{"id":46562,"date":"2017-09-08T16:25:55","date_gmt":"2017-09-08T20:25:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/?p=46562"},"modified":"2017-09-08T16:25:38","modified_gmt":"2017-09-08T20:25:38","slug":"brock-researchers-awarded-3-8-million-from-nserc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/2017\/09\/brock-researchers-awarded-3-8-million-from-nserc\/","title":{"rendered":"Brock researchers awarded $3.8 million NSERC funding, up $1.4 million from last year"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/b>Passing out on purpose. Surfing on the roof of a moving car. Playing \u2018chicken\u2019 with an oncoming train.<\/span><\/p>\n

Recent headlines of teen stunts gone wrong have many scratching their heads wondering, \u201cWhat were they thinking?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Assistant Professor of Psychology Elizabeth Shulman is studying what happens in the minds of teenagers when they consider engaging in risky behaviour \u2014 and she will continue that work with the help of funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC).<\/span><\/p>\n

Shulman is one of almost two dozen Brock researchers receiving a total $3.8 million in funding under NSERC’s<\/span>\u00a02017 competition for the Discovery research programs\u00a0\u2014 more than $1.4 million over <\/span>last year\u2019s results<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

News of Brock\u2019s NSERC funding was delivered by Niagara Centre Member of Parliament Vance Badawey, who made the announcement Friday, Sept. 8 in the University\u2019s Cairns Family Health and Bioscience Research Complex.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"NSERC

Niagara Centre Member of Parliament Vance Badawey congratulates Brock University assistant professor of psychology Karen Campbell on being part of a $3.8 million Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada funding announcement for Brock researchers Friday, Sept. 8.<\/p><\/div>\n

A national announcement, with results of the 2017 Discovery programs, scholarships and fellowships competitions for universities across the country, was simultaneously made in B.C. by the Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis announcement, once again, affirms our government\u2019s commitment to scientific research and the understanding of its importance in our society,\u201d Badawey says. \u201cNiagara is, year by year, continuing to establish itself as a centre of ground-breaking research and by providing much needed resources, we are enabling our brightest minds to meet challenges both today and into the future.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The funds will support\u00a0Shulman in conducting a wide range of physical and psychological tests to explore how adolescents\u2019 decision-making about risk differs when it is based on intuition rather than careful deliberation. She plans to use funds to purchase specialized equipment to measure bodily responses to risk, create computerized risk-taking tasks, and compensate research participants for their time. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis research is important for understanding the most effective ways to keep adolescents safe \u2014 when they are a little bit more vulnerable to risk-taking \u2014 without going overboard or keeping them from having experiences that will allow them to learn,\u201d\u00a0she says.<\/span><\/p>\n

Current research points to teens\u2019 higher sensitivity to rewards as being a key motivator for risky behaviour. However, many studies\u00a0<\/span>use unrealistic decision-making tasks that encourage one to thoughtfully weigh the pros and cons of a particular action or respond to heightened emotions, or both, Shulman says.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIn real life, we don\u2019t actually make that many decisions that way,\u201d she explains. \u201cWe tend to just go with our gut. I think adolescents\u2019 increased levels of risk-taking is probably the result of decision-making that\u2019s based on their gut, their intuition, but not a lot of research has focused on intuitive decision-making.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Brock\u2019s funding includes Discovery Grants, Discovery Development Grants, Discovery Accelerator Supplements and the Northern Research Supplement, as well as master\u2019s and doctoral student awards.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"NSERC

Brock University President Gervan Fearon, centre, addresses the crowd during a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada funding announcement for Brock researchers Friday, Sept. 8. Fearon is joined by Assistant Professor of Psychology Karen Campbell, left, and Niagara Centre Member of Parliament Vance Badawey.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cIn my 28 years at Brock, this is the best round that I can remember for funding success through the NSERC Discovery Programs,\u201d says Interim Vice-President, Research, Joffre Mercier. \u201cI am very proud of our faculty members, and I congratulate them for the outstanding work.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

The success rate for renewing NSERC grants is 80 per cent.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe Government of Canada is committed to investing in fundamental research and engineering that will improve and enrich our country\u2019s knowledge economy,\u201d \u00a0says the Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science. \u201cWe believe in encouraging scientists\u2019 cutting-edge ideas that will lead Canada to greater social and economic growth. I am particularly proud of the support offered to postgraduate students and postdoctoral fellows, who, thanks to today\u2019s investment, will be exposed to advanced training experiences that will prepare them for the jobs and opportunities of tomorrow.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

NSERC awarded Michael Pisaric and Georgii Nikanov with Discovery Accelerator Supplements, grants that researcher don\u2019t apply for but rather are chosen for by the federal funding agency from the pool of Discovery Grant applicants each year.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Discovery Accelerator Supplement grant is awarded to researchers \u201cwho have a superior research program that is highly rated in terms of originality and innovation, and who show strong potential to become international leaders within their field,\u201d says the<\/span> NSERC site<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Pisaric also received a Northern Research Supplement, which provides funding for additional logistical costs to NSERC-funded researchers who conduct research in the Canadian North.<\/span><\/p>\n

Not included in the total is a $149,428 Research Tools and Instruments grant that chemists Melanie Pilkington, Charis Stamatatos and Art van der Est received for the purchase of specialized equipment.<\/span><\/p>\n

Brock University\u2019s recipients of NSERC Discovery Grants in the 2017 competition:<\/strong><\/p>\n