The Automobile and the Economy Essay -- Essays Papers

The Automobile and the Economy The effects the automobile has had on the economy of the world are tremendous. The major effects have came in many ways and include sales of the automobile, jobs provided to sell and manufacture the automobile, gas/oil sales to run the automobile, and the start of auto racing sport. The revolution of the automobile was the start of the most popular and successful industry in the world. The Effect of Gas/Oil There is a great effect on the economy due to the sale of gas. The major effect of how much gas is sold is how efficient the particular automobile uses gas and what automobile the people choose to buy. Since the start of production of the automobile fuel efficiency has steadily increased for the most part thanks to better engineers, tires, and laws that force better efficiency. First, The Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 established C.A.F.E. (corporate average fuel economy) which was meant to steadily increase fuel efficiency in passenger cars every year (http//www.cnie.org/nle/air-10.html#summ) . The only problem was oil prices softened and the demand for small cars that were the most efficient diminished. As a result, the N.H.T.S.A (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) was forced to relax the standard of the model years 1986-1989. The standard for automobiles of today is 27.5 miles per gallon. In the 1990’s the United States had an increased urgency raise their standards as they were more dependent on importing oil instead of producing it. Currently, the Clinton Administration is going to great depths to try to increase fuel efficiency. Bill Cliton made a partnership with the domestic industry to develop a new... ...mobile Manufacturing Industries Act†. October 27 1996. Internet Explorer. Online. March 1 1998. http://www.japanauto.com/about/hjai_01.html â€Å"Auto Production to Expected 3 Million Next Year†. Short Takes. Internet Explorer. Online. September 17 1997. http//www.korta.co.kr/ki/issues/1997/11-12/short.html â€Å"Automobile Fuel Economy†. CRS Issue Brief for Congress. Internet Explorer. Online. October 8 1997. http//www.cnie.org/nle/air-10.html#summ â€Å"Do Automobile Fuel Economy Standards Work?†. Do Automobile Fuel Economy Standards Work?. December 10 1996. Internet Explorer. Online. March 10 1998. http//www.azfms.com/DocReviews/Dec96/art3.htm â€Å"How TV Wizardy Made Stock Car Racing the Hottest, Family-friendliest Sport Around†. Nascar Nation. December 11 1997. Internet Explorer. Online. March 11 1998. http://www.mci.newscorp.com/tv/magazine

The Lord Of The Flies :: essays research papers

The Lord of the Flies The adventure novel, The Lord of the Flies, was an epic tale that depicted the different facets of the human spirit. It was written by William Golding in the 1950's and recieved many awards. It was declared the "Outstanding Novel of the Year" by E.M. Forrester. The author did in no wat mean for this story to be biographical, but Mr. Golding depicted well the many different aspect of human nature. The book has been described as "provacative, vivid and enthralling," but Time and Tide said it best when they wrote, â€Å"It is not only a first-rate adventure story but a parable of our times." The novel took place on an island probably somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic. This can be inferred because of the fact that the boys are British and that they arrived on the island by way of a plane cradsh. The story also occurred during wartime. The story begins when a group of British boys crash on an uninhabited island. In the beginning they area all unruly and unmorginized. Finally, a boy by the nakme of Ralph decides to take charge and call a meeting. The boys declare him â€Å"chief† and then begin to follow his lead. Ralph is also assisted by another lad by the name of Piggy. The group of boys were getting along fine until Jack Merridew, a boy who wanted to be â€Å"chief† instead, decided to go his own way. He disobeyed Ralph and did things his own way. He was to preoccupied witdh his own whims to do the act that was most important on the island, which was to keep the signal going so they could be rescued. Finally, Jack went against Ralph and declared that if any of the other boys wanted to have â€Å"fun,† which meant acting like savages, that they should follow him. The boys splot up into two groups and then havoc insued. Jacks group went around hunting and being barbaric while the others tried to get rescued. In the end Jack had gotten all the boys except Ralph to run around loke wild animals. Then when Jack got tired of dealing with Ralph, he convinced wveryone to try and kill him. By then however, a navy ship had come an they could never get around to the nasty deed. There was more than one antagonist in the story, The Lord of the Flies. They were Ralph, Piggy, and all the other boys who tried to sustain order and law on the island. To begin with, Ralph was the â€Å"first† chief on the island.

Case Study: Cappuccino Wars

1)  The coffee culture of the United States has been taken up by a storm in the United Kingdome as well. The gourmet coffee consumption in the regions increased and the presence of four major chains of coffee in the country have enabled easy access to any type of coffee required or desired by the consumers. The reason for the increase and the popularity of the coffee bars in the region is mostly related to the lifestyle and the environment of the region. The United Kingdom is essentially a very cold region where one can feel cool winter chills even in the summer months of June and July. As a result, coffee as a beverage would have been very popular in the region. However the different hundreds of varieties made available to the consumers piqued their interest as well as their taste buds.Previously the region was used to the unappealing black and grey coffee which did not come in many variations. However with the use of Brazilian coffee and Italian coffee making machines, the gourme t coffee bards were able to provide the customers with a diverse product offering which was delicious and attractive at the same time. The consumer as a result, is also willing to pay a high price for these coffees. The other strategy that was adopted by the coffee bars was to introduce a relaxing atmosphere and ambience at their shops. This attracted the customers to come in the shop, buy their beverages and spend some time socializing or simply catching up on current events or their work.The other reason as to why coffee shops have become so popular in the region of UK is because of the convenience they offer. The wide spread of the shops has made its possible for the competing as well as same retailer owned shops to be located within a hundred yards of each other. This gives the customer the convenience and the choice of getting a coffee when ever they want and wherever they want. Aside from this the various flavours offered by the shops have provided the customers with an array of choices and customisation. The customers love making choices and this makes the experience of buying and consuming a complex and flavourful brew of coffee very attractive for the customers.2)  If I were to be visiting a coffee bar for the first time there would be multiple factors influencing my decision pertaining to the purchase of coffee and the repeat consumption of coffee from the specific shop. These factors would include my mood, my attitude towards the shop, the brand name of the shops, the associations with the image of the shop or the brand, the attitude of my peers with the shop, the reviews that are available for the products and services offered by the shop.Aside from this the factors would also include my personal opinion of the shop, the kind of coffee I want and the various forms of coffees that are offered by the shop. The traffic coming in and going out of the shop as well as the ambiance would also be a important facto of my decision making activity. Aside fo rm this I would want the coffee to be healthy and prepared in a hygiene environment as a result cleanliness and hygiene would also play a crucial part in my decision of going to a certain shop for buying the coffee.However if I have already visited the shop and bought a coffee from there, then my decision making factors would slightly change. By now I would have formed an opinion about the shop and would make my decision according to this. The opinion would be made up of my experience with the staff and the service, the experience of consuming the coffee as well my personal taste of the ambiance in the shop. The satisfaction that I derived form the coffee however would be the most important decision for me in the case of repeat purchase behaviour.My decision to buy coffee can be a high involvement decision as well as a low involvement decision. Initially the decision to go to a shop for the first time would be a high involvement decision as I would be checking the place out and aski ng for reviews form people. However once I have been there the decision for going to the same shop would become a low involvement decision.3)  The leading coffee shops in the UK including Starbucks, Costa Coffee, Cafà © Nero and Coffee Republic have all had been selling large amounts of coffee to the customers, however they have been unable to make any substantial amounts of profits. The main reason for this is that they are currently because of their expansion strategy and the product offering.They are providing the customers with a highly diverse kind of product however the price they are charging is high and premium price based however it is not enough for them to cover the cost of the customizations and the high quality raw materials required in the manufacturing and processing of these coffees. Moreover the intense competition in the industry has made them restrict the level to which they can decrease their prices as the other company in the industry also follows the price d ecrease making the effect the sae. However the margin available to the companies is getting reducesThe other reason is that the expansion strategy especially by Starbucks is eating up into the target market scope and share of the branches of the various coffee bars. This has reduced the traffic coming in per bar, while the number of coffee bars have been increasing. This decrease in the traffic combined with the low margins has made the profitability of these bars almost non existent.The option available to the coffee and related beverage retailers like Starbucks and other serious competitors is to improve the efficiency of their operations. The business will have to perform business process reengineering whereby the have to find out the various inefficiencies that exist in their business processes. Special attention has to be given to the cost inefficiencies present.These need to be identified and improved on or eliminated. By getting more efficient in their operations the stores w ill be able to report profits for their operations. One of the main strategies that the companies might have to take up would be to close down its highly inefficient and loss bearing stores. Aside from this those stores which are not present at strategic location should be eliminated as well in order to cut down the costs of operations.4)  The coffee bars are usually located in the centres of the towns and the streets as this is where most of the traffic tends to pass from. The chance of getting a customer in these regions is very high. However in order to provide the coffee to places where the people actually require them would involve taking the shop to the consumers.This would involve setting up a coffee kiosk in the school during lunch times or in the offices during lunch break. Aside from this the shops can be placed near the vicinity of large schools, colleges and office building. Placing the shop in such strategic locations will allow the customers to conveniently come to t he shop themselves. Aside form this it is also possible to open a coffee bar inside a college campus as well. This is because the study cramming sessions conducted by the students require caffeine laden beverages and they would appreciate the presence of a coffee bar in such convenient vicinity.Other locations where the presence of a coffee shop can be profitable for business as well as satisfactory for the customers would be near political and government offices, near army training camps as well as in hospitals. The presence of such coffee shops would be much appreciated in hospitals as people tend to have a lack of choice for beverages like coffee and snacks in the hospital. The coffee shops can also be located at prominent regional, national as well as international tourism spots and hotels. This would provide the tourists as well as the working staff to the coffee culture providing them will high quality coffee products at their convenience.ReferenceThorburn, S., (2006), Analyst Comment, Marketing, p35-35, retrieved November 10, 2007

Cognitive Impairment Screening in Senior Citizens

I told you three times yesterday you had a doctor's appointment and that I was going to come pick you up. † Judy shuffled back to the kitchen to double check her calendar, followed by her daughter. Both of them stopped in their tracks, taking in the ransacked kitchen. Her daughter asked what had happened in here, but Judy couldn't answer her. She was beside herself. Who could have possibly broken into her home and torn her kitchen apart? Dementia has reared its ugly head. Phil Just wanted to pay for his Reuben. He had been out and about running errands and was very hungry.The young man behind the counter had tried to charge his debit card more than a few times, but to no avail the card was denied each time. Phil began to recant his day to himself. Then It dawned on him, he had closed his bank account only a few hours before. Phil was getting ready to move down to Texas with his son due to his recent diagnosis of Alchemist's. Phil was a regular at the dell and the manager gave h im the Reuben on the house. â€Å"One of the worse things about this rotten disease Is losing the ability of taking care of myself† (Phil Rolled, 2010). Just frustrating for me, not to remember what I need to do to Just feel like I still can live and take care of myself. † This Is a common frustration expressed by those suffering diseases like dementia and Dementia is a costly disease; for the five million people like Phil and Judy living tit the disease in the United States, for Phil and Judy family, and for the government. Earlier detection and intervention of dementia would provide Phil and Judy the time to plan for the future and get the utmost benefit from available treatments.Earlier detection and intervention of the disease would lessen the future financial burden on health care. Cognitive impairment screening would ascertain if early intervention is needed. Cognitive impairment screening in senior citizens must become practice. Dementia is used as an umbrella te rm; describing a wide range of symptoms that include a progressive decline in mental ability severe enough to interfere with daily life. Dementia slowly robs Phil and Judy of their memories. At first, they experience problems with their short-term memory such as remembering an appointment.As time passes, the disease steals more and more of the brain. Phil and Judy eventually will not be able to respond to their environment, nor will they be able to express when they are in pain, or hungry, or thirsty, or when they have to go to the bathroom. A true diagnosis is rare, because dementia affects everyone differently. There is no ere. Dementia is considered an old person's disease. It's normal to forget where you left your keys when you're 65 years old or to forget where you parked the car. Contrary to popular belief, dementia is not a normal part of aging.Alchemist's is the most common type of dementia, but there are many other types. One of the biggest risk factors in developing dement ia is a person's age. Unless someone has stumbled onto the fountain of youth, no one can change or hide from their age. Persons age 65 and older have a greater risk of suffering from dementia. Every five years those Hansen double, so by the time Judy is 85 years old – her chance is nearly 50 percent. Today, there is an estimated five million people living with a dementia related disease in the United States. (What is Dementia, n. D. With the first wave of Baby Boomers already at age 68, the cost of dementia in 40 years is expected to exceed $1. 