Robert Arias

Robert Arias is an Assistant Professor of Marketing at the Quinlan School of Business, Loyola University Chicago, where he teaches undergraduate courses in consumer behavior, marketing research, and multinational marketing. His research explores the intersection of consumer behavior with cultural dynamics, resilience, and social exclusion, often through interdisciplinary and international collaborations.

Research Interests: Dr. Arias specializes in transformative consumer research, focusing on subsistence consumers, consumer resilience, and the role of rituals and belonging in marginalized communities. His work integrates perspectives from organizational behavior, criminology, and Latinx studies, aiming to understand how consumers navigate adversity and construct identity through consumption.

The recent publications reflect a strong trend in studying cultural and psychological dimensions of consumption, particularly in low-resource and cross-cultural contexts. His scholarship emphasizes qualitative, field-based inquiry in regions such as East Africa and South/Southeast Asia, contributing to frameworks on marketplace inclusivity and symbolic behavior.

Professional Affiliations:

• American Marketing Association
• Association for Consumer Research
• Consumer Culture Theory Consortium
• Marketing Ethnic Faculty Association (Secretary)

Dr. Arias is actively engaged in research, teaching, and service, including consulting and volunteer work. He has previously served as an Assistant Professor at John Carroll University’s Boler College of Business before joining Loyola in 2021.

Labs and Research Centers: While not directly linked to a specific lab at Quinlan, his work aligns with transformative and behavioral research themes supported by centers such as the Lab for Applied Artificial Intelligence and QuinLab Behavioral Lab, though no formal membership is stated.