Monetary Incentive Delay Task for Adolescent Development

(MID Trial)

Overseen By Lu-Ann Kozlowski, BSN

Age: < 18

Sex: Any

Trial Phase: Academic

Sponsor: Stony Brook University

Must not be taking: Stimulants, Antipsychotics

Disqualifiers: Severe illness, Head trauma, Pregnancy, others

No Placebo Group All trial participants will receive the active study treatment (no placebo)

Compensation: Varies

Number of Visits: 3

300 Participants Needed

What You Need to Know Before You Apply

What is the purpose of this trial?

This trial aims to understand how adolescents' brains respond to rewards and how this might relate to substance use. Participants will engage in the Monetary Incentive Delay Task, which measures reactions to rewards, alongside brain scans and assessments of substance use over three years. Suitable candidates are teens aged 14-17 who speak English, can provide consent, and have parents willing to give permission. Teens with recent medication use affecting the brain or a history of certain medical conditions may not qualify. The study includes regular check-ins and brain imaging to track changes over time. As an unphased study, this research offers a unique opportunity for teens to contribute to understanding adolescent brain development and its connection to substance use.

Will I have to stop taking my current medications?

The trial requires that you have not used any medication that may affect brain function in the past 6 months and have never used medications that could influence dopamine, like stimulants or antipsychotics.

What prior data suggests that the Monetary Incentive Delay Task is safe for adolescents?

Research has shown that the Monetary Incentive Delay (MID) task is a safe and well-tolerated method in brain imaging studies. Researchers have widely used it with both adults and teenagers to explore how the brain responds to rewards. Studies have confirmed that this task can safely measure brain activity without causing harmful effects.

In the MID task, participants respond to signals indicating possible rewards, helping researchers learn about brain functions related to motivation and reward. Since the task involves only performing an activity during brain scans, it does not require medication or invasive procedures, making it safe for participants.

In summary, the MID task is generally safe and poses no significant risks. Researchers commonly use it to study brain activity without any reported negative effects. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

Why are researchers excited about this trial?

Researchers are excited about the Monetary Incentive Delay Task because it offers a unique approach to understanding adolescent development. Unlike traditional treatments or interventions that focus on direct behavioral or chemical changes, this task emphasizes cognitive and motivational processes by assessing how adolescents respond to rewards and incentives. By utilizing a game-like task, it provides insights into the brain's reward system, which could eventually lead to more tailored interventions for developmental issues. This method is non-invasive and can be adapted for various settings, making it a promising tool for future research and practical applications.

What evidence suggests that the Monetary Incentive Delay Task is effective for adolescent development?

Research has shown that the Monetary Incentive Delay (MID) Task effectively activates brain areas linked to motivation and reward. This task works well for both adults and teenagers, aiding in understanding how the brain reacts to rewards. It measures how quickly and accurately individuals respond to potential rewards, which is crucial for studying behavior and decision-making. Studies have confirmed that this task consistently reveals similar brain activity patterns, making it a valuable tool for observing changes in brain function over time, especially in teenagers. ^{1 2 5 6 7}

Are You a Good Fit for This Trial?

This study is for boys and girls aged 14-17 who are interested in how the brain works during tasks involving money rewards. Participants will be observed over time, but specific eligibility criteria details were not provided.

Inclusion Criteria

I am between 14 and 17 years old.

English-speaking for assent and interview completion

My parents are willing and able to give consent for me.

Exclusion Criteria

Presence of metal in the body

I am currently taking medication that could affect my brain function.

Recent drug or alcohol use determined by positive urine toxicology or breathalyzer

Timeline for a Trial Participant

Baseline Assessment

Participants undergo baseline assessment including neuromelanin-sensitive MRI, resting-state fMRI, and Monetary Incentive Delay task

1 visit

1 visit (in-person)

Intermediate Follow-up

Participants undergo 18-month follow-up assessment including NM-MRI scan and Monetary Incentive Delay task

18 months

1 visit (in-person)

Final Follow-up

Participants undergo 36-month follow-up assessment including neuromelanin-sensitive MRI, resting-state fMRI, and Monetary Incentive Delay task

36 months

1 visit (in-person)

Remote Substance Use Assessment

Participants complete past 90-day substance use assessments remotely every 90 days for 36 months

36 months

What Are the Treatments Tested in This Trial?

