Ayelet Gneezy

Ayelet Gneezy is a Professor of Behavioral Sciences and Marketing at the Rady School of Management, University of California, San Diego, holding the prestigious Carol Lazier and Family Endowed Chair in Social Innovation and Impact. She serves as Director of both the Center for Social Innovation & Impact (CSII) and the US-Israel Center on Innovation & Economic Sustainability (USIC), demonstrating her leadership in bridging academic research with practical applications in social innovation.

Dr. Gneezy's research focuses on prosocial behavior, charitable giving, environmental sustainability, end-of-life decisions, and health-related decision-making. Her work explores how behavioral economics principles can be applied to encourage positive social outcomes, with particular expertise in consumer behavior, pricing strategies (especially pay-what-you-want models), and the psychological factors influencing generosity and cooperation. She conducts extensive field experiments in collaboration with companies and nonprofits to test her theories in real-world settings.

Her publication record demonstrates remarkable breadth across disciplines, with articles spanning from cognitive psychology (smartphone effects on cognition) to public health (cancer screening interventions) to environmental conservation. Common threads across her work include the examination of behavioral nudges, incentive structures, and how context shapes decision-making. Her research has evolved from foundational work on prosocial behavior toward increasingly applied research addressing pressing societal challenges, particularly in health and environmental domains.

• The Carol Lazier and Family Endowed Chair in Social Innovation and Impact
• Research featured in Science, PNAS, Journal of Marketing Research, and other top journals
• Work cited by major media outlets including The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Scientific American

As co-founder and faculty director of two Centers of Excellence at Rady, Dr. Gneezy leads initiatives that connect academic research with practical applications in social innovation and US-Israel economic collaboration. Her work with nonprofits and companies demonstrates a commitment to translating behavioral science insights into real-world impact, particularly in the areas of charitable giving and sustainability initiatives.