Karen Page Winterich
University Distinguished Professor of Marketing
Karen is University Distinguished Professor of Marketing, previously inaugural Gerald I. Susman Professor in Sustainability. She conducts research in the area of consumer behavior, with much of her current research examining how sustainable consumer behavior and consumer response to company sustainability initiatives. Her research is published in Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Marketing Research, and Journal of Marketing, among others. She serves as Co-Editor for the Journal of Marketing Research and is Past President of the Academic Council of the American Marketing Association. Karen also enjoys teaching sustainability marketing which she developed as part of Smeal's Sustainability Education Initiatives.
Expertise
Sustainability, Prosocial behavior, Identity, Unethical behavior, Cultural Differences (Power Distance), Emotions
Education
Ph D in Marketing, The University of Pittsburgh, Katz Graduate School of Business, Pittsburgh, PA, 2007-01-01 BSBA in Information Management and Analysis, Shippensburg University, Shippensburg, PA, 2003-01-01
Courses Taught
B A 442 – Sustainable Behavior of Consumers, Firms, and Societies
Strategies to influence sustainable behavior considering consumer response and marketing communications.
B A 497B – Sustainable Marketing Strategy for Consumers, Firms, and Societies (B)
Sustainability is a broad domain concerning the extent to which environmental,economic, and social practices are vialbe for current and future generations. Consumer awareness of sustainability issues has evolved form an emerging social movement to mainstr
BA 442 – Sustain Consumer Behavior
Sustainability is a broad domain concerning the extent to which environmental, economic, and social practices are viable for current and future generations. Consumer awareness of sustainability issues has evolved from an emerging social movement to mainstream values, but increasing sustainable behavior remains a challenge. This course is designed to provide students with the knowledge to enhance sustainable behaviors in firms, among consumers, and in society at large. In doing so, this course will include frameworks for understanding how to influence sustainable practices, consumer response to sustainability, and marketing communication issues as well as real-world examples of sustainable practices and issues, offering both a theoretical and applied approach. The course may also include a project which will entail student teams working on a real-world sustainable behavior problem in collaboration with a business or segment of the university campus when available or other course project addressing a relevant sustainability issue. Students should leave the course with an understanding of sustainability issues in the current marketplace and the knowledge and ability to influence sustainable behaviors. Students will enter their career with the knowledge and skills to be a sustainable business decision-maker and foster sustainable behavior.
BA 442 – Sustn Consmr Bhvr
Strategies to influence sustainable behavior considering consumer response and marketing communications. B A 442 Sustainability Behavior of Consumers, Firms, and Societies (3) Sustainability is a broad domain concerning the extent to which environmental, economic, and social practices are viable for current and future generations. Consumer awareness of sustainability issues has evolved from an emerging social movement to mainstream values, but increasing sustainable behavior remains a challenge. This course is designed to provide students with the knowledge to enhance sustainable behaviors in firms, among consumers, and in society at large. In doing so, this course will include frameworks for understanding how to influence sustainable practices, consumer response to sustainability, and marketing communication issues as well as real-world examples of sustainable practices and issues, offering both a theoretical and applied approach. The course may also include a project which will entail student teams working on a real-world sustainable behavior problem in collaboration with a business or segment of the university campus when available or other course project addressing a relevant sustainability issue. Students should leave the course with an understanding of sustainability issues in the current marketplace and the knowledge and ability to influence sustainable behaviors. Students will enter their career with the knowledge and skills to be a sustainable business decision-maker and foster sustainable behavior.
BA 580 – DBA Culminating Res Project
This course provides Doctorate of Business Administration students with the opportunity to identify a practice problem or clinical question and investigate the literature related to this selected area of interest. Students will develop and implement a comprehensive project to address the problem. Students will also disseminate the results in both a scholarly presentation and manuscript for publication.
MKTG 422 – Advertising and Sales Promotion Management
Perspectives and models of the key decisions involved in managing advertising and sales promotion campaigns.
