Participants in the study Essay

Of the 40 participants in the study, 26 delivered the maximum shocks while 14 stopped before reaching the highest levels. It is important to note that many of the subjects became extremely agitated, distraught and angry at the experimenter. Yet they continued to follow orders all the way to the end. So 65% of the participants in Milgram’s study delivered the maximum shocks. There were also questions asked regarding the ethics of the study, if we compare it to the British Psychology Society’s summary of ethics guidelines (1990) for the conduct of psychological experiments. General Distress – Distress to participants must be avoided but does not seem to be the case in this research with participants concerned they are harming the learner. Informed Consent – this must be gained with an explanation of the research where ever possible. In this study to the give the participant a full explanation would not have had the results that they got in the first place. They would have caused questions regarding the validity of the research. This then leads us to:- Deception – They were not fully aware of what was going on or the aims and objectives of the research so therefore they were deceived. Debriefing – Milgram fully debriefed the participants and did this extensively and out of all of the participants that 84% were glad to have participated, while only 1% regretted their involvement. The right to withdraw – the participant does have this right but this was not really the case here as here when a participant wanted to stop the experiment, the experimenter probed the subject to continue, pressure was added to continue the study so as not to affect the data. Protection of Participants – now this is from both physical and psychological harm which was not the case in either component. This study would not be able to be completed today due to the ethical issues affecting this but as you saw in the results that it did prove that people would obey even after they believe it’s wrong. Now if we look at Zimbardo’s (1971) in his study â€Å"The Stanford Prison Experiment† he was looking to see people conforming to social roles according to what people believe about a given situation. So for example this was how the ‘prisoners’ would obey the ‘guards’ orders if they believed that they were in jail. The reason that this appealed to Zimbardo was he was a former class mate of Milgram and was interested in expanding on his research. Zimbardo set the experiment by first placing an advert in the paper asking for male students to participant in a prison life experiment. The students who applied there were 24 in total they were selected from larger group that had applied for the study because they had no psychological issues, medical condition and no criminal backgrounds. They were all agreed to be in for one to two weeks for the experiment. The experiment was due to last two weeks but this had to be stopped early due to what was happening to the participants. The guards became abusive and prisoners began to show signs of extreme anxiety and stress. Neither the prisoners nor the guards were advised on how to interact with the each other. The guards began to behave like real life guards but they were also aggressive towards the prisoners, and the prisoners became passive and depressed. Five of the prisoners began to experience such severe negative emotions, that they had to be released from the study early. According to Zimbardo and his colleagues, experiment shows the powerful role that a situation can play in human behaviour. Because the guards were placed in a position of power, they began to behave in ways they would not normally in their everyday lives or in other situations. The prisoners, placed in a situation where they had no real control, became passive and depressed. The experiment could like Milgram’s could not be repeated by researchers today because it fails to meet the standards established by numerous ethical codes which I am going to look at now, by comparing the experiment to the British Psychology Society’s summary of ethics guidelines (1990) for the conduct of psychological experiments. General Distress – this was caused to both the prisoners and the guards, as the prisoners were humiliated and the guards became more and more aggressive which was caused by them wanting to do what they were supposed to do. Informed Consent – This was again something that they were unable to do as this may have had an effect on the results of the experiment, the participants were aware of certain things like that they were part of a prison experiment but not the aims and objectives of the experiment. Deception – due to the fact they the participants were not fully aware of what was going on and what was expected or wanted means there is a certain level of deception in the experiment. Debriefing – Zimbardo did debrief all of the participants but there has been suggestions that this was not enough or a through as Milgram’s debriefing process. Right To Withdraw – Like during the Milgram experiment the participants did have the right to withdraw but when they asked or showed that they wanted to leave they were persuaded to stay. Eventually a few of the participants had to be allowed to leave early as they were beginning to show extreme stress. Protection of Participants – this was the biggest area that was had ethics question raised, the participants were under a lot of stress, they began to believe the things that were being said to them and how they were being spoken to, they began to lose their identity which again caused stress, many of the participants became emotional under this pressure and some even became aggressive. The guards were inflicting this on them but this was situational. The experiment came to an end early when another psychologist realised on how far this had gone. Even Zimbardo himself said that he began to believe that he was the prison warden not the lead psychologist. Despite the criticism that this study received it is still important in psychology and how a situation can influence behaviour. The study more recently was brought to light when there were questions being asked of soldier’s treatment of prisoners in Abu Ghraib, and many people and even Zimbardo himself suggested that this may have been the real world example of what he was trying to achieve through research. To conclude there are many things that influence behaviour in people, wither that be their own beliefs and opinions or other people being around them at the time, they way in which people work is very complex and the study although brilliant at the times with the break through that they made into the social side of psychology have raised questions over the ethical issues that are also something to be looked at. Today the studies would not have been able to take place and in some ways this is a shame as we would not may be have had the knowledge that we have now because of them. Yet if they had thought of other ways around to come up with the same type of results then this would have been better for all of the subjects concerned. I think the research that was done was invaluable and that psychologists will always believe this just the questions over the methods leave a small black cloud over something rather brilliant. References Books Cardwell, Clark, Meldrum, Wadeley. – Psychology A2 for AQA (Fourth Edition) – HarperColins. Gross, Richard – Psychology, the Science of Mind and Behaviour -Hodder and Stoughton Gross, Richard. , McIlveen, Rob. , Coolican, Hugh. , Clamp, Alan & Russell, Julia. – Psychology – a new introduction for A2 – Hodder and Stoughton. Websites  http://wilderdom.com

Anglican Church and the Monarchy

Religion was an ongoing cause of issues in history, and the Church of England was no exception. Issues with the monarchy ruling the church in Britain was the reason for many debates, wars, civil issues and rights to the throne. Initially the Church was under Papal rule, making the Pope have control over something the Throne did not. Hunger for power in the sixteenth century was not limited to land control and civil control; it spread right up to the Church of England causing many problems for the monarchy and Papal authority.The argument during this time was whether or not the monarch had the right to rule church and state, or if the church was meant to be run by Papal authority. The Church of England has a deep history going back to the Roman Empire. An invasion in Britain in the fifth century by pagan Angles, Saxons and Jutes caused the Church to lose its organization. Missionary work in the 6th Century by Pope Gregory the Great, led by St Augustine of Canterbury led to the eventua l combination of three forms of Christianity.The new Church of England amalgamated the Roman tradition of St Augustine, the old Romano-British church and the Celtic traditions from Scotland. As a result of this new formation the influence of the Church was wider spread and more organized. Traditions assimilated with the Western Christians such as liturgy, theology and church architecture. All of this also meant that until the sixteenth century the Church of England was under Papal rule and was considered a branch of the Roman Catholic Church.The Protestant Reformation began in 1517 when Martin Luther published his Ninety Five Theses. They opposed the Catholic Churches doctrines and stated that the teachings and sales of indulgences and the abuses of them showed corruption in the religion. This was the jumping off point for many people questioning the Catholic Church. In the sixteenth century the English monarchy began to question the fact that their church was still following the au thority of the Pope. A main factor in this questioning came from King Henry VIII.Henry wanted his marriage to Catherine annulled, and his marriage would normally be illegal under church law because Catherine was the widow of his brother, but it had been allowed by special consideration from the Pope. Henry claimed that the Papal consideration contradicted church law and therefore the marriage was not legal. The pope upheld his choice and refused to annul the marriage. The underlying cause was the fact that many believed that the authority of the church should belong to the English monarchy not the Pope.Henry broke away from the Roman Catholic Church and declared himself the head of the Church of England (1534), removing the church from the authority of the Pope. During this time Henry also forced the Dissolution of the Monasteries, this was viewed as suppressing the catholic faith. He also started statutes, such as, Statute in Restraint of Appeals, 1533, various Acts of Succession 1 533-36, and the first Act of Supremacy in 1536. These acts all dealt with the relationship between the King and the Pope and how the Church of England should be structured.Henry’s belief in the independence of the Church was the dominant influence in making religious policy. Those who still worshipped Catholic rites during Henry’s rule were quietly moved into secrecy. Henry’s son Edward VI further reformed the church by saying that the Protestant Reformation was more like what the Bible’s teachings meant than that of the Pope. Edward was very young when he was in power so most decisions were ultimately decided by a regency council who were mostly Protestant, so of course the decision was made to keep the church under monarch rule.Edward was the first King who had been raised Protestant even though he was only nine when he was crowned his council did allow him to make decisions. By the age of eleven he had already written a treatise on the Pope as Antichri st and made educated notes on theological controversies. Edward wanted to keep the Church of England Protestant rather than Catholic so instead of allowing his half sister Mary to take the throne upon his death he left the crown to Lady Jane Grey. She was only on the throne for nine days before being imprisoned after the council changed sides declaring Mary Queen.During the reign of Mary Tudor (Henry’s daughter) the Church returned to the Pope’s authority. Throughout her father’s and her half brother’s reign Mary had remained loyal to the Roman Catholic faith, she had even asked for a private chapel to worship in since everyone else in the family worshiped under the Church of England. Mary’s change in the Church did not last long when in 1558 Elizabeth I became Queen, and made the Church of England essentially what it is to this day. She removed it from the Pope’s authority, but she kept the catholic creeds, the architecture and aspects of t he catholic liturgy.While keeping aspects of the Catholic Church she also incorporated Protestant insights of theology and the general shape of its liturgical practices. In the seventeenth century the Church of England had another crisis; tensions over theological and liturgical issues were part of the reasons that led to the English Civil War. From 1649-1660 the Church of England’s bishops were abolished and the Book of Common Prayer was banned. During this time the church was under Papal rule but when the monarchy was restored in 1660 these decisions were over turned and once again the Church was returned to monarch authority.In 1689 the Toleration Act was passed and Protestantism was legally accepted as long as they followed the doctrine of the Trinity. After this was passed the Church of England became the mother church of the Anglican Communion. One of the main arguments throughout the formation of the Church of England was whether or not the monarchy had the right to de cide how the church should be run, or if the church is meant to be run by the Pope. Most believed that since the Pope was not politically affiliated with anyone, it made him impartial and made his rule of the church more pure.He was the representative of God therefore he could settle doctrinal disputes and help spread Christianity without influence from political leaders. Pope Paul III formed the Council of Trent (1545-49) which made the Papacy have power over rulers who wanted to reconcile with Protestants and who were opposed to Papal claims. The monarchy was too powerful and eventually the Papal authority had to bring their focus to spiritual issues as opposed to trying to get secular power (It was not until 1929 that the Lateran Treaty was passed that guaranteed papal independence from secular rule).When the English monarchy declared that the Pope was corrupt and Antichrist they pulled the Church of England out from under papal rule. The throne holds complete political authority in its own state, but the argument of whether this authority crosses over to religion as well was ongoing for many years. Henry VIII makes it easier for himself by having Parliament pass an act appointing him and his successors the head of the Church of England so that they could rule the church whatever way they please. This act caused more problems than solved because now every time the throne was changed the church was changed.The political side of the monarch caused more problems as well. By having political affiliations the monarchs chose rules of the church to follow that suited their political alliances. Affiliations with Scotland made them include Scottish traditions into the Church of England, but bad blood between the British and the Irish made them turn the church away from Catholicism even more. There are arguments that the fact that the Irish worshiped under Papal rule it made the tensions between Britain and Ireland worse.The relationship between France and England wa s even worse; Henry VIII went to war with France three times during his reign. The national religion of France was Catholicism and during this time though there was a large Protestant following, they were greatly persecuted. This was a major contributing factor to these wars; with France under Papal rule and the Protestants being persecuted the British monarchy was livid, giving them plenty of cause to declare war. During this time Henry declared France to be Britain’s number one enemy. When Elizabeth was in power the hostility towards Catholics was increased.While she was not as intense as Henry she did ban mass and other Catholic practices, and also made her Parliament swear an oath of supremacy threatening the charge of treason to anyone who refused. This threat made many Catholics run from England to avoid persecution. Many of these people were writers and went against Protestantism and implied that the Papal authority was superior, but also tried to not anger their Queen in their writings. This showed how the people were expressing their unhappiness in the choices made for them in religious aspects, but they still respected and honored their monarch.Elizabeth’s main fear was that the brash Catholics would attempt to have her taken out of power. Elizabeth’s fear was so profound that in 1571 she passed The Treason Act which made it high treason to say that Elizabeth was not the true monarch. It also made it illegal to say that she was heretic, tyrant, infidel or usurper. This Act made catholic’s even angrier and made them criticize Elizabeth even more. These criticisms towards Elizabeth made her worries of being de-throned more relevant because now Catholic followers were trying to defend Mary Stuart’s right to the English throne.They claimed that Elizabeth caused tensions in foreign affairs because of her focus on religion. At the same time all of these writings that criticize Elizabeth’s choices for religion, they still spoke kindly of her as a person and a Queen in other aspects. Most respected her as a Queen but condemned her choices towards the Church of England. During this time many Catholic writers from France also condemned Elizabeth’s choices showing that the tensions between Britain and France were still very much active in her reign as in Henry’s.The monarchies strive for complete power in the sixteenth century did them more harm than good. Instead of gaining the trust and fellowship of their people, they caused war, tensions, and general unrest among most of their people. With debates between the Papal authorities, who at the time the people viewed as a direct line to God, and the monarch caused distrust for the people against their leaders. With no right to their own choices in religion people that went against the crown were exiled, imprisoned, or worse, executed for their thoughts and beliefs.With most of Britain being raised Catholic during this time a sudden swi tch by Henry VIII because of his unhappiness seemed ungodly. The choice to remove the church from the Papal authority was viewed as blasphemous, and it made the people view their King in a different light. Most of Britain lost faith in their Crown during these Reformations because of unorganized systems, and a constant change between monarch authority and Papal rule. Tensions between Britain and neighboring Countries did not help the monarch’s relationship with their people either, as much of the cause of these tensions was from the monarch persecuting Catholics.The goal of total power over the people, land and neighboring Countries by the monarch was not a success because there was no consistency in the way they chose to run their Parliament, church and state. The monarch may have believed that they had the right to run their church, but realistically the political affiliations and personal wants caused more destruction than if they had allowed a more pure source to lead and make decisions for the church. Ultimately relationships in Western Europe could have drastically changed if the Church of England had remained under Papal authority.

Interpretations of American History Essay

The world is full of rich culture, diversity and experiences unique to each individual. When determining the validity of historic accounts we must factor in that particular historian’s point of view, which should be characterized by ethnicity, idealogy, theoretical or methodological preference. With these factors views of the past often vary from person to person. In this essay I will be discussing the four different stages that shaped the writing of American history over the last 400 years. According to Couvares, the writing of American history has passed through four stages: the providential, the rationalist, the nationalist, and the professional. The providential stage took place during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The puritans were among those who lived during the providential stage. They were strong practitioners of religion, and believed that their ancestry was that of a divine nature. They also believed that their misfortune was God reprimanding them, and t hat their successes were his rewards. During the European enlightenment of the eighteenth century, educated men of the aristocracy began to shun the traditional Puritan mindset. Instead they chose to reform society and advance knowledge through scientific discovery and natural laws of the physical universe instead of the spiritual universe. Among these educated men was Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson had a rationalist mindset. He believed that men could control their own destiny, and natural law shaped society, as opposed to the spiritual view of the puritans. This view did not bode well with evangelical Protestants. In 1790 the federal party led by Washington and Adams openly opposed his views, stating that Jefferson was an â€Å"infidel, an apologist for slavery, and a lover of French revolutionary excess.† (Couvares 76-3) and in fact history had already become politicized. In the nineteenth century historians began to develop a new nationalist mindset. They believed Anglo-Saxon’s to be the superior race, and every other race as inferior. George Bancroft was the most distinguished historian during the nineteenth century. Bancroft believed that Anglo-Saxons were racially destined to lead and spread freedom across the globe. With the establishment of John Hopkins University, college education became more common among middle-class Americans, however only wealthy white men still only had access to that kind of education. This new wave of historians insisted that knowledge of history and physics were of equal importance. The final stage of American history and progression according to Couvares, was the professional stage. Professional scholars rose to prominence from 1910-1945. These historians believed that modernity, industrialization, urbanization, and class conflict had fundamentally changed society. Charles Beard argued that â€Å"the constitution was not the product of wise men intent on balancing liberty and order, but a clique of wealthy merchants and landowners who wanted a central government strong enough to defend their privileges against the unruly masses.† (Couvares 77-2). Beard also thought that many of the major conflicts in society were between economic interest groups. Many critics found flaws in his idealogy, but at the same time it inspired them to find answers to questions that plagued the people. Over the past 400 years, these historians all had different stances on how they thought to improve society. With the mix of cultural backgrounds, and ethnicities no two viewpoints will ever be exactly the same. Couvares summed it up perfectly by stating that historians constantly criticize, correct, and supplement each other’s views, but only by arguing their different viewpoints would they be able to get closer to the truth. The quote still applies in today’s society. Works Cited Couvares, Francis G. â€Å"Interpretations of American History† (76-3) Couvares, Francis G. â€Å"Interpretations of American History† (77-2)

