Equality Act Essay

Learning intentions: Investigating the legislation that protects all groups covered Breaking down the key features of the legislation Assessing the ways in which the legislation addresses their needs Evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of the legislation To consider how a range of care workers would use anti-discriminatory practise Success Criteria Can I name the legislation that protects all groups covered? Can I explain the key features of this legislation? Can I assess how this legislation meets the client’s needs? Can I evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of this act? Research Questions: 1. New definitions of discrimination As well as direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, harassment and victimisation The Equality Act outlines three new categories of discrimination that certain groups of individuals are protected against. Define the three additional types of discrimination below: 2. Who is protected under the Equality Act (protected characteristics)? a) Age- The Act protects employees of all ages but remains the only protected characteristic that allows employers to justify direct discrimination, i.e. if an employer can demonstrate that to apply different treatment because of someone’s age constitutes a proportionate means of meeting a legitimate aim, then no discrimination will have taken place. The Act continues to allow employers to have a default retirement age of 65, as long as the default retirement age remains. b) Disability- The Act includes a new protection arising from disability and now states that it is unfair to treat a disabled person unfavorably because of something connected with a disability. An example provided is the tendency to make spelling mistakes arising from dyslexia. Also, indirect discrimination now covers disabled people, which mean that a job applicant could claim that a particular rule or requirement disadvantages people with that disability. c) Gender reassignment- It is discriminatory to treat people who propose to start to or have completed a process to change their gender less favorably, for example, because they are absent from work for this reason. d) Marriage and civil partnership- The Act continues to protect employees who are married or in a civil partnership. Single people are however not protected by the legislation against discrimination. e) Pregnancy and maternity- The Act continues to protect women against discrimination because they are pregnant or have given birth. f) Race- The Act continues to protect people against discrimination on the grounds of their race, which includes color, nationality, ethnic or national origin. g) Religion or belief- The Act continues to protect people against discrimination on the grounds of their religion or their belief, including a lack of any belief. h) Sex- The Act continues to protect both men and women against discrimination on the grounds of their sex. i) Sexual orientation- The Act continues to protect bisexual, gay, heterosexual and lesbian people from discrimination on the grounds of their sexual orientation. http://www.fpb.org/hottips/601/The_Equality_Act_2010:_protected_characteristics_and_types_of_discrimination.htm 3. Research examples of discrimination and place them into the chart in the correct place Type of Discrimination Example Direct discrimination For example, when people are treated less favorably than others because they have some ‘irrelevant’ characteristic; i.e., they are from a different ethnic background or belong to a religious minority. Indirect discrimination For example, a dress code that requires women to wear a knee length skirt (which has no direct relation to their ability to carry out their work) could be indirectly discriminatory against women from certain cultural or religious groups. Harassment Victimisation For example, a person is victimized (punished or treated unfairly) because  they have made a complaint, or are believed to have made a complaint, or supported someone who has made a complaint (this is a form of harassment). Discrimination by association For example, refusing to promote a woman who has some caring duties because her mother has recently had a stroke is discrimination arising from association. Perception discrimination For example, a heterosexual man who has a gay friend cannot be discriminated against because someone believes (wrongly) that he is also gay. Third party harassment For example, a waitress of Asian origin has complained on several occasions to her employer that a particular customer has been making racist remarks to her. The employer should take steps to protect the employee from harassment by a third-party, such as banning the customer from the restaurant.

Daiwa Case Study Essay

The executive vice president of Daiwa’s New York branch had traded away the bank’s money over 11 years – an extraordinarily long period for such a fraud to run – while using his position as head of the branch’s securities custody department to cover up the loss by selling off securities owned by Daiwa and its customers. The trading loss was one of the largest of its kind in history. But it was the cover-ups by Iguchi over a period of years, and then by senior managers at Daiwa between July 13 and September 18 1995, when the bank eventually reported the loss to the US Federal Reserve Board, that did the real damage. These led to criminal indictments against the bank and its officers and, eventually, to one of Japan’s largest commercial banks being kicked out of the US markets. Unlike Barings Bank, which was swallowed up by similar failures in risk management earlier in the same year, Daiwa’s $200 billion of assets and $8 billion of rese rves meant it was big enough to survive the hit. But punishment by US regulators and public humiliation dealt a massive blow to Daiwa’s reputation. The scandal set in train a longterm change in strategy as Daiwa reigned in its international ambitions and concentrated on its core businesses in Japan and Southeast Asia. There were also long-term per- Lessons learned G Risk-taking functions must be segregated from record-keeping and risk assessment functions. It’s a lesson that’s now been largely learned in terms of segregating traders from the back office – but it has much wider applications; G Structural problems in risk management don’t put themselves right. Daiwa had many warning signals about the way risk management was organised at the New York branch, but chose to believe that local management  had learned its lesson; G Massive fraud can continue for many years in an environment of lax controls: Iguchi made his confession not because he feared he was about to be caught, but instead when he realised that the situation might otherwise carry on indefinitely; G Years after an event, failures in risk management remain a threat to the personal finances of senior executives if the executives can be shown to have acted inappropriately. sonal repercussions for Daiwa’s senior managers. Five years after the debacle broke, on 20 September 2000, in a decision that was immediately challenged, a Japanese court in Osaka told 11 current and former board members and top executives from Daiwa to pay the bank $775 million in damages. The record-breaking award, which followed legal action by shareholders, was to atone for the management failure of oversight, attempted cover-ups, and the breakdown of risk management in the New York branch that led up to the debacle. Treasury securities as part of Daiwa’s services to its pension fund customers. During the 1980s the New York desk became a significant force in the US government debt market and was designated as a primary market dealer in 1986. When Iguchi was promoted to become a trader in 1984, he did not relinquish his back-office duties. All in all, he supervised the securities custody department at the New York branch from approximately 1977 right through to 1995. This lack of segregation, a relatively common feature of small trading desks in the early 1980s but already a discredited practice by the early 1990s, led to Daiwa’s downfall. Daiwa’s New York branch managed the custody of the US Treasury bonds that it bought, and those that it bought on behalf of its customers, via a sub-custody account held at Bankers Trust. Through this account, interest on the bonds was collected and dispersed, and bonds were transferred or sold according to the The Story Toshihide Iguchi, a Kobe, Japanborn US citizen who majored in psychology at Southwest Missouri State University, Springfield, joined Daiwa’s New York branch in 1977. There he learned how to run the small back office of the branch’s securities business. Opened as an office in the 1950s, the Daiwa New York branch began dealing in US  wishes of either customers or the bank’s own managers. Daiwa and its customers kept track of what was happening in this account through transaction reports from Bankers Trust that flowed through Iguchi, in his role as head of the back office. When Iguchi lost a few hundred thousand dollars early on in his trading activities, he was tempted into selling off bonds in the Bankers Trust sub-custody account to pay off his losses. Then, in the words of the FBI agents who investigated the case: â€Å"He concealed his unauthorised sales from the custody account †¦ by falsifying Bankers Trust account statements so that the statements would not indicate that the securities had been sold.† As he lost more money trying to trade his way back into the black, it became hard work keeping alive this parallel series of reports. But luckily for him, Daiwa and its internal auditors never independently confirmed the custody account statements. Later on, while he served his sentence, Iguchi was asked by Time magazine whether his early actions felt like a crime. â€Å"To me, it was only a violation of internal rules,† he said. â€Å"I think all traders have a tendency to fall into the same trap. You always have a way of recovering the loss. As long as that possibility is there, you either admit your loss and lose face and your job, or you wait a little – a month or two months, or however long it takes.† In Iguchi’s case it took 11 years, during which time he is said to have forged some 30,000 trading slips, among other documents. When customers sold off securities that Iguchi had, in fact, already sold off  on his own behalf, or when customers needed to be paid interest on long-gone securities, Iguchi settled their accounts by selling off yet more securities and changing yet more records. Eventually about $377 million of Daiwa’s customers’ securities and about $733 million of Daiwa’s own investment securities had been sold off by Iguchi to cover his trading losses. As Iguchi’s apparen t success grew – he later said that at one point his desk  produced half the New York branch’s nominal profits – Subsequent investigation showed that risk control lapses and cover-ups were part of the culture of Daiwa’s New York operation in the 1980s and 1990s’ According to the charges laid against the bank by US officials, Daiwa had gone so far as to â€Å"temporarily relocate certain traders †¦ and, when necessary, to disguise the trading room at the downtown office as a storage room during [regulatory] examinations†. Following a regulatory rebuff in 1993, the bank had assured regulators that traders would no longer report to Iguchi while he occupied his role as head of the securities custody department. In fact, the branch continued to operate without a proper division of responsibilities. Furthermore, during the 1995 investigation, Iguchi revealed that between 1984 and 1987, other Daiwa traders had suffered major losses; these had apparently been concealed from regulators by shifting the losses to Daiwa’s overseas affiliates (FDIC, 1995). he became something of a golden boy at Daiwa. But the losses accumulated until by the early 1990s it was difficult for Iguchi to continue to hide them, particularly after 1993 when Daiwa made some limited efforts to split up its trading and back-office functions. Yet he managed to survive for another two years before engineering his own day of reckoning. Iguchi’s survival wasn’t entirely down to luck. Subsequent investigation showed that risk control lapses and cover-ups were part of the culture of Daiwa’s New York operation in the 1980s and early 1990s, to a farcical degree. For example, during the 1995 investigation of the Iguchi affair, the bank was also charged with operating an unauthorised trading area for securities between 1986 and 1993. Confession and cover-up In Iguchi’s confessional letters to Daiwa in mid-summer 1999 (he sent a stream of letters and notes to the bank after that initial July 13 letter) the rogue custody officer suggested that his superiors keep the losses  secret until â€Å"appropriate measures† could be taken to stabilise the situation. It was a suggestion that was taken up. In the period after July 13 and before about September 18, when Daiwa belatedly advised the Federal Reserve Board of the loss, certain of Daiwa’s managers connived with Iguchi to prevent the losses being discovered, despite a legal requirement to report misdoings immediately to the US regulators. For example, during September 1995, Iguchi was told to pretend to be on holiday so that a scheduled August 2001 audit would have to be postponed; he was in fact in the New York apartment of a Daiwa manager helping to reconstruct the trading history of his department. Daiwa’s managers seem to have been hoping to transfer the loss to Japan, where it could have been dealt with outside the scrutiny of the US regulators and markets. After Daiwa told regulators about the loss on September 18, Iguchi was taken to a motel and questioned directly by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation. He told FBI agents about what had gone on in the months following his initial confession to Daiwa, and the bank was shocked to find itself facing a 24-  count indictment for conspiracy, fraud, bank exam obstruction, records falsification and failure to disclose federal crimes. Daiwa argued, rightly, that not a single customer of the bank had lost any money. At the time of the incident, Daiwa was one of Japan’s top 10 banks and one of the top 20 banks in the world in terms of asset size. Like most other Japanese, and some European, banks, it had massive â€Å"hidden profits† on its balance sheet that were not accounted for due to the legitimate historical accounting method that it employed. That gave Daiwa’s management considerable freedom of action if unex- Timeline of events July 13, 1995 Toshihide Iguchi of the New York branch of Daiwa Bank confesses  to superiors that he has lost $1.1 billion over 11 years while trading US Treasury bonds. August 8 Japan’s ministry of finance is informed about the scandal by Daiwa. September 15-18 Daiwa belatedly reports the loss to the US Federal Reserve Board, warning that immediate disclosure of a loss of that magnitude might threat the financial viability of the bank. September 23 Iguchi interviewed at a motel by FBI agents who later arrest him. September 26 Iguchi fired by Daiwa and the extent of the bank’s loss made public. October 2 US authorities order Daiwa to put an end to most of its trading in the US, having already shocked the bank by indicting it on serious charges. December 1996 Iguchi sentenced to four years in prison and a $2.6 million penalty (fine and restitution payments). End January 1996 Daiwa agrees to sell most of its assets and offices in the US. February 1996 Daiwa agrees to pay a $340 million fine to avoid further legal battles over its institutional role in the Iguchi affair – one of the largest ever fines in a criminal case in the US. 20 September 2000 Osaka court says some current and some former board members and executives from the bank must pay the bank $775 million as restitution to shareholders. The board members and executives immediately appeal against the decision. One of the bank’s crisis management actions after Iguchi confessed was to pump back into the defrauded account securities equivalent to those that their New York head of custody had sold off. But the US regulators were deeply unhappy at the attempted coverup, and at the way Daiwa had seemed to ignore regulatory warnings over a number of years. They were also unhappy that at least one senior member of Japan’s ministry of finance knew about the Daiwa scandal in early August and had not informed his US regulatory counterpart. This pushed the Daiwa scandal onto the international political stage and led to a telephone conversation in which Japan’s finance minister, Masayoshi Takemura, was obliged to make apologetic noises to US Treasury secretary Robert Rubin for his staff’s failure to pass on the information. (The call was made only after Takemura had annoyed US officials by denying at an earlier press conference that his ministry had failed in its duties; his aides later denied that any formal apology had been made to Rubin.) At a time when the Japanese banking system was already showing signs of strain from the slowing Japanese economy and deteriorating  asset quality, many international regulators took the Daiwa scandal and its aftermath as a sign of the continuing lack of openness in Japanese banks and the Japanese financial system. Meanwhile, Daiwa faced more immediate problems. In November 1995, the Federal Reserve ordered it to end all of its US operations August 2001  within 90 days. By January 1996, Daiwa had agreed to sell most of its assets in the US, totalling some $3.3 billion, to Sumitomo Bank and to sell off 15 US offices. (Indeed, for some time after the debacle, Daiwa was rumoured to be on the verge of merging with Sumitomo.) In February 1996, Daiwa agreed to pay a $340 million fine – a record amount for a criminal case in the US – as a way of laying to rest the charges that US authorities had brought against it. All in all, it endured some of the stiffest punishments ever meted out to a foreign bank operating in the US. By this point, senior figures at the bank had resigned or indicated they would take early retirement. Top management said it would cut its own pay for six months and forgo bonuses as a sign of contrition. Iguchi’s nightmare was now dissipating. In October 1995, he had reached an agreement with his US prosecutors and admitted misapplication of bank funds, false entries in bankbooks and records, money laundering and conspiracy. Iguchi told the judge at early hearings that by the time he confessed: â€Å"After 11 years of fruitless efforts to recover losses, my life was simply filled with guilt, fear and deception.† He said he sent the confession letter because he couldn’t see that anyone other than himself was likely to bring the situation to an end. In December 1996, he was sentenced in New York to four years in prison and a $2.6 million penalty that he had little chance of paying. The cover-up also led to one of Iguchi’s managers being sent to prison for a number of months and fined a few thousand dollars. The Aftermath As this account makes clear, Daiwa’s 1995 debacle resulted in huge losses; a  criminal charge against the bank; Daiwa’s forced exit from US markets; general reputational damage to Japanese banks and regulators; senior resignations at Daiwa; and a diplomatic spat between the US and Japan. In the medium term, the scandal led indirectly to Standard & Poor’s downgrading Daiwa’s credit rating from A– to BBB, and to Japan’s ministry of finance imposing certain restrictions on the bank’s activities for a year or so. It also temporarily threatened the credibility of its profitable trust business. In the longer term, the scandal obliged Daiwa’s management to refocus the bank on its traditional retail and trust banking units. By 1998, this refocus – and the general malaise in Japanese banking – led Daiwa to announce that it would close down many of its international offices to concentrate on its role as a super-regional ba nk in Southeast Asia, with a specific focus on the Osaka region. Bank executives at the time of the scandal in 1995 found that it dogged them into the new millennium. On 20 September 2000, the BBC reported that a Japanese court had ordered 11 current and former board members and executives from the bank to pay the bank $775 million in damages, much of it awarded against the president of Daiwa’s New York branch during the Iguchi period. Judge Mitsuhiro Ikeda made it clear that the award was compensation to the bank’s shareholders for the fact that â€Å"the risk management mechanism at the [New York]  branch was effectively not functioning†, as well as for management’s failure to report the incident promptly, and failures in oversight. Some commentators were surprised by the size of the recordbreaking award, however, and the executives immediately appealed against the decision and filed pleas with the court to suspend any seizure of their assets. Whether or not the award stands, many commentators at the time said that it marked a broader change in attitudes about executive and board responsibility. In Japan, as in most developed economies, it is becoming more and more likely that senior management in charge of a bank or corporation at the time of a disaster will be held personally accountable. I This case study was written by Rob Jameson, ERisk Web Resources AsiaWeek, â€Å"Japan’s $1-Billion Scam†, October 27, 1995 BBC News, â€Å"Bank Bosses Pay $775m Fraud Charge†, 20 September, 2000 Electric Law Library, Criminal Complaint and Indictment Against Daiwa Bank, 11/95 FDIC press release: Regulators terminate the US operations of Daiwa Bank, Ltd, Japan, PR-67-95, November 11, 1995 Time magazine, â€Å"A Blown Billion†, October 9, 1995 Time magazine, â€Å"I Didn’t Set Out to Rob a Bank†, short interview with Iguchi, February 1997

