Marketing and Consumption Research

We are an ambitious, dynamic and supportive community of marketing and consumption research scholars united by our commitment to excellence and diversity. Our strength lies in our multifaceted approaches, embracing various research areas, methodologies, and analytical perspectives to address today's most pressing marketing challenges.

Our mission is to promote long-term business success while creating positive social and environmental sustainability through innovative cutting edge marketing research that benefits consumers, businesses, and society at large.

Our research is symbolized by a boat navigating the waters of modern marketing challenges. Our five research programs form the keel and foundation of our vessel, providing stability and direction, while three interconnected sails drive our progress forward representing current research phenomena.

Our Three Driving Forces (The Sails)

Business Renewal
Our research guides companies through strategic revitalization of their operations and business models, helping them navigate environmental and technological challenges while maintaining competitiveness.

Sustainable Consumption
Marketing and consumption research is essential to promote sustainability as an integral part of daily life, critically reflecting how the consequences of consumption impact individuals, communities, and our planet.

Digitalization of Society 
We bring in understanding of how digitalization shapes modern marketplaces, from business ecosystems to consumer experiences, providing crucial insights for both organizations and individuals.

Our Research Programs (The Keel)

Versatility is the key strength of our group and is underlined by five closely collaborating research programs. We have traditionally been known for our strong competence in consumer research, which is now reflected in three programs, each providing a different perspective to our field of science. Today, our research group has evolved beyond consumer markets to address marketplace actors operating in ecosystems consisting of both consumers and business partners. We strongly believe in science-based education and practice what we believe. The fifth research program focuses on research on marketing education. 

Sustainable Business Models and Ecosystems
The program investigates how organizations can integrate sustainability into their operations, value creation relationships, and the intricate dynamics of business and innovation ecosystems.

Responsible Consumer Marketing
The program excels in quantitative methods and combines business studies, natural science, and social inquiry for holistic understanding of responsible consumer behavior to support the renewal of business practices.

Transformative Consumption Culture and Society
The program creates a deep understanding of business development, sustainability and well-being by focusing on the complex dynamics of consumption across cultural and societal levels through Consumer Culture Theory, Transformative Consumer/Service Research, and Macromarketing paradigms.

Data-Driven Personas for Sustainable Growth
The program brings in cutting-edge digital technologies, including Generative AI, Deepfakes, and Metaverse applications, to the field marketing and sustainability to develop innovative approaches to user and customer understanding.

Meaningful Marketing Education
The program examines and develops evidence-based, contemporary marketing education that integrates marketing competence and pedagogical innovations to nurture creative, critically thinking professionals. 

For Academic and Business Collaborators

We are experts in collaborating on interdisciplinary projects where we combine deep market and consumer insight within networked business knowledge to create novel contributions and transformative marketing solutions that address strategic marketing and societal challenges from a systemic perspective. Our research reveals how consumers' everyday practices and choices, rooted in socio-technical and historical frames, connect with the offerings of various business partners, and how this collaboration can lead to value-creating outcomes. 

Our research group is led by Associate Professor Henna Syrjälä.

Contact Information
Email: henna.syrjala@uwasa.fi

For Potential Doctoral Students

We invite doctoral candidates who are passionate about redefining markets and shaping the future of sustainability.

We offer:

• Close mentorship from experienced and committed supervisors
• A pedagogically constructed path towards doctoral defense
• The possibility to engage in collaborative and multi-disciplinary research projects
• The development of both theoretical expertise and practical problem-solving skills
• A supportive community committed to academic excellence

Doctoral researchers

• Huma Bano Adeel
• Farhan Ahmed
• Hanna Ahtosalo
• Tiia Alkkiomäki
• Danial Amin
• Joel Anderssén
• Ann-Sofi Backgren
• Päivi Borisov
• Laura Forsman
• Audur Hermannsdóttir
• Maija Kantola
• Suzi Kimura
• Niklas Kurki

• Roosa-Mariia Malila
• Tamara Minina
• Rajat Rewaram Patil
• Evianna Pehkonen
• Nayeem Rahman
• Anna-Mari Rimppi
• Tiina Shen
• Ekaterina Sofroneeva
• Katariina Sorvari
• Elina Tikkanen
• Essi Vesterinen
• Leena Viitaharju
• Denise Villikka
• Tiia Vuorinen
• Thi Thu Trang Xuan
• Emiliia Zemskova