Managment Motivating Style Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Managment Motivating Style - Essay Example This paper describes management motivating style, by focusing the motivating styles practiced by Raul Valdez, Manager Cardinal Health. Raul Valdez was interviewed with the purpose of identifying the approaches he applies in to motivate his employees. In order to set up an environment that will stimulate the employees to motivate themselves, Valdez has recognized the need to understand the employee’s motivational needs. He does this by evaluating every employee’s motivational needs that are consistence with the strategies and goals of the organization. Valdez says that the success of their organization directly depends on the improvement of an individual’s or group’s motivation (Singla 265). Valdez derives his motivation skills from theories by Herzberg and Maslow. Maslow theory suggest that people are motivated by a hierarchy of needs which include safety needs, esteem needs, physiological needs, belonging needs and self-actualization needs (Beach 31). Phy siological needs refer to the standard basic needs such as water, air, food, shelter and sleep. Safety needs entail personal security and safety as well as job security. Belongingness is the need to be part of groups such as family, clubs, religious groups, and work groups (Beach 31). Self esteem needs are grouped into two categories. The first esteem originates from mastery or competence of a task. The second esteem result from recognition and attention that come from other people. Self-actualization need is the â€Å"desire to become everything that one is capable of becoming† (Beach 32). Maslow suggested that individuals are motivated by the needs that are above the minimal needs which are fulfilling (Singla 265). People have fulfilled certain set of needs are not likely to be motivated by environments that fulfils needs at the lower level. Similarly, people will not be motivated by environments that fulfill higher needs before their lower needs are fulfilled (Beach 31). T his is the reason why Valdez has to determine how each employee works and what sparks energy in them. He says that employees have their personal needs and own drive that must be fulfilled for them to get motivated. He achieves this by maintaining adequate communication system with every employee, as well as watching and observing them. When the manager is faced with performance problem resulting from lack of motivation, he discusses the cause of the problem with every employee, and suggests what can motivate them, or the fact that makes them lose focus. For example, employees who are struggling to fulfill their physiological needs of sufficient shelter, food and water are likely to be motivated by the self-actualization (Beach 32). They should also be encouraged to seek inner peace and knowledge. Similarly, employees who have secure family, healthy ego and safe homes influenced by accumulation of wealth, are likely not to be motivated by providing financial rewards. Herzberg’ s motivation theory deals with the activities employees do at work. The motivators are recognition, growth or advancement, interest and achievement in the job (Hiam 35). In order to apply these theories, the leaders and managers must understand the motivational need of an individual or a group, so as to set up an environment in which they will motivate themselves. In addition, an overall approach that will reinforce the desired motivation is also established. This is the reas

Trade Union Decline Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Trade Union Decline - Essay Example due to the implementation of varied types of macroeconomic policies, the rate of productivity and performance of the employees enhanced but it decreased the power of trade unions in these organizations. Due to which, the density of trade unions as well as the power of the members of the unions reduced that offered negative impacts over the productivity and brand value of the organization in the market among others. Other than this, as the rate of private sector organizations are increasing rather than manufacturing sectors, the demand for trade or labour unions is decreasing in varied countries such as United States, United Kingdom, and European Union etc. Due to which, over last 25 years, the demand of trade unions is decreasing at a rapid rate (Visser, 2002, pp. 734-745). Trade union is recognised as an association of a wide range of wage-earned members in order to amplify the working conditions and living standard of the employees of the organization. Other than this, the trade union is considered as the association that works for the welfare of the employees so as to amplify their dominance and position in the organization as compared to management. Moreover, it also tries to fulfil all sorts of desires such as pension, medical allowance, incentives, and bonuses of the workers so as to motivate them towards the assigned tasks that may improve the overall productivity of the organization. However, the demand of trade unions is decreasing as the amount of private sector organizations such as catering, IT organizations etc is increasing at a rapid pace as compared to manufacturing organizations. The trade unions act as a catalyst for the workers operating in different organizations. This is mainly because; it works always in favour of the employees by highlighting their needs and requirements (Snell & Bohlander, 2010, pp. 812-823). Trade union members communicate with all the employees of the organization so as to analyse their requirements such as pensions,

English as Only US Official Language Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

English as Only US Official Language - Essay Example Other like-minded movements followed but none has so far prospered because of the chief argument that an attitude of intolerance towards languages other than English is undemocratic and impinges on individual liberties. The policy has nonetheless gained headway in at least 27 states, where pro-English laws or resolutions have already been enacted. On the federal level, two opposing lobbies have been organized represented by the English Plus movement that pushes for bilingualism, and the English Only group that clamors for monolingualism and for English to be declared as the only official national language. This paper dissects the pros and cons of the issue and evaluates which side makes more sense and a stronger case. Topic Sentence 2 - Spanish is perceived to be the biggest threat to English since Hispanics comprise the largest number of immigrants in the US, such that more and more public utilities and documents are inscribed in Spanish especially in areas where there are large immigrant communities. There are over 300 languages spoken in the US by people whose primary language is not English, but Hispanic immigrants easily qualify as the largest group of non-English speakers because of the proximity of the US to Latin America. According to the US Bureau of Census, in a tone that suggests warning, 100 million people of Hispanic origins will be all over the 50 states of the Union by 2050 (Lynch 11). Because of this large-scale immigration of Hispanics, Spanish has become the unofficial second language of the US (Rodriguez 3). This bothers Americans with native roots that perceive the growth of Spanish-speaking communities as a threat to English. Why is this predominantly used immigrant language in America considered a threat to English Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Colorado) explains that Spanish is making inroads into the predominant position that should be occupied by English among Americans. This is duality that must be avoided at all costs because "it would weaken American identity an d sow the seeds of disunity and conflict." The possible weakening of the American identity and the potential of bilingualism to breed disunity is the battle slogan of such organizations as the English Only movement, Official English and the US English Inc., the latter a political lobby group founded by the late Senator from Alaska Samuel Hayakawa and Dr. John Tanton in 1983. These groups feel that English is losing out to Spanish and call for federal legislation to declare English as the official language, specifying that no other state law or policy shall be enforced that requires the use of any language other than English. English Only advocates point to Hartford in Connecticut to show that English is retreating in favor of Spanish and that the threat is real (Mujica 5). Hispanics comprise 40 percent of the population of this typical American city, where half of its Spanish-speaking people do not speak English at all so Spanish is the

Homework Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Homework - Essay Example aw imposed by John Adams, it was required to deliver the commissions who were selected by him, where one of the members of â€Å"Midnight Judges† was William Murbury. But the commissions were not legally accepted till John Adams was the president of US. When Thomas Jefferson had become president, he rejected to admire the commissions. It had been claimed that the commission was invalid as they had not been delivered by expiration of John Adam’s presidency (Landman, 2002). Therefore, William Murbery who was the proposed addressee of â€Å"Justice of The Peace† by means of commission smeared straightforwardly to the supreme court of US for an injunction of mandamus to induce the Secretary of State, James Madison in order to bring the commission. In the year 1803, the Supreme Court had rendered an undisputed decision that court did not possess the authority to deliver commission. This decision proved that court had lacked jurisdiction and it was the win for Democratic Republicans because the claim for injunction of mandamus had been rejected (Cornell University Law School, n.d.). The American system enjoys mutual authority among state, federal and local governments and comprises a requirement for collaboration, synchronization and communication. In the American system, the local government possesses the right to conduct responsibilities for dealing with any emergency or disaster. The federal government is intended to deliver economic support and resources, and state government acts on behalf of applying the federal rules and policies. Notably, the three main elements of American system are: Executive Branch, Legislative Branch, and Judicial Branch (The White House, n.d.). The executive branch is controlled by the governor who is straightforwardly elected by citizens of US. The other members of the executive branch are also designated by the public such as deputy governor, counsellor general, commissioners, and secretary of state among others. The legislative

Evaluating the Business Environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Evaluating the Business Environment - Essay Example This essay stresses that the airline industry has been seen to make less and less revenue as the market forces and the business environment becomes harsh on it. However, Ryanair has seen its revenues grow and in most cases exceed the industry average. The airline has been capitalising on its uniqueness as a low cost airline to remain afloat and this is after analysing its Porter’s five forces. This report makes a conclusion that Ryanair has put in place, it becomes clear that the company has tried in coming up as the low-cost airline of choice for many in Europe. The company also established cost reduction measures based on reducing the impact of its threats in the industry as well as improving on its weaknesses. In overall the Ryanair has made huge strides in making sure that it emerges at the top despite the challenges faced. With all this progress the airline needs to change a few approaches to the market in order to gain more and to ensure a sustainable business. The management need to be more careful with their advertisements as they have seen them airline lose a great deal of finances in legal fees after being sued by competitors. Their website needs to carry information that is not misleading to the customers in regards to fares as the case has been in the past. The airline needs to diversify and move further into other continents so as to become a global airline wi th a wider market base thereby more revenue generation. However, this latter move needs good strategies as competition is stiffer on a global scale and the cost of operation will increase dramatically.

