Connection Between Sexual Activity And Urinary Incontinence Article

Connection Between Sexual Activity And Urinary Incontinence - Article Example While the authors effectively considered marital status and age to be important determinants of sexual activity among older women, they failed to include other factors including family structure and the socioeconomic conditions. The authors seem to assume the old women to be lonely nesters or solitary survivors. Also, the socioeconomic background of the women has completely been ignored. These factors should have been analyzed in order to come down to a more relevant and sound conclusion. Not only these, but the ten item questionnaire seems to have provided a limitation as it restricted the participants to respond to a fixed set of responses eliminating the scope of probing. According to one definition, a primary source is a written matter which is authentic (Princeton University, n.pag.). Primary sources also include peer reviewed articles in journals that present a study on a new subject rather than the commenting and assessing the findings of a previous research. Under such condit ions, the journal article is a primary source as the authors have carried out a research by employing a particular methodology, structure, and so on. Instead of translating and explaining available knowledge, the authors have made an effort to conduct a study by using a suitable questionnaire (quantitative method) of gathering data. Such data has then been tested for validity and reliability by making it go through a series of statistical tests. The questionnaire used in order to conduct the research has been International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire Short Form and by statistically analyzing the data acquired from the participants’ response; a conclusion has been drawn that defines the relationship between UI and sexual activity. The research has employed a purely quantitative methodology for collecting data. As mentioned, the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire Short Form (ICIQ) has been used to evaluate the impact of symptoms experienced as a result of UI on the lives of older women. Although the questionnaire is very simple and provides extensive information regarding the variables under study, however, the fact that it is a quantitative from of research limits the responses to a fixed set of preset answers. As a result, the participant’s are not able to provide any other relevant information apart from the items present in the questionnaire. Qualitative methodology including semi-structured interviews could generate more relevant and specific responses from the participants. While I thought that other determinants of sexual activity should have been considered, a research reports age and the individual’s score from the ICIQ short form to be the best forecasters of UI (Timmermans, Falez, Melot, and Wespes, n.pag.). Therefore, the use of a quantitative method particularly the ICIQ-SF score was essential in predicting UI although its effectiveness in finding the relationship between sexual activity and UI is questionable. The authors have used various peer reviewed journal articles as sources. However, the data obtained from their research using the ICIQ short form has been the most important in coming down to the conclusion. While the authors have backed up their claims using references from journal articles, the role of the data provided from the ICIQ questionnaire response has been critical. Throughout the research, a discussion using the data obtained from the questionnaire has been used and further clarified using support from journal articles. Various tables present in the research demonstrate that statistical testing

Comparison of Qualitative and Quantitative Research Methods

Comparison of Qualitative and Quantitative Research Methods NAME: LUCKY AMADI DISCUSS QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH METHODS. INTRODUCTION. What is Research? Research is an inquiry to describe, explain, predict and control the observed development. Research helps to acquire knowledge about a particular thing it is done to understand. It can also be seen as the systematic investigation into and study of materials and sources in order to establish facts and reach new conclusions. Research methods are often divided into two main types: Qualitative Research methods Quantitative Research methods Qualitative Method of Research. Qualitative research which is also called Field research is done to gain a deep understanding of a specific organisation or event rather than the surface description.it is aimed at getting a better understanding through first experience, truthful reports and quotation of actual conversations, also aims to know how participants derive meaning from their surroundings and how their meaning influences their behaviour. Qualitative research makes use of observation as a data collection method; this is the selection and recording of behaviours of people in their environment, observation is useful for generating in-depth descriptions of organisations or events, for obtaining information that is otherwise inaccessible, and for conducting research when other methods are inadequate. The context or background of behaviour is included in observations of both people and their environment. Stages in Participatory Observation Selection of a site and definition of problems, concepts and indicators. The problem or phenomenon of interest is first identified by the researcher; he tries to discern what will yield the greatest understanding of that problem. The researcher then identifies preliminary concepts and what data will be gathered as indicators of those concepts. The researcher chooses a strategy to move into the researcher. This involves an overt or a covert role for the researcher, issues may include how to record observations (writing notes, tape recordings, video tape) as well as ethical issues (privacy, confidentiality, etc.) Strategies include: adopting a passive role at first, learning the ropes; don’t seek data aggressively until later; be a researcher not a therapist, answer questions but don’t become closely identified with any one person until you are sure it will not cost you information in the long run, be non-persistence. Selecting people and events to observe. Primary sources also known as â€Å"key informants† of information are identified by the researcher. These people may be relied upon in the beginning to help the researcher get acculturated to the situation. The statements of key informants can be taken as evidence, even if their statements are somewhat self-serving. The researcher must also be aware of possible differences between the validity and intention of volunteered statements that are made in response to the researcher’s questions. Develop relationships with the participants. Researchers must have the trust and confidence of the informants. Researchers must speak their â€Å"language† and understand their â€Å"world†. The researcher can note the differences rather than accept one and reject the other. The researcher must determine whether certain things are not being said because of his or her role as â€Å"researcher† or whether they can use their position as â€Å"neutral outsider† to gain more information. Analysing observations. The researcher can check whether none, all or some proportion of behaviours or events occur under distinct circumstances. A preliminary model can be generated to explain the data collected. Further observations are then collected which can strengthen or weaken the researchers preliminary model. Final analysis and interpretation. Models are checked against the evidence. Advanced concepts and evidence for their support and refutation are checked. The major problem is how to present the data in a brief but meaningful form. Advantages of Qualitative research. It gives the researcher freedom to let the study unfold more naturally. The researcher gains more detailed and rich data in the form of comprehensive written descriptions or visual evidence such as photographs. It looks at the context and social meaning and how it affects individuals. Disadvantages of Qualitative research. It is time consuming. It is difficult to code data. It is not applicable to widely dispersed social settings It is difficult to control for researcher bias. Quantitative Research of Method. Quantitative research can be seen as explaining phenomena by collecting numerical data that are analysed using mathematically based methods; this method reduces the data into numbers, the researcher helps to analyse the data with the help of statistics. The researcher knows in advance what he/she is looking for and all aspects of the study are carefully designed before the data is collected. Its objective is to develop and employ mathematical models, theories or hypotheses pertaining to phenomena. Process of Quantitative research method. Developing models, theories, and hypotheses of what the researcher expects to find. Developing instruments and methods for measuring the data. Experimental control and manipulation of variables. Collecting the data. Modelling and analysing the data. Evaluating the results. Principles of Quantitative Research. Objectivity is important. Methods and conclusions are examined by researchers for any possible bias. Researchers go to great length to ensure that they are really measuring what they claim to be measuring. External factors which might affect the result must also be controlled as it might be the other factor which produces the result. When looking at results the P value is important, P stands for probability. It measures the likelihood that a particular finding or observed difference is due to chance, P is between 0 and 1, the closer the result is to 0 the less likely it is that the observed difference is due to change, the closer the result is to 1 the greater the likelihood that the finding is due to chance and that there is no difference between the variables. Advantages of Quantitative method of research. It allows researchers to measure and analyse data. It helps to carry out test for hypotheses in experiments because of its ability to measure data using statistics. The researcher is more objective about the findings of the research. Disadvantages of Quantitative research. It doesn’t study things in a natural setting or discuss the meaning things have for different people unlike qualitative method of research. A large sample of population must be studied; the larger the sample of people researched the more statistically accurate the results will be. CONCLUSION. Each of these researches are done for a purpose just like Qualitative is done to gain understanding of a specific organisation or phenomena, Quantitative is done by analysing data with the help of statistics it has to do with numbers. Just like everything they both have their advantages and disadvantages. REFERENCES Anderson, ML and Taylor, H.F (2009) sociology. The essentials Belmont C.A Thomson Wadsworth.

Arizona Concrete :: essays research papers fc

Arizona Concrete According to the Mine Faculty at the University of Arizona, cement is manufactured primarily from suitable limestone and shale rocks. Arizona had two dry-process cement plants in 1969, namely the Arizona Portland Cement Company plant in Pima County, near Tucson, and the American Cement Corporation plant at Clarkdale, in Yavapai County (52-53). The use of cementing materials goes back to the ancient Egyptians and Romans, but the invention of modern portland cement is usually attributed to Joseph Aspdin, a builder in Leeds, England, who obtained a patent for it in 1824. Currently, the annual world production of portland cement is around 700 million metric tons (Danbury). Many people use the words concrete and cement interchangeably, but they're not. Concrete is to cement as a cake is to flour. Concrete is a mixture of ingredients that includes cement but contains other ingredients also (Day 6- 7). Portland cement is produced by pulverizing clinker consisting essentially of hydraulic calcium silicates along with some calcium aluminates and calcium aluminoferrites and usually containing one or more forms of calcium sulfate (gypsum) as an interground addition. Materials used in the manufacture of portland cement must contain appropriate proportions of calcium oxide, silica, alumina, and iron oxide components. During manufacture, analyses of all materials are made frequently to ensure a uniformly high quality cement. Selected raw materials are crushed, milled, and proportioned in such a way that the resulting mixture has the desired chemical composition. The raw materials are generally a mixture of calcareous (calcium oxide) material, such as limestone, chalk or shells, and an argillaceous (silica and alumina) material such as clay, shale, or blast-furnace slag. Either a dry or a wet process is used. In the dry process, grinding and blending operations are done with dry materials. In the wet process, the grinding and blending are done with the materials in slurry form. In other respects, the dry and wet processes are very much alike. After blending, the ground raw material is fed into the upper end of a kiln. The raw mix passes through the kiln at a rate controlled by the slope and rotational speed of the kiln. Burning fuel (powdered coal, oil, or gas) is forced into the lower end of the kiln where temperatures of 2600Â °F to 3000Â °F change the raw material chemically into cement clinker, grayish-black pellets about the size of 1/2-in.-diameter marbles. The clinker is cooled and then pulverized. During this operation a small amount of gypsum is added to regulate the setting time of the cement. The clinker is ground so fine that nearly all of it passes through a No.

