Dr. Lindsey A. Beck is a social psychologist who studies how people initiate, develop, and maintain close relationships, including friendships and romantic relationships. For example, she examines how people react to signs of initial interest in a relationship, how partners ask for and offer support as they develop relationships, and how couples respond to stressful situations in ongoing relationships. She uses diverse methodologies to investigate these topics, including developmental approaches, biological methods, field studies, experimental designs, and longitudinal and daily-report studies.
She has published her work in several peer-reviewed journals, including Current Opinion in Psychology, Psychological Science, Psychoneuroendocrinology, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, and Journal of Family Theory and Review. She teaches courses in the psychology of close relationships, the psychology of emotions, social psychology, and introduction to psychology.
About
- Department Marlboro Institute for Liberal Arts & Interdisciplinary Studies
- Since 2013
Education
M.Phil., Yale University
M.S., Yale University
Ph.D., Yale University
Areas of Expertise
- Research Methodology
Publications
Thorson, K. R., Beck, L. A., Ketay, S., & Welker, K. M. (2023).
2023Increases in intellectual humility from guided conversations are greater when people perceive affiliation with conversation partners. Social Psychological and Personality Science. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/19485506231213775
Beck, L. A., Pietromonaco, P. R., Ge, F., Carnes, N. C., Laws, H., & Powers, S. I. (2023).
2023Spouses' attachment orientations shape physiological responses to relational stress over time. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 40(10), 3121-3146. https://doi.org/10.1177/02654075231169305
Ketay, S., Beck, L. A., & Dajci, J. (2023).
2023Self-compassion and social stress: Links with subjective stress and cortisol responses. Self and Identity, 22(3), 486–505. https://doi.org/10.1080/15298868.2022.2117733
Pietromonaco, P. R., Overall, N. C., Beck, L. A., & Powers, S. I. (2021).
2021Is low power associated with submission during marital conflict? Moderating roles of gender and traditional gender role beliefs. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 12(2), 165–175. https://doi.org/10.1177/1948550620904609
Ketay, S., Beck, L. A., & Welker, K. M. (2020).
2020Self-expansion: Intergroup and sociocultural factors. In B. A. Mattingly, K. P. McIntyre, & G. W. Lewandowski, Jr. (Eds.), Interpersonal relationships and the self-concept (pp. 177–193). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-43747-3_11
McBride, E., Oswald, W. W., Beck, L. A., & Vashlishan Murray, A. (2020).
2020“I’m just not that great at science”: Science self‐efficacy in arts and communication students. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 57(4), 597–622. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21603
Clark, M. S., Adkins, C., & Beck, L. A. (2019).
2019We should study relational trajectories, but we should think through the metatheoretical framework more broadly. Psychological Inquiry, 30(1), 29–33. https://doi.org/10.1080/1047840X.2019.1585731
Clark, M. S., Beck, L. A., & Aragón, O. R. (2019).
2019Relationship initiation: Bridging the gap between initial attraction and well-functioning communal relationships. In B. H. Fiese, M. Celano, K. Deater-Deckard, E. N. Jouriles, & M. A. Whisman (Eds.), APA handbook of contemporary family psychology (Vol. 1): Foundations, methods, and contemporary issues across the lifespan (pp. 409–425). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/0000099-023
Ketay, S., Beck, L. A., Riela, S., Bailey, C., & Aron, A. (2019).
2019Seeing you in me: Preliminary evidence for perceptual overlap between self and close others. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 36(8), 2474–2486. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407518788702
Ketay, S., Welker, K. M., Beck, L. A., Thorson, K. R., & Slatcher, R. B. (2019).
2019Social anxiety, cortisol, and early-stage friendship. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 36(7), 1954–1974. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407518774915
Pietromonaco, P. R., & Beck, L. A. (2019).
2019Adult attachment and physical health. Current Opinion in Psychology, 25, 115–120. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2018.04.004
Beck, L. A., Clark, M. S., & Olson, K. R. (2017).
2017When do we offer more support than we seek? A behavioral replication and developmental extension. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 34(5), 662–675. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407516652509
Ketay, S., & Beck, L. A. (2017).
2017Attachment predicts cortisol response and closeness in dyadic social interaction. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 80, 114–121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen. 2017.03.009
Pietromonaco, P. R., & Beck, L. A. (2015).
2015Attachment 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 (Vol. 3): Interpersonal relations (pp. 33–64). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/14344-002
Beck, L. A., Pietromonaco, P. R., DeVito, C. C., Powers, S. I., & Boyle, A. M. (2014).
2014Congruence between spouses’ perceptions and observers’ ratings of responsiveness: The role of attachment avoidance. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 40(2), 164–174. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167213507779
Beck, L. A., Pietromonaco, P. R., DeBuse, C. J., Powers, S. I., & Sayer, A. G. (2013).
2013Spouses’ attachment pairings predict neuroendocrine, behavioral, and psychological responses to marital conflict. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 105(3), 388–424. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0033056
Beck, L. A., & Clark, M. S. (2010).
2010Looking a gift horse in the mouth as a defense against increasing intimacy. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 46(4), 676–679. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2010.02.006
Beck, L. A., & Clark, M. S. (2010).
2010What constitutes a healthy communal marriage and why relationship stage matters. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 2(4), 299–315. https://doi.org/ 10.1111/j.1756-2589.2010.00063.x
Clark, M. S., & Beck, L. A. (2010).
2010Initiating and evaluating close relationships: A task central to emerging adults. In F. D. Fincham & M. Cui (Eds.), Romantic relationships in emerging adulthood (pp. 190–212). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511761935.011
Beck, L. A., & Clark, M. S. (2009).
2009Choosing to enter or avoid diagnostic social situations. Psychological Science, 20(9), 1175-1181. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02420.x
Beck, L. A., & Clark, M. S. (2009).
2009Offering more support than we seek. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 45(1), 267–270. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2008.08.004