Intercultural communication Reflective Journal Assignment

Intercultural communication Reflective Journal - Assignment Example However, multiculturalism presents a huge challenge to intercultural communication (Bloomfield 2007). Therefore, it is important to learn about intercultural communication in order to overcome the obstacles that multiculturalism presents. In this reflective journal, I focus on the aspects of intercultural communication, networking, and career management. In addition, I will also reflect on two major guest presentations, one by a professional from the Butterfly movement, and another by Mr. Adam Whitefield of the World Youth International. Finally, I will reflect on the effectiveness of this journal as a learning experience. 1. Intercultural Communication The aspect of intercultural communication has been core in this course. I have gathered wide and important knowledge on this aspect, and I expect this to be the foundation of my future interactions, both at the professional and social levels. This knowledge, I have acquired through classwork, and other out-of-class activities. The mos t important thing to is that I have learnt and mastered the meaning of intercultural communication. I now understand that this kind of communication is complex and challenging, as it involves people from different backgrounds. I have read in Kalscheuer (2009), that the coming in contact of different people due to the advanced technologies and communication, presents a challenge to intercultural communication. Therefore, although this presents diverse opportunities to people, it is also a common root of conflicts today. However, this course has been eye opening to me, thus my competence level in intercultural communication has improved. Different class activities, including group work, have been a major way through which I have learnt about intercultural communication, and experienced it. Through group work, I have had the opportunity to interact with different colleagues, some of whom I do not share similar social or ethnic background. Together we have discussed, communicated, and l earnt about cultural differences from each other. This also gave me a chance to challenge my assumptions, attitudes, and perceptions I had previously held about certain ethnic groups. Therefore, today, I have learnt the importance of cultural diversity, and I have let go of all the cultural stereotypes I held about certain ethnicities. I have learnt that when one lacks knowledge about intercultural communication, they might fail to see beyond the physical appearance of an individual, because of the irrelevant assumptions and stereotypes, which act as obstructions. Through this, therefore, I have acquired considerable cultural intelligence, which will be of great benefit to my future career, especially when working in an international environment, where I have to deal with clients and colleagues from diverse ethnic backgrounds. 2. Networking With regard to networking, through this course, I have theoretically come to terms with the popular phrase, "It's not what you know, it's who yo u know." In other words, networking is an important aspect of every professional, as technical skills alone are insufficient for one to realize success in their career. This involves making connections and building relationships with different people, mainly for career support and advice. Apart from being of great value to individuals,

Art and Antiques Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Art and Antiques - Essay Example (MTI, 2005) The modern art market in the UK equals to 26% of the world market, and 50% of the European markets. Modern art includes the works dating since the middle of the 2oth century until the present time. It is notable, that with the changes of the surrounding in which we live, with changing quality and inner style of art, it is also becoming more marketing and some critics even state that modern artists work depending on the marketing conjuncture and the needs and demand at the market; moreover, with the development of media the popularity of selling art through Internet and online auctions acquires new meaning and can soon become the principal means of selling modern art all over the world. The demand for modern art, as well as the prices and revenues tend to go along with the economic cycles; moreover, through the periods of economic recession art appears to be one of the most vulnerable areas and is seriously damaged by financial losses and low demand. As it has been said, the main aim of the work is to conclude, whether the modern art in the market is an attractive object of investment; this is why it should be noted that art was always viewed as the means of investing finances, its profitability is much similar to that of the stock market. (Moore, 2004) Since much art and antiques are viewed as an investment, the art market index correlates approximately with that of the stock market; however, a healthy stock market and higher interest rates also attract capital away from alternative investments. This is because stocks and cash savings produce dividends and returns that are more attractive, when the stock market is buoyant and interest rates high, than the capital exchange value of art and antiques.' (Moore, 2004) It is notable, that recent years have become a landmark in the demand for modern British art - it was constantly growing. The works of art produced through the period of 1920 to 1980 (the period which is supposed to be contemporary) are selling well, and all styles of modern art from conservative realism to post-war abstraction are equally demanded. In order to understand the reason for the positive changes in the UK modern art market and to discuss the principal distribution channels about it, it is worth looking into the depth of the modern art market in the country. International art movements were traditionally much more popular than modern British art, making it come back to the background of the European art market and thus losing its popularity. 'The British have always been peculiarly apologetic about their hometown talents, preferring instead to extort the virtues of their European and American counterparts.' (Woolmer, 2004) Only the recent ten years have become the note of the shift towards the attitudes in the British modern art and the Cork street is now becoming the principal distribution channel, earning serious profits on promoting British art, though only now the British masterpieces start to catch up with the European works of the same level in financial estimates. British art has always been noted to be 'underpriced' and only now the prices for the works of British modern art start to reach the level of their quality. For example, the gentle oil of Sennen Cove by Laura Knight was the real stir at

