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Behavioral Health
Nudge Cartography: Building a map to navigate behavioral research
Ph.D. candidate Linnea Gandhi of the Wharton School and research assistant Anoushka Kiyawat discuss the development of their team’s innovative research tool.
Behavioral economics strategies can help patients quit smoking after a cancer diagnosis
Researchers from Penn Medicine and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia find ‘nudges’ from electronic health records could improve the implementation of tobacco use treatment.
Penn Medicine to open new crisis response center at Cedar Avenue facility
As part of a unified mental health care hub at Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania–Cedar Avenue, the new model brings together emergency, inpatient, and outpatient psychiatric care on the same campus, creating the health system’s second consolidated mental health care site in Philadelphia.
Symposium highlights breadth and depth of Penn Global research
The Penn Global Research and Engagement Fund is supporting the 19 new faculty-led projects that span research, capacity-building, and development efforts across Africa, Latin America, India, China, and beyond.
Casey Halpern uses science and surgery to address mental health—starting with cravings
The associate professor of neurosurgery at the Perelman School of Medicine has found that deep brain stimulation senses craving and upcoming loss of control in brain cells and delivers stimulation to restore the stop signal that patients need.
Does more money correlate with greater happiness?
Reconciling previously contradictory results, researchers from Penn and Princeton find a steady association between larger incomes and greater happiness for most people but a rise and plateau for an unhappy minority.
Why COVID misinformation continues to spread
Penn Medicine’s Anish Agarwal discusses why false claims about the virus and vaccines arise and persist, plus what he hopes will come from NIH-funded research he and Penn Engineering’s Sharath Chandra Guntuku have recently begun.
Restricted abortion access linked to increased suicide risk in young women
Research from the University of Pennsylvania and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia determined that this association exists for women of reproductive age, findings that hold potential clinical, policy, and ethical implications.
Gay men and trauma
At Penn Medicine Princeton House Behavioral Health, gay men struggling with trauma and its effects have access to care that is inclusive and accepting of all patients.
Abandoned house repairs reduced nearby gun violence
Installing working windows and doors, cleaning trash, and weeding at abandoned houses led to safety improvements and should be considered in efforts to create healthy communities, according to researchers from University of Pennsylvania and Columbia.
In the News
Combat the sleep problems that hit in middle age
Philip Gehrman of the Perelman School of Medicine says that the amount of deep sleep people get at night starts to decline during their 20s.
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Who says money can’t buy happiness? Here’s how much it costs (really) in different cities
Matthew Killingsworth of the Wharton School says that many people, including scientists, are curious about money’s relationship to happiness.
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Fruit and vegetable ‘prescriptions’ may lead to better heart health
Kevin Volpp of the Perelman School of Medicine and the Wharton School says that randomized trials would be the most systematic way to assess the effectiveness of produce prescription programs.
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Can’t sleep? Try this proven alternative to medication
Philip Gehrman of the Perelman School of Medicine says that as many as 80% of the people who try cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia see improvements in their sleep, with most patients finding relief within four to eight sessions even if they’ve had insomnia for decades.
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Digital nomads are traveling by day and working by night
Ilene Rosen of the Perelman School of Medicine explains why consistently pulling all-nighters isn’t a good idea for optimal health or work performance.
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Five things experts do before bed to get the best sleep possible
Mathias Basner of the Perelman School of Medicine says that amount and quality are the two key components of good sleep.
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