Behavioral Science PhD Student Graelin Mandel
Education
BS, Economics (Summa Cum Laude), The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania
Background
Graelin graduated summa cum laude from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania as a Joseph Wharton Scholar. At Wharton, Graelin conducted research at Dr. Katy Milkman and Dr. Angela Duckworth’s Behavior Change for Good Initiative (BCFG), Dr. Adam Grant’s Impact Lab, and Dr. Michael Platt’s Platt Labs, studying behavior change strategies and group decision-making.
Before joining Booth, Graelin spent several years as a digital product manager. She worked most recently at The Farmer’s Dog as a Retention Product Manager, where she led the pipeline of experiments applying behavioral science to improve customer retention. Prior to that, Graelin was a Growth Product Manager at Marcus Invest by Goldman Sachs, where she helped launch a digital investing app for mass market consumers.
Research Interests
Graelin studies positive behavior change strategies, and people's interactions with and perceptions of emerging technologies. A key focus is how environments – digital, social, and physical – can help people build and sustain motivation and effort over time.
Selected Publications & Presentations
Kirgios, E.L., Mandel, G., Park, Y., Milkman, K.L., Gromet, D., Kay, J., Duckworth, A. (2020). “Teaching Temptation Bundling to Boost Exercise: A Field Experiment.” Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 161, 20-35.
Mandel, G. (2020). “What Happens When You Let the Hunger Games Loose? An Evaluation of Temptation Bundling as a Behavior Change for Good Strategy in the StepUp Program.” Joseph Wharton Scholars. Available at