Research

Big Questions. Bold Research. Real Impact.

At the Penn State College of the Liberal Arts, research begins with exploring what it means to be human—how we think, connect, and shape the world. Our faculty and students work across disciplines to understand the past, address today’s challenges, and imagine a better future.

Through innovative centers and collaborative inquiry, we advance policy, promote well-being, and drive societal change. Ranked sixth nationally in federal funding for social and behavioral science research, we’re fulfilling Penn State’s land-grant mission through research that makes a real difference.

Areas of Impact

Our research drives positive change, strengthens communities, shapes cultural narratives, and transforms sectors, reflecting the diverse overlap between disciplines and areas of impact inherent in our interdisciplinary approach.

Insights from liberal arts research help shape policies related to social justice, human rights, and community development, addressing complex societal issues. By amplifying marginalized voices and fostering inclusive dialogue, this research raises awareness and inspires action. Ultimately, it empowers communities to challenge inequities and work toward a more equitable society.

Faculty Research

Hil Malatino

Associate Professor of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and Philosophy

Joyce L. and Douglas S. Sherwin Early Career Professor in the Rock Ethics Institute

Associate Professor of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and Philosophy

Joyce L. and Douglas S. Sherwin Early Career Professor in the Rock Ethics Institute

While conducting research, Hil Malatino, came to the realization that a vast trove of archival documents devoted to trans history had yet to be unearthed and analyzed by contemporary scholars. That insight led Malatino to conceive the project, “Widening the Arc of Trans History: Archival Research for Public Storytelling,” which recently received a $500,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Faculty Research

P. Gabrielle Foreman

Professor of African American Studies

Penn State’s Center for Black Digital Research (CBDR), Douglass Day has proven to be a highly creative and effective way to transcribe a vast trove of digitized African American historical documents — including the writings of its namesake, iconic abolitionist and social reformer Frederick Douglass. Now the program has a new three-year partnership with the Library of Congress.

Faculty Research

Jes Matsick

Associate Professor of Psychology and WGSS

Jes Matsick’s research explores how a sense of belonging impacts the mental and physical health of LGBTQ+ people, emphasizing that structural and interpersonal support are key to individual well-being. Through her work at the Underrepresented Perspectives Lab, Matsick is advancing research that helps LGBTQ+ individuals not only survive but thrive.

Faculty Research

Julie Reed

Associate Professor of History

Julie Reed’s research centers on Cherokee history, Indigenous education, and the ways Native communities preserve and transmit knowledge across generations. Through her Mellon-funded training in applied Southeastern archaeology, she’s expanding her scholarship to include non-invasive archaeological methods that honor and elevate Indigenous voices. Her work reframes dominant narratives about Cherokee educational history and sovereignty while fostering more ethical, collaborative approaches to research with Native communities.

Faculty Research

Mary Stuckey

Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of Communication Arts and Sciences

Mary E. Stuckey’s research examines how presidential rhetoric shapes national identity and influences how people see themselves within political communities. Her work highlights how political language—through symbols like national parks or the Declaration of Independence—both reflects and shapes who we are as a nation.

Faculty Research

Scott Burnett

Assistant professor of African studies and WGSS

Scott Burnett’s work critically examines how fascist and ethnonationalist ideologies manipulate gender and reproductive politics, which contributes to understanding and challenging systems of oppression. By bringing these issues to light through the Sawyer Seminar, the research promotes equity, historical awareness, and the pursuit of justice, while also encouraging dialogue and policy change that can lead to broader social transformation.

Liberal arts research fosters well-being, resilience, and sustainability by exploring human behavior, social justice, and environmental stewardship. It informs policies that enhance quality of life, empower marginalized voices, and protect our planet, building stronger, more inclusive communities.

Faculty Research

Karen Bierman

Evan Pugh University Professor of Psychology and Human Development and Family Studies

Low-income students who received a preschool intervention focused on social-emotional development continued to benefit from it during their teen years according to a recent study.

Faculty Research

Koraly Perez-Edgar

McCourtney Professor of Child Studies

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.

Faculty Research

Jes Matsick

Associate Professor of Psychology and WGSS

Faculty Research

Dawn Witherspoon

Professor of Psychology

Dawn Witherspoon has spent many years researching the ways that the spaces children inhabit play a critical role in their development, including in her role as director of the Parents And Children Together (PACT) research initiative.

