Samskara: Evolution of Self

Samskara: Evolution of Self The novel Samskara: A Rite for a Dead Man, by U. R. Anatha Murthy, tells the story of a Brahmin village community, an agrahara, and the revered Brahmin man Praneshacharya who lives there. Central to the novel is its namesake, the concept of samskara. Adjacent to the title page, the author supplies the many definitions of the samskara, including: â€Å"making perfect†, â€Å"refinement†, â€Å"the realizing of past perceptions†, and â€Å"any rite or ceremony† just to name a few.Throughout the novel, these various understandings of samskara play into the lives of the Brahmins living in the agrahara of the protagonist. Particularly for Praneshacharya, he goes through a sort of rite of passage throughout the novel, in a way his own samskara. The novel begins immediately with the death of Naranappa, a Brahmin member of the agrahara who had long abandoned his orthodox Brahmin dharma. Naranappa, though deceased at the outset of the no vel, is a major character, who acts as a polar opposite to Praneshacharya.Naranappa breaks all tradition from the Brahmins of the agrahara. He eats meat, he drinks alcohol, and he even disregards the caste system, sleeping with Chandri, a lowcaste woman. In his life, Naranappa defied the rigid moral code of the Brahmins, and then in death through his samskara, his death rites, he challenges the traditions of the agrahara, and in doing so exposes the samskara of the local Brahmins, or lack thereof. Naranappa’s death triggers a comical confusion of Brahmin traditional funeral rites.Having essentially renounced his brahminhood through his conduct and going so far as threatening to become muslim, Naranappa could well have been excommunicated from the Brahmin community; however, since he was not, it was understood that he must be cremated by Brahmins, lest any pollution enter upon the ceremony. This was problematic for two men, Lakshmana and Garuda, who wanted to acquire the gold jewelry donated by Naranappa’s wife Chandri towards the death rites. In this way, the samskara, or refinement, of these Brahmin men is called into question through Naranappa’s samskara.Praneshacharya is affected in a very different way by Naranappa’s death. Having lived the life of an orthodox Brahmin all his life, studying the scriptures and such, Praneshacharya knows only of the ascetic lifestyle of purity, avoiding pollution at all times, learned from scriptures and tradition. His samskara, his perfecting, involved not lived experience but recitations of scripture. He even reads erotic scriptural passages yet understands not of the sexual compulsions they relate to.However, through his stressful dealings with Naranappa’s death rites, he has a sudden reversal moment of his thinking in his experience with Chandri. This moment is the beginning of his samskara, which takes his through various stages of self-reflection, thinking through his past (samskara), until he ultimately decides to return to the village, yet it is unclear what he plans to do once there. By the end of the novel, Praneshacharya does not entirely change his way of thinking to that of Naranappa’s. Indeed, he is still very different in personality, however there are many overlaps.Praneshacharya does many things which are strictly forbidden by his orthodox Brahmin Mahdva background. He sleeps with a lowcaste woman, Chandri, also the widowed wife of Naranappa, herein lying one major connection between the two men. He also frinks coffee in town with Putta, and even eats food at the temple during the time he should be fasting after his wife’s death. Praneshacharya seems to accept these violations as his decisions, and therefore his identity. By identifying with these experiences, he is confirming his experience as samskara, a rite of passage.He does however still fear many aspects of his anti-brahmin lifestyle as reflected through his experiences with Putta in the town. He fears the cock-fighting ring and the demoniac attitudes of those involved. He also still cannot bear the pollution of his unwashed hands after leaving the temple meal. Clearly, Praneshacharya is in a state of transition in the novel, and indeed it is part of his samskara. The final line of the novel suggests even he does not know where he stands, just that it isn’t as before.

Morality and Ralph Essay

1. Dominant impression: Genuine goodness is rare and can even overtake the sense of order or of savagery. Ralph, who represents order, and Jack, who represents barbarism, both try to look for Simon (representing human goodness), but he doesn’t follow either of them, only his own heart. Genre: Fiction 2. Allegory. Ralph is order, shown when he says â€Å"I’ll go on with the shelter†. Shelter, to safety, leadership, thinks about others’ as well, not just himself. Jack is savagery, shown when he says â€Å"If I could only get a pig! †. He wants to hunt, resorts to his gut instinct, selfishness, bloodlust. Also this is characterization. 3. Graphic/visual details of Simon’s physique sets Simon as a genuine, Christ-like character. â€Å"an air of purpose† Christ’s purpose is to save people. â€Å"Skinny boy, chin pointed, eyes so bright† all a sense of brilliance and deep understanding of human nature to its core. â€Å"Feet bare like Jack’s†, comparison to Jack. Like Jack, Simon relies on his gut instinct. But instead of being bad, it is good. â€Å"frowning at the little house† observant. This is also characterization of Simon as someone caring and genuine. 4. Antithesis between Ralph and Jack. â€Å"If I could only get a pig! † (Jack) vs â€Å"I’ll go on with the shelter† (Ralph) juxtaposed to show contrast between the two as being very different in morality. Jack is savagery, Ralph is order. Jack is instinct, Ralph is reason. Jack is selfish, Ralph is altruistic. 5. â€Å"They looked at each other, baffled, in love and hate†. Juxtaposition â€Å"love† and â€Å"hate†. To emphasize their differences, contrast, antithesis, etc. They also both respect (? ) each other for being â€Å"leaders† but in a very different way. 6. â€Å"shouting, and splashing and laughing† repetition, establishing rhythm in the actions. Set the atmosphere of the actions as being continuous and numerous and fun. 7. â€Å"They walked along, two continents of experience and feeling, unable to communicate†. Referring to Jack and Ralph, this shows that they are both â€Å"continents† or leaders, and they both possess â€Å"experience and feeling†, but in very different ways. Contrasting mentalities: Ralph is reason, Jack is instinct. Atmosphere: conflicting (feelings and experiences), tense. ? which makes them unable to communicate with each other because they are so different morally. 8. Change in atmosphere when describing Simon, to something more open and mystical. â€Å"delightfully, bright, almost concealing†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Shows that Simon is different from the other two. He is more genuine, and good to his core. â€Å"Bathe† ? symbol for cleansing?

A Clean Well Lighted Place- Ernest Hemmingway Summary

â€Å"A Clean, Well-Lighted Place† Theme Analysis â€Å"I wouldn't want to be that old. An old man is a nasty thing. † â€Å"Not always. This old man is clean. He drinks without spilling. Even now, drunk. Look at him. † -Ernest Hemmingway The story written by Ernest Hemmingway tells of a deaf old man who is in conversation with others at a cafe in the late night hours. The others in the story’s setting share a significant difference of age and opinion. It seems they depict their ages as stages of life. The story contains a lot of noteworthy symbols, behaviors and decisions that give us hints as to what the story is supposed to represent. Characters within the story are divided into four age groups, each having different characteristics and behaviors, however all waiting for their time to in which they face the inevitable and depart from the physical realm of living and into what follows. The old man is described as a deaf and depressed man who tried to take his life away a week prior the story’s setting. It is said in the story the man is financially stable and is a frequent guest in the cafe that is well lighted and clean, unlike bars or bodegas . The story also is able to show the old man’s loneliness, sadness, and distress. Also, the waiters are sharing significant differences between them; the young waiter is in a hurry to leave work and go home to his wife, he is unsympathetic for the old man, he shows a disliking to him, and displays disgust towards the idea of getting old and the old man himself. It seems as if the young bartender has no appreciation for the old man life and holds no regard to it. Unlike the older bartender who tries to understand the old man’s condition and is curious of his suicide attempt. The older waiter himself is not in the hurry, after leaving work he goes to the bar to get a drink and then finally falls asleep upon the dawn. The last characters, however not as significant but symbolic, are a young soldier and a young girl who are just strolling through the street at night. The story reveals interesting patterns based on the age of characters. The young couple strolling through the street at night gives us as an image of how young people are free and independent. Having their whole life in front of them, they explore their surroundings, strive for new experiences and enjoy life without taking a break to stop and think where it is leading. The young bartender is a described to be in the next level in life. He is probably one or perhaps two decades older then the soldier and young girl. Hemmingway gives us indirect hints of the characteristics in which a middle stage life in an adult would exhibit. The young bartender is in a hurry to leave the cafe and go home to his wife. â€Å"I wouldn’t want to be that old† he says during the dialog with another bartender. At some point, upset about having to serve the old man who prevents him to close up the cafe and go home he even says, â€Å"He should have killed himself last week. † It shows how this character is captivated by own needs and wants. It shows his life as having purpose or meaning, time for himself, and an outlook for the future of him and his family. Perhaps, at this point of life, Hemmingway tries to tell us that people are confined within their own personal spaces, living a fast-paced life and trying to accomplish as much as possible with no little regard towards others. They do not look towards life’s philosophy and take that approach very lightly carefully avoiding the truth behind life, because they’re simply disgusted by it. Conceivably, materialistic good is a measure of happiness at that age. The conversation between him and the other bartender reveals that in his mind despair over life couldn’t be caused by anything but money. When the older bartender tells him he’s got everything – confidence, youth and work, the young bartender simply replies â€Å"Come on. Stop talking nonsense. . . .† The older bartender, no doubt, is closer emotionally to the old man. He is far from being in a hurry. The sight of the financially well old man who frequently stays until the last possible drink at the cafe, and has tried to commit suicide week before captivates him. In a way he can relate to the old man, and views him as someone who, like him, has contributed his time and life by years. He questions the younger bartender about circumstances around his suicide attempt as well as trying to defend the old man from arrogant opinions expressed by his co-worker. Why didn’t you let him stay and drink? † the old waiter asks the younger bartender when he refused to serve the old man anymore even though the time for closing was an hour away. Then he concludes â€Å"I am of those who do not want to go to bed. [I am] with all those who need a light for the night . . . We are two of different kinds. † The author leaves it to our imagination to interpret what the bartender mea nt by the â€Å"light† for the night however the distinction between two characters that is linked to their age is significant. The older waiter is slowly getting through the stage of life preceding that of the old lonely man. The â€Å"light† might be a symbol for the hope or motivation for the life to continue. Younger characters of the story did not have a need for that hope as they had everything – confidence, youth, work and most importantly – the time. The old man is the most important figure in the story. Even though he is not part of conversation and does not say more than simple words, he is a symbol of the last stage of one’s life. Hemmingway shows that stage as depressing, a lonely time in one’s life. He shows the old man as having realized the meaningless of life, the old man’s need to move on. The suicide attempt was significant as well as the fact that the old man was deaf, because it shows the man’s loneliness, his need to be with others, and is desperate attempt to end the silence, he feels he is confined to his own lonely thoughts by being deaf and wants nothing more than to end the silence with death, because death or life means nothing to him. The story is constructed in a very enlightening way; by including the different age groups and the different opinions of life and its worth to others. It is interesting to see the contrasting views of the individuals as they journey through life and all its experiences. Take the epigraph above; it shows to vivid contrast between the old and the young bartender. The young bartender shows his disgust in getting old, and his avoidance of it, while the old bartender in his quote shares his appreciation for maturity and the life’s worth. It is something to take from this story that as we all live to understand life and its meaning with different views and opinions, we share one thing in common and that is the inevitable.

Female Offenders Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Female Offenders - Essay Example For some time, many social scientists have ignored the diversity of the women's prison population and the differential treatment to which women of various backgrounds have been subjected. These omissions have affected the type of information available on women in the criminal justice system as it relates exclusively to the issue of gender. Largely, the study of criminology has treated female offenders with some measure of indifference. This is derived from tradition culture that have been conceived in maintain esteem for men's autonomy, intelligence and force of character while disdaining women for their weaknesses of compliance and passivity. In the essay of Kerry Brave entitled "Crime and Gender" (2003), she enthuses that women who conform as pure, obedient daughters, wives and mothers benefit men and society (Feinman, 1994: 16). Those women who don't, that is are non-conforming, may simply be one who questions established beliefs or practices, or one who engages in activities associated with men, or one who commits a crime. These women are doubly damned and doubly deviant (Bottoms, 1996: 1). They are seen as 'mad' not 'bad' (Lloyd, 1995: 36). These behaviours frequently lead to interpretations of being mentally abnormal and unstable. Those doing the defining, by the very act, are never defined as 'other', but are t he norm. As 'men' are the norm, women are deviant. Women are defined in reference to men (Lloyd, 1995: xvii). In the words of Young (1990), 'sexual difference is one of the ways in which normal is marked out from deviant'. So why do these differences exist within the criminal justice system and society as a whole In order to understand why offending and punishment differs between genders it is important to acknowledge and analyse past perceptions, theories and perspectives from predominant sociologists and criminologists of that time towards women in society. Given the emergence of a psychology of women in the mainstream of research and practice, Miller and Trapani (1995) suggested that it is critical that correctional educational practices become responsive to adolescent females. While in the past, few research studies focused on the needs and characteristics of adolescent female offenders, there is some evidence from recent investigations suggesting that adolescent females have unique needs. Most correctional educational programs, assessment procedures, and curricula have been developed on a knowledge base obtained from studies conducted with adolescent male offenders. The profile of the adolescent female now emerging from psychological, educational and sociological research suggests that programmatic changes are necessary if we are to meet the special needs of these females. Although research on adolescent females is a relatively new area of study, much information is now available that points to differences between female and male adolescents. Research has revealed that adolescent females experience more episodes of depression throughout adolescence than do males (Rutter, 1986), attempt suicide more frequently (Rosenthal, 1981), and exhibit lower levels of resilience (Block, 1990). As adolescence progresses, females' self-esteem becomes diminished, whereas young males' self-concept and self-esteem improve (American Association of University Women, 1991). Adolescent females

The California Center for Land and Water Stewardship Article

The California Center for Land and Water Stewardship - Article Example The need for conservation and land planning is especially necessary for Southern California’s desert-like conditions. The first goal is â€Å"Seek out opportunities and grant funding for projects relating to land and water conservation, stewardship, planning, and design in California†. This goal makes sense. It is also essential this goal is first. Funding for CCLAWS is necessary for the project to work. CCLAWS finds funding from contracted projects, grants, consultant and consultation coordination of a CPP Clearinghouse, professional education, workshops and certifications, development and private support activities, database clearinghouse and community information resources, community workshops and education. These funding sources will help fund projects regarding land and water conservation, stewardship, planning, and design. This type of fundraising makes the outlook for this organization good. The second goal is â€Å"Support the work of, and increase collaboration between, academic departments and units, private organizations, and public agencies with goals similar to those of the Center without duplicating efforts†. This goal also makes sense. If goals and projects are doubled than resources will be wasted. Individual projects can receive enough funding without inefficient waste. There is too much waste today in funding projects. A lack of communication is one of the main reasons. If all parties will communicate, then unnecessary funding of projects already funded. The last goal states â€Å"Through education, outreach, and advocacy encourage respect for Southern California’s rivers, railways, open space, and nature from multiple perspectives and foster sustainability by balancing natural, social, and economic systems†. It is easier to fund campaigns that educate the public on the damage littering can do, then fund a project to clean up a polluted river or park.

Factors Influencing Health Seeking Behaviors of African Americans Research Paper

Factors Influencing Health Seeking Behaviors of African Americans experiencing Stroke Symptoms A Systematic Review - Research Paper Example According to Wiley (2009), only 56.3% of African American respondents identified brain as the organ where stroke occurs. Among stroke symptoms, hemiparesis, speech disturbance, headache and blurred vision were the best recognized. Primary risk factors for stroke were correctly identified and included hypertension, family history of stroke, obesity, smoking and cocaine abuse. From the perspective on study results, Wiley et al (2009) found significant deficiencies in stroke literacy among African American study sample. Because of poor stroke literacy in Wiley's et al study (2009), participants were not likely to activate EMS. Consequently, poor literacy on stroke symptoms among African American population jeopardizes the effectiveness of early prevention therapy. King et al (2001) in their study aimed to determine whether African American individuals suffered from stroke (n=103) presented for treatment within the first 3 hours, a critical period needed for effective treatment with recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rt-PA). Through Stroke Survey Tool, King et al (2001) determined that an average time needed for African American victims to present for treatment constituted 24.68 hours.

MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTING Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTING - Essay Example external and internal factors. These factors have redefined how management practices or functions are performed across business organizations. In the writings by Burgstahler et al. (2007), they stated that the transformations have largely affected the decision making process since there is a change in the management structure, which has integrated new roles as well as position holders. In addition, technology is also been increasingly applied in performing management functions. Despite the continuous transformation in the field of management, the constant variable has been the fact that accounting figures have consistently played a key role in the decision making process or rather they have consistently been used to decide the direction that the company should take. The strong reliance on accounting figures to perform management functions has led to the development of management accounting or control systems that were specifically designed to help the management of business organizat ions in the process of control, product costing and evaluation of management’s performance. However, in a seminal article, published by Johnson and Kaplan (1987) they both argued that management accounting systems had lost their relevance since they were inadequate for the modern accounting environment. In particular, they succinctly summarized the inadequacy of management account systems to cope with the demands of modern management by stating the information they generated was â€Å"too late, too aggregated, and too distorted to be relevant for managers’ planning and control decisions (Ezzamel et al. 1990). This present study mainly seeks to discuss the above statement in relation to today’s environment. It will begin with a literature review of the main topic of discussion and even a review on Johnson and Kaplan’s criticisms. Secondly, it will state the methodology that was applied in collected secondary data that were used in this study. In the third part before concluding, the study will conduct a critical analysis on the Johnson and Kaplan’s argument. 2.0 Literature review 2.1 Accounting With reference to the writings by Alkaraan and Northcott (2006), they stated that accounting as a practice focuses on recording, measuring, and communicating financial facts to concerned parties who use the facts for varying reasons. Roslender and Hart (2003) noted that in the present business environment, accounting largely focuses on the preparation of accounting reports and less on bookkeeping, which has been reduced to fairly a routine process because of the increased computerization and introduction of more effective systems of internal control. The users and uses of