Alliant Health System: A Vision of Total Quality Essay

1. Is Alliant’s strategy Sound? What does it have to do well to succeed? a. No strategy is totally sound.b. On paper, Alliant’s strategy would seem sound but, even though over the past five years they have made progress, Alliant has hit a few snags along the way that has prevented their strategy from becoming truly sound. i. They have only been able to lay down a foundation.c. Alliant is faced with â€Å"a culture and a climate that is inhospitable to the TQM philosophy.† ii. CEO Wolford states the he cannot â€Å"point to any one area that demonstate[s] we are substantially better than our competition.†d. â€Å"Alliant had achieved breakthroughs in organizational learning at each step in their TQM journey.† e. CARES+ – â€Å"basic outline for quality goal-setting and review†; bureaucraticf. EQUIP – â€Å"employees used it as a substitute for talking to their managers about day-to-day issues† g. Quality Improvement Teams – weren’t able to â€Å"bite off little pieces† and instead tried to solve â€Å"world hunger† problems; only able to come up with programs but was not capable implementing them; some have been â€Å"going on for over a year with nothing to show for it† h. Critical Paths – Unable to monitor rate of compliance, statistics was anywhere from 2% to 70% i. Have to do well to succeed:iii. Alliant needs to get everybody on board with Total Quality Management (TQM) for their strategy to succeed. 1. The quality process still needs a jumpstart.2. Some physicians are reluctant to adopt the new way of thinking. iv. Implement an IT system that â€Å"support[s] TQM and provide[s] Alliant with the information it need[s] to manage its evolution into the health care organization of the future.† v. Create a central quality organization that could come up with programs and implement them. 2. How well have they implemented the quality strategy? j. Alliant came up with guiding principles and a 10-point action plan to help introduce TQM to the organization through quality management teams (QMT). vi. Alliant was thorough in making sure their quality strategy was implemented systematically through targeted programs and processes that would help their â€Å"organization achieve a competitive advantage based on the management of quality. â€Å" vii. They implemented the quality stategy well in the first year because after Petersdorf died in 1987, â€Å"quality had already taken root† and â€Å"one of the board’s primary selectin criteria for Petersdorf’s replacement was a commitment to total quality management.† k. In the second year of implementation, Alliant saw their most profitable year in the history of the company. l. Four components of TQM strategy were implemented pretty well: viii. CARES+ process â€Å"diffused rapidly across Alliant†; Were â€Å"making the transition from traditional planning to quality improvement†; found quality planning process to be highly effective ix. EQUIP allowed employees to voice their ideas; helped communicate between employees, managers, and executives x. Quality Improvement Teams â€Å"prescribed specific analytical tools and walked a team from problem statement through actions, results, and future plans†; drilled right to the core of performance issues; applied statistical process control techniques to cash flow to bring the receivables range down xi. Critical Paths worked; was able to shorten length of hospital stay for coronary artery bypass graft surgeries from 17 days to 13 days and reduced average costs from $41,863 to $35,843; saved Alliant almost $1 million in 1990; moves process along if everyone works with the same time frame in mind 3.  Assess Alliant’s information technology agenda/strategy. m. Believed information technology (I/T) is a key in the future strength of TQM n. Need â€Å"expert systems – computers to help the mind†Ã‚  o. â€Å"Was a shift in focus: to patient-oriented systems rather than functional, â€Å"stove pipe† applications that met narrow departmental needs. p. Physicians, clinical support professionals, and administrators could share information and drive continuous improvement in service q. â€Å"HELP offered advice on possible diagnoses, cost-effective treatments, resource scheduling, and drug contraindications.† r. New I/T strategy offered significant advantages over Alliant’s existing patchwork of stand-alone systems: xii. System worked concurrently – advice was available as patient was being treated xiii. Had the potential to improve coordination dramatically by collecting data from  all corners of the hospital into a single patient-centered system 3. This would minimize patient costs and stay and the quality of care would be improved by eliminating â€Å"inappropriate procedures, unnecessary waiting time, and ineffective treatments.† 4. Would you proceed with HELP? s. Yes xiv. HELP would bring together Alliant’s hospitals and technically make it one working unit by providing a single patient-oriented system that had all data of a patient from every area of the hospital in one computer making Alliant efficient, productive, and quality focused. xv. This would allow information to be shared and eliminate all repeat and unnecessary procedures and allow a shorter waiting time because information would not have to be collected again. xvi. In effect, HELP would improve quality. 5. What would you do to make sure the implementation is successful? t. Make sure that the process works for us rather than us work for the process u. Take everything one step at a time; analyze little by little instead of taking in everything at once v. Make sure everybody was on board with Total Quality Management by restructuring the culture and climate in making TQM more hospitable w. Train managers with a familiar interface as that of HELP  xvii. This would help with a smooth short-term transition and involve fewer hiccups. xviii. â€Å"Stabilize the existing infrastructure, lay the foundation for HELP, and begin to make some progress on automating support for TQM†

First Day of College Essay

This first week of college has been very exciting. I remember on Sunday all day not knowing what and how to feel and what to expect. I woke up Monday morning nervous and excited, but also blessed because I feel lucky for what I call â€Å"one of those fortunate kids to be able to attend college†. I’ve been reading this devotional book each morning since I began Monday and I pray before I leave the house. Monday morning, I got on this campus, and I immediately started walking towards my first class, excited and anxious, but nervous because I didn’t know anyone in the class. I met my first teacher for the day, Mrs. Martinez for Math, and she is such a sweet and nice woman. Then, I had my hour-and-a-half until my next class, Student Success, so I met up with my best friend Whitney, which I haven’t seen the last time we were at Taco Bell with her mom and grandma, sometime in late June or early July. Her mom passed away last month and Thursday, August 29th would be one month. I was so happy to see her and share my college experience with her!!! Then, I had lunch and bought a ham and swiss cheese sub. Then, it was time to go to my last class, Student Success with Mrs. Butler, who is also a lovely lady. I walked in the class, with my friend Alison, and was nervous not knowing what to expect. The syllabus and presentation was very informative and I enjoyed playing and listening to the â€Å"Have You Ever?† and the â€Å"Head, Shoulders† games. The day ended. I left the campus happy and grateful to be a part of this experience. Tuesday afternoon came and I went to my English class, and met my teacher, Mr. Vrhovac, who is a really funny gu y and sarcastic. I also left this day feeling happy and grateful and I’m really starting to feel comfortable in my own skin and I’m loving passing through many of my friends from whom I went to high school with or young adults from my church. One thing I did notice is that for me personally, I felt that the atmosphere was different†¦ in a good way. It’s very unique and I’m beginning to get accustom with it and a liking to it. I also believe that I’m going to use all these resources to my benefits and I’ve met some incredible people already that will make some great study buddies. Overthese past 2 days, it’s just been an incredible feeling, I’m looking forward to the rest of this year, and I just feel incredibly blessed.

Coordination Number Definition in Chemistry

Coordination Number Definition in Chemistry The coordination number of an atom in a molecule is the number of atoms bonded to the atom. In chemistry and crystallography, the coordination number describes the number of neighbor atoms with respect to a central atom. The term was originally defined in 1893 by Swiss chemist Alfred Werner (1866–1919). The value of the coordination number is determined differently for crystals and molecules. The coordination number can vary from as low as 2 to as high as 16. The value depends on the relative sizes of the central atom and ligands and by the charge from the electronic configuration of an ion. The coordination number of an atom in a molecule or polyatomic ion is found by counting the number of atoms bound to it (note, not by counting the number of chemical bonds). Its more difficult to determine chemical bonding in solid-state crystals, so the coordination number in crystals is found by counting the number of neighboring atoms. Most commonly, the coordination number looks at an atom in the interior of a lattice, with neighbors extending in all directions. However, in certain contexts crystal surfaces are important (e.g., heterogeneous catalysis and material science), where the coordination number for an interior atom is the bulk coordination number and the value for a surface atom is the surface coordination number. In coordination complexes, only the first (sigma) bond between the central atom and ligands counts. Pi bonds to the ligands are not included in the calculation. Coordination Number Examples Carbon has a coordination number of 4 in a methane (CH4) molecule since it has four hydrogen atoms bonded to it.In ethylene (H2CCH2), the coordination number of each carbon is 3, where each C is bonded to 2H 1C for a total of 3 atoms.The coordination number of diamond is 4, as each carbon atom rests at the center of a regular tetrahedron formed by four carbon atoms. Calculating the Coordination Number Here are the steps for identifying the coordination number of a coordination compound. Identify the central atom in the chemical formula. Usually, this is a transition metal.Locate the atom, molecule, or ion nearest the central metal atom. To do this, find the molecule or ion directly beside the metal symbol in the chemical formula of the coordination compound. If the central atom is in the middle of the formula, there will be neighboring atoms/molecules/ions on both sides.Add the number of atoms of the nearest atom/molecule/ions. The central atom may only be bonded to one other element, but you still need to note the number of atoms of that element in the formula. If the central atom is in the middle of the formula, youll need to add up the atoms in the entire molecule.Find the total number of nearest atoms. If the metal has two bonded atoms, add together both numbers, Coordination Number Geometry There are multiple possible geometric configurations for most coordination numbers. Coordination Number 2- linearCoordination Number 3- trigonal planar (e.g., CO32-), trigonal pyramid, T-shapedCoordination Number 4- tetrahedral, square planarCoordination Number 5- square pyramid (e.g., oxovanadium salts, vanadyl VO2), trigonal bipyramid,  Coordination Number 6- hexagonal planar, trigonal prism, octahedralCoordination Number 7- capped octahedron, capped trigonal prism, pentagonal bipyramidCoordination Number 8- dodecahedron, cube, square antiprism, hexagonal bipyramidCoordination Number 9- three-face centered trigonal prismCoordination Number 10- bicapped square antiprismCoordination Number 11- all-faced capped trigonal prismCoordination Number 12- cuboctahedron (e.g., Ceric ammonium nitrate -(NH4)2Ce(NO3)6)

Memory essays

Memory essays What exactly is memory? In Book ten, more specifically, Chapters eight through fourteen of The Confessions of St. Augustine, Augustine examines what he believes the memory to be, and how it functions. Augustine first addresses memory specifically in Chapter eight of Book ten where he describes memory as where are treasures of countless images of things of every manner . . . [and] also whatever we think about . . . (p. 236). He can recall any of these memories that forgetfulness has not yet swallowed up and buried away . . . (p. 236). It may take longer to remember some things than others, for some things may have to be searched for, sifting through other memories that jump into his mind that he must brush away until they are needed. Inside ones memory everything is kept distinct and according to kind . . . (p. 236). Each is obtained through its respective sensory organ and stored for whenever it may be needed. Although the things themselves do not enter . . . (p. 237), images of them are kept. But Augustine ponders how these images are remembered. For when one remembers remembers a sound, he can still hear other things. Also in the memory, Augustine talks of remembering things he has done or others have told him of, and these can be conjured up at any moment in order to influence his many decisions which he must make. Augustine ends the chapter by proclaiming Great is the power of memory, exceedingly great is it, O God, and inner chamber, vast and unbounded! (p. 238). In this final paragraph he amazes at that which is memory. He says that men go to great lengths in order to gaze at mountain heights, at huge waves in the sea, at the broad expanse of flowing rivers, at the wide reaches of the ocean, and at the circuits of the stars . . . (p. 238), but they fail to observe the wonder which is within themselves. They do not appreciate...

