Ethics of Kant and the Categorical Imperative Essay

What is a categorical imperative? A categorical imperative is a moral obligation which is absolute and necessary in any moral situation and isn’t reliant on a singular person’s desires or wills. For Kant, categorical imperatives are the foundation for morality because they invoke â€Å"pure† reasons for our moral actions and decisions since each rational being reasons to act outside of their own personal desires or will which may cloud judgments or impose a biased verdict of the situation. Kant explains this by distinguishing two different kinds of imperatives; categorical and hypothetical. Obviously Kant is interested in categorical imperatives and uses this distinction to show the difference between them so that categorical imperatives come out stronger. As stated before, categorical imperatives according to Kant are moral obligations which are absolute and necessary in any moral situation and isn’t reliant on a particular person’s desires or purpose. He also says that categorical imperatives (obligations) are such if they are of a commanding or imposing nature. For example â€Å"Don’t murder! † is a categorical imperative which is binding to every rational person and forces a person to act of good will. Hypothetical imperatives on the other hand are obligations in which there is an end result of your action which is in turn a result of your personal desires our thoughts. An example of a hypothetical imperative is the statement â€Å"If you want to stay out of jail, then don’t murder†. Here, there is no sense of authority behind it; it doesn’t have any weight or value behind it. He further distinguishes that there are different types of imperatives which make us act or think the way that we do in a question of morality. These distinctions are imperatives of skill, imperatives of prudence, and imperatives of morality. Kant does recognize the imperatives of skill and prudence even though he doesn’t believe them to be intrinsically â€Å"good† or â€Å"of good will†. Imperatives of skill call for action and are a means to an end in which the end that the person is seeking isn’t the end result of happiness but something else. An example of this would be the duty to not smoke cigarettes in order to live a healthy lifestyle. Here, your end goal is to live a healthy lifestyle in order to avoid conditions associated with smoking. Imperatives of prudence also calls for action and is a means to an end but with the end result being a product of the person hoping to achieve happiness. For example, the duty to be polite and respectful so that others will do the same unto you and in turn you will be happy. Here, you are hoping to achieve the end of being happy by acting in a polite and respectful way. Imperatives of morality for Kant are totally different from those of prudence and skill. These duties do not have a specific means to an end but instead they represent a way of determining what to do because of what is morally right. These imperatives are the ones in which they are categorical since a rational being is one in which you are exposed to a situation in which you must determine what the right thing to do is and being a rational being, you choose the action which has good will which in turn means you are acting my duty due to respect and understanding of morality in general. For example the duty to not physically harm another person doesn’t have a specific end that will satisfy yourself but it is the morally right thing to do if you are a rational person who respects the wellbeing of yourself as well as others. How does he arrive at the conclusion that The Categorical Imperative is the â€Å"purest† way to reason your morals? He reasons that the only thing that is unconditionally good is the good will and that good will is an act of duty. For Kant, acting from your duty means not acting by your own desires and wills but for respect of morality in general. Looking at the Categorical Imperative versus other moral theories, the Categorical Imperative is the only one in which a person’s desires or inclinations aren’t needed to make a moral decision (versus Aristotle’s view that a person’s skill and acting prudently is what contributes to moral decisions). Therefore; the only thing that is unconditionally good is to act according to The Categorical Imperative. From this, Kant is saying that the amount of value placed on morals of any action or decision depends on moral duty and moral law. For Kant, if a person acts from a good will then they are acting by moral duty and if a moral decision is binding to every person capable of having a rational thought, then they are acting by moral law. Since both are required for a â€Å"pure rational reason†, then The Categorical Imperative is the only moral law which allows us to meet these requirements of allowing us to act from good will and to also be binding to every person. Even though Kant does seem to be making his point, he has many flaws in his reasoning. One problem is that he doesn’t look at the big picture; he seems to say that if we are to make a moral decision then it should be based on being intrinsically good so that you are able to universalize it which is a good thought however he doesn’t look at situations case by case. He doesn’t believe that there are any exceptions to his theory about categorical imperatives, he believes that it is morally right to act in a certain way for one situation, then you should act that way in all situations and also if it is wrong to act a certain way then it is wrong to act that way in any situation you are in. An example of this is say your best friend is very sick in the hospital and is feeling down. None of his/her friends seems to be coming to visit so your friend’s mom asks you to go and visit but then she adds that she will pay you twenty dollars if you go and do it. So you go and visit your friend which cheers them up. A few weeks later when they are out of the hospital, your friend’s dad accidentally tells your friend that you were paid by their mother to go visit. Your friend is infuriated and confronts you about the situation. Here is the dilemma: do you tell your friend that you were going to visit them anyway and the money was a bonus or do you lie and say that you never took the money in order to save your friend from hurt feelings and a damaged friendship? In this situation Kant would have you tell the truth because lying in general is immoral so if it is immoral in one situation, it is immoral in all situations no matter the circumstances. Another problem with Kant’s theory is that it creates contradictories since there is no room for exceptions even though some duties conflict with each other. An example I will use to show is this from the Bible in Numbers 10:4-6: â€Å"Who will give us meat to eat? † they said. â€Å"Think of the fish we used to eat free in Egypt, the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic! Here we are wasting away, stripped of everything; there is nothing but manna for us to look at! † Here, the Israelites are complaining about their new source of food which God provided for them, because it isn’t tasty and that is the only thing they have to eat. The Israelites are contradicting their new found freedom by wishing for the food they had back in Egypt when they were enslaved under the Pharaoh. Should they be thankful for their newfound freedom even though they have bad food or should they desire the good food they had while they were enslaved? This is a contradiction. Kant seems to only focus on the motives for our actions in moral situations versus the actual outcomes of our actions (which is kind of the point in acting or not acting in a dutiful way). There are many times in which we have good intentions for a situation but what ends up being the outcome of those intentions are abysmal. For example, consider a family member is terminally ill and is in constant pain on a daily basis. There is no hope of a cure or for the pain to diminish; your family member must endure the pain until the illness kills them. What if your family member asked you to aid in their plan to commit suicide in order to escape their pain? Say you come to the decision to help them after deciding it is the morally right thing to do. Without thinking of the outcome of the situation, you are soon found guilty of a felony charge of aiding in a suicide. Even though you had good intentions, the outcome of a person dying with the help of another person clearly outweighs the good and the outcome of the act is just as important as the decision itself. Overall, morality is too complex and full of exceptions to situations so that specific decision procedures won’t work. Kant believes that morality necessitates that we do the morally right thing because it is right, and for no other reason. He also believes that we should account ourselves to the same standards we would require of everyone else so that we aren’t placing exceptions for our own benefit. We must use our reason to come to our own conclusions about good will and ignore our predispositions even if they tend to point in the right direction. An action or decision is only intrinsically worthy because of your ought to do it, because of your obligation to do it. I think what Kant was trying to aim at was the importance of a person’s character (acting the right way even when you may not want to). Only the actions done from our obligations have any value. They have value because we will them from our obligations not because of the goal we try and achieve or the outcome we intend to happen. We have obligations to each other and our actions are right when we are correctly motivated in the face of every obstacle keeping us from those obligations. It isn’t easy being unbiased by our predispositions or desires, but predispositions and desires are often conflicting with what is right. Works Cited The Holy Bible: King James Version. Dallas, TX: Brown Books Publishing, 2004. Kant, Immanuel. Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals. Cambridge University Press. 2012. Print.

