Monday, September 30, 2019

Ateneo Personal Essay Essay

Eleanor Hibbert once wrote â€Å" if it’s good, it’s wonderful. If it’s bad, it’s experience .† We must bear in mind that all our experiences in life, our accomplishments and mistakes, every single person we have encountered, and every medal and scar we have are the reasons why we are who we are today. Every experience, no matter how trivial or immense, is significant. For what I am now, I owe to these experiences. As early as the fifth grade, I have already developed my passion for service. I wanted to join our school’s student government very much, that’s why I started running as a class representative, a P.I.O., a secretary, and lastly as a vice-president. I obtained these positions not because I was popular but because of my willingness to serve. I am privileged to have served the school body for almost six years. This has taught me to do my duties and tasks well, to care for the welfare of others, and it taught me to be able to lead towards the greater good. Having been entrusted with responsibilities was one of the experiences that helped to define me as a person. Through the years, I discovered and enhanced my talents. I had the passion towards art, where they say I inherited from my father, who is very artistic. Doodling on every empty spot on whatever paper I could get on my hands. Sketching and Painting was my favorite. I cherished every moment of our art class, because it’s good to have a time for creativity. I discovered that I could play the piano, I was able to express myself in the music that I make and it was the outlet of my feelings. When I entered high school, I expected everything to be fun and carefree, but I was wrong. This was the time for me to work even harder in order to achieve what I want, because everyone else is trying their best. It really is hard to be an achiever when you are surrounded with many other achievers. I struggled with heavy work load, but through this, I developed the attitude to keep on trying and doing my best. High school for me was also a stage of self-discovery. It awoke me to excel academically, mature emotionally, and discover my identity as part of my family. But faith and having a healthy relationship with God was the strongest factor in defining myself. Trusting Him makes me confident with the problems I may face. And I will never get tired of worshipping Him. I have had the ups and downs in my life, and God was there to guide me and protect me. His plan has given me the best perspective. Life has not really been all that bad since it has also blessed me with moments of pure joy and happiness. Life taught me to hold on and to believe in something even though the odds are against me. Everyday had been the time of my life. This essay made me look back to those 14 years. I admit that I had a hard time defining myself as a person but I have once again put all my effort and did my best. Through this essay, I realized my purpose in this life. I now know my place in this world— to do my best in whatever role I play — as a friend, as a student, as a daughter and in all things, as a Christian. I was truthful and candid and I hope I made myself known. This is who I am. This is Stephanie Joy Cea, an aspiring Atenista.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Healthy Emotional Transition for Mothers, First Week Post-Partum Essay

Emotional is an important aspect of life. We experience joy, anger, and sadness in everyday life. When we do not tend to our emotion needs, psychological complications may occur (Burger & Goddard, 2010). According to health Canada (2009), 16% of women in Canada will experience major depression in the course of their lives. Women experience increased risk for psychological disorders in postpartum period (Raines, Campbell, &Hall, 2010). The most common psychological disorders are postpartum blues, postpartum depression (PPD), and postpartum psychosis (Raines, Campbell, &Hall, 2010). 75% of women experience postpartum blues, but the symptom is usually mild and can usually improve without professional help (Raines, Campbell, &Hall, 2010). A more serious condition is called postpartum depression. Postpartum depression is a medical condition that affects about 10% of mothers (Raines, Campbell, &Hall, 2010). In this article, I will examine the postpartum depression in relation to the healthy emotional transition. This topic is important because the postpartum depression is more serious and can usually last for months (Raines, Campbell, &Hall, 2010), and because postpartum depression can usually be detected and prevented (Donaldson-Myles, 2011) (Wojcicki & Heyman 2011) (Garabedian et al. , 2011). The purpose of this paper is to provide the knowledge to prevent PPD. In order to meet the purpose of this paper, I will examine 3 articles that I have chosen from CINAHL and write critical review and relate the information from the article to my own nursing experience. Synthesis These articles offer great in-depth on how to prevent PPD. Wojcicki and Heyman (2011) have reviewed 10 articles and made conclusion that although more studies are needed, high dosage of omega-3 fatty acid can reduce the risk of PPD. Donaldson-Myles (2011) reviewed on the evidence of breastfeeding and PPD and has found a strong inverse link between the two. Garabedian et al. (2011) has found that women who are victim of violence in adulthood are more likely to suffer from PPD. These 3 articles have contributed to additional information on PPD to what is learned from the textbook. They provide insight on when PPD will likely happen and how to reduce the likelihood. Based on the information on these articles, prevention of PPD would be the top priority in my nursing practice. For example, although it is known from the class that 10% of women will suffer from PPD (Raines, Campbell, &Hall, 2010), it is further explained that women suffer multiple abuses should be expected to have higher risk of PPD (Garabedian et al. , 2011). In the future nursing practice, I will check for signs of injury and the mental state of the client as well as those of her partner’s to make sure that the client does not suffer from violence. I will include breastfeeding and high dosage of omega-3 fatty acid daily as part of my health teaching to reduce the risk of PPD (Donaldson-Myles, 2011) (Wojcicki & Heyman 2011). The questions that have emerged from this assignment are many. One question is that even though there are ways to reduce the risks of PPD, what is the sure way of preventing it? Another question is that Wojcicki & Heyman (2011) has found that high dosage of omega-3 fatty acid can reduce the risk of PPD, does taking too much omega-3 have any side effects? Thirdly, what should I do to reduce PPD if the client refuses to breastfeed? The first 4 weeks of this course has provided me with foundation of caring for postpartum mothers. I learned the basic cares and assessments for postpartum mothers. Those 3 literatures provide me with further knowledge of psychological aspect postpartum mother and made me look for signs of trouble. For example, Garabedian et al. (2011) has found that single mothers, smokers, and women of young age are more likely to experience violence, hence more likelihood of PPD. During my first week of practicum, the first mother that I examined was recently single, had to go out to smoke during my visit and was 26 years old. At that time, she looked perfectly fine and well composed and was reading her self-help book. I thought that she was going to be fine with her postpartum life. If I possessed this piece of knowledge back then, I would recognize her has high-risk for postpartum depression and offer her additional information on how to deal with psychological changes. During the week of my health teaching, I had the privilege of witnessing childbirth and caring for the mother and the child for the day. I used Watson’s caritas process 3, which is â€Å"developing and sustaining a helping trusting authentic caring relationship† (Jesse, 2010). From the moment I walked into the delivery room, I kept reminding myself that helping the patient was my first priority, and that anything that I could learn was just a bonus and should not interfere with the woman’s needs. Therefore, after I introduced myself, I used the technique of using silence and avoid looking at the woman’s exposed body parts because I thought it would create more tension for the woman (Burger & Goddard, 2010). I kept quiet till the family finally thought that I was trustworthy. During the teaching, I used Watson’s caritas process 7, which is â€Å"Engaging in genuine teaching-learning experience that attends to unity of being and meaning, attempting to stay within others’ frame of reference† (Jesse, 2010). Since the family looked very educated, I shared my observation on their knowledge to help communicate (Burger & Goddard, 2010). I used terms such as â€Å"you might already know this† to make myself less lecturing. My patient was very willing to listen to what I had to say because I was very helpful in their delivery and they knew that my teaching was an assignment for school. They asked me a few questions regarding to how to deal with postpartum blues and appeared genuinely interested in my presences. I thought my teaching was effective because firstly I was very nice and humble towards them. Secondly, I received feedback from them in term of questions (Burger & Goddard, 2010). Effective communication involves dialogues in both directions (Burger & Goddard, 2010). Conclusion Postpartum period is a difficult time for a woman (Evans, 2010). The body has to undergo physiological and psychological changes (Evans, 2010). Several factors influence the psychological changes. From my reading of the articles, it is learned that breastfeeding and high intake of omega-3 fatty acid reduces the risk of PPD (Donaldson-Myles, 2011) (Wojcicki & Heyman 2011), and that violence victim have higher risk of PPD (Garabedian et al. , 2011). As a nurse, one has to stay vigilant on client’s behavior, diet, and environment and reduce the likelihood of PPD by informing the patient the benefit of breastfeeding, the benefit of omega-3 fatty acid, and by assessing the patient’s living environment. Reviews The key points of this article is that women who breastfeed are less likely to suffer from postpartum depression notwithstanding the old researches proving otherwise and that breastfeeding provides protection that lasts up to 3 month (Donaldson-Myles, 2011).. The intended audiences of this article are midwives (Donaldson-Myles, 2011). The limitations of this study is the defining the postpartum depression and defining breastfeeding. In some of the study, some people are â€Å"mixed† feeding, which can confuse the result (Donaldson-Myles, 2011). There is also no clear, universally defined method on how to breastfeed in all the studies (Donaldson-Myles, 2011). The definition of postpartum depression is also unclear (Donaldson-Myles, 2011). Although most studies use the Edinburgh depression scale, some of the depression symptom may be just due to lack of sleep or religious factors (Donaldson-Myles, 2011). The cut-off point for depression is also not the same across all the studies, with some using the cut-off point of 13 for depression and some using 12 as cut-off point (Donaldson-Myles, 2011). This research is done in Britain (Donaldson-Myles, 2011). It applies to Canadian nursing because both countries share the same culture and customs. The implication of this article for nursing practice is that as nurses, we need to advocate on breastfeeding in our patient care. Since breastfeeding can offer protection from postpartum depression up to 3 month (Donaldson-Myles,2011), we need to make sure that the clients know the benefit of breastfeeding and make sure that they can breastfeed properly. The key points of this article are that taking high dose omega-3 fatty acid supplement reduce the risk for postpartum depression (Wojcicki & Heyman 2011) and that moderate amount shows no effect (Wojcicki & Heyman 2011) . The intended audience of the article is for the researchers who intend to do more research on the correlation omega-3 and postpartum health (Wojcicki & Heyman 2011). The limitation of this research is that it is a review of other journals. Thus the author does not have raw data from the research (Wojcicki & Heyman 2011). This research is done department of pediatrics, university of California, San Francisco, California, USA (Wojcicki & Heyman 2011). This research applies to Canadian content because of the proximity of two countries. One limitation of this research is that it is a review of other articles (Wojcicki & Heyman 2011). The author does not have the primary data from all the studies. Another limitation of this research is that the dosage of omega-3 fatty acid is not the same in all the studies. Some studies take 100mg daily, others take 500 mg daily and there are also recommendations for 2g/day (Wojcicki & Heyman 2011). The key points of this article is that women who are the victim of violence are more likely to self-report postpartum depression (Garabedian, Lain, Hansen, Garcia, Williams, & Crofford, 2011) and that the more types of violence experience, the more likelihood of self-reported postpartum depression (Garabedian, Lain, Hansen, Garcia, Williams, & Crofford, 2011), and that the likelihood of postpartum depression strongly correlates to the race, marital status, education, and the usage of drugs (Garabedian, Lain, Hansen, Garcia, Williams, & Crofford, 2011). The intended audiences of the article are for the medical professionals who are screening depression for postpartum women. The limitation of this study is that this is composed of mostly online questionnaires (Garabedian, Lain, Hansen, Garcia, Williams, & Crofford, 2011); therefore, false data can appear in the data collection. For example, postpartum blue can be mistaken as postpartum depression (Garabedian, Lain, Hansen, Garcia, Williams, & Crofford, 2011). Secondly, this is survey has a difficult time distinguishing disciplinary action and child abuse (Garabedian, Lain, Hansen, Garcia, Williams, & Crofford, 2011). For example, any hit from the guardian could be considered as child abuse in this survey (Garabedian, Lain, Hansen, Garcia, Williams, & Crofford, 2011). This research is done in Kentucky, USA (Garabedian, Lain, Hansen, Garcia, Williams, & Crofford, 2011). It applies to Canadian nursing practice because 5%-50% of women experience abuse in their lifetime (Garabedian, Lain, Hansen, Garcia, Williams, & Crofford, 2011). The implication of this article for nursing practice is that as nurses, we need to check for evidence of abuse as part of nursing assessment. For example, suspicious bruises should be reported. Since violence is strongly correlated to postpartum depression, we need to make sure that the clients with history of abuse can get help in the postpartum period (Garabedian, Lain, Hansen, Garcia, Williams, & Crofford, 2011) .

