Irene Lu

Associate Professor, Marketing

• BA in Economics (Soochow University), MA in Economics (Soochow University), PhD in Management (Carleton University)
• 6029 Nicol, Carleton University
• 1125 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, ON, K1S 5B6
• Email Irene Lu
• 613-520-2600 ext 2970

• Connect on LinkedIn
• View on ORCID

on sabbatical

Dr. Lu’s research spans consumer behaviour, marketing communication, and psychometric measurement, with her recent work focusing on sustainable and ethical consumption, emotional communication, crowdfunding, and influencer marketing. In particular, she examines how emotional and sustainability-related messages shape consumer perceptions, judgments, and behaviours.

Her research has been published in leading academic journals, including the International Journal of Research in Marketing, International Marketing Review, Journal of Consumer Behaviour, Journal of Psychology, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Entrepreneurship Research Journal, Canadian Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Sport Management, International Journal of Sport Management and Marketing, and Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal.

Her research has been funded by multiple grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), including a 2026–2028 Insight Development Grant examining the role of emotional communication in crowdfunding. She has also recently received a Sprott Research Initiation Grant to investigate the role of empathetic AI in service recovery.

Dr. Lu teaches across undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral programs. She has led PhD and MSc seminars in Consumer Behaviour, Marketing Strategy, and Sustainability Marketing; taught Statistics for Managers in the MBA program; and delivered undergraduate courses in Sustainability Marketing, Marketing Metrics, Marketing Research, Consumer Behaviour, and Marketing in Not-for-Profit Organizations. She is also the recipient of the 2025–2026 Sprott Faculty Teaching Award.

Dr. Lu has held leadership roles with the Administrative Sciences Association of Canada (ASAC), serving as Vice President of Membership and Divisional Chair of Marketing. Before entering academia, she worked as a market researcher at one of Taiwan’s largest media conglomerates and at the Methodology Branch of Statistics Canada. Prior to joining Sprott, she was a faculty member at York University.

Research Interests:

• Sustainable and ethical consumption
• Emotional communication and consumer behaviour
• Crowdfunding and prosocial decision-making
• Influencer marketing and sustainability communication
• Empathetic AI in marketing communication