Tv Cooking Show Essay Example for Free

Tv Cooking Show Essay Ever sit at home with nothing to do? That’s how I feel all the time! Especially when I’m off from school, work, and simply everything. When I have nothing to do, my basic routine is to sit on the couch with my dog and turn on the TV. If Disney Channel is not an option to watch, I would turn to channel fifty-three, the Food Network. Watching the Food Network brightens my knowledge to a variety of cooking. The show taught me how to filet a fish, how to grill a lobster to perfection, and how to make one amazing pork chop. To be honest, without the Food Network shows, I would still be able to cook, but the foods would not be as good and flavorful. If I did not watch any cooking show, the only way for me to cook would be out of my crock pot. My foods without any lessons from the TV would be plain, tasteless, and simple. Being a student at Louisiana Culinary Institute, cooking and baking hold a very promising place in my life. Although it’s out of boredom that I watch the Food Network, cooking and baking is what I do everyday. Growing up I loved watching my mom and grandma do what they do best in the kitchen cooking. Admiring and watching them brought me to my passion in the culinary field. Watching them cook taught me a few things as well. Even though my cooking can not be compared to theirs, it does come pretty close. When I watch the Food Network, my favorite show is â€Å"Diners, Dive-Ins, and Dives† with the host and chef, Guy Fieri. This show is perfect for me because I love to travel and I love to eat. The show is about Guy Fieri’s quest around the world to find the best diners that serve the best foods. Good foods, cheap prices, lay-back locations, and traveling is all that I can ask for, and this show have gotten my vote. Not only do I find out where to eat, I also learn how some of these amazing foods are prepared. What more can I ask for? Every year, traveling is always on my calendar and agenda. When I travel, the most important thing is location, where to eat, and prices. Watching â€Å"Diners, Dive-Ins, and Dives† helps me know where I can go to eat when I’m out of town and help me save money. The thing that is so interesting when I watch Guy Fieri’s show is that anything that I crave for at home, I can make for myself if the restaurant is not around. The show taught me how to cook delicious foods within my price range. Watching the show helps me plan any road-trips much easier. It doesn’t matter where I travel, Guy Fieri can always refer me to a good place to dine.

Impacts of the 2003 Iraq War

Impacts of the 2003 Iraq War The impact of the 2003 Iraq war on both the war on terror  and the prospects for peace in the Middle East Introduction The reasons for the U.S. led war in Iraq in 2003 were numerous and, as it turns out, rather complicated. But, for better or worse, the U.S. led coalition of nations invaded Iraq with â€Å"shock and awe† in 2003. This war in Iraq was conducted under the banner of â€Å"the war on terror.† This second U.S. led military endeavor into Iraq had a twofold mission, which was combative and aggressive on the one hand, and more conciliatory and democratizing on the other. These were the original intentions. The questions to be explored in this paper revolve around these dual aspects of the 2003 Iraq war. How has it affected the overall and global â€Å"war on terror,† and has it achieved a measure of peace and stability in the Middle East? From the beginning of the recent U.S. led war efforts in Iraq, there has been a twofold mission announced by President George W. Bush. The first mission is centered in the war against all terrorists and those who harbor terrorist organizations.[1] The second has been the desire to plant the seed of democracy in the Middle East; a desire which the President hoped might flourish into an eventual, lasting peace. In his 2002 State of the Union address, President Bush said, â€Å"We seek a just and peaceful world beyond the war on terror.†[2] In this line, his commitment to a war against terror is evident, but so is his desire to help bring about a peaceful world. The very name of the military offensive dubbed by the Bush Administration was â€Å"Operation Iraqi Freedom.† A â€Å"Just War† and the Necessity of Peace In all recent discussions of Just War theories, scholarship is united at least in the aspect of the theory that involves the attempt at peace following the war. That is, no war can be considered â€Å"just† if the winner merely walks away from the loser of a given war without any attempt to bring about a measure of stability, security, and peace. Much of this reasoning has to do with the ideas bound up within the just-war tradition. There are many scholars, secular, Catholic, and otherwise, writing within this tradition, as it pertains to the 2003 Iraq war. As George Weigel notes in a recent essay, in the writings of contemporary scholars in this tradition (e.g., James Turner Johnson and Michael Walzer), one encounters the essence of an approach to war that is commensurate with the U.S. President’s intentions expressed above. To engage in a war justly is not only to fight those forces of evil that seek to dominate or corrupt one’s society, nor is it merely about how nations ought to engage in warfare. Although those are considerations brought to bear on just-war theorizing, the fundamental underpinning of this approach to thinking about war â€Å"is ultimately about the peace we seek to establish in contrast to the war the terrorists have set in motion.