Social Learning: Knowledge Acquisition in a Social Context

Social learning theory posits that knowledge acquisition is a cognitive process that takes place in a social context and can occur purely through observation or direct instruction, even in the absence of motor reproduction or direct reinforcement. In addition to the observation of behaviour, learning also occurs through the observation of rewards and punishments, a process known as of vicarious reinforcement.Role Model TheorySocial learning theory states that people learn from the people that they look up to; this has a huge effect on children of young age and because of their age and knowledge they don’t fully know what’s wrong and what’s right, so that’s why most children look up to celebs on T. V and they want to achieve what they have achieved, sometimes a child’s biggest role models are their parents and they will imitate their behaviour for example if the father of a child is abusive and rough with them than the child might grow up thinking th at was normal and imitate the behaviours when they are older.Social learning theory was first introduced in 1977 by Albert Bandura and he stated that behaviour is learned from the environment around us and through the process of observational learning, for example a child’s environment and upraising is very important in influencing the child’s behaviour in later life, if the child’s environment is a rough area and are brought up by rough parents then the child is more likely to copy the actions and the behaviour of the parents when they grow up.This is clearly illustrated in the Bobo Doll experiment in 1961 by Bandura. Bobo Doll Experiment In 1961 Albert Bandura selected 36 boys and 36 girls from ages between 3 to 6 years old, bandura also chose 2 adults a male and a female; he wanted the adults act aggressively towards the Bobo doll while 24 of the children watched, he wanted the adults act as role models for the children so he can analyse what effects that has on the children, the adults were told to throw the doll about and attack it with various weapons like toy guns, hammers and sticks.While 24 of the group of children watched the 2 adults hitting the doll, the other group of 24 children were watching a non-aggressive adults and the final 24 child were used as a control group and not exposed to any model at all. After the children experienced the adult’s (whether they were  aggressive, non-aggressive or no adult) they were taken in the room with toys and they were also told not to play or touch the toys, as the children got angry and frustrated over the rule of not playing with the toys they were taken to another room where there was a Bobo doll and aggressive and non-aggressive toys that they were allowed to play with, the experimenters recorded the children behaviour.Bandura found out that the children who were exposed to the aggressive model were more likely to act in aggressive ways than those who were not exposed to the aggressive model, those children who were exposed to the aggressive model started hitting the doll with a toy gun and a hammer and also started to punch, kick and throwing it while shouting at the doll. But the children that were exposed to non-aggressive models did not react aggressively towards the Bobo doll instead they just played with the toys and the Bobo doll. Self-full filling prophecySelf-fulfilling prophecy a positive or negative expectation about people that may affect a person’s behaviour towards another in a manner that causes those expectations to be made true. e. g. â€Å"treat others how you would like to be treated â€Å"This happens because our beliefs influence our actions. A child might have low self-esteem so he/she will not try out for any sports teams because their belief is that they are not confident and good enough so he/she will make that belief and prediction happen because they have no self-esteem and confidence.Anti-discrimination behaviour Ant i-discrimination behaviour is action taken to prevent discrimination against people on the grounds of race, class, gender, disability etc. Anti-discriminatory practice promotes equality by introducing anti-discrimination policies in the workplace, this is a good way to preventing discrimination in the workplace because it makes the employees aware of the rules and the horrible effects that discrimination could have on people including self harm and suicide.Another really good way of preventing discrimination on a wide scale is to get popular celebrities to promote a campaigned against discrimination on T. V so it can be seen by millions. Because the campaign is promoted by a popular celebrity it will have lots of followers and supporters, this is because the celebrity acts as a role model and will influence their fans to prevent discrimination from happening.As well as celebrities preventing discrimination and promoting anti- discrimination, other people who aren’t celebritie s can also promote anti-discrimination but it will take longer than celebrities because not everyone is well known and have that many supporters or fans to follow them, this can be done by a person encouraging family and friends together and telling them to let others know about anti-discrimination and after a while more and more people will be promoting the campaign.With lots of supporters. An example of a celebrity promoting anti-discrimination is David Beckham and he promotes the â€Å"SAY NO TO RACISIM† campaign through videos, conventions and also by telling supporters to spread the word, because is well known and liked around the world he has a huge number of followers on twitter which he also uses to promote his campaign. Groups and effects of others (Asch experiment)Solomon Asch conducted a series of experiments in which he studied the willingness of an individual to fit in a group while answering a question, even when those answers were obviously wrong. In the experi ment, subjects who were unaware of the actual experiment were told that they were participating in a vision test. In reality though, each subject was placed in a group of people for the experiments. The people in the group were fully aware of the true purpose of the study.The aim of the experiment was to investigate the extent to which social pressure from a majority group could affect a person to conform. They seated the group in a classroom and they were asked a variety of questions about an image on which was placed in front of them which contained straight line labelled A, B and C and they were asked how long line A was, which line was longer than the other, which lines were the same length, etc.The group was told to answer each question out loud in front of the rest of the group, with the accomplices of the experiment always answering before the subjects and always giving the same answers as the others. They answered a few of the questions correctly, but then started answering incorrectly on purpose. The results of this experiment were that nearly 75 percent of the participants in the conformity experiments went along with the rest of the group at least one time even though the answer was obviously wrong.The results showed that people feel pressured go along with the majority of people because they feel pressured to fit in with the group and not stand alone against them. Health and Social Care An example of a positive role model for children to look up to and be inspired by is a doctor because they are respected by society and also they help people in need as they save the life’s of hundreds, this makes children look up to them because they see them as hard working, intelligent and respected professionals who make sick people better.Another reason a doctor is a good role model is that their professional achievement is an indication that they have finished education and worked hard to get to where they are, so that influences children to do work har d to and do well in school to get to where they want to be. They are also positive role model because they promote a healthy living and the majority of them promote anti-discrimination and these influence kids to be health and not to judge people because of their skin or background. Social Learning: Knowledge Acquisition in a Social Context Social learning theory posits that knowledge acquisition is a cognitive process that takes place in a social context and can occur purely through observation or direct instruction, even in the absence of motor reproduction or direct reinforcement. In addition to the observation of behaviour, learning also occurs through the observation of rewards and punishments, a process known as of vicarious reinforcement.Role Model TheorySocial learning theory states that people learn from the people that they look up to; this has a huge effect on children of young age and because of their age and knowledge they don’t fully know what’s wrong and what’s right, so that’s why most children look up to celebs on T. V and they want to achieve what they have achieved, sometimes a child’s biggest role models are their parents and they will imitate their behaviour for example if the father of a child is abusive and rough with them than the child might grow up thinking th at was normal and imitate the behaviours when they are older.Social learning theory was first introduced in 1977 by Albert Bandura and he stated that behaviour is learned from the environment around us and through the process of observational learning, for example a child’s environment and upraising is very important in influencing the child’s behaviour in later life, if the child’s environment is a rough area and are brought up by rough parents then the child is more likely to copy the actions and the behaviour of the parents when they grow up.This is clearly illustrated in the Bobo Doll experiment in 1961 by Bandura. Bobo Doll Experiment In 1961 Albert Bandura selected 36 boys and 36 girls from ages between 3 to 6 years old, bandura also chose 2 adults a male and a female; he wanted the adults act aggressively towards the Bobo doll while 24 of the children watched, he wanted the adults act as role models for the children so he can analyse what effects that has on the children, the adults were told to throw the doll about and attack it with various weapons like toy guns, hammers and sticks.While 24 of the group of children watched the 2 adults hitting the doll, the other group of 24 children were watching a non-aggressive adults and the final 24 child were used as a control group and not exposed to any model at all. After the children experienced the adult’s (whether they were  aggressive, non-aggressive or no adult) they were taken in the room with toys and they were also told not to play or touch the toys, as the children got angry and frustrated over the rule of not playing with the toys they were taken to another room where there was a Bobo doll and aggressive and non-aggressive toys that they were allowed to play with, the experimenters recorded the children behaviour.Bandura found out that the children who were exposed to the aggressive model were more likely to act in aggressive ways than those who were not exposed to the aggressive model, those children who were exposed to the aggressive model started hitting the doll with a toy gun and a hammer and also started to punch, kick and throwing it while shouting at the doll. But the children that were exposed to non-aggressive models did not react aggressively towards the Bobo doll instead they just played with the toys and the Bobo doll. Self-full filling prophecySelf-fulfilling prophecy a positive or negative expectation about people that may affect a person’s behaviour towards another in a manner that causes those expectations to be made true. e. g. â€Å"treat others how you would like to be treated â€Å"This happens because our beliefs influence our actions. A child might have low self-esteem so he/she will not try out for any sports teams because their belief is that they are not confident and good enough so he/she will make that belief and prediction happen because they have no self-esteem and confidence.Anti-discrimination behaviour Ant i-discrimination behaviour is action taken to prevent discrimination against people on the grounds of race, class, gender, disability etc. Anti-discriminatory practice promotes equality by introducing anti-discrimination policies in the workplace, this is a good way to preventing discrimination in the workplace because it makes the employees aware of the rules and the horrible effects that discrimination could have on people including self harm and suicide.Another really good way of preventing discrimination on a wide scale is to get popular celebrities to promote a campaigned against discrimination on T. V so it can be seen by millions. Because the campaign is promoted by a popular celebrity it will have lots of followers and supporters, this is because the celebrity acts as a role model and will influence their fans to prevent discrimination from happening.As well as celebrities preventing discrimination and promoting anti- discrimination, other people who aren’t celebritie s can also promote anti-discrimination but it will take longer than celebrities because not everyone is well known and have that many supporters or fans to follow them, this can be done by a person encouraging family and friends together and telling them to let others know about anti-discrimination and after a while more and more people will be promoting the campaign.With lots of supporters. An example of a celebrity promoting anti-discrimination is David Beckham and he promotes the â€Å"SAY NO TO RACISIM† campaign through videos, conventions and also by telling supporters to spread the word, because is well known and liked around the world he has a huge number of followers on twitter which he also uses to promote his campaign. Groups and effects of others (Asch experiment)Solomon Asch conducted a series of experiments in which he studied the willingness of an individual to fit in a group while answering a question, even when those answers were obviously wrong. In the experi ment, subjects who were unaware of the actual experiment were told that they were participating in a vision test. In reality though, each subject was placed in a group of people for the experiments. The people in the group were fully aware of the true purpose of the study.The aim of the experiment was to investigate the extent to which social pressure from a majority group could affect a person to conform. They seated the group in a classroom and they were asked a variety of questions about an image on which was placed in front of them which contained straight line labelled A, B and C and they were asked how long line A was, which line was longer than the other, which lines were the same length, etc.The group was told to answer each question out loud in front of the rest of the group, with the accomplices of the experiment always answering before the subjects and always giving the same answers as the others. They answered a few of the questions correctly, but then started answering incorrectly on purpose. The results of this experiment were that nearly 75 percent of the participants in the conformity experiments went along with the rest of the group at least one time even though the answer was obviously wrong.The results showed that people feel pressured go along with the majority of people because they feel pressured to fit in with the group and not stand alone against them. Health and Social Care An example of a positive role model for children to look up to and be inspired by is a doctor because they are respected by society and also they help people in need as they save the life’s of hundreds, this makes children look up to them because they see them as hard working, intelligent and respected professionals who make sick people better.Another reason a doctor is a good role model is that their professional achievement is an indication that they have finished education and worked hard to get to where they are, so that influences children to do work har d to and do well in school to get to where they want to be. They are also positive role model because they promote a healthy living and the majority of them promote anti-discrimination and these influence kids to be health and not to judge people because of their skin or background.

