Business Commons^™

Academic Research Interests Of Casino Resort Properties, Collin Ramdeen, Susan Raymakers, Robert H. Bosselman

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

This study surveyed department executives and chief executive officers from casino resort properties. The 52 respondents represented 22 percent of the total surveyed. These respondents were asked to indicate how much their company valued outside research, and the best vehicle for distributing outside research to casino resort properties. They were also asked to rate their relative degree of interest in specific research topic areas. The results indicate that most of the casino resort properties were interested in academic research. The analysis of specific research topics revealed that there was a significant level of interest in consumer behavior, competitive markets, and …

The Use Of Indicators For Unobservable Product Qualities: Inferences Based On Consumer Sorting, Matthew G. Nagler, Fredi Kronenberg, Edward J. Kennelly, Bei Jiang, Chunhui Ma

Publications and Research

We propose a method for measuring the conjectural errors that inexpert consumers make relative to experts in using observable product characteristics as surrogate indicators of a valued unobservable characteristic. Observations on the unobservable characteristic, available to the researcher but not consumers, are used to divide the data into high- and low-quality subsamples. Separate hedonic estimation on the subsamples enables measurement of the relative valuations and conjectures of experts and non-experts with respect to indicators under the assumption that consumers sort across quality grades based on their appraisal expertise. The method is demonstrated using a small sample of SKU-level data on …

Consumer Purchase Decisions Regarding Screw Cap Wines, Lauren M. Jeter

Master's Theses

Screw cap wine closures provide many benefits in maintenance of wine quality over time, however acceptance of their use by purchasers has varied. This work first investigates how factors like age, gender, income and education affect the decision to purchase screw cap wines and to what extent these factors impact consumer decisions to bring screw cap wine to various social settings. The results of a questionnaire pooling attitudes and behaviors of wine purchasers (n=319) indicate that factors such as age, wine knowledge, income and gender influence a consumer’s decision to purchase screw cap wine. Education and income positively impact the …

Impact Of Visual Merchandising On University Of New Hampshire Students, Bailey Comyns

Honors Theses and Capstones

Visual merchandising is a marketing tool used by retail outlets in order to make their products attractive and engaging. It has the ability to sway consumers into buying a product, making visual merchandising a useful tool in today’s competitive market. This study examines the impact visual merchandising has on the students of the University of New Hampshire

(UNH). To determine this, we researched both the students and their local retailers. Retailers in Durham, New Hampshire were interviewed to determine how important visual merchandising is to their business. The consensus was that visual merchandising is an important segment of their business; …

Impact Of Self On Attitudes Toward Luxury Brands Among Teens, Luciana Gil, Kyoung-Nan Kwon, Linda Good

Lester Johnson

The main purpose of this study is to increase understanding of teenagers' self perception on attitudes toward luxury brands. The study investigates how social consumption motivations affect teenagers' attitudes toward luxury brands, how teens' self concepts can influence social consumption motivations, and whether peer pressure affects this relationship. The study also examines the effects of materialism on teenagers' social consumption motivations and attitudes toward luxury brands. The total sample consisted of 558 teenagers between the ages of 12 and 19 (grades 7 through 12). Hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling. This study demonstrates that materialistic orientation is a powerful …

Consumer Micro-Behavior And Tv Viewership Patterns: Data Analytics For The Two-Way Set-Top Box, Ray M. Chang, Robert J. Kauffman, Insoo Son

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Consumer behavior patterns related to home digital media use are changing due to technological innovations. We examine them in the presence of two-way cable television (CATV) settop boxes. They permit viewers to change channels, switch to the Internet, and order paid programming, among other functions. We focus on micro-level data that are generated from consumer CATV viewing behavior. We capture clickstreams of channel-changing behavior when consumer use a remote control handset to interact with the set-top box in their home. We explore a variety of data analytics results that characterize patterns of consumer channel-switching behavior, as a basis for suggesting …

Our Celebrities Our Selves: Reconstructing Ourselves As Online Personalities, Arne Baruca

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

Celebrity influence on consumer behavior at the online macro level is the motivation for this study that addresses the nature of celebrity consumption and how consumers apply that consumption to develop their online self-presentation. The sample for this study is limited to consumers with active accounts at online social networks such as Facebook or Twitter. Methodology is a three-part design. A multi-factor qualitative exploratory study (n=73) reveals four celebrity-consumer relationships whose proposed measurement scales are tested in a quantitative pilot study (n=85). Finally, a large sample study (n=593) is used to test the measurement model and to test the proposed …

