DSpace at NDU: Recent submissions

  • The relation between investigative journalism and the dark web in Lebanon : in light of the authoritarian theory 
    Moundalak, Roland (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2021)
    For over 4 years (2017-2021), new content was constantly being added to this research, for a long-term observation of events, such as the rise and fall of Lebanese figures: after this paper’s interviews, two of the interviewees witnessed their superiors being convicted (Khalil Sehnaoui from Krypton Security, and Suzanne Hajj Hobeiche from the Internal Security Forces). The authoritarian theory was judged as most appropriate to convey the necessity of a technology that would allow private communication among citizens of oppressive regimes: most dangerously, however, is when journalists do not ...
  • The role of social media in mobilizing, sustaining and ending the major protests of the October 17 revolution 
    Mehanna, Samir (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2021)
    The purpose of this study is to understand how social media affected the Lebanese revolution known as the October 17 revolution. The study explored mainly how and why people used social media platforms mainly Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, and it investigated whether or not social media had an influence over decision making during the revolution. The data gathering process was possible through a survey that was filled by 463 Lebanese from all over Lebanon, who are social media users. Also, five interviews have been conducted with public figures, journalists and activists to understand deeper ...
  • CSAS: Course Schedule Advisory Expert System 
    Hamam, Samer (Notre Dame University-Louaize., 2015-02)
    Student academic advising is an educational decision support process required nowadays to be automated for both the student and advisor to speed up the planning process of course registration by finding out the optimal sequencing or prioritization of students degree requirements to enroll in for next semesters based on their academic standing in a way that suits students’ interests and meets overall graduation requirements within a time frame. This thesis integrated all the rules and constraints from all precedent references relevant to this subject that impacts the scheduling process and proposed ...
  • The effects of gender-based violence in luxury brand advertising on Lebanese young-adult females 
    Khawand, Nicole (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2020)
    Feminist movements have been getting their voices heard in multiple countries, while NGOs and lobbyists are pressuring governments to legislate laws protecting women from sexual harassment and violent acts. However, multiple brands have decided to neglect the trend by swimming against the stream and keep on dehumanizing women using them as sexual objects and projecting violent images in their ads. Using the cultivation theory along with the social learning theory, this study aims to shed light on the normalization of sexism and violence against women in luxury brands’ ads addressing women and ...
  • Stress testing and scenario analysis : another way of determining regulatory capital for European commercial banks 
    Abi Abboud, Joanna Michel (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2018)
    Purpose - The purpose of this study is to capture the relationship between credit risk of European commercial banks and their profitability, taking into consideration regulatory requirements under several stressed scenarios. Design/Methodology/Approach - The sample of this study consists of 12 out of 15 largest commercial banks in Europe as measured by their total assets in 2017. This study uses hypothesis testing and stress testing approaches to capture the relationship between credit risk of banks and their profitability and to determine the sufficiency of bank capital adequacy. Findings ...
  • Islamic finance performance and its effect on the economic growth in the Asian market 
    Nehme, Romeo G. (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2017)
    Purpose - the thesis will be studying and analyzing the financial and stock market in the presence of Islamic finance in Asia as a first step and in the Saudi Arabian market as a second step, before overlooking the status of the Lebanese Islamic banks. Design/methodology/approach: after defining Islamic finance and explaining its laws and regulations and the instruments used, Islamic finance will be compared to conventional finance. The results will be based on data collected from both: - Islamic and non-Islamic financial markets (Asian countries) during, before and after the financial ...
  • Effect of accelerated aging on total phenolic content, antioxidant and anti-diabetic activities of Lebanese homemade pomegranate molasses with and without addition of glutathione 
    Bou Ajram, Dima (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2021-03)
    The pomegranate fruit is considered a functional food because of its bioactive compounds mainly phenolic compounds. Pomegranate molasses (PM) is a key ingredient in the Lebanese and Middle Eastern cuisine. The effects of accelerated shelf life testing (ASLT) on the total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), the antioxidant and antidiabetic activities (% DPPH scavenging activity, DPPH IC50, % Fe2+ chelating activity, and α‐glucosidase and α‐amylase IC50 antidiabetic inhibitory activity) of the Lebanese homemade PM have never been evaluated. Moreover, the effect of glutathione ...
