Global cities show a particularly high degree of social polarization Essay

Social polarization is a relatively new urban phenomenon that identifies the existence of a widening gap between the rich and poor within a social group or entity. This gap has developed in country’s societies as a result of ‘income equalities, real estate fluctuations and economic displacement’ (Moulaert 2003). The effects can be damaging to society and can include ‘a loss of resources, investment and young people to the core’ (Bradford and Kent 1995). I aim to discuss and explain social polarization in terms of the causes and effects on society, as well as the main catalysts of polarization. Many geographers believe that globalization is a process that ‘has enabled nation-states, TNCs, as well as individuals, to extend their reach across the globe’ (Daniels et al 2008). Globalization has meant that ‘national economies have become integrated into the international economy’ (Croucher 2004) as a result of trade, capital flows, foreign direct investment, migration and the spread of technology; leading to the growth of many sectors, especially the financial sector, where information is easily accessible via a technologically strong communications network. Some are of the belief that ‘Globalization leads directly to social polarization’ (Sassen 1991) The rapid growth in the financial sector has led to the formation of very well paid positions within financial institutes dominated by managers, executives and stockbrokers. However, it has also created large numbers of low-paying jobs, often filled by women and the minorities in unskilled positions. As a result of this, income inequality is common in global cities with salaries ranging greatly. The United Nations quoted that ‘between 1960 and 1990 country differentials between the wealthiest and poorest 20% increased from 30 to more than 60 (UNDP 1993)(Thrift et al 2002). This can lead to a number of problems, with the lower paid workers easily replaced by an abundant supply of workers moving to the area from abroad, known as the ‘urban immigrant population’ (Chao-Lin 2002). The replacement of low-income workers has become a problem in many global cities, for example in Beijing, the open door immigration policy as led to an influx of urban immigrants. Many social problems are caused as a result of this, such as stress at home and at work etc. This, in turn, widens the gap between the richer and poorer people in society; thus increasing social polarization. The ‘transnationals’ have, of course, greatly changed the economic environment. At the global scale their location of production in developing countries has contributed to what has been called a global shift’ (Bradford and Kent 1995). In the first half of the twentieth century the majority of manufacturing and production plants was concentrated in the core: Western Europe and North America. However, a ‘global shift’ (Bradford and Kent 1995) did occur and by the 1980s a third of TNCs had moved to global production in Newly Industrializing Countries (NICs) at the periphery. As these TNCs made more money and became financially stronger, there was a shift of power from the governments to the transnationals’. The TNCs have great control over some sectors of the economy, as government revenue from taxes is recycled (through wages) back into the large corporations. TNCs can cause a variety of problems by locating in developing countries, ‘the concentration of many transnationals’ activities in one area, often the core, may exacerbate inter-regional differences’ (Bradford and Kent 1995). Again, this will cause social polarization as different areas in a country, or town will show differences in amenities etc. due to a greater investment in infrastructure. However, this investment in the core regions is needed to service the large corporations. Investment will attract people, jobs and activity into the core regions, thus emphasizing the strength of the pull factors created by TNCs: more well paid jobs are created, better living conditions, more amenities etc. However, ‘this is often at the expense of peripheral regions which lose resources, investment and young people to the core – the so called backwash or polarization effects’ (Bradford and Kent 1995). Friedmann’s Core Periphery Model is relevant here as over time people are drawn from the periphery areas into the core, (See Figure 1). Transnationals’ can also cause problems if similar corporations locate in the same countries, thus leading to ‘segmentation of markets’ (classifying markets into distinct subsets with the same needs).   (Todd 1977). (Classifying markets into distinct subsets with the same needs). This can lead to social differences being accentuated, again relating back to differences in income inequality and quality of life at the core and periphery. Furthermore, particular cultures in countries have changed as a result of ‘acquisition of material goods’ (Bradford and Kent 1995). This has lead to people’s position in society being determined by possession or consumption of particular goods, causing anger and stress, which causes societies to began more polarized. To conclude; in my opinion social polarization, can only have a negative effect on societies and countries as stress and anger is caused as a result of concentrations of investment in core areas, leaving peripheral areas without amenities and jobs. As TNCs continue to increase in size the effects of polarization can only increase with the gap between different social groups increasing, as a result of income inequality and economic displacement. With increased control and power, soon TNCs will have even more control than some governments, and this can already be seen in some areas of the world with governments in India etc. being unable to stop sweatshop labour e.g. Nike in Bangladesh. Polarization shows gaps in society have begun to develop as local markets develop in global markets as a result of globalization and the growth of large corporations. References Bradford, M. and Kent, A. 1993 Understanding Human Geography: People and their   Ã‚  Ã‚   Changing Environments, Oxford University Press, Oxford. Chao-Lin, G.U. 2001 Social Polarization and Segregation in Beijing, Beijing, Science  Ã‚  Ã‚   Press, http://www.springerlink.com/content/h3w8112rj24l8468/fulltext.pdf, 29th  Ã‚  Ã‚   November Johnston, R.J., Taylor, P.J and Watts, M.J. 1995 The Reconfiguration of Late   Ã‚  Ã‚   Twentieth-Century Capitalism. In Johnston, R.J., Taylor, P.J and Watts, M.J.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   (eds) Geographies of Global Change: Remapping the World, Blackwell   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Publishers Ltd., United Kingdom, 19-29. Moulaert, F., Swyndedouw, E. and Rodriguez, A. 2003 The Globalized City:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Economic Restructuring and Social Polarization in European Cities, Oxford   Ã‚   University Press, Oxford. Sassen, S. 2001 The Global City, Princeton University Press, USA Todd, D. 1977 Polarization and the Regional Problem: Manufacturing in Nova Scotia,    The University of Manitoba Geography Department, Canada. Figure 1. Rodrigue, Dr. J. P. Department of Economics and Geography, 1998 Bradshaw, M., Daniels, P., Shaw, D. and Sidway, J. 2008 An Introduction to Human  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Geography, Pearson Education Limited, England.   

Legal, Safety and Regulatory Requirements Essay

This paper examines the impact of legal, safety and the regulatory requirements of the human resources development in an organization. This aspects look at the rights of the employee and the employer and how they are secured. This human resources process affects the lawful, well-being, and governing guidelines inside a business while the privileges of those employers and workers are protected by the U. S. Department of Labor, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and the Department of Homeland Security. The employee-related regulations are to guard the privileges of a company and worker. The U. S. Department of Labor gives organization an excellent effective setting and reduces employment ratios by offering development within the organization. The human resources areas have to commit to having current rules and guidelines for salaries and times worked. And human resources management has to guarantee all personnel whether United States residents or non-United States mindful of any material may possibly be related (United States Department of Labor, 2011). According to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 states it is unlawful to differentiate a capable individual with a disability. The law states it is prohibited to react against an individual since the individual complained about injustice, filed an allegation of discrimination, or take part in discrimination complaint. It expects that employers fairly provide the known physical or mental restrictions of an otherwise capable individual with a disability who is an applicant or employee, unless doing so would force an undue difficulty on the process of the employer’s business. The employees of Department of Homeland Security work diligently to preserve the well-being and safety of the United States. They work with municipalities, people, and countries to support them plan for and pull through from emergencies. They evaluate dozens of virtual security statements, and portions of intelligence, continuing continuous communication with specialists all through the country to defend the United States most important buildings and resources. With the legislation of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, Department Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge made a commitment that the new human resources system would be the result of a cooperative and comprehensive process involving supervisors, employees, labor organizations, and a expansive group of participants and specialists from the Federal division and private organization in order to deliver the greatest procedures possible for the employees of Homeland Security. The final guidelines administer to the new human resources for Department Homeland Security is evidence to that commitment The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission defends all employees working inside a corporation against discrimination regarding age, disability, sex, national origin, color or race. The human resources organization has to stay in agreement by making sure that all supervisors are extremely capable to properly relate with employees in the process of hiring, training, advancing, and dismissing. This law is enforced by a federal agency, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). This law is laid out into three segments that consist of e sexual harassment, affirmative action, and equal opportunity. These three different segments have a huge influence on the human resources division, and the employment process and this department must follow the law. These equal opportunity regulations will guarantee an employee is given an equal opportunity while submitting an application or resume for a position at an organization regardless of race, age, or gender. When looking at affirmative action this process allows an organization to hire individuals which fit in to a certain group of individuals. The sexual harassment process is put into the work environment to guarantee employees both women and men are secured under both federal and state law, sexual harassment can be verbal, physical or both, this type of harassment cannot only affect an employee’s work environment, but more importantly that person emotional well-being. Sexual harassment can make an employee feel uncomfortable coming to work, prevents them from focusing on their tasks work, and they can take that emotional stress home with them. The Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 law makes it unlawful to discriminate against any individual basis on race, color, religion, national origin, or sex. It also makes it unlawful to react hostile to an individual because the individual protested about discrimination, filed a charge of discrimination, or participated in a discrimination lawsuit (â€Å"U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission†, 2011). This law also states that supervisors reasonably provide candidates’ and employees’ time to hold religious customs, except if doing so would inflict an unnecessary stress on the owner’s organization. This also goes for the federal government and employment services, and labor establishments, also need to acknowledge the law. The majority of discrimination lawsuits claim a violation of this law. In regards to the statement that, â€Å"Common sense and compassion in the workplace has been replaced by litigation. † I look up the definition and it stated that Common sense is sound practical judgment derived from experience rather than study. And compassion is sympathy for the suffering of others, often including a desire to help (Encarta 1999). Guidelines and procedures are put in place to defend employees and employers. Nevertheless, not all procedures and guideline are for every employee or employer. Every situation is different and has to be approach differently; no two people are the same. A human resources manager has to be able to look at these different situations and make a choice that’s good for the organization employees. Making the right decisions protect the organization from lawsuits. The distress of upsetting employees or possible ligation has caused human resources departments to outline guidelines and procedures.

