Liberal Stuides Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Liberal Stuides - Essay Example The travelers, from who all people a million years into the future descend, are made up of a captain, a Japanese woman with her daughter, an American widow, a young visually impaired girl and 6 Kanka-Bono lasses inhabitant of South America, every one of them with a strange or humorous back story. The book traces their expedition from Ecuador to an isolated island in the Galapagos, whereas the rest of civilization plunges into disaster. In Kurt Vonnegut’s Galapagos, the concept of natural selection reveals a world full of mystery and awe and we are able to examine this wonder, when we study the chance component in natural selection. According to the lessons learnt from Galapagos, the chance component in natural selection divides up distinctiveness with the secrecy constituent of God, and consequently is a probable substitute for that mystery. Nevertheless, the protagonists are not as active in participation in that strange â€Å"dimension of the universe† other than sufferers of the deterministic force which underlies the chance mechanism that is natural selection. When this malicious force is examined, a conclusion is arrived at, that it too bears a resemblance to the mechanistic viewpoint of the world put forward by evolutionary discipline. Vonnegut’s readers get to feel the power or fear in Darwin’s idea of natural selection that takes place in Galapagos. At the onset of Galapagos, Vonnegut depicts the â€Å"big rains† devastate humanity and the earth, even though later, via the material mechanisms of natural selection, the big brains later evolve into â€Å"smaller skulls† and accordingly the earth and humanity are able to be saved from devastation. There are those that put forth the argument that Mary acts out a crucial role in the latest creation, since her engineering in genetics produces a new family that is able to survive the

Analysis of US to cut 'lost pleasure' analysis from public health Essay

Analysis of US to cut 'lost pleasure' analysis from public health approach - Essay Example In particular, the article seeks to weigh the effects of the proposed regulations on tobacco and the lives of the consumers. The article makes various remarks on the benefits associated with the government’s intentions on tobacco consumption. The regulations will have indirect health benefits in terms of dollars. For example, reduced tobacco consumption will bring down the chronic illnesses associated with smoking. The United States’ government incurs billions of dollars in treating cancer-related diseases associated with smoking. It therefore, shows that the government’s move that will bring a â€Å"lost consumer surplus† is vital to the public. Government officials claim that the economy can grow bigger even without the revenues from tobacco trade. They claim that smoking brings an expenditure burden of curing the smoking-related illnesses. Doing away with the expenditures is far more important that earning the revenues from tobacco trade. Health care economists argue that the government seeks to benefit from its move as well as secure the public from harm (Begley & Toni, 201 5). The article points out that economic growth can only be realized by a healthy and stable public. Cracking down on tobacco consumption goes far in building a stable nation focused on economic growth. The Congress mentions that tobacco-related issues cost the government more that the revenues earned from the tobacco business. Health related issues have been a major issue that affects the government’s pace of economic growth (Zeller, 2009). The overall demand will face a downward trend once the government’s regulations are put in place. The authorities claim that shifting the consumers’ utility towards a healthier diet is beneficial to the nation. The government will face fewer challenges in the health sector. Consumer pleasure also faces uncertain future with the proposed regulations on tobacco consumption. Additionally, the

Overview of Leadership Personality Theories

Overview of Leadership Personality Theories CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION â€Å"The study of leadership rivals in age the emergence of civilization, which shaped its leaders as much as it was shaped by them. From its infancy, the study of history has been the study of leaders—what they did and why they did it† (Bass, 1990). According to Keith Davis (1967), â€Å"Leadership is the ability to persuade others to seek defined objectives enthusiastically. It is the human factor which binds a group together and motivates it towards goals†. Barnard in 1938, defined leadership as, â€Å"The ability of a superior to influence the behavior of subordinates and persuade them to follow a particular course of action†. Leadership has a range of definitions but at its simplest it is concerned with the ability to influence others to accomplish goals. The concept of leadership, and the study of the phenomenon, has its roots in the beginning of civilization. Various work-related variables such as work environment, worker motivations, leaders, managers, leadership style, have been the subject of study for almost two centuries. (Gregory Stone, Kathleen Patterson, 2005). The organizational focus of the leader emerged over this period, from organizations operating with an authoritarian style to ones that operate with a more comfortable work environment. Today, organizations are in a transit stage of empowering, encouraging and supporting personnel in their personal and professional growth throughout their careers. The focus of leaders has changed over time, which has influenced and shaped the development and progression of leadership theory (Gregory Stone, Kathleen Patterson, 2005). Researchers have examined leadership skills from a variety of perspectives. Early analyses of leadership from the 1900s to the 1950s focused on identifying the differences between the characteristics of a leader viz. a viz. a follower. Study findings suggested that no single trait or combination of traits fully explained the abilities of a leader. Later studies, examined the influence of the situation on leaders skills and behaviors. Subsequent leadership studies attempted to distinguish effective from non-effective leaders. These studies attempted to determine which leadership behaviors were exemplified by effective leaders. Leadership studies of the 1970s and 1980s once again focused on the individual characteristics of leaders which influence their effectiveness and the success of their organizations. The investigations led to the conclusion that leaders and leadership are critical but complex components of organizations. Leadership is necessary for a variety of reasons. On a supervisory level, leadership is required to complement organizational systems (Katz Kahn, 1978) and to enhance subordinate motivation, effectiveness and satisfaction (Bass, 1990). At the strategic level, leadership is necessary to ensure the coordinated functioning of the organization as it interacts with a dynamic external environment (Katz Kahn, 1978). Thus leadership is required to direct and guide organizational and human resources toward the strategic objectives of the organization and ensure that organizational functions are aligned with the external environment (Zaccaro, 2001). Research on leadership has been divided into 8 major schools (John Antonakis, Anna T. Cianciolo, Robert J. Sternberg, 2004): Trait School of Leadership (1900s) Behavioral School of Leadership (1910s) Contingency School of Leadership (1960s) Contextual School of Leadership (1960s) Skeptics (1970s) Relational (1970s) New Leadership (1970s) Information Processing (1980s) The trait movement gave way to the behavioral styles of leadership in the 1950s. This line of research focused on the behaviors that leaders enacted and how they treated followers. The well-known University of Michigan (Katz, Maccoby, Gurin, Floor, 1951) and Ohio State (Stogdill Coons, 1957) studies identified two dimensions of leadership generally referred to as consideration (i.e., employee-oriented leadership) and initiating structure (i.e., production-oriented leadership). Leader behaviors are often discussed in terms of whether the behavior is oriented toward (a) task processes, (b) relational dynamics, or (c) change. One consistent theme in the literature is that behaviors can be fit into four categories: task-oriented behaviors, relational-oriented behaviors, change-oriented behaviors, and what we refer to as passive leadership. Initiating structure represents task-oriented behaviors. It describes behaviors such as defining task roles and role relationships among group members, coordinating group members’ actions, determining standards of task performance, and ensuring group members perform up to those standards. They describe leaders as being clear about expectations and standards for performance, and using these standards to shape follower commitment, motivation, and behavior. Moreover, initiating structure discusses dealing with deviations from those standards via the use of structure and routines. Relative to initiating structure, consideration leader behaviors describe more relational-oriented behaviors. In particular, leaders high on consideration show concern and respect for individual group members, are friendly and approachable, are open to input from others, and treat all group members as equals (Bass, 1990). A common theme among relational-oriented behaviors is that the leader acts in ways that build follower respect and encourage followers to focus on the welfare of the group. It should be noted that certain aspects of transformational leader behaviors (e.g., individualized consideration) also consist of a relational orientation, which is a point that will be revisited later