Business in a Competitive Environment -technology Article

Business in a Competitive Environment -technology - Article Example There are a number of factors that influence the market’s preference of one technology over another and these include innovation and lock-in forces. Innovation has been defined differently by different people but the one thing that is common in all its definitions is the need to complete the exploitation and development aspects of new knowledge or technology, not just its invention. Innovation is often confused with invention but the later is the first step of the lengthy process of developing a good idea into wide spread and effective use by consumers. A good invention does not guarantee market preference and therefore market success. Once a good technological invention has been created, innovation tools such as market development, project management, organizational behaviour and financial management, just to mention a few, have to be employed in order to make the invented technology successful in the market. For instance, when consumers or markets are faced with the decision to select a technology among many available technologies, the consumers will find it necessary to base their decision on several innovative aspects such a s the technology that gives a richer user experience, is easily accessible, has evolving capabilities, is secure, and best serves the need of the business, among other aspects. The direction of technological innovation is a major determinant of the technology that gets preference in a market. Technological innovation can either be sustaining or disruptive. Sustaining innovations are those that seek to improve an already existing technology in order to increase its value to the market while disruptive innovations aim to introduce entirely new technology to the market in order to replace the old technology. Disruptive technological innovations often overlap with radical breakthroughs but sometimes represent advances in business models. Leading companies and governments in tend to be very successful at implementing sustaining

Role of Marriage in Society

Role of Marriage in Society Culture is defined as the dynamic system of rules established by groups (Matsumoto Juang, p. 10). Marriage is one of the norms established by people, which reflect attitude, beliefs and behaviors. Marriage is an interpersonal relationship with communal or religious acknowledgment which is often created as an agreement. Marriage is rooted effectually in almost every society except where common law partners are recognized. It is the bond that exclusively consents a sexual relationship, especially in collectivist countries where sex before marriage is considered a sin, likewise some societies, especially collectivist countries also require official approval of religious or civil body. Across cultures, the anatomies of ancestral standards are different. Beliefs of what comprises a family are based on culture, dynamics, assets, and ethics. In many cultures, extended family which includes married couples staying in the home of their parents is a form of showing love and respect for exampl e in Pakistan; marriage is also basis for having children in those societies. Since issues like fornication and having children outside of marriage is considered taboo so to grow a family in collectivist cultures getting married is must. Our attributions, interpersonal and romantic relationships and group behaviors are all influenced by the culture we live in thus resulting in the attitudes we have towards a specific actions we take. Support gap, depression and illness including marital satisfaction, communication pattern and attitudes towards marriage, they all differ across cultures and will be discussed. Attitude towards marriage being the most important one, because the whole idea of relationship relies on the individuals perspective and preferences. It depends on the individual to see it as a social foundation which administer structure, support, growth and stability or see it as an economic arrangement or as a part of religious institution. The western society might pay more importance to love whereas collectivist cultures might see as an obligatory and as a religious foundation to have family. Spousal Social Support: Social support for women is greatly reduced in machismo cultures (Matsumoto Juang, p. 198). The conformity and obedience are expected by women and is related to traditional gender roles that females and males have occupied; with male traditionally being in power. Such differences result in loss of support especially in cultures where women tend to get married at a young age; since getting married at an early age is a form of economic survival it is also seen as a way to guard the female gender and to administer some adherence in settings where society is under pressure for example India. The support a married couple gets from their significant partner is substantial, because support from outside the marriage does not compensate for the lack of spousal support (Xu Burleson). Belle (1982) termed support gap hypothesis which is that women receive less support from their husband compared to men even though the study Belle did was in 1980 and it has been almost a decade, the study done by Xu and Burleson indicates that social change in sex role relations has not changed. The different kinds of support received are emotional support, esteem support, network support, tangible support and informational support. Research indicates that men are less comfortable and less skilled in discussing distressed emotional state (Burda Vaux 1987; Saurer Eisler, 1990; Trobst, Collins Embree, 1994). In Cross Cultural comparison of social support, Mortneson (1999) found that members of the American individualistic cultures viewed seeking of social support as more appropriate means of coping with problems than did members of the Chinese collectivist cultures. American individualists also rated the provision of emotional support as more appropriate form of emotional support than did Chinese Collectivists. Study done by Xu and Burleson, included 100 native born Americans and 102 native born Chinese; 45% of the sample were between 18-24 yrs of age and not exceeding 33 years. All participants were recently married i.e. not more than 5 years. The study tried to obtain desired and experienced levels of spousal support for the five types of social support (emotional, esteem, network, informational and tangible). Participants also responded to demographic questions that provided information on age, sex, race, national origin, length of time they had known their spouse and the time they have been married. The results indicated a vast difference between Chinese support system vs. American support system; Chinese men reported getting more esteem and network support from their spouse than Chinese women versus American women who experienced higher level of support from their spouse than did men. Sex differences were found amongst Chinese and American women, both face a support gap but Chinese wom en face an additional gap with respect to network support. The results provided Cross-cultural corroboration for the existence of support gaps, i.e. the less network support for Chinese wives that is because Chinese wives were reliant on their husbands for social contacts outside their home. Chinese also reported in getting more information support than did Americans, which could arise from Individualism-Collectivism; a cultural factor. Americans view intimate relationship in terms of personal affect changes whereas Chinese in terms of connection with community. American men reported getting low level of spousal support than Chinese men that is because in traditional value system, wives have an obligation to support the egos and social connections of their husbands and husbands have lesser responsibility. Results indicate that marriage remains more influenced by traditional values among Chinese men than Americans. Depression and Illness including Marital Satisfaction across Cultures In collectivist societies, marriage is the central reality of a womans life and the blue print on which her life depends. Epidemiological studies confirm the special vulnerability of women, especially married women, in South Asia (Johnson Johnson, 2001). High rates of domestic violence (Jejeebhoy, 1998); female illiteracy, malnutrition, anemia and maternal mortality are major public health problems (Buckshee, 1997). Psychiatric epidemiological studies consistently identify high rates of depression and other neurotic illnesses in women and the gender ratio of these disorders on the subcontinent is higher than the gender ratio in the West (Mumford et al., 1996). Among married women in Pakistan, especially among newly married women, attempted suicide (Khan Reza, 1998) and death rates from murder and suicide are higher than in are higher than in many other societies and are usually associated with in-law conflicts, especially dowry disputes (Kumar, 2004). Smaller scale studies of menta l health and illness have found that a variety of disorders such as depression and post-partum depression were strongly associated with marital problems, particularly maltreatment by husband or in-laws (Patel et al., 2002; Ulrich, 1987). Women immigrants report higher rates of depression and dysphoria than Native American women (Karasz, 2005). A study of traditional South Asian immigrant women and white European American women found that European American women viewed depressive symptoms as the result of personality structures shaped by childhood experiences, or by patho-physiological processes such as serotonin deficiency or hormonal imbalance. South Asian women, by contrast, viewed depressive illness as a normal emotional reaction to severe situational stress, especially marital distress, and to the vulnerabilities associated with womens gender roles (Karasz, 2005). The present study by Karasz examines how women understand the link of marital family problems and a wide range of health problems by examining their conceptual representations of the causal relationship between marriage roles, health and illness. Using qualitative methods and a model of illness representation from health psychology literature, 35 traditional South Asian immigrant women living in New York City were interviewed. Results indicated that problems associated with marriage roles, including marital and marital family conflict, domestic overwork and isolation were viewed as extremely serious and were associated conceptually with a variety of health problems. In another study done by Qadir, De Silva, Prince and Khan, tested the applicability of marital satisfaction scales developed in the West for use in Pakistan. The results indicate that, contrary to cultural beliefs regarding marriage, most women expressed the need to be satisfied within marriage, which was found to be extremely low because of variety of reasons such as living in an extended family background and low spousal support. Communication Patterns Rehman and Munroe did a study and used cross-cultural methodology to examine the demand-withdraw pattern of marital communication. In Western countries, women make more demands, whereas men are more likely to withdraw. This advanced marital structure hypothesis suggests that this pattern can be altered by gender roles and beliefs, particularly in traditional marriages (Rehman Munroe, 2006). To test such hypotheses, the authors conducted an observational study of marital communication across very different cultures, with varying levels of patriarchy (i.e., 50 White American couples, 52 Pakistani couples in Pakistan, and 48 immigrant Pakistani couples in America). A questionnaire was used to gather demographic information, such as age and education. The Short Marital Adjustment Test (SMAT; Locke Wallace, 1959); a standard measure of marital adjustment with well-established psychometric properties was the measure of marital satisfaction level. The Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS; Straus, 1979); was used to screen out violent couples. Modified General Ethnicity Questionnaire (GEQ; Tsai, Ying, Lee, 2000); only the immigrant couples completed this measure of acculturation to U.S. culture. Unable to find acculturation measures designed for The Desired Changes Questionnaire; the DCQ was used to choose topics for each couple to discuss during their marital interactions. Twenty areas are listed (e.g., Get together with my friends).3 For each area, spouses rated how much they wanted their partner to change (1- no change; 7- much more); they then listed at least two additional issues on which they wanted partner change and rank ordered their three most important issues. Each couple was also asked to discuss for 7.5 minutes, which were later coded. Across cultures, demand-withdraw communication was related to marital distress, extending previous findings to new groups. The results for demanding behaviors showed that Pakistani wives were significantly more likely to engage in unassertive demands than were American wives, whereas American wives were significantly more likely to use aggressive demands than were Pakistani wives. In addition, among Pakistani and immigrant couples, husbands were significantly more likely than were wives to use aggressive demands, whereas American wives were significantly more likely to use aggressive demands than were American husbands. There was a trend for American husbands to be more likely to withdraw than their wives. In contrast, in the Pakistani group, wives were significantly more likely to withdraw than were husbands. In addition, Pakistani and immigrant wives were significantly more likely to withdraw than were American wives, whereas American husbands were significantly more likely to with draw than were Pakistani husbands. Pakistani and immigrant wives showed increased withdrawal and made more unassertive demands, whereas Pakistani and immigrant husbands withdrew less and made more aggressive demands. Attitudes towards Marriage Attitude is one of the definitions in Jungs Chapter XI of Psychological Types. Jungs description of attitude is a readiness of the psyche to act or react in a certain way (Jung, [1921] 1971:par. 687). One of the types of attitudes Jung describes is, rational attitude, which is reason as an attitude (Jung, [1921] 1971: par. 785). Rational attitude is subdivided into thinking and feeling and irrational is subdivided into sensing and intuition. Attitude towards marriage involves, readiness to act in a certain way, whether you are capable of considering it rationally or irrationally. Why an individual chooses to get married? (voluntarily and involuntarily) differs across cultures. In collectivist cultures, it is seen as the only way of having family, fornication is not only considered a sin but also an individual can be severely punished which can lead to his/her death; some countries also have laws protecting it for example Saudi Arabia. Higgins, Zheng, Liu and Sun did a study to compare the attitude towards marriage amongst people living in China (collective culture) and United Kingdom (individualistic culture). The British sample consisted of 338 students and the Chinese sample consisted of 505 students. A questionnaire was devised by Chinese and English researchers working together. Respondent cultural differences in response style were noted (Higgins, Zheng, Liu Sun, 2002). According to Triandis, Brislin, and Hui (1988), people who belong to collectivist, group-oriented societies are more likely to value harmony, face-saving, modesty, and moderation and this may manifest itself in neutral answers to attitude scales. Respondents were asked for their opinion using a 5-point Likert scale. In this study, students were asked for their general attitude to sex before marriage. A total of 46.3% of Chinese men and 41.2% of Chinese women gave neutral answers, a higher percentage of Chinese female students (46.9%) were aga inst sex before marriage than were Chinese male students (29.9%). The next statements concerned the connection between premarital sex and marriage. Most British students (85.2% men, 91.3% women) disagreed with A couple who have had sexual intercourse before marriage ought to marry each other, whereas only a few Chinese (12.9% men, 11.4% women) disagreed. The belief that sex is designed for marriage is still firmly held by many Chinese people and exerts a strong influence on their attitudes (Higgins, Zheng, Liu Sun, 2002). When asked about their willingness to marry a partner who had had sex with somebody else, over half of the British respondents (54.0% men, 50.6% women) did not seem to worry about their partners previous sexual experience whereas their Chinese counterparts (34.0% men, 36.5% women) appeared to be less agreeable to the idea. 87.1% male and female 94.3% students were against freedom to have lovers within marriage. This attitude was also prevalent among the Chinese sample, with 65.6% of men and 72.5% of women against extramarital lovers, this study showed that these male-superior norms still exist in the U.K. sample but are more prominent in the Chinese sample (Higgins, Zheng, Liu Sun, 2002). Culture exerts a strong influence on peoples attitudes to love, marriage, and sex. People from a more traditional society (e.g. China) have more consensus about the gender roles of men and women; adhere more to traditional morality and values; and are less open about sexual freedom (Higgins, Zheng, Liu Sun, 2002). Hojat, Shapurian, Shafeyhain and Parsi conducted a study amongst 160 Iranian immigrants in the US in 2000. The immigrants were between 20 -50 years of age, questionnaires were given which included 25 questions regarding attitude towards marriage and relationship. Results showed that Iranian immigrant men were more likely than female partners to view premarital sex, marriage and family from a traditional point of view. Another interesting study done by Wiesel and Krenawi consisted of 150 participants of different cultural backgrounds i.e. 29 were Druze, 32 were Muslims and 33 were Christians; 44 were women and 50 were men with a mean age of 34. The questionnaires were designed to reveal attitudes toward love, the marriage expectation scale, potency scale, which will reveal the control of things, and mate selection scale which revealed how the person took initiative in getting married (love or arranged). Results indicated Muslims saw love as less important for marital quality than did Druze and Christians, Muslims more than other groups correlated independent decision making with marital quality, attitude toward love and marital quality were weakly correlated among Muslims, the necessity to beget off spring and unity between families were high amongst Muslims than other groups suggesting what might keep the families together in the absence of love. The results also suggested that arranged marriages are negatively associated with marital satisfaction and low level of marital satisfaction was related with low level of education. Discussion Through a variety of perceptions, one develops an exclusive analogue of what marriage is; and the ancillary ideals concerning marriage. My mother always said that successful marriage depends on two things: finding the right person and being the right person. Since I am a Muslim, I will give several quotations from Quran; which I support as my belief and my idea of a perfect family and what a perfect husband and wife should be like. Though I must admit with time, I have come to realize that to be perfect; one must have to sacrifice a lot and since marriage is a two way street one has to give a lot in order to get anything. In Islam, marriage is treated as half-faith. When a servant of Allah marries, he has completed half of his religious obligations, and he must fear Allah in order to complete the second half (al-Baihaqi). Prophet Muhammad has also said, Marriage is part of my *Sunnah, whoever runs away from my path is not from among us. Husbands and wives are compared as garments to each other (al-Quran 2:187) Marriage gives tranquility (al-Quran 30:21) of mind in the spouses. Allah has prescribed marriage as the only way for conjugal relationship and family life in human society (al-Quran 2:221, 5:5, 24:33). With enough being said of the significance of marriage in Islam, its a shame to see that Muslim women face higher suicidal rate than men in Pakistan (Khan Reza, 1998). Most marriages in Pakistan are arranged by parents and other elders of family, with the woman having little or no say in the selection of her partner. Premarital meetings between couples are rare. Many couples meet each other for the first time on their wedding night. Newly married couples share the house with the grooms family, having little time or space of their own. Once married, a woman is under increasing pressure from her in-laws as well as her own family to have children as soon as possible, preferably in the first year. If for some reason the woman cannot have children, the threat of divorce or the husband taking on a second wife (allowed in Islam) is not uncommon. The divorce rate in Pakistan is quite low 0.3 per 1000 population (Encyclopedia Britannica, 1996, p. 686) but this does not reflect the true state of marriages. There is considerable stigma to divorce, especially for the woman. In addition, few women work outside their homes or have jobs that give them economic independence. Because most of the South Asian and Middle Eastern countries give high power to men, the spousal support is something that men living in these countries expect from women. Being a housewife, taking care of kids and most of all thinking of women as inferior is something common amongst these men. Because the families live together, there is not privacy, which gives rise to poor communication amongst married couples. My marriage was an arranged, it wasnt that my parents didnt ask me of my approval; or if I didnt get a chance to talk to my husband, before getting married, that is something that a women in Islam has the right to do and people; who are uneducated living in impoverished societies, deprive women of these right which gives rise to many social and marital problems. I must admit though, that living in an extended joined family, gave my husband and me little or no time for us, our life was going around in circles to which I always thought was no ending. But, being educated and having a liberal thinking we always made sure there was at least if not all, some privacy left, some matters that only me and my husband would discuss behind closed doors. While doing research for this paper, I sadly have to confess that women living in Asian or Middle eastern countries do suffer more, which didnt come to me as a surprise because Ive lived in Pakistan and have seen it all, but my question and concer n was who will ever put a stop to all this nonsense?. Sadly, women is a victim in these countries but women are also who are perpetuating these hatred and violence in the household. A woman can take many forms, she can be a daughter, a mother in law, a sister in law, a wife, an aunt etc. most importantly she is the one who raises a child to be the kind of person she wants to see him as; unfortunately in countries like Pakistan and India, it is the woman (mother in law) who forces their child to be stern and harsh to their wives, I think its because of the fact that they cant stand the undivided attention of their sons or maybe they think keeping a women under control will only bring out the best for their sons. Who will ever think of these women who are ignored?

