Digital Commons Network^™

The Impact On Gay Men Of Support And Enforcement Of Workplace Dei Policies: A Meta Analysis, Steven M. Vega

Student Theses and Dissertations

The poor enforcement of workplace DEI policies affects gay men in ways that are unique and invite close attention. The nature of the impact of missing or unsupported DEI policies on gay men has been widely debated in the field of human resources and communication studies, with scholars such as David Wicks, Helen Seitzer, James Ward, and Diana Winstansley arguing that these effects include lasting negative mental and physical health effects and discomfort with self-disclosure in the workplace. However, the existing research on this topic has not sufficiently considered the effects of the poor enforcement of workplace DEI policies side …

Serving Behind The Screen: Practical Recommendations For Best Practices On Social Media For Government Practitioners, Livianette Cabrera

Student Theses and Dissertations

The usage and importance of social media continues to grow in our everyday life, however, governments lag on using the platforms to the fullest extent. This study aimed at learning what best practices should government practitioners exercise to meet constituents needs and provide services and information online. Through oral histories conducted with a small pool of participants, four themes emerged which helped to answer the research question. Findings illustrated four main traits/themes were essential if social media managers wanted to excel at their job: Competent Strategic Senior Management, Effective Community Management, Mission and Value Alignment, and Customized Curation. Through an …

Corporate Reputations Measured And In Practice: How Can Corporations Stay Authentic To Their Positive External Depictions, Internally?, Valeene Wilson

Student Theses and Dissertations

This research paper discusses corporate reputation and how companies can stay authentic to their positive external reputations internally. Organizations are getting better at communicating who they are but fall short in fulfilling broader reputation goals. To be managed, corporate reputations must be measured. Fombrun introduced the Reputation Institute and the RepTrak measurement system, which builds on research done on leadership, employee engagement, and the evolution of corporate reputation. This paper dives into how to assess a corporation’s reputation using the aggregate reputation ranking RepTrak as a frame for the analysis of qualitative data, collected on four organizations and supplemented with …

Citizenship As A Social Determinant Of Health: Healthcare Access And Utilization In The Wake Of The Public Charge Policy Change, Errol Pierre

Student Theses and Dissertations

Research shows that many non-medical factors, called social determinants of health, impact health outcomes. These social determinants include both socioeconomic factors, such as income and education, and public policies, such as laws and regulations affecting access to healthcare. This study proposes that citizenship status is also a social determinant of health and supports this proposition by examining the impact of citizenship status on healthcare access and utilization in New York. The study data consist of enrollments, disenrollments, and paid medical expenses incurred by patients enrolled in Medicaid or the Essential plan, both of which are government-sponsored health plans. In addition …

Muslim Fashion Influencers Shaping Modesty In The Twenty-First Century On Social Media, Awa Sanno

Student Theses and Dissertations

The depiction of Muslim women in Western media has been a long-running joke, as they are framed to be oppressed by the burdens of their religion and the hijab. However, Muslim women have used the power of social media to counter that narrative through their large followings as fashion influencers, digital creators, food bloggers, makeup artists, lifestyle bloggers, musicians, and so much more. Specifically, Muslim fashion influencers are changing and redefining the notion of modesty throughout their posted content on social media. Many people in Muslim communities see this redefinition of modesty as a conflict with the "proper" ways of …

Diversity And Inclusion In The Beauty And Cosmetic Advertising And Its Impact On Corporate Reputation, Lisa N. Alli

Student Theses and Dissertations

Across many industries, reputation management has been a top priority, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic, and the ongoing issues surrounding gender, race, and ethnicity. The beauty and cosmetic industry, for example, continues to face several challenges involving diversity and representation in product development and advertising. This is a study of the beauty and cosmetic industry and how corporate reputation is shaped by representation in advertising and product development. This research demonstrates select ways how brands have marketed their products throughout history by retrieving print advertisements from archives and social media. Changes in representation of gender, age, skin tone, skin type, …

Development Of The Patient Propensity Indicator: Measuring And Predicting Antecedents Of Insights Into The Individual Management Of Healthcare, Julie Monroid

Student Theses and Dissertations

This research describes the development of the Patient Propensity Indicator (PPI), a reliable and valid measure, which is grounded in the rigorous conceptualization and operationalization of psychometric (ability, attitude, belief), health literacy, and learning preferences constructs and their effect on medication adherence. Adopting a well-established protocol for instrument development (DeVillis, 2017) the PPI’s multi-construct items were developed based on the findings from an extensive literature review both within and outside of healthcare.

