Sociology | Penn Today

Testing the reproducibility of social science research

A team co-led by Gideon Nave of the Wharton School replicated 21 high-profile social science studies and found discrepancies with the original research. Researchers betting in prediction markets, however, were quite accurate at predicting which findings would replicate and which would not.

The trouble with trucking

Steve Viscelli, a Robert and Penny Fox Family Pavilion Scholar Senior Fellow and a lecturer in the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy and the Department of Sociology, was cited for his expertise in the trucking industry.

Penn Africana Studies and Sociology Professor Tukufu Zuberi

Centennial of Nelson Mandela’s birth

It has been 100 years since the birth of Nelson Mandela, elected as South Africa’s first black president after being imprisoned by the apartheid government for nearly three decades. Penn Professor Tukufu Zuberi of the School of Arts and Sciences discusses Mandela’s legacy and his continuing impact today.

The real deal

Robert and Penny Fox Family Pavilion Scholar Steve Viscelli of the School of Arts and Sciences and the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy was interviewed about his research into the lives of professional truckers.

Philly as lab, classroom, and collaborator

Philadelphia’s rich history and forward momentum make it ripe for scientific inquiry for a number of Penn schools and departments, from urban and population studies to medicine and anthropology.

Phoebe Ho is a doctoral candidate in Sociology at the University of Pennsylvania. Her research focuses on the sociology of education and family, specifically the experiences of minority and immigrant families. (Photo: Marcus Wright)

Teachers view immigrant and minority parents as less involved in their children’s education

A study from Penn Sociology revealed that such perspectives from educators can end up hampering the academic trajectory of the students.

Sociologist Steve Viscelli studies the trucking industry. A report publishing soon looks at what effect driverless trucks will have on the industry as a whole.

Science fiction or the future of trucking?

Driverless trucks seem like science fiction, part of a far-off world where robots and humans live and work side by side.

Shepherding discoveries from the lab to the pharmacy

In a new book, a biochemist, a sociologist, and an economist share insights into how biomedical discoveries become marketable innovations.

There’s No Scientific Basis for Race—It's a Made-Up Label

Paul Wolff Mitchell of the School of Arts and Sciences, PIK Professor Sarah Tishkoff and Yana Kamberov of the Perelman School of Medicine discussed race and genetics. Skulls from Samuel Morton collection in the Penn Museum are also featured.

Black and Latino Children Are Often Overlooked When It Comes to Autism

A 2007 Penn study found that African-American children were “5.1 times more likely to be misdiagnosed with conduct disorders” before receiving Autism Spectrum Disorder diagnoses.

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