The Economic Environment of Business questions Essay

The Economic Environment of Business questions - Essay Example In short, it can be concluded that Aldi’s share would increase substantially after opening of new stores in different areas across Britain. Â   Â  (Hawkes, 2008) The word downturn refers to a slump in sales due to economic recession and meltdown that because unemployment increases and consumption decreases. The business organisations observe negative growth in their businesses since customers are inclined to make purchases of necessities and are reluctant to make purchases of luxuries and other items with higher price elasticity. Supermarket Industry is an oligopolistic industry since there are few businesses (large scale producers and retailers) that dominate the market and reap benefits. These businesses may set industry total output and prices of their products. Moreover, they have mammoth financial resources because of revenue they generate from their several in-town and out-of-town supermarkets. They also attract a large pool of customers compared to what a small retail shop attracts. It is worthwhile to mention that retailers face stiff competition with their rivals so that each could attract maximum customers. Tesco is one of the leading retailers in UK’s supermarket industry that enjoys a market share of over 28%. Since, it has the potential of offering more than 40,000 products from its organised chain of retail outlets all across Britain; it enjoys monopoly like situation in many instances. Tesco offers various products that attract more buyers than any other retailers including Aldi and Sainsbury. It must not be forgotten that Tesco faces stiff competition from other retailers; therefore, it may not restrict or control production / supply of every product as well as set higher prices to reap abnormal profits. Instead, Tesco may take advantage from products that are not offered by any other retailer and therefore customers are dependent over it to make their purchases. (Hawkes, 2008) Like other

The causes and effects of smoking Research Paper - 1

The causes and effects of smoking - Research Paper Example In addition, it is seen that smoking kills more people than HIV, alcohol, road accidents, suicides, and other murders do. Furthermore, about 90% of lung cancer deaths are due to smoking (Smoking & Tobacco Use). However, when the question as to why do people smoke is raised, the answer comes from Hughes (1) that they smoke because they are addicted to nicotine. Another better clarified answer comes from Cockerham (4) that people continue smoking even though it provides an unpleasant sensation in the beginning because people learn how to smoke by having other persons interpret the experience for them and teach them how to enjoy the desirable sensation forgetting the undesirable. It seems that people learn smoking as a social activity, and it often originates in peer groups. It typically takes birth in adolescent groups who are highly likely to imitate adults to look mature. It is often used as a weapon to impress others. However, sooner or later, they start smoking even when they are alone, and develop their dependence on nicotine. In an interview with Gilchrist (How Best to Quit Smoking: Interview with Dr. Randy Gilchrist), he pointed out that people continue to smoke even when they know that their health is eroding because for the smokers, the smoking habit is connected with their many everyday activities and emotional states. Many of these activities act as the triggers to smoke, and in his words, for them, cigarette is something like a ‘reliable old friend that offers relaxation, comfort and focus’ (How best to quit smoking, Interview with Dr. Randy Gilchrist). According to Butler and Hope (362), there are seven reasons that can be pointed out at this juncture. The first one is that some people feel good using cigarette. It might be the feeling of social acceptance. According to some others it is the best way for relaxation. Yet another category is fond of the taste of cigarettes. Another vital revelation is that cigarette offers

Domestic Violence Essay Example for Free

Domestic Violence Essay Domestic Violence, based on typical legal definition, encompasses psychological, sexual, physical, and verbal actions of an individual against his or her partner (Pournaghash-Tehrani and Feizabadi, 2007). The prevalence of these kinds of abuses has propelled the civic group to clamor from the government for the victims’ legal protection and preservation of rights. Said Pournaghash-Tehrani and Zahra Feizabadi as members of Department of Psychology and Institute of Psychology respectively in the University of Tehran in Iran are both expected to be highly adept in the field of applied psychology. Their study entitled â€Å"Comparing Demographic Characteristics of Male Victims of Domestic Violence† is one of the spirit-awakening researches in terms of domestic violence. It draws out attention on the issue of domestic violence where the typical scenario females are abused while males are the perpetrators. The stereotype of domestic violence has treated it as entirely women’s issue for a long time (Pournaghash-Tehrani and Feizabadi, 2007). Thus, most countries have a definite law concerning violence against women. However, through the efforts of civil groups and social scientists, gender symmetry movement on domestic violence has made a notion that males are victims of domestic violence at least as often as women. Meanwhile, the work of Pournaghash-Tehrani and Feizabadi, as acknowledged by the Asian Network for Scientific Information in 2007, was published in the fourteenth of the seventh volume of Journal of Applied Sciences. Their study revealed that male victims of domestic violence are not only limited in the United States but are also observed in the Asian region. Goal and Hypothesis Based on the studies