https://pittplusme.org/study/teenbrainparent
Teen Brain Online II - Parent of a teen 13-17
STUDY BASICS
Are you the parent of a teen 13-17 that is experiencing low mood? Your teen may be eligible to participate in a research study to develop an experimental task to measure how the teen brain responds to social media. Participation involves one virtual meeting and completing computerized tasks during a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) brain scan. Compensation provided.
STUDY PURPOSE
The purpose of this study is to develop an experimental task to measure how the teen brain responds to social media. Some researchers think that social media may be linked to teen mental health through its effects on the brain, but very little is known about how social media use affects brain functioning in teens. With your teen’s help, we hope to develop a computerized task that can be used in the MRI scanner and can measure teen brain response to social media use. We hope that researchers will eventually be able to use the computerized assessment we develop to better understand how social media might affect the teen brain, and to better understand the role of social media in teen mental health.
COULD THIS STUDY BE RIGHT FOR YOU?
- youth ages 13-17
- experiences depressive symptoms, low mood and/or has been feeling down
WHAT PARTICIPANTS CAN EXPECT
- Visit 1- Virtual, ~ 60 minute meeting with questionnaires, assessments, and preparing for visit 2
- Between visits 1 and 2- Submit selfies to be viewed by other participants and used in visit 2
- Visit 2- In person at CMU-BRIDGE center, ~2.5 hours. Complete experimental tasks while undergoing an MRI scan and eye-tracking
IRB: STUDY24100085B
- Teen Brain Online II: Understanding how Social Media Affects the Teen Brain.png )
MEET THE RESEARCHER
Jennifer Silk
Jennifer Silk is a Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh. Her research focuses on the development and treatment of affective disorders in adolescence, such as anxiety, depression, and suicidality. Her research focuses on the interplay between youths’ social environments and underlying neurobiological vulnerabilities. She has published more than 150 articles and chapters on these topics and has led 9 NIH-funded grants. Dr. Silk was elected as a Fellow of the Association for Psychological Science and earned a Young investigator Award from the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation, a National Postdoctoral Association Mentor of the Year Award, and was recognized at the White House as a winner of the National Behavioral Health Patient Empowerment Challenge. She has been a faculty member at the University of Pittsburgh for 25 years.