Political Act Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Political Act - Essay Example He resigned the Yugoslav presidency amid demonstrations, following the disputed presidential election of September 24, 2000. (wikipedia.com). He surrendered to the JSO (an elite group of police in Serbia), to avoid forced arrest in April 1, 2001. This put in compliance with an American deadline. The warrant had previously been made on suspicion of corruption, abuse of power, and embezzlement. The charges were domestic. The legitimacy of the arrest was not proven since Milosevic surrender; however putting Milosevic in jail is not legal. The investigation does not have a hard evidence to convict the former president. The Serbian Prime Minister Milosevic act during the war convicted him for committing war crimes. During the Yugoslav war in 1990 and Kosovo war in 1999 he conducted his own defense at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, where he stood accused of crimes against humanity, violating the laws or customs of war, grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions and genocide. The decision of the court of not giving him the proper medical treatment is legitimate in the sense that he is convicted of a crime, but the said action is illegal since every person is entitled to have a proper treatment. His trial ended without verdict because he died during the proceedings. He suffered from heart ailments and high blood pressure. In the case of President Milosevic he had made a legitimate act during the war since he is the president; however he violated the laws of war and the Geneva Conventions. The political acts performed by Milosevic are a good example of legitimate act but legal. There are also cases wherein political act is legitimate but it does not necessarily need to be legal. In the case of the American and the British decision to attacked Iraq and engaged into war is legitimate. In the inquiry of people in the website of Noam Chompsky one question goes like this: "Do you think that, after the unjustified and unjustifiable war against Iraq, the world will lose the meaning of its existence, like in the field of language, when we lose the grammatical rules Will we automatically lose the reference of the meaning of sentences, and consequently the meaning of the world around us" Noam answer this question by citing one statement done by a follower of the Iraq war, Michael Glennon, who argues that we should recognize that international law and international institutions are what he calls hot air. They have proven their inapplicability by the fact that the United States disregards them, and he says it is right to disregard them, and the United States must maintain the right to use force as it chooses, independent of these institutions, which we simply have to dismiss and disregard. The act of Americans and British against Iraq has gain criticism throughout the world. But the said act is legitimate. The legality of attacking someone is not being followed especially during the time of war or the need to have a war. In the case of the American President he needs to make decisions depending on the

Ready To Eat Foods English Language Essay

Ready To Eat Foods English Language Essay Street food, which is undoubtedly an essential part of people life, is widely known as ready-to-eat foods and beverages prepared and/or sold by vendors and hawker especially in streets and other similar public places (FAO 1989 cited in Alizon 1996). Differently, Alizon defines street food as an extremely heterogeneous food category, encompassing meals, drinks and snack (1996). It cannot be denied that street food has deep impacts on eating habit of many people. In fact, a study from the FAO (2007) shows that there are approximately 2.5 billion people world-wide eating street food every day; in Bangkok, street food makes up for 40 percent in total nutrition intake of the resident. Additionally, researches indicate that it also plays a substantial socio-economy role in the employment potential. The Equity Policy Center notes that the street food trade consists 6 percent of the total labor force in Zinguinchor, Senegal and Manikganj, Bangladesh to 15 percent and 25 percent in Iloil Cit y, the Philippines, and Bogor, Indonesia, respectively (Cohen 1985 cited in Alizon 1996). Thanks to many benefits, the development of street is continuously on the rise. On the other hand, the question of whether or not street food is completely good remains controversial. Therefore, this paper, with a view to helping us have deeper knowledge about street food, will discuss its development, characteristics, advantages and disadvantages. 2. Discussion of findings 2.1 The development From the ancient time, street food was considered as a vital part of people life. There is no information suggesting the exact time when the street food appears, however, it is supposed to have appeared very early in the human history. A traveling Florentine reported in the late 1300s that in Cairo, people carried picnic cloths made of raw hide to spread on the streets and eat their meals of lamb kebabs, rice and fritters that they had purchased from street vendors. (Wikipedia) Today, like many other types of services for daily life, street food has been developed fast and be loved by billion people throughout the world. The FAO points out that the increased popularity of street food is seemed to be closely linked with the change in the lifestyle and family structure (2013). In fact, in such a modern life as nowadays, people find it difficult to have enough time to relax themselves, let alone cook and enjoy meals together regularly; therefore, many of them see street food as a perfect substitution food. As a result, the demand of street food becomes higher. Street food can be found in every part of the world, particularly in crowed cities. Look into the actual state; many people are eating street food on a regular basis and even seeing it as an indispensable part of daily life. For instant, basing on the survey did by the Nutrition Center of Ho Chi Minh city, there are over 95.5% people are utilizing street food; 51% eating street food every day and 82% using street food for breakfast (Nguyen 2003).On the other hand, thanks to the rising prevalence of street food, the street food trade also tends to be more common. There is a big number of people who are earning their life by selling street food. Specifically, Alizon (1996) mentions an estimation of EPOC indicating that in Bogor, there are approximately 18,000 vendors in a city of about 250,000; or in a smaller area like Hoankiem district, there are over 2,000 vendors (Lam 2008). With a numerous people taking part in, street food trade naturally brings a giant profit. Henrilyto (2012) s tates that the annual sale from selling food on the street in Borgor, Indonesia amount to $67 million and it is 2.2 billion in Malaysia. Obviously, street food is gradually developing and showing its impacts on aspects of our life. 2.2 The characteristics As already mentioned, street food is generally a type of fast food, which is sold popularly on the street and includes a variety of materials. Street food is more affordable, convenient and competitive in comparison with others types of food (Alizon 1996). Commonly, street food is cooked on the street and only when being offered, does the seller start to prepare; therefore, almost street food is hot and keep its best flavors. Talk about the features of street food, Dao (2008) affirms that street food is suitable for every age group, both the young and the old like eating street food. However, he also cites the hidden danger of street