GUIDELINES AND INSTRUCTIONS TO APPLICANTS – 2016 Proposal Deadline: December 1

The Society for the Study of School Psychology (SSSP) and the International School Psychology Association (ISPA) 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 School Psychology Research Initiatives Committee to solicit and review proposals for possible funding of one grant annually of up to $10,000.

The purposes of the International School Psychology Research Initiative are as follows:

  • to encourage international research on important topics related to school psychology;
  • to encourage international practice-based research that may lead to research-based practice;
  • to provide professional and financial support that builds capacity for school psychological research within countries outside the United States; 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.

The following are restrictions related to principal investigators and to the proposed study:

  • Students may not be principal investigators;
  • Funds cannot be used to support thesis or dissertation completion;
  • Current officers of ISPA and SSSP cannot be principal investigators or collaborators;
  • Members of the International Research Initiatives Committee cannot be principal investigators or collaborators.
  • Residents of the United States cannot be principal investigators or co-investigators; residents of the United States can be collaborators but the identity of any U.S. collaborators will be masked in the proposal before it is sent to reviewers.

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;
  • that show promise for significant contributions to the profession of school psychology through its literature.

There is no benefit or penalty to proposals that include a U.S. researcher as a collaborator.

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

  1. explore important scientific and applied issues in a different way or offer new perspectives on a longstanding issue;
  2. summarize research on important scientific and applied topics;
  3. produce empirical results that have important scientific and applied value; and/or
  4. examine relations between practice and scholarly foundations of school psychology.

Category 2. Applications of scientific knowledge to school psychology practice

  1. develop a theoretical framework for evaluating meaningful practical questions;
  2. develop education and training models rooted in theory and research;
  3. evaluate assessment and intervention techniques, service outcomes, or other practice activities;
  4. describe the characteristics and qualifications of school psychologists, roles, functions, populations served, or funding as a foundation for subsequent work force development and professional advances; and/or
  5. synthesize research on an important practice issue to promote a coherent understanding.

Category 3. Development of scientific aspects of school psychology as a profession

  1. explore ways to enable practitioners to integrate research activities within the context of their work; and/or
  2. 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 research project.

Funds may be used for various expenses related to research. Examples of allowable expenses include (a) access to references and other sources (e.g., PsychInfo), (b) license for SPSS or other statistical packages, (c) mail and telephone expenses, (d) test acquisition and adaptation, (e) translation services, (f) travel required for data collection, (g) high-speed internet service, and (i) payments to students for prescribed tasks at the university or agency’s normal hourly rate. Up to $2000 can be budgeted for travel by the Principal Investigators to the annual ISPA conference to present research results. Principal investigators may also apply to other agencies or organizations for financial support; SSSP will consider jointly funded projects that receive financial support from other organizations.

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.

Successful applicants must acknowledge funding by the SSSP/ISPA 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, 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 to the SSSP’s Director for Research and Scientific Practice.

Applications

Applicants must submit a proposal with the ten sections described below. The principal investigator’s administrative head or organizational authority must provide a letter of endorsement indicating the extent to which internal support will be provided to facilitate the conduct of the proposed research. If collaborators include external agencies, a letter of endorsement from the agency must be included.

Proposals must be submitted by December 1, 2016. The proposal must be submitted electronically in a single PDF document to the Chair of the International Initiatives Committee (rdamato@thechicagoschool.edu) via an e-mail attachment. Sections 2-7 of the application must be no more than 10 pages, double spaced, with one-inch margins and 12-point or 14-point font size. Appendices can include information for 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:

  1. 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.
  1. Overview of the Project (1/2 page): Describe the major activities and intended outcomes of the project.
  1. Scientific Rationale for Proposal (1 to 4 pages): Describe the research questions to be addressed, hypotheses to be tested, and goals or intended outcomes of the project. Provide the theoretical, empirical, and/or logical rationale for these questions, hypotheses, and goals. Describe the research design, participants, measures or variables, and analyses. Either quantitative, qualitative or mixed method research projects may be proposed. Provide the rationale for the research methods that will be used. Previous literature, theoretical frameworks, pilot studies, and other activities that provide promising results and qualitative perspectives can be used to build this rationale.
  1. Match to purpose and priorities of the initiative: Discuss how the proposed research is compatible with the purposes of the SSSP/ISPA International School Psychology Research Initiative that are described on page 1 of this announcement. Explain how the project meets one or more of the priorities listed on page 2. Describe specific ways in which this research builds capacity within the country for future research and the development of school psychology as a profession. Describe this research’s potential for sustainability.
  1. Availability of other sources of funding: Discuss any other available sources of funds and describe how other resources will be acquired and used to help support important goals of this research.
  1. Impact: Specify possible short- and long-term impacts this research will have on school psychology practices and scholarship.
  1. Operational Plan: Provide a detailed operational plan with a timeline that integrates rationale, purpose, activities, person(s) responsible for the activities, and benchmarks for success in meeting project goals.
  1. 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.
  1. 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 (major equipment purchases excluded), (e) travel for data collection or to the annual ISPA conference; and (f) other expenses (specify). [Refer to ‘Finances’ section of this announcement for eligible expenses.]
  • Letters: Include all letters of support or agreements to participate from endorsers, participating organizations, collaborators, and others.

Criteria for Review of Proposals

30 points: Importance of the scientific rationale for the research project, the quality of the research design, and the relation to purposes of the International School Psychology Research initiative (described on page 1.)

20 points: Match to the award priorities of the International School Psychology Research Initiative (described on pages 1-2) as these relate to strengthening research collaborations, creating a strong international foundation for school psychological research, and supporting the emergence of research where it has previously not occurred.

20 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: Quality of budget including availability of supplemental funds, effective use of funds, and realistic appraisal of probable costs.

Review Procedures

Members of the International Initiatives Committee will review all proposals. If proposals include a U.S. researcher as a collaborator, the identity of that collaborator will be masked before the proposal is forwarded to committee members for review. The International Initiatives Committee will evaluate proposals using the Criteria for Review of Proposals. Final recommendations will be based on reviewers’ consensus or majority vote. Current officers of the ISPA and SSSP and members of the International Initiatives Committee may not participate as principal investigators or collaborators. Any committee member with a potential conflict of interest will not participate in the review 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 three months after the submission deadline.

Proposals for the SSSP/ISPA International School Psychology Research Initiative must be submitted by December 1, 2016 via e-mail to Dr. D’Amato (rdamato@thechicagoschool.edu). Please also contact Dr. D’Amato if you have further questions.