Cassie Mogilner Holmes
- Decision-Making Satisfaction
- Happiness
- Time and Money
Biography
Cassie Mogilner Holmes is a professor of marketing and behavioral decision making and holds the Bud Knapp Marketing Professorship at UCLA Anderson School of Management. She is the bestselling author of Happier Hour: How to Beat Distraction, Expand Your Time, and Focus on What Matters Most.
Holmes studies happiness, highlighting the role of time. Her research examines such questions as how focusing on time (rather than money) increases happiness, how the meaning of happiness changes over the course of one’s lifetime and how much happiness people enjoy from extraordinary and ordinary experiences. Across these inquiries, her findings highlight the high level of happiness that stems from personally connecting with people and with the present moment.
Holmes’ research has been published in such top-tier academic journals as Psychological Science and the Journal of Consumer Research. Popular accounts of her work have been featured on NPR and have appeared in such publications as The Economist, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, Scientific American and the Boston Globe. Her work on giving time was featured in New York Times Magazine’s “32 Innovations that Will Change Your Tomorrow.” She was identified among the Best 40 Business Professors Under 40 in Poets & Quants, and she received the Early Career Award for her distinguished scholarly contributions to her field from both the Association of Consumer Research and the Society of Consumer Psychology.
Holmes developed and teaches the popular course Applying the Science of Happiness to Life Design, which helps students thrive in their personal and professional lives. Pulling insights from research in psychology and behavioral decision making, as well as her own research, this course provides students with ideas and tools to apply to improve their day-to-day living and the design of their career and life overall. Based on this course, Holmes wrote the book Happier Hour. A Wall Street Journal Bestseller and selected an Amazon Best Book of 2022, Happier Hour provides a practical guide for how to think about and spend time to live a more joyful life.
Prior to joining UCLA Anderson, Holmes was a tenured faculty member at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, where she was an award-winning teacher of strategic brand management. She earned her Ph.D. in marketing from Stanford and her B.A. from Columbia as a psychology major.
Education
Ph.D. Marketing, 2009, Stanford Graduate School of Business
B.A. Psychology (cum laude), 2002, Columbia University
Publications
Joe Gladstone, Emily Garbinsky, and Cassie Mogilner (2022). Pooling Finances and Relationship Satisfaction. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
Catapano, Rhia, Jordi Quoidbach, Cassie Mogilner, and Jennifer Aaker (2022). Financial Resources Impact the Relationship between Meaning and Happiness. Emotion.
Marissa Sharif, Cassie Mogilner, Hal Hershfield (2021). Having Too Little or Too Much Time Is Linked to Lower Subjective Well-Being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
Colin West, Cassie Mogilner, Sanford DeVoe (2020). Happiness from Treating the Weekend Like a Vacation. Social Psychological and Personality Science.
Adam Greenberg, Cassie Mogilner (2020). Consumer Debt and Satisfaction in Life. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied.
Cassie Mogilner Holmes (2020). Staying Happy in Unhappy Times. UCLA Anderson Blog.
Hengchen Dai, Cindy Chan, Cassie Mogilner (2019). People Rely Less on Consumer Reviews for Experiential than Material Purchases, Journal of Consumer Research.
Cassie Mogilner (2019). It's Time for Happiness. Current Opinion in Psychology.
Cassie Mogilner, Michael I. Norton (2018). Preferences for Experienced versus Remembered Happiness. The Journal of Positive Psychology.
Cassie Mogilner, Ashley Whillans, Michael Norton (2018). Time, Money, and Subjective Well-Being. Handbook of Well-Being, ed. Ed Diener, Shige Oishi, and Louis Tay.
Cassie Mogilner, Hal Hershfield, Jennifer Aaker (2017). Rethinking Time for Well-Being. Consumer Psychology Review.
Cindy Chan, Cassie Mogilner (2016). Experiential Gifts Foster Stronger Social Relationships than Material Gifts. Journal of Consumer Research.