An expert assessment of 130 items was conducted by a distinguished judging panel who provided validation of the constructs and item reduction (87). Refined constructs and items were …

The Use Of Ethnonyms In Communication Strategies, Cristina B. Gonzales Otoya Villanueva

Student Theses and Dissertations

This research aims to explore the effectiveness of the language used in external communications, including brand campaigns already launched targeting different ethnic groups, with a particular emphasis on the Hispanic, Latino and Latinx communities. The final objective is to provide recommendations on the appropriate use of ethnonyms in their marketing strategies while authentically approaching their target market to generate brand affinity and long-standing trust.

The Shopping Experience: Pandemic Edition, Katie De Paula

Student Theses and Dissertations

This study is an initial dive behind the decline of shopping malls and stores across America. More specifically, how did the pandemic caused by COVID-19 contribute to the closure and bankruptcies of many shopping malls. Will the e-commerce business eventually take over and be the primary way consumers obtain their items?

The Stigmatization Of Mental Health And Wellness Programs In The Corporate World, Sumiya Chowdhury

Student Theses and Dissertations

This research paper will discuss the importance of mental health and work-related stress, increasing in today's adult population. Employees are more vocal about their challenges with depression, PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder), and anxiety. Many big corporations like Google and LinkedIn have supported mental health causes in their organizations and discussed coping methods on different platforms. Even though this kind of help breaks down the stigma around this issue, unfortunately, it is not enough to make employees in the corporate world feel safe to talk about mental health at work. Also, mental health stigma makes the environment hostile for those who …

Differences Between Brand Activism And Corporate Social Responsibility In Consumer Perception, Erika Marchiondo

Student Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this thesis is to determine if there is a perceived difference among consumers between brand activism and corporate social responsibility. Taking a stand in social and political causes has become an unspoken requirement for major brands. Consumers are selective about purchasing from brands that do not adhere to ethical practices. Consumers are also demanding increased brand transparency about the philanthropical causes brands support. I want to determine how aware consumers are of acts of corporate social responsibility and brand activism, and if consumers are able to identify a fundamental difference between behaviors associated with the two terms. …

Millennials In The Workplace: Recalling Critical Incidents Of Negative Feedback, Jocelyn C. Key

Student Theses and Dissertations

The Millennial generation has become one of the largest groups in the workplace and reports needing constant feedback from their supervisors. However, previous research has suggested that while Millennials desire feedback, they only want it to be positive. This research study examined the critical incidents of negative feedback that Millennials employees and supervisors recall receiving and giving. The study consisted of a qualitative survey with multiple-choice and open-ended questions. The sample comprised of 61 respondents who identified as a Millennial – born between 1981-2000 and between the ages of 22-41 – and full-time employees, the equivalent of 35 or more …

The Significance Of Sonic Branding To Strategically Stimulate Consumer Behavior: Content Analysis Of Four Interviews From Jeanna Isham’S “Sound In Marketing” Podcast, Ina Beilina

Student Theses and Dissertations

Purpose:
Sonic branding is not just about composing jingles like McDonald’s “I’m Lovin’ It.” Sonic branding is an industry that strategically designs a cohesive auditory component of a brand’s corporate identity. This paper examines the psychological impact of music and sound on consumer behavior reviewing studies from the past 40 years and investigates the significance of stimulating auditory perception by infusing sound in consumer experience in the modern 2020s.

Design/methodology/approach:
Qualitative content analysis of audio media was used to test two hypotheses. Four archival oral interview recordings from Jeanna Isham’s podcast “Sound in Marketing” featuring the sonic branding experts …

The Many Sides Of Social Capital: How Social Capital Is Related To Entrepreneurship?, Vivian M. Williams

Student Theses and Dissertations

This study explores two questions about the relationship between social capital and entrepreneurship that have not received much attention. The first is, how different dimensions of social capital relate to entrepreneurship? The second is, to what extent community social capital is related to the level of entrepreneurship among marginal and dominant members of a community? Social capital is the benefits derived from social connections. We know about the positive aspects of the relationship between social capital but it is also important to examine if there are negative effects. Further, community social capital, which is the aggregate level of social capital …

How Innovation Occurs In The Software Industry: A Qualitative Study On Innovation Management, Jihoon Rim

Student Theses and Dissertations

Research in innovation has been widely conducted by academics. However, many of them merely define associations among innovation factors, findings are often contradictory, and research that involves innovation leaders with rich experiences, both successes and failures, is rare. Thus, how to best innovate remains a question among practitioners. This qualitative research is aimed at filling this gap in the literature. To that end, 23 innovation leaders, most of whom founded software companies worth hundreds of millions to billions of dollars, were interviewed with a grounded theory approach using Peter Drucker’s innovation theory as a lens through which to view new …