How does the inclusion of the witches in Macbeth heighten the dramatic impact of the play? Essay

Macbeth is a play written by the renowned playwright William Shakespeare in the early 17th century. Originally produced for the King of Denmark, the play explores themes such as ambition and betrayal through the actions of the main protagonist Macbeth. The play’s other significant figures include three witches whose practice of sorcery attracted a lot of controversy towards the play. At the time, their inclusion heightened the dramatic impact on the audience; primarily because of the public’s view of witches. Also referred to as the ‘’weird sisters’’, they form a fundamental element of the play because it is their input that shapes the play into action. During this period of time, the mainstream population of Europe was Christian and superstitious, therefore belief in witchcraft was at its peak and so-called ‘’witches’’ were persecuted. Supposedly, witches (along with Satan) were part of a collective of evil and were blamed for a lot of wrongdoing in society. For instance, political dissidents who opposed the King were thought to be under the influence of black magic. This was because there was commonly held believe that the King had the divine right to rule; thus anyone challenging the King was basically challenging God (which was considered blasphemy and punishable by death). The inclusion of the witches and amount of media coverage they received along with the public’s superstition helped to heighten the dramatic impact of Macbeth on a Shakespearean audience. Today, however, due to the secularisation of society, religious morals are diminishing and witchcraft is seen as nothing more than simple entertainment; this is certainly not how Shakespeare intended it to be. Furthermore, television programmes such as W.I.T.C.H. and books such as the Harry Potter series are depicting witches in a much more positive light. On the other hand, a small number of possible offshoots of witchcraft such as Wicca and Freemasonry are still being practiced despite it being punishable by death in some extremely religious cultures. In this day and age, the general view about witches lessens the dramatic impact significantly because it is seen as a comedy routine therefore Macbeth doesn’t strike fear into the hearts of the audience like its original purpose. In Act 1 Scene 1, as shown in the stage directions; the witches are the first performers when they enter an ‘’open place’’ with ‘’thunder and lightning’’. By being the first performers on stage, they intensify the dramatic impact because the audience focuses their attention towards them. Also, Shakespeare specifically chose the weather in this scene to be threatening, to reflect the negative view of witches at the time and to elevate the dramatic impact by making them see more powerful (witches were associated with the ability to manipulate the weather). The technique of using elements of nature to express mood is known as pathetic fallacy. In this scene, the first impression that the audience are given of the witches is that they are unattractive. For instance, the quotes ‘’your beards’’ and ‘’skinny lips’’ suggests that the witches are ugly and depict them as being unnatural due to having masculine characteristics. Shakespeare has done this to add to the negative interpretation of witches, which in turn heightens the dramatic impact (because the realistic appearance of the witches would frighten the audience). He also uses other characters to highlight the appearance of the witches and therefore raise the dramatic impact on the audience. For instance, Banquo describe the witches as being creatures ‘’ that look not like th’ inhabitants o’ th’ earth’’. He is suggesting that they do not resemble other humans and that they are abnormal; perhaps beings from another world. Shakespeare uses dialogue between the witches to heighten the dramatic impact on the audience. For example, in Act 1 Scene 3, one of the witches says to the others ’‘I’ll drain him dry as hay, sleep shall neither night nor day’’. This line heightens the dramatic impact because it portrays witches as evil because of the reference to torturing someone by depriving him of water. Also the words ‘’hay’’ and ‘’day’’ rhyme, during the Shakespearean era this was related to the spells chanted by witches, therefore the audience would have instantaneously assumed that the lines were malicious; thus increasing the dramatic impact. The lines spoken by the witches also include a rhythm. For example in Act 1 Scene 3, the three witches start their lines with ‘’all hail†¦ all hail†¦ all hail’’, this promotes the idea that the witches have the same thoughts and gives the impression that they are insane because they speak in a different pattern to the other characters. The witches also speak in riddles to scare and confuse the audience, for example, the line ‘’when the battles lost and won’’ may be referring to Macbeth or it could be talking about the struggle for the throne of Scotland. This intensifies the dramatic impact because the audience are left unsure and given the impression that the three witches know something that they don’t. Once again, the witches are depicted as being unnatural because of their ability to prophesise the future. Imagery is used cleverly in many ways by Shakespeare to show the witches in a negative light and add to the dramatic impact. For example, in Act 4 Scene 1, the 1st witch says ‘’round and round the cauldron go, in the poisoned entrails throw’’. This quote emphasizes the popular belief (at the time) that witches chant around their cauldrons which consisted of nauseating ingredients such as rats (creates the image that witches are sick). Also, the witches simultaneously say ‘’double, double toil and trouble, fire burn and cauldron bubble’’, this makes the spell resemble a song more and consequently it increases the dramatic impact. To conclude, the inclusion of the witches in the play undeniably helps to heighten the dramatic impact on a Shakespearean audience. This is mainly because of his successful methods, for example when using pathetic fallacy. Today, however, his masterpiece has not been as popular and effective at creating a negative image of witches because of the enormous change in the public’s view of witches.

Religion-Effect of Dispossession on Aboriginals

Religion Discuss the connection between the dreaming and the land rights movement. Aboriginal spirituality is determined by the dreaming. The dreaming is a complex concept of fundamental importance to Aboriginal culture, embracing the creative era long past of the ancestral beings as well as the present and the future. The Dreaming's importance to the aboriginal people is emphasised through it providing for the obligations and responsibility of the aboriginal people, and furthermore accounting for their past, present, and future.The dispossession of land of the aboriginal people has led to various problems, including psychological and social issues experienced by communities and individuals, who in the past, have been forcibly removed from their land, their ‘home'. The Land Rights Movement is a movement targeted at recognising the issue of dispossession and progressing towards a. Thus Land Rights Movement, a movement based on the claims by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islan der peoples to repossession and compensation for white use of their lands and sacred sites, became the resolution.The motivation of this movement was ultimately base upon Aboriginal peoples reliance on a sense of spirituality connected to the land. As the movement strengthened, so too did the awareness of the effect of the dispossession, leading to an increase in the movement itself, and also enforcing the Aboriginal people’s sense of spirituality. Essentially, it becomes evident that the importance of the Dreaming was ultimately the reason for, and motivation behind the Land Rights movement. Thus it is needless to say that the Dreaming is fundamental to the Lands Rights Movement.Analyse the importance of the Dreaming for the land rights movement Land rights are of critical importance in relation to Aboriginal spirituality, because the Dreaming is inextricably connected with the land. Therefore the dispossession of Aboriginal native land is also the dispossession of Aborigina l spirituality. The link between the Dreaming, land and afterlife holds significance spiritual importance to the Aboriginal peoples as the land is the resting place for all aboriginal beings. Furthermore each Aboriginal community is connected with the land through their spiritual totems.Specific areas of Aboriginal communities’ have important spiritual meaning for those particular groups of aboriginal people-these are known as sacred sites. What’s caratagoried in ever aboriginal sacred site is the connection to the Dreaming and aboriginal mythology. There are special responsibilities attached to sacred sites such as important ceremonies like weddings and it could be a place of death for an aboriginal elder. The identity of an Aboriginal person is inextricably linked to the land and hence the land is like a mother for the people.

