American life Essay

Who says grabbers are only for narratives? Some of the best expository pieces start out with sentences that capture the readers’ attention. The authors from different literary genres give their own attention grabbers to make their pieces more attractive and more suspense from the beginning up to the end. According to Ruhanie Perera (2007), â€Å"Each creator brings with them their values and beliefs shaped by their education and exposure to English Literature, but their search is the same – for the creative, the bold, the sharp and the fresh. † However, expository grabbers are not created only for narratives but for all kinds of situations like in the field of soccer. Deep down in the ocean lurks a dangerous killing machine. This is one of the examples that we hear in soccer. It is a form of attention grabber to make the players become aware of their actions. From this aspect, it only means that any attention grabber must be new from the ears, minds, and eyes of the audience. Many of us like soccer. We watch different plays and games on television about soccer. This is somehow part of American life. Because of this, we hear different attention grabbers from the announcers, coaches, and players. When these people say their expository grabber, the crowd yells and feels that there is hope for success. Like narratives, attentions grabbers could be heard in the beginning of the event. Expository grabbers make each situation noble and powerful. In soccer, attention grabber means a lot of things – it becomes the life and endurance of the team to work hard and win the game. That is why even in this field, expository grabber is very important. In conclusion to this, it can be said that expository grabbers lift the minds and hearts of the audience or readers. It gives power and indirect control to the spectators. The people may not realize this but they were influenced in freedom and captivation. Bibliography Ruhanie Perera. â€Å"They were the attention grabbers. † Sunday Times. Sunday, April 01, 2007, Vol. 41- No. 44. 31 October 2008. http://sundaytimes. lk/070401/Plus/020_pls. html

Feminism in Doll’s House Essay

One of the primary tenets of Marxism is the belief that human thought is a product of the individual’s social and economic conditions, their relationships with others are often undermined by those conditions (Letterbie 1259), and that the weak or less-fortunate are always exploited by the richer bourgeoisie. A common theme found in Henrik Ibsen’s play, â€Å"A Dolls House,† is the exploitation of the weak and the poor by the strong and the rich, and an obsession with material possession. The characters in â€Å"A Dolls House† are all affected by the lack or acquisition of money, and their entire lives and way of thinking are based upon it. Therefore, a Marxist theme pervades throughout much of the play and can be seen from each of the main character’s perspectives. Nora’s way of thinking and her outlook on life are both completely dominated by her material wealth and financial conditions. For example, when the play begins Nora is just returning home from a shopping trip. She enters the apartment with an â€Å"armload of packages† (43) and is followed by a boy carrying a Christmas tree. Nora then tells Helene, one of their maids, to hide the tree so the kids won’t see it until it’s been decorated. When Torvald enters, she asks him for money so she can â€Å"hang the bills in gilt paper† as Christmas tree decorations (45). The tree symbolizes her obsession with money because she didn’t want anyone to see it until it had been decorated to show off their newfound wealth. Previously, she made the decorations by hand, spending an entire day on the project. Doing the same now would be â€Å"thinking poor† in her mind, so she spends excessive amounts of money on presents and decorates the tree with it because now they can afford to â€Å"let themselves go a bit† (44). Now that Nora belongs to a higher social class she practically throws money away. She tells the tree delivery boy to keep the change from the crown she gave him, paying him twice what he asks. Despite the fact that Torvald’s raise won’t come into effect for another three months, she insists that â€Å"we can borrow until then† (44) when previously she and Torvald saved every penny they could in order to get by, and they both worked odd jobs in order to supplement their income. She becomes more selfish as well, claiming that if something were to happen to Torvald after they had borrowed money, â€Å"it just wouldn’t matter† (44) because the people they borrowed from are strangers. Now that they belong to a higher social class, her responsibility has flown out the door and she cares only for her own interests. She doesn’t care what would happen to the â€Å"strangers† she borrowed from, because she concentrates only on what she can extract from other people. Also, when her friend Kristine comes over, the first thing she mentions is her husband’s new job, claiming that she feels â€Å"so light and happy† (49) because they now â€Å"have stacks of money and not a care in the world† (49). When the wiser Kristine answers that it would be nice â€Å"to have enough for the necessities† (50) Nora insists that that is not enough-she repeats that she wants â€Å"stacks and stacks of money† (50). After she tells Kristine she borrowed the money for the trip to Italy, and tells her about all the â€Å"hard work† she did in order to pay it off, she says her worries â€Å"don’t matter anymore because now I’m free! † (56). She equates freedom with the acquisition of wealth, saying that having money is the only way she can be â€Å"carefree and happy† (56). By the end of the play, however, she realizes that even if she is able to be free of her debts, she is still financially enslaved to her husband, because as a woman she is completely dependant on him. She refers to leaving him as â€Å"closing out their accounts,† (108) and in doing so â€Å"she renounces not only her marital vows but also her financial dependence because she has discovered that personal and human freedom are not measured in economic terms,† (Letterbie 1260). Nora’s entire outlook on life changes with a change in her economic conditions, thereby demonstrating the Marxist belief that people’s thoughts are a product of their financial situations. Torvald is much more careful with money, but he too bases his outlook on life and relationships solely on money and the status it earns him. When he hears Nora return from shopping, he asks if â€Å"his little spendthrift has been out throwing money around again,† (44) saying that they â€Å"really can’t go squandering† (44). Nora claims that since Torvald will be making â€Å"piles and piles of money† (44) from now on they can borrow until his raise comes through, but he is adamant in his reply that they should â€Å"never borrow† and have no debt because â€Å"something of freedom is lost from a home that’s founded on borrowing and debt† (44). Torvald, too, equates money with freedom, and refuses to give up that freedom by borrowing money. He too then mentions that it is â€Å"a wonderful feeling† (47) to know that â€Å"one’s got a safe secure job with a comfortable salary,† (47) similar to Nora’s claim that she’s now â€Å"carefree and happy† because of it. Torvald cares not only about money, but about his social status as well. When he finds out that Nora borrowed money from Krogstad with a forged signature, his â€Å"love† for her is completely erased, and he says she’s â€Å"ruined all his happiness† (106). He cares only about his reputation, because â€Å"it’s got to seem like everything is the same between us-to the outside world, at least† (106). All that matters to him is â€Å"saving the bits and pieces, the appearance† (106). However, once Krogstad gives them the note and says he won’t tell anyone about it, he is suddenly, magically able to love her again, because no one will know. He still cares only about himself, however, claiming â€Å"I’m saved, I’m saved! Oh, and you too† (107). Nora is only an afterthought when it comes to his reputation. Their relationship is ruined because he continues to believe in money and social status as the source of happiness, while Nora comes to realize that money is not that important. The Marxist theme can be seen in both Kristine and Krogstad as well. Kristine sacrificed her love for Krogstad and married another man because â€Å"his prospects seemed hopeless back then,† (95) and she had to be able to take care of her mother and brothers. Although their relationship was revived in the end, it almost failed â€Å"simply for money† (95). Once she comes back to Krogstad, she still won’t even give up the job she took from him, because she has to look out for herself-she tells Nora that in her position â€Å"you have to live, and so you grow selfish† (52). This is a Marxist attitude because her entire life and mind-set are a result of her economic situation at the time of her decisions. Krogstad committed a crime in order to support his family, and when his job was threatened he tried to save it by every means possible-even blackmail-saying he would fight for it â€Å"like life itself† (64) if need be. Krogstad tells Nora that â€Å"it was your husband who forced me to revert to my old ways,† (88) but from a deeper perspective it was really his financial situation that forced his hand and made him blackmail Nora, just as it was the reason he committed a crime years before. The Helmer’s maid, Anna-Marie, also has a Marxist perspective on life. She had to leave her home and her child in order to get by. When Nora asks how she was able to give her child up to the care of strangers she just replies that â€Å"a girl who’s poor and who’s gotten in trouble† (73) has no other choice, and that her daughter â€Å"has written to me both when she was confirmed and when she was married† (73). Anna-Marie’s entire life as well as her way of thinking has been determined by her financial situation. Her relationship with her daughter is â€Å"interrupted and practically destroyed† yet she â€Å"accepts her alienation from her child as if it were natural, given the circumstances of class and money† (Letturbie 1260). She can’t afford to be upset about leaving her only child, because she had no other choice. She had to give up a relationship with someone she loved, just as Kristine had to give up her love for Krogstad. Anna-Marie’s situation exemplifies that â€Å"in the marketplace [women] were a labor force expecting subsistence wages† (Letturbie 1260). Marxism includes the belief â€Å"that capitalism is based on the exploitation of workers by the owners of capital. † Anna-Marie may not have been exploited directly by the rich, but she is forced to live a substandard life because she is poor, and unlike Nora, she does not challenge the laws of class and society but accepts her situation. She does not realize that social class and society’s laws were created by other people â€Å"and thus are capable of imperfection and susceptible to change,† (Letturbie 1260). So all she can expect is to be poor her entire life, and for her financial conditions to remain stagnant. The problems that Nora, Anna-Marie and Kristine face are compounded by their gender. Ibsen’s play is considered by many to be a feminist work, illustrating the erroneous treatment of â€Å"the woman issue,† as Ibsen called it. Though he said in a speech once that Nora was supposed to represent the Everyman, and that he hadn’t been trying to address the issue of women’s rights, critics argue that the presence of feminism in the play is inherent and â€Å"justifiable whatever Ibsen’s intention and in spite of his speech,† (Templeton 111). Nora is depicted until the end of the play as a helpless, dimwitted fool who wastes her husband’s hard earned money. She is Torvald’s plaything, his burden and responsibility. Templeton describes their marriage as â€Å"a pan-cultural ideal†¦a relation of superior and inferior in which the wife is a creature of little intellectual and moral capacity, whose right and proper station is subordination to her husband† (Templeton 138). Her â€Å"womanly helplessness† was attractive to Torvald, because he had to be in control. When they get the Bond back from Krogstad and Torvald â€Å"forgives her,† he says that â€Å"to a man there is something sweet and satisfying in forgiving his wife,† because it seems as if his forgiveness â€Å"had made her doubly his own; he has given her a new life, and she has in a way become both wife and child to him† (65). She was an object, his property, to whom he deigned to give life; but only for his own pleasure. During the first act, he never calls her by name; he calls her his â€Å"squirrel,† a â€Å"spendthrift,† and a â€Å"featherbrain,† among other things. Her entire identity is determined by these nicknames; while she is â€Å"his squirrel† she is innocent, childish, obedient, and completely dependant on him. When he finally addresses her by name, in Act Three, her behavior is entirely different—she becomes serious, determined, and willful. She is his â€Å"doll-wife,† playing the game of marriage. She tells Torvald in the end, â€Å"You arranged everything according to your own taste, and so I got the same tastes as you, or pretended to† (67). All of it is a role that Nora has been taught to play by society, the behavior expected of all women of the time. This role was merely a mask, one that she couldn’t live with in the end. On the outside, she is entirely obedient to her husband; but on the inside, she yearns for recognition and a love that Torvald wasn’t willing to give. She was expected to be content with the life she had, though it wasn’t in any way fair or equal. When she expresses her hope that Torvald would have taken the blame for her crime upon himself, Torvald says that â€Å"no man would ever forsake his honor for the one he loves,† and Nora replies that â€Å"millions of women have done just that† (70). Her rebellion was so shocking to the audience that Ibsen â€Å"was accused of a kind of godless androgyny; women, in refusing to be compliant, were refusing to be women† (Templeton 114). Ibsen was even forced to change this ending in order for it to be performed. Obedience was the main trait that defined women; it was what separated them from men. When she decides to leave, Torvald claims that she is insane, because her â€Å"most sacred duties were to her husband and her children,† and â€Å"before all else she was a wife and mother† (68). So in leaving, she was in a sense denying the purpose of her existence. Women had no other role or function in society. Kristine broke free from this traditional role by chance, because her husband died. Had he lived, she would have been stuck in the same situation as Nora for the rest of her life. Even so, she is still dependant on men in order to live. When her father died, she was forced to marry a man she didn’t love in order to provide for her mother and younger brothers. She wasn’t able to get a job at that point, because she was young and unmarried; so the only option she had was marriage. After her husband died and she went to visit Nora, she says â€Å"I feel my life unspeakably empty. No one to live for anymore† (11). Her entire life up until that point revolved around men; the purpose of her existence was to please her husband and take care of her brothers. When that was no longer necessary, her life lost its meaning. She came to Nora because she was looking for work, and that could only be obtained through Torvald. When he gives her a job, he feels in control of her even outside the office. When Torvald and Nora return from the party in Act III and Kristine is there waiting, he says â€Å"you really ought to embroider, it’s much more becoming. Let me show you†¦in the case of knitting, that can never be anything but ungraceful† (57). He presumes to instruct her on something that is traditionally women’s work, and a hobby, as if she were doing it for him. He insults her taste and her work as if it is his right and his duty to correct not only his own wife but any woman that he sees doing something â€Å"wrong. † When Nora shut the door behind her, she wasn’t just a woman leaving her family. She was a woman seeking independence from the strictures of society and the rule of men which was placed upon her because of gender. She was the representation of Everyman, illustrating the need of everyone, no matter their background, for freedom. And she was the representation of the unnoticed, underappreciated workers of the world overthrowing the capitalists who took them for granted. Ibsen’s play was one of the greatest of its time, reaching all the way to our own with a relevance that will always be valid and true.

