Tuesday, November 26, 2019

All ideologies are broad churches Discuss with reference essays

All ideologies are broad churches Discuss with reference essays An ideology can be seen as a rational and complex science of ideas which offers some form of political and cultural schemata for certain social orders, in an attempt to explain how society should work ultimately aiming for the implementation of a form of utopia. Political ideologies are largely concerned with both the allocation and systematic usage of power, and are thus subject to public scrutiny and evolve with changes in modern day society and culture. Different interpretations of these evolutions often lead to the formation of different ideological structures, and similarly, single ideologies which may be seen as a whole are actually comprised of many different substrands which have developed from their counterparts. As a result, it can be said that no ideology is finite, and that ideologies are always going through periodical and progressive changes in correlation with societys. The phrase broad churches refers to this idea, that within a body of political or philosophical t hought, there are a variety of co-existing (and competing) ways of thinking. One example of this is liberalism. Liberalism is viewed as the dominant modern political ideology, embodying a common sense approach to its analysis (Hall 1986). It identifies the individual, aiming to maximise freedoms, and social equality. However, despite similar labels, liberal parties across different nations differ tremendously. Developed in the 17th century, its initial standing was to challenge the dominance of the monarchy and to establish a stable society in which individuals could exercise their own rights. Among the main developments were Lockes social contract theory, identifying the notion of consent and authority and its role in legitimising governmental actions. As society evolved into the industrial revolution in the 18th century, liberalism adopted an economic focus and the notion o...

Saturday, November 23, 2019

The Ultimate Guide to the 5-Paragraph Essay

The Ultimate Guide to the 5-Paragraph Essay A five-paragraph essay is a prose composition  that follows a prescribed format of an  introductory paragraph, three  body paragraphs, and a concluding paragraph,  and is typically taught during primary English education and applied on standardized testing throughout schooling. Learning to write a high-quality five-paragraph essay  is an essential skill for students in early English classes as it allows them to express certain ideas, claims, or concepts in an organized manner, complete with evidence that supports each of these notions. Later, though, students may decide to stray from the standard five-paragraph format and venture into writing an  exploratory essay  instead. Still, teaching students to organize essays into the five-paragraph format is an easy way to introduce them to writing literary criticism, which will be tested time and again throughout their primary, secondary, and further education. Writing a Good Introduction The introduction is the first paragraph in your essay, and it should accomplish a few specific goals: capture the readers interest, introduce the topic, and make a claim or express an opinion in a thesis statement. Its a good idea to start your essay with a hook (fascinating statement)  to pique the readers interest, though this can also be accomplished by using descriptive words, an anecdote, an intriguing question, or an interesting fact. Students can practice with creative writing prompts to get some ideas for interesting ways to start an essay. The next few sentences should explain your first statement, and prepare the reader for your thesis statement, which is typically the last sentence in the introduction.  Your  thesis sentence  should provide your specific assertion and convey a clear point of view, which is typically divided into three distinct arguments that support this assertation, which will each serve as central themes for the body paragraphs. Writing Body Paragraphs The body of the essay will include  three body paragraphs in a five-paragraph essay format, each limited to one main idea that supports your thesis. To correctly write each of these three body paragraphs, you should state your supporting idea, your topic sentence, then back it up with two or three sentences of evidence. Use examples that validate the claim before concluding the paragraph and using  transition words to lead to the  paragraph that follows - meaning that all of your  body paragraphs should follow the pattern of statement, supporting ideas, transition statement. Words to use as you transition from one paragraph to another include: moreover, in fact, on the whole, furthermore, as a result, simply put, for this reason, similarly, likewise, it follows that, naturally, by comparison, surely, and yet. Writing a Conclusion The final paragraph will summarize your main points and re-assert your main claim (from your thesis sentence). It should point out your main points, but should not repeat specific examples, and should, as always, leave a lasting impression on the reader. The first sentence of the conclusion, therefore, should be used to restate the supporting claims argued in the body paragraphs as they relate to the thesis statement, then the next few sentences should be used to explain how the essays main points can lead outward, perhaps to further thought on the topic. Ending the conclusion with a question, anecdote, or final pondering is a great way to leave a lasting impact. Once you complete the first draft of your essay, its a good idea to re-visit the thesis statement in your first paragraph. Read your essay to see if it flows well, and you might find that the supporting paragraphs are strong, but they dont address the exact focus of your thesis. Simply re-write your thesis sentence to fit your body and summary more exactly, and adjust the conclusion to wrap it all up nicely. Practice Writing a Five-Paragraph Essay Students can use the following steps to write a standard essay on any given topic. First, choose a topic, or ask your students to choose their topic, then allow them to form a basic five-paragraph by following these steps: Decide on your  basic thesis, your idea of a topic to discuss.Decide on three pieces of supporting evidence you will use to prove your thesis.Write an introductory  paragraph, including your thesis and evidence (in order of strength).Write your first body paragraph, starting with restating your thesis and focusing on your first piece of supporting evidence.End your first paragraph with a transitional sentence that leads to the next body paragraph.Write paragraph two of the body focussing on your second piece of evidence. Once again make the connection between your thesis and this piece of evidence.End your second paragraph with a transitional sentence that leads to paragraph number three.Repeat step 6 using your third piece of evidence.Begin your concluding paragraph by restating your thesis. Include the three points youve used to prove your thesis.End with a punch, a question, an anecdote, or an entertaining thought that will stay with the reader. Once a student can master these 10 simple steps, writing a basic five-paragraph essay will be a piece of cake, so long as the student does so correctly and includes enough supporting information in each paragraph that all relate to the same centralized main idea, the thesis of the essay. Limitations of the Five-Paragraph Essay The five-paragraph essay is merely a starting point for students hoping to express their ideas in academic writing; there are some other forms and styles of writing that students should use to express their vocabulary in the written form. According to Tory Youngs Studying English Literature: A Practical Guide: Although school students in the U.S. are examined on their ability to write a  five-paragraph essay, its  raison dà ªtre  is purportedly to give practice in basic writing skills that will lead to future success in more varied forms. Detractors feel, however, that writing to rule in this way is more likely to discourage imaginative writing and thinking than enable it. . . . The five-paragraph essay is less aware of its  audience  and sets out only to present information, an account or a kind of story rather than explicitly to persuade the reader. Students should instead be asked to write other forms, such as journal entries, blog posts, reviews of goods or services, multi-paragraph research papers, and freeform expository writing around a central theme. Although five-paragraph essays are the golden rule when writing for standardized tests, experimentation with expression should be encouraged throughout primary schooling to bolster students abilities to utilize the English language fully.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Classroom of Future Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Classroom of Future - Research Paper Example (Shahril, 2011) The classroom is an important environment that transforms many students’ different fields of proffessionalism.Recent research has proved that there is a relationship between their performance and the classroom facilities. Normally, the classroom facilities affect students’ attendance and academic performance. Therefore, taking care of classroom facilities improve the level of student performance in the classroom. Additionally, the classroom often reflects the correlation between the students and their teachers. (Schneider, 2002) According Shahril (2011), he stated that it is important to understand not only what is coming next but also where classrooms started. Throughout history, classrooms have undergone much of technological changes. The purpose of this paper therefore is to describe those changes and then visualize the future changes of the classroom. The classroom has changed a lot since the past. There are three main periods from the early days that helped build the education system that we currently have. The first colonial period was between the 1600’s to 1700’s. The second period was from the American Revolution to the Civil War which was approximately a 70 year period from 1791-1861. (Anderson, 1962).The Information age came next from mid 1900s to the early 2000s. (Lackney &Tanner, 2006) In the colonial period the classroom were very small and only consisted of a single roomed building most likely with log walls, a dirt floor and wax windows. For chairs they would split a log in half and attach branches to the bottom to create a chair. Educational equipment was very scarce and expensive, most of them were homemade consisting of quill pens and boil down bark to make ink. (Anderson, 1962) Between the American Revolution and the civil war, the classroom transformed and became better since classrooms had blackboards, slates and maps. The furniture and architecture also improved greatly. During