10 Groundhog Day Quotes to Remind You Spring Is Near

10 Groundhog Day Quotes to Remind You Spring Is Near It may seem far-fetched to those who live closer to the equator. But for people closer to the poles, Groundhog Day marks the arrival of spring and the end of winter. Revere the little furry creature that is likely to make an accurate prognosis of the arrival of spring this Groundhog Day. Read these Groundhog Day quotes to celebrate the season of joy. W. J. VogelTo shorten winter, borrow some money due in spring.​Clyde MooreTheres one good thing about snow, it makes your lawn look as nice as your neighbors.​Kin HubbardDont knock the weather; nine-tenths of the people couldnt start a conversation if it didnt change once in a while.William Camden,  Remains, 1605One swallow maketh not summer; nor one woodcock a winter.​Anthony J. DAngelo, The College Blue BookWherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine.Bill VaughnThe groundhog is like most other prophets; it delivers its prediction and then disappears.​Patrick YoungThe trouble with weather forecasting is that its right too often for us to ignore it and wrong too often for us to rely on it.​Phil ConnorsThis is one time where television really fails to capture the true excitement of a large squirrel predicting the weather.​George SantayanaTo be interested in the changing seasons is a happier state of mind than to be hopelessly in love with spring.​George HerbertEvery mile is two in winter.

American constitution Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

American constitution - Assignment Example Secondly, it should provide social infrastructure wherein the citizens can interact well and establish connections and ties with one another. Thirdly, it is tasked in protecting human rights and upholding and ensuring that everyone is treated fairly and accorded with the things that are of the essence to being human. Citizens should be safeguarded against violations of human rights. And lastly, it is the government’s role to provide public safety. In relation with its other roles, this dictates that it should protect the state from both internal and external threats, be it in whatever nature such as, but not limited to, political, military, health, etc. 2.Define democracy and discuss 5 bases of democracy(five bases to use are, self-government john locke-2nd treaties on government, social contract, majority rule, minority rights, limited government, democratic institution, free election, free expression of ideas ). In the modern era of politics, democracy as a form of government has risen as the most widely practiced form of government. The word can be literally translated to mean as the Government of the People/Majority (Becker and Raveloson 4). It is easily distinguishable from other forms of government such as monarchy, aristocracy, and dictatorship simply because the governing body comes from the people themselves. Leaders of such government and elected and empowered by the people in the rationale of them serving the common interest of its citizens. 3. Discuss 5 types of powers (Reward-ability to provide what others don’t have, Coercive-ability to punish, Authority-based on titles and position, Expert-based on knowledge, Referant-based on charisma or respect. The reward-ability power is anchored in the ability of the authoritative entity to grant and motivate its constituents by its desires and undesirables. This regards the work of

Reaction Papers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Reaction Papers - Essay Example The reader evaluate if his society impacts positively or negatively on the general health of the existing population. In addition the article draws the attention of its reader to existing social factors that may influence the health of both the individual’s and the whole population. Moreover, this article draws concerns on whether it is individual socialization or the whole society’s integration that actually affects the health. Though the article is founded on strong foundations of the role of social networks in influence on health, it should be noted that individuals deal with stress related issues differently. These social supports are important but personal dealing of the situation is much more important. To conclude, this article has very strong arguments that should be considered in the future in order to deal with general health in any given society. It advocates for special emphasis in natural social interventions rather than depending on social support groups. Secondly, the article calls for various social environment interventions, like; increased social support within the existing social networks and, cutting on negative interactions (Cohen 676-682). This article, by Michael Lowe, is a critique to the existing weight loss programs in developed counties. Michael observes that these programs are founded on the equipotential intervention bases. As such they are short lived and therefore those engaged in such programs regain the weight lost in due course. The article consequently advances the need to utilize self-regulation methods as the appropriate means of achieving a stable degree of weight controls by individuals and the society as a whole. This article has a good base for its argument since it is only through behavioral checks that individuals can maintain a stable weight (Lowe 45s-59s). The study is developed from observations on the trends of obesity over the past decades. Further, this study considers various

Marketing mix Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Marketing mix - Essay Example All these suggest that the concept of marketing mix has evolved over time as the 4Ps were initially based on the production and supply context of the 1950s (Kent and Brown 2006). The model now encompasses aspects of sociology and cognitive psychology (Hakansson and Waluszewski 2005 cited in Kent and Brown 2006). Without marketing mix capability other concepts such as customer orientation, competitor orientation and inter-functional coordination would not be able to contribute to better firm performance, suggests Shin (2012) thereby highlighting the significance of MM concept in the field of marketing. However, scholars do not agree on the ingredients of the marketing mix. Some authors such as Borden (1964), Frey (1956), and Staudt and Taylor (1965) consider the elements as procedures, policies and processes, while others look at these elements as tools, parameters or instruments (cited by Waterschoot and Bulte 1992). This concept has been criticized as it lacks any specific explanati on of characteristics, thereby suggesting that the concept has a major flaw. The elements of marketing mix do not lead to any theory development. Gronroos (1989) postulates that the marketing mix artificially limits the scope of marketing management as the concept suggests that marketing decisions can be taken based on the 4 Ps (cited by Bitner 1991). Since many authors are critical of this concept, the marketing mix will be evaluated based on the typology of critique in marketing designed by Hackley (2009). This typology has four overlapping categories – functional, intellectual, ethical and political critique. Functional critique The functional critique would simply question whether the marketing mix concept works. Even though it is considered an important tool, there is no consensus over the eligibility and agreement of the practical application of the 4Ps of the MM variables (Kent and Brown 2006). The MM concept suggests that the buyers are a homogeneous group of people w ith common buying behaviour (Bennett, 1997). Resources and capabilities of the organization are organized in a way to satisfy customer needs but Bennett debates whether the customer accepts product benefits and attributes in the same way as the company claims. The customers are not concerned with the elements of the marketing mix and only seek satisfaction from the products and services. The purpose of MM is to improve sustainability performance across economic, ecological and societal indicators (Pomering, Noble and Johnson 2011). Consumers expect firms to be more socially and environmentally responsible and report that they would prefer to purchase from such organizations. However, there is an attitude-behaviour gap in actual consumer purchase, thereby implying that firms that tend to focus on the MM variables do not achieve the intended objectives. Sustainability through MM elements may appear discordant and hollow unless sustainability is addressed at the vision and mission leve l or at the corporate strategy level. The MM concept focuses on the tactical and managerial aspects of marketing and does not take into account the social, organizational, competitive and economic issues (Bitner 1991). The MM has been criticized for its short-term focus on sales and transactions while undermining the long-term relational thinking and brand equity (Rafiq and Ahmed, 1995 cited in Gordon, 2012). The concept has also been criticized f

Fiscal policy and the US economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Fiscal policy and the US economy - Essay Example 'Auerbach and Feenberg (2000) have estimated that automatic tax stabilizers offset about 8% of the impact of an economic shock to GDP.'(Economic Research and Data. The Role of Fiscal Policy. 2002) Mere anticipation of projected fiscal action can have an impact on the U.S. economy. Households and business enterprises will operate their individual spending habits based on both present economics as well as future economics. For instance, a tax cut will leave households will more disposable income, however, if the tax cut is looked upon as a temporary measure it will not contribute to increased consumer expenditure. Similarly, investment tax credits which will only lower the cost of investment ventures on a temporary basis will likely encourage investors to time their spending so as to capitalize on the tax credit initiatives. It is therefore imperative that fiscal policy be considered and conducted in such a manner as to take into consideration the likely impact of both the current and future implications. 'When expectations of future fiscal policy are important, "expansionary" fiscal policy-an increase in government spending, for example-may actually be contractionary'. (Economic Research and Data. The Role of Fiscal Policy. ... It can also influence financial markets to anticipate future tax hikes. The implications are detrimental to the general economy. As a result, long-term interest rates will go up, investors will hold back somewhat on investments thereby circumventing the government's intended expansionary effects of its spending. During the country's recession of the 1990-1991 fiscal year the President Bill Clinton's Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) made a similar observation: 'an attempted stimulus that abandoned, or was perceived to abandon, serious discipline on the growth of future spending or on the reduction in the multiyear structural deficit probably would produce a substantial rise in interest rates. That would offset a large portion of the direct stimulus in the short run and would leave the economy thereafter with a higher cost of capital, which would be detrimental to investment necessary for long-run growth.'(US President. 1992. p.25) According to Alesina, Perotti and Tavares a reduction in deficits are more likely to be expansionary when they entail government spending cuts and government salaries as well as transfers. These cuts have the effect of indicating decreases in government spending activity on a permanent basis and as a result there is a general public perception that taxes will be decreased in the future. On the other hand, decreases in the deficit which are accomplished via tax increases appear to be 'contractionary'.(Alesina. 1998. pp-197-248. The US government's role in the nation's economy cannot be accomplished by merely regulating its fiscal spending and management. The government can only achieve the best results possible for the good of the US