in the manuscript. Leader behaviors oriented toward facilitating and driving change in groups and organizations represent a third category of leader behaviors that is conceptually distinct from task and relational-oriented behaviors. According to Yukl et al. (2002), change-oriented leader behaviors encompass actions such as developing and communicating a vision for change, encouraging innovative thinking, and risk-taking The present study deals with two dimensions of Leader Behavior, Initiating Structure and Consideration Structure. â€Å"Initiating Structure reflects to the extent to which an individual is likely to define and structure his role and those of his subordinates toward goal attainment† (Fleishman Peters, 1962). It refers to the leader’s behavior in endeavoring to establish well-defined patterns of organization, channels of communication, and methods of procedure. Initiating structure refers to getting the job done. The individual who exhibits behavior highly oriented toward initiating structure is one who sees or recognizes the job to be done and more to accomplish it. This individual is task-oriented. He strives to fulfill the purposes of the organization, often at the expense of others concerned. Initiating structure reflects behavior which: Emphasizes the quality of work. Clarifies everyone’s responsibilities. Is continually planning to get everything done. Offers new approaches to problems. Is first in getting things started. Encourages the meeting of deadlines. â€Å"Consideration Structure reflects the extent to which an individual is likely to have job relationships characterized by mutual trust, respect for subordinates’ ideas, and consideration of their feelings† (Fleishman Peters, 1962). It refers to behavior indicative of friendship, mutual trust, respect and warmth in the relationship between leader and members of his staff. Consideration reflects concern for individuals in a group and their feelings. The individual exhibiting behavior highly oriented to consideration, tries to maintain close understanding between members of a group. This person is more concerned with group cohesiveness than with accomplishing specific purposes. Consideration is reflected by a person when he: Finds time to listen to others. Does little things to make it pleasant to work with him. Shows interest in others as persons. Compliments others for their work. Has an open ear. Has others share in making decisions. A combination of both initiation structure and consideration structure is the most productive type of leader behavior. A study conducted by Bruce M. Fisher and Jack E. Edwards, on ‘Consideration and Initiating Structure and their relationships with Leader Effectiveness† suggested that situations play a major role in determining the best suitable leader behavior. Leaders play a very important role in the formation and functioning of teams. Henderson and Walkinshaw (2002), defined the effectiveness of a team as, â€Å"The accomplishment of a desired result, especially as viewed after the fact† and the measure of effectiveness as â€Å"The extent to which a team meets the demands which are placed upon†. Work teams in organizations have three features. First, they are real groups – intact social systems, complete with boundaries, interdependence among members, and differentiated member roes (Alderfer, 1977). Second they have one or more group tasks to perform, producing some outcome for which members bear collective responsibility and whose acceptability potentially can be assessed. Finally such teams operate in organizational context. This means that the group, as a collective, manages its relations with other individuals or groups in the larger social system in which it operates. To perform well, a team must surmount three hurdles. It must: (1) exert sufficient effort to get the task accomplished at an acceptable level of performance; (2) bring adequate knowledge and skill to bear on the work; and (3) employ task performance strategies that are appropriate to the work and to the setting in which it is being performed (Hackman and Morris, 1975). Teams are formed for the express purpose of accomplishing critically important goals. Its formation does not automatically lead to performance. In fact, without significant and ongoing nurturing by the leadership of an organization, teams can actually make things worse. It is helpful to understand the building blocks required for a team’s success. Robbins and Judge (2012) describe a three dimensional model that articulates its foundation. Dimension 1 relates to the importance of Context. Organizations need to support the construction and sustainability of a team, and the team itself requires an environment of comfort for its members; psychological safety is essential so members can feel free to speak up and engage without ridicule. Performance feedback and motivational systems must also be in place. Dimension 2 suggests Composition is vital. In addition to knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) of its membership, the leader needs to focus on the peoples components as well Dimension 3 reveals Process is important. Teams must have clear purpose and specific goals. It is hard to motivate without all members having a clear idea of the direction the unit is heading. In addition, mechanisms and agreements must be in place to deal with conflicts that arise and/or the members who are not â€Å"getting it done† Since teams are a dominant feature in organizations, its effectiveness is paramount to the success of the business. To that end, leaders must understand the dimensions that make a team successful and then work diligently to make it happen. In addition, when teams derail, mechanisms must be in place to bring it back to life; it is the responsibility of the leaders’ to make it happen.