Behavioral Aspects of Project Management Essay

Organizational culture can influence the overall success of a project. Unfortunately, in the given scenario the project is both behind schedule and over budget. Several key team members left in disgust and the morale of the remaining team is low and they fear they will be doing extra work without compensation. In this scenario project leadership is essential to the projects success. This project team needs a leader who can not only get this project back on track but can also build the morale of this demoralized team. This project cannot be managed in a routine fashion. Already behind schedule and over budget, this project will require innovation, skill and a highly competent project manager in order to proceed. 1. How does organizational culture influence the selection, sponsorship, prioritization, and ultimate success of projects?One of the most critical factors for project success is organizational culture and behavior to support project management process. As a result, it is highly important for organizations and managers to understand the influence of organizational behavior and culture in order to meet ultimate success of projects. In this case, we should first know the definition of organizational culture. Organizational culture is made up of attitudes, beliefs, values and behavior of its employees. It is the workplace environment formulated from the interaction of the employees in the workplace. Organizational culture is defined by all of the life experiences, strengths, weaknesses, education, upbringing, and so forth of the employees. While executive leaders play a large role in defining organizational culture by their actions and leadership, all employees contribute to the organizational culture. (1)(2)Organizational culture is important to a project success for several reasons. They are also an important source of stability and continuity to the organization, which provides a sense of security to its members. 2. In what ways could organizational culture create conditions that could lead to the scenario described above?Failing to initiate â€Å"crucial conversations† may be the single biggest cause of project failure, according to preliminary findings of an ongoing study on project management. Thus, project managers’ inability to talk to people about five often-occurring  negative situations frequently leads to failure. Setting arbitrary deadlines and inadequate resources that â€Å"set up a project to fail†. Failing to provide the necessary leadership, political clout or energy for a project. Skirting or manipulating the project priority-setting process. An unwillingness by team members to support projects as required. Failing to acknowledge project problems until it is too late for remedial action. (6)A failure to clearly and completely define the requirements results in building the wrong features or leaving gaps in the features needed. New or state-of-the-art technology is causing unanticipated problems. A poor technical design doesn’t allow the solution to be easily modified or is not scalable. Requirements are not frozen late in the project, and continued change requests start to cause the project to drift. Technology components do not fit together as designed. Poor initial testing techniques cause repeated errors and rework in later tests. (7)3. What role does project leadership play in the success of projects?Project managers have a wide range of responsibilities and face a number of challenges (challenges relate to fundamental functions: planning, organizing, hiring, coordinating, and monitoring) in a variety of areas, on a daily basis. A project manager’s role is a challenging one and requires equal measures of good organizational ability, good people skills, and the technical capacity to judge both individual performance and project  milestones. Project leaders play a significant role in the success of a project. With poor leadership, a sophisticated tool or technique only gives a bad leader the opportunity to do more damage. The person may be a better project manager, but he or she may not be a better project leader. (8) A project leader might contribute different roles in the success of a project. The new role of the project manager requires an ultimate knowledge of the strategy of the project. The PL is responsible for observing and analyzing project process and project structure. (14)A project leader must possess a certain set of combination skills and characteristics that can be used to manage projects successfully including:The diplomatic skills to solicit input and negotiate compromises, having the ability to ask penetrating questions, identifies unstated assumptions, flexible enough to roll with the changes, and resolve personnel conflicts along with more systematic management skills. (12)(13)(15) Also,Developing a grand visionBuilding, leading and mentoring the project management teamLeadership, Facilitation, communicative, Selling (promote and sell the project both within and outside the organization), Presentation skillsPeople-management skills such as constructive feedback, conflict resolution, managing individual styles and personalitiesSkills at interfacing across the organization and removing obstacles for the teamAbility to accept criticism, feedback, and input from othersSkills in using team-based tools such as brainstorming, organizing, decision-making, Project management, conflict resolution, and so on (14)(10)4. Does this role change under the conditions described in the scenario? If so, how and why? If not, why not? To overcome with this scenario, organization should hire a skilled and innovated PM who is able to lead perfectly and solve the above scenario and get the project back on track. (16)In this situation, the new leader must be able to analyze what resources were lost, when key team members left, create a new organizational culture according to the project, and create an inspiring corporate culture that inspires, empowers and energizes project team members. Generally, the project in this situation needs a leader to have enough power to make him/her able for changing the organizational culture, hiring new staffs, offering project members a sense of common purpose beyond the day-to-day  tasks, making work exciting, moving people with a compelling vision, inspiring and encouraging team members to act perfectly for achieving performance. The other important thing which is so vital in any relationship and the new leader must pay attention is building up the morale and trust among team membe rs. The new leader can help build trust faster by following these 10 practical steps:Know the players. Confirm leader role. Identify preconceptions. Set expectations. Involve the team in decisions. Do what you said you were going to do. Deliver informative status reports. Be honest. (17)(18)By bringing a new PM to the project according to case scenario, the role of Project leader would not change. Only, the new leader duties will increase since key member of the project left while the rest of team has lost their trust and motive and feel frustrated and stressed. As a result, it would be much harder for the new leader to reorganize the project progress, project members, build up and improve morale and trust within the project team-members, and let the team members know how important they are for the organization and project. In this case, leader will identify and recognize each member’s duty, skills and their job within this project process and it would be easier for the leader to define tasks. Thus, defining an effective communication plan is critical success through the course of a project. Leader must describe the project in a clear way to ensure that all tasks and responsibilities are going to be done on time and meet the schedules and deadlines. At this time it’s become highly important  for a project manager to decide whether he needs to hire some people to replace the key people or he needs to compensate the people that around in rough time with the project with the salary he would pay to new people because project is already running behind schedule. In such case the second option is more suitable, assuming the current group has the capabilities to complete the project, since project is already over budget. 5) How can a project manager build and manage a successful project team?Building a good team is extremely challenging and rewarding at the same time. It calls for some astute planning. The three most important lessons are: be true to the team’s vision, give people space to operate and develop as leaders and remain intellectually sharp as a team. The first will give the team purpose and direction, the second will give them the ability to deliver and the last will keep the team young and jumping out of their beds on Mondays. Team building in this context is a prized skill that managers are willing to invest in. It has become critical to find â€Å"team players† when selecting people for a job or business project. An organization’s potential will end where the imagination of a sharp team does. There is a lot more involved than simple complimentary skills when building an elite team. Here are seven practices at the heart of building a first-rate team. 1- Get the best on boardA PM should get only those people on board his bus who really understand and value the vision of the project. Also he should make sure and inform those people that it might be a rough or smooth ride so they don’t have any surprises2- Align tasks to skillsIf you allow your team members to progress into the areas where they excel and are interested in, you will effectively keep them engaged and free yourself from the risk of having disgruntled and frustrated team members. 3- Strike the right balanceMost projects require a mix of activities. A team needs to have a balanced set of skills, especially if the majority of the  members are specialists in their field (consultants, analysts, IT experts). All skills will come into play while the team carries out its task, and any lack can result in the hampering of the project. 4- Manage the team mixIt is difficult to predict whether the team mix is correct and if it facilitates success; therefore, constant monitoring is indispensable. Allowing someone to remain on the team when they are a mismatch can prove counter productive. Other members may become resentful when no action is taken and they are obligated to cover for a non-productive member. 5- Give the credit and take the blameDo not indulge in fault-finding or blame games. Pigeonholing a particular member of the team may spread negative vibes within the team and cost you time and quality. Celebrating every small success and appreciating team members will build a sense of camaraderie between team members. 6- Be hard on tasks and soft on peopleThe focus should be on getting the job done. Giving space to every member of the team would allow them to develop their true potential as leaders. A good player always passes the ball. Even superstars need to work as a team player. Individual accomplishments mean little if they don’t enable the team to succeed. Q 6If the new Project manager is able to apply the effective leadership style, and create a team harmony between old team members and new comers, that will certainly revitalize the project Effectiveness. Together with project management discipline, addressing these items will dramatically increase the probability of project success. As we know that just as the main reasons that projects fail are related to human nature and interaction, so are our keys to project management effectiveness. We find that o ¬nly when the appropriate culture, mindset and behaviors are in place are the project management processes able to drive value. If the project manager is able to insert these changes the organizational culture will change to one of high morale, employee satisfaction, employee involvement, formation of groups, open communication lines, and higher employee motivation, employees  embracing the change process, understanding both the ups and downs of the project, like the schedule and budget issues mentioned in the scenario, etc.)Selection & rejuvenating the team: As the project is already behind schedule and over budget, so the Project Manager should focus on selection process more seriously. There are old team members who are already working on the project with lack of resources and guidelines. To relieve these work forces from work overload, there are needs of new workforces to join as team and work together effectively. If the project manager is able to spend more time in selection process that will bring the best into the project board/team, which will certainly save, time and cost. Assign and align task as per the expertise: Once the selection is done, Project manger should categorize the tasks and subtasks as per the critical and non critical path and empower the team members as per their expertise, so they don’t caught up with authentication. This process will enable the project team to work at their best with self-motivation and develop a high degree of morale. Optimum uses of human resources at their synergy will help the project to run smoothly and reduce the project delay. Team synchronization and acculturation: A balance in terms of personality and temperament also needs to be achieved, which will promote better relationships between members of the team. Closely watching the interpersonal dynamics within the team. So by bringing the people together who have the skill sets along with the adaptability and flexibility to work with different people. Synchronized and organizational acculturation enable the project too speed up the scheduled task without any constraints and develop team satisfaction. Communication and collaboration: The concurrent changes within the team rejuvenation and synchronization will enable the project team to communicate effectively and bring the sense of collaboration with in the players. As the project is already behind the schedule, so open line communication and collaborative measures will be developed. Effective measurements: Once the organizational culture is set and adapted by  the project team, there will be an easy access for Project manager to evaluate the project success. Evaluation is very critical at this point of time, as project being behind the schedule and over the budget; project manager should imply the every allocated resource at their optimum use and assessment of every activities and achievements within the due time. Q7)An effective project team leader is a â€Å"social architect† who understands the interaction of organizational and behavioral variables can foster a climate of active participation and can minimize dysfunctional conflict. To be effective and to make better relationship among team members, the team leader must identify major issues associated with three dimensions. These are team related with emphasis on behavioral aspects such as team structure, trust and respect, or barriers to team development and so on also project tasks and resource related to it such as goals and objectives, planning and scope management are essential. What if the other essential ingredient, the team, the followers? Ideally, the more the team can be motivated and empowered to â€Å"take the bull by the horns†, the more productive they become and the less direction and control is required. This has led to the concept of Self Directed Work Teams (Swats). According to Batten, there are 6 things that members of a successful team need from their leader to built better relationship:Expectation (Tell me what you expect of me)Opportunity (Give me an opportunity to perform)Feedback (Let me know how I am doing)Guidance (Give me guidance when and where I need it)Reward (Reward me according to my contribution)Friendly environment (give me open working-environment)Given these prerequisites, both the members of a project team, the followers, and their leader can be expected to progress and develop interactively. The leader focuses successively on telling, selling, gelling and producing project activities, in which the idea is for the team to become an SDWT. However, this only occurs as a result of careful team development and typically advances interactively through four distinct phases of team leadership and â€Å"follower ship† evolution. The four phases of team development have been characterized as â€Å"forming, storming, norming an d performing†. Relationship among Team Members and External resources:Building relationship among the project team and the external resources is the main part for the project to serve the project of the company. We have to identify their level of involvement and work with them accordingly. The key to getting the most out of the outsourcing relationship with the internal project team is to have a good plan in place before hand and to work that plan, but remain flexible. The company must have a clear business goal and an understanding of the role the outsourcing partner which they will play in helping attain that goal. Performance metrics for the outsourced engagement must be in place so that the client company knows weather or not the outsourcing, train and educate the staff in the project management model. And, most importantly, manage communication effectively. Again and effective communication among team members and any outsourced contractor is probably the most critical outsourcing success factor. In fact, it is so critical in a situation where professional services are being provided and contracted for creating a maintaining sound relationship with external resourcesQ8) how would these strategies differ under the conditions described in the scenario. The team is in bad situation, and the previous team has been totally scattered. For this instance the strategies we have defined for the relationship among team members and with external resources will not be the same. So the managing change strategy will be good to handle the situation. So what I believe and also depending upon my finding a project manager should comply with certain strategies which will be helpful according to the current situation. First of all PM will find out that what the reason behind the old situation was? And why the previous manager left also why the team members are scattered and having low moral. Communication with the team members will be the key tool to identify the problem and emotion individually. After identifying the all the key problems in points the role of the PM will to point our the points to coach the employees or team players and to make their moral high, so the PM should inspire people to move forward and make objectives real and relevant. It will also be helpful for the team members to built and maintain the external relationship. Also encourage the team members continue to achieve the final goal according to their task with responsibility on time is the one of the important strategy  too. Although several key team members have quit in disgust, the PM should design the team again, get the right people in place with the right emotional commitment, and the right mix of skills and levels. As the project is behind schedule and over budget, the PM should review the post vision, get the team to establish a simple and right vision, and then focus on emotional and creative aspects necessary to drive the team effectively by building cohesion in between them also with external resources. The project is behind schedule and over budget, the PM should review the post vision, get the team to establish a simple and right vision, and then focus on emotional and creative aspects necessary to drive the team effectively. Now to let the work done properly PM has to take an empowerment action by removing obstacles, enable constructive feedback and lots of support, also PM should reward and recognize progress and achievements. PM also has to highlight achieved milestones time by time. CONCLUSION:In this paper we have addressed the influence organizational culture can have on successful project management. The organizational mission, vision, and value statements shape the expected ethical behavior of individuals. Leadership is an integral part of successful project completion. Effective leadership can influence the moral of a dysfunctional team by building trust within a team. In building an effective project team, the project manager needs to set established principles and hold team members accountable for performance and behavior that is consistent with the organizational culture. Different strategies are needed to successfully manage relationships among team members and the relationship between the team and external resources. Establishing achievable outcomes and linking performance to those outcomes allows team members to recognize achievements. Individual success leads to team success and ultimately organizational success. A culture that supports these strategies will have a competitive edge in the area of successful project management References: 1.Human Resources, Change Management, http://humanresources.about.com/od/organizationalculture/Organizational_Culture_Corporate_Culture_in_Organizations.htm2.Organizational culture, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organizational_culture3.Strategic Leadership and Decision Making (ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE) ,aa

BHS 499 (Senior Capstone Project) Module 3 CBT Essay

BHS 499 (Senior Capstone Project) Module 3 CBT - Essay Example Fraud as defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary of Law is "any act, expression, omission, or concealment calculated to deceive another to his or her disadvantage; specifically: a misrepresentation or concealment with reference to some fact material to a transaction that is made with knowledge of its falsity or in reckless disregard of its truth..." The HIPAA or Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 defines it as ''a criminal conspiracy or a violation" to specific provisions indicated in the U.S. Code which pertains to conspiracy relating to a health care benefit program'' 18 U.S.C. x 24(a). Furthermore, fraud is basically considered as an act of misrepresentation or deception designed to acquire something of value held by some other; and the most common forms of fraud among nurses documented by CNO include: falsifying a record; collecting pay under false pretenses; misappropriating property or money through deceptive means; and providing false information to ones employer (Quality Practice, 2003; p 1). Below outlines the managerial, legal, ethical and financial implications brought about by fraudulent and financial abuse in the health care industry. The unnecessary patient treatments that are being ordered, limits the patient's coverage which may be subsequently met prematurely; later, patients may not be able to expend co-payments for gratuitous visits. In addition, false diagnoses for the purpose of up-coding may affect the patient's ability to obtain maintain insurance coverage since the information is available primarily to other potential insurers (Busch, 2007).According the National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association, around $56.7 to $170 billion is the estimated loss annually (Department of Health and Human Services, 2005). Centers for Medicaid & Medicare (2006) expressed that the dollars lost to reimbursement of Medicare and Medicaid as well as intentional improper billing could have been used to fund the health insurance of low-income persons; if they were not acquired or end up in the pockets of the unscrupulous health care suppliers and providers. The Provision 3.5 under the Code of Ethics calls upon that all nurses needs to take appropriate action about any instances of unethical, incompetent, illegal or impaired practice by members of the health care team or any action on the side of others by the health care system which places the best interest of the patient (American Nurses Association, 2001). Fletcher, Sorrell, and Silva (1998) have point out that nurses are frequently called upon to make sacrifices, in their personal as well as professional, ones they adhere strictly to Nurses' Code of Ethics. This code 3 requires nurses' accountability as professionals however fails to acknowledge that the reality is that in the health care system, many nurses have limited power within. Job security for fraud investigators and auditors remains strong. Over the years, it continues to attract the nurses who are ethically challenged. Health care fraud is oftentimes buried within the functions in critical business. In 2006, initiatives were made to implement the development of health information technology infrastructure, in order to improve the

Summarization for chapters of the weather makers, and The author name Essay - 2

Summarization for chapters of the weather makers, and The author name is Tim Flannery - Essay Example Although it is cheaper for some countries to produce electricity from wind power as compared to burning fossil fuels, the chief disadvantage of wind is that it is not always blowing. It has also been argued that the wind turbines that are currently in use are responsible for the killing of many birds each year, this argument has been effectively countered by Flannery who points out that in the United States, more birds are killed by cats than those killed by turbines (Flannery, 267-271). Chapter 30: Nuclear Lazarus? This chapter focuses on discussing nuclear energy. Nuclear energy is a crucial alternative source of energy in light of the emerging climatic issues. James Lovelock, who is the originator of the Gaia Hypothesis pleaded for the expansion of nuclear energy programs in 2004. Nuclear power plants are however complicated to construct and their safety is a huge concern in their construction. Disasters such as the Chernobyl disasters are always being brought up in discussions of nuclear power safety. With the increasing movement of tectonic plates, more and more geothermal power sources are seen to be constantly coming up on the earth’s surface (Flannery, 272-278). ... Flannery also introduces the reader to the idea of CAT vehicles that efficiently run on compressed air and are extremely eco-friendly. Flannery also points out that despite their harsh emissions, one redeeming element of airplanes is that the contrails that they create help in reducing the average amount of light that manages to reach the earth’s surface, a factor that help in keeping the earth slightly cooler (Flannery, 279-283). Chapter 32: The Last Act of God? It is projected that human influences will eventually overtake natural factors. Flannery evokes the question of â€Å"what is the price of this injustice?† This question is in reference to the story of most of the world’s powerful nation not only polluting, but also preventing rain from falling in developing nations. An example being the Inuit whose traditional food sources such as bear, caribou and seals are fast disappearing as an effect of global warming. The Inuit land is also seen to be fast disappe aring. The Kyoto Protocol has allowed only the ratifying nations to pollute within certain given limits (Flannery, 284-289). Chapter 33: The Carbon Dictator This chapter mentioned Paul Crutzen who once helped save the world from ozone depletion and is yet again, back trying to help with the current climate issue. Flannery draws up three different possible climate change outcomes. The first being that human response is too slow and results in the end of the earth as it is currently known. The second scenario allows for humans to avoid destruction by acting in good time, while the third possibility is where by establishing an Earth Commission for Thermostatic Control, we reduce emissions just enough so as to

Research Methods in Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Research Methods in Education - Essay Example Qulittive reserch tends to be ssocited with prticipnt observtion nd unstructured, in-depth interviewing. The methods of dt collection with which qulittive reserch is ssocited hve been employed by socil scientists for mny yers. The best-known of these methods is prticipnt observtion, which entils the sustined immersion of the resercher mong those whom he or she seeks to study with view to generting rounded, in-depth ccount of the group, orgniztion, or whtever. Unstructured interviewing, in which the resercher provides miniml guidnce nd llows considerble ltitude for interviewees, is lso fvoured technique. Most prticipnt observers conduct t lest modicum of such interviewing, but some qulittive reserchers use it more or less exclusively. The ims of such interviewing re quite different from the fmilir survey pproch. While some qulittive reserchers mke use of n interview schedule, others operte with loose collection of themes which qulittive reserch strtegy ws used in this study becuse this method fits better the chosen topic. Prticipnt observtion nd unstructured interviewing re the centrl dt gthering plnks since in this wy it ws possible to get closer to the people tht were investigted nd be less inclined to impose inpproprite conceptul frmeworks on them. Quntittive reserch is ssocited with number of different pproches to dt co... qulittive reserch strtegy ws used in this study becuse this method fits better the chosen topic. Prticipnt observtion nd unstructured interviewing re the centrl dt gthering plnks since in this wy it ws possible to get closer to the people tht were investigted nd be less inclined to impose inpproprite conceptul frmeworks on them. Quntittive Reserch Quntittive reserch is ssocited with number of different pproches to dt collection. In sociology in prticulr, the socil survey is one of the min methods of dt collection which embodies the fetures of quntittive reserch to be explored below. The survey's cpcity for generting quntifible dt on lrge numbers of people who re known to be representtive of wider popultion in order to test theories or hypotheses hs been viewed by mny prctitioners s mens of cpturing mny of the ingredients of science. (Hirschi's 1969) In frmes of quntittive reserch tht dt re collected on cross-section of people t single point in time in order to discover the wys nd degrees to which vribles relte to ech other. 2.2. The popultion nd smpling Prticipnts were 3 techers completing their Msters degrees nd plnning to work s secondry school prctitioners. Interviews were conduscted during the week. Every meeting took bout 30 minutes. ll nswers were recorded nd then noted down on the pper. ll prticipnts where told it ws strictly confidentil nd the interviews where rrnged by myself, we communicted by telephone nd emil. 2.3. Piloting Leedy & Ormrod (2001) recommend the use of brief pilot study to test the vlidity nd relibility of mesurement instrument, developed for specific purpose nd never previously tested or used in prctice. The mesurement instrument used in this reserch ws subjected to pilot test. The min reson

The Research Project Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 2

The Research Project - Assignment Example s a global state of change. The average tourist has different expectations and desires when traveling today than they did in previous generations, and this greatly impacts the way the tourist industry must adapt across various sectors (Hamzah & Hampton, 2011). One area of particular interest in the young traveler. Young people are choosing to spend a considerable portion of their traveling internationally in record numbers. Many of these individuals will choose to spend extended periods of time in lone geographical region, becoming immersed in the culture and providing a potentially positive source of tourism related revenue to the region. These individuals most commonly travel as ‘backpackers’, and they are more interested in local culture and the way of life of indigenous people than they are in staying in resorts or going to more traditional holiday designations (Allon, 2004). The rationale for this study, therefore, is to look at the country of Thailand and determine how the revitalized backpacker industry is reshaping the way the tourism industry is viewing the young traveler today. While backpackers have been around for generations, they have not typically made the impact on this hospitality industry in large numbers as they are today. As such, more information is needed in order to capitalize of this part of the industry, which well positions a research study of this scope. 1.3 Critical Review of Key References It might be plausible to think of backpacking today in the same vein as it was decades ago. Current research into the discipline, however, reveals a completely different story. While the time was not along ago that young people were expected go from secondary school right into the university, or to launch their own career, that is no longer necessarily the case today. Whereas there was no time afforded to this particular demographic to get out and see the world, that option is now available today. The concept of a ‘gap’ y ear, by way of example, has recently been introduced into hospitality and tourism vocabulary to describe the idea of taking a year or two off, as a young person, to explore and broaden horizons before embarking on a career or educational path (Arnett, 2000). Some young people have opted to turn their adventures during this time into a working holiday, or to simply backpack a particular region of the world for an extended period of time. Backpackers truly desire to encounter and learn from different cultures, and experience different ways of life that they have never encountered before. This gives young people a unique perspective of life that was previously unavailable to them (Arnett, 2000). This new phenomenon, particularly in the context of Southeast Asian tourism, is certainly worthy of further study in order to determine the true impact of backpackers on the industry moving forward. There are positive market trends being demonstrated today in the backpacker segment of the touri sm industry around the world. Some areas of the global are reporting record numbers of

Gun Control Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Gun Control - Research Paper Example When one observes the recent political scenario in America with regard to this issue, one can see that the Democrats stand for the gun control measures and the Republicans oppose it. Many are of the opinion that the issues related with handgun by civilians and students have now become a severe issue and a real threat to the day to day life of the Americans. Even the sniper shootings are capable of providing the civilians sleepless nights. Some of the recent studies have identified that different states of America are in two layers regarding this issue. The sect that protests strongly against the gun control is the gun lobby which has gripped American society like an octopus. NRA (National Rifle Association), the most prominent gun lobby in America, upholds the Second Amendment of the American Constitution that protects individual’s right to use firearms for self defense, in order to hide their secret desires. In addition to this, they also resort to the verdict of the Supreme Court in the year 2001 that protected the right of the individuals to use fire arms. As it is the current state pertaining to the use of guns in America, there arise a notable question concerning the abuse of guns by the criminals, mentally ill persons and children. When people are protected by law with regard to the use of guns, one can certainly say that there is more probability for its abuse. The recent shooting at Chardon High School in Ohio and many other incidents invite one’s attention to the hazard of bearing weapons among the citizens. In the United States, gun related violence among the criminals; mentally ill persons and children show a gradual growth in recent years. Therefore, there should be strong regulations on when and how these weapons are practiced. Analyzing the cause and effects of increasing gun related violence, one can find the fact that gun ownership has become widespread and easier in the United States in recent years. Nowadays gun related deaths an d injuries among the public became a serious trouble in the United States. Existing mandatory laws in the United States permits lawful use of guns for personal defense among the public. Unfortunately, many people use their hand guns illegally and produce harmful effects. Persons who protest the gun control laws strongly argue that there are nominal evidences which prove that gun control reduce the crime rate. Increasing gun related crimes in the United States create relevant challenges against national security and individual freedom. However, an effective law or strict regulation is essential against the use of guns in the hands of criminals, mentally ill persons and children. The issue of gun related violence among the criminals, mentally ill persons and children in the United States Persons from criminal backgrounds often practice guns for their criminal activities and it causes for number of deaths, gun related injuries and heavy violence. Dissimilar from ordinary people, crimin als have the tendency to misuse gun in their daily life. In other words, people who engaged in criminal actions create their own law and social system. Therefore, gun uses among these criminal groups covey a negative message to society. In addition, the increase of gun related violence is a serious issue that reveals the failure of judiciary and legal system in the country. James K. Stewart, Director, National Institute of Justice, rightly observes that â€Å"

Wilma Mankiller video Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Wilma Mankiller video - Essay Example For instance, she explains that when people want to know about the current issues facing the Native Americans, they should first understand the past. She adds on this by stating that it takes the enduring strength of the Native Americans to go through the history they have had. ManKiller continues to give light on issues she feels the U.S. public should understand in totality. In her consistent embrace for the tribal ways, she explains that the tribal government prefers to take care of some issues. These include foster care, adoptions and privileges for water rights (Mankiller 100). Through this project, they have managed to avail health facilities to the locals. Clearly, this is one significant point that cannot be missed from the speech. In a way, she embraces the changes happening in the Native American societies, but mainly insists that it is necessary to keep the cultures. Interestingly, she bounces the speech with bits of sense of humor about a tourist visiting the Cherokee nation hoping to find the native Indians in full attire. However, to the tourist’s disappointment, â€Å"They’re probably all at K-mart.† (Michael

Argument of After Shock Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Argument of After Shock - Essay Example The book Aftershock is a manual that illustrates the declining state of US economy, its consequences and after effects although the authors justly verify the purpose pf the book as stated in the text, â€Å"It ’s only bad news for your personal economy if you don ’ t do anything about it† Hence this book suggests methods and remedies through which personal economic damage can be minimized even when the economy on the whole is falling apart. As the authors say in the book, â€Å"All we can offer is realism, based on facts and logical analysis† (10) and the rest depends on the reader and his interest in benefiting from the writers’ perspective Every fact that is stated in the book is based on, â€Å"a reliable theory of economic evolution, backed up by cold, hard facts, and not random guesses† (11). So such an analysis helps in providing the readers an in depth and logical account of the current situation. The writers use the concept of a †˜Bubble’ as a metaphor to illustrate the unpredictability and the temporariness of the economic conditions of the United States. As stated in the text, â€Å"†¦economic bubbles, by nature, do not stay afloat forever. Sooner or later, economic reality, like gravity, eventually kicks in, and bubbles do fall. After they burst, they never are able to re - inflate and lift off again†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (4). In their point of view the US economy comprises of six bubbles, â€Å"These bubbles included: the real estate bubble, stock market bubble, discretionary spending bubble, dollar bubble, and government debt bubble† (5).... The fundamental advantage of this bubble economic system was that, â€Å"†¦these six linked economic bubbles helped co – create America ’ s booming bubble economy†¦ these bubbles helped us ignore slowing productivity growth, boost our prosperity, disregard some fundamental problems, and keep the party going† (31). However once the decline started there was no possible solution to stop the decline and this decline is explained in the following words in the text, â€Å"First, we had the fall of the U.S. housing bubble and its downward impact on the stock market bubble, the private debt bubble, and the discretionary spending bubble†¦ Next, in the Aftershock, the dollar bubble and the U.S. government debt bubbles will begin their unavoidable descents†¦ And as the final bubbles in America’s bubble economy begin to burst, so will the world’s bubble economy† (33). The real estate or the housing bubble was the first pillar of the economic system that collapsed because the price and expenditures of making a new house increased greatly and outpaced the increase in an individual’s salary and eventually its decline started in 2006 and hence resulted in the rest of the downfall of the economic system. The private debt bubble involves the bank loans and the mortgage payments. When the stock market and the housing economic system crumpled the private debt sector also suffered a severe shock that ultimately led to its decline. The discretionary spending bubble is concerned with the total sum of money spent by the consumer. However due to recession when people started losing their jobs and the rate of unemployment increased consequently people started cutting their