Cassie Mogilner, Michael Norton (2016). Want to Feel Less Time-Starved? The Wall Street Journal.
Hal E. Hershfield, Cassie Mogilner (2016). More Time or Money? Your Choice. The New York Times.
Hal E. Hershfield, Cassie Mogilner, Uri Barnea (2016). People Who Choose Time Over Money Are Happier. Social Psychological and Personality Science.
Jordan Etkin, Cassie Mogilner (2016). Does Variety Among Activities Increase Happiness? Journal of Consumer Research.
Cassie Mogilner, Michael Norton (2016). Time, Money, and Happiness. Current Opinion in Psychology.
Amit Bhattacharjee, Cassie Mogilner (2014). Happiness from Ordinary and Extraordinary Experiences. Journal of Consumer Research.
Francesca Gino, Cassie Mogilner (2013). Time, Money, and Morality. Psychological Science.
Cassie Mogilner, Zoe Chance, Michael Norton (2012). Giving Time Gives You Time. Psychological Science, 23, 1233 - 1238.
Cassie Mogilner, Baba Shiv, Sheena Iyengar (2012). Eternal Quest for the Best: Sequential (vs. Simultaneous) Option Presentation Undermines Choice Commitment. Journal of Consumer Research.
Cassie Mogilner, Jennifer Aaker, Sep Kamvar (2012). How Happiness Affects Choice. Journal of Consumer Research.
Cassie Mogilner, Sep Kamvar, Jennifer Aaker (2011). The Shifting Meaning of Happiness. Social Psychological and Personality Science.
Jennifer Aaker, Melanie Rudd, Cassie Mogilner (2011). If Money Does Not Make You Happy, Consider Time. Journal of Consumer Psychology.
Cassie Mogilner (2010). The Pursuit of Happiness: Time, Money, and Social Connection. Psychological Science.
Jennifer Aaker, Kathleen Vohs, Cassie Mogilner (2010). Non-Profits Are Seen as Warm and For-Profits as Competent: Firm Stereotypes Matter. Journal of Consumer Research.
Cassie Mogilner, Jennifer Aaker (2009). The Time vs. Money Effect: Shifting Product Attitudes and Decisions through Personal Connection. Journal of Consumer Research.
Cassie Mogilner, Tamar Rudnick, Sheena Iyengar (2008). The Mere Categorization Effect: How the Presense of Categories Increases Choosers' Perceptions of Assortment Variety and Outcome Satisfaction. Journal of Consumer Research.
Cassie Mogilner, Jennifer Aaker, Ginger Pennington (2008). Time Will Tell: The Distant Appeal of Promotion and Imminent Appeal of Prevention. Journal of Consumer Research.
In the News
How to Wake Up Earlier: 4 Ways to Become a Morning Person The New York Times 8/30/23
How to Make a Staycation Feel Like an Actual Break The New York Times 7/8/23
Need a Break Now? Try Treating Your Weekend Like a Vacation TIME 6/15/23
What Women Can Learn From Men About ‘Me Time’ The Wall Street Journal 6/5/23
Is Anxiety Contagious? Oprah Daily 5/17/23
2023 Anatomy of Work Global Index Asana 3/13/23
How to be Happier - It's Time The Seedling 3/7/23
Capturing Our Weekends as “Mini Vacations” Will Make Us Happier The Informant 3/3/23
Is Your Team “Time-Poor”? Here’s How to Upgrade Everyone’s Workday The Workback 2/15/23
To Boost Happiness, Treat Your Weekend Like a Vacation The Washington Post 2/23/23
How to Recover From a Layoff, According to Positive Psychology Quartz 2/17/23
Why Feeling Time-Poor is Wrecking Your Motivation (And How to Fix It) Stylist 2/16/23
How to Create Your Ideal Week with the Mosaic Exercise Stylist 2/3/23
Why You Should Add a ‘Shultz Hour’ to Your Weekly Schedule Stylist 1/31/23
In Search of Happiness: The Secrets and Science Behind Leading a Good Life KCRW NPR 1/28/23
How to Use Time Bundling to be Happier Stylist 1/27/23
Why Moments of Awe and Making Rituals are Key to Feeling Like You Have More Time Stylist 1/26/23
Why You Need to Schedule in Free Time Stylist 1/20/23
A Matter of Time Columbia College Today 1/19/23