  • Nano cubesats for dark ages exploration 
    Malkoun, Marwan (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2020-09)
    The Dark Ages, a period stretching from 400 thousand years to 400 million years after the big bang, is the least known era in the evolution of our universe, as no visible light was emitted. However, another type of radiation was available, the Hydrogen 21cm. It reaches us at frequencies between 1.5 and 30MHz. The ideal way to detect it, involves antennas placed in a fixed orbit around the dark side of the moon where it is shielded from electromagnetic interference emitted from earth.
  • Retail banking crises and credit risk management : United States vs. Lebanon case 
    Younes, Elias Fares (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2010)
    This case is important because it sheds the light on the key issues that need to be in place in order to reduce the risk of credit default. If we are to understand the profound significance and the contribution made by lack of Credit controls, the easy credit terms of banks to grant credit facilities and the loosened government legislations that govern the whole lending activity, then we will learn how the Credit Crises was driven and accumulated over the years. On the other hand, we will ensure how a controllable lending environment that is well managed will generate healthy borrowings ...
  • Assessment of prerequisite programs implementation and hygiene status at food packaging companies in Mount Lebanon: cross-sectional study 
    Abdessater, Marilyn (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2021)
    Food packaging has a critical role in all food types and along the food chain from product preservation to transportation, distribution, storage, retailing, and end-use. However, it can become a source of contamination and transfer of microorganisms to the packed food when its hygienic status is not well maintained. The aim of this study was to evaluate the Prerequisite programs (PRPs) implementation in 5 food packaging companies across Mount Lebanon through on-site inspections and to assess the compliance of contact surfaces, employee hands and packaging materials to microbiological specifications. ...
  • The impact of exchange rates volatility on exports : the case of Brexit 
    Souk, Jana Toufic (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2021)
    Purpose – The term Brexit, the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union, is linked with the uncertainty raised due to the ambiguity of the economic relationship to be adopted between the U.K and the EU. This uncertainty is translated directly into a significant fluctuation of the British pound. Therefore, this research highlights the impact of the Brexit referendum on the British pound against the Euro, test the relationship between exchange rate volatility and U.K’s exports to Eurozone countries (Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, ...
  • Earnings management prior seasoned equity offerings : pre- versus post- Canadian SOX 
    Abou Dargham, Hanadi (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2018)
    Purpose: This study investigates the prevalence of accrual-based and real-based earnings management activities prior seasoned equity offerings (SEOs) for a sample of Canadian public firms between 1993 and 2008. This study also examines earnings management trends around reforms in the Canadian corporate governance regime brought by Canadian SOX (CSOX) Act. Design/methodology/approach: Both parametric (t-test) and non-parametric (Wilcoxon test) tests are used to examine the statistical significance of mean and median accrual and real-based manipulation in the year preceding the announcement of a ...
  • The area formula for the Hausdorff measure 
    Nghaywi, Vanessa Pierre (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2018-06-27)
    In this thesis, we will prove a very important theorem in real analysis called The Area formula for the Hausdorff Measure. This theorem is an extension of the well known theorem the Change of variables formula for the Lebesgue measure. In this thesis, we will define the Hausdorff measure and prove some of its properties. We will also define Lipschitz functions and prove some of its properties also. Then, we continue the thesis by proving all the lemmas needed to finalize the proof of the Area formula for the Hausdorff measure. Finally, we finish this thesis by showing three applications of the ...
