Exposing the Gaps—How Does the United States Compare in Key Determinants of Health?
When the health of a population is measured by various mortality indicators such as life expectancy, infant or child mortality, or the chances of surviving to retirement, surprising trends emerge. Health, as measured by longevity, appears to be declining in substantial segments of the U.S. population, especially for women (United Health Foundation, 2013). These findings receive little attention in most public health efforts or in the mainstream media, at least in the United States.
For this Assignment, you select health indicators used to measure the health of the U.S. population and contrast them to other countries around the world. You compare various determinants of health within different states in the United States as well as across continents.
To prepare for this Assignment, complete the readings and view the media in your Learning Resources. Install the free Gapminder Desktop tool and experiment plotting different health outcomes against various determinants already loaded along the two axes. Using the various health ranking resources provided, select two key health indicators for which the United States ranks lower than other nations.
Note: In grading every required Application Assignment, your Instructor uses an Application Assignment Rubric, located in the Course Information area. Review this rubric prior to completing your assignment.
The Assignment (3–4 pages):
Provide a brief description of the two health indicators you selected, citing specific sources.
Explain how the U.S. ranks on these indicators compared to other nations.
Explain two factors that might influence those rankings and the relative standing of the U.S. compared to the other nations.
Determine which two states rank the best and which two states rank the worst for those indicators.
Describe factors you believe might contribute to those relative rankings among the states.
Share any insights you gained or conclusions you drew as a result of making these comparisons.
Expand on your insights utilizing the Learning Resource
SAMPLE ANSWER
How U.S. Compares in Key Determinants of Health
The two health indicators selected are life expectancy and infant mortality rates. Life expectancy is understood as the expected number of years of life that is remaining at a particular age. Life expectancy is extensively utilized in measuring health even though it only takes into consideration the length of life of people in the country and not their quality of life (Kliff, 2013). Infant mortality rate (IMR) is basically the rate of deaths amongst children who are below the age of 1 year, for each 1,000 live births averaged over 3 years (Castillo, 2013).
IMR = (Number of child deaths in a year / No. of live births in the same year) x 1000.
Relative to other nations, America is ranked 26th in life expectancy. This is illustrated in the table below:
Table 1: Life expectancy in the U.S. compared to other countries (Kliff, 2013)
Rank
Country
Life Expectancy
1
Switzerland
82.8
2
Japan
82.7
3
Italy
82.7
4
Spain
82.4
5
Iceland
82.4
6
France
82.2
10
Norway
81.4
11
Netherlands
81.3
12
New Zealand
81.2
15
United Kingdom
81.1
17
Canada
81.0
18
Germany
80.8
23
Belgium
80.5
24
Slovenia
80.1
25
Denmark
79.9
26
United States
78.7
27
Chile
78.3
28
Czech Republic
78.0
The life expectancy for women in America is 80.7 and 75.6 for men (Castillo, 2013). Although the life expectancy in the United States is increasing, it is doing so a lot more slowly compared to other developed countries. Two factors that may influence the life expectancy rankings are violence and disease. In essence, life expectancy in the U.S is lowest amongst industrialized countries because of violence and disease. The violence is partly because of the widespread possession of guns as well as the practice of storing firearms in unlocked places at home (Castillo, 2013). Besides the impact of gun violence, people in the United States get involved in more accidents involving alcohol and consume the most calories among high-income nations. Moreover, heart disease, diabetes in addition to lung disease are more prevalent in the U.S. than in other developed countries (Castillo, 2013).
Figure 1: Infant Mortality Rates of U.S. compared to other high-income nations (Kliff, 2013)
In America, the infant mortality rate is more than 2 times that of peer nations such as Sweden and Japan (Kliff, 2013). Two factors that may influence those infant mortality rate rankings include poor nutrition of American babies compared to babies from other high-income countries, and inadequate nutrition/under nutrition of American babies compared to babies in other developed nations (Castillo, 2013).
Table 2: the two best and two worst states in the U.S. by infant mortality rates (Statistica, 2013)
Ranking
State
Deaths per 1,000 live births
States that rank the best
1
New Hampshire
4.42
2
Minnesota
4.55
States that rank the worst
49
Alabama
8.49
50
Mississippi
9.86
The above statistic indicates the infant mortality rates of the 2 best and 2 worst states in the United States as of the year 2012. The State of New Hampshire had the best rate which was 4.42 for every 1,000 live births prior to the age of 1 year, followed by Minnesota with 4.55. Alabama and Mississippi had the worst with 8.49 and 9.86 respectively (Statistica, 2013). Factors that may contribute to those relative rankings among the states include poor nutrition as well as under nutrition considering that in terms of child food insecurity rates, the state of Mississippi ranks at the bottom and neighboring Alabama is ranked 44th out of 50 states. Conversely, the top 2 states in terms of child food insecurity rates are New Hampshire and Minnesota (Ochs, 2014).
Table 3: U.S. states by life expectancy (Greenwood, 2014)
Ranking
State
Life Expectancy
The Best States
1
Hawaii
81.3
2
Minnesota
81.1
Worst States
50
West Virginia
75.4
51
Mississippi
75.0
At 81.3 years, the state of Hawaii has the longest life expectancy exceeding the national average by more than 2 years. It is followed by Minnesota with a life expectancy at birth of 81.1. Out of all the U.S. territories, Mississippi ranks with the shortest life expectancy having 75.0 (Greenwood, 2014). The two main factors which essentially contribute to those ranking include diseases such as diabetes, as well as the quality of health care in the state, bearing that the state of Minnesota has more doctors per capita compared to West Virginia or Mississippi. Having more doctors per capita ensures the provision of adequate, and better quality health care for citizens of that state (Ochs, 2014).
In sum, America ranks poorly in terms of infant mortality rates as well as life expectancy compared to other developed countries. Two factors that may influence those infant mortality rate rankings include poor nutrition and inadequate nutrition. The factors that contribute to the life expectancy rankings are violence – gun violence in particular –, and disease particularly heart disease and lung disease. The southern states of West Virginia, Mississippi, and Alabama rank at the bottom in terms of life expectancy while Minnesota and Hawaii are at the top. In infant mortality, New Hampshire and Minnesota are at the top while Alabama and Mississippi are at the bottom.
References
Castillo, M. (2013). Report: U.S. Life Expectancy Lowest among Wealthy Nations due to Disease, Violence. CBSNews.
Greenwood, K. (2014). The 15 U.S. States with the Longest Life Expectancies. Boston, MA: CRC Press.
Value Chain Analysis
Consider the following scenario:
Miguel owns a Mexican restaurant. He has well-established relationships with local suppliers and has fresh produce delivered daily. Carefully trained cooks craft authentic Mexican food in state-of-the-art kitchen using a well-refined and systematic process. They interact seamlessly with fast, friendly wait staff who typically deliver food in fifteen minutes or less to hungry customers. Customers come in large numbers for good food at a good price. Miguel carefully tracks customer preferences to alter menus and offer specials.
Despite being a small business, Miguel has successfully coordinated various internal activities and established external relationships in ways that create value for his customers.
A well-functioning work team carefully assesses the strengths and weaknesses of each team member, assigning activities to leverage their individual strengths. However, team members also carefully coordinate tasks to ensure they combine their individual efforts in effective ways. Effective organizations do the same by carefully selecting a strategy that maximizes the strengths in performing various activities. They exploit relationships between internal activities to create a chain of activities that maximizes the value of their product or service for customers. Companies large and small can derive additional benefit from combining a strong internal value chain with those of external partners to establish a value system.
To prepare, select a company with which you are very familiar or for which you can easily obtain information. You may wish to use the organization you are thinking of proposing for the Sustainable Solutions Paper (SSP), which you will complete throughout the course. This would allow you to repurpose information from the Discussion for a portion of your SSP. If you wish to take advantage of this opportunity, please review the SSP template located in this week’s Learning Resources to ensure the organization you choose for this Discussion also satisfies the SSP requirements. Review this week’s Learning Resources, particularly Exhibit 1 in Porter and Millar’s article “How Information Gives You Competitive Advantage.” You can use this chart to guide your value chain analysis for this post.
Critique discussion #1’ analyses by identifying additional strengths and weaknesses of the analyses and offering suggestions for addressing those weaknesses.
•Offer insight into additional potential linkages among areas of the value chain in your colleagues’ organizations that they may have overlooked, and ask a question to expand their thinking on the subject.
•Offer additional insight into the potential strategic significance of the value chain in your colleagues’ organizations and ask a question to expand their thinking on the subject.
•Answer one of the questions posed by your colleagues in their posts.
Discussion #1
Peter Nanga,
Vimal Shah and his elder brother Tarun, in 1985 saw the potential value in all the goods that could be developed from cotton seeds. They started small by developing oil pressing factory where they extracted oil which they would use to produce edible oils and soap. They contracted farmers to grow the produce, cotton, sunflower and corn whose seeds were their main raw materials. As Senge (2010) explained that real innovation opportunities lies in the creation of new products that break away from the dependency on conventional oil and gas entirely. For Bidco it was to totally shift from relying on cotton for their cotton garments to edible oil manufacturing from crude palm oil. At this point, BIDCO which was previously a garment manufacturing factory shifted and became an edible oil and soap producing factory. This was a complete disruptive shift. They made their bar soap whiter and lighter and moved around the country in a van convincing farmers to stock their products and only pay after selling, Bidco has since moved from oil presses to edible oil refinery and imports its crude palm oil from Malaysia while bleaching earth and other raw material used in refinery are imported from china. They had recently acquired flagship brands from Unilever group both in edible oil and soaps after the latter could no longer be competitive In the market. The company has adopted the Japanese philosophy, Kaizen which is about continuous improvement in all areas. This has addressed the issue of wastages in the production and human resource management, procurement by adopting the best production practices and management.
Harvard Business Essentials described strategy as a deliberate search for a plan of action that will develop a business ‘s competitive advantage and compound it. By applying value chain analysis an organization is able to determine which activities within the chain gives the most value. These value generating activities results into creating competitive advantage for the firm. For the company that I have chosen Bidco, innovation in production, procurement, product differentiation and continuous research and development of new products and development of efficient distribution channels have been identified as value generating activities for the company. These three activities has set Bidco apart from its competitors. Two of its competitors are Kapa Oil Refineries and Pwani Oil Refineries.
Value chain analysis is the process by which activities within the chain are analyzed and value adding activities and those associated with core competencies and capabilities identified in order to focus on them and make them perform better than those of the competitors. Continuous improvement and innovations, efficient distribution channels across the Africa Continent and continuous research and development of new products has created value and competitive advantage for Bidco. Senge (2005) likened value chains to a glue that connects disparate businesses, locally, regionally or globally. In the case of BIDCO, its suppliers are part of that chain. They determine the cost, quality and reliability of the supply. BIDCO’s value chain has potential strategic significance. From the seed suppliers, logistics providers and finally processing the final products and distribution of the same, shareholder value continue to be created as it positively affects the larger value chain.
Question to further discussion:
Since value chain reach beyond the boundaries of individual businesses, in which areas would BIDCO collaborate with other organizations as it implements its sustainability strategy?
Reference
The Harvard Business Essentials: Strategy: create and implement the best strategy for your business HD30.28.H3785 2005.
Senge, P., Smith, B., Kruschwitz, N., Laur, J., & Schley, S. (2010). The Necessary Revolution: Working Together to Create a Sustainable World.
Critique discussion #2’ analyses by identifying additional strengths and weaknesses of the analyses and offering suggestions for addressing those weaknesses.
•Offer insight into additional potential linkages among areas of the value chain in your colleagues’ organizations that they may have overlooked, and ask a question to expand their thinking on the subject.
•Offer additional insight into the potential strategic significance of the value chain in your colleagues’ organizations and ask a question to expand their thinking on the subject.
•Answer one of the questions posed by your colleagues in their posts.
Discussion #2
Value Chain Analysis
According to Covell & Walker (2013), Nike is an athletic apparel and gear company based in the United States. Nike offers athletic shoes, clothes, and other accessories worn during sporting events. The US athletic footwear industry comprises companies that manufacture and sell athletic footwear, apparel, equipment and accessories. Nike has become one of the most recognizable companies in the entire world. Nike has had a monopoly in the athletic gear industry for many years. Putsis (2013) described Nike’s main competitors as Adidas and Under Armor. Nikes major buyers are teenagers who later switched to boots and leather gain strength over its competitor.
The value chain analysis is used to see what organization can do to create an advantage over its competition. According to Porter & Kramer (2011), value chain relates to the activities through which firms develops a competitive advantage and creates shareholder value. Michael Porter introduced a generic value chain model that comprises of a sequence of activities found to be common to a wide range of firms.
The value chain analysis divides a company’s activities into primary and support activities. Primary activities are those that involve creating a product and getting the product to market for purchase. Support activities provide the infrastructure that enables the primary activities to take place. The primary activities include procurement and inbound logistics, operations, outbound logistics, marketing and sales, and service. Support activities include research, technology, systems development, human resource management, and general administration (Magretta, 2012).
According to Lu, Sung, Wang, & Li (2012), the goal of the activities is to offer customers a level of value that exceeds the cost of the activities, thereby resulting in a profit margin. One linkage in the chain can affect any part of the chain. The firm will look at the activities that are most valuable and ones to improve to provide a competitive advantage over its competitors. Nike has a strong customer base and large distribution systems that produce many different products for the customers.
Information technology permeates the value chain. Information technology initially was used for accounting and record keeping purposes. Technology can affect competitive advantage by incrementally changing the activities themselves or by making possible new configurations of the value chain. Information technology has given businesses multiple ways to generate data as it performs its activities over multiple systems (Porter & Kramer (2011).
The value chain technology includes technologies in inbound logistics, operation, outbound logistics, marketing and sales, and service. Value chain activity often affects the cost or performance of one of the other activities. Technology helps in planning and collaboration, thereby improving the overall effectiveness of the process. Technology is used to track orders and delivery coordination, and monitors and coordinates shipment, ensuring delivery of the product to the consumer as scheduled. Technology improves the quality of the information, expedites transfer, and monitors the volume of transactions (Tsai, Raghu, & Shao, 2013).
Nike’s strengths include pride it takes in getting the top athletes to wear and sponsor their products. Famous athletes in basketball, football, soccer, and track wear Nike footwear and clothing. Consumers will remember the product based on the athlete and sport played by the athlete (Hall, 2013).
According to Covell (2013), the majority of Nike’s income comes from selling its product to retailers who in turn sell the product to the consumers. The market that Nike participates is very price sensitive. Many consumers try to find the lowest price when shopping for Nike products. Nike continues to receive negative publicity regarding poor working conditions for workers in their overseas factories. Workers are underage and paid way less than minimum wage. Nike must improve the firms weaknesses to stay ahead of its competition.
Questions:
Nike has dominated the athletic retail business in all categories. How can other companies such Adidas improve to compete with Nike?
Nike achieved a cost advantage by controlling the cost drivers out of its supply chain. What can other firms do to help improve their advantage?
References
Covell, D., & Walker, S. (2013). Managing sport organizations: Responsibility for performance. London, UK: Routledge.
Hall, R. (2013). Brilliant marketing: What the best marketers know, do and say. London, UK: Pearson UK.
!!!!! please answer discussion 1 & 2 Seperately !!!! also list two references for each.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Since value chain reach beyond the boundaries of individual businesses, in which areas would BIDCO collaborate with other organizations as it implements its sustainability strategy?
BIDCO should partner with research market companies such as Nielsen and IRI for research and development of the company. Although the company conducts basic research that benefits numerous customers, the primary goal should focus on applied research. Applied research looks at short-term programs such as successfully building new product lines. This proves to be the strength of these research firms in that this method of research is less costly than the basic research, and less dangerous due to the short-term nature. Moreover, research market companies such as Nielsen provide the needed information from the market and customers, which assist the management to avoid risk and invest in necessary places.
The firm should also have a good partnership with other companies that produce its raw materials, especially in near places to avoid excess production costs. These are inbound logistics that ensure there is a constant supply of raw materials to maintain the production. The company has been importing its crude oil from Malaysia, a situation that reveals there is little of its raw material in Africa. In this manner, the company should partner with some agricultural firms within its locality to produce the raw materials. When this is done, there will be an enormous reduction of production cost.
Lastly, just like other big companies, BIDCO should collaborate with big bodies that host global events. For example, Coca-Cola Company sponsors several events such as Big Brother Africa, world cup, and many others. It is time for the company to collaborate with bodies such as FIFA, WHO to sponsor some of the activities. Hall (2013) says that the only way to penetrate through this tough business competition, one has to locate the prominent customers.
References
Hall, R. (2013). Brilliant marketing: What the best marketers know, do and say. London, UK: Pearson UK.
Petkus, E. (2013). Value-Chain Dynamics of the West Point Foundry, 1817-1911: A Historical Case Analysis in Marketing. Marketing Education Review, 23(3), 275-280
Nike has dominated the athletic retail business in all categories. How can other companies such Adidas improve to compete with Nike?
Other companies such as Adidas should obtain many suppliers in the industry to neutralize the effect of Nike in the market. According to Aaker (2011), very little suppliers in the market make bargaining power non-existent. Rubber, leather, and cotton commodities should be abundant in the market with the brand name of other companies. The firms should also be able to switch between the available suppliers cheaply and quickly hence the suppliers will become dependent on the company for their survival.
The firm should put a lot of emphasis on the 4Ps, which are the product, price, promotion, and place. These are very vital components of dominating the market according to Aaker (2011). For a product, the companies should provide good quality and comfortable shoes and outfits that fit the players through research and development. For the price, Nikes competitors should have a pricing strategy for every group of consumer. The price of the items varies depending on the design and edition of the sports gears. For the place, they should open discount outlet stores in rural areas and retail shops where they are less known. Selling in different places will assist them to handle the different needs of the customers. For the promotion, they should not only cut the discounts but also participate in the sporting activities by rewarding and sponsoring those events.
Just like Nike, other companies should have both management and independent directors. The combination of the directors will benefit the companies in that there will be a presence of managers who are directly and indirectly involved with the company. The indirectly involved managers bring outside experiences that provide another frame of reference. The directly involved board is classified as an oversight board, engaging in active roles with strong regards to the management in point of strategy formulation. They also check market trends based on research work and development (Ahenkora, 2012)
Ahenkora, K. (2012). Qualitative Value Chain Analysis and Strategic Choices. International Journal Of Business Management & Economic Research, 3(1), 429-431
We can write this or a similar paper for you! Simply fill the order form!
Long-term financial implications of unequal division in paid and unpaid work between men and women
Order Instructions:
Discuss the long-term financial implications of unequal division in paid and unpaid work between men and women (within and between households) and the extent to which individuals and governments can act to mitigate the implications of these differences in the future.
SAMPLE ANSWER
The Gender Pay Gap
Abstract
The gender pay gap has always being a controversial subject. The inequality between the pay structures between men and women have been traditionally been linked to the historical roles of childbearing and rearing that women have to undertake besides the regular jobs for normal maintenance. The traditional roles women perform both domestically in some places of work are unpaid. These roles have not been quantified in terms of their financial capabilities but their implications have far greater consequences than the male dominated jobs. The responsibilities that women bear are enormous and greatly weigh them down especially in their pursuit of quality education and well paying jobs that are more demanding.
The consequences and implications of the employment and pay imbalance between men and women are catastrophic. The women population will continue to dwindle as majority will sink to poverty as a result of the greater responsibilities of bringing up children while the lowly paid jobs have to be alternated with long periods of absenteeism as a result of pregnancies and childbearing complications. Reduced populations will affect the labor market as scarcity leads to more demand which results in increased costs of acquiring labor services. These will eventually lead to a spiral type of inflation.
Lack of adequate income will also result in ill health, more infant mortality rates and also will largely contribute to women powerlessness. It’s obvious that the inequality in wage compensation affects more women than men and as a result more women are shunning or postponing the extra responsibilities associated with childbirth and marriage. These difficulties have now become a factor in future population growths with countries like Japan and Switzerland experiencing low births that are not consistent with population imbalance. The numbers of old people are growing much faster than they are being replaced by the younger population. (EC, 2009b) Reduced population growths will finally lead to reduced labor force. Labor is a factor of production and its scarcity leads to more expenses for its acquisition. (Millar and Gardiner, 2004)
Inequality in income distribution between paid and unpaid work will lead majority of the workers to shun the unpaid work whether it’s dominated by men or women. All types of jobs have their contribution in the economy. The sudden withdrawal of one sector in the economy will affect the functions of the other sectors as well. (Goode, Callender and Lister, 1998)
The governments can enact legislation that protect women’s right in parental responsibilities and also enforce their rights in gender equality in places of work and compensation structures. The economic empowerment of women and the equality in payment compensation will ultimately lead to more productive society.
The provision of basic services and access to financial assistance in terms of welfare and job creation for women should be a priority for the government. The paid maternity allowance should be also encouraged by allowing companies that have more female employees tax incentives to encourage the employment of more women. The role of women in many households should also be factored during divorce proceedings and the wealth acquired by both parties should also be naturally split as such roles are necessities in life.
Individual men can also participate positively in creating a fair and free society where all people are equal despite of gender or pay differences. Individuals can assist the government in implementing the financial and social changes that may be required to balance between the compensation structures between men and women.
References
Goode, J., Callender, C. and Lister, R. (1998) Purse or Wallet? Gender Inequalities and Income Distribution within Families on Benefits. London: Policy Studies Institute cited in
For each source listed, you will begin with a summary of the information you found in that specific source. The summary section gives your reader an overview of the important information from that source. Remember that you are focusing on a source’s method and results, not paraphrasing the article’s argument or evidence.
The questions below can help you produce an appropriate, scholarly summary:
What is the topic of the source?
What actions did the author perform within the study and why?
What were the methods of the author?
What was the theoretical basis for the study?
What were the conclusions of the study?
Remember, a summary should be similar to an abstract of a source and written in past tense (e.g. “The authors found that…” or “The studies showed…”), but it should not be the source’s abstract. Each summary should be written in your own words
SAMPLE ANSWER
Forster, M., Grigsby, T. J., Unger, J. B., &Sussman, S. (2015). Associations between gun violence exposure, gang associations, and youth aggression: Implications for prevention and intervention programs. Journal of criminology, 2015.
Summary
Forster, Grigsby, Unger and Sussman (2015) conducted a study that investigated the link between gang association, exposure to neighborhood violence and social self control to incidences of aggression at school. The study collected data from minority youths from three Southeast Los Angeles schools. In the literature review, the authors show that aggression is a serious problem in schools. According to Forster et al (2015), over 600,000 teenagers reported assault related injuries annually, in addition, between 20 and 40 percent of school going students had experienced a bullying incident at school. The literature review also revealed that between 700,000 and 1,000,000 teenagers were members of gangs. Past studies have shown that exposure and association to gangs, affiliation with delinquent peers, and family processes are indicators of violence perpetration and victimization. To investigate the link between the variables, the study sampled 77 female and 87 male 7th and 8th graders in three South Los Angeles middle schools. Questionnaires were used to collect data on substance abuse, demographics, social self-control, and family and peer gang association, neighborhood violence and self-reported aggression. The study reported that teenagers with high levels of social self-control were less likely to be involved in past week aggressive episodes. Students with friends who were members of gangs reported 91 per cent higher incidents of aggressive episodes. For girls, aggression was 46 per cent higher if the family was affiliated to gangs. Exposure and fear of gun violence also increased the incidence of aggressive episodes by 26 per cent. According to the study, students were most likely to be involved in aggressive incidents if they were male, had friends associated with gangs, and had low levels of social self-control.
Critique
Forster, Grigsby, Unger and Sussman (2015) is useful study as it explores an area of research where there exist little empirical evidence to link the variables. It is worthwhile to note that the research provides an insightful background on the teenage and school violence. The author then seeks to investigate the factors that lead to high rates of aggression among teenagers and school going students. Unfortunately, the research only sampled 164 students which is a small sample to facilitate the generalization of the results of the study to the general population. In addition, the study was conducted in only three schools in the South Los Angeles area where gang violence and gun crime is common (Forster et al, 2015). It is obvious that teenage aggression in other areas may be driven by other factors apart from association with gangs and exposure to gun violence. However, the results than link social self-control to lower levels of self-reported aggression can be generalizable to other student populations. Using self-reported measures is also a major weakness of the study as the students may fail to report honestly on most of the data collected. Observation would have been a better option for collecting the data on past week aggression as opposed to self-reported measures of aggression. Using observation, the researcher would have been able to see and record incidents of aggression rather than hear about them from the participants. The study rightly concludes that school based interventions can be used to disrupt the development of aggressive behavior. School based programs can help indeed help in the development of social self-control which has an inverse relationship with the development of aggressive behavior.
Application
Forster et al (2015) is a very useful study in research on teenage violence, and associated the associated study areas. The study provides valuable statistics on the state of teenage violence indicating that more than 600,000 school age children report aggression related injuries every year. The study helps to illustrate that teenage violence is a serious problem affecting many school going children and it is an area that warrants further research. Most importantly, the research identifies some of the factors that are predictors of teenage violence perpetration or victimization. The study reveals that association with gangs and gang members is a contributing factor to aggressiveness among teenagers. Other impacts of gang association such as the tendency to use substances and other truant behaviors can also be investigated in future studies in the area. The study also reports an inverse relationship between social self-control and incidents of teenage aggression. Further studies also need to be conducted to establish whether self-control can decrease aggression among teenagers who associate with gangs, and have been exposed to gun violence. The study also indicates that self-reported measures of aggression were limitations of the study, and thus another method of data collection like observation can be used for future studies. The study design also provides a research model that can be expanded for future research in the area of teenage truancy and violence. The research sample for future research on the topic can be expanded to more schools from more heterogeneous school districts to ensure the results can be generalized. Therefore, Forster (2015) is an important research article that provides preliminary evidence linking association with gangs, social self control, and family association with gangs with teenage violence perpetuation. Most importantly, the study establishes several directions for future research in the area
References
Forster, M., Grigsby, T. J., Unger, J. B., & Sussman, S. (2015). Associations between gun violence exposure, gang associations, and youth aggression: Implications for prevention and intervention programs. Journal of criminology, 2015.
We can write this or a similar paper for you! Simply fill the order form!
For this paper, it is critical that the writer clearly respond to the four main points listed in the questions. the paper must be detailed and concise, and the writer must pay attention to grammatical errors and APA formatting which will be to follow the 6th edition . Resources are also included at the end of the questions to assist the writer in getting the material needed to write this paper.
Corporate Governance
One of the most significant debates about corporate governance centers on whether the organization owes a greater responsibility to the shareholder who has invested in the company or to the stakeholders and those who can most be affected by its actions, namely the employees, suppliers, creditors, and customers.
After reviewing the resources for this week, respond to the following:
• Use the Internet to research alternative goals for shareholder wealth maximization.
• Identify countries with goals that differ from the U.S. or countries that are home to firms that have differing goals from those based in the U.S.
• Compare and contrast the difference between stakeholder focus goals versus shareholder focus goals.
• What are potential problems with both?
Resources to be use for this paper.
• Readings
Course Text
• Ross, S. A., Westerfield, R. W., & Jaffe, J. (2013). Corporate finance (10th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin.
Chapter 1, “Introduction to Corporate Finance”
This chapter introduces some of the basic ideas in corporate finance; namely, capital budgeting, capital structure, and cash flows. In addition, there is a discussion on maximizing the value of stock, one of the most important concepts in finance.
Chapter 2, “Financial Statements and Cash Flow”
This chapter introduces and discusses basic corporate accounting procedures, as well as devices used to calculate a corporation’s cash flow from operations, changes in fixed assets, and changes in working capital.
Articles
• Adams, S. (2008, February). Fundamentals of business economics. Financial Management (UK), 46–48. Retrieved from Business Source Premier Database.