Marriage and Family Therapy Essay

This paper will also evaluate five major themes relevant to Marriage and Family Therapy which include: ethical dilemmas in marriage and family counseling, premarital counseling qualifications of marriage and family therapists including licensure and certification. The biblical insight related to marriage and family therapy will also be explored as well as my personal reflections about this topic. History and Development of Marriage Counseling Marriage counseling was established in the early 1930’s. Counselors recognized the advantages and effectiveness of treating married couples in joined sessions. This growing appreciation for patterns of relationships in families led to numerous studies on marital conflict and dynamics and the effects on children’s development. In 1932, there were three marital clinics said to open. They worked with individuals and their difficulties adhering to traditional gender role expectations. Developed and founded in the late 1970’s was the Marriage and Family Therapy’s code of ethics which is called The American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT). The organization’s philosophy was that marriage and family therapy were two separate areas, each with their own histories, concepts and differing practices. (AAMFT, 2012) Introduction of Marriage and Family Counseling Counseling is to help persons understand and clarify their views of their life space, and to learn to reach their self-determined goals through meaningful, well-informed choices and through resolution or problems of an emotional or interpersonal nature. (Burks and Steffire, 1979 . Focusing on a broader field in counseling, What is Marriage and Family Counseling? Marriage and family counselors work with couples and families on a wide range of clinical problems including, but not limited to, depression, marital strife, communication, and anxiety and child-parent problems. Marriage and family counseling is not just for unhappy or struggling couples, couple’s therapy can be used proactively to strengthen bonds and to gain a better understanding of one other. In addition, before a marriage begins pre-marital counseling can help couples achieve a deeper understanding of each other and iron out differences before their wedding day. They also help families learn to solve their problems by managing their relationships effectively. Family therapists often work with individuals, the couple and parents and children to get a better perspective of patterns that affect the entire system to develop strategies for modification. (Corey, Corey ;amp; Callanan p. 450 2011). Family Counseling is important to the counseling field this therapy can help people within the family to resolve their disputes and quarrels through effective communication. Proper communication with the help of a therapist or a counselor can help family members discuss their problems and issues with each other. The importance of the family in our development as whole and healthy individuals is recognized as a basic truth by. In most cases, however, a disturbed and distressed client will have some difficult, challenging relationships within his/her family and these will need to be explored and addressed if the client is to discover and create relief and resolution of their problem. Biblical Insights related to Marriage and Family Therapy In the book, Competent Christian Counseling it states that â€Å"To understand the individual, the one must see the individual in the context of his or her system of relationships† This implies that the quality of a individual is much more than one person, the person is a part of a social system that begins with family. (Clinton ;amp; Ohlsclager p. 518 2002). From a biblical aspect Family is described as a social system that progressed by forming a set of rules, roles, power structure. Forms of communication and way to solve problems. There are four key principles that a Christian counselors point out when approaching any family. The first one is â€Å"The family, in is social dimensions, reflects God†. Meaning that The Father, Son and Holy Spirit all have unique distinctiveness however they are â€Å"one† as God; this is compared to the Family. A family can consist of a mother, father and children or a mother and husband. If thought they are their own persons, they are considered â€Å"one†. The second key principle that is describe is â€Å"Family health, individual health, and maturity are inseparably entwined†. This key principle entails that the powers of family identity and socialization is significant for growth and development among each family member, which can ultimately lead to healthy family living. â€Å"The Family is also like the church is that next basic principle, meaning that a family has functions like the church. Finally, the last key principle describes states that â€Å"Trouble is reproduced, but can also be stopped, in families and in generations of families†. This key principle indicates that there is a psychosocial and spiritual relation among family reproduction pertaining to alcoholism and other issues as describes in Competent Christian Counseling as â€Å"generational curses†. Christians believe that these issues within families from generation to generation can be transformed through Christ. A example is that of Abraham found in Genesis 20. Abrahams family was said to show favoritism to certain children, which continued for three generations. When it comes to marriage counseling, Christian counselors believe marriage counseling helps couples to understand God’s pattern for husband-wife relationships, diagnoses unbiblical patterns and their root causes, and prescribes God’s solutions for soul change that leads to relational growth. Biblical marriage counseling should result in enhanced relationship: closeness with Christ, intimacy with your spouse, and a sense of greater peace. Biblical insights involving to family counseling, the focus is solutions, not simply external solutions. Your counselor will help you to understand God’s design for healthy family living, will assist you to assess unhealthy and unbiblical ways of relating as parents and children, and will equip you to reconcile and grow in your family relationships. Counselor Identity, Functions and Ethics of Marriage and Family Counseling The practice of Marriage and Family counseling rest on the foundation of systems theory, which views psychological problems as arising from within the person’s present environment and intergenerational family system. Corey, Corey, Callanan p. 449 2011). The systems theory is very similar to the views on Christian Counselors as stated earlier; â€Å"Trouble is reproduced, but can also be stopped, in families and in generations of families†. Marriage and Family therapists follow a specific code of ethics know as The American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT). Founded in 1942 as the American Association of Marriage Counselors, the A AMFT has been involved with the problems, needs and changing patterns of couples and family relationships. The association focuses on increasing understanding, research and education in the field of marriage and family therapy, and ensuring the quality training of marriage and family therapists. AAMFT members meet standards for education and training and are held to the ethical standards of the profession. (AAMFT, 2011) AAMFT ethics are broken down in eight core areas. The first area is the responsibility to Clients. Marriage and family therapist have a responsibility to the welfare of both the family and individuals in the family. Therapists are to make reasonable efforts to guarantee their services are used properly and accordingly. Confidentiality is the next core area, which applies to all code of ethics pertaining to the counseling field. Confidentially in Marriage and Family is distinctive because the therapist is dealing with a group of people. However, the AAMFT insist on therapists to respect the confidentiality of each individual client. Although, confidentiality is essential, there are some exceptions. Those exceptions include, mandates by the law pertaining to cases of child and elderly abuse, incest, or abuse to persons with disabilities. A therapist has an exemption from confidentially when it is necessary to protect clients from hurting themselves and others (AAMFT, 2011). When working with a family, all family members must agree concerning the release of any information. Some therapists, in fact, arrange for sessions with individual family members to actively encourage the sharing of â€Å"secrets† to better understand what is occurring in the family. The therapist then may work with the individual client in the hope of enabling that person to disclose the same information in the family session. Marriage and family therapists are to maintain high standards if professional competence and integrity. Therapists must remain current on any developments and advances relevant to their field of practice. They can do this by continuing education, training, workshops and interacting with other professionals in the marriage and family therapy field. (Corey, Corey ;amp; Callanan p. 452 2011). Therapists also have a responsibility to students and supervisees. They are not to manipulate the trust and dependency of the students and supervisees in which there are working with. Responsibility to the profession is the next core is in the AAMFT code of ethics. This includes reporting people practicing without a license and contributing to community service for advancement of the society. The next core area is financial arrangements. Marriage and family therapists are not to misuse clients financially for services. Issues and Ethics in the Helping Professions states that clients are to be â€Å"truthful in representing facts to clients and to third parties regarding any services rendered†. The last core area in the ethical standards of Marriage and family therapy is advertising. Therapists are able to truthfully represent their competence, education, training and experience in marriage and family therapy. Nevertheless, they should not advertise themselves as specialists with show evidence and supporting this assertion. The therapist’s primary responsibilities are to protect the rights and to promote the welfare of his or her clients. The dilemma with multiple clients is that in some situations an intervention that serves one person’s best interests may be conflicting to another. Indeed, the very reason that families tend to seek therapy is because they have conflicting goals and interests. The family therapist must insure that improvement in the status of one family member does not Occur at the expense of another family member. Other therapists implement the policy of not keeping secrets from other family members. They clearly discourage the sharing of any information that might lead to a special alliance with one individual and that excludes the remaining uninformed family members. The impact of the therapist’s values, unavoidable in any counseling process, can play a particularly role in marriage and family therapies. Issues discussed in family therapy elicit very important personal, familial, and societal values regarding preservation of the family system, extramarital relationships, and sex roles. Dealing with these values is not easy, particularly when the therapist confronts a conflict in values among different family members and is inclined to reinforce the beliefs and attitudes of one family member over another (Hines & Hare p. 65 1978). Premarital Counseling Couples now face more demands and have fewer supports than ever before. The typical complex marriage includes managing two careers while rearing children – really requires that couples have very strong, well-established abilities to communicate, resolve issues, maintain support and set goals. Without this foundation, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by stress and time pressures . Problems can intrude much more easily than most couples realize. Therefore, premarital counseling is recommended for couples looking to eventually get married. Research shows that premarital counseling reduces the risk of divorce by up to 30% . Premarital counseling is a type of therapy that helps couples prepare for marriage. Premarital counseling can help ensure that you and your partner have a strong, healthy relationship, giving you a better chance for a stable and satisfying marriage. Premarital counseling can also help you identify weaknesses that could become bigger problems during marriage. There are a variety of formats of counseling through local psychology and counseling centers, including individual counseling, small group counseling and interactive seminars where couples participate with a large number of other couples. (Wright p. 65 1992) Characteristics and Qualifications of Marriage and Family Therapists To be qualified as a marriage and family therapist requires not just that you get the right degree, pass the right tests and meet the licensing requirements, but that you possess qualities that prove you to be both sensitive and firm. Corey, Corey and Callanan in Issues and Ethics in the Helping Professions identifies personal characteristics for effective marriage and family therapists as being assertive, confident, accepting, appreciating the influence of diversity to just name a few. Self knowledge is predominantly vital for marriage and family therapists because when working with a family, their reactions and perceptions are influenced by their own regard to family of origin issues. Marriage and Family Therapists must be sensitive to dealing with people’s most personal and graphic secrets, shame, guilt and rage. A Marriage and Family therapist should be embarrassed to hear about these things or make distasteful comments about a chosen lifestyle or action, otherwise she risks shutting out the patient. An effective marriage and family therapists must listen to stories that are painful to hear but should remember that those stories are always more painful for the teller than the listener. An important quality in an marriage and family therapists is recognizing the difference between judging and advising. A good marriage and family therapist will help the patient with insights into sensible decisions that lead to greater personal happiness and responsibility but will not tell the patient what choice to make or ask the patient to adhere to the therapist’s own likes and dislikes. An marriage and family therapist should distinguish between dysfunctional qualities in a patient and those that are simply non-normative. Marriage and family therapists may hear confessions of illegal activity or hear from the victims of crimes, and legal codes dictate what they have to report. A therapist’s job is not just to listen but to encourage the patient to take action in his life to get the patient to see their actions in a clear light and make good decisions in turn. Marriage and family therapist can become eligible for state certification, or licensure, upon completion of their internship. First, candidates must register with the Association of Marital and Therapy Regulatory Boards. The Regulatory board will examine the applicant’s credentials, education and experience to establish competency before the applicant can qualify for testing. State certification costs vary from state to state. Each state has different rules regarding retesting if the candidate does not pass the test on his or her first attempt. Upon completion of the test, scores are validated and mailed to the candidate. A candidate who has passed the state exam is called a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and is free to practice in a private or clinical setting. The educational requirements to become a Marriage and Family Therapist are regulated by each state and thus may vary; however, most will require a master’s degree or higher in Marriage and Family Therapy or a related field from an accredited institution. It is essential for students to gain experience in working with a selection of families from different ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. A program that offers a all-inclusive course work and clinical supervision provides the ideal learning situation. Corey, Corey & Callanan p. 457 2011) Ethical Dilemmas is Marriage and Family Counseling Couples counselors and family and marriage therapists are likely to encounter many ethical dilemmas throughout their careers. Because of the nature of couple’s therapy, issues pertaining to informed consent, confidentiality, multiple relationships, and value systems can have a damaging effect of the counselor-client relationship if they aren’t handled appropriately and dis cussed by both parties at the beginning of the counseling relationship. Informed consent refers to the process of informing clients about the therapeutic process. Issues such as fees and payment schedules, appointment cancellation policy, theoretical framework that the counselor employs in his practice, approaches and techniques the counselor intends to use with clients and the limits of confidentiality should all be discussed. In addition to discussing verbal consultation, clients also should be given an informed consent package detailing all the information discussed in session. Clients should be asked to sign an informed consent document for both the client and counselor’s records. In couple’s counseling, informed consent prevents misunderstandings, disagreements and hostility between the counselor and the client. (AAMFT, 2011) One of the biggest ethical dilemmas in any kind of counseling is confidentiality. This is particularly complicated when it comes to couples counseling in which couples receive both individual and couple counseling. It is important for the counselor to determine early on in the counseling process whether information disclosed in individual counseling sessions will be kept confidential or if both individuals will sign waivers allowing what’s discussed in private sessions to be brought up in couples counseling. According to the AAMFT Code of Ethics, counselors must discuss the limits of confidentiality with their clients and make sure clients understand these limits. Article 2. of the AAMFT Code of Ethics states that â€Å"marriage and family therapists do not disclose client confidences except by written authorization or waiver, or where mandated or permitted by law. Verbal authorization will not be sufficient except in emergency situations, unless prohibited by law. When providing couple, family or group treatment, the therapist does not disclose information outside the treatment context without a written authorization from each individual competent to execute a waiver. In the context of couple, family or group treatment, the therapist may not reveal any individual’s confidences to others in the client unit without the prior written permission of that individual. † (AAMFT, 2011) In counseling, multiple relationships refer to a situation when the counselor and client are engaged in a sexual or nonsexual relationship outside the counseling relationship. Multiple relationships are often unavoidable, especially in small towns; as a counselor, you may attend the same church as your clients, your children might be on the same soccer team or you may serve on the same board or council. However, multiple relationships should always be avoided when possible. In couples counseling, multiple relationships can further complicate the counseling relationship if the counselor is involved in a multiple relationship with one client but not the other. The client that is not involved in the multiple relationships may feel that the counselor is taking sides or treating her unfairly. (Corey, Corey ;amp; Callanan 2011) At some point in their careers, counselors are likely to encounter couples with a value and belief system that differs significantly from their own. Within the counseling relationship, the counselor has a position of authority; the counselor must not take advantage of this position by trying to impose his values on the client or clients. Counselors must understand that individuals from different backgrounds, cultures, ethnicities and religions than their own may have different value systems. It is not the counselor’s job to change his client’s value system; it is only the counselor’s job to help clients become comfortable with the decisions they make within their personal value systems. Article 1. of the AAMFT Code of ethics states that â€Å"marriage and family counselors respect the rights of clients to make decisions and help them to understand the consequences of these decisions. (AAMFT, 2011). Personal Reflections In today’s world more and more people are experiencing life struggles when it comes to family. These issues can range from problems in a marriage, how to deal with your children issues and understand yourself and how to deal with your family and certain issues. The area of marriage and family counseling/therapy has had an outbreak over the past decade. The counselors are expected to work effectively with families experiencing a variety of issues and problems. In marriage and family therapy/counseling there are so many different types of techniques that are out there but should be used and looked upon not a cure, but a method to help mobilize the family. Choosing this topic wasn’t hard for me because of the love I have my family and evaluating what I believe needs to be repaired and what I believe stands strong for us. I believe in saving marriages and families, I think it is really important. Having strong family and a stable marriage plays such a major part in kids lives today, they need a solid foundation in order to have a healthy life. Watching so many young couples get divorce after less than two years of marriage and seeing how the kids suffer really from the break up of the family. I believe that if younger therapist/counselors were out there and start getting involved in the community, church and conducting seminars relating to marriage and families this could be the beginning of change. This is why I chose this topic to research.

