At a Data Driven Discovery Initiative event, Jesús Fernández-Villaverde shared how he and his team use machine learning to uncover how "dark ships" evade sanctions, illustrating how AI is transforming economic research, reports OMNIA.

Citation:

"At the Intersection of Science and AI," OMNIA, April 28, 2025.

Penn Today highlights Chenyi Ma and Dennis Culhane's research showing that economic hardship—not race alone—drives pandemic-related anxiety disparities across demographic groups.

Citation:
"How Economic Stressors and Vaccination Shaped Mental Health During the Pandemic," Penn Today, April 23, 2025.

Ma C, Culhane D. et al. 2025. "Generalized Anxiety Disorder Prevalence and Disparities Among U.S. Adults: The Roles Played by Job Loss, Food Insecurity, and Vaccinations During the COVID-19 Pandemic," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B.

OMNIA features David Kirk's one-minute lecture, where he discusses his research on Airbnb occupants' vulnerability to crimes such as robbery, burglary, and theft.

Citation:
"60-Second Lectures at Quaker Days," OMNIA, April 18, 2025. 

WATCH THE VIDEO HERE

Olivia Mitchell's op-ed in MarketWatch highlights research showing that financial and health literacy decline steadily with age, especially among older, less educated, and lower-income individuals, underscoring the need for early and sustained literacy interventions.

Citation:

"Financial Skills Slip as We Age: Here’s How We Can Learn to Stay Sharp," Master Watch, O Mitchell, April 18, 2025. 

“Learn how to have productive conversations about difficult topics with people you love.” Alison Buttenheim told SCIAM, “Beliefs and identity are tightly interwoven, so changing beliefs may require a painful—or impossible—shift in identity,” 

Citation:
"How to Talk About Vaccines in an Era of Scientific Mistrust," SCIAM, T Haelle, April 16, 2025.

Olivia Mitchell advocates for starting financial education at home from an early age to improve financial literacy and reduce economic burdens, reports Al Día.

Citation:

"How to Raise Financially Smart Kids, According to a Wharton Economist," Al Día, A M Quevedo, April 16, 2025.

Annenberg highlights that Dolores Albarracín co-authored a study demonstrating how support for harm reduction policies boosts trust in local government in rural US communities.

Citation:

"Do ‘Harm Reduction’ Interventions for Substance Use Lower or Raise Trust in Government?" Annenberg, April 15, 2025.

Liu X, Albarracín D. et al. 2025. "Comprehensive Drug Policies Increase Trust in Local Government: An Analysis of Authorities’ and Residents’ Perspectives in Rural US Appalachian and Midwestern Counties." Springer Nature Link.

Related Article:

Do Harm Reduction Interventions for Substance Use Lower or Raise Trust in Government?

Olivia Mitchell emphasizes that early financial literacy education for children fosters lifelong money management skills, reports Knowledge at Wharton.

Citation:
"How to Teach Your Child About Financial Literacy," Knowledge at Wharton, A Basiouny, April 15, 2024. 

The Daily Pennsylvanian reports that a new study co-authored by Olivia Mitchell finds older adults' financial and health literacy declines by about one percentage point per year, raising concerns about decision-making in later life.

Citation:
"Study Co-Authored by Wharton Professor Finds Financial Literacy in Adults Declines With Age," The Daily Pennsylvanian, J C Serrano, April 14, 2025. 

OMNIA highlights study co-authored by Pilar Gonalons-Pons which examines the high cost of childcare in the U.S. disproportionately reduces income for less-educated women, worsening family income inequality—an effect largely absent in countries with robust childcare support systems.

Citation:
"The Price of Parenthood," OMNIA, J Hill, March 24, 2025. 

Gonalons-Pons P, Marinescu I. et al. 2024. "Care Labor and Family Income Inequality: How Childcare Costs Exacerbate Inequality among U.S. Families," American Sociological Review.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Dorothy Roberts denounces systemic racism in Philadelphia’s child welfare system, calling for a shift from family surveillance to meaningful support.

Citation:
"Philly Removes Neglected Children From Homes to Keep Them Safe, But They Often Face Worse Abuse in Foster Care Placements," The Philadelphia Inquirer, S Volk, J Christie, R Philly, April 9, 2025.

PR Newswire reports that Angela Duckworth has launched the "Phones in Focus" initiative to collect educator input on school cell phone policies. The aim is to use this data to develop evidence-based recommendations that enhance student achievement and well-being.

Citation:

"Landmark "Phones In Focus" Initiative Aims to Collect Evidence and Inform Effective School Cell Phone Policies," PR Newswire, April 8, 2025. 

