PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2018, Business: Business Administration

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) authenticity, the perception that an organization's CSR efforts are a genuine representation of the organization's “true self,” has garnered little attention in the micro-CSR and management literature. Yet, in an environment that is filled with accusations of corporate greenwashing and overall skepticism toward organizations' efforts to be socially responsible, establishing perceptions of authentic CSR in the minds of employees is likely key in realizing fully the organizational benefits of CSR. Drawing on attribution theory, I explore and test how CSR authenticity is established in the minds of employees through investigating two perceived motives for pursuing CSR—strategic-driven and values-driven motives. I also examine the direct effects of CSR authenticity on employees' perceived organizational support and employees' trust of the organization. Lastly, using a social exchange theory framework, I examine the mediating role of CSR authenticity in the relationship between perceived organizational motives and two important organizational outcomes— perceived organizational support and organizational trust—and the effect these outcomes have on employee affective commitment and organizational citizenship behavior. My results show that values-driven motives positively contribute to employees' CSR authenticity perceptions, and those authenticity perceptions mediate the relationship between values-driven motives and perceived organizational support, as well as organizational trust. Further analysis reveals that values-driven motives also positively contribute to organizational citizenship behaviors via employees' CSR authenticity perceptions and feelings of perceived organizational support. I discuss theoretical and practical implications of my findings, along with future research.

Committee: Elaine Hollensbe Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Joanna Campbell (Committee Member); Joel Koopman Ph.D. (Committee Member); Karen Machleit Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Management

Master of Science (M.S.), Xavier University, 2024, Psychology

This study examined the effect of organizational behavioral integrity (BI) related to strategic corporate social responsibility (CSR) on participant perceptions of a hypothetical organization (Windscheid et al., 2016). It utilized a three-group between-subjects design (no BI, low-level BI, high-level BI) to manipulate the level of organizational BI when strategic CSR was present, and measured perceptions of organizational BI and favorability. Out of the total 210 participants, 57 participants demonstrated the potential for insufficient effort responding (Huang et al., 2015) and analyses were run with and without these participants. Results showed a significant effect of BI on participant perceptions of the organization. In comparison to an organization without BI and with low BI, participants had significantly more positive perceptions of an organization with high BI. Compared to an organization with no BI, participants had significantly more positive perceptions of an organization with low BI. The potential IER did not impact results. This study demonstrates people can distinguish between different levels of organizational BI for a strategic CSR initiative and perceive organizations with more BI more favorably. Future research should investigate whether attitudes toward different CSR issues influence perceptions and how these perceptions are manifested for organizations.

Committee: Morrie Mullins Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Dalia Diab Ph.D. (Committee Member); Leann Caudill Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Organizational Behavior; Psychology

MFIS, Kent State University, 2021, College of the Arts / School of Fashion

Fashion businesses today are progressively challenged by consumers to provide value beyond the latest design trends. With a multitude of brand choices available to them, consumers seek a narrative that makes them feel satisfied about their purchase. Consumers are searching for brands that help them live out their own social purpose through purchases that share aligning values of sustainability. The three overarching dimensions of sustainability are social, environmental and economic viability. However, without a leading purpose-driven narrative within a business, there is sometimes an inconsistency in aligning all three of these dimensions of sustainability. Small businesses are often the most flexible and innovative. They tend to come up with creative solutions to problems via novel business products, services, and practices. This thesis aims to investigate the strategies that small businesses use to balance the tensions in achieving the three types of sustainability goals. Data was collected through a critical literature review followed by a website content analysis. This data allows common attributes of these narrative-driven businesses to be determined within the quadruple bottom line theory. Of particular interest are “American Made” companies which address environmental concerns with practices such as up-cycling or recycling, and social concerns such as veterans' health and well-being. The Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) businesses analyzed, which have incorporated purpose-driven strategies, are Anne Cate, Sword and Plough, Alabama Chanin, Zero Waste Daniel, and United by Blue. These businesses were selected because they are United States-based fashion companies that incorporate practices that drive sustainability in their business model. From this information, a list of common attributes, best practices and tools was determined from the companies reviewed. The outcome produced a suggested business model for narrative-driven small businesses.