Baldwin Bicycle Company Essay

Make a recommendation regarding the future strategic direction if the company. According to the SWOT analysis, MD is regarded as a star taking the BCG matrix. Therefore MD should hold its position within the market. In order to do this, we have recommended a few strategies for MD to maintain its position. To maintain its star position, MD needs to be proactive and be constantly aware of its environment. Currently there is an opportunity in the Chinese market. MD has plans to penetrate this market. In order to be successful, MD needs to thoroughly analyse this market and tailor its products to the target market. Due to the growing industry and increasing competition, MD needs to also integrate a differentiation strategy. According to the weaknesses, MD is currently having problems with delivering excellent customer service. Whilst MD has invested in employee training and values customer service within the organisation, this may be an area MD needs to strengthen on. This will help differentiate itself from competitors such as Wendy’s and Burger King and hence continue to hold its position within the market. DEVELOPMENT and RECOMMENDATIONS FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF STRATEGIC OPTIONS Strategic options: Reduction of employee training spending (lowering employee turnover); Taking advantage of organic food industry popularity (develop new products for new segments); Advantage of human health problems (improvement of products). 1 Reduction of employee training spending (lowering employee turnover). In order to reduce of employee training spending and to lower turnover, we would like to suggest: To give the job just for highly motivated people. It means, that they are going to be loyal and not to leave job so fast; To train new employees using ’’Big Brother’’ principle. New employees would be trained by employees, who are working longer. In this way, company reduces training spending, new employees are trained by the people, who are working inside the company and do the same things every day. To motivate employees and always take care about their expectations. It can be money premiums for good working in the end of the month (or year), some employees parties, ’’Employee of the week (month)’’ competition and etc.; also employer should take a look of what employee is expected from employer and try to solve that, ex. Maybe employee is not expected to get premium every month, but for  good and loyal working he would like that the company would pay his child studies fee after 5 years. 2. Taking advantage of organic food industry popularity (develop new products for new segments); McDonald’s is not that company, who suggest the most organic food, so they can try: To make a line of organic food in their menu and take a look what is more popular and healthy for their customers. If it is going more popular than usual menu food, it is more worth to make all food in organic way, even it is more expensive. First of all, people like what is natural, and then they are interested in the price. To be in a partnership with scientists and doctors in order to take care of their customers heath. Everybody knows that organic food makes people feel better and healthier; also it affects nature in a good way. McDonald’s declares that ’’everything is for customer’’, so it must take an advantage of organic food popularity and ’’make’’ their customers to live healthier and in more natural way. To make big advertisement companies declaring organic food pluses and make it more popular in such way. Many people loves McDonald’s food, so it has an authority and can show good example of necessity of organic food in people life and compare how organic and usual McDonald’s food effect customers’ health and all the nature about them. 3. Advantage of human health problems (improvement of products) McDonald’s is big food supplying company, and all of us know, how food affects our health. It is one of the main factors, what built our body and strength our brains. Knowing that, McDonald’s should: Suggest just high quality, improved products, which is full of vitamins and minerals. So, it means that the company must improve their products, all the food must be certificated and fit for all healthy food standards. Be in a contact with suppliers, who supply products for McDonald’s food and always check if the products is natural, high standard and healthy for all of age customers. Contact with doctors, scientist and improve their products to fit for all of age customers, even they have some problems with their stomach. It means to make measures and find what the best is for all possible customers. Strategists have a tremendous amount of both latitude and responsibility in developing and balancing the strategic options of an organization. The  countless decisions required of these managers can be overwhelming considering the potential consequences of incorrect decisions. One way to deal with this complexity is through categorization; one categorization scheme is to classify corporate-level strategy decisions into three different types or grand strategies (Porter, 1985). These grand strategies involve efforts to expand business operations (growth strategies), decrease the scope of business operations (retrenchment strategies) or maintain the status quo (stability strategies). More specifically, growth strategies are designed to expand an organization’s performance, usually as measured by sales, profits, product mix, market coverage, market share or other accounting and market-based variables. Typical growth strategies involve one or more of the following: _ with a concentration strategy the firm attempts to achieve greater market penetration by becoming highly efficient at servicing its market with a limited product line (E.g. McDonalds in fast foods)  by using a vertical integration strategy, the firm attempts to expand the scope of its current operations by undertaking business activities formerly performed by one of its suppliers (backward integration) or by undertaking business activities performed by a business in its channel of distribution (forward integration) _ a diversification strategy entails moving into different markets or adding different products to its mix. If the products or markets are related to existing product or service offerings, the strategy is called concentric diversification. If expansion is into Products or services unrelated to the firm’s existing business, the diversification is called conglomerate diversification. In order for MCD to enhance its competitive advantage and market share in the fast food industry, the organization must consider the following recommendations. 1. Implement Online Ordering Globally There has been a growing trend of food delivery in the China and Middle Eastern Markets. In order to capitalize on this demand and meet customer preferences, MCD has implemented an online ordering system in selected regions such Asia, Middle East and Africa (Jargon, 2011). However, MCD should consider expanding this growth strategy throughout all its stores. It  is expected that if MCD proceeded with this strategy, the organization will be able to attract build its target market, especially tech savvy teenagers. This will in turn improve its market share and competitive advantage in the fast food industry (Donnelly, 2013). Moreover, by employing online ordering, MCD will experience an increased efficiency as the ordering process will be timely and reduces the chance of error as opposed to ordering via a call center (Jargon, 2011). Additionally, there will be a reduction in operating costs, especially in MCD call centers as ordering will be steered to an online platform (Jargon, 2011) Counteracting this benefit of online ordering, MCD needs ensure that its product quality is not undermined. Specifically, high quality equipment with insulators should be used in order to retain the warmth of food, without it getting soggy (Jargon, 2011). Currently, MCD has a flat rate for orders in China, however charges a fee ranging between fifteen to twenty percent on the order price in other countries (Jargon, 2011). However, MCD’s rival, KFC currently charges a flat rate on its delivery orders. Therefore, it is recommended that MCD implements a flat rate on delivery orders in all its fast food outlets in order to maintain consistency and remain competitive in the market (Jargon, 2011). 2. Increase the number of healthy options in MCD’s menu As raised in 1.0 of this report, changing customer tastes and preferences towards healthy eating has posed a threat for MCD. Since, MCD is an influential brand in society; the organization has faced scrutiny by several health groups over its menu lacking healthy options (Strom, 2013). In order to rectify this issue, MCD is currently developing initiatives in order to improve to menu to suit with the changing culture in society. Specifically, the organization is proposing make significant changes to its menu, particularly developing food that is low in salt and sugar by 2020 in regions that account for over eighty five percent of sales (Strom, 2013). Furthermore, MCD is proposing to place less emphasis on its menu items that are deemed to be unhealthy to children in its marketing campaigns (Strom, 2013). Currently, MCD has placed premium pricing on its healthy options and this has downgraded its competitive advantage. This is due to rival, Subway being successful in its ability to sell healthy and fresh fast food at affordable prices (Strom, 2013). Therefore, in order to match this, MCD should consider incorporating more fresh produce into its menu selection that is also reasonably priced. Additionally, rival Burger King recently announced its new turkey burger to its menu (Strom, 2013). As a result, introducing more lean meat options into its menu is recommended to MCD in order to appeal to health conscious individuals.

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

Government - Essay Example Hence, balance of power is imperatively obligatory in order to let all the institutions exercise their abilities and powers according to the provisions of the prevailing constitution. But if an institution is delegated the extraordinary authority to do anything out of its own will for running its business, it may put the powers of other institutions of the state in grave jeopardy. Similarly, that institution may interfere and intermeddle in the matters of other departments, without their free consent, by reducing and confining the sphere of their action. On the contrary, diminution of the magnitude of authority related to the executive through check and balance and separation of power as well may confine and limit the power of the government in respect of taking necessary actions on urgent basis according to the political situation of the country. It is not only against the benefit of the nation at large, but also can delay the action supposed to be taken swiftly. Renowned political philosopher and ex- President of the USA James Madison, in his article under-analysis, throws light on the significance of the separation of power and the system of check and balance for the best interests of the country on the one hand, and for the welfare of the masses on the other. In addition, he argues how such restriction affects the business of governmental affairs because of the implementation of check and balance system. Madison looks for a strong and comprehensive system of check and balance for the adequate and proper working of all departments and organizations within a socio-political establishment. He is of the opinion that since political institutions consists of humans, not angels, which can commit mistakes and blunders while exercising their duties and obligations, and can take such measures that come under the definition of excesses. Thus,

How might we (best) justify the freedom of speech Term Paper - 1

How might we (best) justify the freedom of speech - Term Paper Example This raises questions over the restraint of freedom of speech in protection beyond the minimal principle of liberty. In my own opinion, there exists no single justification that would be sufficient to justify freedom of speech. In this regard, therefore, I would advocate for various justifications based on consequentialist and non-consequentialist approaches. This paper seeks to illustrate various viewpoints to the justification of freedom of speech using the communicative principle (Greenawalt 3-15). The philosophical position of a consequentialist approach contributes to desirable set of circumstances and relies on the association of facts between practice and the expected results of such practice. I agree with the suggestion that the freedom of speech promotes the discovery of truth as put forward by Stuart Mill. Individuals have the capacity to distinguish true ideas from deceitful ideas in reality in the presence of free speech. Thus, people would always demonstration careful understanding in settling for truth. In this case, any claims of value and an understanding by individuals of these claims of value constitute truth. In addition, any sensible idea and level of confidence would make individuals to identify truth and conditions that promote it. By contrast, liberal states object the justification of truth discovery based on an assumption that truth does not exist. In their view, neither truth not its conditions could be identified and if it does, freedom of speech would contradict the existence of various ideas in practicing the discovery of truth (Greenawalt 16-24). Freedom of speech significantly contributes to social stability and the accommodation of competing desires and interests. This usually occurs during the process of learning where individuals discover other people’s desires. Accommodation in free speech creates a balance between conflicting interests using truth in resolving issues of concern such as capital punishment.