Management of Long-Term Cardiorespiratory Symptoms Essay

Management of Long-Term Cardiorespiratory Symptoms - Essay Example Her daughter is concerned as Mary is breathless at rest, has a persistent cough and appears to have some ankle oedema. This first case study will deal with the nursing issues related to the management of this elderly, obese hypertensive patient with history of smoking. He is undergoing treatment for hypertension, and on this presentation, he is complaining of shortness of breath on minimal exertion. Like any other nursing management, an evaluation is necessary which would initiate the nursing process. The assessment would involve first taking a detailed history of this patient. Nursing assessment of the cardiovascular system includes a patient health history and physical examination. If the patient had been experiencing an acute problem, the focus should be on the most serious sign and symptom. In this case, the symptom is difficulty breathing on minimal exertion. It appears that this is new development over the baseline hypertension and obesity, and this has been continuing for quite some time. Since rest produces amelioration of this patient's symptoms of dyspnoea on exertion, it is highly probabl e that this new development in chronic in nature and is stable (Ahmed et al., 2004, 297-307). Therefore, a complete nursing assessment may be undertaken on presentation. In the second scenario, the patient has complicated lung disease, which has characteristic exacerbations and remissions. This patient is dependent on home care, and her condition has deteriorated due to development of congestive right heart failure secondary to her lung disease. The presence of heart failure is indicated by the history of persistent cough and ankle edema. Therefore, there is fluid retention, and the pump failure in the heart has led to accumulation of fluid in the lung leading to breathlessness and persistent cough. History The history is that of a person who is currently having a sedentary lifestyle and is perhaps not able to control body weight. He had symptoms of weakness, fatigue, shortness of breath on exertion. Although he had dyspnoea on exertion, he did not have dyspnoea at rest. However, fatigue and exhaustion continued throughout the day, and he had activity intolerance. There was a sense of chest pressure with activity, and he did not complain about insomnia. His personal history revealed little to no exercise, and he spent most of the day at home watching television. He is obese and is a heavy smoker. Obesity is associated with breathlessness on the simple level of reducing the capacity of the lungs to expand and increasing the workload of the organs. Specifically, obesity may decondition the heart, result in fatty infiltration of the myocardium and lead to altered filling pressures (Gustafsson et al., 2005, 58-64). A long history of hypertension is more closely associated with heart failure than a shorter history. In the second case, when assessing the patient with heart failure and breathlessness, especially if the pattern or severity of the breathlessness is changing, it is worth looking for factors that may be contributing to the problem. The most likely would be common problems such as chest infections and anaemia (Anand et al., 2005, 12-15). A chest infection can provoke heart failure due to increased haemodynamic demands or by the formation of pleural effusions. Anaemia

Prison Policy Recommendation Essay Example for Free

Prison Policy Recommendation Essay There is currently a bill in the legislature that would double the maximum prison term for anyone convicted of armed robbery. As a criminologist advisor to a state legislator, I have been tasked with proposing a recommendation on whether or not the current bill on the table will be good for the government and the communities it represents or detrimental. The proposed bill would double the current maximum prison term for any individual convicted of armed robbery. The thought behind such a bill is that a longer prison term will deter people from even attempting, or committing a crime in the first place. This bill would also, in hopes, keep offenders from re-offending for the same crime. As a result of these hopes, the bill has gained much popularity within the legislature. As appealing as the possible resulting lower crime rates sound, there are certain costs that must be considered. The bill proposes longer prison terms for offenders. These longer terms will also come with a higher price tag. The cost of keeping inmates for a longer period will rise exponentially. Another cost, though not monetary, should also be considered; that is the risk of even more violent crimes being committed. If the prison terms for armed robbery were to be doubled and is close to that of the crime of attempted murder, what’s to say an offender would not go all the way if the sentence would be virtually the same? There may be possible solutions for the bill that can be appealing to both the government and the community. The first would be to increase the maximum term served before parole could be offered. For example, instead of a ten-year sentence, with parole after three years; increase it to six or seven years before parole can even be considered. Another option would be to put in place a work program within the prison system. This will be somewhat similar to the outside world, in that if the prisoner does not work, they will not eat or receive rec time. We do not get handed a meal simply because it is supper time. If we don’t work, we don’t eat. Same premise for prisoners. It is my recommendation that the bill not  be approved as it stands but that it is rewritten to reflect changes to the current prison terms. The prison term does not need to be lengthened, but the offenders do need to be made to serve more of their current term before coming up for parole. It is my opinion, and based on crime rates that offenders are often not rehabilitated in such a short period, time, term in prison, and often get paroled and re-offend. This is an endless cycle. If terms were lengthened, it would cost more to house and feed a prisoner, but the costs would outweigh that of releasing them, having them reoffend, costs of trial and a second prison term. Also, the implementation of the work program would help them to realize that prison is not just a free ride, with meals and rec time without hard work and consequences. The parole system must also be overhauled. Parole officers often cannot keep good track of their parolees, and offenders receive too many chances. Perhaps, requiring prisoners to learn a trade would be equally helpful to them outside of prison. The proposed bill for doubling the maximum prison term should not be approved. It cannot succeed as it is. Simply doubling a prison term without further consequences will be a hindrance to the justice system as a whole. A crime is a crime, and an offenders background should not be taken into account. Instead of threatening offenders with a longer possible sentence, change the current rules and statutes for prison terms. Make them serve the majority of their sentence, make them work for basic needs in prison, and educate them. Give them a skill, so that the possibility of reoffending goes down. As popular as the bill may seem, it does not mean that it is the right choice for the government or the communities it represents. All of the options must be considered and weighed carefully before a decision can be made. Instead of creating new laws, perhaps we should first look at ways to enhance and make the current ones better. Only then, can we hope to move forward and create a better nation. References South, T. (2010, June 8). Bill would keep armed robbers in prison longer. Retrieved from timesfreepress.com: http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2010/jun/08/bill-would-keep-armed-robbers-in-prison-longer/ What are positives negatives to maximum prison sentences? (2011). Retrieved from Yahoo Answers: https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index Would doubling the maximum prison term for anyone convicted of armed robbery be a good idea or a bad one, why? (2007). Retrieved from Yahoo Answers: https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index

