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Brigham Young University

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Articles 301 - 330 of 492

Full-Text Articles in Business Administration, Management, and Operations

Leveraging The Collective Intelligence Of A Large Group In Managerial Decision-Making, James Carlson, Dr. Teppo Felin Apr 2014

Leveraging The Collective Intelligence Of A Large Group In Managerial Decision-Making, James Carlson, Dr. Teppo Felin

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Crowdsourcing is a term used to describe an emerging new set of activities that organizations engage in to leverage the power of the Internet in bringing people together. Crowdsourcing generally consists of placing some type of “open call” on the internet. People around the globe with internet access then respond to the call. Some collaborate and/or compete to create new ideas, services, or products on behalf of an existing company. Others refine existing work or data, such as through feedback, data entry, or proof-reading.

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Message Enhancement Techniques For Business Writing, Sierra Sloan, Dr. William Baker Apr 2014

Message Enhancement Techniques For Business Writing, Sierra Sloan, Dr. William Baker

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The business world requires efficiency and accuracy to be profitable, and poorly written business communications can waste time and resources. Thus, any research that seeks to enhance the effectiveness of writing has the potential to yield significant personal and organizational improvement. While most writing-analysis studies examine the text directly using various textual-analysis methods, this study fills the gaps in academic research by analyzing text through the verbalized mental processing of the audience, or verbal protocol analysis (VPA), resulting in richer and more accurate conclusions. In particular, this study uses VPA to analyze the effect of typical message enhancements used in …

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Micro-Finance Projects In The Yucatan Peninsula, Dario Espinoza, Dr. Warner Woodworth Apr 2014

Micro-Finance Projects In The Yucatan Peninsula, Dario Espinoza, Dr. Warner Woodworth

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In December 2009, I visited three cities within the Yucatan Peninsula to investigate the government’s efforts in providing micro-finance opportunities to citizens in struggling areas. My purpose in visiting these areas was to evaluate the success of the government’s micro-loan projects, to report on their status, and to understand the reasons why a micro- finance project would be successful or unsuccessful for individuals in the area.

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Stock Market Overreaction And Unnecessary Risk, Todd M. Yost, Dr. Steven Thorley Feb 2014

Stock Market Overreaction And Unnecessary Risk, Todd M. Yost, Dr. Steven Thorley

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The original hypothesis behind this study was that the stock market would overreact to news events. So when positive news about a specific company develops the stock price would increase more than would be rational. Conversely when the news was negative the price would decrease more than is warranted. To test the hypothesis, I took several trials consisting of the best and worst performers from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the Nasdaq stock exchange. I then followed the stock prices for several weeks to see if the price adjusts to reflect the real value of the information.

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Report On Status Of Mycobacterium Ulcerans (Buruli Ulcer), David R. Nielsen, Dr. Warner Woodworth Feb 2014

Report On Status Of Mycobacterium Ulcerans (Buruli Ulcer), David R. Nielsen, Dr. Warner Woodworth

Journal of Undergraduate Research

First discovered in 1947 in a small community in Australia, the Buruli Ulcer (Mycobacterium Ulcerans) has become the third largest mycobacterial disease in the world, next to leprosy and tuberculosis. Dobos et al. estimate that the severity of the Buruli Ulcer will soon reach that of leprosy. In a 10-year study conducted in Ivory Coast, villages were surveyed to assess the degree of infection. In some communities, the rate was shown to be as high as 16%, with current estimates as high as 22%.

