Paula Pietromonaco | Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences

Professor Emerita

PhD, University of Michigan

BA, University of California, Los Angeles

she/her/hers

Name Pronunciation

monaco@umass.edu

Laboratory Website:

Paula Pietromonaco - Research Home Page

Research Area(s):

Social Psychology

Center and Institute Affilitation:

Center for Research on Families

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Research

My research examines interpersonal dynamics in close relationships. Close relationships, including marital relationships, have been consistently linked to health and well-being over the life course, but much needs to be known about precisely how relationships promote or hinder health. A primary goal of my work is to understand the processes through which interactions in marital relationships shape each partner's emotional and physical health. My work examines multiple processes that may contribute to downstream health outcomes, including physiological and behavioral responses as well as subjective perceptions. We typically examine these responses as they arise during couples’ interactions when they are trying to resolve important areas of conflict or disagreement. My work also investigates how individual differences (e.g., in attachment security/insecurity, childhood adversity, depression) modulate each partner’s responses during couple interactions, and how situational variables (e.g., differences in power or culture) influence couples’ communication patterns, behavior, and relationship quality over time.

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Publications

NOTICE: The following linked articles have been password protected in accordance with current web publishing copyright laws. To obtain a copy of the document password send an email to the following address and a password will be automatically sent to you. Thank you.
Send email to: P.R.Pietromonaco.publications@gmail.com

Selected Publications

Pietromonaco, P. R., Overall, N. C., Hammond, M.D., Balzarini, R. N., Zoppolat, G., & Slatcher, R. B. (in press, 2024). Did Relationship Quality During the COVID-19 Pandemic Vary Across Cultural Contexts? Journal of Social and Personal Relationships.

Pietromonaco, P. R., Girme, Y. U., & Simpson, J. A. (in press, 2023). Attachment in couple relationships. In N. C. Overall, J. A., Simpson, & J. Lavner (Eds.) Research Handbook on Couple and Family Relationships, Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd.

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Overall, N. C. (in press, 2023). Attachment insecurity shapes physiological and behavioral responses to stress: Implications for couples coping with illness. In the section on “Interpersonal Relations and Health” (N. Vilchinsky & M. Hagedoorn, Section Eds), for Handbook of Health Psychology (K. Morgan & R. Sanderman, Eds.). Routledge.

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Overall, N. C. (2023). How sociocultural contexts may shape the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on couples’ relationships. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 16, 72-86. [Email for password]

Katz, E., Bar-Kalifa, E., Pietromonaco, P. R., Wolf, H., Klempfner, R., Hod, H., & Vilchinsky, N. (2023). Interpersonal Variables and Caregiving Partners’ Burden in Cardiac Illness: A Longitudinal Study. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 40 (11), 3515-3539. [Email for password]

Beck, L. A., Pietromonaco, P. R., Ge., F., Laws, H., Carnes, N., & Powers, S. I. (2023). Spouses’ attachment orientations shape physiological responses to relational stress over time. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 40 (10), 3121-3146.. [Email for password]

Overall, N. C., Howard, C. Osborne, D., Pietromonaco, P. R., Satherley, N., & Sibley, C. (2023). Applying propensity score matching to assess the impact of the pandemic on intimate relationships. Social and Personality Psychology Compass. [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Overall, N. C. (2023). Romantic Relationships During a Global Pandemic. In B. G. Ogolsky (Ed.), The Socio-Cultural Context of Romantic Relationships. Advances in Personal Relationship Series, Sponsored by the International Association for Relationship Research (IARR), Cambridge University Press.

Overall, N. C., Chang, V. T., Low, R. S. T., Henderson, A. M E., McRae, C. S., & Pietromonaco, P. R. (2022). Enduring COVID-19 lockdowns: Risk vs resilience in parent’s health and family functioning across the pandemic. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 39(11), 3296-3319. [Email for password]

Ge, F., Park, J., Pietromonaco, P. R. (2022). How you talk about it matters: Cultural variation in communication directness in romantic relationships. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 53(6), 583-602. [Email for password]

Overall, N. C., Pietromonaco, P. R., & Simpson, J. A. (2022). Buffering and Spillover of Romantic Attachment Insecurity in Couple and Family Relationships. Nature Reviews Psychology, 1, 101-111. [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Overall, N. C. (2022). How Far Is the Reach of Personality in Relationship Functioning During COVID-19? Reply to Pfund and Hill (2022). American Psychologist, 77 (1), 145-146. [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Overall, N. C. (2022). Implications of Social Isolation During the COVID-19 Pandemic for Couples’ Relationships. Current Opinion in Psychology, 43, 189-194. [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Overall, N. C. (2023). How Will Couples Adapt to Stress from the COVID-19 Pandemic? A Relationship Science Perspective. In (Miller, M. K, Ed.) The Social Science of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Call to Action for Researchers.

