Employee Rewards Essay

Introduction The purpose of this essay is to critically examine the processes used by Scotia Learning and identify if their rewards are appropriate to those of the market. The report will begin by discussing the background of Scotia Learning and follow on to define reward management highlighting the objective and constraints within the reward strategy. We will then consider the legal framework and examine why there are variations in pay and how job evaluation can ensure equity and fairness is achieved. Finally we will discuss the concept of motivation and the implications of pay for performance within the reward strategy. The report ends with an analysis of the key issues of the topic. Scotia Learning is the case study for this essay and is one of a network of university-based study centres offering preparation for students wishing to study undergraduate and postgraduate degrees for progression into university degree courses. The company has joint venture partnerships with top universities throug hout the United Kingdom, Ireland and United States of America. â€Å"Reward management is concerned with the formulation and implementation of strategies and policies that aim to reward people fairly, equitably and consistently in accordance with their value to the organisation† (Armstrong & Murlis, 2007, p3). Research by Redman & Wilkinson (2009) indicates that reward is an enormously complex issue and has to take account of three fundamental principles in determining systems and structures: internal equity, external equity and business strategy. In addition Thorpe & Homan (2000) state that the organisation should identify what objectives and behaviours the payment system should have for example, labour market competitiveness and management skills whilst Perkins & White (2009) highlight the importance of legal regulations that can put constraints on organisations, for example minimum wage (legal), collective bargaining (trade unions), and the external labour markets. Scotia Learning does not recognise a trade union however it does recognise that collective bargaining has been influential in discussing and setting pay arrangement due to internal and external rates of pay not being equal. Within the employment legislation pay has always been an area of controversy especially when one considers employee’s collective concerns (Brown et al., 2003). The introduction of The Equal Pay Act 1970 outlawing unequal pay for men and women having since evolved into equal pay for equal work and the Equal Pay (Amendment) Regulations 1983 after the UK joined the EU in 1973 (Perkins & White, 2009), now gives employees a certain degree of protection in their employment relationship. To strengthen current legislation The Equality Act 2010 was introduced highlighting human rights and discriminatory factors, such as equal pay, sex discrimination, race, disability and equality (religion, sexual orientation, and age) (Equality and Human Rights Commission, 2012). In response to this Scotia Learning are aware that they have a ‘duty of care’ to all employees and comply with the Equal Opportunities Policy by ensuring the relevant training is undertaken by managers and employees ensuring everyone understands the importance of and their responsibilities under this Policy. This is also promoted in all recruitment documents, ensuring that wording of job advertisements does not discriminate against any potential applicants. As part of this legislation, employers are legally required to ensure their pay structures are not discriminatory against men and women in terms of valuing work between them in their employment and in order to defend themselves against equal pay claims, organisations must be able to prove that the jobs within their grading system are valued according to the job rather than the gender of the person doing the job. Failure to adhere to these regulations can result in a tribunal claim and if proven the organisation will have to pay all money accrued which can be backdated six years in England and five years in Scotland. In the case of (Birmingham City Council v Abdulla and others [2012] UKSC 47), the Supreme Court ruled that equal pay claims brought in the High Court more than six months after the end of the claimants’ employment, which would have been out of time in an employment tribunal, should not be struck out under section 2(3) of the Equal Pay Act 1970. The reasons for a claimant’s failure to bring a timely claim in a tribunal are not relevant in any way to the notion of convenience under section 2(3). (PLC Employment Law Weekly email). Within Scotia Learning pay and benefits are provided on the basis of objective criteria, free from discrimination taking into account the principle of equal pay for equivalent work or work of equal value. In addition we ensure transparency within the reward system is clear to all employees in that they understand how their pay is worked out and what is required from them to achieve this. Job profiles and person specifications for each new vacancy are drawn up in keeping with other jobs of a similar size and responsibility which focus on the skills, experience and qualifications that are directly relevant to the job. Armstrong & Murlis (2007, p115) state that â€Å"the payment system is important as it not only conveys a signal to the employees what the organisational priorities are but also a cts as a catalyst for wider organisational change† a view reiterated by Armstrong (1996) in which he proposes that the foundations of reward management are to achieve the individual and organisational behaviour that a company needs if the business goals are to be met. Therefore the term ‘employees are the key to enhanced organisational performance’ becomes relevant with links to Kessler and Purcell (1994) where they emphasise that payment systems are related to recruitment, retention and motivation of staff and that the determination of pay is not only the interaction of market forces but also employers. It is also acknowledged that variations in pay can occur for a variety of reasons and from a legal perspective it is important to understand why (Redman & Wilkinson, 2009). Firstly the power scenario, in that if labour is scarce, employees will have more power and hence may be able to demand higher pay, in contrast with an over-supply of labour employers have the power and hence may be able to hold pay at lower rates (Redman & Wilkinson, 2009). Secondly, it has been acknowledged that ‘the rate for the job’ should be the same for employees doing the same job but considering organisational performance is reliant on the empl oyee’s effort, skills and competencies, it is not logical to assume that effort should be rewarded and pay should vary accordingly. A view shared by Redman & Wilkinson (2009, p161) who advocate that â€Å"variable pay schemes (VPS) are said to hold out the promise towards the creation of internal labour market that is fairer in rewarding people as it is only ‘fair’ that rewards should have a direct link with effort†. The argument with this theory is that ‘risk adverse’ workers will be less willing to ‘gamble’ on pay related performance than a set amount of pay. Thirdly, we should also take into consideration the external market rate of pay and uneven market pressures such as differing regional or occupational rates of pay as Kessler (2007, p167) states â€Å"external equity is an organisational imperative as failure to respond the labour market changes will leave organisations at a disadvantage competitively†. Scotia Learning responds to these challenges by regularly benchmarking and studying the market rate of pay within the educational sector. Data collected is beneficial in determining pay to ensure pay scales are in line with and competitive with similar jobs. For example, when recruiting teaching staff, the use of organisations such as SATEFL and other educational websites are particularly useful, for administration staff we would use S1jobs.com and jobseeker.gov.uk website and with management we would use agencies. However, although the aforesaid strategy is very useful, Scotia Learning is a relatively large organisation with Centres worldwide and other factors have to be taken into consideration, such as location and cost of living. In determining the value of jobs within our organisation, although we consider the external market pay rates, decisions concerning pay are done through a coherent wage and career structure internal to our organisation which ensures consistency and fairness in our reward systems. It has been reported that issues with this reward system have arisen within the banking sector resulting in Government intervention to deal with inequalities of pay setting at senior management/director level and low pay via the nati onal minimum wage. This is not an area of concern for Scotia Learning as the annual salary increase is a % rate consistent throughout the organisation and our pay structure process involves a job evaluation â€Å"a systematic process for establishing the relative worth of jobs within an organisation† Redman & Wilkinson (2009, p141). In addition Scotia Learning is accredited to the British Council and British Accreditation Council and all HR policies and personnel files are properly documented and filed. Our job evaluation comprises of an analytical (i.e., jobs are broken down into individual components) broad-band pay structure with a range of factors such as knowledge and skills, problem solving, decision making and then allocating points to them. It is interesting to note that research by IRS (2007) showed that an average of 86% of organisations use this form of job evaluation. Within this broad-band pay structure we have 6 wide overlapping salary bands made up of management, HR, teaching staf f, finance, student services and cleaning staff with a salary range for each bank of at least 75%. Progression up the bands will be by skills and qualifications, performance and competence enhanced through individual career development thus supplying the motivation for continuous learning. To support this, the annual performance review takes place, however it is not linked to pay or rewards and is based on the objectives of skills and competence which are linked to organisational performance. In terms of equity and fairness the rate of pay for full-time and part-time teaching staff is calculated on the same hourly rate therefore ensuring consistency and fairness within the system. It is interesting to note that research by Redman & Wilkinson (2009, p139) argues that by paying an hourly rate â€Å"employers control over pace and performance is reliant on either direct supervision or the willingness of employees to engage with the task† synonymous with the argument surrounding ‘risk adverse’ workers. This point of view may be viable in organisations such as ‘call centres’ where technology enables the monitoring and regulating of work by measuring output and input and within the customer service industry where we have the ‘secret shopper’, but within the education sector autonomy is part of the job as is their professional code of ethics which includes commitment, motivation and discretionary behaviour which is contradictory to the argument by Thorpe & Homan (2000) who suggest that non-financial aspects are secondary and rarely given the same prominence in the design of payment systems. Managing rewards is largely about managing employee expectations linking to their psychological contract which is concerned with pay, performance and the development of skills (Armstrong & Murlis, 2007). The argument then becomes, if reactions to rewards depend on the psychological makeup, values and needs of individual, one cannot wholly rely on performance related pay schemes to enhance all employees’ performance as not everyone is motivated by money. Motivation only takes place if rewards are worthwhile to the individual and if the process is seen to be fair, therefore, it would require to be customised for every individual in the organisation (Armstrong & Murlis, 2007). For example, an employee nearing the end of their career may be more interested in job satisfaction (intrinsic reward), whereas a graduate beginning their career may be more interested in training and development (extrinsic reward). For that reason it can be argued that both intrinsic rewards such as respect, recognition, job satisfaction and responsibility are just as important as extrinsic rewards such as pay rises, bonuses, training and development opportunities and benefits such as annual holidays, company sick pay and company pension. This highlights the importance of implementing an equitable and fair reward strategy in that by incorporating financial and non-financial rewards is that they can be used as a tool to enhance employee motivation resulting in improved organisational performance. Finally the importance of management skills cannot be undermined as they are a fundamental element of human resource management. The management strategy within Scotia Learning is based on autonomy, communication and high levels of trust between management and employees. Evidence to support this is the turnover rate of staff with one employee resigning over the past two years and the annual absence levels within Scotia L earning for all staff inclusive stands at 0.1% of working hours, which is the lowest in the entire organisation. Conclusion This objective of the report was to establish the processes that ensure equity and fairness in the reward systems. We have covered the legal aspects, strategies, market awareness, motivation, job evaluation and performance appraisal and it has become evident that Scotia Learning complies with all legal legislation, and displays equity and fairness within the reward systems. However there was an air of negativity surrounding performance and reward as within Scotia Learning the annual appraisal is not yet connected to pay for performance. It is possible that issues could arise if this was implemented, namely, it could seriously affect the dynamics of the office environment between a very closely-nit team of employees, managers and directors in that, how does the manager justify their decision in the event of a low reward without affecting the equilibrium of the office environment and within a unionised organisation all trade unions argue against performance linked to pay. Schemes relating pay to performance, although generating a tremendous amount of interest have very little in the way of conclusive evidence concerning their effects on performance (Redman & Wilkinson, (2009). This echoes Thompson (1992) findings in which he states, â€Å"research fails to provide convincing evidence of a link between individual performance-related pay schemes and improvements in productivity†. The evidence supports that other approaches should be considered in rewarding employees, for example a one-off bonus payment which would not affect the employees’ annual salary. References Armstrong, M. (1996) Employee Reward, London: Kogan Page/IPD Armstrong, M., and Murlis, H. (2007) Reward Management. 5thedn. London: Hay Group Brown, W., Marginson, P., and Walsh, J. (2003) The management of pay as the influence of collective bargaining diminishes. In: P.K. Edwards, Industrial Relations: Theory and Practice, Oxford: Blackwell IRS (2007) Job evaluation is thriving, survey finds: Employment Review, 667 Kessler, I. (2007) Reward Choices: strategy and equity. In: Storey, J. HRM: a critical text 3rd edition, London: Thomson Learning Kessler, I., and Purcell, J. (1994) Performance Related Pay: Objectives and application, Human Resource Management Journal, Vol.2, No.3 Perkins, S. J., and White, G. (2009) Employee Reward: Alternatives, consequences and contexts, 2nd edn. London: Chartered Institute Of Personnel and Development, Redman, T., and Wilkinson, A. (2009) Contemporary Human Resource Management: Text & Cases, 3rd edn. London: Prentice Hall, Thompson, M. (1992) Pay fo r Performance: The employers experience, Brighton, Institute of Manpower Studies Thorpe, R., and Homan, G (2000) Strategic Reward Systems, Harlow: Financial Times Williams, S., and Adam-Smith, D. (2006) Contemporary Employment Relations: A critical introduction, Oxford: University Press Equality of Human Rights Commission, available from: http://www.equalityhumanrights.com/human-rights/ – date accessed 23/10/12 PLC Employment Law, available from: employment@email.practicallaw.com – date accessed 26/10/12

Nokia Analysis

IntroductionNokia is one of the largest telecommunication manufacturer companies in the world. They are recognized globally for their reliable and high quality products. Though they are a pioneer in manufacturing mobile phones and the GSM technology, Nokia’s profitability has been on the decline in recent years. A reduction of market share in North America of thirty-five percent in March of 2008 to eight and one tenths percent in April of 2010 highlight’s Nokia’s decline (Wong, 2011).Synopsis of the situationNokia has been on a steady decline for the last few years due to outdated product design and technology. On February 11, 2011, Nokia’s new CEO Stephen Elop announced a new mobile strategy to adopt Microsoft’s new but unproven windows phone as its primary smartphone operating system (Wong, 2011). Nokia’s flagship phone, the Vertu, has been a staple in the urban luxury market for the last eight years. Will Nokia’s loyal customer acce pt or reject this new move for their beloved devise.Key IssuesNokia was once an industry leader, but as of recently found themselves behind in the times. Nokia has several key issues that need to be addressed. The first is their shrinking market share and brand preference. The next issue is the inability to deliver innovative products in a timely manner.Define the ProblemThe Microsoft operating system is not a winning over the customers that Elop thought that it would. Nokia has one phone that has been their flagship item for the last eight years. It is believed that making the change to the Microsoft operating system on that phone will cause Nokia to lose the customers for that one popular devise.Alternative solutionsOne alternate solution that could be well received would be to scrap the Microsoft idea all together. The system could be replaced with the current Android smartphone operating system. Android has a proven track record and is even more popular and used than iOS6 which is Apples current operating system.Selected Solution of the problemThe solution is to move forward with the production of the phones with the Microsoft operating system. Nokia has always been on the cutting edge of technology. They did not get to the place that they are by following the trends. Nokia is a company that sets the trends. Microsoft’s operating system is a viable option for the Nokia platform andImplementationImplementing new technology in the workplace can be an advantage to current job performance levels. You may experience an increase in production and reduction of working man hours while adding considerably to the bottom line of the company's income statement. This could be the shot in the arm that Nokia needs. Integrating this new technology in your current system without any disruption to the current workflow can prove to be challenging.You may run into problems with compatibility due to existing systems, hard-to-train workers or errors in the technology ins tallation, all of which adds cost and time to the integration process (Simmons, 2011). There are approaches you can take to make the integration of the new technology as seamless and frustration-free as possible. It is just a matter of careful planning and the support of the workers and vendors alike.RecommendationsIt is my recommendation that the Nokia stays the course. The new and improved Vertu will be a greater success that its predecessor. It is time for the company to regain its place on top of the leader board in the industry, and this new decision could take them there. Nokia will never be at the head of the pack by following its competitors.ConclusionIn conclusion, I feel that that the current CEO of Nokia, Stephen Elop, should take the reins of this company and lead it into a new era. Elop has solid ideas and sound vision for the direction of the company. I feel that the customers that have been loyal to Nokia will continue to be loyal to the company. These customers expec t something new and exciting. That excitement is what led them to Nokia in the first place. It is Nokia’s job to fulfill that promise. There was some initial negative reaction to the news of the direction of the company, but you can always expect some adversity with change. We do not change because it is the easy thing to do; we change because it is necessary. It is necessary to evolve to remain in existence.

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Strenght limitation ans challenge of ethically social responsible business - Coursework Example increases the relationships and independence in all the business sectors and more so in dealing with the customers that are on daily basis generating from the business. Social responsibility issues as well as the ethical concerns are extremely sensitive especially to the managers running the business. Due to some of the pressures they often receive from the groups of interest, public, media coverage, governmental and other legal concerns, the managers ensure that they are solely responsible for any of the developments that are more likely in the social and ethical conducts of their people (Joshua 2000, pg.64). This is commonly challenging especially in the decision making of what and where to apply effectively a certain condition that ought to be in place. If there are any conflicting concerns and situations in the peoples and organizations conducts, then it remains a challenge of where to draw the line and make up for the necessary adjustments of the situation. Social responsibility and the ethical conducts of an individual are thus very important in order to avoid some of the conflicting concerns in ensuring a working business environment. In examining some of the common views of ethics that are standardized in the success of any business, that is how to get to the root causes of the challenges. Diagnosing the strengths that are involved in some of the questionings that involves business and the social ethical responsibility of it is just the beginning of a successful business-working environment. The utilitarianism ethics view whereby an ethical problem is likely to approach the question in considering which of the action course may do the least or rather a good harm. According to John Stuart Mill and Jeremy Bentham, the actions are more likely to categorize in a way that they either make many people satisfied and happy of the outcomes (Bowie 1987, pg.53). Further, they explain that a small number of people could be unhappy but so long as the majority is happy

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Effect of Political Issues on the Finance and Common Stock in Kuwait - Research Paper Example The history, heritage and growing development of the country have allowed Kuwait to become unique in its own way. Along with modernizations being incorporated, the country also maintains its standard traditions and cultures as well (About Kuwait). As far as the economic and financial condition of the country is concerned, Kuwait in the recent years reflected improved results in the macroeconomic issues related to the country. However, there are challenges still existing for the company needing greater developments in the social and physical infrastructure of the country. This development is required for the diversification of the economic foundation of the country. Thus although the country reflected satisfactory results as far as the fiscal and external surpluses of the country are concerned, yet the concerns are in relation to the quality of the infrastructure, health and education that also considers the gross domestic product of Kuwait (Kuwait and the IMF). However, it can be rea lized in this regard that several factors may be responsible for the finance and common stock in Kuwait. The present study focuses on learning about the political factors that may have effects on the finance and common stock in the country. ... This was also followed by the reappointment of the post of Prime Minister in the country. In the present times, the situations have become violent where protestors have been found to break into the parliament and force the Royal Family to suspend the existing legislature allowing space for immediate elections. This has led to the opposition party taking the power of the majority of the parliament and a Prime Minister has been selected from a different background of the Royal Family from that what has been traditional. Disagreements and disputes between the parliament and the Prime Minister had arisen from the time when the government was being formed. There were differences in their choices where the Prime Minister wanted to involve parliamentary members in the deliberations and meetings, and the majority of the parliament had objections to it (Omar). The degree to which members of the parliament and other political performers in Kuwait opposed to each other and struggled in Parliame nt stay put restricted to the limits of the Royal Family, keeping hold of its patrimonial position in the social order. Political disagreements are, consequently, restricted to arguments between Parliament and ministers, the compelling of the Council of Ministers at the powers of the government, and, from time to time, the obligatory resignation of ministers or all the Ministers of the Council. On the other hand, modalities of antagonism in Parliament in the present times are gradually more professed as a righteous opposition to the preferences of the political management as Parliament has turned out to be ever more decisive of the Prime Minister as well and not only for the members of his Cabinet.

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Aristarchus and Ptolemy - Essay Example Ptolemy happened to be a citizen of Egypt, between 90AD and 168AD, during the Roman times and was of Greek Origins (University of Oregon, 2012). Ptolemy was known to be a versatile personality, who happened to be a mathematician, astrologer, geographer and astronomer. Aristarchus was the first astronomer to propound the theory of heliocentricity, which regarded the sun to be a stationary star around which the earth revolved (V Archive, 2012). It was Aristarchus who calculated the diameter of the sun and estimated the volume of the sun on the basis of its diameter (V Archive, 2012). Many astronomers and physicists do believe that it was Aristarchus’ estimation of the superior volume of the sun as compared to the earth that led Aristarchus to conclude that the Sun constituted the center around which the earth revolved (V Archive, 2012). Though Aristarchus’ original treatise in which he noted down his discovery did not survive, references to his heliocentric theory do occur in the works of Archimedes (V Archive, 2012). It was Aristarchus who first proposed that the sun remained fixed and unmoved and the earth revolved around it in a circular orbit. In the history of astronomy, Ptolemy is attributed the honor of developing a comprehensive arithmetical model for accurately calculating celestial motions and astronomical phenomena (University of Oregon, 2012). Ptolemy also propounded his geocentric theory, which the astronomers popularly refer to as Ptolemaic system. Ptolemy extended varied arguments to establish the fact that the earth constituted the center of the universe, and other heavenly bodies revolved around it (University of Oregon, 2012). It was primarily owing to the Ptolemaic system that the geocentric theory gained strong grounds in the Christendom for a long time, until it was eventually replaced by the heliocentric theory propounded by Copernicus (University of Oregon, 2012)). Ptolemy is also credited

Asher Farms Essay Example for Free

Asher Farms Essay Political – In class the major political topic that we focused on was possible affects on the industry if immigration laws became stricter. This industry is highly dependent on cheap labor. If all of a sudden there were not enough workers in the industry there would not be enough chicken available to meet the demand. Economic – Evident from the case, the chicken market is heavily influenced by currency fluctuation. This is because 15% of the total poultry production is exported and therefore changes in the price of the dollar can make chicken much more expensive in other countries or it can have a reverse effect. Social – Over the past couple of decades there has clearly been a shift in the amount of different types of meat products that are consumed. Those who watch their what they eat are more likely to eat chicken for the high protein benefits and minimizing some of the harmful affects of red meat. Technological – There had been a strong push for more efficient technology to be produced in this industry. The technology developments range from the machinery that does some of the work to new genetic engineering of the food that the chickens eat. These advancements allowed for the growth of the chicken industry without and slowdowns. Legal – Animal rights advocates have had major impacts on the ways that chickens can be processed. The conditions that the chickens live in could cause some legal problems in the future in different animal rights groups wanted to make changes. Environmental – Spread of disease always seems to be a major concern in the food industry. Contamination is very possible and could potentially cause huge problems. The FDA would like to minimize the possible affects of any type disease from spreading such as salmonella or other bacteria’s that are harmful. I feel that all of the business risks identified in question 1, the PESTLE acronym, all have the same potential to impact the risk of material misstatements on the financial statements. These business risks would all put revenue, cost of goods sold, wage expenses, and certain discloses at risk for being misstated. This would require more substantive tests to provide more reliable evidence that the financial statements are correctly stated. Obtaining knowledge about the client’s industry helps to highlight practices unique to that industry that may have an effect on the client’s financial statements. The auditor should obtain knowledge relating to the client’s business before commencing the audit. Understanding the client’s business provides information regarding events and transactions that may affect the client’s financial statements. Just like an auditor is not responsible to provide absolute assurance that the financial statements are correct, an auditory does not have the responsibility to identify or assess all business risks because it would be not efficient, timely, or costly to do so. As discussed in question 1, some examples of business risks that should be considered include; immigration concerns, currency fluctuation, health changes, technological development, and the spread of disease. An example of a business risk that might not lead to a risk of material misstatement in the financial statements that we discussed in class was opening new locations and growing the business.

