As stated in the NIMH Consensus Development Conference on ADHD, there is a clear need to more basically define ADHD using basic research techniques. The candidate has a programmatic plan of research that examines biological bases of ADHD using a variety of methodologies including neuropsychological testing and neuroimaging. During the original K24 award period, occurring primarily at Duke University Medical Center, the candidate established a track record of providing mentorship to postdoctoral fellows and junior faculty in psychology and pediatrics on some of these techniques. His move to Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center in 2005 has increased his mentoring opportunities. The candidate is the primary mentor of several junior faculty including an R01 recipient, two K23 awardees, two postdoctoral fellows, a clinical intern, and several clinical psychology graduate students. Continued K24 funding will provide the candidate protected time and resources necessary to continue mentoring these young investigators as they pursue clinical investigation in pediatric ADHD. The Research Plan includes several projects. The candidate is working on several areas of ADHD research including community-based quality improvement, neuropsychological functioning, and treatment development. A new study is described that will examine the efficacy of a cognitive training intervention for children with ADHD. Children with ADHD (n=64) will be randomized to intervention and control conditions. The intervention will be a computerized cognitive training intervention that trains children to reduce intra-individual variability in response times within the context of attention tasks. Treatment outcomes will be assessed across a variety of neuropsychological, behavioral, and academic outcomes. The Mentoring Plan for trainees will consist of 1) individualized mentoring of junior faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and graduate students, 2) training and supervision of the junior faculty and postdoctoral fellows in the development of their own independent research proposals, and 3) participation of graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in established didactic programs on manuscript and grant writing, design of clinical trials and clinical research methodology, and ethics in clinical research.
This grant will protect 50 percent of the Principal Investigator's effort to mentor the next generation of clinical investigators. The Principal Investigator will involve his mentees in a clinical research study examining the efficacy of a new and innovative attention training intervention for children with ADHD.
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