Digital Commons Network^™

Love Affair With Thin Air: Mortality, Mastery, And The Consumerism Of Mountaineering, Kenneth Bates, Justine Rapp Farrell, Steven W. Kopp, Christopher Newman

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

Mountaineering is arguably one of the most dangerous recreational challenges an individual may ever choose to undertake, yet millions of people annually venture above 8000 feet to challenge themselves in pursuit of personal goals, ideals, and support of individual values. But, why are consumers motivated to participate in such demanding and hazardous pursuits? This paper evaluates the psychological complexities surrounding adventure tourism as an act of consumerism, uncovering the pursuit of values, ideals, and identity transformation that is guided by one's own mortality salience. The present study seeks to examine consumer satisfaction beyond the simple pleasures of adventure and adrenaline …

An Examination Of Brand Avoidance Among Consumers Of Membership Business Models, Cara Peters, Bradley W. Brooks

Journal of Applied Marketing Theory

The purpose of this study is to examine how the increasingly prevalent business membership model is linked to potential brand avoidance. Based on a qualitative examination of consumer complaints from two organizations that utilize membership business models, this research demonstrates how consumer complaints are highly consistent with established brand avoidance antecedents. The findings offer a cautionary warning to business decision-makers who manage membership business models with consumers as well as to those who are considering implementing such an approach. The implications for these decision-makers are discussed.

Trust And Fintech: A Review And Research Agenda, James F. Devlin, Sanjit K. Roy, Harjit Sekhon, S. M.A. Moin, Mehmet Sahiner

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

The primary objective of this paper is to formulate a detailed research agenda focussed on trust in the context of FinTech. To achieve this objective, conceptualisations of trust and related constructs are reviewed, and a detailed model of trust is developed. The domain of FinTech is then introduced and is taken to include current and emerging innovations in financial services incorporating aspects of big data and AI, as well as open and decentralised finance and crypto assets. Typologies of FinTech services are also explored. Arguments concerning the importance of trust in financial services are then reviewed, along with prior studies …

A Study On The Impact Of Ceos’ Financial And Technical Backgrounds On The Innovation Strategy Of The Enterprise, Jianyu Cheng

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Amid regional economic integration and market competition, innovation has become a key driver for enterprises to gain competitive advantages and ensure sustainable development. As primary decision-makers in corporate strategy and resource allocation, chief executive officers (CEOs) impact the selection and implementation of innovation strategies through their financial and technical backgrounds, which influence their strategic cognition and risk preferences, leading to heterogeneous innovation behaviors. While existing research has examined the relationship between CEOs and corporate innovation, studies have inadequately explored CEOs’ diverse background characteristics, particularly the interaction between financial and technical backgrounds. Given the rising trend of CFOs and CTOs advancing …

Corporate Strategic Changes In Response To Negative Performance Gaps: The Role Of Listing Board In China, Lei Yu

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

This dissertation investigates how Chinese listed companies respond strategically to negative performance gaps under different institutional environments defined by the Main Board and ChiNext Board of China’s capital market. Drawing on Performance Feedback Theory and New Institutional Theory, it explores whether and how listing board heterogeneity moderates the relation between performance shortfalls and corporate strategic transformation, and further examines the boundary effects of internal governance factors including ownership type, CEO power, and resource slack.

Using panel data of A-share listed companies from 2009 to 2019 obtained from the CSMAR database, this study employs multiple regression analysis and interaction modeling to …

From Discrete Manufacturing To Continuous Manufacturing: Examining The Relationship Among Digital Capability, Organizational Learning, And Enterprise Performance, Demu Chen

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

In 2018, Company J launched its intelligent drive digital transformation project, which was completed and entered operation in 2021. That December, the project obtained certification under Zhejiang Province's "1353" system for the future factory enterprises, marking a successful transition from discrete to continuous manufacturing. To address the asynchronous flows of logistics, information, personnel, capital, and value indiscrete manufacturing enterprises, as well as pain points such as lowper capita output, long product delivery cycles, and low annual inventory turnover rates, this study, based on organizational learning theory, constructs ananalytical model encompassing digital capability (independent variable X), organizational learning (mediating variable Z), …

The Impact Of Value Co-Creation On Organizational Resilience In Small And Medium-Sized Traditional Foreign Trade Enterprises, Dan Yan

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Against the backdrop of increasing uncertainty in the global business environment, international scholarly attention to individual, group, and organizational resilience has risen significantly. Chinese export trading enterprises—especially small and medium-sized export trading enterprises(SMETEs)—face disadvantages such as small scale, weak financing capacity, limited access to information, and low brand strength. After experiencing shocks from digital transformation, the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia–Ukraine war, and the European energy crisis, these firms have been compelled to reconsider how to enhance their organizational resilience in order to adapt to an increasingly turbulent external environment.

