Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Business Environment Essay

The successful accomplishment of this case study is the outcome of the contribution of number of people, especially those who have given the time and effort to share their thoughts and suggestions to improve the report. At the beginning, I would like to pay my humble gratitude to the Almighty God for giving me the ability to work hard under pressure. This report on â€Å"Case study on Business Environment† is prepared through continuous research for a period of about one month. This long span of work would not have been possible without the help of various generous hands. My sincere gratitude to my course instructor, for his supervision on this report. He has given a lot of assistance in coordinating the whole report. Without his perseverance and guidance this report would have been a pile of worthless paper. Page 2 of 17 Table of Content Topic Executive Summary Understanding the organisational purposes of businesses 1.1 Identify the purposes of different types of organization considering their legal structure and types (private company, public company, and voluntary organisation, co-operative, charitable) 1.2 Describe the extent to which an organisation meets the objectives of different stakeholders 1.3 Explain the responsibilities of an organisation and strategies employed to meet stakeholder interests; conflict of expectations; satisfying stakeholder objectives Understanding the nature of the national environment in which businesses operate 2.1 Explain how economic systems attempt to allocate resources effectively 2.2 Assess the impact of fiscal and monetary policy on business organisations and their activities 2.3 Evaluate the impact of competition policy and other regulatory mechanisms on the activities of a selected organization. Understanding the behaviour of organisations in their market environment 3.1 Explain how market structures determine the pricing and output decisions of businesses. 3.2 Illustrate the way in which market forces shape organisational responses using a range of examples. 3.3 Judge how the business and cultural environments shape the behaviour of a selected organization. Assessing the significance of the global factors that shape national business activities 4.1 Discuss the significance of international trade to UK business organizations 4.2 Analyse the impact of global factors on UK business organizations 4.3 Evaluate the impact of policies of the European Union on UK business organizations Recommendations References    Executive Summary First of all I have introduced the company named ‘Sainsbury’s and after that I will describe organisational purposes, nature of the national environment, the behaviour of organisations in their market environment and implication of the global factors that shape national business activities. Sainsbury’s is one of the UK’s leader retailers, currently its position is just after Tesco, who is occupying the market leading position. Anyway Sainsbury’s t offer high quality with great value products and services ranging from food, cloths, daily household needs etc. they employed over than 152,000 (2012) people in the UK, and have more than 1,016stores in UK .Their markets is growing rapidly, recently they have planned to expand more in overseas markets. In brief, I am going to identify the purpose of different types of organisation, their responsibilities, strategies based on the present market situation, trade policies, and behaviours as well as economic, government and the world trade organization impacts on the organization. Then the explanation of market structures, market forces that shape the organisation’s response and impact of business and cultural environment on the organisation. Finally I will discuss the impact of the global factors and how policies of the European Union affect UK business organisations. Page 4 of 17 Understand the organisational purposes of businesses 1.1 Identify the purposes of different types of organization considering their legal structure and types. A business can be organized as follows: Proprietorship: has a singly owner, known as proprietor, who manages the business; proprietorships tend to be small business or professional services, such as accountants, lawyer Partnership: joins two or more persons as co-owners, each owner is a partner and the partnership deal can be done, it is called a mutual, mutual Agency: Organization: this organization, owned by shareholders, these people who own shares in the organization, is a certificate representing ownership in a organization, the business is a organization, when the State approved the articles of incorporation, and the first stock share published article to the lines that have been approved by the administration of the State Corporation, unlike sole proprietorship and partnerships. Public joint stock organization, limited liability organization offers limited liability to its owners and management. If want to be, that the organization can make the organization sells shares to investors, it is useful in attracting capital. Only limited liability organization can be listed on the Stock Exchange, and the character of their stocks has a suffix. So, British Petroleum PLC and BP ticker. A private organization may issue shares and shareholders. But their shares are not on public exchanges and were not granted for the initial public offering. Voluntary organizations: It’s an organization with random or regular volunteer for exploitation and may or may not have paid employees. Voluntary organization is characterized by independence of the State; organize themselves through the unpaid Board membership; Membership that is not received or ordered; support for the charity; are not for profit Cooperative Organization: Page 5 of 17 The organization owned, managed and operated by a group of users in their favor. Each Member must contribute capital and share in the control of the organization on the basis of the principle of one Member one vote. Charity: Embedded or included tax exempt; developed and used for charitable purposes ;uses its own funds for these charitable activities under its direct control; does not to distribute any part of the turnover is generated for each curator, trustier, Member, or any other individuals and does not associated with political organizations. 1.2 Describe the extent to which an organisation meets the objectives of different stakeholders The upper diagram shows Different stakeholders are engaged in an organization that have different objectives and needs which are served by the organization. Here as follows, a) Investors. Investors are concern regarding the risk of investments, interest and overall return. They need information to determine if he/she should buy, keep or sell. The shareholders are interested about the stability and profitability of organization. Organizations provide information that makes them assess the dividends. b) Staff. Organization meets the employers’ expectations through salary, bonuses and ensures safe environment for the employers. c) Lenders. They are interested in the information for their Loans and trade credits. An organization paid them back as sale proceeds come from customers end. Page 6 of 17 d) Suppliers and other vendors, who are likewise interested in information to determine whether their supplies and trade credits safe or not. An organization paid off to them for their supplies. e) Clients keep their eye on organization’s commitment, or market position. Organization ensures their interest through growth of business. f) Governments institutions, Organization help the government in the allocating the resources under country’s business regulation practices also by paying tax which are part of fundamental national income of the country. g) Public, An organization help people to find employment thus help to develop local economy as well as the country. They also help to encourage local suppliers and information about the trend and overall productivity of the country. 1.3 Explain the responsibilities of an organisation and strategies employed to meet stakeholder interests; conflict of expectations; satisfying stakeholder objectives Responsibilities of an Organisation An Organization and various forms of responsibilities to the stakeholders and at the same time they take best effective strategies to meet stakeholder’s interest, conflict of expectation and towards satisfying their objectives. Different stakeholders have different priorities in case of organizational responsibilities which are as follows: Employees: Organization needs to ensure good working environment and proper payment. Shareholders: Organization responsibilities towards their shareholder are to make sure about their profit and dividend. Government and their Institution: Proper allocation of resources, employment solution, follow business regulation of the country, pay corporate tax on time etc are organization’s responsibility towards government and supporting institutions. Customer: Ensuring best quality of goods and services at lowest possible price is an important responsibility of organization. Besides above responsibilities, every organization has been introduced with some new concept of responsibilities which is known as Corporate and Social Responsibility (CSR). Can be subdivided into four criteria (John M. Bryson, 2009) Understand the nature of the national environment in which businesses operate 2.1 Explain how economic systems attempt to allocate resources effectively The economic system is composed of various processes in the Organization and motivation of work production, distribution and circulating, including products and services. Consumer goods, machinery, tools and other technologies. There are three types of economic systems: Market Economy: this market to a minimum level of government intervention is kept or forgotten and economic resources among the private sector as well as the mechanism of price will determine how many products or services will be delivered in accordance with the requirements of the market. Centrally planned Economy System: The Government makes all the plans for economic resources and economic activities which can be seen on in Asia, Centre of Europe, Cuba, Iran and Iraq have these economic systems. In this process unemployment will not be a problem as the Government plan for all economic activities and resources. Mixed economy system: this is so far the best economic system for modern world. A mix of other systems, that is public and private both price mechanism work jointly in this process. And also distributes the resources available in the region. The country, like the United States of America, Canada, and France has this mix economic system, in this process, if one system does not work properly then other works in its process and make balance in the whole economic system. 2.2 Assess the impact of fiscal and monetary policy on business organisations and their activities Government use fiscal policy fiscal revenue and expenditure of the Government. When the Government loans from abroad, it creates lower demand of goods and services. As domestic production decreases this lending policy from abroad can affect the related organization. On the other hand organization can achieve better profits for the added capital when government cut of taxes In case of monetary policy process, thorough which government controls the supply of money within the country, most of the benefits come out when government can stabilize prices and keep Page 9 of 17   As government keeps the interest rate low, people can lend more money. Thus the extra money they can put into production or in the business cycle which in return increases the profit of the organization. On the other hand higher interest rate does the vice versa. In this way controlling monetary policy government can affect the organization of the whole country. 2.3 Influence of the policy of closure and other regulatory mechanisms on the activities of the Organization: The competition targets a market run on the boardwalk and promote better compete it the quality and price. Thus competition contributes to a broader selection of clients in the market and offers the actual and effective price competition between suppliers. With the negotiation of World Trade Organisation (WTO), world leading trading nations signed and ratified in their parliaments. Main goal is to help producers of goods and services, as well as exporters and importers conduct their smooth business. Almost all people want to have their better interests in international trade. As a result international trade and marketing can be broken sooner or later.WTO helps to prevent or mitigate the problems related to the pricing. Profit etc through their details investigation.WTO also covers intellectual property, goods and services, principles of liberalization and including exceptions. The strengthened dispute settlement mechanism of the WTO helps to strengthen to reduce the potential for unilateral and bilateral action outside the multilateral system, proponents of the WTO has long argued that the reduction of trade barriers will increase world trade, but there is hardly a rigorous Empirical research on the impact of WTO or trade or trade policy, although a recent study shows that very little, if any, effects, in another study of the IMF does not agree with this conclusion. Page 10 of 17 Understanding of environmental NGOs in the behaviour of the market 3.1 explain how market structures, determination of the price and output decisions of enterprises. UKs explain the current situation and determine what correct structure would be helpful There are five types of market structure in the UK, and they are following. Perfect competition and perfect competition market Perfect competition market is one where a very large number of buyers and sellers, all distended in the purchase and sale of product, without any unnatural and has a perfect knowledge of the market at the time. With the Koulsayaiannis words are â€Å"the structure of perfect competition market, total absence of rivalry between Individual price takers and where there is freedom of entry into and exit from the industry.† The monopoly market Monopoly is Salvatore as a monopoly is a form of organization of the common market, where there is one organization to sell the item for which there is no change. † There are a number of characteristics of monopoly which †¢ There is only one seller †¢ All control on delivery of product is in the hands of a monopoly †¢ Under the monopoly, the organization itself is an industry; it can be a solo entrepreneur, partnership, JSCs, and etc. †¢ There is no close substitute product monopoly. In the case of cross-border demand elasticity is, in any case, it is possible. †¢ There are restrictions on the entry of other companies in a product monopoly. Page 11 of 17 Duopoly Duopoly is a special case, the theory of oligopoly, where there are only two sellers and they are fully independent and conflict between them. Variations in price and will affect the performance of the other and the other bears the loss must meet the cost of the competitor. Oligopoly Oligopoly is a market where there are several companies that sell or standardized various goods. It is difficult to say, the number of companies in the competition between the pair. A few problems on the market shares of the organization, as a rule, on the other. Oligopoly industry produces a standardized product or different products. This concept is called clean and spotless oligopoly and the last incomplete or oligopoly discrimination, called. Monopolistic competition Monopolistic competition refers to market conditions, when there are many companies that sell a variety of products. â€Å"There is a competition, with enthusiasm, but not perfect, many companies produce very similar products. No organization may not have to reveal the impact on policy, the export of other sellers or price can be very affected by their actions. Define monopolistic competition competition among a large number of Sell of close, but not perfect substitutes for each other. 3.2 Illustrate the way in which market forces shape organisational responses using a range of examples. There are different forces which shape organizational responses to the market. Among them main five markets forces which can shape the responses are given below: Threat of a new entry: Any organization with innovative ideas, technologies and process can affect the existing organization. Threat of a new entry of Sainsbury’s is medium as the business process and environment relatively high barriers for any new entry. Threat of substitute products: Represents a product obtained from industry replacements, perhaps in another area, in this case is the high compensation of marketing competitiveness as Morrison and Asabi are facing big challenge from Tesco in that case. Page 12 of 17 Bargaining power of customers: There are a lot of supermarkets and brands, the customer has the right to choose a product or service that they want and need. In this case competitive price and better quality only can assure business success. Sainsbury’s are in better position with their price and quality though they have to face price war with Tesco and also they face strong challenge from John Lewis and M&S regarding the quality. Bargaining power for suppliers: As there are large numbers of suppliers. Collective bargaining in this situation is weak for the suppliers Rivalry: There is high competition due to large number of suppliers with different price and quality. Sainsbury has to compete both with the price and quality with the other competitor. Through their competency, Sainsbury’s have maintained their reputation and strong position in the market. 3.3 Judge how the business and cultural environments shape the behaviour of a selected organization. As a major retailer Sainsbury’s is well known throughout UK. They are now is one of the best British dealers among the competitors. They also spread their operation USA.they is also planning to spread their market in Asia. Though Sainsbury’s facing tough competition with other retailers, such as Tesco and Asda, but as customers are getting smarter and aware about the quality with price, they are still in a strong position in the market. As we know UK multicultural country with variety of nations, further market researched need to be done with the multicultural food habit, religion and cultures in order to hold the best position in the market. Page 13 of 17 Assessment of the meaning of global factors shaping national activities 4.1 Discuss the importance of international trade for UK business organizations International trade covers trade between United Kingdom and the rest of the world. Any country will have e limited resources of goods, services without international trade. Trade relation between countries and cheap labour and sourcing from developing countries plays an important role in shaping national activities. Moreover of invention and uses of new technologies, access into the cheap sources and labour market also playing a crucial role in shaping the national activities. 4.2 analyze impact of global factors on UK business organizations Globalization has a different impact on UK business: Technology: Organization in have gone through the Internet to promote their products and offer discounts with free delivery on their products to attract clients and makes it easy for them to their products. Sainsbury’s is not behind the progress. Social: Customer tastes change from time to time and from period to period or standard or quality of life. Globalization has put its impact to customers providing variety of taste, attitude and trend and fashions in an advanced way. Political: Political systems that are presently elevated and forced around the world in part to growth of consumption also leading to vast impoverishment and development. We can see the reflection in the UK market as well. Private sectors especially small business and young entrepreneurs are encouraged for business. Trade barriers UK businesses are facing less trade barriers than they used to face before. Page 14 of 17 Environment: Now a day’s people are getting concern day by day regarding green environment. Plastic bags are banned in so many places. People are encouraged to use reusable bags and other eco friendly products, protecting forests. In addition electronics communication are also used instead of printing papers 4.3 assessment of the impact of the European Union’s policy on UK business organizations The European Union has gained more power than before over the policy guidance for the UK business organizations.EU has taken policy to strengthen the industry and move in the direction of eco friendly environment and create jobs. It also helps to promote small companies to grow their business through associating policies, such as competition policy, which helps the fair treatment for all, and reduce costs, improve quality and choice of the customer. EU consumer policy should ensure that the client is protected in their health and safety, as well as help them improve their life. Establishment of Impact Assessment Unit and reduction of regulation cost by EU is also welcome step for UK. Page 15 of 17 Recommendations Sainsbury’s is one of the leading retailer in UK, They meet the stakeholders interest through their superior management quality and also ensuring customers by providing high quality of products. Moreover their dynamic strategies help them to grow rapidly within the limited resources and present government moderate policies. On the contrary, Sainbury’s need be more active to increase number of store in the overseas market and also market research activity especially for the multicultural community. Sainsbury’s have lots of strong competitors like Asda,M&S, Jhon Lewis etc who are also have a good positioning in the market. Actually, the competition lies in the quality and price of the product and services, purchasing behaviour of the customer and of course customer services. In that case they need to find alternative cheap sources from developing countries. Finally, not only the organization, the positive role of the Government, WTO and EU would plays an important role to ensure the overall growth of organizations in UK. Page 16 of 17 References: 1. www.sainsburys.co.uk 2. www.gov.uk/†¦/10-1257-guidelines-for-managing-projects 3. www.investopedia.com/ 4. www.investorguide.com/article/11595/introduction-to-the-economy-fiscal-and-monetary-policy-igu 5. www.wto.org 6. ec.europa.eu/trade/policy 7. www.economicsonline.co.uk/Competitive_markets/Economic_systems.html 8. John M. Bryson, John M. Bryson;Hubert H. Humphrey (2009),’What to do when stakeholders matters? Stakeholder Identification and Analysis Techniques, Institute of Public Affairs’; 9. Thomas, J. C. (1993) ‘Public Involvement and Governmental Effectiveness: A Decision-Making Model for Public Managers. Administration and Society, 24:4 pp444-69. Page 17 of 17

