UOW academic receives ARC Future Fellowship to study children’s self regulation

Associate Professor Steven Howard is one of three academics from the University of Wollongong (UOW) who will share in $2.88 million of funding through the prestigious 2023 Australian Research Council (ARC) Future Fellowships scheme.

His project, Unravelling Early Self-Regulation: A Longitudinal Study,  was awarded $1.1 million, and tackles the persistent issues of social-emotional vulnerability in Australian children. 

It will be an Australian-first study of young children’s self-regulation as they transition from preschool to primary school.

“The project will reveal important insights that can help us target problems of persistent self-regulation challenges – for example, young children’s ‘big behaviours’ after COVID-19 lockdowns and their subsequent digital ‘diets’,” he explained. 

“It will also identify factors that contribute to strong self-regulation growth. These findings will help us ensure that what we do with and for Australia’s young children will lead to positive social and educational outcomes, now and in the future.” 

The ARC Future Fellowships scheme plays a pivotal role in facilitating research excellence by supporting outstanding mid-career researchers in conducting high-quality, innovative research with the potential to lead to significant discoveries and advancements.

UOW Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor David Currow expressed his pride in the researchers and the ambitious applications of their projects.

“The 2023 awardees from UOW represent various disciplines and industries, but they all share the essence of dedication, hard work and leadership in their fields, driving the frontiers of knowledge and innovation,” Professor Currow said.

Fellow UOW academics – Dr Nicolas Flament from the Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health, and Associate Professor Shiyang Tang – will study the dynamic origin of environmental changes that led to the evolution of complex life on Earth and electro-triggered solidification of supercooled fusible alloys respectively. 

Learn more about ARC Future Fellowships.