The prosecution of James Phang Wah and Jackie Hoo Choon Cheat Essay

The prosecution of James Phang Wah and Jackie Hoo Choon Cheat directors of an insolvent company, Sunshine Empire - Essay Example This paper illustrates that the firm swindled investors who bought lifestyle packages. The firm also promised investors returns which were not from genuine profits but were actually funds recycled from new members joining the scheme. These two scenarios constituted criminal law. Another case is where Phang’s wife was paid a commission of nearly 950,000 US dollars for her work as the company’s group sales director, a job she never had or did. Sunshine empire was a corporation. Therefore all its operations were governed by the corporations’ law that existed. Some of the requirements of this law are proper maintenance of books of accounts. This company never kept proper books of account. On the other hand, a company is normally formed with the sole object of not dealing in illegal trade. The company also breached this by processing uncensored and obscene films. All these cases led to the breach of corporations’ law. The company is being wound up. Therefore, t he Commercial affairs department has seized about twenty-one million US dollars and will establish how these funds should be disbursed to the firm’s creditors. This constitutes property law. The directors’ intention of selling 26,000 packages and earning 180, 000 US dollars was unacceptable. They knew that the scheme would fail. An important aspect of Law of contract is ‘acting in good faith.’ The directors breached this provision. On the other hand, Phang’s wife is also being fined for falsifying payment vouchers. This constituted a breach of contract law. How the Law helps in the following Situations Allows people to Organize and Plan Law in itself can help people organize and plan their future actions. In the case of Sunshine Empire, investors are applying the provision of the law to plan their future actions. This is evidenced by the fact that they buy packages from Sunshine Empire with the hope that they will get higher returns. There was a ris k though with such investment as the company could collapse in the future leading to heavy losses to investors; and true to this, the company eventually went under receivership. How Law Encourages or discourages Particular activities Law can act to encourage or discourage certain activities. The prosecution of directors is a common example where the law doe not permit swindling of investors money through fraudulent activities. The directors defrauded the public of their through false investment activities, hence had to pay for their illegal acts (Howitt, p68). The law also acts to encourage compensation in cases of losses being suffered by a given party to a contract. This is seen when the commercial affairs department of company sets aside money to disburse to the firm’s creditors. How Law Creates Rights and Duties that can be enforced The contract between Sunshine Empire and its investors is a clear indication of a situation where law can create rights and duties which can be enforced. The investors invest their funds in the hope of higher returns in the future. The company gets wound up and the Commercial Affairs Department sets aside funds to settle creditors’ claims. By settling the creditors claim, a right of compensation in case of damages or loss is being enforced. How Law Provides remedies when Rights are interfered with or duties are not discharged In this case, creditors are being given funds set aside to cover for their losses as the company goes into liquidation. This clearly shows how law can be used to provide remedy in case of interference with somebody’s rights or where duties in a contract are not fully discharged. Why it is Important to know the law in the circumstances described in the Media report Members of the public at large should know the

Alumni Tracking System Essay Example for Free

Alumni Tracking System Essay An issue tracking system (also ITS, trouble ticket system, support ticket or incident ticket system) is a computer software package that manages and maintains lists of issues, as needed by an organization. Issue tracking systems are commonly used in an organizations customer support call center to create, update, and resolve reported customer issues, or even issues reported by that organizations other employees. An issue tracking system often also contains a knowledge base containing information on each customer, resolutions to common problems, and other such data. An issue tracking system is similar to a bugtracker, and often, a software company will sell both, and some bugtrackers are capable of being used as an issue tracking system, and vice versa. Consistent use of an issue or bug tracking system is considered one of the hallmarks of a good software team.[1] A ticket is an element contained within an issue tracking system which contains information about support interventions made by technical support staff or third parties on behalf of an end-user who has reported an incident that is preventing them from working with their computer as they would expect to be able to. Tickets are commonly created in a help desk or call center environment. Typically the ticket will have a unique reference number, also known as a case, issue or call log number which is used to allow the user or support staff to quickly locate, add to or communicate the status of the users issue or request. These tickets are so called because of their origin as small cards within a typical wall mounted work planning system when this kind of support started. Operators or staff receiving a call or query from a user would fill out a small card with the users details and a brief summary of the request and place it into a position (usually the last) in a column of pending slots for an appropriate engineer, so determining the staff member who would deal with the query and the priority of the request.

