Neurobehavioral Affective Control Training

Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to test a new cognitive training program to improve emotion regulation in adults. The investigators' primary aim is to determine whether participating in this program addresses two key features of emotion dysregulation associated with psychiatric disorders: (1) emotion-related impulsivity and (2) rumination. The investigators will further evaluate participants' perceived acceptability and feasibility of treatment procedures. Secondarily, the investigators will examine the effects of this cognitive training intervention on psychiatric symptoms and overall functioning. The researchers will compare the cognitive training program to a waitlist control.

Participants will be asked to complete eight weekly sessions (over two months) involving cognitive training exercises with a "coach", in addition to a baseline assessment before starting the intervention and post-treatment assessment. Each assessment includes a combination of in-person and remote data collection using self-report questionnaires, psychophysiology, and a neuropsychological battery. Participants will also complete one week of ecological momentary assessment before and after the intervention as well as a set of follow-up questionnaires administered remotely six weeks following their final training session. Researchers will compare participants randomly assigned to complete the intervention without delay to a control group of participants randomly assigned to a two-month waitlist before joining the intervention. Before beginning cognitive training, participants in the control condition will complete an additional pre-intervention/post-waitlist assessment, which will follow parallel procedures to the initial baseline assessment.

Conditions

• Emotional Distress
• Impulsive Behavior
• Mood Lability
• Mood Instability
• Rumination
• Psychopathology
• Affective Symptoms

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Neurobehavioral Affective Control Training

The N-ACT program comprises a series of eight training sessions, lasting one hour each, over two months. N-ACT sessions will be guided by a cognitive training "coach" (supervised by a licensed mental health clinician), who will explain intervention procedures and rationale, offer relevant psychoeducation, and use motivational interviewing principles to provide encouragement and support. In addition to coach-led content, participants will spend about half of each weekly training session (\~30 minutes) practicing two computer-based adaptive training tasks targeting affective control.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Bergen

  collaborator OTHER

• University College, London

  collaborator OTHER

• University of California, Berkeley

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Sheri L. Johnson, Ph.D. · University of California, Berkeley

• J.D. Allen, Ph.D. · University of California, Berkeley

• Åsa Hammar, Ph.D. · University of Bergen

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Model

CROSSOVER

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

65 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2024-11-22

Primary Completion

2025-12-31

Completion

2026-01-10

Countries

• United States

Study Locations