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

Unemployment - Essay Example An unemployed individual does not currently have a job, has sort for a job in the prior 4 weeks and ready for work as defined by the U.S. Department of Labor (1). This is usually denoted as a percentage. Unemployment is a very significant measure or indicator of the economy and serves to indicate how healthy or ailing an economy is. The unemployment rate, which by definition is the ratio of people who are unemployed to the total number of people in the labor market, is the most common measure used to define and size up employment. There are instances when unemployment is voluntary (Gay 30). This scenario occurs when persons opt not to seek employment due to a number of reasons such as low wages in the market. Unemployment generally significantly affects parameters such as inflation and stock prices. What then is the relationship that exists between unemployment and inflation? Market players, such as the Federal government and corporate world usually relate low unemployment rates are attributed to high inflation levels. Low unemployment is consequently related to an increase in the growth of the economy. These market participants also view the reverse as true, which means that an increase in unemployment and a slow economic growth are indicative of a decrease in unemployment. Theoretically, the relationship between unemployment and inflation is explained by the Phillips curve. According to this theory, unemployment and inflation work in opposite direction. Chang asserts that in a period of low unemployment as compared to a period of high unemployment, there are fewer unemployed laborers in the labor market (Chang 10).

Registered nurse Essay Example for Free

Registered nurse Essay The field of nursing has been well-known since the beginning of civilization. People everywhere are familiar with this field because people have always and will continue to experience illness, pain, suffering and death. The purpose of this report is to provide readers with detailed information about the field of nursing including its history, occupation description, education requirements, employment opportunities, job outlook, job availability and salary. The first roots to the modern nursing can be traced back to Florence Nightingale (Career As a Registered Nurse (RN),6). She has inspired numerous people around the world and was considered a heroine in her time. Nightingale was highly educated and would travel through Europe looking at hospitals trying to educate the staff on better patient care and hygiene. She then served as a nurse for the British government tending to ill and injured soldiers during the Crimean War. Nightingale started the first modern, formal nursing school in 1860, naming it the Nightingale School, after herself. Nightingale is said to have created the healthcare model that we follow today, which treats the patient as an individual instead of a disease. (Career As a Registered Nurse (RN),6). This paved the way for other nurses to step up and make nursing a better field to work in. In the United States, Clara Barton cared for soldiers in the Civil War that were fighting for both the North and the South. Clara Barton later developed the American Red Cross. (Career As a Registered Nurse (RN),7). Developments such as these lead to the first nursing school in the US opening. It was opened by the Bellevue Hospital in New York. (Career As a Registered Nurse (RN),7). This helped girls across the country gain insight into the field of nursing which in turn created new schools and new opportunities for people to join the field. A registered nurse takes care of sick and injured people. They are concerned with the â€Å"Whole Person† rather than the disease an individual may have. Registered nurses help with the emotional, physical and mental needs of the patient they are caring for (Registered Nurse (RN)). In the hospital registered nurse’s work under what they call a head nurse. According to the Registered Nurse (RN) web site, â€Å"Registered nurses usually work eight hours a day, forty hours a week, rotating shifts, holidays and weekends. † Registered nurses perform a variety of different jobs. They observe the patient and record the observations they see, they consult with the physicians and others healthcare clinicians with their observations, and they maintain and disconnect intravenous lines for fluid, give medication, blood, and blood products. United States). RN’s help with the plan of care for their patients; the plan may include their activities of daily living, checking the dosages given to the patient, and administering medication (United States). An RN also helps explain to family members how to take care of their family member after they return home. They may explain their diet plan, nutrition, care needs, and the exercise needed (United States). The RN teaches the patient’s family, along with the patient, how to take care of their injuries or illness (United States). These are only a few things that a registered nurse may do on a daily basis as their jobs are crucial for the recovery of sick and injured individuals. They are different educational paths that a registered nurse can choose from. They can get their bachelor’s degree, an associate degree, or a diploma from an approved nursing program (United States). Many registered nurses choose to complete either a two year program with an associate degree or a four year program with a bachelor’s degree. After they have successfully completed the nursing program, then they must take a national examination in order to obtain a nursing license to practice (Career as a Registered Nurse (RN), 23). They are also advanced practice nurses such as a nurse midwife, nurse practitioner, nurse anesthetist or nurse specialist. Advanced practice nurses need a master’s degree in order to practice (United States). Degrees There are three different educational paths to becoming a registered nurse. They can choose to obtain a bachelor’s degree (BSN), an associate degree (ADN), or a diploma (Career as a Registered Nurse (RN), 22). Bachelor’s degree programs are offered by universities and take an average of four year to complete the program. Associate degree program is offered by community colleges and take about two to three years to complete the program. Diploma programs are completed in the hospital, and they last about three years (Career as a Registered Nurse (RN), 22). After the student graduates from one of the three types of programs, and they complete their licensing examination, they can qualify for the entry-level positions as a staff nurse (United States). Several nurses that have taken the associate program will return to school to obtain a bachelors degree program; they call this an RN-to BSN program (United States). People who have a bachelor’s degree program can return to school to obtain an accelerated master’s degree in nursing (MSN). After completion of the ADN program to receive the BSN and MSN it takes three to four years to complete as a full time student to receive an award for both (United States). The bachelor’s degree program takes about twelve to eighteen months to earn the degree after completion of the associate degree program. For someone who holds a bachelor’s degree who decides to obtain an MSN, it takes an additional two years to receive their master’s degree (United States). When taking classes at college for the associate degree program, the programs includes courses such as anatomy, physiology, sociology, microbiology, chemistry, psychology, and nursing classes. For associate degree programs liberal arts is also a part of their coursework (Career as a Registered Nurse (RN), 23). Students must participate in supervised clinical experiences. These clinical rotations can be done in hospital departments such as maternity, psychiatry, pediatrics, and surgery (United States). Several other health care facilities that offer clinical experience include public health departments, home health agencies, nursing care facilities, and ambulatory clinics. Advantages and Disadvantages When deciding what degree should be obtained, students must consider everything before choosing what program is right for them (United States). If someone has chosen to take an associates program with a two year community college, they could be limited for advancement opportunities (United States). When someone takes a bachelor’s degree or higher with a four year university, they receive more training in areas such as communication, leadership and critical thinking and will have a better opportunity to obtain a higher position than someone with a associates degree (United States). People who obtain a bachelor’s degree have more clinical experience in nonhospital settings (United States). Bachelor’s degrees are often needed for teaching, consulting, and research positions (United States). Licenses In the United States, students are required to graduate from an approved nursing program before they are allowed to practice nursing. Students are required to take and pass the national licensing examination known as the National Council Licensure Examination or NCLEX-RN (United States). After successfully passing the NCLEX-RN exam students will obtain their nursing license. Other Qualifications Nurses are people who should love caring for others when they are sick and ill. They should be responsible and sympathetic for all patients. They need to be able to give people direction and supervise other co-workers who are under them. Nurses should be emotionally stable to be able cope with people who are suffering, dying, and emergency situations (Career as a Registered Nurse (RN), 19). Continuing education credits could be required in some states on regular bases (United States). Advancement Registered nurses most often start out as staff nurses in hospitals. The more experience the nurse acquires overtime, the more often the nurse will move to other departments or promoted to do jobs taking on more leadership roles and responsibility (United States). Registered nurses can advance from a head nurse to a senior-level nurse they are more of a director, vice president, chief of nursing and assistant director (United States). This job requires a graduate or an advancement degree in health services administration, and the administration program works with leadership, communication and excellent judgments (United States). If someone chose to advance in their nurse practice, there are four different advanced practice nurses to choose from they are: clinical nurse specialists, nurse anesthetists, nurse-midwife, and nurse practitioners (United States). When a nurse chooses one of the four types of advanced practice nurses, it requires a master’s degree (United States). New graduates should consider if they want to advance in their career when first applying for a job in order to ask the hiring team if there is room for advancement within the facility and the position they will be taking.

Net Privacy Essay -- social issues

Net Privacy The internet has brought mixed blessings to the people who use it. It is a fantastic information source but the relative lack of privacy has brought forth a major problem. Anyone with even little hacking knowledge can track every move that you make while using internet services and/or view private or confidential information. It is now possible for some internet sites can actually find information such as e-mail addresses or the name of the person/people viewing the site without authorisation. This problem can affect everyone who uses any internet services and ultimately can lead to very confidential information(such as credit card numbers) getting into the hands of criminals. Internet services and facilities are now used and provided by many companies and individuals worldwide. Each web site that is visited could have the capability of finding out your name and/or e-mail address and sending junk e-mail or cataloguing this information and then selling it to other companies. The ISP that you connect to the internet also has a record of every bit of information you upload or download, and must keep records for official purposes. Any sites that ask for your credit card number for "pay by use" or restricted services could, in fact, sell or use such information for illegal purposes such as fraud. The actual hardware requirements for using the internet are minimal, only an internet service provider(a company that allows a connection to the internet), modem(to send and receive data transmissions through a phone line), phone line(to dial up the I.S.P,) and a reasonably fast computer(to run the hardware and software) are needed to get onto the internet. This allows almost anyone with a computer to access the internet. Software is needed to browse or view the internet is a browser(such as Netscape Navigator, MS Internet Explorer) and for e-mail services, programs such as Eudora, Netscape Navigator or MS Internet Explorer are needed to send or receive e-mail. Nearly everyone will at some stage in their lives use the Internet. Very minimal skills are needed to use the Internet, and it allows people to access an immense amount of information at the touch of a button. All a person with a little hacking knowledge needs to do to get such information is to use a Trojan horse type program and he or she can follow you around and view the information ... ...er band of people would be willing to visit sites and enter confidential information without any fear of misuse. It must be the future of the Internet. Computer Privacy is a major issue and it does effect anyone who uses any internet service. Something must be done to stop the crimes committed against the privacy of people and people should be allowed to control their personal or confidential information, whether they want it freely available or not. Only through consumer pressure will the internet become more secure as has happened in America. Already people can join up to ISP's with totally secure services with total anonymity. This must be the future of the internet. BIBLIOGRAPHY World Wide Web Electronic Privacy Information Center Authors, Electronic Privacy Information Center, [Online] http://www.epic.org/, 22/4/97 unknown. Who Owns Personal Information?: Junk Mail and Privacy [Online] http://www.epic.org/privacy/junk_mail/ ,24/4/97 unknown. THE FACTS ABOUT COMPUTER PRIVACY, [Online] http://www.203.232.1.23/~org/~itop/priv.html MAILING LIST unknown. Computer Privacy Digest, [e-mail service] mailing list newsletter, unknown. ,20/3/97