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Email Etiquette

Email Etiquette I feel that email etiquette is very important these days because we use this method frequently. I think that it is more important to businesses to use these practices because of the standard of customer service. Email etiquette can assure that you get your point across to the consumer without overwhelming them or even being inappropriate. These listed below are the main three components to email etiquette and I agree strongly with the concept: * Professionalism: by using proper email language your company will convey a professional image. Â  Efficiency: emails that get to the point are much more effective than poorly worded emails. * Â  Protection from liability: employee awareness of email risks will protect your company from costly law suits. When following this step I think that it will keep the company on track with their customers. Another very important factor in email etiquette is Replying. When replying to a customer’s concern or general email a compa ny should do it in a timely manner.I think that 48 hours is long enough and it makes the customer feel like you care about them. I had a very important question about a warranty and the company took two weeks to reply, let’s just say I will never buy anything else from them. Response time is very big when dealing with customers. If your company is able to deal professionally with email, this will provide your company with that all important competitive edge.Moreover by educating employees as to what can and cannot be said in an email, you can protect your company from awkward liability issues. Make sure you staff is fully trained and this will cut down on customer complaints a lot. The use of emotioncons and other lingo can have a negative impact on your business as well these should only be used for personal emails and not business ones. References: http://office. microsoft. com http://www. emailreplies. com

Monday, July 29, 2019

Intravenous Drug Users Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Intravenous Drug Users - Assignment Example This paper will focus on the on the vulnerability of the youths towards intravenous drug abuse. The most vulnerable population of this abuse is the youth’s offenders this is according to the study carried out in South Australia. These youths are mostly found in areas that are densely populated. Lack of good storage techniques of syringes encourages intravenous drug use among the youths. Statistics indicate that there is less use of drugs in youths that are under the care of the parents than those that are on the streets. An assessment was carried out among the youths to acquire appropriate data on the usage of drugs. Most youths were not ready to comply with this assessment. It was later found that intravenous drug abuse is most common among the youths of the age between 14-19 years old (Chin 133). The youths seem to abuse drugs more than the adults. Substance abuse increases with an increase in age. Male youths have been reported to abuse drugs more than women. This abuse amo ng youth’s emanates from environmental factors and also social factors. Intravenous drug users get to learn from there peers. Youths who reside in urban centers are reported to be the most vulnerable towards drug abuse. These youths are influenced into substance abuse by those individuals that have a close connection to the drugs. ... A study carried out in Canada proved that the high spread of substance abuse was due to the high level of homelessness among the youths. Therefore, this homeless children resort to staying in the streets where they are lured into substance use. Others participate in transportation or selling of these drugs to earn a living (Chin 139). Another contributing factor to the usage of drugs is stress among the youths who later resort to abuse of drugs. Adults play a role in fueling drug use among the use for instance ignorance among parents on their children’s welfare, there are adults who encourage intravenous drug use by selling drugs and syringes to the youths. Abuse of drugs has had negative far reaching effects on the youth population. Most cases of HIV/AIDS has been caused due to substance abuse. Unplanned pregnancies have also bee caused by substance abuse therefore leading to production of children by children. Intravenous drug abuse is sometimes caused by an individualâ€⠄¢s ignorance. Most youths are adamant to the teachings and blind to the negative effects that accrue from substance abuse. Another reason to the high substance abuse is school drop outs. Most undisciplined students drop out of school to engage in substance abuse. They do not care about the effects of these drugs to their health. Effects of intravenous drug abuse have been made known worldwide therefore; the youth’s engagement in this act cannot be blamed to the environmental factors but rather themselves (McCarthy 16). Research is very important in shaping ones attitudes. The bias that has been formed against the intravenous drug users can be changed through research. This is because we get to learn different factors that lead to substance abuse among the youths. An individual will be able

