Alissa A. Haedt-Matt, PhD

Dr. Haedt-Matt is the Director of Clinical Training for the APA-Accredited Clinical Psychology PhD Program at RFUMS. Dr. Haedt-Matt obtained her PhD in Clinical Psychology from The University of Iowa in 2012. She completed her predoctoral clinical internship in the Eating and Weight Disorders Track at University of Chicago Medicine. Prior to RFUMS, Dr. Haedt-Matt was the Director of Clinical Training at Illinois Institute of Technology.

Dr. Haedt-Matt joined the Department of Psychology in 2025 and directs the DysRegulated Eating And Mood (DREAM) Team research lab. One of the most commonly cited explanations for eating pathology is that increases in negative emotions trigger maladaptive eating behaviors and that those behaviors function to alleviate negative affect. Dr. Haedt-Matt’s primary line of research focuses on this intersection of affect dysregulation and eating pathology - body dissatisfaction, binge eating and related dysregulated eating behaviors, purging, and nonpurging compensatory behaviors. Her work has contributed to the literature by using diverse methods, including correlational, experimental, and longitudinal real-time assessments, to support the validity and generalizability of study findings. Additional lines of research have, 1) used ecological momentary assessment to test other models of the etiology and maintenance of eating pathology, including psychological, physiological, interpersonal, and environmental factors, 2) contributed to the classification of eating disorders, particularly Purging Disorder, and 3) enhanced our understanding of eating disorders and body image in a number of different populations (e.g., sexual minorities, gender minorities, Black women, Latina women, male collegiate athletes, and female veterans).

Dr. Haedt-Matt serves on the editorial board of three journals (Eating Behaviors, Eating Disorders: Journal of Treatment & Prevention, International Journal of Eating Disorders) and is a member of the Eating Disorder Research Society and the Academy for Eating Disorders. She has numerous publications, has presented her research at national and international conferences, and has received grant funding for her work.

Dr. Haedt-Matt will be reviewing applications for the 2026-2027 academic year. Please note that to remain unbiased in the review of applications and to be equitable across all applicants, it is our department’s policy to not meet individually with applicants prior to our PhD Interview Day. However, if you have a specific question that cannot be answered through our webpage and would influence your decision to apply, you are welcome to reach out with brief questions.

Research Interests

• Intersection of affect dysregulation and eating pathology
• Ecological momentary assessment
• Classification of eating pathology
• Purging Disorder
• Body image and social media
• Eating pathology and body image in underrepresented groups
• Etiology and maintenance of disordered eating behaviors

Selected Recent Publications

Visit Google Scholar Profile for full list.

(*graduate student trainee)

*Murray, M. F., Broekhuijse, A., Romano, K. A., Wildes, J. E., & Haedt-Matt, A. A. (2025). Examining eating pathology and psychosocial functioning across subjective eating disorder recovery stages in sexual and gender minority individuals. Eating Disorders. doi:10.1080/10640266.2025.2452663

*Murray, M. F., *Dorsaint, T., Dougherty, E. N., Wildes, J. W., & Haedt-Matt, A. A. (2025). Examining effects of race and ethnic identity on body dissatisfaction following media exposure of thin and curvy body ideals. Body Image, 52, 101837. doi:10.1016/j.bodyim.2024.101837

*Quiñones, I. C., Selkie, E., Mammel, K. A., Haedt-Matt, A. A., Klump, K. L., Burt, S.A., & Van Huysse, J. L. (2024). Disordered eating in transgender youth: A comparison to population-based and clinical samples. European Eating Disorders Review, 32, 338-349. doi: 10.1002/erv.3045

*Dougherty, E. N., Wildes, J. E., & Haedt-Matt, A. A. (2024). The role of habit in maintaining binge/purge behaviors: An ecological momentary assessment study. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 57, 1160-1171. doi: 10.1002/eat.24070

*Dougherty, E. N., Bottera, A., Haedt-Matt, A. A., & Wildes, J E. (2023). Reconceptualizing emotion regulation and coping strategy usage in eating disorders research: The utility of a regulatory flexibility framework. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 56, 1835-1841. doi: 10.1002/eat.24027

