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Jiancai (Johnson) Liao

Dr.

  • Assistant Professor in Marketing (Research and Education) , Marketing
 https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2949-4668

Accepting PhD Students

20232026

Research activity per year

Personal profile

Qualifications

  • PhD in Marketing, Aalto University School of Business, Finland, 2021-2025

  • MSc in Marketing, Sun Yat-sen University, China, 2017-2020

  • BSc in Marketing, Chongqing University, China, 2013-2017

Biography

Jiancai (Johnson) Liao joined Birmingham Business School as an Assistant Professor in Marketing in 2025. He received his PhD in Marketing from Aalto University School of Business (Finland), and holds an MSc in Marketing from Sun Yat-sen University and a BSc in Marketing from Chongqing University. He has also held visiting researcher positions at City University of Hong Kong and Virginia Tech, with an upcoming research visit to Stanford University.

Johnson’s research centres on healthcare services, artificial intelligence in services, and platform-based services, with ongoing projects on advice adherence, self-care, elder-care, and service inclusion for vulnerable populations. Methodologically, he combines laboratory and field experiments, empirical modelling, meta-analysis, and interviews. His work has been published in journals such as Annals of Tourism Research, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Advances in Consumer Research, Aggression and Violent Behavior, and Advances in Psychological Science, and he has several projects under review at leading journals in marketing and health. He has secured multiple competitive research grants as principal investigator from organisations including the Jenny and Antti Wihuri Foundation, the Marcus Wallenberg Foundation, the Paulo Foundation, the Matti Lehti Fund, the Foundation for Economic Education, and Aalto University’s HSE Support Foundation. He has taught across undergraduate and postgraduate levels, including courses on consumer psychology, digital marketing, and the digitalisation of markets and consumption, and is particularly interested in leveraging AI to enhance student learning and employability.

Johnson has also received several awards and distinctions, including the Paper Publication Award from Aalto University, an EMAC Doctoral Consortium Fellowship (Modelling track), the Best Conference Paper Award at the FAMAC Conference, and multiple scholarships for academic excellence during his studies in China.

Research interests

  • Healthcare Services
  • AI in Services
  • Vulnerable Consumers
  • Consumer Psychology and Behaviour

Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):

  • SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being
  • SDG 9 - Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
  • SDG 10 - Reduced Inequalities

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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years

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  • 4 Article
  • 2 Review article
  • 1 Doctoral Thesis
View all 7 research outputs