Assistant Professor of Family Studies
(PhD, Kent State University)

Research Interests

Aging families, marriage and health, health behaviors and chronic illness management

Contact Information

Fowler House, Room 202
Purdue University
1200 W. State Street
West Lafayette, Indiana 47907-2055

Phone: (765) 494-2942
Fax: (765) 494-0503

E-mail: mmfranks@purdue.edu

Biography
Recent Publications
Education
Courses Recently Taught
Honors
External Grants
Professional Service

Biography

I joined the Family Studies faculty in the Department of Child Development and Family Studies at Purdue University in the fall of 2007. My program of research focuses on marital processes in the management of chronic illness. In this work, my colleagues and I investigate health lifestyles and marital interactions and their association with the physical health and psychological well-being of both marital partners. Our current work is funded by the National Institute on Aging and the National Institute for Diabetes & Digestive and Kidney Diseases.

I am a social psychologist, and I received my doctoral degree from Kent State University. My dissertation research ignited my continuing interest in marital processes in the context of illness. Together with my graduate mentor, Dr. Mary Ann Stephens, I investigated the social support that husbands provide to their wives who are caring for an aging parent. This work on family caregiving led me to pursue postdoctoral training in gerontology. I received an NIA postdoctoral fellowship through the Institute of Gerontology at the University of Michigan. My postdoctoral training with Dr. A. Regula Herzog focused on productive aging and on self-making among older adults. Following my postdoctoral training, I joined the faculty at Wayne State University where I began my research on the management of chronic illness in married couples. I later returned to the University of Michigan to continue my research in the Institute for Research on Women and Gender.

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Publications (2002-present)

Note: Doctoral students

Franks, M. M., Pienta, A. M., & Wray, L. A. (2002). It takes two: Marriage and
   smoking cessation in the middle years. Journal of Aging and Health, 14, 336-354.

Franks, M. M., Hong, T. B., Pierce, L. S., & Ketterer, M. W. (2002). The association
   of patients' psychosocial well-being with self and spouse ratings of patient health.
   Family Relations, 51, 22-27.

Pierce, L. S., Hong, T. B., Franks, M. M., & Ketterer, M. W. (2002). Health-related
   interactions and the self in marriage. Journal of Women & Aging, 14, 149-164.

Franks, M. M., Lichtenberg, P. A., MacNeill, S. E., & Bank, A. (2003). Activity
   limitation and depression: Perspectives of older African American women and
   their close companion. Rehabilitation Psychology, 48, 50-55.

Franks, M. M., Pierce, L. S., & Dwyer, J. W. (2003). Expected parent-care
   involvement of adult children. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 22, 104-117.

Cremeans-Smith, J. K., Stephens, M. A. P., Franks, M. M., Druley, J. A., Martire,
   L. M., & Wojno, W. C. (2003). Dyadic agreement between role partners'
   perceptions of pain severity: The relationship between agreement status and
   patient well-being. Pain, 106, 27-34.

Franks, M. M., Herzog, A. R., Holmberg, D., & Markus, H. R. (2003). Self-
   complexity: Linking age and education with self-rated health and depression.
   Hallym International Journal of Aging, 5, 91-110.

Franks, M. M., Wendorf, C. A., Gonzalez, R., & Ketterer, M. W. (2004). Aid and
   influence: Health promoting exchanges of older married partners. Journal of
   Social and Personal Relationships, 21, 431-445.

Albrecht, T. L ., Franks, M. M., & Ruckdeschel, J. C. (2005). Communication and
   informed consent. Current Opinion in Oncology, 17, 336-339.

Hong, T. B., Franks, M. M., Gonzalez, R., Keteyian, S. J., Franklin, B. A., &
   Artinian, N. T. (2005). A dyadic investigation of exercise support between
   cardiac patients and spouses. Health Psychology, 24, 430-434.