2 trillion (Alchemist's Fact and Figures, n. D. ). In 2010, the worldwide costs associated with dementia equaled one percent of global GAP. One percent doesn't seem like much on a global scale. However, if dementia care was a company; Dementia Inc. Loud be considered the world's largest by annual revenue. (GE Healthcare, 2014) The Alchemist's Association predicts the total number of dementia-related cases in the United States will reac h 14 million in the year 2050.Our healthcare system and the Medicare program are already strained. As the Baby Boomers get older, are we going to be able to weather the suffocating financial squeeze this disease is going to create? Phial's family is lucky to catch the disease before it has progressed too far, his son will be able to take care of him at home until the disease progresses further. The average cost for caring for someone at home is $12,500 per year. As the disease robs Phil of more brain function, more skilled care is required. Families can be billed anywhere from $42,000 to $72,000 per year.Victims and their families can easily deplete their savings on medical care and then turn to Medicare/Medicaid and tax payers to help with the remaining costs. Judy may have already passed the opportune time to either stay at home with her daughter or have in-home care and ultimately needs to go live either in an assisted living or nursing themselves for the price of skilled care. S enator Tom Harkin stated â€Å"The only way we are truly going to save Medicare from bankruptcy when the baby boomers retire is to reduce the length and incidence of expensive illnesses like Alchemist's. Harkin, Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies recently held a hearing in February of 2014 to inspect the financial impact of Alchemist's in America (Bethlehem, 1998). But how do we reduce the length of disease that has a difficult diagnosis and no cure in the foreseeable future? We need to be looking at intervention opportunities. All things considered, some will argue that dementia-related diseases are only a small part of a much bigger problem, dismissing the idea that the disease could bankrupt Medicare. Projections of the frequency of a disease 30 years from now should be taken with a grain of salt,† said Gail Wiliness, chairman of the federal Physician Payment Review Commission (Bethlehem, 199 8). â€Å"We don't know how the frequency of other disease will rise or fall, and how that will affect longevity. † She went on to commend the fact that medical research has allowed people to live longer lives and improve quality of fife. However, she questioned whether the research has saved us any money.Wiliness almost sounds like she is agreeing with another rarely expressed view that concludes if we devote more money and effort into finding a cure for dementia; that will only prolong the life of the elderly by a few more years. Crudely put, if you don't die of complications from dementia, you'll still die of something else. Understandably, we can't avoid death. That is an inevitable fact of life. If we as a community could act early, if we as a community could provide intervention, what kind of standard would e set for the rest of the nation?Earlier detection of dementia could provide earlier intervention, delay the impact of the disease, and prevent significant health ev ents in the future. Does that process sound familiar? In 2013, The United States Preventive Services Task Force recommends women get a mammogram every 2 years starting at age 50 to keep proactive about breast cancer (Mammograms Fact Sheet). Furthermore, the same task force recommends oscilloscopes in adults beginning at age 50 and continuing until age 75 (at different intervals depending on family history) o prevent colon cancer.Curious, I went to the U. S. Preventive Services Task Force website on Recommendations for Adults. I found preventative information on 19 different cancers and 11 different types of heart disease. I found nothing on dementia or Alchemist's. Nothing. Alchemist's disease is the 6th leading cause of death in the United States (Leading Causes of Death, 2011). The top five include heart disease, cancer, chronic lower respiratory disease, and stroke. All five of those diseases all have preventative measures and are routinely screened for in our annual heck-ups wit h our doctors.What needs to be addressed though is why there is more prevalence on detecting cancers and heart disease? John Morris, professor of neurology and co-director of the Alchemist's disease research center at Washington University's School of Medicine, believes we should find a way to distinguish between the normal aging process and early dementia and build more interest (Bethlehem, 1998). This is where a cognitive assessment could help bridge that gap. A cognitive assessment is an examination that is used to determine someone's level of cognitive function.A group of 2,719 elderly residents in Almagest County, Minnesota were 2014). The doctors conducting the case knew from earlier studies that elderly residents would sometimes have a cognitive assessment that indicated some impairment, but when examined again later, the impairment had lessened or completely gone away. During this trial, 40% of people with a mild cognitive impairment reverted back to a more normal state. At the end of the study, the doctors found that 65% of those â€Å"reverts† went on to develop dementia (Berliner, 2014).While this study shows that not everyone who has cognitive impairments may o on to develop dementia, the doctors were certainly more aware of any changes. Unfortunately, there isn't one type of assessment test that is better than the others. However, the Alchemist's Association website has recommended several cognitive assessment tools that can be performed in less that or around five minutes in a primary care or community setting. Not only are there patient assessment tools, there are informant tools for family members and close friends to use as well. Utilizing these assessments Just once isn't going to do the trick.Then again, imagine f the U. S. Preventative Services Task Force recommended a cognitive assessment screening every two-three years starting at age 65. Cognitive impairment screening must become practice for senior citizens. The assessments may n ot garner conclusive data, but over time we will be able to create a clearer picture as to how dementia slowly progresses. From that picture, we will develop earlier intervention techniques to help ease not only the financial strain on Phil and Judy and their families, but ease the frustration felt by dementia's victims.

Hofstede’s cultural dimensions of Australia and China Essay

Mismanaging cultural differences can render otherwise successful managers and organisations ineffective when working across cultures. As stated byOsland (1990, p. 4) â€Å"The single greatest barrier to business success is the one erected by culture†. Hofstede (1983) defines culture as â€Å"the mental programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one human group from another† (Hofstede 1983 p. 25). Through the comparison of Chinese culture and Australian culture using Hofstedes five cross-cultural dimensions: power distance, uncertainty avoidance, masculinity, individualism, and long-term orientation an insightful view into the differences and similarities of the cultures can be obtained (Chong & Park 2003). Human Resource Management (HRM) activities such as: recruitment and selection, career planning and development, employee motivation, and compensation and benefits need to be performed in alignment with national culture as effectiveness of a human resource management practice hinges on the degree to which it fits the values and beliefs of people in the host country. By exploring the differences and similarities of Chinese and Australian culture from a HR perspective strategies aimed at achieving organisational goals can be better achieved. The inherent weaknesses of Hofstedes framework will also be discussed to emphasise the importance of other methods for determining culture. Greet Hofstede’s (1980) landmark study involved more than one hundred thousand IBM employees in forty countries. From those results, and later additions, Hofstede developed a model for classifying national cultures and analysing work behaviour according to five underlying dimensions: power distance, uncertainty avoidance, masculinity, individualism, and long-term orientation (Chong & Park 2003). Hofstedes analysis of each country can provide a better understanding into the national culture that is specific to each country. The significant findings of Hofstedes analysis of Australia include a low power distance score of 36 (ITIM International 2003). Societies with low power distance are characterized by the norm value that inequalities between people should be minimized, and, to the extent that hierarchies exist in such societies and their organizations, they exist only for administrative convenience. Subordinates and superiors regard each other as like people, who have equal r ights and representation (Hofstede 1983). In  comparison China has a relatively high power distance of 80 (ITIM International 2003). By contrast, high power distance societies are characterised by the acceptance of inequality and its institutionalisation in hierarchies which locate people in their â€Å"rightful places†. In high power distance societies, superiors are expected to lead and make decisions, and subordinates are generally afraid and unwilling to disagree with their superiors (Hofstede 1983). As a result of the significant difference in power distance between Australian and China Human Resource activities such as performance appraisals will require different approaches. In Australia and many western cultures performance appraisals are generally linked to the job description and individual career development plans. In Australian 360 degree feedback is often incorporated using feedback from management and peers. Constructive criticism is also another important component in the performance appraisals used i n Australia which is vital for identifying gaps in learning and development and is accepted by employees as the norm (Harrison 1995). By contrast performance appraisals in China are less frequent as both managers and workers in Chinese enterprises want to avoid blunt confrontations; it is understandable that they would try to minimise the frequency of such conflict-prone encounters in the workplace (Huo 1995). Peer evaluation, frequently used in Australian organisations, virtually does not exist in the China. This may be attributed to the traditional authoritarian leadership style prevalent in Chinese enterprises where only supervisors are deemed qualified to evaluate subordinates’ performance (Huo 1995). Performance appraisals generally involve two-way communications which is not embraced by Chinese culture as the large power distance found in China indicated that to challenge authority of superiors is not considered appropriate for subordinates (Huo 1995). Therefore when conducting a performance appraisal in China it is expected that the evaluated will be more subjective. A straight forward form of apprais al would be better received and employee participation should not be forced. Of significant interest is Australia’s high individualism ranking of 90 (ITIM International 2003) . High Individualism implies a society believes that people should largely remain independent from groups, and that people should have a self-concept of being an independent individual rather than a  dependent member of a group(Harrison 1995). In comparison China ranked extremely low with a score of 20 in the individualism ranking (ITIM International 2003). This is as a result of the society fosters strong relationships where everyone takes responsibility for fellow members of their group with an emphasis on a Collectivist society as a result of the Communist rule (Hofstede 1980). As a result of the different stance of each culture on individualism human resource activities such as compensations and benefits will need to be approached in a different way. In Australian rewards are geared towards pay for performance which motivates the individual to stand out from the crowd in particular at more senior management levels. Compensation is not just related to salary but can include bonuses, commissions, and other merit based reward programs for individual contributions. In contrast Chinese tend to focus on the goals of the collective rather than individual goals. Group approaches have been a dominating influence on Chinese social and working life, including team work, group decision making, group reward, group cohesiveness and group consultation (Satoe & Wang 1994). Chinese employees do not want to stand out from the crowd. Thus it has been suggested that Western business practices, such as personnel incentives, do not work (Myers, 1987). Therefore when conducting business within the Chinese culture compensation and benefits should be based on a collective theory where there are less individual incentives rather a focus on the performance of the group or work units. In a field experiment which combined team duties with group incentives, the team responsibility system proved to have a positive effect on members’ expectancy, achievement attribution, morale and satisfaction (Satoe & Wang 1994). The great distinction between Australia’s score of 31 for Long Term Orientation compared with Chinas score of 118 suggest great cultural differences (ITIM International 2003). Long Term Orientation is a measure of the degree the society embraces, or does not embrace long-term devotion to traditional, forward thinking values. As Australia has a low score this indicates that change can occur more rapidly as long-term traditions and commitments do not become impediments to change (Harrison 1995). In contrast to this a country with a high score such as China value long-term  commitments and respect tradition. This is thought to support a strong work ethic where long-term rewards are expected as a result of today’s hard work (Harrison 1995). These types of diverse cultural views towards long term orientation will impact of the way human resource activities such as recruitment and selection are carried out. In Australia it is common for employees to have several difference employers in there working career and even several changes in industry. Recruitment and selection practises in Australia are aimed at aligning the best fit between employees and the organisation in terms of goals and competencies. Recruitment and selection in Australian generally includes interviewing, psychometric tests, assessment centres and other measures of assessment. In contrast with this Chinese employment pattern has traditionally been life employment with three guarantees â€Å"guaranteed job assignment, guaranteed pay irrespective of performance and guaranteed tenure of senior positions† (Lewis 3003) . Selection criteria seem quite different from the West. For example, Easterby-Smith et al. (1995) found that selection criteria for managerial appointments in their case study organisations were â€Å"good moral practice; adequate competence; working hard and excellent performance records; political loyalty and harmonious relationships with others†. Longevity in a job in Australia is not necessarily seen as a good thing and can be construed as complacency whereas in China it aligns with the cultural drivers of loyalty and tradition. When conducting recruitment and selection in China it must be kept in mind that they traditionally do not place too much emphasis on the interview and almost never employ psychometric tests and assessment centres. Rather than acting out against the traditional job for life concept by replacing current staff with more qualified candidates managers should perhaps ensure sound training and development programs are in place to achieve a fit between employee and organisation. Hofstedes measures of Masculinity and uncertainty avoidance for both Australia and China were similar in score. Masculinity stands for a societal preference for competition, while femininity represents a tendency to place relationships with people above money to help others, to care for the weak and to preserve quality of life (Harrison 1995). Australia scored 61 compared with Chinas score of 66 (ITIM International 2003). Similarly the  measurement of uncertainty avoidance which indicates to what extent a culture programs its members to feel either uncomfortable or comfortable in unstructured situations are quite close in score with Australia at 51 compared with China at 30 (ITIM International 2003). The small difference in uncertainty avoidance suggests that within Chinese culture there is a more relaxed and tolerant attitude towards the unfamiliar as compared with Australia where there is less tolerance towards uncertainty and ambiguity. This may impact on human resource activities such as career planning and development. In Australia career planning and development is generally quite structured and directed as employees like to have a clear career path while in Chinese culture they more comfortable with a less structured approach to career planning and development and expect they career will progress in time. Despite its widespread familiarity and influence, Hofstede’s work has been extensively criticized. One reason is that he used the employees of a single large multinational company to represent the cultures of different nationalities. It is clear that such a sample, no