Marketing

Nathalie Dens

Full Professor & Vice Rector Maatschappelijk engagement & Internationaal beleid

About

Nathalie Dens (Ph.D., University of Antwerp, 2009) is full professor of Marketing at University of Antwerp, Faculty of Business and Economics. Her research focuses on the influence of persuasive communications on consumer behavior. Her research interests include effects of nutritional labeling (applying behavioral insights) on consumer food choice, health and social profit marketing, personalized advertising, online reviews, cross-cultural advertising, and stakeholder engagement for sustainable innovation. She has a vast experience with survey research, quantitative analyses and (field) experiments. She is also member of Antwerp Tax Academy and the Antwerp Center for Responsible AI. She is guest editor for the International Journal of Advertising.

​Go to the personal page of Prof. Nathalie Dens​

Research Interests / Expertise

Marketing communications
Branding
Consumer behavior
Experimental research.

Societal engagement / Impact

Prof. Dens has collaborated with several companies (e.g., Sanoma Publishers, DPG Media) and has worked on research projects for among others the province of Antwerp. She also chairs the professional jury for the best leaflet, an initiative of BD Media.

Selected publications

  • Franken, Charlotte, Dens, Nathalie & Briers, Barbara (2026). Default nudges in snacking: The role of effort reduction and cognitive capacity. International Journal of Advertising, online first, pp. 1-23. DOI: 10.1080/02650487.2025.2550824 (SSCI Impact factor 2024: 5.9) (Q1).

  • Godden, Elke, Dens, Nathalie, Coppens, Bart & Thornton, Lukar (2025). Can we improve the healthiness of online food purchases through the Nutri-Score and site design? Food Policy: Vol. 134, 102899. DOI: 10.1016/j.foodpol.2025.102899 (SSCI Impact factor 2024: 6.0) (Q1).

  • Lopes, Ana I., Malthouse, Edward C., Dens, Nathalie & De Pelsmacker, Patrick (2024). Is webcare good for business? A study of the effect of managerial response strategies to online reviews on hotel bookings. Journal of Service Management, Vol. 35 (6), pp. 22-41. DOI: 10.1108/JOSM-05-2023-0219 (SSCI Impact factor 2024: 7.9) (Q1).