What Is Meant by the Term Organisational Culture Essay Example for Free

What Is Meant by the Term Organisational Culture Essay The late twentieth century saw an emergence in industry competition and in order to continually achieve success, organisational behavior had to evolve into something new. Organisational culture is one form of organisational behavior that is focused on the shared values and beliefs which members and employees of a specific organisation believe to be the right way to act in a particular situation (Vecchio, 2000). Just like other theories of organisational behavior, the purpose of culture theory is to gain knowledge of employee attitudes so that organisations can reduce cost and improve production (Stanford, 2010). The aim of this essay is to show the rise of culture belief in organisations, and why it can play an important role in organisational performance. First it will provide a history of the literature, then present different concepts that can be seen, such as has and is theory strong and weak cultures. Finally it will identify positive effects it can have on organisations and employees. The rise of Humanistic theories From the 1920s to the early 1970s Scientific Management was widely adopted by Western companies because it was an easy structure to implement by managers in an organisation to achieve success and control over employees (Burnes, 1996). However with the oil crises in 1973 interest in the Japanese model of production spread to the World (Brown and Williams, 2012). This happened because the Japanese were achieving what no other organisation had ever achieved; in addition they were contradicting every previous concept of production (Vecchio, 2000). When organisations around the World were practicing mass production, the Japanese were developing the just-in-time approach. This is when the raw material would only be ordered just-in-time to be produced, and production would only start just-in-time to be delivered to the costumer, avoiding waste and contributing towards a more effective cash flow; additionally they were practicing team work (Brown and Williams, 2012). Employees were involved in decision making and projects would be integrated at different levels from the marketing and finance department to the shop floor (Vecchio, 2000). This reduced alienation and empowered employees, the results were considerable and were seen as a miracle by Western organisations. Therefore, as a response to the Japaneses new challenging approach, western organisations began to explore different models of behavior (Burnes, 1996). That is when the theories that were more humanistic (Human Resource Management, Culture theory and Contingency approach) were rediscovered and adopted. In 1982 Peters and Waterman (1982) suggested that the key to the recovery of Western companies was the implementation of organisational culture. In their study they analysed several different organisations from the USA and identified a list of eight common beliefs that according to them were the reasons for their success (Mullins, 2011). Thus, if a company wishes to achieve ‘excellence’ they should embrace those beliefs. Customer orientation, respectful treatment beyond different level of employees and a set of values through a clear organisation philosophy were a few of those common attributes (Burnes, 1996). They argue that when employees have organisational values integrated within their actions, there is no need for close supervision, reducing organisation cost and empowering employees (ibid). Therefore, managers should adopt a system where employees have more freedom, nevertheless managers would still have some kind of control (Brewis and Willmott, 2012). It was this study in the 80’s that made famous among managers culture theory as a recipe for success (ibid). Peter and Waterman sent their message to the world as the one best way to be successful. Concepts of Culture Most writers (including Peter and Waterman cited above) that are concerned with culture theory believe that managers can implement and manipulate culture in order to improve organisational success (Brewis and Willmott, 2012). This assumption that culture is a variable and can be changed is explained by Smircich (1983) as culture being something that an organisation ‘has’. For instance, managers could build a value into an organisation and its employee, such as, customer satisfaction and team work to increase productivity. According to Brewis and Willmott (2012) in the has theory, culture can be seen as functional and technical. It is functional because it establishes an order in an organisation, it will lead all employees in the same direction. Additionally work is meaningful to them, which may be seen as empowerment. It is technical because managers can continually administrate core values of a company to achieve better outcome (Brewis and Willmott, 2012). Indeed that m ay be the reason why the subject is so popular today; it is connected with better performance. Has theory can also be associated with strong culture. Deal and Kennedy (1982) believe that in order to achieve success an organisation should implement a clear and consistent set of values, which enable employees to assume how to behave as the way to do things here. If employees feel for the company, if it touches them in some way, they will follow its leaders anywhere because they value, even idolize, everything it stands for (Linstead, 2012, p.197). This approach is supposed to increase employee loyalty and to trigger strong emotions, such as, aspiration, devotion and love (Linstead, 2012). However it is also argued that strong culture may lead to a predictable staff outcome, discouraging new ideas (Brewis and Willmott, 2012). Nevertheless, a considerable number of managers confirm that the structure that culture provides to an organisation has a direct link with its prosperity (Mullins, 2011). On the other hand, some writers view culture as something an organisation is (Smircich, 1983). It is suggested that just like in life where humans develop a behavior that it is a result of their local surrounding, in organisations employees too develop a behavior on a daily bases (Brewis and Willmott 2012). It is created organically and difficult to understand where the roots of it came from, hence hard to manage and change (Stanford, 2010). Is theory sympathises with what literature calls a weak culture. Here the subject is treated more flexible, giving more room for scope, and creativity (Linstead, 2012). It is a debate whether an organisation should adopt strong or weak cultural values; strong cultures may be inflexible and as consequence can react slower to external and internal changes (Stanford, 2010). The link between culture and empowerment According to Stanford (2010) an effective culture would be when employees believe that there are more reasons to work than to just make money, when work is meaningful to them. In addition she believes that the employee should feel engaged within the job, without breaching ethical issues (Stanford, 2010). It should be noted that organisational culture enable human resource management to affiliate organisational values with new employee values, and when both share common beliefs the results can be beneficial for either side. Employees feel fulfillment and managers benefit from this in terms of a more efficient production (Vecchio, 2000). This suggests that managers are paying attention to organisational culture because it empowers employees and as a result boosts productivity. Therefore it can be argued that ‘culture theory seems to achieve what a range of studies have tried to understand for decades, that is how to reward and empower individuals at work in order to improve organisational performance. Hawthornes study in the 1920s draws attention to the fact that humans are not only driven by monetary incentives as stated by Taylor, instead it shows that there is a desire for recognition (Linstead, 2012). Employees need to feel that they are being valued. However at the time it did not demonstrate clear enough how to measure these concepts in organisational practice (Burnes, 1996). Culture theory developed those assumptions in more detail, making it easier for managers to manipulate and implement. Certainly the approaches created by culture theory reaffirm what numerous studies such as Job design, Theory Y and Maslow already said, however it appears that it glued several ideas from those studies into a clear module for organisation practices. In spite of that, culture theory has been criticised to manipulate and control employees in a way that could be seen as unethical (Linstead, 2012). It should be noted that there is an element of control; just like in life, organisations need a mechanism for social order. For Marxists, organisation culture tries to control employees’ emotions and that is a form of exploitation and inevitably will lead to alienation (ibid). Nevertheless, it can be argued that most employees dont feel controlled, and they actually approve of the methodology (ibid). Conclusion Organisation behavior has developed from Scientific Management into a wide school of thoughts, and it will continue to evolve in response to challenging business environments. This essay has given reasons for the widespread use of organisation culture since 1982. It has demonstrated through different concepts why managers are attracted to the topic and it can be concluded that what provokes manager’s interest is the idea that culture is something an organisation has. In this approach, culture can be manipulated to integrate all employees toward the same direction and achieve organisational goals. In addition it can be assumed that when employee values are aligned with company values it results in better organisation performance. For that reason, it is suggested that there is a link between organisation performance and employee empowerment. Culture is seen as the commodity that holds an organisation together. It seems then, that culture, despite its criticism, will probably continue to develop as the demand for it endures on. References Brewis, J. and Willmott, H. Culture. In Knights, D. and Willmott, H. eds. (2012) Introducing Organizational Behaviour and Management. 2th ed. Andover: Cengage Learning. Brown, G. and Hookham Williams, C. (2013) ULMS151 Organisations and Management Custom Text. Houndsmills: Palgrave Macmillan. Burnes, B. (1996) Managing Change: A Strategic Approach to Organisational Dynamics. 2th ed. London: Pitman Publishing. Deal, T.E. and Kennedy, A.A. (1982) Corporate Cultures: The Rites and Rituals of Corporate Life. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Publishing Co. Linstead, S. Managing Culture. In Worthington, F. ed. (2013) ULMS157 Introdution to HRM Custom Text. Houndsmills: Palgrave Macmillan. Mullins, L.J. (2011) Essentials of Organisational Behaviour. 3th ed. Harlow: FT/ Prentice Hall. Peters, T.J. and Waterman, R.H. (1982) In Search of Excellence: Lessons from America’s Best – run Companies. New York: Harper. Smircich, L. (1983) Concepts of Culture and Organizational Analysis. Administrative Science Quarterly, 28(3), 339-358. Stanford, N. (2010) Organisation Culture: Getting it right. London: Profile Books. Vecchio, R.P. (2000) Organizational Behavior: core concepts. 4th ed. Fort Worth: Dryden Press.

