The Main Roles and Responsibilities of Middle Managers Essay

The Main Roles and Responsibilities of Middle Managers - Essay Example A secondary function of middle management that Morgan et al discusses is with regard to definition of making the delivery of public services accountable. Irrespective of a single policy, or task assigned, the expectation is that they will fulfill the task in letter and spirit of utmost professionalism. Often, the need for this accountability is felt in the situations where the plan is questioned and upper management must definitively prove that the approach that was engaged was both meaningful and effective in a number of different areas. Broadly, the middle managers in large organizations perform the following roles: (1) Interpret and represent their work unit's interest; (2) Provide or secure assistance; (3) Establish organizational relationships; (4) Leverage other's time. In short, the middle management serves to holding the apex of management in the balance in the organization and core operating the workforce. More often, the top management may not be able to reach out to the su bordinates. The middle managers play a great role in assisting the management with running the organization such that efficiency and effectiveness of the firm can be achieved. Middle management plays a role towards true representation of the company objectives. They Therefore, the middle managers act as a go between to thevbridge this gap that may exist such that the efforts of all employees are coordinated towards the attainment of the desired goals and objectives in the organization.

The Defining Of Corruption In Governments Politics Essay

The Defining Of Corruption In Governments Politics Essay Corruption as a word is derived from the Latin word corruptus meaning to break up. The use of the word emphasizes the destructive effect of corruption on the fabric of society and the situations where agents and public officers break the confidence entrusted in them Nicholls, Daniel, Polaine, Hatchard, (2006). Johnston, (2005) quoting the works of Nye, (1967); Heidenheinmer, (1970); Scott, (1972); Thompson, (1993); Thompson, (1995); Johnston, (1996); Philip, (1997); and Philip, (2002), stated that definitional issues of corruption is a matter of long-running debate and therefore it is always difficult to settle for any specific definition. He states that the decisive role of the state is reflected in most definitions of corruption, and therefore agrees that corruption is conventionally understood, and referred to, as the private wealth seeking behaviour of someone who represents the state and the public authority. It is the misuse of public resources by public officials, for private gains. The working definition used by the World Bank, Transparency International and others is that corruption is the abuse of public power for private benefit (or profit). Another widely used description is that corruption is a transaction between private and public sector actors through which collective goods are illegitimately converted into private-regarding payoffs (Heidenheimer et al. 1989:6). This point is also emphasized by Rose-Ackerman, who says corruption exists at the interface of the public and private sectors (Rose-Ackerman 1978). In Colin Nyes classical definition, corruption is behaviour that deviates from the formal duties of a public role (elective or appointive) because of private-regarding (personal, close family, private clique) wealth or status gains(Nye 1967:416). Samuel Huntington noted that where political opportunities are scarce, corruption occurs as people use wealth to buy power, and where economic opportunities are few, corruption occurs when political power is used to pursue wealth (Huntington 1968). Huntington (1968), Myrdal (1968) and Scott (1969), believes that corruption is most prevalent during the most intense phase of modernization of a country and tends to decline with institutionalization of advanced democracy (see also Pavarala, 1996). It is however argued that this view cannot explain the prevalence of corruption in advanced industrial democracies because there is now increasing evidence of political corruption and systematic influence peddling in the US and UK (Amick, 1976; Drewry, 1977; Pinto-Duschinsky, 1977; Benson, 1978; Ashworth, 1981; Johnston, 1982; Doig, 1984; Etzioni, 1984). For the purpose of this dissertation, corruption will be defined as the use of public office for private gain provided by Rose-Ackerman (1975, 1978), Becker and Stigler (1974), Klitgaard (1988, 1991), Shleifer and Vishny (1993), Myint, U, 2000; Johnson D.T Zimring F.E, 2005) and Transparency International. This in other words, involves the use of official position, rank or status by an office bearer for his personal benefit. 2.3. Forms of Corruption: There are different forms of corruption, Pedersen and Johannsen (2008); classification by typology, Roebuck and Barker (1974); Heidenheimer, (1989); Alemann (1995); Punch (200); Tserndoodov (2001); and Miller (2003). According to Shah, (2008) corruption is not manifested in one single form. Some scholars group corruption as grand corruption, petty corruption, sporadic corruption, systemic corruption or active and passive corruption base on the stages and magnitude of the malaise, while some like Robinson (2004 p.3) categorized corruption into three main forms: incidental (individual), institutional (for example, the police service) and systemic (societal). However, irrespective of the classification or level of the phenomenon, Vargas-Hernandez (2009), like many other scholars, believe that corruption can be in form of any of the following: bribery, collusion, embezzlement of public funds and theft, fraud, extortion, abuse of discretion, favouritism, clientelism, nepotism, and others. This can be presented in a pictorial form as shown in figure (1) below. Bribery Cronyism Embezzlement Extortion Forms of Corruption Nepotism Conflict of Interest Favouritism Fraud Figure 1. Forms of Corruption In various forms listed in figure (1) above, corrupt activities such as fraud and embezzlement can be undertaken by an official alone and without involvement of a second party. While others such as bribery, extortion and influence peddling involve two parties. There must be a giver and taker in a corrupt deal. The two party type of corruption can arise under a variety of circumstances either in public or private official function. 2.3.1 Bribery: Bribery is defined as the payment for a corrupt act (Zimring Johnson, 2005). A bribery corrupt act is always perpetuated by two or more individuals. Bribery requires collusion between a private citizen and a public employee (Morris, 1991). Albrecht, Albrecht, Albrecht Zimbelman (2009) says bribery involves the offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting of anything of value to influence and official act. According to Myint, (2000), bribes as one of several two party corrupt act offence, involves amongst others, government contracts to determine who gets what contract and the terms of the contract; government benefits like subsidies for importation, permits for explorations and purchase of privatized government corporations; reduction in taxable fees like import duties, custom duties, utility fees, electricity fees and income taxes for both business and private individuals, thus reducing government revenue (See also Rose-Ackerman 2005). It is also argued that bribery c an speed up the wheels of bureaucracy more smoothly and speedily (Myint, 2000); as well as influence the outcome of a legal and regulatory process. A legal definition can be found in (Nicholls, Daniel, Polaine Hatchard, 2006 p. 18). While some theorists like Leff (1964), Leys (1965), Huntington (1968) and Mendez Sepulveda (2006), see bribery under the greasing the wheels hypothesis as payment that is beneficial in alleviating the distortions caused by ill-functioning institutions and thus reducing cost associated with queues (Lui, 1985) (see also Rose-Ackerman 2005, pp. 15-16), it has been established that bribery constitute not only a threat to some countries, but a threat to the future of global security. Osborne (1997) argues that bribery undermines governments by reducing income from taxes, duties, and fees, while increasing the cost of service delivery. He posited that bribery destroys competition and thus companies that bribe their way to a contract or waiver for exploration, loads their prices to cover for the bribes. This creates a spiralling effect that distorts government policies as a result of the personal gain to be derived, subvert company cultures, destabilizes society due to resource diversion, low productivity and making controls ineffective and invariably constituting a threat to global security as a result of drug trafficking, organised crime and terrorism. The most widely quoted bribery statistic is the World Banks worldwide estimate of $1 trillion per year with the total cost of corruption estimated at more than 5% of global GDP (US $2.6 trillion), Cleveland, Favo, Frecka Owens (2010) and the economic effects and ethicality of bribery have been discussed by literally hundreds of sources including Dalton (2006), Gray and Kaufmann (1988), Nichols (1999), and Shaw (2000). 2.3.2. Fraud: Another common corrupt practice is fraud. Fraud is an act of misrepresentation or deception by way of charging for goods or services that was never delivered, changing the specifications or timing on goods and services and their expiration dates, and concealment of funds paid as fees or custom duties. Customs fraud for instance can be the under or over valuation of the value of goods or misclassification and underpayment of taxes. Fraud is the use of misleading information to induce someone to turn over the property voluntarily. According to Albrecht et al (2009 p 7), fraud is a generic term, and embraces all multifarious means which human ingenuity can devise, which are resorted to by one individual, to get an advantage over another by false representationincludes surprise, trickery, cunning and unfair ways by which another is cheated. Fraud is mostly expressed in the form of the Fraud Triangle depicting the three elements of pressure, opportunity and rationalization ( Albrecht, Wernz Williams, 1995). In the public sector therefore, bureaucrats and their private collaborators tend to defraud the public by way of contract inflation, white elephant projects, and poor quality service delivery. In the private sector, fraud is classified variously as employee fraud, vendor fraud, customer fraud, management fraud, investment scams and others (Albrecht et al, 2009). However, the focus of this research is on public sector fraud. 2.3.3. Embezzlement and Theft: These are the form of corruption that is characterized by the taking or conversion of funds, assets or other valuables for private gain. These forms of corruption involve the abuse of public trust on the asset entrusted to the individual. According to Green (2002 p. 99), embezzlement is a crime of specific intent in which a person fraudulently misappropriates or misapplies something that has been legally entrusted to that person but which he or she does not own, thereby usurping the legal owners control For instance, an official can collide with a contractor who is engaged to perform some service and embezzle some of the fund meant for the contract and encourage the contractor to provide a substandard service to be able to recoup the original cost of the contract. Embezzlement therefore is the misappropriation of funds legally entrusted to an official in their formal position as an agent, guardian or trustee. According to Albrecht et al, (2009) embezzle ment is a common type of occupational fraud in both private and public sectors. They posit that employees (or officials) can steal cash, supplies and other assets or establish dummy companies or vendors to pay for goods and services that are not actually delivered. It is however argued (Green, 2002) that determining exactly what constitute embezzlement is sometimes difficult due to legal interpretations of the difference between embezzlement and offense of criminal conversion. 2.3.4. Conflict of Interest: Conflict of interest occurs when an employee (public official) has an undisclosed economic or personal interest in a transaction that will be undertaken by his/her organization. According to Albrecht et al, (2009), conflict of interest involves the exertion of influence by the employee at the detriment of the organization for personal gain or to benefit a friend or relative even though he/she may not received a financial benefit from the act. The conundrum to the conflict of interest is a situation where a public official may have to decline engaging competent and qualified person/organization for the supply of goods or services simple because he/she has a vested economic interest in the supplying organization. However, Albrecht et al, posits that to be classified as a conflict of interest, scheme, the officials interest in the transaction must be undisclosed, and thus the organization is not aware of his/her divided loyalty. 2.3.5. Cronyism: It refers to favorable treatment of friends and associates in the distribution of resources and positions without regard to their objective qualifications and professionalism. 2.3.6. Favoritism: Generally, favouritism, nepotism and clientelism involve abuses of discretion. Such abuses, however, are governed not by the self-interest of an official but the interests of someone linked to him or her through membership of a family, political party, tribe, religious or other group. If an individual bribes an official to hire him or her, the official acts in self-interest. If a corrupt official hires a relative, he or she acts in exchange for the less tangible benefit of advancing the interests of family or the specific relative involved (nepotism). The favouring of, or discriminating against, individuals can be based on a wide range of group characteristics: race, religion, geographical factors, political or other affiliation, as well as personal or organizational relationships, such as friendship or membership of clubs or associations. Favoritism takes place when one favors or prefers acquaintances, friends and family over strangers. It becomes corruption when public (and private sector) officials unfairly distribute positions and resources to colleagues. 2.3.7. Nepotism: Nepotism is used to indicate a form of favoritism that involves family relationships. It describes situations in which a person exploits his or her power and authority to procure jobs or other favors for relatives 2.3.8. Extortion: It is the illegal demand or receipt of property or money through the use of force or threat. According to Morris (1991), extortion in contrast to bribery, is a is a situation where the public official influences the behavior of a citizen through the use of negative sanctions as a threat further to abuse authority to induce cooperation. This is also widely referred to as graft. 