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DESCRIPTION:Shaping Market-Health Convergence: Role of Narratives on Diet M
 ovements\n\nTirtha Dhar\n\nRegister & watch webinar\n\nView poster\n\nTirt
 ha Dhar is associate Professor at the Department of Marketing and Consumer
  Studies\, College of Business and Economics at the University of Guelph. 
 Prior to joining UOIT in 2013 I worked as an Assistant Professor (Marketin
 g) at the Faculty of Business and Information Technology\, University of O
 ntario Institute of Technology and at Sauder School of Business\, Universi
 ty of British Columbia. I am a marketing modeler with interest in both emp
 irical and theoretical modelling with big data. I use tools from economics
  of industrial organization\, econometrics and statistics in my research t
 o address marketing strategies (such as: pricing and advertising decisions
  to maximize long term profits) and public policy related questions. My re
 search has been published in leading marketing and economics journals and 
 cited in major newspapers in Canada and in the US. In terms of industry ex
 pertise I have worked extensively in food\, movie\, and internet marketing
 . My PhD is in Agricultural and Resource Economicsfrom the University of C
 onnecticut. After completing PhD I worked as a Post Doctoral Researcher at
  the Food System Research Group\, University of Wisconsin-Madison in Agric
 ultural and Applied Economics.\n\nAbstract\n\nThis presentation explores t
 he influential role of public narratives surrounding diet movements in sha
 ping market trends\, with a focused examination of the gluten-free movemen
 t. As societal conversations around nutrition and health evolve—encompassi
 ng diets like veganism\, keto\, and gluten-free lifestyles—the market resp
 onds with a proliferation of tailored products and services. We investigat
 e how these diet narratives originate and spread through media\, social pl
 atforms\, and influencers\, transforming consumer preferences and expectat
 ions. Using data on the gluten-free movement\, we highlight the mechanisms
  by which narratives influence consumer behavior\, drive innovation\, and 
 alter competitive landscapes within the food and wellness industries. To a
 nalyze these complex nonlinear dynamics\, we use structured (new product s
 ales and introductions) and unstructured data (news and views in the media
 ) and utilize unsupervised learning and Empirical Dynamic Modeling (EDM) t
 o\n	uncover the interrelatedness of market and discourse. EDM overcomes the
  limitations of traditional parametric models\, offering a powerful tool f
 or identifying causal relationships without relying on predefined paramete
 rs. By examining the influence of media narrative themes on gluten-free ne
 w product sales and introductions\, our study demonstrates EDM's superior 
 predictive capabilities and interpretability. Our findings reveal both uni
 directional and bi-directional dynamic relationships between media narrati
 ves and new product sales\, indicating that media narratives significantly
  influence—and are influenced by—sales. However\, we do not observe the sa
 me dynamics with new product introductions\, suggesting that media\n	narrat
 ives have limited impact on new product introduction decisions. This study
  contributes to the literature on dieting movements by introducing EDM as 
 a valuable analytical method and offering novel insights into the intricat
 e dynamics between public discourse and diet related product performance.
 \n\n\nABOUT THE SERIES\n\nThe Convergent Innovation Webinar Series feature
 s cutting edge science\, technology and innovation in agriculture\, food\,
  environment\, education\, medicine and other domains of everyday life whe
 re grand challenges lie at the convergence of health and economics. Powere
 d by data science\, artificial intelligence\, and other digital technologi
 es\, this disciplinary knowledge bridges with behavioural\, social\, human
 ities\, business\, economics\, social\, engineering\, and complexity scien
 ces to accelerate real-world solution at scale\, be it in digital or physi
 cal contexts. Initiated in the agri-food domain\, the series is now encomp
 assing other grand challenges facing modern and traditional economies and 
 societies\, such as ensuring lifelong wellness and resilience at both the 
 individual and population levels.\n
DTSTART:20241017T150000Z
DTEND:20241017T170000Z
SUMMARY:MCCHE Convergent Innovation Webinar Series with Tirtha Dhar
URL:/desautels/channels/event/mcche-convergent-innovat
 ion-webinar-series-tirtha-dhar-360440
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