Business Commons^™

Help Or Hindrance: How Social Media Affects The Selection And Hiring Processes Of Businesses, Alexandra Krska

Management Undergraduate Honors Theses

Continually, young people have been advised to be conscientious of the imagery they put on social media regarding their personal lives in preparation for employment selection. However, the use of social media in the selection process may cause Human Resource professionals to have inadvertent biases toward candidates among other moral and ethical issues. Through extensive research of the thoughts and actions of a plethora of different corporate professionals, I will analyze whether using social media as a tool in the selection process authentically produces positive unbiased results, or whether social media poses more ethical issues. With the hopes to create …

Lehman Brothers Bankruptcy: Reasons, Effects, And Outcome, Christian J. Reller

Finance Undergraduate Honors Theses

Lehman Brothers’ bankruptcy was a major turning point during the 2008 Financial Crisis, and Lehman Brothers itself has become a prime example of regulatory failure since its closing. The demise of Lehman stemmed from the repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933. The deregulation of investment banking in the 1990s forged the way for new investment practices on Wall Street. The relaxation of rules allowed investment banks to be heavily invested in volatile assets. Lehman’s issues were an extremely high leverage ratio, illiquid assets, and poor corporate governance. An extremely high leverage ratio left Lehman susceptible to large movements in …

Marketing And The Church, Parker Panetti

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper attempts to take an in-depth look at the current state of the Church in America and how marketing has and will continue to play a key role in its position in society.

The word marketing comes from the concept of the merchant buying and selling a product - in the market. From a Christian perspective, marketing tells the story of the redemptive work of Jesus Christ - who bought and redeemed mankind for a price, saved from sin, and set apart for service to the Lord. Churches have this story, the greatest story to tell, but people are …

Will The Metaverse Be Impactful?, Thomas Cupples

Economics Undergraduate Honors Theses

In the whirlwind that is the blockchain and cryptocurrency space, it is easy to get swept

up and lost in what is valuable and what is not valuable in the space. This report intends to

explore and increase the understanding of blockchain technologies, primarily the emerging

metaverse and its use cases, and to demonstrate a better understanding of where this emerging

market can create value. Although blockchain has received negative publicity (due to market

speculation and price volatility, as opposed to the real value of the systems), the metaverse is a

blockchain centric reality with use cases as of today. …

How Agriculture Could Uplift A Nation And Its People: Providing Analytical Data To Farmers In Belize, Thomas G. Stephenson

Economics Undergraduate Honors Theses

Agriculture is the bedrock of the Belize economy, but is plagued by routine issues. These problems hurt not only the economy of Belize, but also the health and well being of its citizens. By working with the Ministry of Agriculture my team surveyed the Stann Creek district of Belize to address these issues and provide much needed information to local farmers.

Employment Discrimination’S Impact On African American’S Professional And Personal Lives, Trey D. Williams

Information Systems Undergraduate Honors Theses

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 makes it illegal to discriminate against a person because of their race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. The law also protects individuals from retaliation if they complain about discrimination, participate in an employment discrimination proceeding, or reasonably oppose discrimination. Although Title VII makes discrimination illegal, it is still present in the workplace. The objective of this thesis is to discuss employee discrimination based on race and sex. Specifically, I will analyze the current workplace discrimination against African American men and women as well as the psychological, physiological, and emotional effects …

Full Disclosure: Model Uncertainty In Adjusting For Confounders, Dieudonne Dusenge

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the role of knowledge about underlying causal relationships in classifying controls in order to mitigate omitted- and included-variable biases. Using simulations and accounting examples, the study shows that the researcher may not distinguish good and bad controls because the underlying causal relationships are unobservable, and remedying strategies (such as the relative timing of measurement) may not remove the uncertainty in the classification. Because of the uncertainty about which controls to use, two or more models will be credible as will the distinct estimates derived from them. Next, the study shows that the current standard practice of singling …

Reconciling Conflicting Institutional Logics: Community Reinvestment Officers At The Intersection Of Public Policy And Market Forces, Meredith Mckee Adkins

