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A randomized controlled trial examining the impact of a brief attention-based neurobehavioral transdiagnostic intervention on acute fear response

Award Number: R15MH125375
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 08/01/2021
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 07/31/2025

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A randomized controlled trial examining the impact of a brief attention-based neurobehavioral transdiagnostic intervention on acute fear response - Project Summary/Abstract Despite decades of research, current psychological treatments designed to treat a variety of mental illnesses are not effective for all who receive them. Specifically, well-supported treatments for mental illnesses that involve fear (e.g., PTSD, panic) appear to be effective for the majority of individuals, but consistently leave a group of “treatment non-responders.” One potential explanation for the observed discrepancy in treatment response may be the focus of modern psychotherapies on relieving symptoms specific to categorical diagnoses, rather than mechanisms underlying why the individual is experiencing the symptoms. Recently, fear-based psychological disorders (e.g., PTSD, specific phobia, panic disorder, social anxiety) have been identified as sharing a distinct set of biomarkers, including genetic biomarkers of acute fear (i.e., fear in the moment) and impairments in controlling attention. Neurobehavioral interventions are therefore a promising class of treatments designed to target the biological markers that may be maintaining the symptoms of various psychological disorders. The Attention Training Technique (ATT) is a neurobehavioral intervention that has garnered attention through its demonstrated effectiveness in reducing symptoms across a variety of psychological diagnoses. While grounded in well-established theory, the mechanisms of change in ATT are largely unknown. One proposed mechanism may be that ATT promotes functional connectivity between regions in the brain implicated in top-down executive control over attention (ventromedial prefrontal cortex [vmPFC] and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex [dlPFC]) and bottom-up attention networks (dorsal anterior cingulate cortex [dACC] and amygdala), resulting in increased top-down regulation of potentially problematic bottom-up attentional processes. The same brain regions implicated in both top-down and bottom-up attentional processes have also been associated with fear responding (i.e., startle response) and fear learning (i.e., how quickly one learns that a stimuli is safe or to be feared). Taken together, the research suggests that acute fear responding may be decreased through increased executive control over attention through engagement in ATT. The proposed randomized clinical trial will test whether a self-administered brief neurobiological intervention (ATT) to increase attentional control will decrease acute fear responding, and whether this change is associated with normative dACC functioning, measured by behavioral proxy. It is expected that those who engage in ATT will show greater attentional control efficiency, which will decrease their acute fear response. It is also expected that those who engage in ATT will also show greater dACC functioning, measured by behavioral proxy and will exhibit decreases in their reported fear as their attentional control increases over the course of the intervention. Additionally, it is expected that the intervention (ATT) will indirectly decrease symptoms of categorical fear-based psychological diagnoses through the identified biomarkers (i.e., attentional control, dACC functioning, acute fear response) to decrease reported symptoms.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2026 ( Subtotal = -$99 )
2026	2021	NORTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY	1425 W LINCOLN HWY	DEKALB	IL	60115	DEKALB	USA	Mental Health Research Grants	000	1	11/25/2025	NEW	-$99
														Subtotal = -$99

Issue Date FY: 2024 ( Subtotal = $0 )
2024	2021	NORTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY	1425 W LINCOLN HWY	DEKALB	IL	60115	DEKALB	USA	Mental Health Research Grants	000	1	7/30/2024	NEW	$0
														Subtotal = $0

Issue Date FY: 2021 ( Subtotal = $426,237 )
2021	2021	NORTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY	1425 W LINCOLN HWY	DE KALB	IL	60115		USA	Mental Health Research Grants	000	1	7/23/2021	NEW	$426,237
														Subtotal = $426,237

Grand Total All Awards = $426,138

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A randomized controlled trial examining the impact of a brief attention-based neurobehavioral transdiagnostic intervention on acute fear response

Award Number: R15MH125375

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 08/01/2021

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 07/31/2025

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