The Story Of Taste: Using Eegs And Self-Reports To Understand Consumer Choice, Charnetta Brown, Adriane B. Randolph, Janée N. Burkhalter

The Kennesaw Journal of Undergraduate Research

The authors investigate consumers’ willingness to switch from a preferred manufacturer brand to an unfamiliar private-label brand if taste is perceived as identical. Consumer decisions are examined through recordings of electrical brain activity in the form of electroencephalograms (EEGs) and self-reported data captured in surveys. Results reveal a willingness of consumers to switch to a less-expensive brand when the quality is perceived to be the same as the more expensive counterpart. Cost saving options for consumers and advertising considerations for managers are discussed.

From Fandom To Tourism: An Examination Of Self-~Expansion Theory, So Jung Lee

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In recent years, pop-culture tourism, in which individuals travel to destinations made famous through pop-culture or relative media themes, has come into the spotlight. The new market segment induced by pop-culture has created a specialized but dedicated consumer, called a "fan." This study examined the impact of pop-stars on a destination from the perspective of fans. Specifically, the research investigated whether fans at different degrees of fandom had different travel attitudes and behaviors with regard to motivation, satisfaction, attachment, and loyalty in the destination context by applying self-expansion theory. In particular, Korean pop-star's fans were chosen as the study example …

Consumer Attitudes Towards Using Qr Codes In A Retail Setting, Chris Thayer

Undergraduate Distinction Papers

Corresponding with the increased use of smartphones and other mobile devices equipped with a camera, quick response (QR) codes have been introduced. QR codes allow large amounts of data (e.g., product information, discounts, usage suggestions) to be compressed into a small, printed square. To access the information, consumers must scan the QR code with a smart device (smartphone, tablet, etc). Korean and Japanese consumers appear more willing to scan QR codes in retail settings compared to their American counterparts. This reluctance is explored through the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM).

Furthermore, consumers’ motivation toward QR code use is made explicit and …

Evaluation Of And Behavior Toward The Visual Retail Environment: Function Of Consumers’ Visual Aesthetic Sensitivity, Sarah Eubanks Wilhoit

Sarah Eubanks Wilhoit

The primary goal of retail environments is to stimulate positive behavior from consumers viewing the fulfilled plan of the designer or architect. This study explores the influence of the consumer trait, visual aesthetic sensitivity, upon the visual aesthetic design features of the store environment and consumer behavior. Treatment of the visual aesthetic design features of the retail environment as an integrated, holistic arrangement demonstrate the dynamic interrelation of the environment and perception as explained by Gestalt theory. Data was collected through traditional survey techniques. Statistical analyses using exploratory factor analysis, ANCOVA, and MANCOVA reveal distinct differences between consumers with high …

A Study Of Golfers In Tennessee, Kelly Price-Rhea

ETSU Faculty Works

The purpose of this study was to investigate preferred shopping behaviors of golfers in the state of Tennessee. While much research has been done on retail shopping behavior in general, little exists regarding shopping behavior in sport retail, and more specifically golf retail. While golfer behavior has been researched in other areas such as tourism, it has not been fully researched in the sport or retail literature. Since this segment of consumer spends millions of dollars per year, this study was conducted to fill the gap in the literature regarding this unique consumer. An online survey was distributed among a …

Ironic Advertising: Theory, Evidence And Practice, Ekin Pehlivan Yalcin

2012

Irony is one mechanism that advertisers use to attract consumer attention. Although ironic advertising (IA) is utilized in the mass media, it has received surprisingly little conceptual or empirical attention from marketing scholars. Perhaps one reason for this is that in marketing irony has been viewed primarily from a postmodern perspective. This is in marked contrast to psycholinguists where the phenomenon is approached from a more ecumenical, realist point of view. This dissertation is based on the premise that a realist approach to ironic advertising would produce insights for both marketing theory and practice.

This dissertation comprises of three papers …

Are Subcompact Cars Driving Consumers Towards Sustainable Transport, Enda Mcgovern

WCBT Faculty Publications

Access to private transport is a critical component of the modern industrialized world but it is also recognized as a major source of carbon dioxide emissions, one of the global warming gases contributing to climate change. This paper looks at increased use of subcompact cars as a key component in developing a sustainable transport policy. These cars benefit the environment by emitting reduced levels of carbon emissions due to their smaller engines. This empirical research explores the opinions of Smart car owners in a focus group study. Smart car owners are primarily focused on reducing their costs due to difficult …