Monday, September 30, 2019

An overview of fashion design history

IntroductionManner is a heating issue in day-to-day life, which is near to about every facet of society. As the enlargement of globalization, manner companies are seeking to more chances in international market by set uping subordinates all over the universe. Harmonizing to Helen ( 1965 ) , manner design is utilizing dedicated art in vesture and accoutrements to set up a alone manner. In today ‘s manner field, Italy is considered in the prima topographic point for its elegant and dedicated manner. However, France and Japan are besides produce first-class interior decorators who have gained international repute in manner design and set up celebrated trade names. The history of manner design could be dated back to 19th century with Charles Frederick Worth to run up label into the garments, and merely vesture created after 1858 could be considered as manner design1. During that historical period, most manner interior decorators are freelance in a family-based vesture store and supply design service to single client, which are rather different from today ‘s forte shops or high-fashion section shops. During the whole twentieth century, manner design had bit by bit been developed consistently and has become an of import industry in society. It is hence utile for analysing the manner history of 20th as a usher for the new century ‘s development. This essay will pick up specific decennary between 1940 and 1950 as the research mark.Background information of twentieth century manner designThe development of manner design in twentieth century has experienced a alone procedure. The first decennary of the century was a period to prosecute ne w component into the design ( Baudot, 1999 ) . The outgrowth of new female coevals and solid tendency in humanistic disciplines had stimulated manner design to unite new elements. The Europe tendency was still focused on elegance and grace, while U.S tendency was developed to natural manner, provided a measure from the dedicated manner of 19th century. Between1910-1919, there was a great alteration in manner design influence by Deco humanistic disciplines. The distinguishable character of Deco humanistic disciplines was the usage of heterosexual and folded line. It brought a boylike manner in the manner design to follow a conciseness manner and add some eastern elements. During following decennary, the manner design added girlish manner to the apparels and go on to maintain the young person elements in the design. Chanel ‘s manner created by combination of coat, skirt and frock privailed and expanded until presents. Another feature is the attending on athletics apparels design . There is besides manner design tendency in China with the amend of traditional cheong-sam. 1930-1939 was an of import decennary for the manner design. In reaction to the economic crisis, the patch-up skirts which represented economy appeared. Then a long skirt lap prevailed until the Second World War. The broken of war stimulated a tendency of nostalgic new Victorian manner. Another of import part of this decennary is the constitution of modern manner design standards, uniting the elements of elegance, beauty and gustatory sensation to stress the corresponding of apparels and fortunes. The following decennary, besides the mark period in the research, is 1940-1949. The epicurean manner during the war clip was restricted by jurisprudence and moral codifications. Practicality had become a standard for manner design. The pursue of map made the adult females apparels be input more male elements by the prevail of ground forces apparels and frocks. The war clip besides provided America w ith the opportunity of developing its ain manner design alternatively of wholly trusting on Europe.Purposes of the researchPresents, manner interior decorators create their original work to show their alone gustatory sensation and manner. However, they besides produce plants to follow the bing manner tendencies. They are hired by mass market makers to make apparels for work forces, adult females and kids. The most successful interior decorator trade names today are those trade names with long history, such as Chanel, Christian Dior and Louis Vuitton. It took them old ages to set up and develop their places as manner icons. In respect to the historical context, 1900-1950 is a really of import revolution in manner history, industries started more originative on the design of their apparels. Fashion design corporations have to bring forth their ain trade name with high quality and repute to last and vie in the promising market. To specify and understand what constitutes manner design a nd how manner design has emerged in today ‘s clip as topographic point the manner design in certain imperative clip periods is of import manner to understand manner industry. The purpose of this research is to present manner design in the decennaries of 1940-1950 to research the relationship between manner design and a series of factors, such as humanistic disciplines, wellness & A ; beauty, scientific discipline & A ; engineering, and so on.Fashion Design and Its Related FactorsHumanistic disciplinesBefore twentieth century, manner design is merely a inactive contemplation of humanistic disciplines. When came to twentieth century, particularly the decennary between 1940 and 1950, manner interior decorators were willing to cooperative with humanistic disciplines. They combined their design with major humanistic disciplines genre. Schiaparell ‘s desk apparels and laniate apparels are representation of super-realism ( Buxhaum, 1999 ) . During this period, the popular music tendency was bop and large set. In the dance country, swing, swing and fox-trot was in the warming place. All the tendencies in humanistic disciplines have influenced manner design deeply. All this new thoughts brought manner market into a new coevals. At this clip, endeavor were usually operation by interior decorators them or household concern.Politicss and current eventsThe most influential event during this period is the Second World War. War as an of import factor to alter the history of human being, every bit good as the development of manner design. During the decennary after the Second World War, manner design had a great transmutation. Women ‘s manner of the beginning of the decennary was masculine, and by the terminal of the decade2 it changed to highly feminine. During the war clip, the manner design manner was changed from elegance, dedicated to conciseness, while it was emphasized on feminine once more after the war. Furthermore, the pursue of practical map durin g the war clip enabled the manner interior decorator to add more male elements in planing female apparels, some even used male mode into adult females design ( Marsha, 1993 ) . The strictly limitation on dressing was besides carried out in several states, for illustration, there was a point system in Britain to curtail the dressing manner of adult females, set out a series of regulations to take adult females ‘s dressing manner ( Janet, 1977 ) . This sort of limitation non merely set on female dressing, but besides guided male ‘s manner of dressing. Male ‘s unvarying manner was most affected portion such as public-service corporation suit of Britain and victory suit of America ( Boucher, 1987 ) . The whole decennary was dominated by the wartime practical map and the after-war feminine manner.Health & A ; athleticsAfter 1945 a series of radical alterations took topographic point in athleticss clothe. First, slipover frocks, underwear and gym tops frequently used new scope of man-made fibers which suited in the early yearss of production to knitted cloths. During the 1950ss, some earlier innovations and new usage of man-made fibers peculiarly nylon combined with practical techniques developed in military vesture were introduced into civilian production. For illustration, goons that were concealed in cervix neckbands ; pockets in jacket foreparts which were designed to hive away snack nutrients ; baseball mitts with nothing pockets for ski base on ballss ; elastic inserts in the sides of ski bloomerss and stirrup straps underfoot made for pull on, draw off apparels. These characteristics are expected by us automatically today. In add-on, nylon running trunkss and cotton vests3 were adopted by jocks. Zip up parkas and parkas were taken onto the sports and athleticss field, though pant undersides frequently appeared to be uneven, they helped to maintain off the iciness. Stretch garments became rather popular by the mid 1960ss ; and one attractive advantage was the comfort factor of being able to travel with a garment.Hair & A ; beautyIn this decennary the most popular hair manners is braids curled and rolled longer. The film stars of that clip such as Veronica Lake and Lauren Bacall gave the best presentation of the long curling manners. Though seting your hair up into compact elegant up-dos was the standard manner for nuptialss and proms, this sort of occasions became rarer and rarer. World War II to a great extent influenced the beauty industry in this decennary. The manner, cosmetics used and beauty criterions were affected by the temper of sad and depression. As Ingrid Bergman showed in the 1942 film Casablanca, a typical beauty manner should seek to show serious, glamourous in a really subdued, sophisticated way4. A wholesome expression was much more acceptable than showy. The temper for surplus and flamboyancy was considered as inadequate, both because the effects of the Depression still were act uponing people ‘s life, and because a batch of American immature work forces were directing to European battlegrounds to contend and decease.CelebrityThe manner icon in this period was Rita Hayworth. The Great American Love Goddess was born in Brooklyn, New York. She represented the most stylish manner of 1940s in the films of â€Å" The Strawberry Blonde † ( 1941 ) , and â€Å" Blood and Sand † ( 1941 ) . The musicals â€Å" You`ll Never Get Ric h † ( 1941 ) and â€Å" You Were Never Lovelier † ( 1942 ) , both with Fred Astaire, â€Å" My Gal Sal † ( 1942 ) , with Victor Mature, and â€Å" Cover Girl † ( 1944 ) , with Gene Kelly, made her a musical star and a favorite pinup miss of American military mans during WWII ( Stach, 1987 ) .Science & A ; engineeringThe development of scientific discipline and engineering enable manner design develops from hand-made household workshop to the machinery production. The importance of client design began to be recognised. As the betterment of industry engineering, the off-the-rack apparels were considered to be the major issue during this period. The scientific discipline of human organic structure stimulates the constitution of comprehensive size system for apparels. The engineering besides made the fabrication of apparels divided into three classs: Haute Couture apparels, senior off-the-rack apparels and ordinary off-the-rack apparels. Meanwhile, the enlarge ment of stuffs scope provided sufficient footing for interior decorators to show their alone manner in their chef-d'oeuvres. Although the conflict broke out over the universe, new merchandises came out at the same clip. Nylonss were sold to the populace in 1940 when the conflict of Britain started. In the following twelvemonth, Nipponese attacked Pearl Harbour, and the landrover was invented in the same twelvemonth. In 1942, when the conflict of Midway and the conflict of Stalingrad broke out, T-shirt was introduced to the populace. Furthermore, the promotion of societal scientific discipline besides played great function in the manner design within the period. Peoples established positive attitudes towards beauty every bit good as manner design and were tolerance on prevailed tendencies, which enabled some subculture tendency become popular in the mainstream of the society.Decision1940-1950 was an of import period in manner design due to the influence of World War II. Affected by the war, many manner corporations closed such as Maision Vionnet and Maison Chanel, while others relocated in New York ( Turner, 1958 ) . Paris ‘s prima topographic point was still continued although Germany was taking half of Gallic fabrication and was sing relocate the original Gallic haute couture to Berlin. The religion of manner design was established and developed rapidly ( Peacock, 1998 ) . Its enomous alteration was driven by several factors include humanistic disciplines, political events, hair & A ; beauty, scientific d iscipline & A ; engineering, etc. Conduct research on this specific decennary is non merely dating back to the history, it is besides provides sufficient information for the development of manner design in the new century.Mentions:Books:Baudot, F. ( 1999 ) A Century of Fashion. London: Thames & A ; Hudson Ltd.Boucher, F. ( 1987 ) A History of Costume in West, London: Thames & A ; Hudson Ltd.Buxhaum, G. ( 1999 ) Icons of Fashion, the twentieth century. New york: Verleg.Helen, B. ( 1965 ) . The Theory of Fashion Design, New York: John Wiley and Sons.Janet, A. ( 1977 ) . Patterns of Fashion 2: Englishwomans ‘s Dresss and Their Construction c. 1860-1940, Wace 1966, Macmillan 1972. Revised metric edition, Drama Books.James, L. ( 1979 ) . The Concise History of Costume and Fashion, Abrams.Marsha, H. ( 1993 ) . The Way We Wore: Manners of the 1930s and 40s and Our World Since Then, Fallbrook Pub. Ltd.Peacock, J. ( 1998 ) Fashion Sourcebooks, the 1940s. London: Thames & A ; Hudson Ltd .Stach, L. ( 1987 ) . Hollywood and Seventh Avenue: The Impact of Historical Films on Fashion, in Hollywood and History: Costume Design in Film, Los Angeles CountyTurner, W. ( 1958 ) . The Mode in Fashion, 1942 ; 2nd expanded edition New York: Scribners.Web sites:hypertext transfer protocol: //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Frederick_Worthhypertext transfer protocol: //www.artdesignfashion.com/timelines/hypertext transfer protocol: //www.fashion-era.com/sports_fashion_until_1950.htmhypertext transfer protocol: //www.lphouse.com/hairstyles-1940s.htm

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Environmental economics Essay

Studies by economists suggest that markets become unproductive as external effects of electricity exploration, global warming and acidic rain water becomes rampant. Previous economic research and analysis overlooked this concept. Externalities, a sort of market failure, once it exists, it deviates the costs in a market from the true marginal costs and marginal benefits allied to the goods and services dealt with in the sell. Various forms of government intercession in the allotment of public goods, services and peripheral costs and benefits result in market failure (Pearce 41). The formation of property rights, conventions and market based taxes and subsidies change the marginal costs and benefits of a market. Introduction This study defines environmental economics as aspects of economics focused on environmental subjects. Externality is pointed out as a circumstance in which a private economy is deficient in incentives to create a prospective market in some good and the absence of these market consequences in the loss of effectiveness (Crocker and Rogers 67). Externality exists when an individual makes a preference that influences other persons that are not financially credited for in the market value. Economic externality is presented on every occasion the well-being of a person is shaped by the economic behaviors of others exclusive of fastidious notice to the welfare of that person. Market failure will imply that markets fall short to assign resources proficiently. This market failure takes place when the market does not allot limited resources like water and electricity to produce the utmost social wellbeing. Studies indicates that lodge subsist between what a specific individual does bestowed with market prices and what society expect the person to do to care for the environment. This lodge means profligacy, economic incompetence and resource allocation make, as a minimum, an individual more contented while making someone else worse off. Widespread types of market failure consist of externalities, non excludability and non contention. The environment has developed into a scarce resource. This facilitates economics to deal with scarce resources as well as environmental troubles. Economics makes sure that the marginal costs and the marginal benefits of environmental actions are proportionate. Estimation of these marginal costs and benefits pose a challenge as demand arises before environmental laws, regulations and policies are determined on a society level. Research shows economic and environmental aims are recognized as being incongruous. Choice has to be made between one another since they can not be reached concomitantly (Crocker and Rogers 67). For instance, externalities spawned in a localized area are restricted to this place and may brim over to further jurisdiction. Moreover, local governments may be well-versed about regulating use of electricity and prevention of water pollution in their jurisdiction. They accomplish these missions without minding the special effects of their proceedings of other jurisdictions. The continuation of locally-generated waste discharge impinges on the proper assignment of both costs and tax errands amongst altitudes of government. The study shows that local government can neither create nor address the externality. The examination of the connotation of decentralization for devising of counteractive policies is outlined (Crocker and Rogers 67). The economic justification requires the utilization of differential tariffs to direct economic externalities personified in paying for water and electricity services. Economic effectiveness obliges that taxes and subsidies are appropriate to internalize either external marginal costs or benefits. Products such as timber that causes widespread deforestation leading to destruction of water catchments should be differentially tariffed to stop expanding environmental externalities. The scale of tariffs necessary to offset the anticipated environmental dent is ever increasing. Services rooted at environmental conservation, use of electrical energy as opposed to coal, should be used as instances of positive externalities and be focus to a subvention. Smog-related diseases like bronchitis and asthma are linked to emissions of carbon dioxides from coal-burning factories (Seneca and Taussig 12). This ill health has far above the ground management costs that are not included in the electricity-use industries. Various environmental tribulations start from externalities of energy manufacture, distribution and utilization. Water pollution, global warming and acid rain are result from discharge of carbon, sulfur and nitrogen oxides coming from burning of fossil fuels. It is shown that oil spills, oil and gas drilling, coal mining and underground storeroom for oil and gasoline lead to marine dilapidation, wildlife obliteration and inaccessibility of quality of fresh water. The nuclear power industry together with desertification is ascribed to the current global warming. These negative externalities have sturdy socioeconomic and environmental welfare outcomes. Since market services establish a great deal of energy production and consumption, allied externalities are outside the capability of the market to determine. Consider how markets assign resources like energy capably. Figure 1a demonstrates a representative stipulate and supply diagram for a commodity (e. g. , coal) or service. In support of lots of goods, the demand curve mirrors marginal private benefit and the supply curve replicates marginal private cost, because merchandise are created and used privately. The marginal benefit curve, being downward-sloping, reveals that populace disburses less for extra units of commodities as they use more of them. The marginal benefit curve indicates people’s readiness to reimburse for commodities, hence the downward slope implies as the price of the commodities drops off, people are agreeable to buy more of them. This curve illustrates the quantity of a good that is required at each price. Correspondingly, the marginal cost curve shows the quantity that is produced per price. The upward slope of the marginal cost curve replicate rising costs of manufacture as well as the willingness of producers to avail supplementary goods at superior prices. Figure 1. The regions beneath the curves correspond to benefits from consumption, and costs of production, of an article of trade. Benefits and costs swell as more of the good or services is consumed and produced in that order. The benefits become higher than costs till the spot where Marginal Private Benefits contemporaries Marginal Private Costs, after that, costs become higher. As a result, disposable private benefits are capitalized when Marginal Private benefits contemporaries Marginal Private Costs, with Q units of the commodity are required and supplied at a cost of P. The region surrounded by triangle ABC in Figure 1a stands for greatest net private benefits. The diagram shows that Social Net Benefits are exploited when Marginal Private Benefits and Marginal Private Costs are very similar to Marginal Social Benefits and Marginal Social Cost, in that order. This implies markets proficiently apportion resources to attain this result. Market failure results every time deviation subsists between Marginal Private Costs and Marginal Social Costs, and between Marginal Private Benefits and Marginal Social Benefits. Research based on economics show that market failure is caused by externalities, imperfect markets, incomplete markets, public goods among others. It has been noted that social net benefits have to be used in taking into account how energy externalities inflict costs on society. Basing on the example above, private market forces encourage manufacture and use of Q units at a price of P and social net benefits are capitalized on at a point where Marginal Social Benefits are similar to Marginal Social Costs with manufacture of Q* units at a price of P*. From Figures 1b and 1c, greatest achievable social net benefits are characterized by triangles ABG and ABF, in that order. Market manufacture and use of Q units give social net benefits similar to region ABG a smaller region GCD in Figure 1b and region ABF not as much of region ECF in Figure 1c. Therefore externalities inflict costs on society by create impossibility to achieve greatest social net benefits. Negative externality like energy-relayed pollution entails private market production of a great deal of energy and pollution can be depicted by Figure 1b. Likewise, positive externality like tree planting enrichment by carbon dioxide release from the burning of fossil fuels entails that excessively tiny energy is produced can be shown by Figure 1c. This cases show that the market price for energy is very low. In truth, the preeminent representation of energy externalities would be that of Figure 1b, this is because pollution special effects overshadow the growing of trees hence the ensuing external result of energy manufacture and use is negative. The resolution to the tribulations created by energy externalities is to make the external internal, so as the external costs and benefits are built-in in the business and further behavior involved in the manufacture and use of energy. The behaviors like public policy which make use of a tax to elevate energy prices and control energy making to socially sought-after levels would resolve energy externality tribulations. Energy is a significant issue of production. Policies that influence energy price and quantity in the end shape the whole economy. Discussion From the analysis, the tribulations that energy externalities showed were actually made complex by factors like energy effluence, market failure concerns and unsuitable government intercession. It is only theoretical to internalize the externalities of air pollution and release that lead to global warming. Motionless power plants are bulky and not many (Hackett 280). They are run by proficient directors who most of the time presents undemanding local effluence patterns. On the other hand, mobile power plant sources of pollution are copious, run by persons and confuse local effluence outlines. Impurities build up in the environment have an effect on prospect generations, bring in intergenerational impartiality problems and problems (Tisdell 36). This is evidenced by excess carbon dioxide releases in the air causing global warming. Although carbon dioxide is linked to sharp increase in global warming and gradual changes in climate, it does not contribute to market and external marginal costs and benefits. Conclusion The study shows that the effect of energy pollutants on the environment can be confined to restricted, regional or even international area. As these regions of influence of pollutants enlarge beyond local borders, the political intricacy of taking on and putting into practice control procedures are compounded. Concerning level of pollution, Carbon dioxide effluence policy necessitates international support while sulfur oxide policies call for nationwide policy. Countries like United States employs use of a program to trade sulfur discharge while Japan taxes sulfur oxides, yet there little advancement in international effort to have power over carbon dioxide. Most of rising nations dread to involve themselves in carbon dioxide release reduction programs as they believe it will hold back their economic growth. The research indicates that the challenges facing energy externalities include the natural history of energy pollutant, uncertainty and dimension issue, income allotment, intergenerational impartiality, economic progress among others (Tisdell 36). The economic justification requires the utilization of differential tariffs to direct economic externalities personified in paying for water and electricity services. A final observation is that externalities, a sort of market failure, once it exists, it deviates the costs in a market from the true marginal costs and marginal benefits allied to the goods and services dealt with in the sell.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Personal Reflection Journal Entry Essay

During times of our lives we deal with stress. For instance, we stress about things from home, financial situations, and jobs as well. I know in dealt with stress in the past and also dealing with it right now. I try to find many ways with coping with my stress by exercising or doing other things to reduce the excessive tension. The term stress is the response of individuals to stressors. Stressors are events that threaten individuals and tax their coping abilities. I was in situations where my coping abilities where threaten. For Instance, last year I was going through a time I had major damages to my vehicle where I couldn’t drive for almost 2 months. I didn’t cope with it very well because I needed transportation to get back and forth to work; I was briefly going to school as well. During the 2 months all I wondered was, how I was going to get my car fixed and how was I going to come up with money. By doing that made things worst. Another stressor I’ve dealt with was, dealing with being unemployed for 6 months. It was times I coped with and other times I didn’t do so well with it. I didn’t worry about being unemployed at the beginning because I was fine financially and if I couldn’t find anything I could always reapply to my previous employer in 2 months. Things got worst when I found out we were moving once again and my mom didn’t have the money she needed to prepare to move again and started to worry me. The reason why I because, don’t like to see my mom struggle and as I embrace being the man of house I start worry about getting a job and coming up with the money to help my mom out. I attempted to try to get my old job back which I felt optimistic about the interview, but as I was waiting patiently for a phone call I never received one. So I decided to call them and they decided to go with another person for the job. I was very disappointed and lost focus on other things I had to deal with in my life. When I was faced with stressors, my body readies itself to handle the assault through a number of physiological changes. The term General adaptation syndrome (GAS) is the common effects on the body when stressors persist. The GAS of three stages: alarm, resistance, and exhaustion. My stress in my life caused me to loss my appetite at times, stayed to myself; and didn’t want to talk about my issues. The stress on my Immune System  didn’t cope very well. On the job dealing with being critique and major task changes lead to having migraine headaches and a more sinus infections. Environmental Factors whether its big or small produces stress. Life events and daily hassles are things we deal with regularly. One of them is the lack of study-time I had when I first started college a couple of years ago. That came about by me working crazy hours at work and I couldn’t my full effect into my school work which led to me not doing so well. Another daily hassle I’ve dealt with was not getting enough credit on my job for my hard work. I stressed over this because I felt like I was being overlooked for certain job positions and barely got any appreciation for what I do at my job. Another everyday experience that is stressful for me is conflict. Approach/approach conflict is conflict in which the individual must choose between two attractive stimuli or circumstances. My conflict was choosing between keeping my current car and getting a brand new one. I couldn’t go wrong with either decision I would of made because I liked both of the vehicles, my current was finally back in good condition, I don’t have to make payments and its my first car. The new car I looked at was a car I really wanted for quite sometime but at the end I decided to keep my old car and wasn’t disappointed with the decision and didn’t any regrets. Avoidance/avoidance conflict is when the individual must choose between two unattractive stimuli. I dealt with this when I had an oral presentation in high school. I was very nervous about presenting in front of class so I wanted to go last but I didn’t want grade to neither and their were times I didn’t want to show up but I decided my grade was important with through with doing the presentation and got A. That moment was very stressful for me. The approach/avoidance conflict for me was me deciding to eat Chinese food or not. Although it’s delicious but it was something I couldn’t eat because I was trying to lose weight. I handled giving up on well and lost the weight since I gave up on Chinese food. The daily hassles produce me into an overload and started to burnout. This term is a state of physical and emotional exhaustion that includes a hopeless feeling, chronic fatigue, and low energy. Burnout came about in my life when I was working full-time and going to school full-time for two years straight. My body was breaking down and I fatigue on a daily. So I decided to make adjustments in life and  made an unpopular decision by quitting my job and focus on school. That took less pressure off me. In conclusion, in the past, I didn’t cope very well with stress. I took two self-assessments based on I’m vulnerable am I to stress and Stressful events in my life. Based off the two assessments, it showed how stressed I was and couldn’t handle it. The things I do now to adjust stress in my life are that I start to think about the positive/negative effects of stress. I think over major decisions before doing it so. I made a lot of adjustments so I can have less stress in my life. If something major happens, I try not worry about it so much because I’ve realized things happen its apart of life. I managed to make adjustments at home, work, and school by getting things done early, stop worrying over certain situations and most importantly I started to enjoy life more and stressed less.

Friday, September 27, 2019

Open Family Communication Is Important Research Paper

Open Family Communication Is Important - Research Paper Example The range of areas elaborated comprises the following: (1) maintaining open communication amidst changes in location by means of various channels (2) the role of communication in preventing unfavourable and disadvantageous including, but not limited to, juvenile delinquency and drug abuse. This treatise points toward resolving questions on the subject of strong communication orientation and healthier parental relationship; open communication and founding moral values in children. THE IMPORTANCE OF OPEN FAMILY COMMUNICATION 2 Introduction Communication is not merely an art but likewise an important facet in building an ideal and healthy parental relationship. The lack or deficiency in communication among family members invites an augmented possibility of misunderstanding, disagreements and predicaments. Furthermore, poor communication orientation, particularly between parents and a child, assigns greater susceptibility on children to undesirable consequences including, but not limited to, juvenile delinquency and drug abuse. Thus, a strong communication is needed in order to preclude these possibilities. A research conducted by Kelly et al. (2002) proposes that, on the whole, parent-child communication serves as a strong protective factor with respect to the youth involvement with substances. Parents should therefore initiate discussions or display communicative behaviour more than their children. Besides, â€Å"†¦parents may be a more potent influence than they might perceive themselves to be† (Kelly, Comello, & Hunn, 2002). An unveiled communication between parents and children paves the way for ingenuousness and ideal parental supervision. The development of family relationship is typically determined by the quality of communication encompassing a home. According to Clark and Shields (1997), communication among family members is universally regarded as one of the most important and fundamental aspect of interpersonal relationships. Correspondingly , they added that it is â€Å"a key to understanding the dynamics underlying family relations† (Clark & Shields, 1997). In some cases, the quality of parent-child communication is rather slashed due to some changes in location or due to some inevitable transition, for example, when a child needs to provisionally separate from his parents to study at another location. Essentially, this particular subject matter interests the researcher because of its prevalent significance in terms of how THE IMPORTANCE OF OPEN COMMUNICATION 3 communication plays a crucial role in maintaining intimate association between parents and a child. Likewise, how dearth of parent-child communication affects the relationship of a child toward his or her parents and the consequences that could conceivably transpire as a result of this deficiency. In effect, this treatise intends to answer the following questions: (1) how does open parent-child communication precludes feasible emergence of undesirable co nsequences – including juvenile delinquency, drug use, and the like - affecting adolescents and young adults? (2) In what ways open parent-child communication can be perpetuated with respect to location, age or means of communication? Open communication does not only bring in healthy home relationship but it also moulds a child’s behaviour and personality. A study conducted by Elwood and Schrader (1998) found out

Thursday, September 26, 2019

MLA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

MLA - Essay Example Michael scores rather high marks in the first category of Need for Achievement. He is always optimistic and very self-sufficient. He is self-employed, does his own cooking, repairs his automobile, and maintains a garden. Even when he is facing a hardship, he has the forward-looking drive to see his plans through and let nature run its course. As an example, whenever he does something, whether baking a cake or fixing a car, he always goes out of his way to attend to details that are almost trivial. Yet, that is what it takes to be an enterprising individual. He is a perfectionist and an over achiever that is seldom swayed from the task at hand. In the second category, Need for Independence and Autonomy, Michael would be considered extremely enterprising. He is self-employed in a one-man business and always does all the work himself without any outside or hired help. He is very determined and never gets rattled by pressure or unexpected events. He dislikes taking orders, though I have always attributed that to his short stint in the military. Michael does his own thing according to his own schedule. Michael also has the Creative Tendencies required to be a successful enterpriser. He writes poetry, short stories, and is working on a novel. In addition, he plays several musical instruments and has written over 200 songs. Every time I see Michael, he is telling me about some new idea for a product whose patent will gain him fame and fortune. However, while his writing is very good, he has only very limited success. His songs languish in his mind and never make it into the studio or in front of the record producers. His ideas are soon forgotten as he moves on to the next blockbuster. Michael has the creativity to be enterprising, but something must be holding him back. Michael is a risk taker, but is careful not to put too much on the line at once. While I have seen him leave a good job to

