Saturday, August 31, 2019

Migrant workers Essay

Migrant workers apparently come from poor countries and have been living in tough financial situation, thus they choose to work as maids outside their countries hoping they would find a solution for their crisis. However, this situation is getting more serious and controversial than before, the rate of domestic workers committing suicide is increasing. what households seek in Lebanon is not to help but slaves to serve them, and these maids go through hard work and mistreatment. We hear a lot of maids who escape and we read a lot in the press about the crimes committed by the maids, but we do not ask ourselves why all of this is happening? The answer is linked on how the householder treats her maid, which in the matter of time the maid might commit a suicide and get her revenge. people are treating maids as animals, not realizing that they also have feelings and lives to live. Maids also have their rights just like any other person; violence or yelling at them is not the solution this may lead them to escape since they are not machines that can get all your work done at the same time. People should wake up and stop treating them such a way; they are still human that needs to be taken care of instead of treating them bad. They are here to help the house holder; their wasted rights should be defended as people should be punished for what they are doing. Forgin workers comes from a poor background and she does not know so much about the technology and how to use electronic appliances, therefore the householder should train and explains for her the instructions how to use these technological appliances instead of shouting and beating her. When the maid starts working the householder should teach her gently and calmly, she could be ignorant, does not know how to read and write, and not educated enough so she needs time to understand what she should do. Trading companies are the one who provide households with domestic workers in order to help them with their everyday life issues, such as cleaning and taking care of kids, that parents usually do not have time for it. Workers coming from poor countries do not mind working and taking such tasks in order to afford enough money for their families back in their home country. The problem starts to rise when owners begin to abuse these workers and forbid them from rights, such as the rights of privacy or maintaining their good health or giving them a day off to rest. Thus, the maids start to disobey their owners and even sometimes create other problems such as creating chaos and misbehaving. In this case owners become extremely  abusive and strict, to a point where the workers do not have any other choice than to commit suicide in case they forbid them to go outside the house. The first right that should be taken into consideration is to enable them to contact their parents, provide adequate housing, and provide the necessary requirements. This type of behavior can even affect the children whom they might have some affection left for the worker. Parents are children’s model of behavior, especially when they are at a young age therefore they imitate whatever their parents do, and start on their own abuse the maids whether physically or intellectually, such as verbal abuse. This might also add to their burden of being abused, even by children. These are the main factors that push them to the edge of killing themselves. Few mothers took this step and others followed and with time, however, need was not the only factor that led to the increase of the number of domestic migrant workers. Apparently we find one or two maids in some homes, houses are cleaner, sinks are empty and laundry is ironed but children are heartless and Lebanese-less. And when love is not received, it cannot be shown. Patriotism taught usually by mothers is getting extinct with time as they no longer discuss patriotic topics with their children due to lack of time. In addition, domestic workers who suffer from migration and their long distance stay, feel more attached to their home country. Both facts are negatively reflected on children; these factors also contribute in their everyday pressure are the oppression and abuse of their rights. Another shocking factor, when the boss of the house tries to have a sexual intercourse with the maid. Maids are not slaves, they keep working all day and night and finally when the employee of t he house finds out what happen she fire her and put her in jail saying that she stole something from her stuff. These maids are working to escape the extreme poverty in which they suffer in their own countries they must have some have someone who fights for their rights and needs since maids are not getting their full rights. The best way to avoid the problems suffered by the female migrant workers is to educate them about their rights safeguard and the dignity of humanity. As a conclusion maids are being exposed to frustration or deprived of achieving their goals or satisfies their needs. The poverty and the need of money has been subjected to injustice, this reflects the majority of committing suicide. Maids must have their rights and obligations. Lebanese society  should learn how to treat these women and they must appreciate and respect what they are doing, thus they should put in mind that these maids come from poor village and they do not know how to deal with new equipments; this is the responsibility of the house holder. Eventually, these maids are human beings just like any other person; they must get their full rights, needs, and they should be treated in a good and polite way. We should not forget that we all work to earn money and living and they also work for the same reasons, but the difference is in the level of education. They are removing the hard work and dirt so their work must be appreciated.

Friday, August 30, 2019

Gender and Leadership: Literature Review

Gender and Leadership Literature Review 1. Introduction Leadership theories and literature describe what leaders should do and on the other hand literature also exists on what leaders actually do, the former are prescriptive and the latter are descriptive (Bratton et al; 2005). Leadership style is a relatively consistent set of behaviours that characterise a leader (DuBrin; 1995). The main leadership theories encompass the trait, behaviour, contingency, power influence, and gender influence and exchange leadership perspectives. This paper focuses on transformational leadership and thus will detail the theory underpinning transformational leadership vis a vis gender differences in leadership. A brief discussion on Leadership effectiveness as it relates to gender and Leadership styles will also be shown. In a study of gender and leadership styles it is important to highlight the deeper foundations that have a bearing on why men and women may lead differently. One of those causes has been found to be culture; a brief review of this construct and its’ bearing on gender has also been outlined in this section. . 2Gender and Leadership Swanepoel et al (2003) define gender as a â€Å"demographic factor that may influence Human Resources Management in organisations and which can lead to similar problems of discrimination in the workplace†. DuBrin (1995) state that the terms sex and gender arouse controversy both scientifically and politically. He further states that the term gender refers to perception s about the differences among males and females whilst sex differences refer to actual tangible differences such as the fact that the mean height of men is greater than that of women. The terms gender and sex are, however, often used interchangeably. Task and interpersonal styles in leadership research are obviously relevant to gender because of the stereotypes people have about sex differences in these aspects of behaviour (Ashmore, Del Boca, & Wohlers, 1986; Eagly & Steffen, 1984). Men are believed to be more self-assertive and motivated to control their environment (e. g. , more aggressive, independent, self-sufficient, forceful, and dominant). In contrast, women are believed to be more selfless and concerned with others (e. . , more kind, helpful, understanding, warm, sympathetic, and aware of others' feelings). Although democratic versus autocratic style is a different (and narrower) aspect of leader behaviour than task-oriented and interpersonally oriented styles (see Bass, 1981), the democratic- autocratic dimension also relates to gender stereotypes, because one component of these stereotypes is that men are relatively dominant and controlling (i. e. , mor e autocratic and directive than women. Bratton et al (2005) highlight a study conducted by Schein (1975) who extended the gender issue in Leadership further with the results confirming that to both the male and female managers who participated in the study; being a successful manager meant being masculine in terms of stereotypical behaviours (Bratton et al, 2005). Wajcman in Bratton, Grint and Nelson stated, â€Å"Some leadership behaviours are interpreted differently depending on the gender of the leader. For example, a particular action seen as â€Å"firm† when displayed by a man (e. , banging the table top with the hand) might be termed â€Å"hysterical† when displayed by a woman. † (Bratton et al; 189). Women are said to find participative management more natural than men because they feel more comfortable interacting with people and that their natural sensitivity encourages group members to participate in decision- making (Dubrin; 1995). Yet as women move up the corporate ladder, their identifica tion with the male model of corporate success becomes important and may even reject the few feminine traits that they may earlier have endorsed. Bass (1998) in his review of studies other than his own concludes that there is no consistent pattern of male-female differences in leadership styles. Modern theory proposes that women lead differently than men (Bratton et al; 2005). This theory tends to promote the idea that women have the characteristics and skill that are necessary for effective leadership and that these skills and characteristics include a more interactional leadership style, the ability to build consensus, a tendency to empower others, and a greater ability to nurture others (Bratton et al; 2005). Robbins (date) in Swanepoel et al (2003) points out that the similarities between women and men tend to outweigh the differences, and that these differences suggest that men are comfortable with a directive style while female managers prefer a democratic style (Swanepoel et al; 2003). The gender perspective argues that women leaders have an interactive, people centered, participative management style. Women leaders are associated with consensus building and power sharing. Views in favour of the gender perspective advocate for equal opportunities at the work place; full utilization of women to utilize available human resources; acknowledgement of the â€Å"special contribution† women can make the work place due to their leadership style and alternate approaches to situations (Bratton, et al; 2005). Swanepoel et al (2003) state that in general women follow a transformational leadership style, which emphasises followers, consensus, and the use of charisma, personal reference and personal contact to enhance interpersonal relations and to influence followers. Men, however prefer a more direct style where job performance is seen as transactional and they also tend to use formal position, power and authority to control people. To tackle the question of whether men and women have different leadership styles, Eagly and Johnson conducted a 1990 review of leadership studies. Notably, although lab studies viewed women as both interpersonally oriented and democratic and men to be both task-oriented and autocratic, field studies indicated a difference on only one of those dimensions: The omen were found to be more democratic, encouraging participation, and the men were more autocratic, directing performance. http: www. psychologymatters. org/womanboss A 2003 meta-analysis extended those results and indicated that women were slightly more likely than men to have the transformational leadership style. Women also appeared to reward good performance more than men, a very positive part of transactional leadership. Men were more likely to criticize subo rdinates and be less hands-on, styles found to be ineffective. http: www. psychologymatters. rg/womanboss. However, psychologists caution against concluding that women or men have some sort of natural or inherent leadership style. There is a possibility that women, knowing how negatively people respond to â€Å"bossy† women, soften their approach. Additionally, the research shows only averages, or tendencies, for each sex. Some men will have more â€Å"feminine† management styles; some women will have more â€Å"masculine† management styles. (http: www. psychologymatters. org/womanboss) Eagly's advice is to be careful about the power of perception. She says that even though the research found some differences in leadership style, â€Å"the sex differences are small because the leader role itself carries a lot of weight in determining people's behaviour. † She concludes that women are in some senses better leaders than men but suffer the disadvantage of leadership roles having a masculine image, especially in some settings and at higher levels. Stripping organizational leadership of its masculine aura would allow psychologists to get a clearer picture of any true differences between men and women. http: www. psychologymatters. org/womanboss) Eagly and Johnson highlighted the following summaries from their review;† The preponderance of available evidence is that no consistently clear pattern of differences can be discerned in the supervisory style of female as compared to male leaders† (Bass, 198 l, p. 499);†There is as yet no research evidence that makes a case for sex differences in either leadership aptitude or style† (Kanter, 1977a, p. 199); â€Å"In general, comparative research indicates that there are few differences in the leadership styles of female and male designated leaders† (Bartol & Martin, 1986, 19. 278). However Quantitative reviews of this research have established the presence rather than the absence of overall sex differences (Eagly, 1987; Eagly & Wood, in press; Hall, 1984). These differences, although typically not large, tend to be comparable in magnitude to most other findings reported in social psychological research. (http: www. psychologymatters. org/womanboss) 3. 3 Cultural Dimension – the link to gender Several theories have been put forward to account for gender differences including biological differences, differences in early childhood and the fulfilment of culturally prescribed gender role expectations. Thomas and Bendixen (2000) refer to Thomas and Ely (1996) who capture the essence of cultural issues in organisations when they state that employees make choices at work based on their cultural background (Thomas and Bendixen; 2000). It is thus important for organisations to understand these values that employees bring into the workplace (Thomas and Bendixen; 2000). Thomas and Bendexin (2000) also lean on Trompenaars (1993) who identified different levels of culture, noting that national culture is at the highest level whilst organisational culture is at the next level down in the hierarchy of culture. Gender related differences in leadership styles may have a foundation in culture. Schein (1990) defines organisational culture as â€Å"a pattern of basic assumptions, invented, discovered, or developed by a given group as it learns to cope with its problems of external adaptation and internal integration, that has worked well enough to be considered valid and, therefore is to be taught to new members as the correct way to perceive, think and feel in relation to those problems. † (Schein, 1990; 111). He further identifies three levels at which culture manifests itself as observable artefacts, values, and basic underlying assumptions (Schein, 1990). Observable artefacts are things that one sees or feels upon entering an organisation. This includes the dress code, the physical layout, the smell and feel of the place to the more tangible things such as the annual reports and company records (Schein, 1990). â€Å"Through interviews, questionnaires, or survey instruments one can study a culture’s espoused and documented values, norms, ideologies, charters, and philosophies. (Schein, 1990; 112). More direct questioning can reveal the more the underlying assumptions, which â€Å"determine perceptions, thought processes, feelings and behaviour† (Schein, 1990; 112) For Edgar Schein (1985) the transformation that matters is a change in the corporate culture. What do leaders pay attention to, measure, and control sends symbolic signals to the rest of the corporate culture. Ho fstede is a central figure in the development of literature on the cultural construct in leadership (Dickson, Hartog & Mitchelson; 2003). He advances the idea that cultural differences are initially encountered as differences in shared values with values being defined as tendencies to prefer certain states of affairs over others (Dickson et al; 2003). Hofstede (1980,2001) described initially four culture dimensions; individualism-collectivism; masculinity-femininity; uncertainty avoidance; and power distance and a fifth dimension, future orientation was added in later work (Dickson et al; 2003). Power distance is â€Å"the extent to which the less powerful members of institutions and organisations within a country expect and accept that power is distributed unequally†. Hofstede (in Dickson, Harthog & Mitchelson, 2003, pg 737). Uncertainty avoidance is defined as the extent to which the members of a society feel threatened by uncertain or unknown situations (Dickson et al p. 740). Individualism versus collectivism ranges from societies in which the ties between individuals are â€Å"loose† and people are expected to take care of themselves and close family only to societies that are â€Å"tight† where people expect their â€Å"in-group to look after them and they do so in return (Dickson, et al. 2003). Masculinity versus femininity ranges from societies in which social gender roles are clearly distinct to societies in which social gender roles overlap (Dickson, et al. ; 2003). This dimension has a direct bearing on gender issues in that societal roles determine gender roles and these ultimately have a bearing on the leadership style that one practices, In her exploration of African management van der Colff (2003) uses the African tree concept advanced by Mbigi (1996). According to this concept the main stem underpinning all the most important values of African History can be traced through ubuntu, which is the key to all African values and involves collectivism (van der Colff; 2003). â€Å"Traditionally African leadership is built on participation, responsibility and spiritual authority†. (van der Colff; 2003,258). Nussbaum (1996) in van der Colff (2003) is quoted as saying that African leadership requires transparency, accountability and legitimacy. The only way they can be legitimate is to be trustworthy themselves before they can expect trust from employees (van der Colff; 2003). Bass (1997) has argued that transformational leadership is universally applicable. He proposed, that regardless of culture, transformational leaders inspire followers to transcend their own self-interests for the good of the group or organization, followers become motivated to expend greater effort than would would usually be expected. While acknowledging the universality of transformational leadership, Bass recognized that cultural differences will contribute to differences at the individual level of measurement. He stated â€Å"Variation occurs because the same concepts may contain specific thought processes, beliefs, implicit understandings, or behaviors in one culture not another† (p. 132). This raises the question of the universality of gender differences in transformational leadership. Although there have been several studies on gender differences in America, unknown is the extent that these findings are replicated in other cultures. This study will show some findings of transformational leadership with a Zimbabwean sample. 3. 4. Transformational Leadership theory From a broad perspective, leadership styles can be transformational and transactional; a transformational leadership style is one that seeks to influence behaviour through inspirational and motivational means. Transactional leadership styles use contingency factors such as rewards and punishment to influence and affect behaviour (Densten, Gray & Sarros, 2002). The transactional leadership theories emphasise transactions between leaders and their followers. Transactional leaders get things done by giving contingent rewards such as recognition and pay increases. These leaders usually manage by exception to monitor performance and take corrective action to remedy poor performance. They motivate followers by clarifying role and task requirements (Swanepoel; 2003). Transformational leadership was first coined by Burns (1978) and further developed by Bass (1985, 1998) and Yammarino & Bass, (1990) with research accumulating in the area over the past fourteen years. Transformational leadership is defined in terms of four inter-related factors: idealised influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individual consideration. Taken together, these sub-types are believed to represent the most effective attitudes and behaviours a leader can have. (Panopoulos; 1998). The transformational characteristic of idealised influence is based on earlier conceptualisations of charisma (e. g. House, 1977). The charismatic leader is able to inspire respect and higher order motivation in followers. The leader is able to communicate a sense of power and confidence in higher values and beliefs. The charismatic leader possesses a clear set of idealised qualities with which followers might wish to be associated (Panapoulos; 1998). The leader who provides inspirational motivation to followers is likely to speak optimistically about the future, articulating a compelling vision of what must be achieved. He motivates followers by his/her own enthusiasm. The leader is therefore not merely a distant charismatic source of referent power but is also able to directly and effectively translate his/her own enthusiasm to followers (Panapoulos; 1998). The leader must also provide intellectual stimulation to followers. In providing intellectual stimulation, the leader is said to orient ollowers to awareness of problems, to their own thoughts and imagination, and to the recognition of their beliefs and values (Yammarino & Bass, 1990 in Panapoulos; 1998). Furthermore, by providing an intellectually stimulating environment, transformational leaders are able to foster the development of creative solutions to problems, which stand in the way of organisational goal attainment. Panapoulos (1998) states that from a humanistic persp ective, the most outstanding component of transformational leadership is the leader’s individualised consideration of his/her followers. According to Bass and his colleagues (Yammarino, Spangler & Bass, 1993 in Panapoulos; 1998), a leader’s use of individual consideration is a crucial element in followers’ achievement of their full potential through a close consideration of their developmental needs. In providing individual consideration, the leader is not only aware of and sensitive to the current needs of followers, but is also aiming to elevate those needs to a higher level (in combination with the use of the other factors of transformational leadership). This can be done by coaching and mentoring, as well as by setting examples and tasks, which are developmentally consistent with the needs of each individual (Panapoulos; 1998). Gender differences in transformational leadership – A review of past research A number of authors have speculated on possible gender differences in the use of transformational leadership (e. g. , Avolio & Bass, 1988; Bycio, Hackett, & Allen, 1995), however, there has been a notable lack of evidence (Bass & Avolio, 1994). Bass contends there are none. Yet, other studies show that women develop a â€Å"feminine style of leadership,† which is characterized by caring and nurturance, and men adopt a â€Å"masculine style of leadership†, which is dominating and task- oriented (Eagly, Makhijani, & Klonsky, 1992). In a study of 345 metropolitan branch managers Carless (1998) found that: Female managers are more likely than male managers to report that they take an interest in the personal needs of their staff, encourage self-development, use participative decision-making, give feedback and publicly recognize team achievements. In summary, female managers report they use more interpersonal-oriented leadership behaviors compared to male managers (Carless, 1998). The review by Eagly and Johnson was the first systematic and comprehensive analysis of gender differences in leadership. Earlier reviews (e. g. , Bartol & Martin, 1986; Dobbins & Platz, 1986) were based on limited samples and were criticized because they failed to specify the selection criteria for inclusion in the review. Eagly and Johnson's (1990) meta-analysis of gender differences in leadership revealed mixed findings. An analysis of task-oriented style and interpersonal oriented style showed that women and men did not differ on these dimensions in organizational studies. Differences were noted for studies in which the sample did not formally hold a leadership position (experimental and assessment studies). On the other hand, significant gender differences were reported in the use of democratic leadership in organizational, experimental and assessment studies. Women used a more participative and inclusive style of leadership and men were more likely to use a directive, controlling style. Carless, 1998). Studies which have used the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ; Bass, 1985b; Avolio, et al. , 1995) to examine gender differences in leadership style have reported conflicting findings. Bass, Avolio and Atwater (1996) examined gender differences in leader behaviour with three samples. Sample I consisted of 79 female and 150 male upper-level leaders who worked for American hi-tec, Fortune 50 f irms. Subordinate ratings of leadership (N = 877) indicated that female leaders were rated higher on all transformational leader behaviors compared to male leaders. These findings are consistent with an earlier study of leaders in the Roman Catholic church (Druskat, 1994). Sample 2, consisted of first-level supervisors employed by a number of organizations, 38 of the leaders were female and 58 were male. Subordinates (N = 271) observed no gender differences for the subscales of Intellectual Stimulation and Inspirational Motivation, however, females were reported as higher on the subscales of Charisma and Individual Consideration. Sample 2 findings were consistent with an earlier study reported by Bass and Avolio (1994). Generally, in studies that report significant differences between females and males the effect sizes are very small and it is therefore argued that there is no practical differences between female and male leaders (Yammarino, Dubinsky, Comer & Jolson, 1997). In the third sample of 154 female leaders and 131 male leaders who worked for nonprofitable organizations (e. g. health care), subordinates (N = 913) reported no differences in the leader behavior of females and male leaders. Similary, Komives (1991) found no difference between female and male manager self-ratings of transformational leadership, with the exception of Intellectual Stimulation; women managers were found to be significantly higher than their male counterparts(Carless,1998). According to the gender-centred perspective, individual attributes vary according to their gender (Betz & Fitzgerald, 1987; Hennig & Jardin, 1977; Loden, 1985). This approach proposes that, women develop a feminine style of leadership, which is characterized by caring and nurturance, and men adopt a masculine style of leadership, which is dominating and taskoriented (Eagly, Makhijani, & Klonsky, 1992). Similarly, the social-role theory (Eagly, 1987) proposes that individuals behave in accordance with societal expectations about their gender role. Through the socialization process, people learn to conform to cultural expectations about their gender role. The feminine model of leadership includes typical transformational leadership behaviors, for example, participatory decision-making, collaboration and quality interpersonal relationships between leader and subordinate (Eagly, Karau, Miner & Johnson, 1994; Helgesen, 1990; Loden, 1985). Hence, it could be expected that females and males may differ in their use of certain transformational leadership behaviors(Carless,1998). The structural perspective suggests that the organizational role the individual occupies is more important then the gender of the individual (Kanter, 1977). Within organizations clear guidelines exist for the expected performance of managers, hence the major issue for managers is meeting the organization's expectations regarding effective management performance, not conforming to culturally defined gender roles. Assuming female and male managers occupy the same role within an organization and have equivalent access to status and power there is no reason to expect gender differences in leadership styles (Eagly, Karau, & Makhijani, 1995). This suggests that when examining gender differences in leadership behavior it is important to compare women and men who occupy the same position in the organization and are at the same level in the organizational hierarchy. (Carless ,1998). Eagly and her colleagues (Eagly & Johnson, 1990; Eagly, et al. , 1995) suggest that gender differences vary according to the extent of gender congeniality. Gender congeniality is described as the â€Å"fit between gender roles and particular leadership roles† (Eagley, et al. , 1995, p. 29). It reflects an individual's interest in a specific leadership role and appraisal of their competence to perform that role. In some organizations, such as the military, leadership positions are defined in more masculine terms than feminine. Thus, leadership positions in these organizations would be described as congenial to men. In others, such as education and nursing, leadership is defined in more feminine ways and therefore could be described as conge nial to women(Carless, 1998). 3. 5Effective Leadership Since women began to climb the corporate ladder, authorities have asked if they have what it takes to lead groups and organizations. According to the research, while men and women are equally effective in some settings, more often effectiveness depends on the fit between the setting and management gender. For example, women's typically more mentoring, coaching style is more favorably received in female-dominated professions; men's more typically â€Å"command and control† style is well received in male-dominated professions. http: www. sychologymatters. org/womanboss . In essence therefore, all things being equal, men and women are equally effective. But given varied work settings and a workplace whose top managers are still more likely to be male, all things rarely are equal. For example, women are slightly more likely to be â€Å"transformational† leaders, serving as role models, helping employees develop their skills, and motivating them to be dedicated and creative. That approach may actually be more effective in today's less hierarchical organizations. But not all workplaces are alike: The participatory style may backfire in traditional male settings such as the military or organized sports. Conversely, the command-and-control style more typical of men may backfire in a social-service agency or retail outlet. (http:www. psychologymatters. org/womanboss) A 1995 review by Alice Eagly, PhD, Steven Karau, PhD and Mona Makhijani, PhD, of more than 80 different studies found that when aggregated over the organizational and laboratory experimental studies in the sample, male and female leaders were equally effective. The leaders or managers assessed in the studies were typically first-level or first-line supervisors, with a strong minority of studies looking at mid-level managers or managers of mixed or unknown levels. The analysis also showed that women were more effective leaders in female-dominated or female-oriented settings, and that men were more effective leaders in male-dominated or male-oriented settings. Thus working in a leadership role congruent with one's gender gives the perception that one is more effective. (http: www. psychologymatters. org/womanboss) Theories of transformational leadership (e. . , Bass, 1985a; Conger & Kanungo, 1988; Kouzes & Posner, 1987; Sashkin & Burke; 1990; Trice & Beyer, 1986) have focused on identifying a range of leadership behaviors which contribute to effective performance. Although these theories differ in the leadership behaviors they distinguish, there exists a number of common themes. Transformational leaders articulate a vision, use lateral or non traditional thinking, encourage individual development, give regular feedback, use participative decision-making, and promote a cooperative and trusting work environment. http: www. psychologymatters. org/womanboss) Densten, et al. ; (2002) emphasise that successful leaders are able to build a strong corporate culture, are truth-tellers, can see the invisible, that is, spot potential winners or identify trends before their rivals or customers, are fast learners and good communicators. Leaders are expected to anticipate future events before they occur and have a vision to overcome uncertainties. Managers on the other hand are expected to run current operations effectively and efficiently (Bratton, et al. ; 2005). Darling in Swanepoel, Erasmus et al argues â€Å"a real test of successful leadership in management lies in giving, to the greatest extent possible, opportunities to others within the situational context of the firm. One does not have to be brilliant to be a good leader, but you have to understand people- how they feel, what makes them tick, and the most effective ways to influence them. †(Swanepoel, Erasmus, Van Wyk, Schenk; 359) DuBrin (1995) state that in order to be a leader one has to make a difference and to facilitate positive changes. They further state that the common characteristic of effective leaders is their ability to inspire and stimulate others to achieve worthwhile goals (Dubrin; 1995). Drucker (2004) outlines eight practices followed by effective executives. He says that they ask, â€Å"What needs to be done? † and â€Å"What is right for the enterprise†. Effective executives also develop action plans, they take responsibility for decisions and communicating, focus on opportunities rather than problems, run productive meetings and focus on â€Å"we† rather than â€Å"I† (Drucker; 2004). Drucker (2004) further explains that the first two practices gives them the knowledge they need, the next four help to convert this knowledge to effective action and the last two ensure that the whole organization feels responsible and accountable. Researchers are especially interested in the question of whether a management style more associated with women – a less authoritarian, more nurturing approach – will â€Å"click† as the workplace generally shifts to more team-oriented structures that thrive under a less directive approach. 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M & Vloeberghs D. 2003: Leadership challenges for organisations in the New South Africa, Journal of Leadership & Organisational Development , 24(2), 84-95 Dickson MW, Hartog DN & Mitchelson JK. 003: Research on leadership in a cross-cultural context: Making progress, and raising new questions, The Leadership Quarterly 14, 729-768 Drucker PF. 2004: What makes an effective executive, Harvard Business Review, 59-63 DuBrin AJ. 1995: Leadership: Research Findings, Practice, and Skills: Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company Eagly AH. Johannesen-Schmidt MC. & van Engen M. 2003: Transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire leadership styles: A meta-analysis comparing women and men. Psychological Bulletin, 95, pp. 569-591. Eagly AH. and Johannesen-Schmidt M. 001: The leadership styles of women and men. Journal of Social Issues, 57, pp. 781-797. Eagly AH. & Johnson BT. 1990: â€Å"Gender and Leadership Style: A Meta-analysis†, Psychological Bulletin 108, pp. 233-256 Eagly AH. Karau SJ and Makhijani MG. 1995: Gender and the effectiveness of leaders: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 117, pp. 125-145. Hogg MA. 2001: â€Å"A Social Identity theory of Leadership†, personality and social psychology review, 5, 3, 184-200 Javidan M & House RJ. 2001: Cultural acumen for the global manager: Lessons from project GLOBE. Organisational Dynamics, 29(4), 289-305 Jung DI, Bass BM, & Sosik J J. 1995: Bridging leadership and culture: A theoretical consideration of transformational leadership and collectivistic cultures. Journal of Leadership Studies, 2, 3-18 Panapoulos F. No date: Gender differences in transformational leadership among the field leaders of New South Wales Police students: http:www. aic. gov. au/conferences/policewomen2/Panapoulos Accessed on 2006/06/5 Rosener J. 1990: â€Å"Ways Women Lead† Harvard Business Review 68, pp. 119-125. 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Thursday, August 29, 2019

Domestic Violence Course Assignment

Questions: Answer the following questions. Name three consequences for women victimized by male partner violence. ? Describe the following three theories: traumatic bonding, Stockholm syndrome, ND attachment. How do these theories explain a victim's entrapment in the relationship? Why can't battered women count on the criminal Justice system to protect them from an abusive male partner? Chapter 9 Review – Abusive Heterosexual Partners: Primarily Men Discuss at least three different types of definitions of partner violence. Discuss blame. Evaluate how it affects battered women and partner violent men. Discuss what is known about female partner abuse offenders.Compare and contrast differences with male offenders. Assignment – Due: Wednesday, April 4, 2012 Discuss the meaning and importance of practice, policy and prevention issues. Evaluate agency services versus individual counseling services. What problems do agencies appear to have? Discuss cultural competence and why is it needed in practice, policy and prevention. Discuss the controversy over treatment of male abusers. What is your opinion? Assignment – Due: Wednesday, April 1 1, 2012 Chapter 4 Review – Child Physical Abuse Should corporal punishment be outlawed?Is it effective? Why or why not? List five general categories of the effects of CPA on children. Describe a prototypical adult who abuses children. Assignment #5 – Due: Wednesday, April 25, 2012 Chapter 12 Review – Abuse of Elderly and Disabled Persons How does elder abuse compare with abuse of younger adults? What is elder self- neglect? What sorts of individuals are most likely to abuse elders? What are some of the forms of abusing disabled persons that appear to be unique? What elder abuse problems and responses to abuse occur in nursing homes?

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Plato's _Phaedo_ Discussion Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Plato's _Phaedo_ Discussion - Dissertation Example Through the dialogue of Phaedo, Plato had been able to present one of his greatest contributions to philosophy which is the perspective of dualities, wherein every concept is viewed and given reason through the opposing concept. Few examples include the body and the soul, right and wrong, darkness and light, night and day, etc. Though concepts are not delineated clearly, the view of duality is the simplest manner of philosophizing regarding the existence of different matter and concepts. Another contribution of Plato’s Phaedo is the further discussion of the Forms, an example of which is the soul. Are Plato’s views applicable in the modern era? On a personal note, Plato’s views can be considered exceptional even in the present era. His views regarding the Forms have influence in the philosophies of the people in the present generation. The main difference though is that the immortality of the soul in the present views of people is related to religion and faith wh ile for Plato the soul is an entity of knowledge, thus, related to science. The view on virtue is also another example. Virtue according to Plato can only be observed in philosophers or people of knowledge since they are aware of the concept of virtue itself.

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

The war against global terrorism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The war against global terrorism - Essay Example So, no, the war against terrorism can never be won in absolute terms. For instance if religious fanaticism is analyzed, the emotional and spiritual motives can push a person to take lives, even their own. The course book lists beliefs and perceptions (Kegley & Wittkopf 177) that become an excuse for religious radicals to do anything in setting the world straight on the correct path. If they find any government secular or not religious friendly, they can start an open war with them. The problem is that it is not a conventional war to stop or destroy an advancing enemy. It is an ideological war. The terrorists will certainly score great sympathy from common people and regional power brokers, because they are the ones showing them the path of righteousness. Killing the leaders of these terror campaigns create martyrs, and the remaining lot almost worships them as their heroes. This only strengthens their cause. One doesn’t need to study ancient war history to understand this plague. Chapter 7 of the book paints brief history of the twenty first century so far. The World Trade Centre incident, Afghanistan War, Iraq’s invasion, Madrid Bombing (2004), London Bombing (2005), Israel’s bombing in Lebanon (2006) and many other incidents demolishing any hopes for a peaceful century (Kegley & Wittkopf 197). The same paragraph also mentions the 2011 Arab demonstration for democratization as a ray of hope. This is highly debatable. The case of Egypt is enough to understand that terrorism can never be defeated in absolute terms. Despite the Arab Spring and powerful (bloody) protests against dictatorships, Egypt still yearns to see democracy in its true form. One needs to ask this question; have the Egyptian demonstrators been successful in achieving their goal? Toppling a dictatorship was just one part of it, true democracy is their destination? Is Egypt a true democracy today? If only military deals decide the

Marketing channel essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Marketing channel - Essay Example In light of this definition, an evaluation of the article Disney’s Powerful Marketing Machine by Ryan Tracy can sufficiently form a basis from which the various aspects of marketing channel can be weighed. Disney’s Powerful Marketing Machine by Ryan Tracy looks at the various marketing and business tools used by Disney as a company. The article tries to evaluate the various successes that Disney has achieved, and looks at these successes in relation to the history that Disney as a company has. It is based on Disney CEO’s remarks on the company, and while the article acknowledges various company CEO’s wont for braggadocio, it draws the line by stating that Disney can actually stand up to the success story behind it. As such, one of the major reasons behind Disney’s success is its intellectual property resulting from an array of highly popular and prosperous characterization in the film industry. This is also backed by years of experience in the logistics involved in making a product and its merchandise as successful as possible. Disney’s worldwide presence means that they have virtually unlimited reach, and coupled with their experience at marketing their merchandise and effectively pricing them anywhere, the Disney magic has always ensured very high success rates. Moreover, Disney has spread its wings to cover almost all the relevant aspects of its scope, from animations, films, books, videogames, magazines, mobile apps, and even its own network channel. Nonetheless, the Disney has not had a very successful implementation of the internet-based media consumption that characterizes the younger generation. While this has caused losses for the company, it has out measures in place to rejuvenate its interactive division. In all, the article foresees a successful future for Disney, particular in consideration of its past and the recent acquisition of Marvell, another giant in action heroes. This article highlights various aspects of marketing

Monday, August 26, 2019

Scientific experiment Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 1

Scientific experiment - Assignment Example This was aslo in conjuction with the rapid at which the carbon dioxide was being released. The results of this experiment showed that with increase in oxygen concentration, there is rapid increase in the heat energy relesed and also the amount of carbon dioxide released. The test for carbon dioxide was lime water which turned white on the passage of carbon dioxide. The amount of energy released could be told by the temperature on the bottle( caroline,28) To both the plants and animals energy is the most fundamental driving factor. Almost all processes in the bodies of the organisms are initiated and run by energy. These processes ranges from reproduction, locomotion, fertilization, growth and development. This calls on scients like me and others in general to clearly show the factors which contributes to the respiration in organisms. It is of essence to note that the experiment went further to give details on the essential elements required in the respiration in which it was found out that oxygen is essential for aerobic respiration, again glucose or some subtrates like starch must be present for respiration to take place. Carbon dioxide was released this was to confirm that it is of less essence for animals though in plants its used fro the process of photosynthesis . Some environmental factors such as high temperatures and humidity affects the rate of respiration. In a very cold environment there is less activities experienced by the endotherms this result in utilization of less heat. When the requirement of heat energy is less in the body there is high likelihood of respiration process going slowly. Different food substrates effects differently on the process of respiration. For instance the starch is very rich in energy therefor when used it result in higher energy production. Respiration takes place in two stages in most

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Stock Market Cycles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Stock Market Cycles - Essay Example Although the political world affects the stock market in the short term the market recovers quickly. What drives the stock market the most are interest rates, inflation, and corporate profits. Interest rates are set by the Federal Reserve. Federal policy is set through the raising or lowering of interest rates. Interest rates help dictate the demand for goods and services. This in turn affects corporate profits and inflation. Interest rates set by business and industry are set according to what people believe the Federal Reserve will set long term interest rates at. This forecasting of interest rates is driven by what the Federal Reserve is projected to do in the future. High interest rates alter borrowing costs. This has the effect of changing the availability of bank loans and household wealth. Lastly, interest rates affect foreign exchange rates (Federal Reserve San Francisco). Corporate profits drive the stock market either up or down depending upon whether corporations have a gain or a loss. Large corporate profits give corporations more to spend or reinvest in the corporation. The gains are passed on to investors through increase in value of the company's stocks and larger dividends. Most dividends are reinvested into the corporation thus increasing growth potential of the corporation. Corporate losses have the opposite affect. Losses are passed on to corporate stock holders in the form of decreased stock value and lower dividend payments. What also drives stock prices is corporate reporting. A corporation that has had a positive growth fiscal year tends to prompt a rise in the value of its stock. Likewise fiscal reporting that falls short of forecasts has the effect of lowering stock value. In addition to reporting results, a corporation's non-compliance with reporting requirements or late reporting has the affect of lowering its stock value. Mainly, t his is because non-compliance is most associated with problems within the organization or reports of an external investigation by the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission). Corporate earnings have the trickle down affect of the raising or lowering of purchasing power of its stockholders and employees. Employees often benefit from owning company stock through a corporate stock option program that awards stock to employees as retirement compensation. A company seeing losses passes that loss of value on to its employees by lowering of the stock price. This has the affect of lowering the value of the employee's retirement plan. A win-win situation would be employees working hard to assist the corporation in making profits because both the corporation and the employees benefit from higher stock values. As long as corporations and individuals have buying power they will exercise that power by purchasing more stocks. That, in affect, gives the corporation more money to spend on operations that make money for the corporation. Thus stock market values rise (Bull market). The inverse lowers stock values and reinvestment and the stock market experiences a bear market. Lastly, a war has an interesting affect on the stock market. Initially, the announcement of a conflict serves to drive the market downward. But, once war production begins and corporations begin to make money because of the conflict the stock market is driven up. Works Cited: Federal Reserve

Saturday, August 24, 2019

The English Law on defences to a claim in negligence is a confused Essay

The English Law on defences to a claim in negligence is a confused muddle. Only contributory negligence makes any coherent sense at all - Essay Example This is patently inequitable, and under such circumstances the courts make serious efforts to discount the presence of contributory negligence (Murdoch, 2002). These judicial gymnastics, at times seem to defy the import of the evidence presented in the case. These observations are clearly brought out in the case of Astley v Austrust Ltd. In this case, a trustee company sued a firm of solicitors for breach of contract and for providing negligent advice. The trial court judge discerned contributory negligence on the part of the plaintiff, and ruled that the responsibility for the loss was to be shared equally by the plaintiff and defendant (Astley v Austrust Ltd, 1999). This decision was set aside by the Full Court in South Australia, which held that there was no contributory negligence. This court went on to rule that contributory negligence could not arise, in instances where the loss to the plaintiff was of the very nature that it was the duty of the defendant to prevent, by providing appropriate professional advice (Astley v Austrust Ltd, 1999). However, in the High Court, it was held that apportionment legislation was inapplicable to contributory negligence of the plaintiff; if the defendant had not protected the plaintiff from such damage. Thus, contributory negligence can be attributed to a plaintiff, in instances where the principal duty of the defendant is to prevent such damage to the plaintiff (Astley v Austrust Ltd, 1999). In addition to being able to predict damage and the closeness of the parties; it should be equitable and reasonable to enforce a duty of care. There have been several cases, where the courts have ruled that the duty of care, inherent in psychiatric injury that was caused on account of negligence, was present due to policy considerations (Victim of self – inflicted injuries owes no duty of care, 2000). In Caparo Industries plc v Dickman, the

Friday, August 23, 2019

Business Analytics Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Business Analytics - Assignment Example 2. Of the six potential data quality problems such as currency, completeness, relevance, duplication, outliers and inconsistent values and coding, which do you consider as the most difficult to detect and fix and why? This has to be the completeness and relevance of data. In a project involving Big Data, it is almost impossible to correctly anticipate future data requirements. Data that may be useful right now may be of no purpose in future. It is also hard to fully understand what data is relevant for the project and what data is of no purpose. Fixing data incompleteness and irrelevance is a delicate task, as it usually results into altering the entire structure of databases and sometimes affecting the integrity of the entire databases. I consider currency, duplication, outliers and inconsistent values and coding to be relatively easy to fix. Currency conversion is inbuilt in data management systems. Duplication of data is also simple to detect and can be eliminated through the use of primary keys. Outliers, inconsistent values and coding can be removed by the use of tools which detect discrepancies in

Thursday, August 22, 2019

The Gift of Magi Essay Example for Free

The Gift of Magi Essay Characteristics of Jim and Della Dillingham Della Dillingham young beautiful poor courage’s loving Della is James Dillingham’s wife in story. She is a young beautiful woman with beautiful long knee length hairs. She loves her husband most and always try’s to keep him happy, whenever her husband ‘jim’ came home she hugs him gently. When the story opens Della is counting money that she has saved to buy her husband a Christmas present and she starts crying after realizing how little she has to buy a good Christmas present for her husband. They were poor, after saving for whole month she could only save $ 1.87. They only possess two worthy things one is Della’s hair and other is Jim’s watch which is given to him by his father. After thinking for a while Della makes decision to cut and sell her hairs for money to buy a good Christmas present for her husband. This shows the courage’s nature of Della. She cuts of her hair and get $20 for them. With the money from her hair she buys a beautiful platinum watch chain for her husband. Later when jim came back home and sees della in short hairs he got stunned by her appearance, della then reminds him that her hairs will grow quickly again and she wants him happy,for it is Christmas eve, and she cut and sold her hairs because she could not face Christmas without a gift for him.This incidence of story shows her unconditional and unselfish love for her husband. James Dillingham Young Hard working serious poor loving Della’s husband Jim is a thin, serious young man, 22 years old. The author of the story has described Jim to the readers by comparing him with the platinum watch chain : was like him â€Å"quietness and value – the description applies to both† Jim is a hard working man , he never returns home before 7 o’clock .and is reliable also â€Å"jim was never late†. Jim’s most prized possession is the gold watch that has been handed over to him by his father and to his father from his grandfather. But jim clearly values his wife more than his watch because he sells it in order to buy a set of beautiful combs for her beautiful long hairs as a present for Christmas. This shows how much he loves his wife.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Nicaraguan Cocoa Trade Essay Example for Free

Nicaraguan Cocoa Trade Essay Cocoa has been an important part of Mesoamerican life for more than a thousand years. It began as a sacred, ceremonial food until the discovery of the Americas by the Europeans. From that time to today cocoa has been a booming commodity locally and more importantly, in the worldwide marketplace. (Somarriba, 2009) However, Nicaragua struggles to capture a big portion of the international market, although cocoa from that region is generally accepted as very high quality. In the late 1970’s farmers struggled with both crop disease and lower market prices. The outcome was a massive replacement by farmers from cocoa to bananas, which were believed to be more profitable. The effect was a decrease in cocoa bean production, which has remained relatively low until recently. Today cocoa is frequently cultivated by indigenous peoples and peasant farmers. Many Mesoamerican countries use the cocoa farms as a key land use effort to reducing poverty. (Somarriba, 2009) However, Nicaragua is beginning to turn their focus on better production methods, and more land specifically designated to the production of cocoa. Experts have estimated that only 6400 hectares are farmed each year in the cultivation of cocoa. That number roughly represents about one thousand cubic tons per year in cocoa production. (Navarrete, 2005) In addition to this, most farmers are small scale generational farmers, passing along traditions through the years. However, it has also been estimated that in comparison to the 6400 hectares that are farmed each year, a possible 350,000 hectares are suitable for cocoa production. (Navarretes, 2005) This exciting prospect is further fueled by the high demand for quality cocoa by international buyers such as Germany, The Netherlands, and the USA. (Dand, 2009) Although Nicaraguan cocoa is known for its very desirable characteristics and therefore good market prices, the area struggles with low production. The two biggest contributors to such minimal output are both poor agricultural management and technology, and plant-diseases. (Navarretes, 2005) Cultivating cocoa is a relatively easy crop. Many farmers like the lack of costly equipment or chemicals that would eat up profits. However, cocoa is very labor intensive. One of the many problems facing Nicaraguan farmers is learning how to deal with these issues on a steady basis to increase crop production. Firstly, soil preparation and plot placement is important. Cocoa needs well drained soil and plenty of water, humidity and sunshine. Often the small considerations like weeding and cutting down excessive shade trees that steal soil nutrients and sunlight are neglected and cause poor crops, although they are fairly easy problems to remedy. . (Navarretes, 2005)Another easy remedy that is often overlooked is that of dead or diseased pod and limb removal. Neglecting such seemingly simple tasks have had disastrous effects on whole cocoa crops. The diseased or dead pods and limbs quickly become diseased and spread rapidly throughout the crop. Adding to these mounting problems, farmers try to save crops with chemicals, but misuse and poor techniques result in killing the crops anyway. One of the most deadly diseases that cocoa farms are susceptible to is the Monilia virus. This devastating virus acts like a cancer and is very easily spread. In the late 1980’s the Monilia virus was responsible for crop failures in most of Mesoamerica. (Lok, p. 251) Management practices were introduced to help educate farmers on easy methods to save crops. These included removing infected fruit, pruning and weed control. One of the biggest problems remaining today that stands as a great hindrance to the desired cocoa production is simply that many of these farmers are ill-educated on farming techniques, and don’t know how to identify or resolve any of these fairly simple problems. However, NGO’s and extensionist groups have tried to come in and remedy the problems. Extensionists focused mainly on farming practices and taught farmers how to identify and resolve problems. Also, they spent time educating farmers on methods for stimulating production, site choices and record keeping. Several problems were faced in all of these areas. First of all, one method which involves opening up the crown of the tree for longer term production must be carefully balanced by how much water is near the tree, humidity being an important factor in healthy cocoa trees. In one study after education the farmer on proper techniques, the farmer didn’t relate the balance of humidity and sunshine, and lost the entire crop to dehydration. This proved to encourage distrust in the farmers of the extensionists who were there to help leading to the general consensus by the farmers that they should continue to stick to their own methods. (Lok, p. 255) As one farmer expressed his feelings on the matter, â€Å"I was told to establish my plot here, because it was the best place according to the extensionists, but I regret having done so. Next time I will establish my plot far from the river on the slope. This will give me less work, while still producing an acceptable amount of cocoa. †(Lok, p. 255) In addition to differences with training techniques, resistance by farmers was also had in relaying the importance of cutting down other trees that inhibit good cocoa crop production. Part of the problem lies in the simple fact that farmers use many of the trees for other necessary uses. For example, many of the shade trees are used for firewood and fruit and are seen by the farmers as being indispensable. Moreover, when trying to establish a basis for recording yield production, extensionists found that farmers would hesitate to give the correct amount. Farmers insecure living circumstances, murder, theft and kidnapping, as well as debts needing to be repaid to the NGO’s all play their part in the farmer’s inconsistencies and reluctance to report accurately. Unfortunately these problems only add to the difficulties being faced in trying to increase production. (Lok, p. 255) With the aid of extensionists also came the helpful tools that the NGO’s had to offer. Because most cocoa was initially sold to middle men, farmers got low prices for their crops, thus ensuring the cycle of low production. With help from NGO’s cocoa prices went up which opened opportunities for funding for better methods. The main problem faced in this are was mostly one that often strikes countries struggling with economic development. One government leader in attempting to address this problem of squandering increased income bluntly stated, â€Å"Brother workers and peasants, begging your pardon, but you will have to get drunk less, and dedicate the money to your family. † (Fagen, 1986) Its second largest task of providing ways to market its product has been aided both internally and externally. With new focus on commercialization and export procedures change is inevitable. Just as in the case with farming techniques, many of the issues that are hindering a large scale export are easily resolved. For instance, one of the major obstacles in the commercial cycle is simply that the roads are in such bad condition make travel impassable. (Dand, 1997) With the addition of government projects and government backing the potential for success is high. In addition, Nicaraguan commercialization of cocoa is focusing on the utilization of the CAFTA organization to help increase productivity. (Dilger, 2005) Following CAFTA encouragement, Nicaragua would focus its commercialization with the United States, who â€Å"buys 25% of the world production†. With this strengthened focus CAFTA will also push cocoa as a free market product, trying to lift restrictions and increase sales. (Dilger, 2005) Interestingly, CAFTA is also aware of the traditional cocoa cultivation practices and is urging farmers to try mew methods. (Dilger, 2005) Regardless of the many obstacles, the national goal of Nicaragua to increase production of one of its finest exports remains strong. Nicaragua is aware of its problems of low production, lack of credit, persistent Monilia, and pricing wars. (Dilger, 2005) However, with Nicaragua’s high quality cocoa and the accompanying international demands, Nicaragua could easily compete in the international cocoa trade. The potential for growth is strong, as is the determination of Nicaragua. References Dand, R. (1997). The International Cocoa Trade. New York: John Wiley Sons. Retrieved March 26, 2009, from Questia database: http://www. questia. com/PM. qst? a=od=114030771 Dilger, Robert. Kopsell, Edgar. (August 2005) Estrategias publicas-privadas en el sector Cacoa en Nicaragua y Acuerdos regionales de comercio libre. Fagen, R. R. (1986, November). The Politics of Transition. Monthly Review, 38, 1+. Retrieved March 26, 2009, from Questia database: http://www. questia. com/PM. qst? a=od=5002128448 Lok, Rossana. (1998) Traditional Cocoa Agroforesrty Systems in Wasala, Nicaragua. Navarrete, Ignacio Thelma Gaitan. (2005). Cadena del Cultivo Cacao. Somarriba, Eduardo. Sustainable Cocoa Production in Mesoamerica. www. worldcocoafoundation. org. Retrieved March 26, 2009

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Cities that contribute to Sustainable Development

Cities that contribute to Sustainable Development Sustainable Cities or Cities that contribute to Sustainable Development Nur Asyiqin Afiqah bte Hj Ahmad Two compulsory readings were given to each person in our class and I chose to read Sustainable cities or Cities that contribute to Sustainable development where it focuses on the definition of ‘sustainable cities’ and ‘sustainable human settlements’ in which majority mentions that by reducing the environmental problems it would help to achieve the sustainable development goals. However, from the reading, the author explains that to achieve sustainable cities or sustainable human settlements it did not just focus on environmental problems, one should not neglect the social, economy, political, demographic, cultural goals as it have been said to be part of sustainable development. After reading this article for more than five times, I realized the author has mentioned about the environmental performances in order to achieve the sustainable development goals. In terms of environmental performances, both countries in the North and South experienced the same problems of depletion of resources, but viewing from the author’s perspectives, he mentions that countries in the North are usually able to solve the environmental problems although there is a disagreement among other authors such that in terms of the non-renewable resources, exploitation of soils and forests, the use of global sink for greenhouse gases show that the level of waste and greenhouse gas emission per capita created by the life styles of most middle and upper-income in the North could not be sustained. They could only bring damages to the environment as the wealthier countries built factories, highways, and started producing and using consumer goods on a large scale, hence the earth’ s air and water became polluted, natural resources were depleted, and sensitive habitats were destroyed. However, to compare the North with the South , there are range of problems in the South, for instance from the perspective of the author , cities in the North perform much better for their inhabitants in most cities which contrast the South such as the smaller role of environmental hazard in illness , injury and premature death (WHO,1996 ; UNCHS,1996) Moreover, in terms of average levels of resource use or greenhouse gas emission per person, most cities in the South have much lower levels than cities in the North (Hardoy,1992 ; UNCHS 1996) The author has also emphasized the importance of social activities in order to achieve sustainable cities. For example, controlling infectious and parasitic diseases in which it links to the environmental problems. This problem usually connected with the inadequate of water and sanitation, be it in the North and South countries. I believe, the government , national and international authorities played important role in order to achieve the sustainable development goals, for example, if government did not take any action or responsibilities, number of problems may arose or if they are only focusing on achieving the environmental performances without looking at any other aspects. This may lead to the emerging and re-emerging of other infectious diseases as most cities concentrate on the large numbers of people who are particularly vulnerable to infection especially those countries in the South as they have high number of infant mortality rates within their population. Furthermore, many particular cities in the North and some in the South have a high concentration of older people who are more vulnerable to many infectious diseases. This may become serious problems if low priority is given or are not being taken into considerations by the governments and other authorities to the public health and health care. Initially, I noticed that the author did not really mention the issues of the population growth. A Little attention was given to the issue of population growth within the discussion of sustainable development and cities (Smith, 1996). A significant proportion of the urban populations have consumption levels that are so low that they contribute little or nothing to the use of non-renewable resources and the generation of wastes, generation of greenhouse gases. Most resource use and waste generation arise from the consumption patterns of middle and upper income households and the enterprises which produce the goods they consume. From the reading, I felt that the developed countries are more responsible than developing countries in sustaining the cities. This is mainly because, the North countries tend to develop heavy industrialization compared to the countries in the South, hence they are producing more environmental problems and the fact that they are using more resources than the So uth. For me, the most important element is meeting the human needs in order to achieve the sustainable development of goals. Meeting the human needs has to be combined with considerations of how to minimize the depletion of environmental capital. There are a lot of different perspectives on achieving sustainable development of goals, for example, phrases such as ‘sustainable cities’, ‘sustainable human developments’ and ‘sustainable urbanization’ do not give exact meaning of these. The third time I read this article on the topic of considering the environmental performance of cities, I realized that the author distinguished between the different kinds of environment problems when making comparison between cities. The five important categories need to be taken into account such as reducing chemical and physical hazards within the home and the health problem. The health problem are related to human beings in which, previously, I believe it is related to the importance of meeting the human needs. Majority of the countries in the South lived in poor conditions of shelters and neighborhoods where their lives and health were easily threatened because of inadequate provision of safe, insufficient water supplies, poor sanitation removal of solid and liquid waste and lack of health care and emergency services (Caimcross ,1990 ; WHO, 1992) Previously, I mentioned that meeting the human needs are important and that government, national and international agencies played important role in taking responsibilities. The sustainable developments in regard to cities were addressed and strong priorities to meeting human needs were given in reducing the depletion of natural resources and other environmental problems where this has been stressed during the Habitat II Conference. Having read this article, I now realise that to achieve the sustainable development goals in regards to sustainable cities is not easy as there are a lot of parties or authors that kind of disagree with focusing on the environmental problems and social problems, and meeting the human needs. The sustainable settlements ‘promote’ or ‘should promote’ human needs, and this is a reminder of how complex it can be to reach agreement among so many interested parties (Kakakhel, 1996). Later, I noticed a high priority to the meeting of human needs in cities and the need for a strong priority for poverty reduction, need to address environmental problems and acknowledge the important heath components are being stressed. There is also a strong stress on the need to strengthen city and municipal authorities. This might be explained by that little mention of the new resources that need to be directed to the meeting of human needs in the nations where there are sufficient resources to achieve this. The definition of sustainable development is meant to sustain whether it is settlements or settlement policies or particular activities within settlements. I have slightly developed my understanding on this topic , it tells me that in order to achieve the sustainable development goals , the society in general or the living conditions needs to be ‘sustainable’ be it in terms of their activities within urban areas, land development, sustainable transport, sustainable livelihoods, sustainable resource use , sustainable water supply, sustainable energy use, sustaining economic growth and equity. The author also assumed that a concern of environmental quality within cities is all that is needed to achieve the environmental component of sustainable development goals without neglecting the economic and social development. References : Are developed countries more responsible for damage to the climate?. Retrieved from: http://www.debate.org/opinions/are-developed-countries-more-responsible-for-damage-to-the-climate Promoting Sustainable Industry in the Developing World. (2008) Retrieved from : http://www.glica.org/topics/show/53

Sparta Vs Athens :: essays papers

Sparta Vs Athens In Ancient Greece there were two different major forms of government, Oligarchy and Democracy. The two city-states that best represent each form of government were Sparta (oligarchy) and Athens (democracy). The democratic government in Athens, though de cently equal, fair and fairly advanced for its time, did not meet the needs of the Greeks. During a time of many military battles Athens decided to worry more about comfort and culture. It is the oligarchy in Sparta that put a war-like attitude as it's first priority and best met the needs of Ancient Greece. The Athenian democratic government, which may have given the citizens in Greece more freedom, was not the best form of government at the time. The democracy in Athens cannot really be called a true democracy since there were several flaws in the governme nt and the way it worked. Only ten per cent of the total population of Athens actually had voting rights and all of these citizens were upper class men who were over thirty years old. Women, no matter what the class or age, were given no freedom at all. They were first owned by their fathers and then were passed from them to their husbands who then gave them nothing more than the responsibilities of managing the household and educating the children. During a meeting of the Assembly, a policy could be adopted and formed into a law but once the meeting of the assembly ended, the enforcement of that law was left in the hands of people who may not agree with that specific law. Also, a rule of the Assembly said that if a certa! in speaker became too powerful, he could be expelled from the country if given a majority vote by the Assembly. This rule could easily be abused and really infringed on the freedom of speech that most democracies have. The Assembly was made up of five hundred men who were chosen from a list of those who were eligible to serve on the council. Since most of the population was of a lower economic class, the time taken away from their normal work by serving on the Assembly lowered their earning potential , causing their already poor situation to worsen. Life may have been sophisticated and graceful in Athens but the Athenians were often mocked by opposing countries and other city-states for having no bravery, patriotism or courage. This was shown by the repeated attacks on Athens. If the Athenians had a more war-like

Monday, August 19, 2019

The Internet and the Justice System :: Government Judicial Web Cyberspace Essays

The Internet and the Justice System I. Introduction. The American legal system has faced many challenges in the past century, mainly due to population growth throughout the nation. The American ‘way-of-life’ has also changed significantly as a result. The legislative and judicial systems need to adapt to these developments. These include advances in information technology, particularly the Internet. This expanding communication network has created different behavioral patterns within our society. This paper will examine some of these changes and try to determine if indeed changes are in order. Issues will be presented from the public manager’s perspective and the position of the justice system, relative to their affect upon citizens. Is it necessary to institute some form of desirable control or regulation over the Internet? If so, will an inordinate amount of public freedom be sacrificed in the process? These questions will be addressed, along with analyzing present policy and possible directions for future legislation. II. The Internet Defined. Public Manager’s Perspective. The introduction of the Internet as an additional mass communication media has created new alternatives for information transmission. The ensuing popularity of the Internet has created many challenges that the public sector must deal with. Estimates in 1999 found that there are approximately 171 million Internet users worldwide (Group Computing, Jan/Feb 2000, p. 56). Change in the societal environment has made the Internet an integral part of the American economy. Privatization. An interesting historical paradox is that, although the Internet has U.S. Defense Department origins, it is scarcely perceived as a public utility by most users anymore. (Abrahamson, JMQC vol 75, no 1, p. 16) Public reaction to the specific and continuing privatization of the Internet has been anything but an organized protest. Greater portions of it have, in name as well as effect, become privatized by larger corporations. This includes Microsoft, the largest player in the nation’s information technology marketplace. This conglomerate is widely recognized as a commercial enterprise with well-documented monopolistic tendencies. Justice System’s Perspective. The justice system must consider the legal issues. New technology has led to a societal issue that must be interpreted in its relevance to the First Amendment. The justice system is supposed to guarantee the rights of every citizen, yet has instead elected to offer more protection to private entities first. These include private companies such as newspaper publishers or, in this instance, the private enterprises found on the Internet.