food for people. It is obvious that street food can be seen widely in many places, however, in each area, it has a distinct attraction. It is totally acceptable to understand that there are a plenty of types of food sold on the street and different places bring different flavors of street foods. For example, while street food in Vietnam is described as fresh and lighter than many of the cuisines in the area, the street food of Thailand is fiery and pungent with shrimp paste and fish sauce (Dorling 2011).Furthermore, to make a variety of meals, vendors often process food in a numerous ways like roasted, steamed, boiled and many others way. A study by the EPOC demonstrates that in Bogor only, a list of popular street food consists of about 300 items with majority of traditional meals and drinks (Chapman 1894 cited in Alizon 1996). With a big number of meals like this, Alizon (1996) suggests that street foods can be classified into three main types: by meal, by number and type of ingredients, and by lev el and type of processing. Clearly, the variation is an important factor; which attracts billion people each year. Not only is street food diverse in list of meals, but it also being sold in a various places. Dao (2008) suggested that the place of selling street food can be divided into five groups: selling food on transports, selling in public spaces, selling in a small house, selling in restaurant or hotel and the last is food sold in festival. In fact, street food is mostly sold in some crowed and moveable places like markets and shopping areas, commercial districts, outside schools and hospitals, residential suburbs, factories, and construction sites (Alizon 1996). Visibly, street food is sold and produced under a very simple infrastructure. 3.3The advantages and disadvantages Street food likes many others problems always having two faces: negative and positive The street food is now attracting more and more people due to many obvious benefits, namely, its low cost, convenience and its significance with some social issues. It is same in everywhere that the price of street food seems to be the least expensive in all kinds of food. Talk about the advantages of street food, Dao (2008) highlighted that street food is suitable with a majority of people because of the low price. Moreover, he also mentions that street food can satisfy many different hobbies of customers thanks to the diversity in the category. Besides the benefits above, street food also plays a meaningful role in society nowadays. Street food is expected to be a good way to introduce local culture, which attracts millions visitors each year. For instant, in the Philippines, street food is not just a plentiful source of food; it also is a fundamental part of the tradition and landscape (Henrylito 2012).It takes for granted that street food brings visitors the deep impression of lifestyle and custom in each region. Additionally, street food is considered as a potential market, which can bring a big income and create jobs for the unemployed; especially the women in urban area, whose job is usually unstable. FAO(1989) studies finds a high rate of participation of women in street food trade in some South American countries; for instant, in Colombia, 59 percent of vendors were women, and, in Peru, 64 percent (cited in Alizon,1996). However, street food can bring people some negative effects. According to Alizon (1996), the safety of street foods seems to be a major consideration, which is now under the cloud of suspicion of many people. In fact, almost food are prepared and processed under bad sanitary facilities, moreover, as mentioned before, street food is usually sold on the road or a very simple places. Therefore, street food itself carries a high risk of disease. Henrylito (2012) states that: According to experts, all street food, cooked or raw, can cause gastroenteritis, typhoid and hepatitis, depending on the bacteria or viral infection they contain. Like many other countries, street food in Vietnam develops fast; however, the safe food is one of most serious problem that Vietnam is facing to. Studies actually show that there is a high proportion of contaminated food in Vietnam. Specifically, currently up to 98% of the street food stores do not meet safety standards prescribed by the Ministry of Health (Dai 2010).According to Tran (2008), director of the National Food Safety and Hygiene, states that there are over 55 cases of poisoning food caused by street food to more than 1,300 deaths in the last three years. Thus, street food safe, which is really hard on solving, is an alarming issues not only in Vietnam, but also in many others countries throughout the world. 4. Conclusion All the findings above indicate that the increased commonness of street food is still going on in almost every part throughout the world. Undoubtedly, street food not only contributes an important part in daily diet of billion people, but it also plays a vital role in socio-economic issues in lots of areas. In contrast, street food can brings people negative effects, specifically affects people health seriously. There is a fact that the place of selling food is very simple and uncontrollable, moreover, the facilities served for processing food is also under very bad condition. Therefore, street food is always at high risk of diseases. Thus, it cannot be denied that people can take many advantages of street food. However, health is obviously the most important issue so it is necessary to consider carefully about where we should eat street food to ensure a good health. REFERENCES LIST: Alizon, Ph.D.1996, Street food in developing countries: The potential for micronutrient fortification, viewed 5 March 2013 http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNACJ872.pdf Chapman 1894 cited in Alizon Draper, Ph.D.1996, Street food in developing countries :The potential for micronutrient fortification, viewed 5 March 2013, http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNACJ872.pdf Cohen 1985 cited in Alizon Draper, Ph.D.1996, Street food in developing countries :The potential for micronutrient fortification, viewed 5 March 2013, http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNACJ872.pdf Dai, D. 2010, 98% cÆ ¡ sà ¡Ã‚ »Ã… ¸ thà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ ©c ăn Ä‘Æ °Ãƒ ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ ng phà ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ khà ´ng Ä‘Ã ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¡t chuà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ©n và ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬ ¡ sinh, viewed 5 March 2013, http://www.tin247.com/98_co_so_thuc_an_duong_pho_khong_dat_chuan_ve_sinh-10- 21574351.html Dao, M.T.2008, Ve sinh an toan thuc pham thuc an duong pho cho nguoi tieu dung, viewed 5 March 2013, http://www.medinet.hochiminhcity.gov.vn/data/news/2008/4/5397/vesinhantoanthucpham.htm Dorling, K.2011, Street food, viewed 5 March 2013, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Street_food Food and Agriculture Organization 1989,A summary of FAO studies and other activities relating to street cited in Alizon Draper ,Ph.D.1996, Street food in developing countries :The potential for micronutrient fortification, viewed 5 March 2013, http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNACJ872.pdf Food and Agriculture Organization 2007,Street food, viewed 5 March 2013, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Street_food Food and Agriculture Organization 2013, Food processing and street food, viewed 5 March 2013, http://www.fao.org/fcit/food-processing/en/ Henrilyto, D.T.2012, Street food: to eat or not to eat, viewed 5 March 2013, http://www.sunstar.com.ph/weekend-davao/street-food-eat-or-not-eat Lam, Q.H.2008, Ä Ãƒ ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚  xuà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¥t cà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¥m bà ¡n hà  ng rong trà ªn hà ¨ phà ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ Hà   Nà ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â€ž ¢i ,viewed 5 March 2013, http://www.baomoi.com/De-xuat-cam-ban-hang-rong-tren-he-pho-Ha-Noi/144/1257108.epi Nguyen, L. 2003, Hià ¡Ã‚ »Ã†â€™m hoà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¡ tà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ « thà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ ©c ăn Ä‘Æ °Ãƒ ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ ng phà ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ: Cà ³ nà ªn cà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¥p phà ©p bà ¡n hà  ng?, viewed 5 March 2013, http://dddn.com.vn/38810cat104/hiem-hoa-tu-thuc-an-duong-pho-co-nen-cap-phep-ban-hang.htm Street food, viewed 5 March 2013, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Street_food Tran, D. 2008, Thà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ ©c ăn Ä‘Æ °Ãƒ ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ ng phà ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ Mà ¡Ã‚ »Ã¢â‚¬Ëœi nguy thà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ i khuà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ©n tà ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ £! , viewed 5 March 2013, http://www.tin247.com/thuc_an_duong_pho_moi_nguy_thoi_khuan_ta%21-1-6640.html

When Worlds Collide Essay -- Culture Anglo Saxon Essays

When Worlds Collide The world of Beowulf and that of modern America have some interesting similarities. The Anglo- Saxon belief in "wyrd," or fate, is alive and well in the 21st century. Like the Anglo- Saxons, our culture regards the crime of killing one’s own kin or family to be the most heinous of all. Americans love entertainment just as much as the Anglo- Saxons of Beowulf’s time did. Of course, with our modern technology like movies, television, and the Internet, we are allowed to experience many more methods of enjoyment than medieval people were able to enjoy. However, their culture is remembered through portions of our popular culture. Within its pages, Beowulf contains the notion of â€Å"wyrd.â€Å" This is the Anglo- Saxon concept of fate, the idea that everything is destined or planned to happen. The Anglo- Saxon people believed that everything was predetermined and that all their fates were already fixed. Beowulf says to Unferth that â€Å"Fate often saves an undoomed man when his courage is good,†(p.12) meaning that fate may save a warrior if he has true courage. In modern- day America, this idea of fate is similar to the idea of having ‘an angel on your shoulder.’ Many of the people who survived the September 11th tragedy did so by missing their train that day or getting struck in traffic. One gentleman who worked high up in the first tower surfed down twelve flights of stairs as the building collapsed and survived with only a broken leg. Some believe that it was just chance or a random thing, but many believe that it was fate that saved them, the idea being that some other force had pl ans for these people and that their time on this earth was not yet over. In Beowulf’s time, the w... ... Lord of the Rings, originally a trilogy of books written by J.R.R. Tolkien, pays respect to the ancient culture and ways of the Norse people, with their traditions of oral story telling and epic quests embedded within the story’s plot. These similarities show where some of our roots as Americans come from. Our culture is a massive patchwork quilt of various cultures and ethnicity. There are strong strains of this ancient culture running through our modern society. Beowulf is only one example of the Anglo- Saxon literature we possess today, but from it, we obtain more of what their culture was and we keep some these values alive in our own ways. Works Cited Associated Press. â€Å"Doctor: Yates felt she had no choice.† http://www.msnbc.com/news/709713.asp 5 March 2002. Howe, Nicholas ed. Beowulf: A Prose Translation. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2002.

Mang Inasal: Humble Stories and Where They Are Today Essay

The epitome of success could never be achieved if one did not set a foot at the bottom of the staircase. Did you know that Mang Inasal, one of the most preferred dining places of the Filipinos today, can prove this? Where Did Mang Inasal start? Establishing its first branch in a 3-year-old unoccupied space in Robinsons Mall Carpark, Iloilo on December 12, 2003, Mang Inasal quickly became a hit for the Ilonggos. Of course, it would not be done without the efforts of its owner, Mr. Edgar Sia II. After conducting a research on what could be the common â€Å"taste† of the 16 regions in the Philippines, Sia figured out that â€Å"barbecue† (or simply, Inasal in Ilonggo) is the mass appeal—a feat that has been capturing the hearts and empty stomachs of the Filipino people. Before enterprising his business to Luzon, specifically in Manila, Mang Inasal opened its second outlet in Roxas City, Sia’s hometown. With this, his business bloomed in the provinces to 26 branches; a proof that his Inasal has really caught the Filipino tastebuds. In 2006, he finally opened his outlet in Manila, a venture that he referred to as the â€Å"make-or-break† city. It was during this year when the city was in the middle of rice shortage (and as we all know, rice is a primary food for the Filipinos). This was where he opened the â€Å"Unli Rice† promo, which was only supposed to run for two months. Seeing that it has attracted more customers, the promo became permanent and is now being simulated by other fast food chains. Where is Mang Inasal today? Right now, Mang Inasal runs in 433 outlets across the country, and is now the second largest fast food chain next to Jollibee and ahead of McDonalds, with Manila having above 100 Mang Inasal branches. As of the moment, Mang Inasal is present in an estimate of 70 cities, and is continuously being expanded. Mang Inasal’s accounts of success stories are not limited to the expansion of its stores, but it can also be remarked with how it can help in alleviating the unemployment rate in the country. Due to its â€Å"grilled chicken† nature, Mang Inasal’s natural way of cooking chicken also depends  on the suppliers of kalamansi, charcoal, banana leaves, vegetables, bamboo sticks, and any other ingredients. Although Mang Inasal has already been sold to the giant company, Jollibee Food Corp., it continues to brandish its own uniqueness and ubiquity, bringing the favorite Filipino dish to all Pinoys across the country, the inasal chicken way. Trivia: 1. Did you know that Mang Inasal means â€Å"Mr. Barbecue?† 2. Mang Inasal is not only known for its delicious food, but with its affordable, permanent, rice-all-you-can promo, equipped with quick service. 3. Edgar Sia II is actually an architecture drop-out, but he was still able to establish a successful fast-food chain! How cool is that? 4. Also, Edgar Sia II gained 3Billion after selling Mang Inasal to Jollibee, a feat that proves how much of a successful businessman he is, and how high he has propelled Mang Inasal to success. 5. Mang Inasal’s success follows this formula: good business concept + quality of food + exceptional marketing strategy + affordable pricing and even expansion + the X Factor (blessing of God), which should be dealt with the right asal (behavior).