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Examine broken blossoms significance as an early example of Hollywoods Essay

Examine broken blossoms significance as an early example of Hollywoods portrayal of Asian culture - Essay Example Movies were being made showing both existing and new trends in life. In the light of these, movies such as Broken Blossoms were made with themes or aspects that reflected other cultures. In this 1900s, Hollywood did not offer Asian culture much positivity in their movies. In most cases, they were viewed as outcasts, strange, and mysterious. This does not mean that Hollywood held anything against Asians; rather, it is possible that due to its short-termed experience with the culture, it might have misunderstood or misinterpreted it. All in all, these are examples of the earliest inclusion of Asian Culture in Hollywood. The following study text will evaluate the 1919 American silent film and in it highlight the different examples of Asian culture as applied within it. The film revolves around Cheng Huan, a Chinese, who leaves for the Anglo-Saxon lands to spread Buddha’s message. Upon getting to London, his dream of spreading Buddhism is endangered by the reality that he finds there; that everyone is too preoccupied with their individual lives. As such, his chances of succeeding are low. He however finds a way through when he meets Lucy Burrows. Burrows is the daughter of a fierce boxer, Battling Burrows. She seems unwanted and mistreated by her father. One evening, she is beaten and sent away by her father and when she is out there, meets Cheng Huan. Huan nurses Miss Burrows and as she recovers, they develop a mutual relationship. They are similar in that both seem misplaced in society. Their relationship is interrupted when Battling hears of their relationship and goes to get her. He drags her home, drunk. Once in her room, she fears her father’s temper and contemptuous behavior and locks herself in a closet to escape him. Battling however finds her and beats her lifeless. Cheng pursues the tow and by the time he accesses her room, it is too late. Coincidentally, Battling bursts into Miss Burrows’ room as he wants

Friday, September 27, 2019

Its My Job Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Its My Job - Assignment Example t restore the employee to the same position upon return to work, on condition that if the position is no longer available, the returning worker will be given a new position with a substantially the same benefits, pay, and responsibilities. Jean did her best to compromise by giving Betty a part-time position (presumably commensurate with her previous position) as long as it is permanent position also and not a temporary job. This is also in view of Bettys previous request to work only on the days when her husband is available and be at home to care for the new baby. The exigencies of the service required a full-time employee (Joanne) be put in place of Bettys old position as it is an important job function at the hospital (Kilpatrick & Johnson, 1999, p. 56) 3. The responsibilities of the hospital administrator include ensuring hospital operations are efficient and not disrupted due to absences of personnel (whether on leave or not) and to comply with pertinent labor laws (Bernstein, 2004, p. 330). The department director (who is Jeans supervisor) should make sure all employees are familiar with FMLA and its

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Article response Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Response - Article Example These include the European Language Portfolio or ELP, American Lingua Folio, and Global Language Portfolio (GLP). The researchers on the portfolio assessment have been building on the work of Dewey (1933), which is titled, â€Å"We Thing: A restatement of relation of reflective thinking to education process.† He built basic premises, which are still evident in both ELP and GLP, and involves reflecting on and summarizing what has already done. The article provides an overview on how the EPs can be used to learn, teach and assess in the United States and Europe based on ELP, CEFR, GLP and American I.F. The EPs function is based on the national standards and ACTFL proficiency scale. There are several advantages that EPs has over paper based portfolio. The functionality of EPs allows the learner, teacher and program coordinator to track the progress of the program throughout the course duration. It allows the learner to share data with both the teacher and the institution. It improves motivation and evaluation of learners’ outcomes. Through the cooperation of scholars from Europe, North America and other parts the world, the effectiveness of EPs for language acquisition will be realized. As the transatlantic partnership grows and higher learning institutions do joint programs, the three-part EPs will be a common technology in Europe and North America. Advancement in technology will facilitate information sharing among international institutions and their joint programs. The Electronic Portfolio (EP) is a digitized collection of artifacts, which include demonstrations, resources and accomplishments representing an individual, group, organization, institution or community. According to Lorenzo & Ittelson (2005, p. 2), these collections can comprise of text-based documents, graphics, and multimedia features archived on websites or other electronic media such as CD-ROM or DVD. The above features make Electronic Portfolio to be the best in

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Grant Proposal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

Grant Proposal - Essay Example Some children start using these drugs when they as young as thirteen years of age (Freeman, 2001). There has been extensive research on the substance abuse, such as alcohol and drugs, among the adolescent population segment. There are a number of generic factors that the substance abuse is blamed on. Also, there are numerous after effects and problems related to the substance abuse that adolescents have to combat in the aftermath of this abuse. Various reasons have been assumed to influence young people into misusing those substances. It is very important to understand the reasons why adolescents indulge in habit of abusing substances and the stage which they have attained so that we can be able to device means to assist them overcome their habits (Connors,et.al., 2001). Some of the causes may be more than mere curiosity hence may require emotional or material support so as to solve the real problem. Intervention is required both at local and state level to save young generation from deadly effects of abuse of substances. According to Deykin et al. (1987), most of the substances used for the abuse in question are depressants. Therefore, due to their continued abuse, they lead adolescent into a dark, depressive state from which it is very hard to emerge back into a happy healthy lifestyle. It has also been stated that adolescents and children who had been depressed to begin with, were far more likely to indulge in substance abuse as a result this depression. The linkage of depressive disorder and substance abuse in adolescent females was six times higher than it was in the male sample used for this study (Freeman, 2001). It was also found that the patients with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) were more likely to fall prey to alcohol abuse after the onset of the disorder. However, it may not always be the case with respect to the

