Disrupted Connections: The Impact of Acute Stress on Memory Integration

Nevada State University

Status: Active, not recruiting

Conditions: Control Condition; Stress

Treatments: Behavioral: Acute Stress; Behavioral: Non-Stress Control Task

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other; NIH

Identifiers

NCT07055555

2501-0392

5P20GM103440 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Details and patient eligibility

About

The goal of this study is to better understand how stress impacts people's ability to learn across their experiences and link new information to what they already know. The investigators will compare performance on a memory task between stressed and non-stressed participants. This memory task requires people to integrate knowledge across learning experiences (think: having to "connect the dots", draw inferences, and generalize your knowledge to new situations and scenarios). Cortisol, the brain's primary stress hormone, will be measured at multiple points throughout the study to measure stress levels. The investigators hypothesize that:

1. Stress will disrupt performance on the memory task by interfering with memory processes that enable linking of related memories.
2. Higher cortisol levels, which reflect a greater stress response, will relate to greater deficits in memory performance across participants.

This research has broad implications for understanding how stress impacts the ability to learn and retain new information, particularly in high-stress environments like schools and workplaces. Additionally, this work may provide insights into the cognitive difficulties experienced by individuals with psychiatric disorders, where stress can worsen memory and learning challenges.

Enrollment: 80 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 35 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• healthy adults
• aged 18-35 years
• speak fluent English
• have normal or corrected-to-normal vision

Exclusion criteria

• individuals who are pregnant
• exercise within 1 hour of the study session
• smoking within 1 hour of the study session
• consuming drugs or alcohol within 1 hour of the study session

Trial design

Primary purpose: Basic Science

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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80 participants in 2 patient groups

Acute Stress Condition

Experimental group

Description:

Participants randomized to the acute stress condition will complete the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), a validated experimental method for inducing acute psychosocial stress. This condition will allow for us to evaluate our primary hypothesis.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Acute Stress

Non-Stress Control Condition

Sham Comparator group

Description:

Participants randomized to the non-stress control condition will complete a non-stressful task designed to parallel the structure of the Trier Social Stress Test without eliciting acute stress.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Non-Stress Control Task