Wednesday, July 31, 2019

One Art Essay

A villanelle poem is a nineteen line poem that consists of five, three-line stanza followed by a quatrain. Bishop’s poem brings a fascinating irony between different levels of losses. Between each stanza, the development of trivial losses escalates into a bigger and traumatic loss that was unprepared for. An intense repetition of the phrase â€Å"the art of losing isn’t hard to master† suggests a few given things (Bishop 1499). She attempts to bring out the fact that â€Å"losing† is a type of skill that you can gain by overcoming. Therefore, by mastering it, you have the ultimate control. Throughout the poem, the phrase â€Å"art of losing† has been used to emphasize the speaker’s effect on how â€Å"it isn’t hard to master,† which suggests â€Å" that the speaker is trying to convince herself that losing things is not hard and she should not worry† (â€Å"Essay Interpreting â€Å"one Art† By Elizabeth Bishop† Page 1 of 2). In fact, the â€Å"art of losing† takes an increasingly significant role all throughout the poem. Each stanza represents what she loss and the level of the loss. †Language and verse form show in â€Å"One Art† how the losses increase in importance as the poem progresses, with the losses in lines 1-15 being mostly trivial or not very important to the great loss in lines 16-19 or a beloved person† (Page 2 of 2). From the beginning of the poem, her losses began to be trivial such as â€Å"lost door keys, the hourly bad spent† (Bishop 1499). Bishop used â€Å"second person. â€Å"Lose something every day. † seems to command one to practice the art of losing things† (Page 1 of 2). Towards the last three stanzas, the second person point of view was shifted to first person point of view after a few references to herself using the subject â€Å"I. † Bishop also suggests how you can practice to perform this type of art by using illustrations of progressive losses from trivial to more significant losses throughout the poem. â€Å"Four times, the narrator asserts that there these losses are â€Å"no disaster. Thus, the central thesis of this poem is that over time, one may learn to cope with loss, even with the loss of those we love† (â€Å"Elizabeth Bishop’s â€Å"One Art† Page 1 of 2). By using different claims of losses, Bishop was able to suggest a statement following certain types of solutions to deal with the loss. For example, the first stanza, including throughout the poem, included the fiercely used phrase that â€Å"the art of losing isn’t hard to master† (Bishop 1499). In the second stanza, it provides the answer to the conflict of trying to master the art of losing by â€Å"losing something every day. Accept the fluster of lost door keys, the hourly bad spent†¦Ã¢â‚¬  With this said, Bishop suggests to readers that by â€Å"practicing losing farther, losing faster,† the readers will be able to achieve their goal: to master the art of losing (1499). â€Å"As we do so, we will recognize that these daily losses truly are no signifi cant† (â€Å"Elizabeth Bishop’s â€Å"One Art† Page 1 of 2). When Bishop adds reference to herself in the poem, the transition from the more trivial day-to-day losses is nothing compared to her own specific incidents. Her incidents include â€Å"lost of her mother’s watch,†¦/†¦next-to-last, of three loved houses went. /†¦lost two cities, lovely ones. And, vaster,/ some realms I owned, two rivers, a continent†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (Bishop 1499). The bigger loss suggested in this poem was â€Å"-Even losing you† (1499). The Webster definition of losing is: resulting in or likely to result in defeat, or marked by many losses or more losses than wins. In the beginning of this poem, losing is defined as the misplacement of an item; therefore, resulting in not being able to locate the item again. For instance, the lost door keys were a misplaced item. But, as the poem progresses, the items being lost are getting bigger and more significant. The level of losing is definitely becoming more defining and more coping. â€Å"Places, and names, and where it was you meant/ to travel†¦ I lost my mother’s watch. And look! my last, or/next-to last, of three loved houses went†¦I lost two cities, lovely ones. And, vaster,/ some realms I owned, two rivers, a continent/†¦it wasn’t a disaster† (Bishop 1499). The combination of stanza 4 and 5 give a couple of suggestions. First, the poem progressed from the smaller things that should not have been of concern to larger things that start to matter. â€Å"But by stanza four, a slightly different meaning of â€Å"losing† creeps into the poem—that is, â€Å"losing† as â€Å"coping with loss†¦The narrator apparently manages to cope†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Elizabeth Bishop’s â€Å"One Art† Page 2 of 2). In this poem, the attitude that the speaker conveys in each stanza seems to fluctuate as the losses get greater. With her uses of punctuation and â€Å"courageous pretense built into this poem,† it seems as though Bishop tries to convey a â€Å"wry, funny, and flippant and very determined not to sound weepy- eyed† type of attitude (Krishnan Page 1 of 3). The trivial matters suggested in the beginning of the poem don’t seem to cause a big affect on the speaker’s attitude. Towards the end, the poem conveyed a sense of how the speaker was feeling by using â€Å"the joking voice, a gesture I love† (Bishop 1499). With this â€Å"joking voice,† she was able to yet again point out that â€Å"the art of losing’s not too hard to master† (1499). With this repetitive type of suggestion, it is almost as if â€Å"this phrase turns it into an incantation, warding off potential feelings of loss† (Elizabeth Bishop’s â€Å"One Art† Page 2 of 2). This poem uses an abundant amount of literary devices especially hyperboles and irony. One Art is a very ironic villanelle poem. The phrase â€Å"losing is an art† might suggest that her attempt of persuading herself and readers that internal pain can be evaded; even if the predictable, and most catastrophic, losses that happen in our lives does not have to be a disaster; or could it be an excuse? (Schmeer Page 1 of 3). The hedging in the narrator’s phrases parallels hedging throughout this poem, a poem whose very existence denies what its lines seem to want to claim: the art of losing is hard to master, especially when that â€Å"art† refers to coping with the loss of someone we love, someone who goes away, someone whose going away is a disasterâ⠂¬ .

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Le Petti Gourmet

Jim O’Connor, President and Owner of Le Petit Gourmet, received a shocking phone call while vacation in California, which informed him that his business is going to shut down indefinitely due to the outbreaks of hepatitis A in his catering facility. Le Petit Gourmet was a family catering business that had been operating in the Denver metro area for more than 30 years. Le Petit employed between 150 and 200 people, 75 of whom were full time. Along with Le Petit was perceived as the most expensive and upscale caterer in Denver, O’Connor also want his business to be known for good food on all levels, from cookies to lobsters. Le petit Gourmet’s business had been on the upswing in recent years. On November 22, Health Department notified O’Connor that his kitchen manager infected by hepatitis A, and by Nov 30, the doctor confirm the case. Due to the further outbreak on Dec 30, Le Petit Gourmet is being shut down completely, and the health departments have ordered food-service workers in metro Denver area to using gloves or utensils when handling food in prevention to hepatitis A. In addition, Le Petit Gourmet employees were forbidden to work as food-handlers anywhere else until January 31. When he returned from San Francisco, Jim O’Connor found that his business and family were under siege. The media, his insurance agents, lawyers, and health department inspectors, Le Petit employees and customers were waiting for his explanation on how he going to handle the hepatitis outbreaks. Initially, he hired a public relations firm to assist him, but decided that he needed to take a more active role to save his business. First of all, he personally called the victims of hepatitis and apologized for what had happened. He also meets with his employees to calm their fears. Afterward, he make sure that his company will have enough cash flow on hands to handle this crisis by delaying payment to his vendors and negotiated a larger mortgage, because he realized that he doesn’t have income for undetermined amount of time. To win back the public on their side, O’Connor and his staff decided to dumped $45,000 of food products into the trash. Many of these items were unopened and frozen products, not part of the infected food. O’Connor was able to maintain his employees during the outbreaks, he honestly tell them that pay cut was imminent in the future, but if your stand by me and help me, I will commit to pay you back when the business is getting better. He also states to the employees that the infected person have been left Le Petit Gourmet, we are very safe working here in Le Petit Gourmet. When he have all the information he need, he held a news conference at the Le Petit Gourmet facility and explained what had happened and what he and Le Petit Gourmet prepared to do about the crisis. During the outbreak periods, other catering companies was worried that this crisis would effects their companies, so they mailed out letter to inform their clientele that this only happened to Le Petit Gourmet and will never happened against them. Due the O’Connor and his staffs diligent works, Le Petit Gourmet finally reopened on January 11, and they have their first catering job on January 14. Main Issues The main issues for this case was how O’Connor able to handle this crisis with ease and win back the reputation for his business. When the crisis first happened, O’Connor is put in a very tough spot, not only that he has face the media, health department, employees, etc†¦ they all waiting for him to inform them what is really happened behind this mess that cost by Le Petit Gourmet. I think that O’Connor did excellent job step by step to get his business reopened and back to business as soon as possible. First of all, he realized that he not going to have enough cash flow on hands to solve the problem, because he will have no income for long period of time due to the out breaks. Smartly, he asked his vendors for a delay payment, and also negotiated a larger mortgage to make sure to have enough cash on hand to solve the crisis. Money could be use to compensate the victims or pay for attorney fees, and also need to pays his employees. Second of all, he was acting as a public relations spokesperson, who called all the victims and apologized for what had happened. He also met with his employees to calm their fears by telling them that the individual to whom the initial outbreak had been traced had already left the company, we are in a very safe working environment. He honestly told his employees that pay cut were imminent in the immediate future and their long-term status at Le Petit Gourmet was cloudy, but if they can stay on his side during this difficult time, he will make commitment to help them later on. In addition, he also dumped $45,000 dollars of food products into the trash, to inform everyone that everything that has to do with hepatitis A will be destroyed and nothing will be held. I am most impress with O’Connor was that he didn’t shy away from the media, after he gather all the information he needed and collected himself personally, he held a new conference at the Le Petit Gourmet facility and explained what had happened and what he and Le Petit Gourmet as a company were prepared to do about the crisis. Finally, due to the diligent works from O’Connor and his staffs, Le Petit Gourmet was finally reopened on January 11, and got they first catering job on January 14. I believe that O’Conner manage everything very well during the crisis, he win back the reputation of his company by holding a news conference and inform everybody what has happened, and win back his employees by honestly tell them what is going to happened in the future, he didn’t hide anything from anyone. He tells everyone what he thinks and what he going to about it.