Committee: Noël Palomo-Lovinski (Advisor) Subjects: Business Community; Entrepreneurship; Marketing; Sustainability; Textile Research

Doctor of Business Administration (D.B.A.), Franklin University, 2020, Business Administration

Ratings made by third parties of a firm's performance in the specific areas of environmental stewardship, social responsibility, and overall governance, or ESG have become important criteria that investors consider in determining a firm's value. Based on stakeholder theory, the purpose of this empirical investigation is to examine the relationship between regulatory oversight and third-party ESG ratings. The methodology chosen for this research was quantitative, observational, and retrospective. Financial statistics were collected on 471 firms from four industry sectors, two heavily regulated sectors and two less regulated sectors. ESG metrics from two ESG rating services, MSCI and Sustainalytics, were collected from Fidelity.com and Yahoo Finance, respectively. The quantitative evaluation included multiple regression analysis followed by multiway frequency analysis to determine if a quantifiable relationship exists between regulatory oversight and ESG ratings. This study may provide information to help stakeholders recognize the influence of regulation on ESG ratings. The result of this study may also be beneficial in explaining to investors and company leaders why ESG ratings vary among different industry sectors. This quantitative study is limited to four specific sectors but may provide insights applicable to other sectors based on regulatory intensity.

Committee: Beverly Smith PhD (Committee Chair); Charles Fenner PhD (Committee Member); John Nadalin PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Business Administration; Business Community; Management; Organizational Behavior; Public Policy; Sustainability

Doctor of Management, Case Western Reserve University, 2013, Weatherhead School of Management

This dissertation explores the effects of personal traits that affect socially responsible behavior in small and medium companies in the United States. The initial study uses qualitative semi-structured interviews of owners or CEOs to build a picture of their mental models of how social responsibility affects their companies. These models indicate that personal traits such as values and beliefs developed over their lives and influenced by their parents, education, and personal events influence their decisions on social responsibility. It identifies self-efficacy and conscientiousness as additional trait based precursors to social responsibility. In several cases, disruptive events caused personal reflection and change of the mental models leading to heightened levels of social responsibility within or external to the firm. It suggests that emotional responses create a shared bond between the owners/CEOs and their employees or with other stakeholders outside the organization. It implies that reflection can heighten the opportunities for an owner or CEO to emotionally connect with others demonstrating compassion. The second study uses a random sample of individuals in small businesses to assess how their individual traits influence social responsibility behavior at a corporate level when mediated by emotional relationships within the company. The study found that shared positive emotions (compassion, vision and positive mood) had significant positive relationships with social responsibility behaviors for both conscientiousness and general self-efficacy. Additionally, we found evidence that the frequency of volunteering behavior during an individual's formative years had a strong positive influence on discretionary social responsibility and a slight positive influence on economic social responsibility. Philosophical orientation was used to assess personal values and traits and showed a positive relationship with economic social responsibility. The relationships s (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Richard Boyatzis, Ph.D. (Advisor); Gary Hunter, Ph.D. (Advisor); Kalle Lyytinen, Ph.D. (Advisor) Subjects: Organizational Behavior

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2019, Computer Science and Engineering

Graphic Processing Units (GPUs) have become popular in the last decade due to their high memory bandwidth and powerful computing capacity. Nevertheless, achieving high-performance on GPUs is not trivial. It generally requires significant programming expertise and understanding of details of low-level execution mechanisms in GPUs. This dissertation introduces approaches for optimizing regular and irregular applications. To optimize regular applications, it introduces a novel approach to GPU kernel optimization by identifying and alleviating bottleneck resources. This approach, however, is not effective in irregular applications because of data-dependent branches and memory accesses. Hence, tailored approaches are developed for two popular domains of irregular applications: graph algorithms and sparse matrix primitives. Performance modeling for GPUs is carried out by abstract kernel emulation along with latency/gap modeling of resources. Sensitivity analysis with respect to resource latency/gap parameters is used to predict the bottleneck resource for a given kernel's execution. The utility of the bottleneck analysis is demonstrated in two contexts: i) Enhancing the OpenTuner auto-tuner with the new bottleneck-driven optimization strategy. Effectiveness is demonstrated by experimental results on all kernels from the Rodinia suite and GPU tensor contraction kernels from the NWChem computational chemistry suite. ii) Manual code optimization. Two case studies illustrate the use of a bottleneck analysis to iteratively improve the performance of code from state-of-the-art DSL code generators. However, the above approach is ineffective for irregular applications such as graph algorithms and sparse linear systems. Graph algorithms are used in various applications, and high-level GPU graph processing frameworks are an attractive alternative for achieving both high productivity and high-performance. This dissertation develops an approach to graph processing on GPUs (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Ponnuswamy Sadayappan (Advisor); Rountev Atanas (Committee Member); Teodorescu Radu (Committee Member) Subjects: Computer Science

Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering (MSME), Wright State University, 2018, Mechanical Engineering

Environmental and safety concerns have necessitated a phase-out of lead-based alloys, which are often used in electronics solder applications. In order to properly assess suitable replacement materials, it is necessary to understand the deformation mechanisms relevant to the application. In the case of electronics solder, creep is an important mechanism that must be considered in the design of reliable devices and systems. In this study, Power-Law and Garofalo constitutive creep models were derived for two medium temperature solder alloys. The first alloy is known by the commercial name Indalloy 236 and is a quaternary alloy of lead, antimony, tin, and silver. The lead-free alternative is a binary alloy of tin and antimony known by the trade name Indalloy 264. Constant strain rate tests were conducted at temperatures from -20 to 175 Celsius using constant strain rate tensile testing in the range of e-5 s-1 to e-1 s-1. Creep constants were defined for use in materials selection and design analysis activities.

Committee: Daniel Young Ph.D. (Advisor); Raghavan Srinivasan Ph.D., P.E. (Committee Member); Joseph Slater Ph.D., P.E. (Committee Member) Subjects: Aerospace Materials; Materials Science; Mechanical Engineering; Mechanics

Doctor of Philosophy, Case Western Reserve University, 2017, Management

Business enterprises are investing in major sustainability initiatives; yet, often they do not know the financial outcomes of these activities. While managers may have a sense that `doing good' yields financial rewards, they cannot pinpoint the specific effects on financial performance. There is extensive literature focusing on how corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability initiatives affect corporate financial performance (CFP). Since 1975 there have been over 200 research studies on this question; yet, the results remain mixed. In some cases, researchers have found a positive relationship between CSR and CFP; whereas, other research has revealed either negative or inconclusive relationships. This mixed methods three-phased study draws data from a number of for-profit business enterprises, and seeks to understand how sustainability activities influence financial outcomes beneficial to the organization. Beginning with a qualitative research study and 32 interviews of business executives, consultants, and academics representing a broad cross-section of organizations, and followed by two quantitative research studies of 150 public corporations in different sectors of the manufacturing industry, I tease out a broader conceptualization of financial performance. Utilizing existing theory together with analysis of exploratory research data, I propose a new construct of how certain business organizations, those that have an `ethos of sustainability, may be enabled to develop unique firm resources that are "valuable, rare, inimitable, and non-substitutable" (Barney, 1991). The third phase of this study examines the relationship of an Ethos of Sustainability to Innovation as an intangible resource of the firm. Based on tests utilizing content analysis of 150 corporate sustainability reports and regression analysis of the hypothesized relationships, I find associations between measures of firms' Ethos of Sustainability and Innovation. Speci (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Chris Laszlo Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Richard Boland Ph.D. (Committee Member); Marc Epstein Ph.D. (Committee Member); Aron Lindberg Ph.D. (Committee Member); Roger Saillant Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Accounting; Management

Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2017, Environmental Studies (Voinovich)

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has become a popular trend in business for sustainable development in developed countries yet evolved in developing countries, particularly in Vietnam. Studies about CSR practices in Vietnam remain scarce, especially in small-and medium-scaled enterprises (SMEs). Most of the enterprises do not have sufficient understandings of CSR aspects, but a variety of perceptions due to different business contexts. This study aims at examining the perceptions and practices of CSR implemented by SMEs in Vietnam. Theoretical framework provides a debate of CSR's pyramid in developed countries which are established by dynamics of economic, legal, ethical, and philanthropic responsibilities. It argues that CSR practices in developing countries are formed by a shift of economic and legal responsibilities, which found dominant in developed countries, into philanthropic responsibilities due to country-specific contextual determinants. The study also looks at environmental responsibilities, which has been considered an important aspect that emerged in the past recent year, and how it is incorporated in CSR practices by SMEs in the country. The study employs Qualitative research method that focuses on Grounded theory to theorize the CSR phenomena based on semi-structured interviews with enterprise' representatives, reports, websites, and researcher's personal observation. The study findings suggest that understandings and practices of CSR in Vietnam are similar to such dimensions in developed countries, which are driven by economic and legal aspects and are influenced by external environment such as market segments where SMEs sell their products. Meanwhile, environmental responsibilities are found evolving in CSR practices as a result of government regulations and market requirements. The study concludes some implications and recommendations for promoting CSR in small and medium-scaled business organizations in the country towards sustainability.

