Compare and Contrast the Current Era of Globalization with...

Assignment one Student name: Hyde Zhu Student number: 220089143 Course code: MM202 Assignment question: topic 1 Compare and contrast the current era of globalization with the first age of globalization (1850s-1920s). What are the advantages and disadvantages of globalization in its current context? Word count: 1530 Unit Coordinator: Dr Tony Ramsay I am going to contrast the current era of globalization with the first age of globalization in many different aspects, in the mean time analysis the merits and demerits of globalization in its current context. John and Kenneth (2012, p. 28) find that the concept of globalization means the trend toward greater economic, cultural, political, and technological interdependence. With the†¦show more content†¦According to John and Kenneth (2012, p. 31), political leaders of over 20 nations decided to made the organization named General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) to promote free trade by reducing both tariffs and nontariff barriers to international trade. Besides, the World Trade Organization is also aim to deal with the trade issues. The three main goals of the WTO are to help the free flow of trade, help negotiate further opening of markets, and settle trade disputes among its members ( World Trade Organization [WTO], para. 2). Over all, the trade in the first age of g lobalization was much freely than it today. At the same time, the trade today is well organized and reasonable. Technology could change the world. The first industrial revolution led the world to the age of steam. The transportation around the world increased rapidly. During the first age of globalization, steam machines like steamship and trains did promote the process of globalization. By contrast, the current key technology term would be the internet. The net work did enhance the connection of the world, the people from anywhere of the world could communicate through the internet. Due to the new technology, the world trade could be much easier. Moreover, with the development of the high technology the speed of the transportations were increased obviously. Globalization brings vast benefits to the world. It helps backward countriesShow MoreRelatedOne 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 Pagesunit. The beginnings and ends of what we choose to call centuries are almost invariably years of little significance. But there is little agreement over when the twentieth century c.e. arrived, and there were several points both before the year 2000 (the collapse of the Soviet Union, the reunification of Germany, the surge of globalization from the mid-1990s) and afterward (9/11, or the global recession of 2008) when one could quite plausibly argue that a new era had begun. A compelling case canRead MoreContemporary Issues in Management Accounting211377 Words   |  846 PagesPress in the UK and in certain other countries Published in the United States by Oxford University Press Inc., New York ß Oxford University Press 2006 The moral rights of the author have been asserted Database right Oxford University Press (maker) First published 2006 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of Oxford University Press, or as expressly permitted

Quantitative Approaches Pearson Education -Myassignmenthelp.Com

Questions: What Are The Nature And Extent Of The Problems Faced By The Managers? How Frequently They Face These Issues. What Are The Steps Taken By The Managers To Combat Such Situations? Answers: Introduction Over the last few decades, the global commercial framework has undergone considerable dynamics and modifications, which have contributed massively in shaping up the modern day methods of doing business. With time, the global business scenario has become more integrated and inclusive, by reducing the geographical and cultural barriers existing in these aspects. Phenomena like that of Globalization and Liberalization across different countries have also contributed in making inter-country trade and commerce much convenient. This in turn has encouraged more and more companies to increase their domain of operations and production across different geographical location, to explore and take advantages of geographically diversified economies and markets (Mendenhall et al. 2017). With the penetration in the global markets, the workforces within these companies are also changing significantly, with the companies having employees not only of different expertise and experiences but also of different cultural, geographical and ethnological origins. These companies, for the purpose of better and wider commercial prospects and for expanding their domain of operations, are becoming increasing dependent on this geographically and culturally varied workforce, which is contributing positively in terms of implementing strategic diversities (Erez et al. 2013). However, the presence of a global and diverse workforce often leads to problems within the teams, in terms of misunderstandings, lack of coordination and confusions, thereby making it a challenge for the managers to manage the global workforce in an efficient manner, such that their productivity and success are optimized. Keeping this into consideration, the paper proposes to discuss and highlight the primary challenges which are faced by the contemporary global business teams in their operational framework, which in turn becomes challenges to the corresponding managements, emphasizing on the problems which crop up while managing cross border business teams. Project Objective Keeping the above discussion in consideration, the primary objective of the concerned project is to analyze and interpret the different challenges and problems, which are faced by the managers of especially those multinational commercial institutions, which operate in different geographical domains and have geographically and culturally diversified cross-border teams of employees. For understanding the same, it is of utmost importance to study the characteristic features of such cross-border business teams, the problems which crop up in such a framework and the root causes behind such problems, which are also proposed to be studied by the concerned research project. Apart from highlighting the different challenges which the managers face, which in turn create hurdles in the path of achievement of the organizational goals, the paper also proposes to analyze the different styles of management which are usually undertaken in this aspect and how they can be improved to combat these hurdl es efficiently. Project Scope It can be seen from the above discussion that the contemporary global business scenario is becoming increasingly integrated and diverse, with companies hiring employees from different geographical locations, cultural backgrounds and professional expertise and the work teams becoming geographically varied within the companies themselves. In such a scenario, it becomes important for the managements to design their operational frameworks in such a way that maximum advantage can be obtained from such work set ups. This can however, only be done once the problems and challenges in the management of such global teams are identified and tackled with. Therefore, to maximize the profits and welfare of the contemporary global commercial framework, the challenges which are faced by the managers of the multi-national companies in this aspect has to be studies with immense importance, which in turn indicates towards the wide scope of the proposed research in the contemporary periods. Global Work Teams With global and geographical diverse workforce and global teams increasingly becoming a part of the modern business frameworks, many literary works have been done on the aspects of the profitability, nature, characteristics of such work teams and the challenges which can arise in the process of efficient management of such diversely located work teams. There exists various definitions and interpretations of the term global teams in the commercial scenario. As stated by Moran, Abramson and Moran (2014), in their working paper, the term can be assigned to the increasingly popular practice of the business organizations to form work teams across different time zones and geographical and cultural boundaries, which in spite of their linguistic and cultural differences work for the same organizational goals. In general, one individual or a group of managers, who, with his base in one country, is assigned the role of managing the geographically diverse teams, manages these varied teams. Benefits of such diverse work teams Different scholars put forward, several crucial advantages of the presence of geographically diverse teams, most of which talks about the prospects it adds to the company and in terms of increased profitability and sustainability. According to Pieterse, Van Knippenberg and Van Dierendonck (2013), the presence of culturally and geographically diverse teams in a commercial institution can help in tapping the regional talents as well as comparative advantages which may have positive implications on the organizations profitability, sustainability as well as global competitiveness. Klitmller and Lauring (2013), who add that the presence of such teams helps the companies in expanding their operational framework in different countries, thereby helping them to exploit the opportunities present in the previously unexplored markets, support their assertions. Daim et al. (2012) puts forward the aspect of the continuously technological innovations and improvisations, which makes it much convenient as well as cost effective for the commercial institutions to manage their global teams virtually with the help of the different electronic mediums, which make communication between these culturally and geographically diverse workforces fast and easy. All these assertions together, point towards the benefit as well as the need for incorporation of diverse work teams in the contemporary commercial scenario. Problems and challenges in maintaining global teams In spite of the presence of considerable prospects and benefits of the presence of global and diversified workforce within a company, there remains several issues of concern in the working of the same, which, as put forward by different scholars, if not addressed can be immensely detrimental to the commercial profitability and viability of these organizations. The primary issues of concern, as highlighted in the different literary works, are discussed as follows: Communication Breakdown- One of the primary challenges faced by the global teams and their managers, as argues by Daim et al. (2012) is the problem of communication breakdown, which often happens within the diversified teams within a company, mostly due to the absence of proper and effective channel of communications between the geographically diverse work teams. Other factors contributing to this problem are lack of trust, inter-personal issues and improper or shortsighted leaderships in the company, which hampers the carrying out multi-national projects of the companies Shaffer et al. (2012). Lack of team developing activities- Dyer and Dyer (2013) asserts that often the global teams are formed within the companies in ad hoc basis as per the needs of the situations. These teams, being temporary in nature, start with the assigned works soon after team formation, which gives them little or no time to build a proper plan for carrying out the task. The absence of the feeling of a proper team mentality hampers the commitment of the members, thereby affecting the goals of the organization. Confusions in decision-making activities- As rightly argues by Liu and Woywode (2013), one of the most crucial issues or challenges which the global teams face in their operational framework, is that of the confusions and problems in decision making regarding planning and executions of different strategies and operations. The geographical difference, different time zones and variations in the work cultures in different geographical locations make it a huge challenge for the cross-border teams to take operational decisions effectively and unanimously. The presence of very little common office hours also contributes to the lack of communication which hampers these activities substantially. Differences in work culture- The presence of different and often conflicting corporate cultures among the cross border teams of a company, is seen as one of the primary challenges in the aspect of efficient team management, by Mowday, Porter and Steers (2013). According to the authors, these varied corporate cultures make it difficult for the managers to make the employees understand their job roles and the common target of maximization of profit of organization, towards which they are supposed to be committed. Coordination failure- Another problem of operation of global teams, which is related to the previous challenges, is the highly relevant problem of coordination issues in the day to day activities in the team. As Alvesson and Sveningsson (2015), suggest often the problem arises with the employees operating in one country and their bosses operating in