Cultural Diversity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Cultural Diversity - Essay Example Young ladies were groomed not for successful careers but to be wives of eligible and economically stable men, so they are not encouraged to pursue their education, as this will not be of benefit to them anyway. This cult of domesticity has been practiced for ages, so it was already something that most women accepted and became accustomed to. However, a growing number of women felt they were too constrained to be anything more than a housewife and longed to maximize their potentials as women. In raising these concerns, feuding groups of women fought for opposite beliefs. Those who yearned for freedom and equal rights with their male counterparts, led by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott, staged a convention to launch the women’s rights movement. For two days in July in 1848, they convened in the low-key town of Seneca Falls in New York. This small group of people were instrumental in uplifting the position of women in society. In the convention, they argued for equality with men and fought for greater legal rights, especially the right of suffrage. They also voiced out their need for more professional and education opportunities (McMillen, 2008). These women were courageous to fight for reform that was considered radical at that time, especially since their opponents were also women who embraced domesticity. Out of that convention came the Declaration of Rights and Sentiments as drafted by Elizabeth Cady Stanton. The document demanded women’s voting and property rights as well as equal economic and educational opportunities with men. Eventually, in 1920, after more than seventy years, women got what they fought for with the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which reads: â€Å"The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.† This amendment empowered women w ith certain rights and privileges that allows them to pursue an education, vote, and seek employment outside the home, and even work alongside men. It was a long wait, but it was truly worth it! Work Cited McMillen, Sally. Seneca Falls and the Origins of the Women's Rights Movement., Oxford University Press, 2008. 2. Institutionalized Heterosexism From time immemorial, the belief that there are only two genders: male and female, has been propagated by society. This meant that each gender was endowed with its own roles, rights and privileges. Over the years, the fact that some people have differing sexual orientations that did not conform to the two that are upheld, was not welcomed, as discomfort in even accepting such differences prevailed. Although homophobia, or the â€Å"irrational fear of, aversion or discrimination against homosexuality or homosexuals† (Merriam Webster Online, 1969) has been viewed negatively, it has somehow persisted albeit in a more subtle manner. Ind ividuals who pursued their sexual preferences as lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders (LGBT) usually suffer discrimination in many facets of society. They are seen as those who go against the norm, and certain rights, opportunities and privileges that heterosexuals enjoy are usually not extended to these LGBTs. This kind of prejudice against LGBTs has been labelled heterosexism. It deprives many of society’s privileges from those who â€Å"

A Passage to India Essay Example for Free

A Passage to India Essay In E. M. Forsters A Passage to India, identities and the labels placed on identities create a vicious environment in which little can be achieved. The English colonists and their Indian subjects are on polar sides of the struggle. The Indians acknowledge that labels are subject to limitation and can blind one to critical differences. The English, however, insist on assigning a label to all components of their lives. A tiny and unidentifiable green bird symbolizes this struggle between these two groups, as they are embroiled in the muddle of India. The indeterminate green bird hints at the irreconcilability of the two cultures. Indias mystery, just as the birds, cannot be explained when approached from two wholly different methodologies. Miss Adela Quested and Ronny Heaslop argue over the green bird, and in doing so, illustrate how the English handle identity. Foremost, it is imperative to the two that they identify what kind of bird it is. Forster admits that although the bird was of no importance, (91) the two, and therefore the English whom they represent, feel a need to assign a name to the bird. His narration is certain that identifying the bird would somehow have solaced their hearts. (91) Critically, the two have just agreed to call off the wedding plans for which Adela had journeyed to India. The two ex-lovers are surprisingly mechanical when discussing this new course of action. The two agree that had they quarreled (90) about this change of plans, it would have been too absurd. (90) Emotions do not seem to hold an important part in English interpersonal relationships. Adela describes their apparent detachment as being awfully British. (90) In fact, although Ronny felt angry and bruised (90) by his dismissal, he refuses to show his pain because of pride, furthering the message of English emotional detachment. From a modern perspective, if Ronny loves Adela deeply, it would be unthinkable that he could let his pride keep him from pursuing her. Instead of addressing their emotional problems, the two pursue the green bird and try to force it to have some degree of English order. The small green bird symbolizes India; it defies English labeling, it is constantly changing and it is far more complex than a single name could communicate. Adela does her best to describe the bird by noting its physical characteristics and location. She hopes that Ronny can explain this bird to her once he knows that it is green and in the tree above them. Similarly, Adela hopes she will understand India once Aziz lists a few characteristics. Yet, she is unable to determine between fact and opinion as she accepted everything Aziz said as verbally true. (76) Just as Ronny is unable to name the bird, Aziz will be unable to explain India. Adela makes the mistake that a label will suffice to create understanding. However, nothing in India is identifiable (91) and by asking the very question Adela has already started a ripple that will cavitate through picture which she asks to see. For example, one cannot study water in any detail without placing oneself into the water. However, by entering the water, one will have created a ripple and the water has forever changed. It is an unreasonable hope to observe an experiene without concurrently changing or interacting with it. Studying birds is much the same; one cannot study the bird if it is unaccustomed to ones presence and while one appears foreign to the environment the bird will not act as it would naturally. Therefore, as long as the English neither assimilate into their environment nor attempt any reconciliation with it, they will be