Why You Should Segment Your Day by ‘Happy Work’ and ‘Work-y Work’ Stylist 1/16/23
Wall Street Journal Bestselling Books The Wall Street Journal 1/12/23
There’s a Simple Science to Contentment: Reframing Time Daily Mail 1/8/23
How to be Happier YOU Magazine 1/8/23
Keep Happiness Going All Year Long The New York Times 1/7/23
The Best Workplace Lessons We Learned from Books This Year TIME 12/30/22
New Year’s Never-lutions: 5 Things Not to Do This Year Oprah Daily 12/29/22
Don’t Just Spend Your Time—Invest It The Wall Street Journal 12/28/22
#1 Best-Selling Self-Help | The Most Sought-After Titles by Public Libraries The Library Journal 12/16/22
The Best Health Books Experts Read in 2022 The Washington Post 12/16/22
FT Business Books: What to Read in the New Year The Financial Times 12/15/22
The Top 22 Happiness Books of 2022 The Next Big Idea Club 12/14/ 22
Greater Good’s Favorite Books of the Year Greater Good Magazine 12/9/22
The Center of Attention: Noticing joy in the everyday Psychology Today 11/22/22
Selected as An Amazon Best Business and Leadership Book of 2022 Amazon Books 11/16/22
How to Spend Your Time on What Matters Most Greater Good Magazine 11/15/22
3 Tips For Maximizing Your Time & Increasing Happiness, From A Psychologist Mindbodygreen Health 11/7/22
Moving In Together Doesn’t Match the Financial Benefits of Marriage, but Why? The Wall Street Journal 11/7/22
5 Science-Backed Books on Being Good to Yourself Next Big Idea Club 10/26/22
Happier Hour: How to Beat Distraction, Expand Your Time, and Focus on What Matters Most Next Big Idea Club 10/22/22
Our Most Precious Resource Isn't Money—It's Time. Here's How to Feel Like You Have More of It from UCLA's Cassie Holmes Maria Shriver’s Sunday Paper 10/15/22
How to Make Your Days Off Feel Like a True Break SELF 9/27/22
This Is The Key To Achieving ‘Time Affluence’ Forbes 9/23/22
The Limits of Data and Four Books I Couldn’t Put Down ParentData 9/21/22
How to Feel Less Depleted by the End of the Workweek SELF 9/15/22
‘Too much free time won’t make you happier,’ says psychologist—how many hours you really need in a day CNBC 9/8/22
A Method to Happiness: Tested in the Lab and in Life UCLA Anderson Review 9/7/22
CBS Mornings 9/6/22
How to Turn Your Routine into a Ritual Fortune 9/6/22
‘Happier Hour’ Review: Of Time and Happiness Wall Street Journal 9/6/22
How to Be Less Busy: Learn to Be OK With Doing Less, and You May Find the Satisfaction You Crave Real Simple Magazine 8/19/22
Why Work When You Can Play? Young Travelers Say They’ll Live Now, Make Money Later Wall Street Journal 9/19/22
A Memorable Staycation: How to Create a Joyous Vacation Near Home Shondaland 7/18/22
Happier Hour: How to Beat Distraction, Expand Your Time, and Focus on What Matters Most Publishers Weekly 6/30/22
Should Couples Merge Their Finances? The Atlantic 4/20/22
The Conventional Wisdom About Managing Money and Marriage is Wrong The Washington Post 3/29/22
22 Tips for 2022: To Avoid Sunday Scaries, End Your Weekend on a High Note NPR 1/15/22
As Income Rises, Link Between Meaning and Happiness Weakens Anderson Review 2/16/22
10 Must-Read Career And Leadership Books For 2022 Forbes 12/26/21
Gift Giving: Is It Really the Thought that Counts? Psychologists Weigh In The Washington Post 12/13/21
Why Having Too Much Free Time Can Be As Bad for You As Having Too Little The Washington Post 9/21/21
Too Much Free Time Isn’t Actually Bad For You Vice 9/16/21
Study: More Free Time Won’t Always Make You Happier Verywell Health 9/16/21
Do Olympic-Level Achievements Make People Happy? The Atlantic 7/29/21
Despite Everything, Most Older Millennials Are Content with How Their Lives Turned Out CNBC 5/6/21
How Consumers Really Use Online Reviews Wall Street Journal 10/25/20.