2.4. Historical Context of corruption in Nigeria and Britain 2.4.1. Nigeria A comparative perspective on corruption provides insight about the role of this peculiar form of crime in various cultures and stages of development (Johnson D.T. Zimring F.E, 2007). The global perception of Nigeria on corruption should therefore be seen in its proper historical context by undertaking a comparative review of the historical evolution of the country and the colonial legacy (Olaleye-Oruene, 2007). Olaleye-Oruene argues that an examination of the Nigerian traditional business ethos prior to contact with Europeans, especially the British, indicates that corruption is not a cultural norm of the Nigerian people pre-colonial. In the Nigerian culture, an inducement by one party for the purpose of gaining an advantage over a competitor would be paramount to an insult and indeed an effrontery to the party awarding the contract. However, there is little documentation on African and Nigerian commercial and administrative transactions before the advent of colonialism to support t his believe. It is therefore on this note that the considered base for any empirical write-up on corruption in Nigeria can only be done from the colonial era. In the 1700 1800s, corruption especially political corruption (Willis 2002, p.151) was seen as a major problem in Britain only partly addressed by electoral reforms in the 19th century and thus during the Balkanization of the African continent that took place in Berlin in 1884-1885, the British which took control of the Northern and Southern Nigeria, imported its legal system, education and economic culture (Olaleye-Oruene, 2007). According to Olaleye-Oruene, European values endorses corruption in view of the commonality and political and corporate corruption found in many countries both eastern and western, with Germany, Britain, Italy, France, Belgium and the Netherlands in the West and therefore the sub-culture of corruption is seen as the acceptable face of capitalism and any form of commercial transactions with the West, notably with multinationals at the time. Foreign-sponsored bribery tends to be held by many observers in developing countries as the most significant contribut ing factor to corruption (Andvig Fjeldstad, 2000). To many commentators like Bloom, (2010) Western companies constitute the main culprits of the corruption syndrome in most developing countries. Quoting Transparency International, he said that the most corrupt industries are arms, construction and oil, and many western companies are helping to line peoples pockets illegally by selling wrong equipment, and dams and roads are built in the wrong place for no better reason other than the politicians can get their kick backs. See also Tanzi, Davoodi, (1997); Hunt and Laszlo, (2005); and Svensson, (2003). This is the situation Nigeria found itself when the country was amalgamated between the south and the north in 1914. In attempting to tackle the menace of the scourge as been treated in Britain in the earlier 18th century, the then British Colonial Administration promulgated the Nigerian Criminal Code in 1916, Ch. XII, with sections 98 and 116 dealing with corruption. The Code made it an offence corruptly to give or receive any gift or other advantage as an inducement to influence the conduct of any . . . officer or servant of any public body as defined in the code. It is punishable with a maximum of 14 years imprisonment and/or fine (Olaleye-Oruene, T. 2007, p.232). However, fitting as the buck shifting may be, the Nigerian perpetrators of corruption or pen-robbers (as they are euphemistically known) have superseded the Europeans in the art of corruption by making it the lifestyle of the body politic. Corruption is no longer confined to government contracts where the perpetrators share the loot of the graft, but percolates to every nook and cranny of the civil service and local government, political hierarchy, both civil and military, and even the church. It is widely noted that the judiciary is tainted by trials settled with bribes . . . universities are tarnished by the trade in diplomas (also bribery as means of gaining entry into universities) . . . the nobility has been mocked by the sale of chieftaincy titles . . . In other words, the majority of public officials are expected to be bribed for performing the duty which constitutes the terms of contract of their employment. For instance, messengers are regarded as powerful because they contr ol the movement of files and could bury the files if anyone fails to bribe them (Olaleye-Oruene, 2007 p.234). According to BBCs Caroline Duffield in Lagos, extortion of civilians and bribery of police is a fact of life in Nigeria often taking place in public and in broad daylight (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-11001624) and the former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Nuhu Ribadu while speaking with the US Congress Financial Services Committee in May 2009, state that Nigeria have lost about $440 billion to corruption since independence in 1960. The question therefore is where did Nigeria get it wrong? Can the country continue to blame the British Colonialist considering that Britain has shed off its corruption tag of the 19th century? Several reasons have been adduced for this state of affairs such as prolonged military dictatorship; lack of political will to tackle corruption; lack of national plan; and the cultural tolerance of corruption and corrupt leadership and the absence of enforcement of the law against corruption. Corruption in public life in Nigeria manifested itself in the 1950s to 1960s with the first penal inquiry on the African Continental Bank (ACB) and Nnamdi Azikiwe affairs with a Justice Strafford Forster-Sutton commission in 1957; the Justice G.B. Coker Commission in 1962 to look into the activities of the then Western region government led by Chief Awolowo and the National Investment and Property company. However, it is widely believed that the malaise started to become a public way of life during the military regimes of General Gown, (Ministry of Defence cement importation scandal), General Obasanjo, (Missing N2.8 Billion from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation) and the subsequent pr omulgation of Decree No.11 of 1976 (Public officers Protection Against False Accusation) seen as the arming of corrupt government officials with immunity and a carte blanche to be above the law (Nwaobi, G.C. 2004). From the Military administration of Gen. Obasanjo in 1976 to President Obasanjo in 1999, there have been many looting of the Nigerian Commonwealth by its leaders and their cronies and such funds deposited in foreign bank accounts that may or may not ever be recovered again. The corruption activities of the Shagari civilian regime and the dictatorial military regimes of Buhari, Babangida, Abacha and even Abdulsalam are well documented in Nigeria (Nwaobi, 2004). The subject of this dissertation will not permit a detail review of the corruption cases in these regimes; however, a table highlighting some of the looted funds is attached as appendix 1. 2.4.2. Great Britain. Concern about corruption is as old as the history of government. In 350 BCE, Aristotle suggested in The Politics, To protect the treasury from being defrauded, let all money be issued openly in front of the whole city, and let copies of the accounts be deposited in various wards. The UK has widely been seen as the model of the non-corrupt industrial democracy (Adonis, 1997). However, a look into the UK history in the last few centuries will portray a society once rife with all forms of corruption. Willis (2002, p.151) quoting Lever 1971 and Denning 1981, stated that the court of King James I of England was once described in the following terms: this is a tale of extravagance, waste, corruption and vice unprecedented sums of money were squandered Titles and government offices were bought and sold. Through Monopolies, tax-farming and appropriation of public land for private purposes the entire national economy was fleeced by parasitic rulers and their cronies Also quoting Williams (1960), Willis said that corruption was the major avenue of securing election to parliament, forming government and staying in government. Therefore buying a seat in parliament out of your own resources was almost the only mode by which parliament was accessible with honour to those who had no family connection or local patron. The Anti-Bribery Act (Last Determination Act 1729, 2 Geo II c 24) called an Act for the more effectual preventing bribery and corruption in election of members to serve in Parliament; The Place Act 1742 (15 Geo II c 22); and Burkes Place Act 1782 (22 Geo III c 45) were some of the early measures taken between the century 1729 to 1832 to curb bribery and corruption in the British political and administrative system. In Britain, the practice of corruption was so rampant in the late 19th century as to necessitate the enactment of a private members bill, the Public Bodies Corrupt Practices Act 1889, in order to implement the recommendation made in 1888 in an interim report by the Royal Commission which investigated various malpractices by the Metropolitan Board of Works. In the decade either side of the First World War a succession of corruption scandals seriously clouded the government of Prime Minister David Lloyd George (Adonis, 1997) In the last half century however, Britain invariably scores highly in indices on integrity in public life despite evidence of underlying and persistent corruption (Doig, 1984, 1995, 1996) as quoted in Doig, (2004). Evidence of bribery and the misuse of public office for partisan or personal benefit has invariably been treated as episodic and personalized. When identified, such as the Poulson scandal of the 1970s; the cash -for- question scandals in the House of Commons in the 1990s; the corruption at the local government council levels like the Lambeth borough council in 1993 and the recent Expenses scandals involving MPs in 2009, cases have been subject to investigations that have dealt with the offenders while confirming the general integrity of institutions and the robustness of the procedures involved in dealing with the offences. At the same time, British political and administrative life has pragmatically so ordered its affairs that the need for corruption has been widely minim ized. Thus members of the executive and senior civil servants are unlikely even to be offered, let alone accept, bribes from government contractors while in office and from the latter half of the nineteenth, into the early twentieth century, political and administrative leaderships were able to introduce measures that precluded membership of Parliament as a means of personal profit in return for government support; required verbal disclosure of financial interests; curbed payments for honours; disengaged MPs and ministers from the spoils and patronage systems that dominated traditional politics; introduced constraints on civil servants moving to the private sector; outlawed voter bribery, and introduced anticorruption legislation for both public and private sectors (Doig, 2003). While it should be remembered that corruption and misconduct did not necessarily disappear during this period, allegations invariably provoked some form of official inquiry that was often used as a vehicle f or some general statement of the principles of conduct. It is therefore not surprising that Britain is rated highly above Nigeria in the Transparency Internationals corruption perception index. 2.5. Theoretical Empirical Works on Corruption: Corruption generally has attracted a great deal of attention in both academic and non-academic circles as reflected through an increased number of studies devoted to the topics. There is a growing body of theoretical and empirical studies within the economics literature examining the factors contributing to corruption and corruptibility within the public service. This will be looked into as below: 2.5.1. Theories on Corruption: Existing theories fail to differentiate various forms of corruption. Morris, (1991 p. 10), states that most theoretical arguments posit a major causal agent as producing corruption; non really specifies what type of corruption may result or what specific factors may relate to different corrupt acts This could be as a result of the difficult nature of defining what really constitute corruption. According to deGraaf (2007), most definitions of corruption are focused on social constructivism and thus it is based on what is considered as corruption at a certain place and at a particular time. In his studies of corruption in the Western countries, he theorized six causes of corruption which will also be considered below: Principal Agent Theory: One of the standard frameworks used in the theoretical analysis of corruption is the principal-agent model. A principal can be a person or an organization, in the case of this research, a government. The model holds that on behalf of the principal, the agent interacts with a client and thus may commit corruption if in his analysis, the benefits outweighs the costs. Using this model researchers like (Bardhan, 1997; Klitgaard, 1988; Rose-Ackerman, 1978) have investigated the trade-offs between the expected costs and benefits of corrupt acts. The reasons for the considered economic benefit may include such as lower wages (Becker and Stigler, 1974; Chand and Moene, 1999; Mookherjee and Png, 1995), social welfare (Becker and Stigler, 1974; Khalil and Lawarree, 1995; Mookherjee and Png, 1995) and greed (de Graaf, 2007). The Principal-Agent theory considers corruption at the micro-model and the agent makes his/her decisions based on a benefit versus costs and thus i f the agent chooses not to be corrupt, they receive a payoff that is the sum of their regular pay plus the moral satisfaction of not being a corrupt. According to Klitgaard as quoted by Chan (2000), the cost depends on his/her own ethical, cultural and religious standards; influence of peers and colleagues; the size and magnitude of the bribe and responsibilities to the principal. Economic Rent and corruption equation: All economic agents are maximizing their individual utility that is personal welfare (wealth). Therefore, selfish interests of economic agents are the basic motive for economic transactions between them. A common thread in these models is that the government is led by a benevolent dictator (the principal), who aims to motivate government officials (agents) to act with integrity in the use of public resources (see Banfield 1975; Becker 1968, 1983; Becker and Stigler 1974; Klitgaard 1988, 1997; Rose-Ackerman 1975, 1978). Resources are allocated to the activities that provide the greatest returns on investment (an allocation decision). Rent by economic definition is a factor of income above the competitive returns (opportunity costs) of the factor and thus because rent appropriations will maximize individual utility (welfare), economic agents are engaged in the rent-seeking process, the process of creation and distribution (appropriation) of rent. Theoretically speaking, rent can be created in a few distinctive ways, but in reality the most significant rent generator is government intervention through the violation of free market operations by way of regulations. In his classical Corruption Equation, Kiltgaard, (1998) postulates that: Corruption Equation C=R+D A Where C= Corruption, R= Economic Rent D= Discretionary powers A= Accountability. In the equation, Kiltgaard posits that Corruption (C) will exist if more opportunities for Economic Rent ( R) exist in a country and that the greater the discretionary powers (D) granted to administrators (bureaucrats, leaders, politicians etc) the more the chances of corruption. However, the equation states that the more administrators are held Accountable (A) for their actions, the less will be corruption. This is designated by the minus sign in front of A. Stated differently, the equation tells us that a fertile ground for growth of a thoroughly corrupt system will emerge in a country if it satisfies the following three conditions: It has a large number of laws, rules, regulations, and administrative orders to restrict business and economic activities and thereby creates huge opportunities for generating economic rent, and especially if these restrictive measures are complex and opaque and applied in a selective, secretive, inconsistent and non-transparent way; Administrators are granted large discretionary powers with respect to interpreting rules, are given a lot of freedom to decide on how rules are to be applied, to whom and in what manner they are to be applied, are vested with powers to amend, alter, and rescind the rules, and even to supplement the rules by invoking new restrictive administrative measures and procedures; and There are no effective mechanisms and institutional arrangements in the country to hold administrators accountable for their actions. The Public/Rational Choice Theory: Like most white-collar crimes, corruption has been seen as a crime of rational choice where the causal chain is that of an individual making a rational decision that leads to a predetermined outcome (de Graaf, 2007). According to de Graaf, the individual corrupt official tries to maximize his utility by rationally calculating when to become corrupt if its expected advantages outweigh its expected disadvantages (a combination of possible penalty and the chance of being caught). Rose-Ackeman (1978), posits that public officials are corrupt simply because they perceive that the potential benefits of corruption exceeds that potential costs. See also Klitgaard, (1988), Gambetta, 1993). This theory is supported by works of Hirschi and Gottfredson (1987) Shover and Hochstetler (2006), and Simpson (2009) in their rational choice theories on white-collar crimes. The rational choice theory, unlike others concentrates on a specific situation of an agent who ca lculates the pros and cons ignoring the larger social context that breeds corruption. Its focus on the officials calculation of the ensuing trade-off as a motivation leaves a gapping question of why some officials especially in the Western countries are not corrupt. The Bad Apple (Anomie) Theory: This theory also looks at the level of an individual for the causal effect of corruption. Most studies on

American Directness and the Japanese Essay -- Essays Papers

American Directness and the Japanese American and Japanese ways of speaking are so different that they often cause culture shock to both Americans and Japanese who visit each other's country. Most Japanese who come to the United States are at first shocked and have a problem with the American direct way of speaking. Culture shock occurs because most Japanese cannot easily escape from the formula "politeness= indirectness." Compared to the American way of speaking, Japanese speak much more indirectly. Directness is considered a form of impoliteness in Japan. Therefore, when we want to be polite, we speak and act very indirectly. For example, we seldom say, "I'll go to a bathroom," except when we are with close friends. Usually, we say, "I'll go wash my hands." Especially when we are at the table or with an important person, we say only, "Excuse me. I'll be back in a minute" because we do not want to remind other people of the bathroom, which is considered a dirty place, even though it is actually clean. Also, other Japanese can infer that we are going to a bathroom from this phrase. But Americans cannot. They ask where we are going since they have no idea what we are going to do: make a phone call? buy something? Yet, in this case, these questions make Japanese frustrated, wondering why these Ame ricans do not understand our polite expression. Basically, expressing our desire directly is not considered polite, and culture shock happens to Japanese when Americans expect us to express our feelings honestly. Concerning appetite, when we are guests, we are unlikely to say, "I'm hungry." We put up with hunger until we are asked, "Aren't you hungry?" Even when we answer the question, we want to stay polite, so we never say, "Yes.... ...ure shocks to Japanese who come to the States. The difference between American and Japanese ways of speaking can cause us some bad experiences at first; however, once we get accustomed to the direct speech of Americans, it is more convenient than the Japanese way. First, we can say what we want. Second, we do not have to hesitate to tell the truth in order to be polite. Finally, it frees us from unnecessary misunderstandings. The third point makes us happy because it makes us feel we have adjusted ourselves to American society at last. Compared to Americans trying to learn the Japanese way of speech, we are supposed to have much less difficulty learning the American way. At first, it might seem to be difficult, but in a few months, we will find ourselves comfortable in the direct speech of the Americans and may be in trouble when speaking with newcomers from Japan.

Caferoma’s Marketing Manager Essay

In the last two years, caferoma’s share of the quality ground coffee market has declined by almost 30 % (see chart). there are several reason for this: brand loyalty: consumers have become less loyal to brands and more price conscious. they are willing to buy lower-priced coffee product. price: supermarket are selling, under their own label, similar products to caferoma at much lower prices. Copycat producto: competing products of italian-style ground coffee are selling at price 30 to 40% lower than caferoma Brand Image: the caferoma brand no longer seems to be exciting and up-to-date. Repositioning the products: change caferoma’s image to appeal to a different market segment. (which segment? what changes to taste, quality, packaging, logo labelling, distribution?) princing reduce the price by, say. 20% to 30% so that it is in the medium range of price. advertising develop a new advertising campà ¡ing to relaunch the brand. multiple brand: sell caferoma, with small changes to product, under different brand names at lower prices. own brand label product: allow supermarket to sell Caferoma under the supermarket own brand label’s. Continue to market the Caferoma brand at the same time. A new product: Bring out an instant coffee or decaffeinated product under the caferoma brand as soon as possible. Stretching the brand: Allow some makers of coffee equipament (cafetieres, percolators, coffee, machines, etc.) to use the caferoma brand on their goods, for a licensing fee. Claudia, Caferoma’s Marketing Manager, has some recent new from one of Caferoma’s biggest customers, Majestic Hotels, a major European hotels chain. She discusses the news with Caferoma’s Sales Director, Pietro. Listen to their conversation. how does this new inormation affect your decisions? writing write an e mail to Caferoma’s Managing Director, Mario Cumino. Summarise what action you agreed to take at the meeting to solve Caferoma’s problem Explain your reasons. task as members of PEFD’s marketing team, hold an informal meeting. consider the advantages and disadvantage of each solution. then decide what to do stop the decline in the product’s market share and to increase profits

Samuel P. Huntington’s essay on the Clash of Civilization Review

Samuel P. Huntington’s essay on the Clash of Civilizations can be summarized as a snapshot of the current state of political affairs of the world through the lens of western civilization. Throughout the paper the author had made numerous hypotheses that stated while nation states will remain a powerful and formidable force in the foreseeable future, it is the non-visible boundaries of civilizations that will shape the future of conflicts and forge allies as well as adversaries. The author has drawn from history in creating his assumption that current and future conflicts will be founded on the basis of civilizations as opposed to kingdoms and emperors.Huntington had stated that with the rise of governments â€Å"for the people† that â€Å"†¦the  wars of the peoples had begun† signaling a major change in why mankind has waged warfare. As such, populations of each respective culture will more than likely form alliances with populations from their own civiliz ations and forge enemies with those they have no common ground with. The author doesn’t take the time to explain the â€Å"why† this phenomena is occurring but chooses to merely gloss over any underlying reasons it may be happing and instead reiterate that it is in fact occurring.Many assumptions are made throughout the paper by evidence of a lack of adequate sources for many hypotheses which would leave the reader to assume that what is said is merely â€Å"common knowledge†. The author glazes over major historical events which had demonstrated peoples from different cultures and civilizations working together towards economic benefit such as the Silk Road.1Persuasion of the TheoristSamuel P. Huntington’s essay on the Clash of Civilizations is persuasive in historical anecdotes and real world current events. Most of Huntington’s essay need not say anything more then what is already repeated on major media outlets around the world. The essay states what has long been opposed by the far left; namely, that people choose to interact, trade and form alliances with â€Å"like peoples†. It then, shouldn’t come as a surprise that the author needs to say little in order to sway an audience to his hypothesis by simply relating real world events such as rising nationalism in Russia2, Greece3 and France.One only has to look at the Anglo sphere of alliances in areas of conflict in the Middle East to find that Huntington’s persuasive argument is a narrative of real world events4. Non-Western nations that hope to transition into modern nations form alliances with Western nations but such alliances only serve to further destroy the credibility of the elites within those non-western countries. The elites are viewed simply as â€Å"puppets† of foreign interest.The rise of extremist organizations such as Hezbollah that have successfully achieved legitimacy through the democratic process of their respective nation st ates further proves that the will of the people in non-western countries is not to be â€Å"let into the club† so to speak, but to form their indepedent civilizations identity while modernizing their economies and infrastructure. Huntington’s essay was able to be persuasive due to how it presented historical  information in light of real world events but failed to mention historical periods that saw massive growth in economic trade and cross pollination of civilizations such as the silk road 6, Incense Road7 or even the lesser known Tea Horse Road 8.Threats, Challenges, and OpportunitiesSamuel P. Huntington’s essay can alternatively be summed up as a threat brief and the challenges it bears provide little opportunity for western nations to exploit economic ventures in developing nations. However, Huntington’s essay does provide a ray of light by illuminating the opportunities Western nations have to form and cultivate defense, economic and intellectual relationships within their own civilizations9. Hunting has shown that civilizations that are similar generally avoid conflicts in national security and economic trade while the reverse seems to only exacerbate the two.This presents a unique opportunity for western nations to carefully examine who they consider as allies and coalition partners while also providing incentives for rethinking our security strategy of disarmament while simultaneously attempting to dissuade developing nations from increasing their arsenals. When one begins to look at current events and policies through the lens of civilizations it becomes apparent that many of our previous alliances with those different from us had been doomed from the start as evidence by the low participation rates of countries from East Asia who only sent token forces for operations in OIF and OEF.One could easily support Hunting’s warning of working together with unlike civilizations by simply looking at the debacle of the Sout h Korea armed forces in Afghanistan and its failure to support US operations while despite US forces that had shed blood on their soil in order in conflicts past10.Analysis of the Future Operational EnvironmentIn reviewing Samuel P. Huntington’s essay on the Clash of Civilizations it is painfully obvious that our previous alliances had been formed on convenience rather than an introspective look into who â€Å"we† as Americans are and how our supposed allies view our relationships. Do our current noticeable dearth of allies view themselves as western nations, are they simply trying to â€Å"join the club† or are they simply biding their time until  they can switch alliances to a group that resembles their civilization and values more than we do?It is my opinion based upon token efforts from allies during wartime, combined with an eager willingness to negotiate with terrorist and non-state actors that our current slew of â€Å"allies† are a bigger threat than some of our enemies. If present conflicts dictate what future areas of concern will be, we should form stronger alliances with like minded civilizations that have already proven their dedication to our shared values such as Poland11, Georgia and former East Bloc countries that have taken similar stances against terrorism by deeds and not words.Based upon the technological advantage and intellectual innovation I would argue that the â€Å"where† US forces might deploy is irrelevant compared to â€Å"who† we might deploy with. Potential enemies to western interest will remain non-western countries for the foreseeable future and despite Russia’s growing nationalism and desire to increase its military strength it will remain an economic defunct nation susceptible to the effects of brain drain12 and disenfranchisement of its middle class.The issues and concerns of redefining our allies along the thread of a common civilization will greatly increase the complexi ty of logistics in military operations due to our geographic locations as compared to those of our advesaries. For example, due to past examples of cowardice; such as negotiating with terrorist, if the US would remove South Korea as an ally it would have increased logistical challenges in dealing with North Korea and China should tensions continue to escalate.One would be safe to assume that South Korea would naturally befriend China, a country with a history and civilization similar to its own, which would rule out the possibility of using such a former â€Å"friend† as a logistic hub for staging operations. However such friends have only proven to be costly relationships in the long lung which seldom paid dividends for services rendered unto them in their time of need. The Western way of warfare has been one of discipline and the leveraging of technology in order to gain tactical superiority over our enemies.As such, we should look to cultivate advanced technologies with na tions that share our civilizations culture and use the inherent technological innovations of these cultures to develop weapons systems that will give us the necessary edge to engage and destroy our enemies. By doing  so, western civilization such as the United States of America would not have to get into bed with nation states of civilizations much different than our own whose motives remain unclear and questionable.

Capstone Project on Audio Production

Capstone Project on Audio Production Capstone Project on Audio Production: Many people are now thinking of making a career in media entertainment, which is mostly due to fast money, fame and power. However, little do most of the people entering into the entertainment industry know about the industry itself? It takes natural talents to emerge as a good entertainer in which if you are lacking then by trying will be like pushing a wall. It will not be correct to point out that, having a career in audio presentation and recoding is without any challenges however, being good at it encouraging enough to face its challenges. Having gone to school in a multi-media college, the ability to differentiate sounds has been an encouraging factor as it has been easier to know what the ears can categorize as music and a random noise. it has been to my concern that many producers lack this ability, and while most of them have considered their careers successful, they have gone as far as choosing music at random for their production not because they lack the ability to choose but due to the fact that, as more they produce the more they get richer. This is not the case being discussed here, music may be seen as just a rhythmical sound but when you look at it deeper you find that, it has to follow a certain path. And while theoretically it will be hard to get this path, practically it is easier as one continues to learn through experience. Becoming a professional in music career requires adaptation to the different sounds that will be directed toward ones ears. It is important that one learns how to trust his own ears as well as make judgment from what he has heard. This is important to ensure the possibilities for correction. In addition to that, learning how to overcome the weakness of trusting one own ears ensures or comes with the strength that is required to have in order to know how somebody would lay down a particular mix. In addition to that, by taking several courses in music instruments such as guitar playing enhances the experience as well as the ability to know which sounds should be combined for one to come up with a good musical sound. While this is important it is also good that one should acquire knowledge of how he is going to approach live music such as FOH. It is important to understand the fact that live music is different from music being developed in a studio. The sounds are much louder while monitoring it requires better understanding of how to tune the equipment being used. On the other hand, studio music is constrained to a particular sound prof room while its monitoring is done by the use of a computer that is connected to special equipment. While one learns on how to become a music producer, it is also essential for him to gain information on how broadcasting studios work. Most of the music produced is made public through the broadcasting studio and thus it is important for one to have the required knowledge on how to broadcast an audio. The same goes for multi tracking and recoding levels required on a CD. This will ensure that one has all the aspects of a good music producer while trying to overcome challenges in the production industry being a major aspect of his career.

EVALUATING NORTH AMERICAN HEALTH SYSTEMS Essays - Health Economics

EVALUATING NORTH AMERICAN HEALTH SYSTEMS Essays - Health Economics EVALUATING NORTH AMERICAN HEALTH SYSTEMS I received an 78% in a third year Public Finance Course for this paper. Criticisms were that I did not detail why private enterprise does not work. Also that a couple of paragraphs were too long. I am a third year Bachelor of Science student majoring in Economics. EVALUATING NORTH AMERICAN HEALTH SYSTEMS INTRODUCTION Compensating the affairs of economic efficiency with the demands of sociopolitical rights is a constant source of tension in Canada and the United States alike. In no other element is this tension more apparent than in the group of complex markets we call the health care system. Canadians have been fortunate enough to receive a universal health care system for nearly forty years. This is a single-payer system funded by the governments, both provincial and federal, but at what costs? Is health care not unlike any other commodity, or is it the privilege of every citizen? Health care has elements of common economic behavior, however, there are also certain social values associated with it. It is this struggle of defining what health care is that causes such anxiety among economists. The Canadian health care system is slowly crippling the economy, and reforms must be devised to preserve the pride of Canada; our health care system itself. The pluralistic health care scheme of the United States, as well, has serious socioeconomic implications, and American policy makers are looking toward the model of the Canadian system for answers. Both the United States and Canada must reform health care policy, but to what extent? Obviously these questions cannot necessarily yield clear, concise answers, however they will provide insight into analyzing the current and proposed systems of health care. Certainly if Canada is to maintain a high standard of care it must adopt an economically efficient, revenue generating system. Moreover the United States must adopt the single-payer system of Canada while still retaining a strong revenue base. This paper will discuss the strengths and shortcomings of the Canadian health care system, and how health care is a sociopolitical enigma. Furthermore, how the single-payer system is the only realistic response to the growing inadequacies within the American socioeconomic status. CANADIAN HEALTH CARE STRUCTURE Serving as a general background in its appraisal, it is necessary to outline the history and the ambient factors of the Canada health care that is so sought after by the United States. The Canadian health-insurance program, called Medicare, is administered by provincial governments and regulated and partly financed by the national government. Medicare pays basic medical and hospital bills for all Canadians, where the governments determine the criterion of basic care, to insure and maintain a standard level of service. As early as 1919, Canadas Liberal party promised national health insurance, but the first real step was taken in Saskatchewan, where in 1947 province wide hospital insurance was introduced. A national hospital-insurance act followed in 1958, and by 1960, 99% of Canadians were covered by government run hospital insurance. Saskatchewan was again the first in 1961 to introduce medical-care insurance which covered doctors services as well. However, this was not an easy tra nsformation. In 1962 when the medical insurance act was implemented, the doctors of Saskatchewan went on strike. As a part of the settlement the government agreed to a modified plan that addressed some of the doctors grievances. Despite the opposition from provinces, doctors and insurance companies, national Medicare legislation was in place by 1967, and today health care is a constitutional right. The arrangement reached by all provinces by 1972 was that the federal government paid half the cost of the provincial plans, provided the plans met five principles: accessibility, universality of coverage, portability from province to province, comprehensiveness of service, and government administration. Under the system the health care provider bills the provincial plan directly. The Canadian Health Act, effective in 1984, clarified the national standards and may penalize provinces that allow doctors to bill for more than the Medicare rate. The Canadian provinces spend a third of their budgets on health and hospitals. High-tech medicine and an aging population have caused Canadas medical costs to rise significantly over the past decade. Increasingly, governments attempt to control costs by promoting personal fitness, cutting back the number

A Guide to Solstices and Equinoxes

A Guide to Solstices and Equinoxes Solstices and equinoxes are interesting terms that show up each year on our calendars. They are related to astronomy and the motions of our planet. Most people think of them as the start of a season. Thats true as far as a date on a calendar is concerned, but they dont necessarily predict climate or weather. The terms solstice and equinox are related to specific positions of the Suns in the sky throughout the year. Of course, the Sun doesnt move through our sky. But, it appears to move because Earth is turning on its axis, like a merry-go-round. People on a merry-go-round see people appear to move around them, but its really the ride thats moving. Its the same with Earth. As the planet spins around, people see the Sun appear to rise in the east and set in the west.  The Moon, planets,  and stars all appear to do the same thing, for the same reason.   Precessional movement of Earths pole. Earth turns on its axis once a day (shown by the white arrows). The axis is indicated by the red lines coming out the top and bottom poles. The white line is the imaginary line the pole traces out as Earth wobbles on its axis. NASA Earth Observatory adaptation How Are Solstices and Equinoxes Determined? Watch the sunrise and sunset each day (and remember never to look directly AT our hot, bright Sun), and notice its rise and set points change throughout the year. Notice also that the Suns position in the sky at noon is farther north at some times of year and more southerly at other times. The sunrise, sunset, and zenith points slide slowly to the north from December 21-22 to June 20-21 each year. Then, they appear to pause before starting the slow daily slide toward the south, from June 20-21st (the northernmost point) to December 21-22 (the southernmost point). Those stopping points are called the solstices (from the Latin  sol,  which means sun, and sistere,  which means stand still). These terms stem back to a time when early observers had no knowledge of Earths motions in space but did notice that the Sun appeared to stand still at its northernmost and southernmost points, before resuming its apparent motion south and north (respectively). Solstices Summer solstice is the longest day of the year for each hemisphere. For northern hemisphere observers, the June solstice (the 20th or 21st), marks the beginning of summer. In the southern hemisphere, thats the shortest day of the year and marks the beginning of winter. Six months later, on December 21st or 22nd, winter begins with the shortest day of the year for northern hemisphere people. Its the start of summer and the longest day of the year for people south of the equator. This is why such solstices are now called the December and June solstices, rather than winter or summer solstices. It recognizes that the seasons for each hemisphere correspond to north or south location.   The Greek astronomer Hipparchus was the first to discover and chart the equinoxes. Getty Images   Equinoxes Equinoxes are also connected to this slow change of apparent solar position. The term equinox comes from two Latin words aequus (equal) and nox (night). The Sun rises and sets exactly due east and due west on the equinoxes, and day and night are of equal length. In the northern hemisphere, the March equinox marks the first day of spring, while its the first day of autumn in the southern hemisphere. The September equinox is the first day of fall in the north and the first day of spring in the south.   So, the solstices and equinoxes are important calendar points that come to us from the apparent position of the Sun in our sky. They are also intimately connected to the seasons but are not the sole reason why we have seasons. The reasons for the seasons  are linked to Earths tilt and its position as it orbits the Sun.   Observing the Solstices and Equinoxes Charting the moments of solstice and equinox is a year-long observation project. Take a moment each day to observe the sky; notice sunrise or sunset and mark where those occur along your horizon. After a few weeks, its very easy to note a  very distinct shift of the positions north or south. Check out the appearance points of sunrise and sunset against the printed calendar and see how close they come to matching. Its a great long-term science activity for anyone to do, and has been the subject of more than a few science fair projects!   While the original ideas about solstices and equinoxes hark back to a time in human history when sky observers had no way of knowing about our planets motions in space, they still mark important dates that give people clues about the change of seasons. Today, ancient astronomical markers such as Stonehenge remind us that people have been looking to the sky, and measuring its motions, since the dawn of human history.