Bless Me, Ultima Essay -- essays research papers

The loss of innocence in life is an inevitable process. Losing one’s innocence comes merely by growing up. The philosophy of the loss of one’s innocence is a definite theme in the book Bless Me, Ultima. This theme is displayed throughout the entire story and plot of the novel. There is loss of innocence all around the main character, Tony, with his brothers and the people he meets. Tony also loses a great deal of his own innocence to the harsh realities of the world which marks his transition from a boy to a man.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The theme of the loss of innocence covers the entire essence of the book. There are many cases in the story where people had lost their innocence of life and it was lost to them forever. Tony’s brothers are of such a case. They had gone to war to fight for their country and explore the world. But as they yearned and sought the outside and how it was, they lost their innocence in the process. Being in war they saw death and destruction which soiled their once virgin eyes. Although they gained knowledge and experience they were becoming no longer young and gay, but were becoming mature and knowledgeable. Growing at such a fast pace was a regretful process, that even Andrew advised Tony to not grow too fast but that would not happen as we know.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another example of loss of innocence in the book would be Tony’s friends. The gang seems to be fairly innocent enough but they ...

The Berlin Blockade

For many historians, the Berlin Blockade effectively started the Cold War era. This is because it happened to be the first major issue which took place between the United States and her allies, on one hand, and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), on the other hand, after which years of tension between the two camps ensued (Byrnes). Essentially, The Berlin Blockade took place when the USSR cut off all access to Berlin in an attempt to force the United States, Britain, and France to the negotiating table for the purpose of discussing the future as well as the division of Germany (Wilde).Historical Background When the Second World War ended in 1945, the victorious allied forces which consisted of the United States, Great Britain, France, and the USSR occupied Germany and divided the country into four zones and its capital (Berlin) into four sectors. Berlin, however, was located well inside the zone which was occupied by the Soviets. In other words, before the three other occ upiers could gain access to their Berlin sectors, they had to pass through the Soviet-occupied zone.Under their arrangement, although the country was already divided into four zones, it would still be considered as one economic entity to be controlled by the â€Å"Allied Control Council (ACC)† (Russian History Encyclopedia). Based in Berlin, the ACC was also known as the Allied Control Authority or the Alliierter Kontrollrat in German. It was essentially a â€Å"military occupation governing body of Germany† composed of the representatives of the United States, Great Britain, and the USSR. A later addition was France whose representative was granted with the power to vote but did not have any duties.The ACC was formally constituted on August 30, 1945. Its initial members were General Dwight Eisenhower of the United States, Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery of Great Britain, Marshal Georgy Zhukov of the USSR, and General Jean Joseph-Marie Gabriel Lattre de Tassigny of Fr ance (Spiritus-Temporis. com). Unfortunately, the relations between the USSR and the three other occupiers of Germany did not last that long because their self-appointed task of administering the occupied Germany under the provisions of the ACC agreement did not go as envisioned.For one, the Soviets insisted on collecting huge reparations from its controlled eastern zone while the United States, Great Britain, and France, instead of demanding for reparations, wanted to revitalize the economy of their occupied zones in order to improve the living conditions of the residents (BBC Bitesize). Their disagreement was sparked by the January 1, 1947 decision of the British and the Americans to merge their zones and form the Bizone. Then the two countries spent the rest of 1947 and the early part of 1948 in the preparation of a currency reform that would ultimately introduce the Deutschmark.This currency reform was only the first step towards the establishment of a separate West German state . This move was opposed by the Russians because, according to them, it showed that the Americans and the British were no longer interested in taking part in the â€Å"four-power control of Germany. † The Russians further argued that the American and the British move would ultimately result to the death of the ACC (Spiritus-Temporis. com). By January 1948, the Soviets were already starting to severely criticize the intents and methods which the Americans and the British were employing in dealing with the economic problems of West Germany.Their disagreements remained unresolved until finally, in March of the same year, the Soviet delegation to the ACC staged a walkout. That Soviet act effectively dissolved the council because no further meetings had been conducted after their walkout (Russian History Encyclopedia). In spite of their disagreements, all four victorious countries were wary of the rebirth of a unified Germany. They all agreed that allowing Germany to regain its eco nomic and military strength would be a very risky proposition because the country might again represent a threat to world peace.However, they differed in their methods and intentions regarding the future of the country. First, the USSR wanted to convert the eastern territory into a communist state. Then it feared that if the zones controlled by the United States, Great Britain, and France would be totally integrated into the capitalist West, its control over its own Russian zone would be threatened, considering that the three Berlin sectors controlled by the three occupiers were located deep inside the Soviet-occupied zone.Stalin, in particular, who was known to have been consumed by paranoia, suspected that the western occupied sector in Berlin would first attempt to alienate the eastern sector from Russian influence and later serve as a staging point of a destabilization campaign against the Soviet Union itself, including the entire Eastern European communist bloc. For this reason alone, Stalin could not allow the emergence of a unified and rejuvenated West Germany inside the Russian zone. The other three occupiers, on the other hand, were bent on working together towards their common objective of rejuvenating their occupied territories.Their intention was to unify their three zones into a capitalist West Germany and integrate the same into their economic and defense organizations. Their purpose was to exercise complete control over West Germany while providing all the necessary assistance it needed in order to become a self supporting state (Wilde). In all indications, the disagreement over the Berlin question was already the start of the Cold War era. Both the western bloc and the Soviet Union were already considering their positions in the new world political order.So that when the Soviet delegation walked out of the ACC meeting, the United States and Great Britain became really convinced of the urgency of the establishment of a West German state. It coul d not be denied that they, themselves, did not want to give the Soviet Union the opportunity to consolidate its hold over all of Europe. For this purpose, a â€Å"Six Power Conference† was convened. Delegates from the United States, Great Britain, France, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Belgium sat down and discussed the issue.

