# Dissociating cognitive response control into triggering and braking processes

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO · 2020 · $196,875

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Self-control refers to how we prevent inappropriate actions and thoughts. Poor self-control is manifest in
symptoms of impulsivity, and is associated with numerous mental health problems. One proxy of real-world
self-control is thought to involve rapid response inhibition. This metric, which is captured by the stop signal
task, is embedded in the large-scale Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study (ABCD). Indeed, the stop
signal task is one of only three tasks for the fMRI part of ABCD. The researchers for ABCD will collect stop
signal fMRI data in 12 000 adolescents repeatedly over 10 years. Stop signal metrics, especially the single
subject aggregate measure of stop signal reaction time (SSRT) [how quickly people stop] will be correlated
with fMRI activation and also with brain structure (gray and white matter). Individual differences in SSRT, and
stop activation and structure, will then be correlated with a slew of personality and behavioral metrics.
Meanwhile, recent developments in stop signal research, including by our group, suggest a potentially much
richer dissection may be done of behavioral stopping than merely computing SSRT. The current proposal aims
to test whether the dissected cognitive processes correspond to particular brain signatures (Aim 1 fMRI, Aim 2
EEG), and how well they account for variability in self-control for ‘real world’ self-report and other tests of
impulsivity (Aim 3). We predict that these metrics will account for more variability in self-control than does
SSRT itself, thus potentially putting the stop signal aspect of the ABCD endeavor, and others like it, on a firmer
physiological footing

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10056948
- **Project number:** 1R21DA050084-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO
- **Principal Investigator:** Adam Robert Aron
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $196,875
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-06-15 → 2022-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10056948

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10056948, Dissociating cognitive response control into triggering and braking processes (1R21DA050084-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10056948. Licensed CC0.

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