Finance slp 02 pc quote web Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Finance slp 02 pc quote web - Essay Example As Wal Mart has a beta coefficient of 0.1467 it implies that the stock generally follows market movements. It also shows the relatively less risk it carries relative to the market (Levinson 2006). However, recognizing the theory of risk and return, the gains in investing in Wal Mart’s stocks is proportional to the risk involved in holding the stock. Since the stock generally carries less risk than the entire market, it also gains less relative to it. When investors put their fund in stocks, they expect to have financial gain from it. The cost of equity is the return that stockholders require for a specific stock that they hold. Using the Capital Asset Pricing Model, Wal Mart’s cost of equity can be computed as: Using the yield to maturity of US bonds maturing in one year (4.5%) as the risk free rate and the difference between the return of the market and risk free rate as 6.5%, the cost of equity of Wal Mart is 5.45% computed as ( 4.5% + 0.1467 (6.5%)). Two other stocks in my portfolio are Nike and Fed Ex which have beta coefficients of 0.8244 and 0.8418. When taken altogether, the average beta coefficient of my portfolio is 0.6043 ((0.8244 + 0.8418 + 0.1467)/3). Using the assumption above, the cost of equity is 8.42% (4.5% + (0.6043) (6.5%). Looking at the beta of the chosen business organizations, it becomes apparent that it can still be diversified. All of the beta coefficients are positive and less than one which means that they are carry less risk and are generally less volatile than the market (Keown et al 2005). I can try to further diversify the portfolio by getting a stock whose beta coefficient is more than 1 in order to shoulder more risk which in turn generates more returns (Keown et al 2005) . It will also be logical to carry a stock whose performance is negatively correlated to the market. This stock will have a negative beta

Death of a loved one and identity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Death of a loved one and identity - Essay Example The main reasons given about the change of identity concern the aspects of religion, psychological perspectives, and interpersonal relationships. From the perspective of religion, it would be noted that a persons religious identity and spiritual affiliations are the most probable aspect that can be changed. This essay, â€Å"Death of a Loved One and Persoanl Identity,† is a critical analysis of the impact of the death of a loved one, and the effect it has in the identification of the personality of a person. Olver (2002) explains that death is an old phenomenon, and it has always existed. Many people are afraid of death, and this is the reason there is extensive debate on how to prevent it, and the life of an individual after death. However, there are different beliefs about this concept of death, and this depends on the values and status of an individual. Earle, Komaromy, and Bartholomew (2009) explain that religion plays a role in explaining the concept of death, and the impact it has on an individual. For instance, religious people believe that, once an individual dies, then he or she has a next life. This life depends on the religious belief of an individual, for instance the Buddhists believe in re-incarnation, while Christians believe in ascension to heaven once an individ ual dies. However, scientists do not have such kind of beliefs, and this is because they are motivated by facts in trying to explain this aspect of death, and the consequences it has in the identification of the personality of an individual. The lack of concrete evidence on this aspect of resurrection has made this topic ambiguous, and difficult to explain. This is because of lack of stories on people who have resurrected, hence giving an account of what happens after death. Therefore, a person can only experience this concept of death, through a third party. That is an individual who is grieving, or has just lost a loved one. The loss of a loved one, normally leads to a

Evaluation of legal and ethical impacts on quality and access to Research Paper - 1

Evaluation of legal and ethical impacts on quality and access to patient care in managed care practices - Research Paper Example f both state and federal standards with regards to the healthcare industry and by analyzing the key trends that exist within the industry as a function of seeking to hire or contract legal expertise and advice to the requesting entity (Lynk et al 2008). Such an understanding is useful for the purpose of this proposed research due to the fact that the author hopes that by proving that a verifiable link exists between the level of legal representation within the industry and the level and quality of care provided, the researcher will be able to demonstrably prove that this is a key determinant within healthcare and its overall improvement and offerings to the end consumer; both within specialized fields such as secondary care and elsewhere. Similarly, the second work of scholarship that this brief analysis has chosen to review is that of the National Academy of Sciences, â€Å"Legal Issues in Quality of Care Oversight in the United States: Recent Developments†. As such, the piece seeks to track the level of legal changes that are manifesting themselves throughout the United States while at the same time seeking to analyze how, if at all, these changes are providing for an increase or decrease in the quality of care (Jost 2003). As a means of measuring this, the authors set out to approach the issue from both a legal requirement standpoint as well as one of economic sustainability; much the same as the one which has been utilized in the first article that has been reviewed. It is of course the intention of this author that this piece, as well as the proceeding piece will help to draw specific levels of analysis with regards to the levels that current and past legal obligations and their subsequent implementations within the field of healthcare have affected the quality of care provided. It should be further noted that the authors of these pieces have stated that the economics of further regulation and legal obligations that the current environment necessarily

New Architectural and Natural Structures Research Proposal

New Architectural and Natural Structures - Research Proposal Example The project began in the 1990s as an initiative for Landmark Millennium Projects, which was to launch in the year 2000. The project began with finding a 160-year-old china clay quarry that was no longer used and was considered a land pit. The team began to construct a variety of biomes to change the space and to offer a different form of living in the area that was before devastated. The beginning consisted of building a drainage system from the natural rainfall and was followed by taking natural soils from land mine waste that could be fertilized over a given time frame. The construction also consisted of natural heating from the sun; however, the biome structure automatically offers 90% humidity at night and 60% at day with recycled water that offers 60 inches per year to assist with the living of both plants and animals (Eden Project, 2011: 1). The initiatives of the Eden Project, while based around the green movement and new structures were also built with the ideology of creatin g community at the same time. The structure was created with the understanding that tourists would be interested in the new initiative. This has been combined with events, such as from musicians, as well as from conservation programs, that continue to grow. The Eden Project is able to continue to expand because of the vast amount of land that is surrounding the area, with the last biome being completed in the year 2005. The goal was not only to create a different initiative that was based on a new structure but also had the goal of creating a social enterprise for entertainment, education, and enjoyment. These two goals altered the structure and offered a different approach to creating the biomes from the first initiatives created (Eden Project, 2011: 1). The design was first initiated by creating biomes, specifically because this offers a natural environment to conserve energy while offering a natural habitat for creatures. The landscape consists of two main biomes, both of which h ave smaller biomes extended from the main origin. The biome landscape was laid out as a path which curves in the same rounded shape from one biome to the next, specifically to keep the main theme of the natural biome as a part of the overall landscape and in relation to the individual biomes. Figure 1: Landscape of the Biomes (Overview of Eden Project) The biomes are divided according to the type of habitat that is offered. One is based on a Mediterranean environment while the second is able to hold a rainforest environment. This is combined with a middle space that carries a habitat for natural plants which are able to grow within Cornwall. The initiative of the design was important not only because of the main landscape but also with the need to create a natural habitat and structure. The main biomes are covered with tubular steel space frames in a hex – tri-hex form. This is combined with hexagonal cladding panels that are made from thermoplastic ETFE.  

Technology Plan Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Technology Plan - Research Paper Example Its head office is located at Redmond, WA. The company uses a web based platform to promote its business on the internet. It can be visited on: Clean-n-Brite.com. However, this is a static web site that only presents basic information about the company. In this scenario, the implementation of new technology based system will offer an excellent support and capability for establishing online sales. At the present, company has a large loyal customer base. In addition, Clean-n-Brite Business is basically a supplier of cleaning products to a lot of different companies and commercial areas. In addition, Clean-n-Brite Business provides different grade cleaning products for a number of different sectors. Additionally, Clean-n-Brite Business presently deals with a large number of corporations including hotels, processing industries, hospitals and public organizations, catering organizations such as leisure centers and schools. With the evolution in business, Clean-n-Brite Business has been able to see a lot of new opportunities as well as issues. Though, the greatest opportunity that business has got is in form of increased customer reorganization and business market position improvement. While talking about the problems that Clean-n-Brite Business is facing include handling the information and data gathered from various customers and corporations. As a result, the existing system which was created to manage these areas is not effectively dealing with these operations in an appropriate manner. Thus, there is need for a better system which can effectively and efficiently manage the operations and processes of business in an attempt to improve the organizational performance. For resolving this problem we have proposed the idea of application of a web based business platform. The new web based business platform will make use of the new technology based services for managing the online sales and transactions. The new system for business management will

Prosecute Billy for the Alleged Assaults Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Prosecute Billy for the Alleged Assaults - Essay Example Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO and Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) have issued the guidelines in order to stipulate how to handle domestic violence complaints and make prosecution of the perpetrators. Domestic violence, also termed as domestic abuse, can attract action under both criminal law and civil law. In the present case, Hilda has been assaulted by her husband Billy resulting in her hospitalisation. In an inebriated condition, he has also assaulted the nurse at the hospital where he was refused permission to see his wife. Given this scenario, the prosecution and police authorities are required to ensure the following actions are adhered to. Protection to Victims First step in response to domestic abuse incident or report is to ensure protection to the victim, her children and police officers involved in the investigation and prosecution from likely harm by the perpetrator both while receiving calls and after the violence report has been registered. Though this may not apply to the present stage, it is worth mentioning that if the suspect/perpetrator has not left the scene while the call is being received, the caller should be kept on the line and have the background noise tape-recorded through a 999 call which could capture the victim’s and the suspect’s voice and be a crucial evidence for prosecution and helpful in monitoring the incident. If the suspect has left the scene of occurrence, the victim or caller should be asked to lock and secure the premises and comeback to the phone and then take full description of the suspect for being circulated to the area officers (CPS, 2009). Prosecution Now that Hilda’s husband Billy, the perpetrator has already been arrested, the following pages will discuss how the Crown Prosecution Service (CPC) will proceed with prosecution and help victims through prosecution. The guidance document of the CPS is of particular use for legal professionals supporting victims of domestic violence. The CPS has been entrusted with the prosecution of cases probed by the enforcement agency who are responsible for investigating the allegations of domestic violence and collection of evidence. Billy has been arrested as is necessary in a domestic violence case to safeguard the victims who may be vulnerable with children from any further injury. CPS has the mandate to decide on a suspect being charged with and the nature of charges. Police refers cases suspected of domestic violence to CPS for deciding on prosecution or otherwise. CPS is not the legal representative of victims and not authorised to act on their behalf but must be concerned with their safety and support besides considering their views. Thus, CPS initiates prosecutions for domestic violence on State’s behalf. In case of the CPS deciding against prosecution, it will inform victim of the decision based on evidence furnished by the police along with reasons (CPS, 2009). Victim’s Safety CPS will send letter t o vulnerable victim or intimidated witnesses informing the decision to prosecute or otherwise within 24 hours of taking a decision and five days in all others. This is with the view to ensure victim’s safety arising out of the decisions. And it is also to

Petroleum engineering Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Petroleum engineering - Essay Example Petroleum Engineering is a field of engineering which deals with the exploration and production of crude oil and natural gases. The petroleum engineer’s job begins after a geologist’s exploration of the site, and then the petroleum engineer aims to extract the liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons from the earth’s porous rocks under high pressure. Petroleum engineer should also have a good grip on various other subjects in order to achieve the complete command on the issues such as drilling, geophysics, petroleum geology, well logging, economics of petroleum, reservoir engineering, computer simulations etc (ELC, 2014). Petroleum engineering field was first introduced in 1914 by the American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical and Petroleum Engineers  (AIME) and in 1915 the first degree in Petroleum Engineering was awarded by the University of Pittsburgh. Ever since this discipline has evolved and has helped in exploring Petroleum, and with the help of ever growing technologies involved in this field, this subject has literally changed the face of the earth and economics. (Honeycutt, 2013) Petroleum Engineering is used to explore and produce hydrocarbons. They are usually buried deep underground, or under deep sea, in arctic regions, and even in deserts. A petroleum engineer along with geophysicists is responsible for the exploration, development and depletion of a hydrocarbon reservoir. Petroleum engineering can be sub classified in to petro physical engineering, drilling engineering, reservoir engineering and production engineering. All these areas of specialization have a unique role in the field of petroleum engineering. Drilling engineering is the first step in oil and gas extraction, a drilling engineer is responsible for digging out the subsurface to surface in an optimized fashion. This field deals with the study of the earth to be drilled, the stresses

South Korean Government vs. US Government Research Paper

South Korean Government vs. US Government - Research Paper Example The South Korean government and the U.S. government differ in terms of its basic structure, the branches of the government, electoral system, and political parties; however, they are similar in terms of corruption allegations and violations of human rights; and that the solution to these is an independent judiciary and a rigid constitution. Review of Literature First Argument: Differences The South Korean and the United States governments differ in terms of their basic structure, as well as in the branches of the government, especially in the legislative and executive branches. Moreover, both governments follow different electoral systems and political parties. Basic Structure. The South Korean government is presidential in nature except for the cabinet, which is partly parliamentary in carrying out its tasks. Moreover, the South Korean government is a central government that oversees all affairs of the nation and declares everything and all the laws are uniform throughout the countr y. The United States government, on the other hand, is based on the principle of federalism, where power is shared between federal and state governments. This is also a system where the autonomy of every State is recognized by the people. Each state, however, submits to the U.S. Constitution and to federal law when there is a dispute. Legislative Branch. The South Korean legislative body is known as the National Assembly of South Korea. It has 299 members who represent the four political parties of South Korea. The South Korean National Assembly formulates laws and does many things that any other legislative body of any democratic government would usually do, such as regulate the armed forces and make decisions regarding the national budget proposed by the executive branch (Savada & Shaw, 1990). On the other hand, the legislative body of the United States government is known as the Congress, which represents mostly two political parties – the Democratic and the Republican par ties, as well as Independent members. The United States Congress is made up of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress is authorized to create laws, levy and collect taxes, issue patents, declare war and support the military, regulate military forces, create federal courts, establish infrastructures, and to regulate money. The United States Congress is made up of 435 members of the House of Representatives, representing every congressional district, each member serving two-year terms, and without any limit as to the number of terms its members may serve. The other component, the Senate, is made up of 100 members, two from each state, each serving six-year terms, without term limits. The role of the Senate is to approve Presidential appointments and to jointly approve bills with the Congress (Wilson & Dilulio, 2011). Executive Branch. The head of the South Korean executive branch is a president that is directly elected through national elections. The President serve s only one five-term year. The President is also the head of state and government as well as the commander-in-chief of the military. Just like many presidents of democratic countries, the South Korean President can declare a state of martial law, a state of emergency, or a state of war. He can also propose laws

Project Management and Tran Essay Example for Free

Project Management and Tran Essay Tran was taking his dog Callie on her evening walk as the sun began to set over the coastal range. He looked forward to this time of the day. It was an opportunity to enjoy some peace and quiet. It was also a time to review events on the Ajax project and plot his next moves. Ajax is the code name given by CEBEX for a high-tech security system project funded by the U. S. Department of Defense (DOD). Tran is the project manager and his core them consisted of 30 full-time hardware and software engineers. Tran and his family fled he was 18 and used the education stipend to attend Washington State University. He joined CEBEX upon graduating with a dual degree in mechanical and electrical engineering. After working on a variety of projects for 10 years Tran decided he wanted to enter management. He went to night school at the University of Washington to earn an MBA. Tran became a project manager for the money. He also thought he was good at it. He enjoyed working with people and making the right thing happen. This was his fifth project and up to now he was batting. 500,with half of his projects coming ahead of schedule. Tran was proud that he could now afford to send his oldest child to Stanford University. Ajax was one of many defense projects the CEBEX Corporation had under contract with DOD. CEBEX is a huge defense company with annual sales in excess of $30 billion and more than 120,000 employees worldwide. CEBEX’s five major business areas are Aeronautics, Electronic Systems, Information Solutions, and Space Systems. Ajax was one of several new projects sponsored by the Integrated Systems Solutions division aimed at the homeland security business. CEBEX was confident that it could leverage its technical expertise and political connections to become a major player in this growing market. Ajax was one of several projects directed at designing, developing, and installing a security system at an important government installation. Tran had two major concerns when he started the Ajax project. The first was the technical risks inherent in the project. In theory the design principles made sense and the project used proven technology. Still the technology had never been applied in the field in this matter. From past experience, Tran knew there was a big difference between the laboratory and the real world. He also knew that integrating the audio, optical, tactile, and laser subsystems would test the patience and ingenuity of his team. The second concern involved his team. The team was pretty much split down the middle between hardware and electrical engineers. Not only did these engineers have different skill sets and tend to look at problems differently, but generational differences between the two groups were evident as well. The hardware engineers were almost all former military, family men with conservative attire and beliefs. The electrical engineers were a much motlier crew. They tended to be young, single, and at times very cocky. While the hardware engineers talked about the Seattle Mariners, raising teenagers, and going to Palm Desert to play golf, the software engineers talked about Vapor, the latest concert at Gorge amphitheater, and going mountain biking in Peru. To make matters worse, tension between these two groups within CEBEX festered around salary issues. Electrical engineers were at a premium, and the hardware engineers resented the new hires’ salary packages, which were comparable to what they were earning after 20 years of working for CEBEX. Still the real money was to be made from the incentives associated with project performance. These were all contingent on meeting project milestones and the final completion date. Before actual work started on the project, Tran arranged a tow-day team-building retreat at a lodge on the Olympic peninsula for his entire team as well as key staff from the government installation. He used this time to go over the major objectives of the project and unveil the basic project plan. An internal consultant facilitated several team-building activities that made light of cross-generational issues. Tran felt a real sense of camaraderie within the team. The good feelings generated from the retreat carried over to the beginning of the project. The entire team bought into the mission of the project and technical challenges it represented. Hardware and electrical engineers worked side by side to solve problems and build subsystems. The project plan was built around a series of five tests, with each test being a more rigorous verification of total system performance. Passing each test represented a key milestone for the project. The team was excited about conducting the first Alpha test one week early—only to be disappointed by a series of minor technical glitches that ook two weeks of problem solving to resolve. The team worked extra hard to make up for the lost time. Tran was proud of team and how hard members had worked together. The Alpha II test was conducted on schedule, but once again the system failed to perform. This time three weeks of debugging was needed before the team received the green light to move to the next phase of the project. By this time, team goodwill had been tested, and emotions were a bit frayed. A cloud of disappointment descended over the team as hopes of bonuses disappeared with the project falling further behind schedule. This was augmented by cynics who felt that the original schedule was unfair and the deadlines were impossible to begin with. Tran responded by starting each day with a status meeting where the team reviewed what they accomplished the previous day and set new objectives for that day. He believed these meetings were helpful in establishing positive momentum and reinforcing a team identity among the engineers. He also went out of his way to spend more time with the â€Å"troops,† helping them solve problems, offering encouragement, and a sincere pat on the back when one was deserved. He was cautiously optimistic when the time came to conduct the Alpha III test. It was the end of the day when the switch was turned on, but nothing happened. Within minutes the entire team heard the news. Screams could be heard down the hallway. Perhaps the most telling moment was when Tran looked down at the company’s parking lot and saw most of his project team walking by themselves to their cars. As Callie chased some wild bunnies, Tran pondered what he should do next. 1. How effective has Tran been as a project manager? Explain. 2. What problem(s) does Tran face?

Product Failure (Malaysia) Essay Example for Free

Product Failure (Malaysia) Essay Product Failure Failure refers to the state or condition of not meeting a desirable or intended objective, and may be viewed as the opposite of success. Product failure ranges from failure to sell the product to fracture of the product, in the worst cases leading to personal injury, the province of forensic engineering. The criteria for failure are heavily dependent on context of use, and may be relative to a particular observer or belief system. A situation considered to be a failure by one might be considered a success by another, particularly in cases of direct competition or a zero-sum game. Similarly, the degree of success or failure in a situation may be differently viewed by distinct observers or participants, such that a situation that one considers to be a failure, another might consider to be a success, a qualified success or a neutral situation. It may also be difficult or impossible to ascertain whether a situation meets criteria for failure or success due to ambiguous or ill-defined definition of those criteria. Finding useful and effective criteria, or heuristics, to judge the success or failure of a situation may itself be a significant task. Failure can be differentially perceived from the viewpoints of the evaluators. A person who is only interested in the final outcome of an activity would consider it to be an Outcome Failure if the core issue has not been resolved or a core need is not met. A failure can also be a process failure whereby although the activity is completed successfully, a person may still feel dissatisfied if the underlying process is perceived to be below expected standard or benchmark. Failure to carry out a task Failure to perceive Failure to anticipate Fail product in local market In Malaysia, there is a lot of product failure and it just too numerous to say it one by one, most of them, it did not even catch the public attention, basically, the public don’t even know the existence of the particular product. There is so much factors that can leads to product failure. Failure causes are defects in design, process, quality, or part application, which are the underlying cause of the failure or which initiate a process which eads to failure. Rather than the simple description of symptoms that many product users or process participants might use, the term failure cause refers to a rather complete description, including the pre-conditions under which failure occurs, how the thing was being used, proximate and ultimate/final causes (if known), and any subsidiary or resulting failures that result. The term is part of the engineering lexicon, especially of engineers working to test and debug p roducts or processes. Carefully observing and describing failure conditions, identifying whether failures are reproducible or transient, and hypothesizing what combination of conditions and sequence of events led to failure is part of the process of fixing design flaws or improving future iterations. The term may be applied to mechanical systems failure. One of the product/brand that fail in Malaysia is: M . Mobile or simply known as M. Mobile is an RD and mobile communication design company based in Malaysia. M. Mobile is Malaysias first cell phone manufacturer and is also the worlds first Muslim-owned mobile phone RD and marketing company in a partnership between Malaysia and China. This company is currently in operation under its parent company, Kosmo Technology Industrial Berhad Type: Berhad Founded: 2005 Headquarters: Kuala Lumpur,Malaysia Key people: Norhamzah Nordin,Chairman Industry: Telecommunications Products: Mobile phones Website: M. Mobile M. mobile’s products: Factors that leads to this brand failure The reason why this brand failed in malaysia market because: M. mobile cannot give a better satisfaction to the consumer compare to their competitor that are well established in mobile technology sector such as Nokia, Sony Ericsson , Samsung etc. Promotion (marketing) M. mobile cannot compete with their competitors in term of : Price Features Quality After sales service Promotion M. mobile should have promote their product and brand more aggressively since they enter a market where most of them already loyal to a particular brand, M. obile did not market their product as well as their brand effectively, therefore they able to capture only few attention from the public, most Malaysian don’t even know the existence of the brand. Price Price offered by M. mobile considered less expensive, but somehow, consumer nowadays always think, â€Å"even though it’s not very expensive, but it’s still money, does it worth the money? † instead of taking a risk of buying t he product which they don’t really know the background of the company, consumer prefer to spend their money on trusted brand for the same price or a bit more. Left picture is NOKIA 2690 and on the right picture is M. obile M10, both phone has a pretty similar specification and the price is almost the same(RM300+), most consumer will go for NOKIA because they want to avoid risk from buying unestablishrd brand. Features Most M. mobile product is a low end product and it does not offer variety of features compare to their competitors. As we know, consumer nowadays demand for the latest technology, therefore as a mobile phone manufacturer, knowing the consumer needs and want is the main priority in coming up with a new product, most of the product produced by this company does not reach consumer expectation who demand for better technology. Quality The quality of the product produced by this company proven not to be as good as the other brand’s products, the materials they use to make the product is low in quality, from the mainboard(interior) to the exterior of the phone. After sales service After sales service is the service provided by the company to the customer of their product, M. mobile does not offer a good after sales service compared to another company like nokia and sony ericsson. It shows that the company do not really think about building a long and strong relationship with the consumer. How the product could be successful In order for this brand to be successful, there are so many things that the company have to take into account, its not easy becoming a great company in consumer eyes, there are several things that the company have to take into consideration especially the strength of the competitors, in order to be successful, a company need to have an advantage that can overcome the competitor’s strength. This is the reason why RD very important in coming up with new product. The 1st thing M. obile have to focus on is their promotion, promotion plays an important part in creating a good image in consumer mind, since there’s a lot of well established company in mobile phone sector, M. mobile have to make a huge action in promoting their brand and product. Doing aggressive marketing by keep on promoting the product and brand is the best way to create a good image in consumer mind, of course it will cost a lot, but the return is way better. Psychologica lly, It’s a human nature, the more we hear n see it, the more we favor it, thus it will create the sense of security towards the product or brand. Price, features and quality are related to each other, this is one of the most important things a company need to think about, they need to know what type of product they want to come out with in term of the product’s quality level and the variety of it features, therefore they can set the price for the product, The company have to make sure the price is reasonable with the quality and the features of the product or else consumer will favor the competitors, M. obile comes out with one new product called M10 and the price for the product is around rm300+,Nokia as well comes out with a new product which is nokia 2690 and the price is almost the same with M. mobile m10, both model provide almost the same features, but in term of quality, we know nokia is better, consumer will think, why choose m. mobile instead of nokia? M. mobile have to make sure their offer can overcome their competitors offer, therefore consumer will find the advantage of choosing M. mobile’s products. May be it will take some time for M. obile to keep pace with the other established company in term of product quality and technology, but by putting a correct price, the company can attract more market and the company will grow. A company have to know how important word of mouth and how dramatic change it can do with the influence of word of mouth, satisfied customer will tell the others how good the product is, dissatisfied customer will spread the bad things about the product, do not give a high expectation to the consumer because the possibility of getting dissatisfied customer is high. After sales service is one of the thing people nowadays always talk about, M. mobile have to make sure they can deliver a good after sales service so that their customer will spread a good deal with the others. It is important for M. mobile building a strong and long relationship with the customer because it can create brand loyalty, once customer loyal to the product, they will keep on purchasing the product and influence other people into buying the same product. Good after sales service shows that the company really care about their customer and customer loves it when the company cares about their rights.

People Suffering Mental Disorder Auditory Hallucinations

People Suffering Mental Disorder Auditory Hallucinations Auditory hallucinations for some people suffering mental disorder are frequently experienced as alien and under the influence of some external force. These are often experienced as voices that are distressing to the individual and can cause social withdrawal and isolation. Although auditory hallucinations are associated with major mental illnesses such as schizophrenia, they also occur in the general population (Coffey and Hewitt 2008). The annual incidence is estimated between 4-5 percent (Tien 1991), with those experiencing voices at least once, estimated between 10-25 percent (Slade Bentall 1988).The standard professional response to voice hearing has been to label it as symptomatic of illness and to prescribe anti-psychotic medication (Leudar Thomas 2000). An alternative is suggested by Romme and Escher (1993), who view the hearing of voices as not simply an individuals psychological experience, but as an interaction, reflecting the nature of the individuals relationship with h is or her own social environment. In this way, voices are interpreted as being linked to past or present experiences and the emphasis is on accepting the existence of the voices. Romme and Escher (1993) see hallucinatory voices as responsive to enhanced coping and found that those who coped well with voices had more supportive social environments than those who found it difficult to cope. This dissertation will aim to discuss the experience and management of auditory hallucinations in schizophrenia looking into therapeutic relationship, helping approaches, and working towards the ending of a therapeutic relationship discussing discharge. First chapter will aim to explain what schizophrenia is, the cause of schizophrenia, its symptoms and types with particular focus on auditory hallucinations. The chapter will then discuss what auditory hallucinations are in the diagnosis. Therapeutic relationship between service user and the nurse is paramount in mental health nursing and is seen to prove long term outcome such as social functioning (Svensson and Hansson 1999). Chapter two will aim to discuss the building of therapeutic relationship in the management of auditory hallucinations using Peplaus interpersonal relations model (1952). The importance of holistic assessment using a variety of tools, scales and questionnaires that will identify symptoms, risks, management of risk and address the service users needs will be discuss in chapter three. Chapter four of this dissertation will discuss helping approaches. Gray et al (2003) states that pharmacological and psychosocial interventions have been heavily researched to find the most up to date literature and recommendations for the management of auditory hallucinations in schizophrenia with medication and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT).. The final chapter will aim to discuss the ending of the therapeutic relationship between the nurse and the service user looking into discharge planning process and conclusion. Chapter one What is Schizophrenia and Auditory Hallucinations? Introduction to chosen topic Schizophrenia is one of the terms used to describe a major psychiatric disorder (or cluster of disorders) that alters an individuals perception, thoughts, affect and behaviour. Individuals who develop schizophrenia will each have their own unique combination of symptoms and experiences, the precise pattern of which will be influenced by their particular circumstances (NICE 2010). Allen et al (2010) define schizophrenia as a chronic and seriously disabling brain disorder that produces significant residual cognitive, functional and social deficits. Schizophrenia is considered the most disabling of all mental disorders (Mueser and McGurk, 2004), it occurs in about 1% of the world population, or more than 20 million people worldwide (Silverstein et al., 2006). The DSM -IV TR (APA 2000) defines schizophrenia as a persistent, often chronic and usually serious mental disorder affecting a variety of aspects of behaviour, thinking, and emotion. Patients with delusions or hallucinations may be described as psychotic. However, Tucker (1998) argues that the system of classification developed by the DSM-IV does not actually fit many patients as a whole; the syndromes outlined in DSM-IV are free standing descriptions of symptoms. He said unlike diagnoses of diseases in the rest of medicine, psychiatric diagnoses still have no proven link to causes and cures; Tucker argues that there is no identified etiological agents for psychiatric disorders. Schizophrenia is characterized by clusters of positive symptoms (e.g. hallucinations, delusions, and/or catatonia), negative symptoms (e.g. apathy, flat feet, social withdrawal, loss of feelings, lack of motivation and/or poverty of speech), and disorganized symptoms (e.g. formal thought disorder and/or bizarre behaviours). In addition, individuals with schizophrenia often experience substantial cognitive deficits including loss of executive function, as well as social dysfunction (Allen et al., 2010). It is estimated that nearly 75% of people with schizophrenia suffer with auditory hallucinations (Ford et al., 2009). Positive and negative symptoms are mentioned briefly because the dissertation is primarily focused on auditory hallucinations. Auditory hallucinations in diagnosis Auditory hallucinations are often considered symptomatic of people diagnosed as suffering from schizophrenia (Millham and Easton, 1998). APA (1994, p.767) defines hallucinations as a sensory perception that has the compelling sense of reality of a true perception but that occurs without external stimulation of the relevant sensory organ. Auditory hallucinations range from muffled sounds to complete conversations and can be experienced as coming either from within or from outside ones self (Nayani David, 1996). However, Stanghellini and Cutting (2003) argue that APA definition of hallucinations is false, they believe an auditory hallucination is not a false perception of sound but is a disorder of self consciousness that becomes conscious. Hearing voices is not only linked to a persons inner experience but can reflect a persons relationship with their own past and present experiences (Romme and Escher, 1996). Beyerstein (1996) suggests that voices are anything that prompts a move fro m word based thinking to imagistic or pictorial thinking predisposes a person to hallucinating. Auditory hallucinations, or hearing sounds or voices are the most common and occur in nearly 75 percent of individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia (Ford et al., 2009). Auditory hallucinations are often derogatory or persecutory in nature, and can be heard in the third person, as a running commentary, or as audible thoughts. Some individuals with schizophrenia also experience useful or positive voices that give advice, encourage, remind, and help make decisions, or assist the person in their daily activities (Jenner et al., 2008). Voice hearer can work with their voices and either choose what to listen to or can completely ignore them (Romme et al., 1992). Sorrell et al (2009) states that some individuals experience positive voices which do not affect the way they function or go about their daily living, these hearers also find that their voices may offer advice and guidance. The hearers voice can be reported as a little distressful or some go on to report no distress at all (Honig et al., 1998). However Nayani and David (1996) argues that individuals who experience a constant negative voice found them less difficult to control, they found the voice more powerful and attempt to ignore the voice. Chadwick et al (2005) said that those who resist voices or feel the need to argue or shout back are termed malevolent, those who think voices are good and engage with them are benevolent, they see voices are helping them so they tend to listen and follow advice. Swanson et al (2008) suggests that people who hear voices are more likely to be victims of violence than be violent themselves. However Soppitt and Birchwood (1997) argue that voices are more commonly linked to depression, voice hearers can also have a history of suicidal thoughts, paranoia and abuse. Not all auditory hallucinations are associated with mental illness, and studies show that 10 to 40 percent of people without a psychiatric illness report hallucinatory experiences in the auditory modality (Ohayon, 2000). A range of organic brain disorders is also associated with hallucinations, including temporal lobe epilepsy; delirium; dementia; focal brain lesions; neuro- infections, such as viral encephalitis; and cerebral tumours intoxication or withdrawal from substances such alcohol, cocaine, and amphetamines is also associated with auditory hallucinations (Fricchione et al., 1995) The phenomenological characteristics of auditory hallucinations differ on the basis of their etiology, and this can have diagnostic implications. People without mental illness tend to report a greater proportion of positive voices, a higher level of control over the voices, less frequent hallucinatory experiences, and less interference with activities than people who have a psychiatric illness (Lowe, 1973). There is also evidence that delusion formation may distinguish psychotic disorders from non clinical hallucinatory experiences. In other words, the development of delusions in people with auditory hallucinations significantly increases the risk of psychosis when compared with individuals who have hallucinations but not delusions. Auditory hallucinations may be experienced as coming through the ears, in the mind, on the surface of the body, or anywhere in external space. The frequency can range from low (once a month or less) to continuously all day long. Loudness also varies, from whispers to shouts. The intensity and frequency of symptoms fluctuate during the illness, but the factor that determines whether auditory hallucinations are a central feature of the clinical picture is the degree of interference with activities and mental functions (Waters, 2010) The most common type of auditory hallucinations in psychiatric illness consists of voices. Voices may be male or female, and with intonations and accents that typically differ from those of the patient. Persons who have auditory hallucinations usually hear more than one voice, and these are sometimes recognized as belonging to someone who is familiar (such as a neighbour, family member or TV personality) or to an imaginary character (God, the devil, an angel). Verbal hallucinations may comprise full sentences, but single words are more often reported. Voices that comment on or discuss the individuals behaviour and that refer to the patient in the third person were thought to be first-rank symptoms and of diagnostic significance for schizophrenia (Schneider, 1959). Studies show that approximately half of patients with schizophrenia experience these symptoms (Waters, 2010). Waters (2010) says a significant proportion of patients also experience non verbal hallucinations, such as music, tapping, or animal sounds, although these experiences are frequently overlooked in auditory hallucinations research. Another type of hallucination includes the experience of functional hallucinations, in which the person experiences auditory hallucinations simultaneously through another real noise (e.g., a person may perceive auditory hallucinations only when he hears a car engine). The content of voices varies between individuals. Often the voices have a negative and malicious content. They might speak to the patient in a derogatory or insulting manner or give commands to perform an unacceptable behaviour. The experience of negative voices causes considerable distress. However, a significant proportion of voices are pleasant and positive, and some individuals report feelings of loss when the treatment causes the voices to disappear (Copolov et al., 2004). The exact processes that underlie auditory hallucinations remain largely unknown. There are two principal avenues of research: one focuses on neuro anatomical networks using techniques such as positron emission tomography and functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). The other focuses on cognitive and psychological processes and the exploration of mental events involved in auditory hallucinations. A common formulation suggests that auditory verbal hallucinations represent an impairment in language processing and, particularly, inner speech processes, whereby the internal and silent dialogue that healthy people engage in is no longer interpreted as coming from the self but instead as having an external alien origin. There is support for this language hypothesis of auditory hallucinations from neuro imaging studies. These show that the experience of auditory hallucinations engages brain regions, such as the primary auditory cortex and broca area, which are associated with language c omprehension and production. This suggests that hallucinatory experiences are associated with listening to external speech in the absence of external sounds (Waters, 2010) An explanation of why these experiences are not perceived as self-generated posits that auditory hallucinations arise because persons who have the hallucinations fail to distinguish between internal and external events. This arises because of deficits in internal self-monitoring mechanisms that compare the expected with the actual sensations that arise from the patients intentions. This abnormality also applies to inner speech processes and leads to the misclassification of internal events as external and misattribution to an external agent (Frith, 2005).However, Bentall and Slade (1985) suggest that individuals with hallucinations use a different set of judgment criteria from healthy people when deciding whether an event is real, and they are more willing to accept that a perceptual experience is true. This bias essentially involves a greater willingness to believe that an event is real on the basis of less evidence. According to the context memory hypothesis of auditory hallucinations, the failure to identify events as self-generated arises because of specific deficits in episodic memory for remembering the details associated with particular past memory events. These specific deficits in memory cause confusion about the origins of the experience (Nayani and David, 1996). Patients with auditory hallucinations tend to misidentify the origins and source of stimuli during ongoing events and during memory events (Waters et al., 2006). The lack of voluntary control over the experience is a key feature of auditory hallucinations, which might explain why self-generated inner speech is classified as external in origin (Copolov et al., 2003). Hallucinations are experienced when verbal thoughts are unintended and unwanted. Because deficits in cognitive processes, such as inhibitory control, are thought to render people more susceptible to intrusive and recurrent unwanted thoughts, studies have linked audit ory hallucinations with deficits in cognitive inhibition (Waters et al., 2006). Recent advances in the neurosciences provide clues to why patients report an auditory experience in the absence of any perceptual input. Spontaneous activity in the early sensory cortices may in fact form the basis for the original signal. Early neuronal computation systems are known to interpret this activity and engage in decision-making processes to determine whether a percept has been detected. A brain system that is abnormally tuned in to internal acoustic experiences may therefore report an auditory perception in the absence of any external sound (Deco and Romo, 2008). Ford et al., (2009) suggested that patients with auditory hallucinations may have excessive attentional focus toward internally generated events: the brains of persons who have auditory hallucinations may therefore be over interpreting spontaneous sensory activity that is largely ignored in healthy brains. Cognitive impairments are not the only factors responsible for auditory hallucinations. Psychological factors such as meta-cognitive biases, beliefs, and attributions concerning the origins and intent of voices also play a critical modulatory role in shaping the experience of hallucinations. The role of environmental cues and reinforcement factors through avoidance strategies must also be incorporated in any explanations of auditory hallucinations. These factors do not explain how hallucinations occur in the first place, but they have strong explanatory power when accounting for individual differences in how the voices are experienced (Baker and Morrison, 1998). Patients suffering from auditory hallucinations sometimes can not distinguish between what is real and what is not real, it is very important to build a trusting therapeutic relationship with the sufferer. This dissertation will go on to explore the importance of building a therapeutic relationship with a patient; To explore the extent of auditory hallucinations a patient may be experiencing it is important that an appropriate assessment and risk management are carried out, exploring the need for assessment and risk management in auditory hallucinations, It will also look into helping approaches discussing pharmacological and psychosocial approaches in the management of auditory hallucinations and how to end the therapeutic relationship between a service user and the nurse, looking into discharge planning. CHAPTER TWO DEVELOPMENT OF THERAPEUTIC RELATIONSHIP Development of the Therapeutic Relationship Peplaus theories laid the ground for ascendancy of the relationship as the key context for all subsequent interventions with patients (Ryan Brooks, 2000). Although the idea of the relationship endures as the paradigm for psychiatric nursing (Barker, Jackson, Stevenson, 1999a; 1999b; Krauss, 2000; Raingruber, 2003), it does not appear there is any universal consensus on exactly how to frame this relationship. The nurse-patient relationship can be defined as an ongoing, meaningful communication that fosters honesty, humility, and mutual respect and is based on a negotiated partnership between the patient and the practitioner (Krauss, 2000, p. 49). Peplau describes nursing as a therapeutic interpersonal process that aims to identify problems and how to relate to them (Peterson and Bredow 2009). Forster (2001) defines therapeutic relationship as a trusting relationship developed by two or more individuals. However, Jukes and Aldridge (2006) says at first sight therapeutic nursing and the therapeutic relationship may seem relatively easy to define, but once we scrape the surface we find a complex range of ideas and concepts that stem from philosophies, ideologies and individual therapies. Sometimes there are difficulties in applying these definitions to our own work. Not least of these difficulties is the relevance of the concept of therapy as healing to nursing. This begs the question of whether a therapeutic relationship always entails the use of a therapy, or whether there is something more universal and fundamental in therapeutic relationships. It seems important therefore to attempt a workable definition of the therapeutic r elationship that has currency within nursing as a whole. Additionally, it seems that therapeutic nursing has two facets. The first of these, and probably the most apparent, is the emotional and interpersonal aspect, which we might call therapeutic nursing as an art. The second is the more logical and objective aspect, which we might call The therapeutic nursing as a science. Arguably, there is a synergy between the two that leads to a gestalt, and therefore a need to address both aspects if our nursing is to be truly therapeutic in a holistic sense. Peplaus theory focuses on the nurse, the patient and the relationship between them and is aimed at using interpersonal skills to develop trust and security within the nurse-patient relationship. Therapeutic relationships are the corner stone of nursing practice with people who are experiencing threats to their health, including but not restricted to those people with mental illness (Reynolds 2003). The relationship of one to one of nurse patient has potential to influence positive outcome for patients. Hildegard Peplau interpersonal relations overlap over four phases namely: Orientation, Identification, Exploitation and Resolution. Peplau also identify that during the four overlapping phases nurses adopts many roles such as- Resource person: giving specific needed information that aids the patient to understand his/her problem and their new situation. A nurse may function in a counselling relationship, listening to the patient as he/she reviews events that led up to hospitalization and feeling connected with them. The patient may cast the nurse into roles such as surrogate for mother, father, sibling, in which the nurse aids the patient by permitting him/her to re-enact and examine generically older feelings generated in prior relationships. The nurse also functions as a technical expert who understands various professional devices and can manipulate them with skill and discrimination in the interest of the patient (Clay 1988). The orientation phase is the initial phase of the relationship where the nurse and the patient get to know each other. The patient begins to trust the nurse. This phase is sometimes called the stranger phase because the nurse and the patient are strangers to each other (Reynolds 2003). Peplaus (1952) suggest that during this phase early levels of trust are developed and roles and expectation begin to be understood. It is important that during this time that the nurse builds a relationship with the patient by gaining their trust, establishing a therapeutic environment, developing rapport and a level of communication expectable to both the patient and the nurse. During the orientation phase trust and security is supposed to be developed between the nurse and the patient. Co-ordination of care and treatment of patient while using an effective communication between the MDT is a nurse role. The nurse also acts as an advocate/surrogate for a patient and promotes recovery and self belief. Essential communication skills are deemed to be listening and attending, empathy, information giving and support in the context of a therapeutic relationship (Bach and Grant 2009). Building a therapeutic relationship needs to focus on patient -centred rather than nurse-task focus. Bach and Grant (2009) say interpersonal relationship describes the connection between two or more people or groups and their involvement with one another, especially as regards the way they behave towards and feels about one another. Communication is to exchange information between people by means of speaking, writing or using a common system of signs or behaviour. Faulkner (1998) suggested that Rogers (1961) client centred approach conditions can be seen as important factors that contributes to a therapeutic relationship. Rogers (1961) three core conditions are: congruence, empathy and unconditional positive regards. Congruence means that the nurse should be open and genuine about feelings towards their patient. Having the ability to empathise with the patient would show that the nurse has the ability to understand the patients thoughts and feelings about their current problem. Unconditional positive regards is viewing them as a person and focusing on positive attributes and behaviour (Forster 2001). The orientation phase also gives the nurse the chance to asses the patients current health and once the assessment has been carried out the can then move the relationship forward to the identification phase. The identification phase is where the patients needs are identified through various assessment tools. Assessment will be discussed in detail in the next chapter. Butterworth (1994; DH 1994a; DH 2006a) says that during the identification phase the nurse and the patient will both work together discussing the patients identified needs, needs that can be met and those that cannot be met. They will al so identify risks and how to manage the risks and aim to formulate a care plan. Butterworth said the care plan should focused on the patients individual needs, long and short term goals and their wishes, whilst being empowered at all times to make informed decisions and choices that matter in their care. Collaborative working between multi-agencies ensures the needs of the patient are being met through appropriate assessment and treatment under the Care and Treatment Plan (CTP). The Care and Treatment Plan is one of a number of new rights delivered by the Mental Health (Wales) Measure (2010). The Measure also gives people who have been discharged from secondary mental health services the right to make a self referral back for assessment and it extends the right to an Independent Mental Health Advocate to all in-patients. A care co-ordinator must ensure that a care and treatment plan which records all of the outcomes which the provision of mental health services are designed to achieve for a relevant patient is completed in writing in the form set out (Hafal, 2012). The Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health (Rose 2001) found that patients are often not involved in the care planning process and many service users were not even aware of having a care plan. The exploitation phase is where interventions are implemented from the needs and goals set out in the identification phase which enables the service user to move forward, these interventions will assist in managing auditory hallucinations, whilst educating the patient and family members about the illness. Helping approaches will be discussed in detail in the next chapter looking at various up to date interventions available for the management of auditory hallucinations. A trusting relationship can help with recovery and during these interlocking phases is what the nurse and the patient are aiming for (Hewitt and Coffey, 2005). Building of a trusting therapeutic relationship is essential for nursing interventions to work (Lynch and Trenoweth, 2008). Nurses need to be sensitive, show compassion at all times and understanding to a patients needs. Nursing interventions needs to address physical, psychological and social needs; this involves having holistic approach (Coleman and Jenkins, 1998). Nurses need to work with the best evidence based therapeutic treatment available, this then being a positive approach to care (NMC 2008). The Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) review of the Mental Health Nursing (2006) noted that to improve quality of life, service users risks need to be managed properly, whilst promoting health, physical care and well being. However, Hall et al., (2008) argues that the CNO review does not take into consideration the great pressure nurs es are under and also the complex needs of the service user. Therapeutic interventions are an important aspect of recovery (Gourney 2005). Recovery can be described as a set of values about the service users right to build a meaning life for themselves without the continuous presence of mental health symptoms (Shepherd et al., 2008). The purpose of recovery is to work towards self determination and self confidence (Rethink 2005). National Institute for Mental Health in England (NIMHE, 2005) described recovery as a state of wellness after period of illness. Nurse need to provide a holistic view of mental illness with a person centred approach that can work towards the identification of goals and offer the patient appropriate support through interventions like CBT, family therapy and coping skills, this will enable the patient to be at the centre of their own care, thus taking responsibility for their own illness and improve quality of life. Service user who have a full understanding and accept their illness can engage more with therapies and in terventions with the necessary support from professionals, this then leads to self determination and better quality of life (Cunningham et al., 2005). However, Took (2002) says it is important to remember that with a service user experiencing auditory hallucinations, their mood and engagement can fluctuate and also the side effect of prescribed medication can affect this which may slow down the recovery process. Early intervention is also recognised to improve long term outcomes of auditory hallucinations in schizophrenia (McGorry et al., 2005: NICE 2009). However, not all service users will seek advice when first experiencing symptoms, due to stigma attached to mental illness and fear of admission to hospital (French and Morrison 2004). Some service users have also complained that the hospital has a non therapeutic environment and that they also feel unsafe and in an orison like setting (SCMH 1998, 2005; DoH 2004b). Drury (2006) says that service users felt that some professionals lacked compassion. Mental health nurses are encouraged to adopt a client centre approach, some research suggests nurses lack empathy and have general uncaring attitude (Herdman 2004). The final phase of Peplaus theory is the resolution phase. This is where the nurse and the service user will end their professional relationship. The relationship can end either through discharge or death. For the purpose of this dissertation the ending of the relationship that will be discussed at a later chapter will be discharge. Therapeutic relationship is seen as paramount during these interlocking phases of peplaus interpersonal relations theory, nurses needs to promote the service users independence whilst treating them with respect, privacy and dignity. By identifying treatment goals, implementing and evaluating treatment plans the service user can move on to interventions that will help them manage and cope with auditory hallucinations. Chapter 3 Assessment of a patient with Auditory Hallucinations Assessment of Auditory Hallucinations Assessment is the decision making process, based upon the collection of relevant information, using a formal set of ethical criteria, that contributes to an overall estimation of a person and his circumstances (Barker 2004). Hall et al (2008) described assessment as one of the first steps to the nursing process; it is also part of care planning and a positive foundation for building a relationship and forming therapeutic alliance. It is an ongoing process that enables professional to gather information that allows them to understand a persons experience. Most assessments have similar aims. However, how assessments are conducted can vary enormously. Such differences are very important and can influence greatly the value of the information produced (Barker 2004). In Wales CTP was introduced under the Mental Health (Wales) Measures 2010. CTP means a plan prepared for the purpose of achieving the outcomes which the provision of mental health services for a relevant patient is design to achieve and ensures service users have a care plan, risk assessment and a care co-ordinator to monitor and review their care (see appendix one). NICE (2010) suggest that assessment should contain the service users psychiatric, psychological and physical health needs and also include current living arrangements, ethnicity, quality of life, social links, relevant risk and other significant factors that may affect the service users quality of life. Assessment of a patient relies upon the collection of information through interviewing: the patient, member of their family, direct observation of the nurse, questionnaire, rating scales, and previous history (Previous records). However, Barker (2004) argues that despite the importance of the history, if relied upon as the sole method of assessment, not only may the final picture of the patient be of a doubtful accuracy but it may also lack the fine detail necessary for the planning o

