Our laboratory is developing a much more detailed understanding of
the underlying neural basis of many complex disorders of childhood,
including autism, childhood depression, disorders of impulsivity such
as ADHD, and antisocial personality disorder. This new information
about the specific brain mechanisms that underlie these disorders, in
the context of the rapid progress in understanding what these brain
circuits are doing and how they are doing it, provides a platform for us
to develop new behavioral interventions that target certain aspects of
these disorders. The new behavioral interventions will be based upon
a detailed understanding of the underlying neural basis of each disorder.

The development of neurally-inspired behavioral interventions is based upon new knowledge of plasticity in the brain and the premise that the brain is capable of considerably more plasticity than has traditionally been assumed. If we can develop targeted behavioral interventions that are designed to strengthen particular aspects of brain function in specific disorders, we can then use neuroimaging to verify that such interventions have indeed affected the relevant underlying brain systems.

This approach can also be adopted in educational settings and represents a new strategy in the development of evidence-based education. Specific components of the curriculum can be implemented and tested using outcome measures that include the traditional ones as well as direct measures of brain function. The ability to show that educational practices have direct effects upon the brain function of children will provide powerful new evidence for the development of innovative educational interventions. We believe that a particularly novel and promising domain in which this idea requires exploration is the domain of social and emotional learning, long neglected in the school system but clearly key to successful life outcomes.

We believe that this area of our lab’s work has revolutionary potential. The ability to target specific brain systems through behavioral interventions is possible in principle, and it requires study. At this time,
behavioral interventions are capable of producing more specific biological effects than any medication. Much work is required to determine the structure and pace of such training and how particular training procedures should be customized for different age children. What is remarkable about this effort is that today direct measures of brain function can be used in the development stage to provide immediate feedback on the effectiveness of the interventions in targeting specific brain systems. This process would enable rapid
adjustments to be made in the nature of training to maximize its efficiency in producing the desired outcome. We anticipate beginning this effort with autism, since we have very good evidence now for how processing information about faces differs in individuals with autism compared with typically developing controls. We have begun to design an intervention that is geared toward improving face processing while keeping social anxiety to a minimum. This strategy requires systematic testing and is poised to be launched with appropriate support. Another domain we wish to move forward with in the near future is the implementation of educational interventions in the classroom to promote emotional intelligence. We have specific ideas for training
procedures designed to improve cooperation and social reciprocity, and we know something about the brain systems that underlie these abilities. We have had contact with various high-level school system
administrators and with local politicians. We believe this effort is realistic on a pilot basis.

The Opportunity: Using the methods of modern brain imaging, we are on the threshold of developing specific behavioral and educational interventions that are neurally-inspired, i.e., based upon a sophisticated understanding of the brain mechanisms that underly specific subcomponents of behavior. We can then use brain imaging methods as one outcome variable to demonstrate that the behavioral intervention does indeed produce specific changes in the brain systems that are hypothesized. The opportunity to conduct such studies in the school system is particularly exciting and has revolutionary potential for providing a scientific rationale for the introduction of methods to train specific social and emotional skills in children.