Phonology Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Phonology - Assignment Example A consonant may be defined to be an interruption of the effusion of vocal sound, arising from the application of the organs of speech to each other (Walker: 2008: 6). In order to identify consonant sound, one should understand a vowel. The words of Trofimov et al (2002: 22) are significant in this sense when they define vowel and consonant as follows: â€Å"A vowel (in normal speech) is defined as a voiced sound in which the air passes in a continuous stream through the pharynx and mouth, there being no obstruction and no narrowing such as would produce audible friction.† They further write, â€Å"All other sounds [expect the previously stated] (in normal speech) are called consonants.† Therefore, one can infer that in the production of consonant sounds, there may be an obstruction in the air passage causing for an audible friction. Consonants therefore include (i) all sounds which are not voiced (eg: p, s, ?), (ii) all sounds in which the air has an impeded passage thr ough the mouth (b, l, rolled r), (iii) all sounds in which air does not pass through the mouth (eg: m), (iv) all sounds in which there is audible friction (eg: f, v, s, z). (iv) may be regarded as a particular case of (ii) (Trofimov et al: 2002: 22). To describe the consonant sound, the following pieces of information will be really helpful: a) the air stream mechanism, b) the state of the glottis, c) the position of the soft palate, d) the articulating organs or points of articulation, and e) the manner of articulation or the stricture involved (McMahon: 2002: 30). Various studies have identified that all English sounds are produced with a pulmonic egressive air stream mechanism, that is, the air stream expelled from the lungs is modified to form speech sounds. The sounds produced with the glottis open are voiceless and those produced with the glottis closed are voiced. According to the position of the soft palate the sounds may be nasal or oral. Place of articulation is defined in terms of the articulators involved in the speech gesture (Manell: 2002). The points or places of articulations can be identified by referring to a speech gesture in terms of an active articulator and a passive articulator. b. monophthong Vowels in English language have been divided into two categories, namely, monophthongs and diphthongs. Monophthongs are also called as pure vowels. Bloomer et al writes, â€Å"...there are 20 vowel sounds in RP English. Twelve of these are monophthongs, that is, pure vowels and eight are diphthongs, that is, two vowel sounds run together so that the first glides into the second† (2005: 251). Therefore it is evident that â€Å"A monophthong is a vowel sound which involves no movement of the tongue during its production - there is no glide, as there is in a diphthong† (The university of Hull). Thus, monophthongs are identifiable in the words like; tap, clip, hit, and bee. Similarly, diphthongs are identifiable in the words, cake, boy, p aper, and tape. c. affricate Consonants in English language can be properly understood by understanding the stricture involved, that is, the manner in which the air passage is restricted and sounds produced. Based on the manner of articulation, consonants can be classified in different ways where affricate being one among them. In the production of the

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Buyer behaviour Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Buyer behaviour - Essay Example The brand was also listed as the #1 company in the world by Forbes.com in June 2012. The rankings were based upon aspects such as people’s willingness to buy, recommend, work for, and invest in a company which is 60% driven by the perceptions of the company and only 40% by the perceptions of their products. The Target Audience/Market Segment: The ad, in this context, is designed for the market segment of an elite upper class that touts trendy styles and exquisite tastes as the marks of their identity, as can be evidenced from the lady’s appearance and the driver’s initial introduction of her. The audience does not get to see her eyes, covered by dark sunglasses, but are told that the first thing one will notice about her is her â€Å"bright, blue eyes† which are usually covered up, but when one sees them â€Å"it’s worth it† (Most Expensive BMW Ad Ever-BMW, 2011). The ad subtly hints here that if the consumer notices the features of BMW, they will know the worth of it. The upper class consumer, who the ad targets, will definitely understand the cue. The target market segment is also likely to be educated, rich and willing to spend heavily on luxury items. Thus, the ad is appropriate in every context to the target consumer. Features and Benefits being Offered: BMW packs their engine with effective features and style according to customer segments. â€Å"The all new BMW 3 series sedan features the BMW Twin Power Turbo four-cylinder diesel engine of its predecessor, which has been honed for even greater fuel economy and lower emissions with no reduction in power output. The 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine is from the same family as the regular BMW 320d engine and shares the same all-aluminium crankcase, VNT turbocharger and latest-generation common rail direct injection† (BMW 3-Series (2012), 2005). Additional features like a slight reduction in maximum output rating, the rpm-reducing, friction-reduced powertrain des ign and an optimized aerodynamics package has helped BMW to bring down its CO2 emission to the lowest. It also comes with 5 rear view cameras to support complete driving safety. The safety measures provided include dual front airbags, side airbags and head protecting side curtains.The BMW 3-Series Sedan is also equipped with an Auto Start-Stop function, which analyses and automatically turns off the engine during short stops to save fuel. The BMW also features important safety measures such as antilock brakes (ABS), electronic stability control (ESC) and electronic brake force distribution (EBD). Intelligent seat belt reminders are also fitted to all seats as a measure of safety and comfort. In the context of this ad, the features of the product remains emphasized throughout, right from its beginning. The lady explicitly expresses that she is done with black, thus connoting to the appeal of the change to white. The car’s manoeuvrability becomes evident when it glides through the mob whereas the car that follows gets trapped. The lady scolds the driver for his lack of pace as she wants to lose her trailing bodyguards. He picks up speed, takes several abrupt twists, turn and swerves that throw the lady around to all nukes and corners of the car but she remains in good shape. Thus, the ad, through the action unfolding before the audience’s eyes, illustrates the features of the car in terms of visual appeal, speed, manoeuvrability, comfort

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

The Hard Lessons f Katrina Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

The Hard Lessons f Katrina - Essay Example According to book, numerous amounts ÃŽ ¿f people were left unemployed, which has affected the economy, since fewer taxes have been paid to the local government. Several loved ones, families, friends, and relatives were separated and lost because ÃŽ ¿f this disaster. The Bush Administration has already spent over $105 billion dollars for repairs and reconstruction in the region. Katrina also destroyed over thirty oil platforms and caused the closure ÃŽ ¿f nine refineries, adding to the economic crises.The forestry industry in Mississippi was also affected, as 1.3 million acres ÃŽ ¿f forest land were destroyed. The total loss to the forestry industry from Katrina is calculated to rise to about five billion dollars. Hospitals relied on bus companies and ambalance services for evacuation, but weren’t able to evacuate their charges. Many forms ÃŽ ¿f transportation had been shut-down, and fuel and rental cars were in short supply before the storm arrived.Brinkley criticized the gove rnment and said that the failure ÃŽ ¿f communication from government, caused a slow response to the storm. Several problems that came up developed from poor planning, and the failure ÃŽ ¿f back-up communications systems at various levels. Many telephones, including most cell phones and internet access, weren’t working due to line breaks, destruction ÃŽ ¿f base stations, or power failures, even though some stations had their own back-up generators. Many people were unprepared for such a disaster.Being unprepared has caused many deaths.

Monday, September 23, 2019

Malcolm X and the United States' Civil Right Movement Term Paper

Malcolm X and the United States' Civil Right Movement - Term Paper Example Malcolm is considered as of the greatest and most influential black American in the history of America. At the age of twenty, Malcolm X was imprisoned where he joined Nation of Islam. After his parole in the year 1952, Malcolm rose to be one of the leaders of the Nation Muslims. Several years afterwards, he became a controversial figure in the public domain. However, disillusionment with Nation of Muslims in the year 1964 made him leave the nation match the same year. Later in 1964, he founded the African American unity organization and the Muslim Mosque, Inc. Malcolm believed that one day America would change in the way the whites treated the blacks. During his leadership tenure in the Nation Islam, Malcolm as the organization’s spokesperson, preached or taught black American supremacy and advocated for separation between the white and the black Americans. However, in his teachings, Malcolm contrasted the principles of civil right movement that emphasized on integration among Americans. Since 1952 when he joined the Nation of Islam until 1964 when he left the organization, Malcolm promoted the teachings of the Nation Islam (Walsh7). In his teachings, he emphasized that blacks were the original people of the entire world, and the white race belonged to the devils. In almost all of his speeches, he emphasized that the blacks or the white people were inferior to the black people, and the demise of the white people was imminent(Levy 98). Malcolm X immensely advocated for a complete separation of the African American from the white Americans, despite The Civil Right Movement’s fight against racial segregation. Malcolm had proposed separation of the black Americans to their own country. He considered the move as an interim measure that should be taken against the white until they could return to Africa (Cone 1). In addition, he rejected the nonviolence strategy that has put in play by the civil right movement. Instead, he advocated for self-defense amo ng the African Americans, and asked, them to use any necessary means and measures that were within their reach (Levy 99). His speeches were highly influential especially among the African American audients who lived in the western and northern cities. Notably, these groups were tired of the empty promises. They were ever being told to wait for justice, respect, freedom, and equality (Walsh 9). Therefore, the majority of African Americans felt that Malcolm was articulating their complaints and grievances in a better way than the strategies and moves that were being taken by civil right movement. Many of the white Americans among other blacks were perplexed with Malcolm’s ideals as well as the things he was saying. The Nation of Islam and Malcolm were later described as black supremacists, hatemongers, violence seekers and they were as well considered a threat to race relation improvement. The Civil rights organization afterwards dismissed the Nation of Islam and Malcolm becaus e of being irresponsible extremists where were not concerned with the welfare of the African Americans. Furthermore, Malcolm was accused of anti-Semitism (Cone 1). On the other hand, Malcolm equally criticized the civil right movement and described its leadership as a â€Å"stooge† that has been established by the whites. He as well described Martin Luther King, Jr. as being a â€Å"chump†. Additionally, he was opposed with the march that took place in 1963 and termed it "the farce on Washington". Malcolm claimed that he did not know why the black America

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Old English Lyrical Poetry Essay Example for Free