Interventions

• Monetary Incentive Delay Task

Trial Overview The trial examines adolescent brain function using a Monetary Incentive Delay Task to understand reward-related processes. It involves MRI scans and regular substance use assessments over a period of three years with visits at baseline, 18 months, and 36 months.

How Is the Trial Designed?

Group I: Whole sample Experimental Treatment 1 Intervention

All enrolled subjects will complete a standard Monetary Incentive Delay Task if able. Inclusion of this task meets criteria for Basic Experimental Studies Involving Humans (BESH)

Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?

Stony Brook University

Lead Sponsor

Trials

225

Recruited

41,700+

Published Research Related to This Trial

The study tested a modified 5-trial adjusting delay task (ADT-5) on 9 children in a psychiatric day treatment program to assess their delay discounting rates for both real and hypothetical monetary rewards.

While the results showed no significant difference in discounting rates between real and hypothetical rewards in initial tasks, they were not statistically equivalent, suggesting that the ADT-5 could be useful for evaluating delay discounting in children, but further research is needed to confirm these findings.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Comparing rapid assessments of delay discounting with real and hypothetical rewards in children. Miller, JR.[2020]

In a study involving 19 healthy youth aged 10-14, researchers found that activation in the left ventromedial caudate during the anticipation of potential rewards was negatively correlated with delay discounting behavior, suggesting that brain activity can indicate how willing a person is to wait for larger rewards.

This suggests that individual differences in the ability to delay gratification may be linked to specific neural responses to anticipated rewards, providing insights into the neurobiological factors that could influence risk for developing issues like substance abuse.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Caudate responses to reward anticipation associated with delay discounting behavior in healthy youth. Benningfield, MM., Blackford, JU., Ellsworth, ME., et al.[2021]

In a study of 58 early adolescents aged 12-14, increased brain activation in areas related to reward processing was associated with a stronger preference for immediate rewards during a delay discounting task.

This connection between neural activation and immediate reward bias may help explain the significant rise in impulsive decision-making seen in adolescents as they develop.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Adolescent Brain Response to Reward Is Associated with a Bias toward Immediate Reward. Hansen, A., Turpyn, CC., Mauro, K., et al.[2020]

In a study involving 36 participants (18 adolescents and 18 adults), adults showed greater brain activity in response to relative rewards, indicating they process the value of rewards differently than adolescents.

The research found that adults had a more consistent increase in brain activity with larger rewards, while adolescents showed less sensitivity to reward magnitude, which was associated with higher impulsivity traits.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Neural sensitivity to absolute and relative anticipated reward in adolescents. Vaidya, JG., Knutson, B., O'Leary, DS., et al.[2021]

The newly modified Child Incentive Delay (CID) task successfully elicited significant brain activity related to reward anticipation in both healthy young adults and children, indicating its effectiveness for studying reward processing.

The CID showed comparable results to the traditional Monetary Incentive Delay (MID) task without differences in reaction times or accuracy, supporting its validity for use in future research involving children and adolescents.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

CID: a valid incentive delay paradigm for children. Kappel, V., Koch, A., Lorenz, RC., et al.[2021]

The Monetary Choice Questionnaire (MCQ) demonstrated high test-retest reliability (mean rxx = 0.83) over a 2-year period with 680 participants, indicating it is a stable tool for measuring delay discounting of rewards.

The MCQ showed significant associations with health behaviors, such as smoking status and COVID-19 vaccination, suggesting its relevance in clinical contexts for understanding decision-making related to health.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Temporal reliability and stability of delay discounting: A 2-year repeated assessments study of the Monetary Choice Questionnaire. Strickland, JC., Gelino, BW., Rabinowitz, JA., et al.[2023]

Delay discounting paradigms are effective tools for linking specific neural systems to behavior, showing promise in understanding decision-making processes across various psychiatric conditions.