Anxiety and the effect on a golfers performance

Anxiety and the effect on a golfers performance Anxiety can be defined as a negative unpleasant emotional state in which feelings of apprehension, nervousness, worry, distress and uneasiness are felt (Weinberg Gould, 2007 and Reber Reber, 2001). This statement states that anxiety would seem to be a hindrance and generate negative feeling for a person. Woods also states that is a negative emotional state, caused because a situation can or may be perceived as being threatening to them. In relation to sport anxiety may be thought to be through out a competition however Hassmen (p.278) states sports psychology researchers have assumed that an individuals anxiety level experienced immediately before a competition (i.e. state anxiety) has a moderating effect on subsequent athletic performance Hassem raises the argument that the feelings before a sporting event for the athlete can have an impact on an athletes perfomance, (Martens, 1971) and relating this to Weinbergs definition it would seem to be a negative effect. This is however co ntradicted by Hanin(2000) who looked at this in more depth and who suggests that there is mounting evidence that indicates athletes vary significantly in the level of anxiety that benefits the athletes performance. This therefore suggests that anxiety is a individually measurable state and not toally a hinderance, as supported by Hassmen (2000 p.278) who proposed that the optimal level of anxiety for performance can vary considerably across athletes. This statement gives light to the fact of an optimal level of arousal that shall be addressed later on. However According to Maynard (1995) the general consensus of practitioners and researchers has been of the idea that anxiety impairs performance in sport. Therefore we have the identification of anxiety and what it is supposed to be, also the different factors that it can entail, it is stated as a negative (Weinberg Gould, 2007 and Reber Reber, 2001 Maynard 1995) and also as a positive with Hassmen (2000) suggesting that there is an optimal arousal level that will help the athlete. This is however contradicted by Jones (1991) that the precise identification of the relationship between anxiety and performance has proved elusive. This is therefore suggesting that more research needs to be conducted in to the area of anxiety and to try and determine the effects if any and the relationship between them, before conclusions can be drawn. Different types of anxiety Spielberger (1971) proposed that anxiety was influenced by peoples traits and states in response to certain situations. Trait anxiety is a predisposition to perceive certain environmental situations as threatening (Cox, 2007). Woods(1998) relates this to sport and claims that a person who is trait anxious and suffers form trait anxiety would worry about the condition of the ground for the next football match a month in advance. Relating this to golf , a trait anxious person would worry about the weather the people there well in advance of situation arising. State anxiety differs from trait anxiety in that it can be seen as a temporary emotional state characterised by feelings of apprehension and tension (Cox, 2007 and Weinberg Gould, 2007). In relation to golf this may the the reaction to standing on the first tee of a compettion it is environment injusied and a repsonse to a situation. It may also changew under circumstances for example when the round is under way, anxiety levels may drop. (Woods 1998) Martens et al (1990) proposed that anxiety not only included state and trait but was also multidimensional in its nature in that it also includes cognitive and somatic factors. Polman(2007 p.39) also agrees and states anxiety consists of three independent but also interacting components, somatic(emotionally), cognitive(worry), and behavioural. These are mainly associated with state anxiety, and the two different types of anxiety somatic and cognitive are not always oth present in a athlete. For example Woods (1998) suggests that some individuals may show signs of having high somatic state anxiety before an event, but however at the same time they may come across very calm and mentally strong, showing ow signs of cognitive state anxiety. Cognitive anxiety is the mental aspect of anxiety caused by fear of negative social evaluation, fear of failure and loss of self esteem (Cox, 2007). There are also cognitive trait and cognitive state types of anxiety which again are mental responses to anxiety which are either predisposed or in response to certain environments (Cox, 2007). Maynards (1995 p.52) Definition Cognitive anxiety is the mental component of anxiety caused by the negative expectations about successor negative self-evaluation, (Burton,1988.p.46) Somatic anxiety is the awareness of arousal in the body, for example when standing on the first tee of a large golf event some people may respond to the situation with an increase in heart rate and muscular tension (Cox, 2007 and Woods, 2004). This is supported by Maynards (1995) view somatic anxiety is the physiological or affective component of anxiety that is directly related to autonomic arousal (Burton,1988.p.46) this gives two different factors of anxiety that also can be broken in to there own sub categories which as stated earlier gives reasoning for the multi dimensional theory of anxiety. Maynard states with this intervention of multidimensional that there seems to be enough research to show that anxiety is a complex multidimensional construct that differentiates anxiety in to somatic and cognitive and the sub groups. This is based on the research of Borokvec (1976) and Davidson (1976) in to the development of the understanding of anxiety. Therefore Jones (1991) may be seen as irrelevant. Measurements of anxiety To test somatic anxiety measures such as monitoring breathing rate, monitoring heart rate using an electrocardiogram and muscle response using an electromyogram can be used (Woods, 2004), it is important to acknowledge however that although performers may exhibit physiological evidence of stress, they may not report feeling stressed, it is therefore advised that numerous physiological and psychological tests are carried out to measure anxiety (Woods, 2004). Somatic anxiety is also made up of somatic trait and somatic state which again are physical predisposed or responses to situations The multidimensional theory of anxiety proposed that cognitive anxiety has a negative linear relationship with performance, whereas somatic anxiety has an inverted U shaped relationship with performance (Hardy et al, 1996). There are two main sources of anxiety that affect performance (Woods, 2004 and Murphy, 2005), pre-competitive anxiety occurs in anticipation of competition (Martens et al, 1990) and competitive anxiety that occurs during competition. Weinberg and Genuchi (1980) found that precompetitive anxiety was higher in players during the competitive rounds of golf than during the practice rounds, Cook et al (1983) however concluded that players performance affected anxiety, not anxiety having an affecting performance. Endler (1978) determined that there are five specific factors that increase anxiety in anticipation of a competitive situation; fear of performance failure, fear of negative social evaluation, fear of physical harm, situation ambiguity and disruption of a well learned routine. Sub Categories to come? One of the test for anxiety that is the most renowned is the Sport Competitive Anxiety Test abbreviated to SCAT test, this is a derived to show the anxiety in a performer through a questionnaire, the SCAT test has been developed to asses competitive A-trait in performers (Martens) The competitive A-trait is defined in three ways the first being the individual differences that a person may have when perceiving a threat either physically or mentally to the state response to the threat. The last is the combination of the two. (Martens) This is different from A-State which focuses on a persons dealing with the situation as the event is occuring The SCAT test is a combination of questions that are given in such a manner to try and lead the participant away from guessing that, it is about anxiety. This is done by the introduction of questions that can be totally random, to make the participant think of an aspect of the game and hopefully add to the validity of the results. If not and the p articipant can guess that it is a study in relation to anxiety then they may feel the need not to be laboratory bias and put answers that are not true to them selves. Csai-2 stands for Competitive State Anxiety Inventory Anxiety optimal arousal The relationship between arousal and anxiety is thought to need one there so that the other can exist. Both Cognitive and Somatic Anxiety are closely Associated with the concept of arousal, which refers to the intensity and dimension of behaviour, the state of the organism varying on a continuum from deep sleep to intense excitement (Martens ) and arousal are very closely linked anxiety is seen to be one of the negative forces that can effect arousal.(Oxedine 1970) however according to woods(p.91) arousal is neither a positive nor a negative, it is the perception of arousal that may lead to stress and anxiety. Therefore this is the link between anxiety and arousal. According to wood it is the perception of arousal that people perceive differently and may lead them to feel uneasy, anxious or stressed. For example if two golfers are standing on the first tee and the are perfectly matched ability wise, but have pycholoigical differences when dealing with anxiety, and therefore effecting the arousal level of the player and visa versa, with the player dealing with arousal by being anxious, if the player does not deal with this as well as the other then this may have a detrimental effect on there performance . Anshel(1997) states that anxiety has a psychological basis and arousal is the physiological side therefore both are interlinked. When researching however it seems that stress anxiety pressure are all used interchangeable in this relationship, and needs to be taken in to consideration. For Example Kremer and Scully (1994) argue that separating arousal, anxiety and stress is too tidy and because there is considerable overlap and interaction between them. When relating this to sport then, they may be seen as being used overlapping, for example a golfer suffering form anxiety stress or pressure, may be seen as negative. However as we will see the right amount of any of these symptoms, can help an athlete in the right situations; there fore there may need to be some more clarification on these subtle difference between them and what they actually entail. Arousal is a blend of physiological and psychological activity in a person, and it refers to the intensity dimensions of motiviation at a particular moment. (Weinberg p.78) this contradicts Anshel statement of them being two parts to one symptom. Woods(p.90) finds that arousal refers to the state of alertness and anticipation that prepares the body for action: it involves physiological activity (such as increased heart rate and cognitive activity (such as increase in attention) This supports Weinberg theory and leaves the thought that arousal is taken in to consideration just before competing and, there does seem to be a direct link between anxiety and arousal, and this impact on the performance. Arousal is neither a positive nor a negative; it is the perception of arousal that may lead to stress and anxiety. Arousal is seen through many different measuring tools firstly is the drive theory this is the theory which was developed by Hull (1951) and Spence (1956) woods P.94. The drive theorys more focused at athletes that are highly skilled for example relating this to golf any one who is a single figure golfer. This entailing that have a grasp of technique and there skill is well learned and autonomous and can be repeated easily. The drive theory then goes on to state that with this ability level that the higher the pressure or arousal the better the performance, and will allow the athlete top perform the skill very successfully. (Woods) This theory is adapted in to a formula and highlighted by Anshel() who looks The Drive Theory has been criticised for the fact that it is not clear what a well learned skill is and can be defined as (woods), also research has shown that after a certain point arousal becomes a hindrance and detrimental( Weinberg Golud) this there fore leads to a system that would have an optimal arousal level. Which is incorporated in the in Inverted U theory. The inverted U theory is a theory that is developed a shows a curvilinear relationship between arousal and relationship. (Anshel) Starting off with low levels of arousal in relation to lower standard then normal, as arousal increases so does the performance, (Weinberg Gould) this is the same principle as the drive theory however it is curved at the optimal level of arousal and then begins to dip afterwards as seen below (Weinberg Gould) FIGXXX Therefore the more arousal and anxiety after this the performance will decrease. Thus the effect of arousal on performance is based on the optimal level given the particular skill.(Anshel p. 73) This theory was bought up to account for some of the criticism of the drive theory(Woods) In relation to the optimal level of arousal Hanin looked at the alternative view of individualized zones of optimal functioning. (Haninà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦w and g p.87) This view on arousal levels is different for two main reasons one of these being that the optimal level of arousal does not always occur in the middle of the continuum it can vary between different athletes (Weinberg Gould) some performances may peak at a very lowlevel of arousal and anxiety and others at a very high level of arousal. This is all to do with the type of person that they are. As stated before anxiety is the reaction to arousal levels and perceiving a situation as threatening therefore if an individual does not see a situation as a threat then there arousal and anxiety may be lower and it may take a certain situation to induce this peak performance and optimal arousal level. The other difference between the inverted U and the IZOF is that the, IZOF has not one singular point that is the optimal level of arous al however a bandwidth and continuum (Weinberg Gould) this therefore gives an easier range for an athlete or performer to aim at and to try and achieve rather than a specific point, which may seem very difficult. Catastrophe Model Supporting evidence for these and against these Methodology Pilot study The pilot study that was carried out involved the two questionnaires that were previously revised in the literature review the SCAT test to find trait anxiety and the CSAI-2 questionnaire to determine the amount of state anxiety. The test were administers and different stages one two days before and renamed and adapted and the other ten minutes before the game began. The first one administered was the CSAI-2 questionnaire on the recommendations of Martens (p.52) as he states that when the CSAI-2 test is delivered together with the SCAT test it recommended that the CSAI-2 test is delivered first as not to impact the results of the SCAT test. The tests were no longer then five minutes each and the questions in the SCAT tests that were not important, were adapted to be golf specific and related to other parts of the round and game, for example how often do you use a routine in your set up, and how often do you play to your handicap these are spurious items on the questionnaire. I used t o players one of a low handicap and one of a higher handicap; these two roughly encompass the range of my final sample group for testing. The two participants played 6 holes of golf with me the researcher watching and I informed them that I would be taking pictures and detailed notes of the round, for them and also to take there scores. This would be to see later on if there scores in the test would have any correlation between the state and trait anxiety, so if they are a generally anxious person or if they only getting anxious at threatening situations and how they deal with this. If they play the holes in a worse score then they would normally do relating to there handicap, and stroke index is going to have to be taken in to consideration, and if they scored highly on the CSAI-2 test or the SCAT test then there could be some correlation between the two scores, and this what we are going to be looking for. Copies of the questionnaires and the score cards for the rounds can be foun d in the appendices. Subjects The Subjects that were chosen are all from Bourn Golf club located in Cambridgeshire and are all members and have been for at least three years. They all play on average twice a week, therefore they no the course well and feel comfortable playing there. This should take away form any anxiety about the unknown and focus on the competitive anxiety and arousal. The players range from a Touring PGA professional to a 22 handicapper golfer with the average in the UK being 20 so the range is from elite player to beginner, there will be 8 participants ranging between the ages of 21 and 60. Therefore the adult version of the CSAI-2 shall be used rather than the child version. The participants that were found for the study were all volunteers and happy to undertake the study all consent and ethics forms are attached in the appendices. Materials The materials used in the study were largely questionnaire based. The first questionnaire used was the CSAI-2 test it is a test that is formed up of 27 questions and a scale of 1-4 is used with 1 being the response not at all and 4 is the response very much so. The CSAI-2 is used to measure anxiety scores and in particular state anxiety scores. This is the measuring tool that was redeveloped from the CSAI questionnaire it was redeveloped by Martens, Burton and Vealy 1990, there are different forms of the CSAI-2 one for children and one for adults, the questionnaire not only measures anxiety it has been adapted to look at the two different types of anxiety as stated before the cognitive side of anxiety the psychological side and the somatic side the physiological symptoms related to anxiety, these can be seen as sweaty palms, being uneasy and not relaxed. The second questionnaire that is going to be given is the SCAT test this will be given after the participants have had a practise and just before they go out to play there holes. The Scat test is used to measure trait anxiety, this is looking at the persons genetic make up if they are generally a anxious person regard less the situation they are in. The SCAT test consists of 15 questions with 5 spurious items with in it to prevent the participant from gathering that the questionnaire is looking at anxiety, also the questionnaires are going to renamed, the instructions shall be kept the same however the titles shall be Competing in sport 1 which will be the CSI-2 questionnaire and Competing in sport 2 which shall be the SCAT test. Procedure The procedure was started with the participant filling out the consent forms and reading the ethics forms. The next step was for the participants to go through the proceedings with the researcher and to make sure they fully understand and are content with what is going to be asked of them, the researcher then went on to inform the participant that they are going to be filmed, as this is an out side stressor that would normally be present on the golf course. However Ii is only the illusion they are going to be filmed there will be no tape in the came as it is data that is not useful or needed. With this it will add another component to the environment and the player may see it as an item to raise arousal and then consequently anxiety is an effect from this, this will give the basis for the results, will this rise in arousal and anxiety improve the players performance or be detrimental, for the participants. The next step is to go through a score card and in relation to there handicap put the scores down on the holes that they would normally have. This will be the basis of the results this is in comparison to a control group that the players normally perform to. This also is adding a target for the players, that may have the same effect as the camera After this they will be assigned the CSAI-2 questionnaire and asked to complete this, to break up the questionnaires as stated by Martens (1990), the participants shall be asked to take part in a warm up and hit a few balls to have a practise. This also reduces the risk of injury and gives the players time to get used to the researcher being there and the surroundings. The net step that was undertaken was to take players to first tee, and to mark the score card on each hole for the player. The study should last approximately

