Call for Proposals
Deadline: January 6, 2026
We are pleased to invite developmental scholars to apply for research grants to explore topics related to the development of intellectual humility among children. Funded by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation, this research initiative is designed to bring together a network of scholars interested in the developmental trajectory of intellectual humility and its impact on reasoning across domains.
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Intellectual humility (IH)—the ability to recognize the fallibility and limits of our knowledge—has a potentially crucial impact on learning and is particularly important given the hyper-polarization of beliefs engendered by the information age and the advent of fake news. However, it is currently difficult to develop programs aimed at fostering IH, as we still don’t know much (if anything) about how intellectual humility develops across childhood, and more generally across the lifespan.
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The first phase of this multi-site collaborative project focused on developing a self-report measure of IH with good psychometric properties that can measure trait intellectual humility in 6- to 10-year-old children. The resulting ten item measure takes 6 to 10 minutes to administer and can be used with children as young as 6 and with adults. The measure can be found here. We welcome the translation of the measure into other languages.
The second phase of the project is aimed at collecting data from diverse populations using our new measure of intellectual humility, and contributing to the evidence on whether and how children’s intellectual humility shapes their learning.
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To promote these activities and further research on the development of IH, the Development of Intellectual Humility Project will distribute up to 10 small grants of up to $40,000 USD each, with a focus on supporting early career researchers and researchers seeking to collect data from diverse populations. Recipients of small grants will be required to collect data using the new measure of IH developed in the initial phase of the project as part of their project.
Expectations: Small grant recipients will be expected to (1) complete a research project related to the development of intellectual humility in the period between May 1, 2026 and October 31st, 2027. Recipients must also (2) submit regular progress reports, (3) commit to attending two online workshops in 2026, (4) commit to attending a culminating project meeting towards the end of 2027, (5) actively engage in dissemination of their findings, through conference presentations and manuscript submissions, (6) make data available on a public repository (like OSF) after publication.
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Eligibility: Grant proposals are invited from individuals or teams from anywhere in the world (non-U.S. citizens are eligible to apply), with the exception of countries on the US OFAC Sanctions List. The Principal Investigator of the research site must have a doctoral degree (or equivalent) and be affiliated with an accredited college or university.
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Budget: Funding is available for up to $40,000 USD per grant, inclusive of overhead (indirect costs). The Templeton Foundation’s maximum overhead allowable for these grants is 15%. Note that funding will be contingent upon appropriate documentation of IRB approval and approval of the research team.
Note that grantees are required to allocate some of their budget toward travel (e.g., flights or train tickets) to attend the culminating conference.
Application process: Proposals should include a 5-page narrative, including (1) a clear description of how the proposed research project investigates whether intellectual humility shapes children’s learning, (2) a review of the relevant literature, (3) a description of the research site and/or target population, and why that site/population would be informative for understanding the development of intellectual humility, (4) a timeline for the research project—funding will start on May 1, 2026 and end on October 31st, 2027. In addition, all proposals should include (5) CVs for all key personnel, (6) a brief budget and budget justification, and (7) a reference list. Grant proposals should be submitted as a single pdf document emailed to dev.ih.utm@utoronto.ca by 11:59 PM EST on January 6th, 2026.
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Review process: Four members of the project leadership team will review all proposals based on the criteria described below. Notifications of awards will be sent by March 6th, 2026.
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Review criteria:
Scientific merit:
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Alignment to project goals: the developmental study of Intellectual Humility
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Innovation and grounding in prior research
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Commitment to open science practices: pre-registration, data sharing, sample size justification
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Methodological rigor
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Contribution to language or geographic diversity https://outlook.office.com/owa/
Feasibility:
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Timeline
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Expertise on the topic outlined in the grant proposal
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Data collection infrastructure
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Experience with cross-cultural research (if applicable)
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Appropriate use of research funds
Special consideration will be given to early career researchers.
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Please direct any questions to Samuel Ronfard (samuel.ronfard@utoronto.ca).
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Formatting:
Proposals narratives longer than 5 pages will not be read.
Formatting requirements are: Times New Roman, 12pt, single spaced, 1-inch margins all sides.