Marília Prada

Marília Prada is an Assistant Professor and Director of the Department of Social and Organizational Psychology at ISCTE-IUL. She holds an aggregation (a higher academic qualification) and is affiliated with the CIS-Iscte research center under the 'Behavior Emotion and Cognition' group. Her academic career began after completing her PhD in Social Psychology at ISCTE-IUL in 2010, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship (2015–2018) examining embodiment theories. She currently coordinates an FCT-funded project exploring sugar consumption determinants and leads the MedDietMenus4Campus initiative promoting Mediterranean diet adherence in campuses.

Research Interests: Her work focuses on (1) food perception and eating behavior, (2) instrument development and validation, (3) affective information processing, and (4) crossmodal interactions between music and taste. Recent projects include studying how music influences taste perception and investigating the role of regulatory focus in sexual health behaviors.

Teaching: She teaches courses such as 'Social Psychology of Consumption and Communication,' 'Health Attitudes and Behaviors,' and 'Emotions in Marketing and Decision-Making.' Her pedagogical contributions include co-editing an academic skills handbook.

Grants and Projects: Coordinates FCT projects like LessSugar4Kids (2023–2025) and MedDietMenus4Campus (2023–2026), which involve interdisciplinary teams addressing dietary habits and food environments. She also participates in the Prevent2Protect project on condom use motivations.

Labs/Teams: Active in CIS-Iscte's multidisciplinary teams, her work integrates psychology with nutrition science and consumer behavior studies. Recent collaborations include studies on emoji use in communication and the impact of food labeling on health perceptions.