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.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 63
Description
The goal of our project was to determine how to create the most marketable hockey team. To do this, consumer needs, team psychology, and financing were all researched and evaluated. With this information, a business plan was designed around the next NHL expansion team. Two surveys, one for marketing distributed to the general public, and one for team psychology distributed to current and former hockey players were created and sent out, while data for the financing aspect was collected by comparing data from other NHL teams and franchises from different sports. In terms of financials, this comes in lower than average ticket prices, a nice and expensive stadium, the ideal city to generate capital, and sufficient money spent on advertising. Our ticket prices of $140 is based on having a low enough price to generate lots of demand while high enough to make a profit. The $600 million stadium (which will be fully funded) will surely draw a significant crowd. Choosing Seattle as a city is the most ideal to meet these goals and lastly, in meeting with an NHL GM, we determined $4 million in yearly advertising costs as sufficient in creating the most marketable team. Throughout this whole process, we remained data focus. We focused on data from a customized marketing survey, organizational structures, salary cap, and attendance. What our marketing survey results showed us is that our potential fans wanted three characteristics in a hockey team: speed, intensity, and scoring. In looking at organizational structures teams that exemplified these characteristics had a heavy emphasis on development and scouting. So we built our organizational tree around those two ideals. We hired GM Mike Futa, a current director of player personnel for the L.A. Kings, and Head Coach Adam Oates, a current skills development coach for top players to bring those ideals to fruition. In constructing our team we replicated the rules set forth for the Vegas Knights' expansion draft and hypothesized a likely protected list based off of last years lists. As a result we were able to construct a team that statistically out performed the Vegas Knights draft numbers by double, in goals, assists, and points, while also beating them in PIM. Based off of these numbers and an analysis of how goals translate into game attendance we are confident that we have constructed a team that has the highest potential for marketability. For the team psychology area, when creating a roster and scouting players, some of our main findings were that it is important to pursue players who get along well with their teammates and coaching staff, are aggressive, are leaders on the team, and are vocal players who communicate effectively. We also recommended avoiding players who significantly portrayed any "pet-peeve" traits, with the most emphasis placed on "disrespectful toward teammates," and the least emphasis placed on "over-aggression." By following all of these recommendations, we believe the most marketable hockey team possible can be created.
ContributorsQuinn, Colin Christopher (Co-author) / Spigel, Carlos (Co-author) / Meyer, Matt (Co-author) / Eaton, John (Thesis director) / McIntosh, Daniel (Committee member) / Department of Marketing (Contributor) / Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law (Contributor) / Department of Management and Entrepreneurship (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
Sports have connected fans together for years, but the way fans are engaging with their favorite teams and the way they are interacting with athletes and teams have changed and will continue to change. Social media is one of the fastest growing trends today and it is continuing to grow and change the way people live. The connection between sports and social media has grown and will continue to evolve, with 93.3% of global sports leaders believing that the pair will continue to grow in the next 5-10 years (Reddy). Sports have been around for many years and each sport has created a special fan base that appeals to them. More recently, the two have become more intertwined with one another and have benefitted from the connection. Sports teams and players are now using social media to draw attention to themselves and differentiate themselves from other teams. Companies are using social media to show their partnerships with teams and the players on those teams. Both entities understand the importance of being ahead of their competitors and staying up to date with the newest trends. It is crucial for social media platforms to stay relevant in the eyes of consumers just as it is important for sports teams, and players, to stay relevant to their fans. The emphasis of social media in society has led to more sponsorships between businesses and teams and has allowed consumers to see those relationships play out right on their device. According to a study done by Fullerton, sports account for 70% of sponsorship money spent in a year (Fullerton). With revenues of both sports and sponsorships increasing, these two entities will grow together. Social media can bring good and bad aspects along with it, but for companies looking to have top teams or athletes support them, it is very beneficial. 75% of consumers reported being always on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram, which are two of the top platforms used by companies to promote themselves (Reddy). These social media 4 platforms can be good for exposure and getting products and news into the world, but can be bad because it can bring light to situations that are not always good. The problems do not arise because of the partnerships that are formed, but rather nobody outside the partnership knowing about it. When a player posts about a product on their social media with no indication of a deal with a company, fans seeing the post would have no idea that they are being paid to say it. When someone clearly shows that it is an "#ad", people are free to form their own opinions because it has been made aware that the post is being made as part of an agreement. This project explores how posting on social media affects the fans perception of the player/team if they know it is a sponsored ad or not. With social media continuing to play a large role in the sports world and advertisements becoming more prevalent on all platforms, it is important for the teams, and the players, to be transparent with their fans.