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Insurance claims Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Insurance claims - Essay Example Whenever there is an accident, the affected parties (car owner and passengers) have the right to seek for compensation from their insurance companies. This chapter looks at the legal responsibilities of certain people for injury or damage caused by accidents on private and public property. These include owners, occupiers, other people who control buildings and land. The Civil Liability Act 2002has modified the way in which liability for negligence is determined. Under the Act, even if you are injured, you may not have a claim if that injury was caused by something which could have been avoided (KRITZER, 1997, p261). The accident that involved Peter, a driver with Collins Coaches Ltd should first be reported to the relevant authorities so that the right course of action is taken. This will be procedural in establishing whether there are any fatalities, damage of property or animals and to what extent the damage has been done. The police should also be helpful in towing the vehicle awa y. Afterwards, there are legal obligations that will follow in case the vehicle has been damaged and someone has been injured. Other passengers are also obliged to provide useful information to the police concerning the accident as this would be beneficial to the authorities. Relevant information entails what other drivers might have been involved in the crash, whether there are any missing persons and maybe how many people were involved in the accident. In this case, Peter should provide his full identify; name and address, the vehicle’s owner (Collins Coaches Ltd), a valid vehicle registration license plate and any other details required in identifying the vehicle. After the accident, there is a legal process that should be adhered to in the event of significant personal injury or damage of property. Within 24 hours of the accident, Peter is expected to report the crash to the police station nearest to where the accident occurred. One may not be required to report the crash if injuries from the accident prevent you from doing so. If you wish to make a personal injury claim you must report the accident to police within 28 days of the accident. Peter should provide useful information concerning: The place and nature of the accident Registration numbers of his vehicle Extent of any injury or damage caused Names and addresses of all witnesses Peter is required to give all possible assistance to any injured person, including phoning 000 for an ambulance. If injured like Jemima and Sarah in this case, you may have a claim against the driver of the vehicle which caused you injury. Seeking medical help from a doctor after the accident is important as well as consulting a solicitor who practices in personal injury law and in particular, in motor vehicle accidents, as soon as possible. At the solicitor, one is required to fill in a personal injury claim form while the doctor fills in the medical certificate that accompanies the personal injury claim form. Your solicitor will then send your claim form and medical certificate to both the owner of the vehicle and the insurer of the vehicle. The solicitor is supposed to do this within 6 months from the material day of the accident in order to avoid giving a full and satisfactory reason as to why it was not sent in this time. Your solicitor will then proceed to pursue your interests according to the Motor Accidents Compensation Act 1999. At the scene of the accident, Peter is also expected to; Take necessary measures to avert further collisions Not confess fault as this may abrogate insurance claims Make notes of any talk with the other person that may have been involved in the event

Monday, September 23, 2019

Areas of Legal Liability for Advanced Practice Nurses Essay

Areas of Legal Liability for Advanced Practice Nurses - Essay Example The failures to follow standards of care may include failure to institute a protocol or failure to use proper procedure for a particular skill. Under such circumstances, nurses are liable for damages caused as a result of their failure to implement proper actions. Hence, management should be ready to take necessary actions against nurses who violated proper standards of care. Such a response may assist the management to limit the liability for managers and the facility. Failure to use equipment responsibly falls under the category of direct breach of care, standards and it can be more easily proved. If a nurse deploys a clinical equipment for any use other than it was actually intended, he/she is liable to face legal consequences. In addition, it is observed that nurses often use equipments that they have not been adequately trained to use. If the misuse of the equipment causes any harm to patients, the nurse is in legal jeopardy. Hence, the management must ensure that they have employed adequate number of skilled and experienced nursing staff to prevent nurses from risking the life of patients. An effective nurse-patient ratio would reduce equipment errors significantly. In most of the nurse malpractice suits, an element of poor communication between nurse and patient, nurse and physician, or nurse and other healthcare providers is identified. The communication failure cases may include nurses’ failure to communicate all relevant patient data to the physician or discharge information to the patient. In order to avoid such troubles, the management may insist nurses to record all matters concerning patient care appropriately. In addition, it is advisable for the management to establish an effective reporting system in the care facility so that the flow of communication between nurses and other parties would become effective. In the eyes of law, if a nurse fails to document something appropriately, the court will consider as it

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Health Policy Assignment 2 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Health Policy 2 - Assignment Example We the American public feel that the authorities have not done enough to educate us on the virus. For example, ways in which the virus is transmitted and how to prevent it from spreading. Although all these happened, we must commend the authorities how they have handled the first two Ebola cases. When the first person showed the signs of the disease, they were quick to isolate the patient and check on everybody who was thought to have stumble upon him. It is a shame that one of the nurses who was attending to the patient contracted the disease. After the second patient was quarantined questions as to the United States preparedness as concerning, this epidemic was concerned came up. It was mostly because Thomas Eric Duncan did not exhibit any signs and symptoms of the infection prior to landing in the United States. The biggest scare came when it was reported that the nurse (Amber Vinson) who was supposed to be under quarantine was spotted walking around town instead of the hospital. This action made many people angry since it proved what many citizens believe that little is being done to combat the disease that has claimed thousands of people (CDC, 2014). The blame r ests solely on the relevant authorities, which include the airlines, the government and the center for disease control. If I were to implement policies that would enable the control of Ebola, firstly i would ensure that all the airlines screen all passengers who come from the Ebola prone regions (CDC, 2014). I would make sure that the affected gain the assistance they require and are quarantined in order to regulate the contact between the infected and the uninfected. I would also organize educational forums whereby experts teach us on how best to avoid the virus. I would establish a private ward/ wing in all hospitals to accommodate any Ebola patients. It would also show some of the ignorant

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Thesis guidelines Essay Example for Free

Thesis guidelines Essay The Use and Purpose of the Guidelines At the Faculty of Technology, there are five different guidelines for writing theses: guideline for bachelor’s degree in business studies, guideline for bachelor’s degree in technology, guideline for master’s degree in business studies, guideline for master’s degree in technology, and general writing guideline for the Faculty of Technology. The guidelines for specific degrees contain instructions for the structure, printing and submitting of the theses. The general writing guideline contains information about the formatting of text and the use of sources and references. The student is required to use two of these guidelines, 1) general writing guideline for the Faculty of Technology and 2) guideline for appropriate degree. The purpose of the above guidelines is to ensure that theses at the faculty fulfil the requirements concerning academic writing and layout. This guideline is for students studying at Faculty of Technology and writing their master’s thesis for the degree of Master of Science in Economics and Business Administration. In addition, students are required to use the general guideline for the Faculty of Technology. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS page 1. MASTER’S THESIS AND ITS PURPOSE 4 2. FROM MASTER’S THESIS TO GRADUATION 5 2. 1. Thesis Subject 5 2. 2. Credits 5 2. 3. Supervision 5 2. 4. Assessment, Approval and Grading 5 2. 5. Maturity Essay 7 2. 6. Publicity 9 2. 7. Further Details 10 3. MASTER’S THESES IN FOREIGN LANGUAGES 11 4. THE STRUCTURE OF THE MASTER’S THESIS 12 4. 1. Title 12 4. 2. Covers 12 4. 3. General notes on printing and editing 13 4. 4. Title page 13 4. 5. Abstract 14 5. EDITING THE MASTER’S THESIS 15 5. 1. Introduction 15 5. 2. Theory and background information 15 5. 3. Main subject of the thesis 16 5. 4. Discussion and results. 17 5. 5. Conclusions 17 APPENDICES APPENDIX 1. Glossary 19 19 3 APPENDIX 2. Title page of a Master? s Thesis 22 APPENDIX 3. Abstract page of a Master? s Thesis 23 APPENDIX 4. Assessment criteria for master’s theses and licentiate theses 24 4 1. MASTER’S THESIS AND ITS PURPOSE According to regulations concerning the degree Master of Science in Economics and Business Administration (higher university degree), the student is required to write a master’s thesis (pro gradu) and pass a written maturity essay. Master’s thesis is a personal independent academic work prepared by the student. The student is advised to start preparing the master’s thesis in the second year of higher degree studies. The student has to sign up for a research seminar group of the major subject. The master’s thesis must show familiarity with previous work in the field and must demonstrate ability to use research methods and academic style. The aim of the master’s thesis is to improve the student’s ability for independent research work and its practical application as well as to enable the student to apply different research methods both independently and in groups. Furthermore, master’s thesis must demonstrate the student’s ability to use relevant literature and to present research results as well as show ability for doctoral studies. 5 2. FROM MASTER’S THESIS TO GRADUATION 2. 1. Thesis Subject The student has to prepare a master’s thesis in order to obtain the degree of Master of Science in Economics and Business Administration (higher university degree). The subject of the thesis is suggested by the student and approved by the thesis supervisor of the major department. Teachers may provide help in choosing the subject. 2. 2. Credits. During the advanced level studies of master’s degree studies, the student prepares a master’s thesis, which comprises 30 ECTS. 2. 3. Supervision The Master’s thesis is supervised by a teacher of the major field. The supervisor gives general guidance during the writing process and more detailed advice when necessary. The supervisor gives feedback about the thesis and may ask the student to report on the progress of the work. 2. 4. Assessment, Approval and Grading The thesis must be submitted to the faculty in 3 or 4 bound copies. One copy should be submitted to each examiner of the thesis. In addition, one or two copies should be submitted to the Amanuensis, depending on whether or not the student gives permission to publish the thesis online in Tritonia database. An electronic copy of the whole thesis and an abstract must be saved to the Tritonia’s database regardless of the student’s 6 decision on public availability. The work and abstract are submitted to Tritonia by filling in a thesis form at http://www. tritonia. fi/? d=140l=1. The thesis cannot be approved unless the work is successfully submitted to Tritonia. Theses copies submitted to the University are not returned to the student. One copy of the thesis must be submitted to the Amanuensis if the student allows his or her work to be made publicly available outside the Tritonia network. If the wok is not to be shown publicly, two copies must be submitted. In addition, an abstract without page number must be submitted to the Amanuensis of the Faculty of Technology. The student should submit only the abstract which is written in the language used in the thesis. The evaluation time for a Master’s thesis is 30 days. This means that the thesis has to be left to the examiners and the Amanuensis for evaluation approximately 5 weeks before the expected acceptance date. If the Master’s thesis is the last study attainment of the student, it should be available for the Dean’s decision at least 10 days before the deadline for submitting the application for degree certificate (which is 28 days before the graduation day). The Dean usually processes theses two times each month. It is recommended that students check the schedule for graduation well beforehand from the university web pages at http://www. uwasa. fi/english/studies/degree-and-postgraduatestudents/academic-information/graduation/. The schedule of the Dean’s thesis processing is available from the Amanuensis, if needed. Two evaluators assigned by the Head of the appropriate department make a statement about the thesis to the Dean within 30 days of the day the thesis is submitted for evaluation. Usually one of the evaluators is the supervisor of the thesis. The student is reserved the right to see the statements and a suggestion for the grading before the work is taken to the Dean for approval. The Dean decides on approval of the thesis and confirms the grade based on the statements and suggestion made by the examiners. The grading scale for Master’s thesis is sufficient, satisfactory, good, very good, and excellent. After the Dean’s decision has been made, the student will receive a notification about the grade of the thesis and a copy of the evaluators’ statement by post. 7 The student dissatisfied with the thesis grading may apply to the degree committee of the University of Vaasa in writing for rectification of the evaluation of the Masters thesis within 14 days of the day when the grade was released (Universities Act 558/2009, Section 82, and the University of Vaasa Degree Ordinance, Section 13). An appeal cannot be made against the decision made by the degree committee on the request for rectification of the decision concerning the evaluation of a study attainment. 2. 5. Maturity Essay In order to obtain the degree of Master of Science in Economics and Business Administration, the student also has to pass a written maturity essay. In the maturity essay, the student is expected to demonstrate knowledge of the subject matter of the master’s thesis in a supervised examination. In addition, the student is expected to show ability to write fluent Finnish or Swedish (see exceptions below). Finnish students write the maturity essay in the language in which the student has received elementary education (Finnish or Swedish). A completed maturity essay in the language of elementary education gives the student excellent language proficiency in the appropriate language (in compliance with Decree A 481/2003). In case the student has already completed a maturity essay for a bachelor’s degree in the same language, the maturity essay for the higher degree concerns only content, not language proficiency. In this case, the language of the maturity essay is determined by the faculty (see Decree on University Degrees, section 16 subsection 3; or the University of Vaasa Degree Ordinance, Section 17). The same applies in all cases where the student has already completed a maturity essay for another higher education degree; the maturity essay concerns only content. Students who have completed their elementary education in a language other than Finnish or Swedish or have received elementary education outside Finland are not 8 required to prove their language proficiency in the maturity essay. Also in these cases the language of the maturity essay is determined by the faculty. International students who have not received their elementary education in Finnish or Swedish but have obtained sufficient language proficiency in Finnish or Swedish may complete their maturity essay in Finnish or Swedish. In this case, language proficiency is assessed according to the criteria used for Finnish students. A successfully completed maturity essay gives the student good language proficiency in Finnish or Swedish in compliance with Decree A 481/2003, and it will be stated in the degree certificate as well. The Maturity essay can be completed on any of the general examination days. Registration must be made with a form and registration envelope available at the Academic Affairs office. The form is available also at the web pages of the Language Centre. The student may register for the maturity essay only after the Master’s thesis has been left for inspection in its final form. The examination date for maturity essay must be agreed on with the thesis supervisor and should be at least 7 days after the thesis has been left for inspection. In the maturity essay, the student is given two or three questions on the subject of the student’s master’s thesis. The student is required to answer one of the questions by an essay. The essay should be written for a reader that is familiar with the appropriate field but has not studied the specific research topic of the master’s thesis. In other words, the maturity essay should comprise an independent text and the student should not assume that the reader is familiar with the master’s thesis. In addition to academic content, the essay must also demonstrate good language proficiency and comprise a logical, well-structured whole. It must present the topic in writing, not by graphical presentations like tables or charts. The essay must also have a heading (otherwise the examiner evaluating the language of the thesis will not be able to see whether the essay really answers the question). The essay must have an introduction and a conclusion. Suggested length of the essay is approximately one examination sheet 9 (four pages). It should be written on each line of the paper with empty lines separating between paragraphs. After the first draft, it is advisable to rewrite the maturity essay, with special emphasis on clear handwriting. Words should be clearly separate and the difference between capital and lower case letters should be clearly shown. The essay must show knowledge of the basics of grammar and punctuation. Excessive use of abbreviations should be avoided. Sentences and clauses must be clearly connected, and they should be logical and show variation. Incorrect reference relationships must be avoided. Word order must be unambiguous and fit the structure of the presented information. The essay must be written in a factual style. Further advice is available at: www. uwasa. fi/kielipalvelut/opiskelu/kypsyysnayte/. The result of the maturity essay must be given within 30 days from the date of examination. The grading scale for maturity essay is pass/fail (no other grade). In case the maturity essay is failed on the basis of its content, the student must meet with the thesis supervisor in order to receive feedback before registering for a retake. If the reason for failing is related to problems in the language, the student must contact the examiner responsible for evaluating the language of the essay. 2. 6. Publicity All theses are public documents. According to the Act on the Openness of Government Activities (621/1999), official documents shall be in the public domain, unless specifically otherwise provided by the law. A master’s thesis becomes public when it has been officially approved. With commissioned theses, the commissioner may demand that a thesis or parts of it have to remain non-public in order to protect business or professional secrets. In this case, those parts of the work that contain such secrets are not integrated into the master’s thesis, but annexed to the thesis as background material. The background 10  material must conform to the general guidelines on writing master’s thesis and must be left for inspection at the same time and in as many copies as the master’s thesis. The background material is not bound together with the master’s thesis but submitted separately with its own title page and titled BACKGROUND MATERIAL. However, general, non-specific information from the background material should be incorporated in the text of the master’s thesis whenever possible. The minimum requirements for the master’s thesis proper are that it specifies the theoretical framework, research methods, material and its analysis, and has a list of references. It must comprise an independent, readable whole. Background material is evaluated together with the actual master’s thesis but is not made public. After the evaluation, the background material is archived and kept in a secure place at the appropriate department. Use of non-public background material must always be discussed in advance with the thesis supervisor. 2. 7. Further Details For information on layout and other technical details of mater’s thesis, see faculty’s general guidelines on writing theses. Further advice is given by the staff of the faculty and departments. 11 3. MASTER’S THESES IN FOREIGN LANGUAGES The student may write the master’s thesis also in languages other than Finnish or Swedish. For practical reasons, this language is usually English as the evaluators of the thesis have to master the language in order to be able to evaluate the academic quality of the thesis. Using a language other than Finnish or Swedish must always be discussed with the thesis supervisor in advance. International students are advised to consult the thesis supervisor and amanuensis about their thesis and maturity essay before they start preparing their master’s thesis. The student is personally responsible for expenses resulting from for example use of language consultant etc. Appendix 1 shows the names of the departments, subjects, study programmes and modules in Swedish, and English. 12 4. THE STRUCTURE OF THE MASTER’S THESIS Master’s thesis can be structured as follows: Title page Table of contents (Symbols and abbreviations) (Pictures) (Tables) Abstract Introduction Main body text (methods, discussion, results) Conclusions List of references Appendices Parts in parentheses are not compulsory. 