Measures and Methods to Advance Research on Minority Health and Health Disparities-Related Constructs (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | PAR 22 072

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 22 072

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is offering a discretionary research grant opportunity titled "Measures and Methods to Advance Research on Minority Health and Health Disparities-Related Constructs (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)," under Funding Opportunity Number PAR 22 072. This announcement supports R01 projects that focus on improving how researchers measure, define, and assess complex concepts that matter for minority health and health disparities research. In practical terms, the FOA is aimed at strengthening the scientific tools used to study why health outcomes differ across populations and how those differences are shaped by social, environmental, cultural, structural, and other multi-level factors. Because this is an R01 mechanism, applicants are generally expected to propose a well-developed, hypothesis-driven or methodologically rigorous program of work with clear deliverables that can significantly advance measurement science in this area. Clinical trials are not allowed under this specific FOA, so the work should not be designed as an intervention study that prospectively assigns people to conditions to evaluate health-related outcomes.

The central purpose of the opportunity is measurement and methods development rather than testing a treatment or running an intervention trial. Projects may include developing new instruments, refining existing measures, improving validity and reliability, creating or adapting metrics for specific populations, advancing analytic methods for assessing complicated constructs, or building approaches that capture these constructs more accurately across different communities and settings. The emphasis on "complex constructs" signals that NIH is interested in measurement challenges where concepts are not straightforward or one-dimensional, such as experiences of discrimination, structural racism, acculturation, neighborhood context, access to care, health literacy, stigma, community resilience, chronic stress, cultural identity, language and communication barriers, or multi-level determinants that influence health over time. The goal is to produce measures and methodological approaches that are rigorous, generalizable when appropriate, and sensitive to the realities of populations experiencing health disparities.

This FOA falls within NIH health-related funding activity areas and is associated with multiple CFDA numbers (93.113, 93.121, 93.242, 93.307, 93.393, 93.395, 93.396), reflecting the involvement of NIH programs that support research across disease areas and public health priorities. The funding instrument is a grant, and the activity category is listed under Education, Environment, and Health, which aligns with the program's focus on improving the research infrastructure and methodological foundations that inform minority health and disparities science. The listed award ceiling is $500,000, indicating that applicants should plan budgets with that limit in mind where applicable. The original closing date shown in the source data is May 7, 2024, and the record creation date is November 20, 2021.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of U.S.-based organizations and government entities. Eligible applicants include state governments, county governments, city or township governments, special district governments, independent school districts, and public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities. Higher education institutions are eligible, including public and state-controlled institutions of higher education and private institutions of higher education. Tribal entities are eligible, including federally recognized Native American tribal governments as well as Native American tribal organizations other than federally recognized tribal governments. The opportunity is also open to nonprofit organizations, both those with 501(c)(3) status and those without 501(c)(3) status, as long as they are not institutions of higher education. For-profit organizations (other than small businesses) and small businesses may also apply, and NIH includes an "Others" category that can capture additional qualifying organizations.

NIH also explicitly highlights several additional eligible applicant categories that are often central to minority health and disparities work. These include Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), and Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs). Faith-based or community-based organizations are named as eligible, which is important for measurement research that may require strong community partnerships, culturally grounded instrument development, or data collection in community settings. Eligible agencies of the federal government and regional organizations are also included. U.S. territories or possessions are eligible as well, which can support research that addresses disparities in territorial contexts where health systems and social conditions may differ from those in the states.

The foreign eligibility rules are specific and worth noting. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities, including foreign organizations and foreign institutions, are not eligible to apply directly for this FOA. In addition, non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are not eligible to apply. However, "foreign components" are allowed as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement. This distinction typically means that while a foreign institution cannot be the applicant organization, a U.S.-based applicant may include a clearly justified portion of the work to be performed outside the U.S. (for example, specialized analyses, access to unique populations or settings, or collaboration with a foreign site), as long as it meets NIH policy requirements and is appropriately documented.

Overall, this grant opportunity is designed for teams that want to make minority health and health disparities research more precise and comparable by improving the underlying measures and methods used across studies. A competitive application would usually be expected to show a strong conceptual framework for the construct(s) being measured, a clear plan for instrument development or methodological innovation, appropriate psychometric or validation strategies, attention to cultural and contextual relevance, and a path for the resulting measures or methods to be adopted by other researchers or applied across multiple studies. The end result NIH is seeking is not simply another dataset, but better tools and approaches that help the field study disparities more accurately and ultimately support stronger evidence to inform policy, practice, and future interventions.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, environment, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Measures and Methods to Advance Research on Minority Health and Health Disparities-Related Constructs (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.113, 93.121, 93.242, 93.307, 93.393, 93.395, 93.396.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2021-11-20.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-05-07. (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 $500,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, 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, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for PAR 22 072

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