Publications

Article

The Feeling of Not Knowing It All

By: Haiyang Yang, Ziv Carmon, Dan Ariely and Michael I. Norton

How do consumers assess their mastery of knowledge they have learned? We explore this question by investigating a common knowledge consumption situation: encountering opportunities for further learning. We argue and show that such opportunities can trigger a... View Details

Keywords: Knowledge Consumption; Consumption Of Learning; Judgment Of Knowledge; Feeling Ofknowing; Confidence In Knowledge; WYSIATI; FONKIA; Knowledge Acquisition; Learning; Perception

05 Oct 2010
First Look

First Look: October 5, 2010

Right Way Authors:Todd Rogers and Michael I. Norton Abstract What happens when people try to "dodge" a question they would rather not answer View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Article

The Artful Dodger: Answering the Wrong Question the Right Way

By: Todd Rogers and Michael I. Norton

What happens when speakers try to "dodge" a question they would rather not answer by answering a different question? In 4 studies, we show that listeners can fail to detect dodges when speakers answer similar-but objectively incorrect-questions (the "artful dodge"), a... View Details

Keywords: Interpersonal Communication; Goals and Objectives

Article

Social Recycling Transforms Unwanted Goods into Happiness

By: Grant Edward Donnelly, Cait Lamberton, Rebecca Walker Reczek and Michael I. Norton

Consumers are often surrounded by resources that once offered meaning or happiness but that have lost this subjective value over time—even as they retain their objective utility. We explore the potential for social recycling—disposing of used goods by allowing other... View Details

Keywords: Disposition; Well-being; Prosocial Behavior; Pro-environmental Behavior; Happiness; Behavior; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Environmental Sustainability

Web

AASU50 - Alumni

Stansbury, Jr., MBA 1973 Walter L. Ross, MBA 1973 Terry L. Jones, MBA 1974 Stephen R. Bryant, MBA 1974 Harry G. Walker, III, MBA 1975 Jonathan L. Weaver, MBA 1975 Frank E. Lattimore, MBA 1976 Anita R. Goodman, MBA 1977 Sylvia C. Carroll, MBA 1978 Edwin C. Reed, MBA... View Details

21 Oct 2014
First Look

First Look: October 21

Jan-Emmanuel, George W. Ward, Femke De Keulenaer, Bert Van Landeghem, Georgios Kavetsos, and Michael I. Norton Abstract—Are individuals more sensitive to losses than gains in... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

Article

The Persuasive 'Power' of Stigma?

By: Michael I. Norton, Elizabeth W. Dunn, Dana R. Carney and Dan Ariely

We predicted that able-bodied individuals and white Americans would have a difficult time saying no to persuasive appeals offered by disabled individuals and black Americans, due to their desire to make such interactions proceed smoothly. In two experiments, we show... View Details

Keywords: Persuasion; Stigma; Interactions; Interracial Relations; Power and Influence; Personal Characteristics; Interpersonal Communication; Attitudes

March–April 2015
Article

Why We Think We Can't Dance: Theory of Mind and Children's Desire to Perform

By: Lan Nguyen Chaplin and Michael I. Norton

Theory of Mind (ToM) allows children to achieve success in the social world by understanding others' minds. A study with 3–12 year olds, however, demonstrates that gains in ToM are linked to decreases in children's desire to engage in performative behaviors associated... View Details

Keywords: Theory Of Mind; Self-Esteem; Behavior; Attitudes; Performance; Cognition and Thinking

28 Jun 2013
News

How Money Actually Buys Happiness

2014
Article

Rituals Alleviate Grieving for Loved Ones, Lovers, and Lotteries

By: Michael I. Norton and Francesca Gino

Three experiments explored the impact of mourning rituals after losses—of loved ones, lovers, and lotteries—on mitigating grief. Participants who were directed to reflect on past rituals or who were assigned to complete novel rituals after experiencing losses reported... View Details

Keywords: Loss; Practice; Emotions

04 May 2010
First Look

First Look: May 4

organs faces widespread disapproval. We survey a representative sample of Americans to assess disapproval for several forms of kidney markets and to understand why individuals disapprove by identifying factors that predict disapproval,... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

14 Apr 2013
News

Heavens, Not Havens

July 2012
Article

iPhones for Friends, Refrigerators for Family: How Products Prime Social Networks

By: Lalin Anik and Michael I. Norton

We show that priming consumers with products associated with specific social networks increases the salience of those networks, influencing both word-of-mouth intentions and consumption. Consumers were exposed to friend- or family-related products (e.g., game consoles... View Details

Keywords: Family and Family Relationships; Product; Customers; Familiarity; Social and Collaborative Networks

Article

Does 'Liking' Lead to Loving? The Impact of Joining a Brand's Social Network on Marketing Outcomes

By: Leslie K. John, Oliver Emrich, Sunil Gupta and Michael I. Norton

Does “liking” a brand on Facebook cause a person to view it more favorably? Or is “liking” simply a symptom of being fond of a brand? We disentangle these possibilities and find evidence for the latter: brand attitudes and purchasing are predicted by consumers’... View Details

Keywords: Brands; Marketing Effectiveness; Brand Evaluation; Peer Influence; Brands and Branding; Social and Collaborative Networks; Social Media

Web

Technology & Operations Management Awards & Honors - Faculty & Research

Named 2020 Valkhof Chair by the Radboud University Medical Center. Himabindu Lakkaraju : Recipient of a 2020 Google Research Award. Michael Lingzhi Li : Winner of the 2020 Pierskalla Award from INFORMS... View Details

July 2021
Article

Consumers—Especially Women—Avoid Buying from Firms with Higher Gender Pay Gaps

By: Tobias Schlager, Bhavya Mohan, Katherine DeCelles and Michael I. Norton

We document a unique driver of consumer behavior: the public disclosure of a firm’s gender pay gap. Four experiments provide causal evidence that when firms are revealed to have gender pay gaps, consumers are less willing to pay for their goods, a reaction driven by... View Details

Keywords: Pay Gap; Perceived Wage Fairness; Purchase Intention; Gender; Wages; Fairness; Perception; Consumer Behavior

01 Sep 2023
News

Made in Italy

HBS faculty members and students visited Lamborghini’s headquarters in Bologna during the immersion to learn how the company became experts in electric car technology. Photo courtesy Lamborghini IMMERSIVE FIELD COURSES OFFERED AS ELECTIVES IN 2023 Denmark and... View Details

Keywords: April White

Article

A 'Present' for the Future: The Unexpected Value of Rediscovery

By: Ting Zhang, Tami Kim, Alison Wood Brooks, Francesca Gino and Michael I. Norton

Although documenting everyday activities may seem trivial, four studies reveal that creating records of the present generates unexpected benefits by allowing future rediscoveries. In Study 1, we use a "time capsule" paradigm to show that individuals underestimate the... View Details

Keywords: History; Information Management; Cognition and Thinking