Task 3 Individual integrative report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Task 3 Individual integrative report - Essay Example s main e-marketing tools are Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and social networking which are regarded as one of the best marketing strategies with high ROI indexes. They also participate on common platforms where several airlines club together to make their offers. However, many airlines are using such marketing tools and QA is not unique in its approach. The report describes QA’s B2B relation from both sell side and buy side. They provide online duty-free shopping which means they have partnered with the suppliers of these goods. They also partner with hotel chains as a means to enhance their customer service. QA is affiliating with other websites to promote its website in order to attract value adding suppliers to partner, which will then draw more customer visits. In analysis, QA’s website has a fresh and contemporary look and an easy to navigate web design. It was found that the website has a high degree of accessibility meeting all audiences’ needs and requirements. The links and information are neatly displayed on the home page and are neatly categorized. The colour theme matches its corporate identity. They also have a separate corporate section. The report found that QA not only allows booking, paying and printing e-tickets, but passengers can even check-online as much as 36 hours in advance. They can even decide on the class of travel depending on the seat comfort they are looking, again based on short or long flights. Online check-in demo is also available on the website for the first time users. Thus they seem to be exploiting the internet technology to its advantage. Based on the Analysis of QA’s application of internet technology, it is recommended that they have a currency converter on the website as they have people from all over globe booking through the website. As of now they have tied up only with 5 star chain hotels but they do have economy class passengers also who may book hotels of lower category if it is offered through QA’s

Psychology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 4

Psychology - Essay Example Piaget divided development into a Sensiormotor Stage (birth to age 2), a Preoperational Stage (ages 2-7), a Concrete Operational Stage (ages 7-11), and a Formal Operational Stage (ages 11- adult). Each stage is marked by certain abilities, such as the ability to understand conservation of mater or the ability for hypothetical thinking. Erikson’s work closely resembles Piaget’s, but it is showing the development of a person’s social intelligence and self-awareness, not cognitive ability. Erikson believed that we went through eight different levels of psychosocial development, each one possessing a unique crisis for the individual’s understanding of who they are and where they fit into society. Stage 1 is Trust v. Mistrust, Stage 2 is Autonomy v. Doubt, Stage 3 is Initiative v. Guilt, Stage 4 is Industry v. Inferiority, Stage 5 is Identity v. Role Confusion, Stage 6 is Intimacy v. Isolation, Stage 7 is Generativity v. Self-absorption and Stage 8 is Integrity v. Despair. Erikson suggests that if the conflict of each stage is not successfully resolved, the final adult will be a person that has emotional baggage. They will have a difficult time reconciling conflicting feelings that should have been resolved at an earlier stage. Both of these theories are as relevant today as they have ever been. Students may use different technology and have a different social environment than they once did, but they still must follow these stages of development in order to be fully functional human

Reflection On Entrepreneurship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Reflection On Entrepreneurship - Essay Example The situation that was in the offing was a creation of six group members. The aim of the group in implementation of the entrepreneurship experimental learning was to look into all the available social avenues to search for an entrepreneur and have him/her respond to their questionnaire. The main issue about the interview was to try and get knowledge of his ability and how he has managed to succeed in the competitive business world. The method of searching for an entrepreneur was to be open and given the high availability of the social networks, all the group members were hopeful of a useful choice being found. Actions That Were Implemented As stated, the choice of an entrepreneur is not an easy task because in most cases the people who are known are the executives and management teams and individuals. These only take part in the implementation of the procedures but they are usually not part of the original team that initiates the project. The cosmopolitan lived offered a wide variety of choices of entrepreneurs that were to be interviewed. An e-mail was sent to an entrepreneur in the cosmopolitan and it was easy to get through since he responded confirming the acceptance of his time. This opportunity was good because the business was well known to all the town members. The entrepreneur was Mr Oren, the entrepreneur behind the existence of MoYou Organization, a company that is associated with creation and development of beauty products. The arrangement was that there was need to meet over a tea break since as an entrepreneur, time was a paramount issue to him. In view of this, and

Chinese American discussion homework Research Paper

Chinese American discussion homework - Research Paper Example Due to their racial affiliation, they are discriminated by the Whites. The diversity of culture of the Asian Americans is also an issue especially when they mingle with their White counterparts. Education attainment will also be an issue as the gap between the races is difficult to be narrowed. Friedersdorf indicates that for the previous twenty years, the number of Asians scooping the top most academic awards in the California Institute of Technology has escalated and most of them have been named semifinalists in the National Merit Scholarships (1). Nonetheless, the performance of the Chinese is exemplary regardless of the challenges they meet due to their racial affiliation. They performed well at school as they were forced to study both during daytime and nighttime by their parents in order to be at par with their White counterparts. The fact that the Chinese Americans are undermined based on their race, makes them more motivated to study harder and attain their grades based on merit and diligence (Zakaria 1). Friedersdorf, Conor. â€Å"Is the Ivy League Fair to Asian Americans?† The Atlantic, 21st Dec, 2012. Web. 16 May 2014.

System analysis and design (model your life) Article

System analysis and design (model your life) - Article Example Another aspect of human life is the social pillar. Every living human being is part of society and in so need to participate in the agreed upon ways of interaction within the niche that they live within. One should have a valuable network of friends, family, and acquaintances from a wide range of life system. Being social is a very significant pillar in a well-designed life model. The third aspect of life and another important need of a well-modeled life is a cultural pillar. Culture is the way a group or a society perceive or view certain things (International Society for Quality of Life Studies, 2006). One need to be part of a cultural group as it helps shape their lives and provide guidelines to a wholesome life. The cultural pillar includes and not limited to such examples as spiritual, law, governance and other systems that give people purpose and help develop principles. The fourth pillar and the last one in this paper is the knowledge pillar. In order for people to live wholesome life individuals, need to be informed on a wide span of the system they live in. Having information creates knowledge and processed knowledge leads to wisdom, which is very significant (International Society for Quality of Life Studies, 2006). People should not have too much of one pillar and very little of the others. Being very social with very little knowledge is not a very good model of

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Experimental design on how to investigate the innate behaviour of woodlice Introduction - Essay Example On the other hand, taxis behaviour is a behaviour in which an animal orients itself in an absolute direction in response to environment stimulus.2 Woodlice belong to the crustacean class. Most of these animals are terrestrial species and aquatic. It is believed that they exhibit an innate behaviour in that they tend to stay in wet and dark environment because they lack the characteristic waxy skeleton on their ex-skeleton like does most of the arthropods, thus tend to lose water easily when in dry conditions ()3. Woodlice are also good examples of organisms that orient themselves to humidity through kinesis. Woodlice also exhibit negative phototaxis. They have ocelli (light receptors). As a result, they do make directed movement away from illumination into the dark areas. They increase their locomotory activity in dry areas. However, this activity is decreased in humid conditions and for this reason they tend to accumulate in areas of high humidity.4 As indicated earlier, woodlice prefer wet and dark environment. Consequently, they increase their locomotory activities in dry areas and reduce their movement in humid areas. For this reason it would be expected that the number of woodlice will be greater int the more humid and dark areas. Then, the tray will be covered to exclude natural light and retain the humid moisture. The tray will be placed in a sheltered location free from direct sunlight. The lighting will be achieved through the use of a stand lamp placed at the same position and distance from the trays throughout the experiment. The distance will be reasonable to prevent transferring heat to the trays. Repeat the above procedures, but this time covering the tray with a perforated aluminium foil in order to create a dark environment, remove the stand lamp and then record the results after 30 minutes Table

System analysis and design (model your life) Article

System analysis and design (model your life) - Article Example Another aspect of human life is the social pillar. Every living human being is part of society and in so need to participate in the agreed upon ways of interaction within the niche that they live within. One should have a valuable network of friends, family, and acquaintances from a wide range of life system. Being social is a very significant pillar in a well-designed life model. The third aspect of life and another important need of a well-modeled life is a cultural pillar. Culture is the way a group or a society perceive or view certain things (International Society for Quality of Life Studies, 2006). One need to be part of a cultural group as it helps shape their lives and provide guidelines to a wholesome life. The cultural pillar includes and not limited to such examples as spiritual, law, governance and other systems that give people purpose and help develop principles. The fourth pillar and the last one in this paper is the knowledge pillar. In order for people to live wholesome life individuals, need to be informed on a wide span of the system they live in. Having information creates knowledge and processed knowledge leads to wisdom, which is very significant (International Society for Quality of Life Studies, 2006). People should not have too much of one pillar and very little of the others. Being very social with very little knowledge is not a very good model of

