Digital Commons Network^™

Leveraging Ai-Driven Salesforce Crm To Improve Customer Retention In The Irish Insurance Sector., Mohamed El Bakouri

Business ETD Collections

This study explores the growing importance of customer satisfaction within the Irish insurance sector, a highly competitive and evolving market. Traditionally, insurers relied on personal relationships and competitive pricing to retain customers; however, modern consumers increasingly demand fast, personalised services tailored to their individual needs. In response, artificial intelligence (AI), particularly when integrated with customer relationship management (CRM) systems, has emerged as a transformative solution. Tools such as AI-powered CRM platforms enable insurers to utilise predictive analytics, generate customer insights, and enhance service delivery, thereby improving customer retention. Despite these benefits, the adoption of such technologies presents significant challenges for …

Dynamic Interactions Between Natural Gas Return, Financial Market Return, And Energy Stock Return: A Var Analysis Of Conoco Phillips., Caglar Yildiz

Business ETD Collections

This study investigates the dynamic interrelationships among ConocoPhillips (COP) stock returns, natural gas prices, the S&P500 index, and changes in the U.S. 10-Year Treasury bond yield using a Vector Autoregressive (VAR) model over the period January 2020 to July 2025. Weekly data are used to estimate a VAR(4) model, allowing for lagged and contemporaneous interactions across financial and commodity markets. The variables are treated as endogenous, with the model validated through stationarity testing, Johansen cointegration analysis, and diagnostic checks.

Cholesky decomposition is employed for structural identification, with the 10-Year Treasury yield ordered as the most exogenous variable. Wild bootstrap techniques …

“Move Fast And Break Things”: Innovation, Stability, And Trust In The Growth Of Revolut., Belen Blanco Mendoza

Business ETD Collections

In this research project, I chose to examine the strategies used in the growth of the fintech Revolut, namely the ’move-fast-and-break-things’ strategy that was employed at the beginning of the company. With this in mind, I decided on two Research Questions, “With the benefit of hindsight, and a focus on problems caused by low security and poor customer support, is Revolut’s ‘move fast and break things’ philosophy a good strategy for the business?” and “Will Revolut’s new fraud prevention strategies, and advances in AI help recover the lost goodwill caused by their earlier ineffective strategies?”, which guided me …

Algorithms And Intimacy: Millennials' Social Meanings From Their Experience Using Tinder., Yuka Gega

Business ETD Collections

In recent years, the way people form relationships has undergone a profound transformation, shifting from traditional, community-based interactions to global, technology-mediated connections. Dating apps have played a central role in this shift, using algorithms and limited user data, such as photos and profiles, to match individuals. While these platforms offer convenience and expanded opportunities to meet others, they may also prioritise selection and appearance over the development of meaningful connections. The widespread adoption of smartphones has accelerated the global reach of these services, making them highly accessible and widely used, particularly among millennials. However, algorithm-driven matching introduces new challenges, including …

Technologies Of Violence: Law, Markets, And Innovation For Gun Safety, Joseph Blocher, Christopher Buccafusco

Faculty Scholarship

Violence in the United States is distinctive in many ways, perhaps none more visceral and fundamental than the technologies with which it is practiced. American violence disproportionately involves guns, and because guns are such an effective tool of violence, confrontations involving them are disproportionately deadly. Decades of research confirm this "instrumentality effect, " and it is reflected in the broad, bipartisan agreement that the nation has a gun violence problem. The deep disagreement, of course, remains about how to address it, with most of the debate focused on regulating who can carry which guns, where, and how.

But fully understanding, …

Females On Board, Stakeholder Orientation, And Esg Disclosure: An Evidence From The Tourism And Transportation Industries, Akrum Helfaya, Phuong Bui, Ahmed Aboud

All Works

In the tourism and transportation (T&T) industries, female directors' contributions are undervalued despite the strong emphasis on board gender diversity in management research. We investigate whether the impact of multiple board gender diversity measures on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices varies between shareholder- and stakeholder-oriented countries and between T&T industries, drawing on insights from both managerial and psychological perspectives. Using an international sample of 790 firm-year observations representing 79 listed firms from 16 countries, we find that gender diversity is positively associated with ESG disclosure practices, and this relationship is more pronounced in shareholder-oriented countries and the transportation sector. …

Volume 28, Issue 1 Full Contents

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

No abstract provided.