†[3] That is, the overarching goal in all wars (including the war on terror) should be the eventual achievement, not merely of removing immediate threats to national security or of pacification of an enemy, of using war as an instrument to establish peace in a land. Peace brings prosperity, whereas continual war and factionalism never bring about progress or prosperity – only suffering which seems endless to those affected by it. The Successes, Trials and Tribulations of the War Perhaps because we are still so near the beginning of the war and because the operation continues to this moment, it is difficult to gauge the relative success of the war efforts themselves and as regards the broader â€Å"war on terror.† In fact, the situation today is still the reality that the success or failure of the war depends largely on who you ask. The war effort has been a politically polarizing issue, which has certainly affected the press, as well as the scholarly community. A simple survey of the books on the shelves to the articles and essays within journals will reveal this truth. It is therefore somewhat difficult to get a proper understanding of exactly what the ramifications of the 2003 Iraq war may be for the broader war on terror, but there is at least some consensus in a few areas useful for exploration in this regard. There are those who, like Charles Hill, can find little more than wide-reaching success in the current war efforts. He writes, â€Å"Iraq is moving toward the full legitimacy that Saddam Hussein stole from the Iraqi people. Sovereignty has been restored, free elections have been held, and a constitution has been approved.†[4] The press and other scholars have, on the other hand, not been so friendly in their detractions and perceptions of the war efforts. The â€Å"Reviews Responses† section of recent editions of the journal Foreign Affairs have been filled with review essays of books very critical of the war.[5] Sometimes the reviews are sympathetic; often times they are not. All of this is supportive of the difficult task ahead of scholars regarding the effort to separate the hubris from the reality of what implications the 2003 Iraq war may have for peace and the larger war on terror. There is no denying the success of disposing of the Taliban in Afghanistan and of Saddam Hussein and his regime in Iraq. This success was decisive, dramatic, and, in the words of Victor Davis Hanson, â€Å"audacious.†[6] Both of these regimes were legitimately argued to have been the most oppressive and potentially dangerous in the region. This is perhaps one of the most compelling reasons adhered to by most Americans originally supporting both war efforts. The question on the minds of most in the scholarly community is whether there was adequate planning for the immediate post-war environment.[7] However, even for those who were very supportive of the initial decision to invade Iraq, recent events over the last year at least, have been sobering. In an article written for the April edition of the journal First Things, George Weigel identifies four distinct wars that have constituted the entire Iraq war since 2003. The first war was the obvious one of deposing Saddam Hussein and creating conditions for the responsible establishment of an interim government and relative stability. This war was concluded quickly and successfully, most all scholars agree. The second war erupted shortly after the first had ended, and this one was against the Baathist loyalists and recalcitrants. The third war broke out as Jihadists (i.e., â€Å"al-Qaeda in Iraq†) began to flood into Iraq through the under-watched and unprotected borders and tried to disrupt the democracy being established there as well as drive out the â€Å"infidels† from the Gulf. The fourth, and perhaps most danger ous today, is the practical civil war that broke out in earnest between Sunnis insurgents and Shia militias after the bombing of a major Shia shrine in February, 2006. Weigel argues that only the first of these four wars has ended. The other three continue to this day and overlap each other.[8] Is it possible that the U.S. led coalition could have anticipated these mini-wars which followed the success of the first? Is it likely that the coalition did all it could to establish a peaceful, post-war environment? Reconstruction Challenges One of the sharpest criticisms of the 2003 Iraq war, even by those who originally supported it, is that there was not enough planning in terms of rebuilding the nation after the decisive defeat of the Iraqi military. First, by any reasonable standards, the amount committed to the reconstruction of Iraq after the war was not nearly enough. In hindsight, all seem to recognize this. Though the intentions of the Bush Administration were admirable in that they sought the just-war approach, which was to replace the dangerous regime with democracy, freedom, and a re-built nation, the reality was that through the combination of inadequate funds and bloated bureaucracy, the U.S. did not adequately anticipate what would realistically be needed to bring their intentions about.[9] George Weigel points out that only $2.5 billion had been originally budgeted for reconstruction assistance, and this was far away from the actual amount needed, given the dilapidated state of the nation due to Saddamâ €™s misrule and a decade of U.N. sanctions.[10] Peace through Civil War? The war created what most analysts have agreed to be a political vacuum. Once the rule of Saddam Hussein was done away with, there was not a quick enough turnaround time for a new and, perhaps most importantly, legitimized ruling government. The largest looming danger now is the risk of civil war in Iraq, which will almost certainly follow from the near-future withdrawal of U.S. forces from the country, as most scholars agree. â€Å"Especially if the United States withdraws from Iraq, the odds are good that a military coup in which some subset of the Iraqi army leadership declares that the elected government is not working and that a strong hand is necessary to impose order will result.