Old English Lyrical Poetry Essay The second part allegorically represents that the troubles of the seaman are the troubles of earthly life and the call of the ocean is the call in the soul to go to its true home with God. The poem is remarkable for (as Legouis puts) The somber and violent pictures it gives of northern seas in which sufferings from cold mingles with the pains of water and wind. The Ruined Burg or the Ruin:- * It is an elegy not for the misfortune of a person but for a place. * The unknown poet laments for the vanished glory of a great city, probably the Roman built city Bath, which was turned into debris by the Anglo-Saxon aggression, Conquest and settlement. * The poem can be divided in three parts- ) First the poet describes the ancient gorgeous buildings now deserted and rootless and tottering. b) Next he goes to muse on its golden past and its adorned and crowded noble princess and warriors. c) Finally he contrasts the runions present with the pompous past. * The poem is remarkable for its nostalgic melancholy and for its descriptive nature. Deor’s Lament: * It is a poem of 42 lines, divided into stanzas and it is included in the Exeter Book. * It is the lamentation of Deor, a scop who after years of service has been supplanted by another minstrel, Herrenda. Finally he consoles himself by considering the misfortune of others. * It is written in strophic form throughout and each strophe ends with a refrain. * There are altogether seven sections in the poem. * In the first five sections, the mentions the adversities that befall others but ends with a note of consolation in the sixth section he speaks of the misfortune of mankind in general. And in the seventh section the poet mentions his own misfortune. In this way the poem is logically well-knit. It remains plainly heathenic in sentiment. The Wife’s Complaint: * It is a kind of monologue. * The narrator is a woman whose husband has left her and gone to the sea. She is forced to live in an old dwelling dug out of earth under oak by her husbands relatives. She sitting under the tree laments over her miserable lot all day. Friendless and fore shaken she bewails her loneliness and the vows of love that have come to nothing. * The poem is rich in melancholy feeling. The Husbandâ€℠¢s Message: * It exists in fragments. A good many lines of this poem are lost for ever. * An exiled husband sends his message to his wife by means of letters carved on a piece of wood. The wood tells the wife its own life story and its journey in a ship. It tells her that though the circumstances let her husband out of home he has been able to gain a position of wealth and dignity. Finally it bids her to join with her husband in the place of exile. * To some critics the poem is a sequel to The Wifes Complaint but some would to see it as an independent poem.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Doctrinal and philosophical dimension of Buddhism

Doctrinal and philosophical dimension of Buddhism Buddhism has over three million followers world-wide, is the state religion in Burma, Thailand, Cambodia and Laos, and maintains a tremendous influence in other countries such as Ceylon, Tibet, China, and Japan. The Oxford Dictionary defines religion as a belief in the existence of a superhuman controlling power, especially of God or gods or, as a particular system of faith and worship. (Hawkins, 2002). The dictionarys short descriptive passage does not take into account the spiritual well being, security, and comfort, a religion gives to its followers, and therefore may be seen to be inadequate and superficial. The doctrinal and philosophical dimension of Buddhism emerged at a time of political and economic instability. The Buddha was born in the 6th century Before The Christian Era (Robinson, 2009). Large, powerful tribes began to invade the Ganges Basin, and society became more complex as the populous moved towards the newly instituted metropolitan centres. During this time a strict and rigid caste system was in place, which did not allow for movement within its structure. The Buddha, as a member of the warrior elite, would have had considerable wealth and standing within the tribe, but he became disenchanted with this way of life, and ultimately rejected it to become a wanderer (Robinson, 2009). The wanderers believed that anybody, regardless of caste, could be wise and good. These qualities could be achieved by rejecting or renouncing life at home, which was dirty and cramped and instead, going out into the wider world which was . completelyperfect and pure (Robinson, 2009). Such renounces believed in the re-incarnation of the spirit, but what or whom you returned as in the next life, depended on how you had conducted yourself in the previous one. By leading a life of purity and devotion one could escape the agony of re-birth and thereby obtain Nirvana or liberation (Robinson, 2009). Such a pure and devoted lifestyle could be achieved by accepting the Four Noble Truths. The first truth was that of suffering; birth, ageing, death, sorrow and defilement (Buddahnet.net, 2010). The second truth was that the causes of suffering were human traits such as greed, and sexual desire. The third Noble Truth stated that suffering can be eliminated if the way of the fourth truth, or Nobe l Eight Fold Path, was followed. This would result in salvation by releasing the follower from perpetual re-birth. This last truth was a guideline to redemption which could only be obtained by correct behaviour, such as correct attitude and correct speech. The method of obtaining Nirvana in conjunction with correct behaviour is by meditation; by having the correct mental attitude one can only think good thoughts and therefore the intentions or deeds are pure also. This is known as Karma or mental work (Hawkins, 2002). Once Nirvana has been achieved, the follower becomes designated as a Buddha or enlightened one and these saints reside on a higher plane. Since the time of Buddha two main proponents of Buddhism have developed, namely Therevada, predominant in South Asia and Mahayana, followed in North Asia. The former believes that the only way to obtain Nirvana is by being a monk or a nun, and may therefore be considered as an elitist form of Buddhism, while the latter shows more liberal qualities and is sympathetic to others (Robinson, 2009). The narratives of Buddhism, the Pali Scriptures and Jakata tales, are important in the historical sense as they give an insight into the words and meanings of the Buddha, and may be construed as being inspirational to his followers (Buddahnet.net, 2010). The oral nature of these stories could possibly lead to them being misinterpreted and lost in translation and therefore their actual meaning may become muted and distorted. Although some of these tales may be deemed to be of a mythical nature, such as the Buddha being conceived by his mothers union with a white elephant they, as in parables from other religions, cannot be taken as literal, historical facts, but could quite possibly contain a hidden meaning (Buddahnet.net, 2010). Therefore because Buddhism uses such stories to accentuate its teachings, it is similar to other faiths and does not detract from its perceived status as a religion. The practical and ritualistic dimension, especially in Mahayana Buddhism, is extremely important. This dimension contains the preaching, prayers and worship element of a religion. By travelling the Ganges Basin in its entirety the Buddha and his followers went to great lengths to make Buddhism accessible to all and encouraged others into believing that salvation was at hand if the proper codes of conduct were adhered to. Buddhists offer prayers to the Buddha as much in the same way that Christians offer prayers to Jesus Christ, they are both a vehicle unto God or Nirvana., which has been thought by some writers to be a Buddhists substitute for God (Buddahnet.net, 2010). The Christian word worship, the worship of a God, constitutes the major problem in the definition of Buddhism as a religion. The Buddha stated that he was neither a messenger from God nor his emissary and denounced the notion that there was a God (Buddahnet.net, 2010). This has led to Buddhists being considered as Ath eists, but Buddhism is a cosmopolitan religion which embraces other beliefs and cultures and ultimately their gods. Therevada Buddhists acknowledge other gods but they maintain that it is the Buddha who is supreme and it is these other, lesser gods who defer to him (Bullitt, 2005). The Buddha is revered by his devotees and may be seen as the object of worship, as prayers are chanted praising him and asking for salvation, and gifts placed at his shrines and temples (Bullitt, 2005). At the New Year festival, the water festival, Buddhas name is used to ward away evil spirits The ethical dimension of a religion is its moral code. The laws and rules that a particular religion abides by are usually, in a mono-religious state those that govern society, as in Islam and Christianity. A religion must be able to teach a moral code and give guidance to a society as to what would be morally abhorrent and that which is deemed as acceptable behaviour. As much in the same way that Christianity has the Ten Commandments, The Buddhists rules or virtues are called Dhammapada, the way of virtue (Jung, 2010). These rules give guidance and a set of guidelines on the proper behaviour of a Buddhist, such as compassion and denounce improper thoughts and actions such as greed, vice, hatred and envy (Jung, 2010). The experiential and emotional dimension is the feeling of perhaps exultation or sense of peace that the follower of a particular religion can get from for example, reciting a prayer, liturgy, or chant (Buddahnet.net, 2010). These feelings can also be shown in many other ways such as a Buddhist attaining enlightenment, or by using meditation as a way of clearing the mind from the mundane aspects of life. A Christian may achieve an emotional experience by seeing a sign from God, chanting a prayer of contemplation, or just from a general sense of well being and contentment. The social and institutional dimension is the self containment of the organisation for its own protection. The Buddhists, like many new groups were persecuted for their beliefs and radical outlook from their foundation (Buddahnet.net, 2010). Buddhism has its own structure, although not hierarchical as in other religions, the monks are seen as the closest to obtaining the goal of Nirvana. It was, and still is the foundation within the lives of its followers, especially those living in remote areas where the rules passed to them from the Buddha and his followers, is followed without deviation. A religion can be interpreted by its followers in many different ways. It can be seen as providing, a comforting belief in the hereafter, and spiritual well-being, while also supplying a code of behaviour and a sense of belonging. Buddhism certainly follows these pre-requisites and although some commentators view Buddhism as atheistic, its followers worship the Buddha as a god, and Buddhism shows numerous similarities to many other widely accepted religions. Regardless of criticism Buddhism is considered a religion by its millions of followers, which today include the peoples of both Eastern and Western civilisations.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Measuring Happiness Levels in Mumbai: Methodology

