2,200 research outputs found
Testing the Mere Exposure Effect in Videogaming
Due to proliferation of media and platforms it is becoming increasingly difficult for
marketers to reach and engage consumers using traditional forms of mass media
such as advertising. Marketers are turning to alternate forms of communication,
such as brand placement in videogames as the games industry continues to grow.
To date academic research appears inconclusive in terms of validating the use of
videogames as a promotional tool. Moreover, there is a lack of empirical evidence
concerning the effects on consumers and brands of marketing messages in the
videogame environment.
This aim of this study was to investigate whether exposure to brand placement
affects unknown brand likeability as a result of mere exposure for game players and
game watchers in videogames. The study adopted a quasi-experiment between
group design, with a Control, Watch Group and Play Group (300 participants in total)
and a post exposure questionnaire. Results suggest some support a mere exposure
effect which is that a frequently presented brand placement in a videogame can
have a positive effect on players and watchers’ brand attitudes, although they do
not recall the brand.
This is the first empirical study to investigate brand placement and mere exposure
effects in videogames. Theoretically, the study contributes to knowledge concerning
brand placement processing in videogames and builds on the existing paradigms of
MEE, low-involvement processing, implicit and explicit processing and brand
attitude formation. For game developers and brand owners, the study has
implications for marketing communications strategy, and graphic design elements
for the placements, design of videogames and the most effective position for
placements in a game
Co-creating learning experiences to support student employability in travel and tourism
This research evaluates the effectiveness of a modular programme of study that aims to develop a range of employability skills in travel and tourism students. The module contents and assessment regime use an experiential approach and are collaboratively delivered by focusing on CV and cover letter writing techniques, job interview skills and other recruitment tools. To measure its impact, semi-structured interviews with students revealed that the experiential nature of the module engenders confidence when participating in job assessment centres. It also highlights the value of informing it through a range of perspectives leading to students with a distinctive competitive advantage
Optimization of Multidimensional Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy, for Resolution and Sensitivity, Through Application of Radial Sampling
The high probability of degenerate frequencies in NMR spectra of complex biopolymers such as proteins presented a great barrier to detailed analysis. The combination of multidimensional NMR spectroscopy and high magnetic field strengths has overcome the resulting resonance assignment problem for proteins less than 50 kDa. However, as protein size increases the sampling and sensitivity limited regimes become apparent. As a consequence, the orthogonal linear sampling requirements of conventional multidimensional NMR spectroscopy, combined with increased signal averaging require a longer acquisition time than is feasible. To overcome these limitations, radial sampling of the indirect dimensions of multidimensional experiments is utilized. It is demonstrated here, that through optimization of radial sampling acquisition parameters, it is possible to escape the linear sequential sampling requirements of Cartesian sampling, which allows for the collection of a high resolution spectrum in reduced acquisition time. Further, by exploiting a fundamental statistical advantage of radial sampling, it is possible to obtain a signal-to-noise advantage, over the traditional methodology. The approach is generalized by developing an all inclusive NMR data processing package and associated programs to optimize radial sampling acquisition parameters. An example, which utilizes the resolution and sensitivity advantages, to collect a novel application of a high resolution four-dimensional 13C, 15N edited NOESY is presented in support
High Quality, Transferable Graphene Grown on Single Crystal Cu(111) Thin Films on Basal-Plane Sapphire
The current method of growing large-area graphene on Cu surfaces
(polycrystalline foils and thin films) and its transfer to arbitrary substrates
is technologically attractive. However, the quality of graphene can be improved
significantly by growing it on single-crystal Cu surfaces. Here we show that
high quality, large-area graphene can be grown on epitaxial single-crystal
Cu(111) thin films on reusable basal-plane sapphire (alpha-Al2O3(0001))
substrates and then transferred to another substrate. While enabling graphene
growth on Cu single-crystal surfaces, this method has the potential to avoid
the high cost and extensive damage to graphene associated with sacrificing bulk
single-crystal Cu during graphene transfer.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figure
Distributions of particulate Heme <i>b</i> in the Atlantic and Southern Oceans— Implications for electron transport in phytoplankton
Concentrations of heme b, the iron-containing component of b-type hemoproteins, ranged from?<?0.4 to 5.3 pM with an average of 1.18?±?0.8 pM (± 1s; n?=?86) in the Iceland Basin (IB), from?<?0.4 to 19.1 pM with an average of 2.24?±?1.67 pM (n?=?269) in the tropical northeast Atlantic (TNA) and from 0.6 to 21 pM with an average of 5.1?±?4.8 pM (n?=?34) in the Scotia Sea (SS). Heme b concentrations were enhanced in the photic zone and decreased with depth. Heme b concentrations correlated positively with chlorophyll a (chl a) in the TNA (r?=?0.41, p?<?0.01, n?=?269). Heme b did not correlate with chl a in the IB or SS. In the IB and SS, stations with high-chlorophyll and low-nutrient (Fe and/or Si) concentrations exhibited low heme b concentrations relative to particulate organic carbon (< 0.1?µmol?mol-1), and high chl a:heme b ratios (> 500). High chl a:heme b ratios resulted from relative decreases in heme b, suggesting proteins such as cytochrome b6f, the core complex of photosystem II, and eukaryotic nitrate reductase were depleted relative to proteins containing chlorophyll such as the eukaryotic light-harvesting antenna. Relative variations in heme b, particulate organic carbon, and chl a can thus be indicative of a physiological response of the phytoplankton community to the prevailing growth conditions, within the context of large-scale changes in phytoplankton community composition
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