Team Leadership Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Team Leadership - Case Study Example Furthermore, the team lacks excellence standards through which individual performance can be assessed. Individual performance should be established at each level in order to identify and correct any wrong doings (Martin 253). With lack of such essential qualities of effective teamwork, it can really be very difficult for the team to attain its goals. Jim should intervene immediately if he wants his team to achieve effectively and with ease its goals. Since his group comprises of individuals with very high expertise, Jim can utilize this opportunity and intervene from within. As an executive leader he should have a clear SWOT analysis of his team in order to approach situations strategically. This will help him to utilize every opportunity/strength the team is exposed to appropriately while avoiding the team weaknesses as well as overcoming the threats. Nevertheless, his intervention should be task oriented even though relational actions may also come into play at times (Martin 254). Jim’s group seems to have no problem with their leader but rather have a problem with what they are expected to do. Jim should define to each individual clearly what he expects of him/her and the exact goal they are expected to achieve. ... Structuring here implies that members’ strengths as well as weaknesses needs to be studied in order for each member to be allocated what they can do best. Decision making is also of equal importance in the process of leading, as it facilitates the process of attaining results. Jim should also ensure that standards are maintained at every step through a constant monitoring and evaluation process. A close analysis of the group will enable him to identify any misunderstandings within the group, and rectify them before they become a major problem. Local Cancer Health Team Teamwork is all about proper communication, listening and understanding each other. Without these qualities group effectiveness which plays a critical role in teamwork is not going to be achieved. Team effectiveness aims at ensuring that tasks are accomplished within the stipulated time, as well as maintaining a strong teamwork. This team may actually fail to accomplish their vision due to poor developments withi n the team. Each individual should be accorded respect in what she/he has been allocated in the team and no one should feel superior over the other. Since within this team other members feel that they know more than others, the team is likely to lack cohesiveness as conflicts may arise (Martin 255). In this team problems are arising from both internal tasks and relations since the two exist co-currently. Conflicts resulting from tasks are likely to spread to internal relations where other team members will feel undermined. As much as it is team work, no one should be looked down upon since it is expected that duty allocation is based on specialty. Doctors in this team however are overstepping their mandate to an extent that they are

Corporate Governance Dilemma Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Corporate Governance Dilemma - Essay Example The ‘shareholding’ paradigm involved the maximization of shareholders’ value while the ‘stakeholding’ paradigm involved satisfaction of stakeholders’ interests. This created the conceptual dichotomy over ‘individual liberty’ and ‘justice for everyone’ when making important business decisions (Sullivan and Conlon, 1997). A prime example of this decision making model is the successful multinational furniture manufacturer Ikea (IKEA, 2012) . While starting as a small family business in Sweden, it gradually became the world’s largest home furnishing retailer with a reputation of low prices and novel design. The company’s internal costs were attributed to the fact most of the products were manufactured in factories from Asian and eastern European countries. However, in early 1998 a scandal ensued stating that Ikea was tolerating appalling working conditions in its suppliers’ factories in Eastern Eur ope and quickly signed an agreement that would stop exploitation of the workers. Later that year, a TV documentary was shown depicting images of child labour and unhealthy working conditions in factories in India producing IKEA textiles and garments causing uproar in Sweden. Despite the subsequent debates and campaigns from the Socialist Party (SP), the company failed to acknowledge the problem and refused inspection by third parties. Ikea also didn’t adopt the Rugmark foundation label, which validated the eradication of child labour and was already adopted by many companies at that time. Customer complaints in the following year ensued and yellow cards were signed but in response the company still claimed that it would take measures for child labour but didn’t satisfy the SP’s demands for proper control. This in turn caused the intensification of the campaigns spreading to other European countries like Austria and Belgium, ultimately leading to the signing of 5 3.300 red cards on the 3rd of June 1999 which banned the purchase of any Indian rugs or textiles from Ikea. The result was the compliance of Ikea on the 7th of July 1999 with the terms of the SP, which involved stronger measures against child labour and hiring a third party firm to evaluate the process. Ikea also adopted a code of conduct in September 2000, called ‘The Ikea Way of Purchasing Home Furnishing Products’ (IWAY), clearly stating against forced labour and hazardous work conditions (IKEA, 2012). On one hand, Ikea’s practices displayed a non-professional approach to the company’s problems which was the cause of the subsequent campaigns and product sales ban. The denial of the problem’s existence significantly damaged company’s consumer market by raising questions and awareness of the manufacturing processes of the products. Additionally, the failure of taking initiatives and allowing third party evaluation, raised criticisms for ot her practices such as tax evasion, further damaging its reputation. The image of a child-friendly reputation was critically damaged which might affected the sales and market expansion of the company. On the other hand, despite the delayed response from Ikea, various initiatives were taken to restore the company’s image. In addition to introducing the IWAY code of conduct against forced la

Exchange Transfer Funds- BRZU Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Exchange Transfer Funds- BRZU - Research Paper Example There is no assurance that the resources will achieve their aim (Direxion, 2014). The fund, under usual situations, creates long trends or series by investing at least eighty percent of its possessions in the securities that include the index and/or economic instruments that give leveraged and unleveraged vulnerability to the index. Index is premeditated to determine the performance of the big and middle cap subdivisions of the Brazil equity market, considering an estimated 85% of the free float-amended marketplace capitalization in Brazil (Wagner, 2012). The fund is non-varied. The Fund requires daily leveraged venture results comparative to its index and is dissimilar and riskier than likewise benchmarked EFTs that does not apply leverage. Consequently, the Fund is not anticipated to be utilized by, and is not suitable for, business investors who do not propose to keenly monitor and control their portfolios (Frush, 2012). The search of day by day leveraged investment objectives means that the gain of the Fund for a phase longer than a complete trading day may allow no similarity to 300% of the benefit of its index for such bigger period since the cumulative return of the Fund is the creation of the sequences of daily leveraged outcomes for each business day (Direxion, 2014). The path of the standard during the extended period could be at least as significant to the Fund’s gain for the r extended period as the collective return of the standard for the pertinent longer period, particularly in periods of market instability. Further, the outcome for investors that venture in projects for periods less than a complete trading day or for a phase different than an exchange period day will not be the establishment of the result of the Fund’s settled objective and the function of the objective index for the full business day. From the fund analysis, it has become more and more evident over the

Theory of Knowledge Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Theory of Knowledge - Essay Example Some areas of knowledge do require reason in order to functions, like mathematics and the natural sciences, while some others, like art and history, do not, because they are based on humans, which are, by nature, partly irrational. This inability to apply reason to all aspects of knowledge means that in order to get a better understanding of these areas, we must use different ways of knowing. (Wok). There are four Ways of Knowing (WoK) perception, emotion, reason, and language. One is supposed to use the Ways of Knowing and the Areas of Knowledge to acquire, perceive, and apply knowledge. To understand the world and to achieve knowledge, people have developed a number of ways of knowing. These are well known as perception, emotion, language as well as reason. The question "each and every other way of knowing are controlled by means of language" is a statement that needs more investigation as well as reflection. Knowledge can be said to be information that the brain has received that meets a certain set of criteria. When someone states that they know something they must also believe that, that something is so. A word is a unit of language that carries meaning and consists of one or more morphemes which are linked more or less tightly together, and has a phonetical value. In general a word will have a root or stem and zero or extra affixes. Words can be joint to make phrases, clauses, and well structured sentences. A word that consists of two or more stems combined together is known as a compound.

Virtuoso Teams Essay Example for Free

Virtuoso Teams Essay In a day-by-day shrinking world where new organizations are popping up like mushrooms on a wet forest floor, what can be the one factor that sets you apart from the rest? The common answers would be better technology, brilliant strategies, great work atmospheres and many other such options. While one can’t deny the importance of all this, isn’t it obvious that every business unit on the planet is aware of these factors and trying in their own way to improve upon them. In a world where complex and intricately-woven ideas generally sound â€Å"smarter† it is often a simple and honest idea that does the trick. While thinking of better ways of resource utilization and profit maximization, we often end up overlooking the most conveniently available resource available to us- the â€Å"human resource†. While human capital management and human resource development (HRD) may now sound like run-of-the-mill terms, companies can take these concepts beyond their conventional boundaries to chart new stories of success. â€Å"Virtuoso teams† are the call of the future. When big, discontinuous change is required, a different sort of team and leadership is needed. These Virtuoso Teams make the difference between real success and just achieving another modest result. What are these â€Å"virtuoso teams†? Are they the proverbial genies from an Arabian Nights story that can make all our problems disappear? Well, not quite so fantastic but somewhat equally efficient, these teams are an elite squad- Revolutionaries that are catalysts for big change. They are utterly unique in the ambitiousness of their goals, the intensity of their conversations, the degree of their esprit, and the extraordinary results they deliver. Not bound by the usual rules of the game, these teams comprising of brilliant individuals working together and yet always competing with one another are dynamic and charismatic in their approach. In a world where there is no dearth of talent or skill, the star achievers are no more content with their accomplishments. There is always a hunger for more. Self-actualization needs makes a majority of workers hop jobs in the search for better prospects. The talent-drain problem is one of the major causes of concern in all major companies. A great idea would be to group such star achievers in teams and put before them the toughest challenges whereby they can not only use their exceptional individual skills but also collaborate for doing something truly remarkable. Traditionalists criticize such teams branding them â€Å"too risky, too temperamental, too ego-centric, and too difficult to control†. But they forget an important fact, the innovators and change agents in today’s world are individuals with these very same characteristics. What if Mark Zuckerberg and his team of innovators had preferred â€Å"playing it safe† instead of charging ahead with their self-belief. The world never would have shrunk so close as it has through â€Å"FACEBOOK†. We may call people like Zuckerberg mavericks and temperamental even ego-centric but who can deny that feeding one’s ego is what actually keeps the crà ¨me-de-la-crà ¨me striving for continued excellence. Virtuoso Teams tell some of the most compelling and wide-ranging stories of remarkable team leadership ever assembled. These teams are intense and intimate. They assume that their customers are every bit as smart and sophisticated as they are, so they don’t cater to a stereotypical â€Å"average.† Leaders of virtuoso teams put a premium on great collaboration—and they’re not afraid to encourage creative confrontation to get it. Top companies are realizing that such teams not only engage some brilliant minds in realizing their true potential but help the company as a whole do much better. Other employees are motivated and work harder to be a part of this elite team, top management can delegate responsibilities to these teams and be sure of effective solutions and the team members have what they crave for most- jobs that challenge them to keep doing their best. The future of business enterprises can be defined through proper handling of these virtuoso teams.

Contextual Environment For Business Commerce Essay

Contextual Environment For Business Commerce Essay This article talks about External Environmental forces which force the organization to change their business strategy and its effect directly or indirectly on their business. This article also reviews the current and future demographic and culture trends changing in UK. In this article you will find out the PESTLE and forecasting techniques of Micro soft in detail according to UK Market with SWOT analysis of organization Analysis the data to uncover and understand cause-effect relationships, thus providing basis for problem solving and decision making Including demographic, socio-cultural, legal/political aspects and demand trend 1.2 Synopsis This article highlights the various factors affecting, creating changes and impact on the organisations performance globally. It deals with those critical scenarios in which companies decisions are derived by the globalisation phase. When organisations are almost compelled to restructure their competitive strategies to achieve the overall organisations objectives. This article discusses about the changes in the global environment 1.3 Literature Review According to an independent research, over 95 percent of the worlds computers work on Microsofts operating platform. In the current global perspective, Microsoft has the largest market share, so thats make them as a market leader. This badge Market Leader opens great opportunities and unexplored market territories. Companies periodically carry out different analytical tools such as SWOT and PESTEL analysis, to be aware that how they are performing and they examine those overlooked segments for market which had been undiscovered. These tools help them to analyse internally pros and cons of the company and help them to identify the external environmental forces which tends to either organisation make others to follow or vice versa. Microsoft is currently facing tremendous change in the trend of consumers, people are more inclined towards Macintosh and Linux based platforms due to much stable platform and above all there are comparatively fewer viruses developed on Macintosh and Linux based platforms. People are diverted towards other brands and Microsoft is losing its creditability and market share which ultimately weaken its grasp on the monopoly which they have created. Microsoft has huge political pressure on it that US government is putting up efforts to divide the company into near about forty different companies, the company has expanded so tremendously that now its one of the greatest threats for US government that Microsoft will be in position to control politics within near future if they remain expanding with the same pace, furthermore US government wants to maintain a healthy competition in the market so that various products can be developed through competitive strategies. Whereas Microsoft is such a company which creates numerous business opportunities for their partner organisations. When measuring the economic impact of a company like Microsoft, organisation has to consider both either direct or indirect impact induced by the effective creation of the new business opportunities. Gates strategy has been to leverage Microsofts desktop operating system to dominate all software sales-from word processing to spreadsheets. Because most new PCs are equipped with the Windows operating system, Gates can place icons for Microsoft software packages on the desktops when a computer is purchased. Also, Microsofts large cash reserves give it an advantage over its competitors. Microsoft can enter a new market or introduce a new package without needing to make a profit from the outset. In April 1995, when Microsoft attempted to make the biggest acquisition in the history of the software industry by purchasing Intuit, a maker of personal-finance software, the antitrust division of the Department of Justice blocked the deal and Microsoft backed off. However, competitors continue to complain that Microsoft uses an existing monopoly to retard the development of new technology. It was the bundling of software, such as Web browsers with Windows 95 and 98 that prompted the Justice Department to file an antitrust lawsuit against the company in 1998. A U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled that Microsoft was free to bundle its software, but a court date was set for September 1998 to determine the final ruling. In addition, Gates invested $1 billion in the cable company Comcast in 1998 in an effort to persuade the cable industry to assist in developing faster connections using cable modems. That same year, Microsoft formed the Cable Broadband Forum with Intel,  TCI, and Time Warner to promote cable modems. The company also invested $425 million to guarantee itself a 20 percent equity stake in the cable access venture, Road Runner. Microsoft employs around 20,000 people in 48 countries. A typical Microsoft employee is very intelligent, but may only have little if any experience much like Gates own background. Gates also invites challenge and confrontation to maintain flexibility (Microsoft Corporation, 2010) (Bruno Van Pottelsberghe De La Potterie, 2005) Read more:  Gates, Bill Overview, Personal Life, Career Details, Social and Economic Impact, Chronology: Bill Gates  http://encyclopedia.jrank.org/articles/pages/6234/Gates-Bill.html#ixzz0k2F2Txf9 Gates took very efficient strategic change by setting up a software house in India, due to several reasons behind. The basic purpose behind was to acquire huge market of India which was a tremendous business opportunity for Microsoft Corporation. The other related target was to control Indian IT immigrants to come to US finding opportunities at Microsoft when they can find wide scope in their home land. The added benefit which Microsoft Corporation has got was of low cost IT personnel which ultimately help them cut down the cost of developing new softwares. In return what advantage India has got is massive amount of economical growth into their country, substantial amount of foreign investments came into their country, demand for IT personnels drastically went up and moreover they got the technology for designing and developing softwares. Due to this several different local software houses emerged into and they now built it into a Software Industry. These are the pros of globalisatio ns, well sometimes it may be misused in order to fulfil specific interests and objectives. With this strategic movement of Microsoft Corporation, it enhances up the demand of IT personnel in India thus resulting up a great vacuum for IT people. People not only from India but several different ethnic groups came to India to join Microsoft, which ultimately helps India to stop brains into their country and a great opportunity for them to get the most out of those brains. Plus India has got an extra benefit from Microsoft that, it got a huge discounts on Microsofts licensed softwares only for Indian market which on the other hand help them to capture huge market of India which were before using pirated softwares. Microsoft lowered down their software prices which could be affordable for the local market and made compulsory for every single person to use Microsoft Licensed Softwares. Organisations periodically carry out SWOT and PESTEL analysis just to be aware of them where they are standing and where they have to reach. The most important issue and which Microsoft has been facing since early stage are of piracy. Microsoft still couldnt be able to overcome this problem and facing substantial losses due to its pirated products. Microsoft has developed and followed various different software monitoring teams which search those cooperate users which do businesses on pirated products. To overcome this thing in India they developed a strategy they lowered the prices of those softwares which were commonly used in both cooperate and domestic sectors, so that it came in the reach on every user. This strategy reduces the usage of pirated Microsoft products in India, whereas in other Asian countries like Pakistan, Microsoft didnt follow the same strategy in Pakistan too, due to insubstantial market as compared to India. With the implementation of cost reduction strategy in India, Microsoft was seems to be obliged to do the same strategy with Pakistan too, but it doesnt happen due to the market analysis conducted before implementing the same strategy in Pakistan. The major reason was the size of the substantial market of Pakistan, which wasnt enough to compensate with the reduced cost. Microsoft is currently facing change in buying behaviour of their well known gamming console called Xbox 360, customers are demanding shake and twisting intelligence systems in their gaming consoles whereas their competitors Nintendo Wii gaming console has more advance shake and twist intelligence features in it which Microsoft is compelled to follow if they still want to be in market leader position. This compilation of bringing up same or more advance features in their products is actually customer driven and according to the demand in the market, Microsoft has to modify their product. In developing and implementing a business strategy, organisation should follow the standard set of procedure so that every step should be organised, well prepared and organisations must also develop a backup plan if in case strategy doesnt go in favour then a backup plan must be ready all resources being used in it also have to be ready in order to act fast. Sometimes after doing secret homework and all company was just in position to announce any marketing campaign, these campaign sometimes leaked my one of an official and competitor launch campaign before the original developer of the campaign, so these cases organisations have another plan to attract potential market towards their products. Microsoft has various different mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures with other organisations. Usually Microsoft acquire small to medium size competitors to remain their monopoly in the sector but big giants like Yahoo and Google, Microsoft has partner collaboration with them. Microsoft acquire Yahoo, but in this acquisition the brand of Yahoo remained, Microsoft didnt eliminate the brand of Yahoo because Microsoft still wanted to remain competition within these two giants in either cases profits will be on Microsoft. Yahoo lovers remain with them and similarly Microsoft market remains with them. Couple of years back, Microsoft and Google did a joint venture named as a GooSoft the two formal archrivals will work cooperatively for the first time in history. Google will use an Open Source version of Windows Mobile to develop similar platform like Apple iPhones platform. On other hand, Microsoft will get chance to redevelop its search engine operations with collaborations with Google, this is one of the sectors in which Microsoft is losing battle very badly. This joint venture will help both of the companies to develop their weak parts and can better perform against Apple, Palm and other handheld devices manufacturers. (Freeman, 2010) Currently demography has been changed a lot within the last couple of year due to various reasons. There is now three censuses based record covering all constituent parts of the UK. All three of them include linked data from vital registration systems. During the last couple of years population of United Kingdom drastically increases due to the easy approach of immigrants in to the country. The amount has been projected to be increased tremendously as Olympics 2012 event is going to be in United Kingdom. Organisations are constantly scanning the external environment where they can cater market with their services. People from all ethnic groups, age groups, religion arrive here and it could be a huge opportunities to cater them. Globalisation plays very potent role in expanding the canvas of business of an organisation. Due to this several different entry barriers are removed and most of the time organisations started new market development where they started to explore new territories. With the globalisation of the company as Microsoft, when Windows Vista was going to launch, Microsoft launched it in its 4000 stores across the globe at a same time, all marketing strategies and planning were done centrally and they launched it on a same day everywhere. Globalisation is bring up various different changes in social trends in United Kingdom, now a days people prefer more to chat and greet virtually (i.e. online, mobile phone and etc) with their relatives rather than meeting them personally. This trend has drastically increased with the development of advanced IT and telecommunications products. While on the other hands young children are also now slaves of these high tech products. Children prefer more to play on virtual devices rather than involving in physical games. Following are the statistical data for United Kingdom Migration is an important driver of population change but migration patterns vary across the EU. Much migration is economically driven but there are other drivers of migration which include for example educational and familial factors. Factors that influence migrant choices of destination country include geographical proximity, historical and cultural ties and economic globalisation, whereby jobs are created outside the country of the sponsoring company. Data are not available to assemble a complete matrix of migration flows between the individual countries of the EU. None the less, a recent Council of Europe report that presents analyses of the data that are available shows the following patterns in moves by people of working age. The majority of economic migrants from central and eastern EU countries move to elsewhere in the EU, Germany and Austria receive a high proportion of economic migrants from central and Eastern EU countries. This containment within Europe is also seen in ot her countries such as Sweden. On the other hand, looking at migrants to countries such as the UK, the Netherlands, Malta, Spain and Italy, there is a high proportion of migrants from outside the EU. A subject of much debate in Europe is the extent to which EU enlargement will impact on migratory flows. Since accession there has been some movement of citizens of the acceding countries to some other parts of the EU but the extent to which migration to and from non-EU countries might be affected is unknown. Changes in the patterns of marriage, divorce and cohabitation have implications for family formation and dissolution. The traditional nuclear family through marriage is still the norm in the EU but a wider range of family and household types is emerging, from lone parent families to step and extended family types. Within Europe, the rise in cohabitation, divorce and remarriage has been particularly evident in the Nordic member states, the Netherlands and the UK. The trends in partnership formation and dissolution mean that children are likely to experience family disruption whilst growing up and some will experience it more than once. There has been a marked increase in the number of births outside marriage over the last decade. The rate has raised from 9.6 percent of all live births in 1990 to 28.6 per cent in the countries of Europe prior to enlargement and similar rises have been seen in many of the acceding countries. The increasing numbers of older people and increased life expectancy have very significant implications for retirement, pensions, health and care, particularly as the number of the oldest old (aged over 85) continues to grow. With improved health the less old are much more active participants in society, for example, taking on caring roles for younger generations in their family, participating in the voluntary sector or continuing in the labour market. Recent reports have highlighted the need for people to anticipate that they should expect to live longer and build this into their financial planning for their retirement, particularly for their oldest years.9 Higher life expectancy means there is a longer period between departure from the work force and becoming highly dependent on services. More people may want to work past retirement age or adopt more flexible working patterns as they get older, perhaps making more use of part-time working opportunities past the usual retirement age . At the same time, larger numbers of older people are taking advantage of property markets to spend significant periods living in another country. There are fundamental difficulties in making reliable estimates of migration, due principally to the lack of data, particularly on emigration. It is generally recognised that more needs to be done to obtain estimates that are accurate, coherent and comparable. Not only is information required about the flows of immigrants and emigrants and their characteristics but also about the numbers of immigrants and their integration into the society and economy of their new country. In individual countries there is considerable interest in international migration that is between Member States as well as migration from outside the EU region. Such information is important in understanding population change and in assessing the diversity of the population and its structures. In addition to international migration, Member States require reliable information about population migration within the country because there are significant implications for housing provision, service provision, local regen eration and local labour markets. The UK are planning for the next Census in 2011, working closely with colleagues in other census-taking countries, both in the EU and internationally, to share experience and lessons learned from the 2000 round of censuses. In Europe a UN ECE Census Task Force exists to review recommendations for the 2010 round of censuses. Between now and 2011, considerable efforts are in hand to improve the quality of intercensal population estimates for local areas and migration estimates. Post 2011, the vision is to move towards an integrated population statistics system that utilises address registers, population registers, administrative sources and surveys. This approach will involve the linkage of records at an individual level for statistical purposes. There are substantial issues to be resolved, such as barriers that currently prevent the linkage of administrative records and the need to gain acceptability from the public, but the benefits in terms of the quality of population statistics wi ll be significant. Policy makers in much of Europe have expressed deep concerns with regard to the increasing pressure on health and social care costs arising from the demographic ageing of their populations (Richter 1992). Although a number of (cross-national) studies have considered the determinants of (especially) health care costs, only one has found that the age structure of the population (proportion of population aged 65 and over being taken as the age structure indicator) is an explanatory factor alongside the effects of income, lifestyle characteristics, and environmental factors (Kleiman 1974; Getzen 1992; Gerdtham et al 1998; Hitris and Posnett, 1992; Leu 1986; OECD 1987; OConnell 1996; Gerdtham et al 1992, 1992a). This brief paper attempts to address relevant issues relating to population ageing and health and social care expenditure, including economic evaluations, drawing primarily on UK and North American literature from both medical and economics journals. Particularly the paper by Sesh amani and Gray (2002) is worthy of extra note. It should be pointed out that this is not intended to be an extensive exhaustive review of the literature on the effects of population ageing on health and social care expenditure nor on economic evaluations of health care. Indeed, as we point out later the number of journal articles on economic evaluations has increased dramatically through the 1980s and 1990s, totalling more than 5500 in peerreviewed journals in those two decades, with approximately 4000 of these in the 1990s alone. However, there seems to be a consensus of opinion in the literature addressed in this brief paper supporting a non-extensive review that economic evaluations lack methodological robustness and integrity in relation to resource allocation. Especially cross-national comparisons appear to be problematic. Before via the literature we consider the impact of ageing on health (and social) care expenditures (in the UK) and the economics of health care (evaluations/interventions), we present briefly UK (and European) population data as a demographic backdrop to that work along with a brief review of UK policy initiatives for the health and social care of older people particularly aimed at preventing dependence. Regulatory bodies are formed to create check and balance system for organisation; these bodies monitor the performance of organisations and develop fair dealing between buyer and seller. These bodies help customers if they are getting unfair deals or being ripped off from the seller. Regulatory bodies also keep strict eye on the competition practices between competitors. In United Kingdom an independent organisation know as The Office of fair Trading. A system has been developed to control and directed accordingly is known as Corporate Governance, with this system business activities of an organisations are regulated. The process includes manages customs, legislations, policies, laws and institution affecting the way a corporation is directed, administrated or controlled. Corporate governance also includes the relationships among the several stakeholders involved and the goals for which the corporation is governed. The basic stakeholders are the shareholders, management, and the board of directors. Other stakeholders include employees, customers, creditors, suppliers, regulators, and the community at large. Corporate Governance has positive impact on organisation that it strengthened economy and hence good corporate governance is a tool for socio-economic development. Corporate governance is a set of framework of accountability to users, stakeholders and the wider community within which organisations take decisions, and lead and c ontrol their functions to achieve their objectives. In this globalised world, it has various aspects which affect the world in several different ways major of them are; Industrial emergence of worldwide production houses and wider access to a range of foreign products for consumers and companies. Movement of goods between and within national boundaries. International trade of manufactured goods across borders increased drastically. Financially emergence of worldwide financial markets and better access to external financing for borrowers. Few studies have sufficient people aged 85 and over to obtain reliable results. Demographers of ageing are frequently required to compare age groups for example, 55-64 years, 65-74, 75-84 and 85 years and over. However, numbers of very old people (those aged 85 and over) in most surveys are not sufficient for more complex statistical analyses: for example, around 300 for the GHS, 400 for the BHPS. An exception is the Family Resources Survey, which has a large sample of 800 very old people. Otherwise the most usual strategy is to use two or three years data from a cross-sectional survey, assuming the same questions were asked each year. A sample of very old people can thus be assembled.29 Again, the Census, SAR and the ONS LS are the best sources for analysing the demographic characteristics of very old people. The increasing proportion of very old people, however, may generate new problems for collecting data: questionnaires should be readable by people with visual impairments; inte rviewers should be ready to cope with people with hearing problems. Interviewing older people usually takes a longer time. Additionally, very old people may not capable of being interviewed, so it is possible that the use of proxy interviews will increase in the future. Very old people may also be less likely to participate in surveys, especially when interviews are conducted door to door. Courtesy of http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_population/PT118_V1.pdf 1.4 Conclusion and Recommendations Finally, in the end I would like to say that although Microsoft is very good organization and they are the market leader of information technology industry but if they cannot change their strategy accordingly the demand then they will lose their position they will not over confidence but they will need to make USP of their product according to market demand.

Analysis of Computer Use in Developing Country Education

Analysis of Computer Use in Developing Country Education Abstract This study identified the extent to which Iranian secondary school principals used computers and explored the relationship between a numbers of variables related to ICT use. These factors included high level of computer access, strong perceptions of the attributes of ICT, high level of computer competence, as well as the high level of transformational leadership behaviours, all contributed significantly to the level of computer use by principals. All four constructs are equally important but have varying impact on computer use. Therefore, all four constructs should be viewed in an integrated manner in accordance to the conceptual model proposed in this study. Keywords: ICT, Secondary school principals, Computer use Introduction One developing country that is currently pursuing the technological track in education is Iran. Irans National philosophy of Education calls for developing the potential of individuals in a holistic and integrated manner, so as to produce individuals who are intellectually, spiritually, and emotionally balanced and harmonious. The catalyst for this massive transformation will be technology which will improve how the educational system achieves the National Philosophy of Education, while fostering the development of a work force prepared to meet the challenges of the next century. With respect to this vision, Ministry of Education provided ICT related workshops and courses for principals and teachers. The plan emphasized that they should acquire seven fundamental digital computing skills (Kousha Abdoli, 2004). Although several institutions have completed the training programmes of their staff, research studies have not been done on the efficiency of this plan, knowledge, skills, and attitude that principals and teachers acquire during these courses. In fact, national programmes in developing countries are not based on research. Hence, successes of these programmes are limited (Albirini, 2006a). In addition, the Ministry of Education in Iran has invested much more fund to facilitate integration of ICT in schools. In spite of this large expenditure of funds, the potential for ICT to alter how principals use computers for instructional and administrative purposes, how teachers teach and how children learn in Iranian schools has not been fully realized since many Iranian schools do not use ICT in their teaching and learning and administrative purposes (Jahangard, 2003). It displays that computer was provided with no supplementary measures to enable principals and teachers to develop positive attitudes toward ICT in education and to use them. Also, in exploring the literature about the implementation of ICT in schools, an area which is noticeably absent in research on ICT implementation and integration is the role of the school principals as technology leaders. Although, some research studies have demonstrated that ICT has a huge impact on the ways in which principals work (Yuen , Law Wong, 2003; Schiller, 2003), the ICT research literature has tended to overlook the role of the principal as technology leaders (Schiller, 2003; Michael, 1998; Riffel Levin, 1997). This gap in the research literature is rather strange because there is considerable literature relating to school effectiveness, school improvement and change which identifies the school principal as a key factor in bringing about successful change in schools (e.g. Hall Hord, 2001; Fullan, 2002). According to Schiller (2003), school leaders are key factors in implementation ICT in schools. They have a main responsibility for creating school change through use of ICT and facilitate complex decisions about integration of ICT into learning and teaching. Although the role of the principal in supporting technology integration is very important there are little Iranian researches on the role of the principal in the implementation of ICT. Also, little is known about the use of ICT by principals and factors that are related to their level of computer use. This article will report on these issues from an analysis of data gathered from secondary school principals in Tehran, Iran. Review of the literature Effective leadership is an important element in the success of schools seeking to implement change (Calabrese, 2002). Anderson and Dexter (2005) reported on the analysis of data from the 1998 Teaching, Learning, and Computing survey of more than 800 schools in the USA and concluded that although technology infrastructure is important, for educational technology to become an integral part of a school, technology leadership is even more necessary (p. 74). Without the support of school leaders the educational potential of information and communications technology may not be realized. They play various roles such as change agent, lifelong learner, main supporter, and resource provider in relation to ICT implementation in schools (Han, 2002). If principals want to lead effectively their school in technology integration, they should embrace technology and realize the role that technology can play in the teaching-learning process. In fact, it is difficult to imagine a leader who does not us e technology trying to convince teachers that it is important (Cafolla Knee, 1995, P.3). Therefore, principals need to understand the capacities of the new technologies, to have a personal proficiency in their use, and be able to promote a school culture which encourages exploration of new techniques in teaching, learning and management (Schiller, 2003). According to Albirini (2006a), access to computer resources has often been one of the most important barriers for the integration of technology in both developed and developing countries. Norris, Sullivan, Poirot and Soloway (2003) reported on the analysis of data from the snapshot survey of more than 4,000 K-12 schools in the USA and concluded that there was a significant and substantive correlation between level of access to computer and level of computer use. Also, Rogers (2003) stated that the perceived attributes of an innovation are one of the important factors in explaining the rate of adoption of an innovation. A large amount of the variance in the rate of adoption of innovations, from 49 to 87 percent, is explained by five attributes: relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, trialability, and observability (Rogers, 2003). The five attributes refer respectively to: (1) the degree to which an innovation is perceived as better than the idea it supersedes; (2) the extent t o which an innovation is perceived as consistent with the existing values, past experience, and needs of potential adopters; (3) the degree to which an innovation is perceived as relatively difficult to understand and use; (4) the extent to which the results of an innovation are visible to others; and (5) the degree to which an innovation is experimented with on a limited basis. Regarding the relationship between perceived innovation characteristics and computer technology adoption, Al-Gahtani (2003) conducted a quantitative research in Saudi Arabia and found that relative advantage, compatability and observability were positively related to the adoption of technology, whereas complexity was negatively correlated. Hence, innovations that are perceived by individuals as having greater relative advantage, compatability, observability, and less complexity will be adopted more rapidly than other innovations (Rogers, 2003). Principals attitudes toward ICT have been recognized as an important factor for the success of technology integration in education (Han, 2002; Mooij Smeets, 2001; Rogers, 2003). Attitude is defined as a positive or a negative feeling associated with performing a specific behaviour (Ajzen Fishbein, 2005). In fact, an individual will have a favorable attitude if he or she believes that the performance of the behaviour will lead to mostly positive results and vice-versa (Ajzen Fishbein, 2005). Ajzen and Fishbein (2005) indicated that attitudes consist of three elements: affect, cognition, and behaviour. The affective element refers to the individuals emotional feelings or liking of a person or an object. The cognitive element refers to the persons knowledge about a person or an object. The behavioural element refers to the persons overt behaviour towards a person or an object. A complete description of attitude requires that all three components be assess by obtaining measures of all the three response classes (Ajzen Fishbein, 2005). Han (2002) conducted a case study on pre-school leaders practices in the use of ICT and found that principals who have positive attitudes toward technology are very helpful and supportive in introducing these new technologies into the school. For example, they encourage their colleagues to have ICT training, equip the school with sufficient computers and ensure staff has access to relevant technology. Apart from that, Liaw (2002) stated that no matter how capable the technology is, the effective implementation of technology depends upon users positive attitudes towards the technology. According to Noraini Idris et al. (2007), individuals with positive attitudes will have positive feelings about people and situations; have a sense of purpose, excitement, and passion; approach problems in a creative manner; make the best out of every situation; realize that attitude is a choice; feel that they have control of their thoughts; and feel that they are making a contribution through their wo rk. Therefore, principals who have positive attitudes toward ICT feel more contented using it and regularly incorporate it into their tasks (Kersaint, Horton, Stohl Garofalo, 2003). According to Rogers (2003), innovation-decision process consists of five steps which are knowledge, persuasion, decision, implementation, and confirmation. These five steps usually follow each other in a time-ordered manner. Knowledge is the first stage of the successful adoption of computer technologies and it is essential for other steps in the innovation-decision process. If principals do not have enough competent in computer use, they cannot be expected to adopt computer technologies into their instructional and administrative tasks. Without the knowledge and skill of computer technology, principals might have a high level of uncertainty that influence their opinions and beliefs about the innovation (Rogers, 2003). In line with this idea, Felton (2006) stated that competence is a key to the use of computers by principals on a daily basis. In fact, competence in operating a computer and in utilizing software may improve the quality and efficiency of administrative performance in s chools. Improved quality could lead to improved decision-making. In order to achieve high levels of principals competence in ICT, there is a need to provide training, and perhaps unsurprisingly, there is a great deal of literature evidence to suggest that effective training is crucial if principals are to use ICT effectively in their work (Kirkwood, 2000). If training is inadequate or inappropriate, then principals will not be sufficiently prepared, and perhaps not sufficiently confident, to make full use of technology. Hence, lack of principals competence and lack of quality training for principals can be barriers to principals use of ICT. Many technology experts have indicated that the integration of ICT in education should occur in the light of the cultural conditions of the country and the prevailing school culture (Albirini, 2006b; Govender Govender, 2009). In fact, cultural barriers, either societal or organizational, are very important among the barriers to the adoption of technology. Societies and organizations can overcome most of the technical barriers through different means of support, but cultural barriers are harder to deal with. It is widely accepted that culture, within a society or an organization, shapes individuals perceptions of innovations. In the field of education, it has been noticed that principals reactions to technology innovations are mediated by their cultural perceptions (Felton, 2006). According to Rogers (2003), a cultural perception is a very general idea of social system norms. Also, it refers to the cultural suitability of computers (Thomas, 1987). Furthermore, Albirini (2006a) carrie d out a study examining the factors relating to the teachers attitudes toward ICT. He collected evidence from high school English teachers about their perceptions of computer attributes, cultural perceptions, computer competence, and computer access. The sample consisted of 63 male and 251 female teachers. The results showed that computer attributes, cultural perceptions, and computer competence are factors that explain the greatest amount of variance in computer attitudes. Also, he stated that cultural perceptions toward different computer-related technologies are key factors related to both the initial acceptance of these technologies as well as future behaviour regarding their usage. Similarly, Lee, Choi, Kim and Hong, (2007) conducted a study on the relationship between users cultural profiles and technology adoption in the context of the mobile Internet. Their findings of large-scale on-line surveys in Korea, Hong Kong, and Taiwan indicate that cultural factors have a significa nt influence on users adoption perceptions of mobile Internet services. So, they concluded that cultural differences are a contributing factor in the adoption of technology, particularly in third world countries. According to Flanagan and Jacobsen (2003), leadership plays a key role in the success of technology utilization in education. Thomas (2001) stated that there is a strong link between educational technology and school leadership. Leadership style is exhibited by the leader could help or hinder technology infusion (Flanagan Jacobsen, 2003; Thomas, 2001). One of the best styles of leadership that can change and transform individuals is transformational leadership (Northouse, 2001). Transformational leadership occurs when one or more persons engage with others in such a way that leaders and followers raise one another to higher levels of motivation and morality (Bass Riggio, 2006). In other words, transformational leadership is a process that both the manager and followers should change themselves (Northouse, 2001). Although the transformational leader plays an essential role in precipitating change, followers and leaders are inextricably bound together in the transformation process (N orthouse, 2001). This type of leadership is becoming more and more important to organizations, as workforces become more diverse, technology improves and international competition heightens. Transformational leadership is comprised of four distinct dimensions: charismatic leadership or idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation and individualized consideration (Bass Riggio, 2006). Idealized influence (attributed) demonstrates attributes of principals that motivate respect and pride and display a sense of power and confidence; idealized influence (behaviour) refers to the principals behaviour to communicate values, purpose, and importance of mission; inspirational motivation refers to leaders that motivate and inspire others by challenging them to exert effort; Intellectual stimulation stimulates followers efforts to be innovative and creative by questioning assumptions, reframing problems, and approaching old situations in new ways; and individualized consideration focuses on development and mentoring of followers and attends to individual needs(Bass Riggio, 2006). Beatty and Lee (1992, as cited in Thite, 2000) conducted several case studies of the implementation of CAD/CAM systems in numerous British and Canadian companies in an effort to investigate the linkage between leadership and technological change in organizations. Through semistructured interviews and using a