Measuring Happiness Levels in Mumbai: Methodology Methodology Happiness has been defined either as a broad notion of how one feels about their life in general or as an emotional or affective state. Depending on the way researchers define the concept, there have been variable attempts at measurement. With decades of research, we have a better understanding of how to measure the happiness of others. A combination of quantitative and qualitative methods appears to be most productive. (Helm, 2000) This chapter illustrates the methodology followed, tools used and ethical guidelines followed during the study. The following are the research objectives of the study. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES To determine the level of happiness among the residents of Mumbai To assess the mental healthcare facilities in the city To find out If there is any correlation between mental health and happiness among the residents of Mumbai On the basis of these research objectives, the following methodology was formulated. Quantitative measurement of happiness Over the past two decades there have been an increasing number of quantitative studies of happiness and well-being. In particular, there have been ongoing debates on whether happiness can be measured, whether it should be measured, how it should be measured and what are the factors affecting it (Ballas Tranmer, 2012).Psychologists and sociologists have used subjective questions regarding individuals’ happiness for over three decades. Cantril (1965) developed a question for life satisfaction. Similar question modules include the Likert (1932)-scale and the Visual Analog Scale (VAS). See also Bradburn (1969). The answer to these subjective questions has been indiscriminately termed ‘happiness’, ‘general satisfaction’ and ‘subjective well-being’. In the GSOEP the satisfaction question is: Please answer by using the following scale in which 0 means totally  unhappy, and 10 means totally happy. How happy are you at present with your life as a whole? Here, we call the response to this question the General Satisfaction (GS) level of the respondent. In this case, there are 11 numerical categories, but the question has also been posed with 7 or 5 categories or with verbal labels, such as ‘very happy/happy/so-so/somewhat unhappy/very unhappy’. The end result is invariably an ordered categorical evaluation of the quality of life of the individual.(Ferrer-i-Carbonell Frijters, 2004).The survey context, such as question order, introductory text and the survey source, can influence respondents’ understanding of individual questions within a survey, as well as the information that they draw on in order to answer those questions. In quantitative measurement, we measure the overall subjective well begin by quantifying certain constructs and concepts given below. Measurement of subjective well being Eudemonic questions like show happy are you with your life and how satisfied are you with your life have been asked to be rated on a cantril ladder. Subjective wellbeing is a broad category of phenomena that includes people’s emotional responses, domain satisfactions and global judgements of life satisfaction. Each of the specific constructs need to be understood in their own right ,yet the components often correlate substantially suggesting the need for the higher order factor.(Diener, Suh, Lucas, Smith, 2013). Quality of life is a broad term covering those aspects of overall well-being that are not captured only by material conditions(OECD Guidelines on Measuring Subjective Well-being, 2013). 12 different constructs were identified and worked upon to generate questions. The constructs namely are: education, employment, family, gender, health/lifestyle, personality/self-efficacy, relationships, work-life balance, communal living housing/income. Employment status – employment status is known to have a large influence on subjective  Well-being, with unemployment in particular associated with a strong negative impact on  measures of life satisfaction.(OECD Guidelines on Measuring Subjective Well-being, 2013). Hence 9 questions have been formulated on employment. Both physical and mental health are correlated with measures of subjective well-being (Dolan, Peasgood and White, 2008), and there is evidence that changes in disability status cause changes in life satisfaction (Lucas, 2007). Although health status is complex to measure in household surveys, there is a large pool of well-developed measures available, such as the health state descriptions from the World Health Survey (WHO, 2012), or more specialised question modules, such as the GHQ-12 for mental health (Goldberg et al., 1978). Environmental quality is inherently a geographic phenomenon, and integrating datasets on environmental quality with household level data on life satisfaction is costly. Nonetheless, there is some evidence that noise pollution (Weinhold, 2008) and air pollution (Dolan, Peasgood and White, 2008) have a significant negative impact on life satisfaction(OECD Guidelines on Measuring Subjective Well-being, 2013). Hence by merging both, 14 questions have been formulated beneath the heading Health/Lifestyle. There is significant evidence that aspects of work/life balance impact on subjective well-being, in particular commuting (Frey and Stutzer, 2008; Kahneman and Kruger, 2006), and time spent caring for others(OECD Guidelines on Measuring Subjective Well-being, 2013). To gauge its effect, 4 questions have been formulated on it. Education and skills have obvious interest both as variables for cross-classification and because there is good evidence that education is associated with subjective well-being at a bivariate level(OECD Guidelines on Measuring Subjective Well-being, 2013). To understand the effect and views of the respondent on education, 7 questions have been formulated. Generalised trust in others as well as more domain specific measures of neighbourhood and workplace trust are crucial factors when accounting for variation in subjective well-being(OECD Guidelines on Measuring Subjective Well-being, 2013).Social contact is one of the most important drivers of subjective well-being, as it has a large impact both on life evaluations and on affect(OECD Guidelines on Measuring Subjective Well-being, 2013). 5 questions have been formulated under communal living. One of the most consistent and robust findings in the field of subjective well-being (SWB) is that the components of SWB are moderately related to personality. Like personality traits, SWB is consistent across situations and is stable across the life span, even after the occurrence of intervening life events(Diener Lucas, 1999). 7 questions have been formulated on personality. Subjective sexual well-being refers to the perceived quality of an individual’s sexuality, sexual life, and sexual relationships. We focus primarily on evaluations of sexuality in terms of satisfaction judgments, which have been central for studying the concept of overall wellbeing(Laumann et al., 2006). Some of these questions have been asked under relationships (4). The relationship and effect of familial relations, housing and income has also been captured by asking 8 questions on it. Satisfaction with life scale The Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) was originally developed by Diener, Emmons, Larsen and Griffin (1985), and was intended as a brief assessment of an individual’s general sense of satisfaction with their life as a whole. Although the SWLS includes only five items, it has demonstrated good psychometric characteristics.(Pavot Diener, 2008) The Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS; Diener, Emmons, Larsen, Griffin,  1985) is a widely used measure of life satisfaction. The SWLS consists of five items  which are rated on a seven-point Likert-type response scale? Scores on the SWLS vary  from 5 to 35 and can be compared with the scores of an international norm group (see  Pavot Diener, 2008). According to Pavot and Diener (2008), various studies confirmed  the internal consistency of the SWLS (with alpha coefficients varying from .79  to .89) (Rothmann, 2013) The authors began the development of the SWLS by generating a pool of 48 items intended to reflect life satisfaction and well-being. From this original pool of items, factor analysis was used to identify 10 items with high loadings (0.60 or above) on a common factor interpreted as global evaluations of a person’s life. After the elimination of redundancies, this group of items was then further reduced to five items, with minimal effect on the alpha reliability of the scale. A 7-point Likert style response scale (ranging from 1 ¼strongly disagree to 7 ¼strongly agree) was utilized in order to afford respondents an array of response options. The five items are all keyed in a positive direction, so the five responses can simply be added to arrive at a total score for the scale. The possible range of scores is therefore 5 to 35, with a score of 20 representing the neutral point on the scale. Scores between 5 and 9 indicate that the respondent is extremely dissatisfied with lif e, whereas scores ranging between 31 and 35 indicate that the respondent is extremely satisfied with life. Scores between 21 and 25 represent slightly satisfied, and scores from 15 to 19 are interpreted as falling in the slightly dissatisfied range(Pavot Diener, 2008). Quality of life has become a primary concern in the evaluation of both the quality and outcome of health care (Moons, Budts, De Geest, 2006). In a review of different conceptual approaches of quality of life, Moons et al. (2006) found life satisfaction to be the most adequate and appropriate conceptualization, as it successfully addresses all of the conceptual problems they examined with regard to health-related quality of life.(Pavot Diener, 2008). In most ways my life is close to my ideal 1. Strongly disagree. 2. Disagree. 3. Slightly agree. 4. Neither agrees nor disagrees. 5. Slightly agree. 6. Agree. 7. Strongly agree. The conditions of my life are excellent 1. Strongly disagree. 2. Disagree. 3. Slightly agree. 4. Neither agrees nor disagrees. 5. Slightly agree. 6. Agree. 7. Strongly agree. I am satisfied with my life. 1. Strongly disagree. 2. Disagree. 3. Slightly agree. 4. Neither agrees nor disagrees. 5. Slightly agree. 6. Agree. 7. Strongly agree. So far I have gotten the important things I want in life. 1. Strongly disagree. 2. Disagree. 3. Slightly agree. 4. Neither agrees nor disagrees. 5. Slightly agree. 6. Agree. 7. Strongly agree. If I could live my life over, I would change almost nothing. 1. Strongly disagree. 2. Disagree. 3. Slightly agree. 4. Neither agrees nor disagrees. 5. Slightly agree. 6. Agree. 7. Strongly agree. Rating scale There are multiple scales, questionnaires and inventories of happiness. The following tools are mere examples: the Oxford Happiness Inventory, the Depression-Happiness Scale and the Memorial University of Newfoundland Scale Of Happiness. These scales and other contain multiple items, most frequently from 10-130 items. A plethora of studies on happiness have used single item self-rating scales with different options , mainly the Likert scale which offers 5 or 7 choice point.(Abdel-Khalek, 2006). Much quantitative research within psychology relies upon the use of numerical scales and in the main Likert scales have emerged as the dominant measurement tool(Ogden Lo, 2012). Although providing respondents with a rating scale may seem straightforward, there  are many ways in which response formats can vary. There may be differences in the response formats that may be optimal for evaluative, eudemonic and affective measures. Evaluative and eudemonic measures are similar to attitude measures in that it may be preferable for the response format to contain information about both the direction of feeling (positive/neutral/negative or agree/disagree), as well as its intensity (strong-weak). In the case of affect measures, it is often desirable to measure positive and negative affective states separately. Thus, rather than asking about the direction (positive-neutral-negative) of affect, respondents are often given a single adjective (e.g. happy) and asked to describe either the intensity or the frequency with which they felt  that way within a given time period. This may in turn have implications for the optimal  number of response options, as well as response scale labelling and anchoring. There is, however, considerable debate around the optimal number of response  categories – and a very wide range of opinions is available in the literature (Weng, 2004,  for a brief summary). This number will depend on respondents’ information-processing  capacities and preferences, survey mode, scale labelling, and, to some extent, presentational  concerns and questionnaire length. Increasing the number of response categories beyond  the optimal length could result in loss of information, increased error and decreased  reliability, because the individual scale points will mean less to respondents. The increased  response burden associated with longer scales may also lead respondents to become less  motivated to optimise and more likely to satisfice in their answers, thus also increasing the  risk of response biases and error Bradburn et al. (2004) argue that, due to the burden on memory and attention, five categories is the maximum number that a respondent can process in a verbal interview setting (telephone or face-to-face) without visual prompts. Furthermore, when the response categories are qualitatively different from one another (rather than being imagined on a sliding scale), these authors suggest that four categories should be the upper maximum. On the other hand, Alwin and Krosnick (1991) indicate that respondents may prefer to have response options denoting weak, moderate and strong negative and positive evaluations (i.e. a 7-point scale) in part because these are the categories that people often use to describe attitudes and opinions in everyday life. For evaluative measures with numerical response scales, longer scales (up to around  11 scale points) often appear to perform better. Using a multi-trait-multi-method  design, Alwin found that across all 17 domains of life satisfaction measured, the 11-point scales had higher reliabilities than the 7-point scales. In 14 out of 17 cases, the 11-point scales also had higher validity coefficients; and in 12 of 17 cases, 11-point scales had lower invalidity coefficients, indicating they were affected less, rather than more, by method variance – I.e. systematic response biases or styles. This overall finding is supported by Saris et al. (1998) who used a similar multi-trait-multi-method analysis to compare 100-point, 4 or 5-point and 10-point satisfaction measures, and found that the 10-point scale demonstrated the best reliability. For affect measures, one might be interested in measuring either the intensity of feeling  or the frequency with which that feeling occurred. Measures of recently-experienced affect  are less like attitude measures, in that one is effectively asking respondents to remember a  specific experience or to sum experiences over a specific time period. The method adopted for this study due to paucity of time and level of research expected from us at master’s level is using a 7 point scale for affect measures and using cantril ladder for eudemonic measures. The 7 point scale ranged from strongly disagrees to strongly agree. Background characteristics Questions on the respondent’s background characteristics were collected in the beginning of the questionnaire. Information such as the following was collected. Age Gender Marital status Religion Education Work status Family income Number of years residing in Mumbai Native state Number of family members Number of earning members in family No of rooms in house Ownership of house Qualitative measurement of happiness One open ended question was asked in the beginning of the questionnaire i.e. what does happiness means to you? The aim was to explore what people equate happiness with and how does it affect their overall living. The use of qualitative assessment methods, such as open- ended questions, provides information about the participants’ perceptions, views and beliefs in their own terms, in contrast to using outside researchers’ definitions and categories, which is typical of quantitative inquiries (Denzin and Lincoln 2000). Qualitative data show an additional crucial feature: it is possible to convert them into quantitative scales for purposes of statistical analyses(Fave, Brdar, Freire, Vella-Brodrick, Wissing, 2010). The entire questionnaire was formulated in the following way Data collection sampling Some surveys with the household as the unit of measure rely on a single respondent (such  as the head of household) to provide responses for the household as a whole. This cannot be  used for measures of subjective well-being, since the cognitive process of evaluating and  responding with respect to one’s own subjective well-being is very different to that of providing an estimate of another householder’s state of mind. Responses to questions on subjective wellbeing are inherently personal, and consequently the unit of measure for subjective well-being must be the individual. While this will typically not be an issue for surveys where the individual is the primary unit of analysis(OECD Guidelines on Measuring Subjective Well-being, 2013). The two modes most commonly used to collect information on subjective well-being are Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI), conducted by an interview over the telephone, and Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI), where the interviewer is personally present when recording the data.(OECD Guidelines on Measuring Subjective Well-being, 2013) Due to paucity of time, the mode was data collection was paper and pen method. The respondents were allowed to take the questionnaire home for a day and could be collected later based on their discretion. The sampling universe was people who had lived in Mumbai for more than 5 years and was targeted at literate working population. The sampling method chose was convenience sampling and the sample size is 200. Confidentiality and ethics Initially the respondents were informed about the purpose of the study and the collector’s identity and her affiliation to the institute. The confidentiality of the participants was not disclosed at any point during the course of the research. Furthermore, the respondents were assured that their responses would be used for academic purposes only.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

