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Sociological Analysis of Mental Health A proposal

Elisia Davis

SOC433 Sociology of Mental Health

July 12, 2020

Sociological Analysis of Mental Health: A proposal

The Aviator is a film that tells the story of a successful film director and aviation magnate by the name Howard Hughes. In addition to narrating his journey from the bottom up, it focuses on his struggles with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). OCD is a condition that sees a person held in a cycle of compulsions and obsessions. Obsessions are invasive and unwanted thoughts, visions, or urges that result in severely distressing feelings. The film takes the audience through the journey of the main character as the OCD manifests and starts to limit his life and drive him to estrangement. In essence, the film is a portrayal of the man’s decade long journey battling this condition.

Unlike most conditions, OCD does not start with parenting but the way a family reacts to a child with OCD can determine whether the child’s anxiety is increased or reduces. Other factors such as traumatic brain surgeries are associated with OCD because of brain function impairment. Severe infections such as strep throat or flu trigger OCD symptoms in children who are genetically predisposed to this condition.

Functionalism is a very effective theory in explaining or enabling an understanding of OCD. Mental states can only be interpreted by what they do but not what they are made of. Compulsions and obsessions result in visible physical behavior. For instance, in The Aviator the character Howard Hughes carries around his own soap and at one point washes his hands until they bleed. Functionalism also connects OCD with its social factors since the theory considers society a structure that is responsible for taking care of the biological and social needs of an individual. The theorists of sociologists who front this idea believe that a condition such as OCD should be approached by focuses on factors outside the individual.

Introduction (11)

Effects of Uppers, Downers, and All-arounders

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Institutional affiliation

Introduction

There are various names used to refer to different drugs including street names, brand names, or even generic names. The terms uppers, downers, and all-rounders are used to refer to a group of drugs widely known as depressants and stimulants. The categories comprise a wide variety of substances used for treating various conditions. Uppers and downers have different effects and can be addictive to users. This essay provides a summary of upper, downer, and all-rounder categories of drugs including examples, effects, and potential consequences they have on users. It is necessary to equip oneself with the correct information about drug substances because it helps a person make fact-based and correct decisions.

Uppers

The term uppers refer to stimulant drugs. This is a group of drugs that is used to increase energy levels and keep people alert. Once a person takes these drugs, initially they experience a feeling of stimulation but as the drug wears off, the individual goes through a phase of extreme exhaustion and depression. Users become addicted to uppers because they experience a desire of maintaining the high. Although uppers have proved helpful in boosting concentration and focus, they can cause a rise in breathing and heart rate when used in certain doses (Apostolov, 2017). The main side effects of using uppers include nausea, heart arrhythmias, and drowsiness. Examples of uppers include methamphetamine, cocaine, Adderall, Concerta, and Ritalin. Worth noting, these drugs have the power to make the user feel anxious, terrified, and paranoid. People who use uppers have the problem of lack of sleep that is why they get hooked on uppers to help them cope with the exhaustion.

Downers

Downers represent the opposite side of uppers. Downers represent a group of drugs known as depressants which have a sedative effect. Once the user, takes downers, they immediately feel relaxed and even drowsy. Examples of downers are alcohol, mandrax, Heroine, Amytal, Seconal, Numbutal, Klonopin. Xanax, Librium, and Halcyon. These drugs have proved helpful in managing conditions such as insomnia, epilepsy, and anxiety. However, when missed, they are bound to cause serious harm to users. The main effects of using depressants are slowed breathing, slow heart rate, and lack of consciousness. Excessive use of downers leads to outcomes such as overdoing and death. Downers generally give users a feeling of calmness, rejuvenation, and relaxation. Moreover, continued use of these drugs has been associated with severe lethargy which makes it hard for the user to follow his daily routine. As such it leads to reduced productivity. Downers such as alcohol and heroine are very powerful to the extent that they can cause the bodily system to shut down completely leading to death or coma.

All-Arounders

All-arounders are drugs that can have effects that are similar to those of uppers as well as downers. Cannabis and hallucinogens fall under the category of all-arounders drugs. Hallucinogens have the effect of producing hallucinations distorting reality. Hallucinogens are also referred to as psychedelic or illusionogenic. All-arounders function by dramatically affecting the emotions, perceptions, and mental processes of the users (Patterson, Brady, & Olympia, 2017). Moreover, all-arounders distort senses and cause hallucinations. Notably, hallucinogens currently have not been approved for medical usage. Examples of all-arounders drugs include cannabis, mescaline, psilocybin, PCP (angel dust), and LSD (acid, blotter). Cannabis which is commonly referred to as marijuana is extracted from the hemp plant called Cannabis Sativa. THC is the main ingredient in the plant. Cannabis is the most used illegal drug and it has depressant effects and just like stimulants, it also raises heart rates. Noteworthy, ecstasy is sometimes categorized as an all-arounder drug owing to its hallucinogenic properties.

Conclusion

The terms upper and downers are used to refer to a cluster of drugs known as stimulants and depressants respectively. All-arounders on the other hand refer to drugs that display both stimulative and depressing effects on the user. An example of all-arounders is cannabis which acts as depressants and at the same time raises heartbeat. The main effects of using depressants are slowed breathing, slow heart rate, and lack of consciousness. Downers generally give users a feeling of calmness, rejuvenation, and relaxation. The main side effects associated with using uppers include nausea, heart arrhythmias, and drowsiness.

References

Apostolov, M. (2017). FDI Uppers and Downers: A Macedonian Case Study. New Global Studies, 11(1), 29-44.

Patterson, K., Brady, J., & Olympia, R. P. (2017). School nurses on the front lines of medicine: Uppers and downers: The approach to the student with altered mental status. NASN School Nurse, 32(6), 350-355.

Institution (4)

Effects of Racism on Culture, Marketing, and International Trade

Student’s Name

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Effects of Racism on Culture, Marketing, and International Trade

Racism is a major problem in society today. Its effects in society have profound effects on people, societies, and governments. It causes immense suffering; discrimination denies various opportunities, suppression of human rights, and general progression of the society. The impact of racism is felt in key areas such as marketing, culture, and international trade.

Effects of racism on culture

Culture is also an essential aspect of life, which is affected by racism. Dang (2018) defines culture as a collective believes, behaviors values, and rituals which are associated with a certain group of people. Culture is vital in society as it helps to create a feeling of belonging. Essential attributes of culture, such as religion, have played a major role in facilitating unity and inspiration to society. The United States is one of the richest countries in terms of cultural diversity. The country is comprised of ethnic groups that range from African Americans, Asians, Whites, among others. Cultural diversity plays a key role in enhancing human development. It helps in fostering unity, enhancing creativity, and providing a new perspective of doing things.

The differences in culture should be considered as a source of celebration and inspiration in society. However, its importance in society is constantly under threat due to racism. Racism negatively affects the role, impact, and the celebration of culture among people in society. The impact of racism in culture often experienced in the immigration sector. Lawmaking organs, lawmakers and political leaders develop policies which are discriminate against the immigration of people from certain cultures. The United States has been a country that embraces and is comprised of immigrants (Hutchison, 2018). Immigrants from different parts of the globe, such as Europe, Asia, and Africa, have contributed to the growth and diversity of American society. The United States continues to use immigration to improve its economic, political, and social identity. However, in recent years the cultural component of people in the United States has been the subject of suppression. The bodies in charge of enacting immigration policies have made regulations intended to suppress minority cultures in the United. The suppression of the cultures of minority groups is enacted through limited immigration opportunities for communities from specific regions.

On the other hand, immigration policies tend to favor people from the majority communities. Increasing immigration opportunities for people from majority cultures while reducing opportunities for people from minority cultures easily translates to racial discrimination. The racist policies are a means of slowly eliminating certain cultures with a view of promoting other cultures. The 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act is an example of a regulation that was racially used to suppress minority cultures while benefit majority cultures (Tourse, Hamilton-Mason, & Wewiorski,2018).  Although the law brought an end to immigration quotas that favored the European immigrants, it secretly created extra visas for Immigrants from Europe.

Another form of modern-day racism that has significantly affected culture is forced assimilation. Assimilation refers to situations where people adopt new cultures and make them their own. Voluntary assimilation is a vital part of society and enables people to learn about new cultures, ideas, and lifestyles. Forced assimilation, on the other hand, is dangerous and detrimental to the progress and success of society. Racism has, in the past and the present, been at the center of forced assimilation, which is directed towards eliminating certain cultures. The implementation of forced elimination among people often arises from government policies that force people to abandon their cultures. Forced assimilation-oriented policies force people to choose education systems and cultures without having an opinion or sat in the process. An example of forced assimilation is banning the use of minority languages in teaching and key government institutions. McCarty, Skutnabb-Kangas, & Magga (2008), assert that people in power view language as a major obstacle. Therefore, they tend to combat their use by enacting systemic changes such as banning their use in schools. Eventually, the language is faced out as people begin to pick up the mandatory languages used in schools. As a result, people from minority groups are unable to use their language a, factor that leads to its disappearance. Native Americans are some of the most affected cultures due to the systemic changes which limit the use of their native languages. They are then forced to adopt the languages spoken by the majority.