ContributorsSeip, Bridgette (Author) / Eaton, John (Thesis director) / McIntosh, Daniel (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is one of the Big Four Sporting Leagues of US Professional Sports. In recent years, the NBA has enjoyed milestone seasons in both attendance and television ratings, resulting in steady increases to both, over the previous decade. (Morgan, 2017) This surge can be attributed in part to the integration of "cultural recognition" initiatives and the overall message of inclusivity on the part of NBA franchises, with their respective promotions and advertisements such as television, social media, radio, etc. Heritage Nights, such as "Noche Latina," among other variants in the NBA, typically feature culturally influenced changes to team logos, giveaways, and other consumer offerings. In markets where Hispanics make up a significant percentage of the fan-base, such as Phoenix, NBA franchises such as the Phoenix Suns must ascertain the financial or perceptual impacts, associated with risks of stereotyping, offending or otherwise unintentionally alienating different categories of fans. To this end, data was collected from the local NBA franchises' fanbase, specifically Phoenix Suns season-ticket holders, and was statistically checked for significant relationships between both categories of fans and several different variables. This analysis found that only $192K in revenue is being missed through the investment of Heritage Nights, and that fan perceptions of stereotypical or offensive giveaways and practices have no significant effect on game or event attendance, despite the stereotypes toward giveaways and practices still being present. Implications of this study provide possible next steps for the Suns and continue to widen the scope of demographical sports marketing both in professional basketball and beyond.
ContributorsGibbens, Patrick Alexander (Author) / Eaton, John (Thesis director) / McIntosh, Daniel (Committee member) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor) / School of Music (Contributor) / Department of Marketing (Contributor) / W.P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
My name is Adriana Becerra and I am a student at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. In hoping to combine my two passions of journalism and film, for my Honors Undergraduate Thesis project I created my own film review website. My website is a complete review of the films that were nominated for the 2015 Oscars in the following categories: Best Picture, Animated Feature, Documentary Feature, Foreign Language, and Short Film Live Action. In all, I watched and reviewed a total of twenty-eight films based on acting, lighting, music, cinematography, costume/makeup/set design, writing, and visual effects. Over the course of nine months, I have watched, reviewed, and talked extensively about each film that I have reviewed. Though tedious at times, I thoroughly enjoyed completing my Undergraduate Thesis Project. I hope to continue critically looking at films, and possibly even incorporating film in my journalistic career.
ContributorsBecerra, Adriana Justina (Author) / Dodge, Nancie (Thesis director) / Russell, Dennis (Committee member) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor) / Department of English (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05
Description
The ability to draft and develop productive Major League players is vital to the success of any MLB organization. A core of cost-controlled, productive players is as important as ever with free agent salaries continuing to rise dramatically. In a sport where mere percentage points separate winners from losers at the end of a long season, any slight advantage in identifying talent is valuable. This study examines the 2004-2008 MLB Amateur Drafts in order to analyze whether certain types of prospects are more valuable selections than others. If organizations can better identify which draft prospects will more likely contribute at the Major League level in the future, they can more optimally spend their allotted signing bonus pool in order to acquire as much potential production as possible through the draft. Based on the data examined, during these five drafts high school prospects provided higher value than college prospects. While college players reached the Majors at a higher rate, high school players produced greater value in their first six seasons of service time. In the all-important first round of the draft, where signing bonuses are at their largest, college players proved the more valuable selection. When players were separated by position, position players held greater expected value than pitchers, with corner infielders leading the way as the position group with the highest expected value. College players were found to provide better value than high school players at defensively demanding positions such as catcher and middle infield, while high school players were more valuable among outfielders and pitchers.
ContributorsGildea, Adam Joseph (Author) / Eaton, John (Thesis director) / McIntosh, Daniel (Committee member) / Department of Economics (Contributor) / W. P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05
Description
A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed. There are few words that have proved as controversial and dividing as these in the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution. Especially today, it seems like every few months we are faced with a new, darker reality of mass shootings and unintended deaths. And everyone has their opinion on the matter. The primary goal of this paper and documentary, A Middle Ground, is to get to the root of the issue: what was the original intent of the Second Amendment and how has that intent changed from 1789 to today? Is there common ground for both sides of the issue? The paper describes the pre-production, production and post-production process of A Middle Ground documentary including problems, solutions and triumphs. The paper also discusses the history of the Second Amendment from its inception to its current day status in the Supreme Court. A Middle Ground follows the Supreme Court case Printz v. United States through the eyes of one of its main plaintiffs, former Graham County Sheriff Richard Mack. The documentary follows Sheriff Mack from his original choice to sue the Federal Government over the Brady Bill to the Supreme Court’s decision. It also touches on the history of the Second Amendment and how Printz v. United States impacted recent historic court cases on the Second Amendment. The case also jumpstarted the individual right movement that is the most prevalent interpretation of the Second Amendment today.
