Pathogencity and Immuneology Host resistence and the immune response Essay

Pathogencity and Immuneology Host resistence and the immune response - Essay Example The bacterium has the ability to cause problems for people who use catheters and heart valve implants. It forms biofilms on these catheters and implants. Over time the bacteria has become resistant to antibiotics and it is because of this resistance that the bacteria has evolved in highly virulent forms. It has the ability to cause infections if removed from its ecological niche. It can also be said to be an opportunistic bacteria because it has the ability to cause pathology in people whose immunity is decreased. Variola Virus On the other hand Variola virus is a virus which causes small pox. Small pox is the only disease which has been eliminated from earth. The virus is brick shaped with a double stranded DNA. It also has an enzyme known as RNA polymerase which helps it to replicate when entering the body. Unlike Staphylococcus epidermidis the variola virus is transmitted through the external world. It does not reside in the normal flora or act as opportunistic bacteria. It can be transmitted through respiratory passageways and skin lesions unlike the bacterium staphylococcus epidermidis which resides inside the body. Staphyloccocus epidermidis may not be harmful in its ecological niche whereas the Variola virus is always harmful because of the disease that it can cause.

Issues of Performance Appraisals Essay Example for Free

Issues of Performance Appraisals Essay Performance appraisal refers to the process, where in, an organization measures the performance of its employees against the performance or productivity standards set by it. For instance, an organization might review employees on the basis of the number of projects completed, goals achieved or sales targets met. Therefore, performance standards of one organization might be different from those of another. This further pinpoints the importance of performance appraisals in truly reflecting and impartially evaluating the performance of employees. A good performance appraisal will motivate employees and point out problematic areas. Whereas, a bad performance appraisal will be a waste of resources for any organization. Issues and Solutions Many organizations have trouble identifying the key areas that a performance appraisal has to address. They do not know, what they are trying to accomplish through a performance appraisal or how it will help them in employee evaluation. This can be established using the example of 360-degree feedback. â€Å"Typical mistakes organizations make are rushing into 360-degree appraisals without a clear idea of what they want them to achieve. † (McCurry P. (1999). New angle on 360-degree feedback. Director, 53, p. 36) Furthermore, organizations tend to use one particular tool in isolation, which does not yield reliable results. This should not be put into practice because one tool may not satisfy all the requirements of appraising. Moreover, appraisals need to take into account a comprehensive picture of performance. Using one particular tool can create a pigeon-hole view of what otherwise needed to be a holistic view of performance appraising. Ideally, an organization should know exactly what each tool can deliver, and use a combination of tools to assess different competencies. Organizations must assess pros and cons of different tools and handpick tools that suit their needs. Some tools that can be used are graphic rating scale, Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scales, alternation ranking, forced distribution method, critical incident method, management by objectives and 360-degree feedback. (cited in Dessler, 2006). Some organizations might use certain tools of conducting performance appraisals just because they are being followed in the industry. This again produces a serious loop hole in the entire process of conducting performance appraisals. Every organization has its own structure, and culture that defines it. Although industry best practices might exist even for performance appraisals, however, the same tool is not necessarily applicable to all organizations. For instance, Andrew Forrest implies; if an organization’s culture is characterized by bureaucratic hierarchies, and does not foster communication, then conducting a 360-degree feedback will be pointless in such an organization. (cited in McCurry P. (1999). New angle on 360-degree feedback. Director, 53, p. 36). Some tools of performance appraising may become obsolete with relevance to an employee or employees because the on job environment of the employee changes. The problem remains that same job dynamics do not hold true for an employee, and so the employee can not be evaluated on former standards. In such a scenario performance appraisers need to consider the exact dynamics of the job of the employee and then undertake evaluation. This solution serves the interest of the both the organization and the employee. As mentioned by Candy Albertsson, . â€Å"An individual may have a different boss or team one year or be doing different work, which can make findings hard to compare†. (cited in McCurry P. (1999). New angle on 360-degree feedback. Director, 53, p. 36). One of the most important issues pertaining to performance appraisals is the degree of its objectivity. Employees certainly do not want to be unfairly evaluated because that effects the rewards or compensations tied to their performance. To ensure objectivity and fairness, Gail Dutton recommends software based performance appraisals. â€Å"software-based performance-appraisals tend to focus on results and actions rather than personality traits, employees are more likely to view them as fair†. (Dutton G. (2001). Making reviews more efficient and fair. Workforce,80, p. 76). Other methods of ensuring impartial appraisals are using multiple evaluators for the appraisal process as this increases the probability of attaining more accurate information. This is because if more than one appraiser is used the chances of errors stemming from biasness, halo effect or central tendency can be reduced. Halo effect, biasness, and central tendencies are inherent problems of the appraising process that are related to the appraiser. Halo effect occurs when â€Å"the influence of a rater’s general impression on ratings of specific ratee qualities† (cited in G. Dessler, 2006). Biasness comes from the impartiality of the appraiser where the appraiser might hold something against some employee. For example, a supervisor may have a personal dislike of an employee that may affect the appraisal process. Whereas, central tendency is defined as â€Å" a tendency to rate all employees the same way, such as rating them all average†. (Dessler, 2006, p. 328). Therefore, using more than one appraiser can truly raise the accuracy of an appraisal. In addition, appraisers should be asked to appraise only those areas in which they have expertise because they will be able to precisely evaluate the areas they specialize in. Another method to increase accuracy and objectivity of appraisal is to train evaluators. Provided that evaluators are better trained they will have a clear understanding or standards and will make better decisions. (Robbins S. P. , Judge T. A. ,2007, 625). Another issue that stems from the use of software based performance appraisals is that they can contain a set of generic questions that are not suited for the jobs that are being evaluated. (Dutton G. (2001). Making reviews more efficient and fair. Workforce,80, p. 76). To overcome this issue organizations need to tailor their software to their performance evaluation needs. In order to process a fair evaluation, the questions need to be customized to the jobs that are being evaluated. Not only should it be customized to the jobs, but also to the performance standards the job entails. Doing so organizations can address this particular issue effectively. Some organizations might favor software or computer based performance appraisals because it increases efficiency of operation. It should be noted that incorporating software based performance appraisals just for speeding up the appraising process will do no good to the organization. It might help the organization effectively utilize resources, for example, time savings, and less use of paper. Nonetheless, appraisal just for the sake of appraisal should not be the prime concern of any organization. Rather even the software based appraising process should be used to support the true meaning of carrying out performance appraisals. To make the appraising process effective organizations should incorporate supportive techniques into their performance evaluations. They should use interviews as well as other tools because in my opinion no tool can undermine the importance of face to face communications. Although the software based performance appraising methods are useful, however, a combined approach of using different tools can give more accurate results. The human touch should not be totally eliminated from the appraising process. References Dessler G. (2006). Human Resource Management. Florida: Prentice Hall Dutton G. (2001). Making reviews more efficient and fair. Workforce,80, p. 76-81. McCurry P. (1999). New angle on 360-degree feedback. Director, 53, p. 36. Robbins S. P. , Judge T. A. (2007). Organizational Behavior. New Jersey: Prentice Hall