Favorite MBA Professors of the Class of 2020 Poets & Quants6/17/20.
It’s Important – and OK – to be Happy During the Pandemic UCLA Health 5/8/20.
How Do We Find Happiness During Difficult Times? UCLA Connections Interview 5/1/20.
Staying Positive in Unhappy Times UCLA Anderson Friday Faculty Chats 4/24/20.
Ways to Find Happiness in Challenging Times UCLA Women & Philanthropy Event 4/30/20.
Happiness in COVID Times How the World Works UCLA Anderson podcast 4/9/20.
Staying Happy in Unhappy Times UCLA Anderson Blog 3/24/20.
How To Relax On Busy Weekends NPR 1/25/20.
How to Have a Good Weekend NPR Life Kit 12/31/19.
The Most Forward-Thinking Business Courses of 2019 Poets & Quants 12/14/19.
Faculty Q&A: MBA Students in Digital Detox, Committing Random Acts of Kindness Anderson Review 12/4/19.
These Are the World’s Best Gifts to Give, According to Science Market Watch 11/12/19.
Time: How We Manage It, Value It and Relate to Its Passage UCLA Anderson Review 9/4/19.
Hell is Other People's Vacation The Atlantic 6/20/19.
Turn Your Weekends Into Mini-Vacations The Wall Street Journal 3/26/2019.
How Much Leisure Time Do the Happiest People Have? The Atlantic 2/21/19.
Vacation Mindset: How Weekends Can Be More Refreshing Anderson Review 2/20/19.
Happiness People Value The Lisa Valentine Clark Show 2/19/19.
Treat Your Weekend Like a Vacation Harvard Business Review 1/31/19.
Yes, You Can Be Happy in Sad Times Zocalo Public Square 12/13/18.
What Kind of Happiness Do People Value Most? Harvard Business Review 11/19/18.
An Aerial, as Opposed to Ground-Level, View of Time UCLA Anderson Review 6/27/18.
2018 Best 40 Under 40 Professors: Cassie Mogilner Holmes, Anderson School of Management Poets & Quants 4/23/18.
Here We Are With Shane Mauss Shane Mauss 3/2/18.
The Scientifically Proven Best Ways to Spend Time if You Want to Be Happy Quartz 2/13/18.
How to Make Your Valentine Happy: Do Something Together Instead of Giving Something Forbes 2/10/18.
5 Ways to Give Better Holiday Gifts Forbes 12/12/17.
How to Give the Gift of Travel Conde Nast Travel 11/28/17.
Age-Old Question:What Make You Happy? UCLA Anderson Review 11/02/17.
Our Flawed Pursuit of Happiness-and How to Get it Right UCLA Anderson Review 11/02/17.
Get To The Heart of Gift Giving Podcast: KGO810 12/09/16.
UCLA marketing prof probes what will make you happier UCLA Newsroom 12/09/16.
Should you want more money or more time? Chicago Tribune 09/26/2016.
Why time-starved people are happier The Washington Post. 06/09/2016.
What do you buy for an anniversary? Marketplace NPR. 07/02/2015.