First, this study selects Company H as a representative case of …

Striking A Balance Between Personal Data Protection And Transactional Efficiency In The Context Of Data-Driven Mergers, Jun Hu

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

The proliferation of data-driven mergers and acquisitions (M&A) has created a critical tension between the commercial value of integrated data assets and the fundamental privacy rights of users. This dissertation addresses the underexplored micro-foundations of user consent when personal data is transferred wholesale to an acquiring firm. It develops and empirically tests a sequential mediation model, anchored in Privacy Calculus and Signaling Theory, to explain how users' perceptions and intentions are shaped by different corporate data protection strategies.

A between-subjects experimental design was employed (N=532), exposing participants to one of three distinct protection mechanisms: procedural safeguards (emphasizing fairness and control), …

The Influence Of Culture + Technology On Night-Time Economy, Jianping Xu

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

As a vital component of modern urban economies, the night-time economy has emerged as a crucial pathway for stimulating domestic demand and promoting consumption upgrading. With the rapid development of digital technologies and increasingly diversified cultural demands, the deep integration of 'Culture + Technology' has provided new momentum for the innovative development of the night-time economy. This study focuses on how 'Culture + Technology' empowers the night-time economy, exploring its impact mechanisms, current status, and development pathways through theoretical analysis, case studies, and empirical surveys.

First, this paper constructs a theoretical framework for 'Culture + Technology' empowering the night-time economy …

The Impact Of Top Management Team Heterogeneity On Corporate Green Innovation, Xueyan Luo

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

At present, green innovation has become a key path for enterprises to achieve sustainable competitive advantage. However, existing research pays limited attention to how internal governance factors—especially top management team (TMT) heterogeneity—affect green innovation. Based on Upper Echelons Theory, managerial cognition theory, and institutional theory, this paper constructs a framework of “TMT heterogeneity–green strategic orientation–green innovation,” and explores the impact of different types of heterogeneity and the moderating role of regional innovation environments. Heterogeneity is categorized into conflict-type (gender, age, financial background) and complementary-type (educational, professional, overseas background) to better explain its mechanisms.

Using a sample of Chinese A-share listed …

Chasing The Dream And Buying The Promise In A Conceptual Framework For Consumer Decision-Making, Casey H. Prentice

Communication & Theatre Arts Theses

The American dream is a concept that is echoed across our society, and while the data show Americans do not overwhelmingly believe in the dream, marketers continue to pair it and the issue of economic prosperity in their agendas. Through a novel framework that overlaps a deeply studied mass communication theory with a decision-making framework used in marketing, this paper demonstrates a new lens to understand how marketers identify strategies and tactics, build agendas, and make sales by touting the American dream. As separate entities, decision-making models and agenda setting theory are powerful, but together can create an environment that …

A Comprehensive Digital Marketing Strategy Guide For Independent Musicians, William Elree Hilburn

Theses

Creating and implementing a sound digital marketing strategy is a crucial element to consider as an independent musician. In this thesis report and the strategy guide that follows, a number of current digital marketing strategies are discussed at length. The strategies that are discussed in this report and within the strategy guide have been gleaned through semi-structured qualitative interviews with two separate up-and-coming music artists. The information shared by these case studies has been documented and synthesised into this report, as well as, into a comprehensive strategy guide that has been written to aid fledgling music artists in their digital …

The Iron Pyramid: Expanding The Iron Triangle To Integrate Safety As A Fundamental Dimension Of Construction Success, Laura Cooley

All Theses

For more than fifty years, construction project success has been judged by staying on schedule, remaining within budget, and completing the planned scope of work—an approach commonly known as the “Iron Triangle” (Barnes, Ph.D., 2006). While these measures are important, they do not capture the full range of factors that determine whether a project truly succeeds.

This study introduces the “Iron Pyramid” (Cooley, 2025), a model that expands the traditional framework by adding a fourth dimension: safety. Safety is understood not simply as regulatory compliance or the absence of injuries, but as a holistic construct encompassing project culture, leadership practices, …

What Do Americans Think About Federal Tax Options To Support Transportation? Results From Year Sixteen Of A National Survey, Asha Weinstein Agrawal, Hilary Nixon

Mineta Transportation Institute

This report summarizes the results from the sixteenth year of a national public opinion survey asking U.S. adults questions related to their views on federal transportation taxes. A nationally representative sample of 2,539 respondents completed the online survey from February 3 to February 27, 2025. The questions test public opinions about raising the federal gas tax rate, replacing the federal gas tax with a new mileage fee, and imposing a mileage fee just on commercial travel. In addition to asking directly about support for these tax options, the survey collected data on respondents’ views on the quality of their local …

Chatgpt In Teaching English As A Foreign Language: Teacher And Learner Perspectives, Sameiha Alhussain N Khawaji