Examining the Market and Operations Strategy of Tesco

Examining the Market and Operations Strategy of Tesco Introduction Human resource management  or shortly said H.R.M. is a designed  and  articulate  way to  management  of people working in the company or organization. The other term used for this is personnel management which is used instead of human resource management. It cn be defines as:- A continues processes managing people in any organizations in a way to achieve its objectives and goals. Human Resource Management is basically a study as well as a department in any organization that stands on ideas and techniques set to improve employee motivation, efficiency and performance. The HRM models makes necessary emphasizes: search for new ways and methods of working key role of managers in making progressive change treating all the workers as individuals encouragement of staff to think management as their partners instead of bosses Human capital is the important quality and capability of businesses especially in service based business. Human resources are some time major proportion of costs for many businesses. Management of such important and valuable resources is necessary for the success of business. Human resource management  means recruiting employees, arranging their training to improve their skills, utilizing these skills, maintaining their performances and paying off their services as required. Employees are a value asset for an organization. The purpose of all this arrangement is to contribute in achievement of company or organization targets. Human Resource Management practitioners have modern view about workplace management comparing to the traditional thinking. As such, HRM techniques, when properly practiced, are expressive of the goals and operating practices of the enterprise overall. HRM is also seen by many to have a key role in risk reduction within organizations. HRM and Employees Performance HRM and organisational performance, evident in improved employee commitment, lower levels of absenteeism and turnover, higher levels of skills and therefore higher productivity, enhanced quality and efficiency  . This area of work is sometimes referred to as Strategic HRM or SHRM (. Within SHRM three strands of work can be observed: Best practice, Best Fit and the Resource Based View (RBV). The notion of best practice sometimes called high commitment HRM proposes that the adoption of certain best practices in HRM will result in better organisational performance. Perhaps the most popular work in this area is that of Pfeffer  Ã‚  who argued that there were seven best practices for achieving competitive advantage through people and building profits by putting people first. These practices included: providing employment security, selective hiring, extensive training, sharing information, self-managed teams, high pay based on company performance and the reduction of status differentials. However, there is a huge number of studies which provide evidence of best practices, usually implemented in coherent bundles, and therefore it is difficult to draw generalised conclusions about which is the best way (For a comparison of different sets of best practices see Becker and Gerhart, 1996   Best fit, or the contingency approach to HRM, argues that HRM improves performance where there is a close vertical fit between the HRM practices and the companys strategy. This link ensures close coherence between the HR people processes and policies and the external market or business strategy. There are a range of theories about the nature of this vertical integration. For example, a set of lifecycle models argue that HR policies and practices can be mapped onto the stage of an organisations development or lifecycle. Competitive advantage models take Porters (1985) ideas about strategic choice and map a range of HR practices onto the organisations choice of competitive strategy. Finally configurational modelsprovide a more sophisticated approach which advocates a close examination of the organisations strategy in order to determine the appropriate HR policies and practices. However, this approach assumes that the strategy of the organisation can be identified many organisations ex ist in a state of flux and development. The Resource Based View (RBV), argued by some to be at the foundation of modern HRM, focusses on the internal resources of the organisation and how they contribute to competitive advantage. The uniqueness of these resources is preferred to homogeneity and HRM has a central role in developing human resources that are valuable, rare, difficult to copy or substitute and that are effectively organised. Overall, the theory of HRM argues that the goal of human resource management is to help an organization to meet strategic goals by attracting, and maintaining employees and also to manage them effectively. The key word here perhaps is fit, i.e. a HRM approach seeks to ensure a fit between the management of an organisations employees, and the overall strategic direction of the company (Miller, 1989). The basic premise of the academic theory of HRM is that humans are not machines, therefore we need to have an interdisciplinary examination of people in the workplace. Fields such as  psychology,  industrial relations, industrial engineering,  sociology,  economics, and critical theories:  postmodernism,  post-structuralism  play a major role. Many colleges and universities offer bachelor and master degrees in Human Resources Management or in Human Resources and Industrial Relations. One widely used scheme to describe the role of HRM, developed by  Dave Ulrich, defines 4 fields for the HRM function: Strategic business partner Change Agent Employee champion Administration Expert Human Resource Department Responsibilities Companies can have different departments, ranging from sales to human resources.   Depending on the size of a company, the human resource department may have an entire staff. Employment opportunities found in the department include human resource coordinator, assistant and director. Human resource department responsibilities can involve understanding federal, state and local  laws. Training and Development The human resources department assists companies with training and development. Companies train employees for different reasons, ranging from employee motivation to new technology. The length of training can differ from hours to weeks. Types of training can range from workshops to classroom participation. Some topics discussed in training sessions include employee safety and customer service. Benefits Companies must use different incentives to attract and maintain employees. After compensation, benefits are a common incentive to keep employees. The  Society  for Human Resource Management states benefits can involve federal and state requirements, such as unemployment insurance. Some companies offer a range of benefits. Types of benefits include dental insurance, vision insurance and paid days off. Compensation The Human Resources Department verifies that employees receive proper compensation. One form of compensation involves the amount of pay an employee receives in exchange for work performed, known as base pay. Commissions offer another form of compensation. Some companies offer only a combination of base pay and commissions, such as for a sales  job. Staffing A company requires staff to provide products and services to its customers. One human resources staffing-related activity involves advertising. Advertising allows companies to match applicants with potential jobs. Forms of advertising can take place on employment boards, specialty newspapers or business websites. Other human resource activities involve contacting applicants for interviews and confirming each applicants background. Employee Exit Interview HR Tools indicates employee exit interviews can help organizations maintain retention rates. Another benefit from exit interviews is a company can obtain  positive  feedback about its compensation, benefits or training programs. The human resources department has the responsibility of scheduling and conducting exit interviews. The employee should feel comfortable discussing employment issues, so a private office is advisable for the interviews. Business Practice Human resources management involves several processes. Together they are supposed to achieve the above mentioned goal. These processes can be performed in an HR department, but some tasks can also be outsourced or performed by line-managers or other departments. When effectively integrated they provide significant economic benefit to the company. Workforce planning Recruitment  (sometimes separated into attraction and selection) Induction,  Orientation  and  Onboarding Skills management Training and development Personnel administration Compensation in  wage  or  salary Time management Travel management (sometimes assigned to accounting rather than HRM) Payroll  (sometimes assigned to accounting rather than HRM) Employee benefits  administration Personnel cost planning Performance appraisal Labor relations HRM strategy An HRM strategy pertains to the means as to how to implement the specific functions of HRM. An organizations HR function may possess recruitment and selection policies, disciplinary procedures, reward/recognition policies, an HR plan, or learning and development policies, however all of these functional areas of HRM need to be aligned and correlated, in order to correspond with the overall business strategy. An HRM strategy thus is an overall plan, concerning the implementation of specific HRM functional areas. An HRM strategy typically consists of the following factors:- Best fit and best practice meaning that there is correlation between the HRM strategy and the overall corporate strategy. As HRM as a field seeks to manage  human resources  in order to achieve properly organizational goals, an organizations HRM strategy seeks to accomplish such management by applying a firms personnel needs with the goals/objectives of the organisation. As an example, a firm selling cars could have a corporate strategy of increasing car sales by 10% over a five year period. Accordingly, the HRM strategy would seek to facilitate how exactly to manage personnel in order to achieve the 10% figure. Specific HRM functions, such as recruitment and selection, reward/recognition, an HR plan, or learning and development policies, would be tailored to achieve the corporate objectives. Close co-operation (at least in theory) between HR and the top/senior management, in the development of the corporate strategy. Theoretically, a senior HR representative should be present when an organizations corporate objectives are devised. This is so, since it is a firms personnel who actually construct a good, or provide a service. The personnels proper management is vital in the firm being successful, or even existing as a going concern. Thus, HR can be seen as one of the critical departments within the functional area of an organization. Continual monitoring of the strategy, via employee feedback, surveys, etc. The implementation of an HR strategy is not always required, and may depend on a number of factors, namely the size of the firm, the organizational culture within the firm or the industry that the firm operates in and also the people in the firm. An HRM strategy can be divided, in general, into two facets the people strategy and the HR functional strategy. The people strategy pertains to the point listed in the first paragraph, namely the careful correlation of HRM policies/actions to attain the goals laid down in the corporate strategy. The HR functional strategy relates to the policies employed within the HR functional area itself, regarding the management of persons internal to it, to ensure its own departmental goals are met. Career and Education Several universities offer programs of study pertaining to HRM and broader fields.  