conducted on the Western countries revealing the capacity of women to commit violence against their male partners, Pournaghash-Tehrani and Feizabadi aimed to focus on the socio-demographic attributes of the male victims of domestic violence. Thus, they intended to find out the relationship of the domestic violence experience of male victims with respect to their age, educational attainment, and income level; the possible interaction among age, educational attainment, income level, and domestic violence experience of the male victims. Specifically, their study sought answers to the following questions: do the male victims have differences in physical violence experiences with respect to age, educational attainment, and income level? ; and do the male victims have differences in psychological violence experiences with respect to age, educational attainment, and income level? ; is the interaction between age and educational attainment, age and income level, educational attainment and income level, and among age, educational attainment and age, income level significant with physical violence experiences? ; and is the interaction between age and educational attainment, age and income level, educational attainment and income level, and among age, educational attainment and age, income level significant with psychological violence experiences? Literature Review The preponderance of domestic violence, in any form, across cultures gave impetus for the creation of legal policies for its prevention, efficient prosecution of the perpetrators, and effective programs of advocacy for the victims. However, legal advocacies are only focused on women for men are typically perceived as the doers of domestic violence (Pournaghash-Tehrani and Feizabadi, 2007). In this connection, studies accounted the significant correlation of socio-demographic factors such as age, educational attainment, income level, socio-economic status, and substance abuse with the occurrence of domestic violence (Pournaghash-Tehrani and Feizabadi, 2007). Meanwhile, as revealed by contemporary researches conducted in the United States and Great Britain, men are also victims of domestic violence at least as often as women. In fact, based on statistical reports in Western countries, about 20% to 30% of domestic violence like punching, throwing objects, biting, slapping an biting are done by women towards their male partners (Pournaghash-Tehrani and Feizabadi, 2007). Moreover, the meta-analysis conducted by Archer in 2000 and 2002 on eighty five marital conflict studies divulged that women have higher tendency for physical violence due to stress levels than men (Pournaghash-Tehrani and Feizabadi, 2007). Aside from physical violence, women are also capable of psychological violence through oral arguments towards their husbands. Further, Hindin and Adair in 2002, Jeyaseelan et al. in 2004, and Perez et al. in 2006, exposed that regardless of gender, low level of education contributes to the occurrence of domestic violence in marital relations (Pournaghash-Tehrani and Feizabadi, 2007). Also, Jeyaseelan et al. argued that even though domestic violence is not limited to a particular social class, it is of frequent occurrence among the poor (Pournaghash-Tehrani and Feizabadi, 2007). On the other hand, Perez et al. reported that incidences of domestic violence are more often to take place in young couples than in older couples (Pournaghash-Tehrani and Feizabadi, 2007). The inevitable fact that women are also perpetrators of physical or psychological violence led to growing consciousness in supporting the notion of gender symmetry in domestic violence through intensive researches. Since most studies are done on behalf of female victims, socio-demographic attributes of male victims need to be further investigated. As such, the characteristics of male victims susceptible to domestic violence and its implications can deeply be explored. Materials and Methods An author-made questionnaire was utilized as instrument in the determination of domestic violence. The instrument has thirteen and twenty four items for the evaluation of psychological and physical violence respectively. Each item was formulated based on the available literature in the assessment of violence. Also, each item was rated based on five-point Likert-type scale. In line with this, the validity of the instrument was evaluated by co-administering with the Conflict Tactic Scale in a hundred of couples. The correlation computed between the two instrument was +0. 89 indicating the high validity of the author-made questionnaire (Pournaghash-Tehrani and Feizabadi, 2007). On the other hand, the measured Cronbach’s Alpha for the consistency of the devised instrument was +0. 81 (Pournaghash-Tehrani and Feizabadi, 2007). In 2006, the devised instrument was administered to one hundred twenty male victims of domestic violence from four family courts in Iran (Pournaghash-Tehrani and Feizabadi, 2007). The subjects were randomly and voluntarily selected, and were informed that they are free to move out from the study anytime they want. They were also oriented on the purpose of the study and that any information will be treated with high regards of confidentiality. Then multivariate analysis of variance or MANOVA and Scheffe test were employed to assess the effects of socio-demographic factors and their interactions to the incidence of physical and psychological violence. Results and Discussion Repondents From twenty five to eighty years old was the age range of the samples wherein among them 40% has education above high school diploma, 25% earned less than high school diploma, 20% earned above high school diploma, and 15% has a high school diploma. In terms of monthly income, 30% has above $590, 35% has $160-$380, 29% has $380-$590, and 6% has below $160 salary. Age and Domestic Violence It was found that age has a significant effect on the incidence of physical violence. As showed by the Scheffe test, men of ages thirty five to fifty have the highest rate of physical violence experience. In terms of psychological violence, age has significance in the incidence of denying choices and cutting off marital intercourse. Additionally, based on Scheffe test cessation of marital intercourse was mainly observed among thirty five to fifty years old men while denying choices was mainly observed among men of sixty five to eighty years of ages. Educational Attainment and Domestic Violence Based on MANOVA, educational attainment has significant effect on throwing of objects. Through Scheffe test, it was found that men with Bachelor’s degree were most often victimized by object thrown. In terms of psychological violence, educational attainment has significance on the incidence of denying choices, cessation of marital intercourse, and devaluation of work. As the Scheffed test showed, denying of choices was much observed in men with Bachelor’s degree while cessation of marital status was mainly observed to men with low educational attainment. Also, devaluation of work was commonly observed among men with diploma. Level of Income, Interactive Effects and Domestic Violence Although the study failed to prove any connection between domestic violence and level of income, the interactive effects of age, educational attainment, and income level have significance with the incidence of hitting. The Scheffe test showed that physical violence was generally experienced by thirty five to fifty years old men with Master’s level of education, and above $590 monthly income. With regards to psychological violence, the interactive effects of age and educational attainment were significant to denying choices. This type of physical violence was mainly observed in men with bachelor’s degree and of above sixty years of age. Moreover, the interactive effects of age and level of income has significance with the incidence of forced household chores task, devaluation of work, and denying choices. The study revealed that: forced household chores task was mostly observed in men with $380 to $590 monthly income within thirty five to fifty years old range; devaluation of work was mainly observe in men with the ages twenty to thirty five years old earning $380 to $590 per month; and denying choices was observed prevalently in men of fifty to sixty five years of ages earning $160 to $380 monthly. Meanwhile, the interactive effects of age, educational attainment, and income level were significant with forced household chores task. This relationship was mainly observed among men with Bachelor’s degrees, of thirty five to fifty ages, and earning $380-$590 monthly. Analysis Even though this study is unique and very revealing in the sense that this was the first research conducted in Iran with respect to the domestic violence committed by women towards their respective partners, there are also weaknesses and limitations. First, the validity and consistency of the author-made questionnaire as the singly instrument utilized to measure the presence and extent of domestic violence is of great question. The validity and consistency of the author-made questionnaire were based solely on the validity and consistency correlations with the Conflict Tactic Scale which is commonly used in the assessment of domestic violence against women. In addition, there are other instruments available for the evaluation of domestic violence such as the Partner-Abused Scale, Abusive Behavior Inventory, and Index of Marital Satisfaction. The validity, reliability, and consistency of these instruments have been verified and established for a long time. Since these available instruments on violence are typically used for the assessment of violence against women, it is then invalid to construct an instrument specific for male victims based only on one of these instruments. Thus, there was a possible bias on the construction of the instrument utilized in this study that probably served as source of error in data collection. Furthermore, the Conflict Tactic Scale which is the solely basis of the author-made questionnaire was tested primarily through the researches conductive in the Western and in some European Countries, hence, cultural differences may possibly serve as interference in the study. Even though domestic violence is ubiquitous across cultures, but cultural factors may influence socio-demographic attributes of the subjects of the study. As such, the validity and reliability of a particular instrument in a specific nation may not hold true for another country. In this line of reasoning, the correlations revealed by this research on socio-demographic characteristics and domestic violence on men may only be valid and reliable with respect to the populations of their own country. Although the results seemed to be comparable with the results of studies conducted in different countries, the authors failed to discuss crucial aspects of those studies in relation to their study like the instrument used and statistical treatment applied. Result comparison among conducted researches with different research design and methodology would result to bias generalization. In fact, in meta-analysis or the integration of the results of several studies, only researches with logically designed methodology and with validated data are included in order to derive a valid generalization (Wolf, 1986). Similarly, by comparing the results of this study with other researches of different research designs so as to make it credible would lead to erroneous generalization. References Pournaghash-Tehrani, S. and Feizabadi, Z. (2007). Comparing Demographic Characteristics of Male Victims of Domestic Violence. Journal of Applied Science, 7(14): 1930-1935. Wolf, F. M. (1986). Meta-Analysis: Quantitative Methods for Research Synthesis. Michigan: Sage Publication.

