The Who Music Quiz

Short Disclaimer: You may or may not notice that I did not mention everything The Who have released, or all the people in their line-up at all times. Nor did I mention Tommy(the movie) or Quadrophenia (the movie). I wanted to focus on The Who's music in their prime years, rather than their various reunions and films. Band Members: Pete Townshend: Guitar, vocals Roger Daltrey: Vocals, harmonica John Entwistle: Bass, vocals, French horn Keith Moon (until 1978): Drums, vocals Kenney Jones (after 1978): Drums John Bundrick (after 1978): Keyboards Discography: 1964: Singles: I'm the Face 1965: Singles: I Can't Explain, My Generation 1965: The Who Sings My Generation 1966: Singles: Substitute, I'm a Boy, The Kids Are Alright, Happy Jack 1966: A Quick One 1967: Singles: Pictures of Lilly, I Can See For Miles 1967: The Who Sell Out 1968: Singles: I Can't Reach You, Dogs, Magic Bus. 1968: Magic Bus – The Who on Tour 1969: Singles: Pinball Wizard, I'm Free, The Acid Queen 1969: Tommy 1970: Singles: The Seeker, Summertime Blues 1970: Live at Leeds 1971: Singles: Behind Blue Eyes, Lets See Action 1971: Who's Next 1971: Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy 1972: Singles: Join Together, Relay 1973: Singles: 5:15, Love Reign O'Er Me 1973: Quadrophenia 1974: Single: The Rael Me 1974: Odds and Sods 1975: Singles: Squeeze Box, Slip Kid 1975: The Who by the Numbers 1978: Who Are You? 1979: The Kids Are Alright (Soundtrack) 1981: Face Dances 1982: It's Hard 1991: Thirty Years of Maximum R&B (Box Set) 1996: My Generation – The Very Best of the Who 1996: Live at the Isle of Wight 2000: BBC Sessions 2002: Ultimate Collection 2002: Live at the Royal Albert Hall 2004: Then and Now: 1964-2004 Few bands in rock history have had the talent, ability, energy, and impact as The Who did from the mid 60's to the late 70's. Starting as an offshoot of the British Invasion, the Who evolved to become one of the most powerful and one of the greatest rock n' roll bands of all time. Though by definition they weren't a super-group (the members were not already established as premier musicians before The Who took off), they arguably had the talent to be one. Destroying equipment, blowing up bass drums, Townshend's windmill, Daltrey's tough guy attitude and rock vocal power, and Entwistle's â€Å"eye of the hurricane† approach to the stage show and lead bass-playing are all defining parts of The Who that make them a legend in their time and into today. Pete Townshend was the artistic leader of the band, and he constantly moved them in new directions to reach areas no rock bands had been and few have been since. Aside from his artistic creativity, his guitar playing was very good. He is often overlooked because he did not do many solos or much flashy guitar work, but he fit the band perfectly. Not only was Townshend a capable guitarist, but his song writing ability is up there with the best. Townshend also sang background vocals and occasionally lead vocals, making him even more valuable to the band. Roger Daltrey, the singer of the group, started as a great singer with solid range and glimpses of power. His versatility allowed him to progress into a power-rock front man, and his amazing stage presence propelled The Who's live shows throughout their career. But the real focus of The Who is usually on the rhythm section (or in The Who's case, the lead instrumental section). John Entwistle was a pioneer in bass playing, as he was one of first players to show that bass could be the lead instrument in rock music. He immediately made his presence known in The Who with his heavy sound and distorted bass, like the fills in My Generation . Entwistle also added solid backup vocals, which gave The Who more dimensions in their vocal harmonies. And then ,of course, there is Keith Moon. Moon was a defining aspect of The Who, and a key part of why they were so different from almost all other bands. His attacking drum style, blazing speed, and constant fills would become a trademark of The Who, especially in their live show. Although Keith is usually noted for being a crazy man on the drums, he tends to show a significant amount of control on their studio albums. There are more fills than other drummers, but enough restraint so as not to ruin the trac k. Instrumentally, Entwistle and Moon led the band. Townshend was a good guitar player, but he usually found himself pounding out power-chords and solid riffs in the role of a rhythm player while John and Keith took the role as lead players. That is not to say that Pete never played lead or that he could not solo, however. Townshend and Entwistle first met each other in high school, and initially played in a Dixieland band together (John was on trumpet and Pete was on banjo) in 1962. In 1963, Entwistle left to play bass for the newly formed Detours, with singer Roger Daltrey already in place. Soon, Townshend joined them band on guitar. Not long after, there was a drumming void, and Keith Moon was added to the band. They changed their name to The Who in 1964. After struggling for a few months to progress, the band met an interested manager in Pete Meaden. Under his direction, the band became known as the High Numbers and began wearing suits and playing more of an R&B style. Their first single contained I'm the Face/Zoot Suit , but it faired poorly. Meaden was cut, and they reformed as The Who. I Can't Explain was the band's next single, and it did much better. After the band played a TV performance that featured Moon and Townshend destroying their instruments, The Who starting gaining popularity. The band's dynamics in this time period are very interesting. Each member had vastly different personalities, which often led to disputes and arguments, sometimes even violence onstage. Instead of keeping these altercations private, The Who made them well-known. They became notorious for their violent demeanour and aggressive stage act, but instead of having a negative effect on the band, the result was that their popularity continually grew. It is important here to stress the Who's significance to the Mod movement in London at the time. The hundred of mods in the audience became a medium through which The Who could let out their pent-up aggression. In these years, The Who soon became the Mod band, the voice of the rebellious teenagers, soon to represent what rock and roll would become: a defiant escape from the previous generation and a defiant statement against it. As I Can't Explain had jumped to the British Top Ten, the band was now ready to record an album. The Who Sings My Generation was built around the title track, also released as a single. The album showcases the raw style of the band early in their career. There is noticeable influence of R&B, blues, and Motown, added into the Who's style of power rock. Its lasting legacy to music is undoubtedly My Generation . This song displays the defiant attitude of the band and Townshend's infamous, â€Å"hope I die before I get old† line. The rebellious nature of the song even became somewhat of an influence on the future punk movement, which would start to see its true beginnings in just a couple years. Also seen here are instrumental statements of Entwistle and Moon. As mentioned before, Entwistle's fills are remarkable. The end of the song features Moon all over the drums, producing a wall of sound that no other drummer of the time could even hope to emulate. The song would also become a key part of their live show for the upcoming years. The single Substitute was released shortly after that album, and met more British success. The song itself is a solid pop tune with great drumming and good vocals. The Band again prepared for more studio work. The Who's next record would prove to be an interesting one, to say the least. Titled A Quick One (in Britain) or Happy Jack (in America), it would expand on the base of The Who to showcase a wide variety of music. The tracks range from the circus type music of Cobwebs and Strange (which features amazing drumming from Moon, it's somewhat of a mini drum solo) to the ten minute mini-opera of the title track, A Quick One . This is Townshend's first experiment with a lengthy piece that centered on a theme. The plot concerns a woman who cheats on her husband while he is away for a long time. Musically, the song moves through six movements that run together successfully. Also on the album were the strange Happy Jack and even stranger Boris the Spider , both of which are solid and are now well known tracks. The most important parts of this album were the fact that the band was certainly showing signs of evolution (which were necessary to further develop and survive as the 60's died out), and the mini-opera concept Townshend was starting to create. This idea would become more important on the band's next album, and eventually reach a climax on Tommy. Their next record, The Who Sell Out (1967), is debatably a concept album that centers on a mock radio broadcast program. Between nearly every song, there is a short mock radio jingle. The album even includes the band advertising certain products in song form, as the title would suggest. There are some rather obvious examples of this, such as Heinz Baked Beans , and other examples that can actually stand alone as solid songs, like Odorono . There is even some dabbing in psychedelia (after all, it was 1967) like on Armenia, City In the Sky . The Who take full advantage of the studio to produce this record, though the music itself still has a bit of the raw essence of the early Who. These early albums do not tend to present the loud raucous Who that their live show represented; instead, there is a strong sense of melody and control. Moon shows remarkable constraint (for him, at least) on songs like Tattoo . Sunrise, I Can't Reach You, and Our Love Was showed Townshend's softer side as a songwriter. I Can See For Miles was the only the album's top ten hit and the only track that got radio play and it features great singing from Roger and typical Keith Moon drumming. However, the real climax of the album is Rael , and religious conceptual experiment. The Who even develops some of the instrumental themes for Tommy on this song (mostly from songs like Sparks or The Underture ). They were now only a short step away from a full-blown concept album. The Who's live show was growing in popularity, size, volume, etc, as they became a bigger band over the last few years. Destroying their equipment was now a standard part of their nightly show. In fact, The Who destroyed so much equipment and gear, that they were actually in debt for a few years, despite the success of their albums and singles. Ironically, the band had stopped smashing their instruments by the time they had enough funds to actually afford doing it. In 1967, The Who performed at the Monterey Pop Festival in front of 200,000 people. Two years before the legendary Woodstock, a festival of this magnitude was a great tool to help launch the band into their upcoming power rock years. In 1968, The Who continued to release singles, including the ever-popular Magic Bus . To help keep momentum, they also released Magic Bus -The Who on Tour , a collection of some early singles and some album cuts not available previously. Through the rest of 1968, Townshend