Moderators and Mediators of Perceptual Learning

Conditions

• Cognitive Change

Eligibility Criteria

Sex

ALL

Age

18 Years - 85 Years

Healthy Volunteers

Accepted

Interventions

• C1 - Standard Perceptual Learning (SPL) — BEHAVIORAL
  Each trial starts with a fixation point (500ms) after which a Gabor (1° radius, at cut-off SF of 25% accuracy, estimated from Pre-Test CSF, at either 45° or 135°) appears for 128ms. The task is to indicate whether the Gabor was tilted left or right. Gabor contrast will be controlled by a 3/1 staircase (converging on approximately \~80% contrast threshold) across all training sessions.
• C2 - Long Training (LT) — BEHAVIORAL
  Will be the same as the SPL with the exception that each session in LT will be twice as long as in SPL.
• C3 - Short Staircases (SS) — BEHAVIORAL
  Will be largely the same as SPL with the only difference being a change to the adaptive procedure. SS will use so-called "short-staircases," which are initialized at 60% contrast with steps of .05 log units and employs a 3/1 staircase that after every 40 trials is reset (the "short" in "short-staircases") back to 60% contrast.
• C4 - Mixed Difficulty (MD) — BEHAVIORAL
  This condition will be identical to SPL with the exception that two staircases - one a 2/1 staircase producing difficulties centered around 60-70% accuracy, the other a 4/1 staircase producing difficulties centered around 85-95% accuracy - will be utilized to control the stimuli.
• C5 - Noise Training (NT) — BEHAVIORAL
  The NT condition will be the same as SPL with the exception that contrast thresholds will be estimated in 5-different levels of external noise (10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 30%).
• C6 - Training with Flankers (TWF) — BEHAVIORAL
  TWF will be reasonably different from the standard SPL task. Here, on 50% of trials a target Gabor will be presented at either 45° or 135° (as in SPL) and will be flanked by two collinear Gabors. On the remaining 50% of trials, flankers will be present without a target. TWF is thus a yes/no detection task, which is necessary since the collinear flankers fully indicate the target orientation. In different 20-trial mini-blocks the flankers will appear either lambda, 1.5 lambda, or 2 lambda from the target (i.e., closer or further from the target) and target contrast will be controlled by a 3/1 staircase separately for each spacing.
• C7 - Parafoveal Training (PT) — BEHAVIORAL
  The PT condition is the baseline for C8-C11 (all of which involve parafoveally presented targets). In PT, we utilize the same task as in SPL, however, in PT, in addition to central training, targets will also appear in one of two peripheral locations (5° eccentricity; angles = 135° and 270°). The location of targets will be randomized trial-wise so as to discourage eye-movements and independent 3/1 staircases will be run at each location. By training only 2 peripheral locations we can measure the extent to which training gives rise to location transfer (e.g., in transfer tasks examining performance at 8 different locations - 2 trained locations and 6 untrained locations). Furthermore, training at the central location facilitates comparisons between PT and SPL.
• C8 - Stimulus Variety (SV) — BEHAVIORAL
  The base task for SV is the PT condition. However, SV employ 20 trial mini-blocks of different SFs (.75, 1.5, 3, 6, 12, 24 cpd) and locations (45°, 135°, 225°, 315° - i.e., more locations than PT, but not the full set tested in the transfer battery) with separate staircases for each SF and location. Orientations will also be drawn from a larger set (22.5°, 45°, 67.5° - for which participants respond "clockwise" and 112.5°, 135°, 157.5° - for which participants respond "counter-clockwise") and will vary on a trial-by-trial basis. This design holds-out 4 locations and 2 orientations to address transfer.
• C8a - Complex Features (CF) — BEHAVIORAL
  This is the same as C8, however we will use band-pass filtered stimuli similar to what has been done by a number of groups including Hussein et al.
• C9 - Exogenous Attention Training (ExAT) — BEHAVIORAL
  Stimuli will be presented in a similar manner as in PT. However, in ExAT, a 100% valid cue, a small black dot - 48ms duration with an 96ms SOA prior to stimulus onset - will appear above the target location on each trial.
• C10 - Endogenous Attention Training (EnAT) — BEHAVIORAL
  Stimuli will be presented in a similar manner as in PT. However, in EnAT, a 100% valid cue (letter UL, LR; standing for upper left and lower right, respectively) - 150ms duration with an 500ms SOA prior to stimulus onset - will appear at the fixation point.
• C11 - Multisensory Facilitation (MF) — BEHAVIORAL
  MF utilizes the same basic task structure as in ExEAT, however, rather than a visual cue, an auditory cue will be used (50ms, 1000hz tone with sound location determined by convolving sound with generic head-related transfer function, kemar large ears.
• No Contact Control — BEHAVIORAL
  While not a "training condition" one type of experience that could be part of a condition is a no contact control (i.e., where participants do no training activities over the same rough time span as for the other training tasks).