Monday, July 29, 2019

New York City Project Part 1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

New York City Project Part 1 - Essay Example Due to lack of adequate money to do it all, the budget reflects the priorities of the city’s elected representatives. And I consider the city council of New York City has a comprehensive plan because that the New York City Charter ("the Charter") vests the responsibility for preparing an annual expense and capital budget with the mayor. The mayor must then submit the expense and capital budget to the City Council for its review and adoption. It shows that the process of making a budget has to be rigorous enough to be implemented (Christine, 2013). Besides, each budget must consist of several parts: the expense budget, which sets forth proposed appropriations for the operating expenditures for municipal services including debt service; the capital budget and program, which sets forth proposed appropriations for capital projects for the ensuing fiscal year and the three succeeding fiscal years; and the revenue budget, which shall set forth the estimated revenues and receipts of the city. In addition, the expense budget is further broken down into a contract budget, which can be viewed as a detailed portion of each agencies' other than personal services expenditures for contractual services that are personal service in nature (Christine, 2013). ... Private employment rose by 9,000 in August 2013 after an increase of 13,000 in July. The unemployment rate rose to 8.6 percent in August from 8.4 percent in July. House market is a significant factor in the New York City’s economy. Some of the most expensive office space in the United States is located in New York City. For example, the world’s third expensive office building-Bank of America tower was value $1 billion in New York City. Department of building’s Fiscal 2014 Preliminary Budget is $93.7 million, which is approximately $2.6 million less than the $96.4 million Fiscal 2013 Adopted Budget (Christine, 2013). This is primarily due to revenue increases from construction related fees. Budgeting Methods Budgeting is a very important management tool in every organization. New York City plays a very important role in the economy of United State. The constitution of United State gives the city council of New York the power to make budget. This budget ensure that the city continue to support the economy. The city is headed by a mayor who manages the city with the assist of a council, which is commonly called city council (Clarke, 1978). The city council of New York uses a master budget in running the activities of the city. The city council uses this approach because it can project all the activities that need a budget allocation. The line items in the master budget include transport expenses, salaries and allowances. The performance of the city’s budget is monitored on monthly bases by its chief financial officer to ensure accountability. The city has various departments such as health, education and waste management (Eltis, 1993). Expenditure is distributed as per the departments'

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Volcano Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Volcano - Essay Example Hot clouds and glowing lava advanced 1 km. down the Genol River. Inhabitants in Muntilan saw the ash fall over surrounding areas. Merapi is considered as the most active of the 130 active volcanoes of Indonesia. Twelve major eruptions have killed thousands. People of Indonesia look at Merapi with awe, wonder and reverence and every year a priest makes the ascent to the top of the mountain to make the prescribed offering. For the last two weeks Merapi volcano has been spewing thick black smoke and the scientists say that a full scale eruption is soon on the cards. The full name of this mountain is Gunung Merapi, meaning Fiery Mountain. It is situated overlooking the ancient royal city of Yogyakarta. Eruptions are a regular feature with Merapi, one of the most active volcanos in the world. Small eruptions take place every 2-3 years, bigger ones at the interval of 10-15 years and the real big ones with tremendous destructive capacity, once in 50-60 years. The eruption of 1006 was so devastating that an entire Hindu Kingdom was destroyed. In 1930, about 1300 people were killed. The 1994 eruption was comparatively less destructive and it claimed 64 lives. Local people consider this volcano as very sacred. They also firmly believe that a supernatural Kingdom exists on the top of Merapi. Merapi is located in the zone called a â€Å"Ring of Fire,† in the Pacific Ocean. When at peace, Merapi is just like a friend to the people and to the tourists who are fond of hiking and climbing. But nothing could be predicted about this wonder of nature. Suddenly you can see the volcanic ash spew and then glowing lava ooze down on all its sides. As it intensifies, the sight of large plume of smoke billowing from it is not only amazing but terrifying! Notwithstanding its fearsome activities, people around the mountain love and respect Merapi and many cultivate crops quite close to the cone section. On November 22, 1994, Merapi shook and was in for a major bout of

Orientation day Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Orientation day - Essay Example Moreover, the background information established that even graduate students should contact their academic department regarding orientation. Only students enrolled in any online-only major or program did not have to attend orientation. We were aware that failure to attend the Undergraduate International student’s orientation would deny me the opportunity to register for classes and would force me to start classes the following semester. As such, I activated my MyISU Portal prior to registering for International Advising and Registration. The university required undergraduate international students to register for the Indiana State University orientation day before attending. The University of Indiana State University orientation day was on summer 2014. We therefore arrived on campus on Thursday, May 8, 2014 in preparation for the orientation that took place on Friday, May 9, 2014. The events of the University of Indiana State University orientation day started at 8:30 am EDT at the Hulman Memorial Student Union building where all new students gathered. After a brief introduction, one of the University administrators presented the rules and regulations that govern the code of conduct at the University. After the presentation, the University a guide who showed us important buildings of the Indiana State University that included lecture rooms, library, administration block, cafeteria, laboratories, hostels, and sporti ng facilities. We also did Student ID in police department of public safety and attended the immigration seminar that addressed immigration regulations, accommodation and dining services, medical aspects, banking, transportation, student employment, community service and student activities and organizations at the University. Through the program, the new undergraduate students had a chance to meet the

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Astronomy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Astronomy - Essay Example 4). Explain how type I and Type II. Supernovae occur. 1). The four main grouping of stars as depicted by the Hertzprung- Russel diagram are dwarf (white and red) stars, main sequence grouping stars, giant stars and supergiant stars (p. 142). The white dwarf stars are Sirius B, Wolf 486, Van Maanen's star, Procyon B, Wolf 1346 and 40 Eridani B. The size characteristic of these stars is ranging from 0.008 R to 0.03 R. The stars in the white dwarf category have temperatures ranging from 5,000 K to 25, 000 K. In between the white dwarf stars and the main sequence grouping we have Bernard's star. Bernard's star is a red dwarf. It has a radius of about 0.1 R and 150 L/L. Bernard's star is also the coolest star with temperatures of 2900 K. The white and red dwarf stars have Mv > 15. The main sequence stars are Aldebaran B, Alpha Centauri B, the Sun, Altair, Sirius, Procyon A, Vega, Rigel B, Pollux, Spica B, Spica A, Adara and Capella B. The luminosity class of these stars is V. The size of these stars vary from 1R to 10R. The stars in the main sequence grouping vary from 7,000 L/L to 85,000 L/L. The main sequence grouping stars have temperatures ranging from 3700 K for Aldebaran B to 30,000 K for Adara. The main sequence stars have between 5- 10 Mv. The next sequence of stars are the giants. Included in the giant classification of stars are Capella A, Aldebaran A, Arcturus, Mira and Canopus. The giant classification of stars have radii which vary from 10 R to 100 R. The luminosity class of the giant stars are III. The giant stars have a Mv between 0- 5. The next sequence is the supergiant sequence of stars. This includes Polaris, Deneb, Rigel A and Alnilam. The supergiants temperatures range from 10,000 K to 30,000K. The luminosity class is Ib. The largest stars are Betegeuse and Antares,.Betelgeuse has a size of 1000 R. Antares has a size of about 2000 R. The Mv for these stars is – 5 (p. 143). 2). A star is born from the thin gases of space. When a star is bo rn, there is normally a large cloud of gas and dust. The thin gases of space are known as the interstellar medium ( p. 162). When enough hydrogen is compressed through the gravity of these stars, hydrogen fusion is achieved. In the center core of these stars there is a helium core. A teaspoon of mass of helium from the center of a star would weigh more than a ton. When enough helium is compressed in the center of the star, there is an abrupt explosion of intense magnitude called a helium flash. For this particular moment in time, the center of the newly born star produces more energy per second than an entire grouping of stars. This helium flash causes the center of the star to increase in temperature, whereas a great number of electrons become excited by the reaction. This causes the hydrogen to fuse into helium. At that point, the star is born with a self sustaining hydrogen fusion reaction at its shell. Often there is a helium fusion reaction at the center of the star. The size o f the star is of the utmost importance, stars less than 0.40 solar masses never get enough energy to continue the helium fusion reaction process. Stars which are greater than 3 solar masses experience degeneration at their core before this phenomenon occurs (p. 187). In the star there are two types of fusion reactions, helium fusion at the center and hydrogen fusion at the shell. 3). A star begins to die when the helium fusion which occurs at its center begins to produce carbon, oxygen and neon. As the fusion

Friday, July 26, 2019

Medication Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Medication - Assignment Example For patients with a history of stroke nursing considerations are needed since some interactions exist between Gentamicin and some prescriptions for stroke. Since Gentamicin causes a feeling of tightness in the chest, patients with pneumonia cannot get a prescription (Goodman, 2003). An individual currently under treatment of respiratory disease cannot sustain chest pains witnessed after intake. Patients with septicemia and pressure ulcer wounds are safe to use Gentamicin. Magnesium 140 is used to maintain adequate magnesium level in the body. Magnesium is an important mineral for the muscles and nerves. The drug is administered intravenously after every 12 hours. The common side effects include muscle cramps, mild diarrhea, upset stomach and depression. There are no strict considerations for patients with a history of stroke, pneumonia, septicemia and chronic respiratory disease. Magnesium 14o cannot be prescribed for a patient with pressure ulcer wound. Lidocaine 1% is a numbing med ication used as a local anesthetic. It functions by blocking nerve signals in the body. It is introduced to the body directly to the blood through an injection. It is given intravenously 2 to 3 minutes on an initial dose. The common side effects include drowsiness, shakiness and dizziness, a feeling of passing out and fast heart rate. It is not a safe prescription to a patient with a history of pneumonia and stroke. A patient with chronic respiratory disease and septicemia is safe to use this medication (Goodman, 2003). Tigeycline is the first in glyclycycline class of antibiotics. A broad-spectrum antibiotic works best for skin infections and intraabdominal infections. The dosage for this drug is 50mg intravenously for every 12 hours. The common side effects are vomiting, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Its prescription to patients with a history of stroke, pneumonia and currently being treated for chronic respiratory failure is not apt. This also applies to patients with septicemia and pressure ulcer wound. This is because the organisms in the antibiotics can cause more infections. Dakin solution is an antiseptic solution used to treat infected wounds it works as a solvent action on dead cells where it develops a separation of dead and alive cells. The solution is highly unstable, and it is administered instantly. It is used by dipping the entire wound surface in the solution (Goodman, 2003). It does not interact and counteractions with drugs prescribed for other diseases. Enoxaparin is a low molecular weight heparin drug used to stop blood clots. It is prescribed for preventing deep vein thrombosis. It works by preventing the formation of clots in blood by preventing the 12-clot developing proteins in the blood. It is administered through an injection intravenously. This is after a period of 12 hours. The common side effects associated with the solution are diarrhea, bleeding, nausea and fever. It has no clear considerations with septicemia. However, for pat ients with history of stroke, pneumonia and chronic respiratory disease, nursing considerations are necessary. Prescriptions for these diseases can interact and counter-interact with Enoxaparin. Carvedilol is a type of prescription medicine in the beta-blockers class. It is generally used to stabilize patients with heart complications. The common side effects of the drug include fatigue, slow heartbeat, low blood pressure and severe allergic reactions. Prescription to a patient with a history of

