Children and Screens’ Interdisciplinary Research Grants Program – US

Deadline: 5-May-23

Applications are now open for the Children and Screens’ Interdisciplinary Grants Program to support cutting-edge interdisciplinary scientific research projects that seek to advance our knowledge and understanding of digital media and child development.

These small research grants are intended to deliver seed funds to interdisciplinary teams (at least two researchers) so that they may gain the preliminary results necessary to apply and compete for major funding from traditional funding sources.

The grants are not intended to supplement existing grants. The projects completed as part of this grant program must be collaborative from start to finish; Principle Investigators and collaborators should work together throughout all phases of the project. Research questions explored should be of national, state, and in many cases international relevance. They encourage collaboration with relevant stakeholders at any or all of these levels.

Focus for 2023 Infants and Screens Grant Funding

• The National Academy of Science’s seminal Neuronsto Neighborhood report highlighted the critical role that early experiences play in shaping brain development. Increasingly, electronic devices are a large part of early experience for newborns and infants before the age of one. From birth, newborns often find themselves surrounded by electronic devices in the hands and the minds of their caregivers. These devices can capture the attention and stimulate the mind of the young infant as well as the adults caring for them. They often preempt competing natural visual and aural stimuli. The introduction of screens has altered the experiences of infants at a time in life when their brains are most plastic and forming foundational brain connections that may serve them for the remainder of their lives.
• Research on the impact of these devices on brain development and subsequent sensory, cognitive, physical, emotional, and social development remains in its infancy. In particular, they know that it is during this period of life that latent ASD, executive function, and language acquisition (to name a few) begin to evolve. What are, if any, the interactions between these novel experiences and different biological susceptibilities? How, if at all, have these devices altered the explorations by these young minds of the world and the people around them? Are there markers in the infant’s brain, anatomical or functional, related to these experiences? Can they detect them early on? What challenges might they present to caregiver-child interactions?
• Children and Screens is pleased to issue a request for proposals to advance the understanding of these critical questions. Studies can be laboratory or field-based but must focus on children 0-12 months of age and take an interdisciplinary approach meaning that investigators should come from at least 2 different disciplines. The funds can either be used to collect pilot data for a larger grant or to answer a discrete and relevant question related to this area. Either way, clear justification of how the work will advance the field including plans to secure additional funding (if applicable) is required.

Funding Information

• Grant requests can be made in any amount up to $300,000. The number and size of grant awards will be determined by the quality and overall number of submissions. Up to 3 total grants may be awarded.
• Priority for funding will be based on the following:
  • Field impact
  • Novelty in terms of methodology or approach;
  • Multi-disciplinary nature that supports the needs of the whole child; and
  • Potential to lead to a larger project funded by other public or private sources.

Eligibility Criteria

• The Principal Investigators (PIs) must possess a terminal degree (PhD, MD, or equivalent) and hold a tenure-track or tenured position at a university, college, or research facility. If a PI’s institution does not offer tenure or tenure-track positions, then the PI must demonstrate that the PI’s position would be considered equivalent to a tenured or tenure-track position in an academic institution.
• All projects must be a collaborative effort consisting of at least two PIs; a maximum of five (5) PI may work on a single project. Projects must represent at least two different disciplines.
• The contact/administrative/fiscal PI must be a United States citizen, legal permanent resident, or those who have employment authorization from the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services at the time of the award and for the duration of the grant period.
• The contact PI must be affiliated with an American entity that can receive and administer the grant from the Institute. The contact PI’s affiliated institution will be designated as the fiscal agent and coordinating institution that will receive and process the grant from the Institute as well as support (i.e., contribute material and in-kind support) the funded research project, if awarded.
  • If the contact institution is a public university or college in the United States, then the grant will be awarded to the private, 501(c)(3) nonprofit entity (e.g., Regents of the University of California, Davis and not the University of California, Davis) designated to support the public university or college.
  • If the contact institution is a research facility in the United States then it must be a private, 501(c)(3) nonprofit entity with a minimum operating budget of $2.5 million, have a minimum three-year track record of leading and conducting multi-year research projects (at least three over the last three years), include research as a core activity as described in recent annual reports, and have produced and publicly disseminated a minimum of five publications (over the last five years) reporting the results of their research.
• PIs affiliated with international universities, colleges and research facilities may be on the project team, but may not be the contact PI for tax purposes given the international status of their affiliated institution.
• All PIs are expected to commit, at a minimum, 10% of their time annually to the project.
• A minimum of one year (12 months) must have elapsed since receiving their terminal degrees before a PI may apply for a grant.
• A single PI may participate in a maximum of two Letters of Intent projects. A PI may only hold one award from the Institute at a time.
• Additional “collaborators” are permitted. These individuals do not need to be involved in the conception or execution of the project, but may act as resources or consultants.
• Multiple applicants from a single institution may submit Letters of Intent.
• All commercial and/or industry funding must be reported immediately to the Sponsor.

For more information, visit Children and Screens.