ContributorsWastek, Jakob Alexander (Author) / Craft, John (Thesis director) / Russell, Dennis (Committee member) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Comm (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
The United States Open Championship, often referred to as the U.S. Open, is one of the four major championships in professional golf. Held annually in June, the tournament changes venues each year and must meet a strict criterion to challenge the best players in the world. Undergoing an evaluation conducted by the United States Golf Association, the potential course is assessed on its quality and design. Along with this, the course is evaluated on its ability to hold various obstructions and thousands of spectators, while also providing plenty of space for parking, ease of transportation access, and a close proximity to local airports and lodging. Of the thousands of courses in the United States, only a select few have had the opportunity to host a U.S. Open, and far fewer have had the chance to host it on multiple occasions. Therefore, we are prepared to create the next venue that has the capabilities of hosting many U.S. Open tournaments for years to come.
ContributorsCostello, Alec (Co-author) / Miller, Alec (Co-author) / Foster, William (Thesis director) / McIntosh, Daniel (Committee member) / W.P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Department of Finance (Contributor) / Economics Program in CLAS (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
The revitalization of the Olympic Games was introduced in 1896 and since then has left a global impact. Over time the candidature process for a city to host the games has evolved from a conversation about wealth to a focus on sustainable practices and cultural influence. This thesis aims to assess the implementation of Agenda 2020, a strategic roadmap created by the International Olympic Committee in 2015. The paper specifically looks at recommendations one, two and three; which are all geared towards bidding procedures. Within this paper, there is information from secondary sources that are both official and unofficial Olympic documents. The primary research portion of this paper includes in-depth interviews with Olympic experts. These experts come from a variety of backgrounds and provide an additional layer of perspective when assessing the Olympic movement. The results of this thesis showed that while Agenda 2020 is the step in the right direction, it lacks progress. There was a lot of effort and time put forth into creating Agenda 2020, but since then there has been minimal follow-up. In order for Agenda 2020 to reach its full potential, there needs to be a team dedicated to tracking its progress and continuously working on future recommendations.
ContributorsChavan, Manali (Author) / Eaton, John (Thesis director) / McIntosh, Daniel (Committee member) / Department of Marketing (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
Sports business is currently among the fastest growing industries in China. The purpose of this project is to investigate the reasons sports business is growing so fast in China. This project will provide insight as to how the Chinese people and its government have ramped up the levels of sports participation and expenditures on sports infrastructure. In the past 10 years, China has developed one of the fastest growing economies in the world. China's sport sector potentially has become the next big growth market in the world. Although it is an emerging and fragile industry, the Chinese government has focused on turning the sports industry into the next big thing in the Chinese business sector. This study identifies and explains five major factors impacting sports in China: 1) the rise of famous Chinese and international athletes, 2), the impact of the 2012 Summer Olympics in Beijing, 3) a focus on business sponsorship partnerships, 4) strong government support, and 5) a changing cultural view of sports and their importance as a nation. Today, there are so many people who are seeing the untapped potential in the Chinese sports industry as a viable and profitable investment opportunity due in large part to the outstanding growth rate of sports business this past decade. The Chinese government is most supportive of this cultural shift as they recognize the impact of seeking new business opportunities as a driver of economic growth. The support of the Chinese government helps to create an environment of developing gold medal athletes as the success of these athlete inspire other people to increase the awareness of sports. Additionally, a large amount of Chinese sponsors like world known companies, Alibaba, Tencent, and WanDa Group, currently invest their money in the largest international sports events such as FIFA, Olympics, and FIBA. Chinese people are interested in playing sports and buying sports related products because they like following the fashion that is created by their favorite athlete or sports brands. Lastly, the thesis will bring you to see the future outlook in Chinese's sport industry.
ContributorsZhao, Chen Xi (Author) / Eaton, John (Thesis director) / McIntosh, Daniel (Committee member) / Department of Marketing (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
Journalism, by its very nature, is limited, often adhering to a repetitive format and narration style. Consequently, the depth of journalistic stories will always hit a barrier. Fiction, on the other hand, provides an elegant solution by exploring the world through a myriad point of views including complete omniscience. This thesis explores the link between journalism and fiction by taking real-world scenarios and exploring them without journalism's limitations. It includes three novellas totaling 25,000 words drawn from true-to-life research papers, news stories and manifestos to paint a realistic picture of a technological reality in the near future, a style of writing one might call futurecasting. The thesis also contains an analysis of the techniques used in contemporary fiction and an analysis of their implementation within the novellas. The goal of the novellas is to let researchers to explore the impact of their work before its mass dissemination in order to shape societal, national and international policy responsibly. Similarly, novellas like this and others similar allow society to discover the beauty of science through fiction. These are some of fiction's greatest roles in science and society.
ContributorsPacini, Jason Daniel (Author) / Zachary, Gregg (Thesis director) / Russell, Dennis (Committee member) / Giarrusso, Theresa Walsh (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Physics (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor)
Created2013-05