Resume and Letter of Application Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Resume and Letter of Application - Assignment Example Culture and Organization Effectiveness: Understand the business strategy and identify opportunities to improve organizational capability and drive culture change to align the organization with the strategy. Must have the ability to diagnose gaps between current and desired organization performance and deploy actions to resolve gap, including organization redesign, process change, coaching and training. Ensure organization practices align with Eaton Philosophy. B. Performance Management: Through the performance management system assure that annual employee job performance assessments are conducted. This includes the annual goal setting process, the annual assessment process and periodic feedback sessions that strive to raise the performance bar in the organization. Provide coaching and consulting to business leaders on effective performance management intervention. I. Talent Management and Retention: Develop talent acquisition plans that anticipate short/long-term business needs. Coach others on how to engage and retain key talent, identify when there is a retention risk and differentiate between wanted and unwanted turnover †¢ This position requires use of information or access to hardware which is subject to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). All applicants must be U.S. persons within the meaning of ITAR. ITAR defines a U.S. person as a U.S. Citizen, U.S. Permanent Resident (i.e. Green Card Holder), Political Asylee, or

Paying for College Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Paying for College - Essay Example There are some people who believe that though college expenses is one of the largest disbursement in a person’s life span, it should be treated as an investment which will give better income, extended career prospects and higher personal contentment as returns throughout one’s life. However, this investment is only possible at a minimum cost therefore, it is necessary to reduce college expenditure. My goal, in this paper, is to establish the point that reduction of college expenditure is absolutely indispensable. To achieve this goal, I have put forward the various reasons for reducing college expenditure in five different sections. In the first section, I have discussed about the negative impact of the debt burden on the parents and students who take loans to pay for higher education because of which reducing cost of education becomes necessary. The second section tells us how this high cost is affecting parents of all classes in the society which makes minimization of higher education costs urgent. In the third section, I have thrown light upon the fact that the high cost of education has made it inaccessible to most of the undergraduates in U.S. which in turn, is creating a deficiency in the workforce of the country. I have ended the paper with the fourth section in which I have discussed how reduction of high costs of college education will make U.S. competitive in the global economy. I have concluded with the fifth section where I have uphold the point that reduction of college education cost is deemed necessary and discussed, in brief, the steps which colleges and the federal government should undertake to reduce the high cost of higher education. However, before discussing these five sections, I would like to put forward the statistical trends of the increase in cost of higher education in recent years. STATISTICAL TRENDS The tuition fees of colleges and universities have been increasing four times faster than the inflation rate (see Fig. 1 ). The cost of educating has soared 439% since 1982 for colleges. The average tuition and fees is around $20,000 annually at a public four year college and it is nearly $30,000- $35, 000 at a private college (Chaudhari). Moreover, it has been predicted that the cost will rise as high as $ 1, 25,000 for a public college and $ 2, 50,000 for a private college by 2015. On an average, families shell out $64 billion annually to send 13.9 million students to public colleges and universities (Immerwahr). According to Rampbell, on an average parents pay for around 37% of the total cost of attending colleges from their savings and income, around 10% of the cost is arranged through borrowing by parents and rest of the expenses are borne by the students themselves or by taking financial aids. Fig. 1 College Tuition and Fees vs. Overall Inflation Debt Burden. There have been recent debates on whether college education should be reduced or not. According to me, it should be reduced because studen ts who study with borrowed money have to face lot of difficulty in paying it back in the long term, though there are some fortunate ones who get grants and scholarships (Chaudhari). There is great concern over the amount of debt students have to take for higher education, though some people argue that financial aids are easily available and payable for students who are willing to

The different directions in Judaism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The different directions in Judaism - Essay Example Most people translate the Halakha as a Jewish law, however, in the real sense, it means the path. That is the manner in which people ought to live. On this basis, most Jews who lived in the diaspora used the Halakha as a source of their religious and civil laws. In the contemporary and modern Jewish society, the personal and the family laws are always under the authority of the rabbi courts. On this basis, the family and personal values are always under the guidance of the Halakha. In interpreting the Halakha, there are three main Jewish directions, namely the Orthodox, the liberal, and the Hasidism directions. The Orthodox Jews believe in the Halakha as a religious system (Landesmann and Jones, 2012). They believe that the Halakha is a revelation of the will of God. Orthodox Jews believe that the Rabbis have a duty of interpreting the written Torah, where its provisions are not clear. However, they must only to do so with the regulations specified by Moses, at the mountain of Sinai. These regulations under consideration were transmitted orally, and they are clearly explained in the book of Talmud. Orthodox Jews believe that no rabbi has an authority to change the Jewish laws contained in the Talmud and the Torah, all they can do is to give an interpretation of these laws. However, their interpretations are subject to change, and reconsideration. According to the Orthodox Judaism, the role of a woman is dynamic and complex. Women under the Orthodox Judaism are allowed to engage in business, to observe the Sabbath, to engage in activities aimed for their personal development, and this includes academics, etc. The role of Jewish Orthodox women revolve around the mentioned areas. However, the Halakha does not identify the specific duties and roles of women amongst the Orthodox Jews; however, the orthodox Jews believe that the Halakha only provides guidance on how women should live. The orthodox Jews believe in the role of a

Patient education Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Patient education - Assignment Example Nurses have significant roles in educating the public on the five components as needed by the agreement on stroke presentation measures. They include lifestyle risk factors of the disease, signs and symptoms and how to access emergency medical services, medications, stroke prevention and follow-up. Furthermore, they can embrace educational techniques to address the modification of the five educational components after a patient has recovered from a stroke. There is no single perfect teaching method than the other for all patients suffering from stroke. Whichever technique is selected, it will normally be the most operational if it is applied with other instructional methods to improve the process of learning. The decisions on what approaches will be applied will be centered on aspects such as the teaching setting, ideal learning style, educational background, age, culture, size and audience. Common approaches applied to provide educational interventions are simulation and gaming, dem onstrations and return demonstrations, lecture, private teaching, group discussions and lectures (Hauer & Quill, 2011). Nevertheless, lively teaching involving multidisciplinary health care practitioners (HCP), family members and stroke patients interactively are more beneficial instead of passive education. Lecture is a greatly structured approach through which HCP’s or nurses transmit information verbally to stroke patients in a group with the aim of instructing them. Audio-visual assistances can be through drafted materials like a pamphlet or booklet in an acoustic form like audio compact disk or visual compact disk. However, teaching approach is not so much effective in teaching the stroke patients because it does not sustain much inspiration for patients with stroke and restricted chance for learner involvement. Additionally, the audio-visual is ineffective as the patients can sleep off while watching. It is recommended to complement this

Analyzing Written and Visual Texts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Analyzing Written and Visual Texts - Essay Example On a Wednesday evening, 11th August 1965, 21 year old Marquette Frye, an African American was pulled over by a white California Highway Patrol Motorcycle officer Lee Minikus on suspicion of driving while intoxicated. A situation occurred and quickly escalated when Ronald, Marquette’s brother ran and called Rena Price their mother to the scene, attracting the attention of people. The incident turned violent when someone pushed Price Frye got struck Price jumped an officer and another officer pulled a shotgun. All these made the situation intense as growing crowds of local residents watching the argument began yelling and throwing objects at the police officers; leading to the six day riot in Watts. The rioters started fighting physically with the police, blocked fire fighters and beat white motorists. Arson and looting was done but was majorly confined to white-owned stores and enterprises that were said to have caused resentment in the neighborhood due to perceived unfairness, (Oberschall, 322-341). In his response to the Watts riot, Martin Luther King wrote an essay by the name â€Å"where do we go from here† where he took a firm stand of commitment to nonviolence. However, he expressed his understanding of the riots that happened not just in Watts but in other areas as well when he says â€Å"one sees screaming children and angry adults fighting hopelessly and meaninglessly against impossible odds†. By this King means that he knows the desperate frustration of the Black people who riot from the unchanging unfairness of living conditions in their own country. He acknowledges the need for action against the unfairness against the Black community as he goes on to say, â€Å"what is needed are a plan for change, a tactical program that will bring the Black people into the mainstream of American life as quickly as possible† (King, 17). This would allow for the Black community to be recognized as an equal citizen of the United States of America with equal rights. King also acknowledges the fault of the white people; who have gone to great heights to ensure that the Black man is classified as less important to the white man. He says that he sees the hatred on the faces of sheriffs, Klansmen and white citizens in the South who have allowed the hate to change their personality as they are burdened by the hatred they feel for the Black man. King interprets the riot as such because he sees fault on both the black man and the white man’s actions. He does not advocate for a sympathetic truce but an affirmative action that will bring the black man from his misery of oppression from under the feet of the white man. So that there can be respect and equality among the two. A newsreel report by the name â€Å"Troops patrol L.A† gave a report of the incident after it happened. The report said that six days of rioting in a Black section of L.A left the city looking like a scene from war torn cities, with most build ings on fire leaving few intact. It also said that the firemen were harassed by brick throwing looters and snipers; to a point of having to wear flack suits with mesh to protect themselves from the snipers who continued to shoot from roof tops. The estimated damage by fire alone was 200 million; while estimates were yet to be done for losses acquired from looters who stole everything

American Steel Industry Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

American Steel Industry - Research Paper Example One of the industrial relations patterns that have emerged and which the international leadership of the united steelworkers of America appears to be advocating is a new cooperative partnership, modeled after the 1986 National Steel Agreement. This new industrial relations model includes significant quality and flexibility-enhancing work restructuring coupled with an increased share of compensation linked to firm performance and productivity in exchange for job security guarantees and unprecedented employee and union participation and information sharing at all levels of the company (Anon 2). Economic, technological and institutional changes in the 1980s have fundamentally transformed the industrial relations system in the American steel industry. Prior to the 1980s, the bargaining structure in steel matched the concentrated and centralized nature of the industry as a whole. Not only did a multi-employer bargain set the pattern for the wider industry, but also there was coordination of pay for particular jobs through the co-operative arrangements. The inaccessibility to potential entrants of requisite iron ore supplies of high grade has imposed a major barrier to entry to the American steel industry. In the period since the reconstruction of Europe and Japan following the Second World War, earlier reductions in tariffs on steel have invited the influx of foreign supplies; until at present foreign producers are supplying an appreciable minor fraction of the American market. These foreign suppliers are drawing on iron ore reserves that have not been generally accessible to potential entrant firms that might have produced steel in America. As a result, the barrier to entry to the American steel market that depended on the close holding of domestically available iron ore deposits by established American firms has been appreciably reduced. American steel

