Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 31, 2026
Measuring Statistical Learning Across Modalities and Domains in School-Aged Children Via an Online Platform and Neuroimaging Techniques
Published on: June 30, 2020
Sensitivity, reproducibility, and reliability of self-paced versus fixed stimulus presentation in an fMRI study on
Helga Krinzinger1, Jan Willem Koten, Julia Hennemann
1Section Child Neuropsychology, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University Hospital of the RWTH, Aachen, Germany. krinzinger@neuropsych.rwth-aachen.de
Abstract:
Fixed stimulus presentation times pose several methodological problems for developmental functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies that can be avoided by self-paced study designs. Yet, methodological issues of self-paced stimulus presentation for fMRI studies are largely understudied. Therefore, we compared sensitivity, reproducibility, and reliability of neural activation of a fixed and a self-paced design for an exact, non-symbolic addition paradigm in a sample of children aged 6-12 years. Both design types were comparable in sensitivity, and the self-paced design was superior in reproducibility and reliability. Therefore, self-paced study designs seem to be a valid option for developmental fMRI studies on higher cognition.
