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Teen Brain Online II: Understanding How Social Media Affects the Teen Brain

Development of a New Social Media fMRI Task to Better Investigate Bidirectional Links Between Social Media Use and Emotional Health in Youth

Who can join

As published by the study on ClinicalTrials.gov. "Not stated" means the study hasn't said — ask the study team.

Age
13 Years to 17 Years
Sex
All sexes
Healthy volunteers
Not accepted
Compensation
Not stated

Other requirements are listed under Eligibility below. Only the study team can confirm whether you can join.

What to expect

No one can promise a trial will help you personally — that is what the research is trying to find out.

What participation involves

  • Procedures mentioned: MRI scans, Questionnaires

Only what the study's summary and detailed description on ClinicalTrials.gov say. Time periods may describe the whole study or a part of it — ask the study team what applies to you.

Show the study's own words
  • "The goal of this clinical trial is to develop and validate a new developmentally-appropriate and ecologically-valid functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and eyetracking task, the TeenBrainOnline (TBO) Task, that is more realistic and similar to modern SM platforms."
  • "Participants will be 50 teens (ages 13-17) with depressive symptoms who will complete the final version of TBO task during fMRI with eye-tracking, an older Chatroom Interact (CHAT-I) Task, daily surveys of SM use, and measures of depressive symptoms."
  • "Phase 1 focuses on task development with 10 participants, where they will complete a screening call, a 60 virtual screening call with questionnaires and preparation for the fMRI tasks (TBO and CHAT) described below."
  • "They will then complete the Teen Brain Online (TBO) and Chatroom Interact (CHATI) tasks during fMRI/eye-tracking at the BRIDGE MRI Center in a counterbalanced order (with half of the participants randomly assigned to complete the CHAT task first, and the other half randomly assigned to complete the TBO task first), approximately one month following the screening visit."
  • "Following a phone screen, youth will complete a virtual screening visit that includes questionnaires and preparation for the fMRI tasks."
  • "They will then complete the Teen Brain Online (TBO) and Chatroom Interact (CHATI) tasks during fMRI/eye-tracking at the BRIDGE MRI Center in a counterbalanced order, approximately one month following the screening visit, as well as measures of depressive symptoms at three months (Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (MFQ)."
Compensation
Not stated
  • Study-related exams and procedures are typically provided at no cost. This is how many trials work in general — confirm the details for this study with the study team.
  • Participants are monitored closely by the research team throughout the study.
  • Some participants may receive access to an investigational treatment, which is still being studied.
  • Your participation helps researchers learn whether this approach could help future patients.

About this study

In plain language

This study tests a new social media task to learn how social media use, brain activity, and depression are linked. It is for teens ages 13–17 with depression symptoms. Teens will have an MRI brain scan with eye tracking and answer surveys about their mood and social media use.

There has been much interest in the potential role of social media (SM) use in driving a current mental health crisis among teens, with a dire need for evidence that goes beyond self-report. One important avenue is to understand the role of the brain in driving the effects of SM use on emotional health and vice versa. However, there is almost no research addressing these questions, largely due to a lack of tasks that can probe the neural correlates of modern SM use. The goal of this clinical trial is to develop and validate a new developmentally-appropriate and ecologically-valid functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and eyetracking task, the TeenBrainOnline (TBO) Task, that is more realistic and similar to modern SM platforms. Participants will be 50 teens (ages 13-17) with depressive symptoms who will complete the final version of TBO task during fMRI with eye-tracking, an older Chatroom Interact (CHAT-I) Task, daily surveys of SM use, and measures of depressive symptoms. Our goal is to show that the task works by: * Demonstrating that it activates expected regions of the brain and visual attention biases toward feedback cues. * Showing that brain and eyetracking (visual attention) activity on the task explain variability in depressive symptoms at baseline and three months later, and work better than similar indices from an older task. * Showing that brain and eyetracking (visual attention) activity on the task are associated with real-world measures of social media use collected during daily surveys. Specifically, The investigators expect that teens whose brain and eyetracking activity suggests they are more sensitive to feedback on SM will report a social evaluation orientation toward social media use in daily life, such as engaging a lot in social comparison, worrying about missing out, and caring about getting a lot of likes and comments. Participants will be asked to: * complete a 10-15 minute screening call to determine eligibility for the study * complete one 90 minute virtual study visit to complete questionnaires and prepare for the MRI visit (visit 1) * submit 24 photos to our study specific social media site * complete an (in person) MRI scan visit (\~4 hours), which consists of 2 tasks where they will interact with peers (visit 2) * complete \~5 minute smartphone surveys 3 times a day for 16 days, asking about their daily experiences online and emotional reactions. * complete 2 online questionnaires asynchronously 3 months after their scan date

Compensation is read from the study's own description and may be missing — always confirm with the study team.

Eligibility

Who can join

  • Be 13–17 years old.
  • Have mild to severe depression symptoms, with a score of 12 or higher on the MFQ-C depression screening survey.
  • Own a smartphone to complete online surveys.
  • Report using social media apps at least 3 times a week, on average.

Who can't join

  • Have a serious brain, nerve, or other medical condition, as reported by a parent.
  • Cannot read or speak English, have thinking difficulties that prevent completing study tasks, or cannot hear and understand instructions through MRI headphones.
  • Report that you might be pregnant.
  • Report likely problems with drug or alcohol use, or screen positive for a possible substance use disorder.
  • Cannot have an MRI because of braces, metal objects or possible metal pieces in the body, fear of small spaces, or weight over 300 pounds.
  • Take medicines that affect the brain and nerves, other than antidepressants at a steady dose, or need stimulant medicines within 36 hours before the scan.
  • Have completed the Chatroom Interact or TeenBrainOnline task in an earlier study.
  • Screen positive for possible autism or a disorder that may cause trouble knowing what is real.

Simplified for readability. The official criteria below are what the study team uses.

Official eligibility criteria

Inclusion Criteria: * Between ages 13-17 * Depression screening scores on the MFQ-C in the mild (MFQ = 12-25; N = 20) or moderate-to-severe range (MFQ ≥25; N=30) * Possess their own smartphone to complete web-based ecological momentary assessments (EMA) using WebDataExpress. * use social media apps (e.g. Instagram, twitter, reddit, discord, YouTube, etc.) at least 3 times a week, on average, per teen report Exclusion Criteria: * Presence of a serious neurological or medical condition, by parent report * Unable to read or speak English or cognitive impairment preventing ability to complete assessments. * Hearing impairment preventing ability to hear and understand instructions conveyed via headphones in the MRI scanner * Possible pregnancy, as determined by participant report * Presence of probable substance use disorder, as determined by participant report * Presence of MRI contraindications (e.g., dental braces, history of metallic foreign objects in body such as aneurysm clips or other devices or questionable history of metallic fragments, claustrophobia, or a weight of above 300 lbs) * Taking medications that affect the central nervous system other than antidepressants (stable dose allowed due to high rates of use among teens with depressive symptoms) or stimulants if required 36 hours before the scan. * Completion of Chatroom Interact Task or TBO Task in prior studies * Screening positive on the Autism Spectrum Screening Questionnaire, or screening positive on the Youth Inventory-4/ for a potential psychotic disorder or substance use disorder.

Study sites (1)

PA