Check Out Phone in Focus Initiative Here

Annually, Penn researchers present Papers and Posters, Moderate Talks, act as Discussants, and more at the Population Association of America's Annual Meeting.

See the complete detailed Penn@PAA list of events HERE

View Just the Penn@PAA Papers Here

View Just the Penn@PAA Posters Here

Atheendar Venkataramani in a Virtual Health Lab Seminar highlights how targeted economic policies, like tax credits and unemployment support, can reduce health disparities and improve population health, especially for low-income individuals, reports Penn LDI.

Citation:

"Using Tax and Labor Policies to Improve Population Health," Penn LDI, H Levins, April 7, 2025.

Insights from Wharton features Olivia Mitchell offering practical advice on improving financial literacy at all ages to avoid costly mistakes and enhance long-term financial well-being.

Citation:

"How to Empower the Next Generation with Financial Education: April 2025 Insights from the Wharton School," Insights from Wharton, April 7, 2025.

“It’s really concerning because, to me, what it’s saying is that the set of stressors that are harming the health of Americans is very widespread, to the point where even being wealthy or rich, you’re not going to be able to escape them,” Atheendar Venkataramani told NBC News.

Citation:
"Not even wealth is saving Americans from dying at rates seen among some of the poorest Europeans," NBC News, A Bendix, April 2, 2025.

Olivia Mitchell, in Wharton Business Daily, discusses the state of U.S. financial education, the effects of illiteracy, and how parents can teach kids essential money management skills.

Citation:

"Teaching Financial Responsibility: Strategies for Parents and Educators," Wharton Business Daily, April 2, 2025. 

Kevin Volpp in a Q&A with CHIBE discusses leading a national “Food Is Medicine” initiative with the AHA to design effective, scalable nutrition-based health interventions.

Citation:
"How to build a good research partnership: A Q&A with Dr. Kevin Volpp on his work with the AHA," CHIBE, April 2, 2025.

Knowledge at Wharton features a study co-authored by Olivia Mitchell revealing that financial and health literacy decline with age, increasing the risk of poor decisions and vulnerability among older adults—especially women.

Citation:

"Does Financial Literacy Decline with Age?" Knowledge at Wharton, S Parameshwaran, April 1, 2025.

Boyle P, Mitchell O. et al. 2025. "Declining Financial and Health Literacy among Older Men and Women." Science Direct. 

Related Article:
Does Financial Literacy Decline with Age?

STAT Names Dorothy Roberts as One of the 50 Influential People Shaping the Future of Health and Life Sciences on the 2025 STATUS List.

Citation:

"The Ultimate List of Leaders in Life Sciences," STAT, 2025.

Dorothy Roberts is featured in Harvard Law Bulletin for her work challenging systems of injustice, particularly in child welfare, reproductive rights, and criminal justice. Awarded a 2024 MacArthur Fellowship, she continues to advocate for radical social change and family support.

Citation:

"An Uncompromising View," Harvard Law Bulletin, C Walsh, March 31, 2025.

Jesús Fernández-Villaverde discusses the impact of the declining U.S. birth rate in a Newsweek article, warning that it could significantly slow GDP growth and strain social programs.

Citation:

"America's Birth Rate Sparks Fears for the Economy," Newsweek, H Cameron, March 28, 2025. 

Mark Pauly, writing for Penn LDI, cautions that proposed Medicaid cuts could unfairly impact low-income and vulnerable groups. He advocates for wealthier states to contribute more to the program to help preserve equitable access to care.

Citation:

"Federal Medicaid Spending Cuts: The Wrong Ways and the Right Ways," Penn LDI, M Pauly, March 28, 2025. 

In an interview with Stroke, Kevin Volpp explores how integrating food and nutrition into healthcare can improve outcomes, reduce costs, and promote equity through innovative, patient-centered approaches.

Citation:

"Author Interview: Dr. Kevin G. Volpp on Food Is Medicine: A Presidential Advisory From the American Heart Association," Stroke, H Chen, March 28, 2025.

A new study co-authored by Duncan Watts, reported by Annenberg, outlines how social media platforms can be intentionally designed to promote kindness, cooperation, and community support online.

Citation:
"Can Social Media Be Less Toxic?" Annenberg, H Reissman, March 27, 2025. 

Dorr T, Watts D. et al. 2025. "A Research Agenda for Encouraging Prosocial Behavior on Social Media," Nature Human Behavior.

Kevin Volpp, Angela Lee Duckworth, and Aaron Richterman, in their research reported by CHIBE, highlight techniques such as gamification, incentives, and text-based nudges to help patients make healthier choices.

Citation:
"5 Examples of How Behavioral Economics Can Influence Patient Behavior," CHIBE, March 26, 2025.

