Business Commons^™

Adaptive Selling: A New Direction For The Pharmaceutical Industry, Kristin M. Chmelicek

Honors Theses

The pharmaceutical industry is moving towards more adaptive selling methods for their sales people. This means that the scripted sales pitch must be adjusted for the personality of the customer. Doctors were interviewed to understand their opinions of the sales people that come into their offices. Through the case studies, it was found that the doctors liked the adaptive selling methods with the combination of relational and scripted aspects for the sales presentation. Doctors found that the most successful sales calls were those that were a good combination of relational aspects as well as the education that is within the …

Perceptions Of Bp: Successes Of Post 2010 Oil Spill Recover Effort, Jordan R. Mathews

Honors Theses

This purpose of this project was to determine peoples’ opinions of BP’s post 2010 oil spill recovery effort. The researcher examined 65 faculty at the University of Southern Mississippi in order to determine their beliefs, attitudes, and intentions concerning different elements of the BP oil spill recovery effort. The researcher found that there is an overall negative opinion concerning the economic, ecological, and overall recovery effort aspects of the spill. This research suggests that BP still has some work to do in order to restore the gulf coast like they promised.

Facebook As A Job Screening Tool: Are Sales Employers Discriminating Against Job Applicants Based On Their Facebook Profiles?, Jocelyn M. Lockhart

Honors Theses

Social media networking sites are an exceptionally popular resource of self-expression in modern society. They allow friends, families and lovers across the globe to connect and stay in touch with one another. It has become increasingly common for hiring employers to utilize these sites as job-screening platforms. This research will explore how sales employers specifically examine job candidates’ Facebook profiles. Furthermore it will examine whether or not they are discriminating against these applicants based on their Facebook content.

As Seen In Vogue: An Analytical Observation Of Nudity In French And American Vogue, Elizabeth A. Kiehn

Honors Theses

For centuries, Europe has been the leader in fashion production and innovation. At the heart of this continent lies the fashion capital of the world—France. French designers have always been on the cutting edge of fashion. Setting trends, shocking consumers, and enticing the world have been normal everyday activities for them as if it is in their blood. French culture is much more daring and open about sexuality in comparison to American culture, however, American designers and retailers are still heavily influenced by French fashion designs. This begs the question then: Are French fashion magazines equally influential on American fashion …

U.S. Gaap Versus Ifrs: Reconciling Revenue Recognition Principles In The Software Industry, Jason T. Babington

Honors Theses

In the world of financial accounting, a demand for universal standards exists. The two primary standard setting boards, The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), have made some strides in developing universal standards, but they still are not fully reconciled in the area of software revenue recognition. The main reason the two standards are not reconciled in the area of software revenue recognition is that a difference exists in the critical event between the standards. The critical event refers to the exact time a company recognizes revenue on its books. The purpose of the …

An Analysis Of Firearms Training Performance Among Active Law Enforcement Officers, John Thomasson

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Firearms proficiency is an implicit expectation, held by the public of police officers, due to presumption that the required firearm training is an adequate preparation for a deadly force encounter. However, anecdotal evidence and available data on police shootings suggest that conventional, unrealistic training methods are wholly inadequate. To present stress into firearms training, some departments have opted for exercises such as physical exertion and shoot-house training as a substitute for realistic simulation of force-on-force confrontations.

To determine whether such exercises are comparable, an observation of performance and heart rate levels was conducted on a group of eight police officers, …

A Study On Various Economic Factors Influencing Student Loan Cohort Default Rates, Jessamyn Ratcliff

Finance Undergraduate Honors Theses

In June 2010, student loan debt rose to over $800 billion, surpassing total credit card debt outstanding for the first time. Along with the increase in the amount borrowed to pay for education, so too, is the percentage of default rates. The analysis presented suggests that cohort default rates increase in number proportionately to annual unemployment rates, while exhibiting an inverse relationship with the average student loan debt upon graduation.

