Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Module 7 †Reflective Practice and Professional Development

Certificate in Education Module 7 – Reflective Practice and Professional Development Report to compare teaching roles In any organisation there must be some structure and it is this that leads to a selection of teaching and management roles within education. All roles are focused on the quality of service provided to not only the learners but to the community, our stakeholders, awarding bodies, funders and parents. The 3 roles I have chosen for comparison are Team Manager, which is my role at NN, a Trainer on the foundation learning programme at NN and the role of Learning Support Assistant.I have collected the information by talking to and observing, the trainer on foundation learning. I have researched the post of LSA as this is a role that I need to employ in the New Year for the new programme I will be running. I have 12 learners on programme at any given time, the course is entry 3 and the maximum I have in a group is 6. The courses are a mixture of practical and theory f or example the driving theory course as the name suggests is mainly theory however the nail technicians course is mainly practical.The trainer on foundation learning has a maximum of 16 learners and the level ranges between entry 3 and level 1. He does 75% practical and 25% theory as he gets the learners to take a lot of responsibility for their own learning. The LSA that I will be employing will be working on a 1:1 or 1:2 basis. We all work with 16-18 year olds that have not fitted into mainstream education. . I have split the responsibilities into sections of common themes to compare the roles. My role as Team Manager is to plan and direct the activities of the team.Through Team meetings and one to one support & supervision sessions we discuss the needs of current and potential learners, with this information in mind, I then need to create Schemes of Work which not only meet the individual needs of the learner and the targets, but also the standards and outcomes set by senior mana gement, funders and regulatory bodies. The session plans are then created by either myself or the trainers for the appropriate programme. The LSA’s, trainers and myself are all responsible for working from the session plans and ensuring that outcomes and targets are met and standards adhered to.As a group we would also discuss what additional resources and materials would be necessary for the course and create an essential list and a wish list. It would then be my responsibility to check what was available within the budget and authorise any additional spending. I am responsible for risk assessing and ensuring the health & Safety of the staff and learners. The trainers are responsible for the health and safety of themselves and learners during sessions and have a responsibility to bring to the attention of the team manager anything that arises during their sessions.The LSA has a responsibility to report any health and safety issue to their line manager. We all have a responsi bility to ensure that our areas are clean, tidy and secure at the end of each session. I am responsible for learner registrations, arranging internal and external verification and attending standardisation meetings. The trainers are responsible for providing me or their team manager with the necessary information for us to do the registrations and to ensure that learner’s portfolios are completed to an acceptable standard.The LSA’s can complete learner progress reports and are responsible for completing the tasks with the learners that have been set by the trainer. All of the roles are responsible for discipline and classroom management, the trainer is responsible for the discipline and management of the whole class, the LSA, alongside the trainer is responsible for the learners they are working with and I am responsible overall for making any final decisions about discipline and behavioural issues. On my project specifically, I allow the learners quite a lot more lati tude initially as my focus is on engagement following a long period of no education.The trainer on FL would expect a far greater standard of behaviour as he is preparing the learners for further training or employment. Ideally we would see a journey of improving behaviour from when they start on my course to when they finish on FL. The LSA’s are responsible for setting up equipment and resources whilst the trainer is responsible for deciding which equipment to use, designing any handouts/resources and ensure that resources are used effectively and efficiently. I need to ensure that there are adequate resources for the trainers including purchasing and designing my own resources whilst remaining inside the allocated budget.I am responsible for securing adequate funding to provide appropriate resources. We are all responsible for the learning journey of the learner; the LSA must be impartial when assisting the learners and ensure that their practice is professional and inclusiv e. The trainer is responsible for ensuring the practice with the group is inclusive and that they can challenge any discriminatory behaviour and attitudes. They design individualised learning plans with the learners and the LSA’s work towards goals set with the learners on these plans.I need to ensure that any new paperwork is designed within our, and other regulatory bodies, codes of practice. The trainer is responsible for completing initial assessments with the learner and I am responsible for ensuring that initial assessments take place and that all relevant paperwork is completed. The LSA would not be expected to do initial assessments however would be expected to contribute to learning reviews. I am responsible for ensuring that practice and assessments are standardised. All staff are required to attend standardisation meetings for the various awarding bodies that we use.This ensures that our assessments are fair, reliable, sufficient and valid. The Trainer on FL would be expected to work with external bodies to find and maintain suitable work placements however on my course this is not as relevant. The Team manager along with the health and Safety manager would be responsible for carrying out a risk assessment on the placement. The trainer is responsible for communicating with colleagues and attending meetings to ensure that training is standardised. They are responsible for collecting information that could be needed by others and passing it to their line manager.I am responsible for collating performance data to present to senior management, external agencies and regulatory bodies. In addition I am responsible for leading, managing, developing and motivating staff, including support & supervision and arranging adequate cover. I control and monitor expenditure against a set budget and contribute to the budget setting process. I am responsible for maintaining the viability of my project and work with my team manager colleagues to ensure that we m aximise, and identify any potential use of any shared resources.I am responsible for developing relationships with referral agencies, stakeholders and partnership agencies and where required work collaboratively in a multi agency setting, whilst maintaining confidentiality of information. The conclusion is that there are a lot of similarities between the roles as they are all predominantly based on supporting the learning journey of young people. All roles are vital for the success of the young people. The differences are based around the levels of responsibility and accountability.

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Impact of Gold on GDP Essay

Impact of Gold on GDP In ancient times, India was referred as Golden Bird and In the modern times, She has emerged as the largest consumer ot gold in the world. The importance ot gold can be understood in the saying all glitters are not gold. Gold is an important participant in Indian culture, traditions and economic policy. Gold has several applications or uses and the main reasons why Indians take to gold are: Gold is considered an equivalent for liquid cash: Gold is highly liquid and portable as a Security or Asset. It can be converted to cash anytime when an emergency arises and Is considered a friend In eed. Gold is considered as Status Symbol: Especially in India gold symbolizes wealth. often, gold Is Important consutuent of the bridal wealth In the wedding. Indian weddings without gold are unimaginable. Gold is a very good investment: Gold is an asset which has consistently increased in value and thereby considered as a safe and secure Investment. Gold Is considered an effective diversifier which helps to reduce portfolio risk. Gold Is considered as a good gift item: Gold is precious and worthy across all cultures and times. The gold Jewelry Is given as gifts during weddings, festivals and other pecial occasions. Gold has great religious significance: Gold is the symbol of the Hindu Goddess Laxmi and considered highly auspicious. Gold is brought or presented on testivals like Dhanteras and Akshaya Tritiya. Toe rings are never made of gold as it represents the goddess of wealth and should not be soiled by touching a human’s feet. Great Ornamental Value: Women of every age and time have always loved wearing gold ornaments. Moreover. Gold Ornaments are never out of fashiorn It also may be remembered that Wedding rings are also traditionally made of gold to mark a long asting relationship. Great value as Heirloom: Gold jewelry is something which can be passed down from one generation to the other as ancestral property Not only In India, but In rest of the world also, gold Is also one of the most valuable assets. Like most of the commodities, gold prices are also determined by demand and supply. The global demand for gold has many layers. For the last 5 years, Jewelry has consisted of of the overall demand for gold. The major players for gold jewelry with over of the demand are China, Turkey, and the Middle East. Gold, as gold coins or bars, adds another 20% of the demand where the united states, India, and Europe play a vital role. Industrial demand lead by Japan makes up the last 12%. Mining constitute 59 percent of the global gold supply, net official sales constitute 6 percent and recycled gold provides 35 percent ot the global gold supply. But many other factors also play their role In determlnlng the gold prices like dollar prices, crude oil prices, inflation etc. Even today, despite of US Dollar being acceptable in International trade, gold is still considered the safest option. It is because ot this reason gold prices are otten attected by the change in Dollar prices. Anyone who follows the gold and currency markets closely will realize that the IJS$ gold price and the Dollar Index generally trend In opposite directions. I ne reason tnat gold ana tne collar generally trend In opposite alrectlons Is tnat In one respect gold is Just another currency. As a result, when the dollar weakens on the foreign exchange market over an extended period then the IJS$ gold price will generally rise during the same period; and when the dollar strengthens over many onths the IJS$ gold price will usually fall. There are, of course, leads and lags and there’s no reason to expect that percentage changes in one will be accompanied by equal-and-opposite percentage changes in the other, but when charts of the dollar and gold are compared it quickly becomes apparent that the two have been inversely correlated. On the contrary, gold prices and crude oil prices tend to rise and fall positively with one another. There are two reasons for this- historically, oil purchases were paid for in gold. Even today, a sizable percentage of oil revenue ends up invested in gold. As oil prices rise, much of the increased revenue is invested as it is surplus to current needs and much of this surplus is invested in gold or other hard assets. The second reason is that rising oil prices place upward pressure on inflation. This enhances the appeal of gold because it acts as an inflation hedge. Over the last 50 years or so, gold and oil have generally moved together in terms of price, with a positive price correlation of over 80 percent. Apart from above factors, gold also provides hedge against inflation and therefore there is a positive relationship between gold price and inflation. During times of economic growth there is an increase in wealth which leads to higher demand for luxury goods like gold. During times of economic recession, gold can be used as an asset that protects against inflation and devaluing paper currencies. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has concluded the purchase of 200 metric tonnes of gold from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), under the IMF’s limited gold sales programme. This was done as part of the Reserve Banks foreign exchange reserves management operations. RBI’s decision to shore up its gold reserves needs to be seen in the ontext of other central banks across the globe increasing their gold reserves. In fact, the share of gold in India’s total reserves has dwindled over the decade. In March 1994, the share of gold in the total reserves of the country was 20. 6%; by the end of June 2009, gold constituted only 3. 7% of the total reserves. The purchase resulted in increasing the share of gold in total assets of RBI to 6percent. RBI’s foreign currency assets consist mainly of sovereign bonds, mainly US treasuries. So, buying more gold had helped the Indian central bank to diversify its assets. RBI’s foreign exchange reserves consist of for eign currency assets, gold, special drawing rights (SDR) which is an international reserve currency floated by International Monetary Fund (IMF) and RBI funds kept with IMF. India is the largest consumer of gold in the world, consuming around 18 per cent of the total world’s production. India has to import around 70 per cent of its total gold consumption, thus imparting a lot of foreign exchange to major gold producing countries. With the development of the stock markets, especially on-line trading systems, urban India is lowly shifting its investment focus from gold to the other avenues of investment such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds etc, but, rural India still has its major investments in the form of gold. Around 65 per cent of the total demand for gold in Inala Is Trom people Involved In agrlculture ana alll around 30 per cent of the GDP of the nation. ea Inaustrles wnlcn contrlDutes to Thus gold is still as important for Indian economy as it was ever. Gold is also the important source of income for many least developed countries of Africa where countries like Mali, Ghana get majority of foreign exchange from the export of Gold.

