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Meg G. Meloy

Color portrait of Meg G. Meloy

Professor of Marketing

Department Marketing
Office Address 455 Business Building
Phone Number 814-863-0687
Email Address mgm16@psu.edu

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Margaret "Meg" joined the faculty at Penn State in 2002 after having served on the faculty in the Department of Applied Economics and Management at Cornell University and the Pamplin College of Business at Virginia Tech. Her research examines consumer and managerial decision making biases and heuristics, with a special emphasis on how preferences are constructed, how moods influence consumer information processing, and how consumers make choices.

Her work has been published in the Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Operations Management, Management Science, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Production and Operations Management, and Psychological Science. She currently serves on the Editorial Review Boards for the Journal of Consumer Research and Journal of Consumer Psychology and has served in leadership roles for the Association for Consumer Research (Treasurer: 2013-2014) and the Society for Consumer Psychology (President-Elect (2018-19); President (2019-20); Past-President (2020-21)). She is the David H. McKinley Professor of Business Administration and currently serves as the Department Chair.

Expertise

Consumer Behavior. Food Marketing, Decision Making Biases and Heuristics, Preference Construction

Education

Ph D, Marketing (Consumer Decision Making), Cornell University, 1996

MS, Applied Economics and Management (Food Marketing), Cornell University, 1987

BS, Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology (Minor in Economics), The Pennsylvania State University, 1984

Courses Taught

MKTG 472 – STRAT BRAND MGMT (3)
Brands are a potentially valuable asset to firms in Business-to-Business (B2B) and Business-to-Consumer (B2C) markets. Strong brands influence purchase and consumption by communicating value and providing differentiation in the marketplace. Effective brand management is therefore critical to maintaining the long-term profitability of products and services. This course investigates how to create profitable brand strategies by building, measuring, and managing brand equity. Theories and practical tools will address the following questions: how does branding influence purchase and consumption? how can firms build brand equity? how should brand equity be measured and managed over time? how should firms manage brands in a brand portfolio? how can firms leverage brand equity? At the conclusion of this course, students will be able to: 1) explain the fundamental concepts of branding and the role of branding in business; 2) apply branding concepts and analysis tools to managerial decision-making; and, 3) provide real-world examples of challenges and issues in branding.

MKTG 330 – Consumer Behavior (3)

MKTG 494H – Research Project (Variable)
Supervised student activities on research projects identified on an individual or small-group basis.

MKTG 496 – Indep Studies (Variable)
Creative projects, including research and design, which are supervised on an individual basis and which fall outside the scope of formal courses.

MKTG 541 – Consumer Behavior (2)
Introduce theories and concepts from psychology, sociology, economics, and other disciplines that are useful in understanding and marketing to consumers.

MKTG 596 – Individual Studies (Variable)
Creative projects, including nonthesis research, which are supervised on an individual basis and which fall outside the scope of formal courses.

MKTG 597B – Topics in Marketing (3)
This course covers selected topics in Marketing. Students will discuss such topics as brand management, integrated marketing communications, pricing policies, new product marketing, and marketing engineering. The topics may change from year to year. The c

MKTG 551 – Theoretical Perspectives on Buyer Behavior (3)
Review of marketing and social sciences research related to understanding consumer and market behavior.

MKTG 597A – Marketing in Challenging Times (3)
The purpose of this graduate seminar is to investigate special topics in consumer behavior.

B A 303H – Marketing (2)
Introduction to customer behavior and research, service/product development, pricing and promotion in diverse and international marketing contexts.

B A 303 – Marketing (2)
Introduction to customer behavior and research, service/product development, pricing and promotion in diverse and international marketing contexts.

MKTG 494 – Research Project (variable)
Supervised student activities on research projects identified on an individual or small-group basis.

MKTG 296 – Independent Studies (variable)
Creative projects, including research and design, which are supervised on an individual basis and which fall outside the scope of formal courses.