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Faculty of Business Environment and Society Assignment

Faculty of Business Environment and Society - Assignment Example In any sector, with the increasing competitiveness of the market and changing nature of customers’ demand, change has become crucial up to a larger extent (Kramar & Syed, 2012). It will also be crucial to mention that a change in any business sector is initiated with the assistance of a systematic process that is planned and executed in an efficient manner altogether. However, it is often seen that changes are welcomed in organsaitions in a collective manner, which further affects the potential effectiveness of the proposed change. There might be various reasons that develop reluctance in employees with regard to the initiation of change within the organisations (Briscoe, Schuler & Tarique, 2012). To get a conceptual understanding in this context, this particular discussion will mainly focus on analysing some recent changes in the workplace of Tesco along with comprehending the causes for their reluctance to change. The discussion will also emphasise depicting a set of recommendations to the company so that it can mitigate the resistant factors amid the employees that results in the reluctance to change. Tesco Plc is recognised as one of the leading players in the international retail sector in terms of its operational experiences as well as scale of operations worldwide. One of the major driving factors that have ensured unparalleled operational success for the company over the years is its effective approach towards dealing with the external environment (Tesco, 2014). Notably, change, as depicted above, is one of the most important aspects associated with the operations of any particular business. It is quite a stable approach in business and it rarely changes over the period. Contextually, Tesco is also aware of the constant changing nature of the external environment, which further encourages it to change its business functions accordingly

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Administrative ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Administrative ethics - Essay Example The article written by Mehnke (2010) entitled â€Å"Managing a breach in patient confidentiality† and published in the Nursing Critical Care journal proffered issues pertinent to the crucial importance of observing privacy and confidentiality when dealing with patients. In a scenario, a nurse accessing patient’s records for personal use emerged without thinking of the possible repercussions of her action to the patient and to herself. Mehnke (2010) revealed that â€Å"a nurse knowingly accessed a neighbor’s electronic medical record and acted on the information she found by confronting the patient. The nurse approached the patient in the perioperative waiting area before the surgery and asked what procedure she was undergoing† (1). As a consequence, the nurse’s action dealt with the utmost penalty of firing her from employment because of breach of confidentiality. The decision precludes other nurses and health care practitioners from repeating the s ame offense. The gravity of the issue was addressed by severing the employment from the health care institution to show other health care practitioners that there is no compromise to the issue. The issue’s impact on health care practitioners focused on giving primary importance and utmost care in adhering to the laws and regulations prescribed by Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), specifically on the protection of patient privacy rights.

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Design a Professional Development Program Essay

Design a Professional Development Program - Essay Example Research supports that the best professional development program is one that is data-driven, constructivist by nature, results-oriented, and job embedded. (State of Vermont DOE, 2010) A successful professional development approach must be standards based and aligned with carrying forth the school’s overall mission and vision; while at the same time meeting the professional and personal needs of the staff, as well as the students and stakeholders. It requires reflection on the past with the goal of instituting initiatives to improve the quality indicators that will impact the future. (Mahaffey, Lind, &Derse) At the beginning, many factors must be taken into consideration. The school must do a careful self-assessment comparing data from the student performance indicators, as well as from the performance evaluations of the staff. Several factors will arise from this needs assessment: interests, current skill sets, values, challenges, strengths, and limitations. It will provide an overall health assessment of the school as a whole as well as an individual picture of each staff member. (Educause, 2006) There are four major areas of development that professional development plans focus on: literacy, numeracy, teaching skills, and student outcomes. Literacy learning comprises the five areas of reading, writing and spelling, adolescent literacy, and English Language Learners proficiency. Numeracy focuses on content and processing standards set by the individual states with benchmarks for Common Core State Standards. The next area is teaching skills which focuses on general teaching skills as well as response to intervention. The last area is student outcomes, which focuses on dropout prevention, school improvement, and using data. By taking a broad picture as well as microscopic view of these areas for potential improvement, the school as a whole, as well as each educator, will be able to identify specific needs to focus on for development. By comparing student performance achievement with outcomes generated by individual educators, as well as educator self-assessments, it is possible to set goals for development that will facilitate overall improvement and satisfaction among staff members. (Professional Development Tools, nd.) The next step is setting goals. One of the most successful ways to set goals is using the SMART plan. This plan outlines how to write goals that are subjective, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely. Through setting SMART goals, both long range and short range, it is easier to evaluate when these goals have been accomplished and it is time to move on to the next area of development. (Rose, 2006) SMART goals are specific and strategic; they focus on a certain area and zero in on ways to improve it; they are measurable with indicators showing success. They take into account for limitations such as budgets and the human condition; therefore they are achievable. SMART goals are relevant and rigorous as well as en courage innovations to produce the desired results. Finally, they provide the structure of a timeframe so as to keep the improvement process from frustrating itself. (SMART Goals, 2010-2018) (WEAC, 2011) Professional development must be committed to equity and excellence. It must take into account all the essential elements that will be involved in the process; curriculum,

Monday, July 22, 2019

Milk and Supermarkets Essay Example for Free

Milk and Supermarkets Essay Introduction In recent years, the relationship between supermarkets with UK farmers that called oligopsony is a heated topic in the society. Some people hold the view that the advantages of oligopsony overweigh those disadvantages. Nevertheless, others believed that it is one way that UK farmers controlled by the supermarkets. It is natural that people come from different backgrounds will have various attitudes to the same issue. In the report, the advantages and disadvantages of oligopsony for both supermarkets and UK farmers are discussed. In addition, nowadays the supermarkets in the UK in order to increase the profit, they use different types of marketing methods. Such as intense price competition, loyalty schemes and provides non-food products and service. The smaller retailers were influence by those marketing methods also reported as follows. 1. 0 Oligopsony Oligopsony is â€Å"similar to an oligopoly (few sellers), this is a market in which there are only a few large buyers for a product or service. This allows the buyers to exert a great deal of control over the sellers and can effectively drive down prices. †(www. investopedia. com A good example of an oligopsony would be the UK supermarket industry, in which a small number of large buyers (such as Asda, Tesco, and Sainsbury’s) control the UK farm market. Such control allows these supermarkets chains to dictate the price they pay to farmers. 1. 1 The effect on supermarkets According to the BBC news (http://news. bbc. co. uk), Tesco account the UK supermarkets share is 31. 6%, Asda took over 17% in the UK supermarkets share, which is ranked second. The third biggest one is Sainsbury’s, which accounted 15. 8%. (Appendix 1) The total percent of big three supermarkets took over more than 50% in all the UK supermarket industry. These supermarkets owned market power in two ways which are selling to consumers (oligopoly power) and buying from producers (oligopsony power). in another words, It means that the few firms have considerable market power in paying low price for inputs and makes it more difficult for the farmers to make a profit. For example, a big supermarket could contract with a dairy producer that the big one will buy all of product. The farmer agreed with the contract and started to supply the dairy to the big supermarket. Nevertheless, maybe the supermarket pay less and less later, and the farmer just can accepted lower price because the farmer produce too much dairy to supply to the big supermarket and it is not too easy to find a new buyers. Farmers who produced milk, vegetables, or other agricultural products have limited choice range, because in the UK, most of agricultural goods are bought by the big supermarkets. Oligposony gives the big supermarkets bargaining power in use lower prices with farmers. In this relationship, the big supermarkets have the absolute advantages over the farmers. They can made it possible that lower the price of agricultural goods, so that these supermarkets can give a reasonable price for the customers which will help the big supermarkets improve the competition with others competitors. In addition, they also can ask the special requirements for the product quality, the farmers are controlled and forced to accept a lower price of their product. 1. 2 The effect on the farmers. Oligopsony this relationship between supermarkets with UK farmers is ensures the agricultural goods can sell to the big supermarkets. Famers have the fixed buyers so they are need not worry about to find new buyers. However, due to most agricultural goods are bought by big supermarkets, the farmers have less choice. Famers used to have some bargaining power on the basis of seasonality. Because there are other competitors, they do not know what price has been offered by other producers and this forced them to offer their produce at a low price to ensure a sale. Especially the perishable foods. The supermarkets â€Å"dictate not only how much they will pay, but also how the produce will be packaged, stored and delivered. †(www. corporatewatch. com) â€Å"The small number of companies dominating both dairy processing (currently six processors control 93% of the industry) and retailing (six supermarkets control 65% of liquid milk and 70-85% of dairy produce sales) means that there is a significant imbalance of market power in the UK dairy sector.. †(â€Å"Supermarkets under fire†, February, 2003). It is easy to know that supermarkets have power in dairy industry in the UK. Though supermarkets have brought buying power to the dairy farmers, however, the big supermarkets in order to increased their power in the dairy sector, they developed own brand milk products. Since 1995, the price of fresh milk has declined; supermarkets have maintained their selling price and increased their profits at expense of both farmers and consumers over the same period. (Appendix 2) â€Å"The National Farmers’ Union has been particularly concerned about the plight of the UK’s dairy farmers. They claim that of the ? 1. 70 which a supermarket customer may pay for two liters of milk, less than 50p will go to the farmers. †(http://www. anformeresources. com) Charles Peers who are an Oxford shire organic farmer, he has said â€Å"There are two hundred thousand farmers, dealing with, basically speaking, three supermarkets, two grain merchants, four fertiliser companies. Not a chance†¦.. They’ve got power, real power. † From these, we can seen that oligopsony made it is possible that the farmers are forced to accepted a low price to sell their products, and the big supermarkets such as Tesco, Asda or Sainsbury’s are have the power in the UK market. 2. 0 How the supermarket to boost profits. In the past 40 years, the small independent shops shifted to huge supermarket chains. â€Å"In 1960 small independent retailers had a 60% share of the food retail market. By 2000, their share was reduced to 6% while the multiples share increased to 88%. †(Institute of Grocery Distribution, Grocery Retailing 2002) Andrew Simms, who works for the New Economics Foundation, says that: â€Å"we are witnessing the death of small and independent retailers and new retail feudalism is emerging as a handful of brands take over our shopping. † (http://www. corporatewatch. org.uk). Though the supermarkets have the market power in the UK, as a business organization, how to increase the profit is the first thing should be considered. In recent years, the huge supermarket chains use various types of marketing methods to increase the profit and the loyalty. Such price competition, loyalty schemes and provide non-food products and service. Supermarkets use various ways to convey price information to consumers, The price promotions including price reduction, a percentage discount, a voucher. In 2009, there was a new price war among the big supermarkets in the UK. Tesco planned to launch a new advertising campaign, which will â€Å"compare the cost of customers baskets of shopping against the prices of its competitors. †(http://www. belfasttelegraph. co. uk) Asda has already hold a new wave of discount on thousands of products that including fresh food and household products. And â€Å"100 frozen food products and 200 everyday health and beauty lines, such as shampoo and deodorant, would be sold for ? 1. †(http://www. belfasttelegraph. co. uk) Andy Bond, the retailer’s president and chief executive officer, said: â€Å"2009 is going to be a very difficult year. Sainsbury’s, the third biggest supermarket in the UK, also joined the price war, â€Å"Vowing to grow its Basics range to more than 600 products by the end of January, The supermarket said more than half of these products would be priced at less than ? 1. †(http://www. belfasttelegraph. co. uk) Except the price war, some of the supermarkets in the UK also offer loyalty schemes to attracting potential consumers. Tesco is a good example, every time when they shopping in Tesco, they will get points according to how much they spend. Sometimes, Tesco also listed products that buy one can get 500 points more to increase the demand of this product. Every month, Tesco will sent voucher or coupons to the loyalty card member’s home. The more you spend, the more you get. Using loyalty schemes not only will attracting potential consumers especially female, but also it is a low cost way to know the customer’s lifestyle. When the customer registers the loyalty card, they should fulfill the personal details. Tesco will well know what is popular among the customer depend on these details. Since 1995, the major supermarkets in the UK start provide the non-food product and services such as pharmacies, clothes stores in Asda, petrol retailers, and banking and financial in Tesco. The effect on the supermarkets will be dramatic, especially due to the growing consumer propensity for the â€Å"one-stop† shop. Non-food products and services will help the big supermarkets increased the market share in the UK, and improve the competition itself. What is more, it is also function as reduce the risk of products, as the proverb said: â€Å"do not put all your eggs in one basket. It is means that for a supermarkets, non-food products and services will share the risk with food products. 2. 0 The effect on the smaller retailers.