Language Key Stage 1 2 Teaching Essay

Language Key Stage 1 2 Teaching Essay Research, such as that undertaken by Piaget (1978) and Vygotsky (Krause et al, 2003), Erikson (1997) and, later on, Bronfenbrenner (Krause et al, 2003), has put child development within social, economic and environmental contexts. Language, its acquisition, and how children talk, are recognised an essential constituents of these approaches. For example, at a Piagetian level, language acts as an indicator of a childs age and stage. For Vygotsky and Erikson, it reflects the students pre-conceptions, interpretations and understandings of the world and its workings as well as levels of pro-social skills. For Bronfenbrenner, language reflects the individuals environments within specific systems ranging from personal (microsystems family, peers, teachers) to external (macrosystems culture, beliefs). Currently, the value to student learning of specific talk types has come to the fore. For example, the importance of exploratory talk (Dawes et al, 2004) within the classroom talk context (Grugeon et al, 2005) has been realised as a means of developing pro-social and thinking skills. The first section of this essay extends this validation of childrens linguistic development. It does this through a survey of how theory, reason and practise combine to define childrens talk at primary level. It also looks at the formats that have been generated to support this (e.g. National Curriculum for Key Stages 1 and 2 and the National Literacy Strategy for Key Stages 1 and 2). The second section gives a general discussion of forms of talk. The third section focuses on the classroom environment and the teachers role in an increasingly holistic approach to students language and learning. It looks at the different language forms as exemplified in Figure 1 and how a teacher can best develop a students skills through talk. As the brief survey above shows, the basic human urge to communicate has been much studied, qualified and quantified. Many of the educational models of communication (eg Lasswells, 1948 adaptation of the 5 Ws and Johnsons processes of interpersonal communication, 1986, both cited in Marsh, 2004) place parameters on childrens talk by encouraging specific forms of talk. The National Curriculum emphasises exploratory and questioning (see Table 1) language. It provides frameworks within each learning area and stage where these forms of talk can be scaffolded into a students means of communication. Understanding how children interpret, manage and convey information in important in order to effectively encourage questioning and exploration. Table 1. Examples of talking and listening in the National Curriculum Examples from the National Curriculum frameworks of teaching talk Listening Mathematics Group discussion and interaction Religious education Group discussion and interaction Science Speaking Design and technology Listening PSHE Listening Information and communication technology Listening Art and design Group discussion and interaction Music From the perspective of childrens talk, language must move through a number of stages and in doing so reflects both physical and cognitive development. It could be argued that two functions of talk, at the early stages, are as a means of learning and as something to be learnt (although arguments to a universal basic grammar point to language as instinctual eg Chomsky, 2000: Jackendoff, 1993). Gradually the parameters for this talk develop into more efficient tools with which to gather, interpret and communicate knowledge. It is important to bear in mind that language is more than just a tool for representing knowledge(Karmiloff-Smth, 1979, p.14). The influences on the childs way of, and purpose in, talking, may start as parents and carers and their specific attitudes and values their cultural capitol as Bourdieu would put it (cited in Webb et al, 2002). They also include culture and environments and, as Jackendoff (1993) points out, society. Children arrive at school with this background of child-directed speech. The amount and type of expansion and recasting appears to be linked to social, cultural and economic environments and impacts upon how a child can interpret and respond to school. Whilst this essay cannot give syntactical, phonetic, semantic or grammatical elements in childrens language development the space they deserve, their importance is acknowledged. However, the importance of oral language is now enshrined in the National Curriculum and integrated across the Key stages. As Dockrell et al (2004) point out in their examination of methods of supporting language development in young children, the approach initiated in Teaching speaking and listening in Key Stages 1 and 2 (QCA, 1999) increasingly focuses on teacher modelling. Research shows (e.g. Hart and Risley, 1995; Peterson and Siegal, 1999) how socio-economic factors and environments can influence a childs basic linguistic knowledge (eg the literacy hour (National Literacy Strategy, 1999) has intended to make up for short fall in a students pre-existing language. As the previous section briefly covers, the mode of childrens talk helps identify cognitive stage, personal knowledge, preconceptions, pro-social skills and terms of reference. It also mentions the reciprocal determinism, as Bandura (cited in Krause et al 2003)would put it, where environment is a product of both the individuals internal and external factors. However, this next section takes a level playing field approach to modes of talk. For example, leaving learning difficulties and ESL aside for the moment, a teacher would not expect a five year old to still be using the telegraphic speech (two word sentences) typical of a two year old. You may expect some over and under-extension, but essentially key stage 1 students should be demonstrating more metalinguistics awareness. Encouraging the development of metalinguistic awareness runs throughout the National Curriculum. For example the English section states: Pupils should be taught about how speech varies: in different circumstances [for example, to reflect on how their speech changes in more formal situations] to take account of different listeners [for example, adapting what they say when speaking to people they do not know]. Clearly, at the basis of this are two fundamental skills the ability to explore an issue and the ability to communicate within the parameters that have been established. Exploratory talk, as pointed out by Dawes and Wegerif (1998) is an essential skill that, for many primary school situations, needs to be taught. Their example is with regard to the use of computers by small groups. It stresses the need for children to learn to take turns talking, to listen to each other, respect each others opinions, question each other, discuss and finally agree on an outcome. Students need to know the necessary formats for this to work. For example, one student may have a very clear idea of the issue but may not be able to explain it well. Without the tools to communicate effectively, the students knowledge cannot contribute to the group. This brings us to the issue of the teacher as facilitator of constructive talk. language acquisition cannot take place in the absence of shared social and situational contexts (Chapman, 1978, cited in Bransford et al, 2000, p.94) With the goal of allowing students to develop their communication skills (and the associated processes such as literacy, pro-social skills etc), teachers need to provide a learning environment based on building confidence in enquiry. This guiding introduces a number of important issues. Firstly, the teachers must be aware of their own preconceptions, attitudes and values. For example, the curriculum demands that teachers maintain high expectations for their students. Without this, students can at best loose their enthusiasm for learning in specific areas, and at worst can sabotage their own learning. As much as a students language reflects their background values and conceptions, so can a teachers. An effective teacher needs use a number of strategies to enable students to contribute orally in a number of different formats. Modelling and motivation are just two of these strategies at work in each format. Both through drama and other exploration, children can develop a better understanding about effective communication, both verbal and non-verbal. Speaking, Listening, Learning: working with children in Key Stages 1 and 2 DfES 0626-2003 p.7 Good modelling is an essential part of a teachers repertoire. The words confidence and fluency run through the National Curriculum and one part of achieving this is to provide the students with both the vocabulary a situation demands and the means of using it. For example, Listening Mathematics involves practical activity, exploration and discussion (5.1.a Mathematics, National Curriculum). However, as Dockrell, Stuart and King (2004) consider, difficulties in defining a good oral go beyond modelling: it is not sufficient simply to provide good models; the language from the adult needs to be carefully tuned to the childs language. It needs to be offered in such a way as to extend and support, and children need plenty of opportunity to practise their fledgling skills. Dockrell et al, Supporting early oral language skills, 2004 A positive learning environment needs several elements. One, as Figure 1 shows, is motivation. This is a key element in producing types and forms of childrens talk. Young children will often talk out loud as they explore a problem, new situation, and put the issue into self-questioning and self-resolution. At this early stage, exploratory talk is often self-generated. At primary level, the teacher takes responsibility for ensuring that valid learning is taking place. Whilst exploratory talk is to be encouraged, it is more guided and learning more scaffolded, be that in a constructivist paradigm or a more structured setting. If the teacher can catch the students interest, then motivation occurs naturally. The curriculum gives four groups of speaking, listening, group discussion and interaction (Speaking, listening, learning: Working with children in KS1 and KS2 extends and supersedes the Teaching speaking and listening in Key Stages 1 and 2 (QCA, 1999)). Specifically, the teacher needs to provide individuals with talking formats and opportunity to practice them. The following is one from the English Framework: What is being talked about? Who is talking? What kind of talk? Speaking, Listening, Learning: working with children in Key Stages 1 and 2 DfES 0626-2003 (2003) Added to this could be what does this mean and how should I respond? Sadly, there is no space here to go into the excellent lesson plans and strategies (see for example Grugeon et al, 2005) for enhancing enquiry learning through exploratory talk or activities such as Talk Box activities (Dawes et al, 2004). In summary, the effective teacher needs to: develop a safe and motivational learning environment be clear and explicit (Johnston, 2004) provide and scaffold the basic tools for communication to listen and judge how successful their strategies are and reflect on how to improve them to tailor communication to individual learning styles to provide ample opportunity for students to practise these skills to use small group work develop a students metalinguistics awareness encourage a students self-regulatory processes enthuse and encourage students maintain high expectations These are just a few of the important elements in producing well-rounded, confident students. It should also be taken into account that school is a format in itself, for example playground talk is a valid component of student learning. Therefore, it is as important to listen to the vernacular as to teach confidence in the more formal contexts. Finally, this essay hopes to have conveyed an understanding of the importance of oral language. It also recognises the effect that talk has on other areas of a students learning. Good oral work enhances pupils understanding of language in both oral and written forms and of the way language can be used to communicate. It is also an important part of the process through which pupils read and compose texts. The NLS Framework for teaching YR to Y6 References and further reading Bransford, J.D., Brown, A.L., and Cocking, R.R. (eds) (2000 expanded ed) How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience and School. Commission on Behavioural and Social Sciences and Education, National Research Council, Washington, DC: National Academy Press Chapman, R.S. (1978) Comprehension strategies in children. Pp.308-329 in Speech and Language in the Laboratory, School and Clinic. J. Kavanaugh and W. Strange, (eds) Cambridge, MA: MIT Press Chomsky, N. (2000) New Horizons in the Study of Language and Mind. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press Dawes, L. and Sams, C. (2004) Talk Box: speaking and listening activities at Key Stage 1. London: David Fulton Publishers Dawes, L., Wegerif, R. and Mercer, N. (2004) Thinking together: Activites for Key Stage 2 Children and Teachers. Birmingham: Imaginative Minds DfES. The NLS Framework for teaching YR to Y6 DfESFramework for teaching (DfES 0500/2001) National Literacy Strategy: DfES Speaking, Listening, Learning: working with children in Key Stages 1 and 2 (DfES 0626-2003) DfES Grammar for writing (DfEE 0107/2000) National Literacy Strategy DfES Developing early writing (DfEE 0055/2001) National Literacy Strategy DfESMathematicalvocabulary book(DfES 0313/2000) National Numeracy Strategy DfES NLS Framework for teaching(DfES 0500-2001). National Literacy Strategy Dockrell, J., Stuart, M., and King, D. (2004) Supporting early oral language skills in Literacy Today, September 2004 Vol. 40 Erikson, E.H. (1997) The Life Cycle Completed: Extended version New York: W.W. Norton and Co. Gee, J.P. (2004) Situated Language and Learning: a critique of traditional schooling. Abingdon, Oxfordshire: Routledge Grugeon, E., Hubbard, L., Smith. C. and Dawes, L. (2005) Teaching Speaking and Listening in the Primary School. London: Fulton Press Hart., B and Risley, T.R. (1995) Meaningful differences in the everyday experience of young American children. Baltimore, MD: Paul H Brookes cited in K. Krause, S. Bochner and S. Duchesne, (2003) Educational Psychology for learning and teaching. p.21. Southbank, Victoria: Thomson Jackendoff, R. (1993) Patterns in the Mind: language and human nature. Hemel Hempstead, Herts: Harvester Wheatsheaf Johnston, P.H. (2004) Choice Words: how our language affects childrens learning. : Portland, Maine :Stenhouse Publishers Krause, K.L., Bochner, S., and Duchesne, S. (2003) Educational Psychology for learning and teaching. Southbank, Victoria:Thomson Karmilloff-Smith, A. (1979) A Functional Approach to Child Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Marsh, C. (2004) Becoming and Teacher: Knowledge, skills and issues. (3rd ed). Frenchs Forest, NSW: Pearson Education Australia Peterson, C.C., and Siegal, M. (1999) Representing inner worlds: Theory of mind in autistic, deaf and normal hearing children. Psychological Science, 10(2), pp.126-129 cited in K. Krause, S. Bochner and S. Duchesne, (2003) Educational Psychology for learning and teaching. p.21. Southbank, Victoria: Thomson Piaget, J. (1978) success and Understanding. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press Robertson, M., and Gerber, R. (Eds) (2000) The Childs World: triggers for learning. Melbourne, Australia: The Australian Council for Educational Research Webb, J., Schirato, T and Donaher, G. (2002) Understanding Bourdieu. Crows Nest, Australia: Allen and Unwin Winch, G., Johnston, R., March, P., Ljungdahl, L., and Holliday, M. (2004) Literacy: reading, writing and childrens literature. (2nd ed). Oxford: Oxford University Press Whitton, D., Sinclair, C., Barker, K., Nanlohy, P., and Nosworthy, M. (2004) Learning for Teaching: Teaching for Learning. Southbank, Victoria: Thomson Wolfe, P. (2001) Brain Matters: translating research into classroom practice. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development Websites Play and effect. http://www.genkienglish.net/playandaffect.htm. Accessed 5 Jan 2006 National Curriculum. http://curriculum.becta.org.uk/docserver.php?docid=728. Accessed 3 Jan 2006 Oral language skills.http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/Pubs/dockrell.html Accessed Jan 4 National Curriculum frameworks. http://www.standards.dfes.gov.uk/literacy/publications/framework/

Pursuing a PhD in English Literature Essay -- College Admissions Essay

Pursuing a PhD in English Literature Education has always been the highest priority in my family. After attending university and graduate school in the US, my parents moved to Florida, turning down a masters in architecture at Harvard for my mother for a position at an engineering firm for my father. Still relatively new to this country and language, my mother established her own architectural firm. In the midst of this transition, both spatially and professionally, my parents insisted on sending my brother to an expensive private school. My mother was trying to get her own firm going at the time and money was scarce. Yet the first priority was always to provide the best education for both my brother and myself no matter what the cost. Along with this focus on education, my parents have also seen it necessary to give us exposure to other cultures. Born into a family that is already multicultural, my very large extended family also helped in this regard. With relatives located in Paris, Tokyo, Seoul, Chile, as well as being spread out through most of the US, we had the opportunity to travel extensively even early on when money was scarce. These trips were always as much education as they were entertainment with a strong focus on exposing us to the arts. Museums, theater, and historical site always took precedent over relaxation and leisure. As a result of this upbringing, I have always been extremely focused on my academic pursuits. In high school I participated in numerous competitions and had my curriculum restructured to challenge me. In the end, I graduated a year early, over-eager to go to college. In retrospect this may have been a mistake. I fell into the stereotypical trap of assuming I could coast t... ...le fulfilling my parent’s own desires. Entering into academics fulfils their desires for a son with a graduate degree and a respectable career while maintaining my own interests. While my interests have developed beyond simple admiration for the texts, at the core I chose this particular path with the intent of working with something I love. Thus, my multicultural background has provided me with the education and the focus I needed. However it simultaneously hindered my interests, for a while at least. It is a continuing struggle to balance my Korean heritage with my American upbringing, embodied not in the least by my academic and professional concerns. My parents provided me with an excellent education, both formally and in our personal lives, yet the obligation incurred nearly pressured me into pursuing a life that would have been at its core dishonest.

