The End of the Road

â€Å"Hell, And How I Got Here† by Brenda Medina and â€Å"Puzzle Pieces† by Barbara Parsons Lane are two short stories from the book Couldn’t Keep It To Myself by Wally Lamb. Medina and Lane are two women who are serving time in a maximum security prison. Brenda Lane is serving time for homicide and Barbara Parsons Lane is serving time for manslaughter. Brenda was involved in a gang-related killing while Barbara was convicted of killing her abusive husband. Each of these women lived their lives being subjected to abuse, yet each woman portrayed themselves differently.Brenda was determined to gain power and not feel like an outsider in her own life. She was determined to take control and she was longer going to be the â€Å"odd girl out† (148). Barbara was living life as a victim and saw only one way to end the abuse. She was victimized in a way that made her feel as if she had no way of escaping her nightmare. Brenda found ways to empower herself in order to find a place in the world as Barbara was belittled to the point where she felt she was too weak to be able to walk away . In â€Å"Hell, And How I Got Here,† Brenda went through life finding ways to gain power.Brenda felt like an outsider for much of her childhood. She spent many unhappy years at a private school, feeling that she didn’t belong. It was not until her high school years, that she finally felt liberated. It was at this time of her life when Brenda started trying to find ways to empower herself and gain the status she was dreaming of. During high school, Brenda started dating Manny, a member of a local gang, The Unidad. Brenda recalled that from the age of fourteen until she went to prison at the age of seventeen, â€Å"Manny ran through my veins† (152).Even though her mother disapproved of Manny, Brenda dated Manny, the boy with the â€Å"outlaw aura. † Going against her mother’s wishes made Brenda feel powerful. She was going to r un her own life from now on. As a child, Barbara was a lost little girl, just like Brenda. Her life was full of disappointments. At the age of four, Barbara was molested by a man she trusted, her grandfather. Looking for support and comfort, Barbara was finally able to find the strength to confide in her mother about what her grandfather had done to her.Instead of comfort, Barbara was told by her mother to never mention the molestation to anyone. â€Å"Don’t you ever say a word† (218). So she didn’t. Barbara became a quiet but a very angry little girl. Barbara’s mother was later diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and later hospitalized. Barbara was left to tend to the house she still shared with her alcoholic father and her two siblings. She had no one to go to and no one to talk to. Barbara resented her mother’s illness. She said the â€Å"illness had freed her brother and sister and made me a slave† (220).Barbara was the one left after her brother and sister moved out. Many years later, Barbara’s mother committed suicide. While dealing with her mother’s death, Barbara confided in her Aunt Ruth about her grandfather molesting her at a young age. Aunt Ruth told Barbara was molested by the same man, her father. Barbara did not understand why her mother just stood and watched while Barbara walked away, hand in hand, with the man she knew all too well. Two years before her mother took her own life, Barbara got married for the second time. She married a younger man named Mark.The disease she resented earlier in life was about to resurface and, once again, make her feel trapped. During their relationship, Manny grew to become controlling and abusive towards Brenda. He began to dictate the people she was allowed to see and what she could wear. Screaming at her after he ripped the skirt off of her, Manny yelled, â€Å"No girl of mine’s gonna strut herself like a little slut! † (161) Manny also b ecame physically and started cheating on Brenda as well. Anytime Brenda threatened to break up with Manny, he begged and cried for her to stay.Brenda always stayed and she always forgave him. She loved to hear Manny tell her how much her loved and that he only wanted him for herself. Brenda loved the feeling she had by hearing Manny beg for to stay. She felt powerful. Feeling anything but powerful, Barbara was beginning to live a life of being controlled by an abusive husband. Mark became abusive emotionally and physically towards Barbara. The things he said to her were intended to make her feel insignificant and make her feel that she had no choice but to stay. â€Å"Some days he drinks from noon until late at night.If I challenge him or question him, I’m told I’m an ‘inconvenience’—his code for: watch out† (225). Being told she was an inconvenience by her husband happened on a regular basis. Mark was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, j ust like her mother. He drank alcohol in order to medicate himself and began having an affair with a