Wednesday, November 27, 2019

Through a Computer Display and What People See There Communication Technologies and the Quality of Social Interactions

Introduction: Communication Technologies Come to the Rescue It is hard to deny that communication technologies play a great role in the lives of billions of people all over the world. With the rise of technology and the surge of innovations that have opened new possibilities for communication between the people in different parts of the world, ordinary live conversation seems to have faded into the background, making more room for new means of communication.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Through a Computer Display and What People See There: Communication Technologies and the Quality of Social Interactions specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Because of the current fascination with technological advances and the active use of the latter, people are rapidly losing the skills of live communication, which is likely to lead to a number of difficulties in socializing, both concerning people’s personal life and bus iness affairs. Reaching for the Most Remote Corners of the World: The Positive Aspects One of the most obvious advantages of communication technologies is the fact that with the help of the latter, one can keep in touch with the people who live miles away, which would be completely impossible without the recent innovations. Therefore, it can be concluded that with the help of the current developments, the distance between the subjects of communication is no longer a problem, not to mention the fact that new forms of media have offered the methods for distanced learning (Atkin 71). However, there are still a lot of issues about communication technologies that need to be revisited. Getting Lost in the Virtual Reality: Where Technologies Fail Losing touch with the real world is the hazard that everyone has talked about; ironically enough, even the new forms of media that the given problem concerns have been used to discuss it. Indeed, with the growing impact of social network, people s eem to be losing the skills of live communication, which is likely to lead to considerable problems in future. Moreover, frequent use of technology as a communication tool can lead to negative social effects, such as the need to stay anonymous (Levi 262). Hence, the threat of deindividualization becomes much more tangible: â€Å"The members of virtual groups are more anonymous. This leads to what psychologists call deindividualization, which is the loss of self-awareness and evaluation apprehension caused by feeling anonymous† (Levi 262). It is worth mentioning, though, that the latter concerns rather online chatting than the use of mobile phone or social networking. Humans vs. Machines: Concerning the Probable Prospects Hence, it seems that technologies will definitely be of great help in providing high-quality means of keeping in touch. However, it still must be admitted that technologies will never be able to replace personal contact, while they should not.Advertising Looking for essay on it? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More According to Partee, live communication is essential for people: â€Å"We humans need personal contact to communicate values† (Partee ix). It is clear that once the current communication technology takes over the world, the tradition of personal conversation will disintegrate into a mess, since people will most likely lose the necessary skills required for a live conversation. Another Means to Raise the Stakes: Technologies Have a Chance One must give credit to the developers of the modern communication technologies, though; it is clear that, when used reasonably, these technological advances can help greatly. Therefore, it can be assumed that, when used with due care, communication technology will not make people less sociable, but will help them keep in touch despite the distances between them (Shih and Hung, 67). About Use and Abuse: A Reasonable Solution to the Pr oblem To balance out the use of live and virtual communication, it is necessary to realize what the current technological advances offer (Konijn, Utz, Tanis and Barnes 19). Therefore, it is necessary to consider such innovations as mobile phones, smartphones, computers, etc. not a substitute for live communication, but an additional opportunity to get in touch with the one who is currently not available in person. With such an approach, it can be expected that technological advances will be used as a complementary communicational tool, and not as the only possible one. Conclusion: Looking for a Compromise It is hard to ignore the fact that communication technology in many aspects is very helpful, since it provides chances for people to arrange something concerning not only their personal life, but also their business issues, which means that communication technology development boosts business processes. With all due respect for the engineers who have provided the humankind with the existing technologies for even more efficient communication, one still has to admit that in many ways, the given technologies kill the tradition of live conversation slowly, but steadily. Since technologies have become so fully integrated into people’s lives that rejecting thee technologies means losing a huge chunk of their lives, at the given stage, a compromise between virtual and live communication must be provided. Therefore, technologies must be used only when the alternative method of communication is not available.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Through a Computer Display and What People See There: Communication Technologies and the Quality of Social Interactions specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Works Cited Atkin, David J. â€Å"Communication Technology and Social Change: Theory And Implications†. New York, NY: Routledge, 2007. Print. Konijn, Elly, Sonya Utz, Martin Tanis and Susan Barnes . â€Å"Mediated Interpersonal Communication†. New York, NY: Routledge, 2008. Print. Levi, Daniel. â€Å"Group Dynamics for Teams†. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE, 2011. Print. Partee, Morris H. â€Å"Cyberteaching: Instructional Technology on the Modern Campus†. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 2002. Print. Shih, Timothy K and Jason C. Hung. â€Å"Future Directions in Distance Learning and Communications Technologies†. Hershey, PA: Idea Group. 2007. Print. This essay on Through a Computer Display and What People See There: Communication Technologies and the Quality of Social Interactions was written and submitted by user Layla Pope to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Brontes Idea of Suburbia essays

Bronte's Idea of Suburbia essays In the classic Wuthering Heights, written by Emily Bronte, the characters reflect passion and hate in the two primary settings of the plot. The tumultuous Earnshaws and their extended family inhabit the stormy household of Wuthering Heights. As opposed to the latter, the Lintons and their family occupy the rational Thrushcross Grange. Through obvious symbolism in the settings of Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange, Bronte effectively contrasts the characters personalities and lives. The geographical setting of Wuthering Heights sets the stage for conflict. Wuthering, the title of the estate, describes the atmospheric tumult to which its station is exposed in stormy weather(2). Mr. Lockwood, one of two narrators, comments on the pure, bracing ventilation they must have up there at all times . . . the power of the north wind blowing over the edge (2). After gathering his first impressions of the house, Mr. Lockwood observes the architect [of Wuthering Heights] had foresight to build it strong; the narrow windows are deeply set in the wall, and the corners defended with large jutting stones (2). The structure of the house is very dark as well as the land surrounding it. Lockwood experiences one dark night coming down prematurely, and sky and hills mingled in one bitter whirl of wind and suffocating snow (12). The gloom of Wuthering Heights suggests unhappiness and pain. Consequently, the setting is not the only contributor to the suffering; the inhabitants t hemselves are dark and stormy. Heathcliffs coarse manner of treating those around him reflects the setting of his home, Wuthering Heights. He discourages offering help to Mr. Lockwood, whose departure was delayed by snow, quipping, I wonder you should select the thick of a snow-storm to ramble about in(9) and scolds him for trying to find his own way t ...