Feminism and Modern Feminist Theory Essay -- Feminist Theory Essays

Feminism is a body of social theory and political movement primarily based on and motivated by the experiences of women. While generally providing a critique of social relations, many proponents of feminism also focus on analyzing gender inequality and the promotion of women's rights, interests, and issues. Feminist theory aims to understand the nature of gender inequality and focuses on gender politics, power relations and sexuality. Feminist political activism campaigns on issues such as reproductive rights, domestic violence, maternity leave, equal pay, sexual harassment, discrimination and sexual violence. Themes explored in feminism include discrimination, stereotyping, objectification, sexual objectification, oppression and patriarchy. While generally providing a critique of social relations, many proponents of feminism also focus on analyzing gender inequality and the promotion of women's rights, interests, and issues. Modern feminist theory has been extensively criticized as being predominantly, but not exclusively, associated with western middle class academia. Feminist activism, however, is a grass roots movement which crosses class and race boundaries Feminism is not a single ideology. Over-time several sub-types of Feminist ideology have developed. Early feminists and primary feminist movements are often called the first-wave feminists, and feminists after about 1960 the second-wave feminists. More recently, a new generation of feminists have started third-wave feminism. Whether this will be a lasting evolution remains to be seen as the second-wave has by no means ended nor has it ceded to the third-wave feminists. Moreover, some commentators have asserted that the silent majority of modern feminists have more in common ideologically with the first-wave feminists than the second-wave. For example, many of the ideas arising from Radical feminism and Gender feminism (prominent second-wave movements) have yet to gain traction within the broader community and outside of Gender Studies departments within the academy. For example, Radical feminism argues for the existence of an oppressive patriarchy that is the root cause of the most serious social problems. Violence and oppression of women, because they are women, is more fundamental than oppressions related to class, ethnicity, religion, etc. Radical feminisms have been very vocal and ac... ...debate has occurred within socialist feminist circles about the exact relationship between sexual, economic class, and racial oppression. Some, usually termed Marxist-feminists, claim that economic class causes oppression. Although they recognize women's oppression as part of a complicated attachment of male dominance, they view it always through its capitalist foundations. Socialist feminists name society's system of male privilege, patriarchy. All socialist feminists recognize that capitalism—the exchange of one's labour for wages to create someone else's profit—is particularly problematic for women. However, the particular relationship between patriarchy as a semi-independent system of patriarchal privilege and capitalism remains controversial. Socialist feminists give priority to the economic side of women's oppression. They believe that the economic class aspects of women's lives define their life choices and that these differences between women must be addressed before women can understand one another's needs. This understanding led to abortion-rights work, which demanded access for poor women, not just for middle-class women who could afford to pay for it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Feminism and Modern Feminist Theory Essay -- Feminist Theory Essays Feminism is a body of social theory and political movement primarily based on and motivated by the experiences of women. While generally providing a critique of social relations, many proponents of feminism also focus on analyzing gender inequality and the promotion of women's rights, interests, and issues. Feminist theory aims to understand the nature of gender inequality and focuses on gender politics, power relations and sexuality. Feminist political activism campaigns on issues such as reproductive rights, domestic violence, maternity leave, equal pay, sexual harassment, discrimination and sexual violence. Themes explored in feminism include discrimination, stereotyping, objectification, sexual objectification, oppression and patriarchy. While generally providing a critique of social relations, many proponents of feminism also focus on analyzing gender inequality and the promotion of women's rights, interests, and issues. Modern feminist theory has been extensively criticized as being predominantly, but not exclusively, associated with western middle class academia. Feminist activism, however, is a grass roots movement which crosses class and race boundaries Feminism is not a single ideology. Over-time several sub-types of Feminist ideology have developed. Early feminists and primary feminist movements are often called the first-wave feminists, and feminists after about 1960 the second-wave feminists. More recently, a new generation of feminists have started third-wave feminism. Whether this will be a lasting evolution remains to be seen as the second-wave has by no means ended nor has it ceded to the third-wave feminists. Moreover, some commentators have asserted that the silent majority of modern feminists have more in common ideologically with the first-wave feminists than the second-wave. For example, many of the ideas arising from Radical feminism and Gender feminism (prominent second-wave movements) have yet to gain traction within the broader community and outside of Gender Studies departments within the academy. For example, Radical feminism argues for the existence of an oppressive patriarchy that is the root cause of the most serious social problems. Violence and oppression of women, because they are women, is more fundamental than oppressions related to class, ethnicity, religion, etc. Radical feminisms have been very vocal and ac... ...debate has occurred within socialist feminist circles about the exact relationship between sexual, economic class, and racial oppression. Some, usually termed Marxist-feminists, claim that economic class causes oppression. Although they recognize women's oppression as part of a complicated attachment of male dominance, they view it always through its capitalist foundations. Socialist feminists name society's system of male privilege, patriarchy. All socialist feminists recognize that capitalism—the exchange of one's labour for wages to create someone else's profit—is particularly problematic for women. However, the particular relationship between patriarchy as a semi-independent system of patriarchal privilege and capitalism remains controversial. Socialist feminists give priority to the economic side of women's oppression. They believe that the economic class aspects of women's lives define their life choices and that these differences between women must be addressed before women can understand one another's needs. This understanding led to abortion-rights work, which demanded access for poor women, not just for middle-class women who could afford to pay for it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