worked on what would be considered by many the band's artistic peak. He developed an interesting concept and a complex plot that moved through the life of a deaf, dumb, and blind boy who plays pinball. Tommy , released 1969, is a double-album and a conceptual masterpiece. The album is known for being the first very successful rock-opera (and one of the first in general). Tommy was met with great commercial success, especially in America. The plot, though confusing at times, is generally easy to follow. An interesting aspect of Tommy is in the religious themes it develops. By the end Tommy becomes such a powerful figure for fans seeking salvation (Sally Simpson ). Musically, the album is unquestionably strong. The Who were able to use great vocal harmonies and soft melodies in combination with their naturally loud and upfront style to produce an ideal mix of the two. Moon is excellent without being over-powering, and Townshend's song writing may have peaked here with impressive lyrics throughout the whole album. There are also instrumental movements like Sparks and The Underture , both of which relate to a strong musical theme. Combined with unbelievable songs like Amazing Journey, The Overture, Acid Queen, Pinball Wizard, Christmas, I'm Free, We're Not Gonna Take It , and a great album structure, Tommy is an album that by itself would have made The Who's career great. Tommy was the peak of the early Who, and soon the band would undergo changes that would dominate their style in the 70's. Touring to support the album, their live show grew in magnitude. Often they would play the entire album all the way through, each night reproducing the epic plot. 1969 also brought about another event that would have lasting effects on The Who: Woodstock. The legendary music festival was the basis for further evolution in the band's sound. The power of their live show was now all but unmatched, and it thrived off performances of epic songs such as the See me, Feel me climax. Roger Daltrey especially evolved during this time. In these years, he became Tommy to the audience, a sex symbol and a leader of the band on stage. Not to say that he was outshining the other members, however. In 1970, The Who decided to d0cument their astounding show with their release of Live at Leeds . The original LP featured rousing versions of Summertime Blues and Young Man Blues , along with a 15-minute version of My Generation that experiments with the Tommy themes. This album is regarded as one of the best live albums ever released, and it's no wonder why. It is still widely considered one of the best live performances ever recorded. A two-disc Deluxe Edition of the album is now available, which features Tommy performed almost in its entirety. Later that same year, The Who also played at the gigantic Isle of Wight Festival. With over 600,000 fans in attendance, The Who delivered a spectacular set. The material is similar to that of Live at Leeds , with new songs like Water, I Don't Even Know Myself, Spoonful/Twist and Shout , and an abridged version of Tommy . The show is now available on DVD as well as CD. The Who's momentum in 1970 to 1971 was also supplemented by the release of Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy , a collection of early singles, as well as the release of The Seeker as a new single. The new song gave audiences a feel for the type of sound that The Who would produce during the upcoming years. After the release of a record that stretched the idea of what was possible by four guys on a stage with just their instruments, The Who decided to use the studio to their full advantage on their next album. Synthesizers drive the album, and there use here was one of the first times a band used them so effectively. However, Pete was having difficulty with the album's concept. Townshend's original idea was a project titled Life house , which supposedly dealt with science fiction and a utopian society, but the idea was becoming increasingly complex and spiralled out of control. In response to the stress build up and complications, Townshend suffered a nervous breakdown. After his recovering, The Who picked up the pieces of Pete's failed work and came up with their 1971 release, Who's Next (this album is said jokingly by many to be the greatest failure in the history of rock music). The new album carried a much heavier sound than their previous studio work, and was very synthesizer-drive n. This is evident right from the start of the album. There are definite beginnings of The Who's â€Å"arena rock† era, which would last basically all of the 70's. Hard rock anthems like Baba O'Riley, Bargain, Behind Blue Eyes, and Won't Get Fooled Again all became very popular and received extensive play on FM radio. It also contains popular fan songs like My Wife and The Song is Over . Who's Next is usually thought of as the band's best album, and is probably their most popular. After more touring with the new material The Who were ready to go back into the studio. Determined to overcome his previous â€Å"failure† and do another Tommy so to speak, Townshend prepared to create another complex concept album. He moved through many possible ideas, each time getting involved in them for a period and then abandoning the concept. Eventually, Townshend settled on looking back at the time he knew best: the Mods. The double-album Quadrophenia was crafted together and released in 1973. The album's concept dealt with a youth, Jimmy, growing up in 60's and struggling to find himself in a mod society. Despite starting with a much stronger story than Tommy originally had, Quadrophenia's plot suffers from being underdeveloped. Townshend tried to incorporate four vastly different personalities into his central character, each of which reflected a member of the band, but this too was left underdeveloped and only weakened Quadrophenia as a thematic album. Ultimately, the record's attempted concept was too complex for the mass Who audience to understand. The album is also very studio heavy, meaning that its complexities (horn sections, various studio effects, overdubs, etc) made it very difficult for the band to replicate it live, unlike most of their earlier material. Despite these negative points about the album, the music overall is very well done. Standout tracks include The Real Me, The Punk and the Godfather, I've Had Enough, 5:15, and Love Reign O'Er Me. The Real Me features some amazing bass playing, even by Entwistle's standards, and Love Reign O'Er Me showcases Daltrey's undeniable power and the emotional climax of the album. Quadrophenia also features what may be Keith Moon's best studio drumming. However, the inability to reproduce the album's sound on a tour would prove costly for the group, and caused them to take a step back. After Quadrophenia , The Who began to drift apart slightly. Townshend and Entwistle were both interested in their own solo projects. Pete began to drink excessively, a habit that would plague him for the next several years. Moon was enjoying his rock star lifestyle of substance abuse and like Townshend, this would cause problems for him in the next few years. Regardless of this, Pete continued working on songs for The Who and for their next album. During their off year in 1974, The Who released Odds and Sods , another singles and album cuts collection spanning The Who's career to that point. The band goes back to the basics on The Who by the Numbers , released 1975. The complex arrangements of the last album were replaced by basically pure rock music. Townshend's lyrics were very emotional and personal. The album and its subsequent tour were both hits, but it did not stand up the level of their past four releases. The record's strongest tracks were Slip Kid and Squeeze Box , with a number of other expressive songs like They Are All in Love and How Many Friends . After the tour, The Who was exhausted and artistically worn-out and agreed to take an extended break. Very little would be heard from the band until they came back together in 1978 to work on their new album. The resulting record would be Who Are You , which was a relatively big success. However, the album is plagued with problems and inconsistencies. Alcoholism and substance abuse were taking their tolls on Townshend and Moon, and although their instrumental ability is still intact, there is the sense that the group is starting to fade. Moon especially during this time was very flakey. It was questionable whether he would turn up for sessions or not. Sometimes he would even forget parts of his drumming and have to relearn things in the studio. The album relied heavily on synthesizers and complex arrangements, and in some cases these are certainly overdone. The title track is the album's biggest accomplishment. The commercial success of the record may have triggered The Who's comeback, but it was not to be. On September 7, 1978, Keith Moon overdosed on a drug that was helping him get away from his alcoholism, and died. Losing a band member like Keith Moon almost immediately implies that the band would not continue. Moon was a defining aspect of The Who for nearly 14 years, and he was certainly not replaceable. Almost no drummers could bring to a band what he brought to The Who. However, the surviving members elected to continue playing. Later they would all agree that The Who in fact did end with Keith Moon's death. Kenney Jones, formerly of the Small Faces, was hired as Moon's replacement. Keyboardist John Bundrick was also added to the group, and they began working on new material and set up for a tour. They gained momentum through the release of The Kids Are Alright, a collection of video footage of the group's entire career. But their momentum and goodwill was crushed when they were informed about the deaths of 11 people after being trampled in a Cincinnati accident. Townshend fell deep into drug use now, and had an almost fatal encounter with heroin in 1981. Daltrey and Entwistle worked on their solo careers, but met limited success. The band reformed to release Face Dances (1981) and It's Hard (1982). Though with some standout material (namely Eminence Front ), the albums pale in comparison to The Who of ten years ago. Their 1982 Tour was supposedly a goodbye to fans, as they were basically packing it in. The remainder of the 80's saw numerous Who collections emerge, and finally in 1991 the band brought together a successful 4-disc box set. The three core members continued their solo careers, and have reunited a few times in the 90's for brief tours and various benefits. When it looked as though the group was gaining steam, John Entwistle died in June of 2002. The Who's lasting legacy to rock music is one of the greatest ever left. They did what no band had done and very few have done. Between the early mod Who, the guitar-smashing mid 60's Who, the concept/thematic album Who, and the unyielding arena-rock Who, few bands have changed as much as they did and covered so much area in music. Their legendary live show is still though off as one of the best rock has ever seen. With the super talented musicians they had, it is no wonder that The Who were able to produce so much good music and influence so many bands and artists of their time, and even now. Their music will indeed live on forever.

