Amit Kumar

Assistant Professor of Marketing University of Delaware

  • Newark DE

Professor Kumar’s research focuses on the scientific study of happiness.

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Spotlight

1 min

Mindful celebrations: University of Delaware experts on integrating mental wellness into your holiday plans

The holiday season is a whirlwind of joy, lights, and laughter, but sometimes it can also sneak in some added stress. Experts from the University of Delaware are here to remind us that our mental wellness shouldn’t take a backseat during these festive times. By weaving mindfulness into our holiday plans, we can maximize the joy and peace we experience. Prioritizing presence over presents Let's face it: the holiday rush often translates to an avalanche of consumerism. But Amit Kumar, a marketing professor who focuses on the scientific study of happiness, suggests focusing on being present rather than the presents. Carving out mindful time The holidays can stir up complex emotions as families come together. Psychology professors Franssy Zablah and Zachary Meehan offer strategies to support mental well-being this season. Valerie Earnshaw and Raphael Travis, professors who study health and wellbeing, can share guidance for supporting family members with substance use disorders this holiday season. Gifting intentionally this year  Education professors Myae Han and Roberta Golinkoff can talk about gifts for children that promote reading or positive play. Keeping the spirts bright year after year  Debra Hess Norris offers tips on how to preserve decorations and make them look brand new every year. To contact any of these experts, click on their expert profiles or email MediaRelations@udel.edu.

Amit KumarRoberta GolinkoffValerie Earnshaw

2 min

Experts share practical guidance for a healthier, happier holiday season

The holiday season is a time of tradition, connection and celebration – but it also brings its own set of challenges, from food safety concerns to emotional stress. University of Delaware experts are available to speak with reporters and provide practical, research-backed guidance to help audiences make the most of the season. Avoid common food safety mistakes Holiday meals are a centerpiece of celebration, but preparing them safely is essential. Diane Oliver, UD Health and Well-being Extension agent, has identified the top five mistakes people make when handling and preparing turkey – and how to avoid them. She can offer timely food safety tips to ensure families enjoy their meals without risk. Protect your mental well-being The holidays can stir up complex emotions as families come together. UD psychology professors Franssy Zablah and Zachary Meehan can provide expert insight into how to maintain mental wellness, manage stress, and set healthy boundaries during holiday gatherings. Find genuine holiday joy Beyond checklists and shopping, how do people actually experience lasting happiness during the holidays? Assistant professor Amit Kumar can share research-backed strategies on pursuing meaningful, authentic joy rather than fleeting holiday pressure. Preserve your decorations for years to come Family ornaments and decorations often carry sentimental value. Art conservation expert Debra Hess Norris can explain how to properly store and care for holiday decorations so they remain vibrant and intact year after year. Connect with these experts All of these University of Delaware experts are available for media interviews and commentary. Reporters and editors interested in speaking with them can reach out to mediarelations@udel.edu for a quick response and support.

Amit Kumar

1 min

The keys to holiday happiness: Gratitude, giving and genuine connection

The holiday ads insist that it’s the time for cheer, buying gifts and reconnecting with friends and family. Various factors – social media, remote work, politics – have made that more difficult than ever. There is hope: Research by the University of Delaware's Amit Kumar shows the path to genuine happiness this season. Kumar, assistant professor of marketing in UD's Lerner College of Business & Economics, offered the following three strategies. Gratitude: Gratitude and giving thanks has benefits for both the giver and the receiver. It makes both parties feel good, and provides a real-life human connection at a time when those are hard to come by. "Investing in doing is a better route to social connection than spending on having." Amit Kumar A shift in gift buying strategy: Experiences can make for better gifts than trinkets, coats, jewelry or other items. There's a better chance of social connection if you're doing something rather than giving something. Type less, talk more: It's important to keep in touch, but reconnecting during the holidays through a phone call or face-to-face interaction (virtually or in person) has a better chance of strengthening our bonds. More information on Kumar, who is also an assistant professor of psychological & brain sciences, can be found on his website. To contact Kumar directly and arrange an interview, visit his profile and click on the contact button. Interested reporters can also send an email to MediaRelations@udel.edu.

Amit Kumar

Biography

Amit Kumar is assistant professor of marketing at the University of Delaware’s Lerner College of Business & Economics. He was previously assistant professor of marketing and psychology at the University of Texas at Austin’s McCombs School of Business. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business. He received his Ph.D. in social psychology from Cornell University and his A.B. in psychology and economics from Harvard University.

Professor Kumar’s research focuses on the scientific study of happiness and has been featured in popular media outlets such as The Atlantic, Bloomberg, Business Insider, CNBC, CNN, Forbes, Fortune Magazine, Harvard Business Review, Hidden Brain, The Huffington Post, National Geographic, The New York Times, NPR, Oprah Daily, Scientific American, Time Magazine, U.S. News and World Report, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post, among others.

His scholarly work has been published in Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, Current Directions in Psychological Science, Current Opinion in Psychology, Emotion, The Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, The Journal of Consumer Psychology, The Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, The Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin and Psychological Science.

