Historical and political relation of anthropology with human rights Essay

From the onset, it is necessary to define anthropology as the social science that is involved with studying the inherent relationship patterns and origins of human beings. As a juxtaposition, the concept of human rights refers to the intrinsic freedoms and rights to which all and sundry (human beings) are entitled, if only by virtue of belonging to the human race, and these are broadly categorized into two main classifications, including the socio-cultural and economic rights, which pertain to the rights to education, food, work and participate in culture. The other distinct grouping of rights and freedoms are those of civil and political nature, encompassing the ideology of people being equal before the law, the right to liberty and life, and also, the freedom to freely express oneself, provided that this does not interfere with that of other people. It is noteworthy that the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights – a non-binding declaration by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948 – reiterates the equality of all humans as relates to their rights and dignity, further acknowledging that each individual was equipped with the vital tools of a rational conscience and logical reasoning, and thus, all subsequent inter-personal relationships ought to reflect a communal spirit of brotherly co-existence. This cognition is widely viewed as being the framework for justice, peace and freedom in the globe today (Goodale, 2004:18-29). From a historical perspective, the anthropologist is more concerned with deciphering the linkage between the afore-mentioned rights and the prevailing localized cultures, from whence an understanding of the basic outline of social justice against a backdrop of cultural relativism is investigated. The general concession is that indeed, deliberation into the historical aspects of anthropology reveals a contribution to both the practical and theoretical facets of human rights workings. Select case studies closely related to this postulation include the current crisis in the Middle East, pitting the Israelis against the inhabitants of the Gaza strip, the Rwandan genocide (Bowman, 2000:31-49) and the topical issue of gay rights in Southern Africa. The former predicament entails Israel devastating, over the recent past, a population of some 1. million inhabitants in Gaza, with their arms tied behind their backs, owing to the fact that there is no active army in Gaza. Statistics reveal that close to 1300 Palestinian casualties are on record, as opposed to a measly 13 Israelis in the raging conflict, largely regarded as a modern day case of ‘ethnic cleansing’. Since the year 2006, Israel placed a blockade into the Gaza region, thus inhibiting the delivery of necessities such as medicine, food and fuel. Previous attempts to foster harmony and well-being in the region, with cease-fires being disrespected severally, have led up to the present situation in which the stakeholders in the conflict, chief amongst which is the Hamas, the Islamic Palestinian socio-political faction that has been in control of the Gaza strip, and Israel itself, have agreed to permanently seek a lasting solution to avoid more bloodshed. The possible recommendations to aid in arriving at a peaceful co-existence is scenario where Israel takes the front row in ensuring a sense of hope to the Palestinians, via the action of taking the political risk and dismantling the illegal West Bank Settlements. On their part, Palestinians should institute measures to ensure they elect purposive leaders into power, if only to militate against the eventuality of history repeating itself iteratively. Hamas should in turn cease firing missiles into Israel, which only serve to wound and kill majority of the innocent civilians, and the large scale smuggling of arms, so as to avoid the likelihood of the situation degenerating into another â€Å"United States versus Al Qaeda† affair. Also, the other stakeholders in the conflict, namely Jordan and Egypt, should seal all loopholes that enable the military exploits of the Hamas to fall through. This being said, the International community should actively ensure they do not turn a deaf ear to the conflict, to be spearheaded by the United Nations and the European Union. The latter, in detail, involved South Africa holding its second, fully democratic elections in the year 1999, which were characterized by the recognition of a wide array of groups and previously neglected factions of the population, such as the gay and lesbian community. Earlier on, the country made history by pioneering non-discrimination on the basis of an individual’s sexual orientation, with gay and lesbian activists championing their cause by widely challenging the very constitutionality of laws that infringed on their freedoms, organizing workshops to educate voters on their rights, plus lobbying for the drafting and resultant implementation of rules and legislations guaranteeing equity in the rights of all citizens (Goodale, 2004:43-54). They also went a step further and created working relationships with non-governmental organizations like the Human Rights Commission and the Commission on Gender Equality, in addition to forming outreach programmes for the members of the gay and lesbian community, especially those that lived in townships. Of particular note is the fact that sodomy has been decriminalized before the South African courts, thus recording another victory in the war for adequate recognition of this community. Of significance is the assertion that, these developments were achieved even with the realization that the South African populace was still divided along ethnic and racial boundaries (Riches, 1986:16-29), and more importantly, within the indigenous cultural groupings in the country, homosexuality is deemed non-existent, or on the best case scenario, a foreign acquisition. Thus, in a nutshell, this case study can be assessed from the view that it not only shapes social patterns, but also, it is instrumental in the democratization of regimes, as influenced by the civil society. Yet another occurrence was witnessed in an iconic court case in Japan (2008), involving the challenging of the historical definition of whom the concept of â€Å"human rights† is meant to apply. The immediate bone of contention was that the court of the day had proceeded to expand the rights of the children of Japanese fathers and non-Japanese mothers to claim Japanese citizenship, and thus by extension, such definition by the justices in the case served to only ensure the protection of the fundamental human rights of Japanese citizens, excluding those of other non-citizens. In this way, this can be said to expressly alienate those people who did not have papers certifying their Japanese citizenship. However, this ought not to be the case, as the rights in question should be guaranteed to every human being, as the very name suggests. In a publication by one Professor Jones regarding this case, he posits that there is a sorry state of affairs in Japan, citing that the tendency of the Sovereign state to mediate the citizens’ claims against each other should be sharply contrasted against the Anglo-American system, which is characterized by human rights being the limiting factor of the state’s power over individuals. In this way, the case is illustrative of how culture and history can affect and/or influence human rights in society (Kurtz, 2001: 43-52). Whilst still appreciating the historical contribution of anthropology to human rights, it is worthwhile to take mention of the concept of hegemony, defined as the utter domination of a state over its allies, and how this has over time influenced historical changes, especially on the cultural frontier. As a focal point, hegemony facilitates the comprehension of power within the confines of routine daily activities, as may be underpinned by cultural (customary) practices (Asad, 1991:13-27). On a more positive note, it is fit to state that the anthropological theory has over the years succeeded to come up with a contested, unbounded and widely flexible supposition of the term, which consequently goes a long way in uncovering the cultural understandings and how these in turn shape power relations, naturalizing domination and acting to suppress different manifestations of resistance in the society (Gledhill, 2000:29-44). Again, drawing from the South African example, although in a different context, it can be established that, quite ironically, the evangelical work of missionaries can be termed as being part of hegemony, although it heightened societal consciousness, going on to spark a form of resistance that gave rise to the awareness of the black community, fuelling the fight against apartheid. Of particular contention is the debate whether, as an interpretive issue, resistance in society should require consciousness and be collective in nature, or whether on the other hand, an end of attaining justice should be envisioned from the onset. Also, it is disputable whether the concept at hand should be extended to incorporate such actions as may be influenced by a sense of non-cooperation or discontent. In the recent past, there has been great agitation in the anthropological circles, wherein the concept of culture has been scrutinized in detail. Earlier anthropologists focused chiefly on societies that were virtually unaffected by factors such as colonial influences, for example, but there’s light at the end of the tunnel since, today, greater emphasis is being laid on flexibility of the frame of thought of culture, as afore-mentioned, now not only being affiliated to habits and daily practices of a people, but also, being engrained in the values they abide to and the ideas subscribed to. In other instances, there have been historical documentations of indigenous communities confronting resistance from the perspective of laying claim to various resources, more so when these individuals are challenged to prove an authentic affiliation to the culture under consideration (Rejali, 1994:49-60); disqualification usually results from the assertion that certain social groups have already undergone cultural changes. In a strange twist, it can be seen that the concept of ‘culture’, as formulated by twentieth century anthropologists in a bid to champion the rights of small-scale communities in the wake of colonialism and other civilizing projects, has in present times been apposite to differing political ends of resisting reform in certain sectors and turning a deaf ear to the claims of indigenous people’s claims to reparation (compensation). On a transitional note, the political inclination of anthropology to human rights can be deduced by critical analysis of the two disciplines (Cohen, 1978:34-57). Such relationship necessitates a vivid conception of the said human rights within a template of anthropologically conceived ideas or principles. A brief intermission here is the appreciation that, as an academic discipline, anthropology seeks to study the various forms and bases of human unity and relative diversity, while the other side of this coin practically applies the acquired knowledge to actively solve problems that may plague the human race (Gledhill, 2000:59-83). This being the situation, politically-oriented anthropologists should concern themselves with instances where the denial of certain rights is pegged on the differences in one human aspect or the other. The validity of using ‘human difference’ as an indicator of human rights is that it incorporates the very specificity of what we as humans – be it collectively or from an individual stance – have evolved to be, both culturally and socially. It is worth noting that the term ‘difference’, as applied in this context, refers to the linguistic, socio-cultural and/or biological characteristics of people, relative to the initial human capacities that facilitated their production in the first place. On the flipside, as may relate to human rights, these ‘differences’ may principally represent the products of the realization of social relations, personal identities and cultural forms (Goodale, 2004:98-110). The general implication of the above argumentation is that specific human rights may be advocated for by calling upon the trans-cultural, but positive, right to difference. This analogy can be stretched further still by acknowledging the unwritten law that anthropologists who study and research instances of societal injustices and assorted cases of human rights abuses do, in the actual sense, bear an ethical obligation to find lasting solutions to these predicaments. In particular, those working with marginal and/or indigenous communities shoulder the responsibility of supporting these groups by all means available, including advocacy as mentioned above (Fried, 1967:61-69).