critical incident approach to assessing leadership abilities, the researchers tracked managerial involvement throughout the implementation process. The outcome of their qualitative research suggests that a transformational approach to leadership is likely to be more effective in overcoming barriers to change than a transactional leadership approach that concentrates on technical problem solving to the neglect of people and organizational issues. According to Burns (2003), transactional leadership involves exchanging one thing for another. In fact, the effective transactional leaders are expert in giving and taking. This style is useful for stable situations but is less useful for organizations that are faced to environmental turbulence or rapid change (Kirkbride, 2006). Transactional leadership was measured by contingent reward and management-by-exception ­ (active and passive). Contingent reward leaders explain the expectations of followers and the compensation they will receive if they meet their performance expectations. Management-by-exception-active leaders attend to followers mistakes and failures to meet standards and management-by-exception-passive leaders react to correct action after problems become serious enough (Bass Riggio, 2006). Regarding the importance of transformational leadership as an influence on principals use of technology, Christopher (2003) conducted a study at the University of Virginia. A self-designed instrument was used in this study. Leadership items were taken from Bass and Avolios Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire Leader Form. Surveys were sent to a random sample of 397 principals throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia, and 185 principals participated in the survey. Her analysis indicated that the overall extent that principals used decision support technologies was significantly correlated with their perceptions of all four transformational leadership behaviors (individual influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individual consideration). Also, she suggested that educational leadership programs should be provided to train principals to use technology as a management tool. If principals do not use technology on a consistent basis; the principal should not expec t the faculty to use technology regularly. Modeling the use of technology provides an affective method for exposing teachers to new strategies and demonstrating to the staff that it is acceptable to take risks and make mistakes, without the fear of retribution (Dawon Rakes, 2003) The study The purpose of this study was to identify the extent to which secondary school principals use computers in Tehran (a large province in Iran) and to explore factors related to level of computer use by principals. Selected factors used in this study were based on Rogers (2003) diffusion theory, Technology Acceptance Model, and previous researchs which include perceived computer attributes; computer competence; computer access; principals attitude toward computers; leadership style of principals; and cultural perceptions. Principals profiles (gender, age, and administrative experience, type of school, and academic degree, as well as information regarding background in computer training) were also included in order to ensure maximum possible control of extraneous variables by building them into the design of the study (Gay Airasian, 2000). More specifically, this study addresses the following questions: What is the level of computer use by secondary school principals? What are the principals attitudes toward computers? What are the principals perceptions of: Computer attributes? Their level of computer competence? Cultural relevance of computers to Iranian society and schools? Their level of access to computers? What is the leadership style (transformational and transactional leadership) of principals? What is the relationship between the level of computer use by secondary school principals and their perceptions of each of the above variables? What is the proportion of the variance in the level of computer use by secondary school principals that can be explained by the selected independent variables and the relative significance of each independent variable in explaining the dependent variable? Methodology This was a descriptive study of an exploratory nature. Creswell (2003) stated that exploratory studies are most advantageous when not much has been written about the topic or the population being studied (p. 30).The target population in this study was Iranian secondary school principals in the province of Tehran during the 2007-2008 school years. The list of principals was based on the secondary principals Directory. The Directory is maintained and updated on a quarterly basis by Tehran Department of Education. The total number of secondary school principals was 1312 in the Directory of the Department of Education in Tehran. Furthermore, a set of questionnaire was used to obtain the required data for this study. The questionnaire was divided into two parts. Part A measured the perceived level of computer use by principals. Factors that were related to it were measured in part B. Questionnaires were distributed to 320 sample principals selected randomly from the population. In this study, stratified sampling was used because Tehran is one of the biggest cities in Iran and consists of 19 educational areas. Also, the population to be sampled was not homogeneous but, in essence, consisted of several subpopulations (Wiersma, 1995). When sub-populations vary significantly, it is advantageous to sample each subpopulation (stratum) independently. Researcher used this stratified sampling method to have less variability in selection. Two indispensable characteristics of measurement that must be considered in establishing the appropriateness and usefulness of measurement instrument are reliability and validity. Although theses instruments were valid, face and content validity of these instruments were established again by a panel of expert. To ensure that Iranian secondary school principals had a complete comprehension of the instrument used in the study, the survey was translated from English into Persian using the double back translation method to ensure the accuracy of the Persian version. Furthermore, Cronbachs alpha was used to measure internal consistency and calculated via the SPSS 15 statistical package. Cronbach alpha is the most common form of internal consistency reliability coefficient. The Cronbachs alpha coefficients for these scales were: Computer Access Scale=0.867, Computer Attributes Scale =0.909, Attitude toward ICT Scale =0.92, Computer Competence Scale=0.97, Cultural Perceptions Scale=0.611, Transformational leadership style Scale=0.812, Transactional leadership style Scale=0.596 and Level of computer use Scale=0.917. To carry out this study, first, approval was obtained from the Ministry of Education and also contact was made with the research department of Tehrans Ministry of Education A meeting was arranged to discuss the proposed study. Furthermore, a letter of introduction and a questionnaire packet were delivered to the superintendent in the research department for review. Finally, approval was received from the superintendent and permitted the researcher to attend the principals meeting in each educational area of the Ministry of Education. A total of 350 pockets were distributed among all members of the sample in these sessions. In the packet, there were materials. These materials include a cover letter, the questionnaire, and a stamped, addressed return envelope was enclosed for some respondents convenience in returning the completed questionnaires. The completed questionnaires were collected at the end of these sessions. Principals who could not fill their questionnaires completely were given approximately three weeks from that date to return the questionnaires by mail. In all, 350 surveys were distributed, 320 were returned, resulting in a return rate of 91.4%. All of the returned surveys, a total of 320, were used in the analysis. In this study descriptive statistics were used to describe and summarize the properties of the mass of data collected from the respondents (Gay Airasian, 2000). Correlation analysis was used to determine the relationship between each of the independent variables and the level of computer use by secondary school principals in Tehran. Furthermore, multiple regression was used to measure the degree to which the independent variables would explain the proportion of variance in the dependent variables and to identify the relative significance of each independent variable in explaining the dependent variable. By convention, an a level of 0.05 was established a priori for determining statistical significance. Findings and Discussion The findings indicated that about 51.6% of the respondents were males and more than half of the respondents (50.3%) were within the 45-54 age range. About 44.7% of the respondents had 21 or more years of experience. More than half of the respondents (53.1%) worked in private schools, and approximately 60.3% of the respondents held bachelors degrees. Moreover, the majority of the participants (95.5%) reported that they had computer training, and 83.8% of them had more than 60 hours training. In terms of the type of training, more than half of the principals participating in the study (52.8%) reported that they received their training through in-service training. Computer Use by Principals The dependent variable, level of computer use, was quantified by the score of 39 items using a five-point Likert scale. Each item was rated by respondents from 1 (Never use) to 5 (use daily). This scale was developed by Felton (2006). According to this questionnaire, four domains of computer use such as Internet use, hardware and software use, instructional use, and administrative use were measured. Table 1 Distribution of Mean Scores on the Computer Use Scale According to Table 1, the principals perceptions of the level of computer use were moderate; with an overall mean score of 3.32 (SD= 0.76). Also, findings indicated that principals spent a few times a week working on their computers. It would seem that Iranian principals need effective and extensive trainings to raise their proficiency in computer use and integrate technology into their schools. Moreover, analysis of collected data on the computer use scale showed that among the subscales of the level of computer use, Internet use had the highest mean (M = 3.49). Also, findings showed that nearly all the respondents used the Internet at home and at school , and the most frequent use of Internet was for sending and receiving e-mail (46.9% 2 or 3 times a week). It would seem that e-mail was the most accepted application among principals who were surveyed. In fact, there may be several reasons for this—e-mail is efficient, widely available, and effective. Thus, it is not surprising that email was accepted and used far more by the sample population of this study. Principals can increase their professional knowledge in the form of knowing current research, new technologies, and best teaching practices through the use of the Internet. Findings of this study showed that most of the respondents used a web browser a few times a week to explore professional and educational resources. Three reasons may underline the obtained results. The first possible reason is that low telecommunication density and very low bandwidth during peak hours sometimes makes it impossible to download files or software. Furthermore, most of the principals have little Internet experience; it was not comfortable for them to spend time on uses other than e-mail or some sort of urgent browsing. Lastly lack of knowledge and skill for searching and downloading the valuable professional and educational resources also limit the use of the Interne. In fact, the Internet can be an avenue for researching information and data. It helps principals to find information regarding their pr ofession and educational subjects in order to develop processes for effective decision-making and problem solving which result in better accountability (Felton, 2006). Therefore, trainings should be provided for principals to learn all possible Internet resources with underlying techniques of strategic browsing to enhance their Internet literacy (Atkinson Kydd, 1997). As for the hardware and software use subscale, the main use for computers was in word processing, whereas construction of spreadsheets, databases and presentations (such as Powerpoint) was used never or a few times a month. Only 2.5 percent of principals stated that they read spreadsheets daily at work with 20.0 percent indicating use 2 or 3 times a week, while 56.9 percent indicated that they had read never or a few times a month a spreadsheet. These results are consistent with Schillers (2003) study. He found that the word processing was the most frequently utilized software among the principals and they used it to create documents and slides. Regarding the instructional use domain, the majority of participants indicated that they two or three times a week used computers for recording observation; monitoring student achievement for specific objectives and grades; creating master schedules; recording discipline referrals; writing up classroom observations; monitoring achievement test data; locating curriculum resources; developing or write curriculum; and creating graphs and charts. Plomp and Pelgrum (1992) stated that one way in which computers might work their way into the school is through administrative use and that this might lead to the use of computers in instruction. An examination of data showed that mean score of the administrative use subscale was lower than another subscales, and computer use for instructional purposes was generally ahead of administrative uses. Moreover, findings indicated that within the area of administrative uses, communicating with staff, and members of the wider school, initiating and sust aining collaborative activities with colleagues within and outside their school were the areas of greatest use, while financial matters, maintaining of administrative records about students, using a programme to analyze information for solving problems, using technology to support levels of professional collaboration, and using technology to participate new kinds of professional development were the areas of least use. Therefore, the early assumption that the introduction of computers into schools for administrative purposes would spread to their use for instructional purposes was not supported by the data. Principals Attitudes toward ICT in Education Attitude scale contained 23 items that asked respondents to describe their attitudes towards ICT. This scale was developed by Albirini in 2006a and comprised of three subscales: affective domain; cognitive domain, and behavioral domain. Respondents attitudes were measured on a 5-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). Higher scores indicated positive attitudes towards ICT while lower scores indicated less positive attitudes. Table 2 Distribution of Mean Scores on the Attitude toward ICT Scale As Table 2 illustrates, principals attitudes towards ICT were positive, with an overall mean of 4.05 and a standard deviation of 0.44. Principals positive attitudes towards ICT exhibit their initiation into the innovation-decision process (Rogers, 2003). It seems that Iranian principals have already gone through the Knowledge and Persuasion stages (Rogers, 2003) and are probably proceeding to the Decision phase. As many theorists have indicated, attitudes can often foretell future behaviours (Ajzen Fishbein, 2005). Thus, it can be concluded that principals who have positive attitudes towards ICT in education, use computer in their administrative and instructional tasks once computers become more available to them. At this stage, principals exp

