Susan Clayton

Department/Affiliation: Psychology; Environmental Studies
Phone: 330-263-2565
Office Address: 107 Morgan
Email: SClayton@wooster.edu
Web Site: Susan Clayton

Degrees

• B.A., Carleton College 1982
• M.S., Yale University 1984
• Ph.D., Yale University 1987

Courses Taught

• PSYC 215: Psychology of Women and Gender
• PSYC 225: Environmental Psychology
• PSYC 330: Social Psychology
• PSYC 340: Peace and Conflict

Awards and Professional Memberships

• Clayton is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, the Society for Environmental, Population and Conservation Psychology, and the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues.
• She is currently on the editorial boards for Social Justice Research, Journal of Environmental Psychology, and PsyEcology.

Recent Publications

Books

• Clayton, S. (Ed. 2012) Handbook of environmental and conservation psychology. New York: Cambridge University Press.
• Lerner, M. & Clayton, S. (2011). Justice and self-interest: Two fundamental motives. New York: Cambridge University Press.
• Clayton, S., & Myers, G. (2009). Conservation psychology: Understanding and promoting human care for nature. Oxford, UK: Blackwell.
• Clayton, S. & Opotow, S. (2003, Eds.) Identity and the natural environment. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

Articles

• Clayton, S., Fraser, J., & Burgess, C. (2011). The role of zoos in fostering environmental identity. Ecopsychology, 3, 87-96.
• Doherty, T., & Clayton, S. (2011). The psychological impacts of global climate change. American Psychologist, 66, 265-276.
• Swim, J., Clayton, S., & Howard, G. (2011). Human behavioral contributions to climate change: Psychological and contextual drivers. American Psychologist, 66, 251-264.
• Clayton, S., Garcia, A., & Crosby, F. (2009). Women in the workplace: Acknowledging difference in experience and policy. In N. Russo & H. Landrine (Eds.), Handbook of diversity in feminist psychology. New York: Springer.
• Clayton, S., Fraser, J., & Saunders, C. (2009). Zoo experiences: Conversations, connections, and concern for animals. Zoo Biology.28, 377-397.
• Clayton, S. (2008). Attending to identity: Ideology, group membership, and perceptions of justice. In K. Hegtvedt & J. Clay-Warner (Eds.) Advances in group processes: Justice (pp. 241-266). Bingley, UK: Emerald.

Research Interests

My research encompasses three threads, which sometimes intersect. Most importantly, I consider myself to be a conservation psychologist: interested in understanding and promoting a healthy relationship between humans and nature. Much of my recent work has been in zoos, where a wide and diverse range of people come to interact with wild animals. A second interest concerns identity – the ways in which people define themselves. I developed an Environmental Identity (EID) Scale to assess the degree to which the natural environment plays an important part in the way in which people think about themselves. Finally I also maintain a strong interest in the psychology of justice: how people define what is fair and how they respond to perceived injustice. Environmental challenges present an interesting and important context for examining perceptions of justice.