Geolocation Positional System (GPS) Experience

NCT ID: NCT05991713

Last Updated: 2025-08-26

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: RECRUITING
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 100 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2023-11-02
• Study Completion Date: 2028-06-15

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to use smartphone technology to capture individual location emotional and cognitive data, to examine how real-world behaviors thoughts, emotions, and brain activity are related to one another.

Detailed Description

The observational portion of this study was initially approved in 2015, this is a subset of the initially approved study and it is a clinical trial of 100 participants.

Conditions

Emotions; Anhedonia; Depression

Study Design

• Allocation Method: NA
• Intervention Model: SINGLE_GROUP
• Primary Study Purpose: BASIC_SCIENCE
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Modifying Exploration

Individuals will be asked on certain days to increase their levels of exploration, and some days be asked to decrease their levels of exploration. Participants will do this for up to six months.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Modifying Exploration

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Participants in this group will use a mobile phone sensor data application that uses an accelerometer, Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) and/or GPS designed for smartphone devices. This technology allows the phones to capture information automatically and passively on the participant's activity. The application will be collecting participants' data 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Participants will be asked to make alterations to their exploration levels approximately 20 days of their participation in the study.

Interventions

Modifying Exploration

Participants in this group will use a mobile phone sensor data application that uses an accelerometer, Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) and/or GPS designed for smartphone devices. This technology allows the phones to capture information automatically and passively on the participant's activity. The application will be collecting participants' data 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Participants will be asked to make alterations to their exploration levels approximately 20 days of their participation in the study.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Must agree to give informed consent
• Must be willing to have an functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (FMRI) scan
• Must be able to receive and respond to daily text messages assessing current emotion
• Must be willing to download and run a GPS tracking application (FollowMee) onto their smartphone for a four-month period

Exclusion Criteria

• history of head trauma, seizures, or neurological disorders
• severe/unstable medical conditions
• conditions that interfere with MRI
• pregnancy
• lifetime psychotic/bipolar disorder
• chronic/severe substance or alcohol abuse/dependence
• antipsychotic medication

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 50 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

NIH

Sponsor Role: collaborator

University of Miami

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Aaron Heller

Associate Professor

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Aaron S Heller, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University of Miami

Locations

University of Miami

Coral Gables, Florida, United States

Site Status: RECRUITING

Countries

United States

Central Contacts

Isabella C D'Ottone, BA

Role: CONTACT

icd30@miami.edu

3052849555

Facility Contacts

Isabella C D'Ottone, BA

Role: primary

icd30@miami.edu

3052849555

Other Identifiers

R01MH133693

Identifier Type: NIH

Identifier Source: secondary_id

View Link

20150678

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id