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Should Red Bull keep on investing in the Formula 1 Championship for Essay

Should Red Bull keep on investing in the Formula 1 Championship for next year - Essay Example The increasing trend of marketing through sponsorships of events is visible to everyone. Around 15 years ago less than 25 percent of events had some sort of corporate support and involvement but today this percentage has increased to 80 percent (McDowell, 1999). These events are an easy way through which an organization can communicate their messages to the customers. Red Bull is a soft drink company that is using sponsorships as a way to market its soft drink. Red Bull sponsors Formula 1 racing events all over the world. They also have many sports teams that take part in sporting events. Red Bull Racing is a Formula 1 racing team that is owned by Red Bull. The company also owns another racing team in Formula 1 known as Scuderia Toro Rosso (Formula 1.com, 2008). The company also sponsors other extreme sport like snowboarding and wakeboarding. The marketing technique of Red Bull is well known and it is known to work for the company. Associating the brand with extreme sports also commu nicates a brand image of the product to the consumers. This is one great advantage of sponsorships of events. Sponsorships of events actually communicate with consumers in a better way than conventional marketing (Meenaghan, 1991). Therefore the efficacy of marketing through sponsorships of events is well established.... It is vital to find the efficacy of this marketing technique in times of financial crisis. This is the main problem that we will attempt to solve. The topic of this research proposal is that whether Red Bull should continue to invest in Formula 1 championships or not in the next year that is 2012. This investment includes the sponsorships of the event and the racing teams of the company. This research proposal will identify the process in which the answer to the above question will be obtained. Aims and objective of the research alongside with a comprehensive literature review on the subject of marketing through sponsorship will be presented. Research methodology will also be discussed in the proposal. Aims and Objective Research Topic The Marketing of Red Bull through sponsorships of sports events like Formula 1 Business Question Should Red Bull continue to invest in Formula 1 championship in the next year? Aim The aim is to help Red Bull make a decision about its marketing techniqu es in the wake of the financial crisis the world is facing today. Objectives 1) To understand what marketing through sponsorships of event it and its importance 2) To seek the economic worth of sponsorship marketing 3) To evaluate the benefit of sponsorships for Red Bull 4) To gain insight on the effect of Formula 1 Championship on brand awareness of Red Bull by collecting responses from customers Literature Review Marketing through Sponsorships Different marketing techniques have been developed over the years and all of them aim at better communication with the target audience. Sponsorship is a way through which a product can be marketed to the customers. Research has suggested that sponsorships do help a product achieve competitive advantage over

Saturday, July 27, 2019

The Use of Social Media Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Use of Social Media - Essay Example Needless to say, people use and depend on technology for their needs and the demand for technology has been on the rise (Lietsala & Esa 34). The impacts of technology on the society are far reaching. It has had both positive and negative effects on the society. However, it has had more positive effects than negative effects on the society. Technology has made the world we live in a small place to live. Technology, through social media has revolutionized how information is relayed and accessed. In reference to Collin et al (13), information spreads faster in social media than any other form of media. Most of the people first learn of any breaking news through social media. People have also switched from watching televisions for any updates to seeking such updates in the social media. This makes social networks the number one source of information for Americans. For instance, the news on the capture and killing of Osama bin Laden had spread faster even before President Obama made the announcement. People had already learnt about the incident through social networks and spread like wildfire. However, most of the people who saw the posts first did not believe them. This is because they thought it was just another internet hoax. Arguably, social media has been known to promote the spread of unreliable and false information . Almost 49% of people in United States have learnt of false reports in social media (Picazo-Vela et al. 506). Recently, social media were filled with false information that the missing Malaysian airlines had made a safe landing. After the plane was reported missing, numerous people spread news on Twitter and Facebook that the plane had made a safe landing in China. This news of safe landing was also picked up by international news media such as CNN and Malaysian media outlets. However, the rate of false information is lower than correct and reliable information. In most cases, media

Friday, July 26, 2019

Advertising plan for BMW 3-Series Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Advertising plan for BMW 3-Series - Essay Example BMW Group, one of the 10 largest automotive companies in the world today, started as a manufacturer of aircraft engines in World War I and began building a reputation for reliability and excellence on that undertaking. Initially known as Bayerische Flugzeug-Werke in 1916,the firm changed its name to Bavarian Motor Works in 1917 as it grew rapidly during the war years. In 1923, BMW put together its first motor vehicle, a motorcycle, followed by its first car in 1928, a version of Austin 7, which was built and commercially sold under license. There was no stopping the company since then. Today, the Group operates in 150 countries through 26 production-assembly plants, 35 subsidiary markets and 12 R&D networks. Its flagship products consist of three automotive brands - BMW, MINI and Rolls Royce. All three vehicles share the same configuration, which suggest luxury, premium class, top-of-the-line quality. This is precisely the corporate culture that animates BMW, which is expressed in it s mission statement: "to be the most successful premium manufacturer in the industry." BMW built a solid reputation on this operational strategy.With this kind of philosophy underpinning all BMW's activities, the company produces nothing but premium-class vehicles, which are limited to exclusive sedans and luxury limousines. The side objectives are to set the industry standards for technology, environmental protection and safety, and providing outstanding customer services in the pre- and after-sale phases. These are enshrined in the firm's operations in its 10 R&D facilities worldwide (4 in Munich, 3 in the US and 1 each in Austria, Tokyo and Beijing), 15 production plants (1 in Berlin, 1 in Munich, 4 in UK, and 1 each in China, South Africa, US, Austria and Brazil), 5 assembly plants with local participation (1 each in Indonesia, Russia, Egypt, Malaysia and Thailand), and sales and marketing subsidiaries in 35 countries. In 2005, the company invested 2,597 million euros to boost its property, plant, equipment and other tangible assets, with emphasis on further expanding its production and sales networks. The amount was 81 percent higher than the 1,396 million euros sunk in the firm in 2004 as capital expenditures. A lion's share of this investment went to the company's R&D network, which has been tasked to come up with the BMW "cars of the future." This is part of an expansion plan that has preoccupied management from the start. In 1994, BMW acquired the Rover Group from British Aerospace in the hope that it could duplicate its earlier success with MINI, which used to be a British-owned firm too. For at least six years, some 1 million Rover vehicles were produced in UK yearly until the company suffered losses reaching $2 million per day as a result of the perceived lack of consumer confidence in the brand and the strengthening of the pound. BMW was then forced to sell Rover to the Ford group in 200 0. As for the MINI, BMW hang on to the more successful brand, which is manufactured in its Oxford plant. Market demand for the MINI has never let up, such that at the time BMW was selling Rover, it was pouring in another 50 million euros to increase MINI production. BMW fosters the core values of technology, quality, performance and exclusivity, such that its activities from R&D to sales are committed to achieving the highest quality for products and services. The overall strategy of the company is first, identify areas with growth potential, understand what they represent, recognize where its strength lies, then make the best of every opportunity by pursuing a clear strategy. These considerations guide BMW's structure and how decisions are made, and from the evidence it works like a charm.

Victims of Organizational Crimes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Victims of Organizational Crimes - Essay Example Organizational crime; on the other hand, can have more of an impact than violent crimes. (Weisburd, 2001)The victim of a violent crime can recuperate, where as the victim of organizational crime can have immeasurable impact that can destroy one's home, family, and even life. The genuine problem behind organizational crime is not defining organizational crime, but developing the suitable means to correct this type of crime. The recognition of organizational crime was meant to provide substantive assistance to the understanding of crime, criminality, criminal justice system and the victim. Even more recent perspectives which recognize that organizational crime offenders will change and develop as a response to life course events and experiences begin with an assumption that there is something unique to the development of offenders that explains their participation in organizational crimes. While recognizing that paths to crime may begin at different stages of an offender's life, scholars taking this approach identify in every stage specific influences that increase (or decrease) the propensity of offenders to participate in crime and other deviant behaviors in the future. The causes of crime remain rooted in the factors that distinguished organizational crime offenders from others. Organizational crimes offenders are better educated than either conventional criminals or the general public. Organizational crimes offenders are more likely to be male and white than conventional offenders. Organizational crimes offenders are generally older than either conventional criminals or the general public. Organizational crimes offenders are much better off financially than conventional criminals, but not as well off as the general public. Organizational crimes offenders are more likely to have a prior arrest than the general public, but less likely than conventional criminals. The academic study of organizational crimes like bullying at work place does little to reveal the deep psychological distress that is experienced by the targets of offenders. Debates about personality characteristics of victims and bullies, the role of organizational factors and the legislative context are vital yet inadvertently they obscure the dreadful anguish that many victims live with year after year. It may be selflessness to mention that anyone can become a victim of bullying by being in the wrong place at the wrong time, simply by working or living within an environment that fosters harassment and in the vicinity of people who gain positive reinforcement from aggressive activity. Yet, frequently the clinical narratives of those who experience prolonged bullying at work place and suffer the severest of insults to their self-constructs provide an historical dimension to their suffering which extends the span and complexity of antecedents considerably. These victims are those who experience harassment at different times and in different contexts over a period of years. It may be that their current complaints are firmly rooted in their workplace as it is at the present or of their

