Shaping the Research Field

A University of Houston Associate Dean and Professor in the C. T. Bauer College of Business has been named President-Elect of the Society of Consumer Psychology (SCP), the premier professional association for consumer psychologists.

Vanessa Patrick, Associate Dean of Research and Bauer Professor of Marketing at the Bauer College will serve as principal executive officer of SCP for 2025-26. SCP advances the field of consumer psychology by promoting professional development and research opportunities for faculty and doctoral students from around the world.

Patrick’s 3-year term on the Executive Board of SCP was announced last week at an annual conference that draws consumer psychologists and doctoral student members from around the world. SCP produces two academic journals (Journal of Consumer Psychology and the Consumer Psychology Review) and operates under a Board of Directors that Patrick will chair.

“This election is a wonderful opportunity to lead this amazing group of scholars and affords me the platform to help shape the future of our field,” said Patrick. “The study of consumer insights is of immense importance in business today. It is an honor to lead an organization for a field of study I’m passionate about.”  

Research has always been a singular commitment for Patrick. She is known for expertise in the areas of self-regulation and personal leadership, everyday consumer aesthetics and luxury brand strategy. In addition to being widely published in top-tier academic journals in psychology, marketing and management, popular accounts of her work have appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, the Scientific American and other major media outlets. Patrick’s first book, "The Power of Saying No: The New Science of How to Say No that Puts you in Charge of Your Life," was published in 2023.

Patrick serves as Executive Director of Doctoral Programs (Ph.D. and DBA) at the Bauer College, and is lead faculty for the Bauer Executive Women in Leadership Program, in addition to leading research initiatives for the Bauer College.  

She has won several teaching awards and has served on editorial boards for numerous academic journals in her career. She previously served as an Associate Editor for SCP’s flagship journal, The Journal of Consumer Psychology (JCP), and in 2010 served as editor for a JCP special edition.

Patrick’s passion for the field of consumer psychology was in part sparked by her doctoral adviser, Debbie MacInnis, who not only served in a number of leadership roles but was also given the highest honor – the SCP Fellows Award, she said.

“This President-Elect role was aspirational and in line with my professional goals. It really speaks to the fact that the field recognizes talent, good work, dedication and citizenship, and rewards you for it,” she said.

Prior to her academic career, Patrick worked in advertising and brand consultancy for multinational agencies like Ogilvy and Mather and J. Walter Thompson whose clients include DeBeers Consolidated Mines, Kimberly-Clark, Unilever, L'oreal and Bacardi. She also worked as a consultant to companies like the Coca-Cola Company, CNN and Hallmark.