Research indicates that abnormalities in delay discounting are associated with different psychopathologies, such as addiction and anorexia nervosa, suggesting that manipulating this behavior in clinical settings could lead to significant health improvements.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Can delay discounting deliver on the promise of RDoC? Lempert, KM., Steinglass, JE., Pinto, A., et al.[2020]

High school students who opted for an immediate monetary reward displayed more self-regulatory issues, including higher involvement with substances like cigarettes, alcohol, and marijuana, as well as poorer academic performance.

A similar pattern was observed in middle-school students, suggesting that the tendency to choose immediate rewards over delayed ones is linked to negative behaviors and self-concept across different age groups.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Delay of gratification: impulsive choices and problem behaviors in early and late adolescence. Wulfert, E., Block, JA., Santa Ana, E., et al.[2022]

In a study involving 49 children with ADHD, stimulant medication (methylphenidate) significantly reduced impulsivity related to real-world rewards, indicating its efficacy in addressing delay discounting.

The medication did not have the same effect on hypothetical rewards, suggesting that the type of reward may influence how ADHD treatments work, highlighting the need for careful consideration of task design in future studies.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Effects of methylphenidate on discounting of delayed rewards in attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Shiels, K., Hawk, LW., Reynolds, B., et al.[2021]

The study introduces a user-friendly Excel-based tool that simplifies the scoring of the Monetary Choice Questionnaires, which assess how individuals value immediate versus delayed monetary rewards.

This tool aims to enhance the accessibility and usability of the questionnaires, which are important for predicting behaviors related to delay discounting, a key factor in various societal issues.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Automating Scoring of Delay Discounting for the 21- and 27-Item Monetary Choice Questionnaires. Kaplan, BA., Amlung, M., Reed, DD., et al.[2020]

A systematic review of 98 studies involving participants aged 12 and older found that delay discounting (DD), the tendency to prefer smaller immediate rewards over larger delayed ones, can be significantly reduced through various behavioral trainings and manipulations.

The most effective strategies identified include acceptance-based/mindfulness-based trainings and interventions that promote a future-oriented mindset, suggesting that DD is not fixed and can be influenced by context and training.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Behavioral trainings and manipulations to reduce delay discounting: A systematic review. Scholten, H., Scheres, A., de Water, E., et al.[2023]

Citations

1. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3739918/

Validation of a child-friendly version of the monetary ... The task reliably elicits striatal activation and is commonly used with both adult and adolescent populations, but is not designed for use with children.

2. sciencedirect.com sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1053811921004638

Neurodevelopment of the incentive network facilitates ... In our study, we employed the Monetary Incentive Delay (MID, Fig. 1) task to investigate motivational states and outcome processing (Knutson et ...

3. withpower.com withpower.com/trial/phase-development-adolescent-3-2024-5a01f

Monetary Incentive Delay Task for Adolescent Development The CID showed comparable results to the traditional Monetary Incentive Delay (MID) task without differences in reaction times or accuracy, supporting its ...

4. academic.oup.com academic.oup.com/braincomms/article/6/5/fcae250/7748270

Neural response to monetary incentives in acquired ... Emerging results from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD13) study provide an unparalleled opportunity to address these questions.

5. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8119872/

How Monetary Incentive Delay (MID) task contrast maps vary ... This manuscript systematically evaluates common task contrasts of the Monetary Incentive Delay task and considers within‐study differences of mean‐level (or ...

6. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40479751/

Parental substance use history density and its influence on ... Reward processing was assessed using the Monetary Incentive Delay Task (MID) at baseline and two-year follow-up. Regions of interest included bilateral striatal ...

7. sciencedirect.com sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1878929323001421

A multi-sample evaluation of the measurement structure ... The monetary incentive delay (MID) task is a popular fMRI reward processing task that is extensively used in the adult and adolescent literature. Despite its ...