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Study Brain Mechanisms of Frustration With Magnetoencephalography in Healthy Volunteers
Sponsor: National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Summary
Background: Irritability can be defined as an unusually strong response to frustration; these responses may include severe temper outbursts and a constant grumpy mood. Irritability is a common symptom of many mental health disorders. Little is known about how the brain responds to frustration, and few treatments are available for this problem. Researchers want to know more about how the brain responds to frustration. Objective: To learn how the brain responds to frustration. Eligibility: Healthy adults aged 18 to 55 years. They must have been screened through studies 01-M-0254 or 17-M-0181. Design: Participants will have up to 3 study visits in 2 months. Each visit will last up to 4 hours. Visit 1: Participants will be screened. They will have a physical exam. They will complete questionnaires about how often and how easily they get angry or grumpy. They will be trained to use a device that measures hand grip. Visit 2: Participants will have a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan. They will lie on a table that slides into a tube. Padding will hold their head still. Visit 3: Participants will undergo magnetoencephalography (MEG). A cone with detectors will be lowered over their head while they are seated. The MEG will measure the magnetic fields in the participant s brain both while they are resting and while they are doing the frustration task. For the task, they will hold a grip device in each hand. They will use the devices to pick 1 of 2 doors on a computer screen. The task has 3 parts. The participant s face will be filmed during this task.
Official title: Characterizing the Brain Circuitry and Neural Activity Mediating Frustration
Key Details
Gender
All
Age Range
18 Years - 55 Years
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Enrollment
80
Start Date
2025-02-21
Completion Date
2027-08-31
Last Updated
2026-01-29
Healthy Volunteers
Yes
Conditions
Interventions
Frustration task
The experimental manipulation for this study is the frustration task. The frustration task is designed to elicit the emotional state of frustrative non-reward (FNR). During the task, participants are asked to use button press (left or right) to alternately press one of the two doors displayed on the monitor. The task has two non-frustration blocks (Block 1 and 2) and one frustration block (Block 3). During the non-frustration blocks, participants earn money for correct press on a fixed schedule. During the frustrative block, participants will not always receive reward for correct press.
Locations (2)
National Institutes of Health Clinical Center
Bethesda, Maryland, United States
Texas A&M University
College Station, Texas, United States