Kara Bentley, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Marketing, College of Business Administration Loyola Marymount University
- Los Angeles CA
Biography
Bentley’s research examines consumer behavior, with a particular focus on social influence, digital and social media marketing, and consumer responses to emerging marketplace issues. Her work has explored topics including influencer marketing, social media engagement, sustainability and food waste, prosocial behavior, and the ways social context shapes consumer decision-making.
Her research has been published in leading marketing and consumer research journals, including the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, the Journal of Consumer Psychology, the Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, the Journal of Global Marketing, and the Journal of Services Marketing.
In the classroom, Bentley teaches the core marketing class at both the graduate and undergraduate levels. She enjoys helping students connect marketing theory with real-world consumer behavior and contemporary marketing practice.
Bentley earned her Ph.D. in business administration with a concentration in marketing from the University of South Carolina and her B.B.A. in marketing from Texas Christian University.
Originally from Fort Worth, Texas, Bentley now lives in Orange County with her husband, Tanner, their two daughters, and their golden retriever. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, and creative pursuits.
Education
University of South Carolina
Ph.D.
Marketing
2017
Texas Christian University
B.B.A.
Marketing
2009
Social
Areas of Expertise
Affiliations
- American Marketing Association (AMA)
- Association for Consumer Research (ACR)
- Society for Consumer Psychology (SCP)
Articles
Together We Stand: The Solidarity Effect of Personized Sellers on Essential Workers
Journal of the Association for Consumer Research2020-12-02
The current research examines how products from personized sellers operate as a source of social support and solidarity for essential workers who are experiencing elevated levels of occupational stress since the advent of COVID-19. A series of experiments show that consumers who view themselves as essential workers prefer products from personized sellers (e.g., Etsy) compared to nonpersonized sellers (e.g., Amazon). These effects are driven by higher feelings of solidarity made salient by the personized seller. Our findings document a novel way by which consumers who are experiencing significantly high levels of occupational stress during the COVID-19 pandemic may seek social support and solidarity to help cope with this elevated stress, that is, purchasing products from personized sellers. Our findings offer valuable avenues for future research and provide important implications for policy makers during the pandemic.
The food production – consumption chain: Fighting food insecurity, loss, and waste with technology
Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science2024-08-07
The UN’s Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 12 seeks to achieve sustainable food production and consumption, including reduced food loss and waste; SDG 2 proposes the goal of zero hunger. In pursuit of these goals, technology arguably has a central role, at every level of the food value chain. To establish this role, the authors identify and examine current technologies aimed at increasing food production and suitably redistributing unused food, as tactics to combat food loss and waste, with the shared end goal of reducing food insecurity. A proposed 2 × 2 typology illustrates how existing technologies can influence food production, distribution, and consumption, as well as influence the stakeholders in the food production–consumption chain. These insights also inform a research and development agenda pertaining to the need for technology applications that can increase food production and/or reduce food waste effectively enough to achieve the goal of zero hunger.
Unfaithful Brands: The Impact of Influencer Marketing Campaigns on Consumption Intentions
Journal of Consumer Psychology2024-07-17
The use of influencer marketing campaigns has increased exponentially in recent years as brands have embraced such campaigns in order to capitalize on the relationships that social media influencers (SMIs) have built with their followers as a means of increasing brand awareness and sales. Although influencer marketing is extensively utilized in practice, much is still unknown about the effects of these campaigns, including potential downsides and audience-level variables that could moderate their success. In the current research, we find that partnering with SMIs is perceived as a norm violation for consumers with a high brand attachment, negatively impacting consumption intentions. Across five studies, we show that social media posts originating from an SMI, as opposed to the brand, lead to lower purchase intentions and willingness to pay for consumers with a high brand attachment. Additionally, we consider several moderators to this effect, including the salience of the sponsorship and consumers' attachment to the SMI. We also provide process evidence by documenting that perceptions of a norm violation mediate these effects.