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

X-Ray Technician Workloads Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

X-Ray Technician Workloads - Research Paper Example As the report stresses there is increasing realisation that for x-ray technicians to be capable of optimum performance that they need post-graduate training as a specialist. However, extended study at university is not always a feasible option for the x-ray operator, due to economic, personal or cultural factors. Also, it is important that the health care provided by practioners meet the needs of the community, and as such, most x-ray technicians find themselves needing to be multi-taskers as practioners. This paper hopes to provide methodological insights in to analysis of the working conditions for x-ray staff. Ideally, this research will contribute to local, state and national standards regarding x-ray technician workloads and training. Also, this paper aims to contribute to the knowledge of the role of the x-ray technician and the workplace factors that impact on their performance. To date, there is a glaring neglect into the study of the x-ray technician workforce. Reliable data is difficult to gather due to the different contexts of work environment, x-ray technician, and patient specific needs. A survey will measure patient satisfaction and x-ray technician workloads at a hospital in the UK. It is hypothesized that on the days of high workloads that the patients will report higher ratings of dissatisfaction. It is also expected that x-ray technicians that are specialists will receive higher ratings from patients with conditions which they specialize in, as compared to those not within their specialty training. A Review of the Literature To date, very little literature exists on the topic of x-ray technician working conditions. General information is readily available, such as the frequency of educational completions or numbers of licenses approved (Patterson et al., 2004). Research into this subject is critical, especially as x-ray technician services are unlikely to be distributed according to community needs. It is a limitation in the understanding of community health care needs when adequate data about the conditions of the workforce of x-ray technicians across time and location remains unknown. Further,

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Comparing Hedonistic and Utilitarian Products Essay Example for Free

Comparing Hedonistic and Utilitarian Products Essay Utilitarian Consumption: The consumption of products has tangible benefit for consumer. In western culture, such products are often labeled as practical or necessary. Utilitarian products are purchased and consumed to satisfy consumer’s practical or functional needs. Utilitarian consumer behavior has been described as ergic, task-related and rational. In the marketing literature choice and decision with respect to utilitarian products and informed by the utility maximizing perspective. Thus the consumption of utilitarian products is more instrumental. The motivation initiating the need for a utilitarian product suggests that these products are primarily thought of in terms of their functional performance. Hedonic Consumption: The consumption of products for fun, amusement, fantasy, arousal, sensory stimulation, or enjoyment. Hedonic, pleasure-oriented consumption is motivated by the desire for sensual pleasure and fun. In western culture such products are often labeled as frivolous or decadent. The concept of hedonic consumption recognizes that individuals consume many types of products because of the feelings and images that are associated with the product. The cognitive motives driving the consumption of hedonic products are arguably the need to satisfy symbolic and value-expressive motives such as ego gratification, social acceptance and intellectual. Hedonic products have pleasure potential whereas utilitarian products perform functions in everyday life. Products with pleasure potential provide intangible, symbolic benefits and are likely to hold greater potential for evoking positive emotions in a consumer. Consumer decision making process: Consumers are often faced with these types of choices between hedonic and utilitarian alternatives that are at least partly driven by emotional desires rather than cold cognitive deliberations. Hence, these choices represent an important domain of consumer decision-making. Yet much of the pioneering work in behavioral decision theory has largely focused on the cognitive aspects of decision-making without exploring its emotional dimensions. Consumer decision is driven by functionality, usage and benefits out of various functions of product in the case of utilitarian consumption. But the decision making process is obsessed by symbolism, status, value-expression and social acceptance. For example: the decision of buying bread is driven is by its generic functions and attributes not by brand or image, which are already underlined and understood by every consumer. In case of designer suit the decision is influenced by its brand, image, labels and certain associations like brand ambassador , designer and promoters or co-owner also.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Theme Analysis of Fahrenheit 451 :: Fahrenheit 451 Essays

