Christophe Van den Bulte

Christophe Van den Bulte is the Gayfryd Steinberg Professor of Marketing at The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. He teaches Models for Marketing Strategy in the Undergraduate and MBA programs, and Data Analysis in the PhD program. His extensive teaching portfolio also includes MBA and Executive MBA core courses in Marketing Management, MBA and undergraduate courses in Channel Management, and PhD courses in Marketing Strategy, Mathematical Models in Marketing, and Social Network Analysis.

Professor Van den Bulte received his PhD in business administration from the Pennsylvania State University and his MA and BA degrees in applied economics from the University of Antwerp, Belgium. This international academic background has informed his research approach across multiple domains.

His research focuses on customer referral programs, new product diffusion, and intervention tournaments (mega-studies). He has made significant contributions to understanding how social networks influence consumer behavior and how companies can leverage these insights for marketing strategy. His work explores the dynamics of word-of-mouth marketing, status concerns in new product adoption, and the effectiveness of behavioral interventions. He has published extensively in top-tier journals including Management Science, Journal of Marketing Research, and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

His recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on large-scale behavioral experiments, particularly "mega-studies" that test multiple interventions simultaneously across diverse contexts. His research spans quantitative marketing models, social network analysis, and field experiments in healthcare (vaccination behavior), education (student math achievement), and digital marketing (social media endorsements). A consistent theme in his work is applying rigorous experimental methods to identify effective marketing interventions with practical significance.

Professor Van den Bulte has received numerous prestigious awards recognizing his contributions to marketing science:

• Management Science Distinguished Service Award (INFORMS), 2024
• Frank M. Bass Award (INFORMS), 2023
• Finalist, John D.C. Little Award (INFORMS), 2023
• Excellence in Teaching Award, The Wharton School, 2022-2023
• 2019 Top Download Award (MSI), 2021

As an active researcher and educator, Professor Van den Bulte serves as Associate Editor at Management Science and the Journal of Marketing Research, and is on the Editorial Boards of the Journal of Marketing, the International Journal of Research in Marketing, and the Journal of Business-to-Business Marketing. His editorial leadership has shaped research directions in marketing science. His teaching excellence has been recognized with multiple awards at The Wharton School, reflecting his commitment to developing the next generation of marketing professionals.

Professor Van den Bulte is a leading figure in quantitative marketing research, particularly known for his innovative work on social networks and mega-studies. His research bridges academic rigor with practical applications, influencing both scholarly understanding and real-world marketing practices across multiple industries.