Opportunity Information: Apply for PA 14 176
Apply for PA 14 176
- The National Institutes of Health in the education health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Healthy Habits Timing for Developing Sustainable Healthy Behaviors in Children and Adolescents (R21)" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.361 Nursing Research.
- This funding opportunity was created on Apr 17, 2014 and posted on Apr 16, 2014.
- Applicants must submit their applications by May 7, 2017. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $200,000.00 in funding.
- Eligible applicants include: Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities Independent school districts Small businesses Public and State controlled institutions of higher education Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification) For profit organizations other than small businesses County governments Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized) Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments) Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education State governments Special district governments City or township governments Private institutions of higher education.
- Other Eligible Applicants include the following Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISISs) Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government Faith based or Community based Organizations Hispanic serving Institutions Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Other than Federally Recognized) Non domestic (non U.S.) Entities (Foreign Organizations) Regional Organizations Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs) U.S. Territory or Possession.
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Opportunity Summary:
The NIH grant opportunity "Healthy Habits Timing for Developing Sustainable Healthy Behaviors in Children and Adolescents (R21)" (Funding Opportunity Number PA 14-176) supports innovative, early-stage research focused on how healthy behaviors form and persist from birth through age 21. The central idea is not simply to test whether an intervention works in the short term, but to understand the underlying mechanisms that shape long-lasting habits and to identify when, how, and why young people adopt behaviors that carry into adulthood. This includes research that explains the processes driving behavior change, research that strengthens positive behavior development, and research that shifts the social and cultural norms that influence health decisions over time.
A key emphasis of the announcement is that sustainable health behaviors are strongly influenced by social and cultural environments rather than by individual choice alone. Applicants are encouraged to design projects that operate in or account for real-world settings such as homes and families, schools, peer groups, neighborhoods and communities, and broader population-level influences. The FOA also explicitly points to sectors and channels that shape youth behavior at scale, including the food industry, age-appropriate learning tools and games, social media and social networking, technology platforms, and mass media. In other words, NIH is signaling interest in work that looks beyond clinical settings and engages with the places and systems that routinely shape childrens and adolescents everyday decisions.
The research topics highlighted in the FOA include several recurring themes. One is identifying effective and durable processes that influence young people to make healthy choices and continue making them over time. Another is "timing" - determining the appropriate developmental stages or windows of influence when sustainable lifelong habits are most likely to take root, whether in infancy, early childhood, middle childhood, adolescence, or the transition to adulthood. The FOA also calls out the role of technology and new media, reflecting interest in how digital tools, platforms, and communication environments can encourage or discourage healthy behavior and how they might be designed or leveraged to support long-term positive routines. In addition, NIH is interested in understanding what supports healthy behavior development among vulnerable populations, what barriers prevent healthy choices (for example, structural, economic, cultural, environmental, or informational barriers), and what mechanisms and mediators may be shared across multiple habitual behaviors. That last point matters because the agency is looking for insights that might generalize across behavior domains, such as eating patterns, physical activity, sleep routines, stress regulation, injury prevention, or other health-related habits, even if a given project focuses on one specific behavior.
Because the FOA frames sustainable behavior formation as complex and multi-determined, it strongly encourages multidisciplinary research teams. Projects might reasonably combine expertise from fields like developmental science, psychology, behavioral economics, education, sociology, communication, public health, nursing, nutrition, informatics, implementation science, and human-centered design, among others. The expectation is that stronger applications will reflect the reality that children and adolescents are influenced simultaneously by caregivers, schools, peers, digital environments, marketing, community resources, and policy contexts, and that research designs should be capable of capturing and testing those interacting influences.
This opportunity uses the NIH R21 mechanism, which is commonly intended for exploratory and developmental studies that can generate new insights, pilot data, or proof-of-concept evidence. The listed award ceiling is $200,000, and cost sharing or matching is not required. The FOA was posted in April 2014, with an original and current closing date of May 7, 2017, and it was archived on June 7, 2017. While archived opportunities are no longer open for application, the description is still useful for understanding NIH priorities and for shaping future submissions to related, active FOAs focused on pediatric and adolescent health behavior, prevention, and habit formation.
Eligibility is broad and includes many types of organizations. Eligible applicants include nonprofit organizations (both with and without 501(c)(3) status), public and private institutions of higher education, small businesses, for-profit organizations other than small businesses, independent school districts, public housing authorities, and multiple levels of government (city or township, county, special district, state, and certain tribal governments and tribal organizations). The FOA also lists additional eligible entities such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic Serving Institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions, faith-based or community-based organizations, U.S. territories or possessions, regional organizations, federal agencies, and non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations). This wide eligibility range fits the FOAs emphasis on studying and influencing behavior in the settings where youth live and learn, which often requires partnerships that extend well beyond traditional academic medical centers.