He has been recognized as a prestigious MSI Young Scholar, an honor awarded to a select few scholars the Marketing Science Institute views as future leaders in marketing academia. He has also been honored as a fellow of the Society of Experimental Social Psychology. His teaching resulted in him being named one of the best undergraduate business professors by Poets & Quants. His service to the field has included serving as co-chair of forums and roundtables for the Association for Consumer Research conference and as a member of the editorial review board for The Journal of Consumer Research. For more information about Professor Kumar, visit his personal webpage (www.kumar-amit.com).

Industry Expertise

Market Research
Consumer Goods

Areas of Expertise

Happiness
Consumer Behavior
Social Psychology
Behavioral Decision Making
Kindness

Answers

What are ways to experience genuine happiness this holiday season? 
Amit Kumar

Gratitude and giving thanks has benefits for both the giver and the receiver. It makes both parties feel good, and provides a real-life human connection at a time when those are hard to come by. "Investing in doing is a better route to social connection than spending on having," says Amit Kumar of the University of Delaware. He has a number of ways to achieve happiness during the holidays. To contact Kumar directly and arrange an interview, visit his profile and click on the contact button. Interested reporters can also send an email to mediarelations@udel.edu.

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Media Appearances

The cost of loneliness can be death. Here’s how to find good friends

CNN  online

2025-06-30

“Human beings just are a fundamentally social species. We have a fundamental need to belong,” said Dr. Amit Kumar, associate professor of marketing and psychology at the University of Texas at Austin’s McCombs School of Business.

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Here’s why planning a trip can help your mental health

National Geographic  online

2024-10-07

Amit Kumar, one of the co-authors of the Cornell study and an assistant professor at the University of Texas at Austin, explains that the benefits are less about obsessing over the finer points of an itinerary than they are about connecting with other people. One reason? Travelers “end up talking to people more about their experiences than they talk about material purchases,” he says. “Compared to possessions, experiences make for better story material.”

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The Best Way to Split the Check at Group Dinners—and Not Leave Grumpy

The Wall Street Journal  online

2024-05-15

Using peer-to-peer payment apps while dining out can make relationships feel transactional, says Amit Kumar, an assistant professor of marketing and psychology at the University of Texas at Austin’s McCombs School of Business. Kumar studies happiness, including how money and payment apps impact it.

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Articles

Undersociality is unwise

Journal of Consumer Psychology

2022-11-15

Wise decisions are often guided by an accurate understanding of the expected values of different possible choices. In social contexts, wisdom comes from understanding how others are likely to respond to one's actions, enabling people to make choices that maximize both their own and others' outcomes. Our research suggests that miscalibrated social cognition may create a systematic barrier to wiser decisions in social life. From expressing appreciation to offering support to performing acts of kindness, this program of research indicates that decisions to engage with others are driven by how people expect a recipient to respond, but that people consistently underestimate how positively others will respond to their other‐oriented actions.

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A little good goes an unexpectedly long way: Underestimating the positive impact of kindness on recipients

Journal of Experimental Psychology: General

2023-01-01

2023

Performing random acts of kindness increases happiness in both givers and receivers, but we find that givers systematically undervalue their positive impact on recipients. In both field and laboratory settings (Experiments 1a-2b), those performing an act of kindness reported how positive they expected recipients would feel and recipients reported how they actually felt. From giving away a cup of hot chocolate in a park to giving away a gift in the lab, those performing a random act of kindness consistently underestimated how positive their recipients would feel, thinking their act was of less value than recipients perceived it to be.

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A prosociality paradox: How miscalibrated social cognition creates a misplaced barrier to prosocial action

Current Directions in Psychological Science

2023-02-02

Behaving prosocially can increase wellbeing among both those performing a prosocial act as well as those receiving it, and yet people may experience some reluctance to engage in direct prosocial actions. We review emerging evidence suggesting that miscalibrated social cognition may create a psychological barrier that keeps people from behaving as prosocially as would be optimal for both their own and others’ wellbeing. Across a variety of interpersonal behaviors, those performing prosocial actions tend to underestimate how positively their recipients will respond.

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Research Grants

Research Excellence Grant

University of Texas at Austin McCombs

2019

Research Excellence Grant

University of Texas at Austin McCombs

2022

Accomplishments

Best Undergraduate Business Professor, Poets & Quants

2024

Research Reboot Award for Accelerating Research and Scholarship, UT Austin Provost’s Office

2023

American Marketing Association Sheth Faculty Fellow

2022

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Education

Harvard University

A.B.

Psychology and Economics

2008

Cornell University

Ph.D.

Social and Personality Psychology

2015

Affiliations

  • American Marketing Association (AMA)
  • American Psychological Association (APA)
  • Association for Consumer Research (ACR)
  • Association for Psychological Science (APS)
  • European Association of Social Psychology (EASP)
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Event Appearances

A Little Good Goes an Unexpectedly Long Way: Underestimating the Positive Impact of Kindness on Recipients

(2021) Association for Psychological Science Annual Convention  Virtual

A Venmo Effect on Relationships: Electronic Payment Makes Social Relations More Transactional and Experiences Less Enjoyable

(2022) Society for Consumer Psychology Annual Meeting  Virtual

A Little Good Goes an Unexpectedly Long Way: Underestimating the Positive Impact of Kindness on Recipients

(2022) Society for Consumer Psychology Annual Meeting  Virtual

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