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Socialt behandlingsarbete

Socialt behandlingsarbete 1. Min uppfattning à ¤r att Socialtjà ¤nstlagen à ¤r generellt sett en ramlag och som ger olika kommuner friheten att forma insatserna efter ortsbestà ¤mda villkor. Men man har, i och med lagen, fà ¥tt ett enormt stort ansvar som innebà ¤r skyldigheten att hjà ¤lpa mà ¤nniskor att leva ett †normalt† liv utifrà ¥n flera samhà ¤lleliga aspekter. Man har med andra ord helt enkelt skyldighet att hjà ¤lpa dem som behà ¶ver hjà ¤lp. Det som jag fà ¶rst lade mà ¤rke till och tycker à ¤r nà ¤mnvà ¤rt à ¤r att paragraf 1 i socialtjà ¤nstlagen à ¤r av rà ¤ttighetskaraktà ¤r. Kan inte jag, eller du, som invà ¥nare i Gislaveds kommun eller i Tomelilla pà ¥ nà ¥got annat sà ¤tt sà ¶rja fà ¶r và ¥ra egna behà ¶vligheter har vi rà ¤tt att fà ¥ stà ¶d, ekonomiskt och socialt bistà ¥nd och kontinuerlig tillfà ¶rsel i livet. Skulle man hindras denna rà ¤ttighet kan man à ¶verklaga till domstol. Det à ¤r inte bara dem som arbetar inom †socialenâ €  som beslutar utifrà ¥n socialtjà ¤nstlagen, utan à ¤ven praxis và ¤gleder. Min uppfattning à ¤r att hela denna lag à ¤r skapad utifrà ¥n ett và ¤lfà ¤rdsresonemang som fà ¶rsvarar mà ¤nniskor och ger dem en skà ¤lig levnadsnivà ¥. Det à ¤r liksom grundlà ¤ggande fà ¶r hela và ¥rt samhà ¤lle. Samhà ¤llets socialtjà ¤nst skall understà ¶dja den individuelles rà ¤tt till sysselsà ¤ttning, ett hem och skolunderbyggnad. Soc. eller socialen, som ocksà ¥ mà ¥nga kallar den, skall kanalisera sig pà ¥ att gà ¶rs sig oberoende och fà ¶rbà ¤ttra och stà ¤rka individuella mà ¤nniskors och gruppers egna resurser, och i arbetet skall man ta stor hà ¤nsyn till mà ¤nniskans sjà ¤lvbestà ¤mmanderà ¤tt, heder och integritet. Socialtjà ¤nsten ska vara bra fà ¶r mà ¤nniskor som behà ¶ver ekonomisk trygghet, likasà ¥ social trygghet samt arbeta fà ¶r att gynna jà ¤mlika levnadsvillkor och verksamt deltaga i samhà ¤llslivet. Om man là ¤ser fà ¶regà ¥en de mening en gà ¥ng till fà ¶rstà ¥r man den som en ramlag, vilket medfà ¶r att arbetet kan se olika ut i olika kommuner. Allt arbete, allt som socialtjà ¤nsten bidrar och arbetar efter à ¤r grundar sig i en demokratisk och solidarisk synsà ¤tt, vilket à ¤r stà ¥ndpunkten och den basala grunden till hela systemet. Socialtjà ¤nsten ska à ¤ven kà ¤nna till och vara insatt i de aktuella levnadsfà ¶rhà ¥llandena i kommunen, vara med i samhà ¤llsplaneringen och hjà ¤lpa fram bra miljà ¶er exempelvis genom att influera pà ¥ olika beslut om bostadsomrà ¥den. Miljà ¶n i samhà ¤llet ska vara tillfredstà ¤llande fà ¶r barn och ungdom, gamla och alla andra som behà ¶ver stà ¶ttning ifrà ¥n samhà ¤llets sida som alltid ska vara fà ¶retagsam i denna frà ¥ga. De à ¥tgà ¤rder socialtjà ¤nsten tar till skall vara av god kvalitet och personal skall vara tillgà ¤nglig och som à ¤ven ska ha en anvà ¤ndbar skolunderbyggnad och eller erfarenheter. Fà ¶r att uppnà ¥ mà ¥len i socialtjà ¤nstlagen arbetar kompetent personal sà ¥som socionomer, psykologer, behandligsassistenter och socialpedagoger med dessa frà ¥gor. Man vill framfà ¶rallt fà ¶rebygga sociala problem hos individer och grupper. Ett, vad vi definierar som socialt problem, kan vara allt ifrà ¥n att hamna i ungdomsgà ¤ng, psykisk instabilitet, missbruk eller kanske familjegrà ¤l. Det finns ett samspel mellan individ, grupp och miljà ¶. Sà ¤tts detta samspel i obalans skapas sà ¥ledes ett socialt problem. Nà ¤r det har uppstà ¥tt gà ¤ller det, ur ett socialt behandlingsarbete perspektiv, att upptà ¤cka den, behandla den och slutligen là ¶sa problemet. Fà ¶r att kunna gà ¶ra det arbetar man pà ¥ olika plan: individ- och familjeinriktat, mellanhand nà ¤r det gà ¤ller att finna utvà ¤gar fà ¶r enskilda, social direktion och planlà ¤ggning, social samverkan, och fà ¶rà ¤ndringsarbete av samhà ¤llet. Det sociala arbetet innehà ¥ller mycket ped agogik vilket i sig à ¤r ett enormt stort à ¤mne, men det innebà ¤r bland annat att kunna motivera mà ¤nniskor till utveckling. Man hjà ¤lper och ger stà ¶d och rà ¥dgivning till de mà ¤nniskor som à ¤r utsatta pà ¥ nà ¥got sà ¤tt. Man vill kunna utveckla en individs eller en grupps egna resurser och insatser à ¤r att man alltid praktiskt arbetar med de involverade, exempelvis ger dem rà ¥d, informerar pà ¥ olika offentliga platser, har olika samtal som rà ¶r problemet, ger budgetrà ¥dgivning, utreder familjefrà ¥gor sà ¥som adoption eller kanske và ¥rdad av barn, och ekonomiskt bistà ¥nd. Alla dessa insatser à ¤r olika verktyg fà ¶r att kunna uppfylla de mà ¥l som anges i socialtjà ¤nstlagen. Bistà ¥nd ges till mà ¤nniskor fà ¶r att kunna tillfà ¤lligt hjà ¤lpa mà ¤nniskor att ge ekonomisk trygg som i sin tur leder till jà ¤mlika levnadsvillkor i samhà ¤llet. Som fà ¶rà ¤lder kan man fà ¥ rà ¥dgivning till hur man hanterar ungdomar i tonà ¥ren, vilket bidrar social trygghet, och som framfà ¶r allt fà ¶rebygger ytterligare sociala problem. Man stà ¤rker alltsà ¥ och hjà ¤lper till att utveckla de egna resurserna hos en individ eller grupp. Nà ¤r man arbetar med individer sà ¤tter man upp và ¥rdplan som innehà ¥ller syfte och mà ¥lsà ¤ttning med behandling gemensamt med klienten. Man arbetar alltid med respekt fà ¶r individens sjà ¤lvbestà ¤mmande och integritet. Han eller hon ska ha mà ¶jlighet att và ¤lja vilken form av stà ¶d man à ¶nskar. Det kan hà ¤nda att andra organ i samhà ¤llet mà ¥ste blandas in i arbetet. Man fà ¶ljer vissa principer exempelvis frivillighet och sjà ¤lvbestà ¤mmande som innebà ¤r att dessa à ¤r và ¤gledande i handlà ¤ggningen och att klienten sjà ¤lv bestà ¤mmer om han eller hon vill ta emot en viss insats. Givetvis à ¤r inte socialtjà ¤nsten kravlà ¶s, men man fà ¶rsà ¶ker sà ¥ là ¥ngt det gà ¥r att respektera dessa tvà ¥ principer. Man mà ¥ste ha en helhe tssyn i sina handlà ¤gganden vilket innebà ¤r att man inte bara ser till problemet, utan ocksà ¥ att detta ses till fà ¶rhà ¥llandet till den sociala miljà ¶n klienten lever i. Hà ¤r brukar ofta andra organ i samhà ¤llet komma in. Mà ¥nga har kanske samma problem men mà ¶jligheter att exempelvis fà ¥ ett jobb eller en bostad à ¤r olika, som kanske visserligen hade là ¶st ett visst problem, men att alla inte har samma fà ¶rutsà ¤ttningar till att fà ¥ ett jobb eller bostad. Dà ¤rfà ¶r ser man alltid till en helhetssyn. Det finns mà ¥nga andra principer exempelvis normalisering eller nà ¤rhet. Man vill ju gà ¤rna inte bli stà ¤mplad i samhà ¤llet eller kanske utpekad, och dà ¤rfà ¶r anvà ¤nder socialtjà ¤nsten principen om normalisering nà ¤r man fà ¶rsà ¶ker uppfylla mà ¥l. Jag gillar principen om nà ¤rhet eftersom jag tror att arbetet effektiviseras enormt mycket nà ¤r man delvis arbetar i klienternas trygga hemmiljà ¶. Man gà ¶r en behandlingsplan som ska fà ¶rklara behandlingsmetoderna och dess à ¤ndamà ¥l. Nà ¤r man talar om allmà ¤nt inriktade insatser kan man sprida info till offentligheten pà ¥ olika sà ¤tt om att det finns en socialtjà ¤nstverkamhet. Insatser som verkar strukturellt kan vara att man deltar i samhà ¤llsplanering. Som sagt à ¤r det ramlag vi fà ¶ljer vilket innebà ¤r att det ser olika ut i hela landet. Det à ¤r alltsà ¥ socialtjà ¤nstens insatser i samhà ¤llet som skall frà ¤mja mà ¤nniskor, stà ¶d och rà ¥dgivning i en mà ¤ngd olika frà ¥gor, socialt och ekonomiskt bistà ¥nd. Socialtjà ¤nsten hjà ¤lper dem som har problem med kanske relationer, i familjen, pà ¥ jobbet, i skolan, missbruksproblem, sociala tvister, fà ¶rmedla kontakt med andra samhà ¤llsorgan, upplysa offentligheten i olika frà ¥gor m.m. Allt à ¤r gott med dessa insatser och de mà ¥l som lagstiftningen satt upp. Men jag fà ¶redrar att blotta verkligheten som den à ¤r. Jag là ¤mnar ingenting oprà ¶vat i verkligheten. Om man granskar 1 kap 1  § inser man snart att socialtjà ¤nsten har nà ¤stan hand om alla sociala frà ¥gor och vilken enorm mà ¤ngd mà ¤nniskor dem mà ¶ter varje dag. Socialtjà ¤nsten mà ¥ste inte bara hjà ¤lpa alla mà ¤nniskor med problem, utan ocksà ¥ stà ¤ndigt tillhandahà ¥lla kommunmedlemmarna med information. Är det dà ¥ mà ¶jligt att samtliga à ¤renden hos socialtjà ¤nsten fà ¥r ett gott resultat? Det tror jag verkligen inte! Nà ¤r en lag à ¤r sà ¥ pass omfattande som denna stà ¤lls verkligen socialtjà ¤nstens arbete pà ¥ sin spets, minst sagt. Det finns massvis med fall som uppmà ¤rksammats i media nà ¤r mà ¤nniskor blivit dà ¥ligt behandlande av socialtjà ¤nsten. Jag tror inte det beror pà ¥ lagstiftningen, utan hur socialtjà ¤nsten i vissa fall tolkar l agarna. Tà ¤nk dig att ditt livsà ¶de jongleras hos socialtjà ¤nsten, som det faktiskt gà ¶r p.g.a. deras ansvar, och att du mà ¥ste fà ¶rlita dig pà ¥ dem. Tà ¤nk dà ¥ vilka konsekvenser det fà ¥r om du fà ¥r en felbehandling. Detta à ¤r bà ¥de brist pà ¥ lagstiftning och kunskap. Myndighetsoffer som stà ¥r hjà ¤lplà ¶s har uppmà ¤rksammats i †kalla fakta† mà ¥nga, mà ¥nga gà ¥nger och det beror bland annat pà ¥ socialtjà ¤nstlagens ibland alltfà ¶r tunga mà ¥l: pensionà ¤rer som lever isolerat som samhà ¤llet inte bryr sig om, unga par som inte fà ¥r behà ¥lla sitt barn p.g.a. deras à ¥lder m.m. Ska jag vara helt à ¤rlig tror jag inte pà ¥ att alla som arbetar inom socialtjà ¤nsten strikt och plikttroget fà ¶ljer vad som stà ¥r i socialtjà ¤nstlagen. Myndighetsoffer à ¤r konsekvenser av slarv ifrà ¥n personal nà ¤r det handlar om att sà ¤tta sig in en klients fall. Mà ¥len à ¤r allomfattande och pekar tydligt pà ¥ vad socialtjà ¤nstlagen stà ¥r nà ¥gonstans. Nà ¤r man ser till missbruk inriktas lagen generellt till att reducera knarkandet, men helst avbryta det helt. Frivilligheten och rà ¤tt till sjà ¤lvbestà ¤mmande ser jag som viktiga và ¤gledningsprinciper i mà ¥lstrà ¤van. Man nà ¤mner inte ohà ¤lsa, men jag drar slutsatsen av att det som utgà ¶r hinder fà ¶r socialtjà ¤nstens mà ¥l kan vara en bidragande effekt till ohà ¤lsa, och att detta skall fà ¶rhindras? Alla insatser som gà ¶rs skall vara av hà ¶g kvalitet, och att man ska fà ¤sta avseende vid etiska perspektiv, och ekonomisprincipen ska beaktas givetvis. Nu menar jag inte att det handlar om snà ¥lhet, utan mera om stà ¶rsta mà ¶jliga effekt pà ¥ stà ¶rsta mà ¶jliga antal. Dà ¥ har man rà ¥d att hjà ¤lpa fler och fà ¶rdjupat arbete. Allt som gà ¶rs, alla insatser ska fà ¶lja ett mà ¥l. Mà ¥let poà ¤ngteras mycket har jag mà ¤rkt. Livskvalitete n ska nà ¤stan vara garanterad. Vad jag menar med †garanterad† à ¤r att det ska finnas en social situation som à ¤r ordnad. Det ekonomiska stà ¶det man fà ¥r là ¤gger tonvikten pà ¥ ett là ¥ngsiktigt uppehà ¤lle, och inte fà ¶r en kort period pà ¥ nà ¥gon dag. Fà ¶r ungdomar och yngre gà ¶r man ett tydligt stà ¤llningstagande som fokuserar pà ¥ stà ¤ndig utveckling, och att alla ska ha samma goda fà ¶rutsà ¤ttningar som innefattar uppfostran, skolning skydd frà ¥n à ¶vergrepp osv. Ã…lderstignare mà ¤nniskor ha rà ¤tt att bo sjà ¤lva och vara oberoende, om de sà ¥ à ¶nskar, och om fà ¶rutsà ¤ttningarna finns. Ännu en gà ¥ng betonas rà ¤tten till sjà ¤lvbestà ¤mmande och myndigheternas makt. Mà ¤nniskor som har nà ¥got funktionshinder ska fà ¥ sina sà ¤rskilda behov tillgodosedda och leva som vilken annan mà ¤nniska som helst i samhà ¤llet. 2. Nà ¤r man anvà ¤nder begreppet missbruk syftar man oftast pà ¥ en skadlig anvà ¤ndning eller misshantering av en beroendeframkallande farmaceutisk produkt som exempelvis droger och alkohol. Men det kan ocksà ¥ handla om mat, spel, sex och diverse andra saker som man kan miss-bruka. Konsekvenserna av ett missbruk kan leda till psykiska, fysiska, ekonomiska och social problem hos den direkt drabbade, d.v.s. missbrukaren sjà ¤lv och de nà ¤rmsta slà ¤ktingarna. Men de indirekt inblandade kan ocksà ¥ pà ¥verkas negativt som exempelvis arbetskamrater och lagkamraterna. En fà ¶ljd frà ¥n missbruk kan là ¤gga hinder i và ¤gen fà ¶r fà ¶rhà ¥llandet mellan missbrukaren och hans eller hennes omgivning. Det kan innefatta alltifrà ¥n jobb till privatekonomi. En missbrukare, à ¤r en mà ¤nniska som repetitionsvis brukar nà ¥got, exempelvis alkohol à ¶ver den mà ¤ngd som à ¤r kontrollerbar och riskerar att gà ¶ra sig sjà ¤lv och andra illa, direkt och indirekt. Om man exempelvis kà ¶r bil och samtidigt à ¤r drogpà ¥verkad sà ¤tter man andra trafikanters sà ¤kerhet pà ¥ spel, och inte endast sin egen. Ett annat sà ¤tt att beskriva ett missbruk à ¤r genom spelmissbruk. Om man gamblar sà ¥ pass mycket att spelaren anses tappa kontrollen à ¶ver sitt eget bruk, leder det inte bara till att det tryter i plà ¥nboken fà ¶r denne, utan bà ¤ddar ocksà ¥ fà ¶r psykiska besvà ¤r, som exempelvis depression eller till och med repetitionsmà ¤ssiga vredesutbrott pà ¥ ens egen familj. Alkohol, bà ¥de en trogen dryck till middagen och en festfixare, men ocksà ¥ và ¥rat lands stà ¶rsta folkhà ¤lsoproblem, sociala problem och beroendeframkallande medel. Jag kà ¤nner personligen ett par alkoholister och jag har samtalat med dem mà ¥nga gà ¥nger om deras missbruk. De har berà ¤ttat om konsekvensen av att vara en alkohol missbrukare som har lett till bà ¥de avsked frà ¥n jobbet och familjegrà ¤l. Ett alkoholmissbruk, eller alkoholism, giver sà ¥ledes konsekvenser bà ¥de fà ¶r en sjà ¤lv, och andra. En alkoholist har ingen kontroll à ¶ver hur mycket han eller hon konsumerar det beroendeframkallande medlet. Antingen vet man inte om det, eller sà ¥ har man slutat bry sig. Grà ¤nslinjen mellan missbruk och vanlig konsumtion à ¤r hà ¥rfin. Den som à ¤r alkoholist dricker stora mà ¤ngder alkohol upprepande gà ¥nger, mestadels flera gà ¥nger i veckan, beroende pà ¥ hur stor tillgà ¤ngligheten à ¤r, d.v.s. hur mycket pengar man har att là ¤gga pà ¥ sprit. Det ekonomiska problemet kan leda till ett annat problem, att man gà ¥r in pà ¥ macken och kà ¶per T-Rà ¶d eftersom det à ¤r billigare och effektivare, dricker det, och direkt fà ¥r fysiska konsekvenser. Problemen hà ¤nger ihop med varandra fà ¶r en missbrukare. Vem blir en alkolist? Det finns ingen som kan svara pà ¥ det, men det kan bero pà ¥ taskiga hemfà ¶rhà ¥llanden som socialt arv, psyksiska besvà ¤r, att exempelvis farsan druckit mycket, eller som vissa pà ¥stà ¥r, att det har genetiska orsaker. Det à ¤r kommunen som har ansvar fà ¶r att invà ¥narna fà ¥r hjà ¤lp och stà ¶d fà ¶r sitt missbruk (2 kap 2  § SoL). Socialtjà ¤nsten har skyldighet att som uppgift se till den som lider av alkoholism fà ¥r hjà ¤lp som ska leda till ett missbruksstopp. Det à ¤r socialtjà ¤nstens ansvar att planera samtidigt som man har en à ¶msesidig fà ¶rstà ¥else fà ¶r missbrukaren och socialtjà ¤nsten kommer att rà ¤tta sig efter planeringen ordentligt (5 kap 9  § SoL). Om man som missbrukare vill ha hjà ¤lp att bli fritt sitt missbruk hjà ¤lper en socialsekreterare till denna att là ¤gga fram en planering och insatser som passar missbrukaren. Det à ¤r viktigt att sà ¥ là ¥ngt som mà ¶jligt fà ¶lja de principer som socialtjà ¤nsten arbetar efter. Behandlingen kan se ut pà ¥ olika sà ¤tt eftersom alla fall behandlas olika. Ibland gà ¥r det bra med à ¶ppen och frivillig và ¥rd som kan innebà ¤ra exempelvis information, rà ¥dgivning, kontaktperson och behandling sklinik. Men ibland kan missbruket vara sà ¥ pass tungt att man mà ¥ste tvà ¥ngsvà ¥rda klienten, och tar dà ¥ stà ¶d av 2-3  § LVM. Meningen med tvà ¥ngsvà ¥rden à ¤r dock att motivera klienten till fortsatt frivillig behandling som inte à ¥terfinnes i LVM. Tvà ¥ngsvà ¥rd infà ¶rs om det exempelvis inte finns nà ¥gon annan metod eller insats som hjà ¤lper missbrukaren att komma ifrà ¥n sitt missbruk (4  § LVM). Nà ¤r socialtjà ¤nsten fà ¥r in en anmà ¤lan pà ¥bà ¶rjas en fà ¶rhandsbedà ¶mning. Utifrà ¥n den bedà ¶mer man om den drabbade behà ¶ver hjà ¤lp med eventuella missbruksbekymmer. Av mina egna erfarenheter av alkoholister vet jag att mà ¥nga av dem inte arbetar och inte behà ¶ver behandlingshem och bor sjà ¤lva. Dessa har sà ¥ledes ekonomiskt bistà ¥nd. (4 kap 1  § SoL) Hur pass stor effekt har socialtjà ¤nstens ansvar och insatser haft pà ¥ missbrukare och fungerar egentligen systemet som jag precis beskrivit? Fà ¶r att ta reda pà ¥ det granskade jag là ¤nsstyrelsens à ¥rliga rapport som visar att antalet missbrukare i samhà ¤llet har à ¶kat under 10-talet och att det rà ¥der stora brister i socialtjà ¤nstens arbete. 40 % av alla missbrukare har barn, vilket à ¤r orovà ¤ckande. Jag tror det beror mycket pà ¥ uppsà ¶kandearbetet, och att det à ¤r là ¤ttare sagt à ¤n gjort att motivera till và ¥rd och behandling. Jag vet sjà ¤lv att dà ¤r jag bor, i Gislaved, inleds inte behandlings av ungas missbruksproblem fà ¶rens missbruk har pà ¥gà ¥tt under en viss tid. Det beror inte pà ¥ att man inte vill behandla ungdomarna, utan mer fà ¶r att det inte gà ¥r att nà ¥ dem och upptà ¤cka problemen innan de bryter ut. Exempelvis har jag aldrig sett Socialstyrelsen nà ¥gon annanstans à ¤n i radio och TV. Det à ¤r dà ¤rfà ¶r kommu nens fel att handlà ¤ggarna inte fà ¥r mer gjort anser jag. Rapporten visar à ¤ven att det rà ¥der dà ¥ligt samarbete mellan de olika myndigheterna som skall samarbete med socialstyrelsen i frà ¥gan om missbrukare. Det finns ocksà ¥ brister i hur man là ¤gger upp ett à ¤rende och hur man gà ¶r olika prioriteringar. Avslutningsvis skulle jag vilja sà ¤ga att det inte à ¤r systemet som brister, utan personalen och deras arbetssà ¤tt som i vissa fall inte à ¤r tillrà ¤ckligt effektiva. Det à ¤r oerhà ¶rt và ¤sentligt att mà ¤ta konkreta effekter av socialstyrelsens mà ¥l fà ¶r att kunna fà ¥ ett bà ¤sta resultat. Frà ¥gan à ¤r bara vem som ska mà ¤ta dem, och hur? Ska det vara missbrukaren eller socialstyrelsen sjà ¤lva, missbrukarens familj eller nà ¥gon annan? Myndigheterna mà ¥ste samarbeta mer med varandra och vara bà ¤ttre pà ¥ att informera allmà ¤nheten om alkoholism, framfà ¶rallt fà ¶r unga mà ¤nniskor som à ¤r sà ¥ là ¤ttpà ¥verkade. Det hà ¤r à ¤r inte bara ett ansvar som socialstyrelsen skall ta pà ¥ sig enligt mig. Alla i samhà ¤llet ansvarar fà ¶r dem som lever i den.

