Business Commons^™

Successful Marketing Strategies For Promoting Event Destinations, Evease Iniece Tucker

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Travel and tourism has been recognized as being an important driver of jobs, growth and economic recovery in the United States. Meetings, events and incentive travel contribute $98.7 billion of the direct spending, $15.0 billion in taxes and 859,000 jobs. As a result, destination marketing organizations (DMOs) in the United States are taking advantage of this impact for growth in their destinations. As a destination marketing organization's main job responsibility is to promote their destination to attract visitors, which requires superior marketing strategies to achieve these goals.

This research investigates the marketing strategies of DMOs in the United States. The …

An Eriksonian Approach To Consumer Identity, Sandra Rathod

Open Access Dissertations

Rathod, Sandra R. Ph.D., Purdue University, December 2013. An Eriksonian Approach to Consumer Identity. Major Professor: Richard A. Feinberg.

Ego development is the fifth stage in Erikson's Lifecycle Development theory (1959) and is a major psychosocial stage beginning in adolescence and lasting into emerging adulthood. Past research based upon Marcia's Ego Identity Status Paradigm (1996) has investigated a number of ideological and interpersonal domains relevant to one's ego identity, however in today's consumer societies, where what you have is at least as important is who you are or what you do, an Eriksonian approach to consumer ego identity (CEI) has …

The Impact Of Narcissism On Value Evaluations Resulting From Virtual Good Purchases, Nathan Mcdougle

Doctoral Dissertations

Social network sites and virtual worlds have become an intriguing area of study within Marketing. The uncertainty of the effects of marketing efforts within these worlds, especially with add-on purchasable items, has received some research attention, but research has not delved deeply into the factors that affect a consumer's intention to purchase these items online. In order to better understand these actions, the present study attempts to empirically examine the effects of several of these variables—specifically narcissism—on purchase intentions, value, and quality of life. Two competing theories are proposed to explain these relationships—a theory of experiential consumption and a theory …

A Roadmap To Mindful Consumption Through Informative Labeling Practices: The Effects Of Sustainability Disclosure Formats On Consumer Product Evaluations, Yoon-Na Cho

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Despite the interest of consumers in sustainable and environmentally friendly products, only a limited number of studies have focused on sustainability level disclosures for consumer packaged goods. The general overarching purpose of this dissertation is to extend the internal reference point and information processing literatures to better understand how consumers will process sustainability disclosures. Applying the theoretical lens of assimilation bias in conjunction with self-enhancement offers an important extension to prior work. Across two retail lab studies and four online experiments, I demonstrate that the perceived sustainability utility (i.e., the difference between a specific brand's level of sustainability and category-level …

Understanding Collaborative Dynamics: A Critical Review And Inductive Investigation, Amydee Mackley Fawcett

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Collaboration has been a topic of discussion for over 20 years. Managers are consistently calling for better collaboration and researchers have argued that managing tightly coupled relationships creates a co-mingling of complementary competencies that establishes distinctive advantages for firms. Even though there have been a few exemplar companies that have been capable of truly developing these complementary competencies, few companies truly understand the dynamics of a collaborative capability. This dissertation reviews the theoretical conceptualization and operationalization of tightly coupled relationships and through an interpretive analysis, begins to provide clarity to the following questions:

* Under what conditions are tightly coupled …

The Legitimation Of Novel Technologies: The Case Of Nanotechnology, Anastasia E. Thyroff

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Nanotechnology is the control, manipulation, and application of matter on an atomic and molecular level. The technology is complex and confusing to consumers, and its long-term safety and effect on the human body, as well as the environment, are unknown. However, for the past decade, nanotechnology has been used to develop consumer products and food with novel and attractive attributes.

Since nanotechnology is still not well known, it is not legitimized; that is, it has not been deemed safe and accepted by society. However, the market for nanotechnology is in the legitimation process. It will take an entire network of …

Toward Understanding The Subcultural Mosaic: Fragmentation Of The Culture And The Symbiotic Interplay Of The Market And Subcultures, Emre Ulusoy

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

This study brought to light the need for a more nuanced analysis and approach for understanding the observed tendency toward eclectic, fragmented, and paradoxical subcultures in contemporary society. It was critical to explore the impact of market hegemony and the response of subcultures to this hegemony leading to the development of contemporary subcultural sensibilities. The central purpose of this research was to develop a theory of subculture that accounted for the fragmentation observed in contemporary culture, and how this fragmentation influences subcultures leading to fragmentation within subcultures. To this end, using in-depth interviewing, netnography, and participant observation, I investigated the …

Perceived Creative Partnership: A Consequence Of Music's Social Use, Paul Gennaro Barretta

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

As contemporary consumers interact with one another and the market in a more symbolic manner, the ways music and other products are used are changing. Scholarly research has investigated the use of music in a social manner, mostly in terms of self-identity, and practitioners have explored the sharing of music, particularly with regard to the use of technology. The present research takes a closer look at the social use of music and proposes a consequence that is termed Perceived Creative Partnership; people use music in a social manner in order to achieve a state of being where they feel as …

The Impact Of Nutrition Information Delivery Methods On Restaurant Consumers' Attitudes And Behavior, Jiaqi Zhu

Open Access Theses

Zhu, Jiaqi. M.S., Purdue University, December 2013. The Impact of Nutrition Information Delivery Methods on Restaurant Consumers' Attitudes and Behavior. Major Professors: Barbara A. Almanza, Carl A. Behnke.

Obesity is a major public health threat. It not only creates challenges for those who are obese and overweight, but also brings an economic burden to the whole society. One important contributing factor for obesity is food eaten away from home, which accounts for more than 40% of American's food budget. Although chain quick-service restaurants are required by law to post calorie information on menus and menu boards, the efficacy of menu …