INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGY ASSOCIATION
and
SOCIETY FOR THE STUDY OF SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGY
Proposals to the International School Psychology Research Initiative
GUIDELINES AND INSTRUCTIONS TO APPLICANTS
2014 Proposal Deadline: October 15, 2014
The International School Psychology Association (ISPA) and the Society for the Study of School Psychology (SSSP) invite proposals by international researchers to investigate important school psychology topics within the researcher’s home country or region. ISPA and SSSP have formed an inter-organizational International Initiatives Committee to solicit and review proposals for possible funding of one grant annually.
The purposes of the International School Psychology Research Initiative are:
- to encourage international research on topics related to school psychology;
- to encourage international practice-based research that may lead to research-based practice;
- to assist international researchers or research teams by providing professional and financial support; and
- to disseminate international research through publications and other presentations.
Eligibility
Principal investigators must:
- be a resident of a country other than the United States;
- have their primary professional affiliation with school/educational psychology;
- be affiliated with a non-profit organization, public or private institution (including schools) or institution of higher education.
Funding is not available to students as principal investigators, and funds cannot be used to support thesis or dissertation completion. Current officers of ISPA and SSSP and members of the International Research Initiatives Committee are ineligible to participate as principal investigators or collaborators.
Award Priorities
Priority will be given to proposals:
- for worthy projects that may not be possible without this financial support
- for a specific research project (a) in one country or geographic region or (b) involving ISPA-affiliated collaborators across multiple countries;
- from researchers or research teams that include both university-based professionals and applied practitioners;
- from researchers from a country or region in which little prior school psychology research has been conducted;
- that show promise for developing a viable and sustained research agenda;
- in which researchers collaborate with colleagues and others in their country, region, or internationally in this research;
- showing promise for significant contributions to the specialty of school psychology through its literature.
Nature and Scope of Project
Successful International School Psychology Research Initiative proposals will generally fall into one of the following three categories.
Category 1. Scientific and applied contributions to school psychology
This category includes projects designed to accomplish one or more of the following:
- explore important scientific and applied issues in a different way or offer new perspectives on a somewhat longstanding issue,
- summarize research on important scientific and applied topics,
- produce empirical results that have important scientific and applied value, and/or
- explore issues and problems in relationships between practice and scholarly foundations of school psychology.
Category 2. Applications of scientific knowledge to school psychology practice
This category includes projects designed to accomplish one or more of the following:
- provide a theoretical framework from which meaningful practical questions may be evaluated;
- develop education and training models rooted in theory and research;
- evaluate assessment and intervention techniques, service outcomes, or other practice activities; and/or
- describe the characteristics & qualifications of school psychologists, roles, functions, populations served, or funding as a foundation for subsequent work force development and professional advances
- synthesize research on an important practice issue or problem to promote a coherent understanding.
Category 3. Development of scientific aspects of school psychology as a specialty and a profession
This category includes projects designed to accomplish one or more of the following:
- explore ways to enable practitioners to integrate research activities within the context of their work, and/or
- apply psychological methods and theory to address education and public policy issues regarding the practice of school psychology;
Finances
Approved projects will be funded for one year. Maximum funding will not exceed $10,000 U.S. A budget justification included with the proposal should explain how expenses are necessary to the successful completion of the project. Funds may be used for most aspects of research, including but not limited to access to references and other sources (e.g., the PsychInfo database), license for SPSS or other statistical packages, mail and telephone expenses, test acquisition and adaptation, translation services, travel required for data collection, high-speed internet service, and payments to students for prescribed tasks at the university or agency’s normal hourly rate. Up to $2000 can be budgeted for travel to the annual ISPA conference to present research results.
Funds may not be used for salary support, stipends, and honoraria for principal investigators, collaborators, or other members of the research team. Funds may not be used for major equipment purchases (e.g., computers or video equipment), local travel, or graduate assistantships. However, student research assistants may be employed and paid for prescribed tasks at a university’s or agency’s normal hourly rate.
The amount of financial support is limited and may not be sufficient to initiate and sustain a proposed research effort. Thus, principal investigators are encouraged to apply for additional sources of financial support. Jointly funded projects that involve other organizations also will be considered.
Successful applicants will be expected to acknowledge funding by the ISPA/SSSP International School Psychology Research Initiative in all publications, presentations, or dissemination of the research supported by the grant. Successful applicants are encouraged to publish the research results in the Journal of School Psychology, School Psychology International, International Journal of School & Educational Psychology, World Go Round, and Communique and to present at annual ISPA conferences.