Understanding Chopins The Awakening :: Chopin Awakening Essays

Understanding Chopin's The Awakening By reading The Awakening, the reader gets a sense of what the life of a Creole woman is like.   In actuality, though, it is not until reading the etiquette books, Chopin’s biographical information, and essays about the treatment of women at the time that there can be a deeper understanding of the rules Edna is breaking. Passages from Chopin's Biographical Information Fawned over as a society belle, admired for her cleverness and musical talent, Kate wrote what she really thought in her diary: â€Å"I dance with people I despise; amuse myself with men whose only talent is in their feet.† She wrote advice about how to flirt (just keep asking, â€Å"What do you think?† and you will be praised everywhere for your intelligence).   (116) The sarcasm and wit of Kate Chopin can be seen and heard through the character of Edna Pontellier.   Just from this small excerpt in Chopin’s diary, we can hear the similarities.   In The Awakening, Edna seems to move through the Creole social scene in a daze, possibly because she despised all of it. But when she was alone with her thoughts, she appears quite aware of what she wanted and needed to be happy. I feel that although many critics say that The Awakening is not based on Chopin’s own life, the author has taken many aspects of her own personal life to develop characters.   For example, the biographical information says that Chopin’s husband is an attentive, loving man.   I think that Robert is, in part, modeled after him. Here is a passage dealing with the rules of etiquette that Edna is breaking: Let nothing, but the most imperative duty, call you out upon your reception day. Your callers are, in a measure, invited guests, and it will be an insulting mark of rudeness to be out when they call. Neither can you be excused, except in case of sickness.   (123) The amount of etiquette that must be learned by these women is astounding.   The articles give the reader a real appreciation for the social faux pas that Edna is   committing. Before reading this, I did not quite understand how far from the norm Edna is straying.   After reading this excerpt, I fully realize why it is such a dire situation to Leonce when Edna went out on her reception day.   The rules made it sound like women needed to be home on their day to have guests; and on the other days, they needed to be out visiting.

Comparing the Use of Setting in The Shawl and The Portable Phonograph E

Use of Setting in "The Shawl" and "The Portable Phonograph"  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚   In literature, setting is often used to enhance or develop characters, provide realism, and create a mood or atmosphere for a story (Roberts 256). Two short stories, "The Shawl" by Cynthia Ozick and Walter Van Tillburg Clark’s "The Portable Phonograph" explore victims of war in the vivid settings that the authors have created. Although both works are vague as to geographic setting and place in time, the authors’ detailed descriptions of the character’s surroundings envelop the reader and lend an air of authenticity to the tales (Kauvar 180). "The Shawl" and "The Portable Phonograph" differ in their treatment of symbolism and characterization but their ingenious use of setting to create a theme unites these two stories. "The Shawl" and "The Portable Phonograph" both open with intense, haunting descriptions; Ozick shocks readers with her portrayal of "the Holocaust in searingly vivid sensory impressions" (Watson 892) and Clark dedicates his first three paragraphs to describing a desolate, war torn plain devoid of almost all life. Clark immediately creates a sense of a dangerous, foreboding world, describing a "sensation of torment" that "arose from the stillness of the earth air beneath the violence of the upper air" (Roberts 260). The reader is left with an impression, filled with detail, but moreover, overflowing with emotion. "The Shawl" and "The Portable Phonograph" contain objects that are critical to the stories and to the mental states of the characters contained within. In the former story, the Rosa believes the shawl protects her baby from the horrors of the Holocaust, the scrap of cloth provides her with hope that the next generation wi... ...rough their thoughts. The settings in these two stories act as more than simply a backdrop for a tale, they are used "to create meaning, just as painters include backgrounds and objects to render ideas" (Roberts 255).    Works Cited Kauvar, Elaine M. Cynthia Ozick’s Fiction: Tradition and Invention. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1993. Magill, Frank N. ed. Critical Survey of Short Fiction, Vol. 2. Pasadena: Salem Press,1993. Roberts, Edgar V. and Jacobs, Henry E. Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 1998. Sheehy, Gail. Spirit of Survival. New York: William Morrow and Co., 1986. Stine, Jean C. ed. Contemporary Literary Criticism, Vol. 28. Detroit: Gale Research Co., 1984. Watson, Noelle, ed. Reference Guide to Short Fiction. Detroit: St. James Press, 1994.   

The Impacts of Cyber Bullying

Kids all over the world have easy access to phones, computers, and other electronic devices, making it easier for kids to become vulnerable to online bullying. As a 2003-04 survey by Org indicates, 42% of kids have been bullied while online and 58% have not told their parents or an adult about something mean or hurtful that happened to them online. Kids are increasingly becoming victims of cyber bullying, causing lowered self esteem, mental health Issues, and In severe cases can trigger suicidal tendencies.Anyone is susceptible to cyber bullying and with social networking sites, like Faceable, on the rise; the need to fit in can take a toll on us mentally. According to Claudia Schwartz, a marriage and family therapist, â€Å"teens who spend a lot of time on the social networking website – and who already have low- self esteem- are vulnerable to Faceable Depression. † Reading negative comments and constantly make comparisons with others on Faceable can cause a downward s piral fast. Schwartz says, â€Å"Parents need to help teens understand that Faceable Depression Is a serious problem. She urges parents to manage their kids' time online, so it doesn't affect other things such as school or homework. Depression can come in all types of forms; recognizing the signs in others and one's self can greatly make an impact on the society as a whole. Apart from mental health Issues, cyber bullying has been known to cause suicidal tendencies. One notable Incident was that of Phoebe Prince, a 15 year old girl who hung herself due to months of torment by students at South Hadley High School. Kids would torment Prince through text message and through the social networking site, Faceable.Like Prince, many teens around the world have thought or resorted to suicide, because they felt there was no other outlet; they felt that's what their bullies wanted them to do. One of the seaways to stop cyber bullying Is to talk about It. Talk to friends, parents, and teachers, someone you feel you can trust. Kids who are being bullied don't have to just take it. Technology should be used to help you ace an English essay, to interact with friends and family, or even to play the latest video game. Put a stop to cyber bullying by not becoming one. Sanely 7 February 2012 Works Citied â€Å"cyber sullying: statistics and Tips.