Comparing How Two Women Find Their Identity :: Compare Contrast Comparison

Comparing How Two Women Find Their Identity Two women born in the United States, and raised in a small town, both have become important role models of today. They each write wonderful and strong essays describing what they believe in and finding out who they really are. Winona LaDuke and Pythia Peay both come from different backgrounds. LaDuke is a Native American Indian who wrote the essay on â€Å"Reclaiming Culture and the Lands.† Pythia Peay also wrote an essay on â€Å"Soul Searching.† They both share their ideas and experience of how and where they grew up. LaDuke is a mother of two children and lives on the White Earth reservation in Minnesota. She is part Jewish and part Ojibwe. Her parents are two very important people in her life. She was one of the few who grew up around people fighting for what they believe in. In her essay she writes about her religion and culture while trying to make it in the real world. She writes about how her people are there for one another and how they take care of each other’s children. In her essay she states, â€Å"We operate in extended families, and that is how we parent†, (10).She is stating that this is not common among the â€Å"White American Culture†, but among the Native Americans. She tries to teach them the value of life and keeping the tradition of their culture and how important it is to know where they come from. She talks about children learning from experience, having the need to be involved within their community, which will make them better understand their culture. In a way she is saying that seeing is believing! She talks strongly about how Native Americans are â€Å"deculturalizing† (12). She is saying that her people are slowly being pulled away from their native culture and being pulled into the white mans culture. This is what makes her even more determined to keep her culture and religion alive. Peay writes her essay on â€Å"Soul Searching†. She writes about finding her soul after leaving her home town in Oak Grove, Missouri where she grew up. Stepping into the new world full of opportunities is what she has always dreamed of. She traveled from city to city, and within each city she began to discover who she really was. In her essay, she lists some opinions and explains what she thinks of them.

Case Digest Aglipay vs Ruiz

Facts: In May 1936, the Director of Posts announced in the dailies of Manila that he would order the issuance of postage stamps commemorating the celebration in the City of Manila of the 33rd International Eucharistic Congress, organized by the Roman Catholic Church. The petitioner, Mons. Gregorio Aglipay, Supreme Head of the Philippine Independent Church, in the fulfillment of what he considers to be a civic duty, requested Vicente Sotto, Esq. member of the Philippine Bar, to denounce the matter to the President of the Philippines. In spite of the protest of the petitioner’s attorney, the Director of Posts publicly announced having sent to the United States the designs of the postage for printing. The said stamps were actually issued and sold though the greater part thereof remained unsold. The further sale of the stamps was sought to be prevented by the petitioner.Issue: Whether the issuance of the postage stamps was in violation of the Constitution. Held: Religious freedom as a constitutional mandate is not inhibition of profound reverence for religion and is not a denial of its influence in human affairs. Religion as a profession of faith to an active power that binds and elevates man to his Creator is recognized. And, in so far as it instills into the minds the purest principles of morality, its influence is deeply felt and highly appreciated.When the Filipino people, in the preamble of their Constitution, implored â€Å"the aid of Divine Providence, in order to establish a government that shall embody their ideals, conserve and develop the patrimony of the nation, promote the general welfare, and secure to themselves and their posterity the blessings of independence under a regime of justice, liberty and democracy,† they thereby manifested their intense religious nature and placed unfaltering reliance upon Him who guides the destinies of men and nations.The elevating influence of religion in human society is recognized here as elsewhere. Act 4052 contemplates no religious purpose in view. What it gives the Director of Posts is the discretionary power to determine when the issuance of special postage stamps would be â€Å"advantageous to the Government. † Of course, the phrase â€Å"advantageous to the Government† does not authorize the violation of the Constitution; i. e. o appropriate, use or apply of public money or property for the use, benefit or support of a particular sect or church. In the case at bar, the issuance of the postage stamps was not inspired by any sectarian feeling to favor a particular church or religious denominations. The stamps were not issued and sold for the benefit of the Roman Catholic Church, nor were money derived from the sale of the stamps given to that church.The purpose of the issuing of the stamps was to take advantage of an event considered of international importance to give publicity to the Philippines and its people and attract more tourists to the country. Thus, ins tead of showing a Catholic chalice, the stamp contained a map of the Philippines, the location of the City of Manila, and an inscription that reads â€Å"Seat XXXIII International Eucharistic Congress, Feb. 3-7, 1937. † The Supreme Court denied the petition for a writ of prohibition, without pronouncement as to costs.

Final Examination and Turkish Economy Essays

Final Examination and Turkish Economy Essays Final Examination and Turkish Economy Essay Final Examination and Turkish Economy Essay ATD457-1 Turkish Industry Fall 2013 Instructor Lecture Hours Classroom Contact : Prof. Dr. Mehmet Hseyin Bilgin : Thursday: og:oo-11 : 309 : [emailprotected] com Main Books: Undersecretariat of Treasury, Turkish Economy, January 2012. Ministry of Industry and Trade, General Assessment of Turkish Industry Sectors 2010, March 2011. Suggested Readings: TsiAD, Turkiye Ekonomtst 2013, December 2012. Ministry of Industry and Trade, Turkish Industrial Strategy Document: 2011-2014 (Towards EIJ Membership), 2010. State Planning Organization, Sector Profiles of Turkish Industry, February 2004. Course Description: This course aims to introduce students to the Turkish economy and provides the students a comprehensive understanding of concepts used in the Turkish economy and industry. The course will give an overview of the industries of the Turkish economy, but the emphasis will be to understand the fundamentals of the Turkish economy and industry. Exams: There will be a midterm exam, a term project, and a final exam. The midterm exam will consist of multiple-choice questions and short answers/definitions, including application problems. It will be held as scheduled and will count toward your final grade (20%). The final exam will consist of multiple choice, short- and long-answer questions, application problems, and figure labeling. It will be comprehensive, covering all required materials through the date of the final exam. It will be held at the end of the semester. The final exam will count for 60% of the final grade. All exams will be closed book and notes. Term Project: You will be assigned a term project to be completed before the end of the term. The erm project topic is The International Competitiveness of the Turkish ABC Industry. : Please choose one industry of your interest and analyze its international email to [emailprotected] com. The deadline for submission is December 27th, 2013. The project will count for 20% of your final grade. Grading/Assessment: The final grade will be determined as follows: Midterm Exam Term Project Final Exam Course Outline: PART l: TURKISH ECONOMY Week 1: Turkish Economy in the World Week 2: Demographic Profile; Growth; Employment; Inflation Week 3: Foreign Trade and Balance of Payments Financial Sector Week 4: Public Finance Debt Management Week 5: Market Indicators Investment Environment Week 6: Social Security Labor Market week 7: Energy sector Week 8: Relationship with the IMF and EIJ THE MIDTERM EXAM PART II: TURKISH INDUSTRY SECTORS Week 9: Turkish Automotive Machinery Sectors Week 10: Turkish Base Metal Sector Week 11: Turkish Electrical Electronical Sector Week 12: Turkish Textile, Apparel, Leather and Leathe Products Sectors Week 13: Turkish Chemical Glass Sectors Week 14: Turkish Cement Furniture Sectors THE COMPREHENSIVE FINAL EXAM