Theme Analysis of Fahrenheit 451    The theme of Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 can be viewed from several different angles.   First and foremost, Bradbury's novel gives an anti-censorship message.   Bradbury understood censorship to be a natural outcropping of an overly tolerant society.   Once one group objects to something someone has written, that book is modified and censorship begins. Soon, another minority group objects to something else in the book, and it is again edited until eventually the book is banned altogether.   In Bradbury's novel, society has evolved to such an extreme that all literature is illegal to possess.   No longer can books be read, not only because they might offend someone, but because books raise questions that often lead to revolutions and even anarchy.   The intellectual thinking that arises from reading books can often be dangerous, and the government doesn't want to put up with this danger.   Yet this philosophy, according to Bradbury, completely ignores the benefits of k nowledge.   Yes, knowledge can cause disharmony, but in many ways, knowledge of the past, which is recorded in books, can prevent man from making similar mistakes in the present and future.    The society envisioned by Bradbury in Fahrenheit 451 is often compared to Huxley's Brave New World.   Though both works definitely have an anti-government theme, this is not the core idea of Bradbury's novel.   As Beatty explains in part one, government control of people's lives was not a conspiracy of dictators or tyrants, but a consensus of everyday people. People are weak-minded; they don't want to think for themselves and solve the troubling problems of the world.   It is far easier to live a life of seclusion and illusion-a life where the television is reality.   Yet more importantly, Fahrenheit 451 is an anti-apathy and anti-dependence and anti-television message.   People in the novel are afraid-afraid of themselves.   They fear the thought of knowing, which leads them to depend of others (government) to think for them.   Since they aren't thinking, they need something to occupy their time.   This is where television comes in.   A whole host of problems arise from television: violence, depression and even suicide.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Consumer Buying Behaviour Essay