Performance Is In The Eye Of The Beholder: Exploring The Moderating Role Of Psychological Perspective Distancing Within Thought Self-Leadership In An Organizational Context, Christopher Bryton Neck

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Self-leadership, or the process through which individuals perform various cognitive and behavioral strategies to attain the self-direction and self-motivation necessary to perform in desired ways, has consistently been evidenced to enhance individuals’ performance through promoting a variety of positive individual cognitions, such as self-efficacy, positive affect, and engagement and through diminishing key threatening mental states such as stress, negative affect, and dysfunctional thinking (Harari et al., 2021; Knotts et al., 2022). The cognitive component of self-leadership, thought self-leadership (TSL) has been found to be particularly impactful, aiding the individual to modify and adapt their dysfunctional thinking to be more constructive …

Analysis Of The Public Acceptance Of Cryptocurrency In The Central African Republic, Bruno Gbado

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation explores the public acceptance of cryptocurrency in the Central African Republic (CAR), applying the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) as the theoretical framework. The study adopts a research model and survey instrument derived from a previous published research paper. Data were collected through paper-based surveys from 357 respondents, mostly students and faculty members at the University of Bangui in the CAR. The responses were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) with Smart PLS software. The results reveal that increased awareness of cryptocurrency significantly boosts its acceptance, with factors such as perceived ease of use and perceived …

Consumer Experiences In The Secondhand Market: Finances, Frugality, Fashion, & Fun, Melissa Chasko Turner

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Secondhand apparel refers to clothing and accessories that have been previously owned, handed down, donated, or resold to others. They are a sustainable product because they are reused instead of being discarded into landfills. Consumer experience refers to the emotional and psychological responses individuals have during their interactions with products and services across all touchpoints. In the secondhand apparel market, consumer experience plays a significant role in product purchasing, and the unique aspects of retail entertainment serve as key motivators. Consumer-perceived risk refers to the uncertainty of adverse outcomes associated with purchasing a product. Purchasing secondhand apparel poses similar yet …

Joann: Analyzing The Downfall Of America’S Beloved Crafting Retailer, Savanna Solano

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

No abstract provided.

Immersive And Generative Technology: New Tools For Marketing, New Tools For Consumer Response, David W. Stewart, Gabrielle Pizzi, Shashi Matta, Federica Caboni

Marketing & Business Law Faculty Works

Immersive technologies, including AR, VR, XR, and generative technologies such as Gen‐AI, are reinventing marketing practice and consumer experience. In this article we provide an introductory review of how these technologies are (re)shaping consumer behavior in domains where the physical and digital converge, and consumers' response to them. Our review finds that while immersive technologies enhance engagement through personalization and multisensory feedback, they also raise concerns about accessibility, authenticity, and digital fatigue. Similarly, Gen‐AI, which is transforming many facets of marketing, including customer service, product development, marketing communications, and consumer research, raises new questions related to attribution, co‐creation, authenticity, and …

Exploring The Stem Career Identity Development Of Black Women Across Their Lifespan, Veronica Hurd

Theses and Dissertations

Although STEM is the fastest-growing career sector, Black women are grossly underrepresented as they account for 2.5% of the workforce. Research highlights that this underrepresentation is due to racialized structures in K-12, postsecondary, and career settings that restrict Black girls’ and women’s STEM opportunities. While macrosystems such as hegemonic ideologies, attitudes, and social conditions shape Black girls’ and women’s opportunities in STEM, they continue to persist and achieve their career goals. To explore these barriers and Black women’s persistence in this industry, this study draws from the autobiographical memories of 10 Black women in the field or formerly in the …

Taking The Temperature: What The Acd 2025 Survey Reveals, Mike Graham, Suzan Pitman

Journal of the American College of Dentists

The American College of Dentists surveyed its Fellows to help leadership better understand how our Fellows perceive and interact with the College. The results will be used to determine organizational priorities and help guide the continued implementation of the strategic plan. The key takeaways of the survey were that (1) the 2023 Strategic Plan implementation is on the right track, (2) Fellows value their connection to the ACD, (3) communication between the organization and Fellows has improved, and (4) leadership and staff must continue to develop a better-defined knowledge base to support local leaders.

Theatre For The People: Exploring The Need For A New National Theatre, Kai Yamanishi

Theatre and Dance Honors Projects

The Covid-19 pandemic sent shockwaves through the theater industry that have seen dozens of venues across the country laying off workers, shortening seasons, and even closing altogether. Costs have risen, audiences have been slow to return, and traditional sources of funding have dried up. What then, are theaters to do? By conducting an economic analysis and examining published and original interviews with theater practitioners, this essay explores this crisis as it has affected the regional nonprofit theater sector, specifically the members of the League of Resident Theaters (LORT). It concludes that LORT’s model is no longer sustainable because of its …

Reconciling Jekyll And Hyde: The Future Of Masculinity Research Within The Domestic Violent Extremism Context, Sam T. Hunter, Brett H. Neely, Carter Welch, Amanda N. Moeller

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

Violence among young men in the United States has escalated in recent years, leading to two contrasting perspectives of young men—either as (a) agentic aggressors or (b) by-products of societal shifts that have caused disadvantage. The first perspective characterizes men as entitled and reactionary, prone to aggression when their societal expectations are unmet. This view aligns with the frustration-aggression hypothesis in which unmet desires lead to hostile behaviors, particularly among individuals who perceive a loss of status and significance. Conversely, the second perspective views men as victims of rapid societal changes, such as job displacement, educational disparities, and shifting gender …

Predicting Crises On The African Frontier Stock Markets With Investor Sentiment Indicators: A Machine Learning Approach, David Korsah, Lord Mensah

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

This study examined the predictive ability of machine learning algorithms in identifying crises within African stock markets. The study employed seven distinct machine-learning models, analyzing historical stock prices from eight stock markets, three major sentiment indicators, and the exchange rates of local currencies against the US dollar, with each data spanning from May 1, 2007, to April 1, 2023. Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) emerged as the most effective algorithm for predicting crises. Historical stock prices and exchange rates were identified as the most critical features for prediction. On the sentiment side, investors’ perceptions of potential volatility on the S&P 500, …

A Conceptual View Of Data For Decision-Oriented Databases: A Knowledge-Driven Approach, Sung-Kwan Kim, Wenjun Wang, Seunghyun Kim

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Typical database design goes through three levels of data modeling: conceptual modeling, logical modeling, and physical modeling. In particular, conceptual modeling is important since it captures and documents user data requirements. Conceptual modeling serves as a blueprint for designing a database by defining information content to be included in a database. Presently, decision-oriented databases have no well-accepted conceptual modeling approach to apply. While some use conceptual modeling approaches for transaction-oriented databases such as the ER (Entity-Relationship) model, they are not well-suited for decision-oriented databases. It is hard to map from the ER Model to decision-oriented data models. Others attempt to …

Preventive Health Care Information Seeking Behaviors Among Baby Boomers In Taiwan, Alexander N. Chen, Michael J. Rubach, Tracy Suter, Hsin Ke Lu, Mark E. Mcmurtrey

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Preventive health care is widely acknowledged as one of the most effective ways to reduce medical costs and enhance people's health. Preventive health care information (PHCI) is a crucial component. This study examines the PHCI-seeking behaviors of Taiwanese baby boomers. The study found some support for the idea that the preferred media used influenced the likelihood of Information seeking behavior. People with good health conditions were found to be more likely to seek PHCI, while people with greater health care needs sought out PHCI less frequently. The study examined social influences, which were found to be important. Three different types …

Pedagogy In The Age Of Ai: Exploring Generative Ai For Higher Education, Alison Munsch Phd

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) presents transformative opportunities for higher education, enabling personalized learning, enhanced student engagement, and efficient pedagogical practices. This tutorial-style article guides educators in integrating generative AI into their classrooms through hands-on activities, practical strategies, and reflective exercises. It explores the capabilities of AI tools such as ChatGPT, their applications across disciplines, and the ethical considerations for their use. By cultivating critical thinking and fostering student readiness for AI-driven futures, this article underscores the transformative potential of generative AI in higher education with an emphasis on the academic areas of business analytics, information systems, and computer science.

Predicting Global Healthcare Supply Chain Delays: A Machine Learning Approach Leveraging Country-Level Logistics Metrics, Jeevan Sai Gali, Nima Molavi, Sepideh Alavi

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

In global healthcare logistics, ensuring the timely delivery of medical commodities is critical, particularly in low- and middle-income countries characterized by infrastructural limitations and operational uncertainties. This research introduces an advanced, data-driven predictive framework designed to forecast delivery delays by synthesizing granular, internal shipment-level data from the USAID Global Health Supply Chain Program (GHSC-PSM) with external country-level logistics capabilities indicators derived from the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index (LPI). Rather than relying on retrospective trend analyses, this study employs machine learning algorithms such as Random Forest, XGBoost, Support Vector Machines (SVM), and Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) to detect …

How Can Chinese Culture Go Abroad? Evidence From Successful Establishment Of Chinese Academic Foreign Translation Projects, Tian Lan

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Compared to Chinese economy scale, the global understanding and recognition of Chinese culture are quite superficial, it is crucial to promote Chinese culture go abroad through academic exchanges between China and other countries. This study explores and validates the relationship and applicability of Chinese culture “Going Global” based on the translation project of Chinese academic works. Through case analysis and the development of data models, it aims to provide theoretical guidance and practical tools for relevant institutions and individuals.