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Nutrition assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Nutrition - Assignment Example Fat used also prevents the mixed dough from sticking to the pan and enhances the flavor and taste. Leavening agent used forms a gas as the heat intensifies; leading to the rise of the product; thus a lighter texture of the product. The open spaces created are as a result of the action of leavening agent. The liquid used may be milk, water, and fruit juice. Addition of the liquid to the dry ingredients creates a mixture. As the heat intensifies in the oven, the liquid in the mixture aids in the rising action of the product. The function of the liquid in the recipe is moisture, preserving agent, flavor, and tenderness. Protein in eggs and flour makes the mixture smooth thus leading to a tender product. Sugar is used as a flavor enhancer, tenderizer, and it make up a liquid ingredient. Heat and action of the mixture components causes the flour to brown (Brown, 408). Compare and contrast the nutrient contribution of vegetables from four different classifications of vegetables by filling out the table below. Use 1 cup or 100 grams (gms) as the serving amount for each vegetable. Be consistent in serving size for all vegetables. Use information for the raw product. Use the USDA food Nutrient database, http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/ for your analysis. 4. Sprinkle some of the flour on the board and scrape the dough out of the bowl onto the floured board. Put some flour on your hands and knead the dough for 6-8 minutes or until the dough is smooth and elastic. During this time you will find it necessary to add more flour. (If you have never kneaded dough refer to the video for the technique.) When you have finished kneading take a fourth photo. 5. You will need to wash out your bowl or use another bowl. Coat the bowl with oil or spray it with nonstick coating, put the dough in the bowl and allow it to stand for about one hour. Take a fifth photo of the dough. 7. Allow the dough to rise until doubled in size. Bake in a

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 24

Case Study Example It commanded 7.6% of the market. Secondly, according to the case, Eskimo pie had at least one of its products in 98% of the grocery stores located across the United States. As such, this has considerable implications in determining the worth of Eskimo pie. Therefore, Eskimo’s market presence and market share across the United States commands a better higher price than what is estimated by Goldman. Having a larger market share and presence in any industry gives the company an edge over its competitors. Therefore, it should deserve and attract a higher premium than what was offered by Goldman and Nestle. Past performance is vital when estimating the value of Eskimo pie. Since 1987, the company’s net sales increased by over 50 % ((17198-30769) Ã · 30, 769). Subsequently, profits of the company increased by over 1300% over the same period ((2526-171) Ã ·171). This is according to the data depicted in Exhibit 1. There are many reasons a company might want to acquire another company. The primary reason nestle wanted to acquire Eskimo Pie was to possess and establish a stronger and robust position or presence in the frozen novelty market. According to the case, nestle owns drumsticks. I can take this to mean that maybe nestle owns other frozen novelties, but the case does not specify or mention any. By purchasing Eskimo pie, nestle would be a frontrunner in the industry by having a larger presence. There are potential synergies to be gained from acquiring Eskimo pie. This is because of the involvement of nestle in the frozen novelties too. In my opinion, Eskimo is worth more to nestle as an acquisition than as a stand-alone company. This is due to the following reasons. Most of the workforce and management of Eskimo pie would not be needed in order to avoid duplication of duties. Since the products of Eskimo and nestle target and go to the same market, the distribution costs of nestle would b e nearly eliminated. Additionally, the marketing expenditure will drop. I

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Literature and Cinema Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Literature and Cinema - Movie Review Example Bremer is not expressive about the writer's style, setting and structure in a novel; and the extent of its application to its film adaptation. In this regard, Bremer quotes Bluestone's Novels Into Films, (According to Bluestone, literature and film are autonomous forms of artistic expression, one communicating with written words, the other with visual images. Along these lines, Bluestone suggests that when the filmist undertakes the adaptation of a novel, he does not convert the novel at all. What he adapts is a kind of paraphrase of the novel, p18). Bremer is satisfied implying that Stam's reason about fidelity is more of the nature of that element in the novel which may not be successful in its film adaptation. A film may be adapted in its totality - chapter to chapter, paragraph to paragraph, summarized, edited and cut down or stretched to the required length of time directly from a novel and transported to the cinemas. This transposition from one medium to another hardly justifies either medium. Quoting Robert B. Ray and Dudley Andrew, J. D. Connors in his article, The Persistence of Fidelity, says, "The problem with fidelity is that it makes for boring criticism."2 In this case, fidelity is a non-issue. The main issue or issues may have more to do with success and less to do with fidelity to the original text. According to Rose Mary Bremer, "In an attempt to increase the probability that a film will be successful, i.e. recover and exceed the initial investment, the industry has turned more and more to the backing of adaptations based on popular contemporary novels and literary classics."3 In his article, From Word to Word-Image: Film Translation of a "Sketchy" Chinese Short Story: Spring Silkworm, Literature Film Quarterly, 2005 Wang, Yiman, mentions, "The moralistic discourse to which Stam refers prioritizes the question of fidelity involved in translating one medium (the verbal fiction) into another (the visual film). One way to counterbalance this moralistic approach is to stipulate qualitative differences between literature and film as two distinct media." Also, in the same vein, Wang goes on to quote Fredric Jameson using the "Bordwell-Hansen hypothesis." This hypothesis suggests, "whenever other media appear within film, their deeper function is to set off and demonstrate the latter's ontological primacy" (Jameson 84)." And, "The "ontological primacy" of cinema is closely related to its visuality, or the commonly recognized cinema-specific properties." 4 In essence, in order to be successful, a film requires cinema-specific visual translations of the core substance of the source novel. The cinema-specific properties depend on selection of the main characters, side actors, stuntmen, and cameraman, location, screen play, costume, music, the element of emotion and suspense, and so on. Literal Fidelity Two film adaptations of The Maltese Falcon in 1931 and 1936 did not measure up to the success of the novel. In the words of Huston, "the previous screenwriters had kept trying to 'lick the book,' instead of filming the book."5 The third version directed by John Huston turned out to be a runaway success. Interestingly, fidelity to the original script coupled with brilliant photograpy and background music,

Monday, July 22, 2019

Clothing and Good Physical Health Essay Example for Free

Clothing and Good Physical Health Essay Summer and Spring clothes are worn for Warmth, Comfort and Style. People sometimes wear different types of clothing for Protection, Comfort and Style. To preserve good physical health, clothing protects us from cold temperatures. It can protect us from sunshine or high winds. It can also protect us from the wetness of rain. Throughout history, clothing has protected people from attackers. People need protection from dirt, insects, and other harmful agents in the environment. Some garments protect workers from the specific dangers of their jobs. Hard hats and safety goggles are examples. With winter clothing it is used for the protection of your body. You need to choose your clothing thoughtfully to stay cozy yet still be able to move easily. For Instance, a three layer jacket, a scarf, furred boots and especially a thermal. These are winter garments that you should wear to keep you warm and to keep out the cold. The clothes shouldn’t be too tight or loose reason being tight clothes inhibits free movement, and loose clothes allow the warm air and body heat to escape. We wear clothing that is creatively designed, and we combine garments in artistic ways. Decorations people use still depend on their native culture. For example: body paints, intentional scarring or binding are for adornment. Ideas can change with time. What is beautiful to us one year may not look attractive at all to us a few years later. Clothing can satisfy the psychological need of belonging such as to a profession, social group, association, or country of heritage. It indicates what â€Å"role† you play or what skills you have. One more common type of clothing is Summer clothing. People all over the world especially the Caribbean wears summer clothes all year round. It comes in all sort of style and people also wear summer clothes also very absorbent for style. Most of the clothing is light weighted and also very absorbent. We learn early in life what others expect us to wear. It gives a sense of belonging. Too much conformity can mean a loss of personal individuality. Certain ways of dressing give clues about personality traits (For Example: people who wear very decorative things are usually very sociable). When we choose styles different from out friends, we are expressing our individuality. The least types of clothing are Spring clothing. People mostly wear these types of clothing when winter season is about to finish it can also be worn for comfort. It is lighter in weight than the winter garments. The winter changes so suddenly that you need something not to heavy or light. You need Shoes that ease your feet but protect them from cold or rain. The fabrics are bright and bold in color. Clothing is needed in our everyday life and some can be very expensive.

