In some countries such as MEDCs population is stabilizing due to low birth rates and low death rates Free Essays

In some countries such as MEDCs population is stabilizing due to low birth rates and low death rates. However, other countries, mostly in LEDCs, the population isn’t stabilizing and instead is increasing. Reasons for this are that people are now living longer due to better health care, while poor education and poor knowledge of birth control means that birth rates are increasing while death rates are decreasing leading to overpopulation. We will write a custom essay sample on In some countries such as MEDCs population is stabilizing due to low birth rates and low death rates or any similar topic only for you Order Now Governments have now begun to recognize the problems caused by population growth and have introduced anti-natalist policies aiming to reduce fertility. Countries suffering from overpopulation are India, Singapore, Nigeria, China and India. Here the governments have implied policies such as later marriages, birth spacing and inheritance laws. Also in India, if a man volunteers for a vasectomy he would receive a free transistor radio. However, perhaps the most famous policy of all is China’s ‘one child policy’. China is the third largest country in terms of areas – 9596960 km2. In terms of population it is the biggest nation with 1.2 billion people, who make up 21.5% of the world’s total population. The problems China faced were that only 7% of China is land area. While only 50% of this land is farmable and only 13% suitable for arable farming. This situation is then made worse by 94% of the Chinese population living in the badly overpopulated southeast of the country, which consists of 43% of land. While only 6% live in the northwest of the country, which consists of 57% of land. This has led to an imbalance between population and resources. Secondly in 1949, China was made a communist country. At this stage, China sought to maximise its population for military and strategic strength. By 1960 CBR had peaked at 45/1000. The sheer size of the Chinese population put increased demands on services such as food, housing, education and employment. In fact during the 1970s the government feared that further population increases would result in mass starvation by the end of the century. This triggered the government to enforce anti-natalist policies. Options were considered such as: Increase death rate – however not a legitimate government policy. Encourage out migration – too many Chinese for this to be successful. Import more resources – implications for the rest of the world, especially LEDCs. Therefore the only option was to reduce the birth rate, which led to the 1979 ‘one child policy’. This included: Compulsory abortion if a couple already had one child (if a couple managed to escape abortion and have more than one child then there were economic penalties). The introduction of ‘Granny police’ – who were older women who went round checking younger women weren’t pregnant. Compulsory sterilisation – the government would send in the army to gather men and sterilize them. Later marriages and the use of contraception were also encouraged. The one child policy found greatest success amongst the urban population – where it was more strictly enforced and accepted. Therefore in 1994 the government introduced the ‘new family plan’. This aimed to educate farmers, in rural areas, on the basis that they will naturally come to understand why fewer children means achieving prosperity sooner. The outcomes of the one child policy were that the Birth rate was reduced from 45/1000 to 22/1000. In this respect the policy has therefore been regarded as a success. Couples are wealthier due to economic improvements while they no longer fear the official penalties of increased housing, schooling and medical costs for larger families. However, there have also been a number of problems with the policy. Firstly, there is now an ageing population, which have a number of potential problems in itself. In the early 90s there were about 100 million Chinese people over 60 – which encountered for 9% of the population. By 2030 it is expected to have increased to 25% of the population. This is likely to lead to a limitation in the labour supply. While pensions and retirement benefits are few, and there has never been much state pension for the elderly. Other problems are that most Chinese families want a son. This has led to some female babies being allowed to die after birth through deliberate exposure, neglect or in some areas the feeding of poisonous berries. This leads to a gender imbalance. This could cause problems for China, as it is likely to lead to a considerable amount of unmarried men, causing social instability and a growing demand for prostitution. There is also the tendency for the child to become spoilt. This will be the only child a couple will ever have, therefore all their ambitions and money are channelled into the child’s education, well-being and comfort. However, in the course of time such a spoilt child could become the sole support for up to six aged people. In conclusion, without the one child policy china would almost certainly be chaos and an economic mess. Therefore although there are serious problems with the policy, the success of dramatically reducing the population outweighs the potential consequences that China now faces. However, it is not only China who have introduced dramatic anti -natalist policies to reduce the population. Indonesia attempted to even out its differences in population density between its inner and outer islands through a transmigration scheme. How to cite In some countries such as MEDCs population is stabilizing due to low birth rates and low death rates, Papers

Discussing Stereotype Threat - Attachment Styles and Relationships in a

Question 1- Critically discuss the notion of stereotype threat? Answer 1- David G Meyers has defined Stereotype threat in his book Social Psychology as a disruptive concern that occurs when a person is facing a negative stereotype in life. This stereotype can be evaluated on the basis of the negative stereotype that the person is facing. It is quite unlike the prophecies that are self fulfilling that question ones reputation regarding ones stereotype and concept. (Inzlicht, 2006) Inzlicht and others in the year 2006 proved that stereotype threat can be explained by even the prejudice that people can face or feel self conscious about. They explained it through the example of white person living in a black community. They explained how the physical stamina and mental ability is diminished when circumstances that make us self conscious occur. If a person is kept in a situation where other people expect the person to perform poorly and fail. This causes anxiety which may force a person to believe the same that he or she may never succeed. Claude Steele along w ith his colleagues called this phenomenon as Stereotype Threat that is an apprehension that gets self confirmed under a negative stereotype. Claude Steele, Steven Spencer and Diane Quinn in the year 1999 conducted an experiment about a tough math test to women and men who had math background. The people were informed in advance that the test will not be judged on gender differences and any other stereotype. After knowing this the women in the test performed equally in comparison to men. (Adams, 2006) But when the experiment was repeated with a different set of women who were told that there is a stereotype for gender difference, they performed badly in comparison to men. The added apprehension after the tough test questions affected their scores. Paul Davies along with his colleagues was able to prove that the media is capable of provoking stereotype threat as well. (Davies, 2012)He proved it with an experiment by making both women and men watch as set of commercials which they had to memorize. The commercials contained neutral stimuli for half the participants and the other half were shown commercials with airheaded women images. After watching the commercials the participants were given a math test. Not only did the women performed badly in comparison to men in airheaded commercial group but also reported a loss of interest in obtaining higher education in math or science. Stereotype threat was also successfully proven by Joshua Aronson and Steele in the year 1995 when they gave verbal tests to whites and black participants. The black participants performed badly when they were subjected to stereotype threat. Steele also reported that students tend to perform badly when they are told prior to the tests that there are chance s of them to fail the test. This may also result in self esteem issues and loss of interest on education on a whole in some students. He suggested that it is always better to challenge the students thus helping them to believe in their potential. Chad Forbes, Topni Schmader and Michael Johns in the year 2008 explained how stereotype threat affects performance. There are three ways in which the stereotype threat undermines performance:- Self monitoring:- many scholars including Forster and Seibt in the year 2004 and Dauenheimer and Keller in the year 2003 have proved that when an individual is subjected to stereotype threat they tend to worry about making mistakes. There are not focused in their work and their attention is disrupted regularly due to this self monitoring. Stress:-many researchers like Derks and his colleagues in the year 2008, Krendl and his colleagues in the year 2008 and Wraga and his colleagues in the year 2007 have proven that stress that is caused by a stereotype threat causes impairing brain activity. MRI scans have shown that under stress from a stereotype threat the areas of the brain that process emotion are highly active and brain activity in the mathematical processing area is impaired. Suppressing unwanted emotions and thoughts:-Croizet and Bonnot in the year 2007 proved that thoughts and memory are disrupted when an individual tries to regulate ones thinking. Research related to stereotype threat was not limited to the negative impact of it but it was also thought that if negative stereotype threat can affect performance in a negative way. Can positive stereotypes enhance performances? Nalini Ambady alon with Margaret Shih and Todd Pittinsky conducted an experiment to confirm it. They took two groups of Asian American females in which one was a control group whereas the other consisted of females that were asked some biological questions. The biological questions were asked to them to remind them of their gender identity after which their performance plunged in the tests. To prove positive stereotype the researchers reminded them of their Asian identity which helped them to score well in the tests. Rydell along with his colleagues proved that positive stereotypes facilitate performance and negative stereotypes have a disruptive affect on performance. Felicio and Miller in the year 1990 studied about stereotype bias judgments in people. Th ey found out that relevant and strong stereotype do affect the judgments of people. Melvin Manis, Monica Biernat and Thomas Nelson in their study proved that when students were asked about the estimated heights of many men and women. All of them perceived men height to be more than the women. It was noted that even when the height of both men and women were the same they perceived that men were taller. A follow up study that was conducted by Manis, Nelson, and Michele Acker in the year 1996 showed the pictures of some of the students of University of Michigan from nursing and engineering to other students. In these pictures the interests of each student were listed as well. the students who were viewing the pictures were informed that the number of males and female students are the same. But many students associated the nursing student with a female student face. This proved that strong gender stereotype is a irresistible force. Question 2 - Bartholomew and Horowitz (1991) differentiate between four distinct attachment styles. Describe these styles and articulate the dimensions that allow them to be differentiated? Answer 2- Human beings are social creatures that are destined to bond with one another. This need to bind is adaptive. Survival is dependent on cooperation, which is essential for any species to survive. When we are babies we prefer familiar faces over strangers. We smile and coo on familiar voices and attention. At the tender age of eight months a baby starts to crawl towards its mother and father. They wail and cry when they are separated from them. The parents who are the caregivers share a strong bond or social attachment with the baby that serves as a survival impulse. Our attachment style affects everything in our life whether it be our selection of our life partner or how well relationship will work. Leonard M. Horowitz and Kim Bartholomew gave the attachment theory that states that attachment relationship continue to be essential throughout our lives. (Bartholomew, 1991) But Horowitz and Bartholomew proved that if an individual abstract self image is negative or positive them the abstracted image will be negative or positive as well. When we are an infant our bond and attachments towards others strengthens our human bonds. (Bowlby, 1988) John Bowlby in the year 1980 reflected that intimate attachments to others are the hub around which an individual life revolves around. Some of the attachments styles are:- Secure attachments:-this type of attachment is rooted in trust and is marked by intimacy. Researchers like Cunningham and Jones in the year 1996 proved that infants even in strange situation if in their mothers presence exhibit a comfortable demeanor but if the mother is asked to leave. They become sad and distressed it is only when the mother returns back that the child relaxes and starts playing again. This attachment style that is based on trust is called as secure attachment. It forms a kind of working model that is based on intimacy that helps in sustaining relationships even through times of conflict. When an infant who