Literature and It’s Relevance in Modern Times Essay

Before the importance of literature is discussed we must ask ourselves: â€Å"What is literature?† Many individuals that are asked that question will often give a complex answer for it seems to be a complex word. Some of the answers may include â€Å"it involves reading† or â€Å"it’s when you write†. These are both true, but when you actually think about it, literature is so much more than that, especially with how often we use it in our day-to-day lives; we speak it, we observe it, we use it in science, etc. Ever since the beginning of time, literature has always been present among men. It has been useful to depict their feelings, thoughts, desires, tragedies, and history. Before the technological advancements and benefits that we use today for entertainment or learning existed, learning was in one way or another completely tied in with literature. As time progressed, mankind eventually found other ways to display their feelings, ideals or thoughts without the use of literature, but that doesn’t mean it’s still not important. The best overall way to describe literature today is that it is lost in transition with the rise of technology and other forms of popular entertainment. Literature is just as important as it always has been; it’s just not as popular and as it once was. It should still be a top priority for society, considering the first things we learn in school are how to read and write. In old times, when a child started attending school, the first things they learned were how to read and count. Nowadays, that hasn’t seemed to change; methods might be different, but literature makes its presence known to us even when we are young and is a great asset to developing other skills needed to be successful later in life. In a recent study undertaken by Literary Research and Instruction, the observed second-grade teacher Mae Graham used â€Å"class readings to foster engagement and student-initiated talk with open discussions†¦.emphasizing the power of dialogue in providing a space for students to meaningfully use language.† (Worthy 308). Literature is just as important and meaningful in our lives from the very first time we begin to use it. From the days of elementary school to college, there is reading and writing involved. Even if one doesn’t realize it, literature is present almost everywhere, but it’s just hiding in plain sight. It can be located in items such as digital environments, films, graphic novels, and comic books. Movie and the famous lines within them are derived from literature, comic books and graphic novels may have pictures, but there are words to go along with the plot, and even when you use take a photo, pictures can be worth a thousand words. Any individual that believes they don’t experience enough literature in their lives needs to realize that books and essays are not its only limitations. When you attend a play, such as Hamlet, you are experiencing literature. If you read a Batman comic book, you’re taking in literature. If you go to the theatres and watch a Harry Potter movie, literature is related to the film at hand. If you take a picture of a typical downtown setting, literature is helping tell the story from what the viewer’s eyes can see. Literature does exist everywhere, but it doesn’t influence individuals as much as it did in the past. In order to understand how important literature is in modern times, we must also understand how it has taken a huge drop in terms of daily importance. Before TV, internet, video games, and other advancements in society were developed, the only forms of entertainment were as such, but not limited to; storytelling, reading, and plays. Many of them were mainly told, written, or performed to so that the audience could use their imagination and let it run wild to interpret the meaning. In modern society, if one doesn’t understand the story, play or text at all, they just look up the answer on the internet. There isn’t anything wrong with this strategy, but over time, one eventually becomes dependent on the â€Å"newer† resources over the oldest and most genuine resource; the brain. Literature is present in films, especially the ones made after novels and book but nowadays, it’s easier and more fun to watch the film rather than to read the book. If you were to ask someone if they would prefer to watch the film â€Å"Troy† starring Brad Pitt as Achilles or reading Homer’s â€Å"The Iliad†, nine times out of ten they will respond with the movie instantly. Not because they prefer movies over reading, but in actuality the movie just seems more entertaining and the movie requires less strain on the brain. Back then, the epic surrounding this tale was read and analyzed by individuals all over the world for were very entertained by it. Today, all someone has to do is just look at Sparknotes or Cliff-notes to trick themselves into thinking they truly understand the story or the message the author is trying to convey. By using these sources, you are not making your own opinion what the story means, but rather just borrowing it from someone who actually analyzed the story in-depth. With the way things are going, literature will soon be a thing of the past and irrelevant to the future. All that will matter is if someone has internet handy to look up a theme or analyze a plot that they can’t muster their brain to figure out. So why does literature still matter? Well it is very important in the sense of not being able to grasp it while at a very young age will result in irrelevance to an individual in later life. Recent research in England suggested that little explicit attention has been paid, either in research or policy documentation, to why literature still has a clear role to play in English education. In the study, teachers themselves were looked at along with their reading habits to see if that had any reflection on how the students were grasping literature and reading. Students that were interviewed on the matter at hand said they have reasons for reading in the first place such as entertaining themselves, to imagine, feel and reflect (Cliff Hodges 60, 67). The mind is so fresh at a very young age and it is very hungry for knowledge. If we feed the right materials to the young throughout the world, they will have so many opportunities ahead of them to succeed. By denying the young individual the chance to use their thought to interpret or imagine what is occurring as they read will only limit the extent of their abilities as they go on with their lives. Many may think that technology and the newer styles of teaching are â€Å"easier† for the youth, but in actuality, we are going to make it harder for them later in life. Anglo-Indian novelist Salman Rushdie once said â€Å"Literature is where I go to explore the highest and lowest places in human society and in the human spirit, where I hope to find not absolute truth but the truth of the tale, of the imagination and of the heart.†(Introduction to World Literature). Without literature, there would be no imagination or heart to what we do in our daily lives. Literature has been present since the beginning of time, and although it is being driven out by the new advancements in technology, we must do our best to preserve the older traditions that help make us better at thinking and understanding. Literature is all around us in our everyday lives, and even though we sometimes can’t see it, it is involved either directly or indirectly with what we do. It is still very important, particularly in the education field. Teaching young individuals to read and write is the biggest part of the foundation being laid out for the house of their future. Math and science might be at top priority right now in the learning environment, but even math and science involve writing and reading. Literature is still important, with its only downside being its decline in popularity. Sources Cliff Hodges, Gabrielle. â€Å"Reasons for Reading: Why Literature Matters.† Literacy: UKLA. 44.2 (2012): 60,67. EBSCO:Host. Web. 3 Feb. 2013 http://web.ebscohost.com.libezproxy.tamu.edu:2048/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=8211ba49-180a-4590-9183-1f76a451f34b@sessionmgr11&vid=12&hid=25>. â€Å"Introduction to World Literature.† Invitation to World Literature. Annenberg Foundation, n.d. Web. 2 Feb 2013. . Worthy, Jo, Katharine Chamberlain, et al. â€Å"The Importance of Read-Aloud and Dialogue in an Era of Narrowed Curriculum: An Examination of Literature Discussions in a Second-Grade Classroom.† Literacy Research and Instruction. (2012): 308-310. EBSCO:Host. Web. 2 Feb. 2013. http://web.ebscohost.com.libezproxy.tamu.edu:2048/ehost/detail?vid=9&sid=8211ba49-180a459091831f76a451f34b%40sessionmgr11&hid=25&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d

Personal Philosophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Personal Philosophy - Essay Example Nursing requires that both nurses and nursing educators explore their own values so they can be better placed to appreciate and respect the cultural values and beliefs of the communities and individuals they serve. It is not possible to examine the aspect of scholarship in nursing education in isolation from the scholar within the â€Å"scholarship†, this comprises of individuals who embody several traits among which are; intense intellectual curiosity, disenchantment with prevailing systems as well as persistence for scholarly growth. In case these ideas were to be inculcated into the scholarship in a school of nursing, they would significantly contribute to the education of nurses who are not only professionally competent but also capable of dealing with situations beyond their call of duty should circumstances a rise. As aforementioned, my core principles are; do no harm and provide the best possible care; these can be implemented in nursing scholarship to mound the trainee s into moral and ethical professionals (Silva and Ludwick, 2005). When nurses are educated in and environment that allows them to express their curiosity, they will acquire more knowledge through in-depth research and studies which will ultimately make them better placed to deal with patients from their wealth of both theoretical and practical knowledge. Furthermore, when they are disenchanted with the prevailing systems, it means they will desire to improve them by examining alternatives and this will boost creativity. The second aspect of my personal philosophy has to do with elimination of discrimination, while this has been covered in nursing training; the elements of prejudice are still evident in nursing practice. This is however not exclusively emanating from nurses but possibly from patients as well, for instance a patient may express discriminatory, for instance racial bias to the attending nurse. In case, the nurse is not objective in his/her practice of care, they may dev elop a negative attitude towards the patient due to the offence and this may be reflected in the quality of care. In my opinion, the best way to bring about changes in the scholarship of nursing through scholarship is to teach it both as a science and art, such that it creates and avenue for excellence through which teachers supply technical knowledge, wisdom and humanity to students (Silva 2012). After the examination of prevailing conditions changes can be implemented through Lewis model of change that requires, the unfreezing of previously held perception, then the scholars can move on to other ideas which if found to be progressive can be refrozen until such a time they will require to be changed of improved (Mitchell 2013). In addition, this also results in inspiring students to think critically and reflectively so that they question convectional practices and strive to be better citizens of the nursing and global community. While ethics may be theoretically taught in class, un til a student is inspired to examine the process of nursing for him/her and make their own conclusions, they will only see them as abstract concepts. For effective change in the field of nursing scholarship; so that it may produce the best caliber of nurses, it is

Nature vs. Nurture in Intelligence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Nature vs. Nurture in Intelligence - Essay Example He went on to analyze biographical dictionaries and encyclopedias, and became convinced that talent in science, the professions, and the arts, ran in families. This suggestion became know as eugenics, "the study of the agencies under social control that may improve or repair the racial qualities of future generations, either physically or mentally." Galton wanted to speed up the process of natural selection, stating that: "What Nature does blindly, slowly, and ruthlessly, man may do providently, quickly, and kindly". Galton was convinced that "intelligence must be bred, not trained". Such arguments have had massive social consequences and have been used to support apartheid policies, sterilization programs, and other acts of withholding basic human rights from minority groups. In the heyday of eugenic IQ testing in the 1920s there was no evidence for the heritability of IQ. It was just an assumption of the practitioners. Today that is no longer the case. The heritability of IQ (whatever IQ is!) is now a hypothesis that has been tested - on twins and adoptees. The results really are quite startling. No study of the causes of intelligence has failed to find a certain and often substantial heritability. What varies from study to study is the amount that can be attributed to heritability. Evidence in favour of "nurture" "Give me a dozen healthy infants & my own specific world to bring them up in, & I'll guarantee to take any one at random & train him to become any type of specialist I might select - doctor, lawyer, artist, merchant, chef & yes, even beggar & thief, regardless of his talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations, and race of his ancestors." - John B. Watson, 1924 This was a famous quote in the heyday of behaviorism, when the child was considered to be a 'tabula rasa' (blank slate) onto which anything could be sculpted through environmental experience. This would be a 100% environmental view, but virtually no psychologists would accept such an extreme position today. So, what can we say about nature vs. nurture as causal determinants of intelligence A conservative, seemly safe position is that: "In the field of intelligence, there are three facts about the transmission of intelligence that virtually everyone seems to accept: 1. Both heredity and environment contribute to intelligence. 2. Heredity and environment interact in various ways. 3. Extremely poor as well as highly enriched environments can interfere with the realization of a person's intelligence, regardless of the person's heredity" (Sternberg & Grigorenko, 1997, p.xi). 4. Although most would accept a causal role of genetics, the exact genetic link and how it operates is very far from being understood - another point that most psychologists would agree on. It is certainly not a single gene, but a complex

Buometric ID system in Europ Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Buometric ID system in Europ - Essay Example (Jain, 2004) The privacy issues related to biometrics are primarily concerned with the civil rights of individuals and the way that the security apparatus of government uses biometric information in law enforcement. The issues of individual privacy vs. the legitimate technological use of biometric information will be discussed in this essay in order to analyze the EU policy that would implement biometric information as a basic part of passports and identity cards. Where the social utility of biometric data is furthered by the expansion of technological developments, the civil rights issues of their use must be clearly determined by a review of institutional practice in order for a fair and sustainable policy to be developed. This essay will review the current efforts to implement biometric identification on a universal basis in the EU in the context of human rights and civil liberties to determine if the current application of policy is threatening to the privacy concerns of individu als. The current proposal for biometric use in the EU includes the complete integration of the technology with existing passport controls and personal identification cards in society. (Heath, 2006) This system will be used in the management of immigration, travel, and related security services in the EU. (Jain, 2004) What the debate over biometrics in this context suggests is that the implementation for security is the main concern, with the risk of terrorism in airports and train stations a major risk to public safety. However, the security use may also â€Å"demonize† this technology by painting it in a negative light socially, whereas the technology itself may be given a wider and more beneficial use in easing transactions and identity verification for other purposes. The biometric technology is a product of human invention and its use is contingent on the motivations of the architects of the system. Rather than being inherently invasive or a threat to civil

The US Foreign Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The US Foreign Policy - Essay Example Such attacks are often inaccurate and end up killing innocent Yemeni citizens, and this was on the rise in 2010 when the AQAP undertook an unsuccessful attack on the US. Your conclusion on the result of the actions of the US is clever, in that, as the AQAP take control of the rural areas of Yemen, the US backs the central government of Yemen; thus, the divide. Indeed, the aggravation of the lack of stability in Yemen by the faked relationship with the US is veritable. I agree with you on the salient position that the US holds in respect to the stability of Bahrain. The internal unrest encountered in Bahrain in 2011 was dealt with through the help from the other Gulf States. However, these Gulf States would not help Bahrain in protecting it from outside threats, such as Iran.These states do not agree on how power should be divided among the Gulf States. One side advocates the Sunni while the other advocates for the Shea. In an apt manner, you have explicated the need to have the US involved in Bahrain’s strategies hence leading to the stability encountered. The US shields Bahrain from external terrorism and Iran through discouraging nuclear programs by the use of economic pressure. Moreover, the US has helped in advocating the rights of workers and removing the ‘kafala’ system that compels the immigrant workers to work for the employees who helped them come to Bahrain. Your argument is well grounded and is insightful.

Research Methods and Critique Question Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Methods and Critique Question - Research Paper Example In addition, this paper critically appraises the article â€Å"Embedding Quality in e-Learning Implementation through Evaluation† by Frances Deepwell (2007) which throws light on the various domains of evaluation as applicable to the domain of e-learning and recommends how evaluation can be used in order to improve the quality of e-learning (Deepwell, 2007). E-Learning – a novel approach to learning: In the current advent of technological advancements, the world has changed into a global village, where distance learning, an essential component of which is e-learning, has fast made its place in the domain of education (Gunasekaran, McNeil, & Shaul, 2002; Khodamoradi & Abedi, 2011). In this download era, the internet has transformed from a simple medium where information and knowledge was fed and then consequently retrieved or shared at a required time, into a worldwide platform, where now each and every second millions, if not more, users are learning ,sharing and teachi ng a wide variety of topics (Downes, 2005). Moreover, in recent times, the teaching methodologies and learning approaches have experienced a paradigm shift in that learner centered approaches are more favored than teacher centered educational approaches, which has made the learning process more individualized and tailored to suit each individual’s pace, requirements and capacity (Deepwell, 2007). In today’s post-positivism era, more emphasis is placed on promoting learner autonomy and cooperative learning (Ehlers et al., 2005). In such a model of learning, the use of technology is pertinent and effective as it enables learners to be independent and learn from a wide variety of learning strategies rather than the conventional teacher centered mode of instruction (Zhang, 2003). These demands and changing trends in the patterns of learning and transfer of knowledge and ideas gave rise to the concept of distance learning or e-learning. The term distance learning refers to â€Å"education designed for learners who live at a distance from the teaching institution or education provider (Khodamoradi & Abedi, 2011, p. 225).† Traditionally, the predominant medium of education employed for distance learning was print media such as textbooks, notes or other course materials, but more recently, this practice has been replaced gradually with the increasing use of non-print media eversince the evolution of the concept of e-learning (Khodamoradi & Abedi, 2011). E-Learning, which is defined as â€Å"technology-based learning in which learning materials are delivered electronically to remote learners via a computer network (Zhang, Zhao, Zhou, & Nunamaker, 2004, p. 76)†

