David C. Matz

Professor

CB 32
612-330-1155
matz@augsburg.edu

Dave Matz, Ph.D., is a social psychologist with interests in groups and group decision making, cognitive dissonance, evolutionary psychology and mate selection, and the relationship between religion and prejudice. He is the author of numerous articles on these topics and serves as a reviewer for several scientific journals. Dave recently established an eye-tracking lab at Augsburg and is currently using that technology to study the relationship between physical features, attention, and the perceptions of desirable characteristics in potential mates.

As an instructor, Dave is intentional about conveying his enthusiasm for psychology. He understands that when an instructor is excited about the material, students are more likely to take an interest and put forth the effort needed to learn. He makes a point of getting to know students early on so that he can understand their strengths and weaknesses as well as their aspirations. This enables him to provide extra support to those who need it and extra challenges for those who excel.

Dave describes the Psychology Department at Augsburg as “a warm, vibrant community of students and faculty.” He notes that the department places an emphasis on the science of psychology allowing students to develop critical thinking skills that will aid them in the eventual career and allow them to be life-long learners.

Education

  • B.A. Bemidji State University
  • M.S. North Dakota State University
  • Ph.D. Texas A & M University

Selected Scholarship

Selected publications

Matz, D. C., & Hinsz, V. B. (2017). Women’s hair as a signal to desired relationship and parenting characteristics. The Journal of Social Psychology, 158, 558-573.

Hinsz, V. B., Spieker, C. J., & Matz, D. C. (2013). The intermingling of social and evolutionary influences on hair color preferences. Current Psychology, 32, 136-149.

Hall, D. L., Matz, D. C., & Wood, W. (2010). Why don’t we practice what we preach? A meta-analytic review of religious racism. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 14, 126-139. Download PDF

Matz, D. C., Hofstedt, P. M., & Wood, W. (2008). Extraversion as a moderator of the cognitive dissonance associated with disagreement. Personality and Individual Differences, 45, 401-405. Download PDF

Matz, D. C., & Hause, E. L. (2008). “Dealing” with the central limit theorem. Teaching of Psychology, 35, 198-200.

Matz, D. C., & Wood, W. (2005). Cognitive dissonance in groups: The consequences of disagreement. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 88, 22-37. Download PDF

Christensen, P. N., Rothgerber, H., Wood, W., & Matz, D. C. (2004). Social norms and identity relevance: A motivational approach to normative behavior. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 30, 1295-1309.

Recent presentations

Mackovichova, S., & Matz, D. C. (2018, April). The moderating effect of anti-fat attitudes on the tendency to blame overweight individuals. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.

Matz, D., & Mackovichova, S. (2018, March). Who’s to blame? The influence of body weight on perceived responsibility for a negative event. Poster presented at the meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Atlanta, GA.

Mackovichova, S., Matz, D., Boline, S., & Kraft, J. (2017, April). Gaze patterns toward same sex and opposite sex targets. Poster presented at the meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago, IL.

Kraft, J., Jordan, S., Hendrickson, H., Matz, D. & Steblay, N (2016, January). The influences of appearance change instructions on eyewitness attention and identification accuracy. Presented at the meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, San Diego, CA.

Lea, R. B., & Matz, D. C., (2016, January). Putting students in charge of student learning: Creating eye-tracking lab modules for a psychology curriculum. Presented at the National Institute on the Teaching of Psychology, St. Petersburg, FL.

Lea, R. B., & Matz, D. C. (2015, January). Disseminating science at a science museum. Presented at the National Institute on the Teaching of Psychology, St. Petersburg, FL.

Petaisto, S. S. P., Matz, D. C., & Manning, H. B. (2014, February). Does a woman’s hair length and color affect perceptions and attentional focus? Presented at the meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Austin, TX.

Matz, D. C., & Lea, R. B. (2014, January). Developing collaborative teaching and research laboratories at undergraduate institutions. Presented at the National Institute on the Teaching of Psychology, St. Petersburg, FL.

Frequently Taught Courses

  • PSY 325 – Social Behavior
  • PSY 215 – Research Methods & Statistics I
  • PSY 315 – Research Methods & Statistics II
  • PSY 105 – Principles of Psychology
  • PSY 491 – Advanced Research Seminar

Primary Research Interests

  • Groups and group decision making
  • Cognitive dissonance
  • Religion and prejudice
  • Person perception and mate selection

Memberships

  • Society for Personality and Social Psychology
  • Society for the Teaching of Psychology
  • Midwestern Psychological Association
  • Association for Psychological Science