States of Consciousness Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

States of Consciousness - Research Paper Example While altered states of consciousness are generally associated with drug use, they also involve meditation and hypnosis. This essay presents a thorough research on these aspects of consciousness. Meditation Meditation is understood as the mode of inducing a specific state of consciousness to achieve a mental benefit. While meditation has a connotation as being a somewhat mystical or new age like experience, in reality it is an ancient practice that has been shown to have positive mental health benefits. In the previous few decades meditation has gradually gained acceptance in the Western world with increasing numbers of individuals and medical practitioners practicing some form of meditation. In terms of medical research, a plethora of studies have examined the physical and mental effects of meditation on human consciousness. In these regards studies have found tangible evidence demonstrating that meditation impacts changes in metabolism, blood pressure, brain activation, and other b odily processes, as well as being implemented in a number of means for stress, pain, and anxiety reduction (Newberg & Iversen, 2003). While meditation has been demonstrated to have beneficial mental effects, what actually constitutes meditation or a meditative state is defined differently among researchers. Wood, Wood & Boyd (2009, pg. 167) understand meditation as, â€Å"a group of techniques that involve focusing attention on an object, a word, one’s breathing, or one’s body movements in an effort to block out all distractions, to enhance well-being, and enact an altered state of consciousness.† This approach to meditation is that which is generally most recognized among Western medical practitioners and psychological professionals. This understanding is oftentimes augmented by an increased emphasis on the attention of the meditator, with Goleman (1988) stating, â€Å"the need for the meditator to retrain his attention, whether through concentration or mindfu lness, is the single invariant ingredient in... every meditation system.† Other researchers have identified the Eastern connotations of the term and recognize its contextual significance within a number of religious or spiritual practices. In these regards, meditation functions to achieve a sort of spiritual enlightenment or transcendence. In terms of Western implementations of meditation there are a variety of practices and corresponding medical research. One of the most prominent meditation practices in the United States is mindfulness based meditation. While influenced by ancient meditative traditions, mindfulness based meditation was popularized in the United States through the work of Jon Kabat-Zinn at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. This form of meditation is greatly influenced by Eastern traditions, most specifically Buddhism, in that it emphasizes non-judgmental self-awareness. This approach has been articulated as a, â€Å"form of naturalistic observa tion, or participant-observation, in which the objects of observation are the perceptible mental phenomena that normally arise during waking consciousness" (Grossman, Niemann, Schmidt & Walach). Much research has been conducted on this form of meditation with many studies indicating that mindfulness based meditation has beneficial effects on stress and anxiety. In addition, it has also been

Logical Forms Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Logical Forms - Essay Example Manjoo also thinks that the proposal is contradictory in its idea that it is possible to prohibit big internet service providers from prioritizing their service to their affiliates and maintain internet openness at the same time. He is cynical to the efficacy of FCC’s proposal and is almost sure it will not deliver on what it promises (Majoo, 2014). According to this article, the attempt by the FCC is not important and it is set for confusion. This is evident in the article’s argument that the commission’s proposal is trying to safeguard the openness of the internet but the internet has always been open. There is an underlying implication that the attempt is therefore futile and it will do more harm than good. The article presents FCC’s proposal as confusing by asserting that it is presenting its proposal as leading to a win-win situation. The article implies that it will not be possible for the commission’s proposal to please both sides. The evidence that the article provides to support its claim that the proposal is futile is quite on point because since its inception, the Internet has always operated on an open-for-all basis. That notwithstanding, this evidence fails to factor in the incidences and possibility of big internet providers dealing unfairly and in a way that can cripple this openness. The same cannot be said about the article’s criticism of the move by the commission to invite the public to help decide on the best framework for its proposal (Majoo, 2014). The article presents FCC’s invitation for public comment on its proposal as unproductive. To criticize this move appropriately, the article uses the analogy of the Interior Department requesting for public opinion on how to run the Hoover Dam. The other warrant that the article provides to indicate the unproductiveness of this move is to parallel the ease of consumers telling their

The Social Impact of Two Artwork Collections Case Study

The Social Impact of Two Artwork Collections - Case Study Example This leads to the question that needs answers, which is: what does art research contribute to the society? The question can also query what the influence or the impacts of arts research are, outside the circles of academic work. Through the exploration of two artwork collections, the impact should be demonstrated in social, economic, and cultural circles. Through this paper, the author will demonstrate the social impact of the exhibitions created by two artists; more attention will be offered to the reactions and the responses of visitors. This study will be used to explore the role played by artworks and its impacts in the society. For this particular case study, the researcher will only focus on the social impact of artworks, as tools that can be used to drive change or to communicate a message within the society. A descriptive model will be used for this study. The study will rely on the reactions offered by the viewers of the two artworks, as well as a review of available literature about the two artworks used as the cases for the study. Through the combination of the information collected from different sources of literature, as well as the views offered by the visitors that viewed the two artworks After consolidating the information collected from the different sources, the author will consolidate the information into a unified set of conclusions, summarizing information about the intended audience, the intended outcomes, the role of the artworks in society and also the impacts of the works. Through the review of the literature, it was found that the ‘translation’ exhibition was developed by Jim Pattison, who is a lecturer at the School of Fine Art, at the University of Dundee (University of Dundee). The research of Jim Pattison took more than ten years, focusing on the translation of information and images using digital equipment, entailing the remodeling and the transformation of  the virtual images captured during his exposure to medical procedures.  

Finance Course work Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Finance Course work - Essay Example In which, both targets and bidders were greatly influenced by the notion of greater efficiency especially this occurred in the first great merger wave period. In the following M&A history, various studies required the presence of legal and regulatory framework with an aim of solidifying the existence along with prolonging the success stories of M&A. Despite the implementation of regulatory-cum-legal framework, hostile takeovers did take place, leaving the negative impacts on the stock price of the targets. In the subsequent part of this paper, first, M&A definitions are accounted for, which is followed by motives and theories. Subsequent to that, Merger waves periods, legal-cum-regulatory framework are elaborated. Afterwards, strategies and tactics in takeovers, the effects of M&A on firm’s stock price and stock market are explained. Before conclusion, financial objectives and case study about Burlines Group’s acquisition of Telemetry business are incorporated. Numerous definitions for types of combinations of firms have been put forwarded (Frensch, 2007, p.23). Fundamentally, mergers and acquisitions take place when a firm seeking to expand its activities into new products (Boettke, 1994, p.394). Additionally, with the objective of pursuing common economic aims, the combinations of firms come out as a result of a union of legally and economically independent firms by serving the interests of both parties. Collectively, Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) take place when two or more organizations join together in toto or in part of their business operations. However, the difference between mergers and acquisitions are associated particularly with: the relative size of the individual firms in the business combination; management control of the joint business; ownership of the combined business (Coyle, 2000). Coyle (2000) further defines its broadest definition;

Macronutrient Intake Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Macronutrient Intake - Research Paper Example Types of fats consumed included saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. In addition, the patient supplemented daily fat requirement with linoleic acid, cholesterol and Omega 3 fats. Based on the daily nutrient reports, it is apparent that the patient’s daily intake of proteins and carbohydrates surpassed predetermined targets. The patient took 67g and 47g of protein on the first and third day respectively. In this case, daily protein intake exceeded target quantity, which lies at 46g. With respect to carbohydrates, the nutritional assessment project set a daily target of 130g, representing approximately 45-65% of total calories. Records indicate that the patient consumed carbohydrates in excess of daily requirements, thus supplementing daily calorie intake with an average of 52% starch. Despite the patient maintaining protein and carbohydrate intake within the target limits, fat intake for the assessment period indicates a slight imbalance in the different types o f fats. Targeted intake of alpha linoleic acid is 1.1g per day. However, the patient consumed only 0.1g of the same linoleic acid on the first day. Therefore, fat intake for that day falls under the clinically required levels. From a theoretical perspective, each of the three macronutrients plays a significant role in providing energy requirements of the body. Clinically, imbalanced intake macronutrient components results in disturbed body functions (Janos and Berdanier 45). Therefore, fat intake for that day falls under the clinically.

Facebook & Myspace Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Facebook & Myspace - Essay Example Both the communities have a somewhat different target audience. As FaceBook was originally offered only to the Harvard Business Students and later they became public therefore an average person on the website is a either a college student or a recently passed college graduate. However MySpace has a much broader audience with a diverse array of users. As far as comparing the essential features of both the websites, MySpace has got a hand over FaceBook in terms of personalization and customization of user profiles. MySpace is potentially flexible as it allows its user to express them in a broader way and users can incorporate a diverse range of colours, personal photos and flash applications to their pages. We know that the most of the revenue generated by these types of web communities is through advertisement therefore it has a profound implication. In the future the businesses would be targeting to individual needs and preferences therefore MySpace would be considered as a better source of partnering and placing your ads. One of the research firm predicted that MySpace will sell $525 million worth of advertising, whereas FaceBook will be able to sell only $125 million (Kirkpatrick, 2007). This financial impact shows that the personalization of content has provided a greater leverage to MySpace. When it comes to customer privacy, FaceBook does ensure maximum security and protects the privacy of the users better than the MySpace. The reason is that the FaceBook was first launched for private community (Harvard Students) therefore it is relatively secure. Whereas MySpace was initially targeted to a much larger group therefore it is open to many and different kind of users. One of the critical issues faced by MySpace is of spamming as the users are inundated with spam and pornographic comments. Every other day you would find that you are being requested by tons of anonymous users. It is socially acceptable to request a random person via

Informal Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Informal Report - Essay Example The future job outlook for this occupation is expected to grow because of an increased emphasis on preventive care due to the aged and some illnesses such as diabetes, which require special nursing services. The typical salaries for this occupation include an hourly rate of $31.48 or an annual salary of $65470. Examples of the companies where one can apply are the Prime healthcare and Johns Hopkins hospital was opened in 1889 and cares for patients with different illnesses such as Arthritis, lung disorders, knee replacement surgery and many more. The hospital makes earnings of about $1,891,059,968 annually from patients’ revenues. It has employed over 10,000 employees who work in the hospital. The main duties for a registered nurse in this hospital include recording patients medical histories and symptoms, giving patients medicine and treatments, staying with patients and observing patients medical progress (Perry pg 300). This is a good occupation which involves caring for patients, and it has a good income and it is an interesting career to take for people who like caring for the sick. It also involves staying with patients and giving them advice on how to live after they have been discharged from

Safety and Medicare Requirements Essay Example for Free

Safety and Medicare Requirements Essay Introduction The first SMART goal is regarding the elevated re-hospitalization rates, and how as a team we can reduce these numbers by 10% within the next six months. I chose this goal because the Medicare requirements are changing for reimbursement rates and we are a non-for profit organization where cutting down on any costs are important for not only our organization but also for our patients. Secondly, the next SMART goal I chose was how we can increase the compliance of incident reports being filled out for patient injuries, falls and infections by 10% within the next 3 months. I chose this SMART goal because this is an area in which we have been falling behind and this is an lack in compliance. Case Managers and Triage Nurses are responsible for making sure these are completed and returned to our managers in a timely manner. Goal 1: Leadership Development The complete Hospice Team; Social worker, CNA, Pastoral Care, Bereavement Services, RN/ Case Manager and Volunteers will all work together to achieve this goal by beginning teaching at time of admission. The Hospice team will all work together in order to make sure that the patient will die comfortably in their home with their family by their side and will do this without returning to the hospital. .We will provide the family with all of the information and support they will need in order to feel comfortable in keeping their loved one at home without returning them to the hospital. They will have access to a nurse 24 hours a day/7 days a week through our Triage line and will be reminded at each visit to use this form of communication in order to prevent re-hospitalization. Peer-Reviewed Articles In the article, Hospital Readmission Rates in Medicare Advantage Plans, this article speaks about the changes that CMS (Centers for Medicare Medicaid Services) put into effect this year (2013). The changes are to establish a hospital readmissions reduction program in Medicare, when implemented, the program reduces payments to hospitals based on their readmission rates by 20% and hospital-acquired conditions or adverse events among patients with Medicare by 40%. This was a good article to explain why as a non-for profit organization, we must drop the rehospitalization rates. Credible Websites The website, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, has several tools and articles speaking of how to avoid rehospitalizations. They have materials, documents and tools called, State Action on Avoidable Rehospitalizations or STAAR. This aims to reduce avoidable rehospitalizations and is focused on how to improve transitions of care and how to address systemic barriers to reducing avoidable rehospitalizations. This is helpful and useful information to use for our SMART goal, as it provides a lot of tools we could use in reducing our rehospitalization rates. Informational Expert Amy Suydam RN CPS (Clinical Practice Supervisor) is over the Hospice RN/ Case Managers at our office. Amy and I discussed the SMART goal about rehospitalization rates and how we are going to decrease these rates. Amy agrees with all of the teaching with the family from admission on and making them aware of all the assistance they have available from our services. One thing she also did mention is that we could do more in-services with our staff regarding this and make sure everyone does understand the decline in reimbursement rates that we are receiving at this time compared to the costs to the organization. Summary In searching information regarding the rehospitalization rates and the drop of Medicare reimbursements for those stays, I was surprised to have found there was so much information regarding this and the tools that are out there also to use. My direct supervisor, Amy Suydam RN CPS, was also helpful in bringing up some things not thought of that would assist in the success of our organization in achieving our goal of decreasing rehospitalizations  by 10% within the next 6 months. Amy Suydam RN CPS did not feel this was an unreasonable timeframe and decline to be looking towards. This is something we have discussed many times as our organization is non-for profit and this is very important that we follow through with our teachings and get all the information put out there that we can regarding these changes. Goal 2: Organizational Planning The RN/ Case Managers and Triage Nurses will increase their compliance of filling out incident reports that are being filled out by 10% within the next 3 months. The nurses will fill these out for patient falls, infections and injuries in order to be compliant with our Quality Assurance Goals. Peer-Reviewed Articles In the article, Introducing incident reporting in primary care: a translation from safety science into medical practice, the authors speak of how most reported incidents were ones that caused little or no injury to the patient. They found those providing care were able to deal with these incidents more actively and taking less of their time away from their other work. This explains how important it is to report any and all incidents. This is what the organizational SMART goal pertains to is making sure we are compliant in reporting everything that should be reported. Credible Websites The website that related to the SMART goal is called, Quality and Safety. This website provides useful tools and different ways that may be effective in reporting incidents easier which may in turn provide increased compliance. On this website they say EHR’s are the best way and more people are compliant when using the electronic reporting. Informational Expert Amy Suydam RN, Clinical Practice Supervisor reviewed the SMART goal and while reading through the plan of action, she declines any further recommendations. She feels everything has been covered even compared it to our policy for incident reports for our organization, and found nothing further at this time. Summary In researching the SMART goal of increasing compliance of filling out  incident reports, it is amazing how many people are non-compliant. This can lead to legal actions at times and other problems. This is a very important part of Quality Assurance within our organization. .Will hold in-services, cover the company’s policy and explain why incident reports are filled out for and how to properly fill them out and who they are turned in to. We will strive to meet our goal of decreasing non-compliance by 10% within the next 3 months. References Qual Saf Health Care 2004; 13: 281-286 doi:10.1136/qshc.2003.009100 Marieke, Adriana. (2013). introducing incident reporting in primary care: a translation from safety science into medical practice. Health, Risk Society, 15(3), 265-278 doi:10.1080/13698575.2013.776014 Lemieux, Jeff. (2012). Hospital Readmission Rates in Medicare Advantage Plans. American Journal of Managed Care,18(2), 96-104 N.A. (2009). U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Agency for Healthcare and Research and Quality. Retrieved from http://www.innovations.ahrq.gov/content.aspx?id=3287

Personality and Organizational Commitment Relationship

Personality and Organizational Commitment Relationship ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to explore the relationships between the personality traits and organizational commitment among non teaching employees in government schools in the Sultanate of Oman. Data was collected by using Big Five Inventory (BFI) and revised Organizational Commitment Scale (Meyer, Allen, Smith, 1993). Response was received from 95 non teaching employees with a response rate of 47.50%. The findings of this study suggest us the relationships between personality traits and organizational commitment among non teaching staff in the government schools. KEYWORDS Affective commitment, big five-factor model of personality, continuance commitment, normative commitment, organizational commitment. INTRODUCTION This study explored the relationship between personality traits and organizational commitment among non teaching employees in the government schools of Sultanate of Oman. Organizational Commitment is being considered as an underlying factor for organizational success. Shepherd and Mathews (2000) suggest that employers view Organizational Commitment with increasing interest and importance. Due to increasing interest of employers and researchers, organizational commitment has become highly researched job attitude. It is evident from the fact that commitment has been the subject of many meta-analyses (Cooper-Hakim Viswesvaran, 2005; Mathieu Zajac, 1990; Meyer, Stanley, Herscovitch, Topolnytsky, 2002) studies. Theoretical reviews by Lawler (1992) and Reichers (1985) have also widely explored this attitude. This job attitude has become important for employers because employees with low levels of commitment are more likely to leave their organizations (Meyer et al., 2002). Research into Organizational Commitment has focused on the relationships between various antecedents and the components of Organizational Commitment. The primary antecedents to organizational commitment are like age; gender; education level; marital status; position and organization tenure; personality; and role states (Camilleri, 2002). Meyer and Allen, (1984); Grusky, (1966) and Mowday et al (1982) have thoroughly examined various relationships between antecedents and organizational commitment. This study was designed to contribute to the Organizational Commitment related literature by exploring the relationships between age, tenure, personality traits (using Big Five Model) and organizational commitment. THE FIVE-FACTOR MODEL OF PERSONALITY The Big Five model of personality implies that personality consists of five relatively independent traits that provide a meaningful explanation for the study of individual differences (Kumar, Bakhshi Rani, 2009) and their responses. The five dimensions in Big Five model of personality are Extraversion, Conscientiousness, Openness to Experience, Agreeableness and Neuroticism. Each of the Big Five traits is a set of traits that tend to occur together in individuals (Kumar, Bakhshi Rani, 2009). Extraversion is the state of being predominantly concerned with and obtaining gratification from what is outside. The behavioral tendencies used to measure this factor are sociable, gregarious, assertive, talkative, and active (Barrick Mount, 1991). Conscientiousness refers to the tendency to show self-discipline, act dutifully and be focused on the goals. It includes behavioral tendencies like being hard working, achievement- oriented, persevering, careful, and responsible (Barrick Mount, 1991). Openness to experience is a general appreciation for art, emotion, adventure, imagination and variety of experience. The behavioral tendencies associated with Openness to Experience include being imaginative, cultured, curious, original, broad minded, intelligent (Digman, 1990). It also reflects need for variety, aesthetic sensitivity, and unconventional values (McCrae John, 1992). Agreeableness refers to a tendency to be compassionate and cooperative. This factor includes behavioral tendencies like being courteous, flexible, trusting, good-natured, cooperative, forgiving, soft-hearted, and tolerant (Barrick Mount, 1991). Neuroticism refers to the tendency to experience negative emotions like anger, anxiety, or depression in a person. It is also called emotional instability. Behavioral tendencies associated with this factor include being anxious, depressed, angry, embarrassed, emotional, worried, and insecure (Barrick Mount, 1991). ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT Organizational Commitment refers to the degree to which an employee identifies with the goals and values of the organization and is willing to exert effort to help it succeed (Herscovitch Meyer, 2002). According to Allen and Meyer (1990) Organizational Commitment is made up of three components or dimensions. First component is affective commitment and it refers to the employees emotional attachment to, identification with, and involvement in, the organization. Second component is continuance component and it refers to commitment based on the costs that the employee associates with leaving the organization. Third component of organization commitment is normative component, which refers to the employees feeling of obligation to remain with the organization. DEMOGRAPHIC RELATIONSHIPS WITH ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN AGE AND ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT According to meta-analysis by Mathieu and Zajac (1990), age and organizational commitment yielded a medium positive correlation. Older employees tend to have a higher degree of organizational commitment because they view their past years of service to the organization as an investment (Camilleri, 2002). Therefore they would tend to be more committed to the organization. Thus, H 1: Non teaching employees commitment to the organization will positively relate to their age. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TENURE AND ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT Various studies show a weak positive relationship between tenure and organizational commitment. In these studies, job tenure has been shown to be more positively related to attitudinal commitment, while organizational tenure was more positively related to calculative commitment (Clayton, Petzall, Lynch Margret, 2007). The given explanation is that years spent in a particular position tend to increase an employees psychological attachment to an organization, while extended tenure also increases their stake in terms of benefits such as pension plans (Mathieu and Zajac, 1990, p.8). Thus, H 2: Non teaching employees commitment to the organization will positively relate to their length of tenure. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BIG FIVE PERSONALITY TRAITS AND ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT AFFECTIVE COMMITMENT Affective commitment refers to an employees positive emotional response to the organization. An employee, who is affectively committed, strongly identifies with the goals of the organization and desires to remain in the organization. While extroverts exhibit positive emotionality (Watson Clark, 1997) and it is reasonable to assume that those high in Extraversion experience higher affective commitment than those who are less extraverted. Many studies have also found significant bivariate correlations between positive emotionality and affective commitment (Williams, Gavin, Williams, 1996). Thus, H3: Non teaching employees extraversion will positively relate to affective commitment. CONTINUANCE COMMITMENT Continuance commitment refers to an awareness of the costs (economic and social) associated with leaving the organization. It develops through an employees perceptions of employment alternatives. Employees who perceive that they have several viable alternatives will have weaker continuance commitment than those employees who perceive that they have few alternatives (Meyer Allen, 1997). Extrovert individuals tend to be more socially active and may develop more social contacts than introverts. More social contacts of extraverts may bring them more job opportunities. Therefore, H4: Non teaching employees extraversion will negatively relate to continuance commitment. Neuroticism refers to an enduring tendency to experience negative emotional states by an individual. Neurotic individuals tend to experience more negative life events than other individuals (Magnus, Diener, Fujita, Pavot, 1993). Due to this tendency, person may prefer to stick to same job instead of facing new work environment. Thus, H5: Non teaching employees neuroticism will positively relate to continuance commitment. Conscientiousness refers to the traits like self-discipline, carefulness, thoroughness, organization,  deliberation  (the tendency to think carefully before acting), and need for  achievement. According to Organ and Lingl (1995), due to conscientiousness nature, employee gets more opportunities to obtain formal (e.g., pay, promotion) and informal work rewards (e.g., recognition, respect). To the extent that a conscientious employee earns such rewards, they should have high level of continuance commitment. Therefore, H6: Non teaching employees Conscientiousness will positively relate to continuance commitment. NORMATIVE COMMITMENT Normative commitment refers to employees perceptions of their obligation to their organization. It develops from the investments that an organization makes in its employees (Meyer Allen, 1991). This will make employees feel indebted to his or her organization and want to respond his or her organizations initiatives favorably. Extraverted employees seek out more social interactions within the workplace and exhibit positive emotions. Therefore extroverts tend to respond favorably towards the organization due to perception of obligation. Thus, H7: Non teaching employees extraversion will positively relate to normative commitment. METHOD SAMPLE A sample of 95 non teaching employees was obtained from government schools in the Sultanate of Oman. Questionnaires were bilingual (English and Arabic). Response rate of 47.50 % (95 filled questionnaires received out of 200) was obtained. The gender composition of the sample was 53.7% male (N=51) and 46.3% female (N=44). The average age of the respondents was 35.85 years (SD=4.3). On an average, the respondents had the present organizational tenure as 7.46 years (SD = 3.2) and total job tenure as 8.21 years (SD = 2.9). MEASUREMENTS THE BIG FIVE The Big Five Inventory (BFI) (John et al., 1991) (John et al., 2008) consisting of total 44 items was used to measure personality traits of school laboratory technicians on a five point Likert-type anchoring ranging from strongly disagree (1) to 5 (strongly agree). It contains five dimensions corresponding to big five personality traits (Extraversion, Neuroticism, Agreeableness, Openness and Conscientiousness). The reliabilities (Cronbachs Alpha) for each facet were Extraversion (0.88), Neuroticism (.94), Agreeableness (.92), Openness (.91) and Conscientiousness (.91). AFFECTIVE COMMITMENT Affective Commitment was measured by revised version of Affective Commitment Scale (Meyer, Allen, Smith, 1993). Responses were collected on a seven-point Likert-type anchoring that ranged from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5). The reliability (Cronbachs Alpha) of this six item scale was 0.82. CONTINUANCE COMMITMENT Continuance Commitment was measured by revised version of Continuance Commitment Scale (Meyer, Allen, Smith, 1993). Responses were collected on a seven-point Likert-type anchoring that ranged from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5). The reliability (Cronbachs Alpha) of this six item scale was 0.88. NORMATIVE COMMITMENT Normative Commitment was measured by revised version of Normative Commitment Scale (Meyer, Allen, Smith, 1993). Responses were collected on a seven-point Likert-type anchoring that ranged from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5). The reliability (Cronbachs Alpha) of this six item scale was 0.89. RESULTS A factor analysis, which is confirmatory in nature, was performed on the different variables such as Extraversion, Neuroticism, Agreeableness, Openness, Conscientiousness, Affective commitment, Continuance commitment, and Normative Commitment. The factor analysis was conducted using principal axis factoring with varimax rotation as an extraction method (see for details, e.g. Nummenmaa et al., 1996, p. 244; Hair et al., 1998, pp. 87-120). The identified factors were selected whose Eigen values are greater than 1.0 from the graph of scree plot. Graph 01: Scree Plot Showing Eigen Values of Factors These variables within factors are correlated, is confirmed by the Bartletts test of sphericity. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) measure of sampling adequacy indicated a practical level of common variance (KMO = 0.587), which implies that the results obtained from factor analysis are appropriate. The factors identified with loadings in appendix 01 exhibits 74.22 percent of the variance of the variables. The table 01 comprises the means, standard deviations, partial correlations, and reliability coefficients for the proposed variables. The partial correlations among proposed variables provided initial support of our hypotheses. In the support of hypothesis 01 age is positively correlated with affective commitment (r = 0.255, p The table 02 shows the results obtained after running multiple regressions. It is evident from the table 02 that the correlations among variables are low. The coefficient of determination of three dimensions of organizational commitment such as Affective commitment, Continuance commitment, and normative commitment are 35.8%, 24.6%, and 20% respectively. The coefficient of determination indicates the change in dependent variable is explained from a change in independent variables. It is evident that the relationship in a linear is medium for affective commitment and small for continuance commitment and normative commitment as the value of the coefficients of determination are very weak. The F-ratio for the three dimensions of organizational commitment such as Affective commitment, Continuance commitment, and normative commitment are 5.255 (p When exploring the beta values of three dimensions of organizational commitment, the magnitude of approximately all values is low. The 35.8% explained variance in the coefficient of determination for the affective commitment may be attributed to organization tenure, job tenure, extraversion, and openness to some extent. The 24.6% explained variance in the coefficient of determination for the continuance commitment may be attributed to organization tenure, extraversion, neuroticism, and conscientiousness to some extent. The 20% explained variance in the coefficient of determination for the normative commitment may be attributed to organization tenure, job tenure, and extraversion to some extent. DISCUSSION The findings suggest that the studied model serves as the foundation in the exploration of the various dimensions of organizational commitment. In particular, Age and organizational tenure has played substantial role in all three forms of the organizational commitment. Moreover, Extraversion has played a role of the most consistent independent variable of the all dimensions of the organizational commitment. Extraversion was positively associated with affective commitment because the positive emotionality is important dimension of personality (Watson et al.,1988; J. Erdheim et al. 2006). Secondly, Extraversion was negatively associated with continuance commitment. In general, extraverts have better relations with peers than introverts which may result into better career options (Watson Clark, 1997). Finally, Extraversion was positively associated with normative commitment. Because extraverts believe that their extraordinary service by providing congenial social environment may enhanc e the psychological contract with the organization (Watson, 2000; J. Erdheim et al. 2006). Correlation between Neuroticism and Organizational Commitment varied for three components of organizational commitment. Correlation between Neuroticism and Affective Commitment was found significantly negative and significantly positive with continuance commitment. While with normative commitment it was found negative (nonsignificant). Neurotics tend to be prone to negative experiences and negative affect. This tendency makes them low on affective commitment. Neurotic individuals used to be conscious of the costs associated with leaving the jobs so continuance commitment used to be high among neurotics. Conscientiousness displayed positive significant relationship with continuance commitment while nonsignificant relations with affective and normative commitments. Since conscientious individuals tend to be highly involved in to their jobs (Organ Lingl, 1995) and it increases their chances of workplace rewards. These rewards will have impact on the continuity of individuals in the organizations. THEORETICAL AND MANAGERIAL IMPLICATIONS The results of the present study reflect that the role of personality is vital in the development of organizational commitment. It gives a scope of relationship between personality job attitudes and organizational commitment. This theoretical implication gives further scope of study pertaining to the factors of other dimensions of the job attitudes such as job involvement, job embeddedness etc. Managerial implications of the study are primarily in the personnel selection. Since different components of organizational commitment are correlated with personality traits, organizations need to judge personality traits at the time of selection and foresee the impact on the candidates commitment. It has been found in meta-analysis that employees with low level of commitment are more likely to leave their organizations (Meyer et al., 2002). LIMITATIONS AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS Furthermore, this study suffers from three limitations whereas the results are statistically in most parts. The first limitation is related to the sample size which is relatively small in comparison to similar other studies. The second limitation pertains to the coefficients of regression model which are relatively low and may affect the reliability and validity of findings. The third limitation which is prominent in nature is that the proposed model was tested using correlation and regression analysis among variables. However, this technique can only examine a single relationship at a time (Hair, at el, 1998). An area of upcoming research is to test the proposed model using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) which may provide better results. SEM is a multivariate statistical technique used to estimate a number of interrelated dependence relationship simultaneously. The present study will give additions in the literature of the factors pertaining to the organizational commitment in various dimensions. There are evidences of outcomes of the study that the application of the five-factor model of personality assisting the prediction of three forms of the organizational commitment. This model paves the way to a new dimension of the research which may explore the extensive relationship between the unexplored dimensions of personality and organizational commitments. Our findings have various practical implications in the selection procedure of the organization. Further research may be extended to explore the utility of using personality tests to predict organizational citizenship behavior in a selection setting. REFERENCES Allen, N.J., and Meyer, J.P. (1990) The Measurement and Antecedents of Affective, Continuance and Normative Commitment to the Organization, Journal of Occupational Psychology, Vol. 63:1-18. Barrick, M. R., Mount, M. K. (1991). The big five personality dimensions and job performance: A Meta-Analysis. Personnel Psychology, 44, 1-26. Camilleri, E. (2002). Some Antecedents of Organizational Commitment: Results from an Information Systems Public Sector Organization. Bank of Valletta Review, 25. Clayton, B., Petzall, S., Lynch, B. Margret, J. (2007). An Examination of the Organizational Commitment Of Financial Planners. International Review of Business Research Papers, Vol.3, No.1. Pp. 60 72 Cooper-Hakim, A., Viswesvaran, C. (2005). The construct of work commitment: Testing an integrative framework. Psychological Bulletin, 131, 241-259. Digman, J. M. (1990). Personality structure: Emergence of the five-factor model. Annual Review of Psychology, 21, 417-440. Erdheim,J., Wang, M. Zickar, M.J. (2006). Linking the Big Five personality constructs to organizational commitment. Personality and Individual Differences 41, 959-970 Grusky, D. (1966) Career Mobility and Organisational Commitment, Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 10, 488-503. Hair, J.F., Anderson, R.E., Tatham, R.L., Black, W.C. (1998), Multivariate Data Analysis, 5th ed., Prentice-Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ, . Herscovitch, L. and Meyer, J. P., 2002. Commitment to organizational Change: Extension of a three-component model. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87: 474-487. John, O. P., Donahue, E. M., Kentle, R. L. (1991). The Big Five InventoryVersions 4a and 54. Berkeley, CA: University of California, Berkeley, Institute of Personality and Social Research. John, O. P., Naumann, L. P., Soto, C. J. (2008). Paradigm shift to the integrative Big Five trait taxonomy: History, measurement, and conceptual issues. In O. P. John, R. W. Robins, L. A. Pervin (Eds.), Handbook of personality: Theory and research (pp. 114-158). New York, NY: Guilford Press. Kumar K., et al (2009). Linking the Big Five Personality Domains to Organizational Citizenship Behavior. International Journal of Psychological Studies. Vol. 1, No 2 Lawler, E. J. (1992). Affective attachment to nested groups: A choice process theory. American Sociological Review, 57, 327-339. Magnus, K., Diener, E., Fujita, F., Pavot, W. (1993). Extraversion and neuroticism as predictors of objective life events: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65, 1046-1053. McCrae, R. R., John, O. P. (1992). An introduction to the five-factor model and its applications. Journal of Personality, 2, 175-215. Mathieu, J. E., Zajac, D. M. (1990). A review and meta-analysis of the antecedents, correlates, and consequences of organizational commitment. Psychological Bulletin, 108, 171-194. Meyer, J.P. and Allen, N.J. (1984) Testing the Side-Bet Theory of Organisational Commitment: Some Methodological Considerations, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 69: 372-378. Meyer, J. P., Allen, N. J. (1991). A three-component conceptualization of organizational commitment. Human Resource Management Review, 1, 61-89. Meyer, J. P., Allen, N. J., Smith, C. A. (1993). Commitment to organizations and occupations: Extension and test of a three-component conceptualization. Journal of Applied Psychology, 78, 538-551. Meyer, J. P., Allen, N. J. (1997). Commitment in the workplace: Theory, research and application. California: Sage Publishers Inc. Meyer, J. P., Stanley, D. J., Herscovitch, L., Topolnytsky, L. (2002). Affective, continuance, and normative commitment to the organization: A meta-analysis of antecedents, correlates, and consequences. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 61, 20-52. Mowday, R., Porter, L.W. and Steers, R.M. (1982) Employee-Organisation Linkages: The Psychology of Commitment, Absenteeism, and Turnover. San Diego, CA: Academic Press. Nummenmaa, T., Konttinen, R., Kuusinen, J., Leskinen, E. (1996), Tutkimusaineiston Analyysi , Analysis of Research Data WSOY, Helsinki, . Organ, D. W., Lingl, A. (1995). Personality, satisfaction, and organizational citizenship behavior. Journal of Social Psychology, 135, 339-350. Reichers, A. (1985). A review and reconceptualization of organizational commitment. Academy of Management Journal, 10, 465-476. Shepherd, J. L. Mathews, B. P. (2000). Employee commitment: Academic vs practitioner perspectives. Employee Relations, 22(6): 555-575. Watson, D., Clark, L. A. (1997). Extraversion and its positive emotional core. In S. R. Briggs, W. H. Jones, R. Hogan (Eds.), Handbook of personality psychology. New York: Academic Press. Watson, D., Clark, L. A., Tellegen, A. (1988). Development and validation of brief measures of positive and negative affect: The PANAS scales. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 54, 1063-1070. Watson, D. (2000). Mood and temperament. New York: Guilford Press. Williams, L. J., Gavin, M. B., Williams, M. L. (1996). Measurement and nonmeasurement processes with negative affectivity and employee attitudes. Journal of Applied Psychology, 81, 88-101. Personality and Organizational Commitment Relationship Personality and Organizational Commitment Relationship CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Chapter Overview This study will focus on the relationship between personality and organizational commitment. This chapter includes background of the study, problem statement, research question, research objectives, significant of the study and the scope of study as well. In addition, the conceptual and operational definitions of terms are discussed to provide an understanding on their usage in this study. Lastly, this chapter concludes with a summary. Background of the Study Organizational commitment is a positive psychological state of attachment that pushes the employee’s performance upward to successfully turn the firm’s strategic vision into a reality (Hawass, 2012) 8964-35144-1-PB (2). Although there are many kind of definitions by different researchers, all of them unanimously attempted to place emphasis on the relationship between employees and organization (Ekmekci, 2011) Darbanyan. Over the past two decades, there has been a huge increase in the research efforts trying to explore and understand the nature, antecedents and consequences of organizational commitment (2-4) Kumar. Many of research reviews and meta-analysis have done on organizational commitment because it plays an important role in predicting work behavior (kumar, 2010) kumar. According to Klein, Backer, Meyer (2009) Hackney, organizational commitment is so well studied due to the impact of organizational commitment is associated with work outcomes such as turnover intention, absenteeism, job performance, motivation and job withdrawal behaviors. Organizational commitment is a multidimensional framework that can bring effect to many factors in organization and draw out various positive implication for organization and its workers (Darbanyan et al. 2014) Darbanyan. For example, there is an inverse relationship between organizational commitment and absenteeism, turnover intention and dysfunctional job behavior (Amiri, 2009) Darbanyan. Moreover, meta-analyses also indicate that organizational commitment is positively related to job satisfaction, organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) and job performance (Vandenberghe and Bentein, 2009; Su et al. 2009) 09593841211204335. A study conducted by Sjoberg and Sverke (2000) Darbanyan in Sweden found out that organizational commitment has multiple effects on absenteeism. Researchers have identified different factors that can be affected for organizational commitment. Personal characteristic, work experience, role related characteristics are considered as common antecedences of organizational commitment (Meyer and Allen, 1993). Personality characteristics are one of the antecedents of commitment and studies of personality as it relates to commitment are few (Klein rt al., 2009) Hackney. Personality is another variable that examined in this study as well as addressed by many theorists. Different researchers possess different approaches and came up with various definitions of personality in line with their approaches (Darbanyan, 2014). According to Peryin John (2009) 8964-35144-1-PB (2), each level of these personality traits has special contribution to the understanding of individual differences in behavior and experience. Individual’s personality can define how he or she views the world around him, react to situations and interacts with others in the organization (Michaud, 2013) 8964-35144-1-PB (2). Understanding employee’s personality is very important due to its usefulness on placing people into jobs and gives clues to managers about how an employee is likely to act and feel in a variety of situation. According to Kumar and Bakhshi (2010) SSRN-id2220719, individual’s personality is a good predictor of work attitudes and work outcomes. The dispositional factors are always referring to the Five-factor model of personality (Kumar and Bakhshi, 2010). Big Five personality is one of the most prominent models in contemporary psychology to describe the most salient aspects of personality (Goldberg, 1990; John Srivastava, 1999) SSRN-id2220719. Most of the studies on organizational commitment focus on identifying the environmental factors such as low salary, highly stress environment and low motivation (Hoffmann, Ineson.., 2004) 109_327_3rdICBER2012_Proceeding_PG1583_1592. However, employee dispositional sources mainly known as personalities are being ignored. A study done by Kumar †¦ (2010) stated that there is little attention given in investigating the relationship between personalities, using the Big Five personality model with organizational commitment. This study proposes to investigate the relationship between Big Five personality and organizational commitment among employees in Aon Insurance Brokers Sdn Bhd, Bangsar. Problem Statement Research Questions Research questions of this study are: What are the personality traits among employees in Aon Insurance Brokers (M) Sdn Bhd. What is the level of organizational commitment of employees in Aon Insurance Brokers (M) Sdn Bhd? Is there any relationship between Big Five personality and organizational commitment among employees in Aon Insurance Brokers (M) Sdn Bhd? What is the effect of Big Five personality to organizational commitment among employees in Aon Insurance Brokers (M) Sdn Bhd? Research Objectives The research objectives of this study are: To identify the personality traits among employees in Aon Insurance Brokers (M) Sdn Bhd. To determine the level of organizational commitment of employees in Aon Insurance Brokers (M) Sdn Bhd. To investigate the relationship between Big Five personality and organizational commitment among employees in Aon Insurance Brokers (M) Sdn Bhd. To determine the effect of Big Five personality to organizational commitment among employees in Aon Insurance Brokers (M) Sdn Bhd. Scope of the Study This study is to identify the relationship between personality and organizational commitment among the employees in Aon Insurance Brokers (M) Sdn Bhd. The study will be conducted by having the Aon Insurance Brokers (M) Sdn Bhd’s employees as respondents to identify the personality traits and organizational commitment of them. There are around 110 employees who work in Aon Insurance Brokers (M) Sdn Bhd and there will be a total number of 86 employees been chosen randomly as research sample to participate in this study. The employees will be chosen based on random sampling and the data will be collected via questionnaire from the employees in Aon Insurance Brokers (M) Sdn Bhd. The independent variable will be measured by Big Five Inventory (BFI). The dimensions of the Big Five personality are extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism and openness. For the dependent variable, Three Dimensional Commitment Scale questionnaire will be used to measure the organizational commitment of employees. There are three dimensions of organizational commitment that will be measured: affective organizational commitment, continuance organizational commitment and normative organizational commitment. Total of 24 items will be used to measure organizational commitment by using 5 point Likert Scale. Significant of the Study Many researchers have widely discussed the study on organizational commitment (Lin, Lin and Lin, 2010; and Judge, Klinger, Simon and Yang, 2008) 109_327_3rdICBER2012_Proceeding_PG1583_1592. However, there is not much attention given on the study of relationship between Big Five personality and organizational commitment especially in Malaysia. Thus, this study will contribute in adding more literatures on personality and organizational commitment specifically in Malaysia context. The study brings attention to the importance of talking personality into consideration while measuring employees’ organizational commitment. Additionally, this study will help managers to understand more about employees’ personality and how they react toward organizational processes. Understanding employees’ personality is very useful to managers because managers can predict how the employees are likely to act and feel in different kind of situation. Moreover, findings of this study could help managers to increase employees’ loyalty in particular company. Job satisfaction will also increase and followed by decrease in turnover rate in that company. Conceptual Definition 1.8.1Personality: Big Five Model Personality is a subfield of psychology (Friedman Schustack, 2008). Personality is basically not studied in terms of non-psychological concepts. These non-psychological concepts included profits and losses, souls and spirits, or molecules and electromagnetism. According to the founder of personality psychology, Gordon Allport, personality is defined as the inner organization of psycho physiological system of a person to create a person’s unique behavior, feeling and thoughts (Lin, 2010). For this research, Big Five personality approach will be used to identify employees’ personality traits. The Big Five personality factors include extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism and openness. Big Five personality is also known as OCEAN, NEOAC or CANOE (Feldman, 2011). 1.8.2Organizational Commitment As Meyer and Allen (1991) suggest, organizational commitment is defined as the psychological state that links an employee to the organization where the employee has strong involvement and desire to exert effort in achieving organization’s goals. There are three types of commitment, which are affective commitment, continuance commitment and normative commitment. Brown (1996) and Brickman (1987) 1-s2.0-S105348220000053X-main who provided general definitions of commitment noted that commitment is different from motivation or general attitudes. They suggested that commitment influences behavior independently of other motives and attitudes and, in fact, might lead to persistence in a course of action even in the face of conflicting motives or attitudes (†¦,2001). Operational Definition Big Five Personality Big Five personality is the five basic factor develop by the researcher Norman through measure of the factor analysis of peer’s personality trait. The factor that concludes from Norman’s Big Five factor is extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism and culture (Lin 2010) yuchuan. However, the Big Five Model that we going to used in this study is the Big Five model which modified by researcher McCrae where the â€Å"culture† dimension is changed to â€Å"openness† dimension (Lin, 2010). Individual who high in extraversion tend to be energetic, talkative, enthusiastic, sociable and dominant. Individual low in this dimension tend to be introvert, quiet, shy, submissive and retiring (Friedman Schustack, 2011) ting. For agreeableness, individual high in this dimension is friendly, warm, cooperative and trusting whereas individual low in this dimension are unkind, cold and quarrelsome (F.., 2011). Neuroticism also known as emotional instability. Individual who has this personality dimension tend to be moody, nervous, tense, high-strung and worrying. Individual low on this dimension is emotionally stable, calm, contented and stable. Conscientiousness also known as lack of impulsivity. Early research in personality psychology mentioned this dimension as Will. Conscientious individual are generally responsible, cautious, organized, dependable and persevering. Individual low on this dimension is impulsive, undependable, careless, disorderly (F†¦, 2011). Besides that, openness also known as culture or intellect. Individual who has this personality dimension tend to be artistic, imaginative, original creativity and witty. Individual low in this dimension are shallow, simple and plain (F, 2011). Organizational Commitment Meyer and Allen’s Three-Component Model of commitment (1991) is used to measure the level of organizational commitment of employees in this study. Organizational commitment refers to the level to which the employees’ emotional connection and their identification with the company where they currently working in. Three dimensions of organizational commitment proposed by Meyer and Allen (1991) is investigated in this study, namely affective commitment, continuance commitment and normative commitment. According to Meyer and Allen (1997), affective commitment is the employee’s emotional attachment and participation of the employee in the organization. In this study, it refers to the employees’ emotional commitment towards their company, their identification and the desire to remain in the company. The second dimension proposed by Meyer and Allen is continuance commitment, which refers to the awareness of the cost of leaving associated with leaving the organization. In this study, continuance commitment means the consciousness of the employees on the perceived prices associate with quitting from their company, such as limited job opportunities. Lastly, normative commitment is the feelings of employee’s obligation to remain in an organization and it also used to describe the degree to which the employee believes him or herself should committed to their organization. Summary In conclusion, this chapter outlines the background, problem statement, research questions, research objectives, study scope as well as significance of study. The main objective of this study is to investigate the relationship between employees’ personality and their organizational commitment. The conceptual and operational definitions of research variables such as personality and organizational commitment are also being discussed. The relevant literatures, previous empirical research, models and theories related to this research will be explained and discussed in chapter 2.

Howard Gardners MI Essay -- essays research papers

Multiple Intelligence As a teacher it will always be my responsibility to keep up to date on new research done on learning theories. That way I am able to provide a fun and exciting learning environment for my students. After learning about Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences I now realize how important it is to make sure I work hard to include every child into my curriculum. Gardner’s theory is that everyone is able to recognize a student that does scores great on an exam is smart, that does not mean that a student that falls short of doing good on the same test is not as brilliant as the other student. Howard Gardner’s, theory opposes traditional methods that view intelligences as unitary, and perceives intelligence to contain eight domains. Gardner believes there is several different intelligences that each person embodies in certain magnitudes. Having more of a particular intelligence than another will change has each person retain information. As a child growing up in public elementary schools, I was taught from a traditional methods. These methods focused mainly on verbal and mathematical skills. If a student is anyone of the other six proposed intelligences, he or she would most likely do unsatisfactorily in school. Howard Gardner’s eight intelligences are: body/ kinesthetic, naturalist, visual/ spatial, musical/ rhythmic, intrapersonal, interpersonal, verbal/ linguistic, and logical/ mathematical.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Body/ kinesthetic is one of the first intelligences we’ll explore. This kind of learner has the skill to manipulate body motion and manage things with skill. Also the body/ kinesthetic learner obtains great hand eye coordination and has an excellent sense of balance. Interacting with the space around them is the way in which this learner processes information. The body/ kinesthetic learner can be a handful in a classroom, and as a student it may be difficult for this type of person to sit still. A teacher needs to give this student breaks and let them move around. Also, as part of the curriculum a teacher could include activity centers and allow the students to act out stories. The second intelligence is the naturalist student. This student has an understanding of the natural world around them. The naturalist thrives when learning about plants, animals, science. They have an understanding for animals behaviors and needs. ... ...nguist enjoy writing poetry, stories and letters. The traditional curriculum appeals to this learner. They are very good at reading and writing which is already the main method of teaching in most classrooms. A teacher can use a story to introduce a math problem in order to tap into this style of learning. Finally, logical/ mathematical is the proposed eighth intelligence. This style is heavily implemented in the traditional curriculum. This student will be able to do very complex math problems. Children who use logic and math as a primary way of learning will be very obvious in the classroom. This student will ask many questions and loves doing experiments. The logical/ mathematical learner will excel if they are help to place information into categories.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  If a teacher assesses their students at the beginning of the school year, he or she can create lessons to incorporate each student. This will allow children to have fun in school and they will be excited about learning. Recognizing your students learning method will allow the teacher to balance the weaknesses and benefit from strengths. Gardner, H. (1988). Frames of mind. New York: Basic Books.

steinback :: essays research papers

Jesus is William Blake’s â€Å"The Lamb†? William Blake’s poem, â€Å"The Lamb" is broken into two stanzas. Both stanzas have ten lines each. In the first part, each line rhymes with the next. There are a total of five rhyming parts in the first stanza. In the second stanza â€Å"name† and â€Å"Lamb† do not rhyme, but the other lines have the rhyming endings. The first two and the last two lines of each stanza are either the same or close to being the same. This is almost like a chorus to a song. In the first stanza â€Å"The Lamb†, opens with "Little Lamb, who made thee?" A child is most likely the speaker and asks the lamb how it came to be. The speaker wants to know how the lamb chooses where it feeds. Next, the speaker asks where the lamb got its’ wool "clothing" and its’ "tender voice" from. In the next stanza, the speaker tries to answer his own question. The speaker tells us that the lamb was made by someone who is called â€Å"a Lamb". The creator is a lot like a lamb. He is seen as gentle and pure, just like the speaker, a child, and a lamb. The lamb most likely symbolizes Jesus Christ. Every time Blake uses the word â€Å" Lamb† it is in The traditional image of Jesus, in the Catholic church, is seen as a lamb. The Christian values of gentleness, purity, and kindness are not only in Jesus but, also a lamb. In lines 16 and 17 the word â€Å"child† is mentioned. Jesus could also be seen as a child. Jesus left His mother and father in search of knowledge, as all children do when they go to school. He also lived under the watch of God, His father, like all children do. Finally, most people have heard how Jesus was killed on the cross. That showed how Jesus was seen as vulnerable, much like every child.

Young People Question their Antidepressants :: Psychology Pharmacy Papers

Young People Question their Antidepressants Like many eager freshmen this year, Amy* made Northeastern University her home with a burst of optimism and the excitement of a fresh start in a strange, new place. But just over a year ago, while a high school senior, she almost lost her chance for the college experience—her grades plummeted with her as she fell deeper into depressive episodes, putting her life and her academic future in jeopardy. The scars she etched in her body tell of her battles with depression, a painful mental disease she dealt with in secrecy for four years before finally seeking help. After years of self-mutilation and uncontrollable sadness, the 18-year-old music industry major started taking antidepressants, the controversial wonder-drugs she attributes her current happiness to. â€Å"I can handle my life much easier now,† she said. â€Å"I would not be able to function without them.† But while Amy embraces her prescription to Zoloft, Northeastern freshman music industry major Erin* plans to drop hers. The very medicine that helped Amy work her way to happiness has left 17-year-old Erin confused and wary of her treatments. Rather than freeing her from the hopelessness of depression, the antidepressant drugs left her apathetic and numb—and when her current prescription runs out, she won’t be refilling it. Antidepressant use in children and adolescents has surged in recent years, with 11 million prescriptions written in 2002 alone, a number that has tripled since the early 1990s. But the practice of prescribing the drugs to young people has attracted a cloud of controversy, with lackluster testing of the medicines and recent revelations that the drugs can lead to increased suicidality—the suicidal thoughts and actions that accompany depression. Still, demand is high and the rate of depression in young people is substantial. The Center for Mental Health Services, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, found in a 1999 study that 6.5% of people aged 18-24 have major depression, yet fewer than 25% of those diagnosed will seek professional treatment—those who do will likely end up on antidepressants. While much about the treatment of depression remains a mystery, information about the illness in children and adolescents is even cloudier. Carol Glod, a local expert on depression and associate professor at the Bouve College of Nursing at Northeastern University, says the only solution is to conduct more research. â€Å"You have to do something for the person that has depression and, without the research, we don’t know what works,† she says. Young People Question their Antidepressants :: Psychology Pharmacy Papers Young People Question their Antidepressants Like many eager freshmen this year, Amy* made Northeastern University her home with a burst of optimism and the excitement of a fresh start in a strange, new place. But just over a year ago, while a high school senior, she almost lost her chance for the college experience—her grades plummeted with her as she fell deeper into depressive episodes, putting her life and her academic future in jeopardy. The scars she etched in her body tell of her battles with depression, a painful mental disease she dealt with in secrecy for four years before finally seeking help. After years of self-mutilation and uncontrollable sadness, the 18-year-old music industry major started taking antidepressants, the controversial wonder-drugs she attributes her current happiness to. â€Å"I can handle my life much easier now,† she said. â€Å"I would not be able to function without them.† But while Amy embraces her prescription to Zoloft, Northeastern freshman music industry major Erin* plans to drop hers. The very medicine that helped Amy work her way to happiness has left 17-year-old Erin confused and wary of her treatments. Rather than freeing her from the hopelessness of depression, the antidepressant drugs left her apathetic and numb—and when her current prescription runs out, she won’t be refilling it. Antidepressant use in children and adolescents has surged in recent years, with 11 million prescriptions written in 2002 alone, a number that has tripled since the early 1990s. But the practice of prescribing the drugs to young people has attracted a cloud of controversy, with lackluster testing of the medicines and recent revelations that the drugs can lead to increased suicidality—the suicidal thoughts and actions that accompany depression. Still, demand is high and the rate of depression in young people is substantial. The Center for Mental Health Services, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, found in a 1999 study that 6.5% of people aged 18-24 have major depression, yet fewer than 25% of those diagnosed will seek professional treatment—those who do will likely end up on antidepressants. While much about the treatment of depression remains a mystery, information about the illness in children and adolescents is even cloudier. Carol Glod, a local expert on depression and associate professor at the Bouve College of Nursing at Northeastern University, says the only solution is to conduct more research. â€Å"You have to do something for the person that has depression and, without the research, we don’t know what works,† she says.

Feminism in Post-war United States

The construction of a just and humane society, just like other social and institutional facts is a long and tedious process, nevertheless, the task needs to be done. Within the United States, the construction of such a society stands as a result of the various historical changes within the country, an example of which can be seen in the changes within the country after its participation in the Second World War. The country’s participation in Second World War proved to be beneficial for its citizens on certain aspects as it enabled what Reinhold Niebuhr would state as the emergence of the ‘children of light’.In line with Niehbur’s argument in his book The Children of Light and the Children of Darkness, the ‘children of light’ emerged within the post-World War II United States as the conditions within the country enabled the development of a society which opted for unity within the conditions of freedom and order (20-21). An example of this is ev ident in the development of the feminist movement in post-World War II United States. The feminist movement in the United States stands as a result of the nationalist and cultural movements in post-World War II United States.Feminist movements within the United States during this period took the form of either socialist feminism, radical feminism, or liberal feminism. Each of these strands of feminism focuses on issues pertaining to women’s exclusion from the political sphere; they differ however in their view as to what enables such an exclusion. Socialist feminists argue that such an exclusion stands as a result of the moral order of social organizations.Radical feminists, on the other hand, argue that such an exclusion stands as a result of the prevalent sex or gender system in society. Finally, liberal feminists argue that such an exclusion stands as a result of the inequality amongst the sexes. Despite the differences of these three strands of feminism mentioned above, t he development of these three strands shows the manner in which post-World War II United States opted for the development of equality between the sexes through the ascription not only of rationality but also agency upon women.Amongst the strands of feminism mentioned above, it is the initial strand [radical feminism] which proved to be significant for the development of the feminist movement during the initial period of post-World War II America as it highlighted the development of the second wave of feminism in the United States. Betty Friedan (1968), in her book The Feminine Mystique, specifies the difference between the first and second wave of feminism.She argues that as opposed to the first wave of feminism which was characterized by the creation of the ‘feminine mystique’ which enabled the discovery of women’s selves within the context of their initial roles in their careers, families, and relationships; the second wave of feminism was characterized by the deconstruction of the ‘feminine mystique’ as a result of women’s recognition of the continuously oppressive character of their initial ‘freed’ position in society (33-34). Since the second wave was influenced by the civil-rights protests and peace protests, it became more activist in character.An example of this activist character of the second wave of feminism is apparent in Kate Millet’s radical strand of feminism in her book Sexual Politics. Kate Millet (2000), in her book Sexual Politics, discusses one of the main issues of the feminist movement in post-World War II United States. Within her book, Millet argues that inequality between the sexes stands as a result of the unequal distribution of power amongst the sexes in society. She argues that women’s subordination stands as a result of the ideological indoctrination of women by a patriarchal society.She states that the â€Å"essence of politics† as power involves seeking to prove that â€Å"however muted its present appearance may be, sexual dominion obtains nevertheless as perhaps the most pervasive ideology of our culture and provides its most fundamental concepts of power† (Millet 25). The title of her book Sexual Politics thereby aims to present her view of how women’s subordination stands as a result of the continuation of patriarchal politics within both the private and public spheres of life.Millet divides her book into three parts. The first part entitled â€Å"Sexual Politics† presents Millet’s thesis regarding the nature of power relations between the sexes. The second part entitled â€Å"Historical Background† presents a survey of the feminist struggle within the United States during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Finally, the third part entitled â€Å"The Literary Reflection† presents Millet’s views as to how the power relations between the sexes are visible in the literary works of D.H. Lawrence, Henry Miller, Norman Mailer, and Jean Genet. Millet’s argument that the content of literary works mirrors the power relations between the sexes is based on the assumption that literature has a mimetic character. In other words, for Millet the content of literary works mirror reality and hence the content of literary works may be used as a means of gauging how women have been continuously subordinated by men through their indoctrination of a patriarchal ideology.Within this context, the importance of Millet’s aforementioned book may thereby be ascribed to its existence as a socio-historical text which takes literature as a source material for a hypothesis about the relationships between men and women in the non-literary world from the late nineteenth century to the present time. In addition to this, Millet’s book stands as the first text which uses a feminist approach in reading or interpreting literary works.In line with Niehbur’s claim re garding the emergence of the ‘children of light’, one may note that the development of the feminist movement in post-World War II United States showed an example of the emergence of the ‘children of light’ since the movement enabled the development of a United States which opted for the equality between the sexes thereby creating a free and orderly society through the emergence of works that not only subverted the predominant ideology in society during that period but also created a new perspective in understanding reality.In the case of Kate Millet’s Sexual Politics, this is evident in her creation of a feminist standpoint for assessing literary works.

Cloud Computing: Two Articles

Cloud Computing Articles One of the recent trends in the fast paced field of Information Technology is the development of cloud computing. Simply put, cloud computing is the outsourcing of business processing and storage to â€Å"virtual† servers over a network, most commonly the internet. The advance of network technology has allowed companies to transfer large amounts of their business intelligence systems to outside servers, without compromising data-transfer speed. Two recent articles from different publications covered the subject of cloud computing. The first, found online from InfoWorld. om, describes the different levels of cloud computing and what each entails. The second article, found in a monthly publication of Computer World, details the pros and cons of clouds in IT. According to the InfoWorld. com article, cloud computing is â€Å"a way to increase capacity or add capabilities on the fly without investing in new infrastructure, training new personnel, or licens ing new software. Cloud computing encompasses any subscription-based or pay-per-use service that, in real time over the Internet, extends IT's existing capabilities. † (InfoWorld. om) Clouds are a modern answer to IT’s ever increasing needs for storage space and computing power. There are several types of services that these virtual servers offer, ranging from utility applications to email spam filtering. Currently, most of the servers must be accessed individually, but they are becoming more integrated as the field progresses. One type of cloud computing, software as a service (SaaS), is the hosting of one software application through the internet. An example this type of application is Salesforce. com, a sales representative management system. By providing the software online, Salesforce. com provides an easy way for managers to monitor and diagnose sales data, without the need for their own costly IT system in-house. SaaS also gives an advantage to the host company, because updates and bug fixes are limited to one program which they control. There are several variations to the Saas system that are offered in cloud computing. Utility computing involves a company’s memory, input / output Storage, and computational capacity being accessed through the network to a â€Å"virtual† server. Currently, most cloud utility computing is for non critical intelligence, due to newness of the system. According to the article, these online servers could one day replace most of the current physical datacenter. Another variation to Saas within cloud computing is web based application programming interfaces. APIs are â€Å"interfaces implemented by an online source that enable interaction with other software† (Wikepedia. org). There is a wide range of APIs used with business intelligence. Some examples would be Google Maps used by delivery services, shipping tracking for UPS, or online tax processing programs such as TurboTax. One of the original forms of cloud computing are managed service providers (MSPs), which are applications that are exposed to the host company, rather than the end user. Examples of MSPs are e-mail virus scanning and anti-spam services, or desktop management offered by companies such as CenterBeam. Managed security services, such as firewalls, are also found within cloud computing. The Computer World article goes further to describe an aspect of cloud computing called infrastructure as a service (Iaas). â€Å"With public cloud IaaS, organizations pay per use or per cluster of resources for an external cloud service provider to host their virtual servers†¦ IT maintains control over the applications without worrying about configuring, upgrading or patching servers and other infrastructure. If a new application is needed, IT simply loads that application onto the service provider’s virtual server and the software is available to users† (Computer World). By migrating the physical datacenters to virtual servers, companies are saving maintenance, power and labor costs from the upkeep of those resources. Most established companies are making the transition to clouds slowly, a couple of datacenters at a time, as they become outdated. Startup businesses, however, can use virtual servers as a great advantage to avoid costly equipment purchases. â€Å"Bernard Golden, CEO of consultancy HyperStatus, agrees that Iaas offers a lifeline when it comes to rising data center costs and real estate constraints. It offers IT the opportunity to reduce the data center management burden, yet improve customer service† (Computer World). For a company who is contemplating the switch to virtual servers, there is also security and legality issues to consider. Migrating large amounts of data, without disrupting critical files, can be risky. One company, Amylin Pharmaceuticals, â€Å"started slowly with self contained, non mission critical applications such as testing and development so they could learn the ins and outs of moving into the cloud† (Computer World). The company should inquire as to the host server’s security and firewall systems, and should always keep hard copies of important data and applications. Business documents that are highly valuable to a company, such as patent documents, customer databases, and technical drawings are not usually stored in the cloud network. The international field of computer hacking is expanding, especially in developing countries, making industrial espionage a serious subject for businesses to consider. A company migrating to cloud computing must also consider the legal aspects of moving their IT systems. Software licenses may not apply to a public network, where the applications can be shared by several end user computers. The company should also know the terms of contracting with the cloud servers, should they decide to break or end the agreement. All data that could be detrimental to the firm should be destroyed by the host server once the contract is void. Some businesses are closely regulated by government agencies such as the FDA or ANSA, and should keep relative files readily accessible. There are also government regulations to consider concerning customer information. The article describes how IT manager Charles Swartz, of Preferred Hotel Group, adheres to regulations. â€Å"Because the company deals with credit card transactions, it must follow the Payment Card Data Security Standard, which requires physical control over servers handling that data. To avoid any complications, Swartz makes sure all credit card transactions go directly to a third party and he avoids keeping any of that data on his outsourced infrastructure† (Computer World). Another issue to consider when switching to a cloud network is computing speed. Where IT systems may have been fast to load or run on a local area network, a wide area network could transfer at a higher or lower speed. With modern business transactions becoming faster than ever, customers expect quick response. â€Å"Delays of just a few milliseconds can cause them [end users] to be frustrated† (Computer World). Switching to cloud networks can be an advantage to speed, if the cloud provides a larger bandwidth than the in-house servers. A higher bandwidth also allows more end users to access the system at once without slowing download speeds significantly. Jason Harper, vice president of technology at Morgans Hotel Group in New York, say customer satisfaction has increased at his shop because end users are accessing their files faster via the cloud† (Computer World). One recommended use of the cloud system is test run or seasonal IT systems. Rather than expanding physical datacenter space for temporary projects, the public servers can be easily setup to run and store data. â€Å"The public cloud is great for short term usage, since very few enterprises have spare servers lying around anymore. Instead, it enables IT to have quick response to new projects without having to preplan† (Computer World). The article does warn, however, that low barrier to entry can be over-sourced. Often-times end users might jump into applications on cloud networks without consulting their IT professionals. This could lead to costly changes down the line, which could have been easily fixed at the setup of the systems. Despite being in an early stage of development, cloud computing already has a definite niche in the business and IT world. One of the main drawbacks at this point is the lack of integration between systems. Previous attempts to create cloud integration technology, such as CapeClear’s enterprise service bus, and a universal bus system by Grand Central, have failed to stay in business. The overall trend of using virtual servers, however, does seem appear to be here to stay. Sources: â€Å"What Cloud Computing Really Means† Infoworld. com Knorr, 4-27-2008 http://www. infoworld. com/d/cloud-computing/what-cloud-computing-really-means-031 â€Å"Moving to the cloud: Big savings, but plan ahead† Computer World Gittlen, March 2010