Impulsivity and Executive Function Following Traumatic Brain Injury
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Impulsivity and Executive Function Following Traumatic Brain Injury
IRAS ID
196350
Contact name
Emma J Sinclair
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Royal Holloway University of London
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 10 months, 3 days
Research summary
Impulsivity is a common consequence of traumatic brain injury (TBI) comprising of different behavioural, emotional and cognitive components and can be defined as: “encompass[ing] actions that appear poorly conceived, prematurely expressed, unduly risky, or inappropriate to the situation and that often result in undesirable consequences” (Daruna & Barnes, 1993, p. 23). It can have negative clinical implications to rehabilitation and recovery following TBI.
Impulsivity has been studied in brain injury, but these studies fail to adequately explain the precise components which comprise this complex construct. Executive functions (EF) are complex thought processes also impaired following TBI; they involve planning and regulation of behaviour. Moreover, impulsivity and EFs have been linked in previous literature in different clinical conditions, but it is not clear how different aspects of impulsivity relate to executive dysfunction in TBI. Consequently, we propose a study to examine how various aspects of impulsivity relate to each other and to executive dysfunctions following TBI. The proposed study will advance our understanding of the nature of impulsivity and its relationship with executive dysfunction in TBI, which could have important clinical implications in assessment and treatment of patients with TBI.
Individuals with TBI and a healthy comparison group will be recruited from hospitals and brain-injury charities in London over a roughly 8-month period. Participants will complete a battery of neuropsychological assessments lasting roughly 1.5 hours. The exclusion criteria for people with TBI are as follows: lacking capacity to consent, impairments to speech and visuo-spatial abilities and significant upper-arm weakness; these deficits would impair assessment performance.
REC name
North East - Tyne & Wear South Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
16/NE/0092
Date of REC Opinion
16 Mar 2016
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion