Rae Yule Kim

Biography

Dr. Rae Yule Kim is a leading social scientist in the field of technology management and an author. He holds a Ph.D. in Management from Rutgers Business School at Rutgers University, an M.S. in Information Systems from Carey Business School at Johns Hopkins University, and a B.S. in Politics from the University of Bristol. He is an editor for the social psychology and management science sections of PLOS ONE (Public Library of Science).

His research has been read more than 100,000 times across academic platforms and has been featured among the most-read research in IEEE publications. He is the author of the forthcoming book AI Hype, to be published by Cambridge University Press.

Dr. Kim leverages large-scale data from more than ten million real-world transactions to study social influence in decision-making. His research identifies systematic patterns of social influence in technology adoption, with applications ranging from online shopping behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic to public acceptance of humanoid robots.

His research has supported international organizations, including the World Bank and the European Union, in developing a deeper understanding of consumer behavior. His research has been published in IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, Communications of the ACM, IEEE Engineering Management Review, and The Cambridge Handbook of Cyber Behavior. Dr. Kim also contributes to leading industry publications such as California Management Review, ACM Interactions, and IEEE Technology and Engineering Management Society Leadership Briefs.

In addition, Dr. Kim has led collaborations with Lean In Networks and the Association of National Advertisers to advance STEM education initiatives and has partnered with leading international technology firms, including Siemens, across China and Europe.

Education

• BS, University of Bristol
• MS, Johns Hopkins University
• PhD, Rutgers University

Resume/CV

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Research

Social influence in technology adoption

My research investigates how social influence affects technology adoption decisions under uncertainty, with applications including online shopping behavior during the pandemic and public acceptance of humanoid robots. My research adds insight into how social influence can help people feel comfortable about taking risks and trying new technologies.  In addition to publishing with renowned organizations such as IEEE and ACM, my research has been indexed with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, World Health Organization, Smithsonian Institution, and American Psychological Association. I have expertise in social influence, social norms, and social planning.

Publications

Journal articles

Kim, Rae Yule (2026). Social Influence in AI Adoption. IEEE Engineering Management Review

Kim, Rae Yule (2026). Envisioning the Future of Business Schools. California Management Review

Kim, Rae Yule (2026). Investigating Techonomy: The Multilevel Effect of R&D Investment on Economic Performance. The Journal of Technology Transfer

Kim, Rae Yule (2026). What Makes Things Catch On? Understanding Consumer Engagement with Video Content on Social Media. Electronic Commerce Research

Kim, Rae Yule (2025). The Prompt Imperative: How Generative AI is Rewriting the Rules of Advertising. California Management Review

Kim, Rae Yule (2025). Redefining Marketing in the Era of Data. California Management Review.

Kim, Rae Yule (2025). Price Promotion Does Not Always Work: Online Reviews. Price-Quality Heuristics, and Risk Aversion, Electronic Commerce Research

Kim, Rae Yule (2024). Anthropomorphism and Human-Robot Interaction. Communications of the ACM

Kim, Rae Yule (2024). Being in a Crowd Shifts People’s Attitudes Toward Humanoids. International Journal of Social Robotics

Kim, Rae Yule (2024). The Fifth Wave: The Sustainability Age and New Industrial Revolution. IEEE Engineering Management Review

Kim, Rae Yule (2023). Gender and Workplace Promotion: A Case Study of a Multinational IT Corporation. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management

Kim, Rae Yule (2023). Text Mining Online Reviews: What Makes a Helpful Online Review? IEEE Engineering Management Review

Kim, Rae Yule (2023). Bounded Rationality: Are Higher Online Review Ratings Always Better for Sales? Behaviour & Information Technology

Kim, Rae Yule (2022). Using Online Reviews for Customer Sentiment Analysis. IEEE Engineering Management Review

Kim, Rae Yule (2021). When Does Online Review Matter to Consumers? The Effect of Product Quality Information Cues. Electronic Commerce Research

Kim, Rae Yule (2021). What Makes People Happy? An Empirical Investigation of Panel Data. Applied Economics Letters

Kim, Rae Yule (2021). Shopping with Robots. Journal of Futures Studies

Kim, Rae Yule (2020). The Impact of COVID-19 on Consumers: Preparing for Digital Sales. IEEE Engineering Management Review

Kim, Rae Yule (2020). The Influx of Skeptics: An Investigation of the Diffusion Cycle Effect on Online Review. Electronic Markets

Kim, Rae Yule (2020). An Unforeseen Story of Alpha Woman. Applied Economics

Kim, Rae Yule (2020). The Value of Followers on Social Media. IEEE Engineering Management Review

Kim, Rae Yule (2020). Share of Voice: Findings from the U.S. Automotive Industry. Economics Bulletin

Kim, Rae Yule (2019). Does National Culture Explain Consumers’ Reliance on Online Reviews? Electronic Commerce Research and Applications

 

Books and chapters

Kim, Rae Yule (2027). AI Hype: A Psychological, Economic, and Technological Analysis. Cambridge University Press, forthcoming.