Relationship among Organizational Citizenship Behaviours

Relationship among Organizational Citizenship Behaviours Abstract Organizational citizenship behaviour is an important factor that aggregate promotes the effective functioning of the organization (Organ, 1988). And the job satisfaction is defined to be a pleasurable or positive emotional state resulting from the appraisal of ones job or job experiences (Locke, 1976). Researches have been done to measure the relationship between the job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behaviours. Some results show there are relationship between job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behaviours while some argue there are little relationship between this two factors. The aim of this paper is to find out the relationship between job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behaviours and measure whether other factors such as age and service length by using the questionnaire to collect data. Introduction In recent years a number of studies have expanded the understanding of organizational citizenship behaviour within the workplace. Organizational citizenship behaviour refers to individual behaviours that are discretionary, not directly or explicitly recognized by the formal reward system, and that in the aggregate promotes the effective functioning of the organization(Organ, 1988). In the early 1980s, the term organizational citizenship behaviors was created to depict extra-role those behaviors previously described by Katz (Smith et al., 1983). Katz maintained that organizational citizenship behaviors are vital to organizational survival and effectiveness. He also provided several examples of important extra-role behaviors, among them are actions that protect the organization and its property, constructive suggestions for improving the organization, self-training for additional responsibility, creating a favorable climate for the organization in its surrounding environments, and coop erative activities (Katz, 1964). Katz and Kahn (1966) suggested that organizational citizenship behaviors were spontaneous and innovative. Moorman and Blakely (1995) pointed out that organizational citizenship behaviours were beneficial and desirable from an organizational perspective, however, the behaviours were difficult to be increased through contractual arrangements or formal rewards. Bolon (1997) emphasized that organizational citizenship behaviours were not enforceable requirements of the role or the job descriptions, which were the clearly specifiable terms of the persons employment contract with the organization. The behaviors were matters of personal choices. The omission was not generally understood as punishable. Organ (1990) pointed out that the definition did not necessarily imply that organizational citizenship behaviours were limited only to those behaviours, which were lacking in tangible return to the person who performs such behaviours. He also maintained that a continual demonstration of organizational citizenship behaviours over time may influence the impression of coworkers or supervisors who develop concerning a particular employee. The impression could play an important role in future reward considerations, such as a salary increase or a promotion. Organizational citizenship behaviours have been linked to many work-related factors, for example, it has been associated with organizational commitment (Bolon, 1997), and transformational leader behaviours (Podsakoff et al., 1990). Studies have found that organizational citizenship behaviour is associated with job satisfaction (eg. Bolon, 1997). Job satisfaction has been gaining steady attention. Job satisfaction could be defined as a pleasurable or positive emotional state resulting from the appraisal of ones job or job experiences (Locke, 1976). The term job satisfaction was first coined by Hoppock in 1935. He defined it as the satisfactory feeling on both psychological and physical sides of the employees about the working conditions. It is the subjective responses of subordinates to work situations. Porter (1973) suggested that the extent of job satisfaction was the difference between the one who really acquires from work and the one who believed that he should acquire from work. A common view among managers is that satisfied employees were more productive than dissatisfied employees. Robbins (2001) suggested that job satisfaction was not only a general attitude toward ones job, but also the differences between the amount of reward workers received and the amount they believe they should receive. In addition, he presented that the term of job satisfaction refers to an individuals general attitude toward his or her job. A person with a high level of job satisfaction holds positive attitudes toward the job, while a person who is dissatisfied with his or her job holds negative attitudes about the job. As a psychological need and a factor to well being, job satisfaction is believed to have an environmental and genetic component (Arvey et al., 1989). There are several different variables, which are related to job satisfaction, such as cultural values, transformational leader behaviours and organizational commitment (Kirkman and Shapiro, 2001; Podsakoff et al., 1990; Feather and Rauter, 2004). There has increasing attention to the possible relationship between job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behaviour. Transformational leaders are those who broaden and elevate the interests of their followers, generate awareness and commitment of individuals to the purpose and mission of the group, and they enable subordinates to transcend their own self-interests for the betterment of the group (Seltzer et al., 1989). Transformational leadership is one of the groups of models describing leadership as an influencing social interaction or process. The process refers to one or a group of individuals which influence the behaviour of other people in an organizational setting for the purpose of achieving or accomplishing organizational objectives (Yukl, 2002). Transformational leadership behaviours raise the consciousness of followers about what is important, move followers to transcend the self-interest for the good of the organization, and raise their concerns for higher level needs on Maslows hierarchy (Bass, 1999). Studies have found that transformational leadership behaviours were positively assoc iated with followers job satisfaction, and transformational leaders could increase followers job satisfaction motivated their followers (Podsakoff et al., 1990; Morrison et al., 1997) There is substantial support for the relationship between job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behaviors. Bateman and Organ (1983) found a significant relationship between general measures of job satisfaction and supervisory ratings of citizenship behavior. Schappe (1998) also suggested that cross-lagged patterns of the relationships between organizational citizenship behaviours and specific facets of job satisfaction revealed essentially the same results as overall satisfaction. Smith, Organ, and Near (1983) identified two separate dimensions of OCB: altruism and generalized compliance. Altruism refers to behaviours aimed at helping specific people directly and intentionally. Generalized compliance refers to a more impersonal type of conscientious behavior that does not provide immediate aid to a particular individual but is indirectly helpful to other people in the organization. Job satisfaction could be a major determinant of an employees organizational citizenship behavior. A satisfied employee seems more likely to talk positively about the organization, help others, and go beyond the normal expectations in their job. Moreover, satisfied employees might be more prone to go beyond the call of duty because they want to reciprocate their positive experiences. Organ suggested that the empirically supported relationship between job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behaviours could be described as a reflecting relationship between perceptions of fairness and organizational citizenship behaviours. On the other hand, he also suggested that the cognitive component of job satisfaction appears to be related to orgaizational citizenship behaviours probably reflects the influence of perceptions. However, some studies argued there are no association between job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behaviours, which were considered to be related to other variables, such as transformational leadership behaviours (Podsakoff et al., 1990) and personality (Organ and Lingl, 1995). Other studies show that there is a positive relationship between job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behaviours (e.g. Chiu and Chen, 2005; Foote and Tang, 2008). Researchers suggested that job satisfaction could be a mediating variable between organizational citizenship behaviour and other variables, such as job characteristics and team commitment (Chiu and Chen, 2005; Foote and Tang, 2008). Studies show that both job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behaviour are associated to organizational outcomes significantly (Koys, 2001). Job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behaviour could thus be important variables for both employees and organizations. Methodological differences Methodological differences could explain differences between studies. Most of the earlier studies were based on samples from America and Australia, and almost all participants were employees in industrial companies. There is little focus on people with a higher education level, for example academics. The relation of job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behaviour could be different among academics, because of the high education level and features of academic work. The purpose of the study was to investigate and get a better understanding of the relationship between organizational citizenship behaviour and job satisfaction. In order to guide the investigation, the following specific questions were formulated: 1.What is the relationship between organizational citizenship behaviour and job satisfaction? 2.Are age, gender and length of service related to job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behaviours? The hypotheses of this study are: H0: There is no significant correlation between organizational citizenship behaviours and job satisfacton. H1: There is a significant correlation between organizational citizenship behaviours and job satisfaction. Methods Survey questionnaires were administered to staff of Department of Human Sciences in Loughborough University. Both academic staff and support staff were invited in this study. Participants were invited to participate in this study by e-mail. The e-mail outlined the survey details, such as the research proposal and the type of questionnaires. Volunteers read the study information and filled in the informed consent, using tick boxes to agree to consent before completing the questionnaire. Data collection was based on an online questionnaire system (Surveymonkey.com). The system provided a completely anonymity system. Participants filled the online questionnaire in directly to enable anonymity and confidentially. Data were collected automatically by the survey system. Of the 61 total personnel involved in such teams, 32 participated in the study. Of the respondents, 62.5 percent were female. Further, the mean age of participants was 45 years. The mean length of service was 11.5 years. Measures Organizational citizenship behaviours. To measure organizational citizenship behaviours, a 13 items five-point Likert scale (from 1= strongly disagree to 5= strongly agree) was using (Smith et al., 1983). The 13 items questionnaire assesses citizenship behaviours and gestures through items such as I am willing to help others who are not able to work, I am willing to volunteer to give orientation and guidance to new members who join our team and I make innovative and good suggestions which help to improve the department. The instrument has two sub scales, which measure altruism and generalized compliance. Altruism refers to behaviours aimed at helping specific people directly and intentionally (e.g. giving orientation to new members, assisting others with a heavy work load). Generalized compliance refers to a more impersonal type of conscientious behavior that does not provide immediate aid to a particular individual but is indirectly helpful to other people in the organization (e.g. punctuality). In the study by Smith et al. (1983) the coefficient alpha reliability estimates were .91 for Altruism and .81 for Generalized compliance. Job satisfaction. To measure job satisfaction, a 5 items five-point Likert scale (from 1= strongly disagree to 5= strongly agree) was using (Hackman and Oldham, 1975). There are The 5 items questionnaire assesses job satisfaction through items such as Generally speaking, I am very satisfied with this job and I frequently think of quitting this job (reverse items). In the study by Hackman and Oldham (1975), the coefficient alpha reliability estimates were .74. Statistical Analysis The data were analyzed in order to provide an answer to the research questions and test the hypotheses. To test the hypotheses and assess the correlation between organizational citizenship behaviours and job satisfacton, Pearson correlation analysis was preformed. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 16.0. Discussion The statistical analysis results show that there are relation between job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behaviours, while either age and length of service do not influence job satisfaction or organizational citizenship behaviours. However, some researchers have found that there is no relationship between organizational citizenship behaviours and job satisfaction (e.g. Podsakoff et al., 1990; Organ and Lingl, 1995), while other studies reported significant correlation between the two variables (e.g. Bateman and Organ, 1983; Schappe, 1998). A possible reason might be because the features of samples are different. As personal choices rather than duties, organizational citizenship behaviours could be influenced by culture, education level and organizational commitment. One limitation of this study is the response rate. In this study, the valid response rate is about 50 present. Moreover, the sample size is relatively small. Another possible problem is that people who have higher organizational citizenship behaviours levels are more likely to participate the study than people who have low levels organizational citizenship behaviours. In addition, one limitation of the study is that university staff need to do more individual duties rather than co-operations. For this reason, the results of the study may not be suitable for organizations which need more co-operations, for instances, customer services companies or manufacturing industry Future studies In this study, the sample size is relatively small. The larger the sample size, the more sensitive the research in exploring the relationships of the variables. Subsequent studies could cover more samples. In this study, the questionnaire of organizational citizenship behaviours were answered directly by the employees, which was not appraised by their supervisors or co-workers. For this reason, the self-reported data may be inflated. Therefore, subsequent researchers may improve the design of surveys to avoid the bias Conclusion As the data gathered from Loughborough University Human Science department suggest that there are significant relationship between job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behavior while there seems no correlation between the job satisfaction and the stuffs age and service length. This conclusion may only apply to those workers who engage in more personal works and a different result could be expected when using workers whose duty includes more co-operation with others.

A Lacanian Study of Motherhood in the Poems of William Wordsworth Essay

William Wordsworth was a prolific poet of the Romantic movement, perhaps best known for publishing Lyrical Ballads with friend and fellow poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge in 1798. These poems were written in what Wordsworth described as a ‘common tongue’ with a focus on themes often found in Romantic poetry, such as the pastoral, the mythical, fragmentation, heroism and satire. In Lyrical Ballads one recurring subject almost unique to Wordsworth in its passion and persistence is that of motherhood. The connection between womanhood and nature make it a frequently explored theme for many poets, such as Blake in his Songs of Innocence. However, I have chosen to focus on Wordsworth since motherhood is not only examined at great length in his poetry, but also because biographical details of his own life make analysis of his works concerning the topic all the more significant, since he had lost his own mother at the age of eight. For a topic such as motherhood, one school of critical thought likely to provide interesting observations is that of psychoanalysis. I have chosen to focus on Jacques Lacan for this essay since his theories have a greater emphasis on the use and formation of language in the individual than other key figures in his field, such as Jung or Freud. Lacan believed that when we examine literature, we do not merely analyse the characters of a text, but also the text itself as an effect of the linguistic wordplay of the unconscious. For this reason I feel that Lacan is particularly well suited to the discussion of poetry. In this essay I shall be making reference to Lacan’s analysis of The Three Orders and his account of The Mirror Stage in relation to the ego. For Lacan, the Mirror Stage is not ... ...ressing or painful situations, although we may have forgotten of origins of the compulsion. In the symbolic realm we also begin our unending search for Objet (petit) a, the lost object that must constantly be sought in order, we feel, to complete us: an unobtainable other. For Wordsworth, this Objet (petit) a appears to be the mother figure and his compulsion is to write about her from every perspective. Works Cited Bennett, Andrew, and Nicholas Royle. An introduction to literature, criticism and theory 4. ed. Harlow: Pearson Longman, 2009. Leitch, Vincent B. "Jacques Lacan." In The Norton anthology of theory and criticism. New York: Norton, 2001. Wilden, Anthony. System and structure: essays in communication and exchange. 2nd ed. London: Tavistock, 1980. Wu, Duncan. "Lyrical Ballads." In Romanticism: an anthology. Oxford, UK: Blackwell, 1994.

The Hoover Dam and Its Construction Essay -- Hoover Dam Research Paper

Outside of China, the United States is the most-dammed country on the planet. Counting only dams taller than fifty feet high, the U.S. has some 5,000 dams that range from giant hydroelectric dams such as the Grand Coulee in Washington State to flood control dams in the southeast and dams that provide water for irrigation in California. Overall the United States has as many as 2.5 million dams of one sort or another. The design and construction of many of these dams took place between 1930 and 1975. This 45 years period is known as the golden age of dam building, starting with the construction of the Hoover Dam beginning in 1931. By the 1970s the golden age of dam construction began to come to an end with increased concerns of the impacts of dams on their surroundings. To better understand this time period I will look at the construction of Hoover Dam during the 1930’s followed by an examination many of today’s arguments for and against dams [i]. The need for a dam on the Colorado River was known decades before construction actually began due to the numerous destructive floods of the Colorado River. A need for water and electricity was also discovered to help with the development of the West. But there were many factors standing in the way such a large-scale construction project. Finally, in 1927 a bill detailing the project passed in Congress. Many construction companies began to look over the proposals but most agreed that the plan was too ambitious, too difficult, the project site was too unforgiving, and that the technology was not available to build a dam of that size[ii]. Hoover Dam is located in the Black Canyon, on the Colorado River, about thirty miles southeast of Las V... ...onomic impacts of the dam, the impacts of removal, and the economic costs. Notes [i] Davy, Emma. â€Å"Robofish† Current Science March 2, 2001: 10. [ii] http://www.hooverdam.usbr.gov/ [iii] http://xroads.virginia.edu/~MA98/haven/hoover/front2.html [iv] http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/hoover/ 5 Robbins, Elaine. â€Å"Damning Dams.† E Jan 1999: 14. 6 Franklin, Chris. â€Å"Let the Colorado River run free.† Earth Island Journal Spring 1997: 23. 7 http://www/irn.org/ 8 â€Å"Not so fast; Eliminating dams; Why dams can be green.† The Economist March 3, 2001: 4. 9 Wade, Beth. â€Å"Bringing down the dams.† American City and County June 1999: 20. 10 â€Å"Knocking down dams – A good year for alewives.† The Economist July 29, 2000: 32. 11 http://www.saveourdams.com/ 12 McMahon, Richard Jr. â€Å"Let’s not damn the dams.† The Business Journal January 28, 2000: 47.

Community Health Nursing Essay

Community description and data analysis Orange County is located in the United States of America in the Southern region in the state of California. In addition with Los Angeles to the north, San Diego County to the south and Riverside and San Bernardino counties to the east. There are 84 cites within the county and several unincorporated areas. The County has a total area of 789 square miles of land and 158.6 square miles or 16.6% of water. The average temperature is about 68 degrees Fahrenheit (â€Å"Orange County, California†). There are also several beaches that are along the coastland that cover more than 40 miles. In addition to its popularity of being home to Disneyland, this county is well known for being a tourist attraction. Orange County was established after the severe drought in the 1860’s. During this time cattle ranching collapsed leading the way towards the boom in silver mining. This huge growth in population lead California legislatures to divide Los Angles county and created Orange county as a separate political entity in March 11th, 1889 (â€Å"Orange County, California†). The State of California and Orange County are in a severe water shortage as the state has implemented laws to discourage unnecessary water usage. Population and Economic Status From an epidemiologic viewpoint the U.S census in 2012 estimated the population in Orange County to be around 3,090,132 with a population density of 3871 people per square mile. The average household size in Orange County is 2, in addition, the average gross adjusted income of non-migrant tax payers in this county in 2005 was $74,786. The median average contract for rent in 2009 for renting an apartment is approximately $1,367 per month, while the average house value approximated to be around $530,000. The percentage of residents living in poverty in the year 2009 was approximately 10.7% with 5.8% being white non-Hispanic, 13.0% of black residents, 17.3% for Hispanic or Latino, and 18.6% for other race residents. The median age of Orange County residents in 2010 was 36 years old with males having the median age of 34 years old and females 37. The birth rate for live births per 1000 population from the year 2000 to 2006 was 15.4. Death rates showed slightly lower rates per 1000 from the years 2000 to 2006 with 5.8%. Persons enrolled in hospital insurance and/or supplemental medical insurance (Medicare) in the year 2003 was 309,081 (281,334 aged, 27,747 were disabled) (â€Å"Orange County, California†). In comparison to residents without health coverage in the year 2000 was estimated at 15%. Unemployment rate is estimated at 143,026, while the amount of employed is estimated at 1,445,477 in the 2010 census report (â€Å"State & County Quick Facts†). Cultural Assessment From the biophysical considerations, the aging baby boomers make up 25.4% of the population in Orange County with more families caring for the elderly at home especially among the Hispanic population. There are over 7,326 persons living in nursing homes in 2010. Coping with stress and adapting to change when the unemployment hit an all time low in 2010 with 10,000 jobs lost put residents in a crisis. Current unemployment rate in  Orange County is 5.0% with and estimated 3 million people homeless. There are 44.1% white non-Hispanic, 33.7% Hispanic or Latino, 17.7% Asian and 1.5% Black non- Hispanics living in Orange County. There are slightly more females with 53.0% and males at 47.0%. The Republican Party slightly out numbered the Democratic Party in 2012 by approximately 8,000 votes. In March of 2000 there is a recorded foreign-born entry population of 165,344 people. The current population of college students is 230,749 and people 25 years of age and older with a high school degree or higher is 79.5%.  