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Qualified Mortgages: An Attempt At Residential Mortgage Stability, Andre Averill Apr 2014

Qualified Mortgages: An Attempt At Residential Mortgage Stability, Andre Averill

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.


The Effect Of Innovation On Corporate Tax Avoidance, Peng Guo Jan 2014

The Effect Of Innovation On Corporate Tax Avoidance, Peng Guo

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

A large body of literature examines the determinants of corporate tax avoidance. In this paper I examine a new determinant of tax avoidance: innovation. Firms with more innovation generate more patents. Due to information asymmetry between the managers of the firm and tax authorities, firms have considerable discretion in choosing which country the patent revenue is generated in. In this study, I predict that firms with more patents will choose to attribute the revenue from those patents to countries with low tax rates. Using a relatively new data source which contains data on patents, I find evidence consistent with my …


Essays On Corporate Innovation, Lai Van Vo Jan 2014

Essays On Corporate Innovation, Lai Van Vo

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this dissertation, I explore the underlying mechanisms through which a firm innovates and invests in Research and Development (R&D). It consists of two essays. The initial essay investigates the effects of aggregate stock market liquidity on innovation at both the aggregate and firm levels for publicly traded firms in the U.S., and shows a significant and positive effect at both levels of aggregation. Next, the essay provides two underlying mechanisms through which aggregate stock liquidity enhances innovation. First, high stock market liquidity reduces the cost of raising external capital, making it easier for firms, especially for small firms and …


Emerging Demographics In The Online Video Entertainment Market., Benjamin Papac Jan 2014

Emerging Demographics In The Online Video Entertainment Market., Benjamin Papac

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.


The Influence Of Personal And Educational Demographic Factors On The Productivity Of Farmers In Selected Geographic Regions Of The Ukraine, Viacheslav L. Sereda Jan 2014

The Influence Of Personal And Educational Demographic Factors On The Productivity Of Farmers In Selected Geographic Regions Of The Ukraine, Viacheslav L. Sereda

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to determine Ukrainian farmers characteristics based on demographic information, describe their agricultural production, land ownership, best farming practices and determine factors that could influence farmers’ gross income. Of the tree Oblasts selected, a total of 250 farmers were randomly selected in two of the oblasts and 150 in the other (due to the size of the population in the smaller sample) for personal interviews by the raion specialists. Random samples were drawn from these lists using a computerized random numbers table. Survey was designed to collect necessary information. Raion specialists received one-day training …


Understanding The Impact Of Motivation On The Effectiveness Of Various Content Delivery Methods In Training Program Development: A Mixed-Methods Evaluation, Serena Lynn Fisher Jan 2014

Understanding The Impact Of Motivation On The Effectiveness Of Various Content Delivery Methods In Training Program Development: A Mixed-Methods Evaluation, Serena Lynn Fisher

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to evaluate an online training program designed for part-time undergraduate Desk Assistants (DAs) employed by Louisiana State University’s (LSU) department of Residence Education. The evaluation of the training program included a comparison of video and lecture versions of a training program with comparable content to determine the effectiveness across a set of four outcomes: motivation during training, motivation after training, satisfaction, and learning. Additionally, this research contributed to the understanding of the impact of technology-mediated learning in training by examining factors that may differentially benefit or challenge the effectiveness of the training delivery method. …


Three Essays On Digital Marketing, Xia Liu Jan 2014

Three Essays On Digital Marketing, Xia Liu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation is primarily interested in finding out how marketing can play a more strategic role in helping firms to improve performance in the Digital Age. It contains three essays on digital marketing. The unifying theme is figuring out how the marketing department can benefit from the informational value of (big) data and advanced analytics and thus improve customer and business performance. The first essay develops a scale for measuring marketing information capability. The scale has passed rigorous tests standards. The second essay empirically examines the antecedents, moderators and consequences of marketing information capability. The antecedents include cross-functional coopetition between …


Essays On Dividend Equivalent Rights And Ceo Compensation, Zi Jia Jan 2014

Essays On Dividend Equivalent Rights And Ceo Compensation, Zi Jia

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation studies a little-known executive compensation device called dividend equivalent rights (DERs). DERs entitle an executive to receive dividends, known as dividend equivalents (DEs), on unearned performance-based stocks and options. In the first essay we do empirical studies on the market reaction of news about DERs and the incentives that DERs can bring. We find that about 22% of S&P500 firms allow for these payments and about 10% actually make such payments. While investors react negatively to announcements of DE payments, DERs can be beneficial to shareholders by inducing a company to disgorge unproductive cash. If a firm allows …