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Although the public policy literature has traditionally focused on public sector agencies’ roles in the policy implementation process, private sector managers who oversee regulatory mandates for their organizations are also policy actors. These actors operate between multiple conflicting field-level institutional logics that create demands that they must reconcile through their work. In the banking sector, the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), enacted in 1977, and its associated policies are monitored by the banking regulatory agencies and implemented by the senior managers responsible for these mandates at regulated financial institutions. Simultaneously with their responsibility for the policy mission of the CRA, CRA …

Closing The Gender Gap In Entrepreneurship Education, Carolyn J. Rodeffer

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Entrepreneurship education in higher education has been cited as a key strategy in filling the entrepreneurship talent pool, preparing students with the skills and confidence needed to start new ventures (Westhead & Solesvik, 2016). However, outcomes of entrepreneurship education for female students are less positive than for their male counterparts (Shinnar et al., 2012; Westhead & Solesvik, 2016; Wilson et al., 2007). Working within the frameworks of Bandura’s self-efficacy theory (1977), Azjen’s theory of planned behavior (1991), and Steele and Aronson’s stereotype threat theory (1995), this quantitative study utilized an experimental research design to assess the impact of role model …

Essays On Performance Evaluation Of Portfolio Managers Of Mutual And Hedge Funds, Yuekun Liu

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation consists of three essays focusing on the performance evaluation of portfolio managers of mutual and hedge funds. The first essay shows the performance of corporate bond mutual funds tends to be estimated using models with limited empirical validation. I test several models and find considerable variation in quality. That variation leads to meaningful differences with respect to the stylized facts of corporate bond fund performance. Using my preferred BENCH4 model—a novel model based on funds’ common benchmarks—I find average underperformance, substantial relative performance persistence, a small number of funds with positive alphas unattributable to luck, and positive alphas …

Three Essays On The Effect Of Scarcity On Consumer Behavior And Firm Performance, Pritosh Kumar

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Studies have consistently shown that scarcity plays a significant role in shaping decision making. Under conditions of scarcity, individuals tend to behave impulsively, and firms are inclined to redefine their set of priorities and strategies, ultimately impacting their performance. Considering the scant investigation of the mechanisms and effects of scarcity in the supply chain management literature, this dissertation aimed to investigate the roles of scarcity in shaping consumer behavior and firm strategy in three essays.

The first essay investigated the effect of post-stockout scarcity disclosures on consumer responses to stockouts through the lens of product scarcity and signaling theory. The …

Three Chapters On Investments And Financial Institutions, Cao Fang

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Only the stock selection (“alpha”) decisions of fund managers who trade on firm-specific information should have predictive return content. Faced with the same information, skilled fund managers make similar stock selection decisions. In Chapter one, we introduce a new measure - stock investment quality - which uses fund quality to weight asymmetries in private information reflected in deviations of fund from peer group ownership on stocks in a style segment. We show stocks ranked high on investment quality generate significantly higher excess returns that persist through the ensuing year. The positive investment quality–future return relationship is robust to alternative fund …

The Buzz Behind Alcohol Advertising: A Study Of How Alcohol Advertisements On Social Media Impact Behavior, Alexis Morgan Campbell

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Alcohol advertisements are known to be appealing and memorable, and several researchers have investigated what makes these advertisements so attractive. Several trends have emerged regarding the content within alcohol advertisements: themes of parties, celebration, and social success within television, magazines, and social media since the 1970s. Recently, several studies found that new themes in alcohol ads have been found to be popular, especially in social media advertisements (Campbell & Chung, 2022). The elaboration likelihood model (ELM) provides insight into why a person’s attitude could be more susceptible or why their behavior could be more easily influenced by certain types of …

Exploring The Divergent Social Dimensions Of Ceo Narcissism On Internal Firm Outcomes, Andrew Brandon Blake

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this study, I move away from the common clinical conception of narcissism in management to a novel two-dimensional concept and measurement of narcissism. Because these dimensions are shown to have divergent motives, goals, social strategies, and behaviors, I theorize that these differences in narcissism will have diverging effects on the firm. Then, I shift the conceptual focus of CEO narcissism research from the CEO as an agentic decision-maker seeking external praise for firm consequences to an implicit social strategist who prioritizes short-term interpersonal interactions in service of narcissistic supply. I examine four internal outcomes likely to be influenced by …

The Forces Changing U.S. Shopping Behavior, Dinesh K. Gauri

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

The future of retail is all about catering to the consumer. To survive retail’s newest challenge, retailers must understand what’s shaping consumer demand.