unable to appreciate it. Ronny Heaslop is unable to visualize the problem he faces; he does not begin to imagine that his presence in an environment changes it and therefore requires some adjustment on his own part. An example of this problem is when Ronny encroaches Fieldings luncheon and is rude to the Indian guests. While it is possible to imagine the guests might normally ignore such behavior and assume it was merely English, for the past few hours they have been attending an unconventional party (71) in which they were treated as equals and with respect by all parties. Yet Ronny brings the party back to the reality where [s]uch affabilitiy is seldom seen. (77) When Ronny deals with Indians as private individuals he [forgets] them. (81) As Fielding finally confronts Ronny with the results of his actions, Ronny responds, Well its nothing Ive said I never even spoke to [Aziz. ] (83) He is completely unaware that ignoring Aziz is exactly what has infuriated him. Ronny ignores Aziz because he has labeled him. In the standard English colonists mind there are three types of people in India. There are the British, the Indians in professional environments and the natives. To the colonists, only the first group requires any acknowledgement otherwise Ronny would obviously have greeted Aziz or Godbole. The last and overwhelmingly largest group includes everyone who does not come under the first two headings. The natives are unworthy of respect, should not be trusted and certainly are not gentlemen. As Aziz is therefore unworthy of respect, in Ronnys mind, Ronny simply could not be rude to him. It is physically impossible to offend a native. In Ronnys logic, if he were told he had been rude to one of the British he would be ashamed and apologetic; with regard to Indians, he simply does not see his transgressions. In the same capacity, because he is British he is unable to vary in his treatment of Indians; the man who doesnt tow the line is lost. (190) The English do not understand there is a problem with the way the two cultures interact. From the English perspective, the natives are brutish and almost worthless. From the Indian perspective, the English are rude and unaccommodating. It is unfortunate that the two groups cannot find a middle ground. Nevertheless, Forsters description of these troubled dealings is practically flawless. If the English and the Indians are able to find a common ground and communicate with each other, it is likely that the two cultures could co-exist in Forsters world. The green bird will remain indecipherable to the English and Indian to the Indians. India requires the acceptance and embracing of variation; when the English realize this, their interaction will improve, not before. Works Cited: Forster, E. M.. A Passage to India. New York: Harcourt Brace Company, 1989.

The insurance sector in india

The insurance sector in india INTRODUCTION INSURANCE SECTOR IN INDIA The Insurance sector in India governed by Insurance Act, 1938, the Life Insurance Corporation Act, 1956 and General Insurance Business (Nationalisation) Act, 1972, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) Act, 1999 and other related Acts. With such a large population and the untapped market area of this population Insurance happens to be a very big opportunity in India. Today it stands as a business growing at the rate of 15-20 per cent annually. Together with banking services, it adds about 7 per cent to the countrys GDP .In spite of all this growth the statistics of the penetration of the insurance in the country is very poor. Nearly 80% of Indian populations are without Life insurance cover and the Health insurance. This is an indicator that growth potential for the insurance sector is immense in India. It was due to this immense growth that the regulations were introduced in the insurance sector and in continuation Malhotra Committee was constituted by the government in 1993 to examine the various aspects of the industry. The key element of the reform process was Participation of overseas insurance companies with 26% capital. Creating a more efficient and competitive financial system suitable for the requirements of the economy was the main idea behind this reform. Since then the insurance industry has gone through many sea changes .The competition LIC started facing from these companies were threatening to the existence of LIC .since the liberalization of the industry the insurance industry has never looked back and today stand as the one of the most competitive and exploring industry in India. The entry of the private players and the increased use of the new distribution are in the limelight today. The use of new distribution techniques and the IT tools has increased the scope of the industry in the longer run. PRESENT SCENARIO OF INSURANCE INDUSTRY India with about 200 million middle class household shows a huge untapped potential for players in the insurance industry. Saturation of markets in many developed economies has made the Indian market even more attractive for global insurance majors. The insurance sector in India has come to a position of very high potential and competitiveness in the market. Indians, have always seen life insurance as a tax saving device, are now suddenly turning to the private sector that are providing them new products and variety for their choice. Consumers remain the most important centre of the insurance sector. After the entry of the foreign players the industry is seeing a lot of competition and thus improvement of the customer service in the industry. Computerization of operations and updating of technology has become imperative in the current scenario. Foreign players are bringing in international best practices in service through use of latest technologies The insurance agents still remain the main source through which insurance products are sold. The concept is very well established in the country like India but still the increasing use of other sources is imperative. At present the distribution channels that are available in the market are listed below. Direct selling  · Corporate agents  · Group selling  · Brokers and cooperative societies  · Banc assurance  · Customers have tremendous choice from a large variety of products from pure term (risk) insurance to unit-linked investment products. Customers are offered unbundled products with a variety of benefits as riders from which they can choose. More customers are buying products and services based on their true needs and not just traditional money back policies, which is not considered very appropriate for long-term protection and savings. There is lots of saving and investment plans in the market. However, there are still some key new products yet to be introduced e.g. health products. The rural consumer is now exhibiting an increasing propensity for insurance products. A research conducted exhibited that the rural consumers are willing to dole out anything between Rs 3,500 and Rs 2,900 as premium each year. In the insurance, the awareness level for life insurance