Psychoanalytical Concepts of Crisis in Masculinity

Psychoanalytical Concepts of Crisis in Masculinity The late 60s saw a rapidly materialising concern about the status of masculinity. Before the 60s it seemed that the idea of masculinity was safe males could be useful within modern capitalist societies, providing for their families and gaining a sense of satisfaction from their place in society. But society began to change, economically, socially and especially in relation to the position of women. The rise of feminism was changing womens attitudes about the way in which they were (and are) treated. In turn this was starting to affect how men viewed themselves. Carroll (2004) explains how in American society the breadwinner ideal was being eroded with support from professional groups including psychologists and cardiologists working all the hours and a constant striving for material wealth might not be good for you. How, asked men, do we define ourselves now? This essay will examine the crisis in masculinity from the point of view of psychoanalysis through the Oedipal complex and the castration complex and then move onto evidence from social and cultural theories. To examine how masculinity might be in crisis, it is first necessary to examine how psychoanalytical theories posit that boys gain their masculine identity or in other words how they become men. Modern psychoanalytical theory, as did Freud himself, places a great emphasis on the early relationships of the young boy with his parents or caregivers. It is the vicissitudes of these relationships that will have important consequences for development. In Freudian terms, this early relationship is overshadowed by the Oedipal conflict. The mother shows a great interest in the child and the boy realises that his father represents his main rival to this relationship. The boy desires the mother, but the father stands in the way. Attempting to maintain these conflicting influences at some kind of equilibrium is the central drama of development from a psychoanalytical viewpoint. What, then, are the most important processes that occur in early life that influence the construction (or otherwise) of the male identity out of the Oedipal crisis? Greenson (1968) explains that psychoanalytic theory concentrates on the idea of disidentification, this is divided into two processes: firstly a boy must sever the emotional ties he has with the primary caregiver usually the mother and secondly he needs to identify with a male role-model usually the father. The identification with the father should allow the boy to have a way of communicating with the outside world, to tempt the boy away from psychological closeness with the mother and provide the support needed to avoid the boys return to a symbiotic relationship with his mother. The relationship with the mother, then, is seen by Klein (1975) as a delicate balancing act. It provides a prototype for later relationships with women and so needs to be warm and loving, but it is difficult for a man to have relationships with women if he is too close to his mother. Horrocks (1994) argues that, in fact, the male child is surrounded by femininity throughout his early childhood, and it is important for him to break away and discover a world of men for here lie the roots of the male identity. The central paradox, though, is that the man wishes to escape this cocoon of womanhood but there is also the desire to become close to a woman. One danger in this dynamic is that the early influence of the mother is too great and not sufficiently counter-acted by the father this leads to an inability to separate himself from the mother (Horrocks, 1994). The role of the father in the masculine identity is seen as crucial by psychoanalysts. Horrocks (1994) sees the role of fathering as an introduction to manhood, the introduction to a role that has previously been shrouded in mystery. While there are some initiation rights and ceremonies in some cultures, overall, and especially in western societies, it is not particularly strong. There has actually been a disconnect between the son and his father, now the father heads out to work everyday and no longer has a chance to bond with his son. Horrocks (1994) sees one of the most important functions of the father as to show the young boy that it is possible to live with the mother, to have conflict, fear and guilt, but still to live together. It is through the father-son relationship that the boy can learn that it is possible to live a civilised existence without continual recourse to violence and satiation of primitive longings. The damaged modern male, the male in crisis, is seen by Horro cks (1994) as unfathered. Women are viewed as dangerous to have a relationship is to have a battle and the man must draw himself away from women from time to time to maintain his safety. By never really making a strong connection, the modern man in crisis feels damaged and abused and uses the methods of abuse and damage to relate to others because he knows no other way. This analysis of the Oedipal complex and its effects, as well as the possibility of transcendence, actually describes a rather prototypical interaction between the young boy and his caregiver. Blazina (2004) describes how some criticisms and refinements of this model have been made by subsequent theorists. Bergman (1995), for example, has argued that it is not necessarily with the mother the boy should be disidentifying. There are many situations where the father is actually the provider of the most emotional nurturance. In this case it is better to see the individuation as occurring with the primary caregiver rather than the mother. Blazina (2004) also maintains that there should not be such emphasis on the cutting off of the other identity. Where the other identity is feminine, there is now greater acceptability of feminine qualities in men so these can be integrated into male identity without compromising maleness. For the crisis in masculinity, Freuds conception of the castration complex is of great interest. Freud (1925) theorised that the castration complex had the following stages. Firstly a boy guesses from the evidence of his own anatomy that everyone has a penis. Secondly he finds out that women do not have penises and assumes that they have been mutilated in some way. Thirdly when he begins to masturbate, he is told that he will be castrated. Fourthly, finding that the breast has already been removed, summarises that the penis will be next. Finally, the Oedipus complex is destroyed by this threat of castration. According to Horrocks (1994), Freud saw this sequence of events as concrete, whereas many psychoanalysts now see this in more allegorical terms, as mediated by culture and society. Through gender, both men as well as women are denied a whole world of being, the world of the other gender. After the process of partitioning men and women both feel a sense of loss at the things that they will not be able to experience. In men this castration complex expresses itself in a variety of different ways. Men have a desire for love, a fear of their own sexuality, and, in particular, a fear of their own anger. Horrocks (1994) describes how, as a psychotherapist, many men talk about their fear that their anger will be exposed to the world. To stop this, they have to bottle it up and repress the emotion. As a result, in heterosexual men, this is recognised by the women with whom they have relationships and they are rendered impotent and asexual. A man who acts in this way behaves passive aggressive ly he is motivated to manipulate those around him by his anger. This prohibits a direct connection with other people because his relationships are based on manipulation. The result of this is that feelings are kept inside and denied. A similar problem is seen, in Horrocks experience, in macho men. The castration of the macho man leaves him profoundly afraid of expressing his own feelings. This denies him the possibility of acting emotionally in any situation as this will simply reveal his weakness as he sees it. It is the emotional parts of himself that this man hates and wants to hide away the feminine parts of him are an embarrassment. By being cut-off from his own feelings, the psychologically castrated man experiences an emptiness within himself that he attempts to fill with methods that will never work. The emptiness inside is often experienced as a dead feeling, almost of death itself. It is precisely this almost death from which, Horrocks argues, many men in the crisis of masculinity are suffering. Without the connection with his own emotions, or those of anyone else, he is only half a man, not able to experience himself or others properly, safely cocooned within an empty world. Within Freuds writings, woman were theorised to suffer from envy of the male penis, but Freud did not acknowledge the possibility of men being envious of the female breast. The male-centred idea that penis envy is fundamental to psychoanalysis is attacked by the introduction of the idea of breast envy. Klein (1975), for example, has pointed out that both male and female children have very strong feelings towards the breast both are attracted to it and both want to destroy it. Instead of defining both sexes in terms of the penis one having and the other jealous a reciprocal envy provides balance that acknowledges the lacuna in mens lives as well. The breast does, after all provide, not only nourishment, but also love to the child, and so a womans breast is a symbol of these qualities. Horrocks (1994) argues that men have a strong desire to return to the breast, to return to the originator of life and at the same time men attack the breast and want to destroy it. Melanie Klein posited that the idea of womb envy was also an important component in the male psyche. Minsky (1995) describes how the Kleinian viewpoint sees the development of male power as being rooted in the fear of the womb. Like the young boys envy of his mothers breasts, he also becomes envious of her womb and the power it has to create new life. To make up for this envy, men are forced to concentrate their efforts on cultural and creative efforts and to suppress womens forays into the same field. Minsky (1995) explains that it is the phallus that then saves men and provides a distraction from the envy of the womb. Lacan has a different take on the Oedipus complex. He sees the father not as a real father but as a representation or a metaphor for culture (Lacan, 2004). It is through the young boys experience of cultural factors such as language that he is pulled away from the mother. The mother represents desire for Lacan and so culture, through the representation of the father, pulls the boy from what he desires. This cutting off is like a castration and the child then attempts to substitute this with a search for truth (Minsky, 1995). Many of these psychoanalytical ideas about the roots of a crisis in masculinity are analysed in social theories in terms of a conflict in gender roles. ONeil, Helms, Gable, David, Wrightsman (1986) have defined gender role conflict as where socialised gender roles have an adverse psychological effect which causes a restrictive effect on the self through barriers created around personal creativities and freedom. ONeil et al. (1986) identify four different types of role conflict. There is a restriction in the range of internal emotionality; similarly, there is a restriction in the types of emotional behaviour that are possible towards other men this results in an inability to communicate feelings. Personal achievement and constant comparison to what others have creates a constant sense of fear and worry. There is a conflict between the requirements of work and those of the family which results in stress and health problems, and a simple lack of time to relax. Evidence to support these ideas of role conflicts has come, for example, from Sharpe Heppner (1991) who found a connection between role conflict and problems with intimate relationships. Watts Borders (2005) point out, though, that many of these studies have not been carried out in younger, adolescent boys. In rectifying this hole in the research, Watts Borders (2005) investigated role conflict in adolescent boys. Their findings were in line with the theories put forward by ONeil et al. (1986). The boys in their study said they found there was a societal pressure to restrict their emotionality, both internally and between themselves and other boys. Further they theorised that many of the boys had only been exposed to a very limited range of emotions from male role models indeed many denied experiencing any emotions other than anger. Cultural theories, which intersect with Lacans ideas, are also important in how the crisis in masculinity has been studied. Whitehead (2002) considers arguments that have been played out in the public domain. Firstly he considers the publication of Stiffed: The Betrayal of Modern Man (Faludi, 2000). The thesis of this book is that it is now the male who finds himself objectified and the subject of much sexist consumer culture. In addition the mans secure attachments and relationships with the world of work are no longer as strong and exclusive as they once were. Men seem also, in Faludis view, to be failing to fight back against the new culture, failing to take on this creeping emasculation. Now that feminism has attacked the patriarchal systems of power and control, masculinity has been left undermined and unsure. The rise of feminism has surely encouraged many men to question how they view women and then apparently left them confused. Faludi (2000) places the blame for this crisis in masculinity at the door of culture and encourages them to work together to combat it. While the argument has some elements of truth, quite how men and women are supposed to step outside of culture is not clear. Without men and women, there is no culture people are intimately bound up with it and part of it. The second set of arguments centre around research carried out by Professor Richard Scase as part of the European Commissions Futures Programme (Scase, 1999). This research found that many women are choosing to live alone as their opportunities in the workplace increase and especially as the roles they can adopt widen. It is hypothesised that this is having a knock-on effect on men who find it difficult to cope with this new situation. Evidence for this is in the rising rates of suicide between 1991 and 1997 they have increased by 60%. Social research finds that men are choosing to remain living at home rather than move out on their own (Office of National Statistics, 2000). Whitehead (2002) sees this as evidence that men are failing to cope with the new challenges they are facing. Further cultural and social evidence that men are in crisis is provided by Beynon (2001). Relying heavily on role theory, Beynon (2001) points to the changes in work patterns particularly the fact that less than half the men over 55 are in work. There is also a sense in which these men are caught between attempting to maintain the old-style macho posturing and the new-man type behaviour requiring a man to be in touch with his feelings. Beynon (2001) claims that generally men are less likely to tackle any psychological or physical illness which faces them. In marital breakdown, Beynon (2002) argues, the man is normally most responsible, with women starting 75% of divorces. Similarly nine out of ten men move out of the marital home after the breakdown of a marriage. This reason, however, is probably more of an artefact of the legal system and simple practicality than an indictment on men. Apart from anything else, men generally die younger and are much more likely to suffer from heart disease. The worrying facts and figures continue through both crime and education and other major areas of life. Violent crimes are mostly committed by men, indeed it is men who are mostly the victims of violent crime, and so it is violence that is seen as an important component of masculinity. Whitehead (2002) sees this violence discourse as having a powerful effect on peoples attitudes to men. Men are seen as being unable to cope with the demands of modern life, especially those men on the social and economic fringes, and so the resort to violence is only natural. Within education, in the schools, male performance is significantly lower then female. Despite much theoretical attention as well as some evidence from research on role theories and other areas, there has been a fair degree of criticism of the idea of a crisis in masculinity. Writers have asked whether the crisis of gender is anything new. Mangan (1997) (as cited in Whitehead, 2002) argues that masculinity, like femininity is constantly in crisis, constantly changing and adapting to new circumstances. Indeed, some of the fundamental ideas from psychoanalysis support the idea that masculinity is always a matter of crisis men will always have to cope with breast envy, womb envy and a castration complex. This question aside though, some commentators have asked if there is really anything to explain at all with the rise of feminism, men have suffered a loss of power relative to women and are trying to cope with that loss, some less successfully than others. Whitehead (2002) suggests that the crisis in masculinity is, in reality, an illusion confined to academic journals and has no meaning for people in the real world. Heartfield (2002), in arguing against a crisis of masculinity, talks of the fetishising of sexual difference, an exaggeration of the differences between men and women. Heartfield (2002) suggests that it is instead the working classes that are in crisis, not men in general. These ideas are far removed from those that come from psychoanalysis where many of the roots of future struggle are born in that difference. In conclusion, psychoanalytical ideas about the crisis in masculinity are grounded in the biological differences between the sexes and how these are dealt with psychologically. Other psychoanalysts and Lacanian ideas have taken these literal conflicts and, to some extent, moved them away from a focus on biological difference and introduced more cultural and social ideas. Social and cultural theories provide a wide variety of, and some reasons for, a possible crisis in masculinity. In particular, the use of role theory has provided an important analysis. Despite using the language of role conflict, the male preoccupations and problems described by role theory have many things in common with those arrived at by psychoanalytical means. Nevertheless, many authors have questioned whether this crisis in masculinity really exists and whether it is anything new. References Bergman, S.J. (1995) Mens psychological development: A relational perspective In R.F. Levant W.S Pollack (Eds.), A new psychology of men (pp. 33-67). New York: Basic Books. Beynon, J. (2001) Masculinities and culture. Buckingham: Open University Blazina, C. (2004) Gender Role Conflict and the Disidentification Process: Two Case Studies on Fragile Masculine Self. The Journal of Mens Studies, 12, 2, 151-161. Carroll, B. E. (2004) American Masculinities: A Historical Encyclopedia. London: Sage Publications Ltd. Faludi, S. (2000) Stiffed: the betrayal of the modern man. London: Vintage Freud, S. (1925) Psychical consequences anatomical distinction between the sexes, SE, 19, 248-258. Greenson, R. (1968). Disidentifying from mother: Its special importance for the boy. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 49, 370-374. Heartfield, J. (2002) There is No Masculinity Crisis, Genders 35. Retrieved 5 January 2006 from http://www.genders.org/g35/g35_heartfield.html Horrocks, R. (1994) Masculinity in Crisis. New York: St. Martins Press. Klein, M. (1930) The psychotherapy of the psychoses. British Journal of Medicine and Psychology, 10, 242-4. Klein, M. (1975) Love, Guilt, and Reparation and Other Works. London: Hogarth Press and Institute of Psycho-Analysis Lacan, J. (2004) Ecrits: A Selection. New York: W. W. Norton Co Ltd. Mangan, J. A. (1997) Shakespeares First Action Heroes: critical masculinities in culture both popular and unpopular, unpublished paper. Minsky, R. (1995) Psychoanalysis and Gender: An Introductory Reader (Critical Readers in Theory Practice). Oxford: Routledge. ONeil, J. M., Helms, B. J., Gable, R. K., David, L., Wrightsman, L. S. (1986). Gender role conflict scale: College mens fear of femininity. Sex Roles, 14, 335-350. Office of National Statistics (2000) Social Trends 30. London: The Stationery Office. Scase, R. (1999) Demographic and Social Trends Issue Paper: Mosaic Living. EUR 18967 EN, Brussels: European Commission. Sharpe, M. J., Heppner, P. P. (1991). Gender role, gender-role conflict, and psychological well-being in men. Journal of Counselling Psychology, 38, 323-330. Watts, R. H., Borders, L. D. (2005) Boys Perceptions of the Male Role: Understanding Gender Role Conflict in Adolescent Males. Journal of Mens Studies, 13,2 267-280 Whitehead, S. (2002) Men and masculinities: key themes and new directions. Cambridge: Polity Press.