Ww1 Trench Warfare

Nature of Life in the Trenches The nature of life in the trenches was a dangerous place. It was a place for the dead or for the survivors. Trenches were a front line which was dug metres underground, inside the trenches, were supplies, training areas, stores and mainly headquarters. The trenches were the main area to store arms of artillery and mortars. Life was hell for soldiers. Bearing the pain they went through, the diseases, the infections, the bad conditions living in, having to deal with sickness, all these illnesses became worse in the long run as soldiers ceased from them.The whole idea of the trenches was to gain and to give protection from enemy lines who would want to attack their enemies once seen, so trenches were a good hiding spot hence other various reasons as well. September 1914 was when trench warfare began and ended in August 1918. In the area of the River Somme on the Western Front, the ground is deathly and is easily tunnelled. The trench sides would dissolve e asily after rain so the ideas would have to be changed and wood, sandbags or any other suitable material would have to be a substitute of dirt.Trenches were never built to be straight for a reason, in case an enemy ever jumped into the trench they could have point blank shot of everyone hiding inside it, whereas, trenches were built in a zigzag form to avoid quick target shots from enemies. The living conditions in the trenches were unbearable. In order to minimise the risk of trench foot (a disease on the feet) they would have to build duckboards on the bottom of trenches to clear the mud and faeces at the bottom. The health risk was very severe and was a maximised hazard of death as the unhygienic smell can affect the body.The weather was a big factor in the trenches, temperatures down to less than 10 degrees Celsius was made impossible for soldiers to cope while sleeping or doing any activity. Diseases such as frost bites could occur as well as exposure and trench foot. Uses of s econdary weapons were used in the war as well as fire weaponry. Secondary weapons such as grenades, bombs, gas bombs, and much more were used and it was effective at long and short range targets. Gas masks were used continually due to the gas mixing with the air and making it hard to breathe so gas masks were introduced to protect the face from burnt skin as well as inhaling it.The main diseases caught while in trenches were trench foot, shell shock, blindness from mustard gas, snakes, infected rats, grenades, bombs, colds from low temperatures, frost bite, gangrene, body lice was a main disease maker as it irritated soldiers to itch numerous times of the day and that would cause infectious diseases on skin and could be caught off one another, the insufferable conditions, stench from rotting bodies, self-inflicting punishments and as well as suicide due to the trauma and depression. Body lice were a main factor in the trenches.It brought upon soldiers infections, high fevers, diseas es and probably death. Lice would stay on the body throughout the whole day and eat at the flesh and irritate soldiers, they would have to itch and itch and itch continuously in order to get the irritation feeling away. The aftermath would leave redness, bad smells, trench fever, first symptoms and shooting pains around the body and high illnesses. Many of the other diseases were much similar to lice and the treatment was similar was well but some things did differ, such as the kind of sickness, disease and the way the â€Å"infection† was going to affect the soldier.Mud affected the body as well as their existence, what they ate, what they were wearing and how they breathed. Mud was an enemy and misery to soldiers. Trench foot was a painful swelling of the feet caused by constant absorption in water. Some cases, toes could rot off and that can lead to gangrene and that can be led to amputation. Rats were known as â€Å"trench rats† because they were sizes of small dog s. Rats would consume food that was left on the ground as well as fresh food and take all food supplies which would then be limited for soldiers the next day or so.Rats were also good humour for the soldiers as they would attract it to food and shoot them once they seem them and hang them as a â€Å"trophy†. Gas gangrene was an easy target for many soldiers, the least of their problems were rats. They had to survive and live to continue the war, they couldn’t afford to inhale dangerous gases and die instantly. If the gas was ever inhaled, it would destroy the tissue inside the human body and the body will decay gradually and disintegrate. Gas masks were then produced.The cold fell to temperature of minus Forty degrees Celsius; nevertheless, trenches had temperature of minus Fifteen degrees Celsius. Soldiers had to manage with the cold, hard to believe, it was worse than lice. The cold made it impossible to sleep. Frostbite affected many men and frequently directed to i nfection, decomposition and later on, amputation, along with hypothermia. In addition the infections led to boils, impetigo (a contagious skin disease caused by streptococcal bacteria, forming pustules and yellow sores), ulcers, hypothermia, frostbite, gangrene and amputation.There were many psychological effects that were put onto soldiers such as trauma, shell shock, tics, a feeling of disillusionment and a growing sense of distrust of political leaders. The effects led to long term effects which made them think about the past most of their lives and that caused controversy to war officials. In conclusion, life in the trenches was difficult and distressing. Soldiers sacrificed their life to create peace in the world but it continued unfortunately. As oppose to all the past dramatic effects on soldiers, they had to live with it their whole lives, having to go through long or short term effects.

Writing a Solid Opinion Essay on History of Architecture

Writing a Solid Opinion Essay on History of Architecture The best way for one to share his or her opinion on any subject matter is through the use of an opinion essay which makes this type of assignments quite fun for students. But it is also important to note that despite the fact you are drafting an opinion essay, there are still certain guidelines and writing procedures one must consider in order to write an excellent essay. This article will attempt to outline some of the more important guidelines you need to consider when writing an opinion essay on the history of architecture. Step 1: Select an Essay Writing Format The field of education is one that comes with a lot of rules and guidelines designed to teach students the importance of structure in learning. When writing an opinion essay it is important to choose an essay template that allows you discuss your convictions with clarity. With this understanding, it is important to note that there are three major essay templates for writing an opinion essay: The Five Paragraph Essay Structure. This involves the use of five paragraphs to explore your thoughts and lay out your opinions through an introductory paragraph, three body paragraphs and a concluding paragraph. The Expository Essay Structure. This involves the use of facts in convincing your audience that your opinions are actually backed up by the reality on ground. The Persuasive Essay Structure. When using a persuasive essay structure to state your opinion, it means that you actually care about the thought process of your audience and like the great orator- Cicero- you are hell-bent on convincing them that your contrary opinion is the correct view of things. Step 2: Research Your Topic Regardless of the essay structure you use, it is important to have the facts on hand that will help you write an educated opinion piece because an opinion without established truths is empty. Therefore, it is important to do a lot of groundwork in order to come up with reputable facts that back up your opinion. For example if writing on the history of architecture, you can surf websites spotting the .edu and .gov suffix as well as check out this 10 facts for an opinion essay on the history of architecture for accurate information. Step 3: Conclude with Passion A good conclusion for an opinion essay must be compelling and drafted to resonate with its reader at a deeper level. Remember this is your opinion and you want others to respect it or in some cases buy into it. Therefore a passionate appeal or a passionate statement telling the reader how the backing of facts makes your point of view valid is what an excellent concluding statement should be about. Lastly, if you are having some trouble coming up with excellent topics on ancient architecture, do not hesitate to take advantage of the outlined topics in this list of 20 topics for an opinion essay on the history of architecture. You can either borrow a topic from the list or let it inspire you to come up with one. Do not forget that this is about your opinion.