Ethical and Legal Issues in the Couseling Profession Research Paper

Ethical and Legal Issues in the Couseling Profession - Research Paper Example All in all, these dilemmas and decisions have made me more prudent and more discerning in my approaches to patient care. This essay will now serve as my reflective ethical autobiography with various sources and theories used to help support and evaluate the choices I have made during my immersion. Discussion One of the main teachings which were drilled to us by our professors was the fact that there were various ethical principles which we had to follow and consider with each patient that we cared for. These main ethical principles include: beneficence, patient autonomy or self-determination, non-maleficence, and justice. These principles helped me develop my sense of right or wrong. Whenever I doubted my actions or did not know whether my actions were right or wrong, I always considered these four ethical principles as a guide or as a foundation for my decisions. Beauchamp and Childress identified these ethical principles which should govern the ethical practice of our profession. T hey discuss that the principle of autonomy is basically about the personal rule of oneself which is apart or free from the influences of others and from the limitations which negate meaningful choice (Beauchamp and Childress, 1994). This autonomous decision making process allows the individual to act in accordance with his plans and his choices. Without such autonomy, an individual is dictated by others and is incapable of acting on his desires or plans (Beauchamp and Childress, 1994). In other words, patient autonomy is about allowing the patient to make his own decisions about his care – without forcing him or influencing him to decide in a particular way. In my practice, I often had to explain to patients the different types of care or interventions which can be implemented in their favor. There were times when I was tempted to influence their choices and to sway them towards making decisions which, I felt, were more favorable to the patients and to me. But noting that I m ight be unjustly and unfairly influencing them to make decisions on their care, I ended up being more restrained and being more balanced in explaining possible choices in their care. By allowing them to make their own choices, I was able to afford more respect to my patients as individuals. Patient autonomy is also about respecting the patient’s decision even if such decision is not the best decision for him. One time, I encountered a patient who refused further care and counseling. I knew that he needed to be in therapy and he needed to undergo intensive rehabilitation. However he wanted to undergo a less structured rehabilitation process and he wanted to do it outside the mental health institution. Even if I knew that his choices may not be effective in rehabilitating him, ethics dictated that I had to respect his choice. And so we released him and allowed him to make his own choices of care. The principle of beneficence is based on doing acts of kindness for others (Beauch amp and Childress, 1994). In essence, this principle â€Å"asserts an obligation to help others further their important and legitimate interests† (Beauchamp and Childress, 1994, p. 260). In applying this principle to my counseling practice, I often encountered situations where I knew that my patients needed more intensive counseling. One time, I encountered a high school student whom I assessed to be depressed. She had significant self-image

Why Illegal immigration is good for the US Economy Essay

Why Illegal immigration is good for the US Economy - Essay Example This is the common wisdom regarding â€Å"illegals.† Everybody knows this. Everybody is wrong. Illegal immigrants actually commit fewer crimes than citizens because they will be deported for even the slightest infraction. The sacrifice to get here was too high to risk that. Regarding taking jobs from Americans, I often tell people that if an uneducated person who cannot speak the language, has no support system, no money, own only the clothes on their back and cannot possibly assimilate into society can take your job, it’s your fault. The main concern is the billions of dollars spent every year due to illegal immigration, money the U.S. just cannot afford due to the high National Debt and stagnant economy. They are like a colony of ants pouring over the border to invade our picnic. Unfortunately for legal and illegal citizens, the common wisdom on this subject lacks an appreciation of the real economic impact, a complex issue which should be more broadly understood before spending money we don’t have to fix a problem that does not exist. Because more students in the U.S. are graduating high school than in years past, workers with low levels of schooling are progressively difficult to find. These workers are an essential element of the economy. They harvest crops, build homes, clean offices, prepare food and are willing to take monotonous factory jobs. â€Å"Because of their low education levels, illegal immigrants don’t compete against skilled natives in the labor market.† (Zavodny, 2007) In 1960 only about half of U.S. citizens graduated high school. Today that percentage has dropped dramatically to 12 percent. Illegal immigrants provide the economy with employees who are in inadequate supply. Opponents of illegal immigration claim that a flood of â€Å"illegals† hurt the economy by lowering overall wages of citizens and increase expenses for public services such as education and health

Ethical and Legal Issues in the Couseling Profession Research Paper

Ethical and Legal Issues in the Couseling Profession - Research Paper Example All in all, these dilemmas and decisions have made me more prudent and more discerning in my approaches to patient care. This essay will now serve as my reflective ethical autobiography with various sources and theories used to help support and evaluate the choices I have made during my immersion. Discussion One of the main teachings which were drilled to us by our professors was the fact that there were various ethical principles which we had to follow and consider with each patient that we cared for. These main ethical principles include: beneficence, patient autonomy or self-determination, non-maleficence, and justice. These principles helped me develop my sense of right or wrong. Whenever I doubted my actions or did not know whether my actions were right or wrong, I always considered these four ethical principles as a guide or as a foundation for my decisions. Beauchamp and Childress identified these ethical principles which should govern the ethical practice of our profession. T hey discuss that the principle of autonomy is basically about the personal rule of oneself which is apart or free from the influences of others and from the limitations which negate meaningful choice (Beauchamp and Childress, 1994). This autonomous decision making process allows the individual to act in accordance with his plans and his choices. Without such autonomy, an individual is dictated by others and is incapable of acting on his desires or plans (Beauchamp and Childress, 1994). In other words, patient autonomy is about allowing the patient to make his own decisions about his care – without forcing him or influencing him to decide in a particular way. In my practice, I often had to explain to patients the different types of care or interventions which can be implemented in their favor. There were times when I was tempted to influence their choices and to sway them towards making decisions which, I felt, were more favorable to the patients and to me. But noting that I m ight be unjustly and unfairly influencing them to make decisions on their care, I ended up being more restrained and being more balanced in explaining possible choices in their care. By allowing them to make their own choices, I was able to afford more respect to my patients as individuals. Patient autonomy is also about respecting the patient’s decision even if such decision is not the best decision for him. One time, I encountered a patient who refused further care and counseling. I knew that he needed to be in therapy and he needed to undergo intensive rehabilitation. However he wanted to undergo a less structured rehabilitation process and he wanted to do it outside the mental health institution. Even if I knew that his choices may not be effective in rehabilitating him, ethics dictated that I had to respect his choice. And so we released him and allowed him to make his own choices of care. The principle of beneficence is based on doing acts of kindness for others (Beauch amp and Childress, 1994). In essence, this principle â€Å"asserts an obligation to help others further their important and legitimate interests† (Beauchamp and Childress, 1994, p. 260). In applying this principle to my counseling practice, I often encountered situations where I knew that my patients needed more intensive counseling. One time, I encountered a high school student whom I assessed to be depressed. She had significant self-image

THE ALTERNATIVE CITY Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

THE ALTERNATIVE CITY - Term Paper Example The main ambition of Hammar Sjostad planners was to extend the city, in order to meet the growing demand for urban living. Expansion of city center was also done to meet Sweden acknowledged environmental, energy, social and economical goals for the future. In retort to environmental and other forces, the Swedish government stated that it wanted to develop the concept of a â€Å"green welfare state,† where everyone lives in good housing, reasonable cost, and secure environment within a long-term sustainable framework. The environment program in the city was politically driven making it spread to an international legendary maintainable program (Ahlroth, 2011). The program included targets for refinement, use of Brownfield land, discouraging use of cars and providing public transport options, energy consumption and recycling of water and waste. Recycling of energy, waste and water management was developed jointly by Stockholm Water Company, Birka Enrgy and the City of Stockholm w aste management bureau. In Hammarby Sjostad city, the sewage water is recycled and purified at large sewage plants and the waste recycled into natural gas, which is channeled to be used as an energy source for the district (Ahlroth, 2011). Purification process produces heat, which is recycled for use at neighborhood-heating units. Hammarly Sjostad city has its own sewage treatment centre where nutrients from the sewage are recycled and used in agricultural land. The city management makes sure that all combustible waste products are recycled into heat energy to be used in apartments. The aim of the planners of hammarby Sjostad city is to minimize environmental pollution and maximize the use of waste products produced by city dwellers. Transport system is essential for a new city success. Planners of Hammarly Sjostad considered the integration of a master transit plan to meet social and environmental anxiety of the project (Ahlroth, 2011). Public transport is encouraged to ease conges tions in the city by private vehicles. The use of many transport technologies has made Hammarly Sjostad city accessible. There is a ferry link system, which takes people across the lake and it runs through from morning to midnight. Planners of Hammarly Sjostad goals were to design a city that is unique. The goal was to make a residential environment based on maintainable resource usage, where energy consumption and waste products are reduced while resource saving and recycling concurrently maximized. The city’s authority made efforts to meet the population increase in Stockholm, and were able to bring high quality housing onto the market at a time when demand was increasing. Good planning brought high standards in design quality and environmental performance of the building (Ahlroth, 2011). Planning application in Sjostad is based on the life cycle cost analysis hence making it simpler to justify higher initial investment in good performing building designs. The heating, tran sport and waste collection systems were planned to work together to reduce the amount of energy and resources required to maintain them in the long run (Ahlroth, 2011). Hammarly city planning administration predicted that residents would be older people and after completion of apartment blocks, people moving in were young families. The development did not meet its target for car owners because of limited parking spaces. References