Cornell University  created the worlds first school for college-level study in HRM (ILR School).  University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign  also now has a school dedicated to the study of HRM, while several  business schools  also house a center or department dedicated. There are both generalist and specialist HRM jobs. There are careers involved with employment, recruitment and placement and these are usually conducted by interviewers, EEO (Equal Employment Opportunity) specialists or college recruiters. Training and development specialism is often conducted by trainers and orientation specialists. Compensation and benefits tasks are handled by compensation analysts, salary administrators, and benefits administrators. Professional organizations Professional organizations in HRM include the  Society for Human Resource Management, the Australian Human Resources Institute (AHRI), the  Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), the International Public Management Association for HR (IPMA-HR), Management Association of Nepal (MAN) and the International Personnel Management Association of Canada (IPMA-Canada), Human Capital Institute. National Human Resource Development Network in India. Functions The Human Resources Management (HRM) function includes a variety of activities, and key among them is deciding what staffing needs to have and whether to use independent contractors or hire employees to fill these needs, recruiting and training the best employees, ensuring they are high performers, dealing with performance issues, and ensuring your personnel and management practices conform to various regulations. Activities also include managing your approach to employee benefits and compensation, employee records and personnel policies. Usually small businesses (for-profit or nonprofit) have to carry out these activities themselves because they cant yet afford part- or full-time help. However, they should always ensure that employees have-and are aware of-personnel policies which conform to current regulations. These policies are often in the form of employee manuals, which all employees have. Note that some people distinguish a difference between HRM (a major management activity) and HRD (Human Resource Development, a profession). Those people might include HRM in HRD, explaining that HRD includes the broader range of activities to develop personnel inside of organizations, including, e.g., career development, training, organization development, etc. There is a long-standing argument about where HR-related functions should be organized into large organizations, e.g., should HR be in the Organization Development department or the other way around? The HRM function and HRD profession have undergone major changes over the past 20-30 years. Many years ago, large organizations looked to the Personnel Department, mostly to manage the paperwork around hiring and paying people. More recently, organizations consider the HR Department as playing an important role in staffing, training and helping to manage people so that people and the organization are performing at maximum capability in a highly fulfilling manner. The Responsibilities of a Manager in Human Resources Planning The human resources department has many roles and functions. Historically, the department was responsible for recruitment and training within an organization. Human resources has evolved to include a wide variety of competencies that are necessary for an organizations growth and success. Managers are in constant communication with the human resources department. Effective human resources planning requires managers and company executives to identify the needs of the company and develop a strategic plan to meet those needs. Recruitment The acquisition of experienced and qualified employees is vital to the success of an organization. Managers are responsible for interviewing potential candidates and making recommendations to hire a particular individual. Managers also attend recruiting events and evaluate applicants to determine whether the candidates personality will fit within the corporate environment. Retention Employee retention is an integral part of a managers responsibilities. Managers are obligated to ensure that employee work environments are conducive to individual success. Managers are responsible for motivating employees and developing programs that encourage good employees to remain with the company. Managers communicate the feedback they receive from employees to human resources so they may expand retention initiatives. These initiatives are designed to keep existing employees happy and satisfied with their  jobs. Training Training within an organization is a work in progress. As new products are introduced or industry trends shift in a new direction, additional training and employee development will be necessary. Human resources departments watch markets closely to ensure their organizations remain up to speed on changes within their enterprise. Managers also must supervise employees to ensure that a lack of understanding of company products and services does not interfere with  job  duties. Further, managers are responsible for making recommendations that additional training be conducted if several employees fall behind on a particular objective. Employee Relations Employee relations involve many different aspects of human resources planning. Employee relations are events or situations that affect an employees well-being, such as managerial disputes or employee discrimination. Employee relations also involve employee salaries, benefits,  health  care and retirement. If an employee has a work-related issue, it is usually brought to the attention of his manager first. Managers are responsible for keeping employee relations matters confidential and referring complex issues to the appropriate department to remedy the situation. Job Duties for a Human Resource Specialist Human resource specialists provide a specific type of work in the human resources department of a  business. Even though a person may specialize in any of several areas, the responsibilities of different specialists may overlap. Employee Recruitment and Placement Specialists in employee recruitment and placement manage the applicant screening process and hiring activities for open positions. They may seek out promising applicants through  job boards or  career  fairs and help match them to appropriate jobs. Compensation and Benefits Specialists in this area design and administer employee benefit programs such as health insurance, retirement plans and flexible spending accounts. They must be knowledgeable about the various benefit programs offered by their company as well as laws that may affect these benefits. Job Analysis Job analysts determine job titles, develop job descriptions and designate position classifications. In some companies, job analysis is done by compensation and benefit specialists. Training and Professional Development These specialists provide employee training such as new employee orientation and continuing education. They often develop and present materials for professional development workshops. Labor Relations Labor relations specialists assist with the resolution of employee disputes and grievances, as well as contract negotiation and workplace safety. They negotiate with labor unions and act as liaisons between employees and management. Effective Interviewing Giving an interview is as nerve racking as having one! As an interviewer you want to get as much information from the interviewee as possible, so to do this youre going to have to be nice to them! By making the environment calm and relaxing, both you and the interviewee will get the best from the interview. Before the interview, decide what information you require. It may help you to write yourself a list of questions or keywords, which will help the interview go smoothly. It is important that you listen to the candidate carefully, as well as getting all of the information you want, it will also help you to expand on the interviewees answers. Try to avoid asking questions together as this may confuse the candidate, as well as giving them the option to avoid certain questions. Glossary Of Terms Added Value  often refers to the analysis undertaken by management of the cost and contribution made by employees involved at each stage in the process of producing a product or providing a service. Appraisal Schemes   an individuals performance is reviewed by their manager. Their past performance is examined and future goals are set. Benchmarking  measures standards of performance against others doing similar work. Business Process Re-engineering (BPR)  refers to the methods by which a company or service undertakes a thorough review of all its operations. Business Units  often have their own Trading Accounts and operate with relative autonomy from the rest of the company or service. Continuous Improvement (Kaizen)  requires employees to constantly seek ways of improving the quality of the product or service. Delayering  is the removal of middle layers of management resulting in a flatter management organisation. Dismissal  is when you are removed from employment Empowerment/Enablement  are strategies aimed to give people more control and responsibility for their work Flexibility  describes changes in the size of the workforce, depending on short-term changes in market conditions Management-by-Objectivesmeans each management team identifying its key tasks and goals and using these as a yardstick against which performance is measured. Multi-Skilling  is the increase of the skills base of the workforce, usually bringing in new technology Multi-tasking  requires for staff to take on a wider range of tasks, usually involving on-the-job training Outsourcing  occurs when management invites external contractors to undertake work that was previously done by in-house staff. Performance Indicators  measure the improvements in throughputs, outputs and outcomes. Performance Related Pay (PRP)links an individuals performance with their pay. Different schemes have been set up to measure Team Building  brings together employers and employees, with the goal of increasing performance by strengthening relationships within the workplace Total Quality Management (TQM)usually involves the introduction of continuous monitoring. It refers to initiatives designed to improve the quality of products and services to meet customers requirements. http://www.bized.co.uk/educators/16-19/business/hrm/lesson/hrm1map.gif Title Human resource management: a problem-solving approach linked to ISLLC standards G Reference, Information and Interdisciplinary Subjects Series Authors Jerry R. Baker,  Madeleine S. Doran Edition 2, revised, illustrated Publisher RL Education, 2007 Length 217 pages Title HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT Authors ROBERT L. MATHIS,  JOHN H. JACKSON Publisher Cengage Learning, 2007 Subjects Business Economics / Human Resources Personnel Management Title Human resource management: a strategic approach to employment B H contemporary business series Author Chris Hendry Edition illustrated, reprint Publisher Butterworth-Heinemann, 1995 ISBN 075060994X, 9780750609944 Length 485 pages Title A handbook of human resource management practice Author Michael Armstrong Edition 9, illustrated Publisher Kogan Page Publishers, 2003 ISBN 0749441054, 9780749441050 Length 979 pages Title Human Resource Management Authors Derek Torrington,  Stephen Taylor,  Laura Hall,  Carol Atkinson Edition 8 Publisher Pearson Education, Limited, 2010 ISBN 0273732323, 9780273732327 Length 848 pages Subjects Business Economics / Commerce Title Human Resource Management: Theory and Practice Authors John Bratton,  Jeffrey Gold Edition 2, illustrated Publisher Routledge, 2001 ISBN 0805838627, 9780805838626 Length 432 pages