4. 1. Title. The title of the master’s thesis should be short, clear and expressive of the content (field and orientation). The student may use a subtitle in order to add focus to the title. No abbreviations should be used in the title. 4. 2. Covers The master’s thesis must be bound in hard, dark blue covers (marble blue for licentiate theses for the Faculty of Technology), page size A4. It is advisable to reserve enough time for the printing process – at least a week. 13 Lettering on the front cover should appear in the colour Gold and font Palatino, Times New Roman or equivalent: MASTER’S THESIS or LICENTIATE THESIS. Centred, bottom margin 200mm (font size 34pt) Author’s name (bottom right corner with 30–35 mm margins from bottom and right, font size 20 pt) Lettering on the spine of the thesis should appear in the colour Gold and font as above: Author’s name (on the left of the spine with 40mm margin on left) Year of publication (on the right of the spine with 30mm margin on right) 4. 3. General notes on printing and editing The student should pay attention to the printing quality of the master’s thesis. The hard copy of the master’s thesis should be printed out with a laser printer or equivalent. When attaching images, tables or appendices, care should be taken so that the final thesis is free of smudges and extra marks. The thesis must be printed, single-sided, on standard A4 paper. 4. 4. Title page The title page must follow the format requirements (appendix 2). Title page must state the following: University of Vaasa, Faculty of Technology, study subject (in capital letters, bolded and centred) Author’s name (centred) Title of the thesis (in capital letters, bolded and centred) and possible subtitle (bolded and centred) Study subject and the type of thesis (right alignment). Possible study programme (right alignment) Place (in capital letters and bolded) and year (bolded) 14 Title page should not be numbered 4. 5. Abstract The master’s thesis must include a one-page abstract (in Finnish/Swedish and in English, international students only in English). The abstract page is numbered and bound after list of symbols and abbreviations or, in case there is no list of symbols and abbreviations, after table of contents, before introduction. When the thesis is left for inspection, the student must also submit one separate, unnumbered abstract page. The separate abstract must be submitted in the language in which the thesis is written, and it is needed as an enclosure of the acceptance decision. The abstract page must state the research problem, material, research methods and major results of the thesis. The abstract should be understandable without having to consult the thesis itself. In the abstract, the student should use established terminology. References or quotations are not to be used. The title of the master’s thesis on the abstract page must be identical with the title on the title page. See examples of abstract in Appendix 3. Fill out ALL parts of the abstract page and take into consideration the margins of the page. The student must give 1-5 keywords. The first keyword should state, as specifically as possible, the field of study. It is followed by the other keywords which further specify the subject of the thesis. You may discuss the keywords with the assistant or your supervisor, if necessary. Keywords can also be searched from the VESA subject thesaurus of the library of the University of Helsinki. 15 5. EDITING THE MASTER’S THESIS. The master’s thesis consists of an introduction, main body text (which may include several chapters), and a conclusions chapter. The specific content, approach and emphasis of the thesis are chosen by the student and revised according to the supervisor’s comments. There are many different ways to prepare a (good) master’s thesis on the same topic. The only general rule is that the first chapter of the thesis is an introduction and the last presents the conclusions. 5. 1. Introduction The introduction should capture the reader’s interest. It gives the background for the choice of topic and presents the goals of the thesis. It limits the topic and gives a general outline of the approach to the research problem. Furthermore, the introduction should place the thesis in context by referring to other previous or contemporary academic studies on the topic. It also outlines the content and structure of the thesis. In case the thesis is a part of a larger project, the introduction must clearly define the author’s contribution to the project. The introduction does not give any details of the theory, methods or results of the thesis. The length of a typical introduction is 2-3 pages. 5. 2. Theory and background information In the chapter after the introduction, the student should give the technical, theoretical and other background information needed in order to understand the solutions and methods used in the later chapters. The theory part should focus only on things that are relevant to the thesis. However, it should not waste time on things that are self-evident to the reader (in other words, there is no need for a textbook-type presentation of the 16 basics in the field). The student’s own new methods are not presented in this section but given later in the thesis. The ‘ideal reader’ for the thesis could be defined as a person who is a professional in the field but unfamiliar with the particular topic. Thus all terms and symbols are to be explained when they are introduced but not later in the work. If several theories are used, it is advisable to present them in separate chapters. In addition to theory, the background information may include for example a company’s old products, a system that is about to be replaced, important standards, internal policies of a company, and possible other parts of a project (in case the thesis forms part of a larger project). These elements are to be explained in as much detail as is relevant for understanding the solutions in and the overall significance of the thesis. Whether this should be placed in the theory part of the work is case-specific and depends on the amount of background information of the thesis. The background information could also be integrated in the general outline of the thesis or be given in a separate chapter or appendix. A more detailed structuring and titles of the chapters (including the main title) are planned and executed on the basis of the work itself. It is highly important that the theoretical part of the work is closely connected to the later description and analysis of the work. In some clearly constructive work, the theory part may be relatively short. The length, however, is not the mere objective, but emphasis should be put on the contents. 5. 3. Main subject of the thesis After theory and background information, the student should focus on the main subject of the thesis and apply the theory to a specific research problem. The structure, headings and analysis in this section depend on the subject and on the approach chosen by the 17  student (and approved by the supervisor). There is no one correct way to approach the main subject of the thesis. In case the thesis includes scientific data (such as measurements etc. ), the appropriate study or experiment must be explained in such detail that the reader can understand all steps of the process. Methods must be presented in a manner that enables replication. For example the mathematical leads of new findings must be presented in such detail that the reader does not have to make extensive calculations in order to follow the process. In case of generally known methods, a short description or reference is sufficient. Less known methods, especially those developed by the author of the thesis, are to be described in much deeper detail. There should always be a clear connection between the theory and the application sections of the thesis. 5. 4. Discussion and results The last section of the main body text (before conclusions) consists of a ‘Results’ chapter or of two separate chapters with headings ‘Discussion’ and ‘Results’. In ‘Discussions’, the student may make comparisons between theory and (for example) measurement results as well as suggest lines of further research or application. The ‘Results’ chapter should focus primarily on the final results of the study, what the student found out and how it relates to the literature. The results should also be placed in the context of the possible earlier studies on the topic. 5. 5. Conclusions Conclusions chapter briefly summarises the whole thesis from start to finish. Aspects of the work that were discussed in the introduction are revisited in the conclusions chapter in order to find out whether initial plans were followed and initial goals achieved. 18 At the end of the conclusions chapter, the student may discuss possible future research on the subject. If this requires more extensive discussion, it can be placed in a separate chapter at the end. The conclusions chapter should be no more than 3 pages long and should not introduce any new ideas or include references to source materials. 19 APPENDICES APPENDIX 1. Glossary Faculty, departments, study subjects, study programmes and orientations in Swedish and English Teknillinen tiedekunta Tekniska fakulteten Faculty of Technology Matemaattiset tieteet Institutionen for matematik och statistik Department of Mathematics and Statistics Sahko- ja energiatekniikka Institutionen for elektro- och energiteknik. Department of Electrical Engineering and Energy Technology Tieto- ja tietoliikennetekniikka Institutionen for datavetenskap Department of Computer Science Tuotantotalous Institutionen for produktion Department of Production Study subjects: Automaatiotekniikka energiatekniikka automationsteknik energiteknik automation technology energy technology 20 fysiikka fysik physics matematiikka materiaalitekniikka matematik materialteknik mathematics materials science sahkotekniikka talousmatematiikka elektroteknik ekonomisk matematik electrical engineering business mathematics tietoliikennetekniikka telekommunikationsteknik  telecommunications engineering tietotekniikka tilastotiede datavetenskap statistik computer science statistics tuotantotalous produktionsekonomi industrial management Study programmes and orientations: Teknisen viestinnan koulutusohjelma Utbildningsprogram for teknisk kommunikation Technical Communication Programme 21 Tietotekniikan koulutusohjelma ohjelmistotekniikka tietoliikennetekniikka Utbildningsprogrammet for datateknik programmeringsteknik telekommunikationsteknik Degree Programme in Information Technology Software Engineering Telecommunications Engineering Sahko- ja energiatekniikan koulutusohjelma  automaatiotekniikka sahkotekniikka Utbildningsprogrammet for elektro- och energiteknik automationsteknik elektroteknik Degree Programme in Electrical and Energy Engineering Automation Electrical Engineering 22 APPENDIX 2. Title page of a Master? Thesis (partly shortened in the example) UNIVERSITY OF VAASA FACULTY OF TECHNOLOGY SUBJECT (E. G. COMPUTER SCIENCE) Author’s name TOPIC OF THE THESIS Subtitle Master’s Thesis in e. g. Computer Science (Degree Programme) VAASA 20XX 23 APPENDIX 3. Abstract page of a Master? s Thesis UNIVERSITY OF VAASA Faculty of Technology Author: Topic of the Master’s Thesis: Instructor: Degree: First name Last name Name of the thesis (subtitle) First name Last name Master of Science in Economics and Business Administration Major subject: (e. g. Computer Science) Degree Programme: (only if Degree Programme in Multimedia systems and Technical Communication) Year of Entering the University: 20xx Year of Completing the Master’s Thesis: 20xx Pages: xxx ABSTRACT: KEYWORDS 24 APPENDIX 4. Assessment criteria for master’s theses and licentiate theses Grade Theoretical knowledge, literature and sources Strong theoretical knowledge; excellent use of source materials; criticism  of source materials is wellgrounded Research problem Original; shows familiarity with and understanding of the subject. Results are interesting. Strong theoretical knowledge; very good use of source materials; demonstrates the student’s familiarity with the subject 3. No significant flaws in dealing with the subject; study produces clear results Good theoretical knowledge; no significant flaws in use of source materials 2 Inconsistencies or clear mistakes; results are difficult to interpret Satisfactory theoretical knowledge; use of source materials is rather limited; flaws in criticism of source materials  Confusing and difficult to follow; several inconsistencies and mistakes; results are questionable Sufficient familiarity with the subject; theoretical knowledge is limited; number of source materials is limited (often mainly Finnish sources). 5 4 1 General Original; shows independent thinking; results are interesting and make a contribution to knowledge of the subject with which it deals Research method and empirical part Methodologically justified; empirically thorough and systematic Text, structure, language and layout Textually fluent and stylistically excellent; technical documentation is excellent; clear and logical  structure; layout is flawless Clear and well-grounded research problem; questions are well-formulated; good research strategy and approach Methodologically correct; empirically correct Textually fluent; Language and layout are flawless; very good technical documentation; clear and logical structure Good research problem; clearly formulated questions; fairly successful solution to research problem Not clearly formulated or bears some inconsistencies; goal not quite achieved No significant mistakes; empirical part prepared rather well Wrongly or confusingly formulated; academic approach is lacking; goals  not achieved Methodologically weak; serious empirical flaws Textually good; Good technical documentation; no serious weaknesses; very few mistakes; layout fairly flawless Textually rather clumsy; incomplete technical documentation; grammatical errors; some weaknesses in structure; layout problems Textually clumsy; technical documentation is weak and unpolished; grammatical errors; flawed structure; weak layout Interesting and welldefined research problem; challenging questions; mature research strategy and approach Clear methodological and empirical flaws. Thesis process Excellent thesis process;  the student is motivated; agreements were kept; the student took responsibility and shows outstanding ability for independent research Excellent thesis process; the student is motivated; agreements were kept; the student took responsibility and shows good ability for independent research Good thesis process; the student is mostly motivated; agreements were mostly kept Flawed thesis process; the student needed extra guidance; occasional lack of motivation and responsibility The student’s motivation is rather weak; the student needed extra guidance; lack of responsibility; the process was prolonged.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Does Personality Predict Employee Performance?

Does Personality Predict Employee Performance? To what extent does personality predicts employee performance? Introduction: An employee need to perform well in the role and activities listed in the job description. Also for a better performance an employee need to have the skills, knowledge and the right attitude needed for the job. In order to get the best performance from an employee, personality assessment is been carried out during the recruitment process. There are many types of personality assessment such as MBTI personality test, MMPI, FIRO-B personality assessment model, Kelly’s personal construct theory, Eysenk’s personality dimension, Raymond cattell’s two types of personality traits, the big five factors and many more. However, this essay will only discuss about the big five model as it is one of the personality assessment that is most commonly used in a work place to predict employee performance. It is essential to understand that there are some criticism about the big five factors as well as the other personality assessment. However, despite the criticism the big five fac tors was successful in predicting employee performance. It is important to know that there is a close relationship between employee performance and personality. This connection between both employee performance and personality depends on the characteristic of the Job, the organisation and co-workers. It is also important to keep in mind that the success of an organisation would depend on the employee performance. This coursework will address the extent to which personality is used to measure employee performance as well as the relationship between the big five personality and Job performance. Furthermore, this essay will discuss about the two main approaches of personality and will further investigate how personality link into career success and furthermore, predict employee performance. In addition, this essay will briefly address the nature and nurture approach. Main body: The nature and nurture approach may both have an effect in an individual personality. Nature is mainly about genetic inheritance, whereas Nurture is mainly about environmental factors. Researchers found out that genes plays an important role in the development of personality as well as the environment as it help to shape the personality of an individual. According to Funder (2001), â€Å"personality is an individual’s characteristic patterns of thought, emotion, and behaviour, and together with the psychological mechanisms-hidden or not-behind those patterns†. He proposed that personality is a predictor of work. Personality can be divided into two main approaches: Nomothetic approach and Idiographic approaches. The nomothetic approach is a measurable and specific perspective that looks at the identification of traits and personality as a collection of characteristics (Mullins 2013). Nomothetic approach view personality as consistent, mainly inherited and resistant to change. Nomothetic theorist believes that it is possible to measure individual personality through personality assessment without diminish the difficulties that measuring personality brings, as it will help employer to identify employee personality types and how individual would behave in a given certain circumstances. Whereas, Idiographic approach is a self-motivated perspective which insists that managers should take into account a ‘whole’ understanding of the individual at work (Mullins 2013). An individual attitude towards his or her work is affected by his or her personality. Idiographic theorist believes that individual are unique and it is vital to understand such uniqueness and are also concern about the de velopment of personality as it is a process that is open to change. Furthermore, they regard that individual responding to the environment and people around them like friends and families or co-workers can shape and affect individual personality. Idiographic approach suggest that using personality assessment to measure the unique ways in which a person understands and responds to the world is inappropriate and is not valid (Mullins 2013). So therefore, it is vital to understand individual personality in order to predict individual performance. Personality plays an important role in predicting how an individual will work. Hence, using personality assessment, employers can simply identify whether a potential employee will work, happily, intelligently, attentively or even willingly. Personality assessment is used by many companies. Employers make use of personality assessment in order to improve their decision making with respect to future applicants. They have recognized that through personality assessment; high-potential applicants can easily be identified. At this stage, we can state that an employee’s personality does predict the level of performance (Ferguson, 2009). However, Schmitt et al. (1984) found that personality tests were among the least valid types of selection tests. Additionally, Spillane Martin (2005) stated that personality and performance are not related as the efforts of using personality test to predict performance have been spectacularly unsuccessful. Furthermore, it can also be argue that perso nality assessments are not a good method for predicting employee performance, as individual can give false answers to any question asked in order to meet the company expectation and get the Job (Buchanan, Huczynski, (2010). Pp.173-189). Many studies have been carried out in order to find the relationship between personality and employee performance. Employee performance is the job related activities expected of a worker and how well those activities were performed. Researchers in both personality and industrial-organizational psychology have touched on a five factor model (FFM) which is commonly recognised as personality framework. The FFM can be linked to predict performance (Barrick and Mount 1991) and it can also be linked to career success (Tharenou, 1997). Furthermore, the FFM are vital when predicting the job performance of an employee on the basis of personality. The FFM includes Extraversion, Conscientiousness, Openness to experience, Emotional Stability and Agreeableness. Extraversion contains traits such as confidence, activity, and friendliness. Extraverts are active and cheerful. Extraversion is considered to be positive frame of mind and capabilities and is therefore seen as a positive effect (Clark Waston, 1991). Research suggests that extraverted personalities are expected to surpass in occupations that involve individuals to socialize and communicate with other individuals (Barrick and Mount, 1991). Barrack and Mount (1991) also decided that Extraversion predicts not only overall job performance, but mainly sales performance as well. Agreeableness refers to individuals who tend to be innocent, caring towards others, merciful, soft hearted, and kind (Costa McCrae, 1992). Previous research has found no relationship between agreeableness and overall job performance (Barrick and Mount, 1991). However, Barrick et al. (2001) found that the measurement predicts teamwork and that the dimension respectively can predict success in specific jobs. This s hows that, depending on the type of occupation, agreeableness may still be theorised as a contributing factor to job performance. Tett et al. (1991) stated that Openness to experience is not effective in predicting job performance. Openness to experience applies to individuals who tend to be productive, inspired, and interested to experience new things amongst other things (Costa McCrae, 1992). Barrick et al. (2001) found no major relationship between openness and performance. Research has shown that openness to experience is linked to success in accessing (Hamilton, 1998), training (Barrick Mount, 1991) and adapting to adjustment (Horton, 1992; Raudsepp, 1990). Emotional stability indicates that individuals who tend to be protected, peaceful and thus more likely to control their desires and survive with stress (Costa McCrae, 1992). Dunn, Mount, Barrick and Ones (1995) indicated that emotional stability is the second most important characteristic that affects the employability of c andidates.Out of the big five model, conscientiousness is recognised as the most valid predictor for measuring performance for most jobs. Factors included in conscientiousness lead to excellent job performance. Recent experimental evidence supports the importance of conscientiousness at work, relating the construct to counterproductive work behaviours (Hogan Ones, 1997), effective job seeking behaviour (Wanberg, Watt, Rumsey, 1996), Maintenance (Barrick, Mount, Strauss, 1994), and attendance at work (Judge, Martocchio, Thoresen, 1997). A relationship exists between the big five traits and career success which in returns lead to employee performance. However, out of the five big traits neuroticism, extraversion and conscientiousness is the most relevant to career success. It can be argued that to some extent, employee performance is predicted by personality. However, to some extent career success can also predict performance through the personality of the employee. For example, if a person career is to become an accountant and they work in a bank, it is most likely that the performance of that person would be positive. Nevertheless, if the career of that individual does not align to the job he/she is doing then it can be argued that performance of such individual might be affected. Career success is defined as what an individual achieved as a result of their work experiences (Judge, Cable, Boudreau, Bretz 1995). Career success depends on two things such as intrinsic success (job satisfaction) and extrinsic success (income and status). Job satisfaction has been defined as the comprising between the actual outcomes and desired outcomes of an employee reaction based on the Job (Egan et al., 2004). Research shows that neuroticism which is the opposite of emotional stability has a negative correlation when link to Job satisfaction and in terms of income and status. Judge and Locke (1993) found out that employees with a negative emotions were likely to have a low job satisfaction which can lead to bad performance as low job satisfaction indicate that employee are not happy with the jobs they are in which can further lead to job stress, poor morale and lack of productivity. On the other hand research shows that Extraversion will be positively related to intrinsic career success and extrinsic success. Watson and Clark (1997) note that extraversion individual has a positive emotion which can lead to a high job satisfaction, and can further predict employee performance. Furthermore, another positive pe rsonality related to extrinsic career success is conscientiousness. Barrack Mount (1997) research shows that conscientiousness may influence extrinsic career success through its high predictor factor on job performance. Conclusion: In conclusion, this essay has found out that out of all the personality assessment used in a company to predict performance, the big five model is the most reliable method of predict employee performance despite all the criticisms of the FFM. This FFM is used by many researchers to predict performance and it has been researched that the most strongly trait that can be used to predict all job occupation is Conscientiousness. It can be argued that FFM is accurate when predicting employee performance as it has also been used for personality assessment. However, one negative effect of using personality assessment to predict performance is that candidate can give false answer in order to meet the job description of the company so that they can get the job. So therefore, it is recommended that companies should not depend on one factor to predict performances as they are other factors that can lead to high performance such as cognitive intelligence/Ability (CI), Emotional intelligence/ Abil ity (EI) and Motivation – related attitudes/ competencies. It is important to know that although there are some advantages of using personality to predict employee performance, there are also some disadvantages. One advantage would be, it helps to choose the right candidate for the job which will lead to high performance as the employee will be motivated to work hard as their personality is link to the job they are doing (Buchanan, Huczynski, (2010) .pg. 189). Whereas, one disadvantage would be employee giving false answer on the personality test in order to score high so that they can be given the job which might lead to bad performance for the organisation if the employee actual personality does not link to the job description. This essay has also identified the two main personality approach which are idiographic and nomothetic approach. Idiographic approach tells us that personality is unique and the theorist of this approach believes that employee personality should be open to change. Therefore, idiographic approach believes that personality assessment is not valid when predicting employee performance. Whereas, nomothetic theorist identified traits and believes that personality is resistant to change and further agreed that personality assessment should use when predicting employee performance. Overall, there factors that affect personality differences between individuals. These factors are the biological environment, the social environment, the physical environment, the cultural environment, and role playing. All these factors related to the research about the nature and the nurture discussed in this essay. References Barrick, M. R., Stewart, G. L., Piotrowski, M. (2002). Personality and jobperformance: Test ofthe mediating effects of motivation among salesrepresentatives.Journal of Applied Psychology, 87: 43-51. Buchanan Huczynski: Organisational Behaviour an introductory text. 4th Ed (Prentice Hall) Egan, T. M., Yang, B., Bartlett, K. R. (2004). The effects of organizational learning cultureand job satisfaction on motivation to transfer learning and turnover intention. 15, 279–301 Hurtz, G., Donovan, J. (2000). Personality and job performance: The Big Fiverevisited. Journal of Applied Psychology, 85, 869–879. Judge, T. A., Higgins, C. A., Thoresen, C. J., Barrick, M. R. (1999). The big fivepersonality traits,general mental ability, and career success across the life span.Personnel Psychology, 52, 621–652. Judge, T. A, Ilies, Remus(2002). Relationship of personality to performance motivation: A meta-Analytic Review. Journal of Applied psychology. 87, P797-807. Mullins, L Gill, C (2013). Management organisational behaviour. 10th ed. Prentice Hall Rothmann, s., Coetzer, E. P. (2003) the big five personality dimensions and job performance. Journal of industrial psychology. 29, 68-74. Spillane R, Martin J,( 2005) Personality and performance: foundations for managerial psychology, Sydney : Australia

