Business Commons^™

Social Determinants Of Low Educational Attainment, Isabelle Graham, Kevin Lieng, Aubriana Weisbach

Undergraduate Economics Working Paper Series

This paper examines how socioeconomic and demographic factors influence low educational attainment across U.S. cities. The analysis estimates both a linear regression model and a semi-log model to evaluate how poverty, unemployment, family structure, age composition, overcrowding, racial and ethnic minority share, broadband access, and housing cost burden affect the percentage of adults without a high school diploma. The results show that poverty, overcrowding, and minority share are the strongest predictors of low educational attainment, each exhibiting positive and highly significant effects. Overall, the findings highlight the role of social factors in shaping educational outcomes in high school.

The Effects Of Neighborhood And Interior Characteristics On Residential Sale Prices, Ella Sophie Hagman

Undergraduate Economics Working Paper Series

This study analyses to what extent certain neighborhood and interior characteristics affect residential sale prices, after accounting for standard property variables. This is important to examine in order to understand the function of the housing market, the sources of price differences, and whether residential values can be controlled by prioritizing specific desirable property features. The study is based on a dataset of approximately 330,000 observations from the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), as well as walkability data obtained from Walk Score. The data is analyzed in Stata, using three regression models with different combinations of explanatory variables. The results show that …

Mlb Speed Premium, Jacob A. Keithley, Chris Hampton

Undergraduate Economics Working Paper Series

This study analyzes if the 2023 rule changes affected the valuation for speed in the MLB labor market. By using a log-linear wage model and including an interaction term for stolen bases and the post-2023 indicator, we test to see if there is a speed premium in salaries. After accounting for yearly effects, the results present a statistically significant increase in the marginal value of stolen bases after the rule change shock. A placebo test was used with home runs to confirm the effects were specific to speed related metrics. The results suggest that the MLB market has and is …

Do Rural Areas Gender-Discriminate Wages More Than Metropolitan Areas?, Ali Gonzalez, Michael Montano, Brandon Sacks, Joseph Williams

Undergraduate Economics Working Paper Series

This study analyzes the gender wage gap in metropolitan versus rural areas using U.S. hourly wage data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), for the period 2010-2025. The analysis uses regressions on a semi-log wage model and Blinder-Oaxaca decompositions to compare the gaps and separate the effects attributable to explained (endowment) differences from those attributable to unexplained (coefficient) differences. The semi-log wage model reveals a percentage wage decrease for females of approximately 17.4% in rural areas and 9.9% in metropolitan areas. The Blinder-Oaxaca decompositions further indicate that the unexplained (coefficient) component of the gap is substantially larger in rural …

Labor Market Responses To Ai: Measuring Wage Effects Across U.S. Occupations, Kaitlin Pham, Karla Rodriguez

Undergraduate Economics Working Paper Series

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly changing economies around the world, with some experts predicting an impact greater than the Industrial Revolution. As AI becomes more common in daily life and business, questions have grown about how it might affect jobs, wages, and inequality. The rise of automation and highly capable AI models has made people wonder which occupations will benefit and which might be at risk. This study looks at how exposure to AI technologies affects wage trajectories in the United States. Using occupational-level data from O*NET and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, we build an AI exposure index …

Simple Determinants Of Commercial Bank Failures, Matthrew Qi

Undergraduate Economics Working Paper Series

This study investigates the internal and macroeconomic determinants of commercial banking failures in the United States spanning 1959 to 2025. Using a logit model and a four-quarter lag, two models are estimated: a comprehensive model (1985–2025) and an extended panel model (1960–2025). Empirical results reveal internal CAMELS metrics are primary determinants of survival; profitability and capital adequacy defends against failures, while asset quality deterioration and management inefficiencies accelerates failure. The “too big to fail” paradigm is empirically validated. Contractionary monetary policy and labor market stress increase failure probabilities. Real GDP growth exhibits a role shift predicting commercial bank failures.

The Structural Limitations Of Mining Output Growth In Nevada, Mckinley Brown, Emma Kitchen

Undergraduate Economics Working Paper Series

This study compares short and long trends in Nevada to the production output within the mining industry. Nevada produces around 70% of the United States gold and about 15% of the world's critical minerals. From its position as one of the most resource rich mining regions globally to its emergence as a growing economic hub, mining played a central role in Nevada's economy. However, despite the industry’s importance, Nevada still faces inefficiencies in production output due to insufficient attention to key inputs such as labor, infrastructure, technology, and energy resources.

