Cliff A. Robb

Cliff Robb

Professor of Finance

Jack C. Massey College of Business

Ph.D.

Location: Barbara Massey Hall 444

615-460-5147
cliff.robb@belmont.edu

Biography 

Dr. Cliff Robb joined the Jack C. Massey College of Business in 2025 after holding faculty positions at the University of Alabama, Kansas State University, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of the South, a Masters in Consumer Economics from the University of Alabama, and a Ph.D. in Personal Financial Planning from the University of Missouri-Columbia.

Dr. Robb has extensive experience as both an instructor and a researcher and has held a variety of leadership positions over his career. Most recently, he completed a term as chair for the Department of Consumer Science at the University of Wisconsin. Prior leadership roles also include time on the leadership board (including serving as President in 2015) for the American Council on Consumer Interests and serving as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Consumer Affairs (2013-2017). He currently serves on the Editorial Board for several personal finance journals and is an Associate Editor for Financial Planning Review (2021-present).

Dr. Robb has published over 40 academic papers across numerous journals, including the Journal of Consumer Affairs, the Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning, the Journal of Family and Economic Issues, the Journal of Consumer Policy, and Financial Planning Review, to name a few. His work has been cited over 5,000 times according to Google Scholar. His scholarly work has received numerous awards, and he managed numerous external grant projects (totally almost $1 million) exploring aspects of financial literacy and well-being.

  • D. University of Missouri-Columbia, Personal Financial Planning
  • University of Alabama, Consumer Economics
  • University of the South, Psychology

  • Professor of Finance, Belmont University
  • Professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison
  • Associate Professor, Kansas State University
  • Assistant Professor, University of Alabama

  • L’Esperance, M., Collins, J. M., & Robb, C. A. (2025) High school personal finance course mandates and financial independence of young adults. Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning.
  • Deliema, M., Robb, C. A., & Wendel, S. (2025) What does trust have to do with it? Training consumers to detect digital imposter scams. Journal of Financial Crime, 32(1), 77-97.
  • Harvey, M., Robb, C. A., & Peterson, C. (2024) Law and order? Associations between payday lending prohibition and alternative financial services use by degree of enforcement. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 58(2), 538-557.
  • Robb, C. A. & Chy, S. (2023). Undergraduate Financial Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviors: The Impact of a Financial Life Skills Course on College Students. Financial Planning Review, 6(1), e1155.
  • Wendel, S., & Robb, C. A. (2023) Who Can You Trust? Assessing Vulnerability to Digital Imposter Scams. Journal of Consumer Policy, 46(1), 27-51.

  • Funded: Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Graduate Education, Fall Research Award. Financial Well-Being among urban households in India (PI)
  • National Endowment for Financial Education Paper Award, ACCI Conference 2023
  • Richard L. D. Morse Applied Consumer Economics Award, ACCI conference 2023
  • Funded: Social Security Administration Retirement and Disability Research Consortium. Enhancing Trust in the Social Security Administration and E-Government Among People Targeted by Fraud (co-PI).
  • High Impact Author Award, Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior (2022)
  • First Place Essay, Society of Actuaries call for Essays on Race and Ethnicity (2021)
  • UW-Madison Class of 1955 Teaching Excellence Award (2021)
  • Funded: AccessLex Institute. Improving Financial Knowledge and Self-Efficacy of Under-Represented Medical Students (PI)
  • Best Paper Award, National Endowment for Financial Education, American Council on Consumer Interests Conference 2015.
  • Best Theoretical Research Award, Financial Planning Association Conference 2014.
  • Mid-Career Award, American Council on Consumer Interests 2013

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