Barrett, The Honors College Thesis/Creative Project Collection
Barrett, The Honors College at Arizona State University proudly showcases the work of undergraduate honors students by sharing this collection exclusively with the ASU community.
Barrett accepts high performing, academically engaged undergraduate students and works with them in collaboration with all of the other academic units at Arizona State University. All Barrett students complete a thesis or creative project which is an opportunity to explore an intellectual interest and produce an original piece of scholarly research. The thesis or creative project is supervised and defended in front of a faculty committee. Students are able to engage with professors who are nationally recognized in their fields and committed to working with honors students. Completing a Barrett thesis or creative project is an opportunity for undergraduate honors students to contribute to the ASU academic community in a meaningful way.
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This study examines Glamour magazine to determine the messages the publication sends to its readers and to evaluate if such messages align with modern feminist goals. The articles of Glamour's 12 issues from the year of 2016 are analyzed using a framework adapted from previous research on women's magazines. Articles are coded as either positive (feminist, anti-traditional, promotes equality) or negative (anti-feminist, traditional, promotes inequality). Distinct content themes (appearance, dating, home, self-development, career development, politics/world issues, and entertainment) are also examined individually. After the presentation of data, I examine my findings through a feminist lens to determine the nature of the messages being sent to women through the magazine's editorial content, followed by an assessment of the value of women's magazines and how they could potentially shape the beliefs and roles of a 2017 woman. It is found that about half of the articles in Glamour could be considered as having feminist messages, with strong themes of personal choice, individual empowerment, and political involvement or activism in these articles and throughout the magazine. The content also has many blatantly feminist messages, including consistent use of the word itself. Another 40% of the articles are found to be neutral (no clear message to reader), and the remaining are negative. The sexism inherent in these negative articles is critically examined. Finally, the main takeaways of the findings and their ramifications are discussed from both a media consumer and a media producer perspective, with arguments for why it is important to be critical of a magazine's editorial content.
ContributorsAllnatt, Libby Paige (Author) / Pucci, Jessica (Thesis director) / Dove-Viebahn, Aviva (Committee member) / School of Social Transformation (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-12
Description
Aventure is the newest contemporary luxury men and women’s apparel and accessories boutique in Arizona. The boutique will be located in Downtown Scottsdale, specifically in McKellips Plaza conveniently located near Scottsdale Fashion Square. Aventure is the first of its kind in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area, providing Millennial fashion fanatics with a destination that fills the empty void in the city’s growing fashion scene. At Aventure, we bridge the gap between pop culture, streetwear, and high-fashion. Through our mantra ‘Redefining the Luxury Retail Experience,’ we aim is to promote expression of one’s self to the fullest extent through style.
‘Aventure,’ which means “experience” or “adventure” in French, defines this upscale boutique and its essence of inclusion. This store does not aim to be your traditional retailer; instead, Aventure aims to build a community within and around the store for individuals with similar styles and passion for fashion. At the moment, the city of Scottsdale (and the Metro Phoenix area as a whole) does not have its own identity in the fashion world. There is no reason why Metro Phoenix cannot, with time, become more recognized in the global fashion community. With an array of exclusive luxury merchandise and an urban atmosphere, Aventure aims to pioneer the Valley’s establishment on the national high-end fashion scene.
The boutique is a result of the vision of its founder Ahmed Imam. Ahmed is a graduating Honors student at Arizona State Univeristy’s W.P. Carey School of Business, pursuing concurrent degrees in Finance and Business Entrepreneurship. Having been passionate about fashion for as long as he can remember, Ahmed will leverage his connections to the industry and excellent understanding of the Metro Phoenix market to turn Aventure into a hallmark of the community. Through his professional experience and educational background, Ahmed also brings the necessary knowledge and skills to the table to effectively run a startup.
The retail industry is experiencing steady growth, with the luxury goods sector expected to perform very well in the coming years. Using market-based sales forecasting, Aventure is estimated to break even by the third year of operations. Sales are expected to grow 20 percent after Year 1, and grow 5 percent thereafter. Net operating income of $83,643 is estimated in Year 1, growing to $141,351 by the end of Year 3. Overall, total startup expenses are estimated to be $206,574, made up of investments from owners and a term loan from Bank of America. The owner investment will be used to cover capital equipment, location, and administrative expenses. These include furniture, equipment, machinery, rent, utility, legal and accounting fees, prepaid insurance, and other expenses. The majority of the term loan will be used to finance opening inventory and advertising expenses, with the rest going towards cash on the balance sheet to ensure liquidity.