Jury Trial Analysis Essay Example for Free

Jury Trial Analysis Essay Jury trial refers to a legal proceeding, whereby a panel of adjudicators makes decisions that are put into practice by the judges. A jury decides upon dubious issues of fact that can either be in a criminal or civil trial. It is a constitutional right for those charged with criminal and civil offenses to face trial by jury. However, in civil trials the defender and the offender can have a consensus of having a bench trial before a judge. Therefore, it is evidenced that jury trial takes place only in those situations where one side in a civil case, or the accused in a criminal case, have a belief that it is in their best interest. It also has an effect on the ruling of cases that never go to trial. In jury trial, there are five main steps that are keenly followed. The first step involves the selection of a jury. In this step prospective jurors show up in a courtroom. The defensive and prosecution lawyers together with the attorneys, interview them through a process called voir dire which means to speak the truth. This procedure is aimed at authenticating whether any of the jurors has a secretive interest in the case, a chauvinism or bias that may negatively influence him or her as a juror. For instance, the defensive lawyer can request to have the juror excused if he or she is afraid of guns. There are two main challenges faced at this stage, challenge for cause and authoritative challenge. Each of the side has the ability to discard a juror capriciously (Denver Criminal Attorney, 2009). Jury selection is completed and an oath is administered for those chosen in a particular case. However, they are lawyers who are specialized in jury selection and they will do excellent in this part of trial. Secondly, both sides in the case participate in an opening statement. First, the prosecutor gives a brief summary of what the trial is about, the offense that the defendant is being accused of and how they will prove his guilt. Thereafter, defensive attorney gives his opening statement in order to summarize how he will demonstrate his client is above suspicion. However, opening statements are not evidence but are only anticipation of what each side waits for the evidence to prove. The third step involves presentation of evidence and testimony of witnesses. The prosecutor takes the first step of professing witnesses and presenting various physical facts such as weapons and documents to evidence the defendant’s guilt. There is cross-examination of his witnesses by the defensive lawyers. After the prosecution is done with his presentation, the defense gets the floor and also presents its own witnesses and evidence. The prosecution gets an opportunity to cross-examine defense witnesses too. Finally, both sides ‘’respite ‘’their case. The fourth step entails closing arguments and presentation of jury instructions. The defense firstly, confirms how the prosecution did not prove its case. The prosecution goes last winding up its case. It is substantiated that the prosecution has the’’ burden of proof’’ and therefore it goes first and also last. The judge interprets the instructions of law to the jurors, defines their responsibilities, what evidence to consider and the law that governs the case. The final step in a jury trial is deliberation. The jury goes to the deliberation room to judge the case and arrive at a verdict. A foreperson is identified to ensure that every juror is given a fair opportunity to participate. In case of any need for clarification, it is written down and the bailiff presents it to the judge (Morrocco). Finally, when a judgment has been attained, jurors agree to it and sign a form then they alert the bailiff. It is then read by the clerk and the judge discharge the jurors. In a jury trial, the constitution allows for fair and impartial treatment of the accused. There are several constitutional rights of a defendant during a jury trial. For instance, the defendant has a right to remain silent, confront witnesses, represented by an attorney and also has a right to adequate and sufficient representation. This is mainly practiced in criminal prosecutions. Jury trial is in deed one of the better systems of judgment of single or a panel of judges who have a lot of bias. Every party in a jury trial is mandated to enjoy the right to a detached jury of the center where the crime shall have been committed. The legal system must use the proper and accurate means of obtaining information and evidence against a suspect (Jury Service). So as to ensure selection of unbiased jury, each of the prospective jurors is ordered an oath to speak the truth. Usually, twelve jurors are selected having two of them being chosen as alternates. Stringent instructions are given as a way to ensure fairness and impartiality as a jury. To maintain the highest standards of fairness in a jury trial, an independent jury must be appointed each year to appraise the application and also select participating juror.

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Gothic Culture And Modern Fashions Cultural Studies Essay