Committee: Derek Kauneckis (Committee Chair); Geoffrey Dabelko (Committee Member); Ana Feger (Committee Member) Subjects: Environmental Studies

Master of Science, Miami University, 2016, Environmental Sciences

Debt-finance is a growing opportunity to fund environmental solutions. Green Bonds are being used by investors wishing to improve their Corporate Social Responsibility positions while maintaining valid returns on their investments. Based on the well-established bond-finance model, Green Bonds put money into diverse environmental projects addressing impacts from climate changes, depletion of natural resources, biodiversity loss, and pollution control. “Green” is a voluntary designation, based on a set of guidelines known as the Green Bond Principles. With varying degrees of clarity regarding their use and environmental impact and whether they are a viable solution to climate damages or merely a “greenwashed” ploy used by some issuers to appear more sustainable were questions examined as part of this research. A concise summary briefing (Appendix A), case study draft, and targeted public engagements were completed. Adaptability and responsiveness, sustainability, credibility, legitimacy, and opportunity for social transformation through the use of Green Bonds were reviewed using a case study analysis method. A unique pool of investment capital being mobilized by Green Bonds is emerging through motivated environmental investment coalitions. A review of the integrated impacts of Green Bonds as well as practical knowledge for their issuance is described here.

Committee: Steven Elliott Dr. (Advisor); Sarah Dumyahn Dr. (Committee Member); David Prytherch Dr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Alternative Energy; Atmospheric Sciences; Climate Change; Environmental Justice; Environmental Management; Environmental Science; Environmental Studies; Finance; Natural Resource Management; Sustainability; Urban Planning

Doctor of Philosophy, Case Western Reserve University, 2014, Management

This research illuminates the differences among US-based multinational corporations (MNCs) that operate in a pro-environmentally responsible manner and those that do not. I asked: What factors might explain differences between weak and strong performance among MNCs? I investigated different groups and explored the following lines of inquiry: Does industry matter? What can explain discrepancies in firms' accounts of their performance when compared to actual performance? I applied an open mixed method approach that used five datasets: (a) firms' environmental performance as reported by Newsweek statistics, (b) firms' safety performance as reported to OSHA, (c) a survey conducted among top executives of the Fortune 500 companies, (d) 78 interviews with top US- and India-based executives of the MNCs, and (e) field observations of MNCs' facilities in India. I discovered two distinct drivers that explain environmental performance: (a) organizational consciousness, and (b) elevated concern for employee safety. Organizational consciousness is a reflection of proactive management (characterized as heedful, alert, and caring about policies and operations). I observed that the Resource-Based View and institutional factors alone cannot explain significant differences between strong vs. weak environmental performers. I found the most significant difference is explained by industry type: (a) high-performing manufacturers have a greater ability to transfer knowledge across functional boundaries and source, and exploit new knowledge for environmental performance; (b) low-performing manufacturers are reluctant to allocate sufficient resources, and use “short-term fixes” to avoid risks associated with uncertain environmental outcomes, and (c) service companies do not see that they represent a risk to the environment and place a low priority on environmental concerns. Surprisingly, a number of firms underestimated their environmental performance (termed “Greenmodest”), and these share (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Kalle Lyytinen (Committee Chair); David Cooperrider (Committee Member); James Gaskin (Committee Member); Roger Saillant (Committee Member) Subjects: Business Administration; Environmental Management