Selected Publications

Alptekinoglu A., Blank A. S., Meloy M. G., Guide V., "Can Mass Customization Slow Fast Fashion Down? The Impact on Time to Disposal and Willingness to Pay." Journal of Operations Management, vol. 69, no. 8, 2023, pp. 1320-1341
Ross G. R., Bolton L. E., Meloy M. G., "Disorder in Secondhand Retail Spaces: The Countervailing Forces of Hidden Treasure and Risk." Journal of Retailing, vol. 99, no. 1, 2023, pp. 136-148
Germann F., Hess R. L., Meloy M. G., "Do Retailers Get Blamed When Manufacturer Brands Fail? Measurement of Multiloci Attributions and Spillover Effects." (Emerald Publishing Limited), vol. 18, 2021
Cheng A., Meloy M. G., Polman E., "Picking Gifts for Picky People." Journal of Retailing, vol. 97, no. 2, 2021, pp. 15
Wilroy G. R., Meloy M. G., Bolton L. E., "Disorder and Downsizing." Journal of Consumer Research, vol. 47, no. 6, 2021, pp. 959-977
Andong C., Baumgartner J., Meloy M. G., "Identifying Picky Shoppers: Who They Are and How to Spot Them." Journal of Consumer Psychology, vol. 31, no. 4, 2021, pp. 20
Ross G., Meloy M. G., Carlson K. A., "Preference Refinement After a Budget Contraction." Journal of Consumer Research, vol. 47, no. 3, 2020, pp. 412-430
Atalay S. A., Meloy M. G., "Improving Evacuation Compliance Through Control: Implications for Emergency Management Policy and Disaster Communications." Journal of Nonprofit & Public Sector Marketing, vol. 32, no. 4, 2020, pp. 364-378
Gonzales G. E., Bolton L. E., Meloy M. G., "Why Do Consumers Think It Is Fair to Pay More When Buying From Producers Versus Retailers?." Marketing Letters, 2019
Abbey J. D., Meloy M. G., "Attention by Design: Using Attention Checks to Detect Inattentive Respondents and Improve Data Quality." Journal of Operations Management, vol. 53-56, 2017, pp. 63-70
Garvey A. M., Meloy M. G., Shiv B., "The Jilting Effect: Antecedents, Mechanisms and Consequences." Journal of Marketing Research, vol. 54, no. 5, 2017, pp. 785-798
Schroeter C., Nicholson C., Meloy M. G., "Consumer Valuation of Organic and Conventional Milk: Does Shelf Life Matter?." Journal of Food Distribution Research, vol. 47, no. 3, 2016, pp. 118-133
Abbey J. D., Meloy M. G., Blackburn J., Guide V., "Consumer Markets for Remanufactured and Refurbished Products." California Management Review, vol. 57, no. 4, 2015, pp. 1-17
Abbey J. D., Meloy M. G., Guide V. D., Atalay A. S., "Remanufactured Products in Consumer Closed-Loop Supply Chains." Production and Operations Management, vol. 24, 2015, pp. 488-503, doi:10.1111/poms.12238
Hamilton R., Thompson D. V., Arens Z. G., Blanchard S. J., Haubl G., Kannan P., Khan U., Lehmann D. R., Meloy M. G., Roese N. J., Thomas M., "Consumer Substitution Decisions: An Integrative Framework." Marketing Letters, vol. 25, no. 3, 2014, pp. 305-317
Blanchard S. J., Carlson K. A., Meloy M. G., "Biased Predecisional Processing of Leading and Non-Leading Alternatives." Psychological Science, vol. 25, no. 3, 2014, pp. 812-816
Carlson K. A., Tanner R. J., Meloy M. G., Russo J. E., "Catching Nonconscious Goals in the Act of Decision Making." Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, vol. 123, 2014, pp. 65-76
Carlson K., Meloy M. G., Miller E. G., "Goal Reversion in Consumer Choice." Journal of Consumer Research, vol. 39, no. 5, 2013, pp. 918-930
Atalay S., Meloy M. G., "Retail Therapy: A Strategic Effort to Improve Mood." Psychology and Marketing, vol. 28, 2011, pp. 638-659
Meloy M. G., Duhachek A., "Advances in Consumer Psychology: Volume II." Society for Consumer Psychology, vol. II, 2010, pp. 283
Carlson K. A., Meloy M. G., Lieb D., "Benefits Leader Reversion: How a Once Preferred Product Recaptures Its Standing." Journal of Marketing Research, vol. 46, 2009, pp. 788-797
Russo J. E., Carlson K. A., Meloy M. G., Yong K., "The Goal of Consistency as a Cause of Information Distortion." Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, vol. 137, no. 3, 2008, pp. 456-470
Bond S. D., Carlson K. A., Meloy M. G., Russo J. E., Tanner R. J., "Information Distortion in the Evaluation of a Single Option." Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, vol. 102, 2007, pp. 240-254
Russo J. E., Carlson K. A., Meloy M. G., "Choosing an Inferior Option." Psychological Science, vol. 17, no. 10, 2006, pp. 899-904
Meloy M. G., Russo J. E., Miller E. G., "Monetary Incentives and Mood." Journal of Marketing Research, vol. 43, no. 2, 2006, pp. 267-275
Carlson K. A., Meloy M. G., Russo J. E., "Leader-Driven Primacy: Using Attribute Order to Affect Consumer Choice." Journal of Consumer Research, vol. 32, no. 4, 2006, pp. 513-518
Meloy M. G., Russo J. E., "Binary Choice Under Instructions to Select versus Reject." Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, vol. 93, no. 2, 2004, pp. 114-128
Meloy M. G., "Mood-Driven Distortion of Product Information." Journal of Consumer Research, vol. 27, no. 3, 2000, pp. 345-359
Russo J. E., Meloy M. G., Wilks T. J., "Predecisional Distortion of Information by Auditors and Salespersons." Management Science, vol. 46, 2000, pp. 13-27
Russo J. E., Meloy M. G., Husted-Medvec V., "Predecisional Distortion of Product Information." Journal of Marketing Research, vol. 35, 1998, pp. 438-452
Russo J. E., Husted-Medvec V., Meloy M. G., "The Distortion of Information During Decisions." Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, vol. 66, no. 1, 1996, pp. 102-110
Meloy M. G., McLaughlin E. W., Kramer C. S., "A Consumer Segmentation Analysis of Grocery Coupon Users: Public Policy Implications." American Council on Consumer Interests, 1988
Meloy M. G., McLaughlin E. W., Kramer C. S., "A Consumer Segmentation Analysis of Grocery Coupon Users: Public Policy Implications." Cornell Agricultural Economics Research Report, 1988
Abdulla H., Abbey J. D., Atalay A. S., Meloy M. G., "Show, Don't Tell: Education and Physical Exposure Effects in Remanufactured Product Markets." Journal of Operations Management

