Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work / W. R. Goe / This qualitative research explores the relationship between urban amenities and the employment of creative Indian workers using personal interviews conducted with Indian professional workers and their families working and residing in the Kansas City (KC) Metropolitan Area. In addressing the debate of whether creative workers follow jobs or jobs follow creative workers, the findings indicate that the decision of Indian creative workers to locate in the Kansas City metropolitan area was primarily influenced by the availability of job opportunities and had little to do with available amenities. A key finding from this study is that the presence of local amenities central to the lifestyles of American professional workers was more important to Indian professional workers than the availability of ethnic Indian amenities such as Indian grocery stores, restaurants, temples, and the screening of Bollywood movies in local theaters. It was also found that “social” amenities (e.g. participation in ethnic Indian associations and formation of networks with other Indian workers residing in the city) are crucial to the retention of Indian professional workers rather than amenities offered through the market. Further, Indian workers preferred residing in suburbs over inner city neighborhoods because of their strong emphasis on the educational achievement of their children and the presence of better schooling opportunities in the suburbs. While ‘distance from work’ and ‘safety of the neighborhood’ were other amenity considerations shaping the settlement decisions of Indian professionals, the presence of co-ethnics in the neighborhood was not an influential factor. The study revealed that most Bengali professionals considered themselves to be assimilated in United States and they appreciated the fact that they are not forced to forsake any aspects of their ethnic culture in the United States. However, some considered that their hectic work schedule, family responsibilities, and involvement with ethnic Indian associations often inhibit adequate assimilation with Americans outside of work. Furthermore, the research found that most Bengali professionals preferred not to impose career or marital choices on their children. However, most second-generation Bengalis were skeptical of their parents’ overemphasis on academic achievement and interference in their personal lives.

Ziel dieses Projektes war es, in Form einer Pilotstudie erste Erkenntnisse über die systematische Nutzung sozialer Netzwerke für den Kauf von Vertrauensgütern durch Privatpersonen zu gewinnen. Hierbei stehen insbesondere zwei Fragen im Vordergrund: (1) Werden soziale Netzwerke im Suchprozeß und bei der Kaufentscheidung von Vertrauensgütern genutzt, und wenn ja, welche Bedingungen beeinflussen das Ausmaß der Nutzung von sozialen Netzwerken? (2) Welche Effekte hat die Nutzung von sozialen Netzwerken im Hinblick auf Suchdauer und Kaufzufriedenheit?

Private Konsumenten stehen häufig vor dem Problem, Vertrauensgüter wie Gebrauchtwagen, Wohnungen oder Pauschalreisen erwerben zu wollen. Als Vertrauensgüter werden Produkte und Dienstleistungen bezeichnet, über deren relevante Eigenschaften der Käufer erst nach dem Kauf durch den Gebrauch Informationen erhält. Im Mittelpunkt dieses Projekts steht die These, dass sich das Vertrauensproblem zwischen Käufer und Verkäufer außer durch den Rückgriff auf formelle Regelungen, wie sie z.B. durch die Gesetzgebung zur Verfügung stehen, auch durch die Nutzung sozialer Netzwerke lösen läßt. Die Einbettung der wirtschaftlichen Transaktion in einen sozialen Kontext ermöglicht dem Käufer, auf Erfahrungen Dritter mit diesem Produkt und/oder diesem Verkäufer zurückzugreifen. Zudem muß der Verkäufer im Falle falscher Versprechungen damit rechnen, einen schlechten Ruf zu erhalten. Die Wirksamkeit dieser Mechanismen ist unter anderem abhängig von den Eigenschaften des sozialen Netzwerkes wie Größe, Dichte oder Heterogenität. Handlungs- und netzwerktheoretische Konzepte erlauben die Ausarbeitung entsprechender Hypothesen, die im Rahmen einer regional begrenzten Pilotstudie getestet wurden. Die ersten Analysen mit den vorliegenden Daten bestätigen vor allem die Bedeutung von persönlichen Netzwerken bei der Wohnungssuche, der Auswahl einer Versicherung sowie der Suche nach einem Zahnarzt oder einem Reisebüro für Pauschalreisen. So geben beispielsweise 73,1% der Befragten an, dass Freunde, Bekannte oder die eigene Familie hilfreich oder sogar sehr hilfreich bei der Suche nach einer Wohnung waren. 45,2% gaben an, vor ihrem letzten Versicherungsabschluß als erstes Rat innerhalb ihres sozialen Netzwerkes gesucht zu haben, während sich nur 24,7% als erstes direkt an die Versicherungsgesellschaft wandten. Das Vorhandensein von Netzwerken, die aufgrund theoretischer Erwägungen für die Suche nach einem Vertrauensgut günstige Eigenschaften aufweisen, erleichtert oder verkürzt die Suche jedoch nicht generell. Für die Frage nach den Effekten der Nutzung von persönlichen Netzwerken für die Suche und Auswahl von Vertrauensgüter sind detailliertere Auswertungen sowie eine umfangreichere Datenbasis notwendig.

