Disrupted Connections: The Impact of Acute Stress on Memory Integration

Part of paid clinical trials in Henderson, Nevada.

Sponsor
Nevada State University
Study ID
NCT07055555
Status
Enrolling By Invitation

Conditions

  • Control Condition
  • Stress

Eligibility Criteria

Sex
ALL
Age
18 Years - 35 Years
Healthy Volunteers
Accepted

Interventions

  • Acute Stress — BEHAVIORAL
    Participants randomized to the acute stress condition will complete the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), a validated experimental method for inducing acute psychosocial stress. The TSST consists of a brief anticipation period followed by a 5-minute mock job interview and a 5-minute surprise mental arithmetic task, performed in front of a neutral panel of judges in professional attire.
  • Non-Stress Control Task — BEHAVIORAL
    Participants randomized to the control condition will complete a non-stressful task designed to parallel the structure of the Trier Social Stress Test without eliciting acute stress. They will have a brief anticipation period followed by a 5-minute description of their typical day or favorite hobby. This task is conducted without an evaluative panel, minimizing the potential for stress or anxiety.

Study Details

The goal of this study is to better understand how stress impacts people's ability to learn across their experiences and link new information to what they already know. The investigators will compare performance on a memory task between stressed and non-stressed participants. This memory task requires people to integrate knowledge across learning experiences (think: having to "connect the dots", draw inferences, and generalize your knowledge to new situations and scenarios). Cortisol, the brain's primary stress hormone, will be measured at multiple points throughout the study to measure stress levels. The investigators hypothesize that: 1. Stress will disrupt performance on the memory task by interfering with memory processes that enable linking of related memories. 2. Higher cortisol levels, which reflect a greater stress response, will relate to greater deficits in memory performance across participants. This research has broad implications for understanding how stress impacts the ability to learn and retain new information, particularly in high-stress environments like schools and workplaces. Additionally, this work may provide insights into the cognitive difficulties experienced by individuals with psychiatric disorders, where stress can worsen memory and learning challenges.

Key Dates

Start date
Mar 26, 2026
Status verified
Jun 2026
Primary completion
May 7, 2027
Completion
Aug 31, 2027

Study Design

Enrollment
80 participants (estimated)
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE

Arms

  • Experimental: Acute Stress Condition
    Participants randomized to the acute stress condition will complete the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), a validated experimental method for inducing acute psychosocial stress. This condition will allow for us to evaluate our primary hypothesis.
  • Sham Comparator: Non-Stress Control Condition
    Participants randomized to the non-stress control condition will complete a non-stressful task designed to parallel the structure of the Trier Social Stress Test without eliciting acute stress.

Primary Outcome Measure

Performance on A-C inference trials in the Paired Associative Inference Task [ Time Frame: During the participant's study visit, anticipated 1-2 hours ]

Locations (1)

FacilityCityStateZIPSite coordinators
Nevada State UniversityHendersonNevada89002-9776-

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By research site
Nevada State University· Henderson, NV

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