Jonah Berger

Why do some things catch on while others fail? What makes online content viral? And why do some products, ideas, and behaviors get more word of mouth than others? Professor Jonah Berger examines the behavioral science that underlies these questions. He examines how people make decisions, how ideas diffuse, and how social influence shapes behavior.

Berger is a Marketing professor at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He has published dozens of articles in top-tier academic journals, and popular accounts of his work frequently appear in popular outlets like the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, NPR, Science, Harvard Business Review, Sloan Management Review, Wired, Business Week, The Atlantic, and The Economist. His research has also been featured in the New York Times Magazine’s “Year in Ideas.” Berger has been recognized with a number of awards for both scholarship and teaching, including various early career awards and being named Wharton’s Iron Prof (an award for awesome faculty research).

Dr. Berger has helped all sorts of companies and organizations get their stuff to catch on. From Fortune 500 companies to small start-ups, and multinationals to non-profits, Berger has helped drive new product adoption, sharpen effective messaging, and develop marketing strategy.