Research Impact and Media Mentions

"Why Does Buying Stuff Make Us Feel Better?", FoxBusiness.com, Internet
"Think You Found the Perfect Gift? Think Again", The New York Times, Newspaper
"Good Question: Why is it So Hard to Keep Your New Year's Resolutions?", WCCO CBS Affiliate Minneapolis, Television
"Black Friday - A Marketing Mind Game", Centre County Report, Television
"What New Year's resolutions work? Just ask an expert", The Morning Call, Newspaper
"Retail Therapy and Stress: The Relationship between Shopping and Stress", About.com, Internet
"Retail Therapy Works, Research Shows", Harvard Business Review: The Daily Stat
"Does Retail Therapy Work?", Facebook, Internet
"Evidence that "Retail Therapy" is Effective", Smart Lemming, Internet
"Retail Therapy Really Can Make you Happier", Shine at Yahoo, Internet
"Feeling Sad? Go Shopping Because it Really Does Make you Happy", Daily Mail Online (UK), Internet
"Retail Therapy Actually Does Matter", Investors Wire UK, Internet
"Shopping Can Help You Beat the Blues", The Times of India, Internet
"Does Retail Therapy Work?", British Psychological Society Research Digest, Internet
"Why are Resolutions So Hard to Keep?", Research Penn State, Journal or Magazine

Editorships

Journal of Consumer Research, Editorial Board, July 2015 - Present
Journal of Consumer Psychology, Editorial Board, (www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-consumer-psychology/editorial-board/), January 2012 - Present
Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Editorial Board, (www.journals.elsevier.com/organizational-behavior-and-human-decision-processes/editorial-board/), June 2010 - July 2015

Honors and Awards