Harrison Bergeron, Kurt Vonnegut Essay

This paper seeks to defend the proposition that that there is a need for individual differences for humanity despite society’s expressed desire to attain equality. The communist and socialist ideologies may have theorized the what is an ideal society, one that is classless or egalitarian but there are simply unacceptable effects if there is all aspects of individualism is excluded. The need for individual differences could be best seen in the short story of ‘Harrison Bergeron’ by Vonneguts, Jr. where the author revealed that a society created to equalize humanity does not always turn out to be the best for the people. Vonnegut did effectively utilized different means to convey his message in the short story. Most of the power of the means is the use of irony and symbolism. Irony has a distinct was of telling people that things could not just be contradicted because it will bring out the most absurd in human understanding. His use of symbolism also complemented his articulate presentation of the roles played by the different characters which the showed the powers and limitations in failing to address what was obvious. He was able to deliver the message the equality is the same as freedom since in the story there was indeed a resemblance of equality, which was made very clear at very first part of the story bur really the irony is that they are not free. Since the short story declares and portrays the equality of people, there was the need to control the tendency of some of the people who were borne with natural abilities and this has the effect of making these people as prisoners to the government. Harrison Bergeron was indeed the main character of the story. Thus as a result of his having an exceptional intelligence and beauty in addition to his good height and strength and beauty he would have to suffer some reduction to bring society to equality. This was therefore done by letting him to carry huge handicaps. The handicaps imposed consisted of having to suffer distracting noises which essentially put him into an individual who will lack focus in what he desired to do. In addition the was also given excess weight of about three hundred pounds, which was enough to almost make immobile as way of restraining his use of intelligence for the purpose of preventing the declared policy that everybody is equal. Because of his many natural gifts as illustrated earlier, it was still necessary to give him eyeglasses to cause him to headaches. Having headache would deprive of the faculties of thinking which could otherwise for productive use. But equality was a greater value than productivity; hence the rule must be enforced. To deprive Bergeron of his beauty he was also added cosmetic changes to make him ugly. What was awaited to the end the story was whether equality declared and implemented by those given the power, would now make things easier for everybody by the attainment of peace in the community since no one is above any body else. If viewed in term of socialism and communism, the society in the story could be viewed as classless or egalitarian. The events in the story metamorphosed into a situation where Bergeron was able to invade A TV station that allowed him to make a declaration for himself as emperor. The event happened despite the many deprivations that every imposed to him by government. Nothing could be more offensive to those guarding him not to shine as physical restraints which should created psychological restrain could have caused Bergeron to remain calm and silent in the name of equality. Perhaps in trying to celebrate his struggle with the deprivations that was imposed on him, story included an event where he had a dance with a ballerina, who had suffered also because of handicaps imposed and who Bergeron helped in discarding said restriction. This event prompted the person who is bound to enforce the law of equality and this resulted to Bergeron and the ballerina who he was dancing being shot by Handicapper General by the name of Diana Moon Glampers and who did not stop to monitor the actions of those who will violate the law of equality. This incident could indeed demonstrate the application of philosophical requirement of duty above everything else. Such misplace â€Å"dedication† to duty could only be the tenable explanation of what society that demands equality would have to attain the goals of society. But viewed in the context of what is human, the simple act of automatic killing without affording Bergeron the right to be heard after a trial could be only considered an act of brutality. Such was the price of attaining the goal of society. Everybody or at least someone will have to a be guard one’s outgrowing another in terms of skills, wealth and even good characteristics. The value of being equal is more important than the value of competition where the best could come out. There is therefore no best among people but every body is co-equal with everybody else. The question that must be answered now is whether the law of equality works for every body. What happened was that despite the handicaps, Bergeron wanted to set free. He wanted the government to be free these handicaps. He wanted to excel and to his potential despite all odds. For the enforcement of the rules, it was necessary to protect state secrets. Such policy also then deprived the right of Bergeron’s parents Hazel and George to know what truly happened to their son. Since the state must be at center of this kind of society, implementation of the strictly was paramount. This therefore gave Diana Moon Glampers to act with her authority to commit the dastardly act of killing Bergeron and the ballerina. Under such society, somebody will have to enforce its rules strictly but human freedom is necessarily sacrificed since the state’s survival was paramount. And to sustain the said principle the Diana Moon Glampers could have only be afraid of not fulfilling her duty for failure to do so could losing her power over the people which the state has bestowed on her. But again the irony of the story was her husband was also in handicapped by being required to wear a bag although such was also big puzzle for Diana Glampers since she knows that her husband was not competing to anybody. So what happened was a failure of the concept of a society where there is equality for almost every part of human endeavor. The system could hold people from to bring out the best in them. It cannot control what was inside the heart and minds of people despite the strict requirement of the law. Vonneguts’s portrayal of the life of Bergeron must also be viewed with symbolism. His being to discard the his own handicaps and that of the ballerina could only speak for releasing the human potentialities that could not be limited and controlled even by governments for such were inherent in human beings. Bergeron’s dance with ballerina also speaks of their freedom to go with the music or environment where men would have to live. Freedom has therefore its end of celebration to go with the limitless tunes of music or limitless opportunities that one could be in the absence of government restrictions. Given the nature of work that Kurt Vonnegut’s has done on â€Å"Harrison Bergeron†, commentaries could not be avoided. In the author’s desire to deliver a point, Vonnegut has chosen to use iron the present the simple meaning of the false theory of equality. In this context, Hattenhauer cited that all commentaries on Kurt Vonnegut’s â€Å"Harrison Bergeron† in the latter are attempts to achieve equality as absurd. Hattenhauer, sounding to agree with Kurt Vonnegut, also concluded that believers of Bergeron as a model of freedom would fail to notice the fact that â€Å"he is a would–be dictator† with the latter’s declaration that he is the Emperor and wanting to select his Empress. One could therefore decipher a view that would in a sense endorse monarchy as a form of government. Hattenhauer believed that if such happens, then reversion to medieval monarchy would come out where serfs or the equivalent of slaves would be produced as a result. He therefore saw in addition to previous commentaries a satire not just on mistaken notion of equality but also â€Å"the American definition of freedom as the greatest good to the smallest number. † The fall of communism is a proof that society cannot be class. There is indeed the need to allow individual to rise to reach their full potentials. Walicki in discussing the fate of communism talked of rise of certain classes in a communist state said when he mentioned about Brezhnev regime having deliberately supported the interests of certain level in society’s structure by giving its representatives formal guarantees such as the right personal security and the right to occupy leading state posts. He saw therefore the â€Å"consolidation and emancipation of the nomenklatura as a sign of â€Å"the formation of a â€Å"new class† and the final betrayal of the proletariat that Trotsky had feared.† But viewed from the right of individuals to rise to power when opportunity allows, there are positive aspects of these events from in terms of the reduction in ideological pressure. This also has the effect of legitimizing the play of interests where large number of managers is involved. Another remarkable effect is limitation that may be approximately estimated on the â€Å"general unpredictability and uncertainty concerning the future. The separation of interests within the nomenklatura was also seen by Walicki to have caused the improved use of the methods of civil law to resolve conflicts and this has the effect of broadening their sphere of application. He also observed central planning having become a fiction, given the showground for the fight for group interests since individuals were now given special roles to play. Thus, the consequent failure the use the same planning as a rational way to control the fate of society. Having witnessed the communist experiment in Russia to have attained its complete cycle, Walicki now wanted to define the historical significance of the Lenin period, which he considered that as â€Å"the time when the sweep of the communist revolution on a world scale was at its peak†. His was basis was the seriousness of Russia trying to take upon itself the task to have all the solution to the majority of social problems, including the promise of giving answers to the most important questions of humanity. Walicki thus asserted that the â€Å"failure of this insanely bold attempt was sufficiently clear by 1921.† He therefore wants humanity to learn from inner defect of process that had to end in the complete failure of communism. What then is the ideal society? Is democracy then the answer to every problem that communism failed to attain? Soros proposed an open society. But his proposal needed some criticism on alternative systems. He cited Popper to have shown about the commonality of fascism and communism, which is using the state’s power to repress the freedom of the individual despite the fact even though one is extreme right while the other is the extreme left. Wanting to extend the argument, Soros contended that even his proposal of an open society is not safe because of the possible threat from the opposite direction. What he meant of course is the chance from excessive individualism that could be generating to much competition and too little cooperation. He feared this to possibly cause bring inequities and instability that could difficult to tolerate. Soros thus exposed also some risks with capitalism as an alternative which strongly believe in the capacity of the market place to solve many ills. He asserted that the doctrine of laissez-faire capitalism which holds that the uncommon good is best served by the unrestrained pursuit of self-interest, poses a great danger if not tempered by the recognition of a common interest. He thus saw an open society that is capable of breaking down if the self-interest is not regulated. In making a comparison of the systems, Soros argued that totalitarianism ideologies which are associated with communism and socialism, is opposed to open society with deliberation while laissez-faire policies under capitalism may just endanger it if there is inadvertence. He however saw more potent danger in capitalism than in communism and even socialism since the latter have already been thoroughly brought into disrepute . Despite what Soros had seen with capitalism, there is basis to consider it better than totalitarianism as proven in history. By his admission of danger, a remedy is still possible which role is assumed by the US constitution and several laws. By the weight of evidence presented, individualism needs to exist in society and it cannot be denied even by very structures of the communist state. It is better then to allow the same under an open society as proposed by Soros. In this context the short story of Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut may have assumed a significant despite the commentary in exposing the fallacy of the law of equality. For this reason, Noise may be justified considering Kurt Vonnegut as one of the great humanists of his time . In seeing him as a proponent of humanism and therefore tool for building a better world, Noise took the chance to expose that fact that humanists are skeptical of religious claims, for the most part on claims of prophecy and revelation . He thus found that Vonnegut, like most humanists, had little use for speculation about supernatural realms and saw organized religions that attempted to do such speculation to be creating needless division in the world. Noise thus saw Vonnegut to have provided some guidance where there are differences among Jews, Christians, and Muslims on such issues eternal salvation . It may this be concluded that the proposition about the need to allow for individual differences for humanity despite society’s expressed desire to attain equality must be sustained based on argument and evidence presented.

Management Essay

Ny organization, whether new or old, small or big, requires certain methods, procedures and plans in place for its efficient functioning. For this to happen, they must develop and implement management concepts which help them implement their vision for the future of the organization. Index Planning Organizing Directing/Leading Controlling Staffing – The Fifth Function The concept of functions of management was put forth by Henri Fayol, a management theorist from France, influential in proposing many of the management concepts in use today. Originally, he had proposed five management functions; amely, planning, organizing, commanding, coordinating and controlling. Modern texts have reduced the functions from five to four. They include planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. The four concepts of management, translated into functions lead to the creation of a cohesive organization. They can be seen here as a diagram. It is interesting to note that there is no hard and fast rule to be followed in the application of these functions, as management is a real-time decision-making system, any of these functions can be operational in conjunction with any other and also as ndependent entities themselves. Planning is the foundation pillar of management. It is the base upon which all other areas of management are built. Planning requires administration to assess where the company presently is and where it would be in the coming years. From there, an appropriate course of action is determined and implemented to attain the company’s goals and objectives. Planning is an unending course of action. There may be sudden strategies required to be implemented during a crisis. There are external factors that constantly affect a company, both positively and negatively. Depending on the conditions, a company may have to alter its course of action regarding certain goals. This kind of preparation or arrangement is known as strategic planning. In strategic planning, management analyzes internal and external tactors that may affect the company, its objectives and goals. One of the primary tools of strategic planning is the use of SWOT Analysis, a technique that helps organizations find their strengths and weaknesses, identify areas of opportunity and take preventive measures against threats arising from both internal and external environmental factors.