Media Violence Essay

Television, magazines, radio, movies, and music are all forms of today’s modern media. Is it possible that our modern media could be causing crime rates to rise? Back in the 1920’s, these media’s came out so that people could stay connected with what was going on around the world. Soon, the media became a form of entertainment. Over the last five decades, the rules and guidelines of media have changed dramatically. When the media first came out, it was completely prohibited to even say something small like â€Å"pregnant† on TV, or cursing in music. However, eventually the new entertainment became old, and the producers of the media had to find ways to keep our interest. Therefore, the media starting making the previous prohibitions, non-prohibited so that they could keep our interest. In result, today the producers the media are showing mass murders and other violent things on TV, like showing murders and crimes. Music artists sing about violent actions. In many people’s eyes, the world we know as media has left a state of innocence and entertainment, to a world of violence and indecency. A plethora of people would say that change in the media has created new issues. Often times, people blame our media for crime rates that have been skyrocketing in the last five decades, especially in adolescences. In fact, violent crimes in adolescence living in America have more than doubled since the 1990’s. For this reason, we must ask, is media violence the reason for this aggressive behavior? After reading many essays, such as Mike Males essay, â€Å"Stop Blaming Kids and TV,† and Sissela Bok’s essay, â€Å"Agression:The Impact of Media Violence,† I realized that people cannot just pinpoint violent media as the cause of this new epidemic, because in reality the environments that kids live in nowadays plays a much bigger role. Therefore, through these essays, it became very clear that media violence is not the biggest issue for violence, but perhaps these children’s homes and families. The first essay I read, â€Å"Stop Blaming Kids and TV,† by Mike Males, explains to the reader that the new profound aggressive behaviors of children have little to do with our new media and more to do with their home environments. To begin Males’s essay, he starts by stating that many people believe that media violence is the cause of the new crime rate increase. Males then starts to list various groups that are strong believers of media violence being bad for kids and gives us many examples such as, â€Å"Progressives are no exception. Mother Jones claims it has proof that TV makes kids violent. And the institute of Alternative Media emphasis, the average American child will witness 200,000 acts of (TV) violence by the time that child graduates from high school† (253). Males then goes on to argue that point by stating, â€Å"None of these varied interests not that during the eighteen years between a child’s birth and graduation from high school, there will be fifteen million cases of real violence in American homes grave enough to require hospital emergency treatment† (253). He then continues by telling us that the Department of Health and Human Services said that there are over 500,000 cases of abusive parents reported each year. After the Department reported this fact, this report disappeared from the news completely after only one day (253). Another point that Males argues is that the Japanese and European kids have media just as violent as ours here in America and yet their crime rates are not nearly as high as ours. In fact, it is said that their crime rate are so low that their 17 year olds create less crime than our 77 year olds in America. Furthermore, Males then tells about his own personal experiences and what he has watched over his years of working with children. Through his own studies, he found that many of the kids who showed any acts of aggression or violence had an unstable or bad home life. For example: kids who have parents in jail or kids who have alcoholics in their families. Next, he tells us about the survey that he conducted in los angles from 400 middle school students. From this study he got that most kids’ parents are there biggest influence. Thus, when a kid sees his/her parents doing something, or acting some way, they are far more likely to act just like their parents did. To back this statement, he provided us with yet another study from the Centers for Disease Control, where they found that â€Å"75 percent of all teenage smokers come from homes where their parents smoke† (255). Males then goes on to conclude his essay by stating, â€Å"Millions of children and teenagers face real destitution, drug abuse, and violence in their homes†¦. Yet these profound menaces continue to lurk in the background†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (256) Males’s main purpose of this essay was to persuade the reader that violent media such as TV is not the only cause for why kids are violent. This essay was very effective because he used many outside sources besides himself. He used a lot of logical appeals and even a few emotional pieces throughout his essay. For his logical appeals he used university, departments, and programs that deal with the youth. These sources tend to be very credible and reliable. As the reader that makes us feel like what he is saying is very factual because he got his information from good sources. In addition He researched other countries and media violence in their countries, which was really good because what he found in those countries, was that even though those countries play the same violence and aggression on their TV’s, they have a lower crime rates which really helps back up Males’s point. Thus, for these reasons this essay was very effective in persuading the reader that TV is not to blame for this aggression. The second essay that caught my attention, â€Å"Aggression: The Impact of Media Violence,† by Sissela Bok, also explains how there is not just one thing that affects why kids are so violent but a myriad of things. As Bok begins her essay she states, â€Å"Even if media violence were linked to no other debilitating, it would remain at the center of public debate so long as the widespread belief persists that it glamourizes aggressive conduct, removes inhibitions toward such conduct, arouses viewers, and invites imitation. † (224). Next, she goes on to tell about how 21 percent of the American public blames television more than any other factors for teen violence. It is said that the media makes up for 5-15 percent of the societal violence. Furthermore, she then writes about Centerwall’s study which was published in 1989 which states that if television had not been created he believes we would have 10,000 less homicides each year (227). However, Sissela fights back to this statement by addressing that Mr. Centerwall did not take into consideration of other things that were going on at the time, like shifts in policy and population. Therefore, she persuades us that media is not a for sure topic to blame for the increase homicide rate. She continues her argument against blaming media violence by writing, â€Å"We may never be able to trace, retrospectively, the specific set of television programs that contributed to a particular persons aggressive conduct†¦. How can anyone definitively pinpoint the link between media violence and the acts of real life violence? †(228). Nevertheless, Mrs. Bok tells about her research on homicides in America and how the children homicide rates have escalated greatly, and then concludes her essay by saying: America may be the only society on earth to have experiences what has been called an â€Å"epidemic of children killing children,† which is ravaging some of its communities today. As in any epidemic, it is urgent to ask what is it that makes so many capable of such violence, victimizes so many others, and causes countless more to live in fear. Whatever role media are found to play in this respect, to be sure, is part of the problem. Obviously, not even the total elimination of media violence would wipe out the problem of violence in the United States or any other society. The same can be said for the proliferation and easy access to guns, or for poverty, drug addiction, and other risk factors. As Dr. Deborah Prothrow-Stith puts it not an either or. It’s not guns or media or parents or poverty. (228-9) Bok’s main purpose was to persuade the reader that media violence is not the only contributing factor into this new profound violence in children. She explains that there are many other factors like these kids’ home environments. This essay was effective because Bok used a lot of really good sources such as associations, psychologists, and studies, as well as many statistics that she provided for us. She also made it very clear that she had researched this topic quick deeply by going way back into the history of children’s violence in previous decades. She provided us with a very well displayed argument and even showed some of the opposing side. However, she always fought back with the opposing arguments with a better argument really building her argument into a good one. In consequence, Bok’s essay was a very effective essay and does persuade the reader into believing that media violence is not the main cause of aggression in children. Overall, Mr. Males and Mrs. Bok both had very good arguments. They both expressed their opinions and the found facts and proof to help back there thesis. While these essays did not completely take the same stand, these authors had similar views to an extent on media violence. In both of essay’s they uses logical and credible sources. In addition, in Mr. Males essay he also included a few emotional pieces, about his work with the children. Both of these essays specifically focused on the outcome of the kids and how media violence has affected them. However, both essays would like to say that media violence is not the pinpoint cause of why kids are being more violent nowadays, as opposed to in the recent decades. After reading these essays I do have to say that now I don’t believe that media violence is the may cause for aggression in adolescence. Furthermore, so who is to say that media violence is causing this aggression since there is no evidence? Better yet, why aren’t we looking at other oppositions such as children’s home environments? Either way this is an epidemic now, and it’s time we learn how to change it. It’s time for the community’s to get involved in helping to stop this epidemic. Perhaps this could be through offering more rehab programs for parents, or counseling to the children with deep levels of anger and hatred. Maybe it’s through offering anger management programs through schools, or spreading awareness, because in any situation, no matter the cause, this violence is happening, and we can’t stop it until we try. So like Sissela Bok and Mike Males, let’s look at other oppositions, and learn how to stop this violence before it gets even more out of control.

Texting While Driving Essays

Texting While Driving Essays Texting While Driving Essay Texting While Driving Essay Imagine you are driving down the highway and suddenly a car hits the car in front of you. In that car there was one adult, one teenager, and toddler, and a newborn baby. The car that was hit got flipped over multiple times. No one in the car managed to survive that accident. This all happened because the driver decided to pull out their phone and text a simple mies. Texting and driving is a huge problem in the United States. Many laws have been passed to prevent texting and driving. It also causes many deaths and injuries. Many laws have been passed to prevent the danger of texting and driving. As said by Robert A Heinlein, l am free, no matter what rules surround me. If I find them tolerable, I tolerate them; if I find them too obnoxious, I break them. I am free because I know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do. am part of the generation that had a cell phone long before having a car. As a society, we have become more and more dependent upon the use of cell phones. They have enabled us to stay connected to the world. With smart phones, we can now check the weather, email, and that eBay item we really want to win in a bidding war. When we talk or kook at a cell phone, our attention span becomes very limited. The emotional stress while talking on a cell phone can lead to decreased awareness on what is happening around a person. Personally, I see no difference between talking on a cell phone and watching a television show. Every day, I see many people on cell phones while driving. I see drivers in cars, Subs, and semi trucks all holding a phone up to their ear while making one-handed turns. I think back to when I received my drivers license and how important it was to have my hands on the wheel at ten and two-o- clock. I remember being told by my driving instructor to always be aware of what is happening twelve seconds ahead of me. Looking at all of these cell phone users on the road, I cant imagine they even know what is going on five seconds ahead of them. I have heard that a persons attention span is decreased four times while talking on a cell phone. A decreased attention span of four times is also the same as a person with a blood alcohol level of . 08. Studies have shown that testing and driving is twice as risky as talking on a cell phone. With more and more teenagers acquiring cell hones, up to fifty percent of teens admit to testing while driving. In my personal opinion, we, as a society, should make cell phone use illegal while driving on the road. I have heard about all of the accidents associated with cell phone use and I am bewildered that we havent made any action to address this issue. I love the fact that hands-free devices are an option with new technology coming out; as of recently, we have developed voice activated calling thats now included in newer models of cars. Sure, Michigan has made it illegal to text while driving, but what about talking on a bile device? I cant help but think about all of the times I have been on the highway and have witnessed drivers making lane changes without looking because they had a phone up to their ear. Drivers on cell phones also have an eighteen percent slower reaction time to brake lights. Several states have already banned the use of cell phones while driving. The carelessness needs to stop! We need to reprimand those who are putting others lives at risk on the road. If we cant confront and enforce this issue, the deaths will Just keep on coming. Testing while driving By sparseness

