Marketing in the Age of the “Illusion of Free Will”
Presented by:
Hui Du, University of New Haven
Keywords:
Neuroscience, Consumer Behavior, Marketing Education
Hear it from the author:
Transcript:
Most of my students begin the semester believing that their everyday choices are primarily their own and made independently of outside influence.
What they often don't realize is how many of those decisions are shaped by attention, emotion, habit, and environmental cues—the very processes that marketing is designed to influence.
In this course, I use neuroscience as a starting point to help students understand why marketing works before introducing specific marketing concepts and tactics. Rather than memorizing theories, students begin connecting those concepts to their own everyday decisions and reflecting on how consumer behavior is shaped.
This poster presents a teaching framework that integrates neuroscience and marketing to encourage deeper learning, critical reflection, and more meaningful classroom discussions.
Key Statement:
Integrating neuroscience into marketing education reveals why tactics influence behavior, enhances relevance, deepens engagement, and empowers students to critically reflect on consumer decisions and perceived free will.
Abstract:
This poster presents a pedagogical approach that leverages the intersection of neuroscience and marketing to enhance student engagement and learning relevance. Centered on the concept of the illusion of free will, the approach connects marketing tactics to students’ everyday decision-making experiences, encouraging critical reflection on how choices are shaped. Rather than emphasizing disciplinary boundaries or specific theories, the focus is on integrating knowledge to deepen understanding. A classroom activity is included to illustrate how this connection can be operationalized in practice. This approach positions students as both learners of marketing and reflective consumers within an increasingly complex decision environment.
Outcomes:
1. Use the illusion of free will to explain marketing concepts.
2. Design classroom activities that connect marketing to students’ everyday decisions.
3. Apply interdisciplinary approaches to enhance student engagement.
References:
Cárdenas, G. G. (2019). Neuromarketing as an effective tool for education in sales and advertising. Revista Latina de Comunicación Social, 74, 1173-1189.
Foster, M. K., West, B., & Bell-Angus, B. (2016). Embracing your inner “guide on the side”: Using neuroscience to shift the focus from teaching to learning. Marketing Education Review, 26(2), 78-92.
Harris, J. M., Ciorciari, J., & Gountas, J. (2018). Consumer neuroscience for marketing researchers. Journal of consumer behaviour, 17(3), 239-252.