Reflection Essay The WritePass Journal

Reflection Essay Reflection Essay IntroductionDescriptionFeelingsEvaluation AnalysisTeam workingDecision making Ethical concerns Diversity and difference Management of power and conflict Clinical reasoningConclusionBibliographyRelated Introduction I have recently completed a unit on facilitating collaboration in professional practice, which formed a part of my Diagnostic Radiography course. During this unit, my tutor introduced the class to the skill of reflective writing and its important role in both formal learning and personal development. In order to have an opportunity to practise this skill, we were each assigned groups tasks. I was part of a group of 10 people whose task it was to promote a governmental campaign aimed at publicising the Allied Health Professions. The campaign in question needed to target three key groups, namely primary school children, year 11 school children and graduates not taking healthcare courses. In this essay, I will be reflecting on the experiences that I had as part of the larger group of 10 students, as well as how I found the process of dividing into smaller sub-groups of four people for part of the activities. Underpinning my personal reflections, and providing my essay with a coherent structure, will be Gibbs’ (1988) reflection model as outlined by Cooney (1999). This model describes a process of description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, and conclusion, and, as such, my personal reflection will also be organised under these headings. Description The group work in which I participated took place over the course of a week. The first day was spent in collaborating on a variety of group activities. The participants in these groups were all from different backgrounds and included students taking courses in a variety of healthcare areas including radiography, physiotherapy, speech and language therapy, and occupational therapy. Although the students were all from such allied health professional groups, there was a mixture of postgraduates and undergraduates, and the vast majority of the students had not met each other before. In order to tackle the task, we decided to separate it into smaller tasks according to the three target audiences involved, dividing ourselves into three smaller groups and working on one target audience per sub-group. At this point, I was part of the group of four people who were responsible for considering the campaign to target graduates not taking healthcare courses. As some group members had responsibilities outside the unit, we decided as a whole that it would be useful to utilise the discussion boards via Blackboard to communicate with other members of the larger group. Our smaller sub-group decided to have meetings at the university during the week in addition to this means of contact. The work progressed in this way for most of the week until, on the last day, the groups joined together for one key session in the afternoon. At this time, we worked together to give our presentation for the campaign that we had devised, for which we had a 10-15 minute window. In preparation for this session, our three sub-groups had a meeting in the morning to discuss the presentation and finalise issues such as how the material was going to be presented and who would be acting as our group’s spokespeople. We also made use of this final discussion session to voice whether we agreed or disagreed with several assertions that had been raised through working on the campaign. This session went well in general and was successful. I found that I did participate, but perhaps not to the extent that I would have liked. Overall, I experienced that all of the group members came to know each other on a personal level through working together over the week to complete our tasks. Feelings Although I was relatively quiet at the start of the session, I became more comfortable as time went on and, by the end of the session, I had begun to contribute my views and ideas to the group discussion. I believe that this initial quietness was a manifestation of my inner feelings of being intimidated by the group. Interestingly, the overall session actually went well and many group members expressed their enthusiasm about the discussion topics. These feelings of intimidation were more acute after the sub-groups reunited as a larger group of 10. I believe that this was because I had become accustomed through the week to working in a small group of only four people, and suddenly becoming part of a much larger group threw my habitual role in the group into uncertainty. I usually experience myself as a very confident person who finds it easy to take charge of situations and engage with activities in a proactive way. However, this was not the case during the aforementioned group sessio n. In retrospect, if I had been in a group of people with whom I had felt comfortable then, regardless of the size of the group, I believe that I would have participated fully in the discussion by contributing as many ideas as possible. In this scenario, I would neither have felt anxious about making a mistake nor experienced the self-censorship that came as a consequence of this anxiety.    Evaluation Overall, I found that the experience of group work was very useful in that it gave me the opportunity to learn a great deal about the topics being discussed as well as helping to illuminate my weaknesses when working with unfamiliar groups. As Moon (1999) asserts, the importance of experiential learning is that it entails organising and developing learning through reflection on practical situations, such that they can lead to improved action. My experience of the group work has made this developmentally valuable reflection possible. The tasks also gave me the opportunity to come into contact with a variety of people from different professional backgrounds, some of whom were older and much more experienced than I. Working in a multi-professional group allowed us to benefit from a number of different perspectives on the task as well as a wide variety of knowledge and experience. This made our presentation much more well-rounded and multi-faceted than it would have been if my group had contained only other radiographers. As the group work progressed, I also began to realise that I was, in fact, more than capable of fulfilling my part in this mixed group and this gradual self-confidence enabled me to overcome the feelings of intimidation that being on unfamiliar territory had initially elicited within me. Towards the end of the session, I began to wish that we could begin the session a second time to allow me to contribute more and be perceived as an active member of the group. Looking back, I would attribute my onl y regrets regarding the group task to this inability to contribute more, perhaps even to the extent of acting as spokesperson during the presentation itself. Initially, I was somewhat sceptical about the idea of the group sessions as I did not appreciate that there was anything valuable to be learned from the collaborative process. However, by the end of the process I had learnt a great deal about the complexities of group work and the way in which people from different professional backgrounds can complement the task by offering a much greater depth of experience. I also increased my knowledge of a number of topics to which I may never have exposed otherwise. The group work also revealed that I rarely make a substantial contribution to group discussions or volunteer for leadership roles in group tasks, preferring instead to avoid the limelight and allow another group member to take the lead. My contributions are then made on the basis of topics already raised by others. This weakness does not stem from a lack of intellectual understanding but rather from a lack of confidence in my own ideas, even when these are valid. An awareness of this tendency to pass the buck will inform my future group interactions and, I hope, facilitate my taking a more proactive role in dictating the course of discussions. Analysis Team working According to the Belbin theory of team roles, I would assess myself as naturally occupying the roles of Team Worker, Resource Investigator and Implementer. The reason why I have identified myself as an Implementer is based firstly on the fact that I took on the responsibility for carrying out the task of researching the use of social networks in our campaign and I enjoyed executing this plan, which we had agreed amongst the group as a whole, in a systematic fashion. The title of Resource Investigator also applies to me as I used these social networks as one of a variety of means to search for useful contacts. As the Belbin theory states (2010), a Resource Investigator explores opportunities and makes useful links with internal and external contacts. Also, I received high marks from my peers for the ability to ‘identif(y) sources and other resources to aid team progress’. I believe that the title of Team Worker also applies to me as, even though I felt that I could have c ontributed more, my peer feedback actually shows that I was perceived by other group members as a good team player. I received high marks for the category of contributing to a collaborative team environment and the comments given on my feedback sheets included ‘active and excellent team member who can be relied upon’ and ‘considerate and pleasant group contributor’. These comments demonstrate that I was seen by others as an important and active member of the team. Decision making My experience of working in my group was that we developed a good decision-making process which we were able to use to come to a mutually-agreed conclusion on the majority of topics that we discussed. We also set clear boundaries about how the group would operate; for example, the ground rules that we devised on the first day were as follows: There will be three individual threads for discussion by each sub-group. On Thursday everyone is to check in to ensure that all work is ready. The sub-groups will send their PowerPoints to David by 3pm on Thursday so that he can amalgamate the PowerPoints into one presentation. The whole group is to meet at 11am on Friday in the cafà © outside the library to prepare for the presentation. A room will be arranged. A poster will be produced for each category. The sub-groups will arrange amongst themselves which method they wish to use to communicate and prepare for the presentation. The sub-groups will decide the media which they will use to promote the AHP. I found these ground rules very useful in giving the group clarity and structure and allowing us to work effectively on common goals. This experience highlighted to me the importance of the ‘forming’ stage as described by Tuckman in his Group Development Model (1965). Although at this stage each team member is keen to be accepted by others, and serious issues are therefore usually avoided, it is a very important stage in team-building. I indeed found this stage to be the time when the group members were getting to know each other, on both a personal and professional level, and forming an idea of how the group would be working together over the forthcoming week. I believe that, without this ‘forming’ stage being completed successfully, we would not have had the basis of understanding that enabled us to progress to the ‘storming’ stage, in which we came up with a number of different ideas, the ‘norming’ stage, when we came to make the mutual decisions about how to write our campaign presentation. This early decision-making process was important as it allowed us all to participate and to feel motivated in working towards the group’s eventual success in producing a good-quality presentation. Ethical concerns The main ethical concern that I had when embarking on this group work exercise was to ensure that each member of the group, including myself, would be treated with respect and in a polite manner. As stated by Dubrin: ‘Showing respect for team members is a general technique for building teamwork’. (2011, pp.487) My experience of treating others with respect, for example by asking whether someone has managed to finish their part of the task rather than demanding that it be ready, certainly reinforced this theory as I was marked highly by my peers for facilitating communication and cohesion within the group. Diversity and difference There was a diverse range of people in the larger group of which I was a part; both males and females, undergraduates and postgraduates of varying ages, and also many different personality characteristics including introverts, extroverts, those who were better at coming up with ideas and those who were better at the organisational side. Rather than causing difficulties, these differences actually meant that our discussions were more varied and interesting, and that our team functioned well through each member playing to their respective strengths. I personally learnt a lot from the group members who were older than me, and felt that I benefitted a great deal from watching the mature way in which they went about resolving conflict to come to a good group consensus. The way in which we all participated in devising the ground rules on the first day created a strong team spirit, an important aspect in the successful management of diversity as Klarsfeld mentions in his recent book (2010). Management of power and conflict Conflict naturally occurs in most group tasks as a consequence of group members having different values, skills and experience. Indeed, Rahim cites a study carried out in 2005 to assert that: ‘a moderate level of substantive conflict is functional, as it stimulates discussion and debate.’ (2010, pp. 122) This was also my experience of the group work.   At points throughout the process there was an element of natural disagreement about the direction that our campaign presentation would take and the best way to complete our activities. I found that this motivated other group members to join in more and also lead to interesting discussions that created further good ideas. I found that the power balance was fairly equal in our group, despite the range of ages and personalities that were represented. The only issue that arose was that one of the girls in the group attempted to dominate at times by getting others to think in the same way as her. As the other group members were more mature and open to other people’s input, we were able to manage this by steering the discussions down a more collaborative path. Clinical reasoning From a clinical point of view, this experience will stand me in good stead for the future. In clinical settings health care professionals are most commonly called upon to work in teams that span different areas such as nursing, physiotherapy and occupational therapy in order to provide the best all-round care for their patients. Radiographers such as myself also work in teams of two most of the time so it is very important to understand how to co-operate with others in a professional setting. Conclusion In conclusion, I found the group work to be a very educational experience concerning the importance of being able to work well in a team. I have been alerted to aspects of my behaviour and personality, particularly with regards to interactions with unfamiliar people, of which I may otherwise have remained unaware. The main aspect that I would like to improve is my confidence, which will enable me to contribute more of my ideas to group work. This will help me at university as well as in my future work as a professional radiographer collaborating with a multi-disciplinary team. Overall, I found Gibbs’ model helpful in focusing on each of the different areas of the experience in order to evaluate my strengths, such as good teamwork and carrying out tasks in a systematic way, as well as areas such as those mentioned above that I would like to improve. Bibliography Belbin, M., 2010. Management teams: why they succeed or fail. 3rd ed. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann. Cooney, A., 1999. Reflection demystified: answering some common questions. British Journal of Nursing. 8(22), 1530-1534. Dubrin, A.J., 2011. Essentials of management. Andover: Cengage Learning. Gibbs, G., 1998. Learning by doing: a guide to teaching and learning. London: FEU. Klarsfeld, A., 2010. International handbook on diversity management at work: country perspectives on diversity and equality. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing. Rahim, M.A., 2010. Managing conflict in organizations. 4th rev. ed.   Piscataway, NJ: Transaction Publishers. Tuckman, B., 1965. Development sequence in small groups. Psychological Bulletin. 63, 384-399. Word count: 2609.

