Interdisciplinary Committee

Mission Statement

The mission of the interdisciplinary committee is to enhance quality, promote visibility, and support capacity building related to interdisciplinary research in the developmental sciences. Through this, we aim to facilitate bold but thoughtful boundary crossings between disciplines to address scientific questions and identify multi-system factors that contribute to innovation and impact on child development. However, the diversity of theory, methods, and language across disciplines often results in a siloing of knowledge that impedes progress toward an integrated understanding of developmental phenomena. Our goal is to help build equitable interdisciplinary bridges that break down these silos, and to inspire as well as foster a culture that rewards the next generation of scientists to address complex human development questions with an interdisciplinary frame.

Recent Initiatives (2025):

Early Career Interdisciplinary Scholars Fellowship (ECISF) Program: Supports early-career scholars within five years of earning a terminal degree in a field outside psychology or human development who are conducting interdisciplinary work in developmental science.

Is Technology Good or Bad for Child Development – Webinar: This interdisciplinary webinar explores the evolving role of technology in child development, highlighting both its potential benefits and emerging concerns. Panelists share insights across fields and outline a forward-looking research agenda for the next decade.

Committee Roster

Activities and News

• Interdisciplinary Awards
• Interdisciplinary Programs
• Interdisciplinary Special Issues
• Interdisciplinary Awardees Presentations and Interviews
• Upcoming  Events
• SRCD YouTube Channel

Awards

• Jacobs Foundation
• Jefress Trust Awards Program in Interdisciplinary Research 
• 2015-2016 Research Incubator Awards (Duke University)
• King's Experience Interdisciplinary Award
• SNI Interdisciplinary Scholar Awards
• Monroe G. Sirken Award in Interdisciplinary Survey Methods Research
• Interdisciplinary Behavioral and Social Science Research (IBSS)
• Distinguished Awards for Interdisciplinary Sustainability
• James H. Zumberge Research and Innovation Fund
• Jeffres Trust Awards Program in Interdisciplinary Research
• Mizzou Advantage: Faculty Interdisciplinary Development Awards
• Welcome Trust: The Hub Award
• University of Oregon: Incubating Interdisciplinary Initiatives

Programs

In this page, we include some suggestions of interdisciplinary programs of potential interest for graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and faculty. The list of programs is not comprehensive, so you can contact the Committee co-chairs to ask for the consideration of other programs.

• Early Career Interdisciplinary Scholars Fellowship Program (Society for Research in Child Development)
• Behavioral Health Programs (Arizona State University)
• Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study and Human Development (Tufts University)
• Learned Centered Curricula (University of Southern California)
• LIFE Course: Evolutionary and Ontogenetic Dynamics (University of Michigan)
• Interdisciplinary Program in Biomedical Sciences (University of Florida at Gainesville)
• Center for Interdisciplinary Studies (Davidson College)
• The Department of Biobehavioral Health (Penn State)
• Interdisciplinary Studies in Child Development Concentration (California State University)
• PhD in Human Development and Social Policy (Northwestern University)
• Doctoral Program in Behavioral and Social Health Sciences (Brown University)
• Mind, Brain and Education Program (Harvard University)
• Interdisciplinary Studies (Institute for Advanced Study)
• Spring 2015 Interdisciplinary honors seminars (Rutgers)
• 2015 Interdisciplinary Programe (Loyola University New Orleans)

Interdisciplinary Special Issues

• The journal Research in Human Development has just published a new special issue calls “Just one wish for the study of human development” edited by Richard A. Stetterston and Megan McClelland (Oregon State University). The issue includes the section “Interdisciplinary collaboration and playing well with others” which contains the following papers:
• Interdisciplinarity, Nature
• Sustainable humanity, sustainable nature: Our responsibility, Pontifical Academy of Sciences
• Towards Truly Interdisciplinary Research on Human Development, Ursula M. Staudinger
• Teams Do It Better!, Toni C. Antonucci
• Let’s Work Together: Towards Interdisciplinary Collaboration,Ingrid Schoon
• The Study That Got Away, Frank F. Furstenberg
• Understanding Human Development: Toward a Comprehensive Framework, Frederick J. Morrison

Interdisciplinary Awardees Presentations and Interviews

• Gary W. Evans (2017 SRCD Inderdisciplinary Awardee)
• Thomas S. Weisner (2017 SRCD Inderdisciplinary Awardee)
• Carol Worthman (2015 SRCD Interdisciplinary Awardee)
• Tom Boyce (2015 SRCD Interdisciplinary Awardee)

Events

2017

• Biennial Meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development

2016

• Interdisciplinary research methods. What? Why? How? Who? (Interdisciplinary net)
• 5th International Conference on Adoption Researh
• The International Conference on Interdisciplinary Social Sciences
• End-of-Academic-Year Multidisciplinary Conference in Munich
• Education and Development Conference 2016
• Interdisciplinary Forum  (Missouri State)
• 3rd International Conference on Interdisciplinary Social Sciences Study
• 4th Annual International Conference on Cognitive - Social, and Behavioural Sciences (icCSBs)
• 2016 Asia-Pacific Conference on Education, Society  and Psychology
• 10th annual International Technology, Education and Development Conference,
• Interdisciplinary symposia (University of Calgary)
• Second International Conference on Loss, Bereavement and Human Resilience in Israel and the World: Facts, Insights and Implications
• IACAPAP Congress 2016: International Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions
• IMBES 2016 Conference
• FENS Forum

2015

• International Conference on Education, Psychology and Social Sciences
• 2015 FPR-UCLA Interdisciplinary Conference on Gender (UCLA)
• A Critical Moment: Sex/Gender Research at the Intersection of Culture, Brain, & Behavior 
• The Annual International Conference on Cognitive - Social, and Behavioural Sciences 
• Interdisciplinary Research Regional Conference
• 1st International Congress of Clinical and Health Psychology with Children and Adolescents 
• Improving Outcomes for Looked After Children Conference