1.1 Introduction What do we mean if we are talking about consumer buying behaviour? There are several decision processes and acts of people (consumers) buying  and using products for themselves or their household. These processes might be very interesting for companies and their marketing managers. But what are the reasons why marketers should know about consumer buying behaviour? -Well, there are several reasons: At first it is important to know about the reaction of the buyer to the firm ´s marketing strategy because this has a great influence on the firm ´s success. Another thing is that the firm can create an almost perfect marketing mix to satisfy the customer. The third reason is that it ´s much easier for the marketers, if they know about the buying behaviours, to predict the reaction of consumers on marketing strategies. On the following pages I want to give a short overview about â€Å"Consumer Buying Behaviour† and â€Å"Organisational Markets and Buying Behaviour†. 1.2 Types of Consumer Buying Behaviour Consumers always want to create an assortment of products which satisfies their needs and wants in the present and also in the future. To realise this aim, the consumer has to make a lot of decisions. These purchasing decisions can be classified into three main categories of decisions: Routine Response Behaviour This behaviour happens when the consumer regularly buys cheap products that need very little search and also very little decision effort. In this case the consumer prefers a special brand but he also knows other brands of the same product class to have an alternative to buy if there is something wrong  with his favourite brand. Limited Decision Making This is the case if the consumer buys a product occasionally or if there is a new brand, he doesn ´t know about, in a familiar product category. For this type of decision-making, the consumer needs a moderate amount of time for gathering information and deliberation. Extensive Decision-Making This is the most complex decision-making behaviour. It happens when a purchase includes unfamiliar, expensive or infrequently bought products; for example cars, houses etc. The buyer uses a lot of time for evaluating alternative brands or choices and also for seeking information. A big contrast to the extensive decision-making processes that were mentioned earlier is the behaviour of the impulse buyers. These people do not plan conscious to buy, they have a persistant urge to buy something immediately if they like it. But often these people get in emotional conflicts, they often feel guilty because of their limited finances or something else. 1.3 The Consumer Buying Decision Process As I mentioned earlier, the decision process is a major part of buying behaviour. This decision process can be divided into five stages: Problem Recognition This occurs when the buyer notices that there is a difference between the desired state and the actual conditions. The consumer gets aware that he has to change something to get satisfied. For example, if somebody needs a car to get to work and one day the car stops working. In this situation the person recognises that there is a difference between the desired state (a working car) and the actual condition (a broken car). Information Search After recognising the problem, the buyer searches for information about a new product which can solve his problem and also is able to satisfy his need (this is only the case if the decision process continues). For example, the above-mentioned car owner, after recognising the need for a new car, he may search for information about different brands and types of cars. Here we distinguish two aspects to an information search: In the internal search, buyers check first if they have any information about the  needed product in their memory. If they cannot get enough information from their memory for a decision, they are looking for more information in an external search. In the external search the buyer may focus on communication with friends or relatives, to hear about their experiences with special brands. He also can obtain information from public sources like manufacturers, salespersons or product-test organisations. Evaluation of Alternatives To evaluate the products of which the buyer got information he is looking for criteria to compare the products. These criteria are for example characteristics or features that the buyer wants (or does not want). In the example of our car buyer these features could be if the car has an airbag, electrical window control or air-conditioning system. The buyer also thinks about how important each criterion is; because some features may carry more weight than others. This evaluation of the consumer can be influenced by the marketer by framing the alternatives – that means the manner how the marketer describes the product and its features. Purchase In this stage the consumer chooses the product or brand which he wants to buy. This selection is based on the result of the previous evaluation stage. There is also a set of criterions which must be taken into account: One of the most important criterions is the product availability which may influence which brand is purchased. If the favourite brand is not available at the moment the consumer may choose the brand that is ranked second. Other criterions that also could be important for the consumer are for example the price, delivery, guarantees, maintenance agreements, installation and credit arrangements. Post purchase evaluation After the purchase the buyer begins to check the product if the actual performance meets the expected level. In this stage many of the criteria used in the evaluating alternatives stage are used again. The result is either satisfaction or dissatisfaction. 1.4 Personal factors influencing the buying decision process The purchasing decision can be influenced by a lot of personal factors, which means factors that are unique to only one person. There are three categories of personal factors: Demographic factors Situational factors Level of involvement Demographic factors These factors are individual characteristics such as age, sex, race, ethnic origin, income, family life-cycle, and occupation. Demographic factors influence in which extent a person buys or uses products in a specific product category. For example consumers between 15 and 24 years often prefer to buy household basics because they have to establish their own household. Whereas people aged between 45 and 54 years often spend more money on luxury and leisure products; the reason for this is that these people have more money, because their children have left home. Situational factors Situational factors are the external conditions that exist when a consumer is making a purchase decision. Sometimes a consumer decides to buy something as a result of an unexpected situation. For example, a person may buy hurriedly buy a plane ticket to spend the last days with a dangerously ill relative. But it is also possible that a person terminates the buying decision process because of situational factors. For example, when the consumer decided to buy something and because of external circumstances he does not need it anymore. Level of involvement The level of involvement means the importance and intensity of interest in a product in a particular situation. The buyer ´s level of involvement determines if he or she is interested in seeking information about certain products or brands. Consumers seem to be more involved in the purchase of high-priced goods and of products that are visible to others, such as clothing, furniture, or cars. So the consumers are more interested to gain more information in this product categories. 1.5 Psychological factors influencing the buying decision process In addition to the personal factors there are also psychological factors that can influence the buying decisions. The five psychological influences on consumer behaviour are: Perception Perception is the process of selecting, organising and interpreting information inputs to produce meaning. These information inputs are received through sight, taste, hearing, smell and touch; that means with all of our five senses. Motives A motive is an internal feeling that forces a person to satisfy a need or to achieve a goal. If a person buys something this activity is affected by a set of motives; at this moment some of the motives in the set have priority, but the priority of the motives also can vary from one time to another. It is very important for the marketers to know about the motives of their customers; there is only the problem that most people do not know why they buy a particular product. The solution for this are special kinds of interviews in which the interviewer wants to gain, in an informal atmosphere, information about the consumer ´s motives. But this topic is very complicated, so I would not like to go into this more nearly Ability and knowledge Every person has got different abilities; one ability that is very important for marketers is the individual ´s capacity to learn. Because learning may change a person ´s buying behaviour by gaining new information and experience. For example; when a consumer buys a particular product and he likes it, he is more likely to