†[11] As alluded to above, the civil war began to erupt after the bombing of the Shia holy site in February, 2006. At this point, it seems that the Sunni minority in Iraq, which has been a constant trouble from nearly the beginning, is only exacerbating its violence against the Shia to the south . Under the self-styled leadership of Muqtada al-Sadr, the various Shia militia forces have engaged in gross acts of terror in return.[12] Conclusion In a recent article, Victor Davis Hanson takes a realistic approach to the successes in Iraq. They cannot be underplayed, nor devalued. The overturning of the Iraqi regime, which was the main goal of the war, was achieved and likely the world is better for it. On the other hand, in retrospect the post-war aftermath was not fully appreciated until it was far too late. Three separate wars therefore erupted, and the most significant (the civil war) looms on the not-too-distant horizon. The prospects for peace are still available to the Middle East but only with properly calculated U.S. led coalition strategy for the future. If nothing else, the various shortcomings of the recent war will hopefully serve as a corrective and impetus to future successes in the war on terror. Successes have occurred, to be sure, but so have enormous challenges to peace, world-wide. Bibliography Bottum, Joseph, and Michael Novak. â€Å"The Leadership of George W. Bush: Con Pro.† First Things. March, 2007, No. 171, pp. 31-35. Diamond, Larry. â€Å"The Pressure Builds.† Hoover Digest. 2006, No. 3, pp. 21-29. Dobriansky, Paula J., Henry A. Crumpton, and F. Gregory Gause III. â€Å"Tyranny and Terror: Will Democracy in the Middle East Make Us Safer?† Foreign Affairs. Jan/Feb, 2006. Vol 85, No. 1, pp. 135-138. Fearon, James D. â€Å"Iraq’s Civil War.† Foreign Affairs. Mar/Apr, 2007. Vol. 86, No. 2, pp. 2-15. Feldman, Noah. What We Owe Iraq: War and the Ethics of Nation Building. Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2004. Hanson, Victor Davis. â€Å"Five Years On.† Hoover Digest. 2006, No. 4, pp. 82-86. Hanson, Victor Davis. â€Å"Hard Pounding.† Hoover Digest. 2006, No. 3, pp. 10-17. Hill, Charles. â€Å"The Rogues are Losing: Why the Rogues of the Middle East Have a Very Short Future.† Hoover Digest. 2005, No. 4, pp. 66-68. Kagan, Frederick W. â€Å"Iraq is Not Vietnam.† Policy Review. Dec, 2005 Jan, 2006, No. 134, pp. 3-14. Weigel, George. â€Å"Just War and Iraq Wars.† First Things. April, 2007, No. 172, pp. 14-20. Yoo, John. The Powers of War and Peace: The Constitution and Foreign Affairs after 9/11. Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 2005. 1 [1] These commitments are very readily found in his 2002, 2003 and 2004 â€Å"State of the Union† addresses, as well as in his â€Å"Address to a Joint Session of Congress and the American People,† given on September 20, 2001. All of these speeches are available at http://www.whitehouse.gov. [2] It would seem that there are few who disagree with the President’s intentions in this regard. Renowned Middle East scholar, Bernard Lewis has long argued that the war on terror and the search for freedom are bound up the one with the other. The two must exist side by side and cannot exist one without the other. NYU law professor Noah Feldman argues that â€Å"the most defensible account of our nation-building policies in Iraq 2003–4, and the standard to which future U.S. efforts should be held, is the production of a basically legitimate, functioning democracy there.† What We Owe Iraq: War and the Ethics of Nation Building (Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2004), p. 20. [3] George Weigel, â€Å"Just War and Iraq Wars,† First Things, April, 2007, no. 172, p. 14. Weigel is here quoting James Turner Johnson. [4] Charles Hill, â€Å"The Rogues are Losing: Why the Rogues of the Middle East Have a Very Short Future,† Hoover Digest. 2005, no. 4, p. 68. In this same essay, he goes on to point out the various ramifications of the initial stages of success of the Iraq war: Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Lebanon all having positive moves and reactions to the strength of the initial war in 2003. Libya’s decision to give up its arsenal is probably the most dramatic ramification of the initial successes of the war that supporters can point to, as Hill does in his essay. [5] The January/February 2006 edition of Foreign Affairs is a perfect example of this phenomenon. Every single review essay of that edition deals with the Iraq war. [6] â€Å"Five Years On.† Hoover Digest, 2006, no. 4, p. 84. Regarding the progress wrought by the Iraq war, Hanson writes, â€Å"thousands of terrorists killed, Al Qaeda scattered, Europe galvanized about Islamism and sobered about the consequences of its cheap anti-U.S. rhetoric, Iran’s nuclear antics revealed, democracy birthed in the Middle East, Palestinian radicals exposed for their fraud, the United nations under overdue scrutiny, America much better defended at home† came largely as a result of the war on terror, beginning with Afghanistan and culminating in Iraq. There is much significant impact there to be pondered. [7] Victor Davis Hanson, â€Å"Hard Pounding,† Hoover Digest, 2006, no. 3, pp. 14-15. [8] Weigel, â€Å"Just War and Iraq Wars,† p. 15. Frederick W. Kagan agrees with this assessment of the various wars being fought in Iraq, although he believes that Weigel’s second war largely ended with the capture of Saddam Hussein. Cf. â€Å"Iraq is Not Vietnam,† Policy Review, Dec, 2005 Jan, 2006, no. 134, p. 6. [9] Although, to be fair, it should be pointed out that former Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, did anticipate that the cost of military operations and rebuilding efforts would amount to $3.9 billion per month in 2003. Cf. John Yoo, The Powers of War and Peace: The Constitution and Foreign Affairs after 9/11 (Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 2005), p. 157. [10] Weigel, p. 17. [11] James D. Fearon, â€Å"Iraq’s Civil War,† Foreign Affairs, Mar/Apr, 2007, vol. 86, no. 2, p. 6. For concurring opinions see Larry Diamond, â€Å"The Pressure Builds,† Hoover Digest, 2006, no. 3, p. 29 and Weigel, p. 19. [12] Diamond, â€Å"The Pressure Builds,† pp. 26-8.