This article provides an analysis of the principal-agent problem and discusses some of the ways that many companies address the issue.
• Rappaport, A. (2006, September). Ten ways to create shareholder value. Harvard Business Review, 66–77. Retrieved from Business Source Premier Database.
In this article, the author states his belief that there are certain principles that when followed will result in increased shareholder value for a company. He provides a review of the 10 steps he has found to be most important and provides a brief description of each.
• Shleifer, A., & Vishny, R. (1997). A survey of corporate governance. Journal of Finance, 52(2), 737–783. Retrieved from Business Source Premier database.
The authors use a survey instrument to study how financial suppliers use corporate governance to assure that they receive a return on their investment.
• Almazan, A., Banerji, S., & DeMotta, A. (2008). Attracting attention: Cheap managerial talk and costly market monitoring. Journal of Finance, 63(3), 1399–1436. Retrieved from Business Source Premier database.
This article presents a new theory as to the best way to increase shareholder value by seeking market attention while the firm is undervalued.
SAMPLE ANSWER
There are a number of goals for shareholder wealth maximization. One of the reasons for shareholder wealth maximization is to increase their wealth and to attain a high market value of their shares (Adams, 2008). In addition, shareholders wealth maximization can be done with the aim of increasing shareholder expectations, leading to reduced conflicts between the management and the shareholders. These conflicts arising among the shareholders may be as a result of directors managing money with less care since it is not their own. Companies can address this issue by encouraging the directors and managers involved in the shareholder business to take note and interest on all matters arising from various interest groups to restore and maintain sanity (Shleifer &Vishny, 1997).
Rappaport (2006) argues that countries differ from one another in matters related to corporate social responsibility. In the United States,the shareholders are more protected by the means of an extensive system of rules that ensure that the rights of the shareholders and the stakeholders and protected accordingly. Germany and Japan had different goals as compared to those of the United States; whereby, they aimed at shaping their banks to be more powerful financial instruments with the capability of driving the economy. The issue of the type of the large investors in the country is also what contributes to making of profit by the financial suppliers with the aid of corporate governance. Large companies are incorporated to adopt the corporate laws that serve the interest of the shareholders and this contributes to the use of corporate governance inorder to gain profit.
Since shareholders and stakeholders forms different groups of people in a company, the views and aspirations concerning the company may slightly differ (Ross, Westerfield, & Jaffe, 2013). Unlike the stakeholders, shareholders are more concerned with the economic activity of their business thereby only seeing an organization in profitable terms and as instruments of its owners. On the other hand, the stakeholders of a business are more concerned with the social responsibility and demand that the business server the interest of all parties. The problem with shareholders focus is that it neglects the dreams of other interest groups of the business while the problem with stakeholders focus is that it may result into low profitability due to overindulgence in social affairs. When the firm is undervalued, there are three methods of seeking to increase shareholder value with the aid of market attention and they include the presence of managerial agency that the shareholders must addressto be able to achieve positive results (Adams, 2008). The ability of market speculators to produce additional information about the firm at a cost is another method for seeking to increase the shareholders of different companies.
Almazan, Benerji & Demotta (2008) argues that there are some ten principles when followed well will result into increased shareholder and one of them is when one does not manage earnings or provide earnings guidance. This is important because organizations only comprise value when they invest at rates below the cost of capital. A company should also make clear strategic decisions that will help in maximizing of the expected value, which is the weighted average value for a range of plausible scenarios even if it’s at the expense of lowering near-term earnings. Cash should be returned to the shareholders even when there are no credible value-creating opportunities to be able to invest in the business since this will help result to increased shareholders (Mallin, 2013). Senior executives and CEOs of companies ought to be rewarded so that they can continue delivering quality services that will help lead to increased shareholders. A company also has the responsibility of rewarding executives of the operating-unit for being able to add superior multiyear value and the middle managers for having delivered superior performance that influences the increase of shareholders directly. In order to bear the risk of ownership, a company requires senior executives to do so and by the provision of investors with value relevant information, there will be increased shareholder in the company
References
Adams, S. (2008). Fundamentals of Business Economics. Financial Management (UK), 46–48. Retrieved from Business Source Premier Database
Almazan, A., Banerji, S., & DeMotta, A. (2008). Attracting attention: Cheap managerial talk and costly market monitoring. Journal of Finance, 63(3), 1399–1436. Retrieved from Business Source Premier Database
Mallin, C. (2013). Corporate Governance. Oxford University Press; 4 edition
Rappaport, A. (2006). Ten ways to create shareholder value. Harvard Business Review, 66–77. Retrieved from Business Source Premier Database
Ross, S. A., Westerfield, R. W., & Jaffe, J. (2013). Corporate finance (10th Ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin.
Shleifer, A., &Vishny, R. (1997). A survey of corporate governance. Journal of Finance, 52(2), 737–783. Retrieved from Business Source Premier Database
We can write this or a similar paper for you! Simply fill the order form!
Debate over the role of science in public education
An evaluation of the debate over the role of science in public education
Order Instructions:
An evaluation of the debate over the role of science in public education.
•Justify your choice of topic and the way in which you will explore it or paper with regard to the course learning outcomes in an introductory paragraph.
•Develop a working draft of your introduction that includes a thesis statement.
•Compile an annotated bibliography of at least eight sources. These sources can be journal articles, pieces of art, or other cultural works such as plays, literature, poems, or newspaper/magazine articles.
1. A thesis- driven (argumentative) paper
2. The paper must be nine pages in length (excluding the title and reference pages) and formatted according to APA style. You must use at least eight scholarly sources, and at least one of which is recommended material to support your points (the latter two can overlap). Two articles from the popular press can be used, but the requirement of five scholarly sources remains. Cite your sources within your paper and on the reference page.
The Research Paper:
Must be nine double-spaced pages in length, Must include a title page with the following
Title of paper
Must begin with an introductory paragraph that has a succinct thesis statement.
Must address the topic of the paper with critical thought.
Must end with a conclusion that reaffirms your thesis.
Must use at least eight scholarly sources and one of the recommended materials from the course.
Must document all sources in APA style.
Must include a separate reference page.
SAMPLE ANSWER
An evaluation of the debate over the role of science in public education
The debate over the role of science in public education is trending in the modern American society, particularly from a theological perspective. This paper explores the history and the legal position of the role of science in public schools in the United States. It inquires into the various arguments as to the creation-evolution controversy and the current state of science education in the United States.
Christian fundamentalists are against the evidence of common descent of human beings and other animals as indicated in modern cladistics, histology, genetics, and paleontology and other sub-disciplines that are based on the conclusions of modern cosmology, geology, evolutionary biology and other related fields. Christian fundamentalists support Abrahamic accounts of creation and they frame it as ‘reputable science’ (Geisler & Anderson, 1987; Gregory & Miller, 2000).
The controversy over creation and evolution began in North American and Europe in the late eighteenth century, which was characterized by new interpretations of geology, leading to several theories of an ancient earth and extinctions retrieved from the fossil geological sequence that prompted early ideas of evolution. In England, the emergence of scientific ideas was at first considered as a threat to the already established social order. Thus, both the church and state repressed them. With time, conditions continued to favor science and in 1844, the idea of transmutation of species was highly popularized by Robert Chambers’ controversial ‘Vestiges’. Initially, the scientific establishment and the Church of England dismissed the idea. Many Baptists, Quakers, and Unitarians who were opposed to the established church privileges argued in favor of evolution on ground that God was acting through such laws (McComas, Clough & Almazroa, 2002).
Charles Darwin’s publication of ‘On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection’ in 1959 established more scientific credibility to evolution and made it a highly respectable field of study. During this period, creationists were majorly a premillenialist minority and their belief in the imminent return of Christ largely depended on a quasi-reading of Biblical verses. These minorities placed little significance over the new findings in biology or geology, and they freely granted scientists any pre-historic time prior to the Garden of Eden to account for scientific observations as regards geological findings and the fossil sequence (Larson, 2010).
In the following post-Darwinian era, few theologians or scientists opposed the antiquity of the earth or the sequential personality of the fossil record. Similarly, very few scientists and theologians attached geological importance on the Biblical flood, in contrast with subsequent creationists. Skeptical scientists, creationist leaders and evolutionary skeptics often adopted a figurative reading of the first chapter of Genesis or argued that the six days of creation do not necessarily imply 24-hour days (Larson & Numbers, 2012).
Science professors from liberal universities almost instantly adopted the evolution theory and introduced it to their students. Nevertheless, various people in parts of the west and south of the United States, who had been greatly controlled by the teachings of fundamental evangelists, were fully opposed to the evolution theory as immoral (Wysong, 1976).
In the United States, the legal controversy as regards teaching of evolution and the role of creationism in public education has been on since 1925 as decided in the ‘monkey trials’ case of The State of Tenessee v John Scopes. In this case, the court convicted a high school biology teacher for violation of a largely ignored and unenforced statute that prohibited teachers from teaching evolution. Later, in the same year, another similar law was passed in Mississipi. In 1927, Arkansas also passed a similar law. Although the first of the court cases did not deal with restrictions on the teaching of evolution, they made an indirect implication to the restrictions (Larson, 2010).