Faculty Research

Sarah Kollat

Teaching Professor of Psychology

Sarah Kollat’s research and teaching focus on developmental psychology, particularly how healthy family systems can support positive growth and prevent future challenges. As a novelist, she draws on her psychology background to explore the darker aspects of human behavior and trauma, crafting psychological thrillers that delve into fear, dysfunction, and the complexities of family dynamics.

Campus LeaderPsychologyResearchSchreyer ScholarSustainability

Ethan Sten

’23

Psychology

Sustainability Leadership (minor)

Psychology

Sustainability Leadership (minor)

Fall 2023 Liberal Arts student marshal Ethan Sten explored scientific research and sustainability at Penn State and worked with the Edna Bennett Pierce Prevention Research Center on community and behavioral health projects. He is now pursuing a doctorate in clinical psychology at the University of Montana.

Liberal arts research shapes culture, media, and global connections by examining societal narratives and cross-cultural interactions. Through literature, history, and social sciences, scholars inform public discourse, influence media, and challenge stereotypes, fostering understanding and a more inclusive, connected world.

Faculty Research

Matthew Restall

Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of Colonial Latin American History, Anthropology, and Women's Gender and Sexuality Studies

Director of Latin American Studies

Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of Colonial Latin American History, Anthropology, and Women's Gender and Sexuality Studies

Director of Latin American Studies

Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of Colonial Latin American History recently wrote a book, “The Nine Lives of Christopher Columbus,” tracing the life and many afterlives of Columbus. Throughout the book, Restall separates fact from fiction and seeks to understand why Columbus continues to mean different things to different people.

Faculty Research

Elizabeth Kadetsky

Professor of English

Elizabeth Kadetsky received a $60,000 Public Scholars grant for her current non-fiction book project chronicling her journey to trace the whereabouts of the Tanesar sculptures, a series of sixth-century stone figures, most of them mother goddesses that are also called matrikas, that were stolen from a temple in southwestern Rajasthan, India, during the early 1960s and ended up in the collections of high-profile art collectors and several prominent museums.

Faculty Research

Sandra Spanier

Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of English and Women's Studies

The Hemingway Letters Project received a three-year NEH Scholarly Editions and Translations grant worth $282,520, plus $150,000 in federal matching funds. That will fund the seventh, eighth and ninth volumes of “The Letters of Ernest Hemingway,” which will eventually produce 17 volumes of the American literary icon’s more than 6,000 letters written between 1907 and 1961.

Faculty Research

Sandra Spanier

Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of English and Women's Studies

Led by Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of English and Women’s Studies Sandra Spanier and Associate Research Professor of English Verna Kale, the the Hemingway Letters Project recently published the sixth volume of “The Letters of Ernest Hemingway”. This volume covers the period from June 1934 to June 1936, plus an appendix of 48 previously unpublished letters written between 1918 and 1934.

Faculty Research

Gabeba Baderoon

Associate Professor of Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, African Studies, and Comparative Literature

Gabeba Baderoon’s work blends poetry, scholarship, and personal narrative to explore themes of illness, memory, and identity. As a Harvard Radcliffe Institute Fellow, she is writing a memoir in verse that grapples with the fragmented experience of concussion through interdisciplinary archives, landscapes, and language. Her project reflects a deep engagement with creative expression as a form of healing and critical inquiry.

Faculty Research

Michael Naydan

Woskob Family Professor of Ukrainian Studies

Michael Naydan’s research and career center on translating and promoting Ukrainian literature and culture for English-speaking audiences. Through decades of collaborative translation work, mentorship, and scholarship, he has helped bring overlooked Ukrainian voices to global attention—especially vital during the ongoing war in Ukraine.

Liberal arts research transforms industries by examining human behavior, ethics, and innovation—helping businesses navigate societal shifts, leverage AI and emerging technologies, and adopt sustainable, inclusive strategies that shape the future of work.

Faculty Research

Karen Bierman

Evan Pugh University Professor of Psychology and Human Development and Family Studies

Low-income students who received a preschool intervention focused on social-emotional development continued to benefit from it during their teen years according to a recent study.

Faculty Research

Koraly Perez-Edgar

McCourtney Professor of Child Studies

Faculty Research

Daryl Cameron

Professor of Psychology

Sherwin Early Career Professor in the Rock Ethics Institute

Professor of Psychology

Sherwin Early Career Professor in the Rock Ethics Institute

Daryl Cameron’s research explores how people perceive and respond to empathy—especially when it’s simulated by artificial intelligence. Through his work with the Consortium on Moral Decision-Making and his Empathy and Moral Psychology Lab, Cameron investigates the ethical and psychological implications of AI-generated empathy, considering both its potential to fulfill human social needs and the risks of outsourcing emotional connection. His interdisciplinary approach aims to deepen understanding of moral behavior in an age of rapidly evolving technology.