Identifying At-Risk Students : A Study Of Freshmen And The Beginning College Survey Of Student Engagement, Amy Ponvelle Hebert Jan 2014

Identifying At-Risk Students : A Study Of Freshmen And The Beginning College Survey Of Student Engagement, Amy Ponvelle Hebert

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study explored the usefulness of variable measures gained from the Beginning College Survey of Student Engagement (BCSSE) as a way to predict student academic performance and identify potential at-risk students. First-year GPA was used as a measure to determine at-risk status and selected BCSSE variables and institutional data were examined as predictors of student performance. The target population included all first-time freshmen at a small, regional university in the south in the fall 2010, 2011, and 2012. The accessible population for the research questions on BCSSE completion included all students who completed the BCSSE in the given years of …


Based On Teacher Perceptions, Would The Use Of Social Media Via Mobile Devices In Grades 9-12 Classrooms Increase Student Engagement In Learning Activities?, Rodney J. Johnson Jan 2014

Based On Teacher Perceptions, Would The Use Of Social Media Via Mobile Devices In Grades 9-12 Classrooms Increase Student Engagement In Learning Activities?, Rodney J. Johnson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This research study addressed teachers’ perceptions of the use of social networking via mobile devices and the impact that social media accessed via mobile devices has on the learning engagement of students in grades 9-12 in select Louisiana high schools, in a rural southern parish of the United States (Gibbs, 2012). The study examined teachers’ perceptions of whether or not the use of social media improved students’ engagement in learning activities. Some researchers assert that the use of social media and smart cell phones is both the current and future mode of communication and that educators would do well to …


Self-Direction In Adult Learning: Effect Of Locus Of Control And Program Design On Learner Motivation And Training Utility, Nicole Cannonier Jan 2014

Self-Direction In Adult Learning: Effect Of Locus Of Control And Program Design On Learner Motivation And Training Utility, Nicole Cannonier

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Andragogy and self-directed learning (SDL) have long been touted as pillars of adult learning theory, but much of the existing SDL research has been predicated on adult learner assumptions that have gone largely untested. This dissertation developed a model based on adult learning and training literatures to assess the antecedents and outcomes of adults’ preference for SDL. The model was tested on a sample of 277 adults participating in job-related training through a continuing education program at a university in the southern United States. Based on social learning theory, locus of control (LOC) was proposed as a predictor of motivation …


The Effects Of Three Dimensional Modeling On Labor Productivity Through Enhancing Visualization Of Craft Workers In The Industrial Construction Industry, Gerrad Delatte Jan 2014

The Effects Of Three Dimensional Modeling On Labor Productivity Through Enhancing Visualization Of Craft Workers In The Industrial Construction Industry, Gerrad Delatte

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to determine if the use of three dimensional (3D) modeling to enhance visualization of structural steel installation would increase labor productivity of industrial construction workers in a selected industrial facility in southeastern Louisiana. The construction industry has seen a decline in labor productivity for many years. The effects of low labor productivity in the construction sector causes unnecessary escalated costs, scheduled completion dates to slip, and conflicts between the owner, engineering firm, and the construction company. The need for reversing this decline and improving construction productivity is critical. The loss of productivity has …


Leader Benefits: Exploring How Leaders Benefit From Lmx, Jeffrey Muldoon Jan 2014

Leader Benefits: Exploring How Leaders Benefit From Lmx, Jeffrey Muldoon

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Leader Member Exchange (LMX) theory has emerged as one of the most prominent leadership theories over the last thirty years. Scholars found that subordinates with elevated levels of LMX experience higher degrees of job satisfaction and work motivation, experience lower levels of burnout and turnover intentions, and demonstrate stronger contextual and focal job performance. Yet the work outcomes for supervisors have not been heavily researched. Scholars assume, but have not demonstrated, that supervisors gain cognitive and affective benefits beyond job performance from their relationships with subordinates. These benefits are crucial because they are common to social exchange and differentiate supervisor/subordinate …


On The Governance Of Innovation: Institutional Ownership Vs. Stock Price, Huong Thi Thu Le Jan 2014

On The Governance Of Innovation: Institutional Ownership Vs. Stock Price, Huong Thi Thu Le

