Matching Items (103)
Description
This thesis describes research into the application of socially reflective, or "Slow", design principles to modern mediated systems, or "Fast" technology. The "information overload" caused by drastic changes in the nature of human communications in the last decade has become a serious problem, with many human-technology interactions creating mental confusion, personal discomfort and a sense of disconnection. Slow design principles aim to help create interactions that avoid these problems by increasing interaction richness, encouraging engagement with local communities, and promoting personal and communal reflection. Three major functional mediated systems were constructed to examine the application of Slow principles on multiple scales: KiteViz, Taskville and Your ____ Here. Each system was designed based on a survey of current research within the field and previous research results. KiteViz is a visually metaphorical display of Twitter activity within a small group, Taskville is a workplace game designed to support collaboration and group awareness in an enterprise, and Your ____ Here is a physical-digital projection system that augments built architecture with user-submitted content to promote discussion and reflection. Each system was tested with multiple users and user groups, the systems were evaluated for their effectiveness in supporting each of the tenets of Slow design, and the results were collected into a set of key findings. Each system was considered generally effective, with specific strengths varying. The thesis concludes with a framework of five major principles to be used in the design of modern, highly-mediated systems that still apply Slow design principles: design for fundamental understanding, handle complexity gracefully, Slow is a process of evolution and revelation, leverage groups and personal connections to encode value, and allow for participation across a widely distributed range of scales.
ContributorsLinn, Silvan (Author) / Kelliher, Aisling G (Thesis advisor) / Tinapple, David (Committee member) / Boradkar, Prasad (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
Mid-Century ranch house architecture and design is significant to the architectural landscape of the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. The increasing age of the city's post-WWII properties is creating a need for renovation and rehabilitation, and new technologies have created modern conveniences for today's homeowners, changing interior space plan requirements. These homeowners will need guidance to alter these properties correctly and to preserve the home's essential features. This thesis analyzes the design trends and materials used during the mid-twentieth century, and demonstrates methods for applying them to a current renovation project. The research outlined in this document proves that it is possible to maintain historic integrity, include "Green" design strategies, and apply contemporary technology to a modern ranch renovation.
ContributorsSimmons, Rachel (Author) / Brandt, Beverly (Thesis advisor) / Warren-Findley, Janelle (Committee member) / Boradkar, Prasad (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2009
Description
This dissertation examines the use of color in lowrider car customizations. It studies the relationships among car owners, car painters, and car clubs in the process of selection, and manipulation of color. This research studies how color is constructed as an element for individual and community differentiation. Also included is the examination of the influence of car clubs in the design process, the understanding of color by car painters and car owners, and the cultural values associated with color in this community. This research argues that through the use, manipulation, and implementation of color as a visual/design element, lowriders challenge, transgress, and resist the preconceived notions of space, aesthetic hegemony, and social disparity they experience. In this case, color as a cultural expression, becomes a pivotal element to narrate and retell their stories of struggle and endurance, as well as to envision a different world. This research frames Chicana/o vernacular production, and color use as being central to the borderland experience of this community. Finally, this research follows the discourse of taste, as this concept has been used to create social categories of exotic otherness and the perpetuation of specific aesthetic epistemologies. In this context, it presents lowriders as expression of a Chicana/o network of vernacular border knowledge. This dissertation concludes by framing the Low n' Slow movement, in the context of healing and emancipating practices enacted by subjugated communities in order to survive, give sense to their reality, and to envision a more egalitarian world.
ContributorsCalvo, William (Author) / Giard, Jacques (Thesis advisor) / Boradkar, Prasad (Committee member) / Foster, David William (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
Ascend is the premier non-profit professional association that enables its members, corporate partners and the community to realize the leadership potential of Pan-Asians in global corporations. Ascend at Arizona State University (ASU) was founded in March 2011 as a student affiliate of the national Ascend organization. There are four ultimate goals for this thesis: 1) to create an operations and transition guide for Ascend's future leadership; 2) to develop strategies and tactics to improve Ascend's operations; 3) to better establish and integrate Ascend within the W. P. Carey School of Business; and 4) to better understand and provide for the unique needs of international students within the W. P. Carey School of Business. An analysis of external trends at the W. P. Carey School of Business and ASU reveals that international students represent a rapidly growing demographic. Ascend, although successful during its first year of operations, must adapt in order to best provide for the unique needs of this demographic. At the same time, it must continue to service the needs of its overall target markets: 1) Asian students (both American-born and international) and 2) students seeking to work in Asia. In order to set the platform for the continued success of the organization moving forward, specific and measurable objectives, strategies, and tactics were developed. The organization's financial condition, executive board, committees, membership, student recruitment, events, support network, and mentor program were identified as the crucial elements that must be developed in order to ensure improvement in the organization moving forward. Finally, in order to ensure the continued integration of Ascend within the W. P. Carey School of Business, the business school can pursue strategies to better serve the unique needs of international students.
