Jainism and Buddhism

Buddhism and Jainism are the two branches of the Shramana tradition that still exist today. Jainism is largely confined to India, whereas Buddhism has only flourished abroad. However the two traditions share notable similarities A shramana (Sanskrit srama?a , Pali sama?a) is a wandering monk in certain ascetic traditions of ancient India including Jainism, Buddhism, and Ajivika religion (now extinct). Famous srama?a include religious leaders Mahavira and Gautama Buddha. Traditionally, a srama?a is one who renounces the world and leads an ascetic life for the purpose of spiritual development and liberation.Typically srama?as assert that human beings are responsible for their own deeds and reap the fruits of those deeds, for good or ill. Liberation, therefore, may be achieved by anybody irrespective of caste, creed, color or culture (in contrast to certain historical caste-based traditions) providing the necessary effort is made. Jain philosophy Jainism derives its philosophy from the teachings and lives of the twenty-four Tirthankaras (ford-makers or enligtened teachers), of whom Mahavira was the last.Jain Acaryas – Umasvati (Umasvami), Kundakunda, Haribhadra, Yasovijaya Ga?i and others further developed and reorganized Jain philosophy in its present form. The distinguishing features of Jain philosophy are its belief in the independent existence of soul and matter, predominance of karma, the denial of a creative and omnipotent God, belief in an eternal and uncreated universe, a strong emphasis on non-violence, an accent on relativity and multiple facets of truth, and morality and ethics based on liberation of the soul.The Jain philosophy of Anekantavada and Syadvada, which posits that the truth or reality is perceived differently from different points of view, and that no single point of view is the complete truth, have made very important contributions to ancient Indian philosophy, especially in the areas of skepticism and relativity. [8] Buddhist philos ophy Main article: Buddhist philosophy Buddhist philosophy is a system of beliefs based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama, a Nepali prince later known as the Buddha.Buddhism is a non-theistic philosophy, one whose tenets are not especially concerned with the existence or nonexistence of a God or gods and which denies the existence of a creator god. The question of God is largely irrelevant in Theravada Buddhism, though most sects of Mahayana Buddhism, notably Tibetan Buddhism and most of East Asian Buddhism (in the Shurangama Mantra and Great Compassion Mantra) do regularly practice with a number of gods (as Dharmapalas and Wrathful Deities, Four Heavenly Kings, and Five Wisdom Kings) drawn from both the Mahayana Sutras and Buddhist Tantras sometimes combined with local indigenous belief systems.The Buddha criticized all concepts of metaphysical being and non-being. A major distinguishing feature of its philosophy is the rejection (anatman) of a permanent, self-existent soul (a tman). Difference Between Buddhism And Jainism On Karma †¢ Buddhism : Buddhism believes in the universality of Karma, which is a result of one's action. †¢ Jainism : Jainism also believes in the universality of karma and its effect on human beings. But, unlike Buddhism, karma, according to Jainism, is not a mere effect of one's actions, but a real substance that flows into each individual body or jiva.This karmic substance remains with a being until good conduct and self purification eliminates them. On Soul †¢ Buddhism : According to Buddhism, soul is an individuality that does exist in plants and animals, but not in non-living or inanimate things. †¢ Jainism : According to Jainism, soul is present in every animate and inanimate object of the universe including its elements – earth, water, wind, fire and air. On The Status And Evolution of Individual Beings Buddhism : After Nirvana, there is no soul, but the individuality of an individual that passes into nothingness, which is beyond any description and speculation. †¢ Jainism : After Nirvana, the soul continues to remain as an individual soul, but in the highest state of purity and enlightenment. †¢ Survival And Disappearence : Over a period of time, while Buddhism disappeared from the Indian soil, Jainism survived in India, with its teachings intact, mostly untouched by the overwhelming philosophy and practices of Hinduism, at the same time imparting to the later some of its noblest ideas.Besides, a major difference lies in the dominions of both the religions. Though both, Buddhism and Jainism, originated and developed individually in the same geographical area of India, but difference lies in their spread. While Buddhism crossed the frontiers of its motherland and went to other parts of the Indian subcontinent, Central Asia, far eastern countries, and parts of North America and Europe as well, whereas Jainism, on the other hand, remained confined to India, the land of i ts origin.

Sample Literature Review

Title: Implicit side of the Olympic Games: The Past, Present and Future of Olympic Marketing. Summary: This dissertation is dedicated to the analysis of Olympic marketing as the implicit side of Olympic movement; evaluation of past, present and future profiles of Olympic marketing. Research literature review There’s a list of research papers dedicated to commercialization of sports in general. At the same time, there’s apparent deficit of studies, dedicated directly to the problem of Olympic marketing, due to the specificity and complexity of the field. Many of them, besides are out-of-date researches. Different aspects of marketing in Olympics appear described in various sources. Though a problem of Olympic marketing is discussed in a list of books and articles, none of them provides ultimate analysis of the phenomenon. It could be explained by the rapid changes in Olympic marketing itself and probable deficit of research data. To exemplify the thesis, one could mention that many studies related to Olympic marketing appear outdated already before they are published. Most of the papers provide, hence, a pure theoretical analysis of the research field. At the same time there is a certain deficit of quantitative researches. There are practically no research books and articles describing the structure of Olympic marketing, its financial revenues and their distribution, peculiarities of Games’ staging, profiles of major sponsors, etc. Monographs and multi-authors books Brenda Pitts and David Stotlar (Pitts et al, 1996) analyze sports marketing in their comprehensive research â€Å"Fundamentals of Sport Marketing†. The study is dedicated to the overall analysis of commerce in sports, its history and modern tendencies. The authors analyze the reasons of sports and marketing’s rapprochement and assess according contributions of business and sports. The researches also define differences of sports marketing from the other forms of promotion in diverse spheres, define the most specific features of sports marketing. The authors focus on several most important aspects of sports marketing, i. e. : development of marketing strategy in sports; clarifying the needs and goals of sports organization and evaluation the ways how a sponsor could contribute it; implementation of comprehensive marketing plans through sponsorship, licensing, ticketing, advertising, etc. The book provides both theoretical and practical data concerning sports marketing. The authors discuss historical aspects of sports marketing, as well as its presence and future, evaluate the general paradigm of sports marketing. Researchers also introduce the fundamentals of marketing inquiry including the basics of segmentation, targeting, and positioning in sport business, etc. Though the book itself is one of the most thorough and all-round analysis of the problem, the paradigm of Olympic marketing is less examined in the research. As a result, a reader could only learn the fundamentals of sports marketing in general, while Olympic marketing has several significant differences. The research of Mulin et al, 2000, is believed to be a groundbreaking text in the field pf sport marketing and management. The primary asset of the book lies in presenting of a new perspective of sports marketing. The authors didn’t just apply the general theory of marketing to sports; instead, they developed a new study of sports marketing based on their own experience. The research focuses on a special nature of sports marketing in a global perspective and the reasons of commercialization in sports environment (1); definition of consumers’ audience and marketing segmentation (2); licensing and pricing strategies of sports marketing (3); specificity of marketing sponsorship (4), etc. The real life examples, besides, make the study extremely valuable to a critical reader. Mulin et al, 2000, focuses on development and management of all-round marketing strategy in sports that includes advertising and promotion, licensing, branding, broadcasting etc. Unfortunately, the study also defines the fundamentals of sports marketing in general, while the paradigm of Olympic marketing remains completely unexamined. Pelsmacker et al, 2001 examines the field of marketing communication. This comprehensive study covers establishment of marketing relationships between companies and corporate sponsors, development of PR and advertising program, provision of effective marketing management. Though the research doesn’t examine the field of sports marketing, the authors provide a fundamental theoretical framework applicable for the further analysis of Olympic marketing. Brad Wise (Wise, 1997) gives an overview of Olympic marketing in his monograph â€Å"Sports marketing: rules of the game and strategies for success†. The author describes the main tendencies of commercialization in sports and analyzes general principles of sports marketing. Though the book is valuable to general apprehension of marketing in sports, its contribution in understanding of Olympic marketing is insufficient. Shank, 1999, defines future perspectives of marketing in sports, summarized in his recent book â€Å"Sports marketing: a strategic perspective†. The author defines positive and negative impacts of marketing relationships in sports and discusses major tendencies of sports and commerce co-existence. Shank, 1999, also focuses on advertising, promotion and sponsorship in a global sports. The primary accent, however, is made rather on commercialization of sports in general, while the marketing profile of Olympic Games remains underexamined. McDonald, 1999 analyzes the recent case studies of sports marketing, also including the most peculiar specimens of Olympic marketing. The author focuses on 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City in the chapter â€Å"Lake City 2002 Winter Olympic Games – the prevention of ambush marketing†. Though the contribution of the author is sufficient, he didn’t analyze the implicit aspects of Olympic marketing providing, instead, the overview of its most explicit manifestations. Shilbury, 1998 devoted his research to the economic aspects of sports marketing, the Olympic marketing as well lacks its comprehensive analysis. Pemberton, 1997 analyzes fundamentals of sports marketing on his own experience. The study incorporates the aspects of establishment and maintenance of cooperation between sports and sponsoring companies and their reciprocal revenues. Though the author provides easy-to-understand, step-by-step explanation of sports as a multibillion business, he focuses on the American sports events. Olympic marketing remains out of the field of author’s researches as well. There’s also a list of work dedicated directly to the Olympic Movement that uncover the fundamentals of Olympic marketing. R. Mandell, 1976, critically analyzes the first Olympic Games of modernity in his book â€Å"The First Modern Olympics†. The author uncovers marketing aspects of the Games, discusses private and corporate sponsorship, sources of Games’ revenues, philatelic program, etc. This information is necessary to understand the making of modern Olympic marketing in historical perspective. F. Landry (Landry et al, 1996) summarizes the major achievements of the IOC (also including its financial achievements) in her study dedicated to the centenarian anniversary of the Olympic Games. The study serves a comprehensive guide through the marketing history of the IOC, its major decisions and innovations. This research complicates the theoretical premises of sports marketing presented in the previous studies. J. Lucas, 1980, analyzed Olympic Games and related phenomena, also including marketing, in his research â€Å"The Modern Olympic Games†. Though the book contains valuable information concerning the problem, the analysis is much outdated. Nevertheless, suggested data is important for the analysis of Olympic marketing in historical perspective. D. Wallechinsky, 1984 analyzes Olympic marketing in his â€Å"The Complete Book of the Olympics†. The primary drawback of the research is still out-of-date information. H. Preuss, 2000 provides a comprehensive analysis of Olympic Games’ economics. A longitudinal research covering almost thirty years of Olympic history since 1972 to 2000, remains obviously the most reliable and all-round analysis of Olympic marketing. The author analyzes all characteristics pertaining to Olympic marketing, defines peculiarities of marketing in Olympic sphere, suggests comprehensive statistical data. At the same time, development of marketing relationships in pre-1972 era is underexamined in the study. Research articles There’s a number of articles examining the problem of sports marketing in general, and Olympic marketing in particular. Marshall et al, 1992 develops the idea of corporate sponsorship in sports. The author analyzes implicit relationships between the organizers and sponsors, as well as their profits, evaluates the assets of corporate sponsorship in sports. The article, however, doesn’t deal with the Olympic marketing directly, that reduces its value for the present research. Sandler et al, 1989, describes Olympic marketing in his article â€Å"Olympic sponsorship vs. â€Å"ambush marketing†: who gets the gold? †. This comprehensive analysis, however, is also much out-of-dated by now. Stotlar, 1993 develops the idea of marketing relationships in Winter Olympics. The author focuses on the idea of corporate sponsorship of the Games that is important for making overall conclusions regarding the role of marketing in staging and holding the Games. Several articles are dedicated to the particular aspects of Olympic marketing. Busby, 1997, analyzes media sponsorship of the sports. The author focuses in broadcasting policies, rights fees and coverage of the sports events as well as the role of broadcasting in sports’ development. More broad definition of Olympic marketing in the aspect of licensing is provided in the Crabb and Ji article â€Å"The Olympic Movement: the Games and Olympic IPR†. The research suggests all-round information concerning the organizing and staging of the Games, main challenges of host cities, and importance of Intellectual Property to the Olympic Movement. The research of T. Atobelli (Atobelli, 1997) is dedicated to the analysis of Olympic marketing program in Sydney. Though the article was written two years prior to the Games, the author has managed to define the main strategies of Sydney’s marketing policy in the aspect of financing and peculiarities of its implementation. As a result, he introduced the â€Å"nitty-gritty† of Olympic marketing to the readers Batcha, 1998, undertook a critical approach to Olympic marketing. The author developed the idea of multiple malversations in sports marketing. Batcha, 1998, believes, that sponsors have turned to be the real competitors of the Olympic events instead of sportsmen. The author states that growing commercialization of the Games has made a serious influence of equity and impartiality of the Olympic Movement. Greek researcher Papandropoulos (Papandropoulos, 2004), instead, believes in a necessity of Olympic marketing in a global perspective. The author provides necessary statistical data concerning staging of 2004 Games in Athens and also defines most important historical landmarks of Olympic marketing and their influence on Games’ development. The author describes the roots of Olympism and sources of its financial supports changing throughout the times. Papandropoulos, 2004 analyzes Olympic sponsorship as a serious source of Games’ funding. This information is vital for the general analysis of Athens 2004 marketing plan. On-line reports and researches Internet reports and documents also provide important information about Olympic marketing. One of the most comprehensive studies is a commemorative report of the International Olympic Committee dedicated to the history and presence of Olympic movement (The Olympic Movement, 1997). The research grants a reader with all-round evaluation of Olympic marketing, its development and future prospects. The paper also provides a quantitative and qualitative analysis of the Olympic marketing that, unfortunately, is now outdated in many aspects. Some principles of Olympic marketing are also described in the Olympic Charter – the official Constitution of the International Olympic Committee. Much information concerning fundamentals of Olympic marketing is accessible on the official site of the International Olympic Committee. The site provides an excurse into the past of Olympic marketing, mentions key dates of its making as well as most important innovations. Forasmuch as the site is being permanently updated, it grants most recent and reliable information concerning the revenues, distributions and expenditures of Olympic Movement. The site also proposes a number of quantitative data concerning financial revenues of the Committee. Presented charts offer comparative analysis of marketing revenues’ growth. Unfortunately, most information is accessible only in a tabloid form that is enough to apprehend the overall idea of Olympic marketing; at the same time, the data is insufficient for a comprehensive analytical research. The international Olympic Committee issues a bulletin dedicated to Olympic Marketing. â€Å"Marketing matters† bulletin is accessible on the official site of the Olympic Committee and could be regarded as a most complete and reliable source concerning past, present, and future of Olympic marketing. The bulletin, besides, provides the reports of IOC’s Marketing Commission and Organizing Committees of the Games’ functioning. The most recent qualitative-quantitative data covering marketing plans of 2004 Games in Athens and 2008 Games in Beijing is also available in the bulletin.

A Hard Days Night

Music is one of the Great Britain's most marvelous contributions to the world, despite the tendency of musical movements over the last four decades to spawn cultures that appear to morally damage the social norms, especially on the youth. Much of the phenomenon can be attributed to the advent and development of television as a medium of communication, for television has vastly catapulted the career of popular musicians to a whole new level. In a similar magnitude, cinema has also projected negative implications on how common people treat celebrities. Together with television, cinema has dehumanized celebrities in such a way that society and culture, particularly in the west, have eventually nurtured television viewers with mindless conformity to the media as well as a fully developed system of glorifying celebrities and their radical behavior. The tremors of broadcast media and cinema have produced the concept of superficiality and prejudice as a basis for popularity. It is quite evident on how movie stars, musicians, athletes, and commercial models are treated in restaurants and other public places. The motion picture A Hard Day's Night, for instance, exemplifies and tackles the backlash of the demeaning nature of popularity as felt by celebrities in a personal level since they themselves feel the luxury of a normal life gradually departing from them. The context of the film is inclined on the idea that the visual elements provided by cinema and television create a following of a particular artist or group of artists based on appearance and not on talent. In analysis of the growing problem, Kevin Donnelly's British Film Music and Musicals emphasizes the phenomenon of how A Hard Day's Night became the antidote to the venom brought about by cinema and television's visuals in such a way that the focus is more on The Beatles' music as the storyteller instead of the plot or the cast themselves (Donnelly, 2007). Contrary to other films involving music artists such as the legendary Elvis Presley who has been the guinea pig of film makers who did nothing but to exploit his popularity in film. Donnelly writes that the film virtually connects viewers to the band through the musical score which goes hand in hand with the situation and emotions that the film's scenes raise (2007). The songs suggest how the Beatles scorn about the fringe benefits of popularity while dealing with the punishing nature of their duties such as recording and touring. The virtual contact also happens as the motion picture shares the band's brutal torments of having a celebrity life while sacrificing their personal goals and interests. The visual technologies of cinema and film indeed contribute to the actuality that such mediums of communication make deities out of celebrities. In this sense, A Hard Day's Night represents and reflects the the star-making machinery around The Beatles in such a way that it documents of The Beatles' misadventures in the United States during the peak of their career. The band's grasp with commercial success were represented through encounters of pursuit by law enforcers and a horde of fans as well as their appearances on press conferences, endeavors with their agents, and hotel life (Balio, 1987). Therefore, Such circumstances are quite similar to the cases of modern celebrities being sighted and chased on public places or being arrested for driving fast and under the influence of psychoactive substances. A Hard Day's Night, meanwhile celebrates the band's stardom in a different manner, by highlighting the band's versatility as musicians since part of the film captures the band's latest compositions at the time, being played during practice sessions, live performances, and informal set-ups (Balio, 1987). The film's distinct approach to the topic subjects the tendency of visuals such as film and television as career boosters in such a way that the showcase of the band's talent through live performances are shown, unlike traditional musician oriented films which make use of the artist's recorded material. In a corresponding approach, A Hard Day's Night together with the film and television industry serve as a mockery of the star-making machinery around The Beatles as well as other celebrities and popular personalities, primarily because music is an art form which stimulates appreciation through hearing. As such, the dedicated medium of communication for expressing the art of music and recording artists is supposed to be the radio, not television, film, and definitely not print. The motion picture also insults the The Beatles as artists by humorously tackling the problem of pop fame, which the band members experience, through a medium that caused such a plague in the first place (Glynn, 2005). In addition, the polluting nature of television and cinema has once again made its presence felt as the visuals have proven to be useful aids in exploiting artists and promoting the developed system of idolizing celebrities, which is in this case happens to be The Beatles. Furthermore, the visuals provided by television and film entombs true musical talent by taking away the recording artists' musical credibility (Frith, 2002). Simon Frith (2002) however implies that rock is to be understood as a television product. The key elements and features of television and film, for Frith, have configured the manner of how the audience perceive music and musicians. Simon Frith writes that television has become largely responsible in the field of star-making for the reason that television with its emphasis on close-ups of the performer and musical virtuosity, particular types of staging and spectacle has added flavor to musicians as celebrated public figures (2002). Frith also adds that the emergeance of music networks such as Music Television together with several music related television programs such as Top of the Pops have also aided artists in terms of promotion which affects components of stardom such as record sales and chart ratings (Frith, 2002). The advent of technology has indeed influenced the the norms and standards for treatment of celebrities. Visuals, in an unimaginable, have added spice to musicians as attractions to the public eye, with it, the innovation of promotion for recording artists have revolutionized. Regardless if the changes brought about by the television and motion picture industry to the public status of career musicians have positive or negative undertones, the bottom-line still goes down to a particular point, change. A change that has been felt almost half a century after it has long been innovated and practiced.