Bookwala, J., & Franks, M. M. (2005). The role of marital quality in older adults'
   depressed affect: Beyond the ‘main effects' model. Journal of Gerontology:
   Psychological Sciences, 60B, P338-P341.

Franks, M. M., Stephens, M. A. P., Rook, K. S., Franklin, B. A., Keteyian, S. J.,
   & Artinian, N. T. (2006). Spouses' provision of health-related support and control
   to patients participating in cardiac rehabilitation. Journal of Family Psychology,
   20, 311-318.

Penner, L. A., Orom, H., Albrecht, T. L., Franks, M. M., Foster, T. S., &
   Ruckdeschel, J. C. (2007). Camera-related behaviors during video recorded
   medical interactions. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 31, 99-117.

Eggly, S., Albrecht, T. L., Harper, F. W., Foster, T., Franks, M. M., & Ruckdeschel,
    J. C. (2008). Oncologists recommendations of clinical trial participation to
   patients. Patient Education and Counseling, 70, 143-148.

Stephens, M. A. P., Fekete, E. M., Franks, M. M., Rook, K. S., Druley, J. A., &
   Greene, K. (2009). Spouses' use of pressure and persuasion to promote
   osteoarthritis patients' medical adherence after orthopedic surgery. Health
   Psychology, 48-55.

Artinian, N. T., Abrams, J., Keteyian, S. J., Franks, M. M., Franklin, B., Pienta, A.,
   Tkatch, R., Cuff, L., Alexander, P., & Schwartz, S. (2009). Correlates of
   depression at baseline among African Americans enrolled in cardiac rehabilitation.
   Journal of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation and Prevention 29, 24-31.

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Education

• Ph.D., 1993, Kent State University,
  (Social/Health Psychology; Mentor: M.A.P. Stephens)
• M.A., 1990, Kent State University,
  (Social/Health Psychology; Mentor: M.A.P. Stephens)
• B.S., 1988 , Northern Kentucky University,
  (Psychology with honors; Mentor: G.D. Goedel)

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Courses Recently Taught

CDFS 434: Aging and Family
CDFS 602: Advanced Family Studies

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Honors (Selected)

2008 Hancook Faculty Fellow, Center for Families, Purdue University

2002 Funding to Attend the Summer Workshop on Bereavement and Aging Utilizing
        the Changing Lives of Older Couples (CLOC) Data, University of Michigan

2002 Invited to Participate in Research Retreat on Health Dynamics in Old Age,
        Spring 2002, Sponsored by University of Michigan's Claude Pepper Older
        Americans Independence Center (OAIC), Geriatric Center, Health and
        Retirement Survey, and Michigan Center of the Demography of Aging.

2000 Selected to Attend Spring 2000 Conference on the Future of Health Psychology,
        APA Division 38

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External Grants (Active)

Co-Investigator, “ Mind-Body Interactions in Management of Type 2 Diabetes.” National Institute on Aging (R01 AG024833-01). Mary Ann Parris Stephens (PI). Period: 09/30/04 – 07/31/09. Total: $1,659,121.

Co-Investigator, The Role of Social Relationships and Self-Efficacy in Diabetes Management. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
(R21 DK078894-01). Wray, L. A. (PI). Period 09/2008 – 06/2010.

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Professional Service

Journal Review (Current)
2008-present Editorial Board, Journal of Family Psychology

Ad-hoc Reviewer (2007-present)
Journal of Aging and Health
Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Science
Journal of Gerontology: Social Science
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
Journal of Applied Social Psychology
Psychology and Aging

Grant Review
2000, Initial Review Board of the Medical and Scientific Advisory Council,
Alzheimer’s Association
2003-2005, Initial Review Board of the Medical and Scientific Advisory Council, Alzheimer’s Association
2004-2005, National Cancer Institute, Small Grants for Behavioral Research in Cancer Control
2004, Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research Career Awards Competition
2004, Anthony Marchionne Foundation Small Grants Program
2007, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada

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