Emotional Well-Being: High-Priority Research Networks

Emotional well-being has emerged as a critical focus area for the National Institutes of Health, with significant recognition that understanding and promoting emotional well-being can fundamentally improve health outcomes across populations. In April 2018, the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) and the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR), in collaboration with other NIH institutes, centers, and offices, sponsored a comprehensive roundtable discussion focused on gaining deeper insight into the existing research on the role of emotional well-being in health. This pivotal gathering brought together leading experts to advance research in this area and create a trans-NIH research program dedicated to developing, testing, and implementing intervention strategies to promote emotional well-being.

Following this roundtable discussion, the NIH recognized the need for a coordinated, multidisciplinary approach to emotional well-being research. In December 2019, NCCIH issued a request for applications titled “Emotional Well-Being: High-Priority Research Networks,” which utilized the U24 cooperative agreement funding mechanism. This mechanism is specifically designed for resource development and planning, enabling interdisciplinary teams to form and grow research on priority areas. The initiative has since funded multiple research networks totaling substantial investment in advancing this critical field of study.

Background and Initiative Origins

The establishment of emotional well-being as a high-priority research area represents a significant shift in how the NIH approaches health research. Rather than focusing solely on disease treatment, these networks emphasize the positive aspects of mental and physical health that contribute to overall well-being. This holistic approach recognizes that emotional well-being is not merely the absence of illness but an active state of psychological, social, and emotional functioning that contributes to resilience, stress management, and long-term health outcomes.

The roundtable meeting report, “Emotional Well-Being: Emerging Insights and Questions for Future Research,” provided the foundational framework for these research networks. The document outlined key research gaps, identified promising areas for investigation, and established priorities for a coordinated research agenda across multiple NIH institutes and centers.

Research Network Objectives and Focus Areas

The emotional well-being research networks operate with clearly defined objectives designed to advance the field systematically. Network applications are restricted to specific research topics of high priority, ensuring that funded research addresses critical gaps in our understanding of emotional well-being and its relationship to health outcomes.

Ontology of Emotional Well-Being

One primary focus area involves determining the neurobiological and behavioral components of emotional well-being across the lifespan and for various subgroups. This research seeks to establish a clear, scientifically grounded understanding of what emotional well-being actually is at the fundamental level. Researchers investigate how emotional well-being manifests differently across age groups, and in specific populations such as individuals with chronic pain, those experiencing economic hardship, military personnel, and other at-risk communities. By establishing a robust ontology, researchers create a common language and framework that enables comparison across studies and populations.

Mechanisms of Emotional Well-Being

Understanding the mechanisms through which emotional well-being develops and functions is essential for designing effective interventions. Research in this area focuses on identifying and developing models of potential mechanisms based on biological, neurobiological, psychological, behavioral, and social factors. Using mechanistic research approaches, scientists work to identify intervention targets, develop and validate experimental methods and measures that engage these targets, and build predictive models for how interventions might enhance emotional well-being.

Biomarkers of Emotional Well-Being

Biomarker identification represents a crucial research objective, as these biological indicators provide objective measures of emotional well-being that can complement subjective assessments. Researchers develop and validate predictive models for interventions aimed at promoting individual-based emotional well-being. These biomarkers might include physiological measures, neuroimaging findings, hormonal markers, or other biological indicators that correlate with emotional well-being and can predict intervention outcomes.

Prevention Research

Prevention-focused research examines the impact of emotional well-being across the entire lifespan, from early childhood through older adulthood. Specific areas of investigation include children’s development, pain management, opioid misuse prevention, caregiver support, and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and mild cognitive impairment. Researchers develop and pilot test prevention strategies aimed at enhancing various aspects of emotional well-being in at-risk populations, ensuring that interventions are tailored to specific life stages and circumstances.