Mexico Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Mexico - Essay Example Mixed race and trading zone makes Mexico a suitable cuisine location (Camp 30). Mexican food is in style all about the globe. From tacos to nachos and enchiladas, Mexican impacts in cuisine can be attained at anyplace (Johnston 24). Those inhabitants of Mexico pleasure themselves in applying natural; from the ground, indigenous ingredients that age groups before them matured using. The ingredients that individuals could effortlessly attain were the key staples in their food. Mexican foodstuff cuisine can be backdated to around 9000 years (Johnston 24). The Mayans’ staples included an assortment of different kinds of sweet potatoes and squash, insects and indigenous animals, and any kinds of vegetables or fruits that were natural and harvestable (Johnston 24). Historically, Romans, French, Moors and Phoenicians are known to have influenced cuisine in the world (Humbert 24). These chronological nations pioneered new cooking methods and recipes in globe cuisine. The cuisine of numerous nations is influenced by the extras initiated by other heritages. This is particularly accurate with Spanish cookery. The impacts of other heritages on the Spanish cuisine are traceable a long way back and as extra influences were integrated, Spain created a cuisine that is exclusively its uniqueness (Humbert 24). The Phoenicians cruise the Mediterranean Sea and introduced their sauces to Spain. Greeks brought the Spanish cuisine the present of olive oil and olives via the Romans who are credited with initiation of the Spanish to these significant ingredients. Additional cultures that have influenced the Spanish cookery are the Carthaginians and the Jews. Whereas they left their spot on the cuisine, the Moors are most strappingly impacted by Spain’s cu isine (Humbert 24). Mexican food positioned itself along with the Mediterranean diet and the French

Mormonism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Mormonism - Essay Example Mormonism Later Day Saint Movement (LDS) or simply Mormonism is a Christian religious group founded by Joseph Smith. Smith claimed himself to be the God’s advocate through whom the Church would be re-established, because according to Smith, all other Churches had gone astray. Smith also claimed that he had several visions from God and that was the cause why he proposed to undertake this new mission. The cult, which claims to be the true church of Jesus Christ, has its own distinctive beliefs and texts different from those of Catholicism and Protestantism. The movement emerged during 1820s in America and gained popularity over the next few decades though later got split into new rather small denominations. According to the LDS statistical report (as cited in BBC Religion), the group has ‘13.5 million members world-wide’. Mormons’ belief about God is very much different from those of other Christian denominations. According to their doctrine, God is an exalte d man who has a physical body like any other human being. Even the human beings have the potential to attain this stature in afterlife. As described in the book of Gruss and Thuet What Every Mormon (And Non-mormon) Should Know, Mormon’s God consists of three distinct beings- collectively called Godhead- who are united in purpose, love and will (281-282). Among these three beings, God the Father is the all knowing Supreme Being named Elohim who created the whole world, for he has the absolute wisdom. The second being of the Godhead is Jesus Christ, who according to the Mormons, showed the perfect way of human life; and he is the first-born spirit child and biological child of the Father, and by whom Father performed the creation of the world (Gruss & Thuet 283). The creation is a process that is very similar to the act of a craftsman, for he did not create anything out of vacuum but perfectly organized already existing materials. Again, the Father himself is an exalted human w ho might have lived in another planet once, and who gained ultimate wisdom by closely adhering to the rules of his God. Jehovah, the God in the Old Testament referred to Jesus who later taught his disciples to live tighter for the common goal. Jesus died, got buried, and resurrected. Mormons’ Christ owns a physical body which neither limits his holiness nor prevents him from being God (BBC Religions). The third being that is Holy Spirit also is a unique being like Elohim and Jesus Christ. The only difference is that he is spirit and has no body, but at the same time resembles man. Unlike other Christian doctrines, mormons’ Holy Spirit is not omnipresent. Although He can be present only at one place at a time, his power is so intense that spreads across the whole universe in no time. Holy Ghost is the being that inspires people to obey God the Father and the Son. All Godly experiences, ‘love, comfort, and affection’ are being transmitted through the Holy Gh ost (BBC Religions). With regard to spiritual life, Mormons give higher emphasis to sustainable growth in knowledge and understanding, which is only possible through ongoing scripture study and personal preparation. Like any other forms of belief, LDS also maintains temples and priesthood which play central roles in their ceremonies. The ceremonies, normally termed as ‘ordinances and covenants’ can be performed only in temples by a proper authority- priest. Among such ceremonies, endowment and eternal marriage are important. During endowment, one promises that one would lead a righteous life by closely following the God’s Commandments. Marriage is not a simple one-time event; instead it lasts for ever once the couples enter eternal marriage, which is often termed as a sealing. Through this covenant, a family, including the children born and yet to be born, gets the blessings to be united for ever. LDS temples are the holy houses where Jesus Christ is expected to come and dwell. Mormons worship Jesus as the Son of God and Savior. Like almost all other Christian denominations,

Native American Policy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Native American Policy - Research Paper Example However, the intentions of the policy toward the Indians had shifted, and the outcomes of the policies helped suppress the Native Americans, in addition to their culture (Anderson & Benson, 2006).Though the policy had been created with good intentions, it had also had some reverse effects which helped in eliminating the Native Americans. Additionally, the policies did nothing to qualm or fight the Indian wars. It also had various negative effects on the Native Americans where it broke many reservations as well as lost much land to the whites. The Native American policy also killed the Native American culture and Indians left their tribes to attain the American citizenship. Although various benefits were created to save and benefit the Native Americans, the policy did nothing in helping the Indians as well as Native Americans and as a result, the Indians as well as their culture died out. This policy received a lot of criticisms from politicians and the Easterners, which brought a cha nge in the policy. Although the policy was less bloody, they did not help in alleviating the Native Americans problems, and many times they worsened the problems. To add to this, attitude and the policy were volatile and had the same effects. The integration of the Native American to the American society was created (Lyden, 1999). Hastedt (2004) claims that, the Native Americans are indigenous individuals living in North Africa and United States and other parts of Alaska. They are composed of a number of states, ethnic groups and states, many of them who survived the political communities. They are also called the American Indians, most of whom lived as hunters and gatherers in the society, as well as... It makes a conclusion about the government interference, the Supreme Court rejected the efforts by local governments and states to regulate the Indian activities, and came up with the First Amendment in regard to tribal government, where it claimed that, any tribe is free to make its choices on matters such as family life, economic organization and environmental quality without any interference from the government. Therefore, the Native American policy was going against the Amendment by forcing the Indians to move out of their land in order to expand their boundaries This paper talks about the Native American policy which was to force the Indians out of their land, force them to accept the treaties, which resulted to fighting. On several occasions, the American troops would lash out against the peaceful Indians, and as result the aggression was out of control. However, the government policy towards the Native Americans was aggressive and did not tolerate their presence in the West. Americans and tribal leaders were able to compromise with the land arrangements and living situations. This law conflicts with The Supreme Court and the First Amendment because, it claims that any tribe is free to make its choices on matters such as family life, economic organization, and environmental quality without any interference from the government. Therefore, the Native Americans had a right to own land in the U.S boundaries.