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The Economic Development Of Laos And Its Future Membership In The Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation, Sean C. Luangrath, Dr. Stanley E. Fawcett, Brent D. Wilson Feb 2014

The Economic Development Of Laos And Its Future Membership In The Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation, Sean C. Luangrath, Dr. Stanley E. Fawcett, Brent D. Wilson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In 1997, Laos was admitted into the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). This membership in a free-trade area has accelerated Laos’ economic growth but only to a certain extent—free trade is limited to only Southeast Asian countries. The two main economic groups in Southeast Asia are the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). Many people argue that these associations are too bureaucratic and protectionalistic to be effective. How has Laos benefited since its admission into ASEAN in July 1997? Should Laos pursue membership in APEC? How economically effective is APEC? What are …

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The Effects Of Extreme Market Volatility On Option Trading, Bradley D. Heitmann, Dr. Steven Thorley Feb 2014

The Effects Of Extreme Market Volatility On Option Trading, Bradley D. Heitmann, Dr. Steven Thorley

Journal of Undergraduate Research

An in-depth understanding of financial-markets volatility and how it relates to option prices is of prime importance for any options professional. Volatility is a key variable of the various option-pricing models, the Black-Scholes model being the most widely applied, that have evolved over the past twenty years. Volatility can be thought of as the standard deviation of return for the prices of the asset underlying an options contract. Generally speaking, volatility is positively correlated with options prices. This is fairly intuitive, for a long position in an option is a position with limited downside risk and unlimited upside potential. If …

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Consumer Perceptions Of Retail Service Quality In Bulgaria, Marious D. Tcherpokov Feb 2014

Consumer Perceptions Of Retail Service Quality In Bulgaria, Marious D. Tcherpokov

Journal of Undergraduate Research

This project was Intended to provide Insights into refining and enriching of SERVQUAL, an existing service-quality instrument constructed by Parasuranam, Berry, and Zeithaml (1991), with respect to its applicability to (1) a global assessment of service quality and (2) in particular, to the retail sector. The description, objectives, methodology, and research results of the project are described in the following sections.

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Direct Marketing, Igor Skender, Dr. Kristen B. Detienne Feb 2014

Direct Marketing, Igor Skender, Dr. Kristen B. Detienne

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Direct marketing, as a profit making tool, was introduced in the United States and Europe just a few decades ago. It became widely spread in our society with its presence especially accentuated in the advertising field. This type of marketing has forever revolutionized the way consumers shop as well as the business world as a whole.

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Applying The Kano Model To Service Recovery Quality, Jeremy Stowell, Dr. Kristie Seawright Feb 2014

Applying The Kano Model To Service Recovery Quality, Jeremy Stowell, Dr. Kristie Seawright

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Successful firms that practice TQM have adopted the philosophy “the customer is king.” (2) Service firms would like to provide their customers with quality service in every transaction. However, mistakes in service related businesses are inevitable because of the high degree of customer contact.

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Summary Of Analysis And Marketing Plan Prepared For A Haitian Handicraft Company, Christian Syphus, Dr. Christopher Meek Feb 2014

Summary Of Analysis And Marketing Plan Prepared For A Haitian Handicraft Company, Christian Syphus, Dr. Christopher Meek

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The economic and political instability of Haiti has rendered it “the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere and its only least-developed country” (1). Familiar with social unrest due to military takeovers and high unemployment, Haitian leadership has struggled to provide consistency for its citizens since Haiti became the first black independent nation in 1804. The future of Haiti depends on the ability of its leaders to discover solutions to bring it successfully into the 21st century.

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What Is Socially Responsible Business?, Kevin Pestinger Feb 2014

What Is Socially Responsible Business?, Kevin Pestinger

Journal of Undergraduate Research

It is becoming increasingly apparent in the world of business that companies have to address the issue of social responsibility. Consumers have begun to demand, with both their purchases and their investment dollars, that companies start to account for their impacts on numerous social issues such as poverty, unemployment, the environment, and world peace. As information becomes readily available to the masses, people recognize the disparity between those whom business should serve and those whom business does serve. The future of business does not lie in the maximization of profits for the owners at the expense of society, but rather …

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A Retail Location Spreadsheet Simulation, Todd Mccauley Feb 2014

A Retail Location Spreadsheet Simulation, Todd Mccauley

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The key to success In retail is a good store location. Several models have been developed to help retailers determine optimal store locations. This project is a store location simulation for a QuatroPro spreadsheet. The model is based on the Huffs Gravity Model, a well-known retail model, which states-in part-that a store’s revenues are based on its proximity to population centers.

