ADHD and entrainment of neural oscillations in adolescents
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The relationship between ADHD and entrainment of neural oscillations in adolescents as measured with EEG
IRAS ID
184564
Contact name
Amy S Boyson
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Research Governance Office, University of Southampton
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 3 months, 31 days
Research summary
The current project aims to understand the relationship between attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and the process of neural entrainment. Entrainment refers to the process by which naturally occurring neuro-electric oscillations become synchronised to the rhythm of external stimuli and has been suggested to be a mechanism underlying attention (for a review see Calderone, et al., 2014). It has also been found that in developmental disorders such as schizophrenia (Lakatos, Schroeder, Leitman, & Javitt, 2013) and dyslexia (Soltesz, Szucs, Leong, White, & Goswami, 2013), entrainment is negatively affected. Here we test the hypothesis that neural entrainment is disrupted in ADHD in a way that undermines normal attentional performance.
The current study will use electroencephalogram (EEG) recording to measure entrainment to a rhythmic stimulus stream. The stimuli will be both auditory and visual in nature and will be presented alone as well as part of a selective attention task. Entrainment efficiency will then be compared between these two tasks and to a control group. Participants will also complete a number of other measures and one other EEG task in order for us to investigate whether any effects seen in the entrainment data might be mediated or explained by other factors such as timing deficits, selective attention, working memory, inhibitory control, or anxiety for uncertain events.
The study will use a sample of 100 adolescents, aged 11-16 years, consisting of equal numbers of ADHD patients and typically developing controls (who do not have ADHD or any related disorders). Patients will be recruited from the South Hampshire ADHD Register (SHARe) and controls recruited from local secondary schools and youth groups.
REC name
South Central - Hampshire A Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
16/SC/0072
Date of REC Opinion
10 Mar 2016
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion