Center For Automatic Brand Associations Team

Brendan Cooney, Senior Market Research Manager, Sentient Decision Science, Inc.

Brendan Cooney has more than 13 years of marketing research experience, including qualitative and quantitative methodologies, research design, brand positioning, ad testing and more. Beginning his career in the Office of Institutional and Market Research at Hofstra University, Brendan then moved to StrategyOne, an Edelman Public Relations company, and then later to a boutique research firm in New Hampshire.

Brendan is formerly the founder and principal of BroadReach Research & Consulting, LLC, a firm specializing in qualitative and quantitative research projects for clients as diverse as Bayer HealthCare and Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce. At Sentient, Cooney is responsible for senior-level management of projects from conception to completion. He designs and executes hybrid research studies for clients across the retail, financial services, consumer packaged goods and household electronics industries.

Brendan holds a master’s in applied experimental psychology from Southern Illinois University and a B.A. in psychology from Frostburg State University.

Yi Zhang, Ph.D., Behavioral Scientist and Director of the Sentient Decision Science Subconscious Research Lab

Behavioral Scientist Dr. Yi Zhang is Director of Sentient’s Subconscious Research Lab. The Sentient Decision Science Consumer Subconscious Research Lab, which opened in mid-2010, conducts a wide variety of neuromarketing and behavioral science research, including methods such as EEG and skin conductance response. In addition to directing lab studies and data analysis, Yi is expanding Sentient’s work translating research from the behavioral science literature into practical applied methods.

Yi completed her master’s degree and Ph.D. in social psychology at Brandeis University. Her research expertise lies at the intersection of social psychology principles and neuroimaging techniques. While at Brandeis, Yi earned a number of academic awards and fellowships, and worked in several research areas, including the Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies. She graduated from Peking University in China with a bachelor of science in life science.

Charles Scherbaum, Ph.D.

Dr. Charles Scherbaum is an associate professor of psychology at Baruch College. He also holds appointments to the doctoral faculty in industrial and organizational, as well as educational psychology at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York.

Charles is expertise in research methods, statistics & assessment, employee staffing, and employee attitudes. His work in these areas has ranges from issues of fairness on standardized tests, detecting dishonest responding on surveys and self-assessments, implicit attitude measures, linking employee attitudes to organizational performance, and advanced statistical techniques. He has presented his research in these areas across the country and regularly publishes the results of his research in top tier peer-reviewed outlets. In addition to his research, Charles has taught courses on HR, quantitative methods, and psychology in the U.S., Hong Kong, and Taiwan. Charles has consulted on employee surveys and research for many Fortune 500 companies and consulting firms.

Charles holds a B.S. degree in psychology from the University of Washington and a M.S. and Ph.D. in industrial and organizational psychology from Ohio University. He is a member of the Society of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, American Psychological Association, Academy of Management, New York Academy of Sciences, and the Metropolitan Association for Applied Psychology.

Jennifer Ratcliff, Ph.D., Harvard, JFK School of Government

Dr. Jennifer Ratcliff is an experimental social psychologist. She completed her doctoral work at Ohio University, and is currently working as a postdoctoral fellow in the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard University. Her primary research interests include positive intergroup relations, prejudice, discrimination, and legal psychology. She teaches social psychology, statistics, and research methods.

Aaron Reid, Ph.D.

Dr. Reid is Chief Behavioral Scientist at Sentient Decision Science, LLC and is the Director of the Center for Automatic Brand Assocations.

Aaron is a Cognitive Psychologist with a published research record in judgment and decision-making, including advanced mathematical modeling of how emotion influences decisions. He consistently presents his research nationally and internationally at industry and professional conferences and has a keen focus on turning research findings into business action steps. Aaron has over ten years of experience working with executive marketing teams at Global 2000 corporations.