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2013, Microbiology

Salmonella enterica is the leading cause of death from foodborne illness in the United States. The mechanisms of its virulence have been well studied but key details have remained elusive. Salmonella expresses a type 1 fimbriae when transiting through the distal small intestine which enables it to bind to mannosylated glycoproteins present on the surface of intestinal epithelial cells. This allows the bacterium to dock to the cell utilizing the Salmonella pathogenicity island 1 encoded type three secretion system (SPI1-T3SS). Upon docking, Salmonella injects effector proteins into the host cell interrupting host cell function. This leads to an actin rearrangement at the site where the bacterium is docked which causes the host cell to engulf the bacterium in a process termed macropinocytosis. These processes are regulated tightly to ensure optimal expression at the time of invasion. The BarA/SirA two-component system in coordination with the Csr system are responsible for the regulation of these virulence traits. BarA is a sensor kinase that monitors the environment for the appropriate signal to start the virulence cascade. Though the signal remains elusive it is hypothesized to be the short chain fatty acids formate and acetate which are found in the distal ileum. Upon sensing these signals BarA phosphorylates SirA, which in turn can activate iii its target genes. To date only two direct targets have been identified for SirA, the small RNA’s csrB and csrC. These small non-coding RNAs are the antagonists of the RNA binding protein CsrA. Typically CsrA binds its target transcripts and prevents translation by blocking the ribosome. Through our studies we have attempted to unravel the pathways by which SirA and CsrA regulate the SPI1-T3SS and type 1 fimbriae to lead to successful invasion of the host cell. We show here that SirA has no direct binding targets in either SPI1 or the fim operon. SirA regulates SPI1 in an indirect manner through the activation of (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Brian Ahmer Ph.D. (Advisor); Larry Schlesinger MD/Ph.D. (Committee Member); John Gunn Ph.D. (Committee Member); Robert Munson Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Genetics; Microbiology

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2010, Human Ecology: Fashion and Retail Studies

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is no longer an entirely voluntary option for retailers. Instead, retailers have been under increasing pressure from various stakeholders and extraneous parties (e.g., the government) to embrace it. The biggest challenge facing retailers today is not whether or not to implement CSR practices, but how. Acknowledging research gaps and practical significance, this dissertation highlights how retailers can reap the benefits from their commitment to CSR within a spillover effect context. It proposes a conceptual framework based upon the Stimulus-Organism-Response framework (Mehrabian & Russell, 1974) and the Expectancy-Value theory (Fishbein & Ajzen 1975) to systematically demonstrate an underlying mechanism of spillover effects and an asymmetrical negativity bias created by CSR communication messages. Specifically, two essays examine: 1) whether or not (and to what extent) CSR communication messages influence consumers' perceptions about a retailer, 2) whether or not the perceptions about the retailer are spilled over onto the evaluation of the retailers' private brands (CSR-PBs, essay one) and loyalty programs (CSR-LPs, essay two) that convey the retailer's CSR orientation, 3) whether or not the spillover effects differ depending on the valence of CSR communication messages, and finally 4) whether or not a consumer characteristic, ethical consumerism, creates differential effects on cognitive, affective, and behavioral responses to the retailers' CSR-PBs and CSR-LPs. To test the proposed model within CSR-PB and CSR-LP contexts, two web-based experiments were performed with university employees (essay one) and with general US consumers (essay two). The results supported that positive and negative information about a retailer's CSR influenced consumers' beliefs/attitudes toward the retailer, but the strength of the impact was greater among consumers who learned of the negative information. Next, the results showed that beliefs an (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Leslie Stoel PhD (Committee Chair); Jae-Eun Chung PhD (Committee Co-Chair); Jay Kandampully PhD (Committee Member); Patricia West PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Behavioral Psychology; Behavioral Sciences; Communication; Marketing; Psychology; Sustainability

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2010, Plant Cellular and Molecular Biology

Members of the SNF1/AMPK/SnRK1 family of kinases are highly conserved. Representatives include SNF1 kinase (sucrose non-fermenting 1) in yeast, SnRK1 (SNF1-related kinase 1) in plants, and AMPK (AMP-activated protein kinase) in animals. These Ser/Thr kinases play a central role in the regulation of metabolism. In response to nutritional and environmental stresses that deplete ATP, they turn off energy-consuming biosynthetic pathways and turn on alternative ATP-generating systems as part of the cellular stress response (CSR). However, the mechanisms that activate these enzyme complexes are not completely understood. These kinases function as heterotrimeric complexes. The catalytic α subunit consists of an N-terminal kinase domain with an activation loop that contains a conserved threonine residue which must be phosphorylated for activity. Following phosphorylation by upstream kinase(s), 5'-AMP is known to allosterically stimulate AMPK activity and to inhibit its inactivation due to dephosphorylation of α subunit at Thr172 by protein phosphatase 2C (PP2C). Direct allosteric stimulation of the SnRK1 complex by 5'-AMP has yet to be demonstrated. However, 5'-AMP has been shown to suppress dephosphorylation of SnRK1 by PP2C. Adenosine kinase (ADK) phosphorylates adenosine to 5'-AMP. ADK and SnRK1 play key roles in antiviral defense, and geminivirus AL2 and L2 proteins inactivate both kinases. Because ADK generates 5'-AMP that is known to activate CSR, this study hypothesizes that ADK contributes to rapid activation of the CSR. In support of this hypothesis, we showed that ADK and SnRK1 form a complex in vivo. This study also demonstrates an increase in SnRK1 activity in transgenic Arabidopsis plants over-expressing ADK, and a 4-6 fold in vitro stimulation of ADK by SnRK1. Interestingly, ADK stimulation does not require SnRK1 kinase activity. We conclude that SnRK1 and ADK mutually stimulate each other to rapidly activate CSR. SnRK1 phosphorylates ADK in vitro, (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: David Bisaro PhD (Advisor); Erich Grotewold PhD (Committee Member); Venkat Gopalan PhD (Committee Member); Jyan-Chyun Jang PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Molecular Biology