Gothic Culture And Modern Fashions Cultural Studies Essay Towards the end of the seventies there emerged a new youth subculture that stemmed from the fragmenting Punk scene commonly referred to as Goth. Goth appeared to assume the trappings of Gothic literature and film which was primarily based on Baroque art. As such, members of the Goth subculture converted the characteristic features of this literature as well as film wherein they transformed them into a form of resistance to suburban Britain. Subsequently, this resistance by the Goth migrated to other regions including America as well as Australia which were presumably perceived not only to be small minded but also dull. The link between the Goth subculture and Gothic literature is not clear. This is because the translation of literature into street style has often been approached with bemusement or simply overlooked by a significant number of scholars. However, the two subjects draw a strong relation through the medium of fashion. In these respect, the designer Gareth Pugh has emerged out as one of the most interesting as well as unique figures in the world of fashion from London. Pughs style entrenched in Goth subculture quite clearly depends on a spectacular style or sets of styles from which the artist invents his identity. This primarily represents another characteristic feature of Gothics preoccupation with clothes and as such fashion. It is the presumption of this paper that the Goth sub-culture has had tremendous influence on fashion that has changed the way in which clothing is represented in Gothic discourses. Goth History A significant chunk of the Goth subculture and the resurgence of interest in this way of life emphasizes on the mutation of Goth into an autonomous youth subculture towards the close of the seventies. This explains the relatively young age of proponents such as Gareth Pugh who further the ideal of the Goth sub-culture through fashion. During the seventies, the Goth culture was led by post punk groups including the Birthday Party, The Sisters of Mercy, Bauhus, Siouxsie and the Banshees (Spooner and Spooner, 2004). The groups led other Goth adherents to the Goth style that combined the graveyard exorcism of 19th century mourning costume and perverse sexuality of fetish with the nihilism of Punk to create a macabre aesthetic. The garments that the adherents adorned were predominantly black. However, according to Spooner and Spooner, (2004)these were accessorised with memento mori motifs and vampire makeup as fig. 1 illustrates. Fig. 1 Gothic Fashion Although the main period of the popularity of the Goth Spanned in the eighties, the culture has proved to be remarkably long living as it has persisted both in the 1990s and ultimately into the twenty first century. In the mid eighties towards the late 1990s, there however emerged cultural figures that began heralding the revival of the Gothic culture by pointing out the increased number of bands that were largely influenced by the Goth subculture including Garbage, Marilyn Manson together with their black dressed acolytes (Spooner and Spooner, 2004). Commentators also often cited the resurgence of the Goth sub-cultural influence in haute couture, film, literary fiction, as well as fine art and other derived genres of music including hip-hop and techno. Toward the end of the twentieth century, critical discourses that surrounded the Goth subculture illustrated a significant shift away from psychoanalytical methods towards historicism. In this regard, this discourse exhibited an increased level of self-consciousness in relation to the processes of textual and fashion production. Baldwick and Minghall, (2000) pointed out a trend in which 20th century theorisations of the Goth subculture focused on the irrational, the spiritual as well as the subversive at the expense of accurate historical analysis. Such a strategy frequently constitutes a kind of idealisation whereby Gothic subculture is privileged with whatever contravening roles generally associated with the critic. Arguably, such a process of canonical rehabilitation as well as critical appropriation has recorded an increase with the advent of millennium celebrations (Stevens, 2000). Gothic art has developed a trend in which it resurfaces at the fin de sià ¨cle whereby as the fin to end all siecles approaches swiftly, the fervour of the subculture reaches a peculiar climax (Spooner and Spooner, 2004). This aspect was captured well by Grunenberg, (1997) who postulated that the modern society exists in a particularly dire time. This period according to Grunenberg constitutes the Gothic period of fear, moral disintegration, horror as well as the perverse indulgence in extreme pleasures. Gothic fashion as such, has evolved to be a quid pro quo for disturbing and sombre moods, events and places as well as cultural by products of the contemporary society in America (Steele and Park, 2008). Despite the fact that a low number of individuals carried with them the expectation of the world ending at the turn of the 21st century, a true fin-de sià ¨cle feeling wrought with elements of cultural pessimism as well as spiritual malaise permeated society at the time. This spirit persists in modern day societys fashion. The Goth Culture One problem that arises when discussing the Goth subculture is that it draws a profound connection to punk and also emphasizes on dramatic visual style (Spoooner and Spooner, 2004; Polhemus, 1995). Ultimately, this has resulted into the Goth subculture being regarded as a spectacular culture despite it being a fan culture as well. Fan communities have to a significant degree been regarded in relation to media texts for instance, the Star Trek series. However, there exist various similarities between communities described by Jenkins, (1992) and common practices usually associated with the Goth sub-culture. Fan communities actively develop their own ways of life from fragments and scrap that are usually scavenged from the media. Jenkins, (1992) describes this process of creative appropriation as textual poaching. Much in the same light, Goth fashion as an element of Goth subculture is particularly focused on consumption. This consumption does not only constitute clothing, but also incl udes cinematic and literary narratives, sub-cultural commodities and music. Much in the same way that television series fans like Doctor Who or Star Trek develop their identities through their love for the aforementioned series, Goth such as Pugh suture their identity from a complicated system of cinematic and literary affiliations through integrating several archetypes and characters they meet during their fantasy lives, ultimately realizing them through costume or fashion. While some Goths may come across as more literate compared to others in the overall tradition of Gothic representation, all have to either a lesser or greater extent constructed their identities, Frankenstein like, from the fragments and scraps of that way of life. This process of developing identity is demonstrated by Tim Burtons early short film by the name Vincent. In this production, Vincent Molloy, a seven year old boy imagined himself as taking the identity of another person, Vincent Price whereby he condu cted himself as Price would. This fan tribute to the oeuvre of Price does not draw any contradictions in relation to attitude and the kind of fan fiction produced around fantasy series and science fiction. However, this does not imply that Goth is a fan culture in any straight-forward way. This is because it is possible for an individual to be a fan of horror films or Gothic novels without necessary being a Goth. On the contrary, Goth is a combination of the elements of spectacular culture and fan culture ultimately creating a monstrous hybrid between the two ways of life. The resulting culture is one in which symbolic resistance is not only enacted through fashion or spectacular style but also embraces narratives that are generally perceived to be dangerous and as such, falling out of general societal conventions. The development of Gothic as an anti-canonical marginalised subgenre as such, propels the cultures sense of resistance to a cultural hegemony of the bland (Hannaham, 1997). Such acts of self-definition constitute the concurrent definition of a mainstream that has been developed as the other by its respective subculture. According to Thornton, (2008) this fantasised mainstrea m may or may not bear any link to what is real. However, it is the product of the subculture out of a desire for difference. Thornton contends that vague opposition can be outwardly stated to be that questioning the number of members of youth subcultures characterising their own activities. Significant to note is the fact that youthful discourses can not be taken literally. This is because these discourses are not mere transparent windows that reflect on the world. A significant number of cultural critics have been insufficiently critical of sub cultural ideologies. This trend is firstly attributed to the fact that they were diverted by the task of contesting and puncturing dominant ideologies and secondly owing to the fact that their biases have tended to agree with the anti mass society discourses of the youth sub-cultural groups they study. This is to say, while the formulations of power in given subcultures are potentially fertile topics for research, investing in subcultures that have been known for their transgression as well as subversion has often proved to be problematic. This is because research in addition to leading to a better understanding of the phenomenon under study, also highlights such phenomenon from obscurity. This implies that aspects that were overlooked in the past owing to the low degree of societal subscription to such doctrines have the potential of becoming famous. This new-born fame is often attributed to researchers. Due to the fact that society loathes aspects of subversive and transgressing elements, researchers have the tendency to steer away from such elements and cultures including Goth. Holmes, (1997) illustrates this element in Gothic culture in his essay coming out of the coffin. He contends that punk and Goth cultures in contrast to exhibiting stability as many would like them to, exi st by way of suturing both the anti-canonical and the canonical as well as the high and low, the romantic and cynical in addition to the straight and the queer. Embracing these aspects in most circumstances is through the Gothic tradition in general as well as through one of the cultures prominent figures, the vampire (Fig 2) (Auerbach, 1995; Goddzu, 2007). In many ways, this is an accurate evocation of Goth, capturing the complexity of its several poses. Fig 2. Barnabas Collins, Vampire: Jonathan Frid in the television series Dark Shadows Costume Gothic fashion is a form of clothing that is usually associated with members of the Goth subculture. It is a dark form of art which sometimes tends to be highly insensitive and morbid with some quarters terming it as an eroticised form of fashion or style of dress. In its typical form, Gothic fashion is characterised with black hips, dyed black hair, and black clothes (Grunenberg, 1997). Additionally, both male and female members of the Goths subculture wear dark fingernails as well as dark eyeliners. The function of clothes within Goth subculture is largely dependent on who is wearing them (Spooner and Spooner, 2004). It was custom for the 1980s middle class individuals to enact rebellion only through implicit and stereotyped ridiculous dress codes while the avant-garde classless individual of the modern day fashion like Gareth Pugh is stylishly subversive of convention. Gareth Pugh as a new generation figure is both glamorous and confident. Pugh is constructed as an individual that is always aiming for the top and forward as opposed to relying on the past to provide him with a referral page for his design. In fact, his world of design is framed in a way that it conforms to utopian principles where both intellectual and irrational forces intermingle in the creation of form. When Gareth Pughs work is perceived under a lens with such an understanding, it takes on a new significance for the designers fans. The implication here is that other designers subscribe to conventional lines of thought and as such, design. An individual that adorns Pughs design on the contrary is stylish and belongs to the new variety. In other words, wearing Pughs design has the capability of transforming an individual from a conventional person to a Gaultier Goth (Spooner and Spooner, 2004). Design in itself is an artistic impression integrated with certain tastes that the artist fancies as ideal (Gardner, Kleiner and Mamiya, 2005). These impressions as expressed in garments draw from a wide history in the long established tradition of art. As such, artists such as Pugh have the tendency to look back at elements that were embraced in the past to which they base their form of art. Subsequently, art and design integrate, ultimately combining inflatable garments, black and white colours as well as geometric shapes in addition to materials such as PVC and plastics (Fargis, 1998). These forms are characteristic of classical Gothic and baroque art. Fig. 3 Conclusion In conclusion, the complexity of Gareth Pughs images is accompanied by an increasing sense of Gothicism in the design themselves. The designer has deliberately courted the Gothic in his work frequently returning to themes of automata, prosthesis and automata (Spooner and Spooner, 2004). While garments that were featured in earlier images in the 90s would be reasonably wearable by most of consumers in the mainstream, most of Pughs are increasingly perverse and esoteric Fig. 3. These later images however particularly resonate Gothic themes. These are not only limited to the characteristic features of imprisonment, vampirism and torture but upon a closer scrutiny also resonate with the kind of structural conventions Eve Sedgwick identifies as characteristic features of Gothic literature (Spooner and Spooner, 2004). Vampirism as portrayed in these images is ostentatiously a surface effect implying no illusion of realism. By conflating the penetrating gaze with the penetrating fangs, Pugh s designs seem to have undergone what Sedgwick referred to as contagion or the manner Gothic literature contends that aspects of a given element are transferred to another. List of figures Fig. 1. Gothic Fashion., Otherclothing.co.uk, online Fig. 2 Barnabas Collins, Vampire: Jonathan Frid in the television series Dark Shadows by William Patrick Day (2002), p.37 Fig.3. Vogue.com (2008) Wicked with a capital W by Gareth Pugh in Vogue Magazine Autumn/Winter 2008-9, online