Las Vegas Casino Revenue In An Expanding Gambling Market, Kaden A. Villa-Real

Undergraduate Economics Working Paper Series

This study examines whether expanding gambling substitutes disrupt the Las Vegas gambling industry using quarterly data from 2014 through 2025. Las Vegas casino revenue is used as the benchmark to gauge the health of Las Vegas, adjusted to Quarter 1 2014 dollars and using an OLS regression model. The results imply that online sports betting is a poor substitute for Las Vegas revenue, while online gambling shows a positive and statistically significant relationship with revenue. The findings indicate that Las Vegas is resilient despite the introduction of more competition and gambling alternatives within an industry it has traditionally known to …

Gambling Behaviors: How Do Gambling Losses Affect Future Wagers?, Ashley Talavera, Hannah Lopez Ibarra, Roman Rozbitskyy

Undergraduate Economics Working Paper Series

This study looks at how previous gambling losses affect future betting behavior in online cryptocurrency gambling markets. Using roughly 50,000 real betting observations from Bustabit, the paper tests whether gamblers become more aggressive after losses or instead pull back and bet more cautiously. Using both OLS and Fixed Effects regression models, the results show that players generally reduce their wager sizes following losses rather than engage in strong loss-chasing behavior. After controlling for individual player tendencies, the Fixed Effects models show statistically significant decreases in future bet sizes after losses, suggesting that caution and loss aversion may play a larger …

Determinants Of March Madness Tournament Advancement, Jace Waldahl

Undergraduate Economics Working Paper Series

This paper examines whether tournament seed and team efficiency ratings help explain how far teams advance in the NCAA men's basketball tournament. Using Bart Torvik NCAA basketball ratings data from 2008 to 2025, I construct a team-year dataset with tournament advancement measured from 1 to 7, where higher values represent deeper runs. The main independent variables are seed, net efficiency, offensive efficiency, and defensive efficiency. Descriptive statistics, correlations, scatterplots, and OLS regressions are used to test whether better-seeded and more efficient teams advance further. The results show that seed is the strongest and most consistent predictor of advancement, but efficiency …

The Current Status Of Utah Women & Girls: A Research Synopsis: 2026, Susan R. Madsen, Corinne Clarkson

Marketing and Strategy Faculty Publications

In 2025, U.S. News and World Report rated each state using 71 metrics across eight categories. Utah was rated the #1 “Best State Overall” for the third year in a row, ranking first in fiscal responsibility and third in both the economy and infrastructure categories and fourth in education.¹ Utah was also ranked number one for “Economic Outlook” by Rich States, Poor States in 2025, a forward-looking forecast that is based on 15 state policy variables.² WalletHub ranked Utah as the second “Most Charitable State” and the number one state for volunteering and service.³ In addition, ConsumerAffairs …

Artrepreneurs & Business Survival: Bridging The Gap To Creative Success, Ryan Michael Moore

Masters Theses

Artrepreneurs — freelance artists and small studio owners within creative industries — frequently lack training in essential business management skills in financial management, client pipeline development, and business sustainability. These factors exacerbate already statistically high business failure rates, adding to the burdens experienced by creative entrepreneurs. Conventional wisdom and guidance for entrepreneurs is found in experience-based advice from books, blogs and business mentors. While these offer valuable insights, the lack of data-driven advice highlights an opportunity to close the knowledge gap. This research investigates visually engaging educational systems to guide the creation of new visual solutions which address these challenges. …

Modern Visual Solutions For Established Brands: Making Graphic Design Accessible To Legacy Businesses, Emma R. Shanton

Masters Theses

Legacy businesses, often family-owned shops or companies that have been around for decades, have real history and loyal customers, but many look old-fashioned and struggle to attract new people today. Outdated logos, hard-to-read designs, and the habit of using ready-made templates or AI-generated images lead to branding that feels generic, turns customers away, excludes people with disabilities, and can even cause legal trouble.

This study asks a simple question: How can small, long-running businesses update their look in a way that is affordable, easy for everyone to use, legally safe, and still feels true to their story, without high costs, …

An Empirical Analysis Of Augmented Reality’S Impact On Fan Engagement And Behavioral Intention To Use: A Technology Acceptance Model Study Among U.S.-Based Major League Soccer Fans, Gozde Sezgun

Masters Theses

Although augmented reality (AR) is becoming a routine part of how sport is consumed, evidence specific to Major League Soccer (MLS) remains limited. This study applies the technology acceptance model (TAM) to examine how perceived ease of use (PEOU) and perceived usefulness (PU) relate to behavioral intention to use (BI) and to two experience outcomes−fan engagement and fan satisfaction in the MLS context. The study is a nonexperimental, cross-sectional online survey of U.S.-based adult MLS fans with prior exposure to AR in an MLS context, including live stat overlays, in-stadium wayfinding, interactive replays, and virtual try-ons. Constructs were measured with …