Free Essays on Japans Declining Population

Japan’s Declining Population One of the world’s most advanced nations, economically and technologically, is Japan. Yet, economic growth has been stagnant for the past several years, and the long-term view is clouded by a question of demographics. Japan is a densely populated nation; it averages 332 people per square kilometer, as compared to 105 in France and 28 in the United States. (Cutter, Renwick 1999) The problem here however is not overpopulation; it is the decline in Japan’s birthrate. Japan is moving rapidly down the road towards a society with fewer children and an aging population, with a speed unprecedented anywhere else in the world. Japan’s total birthrate is declining year by year, while its average life expectancy is increasing. According to the national census, Japan’s population stood at 125.6 million as of October 1, 1999. (Flakus 2000) In terms of population, Japan now ranks seventh in the world following in order China, India, the United States, Indonesia, Brazil and Russia. As in other industrial countries, Japan’s population growth has slowed in recent years despite a steady decrease in the death rate. The government fears fewer babies – births are down to an all-time low of 1.39 per woman. This will mean a less prosperous, more troubled and lonelier Japan. The trend will increasingly squeeze funds needed to provide for the rapidly increasing numbers of elderly among the approximate 130 million Japanese. (Coleman 2001) The Health and Welfare Ministry announced in June that the current birthrate is far below what is needed to keep population steady. Within a decade, the total population will begin to fall. (Kakuchi 2001) The main reason for low fertility rates, as in most other countries with population problems, is the idea of wealth. Women in Japan are now becoming more independent; the traditional roles of housewives and mother are no longer being instilled in them from an early childho... Free Essays on Japan's Declining Population Free Essays on Japan's Declining Population Japan’s Declining Population One of the world’s most advanced nations, economically and technologically, is Japan. Yet, economic growth has been stagnant for the past several years, and the long-term view is clouded by a question of demographics. Japan is a densely populated nation; it averages 332 people per square kilometer, as compared to 105 in France and 28 in the United States. (Cutter, Renwick 1999) The problem here however is not overpopulation; it is the decline in Japan’s birthrate. Japan is moving rapidly down the road towards a society with fewer children and an aging population, with a speed unprecedented anywhere else in the world. Japan’s total birthrate is declining year by year, while its average life expectancy is increasing. According to the national census, Japan’s population stood at 125.6 million as of October 1, 1999. (Flakus 2000) In terms of population, Japan now ranks seventh in the world following in order China, India, the United States, Indonesia, Brazil and Russia. As in other industrial countries, Japan’s population growth has slowed in recent years despite a steady decrease in the death rate. The government fears fewer babies – births are down to an all-time low of 1.39 per woman. This will mean a less prosperous, more troubled and lonelier Japan. The trend will increasingly squeeze funds needed to provide for the rapidly increasing numbers of elderly among the approximate 130 million Japanese. (Coleman 2001) The Health and Welfare Ministry announced in June that the current birthrate is far below what is needed to keep population steady. Within a decade, the total population will begin to fall. (Kakuchi 2001) The main reason for low fertility rates, as in most other countries with population problems, is the idea of wealth. Women in Japan are now becoming more independent; the traditional roles of housewives and mother are no longer being instilled in them from an early childho...

earths geological history essays

earths geological history essays Scientist would need a variety of different pieces of evidence to document the scope and scale of geologic history. The earth is billions of years old, therefore rocks are obvious evidence of it's geologic history. Since all natural land masses ever created on earth stay on earth, it is a fact that the scope and scale can be determined by using it as evidence. The movement of the land masses and land creations can help determine the scope and scale of earth's geologic history. Rocks are obvious evidence of geologic history. Rocks come from the interior of the earth. They are created from magma, and change its form over years of weathering. Scientist also use rock layering as evidence for the Earth's age. The earth's crust has many different layers which represent many different time periods. The amount of years are shown in a time period. Rocks change over time, and that is absolutely what evidence scientist need to document the scope and scale of geologic history. The movement and creation of large land masses are suitable evidence for a scientist to help document the scope and scale of earths geologic history. Over time the large land masses move and change shape and Scientist are able to estimate the years of changes. It took billions of years to separate "Pangea" into separate continents. Along with the movement of the large land masses fossils, bones, and rocks are buried underground. Since the continents were once connected, there was massive earth movements which separated the large land mass known as Pangea. Mountains, rivers, and seas were created and are evidence that can be used . Scientist would need a variety of different pieces of evidence to document the scope and scale of geologic history. Rocks, movement of large land masses and land creations are evidence scientist can use to document the scope and scale of earths geologic history. Everything ever created naturally on earth stays on earth, t...

Recent Earthquake Analysis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Recent Earthquake Analysis - Research Paper Example American Plate (moving towards west) encounters the Caribbean Plate (moving towards east), causing a relatively active zone of subduction and systems of volcanic island-arc. The Antilles zone of subduction is in the southeast direction of this. In the same manner, the South Sandwich Islands which are located in the southern Atlantic also indicate an active zone of subduction. In this case, the Atlantic Plate undergoes subduction under the Antarctic Plate, leading to the creation of the volcanic South Sandwich Islands (Salkey, 59). The majority of highly destructive tsunamis in the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean were caused by either the result of volcanic eruption or seismic (earthquake) activity. A considerable proportion of these led to localized death and damage, but no regionally catastrophic scale damages beyond the Caribbean. There are numerous unconfirmed and confirmed tsunami events that led to localized flooding, particularly in the Caribbean Islands and South Sandwich Islands. There have been slightly over 50 confirmed tsunamis, differing in size, around the Caribbean Islands and South Sandwich Islands since the year 1530 (Selinus,

[Banking and Management] Assess the advantages and limitations of Essay

[Banking and Management] Assess the advantages and limitations of universal banking OR all purpose financial institutions - Essay Example tional economic investments, the Chinese banking sector has undertaken the strategies of integrating investment services, advisory and underwriting service, home finance and asset management under the same umbrella of the commercial services provided the banks. The universal banking service offered by the Chinese state-owned banks has certain advantages as well as the limitations. On one hand, the aspect of universal banking enables the banks to increase their sales revenues and profitability by catering to the investment demands of the worldwide markets apart from the commercial services. The limitations of offering universal banking products and services lay due to the fluctuation of international economic conditions and the fluctuation of interest rates, exchange rate that would increase the risk exposure of the investment services. The concept of universal banking includes a wide range of financial services provided by the banks in order to cater to the regular banking as well as the investment needs of the customers. The aspect of â€Å"all purpose financial institutions† is related to offering comprehensive service to the customers that also help the banks to diversify the risk of their business. The various banking products and solutions that are offered under the system of universal banking includes savings and deposits accounts, loans and credit services, management of assets, investment service, underwriting services, financial analysis, advisory services, processing of payments, etc. However, banks may choose to offer specific products and services in a universal banking system depending on their specializations. The Chinese banks have been recently named by a magazine as the one of the world’s largest and profitable banks in the world (Linda and Julapa, 2000, p.33). However, this does not mean that the Chinese banking sector is more resilient to the complexities of international economies. Although developments in the Chinese banking sector have

Video Analysis on Love the Way You Lie Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Video Analysis on Love the Way You Lie - Article Example It also strongly implies the involvement of domestic violence in this relationship. Performed by hip-hop rapper Eminem and RnB singer Rihanna, both the song and its music video shows the perspectives of both parties. In both angles, it is clear that the two are experiencing a rough time. The relationship clearly shows how two very different people who are absolutely wrong for each other decide to stay together. This brings about a downward spiral in their relationship and just carries on to add fuel to the fire, as things spiral uncontrollably. Eminem and Rihanna, representing the voice of the couple in the relationship, is evidently having an extremely outrageous and difficult time in trying to fix a relationship that was never meant to bring any good. Both Rihanna and Eminem are currently two of the highest chart-topping artists and performers of the previous two decades. They are among the most influential people in pop culture that continues to bear a great impact on teenagers and young adults worldwide and inadvertently, both have played very public roles on the opposite ends of their own personal violent relationships. Eminem, a renowned rapper, emerged to prominence and fame in the later year of the nineties with a succession of controversial and provocative albums, some wherein he has openly expressed and suggested through rap the dark emotions and sentiments of murdering his ex-wife. On the other hand, Rihanna originally comes from Barbados has just recently endured a very public attack by her ex-boyfriend and RnB singer Chris Brown.  Ã‚  

Virtual Intimacy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Virtual Intimacy - Research Paper Example The history of virtual intimacy can also be traced in older times. It was in practice with the help of letters (pen friendships) and telephones (telephonic friendships: a bit newer trend than pen friendship). These practices were not so much common and were only revolving around a certain group of people usually with literary taste. It was a practice of patience so young generation was rarely found indulged in such relationships (Psy.D.). During the age of technology, people who were dreaded of loneliness found a way out to get rid of anxiety and stressful individualist life. They started finding happiness in their desktops. Virtual intimacy and distant cyber oriented relationships no doubt have introduced us with a number of social and communal melodies with incurable side effects. Youth has abundantly distracted in the way of finding their glee in their computers. Cyber crimes were augmented significantly during the age of virtual intimacy (Halder et al 32). These crimes include ha cking, personal information theft, online passwords theft, credit cards theft and fake identity show off. Levels of virtual intimacy are several including general friendships, love relationship and sexual relationships using web cameras and audio applications. Lack of trust and fake identity representation has destroyed the entire beauty of social networking. People are usually representing their identity in false grounds to timely enjoy with others (Gizmodo). Apart from social networking sites, internet media has introduced online dating services where individuals can find their dating partners to exhale their desperate feelings of affections. Since Maslow has identified social and affection need of human being, it has now justified because people cannot survive in individualist cultures (Halder et al 34). When the debate of real versus virtual relationships comes into being, it can easily be justified that level of trust is vulnerable in actual and physical relations in today†™s technological age. In the scenario of uncertain physical intimate relations, it is really hard to trust upon unseen people on internet in order to plunge in to a relationship. In some cases, people reach to marriages but such marriages are not long terms due to abundantly spoken lies (Kiesbye 21). People are lean to plunge in to virtual relations because they do not feel any sort of binding or accountability. They can utilize their leisure in better way. It also offers diversity to people. If a person joins an international dating forum, he or she can get a very diverse choice of people. For example, females in western countries are more interested in Asian men and men in Asian countries like to have a white lady. This collision in choices stimulates them to have a platform to get connected with people of their desire. Many people are fond of travelling and networking, for this purpose they remain connected with many people of their interest areas who can provide them help when needed (Panteli 101). A very broadly observed phenomenon is curse of foreign nationality in men of less developed countries. They get contacts with foreign woman who can support them to come abroad for better earnings. However this is observed lesser. Nowadays people are interested in short term relationships without any sense of accountability and responsibility. Which is why they either virtually intimated with others or they look for shorter term need fulfillment