Saturday, July 20, 2019

The Romance of Travel Essay -- Manfred Byron Essays Papers Traveling

The Romance of Travel Romance, as it confirms human agency with regards to understanding the world and organizing one's existence, is an enabling genre. Northrop Frye identifies "romance" in its questing, adventurous, persistently nostalgic, and "perennially child-like quality" as the "nearest of all literary forms to the wish-fulfillment dream" (186). Arguably, many of the texts that we have examined over the course of the term can be understood as (more or less) participating in the affirmative conventions of romance in the ways that they show men and woman turning travel into a journey. Take for instance Gilpin's essay "On Picturesque Beauty:" what a light hearted quest ("the searching after effects") it is that he assigns to the picturesque traveler. He would not bring this intention of travel into conflict with the other more "useful ends of travel," but he also offers it as a goal for those who "travel without any end at all." Gilpin even describes the amusements of picturesque travel as a sort of adventure: This great object [beauty of every kind] we pursue through the scenery of nature. We seek it among all the ingredients of landscape -- trees -- rocks -- broken-grounds -- woods -- rivers -- lakes -- plains -- vallies -- mountains -- and distances. The gaze of the traveler ranges "with supreme delight among the sweet vales of Switzerland," as well as through the "limits of art;" it "seeks" after nature's "various effects;" the "scene of grandeur bursts on the eye." Indeed, Gilpin's picturesque traveler is very active. Moreover, when the traveler finds him or herself among less visually appealing natural environments, then it is that the wish-fulfilling imagination can be "let [. . .] loose" to "plant h... ...eader, as he reads personal travel accounts that are informed by those same conventions, enjoys a rapport with the authors, texts, and characters within those texts that make him/her feel (at least they made me feel) as though they (and I) were going somewhere. Works Cited Auden, W. H. and Elizabeth Mayer. "Intoduction." Italian Journey by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. London: Penguin, 1970. Byron, George Gordon, Lord. "Byron's Swiss Tour" (1816). http://www.ualberta.ca/~dmiall/Travel/Byron_Oberland.htm Frye, Northrop. The Anatomy of Criticism. Princeton, NJ: Princeton UP, 1973. Gilpin, William. "On Picturesque Beauty." http://www.ualberta.ca/~dmiall/Travel/gilpine2.htm Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von. Italian Journey. London: Penguin, 1970. Wordsworth, William. "Tintern Abbey." http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/~dmiall/Tintern/Tintern_c.htm The Romance of Travel Essay -- Manfred Byron Essays Papers Traveling The Romance of Travel Romance, as it confirms human agency with regards to understanding the world and organizing one's existence, is an enabling genre. Northrop Frye identifies "romance" in its questing, adventurous, persistently nostalgic, and "perennially child-like quality" as the "nearest of all literary forms to the wish-fulfillment dream" (186). Arguably, many of the texts that we have examined over the course of the term can be understood as (more or less) participating in the affirmative conventions of romance in the ways that they show men and woman turning travel into a journey. Take for instance Gilpin's essay "On Picturesque Beauty:" what a light hearted quest ("the searching after effects") it is that he assigns to the picturesque traveler. He would not bring this intention of travel into conflict with the other more "useful ends of travel," but he also offers it as a goal for those who "travel without any end at all." Gilpin even describes the amusements of picturesque travel as a sort of adventure: This great object [beauty of every kind] we pursue through the scenery of nature. We seek it among all the ingredients of landscape -- trees -- rocks -- broken-grounds -- woods -- rivers -- lakes -- plains -- vallies -- mountains -- and distances. The gaze of the traveler ranges "with supreme delight among the sweet vales of Switzerland," as well as through the "limits of art;" it "seeks" after nature's "various effects;" the "scene of grandeur bursts on the eye." Indeed, Gilpin's picturesque traveler is very active. Moreover, when the traveler finds him or herself among less visually appealing natural environments, then it is that the wish-fulfilling imagination can be "let [. . .] loose" to "plant h... ...eader, as he reads personal travel accounts that are informed by those same conventions, enjoys a rapport with the authors, texts, and characters within those texts that make him/her feel (at least they made me feel) as though they (and I) were going somewhere. Works Cited Auden, W. H. and Elizabeth Mayer. "Intoduction." Italian Journey by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. London: Penguin, 1970. Byron, George Gordon, Lord. "Byron's Swiss Tour" (1816). http://www.ualberta.ca/~dmiall/Travel/Byron_Oberland.htm Frye, Northrop. The Anatomy of Criticism. Princeton, NJ: Princeton UP, 1973. Gilpin, William. "On Picturesque Beauty." http://www.ualberta.ca/~dmiall/Travel/gilpine2.htm Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von. Italian Journey. London: Penguin, 1970. Wordsworth, William. "Tintern Abbey." http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/~dmiall/Tintern/Tintern_c.htm

Library Essay -- Library Science

Recently, school library journals have been fraught with tales of gloom and despair – the libraries are closing. But dig a little deeper, scratch more than the surface, and perhaps we will find that not all school libraries are closing. In fact, the trend suggests that only libraries that are not meeting the updated needs of their students find themselves on the chopping block. Why? The traditional services offered by the traditional school library can no longer be supported under the weight of enormous financial constraints. Although traditional school libraries continue to service students’ basic needs, if libraries are not willing to diversify their services, budget cuts will force school libraries to close because they do not meet the needs of today’s student. Simply put, no one can afford to spend more and get less. According to a recent American Library Association report (2010), even as school enrollments are increasing, funding for information resources are decreasing, with fewer libraries serving more students. So how do some school libraries continue to flourish and gain importance? By creating progressive hubs for student engagement, ingenuity, diversity, and teamwork and transitioning into media centers, learning commons, information resource centers. But what is really in a name? What is at the heart of the school library? Books? Periodicals? Videos? Yes, yes, and yes. All these resources are housed in the school library, but the library is so much more than that. Alfaro (2009) defines the school library as â€Å"†¦a wealth of information in print and non-print formats categorized to support the knowledge the children will learn in their classrooms, at home, and through first-hand experiences† (p. 30). So how will the libr... ...effective results. They must utilize available technology, but provide depth and breadth, not just surface-level services. Abrams (2003) asserts that librarians can â€Å"†¦make a difference over the next five years by understanding what’s coming, learning how it works, seeking key benefits for our students, and becoming the resource in our schools that lifts our learners up to their full potential† (p. 6). It’s actually been almost 10 years since that article was written, and still, a new and challenging development is looming over the library: diversification. This diversity of the library’s workforce, collections, and services offered is beginning to travel outside its current comfortable boundaries and seek to balance actions and obstacles in order to change the way the library does business. The library should â€Å"look like† the multicultural world it’s representing.

Friday, July 19, 2019

Mythological References in Hamlet Essay -- Essays on Shakespeare Hamlet

Mythological References in Hamlet      Ã‚  Ã‚   What's in a name? Hamlet's good friend and confidant Horatio is doomed by the etymology of his nomenclature to give good speech. Shakespeare has gifted Horatio with an elegant lucidty that, when inspected closely, enables the reader to better comprehend the nature of the play; one of his first addresses is key in setting the tone of what James Joyce called "'the grave and constant' in human suffering" (Campbell 8). This is also a principal theme of classical mythology, and to fully understand Hamlet as a tragic hero, a comprehension of the mythological references at the beginning of the play must be foremost in the reader's mind. These metaphoric intimations of tragedy; leaked in Hamlet's and Horatio's early soliloquies deliver the fundamental clues to unlocking Hamlet's enigmatic madness and foreshadow its violent emotional, physical and supernatural battles.    The early Greeks believed that the universe created the gods, not .he other way around(Hamilton 24). They created their myths to explain the order of things; how the sun sets, why the moon rises, the tides coming in and out, etc. When these patterns were interrupted, people assumed it was the wrath or folly of the gods and went on making up more stories. Shakespeare has given his characters a heritage influenced by the Teutonic and Nordic races. Both cultures developed a collateral paganish belief shared by the early Greeks, and this parallel helps offer an explanation towards the choice of metaphor in the text. This is most important in the following excerpt from Horatio's second soliloquy. After seeing the ghost of Hamlet's father, he remarks to Bernardo:    Disasters in the sun; and the moist star, Upon w... ...is heroic obligation. Claudius questions Hamlet's mood after a month of mourning for his father:    CLAUDIUS: How is it that the clouds still hang on you? HAMLET: Not so, my lord, I am too much i' the sun.(I.ii.65-66)    The reader is reminded of Horatio's portentous thoughts of misfortune and simultaneously called to recognize Hamlet as the center of future woes, around whom all the disasters at Elsinore revolve like satellites of the Fates: is he too much like his father or not? If Hamlet truly embodies the Promethean essence, then he does know what is to happen: Prometheus means "foresight." What is in a name?    Works Cited Campbell, Joseph. The Power of Myth. New York: Doubleday, 1988. Dukore, Bernard F. "Shaw on Hamlet." Educational Theatre Journal 23 (1971): 152-59 Hamilton, Edith. Mythology. New York: Mentor, 1969.   