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Creation Of An Instruction Manual In Portuguese To Teach Principles Of Computer Aided Design, Richard Kendall Feb 2014

Creation Of An Instruction Manual In Portuguese To Teach Principles Of Computer Aided Design, Richard Kendall

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The financial support awarded to me helped contribute to one of the greatest experiences of my life. My main goal for my project was to effectively help an architectural company by teaching them the techniques of computer-aided design (CAD).

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Privatization Of Agriculture In Post-Soviet Russia: A Model Of Transitioni, Joseph Brian Gross, Dr. Phillip J. Bryson Jan 2014

Privatization Of Agriculture In Post-Soviet Russia: A Model Of Transitioni, Joseph Brian Gross, Dr. Phillip J. Bryson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

This research began as in inquiry into the general causes for the failure of modern rural reforms in Russia. This study traces the development of rural trends from the abolition of serfdom in 1861, through the Soviet era of centralized planning and collective farming, up until the post- Soviet era of privatization. This study identifies and categorizes the modern incentives and obstacles that have stymied organizational restructuring of Russia’s rural sector.

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Economic Yields To Time Spent In A Microfinance Bank; An Econometric Analysis, Jeffery C. Tanner, Dr. Gary M. Woller Jan 2014

Economic Yields To Time Spent In A Microfinance Bank; An Econometric Analysis, Jeffery C. Tanner, Dr. Gary M. Woller

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Microfinance is a growing instrument of poverty alleviation in the field of poverty alleviation, wherein a presumeably poor client borrows money to us as seed capital in starting or growing a small business. In continuation with the ongoing debate surrounding microcredit impact, this paper submits data and analysis showing returns to time spent in a village bank.

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Dissecting Bulls And Bears, Stephen Piccolo, Dr. Robert Crawford Jan 2014

Dissecting Bulls And Bears, Stephen Piccolo, Dr. Robert Crawford

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Everyone who invests his or her resources in the stock market wishes to have definitive answers to the following questions:

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Participatory Organizational Development And Social Change: Microfinance Replication In Western China, Marcie Holloman, Dr. Warner Woodworth Jan 2014

Participatory Organizational Development And Social Change: Microfinance Replication In Western China, Marcie Holloman, Dr. Warner Woodworth

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Microfinance (or microcredit) is increasingly being recognized as an effective tool for promoting the socio-economic development of impoverished communities. The crisis of poverty is so great in every corner of the world that it is tempting to jump on the bandwagon of the “microcredit solution” and implement new programs modeled after successful programs elsewhere, without due regard to differing cultural and socio-economic contexts and needs. One of the major factors behind the success of the microfinance movement is its highly participatory structural design, yet there is great need for microfinance institutions (MFIs) to be innovative in designing the content and …

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Competitive Intelligence Methodologies And Ethics, Andrew Apcar Greene, Dr. Michael J. Swenson, Dr. Paul Dishman Jan 2014

Competitive Intelligence Methodologies And Ethics, Andrew Apcar Greene, Dr. Michael J. Swenson, Dr. Paul Dishman

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Competitive intelligence is a systematic and ethical program for gathering and analyzing information about your competitor’s activities and general business trends to further your own company’s goals1. When practiced responsibly it’s legal and ethical, although some companies have been known to participate in disreputable activities such as: stealing information, wiretapping phones, and burglarizing offices, among other activities – entering the more shadier realms of industrial espionage.

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Do Venture Capitalists Add Value To Small Manufacturing Firms? An Empirical Analysis Of Venture And Non-Venture Capital Backed Initial Public Offerings, Richard Brown, Dr. James C. Brau Jan 2014

Do Venture Capitalists Add Value To Small Manufacturing Firms? An Empirical Analysis Of Venture And Non-Venture Capital Backed Initial Public Offerings, Richard Brown, Dr. James C. Brau

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Venture capital funding of young and high-risk companies is a topic of great interest to both finance practitioners and researchers. A venture capitalist gives funds to privately held companies in hopes of earning a high return on the investment. Venture capitalists also provide more than money: they are viewed as sources of expert advice, both in the industry that the new firm is in, and in the various stages of developing a company. In return for their services, venture capitalists receive equity positions in the monitored firm that potentially offer enormous monetary rewards.

