Ipsos-CARD Dissertation Proposal Award 2026

Last fall, PhD students worldwide submitted interdisciplinary dissertation proposals to the third annual competition co-sponsored by the Fox School’s Department of Marketing Center for Applied Research in Decision Making (CARD) and Ipsos. After a rigorous blinded committee review, two standout winners were selected.

Please join us on March 10 [12pmET/9amPT] to hear about the winning proposals from:

• Winner: Yunhyoung Kim, Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota. "Curated for Infinite Scrolling: A Dopamine-Informed Framework for Short-Form Video Retention”.
• Runner up: Eoin Cremen, University of Bath, UK. Title "AI as a Moderator of Decision-Makers’ Information Search and Hypothesis Testing"

Ipsos proudly collaborates with Temple University’s Center for Applied Research in Decision Making (CARD Lab). CARD Lab’s mission—to advance applied, interdisciplinary, and multi-method research in decision-making and translate discoveries into actionable insights for business and society—aligns squarely with Ipsos’ commitment to leveraging academic rigor to deliver practical solutions for clients. Reflecting this shared dedication to good science, Associate Professor of Marketing and CARD Director Vinod Venkatraman launched the dissertation proposal competition to recognize PhD research that marries bold scientific discovery with real-world, translational impact for industry.

“We launched this dissertation proposal competition to champion interdisciplinary scholarship and spotlight the real value of students’ work,” says Vinod Venkatraman, Associate Professor of Marketing and Director of the CARD Lab at Temple University. “We also want students thinking early about translation—how rigorous research can move from theory to practice and inform real decisions for business and society.”

“Our goal is to champion rigorous science and spotlight the next generation of scholars whose work can immediately inform better decisions,” said Davide Baldo, Global lead for experimental research at Ipsos. “This year’s winners exemplify that standard. Yunhyoung Kim’s dopamine-informed framework for short-form video retention offers actionable levers for creative and media strategy—helping brands design content that earns attention responsibly and improves ROI. Runner-up Eoin Cremen’s research on how AI moderates information search and hypothesis testing provides clear guidance for when and how to deploy AI in the insights process—expanding exploration, reducing bias, and accelerating evidence-based decision-making. This is exactly the kind of translational research that advances Ipsos’ mission of turning academic rigor into practical value for our clients.”