Monday, July 29, 2019

Animal Rights (Tom Regan etc)

Animal rights is a very controversial issue with many different groups of people with differing opinions that want their voices on this issue heard. Many of these groups believe that animals have inherent value and deserve rights, and the majority of people believe this as well, but exactly which rights do they deserve. It is all well and good to say you are an advocate for animal rights, however the real issue here is exactly what rights are they entitled to? I will be evaluating Tom Regans view of animal rights that he sets out in The Case for Animal Rights (1992), in which he calls for an end to the use of animals in scientific experiments and commercial agriculture, and sets out what he believes animals are entitled to. I will also be examining opposing arguments from Carl Cohen (1986), who is very much on the opposite end of the spectrum, and believes that animals deserve no rights whatsoever. In â€Å"The Case for Animal Rights† (1992) Regan argues that all beings of consciousness have what he calls inherent value, which is value to themselves above the value of their usefulness to others. He uses the example of the genius and the retarded child. The value of the usefulness to society differs dramatically in these two individuals, but that does not mean that the life of one is of greater value than the other. You could not morally kill the retarded child in order to save the genius, as this moral theory does not allow for that to happen. All beings of consciousness possess equal inherent value and all have an equal right to be treated with respect and to not be treated in a way that degrades them to simply a thing a resource for others to use. This is what Regan calls the rights view. It denies all tolerability of racial, sexual or social discrimination, and opposes the view that the ends justify the means you cannot justify evil means, that violate an individuals rights, simply by achieving good results. If this moral theory condemns all use of racism, sexism and any other form of discrimination then, of course, it will also condemn speciesism discrimination based on species. Regan does not simply oppose battery hen farming, the conditions of veal farming, the tiny cages used for animals in medical and cosmetic testing and the conservative use of anaesthetics on animals being used for toxicity tests of cosmetics, he opposes the entire doctrine and way we look at animals as a whole. The rights view that Regan holds is abolitionist towards animal testing, for Lab animals are not our tasters; we are not their kings. (Regan 1992) These animals are constantly reduced to their usefulness to others, as they are seen as a renewable resource for us to have our way with and, without the means to object, there is no reason to stop. There is no thought whatsoever to their inherent value and the fact that their living conditions and whether they live or die is important to them. The fact it is important to them means something, according to the rights view. This brings us back to the genius and the retarded child example. If we reduced those two down to their usefulness to others we would have no trouble killing off the retarded child in order to retrieve information that could save the genius life. The problem is not many moral beings would be able to do that. The fact that they can do it to animals is blatant speciesism, which really should be as bad as racism and other forms of discrimination. An animal’s inherent value should be important to us because it is important to them. If we dont respect that then, in the eyes of the rights view, we are as bad as racist mobs lynching an African-American due to the colour of his skin. Regan suggests that the reason animals are perceived to have less value stems from the fact they lack our level of autonomy, reason or intellect. They cant have the same level of inherent value as humans do for those are some of the attributes that make us value human life as a whole. This version of the rights view is even more baseless than saying they have no rights at all, because we arent prepared to make the same call on humans who also lack normal levels of intellect, reason and autonomy. The truth is that those deficient humans, that lack those attributes to a degree, do not hold less value than the rest of us. Their life is still as important to them as our life is to us and we cannot justify saying that this is not the case. All beings who have inherent value have it equally and deserve to be treated as though their inherent value means something for, according to the rights view that I am explaining and evaluating, this is indeed the case. There are, of course, advocates of differing views and philosopher Carl Cohen is one of these advocates. Carl Cohen believes there are two categories that define an organism as a human. These categories pertain to a being’s cogniscience as a legal person and a moral person. There are two types of legal persons: natural and artificial. Natural legal persons refer to you and me any human in the world is a natural legal person. An artificial legal person is a body of men/woman who in the eyes of the law are seen as one e.g. A corporation is seen as one legal entity. Both these types of legal persons have legal responsibilities to uphold the law of the land and are responsible for their own actions. They are also given rights with these responsibilities and come under legal protection. Animals arent seen to have any legal responsibilities and, with no responsibilities, there can be no rights. As such, they cannot come under legal protection, effectively barring them from being classified as a legal person, natural or artificial. A moral person is much the same. They have moral responsibilities to look out for their community, and others around them, and also have the intellect and reason to make autonomous decisions and to object to things they believe are immoral. In agreeing with and putting these responsibilities into practice, they develop moral rights to have their decisions, feelings and value upheld by the communities they are morally responsible for. Animals lack all of these attributes, such as the ability to see right and wrong in their actions, and to be able to recognise their obligations and make a moral decision based on their responsibilities. Cohen himself explicitly states so when he says â€Å"Rights arise, and can be intelligibly defended, only among beings who actually do, or can, make moral claims against one another.† (1986) Humans may be subject to experimentation with their consent a choice they freely made and we, as moral persons, must respect, as they made the choice as a moral person. An animal cannot do this. It is impossible for an animal to give consent or withhold consent and equally as impossible for it to make a moral decision based on moral obligation and sense of right and wrong. It is therefore impossible to call them a moral person. Much like the legal persons classification, they are barred from all moral rights when they cannot comprehend moral obligation, and knowing what is right and wrong. Regan responds to Cohen’s analysis with an accusation of speciesism. Failing to protect the rights of animals due to their lack of moral attributes is exactly like condemning a retarded child for the absence of this same capacity. Using Cohen’s logic, because the retarded child lacks empathy and a sense of moral obligation, they deserve no moral rights at all. In the real world, however, this is quite the opposite. They are, in fact, given more protection as a result. Society provides services and facilities for them to live with fully-functional people, so they may live in a fulfilling manner. It is morally wrong, in modern society’s eyes, to discriminate against them due to their reduced brain function. For this reason, I see Cohens arguments to be, not only antiquated, but not in line with commonly held belief of 21st century society. It was published six years prior to Regans the Case for Animal Rights and, despite the fact that it doesnt seem like a long time, society’s views on animal rights have changed drastically since 1986. The animal rights movement is no longer considered as simply the views of â€Å"hippies† who should not be taken seriously. This movement has garnered a lot of support from the mainstream of society, and many scholars and lawyers have gotten behind it. Regan was one of the key factors in bringing the animal rights issue into the academic limelight, and it has subsequently flourished in the curriculum of many academic institutions, and has the support of senior legal scholars of Harvard Law Alan Dershowitz and Laurence Tribe. 92 out of 180 law schools in the US have now adopted the issue, and even have specific animal rights courses included as compulsory course requirements. The most enthusiastic adopters amongst the academic world are the philosophers, for it brings many deep questions to the surface and causes in us a realization of how cruel society can be, and how hypocritical we can be in our assigning of inherent value. Society has proven to be prone to prejudice and discrimination. As evidenced by the civil rights movement of 1960s America, it can take hundreds of years to achieve a state of equality. Regan’s rights view of â€Å"inherent value†, when viewed in the context of civil rights, has been shown to have immense value to all sectors of society, not only those who are the victims of prejudice. Society selectively applies this rights view to suit themselves. In contrast, Cohen’s rights view of assigning value based on conforming to preset categories of legal and moral personhood, seems to no longer be relevant to 21st century society’s beliefs. Regan himself addresses this view and draws comparisons to how society treats human beings of reduced mental capacity. If society is judged on how it defends those who cannot defend themselves, what justification do we have for failing to protect the welfare and rights of animals. In the time since Cohen published â€Å"The Case for the Use of Animals in Biomedical Research† in 1986, scholarship and academic attention on the subject of animal rights has grown immensely. No doubt, as more academics and philosophers add their own thoughts and research into the subject, we can expect to see our understanding of animals rights continue to change. Jonsson, P. 2001. Tracing an animal-rights philosophy. [online] Available at: http://www.csmonitor.com Encyclopedia Britannica. 2013. animal rights. [online] Available at: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/25760 Dershowitz, A. 2004. Rights from wrongs. New York: Basic Books Smith, W. 2010. A rat is a pig is a dog is a boy. New York, NY: Encounter Books. Regan, T. 1983. The case for animal rights. Berkeley: University of California Press. Cohen, C. 2012. The case for the use of animals in biomedical research. Arguing About Bioethics, p. 206.

Blockbuster Organizational Failure Research Paper

Blockbuster Organizational Failure - Research Paper Example At the same time, it also created numerous challenges in the market place regarding competitiveness, innovativeness as well as sustainability, which has greatly influenced company sustainability in many sectors. Focused on a similar notion, this paper will entail critical analyzes regarding the failure of Blockbuster LLC, which was formerly recognized as Blockbuster Inc. Overview of Blockbuster Organization Blockbuster is a global retail chain, which offers a vivid array of video games, home movie and rental services for DVDs and VCDs at reasonable price to its discriminating global customers. Besides, the organization is also dedicated to provide its customers with adequate product choices and unique purchasing experiences. Currently, Blockbuster is operating with more than 2,500 retail stores spread worldwide. Being an American MNC, the company owns its maximum number of retail stores in the US, apart from Europe, Asia and Australia. The primary objectives of the company over the y ears have been to provide a world class entertainment experience to the consumers with a vivid assortment of movie and game genres, serving to around 90 million people all around the world (Blockbuster, 2013). Irrespective of its success since its establishment, with the increasing pressure of competition in the global platform, the company had to witness a decline in its revenue structure. It was in the year 2010 that the organization filed for bankruptcy and was consequently acquired by Dish Network (Almeida, 2011). Analysis of the Organizational Failure Factors In order to analyze the reasons behind the failure of Blockbuster, the following subject areas will be taken into consideration, which shall be helpful to obtain an in-depth understanding of the role played by various external and internal business environment factors to secure the sustainability of a company in the long-run. Competitive Advantage According to Michael E. Porter (2008) competitive advantage is a strategy of gaining benefit over competitors by offering customers high value through reasonable price, good product quality, product variety, innovativeness as along with other value added services (Porter, 2008). In the current phenomenon, competitive advantages are not only necessary to assist a company in obtaining larger market share, greater profit and brand value, but it is also necessary to assure long-term leadership position of the company, in the modern era. However, when studying the incident of Blockbuster’s failure, it can be observed that the most significant aspect of competitive advantage is to guarantee the sustenance of a company, apart from the aforementioned benefits. It is in this context that apparently, due to its business model limitations, Blockbuster was in a competitively disadvantageous position. The industry context can be accounted as responsible in this regard, to a large extent. The current market structure of the entertainment industry tends to be highl y volatile, where both the suppliers and the customers possess high degree of bargaining power, majorly due to the availability of close substitutes. Additionally, with frequent occurrences of forward and backward acquisition and mergers, Blockbuster also had to witness the threat of new entrants. Hence, given the limitations of the business model followed by the organization in terms of ill fit with external environmental changes, rigidness to adapt innovative ideas and cost as well as time intensive characteristic, the organization failed to preserve its

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Pros and cons of death penelty Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Pros and cons of death penelty - Research Paper Example s a legal sentence that acts as a strong deterrence to the criminals who seldom desist from committing crime and are used to committing such heinous crimes such as murder and killing (Hood 211). The provision of death penalty scares away the people from engaging in such serious and inhuman crimes like murder and killing. It protects the society from the serious criminals who are incapable of mending their ways. It is a final resort against such criminals who are incapable of correcting their criminal tendencies. (2) The one other advantage of death penalty is that it assures that a criminal gets full and complete justice. Since the consequences of death penalty are irreversible, the legal system looks to it that the varied aspects of a crime are seriously considered before an individual is given a death penalty (Hood 179). (3) It is the duty of the criminal justice system to look to it that a criminal gets appropriately punished for the heinous crime committed by one. The provision of death penalty assures that a criminal gets suitably and appropriately punished in consonance with the inhumanity and gravity of the crime committed by one (Anckar 59). (4) Death penalty is also appropriate as it brings a sense of final closure to the family members and friends of the victims who are subjected to serious crimes. It gives a sense of solace to their families that the justice has been met with in a suitable and time bound manner (Anckar 119). (ca) The one big objection against death penalty is that it is deemed to be inhuman and immoral (Haines 62). It is owing to the inhuman and immoral nature of the death penalty that this legal provision has been banned in Europe and in many other nations. (cc) One other objection against death penalty is that it is highly susceptible to the quality and fairness of a trial (Haines 172). In case the trial in the case of a prisoner is not fairly conducted, it may subject one to a situation, the consequences of which can never be

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Benchmarking Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Benchmarking - Assignment Example The intention of this study is benchmarking as an improvement process which is mainly used to discover as well as incorporate the best practices in operation. It is the most preferred process which understands and identifies the elements of world class performance in work process. There are four processes in benchmarking which includes planning, analysis, action and review. There are three different types of benchmarking which includes internal, external and best practice. About 70% of the fortune 500 companies goes for benchmarking companies like Ford Motor Company had benchmarked its function of account payable against Mazda Motor. Studies have shown that top management usually does not support the benchmarking. Mangers should not be discouraged from the process of benchmarking. It provides managers to know their goals through the data. According to Betts, there are people who perceive that their individual performance is better than actually it is which is also termed as the Lake Wobegon effect. Betts have conducted a research to seek if these phenomena are also present when the employees are asked to give their views on the performance of the organization. Overestimation of performance is common in organization as well as in individuals. Individuals rate themselves better than they actually are projected with the help of an example. Around 87% of MBA students at Stanford rate their performance to be at top in comparison with their peers, about 90% of the students believed that were above average and only 10% thought they were below average. Similar is with organizations. Thus benchmarking is important in order to escape from the Lake Wobegon effect as the consequences of this performance may not result to be effective for organizations or mangers. According to Alfred North Whitehead, it is not ignorance but ignorance of ignorance which leads to the death of knowledge. The performers who are below the average and are ignorant of the fact that they are poorer performer usually are not motivated to improve (Betts, Croom & Lu, 2011, p.734). Lake Wobegon effect or benchmarking revolves around perverse dynamic. The mangers believe that they are above average performers. But in reality not all mangers are above average neither does all of them deserve to get a performance bonus. Therefore establishing an appropriate peer group and benchmarking is the only option to establish a competitive edge over the competitors (Lipman & Hall, 2008, p.33). Therefore it has been proved that overestimation of performance is common in organizations and individuals. As per a survey conducted by Betts, it has been proved that overestimation of performance is common as 75 % of the employees reported above average performance, 20 of them reported average performance and only about 5% reported to be below average performance. The people are bad at understanding the average performance basically when they are to evaluate the performance of organization in which th ey work. Therefore the consequence of over estimating is likely to bring about a change and so a greater effort should be put on benchmarking performance and also in spreading awareness in respect to benchmarked to the organization (Betts, Croom & Lu, 2011, p.740). Thus creating a need for change is must in the organization but as seen the management decision of benchmarking usually creates a resistance in the employees. Change is an important aspect and should be done on regular intervals. Manager’s use benchmarking to compare the performance of employees on some given dimension in comparison with other organizations performance so that it can be decided how successful the change has been. For example, when Xerox was

Friday, July 26, 2019

Punitive Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Punitive Law - Essay Example There are three fundamental ways in which punitive damages promote justice. Firstly, punitive damages discourage an individual, agency or a company from cutting the corners or displaying gross negligence. Punitive damages provide the concerned parties with adequate incentives that they may utilize to produce such goods and services that are safe for their clients. When the vendors know that there is a possibility of implication of large monetary penalties against the production of defective goods and services, they tend to improve the quality of their work and thus, promote public safety. Secondly, punitive damages encapsulate a very important punishment function. Punitive damages tend to hold the individuals, agencies or companies accountable for their acts when they cause harm to individuals in the society either by gross negligence or intentionally. Punishment is essential in order to forbid people from committing the same crime in the future. Where there is accountability, there is responsibility and peace. Punitive damages impose larger awards upon the guilty in order to make them take the charge seriously and amend their ways accordingly. Thirdly, punitive damages assume a compensatory function. They play a big role in compensating for the intangible harms. Punitive damages are estimated with a view to providing the incentives that are required to commence the civil suits that are desirable for the society. In the circumstances when compensatory damages are not enough a reward for the promotion of commencement of legal action by the sufferer, and yet there is great need of admonishing the behavior of the defendant, incentives do the job well. Punitive damages serve the purpose by becoming the source of required incentive for the initiation of the action. Justice is thus, indirectly promoted as the people working against the public good are affected. Punitive damages not only encourage civil suits, but also promote socially desirable safety levels, and thu s promote justice. This claim is grounded in the perception that levels of safety are not adequately generated by basing the safety decisions’ cost-benefit analysis upon the price needed to compensate the sufferer. Payment of punitive damages and the costs associated with the compensation of the sufferer gives rise to a cost-benefit analysis that is conducive for the generation of adequate levels of safety for the sufferer. Quite often, it so happens that the benefit given to the defendant as a result of the loss-causing incident does not weight equal to the harm that the plaintiff has caused. Therefore, if increase in the levels of safety has to be the reference for the establishment of justice, punitive damages play a big role in promoting justice in the society. Opponents of the punitive damages say that punitive damages should be terminated because they are too large for companies to bear particularly in the contemporary age of financial crisis. This is not a valid argume nt against punitive damages because if the amount of punishment is belittled, individuals, agencies and companies who are charged with the damages would not take the charges seriously and would continue with their unethical practices considering the charges, a necessary cost of running the business. Larger