Sunday, July 21, 2019

To What Extent Were Gorbachevs Reforms A Failure Politics Essay

To What Extent Were Gorbachevs Reforms A Failure Politics Essay The second half of the 1980s was marked as the fundamental change in the Soviet era. The era of reconstruction, Perestroika had gone into history, with the main purpose of introducing the new Soviet Union, which was the creation of the legal social state and democratisation of a new country. It is considered the most dramatic event in political economy to happen since the Great Depression of the 1930s  [1]   The research question: To what extent could the political and socio-economic consequences of Gorbachevs reforms be considered a failure? adopts a critical and evaluative approach of the Soviet reforms such as, perestroika, new political thinking and glasnost, during the mid 1980s, assessing negative as well as positive consequences of the reform. This investigation explores the question of whether the socio-economic and political changes caused by Gorbachevs reforms can be either justified as a complete failure, contributing to decline in socio-economic development and political factors, or on the other side viewed as a successful policy, that brought freedom to East Europe. For answering the question it is essential to examine the political and socio-economic conditions and address the necessity of such changes that was caused by a profound crisis in the of the Soviet-Union pre-Gorbachev era prevailing in late 1970s. Regardless of the conclusion, this topic will remain under controversy causing different judgments among the historians, as an Emeritus Professor of politics at Oxford University said: The extent to which he [Gorbachev] is regarded a success or a failure will long remain a matter of controversy. There seems no doubt, though, that both in Russia and outside he will be regarded as a figure of decisive importance, regardless of whether his activities are viewed positively or highly negatively.  [2]   During the investigation a wide range of sources was used, representing polar opposite perspectives of the West and the East, from both the time of Perestroika and in hindsight. The sources used can be separated into three groups. The first group were those who believed that the initiative and perseverance of Mikhail Gorbachevs reforms made the first step to ensure the transformation of the country to a civilised state of the Western world. The second group- evaluates Gorbachevs reforms more negatively, believing that his imperialistic policy has led to serious irreversible consequences of the country. Finally, the third group includes political scientists and economists like Marshall I. Goldman and who combine their studies in both approaches, considering both positive and negative aspects of Perestroika. Therefore, the essay will be divided into Political and Socio-Economic reforms of Perestroika during 1985 and 1991 according to these identified groups. 2. Conditions in the Soviet Union prior to Perestroika The necessity of Perestroika and such radical changes were caused by the profound crisis of the Soviet system that were formed in the late 70s including the fall of Soviet authority in the eyes of public opinion in the Soviet Russian and in the Eastern Europe, a so-called socialist camp, where new democratic ideas were forming and demanding more human and political rights, as well as a rejection of the totalitarian regime. Therefore, for Mikhail Gorbachev, his reforms were seen as the best solution to the urgent political and socio-economic problems, which were aimed to strengthen and develop the Soviet Union. Furthermore, he was not anticipating that Perestroika would lead to a complete collapse of the system and USSR. a) Political Between 1980 and 1984, the changes in leadership have had a great impact on destabilising the government. Moreover, USA USSR relations were getting worse every day. After the Yalta Conference and Churchills Iron Curtain speech all contributed to the growing fear of the Soviet Union  [3]  and the beginning of the Cold War. The rivalry of two sides, has increased the military budget of the country, while not helping its economy. Additionally, in the mid 1980s, the Soviet Union was demonstrating its military might in the Afghan war that has also turned against it.  [4]   b) Socio-Economic Prior to perestroika, the Soviet economy was marked by the extensive economic growth in the late 1960s that began to pull to the economical development backwards. In the consequent 20 years USSR has experienced a rapid decline in growth of industry from 8.5% to 3.5%. There was also a problematic situation in consumers market which was also linked to the drop of oil prices. According to the economists, the prices of raw materials were comparatively cheap to other products, which caused inefficient and wasteful usage of these raw materials.  [5]  Between 1970 and 1980 USSR has earned 170 billion US dollars from the petroleum export. However, again, this money was invested into the military expansion and purchase of new machinery which was inefficiently used and did not enrich the country in the long run.  [6]   The agricultural situation in the Soviet Union was also rather complex. The money earned from petroleum exports was used for food imports, instead of introducing new efficient agricultural reforms substituting the old collective system. The economic problems reflected on production in both agrarian and industrial sectors of the country. The harvest fell from 237 million tons from 1978 to 158 million tons in 1981, depicting a very radical change. Similarly, the production of steel fell from 151 million in the 1978 to 147 million in 1982, which is particularly surprising as it always has been constant apart from the World War II period.  [7]   The economic and political constraints in the country such as economic stagnation and corruption, contributed to the rapid decline in the social sphere. Budgets proportion that went to people was not simply enough. This has lead to various social problems such as low standards of living, health care and high levels of alcoholism. These three main factors have affected the ideological and moral values of the people in the country causing demoralisation of the society. That also affected the quality and efficiency of work, such as poor working habits and incentives. As a result, in the early 80s the income per capita has decreased three fold compared to mid 60s. Additionally, there were issues with income distribution, resulting in high inequality between the lower and higher classes. This, of course, all went against the communist ideology. People were deprived of the civil rights and as a result various dissident movements broke in USSR and Eastern Europe. 3. Analysis of Political Reforms a) Glasnost Glasnost was the main political reform introduced in 1986 by Gorbachev. After 50 years of silence and fear the society was finally allowed to speak and express its opinions. With the policy of Glasnost, which Gorbachev has referred to as the other side of the Perestroikas coin, the system became less strict in many aspects of the society. This has included media, reduction in censorship and freedom of speech, opening up USSR to the rest of the world. Only in the year 1986 more than 14 million new newspapers were printed. After Olympic boycotts, the 1986 Goodwill games were seen live from both sides of the Iron Curtain. In the period of two years Gorbachev has made the fear disappear, bringing pop-culture to the USSR, creating a new breed of young people.  [8]   The policy of glasnost was responsible for drastically changing the spiritual life for people. The government ceased prosecution of many key figures that were exiled under Stalins rule, like Andrei Sakharov, who was in  internal exile for seven years.  [9]  Gorbachev said that they need glasnost in order to ensure fulfillment of tasks of the Party Congress  [10]  or in other words Perestroika was used as the base for his reforms. Primarily it was aimed to criticise and expose the corrupt leadership and was an instrument to improve political activity. In his speech to the January 1987 CC Plenum, Gorbachev has said: there can  be no person beyond criticism or people with no right to criticise.  [11]   b) Intellectual Elite Natan Edelman, a well-known historian, wrote in 1989: that the intellectuals support for Perestroika  is virtually unanimous.  [12]  All the great minds that were deprived during the Soviet Regime, has benefited from Gorbachevs reforms. Gorbachevs reforms have assured intellectuals of the right to free speech, unprecedented artistic freedom, wide access to the mass media, and a chance to be elected to the Soviet legislature and to serve in government.  [13]  These were the kind of thinkers who were essential for countrys future growth. c) Democratisation With the reform of Perestroika a general democratisation of life began in the country. Gorbachev publicly stated that Democratisation will not weaken our society but on the contrary, it will strengthen it.  [14]  Even though many were against the political reforms, the supreme Council has adopted two new laws changing and altering the Constitution of the USSR, and introducing voting system for peoples deputies. The final stage of the political reform which was the Congress of public Deputies of the USSR, has elected Gorbachev as the president of the USSR. Despite the numerous mistakes in the reforms, this was still a significant step towards liberation from the previous one-party system. d) US-Soviet Relations The slogan of the new political thinking, was a big change for the USSR and the world. The main idea of the concept was that any military conflict, is wrong. During the 1987 Washington Summit meeting between leaders of the USSR Mikhail Gorbachev and the U.S. President Ronald Reagan, a disarmament treaty was finally agreed and signed.  [15]  Gorbachevs new thinking and non-aggressive policy improved the US-Soviet relations as well as the international situation in general. Weapons of mass destruction were reduced by 2000 warheads. USSR has refused to further confront the West and wished for an end of the Cold War, for which Gorbachev received a Nobel Prize. This breakthrough has not only brought relief to the American-Soviet tensions, but has also allowed Gorbachev to cut the military budget that was essential to reduce the inflationary pressure and improve the living standards.  [16]   e) Afghan War and The Brezhnev Doctrine During 27th Party Congress in February/March 1986 after confirming the Brezhnev Doctrine,  [17]  the failed operation in maintaining Afghanistan gave Gorbachev no other choice in than to abandon the Doctrine and follow the policy of Perestroika. By 1989 Gorbachev withdrew almost all combat personnel from Afghanistan.  [18]   After the free elections in Poland which were marked by Communist Partys defeat by Solidarity in 1989, Gorbachev has renounced the Brezhnev Doctrine.  [19]  His speech at the UN on Dec. 7, 1989 represents the abandonment of communism from the Eastern Europe. In the next two years, their  numerical strength will be reduced by 500,000 persons, and the volume  of conventional arms will also be cut considerably. [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦]. By agreement with our allies in the  Warsaw Pact, we have made the decision to withdraw six tank divisions  from the GDR, Czechoslovakia, and Hungary, and to disband them by 1991.  [20]   f) Conclusion of political reforms The results of Perestroika in terms of foreign policy and political freedom cannot be considered a failure. Due to the policy of glasnost, the media and formation of independent press could now criticise anyone they wanted. People were finally free to speak. Perestroika was a big step towards liberalism with multyparty system and elections.  [21]   Now, almost 20 years after Perestroika, Gorbachev himself, who has lost the political power to Yeltsin after Perestroika, does not regret his actions and marks the results of his reforms as success . Gorbachev claims: it was such a success as it launched the democratic process in the Soviet Union. After the break-up of  USSR, Russia today is continuing to develop the market economy as well as pluralism in several domains such as politics, ideologies, religion, etcà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã‚  [22]   Collapse of the Soviet totalitarian empire and the formation of the 15 new states, some of which later became the members of NATO and a part of new Europe; destruction of the socialist camp and the Warsaw Pact with democratic changes in the political system can all be seen as examples of positive sides of Gorbachevs reform. It also had a further positive effect on economic reforms, that in the long-run has resulted in growth in Eastern Europe and Russia. Moreover, according to Gorbachev, another positive side was that they have managed to avoid a real bloodbath  [23]  in achieving these changes. On contrary, the radical changes were not welcomed by most of the older generation Soviet party members. They believed that the perfect Soviet regime has started to lose its totalitarian control and its isolationist character. For example, the control over media that resulted in a weaker censorship, has then opened many negative aspects of USSR that has been previously presented to be flawless. Gen. Valentin Varennikov, Chief of Soviet Ground Forces has stated that the social and military situation of the country was becoming worse  [24]  and Nina Anderyeva, a historian, saw the younger generations negative attitude towards the Soviet past as a moral degradation and a negative result of Glasnost.  [25]  The society has started to hear the problems in the Soviet Union such as poor living conditions, alcoholism etc. The nationalistic feeling and the strive to independence from the East European countries has increased. Many ethical problems which were previously sealed, have now opened into various riots, demanding for greater independence and stabilisation of the economy. 4. Analysis of Socio-economic Reforms a) Economic reforms The crisis in the economic development was a significant reason for the Soviet leadership in changing the structure of the economy. In July 1987, the  Supreme Soviet  has passed the Law on State Enterprise. It was seen as the key in conversion to a market economy  [26]  . The core of reform included the abandonment of the old planned economy and transition of the decision-making from state to private businesses. This has resulted in abolition of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and the GKES, which were involved in foreign economic operations before.  [27]   However, the initial process of privatisation was much slower than planned. A small number of vendors was the main reason for high prices on the market, and the prices of goods in cooperatives were always higher than the prices in state stores. By 1989, only after one year of Perestroikas inception there were 133,000 private ownerships. However, in comparison to Chinas ten million private enterprises in 1980,  [28]  it is only demonstrating the Soviet delay in the privatisation. Due to mistakes in reforms and social elements in the system, the transformation of the Soviet planned system into a free market economy has failed. The third economic change, was the Venture Law, that went into effect in June 1987 after Gorbachev and his leadership have decided to open the doors of the Soviet market to foreign firms. This was completely against the Marxist ideology and was viewed as an economic and political espionage by the Soviet party members, fearing that the capitalists would gain control over the Soviet market, exploiting their workers as well as stealing their ideas.  [29]  However, it was more the Soviet government and the newly bred mafia that took advantage of this, rather than the foreign companies which instead have brought advances to the Russian market. b) Agricultural reforms A similar situation was in the agrarian sector. In May 1, 1987 Gorbachev has authorised the establishment of individual farming and has introduced decollectivisation. However, again, this process was very slow. By 1990 there were only 20  000 private farms in the Soviet Union, from that only 240 were registered in Russia and only 4 in Ukraine!  [30]  Many who did set up the private farms were subject to attacks and were classified as kulaks. In contrast, to compare with contemporary dynamics, the Chinese process of decollectivisation went at a much faster pace. By 1980 in China all farms were decollectivised.  [31]   c) Anti-alcohol campaign Perestroika has also introduced socio-economic reforms to tackle serious problems like alcoholism that also affected the economical growth. Gorbachevs anti-alcohol campaign was aimed to decrease the consumption of alcohol, improve health and increase the efficiency of the work force and production. However, the anti-alcohol campaign had a rather negative impact on the Soviet economy. As this was a great hit for the state monopolies, including the disappearance of vineyards in Georgia and other republics. It has decreased the tax income by 13% and was said to cost the Soviet Union 200 billion Rubles. It did not stop people from drinking, instead the policy encouraged black markets and increased the production of moonshine,  [32]  that were usually low-quality and harmful for health. Additionally, it had a side effect on the consumption of sugar as home-made vodka required large quantities of sugar for production. The increase in consumption was 10 kilograms per capita in only 5 ye ars, effecting the market and the prices. Both sugar shortage and the reduction in imports of consumer goods combined with inflation caused a buyers panic.  [33]  Moreover, the situation got worse as not only sugar disappeared from the markets but normal goods from sugar to furniture. As a result consumer behavior was to buy as many goods as possible to avoid future shortages, spending hours in queues for nearly everything.  [34]  . d) Conclusion of socio-economic reforms During the years of Perestroika nothing significant was actually done to reform the economic methods. There were many laws adopted that allowed small businesses and private corporations, however, none had any fundamental effect on the principles of the Soviet economy. The political reforms have lead to governments losing of control over the national economy that they had planned out for many years. Gorbachevs indecisiveness in his reforms might explain the fact that he did not know what he was doing. A rapid decline in production has resulted in 20% decline in national income. The consumption of new machinery and lower tax revenues contributed to a rapid increase of the budget deficit. Table 1 shows the estimate budget deficit of the country between 1978 and 1990. CIA states that in 10 years the deficit had increased from 16 billion rubles to 68 billion rubles and later on increased even further reaching three digit values. Although different sources have different values and estimations, it is a fact that the situation catastrophically affected the people. As a result, to decrease the deficit more money was printed which has additionally increased the inflation. As Gorbachev has stated in his speech in the 1990 We have lost control over the financial situation in the country. By late 1990 the inflationary prices of goods were increasing at a 20% rate per annum and few years later this value has increased to 70%.  [35]  There were shortages of various consumer goods and a rat ioning system was introduced. This resulted in a drop of living standards, the Soviet Union fell to 82nd place in the world in terms of living standards. Another problem that has elevated during the economical crisis, was a serious debt as the expenditures were 20-30 % higher than the income (GDP)  [36]  . The debt of the Soviet Union was estimated to be about 60 billion dollars. The Soviet Union had to sell its gold reserves to purchase the foreign currency. This is a very bright illustration that Perestroika has not only failed to improve the old system, instead it disturbed the old system and further deteriorated the situation. 5. Conclusion According to the existing evidence, it is clear that Perestroika has suffered a defeat in the form it was originally conceived  [37]  from a socio-economic side and failed in achieving its main aims in improving the economic situation, instead had rather negative results and consequences. Gorbachevs reconstruction has weakend the social and economic conditions in the country. A further phrase by Aleksandr Zaychenko further proves this statement: Russians today [in 1989] eat worse than did Russians in 1913 under the Czars.  [38]   Even though elimination of the state monopoly in foreign trade was a positive sign in transformation to the market economy, as foreign corporations were able to show the Soviet system new and more advanced ways of doing business. This was a sign that He [Gorbachev] knew where he wanted to end up, with a more productive, consumer-oriented economy, but he did not know how to get there.  [39]  Between 1985 and 1991, ten new economic reforms have been introduced, and not a single one was ever implemented  [40]  no one went down that road before. As a result this half-measure in the economy has lead to an economic crisis. After the reconstruction of the old approaches to the economy there were no new methods that would replace the old ways, the Soviet economy was stuck in the middle between the planned and private economies, which are considered as an economic failure. As stated by Marshall I. Goldman, an expert on the Soviet economy, his book Went Wrong with Perestroika, clearly shows the fundamental problems in socio-economic sphere that were formed as result of Gorbachevs indecisive maneuvers and highlights their contribution to result in a total failure and the collapse of the whole system. On equilibrium, however, political factors seem to be more successful. Reforms like: Glasnost and New Political Thinking, played a crucial role in improving the U.S.-Soviet relations breaking the tensions and diminishing the possibility of a military conflict between the two military blocks, NATO and the Warsaw Pact, as well as finally opening the iron curtain and breaking the Berlin wall. Additionally, Mikhail Gorbachevs new thinkingduring Perestroika was the key in ending the Cold War. After 5 decades of hostilities, In the last few years, throughout the world  people were able to heave a sigh of relief, thanks to the changes for  the better in the substance and atmosphere of the relations between  Moscow and Washington.  [41]  Additionally, after three decades of confrontation USSR became friends with China. This all was doubtlessly one of Gorbachevs successful achievements of his reforms. People take Gorbachev as a hero, others accuse him of causing a disaster  [42]  . Similarly Perestroika is considered as a failure because it has given way to the totalitarian control of the country and, on the other side, can be considered a success for giving freedom to people. Peoples conclusions are linked to their understanding of things.  [43]  These understandings will change with time and therefore change their whole idea towards the event. 7. Bibliography Books Charles Bukowski, and J. Richard Walsh, eds.,  Glasnost, Perestroika, and the Socialist Community  (New York: Praeger Publishers, 1990) Peter J. Boettke,  Why Perestroika Failed: The Politics and Economics of Socialist Transformation  (New York: Routledge, 1993) Mikhail S. Gorbachev, 39 Address at the Forty-Third Un General Assembly Session, December 7, 1988,  The Soviet System: From Crisis to Collapse, ed. Alexander Dallin andGail W. Lapidus (Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1995) Marshall I. Goldman,  What Went Wrong with Perestroika  (New York: W. W. Norton, 1992) Ronald E. Powaski,  The Cold War The United States and the Soviet Union, 1917-1991,   (New York: Oxford University Press, 1998) Dmitri N. Shalin, ed.,  Russian Culture at the Crossroads: Paradoxes of Postcommunist Consciousness  (Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1996) Joanne Wright, 3: The End of the Cold War: The Brezhnev Doctrine,  Why the Cold War Ended: A Range of Interpretations, ed. Ralph Summy andMichael E. Salla (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1995) William E. Watson,  The Collapse of Communism in the Soviet Union  (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1998) Thomas C. Owen,  Russian Corporate Capitalism from Peter the Great to Perestroika  (New York: Oxford University Press, 1995) Hunt, Lynn: The Making of the West: Peoples and Cultures. (Bedford/St. Martins, Boston and London, 2009) Magazine Peter Hylarides, Mikhail Gorbachev and Perestroika,  Contemporary ReviewAutumn 2008,  Questia, Web, 1 Jan. 2011. Journal Vanden Heuvel, Perestroika and After: Comrade Ligachev Tells His Side,  The Nation  2 Dec. 1991,  Questia, Web, 1 Jan. 2011. Websites Structural Reforms, 1986 to Mid-1988 http://www.country-data.com/cgi-bin/query/r-12788.html Communist Party of the Soviet Union. CENTRAL COMMITTEE. MINUTES Of Meeting No. 2 of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the CPSU September 20, 1990, http://www.ibiblio.org/expo/soviet.exhibit/o2gorby.html Mikhail Gorbachev, former USSR President  :Perestroika won, but politically I lost. Euronews Inerview 05/11/09 17:31 CET http://www.euronews.net/2009/11/05/mikhail-gorbachev-former-ussr-president-perestroika-won-but-politically-i-lost/ 1985: Anti- Alcohol Campaign http://www.soviethistory.org/index.php?page=subjectSubjectID=1985drylawYear=1985navi=byYear 1987 | Nuclear Disarmament http://www.austria1989.org/index.php?option=com_contentview=articleid=66Itemid=96 1988 | Gorbachev Ends the Cold War http://www.austria1989.org/index.php?option=com_contentview=articleid=67Itemid=97 Video Gorbachev, Glasnost, Perestroika, Arms Agreement , http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=595W4JJHa2U

