Bigger portions lead to preschoolers eating more over time
Preschoolers may not be as good at resisting large portions of everyday foods as was previously thought, according to Penn State researchers.
In a study, the researchers examined whether children between the ages of three and five were susceptible to the portion size effect — the tendency of people…
Opioid epidemic may have cost U.S. governments $37.8 billion in tax revenue
The opioid epidemic may have cost U.S. state and federal governments up to $37.8 billion in lost tax revenue due to opioid-related employment loss, according to Penn State researchers.
Additionally, the researchers found that Pennsylvania was one of the states with the most lost revenue, with…
Researchers to compare Twitter opinions on climate change with real-world views
How do regional opinions on Twitter represent real-world attitudes toward climate change? A team of researchers will work to find out, thanks to a recent seed grant from the Social Science Research Instituteat Penn State.
In their study, the researchers will construct a Twitter-driven regional…
Chi publishes first book on spatial regression methods
After taking ten years to complete research and writing, SSRI co-fund Guangqing Chi recently published his book, “Spatial Regression Models for the Social Sciences” with co-author Jun Zhu. The book serves as a primer type of textbook for social scientists who would like a quick start to learning…
Registration now open for seminar on generalizability of Twitter data
Guangqing Chi, associate professor of rural sociology and demography and public health sciences and SSRI co-funded faculty, will present “The Generalizability and Replicability of Twitter Data for Population (and Health) Research” at the next Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Research Design (BERD)…
Forcing a smile for customers linked with more drinking after work
Employees who force themselves to smile and be happy in front of customers — or who try to hide feelings of annoyance — may be at risk for heavier drinking after work, according to researchers.
A team of researchers at Penn State and the University at Buffalo studied the drinking habits of people…
Register Today for the CCSA Conference
There is still time to register for the Consortium to Combat Substance Abuse's first annual conference, Envisioning a Future Free from Addiction: Research, Programs, and Practice to Prevent Substance Abuse, to be held Monday, April 29, on Penn State’s University Park campus at the Hetzel Union…
Penn State represented at Congressional briefing addressing child maltreatment
Yo Jackson, associate director of the Child Maltreatment Solutions Network and professor of psychology at Penn State, recently provided testimony on strengthening prevention and treatment of child abuse and neglect to the U.S. House Committee on Education and Labor’s subcommittee on Civil Rights…
Preventing Teen Substance Abuse
While legislators and researchers work together to develop treatment options and solutions for the nationwide opioid crisis, community members, schools and caregivers have turned their focus to developing ways to protect future generations from substance abuse. To help build resilient families in…
National symposium to mark 65th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education
To commemorate the 65th anniversary of the landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision, the Center for Education and Civil Rights and the Africana Research Center at Penn State will convene Brown@65, a national symposium of education, law and policy scholars and practitioners, May 10 on…
Interparental aggression often co-occurs with aggression toward kids
Parents in the midst of a psychologically or physically aggressive argument tend to also be aggressive with their children, according to researchers at Penn State. The team found that this "spillover" of aggression toward children causes kids to exhibit greater fear during future incidents of…
PRI announces seed grant recipients
The Population Research Institute (PRI) announced its recent seed grant winners, Mary Shenk, Molly Martin and Sarah Damaske.
Shenk is an associate professor of anthropology and demography and is a faculty affiliate of PRI. She submitted her project “How objective and subjective environmental…
Opioid addiction treatment in teens focus of new project
Substance use disorders continue to rise at alarming rates among adolescents, with opioid abuse contributing to this significant public health problem. A Penn State researcher and his team will receive over $1.8 million over three years from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to investigate how…
Consortium to Combat Substance Abuse announces Community Fellows
Penn State’s Consortium to Combat Substance Abuse recently announced the first three recipients of its Community Fellows Program awards.
The program provides release time for faculty members to develop community collaborations and build sustainable, evidence-based or evidence-informed…
Strategies for Sexual Abuse Prevention: Raising Safe and Healthy Children
More than 20 percent of children who are sexually abused are assaulted before the age of eight, resulting in some of these children developing emotional and mental health problems, abusing alcohol and drugs, and dropping out of school. Early intervention and prevention efforts can decrease many of…
Scientists discover hundreds more genes with potential link to addictions
Many human diseases, such as tobacco and alcohol addictions, are heritable. Until now, little has been known about what genetic factors contribute to these addictions, and if they put people at risk of inheriting other medical conditions. A recent study, published in Nature Genetics, reveals that…
Wilkinson receives 2019 President’s Award for Engagement With Students
Krista Wilkinson, professor of communication sciences and disorders in the College of Health and Human Development and SSRI co-funded faculty member, has received Penn State's 2019 President’s Award for Engagement with Students.
The award is given to a faculty member who goes beyond his or her…
Opioid initiative earns 2019 Community Engagement and Scholarship Award
The Share Your Opioid Story Initiative, led by Glenn Sterner, assistant professor of criminal justice at Penn State Abington, has received the 2019 Penn State Award for Community Engagement and Scholarship.
The award recognizes a project that best exemplifies Penn State as an “engaged institution…
Building and Using Evidence to Improve Government Effectiveness
This chapter in the FY2020 President’s Budget discusses the importance of evidence in improving government effectiveness and strategies to learn and improve, including learning agendas, program evaluation, harnessing data, and promoting transparency and accountability.
Evaluating spousal caregivers stress
Spousal caregivers can face increased health risks, such as high blood pressure and heart disease, possibly due to the stress of caring for an ailing spouse.
To evaluate this stress in daily life situations, researchers Stephanie Wilson, postdoctoral fellow at Ohio State's Institute for Behavioral…
Scanlon Named AJAC Editor-In-Chief
The American Journal of Accountable Care® (AJAC) is pleased to announce that Dennis P. Scanlon, previously associate editor of the Journal, is editor-in-chief as of the March 2019 issue.
Scanlon is a distinguished professor of health policy and administration and director of the Center for Health…
NIH Releases Protocol Template for Behavioral and Social Sciences Research Involving Humans
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has launched a new protocol template to help behavioral and social science researchers prepare research protocols for human studies measuring social or behavioral outcomes.
The protocol template is an effective resource for communicating the science, methods…
Why Social Science? - Because Social Science Equips Us with Tools We Will Need to Face Down the Biggest Issues of Our Time, Including the Growing Global Threat of Climate Change
By The Honorable Paul Tonko, United States Representative, New York’s 20th Congressional District, U.S. House of Representatives
Our Earth is in crisis. More frequent and severe droughts, rising sea-levels, extreme weather and ecological damage are already here, with more loss and hardship on the…
Become a Certified Recovery Specialist
Do you have a history of addiction recovery and want to help others?
The Certified Recovery Specialist Program being offered through the Penn State Shenango and Beaver campuses is a 54-hour, peer support program designed to meet the current educational requirements for the CRS credentials set…
Employment Reductions and Government Revenue Losses from Opioid Misuse
By Amanda Honeycutt
The economic burden of the U.S. opioid epidemic likely exceeds $78.5 billion per year when considering its impact on healthcare, substance abuse treatment, the criminal justice system, and productivity costs. Although medication assisted treatment for opioid abuse (covered…