A Culturally Defined Nation

There is nothing to define the country more than culture. Culture is a unified power to integrate people, economics and politics. For people, this is attribution. In the words of Mahatma Gandhi, 'culture of the people exists in the soul and soul of people' culture has established a set of traditional morals that will eventually be inherited throughout humanity. It becomes a part of life, even the most diverse people can return. Cultural nationalism defines the state by sharing culture. Nationwide membership qualifications are completely voluntary (they can not get cultures at once), they are not genetic (If you grew up in other cultures, the members' children are seen as foreigners It will be done). China's nationalism is an example of cultural nationalism. Because there are a few ethnic minorities in China. (Chinese nationalists include Taiwanese nationalists who claim to reject mainland Chinese government but have mainland China) Cultural conservatives will help protect the country 's heritage, or a common culture that is not defined at the border. Shared culture may be as different as Western culture or Chinese culture. In the United States, the term cultural conservatism may imply a conservative position in cultural warfare. Even in the face of major changes, cultural conservatives still keep traditional thinking. They firmly believe in traditional values ​​and traditional politics and often have a sense of nationalism Cultural nationalism is a type of nationalism where the state is defined by a common culture. It is an intermediate position between national nationalism and civil nationalism. Therefore, it will focus on the national identity formed by cultural tradition rather than the concept of common ancestors and races. Cultural nationalism does not tend to appear in the independence movement, but rather has a place in a wider nationalist ideology. Therefore, the position of the moderate faction of Flanders, Hinduism nationalism may be cult ural nationalism, and these movements include forms of national nationalism and ethnic mysticism. The fact that European and American media are focusing on Western nationalism generally reflects the influence of defining the identity of citizens as existing demographic and political systems as rapidly changing demographic data . In contrast, the minorities and religious organizations have weakened the competitiveness over the universe in Chinese culture due to the one-party system and the government's control over the media. China's nationalism is determined by the relationship between China and other countries, especially the past 150 years of historical experience.

Cog week10 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Cog week10 - Essay Example Furthermore the base rate and a proper way to reduce it mentioned in terms of simple, uninterrupted, intentional time which result in greater skill in understanding and deducing the information we need by assessing the risks and rewards accurately is the right fit considering the decision making error. " Assignment 3 †¢ A brief description of one failure of deductive reasoning that you observed or experienced in the past week or so, similar to those in the "Wason Selection Task" and "Typical Reasoning" experiments.   A recent example that I experienced was that when I was home alone and waiting for the cable repair guy. I was working in the kitchen so when I heard a knock I didn’t bother to look but jumped to the conclusion that it was cable guy. So without thinking I asked him to come in since the knock on the door coincided with my thought process and anticipation regarding the cable guy. So I failed to use valid deductive reasoning as I followed the situation incorre ctly( p then q), so I assumed q then p. Later I realized how wrong I was when I realized I had invited a complete stranger into the house by incorrectly assuming it was the cable guy, an encounter which gave me a start as I momentarily stared at the unknown individual in shock. †¢ Then, in the context of your examples, explain the impediments (e.g., heuristic, bias, etc.) to each process (deductive and inductive), and suggest methods or techniques for improving each process   Heuristic is what basically influenced by reasoning for the incorrect assumption that the knock on the door was the cable guy. In order to improve my thinking process in such incidents and situations it is imperative that I keep a alert mind and recognize fallacies that occur in deductive reasoning. I should evaluate my thinking and consider alternatives which overcome any biases that I might experience and lead me to confidently draw conclusions without really considering them. †¢ A brief descripti on of one failure of inductive reasoning that you observed or experienced in the past week or so, similar to those in the "Wason Selection Task" and "Typical Reasoning" experiments.   An example that I can relate to that of inductive reasoning was when I saw these two dogs fighting over what appeared to be a large bone which was buried not too deep in this pile of things. During this fight another dog came and joined in the fight and the three fought over the bone for a while. When the third dog had joined in through these observations I assumed that he was actually the one that was the owner of the bone and that he had hidden it in the pile of things. However, after a while when I had looked away and turned my attention back towards them I saw that a man way aggressively waving to get rid of these dogs and that I had wrongly induced to be a bone was actually a large packet of meat shaped like a bone. †¢ Then, in the context of your examples, explain the impediments (e.g., he uristic, bias, etc.) to each process (deductive and inductive), and suggest methods or techniques for improving each process   Confirmation bias is the key reasons that lead to my inaccurate assumptions. Turns out I was focusing on all the aspects that seemed to confirm what I had already