Understand Different Approaches To Management And Leadership Commerce Essay

Understand Different Approaches To Management And Leadership Commerce Essay steve Ballmer, Microsoft.   Without a doubt, Mr. Ballmer is the worst CEO of a large publicly traded American company today.   Not only has he singlehandedly steered Microsoft out of some of the fastest growing and most lucrative tech markets (mobile music, handsets and tablets) but in the process he has sacrificed the growth and profits of not only his company but ecosystem companies such as Dell, Hewlett Packard and even Nokia.   The reach of his bad leadership has extended far beyond Microsoft when it comes to destroying shareholder value and jobs. Microsoft peaked at $60/share in 2000, just as Mr. Ballmer took the reins.   By 2002 it had fallen into the $20s, and has only rarely made it back to its current low $30s value.   And no wonder, since execution of new rollouts were constantly delayed, and ended up with products so lacking in any enhanced value that they left customers scrambling to find ways to avoid upgrades.   By Mr. Ballmers own admission Vista had over 200 man-years too much cost, and its launch, years late, met users avoiding upgrades.   Windows 7 and Office 2010 did nothing to excite tech users, in corporations or at home, as Apple took the leadership position in personal technology. So today Microsoft, after dumping Zune, dumping its tablet, dumping Windows CE and other mobile products, is still the same company Mr. Ballmer took control over a decade ago.   Microsoft is   PC company, nothing more, as demand for PCs shifts to mobile.   Years late to market, he has bet the company on Windows 8 as well as the future of Dell, HP, Nokia and others.   An insane bet for any CEO and one that would have been avoided entirely had the Microsoft Board replaced Mr. Ballmer years ago with a CEO that understands the fast pace of technology shifts and would have kept Microsoft current with market trends. Although hes #19 on Forbes list of billionaires, Mr. Ballmer should not be allowed to take such incredible risks with investor money and employee jobs.   Best he be retired to enjoy his fortune rather than deprive investors and employees of building theirs. There were a lot of notable CEO departures in 2012.   Research in Motion, Best Buy and American Airlines are just three examples.   But the 5 CEOs in this column are well on the way to leading their companies into the kind of problems those 3 have already discovered.   Hopefully the Boards will start to pay closer attention, and take action before things worsen. Some say that Steve Sinofsky, credited with bringing order to the sometimes-chaotic software development process at Microsoft partly by cutting layers of management, should be the man to replace Steve Ballmer. Meetings with Sinofsky can be tough, colleagues say, but he doesnt swear like Gates or scream like Ballmer. Sinofsky has blogged at length about his management ideas, and even taught a management class at Harvard Business School. Some of his best blogs were used as the basis for a book called One Strategy: Organization, Planning, and Decision Making, published by Wiley in 2010, which he co-authored with a Harvard academic. Sinofsky writes in his blog about cutting the number of managers between him and the lowest rung of the Windows unit to three or four from seven previously. This streamlining, along with rigorous planning, has become his signature at Microsoft, but has ruffled some feathers at the company because it has reduced the number of general manager positions, where people got to use a wide variety of skills, and focused instead on the core functions of making software: developing, testing and managing specific programs. But few dispute the results. For sure it flattens the organization, it definitely eliminates fiefdoms, said the former Windows executive. Bill Gates had the most amazing mind Ive ever encountered. You could show him a PowerPoint slide and he would ask why it was different from the one you showed him three years ago, said another former Microsoft executive. Steve Ballmer is the most intuitively mathematical person Ive ever worked with. Steve (Sinofsky) is neither of those things. Sources: http://www.forbes.com/sites/adamhartung/2012/05/12/oops-5-ceos-that-should-have-already-been-fired-cisco-ge-walmart-sears-microsoft/3/ http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46556568/ns/technology_and_science-tech_and_gadgets/t/microsofts-next-steve-windows-boss-faces-biggest-test/#.UAVLf_Wqnm4 Role An executive in the committee tasked to adviseMicrosoft CEO Steve Ballmer has just assigned you to conduct an investigation into how a sample of organisations, including Microsoft and one other company of your choosing, approach the management of their activities. Your analysis will extend into an examination of organisation structure and culture, as well as management style. Tasks: Using the facts of the company presented in the case above and that of another company of your choosing, compare and contrast different organisational structures and cultures (1.1) Explain how the relationship between an organisations structure and culture can impact on the performance of the business (1.2) Discuss the factors which influence individual behaviour at work (1.3) Compare the effectiveness of different leadership styles in different organisations (2.1) Explain how organisational theory is the foundation for the practice of management (2.2) Evaluate the different approaches to management used by different organisation (2.3) GRADING Pass is achieved by meeting all the requirements defined in the assessment criteria. Merit Identify and apply strategies to find appropriate solutions (M1) Characteristics / Possible Evidence Use of comparative chart that is sufficiently detailed to show that an effective approach to study and research has been applied to both organizations. Select and apply appropriate methods/techniques (M2) Characteristics / Possible Evidence Appropriate methods have been applied in organizational structure, culture and approaches to management related to given organizations as well as sources are justified. Distinction Use critical reflection to evaluate own work and justify valid conclusions (D1) Characteristics / Possible Evidence creativity has been used to generate and justify valid comments on approaches to management and styles of leadership. Take responsibility for managing and organizing activities (D2) Characteristics / Possible Evidence independence demonstrated and substantial activities have been planned, managed, and organised related to the practice of management and leadership. A REPORT ON MICROSOFT AND FEDEXS ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES AND CULTURES Prepared for: Mr. John Andre (Lecturer) Organizations and Behavior Banking Academy, Hanoi BTEC HND in Business (Finance) Prepared by: TRAN MAI TRANG AMY Registration No.: ITP F05-229 (F05A) Submit Day: 21st November, 2012 Table of Contents INTRODUCTION The assignment is about six outcomes of Organizations and Behavior subject. The scenario company is Microsoft, founded in 1975, which is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential (Microsoft, n.d.).The other company to compare with Microsoft is Federal Express Corporation (FedEx Express), the largest company in providing a portfolio of transportation, e-commerce and business services under the FedEx brand. FedEx Express is an express transportation company, offering time-certain delivery within one to three business days and serving markets. FedEx Ground Package System, Inc. (FedEx Ground) is a provider of small-package ground delivery service. FedEx Freight Inc (FedEx Freight) is a provider of less-than-truckload (LTL) freight services. FedEx Corporate Services, Inc. (FedEx Services) provides the Companys other companies with sales, marketing, information technology, communications and back-office support (Fe dEx, n.d.). This assignment is going to explain and compare the organizational structures, cultures, leadership styles and performance of these two companies to find out about the organizational theories that underpin the practice of management. 1.1 Compare and contrast different organizational structures and culture 1.1.1 Microsofts structure and culture Microsofts Organizational Chart (The Official Board, 2012) According to the chart above, Microsoft has a flat structure. We can see that Microsoft has five product groups are Windows Live Windows Group, Server Software, Online Services, Microsoft Business and Entertainment and Devices. Each product group, which focuses on a specific line of goods and services, has one executive reports directly to the CEO. Each group has its own RD, sales, and customer service staff (Daft, 2009). This structure allows larger spans of control. Microsoft also has a matrix structure which works alongside the flat structure. The  matrix structure is a structure where project teams are made up of workers with various specialisms from different functions of a business (BPP, 2004). The legal structure of Microsoft is Limited Liability Company because the company went public on March 13, 1986 (Time, n.d.). Microsoft has a task culture because it is a huge company with 94,420 employees around the world, just 56,934 in USA only (Microsoft, n.d.). It is impossible to manage a firm of that huge amount of workers with a person culture or a power culture. A two-time award-winning journalist Kurt Eichenwald described Microsofts work culture as the cannibalistic culture; a management system known as stack-ranking a program that forces every unit to declare a certain percentage of employees as top performers, good performers, average, and poor effectively crippled Microsofts ability to innovate, leading employees to compete with each other rather than competing with other companies (Vanity Fair, 2012). 1.1.2 FedExs structure and culture FedExs Organizational Chart (The Official Board, 2012) FedEx Corporation FedEx, introduced express delivery to the world in 1973, and is the worlds top express delivery service. The organizational structure of FedEx is flat. According to Organizational Behavior A Strategic Approach, FedEx Corporation should change their structure, because it adopted a multi-divisional structure (Hitt, Miller Colella, 2005). The corporation gives significant authorities to the subsidiaries. Operating independently, each subsidiary manages its own specialized network of services. FedEx employed over 280,000 employees worldwide (FedEx, n.d.), so obviously they have a task culture. The culture of FedEx is also market driven culture. All they care about is the customers; their culture center on the customer. They possess a strong customer-service organizational culture (McNeal, 2011). In short, both Microsoft and FedEx Corp. have a new style of management which is flat structure and task culture. However, FedEx is flatter than Microsoft in organizational structure. To look deeper, we can see differences in their culture as one cares about money, the other one cares about the customer. 1.2 Explain how the relationship between an organizations structure and culture can impact on the performance of the business 1.2.1 Microsoft Microsoft has a flat organizational structure and a task culture which is consider the new method of management. It is believed to be the right way to manage a company. This seems to works well when Microsofts 2011 revenue reached $69 billion (Microsoft, 2011). They make a very huge amount of money. The flat structure creates a lower hierarchy of power in Microsoft. It also allows CEOs direct involvement to make decision process quicker and less time consuming. Microsoft was topped ranking of the worlds 25 best multinational workplaces released by The Great Place to Work Institute (Industry Week, 2011). It is noticeable that employees satisfy their working environment in Microsoft. However, the stack ranking program can kill Microsofts creativity. The destructive management technique can be seen the key problem in Microsoft its management system (Frederick Allen, 2012). It can lead to risk of losing big amount of money. 1.2.2 FedEx FedEx increased revenue 12% in the February-to-May quarter and 13% in the fiscal year that ended May 31, reporting total annual revenue of $39.3 billion (William Cassidy, 2011). It is a large amount of money. The culture of FedEx influences its employees to work more effectively. It encourages them not only work hard but also work smart. FedExs managers also make right decisions, catching up with market trends and changing business needs. 1.3 Discuss the factors which influence individual behaviour at work The factors which influence individual behavior at work are: personality, perception, attitude, ability and aptitude, conflict, stress, and change. For the people of Microsoft, their personality is highly competitive. As discussed above, it is obviously that Microsoft has the culture of competition so the people who are working in a competitive culture will become competitive. If they are not yet competitive, the culture will itself make them competitive. Because they are competitive, they know how to get the money from customers and they will do it so well. Microsoft had always been characterized by a culture that was extremely competitive. When the company introduced new products then rocketing sales, the people responsible for the products did not meet to celebrate. Instead, they found what could have been done better instantly. Therefore, the company had always been a leading competitor, and Gates often sent out memos to remind employees about the competitive threats ahead. Gates truly drove a culture of innovation and vision (Microsoft People Problems, 2003). Thus, people were promoted to strive for the highest standards. However, when Gates left, Steve Ballmer has been a new CEO. Steve has been driving a culture of production rather than innovation (Kurt Eichenwald, 2012). For example, two ex-employees reviewd on Glassdor (Glassdoor is a website that collects information about workplaces and companies) that stack ranking made Microsoft be a less desirable place to work and higher stress workplace (Julie Bort, 2012). One more thing is that, Microsoft has discrimination between black and white workers of the corporation. In 2001, a group of current and former employees accused Microsoft of racism. The seven African American people required $5 billion in compensation, claiming they were paid less than their fellow employees and repeatedly passed over for promotions given to less-qualified white workers. The workers also claimed to have been subjected to racial harassment and retaliation when they complained. According to Willie Gary, who is a lawyer, pointed to 1999, government statistics that showed only 2.6% of Microsofts 21,429 employees, and only 1.6% of the companys 5,155 managers, were black (BBC, 2001). 2.1 Compare the effectiveness of different leadership style in different organizations 2.1.1 Microsoft Bill Gatess leadership styles are participative style and authoritative style. The reason is that, Gates involved his subordinates in decision making so they were good at delegating. He is a flexible person and he recognized his role was to be visionary of the company. Whenever needed, he brought professional managers for managing. Gates is a strong and energizing person. His enthusiasm, hard working nature and judgment skills reflect his personality. His motivating power and involving his friends to working with him became the success of Microsoft (Dip Kumar Dey,n.d.). Besides, Gates paid special attention to recruit and retain the best talent. He believed that the recruitment of talented software engineers was one of the most critical elements in the software industry. Gates looked for recruits who included the capacity to grasp new knowledge quickly and deep familiarity with programming structures. Despite a great number of potential recruits applied for jobs at Microsoft, Gates a ssumed that the best talent would never apply directly. Consequently, Microsofts HR managers had to hunt for the best talent and offer them a job. Giving autonomy to his managers, Gates delegated authorities to managers to run their independent departments. Gates involved a little in autocratic style, because control is basic to his nature and his management practice. He had an obsession with detail and with checking up. He tried to monopolize the World Wide Web software market and had legal problems with the department of justice. Also he did not like complaints (Dhananjay Kumar, n.d.). Microsoft used these styles of leadership very well as the company has great performance with net income of $14.569 billion (2009). 2.1.2 FedEx FedEx has a complex leadership style. The leadership style is combined between affiliative style, participative style and democratic style. Because FedEx has a flat structure; the managers give their subordinates authorities so they are good at delegating. Also, to be able to give subordinates authorities, they must trust their workers. Workers at FedEx are smart people so they do not want to be told what and how to do things. FedEx Corp. under the guidance of CEO Fred Smith has been named the Top  Corporation of the Decade by Fortune magazine (Dumain, 2004). Smith  was determined to make employees an integral part of the decision-making  process, due to his belief that when people are placed first they will provide the highest possible service and profits will follow (FedEx, n.d.). Microsoft and FedEx have different leadership styles so they apply it differently to create different working environment for their workers. However, they both earn a huge amount of profit and manage their company so well. FedEx seems to have the right way to apply its leadership style on its employees than Microsoft. 2.2 Explain how organisational theory underpins the practice of management 2.2.1 Theory X and Y It can be easily seen that Microsoft and FedEx use the Y theory. Because both companies care about how their employees feel. Furthermore, workers at Microsoft and FedEx are smart people so they do not want to be told things. Workers at Microsoft and FedEx are very ambitious, passionate and committed to their work. Because the work load at Microsoft is very pressure but there are still many people wish to work at Microsoft. Because the salary they pay is high, $87,965 for normal employees and much higher for managers, engineers or directors. They all have a regular salary over $100,000 each person (Salary List, 2011). Theory Y is about trust. Both Microsoft and FedEx have flat structure; authorities are given through the chain. Therefore, they must trust the workers. It creates not only the trust of managers in workers, but also the trust of workers in managers. This theory helps to build a strong relationship among workers and managers and then it leads to a strong organization. It i s obviously that Microsoft and FedEx are both strong in structure, culture and financial. 2.2.2 Scientific management FedEx doesnt apply this theory in its management. Because based on the theory, the application of this approach was to break each job down into its smallest and simplest component parts or motions (BPP, 2004). Although the theory improves productivity, it creates de-humanity in the organization. Moreover, everyone at FedEx is smart and talented. Therefore, it is wastes to hire smart people to tell them just do the same job day by day. Scientific management doesnt work in an organization that needs innovation and ideas like FedEx. 2.2.3 Bureaucracy Under the dominated decade of CEO Steve Ballmer, Microsoft applied this theory in its management. For this reason, Microsoft was complained that toxic environment and bad managers for anyone who want to join the corporation. Current and former employees in Microsoft were affected seriously by bureaucracy and management of the company for years (Matt Rosoff, 2011). According an article, employees in Microsoft were more concerned with impressing bosses than creating things (Rebecca Greenfield, 2012). They have no incentive to innovate. Nothing has changed at all since the departure of former CEO Bill Gates. It seems to be Steve Ballmer applied an inefficient management system. All things have not worked out. 2.3 Evaluate the different approaches to management used by different organisations 2.3.1 Human relation approach Both Microsoft and FedEx use this management approach to manage their organization. As analyzed above, Microsoft cares about its employees in a wrong way. Steve Ballmer applied a management system which damage peoples creativity, making them to be bored with their work. Now the dominant tech company belongs to Apple. For FedEx, they care about their employees in a different way. They give employees passion and convenient facilities that allows workers to be more develop. Both Microsoft and FedEx know that how workers feel affects how well they work. However, this method is about what workers think, doesnt matter how the leader thinks about the workers. It is matter that the leader can create an image in the workers mind that they are what the leader wants them to believe they are. 2.3.2 The contingency approach It all depends is what we can define this theory. Managers of both Microsoft and FedEx have find out what is the suitable way to manage, not to find out what is the one right way to manage. This is considered the new management way. Microsoft and FedEx are the new organizations: everything is international, everything is new, everything is faster and everything is turbulent (BPP, 2004). This managing method fits these two organizations because organizations change all the time. This method worked very well for FedEx as the leader of FedEx lead the company through the economic crisis in 2008 to survive (The New York Times, 2012) In total, contingency approach is the correct choice for their management. CONCLUSION How an organization achieves its goals and become successful is the managers and leaders concern. Therefore, leaders and managers should build good relationship with their subordinates as well as good organizational structure, culture and good leadership style.

