• Identify new research questions, that are theoretically interesting and practically relevant, and generate his/her own conceptual framework and coherent academic argumentation based on selected theories, specifically in regard to the individual assignment (research proposal)
• Identify, explain, and discuss selected theories and concepts, particularly in light of the individual assignment
• Understand and explain experiments, identify their strengths and weaknesses, and propose an experimental study in the individual assignment
• Identify and discuss contributions and limitations of academic works (including the student’s own) and discuss their implications for marketing practice (including commercial and non-profit/public marketing)

The kind and tone of language marketers use to frame a message -- if they frame it positively or negatively, if they use complex or simple words -- influences our daily lives as consumers tremendously. The choice of language may affect, for example, how consumers think about a new product, if people understand the risk of smoking, or if they perceive a brand as luxurious. And language goes beyond our lives as consumers: Research even found that your first and last name can have a considerable impact on your success in school or how high you may climb the career ladder!

Topics: 
Language is a powerful tool that is sometimes used with too little thought – maybe because we are not always aware of how much a single word or even letter may change our perception. In this course, we will learn about selected current theories and concepts from the areas of
-          marketing (e.g., branding, communications),
-          cognitive psychology (e.g., information processing),
-          linguistics (e.g., sound symbolism)
-          consumer behavior (e.g., judgment and decision-making)

These theories and concepts are core in understanding the underlying mechanisms of how (marketing) language affects our perceptions, decisions, judgments, and memory as consumers.

Topics will include but will not be limited to the creation and effects of brand names, valence framing (positive vs. negative framing), consumer-brand interactions in social media, gender-related language issues, and brand storytelling.

Introduction to experimental research:

Research in this area follows largely deductive, positivistic thinking and argumentation, and data collection is dominated by experiments. It is therefore necessary to introduce students to both the basics of deductive argumentation and hypothesis building and the basics of experiments. Students will not have to collect data, but will have to propose a suitable experiment to answer their suggested research question in their research proposal.

Recommended literature:
This is only an illustrative selection of relevant literature. Assigned literature will mainly consist of journal articles to be downloaded from the library/Google scholar. The complete syllabus will be available on Learn approximately two weeks before course start. 

Chen, M. K. (2013). The effect of language on economic behavior: Evidence from savings rates, health behaviors, and retirement assets. American Economic Review, 103, 690-731.
Feiereisen, S., Wong, V., & Broderick, A. J. (2008). Analogies and mental simulations in learning for really new products: The role of visual attention. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 25, 593-607.
Gregan-Paxton, J., & Moreau, P. (2003). How do consumers transfer existing knowledge? A comparison of analogy and categorization effects. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 13, 422-430.
Keller, K. L., Heckler, S. E., & Houston, M. J. (1998). The effects of brand name suggestiveness on advertising recall. Journal of Marketing, 62, 48-57.
Laham, S. M., Koval, P., & Alter, Adam L. (2012). The name-pronunciation effect: Why people like Mr. Smith more than Mr. Colquhoun. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 48, 752-756.
Lewandowsky, S., Ecker, U. K. H., Seifert, C. M., Schwarz, N., & Cook, J. (2012). Misinformation and its correction: Continued influence and successful debiasing. Psychological Science, 13, 106-131.
Lowrey, T., & Shrum, L. J. (2007). Phonetic symbolism and brand name preference. Journal of Consumer Research, 34, 406-414.
Moreau, C. P., Markman, A. B., & Lehman, D. R. (2001). “What is it?” Categorization flexibility and consumers’ responses to really new products, Journal of Consumer Research, 27, 489-498.
Schuldt, J. P., & Schwarz, N. (2010). The “organic” path to obesity? Organic claims influence calorie judgments and exercise recommendations. Judgment and Decision Making, 5, 144-150.
Song, H., & Schwarz, N. (2009). If it’s difficult to pronounce, it must be risky: Fluency, familiarity, and risk perception. Psychological Science, 20, 135-138.