fifteen year old girl. Mark openly talked about it to Barbara, adding to her feelings of inadequacy. She ended up having to quit her job because of the abuse and the unpredictability of her home life.Barbara was once again feeling imprisoned, just as she did as a hild. Brenda’s relationship with Manny was everything she was looking for. She had found her place in the world. However, Brenda was still feeling left out when it came to Manny, the gang, and their secrets. Brenda had never thought about joining a gang until she talked a â€Å"sister† of the gang. Erika persuaded Brenda to join because of the feeling of â€Å"family† the Unidad gave Erika. Brenda liked the idea and also knew she would no longer feel like an outsider. Brenda longed for the feeling of belonging and knew that her being a member of the gang would bring her and Manny closer.There would no lo nger be secrets between them. Barbara was living the life in which she was subjected to verbal and physical abuse from her husband. She had to listen to him talk about the affair he was having, being completely humiliated by it. Barbara even contemplated suicide at one point. Barbara lived her life feeling as if there was no way out. Mark’s belittling words were etched in her mind. Those words had the power of making Barbara believe she was destined to stay. If she chose to leave, he would kill her. Barbara felt as if she did not have any options at all.She felt completely powerless. Brenda was feeling anything but powerless. Manny, being a member of a gang, had power. Brenda felt that by being his girlfriend gave her power. Despite the fact that Manny was abusive, Brenda felt empowered knowing that she had found her place in this world with Manny. She believed that without her boyfriend, she would not have a place. The one thing Brenda always wanted was to belong. She longer felt like an outsider when she was with Manny. At the beginning of their relationship, Manny told her â€Å"I’m safe with you.And you are safe here† (156). That was precisely what Brenda was looking for. She was no longer the â€Å"odd girl out† (148). She was Manny’s girl. She was a member of the Unidad. She had power. What Brenda decided to do with the power she had obtained with the joining gang would be a life changing decision. The only way Barbara had the power to remove herself from the abuse was to file for divorce. Taking the step to file was a huge and terrifying decision for Barbara to make. It was so worrisome in fact that she tried to stop the process.After Mark was served the papers, he took Barbara to a secluded cabin in the woods, making sure she was fully aware that he had brought guns along on the trip. The trip that Mark planned had one purpose: he wanted to remind Barbara that her only option was to remain a devoted wife. If she tried leaving him, he would â€Å"terminate† her. Mark made it clear many times how easy it would be for him to do. During the trip to the cabin, after Barbara asked him if he went to cabin just to target shoot, Mark replied with, â€Å"No, I came all this way to show you how easy it would be to make you disappear† (230).Barbara knew divorce was out of the question. He would kill her before he granted her one. Although the trip put a divorce out of the question, it made Barbara realize there was only one option left. In order for her to free herself and to escape the trap of an abusive marriage, she would have to kill Mark before he killed her. Brenda and Barbara were both victims of abuse. That is where the similarities end. All Brenda wanted was to become someone other than the â€Å"outsider. † She was abused by her gang member boyfriend. She used that to threaten her boyfriend of leaving him.Brenda felt powerful when would hear Manny beg for her to stay. She fina lly felt like she was somebody. She was no longer an outsider of the â€Å"odd girl out† (148). Barbara was abused and belittled to the point where it made her think of herself as a weakling. She felt it was impossible to free herself from her nightmare. Brenda tried to escape but she always backed down because of how her husband made her think she was weak. Feeling empowered and feeling victimized are at the opposite end of the spectrum, yet they sometimes end up meeting at the end of the same road.

102 Week 6 Journal Response Professor Ramos Blog

102 Week 6 Journal Response This week we have been learning about monster theory. For the journal this week, look for something related to monsters, or the theory we have been talking about. It can be a Halloween post, or it could be related to a movie, book, show, etc. Get creative this week. Whatever text you choose, try to connect it to our monster theory. How is it connected? What reminded you of our theory? Requirements are still the same. About 250 words, summary and response to the article/post/news/etc; aka text. Comment below with a link to the text and your summary and response.

Proper Formal Letter From Introduction to Conclusion

Proper Formal Letter From Introduction to Conclusion Formal English letters are quickly being replaced by email. However, the formal letter structure you learn can still be applied to business emails and other formal emails. Follow these structure tips to write effective formal business letters and emails. A Purpose for Each Paragraph First Paragraph: The first paragraph of formal letters should include an introduction to the purpose of the letter. Its common to first thank someone or to introduce yourself. Dear Mr. Anders, Thank you for taking the time to meet with me last week. Id like to follow up on our conversation and have a few questions for you. Body Paragraphs:  The second and following paragraphs should provide the main information of the letter, and build on the main purpose in the introductory first paragraph. Our project is moving forward as scheduled. Wed like to develop a training program for staff at the new locations. To this end, we have decided to rent out space in the local business exhibition center. New staff will be trained by our experts in personnel for three days. In this way, well be able to meet demand from the first day. Final Paragraph: The final paragraph should shortly summarize the intent of the formal letter and end with some call to action. Thank you for your consideration of my suggestions. I look forward to an opportunity to discuss this matter further. Formal Letter Details Open with an expression of formal address, such as: Dear Mr, Ms (Mrs, Miss) - if you know the name of the person you are writing to. Use Dear Sir / Madam if you do not know the name of the person you are writing to, or To Whom it May Concern Always use Ms for women unless you are specifically requested to use Mrs or Miss. Beginning Your Letter First, provide a reason for writing. If you are beginning correspondence with someone about something or asking for information, begin by providing a reason for writing: I am writing to inform you about ...I am writing to ask/inquire about ...I am writing to ask about information for small businesses.I am writing to inform you that we have not yet received payment for ... Frequently, formal letters are written to express thanks. This is especially true when writing in response to an inquiry of some kind or when writing to express appreciation for a job interview, a reference, or other professional assistance  you have received.   Here are some useful phrases of gratitude: Thank you for your letter of (date) inquiring about ...We would like to thank you for your letter of (date) asking for / requesting information about ...In response to your letter of (date), we would like to thank you for your interest in ... Examples: I would like to thank you for your letter of January 22nd requesting information about our new line of lawnmowers.In response to your letter of October 23, 1997, we would like to thank you for your interest in our new line of products. Use the following phrases when asking for assistance: I would be grateful if you could verbWould you mind verb ingWould it be too much to ask that ... Examples: I would be grateful if you could send me a brochure.Would you mind telephoning me during the next week?Would it be too much to ask that our payment be postponed for two weeks? The following phrases are used to offer help: I would be happy to verbWe would be pleased to verb Examples: I would be happy to answer any questions you have.We would be pleased to assist you in finding a new location. Enclosing Documents In some formal letters, you will need to include documents or other information. Use the following phrases to draw attention to any enclosed documents you might have included. Enclosed please find nounEnclosed you will find ... nounWe enclose ... noun Examples: Enclosed you will find a copy of our brochure.Enclosed please find a copy of our brochure.We enclose a brochure. Note: if you are writing a formal email, use the phase: Attached please find / Attached you will find. Closing Remarks Always finish a formal letter with some call to action or reference to a future outcome you desire. Some of the options include: A referral to a future meeting: I look forward to meeting / seeing youI look forward to meeting you next week. An offer of further help Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions regarding this matter.If you need any further assistance please contact me. A Formal Sign Off Sign the letter with one of the following phrases: Yours faithfully,Yours sincerely, Less formal Best wishes.Best regards. Make sure to sign your letter by hand followed by your typed name. Block Format Formal letters written in block format place everything on the left-hand side of the page. Place your address or your companys address at the top of the letter on the left (or use your companys letterhead) followed by the address of the person and/or company you are writing to, all placed on the left side of the page. Hit the key return a number of times and use the date. Standard Format In formal letters written in standard format place your address or your companys address at the top of the letter on the right. Place the address of the person and/or company you are writing on the left side of the page. Place the date on the right-hand side of the page in alignment with your address.

American Marketing Association

Marketing is a broad concept. According to the American Marketing Association, marketing is the set of activities and processes in order to create communication and deliver products or any kind of exchange that has some value to customers, clients or society. To develop sales and reputation it is important for any company to buildup strategies for emphasizing the concept of marketing. A company that lack good marketing strategy may lose essential opportunities for increasing their market value  (Armstrong, Adam, Denize, & Kotler, 2014). Australian retail market contains many noteworthy names. One such name is Woolworth that has attained a apex of success. For its target customers Woolworths have a wide range and variety of products that includes groceries, vegetables, meat, packaged food items, magazines stationary products and even DVD  (Arli, Dylke, Burgess, Campus, & Soldo, 2013). Recently Woolworths launched its clothing line in South Africa to increase its business and popularity. Woolworths has 980 stores across Australia and 16 retail stores without the name Woolworth but under the same logo. They have their Headquarters in New South Wales and they operate under the name Safeway in Victoria where they have four stores in rural Victoria and three in Melbourne. They are at the market of retail business for over 92 years with average sale of 33,275 million dollars and profit margin of 1099 million dollars. Their asset value is worth 11,936 million dollars  (Knox, 2014). In this current report the marketing strategies of Woolworth including the issues faced by the brand is discussed. Ways for resolving such issues is also recommended. In Australian Market, the prime competitor for Woolworths is Coles and together they dominate over 80% of the Australian retail market. In recent years however a new name Aldi, came to business to give these two giant a competition. Woolworths became the fastest growing food and liquor retailer in Australian market in 2013. For achieving such peaks, the company must have some concrete marketing strategies. In this section, these strategies are discussed elaborately with context to the eight Ps of marketing. The marketing strategy targeted for products includes Design, technology, usability, value, quality, brand and warranty. Woolworths being a retailer has a wide range of products in their supermarket chains. Their product range includes fresh and packaged foods and vegetables; beverages and liquor; clothing line; Home accessories. In addition, they also have financial services  (Perrone & Wodonga, 2015).   For food and beverages, they focus on quality. Supplying the customers with high quality food is their first choice. Next, they rely on convenience, providing the customers feasibility of shopping in wide range of branded products. Innovation is their strongest marketing strategy that includes delicious authentic yet innovative recipes, which are tasty yet nutritious. Their clothing line focus on improving ranges, introducing new fashionable styles in budget value and sustainable quality. Woolworths present a wide range of home accessories and furnishings that include kitchen an d bathroom ware, crockery and vases, bedroom wear and curtains. They also have a market for furniture that is stylish and contemporary in an affordable range  (Digital, 2017). Keeping their customers in mind, and to appeal to a huge range of customer, Woolworths offer a wide range of price that fits the budget of majority of taxpayers. To attract customers they give offers in a wide range of their products as well. A total basket of goods that includes bread, milk, eggs, apples, chicken, cabbage, cheese maize, sugar, mincemeat, soft drink, flour, tea bags, rice and margarine is worth R479.44, which is quite affordable. Combined with lucrative offers Woolworth has a solid marketing strategy to attract a good range of customers  (Digital, 2017). The successful promotional strategies that Woolworths take make them the key player in the Australian retail market. According to analysts, their key to success is that they focus more on growing category sales rather than price cut. Even though there are players in business who offer same range of products in much lower price, Woolworth stays as the customer’s choice of brand to shop. Their central focus is on extending their food and liquor range.   Promoting their grocery, petrol through celebrities had been a prime promotional strategy for Woolworths that attracted attention of customers. This helped increase their brand value considerably  (Methner, Hamann, & Nilsson, The Evolution of a Sustainability Leader: The Development of Strategic and Boundary Spanning Organizational Innovation Capabilities in Woolworths., 2015). Place represents a particular point from where products of an organization reach the end customers. Place can be both offline and online. Depending on the type of product offerings of the organization, online or offline mode is selected and in some cases both are selected, so that the company is able to grow its business manifold  (Armstrong, Adam, Denize, & Kotler, 2014). Place offers a different picture to the consumers. While deciding to set shop in a particular city, an organization has to carefully study various parameters with respect to the existing demography, purchasing power parity of the consumers, existing competitors and local tax laws. It is the community for whom quality products and services are offered by an organization. People factor can be categorized with respect to both in house human resources of the firm and also the consumers to whom the same will be sold. If qualities of services are not up to the mark or the desired level of expectations, then a very good quality product might not sell to its intended customers. Woolworths has an excellent human capital workforce which has helped them expand its network and product portfolio across Australia and now to South Africa as well  (Shin & Lee, 2015). Since it’s important to develop a quality product offering to the customers, the method in which a product undergoes should be of very high standard as customers are paying premium to buy the same  (Human & Bick, 2016). Quality is a critical attribute of Woolworths’ product offerings, which has been maintained since the time it set up its business in 1924. Through partnership route, a firm gains competitive advantage over its rivals as two brands and their distribution points and strategies merge together, thereby realizing good economies of scale  (Rosenbaum-Elliott, Elliott, H., Percy, & Pervan, 2015). When strategic partnerships are formed, it delivers a greater impact on the company’s intended message in the market through smart packaging of products and good merchandising. Physical evidence determines the level of satisfaction from the customer’s point of view. They often judge the quality of a product based on their perceptions of the surrounding infrastructure  (Muposhi & Dhurup, 2016) Achieving the business strategies, analyzing the influential environment on its profitable ground are the important point that Woolworths need for its understanding (Feigin, 2016). The corporate strategies are not only accomplished but also the business performance of the organization significantly affects on the impact of the external factors of the organization. On analyzing the external environment, the internal aspects will help Woolworths to improve its present strategies and turning the mission into effective actions (Methner, Hamann, & Nilsson, The Evolution of a Sustainability Leader, 2015). Woolworths adapted some competitive strategies for competing in retail industry. It identified its position the field of retail marketing.   The two levels of external environment can be divided into two major levels that include the environment of the industry that can influence outside the company and the general influential factor, called macro environment of the company. Issues that Woolworths faces currently in Australia that can be listed below: Woolworths, being a large market scale in retail industry; they have very low dependency on the suppliers of the particular items. They must have very low dependency rate in the ground of the supply chain (King & Thobela, 2014). The fixed customers of Woolworths bargains tremendously in the store for the discount of any items. They get huge level of discounts in the e-commerce sites almost al the year round. Customers start trusting those online sites more than to step in for the retail market (Cameron, Sayers, Sacks, & Thornton, 2015). The discounted items from the sites become cheap in the price range and the quality remains the same. The current and new threat of Woolworths is considered significantly due to several other reasons. Any new organization competing in the particular business needs a huge amount of start-up capital for fixing up the facilities and for operating the business. Woolworths competes with Coles with 23% of the market that is controlled by them. Woolworths is the leader of the Australian market and its position flourishes the power of the company for exploitation of the potentiality of the market by its well-built resources and a proper presence of the company (Feigin, 2016). The Australian government has several restrictions on the movement of Woolworths as it keeps on increasing its prices quiet higher for any of its products specially liquor. The price rise is one of the common business strategies for profit making. The increase in price rise is the major weakness of the company for promoting growth because government restricts that in the upcoming future. Woolworths have several opportunities that is related in the retail industry that focuses with the potentiality of the growth like computerization, advancement of the supply chain and the lifestyle that changes the consumers that facts the abilities of the retailers for growing better opportunities in the market. However, they have adopted several strategies to cope up with the strategies for adopting the multi optional retailing for the changing needs of the consumer. A new technology that is adopted by Woolworths was the subscription of GEMMN(Global Electronic Marketing and Merchandising Network). However, on improving their chain of supply and the system of distribution that includes important impacts on cost saving. They also introduced the facilities for the online shopping, which make them to identify from any other company  (Methner, Hamann, & Nilsson, The Evolution of a Sustainability Leader: The Development of Strategic and Boundary Spanning Organizational Innovation Capabilities in Woolworths., 2015). Recently, Woolworths have diversified from grocery store to Hotels, Petrol, Liquor general Merchandise and general services. The expansion and the acquisition made Woolworths a largest supermarket chain in Australia with 31% share. The main growth of Woolworths is by the strong commitment towards its employees and the customers. It has benefits for multiple activities with innovation and identified strengths for conducting operations flexibly by the coordination of the activities and the close interrogation by the employees and the customers. The first and foremost challenge for Woolworths has always been the neck-to-neck competition provided by the other Aussie retail giant Coles. The last couple year has brought a number of other competitors in the market as well (Ausfoodnews.com.au., 2017). Along with that, the customer satisfaction level of retail chains took a massive hit as the online sites started emerging with their new discount schemes every day. In order to cope up with the current market schemes and the government restrictions on price hike the retail markets are facing increasing debts. Woolworths is no exception to this scenario, and the financial equilibrium of the company took further hits due to its many acquisition in period of 2008 to 2012 (Santos, M., Svensson, & Padin, 2014). The geographical market seclusion also plays a major role in the current instability in the company and the need for global expansion has become prevalent. Dealing with this many challenges needs renovation in strategic and operat ional level; a few recommendations have been listed down below: Woolworths started its journey back in 1924 as just a basement outlet and have come a long way since then. In 2012, the company reached the pinnacle of success when it acquired the position of largest supermarket chain in Australia. Woolworths has managed to capture 31% market shares with a customer base of more than 28 million per week. Even after tackling the Australian retail market for almost a century, Woolworth still has challenges ahead to overcome if it wants to uphold its duopoly in the Aussie retail market. The cutthroat market competition and government jurisdictions have placed hurdles after hurdles in its path that has dimmed the market potential for Woolworths in the last couple of year. However, the Woolies have always been a trusted enterprise due to   their core competence and unsurpassed quality standards. Hence it can be concluded, that a company as reputed as Woolworths just needs a well-articulated and renovated marketing strategy with current market scenario at the focal point to put the company back in the market with renewed zeal. (2017, February). Retrieved from Ausfoodnews.com.au.: https://www.ausfoodnews.com.au/2015/05/06/woolworths-announces-new-strategies-to-win-over-grocery-shoppers-afn-reveals-full-detail.html Arli, V., Dylke, S., Burgess, R., Campus, R., & Soldo, E. (2013). Woolworths Australia and Walmart US: Best practices in supply chain collaboration. Journal of Economics, Business & Accountancy Ventura, 16(1). Armstrong, G., Adam, S., Denize, S., & Kotler, P. (2014). Principles of marketing. Australia.: Pearson Australia. Berning, A. (2014). Sustainable supply chain engagement in a retail environment. The case of Woolworths food suppliers. Cameron, A. J., Sayers, S. J., Sacks, G., & Thornton, L. E. (2015). Do the foods advertised in Australian supermarket catalogues reflect national dietary guidelines? Health promotion international. Digital, B. (. (2017, February 3). WOOLWORTHS HOLDINGS LIMITED | WOOLWORTHS RETAIL | OUR PRODUCTS. Retrieved from Digital, B. (2017). WOOLWORTHS HOLDINGS LIMITED | WOOLWORTHS RETAWoolworthsholdings.co.za. : https://www.woolworthsholdings.co.za/retail/products.asp Feigin, L. M. (2016). The effects of protests and boycotts on a brand and its reputation. Feigin, L. M. (2016). The effects of protests and boycotta case study on Woolworths and boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) (Doctoral dissertation, The IIE). Fernie, J., & Sparks, L. (2014). Logistics and retail management: emerging issues and new challenges in the retail supply chain. Kogan Page Publishers. Human, C. J., & Bick, G. (2016). BOS Brands: challenges of internationalisation. Emerald Emerging Markets Case Studies, 6(4), 1-32. Keith, S. (2012). Coles, Woolworths and the local. Locale: The Australasian-Pacific Journal of Regional Food Studies. The Australasian-Pacific Journal of Regional Food Studies, 47-81. King, L., & Thobela, S. (2014). Woolworths farming for the future. International Food and Agribusiness Management Review. Knox, M. ( 2014). Supermarket monsters: Coles, woolworths and the price we pay for their domination. The Monthly. Methner, N., Hamann, R., & Nilsson, W. (2015). The Evolution of a Sustainability Leader: The Development of Strategic and Boundary Spanning Organizational Innovation Capabilities in Woolworths. Springer International Publishing. Methner, N., Hamann, R., & Nilsson, W. (2015). The Evolution of a Sustainability Leader. Springer International Publishing. Methner, N., Hamann, R., & Nilsson, W. (2015). The Evolution of a Sustainability Leader: The Development of Strategic and Boundary Spanning Organizational Innovation Capabilities in Woolworths. In The Business of Social and Environmental Innovation, 87-104. Muposhi, A., & Dhurup, M. (2016). A Qualitative Inquiry Of Generation Y Consumers' Selection Attributes In The Case Of Organic Products. The International Business & Economics Research Journal (Online), 15(1),, 1. Perrone, A., & Wodonga, T. A. (2015). Centralian College: Creating a strategic marketing plan for long-term growth. Marketing. Centralian College. Rosenbaum-Elliott, R., Elliott, H., R., Percy, L., & Pervan, S. (2015). Strategic brand management. USA.: Oxford University Press,. Santos, A. D., M., Svensson, G., & Padin, C. (2014). Implementation, monitoring and evaluation of sustainable business practices: framework and empirical illustration. Corporate Governance. In A. D. Santos, M., G. Svensson, & C. Padin, Implementation, monitoring and evaluation of sustainable business practices: framework and empirical illustration. Corporate Governance (pp. 515-530). Shin, S., & Lee, S. H. (2015). Effects of Business Environmental Factors on 4P Mix of Eco-friendly Textile in Textile Fashion Firms. Fashion business, 19(2), 36-52. End your doubt 'should I pay someone to do my dissertation by availing dissertation writing services from

School Bulling Intervention Program by Olweus Essay

School Bulling Intervention Program by Olweus - Essay Example This makes the quasi experimental and experimental designs more difficult where randomization is not carried out, as more irrelevant interpretations are well ruled out in case the study is carried out through randomized sampling procedures. The problem of maturation in this study is taken care of by ensuring that all the participants in the study are of the same age gap. Important is that there occurs a relation between bullying and agenda these developmental changes needed to be controlled effectively if appropriate results were to be obtained. In the First Bergan Project that Olweus basis the argument on, there is however shortcomings in that some collected data in the extended selection cohorts might not be applied in evaluation of the program effects. The longitudinal design of the experiment makes it impractical to take this into account during the statistical analysis. This would make this design to have less precision in the final results and having less power as compared to u sing designs where repeated measures are incorporated. The repeataiton of data and the presence of irrelevant factors in the intervention program make this approach a sensitive one and as Olweus argues, care has to be taken in making decisions regarding the relevant and irrelevant factors in such designs. Olweus despite these challenges finds the use of extended cohorts design to be of much importance and would effectively lead to concluding on the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of a particular intervention program, besides this approach being easier to use and a natural step in evaluating the happenings in schools concerning activities related to bullying. Research design Olweus used the extended cohorts design to review and evaluate the effects of... This essay approves that to measure the effectiveness of the intervention programs, results of one of the cohorts could be analyzed critically to register the observed changes in areas that could indicate that the changes happened as a result of the intervention program. The new national initiative against bullying in Norway in 2000 that was implemented by the Olweus Group against Bullying and antisocial behavior was more enlightening concerning Olweus research design, and involved training instructors candidates that were supposed to lead in recurring staff discussion groups. The use of staff discussion groups in the Norwegian initiative was also instrumental in portraying the ideology and design of Olweus program that aimed tackling the bullying issues form all perspectives and stakeholders. That more information regarding bullying, how it could be contained and the necessary prevention mechanism implemented, makes the Olweus research design to be comprehensive, broad, more elabora te and involving the necessary parties. This repoort makes a conclusion that the effectiveness of Olweus bullying intervention program has its effectiveness from the design of the study that involved a broad integration of cohort studies and other relevant studies over the use to come up with certain hypothesis statements and findings that aided in formulation of a more effective approach. Though there are lower rates of validity threats, the study portrays how a system such as the schools could be integrated with an aim of solving a problem successfully.

Youth and Problem Gambling in Australia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Youth and Problem Gambling in Australia - Essay Example Gambling is so prevalent that in 1993 alone, Australians spent 6 billion dollars, more or less, on lotteries, horse racing, gaming and other forms of gambling. Most states not only tolerate it, but profits from shares of revenues of these gambling outfits. Gambling’s wide acceptance in the Australian culture and its availability encourage youth gambling (Moore & Ohtsuka 2002, pp. 429-430). Moreover, high gaming and wagering opportunities mostly account for youth gambling in Australia. These opportunities take the form of EGMs that can be found in hotels and clubs in most states except in Western Australia, casinos, and games of chance like X-lotto, Tattslotto, Powerball, Keno, scratch-tickets and Bingo, some of which are sponsored by state governments. In addition, advances in technology open another opportunities for youth participation in gambling and wagering. These new technologies include the internet and mobile telephony. On the other hand, some events that provide gambl ing and wagering opportunities, such as such as sports bar, specifically target the youth as its niche market (South Australian Centre for Economic Studies 2003, p. 1). In 2000, a study was made on 505 Australian youths aged 15 to 17. It was found that 60% of these youth gambled periodically, with 3.5% of them characterised as problem gamblers. On the whole, the study revealed that they had a predilection towards gambling as evinced by their attitude towards gambling, intention to gamble and actual participation. A positive attitude towards gambling was influenced by family, society and peers whilst frequent gambling was associated with parental and peer gambling. It was also revealed that youths whose parents taught them the value of money (budgeting and... In Australia, gambling is a popular and accepted form of pastime and is considered well-entrenched in the Australian culture. Gambling is so prevalent that in 1993 alone, Australians spent 6 billion dollars, more or less, on lotteries, horse racing, gaming and other forms of gambling. Most states not only tolerate it, but profits from shares of revenues of these gambling outfits. Gambling’s wide acceptance in the Australian culture and its availability encourage youth gambling. Moreover, high gaming and wagering opportunities mostly account for youth gambling in Australia.On the other hand, some events that provide gambling and wagering opportunities, such as such as sports bar, specifically target the youth as its niche market. Gambling is well-entrenched in the Australian culture, but gambling really flourished in the 1990s with the introduction of modern EGMs and the proliferation of huge casinos all over the country. Gambling is now considered a growth industry in Australia bringing revenues not only to private operators but to the government as well. The downside, however, to this growth industry are the twin problems of youth and problem gambling that are now slowly emerging in the horizon. Although problem gambling affects only a negligible number of persons, its dispersive nature logically involves more persons than the problem gamblers themselves. On the other hand, youth gambling is closely linked to problem gambling because studies have indicated that most problem gamblers belong to the 18 to 30 age groups, which naturally leads one to conclude that for these people, gambling must have started at a really young age. Studies, which have pegged the crucial age at, as young as, ten, have confirmed th is theory. Youth gambling is closely linked to familial, societal and peer influences.

Annotated Bibliography Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 15

Annotated Bibliography Example nalysis of data from the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC), the method takes into account retention and graduation numbers at both entry and transfer institutions. Hence, what they accomplish is to construct a polychotomous definition of success. The challenge facing them include identifying new methods to model limited dependent variables. They are sceptical that the multinomial logit method is apt for the purpose. They believe incorporating multinomial regression techniques into the model is a better way of evaluating student success across institutions. The intended audience for this research paper are educators and fellow scholars. The paper uses esoteric language and complex statistical analysis. To this extent novices and teachers under training may find its content inaccessible. However, the necessity and relevance of the angle of scholarly investigation cannot be overstated. At a time when general standards of literacy, numeracy and employability of students are falling ac ross educational institutions, reworking the model for ascertaining student success might help educators and recruiters to refine their search criteria. Likewise, with federal government putting pressure on institutions of higher to improve accountability, all stakeholders are reviewing the utility of arcane laws such as the Student Right to Know (SRK) Act of 1990. In the same vein, the reporting requirements through Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and Graduation Rate Survey (GRS) are also being reviewed. The project undertaken by Jones-White et al is relevant for all these areas of review. The article talks about a longitudinal case study of an experienced educator (Steven). Starting with Steven’s early days as an untrained teacher, the author brings his first hand experiences to bear on the analysis. It is recounted how, through the Teach for America initiative, the subject taught mathematics at an urban middle school, before moving on to teaching