MKTG 442 – Sustain Consumer Behavior
Strategies to influence sustainable behavior considering consumer response and marketing communications. B A 442 Sustainability Behavior of Consumers, Firms, and Societies (3) Sustainability is a broad domain concerning the extent to which environmental, economic, and social practices are viable for current and future generations. Consumer awareness of sustainability issues has evolved from an emerging social movement to mainstream values, but increasing sustainable behavior remains a challenge. This course is designed to provide students with the knowledge to enhance sustainable behaviors in firms, among consumers, and in society at large. In doing so, this course will include frameworks for understanding how to influence sustainable practices, consumer response to sustainability, and marketing communication issues as well as real-world examples of sustainable practices and issues, offering both a theoretical and applied approach. The course may also include a project which will entail student teams working on a real-world sustainable behavior problem in collaboration with a business or segment of the university campus when available or other course project addressing a relevant sustainability issue. Students should leave the course with an understanding of sustainability issues in the current marketplace and the knowledge and ability to influence sustainable behaviors. Students will enter their career with the knowledge and skills to be a sustainable business decision-maker and foster sustainable behavior.
MKTG 494H – Research Project (H)
Supervised student activities on research projects identified on an individual or small-group basis.
MKTG 551 – Theo Persp Buy Beh
Review of marketing and social sciences research related to understanding consumer and market behavior.
MKTG 551 – Theoretical Perspectives on Buyer Behavior
Review of marketing and social sciences research related to understanding consumer and market behavior.
Selected Publications
Hong Y., Dommer S., Winterich K. P. "Received: How Acknowledgment Increases a Company’s Sustainability Image and Drives Repeat Customer Participation in Take-back Programs" Journal of Consumer Research, 2026-01-01
Allred N., Winterich K. P. "Repair Service Signals: How Brand Repair Services Signal Unused Utility and Increase Product Repair" Journal of Consumer Research, 2026-01-01
Shehu E., Veseli B., Clement M., Winterich K. P. "Improving Blood Donor Retention and Donor Relationships with Past Donation Use Appeals" Journal of Service Research, 2024-01-01
Winterich K. P., Reczek R., Makov T. "Knowledge Gaps and Sources of Bias in Consumer Beliefs about Effective Marketplace Actions to Mitigate Climate Change" Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 2024-01-01
Sen S., Bhattacharya C., Lindrud K., Winterich K. P. "Less is More: Enhancing Consumer and Planetary Well-Being by Consuming Less, Consuming Better" Journal of Sustainable Marketing, vol. 5, 2024-01-01
Smith H., Winterich K. P. "Trendy or Classic? Increasing Sustainability by Increasing Preference for Style Durability" Journal of Sustainable Marketing, vol. 5, 2024-01-01
Cakanlar A., Nenkov G., Winterich K. P. "When Transformation Deters Recycling: The Role of Privacy Concerns" Journal of Sustainable Marketing, vol. 5, 2024-01-01
Winterich K. P., Reczek R., Bollinger B. "Reducing Emissions across the Consumption Cycle and an Agenda for Future Research on Consumers and Climate Change: Introduction to the Special Issue on Climate Change" Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, vol. 8, 2023-07-01
Winterich K. P., Reed II A. "Using Identity to Secure Nonprofit Donations" Impact at JMR, 2023-04-11
