Witness Testimony an Example by

Witness Testimony Health and welfare stability is an important aspect for the society as this concern the humanitarian value of each individual. This aspect is viewed to be one of the basic necessity of the people thus, the government must fully satisfy this need through providing quality healthcare service for the people. As part of the governments approach of providing reliable health institution for the society, the lawmaking body and the senate committee has drafted and implemented certain legal policies to advance the healthcare field and develop the service institution that will address this subject. One of the product of those policies is the establishment of the Medicare health system. Need essay sample on "Witness Testimony" topic? We will write a custom essay sample specifically for you Proceed The Medicare healthcare system is implemented to address the need for health and welfare stability of the society encompassing the different age bracket primarily the elderly sector. The Medicare system main objectives are basically to provide sustainable financial assistance and quality healthcare services for the common people through soliciting minimal portion of their income and the contribution of the corporations or business entity they are involved with as an employee or worker. Part also of the assistance program is the offering of loan options for individual to finance his or her needs for healthcare services. In general, the effects and values of the Medicare program is in the assistance it offers to the healthcare finances of people reflected in the reduction of the medication bills, hospital expenses, and payment for medical services. Indeed, this approach of the Medicare program has proved to be an effective government aid for the healthcare needs of the society. However, in the present, recent study and critical analysis led and reported by Ms. Mary Grealy have divulges controversial informations regarding the deteriorating value and effect of the Medicare program to address the health assistance need of the people. An example, of this is the unequal allocation of the payment resources for the healthcare expenses of most patients. Because the Medicare program requires the medical institution to reduce the payment for healthcare services, most professional in this field just extract more from the patients portion just to suffice for the reduction requirement. Thus, the assistance objective of the said program is not being implemented ideally and as planned in the present thus, resulting still to a high financial burden for the people for their healthcare needs. Thus, to maintain the primary objective of the Medicare assistance program, Ms Grealy has proposed an amendment to strengthen and improve the said program. This strengthening approach requires creating new policies and reviewing the previous ones to augment the purpose and implementation of the Medicare health program. Some of the mentioned approach in Grealys report is the development of an educational program to enhance the awareness about the Medicare system and the needed reform for the improvement and redevelopment of the model used for the programs implementation. This approach for strengthening the Medicare program is mainly towards the objective of making the system more competitive against other private health insurance, which are obviously more expensive. Indeed, the proposal of Ms. Grealy is mainly towards giving the society a better choice with lighter financial burden to assist their healthcare needs and medical services. Healthcare assistance program is important for the society as this offers the people particularly those who direly in need of financial subsidy for them to avail medical and healthcare services. This program gives the society a reliable and stable assistance system for them to count for their lifetime healthcare financial necessities. Because of this significance, it is indeed important to strengthen and improvise this program for it to fully satisfy its main ideal objective. If implemented, this will greatly affect the welfare provision for the people through the unyielding and improved participation of the government with their policy legislation and implementation improvement for the benefit for the society. Bibliography Frenzen, Paul D. (1996). The Medicare and Medicaid programs in rural America: A profile of program beneficiaries and health care providers. Economic Research Service, Rural Economy Division. ASIN: B0006QHRDQ. Ms. Grealy, Mary, President of Healthcare Leadership Council (2003). Strengthening and Improving Medicare.The House Committee on Energy and Commerce. Prepared Witness Testimony. Kingson, Eric R. & Berkowitz, Edward D. (1993). Social Security and Medicare: A Policy Primer. Auburn House. ISBN-10: 0865692009.