Importance of Life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Importance of Life - Essay Example This paper will present personal thoughts about the two essays, establishing connections and oppositions, in the area of male-female communication at home. Inferences from the two stories â€Å"I want a wife† explains that wives take a very passive role at home. They offer support services to men after they leave home for work or education. The role of a wife when the husband is not at home will entail taking care of the children, supporting the dependants of the man, finance the man where necessary, as well as doing the daily chores. She is portrayed as one who should sacrifice for the man, by losing days of work, losing pay due to absenteeism as well as leaving her job after the husband gets employed. She is portrayed as the person to take care of the physical needs of the husband as well as those of the children while offering social support to the family (Tannen). A wife is presented as the one to offer support for the social life of the man, children – who she will babysit – as well as the guests of the home, who is required to serve. She is presented as the one to take care of the sexual needs of the man, whenever he feels the need, but she is presented as one that will not present her sexual needs. After all the devotion, she is supposed to accept her replacement, and at the same time absorb the burden of taking care of children after divorce (Brady). The story, â€Å"sex, lies and conversation; why is it so hard for men and women to talk to each other†...presents the woman as the talker of the family, but one who will not express herself in the pubic (Tannen). The case explains the ideal American family, where the man talks in public but not at home. The family outlook is supported by scientific findings that many marriage breakups – according to women – are caused by the lack of communication (Brady; Tannen). Women feel that men do not listen or pay attention to them, which could be explained on the basis of th e different communication cultures of men and women. Women – since their background as girls – relate in an expressive manner, while men relate in an authoritative, non-sentimental manner, which makes women feel like the men do not listen or communicate to them. Women make one another feel better, by demonstrating their shared problems, while men downplay the extent of the other’s problems, and will often not pay a lot of attention to the physical expressions of one another, like women. Through a research study on school children, it was demonstrated that women are expressive to one another – and the expressive aspect is what they expect from husbands – who are naturally passive in their communication and interactions. The problem rises from the need of intimacy among women, and the detachment of men from their feelings. The story ends in the call for an understanding of the cross-cultural nature of men and women, which will enhance their communica tion as well as the understanding of one another (Brady; Tannen). Discussion of the connections and the oppositions between the two stories â€Å"I want a wife† presents the wife as a highly passive member of the family, who will not question the instructions of the husband as well as her roles as a wife. â€Å"My wife must lose time at work and not lose the job† (Brady). The story â€Å"sex lies and conversation† is the opposite, as it portrays the wife as â€Å"

Ethical Issue Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Ethical Issue - Research Paper Example Introduction End of life decision making has become a major focus of attention in healthcare sector, reflected in the media, legislation, research, and health professional education. Nurses are the primary caregivers to patients as they struggle to make difficult decisions, either in advance of serious illness or at the end of life, and to family members coping with impending loss. Nurses thus have a central role to play in ongoing efforts to improve both the care that dying patients receive and the readiness of individuals to plan for this last phase of life. No matter where nurses function in their varied roles, they are faced with ethical decisions that can impact them and their patients in equal measure. The legal and ethical issues are significant in this era of increased campaign to improve the overall quality of healthcare. Strict adherence to the legal policies and healthcare practice ethical standards serves to boost the performance of healthcare proffesionals Review and Eva luation of Issue Ethical issues near the end of life (EOL) often arise because of concerns about how much and what kind of care make sense for someone with a limited life expectancy, particularly if the patient is very old. There is often conflict between physicians or nurses and family members about what constitutes appropriate care (Keegan, Drick & Watson, 2011). Many of these conflicts can be avoided by clarifying who makes the difficult decisions to limit care and by advance care planning. Understanding the ethical and legal framework in which such decisions are made can also transform what appear to be problematic questions into straightforward answers. Ethical decision making is complex and difficult. For this reason, many professions compose ethical codes to aid their practitioners, to aid those in the profession in dealing with perplexing situations that inevitably arise (Keegan, Drick & Watson, 2011). The American Nurses Association (ANA) Code of Ethics is of course one suc h code. It outlines the important general values, duties, and responsibilities that flow from the specific role of being a nurse. The relationship of the individual practitioner to the code, however, is an aspect of professional moral life that requires interpretation and may not always be well understood (Fry, Veatch & Taylor, 2011). A historical and theoretical analysis of the ANA Code can provide for an understanding as to how it is to be used not as a substitute for moral thinking but as an aid to moral thinking. According to Nightingale’s theoretical approach of observation and determining what needs to be done in caring for those dying and their families, there is still the unknown of what takes place in the present moment. End of life is associated with a substantial burden of suffering among many dying individuals as well as health and financial consequences that extend to family members and society. When Nightingale entered nursing, there were no formal ethical stand ards, but she embodied and advocated for the need of high ethical standards herself. In formalization stage, some organization, person, or persons amalgamates earlier traditions, precepts, practices, and rules, attempting to construct a coherent assemblage out of them, and, in the process, attempts to rationalize and justify them, and the field more generally, often emphasizing ideals of service to others and dedication to some public good (Lachman, 2006). The

Industry review of retirement home industry Research Paper

Industry review of retirement home industry - Research Paper Example enture should aim at making profits to the investor, but it must also aim at the provision of quality services to the people in the immediate community (Scaffa and Reitz, 2014). There are two types of retirement industries available to individuals who have attained the age of retirement including the independent and the dependent communities. The independent communities consist of consist of the single family homes, condominiums, duplexes, or townhouses where these individuals live just on their own. This kind of industry may offer a number of services. These include provision of the recreation services, taking care of the lawn among other services. On the other hand, the dependent industry is bestowed with the responsibility of the provision of housing arrangements alongside other health care services. These constantly change with the change in the needs and the tastes of the community (Hillstrom and Hillstrom, 2002). In the retirement industry market, the communities are expected to increase especially in America to over 77 million in the next two years. The retirement group is expected to be shopping for the best option in the market regarding housing and health services in the next 2 decades. The venture into the retirement industry requires some capital to help run the facility in one way or the other. Therefore, this industry seems to be centered onto the senior citizens with some sizeable retirement incomes that are adequate to handle the expenses. For instance, in America, the most expensive retirement scheme requires a capital of between $ 100, 000 to $ 1 million (Scaffa & Reitz, 2014). There has been an escalating trend in the development and the expansion of the retirement industry in the American economy. However, in 2007, there was a recession in the US that spread up to the year 2013. This recession slowed down the growth in the retirement industry. This forced several individuals to delay the retirement due to the dwindling personal assets. There

The Medieval Church Essay Example for Free

The Medieval Church Essay Lingberg and Duffy have a different look on The Medieval Church in the middle Ages. Unfortunately though, the church is often regarded as the capital of corruption, evil, and worldliness. An overview of the crisis concerned with farming, famine and the Black Death. I thought Lindberg was more persuasive than Duffy because of how he thought about farming, famine and the Black Death. As the Medieval church did offer many opportunities for ordinary people, makes us think they did not really cared about religion at all. The King needed the medieval church for political reasons, he did think about religion too. The medieval church offered salvation, for people to confess their sins to the priest. In medieval times people needed to go to heaven the only way was through the church. People were not allowed to think differently to what church had taught them, People were told that God had willed it; they needed religion and explanations to survive. The Church was really important in Medieval times than it is now. In those days people needed Church and religion to get their way through life. The Church controlled everyone even the King. It was important to people because it provided education for ordinary people, the priests gave advice, care and leisure in addition to religion. People needed priests to marry, baptize and bury them, without the church there would be no priests to do that. This shows that the Church was important to people in medieval ages. As we know not many people believe in heaven and hell now, but almost everyone believed in them in medieval ages. Everyone wanted to go to heaven when they died. They followed the church’s rules because it was the only way; they had to confess to their sins to the priest, for forgiveness from God. The church was more important to the king. He needed it to do coronations because they were religious ceremonies. Recognition by the church was important for Kings in the Middle Ages their reputation counted on it. People who were banned from the church and the kings were known as social outcasts. Duffy argues that the churches were directly tied into politics and laws of the land, there was very little distinction between what was holy and what was not. Much of the church was constructed of people who were wealthy and in positions of power; this was an avenue to  exercise that power was a bit more. They were abundant in the church and were a major part of that mindset that one’s work can get them into heaven. Much of the reform brought about by Martin Luther challenged the notion of purgatory, and therefore the significance of indulgences the way the church was misusing them. As many things define the distinct characteristics of history, the Christian church has made a remarkable milestone especially during the Middle Ages. Christianitys emergence as an official religion influenced not only the church, it enabled people to look beyond the obsession of power and worldly pleasures, but to a final and ultimate reward for a life well spent. Everybody put their faith in the hope and love of the Christian God. It gave the people goals and led them to the right path, yet why is it looked down upon so harshly? Maybe it was because of the wealth it exemplified, or the deterioration of morality in the popes. A contemporary account states: â€Å"The money was indeed the thing that killed the Jews. If they had been poor and if the feudal lords had not been in debt to them, they would not have been burnt† (Marcus 1973: 47). One can heedlessly conclude that the Medieval church was corrupt and unholy, but that would not justify its existence. Accordingly, the church was just trying to adjust itself to an age of chaos and uncertainty. Lindberg argued that along with the monetary benefits indulgence held for the church, there was a psychological component which kept the faithful in a state of fear of purgatory or even worse hell. This was one of the major abuses and signs of corruption in the Medieval Church. The Reformation more often emphasizes its social dimension, going beyond the doctrinal issues that divided Europeans. Because religion helped shape every aspect of European life, the practices of the new churches caused major changes. Duffys argues that the English Reformation was inevitable nor that it was the sole means by which the cause of human freedom could progress. Sacramental ceremonies from baptism to last rites had long marked key moments in the lives, families and communities. By abolishing or changing the sacraments, the Medieval Church challenged the social meaning of these rituals. This shattered older understandings about sexuality and personal holiness and led to intensified debate about the role of women in society resistance. Poor relief and charity meant something different when they no longer served as rich peoples way to perform penance. The idea that the medieval church was  immoral. Maybe putting together one thousand years of the history of the church with a disregard to any historical development may represent the medieval church as a corrupt institution, but still it is not necessary to go as far as to say that the church was corrupt. It is also worth noting that not all contemporaries who were interested in the reformation joined Luther in his famous feature, the Reformation. With this in mind, Luther and other reformers are usually credited with bringing the church back to the New Testament ideal, which is not necessarily the case. The Reformation in particular seems all the more worthy of when we realize that it may not have been merely an inevitable reaction to a corrupt Church but instead maybe a spontaneous movement, simultaneous or nearly so with similar movements that reformed politics and economics in equally radical ways. Works Cited Lindberg, Carter. The European Reformations. Malden, MA: Wiley Blackwell, 2010. Print.

Stakeholders Importance And Their Engagement Management Essay

Stakeholders Importance And Their Engagement Management Essay For any project Planning, management and control are always the most important drivers to deliver the desired outcome.In present days there are many different organisations have embraced the concept of projects as a mechanism of delivering change.Regadless of the size and what kind of industry may be due to this they experience unacceptably high rates of failure, which wastes scarce monetary and human resources and the reputation of the project management profession. The Stakeholder engagement offers a mechanism for assesing each key stakeholder and there influence to understand their expectations.It also defines the proper way for engaging stakeholders.The aim of this course work is to define stakeholder engagement and their importance for any project. Stakeholder: Stakeholders are an integral part of a project. They are the end-users or clients, the people from whom requirements will be drawn, the people who will influence the design and, ultimately, the people who will reap the benefits of your completed project. (jenkins, 2006) It is very important to participate stakeholders in every step of the project for reasons like experience shows that their involvement in the project may increase the chances of success by building in a very significant feedback sphere and involving them in the project can be able to fetch confidence in the final product and will greatly ease its acceptance in your target audience. The Stakeholder Circle: There are many researchs regarding the importance of stakeholders roles in enhancing wealth and economical benefits.One research team (Fletcher et al., 2003) defined a process for mapping stakeholder expectation, one that uses value hierarchies and key performance areas (KPA).In this process stakeholders are divided to their respective potential for threat and their potential for cooperation (Blair et al., 1991) or influence of their power basing on their legitimacy of each stakeholder relation with the company as well as the urgency of the stakeholders claim on the company (Mitchell, Agle and Wood, 1997). There are many other methodologies that provide a relevant useful tool for visualising power and influence in social network mapping (Rowley, 1997).It is sort of more holistic process for managing stakeholders, identifying,assessing,influence and support of the stakeholders.This will lead to obtain strategies for assessing stakeholder satisfaction.It culminates in the development of a stakeholder knowledge base that provides knowledge of who is aware or ignorant and whether their attitude is supportive or opposing (Turner, 2002).Another (Briner, Hastings and Geddes, 1996) have influences the Stakeholder Circle. The concepts of power,authenticity and urgency (Mitchell, Agle and Wood, 1997) are valuable for identifying important stakeholders, This idea of providence and centrality(Rowley, 1997) attempted to figure out and show the power and communication importance within the stakeholder community. In the process of developing an proper engagement strategy based on the work of Briner et al. (1996), Turner (2002) and Fetcher et al. (2003).Figure 1 represents the stakeholder circle, which inturn helps project manager and their team in locating the project key stakeholders in relation to specific time within aproject lifecycle. The prototype stakeholder circle consists of two key elements: concentric circles that represents distance between stakeholder and the projrct manageer.The pattern used for each stakeholder represents homogeneity. Figure 1. Prototype Stakeholder Circle. MI_PR_NS_12_05_06_1_fig1.jpg The Stakeholder Circle is done basing on the idea that a project can exist only with the up to date consent of its stakeholder community (Bourne and Weaver, 2002), so the relationship between the community that inturn increases project team chance for achieving desired outcome.The stakeholder community comprises of both individuals and groups with a different possible influence the projects outcomepostively or negatively. Identification Of Stakeholders: Identifying project stakeholders starts with the categories upwards,downwords,inwards,outwards and sidewards.Then it is followed by knowing mutuality (French and Granrose, 1995), as defined in the scales of understanding what each stakeholder requires from the project and also the significance of them to the project.Posing these questions makes the relationhip between the project and the stakeholder and make sure that project manager is aware and understand what what the both group needs.This can be done through a workshop with project team and the persons from the organization those familiar with project deliverables and constraints.The information obtained can be entered and validated.Then next-prioritisation of the stakeholders can be done. Prioritisation Of Stakeholders: Here the rating of each stakeholder can be done from the project team members by validating stakeholders power,proximity and urgency according to the project.And can be put on into the tool.This list with the relavent data on each stakeholder, helps in developing an engagement strategy.This will make easier for project team to understand and ensure the expectations of key stakeholders. Stakeholder Engagement: Stakeholder engagement can be defined as the method of well eliciting the stakeholders views on their association with the organization (Friedman and Miles, 2006). Stakeholder engagement can be implicit as the practice that the organisations usually take to engage stakeholders in a positive way in organizational actions or activities. From the view of accountability and responsibility theories, stakeholder engagement is a method by which organisational accountability and responsibility towards stakeholders can be acquitted, often through the involvement of stakeholders in decision-making and governance (Gary, 2002). In an organisation, stakeholder engagement customs may exist in many areas like public relations, customer service, supplier relations, management accounting and human resource management with the varied set of organisational stakeholder. In such circumstance, stakeholder engagement might be seen as an instrument for consent, control, co-operation and accountability and also as a structure of employee involvement and participation. It is also seen as a practice for enhancing trust and as an alternative for true trust and also as a discourse to enhance fairness. Stakeholders must be appointed to achieve the best through proper planned amalgamation of communication and involvement. This also assists of stakeholder being committed to the organisation. For the companies to execute the operational level of strategic management capability stakeholder engagement may be opted as one approach. In phrase of degree of engagement with their stakeholders, organisations can employee different strategies (Carroll, 2008).  Stakeholder engagement presents the sense of corporate responsibility. If the organisation is working with dedication through suitable policy and practice, it is quite clear that it is acting responsibly towards the stakeholders. The more an organisation engages with its stakeholders, the more accountable and responsible that organisation is towards these stakeholders (Greenwood, 2007). Even though firms take up a wide series of communication to report their stakeholder engagement efforts, customarily, on the whole usually engaged and most wide-ranging method for reporting stakeholders engagement plans is to voluntarily disclosure its annual reports (Boesso, 2009).  By tradition Stakeholder engagement is viewed as a corporate responsibility in action.  The movement behind the use of the term engagement in corporate social responsibility (CSR) is the need to emphasize that ,it is no longer sufficient for firms to simply network  with stakeholder but also to have a sufficient interaction with stakeholders is considered as logically necessary activity of business (Noland, 2010).   For developing a new activity or to reconsider current or previous efforts a template of principles should be stressed. For stakeholders engagement to be effective the company hold on to various kinds of principles when engaging them on an issue or proposed action or for general feedback (Blackburn, 2007). Planning, transparency, code of conduct, training, inclusiveness, ongoing commitment, and listening are some of the principles of stakeholders engagement. The strategic principles refer to a higher level of understanding and structuring of the stakeholder engagement and involves identifying the stakeholders, significant issues and expectations. The  Strategic principles of the stakeholder engagement  Ã‚  deals  with the  Ã‚  issues of significance to stakeholders and the agency,  understands the concerns, views, needs and expectations of the stakeholders and responds coherently and appropriately. The operational principles are concerned with the action of dealing with the stakeholders such as the stakeholders engagement plan and consultation. They involve  clear and agreed information with feedback processes. The operational principles of the stakeholder engagement are collaborative and recognize, understand and involve stakeholders in the process. They conduct stakeholder engagement in a manner that fosters mutual respect and trust. When engaging stakeholders on an issue or proposed action or for general feedback, the comp any adheres to various kinds of principles to help endure the stakeholder engagement is effective. Maintaining Engagement: Understanding or defyning relavent responses recquires numerous elements, Like which stakeholders are concerned about project definition and planning process, which stakeholders are in need of more information about the project to ease their opposition and which stakeholders play key and relevant roles.Project managers will be held responsible in converting the resulting strategy of who,what,when and how, of giving the tailored messages which are defined for each stakeholder into action.This helps in integrating the communication plan into the project schedule and reporting the expectations of stakeholders are understood and managed in a very proper way. Analysing and Planning: Often the significance of research to stakeholder engagement is ignored. It allows you to identify strengths and weaknesses and eventually build up strategies to connect efficiently. The stakeholder engagement is a serious component to the success of the project and it may be useful to develop a stakeholder engagement plan. For this, various sources, predictable and unconventional, whether it is media, online, literature or word of mouth. As part of the analysis, it is important to examine existing, current and past relationships, available resources and constraints . Managing Project Communication Using Prince2: PRINCE2 has a best move toward managing project communication across the whole project cycle.   It is important that the project manager maintain controlled and bi-directional in order flow to engage and inform  project stakeholders.Spotlight should be on how to ensure the project remains feasible even with its business case, produces the obligatory products, and make sure that is maintained according to plan.   The PRINCE2 communication management cycle can be done by using these four steps:   Plan-Execute-Monitor-Improve.I The communication planning should be in such a way that all stakeholders are identified and engaged throughout the life cycle of the project.The time and resources required for performing this activities will be part of project and team should plan how it should be carried on. It is very much important to figure out and analyze key project stakeholders to find out their information needs.Identified stakeholders will be the persons or groups who are not part of management team but required to contact and interact regularly or else the project outcome will be disturbed.So, it is very important to have effective communication to get desired results.PRINCE2 recommends a very proper six step process to engage stakeholders: 1. Figure out the stakeholders who are concerned in project or worried about the project outcome. Evaluate and generate profiles of the stakeholders to know their involvement, interest and attitudes relating to the project Define a engagement strategy for stakeholders and make them focus on project communications, approving on the information required by each concerned party basing on their roles. Define a proper communicating proforma, timing of the project communications and decide who the senders and recipients for each specified item. Engaging stakeholders according to the plan. Evaluate the efficiency communication activities for the project. (T.Barnard, L.Haner and Weese, 2010) The Communication Management Strategy: It defines the resources and regularity of communication with both internal and external stakeholders.The project manager will be held responsible to create and manuscript this strategy and try to update with the strategy stage by stage and make sure it still encompasses all key project stakeholders . When the project is into the final stage it is also to review the Communication Management Strategy and make sure it includes all the parties who need to be advised that the project is closing. (prince2 2009, 2009) Conclusion: This work on stakeholder engagement made me to know how to identify key stakeholders and their engagement and relation with the project manager and the team which inturn reduces the project risk through developing and nurturing relationship within project. This task presumes that the act of stakeholder engagement in and of itself delivers help towards stakeholders and is, therefore, an act of conscientiousness towards stakeholders. Stakeholder engagement does not always reflect perfect communication, relations and results from start to finish. Stakeholders may be at first argumentative, during the course of the consultations for both internal and external reasons, the important factor is how you deal with these hurdles.

Role of Institutional Investors in Corporate Governance

Role of Institutional Investors in Corporate Governance CHAPTER II REVIEW OF LITERATURE Corporate governance paradigm is based on the argument of Berle and Means (1932) that separation of ownership and control leads to the problems associated with agency theory so that the managers of a company may not act in the best interest of owners. Throughout the twentieth century, the pattern of ownership continued to change from declining individual ownership to increasing institutional ownership. So, it is not surprising that institutional investors are increasingly looking more carefully at the corporate governance of companies because good governance goes hand in hand with increased transparency and accountability. Many studies have been conducted to see the impact of institutional holdings on corporate governance. Some researchers contend that substantial holdings by institutional investors and corporate governance are significantly correlated while others argue the absence of such a relationship. Evidences are also inconclusive on whether institutional investors invest in good governed companies or their holdings improve the governance practices. The role of institutional investors is visualized in two perspectives, the corporate governance and the firm performance. The present chapter covers the empirical studies on the above issues as institutional holdings and corporate governance, institutional holdings and firm performance, corporate governance and firm performance with special emphasis on the studies conducted in India on the above aspects. The present submission seeks to evaluate the impact of institutional holdings over corporate governance and firm performance by constructing governance score and taking various measures for firm performance. Various studies have focused on different aspects/levels of ownership and their effects on firm performance. As a result, various arguments have been put forward both in support and against the notion of the effects of ownership structure on the firm performance. While some researchers denied the direct correlation between ownership structure and firms economic performance while the others argued that there exists such a relationship for certain. Amongst those who establish such causality, some provide evidence that there is a negative relationship, while others plead a positive relationship between the two. Studies have also been carried to determine a link between varied aspects of corporate governance and firm performance; evidence in this regard too appears fairly mixed. There has been extensive literature to document a positive relationship between the two, based on identified individual aspects of corporate governance and firm performance whereas others do not find any conclusive evidence in this regard. Prepositions put forwarded by the researchers in this context are being reviewed here as under in the perspectives identified above: 2.1 Institutional Holdings and Corporate Governance Coombes and Watson (2000)1 on the basis of a survey of more than 200 institutional investors with investments across the world showed that governance is a significant factor in their investment decision. Three-quarters of the investors say that board practices are at least as important as financial performance. In fact, over 80% of the investors in the survey stated that they would pay more for the shares of a well-governed firm than a poorly governed firm with comparable financial performance. The survey indicated that the premium these institutional investors would be willing to pay varied by country, with premiums being higher in Asia and Latin America (where financial reporting is less reliable) than in Europe or the U.S. Bradshaw, Bushee and Miller (2004)2 indicated that firms whose accounting methods conform to U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles have a greater level of investment by U.S. institutional investors. They found further that increases in conformity with U.S. GAAP are positively associated with future increases in U.S. institutional investment, but that the reverse does not hold (i.e., increases in U.S. institutional ownership are not associated with later changes in accounting methods). The authors attributed this relation to home bias rather than better transparency (and corporate governance) however; their results are also consistent with the latter interpretation. Chung, Firth, and Kim (2002)3 hypothesized that there will be less opportunistic earnings management in firms with more institutional investor ownership because the institutions will either put pressure on the firms to adopt better accounting policies or they will be able to unravel the earnings management rule so it will not benefit the managers. They found that when institutional investors own a large percentage of a firms outstanding shares, there is less opportunistic earnings management (i.e., less use of discretionary accruals). Hartzell and Starks (2003)4 provided empirical evidence suggesting institutional investors serve a monitoring role with regard to executive compensation contracts. First, they found a positive association between institutional ownership concentration and the pay-for-performance sensitivity of a firms executive compensation. Second, they reported a negative association between institutional ownership concentration and excess salary. One implication of these results, consistent with the theoretical literature regarding the role of the large shareholder, is that institutions have greater influence when they have larger proportional stakes in firms. Parrino, Sias and Starks (2003)5 indicated that those firms that fired their top executives had a significantly greater decline in institutional ownership in the year prior to the CEO turnover than firms experiencing voluntary CEO turnover (even after controlling for differences in performance). These results support the hypothesis that institutional selling influences decisions by the board of directors-increasing the likelihood a CEO is forced from office. This implies that boards care about institutional trading and ownership activity in their firms. Further, the authors found that larger decreases in institutional ownership are associated with a higher probability of an outsider being appointed to succeed the CEO. This result suggests that directors are more willing to break with the current corporate management and institute change. They also noted that there are several potential effects when institutions sell shares. First, heavy institutional selling can put downward pressure on the stock price. Alternatively, institutional selling might be interpreted as bad news, thus triggering sales by other investors and further depressing the stock price. Finally, the composition of shareholder base might change, for example, from institutional investors with a long-term focus to investors with a more myopic view. This last effect might be important to directors if the types of institutions holding the stock affect share value or the management of the company. Cremers and Nair (2005)6 stated that the interaction between shareholder activism on behalf of institutional investors and the market for corporate control is important in explaining developments in abnormal equity returns and accounting measures of profitability. Davis and Kim (2007)7 found that mutual funds with conflicts of interest (based on management of pension assets) more often vote with management in general. On the other hand, mutual funds have more incentive and power to oppose management in firms in which they have a larger stake. McCahery, Sautner and Starks (2008)8 have relied on the survey data to investigate governance preference of 118 institutional investors in U.S. and Netherlands. The study found that the majority of institutions that responded to the survey take into account firm governance in portfolio weighting decisions and are willing to engage in activities that can improve the governance of their portfolio firms. Brickley, Lease and Smith (1988)9 found evidence supporting the hypothesis that firms with greater holdings by pressure-sensitive shareholders (banks and insurance companies) have more proxy votes cast in favor of managements recommendations. Moreover, firms with greater holdings by pressure-insensitive shareholders (pension funds and mutual funds) have more proxy votes against managements recommendations. The authors differentiated between the different types of institutional investors, noting the difference between pressure-sensitive and pressure-insensitive institutional shareholders and arguing that pressure-sensitive institutions are more likely to â€Å"go along† with management decisions. The rationale is that pressure-sensitive investors might have current or potential business relations with the firm that they do not want to jeopardize. Maug (1998)10 noted that institutions use their ability to influence corporate decisions are partially a function of the size of their shareholdings. If institutional investor shareholdings are high, shares are less marketable and are thus held for longer periods. In this case, there is greater incentive to monitor a firms management. However, when institutional investors hold relatively few shares in a firm, they can easily liquidate their investments if the firm performs poorly, and therefore have less incentive to monitor firm performance. Almazan, Hartzell and Starks (2003)11 provided evidence both theoretical and empirical that the monitoring influence of institutional investors on executive compensation can depend on the current or prospective business relation between the institution and the corporation. They concluded that the monitoring influence of institutions is associated more with potentially active institutions (investment companies and pension fund managers who would be less sensitive to pressure from corporate management due to lack of potential business relations) than with potentially passive institutions (banks and insurance companies who would be more pressure-sensitive). Marsh (1997)12 has argued that short-term performance measurement does work against the active monitoring by institutional investors. The performance of fund managers is evaluated over a shorter time period. Hence, they act under tremendous pressure to beat some index. So, when they find a case of bad governance, they find it economical to sell the stock rather than interfere in the functioning of the company and incur monitoring costs. Denis and Denis (1994)13 found no evidence to suggest that there is any relationship between institutional holdings and corporate governance. They stated that if companies that create shareholders wealth are the ones with poor corporate governance practices, and then one really cannot blame the institutional investors for having invested in such companies. For, after all, a fund manager will be evaluated on the basis of stock returns he creates for the unit holders and not on the basis of the corporate governance records of the company he invests the money in. If however, one finds that companies with poor corporate governance practices are the ones, which have consistently destroyed shareholders wealth, then the contention that the institutional investors need not look at corporate governance records cannot be justified. David and Kochhar (1996)14, provided empirical evidence regarding impact of institutional investors on firm behaviour and performance is mixed and that no definite conclusions can be drawn. They argued that various institutional obstacles, such as barriers stemming from business relationships, the regulatory environment and information processing limitations, might prevent institutional investors from effectively exercising their corporate governance function. Agrawal and Knoeber (1996)15 found little evidence of an association between total institutional ownership and other possible control mechanisms (e.g., insider ownership, block holders, outside directors, CEO human capital, and leverage). Payne, Millar, and Glezen (1996)16 focussed on banks as one type of institutional investor that would be expected to have business relations with the firms in which they invest. They examined interlocking directorships and income-related relationships, and noticed that when such relations exist; banks tend to vote in favor of management anti-takeover amendment proposals. When such relations dont exist, banks tend to vote against the management proposals. Leech (2002)17 is of the view that many institutional shareholders do not seek control of a company for a variety of reasons, which include the fear of obtaining price sensitive information, and that it is more likely that institutional investors seek only influence rather than complete control. Moreover, it has also been argued, in line with the â€Å"passive monitoring† view, that institutional investors may not be keen to â€Å"exit† on their investments â€Å"i.e. sell their equity stakes when the firm is not performing optimally, mainly because they hold large investments and thus selling may lower the price and further increase any potential loss. Woidtke (2002)18 concluded by comparing the relative value of firms held for public versus private pension fund that relative firm value is positively related to private pension fund ownership and negatively related to (activist) public pension fund ownership. These results supported the view that the actions of public pension fund managers might be motivated more by political or social influences than by firm performance. Ashraf and Jayaman (2007)19 examined mutual funds trading behavior after the release of voting records. The study found that funds that support shareholder proposals reduce holdings after the release of voting records. Since the time of releasing voting records could be very far from the shareholder meeting date, mutual funds trading behavior after the release of voting records may be unrelated to the votes cast in the meeting. Dahlquist et al. (2003)20 analyzed foreign ownership and firm characteristics for the Swedish market. The study found that foreigners have greater presence in large firms, firms paying low dividends and in firms with large cash holdings and explained that firm size is driven by liquidity. It reiterated that foreigners tend to underweight the firms with a dominant owner. Leuz, Nanda and Wysocki (2003)21 asserted that the information problems cause foreigners to hold fewer assets in firms. Firm level characteristics can be expected to contribute to the information asymmetry problems. Concentrated family control makes it more likely that information is communicated via private channels. Informative insiders have incentives to hide the benefits from outside investors by providing opaque financial statements and managing earnings. Haw, Hu, Hwang and Wu (2004)22 found that firm level factors cause information asymmetry problems to FII. It found evidence that US investment is lower in firms where managers do not have effective control. Foreign investment in firms that appear to engage in more earnings management is lower in countries with poor information framework. Choe, Kho, Stulz (2005)23 found that US investors do indeed hold fewer shares in firms with ownership structures that are more conducive to expropriation by controlling insiders. In companies where insiders are dominating information access and availability to the shareholders will be limited. With less information, foreign investors face an adverse selection problem. So they under invest in such stocks. Covirg et al. (2008)24 concluded that foreign fund managers have less information about the domestic stocks than the domestic fund managers. They found that ownership by foreign funds is related to size of foreign sales, index memberships and stocks with foreign listing. Leuz, Lins, and Warnock (2009)25 found that foreign institutional investors prefer to invest in firms with â€Å"better† governance practices. This literature assumes that firm level corporate governance mechanisms substitute for weak country level legal protections of minority shareholders. Aggarwal, Klapper and Wysocki (2005)26 found that U.S. mutual funds tend to invest greater amounts in countries with stronger shareholder rights and legal frameworks (controlling for the countrys economic development). In addition, within the countries, the mutual funds also discriminate on the basis of governance in that they allocate more of their assets to firms with better corporate governance structures. Resume After reviewing the literature on the above sub-section, it is concluded that the results are inconclusive regarding the association between institutional holdings and corporate governance as some studies invariably support the hypothesis that institutional holdings and corporate governance are significantly related while the others reject it. But the results are uniform on one issue that there is positive relation between the foreign institutional holdings and corporate governance as foreign institutional investors are relatively more concerned about the governance practices of companies and countries as well. They prefer to invest more in the countries with stronger shareholder rights and legal frameworks. Similarly, they do invest in the companies with good disclosure and transparency measures. A group of studies contend that institutional investors consider governance practices of companies as an important consideration for investment decision. They not only care for financial performance of target companies, but also put great emphasis on the board practices. They are ready to pay premium for good governance. Institutional investors can put pressure on firms improve their governance practices if they have substantial stake in the target companies and do not have business relations with them. Moreover, if they dont involve themselves actively in governance but only vote with their feet it serves as a deterrent for the management in practicing bad governance. As it will send bad signal to the stock market leading to further decline in the stock prices and may be changing the shareholder base from dynamic institutional investors with long-term focus to myopic investors. Whereas in other studies, it has been observed that institutional investors prefer to remain passive and concentrate on their own business objectives, rather than look into the governance practices of companies. They do not involve themselves actively in the governance of firms for variety of reasons as short-term performance measurement, business relationships, regulatory environment, information processing limitations, free-rider problem etc. Moreover, they may not be interested in selling the shares of poor firms as they have large holdings and selling may aggravate their potential loss. 2.2 Institutional Holdings and Firm Performance Pound (1988)27 explored the influence of institutional ownerships on firm performance and proposed three hypotheses on the relation between institutional shareholders and firm performance: efficient-monitoring hypothesis, conflict-of-interest hypothesis, and strategic-alignment hypothesis. The efficient-monitoring hypothesis says that institutional investors have greater expertise and can monitor management at lower cost than the small atomistic shareholders. Consequently, this argument predicts a positive relationship between institutional shareholding and firm performance. The conflict-of-interest proposition suggests that in view of other profitable business relationships with the firm, institutional investors are coerced into voting their shares with management. The strategic-alignment hypothesis states that institutional owners and managers find it mutually advantageous to cooperate. Holderness and Sheehan (1988)28 found that for a sample of 114 US firms controlled by a majority shareholder with more than 50% of shares, both Tobins Q and accounting profits are significantly lower for firms with individual majority owners than for firms with corporate majority owners. Hermalin and Weisbach (1988)29 further stated that the managerial ownership is positively related to performance between 0-1% of managerial ownership, negatively related thereafter up to 5%, and again positively related from 5-20% and negatively related thereafter. Boardman and Vining (1989)30 compared the performance of state owned enterprises, joint enterprises, and private corporations among the 500 largest non-US industrial firms, and found that mixed enterprises and state owned enterprises perform substantially worse than similar private enterprises. McConnell and Servaes (1990)31 found a strong positive relationship between the value of the firm and the fraction of shares held by institutional investors. They found that performance increases significantly with institutional ownership. Han and Suk (1998)32 found (for a sample of US firms) that stock returns are positively related to ownership by institutional investors, thus implying that these corporate owners are actively involved in the monitoring of incumbent management. They also found that alignment effect dominates if the managers own up to 41.8% of the share capital. They further evidenced that beyond the limit of 41.8%, the mangers are able to control the Board of directors and so the entrenchment effect dominates the alignment effect. Majumdar and Nagarajan (1994)33 found that levels of institutional investment are positively related to the current performance levels of firms. However, a less-stronger, though positive, effect is established between changes in performance levels and changes in institutional ownership. The results are based on a study investigating U.S. institutional investors investment strategy. Bethel et al. (1998)34 consistent with the view that market for partial corporate control identifies and rectifies problems of poor corporate performance, found that activist investors typically target poorly performing and diversified firms for block share purchases, and thereby assert disciplinary effect on target companies plans in mergers and acquisitions. Douma, Rejie and Kabir (2006)35 investigated the impact of foreign institutional investment on the performance of emerging market firms and found that there is positive effect of foreign ownership on firm performance. They also found impact of foreign investment on the business group affiliation of firms. Investor protection is poor in case of firms with controlling shareholders who have ability to expropriate assets. The block shareholders affect the value of the firm and influence the private benefits they receive from the firm. Companies with such shareholders find it expensive to raise external funds. Bhattacharya and Graham (2007)36 investigated the relationship between different classes of institutional investors (pressure-sensitive and pressure-resistant) and firm performance in Finland. It documented evidence that these institutional owners own stakes in multiple firms across industries, leading to a possible two-way causality or endogenous problem between firm performance and ownership structure. It was also evidenced that institutional investors with likely investment and business ties with firms have negative effect on firm performance and the impact is very significant in comparison to the negative effect of firm performance on institutional ownership. Wiwattanakantang (2001)37 investigated the effects of controlling shareholders on corporate performance and found that presence of controlling shareholders is associated with higher performance, when measured by accounting measures such as return on assets and the sales-asset ratio. However, the controlling shareholders involvement in management has a negative effect on the performance and it is more pronounced when the controlling shareholder and managers ownership is at the 25-50 percent. The evidence also revealed that family controlled firms display significantly higher performance. Foreign controlled firms as well as firms with more than one controlling shareholder also have higher return on assets, relative to firms with no controlling shareholder. Abdul Wahab et al. (2007)38 examined the relationship between corporate governance structures, institutional ownership and firm performance for 440 Bursa Malaysia listed firms from 1999 to 2002 and found that institutional investors have a positive impact on firms corporate governance practices. Qiet et al. (2000)39 found that firm performance is positively related to the proportion of shares owned by the state. In addition, they found little evidence in support of a positive correlation between corporate performance and the proportion of tradable shares owned by either domestic or foreign investors. Wahal (1996)40 observed that although institutional investors, particularly, activist institutions, have been successful in their efforts to affect the governance of targeted firms, these same firms have not demonstrated performance improvements. Studies examining the relationship between institutional holdings and firm performance in different countries (mainly OECD countries) have produced mixed results. Chaganti and Damanpour (1991)41 and Lowenstein (1991)42, for instance, find little evidence that institutional ownership is correlated with firm performance. Seifert, Gonenc and Wright (2005)43 study does not find a consistent relationship across countries. They conclude that their inconsistent results may reflect the fact that the influence of institutional investors on firm performance is location specific. The above studies generally consider institutional investors as a monolithic group. However, Shleifer and Vishnys (1997)44 as well as Pounds (1988)45 theorizations and later empirical examinations by McConnell and Servaes (1990)46 suggest that shareholders are differentiable and pursue different agendas. Jensen and Merkling (1976)47 also show that equity ownerships by different groups have different effects on the firm performance. Agrawal and Knoeber (1996)48, Duggal and Miller (1999)49 find no such significant relation between institutional holdings and firm performance. Resume Various studies on relationship between institutional holdings and firm performance have been reviewed in the above sub-section and the results are mixed. Different researchers have taken different performance measures as some of them have considered accounting measures but others have taken stock market indicators.Some of the observations contend that institutional investors are more expert in monitoring the affairs of companies as compared to individual investors; their holdings improve the financial performance of target companies. The results are more significant, where managers also have some ownership stake so as to have alignment effect. Moreover, if their stake is substantial, they can also assert disciplinary action against the poorly performing firms. Similarly, foreign institutional investors have also positive impact on the firm performance. But the results of other observations state otherwise. They state that if institutional investors have business ties with the firms, they would go along with the management and it may have negative impact on the firm performance. The studies have revealed out an interesting observation that Institutional holdings have positive effect on firm performance but their active involvement in management has negative effect. Some of the observations state that institutional investors may have significant impact on the governance practices of companies but do not improve financial performance. 2.3 Corporate Governance and Firm Performance Lipton and Lorsch (1992)50 found that limiting board size improves firm performance because the benefits by larger boards of increased monitoring are outweighed by the poorer communication and decision-making of larger groups. Millstein and MacAvoy (1998)51 studied 154 large publicly traded US corporations over a five-year period and found that corporations with active and independent boards appear to have performed much better in the 1990s than those with passive, non-independent boards. Eisenberg et al. (1998)52 found negative correlation between board size and profitability when using sample of small and midsize Finnish firms, which suggests that board-size effects can exist even when there is less separation of ownership and control in these smaller firms. Vafeas (1999)53 found that the annual number of board meeting increases following share price declines and operating performance of firms improves following years of increased board meetings. This suggests meeting frequency is an important dimension of an effective board. Core, Holthausen and Larcker (1999)54 observed that CEO compensation is lower when the CEO and board chair positions are separate. It is further shown that firms are more valuable when the CEO and board chair positions are separate. Botosan and Plumlee (2001)55 found a material effect of expensing stock options on return on assets. They used Fortunes list of the 100 fastest growing companies and obtained the effect of expensing stock options on firms operating performance. Morgan and Poulsen (2001)56 found that pay-for-performance plan generally helps to reduce agency problems in the firm as the votes approving the plan are positively related to firms that have high investment or high growth opportunities. On the other hand, votes approving the plan are inversely related to negative features in some of the plans such as dilution of shareholder stakes. Mitton (2002)57 examined the stock performance of a sample of listed companies from Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand. It reported that performance is better in firms with higher accounting disclosure quality (proxied by the use of Big Six auditors) and higher outside ownership concentration. This provides firm-level evidence consistent with the view that corporate governance helps explain firm performance during a financial crisis. Claessens et al. (2002b)58 observed that firm value increases with the cash-flow ownership (right to receive dividends) of the largest and controlling shareholder, consistent with â€Å"incentive† effects. But when the control rights (arising from pyramid structure, cross-holding and dual-class shares) of the controlling shareholder exceed its cash-flow rights, firm value falls, which is consistent with â€Å"entrenchment† effects. Deutsche Bank AG (2004a and 2004b)59 explored the implications of corporate governance for portfolio management and concluded that corporate governance standards are an important component of equity risk. Their analysis also showed that for South Africa, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East, the performance differential favored those companies with stronger corporate governance. Fich and Shivdasani (2004)60 based on Fortune 1000 firms, asserted that firms with director stock option plans have higher market to book ratios, higher profitability (as proxied by operating return on assets, return on sales and asset turnover), and they document a positive stock market reaction when firms announce stock option plans for their directors. Gompers et al. (2003)61 examined the ways in which shareholder rights vary across firms. They constructed a ‘Governance Index to proxy for the level of shareholder rights in approximately 1500 large firms during the 1990s. An investment strategy that bought firms in the lowest decile of the index (strongest rights) and sold firms in the highest decile of the index (weakest rights) would have earned abnormal returns of 8.5% per year during the sample period. They found that firms with stronger shareholder rights had higher firm value, higher profits, higher sales growth, lower capital expenditures, and made fewer corporate acquisitions. Brown, Robinson and Caylor (2004)62 created a broad measure of corporate governance, Gov-Score, based on a new dataset provided by Institutional Shareholder Services. Gov-Score is a composite meas