buy the same product the next time. But if the consumer is not satisfied by the product he will switch to a different brand. Another aspect of an individual ´s ability is knowledge. Knowledge can be divided into two components: familiarity with the product and expertise; together this means the individual ´s ability to use the product. For example; if a consumer does not know about a special kind of product he will not buy it and if he knows about the product but does not know how to use it he also will not buy it. Attitude Attitude refers to knowledge and positive or negative feelings about an object or activity. These objects or acts may be touchable or untouchable, living or non-living. For example people have attitudes towards sex, religion, politics, and music (all untouchable); but also towards cars, football, or pizza. People learn these attitudes through experience and also through relations to other people. Likewise people have attitudes towards companies and their products, so the aim for the companies marketing-strategy should be to give the customer a good feeling about the company an her products. In other words, the company should try to influence the customer ´s attitude. Personality Every person is unique, because of internal traits and behaviours. Marketing managers suspect that there are communities between people ´s traits, and so they are searching for them to find relationships among these similar  characteristics and the buying behaviour. The aim is to find out which kind of consumer prefers which types of brands and products. With this knowledge marketers can try to aim advertising campaigns at general types of personalities. 1.6 Social factors influencing the buying decision process The last kind of factors that can influence the buying decision process are the social factors. The consumer can be influenced by a various number of social factors. The family plays a big role for buying decisions, because there are a lot of different interests. The male head of the household is likely involved in the purchase of products such as alcohol or tobacco. Although female roles have changed, also a lot of women are involved in taking buying decisions related to many household items. Another group that can influence the consumer are reference groups. A group becomes a reference group when a person identifies with it so much that he or she puts very great value on the opinions, habits, and behaviours of the group members. But this could be a very negative reference for an individual, because the values of the group do not have absolutely to be right. Another important factor is the social class in which the individual lives. In every society there are people who belong to higher or lower positions of respect. The different social classes are described as open, because it is possible for everyone can move into and out of them very easily. For grouping people into classes many factors need to be taken into account, such as occupation, education, income, wealth, race, ethnic group, and possessions. Though the number of factors chosen for the ranking can be very various; it depends on the person who is doing the ranking. Social class also determines to some extent the type, quality and quantity of products that a person buys or uses. For example people living in the upper-class prefer luxury automobiles such as BMW or Audi while people ranked in a lower class cannot afford such cars. The last one of the social factors that I want to mention is culture. Culture means everything in our surroundings that is made by human beings. It consists of tangible items, such as food, furniture, buildings, clothing etc, and intangible concepts, such as education, welfare, and laws. But culture also includes the values and different kinds of behaviours of a specific society. Culture influences buying behaviour because everything in our daily life is permeated by it. Culture determines our lifestyle, how we dress, what we eat, or where we travel. So it is another important factor for marketers to know. 1.7 Understanding consumer behaviour It is very important for marketers to understand consumer buying behaviour because that is the only possibility to offer greater satisfaction for the consumer. Although there remains a certain amount of consumer dissatisfaction. The reason for this is that some marketers still are not consumer oriented and do not regard customer satisfaction as a primary objective. Another problem is that the tools for analysing consumer behaviour are not very precise, so it is impossible for marketers to determine what is highly satisfying to buyers. Understanding consumer behaviour is a very important task for marketers. Even though the marketers were not able to gain al the knowledge they need, progress has been made during the last twenty years and is likely to continue in the next twenty. There will not only be refinements in research methods to gain more information, there will also be more pressure for the  companies because of an increasingly competitive business environment, and this will make such information essential for companies. 2 ORGANISATIONAL MARKETS AND BUYING BEHAVIOUR 2.1 Introduction In this chapter I would like to give a short overview about organisational markets and organisational buying decision processes. I want to explain the various kinds of organisational markets, the types of buyers that make up these markets, and much more. Look forward to a new, interesting topic. 2.2 Types of organisational markets The following section describes the four kinds of organisational markets, and the characteristics of the customers that make up these markets. Producer markets Persons and business organisations that buy products with the aim of making profit by using them to produce other products or by using them in their factories are classified as producer markets. These markets include buyers of raw-materials, as well as purchasers of semi-finished and finished items. Though the prerequisite for this is that the consumer uses these materials or items to create new products. A good example for this is a car manufacturer which buys steel and component parts to use directly in the production of cars. Reseller markets Reseller markets consist of intermediaries which means people that buy finished products to resell them with the aim of making profit; examples for  this are wholesalers and retailers. One thing that is important to know is that resellers do not change anything at the physical characteristics of the products they sell. There is only one exception, producers that sell their products directly to the consumer. This is the case when the company produces, for example, high-tech products, which need a lot of explanation and service for the customer. But in all other cases all the products sold to a consumer market are first sold to a reseller. In the normal case it is like this; the wholesaler who carries an immense number of products buys the products from the producer and sells them to the retailer. The retailer carries less products in stock than the wholesaler and sells these products to the final consumer. And the best thing is that every party makes profit (mostly). Government markets Government markets consist of national and local governments. Every year they spend a lot of money for many various products and services to support their internal operations and to provide the public with everything it needs, things like education, water, energy, infrastructure, national defence, etc. It is a little bit difficult for governments to spend the money in the right way because they are accountable for the public money they spend. This is also a problem for the companies which want to sell their products to the state because there is a relatively complex set of buying procedures which are linked with the accountability for the public money and it is understandable that most companies do not want to deal with so much red tape. However there are also marketers that have learned to deal with the complex buying procedures and do not find them to be a stumbling block. And they have good reasons for this because deals with governments can be very lucrative. Institutional markets Institutional markets do not seek to achieve business goals they try to achieve charitable, educational, community or other non-business goals.  Members of institutional markets can be organisations, such as churches, some hospitals, libraries, museums, universities, and charitable organisations. These institutions spend millions of dollars every year to provide goods, services, and ideas to their members. It is very difficult for marketers to sell their goods to the various kinds of institutions because of their different aims; so some marketers use special marketing activities to serve these markets. 