Multinational companies in Jamaica Essay Example

Multinational companies in Jamaica Essay Example Multinational companies in Jamaica Paper Multinational companies in Jamaica Paper Multinational companies in Jamaica Name: Course: Institution: Instructor: Date: Multinational companies in Jamaica Multinational companies have been highly significant to the growth of the Jamaican economy. The exponential growth of these companies has been felt not only in Jamaica and the Caribbean but also in continents such as Europe and North America where they have solid footholds in the respective countries consumer markets. Grace Kennedy and Lasco Jamaica are among the most successful companies in the Caribbean and more so in Jamaica. Multinational companies have a wide range of products that help diversify their portfolios. Grace Kennedy Company was founded in 1922 as a partnership between Dr. John J. Grace and Fred Kennedy. The Company started out as a small trading company and soon grew to have a wharfing facility to enable smooth flow of the company’s imports (Grace Kennedy, 4). The company in the Caribbean operates in Jamaica, Trinidad Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean respectively. Currently the company has sixty subsidiaries and affiliated companies across several continents around the world. The company has grown significantly since its inception form a privately owned company to a public company with a market capitalization of J$21 billion as of the year 2006. The company has a blueprint of catapulting its growth to become a leading global company with branches all over the world. The company has its activities in financial services, remittances services, insurance, manufacturing and retail and distribution. Employment-The Company has been particularly significant in the provision of employment to the Jamaican population. Since it began its operations, it has seen growth in its levels of operating activities and has diversified into different products and activities for the maximization of profits. The growth of the company means that the company has seen an increase in its revenues, which means that there have been more employments to facilitate the higher levels of activities. Employment for any population and country in general has many benefits. In addition, more employment means that the new employees are able to meet their basic needs such as costs for food. Adequate food for a family means the members are able to concentrate on crucial issues such as education. This also alleviates diseases, which are brought about by malnutrition that is because of poor diet or inadequate food. Employment means that people who are unemployed and venture into the new employment bracket are able to cater for their own needs such as education for their children and other basic needs. Revenue for the government-Moreover, new employees also translate to more revenue in the form of taxes for the government. More taxes enable the government to be able to fund more developmental projects such as the provision of basic needs such as water and sewerage systems. New employment helps in the reduction of crime as people who do not have any employment are able to find alternative and better sources of income. Public Ownership-The Company, after its evolution into a public entity, enabled Jamaican citizens to get a chance to own a part of the largest corporations in the country. The new public company after its listing as a public company was able to get more revenue to improve and increase its operations. This also meant that the company would employ more people to facilitate more production and maintain its growth. After the formation of the company in 1922, the company was particularly vital in the provision of basic services to the Jamaican public. This was extremely difficult to find if not impossible, in a period marked by racial oppression such as financial services and insurance services. This enabled the Jamaican entity to be represented in the corporate world by a multinational company, which has several operations in different countries and continents. Grace Kennedy Company has also enabled the Jamaican population to have more products available to them at relatively fair prices. The provision of basic commodities such as packed foods enabled people all financial backgrounds at relatively average prices. This has opened up the market to innovation and competition posed by the different players in the market. Negative impacts Focus on imports-Grace Kennedy has been solely involved in the import of products instead of diversification into the manufacture of products (Grace Kennedy, 11). Manufacture of products in Jamaica would be particularly relevant to the economy by the provision of new jobs and would prove to be cost friendly to the cost reduction of the company. The company should focus on the provision of products that are solely made in Jamaica or the Caribbean. Provision of unhealthy foods-this has contributed to the now persistent health issues affecting obese people due to high intake of fatty foods. Grace Kennedy has aided the distribution of foods that are considered unhealthy. Decline in currency value-Imports drain the country’s foreign reserves, which are used to purchase the imports. This makes it hard for the country to be able to maintain a strong currency. Lasco Jamaica has also been another company that has been in operation in the Jamaican economy since 1988 (Lasco Jamaica, 3). It has been involved in the provision of food, financial, personal care, household and pharmaceutical services and products. Positive impact Access to quality goods-Lasco Jamaica has been facilitating distribution of foreign products by employing aggressive marketing strategies. This has enabled the Jamaican public to be able to access high quality imports at relatively average prices Opening up of the market to healthy competition-Lasco Jamaica has also contributed to the opening up of the Jamaican market to competition posed by foreign products and enabled the local market to conform to high standards in the production of any goods (Lasco Jamaica, 15). This is evident by the presence of locally manufactured goods that are of high standards and are appealing to the consumer. Source of revenue for the government – the imports are usually taxed heavily on entry into any country. This ahs been a significant source of revenue for the government enabling it to fund projects Negative impact Focus on imports-The Company was involved in the importation of foreign products. This has had a negative impact on the Jamaican economy. Importation means that the company was denying local companies the much-needed revenues. Lack of employment due to imports– Lack of adequate revenues means that the local companies cannot employ more employees or even increase production Preference of foreign goods over local goods-The Company has not been a favorable force to the market due to its preference for imports such that it opposed the revival of Jamaican owned entity that would see the Jamaican government operate a dairy company. This would be favorable for the economy, as a whole. It would translate to more jobs in the economy and a reduction in the unemployment rates. This would also mean that the government would collect more revenue in the form of taxes and licenses from new products. In addition, the Lasco Jamaica Company has been providing the Jamaican population with fatty foods, which are considered unhealthy due to the presence of hydrated fats. The presence of such fats translates to people becoming unhealthy due to increase in weight. This leads to medical conditions such as obesity, bloods pressure and other heart related problems brought about by high cholesterol foods. Foreign affiliate-The Company seems to act as an affiliate of larger companies (Lasco Jamaica, 13). This denies the Jamaican populace the chance to work at companies, and denies the populace the chance to buy products that are made by Jamaican companies. The company should authorize the issue of shares and enable people to purchase their shares. This would enable the Jamaican population to have more ownership in entities that have been in existence for a long time and at the same time get money to invest in the farming activities. Grace Kennedy Company should have more responsibilities in the social scene because it has more market capitalization and resources at its disposal. This would be sufficient because the company owes its current existence to the Jamaican society. As a multinational company with the most number of subsidiaries and affiliate companies, they would be able to support such a perspective at the same time the company would be able to use the funds obtained in the acquisition of more equipment and invest in the local production of identical goods to ward off competition from the international products. The company should be the largest due to the high consumption rates of their products, which means that they earn more from the public thus they should give back to the public. Part of the revenue should go back to the society as it is because mast of it was derived from Jamaica. References Grace Kennedy. (2012). About us, 7.Retrieved from gracekennedy.com/home Lasco Jamaica. (2012). Home, 16. Retrieved from lascodistributors.com/Home.asp

Analysis of Unethical issue in Apple's business Case Study

Analysis of Unethical issue in Apple's business - Case Study Example Two major unethical cases were with Pingzhou Electronics and Foxconn that have hired underage persons. Apple terminated its contract with Pingzhou on learning that management was aware of underage persons on the company payroll. Such actions point out that Apple has a long-standing commitment to ensure that all parties in its supply chain work in a healthy environment and that they are adequately compensated for their services. In Apple’s supply responsibility progress report for 2013, the company has stated that it has over 200 suppliers it deals with directly, majority of whom produce software with a few large ones producing hardware (Apple Inc., 2013). The company has been hit with claims of dealing with suppliers hence it came up with an idea of independently auditing its suppliers. To reduce the many cases of litigation and bad publicity, Apple decided not to deal with suppliers who employ minors or those who underpay workers. Apple said that companies employ minors since the minors do not have bargaining power and are likely to take up any amount of salary. On the case of Pingzhou, Apple entered into a contract with them to manufacture a standard circuit board for its devices. The supply chain lasted for a long time despite a number of audits done by Apple based on claims of the company employing underage employees and paying far too little to its workers. In the year 2012, Apple joined Fair L abour Association, a body that audits and makes public unethical behavior among manufacturer. Apple auditors together with FLA ones went to Pingzhou and found out the company has seventy-four minors on its wage bill, working under deplorable conditions. The company did not make attempts to make their working conditions better or call for the minors to be sent away from working is a fair manner; instead, Apple terminated the contract, absolving itself from any wrong doing. On its hand, Pingzhou had to single-handedly pay terminal dues for the minors. Most of

