Lucas Franieck is a junior researcher in marketing and consumer behavior who examines how social and political forces shape consumer responses to brands. He recently completed his PhD in Management at Nova School of Business and Economics (Nova SBE), graduating with distinction on a full FCT scholarship, and he was a visiting researcher at Rotterdam School of Management.
His research investigates the intersections of consumer behavior, ideology, and social perception. A central focus of his work is how consumers respond to controversy: he demonstrates that when brands become embroiled in controversial debates, consumers often perceive those brands as both agentic and hostile, with complex consequences for brands. Importantly, his work also identifies the conditions under which consumers respond positively versus negatively to controversy, offering a nuanced perspective on its marketplace effects. While brand activism provides a useful context for this research, his broader interest is in the mechanisms by which controversy—across issues and contexts—shapes judgments and marketplace behavior. Another stream examines responses to inclusive advertising, identifying when and why conservative (vs. liberal) women react more negatively to brands that challenge slim beauty standards —highlighting political ideology as a critical segmenting variable for fashion brands seeking to engage with body inclusivity. In a further line of work, he explores consumer reactions to products manufactured by prisoners, probing how perceptions of morality, justice, and stigma affect marketplace responses.
Lucas has presented his research at conferences including the European Association for Consumer Research (EACR) and the European Marketing Academy (EMAC), and his work has been featured in media outlets such as Sapo’s Leader magazine.