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Institution
Yale UniversityCurrent Position
Professor Highest Degree
Ph.D. in Psychology from University of Maryland, College Park, 1977
Research Interests
 | Close Relationships |
| Emotion |
| Interpersonal Processes |
| Personality |
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Margaret Clark
Department of Psychology
Yale University
New Haven, Connecticut 06520
U.S.A.
Home Page
Phone: (203) 432-4500
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My research interests fall in the areas of close
relationships, emotion, and the intersection of
those two areas.I've long been interested in the normative nature of
interpersonal processes as they occur within
family relationships, friendships, and romantic
relationships. Much of my early work was devoted
to demonstrating that the norms governing the
giving and receiving of benefits in such close
relationships are distinct from those which govern
the giving and receiving of benefits in other
relationships. In particular, I proposed that it is
normative (and beneficial) for people to give
benefits, non-contingently, in response to a
partner's needs, if and when such needs arise
whereas in other relationships benefits are given
contingently. Studies demonstrated that in
relationships desired to be formal and not
communal (but not in relationships in which
closeness is desired), people react positively to
being repaid for favors and to receiving requests
for repayment (Clark & Mills, 1979), keep track of
inputs into the relationship (Clark, 1984; Clark,
Mills, & Corcoran, 1989), and prefer giving and
receiving comparable to non-comparable benefits
(Clark, 1981). In contrast, in communal (but not
other relationships) needs are tracked (Clark,
Mills, & Powell, 1986; Clark et al. 1989), help is
given (Clark, Ouellette, Powell & Milberg,, 1987),
emotional expression is welcomed and
responded to positively (Clark et al., 1987; Clark &
Taraban, 1991) and giving help boosts one's
mood (Williamson & Clark, 1989; 1992). More recently, I've observed people's ability to
adhere to communal norms within ongoing,
intimate, relationships -- most often marriages.
People do, overwhelmingly, follow communal
norms in these relationships and they and their
partners feel best when they do so. I've also
observed that expressing emotion, which conveys
need states, is welcome in such relationships and
valued and that it carries with it a host of benefits
(Clark & Finkel, 2004). People who are low in trust
of others, however, do have difficulty adhering to
communal norms in the face of adversity and show
some tendency to switch to exchange norms under
such conditions. Finally, I would note that my current interests
include a focus on the nature and function of the
interpersonal emotions of hurt, guilt, and gratitude
within close relationships. Current research is
demonstrating the value of feeling and expressing
hurt and guilt to perserving communal
relationships and the value of feeling and
expressing gratitude to building and strengthening
communal relationships.
 Journal Articles:
- Clark, M. S. (2002). We should focus on interpersonal as well as intrapersonal processes in our search for how affect influences judgments and behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 13, 32-36.
- Clark, M. S., & Finkel, E. J. (2005). Willingness to express emotion: The impact of relationship type, communal orientation, and their interaction. Personal Relationships, 12, 169-180.
- Grote, N., & Clark, M. S. (2004). Perceptions of injustice in family work: The role of psychological distress. Journal of Family Psychology.
- Grote, N., & Clark, M. S. (2001). Does conflict drive perceptions of unfairness or do perceptions of unfairness drive conflict? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 80(2), 281-293. Erratum, JPSP 2001, 80(3), 362.
- Grote, N. K., Naylor, C., & Clark, M. S. (2002). Social comparisons, enjoyment and own and spouse perceived competence drive perceptions of fairness in marriage. Journal of Family Psychology.
- Mills, J., Clark, M. S., Ford, T., & Johnson, M. (2004). Measuring communal strength. Personal Relationships, 11, 213-230.
- Pataki, S. P., & Clark, M. S. (2004). Self presentations of happiness: Sincere, polite, or cautious? Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 30, 905-914.
Other Publications:
- Clark, M. S., & Finkel, E. J. (2004). The benefits of selective expression of emotion within communal relationships. In L. Tiedens and C. W. Leach (Eds.), The social life of emotions, Cambridge University Press: England.
- Clark, M. S., & Fitness, J., & Brissette, I. (2001). Understanding people’s perceptions of relationships is crucial to understanding their emotional lives. (pp. 253-278) In G. Fletcher, & M. S. Clark, (Eds.), Interpersonal Processes. Volume 3 of the Blackwell Handbook of Social Psychology. Blackwell.
- Clark, M. S., Graham, S., & Grote, N. (2002). Bases for giving benefits in marriage: What is ideal? What is realistic? What really happens? In P. Noller & J. Feeney (Eds.), Understanding marriage: Developments in the study of couple interaction (pp. 150-176). Oxford, England: Cambridge University Press.
- Clark, M. S., & Mills, J. (2001). Behaving in such a way as to maintain and enhance relationship satisfaction. In J. H. Harvey & A. E. Wenzel (Eds.), Relationship maintenance and enhancement (pp. 13-26). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
- Reis, H., Clark, M. S., & Holmes, J. (2004). Perceived partner responsiveness as an organizing construct in the study of intimacy and closeness. In D. Mashek & A. Aron (Eds.), The handbook of closeness and intimacy (pp. 201-225). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
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