Kavli Trust announced 2019 Call for Proposals to Award a Total of NOK 25 M

Deadline: 28 February 2019

For the third time The Kavli Trust has announced a call for proposals 2019 for its Health Research programme to award a total of NOK 25 M to collaborative research projects addressing selected evidence gaps in child and adolescent mental health.

Mental health problems in children and adolescents make up a considerable part of today’s global disease burden but funding for research addressing these problems is sparse compared to most somatic illnesses. For a variety of reasons a significant part of today’s health research is wasted and the Kavli Trust is committed to limiting research waste by anchoring research funding in established and prioritized evidence gaps.

The Evidence Gaps

The evidence gaps were selected in three steps

The Kavli Trust Strategic Scientific Committee (SSC) identified evidence gaps by searching for systematic reviews in selected databases
The Kavli Trust User Panel provided their prioritization of the evidence gaps
The Kavli Trust Board decide on how many of the top ranked evidence gaps to include in the call.

The 8 evidence gaps

What is the effect of interventions to prevent the onset of anxiety disorders in ‘at risk’ children and adolescents, and what are potential moderators and mediators of the effect?
What is the effect of different interventions for improving social skills, participation, and other relevant mental health outcomes in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders?
How is the cognitive, adaptive, and behavioral functioning of children placed in foster care compared to children at risk who remained with their biological parents?
What is the effect of interventions for children who have been subjected to abuse and neglect or have experienced violence in close relationships?
What is the effect of EMDR (eye movement desensitization and reprocessing) compared to cognitive behavior therapy for children and adolescents with post-traumatic stress disorder?
What is the effect of interventions targeting psychological well-being in siblings of children and young people with a chronic illness?
What is the effect of psychological therapy versus antidepressants or combinations of the two treatments?
What is the effect of psychosocial interventions for school refusal?

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for funding, the projects must meet all the following criteria:

The project must address one or more of the 8 selected evidence gaps
The proposal and the attachments have to be written in English
The research project has to originate from universities, academic institutions or research institutions or institutes in Norway, Sweden, Finland or United Kingdom
The formal applicant has to be an institution (host institution)
The pre-proposal must be submitted by the principal investigator who must have formal affiliation to the host institution
The project can not apply for less than NOK 3 M or more than NOK 12.5 M in total for the project period
Funding from the Kavli Trust cannot be used for overhead and/or other expenses not directly related to the project
The host institution must provide considerable in-kind contribution. In the full proposal a commitment letter, describing the nature and level of its contribution to the project must be attached
The full proposal must be accompanied by a letter of endorsement signed by the heads of all collaborating institutions
The research project must commit to user involvement by including two named user representatives as members of the research group
Publications must be in accordance with the ICMJE recommendations and unrestricted access to the published output of research is a requirement