Feasibility/Acceptability of Attentional-Control Training in Survivors

EndeavorRx is a digital intervention delivered through an action video game that is indicated to improve attention function. EndeavorRx users first complete two discrete tasks: 1) a perceptual discrimination/attention task in which users respond to target stimuli and ignore distractor stimuli (e.g., tapping the screen quickly only when red aliens appear) and 2) a sensorimotor navigation task in which users tilt their device to steer a hovercraft down a river while targeting or avoiding certain objects. Users are subsequently presented with a multitask training session where they complete the perceptual discrimination/attention task and the sensorimotor navigation task simultaneously. Algorithms adapt the program in both real-time and between sessions to automatically adjust the difficulty level.

The active control program, used in previous studies of this intervention, was designed to match EndeavorRx on expectancy, engagement, and time on task in the form of a challenging and engaging digital word game, targeting cognitive domains not targeted by EndeavorRx and not primarily associated with attentional difficulties. Users are instructed to find and connect letters on a grid to spell words; points are awarded based on number of words formed, word length, and the use of unusual letters. There is progression in difficulty to maintain engagement and expectation of benefit from patients and their caregivers.