other. In such scenarios the support from the supervisors or managers often come in an untimely manner, thereby leading to coordination failure, which hampers the projects of the company, especially in which prompt decisions are needed to be taken. Evaluation of team performance- Cappelli and Keller (2013) rightly puts forward in their article, the problem of proper evaluation of the performance of the global teams by the managers as one of the most concerning issues in this aspect. According to the authors, the remote working locations and virtual communication channels contribute in creating barriers for the managers in the aspect of evaluation of the teams performance. Often these evaluations are erroneous and it almost becomes impossible for the managers to keep track of the regular operations of the team. This in turn hampers in the target setting and goal-achieving framework of the employees, thereby affecting the companies adversely. Lack of vision- The assertions of the previous authors are augmented by Crisp and Jarvenpaa (2013), who argues that the lack of coordination and evaluation often prevents the managers and the leaders to implant the vision of the company among the team members, which makes them feel de-motivated. This clubbed with improper information flow contributes in the problems, which the managers face while managing such teams. From the above review of the existing literatures in this aspect, it can be seen that the problems and challenges, which the managers of multi-national companies and diverse global teams can face, have been extensively discussed and interpreted by scholars from all parts of the world. However, empirical and real life evidences rarely support these assertions. Also very little has been said or done for designing wholesome strategies to rule out such problems or to at least address such issues. For this purpose the point of views of the managers and other people involved in the operation of the global teams need to be emphasized on and incorporated in the problem solving process. Research Methodology To make the research robust and informative, the paper proposes to adopt a mixed method research, incorporating both quantitative as well as qualitative aspects: Quantitative Research The project proposes to carry out interviews with at least 30 managers of such globally diversified teams, who have the base in the country itself. For the collection of the primary data, it proposes to design quantitative questionnaires emphasizing on the following points: Number of teams and team mates the managers handle Geographical locations of the teams Types of diversity in the teams Types of problems faced by the managers Frequency of occurrence of such problems Cost of managing such problems The data collected are proposed to be interpreted and analyzed using statistical software SPSS (Neuman 2013). Qualitative Research Quantitative research methods only focus on the cardinal details of a problem, thereby missing out the ordinal and abstract specific information, which might be extremely relevant (Liamputtong 2013). Considering this aspect, the project proposes to perform in depth interviews with at least five managers of reputed companies handling such teams. It also proposes to conduct focused group discussion with such global teams, emphasizing on extensive discussion about the challenges as well as the ways in which these problems can be solved. Research Limitations The primary limitation of the concerned research is that, though it tries to incorporate the views of all the types of players involved in operation of global teams, it cannot take into account the same for multiple geographical locations, due to time and cost constraints. The research thereby loses the chances to study the differences in corporate cultures and work behaviors and the scope to study how the same affects the working of the different global teams thereby creating challenges for the managers. Time Schedule Research Milestones Particulars Duration Starting Finish Research Ideation 3 Days 18-01-2018 20-01-2018 Review of Literature 3 Days 21-01-2018 23-01-2018 Research Design 5 Days 23-01-2018 27-01-2018 Data Collection 5 Days 29-01-2018 02-02-2018 Data Interpretation 3 Days 03-02-2018 06-02-2018 Publication of the Data 3 Days 07-02-2018 09-02-2018 Conclusion In the contemporary business world, the implications of the global and geographically diverse work teams are becoming increasingly prominent, with more and more companies going global and exploring different geographical markets as well as newer domains of operations. In such situations, the presence of global teams not only become beneficial for the companies but has become a necessity to prosper and stay ahead of the competitors. However, managing such teams are not easy as the managers need to face different problems and challenges which create hurdles in the path of smooth operational framework of the companies and in attaining their long term goals. The proposed research tries to shed light on the major challenges, which the managers of global work teams face, and also tries to discuss the strategies which can be taken to properly address and reduce such problems. References Alvesson, M. and Sveningsson, S., 2015.Changing organizational culture: Cultural change work in progress. Routledge. Cappelli, P. and Keller, J.R., 2013. Classifying work in the new economy.Academy of Management Review,38(4), pp.575-596. Crisp, C.B. and Jarvenpaa, S.L., 2013. Swift trust in global virtual teams.Journal of Personnel Psychology. Daim, T.U., Ha, A., Reutiman, S., Hughes, B., Pathak, U., Bynum, W. and Bhatla, A., 2012. Exploring the communication breakdown in global virtual teams.International Journal of Project Management,30(2), pp.199-212. Erez, M., Lisak, A., Harush, R., Glikson, E., Nouri, R. and Shokef, E., 2013. Going global: Developing management students' cultural intelligence and global identity in culturally diverse virtual teams.Academy of Management Learning Education,12(3), pp.330-355. Klitmller, A. and Lauring, J., 2013. When global virtual teams share knowledge: Media richness, cultural difference and language commonality.Journal of World Business,48(3), pp.398-406. Liamputtong, P., 2013.Qualitative research methods. Liu, Y. and Woywode, M., 2013. Light?Touch Integration of Chinese Cross?Border MA: The In?uences of Culture and Absorptive Capacity.Thunderbird International Business Review,55(4), pp.469-483. Mendenhall, M.E., Osland, J., Bird, A., Oddou, G.R., Stevens, M.J., Maznevski, M.L. and Stahl, G.K. eds., 2017.Global leadership: Research, practice, and development. Routledge. Moran, R.T., Abramson, N.R. and Moran, S.V., 2014.Managing cultural differences. Routledge. Mowday, R.T., Porter, L.W. and Steers, R.M., 2013.Employeeorganization linkages: The psychology of commitment, absenteeism, and turnover. Academic press. Neuman, W.L., 2013.Social research methods: Qualitative and quantitative approaches. Pearson education. Pieterse, A.N., Van Knippenberg, D. and Van Dierendonck, D., 2013. Cultural diversity and team performance: The role of team member goal orientation.Academy of Management Journal,56(3), pp.782-804. Shaffer, M.A., Kraimer, M.L., Chen, Y.P. and Bolino, M.C., 2012. Choices, challenges, and career consequences of global work experiences: A review and future agenda.Journal of Management,38(4), pp.1282-1327.