Methods used in the thesis include online polling and personal interviews with experts. The goal was to theoretically cover the area of internet marketing and analyze own conducted research. Research has revealed that the internet had the biggest influence on the phases of assessing the options, buying and searching for information of the last purchases of the respondents. The categories which were mostly affected by the internet were electronics and tourism services. With the increasing price of goods the influence of the internet was also growing. The most important internet marketing tools were web sites, search engines and search tools to compare prices. Concerning the social networks, their influence on consumer decision-making was only marginal. The work includes a comparison of theoretical knowledge with research and expert opinions as well.

Notre recherche sera centrée sur les interactions entre les réseaux sociaux et les organisations sportives au niveau de la promotion des valeurs de l’olympisme à savoir l’amitié, le respect et l’excellence. L’intérêt et la spécificité de cette recherche consiste dans le manque d’études qui portent sur les relations entre les individus et les organisations sportives via les réseaux sociaux et plus particulièrement sur la promotion des valeurs de l’olympisme. Par ce travail de recherche, nous espérons mieux cerner le positionnement et la perception du mouvement olympique par le biais de ses valeurs. Au plan méthodologique, après l’analyse du contenu et de l’architecture de sites institutionnels comme celui du Comité International Olympique et de certains comités olympiques nationaux, nous avons opté de combiner deux méthodes : la Netnographie ainsi que des entretiens semi-directifs en ligne et un questionnaire à choix multiple qui ont été analysé par les logiciels Sphinx et Tropes. Notre étude portant sur les réseaux sociaux, nous avons créé sur Facebook une page intitulée « Promotion des valeurs olympiques » qui nous permettra d’appliquer les techniques qualitatives citées précédemment. La population visée par cette recherche est composée de personnes ayant une expérience dans le domaine sportif (champions du monde, olympique et nationaux, membres des comités nationaux, des professeurs de sport et d’éducation physique, etc.). Il est bien évident que l’importance et la récence de ce type d’étude au niveau des organisations sportives devra nécessiter par la suite une démarche plus approfondie et étendue, relayée par des études quantitatives sur des publics aux profils divers. / Our research will focus on the interactions between social networks and sports organizations in the promotion of Olympic values namely friendship, respect and excellence. Interest and specificity of this research is the lack of studies that focus on the relationships between individuals and sports organizations via social networks and more particularly to promote the values of Olympism. For this research, we hope to better understand the position and perception of the Olympic movement through its values. Methodologically, after analyzing the content and architecture of institutional sites such as the International Olympic Committee and some National Olympic Committees, we decided to combine two methods: netnographie, semi-structured interviews online and multi choice questionnary will be analyzing with Sphinx and Tropes. Our study of social networks, we have created a page on Facebook entitled "Promotion of Olympic Values» which allows us to apply qualitative techniques mentioned above. The target population for this research is comprised of individuals with experience in the field of sports (world champions, Olympic and national, national committees, faculty of sport and physical education, etc.). It is obvious that the importance and recency of this type of study in sports organizations will need later a more thorough and extensive, supported by quantitative studies on more diverse public profiles.

The master thesis named "Marketing and communication strategy of SAP Czech Republic" analyses contemporary communication of the company, focusing on communication using social media. The thesis is divided into two parts. The theoretical part focuses on explanations of communication, marketing communication as a part of the marketing mix and in particular the specifications of social media. The second part of the thesis contains the analysis of the contemporary communication of the company and analyses communication using social media. The final chapter provides an evaluation of the potential use of social media in the communication strategy of SAP Czech Republic.

Thesis aims to analyze internet marketing and its possible use in social networks, focusing on Facebook. The theoretical part clarifies concepts of internet and marketing, internet marketing specifications, its possibilities and forms. It also introduces Web 2.0 and social networking issues. The practical part demonstrates the possible use of internet marketing on Facebook in a specific company including an evaluation.

