ABC Brain Games Self-Regulation Intervention

Summary

The goal of this project is to measure childhood self-regulation targets known to be associated with obesity risk and poor adherence to medical regimens and to assess whether intervening on these mechanisms can improve self-regulation. The investigators will do so in a pre-existing cohort of low-income school-age children.

Conditions

• Obesity
• Self-Regulation

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

2. Executive Functioning

Interventions will occur in 3 biweekly visits plus technology-based practice. The investigators will use computer-based working memory training to improve Executive Functioning (EF) and will use a working memory training game that has been used with children this age (N-back task).

BEHAVIORAL

3. Food Bias

The investigators will use attention-bias retraining techniques that have been tested in adults that have children practice approach and avoidance attentional strategies using a joystick and food images (healthy and unhealthy foods). Interventions will occur in 3 biweekly visits. Children in this arm will use a computer-based approach avoidance task to reduce attentional biases for food by using a joystick to push away images of nonhealthy foods and pull closer images of healthy foods.

BEHAVIORAL

4. Emotion Regulation

Interventions will occur in 3 biweekly visits plus home practice. The investigators will use assisted relaxation training where children are trained to monitor and control their heart rate and skin conductance using biofeedback in a computer-game context (Journey to Wild Divine).

BEHAVIORAL

5. Future orientation

Interventions will occur in 3 biweekly visits. Children will participate in an interview protocol designed to enhance their capacity to visualize upcoming future events and describe them in detail, with the goal to make the "future" become "present".

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Department of Health and Human Services

  collaborator FED

• University of Michigan

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Alison Miller, PhD · University of Michigan

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

PREVENTION

Masking

NONE

Model

FACTORIAL

Eligibility

Min Age

9 Years

Max Age

12 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2015-09-01

Primary Completion

2018-01-31

Completion

2018-01-31

Countries

• United States

Study Locations