The Insane Mind of Edgar Allan Poe Probes Essay example -- American Li

The Insane Mind of Edgar Allan Poe Probes As a short-story writer, Poe was a fascinating man of imagination. In theme, Poe places the human mind under investigation and probes insanity beneath the surface of normal existence. He was the first author in American literature to make the neurotic, the heroic figure, the protagonist, in his stories. Poe's most enduring tales are those of horror, the horror coming, from the working of an irrational or criminal mind, driven to evil or insanity by a perverse irrational force which, to Poe, is an elementary impulse in man. Typically, The Cask of Amontillado, The Black Cat, and The Tell Tale Heart are three criminal stories of this kind. In these tales, Poe takes readers in the murky territories of the strange world of insanity. And now, let's see what the features and familiarities of these half-mad, evil, and dark criminal minds. To start with, like many Poe's stories, the main characters in these three stories are all driven by their emotions, and mostly, hatred against their antagonists. For example, in The Cask of Amontillado...

Critical Evaluate Maslow’s Theory of Hierarchy of Needs

Critically evaluate Maslow’s hierarchy of needs as way of understanding employee motivation in contemporary Chinese business Nowadays, people resources have been considered as an important task. To focus on that employees’ emotional motivator have always been considered as a standard to predict company’s future tendency of development. (Hurst, 1995) People’s motivation factors and uses have become to play a more significant role in modern firms, which is every boss cared.In today’s China, many local and multinational cooperation companies have expanded their dimensions; Maslow’s hierarchy of needs has been used in their human recourses management to motivate their staffs. Although many people do not think Maslow’s theory is a good way to deal with the motivation in China, there are many firms used Maslow’s theory to gain a good cycle of motivation. For Chinese companies, to adopt Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory as an a ppropriate strategy to motivate employees’ working motive power.This essay will state the introduction of Maslow’s theory of hierarchy of needs, and evaluate it. Then, to combine with Chinese firms’ case and to finish off, the Maslow’s motivation theory is good enough to be adopted as a solution of the staff’s motivation. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs has reflected different kinds of human being’s need. According to Maslow (1943), hierarchy of needs has divided people’s needs into five layers, which have been stated from the fundamentals to the tops: physiological, safety, love/belonging, esteem and self-actualisation.Physiological is the basic things that people need, however, nobody can be live without this factor which support human physiological drive called necessities. If someone can gain a enough life to eat and wear, the more thing they need is safety, which guarantee their secure of lives and finance. Love and belonging always stand for a kind of perception of affiliation, which can give a person a kind of smooth feeling in emotion. The Esteem and self-actualisation are the two much higher division of the hierarchy of needs.They stand for the large satisfying which given by other people and themselves. The higher hierarchies are based on the satisfaction of lower hierarchies, if the basic layers cannot be satisfied, the higher layers are prattles. There also exist many criticisms of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory. Although Wahba and Brudwell (1976) have stated that there exist no evident which can prove there is exist the hierarchy of needs, the hierarchies are not equal to inexistence and the layers are evident to ju dge which is human being appreciate to do and those rarely to own.According to Kenrick(2010), to classify what is the higher hierarchy is prattle. The sexual needs has been considered as biological needs and been classified in physiological. If it is acceptable that Maslow has stated, which will mean that people solve their sexual need by masturbation as by having intercourse is the difference between the people in different levels of hierarchy of needs. As well as Hofstede (1984) also doubted that the pyramid system which the hierarchy of needs has used is based on ethnocentric and does not care the background of individualism and collectivism.In fact, for a collectivism people, to achieve the collective benefit maximization is equal to approach their self-actualization in the whole group. It can also explain the reason why Maslow’s theory can be also used for the people who prefer to trust collectivism. In fact, Maslow’s theory has been widely used in different countries company as a strategy of motivation such as Tesco (The Times 100, 2009), which is the largest retailer in UK, with large human resources all over the world.To the staff of Tesco, the welfare providing by company is not just enough salary but the work atmosphere. Exactl y as Herzburg (1968) has stated that fixed reason that lead to job satisfactions which is related to Maslow’s theory of motivation. Moreover, Management Trainee plan can be processes which can help people achieve self-actualization that attracts the employees to enter the company. Chinese companies also prefer to adopt Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory as a strategy to motivate workers’ impetus.With China’s development and communication with world, culture diversity is on the process. Although there always stated China is still influenced by collectivism, in today’s Chinese society, individualism and collectivism are coexisting. According to Hofstede (1984), Maslow’s theory is based on his individualism background; it can also prove that Maslow’s theory is acceptable and available to Chinese firms. Moreover, for Chinese firms, Maslow’s theory is a good strategy to motivate employees’ emotion.In China Mobile, a most famo us company in China which is the leader of the whole telecommunication industry, esteem and self-actualization are the two most affect ways to make motivation. China mobile has provided a series of fully optimized class for their employees to improve their quality of work ability and build up a kind of competitive selection of the outstanding workers to let them achieve their self-actualization which is correspond to Maslow’s theory. According to China Mobile (n. d. , they have been considered as the most ideal employers by Chinese university student in mainland China. It can also approve that the strategy is correct to use Maslow’s hierarchy of needs as the theoretical fundamental to motivate their workers that the numbers of their employees has always raised to 164,336. (China Mobile, n. d. ) In addition, The China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) is also combined their motivating strategy with the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. CNOOC (n. d. ) has prese nted comprehensive training programs to give the opportunities to employees for self-development.Although the competitive is enormous and hot, the compensation packages are enough to guarantee that they can gain esteem from others and provide enough opportunities to achieve self-actualization. In conclusion, the essay has proved that although Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory has been considered that there exist such a number of issues by some people, such as Hofstede and Wahba (1976), it can still be adopted as a good strategy of motivation. Maslow’s theory not only can use by western countries, but also can used in Chinese company.The main reason is that theory can make people achieve their value in working and make the work more efficiently if the employees have been inspired. China Mobile as a huge company in telecommunication industry has proved as it success in motivating their workers competitive mood and give a platform for the workers to achieve their dream, in another word, they can achieve their self-actualization. To finish off, despite Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory is not consummate enough, it can be used as a good strategy to motivate Chinese employees.Word Count: 1082 References China Mobile (n. d. ) [Online] Available from: China National Offshore Oil Corporation (n. d. ) [Online] Available from: Herzberg, F. (1968). One more time: how do you motivate employees?. Harvard Business Review 46 (1): 53–62. Hofstede, G (1984). The cultural relativity of the quality of life concept. Academy of Management Review 9 (3): 389–398. Business School Press, Boston, MA. Hurst, D. K. (1995), Crisis and Renewal: Meeting the Challenge of Organisational Change, HarvardKenrick, D. (2010). Rebuilding Maslow’s pyramid on an evolutionary foundation. Psychology Today: Health, Help, Happiness + Find a Therapist. [Online] Available from: Maslow, A. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50, 370-396. Ret rieved from: The Times 100 (2009). Motivational theory in practice at Tesco. [Online] Available from: Wahba, A; Bridwell, L (1976). Maslow reconsidered: A review of research on the need hierarchy theory. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance (15): 212–240.

