Enrollment for the BRITE Study is now closed, but follow-up visits with existing participants are ongoing.

Purpose of the study:

The purpose of this study is to help researchers better understand how mothers and their young children respond to one another while playing. Through this study, researchers hope to gain knowledge about the behavioral and neural aspects of mother-child interactions.

Qualifications:

1. Child participant is between the ages of 1-3 years old at time of entry
2. Mother participant is child's biological mother
3. Child participant is healthy and typically developing

What to expect:

Participation involves 4-5 in-person lab visits and 2 phone interviews over the course of 3 years. Each in-person visit takes about 1-2 hours, and each phone interview takes about 30 minutes. Financial compensation is provided to families for participation in the BRITE Study.

During the first visit each year, mothers will complete interviews and questionnaires, either in-person or over the phone, regarding the health history of herself and her child. The second visit each year takes place in our lab in Oakland. During this visit, the mother and her child will each wear a NIRS cap (similar to a swim cap) that measures brain response via infrared light. NIRS is a painless and noninvasive form of neuroimaging that is ideal to use when working with young children because it allows for movement. The mother and her child will complete play tasks together during the visit, and each child has the opportunity to earn prizes throughout the visit.

 If the child is 5 years old in their third year of participation (3 years old at time of study entry), he/she will also undergo fMRI scanning during a seperate third visit. fMRI is a painless and noninvasive form of neuroimaging, but it requires children to stay very still while in the scanner.