Financial Accounting Ethics Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Financial Accounting Ethics Case Study - Essay Example Despite the use of various defensive tactics such as poison put, white knight, lockup, crown jewel, shark repellent and golden parachute, it has not hampered the predominance of mergers and acquisitions. However, the process of mergers and acquisitions has been engulfed with various challenges that often threaten its validity (DePamphilis, 2007). Accountants and management act incongruously to report a better value of a company’s assets, liabilities and working capital so as to gain an advantage during the merging and acquisition process. This paper shall comprehensively analyze a case study involving the Finance Manager at Home and Care Products, Lisa Michaels, and an accountant of Prestige Fragrance Company, Jeffrey Anderson, with an aim of establishing the ethical issues inherent in the case and advise Lisa on the best strategies to use in resolving and overcoming the unethicality. In the process of mergers and acquisition, accountants are supposed to use two methods; the purchase method and the pooling of interests. Under each method, assets, equity and working capital are differently valued but their valuation is standard and should be easily provable through provision of supporting documents. Various ethical issues are inherent in the case study. Firstly, the accountants are violating the principles violated by FASB and are creating unnecessary sections within the financial records. Moreover, they are inflating sales and earnings, a clear violation of the conservatism concept, so that the parent company perceives the subsidiary as financially healthy, which is far from the reality (Bushman & Smith, 2001). Additionally, Jeffrey Anderson accumulated several assets in the â€Å"Other Assets† section in the balance sheet while he could not appropriately account for the assets. The validity and nature of the assets

Norton Introduction to Literature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Norton Introduction to Literature - Essay Example Birds are symbols for freedom and entrapment. Marriage and womanhood are cages for women. Also, just by being a woman, women can hardly flex their wings and do as they please. But birds can also be freed, like what Louise feels after her husband died. Furthermore, the narrator also illuminates the oppression of women inside the institution of marriage. Louise only feels genuine freedom as a widow, because her mind screams: â€Å"Free! Body and soul free!† (Chopin). This statement emphasizes that marriage has imprisoned her body and soul. The narrator then shares what marriage means for nineteenth-century women: a life without liberties and without liberties, there is no happiness. 2. Choose one of the main characters of this story. What can we learn about this character from the details given in the story? Does the character change from the beginning to end of the story? Is this a positive or negative character--and how do you know this from the story? Give details. The main c haracter of the story is Mrs. Mallard. Based on the details of the story, Mrs. Mallard does not own her life. She does not even have a first name in the beginning of the story, since she is introduced as Mrs. Mallard. Only in the end do readers learn that her first name is Louise. This mission of detail regarding one’s identity underscores that as a married woman, she is not an independent individual. She is only seen as someone who is married, someone under Brent Mallard. The character also changes from beginning to end. At first, Mrs. Mallard is the typical woman who must be treated with gentleness: â€Å"Knowing that Mrs. Mallard was afflicted with a heart trouble, great care was taken to break to her as gently as possible the news of her husband's death† (Chopin). It seems that she is a fragile person, which is a perception provide to women in early times. Later on, however, inside her room, she realizes the opportunities that await her, because she is already a wi dow. Louise receives an epiphany of her future life: â€Å"She could see in the open square before her house the tops of trees that were all aquiver with the new spring life.† Spring stands for a beautiful life, a life with no will imposed upon her. She transforms into an empowered woman with complete control of her whole life. For me, Louise is a positive character, because she is only like every other human being, someone who wants to be free after being controlled for a long time. She feels happiness over her freedom per se, and not because she wants her husband to die. In her mind, she drinks the â€Å"elixir of life,† because she has not tasted that in her marriage. It is also understandable then for her to die when she sees her husband. Death is her only key to the elixir of life she just enjoyed. She knows that if she goes back to her married life, she will forever feel empty, for she will never be free in her marriage. 3. What role does the setting play in this story? What can you say about how it furthers the plot or the effect on the reader? What are the details that allow you to "see" one of the scenes in this story? The setting is important because it stands for the setting of every woman trapped in a patriarchal marriage. The setting furthers the plot by ensuring that readers feel how it is to be imprisoned in

Business Ethics Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Business Ethics Assignment - Essay Example The amount of fast food advertising the children are exposed to everyday affects their diet to a great extent. This issue is very pressing as recently the world has witnessed the effects of fast food consumption on their health. In order to calculate the effects of fast-food on the health of people, 3301 black and white adults were interviewed. They were asked to give information about their diets, physical bodily activity and other life style factors. The results showed that those who had fast-food more than twice a week were more likely to gain an extra 10 pounds and has two times greater increase in insulin resistance. (Garner, 2005) The amount of youngsters in the United States who are obese, have type 2 diabetes, and are at the risk of obesity is pressing. (McGinnis et al., 2006) Overweight and obese adults suffer from type 2 diabetes and this is usually linked to other illnesses such as heart disease, stroke and high blood pressure. (Diabetes in children increasing with fast food lifestyle, 2002) A new study by University of California Los Angeles researchers found that advanced heart failure patients with diabetes who are treated with insulin have a death rate four times higher than when treated with oral medications. (Gardner, 2005) In 1960's the number of obese children was approximately 5 percent and in 2002 it increased to 16 percent. This means that the number has tripled in the past forty years. The statistics show how serious a matter this is and why this should be a nationwide concern. 9 million children from the United States are obese and what is worse is that another 15 percent of the children are at risk. (McGinnis et al., 2006) Another very shocking statistic is $100 billion is spent on health-care costs every year. (Gardner, 2005) According to Schlosser, among toddlers in the United States, 21 percent which makes up roughly one-fifth of all the American toddlers, are eating French-fries every day. (Tablac, 2003) The present diet of the children is extremely high in calories, fat, and sugar and is not healthy at the same time. (McGinnis et al., 2006) Fast food is often called unsafe food because of richness in salt and sugar. (Thimphu, 2007) The effects of this unhealthy diet also include diseases later in life including heart failures, diabetes, cancer and osteoporosis. It is now the responsibility of parents, health officials, governments and businesses to realize the magnitude of this problem. They should do something about it so that the children will have a safe healthy future. The diet of these children should change. They should have more intakes of vitamins, fruits, vegetables and whole-grain products. (McGinnis et al., 2006) According to Dr. Julie Gerberding, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the number one health problem in the United States is not SARS. It is obesity that is becoming the number one health problem. (Ruskin, 2003) The Role of MarketingNow the question is how does this work How is marketing of fast food so persuasive that it changes the way people eat. These people include the growing population of both the developed and the developing countries. The marketing of fast food includes its four P's: Price, Promotion, Product, and Placement. Mediums like magazines, television,

Economics Definition Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Economics Definition - Essay Example The essay "Economics Definition" discusses the definition of economics. Adam Smith defined Economics as the science of wealth. Economists define wealth as one that has â€Å"Value in use† and â€Å"Value in exchange†. Economics is the study of how wants are satisfied and decisions made when faced with limited resources. Modern economics pretty much continues along Smith’s line of analysis: ‘a nation and the people do well when the economy does well, and when the economy is in crisis or doesn't do well, the nation suffers and so do the people as they don't always get the goods and services they need.’ Microeconomics is defined at the level of individual choices. This branch of economics is mainly concerned with the decisions made by individual consumers, households, and firms and how these decisions interact with each other to form the prices of goods and services and the factors of production. This is basically a bottom up approach where looking at t he smaller picture individual's relationship to the economy remains the focus area. Macroeconomics is defined at the level of aggregate results in which we study the national income, employment, interest rates, goods and services produced, total income earned, exchange rates, prices etc. In this study, the national economy is studied and compared with global economics. Macroeconomics can be used to analyze how best to influence policy decisions and goals like economic growth, price stability, full employment and the attainment of a sustainable balance of payments.

LL.M. Transnational Commercial law- Aspects of Insurance Essay

LL.M. Transnational Commercial law- Aspects of Insurance - Essay Example He said; Lord Mustill recently reviewed the history of good faith and the need to ensure full disclosure in the case of Pan Atlantic Insurance Co v Pine Top Insurance Co4, where he pointed out that the formulation of insurance policy is largely dependent upon information furnished before the execution of the contract, therefore the inequality of information may be addressed only by full disclosure of all relevant information. In Australia, Section 21 of the Insurance Contracts Act of 1984 (Cth) clearly lays out the scope of duty of a party that is purchasing insurance to disclose all the information that may be relevant to an insurer. This would include all information that is necessary for the insurer to make an objective assessment of the situation in order to decide whether or not it is prepared to accept the risk that is involved. In the recent case of McCabe v Royal and Sun Alliance Life Assurance Australia Ltd5 1, Mrs McCabe applied for insurance, but her condition was diagnosed only after she had sent in her preliminary application. But although Ms McCabe was hospitalized subsequently, she did not submit her doctor’s report to the insurance Company not disclose details of her illness and hospitalization. In this case, the Court held that the insurance Company was entitled to avoid the policy because Mrs McCabe had not fully disclosed all the relevant information about her health which was v ital to the insurer in making a determination about insuring her life. While a person seeking insurance is entitled to expect that an insurance Company will conduct its own independent analysis in making an assessment about the risk, the person seeking insurance also has a duty to provide all relevant information and a failure to do so would provide grounds for avoidance of the policy. The nature of non disclosure is also

Sample Answer the Curse Essay Example for Free

Sample Answer the Curse Essay 1. Write on a character that show responsibility in her or his actions Based on the Novel â€Å"The Curse† by Lee Sue Ann, the character that shows responsibility in her actions is Azreen Saleh. Azreen is not only a responsible sister and daughter but also a responsible student and friend . Firstly, Azreen as a responsible sister comes back immediately when she hears of her sister’s death although at that time she is about to sit for an examination that is important for her. She postpones her examination in order of giving her sister her last respect. Secondly, as a daughter she shows her responsibility firstly, when she spends the whole night repairing her mother’s favourite rattan basket that was broken by the heavy durians that she and Madhuri has brought in. Subsequently, with Madhuri’s help she makes a new rattan basket that looks like the one that she and Madhuri have broken. In addition to that, Azreen accepts the offer to further her studies in London for the sake of upbringing her family social status and thus could then save a lot of money to get a better treatment for her mother that is paralyzed by the bull escape incidents that she . Thirdly, as a friend and a student, Azreen shows her responsibility when she accepts to join the school hockey team as a substitution to Hock Seng that is injured. She does that even though she knows that she will be the only girl in the team and this will tarnish her image as a girl. In fact she plays very well and almost scores a goal. In addition to that, Azreen shows that she is a responsible friend, when she brings a full basket of fresh vegetables and tomatoes to The Old Lady of the forest to replace the one that she tramples earlier when she comes to The Old Lady’s house for the first time. In conclusion, throughout the story, Azreen shows that she is a very responsible towards her actions. In fact, I would like to have her as a friend as a friend as such is hard to come by. 2. Which character do you like the most? The novel I have studied is ‘The Curse’ by Lee Su Ann. The novel is about the main character, Azreen, who returns from England after she finds out about her sister’s death. Upon her return, she is surrounded by many secrets. She discovers the circumstances of Madhuri’s death later in the story. At the end of the story she finds out the truth and leaves for London an orphan but more resilient and wise. The character I like most is Azreen Salleh. She is a 20-year-old student who is studying in a university college in London on an exchange programme. She is short, bespectacled, rather bookish and outspoken. I like Azreen because she is outspoken and she is not afraid to spoke her mind. She is vocal and says her opinions although sometimes she says the wrong things at the wrong time. She also hates her father’s treatment of her foster parents and Madhuri’s burial ceremony that is conducted without her presence. In handling the village gossip, Pn Normala, Azreen tells her off that the rain has started even before the Old Lady comes into town. The second quality she has is she is courageous. As a child, she plays hockey and football with the boys. In the bull’s incident, she is brave enough to accept the blame for the bull’s escape instead of blaming someone else. Azreen also shows her courage by taking up the dare to knock on the Old Lady’s door when none wants to do it. In another instance, Azreen confronts her father about Madhuri’s murder despite her young age. Azreen also has strength of character. When she returns to her village, she hears a lot of gossip surrounding her sister’s death such as as Madhuri having white blood and her death signals a curse to the villagers. Azreen feels upset but she never retaliates. Sheshows patience and strengh because she knows that whatever she does, she cannot stop the villagers from gossiping about her family. In another instance, Azreen is told that her sister is murdered. She should have been very upset about this news but she takes it calmly and does not become hysterical. Later, when she finds out that her father is the culprit who kills Madhuri, she feels no anger but regrets that it has to happen. She understands her father’s anger and shame because Madhuri has been having an illicit affair with Ashraf although she is already married to Hj Ghani. Azreen also shows a lot of strength because after all that has happened to her family, she stays composed and strong and returns to England for her examinations. In conclusion, there are many qualities in Azreen that I admire and she is the character that I like most in the story. 3. Write on a character whom I think is exemplary a) In the Curse by Lee Sue Ann, the character whom I think is exemplary is The Old Lady of the forest. Throughout the novel, she shows strength of character and wisdom. When she first moves to the village as a newlywed, she is popular among the villagers and she enjoys a blissful marital life with her husband. Everything changes as her husband who becomes an alcoholic starts to abuse her and finally she retaliates and kills him. From then on, the villagers treat her like an outcast. She is forced to move out of the village and makes an abandoned house her home. She lives alone for years until she befriends Azreen and becomes her mentor and will console her whenever she has a fight with her parents. When Asraf approaches The Old Lady for help, she is hesitant about going back to the village. Yet she agrees and doing so, she puts her life at risk. When she is trapped in the burning house, she tells Azreen to save herself and she perishes in the fire. Even at death’s door, she reminds Azreen about the importance of forgiveness and tells her to heed all the advice she has given her. The Old Lady is therefore an exemplary character as she is strong, wise and honourable. b) Based on the novel The Curse by Lee Sue Ann, the character that I consider exemplary is Azreen because she is courageous and brave. She shows resilience and she always fight for what she believes in. Firstly, Azreen who does not believe the villagers tales about The Old Lady is being brave by accepting her friend’s challenge to firstly knocking on the door of The Old lady and then meet her in person. . Subsequently, she befriends The Old Lady and makes her, her precious confidante and counselor. In addition, Azreen is courageous by confronting Puan Normala’s mob outside Mohd Asraf’s house when Nek once again has fallen ill and died in order to stop her from entering Nek’s house. Although she is outnumbered, she dares to face Puan Normala’s horde to protect Nek’s house from them. Moreover, she confronts a group of men led by Asraf who goes to the Old lady’s house to seek revenge after Nek dies as they believe the Old lady has poisoned Nek. It is a dog-eat-dog world out there and we must be brave and courageous to overcome our daily obstacles and stand for our own rights. We should not be intimidated by our fear and we must be like Azreen in order to survive the world. The second exemplary qualities of Azreen is that she portrays resilience throughout the story and she constantly fights for what she believes in. This can be seen when Azreen does not give up and is determine and resilience to seek the truth of Madhuri’s death even though others do not want to tell her the truth. She asks Asraf and The Old Lady about Madhuri’s death and slowly gather evidences and finally she knows the truth about Madhuri’s killing. In her village, a woman should be conservative and well mannered but Azreen is a contrast to that and thus she is hated but she ignores the villagers’ perception of her, as she believes that women have their own rights. This can be seen as she befriends Asraf and joins the boys’ hockey team and similarly makes The Old Lady her best friend. In this cruel world, we must stand for our own right and fight for what we believe in. We must follow Azreen’s resilience to make this world a better place. 4. Write on a character that I admire / like The novel The Curse by Lee Su Ann is very interesting. The character I like the most is Azreen. Azreen is from Langkawi. She studies in London. Her father is Salleh Ghani. Her sister is Madhuri. Madhuri is not Azreen real sister. I like Azreen because she is responsible. She takes care of her sick mother. She bathes and feeds her mother. When Old Lady vegetable garden is trampled, she repairs it. Azreen is determined. She always studies hard. She also wants to find Madhuri’s murderer. She does not give up. Finally, she finds out the truth. Azreen is also brave and courageous. She is Old Lady’s friend. She is not afraid of the stories. The villagers say she is a witch. Azreen does not care. It is not true. When Old Lady’s house is in fire, Azreen wants to rescue her. She is really brave. I like Azreen because she is a loyal. She defends Mohamad Asraf. She says she opens the gate of the farm. Azreen is a strong girl. I wish I have a friend like her. When her mother’s basket is damaged, she takes the blame. Azreen wants to protect the people she loves. Azreen is responsible, determined, brave and loyal. Those are the reasons why I like her. She is a good role model.

Impacts of Placing Children in Foster Care

Impacts of Placing Children in Foster Care PLACING CHILDREN IN FOSTER CARE All the children have a right to a better existence. It is the responsibility of the state to make sure that all the youngsters grow up in the best environment. Parents and guardians should always act as role models to their kids. Therefore, it is necessary to take away children from their homes and place them in the care of the state to guard them from exploitation and neglect from their parents. The new environment where they are placed would help influence their positive development. Potential ethical issues Protection of confidence: when implementing the new strategy many times the confidence among the two parties might be violated. There may be situations in which the information raised in a secret conversation with the child can be breached. In the circumstances of child abuse an individual may take the responsibility of sharing the information with other people in order to guard the child (Barber, 2004). One might decide to share the issue with another expert like the boss, and the child protection guide. Breaching the kids’ privacy might be a violation of the law, however, when the child makes a revelation of the abuse or the problems they are facing then one should be worried that the child is in danger of harm. The violation of the child’s privacy can be very essential at this point since the kid might be suffering from the offenses done by their parents or guiders. Therefore, the only way to make certain that the problem is addressed and the child is taken good care off is through reporting of the matter. Through the raising of the concern the youngster’s privacy would have been violated but for the benefits of the child. Conflict of interest: a conflict of attention entails the real mistreatments or the possibility of abuse of the faith that people have on other or experts. It is a state of affairs in which other individual considerations have the possibility to negotiate on the judgment and impartiality. The conflict of interest occurs when a person, for instance the parent or guardian believes that the expert ruling is probable to be cooperation (Bloom, 2010). The liable person might only think that the judgment made concerning the abuse of the child is a biased one. He or she might always want a consideration to be made and negotiations to be included in the procedures where they can be allowed to take back the child. They believe that the involved parties could easily be compromised into making a decision that best suits them. Unnecessary family division: when a home has many reported cases of mistreatments and child abuse the policy allows for separation. The child will be taken away from the family and they might be taken by a foster care service. They might be taken, it until when the offenders have been proven to be free of the charges they are facing (Pine, 2007). The taking away of the affected youngster is of great importance in enhancing the individuals’ growth. In addition, taking away the children from the residence helps to decrease the extent that the kid is uncovered to such violence. By this means, the technique will assist in reducing hostility in the young person. Representation for clients with reduced cognitive ability: during the implementation of the strategy measures should be kept in place to ensure that full representation is applied. The entire individual involved in the case should be signified in the judgment. Those customers who cannot speak for themselves should be symbolized by relative or legal experts (Zlotnick, 2013). There should be an expert who must be in a position to prove their client’s capability and if possible they should present some legal documents. When the children are very young to provide the details of the incident, then they require an expert or another person to represent them. Parents or guiders might also need a representative if they are mentally challenged or when they are not in the right state to represent them. With the proper representation, then the correct judgment that would be beneficial to the child can be achieved. Impacts Reduced juvenile offenses: the implementation of the policy will place a major role in decreasing youth crimes. By taking out the children from violent homes to the institutions where they can be brought up properly helps in enhancing their positive growth. The new environment where there are not incidences of mistreatments and all other forms of abuse make them less aggressive and hospitable. Therefore, when the youngsters are well brought up they would learn to stay away from criminal activities (Wilgocki, 2002). This development most likely to be reflected in the future when they become adults. Since the youngsters will be well brought up, then there can be no cases of crimes in the society in the prospect. Good child growth: the children, who are brought up in homes with domestic aggression and where that parents abuse alcohol or other drugs have a bad growth. They tend to have a negative development where they adopt their parents or guardian behaviors. However, when the youngsters are removed from those houses they associate with other children and populaces. Through the process of interaction they learn and acquire good behaviors which positively impact of their developments. Negative consequence One, the unexceptional cost to the taxpayers: when the society starts to remove the youngsters from their houses and placing the complete load of raising them to the government. Only because an individual in the residence had drug charge and a domestic violence crime, the government would rapidly run out of areas to house the children. The state would be left with no other option rather than to raise the price of taxpayers in order to sustain the children and to house them. Two, putting the kids in an overcrowded situation that might happen from the execution of this rule would do more damage to the children than good. Not all adolescents that are placed in advanced care are there owing to awful parenting. Some of these children end up in that place since their parents could no longer manage their actions (Pine, 2007). All parents or guardians who misplace their kids might not have similar amounts of crime. With this the children from improved environment run the danger of being skilled via a similar social theory actions and violence from the other children. Because people and their performances, they take are resulted from the information increased from watching others and life experiences. Three, the complete disentanglement of the family unit: the children that are placed in these circumstances would mature with a reduced sense of family belongings and worth. The reduced sense of family is because more kids could be taken away under this rule than they could have wished to be located as districts of the state. Many could have wanted to be located with those children from their regions whose relatives would have loved and taken better care. According to Bloom (2010), the Texas further care change plan, notes that when youngsters attain 18 years they are denied government assistance. In addition, they also lack the support schemes to rely on. This frequently pushes them into the criminal justice scheme, since they do not get sufficient education while in the organization to be able to purpose separately. The majority of them have mental and emotional issues yet they are freed into the world to find themselves. They have difficult moments not submitting to poverty, homelessness, criminalization, unwanted pregnancies and illnesses. The impacts of persons engaged in these circumstances are big. Criminals might have to get time out of job to finish all the agendas that could be needed. The kids of otherwise caring parents removed from them and propelled to odd settings getting mental challenges along the way from being shifted to diverse areas (Barber, 2004). They could also get a negative sense of personality value. The cou rt schemes would be very packed than they previously are sourcing extra taxpayer’s cash to be used on more workers. Therefore, considering the above scenarios, this rule should be deemed as ethical. Because there are many dangers of revolving a partially bad state into a much inferior circumstance for the child concerned. The department misinterpreted the theory since it botched to take into thought that some youngsters learn bad behavior and violence other sources beside their parents. References Barber, James G., and Paul H. Delfabbro. (2004) . Children in foster care. Routledge Bloom, Debra. (2010). Foster care. Green haven Press Pine, Jeune, and Suzanne McCall. (2007) Understanding looked after children an introduction to psychology for foster care. Jessica Kingsley Wilgocki, Jennifer, and Marcia Kahn Wright. (2002). Maybe days: a book for children in foster care. Magination Press Zlotnick, Cheryl. (2013). Children living in transition helping homeless and foster care children and families. Columbia University Press

Key Factors Affecting Customer Retention Marketing Essay

Key Factors Affecting Customer Retention Marketing Essay The objectives of this thesis are to examine the influence of the interaction between overall satisfaction with service quality, product quality, pricing, and switching barriers on customer retention at Apollo Education and Training Organization. The study started with an assumption which all above elements have direct impacts on customer retention and crucial to retain students in foreign owned education firms. It can be seen from the results that there is a positive relationship between product quality, service quality, price, customer satisfaction and switching barriers with customer retention. The sample size of this quantitative research included 104 current adult students at Apollo Hanoi. Building on the quantitative aspects questionnaire was designed to examine the customer retention, service quality, product quality, price, customer satisfaction and switching barriers and to generalize the finding to the large population. There are also limitations as well as future research implications at the end of this research study. Furthermore, the descriptive analysis is used to analyze the extent to which the factors affect customer retention. Customer retention is an important element of a foreign owned education firm in todays increasingly competitive environment. Management must identify and improve upon factors that can limit customer defection. These include switching barriers and customer satisfaction with service quality, product quality, pricing. Clearly, there are compelling arguments for management to carefully consider the factors that might increase customer retention rates. A lot of studies have emphasized the significance of customer retention in the industry like banking or hospitalism such as Dawkins and Reichheld, 1990; Marple and Zimmerman, 1999; Page et al., 1996; Fisher, 2001. However, there has been little effort to investigate factors that might lead to customer retention in education firm. Most of the studies have focused on the impact of individual constructs, without attempting to link them in a model to further explore or explain retention. If retention criteria are not well managed, customers might still leave their suppliers, no matter how hard bankers try to retain them. Keywords: Customer retention, Service Quality, Product Quality, Customer Satisfaction, Switching Barrier. Chapter 1: Overview of the research Background of Research Despite of the existing difficulties of the economy, in 2011 and 2012, education remains one of the few positive growth areas. According to experts; it is due to the stable development of education. Peoples learning needs are increasing; their level of investment in learning is increasing too. This investment is not interrupted by fear, worried about funding; on the contrary, students can save many other expenses to spend on their studies or their children. In the field of education, it can be said that in 2012 a lot of new English language centers are opened. The main reason is that English is more and more important, becoming obligatory recruitment requirements of many enterprises. According to the survey, using English proficiently helps graduate students quickly get a job and receive two times higher wages compared to non-English speaking candidate. Therefore, parents will not hesitate to invest in their children English learning at the prestigious center from an early age. More blue and white collared workers will enroll with the purpose of increasing salary, income. Apollo Vietnam, which was founded in 1994, is the first fully foreign owned English language training company in Vietnam and an affiliate of  International House   a well established and trusted name in English teaching. With the slogan Where the best become better, Apollo continues to strive to maintain the high standard English teaching organization in Vietnam. Apollo has made and continues to make a lot of contributions to Vietnamese society such as scholarships for students, fun learn English and teachers training for local schools and several well-known and well-loved television shows, for example, The Golden Bell, The Road to Olympia and Connect Youths. Apollo has seven moder centers based in Ho Chi Minh, Ha Noi, Da Nang, Hai Phong and offers a variety of educational programs and services, such as Public courses ( including English for Young Learners, Teens, Adults, IELTS TOEFL iBT), Corporate English, School Partnership Program and Overseas Study Services. Apollos has a lot of achievements in education and training, recognized by the Vietnamese Government and the United Kingdom: First foreign organization that has received two campaign medals for the Cause of Education from the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training In  2008, Apollos Chairman of the Board of Directors, Mr. Khalid Muhmood, was also awarded the MBE (Member of the British Empire) by Queen Elizabeth II for providing international-standard English training in Vietnam. Apollo is collaborating with leading endorsers, such as Cambridge University, DOET,Nokia, Fahasa, Nestle, Prudential and many more. Apollo is also the English content provider for popular game shows in Vietnam like Peak to Olympia, Golden Bell, Hot VTeen, and Doremi. Apollo has different courses designed for public students at Apollo at different ages, especially for adult. Please have look at Appendix 6 for more details. Problem Statement and Research Questions In recent years, a lot of English language centers with huge capital and investment are opened putting Apollo in the fiercer competition with strong existing competitors like British Council, Language Link, ILA, ACET, RMIT,Clever Learn, Oxford English UK,à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ as well as new entrants such as Alphabest, AMA,etc. As a result, fewer new customers are being pursued by an increasing number of service providers. Under those circumstances, a large share of a firms resources must be devoted to the present customer base in order to make them satisfied and retain them. One significance of customer retention is its close relationship to the companys continued survival, and to strong future growth. Hence, for a company, to maintain a stable profit level when competition is fierce, a defensive strategy which strives to retain existing customers is more important than an aggressive one, which expands the size of the overall market by inducing potential customers (Fornell, 1992). Apollo currently has a good student retention rate of young learner segment, about 80%, whereas for adult segment in recent years, its only around 50% (Figure 2). As it can be seen from Figure 1, Apollo had from 640 to 700 adult student turns from 2009 until present and one forth of companys public revenue comes from those adult students which means that each month a lot of revenue shouldnt have lost if more careful measurements and priorities are drawn to adult segment. As a service company, no one likes the fact that 50% of adult students leave after enrolling one course at Apollo. Therefore, Apollo should try to find out the reasons why they leave and solutions to retain more current adult students. Figure 1: Apollos Average Number of Adult Students from 2009 to 2012 (source: internal document) Figure 2: Apollo Adult Studentss Retention Rate from 2009 to 2012 (source: internal document) There is a large number of literature about customer loyalty, customer satisfaction but not many studies are concentrated on the specific topic of customer retention. Moreover, there are many different characters in the context of English training service by foreign company compared to the regular service. Part of my job relates to retaining existing adult students at Apollo. Gaining better understanding of how to retain adult students at Apollo will not only help me to work more efficiently but also make small contribution to companys development. The research questions that are discussed in this thesis are as below: What are the main determinants and influencers of customer retention at Apollo Hanoi? How can these factors and determinants be developed and evaluated at Apollo Hanoi? Hence, the primary purpose of this study is to investigate the strategies at Apollo Hanoi to increase customer retention. After reading the related literature, as discussed above, it was found out that it would be more appropriate to answer these questions by designing a model to determine customer retention. Thesis Objectives This study explores the impacts that improvements in switching barriers and overall customer satisfaction by improving product or English course quality, service quality, price could have on customer retention at Apollo Hanoi, as it is a key indicator of customer retention, which in turn affects profit. On one hand, this thesis would be an opening to the further researches according to the related area, and on the other hand, this study may have some limitations. There are other factors influencing customer retention, apart from factors suggested in this thesis such as, the demographic characteristics of customers, their life cycles, and their usage pattern of English courses, that would be studied in future researches. The general objective of the research was to examine the extent to which key indicators affecting customer retention are having an impact on Apollo Hanoi and identify steps that Apollo Hanoi should take, if proven necessary. The research is more specifically aimed to: Find out the reasons why left students ended the relationship with Apollo Discover what factors are most important to encourage students study the next level at Apollo according to customers perspectives Indicate the level of satisfaction of adult students with such factors at Apollo Hanoi Find out whether switching barriers has strong effect on students decision to stay Present recommendations to Apollo Hanoi on how to enhance its customer retention Thesis scope and limitations Scope This research was limited to Apollo Hanoi due to the limited reach of the researcher who will be conducting his research and equaled desire for control over the research process apart from these limitations. Limitations Time The researcher faced time constraints in the process of collecting data. As a result, many aspects of the research had to be accommodative of other activities going on at Apollo Hanoi, which included a survey the company had issued forcing the issuing of the questionnaire for this research to be delayed to avoid over questioning of adult students. Finance The researcher was constrained financially. This primarily attributed to the fact that the research was primarily self-sponsored. As a result, certain value adding aspects of the research could not be administered effectively. Data Collection Apollo management was not in a position to disclose all the information requested due to lack of availability of the information as requested and the inability of the company to disclose all documents as they are. The researcher also experienced problems with adult students, as many were reluctant to fill in the survey and answer the questions in interviews. Thesis Structure My thesis will be divided into six chapters Introduction Literature Review Methodology Empirical Findings Recommendations and conclusions In the introduction chapter, the background information such as brief information of foreign education in general and English training in particular in Vietnam, objectives of my research, hypotheses will be presented. In literature review chapter, the related theories will be introduced. Methodology chapter will explain the research techniques and methods. Empirical Findings, data analysis, recommendations and conclusions will show the actual and gathered data and results of this research. Conceptual framework Product Quality Overall Customer Satisfaction Price Customer retention Service Quality Switching barriers CHAPTER 2: Literature Review Customer retention Customer retention plays a very important role in organizations economic portfolio. It is the act of keeping customers resulting from service quality and customer satisfaction (Ross 1995). Companies should be interested in retaining customers, though, for the following reasons (Reichheld 1996): Getting new customers can cost five times more than the cost involved in satisfying and retaining current customers. It needs a lot of effort to induce satisfied customers to switch from their current suppliers to others. The average company loses ten percent of its customers per year. A five percent decrease in the customer defection rate can increase profits by 25 percent to 85 percent, depending on the industry. The customer profit rate tends to increase over the life of the retained customer. According to Werner and Kunar 2000, retention may lead to increased profit over time if there is a forced ongoing relationship or an inertia driven relationship; if costs of maintenance decrease over time at a faster rate than revenues. It is further argued that focus on customer loyalty can provide general commercial advantages due to the following reasons: Customers cost less to retain than to acquire. A loyal customer will commit more to its chosen supplier. About half the new customers come from referrals from existing customers/ clients The concept of customer retention comes from the concept of customer orientation or customer focused marketing, which calls for organizing the company towards the satisfaction of the customer needs. Ideally this requires that the offering should focus on the customer and his needs and/or expectations. Weinstein Johnson (1999) recommended that at least 75% of an organizations marketing budget should be spent on customer retention strategies and strengthening these relationships. Besides this realization, there is a general lack of focus on customers; profitability is still king (Ross 1995). Most firms focus a significant amount of resources to attract and acquire new customers, instead of keeping the existing ones. It is generally thought that once a customer is acquired, keeping the customer is simple through superior products and services (Payne 2006, 2). Ross (1995) continued to claim that a focus on cash flow and short-term profits is not something wrong, but long-term profit and market share both require a base of satisfied customers which are retained by a focus on satisfaction with product quality, service quality, pricing and creating high switching barriers. We notice that customer retention is a concept that requires management to focus on customers by analyzing the indicators that reflect their satisfaction with services. Key factors affecting customer retention Retention depends on how it is measured and presented, but even more on the expectations and targets set for the activity. Therefore, the need for having a model which determines the customer retention influencers so as to evaluate them is essential for such a firm to be successful in the competitive markets . As mentioned before, a model will be developed based on the previous researches for evaluating different factors which influence customer retention and this model will be applied for Apollo Hanoi. Earlier studies of factors affecting customer retention usually concentrate on customer satisfaction and the switching barriers (e.g., Dick Basu, 1994; Gerpott, Rams, Schindler, 2001; Lee Cunningham, 2001). It is studied that customers experiencing a high level of satisfaction are likely to remain with their existing providers and maintain their relationship with the firm. However, according to some research, customer satisfaction, while positively influencing customer retention, is not always a sufficient condition, and, in some cases, fails to produce the expected effects. Hence, these researchers suggest that it is necessary to analyze other potentially influential factors. It is in this context that the concept of the switching barrier was proposed (Jones, Mothersbaugh, Betty, 2002) . Furthermore, it has been demonstrated that the switching barrier plays the role of an adjustment variable in the interrelationship between customer satisfaction and customer retention. In other words, when the level of customer satisfaction is identical, the level of customer retention can change depending on the magnitude of the switching barrier. Hence, many studies have been done on the subject of customer retention and loyalty. They developed models so as to determine different factors influencing customer loyalty and retention. The main model that was developed in these studies is a result of an empirical causal model is as below. It will also be used in this research: Customer Retention Overall Customer Satisfaction Switching Barriers Figure 1: Determinants of customer retention, model by Kim, et. al., 2003 Each factor contains some variables like switching barriers which include switching cost, interpersonal relationship, attractiveness of alternatives, service recovery The education firms must maximize customer satisfaction and the switching barrier in order to enhance customer retention. In particular, they must focus on service quality, product quality, pricing policy and offer customer-oriented services to improve customer satisfaction. At the same time, efforts to raise the switching barrier must be built for a long-term relationship. Customer satisfaction Customer satisfaction roots from a comparison between customers expectations and experiences. It means positive reaction to a service experience. If the customers perceived experience matches the expectations, customers are assumed to be satisfied. If the preceding expectations were higher than the gain of the service, the customers are considered to be disappointed and or dissatisfied. (Ylikoski 2000, 109). Stock (2005, 59) argued that customer satisfaction is an important driver of organizational performance and a key component of competitive strategies and sustainable advantage .Therefore, in market driven economy, measuring customer satisfaction is very important and customer satisfaction is essensial to the firms survival, growth and success (Guo et al., 2004, 141). According to the marketing concept, customer needs are essentially satisfied by integrated marketing, with the intention to satisfy customers while earning profit; the basic idea is that satisfied customers will be more likely to repurchase, leading to increased sales and market share for the company (Innis and La Londe, 1994, 2). Hence, to achieve long-term business success, it is vital to keep customers happy (Stank et al., 1997, 2). Customer satisfaction has been considered as the main element for customer retention in a lot of researches, and has consequently moved to the forefront of relational marketing approaches (Rust and Zahorik 1993). According to Anderson and Sullivan (1993), the more satisfied customers are, the higer is their retention. On the other hand, there are studies and publications where the relationship between satisfaction and retention has been noted not to be so straightforward (Hennig-Thurau and Klee 1997). In some industries, customer satisfaction scores tend to correlate with retention whereas in other industries, there is little or no correlation (Lowenstein 1995, 11-12). Kotler (2003, 73) stated that firms should measure satisfaction frequently, because customer satisfaction is the key to customer retetion. The highly satisfied customer stays loyal longer, buys more from the firm, talks favorably, pays less attention to competing brands, is less sensitive to price, offers ideas to the company, and costs less to serve than new customers, because transactions are routine. Customers will defect if they are very dissatisfied, dissatisfied, or even indifferent. Hence, firms have to frequently survey their customers level of satisfaction and target to create very satisfied customers, because they are most likely to stay loyal to the firm. According to Bolton (1998), the level of satisfaction explains a significant portion of explained difference in the duration of service provider -customer relationship, comparable to the effect of price. Besides, Bolton stated that it was a common misconception that organizations which focus on satisfaction are failing to manage customer retention. Furthermore, managers and researchers might have underestimated the importance between customer satisfaction and retention due to the complexity of the relationship between these factors. In a research by Ranaweera and Prabhu (2003), it was argued that while satisfaction may be an important driver for retention, it only does not ensure service loyalty; trust, switching barriers, and emotional response such as inertia and indifference might also affect retention. In their research, Ranaweera and Prabhu adopted a holistic approach to examine the combined effects of satisfaction, trust, and switching barriers in a continuous purchasing setting. The findings denoted that customer satisfaction and trust have strong and positive effects on customer retention, although the effects of trust on retention are weaker than that of satisfaction. The results also proved that switching barriers have a significant effect on customer retention. According to the research, it is proved that satisfaction is the main driver of customer retention buy if trust is absent, satisfaction will have less impact on retention. The correlation between satisfaction and customer retention is not usually as simple and straightforward as stated before. Reichheld et al. (2000) argued that a concept called the satisfaction trap is represented: while it may seem nonrational that increasing customer satisfaction will push retention and therefore profits, the facts are opposite as 60 percent and 80 percent of customers who defect say they were satisfied or very satisfied with their former supplier. According to Storbacka et al. (1994), customer satisfaction is only one dimension in increasing relationship strength; strong relationships can be dependent or perceived of contextual bonds that function as exit barriers. It is vital to understand that contextual barriers can generate latent dissatisfaction which emerges as the importance of the contextual bonds reduces. The article ends arguing that the relationships are remarkably different between different individual consumers. Some may be very committed to the relati onship and for them the perceived satisfaction with the relationship is very important. Others may find the relationship unimportant, and for those customers, the satisfaction component is so much significant. Extensive evidence suggests the positive influence of customer satisfaction on loyalty (Bolton, 1998; Fornell et al., 1996; Musa, 2004). In fact, many researchers pointed out that in order to improve business performance; firms should measure and manage customer satisfaction and its importance has led marketing scholars to recommend firms to improve their customers satisfaction judgments as satisfaction is a key to customer loyalty and retention (Fornell et al.). Customer satisfaction with a companys products or services is often viewed as the key to a companys success and long-term competitiveness. Product quality A prominent reason why customers do not retain with company is that their products are not fulfilling its functions properly. When products fail to perform their functions completely and properly, then products are useless for customers, when customers are not satisfied with products and do not use it, they will reduce its retention and relationship with company (Buzzell and Gale 1987). Product quality plays a vital role in customer retention and has positive relationship with customer retention. Customers compare the perceived performance of a product or service with some performance standard. Customers are satisfied when the perceived performance is greater than the standard, while dissatisfaction occurs when there is lack of standard for performance falls. Product quality is the strategic benefits of quality in contributing to market share and return on investment (Anderson and Zeithaml 1984). Searching for quality is credibly the most important consumer trend of the 1980s (Rabin 1983) as customers are now demanding higher quality in products than ever before (Leonard and Sasser 1982). A company could use a number of strategies to retain its customers. Of great importance, product quality for customer retention to such strategies is the wider concepts of customer service, customer retention, and relationship marketing. Companies can build loyalty and retention through using of number of techniques, including database marketing, customized products in limited editions, redeemable against a variety of goods or service, issuing loyalty cards, preferential discounts, free gifts, special promotions, newsletters, of magazines, members clubs, or it has been argued that customer retention is linked to employee loyalty, since employees are the ones that build up long-term relationship with customers. Service quality Service quality is a critical issue in the service industry (Stafford, Stafford and Wells, 1998) and of particular importance for English training providers who characteristically offer English courses which are homogeneous in nature. Moreover, service quality is both directly and indirectly related to loyalty through satisfaction (Bloemer, De Ruyter and Peters, 1998). Therefore, those companies which deliver quality of services better than their competitors would surely have greater possibilities of success. In order to understand the level of service quality of an education firm, a measurement should be established. However, quantifying service quality is not simple and too subjective. Nowadays, education firms provide the same types of English courses, but they do not provide the same quality of services. Besides, customers today are more aware of alternatives and their expectations of service have increased. Service quality can, hence, be used as a strategic tool to build a distinctive advantage over competitors. Although quality cannot be improved unless it is measured, it can be defined from several perspectives duh as the ability to satisfy the needs and expectations of customers (Bergman and Klefsjo (1990), or the overall features and characteristics of a product or service that bears on its ability to satisfy given needs. A reason for customers to switch is that companies fail to provide the better and effective customer service to them. These services include pre-sale service and post- sale service (Lewis Mitchell, 1990). If customers are not satisfied with customer service of the company, it will force them to change the supplier. Service quality is very important for the retention of the customers and have positive relationship as if firms provide service according to the customer requirement than it will also retain the customer as well as lowering manufacturing costs and improving productivity. Service quality is consumers judgment about the overall excellence or superiority of products (Zeithaml 1988). The design and implementation of service delivery processes plays a very important role in the overall competitiveness of modern organizations. Roth and Jackson (1995) provided clear evidence that process capability and execution are major drivers of performance due to their impacts on customer s atisfaction and service quality in education firm. Bearden and Teel (1983) found a positive relationship existing between service quality and customer satisfaction. The positive relationship between service quality and customer satisfaction creates true customers, increase efficiency, market shares, and profits, heavy sales volume, higher revenue, and reduces cost by economies of scales, and retain customer.(Anderson and Sullivan 1993) Satisfied customer do not often switch their service providers and therefore, the cost of retaining existing customers is significantly lower than attracting new ones. These customers my also spread their satisfaction by positive word of mouth which influences non-existent customers desire to engage with the organization and work as free promotional agents (Gronroos 2007, Zeithmal and Bitner, 2000) The positive effects by practising service quality models are a competitive differentiation that favors the enterprise, chances of potential growth, better employee morale, customer loyalty and retention, customer satisfaction, economic growth and profits, employee motivation and vision, favorable advertising, greater productivity and minimization of loss for the customers. The evidence that customer loyalty makes an organization more profitable makes it imperative that complaints and other unfavorable behavioral intentions should be handled effectively and timely to ensure the stability of these relationships. It is important for organizations to also acknowledge that customers may also switch because of the attraction of competitors that are providing better service, more personable service or higher quality. In this case, customers are not switching because of unsatisfactory service. Managers of service firms should know that some customers would still switch services even when they are satisfied with a former provider (Keaveney, 1995). Price Price is another factor for customers to be retained or not to retain with companies. Due to competition, companies are playing with prices of products and services. Clients always required products on most cheap price. Previous researches show that there is positive relationship between price and customer retention and the stability would increase the potential for customer retention. Company should lower customers price sensitivity, reduce the costs of failed marketing and of new customer creation, reduce operating costs due to customer number increases, improve the effectiveness of advertising, and enhance business reputation (Fornell, 1992). Customers often switch mainly due to some pricing issues, for example high price perceived, unfair or deceptive pricing practices (Peng and Wang, 2006). Therefore, so as to increase customer satisfaction, it is essential for service firms to actively manage their customers price perceptions, for example carrying out attractive pricing, offering reasonable prices mix, lower prices without decreasing quality, etc. Price might be one of the most important determinants of customer decisions (Srivastava and Lurie, 2001). Managers could make use of price matching to stimulate repeat purchase behavior (reducing price defection), because price matching may indicate a commitment to protect customers , the objective of it is to keep customers happy so that they would come back and buy again. (Reichheld and Sasser, 1990) suggest that repeated existing customers focus less on price savings than new customers do. Understanding long-term price matching effects on customers is important so as to determine whether price matching has a lasting impact on customer behavior that is evaluating the effectiveness of these policies in stimulating customer retention, in addition to customer acquisition (Kukar-Kinney, 2006). Ol

Solomon Essay -- essays research papers

The biblical account of Solomon’s reign contains criticisms; these criticisms illustrate the date of the narrative. Solomon was looked upon as a ruler of peace and welfare. He inherited his throne at a young age from King David. The land he inherited in 970 BC, Israel, ran all along the Mediterranean in the west, up to the Euphrates River in the north, and down all the way to the desert in the south and east.(George Konig, 68) Solomon did not expand his territory any further; rather he built alliances with surrounding countries and developed trade. The traditional powers of the ancient world, the Egyptians and the Hittites, and the empires yet to appear, Assyria and Babylon, were not aggressive during either David’s or Solomon’s rule.(George Konig, 68) David had expanded Israel’s sphere of influence by war; Solomon was a diplomat, who held what his father had gained. During Solomon’s reign, Israel’s wealth and power diminished. Solomonâ€⠄¢s broad-mindedness weakened Israel’s wealth and power. (Anderson, 241) Solomon wrote thousands of proverbs and songs and he is commonly known for his wisdom. His proverbs and songs were what made him known as man of peace and kindness. He however, soon did not stay true to his own writing, his life became promiscuous and materialistic. "Every part of the book bears the mark of foreign influences ... The close connection between the first part of the Thirty Sayings with Egyptian Wisdom ... is only a special instance."(J.C. Rylaarsdam, 444) The gift Solomon requests is the wisdom to govern well. Yahweh is so pleased that he gives Solomon more than he has asked for: he will receive unparalleled wisdom (v. 12) and, with it, wealth and fame (v. 13). The story of Solomon’s dream has been expanded editorially by the insertion of certain materials lacking in the parallel version of the event in 2 Chron. 1:3-13, which seems to have escaped Deuteronomistic editing. Thus, 1 Kings 3:6 has been elaborated to connect Solomon’s succession to David’s throne with the dynastic promise in 2 Samuel 7; 1 Kings 3:14 has been added to qualify Yahweh’s promise; and v. 15 has been altered to shift the place of sacrifice from Gibeon to Jerusalem. (1988) In Judgment of Solomon the account of the divine gift of wisdom is followed by an example of its practical application. The sagacity with which Solomon arbitra... ...ve much to live on and their ruler was wrapped up in his own life and in making himself happy. It was a time when the monarchy was being weakened by the monarch. Solomon was criticized for not being like his father, a great military King. Work Cited A.S. Herbert. Ruth. Black & Rowley Editors. Peake’s Commentary on the Bible. Routledge Co. Ltd. 1962. B.W. Anderson. Understanding the Old Testament. Fourth Edition. (Upper Saddle River, NJ.)1986. Konig, G. Solomon (King): About Bible Prophecy. 2001-2005. Solomon. 1993-2003 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Kings (books of Bible). 1993-2003 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. The Reign of King Solomon. 2005. http://www.medialdea.net/historyguy80538/kingsolreign.htm