Patricia Sunderland, Ph.D.
Patti Sunderland, based in New York, is an anthropologist and a founding partner of Practica Group. She brings background and interest in linguistic as well as visual anthropology to her specialty in the ethnographic, cultural analysis of consumer environments. Patti has been melding ethnographic video and photographs with cultural analysis to bring consumer environments to life for clients such as Advanta, Anheuser-Busch, General Motors, Hallmark, Intel, JCPenney, Nissan, SC Johnson, Target and Tropicana for more than a decade.
Patti stresses the value of understanding consumers in the context of their naturally occurring, everyday (and multiple) environments, and utilizes a range of methods to do so: in-depth, in situ ethnographic interviewing; participant observation; respondent video and audio diaries; videotaping and shadowing. Her work has contributed to highly successful makeovers of brands and retail environments (Pontiac, JCPenney) as well as contributed to the development and launch of new products and brands for SC Johnson, Whirlpool, Wrigley and Masterfoods. Patti has investigated retail settings from home parties to club stores, analyzed the meanings of luxury products and gold as well as drain and bathtub cleaners, and interviewed stay-at-home Moms, drug using Tweens, and CEOs.
Patti believes that diversity enriches her analyses and she thrives on new challenges. She especially enjoys carrying out international projects with Practica's team of associated anthropologists. In this work, she brings to bear not only her research experience and academic training (M.A. and Ph.D. in social/cultural psychology from the University of Vermont and a M.Phil in cultural anthropology from NYU), but also international insight. Patti spent five years living in Europe and speaks both German and French.
Beyond consumer research, Patti conducts seminars and immersion trainings in semiotics and ethnography for anthropology and business school students as well as professionals. A frequently invited speaker by both business and academic audiences, her published articles and essays have appeared in both the academic and trade press. With Rita Denny, she is also author of the book Doing Anthropology in Consumer Research, published by Left Coast Press in November of 2007.