2007
The Defensive Consumer: Advertising Deception, Defensive Processing, and Distrust
Darke, P. R., & Ritchie, R. J. B.
Journal of Marketing Research
Peter R.
Darke
Professor of Marketing
Schulich School of Business · York University
Director, PhD Program
Research on consumer judgment and decision making — consumer psychology, consumer ethics, advertising, pricing, sales promotion, trust, distrust, and word of mouth.
Currently
Toronto · Schulich, York University
Field
Marketing & Consumer Psychology
Focus
Judgment, Trust, Persuasion
Role
Professor · PhD Director
Based
Toronto, Canada
About
A program of research on consumer judgment.
Professor Darke's research examines the emotional, motivational, and cognitive aspects of consumer judgment — whether it is biased, why those biases occur, and whether they may have adaptive benefits.
His work has implications for advertising, sales, behavioural pricing, sales promotion, trust, distrust, consumer ethics, and word of mouth behaviour.
Appointment
Professor of Marketing
Role
Director, PhD Program
Institution
Schulich School of Business
University
York University
Research Areas
Where the work lives.
01
Consumer Psychology
Emotional, motivational, and cognitive drivers of consumer judgment.
02
Consumer Behaviour
How and why people make the choices they do in the marketplace.
03
Consumer Ethics
Moral reasoning, fairness, and ethical decision making.
04
Advertising & Persuasion
Deception, defensive processing, and message effects.
05
Behavioural Pricing
How framing, reference points, and context shape value.
06
Sales Promotion
Discounts, bargains, and perceived fairness of deals.
07
Trust & Distrust
How consumers form, lose, and recover trust online and offline.
08
Word of Mouth
Why consumers advocate — self-relevance, culture, and identity.
Recognition
Honours & Awards
Peter R. Darke's academic work has been recognized through research, publication, reviewing, and teaching related honours across marketing and consumer psychology.
- 2019Outstanding Reviewer AwardJournal of Retailing
- 2016Outstanding Reviewer AwardJournal of Consumer Research
- 2012Best Marketing Paper AwardAdministrative Sciences Association of Canada Conference
- 2010Park Prize for Outstanding ContributionJournal of Consumer Psychology
- 2007Best Paper AwardJournal of Consumer Psychology
- 2002Best Marketing Paper AwardAdministrative Sciences Association of Canada Conference
- 1999–2006Finning Ltd. Professorship in MarketingUniversity of British Columbia
- 1994Tanaka Best Dissertation AwardAssociation for Research in Personality
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In the Classroom
Teaching the next generation of marketers.
From undergraduate seminars to doctoral supervision, Professor Darke's teaching bridges rigorous consumer research and the everyday questions facing marketers, advertisers, and policy makers.
The Library
A curated research library.
Vol. IMost Cited
Read more
2005
Effects of Pricing and Promotion on Consumer Perceptions: It Depends on How You Frame It
Darke, P. R., & Chung, C. M. Y.
Journal of Retailing
2003
Fairness and Discounts: The Subjective Value of a Bargain
Darke, P. R., & Dahl, D. W.
Journal of Consumer Psychology
2006
The Consumer as Advocate: Self-Relevance, Culture, and Word of Mouth
Chung, C. M. Y., & Darke, P. R.
Marketing Letters
1997
The Belief in Good Luck Scale
Darke, P. R., & Freedman, J. L.
Journal of Research in Personality
2016
Feeling Close from Afar: The Role of Psychological Distance in Offsetting Distrust in Unfamiliar Online Retailers
Darke, P. R., Brady, M. K., Benedicktus, R. L., & Wilson, A. E.
Journal of Retailing
Vol. IIFive Most Recent
2025
Promoting Crowdsourced New Products: Competing Co-Contributor Attractiveness, Similarity, and Persuasion Knowledge Processes
Cambier, F., Darke, P. R., & Poncin, I.
Journal of Product Innovation Management
2024
Getting Political: The Value-Protective Effects of Expressed Outgroup Outrage on Self-Brand Connection
Kermani, M. S., Noseworthy, T. J., & Darke, P. R.
Journal of Consumer Psychology
2022
Truth, Lies and Advertising: Understanding Market and Individual Causes of False Advertising Claims
Darke, P., Dhar, T., Weinberg, C. B., & Zeng, X.
SSRN Working Paper
2022
Consumer Online (Dis)trust: A Decade Later
Kermani, M. S., Darke, P. R., & Brady, M. K.
The Routledge Handbook of Digital Consumption (2nd ed.)
2022
Winning the Battle but Losing the War: Ironic Effects of Training Consumers to Detect Deceptive Advertising Tactics
Wilson, A. E., Darke, P. R., & Sengupta, J.
Journal of Business Ethics
Affiliation
Schulich School of Business,
York University
Research, teaching, and doctoral supervision in marketing and consumer psychology.
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Teaching & Supervision
Working with students.
Areas of teaching
Peter Darke teaches and supervises in areas related to marketing, consumer behaviour, consumer psychology, behavioural decision making, and research methods.
Prospective PhD students
Prospective PhD students interested in consumer psychology, consumer ethics, advertising, trust, pricing, or persuasion may find his research especially relevant.
Contact
Get in touch.
For research enquiries, media requests, or prospective doctoral students.
Phone
416.736.2100, Ext. 44600
Office
N327
Schulich School of Business, York University