The Role of Culture in Shaping us as Individuals :: Sociology Essays

The Role of Culture in Shaping us as Individuals Culture has a big impact on how we all fit in as individuals in today’s society, and since this assignment is about that I decided to include some of my own experiences to illustrate my point of view and compare it with those of my classmates and some of the readings. My family and I moved to United States in 1998 from Albania. My parents believed that I and my sister would get a better education here and also it would be useful and interesting to learn another language and its culture. Considering I didn’t speak a word of English I was very scared about starting high school. I was scared about fitting in with the other kids, I was scared about not being able to understand them, and not sure how my culture would impact the way how I looked at things. I remember my first day at the bus stop, when this very handsome guy approached me and said â€Å"Good morning, you must be new†¦What’s Up?† At that momement I kept looking up thinking†¦Ã¢â‚¬ Gosh I don’t really see anything up there†¦what is he referring to?† His name was Michael and he kept repeating the phrase â€Å"What’s up† thinking maybe I didn’t hear him. All I remember is turning red in my face and using the same phrase I had told myself many times that I was never going to use†¦ â€Å"I don’t speak English.† When we moved here I told myself I was going to try my best however I wasn’t going to be like another one of those foreigners you see in the movies that move to a different country and make no attempt to learn the language. I also told my self that I was going to repeat every word that I heard in my brain and then later using the dictionary to find out what that word meant. My favorite subject in highs cool was math, since it required little English knowledge and my least favorite subject was Physical Education. I would have never thought that I was going to hate Physical Education because usually that’s a class most students would probably like to take again and again.