External Forces Shaping The Future Of The Airline Industry Essay

External Forces Shaping The Future Of The Airline Industry INTRODUCTION   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The purpose of this report is to inform airline executives about the external forces affecting their industry and what they can do to keep up with the changing business atmosphere. The terrorist attacks of 9/11 had a grueling effect on the economy, and while most industries are almost back to their pre-9/11 financial status, the airline industry is lucky to break-even. This report will explain three leading trends that are forcing the airline industry to re-think their stance on strategic planning.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The first trend discussed will illustrate the effect that online booking has had on the way airlines do business. The second trend will describe how obesity has caused new standards to be set within the industry. The final trend will explain how the demand for business-related travel has been decreased from the use of new technologies. This paper will close with a brief synopsis of the most relevant trend to the industry—the decrease in business travel due to new technologies. DESCRIPTION   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The following portion of this report will describe each of the three trends and contain information to support the claim. Continue reading for further explanation of the trends. Online Booking Online booking is becoming more popular, especially in a country where over 50% of its households are connected to the internet (U.S. Department of Commerce 2001). (See Appendix; Graph 1) Americans want things â€Å"NOW!† not ten minutes from now. The quicker the service, the more satisfied the customer will become. Various online travel agencies, such as Orbit and Travelocity, give consumers the ability to compare different travel options, all without leaving the comfort of their home. In 2003, 35 million Americans went online to book travel reservations, a 17% increase since 2002 (U.S. News 2004). Currently one-third of all internet-related transactions involve making travel arrangements (The Times 2004). Obesity   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Americans today are heavier than ever, and despite increased health awareness, the obesity epidemic is not slowing down. (See Appendix; Graph 2) Currently two-thirds of Americans are considered to be overweight (New Zealand Management 2004). According to the last U.S. Census, the current population of the U.S. is 281 million. When mixing those details together you can acquire ... ...on Week & Space   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Technology v138 n6 (Feb. 8, 1993): 31,33. Lollis, Barbara De. â€Å"Virtual meeting companies get boost as travel wanes. USA Today   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  (March 18, 2003): 10. Lollis, Barbara De and Chris Woodyard. â€Å"Larger Passengers pay more on Southwest   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Air.† USA Today (2002) . McKee, Bradford. â€Å"Sprawl and America’s Sprawling Middle.† Architecture v92 n8   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  (Aug. 2003). â€Å"Obesity Research.† American Obesity Association (2002) http://www.obesity.org/ subs/fastfacts/Obesity_Research.shtml>. â€Å"Percent of U.S. Households with Internet Access.† U.S. Dept of Commerce (Feb.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2001) . Stellin, Susan. â€Å"Online Booking Cuts Costs and Simplifies Corporate Trips.† New York   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Times (Sept. 2, 2003): C7. â€Å"Web World.† The Times (United Kingdom) (Sept. 4, 2004): 4. APPENDIX Graph 1: Percent of U.S. Households with Online Access Data Source: Newburger, Eric C. â€Å"Home Computers and Internet Use in the United States.† US Census Bureau (Sept. 2001) . Graph 2: Obesity Prevalence in America Data Source: â€Å"Obesity Research.† American Obesity Association (2002) http://www.obesity.org/ subs/fastfacts/Obesity_Research.shtml>.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Womens Prostitution and the Criminal Justice System Essay -- Female W

In the following assignment, it is my intention to produce a research report, examining women involved in street prostitution and how they end up entering the criminal justice system. Within the report I will look at three pieces of research, review their main findings, the type of research that was used, and look to identify where I believe further research is required. My reason for choosing women in the criminal justice system is that I have expressed an interest in the criminal justice setting and my elective module is in this area. Anything that I learn from undertaking this assignment will aid my understanding and increase my knowledge base when undertaking my second placement. Prostitution has been defined as: "Prostitution involves the exchange of sexual services, sometimes but by no means exclusively, sexual intercourse, for some kind of reward, money, drink, drugs, a meal or a bed for the night" (Shaw & Butler 1998) Another simple definition offered was, prostitution is: "The purchase and sale, involving cash payment of sex" This is the preferred definition of Glasgow's Street Working Women as stated in: Stewart, A (2000). Historical Background ===================== Throughout the UK and internationally, the issue of prostitution is seen as an ever-increasing problem. For the purpose of this assignment I will concentrate on the issue of prostitution within the United Kingdom. There has been a marked rise in the incidence of street prostitution since the 1980s and a growth in the proportion of intravenous drug users involved in street prostitution. In Glasgow, police estimate that ar... ...emale population in Cornton Vale Prison is represented by black or ethnic minorities, (HM Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland 2001). One Area that could use further research was highlighted in the Herald newspaper this week; it has become a very worrying state that women are apparently being coerced into working in illegal saunas as prostitutes. Sauna owners are buying the women's debt they then 'work' to 'pay off' the debt, according to retired Chief Inspector Nannette Pollock " the wording that refers to these women is debt-bonded", (The Herald 1/11/02) One other area for further research could be the use of language used within the criminal justice system, terms like 'common prostitute' could and should be removed then maybe some of the stigmatisation that these women are subjected to would also be removed.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Advocacy in Human Services Essay