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The Impact Of Chinese Reunification On Hong Kong’S Future Economic Development, Anthony Lam, Dr. Bryan Sudweeks Jan 2014

The Impact Of Chinese Reunification On Hong Kong’S Future Economic Development, Anthony Lam, Dr. Bryan Sudweeks

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Asia suffered a devastating blow to its economy in February of 1997 with the Asian Financial Crisis. The Asian Tiger economies fell to currency speculation and bank debt, beginning with Thailand. Hong Kong, one of the premier business centers in Southeast Asia, was also adversely affected through trade effects. That same year, on July 1, Hong Kong ended its ninety-nine year term as a colony of the United Kingdom and returned to Chinese rule. The “one country, two systems” policy was put in place to ensure Hong Kong’s continued success. Hong Kong would remain a democracy but be part of …

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The Causes Of The Increase Of Tax Evasions In Moldova, Natalia Virlan, Dr. Gary Mckinnon Jan 2014

The Causes Of The Increase Of Tax Evasions In Moldova, Natalia Virlan, Dr. Gary Mckinnon

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The constant honest tax payment by every citizen and firm of the country is a serious problem, which arose in the Republic of Moldova (an ex-member of the Soviet Union) after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Since then until the present time the tax evasion by physical and juridical persons has not stopped or decreased, and the government does not know when it will.

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Cost-Effective Service Recovery: Knowing Which Customers To Keep, Aaron R. Brough, Dr. Kristie Seawright Jan 2014

Cost-Effective Service Recovery: Knowing Which Customers To Keep, Aaron R. Brough, Dr. Kristie Seawright

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Service failures are inevitable. When firms fail to deliver a service as promised, customers will generally be dissatisfied. Such customers will not likely do business with the company in the future. Some companies may shrug their shoulders and look for new customers. However, research shows that in many cases it is considerably more profitable for a company to keep customers who have experienced failures than to try to find new customers. Service recovery is anything companies do to recover the satisfaction and loyalty of customers who have experienced a service failure.

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Mining For Gold Inside Your Organization, J. Scott Dutcher, Dr. William H. Baker Jan 2014

Mining For Gold Inside Your Organization, J. Scott Dutcher, Dr. William H. Baker

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Making the most of the information that is available to you is what data mining is all about. Surprisingly, large numbers of organizations have yet to incorporate data mining techniques that drive many of their operations and decisions. Instead, upper management is trying to solve many puzzles without looking at the pieces. For those organizations that currently use data mining strategies, better mining methods can always be found. These missed mining opportunities have resulted in poorer service, lost revenue, security threats, and more. Data mining will be essential for the survival of businesses and organizations in the 21st Century. …

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A Study Of The Effects Of Reduced Transaction Costs And Information Asymmetry In E-Commerce, Kendall C. Hulet, Dr. Scott Sampson Jan 2014

A Study Of The Effects Of Reduced Transaction Costs And Information Asymmetry In E-Commerce, Kendall C. Hulet, Dr. Scott Sampson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Information asymmetry is usually defined as a market failure that increases transaction costs. Buyers and sellers in a typical market transaction have varying degrees of information on which to base their decisions, whether it be about the quality of the good or service, or about the optimal price of the good or service. If perfect market efficiency is the ideal, asymmetry of information usually results in too high a price being paid for a particular good or service.

