Syllabus

Title
2494 Introduction to Consumer Neuroscience
Instructors
Gideon Nave, PhD
Contact details
Type
PI
Weekly hours
2
Language of instruction
Englisch
Registration
09/11/26 to 09/14/26
Registration via LPIS
Notes to the course
This class is only offered in winter semesters.
Dates
Day Date Time Room
Tuesday 01/12/27 09:00 AM - 12:45 PM D2.0.342 Teacher Training Raum
Thursday 01/14/27 03:30 PM - 07:15 PM D2.0.342 Teacher Training Raum
Tuesday 01/19/27 09:00 AM - 12:45 PM D2.0.392
Thursday 01/21/27 09:00 AM - 12:45 PM D2.0.392
Tuesday 01/26/27 09:00 AM - 12:45 PM D2.0.392
Thursday 01/28/27 09:00 AM - 12:45 PM D2.0.392
Contents

The course introduces students to the emerging field of Consumer Neuroscience, which combines insights from neuroscience, psychology, economics, and marketing to better understand consumer behavior. Students will learn how physiological and neural measures - including eye tracking, skin conductance, facial coding, EEG, and fMRI - can be used to study attention, emotion, memory, learning, valuation, and decision-making. The course examines both the opportunities and limitations of neuroscience methods in marketing research and business practice, with particular attention to methodological rigor, ethical considerations, and real-world applications in branding, advertising, product innovation, and customer experience.

Learning outcomes

After completing this course, students will be able to

  • explain how neural and physiological processes influence consumer behavior, and why this is important for marketers.
  • understand the strengths and limitations of major consumer neuroscience methods;
  • critically evaluate claims made in academic and industry applications of neuromarketing;
  • apply consumer neuroscience insights to marketing and business problems;
  • assess ethical issues related to the use of neural, physiological, and genetic data;
  • develop research questions that integrate neuroscience and consumer behavior.
Attendance requirements

Participation in all sessions is mandatory. You are allowed to miss 20% of all class hours, however, full attendance is highly recommended.

Teaching/learning method(s)

Interactive lectures, class discussions, online tutorials, quizzes, guest lectures, and group project work.

Assessment

Your grade will be the sum of the following components:

  • Discussion Participation (20%) 
  • Online Tutorials (20%)
  • Group Project (20%)
  • Final Exam (40%)

 

Grades are as follows:

0 - 59 points: failed (5), 60 - 69 points: sufficient (4), 70 - 79 points: satisfactory (3), 80 - 89 points: good (2), 90 - 100 points: excellent (1)

Readings

Please log in with your WU account to use all functionalities of read!t. For off-campus access to our licensed electronic resources, remember to activate your VPN connection connection. In case you encounter any technical problems or have questions regarding read!t, please feel free to contact the library at readinglists@wu.ac.at.

Other

Required Literature: Cerf, M. & Garcia-Garcia, M. (Eds.) (2017), Consumer Neuroscience, MIT Press.

Additional readings will be provided during the course.

Last edited: 2026-06-12



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