has had a secure relationship with others grow into an adult, they tend to enjoy relationship in a committed and secure way. (Ein-Dor, 2010)Their relationships tend to be enduring and satisfying. Securely attached individuals are more satisfied with their lifetime relationships. As children they have seen their parent as a secure base that helps them to independ ently venture in the world and explore it. These individuals grow into adults that are supportive for their partners and are comforting when they see that their partner is disturbed. They form relationships that are open, equal and honest. The model that Leonard M. Horowitz and Kim Bartholomew gave was based on the fact that how an individual sees oneself i.e his self image. Preoccupied attachment style:- which is also called as Anxious Ambivalent is about having positive expectations for others along with the sense of ones own unworthiness. As seen in some infants who tend to cling to their mothers. They will cry and wail if the mother leaves but even when she returns they may be hostile and indifferent. These infants grow into adults that are more possessive and less trusting. They get jealous easily. (Cassidy, 2000) Cassidy in the year 2000 proved that these individuals get angry and emotional when discussing a conflict. In contrast to others who support and acknowledge others freedom. These individual are desperate to form a fantasy bond with others. They feel emotional hunger instead of feeling trust and love for their partner. They feel security and safety by clinging to their partners. They act insecure and desperate as their behavior show their fears. They are clingy, possessive and demanding as they feel unsure of the feelings of their partner. (Crisp, 2009) Dismissive attachment style:- infants with this type of attachment show little distress when separated from their mothers. They do not cling to their mothers even when they return after a period of separation. These infants tend to grow into adults that exhibit negative views about others. These avoidant type of people are not interested in relationships and engage in meaningless sex without love. They have a distrust for others and thus they avoid being in relationship (Etcheverry, 2005). They lead a more inward life as they deny the existence of loved ones and detach from them. They easily shut down emotionally and are psychologically defended. Fearful attachment style:-the individual that have this type of attachment style are fearful of intimacy and are socially avoidant. They commonly use sentences like I keep my options open and I am not comfortable in getting too close to people. They have strong dependency on others in order to maintain their positive self image. But they usually differ in their attempt to be a part of a close relationship. (Lanciano, 2012)This tendency is based on their fear of rejection. They often get overwhelmed by their feelings and are unpredictable. They often end up in dramatic and rocky relationships which have many highs and lows. According to a study by the world health organisation when a child or infant is deprived of familiar attachments they become silent, frightened and withdrawn. This has been experienced with kids that go through extreme neglect. Some elements are common in all loving relationships and attachments. Some of these elements are giving support, mutual understanding, receiving support, and valuing support. Passionate love is different as it has other features as intense fascination, physical affection and exclusiveness. But this passionate love is not just for the lovers as according to a study by Phillip Shaver and his colleagues. The one year old infants that were studied expressed and welcomed physical affection like lovers. They felt distressed when they were separated from their parents. They even showed intense affection when they were reunited with their parents. Question 3- Critically discuss the relationship between close relationships and health? Answer 3- In social psychology the physical and mental well being is a major topic. Close relationships that are supportive and give a feeling of encouragement, affirmative and likeness are good for health. Jean Paul Sartre has said that Hell is others and all our relationships are filled with stress. Many times stress caused by family issues leads to numerous health problems. Many diseases like hypertension, coronary heart disease and immune system failure are caused by stress. (Robinson, 1999)Singer and Ryff in the year 2000 have talked about close relationships and its relationship with health. Lonely people tend to suffer with more health ailments as they experience stress. Research has shown that people who have close relationship with friends and family are less likely to die prematurely. (Ryff, 2000) The people who are relationship oriented, affectionate and outgoing have more friends and are more likely to be healthy. (Cohen, 2003)According to a study by Cohen and his colleagues in the year 2003 people who were more affectionate and outgoing did not catch cold virus in comparison to people who were introvert and were less affectionate. Studies have shown that married people live longer in comparison to unmarried people. They are also healthier irrespective of their income, age, sex or race. Coan and his colleagues conducted an experiment on people who were married in a supportive and happy marriage. When the married women were subjected to threat of shocks through electric ankle shocks some were allowed to hold their husbands hand. These womens MRI scans showed that the threat responsive area in their brains was less active in comparison to women who were asked to hold hands of strangers. These results were consistent to the belief that supportive relationships are conductive of good health. It is not only about receiving support from others but giving support to others is equally essential. In a study conducted on 423 couples who were married proved that Married couples showed that those who provided social support had greater longevity. A finish study conducted on ninety six thousand widowed women showed that their risk of death increased to double in only a week after their partners death. So from all this data we know that there is a link between health and close relationship. People who have close relationships exercise more, drink and smoke less and eat better. But why this happens is it that family and friends bolster our confidence and self esteem. Or a supportive network is helping us to overcome stress. More than eighty studies have shown that people who have supportive close relationships enjoy strong immune system and good cardiovascular functioning. In a study conducted by Robin OHeeron and James Pennebaker on surviving spouses of car accident and suicide victims showed that those who confided their grief with friends and relatives had less health problems. But the ones who kept their grief and sadness to themselves had m any health issues on the near future. He even tried to isolate the confessional and confiding side of close relationships as he asked the spouses to relate to the sad events that are on their mind. Many of them who talked about the event stayed tense until they confided the event. Many confided that they were feeling better by talking about it and blocking it was not helping them. References Adams, G. G. (2006). The detrimental effects of a suggestion of sexism in an instruction situation. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology , 602615. Bartholomew, K. . (1991). attachment styles among young adults: A test of a four-category model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology , 226-244. Bowlby, J. (1988). A secure base: Parent-child attachment and healthy human development. New York: Basic Books. Cassidy, J. (2000). Adult romantic attachments: A developmental perspective on individual differences. Review of General Psychology , 111-131. Cohen, S. D. (2003). Sociability and susceptibility to the common cold. Psychological Science , 389395. Crisp, R. J. (2009). Interpersonal attachment predicts identification with groups. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology , 115-122. Davies, P. G. (2012). Consuming images: How television commercialsthat elicit stereotype threat can restrain women academically and professionally. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin , 16151628. Ein-Dor, T. M. (2010). The attachment paradox: How can so many of us (the insecure ones) have no adaptive advantages? . Perspectives on Psychological Science , 123-141. Etcheverry, P. E. (2005). Thinking about commitment: Accessibility of commitment and prediction of relationship persistence, accommodation, and willingness to sacrifice. Personal Relationships , 103-123. Inzlicht, M. M. (2006). Stigma as ego depletion: How being the target of prejudice affects self-control. Psychological Science , 262269. Lanciano, T. C. (2012). attachment and dysfunctional rumination: The mediating role of Emotional Intelligence abilities. Personality and Individual Differences , 753-758. Robinson, M. D. (1999). The role of self-deception in perceptions of past, present, and future happiness. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin , 595606. Ryff, C. D. (2000). Interpersonal flourishing: A positive health agenda for the new millennium. Personality and Social Psychology Review , 3044.

Business and Society for Journal of World Business- myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about theBusiness and Society for Journal of World Business. Answer: In the business world, it is seen that outsourcing is the major problem, mainly when it includes cheap labor that is offered in many developing countries. It is analyzed that there are many businesses that have embarked on this exercise with the motive of earning profits, that enhances the overall satisfaction level of the shareholders and give assurance of the success in the future. There are many individuals who are claiming that it is ethical practice and also others are claiming that the practice is not considered as moral. This argument does not take into consideration the method of outsourcing but consider the ethical issues that are surrounded by the process of outsourcing. Outsourcing of cheap overseas labor has become a corporate process but the practice has raised many questions related whether the practice is immoral or not (Gerbl, McIvor, Loane Humphreys, 2015). In this paper, the analysis will be made by taking into consideration both the positive and negative facets of the practice. It is immoral to use cheap overseas labor by corporations By taking into consideration ethical opinion, there are many advices opposing the use of overseas cheap labor. One of the argument states that the companies make profits from the use of cheap labor and the profits are reserved by the rich class people, while the people belong from middle class lose their purchasing power and also high taxes are paid by them. There are various individuals who notice government's distribution of economic wealth with negative opinions. The corporate practices considered by the organizations are related to contributing to the economic difference will be taken in a negative way by the public. It is analyzed that overseas employees are not able to make any contribution to the security which is socially related and tax rate of any country. According to Kline (2010), the high tax rate achieved from the business profits cannot justified for the overall amount that the government lose just because of the income taxes. Negativity is created in the residents due to the loss of various opportunities related with the jobs. If the cheap overseas labor is used then it disregards the community and the workers who assisted the organization to achieve success in the market (Poutanen Kovalainen, 2017). So, it is evaluated that success of the organization is related to profits and also concerned to develop the community. If cheap overseas labor is taken into consideration than it affects the job opportunities for the individuals that are available and also weaken the economy of the developing nations (Bevan, Brinkley, Cooper Bajorek, 2018). For instance: If working criteria of the individual increases than extra cash is available that can be spent on products, which suggests that extra jobs can be formed to consider the overall de mand of the products in the market. Therefore, by taking into consideration overseas cheap labor by American organizations can affect the economy cycle of the country. Using overseas cheap labor is Moral It is analyzed that those who are stating that use of overseas cheap labor is right, for them it is important to consider that, at the time of manufacturing of goods by using overseas cheap labor it is important to import more products than manufacturing it on a domestic platform. This argument states that product should be in the country where there is cheap labor as this is one of the best strategies that the company should consider so that profits can be enhanced and also the satisfaction level of the stakeholders can be maximized. Advocates of outsourcing cheap labor by the organizations maintain the competitive advantage by focusing on products that can help to enhance the overall profitability. The argument is that organizations have the goal of earning cash by producing goods and selling them to the customers at a low cost (Wuyts, Rindfleisch Citrin, 2015). In this way, if overseas labor is used then there can be a difference in the overall cost. This cost difference that takes place helps the organizations to achieve overall goals and objectives and also the cheap labor that is used can be justified (Oshri, Kotlarsky Willcocks, 2015). For instance: US organizations should give competition in a global economy which states that the organizations are permitted to recruit worldwide. Competitive advantage is important and one of the best strategies that US organizations should adopt is cheap overseas labor. The next argument that is in support of the companies considering cheap labor overseas is due of the enhancing want of corporate social responsibility which states that many organizations are offering service to individuals in developing nations. Use of cheap labor plays a great role in offering job opportunities for the individuals in developing countries (Beam, 2016). It is also seen that with the use of overseas labor supports American organizations to shape the middle class in the developing nations. Outsourcing cheap labor will help the Americans to grow into a country including of consultants and entrepreneurs. Outsourcing overseas labor is related to partnership and not with theft. Corporations who take into consideration the usage of cheap overseas labors acts in the interest of the customers (Lester, 2018). For example: To pay more to the US workers as linked to the foreign labors is not beneficial to the local economy. Workers always want that the earnings should be high. I t is ethical to provide employment to the people who are existing in developing nations rather than individuals existing in First world nation where jobs are availed. So, from the argument, it is analyzed that the use of cheap labor by the companies can give an advantage to the customers and shareholders at the expense of the employees. An Argument is made in which support point is that use of cheap labor is not ethical from the point that outsourcing cheap overseas labor can give more expense to the foreign economies. The argument is elevated to assist the point that using cheap overseas labor is ethical by taking into consideration corporate social responsibility. Therefore, ethical problems arise related to how organizations should consider the cheap labor like inadequate working conditions and poor wages to the employees. References Beam, E. A. (2016). Do job fairs matter? experimental evidence on the impact of job-fair attendance.Journal of Development Economics,120, 32-40. Bevan, S., Brinkley, I., Cooper, C., Bajorek, Z. (2018).21st Century Workforces and Workplaces: The Challenges and Opportunities for Future Work Practices and Labour Markets. Bloomsbury Publishing. Gerbl, M., McIvor, R., Loane, S., Humphreys, P. (2015). A multi-theory approach to understanding the business process outsourcing decision.Journal of World Business,50(3), 505-518. Kline, J. (2010).Ethics for International Business: Decision-Making in a Global Political Economy.New York: Routledge. Lester, M. (2018). The Creation and Disruption of Innovation? Key Developments in Innovation as Concept, Theory, Research and Practice. InInnovation in the Asia Pacific(pp. 271-328). Springer, Singapore. Oshri, I., Kotlarsky, J., Willcocks, L. P. (2015).The Handbook of Global Outsourcing and Offshoring 3rd Edition. Springer. Poutanen, S., Kovalainen, A. (2017). New Economy, Platform Economy and Gender. InGender and Innovation in the New Economy(pp. 47-96). Palgrave Macmillan, New York. Wuyts, S., Rindfleisch, A., Citrin, A. (2015). Outsourcing customer support: The role of provider customer focus.Journal of Operations Management,35, 40-55.

Welfare Essays (2689 words) - , Term Papers

Welfare The United States or The United Welfare States - A Cost Benefit Analysis The role of welfare within our society has always been controversial. This problem emphasizes the need to understand the roles of variable factors when pertaining to the subject of welfare within our society. The proposed analysis will address the phenomenon of welfare assistance and several factors which may contribute to the increase or decrease of welfare assistance to the poor in 4 ways: (1) by defining major concepts and any other concepts about which there is likely to be misunderstanding, (2) by further examining the past history pertaining to the subject of welfare assistance within the United States, (3) by developing the formulation of a hypothesis which will provide for an explanation of welfare, and finally (4) determining whether or not the benefits of welfare assistance outweigh the cost. Ultimately, the purpose of this research analysis is to investigate variable factors that may contribute to the increase or decrease of welfare assistance. This cost benefit analysis i s an attempt to explain the tentative assumptions of others pertaining to the subject of welfare, in order to determine and explain the relationship of welfare to the economic cost and benefits. Cost-Benefit Analysis before welfare assistance can be analyzed there is a need to define the terms that will be used. Policies like welfare assistance are worthwhile only if the benefits to society are greater than the costs. When choosing among a set of policies, the policy with the greatest net benefit (benefit over cost) should be chosen. Hence, this is where the term cost-benefit analysis comes from. Cost-benefit analysis is a technique for determining the optimal level of an economic activity such as welfare. In general, an activity such as welfare assistance should be expanded as long as it leads to greater benefits than costs. In purely economic terms, does the benefit of welfare assistance justify the costs of welfare assistance? (Mishan 13) Why Use Cost-benefit Analysis? Since 1981 , government agencies have been required to perform cost-benefit analyses called Regulatory Impact Analyses (RIA's) for all major regulations within the United States. Many statutes require that cost-benefit analysis be undertaken and the results be reported to Congress (Mishan 2). Cost-benefit analysis can also be a good way to measure how effective a policy such as welfare assistance has been, or to find ways in which a program can be improved. But, regardless of how it is used, the preparation of a cost benefit analysis provides a useful framework for consideration of the possible effects of a proposed policy. Past History of Welfare Assistance: One of the first welfare programs to provide income support to the poor was a federally backed plan called the Aid to Dependent Children (ADC) program. This legislation was introduced with the establishment of the Social Security program during the Great Depression. (Rowley, and Peacock 43) The ADC program which had started nearly sixty years ago is now better known as the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program, which provided a federal entitlement to economic support for single parents with children younger than 18 who fell below a threshold of assets and income (Rowley, and Peacock 44). Federal guidelines allowed for each state to set its own predetermined needs standards for families of different sizes and living locations. Both the federal government and the states supplied funding for the AFDC program (Rowley, and Peacock 50). In 1996 Congress adopted the Temporary Aid to Needy Families (TANF) program by enacting the Personal R esponsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act that ultimately changed the structure of federal financial assistance to the states thereby abolishing the AFDC program. Another social welfare program was the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program. Congress established the Supplemental Security Income program in 1972, with payments beginning in January 1974. It replaced the former Federal-State programs of Old-Age Assistance (OAA), Aid to the Blind (AB), and Aid to the Permanently and Totally Disabled (APTD)(Myles, and Pierson 9). An individual may have qualified for payments on the basis of age, blindness, or disability. Any person aged 65 or older was also eligible. President Richard Nixon enacted the Supplemental Security Income program with the signing of the Supplemental Social

The theories I have learned at university and tried to put into practice whilst on my 2nd year placement The WritePass Journal

The theories I have learned at university and tried to put into practice whilst on my 2nd year placement Introduction The theories I have learned at university and tried to put into practice whilst on my 2nd year placement Introduction This assignment will discuss some of the theories I have learned at university and tried to put into practice whilst on my 2nd year placement. Social theory helps us to understand the ways of the world and how we live in it. It also provides us with different outlooks on why things happen in the way they do, and how society is organised and structured in a certain way. For the purpose of this essay I will use names for people instead of letters as I feel this will make the essay flow better. Any names relating to the service users or placement setting will be fictional. The placement setting was an inner city hostel, providing twenty four hour support for people age between sixteen and thirty. The service user group consisted of ex offenders and people leaving care. According to Giddens (2001), Social theory includes concepts on conflict and class, as well as theories to help make clear the reasons for behaviour and how people develop. Durkheim, Weber and Marx are all founders of social theory and analysed how societies functioned in the attempt to make sense of social problems and behaviours. The most important learning curve for me this year is that Social Work is bursting with theories, laws and guidance with a purpose to make our work more professional for those using the service. However, I found that actually putting everything I have learned into practice proved to be more difficult than I had anticipated. And at times, it seemed almost impossible and meaningless. From my observations whilst on placement at the hostel it became obvious that there are many reasons for not putting these theories into practice. The main reason was resources and constraints due to funding cuts. But I also witnessed sloppiness and lack of anti discriminatory practice from senior members of the hostel staff. I had to question one occasion involving Kevin, (a service user at this hostel) , when I was asked if I would deliver a pre written warning form the manager, to Kevin for using drugs in front of the other service users. I knew that Kevin is not very well thought of in the hostel, because of his attitude; there were times when he has really tried the patients of the staff, including my-self.   But after reading the warning letter, I felt that I had to voice my concerns. In my opinion the letter was discriminating because all the residents who use drugs, did so in front of each other, so why single him out. This resulted in the warning not being given and a feeling of irritation towards me from the cluster manager. I feel that, anti discrimination and anti oppressive practice are some of the main underpinning principles of anyone working in the field of social work. The British Association of Social Workers (BASW), state in their definition of social work, the encouragement of â€Å"social change and the empowerment and liberation of people to enhance well-being†.   People from all social groups can experience abuse or oppression of some form or another, and I feel that the above definition suggests that a role of social work is to help protect vulnerable people against abuse. The expressions â€Å"oppression† and â€Å"discrimination† are sometimes used interchangeably. However, Thompson (1997) describes discrimination as â€Å"prejudicial behaviour acting against the interests of those people who characteristically belong to relatively powerless groups, it is a matter of social formation as well as individual or group behaviour†. Thompson goes on to say that oppression and discrimination involves â€Å"hardship and injustice brought about by the dominance of one group over another; the negative and demeaning exercise of power.† Empowerment and partnership have also appeared to me as problematic areas of work. This is because I have been attempting to link the theory learned at University, which includes, empowerment and partnership amongst others, and put them into practice whilst on my placement. As a result, I personally experienced the problems that have to be overcome in order to work productively with these concepts, such as one problem I encountered when working with Barry, (a service user at the hostel) was the support worker from his previous hostel, and part of the same agency, had contacted me to see how things where progressing, she then disclosed details of our private conversation back to Barry who then turned to me asking why people have been talking about him. In my opinion professional boundaries hade been broken and inter agency working or partnership was not beneficial in this case, especially when Barry told me that he had been out drinking with this previous support worker and that he ha s gone back to her house afterwards. I felt that this is a direct contradiction to the Code of Practice that we are supposed to abide by. Observing others and how they deal with similar difficulties and a fixed consciousness of how I was working on placement by the means of my reflective diary was a very useful way to assess whether I was effectively using the concepts of partnership and empowerment. Theory has taught me that the concept of partnership (a theory discussed in the module, planning care for adults) does not comprised of a one method or technique but a term that has a range of meanings, Partnership is a fundamental part of anti-discriminatory practice, and for a long time social workers have put great emphasis on enabling and empowering people and avoiding dependency. But the need for clarity, whilst on placement made the term, partnership, more meaningless with no real significance at all. The principles of Social Work can be seen in many different ways and what one sees as partnership working, another may not. As a result, there did not seem to be any tangible way of working towards partnership with the service users at the hostel. This made it complicated for me at the start of the placement as observing others using their own interpretation of partnership made me feel very confused as they all worked towards it in different ways, if at all. I consequently, had to find my own way of working to encourage partnership working. I evaluated the route I took with each client by means of the way I worked with them and their feedback, as well as by means of the supervision sessions with my Practice Teacher. Partnership is all about promoting the self esteem and self determination of a service user. This will increase their sense of power and control over their own lives. Working in partnership involves challenging oppression to allow service-users to be in charge of of their environment by understanding and addressing the causes of the problems in a collaboration between client and worker. This will eventually promote inclusion.   Partnership working will create â€Å"active participants rather than passive recipients† (Thompson, 2007). What I found in the hostel, was that service users didn’t really have any say in what activities they did. One of these activities was making Christmas cards and this was understandably of no interest to the young males aged sixteen to thirty, who where resident at this time. I heard one of the service users describe this activity as â€Å"just like being a kid at school†. The hostel staff saw this as attitude issues; however I thought it was fare comment. According to, Marsh (2003), â€Å"Partnership does not imply an equality of power, or an equality of work†. The hostel staff were predictably involved in the use of authority, this is not a barrier to empowerment or working in partnership, provided that this power is not misused, however, telling the service users that â€Å"if they worked for three days making Christmas cards, they would receive a one day gym pass† seemed like coercion.   I feel that, It was not for the staff to use their power to coerce service users into following a particular course of action, but to â€Å"use such power constructively in identifying and working towards agreed goals as part of a process of partnership† (Stepney and Ford 2000).Service users in this situation must feel that their input and choice of activity is not considered. In my opinion service users can make a significant contribution in terms of their experience and knowledge of their situation; we should recognize their problem solving abilities rather than seeing them in terms of the problems they bring. This involves being able to â€Å"use power to empower† and the â€Å"use of power should be the exception rather than the rule† (Thompson, 2007). Involving service-users as much as possible will facilitate social work in becoming a procedure whereby the worker does things with people rather than to them.(Thompson, 2007). Beckett (2006) in his book â€Å"Essential Theory for Social Work Practice† states that one of the ways in which we can make sure that the service-user remains the main focus is to involve them in shaping the service itself. According to Braye (2000), there are times when this can occur. One such time is when the service user is involved in their own service. The personal support plan is a written agreement that is carried out within the first week of residency at the hostel. This involves a member of staff and the service user identifying the individual needs of the particular person. for instance, their need for outside agencies such as counseling support, their needs regarding change of doctors or dentist and their needs for maximizing benefit claims This is very beneficial because every service user that comes into the hostel has specific needs relating to their own particular circumstances. The personal support plan allows the service user to fully contribute in tailoring the support to their specific needs. Braye, goes on to say that another element is a service user’s involvement in group work. Group work theory was one of the main theories I witnessed and used on placement. Pierson and Thomas (2002) state that, â€Å"Group work is a range of activities†¦that can enable individuals and groups to develop problem solving skills to address both their own concerns and those of the wider community.† There are several areas in which group work therapy is used, and which have varying levels of success.   According to Coulshed and Orme (1998) these can consist of, educational and recreational groups, group counselling and self help groups.   They can all have different themes but most will grow in very similar ways.   Interpersonal skills are an important tool when working with groups and some of the main skills that are used within this are effective verbal communication, active listening and willing participation within the group (Coulshed and Orme 1998). The group work sessions I was involved in were mostly informal/social group settings such as cooking, games and quiz nights. What I mean by informal, is that it didnt fit any formal therapeutic group work theory and had no formal structure. Informal group work is mainly for sharing views and knowledge in a social/fun setting of individuals located within the same organisation. The benefits of informal group work are that it is a more relaxed, social atmosphere with no hard fixed meeting time. This can make attendance higher as it is a non threatening social setting. Group work of this kind can help Developing service users knowledge and generic skills, such as communication skills, collaborative skills, critical skills and attitudes towards diversity. Group work can also develop person’s abilities through the â€Å"interplay† of different personalities and increase their desire to socialise (BASW). I found that being able to verbalise issues within the setting of the group helped in producing confidence and allowed self expression in the service users. Actively listening too the group can also encourage the growth of more ideas and promote further discussions from other members present. Active listening is a way of communicating that makes others feel understood and confident to express themselves more honestly. This involves (amongst other things) good eye contact, repeating back what they have said and sitting in an un-oppressive position.   (Cournoyer 2008). Another form of group work is the formal group activity.   When I was on placement at the hostel there were always, four males and two females resident. The same two females had remained, whilst the males have changed. There was a lot of sexual activity at the hostel with the residents constantly changing partners. Kevin, (who I referred to earlier in this essay) is HIV positive and has Hepatitis C. Dale (a resident at the hostel) told us that she had intercourse with Kevin and with all the other male residents and that all the male resident have had intercourse with Ellie, (the other female resident). This information, along with the binge drinking problem with all the residents prompted a sexual health and alcohol awareness day to promote the dangers of STIs and binge drinking to the residents. Konopka (1963) describes group work as a method of social work that is used in order to help people enhance their social awareness through focused group experiences and to cope more successfully with their personal or community problems. This definition shows a pattern within group work of helping people with problems. Brown (1994) provides a modernised and more comprehensive definition of group work He states that â€Å"Group work provides a context in which individuals help each other; it is a method of helping groups as well as helping individuals; and it can enable individuals and groups to influence and change personal, group, organisational and community problems†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  (Brown 1994) During feedback from the ,sexual health awareness presentation, I gave to the service users from two hostels,   it was stated by my practice teacher that my verbal communication skills were very good, and that I was able to generate good ideas, good service user involvement as well as being quite a motivational speaker. Task centred practice was another theory used by the agency that I was placed in; it was useful in range of settings such as counselling, education and self help. The theory of task centred practice was first discovered in the United States by Reid and Shyne (1969). Task centred intervention was brought about through the responses opposed to psychodynamic theories as this method was a long time consuming process that often lead to dependency. Task centred intervention is similar to crisis intervention, as in, it can be seen as planed or predictable. In the early 1990s task centred work was originally used in family and group casework.   (Marsh and Doel 1992) As a concept emerging in the 1960s, task centred practice is comparatively new in comparison to some other social work methods. Previous to the carrying out of task-centred practice, many service users received long term intervention and Social workers focused on feelings rather than action.   Buckle, (1981) in Coulshed Orme (1998) state that: â€Å" some clients received help for years and compulsive care-giving by helpers often resulted in the difficulties of becoming the responsibility and ‘property’ of the worker.†Ã‚  Ã‚   This form of intervention could possibly lead to â€Å"learned-helplessness†. This is another theory and describes what happens when the service user becomes dependant on the social worker and discards the concept of them fending for or helping themselves. M, Payne (1997) refers to research carried out by Seligman (1975). Seligman’s theory of ‘learned helplessness’ was discovered through his experimentation on animals and humans. He discovered that people with low expectations produced little results. Seligman states that, â€Å"their capacity to learn useful behaviour in other situations becomes impaired. People lose motivation, become anxious and depressed and poor at thinking.† One common assumption with the term â€Å"task centred† is that the social worker does the tasks, such as phoning other professionals for the service user, but this is not the case. The focus of task centred practice should be on empowering the service user to do these tasks themselves in a set time scale.   Couldshed and Orme (1998) state that, â€Å" task-centred practice, also known as brief therapy, short-term or contract work has had a significant impact on both social work practice and the organisation of services†. Service user participation is the key to task centred practice, but on the other hand, the service user may be unwilling to participate. This may possibly be due to court orders, where the service user has little choice but to follow the conditions set by the court or they will face prosecution. Under these circumstances, the client may agree to the situation but possibly reluctant to accept or partake in the process  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   (M. Payne 1997). If this was the case, then a task-centred approach may be unsuccessful and another approach such as person centred could be more suitable (Dole Marsh 1992). A service user could also appear unwilling to take part because of their preconceptions of social workers. We would also have to consider the attitude of an individual social worker. If the social worker appears defensive or appears to be unaware of the power imbalance then the service user may also be reluctant to participate. Social workers also need an understanding of their own feelings and underlying prejudices and values before attempting to explore the interpersonal skills involved in building up client worker relationships. Reid (1992) suggests that: â€Å" only acknowledged problems offer necessary degree of partnership.† To conclude this assignment, I have discussed the different theories I learned about in University and practiced on placement. Social work involves changes to procedures, knowledge and legislation. So many failings with cases in the past have provoked changes and many of these are involved with making social workers more capable of justifying their work. This is done consecutively to minimise harm caused to service users, our organisation and ourselves. Social work is a profession categorised by risk, uncertainty and difficulty and as a result, we need theory, awareness and a sound knowledge of our values and ethics to enable us be accountable and proficient in our practice. Theories, values and ethics permit us to assess our practice and to reflect on it, in order to help us be more accountable and be able to justify our actions when helping others.   (Maclean, Harrison 2009) References Beckett, C. (2006) Essential Theory for Social Work Practice. England: Sage Publications Ltd. Brayne, S. and Preston Shoot, M. (1995) Empowering Practice in Social Care. Great Britain: Open University Press. Brown, A. (1994). Group work 3rd Edition. Ashgate Publishing: Great Yarmouth Code of Ethics for Social Work, www.basw.co.uk. Viewed on 22/04/2011 Cournoyer, B (2008) The Social Work Skills Work Book (5th Ed). Belmont: Thomson higher education. Coulshed, V. and Orme, J. (1998). Social Work Practice an Introduction, 3rd Edition, New York: Palgrave. Dignan, J. Marsh, P. (2003) Restorative Justice and Family Group conferences in England: Current State and Future Prospects’, in McLaughlin, E. Fergusson, R. Giddens, A. (2001) Sociology, 4th ed. Polity Press:  Cambridge. Doel, M. and Marsh, P. (1992).   Task-Centred Social Work. Aldershot: Ashgate. Hughes, G. Westmarland, L. (Eds) Restorative Justice: Critical Issues.London: Sage Publications Ltd. Payne, M (2005) Modern Social Work Theory. 3rd Edition Basingstoke: Palgrave Pierson, J. and Thomas, M. (2002). Collins Dictionary of Social Work, 2nd Edition Great Britain: HarperCollins Publishers Limited. Reid and Shyne (1969). The origins of case work, iriss.org.uk. viewed 04/05/2011 Maclean, S and Harrison, R. (2009), Theory Practice A Straightforward Guide For Social work Students. Rugeley: Kirwin Maclean Associates Limited. Thompson, N. (1997).   Anti-Discriminatory Practice, 2nd ed. Basingstoke: Macmillan. Stepney, P. and Ford, D. (2000) Social Work Models, Methods and Theories. England: Russell House Publishing

Evaluating human resource management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

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Film Review Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

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