matter how large, may not be representative of the respective countries’ national cultures (Mcsweeny 2002). The national culture of China as identified by Hofstese is quite general and it must be kept in mind that the averages of a country do not relate to individuals of that country (Mcsweeny 2002). There are always exceptions to the rule and Hofsteds analysis does not allow for this and therefore should only be taken as general guidelines. It must also be kept in mind that these studies were conducted over 25 years ago. Due to the inherent weaknesses of the frameworks discussed it is vital that other factors be taken into consideration when analysing national culture. It is important to remember that the culture of a country changes over time, either by internal or external influences. Although the measures identified that China has a collective society and it is though as a generalisation that that collectivists are more cooperative was not supported by experimental results. It was found that subjects from the more individualistic region, Beijing, were more cooperative in working toward mutually beneficial outcomes than were subjects from the more collectivist region, Wuhan (Koch & Koch 2007). This research alludes to the conclusion that the Chinese generally have a collective society within the community  they are familiar with but to some degree are less willing to have a collective frame of mind with a group they are less familiar with. This type of social behaviour would be important for management of Chinese culture in circumstance such as group work where participants may not be as eager to participate as once thought within unfamiliar groups. With the inherent weaknesses of Hofstedes framework it is important to consider a broader range of issue in order to obtain an accurate and current insight into national culture. As Coen Heijes states â€Å"no matter how interesting standardised dimensions may be, without a specific knowledge of history, language and education, cross-cultural understanding is doomed from the start† (Heijes 2007 p.94). Hofstedes five cross-cultural dimensions: power distance, uncertainty avoidance, masculinity, individualism, and long-term orientation provide an insight into the national culture of both Australia and China. National culture is important to consider when performing human resource activities as the effectiveness of a human resource management practice hinges on the degree to which it fits with the values and beliefs of people in the host country. Human Resource activities that need to be aligned with cultural factors include: recruitment and selection, career planning and development, compensation and benefits, and performance appraisals. In comparing the performance appraisal process, Australians are likely to be more responsive to a 360 degree type feedback with much interaction between managers and subordinates where Chinese employees are likely to be more responsive to a more subjective performance appraisal with little contribution in the form of feedback from peers or personal contributions due to the difference in the power distance of each culture. Compensation and benefits in Australia can be geared towards pay for performance of individuals and may include bonuses, commissions, and other merit based reward programs for individual contributions. Whereas in the Chinese culture compensation and benefits should be based on a collective theory where there are less individual incentives and rather a focus on the performance of the group due to difference in Hofstedes individualism measures. Recruitment and selection practices comparisons between the two countries are impacted by the difference in long term orientations. The recruitment and selection process  in Australia is important due to the frequently changing roles of employees and the importance of finding a fit between organisation and employee whereas in China recruitment and selection aligns with the cultural drivers of loyalty and tradition. When conducting recruitment and selection in China it must be kept in mind that they traditionally do not place too much emphasis on the interview and almost never employ psychometric tests and assessment centres. The slight difference in uncertainty avoidance dimension impact on human resource activity of career planning and development. In Australia career planning and development is generally quite structured and directed as employees like to have a clear career path while in Chinese culture they more comfortable with a less structured approach to career planning and development and expect they career will progress in time. While Hofstedes dimensions cross-cultural dimensions have been critiqued as being to some degree too generalised, small sample sizes, out dated, over simplifying complex tasks. Therefore the framework discussed should only be used as a rough guide to understanding national culture. As suggested by Coen Heijes (2007) other factors such as political and legal systems, religion, education, language, ethics, and motivation among many others must be considered to obtain a current insight into national culture. Reference list: Easterby-Smith, M., Malina, D. and Yuan, L. (1995), â€Å"How culture-sensitive is HRM? A comparative analysis of practice in Chinese and UK companies†, International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 6 No. 1, pp. 31-59. Harisson, G. (1995), â€Å"Satisfaction, tension and interpersonal relations: a cross-cultural