‘Aventure,’ which means “experience” or “adventure” in French, defines this upscale boutique and its essence of inclusion. This store does not aim to be your traditional retailer; instead, Aventure aims to build a community within and around the store for individuals with similar styles and passion for fashion. At the moment, the city of Scottsdale (and the Metro Phoenix area as a whole) does not have its own identity in the fashion world. There is no reason why Metro Phoenix cannot, with time, become more recognized in the global fashion community. With an array of exclusive luxury merchandise and an urban atmosphere, Aventure aims to pioneer the Valley’s establishment on the national high-end fashion scene.
The boutique is a result of the vision of its founder Ahmed Imam. Ahmed is a graduating Honors student at Arizona State Univeristy’s W.P. Carey School of Business, pursuing concurrent degrees in Finance and Business Entrepreneurship. Having been passionate about fashion for as long as he can remember, Ahmed will leverage his connections to the industry and excellent understanding of the Metro Phoenix market to turn Aventure into a hallmark of the community. Through his professional experience and educational background, Ahmed also brings the necessary knowledge and skills to the table to effectively run a startup.
The retail industry is experiencing steady growth, with the luxury goods sector expected to perform very well in the coming years. Using market-based sales forecasting, Aventure is estimated to break even by the third year of operations. Sales are expected to grow 20 percent after Year 1, and grow 5 percent thereafter. Net operating income of $83,643 is estimated in Year 1, growing to $141,351 by the end of Year 3. Overall, total startup expenses are estimated to be $206,574, made up of investments from owners and a term loan from Bank of America. The owner investment will be used to cover capital equipment, location, and administrative expenses. These include furniture, equipment, machinery, rent, utility, legal and accounting fees, prepaid insurance, and other expenses. The majority of the term loan will be used to finance opening inventory and advertising expenses, with the rest going towards cash on the balance sheet to ensure liquidity.
ContributorsImam, Ahmed Mohamed (Author) / Ostrom, Amy (Thesis director) / Schlacter, John (Committee member) / Department of Management and Entrepreneurship (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
Description
This research looks at a group of students from Tumaini Children's Home in Nyeri, Kenya. The purpose of this paper is to explore why this particular group of students is so academically successful. Quantitative research was taken from the average 2013 test scores of Tumaini students who took the Kenyan Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) exam in comparison to the scores of students who are not residing in the orphanage. Qualitative research involves interviews from those students who live in Tumaini and interviews from adults who are closely connected to the orphanage. The purpose is to understand why the students are performing so well academically and what support they have created for themselves that allows them to do so.
ContributorsTooker, Amy Elizabeth (Author) / Puckett, Kathleen (Thesis director) / Cocchiarella, Martha (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Division of Teacher Preparation (Contributor)
Created2014-12
Description
The fashion industry dubs couture as high fashion, yet couture never reaches the finish line when it comes to comfort. Most of the brand name high heels on the market are too painful to wear for long periods of time. For this project, I have developed 3D printed high heels with detachable insoles that will relieve tired feet based on the principle of reflexology. The product integrates traditional flexible insoles with Arduino computing and the result is a functional surface that can ease the pain of the wearer. This paper introduces the product and with it, under-explored opportunities to customize your own high heels at home. Essentially, each consumer will have the ability to personalize and switch out their style without sacrificing comfort. Soon, a consumer will be a designer.
ContributorsNguyen, Nhi N. (Author) / Ingalls, Todd (Thesis director) / Gigantino, Josh (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts (Contributor) / School of Arts, Media and Engineering (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
Previous studies exploring variability in sentencing decisions have consistently found gender differences, such that women receive lighter sentences than men. In the proposed study, I present a new framework for understanding gender differences in sentencing preferences, including circumstances under which no gender differences should emerge. The Affordance Management Approach suggests that our minds are attuned to both group- and individual-level threats and opportunities that others afford us. I conceptualize the sentencing difference between men and women as driven by perceived affordances that assist or hinder an individual in achieving certain fundamental goals. When faced with sanctioning an offender in our community, the offender's sex, the victim's age, and environmental variables such as the ratio of men to women may influence our decision-making, because these factors have affordance implications. Thus, I hypothesized that individuals will express differences in the sentencing of offenders who commit assault, and that these differences vary by offender sex, victim age, and sex-ratio. The results indicate that, as predicted, female offenders received lighter sentencing than men when the offender committed an assault against a same-sex adult, but received equally punitive sentences as men when the assault was committed against a child. In general, results do not support a consistent effect of sex ratio as a factor when making sentencing decisions. Although results do not fully support the current study's specific hypotheses, there remains much to be gained from applying an affordance management perspective to understanding variability in sentencing between the sexes.