An Overview Of The Book Of Ruth Theology Religion Essay

An Overview Of The Book Of Ruth Theology Religion Essay The Bible is full of inspirational concepts and full of revelatory truth. While the Old Testament points to Jesus of New Testament, it also contains basic doctrines that are established in the New Testament. Hence, words like kindness, faithfulness and mercy have their root in the Hebrew Bible. Hesed is an interesting and fascinating Hebrew word that has a wide range of meaning. The desire to study it makes one to learn a great deal about the characters and attributes of God as it relates to His kindness, faithfulness, goodness, mercy and steadfast love. Hesed was explicitly expressed in the Bible, most especially in the Old Testament. God revealed Himself to His chosen nation (Israel) through His personal attributes and characters (Jenkins,2011:1). No discussion of hesed would be complete without mentioning its role in the interactions of Naomi, her Moabite daughter-in-law Ruth, and the redeemer Boaz. It is on this fact that this paper answers the following questions: What does the concept of hesed entails? What is the general overview of the Book of Ruth? How is hesed described in the book of Ruth? And what implications do hesed present to the Nigerian Christians? This paper therefore intends to discuss how hesed was embraced and expressed in the Book of Ruth. THE CONCEPTS OF HESED There is a beautiful and rich word in the Hebrew language that powerfully describes the faithfulness, mercy, steadfastness and loving-kindness of the Lord. This Hebrew word is transliterated into English as hesed (Maxey, 2012:1). Hesed (pronounced khesed) is not just a Hebrew word to be translated by exegete as simply loving-kindness or mercy , it is in fact an attribute of God. The hesed of God is a divine characteristic and is at the center of why God acts as He does in real space and time. (Belnap,2009,1) Hesed as Jenkins(2011) asserted can be divided into the following three categories: family relationships, relational and religious (1). He went further to describe its occurrences in the Bible in the following words: Hesed occurs in the family relationships categories seven times in the Old Testament, six times in Genesis, once in 1samuel and once in Ruth. Hesed occurs in nine times in a relational way in the Old Testament- once in Ruth, once in Psalms, once in Esther, once in Daniel, twice in Ezra, once in Job, once Psalms and once Zechariah. Hesed used in a religious category involves forty times in the Old Testament- four timed in Genesis, once in Exodus and Deuteronomy two times in 2nd Samuel, fifteen times in Psalms. Once in 1Kings, once in 2nd Chronicles, once in Job, three times in Isaiah, once in Jeremiah, and once in Ruth. (2) The Bible also reveals that hesed is an attribute that children of God possess and they are commanded by God to emulate and develop it. Being made in God image, Gods people can emulate the divine attribute of hesed. While the idea of loving-kindness and mercy may seem to be only that of positive emotion, it will be demonstrated that Gods loving-kindness is a two-edged sword. Hesed can also mean a mechanism of judgment and accountability before God. People can be described as having the gift of hesed or having no hesed, or no loving-kindness. Hesed is both a Hebrew word and more importantly a Jewish theological concept. Hesed is found approximate 250 times in the Hebrew Bible, with about125 appearances in the Psalms alone. And while the word is not identified specifically as hesed in the Greek New Testament, the Old Testament concept of loving-kindness, mercy and selfless giving can be said to be the very heart of the New Testamnt Gospel. For God so loved the world that He gaveà ¢Ã¢â €š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (Jn 3:16) (Emilio, 2012:4). AN OVERVIEW OF THE BOOK OF RUTH The Book of Ruth is named after one of the main characters in the story. There are two books in the Bible that bear the name of a woman. These books are: Ruth and Esther. While Ruth was Moabites, Esther on the other hand was a Jewess. The Book of Ruth has the records of a Gentile woman who came to live among the people of Israel and became the great-grandmother of David, Isreal greatest king; while in the Book of Esther an Israelite woman was taking into the court of the Gentile king and became a queen who secured deliverance for her people (Cowle, 2008; 22). Also, Tiessen in his write up portrays the book of Ruth as one of the most well-crafted pieces of literature in the Old Testament. He submits that: Despite its lesser status within the Jewish canon and the Christian Bible, the narrative of Ruth is well known. This popular familiarity is largely due to the engaging and challenging story the book offers: The tale of two women who overcome several formidable obstacles and succeed in preserving themselves and the family line, which eventually leads to the great King David (Tiessen,2010:1) The name of Ruth is mentioned twelve times in this book which bears her name (Heijkoop, 1989:7). The meaning of this name is friendship. This meaning according to Harlow (1987) reflected in the relationship of Ruth with her mother in-law (Naomi), and other people that came along her way. Even though she was a stranger in a strange land she blended well with the people because being friendly was part of her (5). This book of Ruth is in connection with the geneology of Jesus Christ as recorded in (Matt 1.5). Heijkoop (1989) also asserted that, The book itself beautifully