Saar Bossuyt, PhD

Lecturer, Author and Researcher

Saar Bossuyt, PhD

Lecturer, Author and Researcher

Bio

Dr. Saar Bossuyt studied Applied Economics at KU Leuven and earned her PhD at UGent with a dissertation on (un)ethical consumer behaviour. Before returning to education, she spent several years as a researcher in the consulting industry, applying consumer behaviour insights to real-world business challenges.

Since 2018, she has been a lecturer-researcher at UCLL University of Applied Sciences in Leuven. Explaining complex material simply and inspiring students is what drives her. Becoming an author was one of her childhood dreams, realized with the help of her co-authors (and her loyal cat, Nelson).

Education

Master of Science – Applied Economics – KULeuven
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) – Applied Economics – Ghent University

WEB

Currently teaching

Current teaching responsibilities

Lecturer ‘Consumer Behaviour’ for Bachelors in Marketing and Creative Media Management at UCLL University College
Lecturer ‘Strategic Market Analysis’ for Bachelors in Marketing at UCLL University

Previous teaching experience

Former teaching responsibilities

Guest Professor ‘Introduction to Marketing and Market Research’ for Masters in Management at Vrije Universiteit Brussel

Past research focus

Doctoral dissertation focused on the impact of cleanliness in the retail environment, gender differences in assertiveness (speaking up), and impulse buying on unethical consumer behaviour.
Research at UCLL focused on eye-tracking and consumer behaviour. We investigated different topics:
- We explored consumers’ visual attention for the Nutri-Score label on packaging, both among adult consumers and children.
- We investigated if visual attention for advertisements on digital signage displays could be improved by tailoring these advertisements to demographic attributes of passers-by.
- We looked into visual attention for waste sorting posters on our own campus and how they could be optimized for better recycling.

Nelson, Saar Bossuyt's cat and companion during the writing of Consumer Behaviour: An Introduction

MOBILE

Currently teaching

Current teaching responsibilities

Lecturer ‘Consumer Behaviour’ for Bachelors in Marketing and Creative Media Management at UCLL University College
Lecturer ‘Strategic Market Analysis’ for Bachelors in Marketing at UCLL University

Previous teaching experience

Former teaching responsibilities

Guest Professor ‘Introduction to Marketing and Market Research’ for Masters in Management at Vrije Universiteit Brussel

Past research focus

Doctoral dissertation focused on the impact of cleanliness in the retail environment, gender differences in assertiveness (speaking up), and impulse buying on unethical consumer behaviour.

Research at UCLL focused on eye-tracking and consumer behaviour. We investigated different topics:

We explored consumers’ visual attention for the Nutri-Score label on packaging, both among adult consumers and children.
We investigated if visual attention for advertisements on digital signage displays could be improved by tailoring these advertisements to demographic attributes of passers-by.
We looked into visual attention for waste sorting posters on our own campus and how they could be optimized for better recycling.

Saar Bossuyt – Co-author of Consumer Behaviour: An Introduction

Publications

Bossuyt, S. (2016). Morality in the marketplace: Investigating the antecedents of unethical consumer behavior. Ghent University, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration.

Bossuyt, S., & Van Kenhove, P. (2016). A dirty store is a cost forever: The harmful influence of disorderly retail settings on unethical consumer behavior. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 33(1), 225–231.

Bossuyt, S., Vermeir, I., Slabbinck, H., De Bock, T., & Van Kenhove, P. (2017). The compelling urge to misbehave: Do impulse purchases instigate unethical consumer behavior? Journal of Economic Psychology, 58, 60–76.

Bossuyt, S., & Van Kenhove, P. (2018). Assertiveness bias in gender ethics research: Why women deserve the benefit of the doubt. Journal of Business Ethics, 150(3), 727–739.

Bossuyt, S., Voorend, R., & Geerts, D. (2019, June). Augmented fast-forwarding: Can we improve advertising impact by enriching fast-forwarded commercials? In Proceedings of the 2019 ACM International Conference on Interactive Experiences for TV and Online Video (pp. 205–215).

Bossuyt, S., Custers, K., Tummers, J., Verbeyst, L., & Oben, B. (2021). Nutri-Score and Nutrition Facts Panel through the eyes of the consumer: Correct healthfulness estimations depend on transparent labels, fixation duration, and product equivocality. Nutrients, 13(9), 2915.

Bossuyt Saar, De Feyter Floris, Custers Kathleen (2021), Can computer vision cure display blindness? An investigation into the impact of tailoring advertisements to demographic attributes of passers-by. Proceedings of the European Marketing Academy, 50th, (93471)

Bossuyt, S., Domen, J., & Vullers, S. (2025). Consumentengedrag, de essentie. Pearson Benelux.

Domen, J., Bossuyt, S., & Vullers, S. (2025). Consumer behaviour: An introduction. Pearson Benelux.

Services and speaking

Currently not available for any services or speaking

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