Changing the System :: essays research papers

The "system" is something that people are always out to change. You see people trying to change it all the time, but few are actually successful at changing the system. The system can be a variety of things. In some cases it is the government, it can be the a boss or basically anything or anyone that has some type of control or authority. For some people fighting the system is their livelihood, their mission in life. They try to change the system because of the corruption, because of unjust actions, because they were a victim of it or to seek the truth. In the novels One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest by Ken Kesey and Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, the main characters are out to change the system. Based on the novel by Ken Kesey, it seems that his perspective on this issue is that the system is in dire need of change. Even if you are not successful in changing the system, it is still very effective that you tried and you set an example for others to follow. Kesey also seems to believe that persistence is key when fighting the system. Kesey believes that even if you change a small aspect of the system it was well worth the fight. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, the main character, Randle Patrick McMurphy, fights to change the system in a mental hospital. McMurphy is outgoing, a leader and a rebel. There was a constant power struggle in the novel between the patient's new found savior McMurphy, and the evil Nurse Ratched who rules their wing of the hospital with an iron fist. McMurphy fights to change the system to try to win back the patients' rights and in the process gain more privileges for the patients and himself. McMurphy also seems to get pleasure out of fighting the system. His motives are simple, he wants to help out his fellow patients, his friends, to make their lives better. McMurphy was successful in changing many of the rules and regulations that were imposed upon them by Nurse Ratched. McMurphy was a very inspirational speaker and during the regularly occurring meetings between the patients and the doctors he would rally the patients to fight against Nurse Ratched. Thus he was able to win back some of their rights. McMurphy also uses his cunning wit and his skills as a con man to persuade the doctors into giving the patients more rights and activities. McMurphy is able to con Dr.

Indian Killer Essays -- essays research papers

In Indian Killer Alexie uses a pulp-fiction form, the serial killer mystery, to frame the social issues facing American Indians. He populates the book with stock characters such as a grizzled ex-cop, a left-wing professor, a right-wing talk radio personality, drunken bums, thuggish teenagers and a schizophrenic main character who serves as the most obvious suspect in a mystery that never quite resolves itself. John Smith, the troubled Indian adopted by whites appears at first to be the main character, but in some respects he is what Alfred Hitchcock called a McGuffin. The story is built around him, but he is not truly the main character and he is not the heart of the story. His struggle, while pointing out one aspect of the American Indian experience, is not the central point. John Smith’s experiences as an Indian adopted by whites have left him too addled and sad, from the first moment to the last, to serve as the story’s true focus. The damage that had been done to John Smith was irreparable from the moment the story began. His death, while a gloomy ending for his character, is in many ways a release from his torment, as demonstrated by his rising from the point of impact and leaving his body behind. The value of John Smith is to serve as an extreme example of the damage being done to Indian society. The heart of the story is the experience of Marie Polatkin. Unlike the somewhat stock characters that make up much of the mystery element of the novel, Marie is a fully real...

Communication Style Case Study Essay

â€Å"Communication is an ongoing, complex ever-changing process between two or more individuals to convey a message† (Hansten & Jackson, 2009). Effective communication in the healthcare field is an essential piece to delivering competent client care. Effective communication is not only needed to relay the importance of instructions and tasks to our peers in the treatment team, but to provide respect to our coworkers and create a positive working environment. Communication styles are important and can contribute or hinder the process of maintaining effective communication in the workplace. This paper aims to analyze the communication styles in four different communication scenarios. Scenario One There are two communication style used in scenario one. The Registered Nurse (RN) engaged in aggressive communication whereas the assistive personnel (AP) engaged in passive communication. Aggressive behavior and communication is hostile in intent and is usually communicated through talking at people and not with people. The aggressive communication was used when the RN belittled the AP with an upraised tone, and inappropriate comments such as,† you are only the aide†, and â€Å"we don’t expect you to think, just to do what we tell you to do.† (Hansten & Jackson, 2009). According to Hansten & Jackson (2009), this communication style successfully suppresses ideas and feedback from others and creates a tension filled relationship (p. 281). This communication style inflicts a tone of supremacy, statements which direct blame, and labeling. These negative communications often times can cause the other person to feel humiliated, angry and hurt. The AP was experien cing feelings of anger and resentment and these feelings elicited a response of revenge in this scenario. The AP in this scenario has shown a passive style of communication because he feels it is necessary to keep his job. Passive behavior is often not idyllic due to it being an act of avoidance to the situation that is presented, which the AP showed by quietly sitting and not voicing his  concerns. People who exhibit passive behavior often have feelings of hurt, embarrassment, fright, coyness, and apprehension. Because of the communication of the RN being aggressive it has evoked a passive behavior and communication style on the part of the AP. The passive communicator allows the anger and resentment to build up which ultimately leads to the passive communicator to expose these feelings through outlets of subtle sabotage, manipulation and punishment. This is exactly what the AP in the scenario exhibited when he thought to begin a plan on how he’d make the RN pay for her comments. This is an example of a cycle of authoritarianism and indirect aggression which results in poor work relationships, the compromise of client care in order to revenge communications and breakdowns in communication between the treatment team. Scenario Two The school nurse in this scenario has chosen a passive non-assertive communication style. This is evident through the nurse choosing to avoid the immediate conflict of confronting the volunteer and choosing to take the work load upon her-self. The problem is not going to be faced which will ultimately lead up to the problems multiplying for the nurse because she physically cannot redo every test performed forever, she will become bitter and angry. â€Å"A passive response is based on the fear of rejection and retaliation caused by displeasing others. Conflict is avoided at the price of denying one’s own feelings and needs† (Hansten & Jackson, 2009). This passive and avoidant behavior can lead to nursing fatigue and burnout. This can also lead to her volunteers feeling confused and angry, thinking the nurse doesn’t value or trust their work. This communication style although not outwardly hostile or aggressive due to avoidance of conflict, can cause feeling of hostility which may lead to manipulative behaviors. The school nurse in this scenario has not corrected the problem by educating her volunteers so the incorrect results will keep being brought to her and she will end up becoming bitter and angry with her volunteers leading to a breakdown in communication and possibly a hostile work environment. Scenario Three This scenario also involved two different communication styles. The manager was using assertive communication and the surgical tech was using aggressive  communication. The manager in this this scenario clearly addressed the problem by expressing what she observed, thought, felt and wanted from the situation. She addressed the problem by approaching the surgical tech and stated her wants without belittling the tech. She was very clear even using the surgical techs job description. This communication style promotes a trusting relationship with other coworkers because they know you will address the problem with them and not talk about the situation inappropriately with other staff member. This communication is essential in healthcare because it is a vital core to effective delegation. This communication does not compromise client care because it addresses problems and sets clear expectations to fix the problem which leads to changes. The surgical tech in this scenario used aggressive communication. This was evident by her statement that she’d â€Å"get Rosa’s head on a platter.†(Hansten & Jackson, 2009). The goal of her claim was to dominate and hurt her manager which is a characteristic of aggressive communication. Threatening your coworkers and superiors shows a lack of respect for the workplace and other. This can compromise the working environment which can lead to a breakdown in patient care.