Electronic Communications Essay Example for Free

Electronic Communications Essay As time goes by, the world is changing rapidly; so are its people and the technology itself. Technology brings about a lot of amendments in people’s life. It is getting more advanced from day to day especially when it comes to Information Technology or in this case; electronic communications. Back then, mailing was seemingly to be one of the most vital ways of communication especially for the world communication. In contrast, nowadays people are more prone to communicate the easier ways; by staring on their electronic accounts on their computers or through their iPods and sending short messages from their iPhones or Blackberries. Why is it so? In my slight opinion, this growing trend gives a lot of dominances in today’s life, which are helping people to save their time and money, create borderless communication and make it easy for people to gain prominent information. First and foremost, the world today is turning more to electronic communications like e-mail, Facebook and Short Message System (SMS) and other electronic communications is because they will prevent people from wasting their time and money. How do these work? As we all know, sending a letter to someone will take a lot of processes and will eventually take a long time and waste a lot of money. On the contrary, electronic communications entail only the tip of our fingers so as an electronic device to work with. Then, what is left for us to do is just, typing! Has that not taken a much lesser time and money? For instance, an e-mail only requires us to turn on our laptops, open our accounts on the website and then, you can start write your letter and send them through e-mails. In short, with the very unstable economy nowadays, having these kinds of communications will ease everyone’s burden especially on their daily expenses and also their valuable time will not be wasted. Secondly, the growing trend of electronic communications is making it possible for a borderless communication which is vital these days. Why is it vital? A lot of things require borderless communication; in education field, businesses and even daily activities, especially when foreigners involved. For example, when trading with foreigners, in order to communicate with each other, they need Skype or Yahoo Messenger as mediums to interact and be able to do the trade at a faster rate as compared to by using ‘snail mails’ or regular letters. Skype is the perfect example of an electronic communication which will cut he boundary that has separated each country and make communication between two different countries from around the world possible. In conclusion, it is crucial to have these electronic communications in today’s age of globalization as they make it easier for people around the world to connect with each other. Last but not least, the dominance of these electronic communications is people could gain prominent information more efficiently than before. As there are lesser borders between countries, the efficiency of getting much more relevant and prominent information is higher. People will have the ability to provide and gain information effectively through Facebook or Twitter accounts. For example, international artists who have planned to do a world concert can inform their fans about it through their Facebook account. Likewise, the fans also can ask just about anything to their favourite artists regarding the concert. Hence, this explains why people make these electronic communications as a huge trend these days and in order to keep the trend ongoing, each person has the responsibility to adapt with the technology itself. In a nutshell, the growing trend of using electronic communications is inevitably vital in people’s lives as it gives out a lot of benefits as stated in above paragraphs. So, to avoid ourselves from not getting the chance of keeping up with the changing trends, we have to try our best to adapt ourselves with the rapid changes. I believe that the electronic communication trend is a trend which is very important to be followed as the world is getting more advanced day to day.

A kpi based performance assessment system

A kpi based performance assessment system 1.0 INTRODUCTION Job performance is usually defined as â€Å"actions and behaviors that are under the control of the individual that contribute to the goals of the organization† [9]. Performance measurement-based management systems help an organization to line up its business activities to its strategy, and to supervise performance in the direction of strategic goals over time. In other words, performance management is used to keep track of the organizational progress against its strategic plan and particular performance goals. According to Campbell [7], the procedure of assigning a ranking to an individuals job performance is as follows: observation, sampling, encoding, storage, retrieval, evaluation, differential weighting, and composite scoring. Measuring the performance of a lecturer is very vital because the indication produced is used for major decisions about their future in academic career. Decisions can be of two types: formative that is used as the support to develop and form the teaching quality, and summative, that is used as the proof for summing up his/her overall performance or position to come to a decision about annual increment, award, merit pay, promotion, sponsorship and tenure [10]. The first one deals with decisions to progress the way of teaching; the second on deals with human resources decisions. Summative decisions are ultimate and they are provided by the administrators at different occasion to settle on their prospect. There is an impact of these decisions on the quality of professional career. The different resources of facts for teaching efficiency can be engaged for either of formative and summative decisions or both. To measure the performance, there should be some pre-identified and logical criteria that can be used through out the assessment process. These criteria are collectively called key performance indicator (KPI). It helps organizations to attain organizational goals by measuring and evaluating their achievement. The indicators vary depending on the organization. For a business company the percentage of net profit can be one of its KPI. For an educational institute the percentage of passed student can be one of its KPI. To establish a stable performance measurement system, the key performance indicators selection is very important. They must be selected carefully and rationally. a. BACKGROUND AND PROBLEM STATEMENT UUM is a gigantic university with three colleges CAS, COB, COLGIS. UUM have 25139 students and 1489 administrative staffs, 1216 academic staffs (as of 12th Aug. 08) and it offers 44 undergraduate programs (as of 2nd May ‘09), 59 post graduate programs (as of 16th Feb. ‘09). With the course of time the number of course and students are increasing. Consequently the number of academic staffs is also increasing. UUM has currently many automated systems such as Personnel Information System â€Å"PERSIS†, Research and Consultation Information System â€Å"ReCIS†, Graduate Academic Information System â€Å"GAIS†, Academic and Student Information System â€Å"ASIS† etc. But there is no such automated system for monitoring and evaluating the performance of the lecturer. Currently the manipulating and measuring the performance is manual the lecturers have to fill up the evaluation form, then print the form and attach the relevant documents and then submit to the evaluation committee. The criteria used for the system is teaching, research, consultation, publication and personality. This evaluation outcome is used for the promotion, scholarship for further study, and other consideration in for advance in career. However, this kind of manual evaluating system some time is biased and subject to human errors. Also it is very slow process and takes much valuable time of both the lecturers and the evaluating authority. Because of the absence of any automated system the evaluation process is not accurate and well-accepted. So it has been felt the need of a web based evaluation system that can be integrated with existing UUM systems and the data that will be used for the criteria can be extracted automatically from the Personnel Information System of UUM (PERSIS) and other related UUM systems. It is therefore necessary to develop a web based system in which the whole process will be done automatically. b. OBJECTIVE The main objective of this study is to develop a performance evaluation system for the academic staff of UUM. This system will be a web-based and can be integrated with the existing management systems in UUM. Specific objectives are: To gather the user requirements for the system. To design and develop the system. To evaluate the system c. RESEARCH QUESTION What are the requirements for the automated performance measuring system for the lecturer? What are the user requirements towards to use this system? d. SCOPE AND LIMITATION It will be developed for UUM academic staff and hereby will follow the policy and strategy that have been set by the UUM authority, so it can not be used by other universities and also not for other category of staff. It will be developed in .NET platform, so it can be used only in windows platform and it will be integrated with existing system. 2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Performance Modeling Employee evaluations are used to estimate the performance level of an employee. Performance measurement is the method by which an organization fixes the parameters within which programs, investments, and acquisitions are reaching the desired results. The type of performance evaluation should be determined based on the responsibility of the employee within a company. Employee performance models used in organizations today can be categorized into four types: 1) Top Down, 2) Peer-to-Peer, 3) 360-Degree and 4) Self-Assessment [6]. 2.1.1 Top Down The most common and most effective approach is Top-down employee performance evaluation, because they engage the judgment of an employee by a direct supervisor. Top-down employee performance evaluations are most functional when it is done by the immediate supervisor someone who works with that employee everyday and knows his or her strengths and weaknesses [12]. 2.1.2 Peer to peer Peer-to-peer employee performance evaluations require employees at the same level to review each other. The idea behind peer-to-peer employee performance evaluations is that none knows an employees ability better than his/her colleagues. In this type of evaluation considering the maturity level of the employees involved and the long-term effects that could result from the source of negative assessments getting back to the team members is important [8]. 2.1.3 360 degree In 360-degree performance reviews, many different types of people are consulted about an employees performance. This includes customers, suppliers, peers and direct reports. In the case of a manager, staffs are often asked to give upward feedback on how well they are being managed. The benefits of many points of view are apparent; but there are also some challenges to these types of performance reviews. While 360-degree performance reviews are being performed, a responsible administration manager should organize the procedure; so that subordinate reviewers are assured that their performance reviews are kept secret [11]. 2.1.4 Self-Assessment Self-Assessment performance reviews are successful when it is combined with any of the other three types of performance reviews. With this type of review, employees are asked to rate themselves, often using the same form that a supervisor will use to evaluate them. Self-assessment performance reviews help give the employees an opportunity for them to reflect their opinion on their own performance prior to the formal review [6]. 2.2 Role of Lecturer According to Dr. Zabokia [5], the primary role of a lecturer is to educate his/her students. However, a lecturer can appear in many aspects. Lecturers also play the roles as tutors, teachers, administrators and counselors. The normal tasks of a lecturer are: First and principal lecture Organize the teaching resources i.e. lecture slides and handouts Set up the questions for examination papers and conduct the evolution A lecturer can also provide extra care to their students as their counselor. Some students may be under severe pressure such as family problems, peer pressure, financial problem etc.When a student seems uninterested and his/her presence starts to fall off, its desirable to counsel the student. During a counseling session, a lecturer could also get feedback from the students on the course or subject matter. This may be supportive to the lecturer to progress in his/her teaching style.Documenting the counseling sessions with the students is a good habit.This will facilitate the authority to monitor the improvement of the students, and supply advice to their guardian if needed. According the â€Å"Generic Role Profile† of university lecturer published by University of Cambridge [2] the list of other tasks: Active Research Publications Research Administration Mentoring post graduate students Participating in conferences or workshops Other extra curricular activities like clubs or societies. 2.3 Key Performance Indicator Key Performance Indicator is the subject measurement in order to verify tangible and intangible result of the organizational performance [4]. It notices current business performance and also definitely identifies the future directions as accomplishing the future values. As an index reflecting business strategy and performance, KPI is derived through current strategies and goals that companies should accomplish. According to Berk [10] there are some potential sources of evidence of teaching effectiveness: (a) student ratings, (b) peer ratings, (c) self-evaluation, (d) alumni ratings, (e) employer ratings, (f) administrator ratings, (g) teaching scholarship, (h) teaching awards, (i) learning outcome measures, and (j) teaching portfolio. So these facts can be used as the KPI for this project. Some more indicators can be added which are not mentioned by Berk [10]. Those are number of publications, number of research, and number of projects, year of experience, future planning, undertaken trainings etc. 2.4 System Development methodology- Prototyping Prototyping is the process where a system can be developed based on the outputs of the previous stage. This may be done by engaging the iterative analysis, design and implementation of an evolving prototype. Learning occurs through the evolutionary system building process where insight is gained about the problem and the complexity of the system. The evolutionary prototyping development process includes regular expert/user evaluation feeding back into the systems development process [3]. Prototyping approach addresses the inability of many users to specify their information needs and the difficulty of system analysis to understand the users environment by providing the user with a tentative system for experimental purposes at the earliest possible time [1]. 3.0 METHODOLOGY The methodology that will be used in this project is the prototyping approach. That means we will build a working replica of the proposed system by performing analysis, design and implementation phases concurrently repeatedly until the system is completed. It will be useful to better understand and extract user requirements and also to limit cost by understanding the problem before committing more resources. The prototyping approach is applicable for this project because it can demonstrate technical feasibility and it can also be used to better understand and extract user requirements and also helps to more quickly refine real requirements rather than attempting to understand a system specification on paper. 4.0 SIGNIFICANCE The significance of the study finding the indicators and developing a web based system that will be used to monitor the performance of UUM lecturer based on Key performance indicators (KPI). It will make a long and uncertain process very easy and quick. This will add a new milestone for the UUM management for their future planning about the lecturer performance evaluation criteria. It will be also very cost effective and it will help to increase the education quality level of UUM. 5.0 CONCLUSION In the conclusion, we can say that this system will be very useful for the UUM authority to award the right lecturer with the right qualification and hereby maintain the education quality and prove that UUM is the â€Å"first choice university†. Project Schedule (Gantt chart) TASKS WEEK 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Planning Requirement Analysis Design the Prototype Coding Process Test the Prototype and debugging Analyze results Documentation REFERENCES: [1] E. Koskivaara. Design Science Approaches to Information Systems Research, in S. Gregor and D. Hart,Information Systems Foundations: Building the Theoretical Basis, ANU Canberra, 205-216.2002 [2] â€Å"Generic Role Profile: University Lecturer†. University of Cambridge. Version 1: December 2005 [3] H. Hasan. Information systems development as a research method. Australasian Journal of Information Systems Special Issue 2003/2004 [4] H.J. Moon, S.H. Lee, S.J. Yoo, E.J. Yu, C.S. Leem. A KPI based Performance Assessment framework for Korean e-Government. In Second International Conference on Future Generation Communication and Networking Symposia, 2008 [5] http://drzabokia.wordpress.com/2007/08/23/responsibilities-of-a-lecturer/ accessed on 14th July, 2009 [6] J. H. McConnell. How to develop essential HR policies and procedures. AMACOM Div American Mgmt Assn, 2004 [7] J. P. Campbell. Modeling the performance prediction problem in industrial and organizational psychology. In Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology (pp. 687-732). Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press, Inc.,1990. [8] K. Wolter. Formal Methods and Stochastic Models for Performance Evaluation: Fourth European Performance Engineering Workshop, EPEW 2007, Berlin, Germany, September, 2007 [9] M. Rotundo P. R. Sackett. The relative importance of task, citizenship, and counterproductive performance to global ratings of job performance: A policy-capturing approach. Journal of Applied Psychology, 66-80, 2002 [10] R. A. Berk. Survey of 12 Strategies to Measure Teaching Effectiveness. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education , Volume 17, Number 1, 48-62, 2005 [11] T. Maylett. 360-Degree Feedback Revisited: The Transition From Development to Appraisal. May 27, 2009 [12] Woodrow Kroll. Facing Your Final Job Review: The Judgment Seat of Christ, Salvation, and Eternal Rewards. Crossway Books, 2008