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Defining Time :: Definition Essays

Defining Time When I think of time, I am immediately drawn to the song Unchained Melody written by the Righteous Brothers. In this song there is one line that describes time almost perfectly, as I believe it to be. This verse states that time can do so much, however it is very broad but let me explain. The song was written about a love that was separated and to me moments were described prior to the breakup and how time would be cherished if another chance was given. These moments can be either spent talking, holding each other, or just being near one another. There are many things that are affected by time. Sleep for instance seems like wasted time, however it is very necessary to be productively effective while awake. Did you know that we spend one third of our lives sleeping. Of course many people vary based on their life style but their are many psychological factors to consider for each person. I do believe that time can be wasted in some cases such as the old idea of cutting the lawn with scissors. This is not an ideal way of doing it, and common sense tells that a lawnmower would be a much faster way of completing this task. This example simply depicts predicaments that people often run into. Sometimes we don't have a choice of how things are completed due to lack of knowledge or tools required for the task. Anyhow it would still be wasted time if there is a faster way of doing things. The old saying that, "time is money" is so relevant to this day and age. Why spend hours chopping down a tree and cutting the wood yourself, when you can purchase perfect size pieces at a local hardware store? Sure you would save money but the time spent could have been spent with your family, using a small portion of a paycheck instead. I have had moment where I have wasted time and understand that it is for personal satisfaction. An example of this is baking a cake. It is nice to say, "hey, I made this from scratch how do you like it"?, as opposed to "I saved ti me and bought it at the bakery".

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Importance of the Eunuchs in Elizabeth Inchbald’s The Mogul Tale Essay

Importance of the Eunuchs in Elizabeth Inchbald’s The Mogul Tale The eunuch is an integral part of the 18th century play The Mogul Tale, by Elizabeth Inchbald. He serves a historical role by being the Mogul’s advisor, watchman, and, most importantly, harem guard. Eunuchs are generally defined as castrated males and are thus excellent choices to guard the Mogul’s women – no fear of the guard taking the ladies for himself. Inchbald reinforces these noble positions by showing the eunuch as the Mogul’s â€Å"right-hand man†. But with the passing of time these traditional roles have died along with the people who embraced them. Eunuchs now exist in an India that has all but forgotten their position as protectors. They are now part of a larger, marginalized group that exists on the fringe of Indian society - the hijras1. Hijras include such minorities as eunuchs, hermaphrodites, transvestites, transsexuals, and homosexuals and â€Å"literally means neither male nor female†2. Most hijras undergo a secretive castration operation as part of their religious rites. Because of this secrecy it is unknown as to the exact number of hijras in India. They are described, and describe themselves, as the â€Å" ‘third sex’ – somewhere inbetween and beyond male or female†3. They see themselves as existing inside and above society. Even so, theirs is a day-to-day existence. Hijras make their money one of three ways: as beggars, as entertainers at traditional ceremonies, and as prostitutes. As beggars hijras are aggressive. Three to four will confront individuals, clapping and making hand gestures. If they are given money, they extend bountiful blessings of fortune and fertility to the giver and his family line. But if they are... ...oduction of Hijras in Comtemporary Indian Politics.† Social Research v70.1 (spring 2003): 163(39). (Reddy 181) 6 Reddy 165 7 Reddy 176 8 Butalia 5 9 Reddy 177 10 Reddy 164 11 â€Å"In from the Outside: India’s Long Mistreated Eunuchs are Teaming Up to Demand Equal Rights and Better Health Care.† Time International v156.11 (Sept 18, 2000): 25. (In from the Outside 25) 12 Allahbadia and Shah 49 13 Allahbadia and Shah 49 14 Slijper, Froukje M.E. â€Å"Neither Man nor Woman: The Hijras of India.† Archives of Sexual Behavior v26 n4 (Aug 1997): 450(4). (Slijper 452) 15 Pimlott 46 16 Pimlott 47 17 â€Å"In from the Outside† 25 18 Allahbadia and Shah 48 19 Reddy 166 20 Reddy 164 21 Reddy 166 22 â€Å"In from the Outside† 25 23 Reddy 178-9 24 Reddy 166 25 Reddy 164 26 Reddy 167-8 27 Reddy 170

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

My Educational Philosophy :: Philosophy of Education Teaching Teachers Essays

My Educational Philosophy My true love for education began on the first day of first grade. I was selected to take the attendance sheet to the office. There was a problem. I did not know where the office was. After circling the entire elementary school four times, I opened a random door and walked in crying about my dilemma. The teacher, Mrs. Rohal, consoled me and gave me the best advice ever, â€Å"everyone makes mistakes, and it is okay because it is an important part of learning.† She then took me to where I needed to be and wished me luck. Right then and there she became my inspiration and soon after, my teacher. She, along with many other teachers, made learning fun and desirable. I have always enjoyed learning and the feeling I got when I was reinforced for doing a good job. I believe all students should feel this way, and I have a strong desire to instill these same experiences to the future generations of young elementary school students. My educational philosophy would be considered eclectic. It would be a combination of an idealist and a pragmatist. In order to be an effective teacher, I believe it is necessary to possess a teaching style that is both traditional and facilitated. Since I plan on teaching elementary school, I feel that it is imperative that it is teacher directed, and in a traditional way. On the other hand, I think that it is a comfortable environment when the students are arranged in small groups or in a circle arrangement like facilitated classrooms. I also intend on having a comfortable, encouraging classroom in which artwork and exceptional work are hung up as reinforcement for their efforts and success As an idealist, I believe that it is extremely important to be organized and know the content well in order to convey this knowledge to the students. I think that if the students know that they are valued as individuals in the classroom, they will be more willing to push themselves to learn even the difficult material, and it will build their self-esteem which is very important in the elementary school years.

Monday, September 16, 2019

Hacking and Cybercrime Essay

The Symantec Global Internet Security Threat Report noted a shift in malicious activity to be emerging. The growing level of malicious code activity has also resulted in the proposal of a new cybercrime bill. Malicious activity tends to increase in rapid growth in broadband infrastructure and connectivity. In January 2010, reports emerged that dozens of large companies had been compromised by attackers using the Hydra Trojan. Typically, this type of attack begins with some reconnaissance on the part of attackers. Typically, this type of attack begins with some reconnaissance on the part of attackers. This can include publicly available information about the company and its employees, such as from social networking sites. This information is then used to create specifically crafted phishing email messages, often referred to as spear phishing, that target the company or even specific staff members. These email messages often contain attachments that exploit vulnerabilities in client-side application or links to websites that exploit vulnerabilities in web browsers or browser plug-ins. In 2009, 60 percent of identities exposed were compromised by hacking attacks. Which are another form of targeted attack. The hackers gained access to the company payment processing network using an SQL injection attack. The attackers then installed malicious code design to gather sensitive information from the network, which allowed them to easily access the network at their convenience. The attacks resulted in the theft of approximately 130 million credit card numbers. Web-based attacks have replaced the mass mailing worm in this position. Attackers may use social engineering, such as in spam messages, to lure a user to a website that exploit browser and plug-in vulnerabilities. These attacks are then used to install malicious code or other applications such as rogue security software on the victim’s computer. Four of the top five being exploited were client-side vulnerabilities were frequently targeted by web-based attacks. Two of these vulnerabilities were in Adobe Reader, while one was in Microsoft Internet Explorer and the fourth was in an Active X Control. A Crimeware Kit is a toolkit that that allows people to customize a piece of malicious code design to steal data and other person personal information. Crimeware Kits like zues make it easier for unskilled attackers to compromise computers and steal information. These kit allow anyone who buys them to customize them to their own needs. The SpyEye Kit, is addition to stealing information, also has the ability to detect if a computer already has Zues installed and if so, to intercept its communications. Fragus Exploit Kit contains mechanisms to prevent buyers from reselling their copies of it. A side effect of these kits is the creation of tens of thousands of new malicious code variants that may only be seen by a single user. The volume of financial services spam also remained relatively unchanged in 2009, while the levels of financially oriented spam and phishing have remained relatively constant despite the recent economic downturn, attackers have made adjustments in their tactics. Symantec observed more messages advertising refinancing of debts and mortgages along with offers of loans or opportunities to earn money while working from home. This shows that attackers are able to rapidly adapt their social engineering techniques to better take advantage of current events and situations. Symantec expects attacks against web browsers and malicious code variants installed through these attacks to increase. One of the botnets linked to this ISP was Pandex. This botnet was responsible for as much as 35 percent of spam observed globally before dropping to 8 percent after the ISP was shut down. Spam Zombies that lack a critical command system are unable to send out spam. Additionally, a security researcher allegedly attacked and disabled 250,000 computers associated with the Ozdok botnet. The volume of spam sent by both botnets recovered several days afterwards because unaffected zombies were instructed to significantly increase their spam output, indicating that these events may have been a large factor in the decrease of spam zombies in the United States. Symantec advises end users to use antivirus software, antispam software, firewalls, tool bar blockers, and other software- detection methods. Symantec also advises end users to never disclose any confidential personal or financial information unless and until they can confirm that any request for such information is legitimate.