Isis: Terrorism and Richest Terrorist Group

ISIS is the biggest terrorist army in history. It has caught people's attention all around the world and needs to be stopped immediately. Published by the Boston Herald, scholars Steven Buck,James Philips, Charlotte Florence, Hell Dale and Peter Brooked met up to make an article about the ISIS. â€Å"ISIS Is a clear, present danger. † Before reading this article I had never discovered SIS'S. I never would've thought that a terrorist group could cause so much sadness and hate. I didn't know that terrorists could form an army and just decide to destroy people.When they say convert, Join us, or die,† they not only mean it, but they will follow through with terrible effect. I never watch the news or read the newspaper so I didn't get the chance to hear about ISIS until now. It is absolutely sickening how people in this world can be. Now after reading this article, I learned a lot about ISIS. I learned that ISIS became a huge success so quickly. They even use social media to advertise themselves as a killing group. Their Youth and Twitter page show that the West Is their target. The ISIS Is rising to the top to the point where the terrorist group, al-Qaeda, want to come together with SIS'S. The al-Qaeda control no territory and Is dependent on Afghan and Pakistani and Salamis militants. The leaked is forced to live a clandestine existence under the constant threat of drone strikes; while everyone in the world know about ISIS and how they harm people. The leader of ISIS, ABA-Baker al-Baghdad, is a charismatic leader who claims descent from the Prophet Mohammed. He has much more personal appeal for young Muslim militants than al- Qaeda leader Amman al-Chair. Most people are aware that terrorist groups control almost everything.ISIS lone controls electricity, extortion racket, and exports OLL and gas. â€Å"ISIS Is the richest terrorist group In history,† as stated In the article. ISIS robs banks, controls OLL fields, and pockets a huge amount of mo ney from ransoms. Robbing Mogul's central bank yielded more than $400 million in gold and Iraq currency. It controls oil fields in Syria and Iraq that generate income. How can people who were once so low in the world now be a group of terrorists who are an unstoppable army? Their army controls the size of Maryland! ISIS is the most heavily-armed Salamis extremist group in history.They captured huge amounts of military weapons and equipment in Iraq and Syria. It is easier to travel across the border of Iraq and Syria than it is to travel to Pakistan or Afghanistan. The amount of disrespect this group has caused is disgusting. They should be embarrassed, not happy about it. After watching a video and looking up more Information I feel sick. ISIS needs to be stopped. In conclusion, after reading and watching the news about ISIS, all I have to say Is how sickening and heartless how people can be In this world. ISIS Is not Just a error group, it is an unstoppable army.ISIS attracts recru its from the Middle East, understand how much pain they're causing others? Don't they realize whoever they just killed belong to a family? I hope sometime in the near future this group stops and realizes what they are doing is hurting others. Everyone needs to be at peace and go back to their country. If their group is so â€Å"religious† as Eve heard, what makes them want to harm others for no reason? This all needs to end soon. They need to get bad karma and rot in hell. My source for this essay is the Boston Herald.