Summary
My name is James Sundali, and I have been a Professor in the Management Department at the University of Nevada, Reno since 1997. I received my Ph.D. from the University of Arizona in 1995 and taught for three years at Kent State University in Ohio. My current research is focused on the areas of judgment and decision making, behavioral finance and behavioral economics. I primarily teach the core class in strategic management at both the undergraduate and MBA level, an elective class in decision making and negotiation, and a Ph.D. seminar in managerial decision making. Each summer, I teach a travel class called "leadership insights from the humanities" that visits New York City. I have served in numerous administrative capacities and a variety of committees while at the University.
On the PhD level, I am a founding member of the Behavioral Economics Laboratory in the College of Business. Under the guidance of Federico Guerrero (Economics), Garret Ridinger (Management), James Leonhardt (Marketing) and myself, the students working in our lab conduct experiments in behavioral economics, behavioral finance, neuroscience and other topics. Our students learn how to run rigorous in-person experiments and enhance their skills in data analysis, programming, and writing up the scientific results for submission to high quality conference and journals.
Recent graduates from our lab include:
- Diana Neely (University of South Florida)
- Qizhou Luo (Industry)
- Armina Karapetian (University of Nevada, Reno)
- Mengyue Fan (Meta)
- Mauricio Solorio Arteaga (Chief Economist, Nevada Governor’s Office)
- Irem Sevindik (Industry)
- Qifan Chen (Longwood University)
- Florina Salaghe (Benedictine University)
- Dimitra Papadovasilaki (Lake Forest College)
- Rattaphon Wuthisatian (Southern Oregon University)
- Amanda Safford (Consultant)
We are currently taking on new students interested in this line of research.
I grew up in Anaheim, California and spent my summers playing sports and hanging out at the beach. My identical twin daughters are in grad school in Southern California, so I am looking forward to more days at the beach.
Professional Experience
- Current - 2014 Professor, University of Nevada, Reno / Managerial Sciences
- 2014 - 2000 Associate Professor, University of Nevada, Reno / Managerial Sciences
- 1999-1997 Assistant Professor, University of Nevada, Reno / Managerial Sciences
- 1997 - 1995 Assistant/Visiting Professor, Kent State University / Administrative Sciences
- 1986 - 1987 Stockbroker (Series 7) / Financial Planning Consultant
Recent Publications
- Ridinger, G., Sundali, J., Guerrero, F., Solorio, M., Fan, M., Sevindik, I., Chen, Q. & Neely, D. (2026). An experiment on the impacts of experiential investment advice. PloS one, 21(2), e0343126.
- Karapetian A., Sundali J., Guerrero F., Hanna A., Ridinger G. Risk aversion and social influence. Experimental Economics. Published online 2025:1-26.
- Salaghe, F., Guerrero, F., Jones, D., Nichols, M. W., & Sundali, J. (2023). Behavioral Responses to Losses Disguised as Wins: A Field Study of Slot Machine Players. Journal of Gambling Studies, 1-20.
- Guerrero, F., Papadovasilaki, D., Ridinger, G., & Sundali, J. (2021). Investor beliefs in the midst of a market crash and the COVID 19 pandemic: Survey and experimental evidence. Decision, 8(4), 295–326.
- Salaghe, F., Sundali, J., Nichols, M. W., & Guerrero, F. (2020). An empirical investigation of wagering behavior in a large sample of slot machine gamblers. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 169, 369-388.
- Salaghe, F., Papadovasilaki, D. , Guerrero, F., Sundali, J. (in press). Temptation and Retirement Accounts: A Story of Time Inconsistency and Bounded Rationality. Athens Journal of Business & Economics
- Papadovasilaki, D., Guerrero, F., Sundali. J. (2018). The effect of early and salient investment experiences on subsequent asset allocations—An experimental study. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance. Volume 19, September 2018, Pages 1-19
- Safford, A., Sundali, J., Guerrero, F. (2018). Does experiencing a Crash make all the difference? An Experiment on the Depression Babies Hypothesis. Sage Open, Volume: 8 issue: 2. Article first published online: May 25, 2018
- Wuthisatian, Rattaphon, Federico Guerrero, James Sundali, (2017) "Gain attraction in the presence of social interactions", Review of Behavioral Finance, Vol. 9 Issue: 2, pp.105-127
- Papadovasikaki, D., Guerrero, F., Sundali, J., Stone, G. (2015). How important are early investment experiences on subsequent investment decisions? A laboratory experiment on asset allocation. Managerial Finance, Vol. 41, Issue: 6, pp: 582-590.
- Wieland, A., Sundali, J., Kemmelmeier, M., Sarin, R. (2014). Gender differences in the endowment effect: Women pay less, but won't accept less. Judgment and Decision Making 11/2014; 9(6):558-571.
- Sundali, J. A., Safford, A.H., & Croson, R. (2012). The impact of near-miss events on betting behavior: An examination of casino rapid roulette play. Judgment and Decision Making, Vol. 7, No. 6, November 2012, pp. 768–778
- Sundali, J.A., Stone, G.R., & Guerrero, F.L. (2012). The effect of setting goals and emotions on asset allocation decisions, Managerial Finance, Vol. 38 Iss: 11, pp.1008
- Guerrero, F., Stone, G., & Sundali, J. (2012). Fear in asset allocation during and after stock market crashes: An Experiment in Behavioral Finance. The Journal of Behavioral Finance & Economics. Volume 2, Issue 1, Spring 2012, pp. 50-81.
- Sundali, J. & Guerrero, F. (2009). Managing a 401K account: An experiment on asset allocation. Journal of Behavioral Finance, Vol. 10 Issue 2, p108-124.
Education
- Ph. D., University of Arizona, 1995. Major: Business Administration; Minor: Finance
- Dissertation Title: "An experimental investigation of market entry problems"
- Primary Dissertation Advisor: Amnon Rapoport
- MBA, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, 1990
- BS Economics California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, 1985