Investigating the Effects of Social Stress on Brain Imaging

NCT ID: NCT05591404

Last Updated: 2025-12-03

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: RECRUITING
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 50 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2025-11-17
• Study Completion Date: 2026-11-30

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to examine whether experiencing a social stressor prior to the collection of neuroimaging measures is associated with differences in brain activation in healthy participants.

Detailed Description

Using a randomized, parallel-group study design, this scientific investigation will examine the effect that experiencing the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), the gold-standard for ethically inducing stress in a controlled laboratory setting, may have on neuroimaging measures of anxiety in healthy subjects. The study will enroll 50 healthy subjects who will be randomized to either experience the TSST or watch a nature film prior to undergoing task-based neuroimaging measures of emotional processing and self-referential processing using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).

This study will be conducted primarily at Massachusetts Institute of Technology with research and clinical support from Massachusetts General Hospital.

Conditions

Social Stress

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: OTHER
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Film + TSST

Nature Film + Trier Social Stress Test (TSST)

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Trier Social Stress Test (TSST)

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Participants randomized to the TSST arm will experience the Trier Social Stress Test.

Film Only (No-TSST)

Nature Film Only

Group Type: NO_INTERVENTION

No interventions assigned to this group

Interventions

Trier Social Stress Test (TSST)

Participants randomized to the TSST arm will experience the Trier Social Stress Test.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Ability and willingness to provide written informed consent.
• Sufficiently fluent in English to participate in the trial.
• Between 18-55 years of age (inclusive).
• Right-hand dominant.
• Current medications are stable for past 30 days (no changes to dose or frequency).
• Negative result on pregnancy test (if female).
• Negative result on urine drug screening.
• Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS <30).

Exclusion Criteria

• History of bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, psychosis, delusional disorders.
• History of eating disorder within past 6 months.
• History of any traumatic brain injury.
• Currently diagnosed with diabetes mellitus.
• Presence of severe medical illness that would prevent completion of study procedures.
• Presence of significant neurological illness or cognitive dysfunction (e.g.; seizures, dementia).
• History of substance use disorder within past 6 months (other than nicotine and caffeine).
• Use of any cannabis-containing products in past 30 days (CBD or THC).
• Use of benzodiazepines in past 2 weeks.
• Use of alpha- or beta-blockers in the past week.
• History of claustrophobia.
• Contraindications for MRI (e.g.; shrapnel).
• Presence of any other medical condition that, in the investigator's opinion, may interfere with the study procedures.

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 55 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

Massachusetts General Hospital

OTHER

Sponsor Role: collaborator

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Responsibility Role: SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

John Gabrieli, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Locations

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States

Site Status: RECRUITING

Countries

United States

Central Contacts

Omar Rutledge, MS

Role: CONTACT

orutledge@mit.edu

617-324-2898

Facility Contacts

Omar Rutledge, MS

Role: primary

orutledge@mit.edu

617-324-2898

Related Links

https://redcap.link/SSBI

SSBI Recruitment Site

Other Identifiers

2206000689

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id