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Firms can change their outstanding shares to manage their stock price levels. Those with lower stock prices tend to attract more speculative trading, which causes higher price volatility and may force their managers to excessively focus on short-term earnings at the expense of R&D and other long-term projects. Thus, I hypothesize that keeping high stock price levels allows firms to (i) limit speculative traders’ influences on stock prices and thus mitigate investor short-termism, and (ii) enhance R&D productivity. Indeed, I find that high-priced firms are less likely to cut R&D to reverse an earnings decline, less likely to fire their …


Adult Offender Recidivism Rates: How Effective Is Pre-Release And Vocational Education Programing And What Demographic Factors Contribute To An Offenders Return To Prison, James K. Bueche, Jr. Jan 2014

Adult Offender Recidivism Rates: How Effective Is Pre-Release And Vocational Education Programing And What Demographic Factors Contribute To An Offenders Return To Prison, James K. Bueche, Jr.

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to determine if the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections’ 100 hour pre-release program and vocational education had a significant impact on offender recidivism. Additionally, a model of predicating offender recidivism using demographic data was another aspect of the study. Offenders in the study were 404 offenders who completed the pre-release program, 404 offenders who completed vocational education and 808 offenders who composed the control group. All offenders were released from prison in the year of 2010, and if they returned to prison between their release and December 31, 2013, they were …


Has The Fasb And Iasb's Shift Toward An Asset/Liability View Enhanced The Predictive Usefulness Of Roe?, Regina Cavalier Rosa Jan 2014

Has The Fasb And Iasb's Shift Toward An Asset/Liability View Enhanced The Predictive Usefulness Of Roe?, Regina Cavalier Rosa

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Over the past several decades, accounting standard setters have been gradually shifting financial reporting toward an asset/liability view, by rewriting the underlying conceptual framework and issuing accounting standards that reflect this view. The asset/liability view enhances comparability of a firm’s investment base to that of its peers, and thus enhances the comparability of a firm’s return of equity (ROE). This, in turn, increases the transparency with which firm-specific performance differs from its peers. Greater transparency would be expected to improve predictive usefulness, but would also place greater pressure on a firm to meet the performance of its peers. In the …


The Impact Of A Freshmen-Year Seminar On Students' Second-Year Retention, Lori Henry Richard Jan 2014

The Impact Of A Freshmen-Year Seminar On Students' Second-Year Retention, Lori Henry Richard

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study investigated the impact a freshman-year seminar course, UNIV 101, had on students’ second-year retention. Retention was determined based on a student’s subsequent enrollment at the university, one year after their initial semester. In addition, this study explored the relationship between selected independent variables found in literature and second-year retention. Finally, the study sought to determine if selected variables, completion of UNIV 101, and final letter grade earned by students in UNIV 101 was able to predict the probability of retention. The target population for this study was all first-time freshmen enrolled in a small, public, regional institution in …


Alternative Teacher Certification: The Politics, The Preparation, And The Promise Of A Quality Education, Yasheka Adams Jan 2014

Alternative Teacher Certification: The Politics, The Preparation, And The Promise Of A Quality Education, Yasheka Adams

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Alternative routes to teacher certification have increasingly gained popularity since the early 1980s. This increased attention is due to added focus on teacher quality and quantity. By participating in an alternative certification program, candidates are afforded the opportunity to obtain full teacher certification in an abbreviated time period. Completers of alternative certification programs are tasked with the same responsibilities as traditionally certified teachers. A substantial number of adults are making the decision to transition into the dynamic world of teaching. There are numerous debates regarding the efficacy of alternative pathways. There is a growing body of evidence supporting the belief …


Essays On Mortgage Securitizations, Hong Lee Jan 2014

Essays On Mortgage Securitizations, Hong Lee

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation studies how the affiliation between different entities in securitization process make different market outcomes, and how this estimation of affiliation effects is susceptible to limitations in securitized residential mortgage data. Three essays constitute the dissertation. The first essay illustrates the limitations and potential bias in the loan-level trustee data. Substantial amounts of loan attributes and risk factors are missing. The patterns of data omissions dramatically vary across different risk factors, sponsors, and trustees, and over the time. Missing of one risk factor is in general positively correlated with missing of the other. Omissions of loan attributes are systematically …


Information Systems Scholarship: An Examination Of The Past, Present, And Future Of The Information Systems Academic Discipline, James Alec Love Jan 2014

Information Systems Scholarship: An Examination Of The Past, Present, And Future Of The Information Systems Academic Discipline, James Alec Love