PERVASIVE AND MOBILE COMPUTING The WritePass Journal

PERVASIVE AND MOBILE COMPUTING OVERVIEW PERVASIVE AND MOBILE COMPUTING OVERVIEWFigure 1.1. The computing evolution2. Home systems2.1. Information access devices2.2.   Intelligent appliances2.3.   Smart controls2.4. Entertainment systems3. Electronic Healthcare System3.1. Patient Monitoring3.2. Location based services3.3.  Access to medical data3.4. Health care mobile devices  4. Sensors Networks4.1.   Application of a Wireless sensor network4.1.1. Military applications4.1.2. Environmental application 4.1.3. Medical applications4.1.4. Urban applications 5. Ongoing research6. Conclusion7. Reference  8. AppendixRelated OVERVIEW From the invention of Steam Engine to the invention of dynamo by James Watt and Werner Von Siemens respectively, and also remarkably taking the first power station into operation by Thomas A Edison [1], a massive change took place in the 19th century which brought about the generation, production and distribution of energy. The machines and engines were decentralized making the distribution of energy everywhere a possibility. This discovery led to several others like motor-cars, light bulbs and the rest of them. Although the technology behind these is irrelevant to most users, but then it brings about convenience and make life a lot easier which benefits the economy immensely. After the industrialization transformation, another major transformation occurred which was Computers. â€Å"While industrialization enhanced the manpower with the help of machines, computer multiplied the mental capabilities of man†. Its application then varied from processing large information, creation and organisation of phone bills, payroll, and invoices.   It was also used though with the help of mechanical machines to lift heavy amount of item e.g. steel Figure 1.1. The computing evolution From that point onwards, the computing industry began to grow, and its applications also widened to being used for air traffic control, in administration, and was also used for management systems in the process of â€Å"ensuring a static environment for employees†. Presently information technology has gone so broad that it surpassed the years of using the mainframe system where you have many users to a computer machine, and has since then gone even further to find its way into being an integral part of the telecommunication, entertainment, commerce and finally the finance industry in which nowadays, most organisation run their business online which is also called E-business. This type of computing is known as persuasive computing. Pervasive computing which is also known as ubiquitous computing is an exciting and intriguing field of research that brings in exceptional changes for the computational models in the 21st century. It basically integrates the concept of computation into our daily lives as opposed to having computers standing on its own. The goal of pervasive computing varies from creating an invincible technology to integrating the physical and virtual world together [3]. â€Å"Tremendous development of wireless communications and networking, mobile computing and handheld devises, embedded systems, wearable computers, sensors, FRID tags, smart spaces, middleware, software agents, and the like, have let to the evolution of pervasive computing platforms as natural successor of mobile computing systems†[4]. The internet has ended up being the worlds largest medium of communication. It connects different people all over the world in their billions, share information, data, and application electronically. As discussed above, internet and e-business has now been the order of the day in the business community. â€Å"The rising number of internet accounts proves that within the next years will have the largest internet community†. The internet has contributed greatly to making the world a global market where you find customers comparing prices and purchasing items, employee can get access to business information from distant. Due to the growing trend in computer technology and micro-controller getting smaller allowing them to be included into more and more devices, computer got smaller; the use of laptops became quite common and popular, the use of mobile phones with computing abilities became quite popular as well, examples are the apple iphone, android of google and it likes. The mobile phone with computing abilities is one of the recent developments in computer technology, its uses its wireless access to the internet to browse through information based system from basically anywhere in the world, which works just like a desktop or a laptop computer. Although not all application comes with the mobile phone sometimes, it is usually downloadable which therefore compliments for a poor computational capability, that’s why it doesn’t come as a surprise when there are mobile phone that can be wirelessly connected to the internet, edit photos and videos and print them. 2. Home systems These are basically home appliances that are built around computer networks. As the decentralization of computing continues, computers has now become ubiquitous or omnipresent, it has the ability to be everywhere. Nowadays we have networked home which make use of a web server usually small in size but carries out several tasks. For example, an air conditional can be connected to a web server which manages its operations. Other examples are lights, washing machines e.t.c Pervasive computing in homes can be subdivided into four sections which are Information access devices Intelligent Appliances Smart controls Entertainment systems [5]. 2.1. Information access devices An example of an information based device is the PDA â€Å"A personal digital assistant (PDA) also known as a palmtop computer or personal data assistant is a mobile device usually pocketable that functions as a personal information manager.†[6]. It has an electronic display which enables it have a web browser, and can connect to any network. They function as â€Å"Personal Information Management (PIM)† that include and has got applications such as calendar, address book and can also send and return mails. Although the main function of PDA is to make and record appointments and carry phone numbers, it has now undergone rapid development in wireless communication and its now being used in medical facilities to provide mobile access to a patient’s data. Such is the influence of pervasive and mobile computing in our world today. â€Å"In 1996, Nokia introduced the first mobile phone with full PDA functionality, the 9000 Communicator, which grew to become the worlds best-selling PDA† [7]. It brought about a new class of mobile phones: the PDA phone, now called Smartphone. Today, almost all PDAs are also known as smartphones 2.2.   Intelligent appliances As we continue exploration into the world of pervasive computing, its ubiquity can be seen even more. Intelligent appliances are another section under pervasive and mobile computing that has integrated into home appliances. Washing machine is a major example of such. It goes as far as being able to be connected to the internet, download new updates or request maintenance service. Another example is the fire alarm system. As soon as it senses fire, sends out a distress signal to the fire co-operation in which further action can be taken. Another example is the security alarm systems which gets activated as soon as unauthorised entry is detected, sends out a distress signal as well to the police department, in which further action is also taken as well. 2.3.   Smart controls Smart control is another section under pervasive and mobile computing in homes. Some make use of wireless remote controls for stoves, gas pump e.t.c. and are usually all connected to a network. We also have cases where using a java application, can set a recording time for a video cassette recorder which will automatically start recording when its time. Another example of smart control is the heating system in a house. Usually its has an alarm clock imbedded in it that automatically set in on when its the right time, and heats the room or water as the case may be. 2.4. Entertainment systems â€Å"New kinds of entertainment systems will change the world of traditional broadcasting†. Set up boxes is the technology behind the growth and development of pervasive and mobile computing in home appliances. Interactive digital TV’s, video on demand, improvement in the quality of videos and audios are just one of the few examples of how entertainment is making use of pervasive and mobile technology. Another example is the fire alarm system. As soon as it senses fire, sends out a distress signal to the fire co-operation in which further action can be taken. Another example is the security alarm systems which gets activated as soon as unauthorised entry is detected, sends out a distress signal as well to the police department, in which further action is also taken as well. 3. Electronic Healthcare System The area of healthcare in the field of pervasive computing is a very exciting and promising section, â€Å"it encompasses a broad range of topics such as advanced hospital information and logistics systems, mobile health monitoring, assisted living for the elderly and the handicapped, and lifestyle and wellness related personal systems†. â€Å"Pervasive health care system refer mostly to patient telemonitoring† (Hall et al,2003; Stanford, 2002). Telemonitoring is basically the way in which a patient’s psychological and physical features are being sensed and measured and recorded which provides information through wireless connection to the medical practitioner in real time or/and is transmitted to another location e.g. a medical center or a medical laboratory where other medical experts can work on it [8]. Moreso, with a sensor, a patient’s blood pressure, heart beat rate, blood level, respiration and temperature levels, e.t.c. can be measured. The growth of Pervasive and mobile computing in the health sector is a very promising, the value it adds both socially and economically is enormous in the sense that it creates business opportunities for insurance organizations, telecommunication companies, e.t.c. Moreso, it brings about the hope of a quality medical services while being efficient and ubiquitous and at the same time cost effective. The following are few applications of pervasive and mobile computing in the health-care environment. 3.1. Patient Monitoring With the help of wireless network and private area network, patients who are recovering from an ailment but subject to other complications can be easily monitored anywhere and in case a relapse occur, the nearest hospitals, emergency services are notified automatically. This improves the performance of nurses and doctors, as the time they take to make rounds monitoring patients can be done with the help of pervasive and mobile computing. 3.2. Location based services With the use of network sensors and radio-frequency ID badges, patients with mental challenged patients can easily be tracked if by any chance they leave a designated safe zone. With the help of location based services, people with matching blood types or want to donate an organ can easily be found. Voice-activated systems also act as an aid to blind people. 3.3.  Access to medical data With the help of pervasive computing, patients and medical personnel’s can have access to clinical records. This method is very easy as it reduce the stress of doing paper work, less time consuming and the chance of entering an incorrect data is reduced. 3.4. Health care mobile devices These are mobile electronic device that can be used be used to detect certain medical conditions for example, blood pressure, heart rate, alcohol level, e.t.c. In future, such a device can have a wireless capability to contain the individual medical history and if he/she has adeficiency or suffering from a device, the device should be able to send out a signal or message to his/her G.P or a hospital as the case may be [9].   4. Sensors Networks These are tiny, low cost, low power devices that sense some property e.g. motion, heat sound, light, pressure, e.t.c. and communicate with each other using wireless communication [10]. The wireless sensor is a very major aspect of pervasive computing because it allows computing to be part of the physical environment. It is called a wireless sensors network because many sensors can be spread across different places and can be networked in applications that require no attention producing what is known as a wireless sensor network (WSN). They function in a peer to peer manner in the sense that they do not directly communicate the base station. Usually, â€Å"data collected by individual nodes is routed between the thousands of tiny sensors in a multihop manner until they reach the base station†. A base station is computing device that collects data from multiple sensors node and process them [11]. 4.1.   Application of a Wireless sensor network The application of a WSN is countless; it varies from sensing properties like light, temperature, blood pressure, to being used in the military. Below are typical examples of WSN 4.1.1. Military applications In the military, sensor nodes can be spread across the war zone so as to detect the presence of an enemy and also locate them. It can also be used to detect weapons e.g. chemical weapons, biological weapons and so on. Other applications under the military are target field imaging, security and tactical surveillance, intrusion detection. 4.1.2. Environmental application A sensor node can be spread out in the air to monitor the temperature and from its result weather predictions can be made, climate monitoring, pollution tracking amongst many other. 4.1.3. Medical applications The application can be mostly found in this section. The glucose machine to monitor diabetic patient makes use of a sensor, heart monitors. Basically, most medical equipment for monitoring patients makes use of a sensor system. 4.1.4. Urban applications The application of WSN in our society is very clear and obvious, it can ne see in transportation  Ã‚   and traffic system, automatic identification of drivers licence, street lights, home security, door alarm to mention a few 5. Ongoing research â€Å"A number of leading technological organizations are exploring pervasive computing. Xeroxs Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), for example, has been working on pervasive computing applications since the 1980s. Although new technologies are emerging, the most crucial objective is not, necessarily, to develop new technologies. IBMs project Planet Blue, for example, is largely focused on finding ways to integrate existing technologies with a wireless infrastructure. Carnegie Mellon Universitys Human Computer Interaction Institute (HCII) is working on similar research in their Project Aura, whose stated goal is to provide each user with an invisible halo of computing and information services that persists regardless of location. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has a project called Oxygen. MIT named their project after that substance because they envision a future of ubiquitous computing devices as freely available and easily accessible as oxygen is today.† Today the uses of Internet are limited as its users look for read-mostly information. As we move to a world where the Internet is used as an infrastructure for embedded computing, all this will change. We can hypothesize that the individual utility of mobile communication, wireless appliances and the respective mobile services pervasive technologies in general will be exploited through a digital environment that is – aware of their presence sensitive, adaptive and responsive to their needs, habits and emotions and ubiquitously accessible via natural interaction. Increasingly, many of the chips around us will sense their environment in rudimentary but effective ways. For Example  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Cell phones will ask the landline phone what its telephone number is and will forward our calls to it.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Remote computers will monitor our health statistics and will determine when one is in trouble and will take appropriate action for rescue.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Amplifiers will be implanted and used in the inner ear.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   New machines that scan, probe, penetrate and enhance our bodies will be used.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Refrigerators will be connected to the Internet so one could find out, via cell phone or PDA, what is in it while one is at the store. A refrigerator may even sense when it is low on milk and order more directly from the supplier or rather than this, the connection will enable the manufacturer to monitor the appliance directly to ensure that it is working correctly and inform the owner when it is not.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Stoves will conspire with the refrigerators to decide what recipe makes the best use of the available ingredients, then guide us through preparation of the recipe with the aid of a network-connected food processor and blender. Or they will communicate to optimize the energy usage in our households.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Cars will use the Internet to find an open parking space or the nearest vegetarian restaurant for their owners or to allow the manufacturer to diagnose problems before they happen, and either inform the owner of the needed service or automatically install the necessary (software) repair.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Wrist watches will monitor our sugar.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Digi-tickers or implanted heart monitors in heart patients will talk wirelessly to computers, which will be trained to keep an eye open for abnormalities. In a nutshell, our personal network will travel around with us like a surrounding bubble, connecting to the environment through which we move and allowing our mobile tools to provide us with more functionality than they ever could alone.† [13]    6. Conclusion Pervasive computing provides a very interesting vision for the future. Information would be basically handy through the help of the wireless technology, so instead of sitting on a PC to get information, we would have instant access through the use of our smart phones, our PDAs, e.t.c. As the growth in technology keeps increasing in the 21st century, it has basically influenced our daily lives, the way we communicate, shop, basically every aspect of it and enough evidence has it we are translating into the world of â€Å"pervasive computing† at a fast speed, and in few years time, the world would be living like a scene in the movie â€Å"Star Trek†.    7. Reference   8. Appendix youtube.com/watch?v=Q2DY6jWT2a4 youtube.com/watch?v=bS6XqjBO99Q youtube.com/watch?v=KsKne-fw-X0 youtube.com/watch?v=2I3T_kLCBAwfeature=related