In successive decisions beginning in 1948, the Supreme Court struck down religious instruction, mandatory Bible readings, and school-sponsored prayers (Wysong, 1976). These ‘anti-monkey’ laws were struck down as unconstitutional in 1968 by the Supreme Court of the United States due to the fact that they established a religious doctrine that was in violation with both the First and Fourth Amendments to the United States Constitution. These ‘anti-monkey’ laws simply prohibited the teaching of evolution in schools. They did not provide for the teaching of an alternative theory due to the fact that there was no scientific alternative to evolution. The Bible was the only available alternative (Larson, 2010).
Since the ruling of the case in The State of Tenessee v John Scopes, times of extreme public interest, inquiry and publicity have been interspersed with times of comparative tranquil and general acceptance of the status quo. As from the late 20th century to the early 21st century, there have been renewed political efforts to bring the matter to the face of public concern. Consequently, various state-specific decisions concerning the teaching of evolution have emerged, which have led to strong reactions from major scientific and science education-related professional organizations across the world (Larson, 2010).
With biologists growing more and more confident in evolution as the main defining concept of biology, there was a subsequent growth in membership in religious denominations favoring increasingly literal interpretations of scripture. Particularly, the Lutheran Church-Missouri and the Southern Baptist Convention outpaced all other religious denominations. The growing and increasing finances also placed these religious denominations in a better position to promulgate creationist messages using their own broadcast media, publishing houses, schools and colleges (Larson, 2010).
Subsequently, in 1961, the fore most contemporary creationist book called ‘The Genesis Flood’ by John C. Whitcomb Jr. and Henry M. Morris was published. According to Whitcomb and Morris, creation was literally completed in six days, and that human beings lived concurrently with dinosaurs. These two authors further proposed that God individually created each kind of life. Regardless of judicial rulings against the inclusion of scientific creationism in the public school education curriculum, many Americans have continued to accept biblical creationism of the sort described by Morris and Whitcomb. The 2005 Pew poll showed that forty-two percent of Americans accept this view (Larson, 2010).
With respect to the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, the control of education by the federal government is subsidiary to the power exercised by the state government. State boards of education, school districts and individual schools have decision powers over the public school curriculum. A 1999 decision by the Kansas Education Board to remove any mention of evolution from the science curriculum of the state established the most far-reaching efforts by creationists in the contemporary U.S. society to challenge the teaching of evolution in schools. Although the move did not avert the teaching of evolution, the renewed efforts in statewide testing and the increasing accountability concerning specifically stated topics are likely to lead to the deletion of the topic from many classrooms throughout that state. In fact, various local school boards have considered the adoption of creationist texts (Larson, 2010).
In the contemporary society, a series of important court cases has highlighted the struggle of religious fundamentalists agreeing to creationism with efforts to legitimize their rejection of evolution as science within education institutions in the United States. Today, the debate majorly focuses on what constitutes good science education. The creationism politics currently focuses on the teaching of creation and evolution in public education. According to a 2014 Gallup survey report, among ten Americans, more than four continue to argue in line with the belief that God created human beings in their present form about 10,000 years ago. This perspective has not changed over the past three decades. Half of Americans are of the view that human beings evolved; with most of them arguing that God guided the evolutionary process. Nevertheless, the percentage of those who argue that God did not get involved in creation is rising (Larson, 2010).
The debate is often considered as being between science and theology. However, as the United States National Academy of Sciences stipulates, in the contemporary society, various religious denominations recognize that biological evolution has established the diversity of living things over billions of years in the history of the Earth. In addition, most religious denominations have given declaratory statements admitting that there is compatibility between evolution and their tenets of their faiths (Larson, 2010).
Scientists and theologians have made eloquent writings concerning their awe and wonder over the history of the universe as well as the history of life on Earth. Both sides indicate that there is no conflict between the evidence for evolution and their faith in God. Theologians who do not agree to the occurrence of evolution tend to have a strong belief in stringently factual interpretations of religious texts (Larson, 2010).
However, there is a continuing conflict on the origins and evolution of life by religious groups and creationist organizations whose desire is to uphold some forms of creationism. These forms often comprise of the intelligent design, Old Earth creationism, creation science, and Young Earth creationism. Most of these religious groups and creationist organizations involve literalist Christians with the belief that the biblical account is inerrant. At least some of these groups perceive the debate as part of the Christian obligation to evangelize. Some of these groups perceive religion and science as having diametrically opposed views which are not capable of being reconciled. Accordingly, there are more neutral perceptions held by most scientists and most mainstream churches who regard religion and science as distinct categories of thought that inquires into fundamentally different questions about reality and suggest various avenues for investing it.
Most recent developments are characterized by the intelligent design movement that has taken an anti-evolution position that averts direct appeals to religion. Scientists have argued that the intelligent design fails to make an effective representation on research program within the mainstream scientific community, and is still essentially creationism. The leading proponent of the intelligent design, the Dominionist funded Discovery Institute has issued public declarations stipulating that it was a new science. However, the only article arguing in favor of this was published in a scientific journal and it was agreed to under questionable conditions (Gregory & Miller, 2000).
Consequently, the article was immediately disowned in the Sternberg peer review controversy, whereby the Biological Society of Washington stated that it failed to satisfy the scientific studies of the journal. The Biological Society further argued that that there was a ‘significant departure’ from the normal subject area of the journal and that the article was published at the sole discretion of the former editor, in contrast with typical editorial practices. President Bush expressed the federal government’s viewpoint on the article pointing out that the teaching of intelligent design alongside evolution was the most effective way of teaching science on the ground that people could be able to better understand what the debate is about.
Almost a decade ago, Kansas’s state school board banned the big bang theory in macro-evolution from the topics enclosed in the state science standards. In 2004, Cobb County Public School Board issued a decree that evolution is just a theory. In 2005, Dover Pennsylvania School Board made it mandatory for schools to issue an oral disclaimer in relation to the Cobb County written declaration, although it also implored students to read the creationist text, ‘Of Pandas and People’, as an alternative account of origins.
Again in 2005, the ruling in Kitzmiller v Dover Area School District trial endorsed the view that the American Association for the Advancement of Science as well other science and education professionals that proponents of the intelligent design sought to undermine the teaching of evolution. The court further ruled that proponents of the intelligent design sought to advance an educational policy for United States public schools that establishes creationist accounts for the origin of life to public-school science curricula.
In 2009, the Texas Board of Education supported the intelligent design by a vote of thirteen to two. The Board mandated textbooks to teach intelligent design alongside evolution and inquire into the validity of the fossil record. The 2009 Texas Education Board hearings were stipulated in the 2012 documentary referred to as ‘The Revisionaries’.
There is also a controversy as regards to the definition and limits of science. Critiques such as those drawn from the distinguishing characteristics between fact and theory are frequently leveled against the unification of concepts within scientific disciplines. Principles such as the Copernican principle, parsimony or Occam’s Razor and uniformitarianism are considered as a result of bias within science toward philosophical naturalism that is equated to atheism by most creationists. To counter these assertions, scientific philosophers use the term methodological naturalism in reference to the long standing caucus in science of the scientific method.
According to creationists, supernatural accounts need not be excluded and that scientific work is paradigmatically close-minded. Since modern science solely relies on minimizing a priori assumptions, subjectivity and error, in addition to avoiding Baconian idols, it has continued to remain neutral on subjective subjects such as morality or religion. Mainstream proponents continue accusing the creationists of conflating religion and morality in a form of pseudoscience.
The creation-evolution controversy has increasingly grown in significance over the recent years, especially due to the Southern strategy of the Republican strategist Kevin Phillips in the administrations of Nixon and Reagan. Kevin Phillips was of the perception that the Civil Rights movement had detached many poor white southern voters of the Bible Belt and sought to capture the electorate through partnership with the ‘new right’ Christian fundamentalist movement.
Science education in public schools has received a mixture of opinions from creationists and their opponents. According to creationists, it is important on fairness and equality standards to educate the students about the alleged scientific controversy as to the theory of evolution. Opponents of creationists majorly comprised of science education organizations and the scientific community claim that there is no scientific controversy and that the controversy is existent primarily in terms of politics and religion (Ratzsch, 2010).
The George Mason University Biology Department set out a course on the creation-evolution controversy. Virtually, the more the students learn about biology, the less convincing they find evolution. This indicates that ‘teaching the controversy’ as a separate optional course on philosophy or history of science or ‘politics of religion and science’ would undermine the criticisms of creationists, and that the resistance to this approach by the scientific community was bad public relations (Ratzsch, 2010; Yates & Marek, 2013).
In conclusion, during the Darwinian era, there was credibility over the theory of evolution. In the post-Darwinian era, few theologians or scientists opposed the antiquity of the earth or the sequential personality of the fossil record. There have been many legal developments as regards what constitutes science and the extent to which science should be taught in schools. Today, the degree of support for evolution is very high in the scientific community as well as in academia, with ninety five percent of scientists showing support for evolution. Accordingly, the support for religion and other creationist accounts is very low within the scientific community and virtually non-existent among scientists in particular fields. However, the contemporary society students tend to perceive evolution as a convincing theory due to the efforts made by the creationists’ ‘teach the controversy.
References
Geisler, N. L., & Anderson, J. K. (1987). Origin science: A proposal for the creation-evolution controversy. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.
This book provides a comprehensive read on the origin of the science, the legal underpinnings and the proposals by the creationists as to the constitution of science and the counterclaims to the same.
Gregory, J., & Miller, S. (2000). Science in public. Basic Books.
This book highlights the evolution of science as from the 18th to the 20th century and the statutory and legal provisions concerning science.
