Stress & Self-Control Costs
ConditionSelf-Control
Trial statusRecruiting
Trial phaseNot applicable
Trial typeInterventional
Biological sexAll
Age18-70
SponsorNYU Langone Health
About this trial
Self-control failures are a universal challenge for healthy and clinical populations. Recent work suggests these failures may arise from excessive cognitive costs associated with exercising self-control, yet the mechanisms underlying these costs are unknown. To address this, the investigators will use a validated decision-making task that measures how much individuals will pay (from a study endowment) to restrict access to tempting rewards that may lead to self-control failures. The investigators will examine these costs to identify their cognitive, neural and affective mechanisms. First, the investigators will identify the cognitive and computational mechanism that gives rise to self-control costs. Second, the investigators will characterize the neural correlates of self-control costs and identify neural mediators and connectivity patterns stemming from these costs. Finally, the investigators will examine how different classes of stressors (physical, social, or lifetime stress) shape the behavioral and neural representations of self-control costs.
Eligibility criteria
This trial accepts healthy volunteersQualifiers
18-70 years of age, able to speak, read, and write fluently in English
be willing and able to follow study procedures and provide informed consent.
Must additionally confirm they are on a diet to maintain/lose weight and are implementing/maintaining dietary changes.
Disqualifiers
History of or medication for neurologic or psychiatric disease
High-blood pressure or heart condition
Diabetes, food allergies, metabolic disorders or history of eating disorder
Use of corticosteroids or beta-blockers
Trial design
Design model
Parallel
Treatments tested in this trial
Cold-Pressor Task (CPT)
BehavioralCPT is a physiological stress task in which participants continuously submerge their hand and forearm in ice-water (0-4°C) for 3 minutes.
Trier Social Stress Test (TSST)
BehavioralThe TSST is a psychosocial stressor that requires participants perform a short speech and solve math problems in front of 2 evaluative judges.
Modified Non-Stress CPT
BehavioralThe modified non-stress CPT involves participants continuously submerging their hand and forearm in warm water for 3 minutes.
Modified Non-Stress TSST
BehavioralFor the modified non-stress TSST, participants are asked to prepare for a speech that they will practice alone to themselves and complete math problems alone on a piece of scrap paper.
Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)
DeviceParticipants will complete the self-control task in the fMRI scanner.
Treatment groups
300 Participants
are divided into 4 treatment groupsGroup A: Physiological StressExperimental treatment 2 interventions
Group B: Social StressExperimental treatment 2 interventions
Group C: Physiological Non-StressActive comparator 2 interventions
Group D: Social Non-StressActive comparator 2 interventions
Trial outcomes
Primary outcomes
1
Average Self-Control Cost
The self-control cost is the amount that a participant would be willing to pay to avoid temptation. This will be tested in a self-control task in which participants are shown an images of snack food and report how much they would be willing to avoid the different food items.
Time frame
Day 12
Change in fMRI BOLD Signal During Self-Control Decisions
Functional MRI (fMRI) data will be analyzed to measure changes in blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) signal in the Dorsal Anterior Cingulate Cortex (dACC), Frontopolar Cortex (FPC) and Orbitofrontal Cortex (OFC) regions of interest as participants make self-control cost decisions during the self-control activity.
Time frame
Day 1 (Up to 1.5 Hours)Sponsors and contacts
Click on the lead sponsor to view all of their trials.
NYU Langone Health
Lead sponsor
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Collaborator
Source ClinicalTrials.gov