Romatic Era :: essays research papers

19th Century Romanticism in Europe- Books related to 19th Century Romanticism in Europe- 19th Century Romanticism in Europe- Romanticism began in the early 19th century and radically changed the way people perceived themselves and the state of nature around them. Unlike Classicism, which stood for order and established the foundation for architecture, literature, painting and music, Romanticism allowed people to get away from the constricted, rational views of life and concentrate on an emotional and sentimental side of humanity. This not only influenced political doctrines and ideology, but was also a sharp contrast from ideas and harmony featured during the Enlightenment. The Romantic era grew alongside the Enlightenment, but concentrated on human diversity and looking at life in a new way. It was the combination of modern Science and Classicism that gave birth to Romanticism and introduced a new outlook on life that embraced emotion before rationality. Romanticism was a reactionary period of history when its seeds became planted in poetry, artwork and literature. The Romantics turned to the poet before the scientist to harbor their convictions (they found that the orderly, mechanistic universe that the Science thrived under was too narrow-minded, systematic and downright heartless in terms of feeling or emotional thought) and it was men such as Johann Wolfgang von Goethe in Germany who wrote "The Sorrows of Young Werther" which epitomized what Romanticism stood for. His character expressed feelings from the heart and gave way to a new trend of expressing emotions through individuality as opposed to collectivism. In England, there was a resurgence into Shakespearean drama since many Romantics believed that Shakespeare had not been fully appreciated during the 18th century. His style of drama and expression had been downplayed and ignored by the Enlightenment's narrow classical view of drama. Friedrich von Schlegel and Samuel Taylorleridge (from Germany and England respectively) were two critics of literature who believed that because of the Enlightenment's suppression of individual emotion as being free and imaginative, Shakespeare who have never written his material in the 19th century as opposed to the 18th century. The perception that the Enlightenment was destroying the natural human soul and substituting it with the mechanical, artificial heart was becoming prevalent across Europe. The Lyrical Ballads, published in 1798, was a series of poems that examined the beauty of nature and explored the actions of people in natural settings. Written by William Woodsworth, this form of

Music - Bonos Path Towards Spiritual Enlightenment Essay -- Explorato

Bono's Path Towards Spiritual Enlightenment While most celebrities keep their religious beliefs private, the music of the Irish rock group U2, with lyrics written by lead singer Bono, contains many religious references and ideas. A closer analysis of the song lyrics shows an evolution of the religious ideas contained within. The changing and development of these ideas corresponds to many psychological and sociological theories of faith evolution, including those of Alfred Adler and James Fowler. Adlerian theory posits that "Our ideas about God are important indicators of how we view the world. According to Adler these ideas have changed over time, as our vision of the world—and our place in it—has changed" (Nielson). There are two kinds of changes that may occur: those that advance the faith, and those that incite doubt or stagnation, as reported by Paul Fritz. Fritz, a minister, incorporated the ideas of sociologist Jean Merton into his theory of faith evolution. Fowler, in Stages of Faith: The Psychology of Hum an Development and the Quest for Meaning, states that faith evolves as individuals move through life, changing at each stage the way they make sense of existence. Commenting on Fowler's theory, John Testerman writes, "The stages of faith can be thought of as the different lenses through which we view the world as we journey through life." A careful study of Bono's lyrics can show what kind of "spiritual glasses" he wears at that stage of his life, and how his outlook on the world shapes the portrayal of his beliefs. While the evolution of faith and spiritual beliefs may be divided into stages, a person may be in between stages at any time, exhibiting the characteristics of more than one stage. In Fritz's model, a b... ... Cambridge Bible. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997. Fowler, James W. Stages of Faith: the Psychology of Human Development and the Quest for Meaning. Harper: San Francisco, 1995. Fritz, Paul. Home page. 10 Mar, 2002. "8 Stages of Faith." . Nielsen, Michael. Home page. 3 Nov. 2003. Psychology of Religion Pages. . "The Stages of Faith." The Journal of Religion and Society. Home page. 1 Nov. 2002. . 2 Nov. 2002. Testerman, John. Home page. Mar. 1995. The Stages of Faith. . U2. Achtung, Baby. Island, 1991. U2. All That You Can't Leave Behind. Island, 2000. U2. The Joshua Tree. Island, 1987. U2. October. Island, 1982. U2. POP. Island, 1997. U2. War. Island, 1980.