The study begins with qualitative research on cases, describing and analyzing typical examples to demonstrate how Chinese Academic Translation (CAT) projects …

The Effect Of Human Resource Business Partners' Power On Business Managers' Work Outcomes: The Mediating Role Of Voice, Wei Liu

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

As a fundamental construct in social sciences, power is defined as an ability to influence others’ behavior to pursue one’s own interests, which affects the work outcomes of individuals within the organizations. The main purpose of Human Resource Business Partners (HRBPs) is to cooperate with business managers to achieve work outcomes, but in practice, HRBPs are often positioned differently in different organizations due to the lack of a precise definition of HRBPs, so their support to business managers is different. In-depth research on the power and influence of HRBPs can provide theoretical guidance for enhancing the internal work outcomes within …

Older People's Consumption Decisions On Technological Products From A Time Perspective, Xiaowei Huang

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

The Silver Wave and the Technological Wave are leading social changes in the 21st century. Globally, aging populations have become increasingly dependent on technology. Smart health devices, smart home gadgets, and mental health tools can improve older adults' quality of life, enhance health management, and promote social interaction. Smart products, incorporating artificial intelligence (AI), offer enhanced support for older adults, ranging from remote health monitoring to social companionship. The improvement in AI technology, in turn, expands the potential of technological products to address older consumers’ physical and emotional needs. However, most existing studies don't address deeper personality traits such as …

Transit-Oriented Development On Aquidneck Island: Considering The Costs And Benefits Of Restoring Passenger Rail Between Fall River, Massachusetts, And Newport, Rhode Island, Maeve M. Newton

Pell Scholars and Senior Theses

This thesis considers the costs and benefits of restoring historic infrastructure as transit-oriented development on Aquidneck Island, and its potential to bridge social and economic gaps between the urban communities of Newport, Rhode Island, and Fall River, Massachusetts. There is a direct need for more robust public transportation on Aquidneck Island along with environmentally friendly planning initiatives, and reinstating the Newport Secondary Rail Line for passenger rail service to the new Fall River MBTA station is one important way for historic preservation to be utilized for the improvement of sustainability and socioeconomic equity in the region. Original research will be …

America’S Hidden Heroine: The Revolutionary Experience Of Deborah Sampson, Rebecca A. Dawson

Pell Scholars and Senior Theses

This thesis explores the life of Deborah Sampson, a female soldier in the Fourth Massachusetts Regiment during the American Revolution. The author discusses how and why Sampson joined the military, the challenges she had to overcome, and her experience as the first American woman to lead a public lecture tour. Sampson continues to serve as an embodiment of resilience, courage, and the Spirit of ‘76.

Can Commercials Be Art? An Analysis Of Intellectual Property Preawareness In The Barbie Era, Shreya Kalidindi

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

The note examines the evolution of advertising, particularly native advertising, and critiques the inadequacy of current regulatory frameworks in addressing its deceptive potential. It highlights how modern advertising practices, such as product placement in films like Barbie, blur the line between commercial speech and artistic expression, challenging the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) ability to protect consumers. The analysis argues that strengthening existing regulations is insufficient and advocates for empowering consumers to make informed decisions, as the legal system struggles to keep pace with innovative advertising strategies.

The Militarization Of Space: The Cold War And The Space Race, Malin Wahl

Pell Scholars and Senior Theses

The weaponization of space during the Cold War would have posed a significant threat to global security if left unchecked. The Cold War showcased the ideological rivalry between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and their development of a nuclear arsenal. Space was an unexplored domain that actors thought could be weaponized and even become a strategic advantage if a war between these superpowers broke out. The decision to not militarize space, not place orbital weapons in space, and not utilize weapons of mass destruction came from a standoff in which both parties could …

Bed Allocation Model For Infection Control During A Pandemic, Rosemary R. Seva, Dennis E. Cruz, Lourdes Marie Tejero

DLSU Business & Economics Review

This study proposes a model of allocating beds in a hospital considering infection control during a pandemic. The problem was formulated using the quadratic assignment problem (QAP) in a multi-period planning horizon. The main objective is to

minimize the spread of infection by maximizing the total distance (TD) between areas assigned to the pandemic and non- pandemic patients. Model validation using GAMS showed that the assignment of patient groups to areas is determined by

the arrival rates of patients and the area’s capacity. The model was able to identify periods when the sharing of space was more advantageous. The model’s …

Dei Initiatives Through The Eyes Of Young Consumers: Analyzing Gen Z And Gen Alpha Brand Perceptions, Rachel Stephany

Honors Program Theses

No abstract provided.