Analysis paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Analysis paper - Essay Example He adequately explains that tough laws on gun control will not be effective since it will affect about two percent of the one third of the 200 million guns in private ownership who own hand guns and who use these guns in serious crimes. He further explains that most of the handguns used in serious crimes are purchased privately from local pawn shops and gun shops which would not be affected from the gun laws (James, 126). While this happens Wilson argues that majority of the guns that would be subject to these laws would compromise the ability of victims of the climes to defend themselves since the guns are often used in self defense purposes. James (126) states that this would be centrally to the objectives of the gun laws of disarming citizens who own guns illegally and are more likely to use them commit crimes. Instead, the tough gun law would reduce the number of law-abiding citizens owning guns to use in areas with high crime levels. He further argues that the most effective way of discouraging individuals from owning and carrying illegally acquired guns is through police search and street frisks where individuals who are caught carrying guns without permits are arrested and charged. However the frisks must be based on reasonable suspicion and not mere hunch. Additionally, the police frisks must be aimed at detecting illegal guns, arresting suspects and avoids harassing innocent citizens in the name of searching illegal weapons (James, 127). According to Wilson, each police officer could be given a list of individual suspects who are members of a known criminal gang, on parole or probation, and live within the officer’s beat. The officer could conduct frequent search to ensure that the individual does not possess illegal weapons. This is because these individuals do not possess these guns to engage in criminal activity, but to protect themselves from other armed gangs or individuals who oppose them. In most cases the

Digital technologhy plays a key role in education Essay

Digital technologhy plays a key role in education - Essay Example Use of digital technology in education is not a new trend, but is one that has prevailed for centuries. Much of the development in the fields of science and technology can be attributed to the use of digital technology in education. Calculators have been used in educational institutions ranging from primary, through the high school, secondary school, college, and university level for many decades. Modern calculators come with a variety of functions that can help the mathematicians and scientists perform complex calculations. With the advent of computer and particularly the Internet, the whole process of research has been redefined at all levels of academia. Before, learners used to conduct a lot of research to grasp the concepts they needed for research. In their attempt to get hold of the required sources, they would visit several libraries which incurred them not only cost but also consumed a lot of time. Nowadays, there is a sea of information available over the Internet, many of whose sources provide information free of cost. Researchers have the opportunity to select the research papers they need to study in order to conduct the literature review by reading their free abstracts over the Internet first. Use of digital technology in research has enhanced the focus of the researchers and has made the process of research a lot more convenient. Many educationalists see digital technology as something that neatly fits with the interests and values related to the organization and nature of learning.