Shopping Marketing Tactics That Drive Purchases, Dinesh K. Gauri

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

Technology is reshaping the retail experience. In the fight for market share, how effective are traditional marketing tactics and technology offerings at attracting shoppers?

Active Learning With Cybersecurity, Carole Shook

Publications and Presentations

A global campus grant was obtained in Spring 2020 to develop modules for Cybersecurity. This presentation encompasses the use of Cyberciege and case studies that require active learning of students.

Understanding The Relationship Between Procurement Practices And The Utilization Of Forced Labor, Clara Rauzi

Supply Chain Management Undergraduate Honors Theses

This literature review examines the relationship between procurement practices and the utilization of forced labor. As businesses strive to reduce expenses, one of the most significant areas of expenditure is labor. In forced labor, individuals are exploited and coerced into doing jobs or providing services for which they have not voluntarily undertaken. Globally, there are millions trapped in forced labor who are tied to their positions through debt bondage, threats, or fraud. Analysis of the determinants of forced labor, as well as possible techniques for mitigating it, will aid in the battle to end forced labor. A variety of literature …

Accounting Internship Thesis - Koch Industries, Casey Rivero

Accounting Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis outlines my accounting internship experience with Koch Industries during the summer of 2021. It describes the company's background, explains my role and responsibilities throughout the summer, and details the tools and technology I worked with. This thesis shows what is to be expected of the present day accountant and bridges the gap between university course material and real-life corporate application.

Inflatable Fall-Guard System, Ximiao Yang

Accounting Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper attempts to use a fall guard system created by the senior capstone team to run marketing research, accounting calculation, and financial analysis.

Exploring Women’S Sizing Chart: A View Into Psychosizing, Patience Billingsley

Apparel Merchandising and Product Development Undergraduate Honors Theses

The apparel industry lacks a universal sizing system and has created tactics to group consumers under a few generic sizes. The inconsistency in sizing has led to a struggle of consumers trying to find pieces of clothing that are not only their size but fit their measurements as well. An analysis of the sizing charts of 5 different women’s clothing private labels ranging from sizes 0-16 within two major department stores was assessed. The sizing charts within each individual store were evaluated, and then compared to one another. After calculating the sizing differences, an average of both store A and …

Apparel Students' Perception Of Denim Quality In Relation To Price And Brand, Karli Haws

Apparel Merchandising and Product Development Undergraduate Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to evaluate apparel students’ perception of quality in denim jeans based on the influences of price and brand. The following research objectives were developed:

1. To determine if apparel students’ perceptions of garment quality are affected by price and brand.

2. To determine how apparel students perceive quality in a garment.

3. To determine if price and brand are indicators of quality to apparel students.

The Importance Of Agile Reporting Methods In A Retail Sales Environment, Katie Haefner

Information Systems Undergraduate Honors Theses

The primary objective of this project is to understand the importance of agile reporting methodologies for a retail sales team. Data has proven to be very vital for businesses to use and understand. In software systems that serve as data warehouses, it is expected that value be provided at each iteration within the system. This includes all the measurements, metrics, and reports. Agile reporting effects the way that data is utilized within a company. This paper looks at some of ways that value can be added when companies focus on ways to consolidate and standardize data as well as make …

Forecasting Razorback Baseball Game Outcomes, Austin Raabe

Information Systems Undergraduate Honors Theses

Despite the disappointing end to the 2021 Arkansas Razorback baseball year, the team’s success provided hog fans something to look forward to next season. While they will be without the 2021 Golden Spikes Award winner, Kevin Kopps, and four All-SEC team selections, the 2022 roster has promising new and returning talent. With fifty percent of the players who played significant time last year coming back (minimum ten hits or ten innings pitched), the arrival of several impact transfers from major conferences, and a recruiting class ranked in the top five according to Perfect Game, there is reason to believe that …