Gender Gap in Cyberspace Essay -- Music Technology Papers

Gender Gap in Cyberspace Cyberspace as a frontier is open to all comers, but currently the majority of explorers and accomplished users appear to be mostly white males. Deborah Tannen, in her article "Gender Gap in Cyberspace," discusses some of her experiences and conclusions regarding this difference in usage of computers by males and females.(The full name of the author and of the article need to appear in the first couple of sentences. . .) She sums up her main point (main claim)when she asserts, "Men want to force computers to submit. Women just want computers to work" (141). (Claim is locked to a concrete piece of text to help show how the analyst is working. . .)This claim of fact is blunt and simplistic but works very well to attract the attention of her audience.(Names the claim and transistions in to the next paragraph about audience.) Some of the readers drawn to Tannen's work may be the very technophiles who serve as subjects, sociologists interested in any observations of gender influenced behaviors, teachers exploring how female students grasp technology differently than male students, or general computer users who are considering networking to cyberspace.(Sounds good and is complete regarding audience, but may be a bit long.) This specific article was published in a reader entirely made up of computer related material and written for use by first year college composition students. (Helps deepen the discussion of audience, but isn't terribly pertinent, might be cut later depending on length.)This purpose influences the argumentative style of heavy reliance on personal examples most readers can relate to and also the general language choices: easy to understand vocabulary, uncomplicated syntax, and conversationa... ...t is a full time job to be a good dad," and all listeners can hear his enthusiasm for taking on this role. At the end of the song, when he urges the child to "hold my hand, hold my hand," Stevie Wonder echoes in the background, "Whenever you need me, I’ll be there," and Smith ends the song with a final word, "for the rest of your life." Clearly Smith argues that fatherhood is a rewarding challenge that cannot be entered into lightly. Yet at no point does he shame listeners into being the kind of father he respects. Instead, he leads by providing easily understood words of guidance that offend no one and teach many. His evident joy in fatherhood is pleasantly inspiring. Overall, Smith’s smooth, conversational rap of "Just the Two of Us" is a successful rhetorical presentation encouraging fathers to be consistently loving and fully present in the lives of their sons. Gender Gap in Cyberspace Essay -- Music Technology Papers Gender Gap in Cyberspace Cyberspace as a frontier is open to all comers, but currently the majority of explorers and accomplished users appear to be mostly white males. Deborah Tannen, in her article "Gender Gap in Cyberspace," discusses some of her experiences and conclusions regarding this difference in usage of computers by males and females.(The full name of the author and of the article need to appear in the first couple of sentences. . .) She sums up her main point (main claim)when she asserts, "Men want to force computers to submit. Women just want computers to work" (141). (Claim is locked to a concrete piece of text to help show how the analyst is working. . .)This claim of fact is blunt and simplistic but works very well to attract the attention of her audience.(Names the claim and transistions in to the next paragraph about audience.) Some of the readers drawn to Tannen's work may be the very technophiles who serve as subjects, sociologists interested in any observations of gender influenced behaviors, teachers exploring how female students grasp technology differently than male students, or general computer users who are considering networking to cyberspace.(Sounds good and is complete regarding audience, but may be a bit long.) This specific article was published in a reader entirely made up of computer related material and written for use by first year college composition students. (Helps deepen the discussion of audience, but isn't terribly pertinent, might be cut later depending on length.)This purpose influences the argumentative style of heavy reliance on personal examples most readers can relate to and also the general language choices: easy to understand vocabulary, uncomplicated syntax, and conversationa... ...t is a full time job to be a good dad," and all listeners can hear his enthusiasm for taking on this role. At the end of the song, when he urges the child to "hold my hand, hold my hand," Stevie Wonder echoes in the background, "Whenever you need me, I’ll be there," and Smith ends the song with a final word, "for the rest of your life." Clearly Smith argues that fatherhood is a rewarding challenge that cannot be entered into lightly. Yet at no point does he shame listeners into being the kind of father he respects. Instead, he leads by providing easily understood words of guidance that offend no one and teach many. His evident joy in fatherhood is pleasantly inspiring. Overall, Smith’s smooth, conversational rap of "Just the Two of Us" is a successful rhetorical presentation encouraging fathers to be consistently loving and fully present in the lives of their sons.

Ancient Olympics Essay -- essays research papers fc

History of the Ancient Olympic Games The Ancient Greek Olympics were not only sporting events, it was a celebration to honor the great and powerful Zeus. The Ancient Olympics were held every four years at the famous Olympia, a district of Elis, here all free Greek men were allowed to compete. The first record of the Olympic Games was held in 776 B.C. The main sports were the Pentathlon, the Equestrian Events, Pankration, and Boxing. The Pentathlon was the name for the five events in Greek gymnastics: running, jumping, wrestling, discus throwing, and javelin throwing which began with the 18th Olympiad. In the wrestling event, wrestlers were anointed with oil, dusted with powder, and forbidden to bite or gouge one another. Wrestling was looked upon as a weapon-free military exercise. Since there was no weapons wrestlers that competed used their weight and strength as an advantage especially since there were no weight categories. The Javelin was thrown in the same form back in ancient times as it is thrown today. The first recorded Olympic Games had one event, a race, called the stade which is a measure of the distance of the length of the track. By 724 B.C. a two-length race was added and by 700 B.C. there were longer distance races. By 720 B.C., men participated naked, except in the foot race in armor that weighed between fifty to sixty pounds. The outfit included a helmet, greaves, and a shield that helped young men build speed and stamina in preparation for war. The Pentathlon included three running events such as the Stade, the Diaulos, and the Dolichos. The Stade was a 200 yard foot race, was the first and only Olympic event for 13 Games. The dolichos was a variable length foot race averaging twenty stades or four thousand yards for the fifteenth Olympiad. The Diaulos was a four hundred yard foot race that was instituted for the next Olympic Games. The discus was considered by ancient Greeks, an event of rhythm, precision, and finesse of a competitor to throw the discus was as important as his strength. The discus was made of stone, iron, bronze, or lead, and was shaped like a flying saucer. The Sizes were different for the boys' division, since the boys were not expected to throw the same weighted discus as the men. The athletes who competed in the jump event used lead or stone jump weights called halteres shaped like telephone receivers to increase ... ...rces, but in the historic years their founder is said to be Oxylos whose descendant Ifitos later rejuvenated the games. According to tradition, the Olympic Games began in 776 B.C. when Ifitos made a treaty with Lycourgos the king and famous legislator of Sparta and Cleisthenes the king of Pissa (Coote p. 13). The text of the treaty was written on a disc and kept in the Heraion. In this treaty that was the decisive event for the development of the sanctuary as a Panhellenic centre, the "sacred truce" was agreed, that is to say the ceasing of fighting in the entire Greek world for as long as the Olympic Games were on. As a reward for the victors, the cotinus, which was a wreath made from a branch of wild olive tree that was growing next to the opisthodomus of the temple of Zeus in the sacred Altis, was established after an order of the Delphic oracle. Works Cited Coote, James. A Picture History of the Olympics. London, England: Tom Stacey Limited, 1972. Kristy, Davida. Olympics How the Games Began. Minneapolis, Minnesota: Lerner Publications Company, 1995. Grolier, the Associated Press. The Olympic Story. Danbury, Connecticut: Grolier Enterprises INC., 1979.

Omega Case Study Report Essay

This report is based on the case study of Omega. With external pressure, the company is now encountering internal problem, like high turnover and absenteeism rate. Personnel manager adopts attitude survey to analyses current situation. â€Å"Job attitudes and job performance are perhaps the two most central and enduring sets of constructs in individual-level organisational research† (David, Daniel and Philip, 2006:305). Organisations increasingly tend to use attitude survey to analyses their employees’ attitude and opinion towards employers (Paul R, 1988:145). Omega case provides an attitude survey questionnaire and relevant data. This report is based on these data to analyses the current situation of Omega, also discuss the reason of high absenteeism and turnover rate among professional staff using organisational behaviour theories, and propose recommendations for Omega to step off the dilemma. 1. The questionnaire Before deep discussion, it ought to go into the questionnaire Omega adopts, â€Å"Questionnaires can provide evidence of patterns amongst large populations†(Louis and Gravin, 2010:1). However, the design of the questionnaire has some problems. The questionnaire is consist of closed questions and open questions, including five areas in attitude evaluation, but the order of each question is â€Å"randomly presented†, which could confuse respondents when they do the questionnaire and easily get bored due to misunderstanding the purpose. In terms of open questions, their existence is to check the close questions are enough or not. Actually, experienced researchers choose open questions to understand respondents’ motivations and feelings in depth (Babara, 1965:175). 2.0 Current situation of Omega It can be describe the current situation of Omega as internal revolt and external invasion. Due to limitation, this report analyzes internal revolt of Omega. This part begins with a review of the literature on low job satisfaction. In addition, low organisational commitment, inefficient  communication system, improper leadership are also included. 