Call for SPR Cup Team Applications

Call for Team Applications 19th Annual Sloboda and Bukoski SPR Cup

Applications are due by 11:59pm Eastern Time on December 31, 2024.

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Significant advances in prevention science are often due to teams of individuals working closely together across many years. In recognition of the importance of the collaborative process to the field, the Society for Prevention Research (SPR) sponsors a friendly annual competition amongst teams of early career researchers for the honor of bringing home the Sloboda and Bukoski SPR Cup. The Cup is named for two of the founders and long-time active members of SPR, Dr. Zili Sloboda and Dr. William Bukoski. The competition is an opportunity for a unique experience: several teams of scientists, each working with the same dataset, will develop a research question, analyze the data accordingly, and present their work to each other and to a panel of senior prevention scientists and the SPR membership.

Competition

  • The presentation component of the competition will take place during the annual SPR meeting, on May 27 through May 30, 2025 at the Hyatt Regency Seattle.
  • At least one representative from each team must be in Seattle, WA to present on behalf of the team. Travel funds are not provided, although all team members are encouraged to apply for travel funds through SPR’s ECPN travel awards. (See SPR website for 2024 details: https://preventionresearch.org/2024-annual-meeting/travel-awards/.)
  • Leading up to the meeting, each team will conduct a literature review, generate hypotheses, and conduct analyses using the competition dataset. Teams will be asked to prepare a 1-page research proposal outlining their research questions and analyses.
  • Four teams will be chosen as finalists based on their research proposal and will present a 15-minutes talk based on their results during a highlighted, invited symposium at the SPR annual meeting. A panel of senior prevention scientist judges and the audience at the symposium will rate the quality of the research and of the presentation. The highest scoring team will be recognized and awarded the 2025 SPR Cupduring the SPR Awards Ceremony.

Teams

Teams should include at least two and no more than five team members. Eligible team members are individuals who are currently enrolled in a masters or doctoral training program, or a postdoctoral position/training program. Each team should include participants with knowledge and practical experience in research methodology, data analysis, and conference presentation.

Dataset

The dataset to be used for this year’s competition is the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) Study. This is a longitudinal research initiative that began in 2011 with support from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The researchers collected data from youth and adults related to substance use behaviors and attitudes, as well as measures of health and wellbeing. The dataset provides opportunities for both cross sectional and longitudinal analyses.

The dataset can be found here: https://www.icpsr.umich.edu/web/NAHDAP/series/606.

Mentors

An experienced prevention science mentor should be identified. If needed, we can help to identify a mentor. This person should be available for consultation in person or via videoconference, phone, or email on an as-needed basis – and especially during the month leading up to the conference. Mentors may advise but may not conduct work for their team. All mentors must be acknowledged during the presentation. Teams are invited to engage mentors from multiple disciplines to consult with them as they work.

Criteria

Presentations will be judged on eight criteria: 1) Innovation of Project, 2) Depth and Usefulness of Statistical Analyses (including using appropriate analyses for sample), 3) Ability to Draw Meaningful Conclusions from the Data, 4) Significance of the Project to Prevention Science, 5) Quality of Verbal Presentation (including use of bias free language), 6) Quality of Visual Presentation, 7) Quality of Responses to Judges/Audience Questions, and 8) Connection with the SPR Annual Meeting Theme.

Publication

All participating teams are encouraged to refine their analyses after the meeting and to generate publishable products. The highest scoring team may be invited to submit a manuscript to be considered for publication in SPR’s flagship journal Prevention Science. If so, the manuscript will undergo the regular peer review process.

Application and Acceptance Process

Step 1. Submit Team Application and Verify Eligibility To apply, one person for each team should complete this Google Form: https://forms.gle/K38sdgJjCyEy9Vrm8

In the form, you will be asked to provide each team member’s name, email address, mailing address, highest academic degree, current position, primary institutional affiliation, and a brief summary of research skills and expertise. You will also be asked to specify a team name and designate a team captain and a team primary mentor (or request assistance in finding one).

Applications are due by 11:59pm Eastern Time on December 31, 2024.

Step 2. Develop Research Proposal

  • Teams who complete the application form in Step 1 will be informed by email on or before January 6, 2025 regarding their eligibility to continue in the application process.
  • Teams have until March 14, 2025 to submit their 1-page research proposal (more details to come). Proposals will be assessed based on the quality of their research questions and relevance to this year’s conference topic.

Step 3. Present at SPR

  • Finalists will be notified of their acceptance by March 28, 2025
  • A maximum of four teams will be accepted to present during the invited SPR Cup symposium and the other teams will be offered the opportunity to present their work as a poster during the conference.

Questions can be sent to:
Rashelle Musci, rmusci1@jhu.edu
Sarah Lynne, sarahlynne@ufl.edu
Larissa Gaias, larissa_gaias@uml.edu
Ashwini Tiwari  atiwari@augusta.edu
Co-Chairs, 2025 Sloboda and Bukoski SPR Cup