High-Priority Research Topics

Beyond the core research areas, the networks address several high-priority topics that cut across these categories:

Technology and Outcome Measure Development

Networks actively work on developing technology-based tools for measuring emotional well-being in everyday contexts. This includes smartphone applications, wearable devices, and digital platforms that enable real-world assessment of emotional states and well-being outcomes. These technological approaches allow researchers to capture emotional well-being as it occurs naturally in participants’ lives, rather than relying solely on retrospective self-reports conducted in laboratory or clinical settings.

Measurement Scale Development and Validation

A critical gap in emotional well-being research involves the lack of standardized, validated measurement instruments. Research networks work to develop new measurement scales and adapt existing instruments for diverse populations, including children and adolescents. This work includes harmonizing measures across studies to enable data comparison and integration, creating comprehensive measurement repositories, and establishing best practices for assessing emotional well-being in research contexts.

Mind-Body Interventions and Emotional Well-Being

Several networks specifically investigate the relationship between mind-body interventions—such as yoga, meditation, mindfulness practices, and complementary health approaches—and emotional well-being outcomes. This research explores whether emotional well-being serves as an outcome of these interventions or as a mediator through which they produce improvements in mental and physical health.

NCCIH-Funded Research Networks

The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health has funded several flagship research networks advancing emotional well-being science:

M3EWB: Mechanisms Underlying Mind-Body Interventions and Measurement of Emotional Well-Being

The M3EWB research network represents an interdisciplinary effort to build consensus on a definition of emotional well-being and explore existing measurement approaches. This network works to fill gaps in measurement, such as adapting and validating measures of emotional well-being specifically for children and adolescents. Additionally, the network investigates the relationship between mind-body interventions and emotional well-being, examining whether emotional well-being may serve as an outcome or mediator of improved mental and physical health.

Plasticity of Well-Being Research Network

The Plasticity of Well-Being network focuses on identifying ways to measure emotional health and well-being in everyday life contexts. A central goal involves understanding how flexible or plastic aspects of well-being might be when enhanced through effective, culturally relevant interventions and training. This network recognizes that emotional well-being is not static but can be modified and improved through targeted approaches tailored to diverse cultural contexts.

EMOT-ECON: Emotional Well-Being and Economic Burden Research Network

The EMOT-ECON network addresses a critical but understudied area: the impact of economic burden and financial stress on emotional well-being. This network advances research examining how healthcare-related financial burdens, poverty, and economic hardship affect emotional well-being in real-world contexts and in diverse populations. By positioning itself as a leader in this research area, EMOT-ECON aims to minimize the impact of economic burden on health and enhance overall well-being in economically disadvantaged populations.

NIA-Funded Research Networks

The National Institute on Aging has established research networks specifically addressing emotional well-being across the aging process and in relation to age-related diseases:

NEW Brain Aging: Network for Emotional Well-Being and Brain Aging

The NEW Brain Aging research network addresses mechanistic research on the role of emotional well-being in health, with a specific focus on aging-related processes. This network identifies and tests mechanisms through which brain aging influences emotional well-being and investigates how emotional well-being may impact the risk for and progression of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. Understanding these relationships could reveal new intervention targets for promoting healthy aging and reducing dementia risk.

NEW-B: Network for Emotional Well-Being

The NEW-B research network consists of a cohesive transdisciplinary team of scientists dedicated to enhancing empirical rigor and building consensus around the conceptual definition of emotional well-being and measurement approaches. The network promotes synergy across different methods and study paradigms and catalyzes mechanistic, intervention-relevant research that can yield reliable pathways for improving emotional well-being. This network serves as a central hub for coordinating emotional well-being research across multiple disciplines and institutions.

Advancing Psychosocial and Biobehavioral Approaches to Improve Emotional Well-Being

This network catalyzes innovation and progress in mechanistic research on emotional well-being by fostering a scientific community focused on health span improvement. Operating across 30 countries, the network supports behavioral intervention development and creates a measures repository—a centralized database of validated emotional well-being measurement instruments accessible to researchers worldwide. This international collaboration ensures that emotional well-being research benefits from diverse cultural perspectives and methodological approaches.