  • Investigating usability issues in ERP systems : the cases of multi-UI tasks and UI validation 
    El Hayek, Hanine (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2018)
    Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are vital for managing any modern-day business. These systems aim to facilitate an organization's work by automating and integrating all business information and processes. However, ERP systems suffer from many problems that may cause an implementation failure. Many of these problems are related to usability, which is affected by the complexity of user interfaces (Uls). Usability can be defined in terms of an end-user's efficiency, effectiveness, and satisfactions. A study was conducted in this thesis to inquire about the usability problems that ...
  • Earning management by Canadian acquirers : pre- versus post- IFRS 
    Zweiny, Abir Maadad (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2018)
    Purpose: This study investigates the occurrence of pre-acquisition accrual-based earnings management for a sample of stock- and cash- financed Canadian acquirers between 2005 and 2015 before and after transitioning IFRS in 2010. Design/methodology/approach: Both parametric (t-test) and non-parametric (Wilcoxon test) tests are used to examine the occurrence of accrual-based earnings management in the year preceding the announcement of acquisition. These are compared across stock and cash acquirers as well as before and after the implementation of the IFRS. Findings: Unlike cash acquirers, ...
  • The impact of leadership style on employee satisfaction : the case of BLOM bank and LGB bank in Lebanon 
    Estephan, Hanady (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2021-02)
    Purpose: this dissertation aims to detect what leadership style is mostly adopted in the alpha banks in Lebanon and investigates the corresponding impact of the different leadership styles on employee satisfaction. This study shall conclude the leadership style that should be most adopted to reach the highest level of employee satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach: the research approach was specified as a deductive one. Then, the population represented by the chosen sample of 124 bank employees, specifically 62 from each of LGB and Blom bank. In addition, the research strategy was specified ...
  • The effect of corporate governance mechanisms on IPO performance : the case of U.S. equity real estate investment trusts 
    Choucair, Stephanie Antoine (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2018)
    Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to shed more light on the impact of corporate governance mechanisms on the Initial Public Offering (IPO) performance of U.S. Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT) in the short and long run. Design/methodology/approach: I conduct multi-linear regressions on a sample of 89 US REIT IPO for the years 2003 to 2016. I compute the market adjusted excess returns for each of the first 5 days following the IPO to measure short-run IPO performance and the semi-annual cumulative abnormal returns for each of the three years following the IPO to measure ...
  • Relationship between financial development including Islamic loans and economic growth 
    Bsoussi, Jimmy (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2018)
    Purpose - The purpose of this study was to investigate empirically whether financial development including Islamic loans leads to economic growth Design/methodology/approach - This study covered 13 countries form the MENA region during the period of 2001-2015. Multiple Fixed effect models were used on a balanced panel to check the impact of financial development variables on the GDP per capita. Findings - Conventional loans and Islamic loans have significant positive relationship with economic growth. While bank asset concentration, stock market total traded value, stock market capitalization ...
  • Deafening silence of Friedreich's ataxia in Lebanon: health belief model approach 
    Hakim, Marianne (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2018)
    This research aims to gain understanding of the health behavior of individuals affected with a genetic disease, Friedreich Ataxia in Lebanon and comprehend the consequences of the lack of awareness and circulation of information about FA on those individuals in comparison with international communication efforts through the Health Belief Model theory. The research method used throughout this thesis is qualitative and interviews with sixteen Lebanese participants afflicted with FA aged between 11 to 49 years old were conducted relying on an interview guide that tested seven constructs of the ...
  • Goodvertising and attitude: influence on Lebanese students 
    Ballout, Sarah (Notre Dame University-Louaize, 2020)
    This thesis examined the influence of ‘goodvertising’ campaigns on Lebanese students’ attitudes towards a social issue, specifically women’s empowerment. Goodvertising is a relatively new advertising approach that many brands across the world have started using in their marketing strategies. Studying its influence on individuals can aid in understanding its effectiveness. Although many studies (Amos, Holmes, & Strutton, 2008; Buizjen & Valkenburg, 2003; Deighton, Henderson, & Neslin, 1994; Edquist, Horberry, Hosking, & Johnston, 2011) have been done on the effectiveness of traditional advertisements, ...