Healthy Volunteer Studies
If you would like to participate in health research as the healthy volunteer, below is a list of studies accepting healthy volunteers.
An EEG Study of Auditory Perception in People with and without Schizophrenia
Lead Researcher: Judy Thompson
The purpose of our study is to better understand how the brain processes sounds, including
speech. We are investigating this in people with and without psychiatric conditions.
One of our primary aims is to determine how these processes may relate to specific
experiences and symptoms in conditions such as schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder,
and schizophreniform disorder, with the goal of using this knowledge to develop more
effective treatments. In order to study how the brain processes sounds, we use a technique
called electroencephalography, or EEG. For EEG, a person wears a comfortable elastic
cap with sensors attached to it that are able to record brain activity. In these sessions,
subjects listen to short audio clips while EEG is recording; this allows us to measure
brain responses to sounds. This study also includes interviews about current and past
psychiatric symptoms and treatment, as well as a few short tasks, questionnaires,
and a hearing test. The study typically involves 4-5 visits, with each about 2-3 hours
long. Subjects are paid $30 an hour, as well as a $30 bonus if they complete all study
activities. Transportation costs are also covered, and free snacks are provided. People
between the ages of 18-55 with a diagnosis of schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder,
schizophreniform disorder, or no psychiatric diagnosis may be eligible to participate.
View Study Details
BABE
Lead Researcher: Kirsi Jarvinen-seppo
You are eligible if you are pregnant and 18 years old or older and give birth to a
healthy infant.
The purpose of this study is to compare a group of people at low risk for getting
allergies, the Old Order Mennonite, with a group of people at higher risk of getting
allergies, the average person living in Rochester. The immune system protects us from
diseases, working throughout the body, including in secretions such as saliva and
breast milk, and in the normal bacteria in the stomach and intestines. The way people
live, including the things they are exposed to, changes the way the immune system
develops. A baby’s immune system develops over time. The baby’s ability to fight disease
is helped by the mom’s immunity passed to the baby through breast milk. By comparing
biological samples like saliva, breast milk, and stool, we can study differences between
these two groups to see what’s different in a group at low risk and a group at higher
risk of getting allergies. Using questionnaires and biologic samples (stool, skin
cells, blood, etc.) we will evaluate the development of the infant microbiome, metabolite
composition and the immune system and how that relates to the development of allergic
disease. The microbiome is the collection of all microbes, such as bacteria, fungi,
viruses, and their genes, that naturally live on our bodies and inside us. A metabolite
is any substance produced during metabolism (digestion or other bodily chemical processes).
The term metabolite may also refer to the product that remains after a medicine is
broken down (metabolized) by the body.
View Study Details
Connection in Caregivers
Lead Researcher: Kimberly Van orden
Subjects will complete a baseline interview (phone/zoom and online) at the beginning
of the study. If eligible, subjects will complete 10 days of surveys that are texted
3 times a day (morning, afternoon, evening). Eligible subjects will also complete
a follow-up interview (zoom/phone and online) at 6 months. Subjects are paid up to
$400 for completing assessments. Inclusion: age 50 and older; caring daily for a
loved one with dementia; caregiving stress. Exclusion: Under 50 years of age; not
caring for a loved one with dementia daily.
View Study Details
COVID-19 Vaccine Studies
Lead Researcher: Ann Falsey
URMC is studying several variations of a COVID-19 vaccine. Compensation: $500-$900.
Participation Requirements: Age 18+; Have not been infected with COVID-19. To volunteer,
take our survey to find out if you qualify: https://redcap.urmc.rochester.edu/redcap/surveys/?s=XHH9MC8RMK
View Study Details
Fine Eye Movement Study
Lead Researcher: Brian Keane
This study will look at differences in eye movement as they relate to visual perception
and the way people think. The information collected in this study will aid in finding
ways to more accurately diagnose psychiatric disorders, namely schizophrenia, by using
eye scans. Also, results from this study may guide the development of more tailored
therapies to help people with psychiatric disorders in the future. Procedures include:
interviews about your medical and drug use history; a vocabulary test; review of your
eRecord data; visual perceptual tasks completed on a computer; and eye scans (like
those during an eye doctor exam). Some of these procedures may occur via Zoom, depending
on participant preferences. Eligibility: Ages 18-55; a diagnosis of schizophrenia,
schizoaffective disorder, schizophreniform disorder OR no psychiatric disorder with
no more than one lifetime major depressive episode.