The Effects of Sense of Belonging, Social Support, Conflict, and Essay

The Effects of Sense of Belonging, Social Support, Conflict, and Loneliness on Depression by Bonnie Hagerty and Reg Williams, Nursing Research - Essay Example The references are not very recent as far as the time of publication of this research paper is concerned (1999). The most recent reference quoted it self is from 1996. Only five references are mentioned which were published in the last five years. Similarly fifteen references (including the above mentioned five) were mentioned in the last ten years of publication year. Yes. The author explained that several research studies have been conducted in effect of biological factors on depression. Lot of researchers worked on effect of sense of belonging on depression. Similarly some researchers worked on relation between loneliness and depression. However clarity has not been developed on psychological factors affecting depression. Similarly there has been little research information available on the extent to which the belonging, social support, loneliness and conflict are predictive of depression. a. Is the framework explicitly expressed or must the reviewer extract the framework from implicit statements in the literature review No. There has been no organized frame work for explicit expression of interconnection of inter personal processes and depression. ... 3. Examine the study framework or theoretical perspective. a. Is the framework explicitly expressed or must the reviewer extract the framework from implicit statements in the literature review No. There has been no organized frame work for explicit expression of interconnection of inter personal processes and depression. The literature supporting the implicit expression of interconnection of inter personal processes and depression was reviewed in this research paper. b. Is the framework based on scientific, substantive, or tentative theory The frame work is based on scientific theories. Several researchers have come up with different scientific theories on depression which has formed the base for this frame work. Similarly the statistical path analysis is also a scientifically valid theory which has been used by the author for the present study. c. Does the framework identify, define, and describe relationships among the concepts of interest Yes. It defines the relationships among the concepts of interest i.e. depression and sense of belonging, loneliness and conflict. Path analysis with multiple regression model and correlation has been conducted for better description of relationship among the concepts of interest. d. How is the framework related to the body of knowledge in nursing By predicting the interpersonal theories contribution to depression, nursing will utilize this information for curing psychologically depressed patients effectively. Nursing will control those positive factors affecting the depression and will try to enhance those qualities negatively influencing depression. 4. Are there any research objectives, questions, or hypotheses Yes.

LensCrafters Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

LensCrafters - Essay Example riendly service should never be discounted as efforts to specifically address consumers gives them a sense of power as they enter into a room ready to serve them. The lessons learned from Lenscrafteres’ are to differentiate, provide high levels of service, and to be convenient without sacrificing quality. The strategy that is used by Lenscrafter in order to compete in the eyewear market is high levels of service. Service is made a visible entity as the customer can watch as their eyeglasses are being made. The service that is provided is intended to be completed within an hour, making it a convenient process which leads to the second characteristic. The second characteristic that defines the competitive priorities for Lenscrafters’ is that of convenience. Where most eyewear operations require several days to order and then receive the glasses that a customer has ordered, the Lenscrafters’ model is based on a fast turnaround that provide the consumer with their product within the same shopping experience. The average turnaround time is one hour (Collier & Evans, 2010). The final characteristic explored here is that of quality. Quality is the lynchpin characteristic of the development of the competitive advantages that Lenscrafters’ holds. Everything from the design of the store to the view of the workers in the lab promotes the idea of quality. Although service and convenience are the basis on which the store operates, it is through quality that they create relationships with consumers, outdistancing the competition by crating high quality eyewear in a short period of time with a high level of service. The service delivery system design is structured through the development of the store locations. The store locations use a number of different design features in order to facilitate the best possible experience for the consumer. The first element of the design is that it is created in order to evoke a high level of professionalism. The display of

Factors Affecting Marketing Strategy Term Paper

Factors Affecting Marketing Strategy - Term Paper Example In this sense, Dr. Thunder can be asserted as being a low-involvement brand. There have been no major advertising campaigns run by Wal-Mart to market Dr. Thunder as a brand. For this reason, the recommended marketing strategy is a newly developed. The reason behind developing a new marketing strategy for Dr. Thunder is to highlight the subliminal attraction of the brand, as the brand name is similar to internationally popular Dr. Pepper. Market Size, Performance and Growth From the review of U.S Census on the size of the market segment to which the marketing campaign of Dr. Thunder would target, it has been found that the marketing campaign would target around 3 million Americans. Over the past 10 years, it has been noticed that the target market segment has grown for about 7.7% (United States Census Bureau, 2013). Moreover, the target segment would expand by another 8.9% in the coming ten years. Upon understanding the dynamics of soft drink industry in USA, it is found that the foll owing three factors have an impact on the consumer behavior of this industry: 1. The top most influential factor in this regard is health concerns amongst consumer circles. Consumers perceive that carbonated or fizzy drinks have wrong affects on their health and thus avoid drinking soft drinks at all or usually purchase these drinks. 2. Size and design of the packaging also influences consumer behavior. If a soft drink is offered in a glass bottle, it is not possible for customers to take it home or travel along with a bottled soft drink. On the other hand, a canned or plastic bottled soft drink would be seen as facilitating and thus consumers would prefer to purchase it. 3. Lastly, the soft drink industry in the world is perceived as the most competent and saturated industry. Presence of single handedly market share sweeping companies like Pepsi and Coca Cola makes it difficult for other brands to survive in the market (Mise, Nair, Odera, & Ogutu, 2013). Reference Group and Diffusi on of the Marketing Campaign Soft drink brands are usually more popular amongst younger target audience. For this reason, it can be asserted that the most influential reference group for Dr. Thunder would be the social circle of teenagers. As the majority of the US population is comprised by young generation, and the social circle of young audience is identified as the most influential reference group, it can be suggested that a marketing strategy focused on targeting a younger audience would achieve the quickest diffusion rate. Moreover, adopting a deterministic model would help Wal-Mart to the state of acceptance by a particular segment of buyers of Dr. Thunder and overcome the flaws in production and marketing strategies. The diffusion determinants pertaining to Dr. Thunder are the perceived health advantages to customers, low riskiness in purchase, easy to use packaging of the drink and ability to quench thirst (Saha & Theingi, 2009). Diffusion Enhancement Strategy To enhance th e diffusion rate for Dr. Thunder, the marketing strategy would primarily target college and school students. Moreover, the target audience belonging to the age bracket of 25-30 years would also be focused in the marketing strategy. To attract the attention of the target audienc

Charitable Organizations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Charitable Organizations - Essay Example They just have to manage funds. Lastly, the intangible benefits are immense when it comes to serving in a charitable organization. As for the disadvantages, employee retention and recruitment is a matter of concern as the salary is low and commitment needed is high. Lastly, when charities are newly established, fund raising is a major issue as people doubt their credibility. Charitable organizations are those companies who are working for the sole purpose of doing something good for the society. The organization has charity-oriented factors as its aims and objectives as opposed to a normal company, whose major aim is to maximize its profits. There can be many types of charitable organizations, namely trusts, foundations and associates which are working as unincorporated (Petit-Zaman, 2006). A company might start off with charitable purposes or might become a charitable organization after some time passes after its establishment. There is a difference between a charitable organization and not-for-profit organizations. Charitable organizations are a subset of not-for-profit organizations. Not-for-profit organizations are those which are incorporated as an organization. They have a separate legal entity. They are neither working for purely charitable purposes nor for profit maximization. ... It is actually the responsibility of the state to fulfill these traditional duties, to work for the welfare of the citizens of the state. But often the state is ignorant of these duties and that is when these charitable organizations step in and do some good work. CHARITIES IN UNITED KINGDOM The United Kingdom has a total number of 200,000 charitable organizations (UK Tax). This is a huge quantity and the graph is rising as the sector of charity is rapidly growing and accelerating. Many of these charities are established as limited liability companies so that the owners, i.e. the trustees, are not liable to pay more than their share of investment in the company and so that this factor results in the establishment of more charitable organizations. Charitable organizations are finding new ways to cater to the humanity. The various charitable organizations are basically registered with three regulatory bodies, namely the Charity Commission, the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator and the Inland Revenue. These regulatory bodies are essential to supervise and take care of the activities that these charitable organizations are indulging in. these bodies make sure that these charities do not misuse the money that they collect from the general public for charitable purposes . These charities also have to report its activities to the government. This makes the government fully aware of whether these organizations are fulfilling their purposes or not, as their collections are tax free. This reporting aims to see whether any fraud is being done by an organization opened by the name of charity but eating up money for personal purposes. If a fraud is detected, the license of the