Another aspect of culture which is significantly affected by racism is religion. Religion is a controversial area that has been the subject of intense criticism and scrutiny by governments and people around the globe. Although it is an integral part of the culture among people, governments, and societies around the world have used it as an avenue of racially discriminating people. Muslims are some of the people whose religion has been negatively affected by racism. Racial discrimination of Asians, especially the Arabs, has had a profound impact on their religion. Their practice of Islam is often met by resentment and negativity (Shaver et al.,2016). The negative perception of religion causes people who practice them to change due to fear of persecution or rejection from society. Racism against Arabs is often associated with Islam. Thus, the fear of being racially abused causes people to abandon their religious culture for fear of victimized by racialists. In other instances, governments tend to limit the practice of certain religions as part of controlling their specific cultures. Thus, measures are put in place, which limits the construction of religious facilities such as temples. Such racial discrimination policies negatively affect the ability of people to enjoy and practice their culture. They are driven to become outcasts.

Effects of racism on Marketing

Another area that significantly affected by racism is marketing. Marketing is an essential aspect of society. According to Urbonavičius & Dikčius (2008), marketing plays a vital role in ensuring that companies maintain a close relationship between them and their markets. Marketing also allows companies and organizations to introduce new products into the market and bring consumers to changes in specific components of products and services. As a result, marketing is essential to both the business as well as the consumers. However, the effectiveness of marketing has, over the years, been affected by racism.

The issues of race in modern society have affected the operation of marketing agencies across the globe. Marketing agencies tend to deploy persons who check their advertisements to determine whether they fit the racial eye test. The steps taken by companies to identify independent advisers on their advertisements stem from the fact that various advertisements have, in the past, led to outrage from the public due to display of racially discriminative messages passed through the marketing agencies. The modern age of social media use and increased internet availability across the globe have heightened the scrutiny on companies in terms of their marketing activities. An advertisement for Pepsi, which was done by Kendall Jenner, is an example of a marketing activity that caused an outrage by the public due to the negative racial portray of the blacks (Friedman, 2017).

Marketing plays a vital role in influencing the perceptions, decisions, and ideas of people on certain things about people. Consequentially, it is often intended to influence purchasing decisions and also develop interests in certain products and services. Marketing has been the subject of racial profiling of certain communities. Organizations, societies, and the media have, in the past, used marketing to portray specific ethnic goods in a negative manner. The perception of African Americans, in particular, in marketing negatively affects the self-belief and confidence of the community. The media and marketers tend to only associate Blacks with marketing activities that involve sport or fast foods. However, advertisements that feature executive positions or positions of influence are mainly left to the whites. The media and the markers thus create a narrative which is passed on to the society. Marketing activities that tend to create specific narratives about the capabilities of certain races tend to lower the confidence of young people in society. Other instances in marketing, such as advertisements for soaps and detergents, which depict African Americans ‘change in skin color from black to white, are a further illustration of the negative perception of the African American communities. They demean their race and portray it as an inferior race. Marketing should be about passing ideas to consumers and the public about products and services. However, marketing often finds a way to veer off from its objects and end up undermining races and the ethnic components of the society.

Another effect of racism are the overrepresentation of the whites and the underrepresentation of people for other races. Racial discrimination leads to unfair treatment of individuals in the marketing field based on their racial background. Many companies in the United States prefer to market their products and services through white people as opposed to people from other races such as the Africa Americans and the Latinos (Robinson, 2019). This leads to the underrepresentation of the minority racial groups since most of the marketing activities are carried out by the Americans. Most American firms prefer white marketers because they argue that people from other races are not attractive enough to appear in adverts. The companies have the belief that American marketers have an attractive appearance that will attract a large number of customers during the marketing activities (Davis, 2018). They also argue that African Americans lack creativity, and therefore they cannot create an appealing marketing message that can attract the attention of the potential buyers. As a result of racism, only a few people from minority racial groups, who have shown appropriate capabilities, have been employed to carry out different marketing activities in the country. There are few African Americans and other minorities occupying senior positions in the marketing industry. According to Robinson (2019), individuals who are identified as blacks account for only 5% of those working in public relations, advertising, and other marketing-related activities.

The other impact is the failure to meet the marketing objectives of products marketed by people from minority races. The main objective of carrying out marketing activities is to increase customer awareness and enhance the demand for a particular product (Davis, 2018). Some of the companies in the United States market their product through people from minority ethnic groups such as the backs and the Latinos, to enhance the customer awareness of their brands. However, racism makes it challenging for these companies to attain their marketing goals since the consumers in the country are racist (Robinson, 2019). The consumers do not watch adverts aired by people of color because they argue that they are not appealing and attractive. They prefer viewing adverts presented by American marketers than those presented by people from other races (Davis, 2018). The adverts aired by people of color attract a small number of customers which makes the marketing efforts of the company to be unsuccessful. This affects the future sustainability of the company in the competitive market.

Effects of racism on international trade

International trade involves the exchange of products and services between two or more trading nations. According to Heakal (2020), international trade allows a country to expand the market of its products and services across the borders. It also allows a country to get products and services that it does not produce domestically. International trade is important because it provides a more competitive market that leads to an increase in the quality of products offered to the customers (Heakal, 2020). Global trade involves different countries from different parts of the world. These countries have different cultural and racial backgrounds. Therefore, racism is one of the factors that affect international trade.

Racism has various effects on international trade, which includes the following. One of the impacts is the discrimination of some countries in global trade. This happens when one of the countries refuses to carry out business with another country. The two countries have trading products and services, but one of the nations is unwilling to buy the products offered by the other country (McCluney et al., 2018). The bases of this type of discrimination are the racial background of one of the countries in international trade. For instance, the United States prefers to import tea from Argentina and India than from African countries. In Africa, there are various countries, such as Malawi, that produce high-quality tea. Racism influence the United States to buy tea from white countries than to buy from black countries. African countries are large consumers of American products, but America consumes a small number of products from Africa (Ashe & Nazroo, 2017). This type of discrimination reduces the market for one of the trading countries. It increases the amount of waste, which makes the country incur substantial losses.

The second effect is the reduction of the quality of goods offered in the international market. The products offered by a country in international trade are produced by local companies. Racial discrimination is common in most of the firms in the United States. Racism has various effects on the production activities and the quality of goods and services manufactured by a company (Ashe & Nazroo, 2017). It increases the internal conflict in the workplace. This makes it challenging for the employees to coordinate and work together with a common aim of producing proper quality products. Workplace racism also makes it hard for employees to work in teams. Teamwork is essential because it increases employee interaction, and they can work together to solve workplace issues to enhance the quality of the produced products (McCluney et al., 2018). Also, racism demotivates the affected employees, which reduces their performance in the workplace. Workplace racism reduces the quality of products and services produced by domestic firms, which affects the quality of products offered by the country to international trade.

The other impact of racism is the reduction of the amounts of products offered in international trade. The amount of goods and services provided in the global trade by a country depends on the production of the local firms. Racism has a significant influence on the productivity of domestic firms. Racial discrimination leads to unequal and unfair treatment of the employees from the minority racial groups, which acts as a demotivation factor to the affected team members (McCluney et al., 2018). As a result, it affects the performance of the discriminated employees, which reduces the firm’s productivity and the number of products offered by the country into international trade. Racism also makes some countries not engage in trade with other nations. This reduces the number of products in global trade since the discriminated country will not offer its goods and services (Ashe & Nazroo, 2017). The reduction in the number of products can have various effects on the customers in the international market. It reduces the level of competition since it is only a few countries that participate in international trade. Reduced competition can affect the quality of products and services and the prices charged to the consumers.

Racism can also lead to a decline in demand for products and services from a particular country. This happens when two countries engage in trading activities, but the consumers in one of the states refuse to consume products from another nation (Ashe & Nazroo, 2017). The main reason behind the consumers’ decision not to consume the products and services is the racial differences between them and the people from the other country. This leads to the loss of demand for the discriminated country’s products and services, which reduces its net sales (McCluney et al., 2018). For instance, a consumer visits the supermarket and refuses to buy a plastic product because it originates from China. China produces high-quality plastic products, but the racial differences between them and the United States can influence an American buyer not to buy the products. Racism will reduce the demand for Chinese products in the American market. As a result, it will reduce the net sales of the discriminated country in the international market.

Conclusion

Racism is common in the country. Racial discrimination occurs in different sectors and affects various operations in the country. One of the aspects affected by racism is culture. The United States set regulations that suppress minority cultures and favor the Americans. Marketing activities are also affected by racism. The minority races are undermined in adverts, and they are underrepresented in the marketing operations. Also, International trade is affected by racism because it involves the cooperation between various countries that have different racial backgrounds. Therefore, it is important to learn and educate the public on ways that racism affects crucial aspects of the society such as marketing, international trade and culture. Learning and acknowledging the existence of racism in theses areas allows people to speak against it and put measures which prevent its prevalence.

