Teodora K. Tomova Shakur

Assistant Professor in Management and Leadership

TCU Neeley School of Business

I am an Assistant Professor in the Management and Leadership department at the Neeley School of Business, Texas Christian University.

I study network favoritism, which I define as individuals' tendency to favor their network contacts over equally (or more) competent strangers in organizational decision-making. In my research program, I investigate the core motivations driving individuals to engage in network favoritism and the intended and unintended consequences of such behavior for individuals, organizations, and society at large. I am fascinated by the different forms of network favoritism, including nepotism, cronyism, and employee referrals. My work also explores the role of gender, age, socio-economic status, and other demographic markers and their impact on individuals' proclivity to network and engage in network favoritism.

My research has been published in Personnel Psychology, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, and Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, and has been recognized by the Academy of Management (Best Paper Award) and the International Association for Conflict Management (Finalist in IACM 3MT Competition). My research has received funding from TCU's Research and Creative Activities Fund and NYU's Center for Global Economy and Business.

For more details on my work, please refer to my Research and CV.

I received a Ph.D. in Management from New York University and a B.A. in Psychology (Honors) from the University of California, Berkeley. Prior to joining Stern, I gained experience in the fields of consulting and Human Resources. Outside of work, I enjoy hiking with my husband and our two dogs, Nutella and Marshmallow, sewing, painting, and playing the piano.