Analyse different types of business information and their sources Essay

Verbal communication is communicating a message verbally to whoever is receiving the message. An advantage of verbal communication is the opportunity for immediate feedback to make sure the message was understood. Another advantage is the opportunity to utilize nonverbal cues (tone, body language, inflection). These can apply to Barclays because it’s important for Barclays to receive immediate feedback which they can go on and improve on the Business. Also, Barclays will understand the message that is being given verbally even more clear because they’ll understand the body language of the person that is giving the message. A disadvantage of verbal communication is that the communication or message that was put across is not recorded (unless a video camera is used), this means that if there are any types of miscommunication such as an employee getting rude to a customer, there’s a high possibility that it won’t be recalled again. Another disadvantage of verbal communication is that it is harder to communicate around the world. These apply to Barclays because Barclays has to make sure that there verbal communication towards customers or employees are made clear meaning that they would have to outcome the disadvantage. Also, Barclays has many customers/employees around the world, this means that this is a disadvantage to them as it would be harder to communicate seeing as customers in other countries would be speaking a different language, meaning that Barclays would have to come up with a solution in order to ease verbal communication around the world. Written Communication Written communication means communication by means of written symbols either printed or handwritten. Advantages of written communication are that it is more accurate (errors can be corrected or content approved). Another advantage is that a physical record of the communication is made. These can apply to Barclays because Barclays has to make sure that their communication is as clear as it gets for their terms & conditions pages, and written communication makes this easy for them as there is a high possibility that they won’t make mistakes. Another way these benefit Barclays is that when there is written communication made, there is a physical record of the communication meaning that there won’t be any mistakes in communication between the employees and customers, also customers can refer back to these  communications. A disadvantage of written communication is that written communication takes more time and is more expensive to prepare because of printing letters about outstanding loan payments which leads to higher costs because of the printing and stamps to send these letters. Also, another disadvantage is that there aren’t any types of immediate feedback. These can apply to Barclays because Barclays rely on time and don’t have much of it which means that they have to decrease the amount of written communication. Barclays mostly rely on feedback, with written communication there isn’t immediate feedback meaning that this would be a disadvantage for Barclays. Multi-media/ On-screen Information Multi-media/ On-screen Information is media on new technologies such as text messaging. This can apply to many companies in today’s society. An advantage of Multi-media communication is that the information can be spread to a lot of people at one time. This applies to Barclays because they usually have many meetings, and in them meetings they can use a projector showing a presentation which allows all members in the meeting so see. Another advantage of Multi-media communication is that it’s cheaper to use. This applies to companies like Barclays, instead of Barclays sending information via a paper based system which costs more; they can distribute information to their customers through multimedia communication. A disadvantage of multimedia communication is that many of the elderly in today’s society may not know how to work and understand the technologies used in today’s society. This applies to Barclays because Barclays may use text messaging to their customers and some of their customers may be elderly people. Another disadvantage is that not all people in the world have access to multimedia communication. This applies to Barclays because Barclays now provide services of online banking, and text messaging to their customers, however not all of their customers may have access to multimedia communication meaning that Barclays would still have to use a paper based system for some of their customers which leads to more expenses seeing as it is expensive to maintain. Web-based Information Web-based information shows many benefits of multimedia technology. With the  fast broadband connections in today’s society, it is possible to stream sophisticated content to a computer anywhere in the world. A significant amount of interactive multimedia content is now delivered via the internet through web-sites such as www.barclays.co.uk. This is an advantage for many people and businesses as the information can be received and read wherever and whenever it is convenient for the person/business. This applies to Barclays because they can send information to their employees from anywhere which can be read by the employee at any given time. Another advantage of web-based information is that it is easier to distribute information through it. This applies to Barclays because if Barclays is to have a change into how the business operates and needs to inform their employees, they can easily distribute the information on the web to their employees. A disadvantage of web-based information is that not everyone can access the web. This applies to Barclays because Barclay’s employees may need some information from Barclays on any new information or changes to Barclays, however some of employees may not have access to web based information meaning that Barclays will have to distribute information through paper based information. Another disadvantage of web-based information is that it can be led to misinterpretation. This applies to Barclays because if information is distributed to customers/employees, because it’s through a web based service, the customers or employees may not understand it properly. One other disadvantage is that if the systems of Barclays crashes, it could mean that customers would not be able to access the website. This leads to unpleasant customers whom may write complaints to Barclays. Internal Sources of Information Internal sources of information are those which can give valuable information regarding the organization from within. For example, a business like Barclays can give new employees an insight of information regarding how the business operates. An advantage of internal source is that the information is most likely to be accurate because the source of the information is from within the company its-self which is reliable. Another advantage of internal source of information is that it can be shared amongst other departments and created analysed by experts with in that type of field. For example, financial reports are created and analysed. Disadvantages of internal  sources of information are that it can be costly to produce, for example many people are employed on a specific job to just collect and analyse data. This means that this could actually be cheaper for external companies to do it for them instead. External Sources of Information External sources of information is secondary research, for example if a business like Barclays wanted to find out information about one of their competitors such as Santander, but Santander doesn’t want to pass any information out to Barclays, Barclays would then ask a different organisation to collect as much information about Santander. Pros of secondary research is that the information already exists meaning that this will save time. Another pro is that it is usually cheaper to get secondary research instead of primary research which will save company money. Cons of secondary research are that in some cases, it is usually expensive as well (scanner data). You may have less control over how the data was collected. With secondary research, there could also be biases in the data that you don’t know about. Also another con of this is that the answers may not exactly fit in your research questions. This applies to Barclays because if Barclays was to require information ab out their competitors, they’d refer back to a different organisation to find this information out.

“Inevitable vs. Amendable” Essay

The film â€Å"Inequality for All† tries to explain; what is the current status of the distribution of wealth and that of income equality? Why this is happening and if this is a problem. Yes, as stated in the film, social inequality is inevitable. But, there is without a doubt a problem with United States distribution of wealth. One of the facts that really opened my eyes was the fact that the 400 richest Americans, together hold more wealth than the poorest 150 million Americans have together. This said, it is scary to think about how obscure was the knowledge we had on the one percent with given how much economic influence they have. The minimum wages vs. growth of productivity graph is one that I found very interesting. Why is â€Å"just† in today’s society to be part a more productive workforce that gets paid less than the workforce we had a few decades ago? The line graph for productivity growth is rising every year, meaning that more work is being done. On the other hand, the minimum wages growth rates were rising but after a while they seem to have plateau and they have been like this for about 30 years. Advances in globalization and technology are also inevitable because it is simple economics that a product shall be produced in the cheapest way possible. Yes, technology does create jobs but as we see in the film companies like Amazon are also opting to operate with high tech machinery instead of the traditional assembly line. Women going to work, general workforce working for longer hours and borrowing money from the financial sectors are coping mechanisms that the middle class used to keep up with their good lifestyles, but in my opinion these are more like defense mechanisms in order to survive in the concrete jungle with the same wages they had 30 years ago. One other comparison that I liked was how the widening inequality leads to a deficiency cycle and when the wealth is equally distributed economic stability is transfused from sector to sector creating a domino effect leading to a virtuous cycle.

Social Work Practice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Social Work Practice - Essay Example Ethical practices on the other hand are values that offer a community organization directives for action gotten from the desired outcomes (Dolgoff, et al, 2008). Ethical practices most often are activities that pertain to clinical work with individuals. It is however important to regards ethical practices as helpful to a community organization in it struggle for social justice. Looked at carefully, there is no doubt that there exist an ethical dilemma regarding the silence among the workers on the best intervention to solve the escalating problem of homeless in the community. In this regard, I am referring to the community indifference on the problem of homeless, a situation that should not persist in the first place because there is already a community organization operating in the area. It is particularly disgusting that community members have decided to look the other way to a community problem instead of confronting it head-on as is supposed to be the case. In looking at this ethical dilemma, I have decided to first identify the ethical principle defining the dilemma I am faced with using the Loewenberg and Dolgoff’s ethical principle screen. In doing so, I have identified two ethical principles in the Loewenberg and Dolgoff’s ethical principle screen namely; ethical principles of the protection of life, equality and inequality, and a dec ent quality of life. From the case there is no doubt that a problem of exclusivity exists in this organization. This exclusivity has taken the shape of racism that in all intent and purposes in dangerous to the organization, especially bearing in mind that this organization serves people of different races. There is no doubt that I am new in the organization and not even fully and permanently employed and therefore my ideas and suggestion might be b e taken with a degree of contempt. It is also not in doubt that the workforce as is currently constituted is unlikely to appreciate and accommodate some

Supply Chain Management and Aggregate Planning Essay

Supply Chain Management and Aggregate Planning - Essay Example The supply chain idea basically changes the nature of organizations; control is no longer based on straight ownership and control, but rather based on incorporation across interfaces among functions and companies. This has penalty for the dimension of performance. Traditional dimension approaches may have to be eliminated and a supply chain measurement system developed. Traditional performance actions may limit the potential to optimize supply chains as management does not "see" supply chain wide areas for development. This note raises issues dangerous to measuring supply chain performance. A new dimension approach ought to lead the way for supply chain competitiveness and ought to direct management attention to areas for supply chain optimisation. A beginning structure for measuring immeasurable performance is developed. "One can frequently divide the work a program does into theoretically separate tasks: each encapsulates a control flow and the whole task accesses some common, shared state. High-performance program frequently written with preventative task management wherein implementation of task can intersperse on uniprocessors or over lap on multi processors. The conflicting approach, serial task Management, run each tasks to attainment before starting the next task. Its advantage is that there is no divergence of access of the shared state, one can define inter-task invariant on the shared state and be assured that as the one task is running no other variants can infringe the invariant. The strategy is unsuitable however when one wishes to exploit multiprocessors parallelism, or when slow task have to not defer afterward task for a long time." (Adya, Howell, Theimer, Bolosky, Douceur, 2000) Aggregate planning: Once the strategic choice has been made operation manger move to the planned operations decisions. No doubt, aggregate planning deals with planning the in general production activities and the operating resources required to do them. The arrogate plan provides a big picture to operation manager of the sales insist forecast and capacity plan, aggregate plan establishes account levels and manufacturing rates Conclusion To sum up this discussion we may say that the supply chain concept basically changes the nature of organizations; control is no longer based on direct possession and control, but rather based on incorporation across interfaces connecting functions and companies. Traditional performance events may limit the potential to optimize supply chains as management does not "see" supply chain wide areas for development. A new dimension approach should lead the way for supply chain competitiveness and ought to direct management notice to areas for supply chain optimization. A introduction scaffold for measuring vast performance is developed. Work Cited Arntzen, B., G. Brown, T. P. Harrison and L. Trafton, "Global Supply-Chain Management at Digital Equipment Corporation," Interfaces 25, January 1995, 69-93. Breitman, R.L. and J.M. Lucas, "PLANETS: A Modelling System for Business Planning," Interfaces 17, January-February 1987, 94-106. Chapman, Paul T., "Achieving Operations Excellence Through Better Operations Planning," IIE Solutions, August 1996. 1-7 Chen,

The Presidency of Abraham Lincoln Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Presidency of Abraham Lincoln - Essay Example Abraham Lincoln was a fierce opponent of slavery. He joined the newly formed Republican Party due to its anti-slavery platform. As a U.S. Senator from Illinois, Lincoln was concerned about the institution of slavery being expanding into newly formed states in the west. In June of 1858 he gave the famous â€Å"house divided† acceptance speech following his election to the Senate affirming his belief that â€Å"this government cannot endure, permanently, half slave and half free.† (Hubbard, 1998). Because of his very public stance against the institution of slavery, his election as president was not acceptable to southern states, seven of which broke off from the Union prior to the inauguration. Lincoln’s first act as president was to call up 75,000 soldiers to stop the Southern revolt. Refusing to send troops that would fight their southern neighbors, claiming Lincoln has exceeded his constitutional authority; Tennessee, Arkansas and Virginia seceded as well joini ng the Confederate States of America. Lincoln did not know much about military matters so he educated himself on the subject by reading books on military history. He had no formal education but was a learned man and became a lawyer by reading books so this was an effective method for him. Lincoln sent a supply ship to Fort Sumter located in South Carolina to fortify Union troops stationed in what Southerners now considered a different country, their own. The Civil War officially began when southern troops fired on the ship and fort. Two months later, in an effort to quickly end the war, Lincoln ordered the army to capture Richmond, Virginia, the Confederate capital but the Union was badly defeated on their way in the small town of Manassas, Virginia. Lincoln then realized the war would be protracted so signed a bill into law that called for the enlistment of half a million more troops for a three year period. Lincoln proved to be a capable military tactician and, for the most part, chose effective field commanders. Gener al George McClellan, commander of the biggest Union army, was a favorite of the troops but not Lincoln who was frustrated with McClellan’s unwillingness to advance against the Confederate army. Lincoln relieved McClellan of his command when he did not pursue the retreating Confederates following the 1862 Union victory at Antietam. (â€Å"Abraham,† 2012). Lincoln created a great deal of controversy when he suspended the right of habeas corpus (due process of law) in 1861 when Congress was not in session. He had already ended civil law in some areas but regarded these drastic, many correctly called unconstitutional, measures as necessary steps in the war effort. Lincoln revealed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 following the Battle of Antietam which freed the slaves but Southern states ignored it at the time. Two significant Union successes in the summer of 1863 at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania and Vicksburg, Mississippi finally gave the Union an advantage. Lincoln made General and future president Ulysses S. Grant the Union forces Supreme Commander in 1864 due to his decisive victory at Vicksburg. General George Meade had been expected to receive the title but missed his opportunity when the troops under his command did not deliver a decisive

Should the USA continue its policy of encouraging less developed Essay

Should the USA continue its policy of encouraging less developed countries to adopt democracy and capitalism - Essay Example This is because democracy offers citizens greater political stability, enhanced quality of living, greater individual liberty as well as freedom from any governmental violence. By adopting capitalism, the citizens of less developed countries are able to benefit from the fact that capitalism tends to greatly promote competition and innovation. Capitalism can offer the citizens of less developed countries more choices as well as the very best opportunities that they can be able to use to improve their living standards. These factors are seen to the fostering of greater economic freedom. Another key benefit of promoting capitalism in the less developed countries is that not only does capitalism foster competition, it also benefits these countries as it spurs the companies within them to innovate and develop far better products that will cause for there to be more goods and services in the market a factor that helps in keeping the prices of commodities at low levels. Democratic political systems often tend to enjoy far greater prosperity over longer time periods as compared to other systems. As democracy spreads, more individuals in less developed countries are likely to start enjoying greater economic benefits. While authoritarian regimes are able to compile impressive short-run economic records, they are rarely able to sustain these rates of growth for long time

Leadership and change Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Leadership and change - Assignment Example I exhibit a high level of confidence in situations that require leadership. I have confidence in my ability to deliver exceptional results from any situation. My confidence complements my decision-making skills especially in situations that need quick and real-time decisions. I have the ability to use the available resources in any task to deliver outstanding outcomes. I show a high level of organization when accomplishing leadership roles. In all situations, I try to plan and to apply a high level of order during all tasks. When planning, I set ambitious yet achievable goals that help to create an optimal level of operation and diligence. As a leader, I display flexibility in all situations. Being flexible helps to change strategies and plans whenever unexpected problems or challenges crop up. Flexibility helps me to adapt to uncomfortable environments or situation. Being flexible is useful when using feedback and new information to improve or change processes or policies. I apply a high level of fairness and equality when handling the people I lead. I make sure that all people are treated with respect despite their roles or position. Finally, I have the ability to encourage and motivate other people to work towards a common goal. My weakness during situations of leadership is that I have poor negotiation skills. During negotiations, I usually fail to recognize some factors that have a huge bearing on the process and the final outcomes. I have problems handling presentations.

Disease and health Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Disease and health - Case Study Example This paper, therefore examines certain aspects and issues in sexually transmitted diseases by trying answer the question on the extent sexual contact has played in the spread of STDs by looking at the keys issues affecting the topic, possible future scenarios and offering various interventions measures that can be applied in solving the issues (Shoquist & Stafford, 2004). Sexually transmitted diseases remain the most dangerous and prevalent health issues affecting many individuals especially youths in our society today. The society has taken a large stance in promoting abstinence in key issues related to sexual activities in the society. The results has however been drastic because the failure of explaining issues on the topic of sex has led to key issues which contributes to the spread of the sexually transmitted diseases among youths and the society at large. This has been caused as result of the sensitive nature of the topic as many individuals engage in sexual activities therefore finding it difficult to openly discuss the topic amongst themselves and to the younger generations in particular (Greenwood, 2012). The different issues affecting the spread of sexually transmitted diseases are biological factors. STDs are known to be acquired by having unprotected sex with an infected partners and due to the fact that majority of STDs do not show symptoms at early stage, many of those who are infected can not tell that they need medical treatment. Moreover for those who are not infected it becomes extremely difficult to identify those with the infections. In relating to the issue of gender disparities, women constitute a large percentage of those suffering from complex sexually transmitted diseases than men. This is normally so because of the severity of the effects of STDs on them. Likewise, in relating to age disparity issue, youths are the ones prone to contact sexually disease more than adults because of the numerous sexually partners they have. In