Human behavior theories Essay

Working as a community facilitator is all about empowering and facilitating change within individuals and communities. As their practice facilitators need to identify any challenges and work with the communities to look at ways of solving these problems together. This then requires first for the facilitator to find out why these challenges or problems come about in the first place. Theories are designed to understand human development, identity and approaches to practice. They help turn complicated human, behavioural and social singularities into ideas that are more accessible. It can be said then that theories provide a basis for understanding and reflecting on what we do which then helps us help communities on a micro, mezzo and macro levels. This essay will look at two of the human behaviour theories and how they help us understand and work with our communities (that we as facilitators serve) better. 2. DEFINITION OF TERMS 2. 1. Theory According to (Body, 2014) â€Å"A theory is a logical system of concepts that helps to explain why something happens in a particular way and to predict outcomes†. This means that by preparing their practice on theory, this leads a facilitator to get a better understanding of his/her own task, do some goal planning and also anticipate whatever outcomes there may be. 2. 2. Community Communities are unique with regard to the people in them, place, interaction meaning. According to (Heaven, 2014) â€Å"While we traditionally think of a community as the people in a given geographical location, the word can really refer to any group sharing something in common†. This could also mean any small geographical areas from e. g. a neighbourhood, housing project or development to any community with a large geographically-defined community. 3. HUMAN BEHAVIOR THEORIESÃ'Ž 3. 1. Social Construction Social construction is influential in changing grounded theory. As a way of trying to understand the social world, social construction views knowledge as being 2 constructed (as the name suggests) instead of being created. In this theory communities are seen as alternating between both subjective and objective reality. Past theorists believed that knowledge is beliefs in which people have rational confidence, a common sense of understanding and consensual notion as to what is knowledge. Social construction came about as a way to deal with the nature of reality. It has its origins in sociology and has been linked with the modern era of qualitative research. Reality is it may be something that we are not even aware of. Things like segregation according to what gender, race and class you are a just basic examples of social construction. These things only have meaning because society gives them meaning. According to Tom Andrews (2014) â€Å"Constructionists view knowledge and truth as created not discovered by the mind and supports the view that being a realist is not inconsistent with being a constructionist†. A person can believe that concepts are constructed other than being discovered yet relate to something in the real world. This is consistent with an idea that was put out that reality is socially defined but this one referred to the subjective experience of everyday life as opposed to the objective reality of the natural world. As Steedman (2000) said, â€Å"most of what is known and most of the knowing that is done is concerned with trying to make sense of what it is to be human, as opposed to scientific knowledge†. Individuals or communities decide or rather create this reality one may then ask how this reality or knowledge emerges or how it comes to have significance for society to which social constructionists may answer as they view knowledge as being created by the interactions of individuals within society which is at the centre of social construction as a theory. Andrews (2014) believes that subjective reality is brought about by the interaction of people with their social world and with this social world influencing them it results to routines and habits. That is to say that any regularly repeated action becomes a pattern which at some point can be done without much effort needed. With time this forms a sort of store of knowledge which is passed on to future generations which is then subjective reality. 3 Society gives you and identity from birth. Our identities as people come not from the inside but from the social sphere. Conversation is the main way of maintaining, modifying and reconstructing subjective reality. It compromises notions that are shared unproblematically between the communities so much so that these notions need not be defined each time they are used in conversation and come to assume reality. 3. 2. Examples of Social Construction The most common of all social constructions is that of men and women. Men are required (by society) to have qualities such as control, efficiency, toughness and coolness under emotional distress whilst women on the other hand are said to be the fragile amongst the two with qualities such as inefficiency, emotional expressiveness, caring and mutuality. This is what society has deemed as normal over the years which is what gives the battle of Patriarchy versus Matriarchy in this modern generation. Women today believe that they are more than able to do whatever the â€Å"men† can do and sometimes do it even better. It is clear though that in society’s opinion of gender that men should hold all the power. Laura Flores (2012) is quoted as saying â€Å"Power looks sexy on men, not on women†. But this could be seen as having a double meaning. Other than the obvious meaning we get, it could also mean that women are seen as unable to learn the skills or unable to do whatever a man can do as well. Feminists have been fighting hard battles in order to change this thinking and they have succeeded in changing some people’s minds but the in the traditional societies, mostly in the rural areas this social construction of men and women is still very much evident. Men still go out to provide for the family while the women is expected to stay behind and take care of the children and the home. One other example one could use is that of the social construction of gender. This is slightly different from the previous example used. When a baby is brought into the world the first thing that the doctor will look at is the baby’s sexual category (whether they are male or female) and this is where this social construction begins. Immediately after they are classified as boy or girl the parents then fall into this shared mechanism by dressing them in colours that are â€Å"appropriate† for their gender. Flores says â€Å"the â€Å"normal† thing to do in this case would be for the 4 baby girl to be dressed in pink and the baby boys to be dressed in blue†. You don’t want to be seen as weird for dressing your baby girl in blue or your baby boy in pink, right? Society has put aside colours as some of the symbols that differentiate between boys and girls. Children will then grow like this and then start to try to be like the people who are the same gender as them, â€Å"girls should start acting like their mommy and boys act like their daddy†. Each one will be expected to dress or act in a certain way (as in the first example) but such things are what leads to stereotypes. 3. 3. Asset Based Community Approach 3. 3. 1. What is Asset Based Community Approach (ABCD)? Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) is an approach for sustainable community development. The basis of ABCD is that it believes that communities can develop themselves by recognizing and using existing but often hidden assets to create economic opportunities. It builds those already existing assets in the community and gets individuals, associations and institutions to band together to build on their assets instead of focusing on their needs. It is a naturally positive approach. A large amount of time is spent in trying to identify the assets within a particular community whether it be from individuals, institutions and associations before they are then organised to build on them to the benefit of the community as a whole. The basic key as mentioned above is to use what is already in the community. The ABC approach aims to change people’s view that their needs can only be met by an outsider (professional). When it comes to working with the community, a facilitator who applies the ABCD approach should be adamant about stepping back and letting the community figure things out for themselves. They enlist the help of associations that are within the community in terms of the community development approach and additional support. However Community driven development is mostly done by outside agencies instead of networks that exist in the community already. 3. 3. 2. Discussion on ABCD ABCD pulls out the strengths and weaknesses within a community’s shared history as a starting point for change. Out of all the assets that a community may 5 have ABCD focuses on the assets that are deep rooted in social relationships and sees them as being both evident in both formal and informal networks and associations. It believes that everyone in the community has something to offer and that no one can be said to unimportant. ABCD view individuals as being as being at the centre of it all. The residents of the community has gifts and skills which they can out on the table. These need to be recognized and noted as in community development you can’t do anything with people’s needs but only their assets. Needs are only valuable to institutions. Institutions are groups of people (usually professionals) who share a common interest out of their own choice. These could be agencies or schools etc. these institutions help the community get resources and that in turn gives them a sense of civic responsibility. In terms of assets one could include physical assets such as land, space, funds etc. as they also could be used. 3. 3. 3. How is it facilitated in communities? As mentioned above ABCD is the development of self-mobilisation for change. This development has been implemented in many communities. The task for any agency that comes into a community such as NGO’s is how to put in place this development in other communities without creating a sense of dependency. There are different methods that are facilitated by NGO’s in communities for ABCD. Methods such as Collecting stories whereby they build confidence, informal discussions and interview that also have the goal of drawing out people’s experiences. Success in this will also enable them to uncover any gifts, skills, talents and assets that people in the community may have. Mapping the capacities and assets of individuals, associations and local institutions. Mapping is more than just gathering data on the community. It is of importance that you let the community and institutions d the mapping for themselves as they build new relationships, learn more about help and talents of other community members and also see any connections between different assets. 6 CONCLUSION Understanding a community is crucial to being able to work in it. Failing to understand it will deny you credibility and make it difficult for you both to connect with community members and to negotiate the twists and turns of starting and implementing a community initiative or intervention. Social constructionism places great emphasis on everyday interactions between people and how they use language to construct their reality. It regards the social practices people engage in as the focus of enquiry. This is very similar to the focus of grounded theory but without the emphasis on language. Social constructionism that views society as existing both as objective and subjective reality is fully compatible with classical grounded theory, unlike constructionist grounded theory which takes a relativist position. The ABCD is a substitute the more known needs-based approach. Instead of focusing on what the communities do not have, ABCD looks at what they have to offer. It not only creates a chance for the community to play a part in but they also lead the community planning process. The ABCD is always successful in getting individual participation in the projects in brings to their communities. 7 REFERENCE LIST Andrews, T (2012). What is social constructionism? [ONLINE] Available at: http://groundedtheoryreview. com/2012/06/01/what-is-social-constructionism/ . [Last Accessed 26 August 2014]. Body, A. (n. d. ). Theories Used in Social Work Practice. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www. socialworkdegree. net/theories-used-in-social-work-practice/ . [Last Accessed 26 August 2014]. Cunningham, G and Mathie, A. (2002). Asset Based Community Development- An Overview. [ONLINE]. Available at: http://www. synergos.org/knowledge/o2/abcdoverview. htm . [Last Accessed 26 August 2014]. Flores, L (2012). What is social construction? [ONLINE] Available at: http://oakes. ucsc. edu/academics/Core %20Course/oakes-core-awards-2012/laura-flores. html . [Last Accessed 26 August 2014]. Hampton, C and Heaven C (n. d. ). Section 2. Understanding and Describing the Community. [ONLINE] Available at: http://ctb. ku. edu/en/table-of-contents/assessment/assessing-community-needs-a nd-resources/describe-the-community/main . [Last Accessed 26 August 2014]. Simmons staff. (n. d. ). Theories Used in Social Work Practice. [ONLINE] Available at: http://socialwork.simmons. edu/theories-used-social-work-practice/ . [Last Accessed 26 August 2014]. Steedman, P. (2000). On the relations between seeing, interpreting and knowing. London: Sage. Suttles G, D. (1972). The social construction of communities. 1st ed. Illinois: University of Chicago Press. Vance S. C. (1989). Social construction theory: problems in the history of sexuality. 1st ed. Amsterdam: An Dekker. 8 Varien M, D Potter, M. J, (2008). The Social Construction of Communities: Agency, Structure, and Identity in the Prehispanic Southwest (Archaeology in Society). 1st Ed. New York: Rowman and Littlefield publishers.

Look for the fax that im sending you Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Look for the fax that im sending you - Essay Example The firm seeks to thrive through employment of friendlier and skilled staff, which in combination with great prices, is set to propel the repeat business that will be reliable. The firm expects that as the price of medication continues to rise, Inter-Global Medicare will be increasingly be appealing to the clientele’s sense of value, affordability, and convenience. Inter-global Medicare Entrepreneurs has come on board with the best prescription medication that seeks to fill the therapeutic gap that many scientific attempts have failed to break. Antiobesity Treatment, which this firm has developed, is called surgical sympathectomy. This entails administration of tables and a theatre surgical operation that is aimed at removing some of the excess fats from the body. After that, the patient is taken through a physical exercise session for at least two months and utmost five months within the supervision of the experts and within the facility. The degree of efficacy of this prescr iption will be based on the extent of weight loss. Considering the other past and even the present alternative prescriptions to the Inter-Global's drug, it emerges the best in terms of side effects with little body immunity destabilization and physical wellbeing. Objectives The objectives of Inter-Global Medicare entrepreneurs for its first four years in the market include; i. Deliver beyond the customers’ expectations with superior pricing ii. Increase the market size by more than 35% per year iii. Develop a steady business that survives off its own cash flow. Mission The mission statement of Inter-global Medicare is to provide clients with the best prices for their prescription medications. Our convenience and services will exceed the expectations of the customers. Keys to Success The fundamental keys to success by this firm will include; Satisfaction of the customers so that they are always motivated to come again. To ensure that the overhead costs as well as operating cos ts are maintained as low as possible. To provide effective prices that will be affordable to the customers and a cost-sales competitive tool against the other players in the industry. Company Summary Inter-Global Medicare entrepreneurs is located in Upper-Hill commercial center and offers prescription medications at discount prices to customers by mail order or at the store front. Company Ownership Inter-Global Medicare entrepreneurs are private limited liability corporation. It is registered with the national companies’ registrar under the company’s registration act. Products The Inter-Global Medicare Entrepreneurs offers a wide range of prescription drugs to patients based within Upper hill and nationally. Both generics and name brands will be on offer. In order for clients to purchase medications through mail order, they must first contact The Inter-global Medicare Entrepreneurs over the phone. The customer then needs to mail in the prescription, fax it, or email it . Once it is received and payment arrangements are complete, the prescription will be sent out to the customer via the delivery department. Local customers may stop by the store front to pick up the medications. In conducting any form of business, the concern should be over the welfare of the customers. The pharmaceutical industry is particularly delicate too given the implication of wrongful administration of drugs on patients. Based on this, the firm would do everything to ensure the safety

Brazil and production of superstars Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Brazil and production of superstars - Essay Example Many of these players including Ronaldoinho displayed their passion for soccer by playing on the streets of Brazil. Because of rough conditions and cramped places, they had to find different ways to improvise and in the process learned some of the best maneuvers. In the game of soccer as in any other sport, playing in restricted space means you need to improve your game by setting various targets. This is the only way one can develop his skills with limited resources. all Brazilians players display this kind of skill. You look at them and you know they have such close control of the ball. But there are some external factors as well. Soccer is the national sport of Brazil and thus young Brazilians take up soccer very early. Their concentration on promotion of soccer is almost natural since high percentage of youth goes for soccer than any other sport. Apart from that weather also plays an important role. Unlike Europeans, who may find weather a problem now and then, Brazilians can practice throughout the year because of their ideal climate and this gives them more chances to develop their skills. Brazil may be a poor country but it runs its sports business in highly professional manner. In early 1900s, soccer was an amateur game but it turned professional when passion for the game grew. Many clubs emerged that later formed their leagues.

Origin and the Possible Effects in Health and Disease Term Paper

Origin and the Possible Effects in Health and Disease - Term Paper Example As the paper stresses scientific research shows that some bacteria existing in maternal guts could also be transferred to the breast milk in the latter periods of pregnancy in mothers and during lactation. This is through a process characterized by gut monocytes. It is consequently important to consider that during the latter stages of pregnancy or in the course lactation period, the alteration of the maternal microbiota system could be very significant in an infant’s health. Mammary dysbacteriosis, a condition of microbial imbalance, could lead to inflammation of the breast, hence causing mastitis. Such a condition could prompt for unanticipated weaning.This research paper highlights that  a significant amount of bacterial phylotypes usually found on human skin have also been shown to exist in breast milk. These include Propionibacteria and certain phylotypes of Corynebacteria. Consequently, the probability that the composition of breast milk microbiota could also be a fact or for the interactions with the maternal skin. Studies, however, have shown a difference in the genotypic variations between isolated lactobacilli present in the skin to that in the breast milk. The discovery has therefore led to the assertions of the unlikeliness of the speculation. It has however been shown that there exists a possibility that through the endogenous pathway, bacteria could reach the mammary glands from the maternal gut.

Why America should still be on guard against Terrorist Essay

Why America should still be on guard against Terrorist - Essay Example Nevertheless, its attempts to control others, is loathed. Since the 9/11 radical attacks, the war and America’s move changed to mean rather different for the U.S. men in service, which has used up the last decade combating all kinds of unconventional enemies who use guerilla warfare and are more ephemeral than ever. The presidents Bush and Obama have employed new setting to sanction military action in regions most Americans know little of like Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, and Yemen. The intimidations facing the United States are so immense and ever shifting, they entail diverse responses of force and not essentially the endorsement of assembly. The country should still be in the guard for terrorist attacks since the concepts of terrorism are changing daily. The kind of terrorism in the globe today is constantly changing in terms of the strategies that make it more complicated and harder to track. The acts of terrorism are constantly aimed at the public in terms of maiming and cau sing fear to spread across the nations. US has always made it clear that these attacks are not going without response judging by the advances the country has made to counter al kinds of terrorism. The threats on terrorism are changing from the 9/11 kind to more diverse types of terrorism. The fight against terrorism in the country is more evident in the sense that more radical are coming up with better ways to do their bidding. The advance in the technology had made it easier for them to articulate their terrorist acts on the country. The evolution of the terrorists attacks has changed from the normal forms into maritime, cyber, and even the economic biological and outer space terrorism. The initial official response picked up in America after the bombardments in Boston are heartening. President Barack took pains to continue being calm, contravening with the appalling conventions of the Bush management to guarantee reprisal while arousing the rule of law. Obama knows that the United States needs no new terrorist laws, no new regime agencies, no increase of police and intelligence operations and, the majority of all, no more provocative speeches. The staged search for the two bombing suspects was incontrovertibly a manhunt, and the social networks, particularly Twitter, were filled with false allegations and unbearable invective. However, none of this transforms the feature of Obama's actions, whose speech was patriotic in an optimistic intellect, relaxed and packed with assurance in the president's own, usually legitimized general power. This was in line with the act of Queen Elizabeth II who as a role model managed to set a comparable tone after the London attacks in 2005 (Bruce 4). She gave her subjects of her condolences and showed her sadness and compassion for the fatalities, she thanked the crisis services and the population of London, and then she said, shortly and in brief, that those who perpetrate these atrocious acts against blameless people should know that they do not change the lives of the people they hurt. This is what the voice of development sounds like, and it cannot be permissible to fall silent simply because a few cave inhabitants are continually feeling marginalized. At present and in the future, people should always recap the judgment of the Queen's and Obama's calm words each time terror occurs once again. In fact, the message to such killers ought to always be the same they will never change the lives of the ones they hurt. They can propel bombs, but the culture, the values, and the maimed society grow mightier than the desire to annihilate them. These varied attacks are some of the reasons that

Mechanical Engineering Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Mechanical Engineering - Essay Example The engineering discipline possesses characteristics such as flexibility, individuality, and breadth. In terms of career paths, the individuals determine which category of mechanical engineering they are to deal with or engage in. This is as a result of its breadth and wide boundaries. This is especially advantageous to the current changing society therefore one can satisfactorily decide which career path to follow and not moving out of the core career. Mechanical engineering is found on the basis of mathematics, design, mechanics, heat and energy, engineering sciences and manufacturing. The mechanics discipline of mechanical engineering includes fluids which may range from water to hypersonic gases and motion of particles. Engineers in this field are involved in research, manufacture, development, design and testing of machines, engines and other mechanical devices. They usually work on various devices in particular power producing devices like internal combustion engines, gas turbines, steam turbines, and electric generators. This is just but to mention a few. They are also involved in power consumption machines like air conditioning and refrigeration, material handling systems, escalators, robots to be used in the manufacturing industry, elevators and industrial production equipment. This field of engineering requires core skills and expertise in structural analysis, kinematics, thermodynamics, material science and mechanics. It is through the use of these core concepts that the mechanical engineers are able to achieve their objectives in work. The engineers use various tools like product life cycle management and computer aided tools for the design and analysis work of the heating and cooling systems, motor vehicles, robotics and medical among others. This engineering discipline emerged during the European industrial revolution in the 19th century however its development can be

Subject matter must be directly related to the financial issues Essay

Subject matter must be directly related to the financial issues covered in the course.the sourse of your analysis should be from - Essay Example However before one chooses a particular fund source he/she needs to consider a number of factors with the first one being the risks associated with fund source. The organization in need of finance should also evaluate the kind of relationship they are likely to engage with the potential funder and most importantly, the costs associated with the financing requirements. The cost of fund source is an important consideration for an organization when in need of raising additional funds. The cost of capital, which is the cost of funds to be used for financing an operation undertaken by the organization can be understood from three main perspectives namely investor, company and mode of financing. From an investor point of view, cost of capital refers to the opportunity cost of choosing a particular investment over others. Most investors with a diversified portfolio often have a wide array of investment opportunities where they can invest their money but they often opt for a specific investm ent. Pratt and Grabowski (2010) assert that the decision to invest in a specific investment often made based on the rate of return earned over that specific investment compared to others. ... The rates of return from ABC inform of bond interest and UVW which is inform of divided will play a critical role in informing the investors decision to make investment especially if they are of similar risk considering that each comes with its own opportunity cost. In other words, cost of capital is comparable to the internal Rate of return (IRR) which measures the desirability of a wide range of projects. From a company perspective, cost of capital refers to the measurable cost of acquiring funds from a particular source in order to finance a particular project. For instance, company that uses loan from a bank to finance its projects, its cost of capital will be the money needed to compensate the bank inform of loan interest. Armitage (2005) elucidate that cost of capital is a crucial benchmark for making financial decisions relating to investments in a new project by companies. This is because it forms the minimum amount of return that the owner of funds will require before issuin g funds to the company inform of capital. In other words, the company must be able to pay the cost associated with a particular fund source before acquiring funds. This means that the returns from the project to be financed must be higher than the average cost of obtaining the capital to finance it. Companies are known for borrowing money to finance different projects such as expansion programs, product development, and purchase assets and they often cost of acquiring funds as their basis for project evaluation as projects with low returns and high cost of finance cannot be financed (Lumby & Jones, 2003). For instance an organization that

The U.S. Airline Industry Essay Example for Free

The U.S. Airline Industry Essay The U.S. airline industry provides a unique service to its customers. It transports people and goods with efficiency and convenience which is not achieved by any other service. The purpose of this article is to collect data on the U.S. airline industry and analyze the state of the industry today. Data came from sources such as the Federal Aviation Administration, scholarly articles, and websites such as dallas.culturemap.com and airwise.com. Tools used to analyze the data include P. E.S.T., and Porter’s five forces. The analysis also focuses on the industries’ drivers of change and its key survival factors. Key Survival Factors Include Locations that an airline services – The servicing of particular markets is essential in the nature of the airline industry. Airlines need to offer routes between markets that are desired by customers. Cost structure of an airline’s operations – The costs of operations for an airline are a limit to how low airfares can be. Costs include maintenance, fuel, labor, fees and lease payments for operating in airports. Those airlines that are able to control costs can attract customers with lower fares and can improve overall profitability. (Site this web article here http://dallas.culturemap.com/news/travel/05-19-14-southwest-airlines-virgin-america-new-low-fares/) An airlines’ workforce and its interaction with customers – A Pleasant workforce can encourage repeat business. An unhappy workforce can drive customers away to rivals. Reliability of Service – An airline with a reputation for reliable service has a positive image among customers, which can lead to repeat business. Issues with reliability include mishandled baggage, the on-time arrival of flights, overbooking flights, and passenger complaints. Those airlines that are able to control these elements provide better service to the customer. Drivers of Industry Change Consolidations and Alliances – Many airlines operating in the U.S. have recently consolidated due to high competition and improper cost structures. These newly consolidated firms are also establishing alliances with international carriers which enable them to expand their market participation strategies. Globalization – Growth potential in the global  travel market has led to a drive for globalization in the airline industry. U.S. airlines are lobbying for â€Å"open skies† treaties between the U.S. and other nations. The U.S has signed more than 60 open skies treaties with nations around the globe. Low-cost Competition – The rise of the low-cost carriers has forced a change in the competitive environment of the airline industry. Southwest, JetBlue, People Express and Airtran operate off of low-cost strategies that allow them to offer lower airfares. These low fares put pressure on the industry and force rivals to lower their costs to stay competitive. (http://www.nbcnews.com/business/travel/new-low-cost-airline-peoplexpress-tickets-go-sale-n122971) (P.E.S.T.) Political, Economic, Social, and Technological forces that impact the industry. Political Security Regulations from FAA War on Terrorism led to stricter guidelines Customer Protection Regulations – must show fees (http://www.npr.org/2014/05/31/317429334/regulators-and-airlines-fight-over-fares-fees-and-fairness) Economic High operating costs Airlines merging Fuel Costs are huge Less people traveling due to expense Very high fixed cost Impact of holiday travel Cancellation fees/checked bag cost Social Security – Is it safe to fly? Crashes/failure Customer service (friendliness, flight attendant/pilot being funny) Technological Business changes (using Skype instead of traveling) Buying tickets online/cancel online Porter’s Five Forces Model is one way to analyze the environment in which airline companies operate. This model shows the major forces that form the industry: threat of new entrants, bargaining power of buyers, threat of substitutes, bargaining power of suppliers, and competitors. Threat of new entrants is relatively high in the airline industry. It seems like it would be hard to enter the airline industry due to the large amount of fixed costs however lending has made it not only possible but fairly simple. New entrants will have to endure years of little or no profit until a strong customer base is established though. Meanwhile existing companies will be able to lower prices and take losses against their capital reserves just to drive a new competitor out of business. Further, consumers prefer well-known brands mainly due to safety concerns. Lastly, stringent licensing requirements and heavy regulations by organizations such as the Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Transportation require significant knowledge base and time investment on the part of the new entrant. Bargaining power of buyers is also relatively low in the airline industry. Two main groups of buyers exist: individual buyers purchasing tickets for personal or business travel, and travel agencies and/or online portals that work as a â€Å"middle man† between the airline companies and individual buyers. There is definitively a large amount of buyers compared to the number of airlines; therefore, loss of one customer does not strongly affect the bottom line of a given airline. Typically, each airline has a niche. Some airlines focus on cost, while others focus on having the best amenities, etc. Although switching costs are low for buyers, they tend to remain within a niche and purchase tickets based on their price vs. amenities preferences. Threat of substitutes is medium in the airline industry. Consumers can choose other forms of transportation such as a car, bus, train, or boat to get to their destination. However, there is a cost to this switch, mainly time. For long distance travel, airlines usually exceed all other forms of transportation when it comes to cost and convenience. Nevertheless, there is one important development that should be noted – technological advances are allowing business people to telecommute, this significantly cuts down on required business travel. Bargaining power of the suppliers presents a medium threat in the airline industry. Major suppliers include the airplane manufacturers, aircraft leasing companies,  fuel companies and labor unions. Although airline companies cannot easily switch suppliers, most firms have long term contracts with their suppliers. On the other hand, there are very few suppliers in the airline industry because of the amount of money and expertise required. Airlines represent the main source of income for these suppliers so airline’s business is extremely important to them. Rivalry among existing players is very strong in the airline industry. The first reason is the fact that the airline industry is currently stagnant; the number of competitors remains more or less the same and the industry does not have overcapacity. The fixed costs are extremely high and it is hard for an airline firm to leave the industry because of the long term debt obligations. The rivalry is reduced by the brand identities of different airlines. Some are known for exceptional amenities, others for low prices. The market seems to be equally divided as each company maintains its own niche in the market. Highly competitive industries such as the airline industry typically see low rates of return due to the fact that they competition drives down prices. Couple this with the high amount of government regulation in the airline industry and the investor may be weary of investing in the industry. However, the next five years look promising for the U.S. airline industry due to the fact that many of the participant firms will be newly consolidated and have influence in markets outside of the U.S. as well as those inside.

Trends In Organizational Behavior Essay Example for Free

Trends In Organizational Behavior Essay Business ethics embodies a particular manner of how ethics influences decision-making. It normally affects a company’s management by virtue of ethical expectations, both inside and outside the company. Management decisions are also constrained by the awareness of ramifications that result from a lack of ethics (Boyd, 2004, p. 35). This is the primary reason that most companies have adopted or established internal ethics codes for the compliance of all employees. The manager of today is challenged to meld the demands of the organization and the needs of the individual worker into a functioning whole. Education in today’s work environment will be successful if we formulate activities that are engaging as much as they are educational, and if we adapt to new technologies that will help complement classroom interaction. Drive and resilience are especially important when someone sets out to do something no one else has done or when that person faces setbacks and failures. Ethics in the workplace can involve people who negotiate and face situations in their work or dealings with other people in which ethical dilemmas arise. The individuals in these cases are faced with ethical questions in their relations with customers, employees, and members of a larger society. More often than not, the answers to these questions are difficult because it involves weighing of values. Conflicting values in a given situation are not capable of compromise. One has to choose one over another. Sometimes, the ethically correct course of action is clear, and hopefully individuals act accordingly. But the answers are often not simple. The dilemma is most commonly presented when ethical concerns come into conflict with the practical demands of business. This ties up with learning, just as importantly since this involves self-examination from the employees and up the organizational chart, seeking for strengths and maximizing it, zooming on mistakes and inefficiencies and eliminating or minimizing them, and after every step of improvement, includes patting everyone involved at the back and rewarding them for a job well done. If the managers knew what makes their employees unsatisfied and unhappy, they can offer more to the existing and incoming batches of employees. Again, as stated early on in the paper, it all boils down to responsibility. As Kimmel mentions, â€Å"Being responsible for a â€Å"piece of work† requires an employee to have a strong sense of self-direction and work. It needs a willingness to take personal responsibility for getting a piece of work done† (Kale, 1996). But for the true self-directed employee, this can be pure bliss. Responsibility is the key word here for these individuals, whether male or female, are also good team members. Technostress is a new term coming up these days in reaction to technology and how or lives are changing due to its influence. For several years now, as technology has become an increasingly prevalent part of our lives, technostress impacts people’s lives, their family and their work environment. Because technology lets us do so much, today we take on too much and end up feeling overwhelmed and never finished. We feel invaded by technology on all fronts, ringing of cell phones, incoming faxes and those of others around us. We tote our laptops on vacation and bosses expect employees to be connected to them as often as possible. Thus, personal and work boundaries are blurred. With technology, we have come to embraced all the concomitant stresses that go with it. (Mueller 2001) maintains that workplace stress has increased as technological advances have increased. He reveals that workers are now allowing workplace stress to invade their personal lives. As an example, he further opines that the working women in the UK think that the new technology makes their lives even more hectic. The advent of mobile phones and email have left women feeling under greater pressure to juggle work and home commitments, leaving less time for themselves. As a result, a growing number of career women are suffering from what has been dubbed frantic life syndrome. From the viewpoint of managers, technology is attributed to the profits gained. Thus, when these dont happen, the easy way out is to claim that it is the workers fault. That technology investments do not reliably produce benefits is well established, as is the interpretation that the problem lies in management and computer industry strategies rather than the workers utilization One needs to know that the productivity paradox or shortfall is a general problem, and not just at the workstation (Mueller, 2001).   In order to avoid this technostress, people need to establish some boundaries between work and home. Technology may allow you to work at home, but this in effect makes it more difficult to get away from work.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The process of learning anything new means that one is open for growth. Growth brings changes. Negotiating is a learning experience and the result, if one really works at it, is growth and change. It is a sense of personal readiness to try something new, to experiment, to take the risk—possibly to get a lot of benefits, possibly to fall on one’s face. Both are realistic possibilities. Yet each time one negotiates successfully, one build confidence to tackle situations that are more important. It may take time before one begins to feel capable of negotiating. But when one finally learns that there is no need to passively accept the things that happen, that can help change conditions and improve situations such that events will seem much less overwhelming.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   REFERENCES Boyd, M. W. (2004). Business Ethics for Unseasoned Entrepreneurs: Trends and concerns for professionals and stakeholders. Proceedings of the Academy of Entrepreneurship, 10(1), 33-36. Kale, S. (1996). How culture, organizational culture and personality impact buyer-seller interactions. In P. N. Ghauri J. -C. Usunier (Eds.), International business negotiation (pp. 21-137). Oxford, U.K.: Pergamon. Mueller, J., (2001) Technology and Stress. Stress News,   July 2002, Vol. 13 (3), International Stress  Management Association. University of Calgary. Alberta, Canada. Retrieved Jan. 8, 2007 at: http://mueller.educ.ucalgary.ca/TS2001/

Reflection Of Communication Skills Relevant To Clinical Scenario

Reflection Of Communication Skills Relevant To Clinical Scenario In 2006, a patient named Robin became pregnant. In the 5th month of pregnancy, the patient began having trouble with diarrhoea and then developed a severe infection in her upper respiratory system. Robins obstetrician immediately hospitalized her and within 24 hours, Robin had a temperature of 105 degrees and was in preterm labour. Just before Christmas, Robin was diagnosed with Acute Viral Pneumonia. After getting permission from the doctor to go home for Christmas, Robin was back at the hospital 15 days later because she was in preterm labour yet again. It was then that Robin was introduced to a gastroenterologist who diagnosed her with Crohns Disease. Robin was immediately put on medications to try to save her and her unborn childs lives. On 3rd February, Robins contractions were five minutes apart but her due date was the 17th of March. Robin came to the hospital and within one hour, I performed an ultrasound only to let her know that her unborn baby boy was no longer alive. Afte r the funeral of her son, Robin was diagnosed with Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) in her inner thigh. Reflection: Interpersonal communication skills Listening is an active and basic process that involves not only taking the content of the person speaking by looking at their body language and listening to their words, but also being perceptive (Boyd, 2007, pp. 654-683). Good listening skills are shown by attending behaviour that is practiced by establishing eye contact, maintain a relaxed posture and sending appropriate messages to the patient through gestures (Timby, 2008, pp. 298-312). Attending behaviour works well in that it encourages the patient to verbalise their feelings and ideas freely (Hart, 2010, pp. 287-299). During listening, the nurse paraphrases the words of the patient in fewer words so as to make sure that the nurse understood what the patient wants. Paraphrasing is an important part of listening because it exposes and clarifies any mixed or double messages sent when the patient fails to make a direct statement (Huber, 2006, pp. 754-783). The third part of listening is clarifying. Clarifying goes beyond paraphras ing with an intention of bringing vague material into sharper focus (Kneedler Dodge, 1994, pp. 258-295). Perception checking is an effective part of ensuring accuracy of a communication because it is a method of giving and receiving feedback from the patient (White, 2004, pp. 634-683). When helping Robin, I can say that I had effective listening skills. I made a point of listening to what Robin told me and I made sure that when she was talking, I made her feel comfortable and showed that I was interested in what she was saying. Leading is a communication skill that encourages the patient to respond in an open communication so as to invite verbal expression (Chitty, 2005, pp. 512-554). The helper slightly anticipates what the patient is thinking and where those thoughts are headed. In anticipating these thoughts, the nurse leads the patient so as to stimulate the communication. Leading encourages the patient to retain primary responsibility for the direction of the communication and helps them to be active in the process (Ray Donohew, 1990, pp. 112-148). Leading also encourages the patient to explore and elaborate on their feelings. One of the tools used in leading is using open questions that can be answered by more than just a yes or a no (Giger Davidhizar, 2004, pp. 212-237). Choosing appropriate questions lead to clarification for the patient (Sully Dallas, 2005, pp. 37-82). Another tool used in leading is by being indirect when leading the patient. Indirect leading keeps the responsibility of keeping the communication going on the patient. Indirect leading allows the patient to control the direction of the communication and protect their ideas (Knapp Daly, 2002, 145-187). Direct leading on the other hand specifies a topic and the nurse uses suggestions to direct the patient. Direct leading is important in elaborating, clarifying and illustrating what the patient has been saying (Miller, 2008, pp. 284-325). In the case of a patient who has multiple problems or is vague, focussing is an important aspect that should be used in leading the communication (Marrelli Hilliard, 2004, pp. 213-263). Focussing is a way that emphasizes on a certain idea or feeling and helps the patient get in touch with their feelings (Williams Davis, 2005, pp. 27-39). I did not use leading skills when communicating with Robin and this is a skill I should in the future. I will enhance my abilities in leading skills by using open questions that will encourage the patients to share their ideas and feelings freely. Reflecting feelings, experience and content of the patient expresses that the nurse understands and wants to perceive the world as the patient does (Chase, 2004, pp. 278-317). Reflecting the patients feelings brings those feelings into clear awareness from the vague expressions that they were (Sheldon, 2009, pp 87-113). Helping the patients to own their feelings is done by identifying both the obvious and subtle feelings that are hidden behind words (Rosdahl Kowalski, 2007, pp. 1563-1612). In reflecting experience, the nurse broadly observes the patients verbalised feelings and their nonverbal feelings (French, 1983, pp. 116-145). Like paraphrasing, reflecting content involved repeating the essential ideas of the patient in fewer and fresher words (Hegner, Acello Caldwell, 2003, pp 744-763). When the patient is having difficulty in expressing an idea, reflecting content helps the nurse to clarify those ideas. During communication, reflecting helps the patient to recognise and expre ss their feelings effectively (Lipe Beasley, 2003, pp. 267-301). In communicating with Robin, I sounded monotonous and insincere when I began my reflection with saying, It seems you were very upset even after yelling for everyone to get out. In saying this I also said words that that Robin was unprepared for because they had too much depth of feeling. In future communication with patients, I should not read more interpretations into the statement than was intended, and I should use less monotonous words that sound sincere. Confronting the patients is intended to help them recognize what is going on or what the nurse infers is going on (Cherry Jacob, 2005, pp. 478-501). A patient may feel threatened and anxious at first when they are confronted. However, the patient is also grateful for the honesty albeit direct expression that shows that the nurse cares (Perry Potter, 2002, pp 1114-1163). Confronting the patient presents feedback that is difficult to hear, and as such, the nurse should poses good timing to ensure that the patient is ready for honest feedback (Fitzpatrick Wallace, 2005, pp. 341-367). Sometimes I find it hard to confront patients. In Robins case, I was finding it hard to understand and deal with her. I know that confronting the patient is one of the crucial skills that I must poses. I must recognize my feelings as the nurse and share those feelings with the patient. I must be able to involve myself in self-reflection as a form of confrontation. I believe that by practicing, training a nd observing others, I can develop my confronting skills. Using interpretation helps the patient to see their problems in new ways (Barnum Kerfoot, 1995, pp. 256-298). Unlike paraphrasing where the patients frame of reference is maintained, in interpreting, the nurse offers the patient a new frame of reference. The nurse adds his or her own meaning to the patients basic meaning (Ellis Hartley, 2004, pp. 114-146). When the nurse adds on to the basic message from the patient, and the patient understands the new idea, then communication is accelerated. Interpreting is useful in helping the patient get a broader perception their feelings (Ferrell Coyle, 2006, pp. 542-568). Interpretation is a communication skill that I used with Robin. While talking to Robin, she mentioned that she felt that the nurses around her were angels who lit her fire up in a time when she needed much encouragement. I told Robin that the way I saw it, she could join also become a nurse. Due to the Crohns disease, Robin could only live a stress-free life. However, afte r living the hospital, the first thing that Robin did was to go to Upper Valley Joint Vocational School where she applied for pre-requisite classes in the Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs) program. Robin graduated in November 2009 and has been working in the nursing profession since then. The most important thing that a nurse can do for the patient is sharing simple facts (Crisp Taylor, 2008, pp. 1112-1196). Informing is a communication skill that is integrated with giving advice (Maurer Smith, 2005, pp. 360-378). Under some circumstances, where advice giving does not foster dependency and is not arrogant, giving advice can be helpful to the patient. Communication through informing gives the patient a recommended course of action that the nurse has experience with. Through giving suggestions, the patient can decide the course of action that he or she will take (McConnell, 1993, pp. 96-118). Crisis situations where the patient has to adjust to a readjustment in life are an appropriate situation for giving the patient advice. In Robins case, after she had a stillbirth, I advised her to take her time with her son, Benjamin. I encouraged Robin to spend as much time as she wanted holding the five pound fifteen ounce baby boy. As much as Robin did not want to, I took pict ures of robin and Benjamin for the memory album. I knew that that was the best albeit hardest thing robin had ever done. Summarising skills involve paying attention to what, how, why, when and the effect of what the patient said (Antai-Otong, 2007, pp. 116-128). After communicating with a patient, the nurse should try to gather all the ideas and feeling expressed in one statement (Sines, Appleby Frost, 2005, pp. 273-312). Summarising is important in that it gives the patient awareness of progress in exploring ides and feelings, problem solving and learning (Clark, 2009, pp. 45-96). In summarising, the communication ends in a natural note that clears a way for new ideas and clarifies scattered ideas (Quinn, 1989, pp. 324-364). Patients also gain confidence in that the nurse was attentive to them throughout the conversation. The nurse can use summarising as a means to check the accuracy of the ideas and feelings that were communicated by the patient. When communicating with Robin, I did not use summarising skills. In future communications, I should use the ideas from the patients to make a summary of th e statements made. Instead of making the summary myself, I could ask the patient to summarize the themes, agreements and plans made during the communication. Enablers and impediments to interpersonal communication While communicating with Robin, the physical environment did not pose as an obstacle. However, my discomfort as a nurse was an obstacle when communicating with Robin. This discomfort originated from death and dying in general terms. I dealt with this discomfort by thinking that it was not my responsibility to communicate with Robin about hospice care and prognosis. My desire to maintain positive thoughts in Robin and her parents was also an obstacle. I would put off discussions about Robins possibility of a stillbirth until I felt that Robin and her parents could handle that conversation. In the future, I will initiate communication on prognosis and hospice care without thinking it is too much trouble. I will also control fear that emerges after telling the patient bad news. The patient can also be an obstacle to effective communication when he or she is unwilling to accept prognosis or hospice care (Mauk, 2009, pp. 374-412). This unwillingness that was evident in Robins case is ascr ibed to her non-acceptance of her sons death and her diagnosis with Crohns disease. In helping with Robins acceptance, I encouraged her by letting her know that I would be there to help her and listened to her. Because this worked well, I will continue being an encouraging factor for future patients. Cultural and social issues did not act as an obstacle while I was communicating with Robin. During Christmas, Robin when home to celebrate the holiday with her family, and when she was admitted back a few days later, I gave Robin a Christmas present that facilitated communication. Conclusion and recommendation Nurses play an important role in communicating with patients because they are always in close contact. A nurse-patient relationship is improved by communication and as such, having effective communication skills is an important factor and a priority for every nurse (Daniels, 2004, pp. 1312-1325). I must develop my skills further in leading, confronting and summarising by participating in training activities. By participating in learning activities, I can develop strategies and acquire new skills as well as effectively employ those skills. Another strategy I will use is practicing key skills with actors and simulated patients because I will be able to control the nature and complexity of the task. Lastly, I must use the communication skills acquired in practice.

Touch: The Foundation of Infant Growth and Bonding Essay examples -- P

Touch: The Foundation of Infant Growth and Bonding A premature infant is defined by Whaley & Wong’s Nursing Care of Infants and Children as "any infant born before completion of 37 weeks of gestation, regardless of birth weight." (Wong, p. 1999, p.392) Many premature infants are also considered high risk neonates because the major activities of life, including thermoregulation, respiration and digestion, cannot fully function at their time of birth. This poses a problem for both the health professionals and the parents of the infant. The health professionals must closely monitor this vulnerable infant and, in most situations, assist the infant in thermoregulation, respiration, and feeding while the cautious, nervous parents look on, concerned about their child’s progress. The parent or parents often feel removed from their child’s care as another adult cares for their child’s every need. Infant stimulation can be as subtle and slight as touch of the infant’s arm or as much as skin to skin contact th rough holding. Touch actively involves the parents in the their child’s care and has proven to be beneficial for improving the vulnerable, tiny infant’s condition. Parents, as well as medical professionals, should be encouraged to touch these vulnerable tiny infants as much as, if not more than, they would touch a full term infant. Despite their low birth weight, tiny size and vulnerable condition, these infants should be held, caressed and cuddled with as often as possible. The experience of birth for a mother of a premature infant varies drastically from the birth of a normal full term infant because of the lack of infant stimulation or even sight of her newly born child. Peggy, a mother of newly born premature infant states "... ...tion and interaction, medical professionals need to calm the parents and encourage interaction with their child. What better way is there for interaction than touch? References Manginello M.D., Frank P., & Foy DiGeronimo M.D., Theresa. (1991). Your Premature Baby New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Gorski M.D., Peter, & Huntington Ph.D., Lee & Lewkowicz Ph.D., David J. (1987). Handling Preterm Infants in Hospitals: Stimulating Controversy about Timing Stimulation. In Infant Stimulation For Whom, What Kind, When and How Much? (pp. 43-51) (no place of publication): Johnson & Johnson Baby Products. Co. Wong, Donna L. (1999). Whaley and Wong’s Nursing Care of Infants and Children. St. Louis: Mosby, Inc. Ludington-Hoe Ph.D., Susan M., & Golant, Susan K. (1993). Kangaroo Care: The Best You Can Do to Help Your Preterm Infant. New York: Bantam Books, Inc.

My Watch :: Descriptive Watch Essays, Observation

My Watch My article of clothing is with me at all times. It consists of a 3cm circular base and two separate straps, each 6cm long connected by a metal clasp. These two straps and a clasp are then connected to the top and bottom of the base. The straps are outlined in hard rigid silver, looking as my uncle's smoothly brushed gray hair. Through the center of the 2cm wide straps is a 1cm in width gold strip. The gold looks as bright as a gold chalice from my local church. The clasp is a hard silvery gray such as that which borders the straps. The letters 'SEIKO' are clearly placed on the clasp in raised lettering. The clasp looks 3cm long when in the closed position, but when opened it extends to 11cm as two more 4cm metal pieces open outward. The face of the object is encircled with a gold color, gold as the trim on my father's Cadillac. Inside the gold trim, the background is a black color. The black is like the black rubber on my car's Cooper tires. Towards the top of this face, there is a number 12, the bottom has a number 6, and the leftmost number has a number 9. Each of these numbers are raised in lettering in a gold color. On the rightmost side, there is a 1/2cm x 1/5cm sized box. This box is then further separated in two parts. 2/3s of the box is devoted towards showing the current day's first 3 letters, now showing a THU for Thursday. The remaining space of the box is set aside for the date of the month. In this box the number 14 is shown. Both, the day and the date, are in white colors. This white is like a white hospital gown, starched and cleaned. The face of the object has 56 small lines all facing from the outside of the circle towards the middle. These gold lines are equally separated all aro the face of the object.