2.3 Dimensions of organisational buying After we have looked at the different types of organisational markets I think we should also take a look on the dimensions of organisational buying. Characteristics of organisational transactions In comparison to consumer sales organisational transactions are different in several ways: Organisational buyers order much bigger quantities than individual consumers. That is one consequence linked to the behaviour of suppliers which prefer to sell their products in large quantities. This is the only way for them to make any profit. Another point is that organisational purchases are not negotiated as frequently as consumer sales. Some products that are purchased by organisations might be very expensive, such as machines, or office equipment, and they are used for a number of years. There are also products that are purchased frequently, such as raw materials, or component items, which are used continuously in production. But how I mentioned before the purchased quantities for these goods are much bigger. Also the purchase decisions are not as quick as they are for normal consumers. Because of the expensive products the purchasing decisions are often made by a committee which takes more time than only one individual  needs to take a decision. One thing that is unique to organisational sales is reciprocity. That is an arrangement between to organisations in which they agree to buy from each other. That seems to be very good for those both companies, but most reciprocal agreements threaten competition and that is why most of them are illegal. But nevertheless there are still some cases where such agreements take place. Attributes of organisational buyers If we think about organisational buyers we guess that their purchasing behaviour is different to the behaviour from consumer buyers because they are better informed about the products they want to purchase. However that is not quite right. Organisational buyers also have personal that can be influenced by some of the factors I mentioned earlier, such as psychological, or social factors. Employees are also only people. Primary concerns of organisational buyers Organisational customers are always concerned about buying the right stuff. So they take various factors into account before they make a purchasing decision: Most organisational customers want to offer to their target markets products of good quality. To achieve this aim companies often create a set of expressed characteristics, commonly called specifications. So the organisational buyer can determine if the quality of the different products corresponds to the necessary specifications. Another thing that is very important to organisational customers is service. The services that are provided by suppliers influence directly and indirectly the costs, sales, and profits of the organisational customer. If a marketer wants to have an advantage against his competitors which sell products that are similar to his products, he has to think about the perfect  mix of services that he can provide. I would just like to mention some services that may influence buying decisions: market information, inventory maintenance, on-time delivery, repair services, and credit. The most essential thing for the organisational customer is still the price. If the price is too high the operating costs will also be too high and at long last the product will be too expensive for the final consumer. But when purchasing for example a machine the buyer does not only look at the price, he compares the price with the profit he can gain with this machine, and also compares factors like product quality, and supplier services. Methods of organisational buying No organisational buyer will do his job in the same way like another but most of them use one or more of the following purchase methods: Description: Products are commonly standardised according to certain characteristics, such as shape, weight, size, and colour. With this standards an organisational buyer is able to purchase a product simply by describing quantity, shape etc. This purchase method is common for agricultural products. Inspection: This purchase method is common especially for large industrial equipment, used vehicles, and buildings. These goods have unique characteristics but may vary in their conditions. So the organisational buyer has to base his purchase decision on inspection. Sampling: In this case the buyer takes a sample of the desired product and starts out from the assumption that the sample is presentable for the parent population. Then he checks if the quality of the sample is acceptable. This method only makes sense if the tested product is homogeneous. Negotiation: The buyer describes exactly what kind of product he needs and asks sellers to submit their offer. The buyer may take the most attractive offers and negotiate with those suppliers to see from who he can get the  best conditions. These contracts only make sense for one-time projects. Types of organisational purchases The first type of organisational purchases is the new-task purchase, that means that an organisation makes a purchase of a product that is needed in a new job or to solve a new problem. So it is a product that never have been purchased before. A new-task purchase may require the creation of product specifications, vendor specifications etc. If a new-task purchase is changed the second or third time it is ordered, it turns into a modified re-buy purchase. That means the specifications of the new-task purchase have been changed, or have been modified. If a buyer purchases the same product regularly under approximately the same terms of sale we are talking about a straight re-buy purchase. Mostly this type is used with routine purchase decisions. Demand for industrial products The products sold to organisational customers are also called industrial products, and the demand for those products is called industrial demand. There are four different characteristics for industrial demand: Derived demand: Because organisational customers often buy products that are used directly or indirectly in production of goods that are sold to consumers to satisfy their needs, we can derive the demand for industrial products from the demand for consumer products. That is why it is called derived demand. For example the demand for computer CPUs derives from the consumer ´s demand for personal computers. Inelastic demand: In industry there are a lot of products for which the demand is inelastic. That means that a price increase or decrease will not alter the demand for this product. The reason for this is that a lot of products produced in industry contain a large number of components and so a  price increase or decrease of one of these products will not cause a serious higher or lower per-unit production cost. So the company is not forced to find an alternative product. But if there is a price increase for a component that represents a big part of the product ´s costs the demand may become more elastic because the price increase for the component will also cause an increasing price for the final consumer. Joint demand: Joint demand means when two ore more items are used in combination to produce a product. For example, a company that produces axes needs the same number of axe handles as it does axe blades; these two products are demanded jointly. Demand fluctuations: The demand for industrial products may fluctuate because it derives from consumer demand. A high consumer demand for a particular product may cause that producers buy large quantities of raw materials and components to ensure that they can produce the product for a longer time without any problems. They also may expand their production capacity which requires new machines, more workers, and also more raw materials and component parts. The opposite of this case is a decline in the demand for special consumer goods which causes a demand reduction for industrial products used to produce those goods. The consequence is that industrial customers buy less raw materials and components and stop buying new equipment and machines. There can be even a temporary standstill in the production for these goods. 2.4 Organisational buying decision The buying centre In industry few organisational purchasing decisions are made only by one person; in most cases they are made trough a buying centre. The buying centre consists of people within an organisation who are involved in making organisational purchasing decisions. The members of the buying centre are responsible for evaluating the product ´s performance, selecting suppliers,  negotiating the terms of purchase, and also for developing specifications. Stages of the organisational buying decision process Like consumers, organisations follow a buying decision process which you can see at the figure below. This process is almost similar to the decision process that was explained in sector 1.3 (The consumer buying decision process). Influences on organisational buying There are also some factors that may influence the decision process, they can be divided into four major categories: Environmental: These are factors like laws, regulations, economic conditions, competitive forces technological changes. Organisational: Objectives, purchasing policies, resources, buying centre structure Interpersonal: Cooperation, conflict, power relationships Individual: Age, education level, job status, personality, income 2.5 Concluding remark I hope you enjoyed my short overview about the topics â€Å"Consumer buying behaviour† and â€Å"Organisational markets and buying behaviour†; and I also hope that my explanations were understandable.

