Publications
Publications
- June 2025
- Journal of Consumer Research
Ideation with Generative AI—In Consumer Research and Beyond
By: Julian De Freitas, G. Nave and Stefano Puntoni
Abstract
The use of large language models (LLMs) in consumer research is rapidly evolving, with applications including synthetic data generation, data analysis, and more. However, their role in creative ideation—a cornerstone of consumer research—remains underexplored. Drawing on the human creativity literature, we propose that ideation with LLMs is facilitated by their productivity and semantic breadth, which are psychologically analogous to the dual pathways of persistence and flexibility in human ideation. Further, we distinguish between the utility of LLMs as key ideators versus humans as key ideators, conceptualized through the LLM ideation roles of Designer and Writer and of Interviewer and Actor. While LLMs excel in generating incremental improvements, their potential for groundbreaking innovation could be unlocked by leveraging their ability to prompt human creativity. This paper advances the theoretical and practical understanding of LLMs in ideation for consumer research, offering numerous practical strategies for integrating generative AI into research while emphasizing human-AI collaboration to achieve radical insights.
Keywords
Citation
De Freitas, Julian, G. Nave, and Stefano Puntoni. "Ideation with Generative AI—In Consumer Research and Beyond." Journal of Consumer Research 51, no. 1 (June 2025): 18–31.