Thursday, November 21, 2019

The Story of Continental Airlines remarkable turnaround in 1994 is Essay

The Story of Continental Airlines remarkable turnaround in 1994 is well known in business policy and strategy classes worldwide - Essay Example Continental Airlines is presently America’s fifth largest airline that carries around 50 million passengers a year across the globe to more than 227 destinations. But a couple of decades back in 1993, it was facing its third and final bankruptcy when the new CEO Gordon Bethune and Consultant, Brenneman created history in the turnaround of Continental Airlines. Their leadership initiatives turned the loss of $613 million in 1994 to $224 million profit in 1995 (Brenneman, 1998). The discontented and highly demotivated workforce became the major enabling elements of success that contributed to its renewal. The turnaround strategy was critical factor that was conceptualized around four simple strategic principles that required strong belief, persistence and constant motivation. The creative approach highlighted leaders’ vision which was used to inspire the workforce for higher productive outcome. Turnaround strategy of Bethune and Brenneman was mainly focused on how the firm’s falling fortunes can be turned around into success. They did not place undue emphasis on cost cutting but rather made judicious plans for building strong team of high performance members who believed in collective actions and shared goals. The leadership of new management was exemplary in their forward looking outlook and expedited the process of recovery with single focus on defined goals and objectives. The strategies that were implemented are as follows: 1. Strategic action plans for recovery Bateman and Snell (2009:132) assert that strategic plans facilitate organizations to be innovative and develop linkages to meet the needs of the markets. Flexibility of approach and well laid out plans provide firms with clear direction for the future (Montgomery, 2008). In Continental case, action plan was made with feedback from the customers and employees, which was communicated across the workforce. The recovery plan was distinct in its simple targets but strict in its timeframe so that recovery could be fast. The necessity of fast action was communicated to workforce so that they could understand and become proactive in making it a success. It worked in Continental case because the high frustration in the workforce was mainly due to unclear and frequently changing strategies of the past. The lack of concise directions and target had led to disillusionment, adversely impacting their motiv ation for higher achievement. The new plans were clearly defined by the management and communicated on regular basis to the workforce that helped to strengthen their confidence and motivated them to work towards the goals with renewed enthusiasm. 2. Leadership initiative and team building Drucker (1999) believes that external and internal environment hugely contributes to business performance and managerial leadership innovatively exploits them for the organization’s advantage. The open communication approach used by Bethune and Brenneman helped in adapting to the strategic changes that were introduced to transform business dynamics. Leadership initiative is critical factor to develop an organizational culture of proactive participation, shared learning and strong teamwork (Shapiro, Slywotzky and Tedlow, 2000). The leaders looked for opportunities and exploited them with a sense of high urgency through a team of motivated

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Managed Healthcare Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Managed Healthcare - Essay Example It is under such circumstances that the role of a care-giver becomes all the more important. While on the one hand, the care-giver has to take care of the organizational goals and the profitability aspects, on the other hand the care-giver is supposed to provide the best care and guidance to the customer. Once, such arrangements takes cues from corporate management, the healthcare too becomes 'managed healthcare'. From the point of view of a consumer, the pros of such managed healthcare are; v. At times, in situations like the consumer is on tour to place outside the native place, then the tie-up between caregiver companies helps the consumer in getting a good care from some affiliated company as well i. The consumer gets tied up with a particular company for longer time and even if there are better alternatives, he/she cannot go for a change, because of the agreement between the consumer and the healthcare company But entering into a managed healthcare plan with consumer also involves some risk for the company. For example, in these inflationary times, when costs are rising up, the company finds itself unable to charge higher prices, because of the agreement done with the consumer. Some of the well known managed healthcare are plans are, Health Maintenance Organization (HMO); Preferred Provider Organizations (PPO) and Point-of-Service (POS) plans. These plans have evolved over the years and have taken care of some of the deficiencies that included in the traditional insurance covers. While the traditional insurance covers used to take care of limited aspects of the healthcare, the managed healthcare plans are comprehensive in nature and try to include some modern day health hazards like long sitting in front of the computer screen and its ergonomic impacts on our body parts.

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Radio Coverage Comparisons Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Radio Coverage Comparisons - Assignment Example II. Event Being Covered (116 words) The event being covered are the protests over the bill that would effectively shut down Wisconsin unions’ ability to collectively bargain. Protesters have been inside the capitol of Madison for over a week now, protesting the passage of the bill in the Senate. Senate â€Å"†¦Democrats have fled the state† according to WTMJ.1 WTMJ is Milwaukee’s top-visited radio station. According to a document obtained from WIBA, Madison’s radio station, â€Å"†¦if Senate Democrats refuse to return to Wisconsin and cast their votes in the next day the option to refinance a portion of the state's debt will be off the table.†2 This means that, if Democrats don’t return to the bargaining table, jobs will be cut for sure. III. Where Each Radio Story is Broadcasting From (25 words) As mentioned before, WTMJ is broadcasting from Milwaukee, while WIBA is broadcasting from Madison in Wisconsin where the protests are taki ng place in the capitol. IV. How Does Geographic Location Affect The Way Information is Being Presented? (32 words) WTMJ did not mention this document presented by Scott Walker. Since the protest is taking place in Madison, it is probably due to geographical location that the better information is at WIBA. V.