Meeting Health and Well-being Needs in Day Care Centre

Meeting Health and Well-being Needs in Day Care Centre Day Care Centre This essay will be the design of a day care centre that will meet the needs of 3-5 year olds; cognitive, physical, emotional and social development. This will show examples of how to meet these needs and research to back up the actions. Cognitive development Between these ages lots of cognitive development is going on as they learn from what’s around them, this is where my day care centre can help. In terms of language acquisition children are using sentences made up of more than 4 words, which are intelligible to everyone, not just familiar listeners. They will also ask how and why questions (Bhalla, 2013), and able to answer these questions knowing what type of answer is required of them, despite maybe giving the wrong answer (Hussey-Gardner, 1992). They will be learning the meanings of words, which will help them describe things and tell stories. One issue that will come across is the over generalization of grammar rules, for example a child may use ‘goed’, ‘wented’ ‘fishes’ (Hussey-Gardner, 1992). This supports the language acquisition device (LAD) theory from Chomsky, a child assumed and applied the grammar rules from their universal grammar because they could not have copied or learned these words from adults (Albery, et al., 2008). However the flaw with this theory is that it doesn’t prove a child has a LAD, although it supports that children don’t learn language through imitation alone, they could learn it through other interactions (DAgostino, 2001). In my day care centre I will help prevent over generalisation of grammar rules by repeating the sentence back with the correct grammar in place, reading books with different tenses, ensuring I use the words which are freque ntly misused in the right context. I will also encourage their speech in general by getting them to describe things, and asking them to explain their activities. Vygotsky claimed that children at this age will talk to themselves in order to help complete tasks, this is a very important stage in cognitive development because speaking out loud whilst problem solving will eventually lead to internal thoughts (Albery, et al., 2008). In the day care centre I will help encourage this by giving children tasks by giving them spoken instructions so they can repeat these instructions to themselves whilst completing the task. Using language to assist in problem solving occurred in what Vygotsky called the egocentric speech stage. This stage has a connection to Piaget’s pre-operational stage, where Piaget also believed that children of this age were egocentric and had egocentric speech (Albery, et al., 2008). However Piaget didn’t come to the conclusion Vygotsky did that egocentric speech turned into internal thoughts, Piaget thought egocentric speech just disappeared (Blunden, 1997). Piaget also believed that within this stage children make mistakes due to centration, which is not being able to think of two things at once. He showed this using a balance scale task where children had to take into account distance and number of weights to see which side will go down (Waring, 2006). A criticism for Piaget’s test is that it was not something children understood and are used to and therefore harder for them to relate to the test (Waring, 2006) . I could help children think less centrally by using Vygotsky scaffolding theory (Chaiklin, 2003). They can solve a puzzle on their own taking only one element into account, then with the help of a more knowing adult they can solve a puzzle taking into account two elements, they then should be able to do this themselves. The scaffolding idea from Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development theory is the idea that more knowing adults can guide children through what they can do by themselves, what they can do with help and eventually doing it themselves. The problem with this theory is that it doesn’t take into consideration children’s personal abilities, if they are not particularly good at a skill, no amount of help will get them to succeed by themselves. It also doesn’t consider children’s motivation or desire to complete the task (Chaiklin, 2003) Physical Children at the age of 3-5 years are developing their fine and gross motor skills. They can get more involved in physical play, like climbing, or using tricycles. They can hold things between their thumb and finger rather than their whole fists and manipulate clay (Australian Government Department of Social Services, 2011). To help develop their fine motor skills I can start by giving the children bigger pencils and scissors and gradually give them smaller ones to use. I would also give them shapes to draw, at first getting them to draw along dotted lines, then copying a shape and them getting them to draw it free hand (Bhalla, 2013). Trawick-Smith (2010) noted in his report that motiavtion is an important factor in childrens physical development espeshially in their gross motor skills. He believes that children relate to make believe and role playing games and that they devlop physically when they can reflect on their actions and see what their actions do and look like. So in my day care centre I will have an area for physical sessions with a mirror coverng one side. In these sessions I will relate movements to characters e.g. marching soldiers or woddling penguins. As well as having an outdoor climbing frame which children can play on with each other. The problem with Trawick-Smith’s (2010) ideas are that it is hard to motivate a large group of children in the same way. The idea of physical activity sessions can also be supported by Bandura’s theory of observational learning which came about from his Bobo Doll experiment. The children now have the ability, biologically, to copy the behaviours and to learn new fine or gross motor skills. I need to offer the opportunity to observe the behaviours, for them to retain the behaviour, imitiate the behaviour, and repeat these behaviours. However I must motiave them to repeat the actions and reward the success of repeated action (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, n.d.). The problem with this theory is that there is no garentee that a child will repeat the behaviour straight away it may take a while for the child to feel it is beneficial for them to repeat the action (Taylor, 2014). This is a very behaviourist way of looking at pysical development. The nature vs. nurture debate could be relevant here, as you could argue that the a child will devlop the ability to do these activites through muturation. However behaviourist will take the nuture root that the behvaiour is learnt however the ability to learn it is innate (Keegan, 2002). Lifespan devlopmental theory takes on both approuches, at this age they are in the childhood stage (Keegan, 2002). At this stage they are gaining motor skillls however because myelination is still in its early stages (the devlopment of the sheath around the axon stucture in the Central Nervous System) a child cannot transmit information as fast, the more it develops the more complex brain processes can be allowed (Fraser-Trill, 2010). This may result in differnent physical activites each child is able to do (MacFarlane Nierman, 2001). So in my day care center I will have 3 groups for physical activites seperating the different ability levels. Social Children between the ages of 3-5 will be trying to interact with other children by engaging in pretend play (Bhalla, 2013). They may try and play with toys but sharing may be a difficult task for them at this age due to them being egocentric (Kamptner, 2014). Egocentrism is a theory put forward in Piaget’s pre-operational stage, he used the three mountains test to show that children could not picture someone else’s viewpoint (Albery, et al., 2008). However the problem with Piaget’s theory is that the three mountains test is not relatable to children, they do not understand what is being asked of him. When Hughes and Donaldson carried out the ‘Policeman test’ with children it showed that children could see from another point of view because the task was more relatable as a hide-and-seek type game (Albery, et al., 2008). In my day care centre I will have circle time, each child will have a chance to say something about their day, one child will have a teddy bear, this will indicate it’s their turn to talk, and everyone else in the circle must listen. This will help guide children into understanding others points of view. Egocentrism can also cause difficulties in sharing, taking turns, conflict when playing with each other and can be possessive over toys (Kamptner, 2014). I can try to reduce this in my day care centre by encouraging sharing by having a timer, when the timer ends the toy is given to another child. Also during this age group children are progressing from ‘interactive’ play, which involves parallel play, where children can play with the same toys in the same area but not together, to eventually, ‘cooperatively’ play together, which involves playing together with toys which makes it more organised, for example building something together (Kamptner, 2014). In my day care centre I will use Vygotsky’s scaffolding theory to assist the children in progressing through the two stages. At first I may have group of 2 children and one member of staff to complete a task, for example building a tower. Firstly the children will share the blocks to make one each with the watchful eye of the member of staff, which will encourage parallel play. Next I will get the children to build something different each with the same blocks, maybe a tower and a building which put together after will make a castle, this will show that working together can achieve more. The next stage will be getting the children to build a tower together, the member of staff with them will assign each of them a task to complete. After they will be asked to do the same but the children will organise themselves to cooperative play. The member of staff will be there to diffuse any conflicts that may arise, and to ensure they are sharing properly. Another factor I will have to c onsider is ensuring the children are motivated and rewarded for playing nicely with each other. Emotional At this age children are becoming in tune with their emotions, they are starting to identify their own feelings, they can use words to express themselves which causes less frustration, have fears and are developing a sense of humour, bodily functions in particular are funny to them. It’s important for children to be able to identify emotions as they can still be overwhelmed by them if they don’t understand, however children need to understand their own emotions and others too (Bullick, 2010). Piaget believed that children in the pre-operational stage could not feel empathy because they are too egocentric, however this was contradicted by the policeman test (Albery, et al., 2008). Now that it’s been supported that children can have empathy it’s important to develop it, one way of doing this could be through using a ‘persona doll’. Persona dolls are doll that come in a range of shapes, colour, religion and abilities to help children relate to them. An adult will tell a story about the persona doll, the children then interact by suggesting how it makes them feel and how to make them feel better. For example ‘the doll is scared of the dark’, a child will respond ‘she is scared of the dark like me, I have a night light, we should get her one too’ or ‘someone told the doll she couldn’t play because she was a girl’ a child would respond ‘someone said that to me once, I felt sad. Everyone should be all owed to play.’ This doll encourages them to not only identify their own emotions but also empathise with someone else’s and what they can do to make themselves and others feel better (Brown, et al., 2012). Children who will help themselves or others with their emotions are using their initiative, which is one of the elements in Erikson’s initiative vs guilt psychosocial stage. An initiative child will have a good self-esteem and confident in the activities they are doing. For example they may lead other peers to play a game, or get others to join in on activities or make decisions for example collect their coat when its home time without being told. However low self-esteem or guilt can occur when this initiative is not praised, or criticised, this can lead to inhibition (McLeod, 2013). I can help raise initiative by encouraging role play games as groups. I may have a small group of children and one adult, the adult will nominate one child to make up roles and organise the game which they will all join in on, and the adult must try not to take over or discourage any of the ideas. The next day the adult will nominate a different child, this way all the children have a fair part to play and they are all gaining initiative. Erikson’s theory is based on Freudian view of the conflicting id, ego and superego, however Erikson doesn’t state how successfully resolve these conflicts and the boundaries between each are vague. It also doesn’t show how of if one of the conflict stages can effect another (McLeod, 2013). I could also include Bowlby’s attachment theory here. Bowlby believed that children become attached to their primary care giver, and by this age they will be upset if they leave them (Keegan, 2002). To help with this transition I could let the parents be at the day care center together, to let them get used to it, and then they could bring a teddy from home that they could use a comfort if they start to get upset. In conclusion I will have to bear in mind a lot of aspects in order for the children in my day care centre to have the best development. It has been supported that role play, problem solving and an adult helping hand can go a long way in the development stages. References Albery, I. P., Chandler, C., Field, A., Jones, D., Messer, D., Simon, M., Sterling, C. (2008). Complete Psychology (2nd ed.). (G. Davey, Ed.) London: British Libuary Cataloguing in Publication Data. Australian Government Department of Social Services. (2011, March 10). Physical Development 3-4 year olds. Retrieved Febuary 17, 2014, from Rasing Children: http://raisingchildren.net.au/articles/physical_health_from_age_3_to_4_pbs.html Bhalla, S. (2013, April 25). Parenting Tips Sorted by Age Preschoolers. Growth and Development: 3-5 years. Retrieved Febuary 13, 2014, from One Tough Job: https://www.onetoughjob.org/tips/preschoolers/growth-a-development-3-5-years Blunden, A. (1997). Vygotsky and the Dialectical Method. Retrieved Febuary 13, 2014, from Marxists.org: http://www.marxists.org/archive/vygotsky/works/comment/vygotsk1.htm Brown, B., Johnson, M., Louth, J., Shepherd, M., Spencer, M., Wilson, M. (2012). Case Studies. Retrieved Febuary 19, 2014, from Persona Doll Training: www.persona-doll-training.org Bullick, T. (2010). Growing Miracles. The first six years with your child. (2nd ed.). Alberta: Alberta Health Services. Chaiklin, S. (2003). The Zone of Proximal Development in Vygotskys Analysis of Learning and Instruction. In V. S. Ageyev, B. Gindis, A. Kozulin, S. M. Miller, Vygotskys Educational Theory in Cultural Context (pp. 39-61). Cambridge: The Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge. DAgostino, F. (2001). Noam Chomsky. Retrieved Febuary 13, 2014, from Chomsky.info: www.chomsky.info/bios/2001-02.htm Fraser-Trill, R. (2010, August 26). Definition of Myelination. Retrieved Febuary 26, 2014, from About.com: tweenparenting.about.com/od/physicalemotionalgrowth/a/Difinition-of-Myelination.html Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. (n.d.). Physical Devlopment: Age 2-6. Retrieved Febuary 18, 2014, from CliffNotes: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/sciences/psychology/development-psychology/physical-cognitive-development-age-26/physical-development-age-26 Hussey-Gardner, D. B. (1992). Language Development. Retrieved Febuary 13, 2014, from Parenting Me: http://www.parentingme.com/language Kamptner, L. (2014, January 7). Supporting Childrens Devlopment 3-5 year olds Social Development. Retrieved Febuary 18, 2014, from Institute for Child Devlopment and Family Relations: http://icdfr.csusb.edu/documents/phandoutsocialdevelopment-2.pdf Keegan, G. (2002). Developmental Psychology. Kilmarnock: Learning and Teaching Scotland. MacFarlane, M., Nierman, M. (2001). Life Span Development. Retrieved Febuary 26, 2014, from Annenberg Learner: http://www.learner.org/series/discoveringpsychology/development/dev_flash.html McLeod, S. (2013). Erik Erikson. Retrieved Febuary 19, 2014, from Simply Psychology: www.simplypsychology.org/Erik-Erikson Taylor, V. (2014, Febuary 18). The Disadvantages of Observational Learning. Retrieved Febuary 18, 2014, from ehow: http://www.ehow.co.uk/info_8571259_disadvantages-observational-learning.html Trawick-Smith, J. (2010). From Playpen to Playground—The Importance of Physical Play for the. Eastern Connecticut: Head Start Body Start National Center for Physical Development and Outdoor Play. Retrieved Febuary 17, 2014 Waring, P. (2006). Cognition and Development. Retrieved Febuary 13, 2014, from Psychology 4a: http://www.psychology4a.com/cognitive_development.htm