Saturday, November 9, 2019

The Current “Age of Accountability” Law in Light of Developmental Psychology Current Law Upheld Case Study

In the case study provided, one can see many areas where the development of the child in question can be taken into consideration when looking at the case from a law standpoint. In any case involving children, one must always take into account their environment, their developmental age, and their true age. With each age group, there is a norm for development and each child must be evaluated regarding that norm. In this case, the current law regarding the â€Å"age of accountability† can be upheld through three basic points. These points are the biosocial, the cognitive, and the psychosocial areas of development. Each area plays a huge role in whether or not a child (at the age of six) can be held accountable for such a violent act. In the area of biosocial development, everything from a child’s nutrition to brain development to abuse can affect their perceptions (Berger, 2008). In the case provided, the six year old boy, coming from a single parent household, could very easily suffer developmentally in this area. Historically, single parent households make much less than households where both parents are present. Less income (socioeconomic status decline) could equal less nutritious food to aid in proper development. At the age of the child provided for this case study, he seems to be at the norm for brain development. At this age, even though children can think in rapid succession, they do not process the information to the point of seeing the true consequences. The child is also not completely able to use deductive reasoning when thinking the situation through from beginning to end and vice versa (Berger, 2008). Emotions at this point also play a key role in the development of the child provided. At this age, emotions such as anger (which would commonly be felt after the scuffle on the playground) can grow over a few hours and especially overnight, in a child who has anger or guilt problems anyway. While anger is a normal emotion, some children at this age struggle with the appropriate way to deal with it and lash out, resulting in injury. Taking into consideration the lifestyle of the juvenile in question, abuse and/or neglect could also be a large problem in his dealing with anger issues. While he may see the maltreatment he could be receiving as just basic attention, he is unable to process the true impact of the situation at his age (Berger, 2008). When the child sees anger at home, he is more likely to engage in anger motivated activities outside the home. Cognitive development of the six year old boy must also be taken into consideration when upholding the age of accountability law. Due to the fact that children of this age tend to be very self-centered and have the ability to focus on one idea (regardless of perception), a child with anger issues will see their problem is the whole world and that that one focal point is to stop the angry feeling (Berger, 2008). While to an adult this is irrational thought since the consequences are not planned for, to a child this creates harmony in their world of â€Å"me. Social learning at this age is a huge influence on how they react to their environment. In the case provided, the child is reacting the only way he knows how. Since both his father and grandfather are in the corrections system for gun related charges, it is likely that the child is only modeling the behavior he feels is set forth by those before him (Berger, 2008). While the child does not realize what he is doing at the time, he is an apprentice in thinking in the same way the other male figures have acted in his life. Even though the child has a male influence in his life (his uncle), it does not seem to be constructive as the uncle is likely the one who left the gun out irresponsibly. To uphold the current law, it should also be taken into consideration that a child at this age is merely attempting to make the difference between belief and reality. What a child sees on television and plays in video games can also play a role in their perception of the world as well as their cognitive and psychological development (Berger, 2008). Children before the age of seven have a difficult time realizing the reality and the fantasy within their environment. To them, a violent act is just the means to the end, the consequences are not their concern, and their goal is to end their own suffering regardless of the cost due to their self-centeredness. In the area of psychosocial development, a child should not be held accountable at the age of six due to their emotional status, ability to receive and internalize emotion, and falling victim to their parents’ style of parenting (Berger, 2008). If a child is subjected to authoritarian parenting, they are more likely to be less happy, suffer from depression, and feel guilty about situations in their environment. In the case presented, this could very well be the case for the child as his reason for extreme anger could be internalizing guilt for his father and grandfather being out of his life and in prison. Permissive parenting could also be a cause of developmental issue in a child of this age as they would be lacking of self control and unhappy. Again, the media begins to play a role in the lives of children this age. When a child observes violence and hatred, then they will most likely exude this type of behavior as well if it does not go corrected by a parent (Berger, 2008). When the media is the â€Å"parent† of the child, television used as a babysitter, the only role model they have are the actors on television to mimic and model their behavior. Overall, based on the information provided by Berger in the text, the law regarding whether or not the child in the case from Michigan should be held accountable should be upheld. It can be seen from the information provided above that the child is not developed enough to weigh the consequences of their actions and are most likely victims to their environment. Children cannot control what they are shown and thus at age six should not be accountable for their violent actions when they do not understand what the repercussions of their action could be and do not understand something as complex as taking another life.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

Project management 5 Essay

Project management 5 Essay Project management 5 Essay NAME: Samuel Adebayo COURSE: MIS 4433 INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Mike Estep DATE: 3/14/2015 The sinking of the Titanic is now known to be a folk story and a romantic movie and so many people are unaware of what exactly happened that caused the ship to sink that night on April of 1912. So many people claimed that the builders of the Titanic claimed that the ship was ‘unsinkable’ but the actual statement made by the builders was that, the ship was ‘practically unsinkable’ which is pretty close. The Titanic was the largest ship ever built in the world as at the time she was built. She was built to compete with the Lusitania and Mauretania which both held the ‘Blue Riband’ for the fastest Atlantic crossing ships. The Titanic was built to look like her sister ship, â€Å"The Olympic† in so many different ways. They were both built to travel at moderate speeds, carry a lot of people, and to have a lot of space to carry cargo. The upper part of the titanic was also built to look like the Olympic only that, the Titanic’s was enlarged and refined. There were no risks taken in building the engines as the engines were enlarged versions of the propulsion system first used experimentally in Laurentic in 1909. There was also no risk taken in the design of the inside of the ship as it was built to look like that of older white ships only larger. The Titanic’s long thin rudder with its high counter stern was, in fact, a copy of an 18th century steel sail ing ship, a perfect example of the lack of technical development. This design compared with the modern rudder design of the Mauretania or Lusitania, Titanic's was a fraction of the size. Apparently no account was made for advances in scale and little thought given to how a ship 852 feet in length, might turn in an emergency or avoid a collision with an iceberg. This was Titanic's Achilles heel. It was also said that the Titanic wanted to set a record on her maiden trip by arriving the shores of New York ahead of schedule and that speed played an important role in the Titanic which is not actually true. She went through the route the Olympic followed the previous year and she didn’t even have all her boilers on. She was sailing through the longer route in order to avoid the icebergs. An allegation was brought up that claimed that Bruce Ismay, chairman and managing director of