Lee S., Winterich K. P. "Marketplace Morality: A Review of Recent Literature and Directions for Further Research" The Cambridge Handbook of Consumer Psychology, 2023-03-01
Lee S., Winterich K. P. "The Price Entitlement Effect: When and Why High Price Entitles Consumers to Purchase Socially Costly Products" Journal of Marketing Research, vol. 59, 2022-12-01
Winterich K. P., Cross S. N., Gustafsson A., Pechmann C. "Responsible Research in Business and Management (RRBM) and the Journal of Public Policy & Marketing: Connected Through Impact" Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, vol. 41, 2022-01-01
Winterich K. P. "Three Ways To Engage Consumers for Sustainable Consumption" Impact at JMR, 2021-09-23
Dommer S., Winterich K. P. "Disposing of the self: the role of attachment in the disposition process" Current Opinion in Psychology, vol. 39, 2021-06-01
Xi F., Bolton L. E., Winterich K. P. "How Do Consumers React to Company Moral Transgressions? The Role of Power Distance Belief and Empathy for Victims" Journal of Consumer Research, 2021-01-01
Brough A. R., Donnelly G. E., Griskevicius V., Markowitz E. M., Raimi K. T., Reeck C., Trudel R., Waldman K. B., Winterich K. P., Wolske K. S. "Understanding How Sustainability Initiatives Fail: A Framework to Aid Design of Effective Interventions" Social Marketing Quarterly, vol. 26, 2020-12-01
Vadakkepatt G. G., Winterich K. P., Mittal V., Zinn W., Beitelspacher L., Aloysius J., Ginger J., Reilman J. "Sustainable Retailing" Journal of Retailing, 2020-01-01
Winterich K. P. "The Incomplete Package: What’s Missing in Sustainable Products" Collaborative for Customer-Based Execution and Strategy, 2020-01-01
Winterich K. P., Coleman N. V., Dommer S. L. "The Role of Self-Structure in Managing Identity Conflict" Handbook of Identity Research in Marketing, 2019-12-01
Winterich K. P., Nenkov G., Gonzales G. "Knowing What it Makes: How Product Transformation Salience Increases Recycling" Journal of Marketing, vol. 56, 2019-07-01
Winterich K. P. "Sustainability Marketing - Teaching Note" Collaborative for Customer-Based Execution and Strategy, 2019-01-01
Campbell M. C., Winterich K. P. "A Framework for the Consumer Psychology of Morality in the Marketplace" Journal of Consumer Psychology, vol. 28, 2018-12-01
Lee S., Baumgartner J., Winterich K. P. "Did They Earn It? Observing Unearned Luxury Consumption Decreases Brand Attitude When Observers Value Fairness" Journal of Consumer Psychology, 2018-12-01
Barone M., Li X., Winterich K. P., Lyle K. "Social-Spatial Effects in Pricing: When and How Vertical Orientations Shape Processing of Price Comparisons" Customer Needs and Solutions, vol. 5, 2018-12-01
Winterich K. P., Gangwar M., Grewal R. S. "When Celebrities Count: Power Distance Beliefs and Celebrity Endorsements" Journal of Marketing, vol. 82, 2018-12-01
Lee S., Bolton L. E., Winterich K. P. "To Profit or Not to Profit? The Role of Greed Perceptions in Consumer Support for Social Ventures" Journal of Consumer Research, vol. 44, 2017-12-01
Kaikati A. M., Torelli C. J., Winterich K. P., Rodas M. "Conforming conservatives: How salient social identities can increase donations" Journal of Consumer Psychology, vol. 27, 2017-10-01
Winterich K. P., Naylor R., Irwin J. "Keeping the Memory but not the Possession: Strategic Memory Preservation Mitigates Identity Loss from Product Disposition" Journal of Marketing, vol. 81, 2017-09-01
Garvey A., Blanchard S., Winterich K. P. "Turning Unplanned Overpayments into Status Signals: Benefits of Mentioning the Price Paid" Marketing Letters, vol. 28, 2017-01-01
Gao H., Winterich K. P., Zhang Y. "All That Glitters is Not Gold: How Others’ Status Influences the Effect of Power Distance Belief on Status Consumption" Journal of Consumer Research, vol. 43, 2016-01-01