Fanaroff A, Volpp K. et al. 2024. "Effect of Gamification, Financial Incentives, or Both to Increase Physical Activity Among Patients at High Risk of Cardiovascular Events: The BE ACTIVE Randomized Controlled Trial," Circulation.

PSC and PARC Associates Aaron Richterman, Atheendar Venkataramani, and Alison Buttenheim co-authored a study, reported by Penn LDI, evaluating the B-OK tool's effectiveness in improving HIV medication understanding and adherence in Philadelphia.

Citation:

"Research Brief: Simple Visual Aids Raise Awareness and Knowledge About HIV Treatment," Penn LDI, C Tachibana, March 26, 2025.

Buttenheim A, Richterman A. et al. 2025. "B-OK: A Visual and Tactile Tool for Improving HIV Mental Models in a United States Urban Center." Global Implementation Research and Applications.

Penn Today reports that Angela Duckworth and Penn’s Behavior Change for Good Initiative found that simple, low-cost behavioral nudges for teachers can modestly boost student math progress.

Citation:
"A Simple Way to Boost Math Progress," Penn Today, D Stull, March 24, 2025.

“Philadelphia is still a place that’s attracting young people, professionals forming families and they are having children,” Emilio Parrado told WHYY.

Citation:

"Immigration Is Driving Philadelphia’s Population Gains, Census Data Shows," WHYY, K Mosbrucker-Garza, March 24, 2025. 

A study led by Dolores Albarracín and reported by the Annenberg Public Policy Center finds that people tend to share flattering feedback to boost others’ self-image—except when they dislike them or are prompted to prioritize accuracy.

Citation:
"People Select Feedback to Flatter Others, Except When They Dislike Them," Annenberg Public Policy Center, March 21, 2025. 

Albarracin D, Shen X. et al. 2025. "Enhancing Others Through Information Selection: Establishing the Phenomenon and Its Preconditions." APA PsycNet.

Hans-Peter Kohler told The Washington Times he’s hesitant to view the 2023–24 U.S. birth increase as a sign of reversing the long-term fertility decline, noting more analysis is needed to understand last year’s patterns.

Citation:

"U.S. Births Rose Last Year, but Experts Don’t See It as a Trend," The Washington Times, M Stobbe, March 18, 2025. 

Related Article: 

U.S. Births Rose Last Year, but Experts Don’t See It as a Trend.

Penn Today features Hanming Fang's study revealing that high-speed rail expansion in China significantly boosted electric vehicle sales, highlighting a model for cleaner, more equitable transportation.

Citation:
"Tracing the Connections between Chinese High-speed Rail and Electric Vehicle Sales," Penn Today, D Shortridge, March 12, 2025.

Hanming F, Li M. et al. 2025. "High-Speed Rail and China’s Electric Vehicle Adoption Miracle." PIER. 

Lance Freeman is featured in Penn Today for his groundbreaking work on urban equity, gentrification, and neighborhood dynamics. Drawing from personal experience and data-driven research, he aims to shape more just and inclusive cities.

Citation:
"Changing neighborhoods, changing times," Penn Today, K Garcia, March 12, 2025. 

Dennis Culhane co-authored a study for the National Alliance to End Homelessness on the cost and policy barriers to fully implementing Housing First for sheltered homelessness.

Citation:

Culhane D, Fowle M. et al. 2025. "How Much Would It Cost to Provide Housing First to All Households Staying in Homeless Shelters?" National Alliance to End Homelessness.

Penn Today highlights Dolores Albarracín's receipt of the BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in Social Sciences for her impactful research on attitude change and persuasive messaging.

Citation:

"Dolores Albarracín Honored with BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award," Penn Today, March 11, 2025. 

RELATED ARTICLE:

The Frontiers of Knowledge Award Goes to Ajzen, Albarracín, Banaji, Greenwald and Petty for Contributions that have Revolutionized Attitude Theory and its Practical Applications.

The Russell Sage Foundation awarded a grant to Rebecca Anna Schut for her research on how demographic shifts influence U.S. state immigration policies from 1990 to 2025. 

Citation:
"Demographic Change and Shifting U.S. State Immigration Policies, 1990-2025," The Russell Sage Foundation, March 2025.

Diana Montoya-Williams co-authors an article discussing the impact of the Dobbs decision on pregnancy and pediatric care. The article highlights five key changes, including reduced abortion access, less availability of critical surgeries, and increased healthcare costs for infants with congenital anomalies, reports Penn LDI. 

Citation:

"Ripple Effect: Five Ways The Dobbs Decision is Transforming Pregnancy and Pediatric Care," Penn LDI, J Hinckley, February 26, 2025. 