Kim, Rae Yule (2024). Online Reviews and Consumer Decisions, The Cambridge Handbook of Cyber Behavior. Cambridge University Press.

 

Magazine articles

Kim, Rae Yule (2025). Navigating Consumer Preferences: The Role of Social Signals in Overcoming Uncertainty. IEEE TEMS Leadership Briefs

Kim, Rae Yule (2023). How to Market to Gen Z on Social Media. IEEE Potentials

Kim, Rae Yule (2023). Data-Driven User Experience Design. ACM Interactions

Kim, Rae Yule (2023). Robots in Healthcare. ACM Interactions

Kim, Rae Yule (2023). How to Use Social Media (Properly) for Business? ACM Interactions

 

Conference proceedings

Kim, Rae Yule (2025). Understanding the Role of Media in AI Acceptance. American Marketing Association

Kim, Rae Yule (2025). The Loss-Construal Rule and Construal Aversion: Why Do People Try New Things? INFORMS Society for Marketing Science 

Kim, Rae Yule (2025). Positivity Bias in Processing Health Information. American Marketing Association

Kim, Rae Yule (2024). When Do Price Promotions Fail? Price-Quality Heuristics, Risk Aversion, and Word of Mouth. American Marketing Association

Kim, Rae Yule (2023). Unexpected Price Promotions Can Hurt Sales. INFORMS Society for Marketing Science 

Kim, Rae Yule (2022). Retail After COVID-19: Use Virtual Reality to Enhance E-commerce. IEEE Technology and Engineering Management Conference (IEEE TEMSCON)

Kim, Rae Yule (2022). Online Review Helpfulness: Findings from Sentiment Analysis. INFORMS Society for Marketing Science

Kim, Rae Yule (2022). Text Mining Customer Reviews: What Makes an Impactful Review? American Marketing Association

Kim, Rae Yule, Nina Belei, Rajiv Vaidyanathan, and Sandrine Heitz-Spahn (2022). From Eerie to Aww - Embracing the Imperfect Side of Humans Can Improve the Consumer-Robot Interaction. Academy of Marketing Science

Kim, Rae Yule (2021). Do Social Media Followers Impact Sales? INFORMS Society for Marketing Science 

Kim, Rae Yule (2021). The Role of Anthropomorphism in Customer-Robot Interaction. American Marketing Association

Kim, Rae Yule (2020). Predicting NFL Ticket Sales with Social Media Data. Academy of Marketing Science

Kim, Rae Yule (2020). The Niche Effect: Are Social Media Followers for Niche Brands More Loyal? American Marketing Association

Kim, Rae Yule (2020). How Can Ad Spending Improve Market Dominance? American Academy of Advertising

Kim, Rae Yule (2020). Selling After COVID-19. Atlantic Marketing Association

Kim, Rae Yule (2020). Do Social Media Followers Impact Sales? Society for Marketing Advances

Kim, Rae Yule (2019). Can Advertising Spending Increase Market Share? Atlantic Marketing Association

Kim, Rae Yule (2019). When Does Online Review Matter? Society for Marketing Advances

Honors & Awards

• Contributor, Clarivate Academic Reputation Survey Panel for U.S. News Universities Rankings
• Dean's Grant Finalist, Rutgers Business School, Rutgers University - New Brunswick
• Editorship, PLOS ONE
• Fellow, Academy of Marketing Science Doctoral Consortium
• Program Committee,  2024 IEEE International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management (IEEM)
• Program Committee, 2025 IEEE International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management (IEEM)
• Research Grant Finalist, Academy of Marketing Science and Association Française du Marketing (French Marketing Association)
• Top Scholars in Engineering Management (5-Year Impact: 3/36,794; Lifetime Impact: 27/36,794), ScholarGPS  
• Visiting Professor, Association of National Advertisers