The Symposium Reflective Journal Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Symposium Reflective Journal - Term Paper Example Socrates’ speech is one of the latest ones and it is in typical Socrates’ manner – dialogue. Using persuasive arguments Socrates responds to the, previous to his, speech of Agathon asking the man some questions that logically lead them to some crucial conclusions about Eros. Socrates claims, and it sounds really reasonable, that â€Å"Eros is love, first of all, of some things, and secondly, of whatever things the need for which is present to him† (Plat. Sym. 200e). The next following logical arguments that come after this one claim that Eros strives to beauty but it isn’t beautiful itself as it wants only to possess beautiful things. The point seems not really convincible as the concept of love becomes totally vague. The first reason is that if Eros is a kind of love that wants to have beautiful things in its possession and preserve them, then how does it work in real life and where does this Eros exist? What kind of phenomena is this? Retelling hi s dialogue with some woman Diotima, Socrates comes to the conclusion that it turns out that Eros is ugly as far as it strives to possess beauty, and Socrates argues that ugly thing cannot be good (Ibid. 201c). From this point it is impossible for Eros to be a god. Diotima solves the dilemma and answers the question of the essence of Eros. She points out the Eros is â€Å"a great spirit: for the whole of the spiritual is between divine and mortal† (Sym. 202e). The Diotima’s definition of the essence of Eros shows that it is a special force which is a kind of medium between gods and humans, it is a sort of connection between them which also helps people to connect with gods. The Socrates description of Eros becomes logical in connection with the entire doctrine of world view described in Plato’s dialogues. Probably, Eros is the force that connects the world of ideas with the material reality and makes everything in this world to move and

How can strategic HRM contribute to strategic planning Essay

How can strategic HRM contribute to strategic planning - Essay Example The purpose of HRM is the proper deployment of an organisation's workforce to ensure achievement of organisational goals, simultaneously taking care of the interests of the workforce. Strategic HRM involves the development of an HRM policy that supports the strategic planning and management of an organisation. HRM strategies can support organisational strategies in the following areas; A strategic HRM ensures job satisfaction, justice, and congruence. Congruence implies that there are no discrepancies between different groups of employees, or disparity between an employee's organisational responsibilities and personal commitments. Every organisation needs to train and develop its staff to get the most out of them. Small and Medium Enterprises, especially, as compared to larger organisations operate with less manpower, so they must focus on getting the maximum out of their workforce to succeed in a competitive environment. Training is both formal and informal. Informal training is what an employee picks up on the job, and formal training involves being sent for a specific programme by the organisation. Training is of three types - to improve knowledge, skills or attitude. If a person learning to drive is told how to do it (turning the ignition, changing gears, using the steering) he acquires knowledge. He acquires skill when he can drive by himself; he acquires the correct attitude when he learns how to drive safely and without annoying others. An SME needs to assess the training requirements for its employees by first making a list of the knowledge and skills required to perform well, and then checking on how far its employees are qualified, and who needs what training. A company should take care of training right from the recruitment stage, by looking out for the right employees, who have the required qualities, and require less training, as training is costly. However, many companies are willing to recruit people with less formal qualification if they have the right attitude, because teaching skills/ knowledge to a person with the right attitude is easier, than getting work out of a person who has skills but is not interested in working. Once assessment is done, a plan should be formulated to send the employees for training, and this plan should to followed. Training activity should be seriously undertaken. The activity itself could be fun, without in any way reducing its seriousness. The training should also be relevant. In fact it should be clear to the employee that what he learns in a programme should be put into practice at the workplace, as soon as he is back. Training evaluation can be done by the

The Link Between Sleep and Stroke Links by the Research in the Paper

The Link Between Sleep and Stroke Links by the in the University of Cambridge - Research Paper Example Haemorrhagic stroke is also known as cerebral haemorrhages or intracranial haemorrhages. These types of strokes are not as common as ischaemic strokes. Sudden bleeding in the brain causes a haemorrhagic stroke. This bleeding makes the brain to swell and increased pressure is build up in the skull thus busting. The swelling and pressure damage the tissues and the brain cells. High blood pressure is an example of a condition that causes a hemorrhagic stroke (Meschia 3-4). It weakens the arteries in the brain making them prone to rupture or split. There are things that increase the risk of high blood pressure which include smoking, obesity, an excessive amount of alcohol, lack of exercise and stress. Haemorrhagic strokes can as well occur as a result of rupture of a brain aneurysm and badly formed blood vessels in the brain (Connolly et al 1712). Stroke effects vary from one person to another depending on the type, location, severity and the number of strokes. There are both mental and physical effects of stroke. Weakness or paralysis is one effect that may affect one side of the whole body or just a leg or an arm. This leads to problems of balancing and coordinating because the weight of the weak side pulls against the strong side. The other effect is a problem when using a language where a person may have problem understanding writing or a speech, have the problem of thinking the right words to speak or write or have a problem of saying words clearly. Again, a person with a stroke may suffer vision and perception problems. The condition also causes cognitive problems which include problems with thinking, attention, memory, mental activities and learning (Go 28-30).

Threat of Hezbollah to US

Threat of Hezbollah to US Red Cell Analysis: Hezbollah: a Threat to the United States and its interests. Red Cell analysis: Hezbollah In recent years, the threat alert within the United States increased drastically attributed to the increase in the number of terrorist organizations within its borders. However, most terrorist organizations not only target the United States but also co-ordinate other attacks that target other American interests in other countries. One of the biggest organizations that are a threat to the United States and its interest in other countries is the Hezbollah movement, also known as the â€Å"Party of God,† which advocates for the rights of Muslims in most parts of the world through terrorism activities. The movement comprises of Shi’a Islamists who advocate for violence as part of spreading their message of fighting â€Å"western imperialism† in Muslim controlled states around the world. According to a report released by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Hezbollah movement plans their attacks from South America targeting Americans within the United States and other parts of the world. In 1983, the movement attacked a U.S. marine camp and killed over 250 Americans while also targeting the American embassies in the Arab region (Broxmeyer 2004). In addition, the movement also kidnaps American citizens and demands for ransom before securing their release. The movement employs surveillance methods before attacks whereby members of the movement observe the routine of different planned locations, which creates a clear picture of the most favorable location for an attack. The Hezbollah movement began in 1982 in Lebanon, attributed to the Iranian Revolution. It blamed the United States for most of the problems facing other countries around the world. It is necessary to note that since the inception of the movement, the leadership positions require religious clerics within Islam, who guide the members of the movement in terms of goals and objectives. The movement also supports the local population in the Arab region through annual donations gained through the attacks carried out around the world. Although the main cell for the movement is in Lebanon, the movement plans and executes its operations and attacks from the United States. The U.S. Department of State included this movement in the foreign terrorist organization (FTO) list in October 1997 as part of controlling their activities in the United States (Slogum 2013). The main ideology associated with this movement is enhancing Islam as a confident religion that promotes the achievement of justice an d human rights for every citizen. However, Hezbollah uses violence and terrorist activities in passing on their messages regarding their ideology, which portrays it as one of the most dangerous organizations around the world. Based on the organization’s ideology, the main objective of Hezbollah is to establish a Muslim controlled territory especially in the Arab region. According to the movement’s spokesperson, the group results in committing acts associated with terrorism due to failure in other means of communication between the countries in the Arab region and other western countries. This shows the organization’s commitment towards the terrorist activities, which include suicide bombing around the United States and other western countries. The FBI also associated Hezbollah with the 11th September 2001 attack carried out within the United States. This promoted initiatives from the U.S. government aimed at stopping terrorism in the country and in the Middle East region, which is the main hub of the terrorism cells (Broxmeyer 2004). Secondly, Hezbollah’s goals and objective within the United States is the moderation of national liberation for Muslim living within America. The group argues that the U.S. government discriminates against the Muslims in the country denying them the right to religion as stated within the constitution. This prompts the movement to advocate for liberation of the Muslim population through terrorism activities, which portray clear messages regarding Islam. One of the strengths attributed to Hezbollah is the leadership whereby the leaders of different cells around the world meet in South America for the election of their leaders. The main leader of the movement is Sheikh Muhammed Hussein Fadlallah who also acts as the spiritual father for the movement, as well as, the chief Mujtahid by ensuring a clear understanding of the Islamic law by every member of the movement. Based on the goals and objectives of Hezbollah within the Arab region, Sheikh Muhammed ensures support from other organizations and movement, which is a key strength for the movement. This leader controls the organization’s main cell in Lebanon but also helps in the co-ordination of other cells in other countries around the world especially in the United States. Sheikh Muhammed also helps in punishing offenders within the movement, which is a factor that enhances discipline among members of the movement towards the goals and objectives (Koà §ak 2012). The other main leader of the movement is Hassan Nasrallah, who is the secretary general for the movement. After the assassination of Abbas Musawi by the U.S. government, the leaders of different cells unanimously elected Hassan Nasrallah as the new secretary general. Based on the leadership structure projected, it is clear that the movement operates in secretive environment with the main decision making organ being the spiritual leader and the secretary general. In addition, it is also clear that the movement draws towards its goals and objectives attributed to the election of the spiritual father in a leadership position within the organization. When focusing on the funding of the movement, it is clear that it plays an important role in the operations, and attacks carried out by the movement. Most of the funding for the movement comes about from donations Shi’a Islamists who offer zakat after prayers. This contributes to 50% of the total funding for the movement most of which is used in securing equipment and weapons used in attacks (Koà §ak 2012). It is essential to note that this funding comes from the Arab region considering that the United States does not allow such collections towards terrorist activities. On the other hand, the mov ement also receives funding from the Islamic Republic of Iran through weapons and training sessions with the weapons transported to the United States through underground tunnels and stored in most of the control locations especially in South America. Hezbollah places significant importance on some of the major capabilities that contribute to the success of the attacks carried out by the organization. Based on the ban by the U.S. government on the movement, Hezbollah moved most of the physical bases from the western countries in the Arab region with most countries supporting the movement. However, the cells within the United States also act as support locations whereby members of the movement seek help in case of need. Hezbollah portrays an image of participating in Jihad, which is a Holy war within the Muslims, which has helped in the attraction of more people towards the movement (Goll 2011). This is clear from the number of personnel in the cell in the United States containing over 30,000 people, most of whom act as Jihadists for the Islam religion. As mentioned earlier, the main decision body the movement is the spiritual leader and the secretary general, who control the training programs for the movement. During the recruitme nt of new members of the movement, the leaders move to the physical bases where the training programs occur as a way of ensuring total commitment in the part of the recruits. According to a report released by the United Nations, Hezbollah receives donations of over $200 million annually and spends over $50 million in the acquisition of new communication technologies. However, the communication methods used during attacks depends on the priority of the attacks with the movement using complex communication methods in some of the high priority attack such as the 11th September 2001 attack against the United States. The complexities of the communication methods create a significant disadvantage for the U.S. government in terms of preventing the planned attacks. It is important to point out that most of the attacks carried out by the group target highly populated areas and military bases, which creates tension among people living within the United States (Goll 2011). Based on the training carried out in the physical bases, the U.S. Department of State argues that the movement uses suicide bombing in carrying out terrorist activities in the countries, which mak es it hard for the prevention. Hezbollah also employs the use of gun attacks whereby members of the movement, attack different planned venues and shoot innocent victims, as part of the mission towards passing on the message of liberation. Terror groups operations are mainly dependent on minimizing risks with the aim of achieving the greatest success. Terrorists evade a challenger’s strong point and focus on their weaknesses and their stress on exploiting security measure. This generally means the involvement of the smallest possible number of attackers to complete the operation with the most effective weapons at their disposal. The Hezbollah movement practices a detailed scheduling which can be adjusted depending on the operations requirements. For instance, the determination of the potential targets can continue for years before the operation is carried out. Some targets may be vulnerable enough to warrant shorter periods of observation. However, the information and data collection must be strong. Similarly, depending on the nature of the operation, operations in progress may be improved, deferred or annulled so that the operation does not fail. Under the Hezbollah movement’s planning and data collectio n strategies, tactical missions interlink so that operational objectives and strategic goals are realized. A detailed understanding of the target population is studied through psychological measures where informants are sent to the target site with the aim of getting the experiences of the populace. In case the targeted location involves experts, field agents are recruited and trained to work with companies and organizations operating from that target site. This helps the terrorist agents to be acquainted with the environment and identify the weak points, spare times and surveillance of security measures employed by the firms in the target area. In this light, the most practiced data collection programs include; physical surveillance, involvement of professionals working in the target areas, hacking into data storages of the government through agents in such agencies, practice/ routines/ procedures, not to mention transportation and route travel study. For a mission to be successfully completed and executed by the Hezbollah movement, collected data must be evaluated and studied by a group of strategists in the movement. This group includes professionals in various fields such as security, programming, finance and accounting management, logistics experts, and analysts. The process of data collection is entirely left to the low ranking recruits who, however, must be supervised by a senior ranking member. In most cases, the supervisor is only known by a few recruits for security reasons. The Hezbollah movement has recruited all over and in all fields. The movements target young workers in organizations and government agencies. The main reason for this choice is that such workers are desperate to earn extra money for their leisure activities, and the fact that they are easy to manipulate and blackmail. Given the fact that data collection does not require much experience or expertise, low ranking and new recruits are the most suitable c andidates to collect data and information regarding the operation. In most cases, the recruits are not aware of the real deal of the operation, they will innocently collect and deliver the information. In addition, where surveillance can be done through observation, for instance information regarding logistics and transportation routes and schedules, the organization may use more experienced informants since they are able to survey without leaving a trail or being noticed. Lastly, the pre-attack surveillance and data gathering should be collected by highly trained intelligence and surveillance personnel or members supportive of the terrorist cell. The pre-attack phase involves gathering information relating to the target’s current patterns whereby the attacking team approves information gathered from previous surveillance activities. This is very important as it helps in the identification of presumed and probable vulnerabilities. The Hezbollah movement practices a hierarchic al decision making structure with the leader being the highest. Presently, the leader of the movement is Sheikh Muhammed Hussein Fadlallah, who is not only a leader, but also the spiritual father of the movement. Under this structure, major decisions are made from one end while the day to day running of operations is carried from the other end. At one end of this internal scale of accountabilities, execution of operational tasks is clearly the role assigned to terror cells and operation groups. The other extreme consists of the executive group that has the primary responsibility for the development of the movement’s strategies and direction proclamations that map the overall direction of the movement. The executive group plays an essential part of the process of developing and appraising the movement’s policies and strategies in the continuing provision of updated knowledge and forecasting of future operation. The strategic intelligence applied by the Hezbollah movement is a very specific application of principles, and its main role is to assist the movement with operational decision making as well as strategizing on operations requirements. The main role of strategic intelligence in the Hezbollah movement is the need for support to understand and be able to counter the challenges and barriers enacted by various government agencies. Other strategies are; helping in the realization and development of successful operations, development of goals, objectives and operation matrices, the provision of open-sources as well as intelligence collection support and analysis. The movement has a wide network of intelligence analyst fetched from all probable professions. This makes the organization very effective when analyzing any operation not only for security but also for finance, logistics, and human power management. The team of experts also helps in the planning of emergency and fallback plans in case the operation fails when being executed. In conclusion, the collection of data and information by the Hezbollah movement is a very organized operation that is very secretive and well organized. This task is mainly conducted by low ranking personnel, but under the watch of experienced and trained experts. Once the primary data is collected a group of experts organizes it with the aim of identifying the strengths and weaknesses of their target. Once this is done, the movement rehearses the operation and at times this may be done on similar locations and target sites with the objective of further identifying any enforceable weak points in the operation. Prior to the operation, strategic intelligence surveillance is also practiced where a team of experts evaluates the plan in relation to the available information. This may lead to approval, delay or termination of the operation depending on the existing facts about the intelligence gathered about the operation. Lastly, the group practices the hierarchical management structure, where information is handled through the top-bottom flow. This structure plays a very significant role in enhancing security and protection of sensitive information. The recommendation for a policy maker is for the United States’ ideal objective in Lebanon should be to help them enhance and set up a free media that is reluctant to work with terrorists, facilities able to provide the primary needs for its people, and an audio financial system separate from Hezbollah’s â€Å"fraudulent taxation†. Secondly, they should determine a plan to help Lebanon develop a powerful financial system and discuss with Israel to reduce any stress. If army skirmishes do no quit, the risk of terrorism and financial growth will be unproductive to a flourishing Lebanese upcoming. Lastly, it is sensible to know that Hezbollah has started growing in the Southern United States and is economically cheering itself nearer to United States boundaries. Our plan creators need to be eager to the fact that Hezbollah is growing and getting its feet nearer to the United States’ boundary. Improving boundary protection is going to be a necessary countermeasure that stops enemy from falling though known factors of entries. The U.S. needs to be cautious to not to straight take part in an issue with Hezbollah. The last factor the U. S. Declares should do is worsening Hezbollah into a retaliatory condition. Instead the U.S. should ultimately use Southern United States and Center Southern nations to battle them for us. Additionally, for military performance enhancement and improvement, Hezbollah handled their community assistance and authenticity through the use of non-military indicates, with the supply of social services and governmental contribution probably playing an important role Hezbollah’s huge strategy. Most significantly for Hezbollah, the new approach led the Party of God out of their difficult ideal position in the late 1980s. The result of these connections between enhanced army and non-military indicates was an ideal success for Hezbollah. Israeli community assistance for the war decreased, eventually resulting in the Israeli drawback from Southeast Lebanon. Bibliography Broxmeyer, Eric. â€Å"The Problems of Security and Freedom: Procedural Due Process and the Designation of Foreign Terrorist Organizations Under the Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act.† Berkeley Journal of International Law 22, no. 3 (2004): 439-488. Dr. Habash, George . Terrorist Planning Cycle. A Military Guide to Terrorism in the Twenty-First Century. August 15, 2007. http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/army/guidterr/app_a.pdf (accessed March 15, 2014). Goll, Irene. â€Å"Environmental Jolts, Clocks, and Strategic Change in the U.S. Airline Industry: The Effects of Deregulation and the 9/11/2001 Terrorist Attacks.† Business Politics 13, no. 4 (2011): 1-37. Kang, Youn-ah , and John Stasko . Characterizing the Intelligence Analysis Process: Informing Visual Analytics Design through a Longitudinal Field Study . IEEE Symposium on Visual Analytics Science and Technology. October 28, 2011. http://users.soe.ucsc.edu/~pang/visweek/2011/vast/papers/kang.pdf (accessed March 15, 2014). Koà §ak, Murat. â€Å"Threat assessment of terrorist organizations: the application of Q methodology.† Journal of Risk Research 15, no. 1 (2012): 85-105. Slogum, Louisa. â€Å"OFAC, the Department Of State, and the Terrorist Designation Process: A Comparative Analysis of Agency Discretion.† Administrative Law Review 65, no. 2 (2013): 387-425. Sheehan, Ivan Sascha. Assessing and Comparing Data Sources for Terrorism Research. Springer Series on Evidence-Based Crime Policy 3, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-0953-3_2, 2012: 13-35. Straus , Susan G., Andrew M. Parker, James B. Bruce , And Jacob W. Dembosky. The Group Matters: A Review of the Effects of Group Interaction on Processes and Outcomes in Analytic Teams. National Security Research Division. April 2009. http://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/working_papers/2009/RAND_WR580.pdf (accessed March 15, 2014).

Act One, Scenes Six and Seven in Educating Rita :: Educating Rita Plays Willy Russell Essays

Act One, Scenes Six and Seven in Educating Rita Re-read Act 1 scenes 6 and 7 of Educating Rita. How does Willy Russell suggest that these scenes are important stages in Rita's development? When we speak of the way that Rita is educated we speak of two different types of education. Frank is Rita's teacher for both these types of education as he is a person who Rita looks up to and 'idolises' to an extent. Not only is she educated in English Literature to gain a qualification, but also she is also educated to make the transition from the lower social class towards the middle one. Rita also sees Frank as someone to look up to, as he is where she wants to be in life. Scenes six and seven come roughly half way through the play. This is significant because we are looking at Rita halfway through her challenge of gaining an Open University degree and her challenge of becoming the person she truly wants to be. The play is centred on two main characters, Frank, a middle class, alcoholic University tutor and Rita, a working class, scouse hairdresser, who are very different. Rita decides to enrol on an Open University English Literature course in order to try to create a better life for herself. Her tutor for this course is Frank. However at first Frank tells Rita to find a new tutor, but Rita refuses and they continue to work together. Frank's fondness for Rita continues to grow over time and he warms to her and her witty, individualistic nature. However Rita's quest to further her knowledge is troubled by her husband Denny's disagreement with what she is doing. Yet this simply fuels Rita's ambition more and leaves her hungry for success. Rita is more passionate about gaining the qualification than ever when she goes to see a production of 'Macbeth,' so much so, in fact, that she even buys the book. Rita shows how much her relationship with Frank means to her when she goes to tell him first thing the next day: ' But listen, it wasn't borin' it was bleedin' great honest, ogh, it done me in.' Having watched the professional production, Rita displays excitement and enthusiasm and has an eagerness for more. Rita's attitude changes from her expectations of a boring play to sheer astonishment that she enjoys it so much. Rita watches with an open mind and she herself is surprised that she enjoyed the play and the general atmosphere so much. She expresses this to Frank by informing him that at one point she wanted to stand up and shout: 'I was on the edge of me seat at

Dead Man’s Shoes †Essay Essay

The short story â€Å"Dead Man’s Shoes† (1998) by David Evans is an astonishing view into the life of a rural village in South Africa after the fall of apartheid, and of the different attitudes flourishing in the community. The story depicts the life of a rich widow, Anne Bezuidenhout, who lives alone on an enormous farm with only her black workers to help her. She has many offers of marriage, all with something to offer her, but she ends up surprising everyone with her choice. However, at the heart of the story we see the persistence of apartheid and conservative values in the ‘new South Africa’. Perhaps one can see this persistence in the narrative voice of the short story. As a 1st person narrator, he is part of the story, as one of the seven suitors of Anne; â€Å"Last and least me, a teacher, divorced by a wife who had found me, my profession and Pampoenfontein too dull for her.† The story is slightly affected by the narrator’s opinions. This is visible in several quotes such as â€Å"Most important, she was rich.† and â€Å"But a good Black staff was one thing. A woman trying to manage it on her own was quite another.† The last quote is one of several quotes in the short story pointing towards the narrators both racist and slightly patriarchal mind. One could argue that the quote just pities Anne for being alone on the farm, however on page 3 Anne tells the suitors that she is in fact used to hardship. If one reads between the lines, it is clear that she is aware of her situation but is not worried about it at all. The language in the story al so has a role in the slightly racist values of the narrator. We see this in the choice of words the author has made when describing, for instance, Anne and Samuel. In the description of Anne, the author uses many positive words to do a detailed image of her, as seen on page 1; â€Å"pleasant-faced with wide green eyes and a voice which carried soft currents of her native Galway. She also had a flickering smile charming and at the same time tantalizing, hinting somehow at private amusement and undeclared opinions†. Naturally Anne would receive a detailed introduction as she is one of the main characters in the story, yet Samuel is also a main character, but his introduction is much less personal and without many adjectives, as seen on page 3: â€Å"Anne had taught him to read and write and to do simple sums. This bit of education hadn’t  spoiled him as it did so many. He knew his place: bossboy among the Black workers†. On top of that the author has let the characters use several nicknames for Samuel such as â€Å"swartg oed† (page 5) and â€Å"boy†(page 4). The use of nicknames could, however, lead the reader on to having a look at the characters of the story. As a last contributor to the general feeling of continued apartheid in the story is the characterization. The characters are revealed through an outward description. In the beginning of the story, the introduction of Anne is given very quickly and detailed. But the author’s way of describing the seven suitors is almost like a list where each of them equals a different personality or genetic trait such as â€Å"Harry Smith, the town’s auctioneer, was the oldest†, â€Å"Japie van Os (†¦) was the richest†, â€Å"Hannes Snyman (†¦) was the biggest† and so forth. The reader must therefore make his or her own conclusions on the character through behavior and talking, because of the author’s use of implicit characterization. For instance the reader could focus on the character Maritz Grootbek and immediately conclude that he is indeed a racist. Why? Because he frequently comments on Samuel. One could argue that this is simply because he admires Anne for having â€Å"a good staff with a reliable Black foreman† (page 3), but his rude behavior and ways of talking states otherwise. An example could be when he arrives at Anne’s house and is shocked when Samuel doesn’t fetch her immediately; â€Å"†Where’s the Nkosikazi (frue), boy?† Jamie demanded roughly. â€Å"Go and fetch her. Hurry!†. Since the other suitor doesn’t argue with his rudeness it is clear that they share his opinions. Last but not least, the shared racist values of the seven suitors become certain when Anne tricks them and decides to marry Samuel. Based on their reaction â€Å"We stared, we glared, we blinked in disbelief, then stared again.† (page 5), it is clear that none of them ever thought that they would be put aside in favor of a black man and even after she has announced her will they still â€Å"tried to dissuade Anne† (page 5). Even though it is generally known between the characters in the story that Samuel is a good man, he is still considered low because of his color, and the suitors are still suspicious about him. Ultimately this shows that even though apartheid has legally ended, it is still a state of mind for many white South Africans, as confirmed by the narrator himself: â€Å"Pampoenfontein may have accepted that all of us – whatever our colour – were equal citizens in the new South Africa, but we  were all proud of our past and no white man there could be expected to tolerate any talk of a black being as good as a white†.

Business Admin Research Information Essay

1.1 Give reasons for agreeing objectives and deadlines for researching information Agreeing objectives is essential for a team or individual to know what they are focusing on to avoid wasting resources and time. Deadlines strongly affect what you research, for example, if a deadline of one week is agreed for writing a newspaper, you wouldn’t want to include today’s news as it would be very outdated by the time of publication. 1.2 Give reasons for identifying and agreeing sources of information It’s useful to identify and agree a source to use when researching information, as a standardised method means more uniform work. All information would be in a similar format when gathered from one source, but also, there is less room for error, as the agreed upon source is likely to be accurate and widely trusted. 1.3 Explain the purpose of recording and storing information researched Storing information is essential for many reasons; these include ease of access and readability, the level of detail you are able to store, the choice to have various copies of the information in case of loss and ease of transfer. 2.1 Agree aims, objectives and deadlines for the information search Agreeing aims and objectives helps me to do my work efficiently as they give me a clear idea of what I need to find and why. Deadlines are also very important to me as our customers and our reputation are negatively affected if don’t complete work in the required time so time limits help me estimate the time I have to spend on each one, otherwise, for example, I could spend too long researching one dental practice and affect another. 2.2 Identify sources of information Information can come from numerous sources, for example, other people such as colleagues or friends, online knowledge bases such as Wikipedia or books on the subject in question 2.3 Search for and obtain data I can search for information using the sources stated in the previous criteria, then to obtain the relevant data, I sift through all on offer then write down or type up what I require. If the information is copyrighted I would need to contact the author and request permission to use the data. 2.4 Check that data is suitable for the purpose of the research To ensure the data I find is suitable for the purpose of the research, I should agree guidelines for exactly what is needed and in what format with my manager or whoever set the task. 2.5 Record the data and store it securely I record information in various formats, such as documents onto my computer, memory stick or external hard drive, and onto websites such as Google Calendar and KashFlow. The majority of the information I deal with is confidential so I have to guarantee they are kept secure. I do this by setting strong passwords that only myself and any other required individuals know, and by keeping hardware on my person or locked away. 2.6 Make a record of information sources used It’s important to record all sources I use, as I often need to refer back to previously used documents, or find other information from a particular source. All records are kept organised and secure in our lockable store room. 2.7 Meet deadlines for completing research As previously mentioned, completing research in the set deadlines is important for me to present accurate data, and keep the strong relationship we have with our clients. To ensure I meet these deadlines, I have to carefully prioritise my workload and plan in advance how to tackle it, as I get a steady stream of new site notes every week and some are far more urgent than others.

Traits of an Abnormal Personality Disorder

Traits of an Abnormal Personality Disorder Free Online Research Papers Underlying Normal Traits within Abnormal Personality Disorders Abstract Scholars have argued for decades concerning the fact that there are normal personality traits underlying abnormal personality traits in people who exhibit dysfunctional personalities. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition is the determinative guide on the descriptions of these personality characteristics, and it determined that there were several models to be considered when looking for a universal clinical definition of abnormal personality. Researchers used either the Big Four, Big Five or other models to describe what an abnormal personality consisted of and how it related to a normal personality as studied. Researchers measured personality differences based on qualitative, quantitative and other key factor differences to determine normal or abnormal functioning personalities. It was difficult to determine one substantive definition, as the traits overlapped from normal to abnormal characteristics noted. Later, the definition of personality dysfunctions included life skills, personal tasks and life goals, and whether the individual was able to function as a member of his society, while meeting the expectations of that society. A person’s maladaptiveness and evolutionary sense were added as part of the definition of whether the personality was normal or abnormal, and whether a person had the skill to be able to manage personal relationships were considered as well in the general definition of abnormal personality. Today, treatment options are expanded from the traditional therapy treatments to include drug therapies, psychodynamic therapy, day hospital intervention, and dialectical behavior therapy. To date, day hospital interventions have proved very successful on non-schizophrenic patients suffering from abnormal personality traits. Introduction Scholars have argued for decades concerning the fact that there are normal personality traits underlying abnormal personality traits in people who exhibit dysfunctional personalities. Recently, scholars have begun to make an argument that current category systems of personality disorders (PDs) should be substituted by trait dimensional scheme designations in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV; American Psychiatric Association, 2000). Experts are leaning towards using a Big Four model, which are â€Å"essentially maladaptive variants of the Big Five traits of normal personality, minus Openness† (Watson, 1545). In a discussion of this issue by Watson, Clark and Chmielewski, they state that the newly comprised Big Four model excludes odd or eccentric Cluster A PDs, (Watson, 1545) and that their results noted from three studies show a relationship examining the factors of normal and abnormal personalities. Their results established th at the Oddity factor was considered more broad than the Cluster A traits and more distinct from Openness and other Big Five models, which suggested â€Å"an alternative five factor model of personality pathology (considering only abnormal traits) and an expanded, integrated Big Six taxonomy that subsumes both normal and abnormal personality characteristics† (Watson, 1545). Model Theories The Watson study explains that the Big Four structure was a result of developed hierarchical models that combined general models, like the Big Three and the Big Five models. These former models of personality reviews included multidimensional factors reminiscent of past personality inventories. When the Big Three and Big Five models were formally combined, it was apparent that â€Å"two higher order traits- Neuroticism/Negative Emotionality and Extraversion/Positive Emotionality- are included in both models† (Watson, 1547). Considering these changes, Watson proposes a â€Å"Big Four† theory which does not include Openness, but does include many of the traits of the other theories. Watson reports that their research on the Big Five theory also includes research on a Big Six taxonomy â€Å"that subsumes both normal and abnormal personality dimensions (Watson, 1551). Definitions of Abnormal Personalities Researchers have made recent discoveries that â€Å"abnormal personalities can be modeled as extremes of normal personality variation† (O’Connor Doyce, 2001) (Markon, p. 139). Even though researchers agree that it is possible to describe normal and abnormal personalities within the same frameworks, they disagree on the structure of what the framework will encompass. Even abnormal personality traits are seen now as a variant of the extremes that can happen when reviewing normal personalities. One way to make sense of the distinctions between normal and abnormal personalities is to describe personality disorders (PDs) and develop a working definition for them. By defining the traits for PDs, the researcher is able to develop a base for delineating personalities studied. Once normal traits are identified, abnormal traits need to be assessed. This can be done by reviewing the Big Five model of abnormal personalities. This is the juncture that normal and abnormal personalities overlap. Apparently, there are similar modeling structures that can be utilized to describe both normal and abnormal personalities. Some traits are very common between the two models, and others mimic similar personality descriptions. Meta-analytic Investigation Model One cohesive factor that applies to both normal and abnormal personalities is the meta-analytic investigation model. This model was proposed by O’Connor in 2002, and it stated that there were structural relationships between normal and abnormal personalities (Markon, p. 142). The O’Connor study in 2002 reviewed 37 personality and psychopathology inventories to determine if dimensional structure differences existed between clinical and nonclinical respondents (O’Connor B.P., 2002). O’Connor found similarity between normal and abnormal populations reviewed and measured similarities â€Å"both in the number of factors that exist in the data matrices and in the factor pattern† (O’Connor B.P., 2002). The ten abnormal behavior disorders listed by the DSM-IV are listed as: paranoid, schizoid, schizotypal, antisocial, borderline, histrionic, narcissistic, avoidant, dependent, and obsessive–compulsive† (Livesley Jang, p. 258). Each of these disorders shows traits, and it is the way that professional clinicians are able to make accurate diagnoses of abnormal personality traits of their patients. This listing of traits by the DSM, showed that the distinction between what was considered normal and what was considered abnormal was often defined by distinguishing the â€Å"qualitative distinction between the two† (Livesley Jang, p. 258). Unfortunately, in truth researchers have come to find out that there are no true separations between normal and abnormal disorders, and they are hard pressed to find the dividing lines between the two entities. O’Connor asked whether the distinction can be made using former models, and what exactly was normal or abnormal personality disorder. When the conceptual distinctions between the two were reviewed, there are several models to note. The most noteworthy working model being that there was â€Å"no evidence of discontinuity in the distributions of 100 traits selected to provide a systematic representation of personality disorder† (Livesley Jang, p. 259). In other words, there was no concrete evidence that the researchers would consistently find traits that were exclusively common or descriptive of a specific personality disorder. In fact, personality disorders were measured across normal and control groups. The findings were that there were similarities within the disorder traits and that some equaled normal and others disordered personality traits. In this way, the researchers queried whether disorder traits could be seen in normal personalities. The answer was that there were few solid frameworks to make the decision which would provide a definitive answer to the question. In effect, extreme ends of the traits seemed to be deemed disorders, while extreme variations alone may not have been considered enough to state that a personality disorder actually existed. Quantitative Differences in Normal and Abnormal Personalities Quantitative differences exist between the normal and abnormal personality. The differences often mix up and muddle the personality traits and the disorders apparent within them. With personality disorders, often â€Å"it is difficult to see how an extreme score on dimensions such as conscientiousness, extraversion, or agreeableness is necessarily pathological. Researchers agreed that there were to be other additional factors that needed be present to justify the diagnosis (Livesley Jang, p. 262). That additional trait is inflexibility and subjective distress (Livesley Jang, p. 259). The character trait of inflexibility is defined as one where the person has extreme traits, but not necessarily only an extreme position noted on any given trait. For example, a person who is extremely open and gregarious, but then is not able to tone down his personality when necessary would be an example of this trait. Continuing with this example, what would make the person who is considered otherwise outgoing and spontaneous a person who is suffering from a personality disorder? Maladaptive Personalities The answer may come from prior work done by researchers who were determining personality and abnormal personality disorders. Extreme actions alone were not enough to say the person operated outside of â€Å"normal† personality parameters. The researchers at the time believed that personality disorders were the result of someone suffering from an abnormal variation of a personality being studied. It was measured in how much the person suffered from the disorder. This is where the theory of maladaptation or dyscontrolled impairment came into play (Widiger Trull, 1991; Widiger Sankis, 2000). The reason the researchers sought a generalized definition is that without one, they â€Å"would have to catalogue the various maladaptive manifestations of each trait† (Livesley Jang, p. 263). This was a difficult proposition, since even â€Å"normal† people were prone to exhibit maladaptive traits at some time in their lives. Another problem came with the idea of traits as one certain set of behaviors that were noted on subjects clinically or otherwise. Extreme exhibitions of a trait may show some measureable amount of psychopathology, but were not exclusively indicative of being considered classically maladaptive. In this way, the researchers determined that the â€Å"definition of personality disorder needs to incorporate features of disorder that are separate from, although possibly correlated with, extreme trait variation† (Livesley Jang, p. 263). Harmful Dysfunctional Traits in Personalities These descriptions of personality were necessary because there were more than these factors to consider when determining a personality disorder. In fact, personality was considered to be â€Å"a system of interrelated structures and processes† (Costa McCrae, 1994; Mischel, 1999; Vernon, 1964) which included a person’ dispositional traits, motives, coping mechanisms, and ability to tame impulses are part of the process of determining normal or abnormal indications of personality. In other words, if these traits were considered â€Å"harmful dysfunctions,† (Wakefield, 1992; Livesley Jang, p. 263) they consisted of harmful traits that were underlying natural functions. So, the definition of a personality disorder can be considered a harmful dysfunction in the normally adaptive functions of a person’s personality system (Livesley Jang, p. 263) Another issue within the developing studies of personality disorders was that personality functions were considered to be seen as disturbed in individuals who exhibited personality disorders. Researcher Cantor described a person’s personality as the types of tasks a person sets as personal goals, and they way the person looks at his or her â€Å"self, and life situations, and the strategies used to achieve personal tasks† (Livesley Jang, p. 263). This delineation of personality traits offered a true to form definition of what a personality disorder consisted of for the individual suffering from it. It was considered of a higher order than simply a dysfunction of a personality trait. Here it was described as needing to concentrate on life tasks as the determining factor to determining if an individual had a personality disorder, and was therefore considered abnormal in terms of functioning personality. The researchers assumed that as a person lives his life, he orders his tasks as to what he sets as priorities for completing goals and meeting the needs of his immediate surrounding community and culture. This comes under the order of living in society and meeting the expectations of people who live near the individual, or a way of fitting in within his community. It also had to do with the person’s mean biology, or biological features characteristic of the individual. In fact, these tasks did vary depending on where the person lived and what the person had do to be able to survive in his culture. These may come under the umbrella of life skills, and they are definitely different considering where a person lived or had grown up. For example, a person who grew up in a small native Alaskan out island would have different life skills that would a person who grew up and lived in a borough of Manhattan, NY. The two personalities of these individuals might be similar, but their life skills would be developed in obviously different ways. The person living in the native island village would have an understanding of the elements and what is necessary for bare-bones survival in possibly extreme conditions. While, the person who grew up in the city would have to understand how to be â€Å"street smart† and may need to know how to survive in even a potentially violent atmosphere if the neighborhood suggested those skills were essential to survive on a daily basis. Each individual may otherwise be soft spoken, or be considered similarly warm-hearted or kind. But decidedly, their life skills would separate them and put them a world away from each other in what they knew and needed to depend on to survive in their environment on a daily basis. Universal Tasks Underlying Personality Traits The researchers then understood that there would need to be a set of universal tasks that needed to be identified. These universal tasks were considered of â€Å"evolutionary significance† and featured four universal challenges as set by Plutchik (1980). These were the four ways a person’s identity was developed and they included:the solution to the problems of dominance and submissiveness created by hierarchy that is characteristic of primate social hierarchies; development of a sense of territoriality or belongingness; and solution to the problems of temporality, that is, problems of loss and separation. This allowed the researchers studying personality disorders to come to the conclusion that personality disorders prevented an individual from managing the adaptive answers or solutions that were considered universally applicable to everyone, or a person’s life tasks. When an individual had a deficit in any of these areas, there was a noted â€Å"harmful dysfunction† and the person was unable to adapt to be able to function in his environment or society. The life tasks then seen as either being fulfilled or being abandoned by the individual, probably because of this identified deficit. Personality disorder was seen as different from other disorders by the fact that these failures â€Å"should be enduring and traceable to adolescence or at least early adulthood and they should be due to extreme personality variation rather than another pervasive and chronic mental disorder such as a cognitive or schizophrenic disorder† (Livesley Jang, p. 264). Evolutionary Sense Within Personality Traits There was talk of the individual not being able to adapt to his environment in an â€Å"evolutionary sense† which spoke to whether the person had garnered enough skills for ensuring adaptive social behavior to allow reproduction and survival (Livesley Jang, p. 264). This was explained as stating that the adaptive traits would contribute to the person adapting to his environment and society in general, and the person adapting to his family unit would move the person towards being able to rear children and eventually reproduce to pass down his traits to offspring later on. This is the general definition of people who have self confidence in their dealings with others, and are able to live in harmony in stable relationships, while becoming productive members within their society or community. These can be seen to be part of the ancestral or evolutionary needs of every individual, whether the person had an abnormal personality or normal personality. The more common description of an abnormal personality comes from what the common person observes when someone has problems dealing within a relationship. Rutter (1987) stated that personality disorders were characterized by â€Å"persistent, pervasive abnormality in social relationships and social functioning generally† (Rutter, p. 454). Also, Tyrer (2001) stated that â€Å"we do not necessarily need to know everything about someones personality to recognise the elements that make it disordered† (Tyrer, p. 83). Tyrer states quite honestly that psychiatrists view these descriptive axioms as something to be deferred, and says â€Å"personality disorder and mental retardation are stigmatic terms that psychiatrists like to avoid† (Tyrer, p. 83). So the question is, how can one determine the underlying normality within the abnormal personality? For this the clinician and the layperson need review the DSM-III, considered the premier source of personality disorder classification (American Psychiatric Association, 1980). The DSM classifies what is considered normal and abnormal in terms of personality. The professionals in the field disagree to the proposed stereotyping of this group of classifications, on the basis of the fact that such profiling is considered â€Å"quite inappropriate in such a complicated field† (Tyrer, p. 84). In fact, it appears that there are burgeoning alternative and substitute classifications being used for determining personality disorders in surveys, trials, studies and private practice. Most people would be surprised to find out that this topic has been heatedly debated over the past two decades. Many people most likely assume that there is one clinical definition of what is normal, and what is not normal when it comes to personality disorders. The media plays into this, as well as the television and movie plots. The person seen as abnormal is cloaked in symbolic black, speaks in a raspy voice or has otherwise obvious mentally deviant behaviors that even the least sophisticated person in the audience could confidently label as the â€Å"bad guy.† Personality Disorders Studied Abroad Even the study of personality disorders abroad have led researchers to agree to disagree in the area of determining how to describe profiles for patients with underlying normal traits within their abnormal personality profiles. In a study performed by McCrae (2001) in The People’s Republic of China, 1,909 psychiatric patients were examined to determine the accuracy of the hypotheses determined from the Interpretive Report of the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (McCrae, p. 155). The researchers determined that the PDs were not separate categories that could be determined in a vacuum. They realized that they needed to consider a more comprehensive and forgiving system of personality traits, to be considered an accurate measure of the patient’s personality issues and concerns. The researchers found that the personality traits of the patients did not fit into the DSM-IV defined traits. They did â€Å"draw on the same five underlying personality traits† (McCrae, p. 171), and were considered redundant, but there were several areas of overlap to be considered conclusive. In fact, over 60% of the patients that were being treated for maladaptive personalities were not meeting the criteria defined in the DSM-IV, as relating to any criteria for a PD (McCrae, p. 171). The maladaptive behaviors, the person’s habits and personal attitudes were all measured to find a comprehensive scale for measuring the personality traits of the patients. It was determined that the results were insignificant, and concluded that personality profiles were â€Å"modest predictors of categorical PDs, but they are immensely informative about people† (McCrae, p. 172). Treatment Options for Abnormal Personality Traits But clinicians and psychiatrists are still interested in treating and helping people who exhibit the traits of these personality disorders identified above. They are in disagreement whether there are normal traits that are underlying the abnormal personality traits that deserve to be treated in an effort to offer the patient an opportunity to live a full and productive life. This is a critical option for people who have normal personality traits, but also exhibit the identified borderline abnormal personality traits as well within their psyche. Over a half decade ago, the best treatments were heralded as therapeutic, and they seemed to promise the greatest success overall. But today, there are many alternate treatments available for individuals exhibiting abnormal personality disorders. They include drug therapies, psychodynamic therapy, day hospital intervention, and dialectical behavior therapy (Linehan, 1992, Tyrer, p. 84). Other methods of treatment that carry high success for the patients are the partial hospitalization of patients (Bateman Fonagy, 1999). Bateman Fonagy compared the effectiveness of treating patients exhibiting borderline personality disorders with partial hospitalization s a standard psychiatric care. They studied thirty-eight patients with borderline personality disorder and offered them individual and group psychoanalytic psychotherapy, for up to 18 months (Bateman Fonagy, 1999). The results were that the patients who had been partially hospitalized did exhibit less problems, with â€Å"An impr ovement in depressive symptoms, a decrease in suicidal and self-mutilatory acts, reduced inpatient days, and better social and interpersonal function began at 6 months and continued until the end of treatment at 18 months† (Bateman Fonagy, 1999). Their conclusion was that the partial hospitalization was determined as a far superior type of psychiatric care for those patients exhibiting borderline personality disorder. This treatment option was in opposition with the standard treatment options of the therapies listed above. These results were similar in the study by Piper, (1993) where a day treatment program at the University of Alberta Hospital in Edmonton, Alberta was studied. The patients were referred from the day treatment program and walk-in clinic, and utilized participants with â€Å"chronically disturbed non-schizophrenic patients, who usually have affective and personality disorders† (Piper, p. 757). The results of the study were that day treatment programs w ere considered effective for patients with long-term non schizophrenic disorders. The patients noted significant improvement in â€Å"four of the five areas studied- interpersonal functioning, symptomatology, life satisfaction, and self-esteem- as well as in several of disturbance associated with individual objectives (Piper, p. 762). Reference American Psychiatric Association (1980) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (3rd edn) (DSM- III). Washington, DC: APA. Bateman, A. Fonagy, P. (1999). Effectiveness of partial hospitalization in the treatment of borderline personality disorder: a randomized controlled trial. American Journal of Psychiatry, 156, 1563-1569. Retrieved on April 9, 2010 from http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/full/156/10/1563?ijkey=bb19a5d116af525fe927da3b0a0c0250f3d61de3 Costa, P. T., McCrae, R. R. (1994). Can personality change? In T. F. Heatherton, J. L. Weinberger (Eds.), Can personality change? (pp. 21–40). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Linehan, M. M. (1992) Cognitive Therapy for Borderline Personality Disorder. New York: Guilford Press. Livesley, W. John Jang, Kerry L.. (2005). Differentiating normal, abnormal, and disordered personality, European Journal of Personality, 19(4), 257-268. Markon, K.E, Krueger, R. F., Watson, D. (2005). Delineating the structure of normal and abnormal personality: An integrative hierarchical approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 88, 139–157. EBSCO Database: Academic Search Premier. McCrae, Robert R., Jian, Yang, et al. (2001). Personality Profiles and the Prediction of Categorical Personality Disorders. Journal of Personality, 69(2), 155-174. Mischel, W. (1999). Personality coherence and dispositions in a Cognitive–Affective Personality System (CAPS) approach. In D. Cervone, Y. Shoda (Eds.), The coherence of personality (pp. 37–60). New York: Guilford. O’Connor B.P. (2002). The search for dimensional structure differences between normality and abnormality: A statistical review of published data on personality and psychopathology. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 83(4), 962–982. Retrieved on April 9, 2010 from ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12374447 O’Connor B.P. Dyce J.A. (2001) Rigid and extreme: A geometric representation of personality disorders in five-factor model space. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 81, 1119–1130. PubMed Database. Piper, W.E., Rosie, J.S., Azim, H.F.A, Joyce A.S. (1993). A randomized trial of psychiatric day treatment for patients with affective and personality disorders. Hosp Community Psychiatry, 44, 757–763. Plutchik, R. (1980). A general psychoevolutionary theory of emotion. In R. Plutchik, H. Kellerman (Eds.), Emotion: Theory, research, and experience (pp. 3–33). San Diego, CA: Academic. Rutter, M. (1987). Temperament, personality and personality disorder. British Journal of Psychiatry, 150, 443–458. Tyrer, Peter. (2001). Personality disorder. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 179, 81-84. Retrieved on April 9, 2010 from http://bjp.rcpsych.org/cgi/content/full/179/1/81 Watson, David, Clark, Lee Anna, Chmielewski, Michael. (2008). Structures of Personality and Their Relevance to Psychopathology: II. Further Articulation of a Comprehensive Unified Trait Structure. Journal of Personality, 76(6), 1545-1586. EBSCO Database: Academic Search Premier. Vernon, P. E. (1964). Personality assessment: A critical survey. London: Methuen. Wakefield, J. C. (1992). Disorder as harmful dysfunction: A conceptual critique of DSM-III-R’s definition of mental disorder. Psychological Review, 99, 232–247. Widiger, T. A., Sankis, L. M. (2000). Adult psychopathology: Issues and controversies. Annual Review of Psychology, 51, 377–404. Widiger, T. A., Trull, T. J. (1991). Diagnosis and clinical assessment. Annual Review of Psychology, 42, 109–133. Research Papers on Traits of an Abnormal Personality DisorderThree Concepts of PsychodynamicResearch Process Part OneIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in CapitalComparison: Letter from Birmingham and CritoEffects of Television Violence on ChildrenUnreasonable Searches and SeizuresInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married MalesGenetic EngineeringThe Relationship Between Delinquency and Drug UseArguments for Physician-Assisted Suicide (PAS)

Strategy Evaluation for the Lloyd bank organisation Assignment

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E-marketing in Focus Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

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