Mental health (a patient with bipolar who had a three years old baby) Essay

Mental health (a patient with bipolar who had a three years old baby) - Essay Example As par the report published in the MNT Knowledge Centre (2013), Bipolar disorder can be define as one kind of mental disorder which is associated with extreme change of mood of the patient along with fluctuation in the energy and activity levels. According to this report, bipolar disorder is one of the most severe mental illnesses which often destroy relationship, affect carrier perspective, and also affect the academics of the patient. Bipolar disorder sometime destroys family structure as well. A patient affected by this bipolar disorder often considers it very difficult to complete its day to day normal work. The research regarding this disease pointed out the fact that people affected from this disease sometimes also suffer from some other more common diseases as well like asthma, high blood pressure, etc. which sometimes make it more difficult for the doctors to carry out the treatment. The disease like bipolar disorder not only need proper medical attention but also need proper care, mental support from the close family member to get over the mental block that they used to be in. In this paper the main objective is to analysis the bipolar disorder-what it means for different medical people, how different medical journal define this, what are the main characteristics of this disease, what are different types of bipolar disorder, the present trend of treatment, post treatment care etc. In this paper a case is being considered where the patient is suffering from bipolar disorder along with anyone other common disease. Overview of the Patient: In this paper, the discussion is all about Susie, a bipolar disorder patient. Her case is represented by Cooper. According to the description of Cooper (nd), Susie is a 20 year old college student whose behavior for the last five days was really strange. She never sleeps in last five days and was busy in â€Å"heightened state of activity† which she herself describe as â€Å"out of control† activities. In this paper, the discussion will be a basic overview of the disease, different social, medical and mental characteristics of the patient who are suffering from this disease. What is the basic treatment process of bipolar disorder and what are the different after effect of the treatment that the patient used to face and how one can overcome those. Signs of Bipolar Disorder: Cooper in his review pointed out various characteristics which are observed by the medical officials while studying the social characteristic changes in Susie. Some of her thinking is centered on the present political condition. She used to believe that she had changed her soul with the present senator of her state, and also have some theories, in fact six specific theories which according to her can single handedly save the world from nuclear destruction. She used to share her theories with friends and professors in the university and also starts to campaign for an elected position in the US government. Although t here were no elections scheduled at that point of time. Cooper in his analysis also pointed out the fact that, from the fear of forgetting, Susie used to note down all the theories that she used to discuss with her friends in her room, computer, notebooks etc. From the feedback of her friends and family it was clear that she used to be very organized and tidy.

Historical Documentary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Historical Documentary - Essay Example But one form of documentary was on an upwards curve even into the new millennium - the history documentary" Documentary films are non-fiction films which portray the events which have already happened and which are happening at the moment. This developed in time to be the historical documentaries which have entered a golden age in the literal sense of the word. This boom is attributed to many factors like the political changes, the crucial event in a country, the anxious arrival of the millennium, the unpredicted development of technology, and the accessibility of information. It is also due to freedom of information, favourable political and economical factors, the establishments of film archives, the regular transformation of the filmgoers and producers, prevailing nostalgia of what we left behind and the demand for more real historical events. Over and above these causes, the other noteworthy change was the co productions of history documentaries and political and economical conditions which added to the flourishing of these types of documentaries. "The documentary--whether it is a written account, a photograph, or a film--has long served as one of the primary sources for historians writing about the past as well as one of the key forms, historians use to communicate their stories about the past." (Professor Jill Watts -History 300B, spring 2007) Documentary film was actually born of the written and photographic tradition Initially, documentary films were just current events which had certain significance for the people living at that particular period of time. This created a genre of films which have a say not for the universal time but for only a period. This type of documentary would have had its heyday only when certain pulverizing events such as wars and political controversies took place. When the heat of the debate wears off, there is no more interest on the specific documentary anymore. History Documentary films have reflected attitudes and internal changes in British society for a century. British documentary as a notable movie genre surfaced around 1906. From then on documentary films began establishing a theme. The theme usually focused on the way of life of British working class and rarely touched on other types as well. An apt example of this is 'The Drifters' by Grierson The growth of Documentaries It is essential to note that the government and national agencies funded the production and distribution of such documentaries in the 1920s and 1930s. Popular agencies which got involved in this type of film making are the Ministries of Transport, Trade, Information, the General Post Office and Empire Marketing Board. The British documentary directors were all socialists and their documentaries such as Workers for Jobs by Arthur Elton in 1934, and then by Edgar Anstey in 1935 to devastating effect in Housing Problems for the Gas Light and Coal Company were technically advanced, using the latest film equipment in novel and exciting ways. They used synchronized sound-recording on location. Another important factor to note is that the 16mm film became standardized by Eastman and Bell & Howell in 1923 and the films were exhibited at cinemas as a

Virtual Intimacy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Virtual Intimacy - Research Paper Example The history of virtual intimacy can also be traced in older times. It was in practice with the help of letters (pen friendships) and telephones (telephonic friendships: a bit newer trend than pen friendship). These practices were not so much common and were only revolving around a certain group of people usually with literary taste. It was a practice of patience so young generation was rarely found indulged in such relationships (Psy.D.). During the age of technology, people who were dreaded of loneliness found a way out to get rid of anxiety and stressful individualist life. They started finding happiness in their desktops. Virtual intimacy and distant cyber oriented relationships no doubt have introduced us with a number of social and communal melodies with incurable side effects. Youth has abundantly distracted in the way of finding their glee in their computers. Cyber crimes were augmented significantly during the age of virtual intimacy (Halder et al 32). These crimes include ha cking, personal information theft, online passwords theft, credit cards theft and fake identity show off. Levels of virtual intimacy are several including general friendships, love relationship and sexual relationships using web cameras and audio applications. Lack of trust and fake identity representation has destroyed the entire beauty of social networking. People are usually representing their identity in false grounds to timely enjoy with others (Gizmodo). Apart from social networking sites, internet media has introduced online dating services where individuals can find their dating partners to exhale their desperate feelings of affections. Since Maslow has identified social and affection need of human being, it has now justified because people cannot survive in individualist cultures (Halder et al 34). When the debate of real versus virtual relationships comes into being, it can easily be justified that level of trust is vulnerable in actual and physical relations in today†™s technological age. In the scenario of uncertain physical intimate relations, it is really hard to trust upon unseen people on internet in order to plunge in to a relationship. In some cases, people reach to marriages but such marriages are not long terms due to abundantly spoken lies (Kiesbye 21). People are lean to plunge in to virtual relations because they do not feel any sort of binding or accountability. They can utilize their leisure in better way. It also offers diversity to people. If a person joins an international dating forum, he or she can get a very diverse choice of people. For example, females in western countries are more interested in Asian men and men in Asian countries like to have a white lady. This collision in choices stimulates them to have a platform to get connected with people of their desire. Many people are fond of travelling and networking, for this purpose they remain connected with many people of their interest areas who can provide them help when needed (Panteli 101). A very broadly observed phenomenon is curse of foreign nationality in men of less developed countries. They get contacts with foreign woman who can support them to come abroad for better earnings. However this is observed lesser. Nowadays people are interested in short term relationships without any sense of accountability and responsibility. Which is why they either virtually intimated with others or they look for shorter term need fulfillment

Historical Documentary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Historical Documentary - Essay Example But one form of documentary was on an upwards curve even into the new millennium - the history documentary" Documentary films are non-fiction films which portray the events which have already happened and which are happening at the moment. This developed in time to be the historical documentaries which have entered a golden age in the literal sense of the word. This boom is attributed to many factors like the political changes, the crucial event in a country, the anxious arrival of the millennium, the unpredicted development of technology, and the accessibility of information. It is also due to freedom of information, favourable political and economical factors, the establishments of film archives, the regular transformation of the filmgoers and producers, prevailing nostalgia of what we left behind and the demand for more real historical events. Over and above these causes, the other noteworthy change was the co productions of history documentaries and political and economical conditions which added to the flourishing of these types of documentaries. "The documentary--whether it is a written account, a photograph, or a film--has long served as one of the primary sources for historians writing about the past as well as one of the key forms, historians use to communicate their stories about the past." (Professor Jill Watts -History 300B, spring 2007) Documentary film was actually born of the written and photographic tradition Initially, documentary films were just current events which had certain significance for the people living at that particular period of time. This created a genre of films which have a say not for the universal time but for only a period. This type of documentary would have had its heyday only when certain pulverizing events such as wars and political controversies took place. When the heat of the debate wears off, there is no more interest on the specific documentary anymore. History Documentary films have reflected attitudes and internal changes in British society for a century. British documentary as a notable movie genre surfaced around 1906. From then on documentary films began establishing a theme. The theme usually focused on the way of life of British working class and rarely touched on other types as well. An apt example of this is 'The Drifters' by Grierson The growth of Documentaries It is essential to note that the government and national agencies funded the production and distribution of such documentaries in the 1920s and 1930s. Popular agencies which got involved in this type of film making are the Ministries of Transport, Trade, Information, the General Post Office and Empire Marketing Board. The British documentary directors were all socialists and their documentaries such as Workers for Jobs by Arthur Elton in 1934, and then by Edgar Anstey in 1935 to devastating effect in Housing Problems for the Gas Light and Coal Company were technically advanced, using the latest film equipment in novel and exciting ways. They used synchronized sound-recording on location. Another important factor to note is that the 16mm film became standardized by Eastman and Bell & Howell in 1923 and the films were exhibited at cinemas as a

”Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe Essay Example for Free

†Things Fall Apart† by Chinua Achebe Essay In †Things Fall Apart† Chinua Achebe takes us to a Nigerian village at the time of the British colonization of Africa where substantial changes are affecting the inhabitants. Okonkwo is a proud African man who strives to succeed in the Igbo society. In his early days he created a name for himself by being a successful wrestler. He then put enormous effort into making his farm prosperous by working hard and creating a big family. That he appreciates hard work and discipline defines him as a father. When he realizes that his oldest son Nwoye is not of the quality he requires, he feels himself obligated to take action mostly with the use of violence thought he finds little pleasure in beating the children and views. It is rather a way to obtain respect and his way of parenting. To some extent this domestic aggression is accepted and is an acknowledged part of the Igbo culture. Apart from the elevated position he acquires other clansmen do not always agree with his impulsive nature as for the incident during the week of peace when he beat his wife. At first sight Okonkwo is a confident man who has no fears. This is deeply rooted in the view of how a man should be in their culture where the ability to not show any emotions is highly redeemed. But actually, a lot of his actions can be traced back to fear and insecurity. This fear clearly has to do with Unoka, his work-shy father who left nothing over to his son but debt after his death. Eventually, these moral standards conflict Okonkwo when affection starts to grow for Ezinma, the daughter of his second wife, feelings which he experiences are difficult to handle. He also feels especially bad after he killed the adopted boy Igbomefuna, an act that puts Okonkwo in a depression that if nothing else demonstrates that something has changed in his character. †Okonkwo was also feeling tired, and sleepy, for although nobody else knew it, he had not slept at all last night. He had felt very anxious but did not show it. When Ekwefi had followed the priestess, he had allowed what was  regarded as reasonable and manly interval to pass and then gone with his machete to the shire†. (p 82) One could wonder why he follows even though the priestess had requested to be alone with Ezinma during the sprititualic ritual. It is evident that breaking the rules of the ritualic traditions is not something he could let himself do easily. Not mainly would it be fright of the gods. Okonkwo tries to keep up a facede which involves obeying the traditions of his ancestors as for not showing emotions. And with a past as a warrior it is understandable why he is keen to not look weak. Reference list: Things Fall Apart – Chinua Achebe Litterature Criticism And Theory – Andrew Bennet Nicholas Royle (p.63-70)

