Saunders named as 2024-25 cohort member of the Health Equity Scholars Program
Tracee Saunders, assistant professor of political science and Social Science Research Institute co-funded faculty member, was announced in fall 2024 as a member of the 2024-25 cohort of the Scholars Strategy Network (SSN)’s Health Equity Scholars Program (HESP). This fellowship supports…
News Topics: SSRI cofundsFunding
Understanding aging requires more than counting birthdays
People’s bodies can be old or young for their chronological age, depending, in part, on the amount and types of stressors they have experienced. Scientists can estimate people’s biological age, but whether they use oral tissue or blood to make the measurement matters, according to a new study led…
Two cofunded faculty members join SSRI
The Social Science Research Institute (SSRI) is pleased to welcome two new cofunded faculty members to Penn State. By helping to support faculty members, SSRI is demonstrating its dedication to interdisciplinary research in the social and behavioral sciences. Kyle Aune, assistant professor of…
News Topics: SSRI cofunds
Feb. 5 lecture to discuss how sleep health affects daily life, long-term health
Orfeu Buxton, Elizabeth Susman Professor of Biobehavioral Health at Penn State, will present the 2025 Pattishall Research Lecture, “Sleep Health Across the Life Span.” The lecture, sponsored by the College of Health and Human Development, will be presented on Wednesday, Feb. 5, at 3 p.m. in the…
Grants support research collaboration between Harrisburg, College of Medicine
Four teams of faculty from Penn State Harrisburg and Penn State College of Medicine, including SSRI cofunded faculty member Sujeong Park, have been awarded the inaugural planning and seed grants from the Penn State Inter-Campus Health and Medicine Research Program, a partnership created to support…
Social media users probably won’t read beyond this headline, researchers say
Congratulations. Reading this far into the story is a feat not many will accomplish, especially if shared on Facebook, according to a team led by Penn State researchers. In an analysis of more than 35 million public posts containing links that were shared extensively on the social media platform…
Murphy named associate dean of research and outreach for College of Education
P. Karen Murphy, distinguished professor of educational psychology in the Penn State College of Education, has been named associate dean of research and outreach for the college. “In this role, my vision is for our college to stand at the vanguard of education transformation, equity and innovation…
News Topics: College of EducationSSRI cofunds
How do formerly incarcerated individuals navigate community reentry?
Fifty years of punitive criminal justice policies have created a growing population of older incarcerated individuals who are now eligible for community release but lack the social or economic capital to rebuild their lives, according to a team of researchers from Penn State and the University of…
Gatzke-Kopp named president-elect of Society for Psychophysiological Research
Lisa Gatzke-Kopp, professor of human development and family studies and Social Science Research Institute cofunded faculty member, recently was named president-elect of the Society for Psychophysiological Research. The presidential role spans three years, over which she will serve as president-…
Recovery community centers linked to support factors for substance use recovery
More than 46 million people in the U.S. suffered from substance use disorders and more than 100,000 died by overdose in 2001, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. To address this crisis, recovery community centers (RCCs) have emerged in cities across the U.S.…
Connell appointed The Ken Young Family Professor for Healthy Children
Christian M. Connell, professor of human development and family studies, was recently named The Ken Young Family Professor for Healthy Children in the College of Health and Human Development. The professorship is part of a $1 million gift to support a faculty member focused on enhancing the health…
Byun part of team awarded $3.5 million grant
A Penn State College of Education faculty member is part of a multidisciplinary team across several universities that has been awarded a $3.5 million Transformative Research Grant from the Spencer Foundation to conduct a large-scale, five-year study on community-driven initiatives to teach Asian…
Nine new faculty join Penn State’s Social Science Research Institute
The Social Science Research Institute (SSRI) is welcoming nine new co-funded faculty members to Penn State. By helping to support co-funded faculty members, SSRI is demonstrating its commitment to interdisciplinary research within the social and behavioral sciences. Mark Ortiz, assistant professor…
News Topics: SSRI cofunds
Child Maltreatment Solutions Network conference to be held in November
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Social Science Research Institute’s Child Maltreatment Solutions Network is hosting an in-person conference, “Biological Embedding of Caregiving Adversity,” in 129 HUB (HUB-Robeson Center) at the University Park campus on Friday, November 15 from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm.…
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…
Less sleep and later bedtime in childhood linked to future substance use
A good night’s sleep is essential for children’s health and development, but childhood sleep patterns may also be linked to future substance use. A new study, led by a team of Penn State researchers, found that adolescents were more likely to have consumed alcohol or tried marijuana by age 15 if…
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…
$5M grant to engage Indigenous communities in climate change research
Indigenous communities around the globe face profound threats from climate change, biodiversity loss and land degradation. Now, an international team that includes researchers from Penn State have been awarded $5 million by the U.S. National Science Foundation, along with funding from Canada, the…
Bringing health care back to a rural Pennsylvania community
Snow Shoe Township is a small, rural community of around 1,700 people in central Pennsylvania that lies approximately 30 miles north of State College. A former coal mining town, Snow Shoe has seen an economic decline over the years. Then, in the span of one year starting in 2020, Snow Shoe lost its…
Nutrional science professor awarded the Hoebel Prize for Creativity
Kathleen Keller, professor and Helen A. Guthrie Chair of Nutritional Sciences, has been awarded the Hoebel Prize for Creativity by the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior, an organization dedicated to studying ingestive behavior and its biological, physiological, and social processes. Each…
Teens and drinking: What parents need to know and how they can influence behavior
Parents of teens and young adults can help keep their kids safer from the dangers of drinking, says Rob Turrisi, Penn State professor of biobehavioral health and SSRI cofund. Learn more in this new episode of the Raising Good Humans podcast with Dr. Aliza.
Annual substance use conference examines cannabis use, future of tobacco
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Social Science Research Institute’s (SSRI) Consortium on Substance Use and Addiction (CSUA) recently hosted its fifth annual conference in the Eric J. Barron Innovation Hub at the University Park campus. Drawing over 140 attendees throughout the day including…
Clinical and Translational Science Institute awards six pilot grants
Penn State Clinical and Translational Science Institute is helping to generate innovative health research ideas and promote collaboration through the awarding of pilot grants in its Bridges to Translation program. The institute has awarded $250,000, with co-sponsorship from the …
Drawing and mental health research project receives award in field of neuroarts
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State School of Theatre faculty member Bill Doan’s collaborative research project examining how drawing can be a tool for managing mental health is among the first recipients of the Renée Fleming NeuroArts Investigator Awards. Doan, professor of theatre and director…
Empathetic children may have poorer health in the face of interparental conflict
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Children who report being more empathetic are more likely to show signs of poorer health in the face of more interparental conflict than less empathetic children, according to a new study led by researchers in the Penn State College of Health and Human Development. The study…