Religion statistics show the Catholic Church Adherents has the highest population of 61.2% with the Jewish ranking at 4.7% and the LDS Mormon Church 3.4%. The most common place of birth other than Orange County among foreign born residents is Mexico at 46% with Vietnam coming in second at 13%. There are 56.6% of residents who speak English at home, compared with 25.3% residents who speak Spanish as their primary language. The government finances expenditure in 2006 for Orange County for assistance and subsidies was $210,973,000 with public welfare and cash assistance programs paying out approximately $6,483,000 (Orange County California). Neighborhood/ Community safety There are approximately 18% of children living in poverty and with 26% living in single-parent households. Social and economic factors showed violent crime rates ranking at 230 and 37 injuries to death. There are no drinking water violations in comparison to 28% claims of severe housing problems among renters. There are a low percentage of people having limited access to food at 1% of the population with 15 homeless shelters found in and around Orange County that have access to food, clothing and shelter (Orange County Health Department). Potential weather events include the high incidence for earthquakes. Orange County area has a historical earthquake activity high above the California state average and 2458% overall above the U.S average (Orange County California). Government finances expenditure for police protection for 2006 estimated over $276,955,000 and cost for correctional institutions was over $178,413,000 (Orange County California). There are 26 police departments and 12 fire departments through out Orange County with first responder medics on duty. The numbers for homicides between the years 2000-2006 have a less than state average with 27.8 per 1,000,000. Suicides are also at a below state average between 2000-2006 with 79.3 per 1,000.000. (Orange County California). While Immigration is an ongoing debate in Orange County and California the state’s immigrant population only increased by 15% (1.3 million) in the year 2000s, compared to 37% (2.4 million) in the 1990s (Public Policy institute of California). Obesity and  Alzheimer’s disease is on the rise in Orange County. There are 70% of adults who rate their health as either excellent or good compared with 30% who rate their health as fair or poor. The incidence for Alzheimer’s disease has increased 39% between 2005-2009. In 2009 there is a recorded 33.1% adults considered over weight by comparison to 17.3% being obese. In 2011 the Calif ornia  Department of Children and physical fitness test showed 37.8% of children tested as having an unhealthy body composition. This high incidence has been found to be contributed to sedentary lifestyles and being overweight. These statistics show evidence for the pertinent nursing diagnosis of ineffective health maintenance as evidenced by the unfavorable health disparities listed above. (Orange County Indicators). Nursing actions for these disparities include more after school activity programs that include physical activities. Schools to be required to offer more fresh fruit and vegetables to be included in meals. Offering education for families and children about the potential risks for child obesity and ways to decrease the numbers by offering nutrition counseling at school. Educating the community of health risk and signs and symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease and where to seek medical attention specifically for this illness in their community. Provide resources from organizations specially designed to assistance families with special needs for people battling Alzheimer’s disease such as respite care and hospice. Disaster Assessment and Planning During a disaster such as a nuclear power plant emergency or earthquake, tsunamis, terrorism and acts of war the Sheriff – Coroner is designated as the director of emergency services. The counties emergency operations center (EOC) is located at Loma Ridge. In the event of a natural disaster such as a flood, storm, dam failure or coastal oil spill the County executive officer is the director of emergency services (DES). (Orange County Sheriff). The County of Orange also collaborates with the California of Public Health and also with other entities to safeguard a consistent disaster and preparedness plan  through out this region and nation wide (Orange County, California Disaster and preparedness training). Most Orange County residents are unaware of the disaster planning in their community although there is an overall sense of safety as they put their full trust in community officials. Although there are several safety issues throughout Orange County such as unsafe side walks for the elderly and non- handicap accessible. The County has funded grants and bonds to improve the potential hazards. References Orange County, California. (n.d). Retrieved from http://www.city-data.com/county/Orange_County-ID.html County of Health Rankings & Roadmaps. (n.d) Retrieved from http://www.countyhealthrankings.org/app/orangeounty/2014/california/orangecounty/factors/4/5 Community Health Survey Orange County. (n.d) Retrieved from http://www.phd1.california.gov/home/documents/OrangeCountyCombinedResults.pdf Public Policy Institute of California. (n.d). Retrieved from www.ppic.org Orange County Sheriff Department California (n.d). Retrieved from Ocsd.org. Orange County California Disease and Preparedness training.(n.d) Retrieved from Healthdisasteroc.org State and County Quick Facts (n.d) Retrieved from http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/index.html Orange County Health Department. (n.d) Retrieved from http://orangecountygov.com Orange County Indicators (n.d). Retrieved from Cams.ocgov.com Orange County, California State Community Diagnosis The above assessed parameters gives a brief overview of the Health and Safety of Orange County in the State of California. The overall county has statistics showing a healthy community except for the increasing numbers of overweight children who are lacking in physical activity and the increase in Alzheimer’s disease. The plan is to implement more education on nutrition and resources to families for assistance who suffer from Alzheimer’s diseases. Also included will be to educate the community on emergency preparedness and disaster planning.