Master of Science, The Ohio State University, 2010, Human Ecology: Textiles and Clothing

Previous research supported the predictive effectiveness of the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) model, and extended it to explain consumers' behaviors in various social friendly behavioral settings. However, little research has used a psychosocial perspective to examine the predictors of consumers' purchase intentions towards socially responsible products. The present study provides an empirical application of the TPB model to increase understanding of socially responsible purchasing. Based on a literature review, in this study I add personal moral norms as a predictor of purchase intention, along with the other three predictors in the original TPB model. Based on the results of an online survey of 198 college students, the original TPB model and the extended model are tested and compared regarding the predictive power for purchasing intention. The relationships of the personal norm to other volitional variables, i.e. attitude and subjective norm, are also discussed, in order to have a better understanding of the comprehensive role of personal norms in a normative-related context.

Committee: Leslie Stoel (Advisor); Margaret Binkley (Committee Member); Jae Eun Chung (Committee Member) Subjects: Marketing

Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2010, Journalism (Communication)

Based on the 2009 Forbes Global 2,000 list, this thesis presented a content analysis of website home pages of French and U.S. companies using stakeholder approach to CSR. Twelve stakeholder responsibility issues were analyzed in this thesis. Results revealed that "environment-friendly business practices" emerged as a key issue for both the French and U.S. companies whereas the employee and supplier-related issues were referred to by a very few companies in both countries. Significantly more U.S. companies mentioned the issues of "product/service quality" and "product/service safety" compared to their French peers whereas the issue of "timely and comprehensive communication" with investors was addressed by far more French companies than their U.S. counterparts. While the French companies did not outnumber their U.S. peers in presenting employee issues, the U.S. companies did not surpass their French counterparts in addressing community issues. Possible reasons for these differences were discussed in the thesis.

Committee: Hong Cheng PhD (Committee Chair); Bojinka Bishop (Committee Member); Michelle Honald (Committee Member) Subjects: Communication

Bachelor of Science in Business, Miami University, 2011, School of Business Administration - Accountancy

Many executives are under intense scrutiny to understand the risks associated with their company strategies because unforeseen risks can drastically affect a company's stock price and financial viability. Since the inception of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX) companies have had to demonstrate through business reporting that the company not only understands the connection of strategy to risks, but must also be able to quantify the impact of risks, as well as demonstrate plans of action to deal with risks as they occur. Reporting risks are specifically important because they are the company's most complete display of its performance and can directly changes how investors determine the stock price of the company – a key factor for all publicly traded companies. One way companies can quantify and report its risk is through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) reporting. AEP created the 2010 Corporate Accountability Report to demonstrate to stakeholders that the company is being a positive force in society and in the world. Yet some companies, like BP, have created CSR reports that do not align reality with what the company is reporting. The impact of poor CSR reporting is that some companies produce quality information for stakeholders while others greenwash its reports to look good for stakeholders, making CSR reports difficult for readers to believe and compare against other companies and across time periods. This report assesses the accountability and comparability of AEP's 2010 Corporate Accountability Report to demonstrate that the company still has room for improvement in how it reports. This was accomplished by utilizing AEP's Integrated Enterprise Risk Model (ERM) to understand the company's environmental and safety strategy, the associated risks and stakeholders, and how AEP reports on these issues to determine the strengths and weaknesses of the report. Then AEP's organization model and risk management strategies were used to lay ground for assessment. A (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Dan Heitger (Advisor); Brian Ballou (Committee Member); Kevin Armitage (Committee Member) Subjects: Accounting; Environmental Studies

