Using advanced tools to see the human brain at work, a new generation of marketing experts may be able to test a product’s appeal while it is still being designed, according to a new analysis by two researchers at Duke University and Emory University.

So-called “neuromarketing” takes the tools of modern brain science, like the functional MRI, and applies them to the somewhat abstract likes and dislikes of customer decision-making.

Though this raises the specter of marketers being able to read people’s minds (more than they already do), neuromarketing may prove to be an affordable way for marketers to gather information that was previously unobtainable, or that consumers themselves may not even be fully aware of, says Dan Ariely, the James B. Duke professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke.

In a perspective piece appearing online in the journal Nature Reviews Neuroscience , Ariely and Gregory S. Berns of Emory’s departments of psychiatry, economics and neuropolicy, offer tips on what to look for when hiring a neuromarketing firm, and what ethical considerations there might be for the new field. They also point to some words of caution in interpreting such data to form marketing decisions.

Neuromarketing may never be cheap enough to replace focus groups and other methods used to assess existing products and advertising, but it could have real promise in gauging the conscious and unconscious reactions of consumers in the design phase of such varied products as “food, entertainment, buildings and political candidates,” Ariely says.

“Neuromarketing: the hope and hype of neuroimaging in business,” Dan Ariely and Gregory S. Berns. Nature Reviews Neuroscience.

Is it easier to lie when you’re hiding behind knockoff sunglasses?  Dan Ariely explains how small acts of dishonesty can lead to more serious changes in behavior.

Duke behavioral economist Dan Ariely recently hosted virtual office hours, taking questions on topics including bonuses and motivation, health care, the psychology of gift giving, and more.  View the recorded office hours session here:

The revised and expanded edition of Dan Ariely’s Predictably Irrational is out now, featuring Dan’s thoughts of the current financial crisis from a behavioral economics perspective.  The new version also features correspondence between Dan and readers who wrote to him seeking advice on topics related to the book.

Dan also shared his views on the financial crisis, money, and morality on the PBS program NewsHour.  Watch the segment here.

Dan Ariely’s TED2009 presentation, “Why we think it’s OK to cheat and steal (sometimes),” is now available for viewing.  Watch it here:

Image courtesy of flikr/Bill HR

TED2009 bloggers provided live coverage, including a digest of Twitter dispatches, from Professor Dan Ariely’s February 7 talk at the TED2009 conference.

Ariely shared his research findings regarding cheating, demonstrating the dangers of many people cheating just a little bit, and explained why it can be easy for people to justify cheating to themselves.  Learn more about Ariely’s findings from this piece on Wired.com.

Dan Ariely’s research on “the IKEA effect” is featured in Harvard Business Review’s Breakthrough Business Ideas for 2009. Dan and his collaborators argue that customers tend to overvalue products like IKEA furniture because they have invested personal time and energy in their creation and assembly.  Managers are also not immune to the IKEA effect, Dan argues, because their judgment of projects’ value is likely to be clouded by previous investments of time and energy in those projects, making it more difficult for managers to pull the plug when things don’t work out.

The publication of Predictably Irrational, the best-selling book authored by our own Professor Dan Ariely, was certainly a highlight of 2008 for many of us at Fuqua. And we aren’t the only ones impressed with Dan’s work; Amazon customers chose Predictably Irrational as the best business and investing book of 2008, and the New York Times selected it as one of the 100 Notable Books of 2008.

If you haven’t had the opportunity to read the Predictably Irrational or hear Dan speak about his research, you may want to take a look at a chapter-by-chapter series of videos we’ve produced in which Dan explains the main concepts of the book (and stay tuned for more, there are a few chapters still in production).

Professor Dan Ariely was recently named to Fortune’s list of “Ten New Gurus You Should Know,” for his innovative work in behavioral economics.

In honor of the Thanksgiving holiday, we thought we’d share some of Dan’s thoughts on why we over-value things we own. (Duke basketball fans are sure to enjoy this one, too.)

Duke Professor Dan Ariely is the author of a nice op-ed in today’s New York Times. Ariely explains his research showing that large bonuses don’t always lead to the best performance.

Anyone want to share your thoughts and experiences related to bonuses and motivation?