Disability And Sexuality And Social Work Practice Social Work Essay

Disability And Sexuality And Social Work Practice Social Work Essay There is a growing recognition of the need to provide sex education to people with learning disabilities, as well as their right to achieve such education. Despite a desire to help with this, social workers and other health professionals can lack the confidence and tools to deliver sex education to this population. In an effort to accumulate evidence of best practice thus far, a narrative review of the literature will be conducted to answer the following question: What interventions are available within social work practice for the delivery of sexuality education to people with learning disabilities? By identifying the key consistencies and inconsistencies across effective interventions, feasible interventions can be established and further research identify. Background and Rationale In the past, people with learning disabilities were excluded from sexual education or help with issues around their sexuality. Fortunately, in modern day society this exclusion is beginning to change, which is in part due to a shift from institutionalised care to supported living. This has resulted in an increase in independent living as well as a greater acknowledgement of the needs of people with learning disabilities. Furthermore, the myth that people with learning disabilities are eternal children (McCarthy, 1999) no longer holds sway and it is acknowledged that people with learning disabilities are not asexual; they have the same needs as people without a learning disability, including needs regarding sexuality. The Sex and Relationships research project, set up in 2007, was particularly influential in challenging the previously faulty beliefs and myths that maintained the exclusion of people with learning disabilities. This was a 3-year research programme conducted by CHANGE (2009), a national organisation that fights for the rights of people with learning disabilities. As part of this project it was found that people with learning disabilities, aged 16-25 years old, shared that they were not told about sex and relationships when they were younger. Furthermore, they also said that if they had been given better sex education, they might have made different choices as adults. This highlights a clear unmet need experienced by people with learning disabilities, as well as indicates that these unmet needs discriminate individuals via reduced choice in adulthood. Professionals working within the field of learning disabilities, including social workers, remain reluctant to become involved in sexuality education due to lack of confidence and lack of availability of educational materials designed for this population (Howard-Barr et al., 2005). They want to support people with learning disabilities, but do not have the information or skills to do so (Garbutt, 2008). Thus, there is a need to establish effective interventions designed to equip social workers and other healthcare professionals with the personal and professional tools necessary to deliver sex education to people with learning disabilities. This provides the rationale for a narrative review of the literature. Research Question The research question posed from the background literature is: What interventions are available within social work practice for the delivery of sexuality education to people with learning disabilities? More specifically: What effective interventions are already available? What are the key concepts and theories relevant to effective interventions? How has efficacy of interventions been assessed? What are the key consistencies and inconsistencies across studies? What answers remain? Research Design and Methods A narrative review of the literature will be conducted in order to identify interventions available within social work practice for the delivery of sexuality education to people with learning disabilities. A narrative review has been selected due to its recommended use with comprehensive topics (Collins and Fauser, 2005), and the benefits that derive from being able to include subjective interpretations based on personal experience of social work practice. Social work is a person-centred and holistic discipline that warrants this phenomenological approach. Furthermore, a narrative review can be used to synthesise evidence from both quantitative and qualitative studies, thus benefiting from the strengths of both approaches, the former of which offers scientific rigour and the latter of which offers subjectivity and depth. The relevant literature will be synthesised through the use of data extraction forms (appendix 1), the identification of key themes and controversies between studies, and the development of a considered narrative for each key theme. By identifying established knowledge within this area, as well as where gaps in knowledge remain, conclusions will be made on the efficacy of different interventions or techniques that social workers could utilise in the delivery of sexuality education to people with learning disabilities. Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria Inclusion in this review will be confined to primary research meeting the following additional inclusion criteria: Randomised control trials (RCTs); control trials; prospective pre- and post-test cohort studies; qualitative studies. The study needs to be testing or exploring an intervention for the delivery of sexuality education to people with learning disabilities. Population: social workers or other healthcare professionals working with people who have learning disabilities. Studies conducted over the last 5 years (2006-2011). In addition, the following exclusion criteria apply: Studies conducted before 2006. Non-English studies. Studies that do not meet the pre-defined inclusion criteria. Search Strategy A search of the literature will be undertaken using Boolean logic, which will allow for a more sensitive search of the title and abstracts of the following databases: the Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Medline, Embase, PsychINFO and The Cochrane Library of clinical trials. Keywords to be searched include learning disabilities OR learning dis*AND sex* AND educ* OR train* OR interv* OR intervention studies. The truncation symbol (*) will be applied to search for words that might have various endings (e.g. sex* will find sex, sexuality, sexual). The reference list of all articles that are obtained in full will also be hand-searched for relevant studies. In addition, two key social work journals will be hand-searched from 2010 to 2011 to identify the most up to date research in this area: British Journal of Social Work and Journal of Social Work. The title and abstracts of all literature identified by the search strategy will be scanned for relevance, with irrelevant or duplicate articles being excluded. All records meeting the pre-defined inclusion criteria will be obtained in full for data extraction. A data extraction form recommended by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE, 2010) will be used to elicit key details from each of the studies obtained (appendix 1), including: study design; intervention; and, main findings. Synthesis of Findings Thematic content analysis will be used to identify key themes across studies, followed by the identification of convergent and divergent findings within these key themes (Aveyard, 2010). Narratives will be created for the most prominent themes. A critical analysis of how social work practice could be informed, developed and improved with respect to the evidence obtained from this review will be included, with a specific emphasis on the importance of evidence-based practice. Study Resources, Risks and Timetable Internet databases that provide access to academic peer reviewed journals will be the primary source utilised for searching the literature. The university library will also be a valuable resource for locating learning disability and social work journals that can be hand-searched, as well as providing access to a librarian who can be asked for advice on suitable web-based subject gateways. In addition, the reference lists of reviewed articles are a source of access to further relevant research. Ethical approval will not be required for this review. A timetable for completing this review is presented in Table 1, with the deadline for submitting the reviewing being February 2012. Table 1: Timetable for Review Action Dates 1. Choose research question based on scoping of the literature and consideration of relevant policy. Beginning of March 2011 2. Conduct a preliminary literature search to gather information on the background and rationale for review. Mid-March 2011 3. Develop a review proposal and timetable, including search strategy and inclusion criteria, etc. End of March 2011 4. Conduct first search of the literature, utilising selected web-based databases, excluding irrelevant or duplicate records and obtaining the full text of remaining records. Complete data extraction forms for each study. April and May 2011 4. Hand-search selected journals, obtaining the full text of relevant records and completing data extraction forms for each study. June 2011 5. Hand-search the reference lists of all articles included from the database and journal searches, obtaining the abstract of potential articles of relevance. Exclude those that become irrelevant on closer inspection and obtain the full text of remaining references. Complete data extraction forms for each study. July 2011 6. Identify the key themes and controversies between studies. Write a narrative for each key theme, including objective discussion of studies and subjective interpretations in relation to experience, knowledge, and social work policy. August and September 2011 7. First draft of introduction and rationale chapter. October 2011 8. First draft of methods and results. November 2011 9. First draft of discussion chapter. December 2011 10. First full draft of review make necessary adjustments and finalise. January 2011 11. Submit final review. February 2012