Pietromonaco, P. R., Overall, N. C., & Powers, S. I. (2022). Depressive symptoms, external stress, and marital adjustment: The buffering effect of partner’s responsive behavior. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 13(1), 220–232. [Email for password]

Overall, N. C., Chang, V., Pietromonaco, P. R., Low, R., Henderson, A. (2022). Partners’ attachment insecurity and stress predict poorer relationship functioning during COVID-19 quarantines. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 13, 285-298. doi.org/10.1177/1948550621992973 [Download article]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Overall, N. C. (2020). Applying relationship science to evaluate how the COVID-19 pandemic may impact couples’ relationships. American Psychologist, 76 (3), 438-450. [Email for password]

Joel, S., Eastwick, P. W., Allison, C., Arriaga, X. B., Baker, Z. G., Bar-Kalifa, E., Bergeron, S., Brock, B., Brumbaugh, C. C., Carmichael, C. L., Chen, S., Clarke, J., Cobb, R. J., Coolsen, M. K., Davis, J., de Jong, D. C., Debrot, A., Derrick, J. L., Eller, J., Estrada, M. J., Faure, R., Finkel, E. J., Fraley, R. C., Gable, S. L., Gadassi, R., Girme, Y. U., Gordon, A. M., Gosnell, C., Hammond, M. D., Hannon, P. A., Harasymchuk, C., Horn, A. B., Impett, E. A., Jamieson, J. P., Keltner, D., Kim, J., Kirchner, J. L., Klewer, E., Kuile T., Kumashiro, M., Larson, G., Lazarus, G., Logan, J. M., Luchies, L., MacDonald, G., Maniaci, M. R., Maxwell, J. A., Mizrahi, M., Molloy, P. R., Muise, A., Niehuis, S., Ogolsky, B. G., Oldham, C. R., Overall, N. C., Perrez, M., Peters, B. J., Pietromonaco, P. R., Powers, S. I., Prok, T., Pschedetzky-Schochat, R., Rafaeli, E., Reblin, M., Reifman, A., Reiherts, M., Reis, H. T., Rhoades, G., Rholes, S., Righetti, F., Rodriguez, L., Rogge, R., Rosen, N., Saxbe, D., Sened, H., Simpson, J., Slotter, E. B., Stanley, S., Stocker, S., Surra, C., VanderDrift, L., Vaughn, A., Vicary, A., Visserman, M., & Wolf, S. (2020). What predicts romantic relationship quality? Results of 43 longitudinal couples studies. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., Overall, N. C., Beck, L. A., & Powers, S. I. (2020). Is low power associated with submission during marital conflict? Moderating roles of gender and traditional gender role beliefs. Social Psychological and Personality Science. [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Beck, L. A. (2018). Adult attachment and physical health. Current Opinion in Psychology, 25, 115-120. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Winer, J. P., Powers, S.I, & Pietromonaco, P. R., & Schreck, M. C. (2018).Childhood family adversity and adult cortisol response: The role of observed marital conflict behavior. Journal of Family Psychology, 32(6), 793-803. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Kent de Grey, R. G., Uchino, B. N., Pietromonaco, P. R., Hogan, J., Smith, T. W., Cronan, S., & Trettevik, R. (2018). Strained bedfellows: An actor-partner analysis of spousal attachment insecurity and sleep quality. Annals of Behavioral Medicine. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R. (2018). Editorial. Emotion, 18(1), 1–2. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Collins, N. L. (2017). Interpersonal mechanisms linking close relationships to health. American Psychologist, 72, 531-542. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Winer, J. P., Powers, S. I., & Pietromonaco, P. R. (2017). Early pubertal timing and childhood family adversity interact to predict newlywed women’s anxiety symptoms.Journal of Child and Family Studies, 26, 591–602. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Ge, F., Pietromonaco, P. R., DeBuse, C. J., Powers, S. I, & Granger, D. A. (2016). Concurrent and prospective associations between HPA axis activity and depression symptoms in newlywed women.Psychoneuroendocrinology, 73, 125-132.(get PDF) [Email for password]