View Study Details
Lung Health Cohort
Lead Researcher: Sandhya Khurana
Because lung function reaches its peak level between the ages of 25-35 years old,
we are beginning our study with people only in this age range. If you are in this
age range and have no history of chronic (i.e. long-lasting) lung diseases - other
than mild asthma - and no history of cardiovascular disease, you may be eligible to
join this study. This study involves a combination of in-person exams (during a single
visit), at-home tasks, and remote contact (via video conference, text message, email,
phone, or mail). During the in-person visit, we will test your lung function, take
images of your chest (CT scans), and ask you to provide biospecimen samples (blood,
urine, and nasal samples). There is an at-home portion to this study where you will
wear an activity monitor for one week, and you will perform breathing tests at home.
We will follow-up with you remotely every 3 to six months (up to 4 times per year)
until the end of the study.
View Study Details
PRG Contact Database
Lead Researcher: Brian Keane
This future contact database will facilitate contact with prospective subjects, giving
them greater opportunities to participate in behavioral and neuroimaging studies for
which they may be eligible.
View Study Details
Psychosis-Risk Outcomes Study (ProNET)
Lead Researcher: Steven Silverstein
The purpose of this research study is to collect information from individuals who
are considered at clinically high risk for the possible development of psychosis.
Information will also be collected from healthy individuals who are not considered
at high risk for psychosis. This information will be used to guide future treatments.
Participants will participate in interviews and cognitive tasks, provide blood samples,
saliva and DNA, and get a scan of their brain. You may participate up to 2 years.
You must be between 12 and 30 years old. There are other requirements to join the
study. The study team can review them with you.
View Study Details
Social Connection Coaching for Adults Age 60 Years or Older
Lead Researcher: Kimberly Van orden
Adults (age 60 or older) will participate in Social Connection Coaching. This involves
meeting with a Coach up to 10 times. The first 8 sessions will be completed during
the first 8 weeks. A booster session will be done at 12 weeks and 16 weeks. These
meetings are brief
(approximately 30 mins) and will be done at a private space at your senior living
community or senior center, your home or our office. The coaching is designed to help
you enhance your relationships and improve well-being. Your coach will help you identify
goals for improving your social relationships. Each session, your coach will help
you set a goal for the week, brainstorm strategies to meet the goal, and identify
concrete steps to take to achieve the goal.
You would also complete research assessments by phone or zoom at study start, 8 weeks
and 16 weeks. This study also involves using a study provided smartphone to complete
assessments. Subjects are paid up to $500 for completing assessments.
View Study Details
Spoken Language Comprehension in Adolescents
Lead Researcher: Loisa Bennetto
In this online study, an adolescent will schedule a Zoom appointment with a researcher
and complete a computer-based listening study that may take up to 45 minutes. The
parent will then complete background information surveys, which may take up to 20
minutes. Participants will be compensated via an electronic gift card. We hope that
this research will lead to a better understanding of everyday spoken language communication
and social interactions in adolescents with and without autism.
We are currently recruiting adolescents aged 13-17 without autism.
Please make sure to add an email address so that we can contact you!
View Study Details
Understanding auditory processing disorders in children with and without Autism Spectrum
Disorder or ADHD
Lead Researcher: Emily Knight
The study uses EEG (electroencephalogram), virtual reality (VR), and cognitive testing.
Children are asked to participate in two sessions (~3hrs each). Children are given
several breaks during the sessions. In the 1st session, children wear an EEG cap
and VR headset. They view three characters in virtual reality and are asked to press
a button when the character in the middle says a target word. While the child is
doing the VR-EEG, we also ask parents to fill out questionnaires about their child.
In the 2nd session, we involve the child in a series of cognitive and behavioral tests
that measure things like IQ, language processing, executive function, and social communication.
Parents can receive a report of the testing results from this 2nd session if they
choose. Children receive $18hr per hour for participating. There is an additional
parent stipend of $25 per session. Children must be 7-12 years old. Children with
typical development and those with autism and/or ADHD can participate in the study.
Children must have normal hearing, normal or corrected-to-normal vision, no neurological
disease, no history of head injury or psychosis. They must have fluent verbal ability
and average or above intelligence for this study. We also ask that Typically Developing
Controls do not have a personal history of developmental disability and do not have
a parent or sibling with autism.
View Study Details