Social Entrepreneurship: The Ideal Business For Humanity And The Economy, Maya D. Horgan

Pomona Senior Theses

This essay argues that social entrepreneurship is the most efficient means to generate lasting social change and permanently reduce poverty. Using the support of scholarly research, interviews with experts in the field, and my own qualitative observations, I conclude that traditional aid models that are economically dependent on outside funding, as well as those that simply provide monetary and product contributions in order to sustain the poor or marginalized communities they serve are inherently structured in a way that prevents them from resolving social ills. Despite the influx of aid organizations over past decades, chronic poverty and other serious social …

The Value Of Nongovernmental Free Vocational Training In Vietnam; The Opportunities And Barriers In Teaching Japanese Cooking Skills To Disadvantaged Vietnamese Youth, Koji Asada

Capstone Collection

Nongovernmental free vocational training for disadvantaged youth has been provided by various organizations in the world and has had a positive impact on the learners. This is also true in Vietnam.

However, how is the training geared to employment opportunities, designed to overcome challenges to learning and employment, and with what potential impact on the learners and communities. These questions have not been well answered.

This study examines the value of nongovernmental free vocational training in Hanoi city, Vietnam, which is in the middle of rapid economic development. Specifically, this study researched the future prospects of skill training in Japanese …

Microequity A New Model For Microfinance In The U.S, Joseph Ball

HIM 1990-2015

Most of the research on microfinance focuses on the microloan activities of microfinance institutions such as Grameen Bank of Bangladesh and Banco Sol of South America. These institutions make small loans to the poor to help them engage in income generating activities. Many organizations have tried to translate this practice to the United States, but due to fundamental differences between the advanced U.S. business environment and that found in the developing world, such attempts have been met with limited success. There is a substantial amount of research on microfinance institutions and activities in the U.S., however almost all of the …

Will Leasing Lose Its Luster: An Analysis Of Lease Reporting Under Fas 13, Casey Gates

HIM 1990-2015

When standards for financial reporting are amended, potential for change in the appearance of financial position for companies reporting under those standards arises. Currently standards set forth by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) allow for two methods of reporting lease obligations on the financial statements. The first of these methods is the operating method, which allows lease payments to be expensed within the period they are incurred and only a decrease in cash or an increase in an account payable is recognized on the balance sheet. The second method is the capital method, which requires the present value of …

How Sports Franchises Communicate Via Social Media, Christopher Jones

HIM 1990-2015

The aim of the research is to evaluate how professional sport organizations communicate via social media and lay groundwork on how to effectively do so in the future. The research focuses on the history of social media and its involvement in sport, how it's used today, examples of effective communication and how it can eventually drive revenue for a sport franchise and build a stronger fan base at the same time.

Expectancy Theory And Major League Baseball Player Compensation, Edward Leonard

HIM 1990-2015

Major League Baseball (MLB) organizations spend millions of dollars each year on athletes with the end goal of winning a World Series title. However when an organization signs a player to a long term contract are they actually receiving the production that they paid for? Under the MLB's current form of player compensation players may not be properly motivated or at least not motivated to perform at their highest level. The intent of this thesis was to apply expectancy theory in assessing Major League Baseball's current form of player compensation. It evaluates how well players are currently motivated to perform …

Human Capital Effect On Second Generation Immigrant Entrepreneurs, Ali Mazahaem Flores

HIM 1990-2015

Interest in entrepreneurship has increased in the past few years as more schools are beginning to incorporate subject and degrees specializing in the area as well as individuals mobilizing into an entrepreneurial lifestyle due to the lack of opportunities in the standard workplace environment. Historically, immigrants have made up a large majority of entrepreneurs and it has been their primary way of upward mobility in society. The boom in high tech start-ups and other small businesses in the last decade have primarily been driven by children of immigrants. As a result of these recent trends this study analyses the foreign …

College Students' Attitudes Towards Green Hotel Practices, Elvis Perez

HIM 1990-2015

This research was conducted to discover college students' attitude towards green hotel practices and will be helpful to the hospitality industry to help focus their marketing efforts Based on the survey correlations between variables it appears that the people who use green practices at home are more aware of green practices when staying at a hotels. Implementing green practices into hotels will help the environment and also create a positive brand image and loyalty from guests. The movement of "Green" benefits everyone: the employer, the employees, and the guests.