Factors Affecting Marketing Strategy Term Paper

Factors Affecting Marketing Strategy - Term Paper Example In this sense, Dr. Thunder can be asserted as being a low-involvement brand. There have been no major advertising campaigns run by Wal-Mart to market Dr. Thunder as a brand. For this reason, the recommended marketing strategy is a newly developed. The reason behind developing a new marketing strategy for Dr. Thunder is to highlight the subliminal attraction of the brand, as the brand name is similar to internationally popular Dr. Pepper. Market Size, Performance and Growth From the review of U.S Census on the size of the market segment to which the marketing campaign of Dr. Thunder would target, it has been found that the marketing campaign would target around 3 million Americans. Over the past 10 years, it has been noticed that the target market segment has grown for about 7.7% (United States Census Bureau, 2013). Moreover, the target segment would expand by another 8.9% in the coming ten years. Upon understanding the dynamics of soft drink industry in USA, it is found that the foll owing three factors have an impact on the consumer behavior of this industry: 1. The top most influential factor in this regard is health concerns amongst consumer circles. Consumers perceive that carbonated or fizzy drinks have wrong affects on their health and thus avoid drinking soft drinks at all or usually purchase these drinks. 2. Size and design of the packaging also influences consumer behavior. If a soft drink is offered in a glass bottle, it is not possible for customers to take it home or travel along with a bottled soft drink. On the other hand, a canned or plastic bottled soft drink would be seen as facilitating and thus consumers would prefer to purchase it. 3. Lastly, the soft drink industry in the world is perceived as the most competent and saturated industry. Presence of single handedly market share sweeping companies like Pepsi and Coca Cola makes it difficult for other brands to survive in the market (Mise, Nair, Odera, & Ogutu, 2013). Reference Group and Diffusi on of the Marketing Campaign Soft drink brands are usually more popular amongst younger target audience. For this reason, it can be asserted that the most influential reference group for Dr. Thunder would be the social circle of teenagers. As the majority of the US population is comprised by young generation, and the social circle of young audience is identified as the most influential reference group, it can be suggested that a marketing strategy focused on targeting a younger audience would achieve the quickest diffusion rate. Moreover, adopting a deterministic model would help Wal-Mart to the state of acceptance by a particular segment of buyers of Dr. Thunder and overcome the flaws in production and marketing strategies. The diffusion determinants pertaining to Dr. Thunder are the perceived health advantages to customers, low riskiness in purchase, easy to use packaging of the drink and ability to quench thirst (Saha & Theingi, 2009). Diffusion Enhancement Strategy To enhance th e diffusion rate for Dr. Thunder, the marketing strategy would primarily target college and school students. Moreover, the target audience belonging to the age bracket of 25-30 years would also be focused in the marketing strategy. To attract the attention of the target audienc

Social change Assigment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Social change Assigment - Essay Example His idea has proven to be a replicable and long lasting means of delivering health related services and goods to Guatemalan and Ecuadorian villages. Using this process, he has encouraged entrepreneurship thus giving villagers the opportunity to develop economically, physically and socially. This model targets individuals in rural areas especially the women who have no other means of generating additional household income. This is through overpowering the traditional method of giving handouts to rural communities as they find means of fending for themselves, and not necessarily waiting for the next donation. So far Greg Van Kirk’s method has successfully sold water filters, energy-efficient light bulbs, wood burning stoves, eyeglasses and seed -growing techniques, in over one thousand villages in the rural areas at affordable prices; improving their health and economic status. Greg Van Kirk’s development is considered a social entrepreneurship because it is a new invention which has achieved large scale sustainable, and systemic social change. This invention has also first focused on social and ecological value creation while optimizing on financial value creation. Another reason for its classification as a social entrepreneurship is that it created innovation by finding a new product, and service, and a unique approach to a social problem. It also emulates the act of devotion to the poor and the weak and also stays on top in business innovation. Social entrepreneurship shares common traits and so do their organizations. Greg Van Kirk like most social entrepreneurs believes that all people have the capacity to contribute meaningfully to economic and social development. He has a driving passion as can be seen through his innovation. The zeal to monitor and measure impact, there are several articles showing researches done to determine the strategy, benefits and new

The Mechanicals play Essay Example for Free

The Mechanicals play Essay The Mechanicals play is full of devices which show how incompetent they are as actors. How would you direct the play of Pyramus and Thisbe to bring out the comedy? The Pyramus and Thisbe play is classed as a tragedy but despite this the Mechanicals make it a comedy through their incompetence as actors. As a director I would bring out the comedy by exploring: casting, voices, body, costume, props, movement and blocking. I would choose to put the play on at the Globe theatre because that way the audience could appreciate the words and acting of the play rather than be dazzled by fancy lighting and sound. I would have the people of the court lying down at the edges of the stage so that they are still there but not detracting attention away from the Mechanicals. Quince starts the play with the prologue, lines 108 152. I would cast Quince as a tall, slender man with posh English accent so that he can project his voice out over the court. He would be tall because the play is like his baby, he wrote it and directed it and by being taller than the other Mechanicals he is almost like a father, as fathers are taller than their children when they are young. As Quince speaks I would have him with a fairly neutral expression on his face so that he can introduce each actor in the same way. I would have him in a dark suit with a white shirt and black bow tie almost as though he is a master of ceremonies. As he introduces each actor they should stand forward and bow in an exaggerated manner, Thisbe should curtsey, this is to set the over the top acting style for the rest of the play. Pyramus, who is supposed to be a tall, handsome, hero, would be funny played by a short, balding, fat man with a very camp voice. I would have him in clothes of the period and place, i. e. Athens, similar to those of a king or prince. Thisbe, who is supposed to be a beauteous lady would be funny played by a man in drag, wearing a long flowing dress of the period and place with wig to go with and a scarf and she would have a cockney accent. The wall should wear a sheet with a wall painted on, with a white shirt and trousers underneath, he should have one arm stretched out with the sheet attached and the other bent round with his hand on his hip and a brick in the hole that his arm makes with his body. He should have a Liverpudlian accent so that he seems gossipy, meaning that walls have ears and so hear a lot of gossip and want to spread it around. Moonshine should have a London accent and should wear a white shirt and white trousers to give the impression of shining. He should seem thoroughly bored with the whole production because he doesnt have a very large part. He should have a light bulb to hold to represent the moon, a cuddly toy dog on a lead for the dog and a small bonsai tree to represent the bush. The lion should be very timid to be funny because lions are stereotypically ferocious beasts. He should wear an orangey brown furry all in one with a tail and hairy fur around the head. All the actors should be barefoot to add to their incompetence and show that they are the working classes, i. e. too poor to afford good shoes. At this point in the play, because the people of the court are talking amongst themselves rather than to the actors, the actors would ignore their comments. The wall starts to speak and he should stand across the stage, not facing the front but just turning his head, with his arms in place as before and when he says that had a crannied hole or chink he should remove the brick and slowly wave it above his head so that the whole audience can see it before placing it on the floor, this should be done in a very exaggerated manner. When Pyramus speaks he should do very exaggerated, over the top, arm movements as though he was reaching for something. When Pyramus says show me thy chink, to blink through with mine eyes the wall should point furiously to the hole made by his arm bent round. Then when Theseus interrupts, Bottom should talk to Theseus in a conspiratorial manner when he explains that deceiving me is Thisbes cue to enter. Thisbe enters form the right, seemingly quite bored because he has to play the part of a woman, stands the other side of the wall to Pyramus, puts her hands on her hips and speaks her lines. Then Thisbe exits on the right and Pyramus on he left. The wall then speaks again but this time in a conspiratorial manner to Theseus. The wall then picks up the brick and exits on the left. The people of the court talk together about the play so far, they should be laughing and joking. The lion enters from the right and timidly speaks his lines with his hands up by his face like paws. He then goes to the back of the stage and squats down and stays there. Moonshine, having entered from the left at the same time as the lion and stood at the back of the stage, comes forward and starts to speak, holding up the light bulb as he does so. Theseus interrupts and so moonshine should look upon him with disbelief, annoyance and that they could have the audacity to interrupt him, this happens again. The third time moonshine says his lines angrily and holds up each prop as he speaks about it, he points at himself for the man in the moon. Thisbe enters form the right and looks around, she says her line with no real feeling; the lion roars very quietly and the people of the court joke about his timid roar as he chases Thisbe off stage left, she drops her scarf when shes chased away. Bottom then comes on stage from the right and speaks his lines whilst doing extremely exaggerated arm movements up towards the moon, he should also exaggerate the irony of the words he speaks on line 256 sweet moon, I thank thee for thy sunny beams. He should then catch sight of her scarf, rush over and fall on his knees by it. He then picks it up and says his lines (265 270), he should be very upset and somewhat angry when speaking these lines, made comical by the camp tone in his voice. He then takes out his wooden sword, when he says out sword, and wound on line 280 and stabs himself with it because he is so overcome with grief at the thought that hes lost Thisbe. He then gets up on to his feet and walks about the stage from side to side, swaying as though he was drunk; moonshine leaves the stage form the left when Pyramus says moon, take thy flight on line 289. Then on line 290, Pyramus falls to his knees and keels over, facing the audience at the front, whilst saying his last line. The play is nearly finished at this point and the people of the court talk amongst themselves and say how they are beginning to get bored of the play. Then Thisbe enters from the right and looks around, she sees Pyramus and goes to kneel behind him; she peers over him to look at his face, seemingly upset, she speaks her lines with her face pointing upwards with one hand on Pyramus side. As she speaks she should shuffle around Pyramus, on her knees, until she is by his knees, then at line 325 come, trusty sword she should reach over for the sword and stab herself. She should then keel over in the opposite direction so that they are top-to-tail, both facing the audience. After Demetrius says hi line, the actors playing Pyramus and Thisbe, i. e. Bottom and Flute, get up and ask the people of the court if they would like to hear the epilogue. Theseus is very quick to say no as all the people have had enough of the play and are bored with it. At this point all the Mechanicals enter, half from the left, half from the right, and they bow, Thisbe should curtsey. Throughout reading this it is vital to remember that the characters accents will play a very big part in bringing out the comedy of the play. In conclusion, despite the fact that the play of Pyramus and Thisbe is a tragedy it is appropriate to put it on as a comedy so that it ties in with the rest of A Midsummer Nights Dream, which is also a comedy. The Mechanicals incompetent acting makes the play of Pyramus and Thisbe comical and as director I would have brought out the comedy by considering: casting, voice, body, costume, props, movement and blocking; movement and voice in particular because by exaggerating all the movements the Mechanicals as actors would seem incompetent, thus bringing out the comedy in the play, and by giving all the Mechanicals a different accent or tone of voice that was very inappropriate for that character, for example, Pyramus with his camp voice, would also bring out the comedy in the play of Pyramus and Thisbe.