EntrepreneurHistoryPaterno FellowsPolitical ScienceSocial Data Analytics

Nicholas Birosik

’22

Political Science

Social Data Analytics

History minor

Political Science

Social Data Analytics

History minor

Nicholas is the founder and president of NicNac Charities Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to eliminating the digital divide and launching other nonprofits around the country. “The College of the Liberal Arts provided me with a unique opportunity to craft a well-rounded education, which satisfied my intellectual curiosity and helped to jumpstart my career in public service.”

Research Opportunities

Explore our 75+ centers, institutes, and research labs

The College of the Liberal Arts is home to dozens of cross-disciplinary centers, institutes, and labs that promote scholarly collaboration, outreach, and student engagement. The centers are equipped with the resources to bring their research and scholarship into the public domain, helping to inform practitioners and policy makers well beyond Penn State.

African Feminist Initiative

Bilingual Sentence Processing and Code-Switching Lab

Center for Social Data Analytics

Center for American Literary Studies

Laboratry of Developmental Neuroscience

Criminal Justice Research Center

Center for American Political Responsiveness

Emotion Development Lab

Brain Injury and Plasticity Lab (Hillary Lab)

Laboratory for Personality, Psychopathology, and Psychotherapy Research (Levy Lab)

Relationship and Stress Lab

Center for Human Evolution and Diversity

Measurement, Applied Psychology, and Statics Lab

Group Identity and Social Perception Lab

Code Switching in the Community

Cognitive Neuroscience of Creativity Lab

Feelings, Behavior, and Information Processing Lab

First Families

Semantics, Aphasia, and Neural Dynamics Lab

Coping and Regulation of Environment Stress (CaRES) Lab

Center for Global Studies

George and Ann Richards Civil War Era Center

Castonguay Lab

Africana Research Center

English for Professional Purposes Intercultural Center (EPPIC)

Social Vision and Interpersonal Perception Lab (Adams Lab)

MultiGrammar Lab

Center for Black Digital Research

Empathy and Moral Psychology Lab

Gene-Environment Interplay Across the Lifespan Lab

Reproductive Justice Project

World in Conversation

Cognition of Adult Language Acquisition Lab

Rock Ethics Institute

Personaility Psychology Lab

Cognition, Affect, and Temperament Lab (CAT Lab)

Bilingualism and Language Development (BiLD) Lab

Swim Lab

The McCourtney Institute for Democracy

Neuropsychology-Hillary Lab

Language and Aging Lab

Center for Language Science

Laboratory for Anxiety and Depression Research

Child Language Development Lab

Cognitive and Social Development Lab

Parent-Child Dynamics Lab

Speech Production Lab

Parents and Children Together (PACT)

Language Contact in the Field

Communication, Science, and Society Initiative (CSSI)

Dussias Brain Tracking Lab

Multilingual Morphology (MultiMorph)

Center for Advanced Language Proficiency Education and Research

Child Attention and Learning Lab

Child Study Center

Culture, Health, and Emotion Lab

Humanities Institute

Development, Risk, and Resilience Lab

Learning Lab

Center for Language Acquisition

Center for Humanities and Information

Head Start REDI

Second Language Acquisition Lab

Center for International Human Resource Studies

Gilmore Lab

Context and Development Lab

Neuropsychology-Arnett Lab

Center for Global Workers’ Rights

Language Acquisition Lab

Addiction, Smoking, and Health (ASH) Lab

Workplace Emotional Labor and Diversity Lab

Liberal Arts Sustainability Council

GoPals Pre-Kindergarten Club

Cognitive Aging and Neuroimaging Lab (CAN Lab)

Center for Democratic Deliberation

Make a Gift

Interested in supporting our students and faculty in their research? Lydell Sargeant, senior director of development and alumni relations, will work closely and confidentially with you and your financial advisers to ensure that your gift achieves your individual goals and expresses your personal vision. You can contact Lydell by email at lrs197@psu.edu or by phone at 814-865-3173.

Lydell Sargeant

Senior Director of Development and Alumni Relations

lrs197@psu.edu

More about Lydell Sargeant

Find Research Support

Faculty and Graduate Student Resources

The Office of the Senior Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies supports research activity by faculty, graduate students, and other researchers.

Undergraduate Student Opportunities

A great way to enhance your undergraduate experience and develop skills that will be attractive to future employers is through undergraduate research.