Crime and Punishment Essay Example for Free

Crime and Punishment Essay The saying that crime does not pay lies at the heart of a great deal of literature and many films. It appears in a large number of fairy tales and childrens story. This is to teach children from an early age that it is wrong to commit a crime, no matter how small, and that every criminal is eventually punished. Of course this is not true, many crimes, especially smaller crimes, are never punished. This can either be because no one has discovered a crime was committed or because there was no punishment fit for the criminal. For instance, because the criminal wasnt conscious of committing the crime (mentally retarded, been drugged etc), because he is a minor and has a clean record or even because he is dying or deceased. However the criminal can be punished by other members of society as well and/or instead of by law. This would be in the form of revenge. Then there is self-inflicted punishment. Criminals often feel guilty and this can drive them to depression, sometimes leading them to inflict physical pain on themselves or to commit suicide. If the criminal is Christian or Moslem, he will also have to endure the thought of going to Hell. If the criminal is Hindu or Buddhist, he will know he is destroying his chance for a good rebirth, dirtying and ruining his karma, which will cause him to suffer for lifetimes to come. Criminal acts might in the short run satisfy them or fill their pockets, will in the long run, from a spiritual perspective, hurt the criminal. Indeed, in the long term, and from the moral and ethical, psychological and spiritual points of view, it appears to be almost always true that Crime does not pay. Literature often portrays reality; therefore this moral is present a great deal. Examples of crimes that are punished more by psychological means appear in The Millers Tale in Geoffrey Chaucers The Canterbury Tales. This was written before the 15th Century yet it already refers to crimes that were not punished by law but indirectly by the general public. This tale is of a rich carpenter, his newly wed young wife, Alison, and his lodger. The carpenter is an old, jealous man who doesnt give his wife any freedom for the fear she will cheat on him. The lodger, Nicholas, is always after women and he soon flirts with the beautiful Alison. She soon falls in love with him and they decide to trick the carpenter so they can sleep together. Nicholas, who is fascinated by astrology, tells the carpenter that by studying the moon he  found out that in an hour there will be a great flood and the world will be drowned. The carpenter, who is sworn to secrecy, believes him and obeys his orders. He hangs up three kneading-troughs in the attic which are to be used as boats and at night the three of them get in their boats. The carpenter falls in a deep sleep after all his work so he doesnt know the two lovers have secretly gone downstairs to bed. However Absalon, a young parish clerk who is in love with the carpenters wife, hears that the carpenter hasnt been to work since Saturday. He uses this as an opportunity to tell Alison, through the bedroom window, of his love for her. After being told to leave, he agrees on the condition that she gives him one kiss. She consents but tricks him and he comes to learn that he has kissed a completely different part of her body. To take revenge, Absalon comes back with a hot iron and tells Alison he wants to give her a golden ring in exchange for another kiss. This time its Nicholass bottom that appears out of the window and is subsequently branded with the hot iron. His screaming awakens the carpenter who thinks the flood has started and cuts the rope tied to his tub. The boat falls and the carpenter breaks an arm and starts screaming that the world is flooding. Nicholas and Alison use this occasion to make him out as mad and for the rest of his life, nothing the carpenter says will chan ge this in the eyes of the public. He is treated as a reject but his wife is also mocked for being married to him. Notice that ever single character is punished by some means. The carpenter is mocked and cannot ever live a normal life again. He is forced to live with wife who betrayed him and will forever be considered a madman. It is clearly shown on page 106, that no one believed the carpenter: No matter what the carpenter asserted it went for nothing, no one was converted. He also has a broken arm and many bruises. His wife is also teased for living with him and has to endure the guilt of her criminal actions and their consequences. Nicholas is also humiliated and he is branded for life. Absalons punishment was being tricked into kissing Alisons bottom. He has to live with the shame of this and that he was rejected by Alison. The characters mentioned above all committed a crime: Alison committed adultery, Nicholas deliberately made Alison cheat on her husband and Absalon  also tried but failed. Nicholas and Alison furthermore lied to Absalon and the carpenter. They lied to the whole neighbourhood saying the latter was mad. Lying is not a crime that can be punished by law but it is still wrong. In Christianity and many other religions, it is thought of as a sin. It is to be debated whether Absalon also committed another crime: branding Nicholas with a hot iron. In doing this, Absalon was taking revenge for a crime that had been committed against him; a crime that would not be grave enough to be punished by law. By chance, Absalon was taking revenge on a character who had also committed other crimes. For this reason, the author might have excused Absalons drastic action against Nicholas and therefore given him the lightest punishment. According to the Chaucer, the carpenters crime was to marry a much younger and very beautiful young woman and then to forbid her of her freedom. He did not think of her feelings. Chaucer quotes at the bottom of page 89:A man should marry someone like himself; A man should pick an equal for his mate. Youth and old age are often in debate. However, he had fallen in the snare, And had to bear his cross as others bare.Here Chaucer already predicts that Alison is going to cheat on her husband. The carpenter fell in the trap and now he has to bear the consequences. Indeed, all the characters mentioned above committed a crime and quickly learnt that crime does not pay. They were all psychologically and often also physically punished. I wanted to see if the quote crime does not pay also applies in The shipmans tale. This tale tells of a kind, generous merchant who was married to a beautiful woman. This merchant was on very good terms with a monk, Sir John, and invited him to stay for dinner, some days before he was to leave on business. The monk stayed with them for a few days but one morning when he was speaking to Sir Johns wife, she poured out all her sorrows to him. She told him she wished she were dead and that she had no respect for her husband, she hated him, because he neglected her. She then asked the monk for a hundred francs so she could look smart and do my husband honour (page 162). The monk promised to lend her the money. However, he then privately  asked the merchant for the same amount using the reason that he wanted to buy some cattle. The merchant lent it to him and swore not to reveal the monks debt. When the merchant left, Sir John visited the wife and gave her the money in exchange for her keeping him company at night. The merchant then came back and asked the monk for his money but learnt from him that the money had already been returned to his wife. The merchant felt he had been rude and reprimanded his wife for not telling him the debt had been paid. His wife then explained the situation, cursed the monk for having broken his promise and told her husband she needed the money because he didnt supply her with enough. She asked for forgiveness. Her husband forgave her but asked her not to be so extravagant again (page 168). The obvious crimes here are adultery and breaking a promise. Both the merchants wife and Sir John are guilty of this. It is possible but unlikely, that the merchant committed the crime of not caring for his wife properly. The merchant is described as generous and though he might not always be at home with his wife, this is because he is earning money to support his wife and himself. However, he has the worst deal at the end of the tale: he loses hundred francs. The wifes punishment is that her secret is found out and she is shamed in front of her husband. It is not a heavy punishment but then she only cheated on her husband once. In addition, she has to live with the guilt of what she has done. Maybe she even has to sacrifice something in exchange for spending her husbands money on herself. Sir Johns only punishment is that he is now not regarded in the same light as before. He is also insulted by the merchants wife, but it is debatable whether this is a punishment as he did not have the humiliation of hearing himself be insulted. I think it is difficult to decide whether this moral also applies for The Shipmans tale. It depends who one thinks is guilty of committing a crime. The husband has learnt his lesson: to watch over his wife more closely. The wife learns she has done a foolish thing and will hopefully, for the merchant, now live a better life. However, not much ill seems to befall the monk. Of course, we could argue that he was only trying to help the merchant and his wife. He went too far in cheating on the merchant but he will presumably feel the consequences: his relationship with the merchant and his  wife will not be the same again. Therefore, I think the moral also applies for this tale, but it is not as obvious. I believe the moral that crime does not pay is present not only lies at the heart of a great deal of literature, but also in many films, comics and stories told by mouth. This is important as nowadays people no longer act morally only because they are afraid of God or of hell. Today, atheists are tolerated and many who are religious do not believe every word in the Bible, they no longer fear the word hell. Therefore, to keep society working peacefully, one needs to teach people to be morally good and to teach them that if they dont, they will be punished. Often, one is not punished for doing something morally wrong. This fact is often hidden, to encourage people to commit fewer or no crimes because they believe every crime will have a bad consequence. People, especially children, are taught this, often indirectly, through reading, watching films and hearing about personal experiences where the criminal eventually paid for his crime.