Cultural Conflict between the UK workforce versus Japanese Workforce

Cultural Conflict between the UK workforce versus Japanese Workforce Free Online Research Papers Wilson Ltd, a UK-based engineering firm in producing motorcycles realised that its business strategy needed to be revamped as it had loss market shares predominantly to the Japanese because of their far superior technology. Hence, change-management was much needed at Wilson in order for the company to ensure its survival and stay relevant as well as competitive to the market. As a result, Wilson Ltd had adopted the strategic alliances approach where international joint venture (IJV) was established in 2004 with Japanese counterpart, Akita International –a specialist motorcycle engineering firm in Japan, inaugurating Akita Motor Cycle Company. The new business strategy in the UK was to capitalise on the European niche market by producing and marketing highly engineered, small numbers of prestige-status motorcycles to be sold at premium prices. Even though newly formed joint venture Akita Motor Cycle created a separate legal entity to the business, the management was dominated largely by the Anglo-Saxon minded business thinking. It was evidently clear from the case study that the top management visvis family-led oriented type business managed by Mr. Steven Wilson, Chairman of the Board and Managing Director of Wilson’s Ltd; followed by his son, Mr. Christopher as the Marketing Director and Vice President of IJV and Mr. Kyoto, Managing Director of Akita International – the only representative of Japanese firm. This eventually led to a greater control by Mr. Christopher as compared to their Japanese counterparts. As the company grew, management faced series of problems involving cultural differences between predominantly Japanese employees and also from the typical West Midlands workforce. The mono-cultural style practised by Mr. Sendai, a highly experienced and well respected Japanese team leader was resisted by the British work colleagues. On the other hand, the Japanese workforce were also demoralised by the style of management, particularly Mr. Christopher, in handling their concerns over work conflicts in the company. This is because the management had condoned British co-workers for leaving home after five o’clock p.m. sharp while Japanese employees were still working past the hour. On one occasion, Mr. Sendai’s portrait was put on a showroom slide show causing tremendous embarrassment and being regarded as a moral attack on Mr. Sendai’s character. One problem after another, lead to a high level of tension and frustration between aggrieved workers including Mr. Chr istopher, Mr. Sendai, Ms. Fiona. In the end, work situation had worsened and need to be rectified expeditiously to avoid further failure. Question 1: Drawing on ideas and frameworks from the course, how would you analyse and evaluate the problems in the Akita Motorcycle joint venture? In today’s business environment, organisations are likely to be operating at extremely complex and dynamic in nature due to globalisation facet. More and more businesses are largely conducted in foreign countries as opposed to the traditional ways of doing business. As a result, organisations may often faced with challenges in managing culturally diverse workforce or managing cultural differences per se. Akita Motorcycle Company, a joint venture between U.K motorcycle led firm and Japanese Engineering firm is not an exception either. Schneider and Barsoux (1997) clearly states that ‘in every cross-boarder alliance, there are seeds of potential cultural conflict and misunderstanding’ . Hence, cultural conflict and/or cultural misunderstanding need to be surfaced, diagnosed and effectively managed. In order to manage the ‘conflict’, it is eminent to understand what culture is and how does cultural difference usually have an impact on business performance. Culture by definition refers to ‘systems of meaning – values, beliefs, expectation, and goals – shared by a particular group of people distinguishing them from members of other groups’ (Gooderham and Nordhaug 2003 pg 131; Schneider and Barsoux 2003, cited in Martin G. 2006). Furthermore, undermining the cultural difference can have a detrimental outcome on business performance i.e. lower sales growth or sales volume, lower return on investment / profits (financial performance), high level of dissatisfaction index among workers and customers, impact on competitive advantage index, total failure of cross boarder alliance and etc. This is supported by a study instigated by Marcoulides and Heck (1993). ‘The authors proposed a model in which organizational culture was measured using several latent variables (organizational structure, organizational values, task organization, climate, and individual values and beliefs) and organizational performance were measured using capital, market and financial indicators. The results of this study showed that all of the latent variables used to measure organizational culture had some effect on performance with workers attitudes and task organization activities being the most significant variables ’ (Marcoulides and Heck 1993 cited in Ilie L. and Gavrea C.).Therefore, there is sufficient evidence to illustrate that culture has a correlation, either positive or negative, with organisational performance. In Akita Motorcycle Company, the two predominant cultures are generally of the Japanese and Anglo-Saxon (the typical West Midlands). In a more popular term, culture is defined by ‘how we do things around here’. Since the Japanese usually has its own way of doing things around here and so does the Anglo-Saxon, cultural difference, conflict and variations ought to exist. This is for the reason that both coming from very distinctive cultures bring with them different set of expectations, value assumptions, interaction scripts, leadership styles, verbal and nonverbal habits that influence the conflict process (Toomey). Sequentially, to recognise, understand, evaluate and diagnose the problems in Akita Motorcycle Company, it is rather vital to probe to the root of the problem itself why cultural variation and/or exist and how successfully the management deal with the issues. In an attempt to answer this question, theories and framework on culture need to be addressed. In the last four decades, extensive research effort had been carried out to systematically describing cultural differences. For instance, studies of cultural differences were conducted by Kluckhohn and Strodbeck (1961), Hall (1977), Hofstede (1980), Trompenaars (1993), Schwartz (1995) Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner (1997). Among those, the most widely accepted theoretical framework is the Hofstede’s (1980) four-cultural dimensions model (Thomas, 2008) namely ‘power distance, individualism vs. collectivism, uncertainty avoidance and masculinity-feminity’ . Hofstede’s cultural dimension theory and framework with supported by other research scholars’ cultural dimension will be used widely to evaluate problems in Akita Motorcycle Company. Figure 1 as shown below is outlined from the country rankings (Japan versus U.K denotes by the Great Britain) according to Hofstede’s values. The excerpt however is taken from the table outline in Managing People and Organizations in Changing Contexts (Martin, 2006) . This table will compare the cultural dimensions between Japan and the U.K, helping to understand the existence of cultural differences conflict Akita Motorcycle Company is facing. Country comparison Cultural Dimension Power Distance Individualism Uncertainty Avoidance Masculinity Japan 54 46 92 95 Great Britain 35 89 35 66 Figure 1: Cultural dimension between Japan and Great Britain according to Hofstede’s study. Power Distance by definition indicates the extent to which society accepts the unequal distribution of power in institution or organisation (Schneider and Barsoux, 1997) . In terms of power distance, Japan scores higher, 54, in the cultural dimension index as compared to Great Britain at 35. This illustrates that Japanese