Barone M. J., Winterich K. P. "Does Green Make You Greedy or Does it Make You Go Green? The Influence of Green Color Primes on Consumers’ Promotion Preferences" Customer Needs and Solutions, vol. 3, 2016-01-01
Winterich K. P., Nenkov G. "Can Financial Service Firms Get Consumers to Save Like “the Joneses”?: How Deliberation and Informational Influence Can Increase Savings" Journal of Service Research: Special Issue on TCR, vol. 18, 2015-08-01
Winterich K. P., Morales A. C., Mittal V. "Disgusted or Happy, It's Not so Bad: Emotional Mini-Max in Unethical Judgments" Journal of Business Ethics, vol. 130, 2015-06-04
Winterich K. P., Mittal V., Aquino K. "Moral and Political Identity" Handbook of Consumer Psychology, 2015-01-01
Chowdhry N., Winterich K. P., Mittal V., Morales A. C. "Not All Negative Emotions Lead to Concrete Construal" International Journal of Research in Marketing, vol. 32, 2015-01-01
Winterich K. P., Barone M. J., Carter R. E., Janakiraman R., Bezawada R. "Tis Better To Give Than To Receive? How and When Gender and Residence-Based Segments Predict Choice of Donation- Versus Discount-Based Promotions" Journal of Consumer Psychology, vol. 25, 2015-01-01
Barone M., Lyle K., Winterich K. P. "When Deal Depth Doesn't Matter: How Handedness Influences Consumer Processing of Horizontal and Vertical Price Comparisons" Marketing Letters, vol. 26, 2015-01-01
Winterich K. P., Mittal V., Morales A. "Protect Thyself: How Affective Self- Protection Increases Self-Interested Behavior" Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 2014-11-01
Lee S., Winterich K. P., Ross W. T. "I'm Moral, But I Won't Help You: The Distinct Roles of Empathy and Justice in Donations" Journal of Consumer Research, 2014-10-01
Winterich K. P., Zhang Y. "Accepting Inequality Deters Responsibility: How Power Distance Decreases Charitable Behavior" Journal of Consumer Research, vol. 41, 2014-08-01
Haws K., Winterich K. P., Naylor R. W. "Seeing the World Through GREEN-Tinted Glasses: How Green Consumers Use Motivated Reasoning to Prefer Environmentally Friendly Products" Journal of Consumer Psychology, vol. 24, 2014-07-01
Winterich K. P., Mittal V., Swaminathan V. "Friends and Family: How In-Group-Focused Promotions Can Increase Purchase" Customer Needs and Solutions, vol. 1, 2014-01-01
Winterich K. P., Aquino K., Mittal V., Swartz R. "When Moral Identity Symbolization Motivates Prosocial Behavior: The Role of Recognition and Moral Identity Internalization" Journal of Applied Psychology, vol. 98, 2013-09-01
Winterich K. P., Mittal V., Aquino K. "When Does Recognition Increase Charitable Giving? Toward a Moral Identity-Based Model" Journal of Marketing, vol. 77, 2013-05-01
Winterich K. P., Haws K. "When Value Trumps Health in a Supersized World" Journal of Marketing, vol. 77, 2013-05-01
Choi W. J., Winterich K. P. "Can Brands Move In from the Outside?: How Moral Identity Enhances Out-group Brand Attitudes" Journal of Marketing, vol. 77, 2013-03-01
Winterich K. P., Zhang Y., Mittal V. "How Political Identity and Charity Positioning Increase Donations: Insights from Moral Foundations Theory" International Journal of Research in Marketing, Special Issue on Consumer Identities, vol. 29, 2012-01-01
Winterich K. P., Haws K. L. "Helpful Hopefulness: The Effect of Future Positive Emotions on Consumption" Journal of Consumer Research, vol. 38, 2011-10-01
Walsh M., Winterich K. P., Mittal V. "How Redesigning Angular Logos to be Rounded Shapes Brands Attitudes: Consumer Brand Commitment and Self-construal" Journal of Consumer Marketing, vol. 28, 2011-10-01
Winterich K. P., Barone M. J. "Warm Glow or Cold, Hard Cash? Social Identity Effects on Consumer Choice for Donation versus Discount Promotions" Journal of Marketing Research, vol. 48, 2011-10-01
