Stimulating Diversification in Language Science Research (LangDiv)
NSF supports research to diversify language science by broadening studied learners, languages, and methods to develop more generalizable theories of language and communication.
Funder: U.S. National Science Foundation
Due Dates: Follows deadlines of participating NSF programs (varies by program; many accept proposals anytime)
Funding Amounts: Award size and duration follow standard NSF program guidelines; varies by program.
Summary: Supports research projects that diversify language science by broadening representation of learners, languages, and methodologies to advance generalizable theories of language and communication.
Key Information: Proposals must be submitted to a participating program and begin the title with "LangDiv."
Description
This initiative encourages researchers to expand the scope of language science by diversifying the representation of learners, languages, cultures, contexts, and geographic locations studied. The goal is to catalyze interdisciplinary collaborations and promote the use of varied behavioral or neural methodologies—including computational modeling and artificial intelligence—to develop more generalizable and replicable theories in the language and communication sciences. The effort responds to the overrepresentation of specific language groups and contexts in research, seeking innovative approaches that integrate diverse perspectives and sampling practices to better understand language development, structure, processing, and their neural and cognitive bases.
Projects may address topics such as:
- Language acquisition in diverse sociolinguistic settings (e.g., bilingual/multilingual or bi-dialectical communities)
- Socioeconomic and cultural effects on language development
- Neuroscientific studies in underrepresented language communities
- Cross-linguistic variation in language processing
Proposals must clearly articulate how their approach to diversification will impact the development of generalizable theories in language science.