Study Details

This is a research study about how training can impact performance on cognitive tasks. Participants are between 18 and 30 and 60 to 85 years of age, have normal (or corrected to normal) vision, and have no neurological conditions that would preclude their ability to complete computerized cognitive tasks. Up to 1140 participants will be on study for up to 8 weeks.

Key Dates

Start date

Apr 14, 2023

Status verified

Dec 2025

Primary completion

Feb 28, 2027

Completion

Mar 31, 2027

Study Design

Enrollment

1,140 participants (estimated)

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Intervention model

PARALLEL

Primary purpose

BASIC_SCIENCE

Arms

• Experimental: C1 - Standard Perceptual Learning (SPL)
  Participants in younger cohort will complete SPL training during the first phase of training. In the cross-over they will then complete either SPL, LT, SS, MD, NT, TWF, or NCC.
• Experimental: C2 - Long Training (LT)
  Participants in younger cohort will complete LT training during the first phase of training. In the cross-over they will then complete either LT, SPL, or NCC.
• Experimental: C3 - Short Staircases (SS)
  Participants in younger cohort will complete SS training during the first phase of training. In the cross-over they will then complete either SS, SPL, or NCC.
• Experimental: C4 - Mixed Difficulty (MD)
  Participants in younger cohort will complete MD training during the first phase of training. In the cross-over they will then complete either MD, SPL, or NCC.
• Experimental: C5 - Noise Training (NT)
  Participants in younger cohort will complete NT training during the first phase of training. In the cross-over they will then complete either NT, SPL, or NCC.
• Experimental: C6 - Training with Flankers (TWF
  Participants in younger cohort will complete TWF training during the first phase of training. In the cross-over they will then complete eitherTWF, SPL, or NCC.
• Experimental: C7 - Parafoveal Training (PT)
  Participants in younger cohort will complete PT training during the first phase of training. In the cross-over they will then complete either PT, SV, CF, ExAT, EnAT, MF, or NCC.
• Experimental: C8 - Stimulus Variety (SV)
  Participants in younger cohort will complete SV training during the first phase of training. In the cross-over they will then complete either SV, PT, or NCC.
• Experimental: C8a - Complex Features (CF)
  Participants in younger cohort will complete CF training during the first phase of training. In the cross-over they will then complete either CF, PT, NCC.
• Experimental: C9 - Exogenous Attention Training (ExAT)
  Participants in younger cohort will complete ExAT training during the first phase of training. In the cross-over they will then complete either ExAT, PT, NCC.
• Experimental: C10 - Endogenous Attention Training (EnAT)
  Participants in younger cohort will complete EnAT training during the first phase of training. In the cross-over they will then complete either EnAT, PT, NCC.
• Experimental: C11 - Multisensory Facilitation (MF)
  Participants in younger cohort will complete MF training during the first phase of training. In the cross-over they will then complete either MF, PT, NCC.
• Other: No Contact Control
  Participants in younger cohort will complete NCC training during the first phase of training. In the cross-over they will then complete either SPL, LT, SS, MD, NT, TWF, PT, SV, CF, ExAT, EnAT, MF, NCC.
• Experimental: OA1 - Standard Perceptual Learning
  Participants in older cohort will complete SPL condition.
• Experimental: OA2 - Noise Training
  Participants in older cohort will complete NT condition.
• Experimental: OA3 - Training with Flankers
  Participants in older cohort will complete TWF condition.
• Experimental: OA4 - Stimulus Variety
  Participants in older cohort will complete SV condition.
• Experimental: OA5 - No Contact Control
  Participants in older cohort will complete NCC condition.

Primary Outcome Measure

Change in Near Transfer Task [ Time Frame: Baseline to Post-test 2, an average of 5-8 weeks ]

Central Contacts

• Audrey A Carrillo, MA
  6264828091
  [email protected]

Locations (3)

Find similar trials in Riverside, CA

Related Studies

• Improving Cognitive Function Through High-intensity Interval Training in Breast Cancer Patients Undergoing Chemotherapy
  Recruiting · Dana-Farber Cancer Institute · Boston, Massachusetts
• Interventions in Mathematics and Cognitive Skills
  Recruiting · Stanford University · Palo Alto, California
• Brain Health Virtual Reality Study
  Recruiting · University of California, San Diego · San Diego, California
• Effectiveness of Cognitive Training in Older and Younger Adults
  Recruiting · University of Wisconsin, Madison · Riverside, California