Browsing by Author "Brown, Sandra A"

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    Adolescent Executive Dysfunction in Daily Life: Relationships to Risks, Brain Structure and Substance Use.
    (Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience, 2017-01) Clark, Duncan B; Chung, Tammy; Martin, Christopher S; Hasler, Brant P; Fitzgerald, Douglas H; Luna, Beatriz; Brown, Sandra A; Tapert, Susan F; Brumback, Ty; Cummins, Kevin; Pfefferbaum, Adolf; Sullivan, Edith V; Pohl, Kilian M; Colrain, Ian M; Baker, Fiona C; De Bellis, Michael D; Nooner, Kate B; Nagel, Bonnie J
    During adolescence, problems reflecting cognitive, behavioral and affective dysregulation, such as inattention and emotional dyscontrol, have been observed to be associated with substance use disorder (SUD) risks and outcomes. Prior studies have typically been with small samples, and have typically not included comprehensive measurement of executive dysfunction domains. The relationships of executive dysfunction in daily life with performance based testing of cognitive skills and structural brain characteristics, thought to be the basis for executive functioning, have not been definitively determined. The aims of this study were to determine the relationships between executive dysfunction in daily life, measured by the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF), cognitive skills and structural brain characteristics, and SUD risks, including a global SUD risk indicator, sleep quality, and risky alcohol and cannabis use. In addition to bivariate relationships, multivariate models were tested. The subjects (n = 817; ages 12 through 21) were participants in the National Consortium on Alcohol and Neurodevelopment in Adolescence (NCANDA) study. The results indicated that executive dysfunction was significantly related to SUD risks, poor sleep quality, risky alcohol use and cannabis use, and was not significantly related to cognitive skills or structural brain characteristics. In multivariate models, the relationship between poor sleep quality and risky substance use was mediated by executive dysfunction. While these cross-sectional relationships need to be further examined in longitudinal analyses, the results suggest that poor sleep quality and executive dysfunction may be viable preventive intervention targets to reduce adolescent substance use.
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    Retaining Adolescent and Young Adult Participants in Research During a Pandemic: Best Practices From Two Large-Scale Developmental Neuroimaging Studies (NCANDA and ABCD).
    (Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience, 2020-01) Nooner, Kate B; Chung, Tammy; Feldstein Ewing, Sarah W; Brumback, Ty; Arwood, Zjanya; Tapert, Susan F; Brown, Sandra A; Cottler, Linda
    The novel coronavirus pandemic that emerged in late 2019 (COVID-19) has created challenges not previously experienced in human research. This paper discusses two large-scale NIH-funded multi-site longitudinal studies of adolescents and young adults - the National Consortium on Alcohol and Neurodevelopment in Adolescence (NCANDA) and the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study - and valuable approaches to learn about adaptive processes for conducting developmentally sensitive research with neuroimaging and neurocognitive testing across consortia during a global pandemic. We focus on challenges experienced during the pandemic and modifications that may guide other projects, such as implementing adapted protocols that protect the safety of participants and research staff, and addressing assessment challenges through the use of strategies such as remote and mobile assessments. Given the pandemic's disproportionate impacts on participants typically underrepresented in research, we describe efforts to retain these individuals. The pandemic provides an opportunity to develop adaptive processes that can facilitate future studies' ability to mobilize effectively and rapidly.