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Risk vs Hagiography Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Risk vs Hagiography - Research Paper Example Plutarch’s account of the â€Å"War of Spartacus† as it was also called is contained within his Life of Crassus, a biography of the noted Roman general Marcus Licinius Crassus. Crassus was the one primarily responsible for the defeat of Spartacus’s uprising, and Plutarch’s account is primarily concerned with fitting the episode into the context of Crassus’s life and career. There are some minor differences on matters of fact between the two accounts, but on the whole they represent two very different readings of the same events.Appian’s account begins with an impartiality that might well be taken as sympathy for Spartacus and his cause. He speaks of the desire for freedom that initially motivated Spartacus and seventy fellow slaves to rebel against the gladiatorial school at which they were kept, and adds that Spartacus’s habit of dividing plunder equally among his followers led to him having a great many followers (Appian 217). Much o f the focus is on the official response, which Appian criticizes. He states that the government of Rome did not consider this a war in any real sense, but something more akin to robbery or public disruption (Appian 218). The implication seems to be that this was a short-sighted and ill-considered attitude.Plutarch also offers something resembling sympathy to Spartacus, placing the blame for the uprising on Lentulus Batiatus, the owner of the gladiatorial school, implying that his inhumane management of the school and poor treatment of the gladiators was responsible for the uprising.... Much of the focus is on the official response, which Appian criticizes. He states that the government of Rome did not consider this a war in any real sense, but something more akin to robbery or public disruption (Appian 218). The implication seems to be that this was a short-sighted and ill-considered attitude. Plutarch also offers something resembling sympathy to Spartacus, placing the blame for the uprising on Lentulus Batiatus, the owner of the gladiatorial school, implying that his inhumane management of the school and poor treatment of the gladiators was responsible for the uprising (Plutarch 337). Plutarch’s account, being specifically a military biography, concerns itself with the weapons and tactics employed by the slaves, and how the initial Roman forays against them, led by Clodius and Publius Varinus, were emphatically repulsed (Plutarch 340). Both accounts agree that Spartacus was attempting to reach and cross the Alps, so that he and the other foreign slaves coul d disperse to their countries of origin, escaping the Roman yoke. The fear, however, was that he might change his mind and march on Rome with an army that, at its peak, numbered 70,000. Plutarch’s account focuses much more on Crassus’s maneuvering and decisions regarding the war, including his decimation of a legion that had, in his estimation, shown cowardice (Plutarch 343). Appian deals in broader strokes during this middle portion of the war, and keeps more of the focus on Spartacus’s army and their defensive positioning. The two authors also differ in which parts of Spartacus’s campaign they emphasize. Appian mentions the town of Thurii, which Spartacus took and held (Appian 220), but Plutarch glosses over that part, focusing more on the

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Disseminating Evidence Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Disseminating Evidence - Assignment Example The strategies that will be used to disseminate this evidence include reports, workshops, emails, newsletters, workshops, websites, conferences, and press release (Gerrish, & Lacey, 2006). Each of the methods of disseminating evidence is suitable to a certain group of stakeholders. For example, conferences, websites, and press releases are the best strategies of informing the community about the results of the project (Holland, & Rees, 2010). This is because these methods are affordable to the members of the society. The youth and those who are conversant with the internet will get information from the website of the organization while those who have televisions and radios will watch the press release statement on these media. The project managers will also organize workshops that will aim at informing the community about the results of the plan. These workshops will encourage the members of the society to take corrective measures to protect themselves against the obesity stigma (Krisberg, 2014). The internal staff members of the company who include the nurses, clinicians, and managers will be informed about the evidence of the project using emails, workshops, newsletters, and reports. The reports will be used mainly to inform the managers and other key stakeholders who are involved in the management of the organization. The reports will consist of the objectives of the plan, the strategies used, and the results obtained (Burns, & Grove, 2009). This will enable these leaders to take corrective measures in ensuring that their staff members and the community surrounding the company get the right information about how they may protect themselves from gaining overweight. The nurses and other staff members who help in providing services in the organization, on the other hand, will be informed about the results of the project through

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

CORPORATE OWNERSHIP, GOALS, and GOVERNANCE Research Paper

CORPORATE OWNERSHIP, GOALS, and GOVERNANCE - Research Paper Example Blair looks at the rights of owners and concludes that shareholders do not have sufficient rights to be called the corporate owners. The article details the rights that owners have such as the right to acquire and dispose off assets and a right to get profits generated by the asset and its sale. The article claims that shareholders do not possess all these rights instead it is distributed to various stakeholders. The article argues that since these rights are not possessed by shareholders, it cannot be said that they are the owners of companies. The author also says that calling shareholders the owners of companies cannot guarantee them the rights of owners. However, the author in conclusion advocates for not distributing these rights because they may discourage investment. The distribution of rights between the shareholders and managers is also discussed. The shareholders, given that they contribute capital, have a right to elect the directors. Directors are the ones who make invest ment decisions on behalf of the shareholders. The shareholders do not possess the ultimate right to control the decision making of managers. The author says that this is because in large corporations the shareholders may be so many that even the managers may not know some of them. Shareholders also have limited liability and so cannot be responsible for the debts of firms. This author says this denies them the ultimate right to say that they are the owners of the firms. To support his argument, the author looks at how corporations create wealth. She says that wealth creation in a firm is not just because of the share capital of shareholders, but other stakeholders such as customers, employees and suppliers also make special investment contributions that are important to the company. The authors say that all stakeholders in the firm are investors. She gives an example of employees who dedicate their time and human resource to serve the firm. Even though they are compensated, they nee d to be recognized in the ownership of the firm. In conclusion the article discourages the view of looking at ownership of firms in terms of assets invested. It argues that the employees also create wealth for firms and their contribution must be respected. The article puts up a strong defense for inclusion of other parties, especially the employees in the ownership of firms. This view is good, but it fails to state what level of ownership can these stakeholders posses. Inclusion of employees as owners of firms just by virtue that they help in wealth creation would present a complex scenario in the ownership and management of firms. The only recommendation would be that the employees should be encouraged to buy shares in the firm so that they can be part of owners. â€Å"Corporate Ownership and Governance† by Connelly Brian et al The aim of this article is to demonstrate that corporate governance is not a reserve of the board of directors but also owners participate in the go vernance of firms. They do this by looking at the different forms of corporate ownership and how they influence decision making in the firm. They divide this in two categories, outside ownership and inside ownership. Inside Ownership This is when stock is held by the insiders. These insiders tend to make decisions that favor the

Similar to Liberation Christology Essay Example for Free

Similar to Liberation Christology Essay Until recently, traditional Christian theology was interpreted only by white males. In a modern world things are changing. In her book Consider Jesus, Elizabeth Johnson states that women â€Å"are waking up to their own dignity and finding their own voice† (page 97). Despite the feminist theology movement that Johnson describes, sexism and male dominance is embedded in the culture of the Catholic Church. Women will have equal rights under canon law, the problem is â€Å"Time†, the same thought process of 100 years ago is still active in the Church today. Only when the new generations of clergy is in place can change come. When it comes to the Christological interpretation woman voices can strengthen the debate, but it will take many generations for the old establishment to give way to an equal gender hierarchy. This is a strong argument, because in order for the old establishment to change and accept women, women need to make an effort to actively work to reform the current hierarchy. Johnson describes feminist theology as â€Å"Faith†¦being reflected upon explicitly from the perspective and experience of women† (page 97). Similar to Liberation Christology, in which poor and oppressed have a unique theological interpretation, in feminist theology the dominated group is women who begin to take part in the debate from their unique perspective. There are two main categories of feminist theology. The first is revolutionary feminist theology. As the word revolutionary implies these groups of women are quite radical and completely disassociate themselves with tradition rather than trying to change the minds of the male dominated theology. They do not acknowledge a male deity; instead they worship a female God, a goddess. They do not dwell on Jesus Christ because he was male. Usually these women split from the church and form their own groups arguing that the church is hopelessly stuck in its patriarchal ways. Johnson does not place much importance on these revolutionary feminists because this group has cut themselves off from the Church. The second category of feminist theology is reformist feminist theology. These women share the belief with the revolutionary feminists that there is a â€Å"male-dominated character of the Christian tradition† (p98), but instead of separating from the church, they choose to work from the inside to â€Å"seek the dismantling of the patriarchy and equal justice† (page 98). This approach could be described as â€Å"you catch more flies with honey than you do with vinegar†. Reformists work passively within the church to create change, not trying to dominate but with a view of the earth as shared, where â€Å"the dream of a new heaven and a new earth takes hold†¦ with no one group dominating and no one group subordinated, but each person in his or her own right participating according to their gifts, without preconceived stereotyping, in genuine mutuality† (page 99). The revolutionary theologians approach will ultimately lead to change, because as women are becoming more accepted in positions of power and authority outside of the church, they will become more accepted inside the church. The number of women in post-secondary education and federal government is higher than ever before. These are positive changes, but this kind of change in the church is still years away. Women are half of the human race yet seem to be overlooked in most of human history. The traditional patriarchal structure has defined women’s status and position in society. Reformists hope is to transform this traditional belief that women are second class citizens when in fact they have been just as influential in social as well as in Christological history. Mary Magdalene, the â€Å"apostle to the apostles† (109) and the other women of the Bible are â€Å"given several times in the gospels but have become a forgotten part of the story† (109). How is it that they were so important back then, yet so left out of the debate today? Perhaps our evolution as a male-dominated society has spilled over into the church – woman by no fault of their own were not allow to attend school or a higher level after high school, this alone caused a gap for woman in the church. The bible was written and interpreted by males while woman were denied economic, legal, and educational rights, â€Å"A prejudice is the inability to deal with the otherness of people who are different from what is considered â€Å"oneself†. In patterns of androcentric thinking the male is centered. These samplings are what influences canon law and has shaped Catholic tradition†. (p100 101) The consequence of sexism for woman is a lack of self-esteem and self-confidence; for men it is a narrow band of human characteristics; strong, rational, in control. (p 102) If the sexism could stop, society as a whole could benefit.

Monday, July 22, 2019

Roll of Thunder Essay Example for Free

Roll of Thunder Essay Obviously the store-owner was used to not only treating blacks in this way, but in them putting up with it. However, Cassie was a high spirited young lady who, as yet, was not weighed down by the yoke of racism. The word recoiled also hints at what is to come; for it is Mr Barnett whose store is to be raided by T. J. and the Simms brother at the climax of the novel. While Cassie strives to elucidate the situation, Barnett is infuriated and shrieks whose little nigger is this! Cassie was angry and humiliated as everyone in the store turned and stared at her. Stacey appeared and held her hand. Cassie was thrilled to see her brother by her side, although when she yearned for help Stacey did not respond. Mr Barnett informed him to make sure she dont come back till yo mammy teach her what she is. He wanted Cassie to realize that she and other black people are second-class citizens; consequently deems that he has the power to treat them as he desires. Cassie was exasperated at the way Mr Barnett treats them in his store. The racial injustice makes her furious and she finds it difficult to control her tongue. Stacey angrily rushes outside with Cassie and orders her to shut up. He then crosses the street still irate to Cassies foolish act. While Cassie tries to figure out why Mr Barnett acted the way he did, she stumbles into Lillian Jean, Jeremys big sister. She tells her to apologize but Cassie exclaims that Lillian Jean had bumped into her. Subsequently, Cassie could not bother to have a quarrel with her as she had other things on her mind, so she says sorry. Lillian Jean doesnt find it adequate; she tells her to get down in the road then says maybe that way you wont be bumping into decent white folks with your little nasty self. This statement to Cassie discriminates and shows her how disgusting white racists the Simmss really are. Lillian Jeans father arrives, grabs Cassie by the arm and throws her into the middle of the street. He forces her to make an apology, but Cassie sprints directly for the wagon. Unexpectedly, Big Ma appears and stops her. She wrathfully urges her to apologize to Lillian Jean. Cassie was disorientated to why Big Ma didnt support her when she was in need for her help. Big Ma has a more complicated way of dealing with racism. However, she is an old woman and she had little choice. If Big Ma were to refuse, she knew that they would have to face the consequences, therefore she forced Cassie to act contritely. Crushed and heartbroken, she apologizes to Lillian Jean. Then turns round and runs into the back of the wagon. A day that began full of expectations went from bad to worse. Cassies silence on the return journey home is a reflection of the hurt and humiliation she had suffered. Cassies first real taste of racism had totally subdued this normally impulsive and lively nine-year-old. Cassie is an enthusiastic girl trapped in an inhumane and disgraceful racial system. Along with her brothers, Cassie is learning the hard way about racism prevalent in the deep south of the United States at that time. She cannot comprehend as to why people of her skin colour have to back down in the face of whites, even when they have done nothing wrong. This is even more incomprehensible as Big Ma is a very strong character who Cassie admires greatly. Apologising to Lillian Jean is mortification that the headstrong Cassie finds almost impossible to bear. She is not the sort of girl to forget what has happened and later in the novel, it is no surprise that she is able to avenge her current humiliation. There is a certain amount of irony in the name Strawberry which for Cassie left rather a bitter taste in the mouth. She has learnt from hard experience that things arent always what they seem. Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Mildred Taylor section.

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Effect of Export Performance on Economy

Effect of Export Performance on Economy CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION In this chapter, first we introduce the study by highlighting its background followed by a brief description of Malaysias economy and external trade based on relevant statistics related to economic growth trends and international trade, respectively. Next, we further proceed to look in detail at the export performance concept. Then, we indicate the current major products exported by Malaysian firms, and their main export destinations. Research problem, question, and objectives, followed by the significance, scope, limitations, and organization of the paper, are all discussed in the last part of the chapter. 1.1. Background of the Study With the increasing trend of globalization, the arena of market and competition for business firms has expanded from domestic markets to the international markets. This has accentuated the importance of understanding the behavior of firms in foreign markets. Exporting represents a viable strategic option for firms to internationalize and has remained the most frequently used foreign market entry mode chosen (Zhao Zou, 2002), as it provides the firm with the flexibility needed to penetrate and compete in new international markets. In 2001, the World Bank published the report Globalization, Growth and Poverty: Building an Inclusive World Economy. The report shows that 24 developing countries, which increased their integration into the world economy, achieved higher growth in incomes, longer life expectancy and better schooling (Van Dijk, 2002). Exporting is considered to be one of the most important ways for developing countries to link with the world economy. Therefore, it is identified by governments and public policy makers as a priority (Morgan, 1997). 1.1.1. Malaysias Economy and External Trade The Malaysian economy has shown to be one of the most dynamic economies in the Asia Pacific region. The structure of the Malaysian economy had a dramatic transformation in the last five decades. Gradually over this period, it has displayed attributes of newly industrialized country and its economy has shown an impressive track record (Hamid, 2004). The country had an impressive annual growth in the 1970s reaching 7.8%, and continued to grow at a rate of 8.8% in the 1980s except during recession in 1985 to 1986. The recovery started in 1988 and the economy sustained an annual growth of over 8% in the 1990s. However, the Asian financial crisis had the worst impact when the economy shrank by 11.2% year on year in the fourth quarter of 1998 (The Economist Intelligence Unit, 2009). This led the Malaysian government to implement several economic policy adjustments which started in 1999 in order to speed up the recovery. Consequently, the economy recorded a positive growth in seven consecutive years. After a strong take-off of 5.3% in 2003, the second half of 2006 recorded a higher than expected growth of 5.9% (Malaysia Economic Report , 2006). Recently, as a result of the global recession, Malaysias real GDP contracted by 6.2% year on year in the first quarter of 2009 (The Economist Intelligence Unit, 2009). However, the economy reco vered gradually later in the same year. Malaysias trade policy focuses on greater integration into the world economy and enhancing its global position as a trading nation. The country has consistently maintained its position as the 18th largest global exporter and the 20th largest importer in the last few years (WTO, 2005). Malaysias trade with the world from 2000 to 2009 is illustrated in figure 1. The bar chart shows that Malaysia had a steady increase in total trade. The country reached a peak of approximately RM787.5 billion and RM643.1 billion in 2009 for exports and imports respectively, yielding a trade surplus of RM144.4 billion. This trend is expected to continue in the next few years as more economic reforms would take place, coincided with high growth rates expected. 1.1.2. Export Performance Export performance is broadly defined as the outcome of a firms activities in export markets (Shoham, 1996). The fundamental importance of export performance to international marketing has led to a substantial body of research. It is recognized that research on export performance is of vital interest to three major groups: public policy makers, managers and researchers. First, export performance is important for public policy makers or governments as it contributes to the development of foreign exchange reserves, increases the level of imports a country can afford, provides a vehicle for job creation, improves employment opportunities, improves standards of living, and encourages better working conditions and more efficient business (Lages Montgomery, 2004). Second, at a micro level, managers view exporting as a way to expand their firms access to international markets, benefit from economies of scale, reduce the dependence on their domestic markets, and enjoy faster sales, employment, and growth (Freeman Lawley, 2005). Third, as a result of its importance for both policy makers and managers, researchers consider exporting a challenging and promising area for theory building in international marketing (Zou Stan, 1997). Since gaining independence from Britain in 1957, Malaysia implemented a series of 5-year development plans in order to transform its economy from being an exporter of rubber and tin to emerge as one of the worlds largest producers of palm oil products, timber, oil and manufactured products (Wheeler Mohamad, 1993). Additionally, due to its impressive growth, the manufacturing sector has replaced agriculture as the number one sector in the economy. Table 1 shows Malaysias major export products in January 2010. The manufacturing sector remains a dynamic engine of growth for Malaysia with an estimated share of 31.5% of GDP in 2005 (WTO, 2005). It is considered to be the most dominant sector with approximately three quarters of total exports. This is mainly due to the significant contribution of electrical and electronic products as they are Malaysias leading export earner with a value of RM21,372.3 billion, representing 40.75% of total exports in January 2010. Palm oil retained as the second largest export revenue earner with a total value of RM3,985 billion or 7.6% of exports. Third, liquefied natural gas (LNG) made up 6.5% of total exports with RM3,400.3 billion. Chemicals chemical products were the fourth largest commodity accounting for 6% of total exports with RM3,173.9 billion. The remaining different products Table 1: Malaysias major export products in January 2010 (Billion Ringgits) Source: Department of Statistics Malaysia, January 2010, Malaysia External Trade Statistics. Retrieved on 16/2/2010 from: http://www.matrade.gov.my/cms/documentstorage/com.tms.cms.document.Document_2c11596d-7f000010-584c584c-f259ef13/Press%20release%20Jan10%20Eng.pdfCalculated based on the values of the table. including crude petroleum, refined petroleum products, and others, formed approximately 40% of total exports in the same period. For export destinations, the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) was Malaysias major export market in January 2010, with RM7,094.9 billion (13.53% of total exports), as shown in table 2. Table 2: Malaysias major export markets in January 2010 (Billion Ringgits) Source: Department of Statistics Malaysia, January 2010, Malaysia External Trade Statistics. Retrieved on 16/2/2010 from: http://www.matrade.gov.my/cms/documentstorage/com.tms.cms.document.Document_2c11596d-7f000010-584c584c-f259ef13/Press%20release%20Jan10%20Eng.pdf Calculated based on the values of the table. The next major export destination is Singapore (13.26%, RM6,953.5 billion), followed by Japan (11.15%, RM5,849.7 billion), USA (9.37%, RM4,917.2 billion), and Hong Kong (5.5.%, RM 2,876.2 billion). These top five export destinations accounted for more than half of Malaysias total exports. The statistics reflect the increasing significance of exporting as a key economic tool for growth and development in Malaysia. In addition, despite the downturn caused by the Asian financial crisis thirteen years ago, Malaysia has made rapid strides in economic development through the continuous adoption of appropriate policies and strategies to ensure sustainability of growth (WTO, 2005) as well as to transform the economic structure of the country into a manufacturing and export-based economy. 1.2. Problem Statement, Question, and Objectives of the Study A problem is defined as any situation where a gap exists between the actual and the desired ideal state (Cavana et al., 2007). It is critical that the problem of the study is unambiguously identified, and followed by a clear, precise, and succinct statement of the question and objectives of the study. 1.2.1. Research Problem Much of the knowledge about successful export activity is fragmented, and the tradition of building on previous findings is not well-established in the export marketing field (Aaby Slater, 1989). Many export performance studies focused only on a single factor affecting export performance, while there have been only few attempts to come up with models that incorporate a wide range of relevant factors. These exceptions include, (Cooper Kleinschmidt, 1985); (Cavusgil Zou, 1994). Some of the discrepancies in the literature might be attributable to differences regarding the way in which export performance has been assessed (Walters Samiee, 1990). In this context, the vast majority of studies have utilized objective performance indicators (Katsikeas et al., 1996). However, there are two problems with the use of certain objective measures: First problem is concerned with research methodology i.e. accurate objective indicators of export performance are not easy to obtain since formal company financial statements and reports often make no clear distinction between domestic and export business operations, partially due to the fact that many firms view exporting as an extension of their domestic activities (Yang et al., 1992). Second, a serious comparability caveat may arise as a result of inherent measurement weaknesses underlying most objective measures (Katsikeas et al., 1996). Differences among industries and product subsectors in terms of competition or technology could lead to incoherent comparison across the sample firms. In other words, objective indicators of export performance, such as sales volume, sales growth and market share, might have little meaning in those cases where the firms surveyed belong to different industry or product groups (Covin, 1991). Accordingly, in order to fill this literature gap, it is important to use different indicators to measure the multi-dimensionality of export performance and increase the reliability of the results. In this research, we adopt three subjective indicators to measure export performance of Malaysian manufacturing firms by asking respondents three questions to indicate their perceptions in achieving objectives regarding export sales, export market share, and export profitability. We use this subjective composite indicator because, compared to other objective export indicators, it cancels the size effect and it also facilitates comparison between companies of different sizes and industries. 1.2.2. Research Question Are firms characteristics, export marketing strategy, management perceptions, and export commitment associated with export performance? If so, which of these contributes most to the variance of the dependant variable? 1.2.3. Research Objectives This study aims to contribute to the meager but growing literature on firm-level export performance for developing countries by using Malaysia as the empirical platform. The study was designed to reexamine some determinants of export performance mentioned in the export marketing literature, more specifically, certain firms characteristics, export marketing strategy adopted, managements attitudes and perceptions, and export commitment are integrated factors that viewed as significantly influencing export performance. In a nutshell, the study seeks to achieve the following two objectives: To investigate the relationships between export performance on one hand, and firm characteristics, export marketing strategy, management perceptions, and export commitment on the other hand. Establish the relative importance of each of the independent variables in influencing export performance of Malaysian manufacturing firms. 1.3. Significance, Scope, and Organization of the Study In the next few paragraphs, we address the approaches deployed in this paper that contribute to the significance of this research in the context of export marketing field. Further, the scope, limitations, and organization of the paper, are all discussed subsequently. 1.3.1. Significance of the Study With the increasing global business competition, it has become important, particularly for firms in developing countries, to understand the determinants of export performance as firms survival and expansion, and consequent economic growth of many developing countries are strongly dependent on a better understanding of what determines the export performance (Sousa et al., 2008). In spite of the numerous empirical studies of export performance published since the 1960s, the conclusions reached by researchers in this area have, however, varied widely. The significance of the present study is derived from its design to look anew at some determinants of export performance mentioned in the literature in order to examine their effect on export performance manufacturing firms in Malaysia where export marketing research is of extreme relevance for both practitioners and scholars, knowing that the country is considered to be the worlds eighteenth largest exporter, and the trend is growing significantly over time. For example, exports posted a double digit growth in December 2009, year-on-year, rising significantly by 18.7% to RM54.7 billion, compared with December 2008 (Department of Statistics Malaysia, 2010). 1.3.2. Scope and Limitations of the Study The evidence reported in this paper should be interpreted in the light of several limitations. That is, in addition to the relatively low response rate of just 17%, the research effort was restricted to manufacturing firms within a specific country context, thus caution may be exercised in generalizing the present findings too broadly. Nonetheless, generalizations of the study findings may be applicable to those exporting frameworks with similar structural characteristics of export marketing. Furthermore, the cross-sectional nature of the data limits our ability to rule out cause-effect inferences (Katsikeas et al., 1996). Such one-shot study may not be suitable for a research that involves a dynamic phenomenon, therefore, the adoption of longitudinal studies in future studies can provide more insights into the dynamic aspects of export behavior and performance. Other limitations were related to time constraint, specifically during data collection period which started in mid-February 2010. This stage of the research was coincided with celebrations of the Chinese New Year, on February 14th, the period during which most companies in Malaysia had at least a one week holiday. As a result, it took us a relatively longer time than expected to receive responds in order to proceed for further analysis. 1.3.3. Organization of the Study In this study, an attempt is made to synthesize and empirically test a model of export performance focusing on exporters from an ASEAN member. Specifically, the sudsy constitutes indigenous Malaysian manufacturers trading with overseas distributors. The paper is formatted into several sections. First, an in-depth literature is presented including key theoretical and measurement problems. Next, a conceptual framework of export performance is developed through the statement of several hypotheses. Then, the research design approach and methodological procedures including data analysis are described. Lastly, we present the findings of the study followed by a discussion, conclusions, and recommendations. Summary of Chapter One Through its external trade policy, Malaysia aims primarily for a greater integration into the world economy in order to maintain its position as one of the largest global exporters, specifically exports of manufactured products. At a micro level, export performance refers to the outcome of a firms activities in export markets. It is a way to expand access to international markets, benefit from economies of scale, reduce the dependence on domestic markets, and enjoy faster sales, employment, and growth. Studies within the export marketing field are characterized by the discrepancy and fragmentation of the findings. In this context, most export performance studies utilized objective export performance measures. However, this might result in the fragmentation of findings due to some issues related to research methodology and comparability caveat among firms. Therefore, subjective indicators are employed to measure the dimensionality of export performance in the Malaysian context. The objective is delineate the relationship between export performance (dependent variable) on one hand, and firm characteristics, export marketing strategy, management perceptions, and export commitment (independent variables) on the other hand. CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW In this chapter, a conceptual background of export performance is coherently addressed; starting with a relevant review of the export marketing performance literature and their main characteristics including the way in which export performance has been measured. We further proceed to identify and classify the multiple independent variables that have been frequently used in past studies. At the end of the chapter, some examples of the discrepancies in the findings of some studies are highlighted. 2.1. Export Marketing Performance Literature The classical economic view tries to explain why it is beneficial for a country to engage in international trade based on the assumption that countries differ in their abilities to produce goods efficiently. The comparative advantage theory, for example, helps to explain the pattern of international trade that we observe in the world economy (Heckscher Ohlin, 1991); (Ricardo, 1817); and (Smith, 1776). However, the assumptions underlying the principle of comparative advantage are unrealistic in many countries and industries. That is because competitive advantage depends on the capacity to innovate and upgrade. It also depends on the extent to which a home environment is dynamic, challenging, and forward looking. Therefore, competitive advantage is not inherited; in other words, it does not grow out of a countrys natural endowments, its labor, its interest rates or its currencys value, as classical economics insist (Porter, 1990). A plethora of studies have been published in the past 30 years on the determinants of export performance. This is mainly due to the increasing relevance of export marketing as an area of inquiry. Existing literature shows that the United States is the most researched country in export performance studies. However, an increasing number of studies have been conducted by European researchers from non-English-speaking countries who published in English-language journals. Examples include, (Bijmolt Zwart, 1994), (Holzmuller Kasper, 1991), and (Madsen, 1989). Some other studies have also been conducted in developing countries in Asia and Latin America. Characteristics of the studies reviewed are summarized in table 3. The main characteristics that we focused on are: 2.1.1. Size of the Sample Except for one study which used a data base of 20,161 Indonesian firms from different manufacturing sectors, the size of the samples used in the studies reviewed ranges between 51 and 783. Most of them were drawn from multiple manufacturing industries, while just few such as (Cavusgil Kirpalani, 1993), (Singer Czinkota, 1994), and (Sriram Manu, 1995), had included in the sampling, reselling and service firms in addition to manufacturing firms. 2.1.2. Industry Context of Studies The vast majority of the reviewed studies employed samples drawn from multiple manufacturing industries. Only few have included in addition to manufacturers, reselling and service firms. Examples include (Cavusgil Kirpalani, 1993), (Singer Czinkota, 1994), and (Sriram Manu, 1995). This reflects the importance of manufacturing firms in the world economy. However, findings cannot be generalized to other industry contexts. Table 3: Characteristics of the reviewed articles Solberg 2002 Norway 150 mult manuf SML survey correlation/ anova firm Albaum, Tse 2001 Hong Kong 183 mult manuf SML survey regression firm Gencturk, Kotabe 2001 USA 162 mult manuf SML survey anova firm Effect of Export Performance on Economy Effect of Export Performance on Economy CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION In this chapter, first we introduce the study by highlighting its background followed by a brief description of Malaysias economy and external trade based on relevant statistics related to economic growth trends and international trade, respectively. Next, we further proceed to look in detail at the export performance concept. Then, we indicate the current major products exported by Malaysian firms, and their main export destinations. Research problem, question, and objectives, followed by the significance, scope, limitations, and organization of the paper, are all discussed in the last part of the chapter. 1.1. Background of the Study With the increasing trend of globalization, the arena of market and competition for business firms has expanded from domestic markets to the international markets. This has accentuated the importance of understanding the behavior of firms in foreign markets. Exporting represents a viable strategic option for firms to internationalize and has remained the most frequently used foreign market entry mode chosen (Zhao Zou, 2002), as it provides the firm with the flexibility needed to penetrate and compete in new international markets. In 2001, the World Bank published the report Globalization, Growth and Poverty: Building an Inclusive World Economy. The report shows that 24 developing countries, which increased their integration into the world economy, achieved higher growth in incomes, longer life expectancy and better schooling (Van Dijk, 2002). Exporting is considered to be one of the most important ways for developing countries to link with the world economy. Therefore, it is identified by governments and public policy makers as a priority (Morgan, 1997). 1.1.1. Malaysias Economy and External Trade The Malaysian economy has shown to be one of the most dynamic economies in the Asia Pacific region. The structure of the Malaysian economy had a dramatic transformation in the last five decades. Gradually over this period, it has displayed attributes of newly industrialized country and its economy has shown an impressive track record (Hamid, 2004). The country had an impressive annual growth in the 1970s reaching 7.8%, and continued to grow at a rate of 8.8% in the 1980s except during recession in 1985 to 1986. The recovery started in 1988 and the economy sustained an annual growth of over 8% in the 1990s. However, the Asian financial crisis had the worst impact when the economy shrank by 11.2% year on year in the fourth quarter of 1998 (The Economist Intelligence Unit, 2009). This led the Malaysian government to implement several economic policy adjustments which started in 1999 in order to speed up the recovery. Consequently, the economy recorded a positive growth in seven consecutive years. After a strong take-off of 5.3% in 2003, the second half of 2006 recorded a higher than expected growth of 5.9% (Malaysia Economic Report , 2006). Recently, as a result of the global recession, Malaysias real GDP contracted by 6.2% year on year in the first quarter of 2009 (The Economist Intelligence Unit, 2009). However, the economy reco vered gradually later in the same year. Malaysias trade policy focuses on greater integration into the world economy and enhancing its global position as a trading nation. The country has consistently maintained its position as the 18th largest global exporter and the 20th largest importer in the last few years (WTO, 2005). Malaysias trade with the world from 2000 to 2009 is illustrated in figure 1. The bar chart shows that Malaysia had a steady increase in total trade. The country reached a peak of approximately RM787.5 billion and RM643.1 billion in 2009 for exports and imports respectively, yielding a trade surplus of RM144.4 billion. This trend is expected to continue in the next few years as more economic reforms would take place, coincided with high growth rates expected. 1.1.2. Export Performance Export performance is broadly defined as the outcome of a firms activities in export markets (Shoham, 1996). The fundamental importance of export performance to international marketing has led to a substantial body of research. It is recognized that research on export performance is of vital interest to three major groups: public policy makers, managers and researchers. First, export performance is important for public policy makers or governments as it contributes to the development of foreign exchange reserves, increases the level of imports a country can afford, provides a vehicle for job creation, improves employment opportunities, improves standards of living, and encourages better working conditions and more efficient business (Lages Montgomery, 2004). Second, at a micro level, managers view exporting as a way to expand their firms access to international markets, benefit from economies of scale, reduce the dependence on their domestic markets, and enjoy faster sales, employment, and growth (Freeman Lawley, 2005). Third, as a result of its importance for both policy makers and managers, researchers consider exporting a challenging and promising area for theory building in international marketing (Zou Stan, 1997). Since gaining independence from Britain in 1957, Malaysia implemented a series of 5-year development plans in order to transform its economy from being an exporter of rubber and tin to emerge as one of the worlds largest producers of palm oil products, timber, oil and manufactured products (Wheeler Mohamad, 1993). Additionally, due to its impressive growth, the manufacturing sector has replaced agriculture as the number one sector in the economy. Table 1 shows Malaysias major export products in January 2010. The manufacturing sector remains a dynamic engine of growth for Malaysia with an estimated share of 31.5% of GDP in 2005 (WTO, 2005). It is considered to be the most dominant sector with approximately three quarters of total exports. This is mainly due to the significant contribution of electrical and electronic products as they are Malaysias leading export earner with a value of RM21,372.3 billion, representing 40.75% of total exports in January 2010. Palm oil retained as the second largest export revenue earner with a total value of RM3,985 billion or 7.6% of exports. Third, liquefied natural gas (LNG) made up 6.5% of total exports with RM3,400.3 billion. Chemicals chemical products were the fourth largest commodity accounting for 6% of total exports with RM3,173.9 billion. The remaining different products Table 1: Malaysias major export products in January 2010 (Billion Ringgits) Source: Department of Statistics Malaysia, January 2010, Malaysia External Trade Statistics. Retrieved on 16/2/2010 from: http://www.matrade.gov.my/cms/documentstorage/com.tms.cms.document.Document_2c11596d-7f000010-584c584c-f259ef13/Press%20release%20Jan10%20Eng.pdfCalculated based on the values of the table. including crude petroleum, refined petroleum products, and others, formed approximately 40% of total exports in the same period. For export destinations, the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) was Malaysias major export market in January 2010, with RM7,094.9 billion (13.53% of total exports), as shown in table 2. Table 2: Malaysias major export markets in January 2010 (Billion Ringgits) Source: Department of Statistics Malaysia, January 2010, Malaysia External Trade Statistics. Retrieved on 16/2/2010 from: http://www.matrade.gov.my/cms/documentstorage/com.tms.cms.document.Document_2c11596d-7f000010-584c584c-f259ef13/Press%20release%20Jan10%20Eng.pdf Calculated based on the values of the table. The next major export destination is Singapore (13.26%, RM6,953.5 billion), followed by Japan (11.15%, RM5,849.7 billion), USA (9.37%, RM4,917.2 billion), and Hong Kong (5.5.%, RM 2,876.2 billion). These top five export destinations accounted for more than half of Malaysias total exports. The statistics reflect the increasing significance of exporting as a key economic tool for growth and development in Malaysia. In addition, despite the downturn caused by the Asian financial crisis thirteen years ago, Malaysia has made rapid strides in economic development through the continuous adoption of appropriate policies and strategies to ensure sustainability of growth (WTO, 2005) as well as to transform the economic structure of the country into a manufacturing and export-based economy. 1.2. Problem Statement, Question, and Objectives of the Study A problem is defined as any situation where a gap exists between the actual and the desired ideal state (Cavana et al., 2007). It is critical that the problem of the study is unambiguously identified, and followed by a clear, precise, and succinct statement of the question and objectives of the study. 1.2.1. Research Problem Much of the knowledge about successful export activity is fragmented, and the tradition of building on previous findings is not well-established in the export marketing field (Aaby Slater, 1989). Many export performance studies focused only on a single factor affecting export performance, while there have been only few attempts to come up with models that incorporate a wide range of relevant factors. These exceptions include, (Cooper Kleinschmidt, 1985); (Cavusgil Zou, 1994). Some of the discrepancies in the literature might be attributable to differences regarding the way in which export performance has been assessed (Walters Samiee, 1990). In this context, the vast majority of studies have utilized objective performance indicators (Katsikeas et al., 1996). However, there are two problems with the use of certain objective measures: First problem is concerned with research methodology i.e. accurate objective indicators of export performance are not easy to obtain since formal company financial statements and reports often make no clear distinction between domestic and export business operations, partially due to the fact that many firms view exporting as an extension of their domestic activities (Yang et al., 1992). Second, a serious comparability caveat may arise as a result of inherent measurement weaknesses underlying most objective measures (Katsikeas et al., 1996). Differences among industries and product subsectors in terms of competition or technology could lead to incoherent comparison across the sample firms. In other words, objective indicators of export performance, such as sales volume, sales growth and market share, might have little meaning in those cases where the firms surveyed belong to different industry or product groups (Covin, 1991). Accordingly, in order to fill this literature gap, it is important to use different indicators to measure the multi-dimensionality of export performance and increase the reliability of the results. In this research, we adopt three subjective indicators to measure export performance of Malaysian manufacturing firms by asking respondents three questions to indicate their perceptions in achieving objectives regarding export sales, export market share, and export profitability. We use this subjective composite indicator because, compared to other objective export indicators, it cancels the size effect and it also facilitates comparison between companies of different sizes and industries. 1.2.2. Research Question Are firms characteristics, export marketing strategy, management perceptions, and export commitment associated with export performance? If so, which of these contributes most to the variance of the dependant variable? 1.2.3. Research Objectives This study aims to contribute to the meager but growing literature on firm-level export performance for developing countries by using Malaysia as the empirical platform. The study was designed to reexamine some determinants of export performance mentioned in the export marketing literature, more specifically, certain firms characteristics, export marketing strategy adopted, managements attitudes and perceptions, and export commitment are integrated factors that viewed as significantly influencing export performance. In a nutshell, the study seeks to achieve the following two objectives: To investigate the relationships between export performance on one hand, and firm characteristics, export marketing strategy, management perceptions, and export commitment on the other hand. Establish the relative importance of each of the independent variables in influencing export performance of Malaysian manufacturing firms. 1.3. Significance, Scope, and Organization of the Study In the next few paragraphs, we address the approaches deployed in this paper that contribute to the significance of this research in the context of export marketing field. Further, the scope, limitations, and organization of the paper, are all discussed subsequently. 1.3.1. Significance of the Study With the increasing global business competition, it has become important, particularly for firms in developing countries, to understand the determinants of export performance as firms survival and expansion, and consequent economic growth of many developing countries are strongly dependent on a better understanding of what determines the export performance (Sousa et al., 2008). In spite of the numerous empirical studies of export performance published since the 1960s, the conclusions reached by researchers in this area have, however, varied widely. The significance of the present study is derived from its design to look anew at some determinants of export performance mentioned in the literature in order to examine their effect on export performance manufacturing firms in Malaysia where export marketing research is of extreme relevance for both practitioners and scholars, knowing that the country is considered to be the worlds eighteenth largest exporter, and the trend is growing significantly over time. For example, exports posted a double digit growth in December 2009, year-on-year, rising significantly by 18.7% to RM54.7 billion, compared with December 2008 (Department of Statistics Malaysia, 2010). 1.3.2. Scope and Limitations of the Study The evidence reported in this paper should be interpreted in the light of several limitations. That is, in addition to the relatively low response rate of just 17%, the research effort was restricted to manufacturing firms within a specific country context, thus caution may be exercised in generalizing the present findings too broadly. Nonetheless, generalizations of the study findings may be applicable to those exporting frameworks with similar structural characteristics of export marketing. Furthermore, the cross-sectional nature of the data limits our ability to rule out cause-effect inferences (Katsikeas et al., 1996). Such one-shot study may not be suitable for a research that involves a dynamic phenomenon, therefore, the adoption of longitudinal studies in future studies can provide more insights into the dynamic aspects of export behavior and performance. Other limitations were related to time constraint, specifically during data collection period which started in mid-February 2010. This stage of the research was coincided with celebrations of the Chinese New Year, on February 14th, the period during which most companies in Malaysia had at least a one week holiday. As a result, it took us a relatively longer time than expected to receive responds in order to proceed for further analysis. 1.3.3. Organization of the Study In this study, an attempt is made to synthesize and empirically test a model of export performance focusing on exporters from an ASEAN member. Specifically, the sudsy constitutes indigenous Malaysian manufacturers trading with overseas distributors. The paper is formatted into several sections. First, an in-depth literature is presented including key theoretical and measurement problems. Next, a conceptual framework of export performance is developed through the statement of several hypotheses. Then, the research design approach and methodological procedures including data analysis are described. Lastly, we present the findings of the study followed by a discussion, conclusions, and recommendations. Summary of Chapter One Through its external trade policy, Malaysia aims primarily for a greater integration into the world economy in order to maintain its position as one of the largest global exporters, specifically exports of manufactured products. At a micro level, export performance refers to the outcome of a firms activities in export markets. It is a way to expand access to international markets, benefit from economies of scale, reduce the dependence on domestic markets, and enjoy faster sales, employment, and growth. Studies within the export marketing field are characterized by the discrepancy and fragmentation of the findings. In this context, most export performance studies utilized objective export performance measures. However, this might result in the fragmentation of findings due to some issues related to research methodology and comparability caveat among firms. Therefore, subjective indicators are employed to measure the dimensionality of export performance in the Malaysian context. The objective is delineate the relationship between export performance (dependent variable) on one hand, and firm characteristics, export marketing strategy, management perceptions, and export commitment (independent variables) on the other hand. CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW In this chapter, a conceptual background of export performance is coherently addressed; starting with a relevant review of the export marketing performance literature and their main characteristics including the way in which export performance has been measured. We further proceed to identify and classify the multiple independent variables that have been frequently used in past studies. At the end of the chapter, some examples of the discrepancies in the findings of some studies are highlighted. 2.1. Export Marketing Performance Literature The classical economic view tries to explain why it is beneficial for a country to engage in international trade based on the assumption that countries differ in their abilities to produce goods efficiently. The comparative advantage theory, for example, helps to explain the pattern of international trade that we observe in the world economy (Heckscher Ohlin, 1991); (Ricardo, 1817); and (Smith, 1776). However, the assumptions underlying the principle of comparative advantage are unrealistic in many countries and industries. That is because competitive advantage depends on the capacity to innovate and upgrade. It also depends on the extent to which a home environment is dynamic, challenging, and forward looking. Therefore, competitive advantage is not inherited; in other words, it does not grow out of a countrys natural endowments, its labor, its interest rates or its currencys value, as classical economics insist (Porter, 1990). A plethora of studies have been published in the past 30 years on the determinants of export performance. This is mainly due to the increasing relevance of export marketing as an area of inquiry. Existing literature shows that the United States is the most researched country in export performance studies. However, an increasing number of studies have been conducted by European researchers from non-English-speaking countries who published in English-language journals. Examples include, (Bijmolt Zwart, 1994), (Holzmuller Kasper, 1991), and (Madsen, 1989). Some other studies have also been conducted in developing countries in Asia and Latin America. Characteristics of the studies reviewed are summarized in table 3. The main characteristics that we focused on are: 2.1.1. Size of the Sample Except for one study which used a data base of 20,161 Indonesian firms from different manufacturing sectors, the size of the samples used in the studies reviewed ranges between 51 and 783. Most of them were drawn from multiple manufacturing industries, while just few such as (Cavusgil Kirpalani, 1993), (Singer Czinkota, 1994), and (Sriram Manu, 1995), had included in the sampling, reselling and service firms in addition to manufacturing firms. 2.1.2. Industry Context of Studies The vast majority of the reviewed studies employed samples drawn from multiple manufacturing industries. Only few have included in addition to manufacturers, reselling and service firms. Examples include (Cavusgil Kirpalani, 1993), (Singer Czinkota, 1994), and (Sriram Manu, 1995). This reflects the importance of manufacturing firms in the world economy. However, findings cannot be generalized to other industry contexts. Table 3: Characteristics of the reviewed articles Solberg 2002 Norway 150 mult manuf SML survey correlation/ anova firm Albaum, Tse 2001 Hong Kong 183 mult manuf SML survey regression firm Gencturk, Kotabe 2001 USA 162 mult manuf SML survey anova firm

Saturday, July 20, 2019

Jane Eyre :: essays research papers

Jane Eyre is the main character in the novel Jane Eyre, written by Charlotte Bronte. She is a fictional character along with the book. The book takes place in the mid 1800’s. Jane lives in five different places which greatly affect her life. The first place Jane stays is Gateshead Hall. She then goes to live at Lowood School. From Lowood Jane proceeds on to Thornfield Hall. She then advances on to Moor House. Finally, Jane reaches her final home at Ferndean. All of this happens within two decades and the novel is told in first person, which is Jane Eyre. The first place Jane stays is Gateshead Hall. While at Gateshead, Jane is treated unfairly and is punished for things she did not do. After the death of Jane’s parents, her uncle, Mr. Reed brought Jane into his house. On her uncle’s deathbed Mrs. Reed promises to treat Jane like one of her own children. Jane’s aunt, Mrs. Reed, does not like Jane and has a very hard time doing this. She feels Jane was forced upon her family after the death of her parents. Against her husband’s request, Mrs. Reed does not treat Jane like a human being and is constantly criticizing and punishing her. In one example Jane was keeping to herself, reading a book when her cousin John Reed decided to annoy her. John then grabbed the book and threw it at her knocking her down and cutting her on the head, which bled and was very painful. Mrs. Reed then punished Jane by sending her into the red room, the room her uncle died in, for the entire night. While in the red room Jane became terri fied and thought she saw or heard the flapping of wings. The treatment Jane received caused her to become bitter and to truly dislike Mrs. Reed. Jane then goes on to live at Lowood School. While at Lowood Jane meets a young girl named Helen Burns. Helen taught Jane many things about life and religion. Jane recalls a time when Helen was scolded for not cleaning her nails or washing her face. Mrs. Scatherd, throwing out the fact that the water was frozen proceeded to punish Helen by smacking her on the back of the neck with a bundle of twigs. Jane is amazed at Helen’s ability to accept the punishment, eventhough it was not Helen’s fault.