Benefits of Different Oxygen Levels Administered in ICU

Benefits of Different Oxygen Levels Administered in ICU ABSTRACT: There have been numerous studies conducted to identify the benefits of different oxygen levels administered in ICU (Intensive Care Unit) patients. However, the studies do not reveal a definitive conclusion. The proposed systematic review plans to identify if either conventional or conservative oxygen therapy methods is more constructive in critically ill adult patients who are admitted in ICU. BACKGROUND Oxygen therapy is a treatment that provides oxygen gas to aid breathing when it is difficult to respire and became a common form of treatment by 1917. (Macintosh et.al 1999). It is expended for both acute and chronic cases and can be implemented according to the needs of the patient either in hospital, pre-hospital or entirely out of hospital based on their medical professionals opinions. It was established as the most efficient and safest medicines required by the health system by World Health Organisation (WHO). PaO2 has become the guideline test for finding out the oxygen levels in blood. And by the 1980s, pulse oximetry method which measures arterial oxygen saturation was also progressively used alongside PaO2 (David 2013). The chief benefits of oxygen therapy comprise slowing the progression of hypoxic pulmonary hypertension, emotional status, cognitive function and improvements in sleep (Zielinski 1998). In UK, according to the national audit data about 34% of ambulance journey s involve oxygen use at some point while 18% of hospital inpatients will be treated with oxygen at any time (Lo EH 2003). In spite of the benefits of this treatment, there have been instances where oxygen therapy can negatively impact a patients condition. The most commonly recommended amount of saturation for oxygen intake is about 94-98%, and saturation levels of about of 88-92% are preferred for those at risk of carbon dioxide retention (BMA 2015). According to standard ICU practice, the conservative method denotes that patients receive oxygen therapy to maintain PaO2 between 70 and 100 mm Hg or arterial haemoglobin saturation between 94-98% while conventional method allow PaO2 values to rise up to 150 mm Hg or SpO2 values between 97% and 100% (Massimo et al. 2016).There are also low flow systems where the delivered oxygen is at 100% and has flow rates lower than the patients inspiratory flowrate ( i.e., the delivered oxygen is diluted with room air) and, hence the Fraction of Inspired Oxygen(FIO2) may be low or high. However, this depends on the particular device and the patients inspiratory flowrate. AIM To investigate and conclude whether the use of a strict protocol for conservative oxygen supplementation would help to improve outcomes, while maintaining PaO2 within physiologic limits among critically ill patients. RESEARCH QUESTION A well- defined, structured and exclusive research question will lead as a guide in making meticulous decisions about study design and population and consequently what data can be collected and used for analysis.(Brian, 2006) The early process of research for finding the research questions is a challenging task as the scope of the problem is bound to be broad. Significant time and care is needed to polish, extract and compare the information required from the vast sea of information (Considine 2015) .If a proper and specific research question is not formed, the whole process will be useless (Fineout-Overholt 2005). The fundamental success of any research project is attributed in establishing a clear and answerable research project that is updated with a complete and systematic review of the literature, as outlined in this paper. A PICO framework is a universally used framework used to develop a robust and answerable research question which is also a useful framework for assuring the quality or for evaluating projects. PICO stands for Problem / Population, Intervention, Comparison, and Outcome. The research question presented in this paper is to identify whether conventional or conservative oxygen therapy methods is more beneficial among critically ill adult patients admitted in Intensive Care Unit. LITERATURE REVIEW The literature has focused on the effect of conservative and conventional oxygen therapy methods on mortality among patients in an Intensive Care Unit. Although there have been several studies to analyse which of the two methods is more beneficial to critically ill patients, a definitive study which determines the mortality rate among the different categories needs to be analysed and investigated for its benefit. Different devices used to administer Oxygen: Nasal cannula provides about 24-40% oxygen and flow rates up to 6L/min in adults (Fulmer JD 1984). A basic oxygen mask delivers about 35-50% FIO2 and can have flow rates from 5-10L/min depending on the fit and requirement of flow rate. The other respiratory aiding device is a partial rebreathing mask which has an additional reservoir bag with it which is also classified as a low flow system with flow rate of 6-10L/min and delivers about 40-60% oxygen. The non-breathing system is similar to the partial rebreathing mask, where it has an additional series of one way valves and it delivers about 60-80% FIO2 with a flow rate 10L/min. Review and findings of different oxygen therapy studies: A systematic review of two different published Journals indicated that the usage of additional oxygen when managing acute myocardial infarction arrived at the same result: that there is no significant benefit when oxygen therapy is administered while being assessed with air breathing (Cabello 2010) and it may in fact be damaging which results in greater infarct size and higher mortality rate (Wijesinghe 2009). Although a number of smaller studies could clarify the reviews, none of the original studies could reach a statistically substantial result ( Atar 2010); this stresses the need to provide data that validates the requirement for further analysis. Studies to support this have already been started, where The AVOID (Air Versus Oxygen In Myocardial Infarction) study is presently hiring patients to resolve this critical medical question (Stub 2012).Actual clinical trial data suggesting the effects of varied inspired oxygen levels are even more inadequate in acute ischemic stroke. It is proposed that oxygen therapy may be beneficial if administered within the first few hours of commencement, however it has also been observed that with continued administration, it may induce harmful results (higher 1-yr mortality) (Ronning 1999). In a survey of group study where more than 6,000 patients were case studied following resuscitation from cardiac arrest , hyperoxemia ( defined as a PaO2 > 300 mm Hg (40 kPa),the results obtained were considerably worse than both normoxemia (60-300 mm Hg (8to 40kPa) and hypoxemia (PaO2 There is also no robust proof for the postulation that an increased PaO2 is interrelated with improved long-term survival in critically ill patients( Young JD2000).A reflective study where more than 36,000 patients were considered and arterial oxygenation was administered while being mechanically ventilated, signs of a biphasic relationship was observed within a span of 24 hours between PaO2 and in-hospital mortality(De 2008).The average PaO2 level found was 99mm Hg, yet the foundation for unadjusted hospital mortality was just below 150mm Hg. A very similar study of more number of patients was conducted in Australia and New Zealand and this resulted in a report recording a mean PaO2 of 152.5mm Hg, indicating supraphysiological levels of oxygenation, with 49.8%of the 152,680 group was categorised as hyperoxemic PaO2>120mmHg(Eastwood , 2012). In contrast to the Dutch study, even though hypoxemia was associated with elevated mortality, after an adjustment of disease severity, a progres sive association between progressive hyperoxemia and in-hospital mortality could not be linked together effectively. (Martin 2013). The assumption that patients with hypoxemia secondary to ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome) respond positively to elevated arterial oxygenation reinforces many studies done in this field (McIntyre 2000). Nevertheless, data from clinical trials in patients with ARDS seem to disregard this assumption as frequent oxygenation and long-term outcome have a disconnection (Suchyta 1992). And the studies that report a correlation arterial oxygenation and mortality, a systemic review of 101 clinical studies in ARDS patients came to the conclusion that P/F ratio was not such a reliable predictor (Krafft 1996). Thus a more intense study was conducted to compare the supplementary oxygen therapy with no oxygen therapy in normoxic patients with ST Segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Oxygen therapy has been known to be only universally used for the initial treatment of patients with STEMI which is based on the belief that the additional oxygen may increase oxygen delivery to isc hemic myocardium and hence reduce myocardial injury and is supported by laboratory studies done by Atar in 2010. The adverse effects of supplementary oxygen therapy were noted from a meta-analysis of 3 small, randomized trials as done by Cabello in the same year. More recently, another analysis was done by comparing high concentration oxygen with titrated oxygen in patients with suspected acute myocardial infarction which found no difference in myocardial infarct size on cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (Ranchord 2012). Hence, there are no studies that assess the effects of supplemental oxygen therapy in the setting of contemporary therapy for STEMI, specifically acute coronary intervention. With these reports and analysis put together, we can safely deduct that there remains a substantial amount of uncertainty over the usage of routine supplemental oxygen in uncomplicated Acute Myocardial Infarction, with absolutely no clear indication or recommendation for the level of oxygen th erapy in normoxic patients in the STEMI guidelines. More recently, another analysis was done by comparing high concentration oxygen with titrated oxygen in patients with suspected acute myocardial infarction which found no difference in myocardial infarct size on cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (Ranchord 2012). The annual congress of European Society of ICU (2016) states that patients dying in the ICU was lowered by 9% while using conservative oxygen strategy as compared with the conventional one(JAMA 2016). METHODOLOGY Firstly the terms method and methodology needs to be differentiated. Method is a process used to collect and examine the data whereas methodology includes a philosophical inquiry of the research design as stated by Wainworth (1997). It is vital that the suitable methodology needs to be analysed in carrying out the research question and in assembling the data (Matthews 2010). Research Methodology is a way to find out the result of a given problem on a specific matter or problem that is also referred as research problem (Jennifer 2011). In Methodology, researcher uses different criteria for solving the given research problem and always tries to search the given question systematically in their own way to find out all the answers till conclusion. If the research does not work systematically on the problem, there would be less possibility to find out the final result. For finding or exploring research questions, a researcher faces lot of problems that can be effectively resolved while us ing a correct research methodology (Industrial Research Institute, 2010). This research proposal was done under the systematic review method because it provides a very comprehensive and clear way of assessing the evidence (Chalmers 2001). Also it lowers error and bias and establishes a high standard of accuracy (Jadad, 1998). Healthcare providers, researchers, consumers and policy makers are overwhelmed with the data, evidence and information available from healthcare research. It is unlikely that the all this information is digested and used for future decisions. Hence a systematic review of such research will help to identify, assess and synthesize the information based on evidence needed to make those critical decisions. (Mulrow 1994). There are a number of factors for choosing systematic review for this study. A systematic review is generally done to resolve mismatched evidence, to verify the accuracy of current practice, to answer clinically unanswered questions, to find changes in practice or to focus for the need for any future research. Systematic reviews[AD1] are increasingly being used as a preferred research method for the education of post graduate nursing students (Bettany- Saltikuv, 2012). One of the best resources available on the conduct of systematic reviews of interventions is the Cochrane Collaboration (Tonya 2012). As defined by the Cochrane Collaboration (Higgins Green, 2011[AD2], Pg 6); A systematic review attempts to collate all empirical evidence that fits pre-specified eligibility criteria in order to answer a specific research question. It uses explicit, systematic methods that are selected with a view to minimizing bias, thus providing more reliable findings from which conclusions can be drawn and decisions made. The aim of a systematic review is to incorporate the existing knowledge into a particular subject or regarding a scientific question (British Journal of Nutrition (2012). According to Gough et al (2012) a systematic review is a research method that is undertaken to review several relevant research literatures. Systematic reviews can be considered as the gold standard for reviewing the extensive literature on a specific topic as it synthesises the findings of previous research investigating the same or similar questions (Boland et al 2008). Using systematic and rigorous methods systematic reviews are often referred to as original empirical research because they review primary data, which can be either qualitative or quantitative (Aveyard Sharp 2011). Over the past years, various standards have been evolved for portraying systematic reviews, staring from an early statement called the QUOROM guidelines to an updated widely accepted statement called the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) (Moher et al, 2009). While there are many differences in how each author approach a systematic review and there is no universal approach on one methodology for conducting review. However there are a set of fundamental set regarding the report of systematic reviews that authors are recommended to follow (Tonya 2012). METHODS SEARCH STRATEGIES: The selection of relevant study is based on two concepts: sensitivity and specificity (Wilma 2016).The purpose of the literature search is to identify existing published research in the particular area of interest to assist the researcher to clarify and specify the research question, and to identify whether the research question has been answered. The search of the literature must be strategic and systematic, and informed by a documented strategy. Search strategies have two major considerations: search terms, and databases. Some of the most common and beneficial search strategies used in systematic reviews are using the database of Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), hand searching, Grey literature which contains unpublished studies, clinical trials and ongoing research on the trials. Contacting an expert and extracting information is another useful method. The internet provides access to a huge selection of published and unpublished database. Studies can also b e found by referring the reference lists of the available published data. The database that have been referenced in this paper have been searched, collected and for extraction from the vast base of Northumbria [AD3]University accessible Journals. Journals from Medline, Ovid, ELSEVIER, PubMED and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Journal of the American Medical Association( JAMA), newspaper articles from CHEST, Intensive Care Medicine ,CLOSE and ANZICS Clinical trial group, Resuscitation, Critical care journal, (all of the selected journals from the databases was validated as peer reviewed journals) were reviewed for this paper. INCLUSION AND EXCLUSION CRITERIA The inclusion of unpublished and grey literature is essential for minimizing the potential effect of publication bias (Cochrane Corner 2007). If systematic reviews are limited to published studies, they risk excluding vital evidence and yielding inaccurate results, which are likely to be biased as always positive results (Alderan 2002). The inclusion criteria should consider gender, age of participants, year(s) of publication and study type. For this review purpose, as conventional and conservative oxygen therapy studies are the primary research questions, patients aged 18 years or older and admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) with an expected length of stay of 72 hours or longer were considered for inclusion. Exclusion criteria also need to be justified and detailed and papers may be excluded according to paper type (such as discussion papers or opinion pieces), language, participant characteristics, or year(s) of publication. For the exclusion criteria, patients under 18 years, pregnant patients, and those who were readmitted in ICU, patients with DNACPR (do not actively resuscitate) and neutropenia or immunosuppression and the patients on who more than one arterial blood gas analysis was performed in 24 hours. STUDY SELECTION For the purpose of this research proposal the literature selected are based on Randomized Clinical Trials of conservative oxygen therapy methods and conventional (traditional) [AD4]oxygen therapy methods used in ICU and some systematic reviews of effective oxygen therapy in ICU, if they met the inclusion criteria. The controlled clinical trials provide the most appropriate method of testing effectiveness of treatments (Barton 2000). Observational studies on effect of hyperopia on post cardiac arrest are also reviewed. These studies can help to determine whether conservative oxygen therapy can help increase mortality among critically ill patients. PREPARATION FOR DATA EXTRACTION Data will be[AD5]extracted from the studies and grouped according to outcome measure. The data extraction tools should be used to ensure relevant datas is collected, minimise the risk of transcription errors, allow accuracy of data to be checked and serve as a record of the data collected. The data collected for extraction should be validated against evidence. It is necessary to extract the necessary studies and data that will help in resolving the research question which involves analysing different studies and a preferred way of methodology that reduces errors and bias. QUALITY ASSESSMENT Cochrane risk of bias tool (Higgins2011) will be[AD6]used for the assessment of risk of bias in estimating the study outcome. For the better outcome of this review involved few randomized clinical trials, some observational studies and pilot RCT studies for comparison among various methods. Quality assessment is given special importance because of the inclusion of RCT and non-RCT methodology (Eggers et al 2001). And only quality studies that satisfies the inclusion, exclusion and data requirements, validity and no bias and studies that are needed to answer the research question are carefully selected. SYNTHESIS STUDIES Synthesis helps to summarize and connect different sources to review the literature on a specific topic, give suggestions, and link the practice to the research (Cosette 2000). It is done by gathering and comparing evidence from a variety of sources when there is conflicting evidence or limited number of patients or large amounts of unclassified data. Systematic reviews of RCTs(Randomized control Trial) encompass the most strong form of clinical evidence (Sheik 2002) and occupies the highest layer in the hierarchy of evidence-based research, at the same time qualitative case studies and expert opinions occupy the lowest layer (Evans 2003 and Frymark et al 2009). RCT helps to understand the differences data among various studies (For Example, the studies considered here, conventional versus Conservative Oxygen therapy methods). RCT is the most applicable study used in assessing the results of an intervention, because it limits the effects of bias when performed correctly. (CRDs Guide 2009). It also easier to understand and any observed effect is easily contained to the treatments being compared. (Stuart 2000). The favourable results of an RCT lies with the methodology domain followed in the trial and it reviews its practicality which helps healthcare professionals, clinicians, researchers, policymakers and guideline developers to apply and review the effectiveness of the trials and tests. For example, if a study overestimates the effects of an intervention, it concludes wrongfully that the intervention works; similarly if the study is underestimating the effects, it wrongfully reflects that there is no effect to that study. This is where RCTs stands out, where minimum bias and evidence is the basis of such a study (According to Cochrane reviews). Hence this is why RCTs form the gold standard of comparison studies while questioning effectiveness of different interventions while limiting bias. As an example, groups that are randomly assigned are different from groups that follow criteria in the sense that the investigator may not be aware of certain attributes that they might have missed. It will also be likely that the two groups will be the similar on significant characteristics using chance. It is possible to control the factors that are known but randomisation helps to control the factors that are not known, which drastically reduces bias. Therefore assigning participants in other study designs may not be as fair and each participant may vary in characteristics on main standards. (Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions 2017) The observational studies or non-randomised studies can be argumentative as the choice of treatment for each person and the observed results may cause differences among patients being given the different types of treatments. (Stuart 2000). ETHICAL CONSIDERATION A systematic review is the scientific way of classifying the overabundant amount of information existing in research by systematically reviewing and accurately examining the studies concerning a particular topic. But in doing so, topic of ethics is hardly questioned. This will have some major downsides as some systematic reviews may have studies with ethical deficiencies, which in turn lead to the publication of an unethical research and such research is susceptible to bias. Systematic review does not automatically give the updated approval for an original study. Hence systematic reviews that are methodically and ethically assessed will have better ethical and methodological studies overall (Jean et al 2010). If an original study does not mention the ethical issues, it does not automatically mean that the studies in original papers avoided those ethical concerns and may indicate a lower risk (Tuech 2005).A primary rule for publishing articles is that redundant and overlapping data sh ould be avoided or needs to be cross-referenced while making the purpose clear to the readers in an unavoidable case. (Elizabeth et al 2011). Plagiarism is clearly unacceptable and care should be taken care to not replicate other peoples research work and the original words and data needs to be acknowledged as a citation or quote. A responsible publisher should follow the COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) flowchart that explains suspected plagiarism (Liz 2008). It is also important to give information on funding and competing interests. The Cochrane Collaboration (2011) has very strict rules about funding and it is important to give reasons why the author may or may not be neutral or impartial on the review prepared and it relates to financial support, while competing interests can be personal, academic or political (WAME Editorial Policy and Publication Ethics Committees 2009). REFLECTION The objective of systematic reviews is to translate the results to clinically useful and applicable information while meeting the highest methodological standards. They offer a very useful summary of the present scientific evidence on a particular domain which can be developed into guidelines on the basis of such evidence. However, it is imperative that practitioners understand the reviews and the quality of the methodology and evidence used (Franco 2012). This study proposes to find the systematic review approach of conservative and conventional oxygen therapy methods used among critically ill adult patients in ICU. Incidentally, a RCT study by Susan (2016) found that the strategy of conservatively controlling oxygen delivery to patients in ICU results in lower mortality than the conventional and more liberal approach whereby patients are often kept in a hyperoxemic state.

Anger Management and Health Essay -- Health Anger Emotions Essays

Anger Management and Health Everybody feels anger from time to time. People have been documented feeling anger since biblical times when God was considered angry. Babies even exhibit signs that are interpreted as anger, such as crying or screaming. Anger is not in any way unique to people. Animals also have the ability to feel and express anger. In our personal lives we get angry over at least one thing on almost a daily basis, whether it be on the job, with a spouse or loved one, or perhaps with a figure of authority. Many psychologists have written about anger, discussing the relationship between anger and fear. Each of the individuals that comprise humanity possesses at least one phobia, in the same way that each is capable of possessing anger. The negativity that is associated with phobias often spills over into our feelings about anger. We begin to think negatively about anger since we associate it with fear. Plato was the first to suggest that anger was a disbalance. According to Dr. Willard Gaylin, a prominent psychologist, anger is still seen as a disbalance by many of today's psychologists. Since Plato, anger has suffered a bad reputation. We only have to imagine a domestic abuse scene to immediately condemn anger in all of its manifestations. There is a reason why anger is viewed in a negative light. Nobody likes it when someone is angry with them. We tend to avoid the wrath of those around us. This is one reason we see anger as negative. Another reason may lie closer to Plato's concept of imbalance. The negative perception of anger is evident in the American Heritage Dictionary's definitions of the word anger (1): 1. A feeling of extreme displeasure, hostility, indignation, or someone or something; rage; wrath; ire. 2. (Obsolete) Trouble; pain; affliction. To say, "I'm getting angry", is to invoke fear in another, usually, that fear originates from a perception that the utterer of the phrase is about to take some sort of dramatic action. Dr. Gaylin speaks for these emotions, rage is a response to a perceived assault that effects the body in interesting ways. Skeletal muscles are tensed; the autonomic system moves to increase the supply of adrenaline and redistribute the blood flow of the body; certain muscles are contracted and opposing ones relaxed. (2) Apparently, anger is viewed negatively for a reas... ...s easy. But to be angry at the right person, to the right degree, at the right time, for the right purpose, and in the right way - that is not so easy.† (4) Chronic anger does lead to health problems. Not everyone suffers from anger, but for those that do, it means a multitude of emotional related illnesses. Anger is often accompanied by an imbalance of hormones, as Plato recognized, and no imbalance is healthy in the long run. With consciousness and relaxation, people may be able to achieve dominance over anger, rather than allowing it to have dominance over them. Works Cited: 1 American Heritage Dictionary Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, MA 1985 2 Gaylin, Willard, M.D. The Anger Within: Anger in Modern Life. Simon and Schuster, New York, NY 1984 3 Internet Research: Coping with Anger, 1996 4 McKay, Rogers When Anger Hurts: Quieting the Storm Within. New Harbinger, Oakland, CA 1989 5 Bernstein and Rozen Dinosaur Brains: Dealing with all Those Impossible People at Work. John Wiley and Sons, New York, NY 1989 6 Weisinger, Hendrie, M.D. Anger at Work: Learning the Art of Anger Management on the Job. William Morrow and Comapny, New York, NY 1995

Credit crunch Essay

The credit crunch which is also known as a credit crisis, finance crunch or credit squeeze is best described as a condition that makes investment capital hard or difficult to obtain. It is the sudden reduction in the availability of credit and loans or the abrupt tightening of loan borrowing conditions by financial institutions. Therefore credit crunch is generally associated with reduced credit availability although it might be independent of interest rates increase. During this period investors and lenders seek investments that they consider to be less risky and make flight to quality. This is usually at the expense and disadvantage of medium and small sized business enterprises. The price of liability and debt products is therefore driven up by the wariness of the banks and investors to lend money to corporations. The credit crunch condition is usually considered as a product or an extension of recessions. What causes credit crunch  The sudden wariness of banks and other investors to lend to corporations may be the result of a variety of reasons. First and foremost the slow lending activity could be as a consequence of the central government imposing or forcing direct credit controls on banks and the banking system in general. It could also be the product of banks anticipation decline with regard to the collateral value used they used to secure their loans. Additionally it could be a result of an unexpected raise in reserve requirements or other monetary conditions by the central bank. Moreover perceived increase in risks concerning the solvency of lending institutions within the system of banking could also cause a slow down in lending activity. Credit crunches could also be the effect of sustained periods of careless lending that consequently leads to losses and huge bad debts for investors. The institutions are then forced to react by raising interest rates and decreasing credits that can be made available for lending purposes. Because of the losses that these institutions and investors had earlier incurred it becomes hard for them to lend further than the fixed levels even if they wished to do so. The crunch can also be generally as a result of a decline in the prices or value of assets that had been previously over inflated. The price collapse then substantially leads to a financial crisis. Consequently new entrepreneurs or investors in the market may be forced to foreclosure or bankruptcy as the values of the assets that had been previously inflated go down. In the event of credit crunch especially if the capital available will not be sufficient to survive the credit cycle businesses may prefer to go into liquidation, sell or mark to market. Credit crunch occurs in cycles. During its upward phase assets can experience leverage bidding and induced inflation in prices. Effects of credit crunch on the economy. Generally the crunch has acted to decrease economic growth by disabling major industries and key factors of production which are important to ensure a thriving economy. The credit crunch has not only affected the financial markets in the country but it has gone ahead to affect the ordinary customer and consumer who usually support and also benefit from a booming economy. The credit crunch in the United Kingdom has basically meant that customers are experiencing an increase in the rates and fees charged to them by banks and other financial institutions. For the customer more security is required in cases where the individuals want to take new loans or make overdrafts. For suppliers the situation remains the same with equipment loans getting even harder to acquire and overdrafts being called in or basically being reduced. The rates offered by the financial institutions have soared way past most suppliers’ capabilities and guarantees and debentures have become the order of the day (OL 2007, 2-4). The increased lending rates have resulted to restricted people spending and have also left individuals at a loss not knowing from which other sources to tap their finances. Additionally the economy’s supply capacity has been dramatically affected. The economy’s potential output has been reduced leading to a shortage of goods and services. This also means that the ability to produce innovative goods and services has also been deterred as this also depends on lending services provided by financial institutions that are incapable of lending out enough at the moment. Lack of profitability as a result of reduced innovation has thus become a norm leading to a further economic slowdown. The economy has been deeply affected also because investor confidence and trust in the financial markets has gone down. This means profitable business has ceased and that making losses has become the norm for the economy the implication being deficits in the government budget. More so as a consequence the public sector has gone into deficits (BBC News 2008, 3-5). This is a devastating situation for the economy after enjoying not less than fifteen years of economic growth. Big financial firms have been forced to closure or have had to be rescued with massive damage having been experienced on their banks balance sheets. Investment banks have recorded major losses in their financial books and further aggravated by the decline of structured credit values. Money markets short term lending has become way too expensive and the medium period unsecured lending and securitization which were among the key sources of funds for financial have dried up. Most companies have additionally been forced to direct their income towards debts servicing. The effects have been contracted earnings and increased unemployment rates as companies struggle to cut costs. So far the largest job cuts and unemployment rates have been recorded in the housing and financing sector. In fact towards the end of this year the rates are expected to shoot to five percent which is double the figure that was previously recorded during the end of 2007. The labor market has since been weakened as the result of the crunch as more people get out of working capacities. The housing market is among the worst hit and has continued to weaken as the crunch proceeds. The prices in this market have fallen to devastating levels leading to a further decline of employment rates and real income. Obviously the investments in this sector have gone to a record low. Mortgage rates have also increased, its lending decreased and thus pushing the house prices down. The housing sector is in fact expected to experience a 24 percent drop this year (Pritchard 2009, 3-6). What Is Being Done? Over the last months the economy of the country has declined by a figure not less than 0. 8% making it even harder for the government to map out the way to recovery (Channel 4 News 2009, 1-5). Despite the governments efforts to revive and redeem the people and economy from the disastrous effects of the credit crunch most citizens are not yet satisfied and they are in fact of the opinion that very little is being done to fix the situation. The general feeling is that politicians have been merely throwing words at each other and therefore failing to turn their words into significant action. The government despite these feeling from the public is trying all it can to undo the damage, for example the Prime minister has been caught encouraging people to strive to pay their debts instead of overspending on some household commodities like food. The government is therefore trying to encourage its citizens to ensure that they have enough funds in store to clear or pay their debts and loans. This is for the reason that the more people are able to clear the amounts of money they owe as loans the easier it will be for the credit crunch to fade away after some time. Additionally people are being encouraged to take loans that have rates that they will be able to afford. This is because if people keep up the habit of borrowing loans with high rates and therefore unaffordable to them, the worse the credit crunch situation is going to be. Taking up loans with higher interest rates only create greater debts for lenders because people eventually end up struggling to pay or not paying at all, the effect will then be a prolonged credit crunch (Gillepse 2009, 5-7) Additionally the government opted to increase guarantee on savings in order to discourage or stop mass withdrawals of financial institutions. The implication is that savers have their first not less than 35,000 pounds guaranteed in full unlike the previous years where only savings of not more than 2000 pounds would be guaranteed in full. The government in addition made various attempts to maintain interest rates and keep them on hold for a while due to the turmoil in the economy. They have also severally in the past year cut the rates with the aim of easing the situation, trying to bring it under control and to assist borrowers. The government has moreover tried to persuade its citizens to stay clear of overvalued assets which are all hostage within the credit cycle such quartet resources include for example those in the travel, chemicals and construction industries. The government has also tried to carry out systemic injections in an effort to help fix the crisis. It has furthermore tried to come up with various rescue packages for the financial sector to add to their numerous efforts to restore investor confidence. But until the investor trust in the markets is restored it seems there is little that the government can do as at now to ease the crisis. The government has as well sort the help of the globe to fix this situation for the reason the country is also highly dependent on banking flows that cross the county’s borders. Question marks and eye brows have been raised about the banking systems fiscal policy, regulation and general governance and their ability to guard the system form excessive risk taking. In conclusion recession is a condition that has devastating effects on the economy of any country. Especially in this decade the market forces operate in such a way that it has become very hard for economists to precisely predict any looming crisis to ensure that governments take preventive measures early enough. Market forces have served to increase the cost of living not only in the country but also globally. Wealth distribution has consequently become uneven with the margin between the rich and the poor becoming even wider. All the governments’ have left is to institute the right regulations and policies that will especially work to enhance the operations of our financial systems and then hope that when the markets recover from this crunch that will be the end of financial crises.

Cisco’s Web Enablement Essay

CEO John Chambers believed that â€Å"by providing the end-to-end network plumbing, we can change the way entire companies and industries operate. † How did Cisco’s IT web-enablement initiatives reinforce and demonstrate that belief? Explain your answer with examples. Cisco began web development in early 1990s. Cisco invested around $100 million to web-enable all the applications using standard set of tools and smart group of people. Most of the interactions with customers, partner and suppliers were network-based and began at Cisco’s home page which allowed them to do business with Cisco more efficiently and effectively. Below are some of the examples of the intranet and internet applications that were built part of this initiative: Intranet Applicationss: Employee Self-Service & Communication and distance learning: Cisco’s corporate intranet, Cisco Employee Connection, a centralized portal to access the information, tools and resources needed to streamline processes, facilitate knowledge exchange and maximize employee productivity met the unique needs of 40,000 plus employees. Training modules were available to employees to be trained from their desktops through the distance learning application. The usage of training modules was tracked to improve the quality and its effectiveness. Personalized home pages using ‘My Yahoo! ’ retrieved information from the internet based on user preferences and pushed it to their desktops. Cisco’s quarterly meetings were available for employees to be viewed from their desktop. This not just doubled the attendance but also enhanced the Cisco’s culture of maintaining a strong relationship with each employee. Internet Applications: Customer Self-service through website Cisco’s customer self-service portal built on Cisco. com, a comprehensive, web-based, online resource for information and networked application, was the primary vehicle for delivering responsive, around the clock support for its customers. They relied on Cisco. com to get their questions answered, diagnose network problems, provided solutions and expert assistance worldwide. It was translated into 17 languages for international customers. Cisco’s customers were highly satisfied and enjoyed the lower cost of doing business with Cisco than those who do not used internet based applications to support. Net commerce through the web: Cisco was an early pioneer in using the internet for full electronic commerce. Customer could place and track their orders using Cisco. com. As of January 2001, internet-commerce-based revenue represented 92% of the total revenue base. Productivity gains of 60% for Cisco and 20% for Customers and resellers were being realized through online commerce. Besides the above examples there were other intranet and internet based applications which increased the productivity of its employees and improved supply chain process & customer satisfaction. Thus the above web-enabled systems reinforce and demonstrate the CEO’s belief of changing how companies and business operate. It was very clear that Cisco was successful in the principles of using internet in doing general business.

Final Project Report on Meezan Bank Essay Example

Final Project Report on Meezan Bank Essay Example Final Project Report on Meezan Bank Essay Final Project Report on Meezan Bank Essay It is concerned to a brief study of the operations, functions, Products and Services of Means Bank. Means Bank is the largest Islamic Banking Network of Pakistan. Islamic banking one of the fastest growing segments of the financial industry. Banks serving the Islamic population must comply with several very specific principles of Islamic law if they hope to retain existing customers and attract new ones. Banks must be ready with specialized products and SE;sec and they must put programs in place to train their personnel to support these products and services in order to exist in this competitive marketplace. This Report contains detail of MBA Management structure, Operations, products, Services and Functions along with their features. History of Banking History Of Banking in Pakistan Starts from the partition Of Indo-Pakistan sub continent in August, 1947. At that time, the areas consisting Pakistan had 631 offices of 45 scheduled banks out of which 487 were located in West Pakistan and 1 14 in East Pakistan which was also served by 500 offices of small and non-scheduled banks. There were 19 branches of foreign banks in Pakistan but they had a very limited role to play. Just after the partition, the Indian bankers started immigrating and shifting he head offices of their banks and capital to India. It caused a great set back to the banking field in Pakistan, and resulted in decline in the number of offices in schedule bank from 631 to 195 by 30th June, 1948. The West Pakistan the number fell from 487 to 81 in East Pakistan from 14th 69 by 30th June, 1951. Among these Habit Bank Ltd. , with 25 offices and Australia Bank Ltd. With 19 offices were institutions run by Muslims who shifted their head offices to Pakistan. : The technical and administrative difficulties of establishing a central bank just after independence compelled Pakistan to enter into an agreement with the Reserve Bank of India by which the bank was to perform the function of a central bank in this area also up to 30th September, 1948. The Reserve Bank of India started following wrong policies against the interest of Pakistan. The situation became so grave that after the consultation of two governments the Reserve Bank of India was asked to finish the agreement from 30th June instead of from 30th September, 1948. So the Government of Pakistan decided to establish the State Bank of Pakistan as its central bank from 1st July, 1948. In the same year first Pakistani notes in the denomination of RSI. , 10, and 100 were issued and Indian currency was withdrawn from circulation. After it the government was advised to a bank which should serve as a agent of State Bank of Pakistan. On this suggestion National Bank of Pakistan which was established in 1949 to finance jute trade in East Pakistan to take over the agency functions from the Imperial Bank of India. Furthermore banking companies control act 1949 was promulgated which empowered the State Bank of Pakistan to control the operation of other banks. To boost the economic development the State Bank of Pakistan encourage the commercial inks and gave them schemes to advance in the agricultural and industrial fields. In addition to this specialize financial. Institutions were set up to meet the acute shortage of funds in these fields. The State Bank of Pakistanis policy encouraged expansion in established banks, establishment of new banks, and weeding out Of unsound banks just to faster the growth of banking system in the country.

Stifel And Roberval Essays - Mathematics, Number Theorists

Stifel And Roberval Essays - Mathematics, Number Theorists Stifel And Roberval Michael Stifel Michael Stifel was a German mathematician who lived in the late fifteenth century and early to mid-sixteenth century. He was born in 1487, in Esslingen, Germany. The exact date of his birth is unknown. Stifel died on April 19, 1567, in Jena, Germany. His father was Conrad Stifel, a well-respected member of the community. When Michael was young his family did not have much money. Not much is known about Stifel's life until the time he attended the University of Wittenberg, in Germany. After he graduated, Stifel was awarded an M.A. from the university. Then Stifel began his life with the church. He entered the Augustinian monastery and became a catholic priest in 1511. Soon after this, Stifel began questioning the Catholic Church. He did like the idea of taking money from poor people. As a result of this, Stifel was forced to leave the monastery in 1522. Now he decided to go to Wittnenberg and become a Lutheran. During this time, Stifel became friends with Martin Luther himself, and lived in his house for a time. In 1523, Martin Luther made Stifel a pastor, but because of anti-Lutheran feelings Stifel was forced to leave this job. Then in 1528, Martin Luther decided to give Stifel a parish in Lochau, which is now Annaberg. This where Stifel's story gets wacky. While in Lochau, Stifel decided to announce to everyone that the world was going to end on October 19, 1533 at exactly 8:00 AM. It seems that Stifel performed a series of calculations in which he changed the letters to their successive triangular numbers. However, how these calculations proved that the world was coming to end is beyond my comprehension of mathematics. Stifel told the people of Lochau of his findings on New Year's Eve of 1522. This announcement had amazing repercussions. The sleepy town of Lochau believed Stifel. They all began living for the day and not worrying about what the future would bring. They did not bother to plant crops or store what food they had. Lochau also became a destination for pilgrims. Once they got to Lochau people began to prepare for the end of the world. Some people even took their own life instead of waiting. Some of the town's people burned their houses in an attempt to remove themselves from material objects and make it easier for to get to Heaven. Lochau had only two bars, and in the time between Stifel's announcement and the end it was said that they were never empty. The owner's gave away free drinks. The owners' of the town's inns also let people stay there for free. While all of this was happening, Lochau's historian took all the money from the treasury and left. As a result of this craziness Stifel was forbidden to preach. Finally, the last day came and Stifel began to prepare his followers for the end. Fortunately for everyone except Stifel the world did not end that day. At 8:30 AM the authorities took Stifel away and put him in protective custody, for his own protection. Crowds gathered outside his cell and chanted Stifel must die for many days after this. Martin Luther got Stifel out of this, but he had to promise not to make anymore prophecies. Another one of Stifel's adventures had to do with the newly crowned pope Leo X. Since he was a Lutheran, Stifel was not too fond of Leo and he had the calculations to back up his opinions. Stifel took the name Leo X and wrote it in Latin; this was LEO DECIMVS. He then assigned the numerical counterparts (Roman Numerals) of these letters, throwing out the non-numerical E, O, and S. He rearranged the remaining letters and came up with MDCLVI. The next logical step was to add back the X from Leo's original name and Stifel had MDCLXVI. He then took off the M because it was the initial of mysterium, a word for a religious mystery. The result was DCLXVI, or six hundred sixty-six, or 666. According to Stifel this proved that Pope Leo X was indeed the Antichrist. In response to this, Peter Bungus, a Catholic theologian, decided to write a 700 page book to prove that it was

Artificial Intelligences beneficial impact on economy, education and healthcare

Artificial Intelligence's beneficial impact on economy, education and healthcare Artificial intelligence (AI) continues to prove to have a beneficial and fast-paced impact on education, healthcare, and economy. The measure of the impact artificial intelligence will have on the global economy is bolstered by its successful application into industries. As researchers continue to develop the efficiency and reliability of AI, the application of AI into industries will grow exponentially; therefore, the impact could be incalculable. Desjardins states, â€Å"By 2030, AI is expected to provide a $15.7 trillion boost to GDP worldwide- the equivalent of adding 13 new Australia’s to the global economy†. A boost of this size indicates that vast technological advancements are expected to be made as well. This will create benefits aside from the monetary value. Increased trade between countries will result, which will lead to specialization and competition. A healthy competition between industries encourages innovation as they compete for the consumers’ dollar, and innovation is the heart of technology. The economic boost improves and supports international relations as well. The ef ficiency of AI can impact many parts of the economy such as manufacturing. Rather than humans occupying the jobs, machines are more consistent, reliable, and productive. Lohr presents â€Å"a series of charts and graphs that track AI- related trends over time. They include measures like the rate of improvement in image identification and speech recognition, as well as start- up activity and job openings†. Not only does AI create beneficial developments in economy, but as well as image identification and speech recognition. It also promotes entrepreneurship and new jobs. Therefore, rumors of replacing medical jobs in the future are no longer needed. AI has shown some improvement in healthcare, but researchers say the possibilities of a greater healthcare system with AI involved. Pearl states that â€Å"[u]sing consensus algorithms from experts in the field, along with the data that oncologists enter into a medical record, a computer can review dozens, sometimes hundreds, of established treatment alternatives and recommend the most appropriate combination of chemotherapy drugs for a patient†. Having various ways to cure a patient helps improves the chance of the medicine curing the patient. It can improve the quality of care and STOP. He clarifies, â€Å"Visual pattern recognition software is estimated to be 5% to 10% more accurate than the average physician†. AI has shown a great impact on education and will continue to do so. Bernard states, â€Å"The Navy reported that the students who had worked with the digital tutor made enormous strides in their education, and that they consistently rested higher than students who had studied without the program’s benefit†. Using technology in the classroom hugely impacts on an individual student’s grade and as well as the classroom in a whole. Dickson indicates how â€Å"AI can also help take part in learner groups as a member and help sway discussions in the right direction by providing content, posing questions and providing alternative viewpoints†. Helping students learn beyond one aspect of a discussion can improve students’ education.

Islamic Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Islamic Art - Essay Example This has made the artistic work easy to view on the display and it is also easy to read the contents. Ink, opaque watercolour and gold on paper have been used in the artistic work. This has impacted positively on the ability of the audience to view the writing. The material also appears to be durable and hence its ability to last for a long period of time. This means that the artistic work can be displayed in the museum over a long period of time without the texts being affected. The text is a page from the Quran which is an indication that it is targeting the Muslims. The style that has been used to write the text in Arabic is clear. This is an indication that the audience can easily understand the works. It is also important to note that the style that has been used in writing the Arabic words is unique which is essential in terms of making the texts unique. During the Mamluk Dynasty, the calligraphers who used this type of style in writing enjoyed the greatest prestige among the Muslim artists (Blair & Bloom, 2012). The use of these texts can be traced back to the 12th Century during the Mamluk Dynasty in Egypt (Blair & Bloom, 2012). It was a replacement of the Kufic writings which was popular before. The cursive writing style which has been used in the artistic work is clearer and it can be easily and clearly as they are characterized by tall, slender vertices and sweeping sublinear strokes. This is an indication that the writings have been used for a long period of time. The object has been framed in gold and vegetal ornamentation art the museum. The display is outstanding and the frame is fitting which makes it visible to the audience. However, the lighting is not good at the place that it has been displayed. This makes it a little dull considering that the writings are black and the material used is golden. The object could have been displayed in an area where there is more light so as to make it appear brighter and more

Market research to the success of a new business Essay

Market research to the success of a new business - Essay Example The market research processes help the entrepreneur of the venture to gather relevant information regarding the external business situation based on which he or she can take the suitable marketing and management decisions for the business. The carrying out of a suitable market research can be done through the internal personnel of the company as well as through a third party market research company. Whatever the avenue of the market research is, the results of a market research are expected to add value to the probability of success of the business in the market through an understanding of the external factors that are likely to affect the success as well as the continuity of the business Market research is an essential strategic management tool for the creation of a feasible business plan that would enable a new business venture to initially create a place for itself in the highly competitive business segments and to thrive in the market in the long run as well. Market research conducted for a start up venture is essentially the process of becoming knowledgeable and gathering information about the target market of a new business (Malhotra, 2002). A market research process may serve four types of primary objectives which are Predictive: The predictive view is aimed at analyzing the future trends, opportunities, risks and requirements of the market which helps the company to decide on its priorities and set its objectives and strategies. Descriptive: The descriptive view of market research considers the explanation and description of the existing market situations and aims at identifying the core reasons driving the present market condition (McDonald, 2007). Market research helps a business to understand the context for the new business, accurately define and target the appropriate customer segment, verify whether there is an advantageous level for demand for the products and/or services of the business in the selected market, collect

Aircraft safety and Human Factors Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Aircraft safety and Human Factors - Essay Example Aviation is basically a combination of four ingredients, viz. Man, Machine, Medium and Mission-the four Ms.Sucessful integration of all the four culminates in a safe flight. Safety In aviation is achieved by implementation of in stringent measures at various levels-be the production, training or operations. Great emphasis is given towards production of aircraft. Innumerable test sorties are flown on prototypes before clearing them for production. Once came into the service, maintaince schedules are laid down at various stages to ensure trouble free flying. Similarly the crew operating the aircraft undergoes rigorous training to hone their flying skills. Great emphasis is given towards training of ground crew too, which encompasses all crew not flying but directly or indirectly associated with flying operations. Varios checks are instituted to monitor the health of aircraft and the knowledge of aircrews and ground crews. Despite so much concern and effort however, accidents do take place due to varied reasons and it has been found that the man behind the machine causes almost 80% of the accidents in aviation due to omissions or commissions. Why is it so Why does the same specie, that gas designed and mastered the machine and understood its intricacies, cause an accident due to an error How is the man weakest link among Four Ms These are the questions that need to be answered in the interest of flight safety. Human factors Human factors includes studies human capabilities, system analysis and design, process control and automation, skill acquisition, information processing and display, operator workload, and task-induced stress, human-computer interaction, environmental effects on performance, and accident prevention. Human factors is concerned with the cognitive and interpersonal skills required to manage the flight within an organized aviation system. Cognitive skills are the mental processes required for gaining and maintaining situational awareness, for solving problems and for taking decisions. Interpersonal skills include effective communications and good teamwork. Good interpersonal skills encourage the creation of synergy and the development of successful teamwork. Both cognitive and interpersonal skills are enhanced by a good emotional climate amongst the crew, but they are also easily degraded by stress, so management of the emotional climate and stress becomes and integral and important elem ent of good human factors. Human factors play significant roles in more accidents than do mechanical failures. Accordingly, crew resource Aircraft safety and Human Factors 4 Management and other human factors-related training are emphasized in most flight training. Human factors often place demands on the pilot that contrast with those of technology. Pilots must integrate skillful operation of an aircraft with subtle but powerful factors within themselves. (Frank& Harry 112) Flight Deck Management reports:(

Marketing plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Marketing plan - Essay Example This is because Carl’s Jr. was selling the same type of hamburgers but at half the price. Others offer that the accompaniments that were served with the hamburger, mustard/mayo sauce on potato roll to be specific resulted to the failure. The mega campaign which failed was also partially blamed for the product failure as it targeted the adult population only. Still, some customers offer that the high calorie in the burger was the reason behind the product failure to capture the market. Background McDonalds is undoubtedly one of the fastest growing companies in the fast food industry, which is dominated by a host of players. Some of these players include Carl’s Jr, Burger King, KFC, and Pizza hut. These competitors pose a threat to McDonalds as they have conduced to the decrease in profits. This is because of the alternative products that these competitors continue to offer to the customers. McDonalds is a franchise of many companies with only 19% owed by the company. The company has over 33000 restaurants spread across the globe, serving close to 58 million customers. The company also has dozens of branches situated in 119 countries. McDonalds collected an average of $22,744,700 million in revenues from its global branches in 2009 with operating profits standing at $ 6,841000 million. Market Analysis Analysts predict that the fast food industry is growing at a first rate as customers’ demands for fresh quickly served meals surges. One of the dominant key players in this market is the McDonalds. The company is currently at its maturity level in the product life cycle. However, the fast food market faces constant decrement because of factors such as limited expansion sites, increasing operation costs, and market saturation. Vivid competition in the market has led to production promotion techniques such as price cuts, which have resulted to a diminution in profitability in the industry. Normal Forecast Most of the products that fail to capture the attention of customers in the market are not always inferior. In order for a company to succeed in launching a product, management has to undertake an in-depth research on the market. Through such an initiative, the organization can come up with creative ideas on the areas of packaging, market communication, and pricing. All these activities are facilitated through brainstorming with all the departments in the organization. Failure to consult will result to the release of uncompetitive products in terms of price, packaging, and market communication, into the market. The same applied to McDonald’s Arch Deluxe, which despite massive campaign, failed to sustain the market forces. As mentioned above, some of the reasons were high market price, mega campaign fail and poor market presentation. The other reason behind product failure is intensive competition. When many producers offer the same product to the market, the resultant effect will be edacious competition, where only t he superior products in price, packaging and advertising, end-up being selected by the customer. A good example is Carl’s Jr., which blocked the entry of McDonald’s Arch Deluxe. According to Brand marketing (2006, p. 3), Jack Greenberg McDonalds’ CEO, on an interview with the Financial Times consented that the company spent too much time deciding on when to launch the product. Most of the company’s marketing and branding decisions are made at the headquarters in Oak Brook, Illinois. As such, the

Chevron Stakeholders and Their Interests or Concerns Essay

Chevron Stakeholders and Their Interests or Concerns - Essay Example The consequences were eminent as people obtained water from the streams for domestic use. The effluents had lethal concentration of toxic substances. Ecuadorians witnessed numerous cases of Leukemia and abnormally increasing rates of birth defects. The stakeholders in this case were the company’s management, the Ecuadorian government, institutional stakeholders, and the Ecuadorians. The company management’s main concern was to clear the company’s name by distancing itself from claims about the disaster. Consequently, Chevron denied responsibility of its actions that led to the disaster. â€Å"For a host of cultural and ideological reasons Chevron management is acting against its own self-interest — the interest of its shareholders†¦and in doing so, is driving the company off an $18 billion cliff† (Anderson, 1). The efficient functioning of the company in all areas/department is the role and duty of this category of stakeholders. They are expected to help steer the company into greater heights of success in light of productivity and profitability. This is their ultimate concern as they work to ensure that the company’s operations are running smoothly, no wonder their efforts to keep the looming court case at bay. The Ecuadorian government as a stakeholder, moved to protect the rights and interests of its subjects. The government had to take initiative and thus active roles in court proceedings so as to ensure that the Ecuadorians earned justice. It is one thing for a country to allow a foreign country to invest in one’s country and another to turn against it when it comes to matters of health, safety and security. The only challenge facing this initiative is change of guard from one president to another. Otherwise the country’s government has always strived to resolve the damage through seeking legal redress. The eighteen year old court battle translates into a typically lengthy process.  

Aircraft safety and Human Factors Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Aircraft safety and Human Factors - Essay Example Aviation is basically a combination of four ingredients, viz. Man, Machine, Medium and Mission-the four Ms.Sucessful integration of all the four culminates in a safe flight. Safety In aviation is achieved by implementation of in stringent measures at various levels-be the production, training or operations. Great emphasis is given towards production of aircraft. Innumerable test sorties are flown on prototypes before clearing them for production. Once came into the service, maintaince schedules are laid down at various stages to ensure trouble free flying. Similarly the crew operating the aircraft undergoes rigorous training to hone their flying skills. Great emphasis is given towards training of ground crew too, which encompasses all crew not flying but directly or indirectly associated with flying operations. Varios checks are instituted to monitor the health of aircraft and the knowledge of aircrews and ground crews. Despite so much concern and effort however, accidents do take place due to varied reasons and it has been found that the man behind the machine causes almost 80% of the accidents in aviation due to omissions or commissions. Why is it so Why does the same specie, that gas designed and mastered the machine and understood its intricacies, cause an accident due to an error How is the man weakest link among Four Ms These are the questions that need to be answered in the interest of flight safety. Human factors Human factors includes studies human capabilities, system analysis and design, process control and automation, skill acquisition, information processing and display, operator workload, and task-induced stress, human-computer interaction, environmental effects on performance, and accident prevention. Human factors is concerned with the cognitive and interpersonal skills required to manage the flight within an organized aviation system. Cognitive skills are the mental processes required for gaining and maintaining situational awareness, for solving problems and for taking decisions. Interpersonal skills include effective communications and good teamwork. Good interpersonal skills encourage the creation of synergy and the development of successful teamwork. Both cognitive and interpersonal skills are enhanced by a good emotional climate amongst the crew, but they are also easily degraded by stress, so management of the emotional climate and stress becomes and integral and important elem ent of good human factors. Human factors play significant roles in more accidents than do mechanical failures. Accordingly, crew resource Aircraft safety and Human Factors 4 Management and other human factors-related training are emphasized in most flight training. Human factors often place demands on the pilot that contrast with those of technology. Pilots must integrate skillful operation of an aircraft with subtle but powerful factors within themselves. (Frank& Harry 112) Flight Deck Management reports:(

Chevron Stakeholders and Their Interests or Concerns Essay

Chevron Stakeholders and Their Interests or Concerns - Essay Example The consequences were eminent as people obtained water from the streams for domestic use. The effluents had lethal concentration of toxic substances. Ecuadorians witnessed numerous cases of Leukemia and abnormally increasing rates of birth defects. The stakeholders in this case were the company’s management, the Ecuadorian government, institutional stakeholders, and the Ecuadorians. The company management’s main concern was to clear the company’s name by distancing itself from claims about the disaster. Consequently, Chevron denied responsibility of its actions that led to the disaster. â€Å"For a host of cultural and ideological reasons Chevron management is acting against its own self-interest — the interest of its shareholders†¦and in doing so, is driving the company off an $18 billion cliff† (Anderson, 1). The efficient functioning of the company in all areas/department is the role and duty of this category of stakeholders. They are expected to help steer the company into greater heights of success in light of productivity and profitability. This is their ultimate concern as they work to ensure that the company’s operations are running smoothly, no wonder their efforts to keep the looming court case at bay. The Ecuadorian government as a stakeholder, moved to protect the rights and interests of its subjects. The government had to take initiative and thus active roles in court proceedings so as to ensure that the Ecuadorians earned justice. It is one thing for a country to allow a foreign country to invest in one’s country and another to turn against it when it comes to matters of health, safety and security. The only challenge facing this initiative is change of guard from one president to another. Otherwise the country’s government has always strived to resolve the damage through seeking legal redress. The eighteen year old court battle translates into a typically lengthy process.  

What Are You Made of, the Role of Faith in Social Identity Essay Example for Free

What Are You Made of, the Role of Faith in Social Identity Essay What are you made of? This is truly a difficult question to answer if one would really take the time to ponder it. How would you arrive at the conclusion of describing who you are and the things you believe in? What are the things that made you as an individual? Inevitably, there will be several social, spiritual, and political issues that one may have to battle with to arrive at a sound conclusion. Life is complex and that is a certain fact. The complexity life offers for various people with different political affiliations, religious views, and socioeconomic status may be one arena of conflict. How will these differences be reconciled by the government who must develop national consciousness among its citizens? How will the Philippines become united amidst of these cultural differences? It is also the same question for the people, are they willing to compromise their values and beliefs for the unity of the country? These are questions which have no certain answers. For years now, there have been efforts made by the government and educational institutions that are geared towards resolving this conflict. However, it will take time before the country would experience such desired changes. The Philippines is a largely diverse country. Not only is the country multicultural, it is also multilingual. This situation makes it all the more difficult for the educational system to cater to the different needs of each sector. On the national level, the Department of Education has issued memorandums pertaining to ‘generic’ programs addressing these issues. However, the lack of material resources and the lack of interest from stakeholders are the factors responsible for hampering envisioned improvements. While on the community level, there are also initiatives from the teachers themselves who make their own changes and adaptations depending on the needs of their students. By the age of four, most Filipino children go to school to study. They learn about their own identity and the roles as expected from their identity, their being Filipino and duties of citizenship, the community they live in, and certain cultural beliefs and values. All these form the foundation of their beliefs about their identity and the country at large. This ‘indoctrination’ goes on until college. From here we can see that the life of one student is virtually fashioned inside the school. Thus, the school can be said to be a ‘breeding ground’ where various social identities are shaped. And so the question now is, â€Å"How will schools mold Filipino identity? † and at the same time reconcile it with other social identities such as ethnicity and religion without marginalizing cultural or religious beliefs. This process of molding holds much importance for educators because I think that one of the most significant functions of Philippine education is to inculcate Filipino identity and nationalist consciousness. As a teacher, I believe that a person’s religion bears so much importance in how that person thinks and behaves in the social context. It serves as the guiding light or reference point as to which decisions regarding experiences are based. Seeing that the Philippines has several religions, it becomes one social divider in the nation. Believers of certain faith have their own teachings that should be strictly adhered to regarding the political system and cultural beliefs and practices that may sometimes coincide with the rules of the state. For instance, believers of Jehovah’s Witnesses do not pledge the Panatang Makabayan because they believe that they should only place their faith or for that matter, state their allegiance in the god that they serve. Moreover, I believe that religion really matters for the majority of the Filipinos. And this is the root of conflicts, discrimination, and prejudice between Christians and Non-Christians that are manifested in different areas such as the political and economic system. The values certain groups of communities hold are important for them that they desire the next generation to also believe to these values. In addition, cultural practices are also passed on from generation to generation. This process is evident in the articles discussed in class where indigenous peoples argue for a system of education in which traditional knowledge should be included and given more emphasis. More so, the lessons provided by the public education system are starkly different from indigenous knowledge systems and practices. This creates a conflict because the significant values and practices are not learned by the youth of the community. Hence, elders develop apprehension toward the public school system. Although they acknowledge the beneficial effects of having to go to school, what matters most for them is the sustainable development of values and traditional cultural beliefs and practices of their ancestral community. This case is also similar with Islamic education. There is a problem for Muslims in Mindanao pertaining to the choice of schools for their children. For Muslims, spiritual growth in their children’s religious faith is a more important factor in choosing a school. However, Islam is not a subject offered in the public school system. As a conclusion, I think that the belief and value system is the most important factor in the formation of social identities. An individual’s social identity is intimately tied to the religion he is a member of. This also becomes the primary basis for the further development of his social identity. Because of these conflicts, educational institutions have been classified into sectarian and non-sectarian to cater to the different needs of their clients. Parents who are Catholics want their children to study in a Catholic school to ensure that their children would grow up with values they believe in. Furthermore, members of Iglesia Ni Cristo also do the same as well as members of the Christian community. This system is also the same for nationalities. Chinese parents prefer to enroll their children into Chinese schools. Muslim parents prefer to enroll their children to Madrasah. Based on this observation, membership to certain groups or having to identify with a group’s belief and values system becomes one important factor in parents’ decision regarding their children’s education. Thus, educational institutions become an agent in the processes of indoctrination of certain beliefs and practices that may marginalize other religion and cultural practices. Inevitably, they also reproduce existing social structures that up to the present time is unfair for many. Another problem with the present curriculum is its exclusion of local knowledge systems that bears much significance with the country’s indigenous peoples or with a particular group. In my opinion, the curriculum had put too much emphasis on global literacy or keeping at par with international standards. There is nothing wrong with this proposition. The only problem is that local knowledge systems have been marginalized for a long time which should have been a part of the curriculum in the first place. One goal of Philippine education is to mold the ‘Filipino’ identity in its students. If this is the goal, then it also follows that local history and cultural beliefs and practices should be an important part of the curriculum beginning in the elementary. The present curriculum has the Makabayan subject (Sibika at Kultura and Heograpiya, Kasaysayan, Sibika) as one way of teaching students Philippine culture and history. In spite of this, I think some of indigenous knowledge systems and practices are important so it should be included in the national curriculum. The inclusion would make students understand and appreciate more their being ‘Filipino’ and would be exposed to various local histories and cultures. Hence, they would become appreciative of the diversity of Filipino cultures. I also think that the national curriculum is a ‘colonial make-up’ of foreign education. The current system of education here in the Philippines especially the private schools are more inclined to producing students who are equipped with the skills needed for globalization but are alien to their own country. Yes, academic and professional competence in the global village can be beneficial to the country in terms of economic advancement. However, the problem is that there is no balance between what Filipinos truly are as a race and what they need to know as part of a larger global community. As an observation, I think that students nowadays are not rooted in their own culture and history as Filipinos. Most often than not, the kind of students schools produce have a mentality of a foreigner. In school, they learn extensively of a lot of things such as world histories, architecture, literature, famous scientists, etc. Although they study Philippine history and literature, what they learn is, again, the ‘generics’ or the ‘mainstream’ which can be discriminating against indigenous peoples and Muslims history and culture. And this is both a danger and challenge for Philippine society. The government does not want to produce generation of students who are not rooted in the Filipino culture. So they have to adapt to the needs of the different sectors present in Philippine society. For the country, an individual’s rootedness in his own culture is much needed by the country because this is one way of instilling nationalist consciousness. This can be done gradually through shaping of a Filipino identity beginning in the elementary grades. Moreover, this ‘shaping process’ should be meaningfully linked to a person’s religious belief and value system. Because of this, I believe that the end result would be better. When education can establish a meaningful bridge between Filipino identity and a community’s religion, more and more Muslims and indigenous peoples would develop a sense of being a Filipino finally a part of the collective imagining of the nation. In my opinion, the reason for the Muslim’s apprehension toward the public school system and the nation as a whole is that they do not feel the sense of belongingness because the Philippine government has not been responding to their needs and rights to education. Since Islam is a vital part of their lives and unfortunately, the public school system does not offer this as a subject, they prefer to enroll their children in Madrasah that do not develop Muslims’ national consciousness of being a Filipino. Therefore, students who finish from these schools grow up to be Muslims and not Filipino. Likewise, I believe that the national curriculum is not a ‘generic’ or a ‘one-size-fits-all’ process of education. The Department of Education and teachers as well cannot just prescribe a general program of education to students who are socially differentiated with each other. If the Philippines want to envision the Filipino race as having a nationalist consciousness and wanting each and everyone to be part of the collective imagining of the nation, then it is better for the education sector to acknowledge different local languages, ethnic groups, indigenous knowledge system and practices, and religions. I believe that through this acknowledgement and inclusion, indigenous peoples and Muslims would gradually learn and love to be a part of this country. A person’s social identity is so much affected by the socio-cultural milieu. As a teacher, I should be aware of my students’ background so I could help them in strengthening the development of their identity as Filipino, as a member of a religious community, and as a member of a group. All these contribute to the formation of a person’s social identity and not one should be left out. Being to identify with a group and having a sense of belongingness all contribute to an individual’s over-all well-being and the nation’s well-being too.