Deontology and Bhagavad Gita

Therefore, Krishna also tells Aragua that it becomes his duty to fight a bloody war that would potentially wipe out a few hundred thousand lives on either side, but not to expect either victory or defeat in the war. In a sense, when one evaluates this scenario, one understands Arson's dilemma – a war that will wipe out his relatives and friends or withdrawal from the war that would fall in direct violation of Krishna' central concept of duty. Thus, one can clearly see that the deontological concept of duty is similar and yet distinct at the same time. Similarities between Demonology and Baghdad-GaitIn the Baghdad-Gait the highest duty is that of ‘insomnia-karma' or performing acts without expectations or desires. As instructed by Krishna, the concept does not mean action in the absence of desire or unmotivated action, but, rather, it means acting with a perceptive instruction of complete and total surrender before the God Almighty. Thus, according to the Gait, acts that a person carries out with expectations or desire for results are unacceptable. The concept implies that those people who entertain expectations or desires for the fruits of their activities are spiritually poor.In he deontological concept, Kant does not look upon the result of an act as the object of moral judgment. According to Kant, nothing in world supersedes goodwill and it is goodwill that is supreme. If the will is honorable the action, too, is honorable, whatever may be the result. Since Moral Laws are categorical, their correctness is self-evident being unaffected by the result the other point where Gait and Kant coalesce is that both emphasize service. Another important similarity benzene the two theories is with regard to the control over one's thoughts and feelings.A person's rational tendencies Anton motivate a person to perform an act. The Gait says that when a person acts under the influence of motives such as love and jealousy he or she becomes entangled in the web of karma and falls under the sway of the worldly delusion and desires. Desires (or modes) of passion such as Sex and related acts cause anger when one is denied such act. This anger manifests itself in the form of confusion which, in turn, causes the inherent destruction of reason. The same effect happens when one is guided by desires such as anger, revenge and hatred toward others.Thus, according to the Gait, the ode of passion takes one toward the direction of darkness and ignorance. Therefore, Lord Krishna tells Aragua that the solution to this problem is the complete and total abstention from the feelings of both hatred and love. Once these feelings come under control, other feelings such as anger, confusion, lust and passion also come automatically under control. The way to achieve this mode of enlightenment is to win over the senses by practice and abstinence, along with performing one's duties in the mode of ‘insomnia karma' or working without desiring results.This singul ar outlook of the Baghdad-Gait is very close in philosophical terms to the moral theories Of Kant. Even in case of Cant's theories, the ultimate duty is the restraint of contemptible desires. Lastly, Cant's notion of categorical imperative as the moral law and its applicability to all of humankind is a concept that rings quite close to the ‘Savoyards' concept of the Gait. Like Cant's categorical imperative, Krishna too, dictates that one must perform actions without any desire for the end. (Palmists, 2010, p. 21) The Gait, even states that one is not exempt from performing one's Savoyards even at the time of death. Differences between Demonology and Baghdad-Gait However, given the various similarities between the opinions of Kant and the Gait, there is also a major difference on the issue of human feelings. The Baghdad-Gait does not treat desire, emotion and feelings as completely evil. Lord Krishna through the Gait emphasizes on devotion and worship to the Supreme God so as t o enable the development Of one's feelings and for the suppression of unwanted desires.It, therefore, becomes essential for a follower of this doctrine to change or channel one's feelings positively rather Han exterminate feelings entirely. On the other hand, Kant is much more rigorous in his approach to feelings since he tends to associate the presence of feeling with immorality. Therefore, Cant's thought makes it necessary to eliminate feelings and emotions as much as possible from life. One can therefore classify his opinion as a strict and rigorous approach to feelings and emotions in life.This aspect, in itself, makes the Gait easier for the common people to implement and follow compared to the rigorous principles of Kantian ethics. The second point of difference is the point from where duties bring in each of these theories. In case of Kant, a duty arises from human reason and not due to any external factors or motivation. However, in case of the Baghdad-Gait, duty stems from one's innate nature. For instance, the Gait prescribes the Verna system as a recognition of this problem where every member of the society or a group performs duties in accordance with one's nature. Maitre, 2006, p. 64) In a way, Cant's view that one is to â€Å"act as a member of a kingdom or ends† sounds somewhat similar to the Verna system. However, for Kant the ultimate objective of performing one's duty is oral in nature, in the Gait the ultimate objective lies in attaining God and Mimosa – freedom from the cycle of life and death. Therefore, clearly the ethics of Gait are teleological in nature, as compared to the deontological nature of Cant's theories. Even Gate Pal (2001 ) agrees on the Gist's teleological foundation. P. 225) The third point of difference between the Baghdad-Gait and the deontological concepts of Kant also lies in the manner in which both the concepts know about the duties. According to Kant, an autonomous being would be able to find out about his duties and the nature f his duties merely by consulting with his reason alone and by not taking external help of any kind. (Maitre, 2006, p. 65) In case of the Gait, the answer to this question lies in the state of mind that one has when answering the same.But in most situations, the Gait says that one needs external, social, scriptural, or even environmental guidance, in addition to introspective guidance in order to understand the nature of duties that befit one's understanding capacity and capability. (Maitre, 2006, p. 66) Therefore, demonology requires introspection on the part of the person while the Gait coziness the presence of external factors in determining a person's duty. One can substantiate the difference between the two theories by providing an example through a real-life situation.The Gait prescribes people who perform menial labor to fall in the category of Sutras. The Sutras have a foremost duty to their masters or other people in the higher orders that employ them. In line with this duty, the Gait prohibits the Sutra (or a menial servant) to have feelings and emotions or self-esteem, for that matter. This line of thought makes it perfectly fine for the servant to lie to another person t the behest Of his master. On the other hand, Cant's second formulation Of the categorical imperative asks a person to treat other rational beings as ends, not only as a means. Maitre, 2006, p. 66) This line of thought brings about an opposite effect on the ethical consideration since it prohibits the master to make use of his servant in a disrespectful manner for unethical purposes such as lying or deceiving. Further, Kantian ethics also state that the servant is a rational being with a duty to himself that stands violated although he followed his master's instructions to lie. On both these counts, Cant's deontological thought stands in a complete opposition to the ideas put forth by the Baghdad-Gait.

The U.S. Economy of the1960s and 1970s

The U.S. Economy of the1960s and 1970s The 1950s in America are often described as a time of complacency. By contrast, the 1960s and 1970s were a time of significant change. New nations emerged around the world, and insurgent movements sought to overthrow existing governments. Established countries grew to become economic powerhouses that rivaled the United States, and economic relationships came to predominate in a world that increasingly recognized that the military may not be the only means of growth and expansion. The 1960s Effect on the Economy President John F. Kennedy (1961-1963) ushered in a more activist approach to governing. During his 1960 presidential campaign, Kennedy said he would ask Americans to meet the challenges of the New Frontier. As president, he sought to accelerate economic growth by increasing government spending and cutting taxes, and he pressed for medical help for the elderly, aid for inner cities, and increased funds for education. Many of these proposals were not enacted, although Kennedys vision of sending Americans abroad to help developing nations did materialize with the creation of the Peace Corps. Kennedy also stepped up American space exploration. After his death, the American space program surpassed Soviet achievements and culminated in the landing of American astronauts on the moon in July 1969. President Kennedys assassination in 1963 spurred Congress to enact much of his legislative agenda. His successor, Lyndon Johnson (1963-1969), sought to build a Great Society by spreading benefits of Americas thriving economy to more citizens. Federal spending increased dramatically, as the government launched such new programs as Medicare (health care for the elderly), Food Stamps (food assistance for the poor), and numerous education initiatives (assistance to students as well as grants to schools and colleges). Military spending also increased as Americans presence in Vietnam grew. What had started as a small military action under Kennedy mushroomed into a significant military initiative during Johnsons presidency. Ironically, spending on both wars the war on poverty and fighting the war in Vietnam contributed to prosperity in the short term. But by the end of the 1960s, the governments failure to raise taxes to pay for these efforts led to accelerating inflation, which eroded this prosperity. The 1970s Effect on the Economy The 1973-1974  oil  embargo by members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) pushed energy prices rapidly higher and created shortages. Even after the embargo ended, energy prices stayed high, adding to inflation and eventually causing rising rates of unemployment. Federal budget  deficits grew, foreign competition intensified, and the stock market sagged. The Vietnam War dragged on until 1975, President Richard Nixon (1969-1973) resigned under a cloud of impeachment charges, and a group of Americans were taken hostage at the U.S. embassy in Tehran and held for more than a year. The nation seemed unable to control events, including economic affairs. Americas trade deficit swelled as low-priced and frequently high-quality imports of everything from automobiles to steel to semiconductors flooded into the United States. This article is adapted from the book Outline of the U.S. Economy by Conte and Carr and has been adapted with permission from the U.S. Department of State.

MADD proposition against DRUNK DRIVING essays

MADD proposition against DRUNK DRIVING essays Drunk driving is a dangerous problem that blankets American society. The continuous and ongoing threat of being involved in an accident with a driver under the influence of alcohol has risen since the year 2001. Despite the ongoing efforts of organizations such as Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), alcohol related deaths have increased 5.2% over the course of last year. MADD has concluded that this condition is unacceptable, and intends to turn this condition into a social problem. Therefore, as of November 21, 2002, MADD has decided to propose a new campaign as part of their incessant effort to abolish drunk driving, Get MADD all Over again, in order to raise awareness and enhance the efforts to control this problem. MADD was founded in 1980 in order to support the victims of drunk driving incidents. Their mission is to stop drunk driving and prevent underage drinking. As of today, MADD has more than 600 affiliates and two million members and supporters. The social condition that has been established and confronted is the fact that underage drinking and the percent of accidents involving drivers under the influence has gone up. MADD is determined to turn this condition into a social problem. According to MADD, they urged the nation to adopt its eight-point plan to jump-start the war on drunk driving. Of the general driving age public, 98 percent see drinking and driving as a threat to their personal safety, and 86 percent feel it is very important to do something to reduce the problem, (Gallup Organization, 2000). The plan urges citizens and leaders to Get MADD All Over Again and calls for widespread use of sobriety checkpoints and other highly visible enforcement efforts, tougher laws for the more serious DUI offenders, court monitoring programs, higher beer excise taxes, enacting stronger seat belt laws, reducing underage drinking, and establishing a National Traffic Safety fund...

Lexeme - Definition, Etymology and Examples

Lexeme s In linguistics, a lexeme is the fundamental unit of the lexicon (or word stock) of a language. Also known as a  lexical unit,  lexical item,  or  lexical word. In corpus linguistics, lexemes are commonly referred to as lemmas. A lexeme is oftenbut not alwaysan individual word (a simple lexeme or dictionary word, as its sometimes called). A single dictionary word (for example, talk) may have a number of inflectional forms or grammatical variants (in this example, talks, talked, talking). A multiword (or composite) lexeme is a lexeme made up of more than one orthographic  word, such as a phrasal verb (e.g., speak up;  pull through), an open compound (fire engine;  couch potato), or an idiom (throw in the towel;  give up the ghost). The way in which a lexeme can be used in a sentence is determined by its word class or grammatical category. Etymology From the Greek, word, speech Examples and Observations A lexeme is a unit of lexical meaning, which exists regardless of any inflectional endings it may have or the number of words it may contain. Thus, fibrillate, rain cats and dogs, and come in are all lexemes, as are elephant, jog, cholesterol, happiness, put up with, face the music, and hundreds of thousands of other meaningful items in English. The headwords in a dictionary are all lexemes.(David Crystal, The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language, 2nd ed. Cambridge University Press, 2003) Specifications of Lexemes [A] lexeme is a linguistic item defined  by the following specifications, which make up what is called the lexical entry for this item: its sound form and its spelling (for languages with a written standard);the grammatical category of  the lexeme (noun,  intransitive verb, adjective, etc.);its inherent grammatical properties (for some languages, e.g. gender);the set of grammatical forms it may take, in particular, irregular forms;its lexical meaning.These specifications apply to both simple and composite lexemes.(Sebastian Là ¶bner,  Understanding Semantics. Routledge, 2013) The Meanings of Lexemes Definitions are an attempt to characterize  the meaning or sense of a lexeme and to distinguish the meaning of the lexeme concerned from the meanings of other lexemes in the same semantic field, for example, the elephant from other large mammals. There is  a sense in which a definition characterizes the potential meaning of a lexeme; the meaning only becomes precise  as it is actualized in a context. Since the division of the meaning of a lexeme into senses is based on the variation of meaning perceived  in different contexts, a tension exists in lexicography between the recognition of separate senses and the potentiality of meaning found in definitions. This may well account in large part for the divergence  between  similar-sized dictionaries in the number of senses recorded and in consequent differences of definition.(Howard Jackson and  Ã¢â‚¬Å½Etienne Zà © Amvela,  Words, Meaning and Vocabulary: An Introduction to Modern English Lexicology, 2nd ed. Continuum, 200 5) Invariable and Variable Lexemes In many cases, it makes no difference whether we take a syntactic or a lexical perspective. Lexemes such as the and and are invariable, i.e., there is only one word corresponding to each. Also invariable are lexemes like efficiently: although more efficiently is in some respects like harder, it is not a single word, but a sequence of two, and hence efficiently and more efficiently are not forms of a single lexeme. Variable lexemes, by contrast, are those which have two or more forms. Where we need to make clear that we are considering an item as a lexeme, not a word, we will represent it in bold italics. Hard, for example, represents the lexeme which has hard and harderand also hardestas its forms. Similarly are and is, along with be, been, being, etc., are forms of the lexeme be. . . . A variable lexeme is thus a word-sized lexical item considered in abstraction from grammatical properties that vary depending on the syntactic construction in which it appears.(Rodney Huddleston and G eoffroy Pullum, The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language. Cambridge University Press, 2002) Pronunciation: LECK-seem