MA, Kent State University, 2012, College of Communication and Information / School of Media and Journalism

Capitalistic pressures are causing some companies to increasingly turn to corporate social responsibility (CSR) to improve image and increase profits, rather than to genuinely improve society. Within environmental CSR, the profitability of an environmentally conscious image has led to greenwashing, the use of PR or marketing to promote a misleading perception that a company's policies or products are more environmentally friendly than they actually are. While corporate discourse is flooded with claims of “going green” and “eco-friendliness,” I argue that companies take advantage of the ambiguity of eco-language in strategic attempts to reconcile the conflicting motives behind environmental actions. The goal of this paper is to analyze and explore how corporations use strategic ambiguity in environmental communication, and further how strategic ambiguity contributes to a culture skeptical of greenwashing. The misuse, overuse and deceptive use of eco-language in greenwashing has caused environmental language to become a factor in this ambiguity. Attribution theory is also used to examine how consumers perceive strategic ambiguity and ultimately develop skepticism of environmental campaigns. I present a case study of Clorox and analyze the company's annual reports from 1970-present to critically explore Clorox's CSR communication through deconstruction. This study provides an examination of how capitalistic motives behind greenwashing have been a driving force of strategic ambiguity and shaped the current culture of environmental skepticism.

Committee: Bob Batchelor PhD (Advisor); Gene Sasso (Committee Member); William Sledzik (Committee Member); Larry Leslie PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Communication

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), University of Dayton, 2011, Educational Leadership

This multiple case study examined corporate involvement in Japanese public elementary schools through 3 corporate programs. In 2005 the Basic Law of Food Education, Shokuiku Kihon Ho was enacted. This law promotes food education as a national movement and encourages food makers to become actively involved with the public sector to provide food education programs. Major food makers approached public elementary schools as part of their corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. Purposeful sampling was selected, and programs from 3 companies were identified as cases. This researcher conducted email interviews with 35 elementary school teachers and 3 company spokespersons to examine their motivations, implementations, advantages and disadvantages of the programs, benefits to the company, and changes in teachers' perceptions of the companies, if any. The findings first include sources, including governmental, from which teachers initially learned about the programs. Second, the primary reason for program use was food education. Third, the 3 corporate programs studied appeared to be very successful in obtaining publicity in the schools. Two out of 3 companies had their products present in the classroom and also gave their products as gifts. Fourth, teachers were satisfied with corporate programs because they gained professional knowledge, rich materials, and experience-based activities for children. Fifth, the major disadvantage was scheduling. Few teachers recognized that corporate programs effectively influenced the knowledge of teachers and children. Sixth, teachers' perceptions of the companies were positively changed after experiencing the programs. Teachers were impressed with professional knowledge and they tolerated corporate promotions. This study included implications: School policies and professional development are needed to address commercial activity and insure that the children's knowledge would be balanced.

Committee: Joseph Watras PhD (Committee Chair); C. Daniel Raisch PhD (Committee Member); Carolyn S. Ridenour EdD (Committee Member); Dean B. McFarlin PhD (Committee Member); Deron R. Boyles PhD (Advisor); Victor Kobayashi PhD (Advisor); Takao Kamibeppu PhD (Other); Kenta Nakamura PhD (Other) Subjects: Asian Studies; Business Community; Comparative; Educational Leadership; Elementary Education; Public Health

Bachelor of Arts (BA), Ohio University, 2012, Philosophy

This paper overviews several foundational concepts and questions regarding corporate social responsibility (CSR). Its primary contribution is a statistical examination into key correlations between CSR and Newsweek's 2011 Green Rankings using forensic-based financial and accounting measures. It somewhat replicates a previous study and further introduces new variables in looking at CSR from a financial perspective. Interestingly, this paper is interdisciplinary in nature in that it synthesizes previous studies' conceptions of CSR through finance, consumer behavior, branding, and ethics — a mix which has so far been widely neglected — in an attempt to better define and measure corporate social responsibility.

Committee: Justin Davis (Advisor); Robert Briscoe (Advisor) Subjects: Accounting; Business Administration; Business Education; Ethics; Finance; Management; Marketing