Project development management process

Project development management process INTRODUCTION PROJECT MANAGEMENT: is the art and science of planning, organizing and managing, the vision, task, and resources to bring about the successful completion of specific project goals and objectives. Project Management in software development process can be referred to as the application of management techniques and system execution of a software project through the projects life-cycle in order to achieve predetermined objectives of scope, quality, time and cost to the equal satisfaction of those involved. It involves planning, monitoring, and control of people, process and event that take place as software evolves from an initial concept to an operational implementation. [6] SOFTWARE: Software comprises of programs and associated data and documentation. Each of these items is a part of software development process. The main problems for software development currently are: high cost, low quality and frequent changes causing change and rework. Software has become a limiting factor in the evolution of computer-based systems. The intent of software development is to produce a framework for building higher quality software. In order to achieve successful and quality software certain methods and criteria need to be followed. These methods and criteria are classified as the software development processes. [6] SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT PROCESSES: is a structure imposed on the development of a software product. The process includes the phase approach to software development, software development models, the software development processes and the software project management processes. There are several models for such processes, each describing approaches to a variety of tasks or activities that take place during the process. These processes are carried out in a step by step criteria so as to come up with a successful project where by a successful project start with a step back and understanding business drivers, the problem or opportunity that accelerates the project. [6] A PHASED APPROACH TO SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT A development process consists of various phases, with each phase ending with a defined output. The phases are performed in an order specified by the software development process model. The primary reason for using a phased process is that it breaks the problem of developing software into successfully performed set of phases, each handling a different concern of software development. This ensures that the cost of development is lower than what it would have been if the whole problem were tackled together. [4][6][2] Furthermore, a phase software developmental approach allows proper checking of quality and progress at some defined points during the development. In general, any problem solving in software must consist of these activities during the development process: requirement specification, system design, detailed design, coding and testing, deployment and conversion as shown in figure 1. [6] Requirement Specifications: defines the objectives of new or modified system and lists a detailed statement of the functions that new system must perform. Analysis: during analysis, the focus is on building models that unambiguously determine the problem for which a software solution is being constructed. At this stage the limitations of the target environment is not given a priority. Design: the analysis model is adapted such that it serves as the basis for implementation in the target environment. Hence, the design deals with transforming or refining the analysis model into a design model that determines how to eventually obtain a working system. Implementation: at this stage, the coding of the system is performed Testing: testing deals with the validation of software at various levels. Testing can be categorized as follows: Unit: deals with testing the smallest units of the designed software. Integration: integration testing deals with testing the application that has been (partially) put together by integrating the smallest software units. Basically it involves testing individual software modules as a group. Validation: this involve in testing whether the software functions in a manner expected by the user. System: this is carried out at the after the integration and validation testing, system testing deals with different test whose primary purpose is to fully exercise the computer-based system. Although each test has a different purpose, all work should verify that all system elements have been properly integrated and perform allocated functions. Recovery: recovery testing involves system tests that force the software to fail in a variety of ways and verifies that recovery is properly performed. Security: this testing verifies that protection mechanisms built into a system will, in fact, protect it from improper usage and unauthorized access. It ensures adherence to restrictions on command usage, access to data, and access requirement according to associated privileges. Stress: the stress testing involves executing a system in a manner that demands resources in abnormal quantity, frequency, or volume. In other words, stress testing helps find out the level of robustness and consistent or satisfactory performance even when the limits for normal operation for the system software is crossed. Conversion: during this phase, the old system is substitute by the new system that has been developed. Four approaches can be adopted to achieve the conversion transformation [Harold] namely: Parallel: in this approach both the old and new system are run together until everyone involve in the project is convinced that the old one can be safely taken out of operation. Direct Cutover: at this stage, the old system is discarded and replaced by the new one, all at the same time. Pilot study: during the pilot study approach, the new system is introduced into a very limited area of the organization. It is not introduced any further into the rest of the organization as long as the pilot system does not begin running smoothly. Phased: the phased approach involve the introduction of the new system in stages. The pilot study approach can be considered as a special case of this approach. Maintenance: software maintenance process is the modification of a software product after delivery to correct faults, to improve performance or other attributes, or to adapt the product to a modified environment. At this stage the system has to be kept operational. The nature and extent of activity during this process depend on the type of software being developed. For some support software, the maintenance and operation phase may be very active due to changing user needs. [7] SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT PROCESSES Software development processes are the structures or processes imposed on the development of a software product. To produce a successful and qualitative software product certain processes management criteria need to be considered. [6] A process is a particular method of doing something, generally involving a number of steps or operations. A software development project will have at least development activities and project management activities. The development process focuses on the activities directly related to the production of software that is design, coding, and testing. Project management processes focus on planning, estimation, scheduling and taking corrective action when things do not go as per plan. [6][7] Configuration management processes focus on change and configuration control, so that the correct, tested and approved version of software component are put together for delivery. The process management processes focus on the management and improvement of these processes. The four named processes will be discussed in detail. Development Processes: these processes specify the major development and quality assurance activities that need to be performed in the project, and hence form the core of the software development processes. [7] Software development activity like any production activity is carried out in a sequence of steps, each step performing a well-defined activity leading to the satisfaction of the project goals, with the output of one step forming the input into the next step. One of the aims of any process should be to prevent defect from a phase to pass on to the next phase. This requires verification and validation activity at the end of each step. Verification checks the consistency of input into a phase, while validation activities check the consistency with user needs. There is a clearly defined output of a phase, which can be verified by some means, and the input into the next phase. Such outputs of a development process are called work products. These could be requirements documents, design documents, code, and prototype. [5] As a development process typically contains a sequence of step, the criteria for exit and entry from the phase are to be defined. These generally depend on the implementation of the process. Besides the verification and validation criteria, the development step needs to produce some information for the management process. Information has to flow from development process. An example of a typical step in a development process is illustrated in figure 2. [8] Project Management Processes: the project management component of the software process specifies all the activities that need to be done by the project management to ensure that the cost and quality objectives are met. Project management is an integrated part of software development. To meet the cost, quality and schedule objectives, resources have to be properly allotted to each activity for the project, the progress of the different activities has to be monitored, and corrective action taken, if needed. The processes focus on issues like planning a project, estimating resources, and schedule and monitoring and controlling the project. The basic task is to plan the detailed implementation of the process for a particular project and ensure that the plan is followed. [5][6] Software Configuration Management Processes: throughout development, software consist of a collection of items, such as programs, data and documents that can be easily changed. These changes do happen often. The easily changeable nature of software and the fact that changes often take place require that changes take place in a controlled manner. Software configuration Management systematically controls the changes that take place during development. Basically it is the task of tracking and controlling changes in the software. Configuration management practices include revision control and the establishment of baselines. It is also the process of changing requests and verifying the completeness and correctness of item. These processes are considered independent of the development process, because development processes cannot accommodate changes at any time during development. [6] Process Management Processes: software processes are also not static entities. Process management processes concentrate on the changes that need to be done to improve the process. The three important entities that software development deals with are processes, projects and products. The various software processes ensure that the activities require to develop software are carried out in a controlled manner. [6] CONCLUDE SUMMARY Software development management process consist of various phases, each phase ending with a successful defined output, making it possible to move to the next phase accordingly. The phases are performed in an order specified by the process model criteria being followed. The software development process goes through several phases just like the software development life cycles. The software development process consists of four management processes which are development processes, project management processes, software configuration management processes and the process management processes. The four Ps extremely vital for software project development management are people, product, process and project. All four play equally important roles in the success of a project.

Personality Essay -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Psychology covers a huge field and one interesting aspect of it is personality. Personality by itself involves various issues. Some aspects are Psychoanalytic, Ego, Biological, Behaviorist, Cognitive, Trait, and Humanistic. Different types of behaviors are amazing to learn about, mainly the behavior therapy, collective behavior, crime and punishment, and Social behavior and peer acceptance in children. I chose Behaviorism over the other aspects because I believe behavior determines human personality and is very interesting. You can tell what one is by his behavior, and one behaves according to what place he has in society. By doing this paper on Behavior, I hope to get a better understanding of, if behavior develops a personality or if personality guides behavior. I also see behaviorism helping me in the future with my personal and professional career by understanding human personality and behavior better than I do. No matter what your major is , if you can determine one's personality by his behavior you can really get your work done from that person and understand the better than you would otherwise. This person could be your employee or your employer. Behavior Therapy Behavior therapy is the application of experimentally derived principles of learning to the treatment of psychological disorders. The concept derives primarily from work of Russian psychologist Ivan Pavlov. Behavior-therapy techniques differ from psychiatric methods, particularly psychoanalysis, in that they are predominately symptom (behavior) oriented and shows little or no concern for unconscious processes, achieving new insight, or effecting fundamental personality change. The U.S. psychologist B.F. Skinner, who worked with mental patients in a Massachusetts State hospital, popularized behavior therapy. From his work in animal learning, Skinner found that the establishment and extinction of responses can be determined by the way reinforces, or rewards, are given. The pattern of reward giving, both in time and frequency, is known as a schedule of reinforcement. The gradual change in behavior in approximation of the desired result is known as shaping. More recent developments in behavior therapy emphasize the adaptive nature of cognitive processes. Behavior-therapy techniques have been applied with some success to such disturbances as enuresis (bed-wetting), tics, phobias, stutteri... ...nvolving children to learn social acceptance showed us clearly how one behaves makes him what he is. I believe the same for adults. I believe if one behaves in a certain way for a long time, not only society with believe you are what you are behaving as but he himself will start believing he is what he is behaving as. Also I have learned to be more patient with people because I take a step in the further and think why a person would behave in a particular way. I now can see a clear difference between normal and abnormal behaviors. Benjamin, L. S. (1982). Use of structural analysis of social behavior (SASB) to guide intervention in psychotherapy. In J. C. Anchin & D. J. Kiesler (Eds.), Handbook of interpersonal psychotherapy (pp. 190-212). New York: Pergamon. Benis A.M. Toward Self & Sanity: On the Genetic Origins of the Human Character. Psychological Dimensions Publishers, New York, 1985 http://pmc.psych.nwu.edu/personality.html Carson, R. C. (1969). Interaction concepts of personality. Chicago: Aldine Gurtman, M. B. (1992b). Trust, distrust, and interpersonal problems: A circumplex analysis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 62, 989-1002.