Examining The Relationship Between Dark Triad Personality Traits And Career Paths, Mary Robinson Gibson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Growing opportunities in information technology, digital accounting, and remote leadership have increased interest in the personality traits associated with these emerging work environments. The researcher examined the relationship between psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism, collectively referred to as Dark Triad personality traits, and career preferences. Specifically, the researcher tested whether higher levels of these traits predicted interest in careers characterized by prestige, power, autonomy, and opportunities for manipulation. Working professionals and college students completed the Short Dark Triad (SD3) and a career preference questionnaire. The researcher used binary logistic regression to assess whether Dark Triad traits predicted career cluster selection. Model …

Beyond Crisis: Patient Access And Sustainability, Miguel A. Mendoza

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Critical systems underwent drastic workflow adaptations during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of these operational alterations persist today, while others have been reduced or eliminated. This is a qualitative study on the operational, technological, and human-centered challenges experienced by healthcare organizations providing primary care services in Southwest Ohio during and immediately after the pandemic. This flexible research design implements in-depth, semi-structured interviews with healthcare professionals leading primary care operations to capture a longitudinal perspective on pandemic-era service delivery, and the legacy systems still in place today. Thematic analysis revealed seven themes that determine the effectiveness of care delivery models. Social Determinants …

The Role Of Human Resources In Developing Effective Leadership To Cultivate A Future-Ready Pipeline Of Leaders For Success Assurance, Betzaida Aponte

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The problem addressed in this study was that organizations lack a future-ready pipeline of leaders to ensure a smooth transition amid unprecedented technological change. The purpose of this flexible design single-case study was to understand how organizations establish a future-ready pipeline of leaders capable of navigating rapid technological advancements. Utilizing a post-positivist qualitative approach with methodological triangulation, data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 23 human resources professionals and the quantitative Leadership Practices Inventory–Self instrument administered to 25 senior and aspiring leaders. Thematic analysis revealed critical structural failures within traditional succession planning. Key findings demonstrated a severe transparency gap, where …

The Effect Of Return-To-Office Mandates On Worker Engagement And Perceived Work-Family Conflict, Caleb M. Daughhetee

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this cross-sectional, quasi-experimental study was to examine relationships among employee perceptions of return-to-office (RTO) mandates, employee engagement (EE), and work-family conflict (WFC) among previously remote U.S.-based workers. Despite extensive RTO mandates following the COVID-19 pandemic, limited research has examined the relationship between worker perceptions, EE, and work-family dynamics. Grounded in personal engagement theory (Kahn, 1990), role theory, and the Job Demands-Resources model, this study investigates whether RTO perceptions predict EE and WFC, and whether WFC mediates or moderates the relationship between RTO perceptions and EE. Data were collected from 145 participants using a researcher-developed RTO perception scale …

A Hermeneutical Phenomenological Study On The Queen Bee Phenomenon In Women Higher Education Administrators In Public Colleges, Joy L. Medford

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to discover the lived experiences of women leaders in higher education administration who have experienced the queen bee phenomenon. The theory guiding this study was Tajfel’s social identity theory as it relates to women leaders in public higher education administration. The central research question aimed to explore the lived experiences of women in higher education leadership roles who have experienced the queen bee phenomenon. This hermeneutical phenomenological study included 10 participants who were administrators in public higher education institutions in the United States. Data was collected through semi-structured, individual interviews, journal entries, and …

The Moderating Influence Of Intrinsic Religiosity For Technostress And Tech Addiction In Adults Working In A Digital Environment, Elaine M. Hensley

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This dissertation examined factors influencing levels of technostress and tech addiction in adults working in digital environments, where technology is rapidly advancing. The main research questions asked: If and to what extent intrinsic religiosity and resilience, independently and through their interaction, predict levels of technostress and tech addiction among adults in a digital workplace environment. The research design used two multiple linear regression analyses and two moderation analyses to ascertain whether the null hypotheses would be retained. The procedure involved recruiting 222 participants through Prolific who activated a survey link from Qualtrics. The link contained demographic data and four surveys …

The Challenges Of Employee Selection, Cayward L. Wiggins

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This qualitative single case study examined the challenges associated with employee selection and the role of emotional intelligence (EI) in improving hiring practices within public sector organizations. The general problem addressed was the failure to consistently utilize EI testing resources, which may result in the selection of less qualified employees. The specific problem focused on the inconsistent integration of EI tools during recruitment and interview processes. Guided by a post-positivism paradigm, the study explored how human resource (HR) managers and personnel understood and applied EI in candidate evaluation. Data was collected from 30 HR professionals using interviews and surveys to …

Understanding The Application Of Military Leadership Skills In Transition To Civilian Leadership Positions, Darik Pickerel