culture would tend to be more respectful and value hierarchical status and power of a leader. This is true in the Akita case study whereby the Japanese workers have had high level of respect and support of Mr. Sendai for his leadership, authority and experience. U.K workforces, however, are on the contrary note whereby they would tend to value equality more than other factors. Therefore, U.K workers would treat their Japanese co-workers equally including Mr. Sendai according to their cultural values and beliefs. This in turn creates cultural conflict among the Japanese workers and U.K workers because Mr. Sendai’s position as a leader is now being under valu ed. For instance, the UK workforces tend to question Mr. Sendai’s management style for having work past five o’clock p.m to meet production quotas. Individualism dimension is defined in contrast to collectivism and refers to the degree to which individuals are integrated into groups (Martin, 2006) . On the other hand, Thomas (2008) describes individualism-collectivism dimension as to the ‘extent to which one self-identity is defined according to individual characteristics or by the characteristics of the group to which individual belongs on a permanent basis, and the extent to which individual or group interests dominate.’ From the Hofstede’s cultural dimension, UK scores extremely high on individualism index with 89 meanwhile Japanese counterparts only score 46. Hence, UK has embedded individualistic culture while Japan is more of a collectivist in nature. In the Akita case study, this point is clearly demonstrated. The Japanese workers always praise for group work effort and group task achievement. Furthermore, they enjoyed long working hours, start their work routine with group morning exercise and ended the day with ceremonial work song. Meanwhile, UK workforces on the other hand are highly regarded as individualistic, high initiative on individual accomplishment or achievement and enjoy autonomy. In short, Japanese foster the concept of family and sense of togetherness while their counterpart prefers the right to private life. Cultural conflict in Akita highly to occur in the individualistic versus collectivist dimension because being in a manufacturing motorcycle industry, work are largely organised on group to meet production quota. At the production line, individual work could have been completed but the overall group production quota has not been met. The UK workers are ready to go home while the Japanese workers are still struggling to meet the quota. Uncertainty avoidance in Hofstede’s own words ‘the extent to which people in a society feel threatened by uncertain and ambiguous situations and the extent to which they try to avoid these situations by providing greater career stability, establishing more formal rules, rejecting deviant ideas and behavior, and accepting the possibility of absolute truths and the attainments of expertise’ (Hofstede, 1980) . Japan tend to exhibit a high level of uncertainty avoidance with a score of 92 as opposed to UK with low level of uncertainty avoidance at 35. In the business context, Japanese managers are always seeking support or approval from the top management when it comes to decision making as they are trying to avoid risk taking and be blamed for the mistakes. Meanwhile, the UK managers tend to be more risk taking when making decision making. This can be tied back to the Akita case study as Mr. Sendai brought up the Japanese workers’ grievances over production conflict to the attention of Mr. Wilson asking for his wisdom and clear guidance hoping that the matter could be resolved. Masculinity dimension reveals the ‘bias towards either ‘masculine’ values of assertiveness, competitiveness, and materialism or towards ‘feminine’ values of nurturing and the quality of life and relationship (Schneider and Barsoux, 1997) ’. From the masculinity dimension, Japan exhibits element of strong masculinity with a score of 95 and UK on the other hand is moderately masculine with a score of 66. In business context, country with higher masculinity index tends to have a task accomplishment management style as contrary to quality of life for instance. In the Akita case study, this notion is true as the Japanese are more concern over working long hours in order to accomplish their task. UK counterparts on the other hand, value their personal quality time over material elements. The other cultural model that is useful to evaluate Akita’s problem is the Trompenaar’s and Hampden-Turner Dimension study which was conducted in 1997 (Martin, 2006) . Both researchers draw their ideas from sociologist and anthhropologist point of view and construct on the work of Kluckhohn and Strodbeck (1961), Parsons and Shils (1951) cited in Thomas (2008) . There are seven cultural dimensions namely universalism versus particularism; communitariarism versus individualism; neutral versus emotional; diffuse versus specific; achievement versus ascription; time orientation and environment. It is also essential to note that communitariarism versus individualism and achievement versus ascription is similar to the Hostede’s cultural dimension study namely individualism dimension and power distance dimension respectively (Martin, 2006) . Universalism versus particularism: Universalism is a belief that what is good and can be discovered and universally applied to all context (Trompenaars and Turner, 1997) . In simplest term it means ‘there is one best way of doing things’. On the other hand, particularism stresses on the obligation of relationship. Mr. Christopher, the Vice President of Akita Motorcycle company, strongly demonstrated universalism principle. American education and American attitudes embedded from his stay in the USA highly influence his leadership style. Mr. Sendai on the other hand fosters close and family tie relationship with his subordinates. Neutral versus emotional: In neutral culture, emotional need to be hold back and need not to be expressed freely. Breach to this rule would be seen as intolerable (Martin, 2006). On the other hand, emotional culture emphasis on this notion emotions can be expressed freely and openly in business environment and that is right to do so. Mr. Christopher illustrates an emotional embedded culture as he punctuated his anger at Ms. Fiona’s over the showroom dispute issue. From Hofstede’s Cultural Dimension and Trompenaar’s and Hampden-Turner Dimension study, Akita Motorcycle company’s problems can be surfaced and identified as follows: ? cultural variation / conflict problems and; ? leadership / management problems. Therefore, these problems need to be mended and well managed to keep Akita’s survival, stay viable and continue to prosper. Question 2 How could the joint venture have been led and managed effectively? You should focus on the roles and leadership styles of the principal figures in this case study, including the British and Japanese managers and workers, especially the key people mentioned in the case. It is a widely belief principle, in order for any nation or organisation to progress, the right person need to lead. However, to get the right person for the job is rather difficult unless in an ideal state. Moreover, the term ‘right person’ for the ‘right job’ is still much in debate today. What could jeopardize a great nation or organisation to progress is to have the right people for the wrong job or the right job for a wrong people. Akita Motorcycle company is no exception. Mr. Christoper’s Wilson is the son of Mr. Steve Wilson, the Chairman of the Board and Managing Director of the British joint venture. Mr. Christopher then was appointed as the Director of Marketing and Vice President of the Akita Motorcycle Company either through ‘family-linked’ business oriented system or because of his qualification in the USA with some working experience in the States. Being educated abroad, he had learned the typical American ways of doing business and more ‘Americanized’ in nature – being straightforward in his attitudes, highly individualistic, stereotype and quite provincial in his attitudes