Overall, the opportunity is designed to advance practical and scientifically grounded knowledge about how healthy habits form, when interventions or influences are most effective across development, and how social and cultural systems can be aligned to make healthy choices easier, more normal, and more sustainable for children and adolescents. The long-term goal is to support research that can lead to lasting improvements in health trajectories by strengthening the processes that build positive habits early and by reshaping the environments and norms that guide behavior across childhood and adolescence.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the name of this NIH funding opportunity?
The opportunity is titled "Healthy Habits Timing for Developing Sustainable Healthy Behaviors in Children and Adolescents (R21)."
What is the Funding Opportunity Number (FOA number)?
The Funding Opportunity Number is PA 14-176.
What type of NIH grant mechanism does this opportunity use?
This opportunity uses the NIH R21 mechanism, which is intended for exploratory and developmental research projects.
What is the main purpose of the FOA?
The FOA supports innovative, early-stage research to understand how healthy behaviors form and persist from birth through age 21, with a focus on the mechanisms that drive lasting habits rather than only short-term intervention effects.
What age range is covered by this funding opportunity?
The FOA focuses on children and adolescents from birth through age 21, including key developmental periods such as infancy, early and middle childhood, adolescence, and the transition to adulthood.
Is the FOA mainly about proving an intervention works?
No. A central emphasis is understanding the underlying processes and mechanisms of behavior formation and maintenance, including when, how, and why healthy behaviors take root and endure over time.
What does the FOA mean by "timing" of healthy habits?
"Timing" refers to identifying the developmental stages or windows when influences or interventions are most effective at helping sustainable, lifelong habits take hold (for example, during infancy, early childhood, adolescence, or the transition to adulthood).
What kinds of research questions does NIH highlight in this FOA?
Highlighted questions include: which processes lead youth to adopt healthy choices that last, when in development those processes are most influential, how technology and media shape habits, what supports or blocks healthy behavior in vulnerable populations, and whether there are shared mechanisms across multiple health-related habits.
Why does this FOA emphasize social and cultural environments?
The FOA frames sustainable health behavior as strongly influenced by social and cultural contexts, not just individual choice, and encourages research that accounts for the settings and systems shaping everyday decisions.
What "real-world settings" does NIH encourage applicants to consider?
The FOA encourages projects that operate in or account for settings such as homes and families, schools, peer groups, neighborhoods and communities, and broader population-level influences.
Does the FOA encourage research beyond clinical settings?
Yes. NIH signals interest in studies that engage with the places and systems that routinely shape children and adolescents day-to-day behavior, beyond traditional clinical environments.
What industries or channels does the FOA specifically mention as influencing youth behavior at scale?
The FOA explicitly points to the food industry, age-appropriate learning tools and games, social media and social networking, technology platforms, and mass media as influential sectors/channels.
How does the FOA address technology and new media?
The FOA highlights interest in how digital tools, platforms, and communication environments can encourage or discourage healthy behavior, and how these tools might be designed or leveraged to support durable positive routines.
Does the FOA mention a focus on vulnerable populations?
Yes. NIH is interested in what supports healthy behavior development among vulnerable populations and what barriers prevent healthy choices.
What kinds of barriers to healthy behavior does the FOA mention?
Examples include structural, economic, cultural, environmental, and informational barriers that can make healthy choices harder to adopt and sustain.
What does the FOA mean by shared mechanisms across multiple behaviors?
NIH expresses interest in mechanisms and mediators that may apply across multiple habitual behaviors, so findings might generalize beyond one specific health behavior domain.
What health-related behaviors are examples of what this FOA could cover?
The FOA gives examples such as eating patterns, physical activity, sleep routines, stress regulation, injury prevention, and other health-related habits.
Is multidisciplinary collaboration encouraged?
Yes. The FOA strongly encourages multidisciplinary research teams to reflect the complex, multi-determined nature of sustainable behavior formation.
What disciplines are mentioned as potentially relevant?
Examples listed include developmental science, psychology, behavioral economics, education, sociology, communication, public health, nursing, nutrition, informatics, implementation science, and human-centered design.
What is the maximum award amount mentioned for this R21?
The listed award ceiling is $200,000.
Is cost sharing or matching required?
No. The FOA states that cost sharing or matching is not required.
When was the FOA posted?
The FOA was posted in April 2014.
What was the closing date for applications?
The original and current closing date listed is May 7, 2017.
Is this opportunity currently open for applications?
No. The FOA was archived on June 7, 2017, and archived opportunities are no longer open for application.
If the FOA is archived, why is it still useful?
Even though it is closed, the description is useful for understanding NIH priorities and for shaping future submissions to related, active funding opportunities in pediatric and adolescent health behavior, prevention, and habit formation.
Who is eligible to apply?
Eligibility is broad and includes many organization types across nonprofit, education, business, government, and other sectors, including domestic and non-U.S. (foreign) entities.
Are nonprofit organizations eligible?
Yes. Eligible applicants include nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status.
Are colleges and universities eligible?