Changing Scene Of Healthcare Adminstration

Changing Scene Of Healthcare Adminstration This paper will focus on the changing scene of the healthcare environment. The health care industry is a challenging and gruesome environment. Healthcare providers must ensure that patients are provided with the best care. There are many challenges that managers face in an environment that change on a daily basis. Healthcare managers must be ready to face take on these changes so that their organizations maintains a competitive edge. Organizations continue to pursue new challenges so that they can compete in the global marketplace, they often conclude that multidisciplinary teams are needed to develop innovative products and services and respond to customers interested in a broad range of products and services (Liebler McConnell, 2008). When a manager is taking on a new task of managing split departments he or she must be able to lead and communicate effectively. A lack of communication can be the main cause a manager fails in their new role. Multidisciplinary teams provide a structure for bringing together employees with the diverse technical backgrounds needed for these tasks. The increasing popularity of team-based organizational structures reflects the widely shared belief that teamwork offers the potential to achieve outcomes that could not be achieved by individuals working in isolation (Liebler McConnell, 2008). Healthcare managers that are in charge of split departments must determine what goals the department will need to meet. This can be done through carefully analyzing the specific attributes and qualities of the department. Senior level managers should establish team leaders that can ensure department employees have the necessary resources they need to accomplish the mission. As they restructure around multidisciplinary teams, however, many organizations are discovering that teams do not always produce the desired results. Even when teams fulfill their potential, team members and their organizations may experience unanticipated negative side-effects, such as unproductive conflict and high turnover (Liebler McConnell, 2008). Below is a list of task and responsibility that split level department managers will need to conduct, due to changes within the organization. Approving more time cards Conducting a larger number of performance appraisals Providing senior employees with leadership responsibilities over teams Establishing a diverse environment Setting performance measures for the employees to meet Creating new performance standards Creating new position descriptions Creating a travel schedule so that management can visit employees at other facilities. Healthcare managers conduct the following task listed above on a daily basis and these task will change when the new managers is responsible for multidisciplinary departments. The managers will have to understand the basic foundation of each specialty that he or she is responsibility within their department. Employees will need to receive diversity training on an annual or semi-annual term. Managers will need to determine ways in which grievances can be solved without disrupting the work-flow of the organization. The main goal is for a split department manager to achieve is to ensure the mission and the objectives of the organization is achieved while maintain customer and patient satisfaction. What does this split-department situation do to your efficiency as a manager and how can you compensate for this change? A manager that is new to operating a split-department can have a low efficiency rate at first. The reason being is that the manager might not understand his or her new role and responsibility. Managers will need to undergo transitional training. This training can be for a month, so that when the new manager takes over their new role, they have a clear understanding of the requirements; they will need to be successful in the new position. The efficiency of the department can also be determined by the number of supervisors the employee reports too. In many cases, when there is more than one manager, giving the employee guidance on task it can become confusing for the employee and may lead to a deficiency in work performance. Unity of command is increasingly regarded as something of a theoretical ideal in that in many instances it is being abandoned in favor of split-reporting relationships in which a single subordinate reports to two or more superiors (Jacobs, Smith, Street, 2006). The ability to maintain a split department that has a high efficiency rate will be based on the managerà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s communication and leadership skills. Managers who do not communicate with their employees will never witness high efficiency levels within their department. Newly appointed split department managers will have to deal with resistance. Resistance to change will never be completely eliminated. In many cases employees will need to be flexible and adapt to change as change occurs within the organization. It is critical that managers have full knowledge and understanding of what is happening and why it is happening are the strongest forces the manager can bring to bear on the problems of resistance to change. On what specific management skill should the newly appointed split department manager be concentrating? A newly appointed split department manager must possess excellent communication skills. Communication skills are critical in a healthcare organization. Effective communication is about sending a message to a receiver that is clear and understandable. When the receiver does not understand the message being sent the task being requested cannot be successful completed. Communication in the healthcare environment is critical and can be the determination of life and death for a patient. When information is not passed along correctly patient may receive the wrong prescription or they may have surgery performed on the wrong site. It is important that managers inform employees of the importance of providing accurate and clear communication. In a recent survey of recruiters from companies with more than 50,000 employees, communication skills were cited as the single more important decisive factor in choosing managers. The survey, conducted by the University of Pittsburghà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s Katz Business School, points out that communication skills, including written and oral presentations, as well as an ability to work with others, are the main factor contributing to job success (Mulrennan, 2010). Case: In need of improvement Operating deficiencies can deter the progress of the organization. It is critical that managers identify problems as they occur so that they can be resolved at the lowest level. The reason for the massive restructure is so that the department can account for items that are being provided. The following measures listed below will be implemented immediately and management will work as a team to ensure these measures happen in a timely manner. The next re-evaluation of the department will be conducted in 30 days. The following measures will be taken in order to