Clinical trial NCT03834467: Testing a Shortened Version of the AlAn's Game
Official title: Testing a Shortened Version of the AlAn's Game, Which Can be Delivered Through REDCap, in a Sample of Emerging Adults
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Phase: NA
Conditions: Psychopathic Personality Trait
Keywords: psychopathic traits
moral elevation
prosocial behavior
Lead sponsor: University of Colorado, Denver
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2019-02-08
Enrollment: 537
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Maximum age (years): 25
Standard ages: ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Intervention model description: Study participants will be randomly assigned to receive one of two possible orders of administration. All subjects will first complete the Levenson Psychopathy Scale. Then Arm 1 presents the Moral Elevation stimulus after playing the first AlAn's Short Game v.2 (session 1), while Arm 2 presents the control stimulus (nature video). Subjects in both arms will then play AlAn's game again. After playing the game for a second time, subjects in both arms will fill out an Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire (ACES), Social Connectedness survey, and Demographics form.
Primary purpose: OTHER

Brief summary: It has been demonstrated that behavior on the AlAn's (altruism-antisocial) game is related to Moral Elevation response. Moral Elevation is a positive response to another's act of generosity "of charity, gratitude, fidelity, generosity or any other strong display of virtue". The constellation of emotional, physical and psychological aspects of a Moral Elevation response have been well described. Moral Elevation can be elicited with stimulus stories or videos and measured with self-report questionnaires. The experience of Moral Elevation is associated with subsequent prosocial and affiliative behaviors. Additionally, the research has linked Moral Elevation response with behavior on the AlAn's game. This study will test whether behavior on the AlAn's Short Game v.2 is related to Moral Elevation response and extend prior work by testing whether viewing the Moral Elevation stimulus prior to playing the AlAn's Short Game v.2 is associated with differences in game behavior. The study will also test whether psychopathic traits will correlate with game behavior.

Detailed description: Hypotheses and Specific Aims:

Aim 1: Examine the similarities and differences in behaviors on the AlAn's Short Game v.2 seen with the two Active Trial (AT) types (where Red Cross donation will be reduced and subject will gain money (AT1) vs. where the Red Cross donation will increase and study participants will lose money (AT2).

Hypothesis 1: Number of accepted trials of AT1 and AT2 from session 1 will significantly correlate.

Aim 2: Test the effects of Elevation vs. Nature video on change in AlAn's Short Game v.2 behavior between sessions 1 and 2.

Hypothesis 2: Subjects who view the Elevation stimulus video (study Arm 1) will show increases in prosocial behavior while those watching the Nature video will not.

Aim 3: Test the association between psychopathic traits and Costly Helping and determine whether the influence of Elevation on Costly Helping dissipates with increasing levels of psychopathic traits.

Hypothesis 3: Psychopathic traits, as measured by the Levenson Self Report Psychopathy Scale, will significantly and negatively correlate with the amount of prosocial behavior in session 1.

Hypothesis 4: Using subjects from study Arm 1, change in AlAn's Short game v.2 behavior (session 2 minus session 1) will be negatively correlated with psychopathic trait scores.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

• age 18-25 years

Exclusion Criteria:

• refusal to provide informed consent

Primary outcomes:
measure: Change in the Amount of Prosocial Behavior on the AlAn's Short Game v.2
timeFrame: within 45 minutes, during one single study visit
Secondary outcomes:
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Aurora
country: United States
facility: University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
state: Colorado
Study officials:
affiliation: University of Colorado, Denver
name: Joseph T Sakai, MD
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References:
citation: Algoe SB, Haidt J. Witnessing excellence in action: the 'other-praising' emotions of elevation, gratitude, and admiration. J Posit Psychol. 2009;4(2):105-127. doi: 10.1080/17439760802650519.
citation: Haidt J. Elevation and the positive psychology of morality. In: Keyes C, Haidt, J., editor. Flourishing: Positive psychology and the life well-lived. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association 913-919, 2003.
citation: Sakai JT, Dalwani MS, Mikulich-Gilbertson SK, McWilliams SK, Raymond KM, Crowley TJ. A Behavioral Measure of Costly Helping: Replicating and Extending the Association with Callous Unemotional Traits in Male Adolescents. PLoS One. 2016 Mar 15;11(3):e0151678. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0151678. eCollection 2016.
citation: Aquino K, McFerran B, Laven M. Moral identity and the experience of moral elevation in response to acts of uncommon goodness. J Pers Soc Psychol. 2011 Apr;100(4):703-18. doi: 10.1037/a0022540.
citation: Freeman D, Aquino K, McFerran B. Overcoming beneficiary race as an impediment to charitable donations: social dominance orientation, the experience of moral elevation, and donation behavior. Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 2009 Jan;35(1):72-84. doi: 10.1177/0146167208325415. Epub 2008 Nov 18.