Human Resources Management In Organisational Context Business Essay

Human Resources Management In Organisational Context Business Essay Each organisation has a unique external environment that has a unique impact on the organisation (Capon, 2009, p7). Furthermore Jain et al (2010) state that organisational success is down to the adaptability of a company in the external environment. The STEEPLE model of external analysis will be used in conjunction with critically appraising the company named Hilton. The worldwide hotel chain shall be analysed using the model and the essay shall conclude with recommendations for Hilton to utilise. The aim of this essay is to critically evaluate the external analysis of the case study organisation. The structure is as follows: A brief background to the organisation; defining what is meant by STEEPLE and how it is utilised; look at each part of the model and relate how this may affect the business and finally to come to a conclusion as to what the main problem areas for the company are. What is meant by the STEEPLE model? A STEEPLE analysis can be used to analyse a firms current and future environment (Worthington, 1946, p7). A STEEPLE analysis is an examination of the external market (Campbell et al, 2005). A STEEPLE analysis breaks down the external analysis into six different categories: Socio/Cultural, Technological, Economic, Environmental, Political; Legal and Ethics (Campbell et al, 2005; Harrison, 2010; Jain et al, 2008; Kew et al, 2008; and Worthington, 1946). All of the named categories will have a different effect on the external environment of a particular company. The first part of the STEEPLE analysis is Socio/Cultural, this will be critically evaluated in the next section. Socio/Cultural The Socio/Cultural aspect examines the demographic trends, income distribution, social mobility, lifestyle, attitudes to work and leisure and levels of education (Kew et al, 2010). Some of the Socio/Cultural components will affect Hilton. Demographics according to Farnham (1990, p43) is The statistical study of populations through census returns, records of birth, deaths and marriages and other means. Traynor (2008, p1) finds that Britain will overtake Germany and France to become the biggest country in the EU in 50 years time. The Local Government Association seconds this by finding that the rate of births has fallen dramatically however people are living for longer (Local Government Association, 2010). This may effect the Hilton company because due to people living longer, they will need to take into consideration that there will be an increase in people who are retired. This may mean that people will not have the same income as when they were working and they may have to reduce th e cost of their rooms. On a more positive note for the company, people will have more time to spend on leisure activities. If the company decides to invest money into upgrading the leisure facilities, people may decide to come and spend their time and money there. As found by Vierich et al (1991), consumers in the future are likely to be specific in their requirements and will be less tolerant of providers that impede their leisure process indicating that if a hotel chain does not have a good leisure facility they may choose to spend their money elsewhere. The Socio/Cultural is an aspect that Hilton shall need to be careful of, the management will need to decide what price the rooms are in order to remain competitive. The next section of the STEEPLE model is Technological. How this affects the organisation will be discussed in the following section. Technological The Technological factors in the STEEPLE model critically evaluates the use of techonology available and the effect it will have on the organisation (Johnson, 2008). Kew et al, (2010, p6) state that Technological factors looks at: Research and Development; new inventions; speed of technology and developments of systems Aksu (2002, p94) states that Websites have become important sources of advertisement. This is true as more people get the internet, the information available to them becomed unlimited, this can therefore be linked to development of systems part as the internet is ever changing for the better. Hilton will need to be careful that there website sells the hotel to the customer. Law et al (2005) found that increased Technology meant that customers has a better expereince, booking rooms will be faster, check-in will be quicker and problems will be solved quicker all adding to the customers experience. Although the Technological side does not affect the company in many ways i t still has an impact on what Hilton do. The third part of the STEEPLE model critically appraises the Economic factors affecting the organisation. Economic The Economical factors evaluates the economy and how it may affect the organisation. It uses the economic factors such as supply and demand, inflation and the overall economical impact to the company (Sloman, 2010). It is a known fact that the recession has caused many companies lots of pressure to perform more efficiently (Townsend, 1983). The recession will have a major impact on the company. The company will have to cut costs in order to survive. Staff themselves cost money (Torrington et al, 2008). Supply and demand has the theory that as demand increases, supply increases, but as demand falls, supply falls (Henderson, 2008). The laws of supply and demand will ultimatley affect the organisation in the fact that if people have a demand for wanting hotel rooms or a certain product that Hilton sells, the supply must increase. If people no longer want the product or service the supply must change in order for the company to make money. Another factor affectingh the organisation is th e fact that the exchange rates vary daily. This will affect the companies asset prices. For example, if a company has debts in a foreign country, it may work in their favour to wait until the exchange rate is low, therefore costing less.****Need some quotes on where I got this from?**** The Economical side of the external analysis model is arguabbly very important. There are other factors however used in the STEEPLE model, the next part is Environemtnal and this will be discussed in the next section. Environmental Over the last decade or so the environment has been an important part of every day life. Scientists have found that our world is slowly getting warmer and this is known as global warming (Global Warming, 2010). Delworth et al, (2000) find that globa warming is due human-induced increase of greenhouse gasses. Every human being and also organisation therefore has a part to play in saving the environment. The councils around Scotland have recently introduced bins that are to be used for recycling, this is therefore there part to play in saving the environment. Although one organisation changing their ways will not have that big an impact on the environment, every little helps. Hilton must be careful that they look after the environment. It is clear therefore that environmental factors are an important extrernal factor that impacts upon a company. There are laws being passed everyday by different countries to stop the ever growing amount of pollution going into the atmosphere. The enviro nmental issue is a growing concern for companies and therefore is an important factor for companies around the world to remember when scanning the external environment. Now that the Environmental issues affecting the companies have been raised, the model being utilised throughout this essay states that the next part of the political environment and how that affects organisations such as Hilton. Political Political parties all have different agendas. How these agendas will affect organisations will differ between the parties in power. At the present, there is a coalition government in place and they have changed things within the country already. Depending on who is in parliament at the time will affect different companies. If for instance a green party is in place, they will be tough on climate change. If the labour government comes back into power, things may change that will help employees and their families. However the coalition government at the present time will have different opinions on how the country should be ran. A part of the conservative party manifesto was to increase support for enterprise and have a fairer and more balanced economy (Conservatives, 2010); where as the liberal democrat side of the government believe in tax efficient investment vehichles to provide seed captial for start up businesses (Libdems, 2010). It is clear therefore that different governments in place may affect organisations greatly, therefore becoming a very important part of the case studies external environment. The next part of the model critically analyses the Legal aspect of the environment and suggests how this may affect organisations throughout different countries. Legal The Legal part of the external analysis for any company is an important one that must be kept up to date, some laws change daily and this is done by the House of Lords in London. The Legal environment is a very important aspect that must not be overlooked, the company must do things legally and have stick to protocol when carrying out a procedure such as disciplinary actions or maybe be faced with a fine issued by employment tribunals. The European Union (EU) also has a part to play with the legal aspects of the external environment. The EU issue directives, which must be in place in all member states or a fine and/or penalty, will be issued. An example of an EU directive that may affect Hilton was issued in 2009 to make it easier for companies to sell their services across all of the member states (BIS, 2010). This is just an example directive, there may be many more for the organisation to consider. One must remember that in multi-national organisations such as Hilton, the laws in each land will be different and it is important that the Human Resources strategy takes this into account. From directives and laws in place such as the ones mentioned, it is clear that the legal environment is a minefield for organisations and one that if not careful can be costly to organisations. Rushton (2010) find that employment tribunals have risen by 56% in the last year. It is clear therefore that the Legal aspect of the STEEPLE model is an important factor for the external environment. Organisations must be careful and mindful of the ever-changing laws. The final part of the STEEPLE model is ethics and how that affects the external analysis. Ethics The ethical factor of the external analysis critically evaluates how socially responsible a company is. A new buzz word for socially responsible is CSR also known as Corporate Social Responsibility. How socially responsible a company is now a deciding point for most customers. For example, people may not choose to shop in the shop Primark after it was found that they get their clothes made in poor countries where people work for low wages and in poor conditions. Thankfully, Primark have invested in the Ethical Trading Initative meaning that they are taking a pro-active role in how ethical the company is (Primark, 2010). How a company treats their staff therefore is a factor organisations across the globe must be careful off. Conclusion Having utilised the STEEPLE model to analyse the external market of Hilton, it can be concluded that there are certain main factors that affect the organisation and therefore recommendations can be drawn: If as the Local Government Association (2010) finds, the population is living older, Hilton may need to watch their prices for rooms to keep at a competitive rate. A quick search on the company website gives an average price of  £104 per room, for one night (Hilton, 2010) This is expensive considering it does not include breakfast especially compared to other hotels such as the travel lodge. The organisation will need to keep in touch with increasing technological advancements as Law et al, (2005) found that customers will be impressed by these advancements as it means that processes can be done quicker and more smoothly. The economical factors of the external analysis are difficult to manipulate and change. The government have all control over the economy and Hilton must know what is happening regarding prices and interest rates. The organisation must be wary that the environment is now a large factor in deciding strategic movements that organisations such as Hilton make. Hilton must be careful not to make too much pollution and recycle as much as possible. The government policies will change every time a new party comes into power. It is important that multinational organisations such as Hilton understand that there are different governments in different countries and they must keep this in mind when making decisions. The Legal aspect of the external analysis model has indicated that there are many new laws brought in and some of them may have a direct or indirect affect on the organisation. Finally the ethical aspect is one that affects all companies in todays society. How socially responsible a company is will affect the amount of people that buy there. Therefore in general using an external analysis framework makes organisations such as Hilton more aware of the potential dangers in the market in which they operate and therefore is an invaluable tool to use (Farnham, 2010).

