• Bachelor's Degree in Electronics & Communication Engineering at Delhi Institute of Technology
• M.B.A. in Marketing at Indian Institute of Management
• Ph.D. in Marketing at Leeds School of Business, University of Colorado, Boulder

News Stories & Tip Sheets:

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Battling overindulgence Control the urge to splurge - try dividing things up April 15, 2008 -- Dividing items into small portions helps control consumption. Whether it's food or money, people tend to go through things more slowly when the lump sum is partitioned into small portions, according to new research from a WUSTL marketing professor.

Better to wait for post-holiday sales to indulge in your own present Discovering a holiday discount for an impromptu gift may not be a great deal Dec. 6, 2006 -- December is the month when most people scramble to find gifts for their friends and family. In the process, many decide to treat themselves to a gift as well — especially when they notice that something they've wanted is now on "sale." According to a business professor at Washington University in St. Louis, most people have an easier time justifying an indulgent purchase when there is the promise of saving money, especially when it is in the form of an unexpected discount or rebate. The catch is that frequently customers aren't saving as much money as they might think. More...

What really happens to that tax refund? How people trick themselves into overspending April 6, 2005 -- It's tax-time. For many people that means handing some hard-earned money over to Uncle Sam. But for others tax time is refund time. Theoretically, that refund is money you've earned as a part of your salary, and should be accounted for and spent like regular income. However, most people view it as "found money" and generally find a way to justify spending it on something they didn't necessarily need. According to a professor of marketing at the Olin School of Business, people mentally credit their refunds to specific budgetary accounts to justify spending it on desirable luxuries. The result is people end up spending too much, making it harder to pay other, more essential accounts.

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Clips:

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The word on warranties: don't bother The New York Times Nov. 1, 2006 -- It may be tempting to buy extended warranties with all those high-tech gadgets on your holiday list, but the experts say they are almost always a waste of money. WUSTL business professor Amar Cheema says, the people who are late in adopting new technology buy the bulk of the extended warranties, even though the products are less expensive and more reliable by the time they are buying. These people are less comfortable with technology and thus more vulnerable to sales pitches for extended warranties.

Your PC is also playing FBI role! India Times, Portsmouth Herald News (NH) and 18 others Aug. 19, 2005 -- With uncanny accuracy, computers predict behavior by sifting through mountains of data about customers collected by businesses. Called predictive analytics, this automated crystal-ball gazing has become a $2.3 billion industry in the United States. WUSTL marketing professor Amar Cheema comments.

Tips for improving your financial outlook Money Aug. 1, 2005 -- Summer is when people tend to blow off their goal of paying down credit-card debt, according to the Cambridge Consumer Credit Index. The reason might be that they've tried to pay too much. People who make unrealistic financial promises to themselves do no better than people who make none at all. "And if you don't meet a goal, you're less likely to perform well in the future," says WUSTL marketing professor Amar Cheema.

Selected Publications:

• "When Goals are Counterproductive: The Effects of Violation of a Behavioral Goal on Subsequent Performance," Journal of Consumer Research, Issue 31, 52-62, with D. Soman, June 2004
• "The Effect of Credit on Spending Decisions: The Role of Credit Limit and Credibility," Marketing Science, Issue 21, 1, 32-53, with D. Soman, Winter 2002
• "Auctions: Research Opportunities in Marketing," Marketing Letters, Issue 13,3, 281-296, with D. Chakravarti, J. Cox, D. Friedman, E. Greenleaf, T. Ho, R. Isaac, A. Mitchell, A. Rapoport, M. Rothkopf, A. Sinha, J. Srivastava, and R. Zwick, August 2002
• "The Effect of Windfall Gains on the Sunk Cost Effect," Marketing Letters, Issue 12,1, 51-62, with D. Soman, February 2001

Academic/professional activities:

• Co-Chair with S. Hawkins and J. Srivastava: Society of Consumer Psychology, Winter Conference 2004
• Reviewer: Association of Consumer Research Conference 2003, Society of Consumer Psychology Conference 2003, American Marketing Association Summer Educator's Conference 2003
• Ad-hoc reviewer: Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Psychology
• Member: Association for Consumer Research, INFORMS, Society for Consumer Psychology, Society for Judgment and Decision Making

Professional Affiliations

• American Marketing Association
• Association for Consumer Research
• INFORMS/Marketing Science
• Society for Consumer Psychology
• Society for Judgment and Decision Making

Honors, Awards, and Research Grants

• Research Grant from Center for Research in Economics & Strategy, Olin School of Business, 2003.
• (with Tat Chan and Seethu Seetharaman)
• Runner-up, Fordham University Doctoral Dissertation Competition on Behavioral Pricing, 2003.
• Recognized as the author of a top 50 management article in 2002 by Emerald Management Reviews.
• Fellow, AMA-Sheth Marketing Doctoral Consortium, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL, 2001.
• Research Grant from the Hong Kong Research Grants Council, 2000-2002 (with Dilip Soman).
• Beverly Sears Graduate Student Grant Award, University of Colorado, 2001.
• The Citibank Award for Academic Excellence and Leadership, IIM Calcutta, 1996.