Rate My Professor Anu Sivaraman

Anu Sivaraman is an Associate Professor of Marketing and Director of the Lerner Diversity Council in the Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics at the University of Delaware. She earned her Ph.D. in business administration with a major in marketing and minors in economics and psychology from the University of Houston in 2004. Prior to that, she obtained an M.S. in statistics from Madras Christian College, University of Madras, India, in 1995, and a B.S. in statistics from the same institution in 1993. At the University of Delaware, she teaches undergraduate and graduate courses including Introduction to Marketing, Marketing Strategy, and Introduction to Business. Her teaching innovations, such as requiring students to create and maintain blogs and e-portfolios, have been recognized through grants like the CTAL Instructional Improvement Grant in 2019 and the General University Research Grant in 2008.

Sivaraman's research specializations center on counterfactual thinking and its impact on consumption patterns and consumer behavior, as well as factors influencing nonprofit marketing and fundraising. Her influential publications include "Counterfactual thinking and advertising responses" in the Journal of Consumer Research (2002), "The new world of philanthropy: How changing financial behavior, public policies, and COVID-19 affect nonprofit fundraising and marketing" in the Journal of Consumer Affairs (2022), "When do I ponder? The role of elaboration in counterfactual thinking" in the Journal of Consumer Behaviour (2023), "Not all missed opportunities cast the same shadow: Voluntary inaction reduces the 'sting' of missed sales promotions" in the Journal of Consumer Behaviour (2020), and "Food for thought: the effect of counterfactual thinking on the use of nutrition information" in the Journal of Consumer Behaviour (2010). She has received major awards such as the Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics Outstanding Service Award (2022-2023), Faculty Fellow in the Women’s Leadership Initiative (2022-2024), Most Valuable Professor recognition by University of Delaware student-athletes in Field Hockey and Soccer (2021-2022), Alfred Lerner College Outstanding Teacher Award (2012-2013), Department of Business Administration Outstanding Faculty Award (2015), and the Vanguard Group Inc. Educator Recognition Award (2014). Her work contributes significantly to behavioral decision theory in marketing.