ContributorsAsztalos, Matthew J. (Co-author) / Chang, Haipei (Co-author) / Lam, Yu Hin "Jeffrey" (Co-author) / Ostrom, Amy (Thesis director) / Vinze, Ajay (Committee member) / Pino, Rudy (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / School of Accountancy (Contributor)
Created2013-05
Description
Science fiction themed video games, specifically Role Playing Games (RPGs) like Deus Ex: Human Revolution (DX:HR), that focus on an emerging technology, contain features that help to better inform anticipatory governance. In a game like DX:HR, players vicariously experience human-enhancement technology and its societal effects through their in-game character. Acting as the character, the player explores the topic of human-enhancement technology in various ways, including dialogue with non-player characters (NPCs) and decisions that directly affect the game's world. Because Deus Ex: Human Revolution and games similar to it, allow players to explore and think about the technology itself, the stances on it, and its potential societal effects, they facilitate the anticipatory governance process. In this paper I postulate a theory of anticipatory gaming, which asserts that video games inform the anticipatory governance process for an emerging technology. To demonstrate this theory I examine the parts of the anticipatory governance process and demonstrate RPG's ability to inform it, through a case study of Deus Ex: Human Revolution.
ContributorsShedd, Jesse Bernard (Author) / Wetmore, Jameson (Thesis director) / Fisher, Erik (Committee member) / McKnight, John Carter (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Human Evolution and Social Change (Contributor)
Created2013-05
Description
Numerous studies have examined the attachments individuals have to the places they visit, and that those attachments are formed through experiencing a place in person. This study is unique in that it examines pre-trip place attachment formation via the use of mobile technology and social media. It proposes that media experienced through the use of a participant's smartphone can foster the development of positive emotions, which in turn, facilitates greater mental imagery processing that ultimately influences pre-trip place attachment formation. An experimental design was constructed to examine how text and video on a destination's Facebook page influences an individual's emotions, mental imagery, and subsequently attachment to that destination. Specifically, a 2 (narrative text vs. descriptive text) x 2 (short, fast-paced video vs. long, slow-paced video) between-subjects design was used. A total of 343 usable participant responses were included in the analysis. The data was then analyzed through a two-step process using structural equation modeling. Results revealed no significant influence of textual or video media on emotions although the choice in text has a greater influence on emotions than choice in video. Additionally, emotions had a significant impact on mental imagery. Finally, mental imagery processing had a significant impact on only the social bonding dimension of place attachment. In conclusion, while media had no significant impact on emotions, the effect of previous traveler's retelling of personal accounts on the emotions of potential travelers researching a destination should be examined more closely. Further, the study participants had no prior experience with the destination, yet emotions influenced mental imagery, which also influenced social bonding. Thus further research should be conducted to better understand how potential traveler's image of a destination can be affected by the stories or others.
ContributorsPlunkett, Daniel (Author) / Budruk, Megha (Thesis advisor) / Lee, Woojin (Thesis advisor) / Wetmore, Jameson (Committee member) / Wise, Greg (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
In response to the rapid rise of emerging markets, shorter product lifecycles, increasing global exchange and worldwide competition, companies are implementing `sustainable development' as a mechanism by which to maintain competitive global advantage. Sustainable product development approaches used in industry focus mainly on environmental issues, and to a certain extent on social and economic aspects. Unfortunately, companies have often ignored or are unsure of how to deal with the cultural dimensions of sustainable product development. Multi-nationals expanding their business across international boundaries are agents of cultural change and should be cognizant of the impact their products have on local markets. Companies need to develop a deeper understanding of local cultures in order to design and deliver products that are not only economically viable but also culturally appropriate. To demonstrate applicability of cultural appropriate design, this research undertakes a case study of food systems in India specifically focusing on the exchange of fresh fruits and vegetables (FFV). This study focuses on understanding the entire supply chain of FFV exchange, which includes consumer experiences, distribution practices and production processes. This study also compares different distribution channels and exchange practices and analyzes the pattern of authority between different players within the distribution network. The ethnographic methods for data collection included a photo-journal assignment, shop-along visits, semi-structured interviews, a participatory design activity and focus group studies. The study revealed that traditional retail formats like pushcart vendors, street retailers and city retail markets are generally preferred over modern retail stores. For consumers, shopping is a non-choreographed activity often resulting in exercising, socializing and accidental purchases. Informal communication, personal relationships and openness to bargaining were important aspects of the consumer-retailer relationship. This study presents cultural insights into interactions, artifacts and contexts relevant to FFV systems in India. It also presents key implications for the field of design, design research, cultural studies, consumer research and sustainability. The insights gained from this study will act as guidelines for designers, researchers and corporations interested in designing products and services that are culturally appropriate to contexts of production, distribution and consumption.