Homosexual Propagation in Ukraine

Evelina Habrel The Exploratory Paper Sanna Karosas ENG 113 Academic Writing 6 March 2013 Homosexual Propagation in Ukraine Ukraine is a post-Soviet country; therefore, many Soviet-style values and beliefs still exist in Ukrainians’ minds. Ukraine still shows negative about promotion of gays as it was in Soviet Union. In 2012, Ukraine faced the problem of homosexuality propaganda. Because homosexual couples became very visible, the issue of how to relate to homosexuals propagation became urgent in the society.This issue has influenced not only Ukrainian government and population, gays but also European Union. Ukrainian Parliament presented a bill against promotion of homosexual relationships which is supported even by the president’s representative. The law bans â€Å"propaganda of homosexuality,† which is defined as a positive attitude to gays in public (The Associated Press, 2012). Some politicians proposed to confirm the anti-gay law 8711 where the Ukrainian go vernment wants to prison people up to five years for any positive public depiction of homosexuality.In addition, this bill would ban such events as gay pride parades or TV dating shows for same-sex couples. An author of the Ukrainian bill, Pavlo Ungurian, stated that the bill would help to protect â€Å"the moral, spiritual, and physical health of the nation,† while Ruslan Kukharchuk, a campaigner for the bill and the leader of the â€Å"Love Against Homosexuality† group, named a homosexuality â€Å"a disease †¦ a psychological disorder,† and such people should get â€Å"rehabilitation therapy† (Druker, Boissevain, Caloianu, Persio 2012).Ukrainian political branch is strain because there are many powers that shows negative attitude towards homosexual propagation. This conflict made the Ukrainian population to split into supporters and fighters against gay promotion. Statistics shows that only 3% of Ukrainians have quite positive attitude to sexual mi norities, 10% have rather positive, 14. 5% – rather negative, and 57. 5% – entirely negative (Stern, 2012). In the article â€Å"Tajik Fighting Ends, Ukraine Gets on Anti-Gay Bandwagon† it is reported that people who participated in a march last May in Kyiv promoted the traditional family and rotested against homosexuals’ rights with a slogan â€Å"Homosexuality – No. † People in Ukraine do not want to accept homosexuals in society. As a result, they might do some protests where they express what the feel and think. The way people show their attitude to gays and the words or physical power they use is unethical in some cases. There were situations in Ukraine when homosexuals were beaten by citizens just because they promote nontraditional sexual orientation. For instance, masked assailants kicked and jumped on Svyatoslav Sheremet, the head of Gay Forum of Ukraine.A month later, unknown muggers assaulted Taras Karasiychuk, another of the para de investors, on the street as he was coming home at night (Stern, 2012). These cases show the cruelty of some anti-gay supporters. Ukrainian homosexuals fight for their rights. They ask for help and support for lesbian and gay organizations. Because of the new law, they need a protection because anti-gay movements became very cruel. Homosexuals do not think that propagation of nontraditional orientation can harm Ukrainians population (Danilova, 2012). They ask to provide civil liberties and equity for the sexual minorities.In spring 2012, Ukraine was supposed to have a pride parade, but because of the mass riots against homosexual demonstrations, organizers decided not to conduct it (The Associated Press, 2012). Homosexuals need social comfort because they feel eradication of the prejudiced and stigmatic attitude. Even though they might not promote homosexuality, they still will be treated as those who propagate it. Svyatoslav Sheremet, who leads Ukraine's Gay Forum, said, â€Å"E ventually, society comes to realize that one can only live peacefully when one is tolerant† (Danilova, 2012).Homosexuals feel themselves unsafely and prejudiced in Ukraine, and they want people to be kinder to them. The next perspective of this issue belongs to the European Union that shows its disappointment in Ukraine because of the anti-gay law. For Europe people should be treated equally no matter what sexual orientation a person demonstrates. According to Reid-Smith’s article â€Å"Europe May Punish Ukraine for Gay Censorship Law,† European Union may put new visa rules to punish Ukraine if it confirms law plan against homosexual propaganda. Of course, it will be harder for Ukrainians to have an access to Europe.The draft anti-gay law creates hostility between Ukraine and European Union. The United Nations Human Rights Committee insisted that such law could not exist with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights that Ukraine approved (Intergro up on LGBT Rights, 2012). The European Union does not discriminate homosexual propagation, and if Ukraine accepts the law against it, than the results will be noxious for the Ukrainian population. Many homosexuals nowadays feel themselves uncomfortable because they cannot be accepted in the Ukrainian culture. Lots of them feel they are not treated in the same way as heterosexuals are viewed.Many Ukrainians began arguing whether homosexual propagation can exist in Ukraine or not. Lots of people were raised in families where traditional relationships were encouraged, and for them it is very hard to accept gays’ demonstrations. Based on previous political power in Ukraine, the government does not want to accept homosexual supporters in the country. Moreover, this issue forced the European Union to be involved. Indeed, Ukraine has had strain relationship with Europe, and now it can become worse. European Union wants Ukraine government to be loyal to homosexual propagation.There c an be some limits for demonstrations, but it is unethical to prison those who promote them, as a Ukrainian government wants to do. Ukrainian Parliament should think about European Commission’s reaction. The Parliament should realize all the pros and cons of the 8711 law for the Ukrainian future. References Danilova, M. (2012, Jul 18). Leaders of Ukraine's gay community say intolerance, and violence against homosexuals on rise. Yahoo! News. Retrieved from http://news. yahoo. com/leaders-ukraines-gay-community-intolerance-violence-against-homosexuals-173017972. html Druker, J. , Boissevain, J. , Caloianu, I. & Persio, S. (2012, July 26). Tajik fighting ends, Ukraine gets on anti-gay bandwagon. Transitions Online, 4. Intergroup on LGBT Rights. (2012, December). European Commission: Ukraine’s anti-gay law obstacle to visa-free travel. Retrieved from http://www. lgbt-ep. eu/press-releases/european-commission-ukraines-bill-8711-obstacle-to-eu-ukraine-visa-agreement/ Reid-Smi th, T. (2012, October). Europe may punish Ukraine for gay censorship law. Gay Star News. Retrieved from http://www. gaystarnews. com/article/europe-may-punish-ukraine-gay-censorship-law031012 Stern, D. (2012, October). Ukraine takes aim against ‘gay

The Broadway Café

The products offered by Broadway Cafe: coffees, teas, bread, sandwiches, soups and salads are all homemade. This means that customers will get a feel of being comfy and at home with the products offered by the Cafe. Moreover, the Cafe also does not have that feel of being too commercialized, compared with major coffee shop brands that have sprung in recent years. With the specialized products of Broadway Cafe, its patrons feel special that they are part of a unique Cafe experience. Broadway Cafe is part of the history of the city.The Cafe started operating in 1952. It is amazing that it continues to operate to this day. Although, in some aspects, it has not caught up with technological and operational innovations, it is already a part of the city’s history and part of the local flavor that make the city unique. Because of this, city residents who have developed a fondness for the Cafe will not want to see it close down. Grandfather knew every customer of the cafe. This is part of the unique experience of going to the Cafe.In Ernest Hemingway’s A Moveable Feast, he described his experiences of going to various cafes in Paris. With grandfather knowing every customer of the cafe, they developed friendships and the customers became even more loyal to the Broadway Cafe. Small operations. The Broadway Cafe has small operations. As such, it can easily implement changes without disrupting any major operations. The operational expense of the Cafe is not very large. Therefore, the profits of the Cafe could be easily reinvested into the business. 2. Weaknesses of the Cafe. Only grandfather knows the recipes.This is a weakness because when grandfather dies, then no one else will be able to retrieve the recipes and write them down. There should be at least one other person who knows the recipes and write them down so it would be easy to pass them on. Customer information and data are not stored anywhere else. Knowing every customer of the Cafe is great! Howeve r, only grandfather knows them all. It would also be better for these information to be written down so that I will get to know the existing customers and develop friendship with them, too. Orders are taken manually.Taking orders manually is time-consuming. Some customers may be in a hurry and this process will certainly slow them down. Investing in a good P. O. S. system will help the Cafe take and serve orders more quickly. Inventory tracking is outdated and prone to mistakes. Without an effective inventory tracking system, mistakes will be committed and costs may even go up more than necessary. 3. Threats to the Cafe. Entry of new Cafe in the city. The growth of Starbucks in the past decade has been remarkable. It has penetrated virtually every major city in the world.The entry of Starbucks and other commercial cafe in our city will be a threat to the Broadway Cafe. As such, the Cafe will have to capitalize on its strengths and upgrade its operations so it can compete with the co mmercial cafes. The economic downturn. With the present economic downturn being faced by the United States, the spending power of customers is diminished. As such, they may choose to forego going to the Cafe because of economic reasons. 4. Recommendations for upgrading and bringing the Cafe into the 21st century. Capitalize on the strengths of Broadway Cafe.Essentially, the way that grandfather treated every customer will be recreated. I, as the manager, and the employees of the Cafe will be trained to know every customer and establish friendship with them. Document (on video and on paper) the recipes of the Cafe. This is a sure way of preserving the knowledge of grandfather through the generations to come. If his recipes are committed to paper, the Cafe will be able to include two or more chefs who can help in preparing the orders of customers. Purchase a computerized Point-of-Sale system plus inventory tracking software.By automating the processes of taking order and of tracking i nventory, the Cafe will become more efficient and customers do not have to wait in long lines to be served. The twenty first century has become very busy for working professionals. They would appreciate if orders were taken and served more quickly than before. Craft and implement a marketing plan for the Cafe. Word-of-mouth will remain as the major marketing strategy of the company. However, with the advent of the 21st century, a marketing plan needs to be crafted and implemented, including the creation of a website and the sponsorship of events in the Cafe premises.