The Consumer Preference On Green Product Marketing Essay

The Consumer Preference On Green Product Marketing Essay There has been a rising concern on environmental issues worldwide nowadays. Ministry of foreign affairs statistic shows that over the years, the temperature has been rise because of carbon dioxide trapped and green house gases have affected the global climate. This change will affect the people live all over the world. This also includes access to water, health, food and the well being of the environment. Todays consumers have started to recognize that their purchasing behaviors actually cause a big impact to the environment. Therefore, companies should practice offering environmentally friendly products and service to people to prevent this world become worse. Although, Malaysia has undergone an excellent development followed governmental efforts to attract foreign investor to come and invest for a green product development in Malaysia, the action of environmental responsible behavior among Malaysian consumers are still low. One of the examples of the lack of environmental responsible behavior is shown in an article in Bernama whereby garbage thrown by one of the state in Malaysia residents is the main cause of river pollution in the state. According to a survey which was handled on by global market insight and information group, only 8% of Malaysian respondents responded that they have changed their behavior in a greatest deal to benefit the environment on the aspect of eco-friendliness of habits and behaviors In addition 83% respondents reported that their views on a companys and their Colleges friendliness to the environment would influence them to purchases a green products and services. Studying the determinants of generation-Y consumers green purchase behavior will be definitely benefit green marketers. Generation-Y (also known as a millennial) is defined as A label attributed to people born during the 1980s and early 1990s. Members of Generation Y are often referred to as echo boomers because they are the children of parents born during the baby boom (baby boomers). Because children born during this time period have had constant access to technology (computers, cell phones) in their youth, they have required many employers to update their hiring strategy in order to incorporate updated forms of technology. In a simple word, generation-Y grew up with a technology and relies on those things to perform their job and their task. In addition, when going through a literature review in Malaysian context, there are still a gap existed between environmental knowledge, intention and behavior towards green product. [Said et al. (2005)]. Even though people that have vast knowledge about green products are not necessarily would buy a green product. Therefore, factors those determine and affect Generation-Y to purchase a green product would be worth to find out. 1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE RESEARCH Environment is defined as what surrounds a thing or an item or in other words it means the surrounding. It could be a physical element which is physical environment, that includes the built environment, natural environment such as air, water, land, atmosphere and etc or it could be human environment where people surrounding the item or thing which also known as the social environment. Today environment is getting worst and worst. Many environmental issues arise. Environmental concerns have been growing in recent years. One of the examples of environmental issue is global warming. Global warming and climate change refer to an increase in average global temperatures. Natural events and human activities such as burning garbage and waste are believed to be contributing to an increase in average global temperatures. This is caused primarily by increases in greenhouse gases such as Carbon Dioxide. The greenhouse effect keeps the earth warm when functioning normally. For the first time in h istory, human activities are altering the climate of our entire planet. According to (Jack, 2010), in less than 2 centuries, humans have increased the total amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere by 25% from the burning of fossil fuels and the destruction of forests. In addition to the natural fluxes of carbon through the Earth system, human activities, particularly fossil fuel burning and deforestation, are also releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere (The Carbon Cycle; the Human Role, Earth Observatory, NASA). Green product is define as a product that produce limited carbon footprints; they may require fewer resources to produce, consume less energy or emit fewer hazardous emissions.  Green product is also a product that is non toxic, water-efficient, and also recyclable and biodegradable. There are many green products that have been produce for people in the market. For example, a household cleaner. Nowadays its nearly impossible to go shopping without finding a plethora of products that claim to be environmentally and consumer friendly. Oddly enough, many cheap and eco-friendly substances, such as vinegar, have been used for years as home cleaners. Whether you buy a green cleaning product at a store or use something on hand in your pantry, you can reap the benefits of choosing products that are gentler on you and the environment. Phosphate-free dishwasher and laundry detergents are also consider a green product because they do not discharge environment-damaging phosphates into waterway s. Other examples of green cleaning products are those labeled certified biodegradable; these have passed several stringent tests relating to biodegradability and environmental impact conducted by an independent certifying agency. According to Consumer Reports, the certified biodegradable label is more meaningful than a general biodegradable label. Glass and metal cleaners, kitchen and bathroom cleaners, and laundry detergents are products that might carry this label. The rationale for going green is twofold. Clearly, the positive effects on the environment are a key driver for purchasing green product.  Green product provides myriad environmental benefits. They can replace toxic materials that may be harmful to people or animals. Also, some products save energy and water, while others limit solid waste and manufacturing releases. Green products create a healthier environment for people through reduced exposure to cleaners, solvents, paints and other hazardous substances. Green product also can reduce allergies. Many families find that their children are suffering from allergies, even though their family history does not necessary say that there are no allergies. In some situations, chemicals found within cleaning products contain allergens. Bleaches, toxic cleaning sprays and other chemicals used to clean the home commonly contain a variety of ingredients specifically able to cause or trigger allergies in people.   Generation Y are the cool generation, they embrace brand and live in the new world of digitize communication. Thus that might be interesting to find their perception and their level of awareness towards environmental issues that the world is facing nowadays. Gen Y has grown up in a very structure, busy and over planned world. Also, Gen Y is made up of confident, optimistic young people who feel valued and wanted. In a article of science daily, Gen-Y is a people that will go all the way when it comes to saving the environment as long as it benefit to world economic and environment. They are maturing into a pragmatic generation that wants to do the right thing for the environment but also has real economic concerns 1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT Consumers or practically customers are the sellers and buyers that boost the countrys economy. Therefore, many firms are actually putting many efforts in order to attract more customers because these customers create businesses opportunities and generate profits to them. As the world nowadays facing so many problems regarding to an environmental issue, the consumers and their attitudes or behaviors to purchase a green product are the important factors to be considered. Consumers nowadays have more choices due to the effects of globalization. They will prefer the function of the product rather than the brand or whatsoever to ensure a healthier future. To determine the current level of Gen-y consumers preference towards the green products. To determine what are the determinants or factors of Gen-y consumer preferences towards the green product. To determine the consequences or effects of Gen-y consumer preferences towards the green product. To determine consumer level of awareness of Gen-y consumer towards green product. 1.3 RESEARCH OBJECTIVE Awareness towards environmental issue that the world nowadays facing play a major role encourage people to purchase a green product. Thus, this study is attempts to relate on the various variables that influence consumer especially generation-Y to purchase a green product. The objectives are as the following: * To study the factors affecting the consumer especially Gen-Y to purchase green product. Gen-y is a new generation and It is crucial to understand as they are more advance and modernize. Thus, several researches have been conducted in order to understand consumers in a way that how they behave, and what are the factors that cause them to behave or react to the responses of the products. Leading factors such as price and quality are always the top concerns to the consumers. Product attributes will moderate the effects of price on quality judgments. Partial of the consumers may focus on buying low prices goods and neglect the quality of the products. This group of consumers takes the price as a measure of sacrifice. For instance, consumers take the price served as the benchmark for comparing utility gains from the quality of the product. One the other hand, some portion of the consumers will be willing to pay a premium price for the quality and function of the products, as they are very sensitive to the signals of the quality of one product. Thus, it is hope that this stud y will contribute further to the understanding of factors of price and quality that may lead to the consumers prefer for a green product * To understand the awareness level of people about Go Green campaign. Nowadays, there are many environmental campaign have been organized by a government and private sector. This campaign is aim to encourage people to more concern about the environment. Thus, it is hope that this study will explore how people react to a environmental campaign and what is their level of awareness about the awareness campaign. * To examine the benefit for people involvement in Go Green program. We might be asking, how we will benefit from getting involved in this environmental campaign. Well, recently there has been an increase in events directly related to the availability of natural resources. For example energy shortages that resulted to load shedding, change in weather patterns and water shortages. As a result, civil society is recognizing the need to manage our natural resources more effectively and responsibly. In doing so, we can ensure positive effects on our health, quality of life and even the cost of living. Thus, this study will help people to getting known more about what they will gain if they participate in the environmental campaign. *To discover what consumer perception towards green product. In curiosity to identify what are the main components or criteria that consumer especially gen-Y are looking forward in order to purchase a green product. It is true that each and every one of us are special and unique in the way we are, thus, every consumer has their very own perception in purchasing a green product. Different people from different backgrounds may have different perceptions on these products. In addition to that, different demographic groups may have different perceptions to this kind of product as well. Thus, this study will help to identify whether the consumer especially gen-y prefer to buy a green product or not to safe a mother of earth. 1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF STUDY This study is crucial as there are a lot of green products have been selling nowadays. Obviously, when we talk about green product, the price for that particular item might be so expensive. The study on factors affecting consumer especially Gen-Y buying a green product may allow us to know in depth why are previous efforts taken does not produce as it is thought it would be. Based on the study conducted, motivations towards the environment, knowledge on green product, social norm, awareness and self-image have an impact on the consumer especially Gen-Y buying a green product. Government may need to enhance its program in educating people green product. New and more interesting Go Green program and method is a definite necessity in motivating people to increase their interest/awareness on a green product and indirectly motivates them to purchase it. 1.5 SCOPE OF STUDY The research focus on students in Multimedia University (MMU) Melaka campus and teenagers from outside the campus which comes from various demographic backgrounds such as the faculty, ethnicity and nationality. The focused respondents are a great resemblance on the exact population in Malaysia. 1.6 ORGANIZATIONAL OF RESEARCH 1.6.1 Chapter 1: Introduction Regarding this chapter, it introduce the background of this research such as why do people as a consumer buy a green product. Thus, this will create a strong preference among the gen-y consumers locally and abroad to consume and purchase green products. These sections will explain in details in the of consumers preferences from the Malaysian perspective and as well from the global view for green products. This chapter also recognized the problem statement and the research objectives for this research. Finally, the justification of the research will help to justify the benefits and those who will gain in this research. Chapter 2 : Literature Review A thorough study will be conducted on the dependent variable and independent variables. The main purpose for this chapter is to weigh the pros and cons of the topic and to discuss in details on the ideas and knowledge concerned. In this chapter, every definition of the dependent variable and independent variables will be cited from the journals in order to strengthen every point mentioned. Several of arguments and various points of views from different authors in order to provide a stronger formation of each point can be founded in this chapter. In addition to that, this chapter explains the relationships on several independent variables relate to the dependent variables. 