Research

Social isolation in the U.S. has been on the rise for decades, according to research conducted in 2006 by sociologists.

Measuring the performance of workers on an assembly line is simple: Count the objects produced and find out how long the process took. That should reveal the productivity of the factory workers. But how do you determine the performance of knowledge workers?

Phoenix Metro home prices continued their decline in December, and are expected to keep dropping for the foreseeable future.

Those looking for good news in the jobs data became more optimistic as the second half of 2010 unfolded. Starting in July, payroll employment figures for each month were up compared to the same month in the year before.

The newly released census reports that Arizona's population was just about 6.4 million as of April 1, 2010 — a number considerably lower than estimated. In fact, the Census Bureau's own 2009 estimate was 204,000 too high, and the Arizona Department of Commerce overshot reality by 291,000.

Since 2008, 11 percent of the single-family homes in Maricopa County, Arizona, have been through foreclosure — 4 percent in the last year alone. And with moratoriums on foreclosures ending, the new year is expected to start with an uptick in the number of property owners losing their homes.

Online retailers looking to connect with customers and increase sales and profits would be wise to demonstrate values that appeal to those customers, according to researchers in the Department of Information Systems.

If you choose the academic life, you will always be two things at once: a student — continuously uncovering and processing new knowledge; and a teacher — conveying what you know to others. This dual life begins in the Ph.D.

While shopping online for a computer a few years ago, Fred Riggins noted that three Compaq models offered the FireWire feature he wanted. The three were priced on a low, medium and high range, corresponding to which processor they used.

Members of Generation Y — a group of approximately 70 million young people between the ages of 15 and 30 — are starting their careers in perhaps the worst job market since the Great Depression.