Melissa Franks

Associate Professor of Human Development and Family Studies, Purdue University
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.

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, 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.

At Purdue, I am a faculty associate in the Center on Aging and the Life Course. My families and health research is conducted through the Relationships and Healthcare Lab, in collaboration with Dr. Cleveland Shields. Several exciting projects are underway in this lab, and new projects are being developed by affiliated faculty and students. These projects will contribute new knowledge about the influence of marriage and family relationships on the health and well-being of individual members.