University of Tabuk Journal for Humanities and Social Sciences

This study investigates ChatGPT as a supplementary tool in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) education through surveys of 150 teachers and 350 learners in Asia, Europe and Latin America. Results show that ChatGPT improves language proficiency by providing personalized feedback, conversational fluency (72% of users reported improvement), writing scores by 22% and vocabulary through contextualized practice. Teachers found it useful for lesson planning and administrative tasks. However, challenges such as plagiarism risks (15% of cases), occasional inaccuracies and cultural insensitivities especially in idiomatic and formal language use require ethical guidelines and human oversight. For example, Asian participants noted mismatches …

Digital Communications Between Firms And Investors: Impact Of Explanatory Responses On Investor Engagement In Online Financial Q&A, Runyu Wang, Zili Zhang, Keng Siau, Ziqiong Zhang

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

The emerging trend of digital communications between firms and investors through online question-and-answer (Q&A) platforms is recognized as a vital strategy for managing investor relations, contributing to enhanced market efficiency and information transparency through increased information exchange. Potential investors can seek responses from firm managers to address their information needs, thereby mitigating market uncertainties. To provide foundational insights, we conduct a survey of investors to assess their awareness, usage, and perceptions of firm-investor Q&A platforms. In the subsequent empirical study, we specifically focus on the substance of managers’ responses, which are primarily aimed at clarifying firm events or information. In …

The Role Women Play As Facilitators And Barriers In The Career Trajectory Of Female Leaders, Anna Marie Smith

School of Public Service Theses & Dissertations

As gender diversity in the American workplace increases, the complexities surrounding the challenges faced by women continue to evolve. In recent years, this shift has led to an increase in women entering the workforce in record numbers, providing them with opportunities for successful careers, particularly with respect to leadership, all while balancing work and family life. However, despite the significant gains women have made in the employment arena, they continue to lag behind their male counterparts when it comes to leadership opportunities. While research is abundant on the characteristics of female leaders, what motivates them, and how they compare to …

An Active Learning Simulation For Teaching Hadoop In An Undergraduate Business Curriculum, Ruben A. Mendoza Ph.D., Liyuan Liu Ph.D.

International Journal for Business Education

This paper shows the effectiveness of an experiential learning activity for teaching core Hadoop concepts to undergraduate business students across all majors (Finance, Marketing, etc.). The complexity of Hadoop, with its distributed computing model and deep technical requirements, presents significant challenges in educational settings. The simulation was developed for an introductory course in a Business Intelligence & Analytics (BI&A) curriculum and adapted for use in a Database Management (DB) course. Results show significantly higher performance on questions centered on the topic in an online test preparation game with a total of 236 students in 11 different offerings of the course. …

Tax Trends, Harry Z. Garian

Tax Adviser

No abstract provided.

The Tax Adviser, Volume 15, Number 1 (Pilot Issue), January 1970, American Institute Of Certified Public Accountants

Tax Adviser

No abstract provided.

Tax Trends, Harry Z. Garian

Tax Adviser

No abstract provided.

Tax Trends, Harry Z. Garian

Tax Adviser

No abstract provided.

Professions At Work: Separating The Wheat From The Chaff In 1974, Joel M. Forster

Tax Adviser

No abstract provided.

Professions At Work: Proposed Source-Of Income Regulations: Tax Division’S Comments, Joel M. Forster, American Institute Of Certified Public Accountants. Federal Tax Division

Tax Adviser

No abstract provided.

Final Inventory Regulations: Analysis And Planning, Leslie J. Schneider

Tax Adviser

No abstract provided.

Tax Clinic, William T. Diss

Tax Adviser

No abstract provided.

Transdisciplinary Perspectives On Ai: The Fourth Annual Conference Of The European Culture And Technology Laboratory, Connell Vaughan, Ioana Madalina Moldovan, Silivan Moldovan, Noel Fitzpatrick

Books/Book Chapters

The fourth annual conference of the ECT Lab+ was hosted by Technical University of Cluj-Napoca over two days in October 2024 at the Cluj Innovation Park. The conference brought together experts from the Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences, Technology, and other fields to discuss and reflect on the advent of Artificial Intelligence and how the associated technologies are transforming how we live, work and study. Under the title Transdisciplinary perspectives on AI: Alternative Histories, Current Practices and Possible Futures the conference moved beyond simplistic technophila and technophobia to consider whether we can co-evolve with these new technologies which combine machine learning …

Shaping Smarter Supply Chains With Robotics And Automation, Daniel Delucio

Honors Projects

The purpose of this study is to analyze how companies operate their logistics processes from the procurement of raw materials to the delivery of the final product to customers. By examining current methodologies, the study identifies best practices, emerging trends, and challenges shaping modern supply chain management. Specifically, this research investigates how artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and automation can be integrated to improve efficiency, transparency, and resilience.

Mark Munsell Named Distinguished Fellow Of Artificial Intelligence, Lindenwood University

Archived Lindenwood Press Releases

No abstract provided.

2025 - The Sixth Annual Fall Symposium Of Student Scholars

Symposium of Student Scholars Program Books

The full program book from the Fall 2025 Symposium of Student Scholars, held in November 2025. Includes abstracts from the presentations and posters.