Bringing People Into Focus: How Social, Behavioral and Economic Research Addresses National Challenges.  This NSF report provides examples of the ways in which NSF-funded basic, social and behavioral science research bears on national security and economic interests.

Stimulating Research Related to the Use and Functioning of the Civil Justice System. Law and Social Sciences (LSS) scholars have a rich tradition of describing and explaining how people and organizations mobilize the law, and, in turn, how legal institutions respond to legal demands. In order to stimulate research concerning the use and functioning of the civil justice system, NSF's Law & Social Sciences program announces its continuing interest in supporting research in this area via a Dear Colleague Letter.

Accelerating Integrative Research in Neuroscience and Cognitive Science. The National Science Foundation seeks proposals with the potential to transform neuroscience and cognitive science. For more information on this initiative, see the Dear Colleague Letter.

Stimulating Research Related to the Science of Broadening Participation. Building on the previous investments of the Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences Directorate (SBE) to stimulate research related to the Science of Broadening Participation (SBP), SBE and the Directorate for Education and Human Resources (EHR) have now decided to partner with each other to support SBP research. For complete details concerning this endeavor, see the Dear Colleague Letter.

Interdisciplinary Research Across the SBE Sciences, Including a New Interdisciplinary Behavioral and Social Sciences (IBSS) Competition.  Based on feedback gathered during the SBE 2020 visioning process and presented in Rebuilding the Mosaic, the Directorate for Social, Behavioral & Economic Sciences (SBE) encourages investigators to submit proposals that go beyond the boundaries of traditional disciplines, span across the existing core SBE programs, or extend outside the SBE sciences.  A new Dear Colleague Letter outlines a range of options for pursuing support for interdisciplinary research that bridges the social, behavioral, and economic (SBE) sciences.  Among these options is a new competition for Interdisciplinary Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (IBSS).  Consult the IBSS website and the IBSS solicitation for more information.

SBE 2020 Update.   The SBE 2020 Report, Rebuilding the Mosaic: Fostering Research in the Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences at the National Science Foundation in the Next Decade is now available.  A webcast on this report was released on December 1, 2011.

As scientific research becomes more global in scope and significance, fostering the expansion of interdisciplinary research endeavors and international collaborations is of increasing importance. The Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences (SBE) Directorate encourages research that brings U.S. scientists together with scientists from other countries to work on common projects.  Consequently, the SBE Directorate and The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) of the UK have been collaborating in support of research of mutual interest for several years.  A Memorandum of Understanding is in place to encourage interdisciplinary research and facilitate the peer-review and joint-funding of US-UK collaborative research in areas at the intersection of the two agencies' missions.  Prospective Principal Investigators (PIs) should review the programs supported through SBE's two research divisions, the Division of Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences and Division of Social and Economic Sciences, as well as the AHRC for further information on each of the agency's areas of support.  Researchers are also encouraged to discuss topics for possible joint support with agency personnel.

If you are interested in US-UK collaborative research opportunities, please review the special guidelines to learn more about the review process and criteria established under the MOU.

Online Resource Center for Ethics Education in Science and Engineering
(NSF  13-558) Posted April 17, 2013

EPSCoR Research Infrastructure Improvement Program Track-1:
(NSF  13-549) Posted March 27, 2013

Smart and Connected Health
(NSF  13-543) Posted February 26, 2013

Research Experiences for Undergraduates
(NSF  13-542) Posted February 22, 2013

Nanotechnology Undergraduate Education (NUE) in Engineering
(NSF  13-541) Posted February 21, 2013

Smart and Connected Health
(NSF  13-543) Full Proposal: May 28, 2013, Exploratory (EXP) Proposals

Integrated NSF Support Promoting Interdisciplinary Research and Education
(NSF  13-518) Full Proposal: May 29, 2013, Director's INSPIRE Awards Full Proposals

Integrated NSF Support Promoting Interdisciplinary Research and Education
(NSF  13-518) Full Proposal: May 29, 2013, INSPIRE Track 1 Full Proposals

Smart and Connected Health
(NSF  13-543) Full Proposal: June 3, 2013, Integrative (INT) Proposals

Research Coordination Networks
(NSF  13-520) Full Proposal: June 14, 2013, RCN UBE & UBE incubator Track