A number of lifestyle merchandising and advertising strategies are being used in the home furnishings industry. However, there is limited research regarding the effectiveness of these strategies. The purpose of this study was to explore consumers' attitudes toward the lifestyle concept. Analyses of several consumer behavior variables and descriptors offered noteworthy findings for the home furnishings industry. This study found that although lifestyle orientation is a valuable tool for delineating consumer markets, these segmentations were not significant determinates of consumers' preference for elements of the lifestyle construct. Retailers and manufacturers are not simply creating home furnishing collections that target the needs of specific psychographic segment, but rather creating lifestyles being aspired to obtain. Although respondents scored the attitude variables neutral, the current market environment offers many examples of successfully home furnishing implementations of the lifestyle concept. These success stories coupled with additional findings indicate consumers' positive response to lifestyle merchandising.

Forms in pocket. / Digitized by Kansas State University Libraries

Forms in pocket. / Digitized by Kansas State University Libraries

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Delaware, 2006. / Principal faculty advisor: Bernard Herman, Dept. of Art History. Includes bibliographical references.

The shape of the lumbar and thoracic spinal curves in healthy subjects, when standing and when adopting a variety of working positions, was investigated using angular measures. The hypothesis that spinal and pelvic posture is determined by body position was supported. The mechanism by which body position influences spinal and pelvic posture was investigated using angular indices of the lengths of the hip flexors and extensors. The hypothesis that hamstring stretch determines postural adaptation to sitting positions was not supported. A multivariate analysis revealed that an index of iliopsoas length was the best predictor of posterior pelvic tilt in a variety of sitting positions. A supplementary investigation was carried out using data on the range of motion of the pelvis in the different body positions and its relationship to the muscle length indices. The role of the hamstring muscles in sitting posture was clarified. Some electromyographic data is presented to further illustrate the effect of body position on the role of the hip and trunk muscles in posture. A replication of the main findings and an investigation of some of the practical implications of the work were carried out drawing attention to some mechanisms of postural stress, potential problems of increased lumbar lordosis and their cost-effective alleviation through workspace design. The provision of a footrest, for example, was found to have significant effects on lumbar and pelvic angles in standing as well as in sitting. Further research into standing posture in the workplace is indicated by these findings. Some hypotheses for future investigation are presented.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universidad de Zaragoza, 1986. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 374-386) and indexes.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universidad de Zaragoza, 1986. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 374-386) and indexes.

Dissertation (Ph.D.)--The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 2009. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed May 13, 2010). Directed by Nancy Hodges; submitted to the Dept. of Consumer, Apparel, and Retail Studies. Includes bibliographical references (p. 229-256).

Thesis (M.S.)--The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 2010. / Directed by Thomas Lambeth; submitted to the Dept. of Interior Architecture. Title from PDF t.p. (viewed Jul. 9, 2010). Includes bibliographical references (p. 96-102, 121, 131).

O design do móvel e as relações do usuário com o espaço da habitação popular brasileira são o foco da investigação. É objeto de análise a capacidade de atuação de arquitetos e designers na escolha, distribuição e articulação dos objetos no ambiente da habitação produzida em larga escala no Brasil. Tem-se como grupo social alvo da pesquisa a Nova Classe Média Brasileira, em ascensão desde o início da estabilidade econômica do país em meados da década de 1990. Após o processo de redemocratização e aumento efetivo do consumo com o Plano Real e as políticas de inclusão dos sucessivos mandatos do Partido dos Trabalhadores em âmbito federal, ocorreu a inversão da pirâmide social brasileira, com o surgimento dessa nova classe. Diante da impossibilidade de contratação dos serviços de um arquiteto ou designer de interiores, seja por falta de capital, seja por questão cultural, a Nova Classe Média, maior consumidora do país, acaba por escolher e comprar objetos e mobiliário doméstico sem o auxílio de um profissional da área. Esse processo empírico de escolha resulta em arranjos ineficazes que dificultam a circulação no espaço e acabam por prejudicar a qualidade de vida dessas famílias. O presente trabalho analisou o processo de concepção, edição e estratégia de veiculação de revista popular de decoração pioneira no país, intitulada Minha Casa, lançada em 2010 pela Editora Abril e editada pelo autor desta pesquisa em conjunto com equipe de jornalistas, arquitetos e designers. Unidades habitacionais do programa federal de produção de moradias Minha Casa, Minha Vida, foram usadas como modelos. A comunicação, a adaptação de linguagem, o conceito de produção de conteúdo de decoração, reforma e construção para a Nova Classe Média e seus efeitos integram os resultados dessa pesquisa. / The furniture design and the connections between users and the spaces of Brazilian popular housing are the focus of this investigation. It is the focus of this analysis the ability of architects and designers for the choice, distribution and articulation of objects in large-scale produced housing environment in Brazil. The social group targeted by this search is the New Brazilian Middle Class, that has been rising since the beginning of the economic stability of the country in the mid-1990. After democratization and the effective increase of consumption with the Real Plan and inclusion policies promoted by successive mandates of the Partidos dos Trabalhados at the federal level, the Brazilian social pyramid has turned out, with the emergence of this new class. Given the impossibility of hiring an architect or interior designer services, either for lack of capital, whether for cultural reasons, the New Middle Class, largest consumer of the country, ultimately choose and buy objects and household furniture without the help of a professional. This empirical selection process results in ineffective arrangements that hinder the movement through the rooms and end up harming the quality of life of these families. This study analyzed the process of designing, editing and broadcasting a pioneer strategy of popular decorating magazine called Minha Casa, launched in 2010 by Editora Abril and edited by the author of this research together with a team of journalists, architects and designers. Apartments and houses of the federal program for the production of houses Minha Casa, Minha Vida, were used as templates. The communication, the language editing, the strategy for the production of content on decorating, renovating and building for the New Middle Class and their effects take part of the results of this research.