Impact of Direct Tax on Consumer Equilibrium

Impact of Direct Tax on Consumer Equilibrium OBJECTIVE This term paper is being done in order to check and determine the effect of various factors of the direct tax that have an impact on the consumer equilibrium. The main objective of this term paper is as under: To determine what is direct tax and consumer equilibrium Analysis of articles Impact of direct tax and other factors on consumer equilibrium. INTRODUCTION In introduction , we will start with the basic like- what is direct tax and what is consumer equilibrium. We will discuss these two in a elaborated manner. DIRECT TAX CONSUMER EQUILIBRIUM DIRECT TAX The term direct tax generally means a tax paid directly to the government by the persons on whom it is imposed.In the general sense, a direct tax is one paid directly to the government by the persons. on whom it is imposed (often accompanied by a tax return filed by the taxpayer). Examples include some income taxes, some corporate taxes, and transfer taxes such as estate (inheritance) tax and gift tax. In this sense, a direct tax is contrasted with an indirect tax or collected tax (such as sales tax or value added tax (VAT)); a collected tax is one which is collected by intermediaries who turn over the proceeds to the government and file the related tax return. Some commentators have argued that a direct tax is one that cannot be shifted by the taxpayer to someone else, whereas an indirect tax can be. The direct tax definition is not complete until we do not define or throw some light on indirect tax, thus- INDIRECT TAX A tax that is not assessed on and collected from those who are intended to bear it. Unlike a direct tax , it cannot take individual circumstances into account. Although levied on Producers , the burden of an indirect tax may be shift to consumers. Ex: value added tax, sales tax, payroll tax and excise duties CONSUMER EQUILIBRIUM When consumers make choices about the quantity of goods and services to consume, it is presumed that their objective is toÂÂ  maximize total utility.ÂÂ  In maximizing total utility, the consumer faces a number ofÂÂ  constraints, the most important of which are the consumersÂÂ  incomeÂÂ  and theÂÂ  pricesÂÂ  of the goods and services that the consumer wishes to consume. The consumers effort to maximize total utility, subject to these constraints, is referred to as theÂÂ  consumers problem.ÂÂ  The solution to the consumers problem, which entails decisions about how much the consumer will consume of a number of goods and services, is referred to asÂÂ  consumer equilibrium. Determination of consumer equilibrium.ÂÂ  Consider the simple case of a consumer who cares about consuming only two goods: good 1 and good 2. This consumer knows the prices of goods 1 and 2 and has a fixed income or budget that can be used to purchase quantities of goods 1 and 2. The consumer will purchase quantities of goods 1 and 2 so as to completely exhaust the budget for such purchases. The actual quantities purchased of each good are determined by the condition for consumer equilibrium, which isÂÂ   This condition states that the marginal utility per dollar spent on good 1 must equal the marginal utility per dollar spent on good 2. If, for example, the marginal utility per dollar spent on good 1 were higher than the marginal utility per dollar spent on good 2, then it would make sense for the consumer to purchase more of good 1 rather than purchasing any more of good 2. After purchasing more and more of good 1, the marginal utility of good 1 will eventually fall due to the law of diminishing marginal utility, so that the marginal utility per dollar spent on good 1 will eventually equal that of good 2. Of course, the amount purchased of goods 1 and 2 cannot be limitless and will depend not only on the marginal utilities per dollar spent, but also on the consumers budget. LITERATURE REVIEW Hegde, Prakash and Barve, Nachiket, June 27,2010, Impact of direct tax code on individual, BUISNESS LINE says that Though most of the existing provisions of the income-tax law are finding place in the DTC, many provisions are new or modified that will affect the individuals significantly.The prominent ones are like DTC proposed significant reduction in individual income-tax by increasing tax slabs 30 per cent tax rate at an income level of Rs 25 lakh (present Rs 8 lakh).If proposed tax slabs and rates are implemented, then taxpayers take-home pay may see a substantial jump. However, in view of relaxation or rollbacks of other tax proposals, one has to wait and watch whether Government still intends to offer the proposed tax slabs and rates. EEE preferred over EET, EET results in higher tax at retirement in contrast to ability to pay. Recognising the fact of absence of a well developed social security system and other challenges (technical / administrative) Government thought it fit to retain EEE and partial EET. One of the strange provisions in DTC, which had not caught public attention but can affect a common man travelling abroad, is furnishing an undertaking to the tax officer to the effect that he has made satisfactory arrangement for discharging his tax liability in India before he leaves India. The tax officer has to issue a no-objection certificate for his travel. If travel is made without a no-objection certificate from the tax office, the owner or charterer of the aircraft will be held responsible to pay the taxes due, if any.This process would have been more of a hurdle than a smooth ride. Gillingham, Robert and Greenlees, John S, 4 August 1987, The Impact of Direct Taxes on the Cost of Living says in the article that, a cost-of-living index including direct taxes. They show its relationship to the traditional index and demonstrate how non consumption costs are properly treated. They then define a fixed-weight approximation, a tax and price index (TPI). Using federal, state, local, and social security tax rates for 1967- 85, the authors construct annual TPI series based on household data. They find that inclusion of direct taxes has sizable impacts on the estimated rate of inflation. Partitioning their household sample, they find that recognition of taxes significantly alters inflation rate differentials estimated using consumption prices alone. Subramani, V.K, 29, August 2010, Expectation from code revision, according to the author, There is a huge expectation that the revised Code would address the concerns of the taxpayers at large, by retaining the existing tax concessions and providing smooth transition, with minimal scope for confusion or litigation. There is Positives, negatives traits of the code. There are some positives in the first draft of the DTC, such as: (i) minimum rate of personal tax at 10 per cent for incomes up to Rs 10 lakh;(ii) deduction in respect of savings (similar to Section 80C) up to Rs 3 lakh;(iii) presumptive taxation of income for turnover up to Rs 100 lakh;(iv) short-term capital loss under the present law, called as terminal allowance in the DTC, eligible for deduction while computing business income; and(v) making reference to financial year instead of the currently used terms such as previous year and assessment year.The negatives of the DTC, prima facie, include: (i) clubbing of spouse inc ome with the income of spouse, whoever has higher income;(ii) restricting the exemption in respect of accumulated balance in provident fund account up to March 31, 2011;(iii) denying carry forward of business loss to any year, if the return is filed beyond the due date both in the year of incurring loss and any subsequent year in which it is carried forward with or without set off ;(iv) denying deduction in respect of medical treatment expenses (present Section 80 DDB) to HUF;(v) reduction in time limit for passing order of rectification to two years;(vi) advancing the date for filing the return of tax base and imposing penalty for failure to file tax base return before the due date as against the present time limit of March 31 of the assessment year; and(vii) giving precedence to the DTC in the event of conflict between DTAA and DTC. Parthasarathy, Suresh, 20,June 2010, How the revised tax code impact us, BUISNESS LINE, says that without social security the proposed EET (Exempt-Exempt-Taxed) structure was harsh on individuals, the revised code has proposed to bring some relief to long-term savings investment such as PF, PPF, New Pension Scheme, approved pure life insurance, annuity schemes and GPF. These will now be subject to the Exempt-Exempt-Exempt (EEE) method of taxation rather the EET model proposed last year. . The revised DTC proposes to follow the existing method of tax deduction on home loan at least for the interest paid. In case of the house being self-occupied, the individual will be eligible for deduction of interest on capital borrowed for acquisition or construction of the house, subject to a ceiling of Rs 1.5 lakh, from the gross total income. This revised proposal is a change from the earlier stand of disallowing tax exemptions on the interest and principal paid on house property. The New Pensio n Scheme, was struggling to find patronage owing to uncertainties relating to its tax structure. In a attempt to make this scheme more attractive and to introduce some flexibility in making withdrawals in lump sum without being subject to taxation, the revised code proposes to extend the EEE method of taxation to the pension scheme administered by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority, apart from PF, GPF and recognised Provident Funds. Under the revised code, capital gains arising on account of transfer of equity shares or units of an equity oriented fund held for more than one year will be computed after allowing a deduction at a specific percentage of capital gains without any indexation. Buch, Drupadh, 30 July 2010How Revised Direct Taxes Code Will Impact Senior Citizens, EZINE ARTICLES, according to the author of the article, it states that how direct tax has impact on senior citizen there has not made any changes in the Income Tax Rates and Income Tax Slabs that were proposed in the original draft. That means there is no change in the basic exemption limit for the Senior Citizens (resident individual of 65 years or above), which is 240,000 per year. In the revised DTC, there is no change in the limit of deductions from taxable income for savings in specified investments. In the original draft, the limit has been proposed to be revised to 300,000 from the present limit of 100,000. However, it should not make much difference to the Senior Citizens, as the tax incentives for savings are basically meant for the youngsters. , the retirement benefits such as gratuity, commuted pension, voluntary retirement compensation and leave encashment will be exempt from tax subject to specified limits. Original Draft DTC had proposed a scheme of deferment of tax on retirement benefits, that is, the retirement benefits would not be taxed if it were invested in a Special Retirement Benefit Account, which would be subsequently taxed in the year of withdrawal. In the New DTC, be it in the original draft or in the revised discussion paper, there is nothing very much special for the senior citizens except the higher income tax slabs and the corresponding reduced tax rates. If the basic exemption limit of 240,000 for senior citizens were revised substantially, it would have definitely been a great boon to the Senior Citizens. Latest IRI Research Finds a New Consumer Equilibrium Emerging as Economy Continues to Transform It is no secret that the ongoing economic turmoil is dramatically affecting consumers shopping and purchase behaviors. Consumers are eating out less, reducing the number of doctor visits and foregoing vacations to stretch their limited dollars. But, which consumer groups are driving these cost-saving strategies? The latest research from Information Resources (1) The data and information assets of an organization, department or unit. See data administration. (2) Another name for the Information Systems (IS) or Information Technology (IT) department. See IT. , Inc. (IRI), Competing in a Transforming Economy 4.0: The New Equilibrium leverages post-inaugural survey results to identify key consumer segments that are leading the change and helps retailers and manufacturers connect with their most important consumers. Since the beginning of 2009, a new consumer equilibrium has emerged in which behaviors initially implemented to weather the storm have the potential to last well beyond an economic recovery. In this phase of our research, we went beyond studying the common spending, self-reliance and self-health strategies that are becoming common place in todays environment and examined how economic pressures have driven different types of consumersby income level, household composition and even varying consumer mindsetsto change their strategies. Gidwan, Sunil and Desai, Jignesh, October, 2010, New Direct Tax Code: Impact on Banking sector, THE ANALYST. According to the author, The DTC is a good step taken by the Government of India to reduce litigations and simplify the tax provisions followed for nearly five decades. The banking sector plays a vital role in the economic development of any country. In India, the financial service sector is now acknowledged as the next growth engine. It is therefore crucial that fiscal policies recognize this role and through various measures support and strengthen the sector. Despite the representation made on behalf of the financial service sector after the first draft of the Direct Tax Code (DTC), the new DTC does not seem to address some of the issues faced by the banking sector. India has a better banking system in place, as compared to the other developing countries, but there are several issues that need to be addressed in order to ensure that these issues do not remain as hurdles in t he sustained economic development of the country. . A number of stringent proposals were brought in the draft Direct Taxes Code, 2009. There were several areas of concern. Most of them, such as asset-based Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT) and treaty override, were addressed by the Finance Minister through the release of a Revised Discussion paper earlier in June this year SOURCE OF DATA: The source of data that I have used is SECONDARY SOURCE DATA. Secondary data is elected in form of information which has already been collected by someone. Along with this some information on direct tax, their features are collected from internet. For more information regarding research methodology , books from library have been referred. ANALYSIS OF THE TOPIC The direct tax and the consumer equilibrium has a direct relationship with each other. The direct tax code slabs affect the consumer in many ways and its not just only direct tax that has an impact on the consumer equilibrium there are many other things that effect consumer equilibrium. When the direct tax which are implemented on the individual are low, i.e., the rate of tax that a consumer has to pay is minimum, it provides him the larger window to earn more money as less money will be deducted from his earnings. Due to this the budget line of the consumer will show the deviation, it will move towards right side INDIFFERENCE CURVE EQUILIBRIUM POINT BUDGET LINE QTY OF A QTY OF B Fig a:High direct tax Figb: Low direct tax As we can see the above figure depicts if the direct tax that the individual has to pay are decreased than there will be the upwards shiftment of the budget line which will allow the consumer to buy more products by increasing his budgets. Indifference curve in the figure plays an important role , indifference curve should be tangential to the budget line because its the most optimum level at which the consumer could use his budget to get maximum satisfaction. The following conditions should be kept in mind for consumer equilibrium: Consumer spends all the income in buying two commodities ;hence point of equilibrium will lie on budget line. The point of equilibrium will always be on the highest possible indifference curve that consumer can reach. Slope of indifference curve should be equal to the slope of budget line. In other words: MUm/MUn = Pm/Pn There are also some major factors that has effect on consumer equilibrium, which are as under: Price effect Income effect Substitution effect Price Effect: Change in the price of the any of the goods he consumes will also lead to change the equilibrium point. Price effect shows the reaction of consumer to the change in the price of a commodity, other things remaining the same. It measures the change in amount (quantity) demanded of a commodity with change in its price when price of the other commodity with which it is being combined remains the same. When there is increase in the price of a commodity, obviously he consumes it less (and becomes worse off). And when the price of the commodity decreases or falls, he consumes the commodity more (and becomes better off). Remaining the consumption of a commodity in the combination same, it is clear that when the price of commodity (another in combination) increases, consumer shifts to the lower indifference curve, and when price falls, consumer goes to higher indifference curve. When the price of a commodity in X-axis increases (remaining the price of commodity on Y axis same, consumer will certainly reduce the consumption of commodity in X axis. Budget line shifts downward. After increase in the price of good in X axis, his budget line moves down wards. He gets the new equilibrium point at which it is lower. This is in case of rise in price of a commodity. Price Consumption Curve may be upward sloping, downward sloping (or backward sloping). Nature of slope of PCC shows the types of goods and their cross elasticity of two goods. Slope PCC is dependent on the nature of goods whether they are inferior, superior, luxurious or whether the combination is complements or substitutes. Income effect: When there is change in income of consumer, there is change in equilibrium point due to change in quantity demanded; when there is change in income, there is shift in budget line. Generally income and quantity demanded relationship is positive. But it depends on the nature of goods whether it is inferior or normal. If good is griffin paradox or inferior, income demand relationship is negative. A line joining equilibrium points which are set due to change in income is income consumption curve. When there is increase in income , quantity demanded of both commodities increases. PL is the original budget line or price line. When income of consumer decreases from PL to PL1, consumer consumes both the commodities less and Equilibrium E1 is set on new budget line P1L1 and in lower Indifference Curve IC1. But when there is increase in income of consumer, his budget line shifts upward to the right from the origin (P2L2). During increase in income, consumer consumes both the commodities more and equilibrium is set at point E2 on higher IC on budget line P2L2. Both commodities in X and Y axis are normal goods so ICC is sloping upward. E2 E1 P2L2 PL P1L1 PL1 Substitution Effect: Substitution effect is also one of the responsible factor to cause change in consumers equilibrium. Substitution effect is the result of consumers inherent tendency to substitute cheaper goods for the relatively expensive ones. Substitution effect means the change in the purchase of a commodity as a consequence of change in relative price alone, real income remaining the constant.When price of a good changes, the real income (or purchasing power) of the consumer is also changed. To keep real income of the consumer constant so that the effect due to change in relative price may be known, price change is compensated by simultaneous change in income. For example when the price of good X falls, real of consumer increases. To find the substitution effect (i.e change in demand of X due to change in its relative price), we reduce the money income of consumer (to cancel the increase in real income due to fall in price of X). For further study of substitution, two slightly different theories have been developed. Theory developed by Hicks and Allen is called Hicks Substitution Effect and theory developed by E.Slutsky is known as Slutsky Substitution Effect MERITS/DEMERITS OF DIRECT TAX MERITS OF DIRECT TAXES Direct taxes are the main income sources of government. These taxes are easy to calculate on income and wealth of individuals and businesses. Direct taxes finance government affairs to run smoothly. These taxes help government to start and continue public welfare operations DEMERITS OF DIRECT TAX The implementation or direct tax is a tough job as people are resistant and show wrong assessment of their income and avoid tax payment. Direct tax has the negative impact of individual income and decrease the amount of disposable income. The collection is difficult as compare to indirect tax where consumer do not feel a direct burden of tax. Cost of collection of direct tax is greater than indirect tax. Change in the rate and pattern is also difficult for direct taxes as compare to indirect taxes