Under the Rainbow Inc. began when a group of four socially conscious people discovered a dire need for quality, unbiased welfare support without prejudice or borders and became an ‘incorporated association’ in February 2007. Since its inception, Under the Rainbow Inc. has been committed to excellence in the delivery of social welfare services based on their principles of charity, care and compassion. A range of services designed to promote independence and to enhance quality of life are provided by Under the Rainbow, all of which encompass care and support of local community members, in particular those who require relief from poverty and/or the dependents of any such persons. Advocacy is the primary role of case managers’ who volunteer at Under The Rainbow and in this human service setting and any other it is essential for services to be provided accurately. This essay will define advocacy in a human services context as well as discuss the type of advocacy that is beneficial to clients in this chosen human service setting. In conclusion, this essay will also describe issues that Under The Rainbow have encountered whilst implementing advocacy and change and the way the current political climate can effect their ability to engage in advocacy and deliver quality human services. Whilst the definition of advocacy in general is broad, in human service and social work practice advocacy is essentially the process of protecting human rights or to change discriminatory or abusive treatment to the vulnerable, whether working with an individual or a group (Corey, Corey & Callanan, 1998). Human service workers all act as advocates in the course of their work (Sorensen and Black, 2001) and the Australian Association of Social Workers ‘Code of Ethics’ (2002) supports this view citing, ‘The social worker will advocate for changes in policy, service delivery and social conditions which enhance the opportunities for those most vulnerable in the community’ however Forbat and Atkinson (2005) argue that advocacy is ‘not social work, but its principles and values resonate closely’. Regardless of ones  definition, the ‘key concept’ in the notion of any type of advocacy, is that it requires at least three parties: the client, the advocate and ‘the other side’ (School of Health and Human Services, 2007). Literature suggests that the differing types of advocacy seem as broad as its definition and a number of different types of advocacy exist, however within Under the Rainbow’s human service framework they are predominately concerned with ‘individual’ or ‘case’ advocacy. According to Hepworth & Larsen (1993), case advocacy is a way to ‘obtain resources or services for clients that would not otherwise be provided’ and this theory underlies Under the Rainbows belief that to advocate for a client is ‘to bring about some form of personal and/or social change’ (School of Health and Human Services, 2007). Under the Rainbow is a voluntary community based organisation which now boasts a membership of sixty-five individuals, many of whom work with clients as advocates for change. The goal for each volunteer who manages cases for Under the Rainbow is to promote fair, equal, and humane treatment through fundraising, charity provision (food and clothing), welfare work and social action against injustice for the disadvantaged. Under the Rainbow’s social work practice is mainly concerned with implementing changes in the local community to assist in poverty relief to predominately ‘voluntary’ clients (Barker, 1991), though some are referred. While the majority of Under the Rainbows’ charity work is concerned with ‘lending a hand’ materially and financially, they also work one-on-one with clients to determine why they ‘needed a hand’ in the first place and therefore consider both aspects of their human service delivery forms of ‘advocating’. However there is some argument as to whether charity and advocating is in fact the same thing. The assertion by L’Hirondelle (2002) that charity work ‘simply means offering one-on-one help without effort to give people the opportunity to participate in working with others to change their situation’ is challenged at Under the Rainbow who believe ’empowerment’ of a client is both valuable and essential. Individuals who seek help from Under the Rainbow often see themselves as ‘powerless’ and unable to make changes in their lives and sadly, those who are discriminated against, are often the most vulnerable. Under the Rainbow clients can be distinguished by many inequalities involving social issues in areas such as power, authority, and wealth, working and living conditions, health, lifestyle, gender, education, religion, and culture. Because the nature of Under the Rainbow is predominately a charity, they realise some of the clients who ask for welfare assistance will not want to be involved in any further actions for changing their situation and staff may only be required to ‘advocate’ once. However, they know from experience there are just as many of their clients who will want to get involved and connect with others in order to work together for social and personal ’empowerment’. To clarify empowerment further, Shulman (2005) states that the empowerment process involves ‘engaging the client, family, group, or community in developing strengths to personally and politically cope’ and a number of ’empowerment’ workshops and programmes covering issues such as budgeting, self-esteem and parenting are implemented at Under the Rainbow to facilitate this. Clients also often need help when dealing with other agencies and a Justice of the Peace service and help with letter writing, telephone and electronic correspondence is also offered. Often clients feel they have been treated unfairly by other advocacy and law agency’s and challenging another organisation’s reasoning, on a clients behalf or as an individual can be referred to as ‘persuasion advocacy’ (Reardon, 2001). Many times writing a letter or involving law enforcement agencies to negotiate a point has been successful for Under the Rainbow and their clients to further instil ’empowerment’. Therefore, Under the Rainbow staff believe offering an individual help, whether through the distribution of groceries or an activity similar to the ones discussed above, is seen as empowerment for social change. Under the Rainbow ‘advocate’ for and ’empower’ their clients, bringing people together where they are then able to take action to change their situation. Schneider  & Lester (2001) include empowerment in their definition as part of the practice of advocacy and conclude that ‘this value is based on the belief that individuals have strengths to acquire knowledge, become assertive, and develop skills, and through social work advocacy, these strengths can be set in motion’. Vanessa, who has worked with Under the Rainbow for nine months states, ‘when I interview clients, I encourage and pay attention to the capable person I see in front of me. My focus as an advocate is never on their previous history, as there is nothing I can do personally to change it. The importance for me is what the client wants from life and how it can be achieved’ (Pers comm. 2/4/08). Whilst working as an advocate Vanessa does not expect nor require a client to self-disclose, however they usually do, which Vanessa defines as a relationship based on trust and mutual respect. Respecting the privacy rights and confidentiality of Under the Rainbow’s clients is extremely important and they believe that excellent ethical conduct must be practiced in order to be a credible community advocate. Cultural, language, disability and other accommodations are also provided for. If personal conflicts of interest should occur the advocate will step aside and ask for help from another party. As Under the Rainbow is are self-regulating, ethical decision-making and the process of critical reflection, evaluation and judgment ‘through which a practitioner resolves ethical issues, problems and dilemmas’ (Trevino, 1986) is extremely important in both a personal and professional context. As well as individual and personal advocating, dissolving barriers and building a sense of community on a local level, Under The Rainbow promote ‘global consciousness’ and pride themselves on their broad worldview and high awareness of the inter-relatedness and sacredness of all living things. All Under the Rainbow Inc. members are active, both personally and professionally, in many social arenas confronting a broad range of social and political issues. Advocacy of this type, which refers to a connection with social movements’, is known as ‘activist’ or ’cause’ advocacy (Healy, 2000) and often involves ‘active criticism of or engagement with government  policies and practices’ (School of Health and Human Services, 2007). Many members of Under the Rainbow have strong lobbying and media skills and some of their more prominent contributions and support include subscriptions and memberships to other advocacy groups and organisations such as New Internationalist Magazine, Bush Heritage Australia, Amnesty International and Greenpeace as well as Indigenous organisations, animal and environmental protection groups and interests in many other diverse global activist platforms. Under the Rainbow has also purchased and helped plant thousands of trees in South East Queensland through the Queensland Folk Federation at the Woodford Folk Festival site. Under the Rainbow is self-sufficient and as yet to receive any government funding. Relying on donations from its members and the general public to support their services is successful, but often unpredictable and can cause frustration when resources are limited. However, being an incorporated association means that Under the Rainbow is only accountable to themselves, their donors, members, clients and community. Not being affiliated with any government, church or social agency means they are not subject to any other types of accountability usually required under public auspice and this is preferable. Under the Rainbows projects, which are both broad and long-range, draw only on individual and group advocacy skills from its membership pool, preferring to remain exclusive and not out-source help from other agencies. In recent years, new set of ideas, such as advocacy, consumerism, empowerment, participation, and anti-discriminatory practices have all influenced social work practice and this has had an impact on social work values. This new set of ideas is referred to as ‘radical values’ (Adams et al, 2002) and are concerned with challenging oppression and discrimination, it is within this value system that Under the Rainbow continues to operate. Advocacy is essentially the process of standing up for the rights of others who are being unfairly treated (Sorenson and Black, 2001) and has the potential to bring significant and sustainable change for the better. It can  empower individuals and communities and generate many resources whilst bringing diverse organisations together to work on common issues. Effective advocacy takes specific skills, commitment, effort, resources, perseverance, wisdom and collaboration all of which are faced by the Under the Rainbow volunteers on a daily basis. The case managers at Under the Rainbow realise they need to successfully master the skills needed to be an advocate, which takes time and experience. They are also aware that learning to be persuasive and using resources available to them will increase their level of competence and better assure a positive outcome for both themselves and their clients. I am proud to be a member of Under the Rainbow and my involvement in the challenging albeit very rewarding endeavours to facilitate advocacy for change in this small but powerful association. REFERENCE LIST Adams, R., Dominelli, L., & Payne, M., (2002). Social Work, Themes, Issues and Critical Debates (2nd ed.), Palgrave, Basingstoke. Australian Association of Social Workers (2002), Code of Ethics, Retrieved April 2nd, 2008, AASW Website: http://www.aasw.asn.au/adobe/about/AASW_Code_of_EthicsCorey, G., Corey, M., & Callanan, P., (1998). Issues and Ethics in the Helping Professions, Brooks/Cole, USA. Forbat, L., & Atkinson, D., (2005). Advocacy in Practice: The Troubled Position of Advocates in Adult Services, British Journal of Social Work, 35:3, pp. 321-335Healy, K., (2000). Social Work Practices: Contemporary Perspectives on Change, Sage, London. Hepworth, D., & Larsen, J., (1993). Direct Social Work Practice: Theory andSkills (4th ed.) The Dorsey Press, Homewood, Illinois. Trevino, L.K., (1986). Ethical Decision making in Organizations: A Person-Situation Interactionist Model, The Academy of Management Review, Vol. 11, No. 3, pp. 601-617. L’Hirondelle, C., (2002), Characteristics of Remedial Work vs. Social Change, Retrieved April 4th 2008, Victorian Status of Women (SWAG) Website: http://pacificcoast.net/~swag/index.htmlReardon, K.K., (1991), Persuasion in Practice, Sage Publications, Newbury Park, California. Schneider, R.L., & Lester, L., (2001). ‘Advocacy: A New Definition’, Social Work Advocacy, Brooks/Cole Publishing, Pacific Grove: California. School of Health and Human Services, (2007). Study Guide: Advocacy and Change, Southern Cross University, Lismore. Shulman, L., (2005). Skills of Helping Individuals, Families, Groups and Communities, Wadsworth Publishing Company, USA. Sorenson, H., & Black, L., (2001). Advocacy and Ageing, Australasian Journal on Aging, Vol. 20.3, Supplement 2, pp. 27-34.