Research

My research investigates the psychology of consumers, in particular their motivations and information processing. For example, what motivates people to learn about products and how does this alter one’s sense of self? How does the amount of trust we place in brands impact our evaluation of new products? How do our fundamental beliefs about whether people can change impact our connections to brands? In what ways do brands shape how we perceive others? To address these questions, I first identify phenomena among customers in the real world. This is followed by carefully designed experiments to test theoretical predictions involving processes and boundary conditions. Ultimately, my work provides clear implications for marketing practitioners, policymakers, researchers, and consumers. Broadly speaking, my objective is to create research that informs evidence-based management across strategy, branding, innovation, and consumer well-being (Pfeffer and Sutton 2006).