Research Aimed at Novel Behavioral Targets to Improve Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment and Prevention Interventions (R34) | Apply Online

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): PA-15-035 (R34)

What is PA-15-035?

PA-15-035 is an NIH discretionary grant opportunity titled "Research Aimed at Novel Behavioral Targets to Improve Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment and Prevention Interventions (R34)." It is situated within the Collaborative Research on Addiction at NIH (CRAN) initiative.

What is the main goal of this funding opportunity?

The main goal is to support early-stage, focused research that identifies, generates, refines, and tests novel behavioral and neurobehavioral targets that can strengthen adolescent substance use treatment and prevention interventions. The emphasis is on understanding and improving the specific change mechanisms inside interventions, not just determining whether an existing program works.

What does the FOA mean by "novel behavioral targets"?

In this context, "novel behavioral targets" are measurable processes that interventions can aim to change in order to reduce adolescent substance use initiation, escalation, or relapse risk. These targets are intended to be specific, testable, and tied to how and why interventions produce outcomes.

Which behavioral targets are specifically highlighted as examples?

The FOA lists example targets including impulsivity, risk-taking propensity, sensation and novelty seeking, distress tolerance, delay discounting, self-regulation, and stress reactivity.

What kinds of projects does PA-15-035 support?

The opportunity supports developmental and pilot work consistent with the R34 mechanism. Examples described in the summary include designing and piloting a new skills module to reduce impulsive responding under stress, adding an adjunct component to strengthen self-regulation in high-risk teens, refining existing prevention or treatment approaches to better modulate a target process, or testing whether changing a target such as delay discounting improves substance-related outcomes.

Is the focus on evaluating entire programs or on mechanisms within interventions?

The focus is on mechanisms within interventions. Rather than simply evaluating whether an existing program works, the FOA emphasizes improving interventions by directly targeting measurable processes and clarifying the change mechanisms linked to adolescent developmental vulnerabilities and decision-making.

What adolescent-specific themes does the FOA emphasize?

The FOA emphasizes developmental vulnerabilities and decision-making processes common during adolescence, and it encourages intervention work that is tightly linked to those measurable processes that contribute to substance use initiation, escalation, and relapse risk.

Does the FOA require neuroscience methods?

No. The FOA encourages applicants to build clear theoretical bridges between behavioral targets and underlying neural circuitry, but it does not require neuroscience for its own sake. The stated intent is a mechanism-driven approach that connects what an intervention tries to change, how that change might be instantiated in the brain, and how shifts in these systems relate to prevention or treatment effects.

What does "target engagement" mean in the context of this FOA?

Based on the summary, the FOA is interested in better selection and measurement of behavioral targets and in examining how interventions affect these targets. The overall idea is that measuring whether an intervention actually changes the intended target can help improve intervention design and, ultimately, reduce adolescent substance-related harm.

What is the funding mechanism for PA-15-035?

This opportunity uses the NIH R34 mechanism, which typically aligns with developmental and pilot research intended to prepare for larger-scale efficacy or effectiveness studies.

What is the award ceiling for this opportunity?

The award ceiling listed is $450,000.

Is cost sharing or matching required?

No. The opportunity explicitly states there is no cost sharing or matching requirement.

Is this opportunity still accepting applications?

No. The original and current closing dates are listed as January 7, 2018, and the archive date is February 7, 2018, indicating the opportunity is no longer active.

When was the FOA posted and created?

The FOA was posted on November 18, 2014, with a creation date of November 19, 2014.

Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is broad and includes many U.S.-based organizations and governmental entities. Eligible applicants include public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, nonprofits with and without 501(c)(3) status, small businesses, and for-profit organizations other than small businesses. Government applicants listed as eligible include state governments, county governments, city or township governments, special district governments, independent school districts, and public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities.

Are specific institution types explicitly mentioned as eligible?

Yes. The FOA lists institution categories such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic Serving Institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), as well as faith-based or community-based organizations and eligible federal agencies.

Are foreign organizations or foreign components allowed?

No. Foreign organizations and foreign institutions are not eligible to apply, non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations are not eligible, and foreign components (as defined by NIH policy) are not allowed.

What NIH-wide initiative is this opportunity associated with?

PA-15-035 is within the broader Collaborative Research on Addiction at NIH (CRAN) initiative, reflecting a trans-NIH framing for addiction-related research.

What CFDA numbers are associated with this opportunity?

The summary lists CFDA numbers 93.273 (Alcohol Research Programs), 93.279 (Drug Abuse and Addiction Research Programs), and 93.399 (Cancer Control), reflecting cross-cutting addiction research and broader public health impacts associated with substance use.

Where was the full official announcement hosted?

The official source for the full announcement was hosted on the NIH grants site at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-15-035.html.

Who is the contact for access or technical issues related to the announcement?

The contact provided for access or technical issues is the NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) webmaster at FBOWebmaster@OD.NIH.GOV.

What types of outcomes is NIH ultimately trying to influence through this FOA?

Based on the summary, NIH signals interest in a translational pathway where improved target selection and measurement can produce interventions that reduce adolescent substance-related harm, including downstream morbidity and mortality.

Does the FOA emphasize prevention, treatment, or both?

Both. The opportunity is framed around improving adolescent substance abuse treatment and prevention interventions through mechanism-focused research on behavioral and neurobehavioral targets.

What is meant by moving "beyond broad program labels"?

It means shifting emphasis away from evaluating branded or bundled programs as a whole and toward interventions that are tightly linked to well-defined, measurable, and testable behavioral targets (for example, impulsivity or stress reactivity) so that the specific mechanisms of change can be studied and improved.