The Moldau

Connie Ju| [The Moldau] Smetana | Year 11 Music 2 Musicology Essay| | Smetana’s Moldau is a musical portrayal of the main river which runs through the countryside of Bohemia (present day Czech Republic). The piece begins with a sweet one bar theme that is played by two solo flutes, representing the trickle of a small creek. The soft melody played in piano and â€Å"lusingando†, which means to be played in a coaxing style, convey the delicate and smoothness of the water.The ascending semi-quavers accompanied with a slight crescendo at the beginning of the phrase as well as a two quaver rests at the end of the bar create a rippling effect, symbolising the slight waves of a stream. Furthermore, the lone plucked pizzicato quavers by the strings add small splashes of colour to decorate the continuously flowing melody of the airy flutes. The light, fluttering tone colour of the solo flutes and the thin texture portray the clear appearance of the water as it makes its way acro ss the land.Bar 1 -2 (solo flutes) Bar 1 -2 (accompanying strings) The first bar theme is repeated to become the basis of this extract, however there are also variations of the theme were the starting note is changed to indicate a different scenery or perhaps some animals, such as small fishes, that are swimming through the water that make the river full of life. Bar 5 (repeat of the theme)Bar 8 (variation of theme) Bar 10 (variation of theme)The texture of this work begins as very thin as there are only solo flutes that play the melody that portray the simple and tiny stream accompanied with light pizzicato of strings that add to the tone colour. This means that the start of this piece is played in a thin homophonic texture. Bar 1 -4 (homophony) However, when the texture at bar 16 is compared to the first four bars, it is thicker as there is the addition of clarinets that play an alternate melody. This new melody is in a contrary motion to the existing flute melody and plucking st rings which represent widening of the tiny creek so the water is moving a bit more wildly.The polyphonic texture consists of two major layers and the randomly placed pizzicato chords which are a reminder of water’s unpredictable motions. Bar 16 (flutes, clarinets, strings – polyphonic texture) The two small rivers that make up the larger Moldau meets at bar 28 where the clarinets stop for a bar and the violas begin their melody. This short bar acts as a bridge, the connection where the bodies of water finally merge to create a great river. The bigger river in bar 29 is conveyed by the three different layers, flutes, clarinets, and violas.Continuous semi-quavers that rise and fall in pitch still represent the fluidity and continuity of the water but now the extra layer means that the river is wilder with bigger waves and other movements. Bar 28 (melodies played by flutes and strings) Bar 29-30 (flutes, clarinets, viola) Bar 36 sees even more layers as the strings begin to play the flowing melody of the river. The start of the larger body of water is indicated by a strong perfect cadence by the lower strings (bar 36). At the widest point of the river, bar 40, the whole orchestra plays.All the instruments playing together expresses the notion that this is the climax of the river and it is wildest at this point. The wind instruments, however, play a slower melody of slurred crochets and quavers with a drawn out crescendo and the instruction of â€Å"dolce†. The new melody presents the idea that the river is experiencing different landscapes, such as quiet, peaceful pastoral lands or rolling hills in the distance. This polyphonic texture continues until the end of the excerpt. These additional tone colours further build upon the majestic nature of the river as well as its more powerful movements.Bar 36-37 (increased layers) Bar 40 (different melodies, thick texture) The dynamics of this piece correspondingly represent the growth of the river. I n both bars 1 and 2, there is a lone crescendo plus an accent, this is the river just starting out so it is not very dramatic compared to bar 20 and 21 where there is a crescendo and a decrescendo within one bar. Moreover, in bars 41-42, not only are there crescendos and decrescendos but the additional sforzando sign.The â€Å"p† for piano in the bar directly after (bar 43) simply adds to the tempestuous nature of the water as there are more dramatic things happening in a faster-flowing large river. Bar 1 (slight crescendo, â€Å"lusingando†, accent, â€Å"p†) Bar 20-21 (crescendo and descrendo) Bars 41-43 (dramatic dynamics) The tone colour of the instruments also changes as the river grows. The solo flutes at the beginning create a sweet, airy, light sound of a stream but the orchestral playing altogether from bar 40 onwards makes a stormy sound much like the torrents of a wild river.Having the lower strings playing the melody instead of the winds depicts the strength of the matured river compared to the higher pitched flutes that represented the fragility and daintiness of a stream. Bar 40 (full orchestra playing – polyphonic texture and extra tone colour) This musical program by Smetana artistically conveys the development of the iconic Moldau River through the use of various techniques such as texture, structure, rhythm, tone colour, and dynamics. He is able to represent all the aspects of the constantly moving river, beginning with a delicate stream and finishing with a majestic river. Word Count: 940

Child Labour in the Global Economy Dissertation

Child Labour in the Global Economy - Dissertation Example Children had been historically involved in a variety of jobs ranging from agricultural and farming to industrial and manufacturing jobs. But, this conventional idea employing children in the aforementioned fields is rapidly changing as most often it is their parents who force their offspring into laborious activities. A survey conducted by ILO across 36 less developed economies reported a fraction of the 25 percent children employed in economically active jobs to be working for others. In addition, most of them work without pay with dominance of such form of exploitation more prevalent in urban than in rural areas. UNICEF reported this figure at 4.2 percent in case of rural regions and 5.2 percent for urban areas, for LDCs. Furthermore, out of the few children who work for others, nearly 6 percent do not earn any wage; such situation normally arises in cases when parents hold their children as collaterals while accepting loans and default payments on the same owing to poverty (Edmond s & Pavcnik, 2005, p. 202). Figure 1 alongside summarises the outcome of a survey conducted by ILO in 2006 to comprehend the change in occurrence of child labour across the world through 2000-2004. It shows the highest concentration of child labour in Sub-Saharan Africa followed by Asia-Pacific areas. Child labour is found to have dropped drastically in Latin America and Caribbean with a reduction of more than 10 percent of the total child population over the region. On the whole, the scenario has improved for child labour throughout the world within a span of four years.... But, this conventional idea employing children in the aforementioned fields is rapidly changing as most often it is their parents who force their offspring into laborious activities. A survey conducted by ILO across 36 less developed economies reported a fraction of the 25 percent children employed in economically active jobs to be working for others. In addition, most of them work without pay with dominance of such form of exploitation more prevalent in urban than in rural areas. UNICEF reported this figure at 4.2 percent in case of rural regions and 5.2 percent for urban areas, for LDCs. Furthermore, out of the few children who work for others, nearly 6 percent do not earn any wage; such situation normally arises in cases when parents hold their children as collaterals while accepting loans and default payments on the same owing to poverty (Edmonds & Pavcnik, 2005, p. 202). Figure 1 alongside summarises the outcome of a survey conducted by ILO in 2006 to comprehend the change in oc currence of child labour across the world through 2000-2004. It shows the highest concentration of child labour in Sub-Saharan Africa followed by Asia-Pacific areas. Child labour is found to have dropped drastically in Latin America and Caribbean with a reduction of more than 10 percent of the total child population over the region. On the whole, the scenario has improved for child labour throughout the world within a span of four years. This fact has an obvious implication that the world is indeed developing at a fast pace and in a homogeneous pattern. Figure 2 on the other hand, emphasises upon the kinds of jobs that children between 5 and 14 years of age, are employed in. It shows a majority of them to be employed in agricultural and farming