Hawthorne’s The Ministers Black Veil †Solitude of the Protagonist and the Author :: Ministers Black Veil Essays

â€Å"The Minister’s Black Veil† – Solitude of the Protagonist and the Author  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚   Isn’t it more than coincidental that the protagonist in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s â€Å"The Minister’s Black Veil† and the author himself are both given to solitude and isolation?    Literary critics seem to come to a consensus on the subject of Hawthorne’s preference for solitude. Edmund Fuller and B. Jo Kinnick in â€Å"Stories Derived from New England Living† state that â€Å"Hawthorne was essentially of a solitary nature, and group life was not for him. . .† (30) Sculley Bradley, Richmond Croom Beatty and E. Hudson Long in â€Å"The Social Criticism of a Public Man† say that â€Å"a young man engrossed in historical study and in learning the writer’s craft is not notably queer if he does not seek society. . . .† (47) Stanley T. Williams in â€Å"Hawthorne’s Puritan Mind† states: â€Å"Soon after Hawthorne’s birth in 1804, circumstances intensified his innate Puritan characteristics: his analysis of the mind, his somber outlook on living, his tendency to withdraw from his fellows† (40). According to A.N. Kaul in his Introduction to   Hawthorne – A Collection of Critical Essays, the themes of isolation and alienation were ones which Hawthorne was â€Å"deeply preoccupied with† in his writings (2).    At the outset of the tale, â€Å"The Minister’s Black Veil,† the sexton is tolling the church bell and simultaneously watching Mr. Hooper’s door, when suddenly he says, ``But what has good Parson Hooper got upon his face?'' The surprise which the sexton displayed is repeated in the astonishment of the onlookers: â€Å"With one accord they started, expressing more wonder. . .† The reason is this: â€Å"Swathed about his forehead, and hanging down over his face, so low as to be shaken by his breath† is a black veil. The 30 year old, unmarried parson receives a variety of reactions from his congregation:    ``I can't really feel as if good Mr. Hooper's face was behind that piece of crape'' ``He has changed himself into something awful, only by hiding his face''   ``Our parson has gone mad!'' Few could refrain from twisting their heads towards the door. . . . . . . more than one woman of delicate nerves was forced to leave the meeting-house.    Hawthorne, after exposing the surprised people to the sable veil, develops the protagonist through a description of some of his less exotic and curious characteristics:

Benefits of Genetically Modified Organisms Essay -- Genetic Engineerin

Even though we may not know it, GMO’s are everywhere. From the trees in a lumberyard, the pets we own, and most common, the food on our plates. GMO’s are genetically modified organisms. They have even been called â€Å"part of the fabric of American life† (Lambrecht 3). New controversies have risen up to fight these â€Å"deadly† foods. Do we really know what we are eating? Does it even matter? Biotechnologies and altering the characteristics of food have been around for many centuries. These uses were put into use to create useful products such as wine and bread and more recently to create resistant crops and antidotes in the medical field. The difference is that modern biotechnology is now associated with the modification of genes. This is not only limited to food. There are many other practical and useful purposes for this type of engineering. Although recently this use of technology has received a lot of flak and hostility towards these crops that in t urn has been holding back on advancement of the foods. Some of these misconceptions about these products are coming from people who don’t yet know how safe the GMO’s really are and don’t understand the possibilities that these foods have. Further innovation could develop into a long and jubilant rapport with genetically modified organisms. Thus, as long as GMO’s are labeled on the products then it is okay to sell them. We walk into grocery stores everywhere and we see these stickers on our products that say GMO and wonder what GMO’s actually are. These GMO product sticker means the food that we are buying is engineered to be bigger, better tasting, and resistant to disease. In Nova’s movie, Harvest of Fear, they explain how scientists do this by inserting genes or proteins into the DNA o... ...nd the global politics of food. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2001. Print. Mather, Robin. "The Threats From Genetically Modified Foods." Mother Earth News 251 (2012): 42. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 8 May 2012.Nestle, Marion. Safe food: bacteria, biotechnology, and bioterrorism. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2003. Print. Whitman, Deborah B. "Genetically Modified Foods: Harmful or Helpful?" Genetically Modified Foods: Harmful or Helpful? Apr. 2000. Web. 08 May 2012. Powell, Douglas, †Genetically Modified Foods Should not be Labeled.† National Post (22 June 2001). Rpt in Genetic Engineering Ed. James D. Torr Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2006. Current Controversies. Gale Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 09 May 2012. "GMO | Life Is Fare." Life Is Fare | One woman's approach to living life to the fullest by eating happy food.. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 May 2012.

diversity management: case study Essay -- essays research papers

Nightmare on Wall Street   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This case is all about facts and incidents about the harsh truths that lie behind the discrimination and harassment against women in the workplace. Males have predominately rules the workplace on Wall Street and had the perception of having no women take their glory. For years women were filling suits with the EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) about the way men were treating them. Women were getting mistreated, demoted, harassed or even fired in some incidents for reasons beyond their control.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Robert Thomann is a good example of the mistreatment that was being laid on the female brokers. Thomann was out on 8 weeks maternity leave and when she came back, her branch manager which was known as the tyrant demoted her. Cueno, her branch manager, said that any sexual harassment charges would be deliberated in the Boom, Boom Room which was located in the basement of the firms building. It was a room decorated like a fraternity with a toilet seat hanging on the ceiling. After I read that, I could not believe it. The way the men were acting and treating women is unbelievable. Something needs to change at Thomann and other women keep filling suits against these male dominated managers that were not scared of any repercussions of the way they were acting. They did not think that they were doing anything wrong because their mindsets were all about the males in that industry were better su...

