Research Interests

My primary research interests are focused on the psychology of conspiracy theories. I focus on why people are drawn to conspiracies and the motivations that lead people to hold conspiratorial beliefs. Previous studies that I have conducted have investigated the role of trust, locus of control, both right-wing and left-wing authoritarian political views, among others. Psychology majors interested in becoming involved in one of these ongoing projects are always encouraged to reach out to me!

Courses Taught

• General Psychology (PSYC 171)
• Data Analysis in Psychology (PSYC 223)
• Research Methods I (PSYC 230)
• Social Psychology (PSYC 250)
• Research Methods II (PSYC 330)
• Personality and Individual Differences (PSYC 450)
• Advanced Research (PSYC 489)

Grants and Awards

• 2025 Outstanding Advisor of the Year, Viterbo University
• SPSP Small Research Grant (Grant #19-3-0080): "Basic Psychological Needs and Motivated Social Cognition"
• Psi Chi Undergraduate Research Grant (with student Allison Dunne): "Need Thwarting and Dissatisfaction as it Relates to Perfectionism"
• 2019 Alec Chiu Memorial Award for engaging students in scholarly research
• D.B. Reinhart Institute for Ethics in Leadership Research Fellowship: "A Social Psychological Analysis of the Moralization of Political Identification in the United States"
• 2016 High Impact Practice Project Incubator Grant, Viterbo University
• 2014 Morton Deutsch Award for the best paper published in Social Justice Research, International Society for Justice Research

Selected Publications and Presentations

• Parker, M.T., Bryant, T. & Dudley, S. (2022, May). The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on sales career motives: The moderating roles of gender and job-related fears. Poster presented at the 34th annual meeting of the Association for Psychological Science, Chicago, IL.
• Parker, M.T., & Dunne, A. (2020, February). Basic need thwarting as a motivational antecedent of perfectionism. Poster presented at the 21st annual meeting of the society for Personality and Social Psychology, New Orleans, LA.
• Steele, R. R., Parker, M.T., & Lickel, B. (2015). Bias within because of threat from outside: The effects of an external call for terrorism on anti-Muslim attitudes in the United States. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 6, 193-200.
• Yogeeswaran, K., Adelman, L., Parker, M.T., & Dasgupta, N. (2014). In the eyes of the beholder: White Americans' national identification predicts differential reactions to ethnic identity expressions. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 20, 362-369.
• Parker, M. T., & Janoff-Bulman, R. (2013). Lessons from morality-based social identity: The power of outgroup "hate," not just ingroup "love." Social Justice Research, 26, 81-96.
• Janoff-Bulman, & Parker, M.T. (2012). Moral bases of public distrust: Politics, partisanship, and compromise. In R. Kramer & T. Pittinsky (Eds.), Restoring Trust in Organizations and Leaders: Enduring Challenges and Emerging Answers: NY: Oxford University Press.
• Parker, M.T., & Isbell, L. M. (2010). How I vote depends on how I feel: The differential impact of anger and fear on political information processing. Psychological Science, 21, 548-550.