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Foreign Direct Investment In Southeast Asia, Ryan S. Gifford, Dr. Stanley Fawcett Jan 2014

Foreign Direct Investment In Southeast Asia, Ryan S. Gifford, Dr. Stanley Fawcett

Journal of Undergraduate Research

One of the driving forces behind the tremendous growth that Southeast Asia has experienced throughout the past decade is foreign direct investment (FDI) from multinational corporations in industrialized nations. Southeast Asian countries have been receiving several billion dollars in FDI annually since the mid 1980s. FDI is thus largely responsible for the economic transformation that has occurred in Southeast Asia and has made it among the fastest growing regions in the world.

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Craig R. Scott: Anonymous Agencies, Backstreet Businesses, And Covert Collectives: Rethinking Organizations In The 21st Century, Paul C. Godfrey Jan 2014

Craig R. Scott: Anonymous Agencies, Backstreet Businesses, And Covert Collectives: Rethinking Organizations In The 21st Century, Paul C. Godfrey

Faculty Publications

Organizational scholars have made substantial contributions in understanding organizational life; however, if we deeply examine our knowledge, we’ll find that we know a lot about large, public organizations, be they businesses, civil society, or governmental agencies. We’ve made great strides in understanding the formal, visible organizational world, and our field sports a strong base of stylized facts and even some very generalizable, law-like propositions about these organizational forms. Scott’s book invites us to turn our gaze toward another substantial, and certainly impactful, organizational context: formal or informal organizations that deliberately strive to be invisible.

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The Functions Of The Executive At 75: An Invitation To Reconsider A Timeless Classic, Paul C. Godfrey, Joseph T. Mahoney Jan 2014

The Functions Of The Executive At 75: An Invitation To Reconsider A Timeless Classic, Paul C. Godfrey, Joseph T. Mahoney

Faculty Publications

The year 2013 marks the 75th anniversary of the publication of Chester I. Barnard’s classic, The Functions of the Executive, a groundbreaking contribution to management theory. We maintain that Barnard’s work provides a valuable perspective on the causes and potential solutions to challenges facing capitalism, business, and management consequent to the scandals and financial crises of the early 21st century. We believe Barnard would see a systemic failure of the moral dimension of organization as a driver of these crises, and that management theory and practice need to focus on both the science and the aesthetics of management. We look …

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Addressing Posttraumatic Stress Among Iraq And Afghanistan Veterans And Significant Others: An Intervention Utilizing Sport And Recreation, Jessie L. Bennett, Neil R. Lundberg, Ramon Zabriskie, Dennis Eggett Jan 2014

Addressing Posttraumatic Stress Among Iraq And Afghanistan Veterans And Significant Others: An Intervention Utilizing Sport And Recreation, Jessie L. Bennett, Neil R. Lundberg, Ramon Zabriskie, Dennis Eggett

Faculty Publications

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of an existing "couples" adaptive sport and recreation program called Higher Ground developed by Sun Valley Adaptive Sports to reduce symptoms of PTSD, facilitate posttraumatic growth, and enhance marital satisfaction for veterans with PTSD and their significant others. The sample consisted of two experimental groups ( Group A five couples, Group B six couples) and a control group (six couples). ANCOVA analysis indicated significant decreases in PTSD symptoms and increases in marital satisfaction among the experimental groups following participation in the recreation program. Findings support the use of recreation programs …

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A Critical Examination Of Couple Leisure And The Application Of The Core And Balance Model, Peter J. Ward, Keith W. Barney, Neil R. Lundberg, Ramon Zabriskie Jan 2014

A Critical Examination Of Couple Leisure And The Application Of The Core And Balance Model, Peter J. Ward, Keith W. Barney, Neil R. Lundberg, Ramon Zabriskie

Faculty Publications

This study further clarified the relationship between couple leisure involvement, couple leisure satisfaction, and marital satisfaction through examining the core and balance framework as it has been applied to the relationship between couple leisure and marital satisfaction. The sample consisted of 1,187 couples across the United States (N = 2,374). SEM analyses supported previous findings, indicating satisfaction with couple leisure involvement was far more important when predicting marital satisfaction than the amount of leisure involvement. Furthermore, while core marital leisure satisfaction was the driving force in the explanation of variance in marital satisfaction, findings suggested before that can happen there …

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