Infusing human behavior into epidemiological models is focus of new NSF-supported research projects
08/15/2022
Infusing human behavior into epidemiological models is focus of new NSF-supported research projects
The U.S. National Science Foundation is investing more than $7.5 million in new research focused on empowering more reliable prediction of the spread of infectious diseases, the effects of mitigation measures and other critical aspects of national health crises. The funding will support eight interdisciplinary research projects aimed at incorporating the complexities of human behavior into epidemiological models.
The science of epidemiology studies the health of groups of people — including the causes and patterns of infectious disease spread — in populations ranging in size from individual neighborhoods to the entire world. Advanced mathematical models are invaluable predictive tools in epidemiology and are widely used by healthcare professionals, decision-makers and leaders. However, the COVID-19 pandemic revealed that current epidemiological models do not adequately account for the human behavioral, social and economic factors that are key to understanding and mitigating a rapidly changing public health crisis.
“The resiliency and health of every community in the U.S. can be strengthened by leveraging the fundamental power of mathematics to better understand behavioral and social dynamics,” says NSF Assistant Director for Mathematical and Physical Sciences Sean L. Jones. “These new projects are bringing together researchers in a multitude of fields, from mathematical biology to social psychology, to unlock the insights that can provide policymakers and others with the most complete predictive models possible.”
“This bold work is based on a simple but ambitious premise: The consequences of pandemics and other public health emergencies can and should be anticipated in advance,” says NSF Assistant Director for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences Kellina Craig-Henderson. “The potential value of this innovative research for every American is recognized not just by NSF but also by our incredible research community who has risen to this difficult but vital challenge.”
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Flood mitigation, rural transportation, supply chains: NSF awards 9 new people-focused research grants
Flood mitigation measures, rural transportation systems and pharmaceutical supply chains are among the subjects being examined by nine new research projects receiving backing from the U.S. National Science Foundation. NSF is investing more than $8 million in the projects through its Strengthening American Infrastructure program. The program supports research that utilizes advances in behavioral and social science to improve the value and usefulness of infrastructure in people’s lives, from U.S. roads and highways to state and local power grids.
The projects are centered in social and behavioral science being conducted at institutions across the U.S. in collaboration with researchers from a wide range of other fields including computer science, engineering, geosciences, mathematics and physical sciences.
“These projects can reveal new ways to enhance safety, reduce pain points in our everyday lives and enable greater prosperity and security for future generations,” says Marc Sebrechts, director of NSF’s Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences Division. “NSF’s Strengthening American Infrastructure program is using the illuminating power of social and behavioral science to examine issues and opportunities at the heart of practically every type of infrastructure that people in the U.S. depend on.”
“Strong infrastructure stimulates U.S. job creation, improves our quality of life and protects the well-being of our communities for many years into the future,” says NSF Assistant Director for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences Kellina Craig-Henderson. “The projects we’re supporting are taking science out of the proverbial lab and into a broad new array of areas so communities large and small can directly benefit from their discoveries.”
The projects’ diverse goals include improving air quality in rural areas with high levels of highway traffic, enabling communities and neighborhoods to retain power during large-scale power outages and helping states and cities effectively plan for increasingly frequent floods and storm surge.
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