A narrowed aspect of National Park Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

A narrowed aspect of National Park - Essay Example Snowmobiling in the Yellowstone national park is disputable on a few fronts. Moderates are worried about how snowmobiles, and snowmobile outflows specifically, may affect natural life, air and water quality, commotion levels, and the pristine aesthetic of the Yellowstone wilderness. An alternate concern is for the well being impacts upon both snowmobile riders and park officers who are laid open to fumes and high clamor levels for huge measures of time. Supporters of snowmobiling point to different contemplations, for example, economic benefits to local communities and the importance of preserving access to public lands. Adding further, several individuals are of the view that more up to date innovations make cleaner, quieter snowmobiles that relieve the impacts of snowmobile use on air, water and commotion contamination. Quantitative research on this issue remains inadequate and numerous inquiries stay unanswered. There are 185 miles of cleared and paved roads especially constructed for snowmobile use in the Yellowstone National park, the vast majority of which are adjoining to streams, rivers and lakes. Considering the dissemination of pollutants in the snowpack and the impacts of poisons on oceanic creature, there is potential for surface water tainting from snowmelt spillover. For example, separation of polluted snowpack from water body, contaminant level versus weakening component and so on. Human recreational exercises have a major impact on aquatic resources directly and by through implication as well. Winter recreation influences aquatic organisms principally by aberrant affects because of contamination. Two-stroke motors can store contaminants on snow, prompting ground and surface water quality corruption, which along these lines may affect aquatic life. Protection of the aquatic resources of park, including the aquatic assets, and rebuilding of local species are essential administration objectives of the National Park Service.

Diversity of the World for Children Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Diversity of the World for Children - Essay Example Gay marriage is often discussed by contemporaries. Whether homosexuality is a sexual or psychological deviance or is it a norm, should it be public or not and many other issues are high on the agenda nowadays. The children’s literature is another sphere, which is properly considered in the modern world as a really important phenomenon of the modern life. In the book â€Å"Daddy’s Roommate† by Willhoite (1990) these issues are correlated. Whether children literature should illustrate phenomenon of homosexuality or not is argued further on. Thesis: In spite of different stereotypes, gay relationships are present in the modern world and there is no need to avoid this demonstration of the world’s diversity. It is better to position gay relationships as another kind of love, which is the way to happiness, as the author of the book claims. Summary The book â€Å"Daddy’s Roommate† by Willhoite shows to the modern readers a challenging problem of living in family of two gays. Basically, homosexual parents do not differ from heterosexual parents. There is a strong emotional bound between two parents and a boy. They go shopping, gardening, making trips to the zoo. There are affectionate relationships between these two parents and boy is growing up surrounded with a great care and tolerance. There is a friendly atmosphere in their family. For this small boy being gay is just another kind of love. It is not a socially perverted representation of love it does not violate moral norms and it is not against social stereotypes. Analysis There are equal incongruities between gay couples and heterosexual couples: the author presents that there are even fights between two gay parents (Willhoite 1990, pp.8-12), but it is possible to underline that heterosexual couples are often quarrel and even fight. Moreover, the book does not promote gay love, it tells about gay love as about another kind of love. There is a story about two adult men, who are gay. They are not young and their relationship is stable. There is a tendency to establish short-term love relationship among heterosexual young people, as well as among homosexual young people. The point of the book is different. It informs about gay relationships, it neither criticizes nor promotes it. Gay relationship is shown as is. The book shows that in the course of time there is a natural necessity to appreciate the beloved person and there is a need to contribute much into the development of mutual happiness. Gay family is positioned as a final point of two lonely hearts’ wanderings. Both men are pacified and put their mutual efforts into social development, social activity etc. The ban In spite of criticism against the book, there are also proponents of the book and they argue against the book’s ban. On January 20, 1998, the Hays (K ansas) public library board showed antagonistic moods against the book’s ban. Their main claim coincided with the main claim of a small boy, the main character of the book. This book was another depiction of love and a homosexual life style did not differ much from life style of other couples. In accordance with the moods of the Library Director Melanie Miller: â€Å"I do not believe in restricting access to those child library patrons who would benefit from the book because there are parents who do not believe that their children should have access to the material† (Nava and Dawidoff 1995, p. 34). Another claim is made by the Brevard County (Florida) Library Board, which removed the book from the library shelves. The members of the Christian Coalition made an emphasis on the absence of necessity to leave the book in the library. As a result, de facto censorship was criticized by the readers. There is an evident struggle against the book and in 1999 the Nampa (Idaho) L ibrary Board decided to leave  Daddy’s Roommate  and  Heather Has Two Mommies  in the juvenile nonfiction section. The staff of the library claims that there is no book, which would be acclaimed by all parents to the

The Importance Of Training And Development Of The Staff Dissertation

The Importance Of Training And Development Of The Staff - Dissertation Example actice versus simple exposure 12 2.4.4 Individual Characteristics 13 2.4.5 Background of the trainee 13 2.4.6 Learning Style 14 2.4.7 Working Environment 14 2.5 Benefits of training and development for the Organization 15 Other Benefits 17 2.6 Telecom Industry of UK 19 2.7 British Telecom 20 2.8 Training and Development of British Telecom 22 2.9 Benefits enjoyed by British Telecom 23 2.10 Vodafone 24 2.11 Training and Development of Vodafone 24 2.11.1 Learning via experience 25 2.11.2 Training and Development Programs 25 2.11.3 Other Development Opportunities 25 2.12 Budget standard for training and development 26 2.12.1 Allocating Resources 26 2.12.2 Allocating Expenses 27 2.12.3 General estimation policy 28 2.13 Evaluation of training and development 29 2.13.1 Emotional reaction 29 2.13.2 Achieved learning objectives 30 2.13.3 Behavioural Changes 30 2.13.4 Impact on Organization 32 Chapter 3: Methodology 33 3.1 Introduction 33 3.2 Research Approach 33 3.3 Research Strategy 35 3.4 R esearch Methodology 36 3.5 Data Collection and Sampling 37 3.6 Ethical consideration 38 3.7 Limitation of the study 38 Chapter 4: Results and Findings 39 4.1 Introduction 39 4.2 Findings from employees of British Telecom 40 4.3 Findings from managers of British Telecom 45 4.4 Findings from the Employees of Vodafone 48 4.5 Findings from the Managers of Vodafone 53 Chapter 5: Analysis and Conclusion 61 5.1 Analysis 61 5.2 Conclusion 62 5.3 Recommendation 64 Chapter 6: Project Management and Review 66 Review 67 Reference List 69 Appendix 76 List of Figures Fig 1: Department of the respondents................................................................................41 Fig 2: Age of the... It has been identified by many of the authors that there exist some special characteristics of HRM that help in managing organizational culture and employee commitment (Anthony, 1994; Atkinson, 1990; Sisson, 1990; Guest, 1995). The commitment and alteration in the culture are encouraged by the application of specific practices in the areas of selection and recruitment, training and development, appraisal system and encouragement in the participation of the employees. In the general literature of HRM, recruitment and selection are seen as essential elements that assist in achieving employee commitment and cultural change. Some of the significant policy areas required to achieve new culture were identified by Guest (1987). On the other hand, William, Dobson, and Walters (1993) identifies that if recruitment is conducted in a systematic and thoughtful way, it is possible to exert emphasis on the ‘incoming culture', thereby creating a strong pressure on the existing workforce withi n the organization. Moreover, in order to create a change in the culture, it becomes very important for the HR manager to recruit selective people with the desired attitude. Snape, et al. (1995) have also emphasized that in order to develop the appropriate culture within the organization, the recruitment and selection of the employees should be based on their attitudinal and behavioral characteristics. The HRM literature also suggests that the training and development of the employees also lead to the change in the culture of the organization.

Gender and Work Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Gender and Work - Essay Example been expected to find work and earn for the livelihood of the family, and the women have stayed home, bearing children, caring for the immediate needs of the family. From the 1950s onwards, new trends were observed as women have been prompted by financial constraints to find work and also help sustain family needs. Such trends grew to more significant proportions, to the current trends which have now been observed in society. Men and women are now equally expected to find work, have careers, or simply work for themselves, not necessarily for their families. Regardless of the seeming egalitarian situation such work conditions have created, issues on discrimination have still been observed. Moreover, such issues have also been very much apparent as far as leadership or managerial positions are concerned. The male: female ratio for managers in organizations very much favours more men occupying leadership roles. However, organizations are often quick to dismiss such trend, arguing that t he difference is mainly caused by the fact that men are more interested in gaining managerial roles, and that women can have as much chance to be leaders much as men. This argumentative essay shall analyse the issue or contention that: Women are being discriminated in the workplace in relation to leadership or managerial roles and positions. This essay shall first provide facts relating to statistical figures on women versus male leadership ratio in organizations. Next, it shall argue on one hand how women are still being discriminated against for leadership roles. A different perspective on the argument will also be presented. Also, both sides of the argument will be considered in order to indicate a logical and well-evidenced position on the issue. A conclusion will summarize the arguments and provide a clear and logical answer to the issue raised. A reflective analysis will also provide a personal perspective on the issue. Although women are already making up a huge proportion of

The Euro Debt Crisis and Consequences for the Developing Nations Essay

The Euro Debt Crisis and Consequences for the Developing Nations - Essay Example As an important trading block, there is no doubt that effects have already been spread elsewhere, with the developing nations having a share of the crisis. Accordingly, the global growth momentum is projected to slow down by more than one percent between the year 2010 and 2012 (IMF 8). Unemployment within the Euro zone is degenerating and surging upwards. In fact, the UK has registered a new level high in 17 years. Growth prospects are not any better in the United States with the Senate blocking Obama’s jobs bill. The euro has lost substantial ground against the dollar, whereas the Chinese Yuan has been gaining ground, a fact that has prompted the US to threaten China with trade sanctions, unless they devalue their currency. Do the less developed nations have anything to worry concerning the Euro crisis? Through what transmission mechanism could the developing nations experience the Euro zone debt crisis effects? While Germany and the UK are taking the lead in steering the Eur o zone towards a complete makeover with seemingly harsh austerity measures, especially to countries believed to be the architects of the crisis, developing countries are yet to feel the pinch of the crisis. As witnessed in the degenerative effects of the global financial crisis, the less developed nations were not hit hard mostly due to their limited financial integration with the world economy. Even though the effects delayed mostly in African countries, trade ties, capital flows, tourism, remittances from abroad, and foreign aid among other channels eventually led to a significant slowdown in these economies. Just as it was with the global financial crisis, the euro debt crisis is likely to affect the less developed nation through three main transmis ­sion channels: financial networks, fiscal consolidation within the European nations currently struggling to overcome the crisis, and through the exchange rate. While the austerity measures as well the rescue package released that h as seen a combined effort of the IMF to that of the EU are timely and may be effective, it is very unlikely that the measures will offset the impact of the crisis on European economies within a record time frame as may be envisioned by many economists (Mhango par 1). From the fiscal measures that are already being adopted in unison, the possibility that the Europe nations are headed for a slow growth phase is very likely. The immediate and direct impacts of such measure are set to become more pronounced in trade links (Kandiero and Ndikumana par 4). As shown in the diagram below, it is evident that many developing nations, mostly Africans, are dependent on the European markets. The effects of European debt crisis could also reach the developing nations through sovereign risks, arising from the declines in tax revenues. This would potentially increase the costs of borrowing due to changes in risk premiums. In particular, those countries with high fiscal deficits are relatively expose d to the risk of re-pricing of risk premiums. Already the effects are being felt in certain countries that utterly depend on exports as income generating component of their economies. The crisis is slowly cutting down demand for exports from Africa. The effect that this has will translate in difficulties of these countries in maintaining planned levels off public expenditures including infrastructural

