# An integrative framework of cognitive control and reward modulation in children with ADHD: from brain dynamics to clinical symptoms

> **NIH NIH R01** · STANFORD UNIVERSITY · 2024 · $38,600

## Abstract

Project Summary
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) stands as the most prevalent neurodevelopmental disorder,
affecting between 5-10% of children worldwide. Over the past two decades, the diagnosis rate for childhood
ADHD have surged, resulting in a substantial societal and economic burden on those impacted individuals,
their families, and the broader community. ADHD is characterized by compromised cognitive control, yielding
adverse life-long consequences for academic and social functioning. Cognitive theories of ADHD have
hypothesized that deficiencies in cognitive control and motivational systems might underlie behavioral
problems in ADHD. Modern perspectives in neuroscience underscore the latent dynamics of brain as pivotal
for comprehending both functional and dysfunctional cognitive processes. The proposed research undertakes
the investigation of intricate interplay between intrinsic brain mechanisms, task-modulated brain dynamics, and
behavioral and clinical symptoms associated with ADHD. The study has three main aims. The first aim is to
examine the intrinsic brain dynamics within the cognitive control and reward systems in children with ADHD,
and how aberrant intrinsic brain dynamics might be linked to deficits in functional circuitry when affected
children are engaged in cognitively demanding task. The second aim focuses on studying how intrinsic and
task-modulated brain dynamics are associated with cognitive control deficits and clinical symptoms in children
with ADHD. The third aim involves testing reproducibility and generalizability of the association between brain
dynamics and symptoms using datasets collected independently in the United States and Japan. The
proposed research significantly augment the scope of the funded parent grant (MH124816) by unveiling the
intricate relationship between intrinsic and task-modulated brain dynamics mechanism and their interplay with
childhood ADHD. The study capitalizes on multidisciplinary expertise in psychiatry, computational sciences,
statistics, cognitive neuroscience, psychology, brain imaging and neurology. Moreover, it builds on our recent
studies in developing advanced computational methodologies to solve important problems in cognitive,
systems and clinical neuroscience. The ultimate goal of the supplement proposal is to propel our
understanding of the foundational neural mechanisms underpinning childhood ADHD. The findings will
facilitate developing more targeted and efficient interventions for childhood ADHD in the future. Our cognitive,
neuroscience and computational framework developed here can be widely applied to study many psychiatric
disorders that manifest similar cognitive deficits, such as schizophrenia and autism.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10925709
- **Project number:** 3R01MH124816-04S1
- **Recipient organization:** STANFORD UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Weidong Cai
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $38,600
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2021-08-01 → 2026-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10925709

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10925709, An integrative framework of cognitive control and reward modulation in children with ADHD: from brain dynamics to clinical symptoms (3R01MH124816-04S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-12 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10925709. Licensed CC0.

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