Community-Engaged Researcher Survey
Mar 28, 2022
Penn State faculty are invited to participate in a survey as part of a collaborative Social Science Research Institute (SSRI) and Penn State Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) initiative to strengthen existing and foster new community-academic partnerships in community-engaged…
Penn State social scientists anticipate Ukrainian refugees’ needs, challenges
Mar 24, 2022
In one of the largest mass migration flows in recent history, approximately 3.4 million people have fled their homes in Ukraine since late February. Most are women and children, and many families have been torn apart because the Ukraine State Border Guard Service has prohibited men ages 18 to 60…
Challenges of older Pennsylvanians focus of new brief
Mar 22, 2022
Pennsylvania’s population is aging rapidly, and it is estimated that by 2030, one in five residents will be age 65 and older.The issue is important, because as the state’s population ages, the number of adults needing services is expected to increase. In a new policy brief from Penn State’s …
The Covid cloud is starting to lift – but two years on, its legacy of grief lingers
Mar 15, 2022
PRI Associate Ashton Verdery was quoted in this story about the impacts of Covid-19 by The Guardian.Verdery created with colleagues a bereavement multiplier that estimates how many people in the US have lost a close relative to Covid. Given the paucity of historical demographic data for Hispanic…
Santos quoted on underrepresented communities in the census
Mar 12, 2022
SSRI cofund and PRI associate Alexis Santos was recently quoted in an ABC News story about Latino, Black, and Native American communities underrepresented in the 2020 Census.It's important for the bureau to accurately measure how many people are living in the United States; the census determines…
New PPN Brief discusses ambulatory and cognition challenges among older Pennsylvanians
Feb 28, 2022
A new brief from the Pennsylvania Population Network (PPN) explores differences in ambulatory and cognition challenges for Pennsylvanians by age group and sex.Authored by Alexis R. Santos, SSRI cofund and assistant professor of human development and family studies, and Raeven Faye Chandler,…
Morgan among top 1% of researchers globally
Feb 28, 2022
Harry & Marion Royer Eberly Fellow and Professor of Education and Demography Paul Morgan is recognized as being among the top 1% of scientists in the world, according to a report from Elsevier BV and Stanford University.Morgan is also a PRI associate and the director for the Center of…
Aging and Disability Services are Unequally Distributed Across the United States
Feb 22, 2022
The U.S. population is aging rapidly, but 15% of U.S. counties have no aging and disability services organizations. This research brief by Syracuse University’s Claire Pendergrast and Penn State's PRI Associate Danielle Rhubart shows that rural counties and counties with the highest rates of…
Researchers examine link between residential and school segregation
Feb 9, 2022
School segregation has remained a hot-button political issue since Brown vs. Board of Education, a landmark 1954 decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the justices ruled that state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional. New research from a Penn State…
Social science policy and communication strategies workshop
Feb 4, 2022
Interested in how to get your work into the hands of policymakers? Want to know how to frame your science to increase its value by decision makers and engage directly with leaders about your science?The Evidence-to-Impact Collaborative (EIC) at Penn State is hosting the virtual workshop “Improving…
Shenk named AAAS Fellow
Jan 31, 2022
Congratulations to PRI Associate Mary Shenk, one of five Penn State faculty members named fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world's largest general scientific society.Story in Penn State News.
Can wearable technology predict the negative consequences of drinking?
Jan 27, 2022
“How much have you had to drink?” might seem like a simple question, but it is not always easy to answer. Although there are general guidelines about responsible alcohol consumption, a person’s level of intoxication depends not only on the number of drinks they consume but also on the alcohol…
Connection to racial identity may boost body image in Black youth
Jan 27, 2022
Adolescence can be a time filled with anxiety and insecurity about body shape and size, but a new Penn State study found that for Black youth, having a strong racial identity may help stave off these worries.The researchers found that among Black youth between the ages of 11 and 19 with high body…
Family Symposium examines intersection of physical environment and family health
Jan 20, 2022
Penn State’s 29th annual Symposium on Family Issues, “Environmental Impacts on Families: Change, Challenge, and Adaptation”, examined the role of the physical environment in family relationships, behaviors, and well-being, with a focus on disasters, climate change, and the built environment.…
Parent-child separation book published
Jan 11, 2022
"Parent-child separation: Causes, consequences and pathways to resilience", the 12th volume in Penn State’s National Symposium on Family Issues book series, was recently published. The book is edited by PRI Director Jennifer Glick, PRI associate Valarie King, and former SSRI Director Susan M.…
Penn State professor named among most influential in shaping education
Jan 10, 2022
Erica Frankenberg, professor of education (educational leadership) and demography at Penn State and director of the Center for Education and Civil Rights, was recently named to the 2022 RHSU Edu-Scholar Public Influence Rankings list of top 200 U.S.-based university scholars who influence education…
How understanding neighborhoods can help reduce tobacco use
Jan 4, 2022
A Penn State researcher testing a new way to assess tobacco use with a neighborhood mapping platform and in-person interviews has found that community engagement is key to addressing risky health behaviors.Cigarette smoking remains the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the United…
Connecting researchers to policymakers to optimize educational equity
Dec 10, 2021
A partnership between Francesca Lopez, Waterbury Chair in Equity Pedagogy and professor of education in the Penn State College of Education, and Penn State’s Research-to-Policy Collaboration was recently awarded a $250,000 Chan Zuckerberg Initiative grant to connect researchers with hundreds of…
E-cigs with cigarette-like nicotine delivery may help smokers quit
Dec 9, 2021
Electronic cigarettes with cigarette-like nicotine delivery may help some people stop smoking cigarettes, according to a new study by Penn State College of Medicine and Virginia Commonwealth University researchers. By switching to e-cigarettes, the researchers said tobacco users may reduce their…
Research finds flawed federal monitoring of students of color with disabilities
Nov 30, 2021
Current federal legislation and regulation that monitors for significant disproportionality in special education may be contributing to children of color with disabilities failing to receive treatments and services to which they are legally entitled, according to a Penn State College of Education…
Looking for Associate/Full Professor in Population Aging and Health
Nov 30, 2021
Looking For: Associate/Full Professor in Population Aging and HealthThe Social Science Research Institute and the Population Research Institute (PRI) at the Pennsylvania State University invite applications for a tenured faculty member (Associate Professor or Full Professor) in the area of…
Q&A on NIH Diversity Supplements with Program Officials
Nov 17, 2021
Join the Social Science Research Institute for a Q&A session on the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Diversity Supplement program for in-place grants on December 1, 10 a.m. via Zoom.The NIH takes seriously the need to support new generations of researchers from diverse backgrounds. An…
Van Hook appointed next director of the Population Research Institute
Nov 9, 2021
Dr. Jennifer Van Hook has been appointed to serve as the next director of the Population Research Institute (PRI) beginning July 1, 2022. PRI is a multidisciplinary research center at Penn State that promotes innovative population research. Part of the Social Science Research Institute at Penn…
EIC Podcast on the 2020 US Census
Nov 5, 2021
The 16th episode of the Evidence-to-Impact Podcast tackles all things related to the U.S. Census. We discussed the decennial Census, the data products created and released from the U.S. Census Bureau, the current demographic trends and challenges, and measuring hard-to-reach populations.We spoke…
SSRI announces large pilot grants program
Nov 3, 2021
Penn State’s Social Science Research Institute invites proposals of up to $75,000 for innovative pilot research projects that contribute to SSRI’s strategic mission of fostering interdisciplinary research that addresses critical human and social problems at the local, national, and international…