The Effectiveness of Training Care Home Staff on Management of Literature review

The Effectiveness of Training Care Home Staff on Management of Challenging Behaviour of Person with Dementia - Literature review Example As far as dementia is concerned, a recent study revealed that one of the best ways to equip nurses and other health professional with the basic skills and knowledge to carry out their duties effectively is by giving them training and education on how to give innovative and result oriented care to handle some of the most disturbing behaviors from dementia patients (Smithers et al, 2007). This section of the dissertation therefore reviews related literature that touches on some of the key innovative ways of addressing challenging behaviour through training in three major areas as reviewed below. 2.1 Non-Pharmacological Approaches to Managing Dementia 2.1.1 Psychosocial intervention for managing dementia Recent studies have actually pointed to the realisation that training in the use of psychosocial intervention for managing dementia is an effective way of handing challenging behaviour in dementia patients (Cohen-Mansfield, Libin & Marx, 2007). The singular reason for the effectiveness of the psychosocial intervention is in the fact that it is multi-active and thus makes use of several approaches that addresses multi-complexity issues about the patient. For instance as part of the psychosocial intervention, social, individual as well as environmental factors of the causes of the challenging behaviour may all be catered for in one pile (Davison, et al, 2007). In a very modern perspective, this intervention could be judged as highly viable because dementia as a cognitive problem does not associate its cause to just one risk factor. This means that the kind of interventions that are prescribed for its solutions must also well be varying in nature like psychosocial interventions. Indeed, practitioners who receive training and education in psychosocial intervention in managing dementia would come to the realisation that their patients are as much relevant in the solution as the caregivers themselves. This way, the practitioners would not see patients who put up challen ging behaviour as elements of problems that must be avoided but rather as companions for a common goal who should be aided to come to terms with how best they can play their part in the solution. 2.1.2 Individualized interventions for patients Even though most commentators have rooted for the use of standardised interventions for handling problematic patients who exhibit challenging behaviour as part of the dementia symptoms, there continues to be some modern researchers who believe interventions for catering for problematic dementia patients should be individualised (O'Connor et al, 2009). By individualised interventions, reference is being made to that kind of approach that sees each patient among the lot as a distinguishably different person who demands personalised approach to his or her problems (McCabe, Davison & George, 2007). Relating to this training and education for caregivers, it is said that the trainee should first and foremost possess an attitude that recognises the p eculiarity of each person and must have a very huge heart to accommodate all such differences. This means that the trainee ought to adapt him or herself in such a way that he or she would use a kind of communication that meets the understanding of the patient. There should also be practical management strategies that focus on the needs of the patient. Finally, it is important to recognise the need to have enough patience for patients to recover at their own rate. The later is indeed a major

Comparative essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Comparative - Essay Example In O’Connor’s work, the protagonist is not clear while in Abagnale’s, it is Frank. However, given that the Misfit is given a lot of focus, majority describe him as the protagonist in A Good Man Is Hard to Find. If this is the case, then it is apparent that both protagonists- Frank and The Misfit live as villains at the formative and medial stages of the two literary works (O’Connor, 6). At the same time, as the movie and the story approach denouement, the characters switch to different ways of dealing with their problems. For instance, The Misfit switches to an internal monologue when the grandmother presents the message of the Gospel to him. He debates inwardly, the existence of Jesus Christ, since he thinks that Christ had not made physical manifestations of Himself to prove His existence on one hand. On the other hand, he is concerned that he may be displeasing Christ, in the event that it turns out that He exists. All these happen in The Misfit’s mind as he decides also, whether he should shoot the grandmother or not. According to Price, this is not the case with Frank who has to make split second decisions when he is being trailed by an FBI agent, Carl. He hurriedly leaves Brenda, hoping that they can unite later. When their place of meeting is invaded by FBI agents, he leaves immediately (5). Both Frank and The Misfit show bitterness and recoil when confronted with the pain of being abandoned by their parents. When the grandmother tries to preach to The Misfit, he retorts that life has no pleasure but meanness. When the grandmother attempts to inquire some more and approach The Misfit, he recoils and shoots three times. When Frank happens upon his mother, her mother’s lover and stepsister, he gets agitated and turns himself up to be handed a 12 year prison sentence. This shows that like The Misfit, Frank totally rejects his parental figures (mothers) because of the pain of the past. The implication of the foregoing

Greek Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Greek Art - Essay Example It also absorbed ideas from Italian and European arts during the Romantic period. These ideas invigorated the Greek revolution which is, arguably, still taking place today. Greek art is made up of five forms which include: pottery, painting, architecture, jewelry making and sculpture (Maphosa 4). Modern Greek art is as a result of gradual development of the ancient which started during the Romantic period. Many of its elements were absorbed from other European arts and consequently culminated in a unique Greek Romantic art style (Smith and Plantzos 633). This was inspired by the country’s history and geography as well as revolutionary ideals. After the end of the Ottoman rule, education opportunities in arts were limited in independent Greece and, therefore, many Greece artists studied abroad. Majority of the Greece artists of the 19th century studied at Munich International Center for arts (Smith and Plantzos 698). After graduation, they returned to Greece and shared their knowledge with the Greek community. This led to the development of personal and academic bonds between Munich artistry and early Greek painters which in turn gave birth to the Greek Munich School of painting. Nikolaos Gysis was one of the great figures in the 19th century Greek art because he acted as both an artist and a teacher at the Munich academy (Smith and Plantzos 700). The Greek art was characterized by realism, academism, landscape painting, still life, genre painting, portraiture of the upper middle class, and impressionists’ features. Later these features were replaced by symbolism and art Nouveau. In the 20th century, Greek art was represented by many artists who were more interested in living conditions, local customs, and everyday Greek life (Norris 174). Many gifted painters emerged such as Theodoros Vryzakis, Nikiphoros Lytras, Georgios Jakobides, and Georgios Roilos among others. Theodoros

Strategic Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 5

Strategic Management - Essay Example ff and this along with their loyalty and commitment ahs made them what they are today- unqualified leadership in the entertainment and media industry. Another name in the reckoning is that of News Corporation, which again has drawn heavily from its diversification plans, both in US and abroad. As a matter of fact, the non US revenues of NC is much higher than that of its US earnings, which is one of the main reasons that it has sustained itself in the market for long, and provided strong competition to giants like Walt Disney, Time Warner, etc. Coming to the Walt Disney, this corporation needs to undertake massive diversification and expansion plans, in line with what its major competitors are doing. This could be seen in make a more emphatic presence in areas like digital cable, video on demand services, and owns cable networks. Again it also needs to trim its work force and make it more accountable and productive. By pursuing a lean yet efficient workforce strategy, it could become more efficient and cost conscious. Besides, there is need for greater degree of streamlining its resource systems, and adopting strategic plans in tune with current requirements of business to remain on top. With a large number of players in the industry and potential rivals on the anvil, it is also necessary that WD takes up some innovation plans and modernizes its business to entail newer growth avenues. The future of the entertainment electronics was never so immense, albeit challenging and it is now for WD to take up this challenge gratefully and prove that it is indeed a worthy contender in the genre of entertainment for a long time to come. By plunging into the deeper realms entertainment business, it has perhaps everything to win and nothing to

MOZARTS REQUIEM Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

MOZARTS REQUIEM - Term Paper Example He started composing music from the age of five and also played before the royalty. He travelled widely, with a penchant for performing. He had also performed before the European royalty at a very early age. There was always a search for a better position, leading him to change places and compos with a lot of regularity. While on a visit to Vienna in the year 1781, he faced dismissal from the position at Salzburg. He stayed on at Vienna, but the financial security was much lesser. The final years in Vienna were extremely productive, with the composition of a number of pieces. The part that we would concentrate on is the Requiem. It was one of his most important works, but was left in an unfinished state for most part. The situation that led to his death has been a subject of folklore, with a number of interpretations doing the rounds. Mozart learned the art from a lot of the other musicians, with the compositions straddling both worlds. Some of the compositions are very light in the constitution, while some of the others are extremely dark. The body of his work is very elaborate, with over six hundred pieces, and many of them have been taken as the best in symphony, concert ante and other forms of music. He had been an inspiration to some of the other leading lights, including Beethoven; who was inspired by him. He was the youngest one among seven, children; five of whom had died in infancy. His father, Leopold Mozart was a minor composer in the court of the Count of Salzburg. It can be noted that Leopold was a devoted teacher to his son, the young Mozart. It can be also said, that Mozart wanted to progress beyond the teaching given by his father. Alongside conventional music, he also taught Mozart academic subjects. He and his sister were considered to be child prodigies. All of the concerts began with the concerts at Munich, going on to the courts of Vienna and Prague. The tour lasted for almost three and a half years, ending through the cities of Zurich. Moz art was influenced by a number of composers during that period. Some of the most famous names include the individuals like Bach. The trips of the family were often done in the conditions, which were not conducive for travel. In the year 1769, Mozart and his father again left for travel, which took them through many places. They finished the travel by the year 1771. Leopold, his father had hoped for some kind of appointment in the courts of Italy, but it never materialized. In the year 1777, Mozart resigned from the position at Salzburg, and went in to travel in different parts of Europe like Munich and Paris. Mozart fell ill in the year 1791 during the premier of an opera, which was written as a part of the responsibilities for the emperor’s coronation. But, he kept on performing most of the functions, and also had the premiere of the play. The deterioration of health became more evident on the 20th November of same year, making him bedridden. He started to suffer from pain, vomiting and swelling in the joints. Mozart was looked after in the final times by his wife and her sister. He was also attended by the family doctor Thomas Franz Closset. During that period, he was occupied with the creation of Requiem, which was the last of his seminal works. This is one of the reasons, why it has been chosen for writing this paper. THE REQUIEM The Requiem written by Mozart was one of the finest works by the composer. The fact that it was written during the final years of his life, further makes it more important. It was left in an unfinished state by the composer, and was finished after the death of the composer on December 5. The completed copy was sent to Count

Security Management Annotated Bibliography Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Security Management - Annotated Bibliography Example These different ways are meant to ensure the security of these facilities and minimize or entirely prevent disasters that may be brought about by them not being rigid. Some of these ways include: type of construction, access to the site, the height of the building and even location among other ways. According to Hayes, (2003) the traditional methods of loss prevention seem not to be working and especially in multi-million dollar companies hence putting the security of their assets in jeopardy. The senior management in these companies has decided on using technology as a contemporary measure to prevent further loss and protect the assets of the customers. This technology as a contemporary measure requires linkage with other managers in the business for it to be successful. According to the article, managers have always viewed security in terms of guards (physical security) as a form of security management. However, with cases of the guards and other physical security measures starting to be outdated and outmaneuvered by the information security system, the management has started adopting this by increasing the budget they allocate to the security dockets in their companies and this has gone way ahead to yield positive results as loss is prevented more without any injuries being inflicted on security

Serving Justice in the Case of Billy Budd Essay Example for Free

Serving Justice in the Case of Billy Budd Essay From the case of Billy Budd, one must ponder about several important questions in regards to the power of the law and the extent to which it should be recognized. â€Å"Although Billy Budd killed Claggart unintentionally, he was aware that striking a superior officer was a serious offense, however, Claggart had provoked him by accusing him of organizing a mutiny† (Hunte). Thus, Billy Budd is described as the following, â€Å"His simple nature remained unsophisticated by those moral obliquities which are not in every case incompatible with that manufacturable thing known as respectability† (Melville). Perhaps Melville is emphasizing the point that Billy is some sort of special moral being, completely incapable of conceiving evil and bearing malice. Perchance, the case of Billy Budd should not be manipulated to fit the law; rather the law should be made to fit the case. In society, laws are made to serve justice and to protect individuals. Each case has unique circumstances and no one case is the same. Therefore, in order for justice to be served, the laws should be interpreted differently in each case. Captain Vere has illustrated his realization that this case has special circumstances, stating that â€Å"This case is an exceptional one† (Melville). Everyone on the Bellipotent knows Billy for his kindness; Billy even has attempted to befriend Claggart. By sentencing Billy to death, the Drumhead Court would eliminate a kind-spirited and hard-working man from the ship. Billy’s good heart and benevolent nature show that he is not likely to kill another man in the future, and killing him wont protect any individuals. Since a law is made for serving justice and protecting people, and sentencing Billy to death does neither. Furthermore, there are many things that make this case unique, and that need to be taken into consideration when devising Billy’s punishment. When considering this case, one must recognize that Billy Budd is crippled. It is true that he is not noticeably mentally or physically handicapped, but he does have a disability. In a situation where any other person would be able to speak up for himself, Billy was unable to. He has a condition that prevents him from verbalizing his thoughts when he feels very strongly about a certain topic or situation, which causes him to stutter. When Claggart accused Billy of conspiring with his fellow sailors, Billy could not verbally defend himself. As a result, he defended himself in the only way that he could, by striking Claggart across the head, causing his death. Because of his inability to protect his honor with words, Billys use of physical force was somewhat justified. Because every case is unique, and laws are made to properly serve justice leaving those responsible with clear consciences, they should not be made so strict that they do not allow for manipulation and mitigation depending on the situation at hand. Billy Budd’s case is unique for many reasons, including his own disability, and Billy’s lack of malicious intent. Through the eyes of an individual, Bill Budd can perhaps be viewed as innocent. Can one not support Bills actions of self defense? In order for justice be made, the case should shape the law and not the law mold the case as it happened in Billy Budd. Works Cited Billy Budd Morality and Ethics Quotes Page 1. shmoop. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Feb. 2013. http://www.shmoop.com/billy-budd/morality-ethics-quotes.html. Erudite , Mann. Literature Criticism.Literary Works. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Feb. 2013. http://www.mannmuseum.com/essay-serving-justice-in-the-case-of-billy-budd/ Hunte, Richard. West Port Wolf Pack .World Literature. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Feb. 2013. www.marion.k12.fl.us/schools/wph/teacher Melville, Herman. Billy Budd. Raleigh, N.C.: Alex Catalogue, 199. Print.

Understanding The Concept Of Gender Mainstreaming Sociology Essay

Understanding The Concept Of Gender Mainstreaming Sociology Essay This report is about gender mainstreaming which entered the mainstream of international public policy in September 1995, when it featured in the platform for Action of the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing where most nations have signed the Platform. The report present the background and the foundation of gender mainstreaming and discusses why, how and outcome of gender mainstreaming application in the institution and some problems and restrictions will be presented which may hinder the process of mainstreaming. 2.0 Background The road to guaranteeing equality between men and women began some decades back, and progress was made in certain sectors of society but we still a long way far from being to announce and state that equality exists in terms of womens access too all of society sphere. Access has been restricted in areas of power or those requiring further education which has lead to the glass ceiling phenomena which still exist up to now in most organizations and institutions. There has been always efforts and progressive approaches to achieve equality for women in the society and the main concern was over womens issues and womens access and opportunity to the different positions in the society. In the 1970s, which this period called the period of individual rights women in development (WID) main focus was on how women could better be integrated into existing development initiatives and was regarded as beneficiaries rather than full member of development. This approach has relevance to women only which had the effect of isolation and marginalizing of women n the decision making. In the 1980s, which this period called the period of specific action due to the ineffectiveness and limited approach of the (WID), it became an evident that a new paradigm was needed to explain the relationship between women and men, Gender and Development GAD approach was different from WID and is it approach was: The gender is not a women issue but both men and women Both men and women have different and special needs. Women can not be treated as homogenous group. Women are disadvantaged to men The inequality between men and women is systemic and structural. Gender equality and equity in institutions and organization must be looked at with the understanding the complex lives of people and in order to have an effective gender analysis, must make a practical explaining the differences n mens and womens lives and helping to produce policies and programs that reduce inequalities. The concept of gender mainstreaming was first proposed at the 1985 Third world Conference on Women in Nirobi and was developed further by the United Nation development community and is recognized as a global strategy for the promotion of gender equality. The idea of gender mainstreaming was formally featured in 1995 at the Fourth Conference on women which was held in Beijing. The UN Economic and Social Council defined the concept of gender mainstreaming as: Mainstreaming a gender perspective is the process of assessing the implications for women and men of any planned action, including legislation, policies or programs, in all areas and at all levels. It is a strategy for making womens as well as ens concerns and experiences an integral dimension of the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programs in all political, economic and societal spheres so that women and men can benefit equally and inequality is not perpetuated. The ultimate goal is to achieve gender equality. The importance of gender mainstreaming has been widely discussed since governments committed to the concept in Beijing Platform for Action in1995. It has become a generally accepted procedure that gender equality is a prerequisite for a sustainable human development. Gender mainstreaming is an essential strategy not only for attaining gender equality, but also for the sustainable development of societies as whole. National womens machineries (NWM) around the globe have been grappling with the complex task of turning concepts into reality to implement gender mainstreaming strategies. Gender mainstreaming incorporates the GAD perspective and aims to look the relationships between men and women in their access to and control over resources, decision making and benefits and rewards within a particular system. The system could be an institution, organization, a government or a department society. The mainstream refer to an inter-related set of dominant ideas, values, practices, institutions and organizations that determine who gets what within a society. The ideas and practices within the mainstream tend to reflect an reinforce each other and thus provide a rationale for any given allocation of societal resources and opportunities. Being part of the mainstream means that women and men have equitable access to resources, including opportunities and rewards. It implies equal participation influencing what is valued in shaping options within society. Becoming part of the mainstream means sharing equitable in the benefits of development. Becoming part of the mainstream offers the opportunity to influence who does what in a society, who won what, who has access to jobs and income, who controls the societys resources and institutions, who makes decisions and who sets priorities. Gender mainstreaming is a long term, complex and multi dimensional process that focuses on the needs of both men and women in order to achieve the optimal development and equality in the organization, gender streaming can defined as follows: Is a process or a strategy to work toward the goal of gender equality and it is not and end in itself. It is an approach to governance that makes mens and womens concerns and experience and integral part of the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programs in all sectors of society. It involves changing policies and institutions so that they actively promote gender equality. It is a long term, transformative process that involves rethinking socio-cultural values and development goals. The gender mainstreaming involve not restricting efforts to promote equality to the implementation of specific measures to help women, but mobilizing all general policies and measure specifically for the purpose of achieving equality by actively and openly taking the account at the planning stage their possible effects on the perspective situation of men and women. An effective gender mainstreaming policy consists of four steps: Getting organized is on implementation and organization, and building awareness and ownership. Implementation and organization of gender mainstreaming refers to the process of providing a structural and cultural basis of equal opportunity. This includes formulation of objectives and targets, making a plan and drawing a budget and defining responsibilities and accountability of the different actors involved. All stakeholders involved in the policy should take equal opportunities of men and women in account. Training is essential in order to create a certain degree of gender awareness and expertise. Learning about gender differences, a description of the actual situation is essential in order to access actual gender inequality. In addition, monitoring the situation over time and making an assessment such as participation (group/population) such as the share of men and women in unemployment, among the disabled or among those with flexible contracts. Resources such as access or distribution of time, money, space, information, political and economic power. Norms and values such as influence gender roles, gender division of labor, the altitude of men and women. Values attached to men and women. It is essential to identify the role of policy measures in reinforcing social norms and values that maintain gender inequality. Rights pertain to direct or indirect sex discrimination, human rights, and access to justice in the legal, political or socio-economic environment. Assessing the policy impact is to analyze the potential gender impact of the policy with reference to participation, resources, norms and values and rights. Both quantitative and qualitative aspects should be taken account of participant. Its important to differentiate between particular groups of men and women such as ethnic minority groups, age groups, and regional groups. Its the changing policies and institutions so that they actively promote gender equality. It is a long term transformative process that involves rethinking socio-cultural values, development goals and redesigning policies to identify ways in which the policy could be redesigned to promote gender equality in the even of having negative impact on gender equality or to be broadly gender neutral. An effective gender mainstreaming policy diagram 3.0 Gender Streaming why, how and outcome: 3.1 Why Gender Streaming Gender mainstreaming is an important aspect of good governance. It seeks to ensure that institutions, organizations, policies and programs respond to the needs and interests of women as well as men and distribute benefits equally and justice for women and men. Thus enhancing the accountability of organizations / governments to achieve results for all citizens. The gender mainstreaming process does not mean a move away from specific women programs, special measures or women specific activities may still be required to address inequalities. Reducing poverty, boosting economic growth and strengthening citizenship is a proactive process designed to tackle inequalities which can discriminate against either sex. Gender mainstreaming is not only about women but it is also about men and society in general. It is also important for both men and women to feel comfortable as pat of the gender mainstreaming process and must play an active role in ensuring gender equality. It will benefit the organization directly in terms of improving its image, credibility ad enhancing their political capital. Mainstreaming can play an important role in eliminating sexual harassment and unprofessional attitudes towards people involved in gender work are series barriers that may not be easily surmountable through good augmentation strategies. Gender sensitivity and efforts to change attitudes within organization structure are vital elements in the gender mainstreaming process. Gender mainstreaming may load to changes which give women and men equal access to the operation, power and resources. In addition the mainstreaming will have a direct effect on the effective service of the organization and better distribution of resources for both men and women. It will lead also to more legal security, better democracy in that women and men are treated equally and a better grasp of gender equality policy and of the needs of those who use the organizations services. Why gender mainstreaming can be summarized as follows: Target major economic and social policies that deliver resources Make good economic sense ensuring that women as well as men are active, using full of the productive labor force. Represent a further step in the search for equality. Gender is the one of the most fundamental organizing features in society and affects our lives from the moment we are born. Recognition of male and female identities and recognizes that differences exist in mens and womens lives and therefore our needs, experience and priorities are different. Willingness to establish a balanced distribution of responsibilities between women and men. Needs determined political action and support with clear indicators and targets. Will not happen overnight, it is a continuous process. Equal division of power and influence between women and men. Women and men shall have the same rights and opportunities to be active citizens and to shape the conditions for decision making. Economic equality between women and men. Women and men shall have the same opportunities and conditions with regard to education and paid work that provide lifelong economic independence. Men violence against women must stop. Women and men shall have equal rights and opportunities in terms of physical integrity. 3.2 How, Gender Mainstreaming Gender mainstreaming in any organizations policy must first take stock to determine where equality needs to be established. We need a clear idea of the political measure for change. Previously such measures were usually understood to the promotion of women, thus the new strategy is called the gender mainstreaming which combined political perspective should then provide and idea of what must be changed, how, and with what means. All measures must first be checked for their political effects for both sexes and implemented only of they contribute to gender equality. Many measures must still contribute essentially to the promotion of women, that is, the dismantling of structural disadvantages for women, and to active gender equality. Gender mainstreaming resides in gender controlling, that is, in the analysis of each and every political activity from the perspective of its contribution to the establishment of equal opportunity. For such an analysis to be successful, expert knowledge, gender competence, and power must come together. Expert knowledge refers to knowledge of processes, that is, one must have a through knowledge of the legal, political, and bureaucratic conditions of the given field of action. Gender competence signifies the development of critical view of gender that will help to recognize gender hierarchies. Pointing out general patriarchal structures is no longer enough; rather, subtle processes of constrictions on men as well as women must be recognized. Power also means the power to define problems in any given situation by pointing and filtering out issues that needs and require action in order modify its situation. The inequalities exist in the organization is part of the domain of knowledge that would have to be made broadly available and should not remain in the hands of only a few specialists and mainstreaming means introducing gender relations in all themes and the fields they cover. A key point of gender mainstreaming is the demand that gender questions be made an obligatory theme in all areas, and a special theme for only a few. Giving this approach a political and legal foundation that is, as a measure applied from above will certainly makes things easier for activities struggling for general equality from below. But how to approach the theme, where it belongs, and how it is to be pursued remain largely open and needs expert recommendations. The different pattern of participation of the sexes in the varies departments and levels of the institution must be achieved, this apply to all people within the institutions. We need acknowledgment that unequal distributions are a problem and obstacle in equality, such an acknowledgment is relevant in identifying and applying the particular policies to achieve equality. Gender mainstreaming involves varies actions to be determined in order to formulate a policy of gender integration to achieve the final outcome, these actions include: Carefully assessing the situation of women and men in the organizing and identifying the different vulnerable groups of women and men and thats include ethnic minorities, disabled in relation to the objectives we need to achieve in our work. Determining the steps needed to improve the gender equality within the organization in order to support this improvement. Tracking the progress of mainstreaming with indicators or other means of monitoring the gender equality related issues. Raising awareness about gender equality problems, obstacles and the importance of adopting a gender prospective. Building a capacity program among the organization and partners to adopt a gender sensitive approach. Ensuring visibility of the gender dimensions of the activities in the organization with proper documentation, reports, seminars and public information materials. Sex disaggregated data and statistics Skills and opportunities to carry out gender analysis. Effective monitoring and evaluation systems and tools. Effective communication, networks and linkages Skilled human resource base Civil society participation. 3.3 Outcome of Gender Mainstreaming Gender mainstreaming was established as a global strategy for achieving gender equality, and in turn for achieving sustainable economic development in the 1995 Beijing platform for action ratified by all United Nations member states. It is now incumbent upon nation-states and international organizations to carry out gender mainstreaming and as such, has achieved widespread endorsement by individuals governments, regional suptra state bodies such as the European Union, the Nordic Council of Ministries and the Organization of American States, the United nations and its varies agencies, the Organization foe Economic Cooperation and Development and the Council of Europe. Gender mainstreaming is a process rather than a goal, where efforts to integrate gender into existing institutions of the mainstream have little value for their own sake. Mainstream gender concerns to achieve gender equality and improve the relevance of development agendas. Such an approach shows that the cost of womens marginalization and gender inequality are born by all. Gender mainstreaming include attempts to establish a gender-equality perspective across all policy areas, even where the gender issues at stake may be not immediately apparent, and where the impact of mainstreaming policy on gender relations is often indirect. Gender mainstreaming is neither conceived of as an achievement in itself nor as a liberal policy to include women in decision making roles, rather it is conceived as a strategy to re-invent the process of policy design, implementation and evaluation by taking into account the gender specific and often diverse interests and values of differently situated women and men. All accounts of gender mainstreaming imply significant changes to gendered institutions, a range of different visions or models of gender equality have been invoked. Three main models of gender equality have been identified: The first model is one in which equality based on sameness is fostered, especially where women enter previously male domains and this known as the transformations of gender relations. The second in which there is a move towards the equal valuation of existing and different contributions of women and men in a gender segregated society known as tailoring situations to fit the needs of the women. The third is one in where there is a new standard for both men and women, which is the transformation of gender relations in which there are new standards for everyone, replacing the segregated institutions and standards associated with masculinity and femininity. Gender mainstreaming is highly diverse with uneven impacts, it is situated within the development of global politics, multi forms of governance and diverse discourses of human rights. All gender mainstreaming agendas and policies must should be evaluated from the perspective of whether or not it reduces or increases gender inequalities, unfair and unequal gender outcomes can be redresses. Gender equality and justice thus rely on the creative and technical capacity of gender analysis and gender specialists in the institutions. The gender mainstreaming main aim and the resulting goal is to help to transform a society to better gender equality, the result of such an events can be difficult to identify and track. The signs of the outcome of the gender streaming may be observed after a long term and can be identified by the increase in equality and the development results may include: Womens increased access to and control over a societys development resources and opportunities. Reduction in poverty for both women and men assessed through several indicators associated with areas where significant gender gaps exist, such as health and income. More equitable participation in decision making concerning allocation of development resources that might produce results such as improved health service delivery or better access to opportunities. Improved media images of womens roles in relationship and society, promoting women as individuals with full human rights and discouraging intolerance and violence against women. The emergence of committed gender-sensitive leaders, planers and implementers, both men and women applying gender analysis to their work on a regular basis. Identification of gender focal points in various government ministries with the capacity to provide leadership and accountability. The provision of adequate resources for the collection and analysis of sex disaggregated data, particularly to track impact of policies and programming. Putting mechanism in place to facilitate regular consultation and validation of policy decisions with civil society groups and organizations promoting gender equality. 4.0 Possible Problems or restrictions of gender mainstreaming Gender mainstreaming is a new strategy which has not been a great success so far, and essentially contested form of feminist politics and policy, existing in the tension between the mainstream and interventions to secure gender equality. The gender mainstreaming in development policies has been limited by its discursive construction as well as the failure to empower key gendered actors and its development has been uneven and weakened by its subordination to other policy goals. Gender mainstreaming has been criticized as a confusing conceptual framework at best, and at worst, a force that has totally undermined womens rights. Some say that it has resulted in the disappearance of attention to womens specific needs and the gender differentiated impacts of policies and programs. Mainstreaming has been described as a deceptive simple concept that is likely to be extremely difficult to operationlize and as an extraordinary demanding concept, which requires the adoption of a gender perspective by all the central actors in the policy process. Most Organizations embrace mainstreaming without implementing the extensive ground work and structural change that is necessary to ensure effective outcomes. Gender mainstreaming has emerged as a strategy in a period in which many governments and organizations have been anxious to reduce the costs and burdens imposed on market actors. Present approaches to macroeconomics have tended to reinforce a simplistic anti-poverty agenda that is incompatible wit process of gender mainstreaming. The lack of general understanding of what gender mainstreaming entails in practical terms and a lack of access to support mechanism and the gaps between policy and practice, with particular challenges to inadequate institutional mechanism, including the area of data collection, accountability, monitoring, reporting and training, as well as inadequate resource allocation. Other factors which hindered and restricted the gender mainstreaming include: Women organization may influence the outcome of mainstreaming due to their claim that streaming is not the appropriate procedure to achieve equality and feel that their situation will even become worse than before. The policy of gender mainstreaming sometime will lead to the abandonment of specific, positive actions on behalf of women and the particular policies on behalf of women may be discontinued and the equal opportunity unit will be weakened in the name of mainstreaming. There is a far that gender mainstreaming might be an attempt to integrate womens work to cut down costs and to downsize staff and the fear of some women is that it might lead to integration and elimination of womens movement and therefore lad to invisibility rather than to transformation. Many of the initiative undertaken under its mandate fail to create and legally enforceable rights, such as equal pay. The promise of the mainstreaming approach lies not in the short term creation of legally enforceable rights, but in the long term transformation of the policy process to serve the goal of equal opportunity between women and men. Political will and leadership: Understanding and commitment from authorities is obviously crucial to creating an enabling environment for the implementation of gender mainstreaming. Formal acknowledgement from political leaders that gender equality is an essential component of sustainable development is a starting point. Policy framework: without a formal policy in place related to gender streaming, often the results will be weak and missed. Unavailable of Sufficient Resources: without sufficient of resources, the commitment to gender streaming will not be achieved. Resources must be allocated to support the structure and practice required of mainstreaming. Sex-disaggregated and data information system: Information are not available to assure that there differences in circumstances and opportunities between women and men in order to provide the basis for policy and program development and evaluations. Tools and knowledge for gender analysis is not available and missing, such as inappropriate person in key position, lack of understanding concerning national gender equality and rational, scarce human, financial and technical resources, a lack of incentives / recognition rewards, lack of professionalism or political skills within the organization who will be responsible for establishing linage with other agencies and government departments. 5.0 Steps and procedures needed to address issues in mainstreaming Gender mainstreaming is relatively new phenomena and drives from only 20 years experience and the main procedure needed to the successful polices of mainstreaming is capacity building and training is needed to ensure and enhance the system gender sensitivity and gender expertise and these include: Integrate a gender perspective into all training programs. Provide continuous gender training for all staff, including those at the highest levels. Provide special training for gender experts to enhance their skills. Ensure that specialized gender expertise is available to them. Coordinate their training efforts though a system-wide evaluation of the impact of gender training. Gender disaggregated statistics and indicators to be collected and analyzed. Information exchange on gender mainstreaming within organization in particular women watch groups. Provide gender sensitive public information activities and materials to all concerned parties. In addition all problems and restrictions of gender mainstreaming of previous section can be avoided in order to not to hinder the development policies of gender mainstreaming. 6.0 Conclusion The gender mainstreaming is relatively new and has taken a center stage in the world order since the United Nations Conferences in Cairo, Copenhagen and Beijing have created very important aspects for women equality and rights to move the International development agenda from small scale to emphasizing the importance of gender mainstreaming in impacting the status of women in economics, social and political development. The mainstreaming gender equality is a commitment of organization to ensure that womens as well as mens concerns are the main parameters of the design policy in order to achieve equality for all sexes and to shatter the glass ceiling.

Medea by Euripides | Plot Summary

Medea by Euripides | Plot Summary Crazed Mother Medea relates to real life if you watch the news and hear about ex-lovers ending their relationships with murder or suicide. Medea is willing to sacrifice everything to make her revenge perfect. Medea shows her complete necessity for revenge when she says, â€Å"anyone running between me and my justice will reap what no man wants.† Not only does she kill two children, she kills her own two innocent children, because she does not want the kids in Jasons hands. This type of crazed revenge is seen too often in todays society. The play Medea can be interpreted as a crazy mother who takes her heart broken anger out on her own innocent children. At the beginning of the play, the Nurse talks about the years when Medea and Jason were in love. She mentions how she was broken by saying, â€Å"but Jason has turned from her; he calls the old bond a barbarian mating, not a Greek marriage.† Jason harshly betrays Medea and it is obvious that it is going to lead to violence and rage when Medea says, â€Å"And when I have ruined the whole of Jasons house, I shall leave the land and flee from the murder of my Dear children, and I shall have done a dreadful deed.† Medea has set her plan to ruin Jasons life by taking her childrens. Jason is very arrogant, but is he really the hero he is made up to be? Medea knows she made Jason who he is when she says, â€Å"I gave him success and fame; I saved him his precious life, not once, many times†¦I betrayed my father for him, I killed my brother to save him.† The reason why Jason is where he is at in his life is because of Medea. She did all the dirty work for Jason, but he repays her by running off and marrying the beautiful girl. Jason does not understand that the reason he holds power is from Medea. This arrogance is one of the reasons why Medea is so enraged at Jason. Medea gives many hints throughout the play of her final act of retaliation. As the story progresses the need to seek revenge also builds inside of her. The initial signs of Medeas potential behavior appear at the beginning of the play when the Nurse tells how Medea is emotionally hurt. The Nurse says, â€Å"But Medea lies in the house, broken with pain and rage; she will neither eat nor drink.† It is completely natural to want revenge on something that has stung you in the past. Medea comes right out and tells Jason that something is going to happen, â€Å"Something might happen. It is†¦likely†¦that something might happen to the bride and the marriage.† Medea bluntly tells Jason that something will happen to disrupt his marriage and she will have revenge for what Jason has done to her. Medea showed her first signs of craziness when she killed her family members and others to get what she wanted. She offers more signs of her future behavior when she screams out in her mind about what she will do, â€Å"What I need: all dead, all dead, all dead, under the great cold stones. For a year and a thousand years and another thousand: cold as stones, cold, but noble again, proud, strait, and silent, crimson-cloaked in the blood of our wounds.† Medea wants all that have betrayed her to be dead. Even though Jason is still living, his pride and everything he had, like his children and the princess, is dead. She says that once it has all been completed she will be proud, and noble. This self-reflection is a major give away toward her crazy inner soul. In Medea, the three Corinthian women often show signs that they are afraid of Medea. One of the Corinthian women says, â€Å"They say she is dangerous. Look at her eyes.† The women tell us that Medea is filled with crazed rage and will do something dangerous. One of the Corinthian women says, â€Å"Women hate war, but men will wage it again. Women may hate their husbands, and sons, and fathers, but women will never hate their children.† This statement says that Medea will hate her husband, but she did not hate her children even though she killed them, and this is ultimately what makes her crazy. Medea also shows many heroic qualities, especially when she is willing to kill her own brother to be with Jason. When she kills her brother, she shows that she is willing to do whatever is necessary to get the job done. Medea has been not only cheated, but also betrayed by Jason. She will not tolerate this abuse from him and does something about it. Medea says to Creon, â€Å"You see a woman driven half mad with sorrow, laboring to save her little children.† Medea builds up enough courage to confront Jason and get revenge. There are two main reasons why Medea decides to kill her children. The first is that she feels that it is a perfect way to complement the death of the princess in getting revenge on Jason. When she tells the chorus of the plans to kill the children, they wonder if she has the heart to kill her children, and Medea answers, â€Å"yes, for this is the best way to wound my husband.† This shows that she believes that by killing her children, she will basically ruin Jasons life and succeed in her revenge. The second reason for Medea killing her children has nothing to do with revenge. If she left her children with Jason, they would be living in a society that would look down upon them since they do not have pure goddess origins. Since she does not want to leave her children with Jason, they really have no place else to go, â€Å"my children, there is none who can give them safety.† Medea decides that killing her children is the best way to get both revenge, and the assurance that her children are not in Jasons hands. Medea ends the play with her crazed mind when she stabs her two innocent kids to death. She confronts Jason with the dead children and taunts him as she walks on saying, â€Å"I do not leave my childrens bodies with thee; I take them with me that I may bury them in Heras precinct. And for thee, who didst me all that evil, I prophesy an evil doom.† Medea shows her craziness throughout the entire play.

Rethinking Technology in Education :: Technology Essays

Over the past decade, many billions of dollars have been invested in computer hardware, software, and network access for our nation's schools. This unprecedented support for school technology has come about as a result of the confluence of a number influences. The historical foundations of public education in America; the introduction of the personal computer; and a cultural history that seems to make Americans particularly susceptible (though perhaps not uniquely so) to the idea that "technology is good, that it is value-free, that it should find application in many fields, disciplines, and aspects of our lives." (Kerr 1996) have come together at a time, and in a way, that has caused society to view computers in schools in a uniformly positive way. The paradigm embracing computers in schools has to this point, become so reified that teachers, administrators, and community leaders have seemingly come to view the acquisition of hardware, software, and access capabilities as an end unt o itself. This paper examines technology in education by looking historically at the implementation of educational technology before the computer; looking at the implementation of computers in a social context, by arguing for the need to broaden the current discourse about computers in education, and by suggesting a framework around which this broadened discourse may be shaped. In spite of many predictions that teachers, schools, and textbooks would see their demise at the hands of new technologies of teaching and learning, schools seem to have grown increasingly rooted over the years and seem to have tendencies to remain highly traditional institutions. Computers and computing networks are the most recent in a long line of educational technologies that were looked at as the catalysts for transformative change with the power to revolutionize the way that schools taught and the way that students learned. In order to understand the context of how computers and computing networks have come to be viewed and understood in the education field, it is helpful to first examine how technology has typically been both viewed and implemented for use in schools by teachers, students, and school administrators. Despite its centuries-old status, the moveable type printing press appears to be the gold standard, against which all other technological innovations in education are now measured. The movable type printing press made possible, "new patterns of knowledge development, storage, and distribution," (Meyrowitz 1996) and thus, ultimately helped to shape the way that we, as a society, have come to view schools and learning.

Using the Internet as a Medium for Art Essay -- Computers Technology W

Using the Internet as a Medium for Art â€Å" This is my space, this is my world. I can express how I feel and what I believe, it’s a different type of freedom.†(1) This quote could speak of so many places in a creative world; a university, a gallery, a bedroom, a studio, and so many others that people commonly associate with artistic space however it refers to none of these and all of these at once. I am talking about the web. The web is a new space and like all technology pushed to its limits by artists. This essay will discuss the impact that new technologies have had on the young and emerging visual artist. In particular this essay will focus on the advantages that the internet as a medium has had over a new generation of artists that are coming into being. Starting with the tools that have been developed to create works and early examples of ‘net art.’ The essay shall also move on to websites being a new genre of art onto themselves. I shall show examples of websites that explore the many possibilities and capabilities that this new ‘web art’ genre has created and how people have exploited them to great advantage. Looking at browser based art that has been created for and only exists within the confines of a browser window. The essay shall end exploring how websites are also a medium for artists young and old, new media and traditional to deliver their work to a new audience not accessible to them before internet technology became a household standard. As stated in the introduction, many, if not all technologies are used by artists and pushed to its limits. The internet is no exception. Originally developed for and by the US Department of Defense in 1969 it quickly grew from 3 computers to hundreds and then thousand... ...nt† http://www.ihasz.com 8. Unknown Author (2000-current) â€Å"Deviant Art† http://www.deviantart.com 9. Thorson, Joshua (2003) â€Å"Clock Work Crow† http://www.clockworkcrow.com/ 10. Gilligan, Amanda (2002- current) â€Å"Shutterfly, Amanda Gilligan Photography† http://www.lyptonvillage.org/shutterfly/ 11. Cameron,Katsuki (2003-current) â€Å"TEAM k!itten.com† http://www.teamkitten.com/site/index02.html 12. Unknown, (2004) â€Å"escape|route† ACMI – Australian Centre for the Moving Image http://www.acmi.net.au/ Arts Hub- For Australian Arts Workers http://www.artshub.com.au Australia Council – New Media Arts http://www.ozco.gov.au/boards/new_media_arts/ Free Dictionary.com – Generation Y http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/Generation%20Y History of the Internet- Where did the Internet come from http://net.gurus.com/history/?FRAME=no Using the Internet as a Medium for Art Essay -- Computers Technology W Using the Internet as a Medium for Art â€Å" This is my space, this is my world. I can express how I feel and what I believe, it’s a different type of freedom.†(1) This quote could speak of so many places in a creative world; a university, a gallery, a bedroom, a studio, and so many others that people commonly associate with artistic space however it refers to none of these and all of these at once. I am talking about the web. The web is a new space and like all technology pushed to its limits by artists. This essay will discuss the impact that new technologies have had on the young and emerging visual artist. In particular this essay will focus on the advantages that the internet as a medium has had over a new generation of artists that are coming into being. Starting with the tools that have been developed to create works and early examples of ‘net art.’ The essay shall also move on to websites being a new genre of art onto themselves. I shall show examples of websites that explore the many possibilities and capabilities that this new ‘web art’ genre has created and how people have exploited them to great advantage. Looking at browser based art that has been created for and only exists within the confines of a browser window. The essay shall end exploring how websites are also a medium for artists young and old, new media and traditional to deliver their work to a new audience not accessible to them before internet technology became a household standard. As stated in the introduction, many, if not all technologies are used by artists and pushed to its limits. The internet is no exception. Originally developed for and by the US Department of Defense in 1969 it quickly grew from 3 computers to hundreds and then thousand... ...nt† http://www.ihasz.com 8. Unknown Author (2000-current) â€Å"Deviant Art† http://www.deviantart.com 9. Thorson, Joshua (2003) â€Å"Clock Work Crow† http://www.clockworkcrow.com/ 10. Gilligan, Amanda (2002- current) â€Å"Shutterfly, Amanda Gilligan Photography† http://www.lyptonvillage.org/shutterfly/ 11. Cameron,Katsuki (2003-current) â€Å"TEAM k!itten.com† http://www.teamkitten.com/site/index02.html 12. Unknown, (2004) â€Å"escape|route† ACMI – Australian Centre for the Moving Image http://www.acmi.net.au/ Arts Hub- For Australian Arts Workers http://www.artshub.com.au Australia Council – New Media Arts http://www.ozco.gov.au/boards/new_media_arts/ Free Dictionary.com – Generation Y http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/Generation%20Y History of the Internet- Where did the Internet come from http://net.gurus.com/history/?FRAME=no

Dehumanization in The Women Who Clean Fish Essay -- Women Who Clean Fi

Dehumanization in The Women Who Clean Fish Erica Funkhouser's women who clean fish can hardly be categorized as women at all. Yet they supposedly are all named Rose or Grace forming a vast contradiction in itself. They are introduced as individuals giving the illusion that they are of some importance but very soon they are seen as nothing more than laborers. They become an unidentifiable mass, each as common as the next. However, they do not remain unidentifiable forever and by the end of the poem the women become entirely fishlike. "The Women Who Clean Fish" illustrates this dehumanizing transformation into fish. The names Rose and Grace do not fit into this poem because of the context in which they are used. When the word "rose" is seen or heard it is the illustration of an elegant flower at the end of a long slender stem, adorned with delicate petals that is clearly visible and an instant picture of beauty comes to mind. By definition, grace means "a virtue that comes from God." Immediately an angelic, classy woman by the name of Grace is pict...