References

Ashe, S., & Nazroo, J. (2017). Equality, diversity, and racism in the workplace: A qualitative

Analysis of the 2015 race at work survey. Online: http://hummedia. Manchester. ac. UK/institutes/code/research/raceatwork/Equ…(accessed: 7 April 2017).

Dang, W. (2018). How culture shapes environmental public participation: case studies of China, the Netherlands, and Italy. Journal of Chinese Governance, 1-23.

Davis, J. F. (2018). Selling whiteness?–A critical review of the literature on marketing and

Racism. Journal of Marketing Management, 34(1-2), 134-177.

Friedman, N. (2017). A Pepsi commercial’s lesson for advisers. The New York Times, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/06/opinion/a-pepsi-commercials-lesson-for-advertisers.htmlHeakal, R. (2020). The investor’s guide to global trade,

https://www.investopedia.com/insights/what-is-international-trade/

Hutchison, E. D. (2018). Dimensions of human behavior: Person and environment. Sage Publications.

McCarty, T. L., Skutnabb-Kangas, T., & Magga, O. H. (2008). 21 Education for Speakers of Endangered Languages. The handbook of educational linguistics, 297.

McCluney et al. (2018). Structural racism in the workplace: Does perception matter for health

Inequalities? Social Science & Medicine, 199, 106-114.

Robinson, T. (2019). A brief roundown of racism within advertising and why it’s still happening Today. https://www.adweek.com/agencies/a-brief-rundown-of-racism-within-advertising-and-why-its-still-happening-today/Tourse, R. W., Hamilton-Mason, J., & Wewiorski, N. J. (2018). Systemic Racism in the United States: Scaffolding as Social Construction. Springer.

Urbonavičius, S., & Dikčius, V. (2008). Importance of marketing activities in a company: the management perspective. Ekonomika, 83, 41-50.

ook Review The Big Lie Exposing the Nazi Roots of the American Left (2)

Effects of Nursing Staff Shortages on the Health Care System

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Date

Nursing Staff Shortages in the Health Care System

Introduction

The shortage of nurses is a global health issue that negatively affects healthcare delivery, and the problem is expected to worsen with the increasing demand for healthcare providers caused by the aging population (Stokes & Iskander, 2021). It is approximated that by 2029, there will likely be 73% more Americans over the age of 65, which will increase the demand for healthcare practitioners to provide medical services. This paper provides a comprehensive discussion of the issue of nurse shortage in the cultural and ethical context. Two Level 1 research questions, one from the ethical perspective of inquiry and the other from a cultural perspective, have been selected to guide the paper. Also, a Level 2 research question has been formulated for each perspective of inquiry to further explore the issue of nursing shortages from the cultural and ethical context. The chosen Level 1 question from the ethical perspective of inquiry is “What laws pertain to the issue?” while the formulated level 2 question from this perspective is “What are the ethical implications of nursing staff shortages?”. On the other hand, the chosen level 1 question from the cultural perspective of inquiry is “Which cultural values influence the issue?” and the corresponding level 2 question is “How does cultural diversity affect nurse shortage?”. All these questions are addressed below.

Research Questions from the Ethical Perspective of Inquiry

The Level 1 research question from the ethical perspective of inquiry aims to uncover the laws that pertain to the issue of nurse shortages. Since different countries have different laws that pertain to this healthcare issue, the focus of this paper will be on the US laws that pertain to the issue of nursing staff shortages. One of these laws is the Nurse Reinvestment Act, P.L. 107-205. The 107th Congress passed the Nurse Reinvestment Act on July 22, 2002. Congress had been significantly engaged since the 1960s with the goal of providing the US with sufficient nurse manpower. The Act was later signed into law by President George W. Bush on August 1, 2002. The Nurse Reinvestment Act pertains to the issue of nursing staff shortages because Title I and Title II pertain to nurses’ recruitment and retention, respectively. Title 1 of the Act provides two ways of boosting nurses’ recruitment. The first initiative is the development and broadcasting of grant-based funding of local and state public service announcements to promote and advertise the nursing profession. During broadcasting, the rewards ad advantages of the nursing profession should be highlighted, and people are persuaded to enter into this profession. The second initiative entails the revision of provisions of the National Nurse Service Corps (NNSC) related to items such as scholarships, loan repayment, funding, and reporting and eligibility requirements. Boosting nurses’ recruitment helps in addressing the main health care issue selected, which is nurse shortages. Title II of the Nurse Reinvestment Act presents policies intended to improve the retention of nurses. The provisions of Title II relate to areas such as creating career ladders and retaining high-quality nurses through retention grants and nurse education, developing and funding comprehensive geriatric education, and creating and running a nurse faculty loan program to improve the number of qualified nursing faculty. Title II of the Act helps address the issue of nurse shortages by ensuring nurses do not quit their profession. Another law that pertains to the issue of nursing staff shortage in the US is the Nurse Training and Retention Act of 2007, S.2064. The 110th Congress passed this Act on September 18, 2007. This Act aims to ensure comprehensive programs are funded to facilitate a sufficient supply of nurses. Increasing the supply of nurses helps deal with the selected healthcare issue, nursing staff shortage.

Level 2 research question from the ethical inquiry perspective aims to uncover the ethical implications of nursing staff shortage. Persistent nurse shortages across the world challenge the values and beliefs of this profession and result in various ethical implications. One of these ethical implications is poor patient care. One of the ethical obligations that nurses must fulfill during their line of duty is ensuring that patients are protected from harm (Haahr et al., 2020). However, nurse shortages make it challenging for the nurses to fulfill this obligation as the hospitals assign them to cater for many patients. Since chronically ill patients require holistic care, inadequate staffing denies nurses an opportunity to provide such care to these patients, resulting in poor patient care. Another ethical implication of nursing staff shortages is nurses’ reduced job satisfaction. Usually, ethics assist nurses in making the right decisions guided by their morals. However, nurse shortages leave nurses dissatisfied with their jobs because they do not have sufficient time to communicate with their patients and provide holistic care. Moral distress is another ethical implication of nursing staff shortages. Nurses who serve in healthcare facilities with shortage of nursing staff experience moral distress since they feel that they are compromising their ethical obligation of ensuring patients are protected from harm by providing inadequate patient care (Bayat et al., 2019). Also, nurses who work in health care facilities facing the issue of nurse shortage may suffer moral distress because they feel that they would have rendered better patient care if they were not assigned many patients. Lastly, burnout is another ethical implication of nurse shortages. According to Mullen et al. (2017), increased ethical conflict at work may result in emotional stress and mental burnout.

Research Questions from the Cultural Perspective of Inquiry

Level 1 research question from the cultural perspective of inquiry aims to uncover the cultural values that influence the issue of nursing staff shortages. Cultural competence is one of the cultural values that influence the issue of nurse shortages. Cultural competence is the set of values, practices, behaviors, and attitudes within an organization system or even individuals, which allows them to work effectively across different cultures. Cultural competence influences nurse shortages because when nurses are not culturally competent, they tend to get stressed, which results in nursing burnout. Another cultural value that influences nurse shortages is cultural diversity. Cultural diversity is the existence of many cultures in the same society. Nurses must be well prepared to serve culturally diverse patients. Unless nurses are culturally competent, they cannot be in a position to provide quality care to patients. When nurses cannot provide quality care, they get stressed and end up quitting their jobs. The last cultural value that influences nurse shortage is cultural awareness. Nurses’ cultural awareness is their comprehension of differences between themselves and patients from other cultural backgrounds. Similar to cultural competence, a lack of cultural awareness may result in nurse shortages.

Level 2 research question from the cultural inquiry perspective aims to uncover how cultural diversity affects nurse shortage. Cultural diversity may both increase or minimize nurse shortages. Research reveals that nurses without a firm understanding of cultural differences may experience frustrations and stress when dealing with culturally diverse patients (Balante et al., 2021). Consequently, this may result in nurse burnout. Burnout is one of the leading causes of nurse shortages. Thus, it can be concluded that nurses’ lack of cultural competence indirectly results in nurse shortages. On the contrary, cultural competence allows nurses to provide inclusive healthcare service, improves nurses’ job satisfaction, and facilitates patient satisfaction. When nurses are satisfied with their job, they tend to retain their profession. Consequently, this minimizes nurse shortages.

Conclusion

Overall, nursing shortages are a global health issue of concern and have adverse effects on healthcare delivery. This paper comprised two four questions. The first question was a Level 1 question from the ethical perspective of inquiry and sought to uncover the laws that pertain to the issue of nurse shortages. Two laws were found, including the Nurse Reinvestment Act, P.L. 107-205, and the Nurse Training and Retention Act of 2007, S.2064. The Nurse Reinvestment Act pertains to the issue of nursing staff shortages because Title I and Title II pertain to nurses’ recruitment and retention, respectively. On the other hand, the Nurse Training and Retention Act of 2007 aims to ensure comprehensive programs are funded to facilitate a sufficient supply of nurses. Level 2 question from this perspective sought to examine the ethical implications of nurse shortages. They include the provision of poor-quality care, reduced job satisfaction, burnout, and moral distress. The Level 1 research question from the cultural perspective examined the cultural values that influence nurse shortages. The identified cultural values include cultural competence, diversity, and awareness. The Level 2 question from this perspective is how cultural diversity impacts the nurse shortage. It has been established that cultural diversity can increase or minimize nurse shortages. Questions from both perspectives provide insights on how the issue of nurse shortages can be dealt with.

References

Act, N. R. PL 107-205 (2002). Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office.

Balante, J., van den Broek, D., & White, K. (2021). How does culture influence work experience in a foreign country? An umbrella review of the cultural challenges faced by internationally educated nurses. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 118, 103930. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2021.103930Bayat, M., Shahriari, M., & Keshvari, M. (2019). The relationship between moral distress in nurses and ethical climate in selected hospitals of the Iranian social security organization. Journal of Medical Ethics and History of Medicine, 12 (8), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.18502%2Fjmehm.v12i8.1339Haahr, A., Norlyk, A., Martinsen, B., & Dreyer, P. (2020). Nurses experiences of ethical dilemmas: A review. Nursing ethics, 27(1), 258-272. https://doi.org/10.1177/0969733019832941Mullen, P. R., Morris, C., & Lord, M. (2017). The experience of ethical dilemmas, burnout, and stress among practicing counselors. Counseling and Values, 62(1), 37-56. https://doi.org/10.1002/cvj.12048Stokes, F., & Iskander, R. (2021). Human rights and bioethical considerations of global nurse migration. Journal of bioethical inquiry, 18(3), 429-439. https://doi.org/10.1007%2Fs11673-021-10110-6Stokes, F., & Iskander, R. (2021). Human rights and bioethical considerations of global nurse migration. Journal of bioethical inquiry, 18(3), 429-439. https://doi.org/10.1007%2Fs11673-021-10110-6

One can view how the society gets its information in three main ways

Effects of New Media

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(Institutional Affiliation)

One can view how the society gets its information in three main ways. The first way is that individuals or the society are gullible and will almost listen to, read or watch anything. The second is that most individuals need an intermediary who is informed to show and tell them what is right, meaningful and important, the third is that individuals are smart and knowledgeable, and given the means, they understand and find out things for themselves and find their own truth version (Rayuso, 2011). This paper will mainly focus in the second way to view how people are informed, the fact that individuals need an intermediary that is informed to show and tell them what is meaningful and right. This informed intermediary in this case is the media, which holds all the information the public needs. The paper, therefore, will examine ways in which the media, playing the part of an informed intermediary, affects and influences the American culture by looking at the responsibility it has to the people and the influences it has on politics and journalism.

In the past fifty or more years the effects and influence of the media on the society have grown exceedingly chiefly with the progress in science and technology. First, there were telegraphs and then radios, magazines, newspapers, TV and currently the internet. Today’s society depends on communication and information to move towards the right direction and do everyday tasks like entertainment, work, education, health care, travelling, personal relationships and any other activity. The average American person wakes up each day and checks information and news on the TV and newspapers before going to work where he or she makes several phone calls in a day and makes contact with their family when it is possible and basically, leaves his or her life based on the information and knowledge derived from the media (Rayuso, 2011).

The mass media have essential tasks and roles in the modern society as the main communication channel. The populations depend on the media as the central source of information and the foundation on which they base their opinions and election and voting decisions. As the cultural selection theory argues, any choice of messages and information in the mass media will, therefore, have a momentous consequence on the rest of the society. There is an increasingly interesting situation in the current society: on one side, the media have significant influence on individuals and their decisions, conscience and activities, but on the other side, the media are the institution least trusted to have any social weight (Rayuso, 2011). There are several reasons as to why the condition is like this. For instance, the media are seen to have a significant influence on individuals because of its ability to influence the actions of individuals and even children. There have been several of surveys that have pointed out the paramount influence media have had on the American culture. These influences range widely and they include the influence on lifestyle, clothing, style, manner of speaking, and violence when it comes to the younger generation (Baker, 2004).

Alternatively, the media are viewed as the most untrustworthy institution because of their ability and tendency to exaggerate, violate privacy and feed the society with unsuitable and at times inappropriate information. For instance, the media are blamed and untrusted when it comes to vulgar and sexual material usually aired on the television and witnessed in movies and films. Because of these two sides or faces of the media, that are not positive, the mass media today has to assume a number of responsibilities because it is much recognized and followed by a large percentage of the population (Baker, 2004).

The mass media, for instance, has to be careful on the kind of information they avail through TV programs, movie, films and information on magazines, internet and the newspaper as it influences the society largely. It is also the responsibility of the media to feed the society with all the relevant information that they need to live their lives comfortably. Hiding significant information or releasing only a part of it is not responsible. Another responsibility the media have is to inform individuals about elections, political leaders and parties and their visions. This way, the media have a huge influence on the decisions the society has during elections. The media does this through dispensing specific information to either favor a candidate or tarnish their reputation. Either way, the media play significant roles in the American politics today (Baker, 2004).

The media do not only have impacts on politics and society alone, they also significantly affect journalism and techniques and methods informed. With the emergence of advanced technology, journalism has taken a new course that does not just require the TV, radio or newspaper to spread information. Today’s America receives information from a wide range of channels most of which are online. As it follows, journalism has had to advance its methods of communication to remain at par with the rest of the world (Rose, 2010).

The above are only a handful of instances of how the current mass media affects and influences the American culture.

References

Baker, M. (2004). The media and social responsibility. Mallenbaker.net. retrieved from http://www.mallenbaker.net/csr/page.php?Story_ID=1210

Rayuso. (2011). Mass media influence on society. HubPages. Retrieved from http://rayuso.hubpages.com/hub/Mass-Media-Influence-on-Society

Rose, C. (2010). The Security Implications of Ubiquitous Social Media. EABR & ETLC Conference Proceedings. Dublin: Ireland.

Introduction (19)

Effective Treatment Interventions with Family

Student’s name

Institutional affiliation

Introduction

Family treatment interventions are vital as they have been designed to deal with specific problems affecting people’s functioning and health. It is common for families to go through rough times, significant transitions, behavioral and mental problems hence the need to employ effective treatment interventions. The type of therapy and technique used to treat families depends on the target population and the specific issue affecting the individuals. This literature review aims to analyze and interpret family-based interventions used on various individuals within the family set up when they are experiencing health difficulties. This research could not be timelier; it comes when little research has been conducted on the effectiveness of various interventions used to treat families. The following review confirms that practices including functional family therapy (FFT), goal-oriented parental interventions, family-focused alternatives ,community-based alternatives to incarceration, family interventions for schizophrenia, and the psychoses and family-based management interventions for children with obesity improve have proved effective in improving family well-being.

Community-based and family-focused alternatives to incarceration

Ryon, Early, and Kosloski evaluated community-based and institutional placements intervention programs for delinquent youths in 2017 intending to examine the impact of a family-focused approach to deal with juvenile offenders. The authors assessed Parenting with Love and Limits (PLL), a family-focused and community-based approach piloted in Florida to treat juvenile offenders with the aim of diverting youth away from residential facilities. Ryon, Early, and Kosloski discovered that the youth that had gone through the PLL program had averagely low recidivism rates. The article opined that community-based interventions attained lower rates of a felony conviction, reconviction, and subsequent placement in a justice system after one year of completing the program. The article concluded that community-based programs that incorporate both group and family-focused individuals are viable and effective alternatives to institutional placements are more restrictive for delinquent youths.

Functional Family Therapy (FFT).

Sexton (2010) found functional family therapy (FFT) to be an efficient and successful family-based treatment program in treating various problems that affect young people, including mental health problems, drug and substance abuse, conduct disorder, truancy, and other related problems. Noteworthy Sexton found that Functional Family Therapy treats families within various multicultural, multiethnic, and geographical contexts. Sexton discovered that the FFT program benefited more than 40,000 youths and families annually following its implementation in more than 300 communities across Europe and the United States over the past few decades. Moreover, Sexton noted that the program’s delivery and implementation in communities is based on five theoretical principles. He also noted that FFT employs technologies to enhance its outcomes, including the use of measurement feedback systems, a systematic measurement system, and a web-based quality improvement system. The article notes that since the FFT family-based treatment program is manual driven, these tools act as an accompaniment to the supervision and treatment manual protocol.

Parent Engagement and Family Reunification for Children in out-of-home Care

Lack of parental engagement remains the greatest challenge for family re-unitement after temporary child placement in out-of-home care services. Maltais, Cyr, Parent, and Pascuzzo (2019) conducted meta-analyses on studies for 2996 families to identify the most effective practices that can be used to promote family reunification and parental engagement. The authors examined the efficacy of goal-oriented parental engagement interventions and compared them to a group whose parents had standard services. The article revealed that parents that received goal-oriented engagement strategies were more and had higher chances of a smooth reunification with children receiving care away from home than parents that received standard services. The authors analyzed six interventions in the analyses, including training of child care staff, strategies promoting access to intervention, type of clinical modality, sources of motivation, focusing on the relationship between child care staff and parents and a number of clinical strategies. The authors came to the conclusion that results that family-focused interventions are effective in promoting parental engagement.

Family engagement for schizophrenia and the psychoses

McFarlane (2016) reviews the family interventions for Schizophrenia and Psychoses, treatment programs that came into being 40 years ago. As opposed to concentrating on the traditional goal of decreasing emotion to prevent relapse, McFarlane focuses on the social and role functioning of the family well being. The article refutes claims that family pathology leads to deterioration and relapse and affirms that family engagement in psychoeducation is an effective alternative. McFarlane noted that family engagement complements interventions provided by clinicians with specialized coping and interaction skills that counter the neurologic deficits inherent to the particular disorder. McFarlane concluded that family interventions indicate a 50-60% relapse rate reduction compared to usual treatment. He found that a combination of the prodromal psychosis alongside other evidence-based interventions is yielding promising results that include significant return to normalcy and total avoidance of psychosis altogether.

Parental Involvement in Treating Childhood Obesity

Faith-based interventions have solutions that are commonly employed when treating childhood obesity. Chai, Collins, May, Brain, See, and Burrows (2019) review the effectiveness of interventions for managing weight that are family-based in children with obesity. The article reveals that when it comes to treating childhood obesity, direct parental involvement improves the outcomes. The authors carried out systematic reviews on family-based interventions in children below 18 years, categorized their weight as obese or overweight. The article revealed that 13 in 14 of the total reviews proved successful in improving weight-related behavior in children. Chai, Collins, May, Brain, See, and Burrows concluded that family-based interventions that target parents either single-handedly or with their child have proved useful in managing child weight.

Conclusion

Practices including functional family therapy (FFT ), goal-oriented parental interventions, community-based and family-oriented alternatives to incarceration, Family interventions for schizophrenia, and psychoses and family-based weight running interventions for overweight and obesity children have proved effective in improving family well-being. There is a need to conduct further research to complement the lack of substantial evidence, particularly regarding the emerging interventions for parents in addressing obesity in children. Health practitioners must collaborate with change agents and focus on being role models for children to emulate when managing their weight. Future research should explore parent-child interventions and include a variety of populations.

References

Chai, L. K., Collins, C., May, C., Brain, K., See, D. W., & Burrows, T. (2019). Effectiveness of family-based weight management interventions for children with overweight and obesity: an umbrella review. JBI Evidence Synthesis, 17(7), 1341-1427.

Maltais, C., Cyr, C., Parent, G., & Pascuzzo, K. (2019). Identifying effective interventions for promoting parent engagement and family reunification for children in out-of-home care: A series of meta-analyses. Child abuse & neglect, 88, 362-375.

McFarlane, W. R. (2016). Family interventions for schizophrenia and the psychoses: A review. Family Process, 55(3), 460-482.

Ryon, S. B., Early, K. W., & Kosloski, A. E. (2017). Community-based and family-focused alternatives to incarceration: A quasi-experimental evaluation of interventions for delinquent youth. Journal of Criminal Justice, 51, 59-66.

Sexton, T. L. (2017). Functional family therapy. The Encyclopedia of Juvenile Delinquency and Justice, 1-7.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Effective management of call centre

EFFECTIVE MANAGEMENT OF CALL CENTRES LOOKING AT ISSUES OF WORK DESIGN, STAFF MOTIVATION, RECRUITMENT AND TRAINING, PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT:

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

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Class

Date

Research MethodologyMethodologyThe methodology chapter presents a depiction as well as a discussion of the methodology employed in research. This entails the compilation of information and data analysis to examine the hypotheses. The research philosophy, express the research rationale as well as the approach. It also describes the research strategy and finalizes with the delineation of data compilation and sample selection. Research StrategyThe research strategy signifies the most remarkable aspect in the entire research as well as the survey process is the research methodology. This is universally a method of acquiring data from preceding researches, magazines, articles, and journals. This gathering of information mainly facilitates the researcher in the short-term as well as in the long-term. Consequently, the researcher may implement diverse inferences through the research study. The research strategy chapter focuses mainly on the rudimentary aspects of the research study, which bear significance to the researcher. These critical qualities may encompass the research procedures, compilation of information, and utilization of diverse types of information. The chapter entails several merits as well as demerits of varied types of information, which enable the reader to straightforwardly comprehend the merits and de-merits associated to a specific method. The key aspect of contemplating a research process is to generate an insightful school of thought so that the researcher may achieve a credible conclusion.

Research PhilosophyThis chapter concerns assumptions on the perspectives pertinent to life, which underpin the research strategy as well as the chosen methods. The most universally known research philosophies, also referred to as epistemology are realism, interpretive, and positivism.

Research PurposeThree dissimilar research purposes include descriptive, explanatory, and exploratory. The descriptive research studies endeavor to depict situations as precisely as possible. In contrast, exploratory research studies are carried out when new insights ought to be attained in a specific focus of interest. This occurs when principally a familiar research subject matter is being scrutinized from a special angle. With the execution of explanatory research studies, elementary relationships between diverse variables are appraised and elucidated. This research will assume an exploratory study approach in investigating the linkages between how work design, staff motivation and training affects performance in call centers. Statistical analyses like correlation tests are usually executed in this type of research in order to achieve diverse insights into diverse relationships.

Research ApproachA research project design may assume two dissimilar approaches namely deductive or inductive. With a deductive approach, pertinent theories are verified and underlying relationships are explained. With the inductive approach, empirical data is initially ascertained, from which the hypotheses of the study is derived. This approach is also referred to as the qualitative approach. For this reason, the objectives of the research are founded, which are subsequently validated by means of quantitative methods.

Quantitative Approach to ResearchThe quantitative research methodology is considered as the most ordinary technique utilized in scientific researches. This approach utilizes data mined from diverse numerical based facets, and measurements. It appraises numerical data which are accordingly utilized to interpret the outcomes. The core philosophy of this study is dealt with statistical and numerical methods. While utilizing the quantitative research approach, it is essential that the researcher utilizes statistical data correlated to research areas and subjects.

Any discrepancies faced between numerical data and statistical data that are gathered from dissimilar sources in a sample population may be e illustrated by the quantitative based approach. The universal method of acquiring data in this case is via questionnaires or interviews. In order to authenticate or examine the hypothesis a number of mathematical or statistical techniques would be subsequently utilized. The researcher is not permitted to influence or corrupt the research as well as its components. The quantitative approach applies analysis of accrued information through statistical techniques whereby measures or the averages of central tendency are used on the sampled population.

Limitations and Advantages of Quantitative ResearchUtilization of quantitative measures, like quantitative data, is uncomplicated in gathering, translating, and storage, than a range of other forms of information collection methods. It also saves a lot of time in comparison to other forms of information collection methods. Any disparities in variables are easily found out and regularly measured. It is usually easy to compare the dissimilar variables in the sample data with the historical data through this approach.

The dominant limitation to this approach is the over generalization engaged, which may not produce the requisite information. Another drawback is the implicit generalised situation of the factual world. The utilized data would be objective and consequently, the data which is not capable of assessment numerically or statistically would by and large not generate any useful results. Another negative aspect of employing this approach is that, the whole research is executed in a controlled environment. Consequently, the numerical or statistical outcomes would subsequently be specific to the research. Such research outcomes would not be adequately flexible to be applied to generalised environments. Consequently, the statistical measures acquired cannot be appropriate in similar environments in the factual world. The quantitative approach thus, limits the scope of the research to some specific variables in specific situations whereby other essential variables may be neglected.

The deductive approach was considered as being the appropriate approach in this study. General theories were considered, which led to the formulation of the aims of the study. The questionnaire that would facilitate the data collection process was set up. The purpose is to test the existing literature to either reject or confirm the original theories towards the conclusion of the study. In this study, the research design will employ interviews whereby quantitative research techniques will be employed.

Research StrategyThe research strategy may be established on the basis of the research approach, as well as philosophy. It is essential to select the appropriate research strategy that will help in answering the research question (s) and meeting the research objectives. This dissertation pursues the deductive approach. The research strategy of choice in this dissertation is a survey, which is a usually pursued strategy in business research. This is because it permits the gathering of huge quantities of data from a considerable population in the most efficient way.

The rationale for employing questionnaires and surveys was that, they provide an unsophisticated access to the study of principles, and intent of the person who completed the questionnaire. Questionnaires or surveys may be customized to accumulate general data from roughly every human population. The data compiled from questionnaires or surveys is in essence quantitative in nature. In the course of the interview, the interviewer’s presence may encourage participation, and the interviewer may be able to judge the scope to which the exercise is treated sincerely.

Research Ethics

Respondents will grant informed consent prior to their contribution in the survey. The researcher will guarantee this by informing the relevant respondents concerning the purpose of this study. This will include, the contents, time limit of the survey, as well as the potential risks and benefits pertinent to the study. The respondents will be updated in regard to their freedom to withdraw from or participate in the study. The respondents will as well be informed regarding the privacy of their identities. The researcher will guarantee this by not connecting the respondents to their answers in the survey.

Primary Study Sampling and Data Collection In order to realize the dissertation aims and also compile data for hypothesis testing, a questionnaire was carried out. Sampling was constructive in restricting collection of data to a explicit subgroup which is of significance according to the dissertation aims. It is therefore imperative to delineate the pulled sample population.

Methods of Data Collection This dissertation design employs the utilization of interviews in the event that quantitative research techniques will be employed. Secondary as well as primary data will be coalesced in this research in pursuit of the study aims.Qualitative Approach to ResearchThe quantitative approach is a method to examine an established hypothesis based on statistical and mathematical techniques. In comparison, the qualitative approach creates an original theory by itself. Qualitative approach facilitates in giving significance to real-time experiences. It also grants meaning to the experiences in order to improve the reach to a variety of concerns. This approach is applied in research in order to investigate the richness, saturation, as well as the degree of complexities. The qualitative based approach is based on different viewpoints, such as the absence of real experiences. This is usually referred to as realism. Realism contrasts for different people and differs with the passage of time. Realism also posits that knowledge has significance only in the event of a specific situation or only in a precise context. This forms the rationale as to why the researcher’s own perception plays a critical role in this approach. The researcher’s role in this regard would be to research and utilize effectively his aptitude towards creating innovative ideas and creative thinking.

Limitations and Advantages of Qualitative ResearchThe qualitative approach is adequately flexible to adopt change in accordance with the prevailing situation. This approach presents the researcher with the opportunity to focus primarily on the research process. The interactive questionnaire proposed for the qualitative approach facilitates the survey participants to communicate their ideas and explanations, thus resulting in detailed knowledge and creativity. This approach does not review the samples only, but also makes an allowance for the knowledge utilized by the researcher as well as the participants. The participants are relatively more involved and motivated in the research process since the questionnaire in this study is descriptive based.

A disadvantage of utilizing this approach would include the prejudiced nature of the researcher and particularly the research participants in connection with any of the issues in the questionnaire or the research hypothesis. Another prominent shortcoming of the qualitative based approach is the subjectivity and restricted capacity of the present research. This intends that in the event that, the research is conducted by use of similar samples, it may produce outcomes that would be varying. Qualitative based approach requires s greater time in comparison to the quantitative approach. Data will be gathered through holding interviews with the employees in identified call centres. A structured semi-interview procedure will be developed. This will entail closed as well as open ended questions in order to facilitate the researcher in quantifying the compiled data.

Data Collection Method

Randomly selected participants will be provided with a questionnaire or involved in the survey. Survey responses will be achieved by means of closed-ended questions. In the research, collection of secondary data will be engaged in order to supplement the techniques of primary data collection. This is because the researcher will conduct a descriptive survey. The researcher is principally interested in understanding the relevance of linkages between how work design, staff motivation and training affects performance in call centres. The primary objective of the researcher in utilizing survey is to grant him with constructive hints for theory building as well as refinement. The secondary research will comprise document reviews whereby a bulky quantity of publications as well as pertinent materials are analyzed and examined. A broad variety of journals, books, as well as articles will be utilized in order to compile pertinent information in regard to the subject matter.

A limitation in regard to convenience sampling occurs since there is no verification that the sample is representative of the entire population. Nevertheless convenience sampling is extensively employed in business research. In regard to time and finance restrictions, convenience sampling facilitates the researcher in obtaining an enormous quantity of data in an uncomplicated, time-saving as well as economic manner. Random sampling is considered to be the most appropriate instrument in conducting a representative survey in the event of a known population. Consequently the population, with its characteristics must be identified and must participate in the survey. These requirements are impractical for this research subject and consequently irrelevant.

Data analysisThe research will employ qualitative as well as quantitative techniques in analyzing the compiled data. This will mainly be realized through the use of SPSS in data analysis. This is because, SPSS offers a user-friendly interface. While using SPSS, it is uncomplicated to load data sets following compilation. It is also feasible to create new variables from the existent variables and subsequently analyze as well as present the data in an assortment of formats such as tables and graphs. SPSS is also unproblematic to use in computing robust quantities of data. Nevertheless, SPSS will necessitate that the researcher uses limited data.

In data analysis, qualitative methods will also be employed since the method provides better information in regard to strategy assessment data. The qualitative methods will embrace the utilization of individual accounts through interviews as well as narrative responses to the survey. The qualitative data compiled will be analyzed through a strategy of constant comparative data reduction. Data reduction refers to a concept employed in the analysis of inconsistent data in social sciences. The key advantage of employing data reduction is the consistency and simplicity of analysis whereby data are broken up and the completed data found.

The majority of these data will be supplied by the call centres’ employees. The questionnaires to be utilized will be Likert structured questionnaire. This will be in a scale of one to five to facilitate simplicity of entry, tabulation, and analysis of data. For precision of the data, the research will utilize primary data. On the other hand, the key inadequacy of this method is that it is expensive to the data collector and also time consuming. There may also be some aspect of partiality which may be linked with this study. Validity and Reliability of OutcomesIn this study, the reliability as well as the validity of the compiled data will be depending on the design of the real questionnaire utilized. However, in optimizing the latter, cautious planning of questions, the layout as well as distinct elucidation of the rationale as well as pilot testing will be considered. The validity, reliability, and generalizations will be addressed by employing data verification as well as construct validity checks. The researcher will be cautious in regard to reflexivity issues. Sources of information including books as well as journals should be considered in order to achieve reliable as well as valid data by means of triangulation.

Ethical Considerations Associated With Research

Ethics will be attended to by effecting a human subject’s application. It is in line with standard good practice in regard to research that concerns individual volunteers as research subjects. All pertinent ethical conditions will be considered through the requisite best practice standards. Permission will be solicited prior to engaging the individuals in interviews as well as the questionnaire. An approval to execute this research will be acquired from the call centres, management through the use of letters. Opinions will be documented in the questionnaires and confidentially will be maintained. Upon completion of the analysis of data, these questionnaires will be destroyed. All realized research findings will be considered extremely confidential in regard to the information offered by the respondents’. As an ethical obligation, comments will not be linked with the source devoid of the respondent’s express permission.

Bibliography

Burney S. Inductive & Deductive Research Approach, Karachi: University Of Karachi Press. 2008.

Chase and Aquilano. Production and Operations Management: A Life Cycle Approach, New York: Homewood Press. 2000.

Cooper & Schindler, Business Research Methods, New York: McGraw-Hill. 2003

Creswell, J. Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches, Beverly Hills: Sage. 2002.

Easterby, Smith. Management Research, London: Sage. 2005.

Forza, Cipriano. “Survey research in operations management, a process based perspective.” International Journal of Operations and Production management, 2002.

Jørgen Carling. Using SPSS in research projects, Berlin: Hovedfag. 2001.

Murat, Kristal. “The Effect of Quality Management on Mass Customization Capability.” International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 2010.

Phelps T. Organizing and managing your Research: A practical guide for Postgraduates, London: Sage. 2007.

Saunders, Lewis, & Thornhill. Research Methods for Business Students, Harlow: Prentice Hall. 2003.

Thesis Purpose Statement

Effective Behavior Management Strategies to Support Special Needs StudentsDereka L. Holland

Texas A&M Commerce

Abstract

Will be completed by due date.

Thesis/ Purpose Statement

This paper examines the behavior interventions and supports used in the classroom by teachers with special needs students to help manage or change behavior school wide. My aim was to explore different research-based strategies and measure how well they were effective with my students in the classroom and across the school campus. With these effective behavior strategies, I hope that they can support teachers in helping decrease the negative behaviors in the classroom with students of disabilities.

Literature Review

Behavior management is vital to the learning environment and can be a major distraction if it is not controlled or managed. According to Lavay, French and Henderson (2007) behavior management means more than controlling students to make them behave. It can be a little different with students who are disabled. Their misbehavior can be triggered and completely out of their control. The teacher must think effectively about the best way to manage students who face these behavior challenges. The goal of this literature review is to compare how other authors view behavior management and the best way to manage it with students who are disabled. In Building Classroom Management by C.M Charles and Karen Cole, the authors explain the teacher’s role in managing the classroom starting with developing management skills. They discussed how important effective communication in a classroom management system is for teachers and students. While reading I noticed that some of the recommended behavior strategies for the general population were different than students with disabilities. The authors stated that these students have difficulty controlling their own behavior. (Charles and Cole, pg.297) Some suggestions were to remain calm, use pictorial/visual cue cards, use a nonconfrontational and unemotional tone.

Behavior Intervention Plan

In the article, A Practical Plan for Managing the behavior of students with disabilities in General Physical Education by Barry Lavay, Ron French and Hester Henderson stated that behavior management is grouped into three categories described as behavior, psychodynamic and biophysical. Lavay et al stated that, no one specific behavior management approach will work all the time with all students. The authors mentioned this because some educators are comfortable repeating the same approach that they are comfortable with based on their experiences. In this article the authors mentioned the difference between a behavior management plan and a behavior intervention plan which is developed by a team of professionals such as the ARD committee for a student with a disability who has severe behavior problems. The behavior intervention plan is created and implemented in the students IEP. Lavay et al suggested using the behavior management eclectic and ecological model when creating a behavior intervention plan or behavior management plan. The model consists of designing a plan, identifying the behavior, develop and implement the behavior intervention plan, observe, and evaluate. (LaVay et al. 2007)

Time Outs

With experience I noticed that many teachers use time-out corners but now have been given a new name such as cool down spots. According to Costenbader & Reading-Brown (1995) timeouts should only be used when less restrictive interventions have not been successful. The authors stated that many educators make an exception for this rule when the student is extremely acting out and it is a safety concern for others.

Self-Advocacy Strategy

In the article, Behavior Management through Self-Advocacy: A Strategy for Secondary Students with Learning Disabilities by Ronen Sebag (2010) suggests implementing a behavior management model that focuses on self- determination and self-advocacy to improve the students understanding of themselves and their strengths and weaknesses to support their ability to create strategies and goals for behavior improvement. The author believes that no single strategy will solve all situations like the reading of Barry Lavay, Ron French, and Hester Henderson. The author describes the self- advocacy behavior model as a model that is student centered, student directed, and student driven. It is different from models like a behavior management plan or behavior intervention plan because the educators are the creators, and they implement this strategy. The self-advocacy behavior model allows the student to identity the problem behavior, create a strategy to improve this negative behavior, reflect on how well the strategy was effective and make the necessary adjustments if needed.

Using Rewards

Using a reward system to encourage positive behavior has been a go to for many teachers and administrators in the classroom and school wide to motivate and teach students the expectations. The authors Witzel and Mercer (2003) stated that in special education dealing with student behavior is important for minimizing distractions and having students focus. According to Witzel and Mercer, students with learning disabilities have indicated that their feeling competence tie directly into self-esteem. Based on the readings, it is best to infer that self-advocacy, self-esteem and motivation are key factors in behavior for students with disabilities. The authors believe that educators should determine the problem and work to reduce the problem and improve student performance which involves teaching adaptive skills to the student’s environment in and outside the classroom. Then motivate the student to want to behave such as reward. They argue that rewards do not always bring a positive reinforcement. Witzel and Mercer stated, “how the delivery of the reward is received affects the possible long-term motivational effects of the reward. During research the findings appear to be unclear because the researchers had differences against the use of tangible rewards. Instead, research suggest that educators use a proposed motivational model which can help teachers develop positive behavior interventions.

Behavior Analysis Technique

In the book, Solving Discipline and Classroom Management Problems by Charles H. Wolfgang (2009), the author suggests using the behavior analysis technique when dealing with misbehavior. When using this technique, it requires the teacher to collect data and establish a behavioral objective that identifies the learner, the antecedent condition, or the occasion when the behavior occurs and identify the criteria for acceptable performance. Data can be collected by event recording, graphing the total number of disruptive events for each school day or an anecdotal report. In my classroom I collect data on my most problematic behaviors and meet with ARD committee and/or parents to create a behavior plan. Data is the most efficient tool a teacher can have because it supports as evidence. We will never be able to fully control a student’s behavior, but we can manage it to have a successful learning environment and positive climate and culture classroom.

Methodology

The research was conducted at a public school, Dr. Billy E. Dade Middle School which is in a high-poverty area. The population of students is about 800. Of the 800 students, 150 of them are identified as special needs and/or 504 students. These students’ disabilities consist of a learning disability (LD), emotional disturbance (ED), autism spectrum disorder (AUT), intellectual disability (ID), other health impairment (OHI) such as ADHD, speech or language impairment, visual impairment, and deafness. The research was particularly based on my seventh-grade special education unit class that consists of ten students who have one or more of the disabilities mentioned. The class consist of three girls and seven boys. These students may receive special services such as speech therapy, occupational therapy, or adaptive physical education in the classroom. The students receive 70% of their instruction inside the classroom and 30% in the school cafeteria and elective classes. Each student has an individualized education plan that is put in place with individualized goals and objectives pertaining to that student. Inside the classroom, I am the teacher of record and I also have one teacher assistant inside the classroom. For this action research paper, I chose to focus on the behavior problems that are severe in my classroom so that I can improve and help other special education teachers.

Data Collection

My data collection consisted of observing three other special education teachers besides my class to observe behavior problems and the interventions teachers used when a negative behavior occurred. This allowed me to observe the behavior management methods that teachers are using. While observing the other teachers, I conducted a short interview with them about the behaviors that I saw. The teachers were given a quick survey towards the end of my study. In one class, the teacher was able to recognize a student getting ready to misbehave before he did it, based on his body language. After observing and noting some behaviors in other classes, I started collecting data on my own class. I created an anecdotal note form that included the date/time, location, what happened before and what happened after. Data was collected for two to three weeks. I reviewed each students red folder which has all confidential information such as medical records and individualized education plan pertaining to the student. My data collection would begin after 8:20 which is when the instructional day begins. I interviewed my teacher assistant to receive her viewpoint on the strategies being used in the classroom and how we can improve the behavior management strategies that are in place. To help promote positive behavior, I use ClassDojo as a communication tool with parents and as a point system for behavior. Students and parents can see the point system and the notes about their behavior each day.

Data Findings

The findings from the teacher observations showed that we were all using the same behavior intervention strategies. With the behavior strategies that I recommended to those teachers, some students responded positively to them, and a few didn’t. In my class, I found that it was easier to intervene and implement the behavior strategies with the girls quicker than the boys. Before the beginning of class every day, we reviewed the classroom expectations and consequences verbally and using visual/pictorial cues. I noticed when I start the class with setting the expectation that reduced the negative behaviors in the morning. I know that repetition is important for special education students, so it’s important that I continue repeating the behavior expectation. When a negative behavior occurred, I resulted to using positive reinforcement, time-out or thirty minutes of the cool down spot, and student-teacher conference to review the behavior, why it happened and what can be done differently. I found that using time-outs does not guarantee the behavior will be corrected, the student improved for the moment just to return to his desk. After learning and using the ClassDojo system, it helped to improve behavior. Students were able to recognize when they received points for negative or positive behavior. Parents began to establish effective communication with me in how I can support their child and provided techniques that were used at home to manage behavior issues. By the end of the two weeks, my behavior problems decreased from the whole class having a bad day to about two or three students a day. At the end of my study, I reviewed the surveys that were given to the three special education teachers. All three of the teachers agreed that classroom behavior is the main challenge that they have and that more training is needed campus-wide on how to manage behavior issues of students with disabilities. Two of the three believed that the time-out method was an effective behavior management strategy to help promote positive behavior. All three teachers agreed that it was important to for the teacher to model and set the expectation of classroom behavior. One teacher stated that providing the students with immediate feedback can relive some of negative behaviors and can help correct it. As a result of my findings from the survey, all three teachers commented it’s important for special education teachers to continue to take training and educate themselves on ways to improve behavior management with special education students.

Survey given to teachers.

Introduction

Will be completed by due date.

References

Charles, C. M., & Cole, K. M. (2018). Building Classroom Management: Methods and Models. Pearson.

Costenbader, V., & Reading-Brown, M. (1995). Isolation timeout used with students with emotional disturbance. Exceptional Children, 61(4), 353–363. https://doi.org/10.1177/001440299506100404

Lavay, B., French, R., & Henderson, H. (2007). A practical plan for managing the behavior of students with disabilities in general physical education. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, 78(2), 42–48. https://doi.org/10.1080/07303084.2007.10597973

Sebag, R. (2010). Behavior Management through Self-Advocacy: A Strategy for Secondary Students with Learning Disabilities.

Shagoury, R., & Power, B. M. (2012). Living the questions: A guide for teacher-researchers. Stenhouse Publishers.

 Witzel, B. S., & Mercer, C. D. (2003). Using rewards to teach students with disabilities. Remedial and Special Education, 24(2), 88–96. https://doi.org/10.1177/07419325030240020401

Wolfgang, C. H. (2009). Solving discipline and classroom management problems: Methods and models for today’s teachers. Wiley.

JJJ_economics

Economics

Student’s name

Affiliation

Course

Date

 What are the differences between accounting and economic definition of profit? 

An accounting profit is the business income surplus more than the business expenses. A business makes money after it sells its goods or services. When the money made is more than the money they spend when making the goods and services, then it is said that that business has made an accounting profit. When the total cost is deducted from the total income made by a business, in case the remaining amount is positive then it is regarded as accounting profit. An accounting profit is therefore the excess of accounting income over accounting expenses.Accounting Profit = Total Income – Total Expenses

Economic profit includes opportunity cost of the firm that is used for production. The opportunity costs are the implicit costs. whenever a firm’s total revenue surpass all its economic costs both implicit and explicit the remaining goes to the entrepreneur is known as economic or pure profit. Economic profit is calculated as total revenue less all opportunity lost costs (explicit & implicit) (Copeland& Shastri, 2004).

Economic Profit = Total Income – Total Expenses – Opportunity Lost Cost

 When one compares accounting profit and economic profit of an investment, it is clear that an economic profit in the at the end will quite often be less than the accounting profit, since the additional deliberation of opportunity lost cost. However, the other investment makes a loss.

From an economic perspective which capital budgeting technique is the only one that is consistent with maximizing shareholders wealth? 

In an economic view, the appropriate capital budgeting technique that is responsible for maximizing a shareholders wealth is the net present value. When one deducts today’s cash outflow so as to make an investment, the remaining difference can be an increase or decrease in one’s wealth and it is known as net present value (Copeland& Shastri, 2004).

The net present value (NPV) is the current cost of all anticipated cash flows.  Therefore one can refer to the net present value as the differentiation between present value of cash inflows and present value of cash outflows.

The NPV method is reliable when it comes to owners’ wealth maximization regardless of capital rationing or mutually exclusive projects.

How do capital markets benefit society?

Capital markets are vital for a society since it allow individuals to borrow funds against their expected future income (endowments). This helps the individuals to yield higher productivity growth in their businesses. The individuals borrow from others who lend surplus current income (endowments) and issue positive interest rates. This creates employment opportunities since there is growth in businesses. Capital markets guides to a competent allocation of resources to investment projects within the society.

What are the differences between CAPM and APT?

The Capital Asset Pricing Model is a unique case of the Arbitrage Pricing Model (APT) such that CAPM uses a single factor known beta as sensitivity to market price changes while the APT has various factors that does not consist of the CAPM beta. CAPM applies on the demand side’ in that it is usually based on the market’s aggregation of individual investors’ effectiveness maximization curves. APT applies on the supply side in that it normally takes account of macroeconomic factors. CAPM regard s only in a single factor while APT regards multi-factors; CAPM depends on the historical data while APT is futuristic; CAPM is more consistent as the probability may fail; CAPM is very simple to calculate while APT is difficult to calculate.

What do you believe are the weaknesses in ‘capital market efficiency’ theory what are its strengths?

Capital market efficiency theory states that market efficiency does not mean having no improbability about the future, but it is an overview of the world which might not constantly hold true, and that the market is basically resourceful for investment reasons for most individuals. The theory states it is not possible to challenge market efficiency. The future prices may not be foretold through past price analysis (Drake, 2002).

Define EVA?

Economic Value Added (EVA) is a firm’s estimation of economic profits to be the surplus formed cost of a company’s investor’s essential return. It is calculated as the net profits following taxes deduct capital charge. A company that has a positive EVA is said to have produced wealth while the one with a negative EVA is said to have consumed capital. The key strength of the EVA is that it presents a sign of wealth formation that supports the goals of separation managers to the common business goals. However, its limitations, are viewed when it comes to financial orientation, size differences, short-term orientation and outcome orientation.

How has the role of the CFO changed over the last 25 to 50 years?

The role of the CFO has noticeably changed in the last 25 to 50 years with CFO’s moving from the occupation of reporting outcomes to being active in the operations in order to comprehend the financial impact of decisions. In addition, holistic financial and solid strategy takes into account market conditions and potential risks in the long term. Observance of the highest standards of internal and governance controls has become a critical aspect of a CFO’s role (Drake, 2002).

References

Copeland, T& K. Shastri (2004). FINANCIAL THEORY AND CORPORATE POLICY, FOURTH EDITION (4th Ed.). United States: Paper back

Drake, P., & Fabozzi, F. (2002). Capital budgeting: Theory and practice. New York, NY: Wiley

Understating pollinator-plan networks

Ecology Experiment

Name

Institution Affiliation

Understating pollinator-plan networks

The hummingbird is one of the smallest birds in the world and is mostly found in the Americas. Interestingly, it is the only bird that can fly backward. The name humming is derived from the humming sound it makes with its wings as they flap at very high speed sometimes between 12 to 90 times per second. However, this is dependent on the species and the size of an individual bird. These birds have a very short lifespan, with most of them not able to survive a year after they are born with many dying after three to four years.

Hummingbirds feed on nectar from plants and usually live in the western hemisphere. They are specifically found in Canada and Alaska to Terra del Fuego. They live in families made up of about 340 species and have an extraordinarily diverse morphology, behavior, and ecology (Biddick & Burns, 2018). Almost all their diet is based on nectar, which is a dilute solution found in plant flowers containing various types of sugars. These sugars are easily converted into energy through the process of digestion and fulfill the carbohydrate requirements of the hummingbird (Carvalheiro et al. 2013). The other 10 percent of the hummingbird diet includes arthropods that act like protein, vitamin, and fat supplements.

Plants that are visited by hummingbirds are mostly herbaceous undergrowth plants, which are founding in numerous similar species and variably distributed. A good example is those of the genus Helicon and Costus. These plants produce flowers that only last day and release most of their nectar before opening at sunrise to reduce the damage by nectar feeders.

Hummingbirds have shared a complex ecological network with plants, which is most beneficial for both organisms. These mutual interactions can be credited for the generation of the earth’s diversity. It is important to create an understanding of the patterns in hummingbird grouping and an extensive analysis of the main factors leading to patterns of interactions in this humming bird-plant network. The most central concept, however, is whether specific morphological traits have any influence on the patterns of interactions in this mutual interdependences.

The experiment applies several methods to assess the importance of morphological traits for configuring the interaction between plants and hummingbirds. The first approach is the analysis of the effect of avian morphological features and plenty on the ecological specialization of humming-birds. The second approach is considering if the plants and the hummingbird have matching traits that suggested the interaction strength in these mutual co-dependences. The third systematic approach is evaluating where matching traits were connected to feeding times by hummingbird species. MacArthur and Pianka (1996), in their foraging theory, believe that hummingbirds tend to feed more on those flowers that match well with their bill morphology because this association is connected to an increased proficiency of resource use.

Methods

Fieldwork conducted in the local woods because a tropical forest is far and cannot be easily accessed. The chosen areas must first be scouted for samples. The area should be considerably diverse in terms of species with at least 1000 different species of plants, at least 300 species of trees and more than 350 species of birds.

Sampling will include the collection of data on profusions and functional features of nectar, which is the resources and hummingbirds. Pollen loads carried by hummingbirds will also be sampled to know how the hummingbirds interact with the plants at individual levels as well as species level. To understand the kind of forage preferred by certain hummingbird species, an experiment will be conducted using artificial feeders and flowers.

Analysis

Experimental and observational data will be used to evaluate the feeding preferences of hummingbird species on the artificial as well as the natural flowers while looking at morphology. The visits made by the birds to artificial feeders and those visiting the artificial flowers will show what kind of flowers they prefer. The results collected will suggest the different processes and mechanisms fundamental to the functionality of the plant-humming bird mutualistic coexistence.

The use of analyses that are based on traits alongside experimental and observational methods as crucial for a wide-ranging understanding of the evolutionary and ecological dictating of how plants and pollinator networks operate. These bases are important for and provide huge value for the understanding of the systematic bases of community muster and system structure in other types of collaboration networks.

Conclusion

Looking at the feeding preferences of nectar feeders or pollinators, in general, helps with the comprehension of factors that define the interactions of these species and the factors that influence the split among nectar feeders and pollinators. A better understanding of what traits hinders some species from nectar resources and whether birds have to get these resources for flowers that match their morphology. The experiment will check what other factors beyond this would influence how hummingbirds or pollinators interact with plans.

References

Biddick, M., & Burns, K. C. (2018). Phenotypic trait matching predicts the topology of an insular plant–bird pollination network. Integrative zoology, 13(3), 339-347.

Carvalheiro, L. G., Kunin, W. E., Keil, P., Aguirre‐Gutiérrez, J., Ellis, W. N., Fox, R., … & Van de Meutter, F. (2013). Species richness declines and biotic homogenisation have slowed down for NW‐European pollinators and plants. Ecology letters, 16(7), 870-878.