Stefan Hoffmann

Prof. Dr. Stefan Hoffmann serves as a Professor and Chair of Marketing at the Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel, where he also acts as a Principal Investigator at the Kiel Centre for Globalization (KCG). His research focuses on consumer behavior with particular emphasis on ethical consumption, cross-cultural differences, and sustainability issues. He leads several major research projects examining consumer responses to corporate social responsibility and ethical dilemmas in global supply chains.

Prof. Hoffmann's research interests span Consumer Behaviour, Health Marketing Communication, and Intercultural Marketing, with a strong focus on ethical consumption patterns. His work explores how cultural contexts shape consumer responses to sustainability initiatives, corporate social responsibility, and ethical dilemmas. He investigates phenomena such as consumer animosity, boycott behavior, moral licensing, and the psychological barriers to sustainable consumption, with particular attention to cross-cultural differences between Eastern and Western consumer markets.

His extensive publication record reveals a consistent focus on understanding the psychological and social mechanisms behind consumer ethical decision-making. Recent work examines how basic human needs like hunger affect sustainable consumption choices, how ambient temperature influences CSR skepticism, and why consumer participation in boycotts diminishes over time. His research employs diverse methodologies including laboratory experiments, field studies, and large-scale cross-cultural surveys across multiple countries.

Prof. Hoffmann actively supervises PhD researchers and collaborates with international scholars through the Kiel Centre for Globalization. He has secured funding from the German Research Foundation (DFG) for projects examining social and vicarious consumer animosity. His research has practical implications for businesses developing global marketing strategies and for policymakers addressing sustainability challenges through consumer behavior interventions.