Mapping The Online Gambling E-Servicescape: Impact Of Virtual Atmospherics On The Gambler's Experience, Brett Lillian Levine Abarbanel

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

A structural model is proposed and empirically examined that investigates the influence of an online casino's atmospheric cues on consumer behavioral response. A stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) model, often used to frame other servicescape research, is adapted as the basis of the theory that the online casino environment will influence the organismic effects of cognitive and affective states, which in turn influence gamblers' approach or avoidance behavioral intentions. Analyzed elements of the online gambling site stimulus include high and low task-relevant cues, financial trust, and gambling value. Personal and situational factors and demographic characteristics were found to moderate the relationship between atmospheric …

How We Complain: The Effect Of Personality On Consumer Complaint Channels, Riley Allen Berry

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this study was to explore any connections that may exist between personality types and consumer complaint channels. A sample of 490 undergraduate students at the University of Nevada Las Vegas was surveyed during class time with a paper and pencil survey. The survey consisted of four service failure scenarios each with eleven possible courses of action. Respondents were asked to rate their likelihood to participate in each action on a seven point Likert-type scale. The three personality factors measured against the complaint behavior were Locus of Control, The California Psychological Inventory measure of Sociability, and Cattel's 16 …

Motives For Different Types Of Medical Travelers: An Analysis Of The Current State Of Academic Research On The Topic, Dan B. Cormany

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this research is to determine the current state of research undertaken to provide insight into the motivational characteristics of medical travelers, as reported by scholarly publications in the last five years. As a part of the study, an exploration is undertaken of the four basic schools of psychological thought, as each have different explanations for human motivation. These four schools - psychodynamic, behavioral, humanistic, and cognitive or pragmatic - are examined in the light of six categories of medical travelers. The categories are those traveling for life-saving surgeries, for treatments to improve quality of life, for elective …

Sex Worker Rights Organizing As Social Movement Unionism: Responding To The Criminalization Of Work, Crystal A. Jackson

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In a post-industrial, de-regulated economy, worker organizing is changing shape and function. While much research has focused on the decline of U.S. union organizing and the difficulty of organizing today's workers, a growing body of research on social movement unionism interrogates how "un-organizable" and "non-traditional" workers like day laborers and domestic workers are organizing. Yet sex worker activism in the U.S. is little studied, which is interesting given sex workers unique position as criminalized and contingent workers. Based on a two year ethnographic study from 2010 to 2012 of a national sex worker rights organization, the Desiree Alliance (DA), I …

Predicting Chest Press Strength From A 4rm Triceps Brachii Exercise In Trained Women, Krystina Nadia Moschella

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Determining maximal strength is important when developing a resistance exercise program for trained athletes. The most frequent strength procedure used to evaluate maximum strength is the 1RM test. However, risk of injury from a 1RM test increases for the athletes, therefore a 4RM test is used in the following study. The purpose of the study is to test whether there is a linear relationship between the bench press and the triceps rope extension exercise. A secondary purpose is the development of a prediction equation for the purpose of prescribing bench press exercise loads from triceps brachii loads using a 4RM …

The Effectiveness Of Various Green Print Advertising Strategies For Budget And Luxury Hotel Segments, Safak Sahin

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study aims to broaden knowledge about the effectiveness of the green (environmentally responsible) print advertising in the context of hotel industry. The development of green advertising and relevant studies in general marketing literature is discussed. After the gap of research in hospitality field is highlighted, the current study is introduced. Five by two between subjects experimental design is developed to understand if green advertisements perform better than non-green ones, and whether hotel segment (budget versus luxury) influences the effectiveness. Another goal of the study is to identify the best strategy or medium (text, logos, visual images, or a combination …

The Impact Of Airport Service Quality Dimension On Overall Airport Experience And Impression, Redha Widarsyah

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This research examines the relationship between seven airport service dimensions (Access, Services and Facilities, Dining, Shopping, Service Personnel and Security, Environment, and Immigration and Customs) and overall passenger perceptions of service quality. The study used convenience sampling collecting data from a total of 304 travelers who were passengers at four major international airports in the West Coast region of United States - Las Vegas McCarran International, Los Angeles International, San Francisco International, and Seattle-Tacoma International. The data was collected online through Qualtrics with a self-administered questionnaire and it was analyzed using multiple linear regression.