"The Dobbs Decision and Pediatric Healthcare: Preparing for Unintended Consequences," Pediatric Research, S Lorch, A Wilpers, D Montoya-Williams, November 23, 2024. 

Iliana V. Kohler and Hans-Peter Kohler co-authored a study exploring the use of dried plasma spot technology to measure Alzheimer's disease prevalence in Malawi's aging population, addressing global health disparities.

Citation:

"Bridging Borders: Advancing Aging Research in Malawi," Penn Memory Center, M McCarthy, February 26, 2025. 

Olivia Mitchell discusses common retirement regrets and the need for increased savings due to the impending insolvency of the Social Security Trust Fund on Decoding Retirement, as reported by Yahoo Finance.

Citation:

"How to Avoid Retirement Regrets," Yahoo Finance, February 25, 2025. 

WATCH THE VIDEO HERE

Rachel Werner co-authored an issue brief in Penn LDI, offering recommendations to enhance Community Health Centers' participation in value-based payment models and align these efforts with health equity goals.

Citation: 

"Issue Brief: Paying for Value and Health Equity in Community Health Centers," Penn LDI, P Chatterjee, R Werner, J Weiner, February 25, 2025. 

“The shelters are not a solution,” Dennis Culhane told Cal Matters, “We have every reason to believe that if we scaled up income support and provided rental assistance, we would probably see the homeless numbers cut in half.”

Citation:

"‘A Volunteer Jail’: Inside the Scandals and Abuse Pushing California’s Homeless Out of Shelters," Cal Matters, L Hepler, February 25, 2025.

In an episode of Decoding Retirement on Yahoo Finance, Olivia Mitchell explains that, due to the projected insolvency of the Social Security Trust Fund, retirement planners will need to increase their personal savings to ensure financial security in retirement. 

Citation:
"How to Avoid Retirement Regrets," Yahoo Finance, February 25, 2025. 

Watch the Video Here

Lourii Manovskii's research on local labor market dynamics and unemployment variability was featured in the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis.

Citation:

"Unemployment is Local," Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, L C McKay, November 13, 2024. 

Kuhn M, Manovskii I. et al. 2024. "The Geography of Job Creation and Job Destruction." Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis.

"The government should restore all the data that had been previously collected and make it available," says Irma Elo. She describes the federal statistical system, which collects population-level census and health data, as "the only independent source of data that we have."

"You cannot just replace it without having a huge influx of resources," she says, or without the expertise of statistical agencies that have collected and published these data for decades.

Citation:

"Some Federal Health Websites Restored, Others Still Down, after Data Purge," NPR, W Stone, P Huang, February 6, 2025. 

Eric Bressman and Kevin Volpp co-authored a study highlighted in Penn LDI, which examined the effectiveness of BP Pal, a text message-based hypertension management program, revealing high patient engagement but underscoring the need for rigorous testing of digital health innovations.

Citation:

"Automated Text Messaging for Hypertension Gets High Ratings—and Shows why Randomized Controlled Trials are Important," Penn LDI, C Tachibana, February 4, 2025. 

Bressman E, Volpp. et al. 2024. "Automated Text Message-Based Program to Improve Uncontrolled Blood Pressure in Primary Care Patients: A Randomized Clinical Trial." Journal of General Internal Medicine.

In Penn IUR, Lance Freeman discusses the need for updated comprehensive plans and streamlined approval processes to address the housing shortage and expand affordable housing supply.

Citation:

"Expert Voices 2025 | Access to Sustainable and Affordable Housing," Penn IUR, January 28, 2025. 

Greg Ridgeway co-founded the Data-Driven Discovery Initiative (DDDI) at Penn to foster collaboration among the university's data scientists. The initiative focuses on breaking down silos and advancing interdisciplinary connections in data science across various fields, as reported by OMNIA.

Citation:

"The Missing Data Link," OMNIA, L Dattaro, January 28, 2025.

A study co-authored by Nazar Khalid, along with PSC Associates Emily Hannum and Jere Behrman, explores how flooding in India exacerbates learning gaps for marginalized children, underscoring climate change’s unequal impact, as reported by OMINA.

Citation: 

"India, Floods, and Learning Outcomes," OMNIA, K Silva, January 27, 2025.

Khalid N, Nehrman J, Hannum E. et al. 2024. "Floods and Children’s Education in Rural India." The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences.

Penn Today highlights Michel Guillot's study, which reveals that life expectancy in Gaza has dropped by 46.3% since October 2023, from 75.5 to 40.5 years. The decline is more pronounced in men, and the study cautions that mortality estimates may be underestimated due to incomplete identification and the indirect effects of the war.