Ge, F., Lembke, J., & Pietromonaco, P. R. (2020). Intimate relationships and physical health. Wiley Encyclopedia of Health Psychology, 337-345. In K. Sweeny & M. L. Robbins (Eds.), The Wiley Encyclopedia of Health Psychology: Volume II, The Social Bases of Health Behavior. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Laws, H., Sayer, A., Pietromonaco, P. R., & Powers, S. I. (2015).Longitudinal changes in spouses’ HPA responses: Convergence in cortisol patterns during the early years of marriage. Health Psychology, 34 (11), 1076-1089.(get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Powers, S. I. (2015). Attachment and health-related physiological stress processes. Current Opinion in Psychology,1, 34-39.(get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., DeVito, C., Ge, F., & Lembke, J. (2015). Health and attachment processes.In J. A. Simpson & W. S. Rholes (Eds.)Attachment theory and research: New directions and emerging themes (pp. 287-318). NY: Guilford. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Beck, L. A. (2015). Attachment processes in adult romantic relationships. In M. Mikulincer, P. R. Shaver, J. A. Simpson, & J. F. Dovidio (Eds.), APA handbook of personality and social psychology, Volume 3: Interpersonal relations.(pp. 33–64). Washington, DC, US: American Psychological Association. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Perry-Jenkins, M. (2014). Marriage in whose America? What the suffocation model misses. Psychological Inquiry, 25, 1-6. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Beck, L. A., Pietromonaco, P. R., DeVito, C., Powers, S. I., & Boyle, A. (2014). Congruence between spouses’ perceptions and observers’ ratings of responsiveness: The role of attachment avoidance.Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 40, 164-174. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Beck, L. A., Pietromonaco, P. R., DeBuse, C. J., Powers, S. I. & Sayer, A. (2013). Spouses’ attachment pairings predict neuroendocrine, behavioral, and psychological responses to marital conflict. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 105 (3), 388-424. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., Uchino, B., & Dunkel Schetter, C. (2013). Close relationship processes and health: Implications of attachment theory for health and disease. Health Psychology, 32(5), 499-513. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., DeBuse, C. J., & Powers, S. I. (2013). Does attachment get under the skin? Adult romantic attachment and cortisol responses to stress. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 22(1), 63-68. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Kitayama, S., Conway, L. G., Pietromonaco, P. R., Park, H., & Plaut, V. C. (2010). Ethos of independence across regions in the US: The production-adoption model of cultural change. American Psychologist, 65, 559-574. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R. & Barrett, L. F. (2009). Valence focus and self-esteem lability: Perceiving and reacting to valenced cues in the social environment. Emotion, 9, 406-418. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Greenwood, D., Pietromonaco, P. R., & Long, C. (2008). Young women's attachment style and interpersonal engagement with female TV stars. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 25, 387-407. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Powers, S., Pietromonaco, P. R., Gunlicks, M., & Sayer, A. (2006). Dating couples’ attachment styles and patterns of cortisol reactivity and recovery in response to a relationship conflict. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 90,613-628. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Barrett, L. F. (2006). What can you do for me? Attachment style and motives underlying esteem for partners. Journal of Research in Personality, 40, 313-338. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., Barrett, L. F., & Powers, S. A. (2006). Adult attachment theory and affective reactivity and regulation. In J. Simpson, D. Snyder, & J. Hughes (Eds.), Emotion Regulation in Families and Close Relationships: Pathways to Dysfunction and Health(pp. 57-74). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., Greenwood, D., & Barrett, L. F. (2004). Conflict in adult close relationships: An attachment perspective. In W. S. Rholes & J. A. Simpson (Eds.), Adult attachment: New directions and emerging issues (pp. 267-299). New York: Guilford Press. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Laurenceau, J. P., Rivera, L. M., Schaffer, A. R., & Pietromonaco, P. R. (2004). Intimacy as an interpersonal process: Current status and future directions. In D. Mashek & A. Aron (Eds.), Handbook of Closeness and Intimacy (pp. 61-78).Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Greenwood, D., & Pietromonaco, P. R. (2004). The interplay among attachment orientation, idealized media images of women, and body dissatisfaction: A social psychological analysis. In L. Shrum (Ed.), Blurring the lines: The psychology of entertainment media (pp. 291-308).Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., Laurenceau, J. P., & Barrett, L. F. (2002). Change in relational knowledge structures. In H. Reis, M. A. Fitzpatrick, & A. Vangelisti (Eds.), Stability and change in relationship behavior. Advances in personal relationships(pp. 5-34). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Barrett, L. F. (2000a). Attachment theory as an organizing framework across diverse areas of psychology. Review of General Psychology, 4, 107-110. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Barrett, L. F.(2000b). Internal working models: What do we really know about the self in relation to others? Review of General Psychology, 4,155-175. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Madden, T., Barrett, L. F., & Pietromonaco, P. R. (2000). Gender differences in anxiety and depression. In A. Fischer (Ed.) Gender and emotion: Social psychological perspectives(pp. 277-298). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Fishtein, J., Pietromonaco, P. R., & Barrett, L. F. (1999). The contribution of attachment style and relationship conflict to the complexity of relationship knowledge. Social Cognition, 17, 228-244. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Barrett, L. F., Robin, L., Pietromonaco, P. R., & Eyssell, K. (1998). Are women the more emotional sex? Evidence from emotional experiences in social interactions.Cognition and Emotion, 12, 555-578. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Laurenceau, J., Barrett, L. F., & Pietromonaco, P. R. (1998). Intimacy as a process: The importance of self-disclosure and responsiveness in interpersonal exchanges. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74, 1238-1251. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Barrett, L. F. (1997). Working models of attachment and daily social interactions. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 73, 1409-1423. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Barrett, L. F., & Pietromonaco, P. R. (1997). Accuracy of the Five Factor Model in predicting perceptions of daily social interactions. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 23, 1173-1187. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Carnelley, K. B., Pietromonaco, P. R., & Jaffe, K. (1996). Attachment, caregiving, and relationship functioning in couples: Effects of self and partner. Personal Relationships, 3,257-278. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Rook, K. S., Pietromonaco, P. R., & Lewis, M. (1994). When are depressives distressing to others and vice-versa? Effects of friendship, similarity, and interaction task. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67, 548-559. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Carnelley, K. B. (1994). Gender and working models of attachment: Consequences for perceptions of self and romantic relationships. Personal Relationships, 1, 63-82. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Carnelley, K. B., Pietromonaco, P. R., & Jaffe, K. (1994). Depression, working models of others, and relationship functioning. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 66, 127-140. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., Rook, K. S., & Lewis, M. (1992). Accuracy in perceptions of interpersonal interactions: Effects of dysphoria, friendship, and similarity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 63, 247-259. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Rook, K. S., & Pietromonaco, P. (1987). Close relationships: Ties that heal or ties that bind? In W. H. Jones & D. Perlman (Eds.), Advances in personal relationships (Vol. 1, pp.1-35). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Rook, K. (1987). Decision style in depression: The contribution of perceived risks versus benefits. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 52, 399-408. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., Manis, J., & Markus, H. (1987). The relationship of employment to self-perception and well-being in women: A cognitive analysis. Sex Roles, 17, 467-477. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., Manis, J., & Frohardt-Lane, K. (1986). Psychological consequences of multiple social roles. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 10,373-382. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R. (1985). The influence of affect on self-perception in depression. Social Cognition, 3, 121-134. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Markus, H. (1985). The nature of negative thoughts in depression. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 48, 799-807. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Zajonc, R. B., Pietromonaco, P., & Bargh, J. (1982). Independence and interaction of affect and cognition. In M. S. Clark & S. T. Fiske (Eds.), Affect and cognition: The Seventeenth Annual Carnegie Symposium on Cognition(pp. 211-227). Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Bargh, J. A., & Pietromonaco, P. (1982). Automatic information processing and social perception: The influence of trait information presented outside of conscious awareness on impression formation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 43, 437-449. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Pietromonaco, P. R., & Nisbett, R. E. (1982). Swimming upstream against the fundamental attribution error: Subjects' weak generalizations from the Darley and Batson study. Social Behavior and Personality, 10, 1-4. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Lucker, G. W., Graber, L. W., & Pietromonaco, P. (1981). The importance of dentofacial appearance in facial esthetics: A signal detection approach. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 2, 261-274. (get PDF) [Email for password]

Questionnaires

Levinger, G., & Pietromonaco, P. (1989). Conflict Style Inventory. Unpublished scale, University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

Biography

Paula Pietromonaco is a social psychologist and Professor Emerita, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Massachusetts, Amherst. She received her PhD in Psychology in 1983 from the University of Michigan, and her Bachelor's degree from UCLA. She is currently Editor-in-Chief of the journal Emotion, published by the American Psychological Association. Her research focuses on understanding connections between close relationship processes, emotions, and health. In addition to her research contributions, she has been actively involved in elected leadership positions in major organizations in her field, including the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Society of Experimental Social Psychology, and the American Psychological Association, and has served as Associate Editor for Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology: Interpersonal Relations and Group Processes, and as Associate Editor and Deputy Editor for Psychological Science. Her research focuses on how basic psychological processes that arise in the context of people's close relationships such as dating and marital relationships might impact relationship outcomes as well as emotional and physical health over time. Relationship processes are investigated using a variety of methods including examining people's subjective perceptions, the speed of their responses (reaction time), physiological responses (e.g., cortisol reactivity), and behavior (e.g., during interactions with their partners).

Visit my personal website for more information.

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