O presente trabalho apresenta um mapeamento quantitativo inédito de como as redações dos jornais brasileiros diminuíram em número de jornalistas e em estrutura, na última década, em consequência da crise do modelo de negócio causada pela queda do faturamento publicitário e das transformações impostas pelos novos meios digitais. Emoldurado por revisão bibliográfica acerca de fundamentos teóricos do jornalismo, da evolução das mídias, das características da transmissão da informação e da fragmentação causada pelas forças disruptivas das tecnologias digitais, o estudo sistematiza, sumariza e analisa esse encolhimento e seus efeitos nos processos de produção da cadeia jornalística. Realizada em nível nacional, com representatividade de 80% da circulação dos jornais, a pesquisa de campo detalha a diminuição do volume de páginas impressas editadas e da produção própria de conteúdo -fenômeno que se verificou em todos os ambientes pesquisados, qualquer que seja o meio de veiculação. O presente trabalho analisa também qual foi a estratégia de conteúdo dos jornais ao atravessarem essa transição. Este estudo ainda compara, em períodos simultâneos, o volume de atividade digital de jornais com a atividade dos governadores numa rede social selecionada, o Facebook. O resultado da comparação complementa a pesquisa e mostra, de forma quantitativa e pela primeira vez, o risco potencial de que, exposta a discursos \"oficiais\" diretamente disseminados por mandatários do Poder Executivo, a sociedade perca as referências habituais geradas pelo jornalismo profissional. Assim, a presente dissertação lança um alerta: a disseminação do uso das redes sociais por parte de governantes combinada com o recuo da presença dos jornais pode indicar um risco para a qualidade informativa do debate público na democracia contemporânea. / This study presents an unprecedented quantitative mapping of how newsrooms in Brazil have diminished in number of journalists and in structure in the last decade as a consequence of the crisis of the business model caused by the fall in advertising revenues and the transformations imposed by the new digital media. Framed by a bibliographical review about the theoretical foundations of journalism, the evolution of the media, the characteristics of information transmission and the fragmentation caused by the disruptive forces of digital technologies, this study systematizes, summarizes and analyzes that shrinkage and its effects on the production processes of the journalistic chain. Held at the national level, with 80% representation of newspaper circulation, the field research details the decrease in the volume of edited printed pages and the production of original content --a phenomenon that occurred in all the environments surveyed, regardless of the medium. The present paper also analyzes the content strategy of newspapers when crossing the transition. This study also compares, in simultaneous periods, the volume of digital newspaper activity with the activity of the governors in a selected social network, Facebook. The result of the comparison complements the research and shows, in a quantitative way and for the first time, the potential risk that, when exposed to \"official\" discourses directly disseminated by representatives of the government, society loses the usual references generated by professional journalism. Thus, the present dissertation warns that the dissemination of the use of social networks by governments combined with the retreat of the presence of newspapers may indicate a risk for the informative quality of the public debate in contemporary democracy.

Nessa tese, pretendeu-se examinar as atitudes perante a morte a partir do advento dos websites de redes sociais (WRSs), o que se desdobrou em uma pesquisa também sobre luto, a morte e o campo digital. A estrutura do trabalho envolveu a apresentação do fenômeno na internet: dos cemitérios virtuais às tumbas digitais que habitam o Facebook. Seguiu-se então uma revisão bibliográfica de autores que trabalharam com o tema e de reflexões sobre a questão da identidade no ciberespaço, teorias do conhecimento sobre a morte, psicologia da morte e sobre o luto. Tais temas perpassaram autores da Psicologia, Psicanálise, Antropologia e História. Depois de tais reflexões teóricas, foi apresentada uma análise de dados oriundos de um questionário aplicado na internet, que contou com 173 respostas, além de duas entrevistas realizadas com enlutados. Alguns temas que emergiram evidenciaram a preponderância da interação com perfis de falecidos entre os enlutados, destacando os websites de redes sociais como elemento partícipe do rito fúnebre contemporâneo e consequentemente do luto. Nas considerações finais alguns pontos que concernem aos paradoxos de uma atitude perante a morte e do luto nos WRSs foram elencados. Além disso, a pesquisa suscitou discussões que que se referem à Psicologia da Morte e também à intersecção entre a Psicologia e o Campo Digital / In this thesis, it was tried to examine the attitudes toward death from the advent of Social Networking Websites (SNW\'s), which was unfolded in a research also on mourning, death and the digital field. The structure of the work involved the presentation of the phenomenon on the internet: from virtual cemeteries to digital tombs that circulate on Facebook. This was followed by a bibliographical review of authors who worked on the theme and of reflections on the question of identity in cyberspace, theories of knowledge about death, the psychology of death and about mourning. These themes permeated authors of Psychology, Psychoanalysis, Anthropology and History. After such theoretical reflections, an analysis of data from a questionnaire applied on the internet was presented, which included 173 responses, as well as two interviews with mourners. Some themes that emerged evidenced the preponderance of the interaction with profiles of deceased among the mourners, highlighting the social networking websites as a participant in the contemporary funeral rite and consequently of mourning. In the final considerations some points that concern the paradoxes of an attitude towards death and mourning in the WRS\'s were listed. In addition, the research elicited discussions that refer to Psychology of Death and also to the intersection between Psychology and the Digital Field

Different types of shocks, or the treatment of one of the players in a specific network, may influence not only the future performance of themselves but also affect their network connections. It is crucial to explore the behaviour of the whole network in response to such an event. This paper focuses on the cases of endogenously formed shock. The logic used in the peer effect literature is adopted to develop the dynamic model and accounts for the endogeneity of the shock. The model allows us to predict the endogenous part of the shock and use the remaining unexpected component to estimate the effect of the shock on the changes in the performance of network connections. The identification conditions for effect are derived, and the consistent estimation procedure is proposed. / Series: Department of Economics Working Paper Series