RFP: Flourishing and Relational Virtues in Psychotherapy
Flourishing and Relational Virtues in Psychotherapy
RFP: Flourishing & Relational Virtues in Psychotherapy Training Fellowships
One of the goals of the current project is to develop a network of early career scholars who can advance research programs that align with the goals of the Training and Treatment Integration Research for Virtue and Flourishing in Mental Healthcare: A Team Science Project. This project is co-led by Drs. Sandage & Owen and funded by the John Templeton Foundation. We want to provide relational and financial support as well as training structure to facilitate long-term collaborations between early career scholars. Our hope is this RFP will increase dissemination of the ideas of the group and will give us new leads for networking and collaboration.
To submit, please provide up to 5-page (double spaced) proposal outlining your project. This should include: (a) background/rationale for the project, (b) proposed methods, and (c) budget/timeline and budget justification. The focus of the study should be on the intersection of relational virtues (e.g., gratitude, humility, forgiveness) and flourishing within the psychotherapy training context. Please include a title page as well (not counted in the page count). We will be supporting 4 Flourishing Fellows (25k+6,250 travel each). Proposed budgets should be capped at 25k and there is a 2-year timeline with an anticipated start date of January 15th, 2026. By rule, you may only charge up to 15% for indirects. We are expecting at least one publication for the Flourishing Fellows funded in the RFP as well as to create practical materials that makes it easier for supervisors, professors, and/or internship directors to use the flourishing approach in their training/supervision.
For context, the larger JTF funded project has 8 sites that are focused on flourishing, relational virtues within the context of psychotherapy training. Each site is integrating these themes within existing treatment interventions (e.g., CBT, alliance rupture/repair, psychodynamic/relational, mentalization based therapy) within professional mental healthcare. Each of the sites have an early career scholar as a co-I, which will also be part of this early career scholar network. We have collaborated with Dr. Davis and the Matheny Center for the Study of Stress, Trauma, and Resilience (MSTAR) to invest in these scholars.
The fellows will engage in an annual meeting that occurs on April 24th, 2026 in Atlanta, GA (funded through this RFP) and in subsequent years. Selected scholars will have a chance to interact with other highly productive scholars doing work at the intersection of virtues, flourishing, and psychotherapy. The meeting also has several pre-conference opportunities, such as workshops on grant writing, measurement development, and pedagogy practices. Drs. Davis and Wong will provide quarterly calls for this network of scholars. The group has an established track record of providing engaging talks as well as a way to increase their national prominence, as we disseminate their work nationally and provide a keynote a talk at the MSTAR conference in year 3 of the grant.
Eligibility:
Early Career Professional (earned doctoral degree within 10 years of submission).
Attests to attend the MSTAR conference and quarterly professional development calls.
Projects that demonstrate commitment to relational virtues and flourishing in psychotherapy training/practice.
Not currently part of the main JTF funded project or the site teams.
Submissions are due 12/15/25. Send materials and/or questions to Dr. Davis at ddavis88@gsu.edu
Flourishing Fellows Announced
We are excited to announce the Flourishing Fellows. These projects were selected because of their alignment with the goals of the John Templeton Grant led by Drs. Sandage and Owen entitled “Training and Treatment Integration Research for Virtue and Flourishing in Mental Healthcare: A Team Science Project.” For context, the larger JTF funded project has 8 sites that are focused on flourishing, relational virtues within the context of psychotherapy training. Each site is integrating these themes within existing treatment interventions (e.g., CBT, alliance rupture/repair, psychodynamic/relational, mentalization based therapy) within professional mental healthcare. Each of the sites have an early career scholar as a co-I, which will also be part of this early career scholar network. The PIs will meet together in person at the beginning and end of the project-time period, and we will also establish a cadence of quarterly calls to form a “community of practice” to exchange ideas, strengthen professional relationships, and likely envision how these projects can lead to future work building on the momentum of the teams involved. The Flourishing Fellows will also have opportunities to connect with scholars on the larger grant.
Austen Anderson
Florida State University
Title: Relational Virtues and Virtuous Friendships as Contributors to Flourishing in Psychotherapy Training Climates
Jamian Coleman
University of Tennessee-Knoxville
Title: Peer Consultation for Rural Addiction Counselor Flourishing
Jonah Li
University of Washington
Title: You’ve Got This! An Experimental Evaluation of an Encouragement Intervention on Promoting the Virtue of Encouragement and Flourishing in Psychotherapists in Training
Meredith Tittler
University of South Alabama
Title: An ACT-Based Intervention to Promote Cultural Humility and Flourishing in Clinical Practice
Justin Karter & Zenobia Morrill
Boston College
Philosophical Embarrassment and Relational Virtues: Integrating the Psychological Humanities into Psychotherapy Training