About Me

Welcome to my website! My name is Michael and I am currently an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Sacred Heart University. I recently graduated from Adult Development and Aging Psychology doctoral program at the University of Akron, where I worked under the advisement of Dr. Toni L. Bisconti in the Transitions Resilience and Identity (TRI) Lab. I have two programs of research that merge to shed light on the impact of stigma in older adulthood. My goal as a professor and researcher is to inspire students with my passion for learning and enthusiasm for psychological research. For more information about my research, teaching, and some fun facts continue reading below!

Attitudes Toward Older Adults and Benevolent Ageism

The first program of research explores attitudes toward older adults and ageism, specifically with a focus on benevolent, or the seemingly nice, forms of ageism. When I first learned about ageism, I found it odd that ageism is one of the least studied forms of prejudice, yet it is pervasive, deemed socially appropriate, and will someday apply to everyone. I have built a foundation in exploring how older adults are viewed and treated in benevolent, or overaccommodative, fashions across two experimental vignette studies. (Vale, Sublett, & Bisconti, 2019; Sublett, Vale, & Bisconti, 2021). My most recent ageism projects have been investigating how ageism is manifesting and rising as a result of the the COVID-19 pandemic (Vale, Stanley, Houston, Villalba, & Turner, 2020).

Minority Stress in Older Sexual Minorities

My second area of research is more personal as it investigates how socially based stigmas are directed at sexual minorities, or those romantically attracted to the same-sex (e.g., gay men, lesbians, bisexuals), across the lifespan. As a gay man who was raised in a small town in Ohio, I often felt like I did not belong and struggled with my sexuality. Prompted by my specialty interest in aging, I began to question how minority stress (e.g., discrimination, concealing sexual identity, internalized stigma) is contextualized by one’s life history. 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, my research aims to address age and cohort differences in minority stress and how these differences lead to social, mental, and physical health. For my masters thesis, I examined age differences in minority stressors in the context of romantic relationships which has produced two manuscripts (Vale & Bisconti , 2020; Vale & Bisconti, 2021). For my dissertation, I asked sexual minorities of different ages to take daily surveys that assessed their day-to-day experiences of minority stressors, well-being, and social interactions across 3 weeks. This study is allowing me to examine and model the minority stress process and explore how age influences our daily experiences of minority stress. This study is currently being analyzed and prepared for publication.

Teaching

I currently instruct Adult Development, Child Development, and Research Design and Analysis at Sacred Heart University. I also have taught Introduction to Psychology Developmental Psychology and assisted teaching Experimental Psychology, Psychology of Hate, Advanced Topics in Sexuality, and Psychology of Diversity courses. Across these different experiences I have found that I enjoy my time in the classroom, as it is often the best part of my entire week. I also believe that it is important that students get to experience teachers who have a passion and deep knowledge for psychology, a promise I will keep in my future teaching. It is important to me that I continue to share my expertise, passion, and enthusiasm for psychology and the research process.

Other Fun Facts

I was born and raised in a small village in the suburbs of Cleveland, called Fairport Harbor. Living in a small community has undoubtedly shaped my academic work, because in the “Port” intergenerational relationships are the norm and older adults played a major part of my everyday life. Therefore, it was not a surprise that I have found myself wanting to study older adults and aging. Outside of academia, I also enjoy spending my time “geeking” out on popular culture, exploring different hiking trails, attending confirmation dog shows (yes, like the dog shows you see on tv— I have shown at Westminster!), and laughing at Golden Girls reruns!