Environmentalism Essay -- essays research papers

Evironmentalism: The Next Step Broad Social Change Through Personal Commitment Introduction In the last thirty years, America has witnessed an environmental revolution. New laws like the 1963 Clean Air Act and the 1974 Safe Drinking Water Act forged new ground in political environmentalism. Social phenomena like Earth Day, organized by Dennis Hayes in 1970, and the beginning of large-scale recycling, marked by Oregon's 1972 Bottle Bill, have help change the way Americans think about the environment. As we approach the third millennium, however, we must reconsider our place on the planet and reflect on our efforts and progress towards a sustainable society. As global warming becomes a scientific reality, natural disasters make monthly appearances in the headlines, and communities continue to find their ground-water contaminated by industrial and nuclear waste, we must ask ourselves: are we doing enough? The environmental movement in the past has largely been a social and political ph enomenon. While many of us recycle (yet still only 35 percent of us) and take dead batteries to our town's Hazardous Waste Day, most Americans have not made the environment a personal issue. Very few of us have taken the kind of personal life-changing steps that are necessary to create an environmentally sustainable society. It is simply naive to believe that America's present rates of consumption, waste production, and environmental contamination are sustainable. The kind of social change required can only happen when we as individuals embrace the effort in our everyday lives. Only then will corporate America and the government realize that they too must change to maintain their customer base and public support. This kind of personal commitment to change would also create a new social ethic based on the environment under which people and companies who do not care for the earth would be held socially and financially responsible. In six parts, this article will re-examine our place i n the environmental movement and investigate exactly what changes we can make in our personal lives to bring about positive change. These areas are transportation, energy, recycling and waste management, toxins and pollution, food, and water. Some of the changes discussed will require sacrifice. But, more important, these changes will often simplify our lives, bring our families and communities closer ... ...incing letter to your boss (if you're not the boss) might convince him or her that the amount of money saved in paper will eventually pay for the printer. When you go to the grocery store, bring your own bags instead of using paper or plastic. Consumers often wonder which of the two is better; the answer is: neither. When shopping for smaller items, tell the clerk not to give you a bag (frequently their default action) if you can simply carry the item in your hand. Buy durable, quality items that will last and lend themselves to repair when broken. When things do break, remember that fixing is almost always cheaper than replacing, and you'll have the satisfaction of minimizing your garbage output. When you no longer need something, give it away instead of throwing it away. Organizations like The Salvation Army will gladly accept almost any used household item. Remember that Benjamin Franklin's maxim, "A penny saved is a penny earned," goes for the environment, too. Ever y time we reuse something, we've saved another like it from having to be made. Every time we recycle something, we've saved energy, pollution, and the materials from being mined from our natural resources.

Skunk Hour Essay -- essays research papers

Frustration’s Armored Aroma Skunk Hour by Robert Lowell and The Armadillo by Elizabeth Bishop are two closely related poems. Both share the theme of an animal carrying with it natural defenses, and the image of an isolated spectator. However, there is one important contrast between these poems: The Armadillo portrays a creature who cannot comprehend the events destroying the life about it, whereas the speaker in Skunk Hour understands, possibly too well, the events affecting its life. By using the skunk as a descriptive element for his character, Robert Lowell increases the distance between the character and the brief glimpse of society portrayed in the poem. Skunks, generally, are avoided by everyone because of their reputation for spraying unwelcome visitors with a noxious vapor. Here, the reason for Robert Lowell’s choice in animals becomes obvious. Utilizing such an isolated animal to parallel the thoughts of the speaker, Lowell considerably strengthens the distance between the speaker of the poem and the "love-cars" (Lowell 11) being watched. Even if the occupants of those cars knew they were being observed, chances are they would not associate themselves with the speaker. In addition, Robert Lowell portrays his character as something akin to a stalker, illustrated in the following excerpt. One dark night, my Tudor Ford climbed the hill’s skull; I watched for love-cars. ...