Madness and Insanity in Shakespeares Hamlet - Both a Sane and Insane Hamlet :: GCSE Coursework Shakespeare Hamlet

Sane or Insane Hamlet: Support for both Positions Shakespeare's tragic hero, Hamlet, and his sanity can arguably be discussed. Many portions of the play supports his loss of control in his actions, while other parts uphold his ability of dramatic art. The issue can be discussed both ways and altogether provide significant support to either theory. There are indications from Hamlet throughout the play of his mind's well being. Hamlet's antic disposition may have caused him in certain times that he is in a roleplay. Hamlet has mood swings as his mood changes abruptly throughout the play. Hamlet appears to act mad when he hears of his father's murder. At the time he speaks wild and whirling words:Why, right; you are I' the right; And so, without more circumstance at all, I hold it fit that we shake hands and part... [Act I, scene V, lines 127-134]. It seems as if there are two Hamlets in the play, one that is sensitive and an ideal prince, and the insane barbaric Hamlet who from an outburst of passion and rage slays Polonius with no feeling of remorse, Thou wretched, rash, intruding fool, farewell! / I took thee for thy better. Take thy fortune;/ Thou find'st to be too busy is some danger.- [Act III. scene IV, lines 31-33] and then talks about lugging his guts into another room. After Hamlet kills Polonius he will not tell anyone where the body is. Instead he assumes his ironic matter which others take it as madness. Not where he eats, but where he is eaten. / A certain convocation of political w orms a e'en at him. [Act IV, scene III, lines 20-21] If your messenger find him not there, seek him I' th' other place yourself. But, indeed, if you find him not within this month, you shall nose him as you go up the stairs into the lobby. [Act IV, scene iii, lines 33-36]. Hamlet's behavior throughout the play, especially towards Ophelia is inconsistent. He jumps into Ophelia's grave, and fights with Laertes in her grave. He professes I loved Ophelia. Forty thousand brothers/Could not, with all their quantity of love,/ Make up my sum [Act V, scene I, lines 250-253], during the fight with Laertes in Ophelia's grave, but he tells her that he never loved her, when she returns his letters and gifts, while she was still alive. Hamlet subtly hints his awareness of his dissolving sanity as he tells Laertes that he killed Polonius in a fit of madness [Act V, scene II, lines 236-250]

Why teams don’t work?