What Can Businesses Learn from Text Mining - 2145 Words

Case StudyWhat Can Businesses Learn From Text Mining?Text mining is the discovery of patterns and relationships from large sets of unstructured data – the kind of data we generate in e-mails, phone conversations, blog postings, online customer surveys, and tweets. The mobile digital platform has amplified the explosion in digital information, with hundreds of millions of people calling, texting, searching, â€Å"apping† (using applications), buying goods and writing billions of e-mails on the go.Consumers today are more than just consumers: they have more ways to collaborate, share information, and influence the opinions of their friends and peers; and the data that they create in doing so have significant value to businesses. Unlike structured†¦show more content†¦Location managers and corporate executives have also used findings from text mining to influence decisions on building improvements. Wendy’s International adopted Clarabridge software to analy ze nearly 500,000 messages it collects each year from its Web-based feedback forum, call centre notes, e-mail messages, receipt-based surveys, and social media. The chain’s customer satisfaction team had previously used spreadsheets and keyword searches to review customer comments; a very slow manual approach. Wendy’s management was looking for a better tool to speed analysis, detect emerging issues, and pinpoint troubled areas of the business at the store, regional or corporate level.The Clarabridge technology enables Wendy’s to track customer experiences down to the store level within minutes. This timely information helps store, regional and corporate managers spot and address problems related to meal quality, cleanliness, and speed of service.Text analytics software caught on first with government agencies and larger companies with information systems departments that had the means to properly use the complicated software, but Clarabridge is now offering a v ersion of its product geared toward small businesses. The technology has already caught on with law enforcement, search tool interfaces, and â€Å"listening platforms† like Nielsen Online. Listening platforms are text mining tools that focus on brand management, allowing companies to determine how consumersShow MoreRelatedUnstructured Data Processing Essay944 Words   |  4 Pagescubes are constructed from a fact table and one or more-dimension tables [1]. It is ad-hoc, and not for everyday repetitive use. 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However, Social Media is still a media which is primarily used to transmit or share information with a broad audience, while social networking is an act of engagement as people with common interests associate together and build relationships through community (Edosomwan, 2011). Social Media can be viewed as a medium to get a conversation to reach aRead MoreApplication Of A Macbook Pro And Os X1446 Words   |  6 Pagesthe case study. So let’s get down to business and learn computer basics. So what operating system does my computer use? For my personal computer I chose to utilize a MacBook Pro and OS X El Capitan is the operating system that powers my Mac. The OS X operating system is based on the UNIX foundation. According to Opengroup.org UNIX is â€Å"the most stable, portable and cost effective applications development environment for a wide range of platforms from mobile devices to mainframes.† Some examples of

Egypt more to Blame than Israel for the Outbreak of War...

There are different historical views on what really provoced the war of 1967, the Israelis would clearly blame the Egyptians and point at Nassers agressions as the main provocation leading to the war. Another view is that Nasser did not have the intention to fight Israel at that point, but when the UN troops in the Sinai were withdrawn suprisingly after Nassers demand, Nasser had to make true his big promises to defeat Israel to the other Arab nations. He wanted to keep his reputation as the ultimate leader of the pan-Arabian league and he could only do so by moving his troops towards Israel, which no longer had a protection buffer by the UN troops in the Sinai. Another view is that the Six Day War was the result of Egyptian- Israeli†¦show more content†¦France and Britain had lost their role in the Middle East after 1956, nevertheless, other foregn influences became strong in the area: Soviet-American rivalry dragged the Cold War into the region. Russia hoped that if it wou ld spread its influence in the Middle East, it would be able to break the encirclement around the USSR, which stoped it from spreading. The USA had made pacts to condemn communism from spreading, the Baghdad pact of 1955 included Turkey, Iran, Iraq Pakistan and Britain. By winning over the Arab states, Russia expected to break this belt and be able to take Communism all over the world. Russias interest in the Middle East alarmed the United States, so they started taking an interest themselves in the region, sympathizing most with Israel, due to Egypt being too unpredictable in its loyalities. After 1956 the Israelis were forced to give back all territorial gains and return to the borders agreed in the 1949 armistice, but in received in return the support of the UNEF in the Gaza Strip and the Sinai. Passage through the Gulf of Aqaba was assured by the presence of the UNEF at Sharm al-Sheikh, supported by the US, which guaranteed to step in if the right of international passage was violated. Between 1957 and 1959 Israel could even send cargo ships through the Suez canal, but as soon as controls diminished, NasserShow MoreRelatedForeign Policy of Pakistan from 1947 to 201210146 Words   |  41 Pageseconomic prosperity. Owing to the anarchic nature of the international political system and the absence of a world government, states tend to feel a high degree of insecurity, as there is no guarantee of the security of a state in the system because war is the legitimate instrument of foreign policy of a state. Hence, each state knows that it has to depend on itself for its pres ervation and safety. Self-protection is the sole protection in an essentially anarchical system. The primary objective ofRead MoreOne Significant Change That Has Occurred in the World Between 1900 and 2005. Explain the Impact This Change Has Made on Our Lives and Why It Is an Important Change.163893 Words   |  656 Pages Agricultural and Pastoral Societies in Ancient and Classical History Jack Metzgar, Striking Steel: Solidarity Remembered Janis Appier, Policing Women: The Sexual Politics of Law Enforcement and the LAPD Allen Hunter, ed., Rethinking the Cold War Eric Foner, ed., The New American History. Revised and Expanded Edition E SSAYS ON _ T WENTIETH- C ENTURY H ISTORY Edited by Michael Adas for the American Historical Association TEMPLE UNIVERSITY PRESS PHILADELPHIA TempleRead MoreInternational Management67196 Words   |  269 PagesTrade Organization, and the lagging support for some bilateral trade agreements pose additional challenges to global managers and multinational companies. In addition, the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has renewed calls for corporations to do more to protect the planet and governments to get tougher with companies in terms of oversight and accountability. The advent of social networking and other media has transformed the way citizens interact and how businesses market, promote, and distributeRead MoreExploring Corporate Strategy - Case164366 Words   |  658 PagesIndustry, tests a reader’s understanding of the main issues inï ¬â€šuencing the competitive position of a number of organisations in the same industry with a relatively short case. For a case that permits a more comprehensive industry analysis The Pharmaceutical Industry could be used. However, if the purpose is more focused – illust rating the use of ‘ï ¬ ve forces’ analysis – the TUI case study or Illustration 2.3 on The Steel Industry could be used. Some cases are written entirely from published sources but

Short Story - 825 Words

The smell of thickening, chalky smoke weaved its way into the damaged lungs of the soldiers. The never-ending sense of nausea spiraled, slowly suffocating you. The smoke was a killer on the loose. Rotting corpse lie frozen in time, unaware of the standpoint. A pungent smell mixed with a drop of sickening sweetness compressed waiting for your last breath. Dead rats, squelching mud and the overall sense of darkness, combined forces and created a poisonous, overpowered hurricane of death-eaters. Inescapable stench of deep, rusted iron coiled in the form of khaki, overcast, flying phantoms. The whiff of grounded moss and oxidized metal chased us soaking up into our uniforms, weighing us down. Moss, blood, smoke, death, rain, all waiting for†¦show more content†¦Moans and cries of agony would echo through the battlefield.The screams and shrieks would layer on top of each other. The ear-splitting, ground-shaking, mind-breaking flying bombshells, shuddered through the ground, cau sing a wave of destruction. After every bomb came a silence, a deafening silence. The 2 sides would wait cautiously, waiting for the others to pounce . The birds tweeting could be heard, a pin drop could be heard, and a sigh could be heard but no one could hear chatter. Just utter silence. My tongue were concealed by a blanket of splinters, creating a nest on our mouths. I knew I wasnt the only one who had this because the others were complaining as well. Any speech that came out my mouth was planted into a bubble. A bubble that jammed my speech, making it extremely hard to speak clearly. The food provided was basic and bland. Maconchies meat stew and hard biscuits it was called. It consisted of cows fat and a tomato sauce(with some hard crackers on the side). Some said it tasted like pigs eye mashed with a vegetable, I think it tastes like under cooked beef drenched with a cold tomato sauce. My taste buds went numb because of the splinters but every drop that we actually tasted was a drop of bittersweet reality. I could taste the revolting, rotting, repulsive bile coming out of our friends open wounded bodies after carelessly touchingShow MoreRelatedshort story1018 Words   |  5 Pagesï » ¿Short Stories:  Ã‚  Characteristics †¢Short  - Can usually be read in one sitting. †¢Concise:  Ã‚  Information offered in the story is relevant to the tale being told.  Ã‚  This is unlike a novel, where the story can diverge from the main plot †¢Usually tries to leave behind a  single impression  or effect.  Ã‚  Usually, though not always built around one character, place, idea, or act. †¢Because they are concise, writers depend on the reader bringing  personal experiences  and  prior knowledge  to the story. 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Interventions to Improve Surgical Culture †Free Samples to Students

Question: Discuss about the Interventions to Improve Surgical Culture. Answer: Introduction Workplace culture refers to the way things are done in an organization and includes shared structures, norms, routines, and rules that offer guidelines and constrain behavior in work communities (Eskola, et al 2016). Values and beliefs are significant as well as legitimate guiding principles of any organization and are considered to be the philosophies and ethical practice rules (Taplay, et al 2014). They signify an institutions most significant aspects and what it is striving for. In most cases, values and beliefs are symbolized by public statements including the vision and mission statements. It is through the workplace culture that beliefs and values are learnt and through relationships with other professionals that a certain workplace culture is reinforced in practice. It is therefore important to get a clarification and comprehension of the underlying beliefs and values for one to understand workplace culture and consecutively develop practice (Eskola, et al 2016). As Taplay, et al (2014) states the values and beliefs in an institution are established over time, they are perceived to be valid, and are transferred to new individuals who enter into the culture. Additionally, the association between workers and work environment ascertains the workplace cultures perception. With regard to health care, it is the workplace culture that qualifies the experts work and care for their clients by replicating a microsystem culture level in which delivery and experience of care occurs (Eskola, et al 2016). A healthcare workplace culture influences the delivery of care that is clinically effective, person-centred, and improving continuously in response to a context that is changing as it influences the behaviors and attitudes of employees. Workplace culture also plays a crucial role in determining whether a certain organization is a healthy and happy place to work. Although in a workplace subcultures exist, overall culture determines the quality of care offered to patients in terms of cultural attitudes towards timeliness, respect, cleanliness, and dignity. As Davies and Nutrey (2008) suggest, some workplace cultures forges an environment where excellence can flourish and others cannot. If for instance employees have an attitude that is conducive to making errors and underperforming the organization itself and the patients will be impacted negatively. On the other hand, employees possessing good personal values about the components of a good healthcare will depict conducive working beha viors that are promote quality care. Leadership plays a significant role in determining the kind of culture in an organization. If a leader, for example, believes and practices the ethos of care that is person-centred and prioritizes the needs of individuals rather than those of the organization it is likely that they will instill the same concepts in other subordinate employees. An efficient culture also offers other benefits. For instance, in the healthcare settings resources are scarce compared to other settings and a culture of waste reduction, efficiency, and financial planning helps to reduce costs . Additionally, a culture of an organization also affects the overall performance of the healthcare institution. As such, a culture of attention to detail, hard work, and efficiency can help improve measures such as survival rates and patient number that receives treatment. Where a toxic culture exists, serious implications for employee well-being and patient outcomes are observed. Such negative cultures may lead to poor retention of employees, high sick leave levels, many medical errors, and low employee psychological empowerment. There are various factors that affect the culture of an organization, including in a health care setting. First is communication as suggested by Bhattacharje (2013). Communication is an important concept in ensuring patient safety. It binds team members together allowing them to act with shared objectives and with coordinated activity. A workplace with effective communication creates a culture of honest and open communication (Sacks, et al 2015). As Dingley, et al states, ineffective communication among care givers is one of the leading causes of patient harm and medical errors. Teamwork also influences the culture of an organization. A culture that supports teamwork between healthcare professionals is important. With regard to person-centered care, interprofessional teamwork required certain aspects to be effective, including cooperation, communication, work climate, respect, and coordination as stated by Korner, et al (2015). Interprofessional teamwork has been shown to improve out comes on patients, health care professionals, and in the organization level (Korner, et al 2015). On the patient level, teamwork of high quality has been positively associated with higher satisfaction, adherence to treatment, improved safety of patient, improved treatment quality, and improved clinical outcomes. on the other hand, health care professionals outcomes contributed by teamwork include higher job satisfaction, enhanced well-being, increased team efficacy, improved mental health, and better team climate (Korner, et al 2015).with regard to organizational level, it results to reduced turnover, higher retention of workforce, and saving in costs (Korner, et al 2015). Therefore, a workplace that supports teamwork is bound to perform well. Effective coordination as suggested by Cropley and Saandrs (2013) is also an essential aspect that can help improve quality of care and reduce cost in healthcare. With regard to provision of person-centred care, care coordination requires effective interaction of healthcare professionals to assume accountability, build relationships, provide patient support, and develop connectivity (Group Health Research Institute, n.d.). Care coordination has been shown to increase care compliance (Rizo, et al 2016). Therefore, a culture with care coordination can be beneficial in many aspects. Person-Centered Framework The person-centered nursing framework by McCormack and McCance (2006) sourced from a blend of two conceptual frameworks. A conceptual framework was developed by McCance to describe caring as perceived by patients and nurses. On the other hand, McCormack developed another conceptual framework that emphasized on person-centred practice from an autonomy study in older people (Manley, McCormarck, and Wilson 2008). The principles in which the two frameworks are based on are consistent with other human science approaches including the core of human choice, freedom, holism, relationships, responsibility, and the essence of space and time (Manley, McCormarck, and Wilson 2008). The resulting person-centred theoretical framework is comprised of four constructs, The first construct is prerequisites, which emphasizes on nurses attributes. They include possessing established interpersonal skills, being competent professionally, organizational commitment, and ability to depict clarity of knowing self, values, and beliefs (Manley, McCormarck, and Wilson 2008). The other domain is environment of care, which emphasizes on the care delivery context. It includes appropriate mix of skills, effective relationships of staff, systems that enhance shared making of decisions, supportive organizational systems, innovation and risk taking potential, and power sharing (Manley, McCormarck, and Wilson 2008). Following is the person-centred process, which emphasizes on care delivery via diverse activities. The five care processes through which it is operationalised includes (a) engagement, (b) working with the beliefs and values of the patient, (c) having sympathetic presence, (d) shared decision making, and (e) holistic physical care (Broderick and Coffey 2012). Lastly is the expected outcomes, which symbolize the results of efficient person-entered nursing. They include patient satisfaction with care, sentiment of well-being, and creation of a therapeutic environment characterized by collaborative decision making and staff relationships, transformational leadership, and supported innovative practices. Health care provision has evolved to patient-centred care (PCC) from utilization of the traditional paternalistic strategy of the care giver/doctor knows best. Under the latter approach health professionals made instructions and prescriptions of treatment with limited input from the patients and their families (Delaney 2017). On the contrary, studies suggest the importance of advocating and endorsing the patients needs where greater emphasis should be placed on individual patients through patient-centered care. Person-centered care is a strategy that emphasizes on development of therapeutic relationship and mutual respect between the healthcare personnel and the patient (Broderick and Coffey 2012). Person-centred nursing respects the beliefs and values of every individual, promotes a connectedness between the healthcare giver and the patient, and is important for quality person-centred care. In professional nurses guidelines person-centred care is a core value and its provision is fo unded on five areas, (a) the vital aspect of knowing the patient and meeting their needs using this information, (b) welcoming the patients family, (c) providing a personalized environment, (d) providing activities that are meaningful, and (e) ensuring flexibility and continuity (Broderick and Coffey 2012). Evidently, person-centred care is entrenched within the holism prototype that takes individuals as physiological and psychosocial whole. Patient-centred care presents with many benefits. Since its emphasis is on communication it ensures shared decision making and collaboration processes as it views the patient as an active participant as opposed to a passive medical process component (Delaney 2017). Additionally, PCC adherence promotes concordance between adherence of patients to treatment and health care professionals plans, increases satisfaction of patients with the offered care, and improves health outcomes. What is more, it allows patients to manage their health better due to the support and information they are provided with (Delaney 2017). As Delaney (2017) emphasizes, the PCC strategy has been shown to significantly reduce the need of patients to access hospitalizations, specialty care, and necessitates minimal pathological investigations. Studies have also shown that PCC adoption in patients health management of chronic conditions leads to an increase in adherence to medications (Delaney 2017). Other benefits of PCC include reducing stress, improving self perception, and increasing empowerment in patients. In practice, the PCC is at the centre of culture change theories and is characterized by certain elements including personhood, nurturing relationships, creation of supportive organizational and physical environment, and maximization of autonomy, choice, and comfort (Jones 2011). When these organizations adopt this approach, the knowledge of the care givers regarding their patients is increased. Additionally, health care professionals discover the kind of activities the patients desires including choices regarding basic care. Further, the frontline care givers should develop the relationship with the parents by determining the patients past accomplishes family, hobbies, and career together with their current desires and current wishes. SCARF Model SCARF is a brain based model that governs a reward or threat response in people and depicts the level of peoples engagement to their environment (Rock 2009). It is composed of five domains which include status, certainty, autonomy, relatedness, and fairness (Tillot, Moxham, and Malsh (2013). According to the model, the brain act in response to behaviors it recognizes as threats or rewards. When a perceived threat is recognized by the neurobiological pathways avoidance becomes the response. On the other hand, when reward pathway is simulated a pleasurable response is observed. In practice, scarf offers a framework for health care leaders to reflect on the characteristics of individuals that result from workplace culture. As such, it allows for identification of factors that may either engage or disengage employees for leaders to implement strategies that promote positive workplace culture. Change of culture in the health care setting is a promising solution that will enable transformation from the traditional approach to the PCC as stated by Doll, et al (2017). However, it is not a one-time occurrence but a journey that progresses through time (Jones 2011). Person-centred principles of care include (a) empowerment of the health care staff, (b) resident care direction and activities, (c) encouragement of shared decision making, and (d) provision of a favorable environment that makes patient to feel at home (by Doll, et al 2017). For healthcare organizations to achieve change in their culture they have to enact a comprehensive change that will affect their mission and vision statements, leadership, culture, and strategy. However, implementation of change has been shown to be challenging with most changes being incremental, small, and planned as opposed to intentional, major, and organizational changes by (Doll, et al 2017). The former is referred to as evolutionary chang e and the latter revolutionary change. Evolutionally change involves reforming the culture by implementing a policy that involves capitalizing on the traditions, working practices, and lessons that have been fruitful to the organization over time (Scott, et al 2013). On the other hand, revolutionary change involves transformation of the existing culture and is appropriate as an intervention for a stagnating culture that necessitates complete overhauling. As Doll, et al (2017) outlines, revolutionary culture is important to the future of nursing. Workplace Culture Change and Management Change management is a dynamic, complex and challenging process, and promoting it is fatiguing and demanding. It involves addressing the complexities accompanied by the process. As Al-Abri (2007) states, it involves assessment, planning, and implementation of operations, strategies, and tactics and ensuring that the change is relevant and worthwhile. With regard to workplace culture, an effective change involves unfreezing old behaviors, establishing the new, and re-freezing them (Al-Abri 2007). It is important for employees to understand the rationale behind a certain change and how they will be influenced to prevent reactions such as anger, insecurities, Every culture change strategy should consider possible hindrances to the purposed change. The major sources of resistance in a health care organization include: The culture of an organization is transmitted and entrenched through a wide range of channels such as established procedures and practices of working including written documentation, professional demarcations, physical spaces, and shift patterns. Therefore, it is impossible for a specific culture change strategy to be able to effectively transform simultaneously all the fronts, necessitating establishment of realistic implementation time frames (Scott, et al 2013). External factors such as stakeholders may also work against internal reform efforts. Therefore, a culture changing strategy should heed the constraints presented by these entities in establishing the behavior, norms, and values of health care givers (Scott, et al 2013). For instance, to change the culture of National Health Service in the UK the influence of external entities that affect internalization of core values must be considered. Such stakeholders include the Royal Medical Colleges (Scott, et al 2013). Since change evokes a sense of loss in most cases reactions to change is expected from professional bodies or individuals (Scott, et al 2013). Therefore, it is important for a change strategy to ensure that a large workforce advocate and work towards achieving the change to avoid failure of the initiatives. Lack of Appropriate Leadership In any transformation in culture leadership plays a significant role to ensure its success or failure. Inadequate leadership has been shown to be a key contributing factor to culture change failure (Scott, et al 2013). As such, integrating both transformational and transactional leadership styles during the change period is necessary. For example, a transactional approach may be employed where the employees who employ patient-centred care are rewarded. At the same time, this approach alone may not be sufficient for employees to embrace the change. Transformational strategies of leadership may be employed to help health care employees cognitive apprehension of what is involved in patient-centered care. Conclusion Therefore, workplace culture plays a crucial role in shaping the behaviors, attitudes, beliefs, and values of the employees and it guides their acts. It is through the workplace culture that beliefs and values are learnt and through relationships with other professionals that a certain workplace culture is reinforced in practice. Since these beliefs, values, and practices are strongly rooted, it is difficult to change them. Some of the hindrances to successful culture change include complexity of culture, lack of appropriate leadership, lack of ownership, and external influences. Changing the workplace culture is therefore a complex process that necessitates sustained support and input to overcome the hindrances. One of the important and advocated changes in culture in health care settings is the transformation from a traditional approach of care to a person-centred one. Person-centered care is a strategy that emphasizes on development of therapeutic relationship and mutual respect b etween the healthcare personnel and the patient. However, since changing an organizational culture is a long-term process, most health care institutions are yet to integrate the new approach fully. References Al-Abri, R 2007, Managing change in healthcare. Oman Medical Journal. vol 22, no 3, pp 9-10. Bhattacharjee, M 2013, Factors that influence employee culture . Available from https://www.annese.com/blog/bid/220658/6-Key-Factors-that-Influence-Employee-Culture [13October 2017] Broderick, M Coffey, A 2012, Person-centred care in nursing documentation. International Journal of Older People Nursing. Vol 8, n0 4, pp 309-318. Cropley, S Sandrs, ED 2013, Care coordination and the essential role of the nurse Creat Nurse, vol 19, no 4, pp 189-194 Davies, TO Nutley, SM 2008, Organizational culture and quality of health care, BMJ Wuality Safety, vol 9 no 2 Delaney, LJ 2015, Patient-centred care as an approach to improving health care in Australia. Collegian. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.colegn.2017.02.005 Dingley, C, Derieg, KM Persing, R 2008, Improving patient safety through provider communication strategy enhancements, Advances in Patient Safety: New Directions and Alternative Approaches, vol 3 Doll, GA, Cornelison, CJ, Rath, H, Syme, ML 2017, Actualizing culture change: The Promoting Excellent Alternatives in Kansas Nursing Homes (PEAK 2.0) program. Psychological Services, Vol 14, no 2, PP 307-315. Eskola, S, Roos, M, McCormack, B, Slater, P, Hahtela, N, Suominen, T 2016. Workplace culture among operating room nurses. Journal of Nursing Management. Vol 24, No 6, pp 725-734 Group Health Research Institute n.d, Care coordination model, Improving Chronic Care Org, Available at https://www.improvingchroniccare.org/index.php?p=Care_Coordination_Models=353 [15 October 2017] Jones, CS 2011, Person-centered care. Journal of Gerontological Nursing. Vol 37, no 6, pp 18-23. Korner, M, Wirtz, MA, Bengel, J Goritz, AS 2015, Relationship of organizational culture, teamwork, and job satisfaction in interprofessional teams. BioMed Central Health Service Research. vol 15, pp 243 Kurjenluoma, K., DPhil, B, Slater, P 2017, Workplace culture in psychiatric nursing described by nurses. Scandivanian Journal of Caring Sciences. Manley, K, McCormarck, B, Wilson. V 2008, International practice in nursing and healthcare. John Wiley Sons Rizo, VM, Rowe, JM, Kricke, GS, Krajci, K Golden, R 2016, a care coordination miodel to improve patient health ourcomew, Health Social Work, vol 41, no 3, pp 191-195. Rock, D. 2009.Your brain at work: strategies for overcoming distraction, regaining focus, and working smarter all day long. Pymble, NSW, HarperCollins e-books. https://sclhs.lib.overdrive.com/ContentDetails.htm?ID=DD1DE978-BAD3-4E0E-BB8B-3023D3DE3D00. Sacks, G.D., Shannon, E.M., Dawes, A.J., Rollo, J.C., Nguyen, D.K., Russell, M.M., Ko, C.Y. and Maggard-Gibbons, M.A., 2015. Teamwork, communication and safety climate: a systematic review of interventions to improve surgical culture.BMJ Qual Saf,24(7), pp.458-467. Scott, T, Mannion, R, Davies, HTO., Marshall, M 2013, Implementing culture change in health care: theory and practice. International Journal for Quality Health Care, vol 15, no 2, pp 111-118 Taplay, K., Jack, SM., Baxter, P., Eva, K., Martin, L 2014 Organizational culture shapes the adoption and incorporation of simulation into nursing curricula: a ground theory study. Nursing Research and Practice. Vol 2014. Tillot, S, Moxham, L, Walsh, DK 2013, Encouraging engagement at work to improve retention. Nursing management, vol 19 no 10, pp 10-14

The Stud Versus the Slut free essay sample

Western youth is consumed by a perception of gender roles and addicted to what is acceptable sexually for each female and male. Historical gender rolls, parental guidance, and the media are all leading examples as to how the sexual double standard (SDS) becomes evident in the lives of youth. Further, the negative perception of permissive females, as well as the negative perception of sexually inactive males, affects the social status and peer acceptance of students across the United States. The way sexual behaviors are perceived by gendered peers can be related and analyzed in the movie, Easy A. The scene includes Olive and a gay acquaintance, Brandon, who exit a room after faking a sexual encounter for an audience behind a closed door. From the experience, each character benefits from the sexual double standard as gender norms are bent and sexual expectations are shattered. Literature Review Numerous studies have been conducted on the sexual double standard as related to adolescence. We will write a custom essay sample on The Stud Versus the Slut or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Understanding how the SDS manifests and is perceived by both men and women is crucial in investigating the artifact. Through literary analysis, peer acceptance and relationships, as well as reasons for consistency in the SDS, will be examined. Typically, social norms tend shift as society evolves. For example, norms such as language, style, and ethics have changed regularly over centuries. While some argue that gender norms in contemporary Western society are currently developing, the SDS is an illustration against such claims. Hundreds of years ago, men were persistent on maximizing their offspring. To do so, they impregnated as many women as possible to amplify probability. Women however, focused on quality s opposed to quantity, searching for a stable mate to assist in raising her child (Ratter amp; Riccioli, 2009). Evolutionary psychology may allude to the origin of the sexual double standard. This idea is furthered by gender norms that are instilled in children by parents. According to King, children begin recognizing gender roles as early as 14 months old. He says by the age of four, children have generally embraced stereotypical gender, and pressures to fit into traditional gender roles become most prominent around age nine (as cited in Ratter amp; Riccioli, 2009, p. ). Therefore, the information and lessons a mother conveys to her child in their ripest age will most likely shape their early views on sexual standards. Research has concluded, that in regards to sexual development, mothers are usually more tolerable of their sons’ exploration then that of their daughters’ (Ratter amp; Riccioli, 2009). This intolerance of female sexual maturity is one of the first models of sexual bias seen by youth. When mid adolescence is reached, most will engage in sexual intercourse for the first time during a period of gender role intensification. This phase will continue into high school, where peer acceptance will persist in developing the sexual double standard. An adolescent’s number of sexual partners and their acceptance by peers are dramatically related according to a study done by Kaerger and Staff (2009). The study consisted of 5,944 girls and 5,530 boys across the nation, all ranging from seventh to 12 grade and 12 to 20 years old. Results showed that sexually permissive girls who had slept with eight or more partners had not only fewer friendships than those with no sexual partners, but were less accepted by peers. The correlation between a rising number of sexual partners and peer acceptance is nearly linear for both females and males. However, the male relationship is reversed, peer acceptance is enhanced with permissiveness. Males lacking in sexual experience on the other hand are characterized as having significantly less friends. Although other variables for measuring peer acceptance were tested, such as age, GPA, or participation in athletics, number of sexual partners trumped as most influential. High school popularity then consequently depends on one’s sexual promiscuity, or lack there of. Kaerger’s in depth study epitomizes the SDS and in addition, provides data that may explain why the double standard is not diminishing in spite of gender norms evolving in society. First, Kaerger gives an explanation for the constant SDS using media influences as an example. Female actors in the United States are under relentless scrutiny by society, particularly by young women. To avoid negative stigmas associated with licentious behaviors, actresses must keep their sexual activities secret. This serves as a model for young women. Increasing sexual partners and behaviors frequently poses a higher chance of closet activities being revealed to the public, thus having to endure social reaction. While the actress example deters permissiveness in girls, continuing the SDS, other factors also come into play. Ratter and Riccioli analyzed young women â€Å"talking† about the SDS and how they disliked it (2009). Even though they condemned the â€Å"stud† reputation men receive from promiscuity, the women suggested nothing of resistance or attempt to change norms. Instead, they lamely accepted the SDS as inevitable. Heidi Lyons of Oakland University completed a study in which one focus was the cultural reality of the SDS to adolescence (2011). Lyons discovered that regardless of sexual experience level, young women were by and large aware of key elements to the SDS and conscious that they were held to, â€Å"different normative standards compared to men† (2011). In addition, these women scorned the social labeling process that rewards men for similar behavior that degrades women. Some of the females bashing the gender bias were promiscuous themselves, but provided explanations and disclaimers to their behavior. They furthermore cursed permissive women, identifying a secondary female double standard. Data collected from Kaerger’s study on perceived peer status from strictly male or female perspectives also discovered major discrepancies in the SDS. Research suggested that, â€Å"permissive boys are more likely to gain status from female peers than from male peers†¦female reactions to sexual behavior simultaneously escalate the status of permissive boys and decrease the status of permissive girls† (Kaerger, 2009, p. 156). Therefore, womens desire to model media examples of hiding sexual activity, as well as accepting the SDS instead of refusing it, cause the SDS to continue unwaveringly. The manifestation of the sexual double standard was inevitable due to rooted gender norms and the parental proliferation of gender stereotypes. More recently, the SDS has remained relatively constant because of women’s own perception and double standard. The negative views towards both female and male sexual behaviors, or lack there of, affect the acceptance by peers in Western society. In reference to the artifact, Easy A, the following topics will be used for analysis: * Negative perception of permissive females * Negative perception of inexperienced males * Sex-status association Analysis Easy A, although comedic, includes serious social themes. The largest theme observed in the scene being analyzed is that of the sexual double standard. The negative perception of promiscuous females and conversely the negative perception of inexperienced males by adolescent peers are very apparent in the clip. In addition, sex-status association, or the relationship between sexual activity and social status, is also evident. In Easy A, Olive is the perfect subject to observe in regards to the SDS. First, as Olive exits the room, the crowd of students awaiting her and Brandon outside offer mixed feedback on the supposed â€Å"deed† as distinguished by their gender. Female onlookers immediately sink to a disgusted demeanor when they see the â€Å"slut† exit a room used for sex in a public setting. The previous rumor about losing her virginity is now amplified with an open location sex act, which demonstrated a rapid increase of sexual partners. As Kaerger explained, as number of sexual partners increases, acceptance of peers and number of friends decrease (2009). Olive has become ostracized from her female peers (Perry, 2011). Adversely, male students outside the room now see Olive as a possible â€Å"hook up†. They â€Å"check her out†, but also make fun of her behind her back by performing lewd gestures. Olive leaves the party early, upset, with her self-esteem low. The fact that Olive has not actually partaken in any sexual acts allows the audience to see the degree to which the double standard can reach. Brandon on the other hand, who also did not perform any sexual act, benefits from the SDS. In this scene, Brandon transforms by gaining peer acceptance and friends due to his fake sexual encounter. His popularity will grow according to Kaerger, and have the opposite affect that that of his counterpart. Unlike Olive, as Brandon exits the room he is greeted by nothing but positive responses. Before the stunt, he was subject to extensive bullying and abuse; the false reports create a temporary security from the antagonism he would otherwise face due to his rumored homosexuality and virginity (Zwarg, 2011). Now, he is perceived as a â€Å"stud† by male and female students alike. In his case, the SDS helped him to escape abuse and gain status. Although the general outcomes vary from positive to negative for the pair of Olive and Brandon, they were both successful in helping each other reach status quo (Perry, 2011). As invisible high school students, the duo strived to make names for themselves. Olive demonstrated in the scene that she would embrace her new popularity, whether positive or negative, by continuing to pretend to be sexually promiscuous (Zwarg, 2011). She behaves as the â€Å"popular boy† in Kaerger’s ordering of sexual partnerships and peer status (2009). He refers to the inverse double standard hypothesis in which status increases sexual partnerships as opposed to the other way around. He states, â€Å"unpopular girls would seek peer acceptance through sexual intercourse and popular boys would take advantage of their high status to have sex with many girls† (Kaerger, 2009, p. 159). As previously stated, Olive reverses roles as the only â€Å"popular† student involved in the fake sexual activity. As a result, Brandon, the homosexual, assumes the role of unpopular girl seeking acceptance. By the end of the scene, they both have received the attention and status satisfaction the set forth for. Conclusion In conclusion, Easy A is the romantic comedy that incorporates serious sexual issues that adolescence face in modern, Western society. The sexual double standard is branded on this film, re-defining and shocking viewers with gender role reversals and surprises. Today, youth conforms to perceptions of gender roles and labels others based on what is considered sexually acceptable. â€Å"Sluts† and â€Å"studs† are the vocabulary terms that rule the high school hierarchy and define students as popular, or a nobody. Further research could be done on the subject regarding Brandon’s homosexuality, and if there’s a correlation between same-sex partners and peer status (Kaergar, 2009). Another subject for further study could relate to the location of the high schools studied, and whether their cultural norms affect the way sexual promiscuity is perceived, especially in regards to social status. A final focus of further research could study the long-term affects of adolescent sexual double standard. Whether women that assumed the â€Å"slut† role can, as adults, hold relationships and become successful, and whether men that assumed the â€Å"stud† role can do the same.