Theory of employability

Theory of employability Chapter 1 1. Introduction The theory of employability can be difficult to identify; there can be many factors that contribute to the idea of being employable. Little (2001) suggests, that it is a multi-dimensional concept, and there is a need to distinguish between the factors relevant to the job and preparation for work. Morley (2001) however states that employability is not just about students making deposits in a bank of skills, Knight (2001) further considers the notion of employability to be: â€Å"A synergic combination of personal qualities, skills of various kinds and subject understanding†. (Knight and Yorke. 2001) The understanding of employability can be seen to be more complicated than the emphasis that Dearing (1997) has placed on students personal qualities, which suggests less emphasis on these qualities and more on generic academic skills. However, it could be assumed that the individuals personal skills could have considerable bearing on a particular students success in the employability stakes. The jobs market is rapidly changing with new sectors emerging, changing the nature of work and the way employees perceive the workplace. Graduates will have to be flexible and have the personal capabilities to manage changing and challenging work situations. Employers are looking to recruit graduates who fit into the organisational culture and utilise their abilities and skills to transform the company by facilitating innovative teamwork. (Harvey et al., 1997) According to Yorke and Knight (2004b) employability is seen to be influenced, amongst other things by students self efficacy beliefs, students self-theories and personal qualities. They highlight that what is of critical importance is the extent to which students feel that they can â€Å"make a difference†. This, importantly, not only broadens the focus to include a wider range of attributes required to be successful within employment but also includes the attributes required to manage ones career development in ways that will sustain ones employability. Its important to identify the significance of self-efficacy in influencing career intentions since the level of self-belief which individuals have in their ability to be successful in the quest of a particular career is likely to control which path is chosen. Individuals will require higher levels of self-efficacy if they are to select a route which is perceived as difficult, challenging or non-traditional. According to Bandura (1997) self-efficacy beliefs are â€Å"beliefs in ones capabilities to organize and execute the courses of action required to produce given attainments†; indeed, â€Å"peoples level of motivation, affective states, and actions are based more on what they believe than on what is objectively true† (Bandura, 1997, p.3). The literature review will look in turn first at, the employability definition, second, employability and transferable skills, third, employability attributes and finally, personal and self-efficacy attributes 1.1 Methodology and methods 1.2 Aims of the research project The main aims of the research project are to: Provide an evaluative summary of the literature on employability (through the provision of a literature review) Present a picture of graduate employability to employers Explain how self-efficacy has a major influence in the graduates employability profile. Make recommendations for further research on graduate employability. 1.3 Personal aims include: Completion of the compulsory component for the award of an Honours degree in Business Management Preparation for employment 1.4 The objectives of the research project are to discover: Identification of the definition of employability. How graduate employability is viewed by employers and Government. The role of universities in graduates employability attributes. Higher education influences on student personality. Employers approaches in recruiting graduates. How self-efficacy contributes to employability. 1.5 Literature search and review Secondary data will be accessed through Library and Information Service using a selection of tertiary and secondary information sources such as Blackboard, commercial bibliographic databases and Internet search engines and directories. Sources accessed and retrieved will be used to write the literature review. 1.6 Source critique of secondary data The criteria for source critique are authenticity, time relation, independency, and tendency avoidance. Authenticitymeans that the source should be correct and not misleading. Timerelationmeans that the source should be up-to-date. However this does not mean that all old sources should be rejected, as these can include valuable information that is still useful. Independency and tendency avoidanceimply that sources for example should be impartial and objective. The above criteria have been considered to greatest possible extent throughout the work with this paper. To ensure authenticity, the use of original secondary sources will be used, by doing this there is minimal risk of misinterpretations and there is opportunity for the reader to look up and evaluate the original source. To ensure authenticity and high quality of sources only peer-reviewed and well cited sources have been used. There is however a few sources that are not frequently cited. These though have been included to bring interesting and broader aspects to this work. 1.7 Scope and limitations of the study The literature search will aim to be comprehensive; however restricted access to primary literature, for example due to the commercialisation of some of the material sought, will exclude consideration of some sources in the actual literature review. 1.8 Statement of the Problem Which employability skills are desired in todays local workplace for an entry-level applicant? There is a suggestion from some graduate recruiters that students are not prepared for work. However, through efforts from universities and government directives is it the case that employers and universities have not synchronised the expectancy of what makes a graduate employable? Determining what employers want and matching the needs with under-graduate courses can only be achieved if universities obtain the specific needs articulated by potential employers, and keep up with the changes that are taking place in todays workplace, and produce a graduate ready for the world of work. 1. 9 Delimitations The specific delimitations imposed on the study depict what issues the study dealswithand what issues it covers. It therefore can be argued that this study focuses on hypothetical, rather than on practical argument; the picture given of different aspects of the processes of employability will be somewhat limited in comparison to an empirical/practical study of issues of the same processes. A study with a purely theoretical focus will inevitably tend to simplify some aspects of process studied. However, in the process of more or less ignoring certain aspects that otherwise might have contributed to the over-all portrayal of a biased reality, other aspects can be examined, described and analysed with further rigidity. Chapter 2 2 Literature Review 2.1 Literature Review Introduction Defining employability is a difficult process; as Hillage and Pollard (1998) suggests, it is a term used in a selection of contexts with a variety of meanings and can lack clearness and accuracy as concept. This literature review is an attempt to analyse the concepts of employability in regards to UK graduates. And further exploring the affects, self-efficacy has on students ability to be successful in the workplace. 2.2 Employability Baruch (2001) suggests that individuals assume responsibility for their ongoing employability while employers provide opportunities for development. This simplistic view of employability is where individuals manage their careers across employment opportunities and organisations, who in turn offer employment as long as the person is needed. Hillage and Pollard (1998), however, see employability as being capable of getting and fulfilling work through the ability to be self sufficient within the labour market, to realise the potential through sustainable employment. Further, their finding from their report for the DFES for developing a framework for policy analysis on employability, found that employability is about having the capability to gain initial employment, maintain that employment and if necessary find new employment. Knight and Yorke (2003), however, define Employability as: â€Å"A set of achievements, understandings and personal attributes that make individuals more likely to gain employment and be successful in their chosen careers.† (Knight and Yorke, 2003) Employability of a graduate is the predilection of the graduate to show attributes that employers predict will be required for the future successful functioning of their organisation.(Harvey, 1997) He further suggests that graduates will need to be flexible due to the increasing number of short time contracts and part-time work in the work place.(Harvey, 2000) From the HEIs perspective, employability is about producing graduates who are capable and able, Williams and Owen (1997) state the most perceived graduate qualities are the ability to learn, intelligence, ideas and imagination and communication skills. Billing (2003) adds employers want employees who are â€Å"effective communicators, problem solvers and critical thinkers, and can work well within a team†. (Billing, 2003) To understand employability requires a consideration of the various component parts and the different ways in which it is described and evaluated, the generic transferable skills nurtured through university, through to competencies required for employment. This suggests that employability is likely to be less about nurturing attributes, techniques or experiences just to enable a student to get a job; it is about learning with less emphasis on ‘employ and more on ‘ability. The prominence is on developing critical and reflective skills, with a view to empowering and enhancing the learner. Employment is a by-product of this enabling process (Harvey, 2003; Lees, 2002; Knight and Yorke, 2002). Therefore if employability is defined as the ‘set of personal attributes acquired by the under-graduate as a result of their investment in higher education, then what are the attributes that make graduates employable? Much of the literature broadly defines employability attributes as: key, core, generic, personal transferable skills, work/employment related skills (Holmes 2001). However Lees (2002) suggests this imprecision makes it difficult to pinpoint exactly what is meant by the term ‘employability skills. It can be argued, it is where various employers needs and individuals attributes meet. 2.3 What are employability skills? Competencies such as ability, aptitude and qualities developed in context that can be applied to an occupation or career can be identified as employability skills. These competencies might develop employability skills as a result of the teaching and learning process in higher education or from work experience. Employers generally see a good degree as an essential entry requirement to any graduate position. It is widely accepted for graduates to be competitive in the labour market, which is seeing a massive reduction in recruitment numbers due to the economic situation; they need to have additional skills to complement their academic achievement. Surveys by AGR, an independent voice of UK-based graduate recruiters, highlighted the following deficiencies in employability skills: ‘Softer skills such as team-working, leadership and project management Awareness of their chosen industry sector; commercial awareness and business/organisation understanding. (AGR, 2007) AGR state that more than 70% of their members use competency-based selection methods. They further suggest that graduates lacking these qualities, or evidence that they have them, will find it more difficult to secure graduate jobs. It is seen as one of the toughest challenges for employers to recruit from an increasing number of graduates, with employers realising that the future of their organisation depends on the selection of the best candidates to add value. The CIPD reports that since the 1980s the number of students entering HE has significantly increased by more than double, but further states, that even with this increase employers still have difficulty in recruiting the types of employees they need. (Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, 2007a, b, c) It is recognized that having a degree will no longer be enough to get a graduate job. There is evidence that graduate recruiters are looking beyond qualifications; they are looking for people with qualities to enable them to cope with the changing demands of the job in an uncertain and competitive world. Employability has been used as a performance indicator for higher education institutions (Smith et al, 2000) and represents a form of work specific (pro) active adaptability that consists of three dimensions: career identity, personal adaptability and social and human capital (Fugate et al, 2004). At the same time, Knight and Yorke (2004) have put forward the four broad and interlocking components of USEM account of employability: Understanding (of the subject discipline) Skilful practices in context Efficacy beliefs Meta-cognition Nabi (2003) says that employability is about graduates possessing an appropriate level of skills and attributes, and being able to use them to gain and remain in appropriate employment. From a human resource development view, employability is a concept that emerged through the 1990s along with a growing perception among employees that they cannot count on their employers for long-term employment. Employability is a promise to employees that they will have the skills to find new jobs quickly if their jobs end unexpectedly (Baruch, 2001). Prior to this, Harvey (2001) has defined employability in various ways from individual and institutional perspectives. Individual employability is defined as graduates being able to demonstrate the attributes to obtain jobs. Commonly, institutional employability relates to the employment rates of the university graduates. However, Harvey argued that employment outcomes of graduates are not an indicator of institutional employability. 