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.
With the majority of films today being adapted from original source material, the market is in need of guidance on how to produce a motion picture authentic to the original source material while also providing new, engaging viewing experiences. When the source itself has established itself as a brand with a strong fanbase or group of brand lovers, these needs become heightened and extremely valuable to the success of the adapted film brand. By examining the concepts of brand love, brand authenticity, films as brands, and brand ambidexterity I was then able to evaluate the need for an adapted film brand ambidexterity framework to produce a higher likelihood of success amongst fans. This need became further apparent when examining the brand history of the Star Wars franchise, one of the largest adapted film brands. From the prior research, I was able to construct in-depth interviews with fans of the Star Wars brand to deduce what aspects of brand love remained within this market, what they identified as the essential brand identity that must remain consistent with future projects, and what relevant ideas they anticipate in brand extensions. The unveiled concepts included the importance of long-term relationship with the brand, connection to the film brand’s philosophy, nostalgia, high family involvement, world expansion, and creative brand leaders.
In the past decade, the use of mobile applications, specifically mobile applications focused on improving the health and fitness of users, has increased exponentially. As more consumers look towards mobile health applications to improve their health through dieting, exercise, and weight management, it is important to analyze how the concept of gamification can encourage sustained interaction and approval of these health-focused applications. This thesis aims to understand the prevalence of gamification amongst a large sample of health and fitness applications, identify and code the gamification features used in these apps, and finally, understand how different gamification features relate to the popularity and willingness to advocate using eWOM on behalf of a mobile app.