Saturday, July 20, 2019

Quit Watching Me! :: essays research papers

“Quit Watching Me!';   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Attempts to monitor employees have always existed in one form or another, from mechanical keystroke counters in the early part of the century, to the latest innovations in electronic monitoring. As technology advances, so do the monitoring possibilities in the workplace. As result of the endless possibilities in surveillance, anxiety in employee’s increase, which in most cases leads to illnesses. Studies have shown that individuals who are constantly being monitored at work suffer from inevitable effects, the majority being illnesses such as physical, emotional, and mental disorders. Employers feel they have the right to monitor their employees, however when extensive monitoring effects a employees health, then the employers has gone to far. Advance technology has lead to monitoring devices such as via computers, video surveillance, and active badges in the last decade, but as the intensity of the surveillance increases so do the negative effects on the empl oyees.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There has been a huge increase to pass legislation’s that will regulate the employer in monitoring his employees’ by via computer. Monitoring an employee by via computer is one of the latest innovations in electronic monitoring, which is done by purchasing and installing software in the companies computer system. Once the software is installed, it will be able to do a variety of types of electronic monitoring from keystroke counting and accuracy, time how long it takes to make a transaction, and how long the computer has been on idle. This type of electronic monitoring that involves advanced technology and “the constant monitoring to measure employees’ performance creates an enormous amount of pressure and stress…the stress that is created by monitoring has caused serious physical effects'; (Ternipsede 447) on employees in the work place. Many employees have been effected from such setting in the workplace, but they are unaware of the effects since they take many years to develop fully. Another type of electronic monitoring that can damage an employee’s health is video surveillance.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Video surveillance has existed in the work place since the invention of the television. Video surveillance cameras come in all shapes and sizes, from the obvious ones to some that are small as a dime. Many employers purchase such devices to capture employees and customers who commit theft and fraud, or any other illegal activity. The increase of technology in electronic monitoring is now able to transfer images from a camera to a computer where the employer is able to zoom in and make a positive identity of the employee or customer who is committing an illegal act.