Depiction and Development of the Knight Hero in Wolfram von Eschenbach’

Introduction Wolfram von Eschenbach’s epic poem Parzival stands as one of the richest and most profound literary works to have survived from the middle ages. Lost in obscurity for centuries until rediscovered and republished by Karl Lachmann in 1833, the poem enjoyed at least as great a popularity when it was first composed as it does among today’s readers: Some eighty manuscripts have been preserved, in whole or in part, from Wolfram’s era (Poag 40). Among the more intriguing aspects of the work is Wolfram’s handling of the depiction and development of two of the story’s primary characters, the knights Gahmuret and Parzival, father and son. Central to the action of the text from its inception, yet never sharing a scene, these men function as the poem’s heroes—larger-than-life figures of extraordinary strength, skill and courage whose remarkable achievements and bravery carry the momentum of the story. These men represent the classic knightly warriors of old who (at least ideally) dedicated their energies and passions above all else to the noble pursuit of fame, honor and valor. Indeed, in the course of discussing heroic development in Parzival, one must also note the main characters’ chivalric development, as their natural proclivity and tendencies as knights are clearly reflected and reinforced in their heroic manner and mien. In the course of this investigation I wish to analyze the ways in which Wolfram depicts these knighly heroes and their development. In this way I shall attempt to achieve a better understanding of how Wolfram—and, by extension, the men of his time—themselves understood the themes and events he describes. I shall also include the critical perspectives of scholars whose have previously c... ...its, though not always attained thorough strict maintenance of precepts such as Campbell’s, is— and perhaps for that very reason—the stuff of great literature. Works Cited Campbell, Joseph. Myths to Live By. New York: Viking, 1972. Cousineau, Phil, Ed. The Hero’s Journey: The World of Joseph Campbell. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1990. Eschenbach, Wolfram von. Parzival. English Trans., Ed. Andrà © Lefevere. New York: Continuum, 1991. —-. Parzival. German Trans. Wolfgang Mohr. Gà ¶ppingen: Alfred Kà ¼mmerle, 1977. Hasty, Will. †Introduction.† A Companion to Wolfram’s Parzival. Columbia: Camden House, 1999. Poag, James F. Wolfram von Eschenbach. New York: Twayne, 1972. Sacker, Hugh. An Introduction to Wolfram’s ‘Parzival.’ Cambridge: Cambridge U P, 1963 Weigand, Hermann. Wolfram’s Parzival: Five Essays with an Introduction. Ithaca: Cornell U P, 1969.

Italy Tax System

Faculty of Business and Management, Brno University of Technology INTERNATIONAL AND EUROPEAN BUSINNES LAW Tax system in Italy 2009/2010 Taxation in Italy The taxation system in Italy is administered by the Agenzia delle Entrate (Revenue Agency) which is the national legal authority for taxation. Taxation of an individual's income in Italy is progressive. In other words, the higher the income, the higher the rate of tax payable. There are reduced rates of tax and tax exemptions available to certain income earners. The liability for Italian income tax depends on where a person is domiciled. A domicile is usually the country we regard as the permanent home and where we live most of the year. A foreigner working in Italy for an Italian company who became resident in Italy and has no income tax liability abroad is considered to have a tax domicile in Italy. A person can be resident in more than one country at any time, but can be domiciled only in one country. The country of domicile is important regarding inheritance tax, as there’s no longer any inheritance tax in Italy. Generally, person is considered to be an Italian resident and liable to Italian tax if any of the following applies: †¢The person has permanent home in Italy; †¢He/She stays at least 183 days in Italy during any calendar year †¢Person carries out paid professional activities or employment in Italy, except when secondary to business activities conducted in another country; †¢The centre of person’s economic interest in in Italy If the person is registered as a resident in a comune, he/ she is liable to pay income tax in Italy. If a person moves to Italy to take up a job or start a business, he/she must register with the local tax authorities soon after the arrival. This is done at a local tax office. An individual is also liable for tax on his income as an employee and on income as a self-employed person. Tax will be payable on income earned in Italy and overseas by an individual who meets the test of a â€Å"permanent resident† of Italy. A foreign resident who is employed in Italy pays tax only on income earned in Italy. It is important to point out as regards taxable income from outside Italy, that a â€Å"tax credit† is granted for tax deducted outside Italy. In the case of income from a salary, the employer is obligated to deduct the amount of tax payable on a monthly basis. A self-employed person must prepay income tax that will be offset on filing an annual return. The advance payment is determined on the basis of the return made for the previous year. In the event of a new business, the advance will be calculated on the basis of estimates made by the owner of the business. The taxation system in Italy is divided into two categories: Direct taxes * IRPEF or IRE: Imposta sui Redditti delle Persone Fisiche ( Personal Income Tax) * IRPEG or IRES: Imposta sur Redditi delle Persone Giuridiche (Corportation Tax on the Income of limited liability and joint-stock companies – SRL or SpA) * IRAP: Imposte Regionale sulle Attivita Produttive (Regional Tax which applies to the value of goods and services) Italy Personal Income Tax rates in year 2009 * 23%0 – 15,000(EUR) * 27%15,001-28,000(EUR) * 38%28,001-55,000(EUR) * 41%55,001-75,000(EUR) 43%75,001 and over (EUR) Capital Gains Tax in Italy For individuals capital gains are generally added to the regular income. †¢The rate of tax payable on capital gains from shareholding is 12. 5% for non-qualifying shareholding of up to 25% in a company. †¢For the purpose of calculating a capital gain, the gain is decreased in line with the rate of increase in inflation, from the date of purchase to the da te of sale. In regard to capital gains in a corporation, identical relief is allowed at the rate of increase in the Index. †¢Companies pay 27. 5% tax on capital gains. In sale of participation, 95% is tax exempt, subject to certain conditions. Italy Reporting Dates and Payment The tax year in Italy ends on December 31st. Advance payments of tax are made on the following basis. †¢ An Individual – An individual whose only income is from a salary is not obligated to file an annual tax return. His employer deducts tax from the employee and transfers the payment immediately to the tax authorities on a monthly basis. †¢ A Self-Employed Individual is obliged to pay 100% of the tax forecast for a year, or an amount that is the equivalent of 98% of the tax paid in the previous year. The pre-payment is made in two installments. 40% of the total is paid by June 20th and the remaining 60% is paid on November 30. The date for filing an annual return for an individual is July 31. Fines are imposed for arrears in filing an annual return at the rate of 120% – 240% of the tax, depending on the length of time that the return is in arrears. †¢ A Limited Company – A limited company is obligated to submit Financial Statements within 30 days of the date of approval of the Statements. Up until the date of approval of the Statements, the Company is obligated to pay the amount of tax due for the previous year as well as 40% of the advance on account of the tax forecast for the current year. Italy Deduction of Tax at Source Italy Taxation of Employees As regards employed persons, the employer is obligated to deduct tax at source from an employee and to make additional contributions to social security. Italy Social Security †¢An employed person – th e employer's contribution is around 30% of the salary and the employee's contribution is around 10% of the salary. A self-employed person – the rate of payment is between 17%-25. 7% with an upper limit that changes from year to year. Indirect taxes * IVA (VAT) * Imposta di Registro (Registration Tax) * Imposte Ipotecarie e Catastali (Mortgage and Land Registration) * Imposta di Bollo (Revenue Stamps) * Accise o Imposte di Fabbricazione e consumo (Inland Duties) IVA (VAT) * Standard Rate 20% (since Oct 1997) Reduced Rate 10% Italy VAT Recovery Time: 18 months Italy VAT Registration Threshold Non-Resident: Nil Inheritance Tax ; Gift Tax There is no longer any tax on inherited property, regardless of its value and the relationship between the deceased and the heirs. On immovable property and real property rights, the catastral tax (imposta catastale) and land registry tax (imposta ipotecaria) must be paid at the rates of one percent and two percent, respectively, of the cadastral value of the property or the real property rights included in the inheritance. If one of the beneficiaries satisfies the conditions for the main or only residence (prima casa), the cadastral and land registry taxes due on an inheritance or a gift are a fixed amount of â‚ ¬168 each. In relation to gifts, the rules vary depending on the degree of kinship and the value of the gift. There are no taxes payable on gifts in favour of a spouse, descendants or other relatives up to the fourth degree. Gifts in favour of persons other than those mentioned above are subject to taxes on the transfer if the value of the share due to each beneficiary is greater. Other Taxes There are other taxes payable to central, regional, provincial or local governments. These are usually paid once a year. Bollo Auto (Car Tax), which includes the tax on your car radio and the stamp duty on your Italian driving licence * Bollo Moto (Motorbike Tax) * Bollo Motorino (Scooter Tax) * Canone RAI (TV Tax) * Tassa Rifiuti (Garbage Tax) * Imposta Comunale Sugli Immobili – ICI (Municipal Property Tax) Deductible Burdens and Tax Allowances Tax allowances include the so-called â€Å"no-tax area†, (a deduction of between â‚ ¬3,000 and â‚ ¬7,500 to avoid taxing those on low incomes), as well as allowances for dependant family members (dependant wife and/or children). Some deductible burdens (oneri deducibili) are expenses which can be used to reduce the total income. For example: some types of medical expenses, national insurance contributions, donations to religious institutions, donations to universities, research bodies and associations for the protection of assets of artistic interest, the cadastral income (income deriving from the value of any land owned) of the main residence are considered to be deductible burdens. Some deductible burdens are expenses which can be used to reduce the amount of the gross tax due. Again by way of example: medical expenses, passive interest on mortgages, education expenses, donations to Bodies or Foundations for research, for performing arts, for social purposes, donations to political parties. Each type of expense has its own rules for the deductions. For example: from rental property income a fixed amount of 15 percent of the income is deducted for expenses, while from business and self-employed income the expenses sustained for the carrying out of the activity are deducted. Some unearned incomes are taxed only on 40 percent of the amount. The majority of these burdens are not deductible from the income of non-residents. Other deductions in Italy Deductions must be made from the following payments to nonresidents according to this table: * Dividend27 (1. 375% to EU and EEA residents) * Royalties22. 5% * Interest12. 5 / 27% * Director's Remuneration20% Deduction at source in the case of a dividend, royalties and interest paid to foreign residents is subject to the Double Taxation Prevention Treaty. Double Taxation Treaties Double taxation treaties contain rules that determine in which country an individual is resident. Italian residents are taxed on their world-wide income, subject to certain treaty exceptions. Non-residents are normally taxed only on income arising in Italy. Citizens of most other countries are exempt from paying taxes in their home country when they spend a minimum period abroad, e. g. a year. Double taxation treaties are designed to ensure that income that has already been taxed in one treaty country isn’t taxed again in another treaty country. The treaty establishes a tax credit or exemption on certain kinds of income, either in the country of residence or the country where the income was earned. Where applicable, a double taxation treaty prevails over domestic law. Italy has double taxation treaties with over 60 countries, including all members of the EU, Australia, Canada, China, the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Iceland India, Israel, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, the Philippines, Poland, Romania, RSA, Russia, Singapore, the Slovak Republic, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Turkey, and the US. Bibliography: SOCR. CZ. Pravidla pro volny pohyb sluzeb a svobodu usazovani v  EU- Italie. [online]. [cit. 2010-04-12]. URL:http://www. ocr. cz/images/prirucka/pdf/it. pdf, cit. 1 BUSINESSINFO:CZ. Italie: Financni a danovy sektor [online]. [cit. 2010 012]. URL:http://www. businessinfo. cz/cz/sti/italie-financni-a-danovy-sektor/5/1000683/ ANGLOINFO. COM. Personal Taxes – Income Tax, Capital Gains & Inheritance Tax – in Italy. [online]. [cit. 2010 012]. URL: http://rome. angloinfo. com/countries/italy/tax. asp CANAD INTERNATIONAL. GC:CA. Income and Other Taxes in Italy. [online]. [cit. 2010 012]. http://www. canadainternational. gc. ca/italy-italie/consular_services_consulaires/tax_italy-italie_taxes. aspx? lang=eng