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…
‘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…
Expanding Empathy Series returns for discussions on empathy and morality
The Consortium on Moral Decision-Making’s Expanding Empathy Speaker Series returns for its seventh consecutive year starting Thursday, May 8. Organizer Daryl Cameron, Sherwin Early Career Professor in the Rock Ethics Institute and director of the Consortium on Moral…
Consortium announces seed grant recipients
The Consortium on Moral Decision-Making at Penn State recently awarded nine seed grants to support interdisciplinary research related to the conceptual and empirical study of human morality and ethical decision-making. According to consortium director Daryl Cameron, Sherwin Early Career…
Political Morality Conference to be held at Penn State
Penn State’s Consortium on Moral Decision-Making will be hosting a hybrid conference on political polarization and moral decision-making on Friday, April 25, at Foster Auditorium in Paterno Library and live-streamed on Zoom. According to consortium director Daryl Cameron,…
Penn State social scientists support federal research funding at COSSA Day
A distinguished delegation of Penn State researchers traveled to Washington, D.C., March 24-25, to participate in the annual Consortium of Social Science Association's (COSSA) Social Science Advocacy Day. The event brought together social and behavioral scientists from across the nation to engage…
Grant to explore maternal depression’s effect on young children
Does maternal depression affect mothers’ young children? If so, how? Those are the questions that Penn State Associate Professor of Psychology Katie Burkhouse and a colleague at Vanderbilt University aim to answer with a five-year, $3.8 million grant from the U.S. National Institutes of Health…
Consortium on Moral Decision-Making Seed Grants Now Open
We’re re-opening the call for submissions and highly encourage teams to apply The Consortium on Moral Decision-Making is seeking proposals for seed grants to support interdisciplinary research related to the conceptual and empirical study of human morality and ethical decision-making. …
Q&A: Is it always ‘us vs them’? Researcher explains why flexibility is key
Urban versus rural. Penn State versus Michigan. Star Wars versus Star Trek. As social beings, humans gravitate toward groups. But sometimes group living can spur an “us versus them” mentality that causes conflict, especially when two groups are competing for the same limited resources, like money…
Interdisciplinary research on ethics and morality focus of recent conference
Penn State’s Consortium on Moral Decision-Making and Moral Psychology Research Group recently hosted a conference to highlight interdisciplinary research on moral and ethical decision-making. According to consortium director Daryl Cameron, Sherwin Early Career Professor in the Rock Ethics Institute…
Long-distance friendships may provide conservation benefits
While sustaining friendships from afar can be challenging, they may offer unexpected benefits for environmental conservation. These long-distance social ties can positively influence community-based conservation, according to a new study by an international team that includes Anne Pisor, assistant…
Choosing Empathy Is Critical to Democracy If we lose sight of why empathy matters, both individual dignity and democracy suffer
BY C. DARYL CAMERON for Scientific American In the weeks before and after the U.S. presidential election, many of us are asking about the role of empathy in American politics. Does it matter whether candidates express care for their constituents, and what does a person’s vote says about their…
News Topics: EmpathyCollege of the Liberal Arts
Conference to focus on moral decision-making research
Penn State’s Consortium on Moral Decision-Making and Moral Psychology Research Group are cohosting a conference Nov. 15-17 to highlight interdisciplinary research on moral and ethical decision-making. There will be two keynote talks by Penn State alumni researchers beginning at…
New Child Study Center co-directors to continue collaborative research mission
Over the past five years, Rina Das Eiden and Jenae Neiderhiser have forged a close working relationship as colleagues in Penn State’s Department of Psychology. Recently, their collaboration began a significant new phase when they were appointed co-directors of the College…
Australia offers lessons for increasing American life expectancy
Despite being home to some of the world’s most dangerous animals, Australia has led the English-speaking world in life expectancy for the last three decades. As for other high-income Anglophone countries, the Irish saw the largest gains in life expectancy, while Americans have finished dead last…
Professor’s new book examines universities’ role in advancing science
The last century has been a remarkable period of scientific discovery. And one of the primary drivers of it? Universities like Penn State, according to Professor of Sociology, Education and Demography David P. Baker. That’s the main takeaway of “Global Mega-Science: Universities, Research…
Impacts of protests focus of new research funding
Protests can direct attention toward an injustice, but some activist group tactics may turn people away rather than align them with the cause. A team of researchers at Penn State are launching a project to better understand how protests and other activist group approaches impact how people think…
Midcareer Faculty Advancement Program offers pathway to promotion
Like many tenured faculty members at Penn State, José Soto took some time before deciding to take the necessary steps to achieve his next big career goal — a promotion to full professor. “Promotion was something I had thought about, but had made a conscious decision to not worry about…
Expanding Empathy seminar series to kick off
We are under two weeks away from the first panel of Expanding Empathy 2024, which is supported by the Consortium on Moral Decision-Making. The first panel, taking place March 19, 12 - 2 p.m. EDT on Zoom, will include talks by Sa-kiera Hudson, University of California, Berkeley; Felipe De…
Low voice pitch increases standing among strangers
If you’re looking for a long-term relationship or to boost your social status, lower your pitch, according to researchers studying the effects of voice pitch on social perceptions. They found that lower voice pitch makes women and men sound more attractive to potential long-term partners, and lower…
Consortium moving forward with events and new website
Penn State’s Consortium on Moral Decision-Making is progressing with its mission to create an interdisciplinary, collaborative network of social scientists and scholars studying how people make moral and ethical decisions with upcoming events and a new seed funding program. Directed…
Liberal Arts initiative to explore historical, societal impacts of immigration
Immigration is the focus of the current offering in the College of the Liberal Arts’ “Moments of Change” initiative — an undertaking that brings students, faculty, staff and alumni together to explore what it means to live through historic and contemporary times of change. Through…
Lecture to explore how demography influences environmental research and policies
Penn State’s 18th annual De Jong Lecture in Social Demography, “Reflections on Necessary, Next Generation Population & Environment Research Agendas,” will be presented by Sara Curran on Oct. 4, from 9 a.m. to noon, in the HUB Robeson Center room 233 B and virtually. Curran is a professor of…
SSRI Welcomes Three New Co-Funded Faculty Members
The Social Science Research Institute welcomes three new co-funded faculty members to Penn State: Cleothia Frazier, asistant professor of sociology in the College of Liberal Arts. Frazier completed her Ph.D. in sociology at Vanderbilt University and MPH at Michigan State University.…
'Topping out' ceremony held for Welch Building construction project
Construction of the Susan Welch Liberal Arts Building at Penn State's University Park campus marked another significant milestone this week. The University held a “topping out” ceremony at the construction site on Wednesday, July 26, during which representatives from Penn State’s …