Friday, November 15, 2019

Subjective well-being at the workplace and organizations

Subjective well-being at the workplace and organizations Even though the psychologists explored the human behavior especially unhappiness in detail but the positivity was ignored in the past. Until 1974, the Journal Social Indications research founded and dedicated large number of articles to Subjective well-being. The literature of SWB shows or focuses on why and how people experience positive way of life including cognitive judgments and affective reactions. By cognitive judgment it means life satisfaction and by affective reaction it means positive and negative affect. In past many researches used the affective dimension to measure well-being. For instance, using the traits of negative affectivity and positive affectivity to explain the well-being of employees but the measurements of the cognitive dimensions were uncommon. So, Because of this Diener developed the measurement of Satisfaction with Life scale (SWLS) 1985. It assess person on their own rather on the researchers judgments. One of the definitions for happiness according to Di ener (1984) is satisfaction of life (Diener, 2000). Despite lots of researches exploring the individuals happiness sources, no one of the theories of subjective well-being has risen to dominate this area of study as the main reason for this is incomplete existing SWB theories. Psychological theories of SWB are divided in to two main categories, top-down approach suggesting individuals that are happy as they are inclined to react to the circumstances in a positive way while the bottom up approach uphold that individuals are happier because of numerous happy moments in their lives. There are three characteristics of subjective well-being first is development of SWLS. Secondly it includes not only positive but also negative measures and finally SWB measures global assessment of all peoples life aspects (Diener, 1984). Donaldson (2009) defined positive psychology as a term that focus on excellence, happiness, gratitude, flourishing, subjective well-being, strengths, flow, resilience and positive organizational scholarship. This section focuses on positive as well as negative Subjective well-being in the organizations but more importance is given to positive aspect. Circumplex model (Russell, 1980, 2003) as a broad theoretical frame work to distinguish between positive and negative work related subjective well being. Positive subjective well-being includes work happiness, job satisfaction and work engagement where as negative SWB includes burnout and workaholism. Psychologists and sociologists are focusing in happiness and subjective well being from many years (Veenhoven, 1991). Recently happiness also gain importance in the field of economics (Layard, 2006) and is the central focus in the positive psychology movement (Sleigman Csikszentmijhalyi, 2000). This field of psychology has focused on the positive aspects of the individuals to help them flourish. Psychology, sociology and economy all of these fields in together can contribute in better understanding of the employee happiness in the organization (Bakker and Schaufeli, 2008). Definition of Subjective Well-Being (SWB): Subjective well-being means that how people assess their lives. Its a normal positive state that involves the whole life experience. This assessment may take the form of cognitions when person makes conscious evaluative judgment about their satisfaction with life as whole. A person is having high subjective well-being if he is satisfied with his life and having frequent positive experiences or emotions such as joy and happiness and in frequent negative feeling such as sadness and anger (Diener, Sandvik Pavot, 1991). Subjective well-being is a trait not a state. Many researchers argue that individual have a set-point for happiness level and this is fixed and crucial part of our performance. So, SWB is very important as without it human beings shrink their skill to gather desired assets and weaken their ability to handle and remain flexible in the face of challenges (International Well being Group, 2006). According to Windle and Treuer (2008) subjective well-being is vital because positive feelings and experiences build a range of personal resources i.e. physical, social, intellectual and psychological and they defined SWB as a normal positive state of mind that includes the whole life experience and stable happiness. According to Diener (2009), subjective wellbeing indicates satisfaction of life; high positive emotions like passion, joy and love; reduced negative emotions like anger, depression and also satisfaction with various other aspects of life like work, marriage, health. Diener (1984) said that subjective well-being is an umbrella term that evaluates ones lives including life satisfaction, pleasant emotions, feeling of fulfillment, work and marriage satisfaction and lowest level of satisfactions. Researchers used the term subjective well-being rather than happiness as it has varied meaning depending on the life event. Although life satisfaction is is an important aspect of life but not for all people as people want to be happy for good reasons and presence of vital things although they are not happy with it. So, it can be argued that subjective well-being is just an important component of good life. Diener also stated that demographic factors like age sex, income, ethnicity and education has 20% variance in subjective well-being. It is also stated that married people are happier than unmarried people over that women are happier than men. Diener (2000) studied the relation between the resources and subjective well-being and they predicted that internal resources like self confidence were best predictorsof subjective well-being in college students rather than external resources like money due to that with the help of internal resources external resources can be obtained too. Culture does have influence on the subjective well-being of the individuals. Diener and Biswas-Diener (2002) and Diener and Oishi (2000) have worked a lot on relationship between money and happiness. Their studies showed findings that positive correlations exist between income and subjective well-being of wealthy nations. Wealthy nations have high subjective well-being than the poor nations. But always its not the same in case when the employees pay is increased he is still unhappy as its stressors are more like high expectations in return. It was also found that materialistic people have low subjective well-being because people who have high desire for money dont care about the social relationships and are insecure. People with high subjective well-being have the following characteristics that is they have more friends, more likely to get married nad stay happily, have good services are more involved in leadership roles and live longer. 2.3 Subjective well-being at Work According to Dieners (2006) definition of SWB, an employee has elevated work related SWB if he is satisfied with his job and have frequent positive experiences and infrequent negative emotions. Positive emotions are employees experiences at work investigative of engagement, happiness or satisfaction. Diener (1994) also stated that when SWB, term is read it must be immediately noted that its not the same as happiness but synonymous to it. It can be defined as broad category that includes peoples emotional response, domain satisfactions and global judgments of life satisfaction. Sleigman (2002) also said that positive psychology is the scientific study of how humans achieve happiness and mental satisfaction, in order to discover how people can lead the most productive lives possible. It is about positive subjective experience i.e. well being ad satisfaction. In short, positive psychology is a science of subjective well-being. Diener sees life satisfaction as a factor of SWB and subsidiary to it (Camfield and Skevington 2008). International experts defined subjective well-being as an umbrella term for different valuations that person make related to their lives, the actions experienced by them and the situations in which they survive. Happiness is referred many times as positive affect but it can also be related to positive mood generally, a global evaluation of Life satisfaction, living a good life and the causes or reason of happiness (Diener, 2006). Now, we will discuss positive and negative emotions of work related SWB by placing them in the circumplex model. Russells (1980, 2003) circumplex model put forwards that affective states occur from two basic neurophysiological systems, one linked with pleasure-displeasure continuum and the other with arousal and activation. Each experience of emotions can be linear combinations of theses two proportions as varying degrees of both pleasure and activation. Figure 2. A two-dimensional view of work-related SWB (adapted from Russell, 1980, 2003). 2.4 Positive forms of Work related SWB: 2.4.1 Work engagement: it is defined as an optimistic, gratifying, work related state of mind that is portrayed by vigor, dedication, and absorption (Schaufeil and Bakker, 2010). Its position in circumplex model is at upper right quadrant resembling high levels of pleasure and activation. Vigor means high level of energy while working and persistence even in the face of difficulties, dedication means being strongly in ones on work and experience a sense of enthusiasm and lastly absorption mean being fully concentrated in ones own work . Because of engaged employees positive attitude towards them selves, employees buildup their own positive feed back in terms of appreciation, recognition and success (Bakker, 2009). 2.4.2 Happiness at work: numerous researchers have connected subjective well-being with the term happiness (Cropanzano and Wright, 1999; Easterlin, 2001; Sleigman, 2002; Lyubomirski, 2001). It refers to high level of activation as being satisfied and some hat lower as being excited. According to Fisher, (2003) more than 90% of workers agree that happy workers are productive workers as they are more active, energetic and interested in work and persistent to face difficulties as compared to unhappy employees. It is important to distinguish happiness as a specific emotion from other measures that cover a range of positive and negative emotions (Veenhoven, 1984). 2.4.3 Job satisfaction: it is most studied form of work related SWB and it can be placed in the right lower quadrant of the model, as it reflects a high level of pleasure and a lo level of activation. According to Grebner, Semmer and Elfering (2005), employees having satisfaction with their jobs experience high pleasure, but may have limited energy and aspirations. Similarly, Bussing, Bissels, Fuchs and Perrar (1999) said that decrease in aspiration level can result in a positive state of satisfaction and over all job satisfaction is closely related to the experience of satisfaction as positive emotion in the work place. 2.5 Negative Forms of Work-related SWB 2.5.1 Workaholism: it is placed in the upper left of the quadrant reflecting lower levels of pleasure and high levels of work activation workholism is an inner drive to struggle and work hard (Oates1971). According to Tris, Schaufeil and Shimzau (2010), workholism is an employee has compulsion to work incessantly and give exceptional time to work and to meet expected organizational requirements. 2.5.2 Burnout: its placed in the lower left of the circumplex model reflecting low levels of pleasure and activation. According to Masiach and Jackson (1986) it was originally conceived as work related syndrome that most often occurs among individuals who work with other people. Consistent with our categorization of SWB according to circumplex model and some researches have suggested that burnout is the opposite of work engagement (Gonalez-Roma-Schaufeil, Bakker and Lloret, 2006). According to Noll (2002) the individual is himself or herself responsible to evaluate their quality of life in terms of subjective well-being. The subjective well-being construct is comprised of four different components: Life satisfaction (universal judgment of ones own life). Satisfaction with necessary life domains ( family, health work) Positive affect ( many positive emotion and moods experienced) Low negative affects ( familiar with few unpleasant emotions and moods) Dolan and White (2006), regard as these mechanisms of SWB as divisible elements. a person for example who have high level of positive affect for a particular event will be dissatisfied because he has failed to achieve personal aim. Alternatively, an individual experiencing negative affect may be satisfied by comparing himself to an individual in less favorable situation. There are cross cultural differences in happiness and life satisfaction that are not completely explained by income differences. Bradburn (1969) study showed that Subjective well-being was moderately associated with adjustment, neuroticism, work satisfaction and family situation, but were considerably associated to each other. Concluding, the psychological contract following are its key features: Psychological contract is based on beliefs and perceptions and is different for each individual although in the same organization. They are implicit and are thought to be inferred from obligations made by the organizations or employees and conclusions are drawn by one party by observing the behavior with the other party. There is an exchange relationship in it so its founded on the principle of reciprocity: the implied promises to behave in certain way to work, psychological contract is also based on perceived or observed agreement rather than actual or written agreement, in which the terms are continuously re-written as the parties interact and mutual expectations, obligations and promises are generated and implied. The employees have a heart as well other than a hand and a head which is mostly over looked by the organizations that have focused just on hiring the hands and head ignoring the heart. Subjective well being is satisfaction with life and positive emotions and moods having low level of unpleasant emotions. Studies have revelaed that the income, religion, education , intelligene have only 15% of effect on th subjective well-being. The focus of happiness that who is happy has been shiftd from when and why people are happy (Diener, 2000). Chapter 2: Literature Review. The growing body of literature on the psychological contract reflects collecting confirmation or verification for its great impact on assorted work-related outcomes. The literature review estimate that employees evaluate their incentives received from their organization by comparing it with the promises made and this estimation leads to psychological contract fulfillment or breach impression (Turnley Feldman, 1998). The over view of PC research shows that there are about 100 or more empirical studies on Psychological Contract out of which 60% were on the breach and 30% on content of psychological contract. Psychological contract breach or violation has been correlated with mistrust, job satisfaction, intention to quit, actual turn over, actual performance, organizational commitment and absence .Based upon research by Guest Conway (2001) 84% of managers had heard of psychological contract, 36% of managers apply it to deal with the employment relationship. Similarly, Guests (1998) ex plain why the Psychological contract is important and should be taken seriously. First reason was that from the last few years the focus is being shifted from industrial relations to employee relations and this can be explored through the construct of Psychological contract. Second reason is it focuses on distribution of power and finally it has ability to incorporate large number of organizational concepts. In 1998, Turnley and Feldman study found that twenty five percent of their employees sample felt that they received less than they had been promised like health care benefits, job