*Sandhu, D., *Dougherty, E. N., & Haedt-Matt, A. A. (2023). PTSD symptoms as a potential link between military sexual assault and disordered eating. Eating Disorders: The Journal of Treatment & Prevention, 31, 285-299. doi:10.1080/10640266.2022.2133586

Keel, P. K., Eckel, L. A., Hildebrandt, B. A., Haedt-Matt, A. A., Murry, D. J, Appelbaum, J., & Jimerson, D. C. (2023). Disentangling the links between gastric emptying and binge eating v. purging in eating disorders using a case-control design. Psychological Medicine, 53, 1947-1954. doi:10.1017/S0033291721003640

Goldschmidt, A. B., Mason, T. B., Smith, K. E., Egbert, A. H., Engel, S. G., & Haedt-Matt, A. A. (2022). Typology of eating episodes in children and adolescents with overweight/obesity. Eating Behaviors. doi:10.1016/j.eatbeh.2022.101596

*Quiñones, I. C., Herbozo, S. M., & Haedt-Matt, A. A. (2022) Body dissatisfaction among ethnic subgroups of Latin women: An examination of acculturative stress and ethnic identity. Body Image, 41, 272-283. doi:10.1016/j.bodyim.2022.03.006

*Perelman, H., *Schwartz, N., Yeoward-Dodson, J., *Quiñones, I. C., *Murray, M. F., Townsel, R., Arthur-Camesell, J., & Haedt-Matt, A. (2022). Reducing eating disorder risk among male athletes: A randomized controlled trial investigating the male athlete body project. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 55, 193-206. doi:10.1002/eat.23665

*Dougherty, E., Goldschmidt, A. B., *Johnson, N., *Badillo, K., Engel, S. G., & Haedt-Matt, A. A. (2022). Gender differences in the relation between interpersonal stress and momentary shape and weight concerns in youth with overweight/obesity. Body Image, 40, 249-255. doi:10.1016/j.bodyim.2022.01.006

*Schwartz, N., *Hecht, L., & Haedt-Matt, A. (2021). Nutrition knowledge moderates the association between concern over mistakes and shape/weight concerns. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 75, 1433-1439. doi:10.1038/s41430-021-00866-w

*Murray, M. F., Cox, S. A., Henretty, J. R., & Haedt-Matt, A. A. (2021). Women of diverse sexual identities admit to eating disorder treatment with differential symptom severity but achieve similar clinical outcomes. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 54, 1652-1662. doi:10.1002/eat.23576

*Dougherty, E. N., Murphy, J., ^aHamlett, S., ^aGeorge, R., *Badillo, K., *Johnson, N. K., & Haedt-Matt, A. A. (2020). Emotion regulation flexibility and disordered eating. Eating Behaviors, 39, 101428. doi:10.1016/j.eatbeh.2020.101428

Egbert, A. H., Haedt-Matt, A., Smith, K., Culbert, K., Engel, S., & Goldschmidt, A. (2020). Pubertal stage interacts with dimensions of positive affect to predict dysregulated eating in youth with overweight/obesity. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 53, 1667-1677. doi:10.1002/eat.23342

Goldschmidt, A. B., Evans, E. W., Saletin, J. M., O’Sullivan, K., Koren, D., Engel, S. G., & Haedt-Matt, A. (2020). Naturalistic, multimethod exploratory study of sleep duration and quality as predictors of dysregulated eating in youth with overweight and obesity. Appetite, 146, 104521. doi:10.1016/j.appet.2019.104521

*Hecht, L., Haedt-Matt, A., *Schwartz, N., & Goldschmidt, A. B. (2020). Clinical relevance of overvaluation of shape and weight among bariatric surgery candidates. Obesity Surgery, 30, 1163-1167. doi:10.1007/s11695-019-04372-8

Smith, K., Haedt-Matt, A., Mason, T.B., Wang, S., Yang, C-H., Unick, J.L., Bond, D., & Goldschmidt, A.B. (2020). Associations between naturalistically assessed physical activity patterns, affect, and eating in youth with overweight and obesity. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 43, 916-931. doi:10.1007/s10865-020-00152-3