2.1 Low job satisfaction In order to analyze the job satisfaction level, it is firstly should make assure what is job satisfaction. James (1992) defines job satisfaction as â€Å"the extent to which employees like their work†. And Luthans (2011:141) suggests â€Å"job satisfaction is a result of employee’s perception of how well their job provides those things that are viewed as important†. After explain job satisfaction, the measurement is put forward below . There are six facets of job satisfaction, which are the work content, financial rewards, hierarchical satisfaction, management, peers, and working conditions (Paul, 1997: 12). In terms of work content, Bozionelos (2007: 13) suggests five aspects to consider work itself, such as, skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy and feedback, which according Omega’s situation, they are low. It is a little better of the financial rewards aspect than the work content but still is low. Employees do not hold the shares of Omega and they think company underestimate their effort and their value and just 34% employees think they are paid fairly. Hierarchical satisfaction is not very clearly discussed in this case. Management satisfaction in Omega is mediate. Nevertheless, 89% of respondents think their immediate superiors treat them fairly. Other factor, namely, level of support, is low. Coworker satisfaction is not high as well because only 42% of respondents’ stay in company due to coworkers. Work condition in Omega supposes to be low because employees think manager does not care about the work condition, so work condition might be low. Through analyses above, job satisfaction of Omega could be judged as low. 2.2 Inefficient communication system David (1997, 42) defines communication process as â€Å"the transmission of information, and the exchange of meaning†. Robbins (2010: 290) points out six main parts of communication process, such as the information giver, encoding, the information, the channel, decoding, information receiver,  interference and feedback. Omega lack channel and feedback of communication process, so the process is not seriously exist in Omega. There are many directions of communication in organisation, namely vertically up and down, horizontally with coworkers (Katherine, 2012:31). Robbins (2010:291) also points out the main role of downward communication is to explain the reasons of different decisions. In Omega even the result of questionnaire is sent to the home address of employee not through company’s internal mail system. This could demonstrate the communication in company is really weak. David (1997, 42) defines communication process as â€Å"the transmission of information, and the exchange of meaning†. Furthermore, Cal and Allison (2004:6) say feedback could be an important facet to assess communicational efficiency and different company will have different emphasis on communication process. In Omega, they seldom receive feedback from their superiors. Furthermore, employees even do not know what happened in other regions of company or some issues relate to Omega. Through these analyses the communication system in Omega is really inefficient. 2.3 Low organisational commitment Organisational commitment is one of attitudes employees have towards organisation. Allen and Meyer(1991,) suggest organisational commitment consist of three parts â€Å"a desire (affective commitment: an emotional attachment to organiasation) to stay in a company; a need(continuance commitment: consider cost of leaving the company) to stay and an obligation(normative commitment: moral and ethical consideration) to stay† Though the questionnaire of Omega is not very clearly include organisational commitment questions, it still can be reckoned by similar questions. The question about belonging to Omega can be recognized as affective commitment question and only 23% of respondents think they have this feeling, which means the affective in Omega is low. In addition, when ask if any other company offered more than 5% salary will you leave Omega, 27% of respondents  will leave. And when it is raised by 10%, the result is 52%, and raised by 15% then 75% will leave. However, 89% of them do not treat financial reward is the most important aspect of their job. In this way, it could be reckoned normative commitment in Omega is low, meaning there is little moral or ethnic factor employees consider when they choose to leave company. Though there is few content of questionnaire relating to continuance commitment, organisational commitment is still low from the other two aspects. 2.4 Improper leadership Robbins (2010:316) define leadership as â€Å"the ability to influence a group toward the achievement of a vision or set of goals†. Furthermore, Bozionelos (2007:14) claims â€Å"the main role of leader is to motivate his/her subordinates.† He also points out leaders could motivate employees by using â€Å"right† style. According to OHIO style studies, high consideration sometimes is associated with less turnover and absenteeism. Employees in Omega mainly are highly educated, who have interests in company operations and have strong aspirations to get involved in their job, not just finishing the task superiors give them. Nevertheless, leaders in Omega ignore the workforce environment and adopt improper leadership, like ignoring their opinions and isolating them from the whole company, furthermore, providing unsatisfied working environment. In conclusion, leadership in Omega is improper. 3.0 Analyses high turnover and absenteeism The relationship between turnover and absenteeism is positive, which means high turnover relate to high absenteeism vice versa (Terry, 1978). There are several reasons to the high absenteeism and turnover rate. Robert (1993) figures out job satisfaction and organisational commitment negatively relate to the turnover and absenteeism. In terms of the relationship between the two, there are mainly two different views, one of which is â€Å"the commitment mediate the effect of job satisfaction† (Porter, 1974), the other one of which is the two both have impact on turnover but separately (Dougherty, 1985). This report follows the latter view. In addition, motivation theories are also mentioned below. 3.1 Job satisfaction reason Bozionelos (2007: 13) implicates the relationship between job satisfaction and absenteeism is moderate strong and Bobbins(2010: 72) supports this view and think the relationship is moderate to weak. According to these two scholars, there are many other reasons independent on job-related aspect, like the traffic situation and family stuff like child’s sick, etc. And Bozionelos(2007: ) mentions unsatisfied employees are more likely truancy than satisfied ones participate in work, which means make employees satisfying could not make sure low absenteeism, but if employees are unsatisfying they will more likely absent. Tett and Meyer(1993) conclude the relationship between job satisfaction and turnover is also moderate. However, Carsten and Spector (1987) point out job satisfaction will lead to turnover when employees find it easy to find an other similar job. 47% of respondents would leave company if they find a comparable job. In this way, job satisfaction is strongly relate to quit. Given the theory mentioned above and analyses of job satisfaction level in Omega, It could make a conclusion that job satisfaction in Omega is low and moderately leading to high turnover and absenteeism rate. 3.2 Organisational commitment reason â€Å"Empirical research on organisational commitment generally has shown commitment to be a significant predictor of turnover† (Gary, 1987). Also, John and Dennis (1990) demonstrate organisational commitment could help organisation reduce withdraw behaviour, like absenteeism and turnover. Furthermore, some scholars support the view that high organisatioanl commitment could lead to high job satisfaction (Batemen and Strasser, 1984). In terms organisational commitment itself, Robbins(2010:64) demonstrate organisational commitment negatively relate to both absenteeism and turnover, and in particular, affective commitment have stronger relationship than other two type of commitment with turnover and absenteeism. Meyer (2002) after a meta-analyses support Robbins conclusion, and figure out  affective commitment is the strongest lead to high turnover rate(Ï  = −.17). However, in terms of absenteeism, except affective commitment, the other two commitments have positive relationship with absenteeism. Though there is few content of questionnaire relating to continuance commitment, organisational commitment in Omega still could explain the high turnover and absenteeism rate, because affective commitment is low, which is the strongest aspect influence withdraw behaviour. 3.3 Motivation reason Motivation theories could explain the high turnover and absenteeism is because lack of motivation will have influence job satisfaction and organisational commitment, which have discuss above to be proved could impact quit and missing the job. Motivation theories used in this report are equity theory. Mullins(2002:443) explains equity theory as â€Å"focuses on peoples’ feeling of how fairly they have been treated in comparison with the treatment received by others.† He points out one of inequity behaviour is â€Å"leaving the field† to find balance. In this way, employees are tend to absent and find other equal job. In addition, Laura (2000) suggests wage equity is related to worker motivation. Employees in Omega believe they are under inequity situation, because of inequity input and output. About 66% of respondents think they are paid unfairly. As a result, employees are tend to absent and change their job. 4.0 Recommendation This part is mainly based on motivation theory and motivation applications method. Apart from motivate employees, improving job satisfaction, consummating communication system are also used to propose recommendations. 4.1 Motivate employee Maslow’s theory and Herzberg’s theory are applied to suggestions. Though popular with its criticism, Maslow’s five level hierarchy theory is always  the basic theory of motivation and is simply applied to real case. Maslow hierarchy need theory consists of five needs of a person, which, from the bottom to the top, are physiological, safety, love, esteem, self-actualization (Maslow, 1954). These needs are satisfied until the lower needs are fulfilled. Mangers need to identify dominant needs during employees then provide incentives to satisfy them in order to improve job satisfaction (Bozionelos , 2007: 29). In Omega case, manager should first identify what employees really needs. Except relatively satisfied salary, they also need more control in their work and more communication with superior. Next theory using to propose suggestions is Herzberg’s two-factor theory, which are hygiene factors and motivators. Hygiene factors are mostly about work conditions and environment and actually hygiene cannot motivate employees, but if hygiene factors are not filled, they will lead to dissatisfaction. Motivators are mostly about work itself and work content. Robbins (2010:143) suggests it is advised to use motivator to motivate people, like â€Å"promotional opportunities, opportunities for personal growth, recognition, responsibility and achievement†. Omega manager or personnel manager can follow this suggestion to redesign the job in Omega. 4.2 Improve job satisfaction Locke (1976) says job satisfaction is a â€Å"positive emotional state†, so improving job satisfaction is same as improving the positive emotion of employees. There are several aspects could lead to high level of job satisfaction. One of the most significant aspects relating to high job satisfaction is enjoying the job. Enjoyable job should provide necessary training, variety and authorization (Robbins, 2010:67). In Omega, managers could decrease close supervision when employees working, which probably could increase job satisfaction. 4.3 Consummate communication system As mentioned above, the communication process is important in an  organisation. Omega’s manager should provide a platform for employees to express their opinions, complains and proposals. In addition, frequent feedback is also essential during the whole communication process even though it may be the last step. Formulating new feedback policy in accordance with job’s need. 4.4 Improve employee involvement Lawer (1986) suggests â€Å"job involvement has been considered the key to activating employee motivation†. In addition, employee involvement could also help improve job satisfaction (Steve, 1996). Involving employee can not only help improve job satisfaction but also help improve organiasational commitment. Daily update e-mail could provide latest news of company as well as satisfy employees’ need to understand organisation. Furthermore, involving employee could develop a feeling of belonging to organisation. 5.0 Conclusion Through the analyses above, it is clear that there are numerous of problems in Omega. Low job satisfaction, inefficient communication system, low organisational commitment and improper leadership are the key problems. Some of them strongly relate to high turnover and absenteeism rate, some of them moderately relate. Recommendations are based on the problems, which most could be applied to real work. More importantly, taking actions to make ideas into reality is the key. 6. Personal reflection This part mainly discusses the writer’s personal opinion on management. Fortunately, this case study gives me a lot of thinking about management and leadership. As a manager in a company especially in a highly educated organisation must pay attention to employees’ opinion towards company and management. Their involvement not only can level up their job satisfaction but also can help improve efficient of management. In addition, motivation system is another factor that should be taken seriously. Though there are many theories in motivation and many ways to motivate employees, actually,  manager could choose one and utilize effectively, then can benefit a lot. 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