Here are some reports from the field, cited by Osborn, Moran, Mushiest, and Zinger (1990) in Self-Directed Work Teams: The New American Challenge. At Xerox, the authors report, Plants using work teams are 30 percent more productive than conventionally organized plants. Procter & Gamble gets 30 to 40 percent higher productivity at its 18 team-based plants†¦. Tektronix Inc. Reports that one self-directed work team now turns out as many products in 3 days as it once took an entire assembly line to produce in 14 days†¦. Federal Express cut service glitches such as incorrect bills and lost packages by 13 percent†¦.Shenandoah Life processes 50 percent more applications and customer service requests using work teams, with 10 percent fewer people. (up. 5-6) Heady stuff, that, and it is reinforced by back-cover blurbs. Tom Peters: â€Å"Selfridges work teams are the cornerstone of improved competitiveness .. † . Bob Waterman: â€Å"Self-Directed Work Teams seems too goo d to be true: dramatic improvement in productivity and a happier, more committed, more flexible work force. Yet †¦ They do just what they promise for the likes of P&G, GE, and Ford. † It makes sense. Teams bring more resources, and more diverse resources, to bear J.Richard Hickman ; Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138. Theory and Research on Small Groups, edited by R. Scott Tindal et al. Plenum Press, New York, 1998. 245 246 on a task than could any single performer. Moreover, teams offer flexibility in the use of those resources-?the capability to quickly redeploy member talents and energies and to keep the work going even when some members are unavailable. Teams composed of people from different units can transcend traditional functional and organizational barriers and get members pulling together toward collective objectives.And, of course, teams offer the potential for synergy, that wonderful state when a group â€Å"clicksâ⠂¬ and members achieve something together that no one of them could possibly have accomplished alone. These are major benefits, worthy of the attention of the leaders of any purposive enterprise. No wonder Steersman found teams to be so popular. But there is a puzzle here. Research evidence about team performance shows that teams usually do less well-?not better-?than the sum of their members' individual contributions. I first encountered this bleak fact as a beginning doctoral student at he University of Illinois.In a course on group dynamics, Ivan Steiner put on the board his now well-known equation: AP = UP – PL; that is, the actual productivity of a group equals its potential productivity (what the team is theoretically capable of, given the resources brought by members) minus what he called process losses such as coordination and motivational problems (Steiner, 1972). I was surprised that there was no term for process gains, the synergistic benefits that can emerge when people work together. The model, I thought, should really read: AP = UP – PL + PEG. It turns out hat there is no empirical Justification for that extra term.When interacting teams are compared to â€Å"nominal† groups (I. E. , groups that never meet, whose output is constructed by combining the separate contributions of those who would have been members), nominal groups usually win. And when Steiner's models miss the mark in empirical studies, the problem usually is that groups fail to achieve even the relatively modest performance targets specified by those models. At least for groups in the experimental laboratory. Maybe the laboratory context is so constraining that groups do not have the elbow room to show what they can do.Maybe the real advantages of groups are only to be found in organizational practice. I came up short on this hypothesis as well, this time at the hands of Bill Hicks, an editor at Josses- Bass. My colleagues and I had completed an intensive stud y of some 33 different work groups of all different kinds-?athletic teams, industrial production workers, top management teams, prison guards, airline crews, economic analysts, and more. We pulled our findings together in a book that I proposed be titled Groups That Work, a catchy phrase with what I thought to be a clever pun.Bill sat me down and said he'd e happy to publish the book, but not with that title: There were Just too many groups in our study that barely worked at all. I went back to the manuscript and found that he was right. Probably 4 of our 33 groups were actually effective teams. The rest had problems so severe that our analysis was mainly about what had gone wrong with them. So the book was published with a parenthetical phrase after my clever title: Groups That Work (And Those That Don't). Anyone who actually reads through it will discover, as Bill did, that most of our groups lie within the parentheses. Moreover, the preface of the book offers a cautionary note ab out team effectiveness, based on the experience of the authors who wrote it. The book took 9 years to be completed, mainly because our own team suffered a near-total collapse midway through the project. 247 Other in-depth studies of real groups performing real work provide additional reasons for concern-?such Irving Jinni's (1982) well-known demonstration that even highly cohesive groups composed of well-qualified, well-motivated people sometimes fall into a pattern of â€Å"grouping†that can yield disastrous policy recommendations.What, then, are we to make of all the team successes reported in the managerial literature? It is possible, of course, that the published claims are exaggerated, as writers have sought to catch the wave of enthusiasm about teams-?to sell books, to build consulting practices, to market training programs, to become team gurus. That is not a sufficient explanation. Indeed, I trust the accuracy of the numbers about productivity and service gains that a re reported in the popular books about teams. My concern, instead, is whether those numbers really mean what they seem to mean.Consider first the attributions that are made about the causes of team successes. After teams have been implemented in an organizational unit, its performance habitually is compared to that of a conventional unit (or, perhaps, to the same one before teams were installed). Such comparisons are fraught with interpretive ambiguities, because there invariably are many differences between the units compared-? in technologies, labor markets, senior managers, and so on. It almost never is the case that the only change is that work previously done by individuals is now performed by teams.Was it the teams that generated the improvements, or was it one of the other differences between the units? It is not possible to know for sure. 2 Questions also can be raised about the staying power of any performance improvements obtained when teams are installed. The implementati on of any new management program, be it self-managing teams or anything else, invariably involves intense scrutiny of the unit where the changes will occur. Taking a close look at any work unit that has been operating for a while almost always surfaces some inefficiencies and poor work procedures.These incidental problems are corrected as part of the change process-?it would be foolish not to. But in making those corrections, an interpretive ambiguity is introduced. Was it the team design that resulted in the improvements found, or was it that a shoddy work system was shaped p? Virtually any intervention that is not itself destructive has a better-than-even chance of generating short-term improvements, simply because of the value of intently inspecting a work system. This, in addition to any benefits from the well- known â€Å"Hawthorne effect† (Rotisseries & Dickson, 1939).The question, then, is whether short-term improvements associated with the introduction of teams are su stained over time as the newness wears off and inefficiencies begin to creep back into the system. Again, it is not possible to know for sure-?at least not without an appropriate longitudinal research design. 2 The solution to this problem, of course, is to conduct experimental research on the impact of team designs for work, because true experiments allow unambiguous inferences to be drawn about the causes of any effects obtained.Unfortunately, experiments are rarely a viable option for comparing team and traditional work designs in organizations. For one thing, the level of experimenter control required in such studies (I. E. , to randomly assign people to teams and teams to experimental conditions) would not be tolerated by most managers who have work to get out. And even if an organization were found in which managers would relinquish such control to experimenters, there would be serious questions about the generalization of findings obtained in such an unusual place (Hickman, 1 985). 248 So what is going on here?How can we reconcile the amazing reports from the field about the benefits of teams with the gloomy picture that has emerged from scholarly research on group performance? Do teams generate the benefits for their organizations that are claimed for them, or do they not? 3 My observations of teams in organizations suggest that teams tend to clump at both ends of the effectiveness continuum. Teams that go sour often do so in multiple ways -?clients are dissatisfied with a team's work, members become frustrated and disillusioned, and the team becomes ever weaker as a performing unit.Such teams are easily outperformed by smoothly functioning traditional units. On the other hand, teams that function well can indeed achieve a level of synergy and agility that never could be preprogrammed by organization planners or enforced by external managers. Members of such teams respond to their clients and to each other quickly and creatively, generating both superb performance and ever-increasing personal ND collective capability. Teams, then, are somewhat akin to audio amplifiers: Whatever passes through the device-?be it signal or noise-?comes out louder.To ask whether organizational performance improves when teams are used to accomplish work is to ask a question that has no general answer. A more tractable question, and the one explored in the remainder of this chapter, is what differentiates those teams that go into orbit and achieve real synergy from those that crash and bum. As we will see, the answer to this second question has much more to do with how teams are trucked and supported than with any inherent virtues or liabilities of teams as performing units.Mistakes Managers Make In the course of several research projects, my colleagues and I have identified a number of mistakes that designers and leaders of work groups sometimes make. What follows is a summary of the six most pernicious of these mistakes, along with the actions that th ose who create and lead work teams in organizations can take to avoid them. 4 Mistake l: Use a Team for Work That Is Better Done by Individuals There are some tasks that only a team can do, such as performing a string quartet or arraying out a multiparty negotiation.There are other tasks, however, that are inimical to team work. One such task is creative writing. Not many great novels, There is a large and diverse published literature on the performance of self-managing teams. Here is a â€Å"starter set† of illustrative and informative pieces: Cohen and Leotard (1994), Sorcery, Mueller, and Smith (1991), Gun (1984), Jackson, Malarkey, and Parker (1994), Pops and Marcus (1980), Wall, Kemp, Jackson, and College (1986), and Walton (1980). Some of the material in the next section is adapted from Hickman (1990). 3 Why Teams Downtown's 249 symphonic scores, or epic poems have been written by teams. Such tasks involve bringing to the surface, organizing, and expressing thoughts and ideas that are but partially formed in one's mind (or, in some cases, that lie deep in one's unconscious), and they are inherently better suited for individual than for collective performance.Even committee reports-?mundane products compared to novels, poems, and musical scores-?invariably turn out better when written by one talented individual on behalf of a group than by the group as a whole working in lockstep. The same is true for executive leadership. For all the attention being given to top management teams these days, my reading of the management literature is that successful organizations almost always are led by a single, talented and courageous human being.Among the many executive functions that are better accomplished by an exceptional individual than by an interacting team is the articulation of a challenging and inspiring collective direction. Here, for example, is a mission statement copied from a poster in a company cafeteria: â€Å"Our mission is to provide quality products and arrives that meet the needs of individuals and businesses, allowing us to prosper and provide a fair return to our stockholders. Although I do not know how that particular statement was prepared, I would be willing to wager that it was hammered out by a committee over many long meetings. The most engaging and powerful statements of corporate vision, by contrast, invariably are the product of a single intelligence, set forth by a leader willing to take the risk of establishing collective purposes that lie Just beyond what others believe to be the limits of the organization's capability. Beyond creative writing and executive leadership, there are many other kinds of tasks that are better done by individuals than by teams.It is a mistake-a common one and often a fatal one-?to use a team for work that requires the exercise of powers that reside within and are best expressed by individual human beings. Mistake 2: Call the Performing Unit a Team but Really Manage Members as To reap the benefits of teamwork, one must actually build a team. Real teams are bounded social systems whose members are interdependent for a shared purpose, and who interact as a unit with other individuals and groups in achieving that repose (Alder, 1977).Teams can be small or large, face-to-face or electronically connected, and temporary or permanent. Only if a group is so large, loosely connected, or short-lived that members cannot operate as an intact social system does the entity cease to be a team. Managers sometimes attempt to capture the benefits of teamwork by simply declaring that some set of people (often everyone who reports to the same supervisor) is now a team and that members should henceforth behave accordingly.Real teams cannot be created that way. Instead, explicit action must be taken to establish and affirm the team's boundaries, to define the task for which members are collectively responsible, and to give the team the autonomy members need to manage both thei r 250 own team processes and their relations with external entities such as clients and coworkers. Creating and launching real teams is not something that can be accomplished casually, as is illustrated by research on airline cockpit crews.It is team functioning, rather than mechanical problems or the technical proficiency of individual pilots, that is at the root of most airline accidents (Helices & Focuses, 1993). Crews are especially vulnerable when they are Just starting out: the National Transportation Safety Board (NTIS) found that 73% of the accidents in its database occurred on the crew's first day of flying together, and 44% of those accidents happened on the crews very first flight (National Transportation Safety Board, 1994, up. 0-41). Other research has shown that experienced crews, even when fatigued, perform significantly better than do rested crews whose members have not worked together (Focuses, Lubber, Battle, & Comb, 1986), and that a competent preflight briefing b y he captain can help reduce a crew's exposure to the liabilities of newness (Gannett, 1993). This substantial body of research has clear policy implications.Crews should be kept intact over time, preflight briefings should be standard practice, and captains should be trained in the skills needed to conduct briefings that get crews off to a good start (Hickman, 1993). Yet in most airlines, crew composition is constantly changing because of the long-standing practice, enforced by labor contracts, of assigning pilots to trips, positions, and aircraft as individuals-?usually on the basis of seniority bidding system. Virtually all U. S. Airlines now do require that crew briefings be held.Yet captains receive little training in how to conduct a good one, some briefings are quite cursory (e. G. , â€Å"Let's the social hour over real quick so we can get on out to the airplane†), and schedules can get so hectic that crew members may not even have time for proper introductions, let a lone a briefing, before they start to fly together. Creating and launching real teams is a significant challenge in organizations such as airlines that have deeply rooted policies and practices that are oriented primarily toward individuals rather than teams.To try to capture the benefits of teamwork in such organizations, managers sometimes opt for a mixed model in which some parts of the work and the reward system are structured for individual performance, whereas other parts require teamwork and provide team- based rewards. Research has shown that such compromises rarely work well. Mixed models send contradictory signals to members, engender confusion about who is responsible and accountable for what portions of the work, and generally underperformed both individual and real-team models (Washman, 1995).If the performing unit is to be a team, then it should be a real team-?and it should be managed as such. Mistake 3: Fall Off the Authority Balance Beam The exercise of authority cr eates anxiety, especially when one must balance between assigning a team authority for some parts of the work and withholding it for other parts. Because both managers and team members tend to be uncomfortable in 251 such situations, they may implicitly collude to â€Å"clarifying is really in charge of the work.Sometimes the result is the assignment of virtually all authority to the team-? which can result in anarchy or in a team heading off in an inappropriate direction. Other times, managers retain all authority for themselves, dictating work procedures in detail to team members and, in the process, losing many of the advantages that can accrue from team work. To maintain an appropriate balance of authority between managers and teams requires that anxieties be managed rather than minimized. Moreover, it is insufficient merely to decide how much authority a team should have.Equally important are the domains of authority that are assigned to teams and retained by managers. Our res earch suggests that team effectiveness is enhanced when managers are unapologetic and insistent about exercising their own legitimate authority about direction, the end states the team is to pursue. Authority about the means by which those ends are accomplished, however, should rest squarely with the team itself. 5 Contrary to traditional wisdom about participative management, to authoritatively set a clear, engaging direction for a team is to empower, not deplorer, it.Having clear direction helps align team efforts with the objectives of the parent organization, provides members with a criterion to use in choosing among various means for pursuing those objectives, and fosters the motivational engagement of team members. When direction is absent or unclear, members may wallow in uncertainty about what they should be doing and may even have difficulty generating the motivation to do much of anything. Few design choices are more consequential for the long-term well-being of teams than those that address the partitioning of authority between managers and teams.It takes skill to accomplish this well, and it is a skill that has emotional and behavioral as well as cognitive components. Just knowing the rules for partitioning authority is insufficient; one also needs some practice in applying those rules in situations where anxieties, including one's own, are likely to be high. 6 Especially challenging are the early stages of a group's life (when well-meaning managers may be tempted to give away too much authority) and when the going gets rough (when the temptation is to take authority back too soon).The management of authority relations with task- performing groups is much like walking a balance beam, and our evidence suggests that it takes a good measure of knowledge, skill, and perseverance to keep from falling off. As used here, the terms manager and team refer to conventional organizational arrangements in which some individuals (â€Å"managers†) are auth orized to structure work for performance by other organization members. Teams that have been given the authority to monitor and manage their own work processes are therefore called â€Å"self-managing. In some circumstances, teams also have the authority to set their own direction. Examples include physicians in a small-group practice, a professional string quartet, and a mom-and-pop grocery store. These kinds of teams are referred to as â€Å"self-governing† (Hickman, 1986). Given that newly minted Mambas increasingly find themselves working in or leading task-performing teams immediately after graduation, it is unfortunate that few MBA programs provide their students with practice and feedback in developing such skills. 252 Mistake 4: Dismantle Existing Organizational Structures So That Teams Will Be Fully â€Å"Empowered†to Accomplish the Work Traditionally designed organizations often are plagued by constraining structures that have been built up over the years to monitor and control employee behavior. When teams are used to perform work, such structures tend to be viewed as necessary bureaucratic impediments to group functioning. Thus, Just as some managers mistakenly attempt to empower groups by relinquishing all authority to them, so do some attempt to cut through bureaucratic obstacles to team functioning by dismantling all the structures that they can.The assumption, apparently, is that removing structures will release the pent-up power of groups and make it possible for members to work together creatively and effectively. Managers who hold this view often wind up providing teams with less structure than they actually need. Tasks are defined only in vague, general terms. Lots of people ay be involved in the work, but the actual membership of the team is unclear. Norms of conduct are kept deliberately fuzzy. In the words of one manager, â€Å"The team will work out the details. If anything, the opposite is true: Groups with appropriate structures tend to develop healthy internal processes, whereas groups with insufficient or inappropriate structures tend to be plagued with process problems. 7 Because managers and members of troubled groups often perceive, wrongly, that their performance problems are due mainly to interpersonal difficulties, they may turn to process- focused coaching as a remedy. But process consultation is unlikely to be helpful in such cases, precisely because the difficulties are structurally rooted.It is a near impossibility for members to learn how to interact well within a flawed or underspecified team structure. Our research suggests that an enabling structure for a work team has three components. First is a well-designed team task, one that engages and sustains member motivation. Such tasks are whole and meaningful pieces of work that stretch members' skills, that provide ample autonomy for doing what needs to be done to accomplish the work, and that generate direct and rusticity feedback a bout results. Second is a well-composed group.Such groups are as small as possible, have clear boundaries, include members with adequate task and interpersonal skills, and have a good mix of members-?people who are neither so similar to one another that they are like peas in a pod nor so different that they are unable to work together. Third is clear and explicit specification of the basic norms of conduct for team behavior, the handful of â€Å"must do† and â€Å"must never do† behaviors that allow members to pursue their objectives without having to continuously discuss what kinds of behaviors are and are not acceptable.Although groups invariably develop their own norms over time, it is important to establish at the outset that members are expected to continuously monitor This point is reinforced in a quite different context by an essay written by Joe Freeman (1973) for her sisters in the feminist movement in the asses. The message of the essay is neatly captured by its title: â€Å"The Tyranny of Structuralizes. † 7 253 their environment and to revise their performance strategy as needed when their work situation changes.The key question about structure, then, is not how much of it a team has. Rather, it is bout the kind of structure that is provided: Does it enable and support collective work, or does it make teamwork more difficult and frustrating than it need be? Mistake 5: Specify Challenging Team Objectives, but Skimp on Organizational Supports Even if a work team has clear, engaging direction and an enabling structure, its performance can go sour-?or fall well below the group's potential-?if it has insufficient organizational support.Teams in what Richard Walton (1985) calls â€Å"high commitment† organizations can fall victim to this mistake when they are given challenging objectives but not the resources to achieve them. Such teams often start out with great enthusiasm but then become disillusioned as they encounter frust ration after frustration in trying to obtain the organizational supports they need to accomplish the work. If the full potential of work teams is to be realized, organizational structures and systems must actively support competent teamwork.Key supports include (1) a reward system that recognizes and reinforces excellent team performance (not Just individual contributions); (2) an educational system that provides teams, at their initiative, any training or technical consultation that may be added to supplement members' own knowledge and expertise; (3) an information system that provides teams the data and forecasts members' need to proactively manage their work; and (4) the mundane material resources-?equipment, tools, space, money, staff, or whatever-?that the work requires.It is no small undertaking to provide these supports to teams, especially in organizations that already have been tuned to support work performed by individuals. Existing performance appraisal systems, for examp le, may be state-of- the-art for measuring individual contributions but wholly inappropriate for assessing ND rewarding work done by teams. Corporate compensation policy may make no provision for team bonuses and, indeed, may explicitly prohibit them.Human resource departments may be primed to identify individuals' training needs and to provide first-rate courses to fill those needs, but training in team skills may not be available at all. Information and control systems may provide senior managers with data that help them monitor and control overall organizational performance, but teams may not be able to get the information they need to autonomously manage their own work processes.To align existing organizational systems with the needs of task-performing teams usually requires managers to exercise power and influence both upward and laterally in the organization, and may involve difficult negotiations across functional boundaries. For these reasons, providing contextual supports f or teams can be a 254 significant challenge for managers whose experience and expertise has mainly involved supporting and controlling work performed by individuals. That challenge is worth taking on, however, because an unsupported organizational context can undermine even teams that are otherwise quite well directed and well structured.It is especially shattering for a team to fail merely because the organizational supports it needs cannot be obtained. Mistake 6: Assume That Members Already Have All the Skills They Need to Work Well as a Team Once a team has been formed and given its task, managers sometimes assume their work is done. A strict hands-off stance, however, can limit a team's effectiveness when members are not already skilled and experienced in teamwork-?a not uncommon state of affairs in cultures where individualism is a dominant value. It can be helpful,