Michael T. Vale
Office Location
Michael T. Vale, PhD joined the Psychology Department in the fall of 2021 and is excited to interact and engage with students, both in the classroom and on research projects. Dr. Vale graduated from the joint Adult Development and Aging PhD program at the University of Akron and Cleveland State University. In the classroom, Dr. Vale encourages his students to integrate their own experiences into coursework and challenges them to think about their own lifespan trajectories. Dr. Vale also enjoys mentoring and working with students on research projects. Broadly, Dr. Vale’s research focuses on understanding the consequences of stigma in older adulthood in two main areas: understanding the consequences of benevolent ageism and studying the impact of minority stress in older sexual and gender minorities (e.g., LGBT people). Outside of academia, Dr. Vale enjoys spending his time attending confirmation dog shows and laughing at Golden Girls reruns.
Degrees & Certifications
- BA, Gerontology, University of Akron
- Certificate of Gerontology, University of Akron
- MA, University of Akron
- PhD, University of Akron
Teaching Responsibilities
- Adult Development
- Research Design and Analysis I
- Child Development
Research Interests
Dr. Vale is interested in how stigma predicts psychological well-being, social-relationships, and health and how these relationships are contextualized by one’s unique lifespan experiences (e.g., period of growing up). His first program of research explores attitudes toward older adults and ageism, specifically with a focus on benevolent, or the seemingly nice, forms of ageism. Ageism is one of the least studied forms of prejudice, yet it is pervasive, deemed socially appropriate, and will someday apply to everyone. Dr. Vale has built a foundation in exploring how older adults are viewed and treated in benevolent, or overaccommodative, fashions and he hopes to uncover how older adults perceive and react to benevolent ageism in his future work at SHU. Dr. Vale’s second program of research investigates how minority stress (e.g., discrimination, concealing sexual identity, internalized stigma) is experienced by older sexual minorities, or those attracted to the same-sex (e.g., Lesbians, Gay Man, Bisexuals, Men who Sleep with Men). Older sexual minorities have witnessed the uprising of the gay rights movement, saw the removal of same-sex attraction as a mental disorder, and can recall the decriminalization of same-sex attractions. Thus, he is interested in age and cohort differences in minority stress, understanding how these differences lead to social, mental, and physical health outcomes, and identifying the factors that promote resilience against stigma.
Dr. Vale encourages students who are interested in working on his research projects to email him.
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