Attention and Achievement: A Mind Wandering Investigation

Attention and Achievement (A Subproject Affiliated With the Texas Center for Learning Disabilities or TCLD)

This study assesses the impact of mind-wandering on reading and math.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Attention Disturbances
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: mind-wandering intervention; Behavioral: mind-wandering comparison

Detailed Description

This study assesses the impact of mind-wandering on reading and math. Specifically 120 middle school student participants will receive descriptive measures (of achievement, attention and related factors including mind-wandering), and will receive a brief (~30 min) lesson in reading and math (order counterbalanced). Participants will receive a brief pre-test, the lesson, and then a post-test on the reading and math outcomes. 75% of the participants will receive a brief manipulation that sets up the influence of mind-wandering, as well as redirects when probe-caught mind-wandering occurs. The remaining participants will receive only redirects, and only randomly. Among participants to receive the mind-wandering manipulation, an equal number will receive this only for reading, only for math, and for both reading and math.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 53
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Paul T Cirino, PhD; Phone Number: 832-842-2002; Email: pcirino@uh.edu

Study Locations

• United States
  • Texas
    • Houston, Texas, United States, 77204-5053
      • University of Houston

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 11 years to 15 years (Child)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• enrollment in schools where we have permission to conduct the study

Exclusion Criteria:

• students known to be enrolled in separate curricula (e.g., life-skills classes)

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Factorial Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Mind Wandering Intervention; 75% of participants will receive proactive and reactive mind-wandering information and redirection.	Behavioral: mind-wandering intervention; Participants in this condition receive a brief introduction to the potential impact of mind-wandering (before learning, proactive), and are redirected to lesson if "probe-caught" mind-wandering are endorsed (during learning, reactive)
Active Comparator: Mind Wandering Comparison; 25% of participants will receive only mind-wandering redirection, but only at random times.	Behavioral: mind-wandering comparison; Participants in this condition receive no introduction, and only redirection, and the redirection is random, not in reaction to mind-wandering

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Investigator Developed Items Derived From Reading Content Being Taught	Participants will answer multiple choice questions regarding the reading material being taught, and the key index will the raw score number correct. The investigators call the scale "Sleep and Dreams" (after the content the participant is reading about), and the possible score range will be 0 (min) to 24 (max), with higher scores meaning better comprehension of the material.	administered one time immediately following the single reading learning session on day 1
Investigator Developed Items Derived From Math Content Being Taught	Participants will answer multiple choice questions regarding the math material being taught, and the key index will the raw score number correct. The investigators call the scale "Circles" (after the content being taught), and the possible score range will be 0 (min) to 24 (max), with higher scores meaning better comprehension of the material.	adminstered one time immediately following the single math learning session on day 1

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Investigator Developed Probe-Caught Mind-Wandering	During the learning (of the reading and math content), participants are prompted on several occasions as to whether their mind was wandering during the lesson. This is a single item multiple/choice scale (called Probe-Caught Mind Wandering), with the range being 0 (min) to 12 (max), with lower scores indicating the better outcome (less mind wandering)	On 12 occasions interspersed during each of the math and reading learning sessions, on day 1 only.

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Houston
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Paul T. Cirino, PhD, University of Houston

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): May 11, 2022
• Primary Completion (Actual): June 15, 2022
• Study Completion (Actual): June 15, 2022

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: January 25, 2022
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 23, 2022
• First Posted (Actual): March 25, 2022

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 19, 2023
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 17, 2023
• Last Verified: May 1, 2022

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Other Study ID Numbers: 00000568

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: YES
• IPD Plan Description: If another researcher with an approved Institutional Review Board (IRB) protocol wishes to utilize the data for purposes that are non-overlapping with the investigators, they may reach out to the Study PI, who can share de-identified individual data.
• IPD Sharing Time Frame: Data will become available after the paper describing the study is published in a peer-reviewed Journal, and will be available for up to 5 years following the termination of the study
• IPD Sharing Access Criteria: If another researcher with an approved Institutional Review Board (IRB) protocol wishes to utilize the data for purposes that are non-overlapping with the investigators, they may reach out to the Study PI, who can share de-identified individual data.
• IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type: STUDY_PROTOCOL; ICF

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No