Our Town Analysis :: essays research papers

Our Town Analysis   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In fact my town does not resemble the setting displayed in this play although I am sure the setting of our ancestors’ towns were much like this one. Back then everybody knew each other and they did not have to lock their doors and they had a strong fear of death and judgement which was indirectly implanted in their religion.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This play was interesting because the representation of death portrayed as being so sudden. When death hit Emily, she suddenly realized how she had wasted her life on earth because they were repeating the same actions everyday of their. She became sad and also regretful that she could not tell her husband George to get on with his life and end this incessant mourning.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The setting is very important because the play is set in a small simple town and it demonstrates the precise actions of people of that time. The setting is special because it is vague therefore it lets your mind imagine the precise details of the scene. This is interesting because you see the scene the way you want it so the author does not need to go into dull descriptions which are not too pleasing.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The atmosphere is very obvious in this play because it is one of the most prominent factors in the play itself. In the first act the dominant mood is happiness because everybody is pursuing their normal activities and gossiping and the first act is used to introduce the characters for us to know their attitudes. In the second act the action is sped up and there is a special event which is marriage involves George and Emily. Emily shows a great deal of hesitation and the attendants at the ceremony are discussing the couple and how they were when they were young. In the third act the mood is sorrow and sadness caused by the death of Emily and her reaction at the overview of her own life.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The relationship between George and Emily is very evident throughout the whole play. In the first act they shared a boy/girl relationship and were good neighbors.