Healthier Consumption Research Unit

The Healthier Consumption Research Unit (HCRU) focuses on scholarly and applied research to support healthier consumption decisions. Aligned with the WHO’s definition of health, we define healthy consumption as choices that improve physical, mental and social well-being.

What we do

We advance healthier consumption habits among Canadian consumers providing insights and practical strategies to help individuals enhance their overall health through informed consumption. Our research explores how consumption choices affect physical and mental health, both short and long term. We use our findings to advocate responsible choice architecture, encouraging businesses and organizations to create environments that support healthy decision-making.

Research partners

Research Publications

• Belk, Russell, Mariam Humayun, and Myriam Brouard (2022). "Money, possessions, and ownership in the Metaverse: NFTs, cryptocurrencies, Web3 and Wild Markets." Journal of Business Research
• Brown, Terrence, Albert Caruana, Michael Mulvey, and Leyland Pitt (2021). "Understanding the emotions of those with a gambling disorder: Insights from automated text analysis." Journal of Gambling Issues
• Kelloway, E. Kevin, Jennifer K. Dimoff, and Stephanie Gilbert (2023). "Mental health in the workplace." Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior
• Kettle, Keri L., and Antonia Mantonakis (2024). "Look for the signature: Using personal signatures as extrinsic cues promotes identity-congruent behavior." Journal of Business Research
• Lavoie, Raymond, Markus Baer, and Elizabeth D. Rouse (2024). "Group flow: A theory of group member interactions in the moment and over time." Academy of Management Review
• O'Reilly, Jane, Silvia Bonaccio, Laurent Lapierre, and Yanhong Li (2023) "The ‘Room to Share’: A Systems Theory Framework for Understanding Mental Health Disclosure at Work." In Academy of Management Proceedings, no. 1.