Yes. Public and private institutions of higher education are eligible, including several categories of minority-serving institutions listed in the FOA.
Are small businesses or for-profit organizations eligible?
Yes. The FOA lists small businesses and for-profit organizations other than small businesses as eligible applicants.
Are school districts eligible?
Yes. Independent school districts are listed as eligible.
Are government agencies eligible?
Yes. Eligible entities include city or township governments, county governments, special district governments, state governments, certain tribal governments and tribal organizations, federal agencies, and regional organizations.
Are public housing authorities eligible?
Yes. Public housing authorities are listed as eligible applicants.
Are faith-based or community-based organizations eligible?
Yes. The FOA lists faith-based or community-based organizations among eligible entities.
Are U.S. territories or possessions included in eligibility?
Yes. The FOA lists U.S. territories or possessions as eligible entities.
Are non-U.S. (foreign) organizations eligible?
Yes. The FOA explicitly includes non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations) as eligible.
Which minority-serving institutions are explicitly mentioned as eligible?
The FOA lists Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic Serving Institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, and Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions.
What is the overall long-term goal of this research area, as described in the FOA?
The long-term goal is to advance practical, scientifically grounded knowledge about how healthy habits form and persist, how environments and norms can be aligned to support healthy choices, and how these advances can improve long-term health trajectories for children and adolescents.
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Applicants also applied for:
Applicants who have applied for this opportunity (PA 14 176) also looked into and applied for these:
| Funding Opportunity |
|---|
| Healthy Habits Timing for Developing Sustainable Healthy Behaviors in Children and Adolescents (R01) Apply for PA 14 177 Funding Number: PA 14 177 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| mHealth Tools for Underserved Populations with Chronic Conditions to Promote Effective Patient Provider Communication, Adherence to Treatment and Self Management (R01) Apply for PA 14 180 Funding Number: PA 14 180 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| mHealth Tools for Underserved Populations with Chronic Conditions to Promote Effective Patient Provider Communication, Adherence to Treatment and Self Management (R21) Apply for PA 14 181 Funding Number: PA 14 181 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: $200,000 |
| National Cooperative Drug Discovery/Development Groups (NCDDG) for the Treatment of Mental Disorders, Drug or Alcohol Addiction (U01) Apply for PAR 14 184 Funding Number: PAR 14 184 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Revisions to Add Biomedical Big Data Training to Active NLM Institutional Training Grants in Biomedical Informatics (T15) Apply for RFA HG 14 006 Funding Number: RFA HG 14 006 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| NIDA Core Center of Excellence Grant Program (P30) Apply for PAR 14 186 Funding Number: PAR 14 186 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Lasker Clinical Research Scholars Program (Si2) Apply for RFA OD 14 004 Funding Number: RFA OD 14 004 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| NLM Information Resource Grants to Reduce Health Disparities (G08) Apply for RFA LM 14 001 Funding Number: RFA LM 14 001 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Wild Horse and Burro Contraception Apply for L14AS00048 Funding Number: L14AS00048 Agency: Bureau of Land Management Category: Education Health Funding Amount: $500,000 |
| Chronic Wounds Advancing the Science from Prevention to Healing (R01) Apply for RFA NR 15 001 Funding Number: RFA NR 15 001 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: $350,000 |
| Long Term Retention in Care for U.S. Substance Using Populations (R34) Apply for PA 14 222 Funding Number: PA 14 222 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: $225,000 |
| Long Term Retention in Care for U.S. Substance Using Populations (R21) Apply for PA 14 223 Funding Number: PA 14 223 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: $200,000 |
| Long Term Retention in Care for U.S. Substance Using Populations (R01) Apply for PA 14 224 Funding Number: PA 14 224 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Clinical Evaluation of Adjuncts to Opioid Therapies for the Treatment of Chronic Pain (R01) Apply for PAR 14 225 Funding Number: PAR 14 225 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Exploratory Studies of Smoking Cessation Interventions for People with Schizophrenia (R21/R33) Apply for PAR 14 230 Funding Number: PAR 14 230 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Exploratory Studies of Smoking Cessation Interventions for People with Schizophrenia (R33) Apply for PAR 14 231 Funding Number: PAR 14 231 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: $225,000 |
| National Cooperative Drug Discovery/Development Groups (NCDDG) for the Treatment of Mental Disorders, Drug or Alcohol Addiction (U19) Apply for PAR 14 234 Funding Number: PAR 14 234 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Collaborative Research Projects to Enhance Applicability of Mouse Models for Translational Research (Collaborative R01) Apply for PAR 14 240 Funding Number: PAR 14 240 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: $450,000 |
| Research Projects to Enhance Applicability of Mouse Models for Translational Research (R01) Apply for PAR 14 241 Funding Number: PAR 14 241 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: $450,000 |
| Oncology Models Forum (U24) Apply for PAR 14 239 Funding Number: PAR 14 239 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Health Funding Amount: $750,000 |
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