NICHD-Funded Research Network

FAM-NET: Family Well-Being Research Network

The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development funds FAM-NET, which focuses specifically on family well-being and children’s quality of life. This network supports and advances research on measurement of family well-being, recognizing that family dynamics and relationships fundamentally shape emotional well-being across the lifespan. FAM-NET builds knowledge by funding new research, supporting and mentoring the next generation of scholars, and providing education and training in family well-being research.

Network Activities and Support Mechanisms

The emotional well-being research networks engage in diverse activities designed to advance the field systematically and foster collaboration among leading scientists:

The networks facilitate regular research network meetings where scientists convene to share findings, discuss methodological challenges, and identify collaborative opportunities. These meetings enable cross-pollination of ideas and build consensus around key research questions and approaches. Networks also organize and sponsor conferences dedicated to emotional well-being research, creating venues where researchers can present novel findings and engage with both established and emerging scientists in the field.

Beyond conferences and meetings, networks support small-scale pilot research projects that explore promising new directions in emotional well-being science. These pilot studies generate preliminary data that can support larger research grant applications and help establish proof-of-concept for novel intervention approaches or measurement methodologies.

Multidisciplinary cross-training represents another critical network function. By bringing together researchers with expertise in neurobiology, psychology, behavioral science, sociology, and other disciplines, these networks ensure that emotional well-being research benefits from multiple perspectives and methodological approaches. This cross-training helps develop the next generation of researchers who can communicate across disciplinary boundaries and conduct truly integrated research.

Networks also prioritize information dissemination, sharing findings and resources with the broader scientific community, healthcare providers, and the public. This includes developing online training resources, creating measurement repositories, publishing consensus documents, and engaging in science communication activities.

Funding and Support

The emotional well-being research networks represent a significant commitment of resources from multiple NIH institutes and offices. These networks received funding totaling $3.13 million, enabling sustained research and collaboration. Co-funding partners include the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), the NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR), and the NIH Office of Disease Prevention (ODP), demonstrating the trans-NIH priority placed on emotional well-being research.

Anticipated Outcomes and Impact

The emotional well-being research networks aim to generate several key outcomes that will advance the field and benefit public health. These networks will identify factors that influence emotional well-being across the life course, providing essential knowledge for understanding what promotes sustained well-being from childhood through older adulthood. This information will inform the design of evidence-based interventions to promote emotional health and reduce suffering in at-risk populations of all ages.

By establishing consensus definitions, validated measurement instruments, and identified biomarkers, these networks will create the scientific foundation necessary for scaling up emotional well-being interventions. The collaborative infrastructure established through these networks will persist beyond individual grant periods, fostering ongoing partnerships and coordinated research efforts.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is the primary focus of the emotional well-being research networks?

A: The networks focus on advancing transdisciplinary research to understand emotional well-being, develop valid measurement approaches, identify mechanisms and biomarkers, and design evidence-based interventions to promote emotional health across the lifespan.

Q: How do these networks differ from individual research grants?

A: These networks use the U24 cooperative agreement mechanism, which emphasizes resource development and collaboration. Rather than funding isolated research projects, networks build infrastructure, facilitate collaboration, and develop shared resources that benefit the entire research community.

Q: Which NIH institutes and offices support these research networks?

A: Primary funding comes from the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) and the National Institute on Aging (NIA), with co-funding from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), the NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR), and the NIH Office of Disease Prevention (ODP).

Q: What are the core research topics addressed by the networks?

A: The networks address ontology and measurement of emotional well-being, mechanistic research on emotional well-being’s role in health, biomarkers, prevention research in target populations, and technology and outcome measure development.

Q: How can researchers participate in or benefit from these networks?

A: Researchers can attend network meetings and conferences, access measurement repositories and training resources, participate in collaborative research opportunities, and contribute to consensus-building activities in emotional well-being science.

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Medha Deb is an editor with a master's degree in Applied Linguistics from the University of Hyderabad. She believes that her qualification has helped her develop a deep understanding of language and its application in various contexts.

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