Hi Mary. Welcome to this awesome community. With changes in the partner program, claps are important because they count for showing you are a fan(shows up in stats).Also a lot of readers clap the maximum of 50 claps, just to give positive reinforcement. (Well, Unless they totally dislike a piece!)

The prevailing thought is that writing is a lot of work, with heart and soul invested, so 50 claps and a comment go along way to making a writer feel good.