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

How Conservative Hollywood Became a Liberal Town

How Conservative Hollywood Became a Liberal Town While it may seem as though Hollywood has always been liberal, it hasn’t. Very few people today realize that at one point in the development of American cinema, conservatives ruled the movie-making industry. Santa Monica College Professor Larry Ceplair, co-author of The Inquisition in Hollywood, wrote that during the ‘20s and ‘30s, most studio heads were conservative Republicans who spent millions of dollars to block union and guild organizing. Likewise, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, the Moving Picture Machine Operators, and the Screen Actors Guild were all headed by conservatives, as well. Scandals and Censorship In the early 1920s, a series of scandals rocked Hollywood. According to authors Kristin Thompson and David Bordwell, silent film star Mary Pickford divorced her first husband in 1921 so that she could marry the attractive Douglas Fairbanks. Later that year, Roscoe â€Å"Fatty† Arbuckle was accused (but later acquitted) of raping and murdering a young actress during a wild party. In 1922, after director William Desmond Taylor was found murdered, the public learned of his lurid love affairs with some of Hollywood’s best-known actresses. The final straw came in 1923, when Wallace Reid, a ruggedly handsome actor, died of a morphine overdose. In themselves, these incidents were a cause for sensation but taken together, studio bosses worried they would be accused of promoting immorality and self-indulgence. As it was, a number of protest groups had successfully lobbied Washington and the federal government was looking to impose censorship guidelines on the studios. Rather than losing control of their product and face the involvement of the government, the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of American (MPPDA) hired Warren Harding’s Republican postmaster general, Will Hays, to address the problem. The Hays Code In their book, Thompson and Bordwell say Hays appealed to the studios to remove objectionable content from their films and in 1927, he gave them a list of material to avoid, called the â€Å"Don’ts and Be Carefuls† list. It covered most sexual immorality and the depiction of criminal activity. Nevertheless, by the early 1930s, many of the items on Hays’ list were being ignored and with Democrats controlling Washington, it seemed more likely than ever that a censorship law would be implemented. In 1933, Hays pushed the film industry to adopt the Production Code, which explicitly forbids depictions of crime methodology, sexual perversion. Films that abide by the code received a seal of approval. Although the â€Å"Hays Code,† as it came to be known helped the industry avoid stiffer censorship at the national level, it began to erode in the late 40s and early ‘50s. The House Un-American Activities Committee Although it was not considered un-American to sympathize with the Soviets during the 1930s or during World War II, when they were American allies, it was considered un-American when the war was over. In 1947, Hollywood intellectuals who had been sympathetic to the communist cause during those early years found themselves being investigated by the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) and questioned about their â€Å"communist activities.† Ceplair points out that the conservative Motion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideals provided the committee with names of so-called subversives. Members of the alliance testified before the committee as friendly† witnesses. Other â€Å"friendlies,† such as Jack Warner of Warner Bros. and actors Gary Cooper, Ronald Reagan, and Robert Taylor either fingered others as â€Å"communists† or expressed concern over liberal content in their scripts. After a four-year suspension of the committee ended in 1952, former communists and Soviet sympathizers such as actors Sterling Hayden and Edward G. Robinson kept themselves out of trouble by naming others. Most of the people named were script-writers. Ten of them, who testified as â€Å"unfriendly† witnesses became known as the â€Å"Hollywood Ten† and were blacklisted – effectively ending their careers. Ceplair notes that following the hearings, guilds, and unions purged liberals, radicals, and leftists from their ranks, and over the next 10 years, the outrage slowly began to dissipate. Liberalism Seeps Into Hollywood Due in part to a backlash against abuses perpetrated by the House Un-American Activities Committee, and in part to a landmark Supreme Court ruling in 1952 declaring films to be a form of free speech, Hollywood began to slowly liberalize. By 1962, the Production Code was virtually toothless. The newly formed Motion Picture Association of America implemented a rating system, which still stands today. In 1969, following the release of  Easy Rider, directed by liberal-turned-conservative  Dennis Hopper, counter-culture films began to appear in significant numbers. By the mid-1970s, older directors were retiring, and a new generation of filmmakers was emerging. By the late 1970s, Hollywood was very openly and specifically liberal. After making his last film in 1965, Hollywood director John Ford saw the writing on the wall. â€Å"Hollywood now is run by Wall St. and Madison Ave., who demand ‘Sex and Violence,’† author Tag Gallagher quotes him as writing in his  book,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"This is against my conscience and religion.† Hollywood Today Things are not much different today. In a 1992 letter to the  New York Times, screenwriter and playwright  Jonathan R. Reynolds  lament  that â€Å"†¦ Hollywood today is as fascistic toward conservatives as the 1940s and 50s were  liberals †¦ And that goes for the movies and television shows produced.† It goes beyond Hollywood, too, Reynolds argues. Even the New York theater community is rampant with liberalism. â€Å"Any play that suggests that racism is a two-way street or that socialism is degrading simply wont be produced,† Reynolds writes. â€Å"I defy you to name any plays produced in the last 10 years that intelligently espouse conservative ideas. Make that 20 years.† The lesson Hollywood still has not learned, he says, is that repression of ideas, regardless of political persuasion, â€Å"should not be rampant in the arts.† The enemy is repression itself.

Sunday, November 3, 2019

Human Resource Management Employee Selection Processes Research Paper

Human Resource Management Employee Selection Processes - Research Paper Example Methods of selection on the other hand should have some reasonable quality as dictated by the concept of utility. Selected employees should add value to the organization. A method that selects employees who cannot add value to the organization is an ineffective method. Lastly, selection process must adhere to the legal regulations and provisions of employment such as discrimination and equal employment regulations (Ullah, 2010). Organizations selecting employees should ensure that there are no discriminations and equal employment opportunities. Equally suited candidates must be subjected to equal interviews or selection process. One of the easiest and most effective approaches in selecting one of the two equally suited candidates is the thorough analysis and evaluation of experiences and job specifications. There is no doubt that there must be one candidate who is slightly more experienced that the other or has an additional qualification. In the event that they have the same years of experience, academic qualifications, and admirable track or records, the two equally suited candidates should be subjected to various selection processes such as aptitude of panel interview to critically evaluate their uniqueness (Knouse,