is the highest in rural India, but the consumers are also aware about motor, accidents and cattle insurance. PLAYERS OF INSURANCE COMPANIES IN INDIAN MARKET LIFE INSURANCE COORPORATION OF INDIA ICICI PRUDENTIAL BIRLA SUN LIFE BAJAJ ALLIANZ SBI LIFE INSURANCE HDFC STANDARD TATA AIG MAX NEW YORK AVIVA OM KOTAK MAHINDRA ING VYSYA MET LIFE MEANING OF QUALITY SERVICE: (Quality of Service) Consistent performance. Certain network services need to be delivered at a certain minimum performance level to be useable for example, a video or audio clip will stutter and break up if the bandwidth is inadequate. QoS refers to a network systems ability to sustain a given service at or above its required minimum performance level. Short for Quality of Service, a networking term that specifies a guaranteed throughput level. One of the biggest advantages of ATM over competing technologies such as Frame Relay and Fast Ethernet, is that it supports QoS levels. This allows ATM providers to guarantee to their customers that end-to-end latency will not exceed a specified level. REVIEW OF LITERATURE Studies on life insurance consumption dates back to Heubner (1942) who postulated that human life value has certain qualitative aspects that gives rise to its economic value. But his idea was normative in nature as it suggested how much life insurance to be purchased and not what will be purchased. There were no guidelines regarding the kind of life policies to be selected depending upon the consumers capacity and the amount of risk to be carried in the product.The ongoing discussion also reveals that individuals current income and future anticipated consumption expenditure plays a crucial role in determining the amount of insurance purchased (we are, for a while ignoring the form in which insurance is purchased). The importance of rate of interest or the impatience factor is also worth considering. Preferences over different consumption pattern vary from person to person and there are qualitative factors which affects such preferences. Using the expected utility framework in a continuous time model, Yaari (1965) studied the problem of uncertain lifetime and life insurance. Including the risk of dying in life cycle model, he showed conceptually that an individual increases expected lifetime utility by purchasing fair annuities. Simple models of insurance demand were proposed by Pratt (1964), Mossin (1969), Smith (1968) and others; considering a risk adverse decision maker with an initial wealth. The results indicate that demand for life insurance varies inversely with the wealth of the individuals. Hakansson (1969) used a discrete-time model of demand for financial assets and life insurance purchase in particular to examine bequest motive in considerable detail. Headen and Lee (1974) studied the effects of short run financial market behavior and consumer expectations on purchase of ordinary life insurance and developed structural determinants of life insurance demand. They considered three different sets of variables: first, variables stimulating demand as a result of insurer efforts (e.g. industry advertising expenditure, size of the sales force, new products and policies, etc.); second, variables affecting household saving decision (e.g. disposable, permanent and transitory income, expenditure expectation, number of births, marriages, etc.) and lastly, variables determining ability to pay and size of potential markets (e.g. net savings by households, financial assets, and consumer expectation regarding future economic condition). They concluded that life insurance demand is inelastic and positively affected by change in consumer sentiments; interest rates playing a role in the short run as well as in the long run. Pissarides (1980) further extending Yaaris work proved that life insurance was theoretically capable of absorbing all fluctuations in lifetime income. Lewis (1989) found out that the number of dependents as an influence on the demand for life insurance. To sum up, the theoretical review yields macroeconomic variables like income, rate of interest, and accumulated savings in wealth form; along with a set of demographic or social variables having potential impact on an individuals decision to opt for or not to demand insurance. Life insurance consumption increases with the breadwinners probability of death, the present level of familys consumption and the degree of risk aversion. OBJECTIVES OF RESEARCH To find that which factors people keep in their mind sat the time of getting any insurance policy. TO know the service quality of insurance companies in Jalandhar city To know the perception of customers regarding insurance service in Jalandhar city. RESEARCH METHODOLGY Research is the systematic and objective identification, collection, analysis, dissemination and use of information for the purpose of improving decision making related to the identification and solution of problems and opportunities in making. RESEARCH DESIGN- DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH FOR my study I have choose descriptive research design because in my study I have to know the effect of motivational forces. In this I have describe the effect of motivational forces. DATA SMPLING Data extent- Jalandhar (Punjab) Sample size-60 Sampling technique-Stratified sampling DATA COLLECTION PRIMARY DATA- Questionnaire SECONDARY DATA- Journals, magazine, newspaper. For my project, I have decided on primary data collection method by filling up the questionnaire from customers residing in jalandhar city I also followed secondary data collection method using various websites, journals and magazines for collecting information under my term paper project. LIMITATIONS Research was limited to Jalandhar city only. Some of the respondents were not ready to give proper response feeling risky to feel the questionnaire. Some of them were feeling unsecured by filling up the questionnaire. Most of the people were not aware of the importance of life insurance service in their life. They are not aware how useful life insurance can be for their family members if something happens to them. They are of the view that Insurance policies do not give good results They are not aware of modern unit linked insurance plans .they are still under the perception that if they take insurance they will get only 5-6%returns which in not true now days. People are still today not aware of the earning opportunity that an insurance service provides. FINDINGS LIC is the best service provider as compared to other insurance companies. Maximum of the respondents are not aware of benefits provided by insurance policies. Most of the people give more importance to life insurance policies as compared to other insurance policies. People think public insurance companies provide more security than private ones now days. Most of the people are also of the view that services provide by public insurance companies are better than private companies that is why most of them get insured their self and their family in public insurance company now days.

The Challenger Disaster - Responsibility of Morton Thiokol Inc. Essay

The Challenger disaster was not only a disaster in terms of the destruction of the spacecraft and the death of its crew but also in terms of the decision-making process that led to the launch and in terms of the subsequent investigation into the "causes" of the disaster. The decision to recommend for launch was made by lower-level management officials over the objections of technical experts who opposed the launch under the environmental conditions that existed on the launch pad at the time. Furthermore, the lower-level managers who made this decision--both NASA and contractor personnel--chose not to report the objections of the technical experts in their recommendations to higher levels in the management chain- of-command to proceed with the launch. Finally, it seems that the lower-level managers had also received out-of-the-ordinary pressure from higher levels of management (some allusions suggested this pressure may have come all the way from the White House) to proceed with the launch on time. The subsequent investigation began with efforts to determine the technical causes of the explosion of the Challenger. Initially, the decision-making process leading to the launch was not considered by investigators. This suggests that the initial purpose of the investigation was not concerned with ethical issues or issues of responsibility. As the investigation proceeded, information emerged through leaks to the press, which suggested that NASA had been aware of the risk of explosion under the environmental conditions that existed for the Challenger launch for several months prior to the launch. Also, the opposition of the technical experts to the launch just prior to the decision to launch became known to the investigators as well. These two pieces of information changed the nature of the investigation mid-stream from an effort to determine the technical cause of the explosion of the spacecraft to an investigation of the decision-making process leading to the launch. Viewing the Challenger disaster as an ethical problem would lead to an effort to determine whether the decision to launch was "right" or "wrong." Clearly, the explosion was an accident. It was an accident that might have been prevented or anticipated but the decision to launch was clearly a matter of judgment--albeit of apparently poor judgment in retrospect--rather than... ...s associated with launching in the environmental conditions at the time. Lower-level managers were able to avoid accountability for both the final decision to launch (made by higher levels of management) and for recognition of the technical risks associated with launching (resting in the failure of technical experts to provide justification against launching in technical specifications or formal regulations). Each of these factors--the management chain-of-command, the role of technical specifications and formal regulations, and the availability of information--served to both hinder the ability of decision-makers to act and to obscure accountability for their decision-making. As such, they served to limit the responsibility of individuals within the decision-making process and to render that process itself irresponsible. These obstacles to responsibility within NASA point to the more important ethical problem that existed beyond the scope of the specific instance of the Challenger disaster. Namely, the poor nature of the decision-making process within NASA and its negative role in fostering responsibility, both on the part of individuals and on the part of the organization as a who

Freedom of Speech vs. Censorship Essay

Adopted in 1791, the First Amendment, states â€Å"Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.† (Pilon) The freedom of speech documented in the First Amendment is not only a constitutional protection but also an inevitable part of democratic government and independence, which are essential values in society. â€Å"Censorship,† according to Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, â€Å"is an almost irresistible impulse when you know you are right† (Sunstein). That is why the American citizen’s right to free speech should be held as the highest virtue and any censorship of freedom of speech should not be allowed, however, should be respected. Freedom of speech is essential part of democratic government because the only way truth can emerge when there is an open competition of ideas. However, there is a strong support of censors hip when people start mentioning extremely offensive opinions. Should the freedom of speech be limited in this case? The answer is â€Å"No†. â€Å"If liberty means anything at all,† writes George Orwell, â€Å"it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.† (Cox) If we want to enjoy the freedom fully, the full protection should be given to the freedom of speech; there are no compromises about it. Freedom of speech protected by the First Amendment is not just a right, which can be declared or abolished. According to the â€Å"liberty theory,† proposed by some legal scholars, freedom of speech is an essential part of the liberty of every person who pursues an individual self-determination and self-realization (Cox). Thus, freedom of speech is also a global right one that permits freedom of personal development and self-expression. Another theoretical ground to support the freedom of speech is called â€Å"tolerance theory.† It holds that the ability to teach and promote tolerance is one of the most important assets of freedom of speech (Cox). From this perspective, freedom of speech itself excludes any type of intolerance, which sometimes appears in a threatening form (religious intolerance, racial intolerance). The â€Å"tolerance theory† implies self-restraint, which is the only appropriate response to any ideas, even those that we may personally may dislike or hate. The â€Å"tolerance theory† provides a broader context for exercising tolerance in a conflict-ridden democratic society. Furthermore, in legal practice there are certain restrictions on freedom of speech imposed by the Supreme Court. They define a few categories of speech, which are considered not to be fully protected by the First Amendment. These categories include defamation, advocacy of imminent illegal conduct, obscenity and, fraudulent misrepresentation (Farber). However, if the speech does not fall within one of these categories, there are no grounds for the government to argue that freedom of speech should be restricted because of its harmful content. One of the common bases for partial censorship is proof that the freedom of speech causes imminent illegal action. The Supreme Court has already drawn a careful line between general abstract theories and political dissent on one hand and particular illegal acts incitement on the other. This line is drawn by definition of â€Å"clear and present danger† test (Farber). The government cannot sue the speaker on the basis of its tendency or possibly illegal conduct incitement. Before any speech is punished on the grounds of incitement, there is an obligatory three-part criterion that should be met. First, the speech must directly incite lawless action. Second, the context of speech must imply imminent breaking of the law, rather than call for illegal conduct at some indefinite future time. At last, there should be a strong intention to produce such conduct (Farber). Such â€Å"clear and present danger† test determines the level of probability of threat imposed by the speech in question. However, the evil, which the government tries to prevent by outlawing the advocacy, does not outweigh the harm of outlawing the free speech. Only when the imposed danger becomes evident, the freedom of speech may be questioned. We must be aware that the price for preventing several cases of the openly declared illegal conduct may be paid by restriction of one of the most essential rights that constitute freedom for the entire nation. For the wellbeing and public safety, the Supreme Court has imposed certain regulations on the freedom of speech not because of its content, but because of the time, place and, manner the speech is being expressed (Farber). The court pointed out in Snyder v. Phelps (2011) that one way to ascertain whether a restriction is content-based versus content-neutral is to consider if the speaker had deliver a different message under exactly the same circumstances (Supreme Court of the United States). However, these rules do not limit the actual freedom of speech and are not even upheld, if there is no public need for this. However, concerning the content-neutral regulation, it raises many controversial issues. The content-neutral regulation requires a very careful distinction and therefore may sometimes be misinterpreted. There is a raising concern that such regulation may weaken people’s right to participate, especially if the government puts too many restrictions on how the ideas should be voiced. Thus, by analyzing the current issues concerning the First Amendment right to free speech in the United States, I wanted to show the perspective of outlawing this right, and the negative aspects t hat such outlawing may involve. Freedom of speech has served a crucial role for the right to dissent and for the entire principle of democracy in our society. This law was developed during the course of American history and only after numerous struggles it was achieved. The evolution of this law is still in progress however, the limitation of the basic right to free speech may as well limit our freedom and democracy, therefore should be respected and protected. Works Cited Cox, A. A Freedom of Expression. Cambridge: Harvard University, 1981. Print. The Declaration fo Independence and the Consitituion fo the United States. The Declaration fo Independence and the Consitituion fo the United States. By Roger Pilon. N.p.: Cato Institute, 2000. 1-10. Print. Farber, D. The First Amendment. New York: Foundation Press, 1998. Print. Sunstein, C. Democracy and the Prolem of Free Speech. New York: Free Press, 1993. Print. United States v. Kozminski – 487 U.S. 931 (1988). U.S. Supreme Court, n.d. Web. 1 Apr. 2013. . United States. Supreme Court. â€Å"Supreme Court of the United States of America.† Supreme Court of the United States of America, Oct. 2010. Web. 1 May 2013. .

Music and no music condition Essay

The use of music seems to be a good way of operationalising the IV as many people do learn to the sound of music so therefore the difference between the music and no music condition should be marked. Also, getting the participants to write down the words is a good way of measuring the DV as it means it is easy to collect and analyse the data.  The study itself was quite simple and it seemed to measure what effects music has on learning. The independent variable was manipulated in such a way that it was hard for there to be anyway the results could have been affected significantly. Also because the measurement method was very simple there isn’t a chance that the results could be interpreted in the wrong way. As the study was a laboratory experiment it doesn’t have as high validity as a field experiment. Although the participants were not in a strange environment, the fact that they knew they were being studied may lower the ecological validity of the study.  Leading on from the fact that the study might have bad ecological validity, there is also the problem of the study having bad participant reactivity. Seeing as they know they are being studied and they know they have to learn the list of words given to them, they may try much harder than they normally would in their everyday life. There is the factor of social desirability and how some participants may deliberately try to recall fewer words. Improving Validity  Although it would be very difficult and expensive it could be possible to take the study outside the laboratory to increase the ecological validity of the study. You could monitor the participants while they are learning for something at home and while they are playing their own music in their rooms. They could then be tested unknowingly at school by one of their reachers.  However, even if these changes were made, the results would probably still stay the same. It has been proved before by numerous studies done by different scientists that music does help when trying to learn. This is why students are encouraged to listen to wordless music when revising for exams. These changes would also help improve participant reactivity if they are studied in a familiar environment. It would give them a sense of security and the need to look ‘cool’ is not needed anymore and there is no extra pressure put on them to learn because they don’t have the feeling they are being examined.  So, these changes could actually change the results slightly if only with a few participants. It might be found that there is higher recall in both conditions though but the difference may still stay the same. Reliability  The study is very easy to replicate as there is many references to other studies similar to it. Also because the study is quite simple in itself and very cheap to do there are very rarely any problems in recreating it for different purposes.  One possible confounding variable was introduced by the fact that there were four researchers in the room at the time of the study and they all knew the hypotheses. They may have tried give the participants help in recalling the words by giving hints and clues so that the results were more conclusive. This may have led to unreliable comparisons between conditions. As the study was a laboratory experiment it meant the researchers had good control over the study. The words that were chosen were all unambiguous so the participants would not have interpreted them in different ways. Also the test had been severely standardised. The words were shown on an over head projector so they were all looking at the same thing when learning was taking place. Also the testing was completed in the same room and at the same time of day for each condition so the participants were not feeling more tired in one condition than the other. Improving reliability  The only possible way to improve reliability was to keep researcher contact to a minimum or have a person in the room that was unaware of the hypothesis so they couldn’t alter the study in any way. This would be difficult though because once they are in the room it does become quite obvious what the study is about.  This could be controlled for by using an outside civilian to be the one person giving the participants instructions on what they have to do. There could be one person chosen for each condition so that they don’t guess what the study is about.  Even if these changes did increase the reliability of the study the only difference they might make to the results is to decrease the differences found between the two conditions.

Leaders Are Born Not Made

ESSAY TITLE: LEADERS ARE BORN NOT MADE AUTHOR: AYODELE OLATOYE SUMMARY: The essay refutes the viewpoint that leaders are born not made, and seeks to establish through valid arguments, illustrations and documented evidence that leaders are actually made and not born WORD COUNT: 1920 LEADERS ARE BORN NOT MADE Folklore has lulled us into believing that some people are born leaders while others are not.Regardless of tribe, ethnicity or race, most people can trace their origins back to a monarchical or feudal system where the offspring of the reigning family found themselves thrust into leadership positions regardless of their inclinations to rule or not. To further impress this upon our collective psyches, the legends of such royal ancestors are interwoven with thrilling notions of romantic adventure and grandeur, and we unwittingly find ourselves mentally acquiescing to the untruth that some people are born to lead while others are destined to merely follow.History has however proven ot herwise; leaders are made not born. The fall of monarchical systems of government occurred slowly but surely over centuries, as it became apparent to all that leadership is to be earned, and is not a birthright. Nobility was no longer a question of bloodline but of courage, strength of character and the ability to motivate your peers to follow you in achieving a common goal. Some critics would argue that the most prominent features of leaders such as courage, charisma and strength are personality traits which are inherited and cannot be taught (Colleen 2012).Research has however shown that the human personality is extremely malleable, and under the right tutelage and exposure to carefully calibrated exercises, leadership attributes can be developed by anyone who is willing to invest the required amount of time and energy to achieve these results (Parks 2005). It has also been argued that another key requirement for leadership is pleasant good looks which are an inherited feature (Co lleen 2012).This is however an unsubstantiated assumption and perhaps is only relevant in the realm of politics where the ability to assume an office is often indicative of a strong political machinery backing you, and not your ability to lead and motivate. True leadership is not an office but a lifestyle. Mahatma Ghandi may not have qualified as a prospect for GQ’s cover page but he is undisputedly one of the most influential leaders in modern history. Perhaps it would be instructive to clarify who a leader is before proceeding further. ‘A leader is a person who influences a group of people towards the achievement of a certain goal’ (Merriam-Webster n. . ). Leaders exist in almost every facet and sphere of life we may choose to examine; the family unit, schools, religious organisations, business institutions and states. The manner in which they influence people varies from individual to individual. One of the areas which has witnessed the most review and analysi s is the business environment, where the efficacy of a leader could determine whether an organisation thrives or goes under, and with it the fates of staff, shareholders and other stakeholders whose livelihoods are inexorably linked to the business.We will therefore restrict our review to the attributes of a successful business leader and an analysis of whether such traits are inherited or cultivated. One key trait which most of the literature written on great business leaders agree on as a required characteristic is excellent communication skills. A leader must be able to clearly communicate his vision in compelling terms that will motivate his team to follow him into the thick of the fray, be it the floor of the New York Stock exchange or into the last quarter of the year where the sales figures will determine whether the organisation sinks or swims.Is the ability to communicate convincingly an inborn trait? History would lead us to believe otherwise. According to folklore, Demost henes was the most famed of Greek orators whose first attempt at public speaking earned him the derision of his peers for his efforts (Horne 2007). Through dedication and the proper tutelage, he overcame a speech handicap and eventually became a voice that all of Greece respected. In the modern world, the abundance of voice coaches and public speaking training material points to the fact that excellent communication skills can be learnt.In addition, as organisations continue to grow in size and staffing, an increasing amount of the intra-organisational communication is written and no longer verbal. CEOs communicate their vision and the company’s direction to the entire staff via written emails. Though some critics may maintain that good communication skills are inherited, it is unlikely that even the strongest proponents of this view will believe that the ability to type concise emails is an inborn talent. Another important leadership trait is passion; passion is infectious n d galvanises those around you into pouring their energy into the goals you have set. It is obviously apparent that some people are naturally more passionate than others and this is inarguably an inborn personality trait. As a leader however, you are not required to be passionate about every single thing; you however must be passionate about your job, your organisation and the objectives you have set. In the book ‘Who Am I; The Quest for Entrepreneurial Identity’, Charles Y. Murnieks states ‘†¦ ntrepreneurial passion is significantly related to the setting of proximal goals’ (Murnieks 2008). This suggests that any leader who is fiercely committed to a goal inadvertently becomes passionate about it. Goal setting and focus is a trait which can definitely be taught and are the precursors to the passion that a great leader needs. On the other hand, being a passionate person in a general sense is no guarantee of great leadership. On the contrary, passion tha t is not built on predetermined goals may lead to emotional decisions which could destroy an organisation.A third important leadership trait is courage. In the course of running an organisation, a leader must have the courage to take decisions which could either make or break that organisation. Whether it is choosing the sectors to invest businesses capital in or selling off an ailing subsidiary, his courage will constantly be put to test. He must also have the courage to face his staff with candour and give unpleasant feedback to an employee who may not be pulling his weight.A study by Daniel Goleman surprisingly revealed that fearlessness, amongst others, is often an inherited trait (Goleman 1986). It appears that some children are born with a higher threshold of fear and risk aversion than others. An insensitivity to fear however does not necessarily make a courageous leader. In the article ‘The Meaning of Courage’, Richard Zinbarg states ‘In my view, however, we cannot be courageous or strong in situations in which we have no fear or anxiety whatsoever’ (Zinbarg 2010). Courage is the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc. despite anxiety or fear’ (Rachman 1978). This thus means that the quality of courage which one needs to have to be an effective leader is not ingrained at birth, but rather is developed over time by the habit of constantly facing ones fears. Many leadership training organisations teach this trait with rock climbing or mountain climbing exercises, which will gradually help the students face down their fears and take challenges head on.The military also recruit young men and women into their ranks and through trainings, exercises and exposure to real armed conflict situations, gradually shape them into courageous combat ready soldiers. This is perhaps one of the reasons why the American people had until recently only voted ex-military political candidates into office; they naturally believed that these men would have cultivated the traits of strength and fearlessness during their time in the military. Integrity is another important attribute of a good leader.The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines integrity as the ‘firm adherence to a code of especially moral or artistic values (Merriam-Webster n. d. ). Are some people born with integrity whilst others are born with a propensity for deceit and inconsistency? Research shows that children growing up are prone to adopt the moral code and values which their models exhibit from birth to about the age of 7, when they begin to observe and appraise the results of actions on subjects as well as the attendant repercussions.They then begin to form their own value system which continues to be shaped throughout their lives (Thomas 1993). Integrity is a learned attribute and leaders can therefore not be born with it; it is an acquired trait. A review of the biographies of great leaders often refer to defining moments in their lives where experiences occurred that shaped and defined their moral codes for the rest of their lives. One of the greatest examples of this is the story of President Abraham Lincoln, fondly known as ‘Honest Abe’ by the people of America.He exposed himself at a very early age to character moulding literature that extolled the virtues of integrity and individual struggle, thereby internalising the accounts of other great men and consciously adopting their moral codes (Carwardine 2003). The mere fact that peer pressure, lack of a proper family structure and environmental/ community factors have been identified as three of the main contributing factors to teen crime (Muhammad 2008) establish that integrity or the lack of it is a learned behaviour and not an inherited trait.This is one of the reasons why juvenile corrective authorities always seek foster parents for adolescents whom they perceive to be in danger of being corrupted by their soci ety. The human race has made exceptional leaps in the past century on numerous frontiers; medicine, law, science, technology, and most of the other endeavours we have focused our mental energy and resources on. In the business world, the number of registered companies (either with physical or virtual offices) is rising quickly and with it the portfolio and profile of its owners and managers.The leaders of these advancements and breakthroughs did not let questions of their genetic predisposition to leadership deter them from achieving the feats they have accomplished. Proposing that leadership is a birthright and therefore the exclusive right of a privileged few would be encouraging scores of people to abdicate their natural duty of being the best version of themselves they possibly can, encouraging them to ignore the plethora of opportunities to lead and make a difference, encouraging them to give up at the first sign of difficulty.The last and arguably the most important trait of a great leader is faith; faith in his ability to lead his team and actually make a difference. It is only by understanding that great leaders are made and not born that we can have the faith to put ourselves through the gruelling process it takes to shape our minds and bodies, and thereby become the exceptional leaders that we all can be.Bibliography Carwardine, Richard. Lincoln. London, 2003. Colleen, Sharen. â€Å"Leaders are Born not Made. † Thinking is Hard Work, 2012. Goleman, Daniel. â€Å"New York Times. † New York Times, 2 December 1986. Horne, C. F. Heritage History. History Curriculum Homeschool, 2007. Merriam-Webster. â€Å"Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. † http://www. merriam-webster. com/dictionary/integrity. Muhammad, Ali. Youth Crime; Causes and Remedies. 2008. Murnieks, Charles Y. Whom Am I; The Quest for Entrepreneural Identity. 2008. Parks, Sharon Daloz. â€Å"Leadership Can Be Taught: A Bold Approach for a Complex World. † 2005: 5-6. Rachman, Stanley. Fear and Courage. 1978. Thomas, Laurence. Morality and Psychological Development. Basil Blackwell Ltd, 1993. Zinbarg, Richard. The Meaning of Courage. 2010. Leaders Are Born Not Made ESSAY TITLE: LEADERS ARE BORN NOT MADE AUTHOR: AYODELE OLATOYE SUMMARY: The essay refutes the viewpoint that leaders are born not made, and seeks to establish through valid arguments, illustrations and documented evidence that leaders are actually made and not born WORD COUNT: 1920 LEADERS ARE BORN NOT MADE Folklore has lulled us into believing that some people are born leaders while others are not.Regardless of tribe, ethnicity or race, most people can trace their origins back to a monarchical or feudal system where the offspring of the reigning family found themselves thrust into leadership positions regardless of their inclinations to rule or not. To further impress this upon our collective psyches, the legends of such royal ancestors are interwoven with thrilling notions of romantic adventure and grandeur, and we unwittingly find ourselves mentally acquiescing to the untruth that some people are born to lead while others are destined to merely follow.History has however proven ot herwise; leaders are made not born. The fall of monarchical systems of government occurred slowly but surely over centuries, as it became apparent to all that leadership is to be earned, and is not a birthright. Nobility was no longer a question of bloodline but of courage, strength of character and the ability to motivate your peers to follow you in achieving a common goal. Some critics would argue that the most prominent features of leaders such as courage, charisma and strength are personality traits which are inherited and cannot be taught (Colleen 2012).Research has however shown that the human personality is extremely malleable, and under the right tutelage and exposure to carefully calibrated exercises, leadership attributes can be developed by anyone who is willing to invest the required amount of time and energy to achieve these results (Parks 2005). It has also been argued that another key requirement for leadership is pleasant good looks which are an inherited feature (Co lleen 2012).This is however an unsubstantiated assumption and perhaps is only relevant in the realm of politics where the ability to assume an office is often indicative of a strong political machinery backing you, and not your ability to lead and motivate. True leadership is not an office but a lifestyle. Mahatma Ghandi may not have qualified as a prospect for GQ’s cover page but he is undisputedly one of the most influential leaders in modern history. Perhaps it would be instructive to clarify who a leader is before proceeding further. ‘A leader is a person who influences a group of people towards the achievement of a certain goal’ (Merriam-Webster n. . ). Leaders exist in almost every facet and sphere of life we may choose to examine; the family unit, schools, religious organisations, business institutions and states. The manner in which they influence people varies from individual to individual. One of the areas which has witnessed the most review and analysi s is the business environment, where the efficacy of a leader could determine whether an organisation thrives or goes under, and with it the fates of staff, shareholders and other stakeholders whose livelihoods are inexorably linked to the business.We will therefore restrict our review to the attributes of a successful business leader and an analysis of whether such traits are inherited or cultivated. One key trait which most of the literature written on great business leaders agree on as a required characteristic is excellent communication skills. A leader must be able to clearly communicate his vision in compelling terms that will motivate his team to follow him into the thick of the fray, be it the floor of the New York Stock exchange or into the last quarter of the year where the sales figures will determine whether the organisation sinks or swims.Is the ability to communicate convincingly an inborn trait? History would lead us to believe otherwise. According to folklore, Demost henes was the most famed of Greek orators whose first attempt at public speaking earned him the derision of his peers for his efforts (Horne 2007). Through dedication and the proper tutelage, he overcame a speech handicap and eventually became a voice that all of Greece respected. In the modern world, the abundance of voice coaches and public speaking training material points to the fact that excellent communication skills can be learnt.In addition, as organisations continue to grow in size and staffing, an increasing amount of the intra-organisational communication is written and no longer verbal. CEOs communicate their vision and the company’s direction to the entire staff via written emails. Though some critics may maintain that good communication skills are inherited, it is unlikely that even the strongest proponents of this view will believe that the ability to type concise emails is an inborn talent. Another important leadership trait is passion; passion is infectious n d galvanises those around you into pouring their energy into the goals you have set. It is obviously apparent that some people are naturally more passionate than others and this is inarguably an inborn personality trait. As a leader however, you are not required to be passionate about every single thing; you however must be passionate about your job, your organisation and the objectives you have set. In the book ‘Who Am I; The Quest for Entrepreneurial Identity’, Charles Y. Murnieks states ‘†¦ ntrepreneurial passion is significantly related to the setting of proximal goals’ (Murnieks 2008). This suggests that any leader who is fiercely committed to a goal inadvertently becomes passionate about it. Goal setting and focus is a trait which can definitely be taught and are the precursors to the passion that a great leader needs. On the other hand, being a passionate person in a general sense is no guarantee of great leadership. On the contrary, passion tha t is not built on predetermined goals may lead to emotional decisions which could destroy an organisation.A third important leadership trait is courage. In the course of running an organisation, a leader must have the courage to take decisions which could either make or break that organisation. Whether it is choosing the sectors to invest businesses capital in or selling off an ailing subsidiary, his courage will constantly be put to test. He must also have the courage to face his staff with candour and give unpleasant feedback to an employee who may not be pulling his weight.A study by Daniel Goleman surprisingly revealed that fearlessness, amongst others, is often an inherited trait (Goleman 1986). It appears that some children are born with a higher threshold of fear and risk aversion than others. An insensitivity to fear however does not necessarily make a courageous leader. In the article ‘The Meaning of Courage’, Richard Zinbarg states ‘In my view, however, we cannot be courageous or strong in situations in which we have no fear or anxiety whatsoever’ (Zinbarg 2010). Courage is the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc. despite anxiety or fear’ (Rachman 1978). This thus means that the quality of courage which one needs to have to be an effective leader is not ingrained at birth, but rather is developed over time by the habit of constantly facing ones fears. Many leadership training organisations teach this trait with rock climbing or mountain climbing exercises, which will gradually help the students face down their fears and take challenges head on.The military also recruit young men and women into their ranks and through trainings, exercises and exposure to real armed conflict situations, gradually shape them into courageous combat ready soldiers. This is perhaps one of the reasons why the American people had until recently only voted ex-military political candidates into office; they naturally believed that these men would have cultivated the traits of strength and fearlessness during their time in the military. Integrity is another important attribute of a good leader.The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines integrity as the ‘firm adherence to a code of especially moral or artistic values (Merriam-Webster n. d. ). Are some people born with integrity whilst others are born with a propensity for deceit and inconsistency? Research shows that children growing up are prone to adopt the moral code and values which their models exhibit from birth to about the age of 7, when they begin to observe and appraise the results of actions on subjects as well as the attendant repercussions.They then begin to form their own value system which continues to be shaped throughout their lives (Thomas 1993). Integrity is a learned attribute and leaders can therefore not be born with it; it is an acquired trait. A review of the biographies of great leaders often refer to defining moments in their lives where experiences occurred that shaped and defined their moral codes for the rest of their lives. One of the greatest examples of this is the story of President Abraham Lincoln, fondly known as ‘Honest Abe’ by the people of America.He exposed himself at a very early age to character moulding literature that extolled the virtues of integrity and individual struggle, thereby internalising the accounts of other great men and consciously adopting their moral codes (Carwardine 2003). The mere fact that peer pressure, lack of a proper family structure and environmental/ community factors have been identified as three of the main contributing factors to teen crime (Muhammad 2008) establish that integrity or the lack of it is a learned behaviour and not an inherited trait.This is one of the reasons why juvenile corrective authorities always seek foster parents for adolescents whom they perceive to be in danger of being corrupted by their soci ety. The human race has made exceptional leaps in the past century on numerous frontiers; medicine, law, science, technology, and most of the other endeavours we have focused our mental energy and resources on. In the business world, the number of registered companies (either with physical or virtual offices) is rising quickly and with it the portfolio and profile of its owners and managers.The leaders of these advancements and breakthroughs did not let questions of their genetic predisposition to leadership deter them from achieving the feats they have accomplished. Proposing that leadership is a birthright and therefore the exclusive right of a privileged few would be encouraging scores of people to abdicate their natural duty of being the best version of themselves they possibly can, encouraging them to ignore the plethora of opportunities to lead and make a difference, encouraging them to give up at the first sign of difficulty.The last and arguably the most important trait of a great leader is faith; faith in his ability to lead his team and actually make a difference. It is only by understanding that great leaders are made and not born that we can have the faith to put ourselves through the gruelling process it takes to shape our minds and bodies, and thereby become the exceptional leaders that we all can be.Bibliography Carwardine, Richard. Lincoln. London, 2003. Colleen, Sharen. â€Å"Leaders are Born not Made. † Thinking is Hard Work, 2012. Goleman, Daniel. â€Å"New York Times. † New York Times, 2 December 1986. Horne, C. F. Heritage History. History Curriculum Homeschool, 2007. Merriam-Webster. â€Å"Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. † http://www. merriam-webster. com/dictionary/integrity. Muhammad, Ali. Youth Crime; Causes and Remedies. 2008. Murnieks, Charles Y. Whom Am I; The Quest for Entrepreneural Identity. 2008. Parks, Sharon Daloz. â€Å"Leadership Can Be Taught: A Bold Approach for a Complex World. † 2005: 5-6. Rachman, Stanley. Fear and Courage. 1978. Thomas, Laurence. Morality and Psychological Development. Basil Blackwell Ltd, 1993. Zinbarg, Richard. The Meaning of Courage. 2010.