Penn Integrates Knowledge Professors

PIK Professor Roberto Gonzales weighed in on the effects of a recent court ruling that barred the U.S. from approving DACA requests. "For these youngsters, these teenagers who are aging into eligibility in a really critical developmental period of their lives and not being able to get DACA, it's really detrimental to their future trajectories," he said. "It curves, if not cuts off, possibilities for them."

Research co-led by PIK Professor Dolores Albarracín found that those who trust science are more likely to believe and share false claims containing scientific references than those who do not. “A critical mindset can make you less gullible and make you less likely to believe in conspiracy theories,” she said.

PIK Professor Ezekiel Emanuel said workplace vaccine mandates could improve uptake. When Penn’s health system required staff to get COVID-19 vaccines, Emanuel said, “the sky didn’t fall. When we do it, and we have a good justification, people respond.”

PIK Professor Ezekiel Emanuel spoke about vaccine mandates for health care workers. “Patients come first. It's our obligation to promote their health and well-being,” he said.

PIK Professor Ezekiel Emanuel and research coordinators Matthew Guido and Amaya Diana wrote an opinion piece calling for vaccine mandates in the private sector. “The mandates are ethical, providing huge benefits that outweigh risks, and higher immunization rates maximize the vaccine’s benefits in the workplace and community,” they wrote.

PIK Professor Dolores Albarracín spoke about how conspiracy theories persist, even when countered with facts. “The belief contains a device that protects it,” she said. “Nothing can invalidate the conspiracy theory. Trying to refute the theory proves the theory and signals you as a conspirator.”

PIK Professor Ezekiel Emanuel said workplace mandates may be necessary in order to achieve higher COVID-19 vaccination rates in the U.S. “If the federal government does it, there’s going to be a ton of backlash. It’s going to be a political event,” he said. “If private industry does it, it’s like, ‘OK, that’s private industry, that’s what we’re founded on.’”

PIK Professor Herbert Hovenkamp weighed in on a pair of legal rulings that dismissed antitrust lawsuits against Facebook. “This is going to strengthen the case for legislation,” he said. “It seems to be proof that the antitrust laws are not up to the challenge.”