Good Education Essay Example

Good Education Essay GooHaving a good education is very vital in today’s world and has always been. There are numerous amounts of reasons and benefits. Education basically decides the outcome of your life. It decides the outcome of your life because how educated you are controls the decision making in your life. Being well educated helps you pick a good career. You make good health decision with a good education. Not only does a good education help you make good long term decision but also short term everyday decision making. Fredrick Douglass wrote in his narrative â€Å"I wish to learn how to write, as I might occasion to write my own pass† (Dancing With Tigers 25). Having a good education is like writing your own pass to a successful and happy life. Education doesn’t start when first start pre-school, daycare, or elementary school. It starts at the very beginning of your life. You learn what is right and wrong as an infant. You learn what is good to put in your mouth and what is not. So your first educators are your parents or whomever you are raised by. So whomever raises you could determine how you will start life. We will write a custom essay sample on Good Education specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Good Education specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Good Education specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The way you speak and talk all depends on who you are around. So some people may get educated better early in their life just because of where they are from or where they live. Being well educated early in life has its advantages because it helps you communicate well with others at an early age. Also you can get into higher level schools where you can learn at a faster pace. If school is easy to you at an early age then it is most likely to continue as you go from grade to grade. As you get older education becomes more important and also has a lot more benefits too. It is more important because getting older means you have more responsibilities and more difficult decision to make. Also getting older means your body grows so you have to learn to take extra care for your body and stay in good health. With a good education you can make the transition in life easy. You will know who to be around and who not to be around. Who to ask for help when needed. You also begin to become more independent in life meaning your parents will not always be at your side every minute. Being well educated you can a lot more things on your own. Things such as going out on your own with parental supervision, buying your own things, cooking for yourself, and many other things. As you get older get to apply for part-time and summer jobs as you are in high school. So with little to none work experience most jobs may just look at how well educated you are in interviews or, when you fill out applications. Learning how to drive comes into factor when you get older as well. So learning how to drive is a major benefit in life. It really helps you become more independent and allows you to do more on your own. Also being well educated on how to drive can keep you from getting into car accidents and, fixing minor car problems while on the road. The real major benefits of a good education come after you finish high school or become a young adult. After finishing high school you have a lot of big decision to make. You make the decision whether you want to further you education by going to college or go straight into the work field. Your education level determines what type of college you can go to and/or what type of job you can get. If you are well educated you will have more options of college choices and job positions. With good grades in high school and great test scores you can earn yourself a scholarship for school and maybe even go to school for free. Going to school for free is a great benefit. Going to college to further your education is good because it can open up a lot of career opportunities and job opportunities. It is good to have a education because in most colleges you have to good grades just to participate in extra-curricular activities. For example if you wanted to play a sport at your school you not only would have to be talented at the sport but you would have to maintain a certain G. P. A. (Grade Point Average). Having a college education leads to many career opportunities. Depending on how well you did in college will decide on what type of job you have and the position you get at the job. During very well in college and becoming very educated can lead to higher job position. That is a good benefit because the higher your job position is the higher you salary or pay is. A great paying job can lead to more things such as buying a nice house and living in a great neighbor. With a good salary it will be much easier to support a family. Also a good salary can help you pay off any college loans you may have. Having a good job also means you can afford health insurance which will come in hand if you happen to get hurt or when you need to go to the doctors for daily check-ups. Being well educated is not only good for just yourself but for others as well. Being well educated means you have the ability to help people when help is needed. Well educated people like doctors and lawyers help people out all the time. Without them there would be many problems in today’s world. Without well educated people we wouldn’t have teachers or scientists and, nothing new would ever be learned or invented. So that is why people always encourage other people to get an education. There are tons of benefits of having a good education. It makes life easier to get through. Works Cited Connelly, Mark, Joseph Trimmer and Fredrick Douglass. Dancing With the Tigers. Mason, OH: Cengage Learning, 2008. Print.

Organic Chemistry Hydrocarbon Nomenclature Prefixes

Organic Chemistry Hydrocarbon Nomenclature Prefixes The purpose of organic chemistry nomenclature is to indicate how many carbon atoms are in a chain, how the atoms are bonded together, and the identity and location of any functional groups in the molecule. The root names of hydrocarbon molecules are based on whether they form a chain or ring. A prefix to the name comes before the molecule. The prefix of the molecules name is based on the  number of carbon atoms. For example, a chain of six carbon atoms would be named using the prefix hex-. The suffix to the name is an ending that is applied that describes the types of chemical bonds in the molecule. An IUPAC name also includes the names of substituent groups (aside from hydrogen) that make up the molecular structure. Hydrocarbon Suffixes The suffix or ending of the name of a hydrocarbon depends on the nature of the chemical bonds between the carbon atoms. The suffix is -ane if all of the carbon-carbon bonds are single bonds (formula CnH2n2), -ene if at least one carbon-carbon bond is a double bond (formula CnH2n), and -yne if there is at least one carbon-carbon triple bond (formula CnH2n-2). There are other important organic suffixes: -ol means the molecule is alcohol or contains the -C-OH functional group-al means the molecule is an aldehyde or contains the OC-H functional group-amine means the molecule is an amine with the -C-NH2 functional group-ic acid indicates a carboxylic acid, which has the OC-OH functional group-ether indicates an ether, which has the -C-O-C- functional group-ate is an ester, which has the OC-O-C functional group-one is a ketone, which has the -CO functional group Hydrocarbon Prefixes This table lists the organic chemistry prefixes up to 20 carbons in a simple hydrocarbon chain. It would be a good idea to commit this table to memory early in your organic chemistry studies. Organic Chemistry Prefixes Prefix Number ofCarbon atoms Formula meth- 1 C eth- 2 C2 prop- 3 C3 but- 4 C4 pent- 5 C5 hex- 6 C6 hept- 7 C7 oct- 8 C8 non- 9 C9 dec- 10 C10 undec- 11 C11 dodec- 12 C12 tridec- 13 C13 tetradec- 14 C14 pentadec- 15 C15 hexadec- 16 C16 heptadec- 17 C17 octadec- 18 C18 nonadec- 19 C19 eicosan- 20 C20 Halogen substituents are also indicated using prefixes, such as fluoro (F-), chloro (Cl-), bromo (Br-), and iodo (I-).  Numbers are used to identify the position of the substituent. For example,  (CH3)2CHCH2CH2Br is named 1-bromo-3-methylbutane. Common Names Be aware, hydrocarbons found as rings (aromatic hydrocarbons) are named somewhat differently. For example, C6H6 is named benzene. Because it contains carbon-carbon double bonds, the -ene suffix is present. However, the prefix actually comes from the word gum benzoin, which as an aromatic resin used since the 15th century. When the hydrocarbons are substituents, there are several common names you may encounter: amyl: substituent with 5 carbonsvaleryl: substituent with 6 carbonslauryl: substituent with 12 carbonsmyristyl: substituent with 14 carbonscetyl or palmityl: substituent with 16 carbonsstearyl: substituent with 18 carbonsphenyl: common name for a hydrocarbon with benzene as a substituent

Strategic Management plant Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Strategic Management plant - Essay Example The opportunities that are available to the firm are that of growth and government support. Threats that the company is facing include pirate attacks, weak economy, and environmental pressure groups. In this report we have suggested three long term objectives for the company. First long term objective is to lower operating expenses to 1500 million Euros by year 5. The second long term objective is to increase revenue by 20 percent by the end of year 5. The third long term objective is to reduce environmental pollution by decreasing the use of environmentally dangerous fuel by 20 percent by year 5. By using the tools like Grand Strategy Selection Matrix and the Model of Grand Strategy Clusters we have reached a conclusion that concentric diversification strategy should be adopted by Hapag-Lloyd because of the large size of the firm and its relative position in the market. The key success factor for the company is to lower its operational cost. The whole industry is facing this problem and it is important for the company to solve this issue in order to maintain its competitive position. Another key success factor is to enter in similar businesses like air cargo services in order to achieve concentric diversification. ... Both the companies operated during the World Wars too and this shows the rich history of the company. It can therefore be safely concluded that the foundations of the shipping giant Hapag-Lloyd is quite strong. The size and stature of the company can be deduced by the fact that it is currently the fifth largest shipping firm in the world (Taylor, 2010). Hapag-Lloyd has offices in around 114 countries which show the extent of their business. The services offered by the company are aimed at providing ultimate customer satisfaction. The internal company structure is vertical with a board controlling all decision making. All international offices follow a standardized plan designed in the Hamburg headquarters. Although some levy is also given to the foreign offices so that they can adapt to the local environment. Hapag-Lloyd mainly targets high end customers who are willing to pay high prices for quality services. Currently the company is facing problems from the Somalia pirates who are looting and hijacking ships in Arabian and Indian oceans. Hapag-Lloyd is also facing pressure from environmental groups to reduce sea pollution. The industry in general is constantly searching to find environmental friendly ways to reduce pollution and preserve natural habitat. Increasing fuel prices is also affecting the shipping industry. Vision Statement The company does not have a vision statement currently. I would suggest the following vision statement, â€Å"Satisfaction of global clients by providing, safe, superior and quick services in an environmental friendly manner†. This vision statement broadly speaks to the external world about the business of the company. The mention of the word ‘global’

Structural analysing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Structural analysing - Essay Example Today, an SEM has become an indispensible instrument for any R&D or production set up dealing with advanced materials science. In the subsequent sections interaction of electrons with matter, basic principles of electron microscopy, architecture and working of scanning electron microscope, different attachments to an SEM and applications of SEM in materials science will be discussed in brief with special emphasis on specifications of a modern SEM. Interaction of Electrons with Matter Electrons as a probe are extremely versatile as they generate a wide range of signals which can be detected and processed to get useful and meaningful insight about surface topography, microstructure, microchemistry and micro-texture of the material being probed. Different kinds of signal generated as a result of interaction of electron probe are shown in Fig. 1 [1]. Fig. 1: Schematic Drawing Showing Electron – Matter Interaction When thickness of the specimen is less than ~ 100 nm only then the i ncident electron beam is able be pass through it and generate different kind of transmitted signals. However, the transmitted signals are relevant for Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) and not for Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM); therefore, we will not discuss about transmitted signals here. Among the reflected signals secondary electrons (SE) and Back Scattered Electrons (BSE) are relevant for SEM for imaging and characteristic X-rays are useful for chemical analysis in SEM. Besides, BSE is also useful in micro-texture analysis using Electron Back Scattered Diffraction (EBSD) attachment. Therefore, we will limit our focus to these signals only. Secondary Electrons (SE) These are low energy electrons (less than 50 eV) generated after the incident beam hits the substrate. Back Scattered Electrons (BSE) These are high energy electrons (more than 50 eV up to beam energy) generated after the incident beam hits the substrate. Characteristic X-Rays When electron beam strikes the s pecimen, it knocks out the inner shell electrons and the vacancy thus created is immediately filled by an electron from higher shells. This electronic transition leads to generation of X-rays which are characteristics of the element. Thus these X-rays can be used for micro-chemical analysis using Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) and / or Wavelength Dispersive Spectroscopy (WDS). Basic Architecture of SEM Basic architecture of an SEM is presented in Fig. 2 [2]. It is a column always under vacuum consisting of different subcomponents. It consists of an electron gun or electron source. This can be different types, which will be discussed afterwards. This is followed by condenser lenses to focus the beam. There are apertures in the path to allow only and an aperture to allow only the useful (central) portion of the beam to the subsequent stages. The focused beam is double scanned and made to pass through an aperture to fall onto the specimen. The beam is scanned over the specimen in a raster and the generated signals – secondary or back scattered electrons are collected, amplified and again scanned in a raster onto a CRT screen in synchronized manner. Thus image is formed pixel by pixel. The magnification is ratio of

Suicide among adolescents and young adults Essay Example for Free

Suicide among adolescents and young adults Essay The cause of suicide has long been the focus of many psychological research studies. Suicide is generally the result of people’s beliefs and reactions to particular situations and experiences. Most people commit suicide out of depression and hopelessness that a person cannot handle anymore. The members of the society who have the highest rate of suicide and suicide attempts are the adolescents and young adults. Suicide has become the second or third leading cause of death among adolescents 13 to 18 years old (Bondora Goodwin, 2005, p. 6). Suicide is also among the top three causes of death among adults 18 to 24 years old (Malone et al, 2000, p. 1084). Suicide among these particular groups has been the â€Å"driving force behind increases in the overall suicide rate, and rates are rising fast† (Bloch, 1999, p. 26). A study of Gould et al (2003) shows that about five to eight percent of adolescents, or approximately one million teenagers, attempt suicide. Out of these one million, only about 700,000 receive medical attention. Due to these alarming statistics, the objective of this research study is to find out the causes behind suicide cases and suicide attempts among young people under the age of 25 using an interdisciplinary approach. Identifying potential causes helps determine the appropriate solutions or medical remedy for a particular cause. The research also helps to evaluate the possible ways on how to prevent suicides among adolescents and young adults, helping decrease the morbidity rate among this population. Lastly, the research is important for the purpose of understanding what specific aspects of society can be shown to trigger adolescents and young adults to commit suicide. For many reasons, knowledge must be utilized from multiple viewpoints as determined by various disciplines in order to fully understand these stressful experiences (Repko, 2005). Moreover, suicide is a complex issue that can no longer be confined in the domains of mental and medical health. According to Goldsmith (2002), â€Å"suicide is a consequence of complex interactions among biological, psychological, cultural and sociological factors†. Thus an interdisciplinary approach is necessary to achieve the objective of this study. For this particular research study, the perspectives of psychology, sociology and religion disciplines are investigated and analyzed in relation to suicide. Psychology helps determine the relationship between suicide and the state and characteristics of the human mind and behavior. The field of psychology helps understand why certain groups like adolescents and young adults have high suicide potential and tendency of having suicidal behavior. Sociology, on the other hand, assists in the understanding of several sociological factors of committing and attempting suicide. Psychological pains are commonly caused by sociological factors such as exposure to suicide or suicide attempts, relationships, and interactions among the member of the society and may increase the potential of having suicidal behaviors. In view of that, psychology and sociology are interrelated disciplines when it comes to determining the causes of suicide. Sociology encompasses several issues such as culture, media, peer, family, demographics, ethnicity, and socioeconomics that may influence the behavior and thinking of adolescents and young adults. Investigation of the religion perspective discipline shows how moral values, religious beliefs and practices influence the behavior and thinking of most people including the young adults. In the United States alone where ninety-five percent of Americans believe in God, more than fifty percent of them pray daily, forty percent attend church weekly, and almost seventy-five percent of Americans say their approach to life is grounded on their religious faith (Matthews et al, 1998, p. 118). Religion is considered as a significant part of people’s way of living, resulting to various beliefs about issues. It is perceived that the more a person is religiously committed, more likely he or she is to avoid suicide for suicide is considered to be a mortal sin for most religions. To accomplish the objective of the study, various secondary sources such as peer-reviewed journals, earlier research studies and books pertaining to the disciplines involved are reviewed and serve as the basis for any claim this paper will make. These sources also include interdisciplinary research studies that have already simultaneously discussed suicide in the disciplinary perspective of psychology, religion or sociology. The behavior of adolescents can be studied through the discipline of psychology. Adolescence is considered as a crucial stage because it is the time a person experiences a lot of changes and challenges including: biological and sexual maturation, development of personal identity, development of intimate relationships with an appropriate peer, and establishment of independence and autonomy in the context of the socio-cultural environment (Christie Viner, 2005, p. 301). It is also the stage when abstract thinking, law of morality, and ideology are developed (p. 301), thus adolescents have the tendency to reject or accept ideas, react, and resist to situations during this stage. Adolescents, since they are searching for identity, are easily influenced. According to Resnick et al (1997, p. 823) â€Å"adolescent well-being is largely the product of interactions among multiple contexts in which adolescents are embedded†. Media exposure, peers and family are all included in these multiple contexts that have psychological effects on adolescents. They are also easily influenced because of their idealism that has made adolescents vulnerable to sad and disappointing situations that may result in depression and consequently, suicide. According to Bennet (1994), adolescents and young adults with history of depression, a previous suicide attempt, a family history of psychiatric disorders, family disruption, and certain chronic or debilitating physical disorders or psychiatric illness are at higher risk of committing or attempting suicide. Among these factors, depression was found out to be the most common clinical syndrome of suicidal behavior (Petrie Chamberlain, 1983) and approximately 66 percent of those who attempted suicide have depressive symptoms (Rich et al, 1990). There are also life stressors that some young adults cannot handle yet like parental separation, parental alcoholism, parental abuse and related family problems, death of a loved one or close friend, and personal injury or physical illness (Finch Poznanski, 1971; Marcus, 1996; Pfeffer, 1986). For those who have the potential to have suicidal attempts or commit suicide, the most common reactions to these stressors are revenge, anger, hurting one’s self, smoking, drug use, alcohol abuse and suicide (Hepfler, 1998). Sociology is essentially about the society and the interactions of its members. Adolescents are part of the society and the interactions occurring in it. One of these interactions is friendship. Friends and peers are parts of the social network and is one of the central contexts for adolescents (Bearman Moody, 2004, p. 89). Adolescents who are still at the stage of finding their identity needed strong association and belonging and that isolation from peers leads to lower estimations of self-worth and self confidence (Tani et al, 2001). Media, on the other hand, is a strong influence on adolescents and young adults. Young people are very much exposed to popular media such as television, radio, movies, Internet, and reading materials. Rustad et al (2003, p. 121) found out that viewing films, listening to music, and other forms of media usage can have negative psychological impact on adolescents including: emotional arousal; activation of aggressive thoughts, emotions, expectations, and memories; weakening inhibitions against aggressive behavior; desensitizing reactions to violence; reducing empathy toward victims; and providing model of specific techniques. Curran (1987, p. 108) and Patros (1988, p.43) find that television, movies, books and some reading materials often portray suicide as a positive act, resulting to adolescents showing more acceptance to death including their own death. Some of the ways in which media have portrayed suicide to adolescents include: â€Å"a peaceful sleep that will make everything better; a means of punishing someone; a way of forcing someone to express their love for them; a way of being reunited with a deceased other; a way of expressing great love; and an escape from feelings of helplessness and hopelessness† (Bondora Goodwin, 2005, p. 9). Demographics were also found out to have significance on young people’s tendency of having suicidal thoughts or committing suicides. Gay youths, for instance, are more likely to commit suicide; the stigma, verbal and physical abuse they experienced leads to lower self-esteem, making them a high-risk population (Romero, 1999, p. 117). The same study was conducted by Russell and Joyner (2001) who found out that sexual minority youth are more likely to have suicide ideation and attempt, reflecting that sexual orientation can be a cause or a determinant of the causes of suicide among young people. In a study conducted by Molina Duarte (2006), it was found out that female adolescents are more likely to attempt suicide compared to their male counterparts. On the same study, ethnic minorities like American Indians or Alaskan Native adolescents are more probable to attempting suicide. Such study strongly suggests that demographic characteristics such as race and sex are determinants of risk factors. Religion is by far the discipline that has been the topic of many research studies about suicide. There are few literatures suggesting the relationship between religion and suicide like that of Kendler et al (2003) which concluded that some dimensions of religiosity are related to reduced risk of particular psychiatric disorders. In relation to suicide, this study suggests that religious beliefs can affect the thinking of people, reducing suicide ideation. The study conducted by Malone et al (2000) also suggests that religion can provide ‘reasons for living’, allowing people experiencing depressive episodes to be more optimistic about life, reducing the feeling of hopelessness and thus reducing the risk of committing suicide. This study is supported by the study conducted by Dervic et al (2004) which suggests that religious affiliation is associated with less suicidal behavior in depressed patients and that religiously affiliated subjects may function as protective factors against suicide attempts (p. 2303). Moreover, religious commitment was reported to promote social and family ties and reduces alienation, a social network provided by religion provide emotional support, nurturance and a sense of belonging (Koenig et al, 2001; Walls Zaritt, 1991). Religiosity is also associated with behaviors such as lower hostility, less anger, and less aggressiveness, behaviors opposite to suicidal behavior reflecting that religious people are less likely to commit suicide (Storch Storch, 2002). The purpose of this research then is to identify the causes of suicide and suicidal attempts among the adolescents by describing suicidal behaviors and the underlying causes behind such behaviors which are commonly due to stressors and sociological factors. Religious affiliations and commitment also serve as determinants on the possibility of committing suicide. Religious and moral beliefs commonly shape the behavior of a person, thus less commitment or more commitment and affiliation to religion may also be a cause of suicidal behavior. That is, it is expected to determine, through this study, if the people who are more committed with their respective religion are less likely to commit or attempt suicide.