Ethnography: Ainu Essay example -- Cultural Anthropology

Ethnography: Ainu Worldview   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Ainu, Japan’s native aboriginal people, are very much an isolated people, living now only in the northern island of Japan, Hokkaido. They number, as of a 1984 survey, 24,381, continuing a rise from a low point in the mid nineteenth century due to forced labor and disease, and have largely left their old ways and integrated into standard Japanese society, though even the majority of those still reside in Hokkaido. The animistic religion of the Ainu is firmly enmeshed with every other aspect of the culture. Family and Kinship   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Most Ainu organize in groups of nuclear families, the nuclear family being the basic social unit (Encyclopedia). Some groups, however, have extended families, but are not as common. Families are both patrilineal and matrilineal, the sons inheriting the father’s clan and the daughters inheriting the mother’s clan (. Both males and females do not marry cousins, but only from their mother’s family (Encyclopedia). Also, polygyny is practiced by the higher-status males in a community (Encyclopedia). During the bear ritual, relatives of the host in other settlements usually come to participate (Encyclopedia). Marriages traditionally were either arranged or of mutual consent (Museum, Life 1). Also, as a result of the twentieth century’s attempted Japanese integration, often through exogamy, now not even a third of all Ainu have four Ainu grandparents (Bowring 244). Economics The Ainu traditionally were hunters and gatherers, but rather than wandering nomadically, they settled in one location, on one section of a river, where they could fish and hunt (Museum People). However, in more recent times, Ainu seeking to integrate into Japanese society have taken jobs in ... ... Apr. 2002.      Encyclopedia of World Cultures.   CD-ROM.   Old Tappan, NJ: Macmillian.    Forbis, William H.   Japan Today:   People, Places, Power.   New York:   Harper, 1975.    Law to preserve Ainu culture was Passed.   1 Feb. 2002.   Buraku Liberation and Human Rights Research Institute.   25 Apr. 2002.   .    Takasugi, Shinji.   Numbers in world languages.   25 Apr. 2002.   .    Thomason, Andy.   â€Å"The Ainu of Japan.†Ã‚   2 July 1999.   Suite101.com Inc.   25 Apr. 2002.   .    Wright, Mike.   â€Å"Ainu-English Word List.†Ã‚   13 Nov. 1999.   Costal Fog Net.   25 Apr. 2002.   .

Pete Rose in the Hall of Fame Essay -- Art

Pete Rose in the Hall of Fame To some, including myself, baseball is the greatest sport that has ever been played. It is a game played by two opposing teams made of multiple players, but only nine players per team play at the same time. To be part of one of the thirty teams that get to play professional baseball, a player has to play the game extremely well (www.baseballhalloffame.com). When a player plays the game better than most have played he gets rewarded, usually with lots of money in a big contract. Then there are those rare players, the 244 elite players of the game that have already been inducted into the Hall of Fame. Being inducted in the Hall of Fame is the utmost of baseball fame. The players listed are remembered forever. This brings me to my argument. Pete Rose should be allowed induction into the Hall of Fame. Now, most of the baseball critics and brass do not want Pete Rose inducted. They claim that his illegal betting on baseball games should keep him out of the Hall of Fame. Almost all of the "highly questionable" evidence that Commissioner Bart Giamatti held was derived from former friends and associates of Rose. "Up to $30,000 per day", so some of Roses' "close" friends say. These former friends of Rose are Tommy Gioiosa, Donald Stenger, Mike Fry, and Paul Janszen. This evidence is what prompted the banishment from baseball of Pete Rose, which he signed. The evidence was enough for the Commissioner. In 1989, baseball's Commissioner Bart Giammati ...

A Raisin in the Sun What’s Up With the Epigraph? Essay

What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore and then run? Does it stink like rotten meat? Or crust and sugar over like a syrupy sweet? Maybe it just sags like a heavy load. Or does it explode? Harlem by Langston Hughes. Lorraine Hansberry, playwright, author, and activist seemed to have gotten inspired by Hughes poem as well as her own life experiences and decided to write A Raisin in the Sun. A Raisin in the Sun is a play about an African American family living on the South Side of Chicago during the 1950s. In the play, Lorraine essentially focuses on the dreams of the characters and the obstacles in their life they try to overcome to fulfill them. Each member of the Youngster’s family has a dream he or her wants to accomplish. Lena Younger (Mama) has always dreamt of moving her family into a nice neighborhood with a big backyard so her children can play and she can attend to her garden. Mama is a strongly religious woman who takes care of her family like a mother should. She wants the best for them, Mama’s dream was not a dream she wanted for her family it was also what she and hate husband Big Walter always wanted. Big Walter worked extremely hard to provide and support for his family. So hard it resulted in his death as Mama says â€Å"he finally worked his self to death†. Since Big Walter’s passing Mama has received a life insurance check for ten thousand dollars. Taking to opportunity so that she can fulfill both her and Big Walter’s dream Mama decides to use that money to buy a house in an all-white neighborhood. Big Walter’s life insurance check cause a conflict within the family Ruth Younger dream is quite similar to Mamas. She wants to build a happy family for herself and believes getting away from their cramped apartment will do so. Ruth works very hard to take care of her family but with being overworked, financial problems, a downfall in her relationship with her husband, and an unexpected pregnancy Ruth can’t seem to find any sort of happiness in her life. That’s why she feels a new beginning will change all that. Beneatha Younger dream is to go to medical school to become a doctor. Beneatha is a better educated than the rest of her family and is determined to use her knowledge to make a difference. Throughout the play, it seems as though Beneatha is struggling to find herself. With the changes in hobbies such as horseback riding and playing the guitar also she’s struck an interest in learning more about her African heritage. She is determined to be more than the others around her. Living in a time where women jobs are mostly cooking, cleaning. Walter Lee Jr. the dream is to invest in a liquor store so that he’s able to provide for his family. Walter is not so happy with his dead-end job as a chauffeur and feels this investment will help him make his own money so he can become his own man. Everyone tries to warn Walter that investing into a liquor store is not such a bright idea Throughout the play, A Raisin on Sun