The major factors of business expansion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

The major factors of business expansion - Essay Example Total float for the entire project is the sum of all floats of the activities. . Critical path. (American Society for Quality, 2008). Critical path = path A-B-D-E-G-H-L-M-N-O-Q-R Project Time Project time equals adding the durations for the activities in the critical path. = 4 + 6 + 2 + 2 + 6 + 12 + 4 + 4 + 2 + 6 + 1 = 49 days. If the project begins on July 6, 2009, Activity A would take 4 days to end on July 9 2009, activity B starts on 10 July up to July 17 2009, activity D starts on July20 2009 and ends on July 21 2009. Activity E would start on July 22 2009 and end on July 23 2009 while on July 24 2009, activity G runs up to July 31 2009. This would pave the way for activity H that would begin on August 3 2009 and run up to August 18 2009. Activity L starts on August 19 2009 and take 4 days up to August 24 2009. Activity M starts on August 25 2009 up to August 28 2009 and activity N goes on till September 1. Activity O starts on September 2 2009, till September 9 2009 and activity Q ends on September 10 2009. Activity R ends on September 11 2009. A 1 day delay on activity J would not affect the duration of the whole project since activity L can wait for 12 days for activity H to end. Completing activity O one day before schedule would reduce project days by one day. Activity C can not affect the duration for he whole project. A network diagram is a logical approach of representing several activities which indicate the flow or sequence of a certain project. It is used to indicate the path of the project and all its activities and the starting and finishing time for every activity. It also shows the names and events for every operation Case 2: Feasibility Report for...Activity O starts on September 2 2009, till September 9 2009 and activity Q ends on September 10 2009. Activity R ends on September 11 2009. A 1 day delay on activity J would not affect the duration of the whole project since activity L can wait for 12 days for activity H to end. Completing activity O one day before schedule would reduce project days by one day. Activity C can not affect the duration for he whole project. A network diagram is a logical approach of representing several activities which indicate the flow or sequence of a certain project. It is used to indicate the path of the project and all its activities and the starting and finishing time for every activity. It also shows the names and events for every operation I examined the feasibility of establishing a new base for William CO. Ltd for expanding its current base that has a medium sized head office of about 2,600 square meters and employs nine administration staff members in addition to the operational workers who total to 48 in number. The company is an SME company which is involved in supply of mechanical services including heating, air conditioning, ventilation systems and plants.

The Euro Debt Crisis and Consequences for the Developing Nations Essay

The Euro Debt Crisis and Consequences for the Developing Nations - Essay Example As an important trading block, there is no doubt that effects have already been spread elsewhere, with the developing nations having a share of the crisis. Accordingly, the global growth momentum is projected to slow down by more than one percent between the year 2010 and 2012 (IMF 8). Unemployment within the Euro zone is degenerating and surging upwards. In fact, the UK has registered a new level high in 17 years. Growth prospects are not any better in the United States with the Senate blocking Obama’s jobs bill. The euro has lost substantial ground against the dollar, whereas the Chinese Yuan has been gaining ground, a fact that has prompted the US to threaten China with trade sanctions, unless they devalue their currency. Do the less developed nations have anything to worry concerning the Euro crisis? Through what transmission mechanism could the developing nations experience the Euro zone debt crisis effects? While Germany and the UK are taking the lead in steering the Eur o zone towards a complete makeover with seemingly harsh austerity measures, especially to countries believed to be the architects of the crisis, developing countries are yet to feel the pinch of the crisis. As witnessed in the degenerative effects of the global financial crisis, the less developed nations were not hit hard mostly due to their limited financial integration with the world economy. Even though the effects delayed mostly in African countries, trade ties, capital flows, tourism, remittances from abroad, and foreign aid among other channels eventually led to a significant slowdown in these economies. Just as it was with the global financial crisis, the euro debt crisis is likely to affect the less developed nation through three main transmis ­sion channels: financial networks, fiscal consolidation within the European nations currently struggling to overcome the crisis, and through the exchange rate. While the austerity measures as well the rescue package released that h as seen a combined effort of the IMF to that of the EU are timely and may be effective, it is very unlikely that the measures will offset the impact of the crisis on European economies within a record time frame as may be envisioned by many economists (Mhango par 1). From the fiscal measures that are already being adopted in unison, the possibility that the Europe nations are headed for a slow growth phase is very likely. The immediate and direct impacts of such measure are set to become more pronounced in trade links (Kandiero and Ndikumana par 4). As shown in the diagram below, it is evident that many developing nations, mostly Africans, are dependent on the European markets. The effects of European debt crisis could also reach the developing nations through sovereign risks, arising from the declines in tax revenues. This would potentially increase the costs of borrowing due to changes in risk premiums. In particular, those countries with high fiscal deficits are relatively expose d to the risk of re-pricing of risk premiums. Already the effects are being felt in certain countries that utterly depend on exports as income generating component of their economies. The crisis is slowly cutting down demand for exports from Africa. The effect that this has will translate in difficulties of these countries in maintaining planned levels off public expenditures including infrastructural

Psychology of Women Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Psychology of Women - Essay Example The first portrayal of bias in the media is seen through the concept of feminism, which is represented by the main character, Margaret Tate. This character is seen as an independent woman from the beginning, and is often referred to as a witch by others in the office. Margaret is recognized as successful and as an editor that is able to help her publishing company reach more success. The feminist perspective and bias that is noted from the beginning is one that shows the independence of the working woman and the way that women who are independent act toward others. For a woman to carry this level of success, compromises of being a woman are made. As the movie continues, this is seen as Margaret reveals that she has given up a social life and marriage for the sake of the business and to be an independent woman. This relates directly to the juxtaposed debates of feminism, which states that working women can’t be housewives and often compromise ideas of femininity for their succe ss. This results as an expectation from society and what is occurring among others in the office. The concept of feminism and independence is one of the most important aspects of this film with the reversal of expectations that begin to occur. This relates directly to the main plot, which shows Margaret asking Andrew to marry her for the sake of her job. Margaret takes the role of a male in her assertiveness and in her proposal to Andrew at the beginning of the film. The media portrays Margaret as the feminist who is independent and who will do anything for the sake of her job while leaving behind her traditional role. This is important for the identity of feminism and the perception of how women take this role in society. However, the media also shows the underlying tone of feminism and how this is an illusion. By the end of the film, Margaret is seen as

Platos View On The Soul Philosophy Essay

Platos View On The Soul Philosophy Essay Plato was a Greek philosopher. He had many views on life and existence. Platos views on the mind body distinction have been the target of many criticisms since his time. In the republic, he formulated ideas on the allegory of the cave and the theory of the forms. He believed that our existence on earth was merely a shadow of a higher spiritual plane, our bodies just a vessel, or even looked upon as a cage trapping the soul and restricting it from this higher plain. Plato was a dualist and so believed that when the material body dies the soul lives on. Platos views, are best described in his analogy of the cave in which it depicts a prisoner that escapes the cave metaphorical for this life- and goes on to discover everything he once believed in was only a fraction of the truth: Platos main philosophy stemmed from the cave and was about knowing the theory of the forms. Here, he thought that the soul is a substance and is immortal, however the body- being physical- could be doubted as it was part of the empirical world. On the one hand, Platos ideas about the soul were revolutionary and extremely advanced for his time, as with most of Platos philosophies, yet on the other hand they appear to be both self-conflicting and flawed. Platos idea of the soul is his dualist position, believing that body and soul are fundamentally distinct. His theory on the soul was produced in his book Phaedrus. In it Plato was most concerned with demonstrating the immortality of the soul and its ability to survive bodily death. He proposed the idea that, like Aristotles idea of motion, whatever is the source of its own motion or animation must be immortal. Plato was writing at a time in Greek philosophy where popular opinion believed that the soul did not survive death, and that it dispersed into nothing, like breath or smoke. Plato believed that the soul must be immortal by the very nature of being the source of its own animation, for it is only through a psyche that things can be living rather than dead. The souls are both animated and at the same time the source of its own animation. Plato also states that the soul is an intelligible and non-tangible article that cannot be destroyed or dispersed, much like his ideas about form s of non-tangible realities; such as beauty or courage. The argument from affinity, as Plato posited in Phaedrus, states that because the soul is an invisible and intangible entity, as opposed to a complex and tangible body; the two must be distinct and separate. Plato believed that which is composite must be divisible, sensible and transient; and that which is simple must be invisible, indivisible and immutable. Forms bear a resemblance to the simple, immutable entities, such as beauty; however a beautiful painting is transient and palpable. The body shows an affinity to the composite by nature of its mortality and mutability; just as the soul shows a similar affinity to immortality and indivisibleness. To further emphasise the point, Plato writes when the soul investigates by itself it passes into the realm of what is pure, ever existing, immortal and unchanging. He argues that just as the bodys prime function is to understand the material and transient world, the functioning of the soul as an entity of rational and self-reflective thou ght demonstrates its affiliation with a simple and immutable world; showing that the two are distinct. However Plato does not explore the criticisms of this argument that just because an entity portrays an affiliation, does not necessarily require it to be as that which it affiliates. Plato believed that the soul, if it were to be the animator of all living things, must be responsible for a person s mental or psychological activities and responses. For the soul cannot be the reason for life, yet at the same time limited in its influence over the bodies in which it animates. However this provides one of the most serious and potentially defeating criticisms of Platos views on the soul. He fails to address the issue of the interrelationship between body and soul, if they are indeed distinct. He doesnà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢t mention if the soul act as controller of a lifeless body, or is there more to the body than simply the material. Moreover the argument from affiliation would suggest that the body is concerned with the material, composite world whilst the soul is concerned with the invisible and simple world. If this is the case then the soul cannot, following from Platos argument, have any interaction with the material, bodily world; for then it ceases to be simple and immutable. An argument from recollection, which Plato first put forward when discussing his theory of the world of the forms, also serves his theory of the soul. Perfect forms, such as equality, are knowable a priori; we have no need for experience to tell us whether two lines are equal length. We must, therefore, know these things through recollection of these perfect forms. Therefore, the soul must have pre-existed the body to know these facts a priori. Platos argument from opposites was based on his idea that everything in the observable world has an opposite effect. As Plato writes in his work Phaedo; If something smaller comes to be it will come from something larger before, which became smaller. In other words everything we can know has an opposite; asleep and awake; hot and cold. Similarly they are reversible, just as one goes from a state of sleep to a state of being awake, one can do the opposite. Plato argued that if this were the case, then the same should apply to life and death. Just as one can go from life to death, one must be able to go from death to life; and if this statement is correct, then the soul must survive this transition and as a consequence possess immortality and separation from the body. He believed that animation and life was integral to the very notion of the soul, just like heat is a part of fire; thus it cannot be destroyed and is eternal. A separate argument from his theory of opposites was that of a similar theory of the forms and their opposites. He stated that no entity can consist of contradictory forms, and thus one form must necessarily exist and the other not in any particular entity. The number five cannot possess both the form of even and odd; by adding or subtracting one; the form of odd is displaced by even. Plato wrote: so fire as the cold approaches will either go away or be destroyed; it will never venture to admit coldness and remain what it was, fire and cold The soul must share in the form of life, for we know that those living have a soul. Therefore, it cannot contain the form of death also, for this would be in direct conflict of life. The soul must ontologically necessarily exist, and must therefore be immortal. Contemporary analysis of Platos views on the soul produces many criticisms; there is a clear chronological confusion as his work progresses; with the soul starting as an unintelligible and non-tangible item, yet progressing to where the soul becomes a complex tripartite entity that is trapped in the material body, yet still longing to enter the world of the forms. Plato demonstrates a contradictory and muddled thought process that attempts to find resolutions for flaws in his thinking. The idea of an imperfect entity entering the perfect realm of the forms is one such logical fallacy in his argument; and he does this by seeking to find reason and justification for his conclusion, rather than seeking a conclusion based on all of his own logic.

