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In This Section:
Description
Prior to the clinical diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia, individuals may experience subtle changes in cognition, emotion, social behavior, or changes in everyday functions, like financial decision making, driving, or medication management. BSR is invested in developing sensitive tools for early detection of these psychological and functional changes. Such tools could inform the development of new diagnostic procedures, identify individuals who might benefit from treatments or preventive interventions, and allow people to take steps to manage important decisions about healthcare, finances, driving, and living arrangements. Measures of early psychological and functional changes, along with biomarkers, could also serve as intermediate outcome measures for AD/ADRD prevention trials.
BSR supports research on the development and application of new approaches for early and/or passive detection or preclinical monitoring of change in cognition, affective function, motivation, social function, decision-making and other behaviors. BSR supports observational studies that document these changes and relate them to their neurobiological, genetic, and physiological underpinnings; as well as studies that develop new assessment tools and adapt them for research or clinical purposes. Of particular interest are studies that elucidate when in the life course and along which dimensions AD/ADRD-related changes in psychological processes or everyday functions diverge from changes observed in normal aging.
BSR goals for this area include:
- Continue to encourage research that links behavioral, psychological, and social change with additional approaches to early detection of AD/ADRD such as scans and blood tests in its supported research and its large population data infrastructure development.
- Encourage research that integrates cognitive with non-cognitive motivational and emotional aspects of both normal and abnormal age-related changes in psychological and brain function, as well as with other aspects of mental health.
- Support development of novel cognitive measurement technologies to accelerate discoveries about changes in normal cognitive function, mild cognitive impairment, and AD/ADRD.
Related AD+ADRD Research Implementation Milestones: 9H , 11D , 11F
Funding Opportunities
BSR is accepting grant applications to a number of funding opportunities related to early psychological and functional changes in AD/ADRD. In addition, any AD/ADRD-focused application can be submitted to NIA’s parent AD/ADRD R01 and R21 program announcements. Notices of Special Interest associated with these parent NOFOs specify high priority behavioral and social research topics. For a list of all of BSR’s active funding opportunities, visit our funding opportunities and applicant resources page.
| NOFO Number | Title | Release Date | Expiration Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| PAR-22-213 | Complex Integrated Multi-Component Projects in Aging Research (U19 Clinical Trial Optional) | 7/7/2022 | 9/26/2025 |
| NOT-AG-21-048 | Notice of Special Interest (NOSI): Digital Technology for Early Detection and Monitoring of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias | 1/6/2022 | 11/13/2024 |
Research Investments
BSR has supported research projects focused on early psychological and functional changes in AD/ADRD through targeted notices of funding opportunity. Although some of these funding opportunities are no longer active, the topics outlined in the announcements remain priority research areas for BSR. Applications on these topics should be submitted through a relevant active NOFO or through NIA’s parent AD/ADRD R01 and R21 program announcements.
- NOT-AG-20-017 - Notice of Special Interest: Digital Technology for Early Detection of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias. Funded Project Descriptions .
- NOT-AG-20-040 - Notice of Special Interest: Basic and Translational Research on Affective, Motivational, and Social Function in Normative Aging and/or Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (AD/ADRD). Funded Project Descriptions .
- RFA-AG-20-022 - Aging, Driving and Early Detection of Dementia (R01 Clinical Trial Optional). Funded Project Descriptions .
- RFA-AG-20-050 and RFA-AG-20-051 - Low Cost Detection of Cognitive Decline in Clinical Settings. Funded Project Descriptions .
- PAR-18-538 and PAR-18-544 - Basic and Translation Research on Decision Making in Aging and Alzheimer's Disease. Funded Project Descriptions.
- PAR-18-581 and PAR-18-582 - Emotional Function in Normal Aging and/or MCI and AD/ADRD. Funded Project Descriptions.
- RFA-AG-18-012 - Mobile Monitoring of Cognitive Change. Funded Project Descriptions.
Related Workshops & Reports
Behavioral and Social Research and Clinical Practice Implications of Biomarkers and Other Preclinical Diagnostics of Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and AD-Related Dementias , June 28-29, 2021
Decadal Survey of Behavioral and Social Science Research on Alzheimer's Disease and Alzheimer's Disease-Related Dementias , August 14, 2019 – July 8, 2020
Leveraging Insights and Approaches from Social and Affective Neuroscience to Promote Adaptive Aging , November 18-19, 2019
Cost-Effective Early Detection of Cognitive Decline , October 25, 2017
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