ContributorsUzzanti, Charlene Ann (Author) / Neuberg, Steven (Thesis director) / Knight, George (Committee member) / Salerno, Jessica (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Criminology and Criminal Justice (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
This thesis will focus on the organizational structures and leadership challenges within private law firms. It begins by explaining the different roles within the organizational structure. It will then discuss various other duties that are carried out by lawyers in addition to legal work. Through the use of qualitative methodology, including a review of scholarly literature and semi-formal interviews with private firm partners, this research mainly focuses on the challenges that exist in private law firms. The study concludes with possible solutions to address the discussed challenges in private law firms.
ContributorsKrikorian, Dikranouhi (Author) / Trujillo, Rhett (Thesis director) / Waldman, David (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / W. P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Department of Management (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
The Latino population is the fastest growing minority group in the United States (U.S Census Bureau, 2003). Such a rapidly changing demographic stresses the importance of implementing strategies into the community social framework to accommodate for cultural and language differences. This research paper seeks to answer: what factors influence the sense of community among Latino families in Phoenix? The following questions will help to assess the dynamic relationship between sense of community and literacy 1) what is the perceived importance of literacy among Latino families living in Phoenix? 2) How is language development reflected among the family dynamics within a predominantly collectivist culture? It is hypothesized that both collectivism and literacy are the main influences on sense of community among this population.
ContributorsBennett, Julie (Author) / Glenberg, Arthur (Thesis director) / Restrepo, Laida (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
Scientists, lawyers, and bioethicists have pondered the impact of scientifically deterministic evidence on a judge or jury when deciding the sentence of a criminal. Though the impact may be one that relieves the amount of personal guilt on the part of the criminal, this evidence may also be the very reason that a judge or jury punishes more strongly, suggesting that this type of evidence may be a double-edged sword. 118 participants were shown three films of fictional sentencing hearings. All three films introduced scientifically deterministic evidence, and participants were asked to recommend a prison sentence. Each hearing portrayed a different criminal with different neurological conditions, a different crime, and a different extent of argumentation during closing arguments about the scientifically deterministic evidence. Though the argumentation from the prosecution and the defense did not affect sentencing, the interaction of type of crime and neurological condition did.
ContributorsMeschkow, Alisha Sadie (Author) / Schweitzer, Nicholas (Thesis director) / Robert, Jason (Committee member) / Patten, K. Jakob (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor)
Created2014-05
Description
This focuses on recent changes in Arizona eminent domain law regarding the question of whether a use be "truly public." In light of the landmark decision in Bailey v City of Mesa--often lauded as a great victory for proponents of private property rights-- a few sources will be reviewed to provide an indication of the extent redevelopment in Arizona has been affected by the decision. While the result in Bailey, precluding the City from taking the subject property may have been the correct outcome, the test to which the case now subjects any similar case involving redevelopment has made it unnecessarily difficult for political subdivisions of the state to carry out legislated redevelopment goals. The Bailey case only served to convolute the question of "public use" in the context of economic development, rather than create a workable body of law. In addition to providing a historical context and analyzing the effect of new interpretations on redevelopment generally, this paper will critique the Bailey decision in order to resolve the conflict that the decision created: that of the redevelopment goals of the state and municipalities and the authorized use of condemnation to achieve these goals with the judiciary's decision to greatly restrict the use of condemnation for the achievement of redevelopment goals. Arguably this conflict arose from a failure to fully understand the complexities of the use of the power of eminent domain for redevelopment purposes. Unaware of the need to use eminent domain in order to speed along and make possible economic redevelopment, overzealous proponents of property rights have reduced the issue to a narrow view of the state vs. the individual. Hopefully this paper can offer a more moderate and unbiased view of the use of eminent domain in light of the charge of the state and municipalities to facilitate economic growth.
ContributorsStern-Sapad, Zalman Badi (Author) / Birnbaum, Gary (Thesis director) / Braselton, James (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / W. P. Carey School of Business (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
Modern Americans ignorantly live under a blanket of unread terms, conditions, and binding contracts. Often, these contracts (mostly associated with products and services) come and go with little effect. Periodically, the products or services cause the consumer harm, leading them to seek repair. The consumer then realizes that all the fine print they failed to read makes an impactful legal difference. This paper analyzes the work of Professor Radin through her book, Boilerplate. It goes on to explore many other arguments presented by contract theorists and makes substantial claims regarding the dangers of boilerplate (unread terms and conditions).
ContributorsBecker, Alexander Daniel (Author) / Koretz, Lora (Thesis director) / Calleros, Charles (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / W. P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Department of English (Contributor)
Created2015-05