Divorce Impacts a Child Emotionally, Mentally and Academically Essays

Divorce Impacts a Child Emotionally, Mentally and Academically Over 60 percent of couples seeking a divorce have children still living at home. ( 6) What some parents don’t realize when they file for a divorce is the great impact that it will have on their kids. Divorce affects children in many ways. It affects kids emotionally and causes them to experience feelings such as fear, loss, anger and confusion. Divorce also hurts a child’s academic achievement. Children whose parents divorce generally have poorer scores on tests and a higher dropout rate. (3) Children react differently yet similarly in divorce. Every child caught up in the distress of divorce has a hard time coping with it and imagining their life without a parent. Their anxiety levels peak as they feel they are going to be abandoned. They experience feelings of loneliness due to the loss of the other parent. Different children go through these emotions at different levels and at different times depending on the child’s age. How bad or how well children handle the divorce depends on how the situation is handled. It can throw the child's entire life into a whirlwind. Young children, up to age five or six, are the most confused and the most disoriented by their parents’ separation. They often fear they are going to be abandoned by their parents, which causes great anxiety. The loss of a parent is extremely sad to a child of this age because they feel that their needs are not going to be attended to as well as they had before, when their needs are not going to be attended to as well as they had before, when their family was together. Many of the children in this group are worried that they will be left without a family or their parents might have money troubles and they will be deprived of food and toys. These thoughts that children of this age have cause them to have feelings of guilt, being unloved and fear of being alone. Some children will be extremely sad and show signs of depression and even sleeplessness. They might feel rejected by the parent who left and think that it is all their fault, that they weren’t good children and th eir parents stopped loving them. They also sometimes have increased tantrums, or may cry more easily than usual. Children at this age may develop physical complaints, like headaches, or stomachaches due to this depressing situation and time they are going thr... ...ng up in a single-parent home (usually female-headed) is seven times as likely to be a delinquent. The rate of violent crime and burglary is related to the number of single parent households with children aged twelve to twenty. (1)In a new study of 72 adolescent murders and 35 adolescent thieves, researches for Michigan State University demonstrated that the overwhelming majority of teenage criminals live with only one parent. Fully 75 percent of those charged with homicide had parents who were either divorced or had never been married at all.( 5) So, in conclusion, divorce is very bad for children. It ruins their lives and happiness. Losing a parent destroys a child emotionally, mentally and even academically. They would rather live with both parents because both of them are an important part of their lives. Two parents are better than one! Bibliography: 1) http://www.alfra.org/risks2.htm 2) http://www.canadianparents.com/articles/feature08b.htm 3) http://www.divorcereform.org/crime.html 4) http://www.ksu.edu/psych/bartel/adolescence/divorce-yes.html 5) http://www.theallengroup.com/members/Fr_flammer.html 6) http://www.womentodaymagazine.com/family/kidsdivorce.html