Brain-computer interface game for social skills in autism
Tests a brain-computer interface game with facial expressions in people with autism spectrum disorder.
Plain-language title generated from the registry record
Registry title: BCI Training for Social Cognition and Error Monitoring in ASD
Key facts
- Where
- Coimbra, PortugalSee the site
Could this be for you?
Answer for yourself. This is not a decision: only the study team can say whether you can take part.
- Are you between 16 and 55 years old?
Source: NCT06829303, who can take part
Where in Portugal
- ICNASCoimbra, PortugalTaking people
Questions to ask the study team
- How often do I need to come in, and for how long each time?
- Are travel costs paid?
- Can I keep my own doctor?
- What happens if I want to stop?
Trial details
- Who runs it
- University of Coimbra
- Trial code
- NCT06829303
- Record updated
- 1 August 2025
- Original description
Social cognition seems to develop atypically in autism, particularly in processes such as faces perception, joint attention and social information processing. In this sense, and using an Emotional Paradigm of Facial Expressions (EFP) with a Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) based on Electroencephalography (EEG), the investigators intend to evaluate its effectiveness as a medical device in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), namely: improving 1) social skills and 2) reducing generalized anxiety, 3) improve error monitoring, and consequently verify 4) an increase in motivation. To this end, the investigators will test a gamified intervention (EFP), using personalized feedback in real time. In this gamified interface, there is an artificial agent that learns rules through Reinforcement Learning using the evoked potentials from the participant as they observe the agent's right or wrong actions. The hypothesis is that this approach allows, during the gamified task (EFP), not only the agent/interface to learn, but also the participant through operant conditioning and implicit scrutiny of errors, which makes it particularly interesting for disorders in which error monitoring processes are compromised, as in ASD.Read full original descriptionShow less
Improving Social Cognition and Error Monitoring in Autism Spectrum Disorder Through a Brain Computer Interface Based on Reinforcement Learning
Social cognition seems to develop atypically in autism, particularly in processes such as faces perception, joint attention and social information processing. In this sense, and using an Emotional Paradigm of Facial Expressions (EFP) with a Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) based on Electroencephalography (EEG), the investigators intend to evaluate its effectiveness as a medical device in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), namely: improving 1) social skills and 2) reducing generalized anxiety, 3) improve error monitoring, and consequently verify 4) an increase in motivation. To this end, the investigators will test a gamified intervention (EFP), using personalized feedback in real time. In this gamified interface, there is an artificial agent that learns rules through Reinforcement Learning using the evoked potentials from the participant as they observe the agent's right or wrong actions. The hypothesis is that this approach allows, during the gamified task (EFP), not only the agent/interface to learn, but also the participant through operant conditioning and implicit scrutiny of errors, which makes it particularly interesting for disorders in which error monitoring processes are compromised, as in ASD.
Inclusion: Participant is able and willing to give written informed consent/assent; Previous diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder by a qualified clinician according to gold-standard instruments; Aged between 16 and 55 years old; Normal or corrected-to-normal vision.
Exclusion: Concurrent neurofeedback therapy; Concomitant medication without a stable dosage for at least 4 weeks; Dermatological diseases of the scalp; History of seizures and/or epilepsy; Global Intelligence Quotient <70.