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The problem is that the leadership skills of ex-military leaders are not always effectively leveraged when they transition into civilian organizations, resulting in a missed opportunity to harness valuable competencies. The purpose of this flexible design qualitative single case study was to explore how civilian organizations could effectively leverage the valuable leadership skills of ex-military leaders. Three research questions guided the study: What leadership skills do ex-military leaders bring to civilian employment in the production industry based on the experiences of ex-military leaders, their organizational subordinates, and their organizational superiors? How can ex-military leaders most effectively apply their skills to …

The Relationship Between Employee Perception Of Perfectionistic Leadership And Employee Outcomes, Jennifer Parras

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Research shows perfectionism to be a multidimensional trait, yielding both positive and negative results. Given its evolving nature and impact, perfectionism is becoming more widely researched and an important trait to study. Multidimensional perfectionism, in its positive side, refers to striving towards excellence, whereas in its negatives side refers to a concern of failure. Today, multidimensional perfectionism research focuses more on the individual and interpersonal consequences of the trait with less focus on the workplace consequences of performance. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the dyadic relationship of leader’s perfectionism and employee outcomes. This …

Valuation Transparency And Reputation Of Depository Institutions, Mamadou Ghourayssi Barry

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This qualitative single-case study examined how the historical lack of transparency in the financial sector affects the operations of thrift institutions, focusing on one in Albany, New York. The purpose was to understand how valuation opacity, disclosure practices, and leadership behaviors influence stakeholder trust, performance, and institutional reputation. Guided by transformational leadership theory and Vroom’s expectancy theory, the study explored how leadership and organizational practices can enhance transparency and operational integrity in community banking. Data were collected from 27 employees in operational and managerial roles through semi-structured interviews that captured their experiences and strategies related to valuation transparency and ethics. …

How Race Influences Leadership Motivation: A Study Of Career Aspirations In Diverse Workforces, Latosha V. Hayes-Sperling

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study explored whether and how racial identity influenced leadership motivation among Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) professionals. Despite growing attention to workplace diversity, limited research had examined the internal motivational processes shaping leadership ambition for racially marginalized groups. Using a non-experimental design, this study examined whether perceived racial discrimination predicted leadership motivation and whether this relationship differed by gender. Survey data were collected from approximately 126 BIPOC professionals using validated measures of perceived racial discrimination and leadership motivation, the latter measured as a dimension of career aspirations. Results indicated that perceived racial discrimination, operationalized through workplace microaggressions …

Impact Of Authoritarian Leadership On Employee Job Satisfaction And Turnover Rates In Healthcare Organizations, Esther Odufuwa

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In this multiple-case study, I explored how authoritarian leadership behaviors influence employees' job satisfaction and turnover rates in healthcare organizations. Employee outcomes, including job satisfaction and turnover rates, significantly affect productivity and quality of care, and leadership style is a key factor shaping these outcomes. I used the research questions to examine the relationship between authoritarian leadership behaviors and healthcare workers’ organizational commitment. Additionally, I explored how these behaviors affect employees' job satisfaction and impact employee turnover rates in healthcare organizations. Guided by a pragmatic approach, I examined the experiences of healthcare workers, including registered nurses (RNs), licensed practical nurses …

Toxic Leadership Behavior And Its Relationships With Turnover Intention, Job Satisfaction, And Organizational Culture In Healthcare: Evidence From A Government Hospital In Bangladesh, Khan Kamranur Rahman Shovon

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Toxic leadership in healthcare is a growing concern, with nurse managers exhibiting toxic behaviors linked to negative employee outcomes, such as turnover intention and job satisfaction, and organizational issues, such as reduced productivity and financial losses. This study examined how toxic leadership behavior relates to nurses' turnover intention and job satisfaction, and how organizational culture mediates the relationship between toxic leadership behavior and turnover intention. Data were collected from 203 nurses at Dhaka Medical College Hospital in Bangladesh. Data analysis employed Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM), with validated tools to measure the variables. The results showed that toxic …

The Effect Of Transfer Student Enrollment On The Overall Gpa In Division I Men’S Basketball, Emme Hurn

Masters Theses

The study explored the impact that transfer student-athletes have on the overall Grade Point Average (GPA) of a team in Division I Men’s Basketball. Through the use of Alexander Astin’s Input-Environment-Output model, academic preparation and environments were examined to determine their role in academic outcomes. The purpose of this research was to test this theory in order to answer three key research questions: Is there a statistically significant difference in overall team GPA when comparing Division I men’s basketball teams with a high number of transfer student-athletes, and teams with no transfer student-athletes? What is the relationship between the number …

Dr. Aaron Voyles Named Vice President Of Student Affairs, Lindenwood University

Archived Lindenwood Press Releases

No abstract provided.

Service And Scholarship: Lindenwood Announces 2026 Faculty Awards, Lindenwood University

Archived Lindenwood Press Releases

No abstract provided.