Fear Conditioning Using Computer-Generated Virtual Reality

NCT00025844 | Completed

• 2 other identifiers: 02000302-M-0003
• Study Type: observational
• Target: 202
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to use a computer-generated virtual reality environment to study fear conditioning. Fear conditioning is used to explore the causes and persistence of anxiety and anxiety disorders. When confronted with fearful or unpleasant events, people can develop fear of specific cues that were associated with these events as well as to the environmental context in which the events occurred via a process called classical or aversive conditioning. Advances in computer-generated visual stimulations could facilitate the design of new aversive conditioning studies. This study will develop a virtual reality environment to examine human contextual fear conditioning in the laboratory. During the procedure, moderately painful stimuli will be administered. Participants in this study will be screened with a medical history, physical examination, psychiatric evaluation, and hearing test. Participants will wear headphones and special goggles that will enable them to view a virtual reality environment. Measures will be taken during the study to see how the brain adapts to environmental stimuli.

Conditions

Anxiety Disorder

Keywords

Stress; Anxiety; Adults; Fear Conditioning; Normal Volunteers; Associative Learning; Virtual Reality; Context Conditioning; Healthy Volunteer; HV; Normal Control

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 7 Years - 50 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Child (0-17), Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• Subjects will be healthy volunteers ages 7-50 recruited through advertisements in the local media.
• Subjects will be free of current or past psychotic disorder and organic central nervous system disorders.
• All children will be screened for lifetime history of psychiatric disorders using the K-SADS Interview. The interview will be administered by a trained clinician (at least master level) supervised by Dr. Pine.
• The children/adolescents will be able to give assent and parents will give consent.
• They will have an IQ greater than 70 based on WASI.

You may not qualify if:

• Ongoing medical illness that could interfere with the study
• Current psychiatric or neurological disorder (including seizure)
• Past psychotic disorder
• Current substance abuse
• Current psychotropic medication

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH): lead

Study Sites (1)

National Institutes of Health Clinical Center, 9000 Rockville Pike

Bethesda, Maryland, 20892, United States

Location

Related Publications (3)

• Grillon C, Davis M. Fear-potentiated startle conditioning in humans: explicit and contextual cue conditioning following paired versus unpaired training. Psychophysiology. 1997 Jul;34(4):451-8. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-8986.1997.tb02389.x.

  PMID: 9260498 BACKGROUND

• Grillon C, Ameli R, Woods SW, Merikangas K, Davis M. Fear-potentiated startle in humans: effects of anticipatory anxiety on the acoustic blink reflex. Psychophysiology. 1991 Sep;28(5):588-95. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-8986.1991.tb01999.x.

  PMID: 1758934 BACKGROUND

• Grillon C, Ameli R, Goddard A, Woods SW, Davis M. Baseline and fear-potentiated startle in panic disorder patients. Biol Psychiatry. 1994 Apr 1;35(7):431-9. doi: 10.1016/0006-3223(94)90040-x.

  PMID: 8018793 BACKGROUND

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Anxiety Disorders

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Mental Disorders

Study Officials

• Thomas C Quinn, M.D.

  National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: observational
• Sponsor Type: NIH

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: October 26, 2001
• First Posted: October 29, 2001
• Study Start: October 22, 2001
• Study Completion: April 10, 2012
• Last Updated: July 2, 2017

Record last verified: 2012-04-10

Locations

US (1)