Social Care in the UK Essay -- Government Politics Welfare

This essay attempts to; discuss the dominant social policy perspectives that have influenced social policy making in the United Kingdom since 1945. To explain how differing perspectives have responded to healthcare as a social problem. To describe two key policies that have been instigated since the start of New Labour in 1997, and to examine a contemporary social policy relating to health. In 1941 Sir William Beveridge was commissioned by the then Conservative prime minister, Winston Churchill to conduct a study of the welfare system of the time. The Beveridge report paved the way for the welfare state as we know it and was important in shaping the social democratic ideology that remained prevalent until the mid 1970’s. The key principals behind most social democratic ideology are that of equality and collectivism. In practice, the state manages the economy using Keynesian economic principals, manages the provision of welfare through the welfare state and takes a regulatory roll in peoples lives. This protects citizens from the extremes of poverty and prevents major economic inequality. The New Right ideology came to the fore in the mid 1970’s as a result of a major recession and the reality of an economic crisis. The 1979 general election was won by the Conservative party led by Margaret Thatcher. Thatcher was prime minister until 1990 in a period of politics that came to be known as Thatcherism. Two key thinkers of the time were Milton Friedman and Friedrich von Hayek who saw ‘the free market’ as central to the success of Thatcherism and believed that government should concentrate on economic issues, thus allowing ‘market forces’ to shape society. From the early 1990’s a new, politically cen... ...el medical treatment, help and advice via centres that are easy to access. The NHS annual review 2009-2010 found that NHS direct recommended to 49% of callers to go to less urgent/lower cost points of care, saved 2.4 million GP appointments and 1.2 million ambulance journeys (www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk 2010). Disadvantages of these direct services are that they are extremely expensive and only offer a reactive form of health care, while not providing enough health education. Works Cited Pilkington A & Yeo A Sociology in focus Haddington, Scotprint. 2004. Pugh P & Garratt C, Keynes a graphic guide London, Icon books. 2009. Walsh M, Stephens P & Moore S Social policy and welfare, Stanley Thornes Ltd. 2000 www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk.

Comparing Relationships in Susan Minots Lust and Coraghessan Boyles C

Comparing Relationships in Susan Minot's Lust and Coraghessan Boyle's Carnal Knowledge  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚      "After the briskness of loving, loving stops"-Susan Minot  Ã‚  Ã‚   This quote from Minot summarizes the love affairs in her short story "Lust" and T. Coraghessan Boyle's short story "Carnal Knowledge." The protagonists in these stories go to great lengths to please their significant others hoping to find loving, fulfilling relationships. They make sacrifices and relinquish certain degrees of power to find happiness, only to discover that this happiness is temporary. Both authors use literary techniques to enhance these themes. The short stories "Lust" and "Carnal Knowledge" maintain that relationships that lack an honest, loving foundation and a lack of balance of power end abruptly and cause pain and loneliness. The love the narrator hopes to find in Minot's "Lust" continually eludes her. The story consists of a young female narrator recollecting her numerous sexual experiences with numerous partners. Her motivation is not licentious, nor is she proud of her experiences, she is only struggling to find comfort and emotional fulfillment. Unfortunately, her experiences only take her further and further from the love and acceptance she yearns for. Sex initially makes the narrator feel loved, appreciated, and valued. She loved feeling "safe, at rest, in a restful dream" (258), as she would feel when he would first begin touching her with tender caresses. It becomes almost an addiction for her, a necessity for happiness. Ironically, it is an addiction that does not satisfy the need. Like a drug, sex brings the narrator a temporary means of escape and a temporary "high", yet after the the "high" is gone, she feels empty, alone, and ... ...d the last few paragraphs have no mention of Alena. This also helps to demonstrate how she flew in and out of Jim's life. Her effect on him was very short-lived and impermanent, and he is able to return to his old way of life after she is gone. Both "Lust" and "Carnal Knowledge" examine very brief love affairs. The relationships depicted in each story lack a solid foundation, therefore they cannot last. Power imbalances exist in these relationships that intensify the pain of the protagonists. Both characters initially derive great pleasure from the relationship only for it to slip away and leave them feeling empty and lonely because "After the briskness of loving, loving stops." Works Cited Boyle, T. Coraghessan. "Carnal Knowledge." The Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature. Ed. Michael Meyer. 5th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2000. 242-255.

Humanities Chapters 31, 32, 33

Chapter 31 1. No. He stated, â€Å" ‘Progress’ is merely a modern idea, that is, a false ideal. The European of today is vastly inferior in value to the European of the Renaissance: further development is altogether not according to any necessity in the direction of elevation, enhancement, or strength. 2. A. ) Paul Verlaine, Arthur Rimbaud, Charles Baudelaire, Stephane Mallarme, & Maurice Maeterlinck. B. ) To find a language that embraced the mystical, the erotic, and the ineffable world of the senses. 3. A faun is part man, part beast. A nymph is a beautiful forest maiden.They have an erotic encounter. 4. They preserved the romantic fascination with nature and the Realist preoccupation with daily life. They idealized nature. They were interested in sensation and the sensory experience. They tried to record an instantaneous vision of their world, sacrificing the details of perceived objects in order to capture the effects of light and atmosphere. Some painted canvases t hat offered a glimpse into the pleasures of 19th century urban life. 5. Bergson viewed life as a vital impulse that evolved creatively, much like a work of art.True to Bergson’s theory of duration, experience becomes a stream of sensations in which past and present merge. 6. Reliquaries, masks, and freestanding sculptures were among the power objects used to channel the spirits of ancestors, celebrate rites of passage, and ensure the well-being of the community. Beadwork using seed beads and wood carving with hammered brass were unique features. 7. Post-Impressionist paintings were a broad reaction against Impressionism. The works continued to use the bright Impressionist palette, but rejected the Impressionism’s emphasis on the spontaneous recording of light and color.Post-Impressionists sought to create art with a greater degree of formal order and structure. The new styles they created, Georges Seurat’s divisionist technique and Vincent van Gogh’s brus hwork, led to more abstract styles that would prove highly influential for the development of modernist painting in the early twentieth century. Post-Impressionist compositions focused on the personal experience of the painter, versus fidelity to the object like in Impressionism; the style of the work, developing a new method of paint application or viewing the piece from multiple angles, was more important than subject matter. . The art of Paul Gauguin developed out of similar Impressionist foundations, but he too dispensed with Impressionistic handling of pigment and imagery in exchange for an approach characterized by solid patches of color and clearly defined forms, which he used to depict exotic themes and images of private and religious symbolism. Gauguin looked toward remote destinations where he could live easily and paint the purity of the country and its inhabitants. Chapter 32 1. A. ) Imagists were a group of poets who were leaders in the search for a more concentrated st yle of expression. B. Verbal compression, formal precision and economy of expression were the goals of the imagists. 2. A. ) The work portrays five nude female prostitutes from a brothel on Avinyo Street in Barcelona. Each figure is depicted in a disconcerting confrontational manner and none are conventionally feminine. The women appear as slightly menacing and rendered with angular and disjointed body shapes. Picasso â€Å"Africanizes† the two pink (white European) bodies of the two prostitutes who are seen on the right hand side of the picture and the other three faces he evokes an Iberian style of Picasso's native Spain, giving them a savage aura.This creates an effect of cultural confrontation; difference is explicitly present and causes uncomfortableness. B. ) French imperialism in Africa and the Pacific was at its peak, with boats and trading steamers bringing back ritual carvings and masks as curiosities. While the African carvings had a kind of quirky otherness, becom ing very collectible in France, the general view of Africa was the symbol of savagery. Unlike most Europeans, however, Picasso saw this savagery as a source of vitality and renewal that he wanted to incorporate for himself and for European painting.His interpretation of African art, in the mask-like faces of the figures on the right hand side, was based on this idea of African savagery; the brush-strokes which create them have a stabbing violent quality to them. 3. A. ) Analytic Cubanism is a multiplicity of viewpoints that replaced 1-point perspective. B. ) Synthetic Cubanism is the late phase of cubism, characterized chiefly by an increased use of color and the imitation or introduction of a wide range of textures and material into painting. 4.Machine technology of speed, electric lighting, and the new phenomenon of moving pictures. 5. A. ) Nonobjective art is art that lacks recognizable subject matter. B. ) Kandinsky was deeply influenced by the Fauves, the Symbolists, and by Rus sian folk art. Malevich arrived at nonrepresentational art not by way of Fauvism but through the influence of Analytic Cubanism, which asserted the value of line over color. Mondrian was inclined to discover geometric order in the landscape of his native country. 6. Thomas Edison was the first American to project moving images on a screen.In France the brothers Auguste and Louis Lumiere perfected the process by which cellulose film ran smoothly in a commercial projector. 7. Frank Lloyd Wright invested the techniques of glass and steel technology and the functional principle of the cantilever with the aesthetics of Japanese art to create a modern style of domestic architecture. Le Corbusier introduced some of the classic elements of modern urban architecture, including the open floor plan, the flat roof, and the use of glass â€Å"curtain walls. † 8.Atonality, polytonality, and polyrhythm as formal alternatives to the time-honored Western traditions of pleasing harmonies and u niform meter. Chapter 33 1. The id is the seat of human instincts and the source of all human desires, including nourishment and sexual satisfaction. It is the compelling force of the unconscious realm. The ego is the administrator or manager that attempts to adapt the needs of the id to the real world. The superego is the moral monitor commonly called the conscience. It monitors human behavior according to the principles inculcated by parents, teachers, and other authority figures. . Freud states that when any situation that is desired by the pleasure principle is prolonged, then it creates a feeling of mild contentment. Thus or possibilities of happiness is restricted by the law. Many of humankind's primitive instincts (for example, the desire to kill and the insatiable craving for sexual gratification) are clearly harmful to the well-being of a human community. As a result, civilization creates laws that prohibit killing, rape, and adultery, and it implements severe punishments i f such rules are broken.This process, argues Freud, is an inherent quality of civilization that instills perpetual feelings of discontent in its citizens. Freud's theory is based on the notion that humans have certain characteristic instincts that are immutable. Most notable are the desires for sex, and the predisposition to violent aggression towards authority figures and towards sexual competitors, which both obstruct the gratification of a person's instincts. 3. A piece of cake soaked in tea. 4. The themes of insecurity and vulnerability reflect the mood that prevailed during the early decades of the century.The main character wakes up one morning and realizes that he has been turned into a large insect. 5. A brand new car. 6. Dresdan, Munich 7. World War I; they dedicated themselves to spreading the gospel of irrationality because they believed WWI was evidence that the world had gone mad. 8. The group aimed to revolutionize human experience, in its personal, cultural, social, a nd political aspects. They wanted to free people from false rationality, and restrictive customs and structures. Breton proclaimed that the true aim of Surrealism was â€Å"long live the social revolution and it alone! To this goal, at various times Surrealists aligned with communism and anarchism. There are two composers who were greatly influenced by Surrealism like Erik Satie. He wrote the score for a ballade parade which had a great influence on other composers like Guillaume Apollinaire. He coined the term and made compositions based on it. 9. There are two composers who were greatly influenced by Surrealism like Erik Satie. He wrote the score for a ballade parade which had a great influence on other composers like Guillaume Apollinaire. He coined the term and made compositions based on it.

