Creighton Theses and Dissertations

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Now showing 1 - 5 of 2097

Mobile App Releases and Firm Value: Reconciling Conflicting Literature
(Creighton University, 2022-08-02) Stumphf, Shawn; Wingender, John; Stumphf, Shawn
Current research finds different impacts on the effect of mobile application (app) releases on firm value. Prior event studies based on mobile app announcement dates show positive abnormal returns on average, and prior event studies based on mobile app release dates show negative abnormal returns on average. These conflicting results send mixed messages on the impact of mobile apps on firm value. An event study methodology is used to determine if initial mobile app releases generate positive or negative abnormal returns on average. This paper considers mobile app releases both with and without announcements to attempt to reconcile conflicts in the literature. The effects of time, industry, mobile app category, and mobile operating system are also examined. A sample of 305 initial mobile app releases during 2008 through 2020 from S&P 500 firms is analyzed. The results confirm prior studies that mobile app releases have different effects on firm value on the announcement date and release date. Industry and mobile app category are shown to have a statistically significant, positive effect on firm value for mobile app releases, but time and mobile operating system do not have a statistically significant effect. Keywords: mobile app, event study, firm value, abnormal returns, Apple, Android, announcement
Examination of Abiotic Drivers and Their Influence on Spartina alterniflora Biomass over a Twenty-eight Year Period Using Landsat 5 TM Satellite Imagery of the Central Georgia Coast
(Creighton University, 2022-05-17) O'Donnell, John Patrick Ryan; Schalles, John F; O'Donnell, John Patrick Ryan
We examined the inﬂuence of abiotic drivers on inter-annual and phenological patterns of aboveground biomass for Marsh Cordgrass, Spartina alterniﬂora, on the Central Georgia Coast. The linkages between drivers and plant response via soil edaphic factors are captured in our graphical conceptual model. We used geospatial techniques to scale up in situ measurements of aboveground S. alterniﬂora biomass to landscape level estimates using 294 Landsat 5 TM scenes acquired between 1984 and 2011. For each scene we extracted data from the same 63 sampling polygons, containing 1222 pixels covering about 1.1 million m2. Using univariate and multiple regression tests, we compared Landsat derived biomass estimates for three S. alterniﬂora size classes against a suite of abiotic drivers. River discharge, total precipitation, minimum temperature, and mean sea level had positive relationships with and best explained biomass for all dates. Additional results, using seasonally binned data, indicated biomass was responsive to changing combinations of variables across the seasons. Our 28-year analysis revealed aboveground biomass declines of 33%, 35%, and 39% for S. alterniﬂora tall, medium, and short size classes, respectively. This decline correlated with drought frequency and severity trends and coincided with marsh die-backs events and increased snail herbivory in the second half of the study period.
Lived Experiences and Attributes of Custodial Grandparents that Influence Their Grandchild's Early Learning and Development: A Phenomenological Study
(Creighton University, 2022-05-05) Armstrong, Anita; Caruso-Woolard, Cassandra; Armstrong, Anita
Over the last decade, the United States has experienced a steady rise in the number of children who are placed in out-of-home care, due in large part to the opioid epidemic. When children cannot live with their parents, kinship care is the preferred placement option because it helps children maintain a sense of stability, familiarity, and connection to family culture. A majority of these relative caregivers are grandparents who take on full-time caregiving responsibility for their grandchildren. Custodial grandparenting differs from typical parenting and other kinship caregiving. The focus of this study was the nonnormative experience of grandparents raising grandchildren. A phenomenological research design was used to explore the lived experiences and attributes of grandparents with custody of a preschool-age grandchild enrolled in Head Start. The study took place in the state of Ohio in the Midwestern region of the United States. The findings draw attention to grandparent-headed families as a specific family form with unique strengths, challenges, and needs. The findings also reveal a gap in the supports and services necessary to promote resilience and well-being among caregivers and children in grandparent-headed families. This study contributes to existing research on grandfamilies and informs professional learning and continuous improvement within child and family serving systems.
The Changing Face of Christ: Leading a Catholic School Through a Demographic Shift
(Creighton University, 2022-05-06) Hinrickson, Noelle; Moss Breen Kuzelka, Jennifer; Hinrickson, Noelle
Despite higher overall student achievement, Catholic schools are closing at an alarming rate. The purpose of this dissertation was to explore the role of school principals in leading a Catholic school through a demographic shift, and through the lens of change theory, to describe the best practices employed by these principals to ensure the success of the students and the long-term viability of the school. Case study research was conducted within a K-8 urban Catholic school which had successfully undergone a demographic change. Nine various stakeholders were interviewed via a researcher-developed protocol using open-ended questions. Utilizing a case study framework, datum was organized and coded, which established themes of school culture, instructional support, community outreach, and archdiocesan support. Themes were developed into recommendations for both school principals and archdiocesan leadership when leading a school undergoing or facing a future demographic change. While this case study provides one example of one school, future research in similar schools who have undergone similar changes would provide meaningful insight into the efficacy of these recommendations.
A Case Study on College Persistence of Low Income Students
(Creighton University, 2022-05-05) Ryan, Thomas; Liebertz, Scott; Ryan, Thomas
Abstract Over the past five years, the national average college persistence rate for low-income students was 16%. Compared to the national rate of 60%, this number presents a significant gap in college persistence rates between low-income and the overall persistence rate. However, the college persistence rate for low-income students from Cristo Rey Boston is 56%. The number jumps to 100% for Cristo Rey Boston students attending College of the Holy Cross. The investigation will look at how the students’ time at Cristo Rey Boston supported their college persistence. The data that emerged from this study produced four themes. The four themes are: (1) the students felt prepared to handle humanities classes in college, (2) the students did not feel prepared to handle STEM classes in college, (3) the students initially felt a negative experience socially, and (4) the students expressed gratitude to the Corporate Work Study Program. The study provided solutions to address barriers to college persistence that emerged from the themes and corresponding sub-themes. Keywords: college persistence, low-income, mission, STEM, humanities

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