Social Brain Interaction Study

STUDY BASICS

Do you have an Autism Spectrum Disorder and are age 18-45? If so, you may be able to participate in a research study to find out how your brain works during social interactions. Study involves wearing a safe and painless device that measures brain activity while interacting with another person. Compensation provided.

STUDY PURPOSE

The purpose of this study is to look at how brains interact during social situations and find out how this process differs in people with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

COULD THIS STUDY BE RIGHT FOR YOU?

• Age 18-45
• Diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Able to communicate verbally

WHAT PARTICIPANTS CAN EXPECT

Participation includes one visit to Oakland that will take about 1-2 hours. Researchers will use a non-invasive optical imaging called functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to look at how your brain respond while interacting with a member of the research team on a variety of tasks. The fNIRS device includes a headband or hat (similar to a swim cap) that measures activity in the front part of the brain. fNIRS is safe and painless. A second part of the study will monitor your speech for a few days at home. You will wear a small device called the Language Environment Analysis System (LENA) that uses speech recognition technology. The LENA will be collected by the study team when participants have completed the study.