Suzanne Shu

Biography

Suzanne B. Shu is the John S. Dyson Professor of Marketing at the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, part of the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, where she also serves as the Dean of Faculty and Research. Recognized as a top 20 marketing scholar in Premier AMA Journals, she publishes regularly in Journal of Marketing Research and other leading marketing, psychology and economics outlets. Her research examines consumer decision making, including self control challenges, consumption timing and financial choices, with implications for behaviors ranging from procrastination to saving. Her work on retirement decisions explores annuities, Social Security claiming and perceived fairness in financial products.

In the health domain, Shu has led grant funded projects applying behavioral economics to encourage hypertension medication adherence, reduce procrastination in mammogram screenings, increase participation in weight loss programs and promote colon cancer screenings.

Shu has taught marketing and decision making courses to MBA students at Cornell, the University of Chicago, Southern Methodist University, INSEAD and UCLA. She is an NBER research associate, holds a joint faculty appointment at the UCLA Medical School and has served on the Academic Research Councils for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and Netspar.

She received a Ph.D. and MBA from the University of Chicago and holds a B.S. and master’s degree in electrical engineering from Cornell University.

Education

PhD Graduate School of Business, University of Chicago, 2004
MBA Graduate School of Business, University of Chicago, 2003
MEng College of Engineering, Cornell University, 1992
BSEE College of Engineering, Cornell University, 1990

Research

• Weber, Megan; Spiller, Stephen; Hershfield, Hal; Shu, Suzanne. "Inflow neglect: Forecasting failures after stocks run out"Journal of Experimental Psychology: General. 155.4 (2026): 1006-1023
• Sirwani, Deepak; Sokolova, Tatiana; Shu, Suzanne. "When “Year” Feels Near: How Year Versus Length Framing Alters Time Perception and Consumer Decisions"Journal of Marketing Research. 63.3 (2026): 584-606
• Chu, Charlene; Shu, Suzanne. "Of Photographs, Souvenirs, and Ticket Stubs: When Do Consumers Desire Mementos During an Experience?"Journal of the Association for Consumer Research. 10.4 (2025): 419-432
• Yoon, Ye Rin; Peck, Joann; Shu, Suzanne. "Increasing Hotel Loyalty Through Psychological Ownership"Cornell Hospitality Quarterly. 66.3 (2025): 277-293
• Mishra, Nirajana; Garbinsky, Emily; Shu, Suzanne. "Discussing money with the one you love: How financial stress influences couples' financial communication"Journal of Consumer Psychology. 35.2 (2025): 288-296
• Shu, Suzanne; Fisher, Geoffrey; Just, David; Shu, Stephen. "Advancing Behavioral Economics Research for Health and Finance"The Behavioral Economics Guide 2025. Behavioral Economics Group. 2025 (2025)
• Christensen, Katherine; Shu, Suzanne. "The Role of Heritage Connection in Consumer Valuation"Journal of Marketing Research. 61.3 (2024): 571-586
• Greenberg, Adam; Hershfield, Hal; Shu, Suzanne; Spiller, Stephen. "What Motivates Social Security Claiming Age Intentions? Testing Behaviorally Informed Interventions Alongside Individual Differences"Journal of Marketing Research. 60.6 (2023): 1052-1070
• Chu, Charlene; Shu, Suzanne. "Mementos and the endowment effect"Journal of Behavioral Decision Making. 36.1 (2023): e2295
• Chin, Alycia; Zimmerman, David; Johnson, Heidi; Shu, Suzanne. "Decisions about overdraft coverage: Disclosure design and personal finances"Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied. 28.4 (2022): 746-774

Awards

• Best Competitive Paper (2025) Association for Consumer Research