related security, power to make vital decisions, career development and responsibilities. Similarly, Robison, Kraatz and Rousseau (1994) study found that fifty five percent of the sample reported contract violations by their employers after spending two years at the organization and these violations were related to training and development, promotion, compensation etc. These studies indicate that workers or employees are quite cynical about the organization that whether they accomplish their pledges. In the past organizations focused on employees loyalty and honesty to the organization but currently they need flexible employees who learn more skills and abilities, to work under pressures and are more marketable for the organization (Herriot and Pemberto, 1995, Sparrow and Marchington, 1998). The current sta te of psychological contract is much similar to the past as four out of five employees are satisfied with their job, there commitment ha not declined but there trust has declined over the years according to the CIPD surveys (CIPD, 2005). According to Guest and Conway (2002), 1,306 senior HR showed that Psychological Contract offers employers a framework within which they study how to administer the employment relationship. So, the main role of the Psychological Contract in an organization is to make most out of their human capital which means what employee expect from their employers (Guest and Conway 2002, CIPD 2005). CIPD concluded that employees today seek one of the three types of psychological contract with their employee: Traditional: those who seek long term tenure and work long hours. Disengaged: for those whom work is not a central life interest and seek no emotions to their employers and Independent: those who are well qualified and seek short tenure and high rewards. In a qualitative study by Herriot, Manning, and Kidd (1997) it was found that the relational component of psychological contract was more frequently mentioned than was the transactional component and therefore seemed more important. Similarly, Zhao, Wayne, Glibkowski and Bravo (2007) also found in a study that the association between relational breach and job satisfaction, turnover intentions and organizational citizenship behaviors as much stronger than association between transactional breach and job satisfaction, and the above variables. According to suggestion of Berman, E.M. and West, J.P. (2003), psychological contract involves work load, work schedules, authority, work quality, responsibility, interpersonal relations, job security, rewards, promotion, career development, loyalty, working relation with immediate supervisors, specific behaviors of employees and managers and individually preferred working styles other than employees and employers. While Devidson (2001) recommended that employee hopes involve benefits and rewards, job security, safe and comfortable working conditions, personal development opportunities and career progression, fair treatment, work life balance, working hours, job challenges on the other hand employers expectations involve high productivity for reward, working under organizational objectives. According to Collin (2010) psychological contract fulfillment is found to be significant predictor of turn over intention and finding suggest that turnover can be moderated if leaders of organizat ion have strong relation based on respect, trust and mutual obligations and uses them to fulfill the unwritten contract between firm and the employees. Rousseau (1995) investigated that the psychological contract in business relationship is a key ingredient between employees and employers and at work place it could be influential determinant of behaviors and attitudes. Researchers like Coyle-Shapiro and Kessler (2000), Tekleab and Taylor (2003), Turnley and Feldman (1999), Robinson and Rousseau (1994), findings showed that fulfilled contracts are positively related to organizational commitment and the effective functioning of the organization. The fulfilled psychological contracts have positive association with employees and organizational outcomes. A foremost research was conducted by Psycones (2006) in six European countries and Israel. The sample size was 5288 employees (1981 were temporary employees and 3307 were permanent employees) working in 202 companies of education an industries and retail sectors. The results of this study were violation of promises made by the employer reduced the job satisfaction. Workers receiving power at work, fulfilling promises from their supervisors show higher satisfaction the more the promise fulfilled by the organizations the more the employees are committed to the organization and the violation of employer or employee obligations lead to quitting the job. Suazo, MarK, Turnley, William H., Mai-Dalton, Renate R (2008) conducted a study on characteristics of supervisor subordinate relationship as predictors of psychological contract. The sample size was 234 full time employees out of which 41% were males and 59% were females and the mean age of the participants was 37years. The data was collected through emails. The aim of this study was to know the factors like gender, cognitive style and race present between employees and employers predicting psychological contract breach. The hypotheses were that greater similarity between the cognitive styles of supervisor and subordinate will reduce the likelihood of psychological contract breach, the gender will be a specific factor in predicting psychological contract breach and subordinates with mix races will perceive more psychological contract breach than subordinates in same race supervisor subordinate dyads. The results proved that the cognitive style was negatively related to perceived Psyc hological contract breach and where as gender and race were not significant predictors of psychological contract breach. The cognitive approach of the supervisors and subordinates towards a problem, matters more than gender and race in predicting psychological contract breach. Lester, Claire, Kickul (2001) paper studied the status of psychological contract in 21st century. Employees recognized the importance of various aspects of psychological contract and the degree to which their organization had fulfilled theses obligations. The purpose of this study was to examine the employer inducements which are considered more important by the employees, to find how well the companies are fulfilling their obligations and also to know the discrepancies between the perceived importance and fulfillment of psychological contracts obligation affecting employees behavior at work. The numbers of participants were 268 fulltime employees out of which 51.7% were males and 48.3% were females and the average age was 27.6 years old. The respondents belonged to different occupational fields like finance and banking, sales and marketing, computer science, accounting, human resource and staffing, engineering and organizational consulting. The findings showed that the organizations also struggle to fulfill components of psychological contract mostly accepted by the employees. The discrepancies between the perceived importance and fulfillment have significant effect on satisfaction and turnover of employees. Employees performance was also effected but to less extent. Similarly, Bergmann (2001) investigated relational component of the psychological contract across time, generation and employment status. His study focused on just one type of psychological contract and went to its details. The sample size was 204 individuals of three different generations 68 were college students, one of each of their parents and grandparents were also included in the survey. From 204 participants 56% were females and 75%of students and their parents were employed where as grandparents retired and 44% of students were full time employees. The respondents were also asked for their perception regarding psychological contract on four different time periods 1900s, 1950s, 1960s and 19 70s. There was significant difference between psychological contract scores for 1950s and 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. The interaction effect of time and generation on assessment of the relational component of psychological contract was not significant i.e. the subjects viewed psychological contract same across time regardless of changes in generation. So it was stressed that the relational components of the psychological contract have decreased during the five decades. It is also possible that factors other than time, generation, workplace may also have contributed to the shift in the psychological contract. Michael (2001), perceived the obligations of future forest industry employees and their first employers after graduation. New employees have reciprocal obligations between them and their employers and these beliefs can be called as psychological contract between them when the employee observes that he owe the employer certain incentives in return to the contribution given by him. Fulfillments of psychological contract have a direct impact on employees productivity and satisfaction. The sample size of his study was 300 graduated students from 34 different universities at United States of America. The results showed that the first obligation of the employee to their future employer is hard work and have distinct type of relationship with future employers. From the middle of 1970s the well-being has not increased in Britain and United states. White individuals are happier than black and non-white individuals in the United States but in the last 30 years the results are changing the blacks are also much happier and satisfied, so this study by Blanch Flower and Oswald (2004) has focused on races not immigrants. The peer reviewed literature on the influence of positive psychology in organizational sector focusing on organizational behavior and scholarship is in the year 2001 there were to researches done in organizational sector, in 2002 in total 6 researches were conducted 2 empirical and 4 non-empirical, in 2003 3 empirical and 6 non-empirical researches were conducted , 3 empirical and 24 non-empirical in 2004, 5 empirical and 17 non-empirical in 2005, 6 empirical and 18 non-empirical in 2006, in 2007 7 empirical and 16 non-empirical, and finally 19 empirical and 18 non-empirical in 2008. So in total 46 empirical studies and 104 on empirical studies were conducted and combining both 150 studies having being conducted in positive psychology organizational sector (Donaldson, 2009). Danna and Griffin (1999) investigated that work settings and occupational stress would be the forerunner factors of well-being. This view was supported by Cropanzano, James and Konovsky (1993) and Wright and Hobfoll (2004). Workers or employees when experience poor health and well-being at the work site are less productive, make lower quality decisions, and absenteeism (Boyd, 1997). Similarly, Price and Hooijberg (1992) the low subjective well-being would diminish the contributions to the organizations. In a cross national study, Diener and Oishi (2000) established that for majority of the students in 42 countries happiness and life satisfaction was more important than income. Over the past five decades the number of longitudinal studies on income and subjective well-being exposed that although income level has been increased dramatically in United State of America and other developed countries but the levels of subjective well-being have been rather stable (Myres, 2000). According to Diener (2000), as employees rise in their accomplishments and possessions their expectations also raise. They adapt themselves to the ne level very fast and then the current level is no longer source of happiness for them but this happens with some employees depending on the situation. The factors that have import effect on the subjective well-being of the individual are personality, personal goals, comparison with other people, past, needs, goals and the last factor is culture. In the recent years, the emergent number of researchers focused on positive indicators of subjective well-being (SWB), including job satisfaction (Judge, Thorenson, Bono and Patton, 2001), work engagement (Bakker, Schaufeil., Leiter and Taris, 2008), and happiness at work (Diener and Biswas- Diener 2002). Parent-Thirion, Fernandez-Macias, Hurley and Vermeylen (2007) study shows that 85% of all employees in the European Union and a study by Handel (2005) found that 86% of all the employees in the United States of America are very satisfied with their jobs. A research on subjective well being of managers of private enterprises was conducted by Bo Lui, bus, Hohai, Nanjing (2010) in China. This study include factors that affect subjective well being, subjective well being of different masses, cultural differences. Different managers of private enterprises were considered as participants and the data was analyzed on SPSS15.0. The overall subjective well being of the managers of private enterprises was low. The factors like status of marriage had significant impact on the subjective well being of the managers but gender and education didnt play vital role. Correspondingly, a study Job Insecurity and Wellbeing: Moderation by Employability by Inmaculada, Nele, Francisco, Jose and Hans (2010) investigated the association between job insecurity and wellbeing and the role of employability in this association. The researcher hypotheses were that job insecurity may be related to poor well-being, employability might moderate the unfavorable results of job security for employees well-being and employability is beneficial in the same manner as the job security is. These hypotheses were tested on the sample size of 639 Belgian employees from six organizations. The findings showed that the job insecurity is related to poor well-being, employability as expected moderates the relation between job insecurity and life satisfaction. There was no association found between employability and job security. The model accounted for 8% of explained variance. The first research that studied the relationship between psychological contract and subjective well being of employees was conducted by Windle and Treuer (2008). In this longitudinal study psychological contract was dependent variable and subjective well being was independent variable. The sample size was 187 new recruits in Australia wide organizations and data was collected through online survey 58% males and 42% females. The results indicate that SWB informs development of a Balanced Psychological contract and SWB significantly correlated with employer fulfillment, employee fulfillment, social knowledge and interpersonal resources. Balanced dynamic performance of Psychological contract was predicted by subjective well-being at 9% variance explained while in dynamic performance 10% of variance was explained. A lot of researches have focused on happiness of individuals and employees living within their own country. This study is different in terms that its focusing on employees who have migrated from their home country to the host country and to investigate the relationship of psychological contract and the physical and mental health i.e. subjective well-being of Pakistani immigrants working abroad (Middle East). It would be expected that the fulfillment of psychological contract would have positive relation with subjective well-being of the employees. The role of gender within psychological contract has received little attention, so this study would also examine whether there are any gender differences in the type of psychological contract of Pakistani immigrants and among them which type of psychological contract is more common. Rationale Keeping in view the literature review on the psychological contract and subjective well-being and also the statistical figure of Pakistani immigrants working abroad especially at U.A.E, not much work has been done regarding the problems and difficulties they face, and no work