1.6.2 Chapter 3 : Research Methodology Research methodology is usually conducted after the thorough study of literature review. In this chapter, theoretical framework will be form to illustrate the relationships between the dependent variable and the independent variables. Hypotheses or a proposed explanation which were made on the basis of limited evidences will explain the relationships between two or more variables. All the hypotheses stated will be tested together with empirical data. This chapter also includes the description of the sampling data, data collections and as well as the development of the questionnaire for this research. Chapter 4 : Data Analysis After questionnaires are collected from all the respondents, then few tests will be conducted to test on the validity and reliability of the results. The responds of the questionnaires from the respondents are represented by a set of numbers that symbolize their own significant meanings. Whereas the tests that will be carry out are to analyze the responses from the respondents so that it will derive to a stronger conclusion at the end of this research. Chapter 5 : Conclusion This chapter will provide the final outcome of this research. Thus, the final results will be explained and we will be able to identify how the exact hypotheses that formed earlier are hold. Chapter 2 Literature Review 2.1 Environmental quality in Malaysia According to report from Department of Environment Malaysia, 2006, Malaysia experienced a short period of slight to moderate haze due to trans-boundary pollution from neighboring countries. Different states have the differed air quality status according to the geographical locations, the industrial and commercial activities, populated areas and the traffic conditions. During that period, especially in Klang Valley, one of the area in Malaysia was more exposed to be effects to air pollution than any other areas. Statistic shows that, the air quality there was good only 23% of the time, moderate 70% of the time and the remaining 7% at an unhealthy level. As a developing country, Malaysia faced in a numerous challenge to ensure a balance between environmental sustainability and development. River quality, urban air, deforestation, household and hazardous waste are some of the major serious and worrying environmental problems faced by the country According to The Ninth Malaysia Plan (2006-2010) report, Malaysian government allocated RM510 million for cleaning, preserving and beautifying rivers; RM530 million for coastal management; RM200 million for reforestation; and another RM70 million for the management of wildfire and protected areas to ensure environmental sustainability and resource management. In a global environment article stated that, Solid waste is one of the three major environmental problems in Malaysia. It plays a significant role in the ability of Nature to sustain life within its capacity. Currently, over 23,000 tonnes of waste is produced each day in Malaysia. However, this amount is expected to rise to 30,000 tonnes by the year 2020. The amount of waste generated will continues to increase. It is because due to the increasing population and development in this country. It will be assume that, it will be only less than 5% of the waste is being recycled. Rivers represent the lease of life which pulses through the earth. It is a finite and only source of water. In Malaysia, there are almost 1800 rivers. Sadly, more than half of these rivers have been polluted and destroyed. Improper solid waste management contributes greatly to river pollution. Improper solid waste management also contributes to climate change decomposing waste produces methane and production of new products to meet demand emits greenhouse gases and utilizes natural resources. Therefore, a change towards more sustainable consumption patterns is required. 2.1.1 Concern of environment There are many reasons and factors that affect consumer especially Gen-Y to buy a green product. According to  Mostafa (2007), green purchase behavior or environmental friendly buying behavior is the ingesting of products that are beneficial to the environment, recyclable or conservable, Sensitive and responsive to ecological concerns. Concern for the environment is perceived to be important in encouraging consumer to participate in green program and also buying a green product. Research finding suggest that, moral concerns determine several curtailment behaviors (Goldstein et al., 2008; Hage et al., 2009). However, studies on the influence of moral concerns on consumer high involvement buying decisions with environmental implications are rare (Thà ¸gersen, 2005). This is a problem since overlooking an influential determinant might hinder or delay successful diffusion of environmentally friendlier products and innovations. Consumer identify environmental protection as a priority f or governmental policies and this interest has led to an increase in ethical production-for both consumer and non-consumer products (  Finisterra do Paà §o  et al., 2009). Sensitivity to environmental issues shifts consumer behavior towards supporting the growth and diffusion of green marketing and ecologically-conscious consumer behavior including: consumer preference for greener firms, increase in demand for greener products. (Alsmadi, 2008; Finisterra do Pacao et al.,2009) found that greater awareness of environmental problems, increased media coverage, impact of major industrial disasters on public opinion, and the rise of pressure group activities are among the factors driving environmental concerns. 2.2 Green marketing Grant, John.(2008)define the green as a brand that that offers a significant eco-advantage over the incumbents and which hence appeals to those who are willing to making green a high priority. Soonthonsmai (2008) defined a green marketing as the activities that have been action by firms that are really concern about the environment by convey the environmentally sound goods or services to build and create consumers satisfaction. Other definitions of green marketing as suggested by marketing scholars are include social marketing, ecological marketing or environmental marketing. Harrison (2008) suggest that green marketing strategy by firms through positioning the environmental benefits of green products to consumers perception to influence their purchasing decision. Peatitie (2007) and Welford (2000) defined green marketing as the management process responsible for identifying and satisfying the requirements of customers and society in a profitable and sustainable way. In reality, comp anies that are going to pursue green marketing encounter various challenges mainly from the variability of demand, un-favorable consumer perception and high cost (Gurau and Ranchhod, 2008). The most key concern lies in an understanding of green consumers and their characteristics and it will help firm to enable and to develop a new target and segmentation strategies (DSouza et al., 2008). Dwyer (2009) defined green as the products to be designed, commercialized, and used which are capable of reducing sources of pollution and minimizing risks to human health and the environment. On the other hand, there are product sector speci ¬Ã‚ c examples of research on green buying process, such as food and household products (Vantomme et al., 2005) and clothes (Shaw et al., 2006) 2.2.1 Consumer preference on green product The dependent variable in this study is the factor that affecting consumer preferences for green products. Everyone in this Earth, play a major role as a consumer. Consumers are the main factors that boost a countrys economy. Each and every consumer has their very own perspective and preferences towards what they consume. Consumer from different demographic factors such as background and society may influence their behavior in making decisions while to purchase products. Thus, it is undeniable that consumers preferences and their perspective towards goods and services are hard to predict. DSouza  et al.  (2006a)  found out in their research that consumers perception on green products did not influence by any criteria such as packaging, label and ingredient of a product. The important finding from  DSouza  et al.  (2006)  was that green consumers will be rely more on their personal experience in using the green product rather than assess a green product base on marketers provided information. Interestingly, this finding however contradicts to Taghian and Lambs finding. They found that consumers are getting more environmental information by look at a product labels before deciding to purchase it. It is mean that, labels are important to capture consumer impression to buy a green product. Rashid (2009)  in his study stated that eco label is an important factor that would enable consumers to make the right purchase choice if they faced with a situation that required them to taking their consideration of the environmental impact on a product that they wish to purchase. The importance of consumers has lead to many researches to be conducted in order to study on their behavior and attitudes towards what they perceived on the products. Barr and Gilg (2006) was found that green purchasing behavior was the least popular activity alongside activities such as recycling and habitual household activities. However, not surprisingly, green consumers do consider environmental factors when purchasing products, but engaged more frequently in activities such as switching off lights and recycling paper (daily activities). Wheale and Hinton (2007) suggested that amongst the population of green consumers there is a hierarchy of importance of ethical drivers in the purchase decision-making process. The environment and the quality of the product was rated as the most important ethical driver during purchasing decisions. The finding from  DSouza  et al.  (2006)  was if product is lower in quality, consumers would not have interested to purchase the products eve n though they were always reading labels outside the product. Furthermore, if ordinary product is more expensive compared to a green product, consumers might have intention to buy green products because of the benefit and the cost. Therefore,  DSouza  et al.  (2006)  concluded from their study that consumers were not compromised to lower product quality. 2.3 Knowledge and attitude towards environment and green product Knowledge and attitude towards environment are very important to influcence consumer especially Gen-Y To purchase green products. There is a general belief among the researchers and also the environmental activists that by purchasing environmentally friendly products or green products, products with a recyclable packaging or properly disposing of non-biodegradable garbage, consumers indirectly can contribute significantly in order to enhance the quality of the environment (Abdul-Muhmim, 2007). The quality of the environment depends critically on the level of knowledge, attitudes, values and practices of consumers (Mansaray and Abijoye, 2005). Attitudes are the most consistent clarifying factor in predicting consumers willingness to pay for green products (Chyong et al., 2006). This means, price is not the main cause in avert consumers from purchasing green products if they are pro-environment. Researcher also found that Influencing consumer behaviour is a complex and difficult task r equiring knowledge of its determinants. The most convincing support of the growing influence of the ecologically-friendly consumer is the increase in the number of individuals that are willing to pay more for environmentally friendly products (Bang et al., 2005). 2.4 Social norm and value perception influence consumer to buy green product. Studies have also investigated the effect social influence has affect consumer especially Gen-Y purchase green product.The interest in green initiatives is not expected to emanate only from external impositions and inducements but also from the internal sense of responsibility of a firm towards the society in which it exists. For green issues, such sensitivity is intensified by increasing environmental problems such as global warming and pollution. Such problems may also raise awareness and interest of a firm to behave in a more socially responsible manner and reflect an image of due diligence and commitment to sustainability. Green purchasing is primarily motivated by a certain degree of consumer ecological consciousness. Frey and Stutzer (2006) identify a number reasons behind environmental motivation: intrinsic motivations, altruism, internalized norms and social norms. Social norms lead individuals to take into consideration the opinions of the other members of society when choosing a green product over another: if they think that their acquaintances approve of green product purchase and disapprove of standard product purchase, there are encouraged to buy green products. (Ewing, 2005) stated that social norms are an important motivator of ecologically responsible behaviour. The strength of the normative influence of the consumers family and social groups on purchasing decisions depends on the characteristics of the product (e.g. luxury rather than a necessity). Value perception is the conception one has of oneself. Study in marketing influence on consumer purchase decision on green product, value perception was influencing green behaviours. This agrees to Lee(2008) finding value perception as the third predictor of her study. Apart from behavioral aspects, numerous studies have also looked at the relationship between demographic and socioeconomic variables and purchase green product involvement. Kinnear, T. and Taylor, J. (1973) stated that there has been no signi ¬Ã‚ cant link found between demographic segmentation and green purchase. This could be due to the notion that different groups of people relate to different parts of the environmental agenda Peattie, K. (1995). There have been contradictory results of younger and older age groups concerns about environmental issues Peattie, K. (1995). There is, however, a belief that environmental concern is directly related to a consumers level of education Balderjahn, I. (1988). Based on four surveys, Hines et al. found no relationship with gender. Chapter 3 Research Methodology 3.1 Overview Methodology is a system of methods used in a particular research. Research methodology normally comes after defining the problems and completing the thorough of the literature review. Research methodology which has been implemented to collect, investigate and as well as interpreting data obtained for the testing of the hypothesis will be discussed. Theoretical framework will be formed in this chapter in order to illustrate the relationships in between the dependent variable and independent variables. Besides that, hypotheses were developed and will be discussed together with the explanations in conjunction with the dependent variable and the independent variables. On top of that, plans of the sampling method, data collection methods and as well as the development of the questionnaires are included in this chapter. Finally, the data analysis and the hypotheses testing will carry out to analyze the responses from the respondents so that it will derive to a stronger conclusion at the en d of this research. 3.2 Theoretical Framework Figure 3.1 below illustrates a theoretical framework that shows the relationships in between the dependent variable and the independent variables. Knowledge Country Factors affecting Gen-y consumer in Malaysia buying a green product Attitude Social Norm Value Perception 3.3 Explanation of Framework The preferences of consumers for green products are subjective. Consumer from different demographic factors such as background and society may influence their behavior in making decisions while to purchase products. Whether they have a greater of favor to green products or to ordinary products are just hard to predict. Thus, it is undeniable that consumers preferences and their perspective towards goods and services are hard to predict. The importances of consumers have lead to many researches to be conducted in order to study on their behavior and attitudes towards what they perceived on the products. The knowledge, which is one of the factors that might cause preferences for consumers to make purchases for green products. The first thing that came across consumers mind is the brands and firms that produce a green product. Thus, the brand image of the company has help by providing hints to the consumers in summarizing the information from that certain product. According to Grunert (1993), knowledge of the benefits of a green products use on the environment may have an impact on whether or not that product is purchased and used. Besides that, consumers also prefer to purchase a green product with a lower cost. The attitude is another most influential factor in consumer preferences for green products. Consumers normally are not really aware about our environment is