Children ages 8-12 Needed to Participate in Research!

The Detection Study examines how young children ages 8-12 years search for information in complex scenes, and how attention may help them search. We wish to examine how autism affects visual attention and we will compare typically developing children with children who have been diagnosed with autism.

Participation in this study will involve one to two visits to our laboratory at the Shriver Center in Waltham. In the first visit your child would complete a series of standardized assessments. Based on this information we will determine whether he or she meets the specific qualifications for the study. If so, we will then schedule a second visit to return and complete the experimental task.

In the experimental task, we use behavioral measures like speed of responses and location of eye gaze. Children will watch a computer screen that "flickers" between two versions of a complex scene and are asked to identify what element of the scene changes in the two versions. It is a fun and interactive task children as young as 6 can perform and enjoy.

All of our study participants receive compensation for their time and a small gift and are free to participate in as many studies as they qualify for. Children and their parents are invited to come to our laboratory at the Shriver Center in Waltham, which is reachable by public transportation and has ample free parking.

To learn more about participating in "The Detection Study" or for more information about other studies in our laboratory, please contact us at (781) 642-0047, send email to shriver.recruit@umassmed.edu or visit our website at: http://users.umassmed.edu/teresa.mitchell/

Download the Detection Study Flyer

Docket# H-12663