The phenomenon of city as a symbol of a modern way of life

The phenomenon of city as a symbol of a modern way of life is as complex as the structure of modern societies. In fact, city can be seen as a miniature version of a smaller society within a larger one, as most people living in cities tend to strongly identify themselves with them. And if we take into account the fact that in the Western world the percentage of city dwellers in contrast to people living in the countryside is continuing to grow due to the process of urbanisation (Hayward, 2004, pp.17-18), the phenomenon of city as a of dominant life style of humans deserves the most attentive examination.In particular, the urgent topic in the study of the ways in which city functions is the problem of its inner structure and dynamics in light of the often voiced concerns that the contemporary city is becoming more fractured and polarised than ever. The disturbing degree of this polarisation can be appreciated with the help of the so-called ‘dual city theory’, which, among other things, aims to show how the changes in economy, such as the removal of most of manufacturing jobs from the urban areas coupled with the state`s minimal involvement into the social sphere, lead to significant changes in the social structure of modern cities â€Å"in which the richer get richer, the poorer more poor and the middle classes are shrinking† (Holt-Jensen, 2002, p.3).Still, even without this socio-economic aspect of the city life, there is a plenty of reasons why the contemporary city may become fractured. One of them is the presence of ethnic sub-groups in many cities that occupy distinct areas and in this way in essence form isolated cultural islands. This peculiarity of many modern cities is reinforced by the more traditional but very important division between their functional parts, such as historical districts, usually attractive for tourists, downtown, industrial areas, and bedroom communities. This internal structure also inevitably shapes the economic and social structure of cities, as being historically perpetuated this type of division forms corresponding social patterns, represented by correspondence of a certain city district to a certain social class of people inhabiting it. As a sad example of such a firm correspondence may serve districts with the increased criminal activity, which cannot be exterminated by any legal enforcements.As the result of the working of the mentioned factors, it is indeed possible to say that the contemporary city in many respects resembles a fractured and polarized environment, in which it is possible for people to feel themselves lonely even in the crowd (Clarke, 2003, pp.192-195).By the way, speaking about specific problems stemming from the high density of population in most modern cities, such as ubiquitous traffic jams or the issue of environmental pollution, it is worth to mention that it is perhaps one of the unifying factors for all the city communities as such challenges require a cohere nt and unanimous action. Also, in relation to the positive roles that cities play in the modern world, it should be said that in their frames a lot of opportunities exist for the cultural exchange and development, so that cities can be seen as miniature melting pots of languages and cultures.As we can see, the view that the contemporary city is becoming more fractured and polarised is indeed not devoid of the truth. However, it seems safe to claim that this is happening not so much due to the peculiarities of the life in cities as such, but rather due to the natural processes of social interaction. Thus, city is an environment in which all the forms of social change are just manifested and amplified in a very clear form. SourcesClarke, D., B. (2003). Consumer Society and the Postmodern City. RoutledgeHayward, K. (2004). City Limits: Crime, Consumer Culture and the Urban Experience.

“the Social Responsibility of Business Is to Increase Profit”

Businesses have many responsibilities, the primary role being, to make profit and then in turn grow and expand as a business in the hope that they increase profits. After all, not many people want to be in the business of losing money, it is simply the function of a business †¦ to make money. However, in saying that, I would disagree in saying that this is entirely a â€Å"social† responsibility. Businesses have a responsibility to their stakeholders and/or their shareholders to increase profits, but socially they are required to do so much more. In terms of â€Å"social† responsibility, in this current day and age, businesses have a responsibility to society. I believe consumers are generally not concerned about the profit businesses makes, they are more concerned about the quality, service and value they receive from dealing with a business, and more importantly whether the success of the business was gained by them following socially and ethically responsible business practices. In the past, businesses would forfeit their social responsibility at the cost of increasing profit. A good example of this is multinational conglomerate, Proctor & Gamble, identified by PETA as a corporation that actively participates in animal testing1 to ensure that their products are safe for people to use. Yes, they are fulfilling their â€Å"social† responsibility in ensuring that their products do not harm their consumers, but now society and organisations are pointing the finger and actively boycotting companies such as Proctor & Gamble, for ignoring their social responsibility. Businesses have had to turn things around to adapt to the views of changing society. Being socially responsible is now a costly exercise. Due to their previous poor business ethics, they have to date invested almost $250 million in alternative testing methods in an effort to abolish all forms of animal testing. 2 Not only now is it socially unacceptable to practice â€Å"bad† business ethics, but it is socially unacceptable for businesses that make too much money to ignore the needs of the needy. Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft together with the efforts of his wife Melinda have established the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The foundation donates millions of dollars every year, aiding many projects with their slogan being â€Å"all lives have equal value†. It is now the duty of businesses and many large corporations to be socially responsible and contribute to society on a larger scale. It is simply incorrect to say that increasing profit is the sole responsibility of a business. It is the social responsibility of a business to be socially responsible, in all facets. Portraying a ‘socially responsible’ image is detrimental to increasing profits, this has not always been the case, many companies that were once selfless entities who’s only mission was to profiteer at any cost have realised that with the changes in society, they have had to change the way they conduct their business. Sadly, many businesses and corporations participate in â€Å"socially responsible† activities for the purpose of increasing profit, businesses are not changing their packaging to pink to ‘secretly’ support breast cancer, they do so, so that you and I know about it. These so called acts of social responsibility are a form of advertising and they are done to show consumers just how â€Å"good† they can be. It is not the social responsibility of businesses to increase profit, but it is the social responsibility of companies to be socially responsible to increase profit.

Parenting Skills Essay

Review Questions 1. What are the differences between being a biological parent, an adoptive parent, and a foster parent? A biological parent are your real blood parents, an adoptive parent is your parent till you’re 18, and a foster home basically is somewhere to stay and home family till you get adopted not really a permanent situation. 2. What financial needs are parents obligated to provide and which are optional? Up to the age of 18 (unless they move out before) Then clothes, school, food, place to live ,utility bills etc, some kids have activities which would be provided by giving pocket money, educational toys and books, toiletries. Christmas presents are optional but cover fun toys etc after 18 I would hope she will have a job and can contribute towards bills etc. 3. What other needs might a child have that a parent is expected to provide? Toys for them to play with, love, support, food and a safe place to grow up in. 4. What are the qualities of a nurturing parent? A nurturing parent w ould never give up on their child and go throw everything with them. Would do anything for them even in the worst situation. Critical Thinking Questions 1. What qualities make a person a good parent? A bad parent? A good parent would be there for their child and do whats best for them. A bad parent wouldn’t show any love or care. 2. Which parental responsibilities do you think would be the most challenging? Why? I think letting go over your child and letting them go off on their own, because you will think they’re not safe or okay without you. 3. Which parental responsibilities do you think would be the most interesting to you? Why? I guess getting them their first pet. I love animals and when I do have kids one day I would love to teach them how to take care of the pet. 4. What are some things that people can do to prepare for parenthood? Nothing, because you wont know what to expect until it happens.

UV Light Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

UV Light - Research Paper Example Disadvantage of excessive sunlight consumption is that it can cause sunburn and other skin related diseases. Ultraviolet light has many uses for instance, in astronomy, to cause resistance against infections and in light bulbs using fluorescence. The word ultraviolet stands for beyond violet. In the spectrum of light which is visible, the wavelength of light tends to decrease whereas the energy that is present in the electromagnetic waves keeps on increasing. The range starts from red and changing from orange, yellow, green, blue and all the way to violet. Therefore, UV light is shorter in wavelength and possesses more energy than violet radiation waves. Usually UV light is measure in nanometers. The range defined for ultraviolet range is between 10nm to 400nm. The characterization of ultraviolet light can from UV-A, UV-B or UV-C that depends on how the wavelength is decreasing. Another way to classify ultraviolet when it comes to astronomy is by characterizing through near, middle, far and extreme. Ultraviolent light has many benefits for example the UV light present in the sunlight can produce vitamin D which is essential for human growth and prevents from many harmful diseases like cancer, heart diseases, rickets etc.. The UV light present in the sun activates a chemical in our body that eventually formulates the vitamin. It is observed that an excessive absorption of sunlight can cause skin diseases and sunburn. "Ultraviolet light has been used for centuries to treat a myriad of health and skin problems in the form of natural sunlight or more recently by artificial UV generated sources." (Baranoski, 154) Another purpose of ultraviolet waves is that it is used in the restoration of artwork.Ultraviolet waves help in restoration of art therefore while buying, framing, selling or praising an artwork knowledge of its prior restoration is necessary therefore while restoring

STeps Which Came First Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

STeps Which Came First - Essay Example After the fasting he was arrested to undergo 3 trials. He was crucified and died. People realized that he is the Son of God. He rose from the dead after three days. Jesus celebrated the Passover with His disciples and had their Last Supper. He spent 40 days and 40 nights praying and fasting at Gethsemane where he was arrested afterwards. He went through 3 trials, first with Caiaphas, who sentenced Jesus to death. The second trial is with Pontius Pilate; he was convinced that Jesus is a good man. He sent him to Herod for he is a Galilean, and he spent the third trial there. He is also convinced that Jesus has done nothing wrong, so he sent him back to Pilate where the crowd demanded for Jesus’ crucifixion and the release of Barabbas. He told the crowd that his hands are clean and sent him to the cross. Jesus carries a cross towards Calvary, and he stumbles 3 times. In his second stumble, Simon of Cyrene helped Jesus to carry the cross then after he passed the cross to Jesus. Upon reaching Calvary, Jesus was nailed to the cross. There were three hours of darkness even though it was noon. Jesus spoke and committed his spirit to the Lord, and then he died. The veil in the holiest place in the temple is ripped in half from top to bottom surprising the priests and the chief priest. After the crucifixion, a soldier used his sword to pierce Jesus’ side to be sure of his

Issues in global business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Issues in global business - Essay Example In addition, if the firm has specialized products or services, which cannot be found or found in minor varieties in a foreign market, then also firms will adopt internationalization and become an MNC. Instead of competing in a saturated local environment, if the firm becomes MNC, it will have access to new markets and new customers. In foreign countries, people will always view foreign products with big expectations, particularly if it is a well known brand. If the MNCs are able to provide superior quality product than the local companies, it can attract many customers and earn good profits. However, the disadvantage is, in most cases, the MNCs have to launch a new and localized marketing campaign, to build a brand from scratch. As the local companies would have been operating for a long time, they will be in the minds of the people, but MNCs has to carry out campaigns and this could take time. There are a number of entry paths available to the MNCs to enter foreign countries. However, the common paths are Direct Investment, Joint Ventures, Franchising, Mergers, etc. Although, Direct Investment will be the favourable mode of entry for the foreign firms, if there are any government regulations against it, then they will go for joint ventures and franchising. Franchising has become one of the common entry paths because franchises have local knowledge and expertise that can be leveraged to a competitive advantage. (Neelankavil and Rai

