Xun (Irene) Huang is an Associate Professor of Marketing and Department Head in the Department of Global Business and Marketing at the Lee Shau Kee School of Business and Administration, Hong Kong Metropolitan University. She earned her Ph.D. in Marketing from The Chinese University of Hong Kong. As a consumer psychologist, her research investigates how brand communications, digital environments, and emotional and sensory experiences shape consumer behavior. Her recent work explores digital marketing in emerging contexts, and examines how brand communication strategies, sensory inputs, and emotional cues shape consumer decision-making and preferences.

Her research has been published in top-tier academic journals, including UTD24 and FT50 outlets such as the Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Marketing, Journal of Consumer Psychology, and MIS Quarterly. She has received numerous research awards, including the Purpose Paper Award at the 2025 American Academy of Advertising Conference, the Outstanding Paper Award at the 2024 Asia-Pacific Marketing Academy Conference, two Top Paper Awards at the AEJMC Annual Conference (2022 and 2023), the SCP Park Young Contributor Award in 2015, and was named an MSI Young Scholar in 2019.

She is actively engaged in the academic community, serving on the editorial boards of the Journal of Consumer Psychology and the Journal of Business Research, and regularly reviewing for leading academic journals and research funding bodies. Prior to joining Hong Kong Metropolitan University, Dr. Huang held faculty appointments at Nanyang Technological University and Sun Yat-sen University. At NTU, she was recognized with both the NBS Research Excellence Award (2017) and the NBS Teaching Excellence Award (2021). Dr. Huang has also supervised PhD students, collaborating with them on impactful research projects that have led to co-authored publications and recognition through prestigious research awards. 

Dr. Huang is currently recruiting Ph.D. and MPhil students with a strong interest in consumer behavior research for the Fall 2026 intake. Applicants should have (or be close to completing) a degree in marketing, psychology, or a related behavioral field. Candidates should be self-motivated, independent, and interested in an academic career. Preference will be given to those with experience in experimental methods, statistical or web programming (e.g., SPSS, Qualtrics), and relevant research experience (e.g., RA work, projects, or a thesis). Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. Interested applicants, please email Dr. Huang your CV and a research proposal using behavioral experiments, preferably before Feb 28, 2026.