Staff Training And Development Essay

Sustaining Effective Staff Training And Development Essay IntroductionWhat is training and development?Training and development is a concept in management which allow the organisational activity to be aimed directly at performance of individuals, groups and the organization (Landale, 1999). There are three main activities under the guise of training and development which are interlinked – training, education and development. It is not just the role of the employer to identify training and development needs, the employee also needs to be able to identify their role in the organization and how they can effectively develop themselves (Landale, 1999). Van der Bossche et al (2010) acknowledge that due to the rapid advancements in technology and knowledge require the individual to participate in personal and professional development. The development of talent within the organization is necessary for competitive advantage to exist, it is also necessary for the retention of employees. The organization needs to identify talent and to support the individuals through all their training needsStaff Training and Development is described asthe necessity to cover the essential skills used in the everyday work situation. Within the promotion of training and development, the individual needs to be focused on the goal of developing their skills, knowledge and understanding of how the organization exists within its environment (Jerling, 1996). If the manager can motivate the employee in their work and can encourage development then the employee will see it in a positive light and will work towards the goals.I I Background Having effective employees is instrumental to the success of any business organization. This is the case because of the high employee turnover rates and high unemployment rates evident in most countries. Since the 2008 recession in the U.S, other countries of the world have experienced the ripple effects as the world largest economy struggles to recover. The European nations have suffered under the current debt crisis that has shrunk economies in Europe. Other countries in African and Asia have also felt the impact, as their economies are most dependent on both the U.S and European markets for trade. The subject of having effective employees has therefore, gained relevance as employers look for ways to sustain their workers. In an effort to keep their most important asset, organizations are heavily involved in the training and development of employees (Hung &Wong 2007). Training and development has been a tool used by organizations to mitigate the risks of losing employee to other or ganizations. It has also been used to groom future leaders of the company, as well as assist organizations in saving time and money. This essay shall discuss two theories that discuss employer support and training, as well as the impacts of employee performance in relation to training and development of employees.III Development Humphry Hung and Yiu Wong have come up with two theories that discuss the relationship between the employer and the workers when it comes to training, continuing education and work study performance (Hung and Wong, 2007). The theories were introduced because of a case study of Hong Kong students who were in school and worked at the same time. The authors then came up with the theories to help explain the student or employee’s performance in relations to their employees and employer relationship (Hung and Wong, 2007). The first theory was the psychological contract theory while the second one was the expectancy dis-confirmation theory. The researchers realized the need for employees to have an education so that they are able to move up the ladder as far as the work force is concerned. The researchers used the employee and employer relations as the subject of research, and came up with a model to explain how training and development can be effectively used in the workplace (Hung &Wong2007).Psychological contract theoryAccording to the psychological theory, the employer and the employee have a set of beliefs, promises and obligations that go beyond the formal contract between the two. This psychological contract theory is attributed to the second wave of research in this subject, namely where the basis is a mutual loyalty between employees and organization (Hall and Moss, 1998). The elements of the third wave of research on the psychological contract, which measures the attitudes and perpceptions of employees towards organization are demonstrated below (Robinson, 1996). In other words, once an employer hires an employee, the employee has to abide by certain rules while the employer is obligated to behave professionally. This means that the employees expect to exchange their loyalty and productivity for wages and other forms of compensation (Kimberly 2009). This theory may be regarded to be limited in delivery of depth of investigation of relations between organization and employees (Robinson and Morrisson, 1995). This suggests that recent research has failed to acknowledge the fact that psychological contact theory is more multi-dimensional as opposed to what has been presented in the research (Trunley and Feldamn, 1999a). As a result, there were two kinds of contents presented, namely transactional and relational. Transactional content involves measurable economic exchanges between the two parties. For instance, an employee works 40 hours a week for a paycheck at the end of the week. Relational contents are based on trust and long-term relationships. In such a case, an employee can delegate a certain role to the employee based on trust (McConnell 2004). In the study, three principles can emerged. First, there is interaction at an individual level, mutual relationship between the two parties and finally tactical exchanges. Most people believe that the relationship between the employee and the employer is based on personal ties because the employer is an embodiment of the organization, and the experience of their interaction dictates the success of an organization (Hung &Hing 2007). On the other hand, some believe that there has to be a mutual relationship between the employer and the employee for organizations to succeed. The mutual obligation is based on the belief that the employer is obliged to the employee in return for a commitment. Finally, the tactical exchanges occur between the workers in which case, the employee insists on a mental connection between the two parties (Kimberly 2009). The significance of the psychological contract theory is that it attempts to explain the employee’s behavior in regards to how he is treated by the employer. In other words, the employee relationship to the employer is imperative to matters regarding how employees react when subjected to training by organizations. The development of the employee dictates the performance of the employee in the continuing work-study. The research found that students who had a good working relationship with their employer performed well in their training and education compared to those who had a bad relationship (Hung &Hing 2007). Another limitation is attributed to the assumption, that psychological contact theory fails to address the specifics of individual work behaviour (Robinson, 1996a). From methodological perspective, this theory was developed on the basis of employee’s self-appraisals. As a result, it failed to include the actual supervisor’s appraisals, which are perceived to be quite crucial in delivery of objective opinion on the subject of job performance (Keeney and Svyantek, 2000).Expectancy disconfirmation theoryThe expectancy disconfirmation theory is similar to that of consumer dissonance. Only that in this case, it deals with the employee, as opposed to the consumer. The theory was brought about from the comparison of a worker and a consumer when dealing with their products. An employee is believed to have positively disconfirmed their role in the organisation when their perceived performance exceeds their expected performance (Roughton&Mercurio 2002). The opposite is true and r eferred to as negative disconfirmation. Negative disconfirmation occurs when an employee believes that their expectations exceed their perceived The ability for the organisation to be able to sustain effective staff training and development in the workplace is a necessity in the global market. The purpose of this paper is to reflect on training and development in the workplace (Venkatesh and Goyal, 2010). Other considerations which must be taken into consideration when discussing this topic are in relation to the culture and structure of the organisation as well as the importance of communication and the impact of the leadership styles on the overall behaviour of the organisation (Venkatesh and Goyal, 2010). The global market has allowed the transfer of skills and knowledge through migration and the internationalisation of organisations. Training and development are important to how the organisation can compete in the market, if the organisation can sustain their employees through training and development they will be able to compete in the market. The effectiveness of employees will prove to be a valuable asset to the organisation and it is important that the organisation holds on to their employees (Klein, 1998). It has been argued that the resources of an organisation are the key sources of competitiveness. There is a need to examine the background of the organisation – culture and structure to see how these can determine how the organisation perceives training and development opportunities within the organisation. This theory has also proved to have some limitations attributed to it. This implies that it has been a subject to limitations imposed on the methodlogical approach. This implies that there have been some concerns reported in relation to the measurement of expectations that have been met (Irving and Meyer, 1999). This implies that direct measurement which is utilized in prediction of the disrepency between the expectations in relation to the job and actual behavioural intentions (Irving and Meyer, 1999).Strategic ManagementStrategic management is an essential process which needs to be considered in any organisation. Thompson & Martin (2005) explain the process as being concerned with organisational actions and activities which identify and deal with threats, opportunities etc in both the internal and external environment. How strategic management is managed shows how well the organisation can adapt to change and how training and development will be welcomed in the organisational conte xt. Lamb (1984) states that strategic management assesses competitors of the organisation and sets goals and strategies which can be seen in the context of training and development and how the organisation views the importance of its employees. One of the most important strategic processes is the practice of retaining employees. It is best practice to keep the skills and knowledge available to the organisation to remain competitive and to be able to recruit the most talented individuals in the market. If an organisation has the pick of the talent through their recruitment process they can sustain their competitive advantage which will allow them to compete consistently. The type of culture is reflected through the recruitment and selection processes as well the organisational structure and culture. If an organisation can effectively train and develop their workforce as well as retain their employees. Performance management and a competitive incentive programme can enhance the ability of the organisation to select and recruit the individuals they want to recruit to positions and not just because they have to fill the position (Phillips & Pulliam Phillips (2002). Lambin (2000) defines the strategic process as allowing management to identify advantages and disadvantages. It will be important to identify the advantages and disadvantages of training and development further on in this paper but it is extremely necessary that these are identified so that the organisation can identify the skills and knowledge which they require in their organisation. The human element to the resources of the organisation are extremely important, Armstrong (2006) cites that the skills and competencies identified within the human resources process need to meet the future demands and challenges of the organisation and the environment. It will be necessary for the organisation to meet the pressures from the competitive environment and it should be prepared for this. Most organisations would not be able to function effectively in their environment without sustaining effective training and development in their workplaces. It is important that employees can be motivated i nto performing and target meeting.Organisational CultureThe culture of the organisation is an integral factor of organisational activity. Holbeche (2006) believes that there are issues linking corporate social responsibility, accountability and the stakeholder environment. The culture of the organisation will impact on the behaviour of the employees in reference to how they behave, their work attitudes, the ability to embrace change and how the organisational objectives are achievable or not. Motivational theory is extremely important (Alderfer, 1969, Vroom, 1964, Maslow, 1943, Herzberg, 1966) link the goals of the organisation to the performance and achievement of personal goals which in turn can be fuelled by how skilled and knowledgeable the individual is. The culture of the organisation can be linked to success through the achievement of the competitive advantage. Deal & Kennedy (1982) believe that the most important factor for the success or failure of the organisation is the c ulture. Culture by its very nature is implicit of behaviours within the organisation. Leadership and management are also essential to the understanding of culture and how it affects all mechanisms within the organisation (Rabey, 2003). This is also essential to the concept of training and development within the organisation as the development of management within the organisation, as the leadership role needs to grow both personally and professionally thus the impetus is on the development through training and development. The leader plays a role in the development of the organisation and if this individual is in tune with the development and training of the human resources, the organisation will embrace this concept. Schein (2004) reflects that the leadership and culture are inseparable. Structure is also important to the training and development environment within an organisation. The more rigid the hierarchical structure the less likely the culture will embrace training and development p ractices. While many organisations realise the need for progressive training and development it should be noted that not every organisation is a learning organisation (Schein, 2004).LeadershipIt is necessary to understand leadership as a concept before attempting to evaluate training and development. The development of the leader, according to Pedlar et al (2003), is that the concept is based on unexamined assumptions. There is no single definition of a leader, however, there are many attributes attached to leadership such as an ability to adapt, to make decisions, to be flexible and to be able to recognise skills within themselves and within others. The ability of the strategic manager is to be able to create an environment where employees want to participate and make a significant contribution to their role in the organisation. It is through this communicative process that the leader can identify the development requirements of the employee. The employee should be able to trust t he judgement of the leader to allow them to participate in any programmes for development and learning within the organisation (Rabey, 2003). It is also necessary that the leader can identify any developmental needs in their own career progression. If the leader is forward thinking they will bring the organisation into line with the requirement of the selection and recruitment process to enhance the competitive nature of the organisation. The performance of the individual is impacted by the authority figure in the organisational relationship and can be highly influenced by the use of incentives. One such incentive which can be used to motivate the employee is that of training and development opportunities. These types of incentives are extremely important in today’s global environment with the internationalisation of organisations and the free movement of the workforce. The more skilled the workforce, the more ability the employee has to dictate their position