£1.7 million funding announced for 192 innovative research projects

The British Academy and the Leverhulme Trust have today announced 192 Small Research Grants worth over £1.7 million to support trailblazing research projects in the SHAPE disciplines (Social Sciences, Humanities and the Arts for People and the Economy).

Worth up to £10,000 each over a period of up to two years, the British Academy / Leverhulme Trust Small Research Grants support academics working at universities and other research institutions across the UK – as well as independent scholars – by covering the cost of expenses arising from a particular research project.

The awards fulfil a crucial demand within the humanities and social sciences research community, providing funding for pilot and development phases of substantial projects. They often serve as the first substantial grant opportunity for emerging researchers in the field.

Funding for the Small Research Grants programme is provided by the Leverhulme Trust, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the British Accounting and Finance Association, the Sino-British Fellowship Trust, the Society for the Advancement of Management Studies, the Albert Rickett Fund, the Journal of Moral Education Trust and Wellcome.

The full list of 2023 Small Research Grants is published online. Examples include:

• ‘Inclusive Growth: Entrepreneurial ecosystems and the growth trajectories of women entrepreneurs’ – Dr Ketch Adeeko, University of Bristol
• ‘Investigating the Political Success of Narcissistic Leaders’ – Dr Philippe Beauregard, University of Aberdeen
• ‘Media Freedom: An International History, 1945 to the Present’ – Dr Simon Huxtable, Independent Scholar
• ‘Legitimising digital sustainability through stakeholder communication’ – Professor Shuang Ren, Queen's University Belfast
• ‘The Impact of Bank Branch Closures on Local SMEs and Employment: Evidence from the UK’ – Dr Binru Zhao, Bangor University

The cohort announced today is the third to be awarded as part of the Academy’s partial randomisation trial, which is set to continue over the next two years, consisting in total of six rounds over three years. Early results suggest that introducing partial randomisation into the selection process could lead to a more ethnically and institutionally diverse cohort of award-holders, though future trial rounds may yield a different set of results.

Dr Alex Lewis, the British Academy’s Director of Research, said: 

“The Small Research Grants programme continues to showcase the best of innovative SHAPE (Social Sciences, Humanities and the Arts for People and the Economy) research taking place across the UK. I’m particularly happy to see the programme continue its impressive record of backing diverse and engaged research. As always, we look forward to seeing these grants fuel fresh ideas and highlight the impact of the SHAPE disciplines."