Citation:
"Study Shows Drop in Life Expectancy in the Gaza Strip," Penn Today, January 23, 2025. 

Guillot M, Draidi M. et al. 2025. "Life Expectancy Losses in the Gaza Strip during the Period October 2023 to September 2024." The Lancet. 

Penn LDI features a study on birth certificate data, co-authored by Diana Montoya-Williams, highlighting how refining racial and ethnic categorizations can enhance equity in preterm birth research and outcomes.

Citation:
"A Preterm Birth Study by LDI Fellows Supports Newly Instituted Changes to Racial and Ethnic Categorizations by a Key U.S. Agency," Penn LDI, K Holloway, January 22, 2025. 

Holloway K R, Montoya-Williams D. et al. 2024. “The “Other” Race Category on Birth Certificates and its Impact on Analyses of Preterm Birth Inequity.” Journal of Perinatology.

Kevin Volpp Receives AHA’s 2025 Edward S. Cooper Award for Transformative Contributions to Behavioral Economics and Community Health, Reports CHIBE.

Citation:

"Dr. Kevin Volpp Receives AHA’s 2025 Edward S. Cooper Award," CHIBE, January 16, 2025.

Penn LDI highlights research by Molly Candon and PSC research associates Rachel Werner and David Mandell, revealing that increased insurance coverage for acupuncture from 2010 to 2019 led to greater use among individuals with low back pain.

Citation:

"Chart of the Day: More U.S. Patients Use Acupuncture for Low Back Pain, But it Remains Rare," Penn LDI, C Weeks, January 15, 2025.

Candon M, Werner R, Mandell D. et al. 2024. “Utilization of Reimbursed Acupuncture Therapy for Low Back Pain.” JAMA Network Open.

Penn Carey Law highlights Dorothy Roberts' Penn Carey Law course on reproductive justice, exploring legal, ethical, and constitutional issues beyond abortion access, including parenting, contraception, and freedom.

Citation:

"Reproductive Rights & Justice," Penn Carey Law, December 17, 2024.

"Dorothy Roberts on Reproductive Rights and Justice," Penn Today, January 13, 2025.

WATCH THE VIDEO HERE

Dennis Culhane in an interview with The Signal addresses the troubling increase in homelessness across the U.S., focusing on the sharp rise in homelessness among immigrants.

Citation:

"Mother of Exiles," The Signal, D Culhane and G Jönsson, January 7, 2025.

Read the PSC 2024 Year In Review annual newsletter and discover all the highlights of the Population Studies Center's work from the past year. Sections include: a letter from PSC Directors Emilio A. Parrado & Paula Fomby, 2024 By The Numbers, New Associates, Population Center Working Papers, PSC Funded Pilots, Funding, Awards & Honors, GGD Awards & Honors, In the News, Op-Eds, and Colloquium Videos.

Dolores Albarracín, co-author of the study highlighted by the Annenberg Public Policy Center, says, “These findings are important for media outlets and policymakers as they navigate the complex choices in how to portray and engage with international conflicts, and they also shed light on the psychological forces that shape policy support in the context of war.” 

Citation:

"Coverage of Civilian Casualties in Allied Countries Boosts Support for U.S. Involvement," Annenberg Public Policy Center, January 6, 2025.

Albarracín D, Kraitzman A. et al. 2025. "How Civilian Casualty Information Shapes Support for U.S. Involvement in an Ally Country’s War Effort." Humanities and Social Sciences Communications.

Hanming Fang and Yi Chen won the 2024 JER Best Article Award for their article "The State of Mental Health among Older Chinese and the Role of Children" in The Japanese Economic Review. The article examined the mental health of older Chinese and the role of children.

Citation: 
Chen Y, Fang H. 2024. "The State of Mental Health among Older Chinese and the Role of Children." The Japanese Economic Review.

Penn computational social scientist Duncan Watts and his team developed the AI-powered Media Bias Detector as reported by Annenberg, to analyze news articles in real-time, identifying biases in tone, partisan lean, and fact selection.

Citation:

"AI-Powered Bias Detector Transforms News Analysis," Annenberg, January 1, 2025. 

Dolores Albarracín told Annenberg. "Our research provides a map for what might be effective, even for behaviors nobody has studied. Just like masking became a critical behavior during the pandemic, but we had no research on masking, a broad empirical study of intervention efficacy can guide future efforts for an array of behaviors we have not directly studied but that need to be promoted during a crisis."

Citation:

"Groundbreaking Analysis Unveils Secrets to Predicting and Changing Human Behavior," Annenberg, January 1, 2025.