illustrates how the Holy Spirit gathers up family circumstances in a manner which quite naturally directs the mind and thoughts to a very important truth(7). This special story in the Book of Ruth draws ones attention to the most precious titles of the Lord Jesus Christ. The word kinsman as used here could be translated as Redeemer or Avenger. This little book of only four chapters has drawn tributes from very many, and it has even been described as the Perfect Story. It is told simply and directly. Cundall and Morris (1968) in their own assertions described this book in the following words: The book is a book about friendship. The devotion that Ruth shows to Naomi and the care that Naomi exercises towards Ruth run through the book. It is simple a tale of friendship. The three principal characters of the book are depicted as being mindful of their obligations to the family. Ruth does not forget her duty to Naomi, and consequently to Elimelech, Naomi seeks out a marriage that will preserve the name of her deceased husband while Boaz marries the Moabites to raise up the name of the dead (241). It is better to see the book as a tale told because it is true and because it shows something of the relationship between God and man. The book of Ruth raises the question of whether or not Yahweh can be trusted. The incident suggests to Naomi that God had abandoned her or He is no more reliable. The author of the is unknown, but the last verse of chapter 4 points to the fact that it was written during the time of king David because the is where the list of Ruth descendants ends. (Harlow,1987; 6). The story according to Reid (2000), is told from a female point of view and certainly seems to commend Naomi and Ruth to believers (25). HESED IN THE BOOK OF RUTH The book of Ruth revolves around the concept of hesed. Hesed is an active concept and it is considered as an essential part of the nature of God. The word is frequently used to describe the gracious and merciful practices of God (Farmer, 1991: 96). Human beings, as said earlier are also expected to show hesed to one another. The Book of Ruth is about a stranger who had probably not encountered God personally but might have been hearing her mother in-law talked about that God. This gentile woman acted as an agent of Gods hesed when she showed hesed to Naomi. When Naomi thought that every hope was gone, this non- Israelite woman that brought hope by showing kindness to her mother in-law. In accordance with this, Farmer asserted: Ruths speech in 1:16-17constitutes an act of hesed. By committing herself and her future to the Lord, Ruth becomes the means through which God will transform Naomis emptiness into fulfillment. The Lord will be able to work through the loving-kindness of Ruth to change a crises situation into an occasion for hope. The Book of Ruth is a special book Christians should study and ponder well upon. It has an unhappy beginning, an uncertain middle and a happy ending. The tragedy that befell Naomi made her to forget that YHWH is still in control and that He can still bring redemption. This reflected in her statement: 8 Then Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, Go back, each of you, to your mothers home. May the Lord show kindness to you, as you have shown to your dead and to me. 9 May the Lord grant that each of you will find rest in the home of another husband. Then she kissed them and they wept aloud 10 and said to her, We will go back with you to your people. But Naomi said, Return home, my daughters. Why would you come with me? Am I going to have any more sons, who could become your husbands? 12 Return home, my daughters; I am too old to have another husband. Even if I thought there was still hope for me even if I had a husband tonight and then gave birth to sons- 13 would you wait until they grew up? Would you remain unmarried for them? No, my daughters. It is more bitter for me than for you, because the Lords hand has gone out against me! 14 At this they wept again. Then Orpah kissed her mother-in-law good-by, but Ruth clung to her. 15 Look, said Naomi, your sister-in-law is going back to her people and her gods. Go back with her. ( Ruth:8-15) NIV Naomi tried to convince the women to go back home She even reminded them of their mothers house. She knew the weak spot of Moabites female. The existence of Moab was the result of willfulness of the part of Moabs first mother, who at all costs had to have a relationship with a man and have children. (Gen 19:30-38) And the daughters of Moab had manifested the same willfulness (Heijkoop 31-33). Naomi directly blames YHWH for the tragic circumstances of her life. Believing that everything came from God. Her situation can be related to that of Job. Job accepted the misfortune that came upon him is from God. He said: Have pity on me, my friends, have pity, for the hand of God has struck me. Why do you pursue me as God does? Will you never get enough of my flesh? (Job 19:21-22). NIV Bruggeman, quoted by Tiessen explained the thoughts of job in relation to that of Naomi in these words: Job asks: Is God reliable? And Job, in his rage, entertains the option that Yahweh is not. Naomi, like Job, is in the throes of tragedy and likewise expresses and entertains the option that Yahweh is not reliable. Notice that in 1:13b Naomi asserts that the hand of Yahweh is against her, and thus she excludes her daughters-in-law who also have experienced profound loss through the deaths of their husbands (4). Naomi also pointed to her lonely position. A life without a husband and no children who would give her hope. All was Gods fault. Not only did Naomi try to keep her daughters-in-laws from joining her by depriving them of any hope of help, but she had also given them a total false picture of God, who actually is the husband to the widows and helper to the strangers. She indicated that God was responsible for all her misfortune, instead of admitting that she had brought those things upon herself by leaving God and His appointed place where they would have blessings (Heijkoop,36). She and her entire family chose to go to Moab neglected the place where they would have had the experience of Gods hesed as the Psalmist expressed: Behold, the Lords eye is upon those who fear Him who revere and worship Him with awe, who wait for Him and hope in His mercy and loving-kindness,  To deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine (Ps 33:18-19). Naomis great effort to dissuade her daughters-in-law from accompany her seems strange, especially in view of her desire that they become true children of the Lord God of Israel. However, it seemed to be the only course she could take in view of her dire circumstances (Parker, 1980:144). While Orpah yielded to the advice of her mother in-law, went back to her own people and gods. Ruth clave to her, And Ruth said, Urge me not to leave you or to turn back from following you; for where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me, and more also, if anything but death parts me from you (1:16-17). The strong desire of Ruth to go with Naomi symbolized her commitment to her and her God. Ruth was neither obliged for expected to become her mother-in-laws source of support. But once they were back in Bethlehem she was the one who went into the fields to glean the bits of grain that the harvests missed. Ruth indeed was a good daughter in-law. Her kindness was a total self sacrifice. She took the initiative in providing for their needs by suggesting that Naomi let her glean ear of corn. Gleaning, according to Parker (147) was a special provision of God written into the law to provide for the poor, especially for strangers, widows, and orphans (Lev. 19:9-10; 23:22; Deut.24:19). The practice required that owners should leave at harvest the corners of their fields and the droppings of the harvesters to care for the unfortunate groups of people. The attitude of Ruth towards Naomi by volunteering herself to take care of her is an expression of hesed which actually belongs to YHWH. One would wonder how a gentile could display the attributes that Gods children should possess. Emilio responded in the following words: How then did Ruth, a Moabitess, come by this divine trait which was originally given by God to the descendents of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob? The answer to this mystery is not found in the Holy Bible. However the Talmudic explanation is of value and interest because it helps clarify the theology of hesed which is found in both the OT and NT. Simply put, the Sages held that Ruth was a direct descendent of Abraham by way of Lot. They teach that Ruth was the daughter of Eglon and the granddaughter of Balak who were direct descendents of Moab the son of Lot and nephew of Abraham. Thus Ruth was an inheritor of the seed of lovingkindness which Abraham planted in Lot (Emilio, 2012) The hesed that Ruth showed to Naomi made it possible for her to meet her redeemer. Ruth met Boaz and received unexpected praise and favour. 11  And Boaz said to her, I have been made fully aware of all you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband, and how you have left your father and mother and the land of your birth and have come to a people unknown to you before. 12  The Lord recompense you for what you have done, and a full reward be given you by the Lord, the God of Israel, under Whose wings you have come to take refuge! 13  Then she said, Let me find favor in your sight, my lord. For you have comforted me and have spoken to the heart of your maidservant, though I am not as one of your maidservants. 14  And at mealtime Boaz said to her, Come here and eat of the bread and dip your morsel in the sour wine [mixed with oil]. And she sat beside the reapers; and he passed her some parched grain, and she ate until she was satisfied and she had some left [for Naomi]. 15  And when she got up to glean, Boaz ordered his young men, Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not reproach her. Ruth 2:11-15 The writer of this paper has discovered that Ruth and Boaz are like-minded people. The similarities between them are emphasized. Reid (2000), enumerates their similarities as follows: Boaz praised Ruth for her kindness to Naomi (Ruth 2:11-12) and Ruth praised Boaz for his generous kindness to her (Verses 10, 13). As Boaz enters the field, he pronounced a kindly phrase, The Lord be with you!(verse 4). This suggests that Boaz is such a leader who values and respected his employees. The workers respond, The Lord bless you! Boaz is clearly a good, kind man; who is suitable for good, kind Ruth (41). Studying this Book one will discover that God is at work even in the lives of his people. Ruths story reveals loud and clear that through the ordinary and unpredictable aspects of everyday life, one experience the reality of Gods care (Reid, 2000:25-28). IMPLICATIONS OF HESED FOR NIGERIAN CHRISTIANS Hesed in the book of Ruth is significant to the Nigerian Christians. It expresses how good and faithful YHWH is to His promises. He remembered Naomi in her low estate (Psalm 136: 23), even though she and her family brought the tragedy upon themselves. Many Nigerians Christians today run to Oversee countries because of the economical situation of their father land. Some of them are lost not remembering home again. The writer of this paper is of the opinion that there is still hope for Nigeria. The situation can still be better than what it is, if only Nigerian Christians can hope in God and trust Him absolutely. Similarly, hesed in the Book of Ruth stresses both family and community loyalty. Naomi thought first of the welfare of her daughters-in-law. She always acted with their best interest in mind. Boaz was noble. Ruth was loyal. Kent, (1980) submits that the simple narrative also amply illustrates the Lords providential care. God is clearly at work in the lives of those open to Him (143). Nigerian Christians are to commit to one another so as to be of help to one another in terms of needs; an adage says a friend in need is a friend indeed Also, as God expressed hesed (mercy) to His people, He expects them to reciprocate. God was ever faithful and devoted to His people (Israel) in the ancient time and He is still the same God of the contemporary times. In like manner does He expect faithfulness, total dedication and devotional life from the Nigerian Christians. The Christian leaders are expected to be faithful and dedicated to the position they are holding. They should be mindful of the welfare of their followers. As God is good and loyal to His promises, Boaz was good and kind to his followers so the Nigerian Christians should be good and loyal to one another. Also, Nigerian Christians should see God as a God of love and should demonstrate that love into their personal lives and ministries towards others. By doing this, Christians will be able to demonstrate to the world in words and deeds that their lives are grounded in the character of God who loves and desires to redeem the world through the person and work of Jes us Christ. Furthermore, it is worth noting that God can use anybody, no matter how rough the background may be. Willingness and readiness is what He desires. In like manner, Christians should pay sacrifice of taking other peoples problem upon themselves. They should be mindful of poor and the needy around them. CONCLUSION Hesed, is indeed a word denoting emotion but it is more a word of action. On the other hand, hesed is a gift from God, that is to say, God imparts a measure of His loving kindness to His children. And He expects all His children to express it to one another. Hesed, as used in this paper reveals the characters of three major people, Naomi, Ruth and Boaz. Many in this world have experienced the tragedy of Naomi and long for God to be present and active amidst situations where He does not always act in the way human beings expect. But absolute trust in Him will end in a happy way.

War and Peace Essay -- European History Germany France War Essays

War and Peace The greater threat to world peace in the 20s, 30s, and 40s is a point that could be argued and debated upon for essays on piles of essays. The true threats of world peace were those who were naà ¯ve enough to believe that a people can be totally humiliated as the Germans were in the Treaty of Versailles following World War I and not be subject to promises of regained glory. Throughout the 1920s, the world was relatively peaceful—save perhaps the Italian â€Å"revolution† by Mussolini who had his Fascist government set up fully by the year 1926 and the Beer Hall Putsch led by Adolf Hitler in 1923. With the crushing of the revolution by the Bavarian government (which was completely riddled full of Nazi sympathizers), Hitler was sentenced to the minimum five years in prison at Landsberg Castle in Munich where he had a Martha Stewart-esque term of â€Å"hard-time.† Even at his trial, he spoke as if it were a political rally! Hitler’s book was inspired from the encouragement of other members of the Nazi party, Emile Maurice his chauffeur being the original â€Å"writer† until young Rudolf Hess took over shortly after Hitler began to dictate the book. Hitler originally titled his autobiography â€Å"Four Years of Struggle Against Lies, Stupidity, and Cowardice† (http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/GERmein.htm). The publishers thought the title to be too long and instead changed it to Mein Kampf which translates to â€Å"My Struggle.† After H...

Psychological Development Essay -- Psychology, Pregnancy

Psychological development is the development of a person’s emotional, intellectual, cognitive, and social capabilities and functions that they acquire throughout their lifetime. This starts from birth and carries on until death, but how does pregnancy affect the development stage? There are many myths that when women become pregnant their cognitive capabilities begin to decrease and the mother suffers from ‘baby brain’ or ‘placenta brain’. Scientists are interested in this and some wondered what role pregnancy plays in the increase or decrease of a woman’s cognitive function. An experiment by Christensen et al (2010) they tested cognition speed, immediate recall, working memory, and delay memory in pregnant, non-pregnant women, and during motherhood. The hypothesis of this study was to see if pregnancy affects cognitive skills in women, and this was tested through surveys and questioners (Christensen et al., 2010). With all the multiple tests there was no negative impact on the pregnant women’s intelligence (Christensen et al., 2010). Therefore, with this study there was no s...

multiple sclerosis :: essays research papers

Multiple Sclerosis My aunt has had Multiple Sclerosis for about 11 years now. She started showing symptoms when she was 27. I remember the day that I walked into my parent’s room to find my mom on the phone crying. I stayed to listen to the conversation and when she was off the phone she told me what was going on. All I could do at that point was remember all of the times we went on bike rides and had a lot of fun. It was a really bad feeling knowing that we would never have the chance to do any of that again. It was really hard for my uncle to handle and I am sure it still is, but when ever I go over they’re house everyone is cheerful and easy to talk to. Whenever I get the chance I talk to my aunt and she is still very intelligent and fun to hold a conversation with. So if you ever see a person with a disease, do not be afraid to talk to them for they are very wise. Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, often disabling disease that randomly attacks the central nervous system. Specific symptoms of the disease can not be predicted. The symptoms may range from tingling and numbness to paralysis and blindness. MS is a devastating disease because people live with its unpredictable physical and emotional effects for the rest of their lives. My aunt has to be feed, bathed; she cannot do anything for herself. MS is a well-known disease, but poorly understood. In the United States there are about 200 new cases diagnosed each week. MS is a common disease and not always caused by genetics. Therefore, I feel we all need to have a better understanding of this disease that has no cure yet. My aunt has been in my prayers and many other peoples for a long time. I just want to see her get rid of the nasty disease. I hope to make MS more understanding in my paper. In my paper I will explain what MS is, who gets MS, what MS has to do with the metabolism, what some of the symptoms of MS are, and some treatments for MS. Multiple sclerosis is a progressive disabling illness that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. â€Å"Under normal conditions these nerve cells are surrounded by an insulating sheath made of fatty myelin, which speeds the passage of nerve impulses.

How Upholding Ethical Values Helps an Organisation

HOW UPHOLDING ETHICAL VALUES HELPS AN ORGANIZATION THAT USES INFORMATION SYSTEMS? INTRODUCTION In order to understand the role of ethical values and the related ethical codes of conduct with regard to information systems in organization performance, there is need to put the, whole affair in a broad context as to the rise of ethical issues and dilemmas in the management of systems for organizational performance and development.Information systems has been defined as â€Å"a set of interrelated components that collect, process, store, retrieve and distribute data or/information in an organization referred to above facilitates decision making and control in an organization† The data or information referred to above facilitates decision making and control in an organisation and hence being crucial to organizational management and performance.It can therefore be said that the system of managing the collection, processing, storage, retrieval and distribution of data and information is what is termed as Management Information Systems. Infact Management Information Systems is about the relationship between management and the operations of an organization. When you think about this assertion, three things stand out; How IT or information systems improves the management of an organization How IT or information systems helps in the improvement of organizational performance How IT contributes to organizational developmentThe fact of the matter is that the rapid growth of Information Technology and hence the use of information system has contributed significantly to organizational management, improvement in organizational performance and organizational development in general. The rapid advancement in IT has led to creation of INTERNET and the rise of the DIGITAL FIRM. While significant achievements in social progress have been recorded, at the same time, it has led to social costs for other users, and the rise of computer crimes.Infect the rapid advancement of IT and the attendant use of information systems has created ethical issues and this is due to the following; I. T changes the distribution of decision making rights, power and other resources. For example IT makes it possible for millions of people to download video files weakening the exclusive rights of movie studios to control distribution for their own profit. IT creates new opportunities to commit crimes. For example e-mail creates conditions for extensive â€Å"Phishing† or online con games designed to defraud ordinary citizens.In this era if IT and the expansion of computer usage, ethical values for good management information system can be looked at in relation to the following ethical moral dimensions. Information rights and obligation – this is about ourselves as human beings and organizations Property rights and obligation – this is the protection of intellectual property rights Accountability and control – this pertains to who will be held accountab le in case harm is done. Systems quality – standards of data and systems quality.Quality of life – this is in connection with in the preservation of values and culture WHAT IS ETHICS Ethics refers to the principle of right and wrong which people use to make choices to guide their behavior and actions in the operations for organizational performance It is necessary here to reflect on some key technological trends which have led to ethical issues in information systems; Computing power doubles every 18 months. Almost everything is computerized. The over dependence on computers us giving rise to errors.As computer usage increases its use if being abused Rapidly declining data storage costs. Modern computer techniques have led to the creation of multiple databases. Software’s have become cheap and this led to some people to store phonographic material. Data making advances – the use of high speed search engines has led to things like harking. It has led to va luated access to information and hence interfering with people’s privacy and the confidentiality of organizational information and data is at stake. Advances in networking including the INTERNET – This has led to increased computer crime.Thus, as we witness increased technological advancement and the increased use of information systems, concern must be put on the attendant rise of computer crime and other ethical issues, ethical concerns and dilemmas in this era of globalization. Therefore organizations using information systems must concern themselves with the need to put in place ethical codes of conduct and enforce them with emphasis on inculcating into the minds of their employees the use of ethical values in their day to day work for the proposer management of their organizations and managementHOW THE USE OF ETHICAL VALUES CAN HELP AN ORGANISATION WHICH IS USING INFORMATION SYSTEMS Upholding ethical values in an organization using information systems is of benefi t to both within and outside stakeholders. That is To outside stakeholders, the organization gives assurance to its clients of security and confidentiality of their data. Hence the integrity of the organization is reaffirmed. Ethical values are used to assure people of fair and free judgment thus transparency in operation. Ethical values emphasize law and order which affect the behavior of employees in a desired direction.For example workers of an ethical upright organization would not spend working time moonlighting since they are aware of illegality involved in using organization resources for private work. Ethics controls dilemmas. For example it is not certain if software fits in intellectual property law since it is a code created by mathematical texts (Severson 1997 p. 33). Hence in such incidences the law would work best with morality. Ethics is used for consistent decision making at all levels of management in the organization because everyone would be aware of what is accep ted or not.For example someone from an ethically upright organization was asked to steal funds using the electronic fund transfer would immediately say no because he or she would know is wrong without putting too much thought on the benefits of stealing. Through upholding ethical values, trust among employees is established since they are assured of confidentiality. This in turn brings a sense of belonging and commitment to the organization. By ensuring ethical values, the security is made certain since the organization ensures that the hacking is illegal and punishable especially in incidences of uncertainty.Fair presentation ensures honesty and fairness in the market to avoid law suits despite the pressure to succeed. This encourages whistle blowing in order to avoid negative publicity that may tarnish the image of the organization in the public eye. For† example it is unethical for an organization to bribe a worker from a competitor company to be their informer on the compe titor’s plans. Ethical values act as a driving force to achieving organization goals and objectives thus increasing productivity.That is ethics provides basic guidelines on which behavior is more likely to achieve the best results in the wrong run instead of mixing wrong and right. An organization upholding ethical values controls misuse of organization resources. For example if the organization considers download if internet material like movies, music for personal gain as un ethical, then its workers may not do that and this would minimize wastage of internet data. Upholding ethical values would create a conducive working environment which would create team work and sense of belonging for the workers.This reduces chances of corruption and malice as everyone would look out for each other from bottom to top and top to bottom. This also reduces supervision of workers thus providing opportunities for innovation. For example in an ethically upright organization, the manager may enjoy leave away from work without worrying about decline of profits in his absence. REFERENCES C. A Raiborn&D. PayneCorporate codes of conduct: A collective conscience and continuum. Journal of Business ethics. 9:879-889, 1990.

Improvement of standard living contributes to damage to environment Essay

In the last decade, many countries over the world have to experience the inevitable consequences of damage to environment. The environment has been sacrificed as the people’s standard living has been improved, which is including the rising of new technology. Sometimes, the new technology that has been invented can cause environment’s devastation enhancement and also harms the ecosystem on it. Many forests and parks have disappeared so that animal extinction for some species cannot be avoided. Nowadays, many developer company compete each other to build residences, apartments, hotels, malls, entertainment centers, such as cafes, cinemas as the enhancement of our standard living. People need a living place more than just a place to sleep and take a rest. The more facilities that one residence area or apartment has, such as swimming pool, golf area, gym, supermarket; the more benefit they can offer to attract customer. It means, one developer company needs bigger areas to construct a residence or apartment. Besides that, we can see the increasing amount of skyscraper buildings in big cities. Along with many constructions, it means that many green areas has to be cut off to be changed into a commercial area and people do not contemplate the consequences of not having enough trees and green areas. In addition to this, many constructions also are not built with a good drainage system. Due to this matter, flood happens everywhere. For instance, in Jakarta, Indonesia, flood happens at least once per year during peak rainy season as the result of constructing park and forest to be a commercial building. Industrial companies also contribute to environment’s devastation. High technology system is developed to support the industrial business. Some of new technology system that has been invented are not eco-friendly. For instance, in Agriculture industry, pesticide is used for controlling the pest that can harm the plant. The consequences of using pesticide that can contaminate the soil, the plants, and harm the ecosystem surrounding it are being ignored and also it can harm the people who consume the fruits or vegetables of those plants. In addition to this, many wastes are produced every year and most of the waste cannot be recycled. Some of the waste fills the river and harm the ecosystem that live in the river, such as fishes. Later on, consuming fish from contaminated river can jeopardize human’s health. In the end, we have to realize that along with standard living improvement, often we neglect our environment and abandon the balancing of ecosystem in our planet. Besides environment devastation, we also harm our lives and our next generation lives. It is suppose that now is the perfect time for us as human being to look after our planet; maintain, protect and nourish our environment surrounding us to build a better health life in the future.