Article Review II Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Review II - Article Example The second topic is the negative impacts that result from implementation and expansion of Medicaid. The third issues covered in the article high are requirements that are needed for individuals to qualify for the insurance. People with a low income can access federal tax credits thereby subsidizing private health insurance. However, those living below the poverty line will not benefit from the health insurance, Medicaid or other tax credits. The instances of unfairness resulting from the policy have been experienced in a number of states. For instance, The Kansas Medicaid program offers no coverage for adults without children (Robert). The intended audiences for this article are the general public, administration, public and private health care providers as well as all stakeholders in health care. The author has involved the audience in a though provoking way. There could be bias in the article as the author is a Republican and this article may be interpreted as a criticism of the Democrat administration. Although the public might blame President Obama for the current woes in health care, the Republicans are the ones responsible for fighting against the expansion of Medicaid (Health Policy Briefs). In the health care law approved in 2010, Congressional Democrats were determined to expand Medicaid in all states. The administration has been urging people who are in need of health insurance to register on the government website to receive information of the available insurance options. The student should be evaluate the current care policies and establish whether they are effective and fair to all members of society (Virginia Gray, David and Jennifer 135). This article is important since it has the relevant information concerning the roles of various government agencies in health care. It provides explanation on the negative impacts of states’ refusal to develop Medicaid. The article spells out the states that are likely to be marginalized by this policy.

Social Science(What is patriarchy How might it operate within the Essay

Social Science(What is patriarchy How might it operate within the contemporary family - Essay Example Interestingly, power has as many different meanings as there are theoretical perspectives. Ferguson (2006) presented two main theorists in the power debate, namely Max Weber and Michel Foucault. Each of the two is in direct opposition to the other. Weber believed that ‘power is hierarchical, that there are individuals in control and others who take instructions from those in their ‘line of command’ (Fergusson and Hughes, 2006, pp.26). Obedience is not automatic, only where authority is perceived as legitimate authority would one be willing to comply with the commands. Weber termed his concept of power as bureaucratic power where there is a central source of authority which others would comply to providing that the one in authority functions without prejudice. Notably no special knowledge or skill is required all that is needed is the ‘institutional position’ (pp.31). Allen (2004) notes that the ‘legitimate basis of patriarchal authority is notably different to Weber’s bureaucratic authority. Weber, himself, presented two distinct differences in patriarchal domination and bureaucratic domination. Firstly, Weber notes that ‘where bureaucratic domination is based on an official’s commitment to a sense of impersonal duty, the former relies upon the personal authority of the male head of the household.’ The male head of the family possesses authority based on ‘natural and enduring’ personal relations (pp.31). Thus, the second difference is that ‘patriarchal authority is rooted in traditi on passed down from one generation to the next and bolstered by filial bonds. The obedience of the wife and children to the male head is said to derive from dutiful conduct rather than from a set of rules established on an abstract, rational basis’ (pp.31). Foucault, on the other hand, viewed power as ‘never in any one person’s hands.’ Power is seen not as ‘any obvious willed manner, but something within our psyche which

An Analysis on Alfred Hitchcock and His Film Psycho Essay Example for Free

An Analysis on Alfred Hitchcock and His Film Psycho Essay In the â€Å"shower scene† in Alfred Hitchcock’s movie, the amount of blood that flowed can be considered in contemporary times as nothing short of artistry or a sense of tastefulness in the viewer’s understanding. However, during the 1960’s, the â€Å"shower scene† is considered unreasonable or gratuitous, giving the scene the impression that it depicts too much unsolicited violence. For those who look upon the â€Å"shower scene† as one of Hitchcock’s attempt of revolutionizing films, the scene can be treated as one that reflects the perception of the time in which the film was conceived. Apparently, the â€Å"shower scene† amongst the number of hair-raising scenes in the film further reflects the 1960s social upheaval that grew in the west, including the United States. Another violent scene in the movie is the one that showed Detective Milton Arbogast being slashed to a bloody death after he was pushed off from the height of the stairs. The murder of the private detective in the movie Psycho, as well as the â€Å"shower scene†, can be taken to mean as two of the social upheavals that burst in the 1960s American society, revolutionizing the way in which movie scenes are crafted especially the way in which they portray violence, sexuality, and language. Hitchcock generally worked and directed movies that fall under the thriller genre by imprinting upon formulaic movies his famed idiosyncratic touches. The manner in which Hitchcock worked as a crucial part of the filmmaking process largely contributed in â€Å"propelling him to the status of an auteur†. Hitchcock even â€Å"ordered and manipulated the shade of blonde he was looking for in Grace Kellys hair† in one of the films (Martin Wikstrom, 2001, p. 20). What enabled Hitchcock to â€Å"cut in the camera† is his attitude of working out the details of the film in advance, which eventually corresponds to the unswervingly stumpy ratio of film really utilized in the finishing cut to the film shot during the entire shoot. Having worked out everything in advance, he worked quickly and economically. A minimal set of editing was the result of his working attitude, hence the term â€Å"cutting in the camera. † The fact that Hitchcock planned every detail in advance oftentimes led to bore him during the actual shooting of the film. To fend off languor in the course of the actual filming progression, he would customarily commence labor on the storyboards for his coming film project (Martin Wikstrom, 2001, p. 21). â€Å"When all the interesting film-makers—those who were referred to as auteurs by the Cahiers du Cinema in 1955, before the term was distorted—concealed themselves behind various characters in their movies. Alfred Hitchcock achieved a real tour de force† that established his status further as an auteur (Ray, 2001, p. 38). Hitchcock’s most popular films include Vertigo, Psycho, Rear Window, and The Birds which reflected his story telling methods and skills which were renowned for their witty plots, intelligent dialogues and the fusion of mystery and murder. With this respect, Hitchcock’s name became commonly attributed to the thriller genre as he created revolutions in that aspect of filmmaking. Part of the reason to this, apart from the fact that it was the genre he centrally focused on, is his skill which he exhibits during the course of the film which can be observed in his treatment of the subject in line with the shots he utilizes and on how he is able to fuse them altogether (Truffaut Scott, 2003, p. 346). One illustration to this is shown in one of his famed screen moments. The terrifying shower scene in the film Psycho featured 70 unique shots in just a matter of 1 minute. The numbers of shots were combined altogether in such a manner that one will find a difficult time seeking the distinction between the montage and the mise-en-scene (Nickens, 1995, p. 110). A considerable number of movies made by Hitchcock contained fleeting cameo appearances by the director himself such as a Hitchcock being seen for a brief period boarding a bus, standing in an apartment across the length of a courtyard, appearing in photographs in the scenes, or by simply crossing in front of an edifice. This seemingly playful act eventually became labeled as one of the Hitchcock signatures in films. Further, Hitchcock himself would carry a musical instrument in one of the scenes in the film as a recurring theme (Martin Wikstrom, 2001, p. 23). The fact that these varied elements are included in the movies of Hitchcock signifies the fact that Hitchcock had a very huge role in the filmmaking process and that this monumental role extends his personality right into the theme of the movie. Since film producers have a significant trust on Hitchcock, he was able to freely include these elements either in a subtle or in an obvious manner. The constant inclusion of these personal elements in the many movies of Hitchcock eventually molded an image uniquely his own. Hence, it became inevitable that the movies highlighting these elements were immediately attributed to Hitchcock thereby creating the director-image of Hitchcock as an auteur (Sarris, 2002, p. 29). Considering all of the characteristics of Hitchcock, his crucial role in the movies he created, the inclusion of the elements in the movies which reflect his personality and lifestyle as well as the role of the scholars in carefully assessing his impact of his personal touches in the movies, it can be said that Hitchcock indeed is an auteur in the strictest sense of the word. Although arguments can be raised against the role of the director as an auteur in the filming of the movies, it remains a fact that Hitchcock had an immense weight of participation prior to, during , and even after the filmmaking process. Part of the arguments against it is the claim that several other factors must also be considered and the merit should not solely belong to the director. As with the case of the seemingly lesser roles in the movies, the collective efforts of all the participants excluding the participation of the director when combined altogether essentially posits a substantial bearing in the creation of the film. In conclusion, the factors which are attributed to the delegation of the status of an auteur to Hitchcock should not be looked upon as a means to ignore the relative importance of the role of the rest of the crew involved in film production. Rather, the role of Hitchcock as an auteur should be noted as a form of a proper authority in guiding the direction of the film. On the other hand, the distinction between an auteur and the other roles in the film production should be taken as an informal relationship which defines the structure of the outcome of the movie. This is the point where Hitchcock himself leads the way not only as a director but also as the auteur. Not surprisingly, Alfred Hitchcock techniques are indeed innovative during his life where a considerable number of his films manifested his ingenuity in the film industry. Especially in his film Psycho, Hitchcock’s style in directing the film is manifested through his fitting use of musical scores and backgrounds in the proper timing and scene. His approach in Psycho manifest the fact that Hitchcock is only one of the few who was able to reshape the film industry and contribute significantly to its quality and style. References Martin, G. , Wikstrom, P. (2001). Alfred Hitchcock and the Golden Days of Radio. In The Alfred Hitchcock Presents Companion (1st ed. , pp. 20-23): O T R Pub. Nickens, C. (1995).Psycho: Behind the Scenes of the Classic Thriller (1st ed. ): Harmony. Ray, R. B. (2001). The Bordwell Regime and the Stakes of Knowledge. In How a Film Theory Got Lost and Other Mysteries in Cultural Studies (pp. 38-39). Indiana: Indiana University Press. Sarris, A. (2002). The Auteur Theory Revisited. In V. W. Wexman (Ed. ), Film and Authorship (pp. 27-29). New Jersey: Rutgers University Press. Truffaut, F. , Scott, H. Hitchcocks Final Years. In 2003 (Ed. ), The Definitive Study of Alfred Hitchcock (Revised ed. , pp. 346). New York: Gallimard.