within the organisation. This position allows the employee to hold some power over the authority figure as they can determine where they want to go in terms of their career and their development. Communication is key to this process so that the employee knows what kind of training is available to them and for the leader to be able to communicate the type of training which may best suit the employee. It is important that the leader can apply self development to themselves before they apply it to the individuals within their organisation and there should be an ethos throughout the organisation on lifelong learning .Learning OrganisationIn today’s global environment the concept of lifelong learning is extremely important and it is necessary for all employees to keep their development and learning up to date. The availability of learning to employees should be a pre-requisite to any organisation who profess to be a global leader. It is necessary for all employees to keep their skills, resources and knowledge updated so that they can compete in their business market. The markets while very dynamic and complex are also extremely competitive, and organisations are always looking for the right individual to take up a position within the organisation, who will ultimately enhance their competitive advantage (Lambin, 2000). Lifelong learning as a concept is not new, however, the concept of learning within the organisational context is very new. This allows the individual to learn around their own experiences. Both the organisation and the individual should be in synch with each other to allow their goals to be achieved. The service which the individual can apply to their customer greatly leaves a mark on the organisation as to how proficient it is in dealing with its customer. The ability of the organisation to provide professional training for their employees will successfully promote the organisation as well as the role of the employee. It is necessary that lifelong learning should be promoted more readily in today’s global markets due to the expansion of business and the free movement of employees to other countries. Lifelong learning can be provided throughout the organisation and does not necessary mean that it must be formal, it can be on the job training, but it should be used to encourage and motivate the individual. It is important to understand that the concept of lifelong learning is not without it disadvantages and within many organisations the facility is very much available. However, it is up to the individual to decide that they wish to partake in any programme, and also up to the manager to put the employee forward for training and development. This is very much about communication. Depending on how free flowing communication is, depends on the availability of these facilities. If the employee does not push for these opportunities they can hardly be expected to be handed the opportunity. However, the manager must communicate that these opportunities are available to the employee and explain the positive features for the employee. It is also necessary that the vision and politics of the organisation match the service and opportunities which can be given to employees. The need to preserve the abilities of employees within the organisation has become increasingly important, especially for the organisation to retain the skills, knowledge and resources which it currently holds. Lifelong learning can in effect change the labour market and the direction which the organisation is heading. Smith (2001) identifies the need of an organisation to be progressive, to allow the individual to gain more knowledge throughout their career and to persuade the individual to use the resources available to them for educational and growth purposes.Benefits of Training and DevelopmentTraining and development is a particularly helpful feature to the organisation as well as the individual. The process allows both the organisation and the individual to grow alongside with the global market. It allows the individual within the organisati on to recognise that they should be motivated to perform their job to the best of their ability because they can feel more valued by the incentives which they can receive from the organisation. There are many benefits to the organisation and the employee but it should also be recognised that there are also disadvantages to this. Lifelong learning does not necessary mean that the employee has to go off site on participate in in-house training, it also means a variety of opportunities within the organisation such as job rotation, secondment etc. These types of roles allow the employee to try out the role but also it means that they can avail of training in other positions within the organisation. This type of training can also motivate the employee as it can be seen as a performance reward for their hard work. It would seem in today’s environment, the emphasis would be very much on a culture of performance equals rewards. Other types of training and development include attending classes and online courses.Advantages and disadvantages of Training and DevelopmentThe advantages which can be beneficial to the organisation is the retention of the current employees who are competent in their positions and have the ability to take on new roles within the organisation. If the employee can be trained in other po sitions it will benefit the organisation when it comes to employees leaving, thus the need for an urgent replacement for the position is no longer made a priority as the organisation can often promote or second from within. This allows the organisation some time to proceed with the recruitment and selection process to allow for them to find the right candidate. This also allows the employee to try other positions within the organisation and to decide if they wish to apply for these positions. With these types of training and development opportunities, the employee gets an opportunity to experience other roles and they may also provide a monetary incentive such as a pay rise while they are in the position. The ability of the organisation to provide these types of roles will also allow the organisation to retain their workforce and the skills and knowledge which come with that. It also enhances the skills of the employee. While there are advantages to training and development, there are also disadvantages. These disadvantages are predominately to the organisation but those which are important factors to the employee are the amount of time they would have to spend on the training and they may not be fully aware of the training opportunities which are afforded to them. This could be due to a lack of communication within the organisation or that the organisation is not overly interested in the development of their employees. One major reason that an organisation may not provide training and development would be down to cost in time and money. It may not be convenient for the organisation to spent time and money on an employee when the end result could be that they lose the skills and knowledge of the employee to another organisation due to the training and development they received. This has become more common as employees are more empowered and acknowledge the freedom to move to another job, even to mov e to another country.How Training and Development is ChangingGarrison & Anderson (2003: p.i) state that ‘The growth of e-learning is being described as explosive, unprecedented, and above all, disruptive.’ E-learning is associated with providing a framework for understanding the application and to goal set. This method of learning has become increasingly adopted as technology is evolving and transforming work practices. Many organisations have acknowledged the need to change according to reviewing the values and culture of their organisations. It has become increasingly important for organisations to adapt to the new learning environment. Training and development has changed rapidly due to global expansion. The employee no longer needs to take time off work to participate in training. Along with on the job training, it has become cost effective for employees to educate themselves through online and DVD/ CD’s. Technology has afforded organisations and employees easier ways to participate in training and development. Study can take place at the workstation or at home rather than the traditional format where the employee had to leave the workplace and travel to a destination where they could be facilitated. This has become extremely cost effective for the organisation as they are not losing man hours when the employee is studying/ on their course and it also means that workloads are not high because the work is still being completed. Along with the rise in popularity of the Internet and its main feature, namely interactivity, the human resource managers have found out that this may be used to the advantage for training and development purposes (Venkatesh and Goyal, 2010). The internet, as an interactive and communication medium provides wider access to the information and enables distance learning for knowledge transfer purposes. This suggests that it is much easier to engage in learning programs from any location in the world, if an individual has an Internet connection (Venkatesh and Goyal, 2010). Additionally, it has been estimated that the Internet is associated with lower costs, imposed on the training and development strategies. This implies that the main costs are reduced in the areas of physical distribution of training and development programs and the need for hiring a specific staff in order to maintain those. Online training allow the individual to manage the training program by himself, where he is r egarded to be in control over the situation (Venkatesh and Goyal, 2010). Van Dam, (2002) suggests that online training is utilized in combination with the offline channel, suggesting that in the majority of cases, the users of the online training system tend to maintain an offline contact whilst receiving the necessary instructions. The online training system is mainly utilized for the development of computer skills, job-related skills and technical competencies. Recently, there has been an emergence of economic recession that has affected the planning and implementation process of training and development programs. This implies that economic recession has made the companies to reconsider their costs and thereby plan the cuts, where necessary. CIPD, (in EWCO, 2009) has estimated that the performance of the majority of companies in the previous 12 months has been worsened. With regard to training and development, it has been estimated that 32 % of surveyed companies have reported cuts in the training and development budget in the previous 12 months. However, in the light of recession, despite the imposed cuts in budget, the majority of companies has estimated that training and development has not been viewed as an expendable commodity. This implies that the management of the companies still view training and development programs as the key priority for company’s achievement of organizational objectives (CIPD in EWCO, 2009; Bourke, 2009) . This suggests that there is a great potential for further investments in training and development programs, given its significance in the corporate world.Methods used in Training and DevelopmentThis type of training also encourages the employee as they can do all their study with the use of a pc and can do it during working hours at their workstation. It also allows the employee to have more say in their development and to enhance their skills. The use of IT has allowed the development of more globalised skills which are transferrable. It is also appropriate for the organisation to provide the employee with the information about training and development opportunities which is extremely easy compared to how the traditional methods had been. The employee and the organisation can research the courses/ training and development opportunities. The manager has the ability to distinguish worthwhile courses/ training opportunities according to the need of the employee with the use of IT. T his is where the ability to communicate and identify the individual needs of the employee as well as their own needs. References 1.Alderfer, C.P. (1969): An Empirical Test of a New Theory of Human Needs, Organizational Behaviour and Human Performance, Vol. 4, Issue 2, May, pps. 142-175 2.Armstrong, M., (2006): A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice, 10th Edition, Kogan Bourke A. (2010). ‘Recession Affects Training and Development Programs’. Available from: http://www.aicpcu.org/MediaCenter/docs/articles/Recession_Affects_Training_and_Development_for_Web_10-09.pdf. Last Accessed: 13th Feb. 2012 CIPD in EWCO (2009). ‘Impact of recession on workplace training’. Available from: http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/ewco/2009/09/UK0909039I.htm. Last Accessed on 13th Dec. 2012 3.Deal, T.E., & Kennedy, A.A., (1982) :Corporate Cultures: The Rites and Rituals of Corporate Life, Harmondsworth, Penguin Books 4.Garrison, D.R., & Anderson, T., (2003) :E-Learning in the 21st Century, RoutledgeFalmer, Taylor & Francis Group Hall, D. T., & Moss, J. E. (1998). ‘The new protean career contract: Helping organizations and employees adapt’.Organizational Dynamics, 26, 22–37. Herzberg, F. (1966) :Work and the Nature of Man, Staples Press Holbeche, L. (2006), Understanding Change: Theory, Implementation and Success, Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann Hung, H. & Wong Y. (2007), ‘The relationship between employer endorsement of continuing education and training and work and study performance’: A Hong Kong case study’. International Journal of Training& Development, 11, 4, pp. 295-313. Irving, P. G., and Meyer, J. P. (1999). ‘On Using Residual Difference Scores in the Measurement of Congruence: The Case of Met Expectation Research. A Longitudinal Analysis’, Personnel Psychology, 52(1), pp. 85-95. Jerling K. (1996). Education, Training, and Development in Organisation. Pearson: South Africa Keeney, M. J., & Svyantek, D. J. (2000). ‘A review of psychological contract theory and research: Promise nothing and they still may get angry’. Current Trends in Management, 5, 65–94. Kimberly, W. 2009, Value Initiatives Improving Performance in the Workplace. NY:GRIN Verlag 9.Lamb, R., (1984) Competitive Strategic Management, Prentice Hall 10.Lambin, J.J., (2000) Market-Driven Management: Strategic & Operational Marketing, MacMillan Business Landale A. (1999). Gower handbook of training and development. 3rd ed., Gower Publishing: UK 11.Maslow, A.H. (1943), ‘A theory of human motivation’, Psychological Review, Vol. 50 No. 4, pp. 370 – 396. 12.McConnell, C. R. 2004, ‘Managing Employee Performance’, Health Care Manager, Vol. 23, No. 3, p. 273, Supplemental Index. 13.Pedler, M., Burgoyne, J., & Boydell, T., (2003) A Manager’s Guide to Leadership, McGraw-Hill Phillips, J.J., & Pulliam Phillips, P., (2002) Retaining Your Best Employees: In Action Case Study Series, American Society for Training and Development Rabey, G., (2003) The Paradox of Teamwork, Industrial and Commercial Training, Vol. 35, No. 4, pp. 158 – 162 Robinson, S. L. (1996). ‘Trust and breach of the psychological contract’. Administrative Science Quarterly, 41:574–599. Robinson, S. L., &Morrison, E.W. (1995a). ‘Psychological contracts and OCB: The effect of unfulfilled obligations on civic virtue behavior’. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 16: 289–298 Roughton, J. &Mercurio, J. 2002, Developing an effective safety culture: A Leadership Approach. NY: Butterworth-Heinemann 17.Schein, E.H. (2004): Organizational Culture and Leadership, Jossey-Bass 18.Thompson, J.L., & Martin, F., (2005) Strategic Management: Awareness and Change, 5th Edition, Thomson Learning 19.Smith, M. K., (2001) ‘Peter Senge and the learning organisation’, the encyclopaedia of informal education, available online at www.infed.org/thinkers/senge.htm Turnley, W. H., & Feldman, D. C. (1999a). ‘The impact of psychological contract violations on exit, voice, loyalty, and neglect’. Human Relations, 52, 895–922. Van den Bossche, P., Segers, M., & Jansen, N., (2010) Transfer of Training: The Role of Feedback in Supportive Social Networks, International Journal of Training and Development, Vol. 14, Iss. 2, pp. 81 – 94 van Dam, N. (2002). E-learning by design: Can a better-designed course help you learn moree-learning. 3(1), 38-39. Venkatesh, V. and Goyal, S.(2010). ‘Expectation Disconfirmation and Technology Adoption: Polynomial Modeling and Response Surface Analysis,’MIS Quarterly 34, (2), 281-303 Vroom, V.H. (1964), Work and Motivation, John Wiley