Supply Chain Disruptions During The Pandemic And Ways Food And Beverage Companies Are Looking To Find Stability, Jacob Merz

Supply Chain Management Undergraduate Honors Theses

In March 2020, the world was impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic and is still dealing with its repercussions. This paper examines how the pandemic has had an impact on the food and beverage industry. In this study, there are three disruptions highlighted by industry professionals and online articles. The professionals within the supply chain industry cited in this research are Jane Gringer-Flinn, Director of Customer Solutions at Coca-Cola, Whit Calhoun, Senior Director of Logistics at The Fishin’ Company, Judy Thorne, Senior Director Distribution Services at Tyson Foods, and Bill Carver, Senior Director at J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. The three …

An Investigation Into Dysfunctionality Within Intermodal Transportation With A Minor Focus On Refrigerated Containers, Austin Burgess

Supply Chain Management Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper will contain a discourse regarding intermodal transportation, with a focus on refrigerated containers. It will also give insight into the current issues facing the intermodal market with a selection of suggestions on how to address them. The discourse will take factors such as cost, service, reliability, capacity, the characteristics of the different modes of transportation, and several other factors into consideration. This shall be accomplished through a qualitative interview series conducted with involved parties with different perspectives. Additionally, quantitative data gathered from industry and governmental resources will assist in the analysis. The output of this paper will be …

Northwest Arkansas Commercial Retail Strategy, Joshua Winn

Supply Chain Management Undergraduate Honors Theses

Retail supply chain tactics vary drastically by differing cities, especially when looking at population density and how it can affect final mile delivery. When looking to expand or create new business, you will have to look at new ways to operate your business to compete in each specific environment. An example of this would be how cultural trends affect how business is done, such as people having smaller cabinets in many Asian countries, meaning less products being purchased on shopping trips. Grocery stores in urban cities in China also have very limited access to parking. Walmart discovered the best way …

A Country Prospering On Abuse: Migrant Worker Exploitation And Labor Reform In Qatar, Emma Towe

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

The countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council rely on migrant workers to drive their economies and perform hard labor while simultaneously abusing these workers through the kafala (sponsorship) system. Qatar is not an exception to this rule, even as labor reforms are being implemented. When Qatar was awarded the responsibility of hosting the 2022 FIFA World Cup, an international spotlight on labor abuses followed. Although Qatar has responded by enacting labor reforms, strong evidence shows continued abuse and lax enforcement of new polices. While the economy of Qatar thrives, overworked, underpaid migrant workers, who have little to no rights, continue …

A Historical And Practical Analysis For Neuromarketing In Business Practices Today, Scott Wicinski

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

What thoughts come to your mind when you think of the term neuromarketing? In a digital age where personal privacy seems to be diminishing and data exploitation appears to be rising, many people are skeptical about businesses' attempts to combine neurology, psychology, and business. This skepticism is unfortunately, legitimate. Our history reveals plenty of occasions where businesses have exploited their customers through unethical means and traded valuable relationships and resources for profits. However, despite the flaws business can introduce, business is arguably still the most powerful tool for creating value in a community. Through business, customers have had access to …

Achieving Brand Authenticity In The Age Of Cancel Culture: Why Brands Can No Longer Be Neutral Without Being Seen As Complicit, Caitlin Paris

Marketing Undergraduate Honors Theses

As cultural controversies arise, brands experience pressure from consumers and competitors to take a stance. The looming presence of cancel culture has increased this feeling, as users are quick to point fingers at organizations they think are falling short. However, increased brand engagement has created a gap between superficiality and moral accountability. When a crisis strikes, the media arena becomes filled with statements, pleas, and promises, but when the dust settles, those who lack action are quick to be criticized. Companies must strike a balance between focalized brand authenticity and short-term reactivity, in a culture where it is unacceptable to …