Larson, E. J. (2010). The creation-evolution debate: Historical perspectives (Vol. 3). University of Georgia Press.
This book evaluates the current debate on creation and evolution and shed insight on the trend in the contemporary United States society.
Larson, E. J., & Numbers, R. L. (2012). Creation, Evolution, and the Boundaries of Science: The Debate in the United States. Almagest, 3(1), 4-24.
This article demarcates the current legal position and developments in the creation, evolution and boundaries of science across the various American states.
McComas, W. F., Clough, M. P., & Almazroa, H. (2002). The role and character of the nature of science in science education. In The nature of science in science education (pp. 3-39). Springer Netherlands.
This scholarly article has explored the dynamic arena of the nature of science by examining both its history and ways that the nature of science has informed and should guide science teaching.
Ratzsch, D. (2010). The battle of beginnings: Why neither side is winning the creation-evolution debate. InterVarsity Press.
This book is a scholarly compilation of the overwhelming debate and brings out the credibility of both creationists and evolutionists and the arguments that are more convincing.
Yates, T. B., & Marek, E. A. (2013). Is Oklahoma really OK? A regional study of the prevalence of biological evolution-related misconceptions held by introductory biology teachers. Evolution: Education and Outreach, 6(1), 1-20.
This article shows that whereas the scientific community embraces the theory of biological evolution, the general public largely lacks an understanding, with many adhering to misconceptions
Wysong, R. L. (1976). The creation-evolution controversy. Wysong Institute.
This book provides a comprehensive reading on the creation-evolution controversy and the positions of various scholars on the matter.
We can write this or a similar paper for you! Simply fill the order form!
Scenario – You recently instituted a “No Smoking” policy in the facility. All employees were notified of the policy change. It was not well-received. As you walk down aisle B in the warehouse, you see a cloud of smoke and then see Chris running to aisle A. You need to talk to Chris.
Describe the real issue, and explain what the most difficult element of this step is for you.
Describe your goal.
Explain what temptation you are most likely to face and how you will resist it.
Explain basic performance concepts, such as how you will get permission, what issues you would consider when choosing the best time to deliver the feedback, and how you will select the place for the conversation.
Write your negative feedback narrative following the ABC model.
Conclude your paper with your insights about the process and your comfort level with it.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Presenting Negative Feedback
The real issue involved in the scenario is lack of co-operation from the employees in relation to the aspect of adhering to the no-smoking policy. Employees in the organization seem not to embrace the policy and are inclined towards breaking it. Taking this issue into consideration, the most difficult aspect of this case is confronting Chris with the issue of smoking as there is no substantial proof that can link him to the cloud that emanated from warehouse. Thus, the problem lies in presenting the negative feedback to Chris without hurting his feelings or making feel disregarded. In relation to this, my goal is to deliver advice Chris against the habit of smoking within the organization without hurting him or making him feel disregarded. Besides, I aim at ensuring that the employ receives my advice and respond to it in an effective way. I want to ensure that the employee comprehends the significance of not smoking within the organization alongside the negative effects that such a habit has on the organization. In addition, I also aim at ensuring that the employee does not become defensive during the confrontational process.
In solving Chris’ problem, I will employ the ABC framework or model. This framework offers a three-step procedure for presenting and receiving feedback. One of the temptations that I can face during the process of confronting Chris is the feeling of wanting to rebuke or criticize him for his action. Moreover, the feeling of fear can also develop inside, as I do not want to annoy the employ. When leaders are faced with a situation in which their juniors seem to ignore the outlined rules and regulations, the aspect of anger is often inevitable (Lu et al, 2011). However, efficient and effective management of anger is a significant aspect that leaders should embrace when confronting their employees over issues. In relation to this, I will ensure that I remain composed and calm when confronting Chris to enable me to accomplish my objective. Listening and providing feedback effective are significant skills for leaders who are focused on improving the performance of firms through effective employee corporation.
Researchers have focused on illustrating why individuals who are providing and receiving feedback often view this process with fear or apprehension (Lu et al, 2011). Lack of adequate training on the part of leaders is always linked to element of fear during the confrontation of employees. Managers who allow fear to develop in them when confronting workers usually wind up proving undesired or unintended responses such as defensive and anger. Using the ABC model will enable address the issue involving Chris in an effective manner.
The first step of the ABC framework will involve the action stage. Here, I will focus on collecting information on the issue surrounding Chris case. For instance, I will conduct a thorough investigation to be sure that Chris was the one involved in smoking in the warehouse. One of the methods that I will employ in achieving this goal is confronting Chris’ close associates or friends, and inquire about the issue from them. While doing this, I will be keen not to leak any information concerning my encounter with Chris at the aisles. Besides, I will also ensure that any information that might link Chris to smoking in the warehouse is kept private. Collection of adequate data on this information is vital in ensuring that I focus on a specific issue when confronting Chris (Van-Dijik & Kluger, 2011). As such, Chris will not perceive my confrontation as an attack to him. Being that Chris was running to aisle A, does not offer a full proof that he was the one smoking in the warehouse. Therefore, collecting adequate information concerning this issue is significant in ensuring that I confront him with adequate evidence linking him to the mistake. The availability of data will play a vital role at this stage as it helps in depersonalizing the opening exchange, which is significant in reducing any dissonant reaction (Van-Dijik & Kluger, 2011). Furthermore, the availability of data will help me in making a confident and accurate statement. Here, my main aim will be to provide a picture of characters that are actionable. As such, this approach will enable Chris view what I am discussing to him and develop the feeling that he can do something about it. At this stage, I will have to deliver the message to Chris. However, I will ensure that this message is delivered after the normal working hours to avoid interrupting Chris from his work. Moreover, this time be suitable for to deliver the message to Chris as delivering the message in-between the working hour can impact negative on Chris’s performance. I will also ensure that this message is delivered to Chris at a quiet and confidential place to avoid interruption or embarrassment that he might face from other employees. As such, I will have to call him in my office.
In the second stage of the ABC model, I will focus on the significance of addressing the issue of smoking in the organization. Here, I will focus on informing Chris about the impact of his behavior on the organization and other employees. This stage will be vital in ensuring that valid reason why the habit of smoking in the organization is not required is provided. As such, this step will ensure that Chris takes accountability and ownership of the feedback or his action. Besides, this stage will help in the establishment of a credible and valid purpose for giving the feedback to Chris. At this stage, the use of abstract statements such as “people often…” and “everyone thinks…” will be avoided as they serve to block any opportunity to engage the employee in discussion concerning the specific effect of his action (Lu et al, 2011). This undertaking will help in ensuring that Chris acknowledges the negative effects of his action and avoid treating the confrontation in a negative way. In addition, this step can help in revealing the reasons why workers are uncomfortable with the no-smoking rule as it will involve a discussion between the two of us.
Lastly, I will focus on establishing the actual remedy for addressing the issue of smoking. In this stage, I will aim at identifying the resources, action plans, and needs that are required in ensuring that workers stop the habit of smoking within the organization (Van-Dijik & Kluger, 2011). This step helps in ensuring that I focus on all workers as opposed to the single worker who was involved in breaking the no-smoking rule. This stage also helps in avoiding time wastage in blame game. As a result, this time can be employed in finding effective solutions to the lack of corporation on the part of workers.
In conclusion, the application of the ABC framework in solving Chris’ case will help in ensuring that the issue of smoking within the organization is handled effectively without any resistance from employees. Furthermore, the application of this framework in solving the issue of smoking in the organization will help in the realization of efficient corporation from workers
References
Lu, K et al. (2011). Examination of a Perceived Cost Model of Employees’ Negative Feedback Seeking Behavior. Journal of Psychology, 145(6), 573-594.
Locate the proper Emergency Support Function Annexes from the National Response Framework Resource Center for this Session Long Project. The areas of interest are:
•Fire
•Search and Rescue (SAR)
•Public Safety
Also, refer to previous readings and required websites.
During a natural or man-made disaster, fires happen, people go missing, and people may commit criminal acts or become threats to public safety. One only has to remember the Hurricane Katrina episode. Your Emergency Response Plan includes your local fire and police departments. Memoranda of Understanding have been drafted so their functions are clearly delineated. Search and rescue falls under your fire
Scenario: A major blizzard dumped 2.5 feet of snow, leaving your town in disarray. Such a storm is rare in your town. As Incident Commander, you have spearheaded a successful two-day coordination of essential services that include alternate use of transportation (e.g., procurement of five snowmobiles for police) and the establishment of alternate communications. However, 75% of major highways and secondary roads need to be plowed, but there are only five town plows available. The majority of citizens need to have access to supermarkets and hospitals. List what you will do first. Then discuss your plan of attack. Reference specific pages in the National Response Framework.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Search and Rescue Mission
From the previous reading, search and rescue known as SAR is the search for provision of aid or assistance to individuals who are in imminent danger or distress. However, this rescue programme is aimed at assisting various people whose lives may be in danger in various parts, location, and times from every corner of the country. Therefore, the general field of search and rescue may include many specialties, characteristically determined by the specific type of terrain of the search conducted. They include ground search and rescue, mountain rescue, urban search and rescue in towns and cities, combat search and rescue, which happens in the battle fields, and air-sea rescue that takes place in water.
A case where there is fire outbreak in the city and a large blizzard has blocked the major roads leading to the city would involve the entire search and rescue plans. That is, urban search and rescue, ground search and rescue, and air search and rescue. The first point of rescue mission is the communication that serves to create awareness to the public. Krolik (2013) says that the first point is prevention and then curing. The safety of the public becomes a matter of concern and the people who are out of the vicinity who may intentionally or unintentionally come to the scene are prevented. In this case, the mobile services are applied. Rescue teams such as the Red Cross society can provide food and medical services so the people to avoid further movement that can would increase the number casualties. Underwood (2010) posits that containing people in a safe place is the first step of rescue. Then the ground search and rescue is applied by using plows to tilt the land providing opening for fire personnel. However, following the few numbers of plows, a rescue plan is revised and the air search and rescue plan is applied to work together with the ground search and rescue.
The ground search and rescue missions that take place in urban areas should not be bemused with urban SAR; in this case, there is extraction of materials and people from affected buildings and other entrapments. The team can also employ sniffing dogs in cases where the plows have opened necessary routes. As opening the routes by the few plows might take long, the rescue team employs air search and rescue where helicopters are used to save lives and ferry the fire brigade team to the site. The helicopters are usually non-amphibious equipped with hoists.
As the air and ground search and rescue work to stop the disaster, the team also applies urban search and rescue to work in the city. The city is much completed and all the multi-disciplinary forces are needed. This includes personnel from medical services, police, and fire departments. The urban search and rescue team have rescue knowledge on broken natural gas lines and live wires that are known to spread the effects of fire (Underwood, 2010). The personnel from the medical services attend to those who are seriously injured. Rescue communities such as World Food Organization and government services ensure the individuals at risk of movement are attended to by providing them with food and shelter. Finally, after the rescue mission, the area is marked out of bounce and the specialists given the go forward for investigation so that the primary cause is realized to avoid such predicaments in future
References
Krolik, M. (2013), Exploring A Rights-Based Approach To Disaster Management. Australian journal of emergency management, The , 28(4)44
Underwood, S. (2010) Improving Disaster Management. Communication Of The ACM, 53(2), 18-20
We can write this or a similar paper for you! Simply fill the order form!
In this assignment, you will write a critical appraisal of an assigned article in outline and
narrative format using the guidelines provided. Be sure to use the headings, such as Theoretical
Framework, Variables, Measurement, etc. listed in the assignment guidelines.
Use the following study to complete your assignment. Cossette,S and Frasure-Smith (2012) Randomized Controlled Trial of Tailored Nursing Interventions to Improve Cardiac Rehabilitation Enrollment. Nursing Research (61) 111-120
Instructions
1. Theoretical Framework (theory and/or concepts)
a. State whether the theoretical framework is based on scientific theory (relationships highly validated by research), substantive theory (published middle range theory with limited testing), or tentative theory (developed as a framework for this study) or a combination of these as defined by Grove, Burns, and Gray (2013).
b. Discuss the study framework. If the theorist has a model, you can include it in the paper and describe it.
2. Major Study Variables
Identify the study variables by examining the purpose, the objectives, questions or hypotheses, and the results section of the article. Identify the type of each variable (independent, dependent, or research) and conceptually and operationally define only the major study variables. You do not need to define the demographic variables in the study.
a. Independent variables: Identify and define conceptually and operationally
b. Dependent variables: Identify and define conceptually and operationally
OR
c. Research variables: Identify and define conceptually and operationally.
3. Sample and Setting
a. State the inclusion and exclusion sample or eligibility criteria.
b. Indicate the method used to obtain the sample.
c. State the sample size. Indicate if a power analysis was conducted to determine the sample size.
d. Identify the refusal to participate number and percentage.
e. Identify the sample attrition or mortality number and percentage.
f. Describe the informed consent process used and any institutional review board (IRB) approval.
g. Describe the study setting.
4. Measurement Methods
Identify each measurement method used in the study with the following guidelines and put the information in a TABLE using the headings identified in the example table below.
a. Identify the study variable and link it to the measurement method used to measure this variable in the study (see Table below).
b. Identify author of each measurement method.
c. Identify the name of each measurement method.
d. Identify the type of each measurement method (i.e., Likert scale, visual analog scale, physiological measure, questionnaire, observation, or interview).
e. Report the reliability and validity of each scale or questionnaire from previous studies and the current study if used in this study.
f. Report the reliability and validity of an existing database, observation checklist, or interview script if used for measuring study variables.
g. If a physiological measure was used, report the precision and accuracy of the measure for previous studies and the current study.
Table of Study Measurement Methods (Example)
Study
Variable
Author and Name of Measurement Method
Type of Measurement Method
Reliability or Precision
Validity or Accuracy
Nurse job satisfaction
McCloskey/ Mueller Satisfaction Scale (MMSS)
31-item Likert scale. Likert scale ranging from very dissatisfied (1) to very satisfied (5)
Reliability: Cronbach alpha for complete scale of 0.89 from previous research and 0.82 for this study. Reliability values for 8 subscales ranged from 0.52 to
0.84
Construct Validity: Content validity literature and input from hospital nurses, reading level 6th grade. Confirmatory factor analysis indicating the scale covered 8 factors of nurse job satisfaction (control and
responsibility, scheduling, interaction
opportunities, professional opportunities, extrinsic, coworkers, praise and recognition, and balance of family and work). Successive use validity—scale used in many studies.
Study
Variable
Author and Name of Measurement Method
Type of Measurement Method
Reliability or Precision
Validity or Accuracy
Patient fall rate
Hope Hospital
Agency clinical database
Existing database
Data entered by trained experts within the agency. Data scanned daily for errors. Data transferred electronically to prevent errors
Database constructed by national organization and includes quality indicators for patient, provider, and agency outcomes. Valid data with multiple agencies using database over several years.
Blood pressure (BP)
Omron Blood Pressure Equipment
Physiological measure
Precision: Equipment was developed and tested to determine consistent readings in repeat BP measurements. Equipment will be recalibrated according to company guidelines
each day.
Accuracy: Three BP measures will be taken and averaged to determine the reading for the study. Correct size cuff for patient and placement of cuff on bare arm correctly. Patient will be sitting for 5 minutes, feet flat on floor, and arm at heart level for taking BP. BP readings will be downloaded from the BP equipment directly into the computer and study database.
5. Statistical Analyses (found in the Results or Statistical Section of the article).
a. List all the analysis techniques used in the study to:
(1) describe the sample and the study variables,
(2) examine relationships, and/or
(3) determine differences.
b. Were the data analyses linked to the study purpose and/or objectives, questions, and hypotheses?
6. Researcher’s interpretation of findings.
a. Describe how the findings are related back to the study framework.
b. Describe which findings are in keeping with those expected.
c. List any unexpected findings.
d. State whether the findings are consistent with previous research findings.
7. Describe the study limitations identified by the researcher.
8. Discuss if the researchers generalized the findings from this sample to a larger population.
9. List the implications of the findings for nursing practice.
10. Identify any suggestions for further study.
Format
Writing style needs to be clear, concise, organized, and complete without punctuation, sentence structure, spelling, or grammar errors. Citing of sources in the paper and references need to be in APA (2010) format.
Rubric
Use the following rubric to guide your work.
Tasks
Theoretical framework (theory and/or concepts)
(0-7 Points)
Identifies theoretical framework: scientific, substantive, or tentative theory
Identifies study framework
Major study variables
(0-15 Points)
Identifies independent variables and
Identifies dependent variables
Or Identifies research variables
Conceputally defines study variables and Operationally defines study variables
Sample and setting
(0-20 Points)
Identifies inclusion and exclusion sample or eligibility criteria
Identifies method used to obtain sample Identifies sample size and power analysis Identifies “refusal to participate” number and
percentage
Identifies sample attrition number and percentage
Identifies informed consent process and IRB approval
Identifies study setting
Measurement method
(0-20 Points)
Completes a table that includes the following: Identify variables measured in the study Identifies author and name of each measurement method
Identifies type of each measurement method
Identifies reliability and validity of the scale or questionnaire if used in the study
Identifies reliability and validity of an existing database, observation checklist, or interview script if used in the study
Identifies precision and accuracy of the physiological measurements if used in the study
Statistical analyses
(0-8 Points)
Identifies all analysis techniques used in the study including those to describe the sample and variables, examine relationships, and/or
determine differences.
Identifies whether data analysis is linked to the study purpose and/or objectives, questions, and hypotheses
Interpretation of findings
(0-8 Points)
Determines whether findings related back to study framework
Determines whether findings are in keeping with those expected
Identifies any unexpected findings
Determines if findings are consistent with previous research findings
Study limitations
(0-4 Points)
Identifies study limitations
Generalization of the findings
(0-3 Points)
Determines if the researchers generalize the study findings
Implications for nursing practice
(0-3 Points)
Identifies implications for nursing practice
Further study
(0-2 Points)
Identifies recommendations for further study
Format
(0-10 Points)
Writing style needs to be clear, concise, organized, and complete. No punctuation, sentence structure, spelling, or grammar errors. Citing of sources in the paper and references need to be in APA (2010) format.
Total Points Possible: 100
SAMPLE ANSWER
Cardiac illness case study
Introduction
Patients suffering from cardiac illnesses usually require constant medical attention to help better their situation. Unfortunately, options such as cardiac rehabilitations are rarely optimized. The article “Randomized Controlled Trial of tailored Nursing Interventions to Improve Cardiac Rehabilitation Enrollment” features a study conducted on the mentioned concept. This paper features a critical appraisal on the article so as to judge whether the findings from the research can be trusted and applied in a medical setting.
Theoretical Framework
This article by Cossette et al. (2012) has a theoretical framework that is wholly based in scientific theory. According to Grove, Burns, and Gray (2013), such a theoretical framework features relationships that are highly validated by research. In the article, reference to scientific research can be noted all through the theoretical framework. For instance, the authors state that meta-analyses have recorded significant reductions in all-cause mortality, as well as cardiac mortality by 27% and 31% respectively (Cossette et al., 2012). They further refer to previous researches that show only an approximate of 20-25% such patients enroll in rehabilitative care (Cossette et al. (2012).
Major Study Variables
Independent Variable in this article features the efficacy of the Coronary Care Unit transit nursing intervention on rehabilitation enrollment (Petter, DeLone & McLean, 2013). This variable is measured with the help of two groups of patients. The first group is the experimental group whereby the variable will be applied so as to try and trigger a response. The second group, is the control whereby the variable will not be applied. Therefore, the variable is defined by the difference in results from the two groups of patients.
Dependent Variable
This is the change in patient enrollment in the cardiac rehabilitation after the independent variable was applied (Wiersema & Bowen, 2009). It is measured in percentage of patient enrollment in the free access rehabilitative care after they have undergone the nurse intervention.
Controlled Variable
The first controlled variable featured the assumption that enrollment is having attended at least one rehabilitation session within 6 weeks of discharge. This will act as a control since the study is only supposed to measure the effects of nurse intervention on the level of patient enrollment into the cardiac rehabilitation. The second control was that patients had factors that were influencing whether or not they would enroll. These included illness perceptions, family
support, anxiety level, medication adherence, and also cardiac risk factors.
Sample and Setting
The eligibility criterion was based on the factors that were thought to affect a patient’s enrollment into the rehabilitative care. This included factors such as illness perceptions, anxiety level, cardiac risk factors, and family support. The sample was obtained with the aid of two methods: randomization and blinding. These are sampling techniques whereby participants are chosen randomly without considering any of their characteristics (Bench, Day & Metcalfe, 2013). In this article, the eligible patients were first given consent forms to fill, thereafter randomization was conducted by a statistician, and nurses were handed the results which were sealed in opaque envelopes (Cossette et al., 2012).
A sample size of 242 patients, with each group consisting of 121 patients was chosen. A power analysis was conducted to decide on this size as it has also been indicated that the sample size was for a power of .80 and two sided alpha of .05 (Cossette et al., 2012). 301 patients refused to participate, and the percentage of this is 6.27% of the patients evaluated. The mortality number was 583, a percentage of 12% of the patients evaluated.
The informed consent process used featured a signing of the form prior to the exercise. The patients were also expected to fill out a baseline questionnaire that covered their socio-demographic information and self-report scales. The study is conducted in a hospital setting, whereby the nurses who give them their care differentiate the control and the experiment group. The control group will still be taken care of by the regular nurse, while the experimental group will be handled by the nurses conducting the research.
Study
The number of patients enrolled in the free access cardiac rehabilitation program
Variable
Enrollment in the free access rehabilitation program
Author and Name of Measurement Method
Data Entry
Type of Measurement Method
Data Collection. Data was entered in a computerized database that records all appointments in the program.
Reliability or Precision
This method has proven reliable for many other researches
Validity or Accuracy
Database has been in use over a period of time, and it has also proved efficient.
Table 1
Study
Six weeks post discharge feedback
Variable
Efficacy of the nursing intervention
Author and Name of Measurement Method
Type of Measurement Method
Telephone questionnaire
Reliability or Precision
Is reliable as the interviewer can determine accurate information from the voice of respondent
Validity or Accuracy
This is a valid measure that has been used to collect data.
Table 2
Study
illness perceptions
Variable
Enrollment in the free access rehabilitation program
The socio-demographic and clinical variables were summarized in the form of mean T standard deviation for the continuous variables, and as count as well as percentage for categorical variables. There is a relationship between the dependent and independent variables since the research yielded results that proved an increase in the number of enrolled patients, who underwent the nursing intervention. The data analyses were linked to the study purpose since they played a role in influencing whether or not a patient would enroll, and they also played a role in establishing that nurse intervention helps in the process.
Interpretation of Findings
The findings are related to the framework, as the two major variables have been determined. They have turned out as expected since the relationship between the independent and dependent variable all come down to the patient’s perception of illness. Therefore, intervention was expected to yield results. Limitations of this study included the fact that a patient who had accepted to participate failed to do so last minute juts because he was in a hurry to go home. Most of the patients, before discharge, had already developed worries about symptom management. These affected the power analysis as the sample size was switched to a much lower number than expected.
References
Bench, S., Day, T., & Metcalfe, A. (2013). Randomised Controlled Trials: An Introduction For Nurse Researchers. Nurse Researcher, 20(5), 38-44.
Grove, S., Burns, N., & Gray, J. (2012). The Practice of Nursing Research, 7th Edition; Appraisal, Synthesis, and Generation of Evidence. 10-600.
Petter, S., DeLone, W., & McLean, E. R. (2013). Information Systems Success: The Quest for the Independent Variables. Journal Of Management Information Systems, 29(4), 7-62. doi:10.2753/MIS0742-1222290401
Wiersema, M. F., & Bowen, H. P. (2009). The use of limited dependent variable techniques in strategy research: issues and methods. Strategic Management Journal, 30(6), 679-692.
We can write this or a similar paper for you! Simply fill the order form!
Describe how you’d feel if you had to take a psychological test or an honesty test either as an employee or as a precondition for employment. Under what conditions, if any, would you take such a test?
Every human being has personal privacy that he or she would not like exposed to any other party (Muchinsky, 2012). The questions asked during honesty test or a psychological test tends to infringe on private information of an individual. Take for example a question like “Are you strongly attracted to members of the same sex?” This is a very private information that I feel should not be disclosed to any other person. After all, it is none of his business to know whether I am or not. I would obviously feel beleaguered but then because it is a precondition for employment, I would assume my feelings and take the test to answer the question for the sake of the job.
How useful or informative do you think such tests are? Is their use of a reasonable business policy? Assuming that tests like those described are valid and reliable, are they fair? Explain.
Honesty tests are very informative to the employer. There are some questions that would lead the employer to automatically detect whether his prospective employee is honest or dishonest with his answers. In a question like, “Do you always tell the truth?” the answer should be automatically “NO” because anybody who has attained the employment age has lied at any one given point in his lifetime. Should the respondent say yes, then the employer would be informed that he is likely to be a dishonest employee.
There is a business policy that states that personal privacy should remain confidential and they should only reveal them if they feel free to do so. In an honesty test, the employees or the prospective employees are compelled to answer questions regarding themselves, which under normal circumstances they would not reveal to anyone, not even their confidant, but because it is a matter of survival, employment for that matter, they are forced to take the tests and answer the questions as they come. This, therefore, implies that there is no use of a reasonable business policy.
The honesty tests described above are actually not fair. Even if they are valid and reliable, they are more of nagging to the employees and any other person would not want to take the tests if they had an alternative.
Do you think tests like these invade privacy and, if so, is this invasion justified? Explain why or why not.
Tests of this kind actually invade privacy and the invasion is justified. Inasmuch as the privacy of the prospective employees is invaded, the invasion is necessary because it is not only important but also safe for the employee to know the real character of the individual he is employing. It has been in the public domain that some employees end up with some characters that would sabotage the organization and send it crumbling. Such characters like theft can be detected in a person through the tests and therefore the tests are justified.
What ideals, obligations, and effects must be considered in using psychological tests as pre- employment screens? In your view, which is the most important consideration?
Previously, it was the person taking the honesty tests that felt nervous, riddled with angst or tensed (Shultz & Schultz, 2010). To this day, the employers administering the tests to the employers or the job seekers would also find themselves suffering from anxiety or feeling tensed too. This is because there have recently developed a number of obligations, ideals and effects that have to be considered when administering psychological tests (Shultz & Schultz, 2010). The legal hurdles and threats to employment testing have been quite significant. The employer have to consider whether or not he is infringing the employees’ or the applicant’s’ civil rights (Shultz & Schultz, 2010). He also has to take into consideration the psychological effect that the person undertaking the test would have after the completion of the test.
The most important consideration in this case is the consideration whether civil rights are being violated. It is a universal human rights requirement that everybody’s civil right is to be protected and from violation and anybody who violates it should be subjected to legal justice. The employer should try as much as possible to respect the civil rights of the employees or the job seekers as much as possible.
If you were an employer, would you require either employees or job applicants to pass an honesty exam? Explain the moral principles that support your position.
I would require job applicants to or my employees to pass an honesty test. Any other employer would want to have honest employees to be certain that their organizations are safe from vandalism by dishonest workers (Fancher & Rutherford, 2012). As an employer, I would not expect anything less either. Even if not all the questions would enable the employer to identify honest workers, most of them will and, therefore, if they are passed, then the employer would be sure to have a very honest team that would deliver to the organization through honest means, thereby assuring the success of that organization.
References
Fancher, R. and Rutherford, A., (2012). Pioneers of psychology. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Muchinsky, P., (2012). Psychology applied to work. North Carolina: Hypergraphic Press.
Shultz, J. and Schultz, D., (2010). Psychology and work today. New York: Prentice Hall.
We can write this or a similar paper for you! Simply fill the order form!