improve the current structure of the department. A justification will be written as to why another processing aide is needed. The current work load will be analyzed to determine whether the justification for another processor is appropriate. An inventory management program that is replicated from the department of veteran affairs regulations will be created. Only a 30 day inventory level will be maintained in stock. The inventory specialist and the manager will conduct an inventory every month. Appropriate re-order levels will be set so that items will not complete run out. Management will develop a plan for organizing the current work environment so that space can be utilized effectively. Once the new guidelines are implemented, managers must monitor the implementation of the change to ensure it will work long-term. A new work method, dependent for its success on willing adoption by individual employees, can be introduced in a burst of enthusiasm only to die of its own weight as the novelty wears off and old habits return. New habits are not easily formed, and the employees need all the help the manager can furnish through conscientious follow-up (Liebler McConnell, 2008). Classic management functions Manager at all levels have five basic management functions that they must follow in order to successful operate an organization. These functions have been used for many years and have enable managers to be successful. When these functions are used incorrectly organizations will suffer from lack of productivity. Planning is the first management function. This is a critical function and involves developing the mission and what goals the organization is going to accomplish. Managers must plan for the success of the organization by evaluating all areas of the organization. Through this evaluation managers will be able to determine what areas are weak and strong. An example of planning would be when healthcare managers are moving an entire department to another floor. Managers will need to plan the move with engineering and IT so that work stations and furniture gets moved to the correct location (Marquis, Huston, 2008). Planning the move of an entire department will require constant communication on the immediate supervisorà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s part. He or she will need to keep employees constantly informed on the status of the move. Organizing is the second management function. Mangers will need to use the organizing function when trying to plan effectively. When managers are planning to move one department to another floor, they must create a timeline so that the move will be organized according to a schedule. This timeline will provide employees with a start and end date of the move. Manager can also organize a schedule on what section will be moving first and who will be moving last. Staffing is the third management function. It requires filling and keeping filled with qualified people all positions in the business. Recruiting, hiring, training, evaluating and compensating are the specific activities included in the function (Marquis, Huston, 2008). Managers will need to ensure they are interviewing and hiring qualified candidates for the positions they have vacant. An example of staffing is when a logistic manager is conducting performance appraisals on his or her employees. Managers who conduct performance appraisal will be keeping employees informed on the progress they have been making while working for the organization. Directing is the fourth management function and requires influencing peoples behavior through motivation, communication, group dynamics, leadership and discipline. It is critical that managers have excellent leadership and communication skills. Senior level managers who have the responsibility of directing junior mangers will need to communicate with them on a regular basis, so those employees are aware of the organizations status. Healthcare managers can also provide leadership training to those mid-level managers who might be having a difficult time leading and communicating with their employees. The purpose of directing is to channel the behavior of all personnel to accomplish the organizations mission and objectives while simultaneously helping them accomplish their own career objectives. An example of directing is when a team leader directs their subordinate to accomplish a task within a specific timeframe. In order for the manger to be successful with direct leadership authority they must provide the employees with the necessary resources they will need to accomplish the mission. Controlling is the fifth management function. Managers can develop performance standards in order to implement this function. Controlling is a four-step process of establishing performance standards based on the firms objectives, measuring and reporting actual performance, comparing the two, and taking corrective or preventive action as necessary. Managers are responsible for controlling the daily operations of their departments. In many cases when an employee cannot control a problem from erupting they will normally involve their manager. All managers must have the capability of solving problems that may arise within the organization. Since planning is an active pursuit, how can doing nothing be indicative of planning to fail? Managers are required to plan for worst case scenarios. When managers do not plan for the problems they may foresee in the future they have set the organization up for failure. The reason being is that when these problems occur managers will not know how to handle or solve the problems. Therefore the problem will escalate and may eventually cause harm on the organizations operations. What is one legitimate example of organizing that the department manager may never encounter or may perhaps encounter only once in a great while? And one example of organizing that the department manager may employ multiple times in a normal workday? The department manager may have to organize an event that will allow multiple disciplines to come together and work on their customer service or team building skills. An example of organizing that the department manager may employ multiple times in a normal workday is when a manager organizes the employeeà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s workload for that day or the next day. What is the management function most closely associated with teaching, guiding, and motivating workers? Directing is the management function that is closely associated with teaching, guiding and motivating others. It is important that managers provide guidance and direction over their employees so that the daily task of the organization can be accomplished in a timely manner. In conclusion the healthcare industry is constantly changing. Healthcare managers must train their employees to adapt to change so that productivity can continue to increase. The five management functions that were explained earlier can be used to strengthen any organization from the ground up. Communication and leadership skills are essential if managers are going to succeed in training and maintain a workforce that can satisfy patients and employees.