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation investigates the topic of scholarship in the Information Systems (IS) discipline through a series of three papers. The papers, presented in Chapters 2, 3, and 4, each delve into a specific chronological period of IS scholarship which are delineated into the past, present, and future. Chapter 2 elucidates the IS discipline’s ‘past’ by categorizing the entire corpus of extant research in the Association of Information Systems Senior Scholars’ Basket of eight journals. Clusters derived from these mainstream journal publications represent a thematic identity of the IS discipline. After analyzing the corpus altogether, further analysis segments the corpus into …


A Mixed Methods Evaluation Of The Coastal Roots Program, Jenna Lachenaye Jan 2014

A Mixed Methods Evaluation Of The Coastal Roots Program, Jenna Lachenaye

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Few evaluation-based studies of the LSU Coastal Roots™ program have been conducted over the 14-year life of the project. Teacher participant numbers and the scope of the program have grown since its inception, changing the face and shape of the program in each manifestation. A goal free approach to a mixed methods evaluation was employed to meet the exploratory nature of the investigation and to remain open to the myriad of possibilities within the program as it exists today. The exploratory sequential design employed qualitative methods in the early stages of the project through the collection and analysis of interview …


The Hidden Layer Of Buyer-Seller Relationships, Stephanie Marie Mangus Jan 2014

The Hidden Layer Of Buyer-Seller Relationships, Stephanie Marie Mangus

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Using social capital theory (SCT), this research conceptualizes trusted advisor relationships (TAR) and empirically tests the implications of such intense relationships on important performance outcomes. Essay 1 was conducted to offer an in-depth analysis of the conceptualization of trusted advisor relationships. A hermeneutical phenomenological approach was used to interpret the data derived from fourteen in-depth interviews with professional salespeople and their business-to-business (B2B) clients. These data supported the development of a conceptual model and definition of TARs. Essay 2 was conducted to explore the measurable components of trusted advisor relationships and solidify an operationalization of the construct for used in …


Identifying And Quantifying Factors Affecting Injury Severity Of Young Drivers Involved In Single Vehicle Crashes Occurring Within Curves On Rural Two-Lane Roads In Louisiana, Cory Hutchinson Jan 2014

Identifying And Quantifying Factors Affecting Injury Severity Of Young Drivers Involved In Single Vehicle Crashes Occurring Within Curves On Rural Two-Lane Roads In Louisiana, Cory Hutchinson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study investigates factors affecting young driver injury levels for single vehicle crashes occurring within curves on rural two-lane roads in Louisiana. Although the number of fatal and serious injury crashes involving young drivers is declining, young drivers are still overrepresented in crashes and crashes are still the leading cause of death for young drivers. Driver injury prediction models are formulated using binary logistic regression and Bayesian Network (BN) modeling. Binary logistic regression models have commonly been used in safety studies to analyze injury levels of occupants involved in crashes over the past few decades. More recently, a few safety …


Finding The Right Balance: Antecedents And Consequences Of Making, Buying, Or Concurrently Sourcing Human Capital, Joshua S. Bendickson Jan 2014

Finding The Right Balance: Antecedents And Consequences Of Making, Buying, Or Concurrently Sourcing Human Capital, Joshua S. Bendickson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Strategically determining organizational boundaries is one means to achieving better performance. This dissertation examines vertical integration, strategic acquisitions and concurrent sourcing to better understand the strategies used to acquire human capital and the impacts of these choices on performance outcomes. Using transaction cost economics and the organizational capabilities literatures I develop hypotheses to determine and explain the relevant antecedents to these strategic decisions. I then determine how the decision to make or buy (or both) human capital impacts competitive advantage and how competitive advantage impacts financial outcomes (i.e., revenue, and sales). Hypotheses are tested using data on 30 organizations from …


The Influence Of Selected Factors On The Science Achievement Of Eighth Grade Students In Louisiana, John Dana Gaspard Jan 2014

The Influence Of Selected Factors On The Science Achievement Of Eighth Grade Students In Louisiana, John Dana Gaspard

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study is to determine the influence of selected demographic and academic factors on the science achievement among middle school students in Louisiana. The dependent variable for this study was Science achievement as measured by the Eighth Grade LEAP Test. The independent variables consisted of selected demographic characteristics and student scores on the ELA, Reading, Mathematics, and Social Studies sections of the Eighth Grade LEAP Test and their subtests. The target population of this study was Eighth Grade students in the public schools of Louisiana who were required to successfully complete the LEAP test in order …