Developmental Sciences

Overview

The Developmental Sciences program supports basic research that advances our understanding of perceptual, cognitive, linguistic, social, cultural, and biological processes related to human development across the lifespan. Research supported by this program will expand our knowledge of the underlying developmental processes that support social, cognitive, and behavioral functioning, thereby illuminating ways for individuals to live productive lives as members of society.

The Developmental Sciences program supports research that addresses developmental processes within the domains of perceptual, cognitive, social, emotional, language, and motor development across the lifespan by working with any appropriate populations for the topics of interest including infants, children, adolescents, adults (including aging populations), and non-human animals. The program also supports research investigating factors that affect developmental change, including family, peers, school, community, culture, media, physical, genetic, and epigenetic influences. The program funds research that incorporates multidisciplinary, multi-method, and/or longitudinal approaches; develops new methods, models, and theories for studying development; and integrates different processes (e.g., memory, emotion, perception, cognition), levels of analysis (e.g., behavioral, social, neural) and time scales. The program funds basic research that advances our understanding of developmental processes and mechanisms; the program does not fund clinical trials and/or research focused primarily on health outcomes.

The program seeks to support research that (1) involves diverse methodologies and theoretical perspectives; (2) includes participants from a range of communities, ethnicities, socioeconomic backgrounds, and cultures; and (3) helps diversify research project leadership (PIs and co-PIs), ideas, and approaches via equity-centered collaborative models. Proposals that include participants from historically marginalized groups and/or groups underrepresented in developmental science research should demonstrate cultural competence within the research team to conduct research with these communities. PIs should provide clear evidence of equity-centered collaborative practices with community members.

A list of recent awards made by the program demonstrates the range of sub-fields, methods, and topics typically supported by the program. If a researcher is unsure whether the Developmental Sciences Program and NSF more broadly are appropriate for a proposal topic, they are encouraged to email a one-page summary of their project to the program officer(s) before a proposal submission.

Additional Relevant Funding Opportunities
The NSF Developmental Sciences Program supports multiple types of proposals:

• Standard Research Proposals
• Conference/Workshop Proposals
• Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Supplemental Funding Requests
• Non-Academic Research Internships for Graduate Students (INTERN) Supplemental Funding Requests
• Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program Proposals
• Mid-career Advancement (MCA) program supplemental funding
• Career-life balance supplemental funding
• Facilitating Research at Primarily Undergraduate Institutions: Research in Undergraduate Institutions (RUI) and Research Opportunity Awards (ROA) Proposals and Supplemental Funding Requests
• Research Coordination Network (RCN) Proposals
• Rapid Response Research (RAPID) Proposals
• Early-concept Grants for Exploratory Research (EAGER) Proposals
• Research Advanced by Interdisciplinary Science & Engineering (RAISE) Proposals.

Limit on Number of Proposals per PI or co-PI: 1

In addition to consulting the NSF awards database, it is often useful for interested proposers to submit (via email) a summary of no more than one page so that a program director can advise the investigator on the fit of the project for DS before the preparation of a full proposal.

Based on a need for portfolio diversity, we encourage recent recipients to explore alternative funding opportunities rather than seek additional funding from Developmental Sciences.

Awards: While there are no specific rules about budget limitations, a typical project funded through the Developmental Sciences program is approximately three years in duration with a total cost budget, including both direct and indirect costs, between $100,000 and $200,000 per year. The Developmental Sciences program also considers proposals for workshops and small conferences on a case-by-case basis. These typically have total cost budgets, including direct and indirect costs, of approximately $35,000. Conference proposals may only be submitted following an invitation from the Program Directors.