Information System in Recruitment

Information Systems in Recruitment Summary: Several researches and studies have been conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of technology in the recruitment process. This project explains what recruitment is, the growth of recruitment from how it was two decades ago to using technology today. The work done in this paper identifies the advantages and disadvantages of e-recruitment and discusses e-strategies to overcome the disadvantages. The adoption of these e-strategies helps advantages of internet recruitment outweigh the disadvantages.The conclusion reached in this work is based on several assumptions which might have caused the results to vary from the actual results of detailed works done in this field before. Index Terms: Technology in recruitment, e-recruitment, advantages of e-recruitment, disadvantages of e-recruitment, Internet recruitment. Introduction Information System can be defined technically as a set of interrelated components that collect, process, store and dis tribute information to support decision making and control in the organization (Laudon & Laudon, 2000,Pg 7).The transformation of our society from preindustrial to Industrial and from Industrial to a post industrial society (Fitzsimmons & Fitzsimmons, 2008, Pg 7) has given way to globalization, where information is the key resource. The growth of internet and the globalization of industries have changed the traditional operation methods in all areas of business and management including Strategic planning. The Human Resource Information System (HRIS) is a software or online solution for the data entry, data tracking, and data information needs of the Human Resources, payroll, 2 E-Recruitment anagement, and accounting functions within a business (Heathfield, 2010). Konrad & Deckop (2001) explain that â€Å"instead of shuffling paper work and fielding phone calls, HR managers use the Internet to obtain information and communicate with others, affecting virtually every HR function. HR database management systems maintain organizationally relevant information about employees. Developments in computer hardware and software have not only made possible user-friendly access to employee information, but also the ability to analyze this information for purposes of organizational planning. Information systems is applied by major companies for notable components of Human Resource Management (HRM) that include HR Planning, Recruitment, Selection, Training, career development, employment relationship management and compensation and benefits management. DeSanctis (1986) explains that information systems in personnel have evolved from the automated employee recordkeeping of the 1960s into complex reporting and decision systems to- day. The Human Resource Information Systems (HRIS) is designed to support the planning, administration, decision making and control activities of the human resource management (DeSanctis, 1986).The purpose of this article is to focus on the advantag es and disadvantages of technology in recruitment process and determine if advantages outweigh disadvantages or viceversa. Evolution of Recruitment Recruitment is the process of identifying potential candidates so that employers can choose the right person for the right job. Dale S Beach observed â€Å"Recruitment as the development and maintenance of adequate manpower resources. It involves the creation of a pool of available labor upon whom the organization can draw when it needs additional employees† (Seetharaman 3 E-Recruitment Prasad, 2009). Recruitment also goes hand in hand with the selection process whereby organizations evaluate the suitability of candidates for various jobs (Singh & Finn, 2003). Hence recruitment is said to be a positive process as it involves attracting suitable candidates for available jobs. Selection is said to be a negative process as it involves rejecting a large number of applicants to identify a few that are suitable for the job. As a filteri ng mechanism in the selection process, the recruitment function is one of the most important areas of human resource management (Singh & Finn, 2003).The recruitment process begins with human resource planning where a company identifies the right number of people needed to perform the job. Khanna & New (2005) explain that† HR planners can influence the HR planning process so that resource decisions are made with due thought and the organization does not hurt itself by either undercutting its talent pool or retaining excess flab. HR planners should take this mission seriously if they want to have any control over the changing face of the organization of the future†.Hence HR planning is an important activity as it involves forecasts of the manpower needs in a future time period so that adequate and timely provisions may be made to meet the needs (Seetharaman & Prasad, 2009). The process of human resource planning usually involves forecasting labor demand and labor supply an d performing a gap analysis. Once when a vacancy is identified, the recruiter receives an authorization to fill it. A job analysis is done to identify the critical knowledge, ability, skills, and other competencies (KASOC) required for performing the job.There are two sources of recruitment – Internal and External. â€Å"In earlier days, for external recruitment, recruiters used low tech methods like advertisements in newspapers, magazines and journals, radio, Employment agencies, campus visits, etc in search of potential candidates. Internally, one of the most common methods, 4 E-Recruitment especially in unionized organizations, involved posting vacancies within the organization and encouraging bids from current employees† (Singh & Finn, 2003).Singh & Finn (2003) explain that many organizations began to use innovative information technology methods to complement traditional sources. Companies use internet medium to attract potential pool of applicants as it has a glo bal reach and relatively inexpensive to the low tech sources available. In a survey by SHRM and AON Consulting, human resource professionals considered employee referrals as a good source of job applicants and it was their top choice (Click, 1997).Another recent survey suggested that over 80 percent of organizations use the web to recruit (Bernardin, 2009). Employee referrals Newspaper ads Recruiting firms College recruitment Temporary help firms Job fairs Internet Targeted minority recruiting Walk-ins Government employment services. 61% 60% 58% 52% 46% 32% 20% 18% 18% 10% Source: Click, Jennifer. Blend established practices with new technologies. Business Source Premier. HR Magazine; Nov97, Vol. 42 Issue 11, p59. 5 E-RecruitmentComponents of E-Recruitment Thomas & Ray (2000) identify general job sites, specialized job sites, company website chat rooms and news group as the four major components of web recruitment. Though each of these components have their own advantages and disadv antages, Thomas & Ray (2000) explain that company website is the best e recruiting tool as it has a low marginal cost, the company has e-recruiting control over its content, and it is the only e recruiting tool with the potential to provide a e-recruiting prov competitive advantage specific to a particular firm. 6 E-RecruitmentImportance of information in advertisements Several researchers have suggested that the advertisements viewed by job seekers as they gather organizational information play an important role in initial organizational perceptions (Walker, Field, Giles & Bernerth, 2008). Hence, to attract talented people, advertisements placed by companies must be attractive. Potential applicants look out for advertisements to gather important information about the recruiting company. The specificity of communicated information provided in job advertisements has found to influence application decisions (Walker, Field, Giles & Bernerth, 2008).Researches focused on the aesthetic pr operties associated with recruitment messages that concentrated on web based recruitment. The results of these surveys concluded that job advertisement characteristics such as font, pictures, color, content and design influence job seeker attitudes and the cognitive processing of recruitment information (Walker, Field, Giles & Bernerth, 2008). Advantages / Disadvantages of Information Systems in Recruitment The following are the advantages and disadvantages of recruitment using Information systems. (whatjobsite. com, 2009 & ezinearticles. com, 2010). 7 E-Recruitment AdvantagesSource: Kay, Alan S. , (2000, March). Recruiters embrace the Internet. InformationWeek,(778), 72-80. †¢ Inexpensive Employers are finding ways to reduce their recruitment costs in the wake of economic downturn, according to a survey by Personnel Today’s sister organization, Pay Specialist IRS (Williams, 2009). More specifically, the results of the survey of 143 employers found that employers were ty pically reviewing four main areas of recruitment procedures in an attempt to reduce recruitment costs. They are use of advertising, deciding whether or not to fill certain vacancies, the cost of agency fees and candidate E-Recruitment selection procedures. It was identified that finding alternatives to recruitment advertising received the most attention. The survey also identified that shifting recruitment away from employment agencies towards online recruitment ranked third in the most effective ways of reducing recruitment costs. Many researches show that advertising costs are lower than traditional recruitment methods. The results of these surveys are discussed below: †¢ Kuhn (2003) explains that â€Å"for posting a typical career ad on an internet job board for several weeks cost firms a few hundred dollars.Some sites offer unlimited posting to client firms for about $15,000 a year which is contrast to news paper advertisements that costs to $2000 per day. A quarter page a dvertisements can cost $15000 in many markets†. †¢ Superdrug, a UK based health and beauty retailer, employed e-mail based recruitment system and explains that the recruitment process has become quicker, more efficient, and 87% cheaper (Pollitt, 2007). †¢ In one study, the average cost per hire via Web ads was reported to be about $152, compared with $1,383 using traditional methods.Another survey identified that in traditional advertising cost-per-hire was $3,295 compared to the Internet cost per hire of about $377. In other instances, many job-posting sites charge $100 or less for a single job posting, thus saving a recruiter as much as $6,000 in recruitment costs for each position filled (Singh & Finn, 2003). †¢ On another study conducted by Verhoeven & Williams (2008) note that the relative costs of Internet recruitment are perceived to be lower in comparison with non-electronic recruitment sources. 9 E-Recruitment †¢No Intermediaries Recruitment interm ediaries are employment organizations that operate as middlemen between organizations and potential employees. According to Wolfe & Hartley (2005) Recruitment intermediaries typically operate in one or more of three ways: 1. Finding specific skills in specific sectors 2. Providing workers of all kinds in a specific locality 3. Specialist ‘headhunting’ or search agencies. â€Å"The development of web-based recruitment led business organizations to use corporate internet which reduced the market for recruitment intermediaries.With the advancement in technology, companies can develop their own websites with a separate section for employment opportunities† (Wolfe & Hartley, 2005). Candidates can go to the company website, create a profile to view the job openings available and apply for specific vacancies. Companies maintain each candidates profile, send e-mail to candidates if their profile matches any vacancy. It is the duty of the candidate to visit the corporate website regularly and update their profile information. This direct contact between the company and the candidate eliminates the need for intermediaries.Thomas & Ray (2000) explain that the need for employment agencies is reduced by establishing a database pool of potential employees, thus saving 20 to 30 percent of the hired employees’ base year salaries. Moreover, potential applicants may feel insecure to send personal information to recruitment agencies. While a few commercial sites protect applicant privacy, company databases make it a point to maintain confidentiality, and company provided privacy statements restrict resume submissions to internal use (Thomas & Ray, 2000). 10 E-RecruitmentWhile using corporate websites for recruitment purposes, companies don’t have the need to approach independent recruitment agencies and thereby reduce the involvement of intermediaries in the recruitment process. By eliminating intermediaries, companies have the advantage of dire ctly contacting potential employees and employees too feel confident about the information they obtain for their employment. This also acts as a cost-saving technique for companies and a security tool for potential employees as company websites are more secure. Reduction of hiring time Once when companies post a vacancy on the internet, either by using intermediaries like recruitment agencies or by using corporate websites, applications will be received as fast as possible which enables employers to process them faster. One website notes that â€Å"a job vacancy can be put on a job site in the morning, the first applications arrive by lunchtime, and a candidate interviewed by the end of the day. Of course, it isn't always like this. It isn't even often like this. But the fact that such things do happen so quickly gives an indication of just how quick recruiting online can be† (whatjobsite. om, 2010). Many researches show that recruiting online is quicker. Verhoeven & Williams (2008) identifies that the Internet has led to a quicker turn-around time of the recruitment process and is one of the most widely perceived advantages. Lorraine Crawford, head of resourcing at Lloyds TSB believes that advertising online results in a higher speed of response (Berry, 2004). Haroon & Zia-ur-Rehman (2010) also note that e-recruitment is going to replace the other traditional sources of recruitment because of low cost, time saving, quick response for both employers and job seekers. 11 E-RecruitmentOne website (ehow. com) mentions easier and quicker recruitment as one of the distinct advantages. Candidates don’t have to resumes in a piece of paper, take a note of the company’s address from newspapers, go to the post office to mail their resume’ and cover letter and wait for a week to hear back from the employer. All this can be done with the click of a button and received by the recruiters instantly. This makes the process simpler and quicker. †¢ Improved efficiency The above mentioned advantages of online recruitment like low cost, eliminating intermediaries and reduction in hiring time roves the efficiency of internet recruitment. For example, as noted in Free Press Release (2009) â€Å"Today’s global economy has demanded for more advanced technology which resulted in recruitment automation software that makes the process of recruitment easy, simple and effective for an organization†. These advancements in technology show the efficiency of internet recruitment which also eliminates the drawbacks of traditional recruiting methods. Beakware, an India based IT Company provides software solutions for clients all over the world, is an expert with HR technology and develops intelligent HR software solutions (beakware. om, 2010). Beakware explains that on the whole e-recruiting is considered to be one of the most efficient tools of human capital acquisition and management (Beakware. com, 2010). The above referenc es mentions efficiency in time and cost. E-recruitment also improves a company’s Return on Investment. â€Å"Organizations’ strong impact on Return on Investment (ROI) and company's success in the marketplace have placed significant emphasis on effective recruitment strategies from individual, organizational and societal 12 E-Recruitment erspectives that lead to increased ROI and economic viability of the organization† (Sangeetha, 2010). The modern recruitment source is widely used since the mid -1980s and got systemized in 1990 and also that it carves a competitive advantage for the company in establishing an 'employer of choice' image, to address a niche employee zone, and passive job searchers† (Sangeetha, 2010). In addition to this, Feldman ; Klass (2002) explain that the expenditures on news paper advertisements and headhunter retainer fees have dropped 20% as internet advertising revenues increased.On these bases it is clearly understood that many co mpanies choose internet recruitment as one of the effective recruitment strategies which will lead to increased ROI. IT also helps companies to retain employees for a longer period of time. Using IT. com's data bank, State Street was able to make a better assessment of desirable employees’ qualities, thus able to retain people longer und saving the company between $2 and $5 million with this service (Singh & Finn, 2003) Another research by Feldman & Klass (2002) argues that as job hunting is significantly related to job issatisfaction, dissatisfied employees might not seek employment elsewhere because they do not have the time or resources to search for another job. Hence Internet allows individuals to gain quick and easy access to information on a wide range of job possibilities twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, thereby resolving potential conflicts between employees’ current job possibilities and the time demands associated with active job hunting (Feldman & Klass, 2002). Darlene Chapin, Recruiting director for Cheetah Technologies in Florida, claims Internet recruiting for programmers has made the process much more efficient (Bernardin, 2009). 