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Overview of Data Encryption and Legal Issues Essay -- Privacy Legal Es

Overview of Data Encryption and Legal Issues What is encryption and why do we need it? The concept of encrypting information has been popular for hundreds of years. Revolutionaries, scientists, political activists and lovers have utilized this technique to maintain privacy and confidentiality in their communications. As kids, we would take our secret messages and shift the letters of the alphabet by a specific number to create an encrypted message. For example, by shifting the letters of the alphabet by three we could change the word cyberlaw to fbehuodz. In encryption, a message is referred to as plaintext before changing it in any way. Data encryption is the process whereby plaintext data is converted to ciphertext data. Ciphertext data can only be read by a party with a secret decryption key. A method for encrypting text is referred to as a cryptosystem. There are many uses for encryption today, particularly, with the widespread use of the Internet. Encryption is used to verify messages, validate and authenticate users and authorize transactions. Banks use encryption to secure customer identification numbers at ATM machines. All U.S. electronic funds transfer messages are encrypted. Online vendors depend upon the security of credit card transactions in conducting business. Many political groups use cryptography to protect the identity of online users. Internet users want electronic privacy; freedom from observance by the government or other parties. Anonymity is vital to both privacy and freedom of speech. Potential Abuses of Encryption: The U.S. Government is concerned with the abuse of this technology at the hands of criminals, terrorists and hostile foreign governments. Encryption could impede their effo... ...nternet. The availability of encryption codes will encourage a larger population of users to encrypt communications and will provide businesses worldwide a way to conduct transactions securely. Arguments are made that the control of source code export discriminates against software distribution as opposed to encryption in print form. This greatly limits the expression of scientific ideas and thereby limits the marketplace for ideas. The ability to remain anonymous is important to free speech and our right to privacy in communications on the Internet. If Clipper chips and escrow accounts become the standard, the U.S. government will be able to read private e-mail and determine the recipients. This would be a frightening departure from our proud tradition of preserving privacy in our communications and encouraging the free exchange of ideas and information.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Classroom observation Essay

I have been observing several elementary teachers during the past eight weeks. All instructors bring into the classroom their individual teaching styles. Within that style there are various and assorted behaviors and actions they performed in their instruction. Most of the teachers observed presented the topic they were teaching. The instructors used teaching aids such as overhead and PowerPoint slides. It helped to keep students on track in the presentation of information. Teachers encouraged class participation in the subject to be taught by asking questions related to the topic. The students connected easily with the material when they could relate it to prior knowledge. Teachers were very organize and interested in communicate with their students. They periodically asked question and made sure students were understanding the concept presented. Students seem to be enjoying the instructional time with their teachers. They seem relaxed, attentive, on task, and actively participating in the subject. I could see that there were hardly any behavioral problems. When students were beginning to lose track of subject, there was one teacher that use humor to bring them back. I run into one exemption when observing a 1st grade teacher. His classroom was not well organized. You could see stacks of papers on different tables. Wall signs were falling down, trash on the floor. Students were the same way. Their desks were full of trash. Their books and supplies under their desk were all over the place. The instructor asked the students to take their language art book out and wrote the page number where they were going to start reading. He had another student controlling the a CD player to star reading along with the CD. It was chotic in that classroom I believe that instructor was not prepare enough to teach this subject and he needs classroom management.

Friday, November 8, 2019

International Business Portfolio of The Netherlands †International Business (300 Level Course)

International Business Portfolio of The Netherlands – International Business (300 Level Course) Free Online Research Papers International Business Portfolio of The Netherlands International Business (300 Level Course) 1. Does your country have resources that can be found only there, or are resources there of a high quality? Describe the quality of natural resources. There are no resources unique to the Netherlands. The resources aren’t necessarily of high quality, but there is an abundance of arable land available to be cultivated or built on. 2. List three products for which your country is best known. Describe either the competitive or absolute advantage that these products have. Heineken (beer)- Heineken has a unique product, and continually comes up with innovative ideas (putting a â€Å"ball† in cans of beer to create a â€Å"head† when pouring, along with the â€Å"mini keg† cans). They also have customer loyalty and competitive prices compared to other foreign brands. Food Processing- The abundance of arable land coupled with the highly mechanized agricultural sector creates large surpluses for the food-processing industry and for exports. The Netherlands have an absolute advantage because they are able to produce and process food at a higher rate of productivity compared to other countries. Fuels- Natural gas, and oil are two of the biggest exports from the Netherlands. The Netherlands have a competitive advantage because they provide other countries with better service because of their access to transportation by the sea. 3. In what ways does your country have advantages that will give it a competitive edge? The Netherlands has access to all forms of transportation and relies heavily on foreign trade to boost the economy. It also has a very strong dollar (euro) that compares closely to the American dollar making international trade easier and more profitable. The euro also makes trading within the European Union easier because all countries use the exact same currency. 4. Is something manufactured in your country that is not manufactured elsewhere? Has your country been responsible for any major innovations? List them. The majority of goods produced and exported in and from the Netherlands are natural resources, which can be found in other countries throughout the world. The Netherlands are responsible for putting a â€Å"ball† in cans of beer to create a â€Å"head† when pouring and they also came up with the â€Å"mini keg† cans. 5. How do the competitive advantages offered by this country provide opportunities for rationalization of Canadian business operations? For example, is labour less expensive, making it efficient for a Canadian firm to build a plant in or source exports from this country? The Netherlands and Canada have very similar economies both monetarily, resource and production wise. The only competitive advantages Canadian businesses would have is better service to European markets because of the proximity and better pricing because of the reduced shipping costs. Research Papers on International Business Portfolio of The Netherlands - International Business (300 Level Course)Definition of Export QuotasThe Effects of Illegal ImmigrationPETSTEL analysis of IndiaNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This NiceAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductThe Project Managment Office SystemIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in CapitalBionic Assembly System: A New Concept of SelfPersonal Experience with Teen Pregnancy