Mass Media and Entertainment Essay

I’ll go ahead and say it: Neal Gabler’s â€Å"Life the Movie† makes valid points. Because of America’s dependence on technology-based media entertainment it is impossible not to interact with the distracting and alluring world of expressive communication. The world we live in today is sadly not the one that Henry David Thoreau was able to circumnavigate for two years in 1845. Today, to avoid media, is to be totally shut away from the world. Gone are the days of subtle newsprint and objective journalism. They have been trampled by 24-hour news cycles and narcissism-based social networking sights like Twitter and Facebook. While I can’t help but agree with Gabler on the media’s degenerative effects, there is a brighter side to a globalized system of entertainment. Entertainment can certainly ruin society if given the chance. Take for instance, MTV’s â€Å"Jersey Shore†. A show with absolutely no moral integrity, but simple humor and sex appeal can make money, so realistically; executives will invest in more of the same material. At the same time, hate/fear-mongering media moguls like Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh have a devoted, if not cult-like following of 60-somethings that they control in the name of â€Å"entertainment†. Clearly, entertainment has the capacity to ruin the structure of society, for better or worse. Whereas sites like Twitter and Facebook can be detrimental to society, they can also cause positive progress. Very recently, young Iranian revolutionaries used Twitter as a means of communication, education, and unity. Videos of citizens beaten to death in the streets were accompanied by calls to action, as a youthful and courageous Iranian population revolted against its oppressive government on the computer and TV screens of the globalized world. Furthermore, recent crisis like the tsunamis in Indonesia, hurricane in New Orleans, and earthquakes in Haiti were brought into the homes of the prosperous and caring across the world. Although tragic, these events demonstrated the capacity that a connected human populous has for charity. Billions of dollars in relief money has been donated in the past decade, thanks to the stirring images captured not only by corporate cameramen, but also by civilian camcorder. Thus, to define entertainment as solely destructive or beneficial is unjust. People are not always wise enough to turn off what they know is subjective information, but they are no means praying to neon gods. In his book â€Å"Life the Movie,† Neal Gabler discusses how entertainment has taken over the reality. This is true in every way: people watch television or movies, listen to music, and Facebook stalk their friends just to get out of their own heads for a while. It is an escape from their realities. Gabler argues that the outlet the media has come to provide can potentially ruin society. This is true in many cases. Certain forms of entertainment can indeed â€Å"overturn all morality† and â€Å"poison the springs of domestic happiness.† Music, specifically, is one type of entertainment that has the capacity to cause people to compromise their morals. It has a sneaky way of planting new thoughts in our minds. Music artists think of lyrical euphemisms to subtly engrain an idea into their listeners minds. For example, in their song â€Å"Fast Blood,† the ingenious Scottish band Frightened Rabbit sings about a â€Å"midnight organ fight–† a clever euphemism for sex. Even if their listener wasn’t sure what that line meant, the rest of the lyrics would help him piece it together fairly quickly. It’s a beautiful song, and soon enough, the listener finds himself singing along, and the idea that sex allows a person to feel â€Å"reborn† has now become a belief of this listener. And, whabam, there we have a compromised moral resulting from the idea of one song. The characters and stories found in movies, books, and television are aspects of entertainment that most certainly have the ability to ruin society. They can jeopardize a family’s happiness by creating an image of the â€Å"ideal† spouse or significant other or family. Stefanie Meyer’s Twilight Saga, for example, creates the character of Edward Cullen: the perfect lover. Comedian Whitney Cummings made a good point in her stand up routine â€Å"Money Shot† when she said, â€Å"Women are obsessed with romance†¦we get brainwashed from romantic movies.† She said she went to go see the movie â€Å"Twilight† thinking it was just about high schoolers and came out thinking, â€Å"Ohh, I have to marry a vampire, oh my God,† and proceeded to address the males in her audience, â€Å"Guys, don’t let your girlfriends see this movie: she will leave your ass, okay?† Movies like â€Å"Twilight† create this image of the perfect man. If women see that and begin to compare their husbands to Edward Cullen, divorce papers will soon be a-rustling. Characters like these create impossible standards for men to live up to! And pornography does the same to women: men look at these beautiful women with perfect bodies and begin to idealize females. And then no woman is good enough for them because it is impossible for a woman to look like that without plastic surgery, a crapload of make up, and a whole hell of a lot of photoshop. Media like this has the potential to destroy relationships because it establishes an unreachable standard. So, yes, Gabler makes a good point. Although entertainment can be â€Å"fun, effortless, sensational, mindless, formulaic, predictable and subversive† and that is why people love it so much, it can be detrimental to society as a whole. In his 1998 book, Life the Movie: How Entertainment Conquered Reality, Neal Gabler makes the assertion that entertainment has the capacity to â€Å"ruin† society. Although plenty of entertainment features positive messages and portrays good role models, I completely agree with idea the entertainment can ruin society because a large percentage of entertainment and media can acclimate viewers’ minds toward violence and it can corrupt citizens’ views of society and of themselves. In our modern media there are thousands upon thousands of movies, tv shows, songs, and video games that encourage violence and other negative behavior. Many people believe this to be harmless fun, but in instances when consumers blur the line between fantasy and reality it can become very dangerous. One tragic instance of this occurred June 7, 2003, when 3 men, 2 police officers and a 9-11 dispatcher, were killed in an Alabama police station by 18 year-old Devin Moore, who had played Grand Theft Auto day and night for months before the shooting. During his arrest, Moore is reported to have told police, â€Å"Life is like a video game. Everybody’s got to die sometime.† Entertainment can also ruin society by destroying citizens’ views of society and of themselves. From magazines to movies to television, the media has created a standard of near perfection that many people struggle to live up to because they want to be accepted. For example, professional athletes like Lebron James, Payton Manning, and many others have caused many aspiring athletes to look down upon themselves because they are not able to perform to the same level as the pros. Although many celebrities have contributed great acts of charity to society, that does not change the fact that much of entertainment, which these celebrities are apart of, encourages negative behavior. If not brought under control, these negative behaviors can bring about the downfall of society as we know it. Entertainment can be in many different forms: television, magazines, books, the computer, music, etc. And according to Neal Gabor in his book, â€Å"Life the Movie,† all of these things are â€Å"fun, effortless, sensational, mindless, formulaic, predictable, and subversive.† The fact that because of these reasons, people like entertainment is true. However, just because people like something, or enjoy it, doesn’t mean it’s not harmless. People who go tan in tanning beds everyday enjoy doing it, but in reality it triples their risk of skin cancer. The social impacts of entertainment are already showing in today’s society. People are communicating less and less by person, and more and more by computers. When people lose their ability to communicate with the people around them outside of their entertainment bubble, the sense of community is lost, and is causing increased health risks. All this said, it is not true that ALL entertainment will completely â€Å"dissolve the ties of our social order†. If entertainment is used in moderation and people learn to make the distinction between entertainment and reality, then it can be an enjoyable experience. But because all people don’t do these things, entertainment does have the capacity to â€Å"ruin society†society falls apart. In addition, some of the things that entertainment exposes society to can alter the thoughts and decisions of Americans and cause problems for society. For example, TV networks are creating shows like â€Å"America’s Next Top Model,† and giving people the idea that in order to be beautiful you have to be dangerously thin and look like a model. This causes poor self-images, and causes people to be unhappy. To make matters worse, celebrities everywhere are getting cosmetic surgery. This gives audiences the idea that they shouldn’t be happy with who they actually are, and that in order to be happy, they have to waste tons of money on unnecessary procedures. Also, the percentage of people getting divorced in America has been increasing lately. This is most likely because of the fact that celebrities are getting divorced left and right, and it’s starting to become â€Å"the norm.† People are making money off of those divorces by selling the stories (in gossip magazines) as entertainment. Entertainment portrays false realities that have potential to crumble social aspects of society. Not only does entertainment have the capacity to â€Å"ruin† society socially, but it can also cause health related consequences. The percentage of Americans that are either overweight or obese is somewhere around 63% and that is constantly increasing. Though it is true that part of the cause for this is the amount of processed foods we eat, but another large part of it is the amount of time we spend sitting, a concept that goes along with entertainment. Today people don’t have the need to go out much to be â€Å"happy†. Children can sit andwatch TV or play video games for entertainment, and no longer need to go outside to play with their friends. Also, because of computers people don’t need to leave their house to communicate with friends, they can just do it on Facebook. People don’t even have to leave their house to grocery shop anymore; they can just use their computer. The fact is that entertainment has made America into a very sedentary country, which Just like a friend’s influence on one’s behavior, entertainment has the capacity to destroy or strengthen one’s character. Someone can choose between entertainment with fleeting pleasure or lasting value. i. Maybe entertainment can ruin society because it is so distracting. For example, if kids and teenagers fill all of their time with entertainment instead of education, then how might this ruin society? ii. Maybe entertainment can ruin society by overturning morality. What are some ways that entertainment might change a society’s moral principles for the worst? For example, do violent video games cause people to believe that killing is not morally wrong? If so, how would this ruin a society? iii. Maybe, as your quote above claims, entertainment does dissolve the ties of social order. Does entertainment contribute to increased crime or civil unrest? Can you think of ways that entertainment directly or indirectly causes a society’s rule of law to break down?