SSRI Welcomes New Associate Director
The Social Science Research Institute (SSRI) at Penn State announces the addition of a new associate director, Orfeu M. Buxton.
Buxton is a professor of biobehavioral health in the College of Health and Human Development. He is also a cofunded faculty member of SSRI. His research primarily…
New research brief examines rural-suburban-urban differences among Northeast US caregivers
The Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development (NERCRD) has published a fourth brief in its caregiving research brief series. The brief describes the caregiving experience for rural, suburban, and urban caregivers in the Northeast region of the U.S., as reported by households as part of the “…
Federal science cuts threaten our natural resources
By Anne Pisor for The Times-Tribune
What if I told you the friendships you’ve built on the lake, river or trail could help protect Pennsylvania fisheries — would you believe me?
With support from the National Science Foundation (NSF), I’ve been studying how our everyday relationships — like those…
Conference on political divisions draws international presenters
Scholars from around the globe recently attended Penn State’s Consortium on Moral Decision-Making conference on political polarization and moral decision-making.
Organizer Daryl Cameron, director of the consortium, Sherwin Early Career Professor in the Rock Ethics Institute, and…
New grant supports postsecondary outcomes for youth in foster care
Penn State’s Social Science Research Institute (SSRI) has been awarded a three-year, $650,000 Institutional Challenge Grant from the William T. Grant Foundation (WT Grant Foundation) to strengthen research-practice partnerships that focus on improving health and wellbeing outcomes for youth. …
Private tutoring linked to student disengagement, researchers find
Private tutoring and supplemental learning are intended to enhance classroom learning, but new research led by a professor in the Penn State College of Education has revealed that it may actually erode student engagement. The finding came from an analysis of South Korean elementary students but has…
Early brain and child development study data now available
The first wave of data Penn State's HEALthy Brain and Child Development (HBCD) study is now available to researchers interested in addressing a wide-range of questions, including how environments and substances impact infant and child development.
In 2021, the National Institute on Drug Abuse…
SAFE-T system designated as an American Academy of Nursing 'Edge Runner'
The Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing has announced that the Sexual Assault Forensic Examination Telehealth (SAFE-T) System has been named an "Edge Runner" by the American Academy of Nursing. Edge Runners are nurse-designed models of care that reduce cost, improve health care quality…
Why Social Science? - Because If We Don’t Advocate for the Future of our Field, Who Will?
By Marcel LaFlamme, Association of Research Libraries; Angelo Cusimano, CUNY; and Sarah Wang, American University
This month's "Why Social Science?" post comes from three participants from this year's Social Science Advocacy Day who reflected upon their advocacy experiences and the…
Contreras new assistant director at SSRI
The Social Science Research Institute (SSRI) at Penn State is pleased to welcome Danilo Antonio Contreras as its new assistant director.
Contreras first came to Penn State in 2023 as a visiting fellow at the Center for Global Workers’ Rights in the School of Labor and Employment Relations while on…
New program aims to help faculty build skills in AI, quantum sciences
A call for proposals out of the Penn State Institute for Computational and Data Sciences (ICDS) seeks to provide University faculty members with the opportunities to learn new skills and make use of available resources in the rapidly evolving landscape of artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum…
Puts elected president of the Human Behavior and Evolution Society
David Puts, professor of anthropology at Penn State and Social Science Research Institute cofunded faculty member, was recently elected president of the Human Behavior and Evolution Society.
Puts is also the principal investigator of the Behavioral Endocrinology and Evolution Lab at…
Child Maltreatment Solutions Network announces funding recipients
The Child Maltreatment Solutions Network (CMSN) at Penn State has awarded funding to support six projects through its University-sponsored endowment.
“The Network is proud to support Penn State faculty as they lead innovative, interdisciplinary work to better understand and respond to…
Annual substance use conference examines psychiatric and opioid use disorders
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Social Science Research Institute’s (SSRI) Consortium on Substance Use and Addiction (CSUA) hosted the sixth annual conference in May at the the Eric J. Barron Innovation Hub at Penn State University Park.
Drawing over 150 attendees throughout the day,…
Preschool intervention linked to high school performance
Low-income students who received a preschool intervention focused on social-emotional development continued to benefit from it during their teen years according to a recent study published in the journal Child Development.
The researchers, led by Karen Bierman, Evan Pugh University…
The silent struggles of post-9/11 veterans
Post-9/11 veterans often face visible challenges like finding gainful employment or recovering from physical injuries, but some of their struggles are invisible. Veterans may carry a sense of isolation and the painful belief that their presence is a burden to those around them. When these thoughts…
$2.9M grant funds study on long-term effects of adolescent binge drinking
Ten percent of adolescents and young adults aged 12 to 20, whose brains are still developing, report drinking alcohol, with 90% of their consumption being binge drinking, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). An interdisciplinary team of researchers at Penn…
Penn State Neuroscience Institute Expands Access to Groundbreaking Mental Health Registry
Penn State has expanded access to a powerful clinical registry of mental health data, the Penn State Clinical Assessment and Rating Evaluation System (PCARES), to investigators at the University Park campus through the Penn State Neuroscience Institute (PSNI).
Developed by faculty in Penn State’s…
Link between loneliness, heart disease persists across different cultures
Over the past few decades, researchers have repeatedly identified loneliness as a significant risk factor for developing cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, most of this research has focused on people in United States and Europe, in which social norms tend to favor the individual over collective…
Chronic loneliness may harm cognitive health in young adults
Young and middle-aged adults who live with chronic loneliness may be at risk for early cognitive decline, according to a new study by researchers in the Penn State Department of Human Development and Family Studies.
In a study published in BMC Public Health, the researchers demonstrated that young…
Downs named as a fellow of the National Academy of Kinesiology
The National Academy of Kinesiology recently announced the new 2025 fellows, including SSRI Associate Director Danielle Symons Downs, professor of kinesiology and obstetrics & gynecology.
The Academy has a rich history of annually electing New Fellows into the association who have been…
Cocoziello Institute of Real Estate awards seed funding to five research projects
Penn State’s Cocoziello Institute of Real Estate Innovation has awarded seed grants to five interdisciplinary research projects. These grants support collaborative projects led by Penn State faculty who aim to generate innovative solutions to complex challenges in real estate and the built…
‘The Last Of Us’ Preys on Our Empathy. Here's Why That Feels So Weird.
BY JAKE KLEINMAN, Men's Health
This article quotes Daryl Cameron, director of SSRI's Consortium on Moral Decision-Making.
“It's a game about empathy. It's a game about forgiveness.”
That’s how Neil Druckmann, the director of The Last of Us Part II, described his new video game in a 2020 interview…
NIH announces new Public Access Policy
Change in NIH Public Access PolicyEffective July 1, 2025
Attention all researchers! There has been a change in NIH's public access policy. The policy still requires that all NIH-supported journal publications be submitted to PubMed Central. However, there are new requirements…
Andrew Read to host conversation focused on executive action affecting research
The Penn State community is invited to attend a conversation hosted by Penn State Senior Vice President for Research Andrew Read at 1:45 p.m. on May 28 at the University Park campus and live online. The conversation will provide an opportunity for faculty, staff and students to engage in dialogue…