comparison of managers in Singapore and Australia†, Journal of Managerial Psychology, Volume 10, Number 8, pp. 13-19Heijes, C. (2007), ‘The Broad Dimensions of Doing Business Abroad’, The Business Review, Vol.8, No.1, pp 93-99Hofstede, G. (1980), Culture’s Consequences. International Differences in Work-Related Values, Sage Publications, Beverly Hills, CA., . Hofstede, G. (1983), â€Å"The cultural relativity of organizational practices and theories†, Journal of International Business Studies, Vol. 14 No. 2, pp. 75-89. Huo, P. (1995), â€Å"On transplanting human resource practices to China: A culture-driven approach†, International Journal of Manpower, Vol. 16 No. 9, pp. 3-15. ITIM International 2003, Geert Hofstede BV, the Netherlands, viewed 12th August 2008, < http://www.geert-hofstede.com/index.shtml>Koch, B. Koch, P. (2007) ‘Collectivism, individualism, and out group cooperation in a segmented China’, Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Vol. 24, No.2, pp 207-225Lewis, P. (2003), â€Å"New China – old ways? A case study of the prospects for implementing human resource management practices in a Chinese state-owned enterprise†, Employee Relations, Vol. 25, No. 1,pp. 42-60Mcsweeny, B. (2002), ‘Hofstede’s Model of National Cultural Differences and Their Consequences: A Triumph of Faith – A Failure of Analysis’, Human Relations, Vol. 55, No. 1, pp. 89-118Myers, H. (1987), â€Å"The China business puzzle†, Business Horizons, July-August, pp. 25-8. Osland, G.E. (1990), â€Å"Doing business in China: a framework for cross-cultural understanding†, Marketing Intelligence and Planning, Vol. 8,No. 4, pp. 3-15. Satow, T.Wang, Z. (1994), â€Å"Cultural and Organizational Factors in Human Resource Management in China andJapan: A Cross-cultural Socio-economic Perspective† Journal of Managerial Psychology, Vol. 9 No. 4, pp. 3-11

An Appreciation for Music Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

An Appreciation for Music - Essay Example Naturally, depending upon the type of music that I listen to, it can ultimately be used in a way not dissimilar to a drug. When I am having difficulty sleeping, I can easily find a piece or a series of pieces of music that reflect a very calming and soothing tone; thereby helping me to get to sleep. When I need a level of focus or would like to bring out key attributes of determination or courage, I can turn to music as a way to instill such emotions. In short, music and the feelings it inspires can act as a type of stimulus to achieve the given mood that I am in search of or to induce feelings that would otherwise not come to me in a natural way. Finally, as a function of the other two ways in which music affects me, the third way is an ultimate end in and of itself. A type of imaginative portrait that can be painted in any number of ten thousand different ways. Even though I may have heard the song, track, or album before, the fact of the matter is that the imagery that it engages me with as a function of the aforementioned emotion and mood alteration is something that can only be described to a fellow music lover. Whereas one can read a book and have the same thought process, look at a piece of art and evoke the same images or memories, when I listen to music, there is never a firm or defined way in which my brain imitates the imagery that is presented; it is ultimately different each and every time. As a function of all of these things, music has a profound effect on the way I view the world.

Considiring Censorship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Considiring Censorship - Essay Example The communicative content that is usually censored is â€Å"sexual content, swearing, blasphemy, drug references, political content, and violence† (Inglis, 2006, 565). Censorship is good because it is done for the welfare of society as a whole. Television, radio, internet, newspapers, magazines, journals, novels, books, telephones and many other modes of communication are evaluated in terms of any content that is censorable. The content that is censored is restricted to reach to general public. In our daily lives, we can see various examples where the communicative content is censored on the basis of its harmful effects on the receivers of messages. The motives of censorship are good and this is done for the betterment of masses. On television, we can see various programs that we like. For example, we like to see movies. Sometimes, in movies abusive language or slangs are employed. In order to censor those slangs or abusive language, the abusive content is stopped to reach to general public. You must have heard the speech that is cut in between on the basis of its containing abusive content and in place of the actual word, we listen a tone. The tone indicates that the word was not worth listening to. Whenever, we listen to the tone, we at once identify that some bad talk is stopped. This censor of abusive words is a type of moral wellbeing of the masses and by this people are stopped to make use of abusive words in their daily lives. In wrestling programs, the sound of tone is extensively used when wrestlers talk to one another before the audience. They are not only challenging one another but also abuse each other and use colloquial expressions that are injurious for the listeners. The wrestling of WWE is well liked because of many heroes of the wrestling like John Cena and Shawn Michael. In this wrestling program, every other day, the wrestlers’ words are censored on the basis