towards the Japanese, his IJV counterpart. The question worth to ponder is whether he is the right man for the job? Mr. Christopher also demonstrated a ‘laissez-fair’ leadership style. In a loose term, laissez-fair can be defined as ‘to allow events to take their own course or to let people do what they choose’ . It is evidently clear that, Mr. Wilson delegated his work through respective divisional managers i.e. Production is managed by Mr. Sendai, Ms. Fiona on Language matters while Ms. Janice incharge of the showroom. By exercising laissez-fair leadership model, maximum freedom was given to the group while the leader desires minimum control and leadership. Moreover, this kind of leadership would only give help if requested. Mr. Christopher highly exhibits this trait. In the case study discussion always commenced when issues were raised and need further discussion i.e. frustration of Japanese worker towards their U.K counterpart on working hour issues and the showroom episode involving Mr. Sendai’s slide show. On the other hand, another key figure that is highly respected by the Japanese workers is Mr. Sendai. In general, by judging to his personal traits and characteristics, he tends to be ‘happy-go-lucky, highly qualified and experienced chief engineer, serene, Buddha-like disposition, steadfast traditional values, and sizeable physical strength. Japanese culture also regards Mr. Sendai as wise because of his age. Thirty-minute exercise routine led by Mr. Sendai normally commences before typical work-day starts, and ends the day with ceremonial work song. In general this demonstrates that he foster group-work, family oriented, father figure character. Hence, he tends to display paternalism leadership style. Thomas (2008) has described paternalistic leadership as a ‘hierarchical relationship between the leader and follower, like a parent, provides direction in both the professional and private lives of subordinates in exchange for loyalty and deference’ Being promoted to a Production Manager due to his experience, expertise and wisdom, Mr. Sendai had practiced mono-cultural Japanese management techniques in the Production factory which had largely created friction between the two cultures. The UK coworkers of which on the hourly wage scheme saw their job as per nine to five basis. Japanese workers on the other hand, tend to work beyond their normal working hours as it is embedded in their working culture. In addition, the Japanese workers are on a monthly salary basis. Being a paternalistic in nature, and coming from a highly collectivist and uncertainty avoidance culture, Mr. Sendai had escalated the problem to Mr. Christopher for guidance. The clash of leadership styles and cultural variation in nature between Mr. Sendai and Mr. Christopher left the problem unsolved, hence demoralised the Japanese workforce. Furthermore, it is likely that when two distinctive cultures meet, cultural diversity emerges. Therefore potential culture clash might occur. This is true in the Akita case study when the two predominant cultures meet – the West Midlanders culture versus Japanese culture. Schneider and Barsoux (1997) proposed that: ‘†¦not only behavior, values and beliefs are different across cultures, but also that their importance to those cultures should not be underestimated. What people in one culture value or perceive as sacred (seniority or tea) maybe considered irrelevant in another culture. The trouble is that, it is difficult to recognize just what matters (and how much) to another culture-especially when we find it so hard to recognize what is important in our own’ Ms. Fiona on the other hand was hired by the management in 2005 as the Chief Language Instructor when the communication between the two cultures became difficult. She plays her part as an interpreter’s role and acts analogically as a glue to bond between the two cultures. The management of Wilson Ltd., Mr. Christopher’s exorbitant leadership, cultural conflicts, human resource issues largely had its drawbacks. Shortcomings and recommendations to best reflect these drawbacks are as follows: ? When Wilson Ltd. and Akita International determined to embark on International Joint Venture (IJV) as a strategy to add competitive advantage and value-added to Wilson Ltd. per se, the management of Wilson Ltd. had not done extensive research about their counterparts well enough. For instance, a research background on the culture, people, organisation structure, human interaction, leadership style, work norms and etc. could have given valuable information and helpful insight about the future IJV. From analysis, Wilson Ltd. expeditiously opt for IJV because the company was panicked losing their market share predominantly to the Japanese due to superior engineering technology. Hence, on board IJV seems to be the best option or strategy at that point of time. Arguably however, managing IJV successfully is often complicated and challenging. Thus, many ultimately bound to fail. Schuler et al (2004) accounts failure rate of IJV is up to 70% . For instance, Wal-Mart, a giant retailer tha t has been successfully dominated the USA market, on the other hand, failed in its attempt to penetrate Germany’s market. The illustration of the case study on Wal-Mart and overseas expansion is well discussed in the Managing People and Organizations in Changing Contexts (Martin 2006) ? Management also had failed to see the bigger picture visvis helicopter view and only identify language is the key to solve cultural differences issue. Language by all means is merely a small piece of a jigsaw puzzle in a bigger context. An analogy for understanding cultural differences has been pictured as ‘peeling an onion’ . The first and obvious layer is the outer layer where languages, foods, buildings, monuments. This visible layer is known as artifacts. The second layer entails espoused values such as strategies, goals, philosophies and etc. Finally, the deepest root of culture denotes by the inner most layer is the basic underlying assumptions, whereby this layer is invincible and unconscious to human perception. Feelings, thoughts and perceptions fall under this category. Therefore, in order to understand cultural difference as a whole, the management need to examine and analyse all three layers and not only visible to the eyes. ? As IJV has been successful for Wilson Ltd. and Akita International, a new identity and separate legal entity was formed namely, Akita Motorcyle Company. This was merely a new beginning and more challenges await. As the company started to grew, British marketing, public relations and financial accounting staff along sales force made up both British and Japanese nationals were brought into the company. The integration of these workers into the company were difficult since human resources issues were poorly managed. In fact, Human Resource Division was not once mentioned in the Akita’s case study. By establishing Human Resource Division, employees particularly would not be ‘left in the dark’ as clear guidance and formal policies on all Human Resource (HR) matters would be in-placed and implemented. Schuler (2004) commented further on the Managing Human Resources in IJV by stating that: ‘For individuals as well as teams, the importance of learning, sharing and transferring knowledge has implications for the competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, personality, and habits) to perform their organizational roles. Ineffective HR policies and practices may produce a workforce that is incompetent and unmotivated, poorly matched with job requirements, inadequate socialized ad uncommitted to the IJV itself, and/or unable to manage their dual loyalties to the IJV and its parents’ ? With the establishment of HR division within the Akita Motorcycle Company, gap on cultural barriers/cultural conflicts or variations can be lessened via cultural training programs, job rotation among UK and Japanese workers. Such practices can foster biculturals learning experience and enriching cultural understanding and exposure. Thomas (2008) clearly defined