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Music Therapy for Autistic Children Essay -- Health, Treatment

II. History of Music Therapy Music Therapy originated in treatment hospitals for World War II Veterans. The doctors and hospital staff realized that the musicians needed training to interact with the patients. They originally had just played music in the hospitals around the patients and did not have any training other than their music training. These realizations lead to the creation of the first college degree program for Music Therapy at Michigan State University (A-9). Music Therapy is now used in many different venues, from children to Alzheimer’s Patients (N-2). According to the American Music Therapy Association â€Å"Music Therapy interventions can be designed to: Promote wellness, manage stress, alleviate pain, express feelings, enhance memory, improved communication, and promote physical rehabilitation† (D-1). They also state that any types of music can be used for therapy and therapy can be used on any types of people including people with not existing medical conditions (N-4). A News Paper Article in New Jersey even states that Music Therapy has uses for anything from birth to adults (J-1). The AMTA States that â€Å"Music Therapy is the clinical and evidence-based use of music interventions to accomplish individualized goals within a therapeutic relationship by a credentialed professional who has completed an approved music therapy program† (D-2). Therapists are available through schools. They also have private pract ices. Depending on the state, there may be state funding for the programs (A-4). When a Therapist works with a child they began planning a treatment. This happens before any treatment is done as well as during the treatment process. They reevaluate during the treatment process to make sure that the treatment... ...n they see that they can do something, they are motivated both within the session and outside of the session (F-1). Research has shown that extemporaneous music attracts ADS children’s attention more than pre-recorded music (F-4). Children are surrounded by instruments throughout their therapy session and they learn about all of them because they are surrounded by them. They can even talk about the instruments outside of the Music Therapy Sessions (K-3). One Mother testifies that â€Å"Perhaps the best part is the carry-over effect† (K-4). X. What does not work When the Tomatis sound method, it was found to not work as well at music therapy (G-1). The research that has been done on Music therapy has been done mainly outside of the USA. The places include Turkey, Denmark, and many others. As of 2000 there were no controlled music therapy research being done (G-2).

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Dogfight over Europe: Ryanair Essay

A. What is Ryanair’s strategy and why has it been successful so far? In 1911, Ryanair faced cash flow problem, and was going to be bankrupted. However, it found the way to overcome this crisis by transform themselves from ordinary high-price airlines into the lowest price airline in the EU. They focused on 5 things to rebirth their company. 1. Focused on cut down the costs: Ryanair aggressively cut most of its costs in many ways. Found the routes and airports that charged low landing fees, and low turnaround costs Chose routes to Secondary airports, low airport fee Eliminated all in-flight amenities Used metal stairs instead of â€Å"air bridge† Paid lower commissions to travel agents Saved cost in its internal operations Implemented economies of scale by using one model aircraft and treating all customers equally 2. Focused on operating efficiency: Ryanair carefully allocate all of its resources and assets to get the highest performance outcome. Optimized airplanes usages by relocating the planes used in loss-making routes to gain-making routes. Attempted to increased aircraft turnaround rate in many ways Operated only one type of aircraft Provided the newsletter to employees, which contained its and its competitors’ movements 3. Focused on customer satisfactions: Ryanair sustained customer care. Even though they are mostly middle-to-low classes who expected less services due to the lowest airfares, they would receive more than their expectation. There were 160 full-time reservation agents at its call enter at Dublin answered calls Maintained its record for on-time flight due to good-performed aircraft turnaround Received airfares in other currency Had fewer restrictions to change the tickets 4. Focused on ancillary income: Ryanair gained extra revenue from other sales and services. In-flight sales: beverages, snacks, and traditional items Advertised spaces renting Other referred fees 5. Focused on its employees: Ryanair never forgot to sustain and motivate employees. Imprinted its values to employees. â€Å"the firms as brutally cost conscious† Gave its stock options to employees Rewards system varied with performance, commission, and corporate profits Had lots of job opportunities, e.g. promotion or rotation Had no bureaucracy and hierarchy Compared to its competitors, Ryanair became succeed because it was the first low-cost airlines which provided low airfares that generate increased volume of customers. At the same time, it had maintained a continuous focus on customer satisfactions, cost management and operating efficiencies, leading to the great reputation that transfer â€Å"from mouth to mouth† by its loyalty customers. That created more customer and more income, being its sources of fund for reinvest. Also, the extra revenue from sales, advertised spaces renting, and referral fees could support its financial health and accommodate it to sell the ticket more lower price. Moreover, started with people, Ryanair’s employees shared the same values and goals with their company, â€Å"cost-conscious† with â€Å"good-services†. Sharing the company’s benefit with them also motivated them to work better and better. This was the other important foundation for its success. That’s why, Ryanair was success and became very high competitiveness in this market. B. Looking to the future, what should be the strategic concerns of Ryanair? What recommendations would you make to the top management? In my opinions, the most strategic concerns of Ryanair is its competitors. Assuming we were in 1999, at that time, no carrier that were Ryanair’s primary competitor. However, in this year, no-frills carriers accounted for 3% of the European air travel market. This implied that the competition would be more intense. I would like to go through each competitors one-by-one. Virgin Express: It was most harmful competitor. It had many features as same as Ryanair, and some of them were better than Ryanair’s, e.g. nine languages services in ticket reservations, no physical tickets (lower its costs), etc. Virgin Express’s financial lost in 1998 might be resulted from only a shortage of pilots. If Virgin Express could fix that problems, continuously improve its features, and fully implement cost control, it would become very competitiveness to the market. Suggestion for Ryanair: Sustain doing the  ways Ryanair was, improve quality of service, innovate the ways to reduce costs, and focus more in marketing and creating brand awareness easyJet: It was also harmful competitor. It had the same business model concerned about cost control, it gradually grew and was going to change from subcontracting to their own operation by reinvesting. However, its philosophy was â€Å"won’t complete with other low-fare guys†. Suggestion for Ryanair: Quickly expand the flying routes and grasp that benefits before easyJet does. British Airway’s Go: British Airway’s Go had powerful backups and great brand values. It provided better service in-flight but also sold ticket at the cheap price. Leading to the price competition in the future. Suggestion for Ryanair: The company have to innovate its new unique point to eliminate the problem that it would have faced the loss of its customers to the competitors. It also need to in-depth its group of customers to find the ways out. Also, Ryanair have to be alert all the time. As the market become more intense, only dynamic organization can survive.

Friday, August 16, 2019

My Job Experience

Narrative Story: The first-person narrative is a literary technique wherein a story is narrated explicitly by one or more of the characters, who refers to himself or herself in the first person as â€Å"I†. As the narrator express his/her own feelings, thoughts, and experiences, the narrator’s character is revealed and the reader easily gains insight to the character. It also suspends information from the reader, and therefore widely used and effective to suspense and detective fiction. My Job Experience I woke up with a loud ringing near my head.A few days back, or years to be exact, I would have easily put it off and dose back again on my soft pillows. Ahh, but this day was different. It’s my first day in my first job ever. I could hear my head pounding. I never needed the alarm clock in the first place anyway, since I hardly slept last night. I’ve always seen myself as a ‘cool guy’ but the butterlies in my stomach speaks much differently ab out me, though. I headed for the shower and felt the water slap me from my semi-half-awake half-asleep state. Breakfast!But where are my stockings? Though contrary to real day-today experience, I wish mom was here. Well, better get off now or I might miss the bus. I surely want to make a good first impression and hope this will carry me all the way to promotions. I can hardly wait right now to experience the sweet smell of success! I stopped myself as I saw a man staring at me. Daydreaming may have been written all over my face. Secretly, I pinched myself for making a fool of me. As I came inside the building, I headed for the shop to which I was assigned.Across the shop, Darlene Shepherd subtly nodded at me, acknowledging approval of my early arrival. She was the one who chose me as a shop steward. Of course, I wanted to prove my worth. I love the dignity of work, but best of all, I love to walk around the corner and shop just a liiiitle bit of little-bitty things. My first day in my first job closed shopped with less adventure than I expected. This routine, except for the case of the missing stockings, went on for some time. Until last April, I saw my coworker named Daniels crying.Apparently, she was reprimanded. I came near her. At first it felt awkward hugging her a bit ( we hardly knew each other except for our first names). But when I did, her tears fell all the more, and I was completely taken over by her concern It was mid-afternoon, she said when her legs became awfully painful trying to stand all day. As the pain became almost unbearable, she tried to sit on one of the chairs placed near the customer’s area. Though shoppers were becoming fewer by the moment, Mr. Jarvis (our head supervisor) came in just as she sat down on the couch.Think about perfect wrong- timing indeed! I could understand where Mr. Jarvis is coming from, since it did look the way it should’nt look. But termination? I tried to calm myself down. Being angry might give me my fifteen minutes of victory but it could defeat my career-history. I brought the case to higher management. I carefully chose and weighed my words and to my amazement†¦ they listened and relented. From then on my co-workers would start looking for me to speak for them whenever they have concerns that they feel uneasy to face with the supervisor or manager.I found myself getting more and more involved in my co-employees’ work-related concerns. I have learned to listen and empathize with them, without getting emotionally involved myself whenever the outcome turns out unfavorable. I never did saw myself before as what I am becoming right now. Lately, we’ve been involved in community outreach to feed the homeless. It’s a pretty sight to see big-muscled Jack teaching math to 5 year- old Sam. I’ve seen how generous below-middle class workers could be with their spare time.I thought plenty spells generosity, but my co-workers proved them wrong. Before we started this project, I honestly had some doubts as to its success and sustainability. Before, it was just us, me and the union. I believe in the union’s contribution to the betterment of the worker’s welfare. And yet, the more we ask, the more we see things to complain about. There seems to be no end on what to grudge about. Of course, as we go along helping the needy, there would be more things to sort out, too. And more things to improve on.Yeah, life as a shop steward does have its many rewards. Shopping? Maybe. For now I see my storehouse rich with life’s lessons — being my brother’s keeper (whether one is rich or not-so-rich), standing up for what is just and striving for equality. As we wrap our things and clean up the mess after the feeding program, all around me, I see tired happy faces. Tired, but happy. Reference: 1. â€Å"First-Person Narrative†. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/literary_sty les

Thursday, August 15, 2019

US Imperialism in the Post-9/11 International Order

The history of the world is hitherto marked by the antagonisms in the economic aspects of the society. Since the existence of hierarchical orders in societal relations in political and economic relations were conceptualized, the contradictions between and among the decisive forces in the production process have long been made brutal and more explosive than any other points in human history. Hence, the development of the capitalist mode of production and its dominance as the world's economic system gave way for the advancement of nation-states into imperialist powers of the modern world.Contradictions among the classes in the society, between the industrialized countries and industrialized versus the colonies and semi-colonies, only intensified the differences and irreconcilable economic interests of the nations. These contradictions gave way for most of the world's major catastrophic events like the First World War and the Second World War, being, in reality, war between imperialist and industrialized powers secure their insatiable interests for the control of the market.Such nature of class antagonisms reflected the exploitation and oppression that the motive forces experienced in the light of these economic restrictions in the present economic condition (Lenin 1916: IX). This essay would settle on the issues raised by the presence of the United States' vast economic, political, and social sphere of influence on most regions of the world. As the world's only remaining superpower, the United States of America, maintains its structure in presenting and directing the course of global diplomatic, military and economic affairs.US imperialist expansion would be studied in order to come up with the particular nature of the hegemony and provide necessary clarifications on the nature of imperialism, super-imperialism and inter-imperialism and if ever these terms are applicable and politically relevant in today's discussion of global relations. After the terror attacks become the focus of regional diplomatic and military roadmaps, United States role in overseas affairs became even more directed towards armed resolution of conflict as essential appendage of its imperialist hegemony (Stivachtis, 2007).Marxist analysis of the society in general and political economy in particular could mainly present the foundations of this discourse by which we would draw the explanation for such concepts of imperialism and monopoly capitalist hegemony in the economic, political, cultural and other societal structures that are essentially intertwined with this. To Marxists, â€Å"imperialism† is not simply the â€Å"trend towards expansion† or the â€Å"conquest of foreign lands,† as it is defined by most political scientists and sociologists.The word is used in a much more precise sense to describe the general changes which occurred in the political, economic and social activity of the big bourgeoisie of the advanced capitalist countries, begin ning in the last quarter of the 19th century. These changes were closely related to alterations in the basic structure of this bourgeoisie (Germain 1955). With this definition, there are still varied interpretations of imperialism even among Marxists.Vladimir Lenin's theoretical exposition on this subject has long been accepted widely after the Soviet Union molded a formidable economic and military superpower and directly/indirectly influenced the outcomes of revolutions in third world countries. The first and second world wars were the major eruption of these antagonisms and the world experienced an imperialist war over territories for the acquisition of raw materials for the industries and market for the surplus products of the capitalist western powers. A polarized global atmosphere boiled into wars that in reality, wars of expansion.The United States benefitted greatly from the war. It made the nation accumulate more neo-colonies after the defeat of the Axis powers in Europe and Asia. Hence, a conclusion can be derived from these events: the United States, after its economy faced a major crisis in the 1930's, needed war in order to boost its military industrial complex, obtain new territories as sources of industrial needs and market for overproduced goods, propel its strategic military positions overseas and contain the Soviet union's growing power and influence.Kautsky and Luxemburg, famous Marxists in Europe, clarified imperialism and presented yet another perspective on imperialist stage of the bourgeois capitalist system. Kautsky stated that imperialism is an absolute terminology to be applied to the interests of an industrial nation to expand its commercial realm by arguing that precisely an industrialized nation cannot sell all its products within industrialized nations so it has to look for nations with backward economies that do not have the technology and capacity to produce similar goods or products (Germain 1955).Cox stipulated the mechanics of how the United States was able to control foreign markets and flooded with surplus goods. He argued that the ‘Empire' dominated these backward or lagging economies through intimidation by use of the military, alliance with the local elite thus assuring an elite's government friendly, if not servile, to United States' imperialist interests (Cox 2004: 309). The reality of the economic basis of imperialist hegemony has not really subsided at the turn of the 21st century and even after the Socialist block has collapsed in the 1990's.In fact, the same contradictions n the political economy of the world, however, significant alterations have pervaded since and the resulting events are what the current United States' ruling class faces. Robert Cox noted the events which shaped the present international order as end products of centuries of societal evolutionary and revolutionary processes. First, he refreshed what French diplomacy baptized as ‘hyper-power' of the United States of America due to the collapse of the Soviet Union and the disintegration of a bipolar world.Second, environmental concerns have taken the center stage of international affairs because of unstable conditions in the biosphere, biotechnology and genetically modified organisms. Along with these, there is the economic dilemma which suggests that capitalism continues to contain a tendency of widening the gap between the rich and the poor; ethnic, national, religious and other reason for polarization have been reaffirmed and; the emergence of ‘irregular' activities pertained to as terrorism and other organized crime.Hence, in the light of the authority's inaction regarding these concerns, the public developed skepticism towards established institutions (Cox 2004: 318). Further delving on this particular reasons for the establishment of a new international order, Cox asserted that with all these, there must be a ‘power' holding all these things completely so that this ‘p ower' could set forth the destruction or the genesis of an established reason.This ‘power' poses a dilemma as to what nature does this power hold that even Cox tried to provide an acceptable definition. Power†¦ [Is] in a very general sense to mean whatever force can intentionally bring about change in the behavior of any of the diversity of agents in world political economy. States are obviously to be included among the agents. Military strength and the capacity for economic coercion are obviously to be included among the relevant forces.The problem is to infer from observation of what has happened what the key forces are and what agents are capable of wielding those forces (Cox 2004: 308). Current international scene is dominated by the United States but the economic and diplomatic influences are fast rescinding because of US hegemony in many aspects of world affairs. The US led war on terror and its coalition of the willing is a manifestation of an inherent crisis in a monopoly capitalist system.Military power now assumes the greatest role in preserving the existing order while its continued intervention in domestic and regional conflicts only isolates US hegemony from the collective of nations. This fragile condition of artificial harmony in a US controlled international scene radiated greater conflicts and majority of the nations initiated their independence from the economic influence of the US through the formation of a regional economic and political cooperation.The euro for example, attempted to present an alternative to the US dollar. Even if this attempt did not gain head on with the US dollar, its presence already showed that economic regionalism was developing into more stable formations and poses formidable challenge to US unilateralism (Cox 2004:314). The war on terror has unveiled the nature of US imperialism that it is an ‘Empire' that sought to expand its influence and domination wherever necessary and possible.Conflicts in th e Middle East and the terror attacks in the US re-opened the debating floors to the concerns of terrorism and the ‘dialectic' relation of ‘terrorism' and ‘war on terror'. As Robert Cox puts it: †¦terrorism is a violent reaction to ‘Empire'; and for dominant power the response to ‘terrorism' is an expansion of ‘Empire'. The two are joined in dialectic without end since the two contestants are not of the same order†¦ The physical elimination of ‘terrorists' by police and military action does not eliminate ‘terrorism'.It encourages more people to take up the role of terrorist. The only way this quagmire dialectic could end would be by transcending the conflict in a reestablished legitimacy (Cox 2004: 318). Accumulating the economic, political, cultural and ideological crisis of the United States' monopoly capitalist empire, various thinkers attempted to explain the nature of this ‘Empire'. The most common of these terminol ogies used to refer to US imperial structure are ‘super-imperialism', ‘ultra-imperialism' and ‘inter-imperialism'.Super-imperialism is more concerned with the mechanics of the economy and that evolution from classical imperialism to super-imperialism was caused by a reverse in the international scene where US surpassed its preeminent creditor status to a debtor status, hence, the worsening crisis of finance capital under the capitalist system. Ultra Imperialism is a term coined by Karl Kautsky as a theoretical conception of imperialism in the September 1914 issue of Die Neue Zeit. Kautsky articulated that capitalist could exist without wars and these industrialized nations need not to divide territories and markets rather form a cartel.Lenin quickly repudiated this assertion and stressed that ultra-imperialism understates the class antagonisms in an imperialist system and the contradictions were disregarded. Inter-imperialism on the other hand does not really offer a new conception of imperialism but only an earlier term used by Hobson to what Kautsky referred to as ultra-imperialism. In broadest sense, US imperialism maintains the exploitative conditions at present, the contradiction between and among industrial nations and between industrial nations and third world.