Tacit Oligopoly of the Original Supermarkets of Bogor

Extended Essay in Economics Tacit Oligopoly of the Original Supermarkets of Bog Written By B Diploma Candidate #: Session Word Count: Abstract The grocery market of Bog has been facing a significant change during the past several years. Sudden emergence of new suppliers has more than doubled the number of existing supermarkets. I took interest at the fact that despite of the sudden increase in the number of suppliers, there never was a price decrease. This signifies that the market is experiencing Over Supply.I decided to investigate whether the strain caused by the over supply have hanged a particular part of the market structure of the supermarkets of Bog. I took to compete against new competitors. My first step was to investigate whether the supermarkets shows characteristics of an oligopoly. Several factors are apparent; the number of firms in the market is small, their size is relatively big, their products are slightly differentiated, and the entry barriers are high. To further strengthen my claim concerning the barrier, I have studied a small portion of two legal documents that concerns starting a supermarket business.Afterwards, I have recorded product prices and performed statistical analysis to determine whether the price range is narrow. I then compare the prices of the new supermarkets and all the supermarkets of Bog as a whole. The result shows that indeed there is an oligopoly; yet it extends to reach the new supermarkets. This meaner that the original supermarkets have not segregated themselves to attempt gain business power (e. G. In pricing). New questions are formed based on the results. Among them is whether the oligopoly intentional or has competition with other suppliers, e. G. The traditional markets, caused the price range to be limited?These questions require further researches that are likely to orientate to the Business Studies disciplines. Word count: 295 Table of Contents Part 1: An Introduction to the Essay Part 2: The Present Marke t Profile Part 3: Review of Relevant Theories 2 3 5 7 Part 4: Hypothesis and Methodology of Research Part 5: Data Collection and Analysis Part 6: Conclusion and Evaluation 17 10 12 Bibliography 18 Appendix 2 Appendix 3 Acknowledgements Part 1: An Introduction to the Essay 20 21 Bog is a minor city that is founded over two centuries ago, thus by now it is well known by its surrounding cities and villages.The city was established as a center of trade for local agricultural industries (Incarnate). As a citizen of the city ever since birth, I know well that the grocery market of the city is massive. The vast and well known open air market of fresh produces called Papas Bog (or the Market of Bog'), numerous minor grocers, five notable supermarkets, and the easily accessible shopping centers in Jakarta have supplied the household demands of the 3,696,848 citizens residing in Bog (the figure was recorded at a 1997 census) (Incarnate). The market status, however, have taken a significant tu rn during the last 10 years.Numerous new suppliers entered the market; among them are as much as five new supermarkets (doubling the present number), two hypermarkets, and two new mini- market chains. Among the very basic principles taught to economics students is the Market Equilibrium law. It states that the demand and supply of a product is dependent of the price level. The consumers prefer lower prices while the suppliers prefer higher prices. Where the two quantities met, it is called the Equilibrium point. (Collier, 201) Diagram 1. 0 shows this point of importance as (SQL, Pl). Diagram 1. 0.The Micro Economic Model of the Grocery Market shift in the Supply line. Diagram 1. 0 portrays this scenario by having the line labeled ‘Supply 1' shift to become ‘Supply 2'. This shift will cause the equilibrium to increase in quantity but decrease in price (Collier, 191). However, there never was a significant price decrease in the grocery market of Bog. The supply line may sh ift, but the price is maintained at Pl, and theoretically this must result in an Over Supply. An Over Supply occurs when the quantity of supply exceeds the quantity of demand. (Collier, 203) [pick] Diagram 1. 1 . Illustration of the market experiencing Over SupplyThe Over Supply strains the suppliers, since it meaner that some of their stock will remain stagnant and inevitably experience depreciation -which in turn will result in business failure. Despite, logically thinking, the side that was experiencing the biggest lost of consumers will be the suppliers (supermarket, etc. ) in Jakarta; inevitably the local suppliers of Bog too will share part of the strain. However, the pressure will not be as hard on the new competitors as it would be to the original suppliers since all new competitors belong to a nationwide company (details are located in part 2: the Present Market Profile).There is the possibility that the demand line has shift along (or even preliminary) to the shift of the supply line. However, through observation I have noticed that there never was an apparent change in the factors that may trigger a shift of the demand line. Those factors are: price of substitute products, price of complementary goods, general income and taste (preference), the population, and advertisements (Galilee, 24). The original supermarkets (from this point this term will be used to refer to the supermarkets that have existed before the sudden emergence of new competitors) concerned me the most.The Market of Bog and other minor suppliers surely offered the least prize, thus they have a separate market segment. My concern would be whether the business pressure is strong enough for the original supermarkets to from a tacit oligopoly. Thus was formed the research question: Did the original supermarkets of Bog form a tacit oligopoly to compete against the new competitors? The next part of the essay will reveal the present market profile. Following it will be a review of relevant theories, which serves as a base for the hypothesis.After discussing my methods of research to verify my hypothesis, the ATA collected will be presented and analyzed. Thus, a conclusion will be formed, along unanswered questions and possible sources of error. Part 2: The Present Market Profile Original Supermarkets: Ingest Supermarket (3 outlets) Grand Supermarket Shanghai-La Supermarket New Supermarkets: Hero Supermarket Matriarch Marketplace A;G Groceries DAD Supermarket Ramadan Supermarket New Hypermarkets: Giant Hypermarket Hypermarket Hypermarket.New Mini-markets: Intimidator Alfalfa's Other competitors: The Market of Bog Minor Grocers Suppliers (supermarket, etc. ) of Jakarta A ‘minor grocer' is a reference towards traditional Indonesian grocery suppliers, known locally as Warnings'. It tends to be a small store, not often would you found one the size of a typical bathroom. The goods it sells are usually minor needs, such as cigars, sweets, and hygiene products. The app earance of the outlets tends to be ignored and they could be found dispersed around the vicinity of the city.However, the term ‘mint-markets' refers towards literal small supermarkets. Its design and facilities equal those of a supermarket and thus it presents its customers with every benefits of a supermarket besides variety of product. The mint-markets belong to a nationwide chain and they have an outlet in seemingly every residential area of the city. Despite being under the same brand, the three outlets of Ingest Supermarket belong to different people. It originated as a Private Limited company, but now the three branches are run separately by three children of the original founder. Note: ‘Opt†¦ Tab is the Indonesian label for a Public Limited company) Hero Supermarkets and Giant Hypermarket belong to OPT. Hero Supermarket Tab. Matriarch Market Place (a supermarket) and Hypermarket (a hypermarket) belong to OPT. Matriarch Putter Prima Tab. ? Ramadan Supermarket belongs to OPT. Ramadan Alistair Santos Tab. GAG Mart Groceries and DAD Supermarket belong to different companies but both own more than one outlet situated in different cities of the country. The mint-market chain Intimidator belongs to OPT.Indicator Prismatic (a Limited company that belongs to the Indoors group, whose owner once so far as become Indonesian richest entrepreneur). The Alfalfa's mint-market chain belongs to OPT Summer Alfalfa Trinity Biding Shah (a Limited company) and is about to be integrated to OPT Ramadan Alistair Santos Tab that owns the Ramadan Supermarket (see above). Art 3: Review of Relevant Theories Sisters Paramus Sisters Paramus is an assumption that every factor other than the one being discussed remains constant (Galilee, 10). Every part of this essay is written on Sisters Paramus.To investigate whether the original supermarkets of Bog have formed an oligopoly, first the characteristic of that particular market structure and other alternatives must be p re-determined. 1). A Monopoly This is a market where there is a single seller. It has absolute control over the prices of the market due the unavailability of substitute products. Due to this fact, often times monopolies are placed under strict control of the government. (Galilee, 120) A monopolized market requires the highest forms of barrier of entry.This meaner that people interested in entering the market ought to proceed through many difficult requirements which often was impossible to attain. The highest barrier that one may encounter is governmental laws, and indeed it was often intentionally employed to create monopolies. (Collier, 269) A good example would be Indonesian PLAN, its sole electricity supplier for the whole nation. It was the only entity n the market for mass electricity and legal laws forbid any enterprise to enter the market. In this particular case, the government owned the company. This grants them maximum control over the market.The huge sales volume was di rected towards the government's fund. 2). Assumptions of an Oligopoly An oligopoly is a market situation where there are few sellers and each firm may be aware of the activities of another. There are high barriers of entry -but these are lower than those of a monopoly. The products they offered tend to be differentiated goods, this refers to goods that are derived from an original form (e. . Shampoos may be differentiated to anti-hair-loss, scalp oil controlling, etc). (Galilee, 140) The few firms in the market collude together and act like a monopoly formed by many entities.A formal collision is called a cartel, and the original supermarkets of Bog do not belong to a formal cartel. An unofficial collusion is referred to as a tacit oligopoly. (Galilee, 140) The colluding firms will have an agreement about price range, advertising, market share, and possibly corporate business strategies. Their semi-monopoly allows the firm sizes to be big. (Galilee, 140) 3). Assumptions of a Monopol istic Market A monopolistic market is when many firms compete in the same market, selling similar yet differentiated goods or services.The barrier of entry is relatively low compared to the previous two market structures discussed. (Galilee, 114) each other but are differentiated. A consumer may switch his preference from one brand to another and will not experience a significant change in utility. Note however, that when talking about such products, there are several items on the market with very distinguished feature (special brand of clothing, etc. ) that belongs to ice markets. These products are not part of a monopolistic market.The degree of price control (however weak) of a monopolistic market is attributed towards this slight differentiation. If the product is entirely homogeneous, no firm will have control over its prices, turning it into a Perfect Competition Market. (Galilee, 114) 4). Assumptions of a Perfect Competition Market A perfect competition market houses extreme amounts of producers, none of which possessing a high rate of market share. The products are homogeneous (exactly the same), and the barrier of entry is near to non-existent. No firm has any influence over the market's price.The homogeneity of the product does not allow selling above market price (since it will result in severe loss), and the fierce amount of competition did not allow the firms to engage in a price war strategy (setting price lower), since the market price is already set as close to the cost of production as it could be. If indeed the current price is a degree above the average cost of producing the goods, then a firm may employ a price war strategy and enjoyed supernormal profit for a period of time, but other competitors will follow suit immediately.Part 4: Hypothesis and Methodology of Research My hypothesis is the original supermarkets of Bog have formed a tacit oligopoly that is separate from the new supermarkets to gain business power. As discussed in the intr oduction and the market profile section of this essay, it is unquestionable that the original supermarkets experience a degree of pressure from the sudden establishment of new competitors. I believe that it is only logical for them to attempt making the overall competition more endurable by forming a segregated oligopoly.This way, they may attempt corporate business strategies, especially on the matter of racing. To prove this hypothesis, I must attempt to correlate the supermarkets with characteristics of an oligopoly. Those are: Number of firms: few. Products are slightly differentiated (as in groceries). Big. High barrier of entrance. C] Similar price range. Size of firms: relatively The first three characteristics are theoretical and apparent. There are a small number of firms (compared to the monopolistic food and beverage business or the perfect competition green grocers, for example).All supermarkets sell many identical products (common brand and package size) and the nature of these products is in neural only slightly differentiated. The size of the firms too is relatively big, proven to us by the existence of mint-markets which are smaller representatives of supermarkets. As of the barrier of entering the market, it is only logical that it is high. A supermarket is visibly a large scale business -meaning that it requires a big amount of capital to start. Furthermore, the products offered by a supermarket are numerous in variety.For every single product they would have to prepare legal methodologies of payment, storage, delivery, and shelf placement -this surely is a significant entry to the supermarket business is high. The last missing information is their product prices. I will record the prices of all supermarkets and perform statistical analysis to determine their price range. If the prices posed by the original supermarkets are similar to each other, then it is proven that they indeed do form a tacit oligopoly.The next part of the research would be comparing the price of the original supermarkets to the new supermarkets. Afterwards I shall perform identical mathematical analysis as before. If indeed the two results (the first being the price range of the original supermarkets alone and the second data being the price range f all supermarkets) are different, then indeed we would know that the original supermarkets of Bog have formed an oligopoly that segregated them.Diagram 4. 0 shows the Market with the original supermarkets segregating themselves and formed an entirely new team (oligopoly). This way, possibilities to compete better will open to them, e. G. A corporate pricing strategy. However, if their price range is similar, then we may conclude that all the supermarkets as a whole is an oligopoly and so the original supermarkets have not segregated themselves by making an oligopoly of their own. Diagram 4. Wows an oligopoly that includes both the original and the new part 5: Data Collection and Analysis Before proceedin g with the price analysis, I would like to strengthen my claim concerning the high entry barrier. Here are parts of two legal documents that concern opening a new supermarket business. Note that the documents are written in the Indonesian language (Bass Indonesia), thus the translations present are my personal attempt. Here is a transcript from the ‘Peered tenting Pentagonal Shah Industry Separate Bog [Regional Regulation Concerning the Managing of Industries in the Bog Region]':