Faculty directory

Aparna Labroo

Marketing

Professor of Marketing

Portrait of Aparna Labroo, Faculty at the Kellogg School of Management

Dr. Labroo is a leading Consumer Psychologist and Professor of Marketing, specializing in leveraging psychological insights into emotions and motivation that drive consumer behavior. She uses her expertise in judgment and decision-making to help companies create impactful interventions that nudge consumers toward healthier choices, pro-social actions, smarter financial decisions, and enhanced creativity. Her work delivers actionable strategies that help organizations influence consumer decisions and improve long-term outcomes. Her research has been featured in top media outlets such as The New York Times, Forbes, and Scientific American, and she regularly shares her insights with top business schools and psychology departments globally.

She is a recipient of the Society for Consumer Psychology Early Career Award (2011) and the Marketing Science Institute Young Scholar Award (2007), and she currently serves as co-Editor of the Journal of Consumer Psychology. Previously, she was Editor-in-Chief of Marketing Letters (2020-2023) and is an advisor to multiple editorial boards, shaping the future of consumer psychology.

An exceptional educator, Dr. Labroo teaches Marketing Strategy to senior executives at Kellogg, having mentored over 4,000 professionals. Her teaching has earned top accolades, including the J. Keith Murnighan Outstanding Professor Award (2020, 2024) and the Chair’s Core Course Teaching Award (2021). She has advised startups, non-profits, and Fortune 500 companies in sectors such as pharmaceuticals and food choices guiding them to enhance brand loyalty, consumer engagement, and strategic marketing initiatives.

With an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management (Ahmedabad) and a PhD from Cornell University, Dr. Labroo’s career combines academic rigor with practical experience, including academic roles at the Rotman School of Management and Chicago Booth. She also worked with Unilever and SmithKline Beecham in advertising, gaining hands-on insight into strategic brand management. She has an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management (Ahmedabad) and her PhD is from Cornell.

About Aparna
Research interests
  • I am an expert on consumer judgment and decision making and branding and the role emotions play in these contexts. I research factors that influence brand preferences and consumer choices
  • especially choices that engage self-control and involve trade-offs between immediate pleasure and long-term benefits
  • such as healthy choices
  • financial decisions
  • and pro-social actions including charitable giving. My focus is on how feelings can be leveraged to play a functional role in helping people accomplish their goals.
  • PhD, 2004, Marketing, Cornell University
    MBA, Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad
    BA, Economics, St. Stephen's College, India, Honors
  • Professor of Marketing, Northwestern University, 2013-present
    Patricia C. Ellison Professor of Marketing, University of Toronto, 2011-2013
    Visiting Scholar, Northwestern University, 2011-2012
    Visiting Professor of Marketing, University of Chicago, Fall 2011, 2011
    Associate Professor of Marketing, University of Chicago, 2007-2011
    Assistant Professor of Marketing, University of Chicago, 2003-2007
  • Keith J. Murnighan Outstanding Professor Award (EMBA), J. L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management, 2024-25
    The J. Keith Murnighan Outstanding Professor Award (EMBA), Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management
    Chair Core Course Teaching Award (MBA), Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University
    OpEd Project Public Voices Fellow, Northwestern University
    Conference Co-chair, Association for Consumer Research Annual Conference
  • Co-Editor, Journal of Consumer Psychology, 2024-2027
    Associate Editor, Perspectives on Psychological Science, 2022
    Co-Editor, Marketing Letters, 2021-2023
    Co-Editor, Journal of Association for Consumer Research (Special Issue), 2018-2020
    Co-Editor, Special Issue of the Journal of Consumer Psychology, 2018-2021
    Associate Editor, Journal of Consumer Research, 2014-2018
    Associate Editor, Journal of Consumer Psychology, 2012-2015
    Editorial Board, Journal of Consumer Psychology, 2015-2024
    Editorial Board, Journal of Marketing Research, 2006-2018

Developing Impactful Consumer Behavior Research (MKTG-531-3)

Taking a problem-solving approach, we examine how psychological insights inform and solve real-world consumption problems, and how real-world problems provide new psychological insights. Taking an empirical deep-dive, we also discuss published data, what we can/cannot infer, how to make objective conclusions, and to enhance their substantive impact (e.g., employing observational data, field studies, choice data, and/or programmatic experimental designs).

Theory Building in Consumer Behavior Research (MKTG-531-1)

The purpose of this course is to acquaint you with the principles of theory building in social science research, to help you distinguish between theory-building research and research with other aims, and to provide you with an opportunity to develop your ability to conceptualize and develop research that builds theory.

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