Getting to Know Rebecca Anna Schut: Exploring How Policy and Place Shape Health and Well-Being
Rebecca Anna Schut is an assistant professor of rural sociology and demography at Penn State whose research explores how immigration, health care, and state policies shape people's health, well-being, and life opportunities. Her work brings together social demography and policy research to better…
Twenty-five faculty receive new Provost Awards for academic excellence
Twenty-five faculty earned one of two new awards from the Penn State Office of Executive Vice President and Provost. These awards are designed to recognize full-time faculty of any rank, tenure-line or non-tenure-line, whose accomplishments during the current year distinguish them as top performers…
'Expanding Empathy' series to explore morality, empathy and future research
How do ideas about right and wrong vary across cultures? What do researchers mean when they talk about empathy? And what questions should guide the next generation of scholars studying these subjects?
Those questions will shape "Expanding Empathy 2026," a series of four discussions in November and…
Penn State CTSI announces early-stage investigator training awardees
Penn State Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) has announced the latest cohort of scholars selected for its Early-Stage Investigator Training (K12) Program. The K12 award, funded by the National Institutes of Health’s National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, provides…
1 in 4 Pennsylvanians say they paid out of pocket for their annual checkup. Why isn’t insurance covering these preventive visits?
By Sujeong Park, Assistant Professor of Health Policy and Addiction Studies, for The Conversation
I was teaching health economics when a student raised his hand. We were discussing the Affordable Care Act, or ACA, which requires most health plans to cover certain recommended preventive services at…
Professor’s new book examines the lives of ‘hit doctors’
Penn State Assistant Professor of Sociology and Public Policy Sarah Brothers was a college undergraduate volunteering at a San Francisco syringe exchange center when she was introduced to what’s colloquially known as a “hit doctor,” a job she had never heard of before.
From that first interaction…
Getting to Know Ilaria Pretelli: Exploring the Evolution of Childhood and Family Life
Ilaria Pretelli, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of anthropology at Penn State whose research uses an evolutionary perspective to explore human behavior, family dynamics, and the role of children in families and communities. Combining fieldwork with quantitative and computational methods, her work…
Q&A: Why do people prefer human empathy despite rating AI empathy higher?
More people are turning to artificial intelligence (AI)-powered chatbots for companionship and to address loneliness. But can AI-generated empathy replace human connection?
In a study published in the journal Communications Psychology, a team led by researchers at Penn State found that human users…
Child Maltreatment Solutions Network conference to focus on supporting transition-age youth with foster care histories
Penn State’s Child Maltreatment Solutions Network will host its annual daylong conference, “Supporting Transition-Age Youth with Foster Care Histories: From Evidence to Action,” on Friday, Oct. 23rd, at The Nittany Lion Inn on the University Park campus. The conference will run from 8:30 a.m. to 4…
Rock Ethics Institute launches collaboration with Freiburg research institute
Five Penn State researchers affiliated with the Rock Ethics Institute will participate in an international workshop Oct. 20-22 in Freiburg, Germany, marking the beginning of a new collaboration between the institute and the Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies (FRIAS) at the University of…
Child Maltreatment Solutions Network awards funding to 12 projects
The Child Maltreatment Solutions Network (CMSN) at Penn State has awarded funding to support 12 new projects through its University-sponsored endowment this year.
“The Child Maltreatment Solutions Network’s seed funding program is designed to spark innovative ideas and foster new interdisciplinary…
Moms, emotions, exercise and memory — multiple factors affect ‘pregnancy brain’
Symptoms of anxiety and depression are associated with higher levels of “pregnancy brain,” which is also known as “baby brain,” "brain fog" or “momnesia,” according to a new study by Penn State researchers. Pregnancy brain is not a medical diagnosis, but people have long known that pregnant women…
Jennifer Van Hook elected president of Population Association of America
Penn State Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Demography Jennifer Van Hook has been elected president of the Population Association of America (PAA).
Van Hook will serve as president-elect in 2027, president in 2028 and past president in 2029 of the 96-year-old professional organization,…
SSRI Welcomes Five New Co-funds for 2026-2027 Academic Year
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State’s Social Science Research Institute (SSRI) welcomes five new co-funded faculty members, further strengthening its mission of advancing interdisciplinary social and behavioral science across the University.
The new cohort of SSRI co-funded faculty comes from a wide…
Penn State CTSI launches four fellowship opportunities for 2027-28
Penn State Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) is inviting applications for four fellowship opportunities designed to help faculty, researchers and staff develop the skills, mentorship and protected time needed to advance clinical and translational science.
The 2027-28 opportunities…
Why Social Science? Because Social Scientists Help the Federal Government Address Problems Facing the Nation
This month's Why Social Science? post comes from Alycia Chin (US Securities and Exchange Commission) and Baruch Fischhoff (Carnegie Mellon University) highlighting three key examples of work done by social and behavioral scientists that have affected American life in essential ways.
By Alycia Chin…
Public policy professor to present on undocumented migration in US
The Pennsylvania Center for Latino Research at Penn State Harrisburg will host Nicole Kreisberg, assistant professor of public policy an Social Science Research Institute cofunded faculty member, for a presentation on undocumented migration in the United States.
The event will take place on Oct. 14…
Too noisy, too hot or too bright? Sleep environment matters for young adults
Between college dormitories and cramped apartments, young adults often live in environments that can be loud, bright or uncomfortable, making it difficult to reliably get a good night’s sleep, according to Adwoa Dadzie, doctoral candidate in biobehavioral health at Penn State. Despite some people’s…
Lozinski joins the Population Research Institute
Regina Lozinski was recently named the Research Project Manager for SSRI's Population Research Institute (PRI). In this role, she will primarily manage the workflow and oversee the P2C NICHD infrastructure grant cores as well as administer the PRI seed grant program, aiming to support…
New funding opportunities from the Child Maltreatment Solutions Network
SSRI’s Child Maltreatment Solutions Network (CMSN), is offering two new funding opportunities to aid in innovative research addressing and dealing with child maltreatment, adversity, resilience, and prevention. These opportunities are designed to support both faculty and emerging researchers who…
Penn State professor addresses veteran career pathways at legislative meeting
Daniel F. Perkins, principal scientist at the Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness at Penn State (Clearinghouse) and distinguished professor of family and youth resiliency and policy in the College of Agricultural Sciences, participated Sept. 24 in a joint informational meeting of the…
SSRI seeks director for Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness
The Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness at Penn State University (Clearinghouse) is an applied research center within the Social Science Research Institute (SSRI). The Clearinghouse conducts applied research designed to improve the health and well-being of military service members, veterans…
SSRI seeks new director
OSVPR is commencing the search for Director, Social Sciences Research Institute. The new SSRI Director will build on a strong foundation to promote the social and behavioral sciences at Penn State, including by working with faculty from across the University as well as the other OSVPR Institute…
How quickly people age during midlife predicted memory lapses 10 years later
Most people occasionally misplace their car keys or forget a dentist's appointment, especially as they get older. When memory lapses occur regularly and interfere with daily life, however, they could be a sign of a serious decline in a person’s cognitive ability, according to David Almeida,…
2026 Impact Map update is underway
The annual update of the Penn State Community Impact Map
Please review and update all previous submissions and enter any new submissions for the recently ended 2025–2026 academic year using the Community Impact Map Activities Dashboard.
Also, please remember that:
all previously submitted entries…