Thursday, July 18, 2019

Business Ethics in Brazil Essay

In this comparative survey of 126 Brazilian and U.S. business professionals, we explore the effect of national culture on ethical decisionmaking within the context of business. Using Reidenbach and Robin’s (1988) multi-criteria ethics instrument, we examined how these two countries’ differences on Hofstede’s individualism/collectivism Rafik I. Beekun (Ph.D., The University of Texas, Austin) is Professor of Management and Strategy in the Managerial Sciences Department at the University of Nevada, Reno. His current research interests are in the area of strategic adaptation, the link between national cultures and ethics, and the relationship between management and spirituality. He has published in such journals as Journal of Applied Psychology, Human Relations, Journal of Management and Decision Sciences. Correspondence regarding this article should be sent to him at: Managerial Sciences Department, Mail Stop 28, University of Nevada, Reno, NV 89557-0206. Yvonne Ste dham (Ph.D., University of Kansas) is an Associate Professor of Management in the Managerial Sciences Department at the University of Nevada, Reno. She has published in such journals as the Journal of Management and Journal of Management Studies. Dr. Stedham’s research focuses on the following areas: CEO performance evaluation, gender discrimination in employment, ethics in business, decision making across cultures, and managing knowledge workers. Jeanne H. Yamamura (CPA, Ph.D., Washington State University) is an Associate Professor of Accounting in the College of Business at the University of Nevada Reno. Her teaching responsibilities include auditing and accounting information systems courses. Dr. Yamamura’s research focuses on the management of accounting professionals with a particular interest in cross-cultural differences and her work has been published in accounting and business journals. She has extensive practical experience in the field of accounting through her previous employment in public and private accounting. Rafik I. Beekun Yvonne Stedham Jeanne H. Yamamura dimension are related to the manner in which business practitioners make ethical decisions. Our results indicate that Brazilians and Americans evaluate the ethical content of actions or decisions differently when applying utilitarian criteria. By contrast, business people from both countries do not differ significantly when they use egoistic criteria in evaluating the ethical nature of business decisions. KEY WORDS: Brazil, egoism, ethics, national culture, U.S., utilitarianism As business organizations move from domestic to global and transnational competition, they are finding that cultural values vary significantly across national boundaries, and are likely to affect business practices (Husted, 2000). During the past decade, several researchers (Ferrell and Gresham, 1985; Hunt et al., 1989; Abratt et al., 1992; Hunt and Vitell, 1992; Tsalikis and Nwachukwu, 1991; Vitell et al., 1993) have noted the potential influence of national c ulture on ethics within a business context. What obscures the impact of national culture on ethics is that business practices may conflict with ethical values in a manner that medicine, law and government do not (DeGeorge, 1993). Not surprisingly, empirical research investigating the relationship between national culture and ethical decision-making is relatively sparse (Vitell et al., 1993). A primary reason for exploring the effects of culture on ethics is the increased globalization of business. This trend, in turn, is characterized by a diverse array of interorganizational arrangements that require cross-cultural interaction. As a result, cultural misunderstandings are likely to occur. One of the key areas where such mis- Journal of Business Ethics 42: 267–279, 2003.  © 2003 Kluwer Academic Publishers. Printed in the Netherlands. 268 Rafik I. Beekun et al. understandings take place is in the area of ethics, partly because of the influence that national cultures may have upon business ethics (Husted, 2000). Accordingly, in our study, we explore the relationship between national culture and business ethics. We will seek to investigate what process underlies ethical behavior across national boundaries. Understanding this process may help global managers develop tools to promote ethical behavior in their international workforce. In this research, we compare two culturally diverse countries, the United States (U.S.) and Brazil, in order to identify similarities and differences with regard to approaches toward ethical decision-making in a business context. Since culture is a broad concept, it is necessary to specify the values that could be related to behaviors or practices (Husted, 2000). For the purposes of this study, we used a well-established framework of national culture (Hofstede, 1980). Hofstede conducted one of the most important studies that ascertained the relationship between national culture and management. From this study, he identified several â€Å"value† dimensions along which countries differ. Using Hofstede’s (1980) framework, we carried out a crosscultural, comparative survey to assess the relationship between his individualism/collectivism dimension of national culture and ethical criteria. With respect to ethical decision-making, we adopted the instrument proposed and validated by Reidenbach and Robin (1988, 1990). They have generated a set of scales that measure the core dimensions characterizing different perspectives of ethical philosophy. Defining national culture: Hofstede’s dimensions of culture Multiple definitions and conceptualizations of national culture exist (Hofstede, 1980, 1988, 2001; Kluckhohn, 1951, 1962; Kluckhohn and Strodtbeck, 1961; Ronen and Shenkar, 1985; Trompenaars, 1993). Although these frameworks and conceptualizations typically center on values, they differ with respect to the specific values that are included in their respective frameworks. For instance, Trompenaars (1993) focuses on values related to relationships such as obligation, emotional orientation in relationships, and involvement in relationships. By contrast, Kluckhohn and Strodtbeck (1961) emphasize more global values such as people’s relationship to nature and time-orientation. With respect to our study, Hofstede’s framework of national cultures is the most appropriate since he ident ified values related to economic activity (Husted, 2000). Therefore, his framework is germane for the study of business decisions. Focusing on national cultures, Hofstede (1997, p. 260) defines culture as the â€Å"collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one group or category of people from another†. Thus, although the problems faced by groups (whether organizational or national) are universal, the solutions devised by each group may be relatively unique to that group. These solutions then become taken for granted over time, and may suggest why people hold certain beliefs and behave the way they do (Schneider and Barsoux, 1997). Hofstede (1980, 1988) has suggested that five dimensions of national culture underlie differences in the behavior of individuals from different cultural backgrounds. Since these dimensions describe how individuals view and interpret situations and behavior, they are likely to be related to how individuals engage in decision-making in general (Weick, 1979; Adler, 2002). Ethical decisionmaking, too, is likely to be affected by these dimensions of national culture. Hofstede’s five cultural dimensions (1980, 1988) are power distance, uncertainty avoidance, masculinity/femininity, individualism/collectivism, and long-term/short-term orientation. Power distance refers to the degree to which less powerful members in a country accept an unequal distribution of power. Uncertainty avoidance depicts a people’s ability to cope with ambiguous situations as well as the mechanisms they have created to avoid such situations. Masculinity exemplifies a focus on material things, such as money, success, etc., whereas femininity refers to a focus on quality of life, caring, etc. Individualism, which will be discussed in more detail later, refers to the tendency of people to consider their interests and those of A Comparative Investigation of Business Ethics their immediate family only. By contrast, collectivism refers to the inclination of people to view themselves as part of a larger group, and to protect the interests of group members. Longterm/short-term orientation describes the time perspective people take when dealing with a situation. Table I represents the scores for Hofstede’s cultural dimensions for Brazil and the U.S. While the scores indicate dissimilarities between the U.S. and Brazil on all five cultural dimensions, by far the largest difference appears in the individualism/collectivism dimension. Brazil scored low on individualism, and hence is considered a collectivistic country; by contrast, the U.S. scored high on individualism and is considered an individualistic country. The individualism/collectivism dimension describes how individuals relate to others and to society, and represents the extent to which they are emotionally and cognitively attached to a particular network of individuals. Individualism describes the inclination of individuals to be primarily concerned with their personal interests and their immediate family’s welfare (Hofstede, 1980). Members of a highly individualistic country view themselves as independent of organizations or institutions, and place a higher value on self-reliance and individual action. Collectivism, in comparison, describes a culture where individuals are viewed as part of a larger group, and look after each other. Collectivistic cultures protect the interests of their members in return for their loyalty. In collectivist cultures, morality is defined in terms of the benefits for the in-group (family, friends, work companies, 269 etc.), implying the maintenance of solidarity (Triandis and Bhawuk, 1997). Hofst ede (1980) noted that the individualism/collectivism dimension carried â€Å"strong moral overtones† because this dimension was reflected in value systems shared by the majority. For example, in a highly individualistic country, individualism is viewed as a strength and the major reason for the country’s accomplishments. By comparison, inhabitants of a highly collectivistic country view an emphasis on self as a negative attribute to be eliminated for the good of society. Competing ethical frameworks for business decisions Ethics are the principles of human conduct regarding either an individual or a group (Shaw, 1999), and represent the moral standards not governed by law, that focus on the human consequences of actions (Francesco and Gold, 1998). Ethics often require behavior that meets higher standards than those established by law, including selfless behavior rather than calculated action intended to produce a tangible benefit. With respect to this study, business ethics describe the ultimate rules governing the assessment of â€Å"what constitutes right or wrong, or good or bad human conduct in a business context† (Shaw, 1999). In the assessment of ethical behavior, perception is critical (Hartmann, 2000). Indeed, ethical decisions may be influenced by our own perception, by others’ perceptions of our actions, and by our perception of â€Å"universal laws†. As a TABLE I Cultural dimensions (Hofstede 1980, 1988, 2001) Dimensions of culture U.S. Brazil Difference Power distance Uncertainty avoidance 40 46 69 76 (29) (30) Individualism/Collectivism 91 38 53 Masculine/Feminine Confucian Dynamism 62 29 49 65 13 (36) 270 Rafik I. Beekun et al. result, our final choices may be determined by the perception tha t is the most salient at the time. Further, Hartmann suggests that cultures may differ not only with respect to the ethical principles underlying decisions but also with respect to which of the three stakeholders – self, society, and universal laws – is emphasized in any given situation. Depending on which stakeholder is emphasized, people from different cultures may vary in their assessment of the ethical nature of a decision. Across most situations, ethical principles that distinguish right from wrong actions are encompassed by several normative theories, e.g., justice, relativism, egoism, utilitarianism, and deontology. These theories can generate potentially conflicting interpretations of what is ethical or unethical, originating from the very nature of the theories themselves. Moreover, prior research (Cohen et al., 1996; Hansen, 1992; Reidenbach and Robin, 1988, 1990) indicates that individuals making ethical decisions do not select a single theory or philosophy by which to make their decisions. In fact, Reidenbach and Robin (1988) found that a varying combination of ethical philosophies or theories is employed when ethical decisions are made. Shaw (1999) draws a distinction between two types of ethical theories, consequentialist and nonconsequentialist. Consequentialist theories suggest that the moral rightness of an action depends on the actual or intended results of the action. What is right is determined by â€Å"weighing the ratio of good to bad that an action is likely to produce† (Shaw, 1999, p. 45). A key issue underlying consequentialist theories is the nature of the beneficiaries of the action under consideration. Should one consider the consequences for oneself or for all involved? The most important consequentialist theories are egoism and utilitarianism. Egoism promotes individual self-interest as the guiding principle whereas utilitarianism advocates that everyone affected by the action or decision must be taken into account (Shaw, 1999). By contrast, nonconsequentialist theories suggest that it is not simply the consequence of an act that matters, but also its inherent character. Although these theories do not deny that con- sequences are morally relevant, they assert that other factors are also important in assessing the moral significance of an action. For example, â€Å"breaking a promise† is wrong not simply because of the consequences that result from breaking it, but also because of the nature of the act itself. In this study, we focus on consequentialist theories for several reasons. First, Hofstede’s individualism/collectivism dimension can be clearly and easily related to the two consequentialist theories. Second, the two theories represent the perceptions of two of the three possible sta keholders identified by Hartmann (2000), namely own perceptions and others’ perceptions. Third, staying within one theoretical category allows for a much more parsimonious, yet thorough, analysis. Ethical perspectives and national culture: hypotheses Whether egoistic or utilitarian principles are employed, ethics are a product of a society’s culture, which includes its traditions, values, and norms. Within a society, ethical behavior is generally agreed upon. Francesco and Gold (1998, p. 40) explain that â€Å"members implicitly understand how relationships, duties and obligations among people and groups ought to be conducted, and distinguish between their selfinterests and the interests of others.† However, when two or more countries interact, they often find that their ethics differ. According to Hendry (1999), these differences may lead to three types of culturally based ethical conflicts. First, there are those conflicts where the ethical values typifying the two national cultures lead to differing conclusions; what is deemed unethical from one perspect ive is considered to be ethical from the other. Second, conflict may arise when businesspersons from one culture consider something morally significant whereas their counterparts from another culture are ethically neutral. Third, business people from two cultures may interpret a common situation differently even when there is some commonality among their national values. A Comparative Investigation of Business Ethics To investigate the relationship between national culture and ethics, we chose two culturally diverse countries, Brazil and the U.S. Given the differences in their respective national cultures, we expect Brazilians and Americans to differ in their assessment of the ethical content of business decisions. Accordingly, we propose the following hypothesis: H1: The assessment of the ethical content of business decisions is a function of national culture. Egoism and individualism/collectivism According to egoism, the only valid standard of one’s behavior is one’s obligation to advance one’s well-being above everyone else’s (Beauchamp and Bowie, 1997). Promotion of one’s own longterm interest is viewed as the only worthwhile objective and the only determinant of whether an act is morally right or not. Nothing is owed to others or to the organization that one works in. Those who abide by this approach to ethics intensely believe that all altruistic efforts by others are really acts of self-promotion since an individual may have to help others in order to advance his/her own interests. Brazil is collectivistic whereas the U.S. is individualistic. As discussed earlier, persons from an individualistic culture emphasize their families’ and their own int erests. H1.a: When applying egoistic criteria to judge the ethical content of an action or a decision, respondents from the U.S. will be less likely than respondents from Brazil to see a decision or action as unethical. Utilitarianism and individualism/collectivism Utilitarianism, in direct contrast to egoism, â€Å"is the moral doctrine that we should always act to produce the greatest possible balance of good over bad for everyone affected by our action† (Shaw, 1999, p. 49). Although utilitarians also 271 evaluate an action in terms of its consequences, an action is ethical if it results in the greatest benefit or â€Å"good† for the largest number of people. Issues of self-interest are not germane since actions are assessed in accordance with one primary standard: the general good. Utilitarianism has long been associated with social improvement and the promotion of actions that are in the best interest of â€Å"the community.† Actions are right if they promote the greatest human welfare. Brazil is collectivistic. Persons from a collectivistic culture focus on actions that lead to the greatest benefit for most members of a group. H1.b: When applying utilitarian criteria to judge the ethical content of an action or a decision, respondents from Brazil will be less likely than respondents from the U.S. to see an action or decision as unethical. To be consistent with prior ethics research (Reidenbach and Robin, 1988), the above hypotheses (H1.a and H1.b) together suggest that Americans and Brazilians rely on more than one ethical criterion when assessing the ethical content of an action or decision. However, we are also suggesting that when each specific ethical criterion they refer to is considered separately, people from different national cultures will vary in their assessment of the ethical content of a course of action or a decision. Methodology Sample Data were collected from 126 respondents – 92 from the U.S. and 34 from Brazil. U.S. participants included MBA students at a regional university as well as business professionals. Brazilian participants were all students enrolled in an Executive MBA program. We used MBA students in our study for two reasons. First, MBA students are a commonly used proxy for business people (Dubinsky and Rudelius, 1980). Dubinsky and Rudelius’ (1980) comparison of 272 Rafik I. Beekun et al. student versus professional evaluations found a high degree of congruence between the two groups. Second, since all students (both U.S. and Brazilian) were currently employed by companies or had recent professional work experience, the sample can be used as a proxy for business professionals in both countries. Data collection The instrument we used was Reidenbach and Robin’s (1988) pre-validated, multi-criteria instrument incorporating the core dimensions that underlie several ethical perspectives. We selected this survey instrument because it is a multi-philosophy and multi-item questionnaire. As a result, it will enable us to assess both ethical dimensions of interest, i.e., egoism and utilitarianism, simultaneously. This instrument incorporates multiple items for each ethical philosophy and, therefore, is relatively more reliable than single item instruments (Kerlinger, 1986). Reidenbach and Robin’s instrument includes an initial set of scales that has shown evidence of high reliability and modest convergent validity with respect to U.S. respondents. The scales correlate highly with a univariate measure of the ethical content of situations. Hence, the instrument can be said to have high construct validity in the U.S. Additional reliability and validation efforts for the wh ole sample and for Brazil specifically are reported below. Using a seven-point Likert scale (1 = ethical, 7 = unethical), respondents were asked to rate the action in three scenarios using the criteria (items) described in Table II. The perception of and the criteria emphasized in evaluating the ethical content of a decision or situation depend on the nature of the decision or the situation. In accordance with previous research, scenarios will be used in this study to provide the contextual stimulus and to motivate the evaluation process (Alexander and Becker, 1978). We adopted the three scenarios developed and validated by Reidenbach and Robin (1988, 1990). Table III presents the three scenarios used in this study. Data were collected by means of the abovementioned instrument administered to Brazilian participants (in Portuguese) and provided via written instrument and website access to U.S. participants (in English). The Brazilian instrument was back translated to ensure equivalence. Efforts were made to establish the reliability and validity of the instrument in this comparative context and are reported as follows. We examined the reliability of the instrument by assessing its internal consistency through the use of Cronbach’s alpha. Since we used three different measures (one for each of the scenarios), we calculated three inter-item coefficient alphas. The Cronbach alpha was 0.81 for the first scenario, 0.75 for the second scenario and 0.86 for the third scenario. All three coefficients indicate that the scale items are internally con- TABLE II Ethics instrument scales Ethical perspective Items (Seven-point Likert scale †“ 1 to 7)* Egoism Self promoting/not self promoting Self sacrificing/not self sacrificing Personally satisfying/not personally satisfying Utilitarianism Produces greatest utility/produces the least utility Maximizes benefits while minimizes harm/minimizes benefits while maximizes harm Leads to the greatest good for the greatest number/leads to the least good for the greatest number * Generally speaking, in the above bipolar scales, 1 = fair or just or efficient (ethical) whereas 7 = unfair, unjust or inefficient (unethical). A Comparative Investigation of Business Ethics

