Feyzan Karabulut, PhD

Assistant Professor

Faculty

Management and Marketing

Feyzan Karabulut

Feyzan's research explores consumer behavior in digital spaces. She investigates consumers’ interactions with AI agents, businesses, and each other across platforms such as online chat, videoconferences and social media. She studies how, when, and why consumers interpret, are influenced by and respond to digital interactions.

Areas of Study & Research

Digital Communication, Verbal and Visual Cues in Communication, Word-of-Mouth, and Social Media Marketing

Courses Taught

  • MRKT 410/610 Consumer Behavior

Education

  • University of Alberta, Alberta School of Business, Edmonton, AB, Canada Ph.D. in Marketing, 2025
  • University of Rochester, Simon Business School, Rochester, NY, USA M.S. in Marketing, 2013

Publications

  • Karabulut Feyzan, Ozan Ozdemir, and Paul R. Messinger (2025). Can(’t) Touch This: The Effect of Form Realism and Product Domain in Virtual Influencer Endorsements. Journal of Retailing, 101(2), 298-310.
  • Karabulut, Feyzan, Sarah G. Moore, and Paul R. Messinger (2023). Choosing Backgrounds for Success: The Role of Videoconference Backgrounds in Self-Presentation. Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, 8(2), 153-164.
  • Messinger, Paul R., Xin Ge, Kristen Smirnov, Ozan Ozdemir, and Feyzan Karabulut (2025). A Framework of the Extended Self in the Metaverse: Visual Self-representation in Avatar-mediated Environments. In Russell Belk and Ayalla Ruvio (Eds.), Handbook of Consumption and Identity. Routledge.

Presentations

  • Karabulut, Feyzan, Sarah G. Moore, and Paul R. Messinger, “Consumer Responses to AI Agents’ Phatic Cues Use”
    Association for Consumer Research; September 2024; Paris, France
    Biz AI Conference: AI Applications in Business Research; March 2024; Dallas, Texas
  • Karabulut, Feyzan, Sarah G. Moore, and Paul R. Messinger, “How Platform Type Influences Word-of-Mouth”
    Association for Consumer Research; September 2024; Paris, France
    Society for Consumer Psychology; March 2024; Nashville, Tennessee
  • Ozdemir, Ozan, Paul R. Messinger, and Feyzan Karabulut, “The Role of Realism in Virtual Influencer Endorsements”
    Association for Consumer Research; September 2024; Paris, France
  • Karabulut, Feyzan, Sarah G. Moore, and Paul R. Messinger, “Background for Success: The Role of Videoconference Backgrounds in Self-Presentation”
    Society for Consumer Psychology; March 2023; San Juan, Puerto Rico
    Association for Consumer Research; October 2021; virtual conference