3 E-Recruitment All these researches clearly show the improved efficiency in various aspects of recruitment to employers and employees when using online recruitment services compared to traditional methods. †¢ Round the clock access In earlier days potential employees need to wait for mornings to look at the classified section of news paper to get information on job vacancies. Online Recruitment provides round the clock access to employers and employees. Employees can access to wide number of job openings and employers have the advantage of accessing to large number of applicant resumes’ anywhere and anytime.Internet recruiting also proves advantageous to recruitment consultants by giving them access to work from home. â€Å"A web-based recruitment system is making home working a r eality for consultants at specialist recruitment agency. Managing director Craig Burton told Recruiter that â€Å"using eploy's recruitment software they have 24-hour access to the system from any fixed or mobile device and are distributing job alerts and CVs to potential candidates â€Å"at a moment's notice. All information can be traced and tracked, making candidate management straightforward and responsive†Ã¢â‚¬  (Anonymous, 2009).Delaware department of labor explains the advantages of internet recruiting – that internet job description has immediate access, changes can be done immediately and can be accessed 24 hours a day, 365 days per year (Delaware Job Link, 2009). In addition to these researches, some websites also support the view of round the clock access to online resumes. Rao (2009) explains that online recruitment allows applicants the luxury of accessing jobs online at their own convenience 24 hours 7 days a week.It provides the comfort of scrutinizing jobs without physically going through the 14 E-Recruitment stress of an interview (igi-global. com). Another website notes that organizations have the ability to reach a much larger target audience as there will be 24 hour global access to their vacancy information (citehr. com, 2010). Last, but not the least, Agarwal (2004) explains that â€Å"For employers, online recruiting allows far better targeting of candidates than does advertising in general newspapers, resulting in a greater percentage of qualified applicants.In addition, because 24/7 online job hunting is private and convenient, a company's Internet presence is more likely to draw in â€Å"passive job seekers† – high-quality candidates who may be curious to know what's out there but who have not launched allout campaigns† (webpronews. com). †¢ Convenience Internet recruitment offers convenience to both employers and employees. Prospective employees don’t need to search for jobs in classif ieds section of newspapers, post them to prospective employers using snail mail. They have the convenience of sitting at home on a Sunday morning and apply for â€Å"n† number of jobs with just a click.Employers on the other hand, need to post job vacancies either in their company website or line up with online recruitment agencies like monster. com to inform about a vacancy. Internet recruitment offers convenience in the restaurant business as well. Jackson (2010) explains that â€Å"There are many job websites which cater specifically to the restaurant industry. Employees can sign in with these websites for free and expose themselves to thousands of restaurant openings at the same time. Moreover, it saves them valuable time and the headache of applying and filling out forms at various restaurants.Job providers too do not need to advertise and go through a lot of paperwork for hiring a trained staff. They can get associated with these websites and scan through a well struct ured list of 15 E-Recruitment candidates matching the skills and qualifications they are looking for. All this is accomplished in just a click† (articlebase. com). †¢ Global access One of the major disadvantages of traditional sources of recruitment is its limitation to attract applicants from different cities. If potential employees are looking for jobs only in one city, then traditional sources may be very helpful.But with Globalization and with the increase of employers seeking for multicultural talent has forced employers to use internet for recruitment purposes. The internet has been widely accessed by all potential employees universally, giving them access to a broader number of jobs. Employers can view resumes’ of South African applicants in London and hire them for an American company. Technology has become more and more advanced providing such advantages for employers and employees who strive to reach heights. â€Å"Internet searching is much more efficie nt when looking for jobs region-wide, nation-wide or globally.Similarly, when individuals are willing to consider jobs in a number of functional areas and in a wide spectrum of firms differing in industry and size, Internet job hunting is likely to be perceived as a more time-efficient search strategy. Online recruiting can reach a more diverse applicant pool and, at the same time, yield a higher quality set of candidates† (Feldman ; Klass, 2002). Uzelac (2008) supports this view by explaining that â€Å"recruitment agencies are moving towards sourcing candidates through internet job boards enabling recruitment activity to occur in real time.The ability to recruit internationally has been a huge development and boon for organizations using these services (jobseekersadvice. com). 16 E-Recruitment Disadvantages †¢ Screening large number of unqualified applicants is time consuming One of the advantages of online recruitment is receiving large number of applications giving e mployers the opportunity to choose from a wide range of candidates. But recruiters feel that receiving large number of applications has become a disadvantage because screening those applications is time consuming and most applications do not meet the minimum qualifications required for the job.Research carried out by the IRS Employment review found that although the online recruitment market is booming, most employers are unhappy at the amount of unsuitable applications they receive (Savvas, 2004). More than 60% of the 200 organizations told IRS that they received inappropriate responses from the adverts they placed (Savvas, 2004). IRS also found that the ease of applying for jobs online may lead to more unsuitable applications being received, which have to be screened out, cancelling out some of the savings the channel offered (Savvas, 2004).Another conducted by Verhoeven ; Williams (2008) concludes that Internet recruitment has the ability to draw applicants from a greater geograp hic area but that this results in a pool of applicants which has a higher level of unqualified applicants in comparison with non-electronic sources. Thomas ; Ray (2002) also note about the commercial websites generating large volumes of applicants. Some HR professionals claim that blindly searching the internet for resumes is inefficient, and anything other than company based posting is time consuming and expensive (Thomas ; Ray, 2002).Recent research conducted by Europe’s largest HR development professional body – The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) highlights that e-recruitment 17 E-Recruitment could increase the number of unsuitable applicants and act as a barrier to recruiting older workers (cipd. co. uk, 2009). †¢ Lack of access Although internet recruitment offers greater access to applicants worldwide, it limits only to people who are comfortable using technology and thereby is a hindrance for companies to reach a more diverse set of candidates.Most of the rural areas do not have access to technology limiting access to people living in such remote geographical locations. â€Å"One study citing Census Bureau data indicate that rural black households have the lowest computer ownership of any group (6. 4 percent), followed by Hispanics (12 percent) and Native Americans (15. 3 percent), with rural whites (24. 6 percent) and Asians (33. 7 percent) having the highest ownership rates† (Singh ; Finn, 2003). This data is a proof that minority groups do not have access to internet.According to the Pew Internet ; American Life Project, â€Å"58% of whites have access to the Internet whereas only 43% of African Americans and 50% of Hispanics have Internet access† (Bernardin, 2007). In addition to internet recruitment lacking access to minority groups, internet recruitment also has legal implications. â€Å"In Griggs v. Duke Power Co. , (1971) the plaintiff showed that the educational requirements disqualifie d African-Americans at a significantly higher rate than whites, and in another lawsuit filed by employees against Walt Disney Co. in Los Angeles, it is alleged, â€Å"since the Resumix (Resume Tracking Software) is based on majority white culture, it discriminates against African-Americans seeking employment or promotions† (Singh ; Finn, 2003). However Christopher F. Ball, corporate counsel at Restrac says, â€Å"I don't think discrimination is part and parcel of using technology. I think it's much more related to internal hiring practices. If a company 18 E-Recruitment is going to use discriminatory search methods, they're going to do it whether they're using an automated staffing technology or old paper-and-pencil filing tactics.These new recruiting technologies don't dictate or modify the way employers use criteria to search for candidates† (Click, 1997). Like Ball mentioned, discriminatory practices may be adopted by companies even by using traditional methods if t hey intend to do so. They don’t necessarily have to use recruiting technologies for this purpose. Based on this logic, I think discrimination using technology can be eliminated. Hence, lack of access to technology is the only disadvantage among minority groups.Strategies to overcome disadvantages – Presenting e-strategies Screening applications is time consuming – Presenting Preliminary Competency Screening Many companies claim that screening large volume of applications is time consuming and costly. Progressions in Information and Technology have found new ways to deal with such problems. â€Å"Organizations might request applicants to provide online biographical information often used to predict employee performance, including educational attainment and relevant job experience. This information may be used to assess the likelihood of an applicant performing a job at a satisfactory level.For the recruitment personnel, these new procedures may save time and mon ey† (Singh & Finn, 2003). Bernardin (2007, Pg 152) explains that the above mentioned format allows for an automatic scoring of information, known as â€Å"Artificial Intelligence† approach that allows for greater control over information gathering and storage and has the potential for better decision making. I think, instead of just obtaining biographical information, companies can prepare closed questionnaire and conduct a Preliminary Competency Screening (PCS) that measures the critical skills, abilities, knowledge and other competencies required to 9 E-Recruitment perform the job. The employer must also set a time limit within which the candidate needs to answer those questions to prevent low-skilled candidates from deceiving. When the candidate passes this test, biographical information and resume can be obtained for further processing. The results of this interview can be made available to the candidates as soon as they finish the interview to let them know if they have the expected level of knowledge to perform the job.If they don’t pass the preliminary round, they may be encouraged to create a profile and update their resume to inform about a future vacancy that matches their profile. While this method makes the screening process quicker and eliminates unqualified applicants efficiently, it may also reduce the negative perceptions of some minority groups about employer discrimination as biographical information are obtained only after the candidate is selected. Lack of Access – Advertising in Socializing websites One of the disadvantages of internet recruitment to minority groups is their access to internet.Many reports show an increased use of internet usage among African Americans and Hispanics. In December 1998, 64% of unemployed blacks with home internet access searched for jobs on line, compared to 48% of whites in the same situation (Kuhn, 2003). This reveals the growing trend in minority workers who use the internet as a job search tool. Limited access to some minority groups has been a disadvantage but recent studies also show the yearly internet adoption rate is growing rapidly in African American and Hispanic households (Bernardin, 2007, Pg 148).In 2000, of those seeking work, 40% of Hispanics, 36% of Whites, and 50% of African Americans surveyed said they had used to the Internet to look for information about a job (Bernardin, 2007). 20 E-Recruitment â€Å"According to Horowitz Associates, a consumer and business-to-business market research group, about 70% of Hispanic households have an Internet connection, and the Pew Research Center estimates that 56% of Hispanic households are using high-speed broadband connections. Marketer also finds that Hispanics are using the Internet for interactive purposes, with 46% using instant messages, 32% visiting social networking sites and 22% participating in chat rooms. The percentage of African Americans who use the Internet increased to 64% in December 2008, up from 56% in December 2007. Like Hispanics, African Americans are also using the Internet to connect with others. (NAS, 2009). Source: NAS, 2009. 21 E-Recruitment The growing number of job search websites for minorities is another proof showing their increased internet usage.A recent study by Wernau (2010) show that minority websites like iHispano have job listings from Fortune 500 companies because many companies believe that enhancing diversity promotes employee retention, performance and commitment. Although the success of minority websites shows a growing trend, companies must take advantage of the reason why African Americans and Hispanics use internet. I think, what is lacking here is the low awareness of multi-national company listings in minority websites.Companies must advertise in socializing websites like Facebook and twitter to inform potential recruits about their vacancy listings on minority websites like iHispano. They must encourage minority candidates to use internet to apply for jobs. This enables them to reach a large number of African Americans and Hispanics. Conclusion It is obvious that technology has changed the recruitment process from the way it was two decades ago. Many companies are listing their job openings either on their own corporate websites or in third party website like Monstor. com.Fortune 500 companies are trying to list jobs on minority websites to attract diverse candidates. Those companies that do not employ technology to assist in recruitment are at a competitive disadvantage compared to their peers (Searle, 2006). Raymond Pennie, commercial director at Kamanchi, says he used to believe that recruiters couldn't get a commercial advantage from technology but now firmly believes that you can have a â€Å"positive disadvantage† if you haven't got the right technology (Anonymous, 2010). Based on the several researches presented in this paper, it is clear that there is an increased use of internet for recruitm ent purposes.E recruitment has both advantages and disadvantages. The disadvantages presented in several other discussions and this paper can be overcome by 22 E-Recruitment employing e-strategies like preliminary competency screening and e-marketing strategies discussed in the previous sections. Hence, internet recruitment is an opportunity for employers and potential employees. 23 E-Recruitment