Professor and Chair
Experimental - Social
mstephen@kent.edu
213 Kent Hall
T: (330) 672-2027
F: (330) 672-3786
Department of Psychology
Kent State University
Kent, Ohio 44242-0001
Department of psychology 
Mary Ann Parris Stephens , Ph.D.
Education: Ph.D., University of Houston (1980)
Research Interests
Stress and coping theories guide my research on social relationships and chronic illness. Interests focus on effects of family interactions on adjustment to illness, as well as effects of illness on family caregivers. Of special interest are social support and social control (social influence) as ways married couples cope with illness.
Courses Frequently Taught
- Psychosocial Aspects of Health Psychology (graduate)
- Psychological Research Methods (graduate)
Recent Publications
Fekete, E.M., Stephens, M.A.P., Mickelson, K.M. & Druley, J.A. (2007). Couples' support provision during illness: The role of perceived emotional responsiveness. Families, Systems and Health, 25, 204-217.
Stephens, M.A.P., Martire, M.M., Cremeans-Smith, J.K., Druley, J.A.,& Wojno, W.C. (2006). Older women with osteoarthritis and their caregiving husbands: Effects of pain and pain expression on husbands' well-being and support. Rehabilitation Psychology, 51, 3-12.
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.
Fekete, E.M., Stephens, M.A.P., Druley, J.A., & Greene, K.A. (2006). Effects of spousal control and support on older adults' recovery from knee surgery. Journal of Family Psychology, 20, 302-310.
Norton, T.R., Gupta, A., Stephens, M.A.P., Martire, L.M., & Townsend A.L. (2005). Stress, Rewards, and Change in the Centrality of Women's Family and Work Roles. Sex Roles, 52, 325-335.
Cremeans-Smith, J. K., Stephens, M. A. P., Franks, M. M., Martire, L. M., Druley, J. A., & Wojno, W. C. (2003). Spouses' and physicians' perceptions of pain severity in older women with osteoarthritis: Dyadic agreement and patients' well-being. Pain, 106, 27-34.
Druley, J. A., Stephens, M. A. P., Martire, L. M., Ennis, N., & Wojno, W. C. (2003). Emotional congruence in older couples coping with wives' osteoarthritis: Exacerbating effects of pain behavior. Psychology and Aging, 18, 406-414.
Martire, L. M., & Stephens, M. A. P. (2003). Juggling parent care and employment responsibilities: The dilemmas of adult daughter caregivers in the work force. Sex Roles: A Journal of Research, 48, 167-173.
Stephens, M.A.P., Druley, J.A., & Zautra, A.J. (2002). Older adults' recovery from surgery for osteoarthritis of the knee: Psychosocial resources and constraints as predictors of outcomes. Health Psychology, 21, 377-383.