7/21 ABCD-USA CONSORTIUM: RESEARCH PROJECT SITE AT YALE

Abstract
Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) is the largest long-term study of brain development and
child health in the United States. The ABCD Research Consortium consists of 21 research sites across the
country, a Coordinating Center, and a Data Analysis and Informatics Resource Center. In its first five years,
under RFA-DA-15-015, ABCD enrolled a diverse sample of 11,878 9-10 year olds from across the
consortium, and will track their biological and behavioral development through adolescence into young
adulthood.
All participants received a comprehensive baseline assessment, including state-of-the-art brain imaging,
neuropsychological testing, bioassays, careful assessment of substance use, mental health, physical health,
and culture and environment. A similar detailed assessment recurs every 2 years. Interim in-person annual
interviews and mid-year telephone or mobile app assessments provide refined temporal resolution of
developmental changes and life events that occur over time with minimal burden to participating youth and
parents. Intensive efforts are made to keep the vast majority of participants involved with the study through
adolescence and beyond, and retention rates thus far are very high. Neuroimaging has expanded our
understanding of brain development from childhood into adulthood. Using this and other cutting-edge
technologies, ABCD can determine how different kinds of youth experiences (such as sports, school
involvement, extracurricular activities, videogames, social media, unhealthy sleep patterns, and vaping)
interact with each other and with a child’s changing biology to affect brain development and social,
behavioral, academic, health, and other outcomes.
Data, securely and privately shared with the scientific community, will enable investigators to: (1) describe
individual developmental pathways in terms of neural, cognitive, emotional, and academic functioning, and
influencing factors; (2) develop national standards of healthy brain development; (3) investigate the roles and
interaction of genes and the environment on development; (4) examine how physical activity, sleep, screen
time, sports injuries (including traumatic brain injuries), and other experiences influence brain development;
(5) determine and replicate factors that influence mental health from childhood to young adulthood; (6)
characterize relationships between mental health and substance use; and (7) specify how use of substances
such as cannabis, alcohol, tobacco, and caffeine affects developmental outcomes, and how neural,
cognitive, emotional, and environmental factors influence the risk for adolescent substance use.

Grant Number: 5U01DA041174-12
NIH Institute/Center: NIH
Principal Investigator: Arielle Baskin-Sommers