IDeA – Project GIDeCA

GIDeCA (Gene by Environment Interactions on Decision Making in Children with different ADHD Symptoms) assesses biological and psychosocial family–related influences on the ability to delay rewards and on risky decision-making behavior in children with different ADHD symptoms.

When children are faced with the option of either receiving a small gift at once, or waiting for a bigger gift they will receive later on, some children with an impulsive disposition opt for the smaller gift they will be given immediately. Children with a stronger ability to delay rewards will wait. Risky decision-making behavior is demonstrated by children who, regardless of the time they have to wait, decide in favour of options that are unlikely to lead to great success, rather than voting for choices bearing a high probability of small success.

Roughly two thirds of the entire human population carry a gene variant that leads to a lower availability of the neurotransmitter dopamine in the brain. Different scientific studies have shown that these different gene variants correlate with a reduced ability to delay rewards. Moreover, there is evidence that psychosocial and family-related aspects, such as an authoritarian style of upbringing, have an influence on the ability to defer a reward.

GIDeCa is based on the assumption that genetic as well as psychosocial and family-related factors correlate with the ability to delay rewards and risky decision-making behavior. Furthermore, we assume that the effects of family-related risk factors are particularly significant in individuals with a particular genetic disposition. Moreover, we are interested in investigating in how far children with specific ADHD symptoms (combined ADHD subtype and primarily inattentive ADHD subtype) differ regarding the delay of rewards and risky decision-making behavior. 

Principle investigators

Prof. Dr. Christine Freitag
Prof. Dr. Caterina Gawrilow
Dr. Wolfgang Rauch

Project staff

Dr. Christina Schwenck
Tilman Reinelt, Dipl. Psych.
Andrea Wirth, Dipl. Psych.

Co-operation partners 

Klinik für Psychiatrie, Psychosomatik und Psychotherapie des Kindes- und Jugendalters der Goethe-Universität Frankfurt/Main
Children and Youth (Clinic for Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Goethe University, Frankfurt/Main)

Contact address:

gideca@idea-frankfurt.eu

Owing to technical reasons, the project participants employed at the DIPF are again listed below: