Google Corporation Challenges in China

The case study of china involving a powerful Google corporation is an interesting social responsibility considering their business mission declaration â€Å"Don’t Be Evil†. The biggest challenge Google has to face is the fact that china offers an enormous profitable market considering its populace. There has to be a dilemma regarding marketing and the legal, cultural or ethical challenges that may be involved.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Google Corporation Challenges in China specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Culturally the case has set up a stepping-stone for the human rights activists who seem gagged by the government’s rules and regulations. The government reminds all the companies especially those involved with the transfer of information to the outside world to ensure strict abidance with its rules. The state’s control of the cyber space may have been involved with the threats placed by Google forcing them to consider pulling out of its services. According to Google, sophisticated and targeted cyber attacks seem to originate from the Chinese government in their aim to preview emails of human rights activists as a security measure. The aim of the Chinese government is to try to filter some internet contents to maintain a strong grip on power. The attack also hits other companies such as Yahoo and Adobe. The ethical challenge Google has to face entails its decisions during the 2006 search engine launch regarding business undertakings in china, where it agreed the government pronouncement to censor the search engine â€Å"Google.cn†. Arguably, Google played a role in enhancing conditions for the attack by giving in to the rule that encourage bullying of human rights by the government. According to the users in china, by leaving China, Google leaves its clients in a sober mood but equally, it is more painful to learn that it went against its principle of â€Å"Don’t Be Evil† when it agreed to venture into China on condition of accepting censorship in 2006. The Google top executives (co-founders) Larry Page and Sergey Bin face an uphill task over deciding the way forward. They have to analyse the possibility of bleaching their terms of trade with the Chinese government, which can as well result to legal charges. If their break on the contract concerning the agreement for the government to monitor content causes internal security risks, then legal settlement regarding the matter might be inevitable. The legal risk involves braking China’s sophisticated network used to monitor and limit information through the fight for human rights of expression. (U.S. Department of State, 2010)Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More As the saying goes, one’s man meat is another’s poison†. The agony Google managers’ faces in today’s global market has triggered their rival’s â€Å"Baidu† speculation of the move as a hypocritical and financially driven. According to the market research companies, financially they dismiss the move claiming Google’s failure to capture the market with an estimate of 15-30 percent of the users compared to the rival’s 70 percent. Arguably, Google may be aiming at a long-term strategy, where their opportunity lost will be the short-term revenue loss in China and the opportunity cost would be better and higher market penetration than the current situation. They would not wish to lose client’s trust totally, because the future endeavours to dominate the search and mail services. Their move therefore entails gaining people’s trust regarding mails, calls, storage of documents, pictures and other files as well as the web search services. The financial disaster can only be catalysed by lose of trust and not th e short-term back off to strategize. A well-calculated move is the ultimate benefit. Considering the public snub of the Chinese authorities, Google risks other key U.S. companies and the government partnership in other business involvements in China. China is a potential exporter of a wide range of manufactured good for the U.S. consumers. References U.S. Department of State, Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, â€Å"Background Note: China,† Retrieved from https://www.state.gov/u-s-relations-with-china/ This essay on Google Corporation Challenges in China was written and submitted by user Nadia Lucas to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Modern marketing approach

Modern marketing approach Introduction This paper supports the statement â€Å"the product/service dichotomy in marketing theory is no longer sustainable.† The present day marketing approach is a result of the many revolutions and changes that come about in marketing as a result of increased competition.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Modern marketing approach specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Modern marketing approach emphasizes â€Å"cost leadership, differentiation and focus† (Baker and Saren, 2010) The cost leadership attribute entails the product cost advantage of the product in relation to existing products in the market. Differentiation emphasizes creation of products with unique qualities that gives it an edge over the other products in the market. Focus on the other hand implies targeting particular market niches either based on age demographics, lifestyle geographic locations or any other appropriate attributes. Produc t/Service Dichotomy Product manufacturers often endeavor to achieve customer fidelity by delivering to them goods that satisfy their needs. This has led to the development of the â€Å"product/service mix† as pointed out by Baker and Saren (2010) in this scenario, service as a facet of the mix has continually been growing its importance. Technology and globalization have played a pivotal role in enabling different service providers reach out to the dispersed customers. Web applications for example, powered by the internet enables service providers to serve customers at any point. The earlier marketing approaches placed emphasis on the value within the product, which were always produced and distributed to the wider market. Because the value of the product was seen to be within the product, producers did not have to convince the buyer or persuade them the buy the product. The marketing practice therefore comprised distribution of the products to the â€Å"waiting† consu mer. The services marketing is said to have come in lime light during the 70s (Schiffman and Kanuk, 2000). The services’ marketing was uniquely packaged to center on individual services and making it different from the traditional goods marketing. There was a visible difference between manufactured goods and services in the sense that goods are tangible and can be felt whereas services are not.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Continuous market dynamics and technological advances have seen manufacturers shift from the old method of manufacturing for a speculated market to a situation where they accurately predict the customers needs and respond to them appropriately. By addressing the customers’ needs, manufacturers aim at creating customer dependency to their products and are assured of them buying. This process calls for the need to carry out a feasi bility study well in advance to establish what the customer needs and then customizing the products to feed the customers’ needs (Baker and Saren, 2010) Manufacturing companies have come with different ways of customizing products to fit individual needs; this can either be through use of colours that are synonymous to a certain group or tags that can be identified with a target market. The books sector is a good example where customers have widely applied the strategy of â€Å"product personalization† by providing them with unique names (Schiffman and Kanuk, 2000). High levels of competition and technological advancements have consistently pushed manufacturers and service providers into a need to pay more attention to the customer. They have been forced to categorize customers and strive to satisfy each customer’s unique need. There is a growing â€Å"perception that goods and service are similar,† this as pointed out by Lusch and Varg (2006) is as a â⠂¬Å"result of co-production.† The shift towards the notion that goods and services are similar has led to studies into the need for customer integration. Researchers on the subject-customer integration have often pointed out that the process allows customers to take part in adding value to the products. Through customer integration, Lusch, and Varg (2006) argues that three levels of serving the customer; â€Å"the facilities level, transformation and utilities.† The practice also enhances decision making, value addition and resource utilization. The support structure for the three levels of service provision is usually founded on the difference between â€Å"direct and indirect service provision.† In this framework, the resources service provision level brings integration when there is an exchange between a company and the customer (Lusch and Varg 2006). The structure also helps in identifying who between the customer and the service company is responsible for th e express and circuitous provision of services.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Modern marketing approach specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More At the decisions level, the support framework indicates that there is a relationship between the company and the customer at the point of making a decision. The value addition stage of value provision on the other hand indicates that customers and service companies collaborate in service provision. Niche Targeting Most recent marketing strategies target particular groups of people classified either according to age, gender, social status or job. Marketing attempts directing towards the youth for example are more frequent as a contemporary marketing approach. In this case, the marketing team studies the bahavor of its target market and develops a product that is customized to fit the needs of the chosen niche. This is common for example with the fashion companies, mobile phone man ufacturers and mobile service providers. Increase in the number of firms engaged in the production of similar goods or provision of similar services is responsible for the increased competition. Each organization strives to attain levels of competitive advantages over the others. Michael Porter formulated three important strategies which business organizations can use to gain competitive advantage; he points out â€Å"cost leadership, differentiation and focus† (Zeithaml, etal., 2005). As the main strategies for attaining competitive advantage. Current marketing strategies seem to have outgrown Porters’ strategies The modern marketing strategies emphasize the need for market segmentation as opposed to Porters’ three strategies alone. In the old days, price and product sophistication was used as a strategy to create market segments. Product pricing often meant that the product is affordable to a particular group of people by default and not some. Depending on the level of sophistication, a product would by default of preference to a particular social class. This type of strategy requires a substantial amount of promotional effort which results in a product that serves a narrow market segment rather than the mass market. The approach to niche marketing in the present day scenario requires inclusion to ensure sustainability. This means the modern approach to niche marketing is more focused to unique abilities and talents among people rather than in the different categories of people.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The unique abilities and skills may lie in the type of technology used by the organization or the unique talents among the organization’s manpower. (Palmer, 1997) points out the strategy that Apple Company has been using to make its i-products stand out of the competition as a typical example of this. The Dynamics of the Niche Market Niche markets are often very vibrant and keep on evolving with time. An organization can capture a niche and own it for time and loose it to other competitors in the field with time. Schiffman and Kanuk (2000) points out that shopping malls were niche markets for quite some time, he observes the changes that have occurred since then exposed malls to stiff competition. The same scenario is said to have happened to watch brands such as; Dual time. Changes in lifestyle, technology taste and preference among consumers contribute to the frequent shifts in the niche market. One would observe that what is considered fashionable within a given niche may not last long as other products keep on being launched into the market. Goods meant for niche marketing are often tailored to some technology and marketing procedure that fits the desired niche. The market usually begins with a boom but is filled up with competitors with time. This means that if an organization is to focus on niche marketing, then it must develop the most innovative strategies and be ready to continuously evolve and seek new niches for its products. Focus to a particular niche requires robust support in terms of resource but it does not necessarily translate into large revenue output. It is therefore not advisable for a particular firm to target niche marketing as a sole strategy for its product line. There is need to diversify into other strategies to cushion the organization from diverse effects of niche marketing incase of poor performance (Zeithaml, etal., 2005). Such an organization must also invest in developing right talents that can formulate and put into op erations appropriate strategies to achieve success. A niche in this case can not be looked at as a marketing strategy, rather it is a process resulting from an organizations’ proficiency in producing products that appeal to a particular group of people (Gilmore, 2003). Attaining sustainability in this course requires continuous innovation both in marketing skills and product development. Inclusive networking and sourcing ideas globally stands out as one of the strategies to successfully run a niche market. Niche marketing must strive to uniquely package products and invest in efficient manufacturing processes, cost effective distribution channels and adopt different marketing strategies. Technology serves as a major pillar in attaining the mentioned attributes. Technologically supported manufacturing, distribution and marketing helps in cutting down on cost and achieving high profit margins. Computer aided manufacturing and computer aided design are the key technological tool s that have helped in increasing manufacturing precision, reducing wastage and developing goods that suit the customers taste and needs. In supply chain, technological tools such as; RFID and EDI play an important role in speeding up the process and eliminating errors in the supply chain (Pasuraman and Berry, 2004). Leadership and sustainability in niche market is squarely based on the profitability of the strategy used. In order to attain leadership, there is needs a sound strategy that serves the whole market. This requires that an organization can be able to serve the market with as many products as possible at a minimum cost Pasuraman and Berry (2004) indicates that there is need to pursue â€Å"scale, scope and niche in a single business model in order to attain leadership in niche marketing.† Product/service dichotomy hampers development of marketing strategies The idea of creating a division between the approaches to service and product marketing makes it hard to devel op successful marketing strategies. Marketing of consumer and industrial services ought to be treated as one to allow the use of similar strategies in either. Often those who support the division of the product and services stress on differences in terms of the structure, marketing approach, response to environmental pressure and their markets. On the other hand, those opposed to this argument feel the dichotomy approach falls short in reality in the sense that; products and service marketing are similar. The only difference as pointed out by Rathmall (1974) could be in terms of the sizes of the companies involved. Division of marketing for products and services is often used as the platform for developing marketing theory and their application. Here, the dichotomy serves as a guide for developing distinct marketing actions tailored to particular products, enterprises and market divisions. Service marketing tends to target the final consumer as opposed to industrial product marketin g that targets buyers within the supply chain. Probably according to Rathmall (1974) this is what describes the difference between the two as far as marketing entails. Environment and company size are the main distinctions in product and service dichotomy. Environmental influences which undermine marketing efforts such as infrastructure can be a basis for differences between product and service marketing. Company size dictates the amount of resources available for investing in the marketing. Amount of resources available for marketing puts different platforms as far as marketing of products and services concerns. The Size of the Firm vs. Marketing Activities Most small firms often use contemporary marketing approaches building it both on the relational and transactional marketing theories. This brings on the same platform the marketing practice adapted by both small enterprises and the big ones. Traditionally, only the big firms used the transactional and relational marketing theori es to develop marketing strategies for their products. The size of an enterprise plays an important role in the manner in which the enterprise plans its marketing. Often, small enterprises adopt informal type of marketing plans unlike large enterprises which formulate formal marketing plans. Generally, there are several similarities between the informal and formal marketing plans adopted by small and large enterprises. There are wide similarities between in how the marketing decisions are developed and implemented. The general decision making strategies are used by both the small and large enterprises to develop marketing decisions. Another similarity is exhibited in customer relations duration anticipated by both product and service providers. They all aim at developing a sustainable customer relation, to achieve this; a lot of emphasis is placed on effective customer relations. Another similarity between small and large enterprises lies in the manner in which they develop and keep their customer contacts. Right from the first transaction with the customer, both large and small enterprises seek to keep the contacts of the customer for purposes of future communication and interaction. Enterprises often have a database of customers to act as a reference to track the customers buying behavior. Marketing as a process requires an investment to enable logistical procedures and planning. The only difference regarding investment in marketing is reflected in the budget but both the product enterprises and service enterprises must invest in marketing. It has also been noted that both small and large enterprises practice some aspects of traditional marketing. The problem of using traditional marketing approaches often has been lack of compatibility with the modern environment and customer behavior. Generally, by small enterprises adopting broad marketing strategies, they reduce the marketing distinctions between them and large enterprises. Small enterprises are continuo usly emphasizing investment of financial resources, time and effort in the development of personal relationships with the customers and raising their competitive levels in the market. Relational marketing provides an effective strategy for small firms to be as competitive as large firms. By enhancing the use of traditional marketing strategies, small firms can create a stable base from which they can strengthen their customer relations and be in a better position to compete the large firms. Planning and performance evaluation is another area that brings out more similarities between large and small enterprises’ marketing strategies. As pointed out earlier, small enterprises adopt a rather informal marketing plan, modern small business managers are increasingly coming to the realization of the need to adopt formal marketing plans to compete effectively with large firms. Another implication from marketing planning is that there is no empirical support of planning to performance in marketing. Palmer (1997) argues that whether a firm large or small adopts a formal plan, the difference might only be in the structure of the marketing approach but not necessarily in performance. Since evaluation of a marketing plan rates performance, planning may not be a strong factor as such. Firms should rate their marketing performance majorly from the customers’ response as well as their feedback. Marketing in the Service Industry Service industries, like industrial companies must constantly revolutionize their marketing strategies to put themselves in strategic positions in relation to the customers. There is in fact a higher need of growth and development in the service industry than in industrial markets. The major challenge in the service industry as pointed out by Palmer (1997) is the continuous fluctuation of overheads. The service sector became a prominent part of the economy towards the end of the twentieth century and has continued to play an important rol e in supporting economies. The sector continues to be a major source of employment, and therefore an excellent need for the services to be looked as importantly as the goods industry. Taking the service industry with the same weight as the goods industry should then be translated to the marketing approaches and strategies applied in both industries. Distinction of marketing strategies between goods and service industries would mean lead to making ineffective the traditional marketing strategies that have been existence for long. This is because the service industry as indicated earlier is a new venture in the world. Compared to goods industry which has been in existence for several years, with already established marketing strategies, it is important that the service marketing industry. Service purchase involves dealings which unlike the goods industry do not lead to material ownership. Since the emergence of the services industry, marketing of its products has been continually chan ging to take the same line as the products industry. The 4ps model of marketing has often been cited as inadequate in selling services Gronroos (1990) proposes an enrichment factor to this model in order to suit the service industry; â€Å"process and the participants should also be added to the list to make it effective as a services marketing tool. Time and speed are two other important elements of service marketing as pointed out by Palmer (1997) customers always make a repeat order for services from a provider that guarantees maximum effectiveness, efficiency and also delivers to the promise. The marketing speed is however an element that is controlled solely by the marketers. Services in which speed is important include; the food industry due to its perishable nature, transport service is another sector where speed of service delivery matters a lot. Integration of Product and Service Marketing Services do not have tangibility as opposed to goods, goods have evidence. Gronroos (1990) points out that â€Å"some pieces of evidence bundled with services can not be categorized as a true element.† However, service evidence as pointed with plays an important role in the fulfillment of the service. Customers use service evidence to appraise the performance of the service provider. Evidence in the service provision process helps minimize risks and gives the customer more confidence to purchase the service. Besides, evidence also helps to distinguish one service from another. Providing Evidence in Service Marketing Dichotomy is often used as evidence by service providers, â€Å"the quality of the product that accompanies the service they receive† (Bell, 1973) this includes the cost of equipment used to provide the service. Taking an example of a lodging or restaurant, cheap lodging or restaurant equipment implies poor service and expensive equipments on the other hand translates to classy services. This fact is used to differentiate service providers in terms of quality. Branding is also used as evidence in service provision. Borden (1965) points out that â€Å"service branding makes the product acceptable.† Once a service provider brands a service and runs a campaign to make it popular, customers develop more confidence in the service. A popular brand develops the customers’ confidence and reduces their perception of underlying financial risks in buying the service. The brand acts as evidence to what the customer can not feel or touch. Customers develop strong confidence in popular brands and buy them with same ease as a visible product. Branding consists of two stages; primary and secondary. The primary state consists of tangible evidence about the product which as earlier mentions lacks in services. Bell (1973) suggests that â€Å"the name of the service provider can be used as a primary brand.† The secondary brand then follows on the description given to the service. Companies distributing strong brands in the markets stand out of the rest because of the brand name. The environment in which the service is used can also serve as evidence for the service. Marketers can rely on this factor, to market the service as easily as they can to a product. The environment in which a product is used gives an opportunity for a marketer to create a mental picture of the service to the potential buyer. Borden (1965) indicates that a marketer out to create awareness of services provided by an amusement park can use words like â€Å"fun filled or enjoyment place† to create a mental picture about the park to the customer. The marketing message is another sort of evidence marketers in the contemporary world use to convince consumers about the service. Besides the message, customers are also given some incentives to lure them to the service. Mobile phone service providers for example promise free call time or launch a competition in which users of the service stand a chance to win some gifts. T his strategy is one of the best that marketers have focused on to convince consumers to use their services. This is described by Assael (1987) as the â€Å"power of communication† in which a market tends to glorify the service to the consumer. Along the same vein, the media has become a prominent tool with which marketers use to spread their service messages to the consumer. Service structure is another important tool for marketers, service marketers need to create structures which they can use to appeal and convince the customer why he or she should use the service. These structures could be in form of the tools that the service provider uses to deliver the service. Assael (1987) suggests that an air transport service provider can flaunt to the customer about the best airplanes in the company possession. With this structure, a marketer can make the customer imagine how good it is to use the service. By seeing the best rated airplane for example, a customer can be convinced t hat the service provided will be classy. Conclusion This paper has demonstrated that the product service dichotomy is increasingly loosing popularity in the modern business world. Although seen as a step towards the creation of market segments for products and service. Creating a distinction between products and services for the purposes of marketing is increasingly becoming a thing of the past as market researches continue pouring new approaches to integrate service and product marketing. References Assael, H., 1987. Consumer Behavior and Marketing Action. Boston: Kent Publishing Company. Baker, M. and Saren, M. 2010. Marketing Theory: a Student Text. London: Sage Publications. Bell, D., 1973. The Coming of the Post-Industrial Society. New York: Basic Books. Borden, N. H., 1965. The Concept of the Marketing mix. New York: John Wiley Sons. Gilmore, A., 2003.Services marketing and management. London: Sage Publications Gronroos, C., 1990.Services Management and Marketing. New York: L exington Lusch, R. F. and Varg, S. L., 2006. Theservice-dominant logic of marketing: dialog, debate, and directions. New York: M. E. Sharpe, Inc., Palmer, A., 1997. Principles of Service Marketing.London: McGraw Hill. Pasuraman, A. and Berry, L. 2004. Marketing Services: Competing Through Quality.New York: Simon Schuster Rathmall, J. M., 1974. Marketing in the Service Sector. Massachusetts: Winthrop Publishers, Inc Schiffman, L. and Kanuk. L. L., 2000. Consumer Behavior. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Zeithaml, V. A. etal., 2005. Services Marketing: Integrating Customer Focus across the Firm. London: McGraw-Hill.

Human Resource Management Study Report on Grimshaw's Quality Textiles Essay

Human Resource Management Study Report on Grimshaw's Quality Textiles - Essay Example Despite problems in the industry QualTex is surviving. It makes clothes for well-known supermarket chains, and given the explosion of this part of the market, is managing to turn a respectable profit 2. The company has a reasonable reputation as a local employer, the rates of pay are good for the area, and it has an unproblematic industrial relations record (at least there haven't been any strikes in the last ten years). However, it does have a high labour turnover, there have been some worrying health and safety issues and a couple of serious accidents at the factory in recent months. It also has a reputation as an 'old-fashioned' place to work. All issues to do with personnel and industrial relations have been managed by the Managing Director and his PA. The PA keeps the personal records of all employees and the MD has published a number of Personnel Policies to cover 'Absence', 'Discipline' and 'Regulations on wearing Personal Protective Clothing at work'. The MD expects the section managers to 'manage' the people issues in the factory 3. What are completely missing are any training, learning and development activity other than the minimum of health and safety training, and some cursory induction training on appointment. Focused Point # II: The workforce of the factory has recently been stunned by the news, which was announced by the Managing Director on 1 December last year. The announcement was as follows: 'In order to ensure the survival of QualTex in these difficult times for the textile industry, the company will merge with Grimshaw 's Fabric Company with effect from 1 January 2007. This is not a take over, but must be seen as a new partnership of long-standing successful Lancashire Textile manufacturers. The merged company will be registered at Company's House under the new name of 'Grimshaw's Quality Textiles'. This is a startling development. Grimshaw's is a highly successful textile manufacturer, which has modernised its plant and streamlined its production at its factory in Accrington. Unit costs are kept to a minimum, employees are paid minimum wage rates, but are part of a profit-sharing scheme and get good payouts at two crucial points in the year, immediately before the summer shutdown for 'Accrington holidays' and again before Christmas. Health and Safety records appear to be good, with a reduction of 'incidents' since 2004. There have been some difficulties with industrial relations and there was recently a walkout by employees protesting about the low level of pay 4. Focused Point # III: The threat of losing last year's Christmas profit share bonus brought everyone back to work very quickly. The management of Grimshaw's has a reputation for being tough. "If your face doesn't fit...you 're out' is a frequent complaint amongst Grimshaw's employees. Grimshaw's employs a Personnel Manager who is responsible for the issue and implementation of personnel policies and

Are eating disorders directly connected to the media Term Paper

Are eating disorders directly connected to the media - Term Paper Example Role models represented in the media are often mostly appearance and too often, little substance. According to perceptions precipitated by the media girls are ideally blonde, tall and slim with unblemished complexions. The idea of the ‘Barbie complex,’ propagated primarily by the media, positions the ‘norm’ of society at practically impossible standards. This has fashioned a culture that is exceedingly focused on appearance to the great disadvantage of most persons within it. There is an obvious connection between many aspects of the ‘appearance culture’ and increased instances of negative self-image and peer acceptance leading to eating disorders among teenagers. Girls who enter school without an already chubby figure start to think of themselves as being overweight, a perception that becomes increasingly cemented into their minds as their peers also start making these same associations. A continuous cycle begins causing the child to gain addit ional weight as a consequence of the emotional distress they feel because they are physically handicapped and can’t compete with other kids on the playground or sports field. Additionally, they don’t conform to the social ideals. ... einforce their child’s perception of themselves by unconsciously or consciously expecting them to be less active and less intelligent than their peers, again judging the child by their looks. The spotlight on beauty as a means of acquiring society’s approval is also emphasized by adults, mainly women, who think plastic surgery is a suitable means of getting it. Desiring to emotionally break away from the harassment of their childhood, many teenagers wish to have body altering surgery performed as well. In a study involving 2,000 girls, average age of 14, â€Å"four out of ten said they would consider plastic surgery to make themselves slimmer† regardless of their existing weight status (Gustafson, 2005). For those who either can’t afford or are repulsed by the thought of plastic surgery, the only choice they see available often emerges as a type of eating disorder, most frequently bulimia, a pattern of indulgent eating followed by forced vomiting, or anore xia, a sustained routine of deliberate starvation. Often thought to be based within issues of appearance and ‘not fitting the mold’, these unhealthy patterns become issues in and of themselves. A variety of factors play a role as to why a child may become overweight, but the perception they develop of themselves is rooted chiefly on how closely they and their peers consider they measure up to a social standard. The media plays the most active role in constructing this social standard and therefore the perception of self for many people. People need to only glance quickly into a mirror to understand how well or inadequately they correspond with the ideal personas they view on TV. This is an automatic and natural process. There are many arguments that indicate people do and always will focus on outward

Different Cultural Identities Dilemma Essay Example for Free

Different Cultural Identities Dilemma Essay The memoir Farewell to Manzanar, written by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston, tells of her experience at Manzanar internment camp after the Pacific War broke out. During the internment of Japanese-Americans, their living standards fell drastically; moreover, they faced Japanese and American values and identity conflicts. It was hard for these Japanese Americans to maintain two different cultural identities for several reasons. In the first place, they suffered from racial discrimination. In the 1940s, mainstream society and the government discriminated against Japanese Americans who were viewed as potentially dangerous people who might betray the US. Thus, Japanese Americans found it was hard to be accepted by others in America. In addition, they largely insisted on their own cultural identities. They were not willing to give up Japanese identities after arriving in America. Chinese immigrants would like to get together and formed Chinatown for the same reason. In the article, Two worlds, one family, Jen Maldonado was imposed on pressure by her Taiwanese friends who insisted on Chinese culture, when she wanted to develop a cross-cultural relationship with an American. It is hard to successfully balance two different cultural identities because of racial discrimination and the adherence to peoples former culture as will be shown using evidence from Farewell to Manzanar, Two worlds, one family and my personal observations. In the 1940s, Japanese-Americans suffered from racial discrimination; thus, they had a hard time getting into mainstream society and balancing their cultural identities. The government never showed full trust towards these immigrants who were viewed as threats to American national security. In order to supervise Japanese-Americans and prevent any potential danger, the government relocated Japanese Americans to internment camps, which exacerbated cultural conflicts and undermined basic human rights. The racist decision that the government made led Japanese Americans to feel that they were incompatible with American culture. Because of the racial discrimination the government initialized, many Japanese immigrants thought they were i nsulted, and so they struggled to accept their American identities. Some of them even wanted to get rid of American identities and went back to Japan. As a result, racial discrimination threatened their American identities. Houston and her friend Radine shared many qualities in common and became the best friends. Although they were socially equal, they were treated in completely different ways because of racism. Houston was not culturally accepted by mainstream society as Radine was. Boys were more likely to ask Radine to the dances, even though they flirted with Houston. Houston was barred from sororities, but Radine was admitted to join them. Houston said that, Watching, I am simply emptied, and in the dream I want to cry out, because she is something I can never be(172). Houston never stopped attempting to retain American identity; however, prejudice of her oriental characteristics obstructed her effort. She looked forward to fulfilling her American identity, but she was too helpless and powerless to challenge enormous racial discrimination, Other than prejudice against Japanese-Americans, another reason that caused people from different cultures to struggle to balance two cultural identities was adh erence to their own culture. After arriving at the continent and staying there for years, many Japanese immigrants still considered that they were more Japanese than American. They were not willing to give up their own culture, and so they confronted cultural conflicts. A minority of people in the camps labeled members of the Japanese American Citizens League inu for having helped the army arrange a peaceful and orderly evacuation(67). Inu meant collaborator or informer in Japanese. The hatred towards these pro-American Japanese immigrants and disrespectful insult words revealed their strong belief in Japan and hostility towards America. To people’s surprise, the authors father who stood up to defend the point of view that immigrants should be loyal to American government was assaulted and condemned by his peers. Although these pro-Japan immigrants had been in America for many years, they still insisted that they were more Japanese. It was the thought that some Japanese Americans were not capable of integrating into American culture and balancing two identities. Chinatown exemplified that Chinese immigrants insisted on their own culture. Chinese immigrants were viewed as a group of conservative and un-American people after they first came to America. They showed keen interests in preserving Chinese culture, but they would not adapt themselves to American society. Therefore, their refusal to give up Chinese identity led to their isolation and failure to balance two cultural identities Their adherence promoted the formation of Chinatown, a Chinese world in alien countries. In the article, Two worlds, one family, Jens Taiwanese friends started giving her grief for dating an American. They were strict about Chinese culture and rejected the cross-cultural marriage. Jen was also warned that she needed to stick with someone from her own culture.' By this, her friends hoped that Jen could retain her Chinese identity by narrowing down her dating range. However, many cases had proven that the cross-cultural marriage played an important role in balancing different cultural identities. When people with different cultural backgrounds decide to form cross-cultural families, they build a bridge of cultural communication. Thus, her friends thoughts undermined cultural exchange. To conclude, it is hard to successfully balance two different cultural identities. Racial discrimination stopped Japanese Americans from balancing their cultural identities. In the wartime, the mainstream society held hostility towards these immigrants, and so they were isolated by the majority. Moreover, some peoples adherence to their former culture became the obstacle of integrating into American society. Chinese always struggled to have cross-cultural communications proceed effectively and successfully due to their insistence on Chinese identity. In the article, Two worlds, one family, Jen was hoped that she could date Chinese persons by her friends. However, their insistence seemed to be stubborn because it blocked effective communication between people from different cultural backgrounds. In order to balance two different cultural identities, people should be more lenient with newcomers and more open to new culture.

Role Of The Registered Nurse

Role Of The Registered Nurse Registered Nurses (RNs) provide many different services to health care consumers in a variety of settings. Some things nurses do on a daily basis offer a unique contribution to health care, whereas others can be done by other health team members. Professional nursing offers a specialized service to society. Professional nurses use a broad approach when considering holistic health need of the people they serve. Because of the broad nature of the discipline, nurses assume multiple roles while meeting health care needs of clients. For this reason, this paper would be discussing the role of the registered nurse in health care delivery. We would also discuss the professional standard and expectations for registered nurse. The quality assurance and confidentiality issues would then be discussed. In addition, this paper would explore the responsibility of the employers in hiring new health care staff. This would then include the employers expectation regarding competencies. Finally, a conclusion would be provided in order to highlight important details discussed in the paper. Different Roles of the Registered Nurse Primary Caregiver As a caregiver, the nurse practices nursing as a science. The nurse provides intervention to meet physical, psychosocial, spiritual, and environmental needs of patients and families using the nursing process and critical thinking skills. The nurse as a caregiver is skilled and empathetic, knowledgeable and caring. RNs provide direct, hands on care to patients in all health care agencies and settings. They also take an active role in illness prevention and health promotion and maintenance (Chitty, 2005; Australian Nursing and Midwifery Council, 2006; Masters, 2009). Nurse Leader/Coordinator The Nurse Coordinator role is unique. It is a vital part of the multidisciplinary care team for patients and contributes to improved patient outcomes. The core functions of the Nurse Coordinator role centre around the patients physical and psychosocial assessment, care coordination, education and support, from coordinating the patients diagnostic work-up tests to assisting them to navigate the hospital system, and referring them to allied health professionals. The Coordinator is an important resource for the patient and family and acts as a focal point of contact throughout their time in the hospital (ANMC, 2006; Hood Leddy, 2006). Incorporated in this advanced practice role, the Nurse Coordinator is responsible for maintaining clinical competencies and participating in those activities that contribute to the ongoing development of self and other health care professionals. The Nurse Coordinator contributes to the educational needs of clinical nurses and participates in both informal and formal education programs at a national and international level (ANMC, 2006; Hood Leddy, 2006). Patient Advocate The purpose of this role is to respect patient decisions and boost patient autonomy. Patient advocacy includes a therapeutic nurse-patient relationship to secure self-determination, protections of patients right and acting as an intermediary between patients and their significant others and healthcare providers (Blais et al., cited in Masters, 2009). A patient advocate is mainly concerned with empowering the patient through the nurse-patient relationship. The nurse represents the interests of the patient who has needs that are unmet and are likely to remain unmet without the nurses special intervention. The professional nurse speaks for the patients interest as if the patients interests were the nurses own (Chitty, 2005; ANMC, 2006; MacDonald, 2006: Masters, 2009). Nurse Educator Nurse educators teach patients and families, the community, other health care team members, students and businesses. In hospital settings as patient and family educators, nurses provide information about illnesses and teach about medications, treatments and rehabilitation needs. They also help patients understand how to deal with the life changes necessitated by chronic illnesses and teach how to adapt care to the home setting when that is required (Chitty, 2005; ANMC, 2006). Nurse as Collaborator Collaboration is important in professional nursing practice as a way to improve patient outcomes. Multidisciplinary teams require collaborative practice, and nurses play a key role as both team members and team leaders. To fulfill a collaborative role, nurses need to assume accountability and increased authority in practice areas. Collaboration requires that nurses understand and appreciate what other health professionals have to offer. They must also be able to interpret to others the nursing needs of patients. Collaboration with patients and families is also essential. Involving patients and their families in the plan of care from the beginning is the best way to ensure their cooperation, enthusiasm and willingness to work toward the best patient outcome (Chitty, 2005; ANMC, 2006). Nurse Practitioner A nurse practitioner is a registered nurse educated and authorized to function autonomously and collaboratively in an advanced and extended clinical role. The nurse practitioner role includes assessment and management of clients using nursing knowledge and skills and may include but is not limited to, the direct referral of patients to other health care professionals, prescribing medications and ordering diagnostic investigations. The nurse practitioner role is grounded in the nursing professions values, knowledge, theories and practice and provides innovative and flexible health care delivery that complements other health care providers. The scope of practice of the nurse practitioner is determined by the context in which the nurse practitioner is authorized to practice. (ANMC, 2006; Carryer, Gardner, G., Dunn, Gardner, A., 2007). Professional Standards and Expectations for Registered Nurses Standards within a professional practice are known as statements of an authoritative nature through which the profession to which they relate to provide a unique description of the responsibilities of all practitioners within that profession (Campbell Mackay, 2001). Further, the standards and expectations are in place to ensure that all practitioners are also accountable for the work and duties they perform. When it comes to nursing, this is done in order to create boundaries and to provide a level of care that is equitable for all patients. Further, the priorities and values of nurses must be common to each nurse within the profession, and the standards and expectations outlines this as such (Campbell Mackay, 2001; Pearson, Fitzgerald, Wash, Borbasi, 2002; American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, 2003; ANMC, 2006, 2008; Schiemann, 2007; Furaker, 2008). While standards will vary in specifics across nursing specializations, and across countries, there is a general mindset as to what is expected of nurses in terms of expectations and standards. They are intended to provide daily guidance to nurses as they practice. Accountability, ethics, competence, knowledge, and the practical application of knowledge are key elements that are common to all nursing standards and expectations (Campbell Mackay, 2001; Pearson, et al., 2002; AACN, 2003; ANMC, 2006, 2008; Schiemann, 2007; Furaker, 2008 ). Nurses are required to be held accountable for every action that they take on a daily basis. This requires constant documentation of every element of their daily job, and following a chain of command within their select position. They are also required to maintain ethical standards within their practice, and to follow all ethical guidelines as set forth by their governing body of nursing. Furthermore, nurses are expected to have a set amount of knowledge before they enter the field of practitioner work, and with that knowledge set come an expectation of competence and practical application. Nurses are expected to be competent in their knowledge base such that they know and understand what they are supposed to in the medical field, and also, are supposed to know how to apply that knowledge in a practical manner (Campbell Mackay, 2001; Pearson, et al., 2002; AACN, 2003; ANMC, 2006, 2008). Quality Assurance Quality Assurance is another issue that is common across all standards and expectations for nurses. Through this, quality assurance standards ensure that nurses are practicing with quality efforts which in itself promote their competence and practical applications. This will require continuous education on the part of the individual nurse, as quality assurance standards across many medical centers, cities, and countries are in a constant state of evolution. It is the responsibility of the nurse practitioner to understand their quality assurance expectations at all times (Ellis Hartley, 2004; Hood Leddy, 2006). Confidentiality Confidentiality is another element of most standards and expectations for nurses. This is a requirement that nurses do not have an option to practice or not. Legislation and privacy concerns are in effect all across the globe, and nurses have the expectation that they will maintain confidential and private information for their patients within the patient doctor realm. Patients use medical services under the understanding that their information and medical records are not being seen by the wrong person, or found in the wrong hands, and because nurses have the most contact between patient and doctor, these are standards of paramount significance to the nursing profession (Deshefy-Longhi, Dixon, Olsen, Grey, 2004, Ellis Hartley, 2004; Chitty, 2005; ANMC, 2006, 2008; Masters, 2009). Employers Responsibility in Hiring New Health Care Staff The employer of an organization has an inherent duty to employ competent staff. This is not only cost-effective on the part of the employer but also guarantee in some ways that the products and services provided by the organization are competently given to the end-users. In the context of health care employees, such as the RNs there is an accreditation scheme to ensure the capacity of the RNs to carry out his/her job. In this manner, the employers responsibility to screen the professional capacity of the RN is significantly simplified. Seeking only the certification of the newly hired RN will guarantee that he/she has satisfied the minimum requirements of training, licensure, and communication proficiency to carry out his/her role as health professional. Having the employer check the credentials of the newly hired RN as well as his/her certification with authorities will allow the employer to measure the RN capability to perform his/her jobs in the organization (Ellis Hartley, 2004; Hart, Olson Fredrickson, McGovern, 2006). Employers Expectations Regarding Competencies Registered nurses should appraise their strengths, weaknesses and preferences. The RNs must ensure that there is a good match between their abilities and employers expectations. Ellis and Hartley (as cited in Chitty, 2005) suggest that RNs examine themselves in seven areas in which employers have expectations. Theoretical knowledge should be adequate to provide basic patient care and to make clinical judgments. Employers expect RN to be able to recognize the early signs and symptoms of patient problems, such as an allergic reaction to a blood transfusion, and take the appropriate nursing action, that is, discontinue the transfusion. They are expected to know potential problems related to various patients conditions. (p. 212) The ability to use the nursing process systematically as a means of planning care is important. Employers evaluate nurses understanding of the phases of the process: assessment, analysis, nursing diagnosis/outcome identification, planning, intervention and evaluation. They expect nurses to ensure that all elements of a nursing care plan are used in delivering nursing care and that there is documentation in the patients record to that effect. (p. 213) Self-awareness is critically important. Employers ask prospective employees to identify their own strengths and weaknesses. They need to know that new nurses are willing to ask for help and recognize their limitations. New graduates who are unable or unwilling to request for help pose a risk to patients-a risk that employers are unwilling to accept. (p. 213) Documentation ability is an increasingly important skill that employers value. Employers expect RN to recognize what patient data should be charted and to know that all nursing care should be entered in patient records. (p. 213) Work ethic is another area in which employers are vitally interested. Work ethic means that prospective RN employees understand what is expected of them and are committed to providing it. Employers expect new graduates to recognize that the most desirable positions and work hours do not usually go to entry-level workers in any field. In the nursing profession, a nurse cannot leave work until patient care responsibilities have been turned over to a qualified replacement; therefore, being late to work or â€Å"calling in sick â€Å" when not genuinely incapacitated are luxuries professional nurses cannot afford. (p. 213) Skill proficiency of new graduates varies widely, and employers are aware of this. Most large facilities now provide fairly lengthy orientation periods, during which each nurses skills are appraised and opportunities are provided to practice new procedures. In general, smaller and rural facilities have less formalized orientation programs, and earlier independent functioning is expected. (p. 213) Speed of functioning is another area in which new nurses vary widely. By the end of a well-planned orientation period, the new graduate should be able to manage the average patient load without too much difficulty. Time management is a skill that is closely related to speed of functioning. The ability to organize and prioritize nursing care for a group of patients is the key to good time management. (p. 214) Conclusion Through time nurses have advanced their roles into various spheres of practice, and this progression seems set to continue as healthcare continues to evolve. Whatever the reason, central to role extension should be the delivery of safe care to all patients, with the support of the multi- disciplinary team to ensure good standards of patient care. Nurses should ensure that each activity performed when advancing a role should complement the current job, one which they are competent in. Nurses should guard themselves against litigation and carefully consider what they really want to do, as each practitioner is accountable for their actions and should be aware of the legal implications of practice within the process of advancing professional practice. Reference American Association of Critical-Care Nurses. (2003). Safeguarding the Patient and the Profession: The Value of Critical Care Nurse Certification. Retrieved May 5, 2010 from http://0-web.ebscohost.com.library.vu.edu.au/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=4hid=11sid=a5993293-dc81-4e26-93ec-1fec6430d3b1%40sessionmgr4 Australian Nursing and Midwifery Council. (2008). Code of Professional Conduct for Nurses in Australia. Retrieved May 5, 2010 from http://www.anmc.org.au/userfiles/file/New%20Code%20of%20Professional%20Conduct%20for%20Nurses%20August%202008(1).pdf Australian Nursing and Midwifery Council. (2006). National Competency Standards for the Registered Nurse. Retrieved May 5, 2010 from http://www.anmc.org.au/userfiles/file/RN%20Competency%20Standards%20August%202008%20(new%20format).pdf Campbell, B., Mackay, G. (2001). Continuing Competence: An Ontario Nursing Regulatory Program That Supports Nurses and Employers. Nursing Administration Quarterly, 25(2), 22-30 Retrieved from http://0-web.ebscohost.com.library.vu.edu.au/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=4hid=11sid=42ae05a5-ab95-46df-976e-9c3eaa7b6092%40sessionmgr12 Carryer, J., Gardner, G., Dunn, S., Gardner, A. (2007). The core role of the nurse practitioner: practice, professionalism and clinical leadership. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 1818-1825. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2702.2006.01823.x Chitty, K. K. (2005). Professional Nursing: Concepts Challenges(4th ed.). St Louis, Missouri: Elsevier Saunders Deshefy-Longhi, T., Dixon, J. K., Olsen, D., Grey, M. (2004). Privacy and Confidentiality Issues in Primary Care: Views of Advanced Practice Nurses and their Patients. Nursing Ethic, 11(4), 378-394. doi: 10.1191/0969733004ne710oa Ellis, J., R, Hartley, C., L. (2004). Nursing in Todays World: Trends Issues Management (8th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams Wilkins Furaker, C. (2008). Registered Nurses views on their professional role. Journal of Nursing Management, 16, 933-941. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2834.2008.0872.x Hart, P. A., Olson, D. K., Fredrickson, A. L., McGovern, P. (2006). Competencies Most Valued by employers-Implications for Masters-Prepared Occupational Health Nurses. Business and Leadership, 54, (7), 327-335. Retrieved from http://0-web.ebscohost.com.library.vu.edu.au/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=7hid=11sid=42ae05a5-ab95-46df-976e-9c3eaa7b6092%40sessionmgr12 Hood, L. J., Leddy, S. K., (2006). Leddy Peppers: Conceptual Bases of Professional Nursing(6th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams Wilkins MacDonald, H. (2006). Relational ethics and advocacy in nursing: literature review. Journal of Advance Nursing, 57(2), 119-126. doi. 10.1111/j.1365-2648.2006.04063.x Masters, K. (2009). Role Development in Professional Nursing Practice (6th ed.). Sudbury MA: Jones And Bartlett Publishers Pearcey, P. (2008). Nursing Roles: Shifting roles in nursing does role extension require role abdication? Journal of Clinical Nursing, 17, 1320-1326. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2702.2007.02135.x Pearson, A., Fitzgerald, M., Walsh, K., Borbasi, S. (2002). Continuing competence and the regulation of nursing practice. Journal of Nursing Management, 10, 357-364. Retrived from http://0-web.ebscohost.com.library.vu.edu.au/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=4hid=10sid=1e5abd6f-0fce-4667-af73-c2cfe7c90ba5%40sessionmgr11 Schiemann, D. (2007). Expert Standards in Nursing as an Instrument for Evidence-based Nursing Practice. Journal of Nursing Care Quality,22(2), 172- 179. Retrived from http://0-web.ebscohost.com.library.vu.edu.au/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=7hid=10sid=1e5abd6f-0fce-4667-af73-c2cfe7c90ba5%40sessionmgr11

Kiss of the Spider Woman

In Manuel Puig’s novel Kiss of the Spider Woman, Molina and Valentin use fantasy as a way of escapism. Firstly, Molina uses the films he tells in the cell to escape his unfavorable and lonely life by creating a preferred reality through the fantasy he creates in them. Secondly, the setting of the cell itself provides Molina with a sanctuary from the outside world, allowing him to escape from the gender roles in which he is confined in and fantasize about taking on the feminine role with Valentin through the isolation of jail.Lastly, in Valentin’s morphine-induced fantasy at the end of the novel, he can escape from the socially accepted stereotypical male gender roles and express his true feelings about Molina. Firstly, Molina uses the fantasy presented in the films he reiterates as a way to escape from the harsh reality of the real world, creating his own, more favourable one. This perspective can be seen throughout the novel, particularly in association with the strong romantic and feminine aspects displayed in the films.A film that allows Molina to escape the real world is told through his stream of consciousness in chapter five, which tells the love story between an unattractive maid and a young soldier, face scarred by the war. This film is very personal to Molina in two aspects. Firstly, it is told not aloud to Valentin, but inside his own head, and secondly, it features a protagonist who is an outcast to society who nonetheless finds love. It is told through the first person perspective of the maid, and the use of personal pronouns draw a connection between the characters of Molina and the maid.This parallel characterization is heightened through the maid’s casual and repeated reference to herself as an â€Å"ugly girl† (100), mimicking Molina’s expressions of self-deprecation through belittling diction. He is constantly using words like â€Å"revulsion† (260) and â€Å"disgust† (262) to describe himself wi th, and he even interjects the film to recount the judge’s description of him as â€Å"the worst, a revolting fag† (106). It is clear that Molina, a gay man living in a homophobic country of machismo men feels like an outsider with a lack of self worth.In the chapter three, Molina relates the story of his unrequited love for the waiter Gabriel: a heterosexual man who does not return Molina’s feelings. Molina is escaping from the bitter truth of his own love-less life and living through the fantasies he presents in the form of films: an outlet that allows him to experience a preferred and utopian reality. Puig’s purpose in drawing a parallel between the maid and Molina is to express Molina’s intense desire to find love and acceptance and suggest the eventuality this lies in Molina’s future, as it did for the maid.Through film, Molina can escape the bitter actuality of his own life into his own highly romantic and idealistic fantasies. Not onl y does Molina use fantasy in his stories as a way of escapism, through the isolation of their cell, Molina can escape from confining traditional gender roles and assume the feminine role with Valentin, a form of fantasy for him. Throughout the novel, it has been made clear that Molina identifies with women; even claiming â€Å"I want to be one† (19). Inside the cell Molina is able to escape from the prejudice experienced in his primarily homophobic country and don the feminine traits he associates himself with.Molina cares for Valentin when the latter becomes ill, indulging in a fantasy in which he is sympathetic, caring and maternal. For example: â€Å"But you have to wait for that, until you feel okay, and you can be sure that you only get half of that†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (156). It is obvious that Molina enjoys being subservient to Valentin. In a sense, Molina is not so much homosexual as he merely believes himself a woman. Indeed, he firmly believes in the stereotypical and tra ditional roles of men and women: â€Å"But if a man is†¦my husband, he has to give the orders, so he will feel right. That’s the natural thing, because that makes him†¦ the man of the house† (244).Molina’s identification of himself as female is what makes him subject to prejudice, such as the kind he experienced with the judge. Towards the end of the novel, Molina comes to the realization that his situation outside the jail cell will never change, and that the fantasy he is experiencing with Valentin will not last: â€Å"No, they’ll never change†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (215). Puig creates the irony that it is within the confines of prison that Molina feels the most free, and it is outside where he feels imprisoned. Inside the jail cell, Molina is able to escape the bleak future in which he foresees himself never fully being able to embrace his gender identity.The fantasy he is living with Valentin is an opportunity to live his life like a woman, free fro m prejudice and discrimination. Although it is mainly Molina who utilizes fantasy throughout the novel, in his stream of consciousness at the end of the novel, it is Valentin who escapes from the pain of real life and the confinement of the cell into a morphine-induced fantasy. In this dream-like state, Valentin, free from socially accepted gender roles, is able to express his true feelings and thoughts.At the beginning of the novel, Valentin’s only addition to the films appeared in blunt interruptions, often times closer to criticism of the films than positive contribution: â€Å"I don’t really get it, it’s very confusing the way you tell it† (12). As the novel progressed, and Valentin and Molina grew closer together, the dialogue between them became of greater significance, as Valentin let down his emotional guard. This emotional development culminated in Valentin’s expressive and out of character dream, full of vivid imagery, in which he can esc ape from the expectations of his gender, and express his true feelings, specifically towards Molina.The metaphor of Molina as the Spider Woman is epitomized in this chapter and through this image, Valentin can express his true feelings about him: â€Å"†¦so many threads that look like hairy like ropes and disgust me, even though if I were to touch them they might feel as smooth as who knows what, but it makes me queasy to touch them† (280). This represents Valentin’s initial unease about being intimate with Molina, but at the same time knowing that allowing someone into his personal life could potentially be gratifying.Being part of a revolutionary group, Valentin has been accustomed to severing personal relations that interfere with the cause. At the same time, he has been associated with having very masculine traits, even proclaiming: â€Å"I’m no woman† (38). By Valentin admitting both that he had sex with Molina, and that he â€Å"enjoyed itâ₠¬  (280) shows an immense diversion from his characterization at the beginning of the novel. In this fantastical state, he can escape from the traditional gender roles in which is perceived with and admit to his true sentiments.In conclusion, fantasy plays a very important role in terms of escapism for Molina and Valentin in the novel, both in terms of physical and physiological situations. Molina and Valentin experience three key escapist fantasies throughout the novel: Molina uses the fantasies in the films to escape his own disparaging life, Molina uses the setting of the cell itself as an escape for the gender roles he sees himself confined in in the outside world, and Valentin’s dream like fantasy allows him to express his true feelings and escape confining male gender roles.The purpose of these fantasies in Kiss of the Spider Woman is to provide the characters with an environment in which they can escape from the confines of their life and express their true feelings. Indeed, it is these fantasies that provide illuminating characterization and allow the reader to truly discern the nature of the characters of Molina and Valentin.Work Cited Puig, Manuel. Kiss of the Spider Woman. New York: Knopf, 1979. Print.

Marketing Orientation Essay

There have been many studies of the term ‘marketing orientation’, and its presence within organisations. Marketing orientation is an approach that companies take which centres its activities towards achieving customer satisfaction through effective marketing. It is where customers form the basis of an organisations performance and overall success. In order to achieve successful marketing orientation, a company must organise an effective structure through planning its activities, products and services successfully. This will help the company on focusing its aims and objectives on the needs and requirements of its customers, in order to establish a relationship that will increase performance and success. ‘Market orientation is the organisation wide development of market intelligence pertaining to customer needs. ’ (Kohli and Jaworski, 1990. p12) Two approaches to marketing Orientation have been suggested by Avlonitis and Gounaris (1999), focusing on the practices and culture that the company adopts. It has been interpreted by Avlonitis and Gounaris (1999) that marketing orientation is either ‘a company attitude or company behaviour. This is whether a company is customer orientated or focuses on a competitive advantage through marketing orientation. Other authors have similiar thoughts upon these approaches to marketing orientation. Drucker (1954) believes that customers perceive marketing as an ‘activity involving the entire organisation’, rather than being a spec ific company process. The author’s view coincides with the work of Avlonitis and Gounaris (1999), as he focuses on the attitude organisations have in satisfying customer needs. The other side to this approach is the significance of a company’s culture towards marketing orientated activities. Felton (1959) states; ‘It is the attitudes and beliefs of a workforce that control the level of orientated activities a company strives to achieve,’ implying the focus is on themselves competing rather than putting the customer first. Trout and Ries (1985) perceive marketing orientation as an effort by companies to increase competitor advantage, rather than satisfy customer needs. Therefore the company’s culture is focusing its strategy on competitor orientation in order to achieve success. An organisations performance is a very important aspect of successful marketing orientation. Narver and Slater (1990) state that marketing orientation is based on 3 performance measures, which include ‘customer and competitor orientation, and inter-functional coordination. ’ Introducing effective performance measures can have positive influences on companies, as it helps the company’s culture set aims and objectives for a successful approach to marketing orientation. Jobber (2007) also describes the importance of these measures, stating; ‘A marketing concept culture that manifests in corporate activities to create superior value for customers. However, specific marketing activities relating to the behaviour of a company have ‘emphasis on managerial control rather than the natural culture of the organisation’ (Ellis, 2004), which relates to the work of Trout and Ries (1985) and their beliefs of company’s influencing the importance of competitor orientation over the satisfaction of their customers. Sharp (1991) argues the approach to marketing orientation as described by Drucker (1954), saying that it’s more than just about customer focus; Market orientation has a principle element of focusing on available markets and customer needs. Sharp criticises this view of orientation, as costs of maintaining customer focus will incur in unstable markets, affecting a companies orientation plan. In order to balance this procedure, a company needs equal focus in its approach to marketing orientation, which will help achieve success and efficiency. The link between organisational strategic thinking (Sharp, 1991) and managerial control (Ellis, 2004) helps towards a successful company through competitor orientation. Ellis states that effective performances increase through analysing competitor actions, in order to create a competitor advantage. However, company’s still need to be responsive to customer needs due to volatile markets. Overall increases of a company’s orientation, resulting from effective customer satisfaction, will then lead to greater performances (Kohli and Jaworski, 1990). The relationship between performance and marketing orientation is analysed negatively to strategic marketing. Sin (2005) considers the ‘external environmental aspects’ of marketing orientation, emphasising the importance of linking performance and marketing orientation in order to meet the needs of customers. Sin believes that if companies developed their approaches towards linking these two factors, a more in depth examination of customers needs could be undertaken, which would lead to higher performances within the company. Sin agrees with Sharp’s views, by describing the inclusion of customer needs as well as company aims and objectives. A strategic way of thinking is described by Sharp, where marketing orientation is described as being the most relevant, as it focuses on company, and not just market characteristics. The analyses of various journal articles relating to marketing orientation has led me to understand the different issues relating to marketing orientation. I agree with Kohli and Jaworski (1990) that a company should balance its orientation between customer focus and its aims and objectives, for effective performances. The authors were very clear and focused on what strategies were effective in approaching marketing orientation. I felt that this analysis helped me understand the best method of adopting marketing orientation and how to effectively respond to customer demands, as well as creating a competitive advantage. Limitations to the analysis were discussions from Felton (1959) and Trout and Ries (1995). The views of these authors concentrated on companies who adopted marketing orientation to create a competitive advantage as its main priority. The context of this article focused totally on businesses success and shadowed the importance of customer orientation, something which I feel is crucial for overall success.

English essay The decline of the west Essays

English essay The decline of the west Essays English essay The decline of the west Essay English essay The decline of the west Essay West Sometimes In your life you have times, where everything do not makes sense for you. We all have bad days, button still need to find a meaning of your life. It Is Important to find yourself and live life as it is. There are also declines In the real world, for example the decline In the West. The short story The Decline of the West Is a good example of this, because the theme Is about these kinds of problems. The text Is written by Hanoi Kurdish, and the short story was published in 2010 in a collection of Hanoi Surprises stories. Mike is the main character in the short story The Decline of the West. Mike is 45 years old. He has a wife whose name is Imagine. Mike looses his job, because he gets fired and after that he thinks a life is difficult and he cant see positive things in his life. Mike is also under pressure, because the short story takes place in the middle of the financial crisis. Mike seems to be a little bit weak. Mike at forty-five, had no idea what he would do. First he had to lose everything. (Page 4 1. 1. 73-74). This quote shows us that Mike seems to be weak after he loses his Job. Mike Is also a little bit an egoist after he loses his Job. He does not care about what his family tries to say to him. Just call me the Delivery man. Thats my name. But even you might have noticed theres a financial crash taking place. (Page 5 1. 1. 147-148). Mikes wife, Imagine, tries to talk with Mike about the problems, but Mike does not want to talk with his wife. He does not want to tell her wife what was happened at his work, and it shows that Mike is a egoist. He does not care about anything. The point of view in the short story (The Decline of the West) is a limited point of view from Mikes site. We know that, because the narrator follows the main character Mike in the whole story. We are as readers able to understand (a little bit) what Mike is thinking about. I have a quote, which shows us that the point of view in the short story is a limited point of view in third person. He switched on the garden lights and, looking out at the new deck where last summer theyd held barbecues, thought, l paid for this with y time, Intelligence, and the education the state provided me with. (Page 2. L. L. 18-20). The quote shows us that it Is a Limited point of view. The narrator knows a little bit about Mike, and sometimes we are In his thoughts, but the point of view Is not an omniscient point of view, because the narrator is not omniscient about Mike. The limited point of view makes the short story more open. It gives the effect that we sometimes need to think about what the short s tory is about. We do not hear what the author thinks and it makes the short story more clear. The setting in the short story The Decline of the West is described a bit negative. In any case if we look at the relationship in Mikes family. In the beginning the setting is good. Mike is looking forward to seeing his family again. Mike had endured, and hed been looking forward to opening the door into the warm hall, hearing the voices of his wife and children. (Page 2 1. 1. 1-3). The quote shows that the setting is quite good In the beginning of the short story. The story takes place In London In the comfortable outskirts. Mikes family has a big house with five floors and off-street parking, which Is overlooking a green. In that way the setting Is also good and the environments are very well But teen setting changes quickly. MIKe loses Nils JODI Ana rater Tanat teen setting is bad. Mike cant see positive things in his life anymore, and he only thinks about himself. Family life could appear chaotic, but theirs was finely organized, with every hour accounted for. (Page 4 1. 1. 77-78). Leave me alone! Dont ever talk to me again! Buck off, evil old man, Just die! Eve been wanting to do this all day! These quotes show us (the fact) that there is a rough atmosphere in the family. The setting is described in a negatively way in the most of short story. The title is called The Decline of the West, because we can compare the short story to the decline in the West. There was a big decline in the West in the middle of the sass. Sometime in the mid-sass debt stopped being shameful and after 1989, there appeared to be general agreement: capitalism was flourishing and there was no finer and more pleasant way to live but under it, singing and spending. (Page 4 1. 1. 83-85). The quote describes a little bit the decline in the West in the middle of the sass. It is a little bit the same in this short story, but this is a personality decline. It is a decline in Mikes life, because he gets fired, and he cant see positive things in his life. How easy it was to fall, and how tempting it was suddenly would be best to die! (Page 4 1. 1. 100-101). The quote says something about the situation in Mikes life. The quote shows us that Mike cant see positive things in his life and that is why, we can say the act that there is a personality decline in the short story. dubbed!

The role genetics plays determining someone essays

The role genetics plays determining someone essays What role does genetics play in the determination of someone's height? This can be answered with one simple answer. A person's height is factored mainly by genetics, but also that individual's environment. For instance, when my mother wanted to have a baby she stopped smoking, drinking soda and coffee, and everything else that mothers give up; however, she had a miscarriage. After that devastating time, her doctor told her not to change her every day life, and nine months later she gave birth to a healthy baby girl. My reason for telling this story is simple. I wanted to research this to find out if that possibly helped my genetic information in the determination of my height. Everyone thinks that just because his or her mother or father is tall they too will be tall. Saying a trait has a high chance of being inherited has never implied that its fated to be. Scientists from Oregon State University said that height is multi-factoral, meaning that not just many genes work together in determining final height, but the environment interacts with it as well. They also stated that the interactions with a persons environment might include gestation; the time while a mother is pregnant, during growing years, and also if he or she is exposed to cigarette smoke and/or alcohol before birth. A persons health and even birth order (in most cases, second children are taller than first born) are factors in his or her height. Dr. Trudy Wassenaar said that since there are so many different things that determine this genetic-based trait, it makes it very complex. But since height is controlled by more than one gene, if one gene doesnt work then you might not tall or short like you were programmed to be. Scientist from Oregon State University said that generally speaking, children inherit most of their physical features from their parents. Also, this means that the most likely reason for a person to be tall or short would ...

Pricing Strategies of Organisations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Pricing Strategies of Organisations - Essay Example With this shift in pricing strategy, Whirlpool was able to redefine the washing machine industry and identify new markets and segments within it (Gregson, pp. 85-87, 2009; Ferrell & Hartline, pp. 47-49, 2008). Market Skimming Consider the example of Sony’s first High Definition Television (HDTV) in the Japanese market introduced in the year 1990. Sony initially priced it with 43000 US dollars but by the end of the year 1993, the same HDTV with similar features was being sold for almost 6000 US dollars. By the year 2004, a 42-inch HDTV had a price tag of only 1200 US dollars in the Japanese market. What Sony was trying to do here in Japanese market is known as â€Å"price skimming† or â€Å"Market skimming price† in the language of marketing. When companies introduce new, technologically advanced and better products, they deliberately charge very high prices for those products (Gregson, pp. 85-87, 2009). Usually, extensive promotion and hype is created in the mark et about the product, which create a very high demand. Furthermore, the unit costs of producing small volumes are not so high. This allows the organisation, not only to keep the competitors out of the market but at the same time, the high price communicates the message of luxury, uniqueness, and superiority of the product. By starting with the highest possible price and gradually decreasing it over a period, the company is able to â€Å"skim† all the revenue layers of the market (Zhang, pp. 36-39, 2005; Kurtz, MacKenzie & Snow, pp. 325-326, 2009). Important here to note is that with this method, the company is able to target all the segments and markets. With high initial prices, the company targets the market of less price sensitive customers who are willing to pay... This essay approves that many airlines in the airline industry use dynamic pricing strategy, which is another form of price discrimination. Under the umbrella of dynamic pricing, airlines charge different fares to the different customers during peak and off peak seasons, for advanced bookings, for last minute bookings and thus fares vary for different times of the day, different days of the month and different seasons. In fact, there are all chances that two people who are travelling through the same flight may have paid different fares for the same flight with the same benefits. Important here to note is that this kind of pricing not only allows the company to earn some extra revenues during the peak hours, days and seasons but it also ends up in increasing tourism in those areas. However, important here to note is that these are the low cost carriers who use aggressive forms of dynamic pricing. This paper makes a conclusion that pricing strategies play a crucial and imperative role in targeting different markets. Companies and managers, which are aware of the potential of pricing strategies to target different markets, are able to generate more business and revenue for the company. However, as mentioned earlier in the paper as well that much consideration and thought must be put into the pricing strategies to target different markets because an incorrect pricing strategies may not even end up tarnishing the image of the company but it may also end up putting the company into losses

Globalization & Multinational Corporation Term Paper

Globalization & Multinational Corporation - Term Paper Example In the first paper, for instance, the author looks deep into the key features that characterized both the Industrial Revolution and the Great Divergence. The author considers the divergence that occurred in the 19th century. By constructing a trade/growth model. The paper compares the trade styles, technology and industrial growth between the north and south regions in this era of divergence. The second paper on the other hand significantly presents a multi-country theory of economic growth. This growth is related to how different countries are connected in terms of trade and exchanges. Since the stated growth is directly related to the human practice and knowledge accumulation, the paper revisits The Great divergence in relation to how specific countries connect to the rest of the world and how these networks contributed to the phenomenon. The third paper is rather specific, focusing on the issue of transportation cost as a factor that affected The Great Divergence. The paper focuses directly on the effects of transportation cost in different trade sectors. In an inquiry fashion, the paper specifically addresses how the reduction in transportation costs of industrial goods. The paper recognizes that such a reduction is related to an enhanced convergence of economic growth rates. The papers relate directly to the issues affecting economic growth in many countries in the world. Currently, economic growth is directly related to trade and the costs of movement. In addition, these costs and trade depends on the connections and the networks that exist between the specific country and the rest of the world. Globalization and multinational corporations are a direct expression of this network. Since this is a current issue in business, the papers therefore bring out an interesting relationship between The Great Divergence and the current status of economy and globalization. My motivation for choosing the papers is therefore