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

Fiber optics essays

Fiber optics essays The field of communications is one in which the technologies are changing on an almost daily basis. Numerous different technologies have been pursued over the past few years, each designed to essentially accomplish several basic purposes in terms of community service. Three of the most actively pursued applications include interactive distant learning, video conferencing, and entertainment. While it is the first two, video conferencing and interactive distance learning, which would serve to the best advantage in terms of education and business; it is the last, entertainment which has the most appeal to the largest number of people. The application of various communications application in terms of education and business is currently being utilized in remote learning programs and company training programs around the nation. One technology has maintained a position close to the lead in terms of staying in the running to win the coveted spot of the worlds most progressive and sough t after communications application. This application is that of fiber optics. To understand fiber optics in its application to communications, one must first have an understanding of the technology itself. The transmission of light through thin fibers of glass or plastic is the basis of the branch of physics known as fiber optics. Capable of transmitting light over more than one hundred and fifty miles, these fibers are made of either pure glass or plastic. Each fiber is composed of two parts, the core and the cladding. Optical fibers vary in thickness from hair size (0.001 inch) in diameter and up. The core is composed of the glass or plastic and does the actual transmission of data. The core is typically covered in a sheath referred to as cladding. The cladding around each fiber serves to reflect the light traveling through the fiber back inward into the core of the fiber and to prevent the escape of the light out the walls of the fibe...

Sunday, November 3, 2019

Peer Review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Peer Review - Essay Example Though a good paper, the author falls a victim of some of the highlighted mistakes, and, therefore, the quality of the paper has in a way been compromised. In this document, I will review the work so as to analyze its strengths and weaknesses and give my opinion on the nature of the work as a whole. This author, as I had hinted earlier, has done very much to address the points of the prompt. The author discussed all the points except one. The point that is explicitly noted to missing is where the author was required to state whether he/she is a monist, dualist, pluralist, an idealist or a materialist and the reason for being one. This point was one of the primary requirements of the paper, and its omission implies that the quality of the paper, going by the journal requirements, is relatively small. The author, according to my assessment, scored relatively high in the explication of some of the arguments offered by the philosophers and relatively little in others. I would give him the highest score in his elucidation of the arguments of such philosophers as Thales, Democritus, Heraclitus, Plato, Aristotle, and Descartes. The only part where I would have given him a relatively lower score is the explanation that he gives to Pythagoras’ philosophy; it is not convincing at all. The student should have given more information about Pythagoras, for example, he defended pure monotheism and made pupils go through various degrees before he could allow them personal contact (The life and philosophy of Pythagoras). He literarily looks at some of the objects like fire, water, and grass in page 2 of the paper and hurriedly concludes that they are not made up of numbers, and then ends up finding that the philosophy is wrong. He fails to give it the inner eye so as to understand what t he philosopher meant by stating that the universe is made up of numbers. I find his argument on this

Friday, November 1, 2019

Berman vs dept of interior case Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Berman vs dept of interior case - Assignment Example United States, subsequently, filed a civil suit in United States District Court for District of Columbia, where it asserted that Berman and POGO violated the 19 U.S.C & 18 U.S.C. Â § 209 that prevents private parties and government for making compensations and people or employees from receiving the compensation while in government service. In 2008, the jury found out that Berman and POGO violated the law. Nevertheless, Berman and POGO appealed seeking for review by Court of Appeal in United States for District of Columbia Circuit (Ralph, 2002). However, the government opposed the move by saying that the two parties violated 18 U.S.C. Â § 209 that prevents any person from giving or receiving supplementation of salary or contribution as compensation for services during an employee of the officer at the executive branch. Furthermore, Berman was charged with Unjust Enrichment (UE) and Breach of Fiduciary Duty (BFD). District Court granted the motion by government for summary judgment for violating 18 U.S.C. Â § 209(a). The court reversed and remanded the matter to District Court for more proceedings to come up with a resolution of the disputed facts of the existence of intentional direct link between the official responsibilities of Berman and payments made by POGO. On remand, District Court accepted the argument by government of 18 U.S.C. Â § 209(a) being a strict legal statute and termed the parties’ intent as irrelevant. The court kept the briefing schedule for the case pending with the disposition in the United State vs. POGO, 616 F.3d 544. The Court of Appeal, in the decision for District of Columbia Circuit, remanded and vacated in part for a new trial. This concluded the intent of the required element of the violation of 209 of the failure of the jurys instruction from District Court in instructing on intent element (Cooper, 2006). According to Berman,