Wednesday, July 17, 2019

Research Proposal for Internal Auditor Essay

triggerThe province of the internal analyse is to serve the Ministry of jurist in a manner that is arranged with the pecuniary Administration and audited account Act, Standards for the passe-partout Practise of upcountry Auditing and with professional standards of direct. This act has the potential to provide hitherto uneven redevelopments to circumspection in the channelize of their duties.Background of StudyThe administration of Jamaica conventional the inside Auditing delegacy as a means of strengthening accountability and reinforcing assert and confidence in financial inform for state-supported firmament institutions. These audits help advance economic prosperity, expanding the variety, number and grade of proceeding by means of written reports or consultations to prep atomic number 18 persons who are entering into transactions. (Institute of contract Accountants 2005) The value of an intimate attender lies in how well he/she is capable to offer to the o verall attainment of the organisations objectives.The auditor should unendingly strive to make himself relevantto the ogranisations using the ripe methods of providing schooling to that will al hapless management make decisions that will impact the organization positively on their ability to achieve organisational goals. However according to the reports made by the Auditor General of Jamaica (2005) audits have been regulatory in terms of scope with the neglect of technology in aiding auditor and fraud. This ask to be addressed if the required snuff it on investment in the intrinsic Audit is to be attained.Problem taleThe knowledgeable Audit Agency (2006) believes that the enormousness of internal audit is analytically obscure. This tenet plagues the importance of an internal audit as a key function that stool strengthen the oversight responsibility of the political science body and this spot reflects managements view on auditors. To sum it up, unexclusive field ag encies discredit auditors, The sexual Audit functions in the Jamaican overt sector faces a perception and credibility riddle as auditors are seen as value adders or fault stimulateers in the government rather than solution providers. Management call into headway Why is it that public sector managers find the function of the native Audit Agency an inconvenience and what can be through to curb it? investigate Questions1. Why is on that point a low support for infixed Audit by earthly concern Sector Managers? 2. What steps should be put in place in order to fuck off the support of management for inner(a) Auditing in the Public Sector? 3. Is there a comparison among the quality of service the essential Auditor provides for his organisation and the attitude of managers towards the Internal Audit function? meditation The quality of service provided by the Internal Auditors for their organization is in no right smart related to the attitude of managers towards the function of the Internal Audit.Objectives1. Examine the factors that are responsible for the low support of the Internal Audit by managers of the Public Sector institution. 2. Identify proper(postnominal) actions required to secure support of managers for the Internal Audit 3. Establish the relationship between quality of service and support of managers for Internal Audit import of StudyThe meaning of the study will be to1. kick off the Agency to the Jamaican public not as evaluators but future planners 2. remediate the public understanding of the Agencys role in the government 3. To array that the agency aids organizations in achieving their goals and objectives.methodological abridgmentAreas covered in this section implicate research figure of speech, population, assay and sampling techniques, information collection and analysis. Research Design The design will ask evaluating the role of the Internal Auditors in the governance of the organisations in the public sector. This res earch is designed to validate the objectives check out by the detective.PopulationThe public sector of Jamaica is probably the largest employers of internal auditors. These institutions involve several organisations including ministries, departments and agencies (A). It also includes metropolitan, municipal and soil assemblies (B). The stone pited population for the study would include1. Directors and managers2. Financial officers, set up directors and rung3. Staff and heads of the audit departmentsSampling and Sampling TechniqueThe investigator will adopt the survey pillowcase of research in which a sample from the target population will be used for the study. A total of cl elements will be destineed from a target population of 500. The details are as follows* 20 directors and 5 managers* 30 coordinating directors and 15 financial officers* 60 staff members and 10 heads of the audit departmentIn this research, the researcher will adopt a multistage stratified sampling met hod to select elements. -The population will be scattered accordingly into (A) and (B), as readn above. -Elements in congregation (A) are the Ministries, Departments and Agencies -Elements in group (B) are the Metropolitan, Municipal and Districts. This separates them to allow the research information to be more coherent and shows that their operations are significantly different. data accruementThe focus of this data collection is to show the attitudes and perception and the importance of primary data. petty(a) data will also be collected to reinforce the data collected. The researcher will have to provide the Public sector institutions with an introductory letter explaining the intellectual for the research with proper identification and postulate consent. The initial visit to selected institutions would be to familiarise himself with those institutions and members within the institutions .Data Collection agentA drumheadnaire will be the legal instrument used in retrievi ng the Data. It would include incorporate questions segregated into 4 sections. character 1, Section 2, Section 3, Section 4. * Section 1 will comprise of questions want to suffice the first research question * Section 2 will incorporate of questions seeking to answer the second research question * Section 3 will consist of questions seeking to answer the third question * Section 4 will consist of questions to test and validating the hypothesisData AnalysisThe answered retrieved from the questionnaire will be judge in each section and a percentage will be formulated.LimitationsThe researcher may not be able to cover all the institutions over Jamaica. Institutions may not allow the researcher to conduct research on the organization.References* The Institute of Internal Auditors (the IIA). (2007),The commerceal Practices Framework.Florida, U.S. The IIA Research Foundation.* Institute of Internal Auditors (2010) Role of Internal Audit, South Africa * Cahmbers, R. Internal Audi tor Chambers on the Profession (2012) Dilemmas Every Internal Auditor go away Face, http//www.theiia.org/blogs/chambers/index.cfm/post/Five%20Dilemmas%20Every%20Internal%20Auditor%20Will%20Face * Ministry of Justice, http//www.moj.gov.jm/internal_audit * Auditor Generals Department of Jamaica, one-year Report 200, http//www.auditorgeneral.gov.jm/Table of ContentsIntroduction 2 Background of Study 3 Problem Statements 4 Management question, Research Question and Hypothesis 4 Objectives and Significance of study 5 Methodology 6 Research Design andPopulation 6 Sampling and Sampling Technique 7 Data collection, Data Instrument, Data analysis and Limitations 8 References 9