Winterich K. P. "Are Your Jurors Mad or Sad? How Emotional Blunting May Influence Their Judgements in the Courtroom." The Jury Expert, vol. 23, 2011-01-01
Winterich K. P., Han S., Lerner J. S. "Now that I’m Sad, It’s Hard to be Mad: The Role of Cognitive Appraisals in Emotional Blunting" Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, vol. 36, 2010-11-01
Zhang Y., Winterich K. P., Mittal V. "Power-Distance Belief and Impulsive Buying" Journal of Marketing Research, vol. 47, 2010-10-01
Walsh M., Winterich K. P., Mittal V. "Do Logo Redesigns Help or Hurt Your Brand?: The Role of Brand Commitment" Journal of Product and Brand Management, vol. 19, 2010-04-01
Winterich K. P., Mittal V., Ross W. T. "Donation Behavior toward In-Groups and Out-Groups: The Role of Gender and Moral Identity" Journal of Consumer Research, vol. 36, 2009-08-01
Swaminathan V., Winterich K. P., Gurhan-Canli Z. "'My’ Brand or ‘Our’ Brand: The Effects of Brand Relationship Dimensions and Self-Construal on Brand Evaluations" Journal of Consumer Research, vol. 34, 2007-08-01
Honors and Awards
AMA-EBSCO Responsible Research in Marketing Award Finalist, AMA-EBSCO-RRBM, (2025-05-31)
AMA DocSig's list of most productive authors in the past ten years (2014-2023), (2024-02-28)
Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award, Society for Consumer Psychology, (2023-03-31)
Outstanding Reviewer Award, Journal of Consumer Psychology, (2023-03-31)
AMA DocSig's list of most productive authors in the past ten years (2013-2022), (2023-02-28)
Impact Award, Smeal College of Business, (2022-09-30)
Davidson Award, Journal of Retailing, (2022-05-31)
AMA DocSig's list of most productive authors in the past ten years (2012-2021), (2022-02-28)
AMA-EBSCO Responsible Research in Marketing Award Distinguished Winner, AMA-EBSCO-RRBM, (2022-02-28)
Responsible Business Education Award, Financial Times, (2022-01-31)
Outstanding Reviewer Award, Journal of Consumer Research, (2021-10-31)
AMA DocSig's list of most productive authors in the past ten years (2011-2020), (2021-02-28)
Gerald I. Susman Professor in Sustainability, Smeal College of Business, Penn State University, (2020-12-31)
MSI Scholar, Marketing Science Institute, (2020-12-31)
MSI/H Paul Root Award for 2019 Journal of Marketing Article, (2020-03-31)
AMA DocSig's list of most productive authors in the past ten years (2010-2019), (2020-02-28)
AMA-EBSCO Responsible Research in Marketing Award, Inaugural Winner, (2020-02-28)
AMA DocSig's List of Most Productive Authors in the Past Ten Years (2009-2018), (2019-02-28)
AMA DocSig's List of Most Productive Authors in the Past Ten Years (2008-2017), (2018-02-28)
Outstanding Reviewer Award, Journal of Consumer Research, (2017-10-31)
Most Productive Authors in the Past Five Years in Premier Marketing Journals and the Premier AMA Journals (2011-2015), DocSig, (2016-12-31)
Smeal Faculty Sustainability Award, (2016-09-30)
Most Productive Authors in the Past Five Years in Premier Marketing Journals and the Premier AMA Journals (2010-2014), DocSig, (2015-12-31)
Outstanding Young Alumnus, Shippensburg University, (2015-05-31)
Best Paper in Consumer Behavior Track, Winter Educator's AMA Conference, (2015-02-28)
Most Productive Authors in the Past Five Years in Premier Marketing Journals and the Premier AMA Journals (2009-2013), DocSig, (2014-12-31)
Page Prize for Sustainability Issues in Business Curricula, Honorable Mention, Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, (2014-12-31)
Frank and Mary Smeal Research Fellowship, Smeal College of Business, Penn State University, (2014-01-01)
MSI Young Scholar, Marketing Science Institute, (2013-01-31)