Airport access, environment, dining, and immigration …

Social Media Strategy For The Hank Greenspun School Of Journalism And Media Studies, Irene Williams

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Within the past 10 years, communication online has evolved tremendously toward social media. This rapid change has been difficult for higher education institutions (HEI) to adapt to, leaving this important area underexplored. This strategic social media plan was developed to improve internal and external communication for the Hank Greenspun School of Journalism and Media Studies (JMS). By initiating social media platforms, relationships are cultivated with present and future students on Facebook and Twitter. This strategic social media plan develops and maintains Facebook and Twitter pages for JMS and interprets social media site visitation data. These data provide information on users, …

Corporate Social Responsibility: Is What’S Good For Society Also Good For Business?, Nicole Elizabeth Gillette

Business/Business Administration

The objective of this study was to determine whether a company engaged in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities would experience a financial reward or penalty for the strategy. It is imperative that corporations act as partners in the attempt to improve conditions of society and the environment in which we all live. Two competing corporations were selected; one, which has employed green strategies whereas the other appears less, committed. The two firms were analyzed and compared and contrasted to assess the financial implications. It was discovered that green oriented company has a growing return on equity and also return on …

Investment In Treasury Bills As A Means Of Stock Portfolio Revenue Generation, Ryan Heller

Business/Business Administration

In a world with differing opinions regarding capital investments, it is necessary to understand the expected returns for each investment option an investor may exercise. All investors seek maximum returns on their investments, and here the study evaluates the projected incomes of initial investments when exposed to two different strategies. Approximately $36,000 was invested into each, a portfolio of stocks entered into a Dividend Reinvestment Plan, and a portfolio of stocks exposed to a new strategy. This new strategy was a risk averse alternative to the DRIP and its portfolio market value was compared to that of the DRIP portfolio …

Corporate Social Responsibility: Path To Profits Or Track To Losses?, Kevin Spiletic

Business/Business Administration

Growing concerns for the general welfare of society as well as the environment have become a pertinent aspect of many cultures throughout the world. Corporations have begun to realize that their customers expect them to act in socially responsible ways. This investigation is aimed at discovering if socially responsible behavior has a positive correlation to firm financial performance. A socially responsible firm will be compared to a less socially responsible firm in order to determine if a correlation exists. Profitability ratios will be analyzed between the two firms in order to see which company is experiencing more financial success. It …

Off-Price Vs. Department Store Retailing, Denise Aghion

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

There are multiple forms of retailing in the United States – two of the most common forms are department store retailing and off-price retailing. Both types of retailers are looking to create profits by negotiating costs with vendors to create suitable gross margins; however, they go about doing so in very different ways. Because I have interned at both types of corporations, my Capstone is to identify which, if either model, is more sustainable in today’s conditions.

Department store retailing is the most well-known form of retailing, and is currently the largest sector of retailing in the United States. They …

A Changing Dynamic: The Business-To-Individual Relationship, Robert Bloomberg

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

As the Digital Revolution sweeps the world over, modern marketing strategies have had to adapt and change. Power has shifted from brands into the hands of consumers. This paper explores how this relationship is changing, and offers a glimpse of how this new relationship manifests itself in two forms of digital marketing strategy: the digitization of the in-store experience and the gamification of the modern day loyalty program. These strategies are intended to enhance the consumer experience and ensure that any interaction they have with the brand is a fulfilling one. This paper also discusses how digital technology has broken …

Gender, Politics, And The Media: An Analysis Of Media Coverage During The 2008 Democratic Presidential Nomination, Janelle Bridson

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

This thesis examines media coverage of female politicians. Through conducting background research, a personal interview with a nationally acclaimed political strategist, and a content analysis of 640 online articles published by The New York Times, the thesis presents a thorough review of media coverage. Results revealed that the media did not provide a consistent standard of coverage between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama during the 2008 Democratic Presidential Nomination. The New York Times depicted Obama in a more favorable light than Hillary Clinton. Additionally, Clinton was significantly more likely to be described in terms of her family life, physical appearance …

Clearview Church: An Online Brand Management Model For Nonprofits, Lindsey Nicole Colegrove

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

This project aims to provide specific recommendations to ClearView Church, and by extension nonprofits in similar situations, on how to strengthen their online presence. The recommendations are formed through in depth research into ClearView’s resources, goals and requirements as well as calling upon my expertise and experience in the technical and communications sides of the nonprofit field.

Through multiple interviews with church staff and members, I determined an overarching goal of sharing the warm, welcoming personality of the church with young families in the surrounding community. However, this goal was not guiding their online outreach efforts and therefore needed to …