Before joining Seoul National University, Dr. Kyoungmi Lee served as an Assistant Professor of Marketing at Yonsei Business School and Kansas State University. She holds a Ph.D. in Business Administration from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and B.A. and M.A. degrees in Business from Seoul National University.

Dr. Lee’s research focuses on understanding how consumers perceive and construct meaning in the marketplace. Her work explores a wide range of topics, including brand perception, identity-relevant consumer behavior, symbolic and conspicuous consumption, consumer risk judgment, stereotyping, and the influence of social networks and digital platforms on consumer decision-making. Her research has been published in leading academic journals such as the Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Consumer Psychology, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, and Self & Identity.

In addition to her academic contributions, Dr. Lee actively collaborates with industry. Recognized as an expert in the K-Beauty and K-Food industries, she advises companies on how to build global brand equity and capture emerging consumer trends. She frequently consults on brand strategy, consumer insight, and innovation in these and other dynamic consumer markets. She has served as an outside board director for major corporations such as Pulmuone and Amorepacific Group, and has provided strategic advisory to companies. She regularly advises leading Korean corporations on branding, customer value innovation, and emerging consumer trends through executive education and consulting engagements. She also delivers executive lectures on luxury branding and high-end consumer behavior to business leaders across various industries.

Dr. Lee also contributes to the academic community as an editorial board member of Journal of Marketing Studies and Asia Marketing Journal, and as an executive member of the Korean Marketing Association and the Korean Consumer Studies Association.

In the classroom, Dr. Lee teaches courses on Marketing, Branding, and Consumer Behavior, inspiring the next generation of marketers and business leaders. She is also highly engaged in executive education, helping professionals enhance their strategic marketing and consumer insight capabilities.

Dr. Lee has received multiple honors for her contributions to research and teaching, including the Seoul National University Scholarly Research and Education Award, the SK Social Value Research Grand Prize, and several Best Paper Awards from major academic associations.

Selected Professional Activities

[Education]
• Ph.D. in Marketing (Social Psychology Minor), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• Master of Business Administration (Marketing Concentration), Seoul National University, Korea
• Bachelor of Business Administration, Seoul National University, Korea
• [Industry Engagement]
  • Outside Board Director, Pulmuone Co., Ltd.
  • Outside Board Director, AmorePacific Group
  [Academic Leadership & Professional Service]
  • Vice President, Korean Society of Consumer Studies (incoming)
  • Executive Board Member, Korean Marketing Association
  [University Service]
  • Associate Dean for Student Affairs, College of Business Administration, Seoul National University
  • Deputy Vice President for Planning and Coordination (기획부처장), Seoul National University

Social Relationships / Identity-relevant Consumer Behavior

• Kyoungmi Lee, Hyewon Park (2024), "How Relational Motivation Affects Behavioral Costs in Gift Purchases: The Mediating Role of Recipient Orientation," Journal of Consumer Studies (Korean).
• Kyoungmi Lee, Hyeju Han, Sujin Park (2021), "Does Political Orientation Affect the Evaluation of Artificial Intelligence?," Asia Marketing Journal.
• Kyoungmi Lee, Heeyoung Yoon, Hyeju Han (2020), "What Are Friends For: Shifting the Focus of Social Relationships," Journal of Marketing Studies (Korean).
• Kyoungmi Lee, Hyeju Han (2017), "The Effect of Consumer Perception of Social Class Mobility on Self-ex_x_pression Motivation and Preference for Symbolic Products," Journal of Consumer Studies (Korean).
• Kyoungmi Lee, Heeyoung Yoon, Dae Ryun Chang (2014), "It Has to Be ME (Not YOU): The Role of Competitive Message on the Self-Concept and Purchase Intention," Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science.
• Hakkyun Kim, Kyoungmi Lee, Ying-yi Hong (2012), "Claiming the Validity of Negative Ingroup Stereotypes When Foreseeing a Challenge: A Self-Handicapping Account," Self & Identity.
• Kyoungmi Lee, Hakkyun Kim, Kathleen D. Vohs (2011), "Stereotype Threat in the Marketplace: Consumer Anxiety and Purchase Intentions," Journal of Consumer Research, August, 343-357.
• Sun No, Ying-yi Hong, Hsin-Ya Liao, Kyoungmi Lee, Dustin Wood, and Melody Chao (2008), "Lay Theory of Race Affects and Moderates Asian Americans' Responses toward American Culture," Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

Brand Perception / Communication & Digital Influence

• Kyoungmi Lee, Hyeju Han, Sujin Park, Hyewon Park (2022), "The Effect of Corporate Innovation Openness Image and Ingroup Emphasis in CSR on Consumer Evaluation of Companies," Journal of Marketing Studies (Korean).
• Kyoungmi Lee, Seungeun Kim (2019), "The Effect of Information on Product Inspiration Source on Consumer Product Evaluation," Journal of Marketing Studies (Korean).
• Kyoungmi Lee, Hojun Chang (2018), "The Dark Side of Star Marketing: Celebrity Endorsement Contracts Can Lower Brand Equity," Asia Marketing Journal.
• Kyoungmi Lee, Wang Wei, Jinwoo Kim, Hankun Lee (2015), "A Study on Factors Affecting Preference for Shanzhai Brands in China: The Role of Consumer Social Class Perception," Journal of International Business Studies (Korean).
• Kyoungmi Lee, Hyeju Han (2014), "A Study on Consumer Information Sharing Activities via Social Media," Journal of Consumer Studies (Korean).
• Kyoungmi Lee, Hankun Lee, Hakkyun Kim, Junyoung Lee (2013), "The Impact of Consumer Loneliness on Preference for Social Commerce Channels," Journal of Marketing Studies (Korean).
• Kyoungmi Lee, Moonsup Kim (2013), "Enhancing Consumer Product Evaluation through CSR: Focus on Construal Level Theory," Journal of Marketing Studies (Korean).
• Kyoungmi Lee and Sharon Shavitt (2009), "Can McDonald's Food Ever Be Seen as Healthful? Metacognitive Experiences Affect the Perceived Understanding of a Brand," Journal of Marketing Research.
• Kyoungmi Lee and Sharon Shavitt (2006), "The Use of Cues Depends on Goals: Store Reputation Affects Product Judgments When Social Image Goals are Salient," Journal of Consumer Psychology, 16(3), 260-271.

Risk Judgment / Financial Behavior

• Kyoungmi Lee (2018), "Feeling Stereotyped and its Effects on Investment Decisions," Seoul Journal of Business.
• Kyoungmi Lee, Jinwoo Kim (2018), "The Effect of Pre-Investment Decision Making on Risky Asset Preference among Financial Product Consumers," Journal of Marketing Studies (Korean).
• Kyoungmi Lee, Jinmyung Kim, Jinwoo Kim (2017), "The Role of Private Pension System in Enhancing Perceived Control Over Life," Journal of Consumer Studies (Korean).
• Kyoungmi Lee, Hakkyun Kim, Kiwan Park (2015), "Balancing out feelings of risk by playing it safe: The effect of social networking on subsequent risk judgment," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes.