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2011

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Articles 18001 - 18030 of 19541

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Emotional Brand Attachment: Marketing Strategies For Successful Generation, Katie Bilotti Jan 2011

Emotional Brand Attachment: Marketing Strategies For Successful Generation, Katie Bilotti

CMC Senior Theses

Modern society is structured around consumption. The climate of the current consumer culture is one of intense competition. In order to differentiate their brands and products, companies are beginning to focus on differentiating their brands on the basis of distinctive emotional, rather than functional, characteristics. Emotional brand attachment is defined as the bond that connects a consumer with a specific brand by involving feelings of affection, passion, and connection. When established, emotional brand attachment is a powerful tool for building brand equity and influencing the purchasing decisions of consumers. This paper explores the marketing tactics utilized by Dove brand and …

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Can The Monetary Integration Of Ecowas Improve Intra-Regional Trade?, Chinweuba E. Ezekwesili Jan 2011

Can The Monetary Integration Of Ecowas Improve Intra-Regional Trade?, Chinweuba E. Ezekwesili

CMC Senior Theses

A gravity model is used to evaluate the effects of currency union on intra-regional trade of ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) member states. The panel data used includes bilateral observations for fourteen years spanning 1994 through 2006 for 16 countries. Controlling for determinants and deterrents of trade, I find the presence of a currency union three times as likely to increase intra-regional trade between ECOWAS member countries. In addition, I find that the effect on trade creation has been steadily falling since 1994.

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America's First Great Moderation, Ryan Shaffer Jan 2011

America's First Great Moderation, Ryan Shaffer

CMC Senior Theses

This paper identifies America's first Great Moderation, a period from 1841-1856 of unbroken economic expansion and low volatility comparable to the Great Moderation of the 1980s-2000s. This moderation occurred despite a lack of central banks, low governmental spending, and barriers to interstate commerce during the antebellum period. I demonstrate this moderation in industrial production and stock market indexes and compare the first Great Moderation with the second in these economic factors. These results also call into question the conventional wisdom of the National Bureau of Economic Research business cycle chronology that the antebellum period was volatile and fraught with recessions. …

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Immigration And Identity Politics: The Senegalese In France, Justine Dodgen Jan 2011

Immigration And Identity Politics: The Senegalese In France, Justine Dodgen

CMC Senior Theses

As immigrants arrive in a new culture, they must modify their behaviors to adapt to their host society. Through a review of current literature, I will examine the psychological and sociological aspects of immigration and the effects on migrant identity. I will argue that migrants most desire a bicultural identity, in which they retain some elements of their ethno-cultural identity while adopting some values of French society. The construction of a bicultural identity presents a challenge due to the particular philosophical foundations of the French nation-state and French culture. In the next chapter, I will analyze the challenges Senegalese migrants …

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Performance Of The Indian Banking Industry Over The Last Ten Years, Saumya Lohia Jan 2011

Performance Of The Indian Banking Industry Over The Last Ten Years, Saumya Lohia

CMC Senior Theses

This paper analyzes the performance of Indian banks over the period of the last ten years. It uses the CAMEL Framework to determine the performance of public and private banks in India. The paper also conducts an empirical analysis to determine the share price performance of Indian banks relative to the share price performance of banks in Hong Kong, Europe and the US. This paper finds that private banks perform better than public banks overall based on the CAMEL Framework. In addition it also finds that the Indian banks share price performance is dependent on the share price performance of …

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Blood Money: A Study Of The Effect Of Fighting On Player Salaries In The National Hockey League, Matthew G. Morton Jan 2011

Blood Money: A Study Of The Effect Of Fighting On Player Salaries In The National Hockey League, Matthew G. Morton

CMC Senior Theses

Fighting has been a centerpiece of the National Hockey League since it was formed in 1917. Although rules have been introduced regulating the physicality of play in the NHL, fighting is demanded—and encouraged—by fans and players alike. Fans have long been attracted to the violence of professional hockey; previous studies have documented that professional hockey is a “blood sport” that generates revenues with violence. This research investigates the effect of fighting on player salaries in the NHL, examining the way in which fighting has become a strategic element of the game, describing the way players enforce their own “Code” of …

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Past Financial Reporting Credibility: Does It Influence Market Perceptions Of Fair Value Assets?, Jason M. Rehhaut Jan 2011

Past Financial Reporting Credibility: Does It Influence Market Perceptions Of Fair Value Assets?, Jason M. Rehhaut

CMC Senior Theses

During the financial crisis, many assets became illiquid and ceased trading on the open market, thus classifying them as level three assets. This study attempts to determine whether fair value asset disclosures, especially level three assets, were viewed by the market as valued correctly, given the amount of subjectivity involved. This paper will discuss prior literature on the topics of fair value accounting, various earnings quality measures, and corporate governance impact on fair value disclosures. Using models similar to prior papers, many of the coefficients of interest proved insignificant. However, the models improved when examining only the least credible firms.

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Film Review Aggregators And Their Effect On Sustained Box Office Performance, Nicholas Krishnamurthy Jan 2011

Film Review Aggregators And Their Effect On Sustained Box Office Performance, Nicholas Krishnamurthy

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis will discuss the emerging influence of film review aggregators and their effect on the changing landscape for reviews in the film industry. Specifically, this study will look at the top 150 domestic grossing films of 2010 to empirically study the effects of two specific review aggregators. A time-delayed approach to regression analysis is used to measure the influencing effects of these aggregators in the long run. Subsequently, other factors crucial to predicting film success are also analyzed in the context of sustained earnings.

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Winning Off The Field: The Determinants Of Mlb Franchise Value, David F. Ulrich Jan 2011

Winning Off The Field: The Determinants Of Mlb Franchise Value, David F. Ulrich

CMC Senior Theses

This paper examines the underlying drivers of MLB franchise value. Using panel data for MLB teams from 2000-2010, I find that a team’s ballpark and metro-area market are significant determinants, yet revenues truly drive value. Further, I find that incremental increases in winning percentage by a particular team has an insignificant effect on total revenues and has no marginal impact on the value of the team, particularly if the team recognizes consistent revenue streams every year. Finally, I show that the modern sabermetric approach to player management negatively impacts firm value, suggesting that although small market teams have been successful …

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Foreign Corrupt Bribery Act: Long-Term Benefits Should Outweigh Short-Term Burdens, Brian K. Gose Jan 2011

Foreign Corrupt Bribery Act: Long-Term Benefits Should Outweigh Short-Term Burdens, Brian K. Gose

CMC Senior Theses

The purpose of this thesis is to examine the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Specifically, do long-term benefits from the FCPA outweigh short-term burdens? The paper begins with a short Introduction that provides a roadmap for the overall thesis. Chapter I discusses the business and economic environment of America during the 1970s. Specifically, the focus is on the Watergate scandal and how it played a crucial role in the enactment of the FCPA. Chapter II explains and analyzes specific provisions of the FCPA. It also demonstrates the FCPA‟s relationship to the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act …

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Policy Analysis Of Rural Development Strategy In Mexico: Creation And Management Of Infrastructure Systems, Carlton J. Rueb Jan 2011

Policy Analysis Of Rural Development Strategy In Mexico: Creation And Management Of Infrastructure Systems, Carlton J. Rueb

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis explores rural development strategy in Mexico within the context of infrastructure development. It finds that although the tenants of decentralization and neoliberalism on which the strategy is based are conducive to gains in productivity, equity, and environmental sustainability in rural Mexico, the current government apparatus creates a number of market failures which limit the beneficial potential of the development strategy. Lessons learned from the Mexican experience should be applied in other contexts for development strategies.

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Strategic Significance: A Model Of G-20 Membership, Patrick Eagan-Van Meter Jan 2011

Strategic Significance: A Model Of G-20 Membership, Patrick Eagan-Van Meter

CMC Senior Theses

The membership of the Group of 20 was selected without any official criteria. This paper investigates whether group membership can be explained through the consideration of several different factors that coincide with the mission of the organization. I found strong evidence that membership in the Group of 20 was based on some combination of land mass and economic output. The results demonstrate that these factors are highly predictive of group membership.

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Fiscal Impact Of Privatization In Developing Countries, Alexander H. Sunderland Jan 2011

Fiscal Impact Of Privatization In Developing Countries, Alexander H. Sunderland

CMC Senior Theses

This paper examines the fiscal impact of privatization revenues in 47 developing countries. There are many reasons that privatization is attractive for the central government of developing countries. If substantial, these revenues from the sale of state owned enterprises can present a potential solution to persistent deficits. On the other hand, the privatization revenues could be used to finance an even larger deficit. In this paper, I will discuss previous research on the fiscal impact of privatization revenues, the factors that contribute to persistent fiscal budget deficits and explain how empirical research on the fiscal impact of privatization in the …

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Work Attribute Importance And Loyalty Intention: Millennial Generation Psychological Contract, Laura M. Bottorff Jan 2011

Work Attribute Importance And Loyalty Intention: Millennial Generation Psychological Contract, Laura M. Bottorff

CMC Senior Theses

This study investigated the importance that junior and senior job-seeking undergraduates (Millennial generation members) place on transactional and relational work attributes; how ratings vary by gender, experiences with layoff, and intended loyalty; and how well ratings match with actual attributes offered by organizations. Results are discussed in context of psychological contract theory. Students (n = 199) and recent graduates working full-time (n = 180) took separate online survey. Students indicated the importance of various work attributes (Ng, Schweitzer, & Lyons, 2010), loyalty intentions, and other related questions. Graduates answered only work attribute questions related to their current employer. Work attributes …

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Public Dollar Private Owners; Tax Subsidies For New Stadiums In Professional Sports, Grant J. Bunnage Jan 2011

Public Dollar Private Owners; Tax Subsidies For New Stadiums In Professional Sports, Grant J. Bunnage

CMC Senior Theses

The growing popularity of North American professional sports over the last twenty years directly coincides with the recent trend of urban communities using tax dollars to publically subsidize professional football, baseball, and basketball stadiums. Communities across North America invest substantial amount of public tax dollars in private facilities in light of a consensus among policy analysts that the economic impact of the new stadium is greatly exaggerated. The economic impact of new stadiums has been extensively researched, the focus of this paper rather, is to examine the impact publically subsidized facilities built in the last twenty years have on the …

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Redistricting In California: Its Effects On Voter Turnout In Minority Populations And Misrepresentation, Carlos A. Hernandez Jan 2011

Redistricting In California: Its Effects On Voter Turnout In Minority Populations And Misrepresentation, Carlos A. Hernandez

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis analyzes the history behind reapportionment and how the task of redistricting has differed in the past decades. For the most part, there was always been a public outcry when the task was in the hands of the Legislature. Fear of political gerrymandering and the creation of safe districts was enough for people to pass a series of initiatives to try and correct the system. While many initiatives failed to pass, Proposition 11, passed in 2008, created the Citizen’s Redistricting Commission—a 14-member committee put in charge of drawing this years’ plans. This paper also looks at population trends in …

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The Gift That Keeps Giving: Fdi Inflows In China, Joseph Chang Jan 2011

The Gift That Keeps Giving: Fdi Inflows In China, Joseph Chang

CMC Senior Theses

This paper investigates the primacy of foreign direct investment inflows in liberalizing China’s economy and whether the long-term gains from economic openness will justify its inefficient energy uses and growing regional income disparities. By examining the history of FDI inflows in China, it becomes evident that FDI inflows were an instrumental part in institutional and technological development in China. I extend the argument to take into account how these developed infrastructures react to China’s growing energy demand in light of a shrinking world supply. Lastly, I perform a meta-analysis on the Environmental Kuznets Curve theory and the Pollution Haven Hypothesis, …

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The Impact Of Terrorism On Foreign Direct Investment: Which Sectors Are More Vulnerable?, Shivani Agrawal Jan 2011

The Impact Of Terrorism On Foreign Direct Investment: Which Sectors Are More Vulnerable?, Shivani Agrawal

CMC Senior Theses

The impact of conflict and violence on foreign direct investment (FDI) is not a topic that has been done justice by the literature, and what few studies exist have contradictory results. This paper studies the impact that transnational terrorism has on FDI inflows by economic sector, in developed countries. Results indicate a statistically significant negative correlation between terrorist events and total FDI inflows. Amongst a list of 12 broad industrial sectors, FDI inflows for manufacturing, trade and repair, and construction were found to have a statistically significant negative correlation with terrorist events.

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A Reexamination Of Us Heroin Policy, Daniel Fogel Jan 2011

A Reexamination Of Us Heroin Policy, Daniel Fogel

CMC Senior Theses

Misguided drug policy in the United States has led to many severe social and economic problems that have burgeoned over the past century. I analyzed heroin policy specifically, investigating new treatment methods and alternative decriminalization policies that would ameliorate some of these problems.

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Running Backs In The Nfl Draft And Nfl Combine: Can Performance Be Predicted?, Chris Blees Jan 2011

Running Backs In The Nfl Draft And Nfl Combine: Can Performance Be Predicted?, Chris Blees

CMC Senior Theses

Berri and Simmons (2009) investigate the relationship between the NFL Combine and the NFL Draft. They find that a quarterback’s performance in the Combine can have a significant impact on that player’s draft position. However, they find that no known aspect of a quarterback before they are drafted is an indicator of success in the NFL. I examine if these relationships exist for the Running Back position. I find similar results to Berri and Simmons: that performance in the Combine does have an effect on that player’s draft position, but that no aspect of a running back’s pre-draft characteristics can …

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The Effects Of Industry On Cross-Border And Domestic Ipo Underpricing, Emily K N Hirano Jan 2011

The Effects Of Industry On Cross-Border And Domestic Ipo Underpricing, Emily K N Hirano

CMC Senior Theses

Increasing numbers of foreign firms are holding cross-border IPOs in attempts to raise capital in markets outside of their home nation. Within the United States cross-border IPOs consistently experience greater amounts of underpricing than domestic IPOs. This paper examines the effects of SIC industry classifications on cross-border and domestic IPO underpricing from 2004-2010. Analysis demonstrates that in various industries, SIC classification has a significant impact upon underpricing in comparison to other industries. While in other industries, significance is solely exhibited through the differing impacts of domestic and cross-border IPOs, within the industry itself, upon underpricing. The most significant industry effect …

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Striving For A Happier America: Lessons From Denmark, Leanne P. Ringquist Jan 2011

Striving For A Happier America: Lessons From Denmark, Leanne P. Ringquist

CMC Senior Theses

American society has lost sight of one of its most valued virtues: Happiness. Research has showed that the United States is behind many other countries in the overall happiness of its citizens. Leading the world in well-being is Denmark. This paper’s aim is to explore possible factors that could be facilitating the well-being of Danish citizens, and applying them to American society. In this search, I explore universal individual factors, as well as factors that lead to the development of a culture and dispositions of its citizens. From these factors, as well as unique characteristics of both countries, I hypothesized …

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The Economic Impact Of Oil Price Shocks On Emerging Markets, Aanchal Kapoor Jan 2011

The Economic Impact Of Oil Price Shocks On Emerging Markets, Aanchal Kapoor

CMC Senior Theses

Recent spikes in oil prices have thrown light on how economic activity in emerging markets may be impacted by oil price shocks. This paper conducts an empirical analysis of the effect of oil price shocks on emerging markets. It tests for the existence of an asymmetrical relationship between oil prices and economic activity using a model developed by James Hamilton. It also assesses the impact of structural shocks to the real price of oil on output as proposed by Lutz Kilian. While our models find no consistent pattern within emerging markets, they do suggest that oil price shocks have a …

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The Great Indian Growth Puzzle: What Caused A Spike In 2003?, Aditya Bindal Jan 2011

The Great Indian Growth Puzzle: What Caused A Spike In 2003?, Aditya Bindal

CMC Senior Theses

This paper will employ unit root tests for finding structural breaks endogenously among India’s key macroeconomic aggregate series, as well as their components and subcomponents. The same analysis will be repeated, wherever data are available, for states. The results from these unit root tests will then be used in regression models for national and state level data to understand the causes behind structural breaks. We find that breakpoints cluster around 1982 and 2003 for most series at the national and state level. The services component appears to be a promising candidate for explaining the 2003 structural break in some of …

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Disputed Theory And Security Policy: Responding To The "Rise Of China", Joseph K. Clifton Jan 2011

Disputed Theory And Security Policy: Responding To The "Rise Of China", Joseph K. Clifton

CMC Senior Theses

Much has been written on the security implications of the "Rise of China," yet there is little consensus, posing a problem for policymakers. I highlight the areas of disagreement, arguing that the lack of consensus is a product of different theoretical positions. Since there is not an obviously correct theoretical position, policymakers must make decisions based on significant uncertainty. I argue that policymakers ought therefore reject costly and decontextualized theories, such as offensive realism, while still maintaining openness to theoretical knowledge.

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Examining The Effect Of Psychological Traits On Earnings And The Gender Wage Gap Within A Young Sample Of U.S. Employees, Marika May Jan 2011

Examining The Effect Of Psychological Traits On Earnings And The Gender Wage Gap Within A Young Sample Of U.S. Employees, Marika May

CMC Senior Theses

This paper examines the effect of psychological traits on earnings and furthermore whether it helps explain the gender wage gap. Public-use data collected from The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health is used to evaluate the impact on earnings on seven psychological factors: masculine traits, self esteem, analytical problem solving approach, willingness to work hard, impulsiveness, problem avoidance, and self-assessed intelligence. Findings show that gender differences in psychological traits are significant and returns to observable characteristics differ somewhat by gender as well. Among the young sample of U.S. employees evaluated in this study, I find that up to 21 percent …

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Executive Minority Employment And Compensation Gap In The S&P500: Is Compensation Disparity More Prevalent In Certain Industries?, Jason W. Toney Jan 2011

Executive Minority Employment And Compensation Gap In The S&P500: Is Compensation Disparity More Prevalent In Certain Industries?, Jason W. Toney

CMC Senior Theses

Minorities hold a significantly smaller percentage of executive positions in companies within the S&P500. However, whether these minorities are under compensated relative to their non-minority counterparts has not been previously investigated. Using Compustat data, this paper documents the differences in compensation between minorities and non-minorities as a whole, minority and non-minority CEOs, and the differences in compensation for minorities and non-minorities within industries. I show that there is no minority/white wage gap overall, and in some cases, minorities earn a premium compared to non-minorities.

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The Impact Of Oil Prices On The U.S. Economy, Jacob H. Bauch Jan 2011

The Impact Of Oil Prices On The U.S. Economy, Jacob H. Bauch

CMC Senior Theses

Nine of the ten recessions since WWII have been preceded by relatively large and sudden increases in the price of oil. In this paper, I use time series analysis to forecast GDP growth using oil prices. I use the methodology from Hamilton (2009), and extend the dataset through 2010. Impulse response functions are used to analyze the historical performance of the model’s one-year-ahead forecasts. In April, 2011, the International Monetary Fund changed its forecast of 2011 GDP growth in the U.S. from 3.0% to 2.8% largely due to persistently high oil prices. My model suggests that the price increase in …

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Gender Inequality In The Law: Deficiencies Of Battered Woman Syndrome And A New Solution To Closing The Gender Gap In Self-Defense Law, Meredith C. Doyle Jan 2011

Gender Inequality In The Law: Deficiencies Of Battered Woman Syndrome And A New Solution To Closing The Gender Gap In Self-Defense Law, Meredith C. Doyle

CMC Senior Theses

Dr. Lenore Walker developed battered woman syndrome to address the issue of domestic violence and to give battered women a defense in situations in which they kill their abusive partners when they are not overtly threatening them. Self-defense law is based on male on male combat. Women are less able to protect themselves in an attack by a man, and so they may preemptively attack their sleeping partners to avoid a situation in which they cannot adequately protect themselves. Battered woman syndrome explains why these battered women act in a way that is irrational to a non-battered person. Walker's theory …

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Appreciating Bilingualism: The First Step To Reducing Racism In The United States, Jenna Suttmeier Jan 2011

Appreciating Bilingualism: The First Step To Reducing Racism In The United States, Jenna Suttmeier

CMC Senior Theses

The goal of this paper is to explore the origins of modern-day racism and to discuss ways to reduce discrimination in the United States. Research on bilingualism and bilingual education indicates that bilingualism can be one method that helps reduce racism and increase cultural acceptance. For example, bilingual education can help establish multicultural identities in school children by providing better educational opportunities for English learners, teaching a new language and culture to native-English speakers, and integrating diverse cultures in classroom settings. Therefore, bilingual education can be a powerful tool in facilitating cultural awareness and reducing racial tensions in the U.S.

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