2.4 Transferable Skills Amongst the numerous listings which identify the skills and attributes sought by employers, AGCAS Employability Briefing7(2003), suggests the most important are: â€Å"motivation and enthusiasm, interpersonal skills, team working, oral communication, flexibility and adaptability, initiative, productivity, problem solving, planning and organisation, managing own development and written communication†. (HEA, 2006) Atkins (1999) questions how transferable key skills are into employment contexts. Often, the skills most in demand by employers, as measured by the wide range of skills asked of future employees, are typically the least in supply, as measured by the skills, abilities, and competencies that university graduates bring to the job. Eraut (1994) sees transfer as a learning process in its own right, although this may be easier for skills in relation to objects, rather than the ‘softer skills of interacting with and managing people effectively. Brown (1999) believes that the learning development, and transferring the understanding of that learning, is most likely to be effective if the learning situation closely resembles the work place. Knight and Yorke (2000) suggest that for there to be a transfer of learning from one context to another, the learner needs to use that knowledge in a variety of different situations. From these comments, it would seem that practice in a number of contexts is fundamental for the development of employability skills and attributes. Dearing (1997) regarded key skills to consist of four components: communication, numeracy, information technology and learning how to learn. He further proposed that it was essential that these were developed at undergraduate level. The department for Education and Skills (DFES) adds teamwork and problem solving to this list. There are many different lists of key skills, although there is general agreement about the importance of communication, numeracy, teamwork, IT and problem solving (Dunne et al., 2000). These are considered to be generic skills as they represent skills that can be used to support study in any discipline. The possession of some key skills IT, numeracy, for example, will facilitate the acquisition of subject understanding (Yorke, 2001), as using IT for research will enable students to learn more about their discipline. 2.5 Personal Attributes There are many factors that cause organisations to change, but in this current economic downturn it seems the main problem is downsizing and redundancy, therefore the graduate will need to be equipped with the relevant skills and attributes to cope with a flexible and perhaps short term jobs market. Employers themselves want graduates who can quickly adapt to the organisational culture, and utilise their abilities and skills to facilitate innovative collaboration. (Harvey et al, 1997) The CBI (2008) highlights the importance employers place on the ‘softer skills that make people more employable. This means being a good team-worker, communicator and problem-solver is vital, and getting work experience goes a long way with a future employer. ‘Employability is having a set of skills, knowledge, understanding and personal attributes which make a person more likely to choose and secure occupations in which they can be satisfied and successful. (Dacre Pool Sewell, 2007) It is widely accepted that lifelong learning through acquiring new skills improves employability. However despite there being different concepts to analyse the make up of â€Å"employability†, the consensus of these is that there are three key qualities when assessing the employability of graduates: These are: 1) Job specific skills: reading, language, and numeric capacity, listening, written communication, oral presentation, global awareness, critical analysis, creativity and self-management. Lees (2002), Harvey (2001), Little (2001), Mason et al (2003). 2) Process skills: Problem solving, decision making, planning and delegating, understanding business and its commercial interests, prioritizing, team work, and negotiating. These skills are developed through work experience rather than through academia. 3) Personal qualities: AGR states that their research has shown that employers are looking for qualities that include â€Å"self-confidence, self-control, self- esteem, social skills, honesty, integrity, adaptability, flexibility, willingness to learn, emotional intelligence, stress tolerance, punctuality, efficiency and the ability to reflect.† These qualities are very much embedded with the personality type and shaped through life-experiences. Researchers have been seen to classify these qualities in various ways; the common denominator amongst them is that there is a distinction between core skills and soft skills, with soft skills being learned from different experiences. Martin (2007) states that: â€Å"Therefore, it is to be emphasized that an employer with employability focus is looking for an individual with potentials to be realized, rather than suitable skill sets.† (Martin, 1997) Further research from the UK government stated that: â€Å"Our higher education system is a great asset, both for individuals and the nation. The skills, creativity, and research developed through higher education are a major factor in our success in creating jobs and in our prosperity. Universities and colleges play a vital role in expanding opportunity and promoting social justice. The benefits of higher education for individuals are far-reaching. On average, graduates get better jobs and earn more that those without higher education.† (The Future of Higher Education White Paper. 2003, p4) The ‘Skills plus Project highlights and emphasises the importance of ‘personal qualities and their insertion into the model of employability, further stating how these can have a considerable bearing on student success. (Knight and Yorke, 2001, 2002, 2003; Yorke, 2001) From the work of Dweck (1999) and Bandura (1997), there is recognition of the two broad categories of self-belief: an individual/permanent/fixed belief, intelligence for example, that cannot be changed, and an incremental/variable/flexible belief that development is achievable and even likely. They further make assumptions that students with a fixed belief about their intelligence are likely to be discouraged by failure; this is derived from the belief that failure is a lack of intelligence. From this assumption it could be fair to say that these students may avoid more demanding work for fear of disappointment. On the contrary, students with a malleable self-belief are more likely to characterise failure to a lack of effort, and believe that poor performance should lead to further learning. ‘Hence, it is the learning that becomes a source of self-esteem. (Dweck1999. Bandura, 1997) A range of cognitive, social, emotional and behavioural sub-skills will not be enough on their own, but these skills will have to be integrated into the challenges faced. (Yorke, 2001) Therefore, perceived self-efficacy or capability will play an important role in career choice and personal development. This in turn is essential in the individuals employability. Personal qualities are also important in the acquirement of subject understanding and the improvement of skills. â€Å"A willingness to learn, often from mistakes, implies a preparedness to tolerate a degree of stress in order to achieve success† (Knight and Yorke, 2001; Yorke, 2001). The self-construct characteristic of self-confidence enables the individual to have a positive, realistic view of their selves or in situations they find themselves. This characteristic refers to the individuals expectation of their ability to achieve, an influential factor in ensuring personal potential is realised. (Stevens, 2005) This statement suggests that a person high in self-confidence has a pragmatic view of themselves and their abilities, which gives them resolution in their endeavours. According to Neill (2005), self-esteem and self-efficacy in combination is what constitute self-confidence. Neill (2005) defines self-esteem as a general feeling of self-worth or self-value. It is widely recognised that an individual with low self-esteem believes that they are insignificant or insufficient, while a person who has high self-esteem believes otherwise. Self-efficacy on the other hand is the belief in ones capacity to succeed at tasks. Self-efficacy according to Neill (2005) can be general or specific where general self-efficacy is belief in ones general capacity to handle tasks, and specific self-efficacy refers to beliefs about ones ability to perform specific tasks in certain things. Self-efficacy is also sometimes used to refer to situation specific self-confidence. From this, academic self-confidence can be viewed as self-efficacy. (Zimmerman, 1990) There is a close link between self-efficacy, self-confidence and self-esteem in providing the relationship between understanding, perception, skills, practice and personal attributes and employability. According to Bandura (1995, p. 2): â€Å"Perceived self-efficacy refers to beliefs in ones capabilities to organize and execute the course of action required to manage prospective situations. Efficacy beliefs influence how people think, feel, motivate themselves and act†. (Bandura, 1995) He further suggests that there are several sources of efficacy beliefs relevant to employability: Mastery experiences. Vicarious experiences provided by social models. Social persuasion. Mastery experiences occur when people are given the opportunity to try a particular task themselves, such as work experience. â€Å"Mastery experiences are the most effective way of creating a strong sense of self-efficacy, and so play a vital role within employability.† (Bandura, 1995) Vicarious learning occurs when learners decide, after viewing the actions of others, what types of actions will be effective or non-effective for their own performance of a task. The closer the others are in similarity to themselves, the more effective the experiences are. The attitudes and behaviours of other people or groups frequently change our own attitudes and behaviours. Conforming ones attitude and behaviour to a person or group who can exercise authority or to an influential power, is a sensible strategy for receiving further benefits as a basic social skill in general. Social persuasion occurs when people are convinced that they possess the capabilities needed to succeed in a particular activity. This encourages them to put in more effort and stay motivated in order to achieve success. . Bandura (1995, p. 17) further expands his discussion by saying that: â€Å"A major goal of formal education should be to equip students with the intellectual tools, efficacy beliefs, and intrinsic interests to educate themselves throughout their lifetime†. (Bandura, 1995) It can be presumed from Banduras work that by providing the opportunities for in learning of mastery experiences, vicarious experiences and social persuasion, and encouraging reflection on and evaluation of these experiences, self-efficacy can be increased. A graduate who believes they can do whatever is necessary is far more likely to gain a position and be successful in whatever occupations they choose than a graduate who does not have that self-belief. If self-efficacy is seen as an idea that one has the ability in a particular situation, then self-confidence could be seen as the way this is shown to the outside world. Self-confidence appears to be something that can be seen from a persons manner and behaviour. According to Goleman (1998, p. 68) people with self-confidence are able to present themselves with self-assurance and have â€Å"presence†. It has been suggested that self-confidence can be either a trait or something that is specific to certain situations. Norman and Hyland (2003) point out that if self-confidence is seen as a trait, which personality theorists suggest are relatively stable over time, then those who lack self-confidence would be unlikely to develop it through a learning activity. If, however, if it is viewed as a position specific concept, then it is possible for students to enhance their levels of self-confidence for any given situation. An increase in self-efficacy should be reflected by a boost in demonstrated self-confidence. As a sub-set of employability skills, Meta skills can enable the student to expand and exploit the ranges of other skills they have developed. There is an understanding that reflection is a key graduate skill that can contribute to employability, the belief that the employability of students will be enhanced by their ability to reflect on their own learning. Knight and Yorke (2003b) describe employability as being a blend of self confidence and of meta-cognition, which includes students ability to be reflective about their own progress. Chapter 3 3 Discussion 3.1 Define Employability? Personal attributes and attitudescan be connected to an individuals personality and educational background. According to Dench (1997) examples of attributes that are of great significance for employers are honesty, integrity, and reliability, generally fitting in, and playing the game. However, it is essential not to generalise since companies usually search for different attitudes and attributes. (Dench, 1997) Organisations generally put great effort into finding future employees with a personality profile that fit into the organisation, while others are more concerned with finding people with particular job experience skills. (Dench, 1995) Due to the economic climate and the need for employers to recruit the ‘right individuals for their organisations there has been a emphasis on personal attributes and skills. However, researchers have shown difficult to unifying a common vocabulary. Among the most common terms used are behavioural, generic, transferable, core and key skills. These skills give indications of an individuals behaviour and how the person could function in the workplace. However it is recognised that personal skills involve abilities regarding teamwork, problem solving, negotiation and communication. From the research literature it is argued whether or not that these attributes are taught or increased. There are arguments stating that skills are innate, while others claim it is a matter of training. Nevertheless, something that many researchers agree upon is that service is becoming increasingly important due to, for instance, customer demands, more knowledgeable customers, and increased quality che ck-ups. (Dench, 1997) Skills are perceived, analysed and measured differently by different people. Storey (2007) suggests â€Å"it is about individual attributes and capacities people have for performing certain activities†. 3.2 Who values transferable skills and qualities? The review of the available literature has shown that graduate employers are looking for graduates with a range of transferable skills: skills that can be demonstrated in selection processes. The research undertaken by Harvey et al. (1997, p. 63) to establish the values placed on skills in the world of work concluded that: â€Å"There are a large number of graduates looking for jobs and employers, as we have seen, no longer recruit simply on the basis of degree status. A degree might be necessary or desirable but employers are looking for a range of other attributes when employing and retaining graduates†. In the recruitment of graduates, the most common perceived graduate qualities are an ability to learn, intelligence, ideas and imagination, and good communication skills. The DfEE (1997, p. 2) endorses such standards and attitudes held by graduate recruiting organisations, and it further considers that national targets for education and training support its aim of improving the UKs international competitiveness by raising standards and attainment levels in education and training. To be part of a flexible and adaptable workforc