ContributorsDhadphale, Tejas (Author) / Giard, Jacques (Thesis advisor) / Boradkar, Prasad (Thesis advisor) / Broome, Benjamin (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
Increasing collaboration among employees is a top priority for many organizations today. How can we help companies and employees collaborate better? Through Innovation Space, our team Kioro has an opportunity to design and develop alternative solutions that will help achieve the idea. This paper discusses the fields of the five disciplines including from Graphic Design, Industrial Design, Engineering, Sustainability, and Business. The scope and content is aimed at focusing on each role, his/her basic responsibility and some of the highlights of his/her work over the whole semester. The very interactive and engaging environment at Innovation Space has driven me to think about teamwork, interpersonal relationship, and self-evaluation. By observations of my team members, this paper covers a reflection with a list of solutions to improve my life. Innovation Space not only teaches me about new product development, but also has a significant impact behind and lead me to think about life.
ContributorsTao, Wing Yi (Author) / Peck, Sidnee (Thesis director) / Boradkar, Prasad (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Finance (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
Over a twelve-month period I completed industry research on women working in the financial industry. I then compiled a set of 17 qualitative questions with a focus on career development, leadership, compensation, and best practices for women working in the financial industry in order to complete my own study. I focused my time and energy on ten women working in the finance in Arizona. I completed one hour interviews with each woman in order to gain an understanding of the challenges women face in the workforce today. I have learned that gender bias is still very prevalent in the financial industry. Seven out of the ten women I spoke to labeled it as an obstacle during their career. The wage gap in finance continues to exist and I believe this is due to a culture of secrecy in the workforce and the discouragement of negotiation. The women I interviewed focused on communal leadership skills such as encouragement, empathy, and team success. This is a benefit today as the workplace culture changes these leadership strategies are extremely affective. Although gender discrimination is still prevalent, there are many promising signs for women entering the financial industry. Women as a whole are very satisfied with their careers and recommend the field to other young women starting off. Ten out of ten of the women I interviewed believe that being female in a male dominated workforce can be a benefit. If you work hard and demonstrate successful leadership abilities it can be easier to stand out. It is definitely possible to have a fulfilling career in the financial industry, but you have to define success in your own terms and make time for the activities and people you enjoy. I hope that my research will impact other young women to continue to pave the way of success for women in the financial industry.
ContributorsRuttledge, Florence Rose (Author) / Kalika, Dale (Thesis director) / Ostrom, Amy (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Finance (Contributor) / Department of Supply Chain Management (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
Abstract Hope and Dreams: Insight into Autism Art Benefit Exhibition Megan H. Tollefson Hope and Dreams: Insight into Autism was a social outreach project benefiting autism research in the Phoenix Valley via an art exhibition. Autism is a widely discussed disorder that affects more than 1.5 million people in the United States. It has had a significant personal impact on my life, as I have two cousins with the disorder, as well as o the lives of millions of others. The project aimed to educate the public on autism, support families dealing with the disorder, and raise funds for essential research to better understand, treat, and prevent autism. The variety of paintings in the exhibition was meant to be representative of the many facets of autism while inspiring hope for viewers. The project also intended to advocate the arts as a viable method for communicating for collective community pulse in the face of increasing autism prevalence. The project process hoped to speak as a visual, social and most importantly, a human commentary on the current state of autism in America. My artwork was selected as the winner for the Sally A. McKenna memorial exhibition for spring 2008, and the exhibition took place in the Step Gallery in the heart of Tempe. The paintings I created and the marketing for the event allowed me to create a meaningful thesis project and combine my interest in business and the arts. I was also able to donate several thousand dollars and one of the paintings to the Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center.
ContributorsTollefson, Megan (Author) / Schoebel, Henry (Thesis director) / Ostrom, Amy (Committee member) / Minonich, Lyndsey (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2008-05