A grant report that summarizes the activities and results of funded projects will be required from the principal investigators at the completion of the grant year and in subsequent years to provide evidence of longer-term project outcomes. These reports should be submitted as PDF attachments via e-mail to Dr. Edward Shapiro (ess2@lehigh.edu), SSSP’s Director for Research and Scientific Practice.
Application
Applicants will submit a proposal that addresses all issues cited in the following sections. If collaborators include external agencies, a letter of endorsement from the agency must be included. The principal investigator’s administrative head or organizational authority must provide a letter of endorsement that also indicates the extent to which internal support will be provided to the researcher to facilitate the conduct of the proposed research.
Proposals must be submitted on or before October 15, 2014. The proposal must be submitted electronically in a single PDF document to the Chair of the International Initiatives Committee (bdoll2@unl.edu) via an e-mail attachment. The part of the application that addresses Sections 2-7 below must be no more than 10 pages, double spaced, and use one-inch margins and 12-point font size. Appendices can include information requested in Sections 1, 8, 9, and 10 and references; these materials do not count toward the 10-page limitation.
Applications should be organized into the following sections:
- Title Page: This page should include the title of the study; the principal investigator(s), their affiliation(s), and contact information (i.e., postal and email addresses, phone number); and the names, affiliations, and email addresses of all collaborators.
- Overview of the Project (1/2 page): Describe the major activities and intended outcomes of the project.
- Scientific Rationale for Proposal (1 to 4 pages): Provide the theoretical, empirical, and/or logical foundation for the project. Previous literature, theoretical frameworks, pilot studies, and other activities that provide promising results and qualitative perspectives are acceptable for building this rationale. This section should include research questions to be addressed, hypotheses to be tested, and goals or intended outcomes of the project.
- Rationale for Funding: Discuss how the project rationale is compatible with the purposes of the ISPA/SSSP International School Psychology Research Initiative. (See page 1 of this announcement.) Describe specific ways in which scholarship and/or practice in school psychology may be influenced by the results, and the potential for sustainability of this research.
- Limited availability of other sources of funding: Discuss the other available sources of funds and describe how other resources will be acquired and used to help support important goals of this research.
- Impact: Specify possible short- and long-term impacts this research will have on school psychology practices and scholarship.
- Operational Plan: Provide a detailed operational plan with a timeline that integrates rationale, purpose, activities, person(s) responsible for the activities, and indicators of progress toward meeting project goals.
- Personnel: Briefly describe the qualifications of the person(s) responsible for project activities. Attach a brief curriculum vitae (up to 3 pages) as an appendix for the key person(s) responsible for project activities.
- Budget: Provide detailed estimates of funds that will be used for (a) student hourly payments or stipends/honoraria for research participants, (b) supplies, (c) data processing, (d) equipment, and (e) other expenses (specify).
- Letters: Include all letters of support or agreements to participate from endorsers, participating organizations, collaborators, and others.
Criteria for Awards
Proposals will be evaluated according to the following criteria:
30 points: Importance of the scientific rationale and research project and its relation to purposes and award priorities of the International School Psychology Research initiatives as they are linked to needs in school psychology, including the potential for sustainability.
10 points: Rationale for funding in relation to other sources of funds and ISPA/SSSP purposes.
30 points: Operational plan, including a detailed timeline and benchmarks for success.
20 points: Personnel and agency or institutional capabilities; qualifications of principal investigator(s).
10 points: Efficiency of resource utilization, including availability of supplemental funds, effective use of monies, and realistic appraisal of probable costs.
Procedures
Members of the International Initiatives Committee will review all proposals. The International Initiatives Committee will evaluate proposals according to the Criteria for Awards. Final recommendations will be made on the basis of reviewers’ consensus or majority vote. Current officers of the ISPA and SSSP and members of the International Initiatives Committee are ineligible to participate as principal investigators or collaborators. In the event of a potential conflict of interest in the evaluation process, the Committee member who has such a conflict will not participate in the scoring process for that application.
The Committee’s recommendations will be forwarded to the SSSP Board of Directors and ISPA Executive Committee, which jointly will consider the Committee’s recommendations and determine final approval of projects to be funded. Applicants can expect to receive this information approximately two months after the submission deadline.
Proposals for the ISPA/SSSP International School Psychology Research Initiative must be submitted by October 15, 2014 via e-mail to bdoll2@unl.edu.
Beth Doll, PhD
International Initiatives Committee Chair
College of Education and Human Sciences
233 Mabel Lee Hall
University of Nebraska Lincoln
Lincoln, NE 68588-0234
Please contact Dr. Doll if you have further questions:
Email: bdoll2@unl.edu
Phone: 001-402-472-2238