10 ways to get happy CNN 03/20/2015.
When Multitasking Makes You Happy and When It Doesn't Harvard Business Review. 02/26/2015.
Even for the Person Who Has Everything, Gifts Matter New York Times 12/19/2014.
What makes us truly happy? Radio Times, WHYY, NPR 12/10/2014.
Why Time--Not Money--Is the Key to Happiness Knowledge@Wharton 11/12/2014.
How Consumers' Moods Drive Decisions The Atlantic 10/02/2014.
"Longmire" lost out because of its older viewers Marketplace, NPR. 09/12/2014.
For Some, 'Tis a Gift to Be Simple New York Times 08/29/2014.
What brings people to cities with unhappy residents? NPR Marketplace 07/14/2014.
The Meaning of Happiness Changes Over Your Lifetime. Huffington Post 06/18/2014.
How happiness changes over time Fox News 02/21/2014.
Ordinary or extraordinary experiences, what makes you happiest? NPR KPCC 02/20/2014.
Study reveals surprising link between age and happiness Huffington Post 02/12/2014.
Ordinary Experiences Make Us Happier as We Get Older The Atlantic 02/12/2014.
What Makes Older People Happy New York Times 02/11/2014.
How Thinking About Time Can Make You a Better Person The Atlantic 12/13/2013.
Don't Be a Lousy Gift-Giver Wall Street Journal 11/29/2013.
Time is Not Money The Economist 10/05/2013.
How Happiness Changes with Age The Atlantic 05/28/2013.
4 Steps to Become a Happier Entrepreneur Forbes 02/13/2013.
Analysis Paralysis New York Times Magazine 12/16/2012.
The Science Behind Gifting Wall Street Journal 12/03/2012.
How to Make Time Expand Boston Globe 09/10/2012.
You'll Feel Less Rushed If You Give Time Away Harvard Business Review 09/01/2012.
Make Time for Yourself by Giving Time to Others The Guardian 08/11/2012.
Not All Happiness Is the Same Huffington Post 07/23/2012.
Something for the Weekend Financial Times 07/06/2012.
32 Innovations That Will Change Your Tomorrow New York Times 06/01/2012.
Giving Time Can Give You Time WBUR, Boston's NPR station 04/23/2012.
If We Feel Too Busy Scientific American 04/22/2012.
Getting It All Done Boston Globe 04/01/2012.
Real Good for Free: The Paradox of Leisure Time Huffington Post 03/26/2012.
Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Happier CBS Money Watch 02/03/2012.
Are We Happy Yet? Depends on How We Define It Wall Street Journal 12/14/2011.
Trading on Happiness The Times of India 12/11/2011.
If Money Doesn't Make You Happy, Consider Time Forbes India 07/11/2011.
Love Your Weekends Again ABC News 05/09/2011.
Why We Strive for Money Over Time--and Why It's a Mistake TIME Magazine 10/11/2010.
Thinking about Time or Money Impacts How We Spend Our Days Scientific American 10/09/2010.
Buying Time: The Pursuit of Happiness Huffington Post 09/15/2010.
Strawberry Shortcake's Trendy New Look NPR Marketplace 09/02/2010.
The Pursuit of Happiness: Buying Time Association for Psychological Science 08/25/2010.
Seu consumidor quer tempo ou dinheiro? Exame 07/19/2010.
Something for the Weekend Financial Times 02/05/2010.
Marketing Lessons from the Lemonade Stand Inc 04/09/2009.
Does Happiness Have a Price Tag? CBS MoneyWatch.com 04/01/2009.
Why to Tie Marketing to Time, Not Money Wall Street Journal 03/24/2009.
The Way the Brain Buys The Economist 12/18/2008.
Can't Decide? Look for the Label New York Times 07/28/2008.
Categories Help Us Make Happier Choices Science Daily 07/17/2008.
Care to Know the Motivation Behind that Gift, Love? Washington Post 02/11/2008.