bicultural as an ability for workers to have dual pattern of identification towards culture, apart of their own culture, and at the same time have a tendency to ‘experience more cognitive complex cultural representations than do mono-culturals’ (Benet-Martinez, Lee et al 2006 cited in Thomas 2008) . Moreover, HR can also relook into Ms. Fiona’s roles, towards more culturally liason, so that it can be more an enriching experience for her rather solely being an interpreter. ? On the other hand, any grievances pertaining to employee relations issues such as working hour’s policy, reward system can be smoothly handled as grievances could possibly be channeled properly. Communication feedbacks on grievances must also be built to help ease the parties concerned. ? Mr. Christopher also highly need to change his views towards the Japanese, thus harnessing the understanding of different culture by way of recognizing, respecting, and continuously reconciling cultural differences. Recognizing and respecting phase occasionally tend lead towards identification of potential threats and opportunities that the culture can offer. ‘Reconciliation on cultural differences’ was the idea introduced by Trompenaars F. and Woolliams P (2006) whereby both researchers suggest that: ‘It helped to identify and define behaviors and actions that vary across the world and across companies but which all integrate differences to a higher level ~ much more significantly than compromise solutions. The approach informs managers how to guide the people side of reconciling any kind of values. It has a logic that integrates differences. It is a series of behaviors that enables effective interaction with those of contrasting value systems. It reveals a propensity to share understanding of other’s position in the expectation of reciprocity’ ? In addition, Mr. Christopher’s ‘silo minded thinking’ (denotes by I-type-thinking) also need to be changed, whereby universalism principle upheld by his values likely not to be practical anymore. Instead, Mr. Christopher needs to exhibit openness and develop a broader thinking style (T-type-thinking). Mr. Christopher also needs to embrace the cultural diversity that Akita Motorcycle Company enjoys. Rather than seeing culture as a problem, cultural diversity needs to be viewed as a source of competitive advantage. In short, in making a change management program in Akita Motorcycle company a success, the leaders need to reflect and be ready to experience first hand change within self via the notion ‘led by example’ or ‘walk the talk’ .i.e. changing mindsets and attitudes. On the other hand, Human Resource Division also needs to play its part in order to close gap on people’s problem. Question 3 Suggest a strategy for change to take the company forward. As pointed out earlier, businesses and organisations are becoming more diverse and complex as a result of globalisation. Hence, organisations being multicultural in nature, must deal with the impact of cultural difference, and possibly problems that could arise from it. Slightest variation in behaviour in a culture could create conflict thus could give impact on the workforce motivation and productivity . Lower productivity and motivation largely could have a direct impact on business performance. Therefore, a strategy for change needs to be implemented successfully to solve the root of the problem – cultural conflict. For instance, Akita Motorcycle Company is facing with such conflict. In order to move forward, an appropriate change strategy is needed to effectively attempt at the problem. Martin (2006) suggests two generic models that can be used to analyse and guide the strategic change management particularly deals with cultural change . The two change models are as follo ws: ? the Intervention Strategy Model (ISM) developed by Paton, R. and McCalman, J. (2006) and; ? the Strategic Change Process Model developed by Martin, G. and Beaumont, P. (2001) The ISM model is a system driven and also based on a socio-technical platform (Paton McCalman 2008) . Fundamental components of the system are the integration between the System Intervention Strategy (SIS), developed by the Open Business School (Mayon-White, 1986) and Total Project Management (TPM), a product of Glasgow Business School (Paton and Southern, 1990) . The ISM model was subdivided into three phase namely problem initialization or identification phase; evaluation and design phase; and the implementation phase. Martin (2006) further break-up the three phase models into smaller elements that associated at different stage . The segregation model of the ISM as follows: ? Stage 1: Problem definition a) clarifying the objectives of the change b) capturing data and performance indicators c) diagnosing the system’s properties ? Stage 2: The evaluation and design phase d) analysing the system e) determining options or solutions f) evaluating options or solutions ? Stage 3: The implementation phase g) implementing the chosen option or solution h) appraisal and monitoring During the problem definition stage, Akita Motorcycle Company must identify problems arising from the cultural conflict observed by both cultures. Then the problems with a brief background of the event could be stated for further discussion. Both cultures would then view the problems in their own perspectives and agree on the problems. The shared perception on the problems could give advantage to both culture and leads to work for a solution. The whole process to some extent is believed to be motivated by the work of Jourard S (1964), a concept on the Johari Window, working on the notion of ‘how I see things / I don’t see things’ versus ‘how they see things / they don’t see things’ (Jourard S 1964 cited in Schneider and Barsoux 1997) . Performance indicators are also need to be set up allowing the data on the problems to be collected for further analysis and evaluation. At the evaluation and design stage, the data collected earlier can then be analysed by the organizational change specialist and perhaps come up with a possible solutions to the problems . Cultivating bi-cultural learning, cultural training program, working towards one corporate cuture (united organisation) or even engaging in conflict resolution are some examples of possible solutions that Akita can consider. These possible solutions will then be evaluated to see whether they are viable and reliable. Some useful techniques recommended by Martin (2006) to evaluate the solutions are of the scenario writing / planning; forecasting and scenario planning. Best possible solution would then be implemented via suitable implementation strategies to achieve the goal of the organisation. These implementation strategies include pilot testing, parallel running and big bang (Paton and McCalman, 2008) . It is important to note however that not every change strategy is a success. In the Akita case for instance, the goal is to strive in resolving cultural difference and working towards achieving cultural integration. Appraisal and monitoring program also need to be built in for future review and reference. Research Papers on Cultural Conflict between the UK workforce versus Japanese WorkforceThe Project Managment Office SystemAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaDefinition of Export QuotasOpen Architechture a white paperMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductResearch Process Part OnePETSTEL analysis of IndiaTwilight of the UAWAppeasement Policy Towards the Outbreak of World War 2Bionic Assembly System: A New Concept of Self

Top 10 ACT Reading Tips Use These and Improve

Top 10 ACT Reading Tips Use These and Improve SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips If you’re taking the ACT and find the Reading section to be a challenge, you’re probably looking for some quick ways to improve your scores. Well, you’re in luck. Here are our top 10 tips for acing the ACT Reading section! Tips for Reading Passages Tip #1: Start with Your Most Comfortable Subject Matter The structure of the ACT Reading section is very consistent.There will be fourtopic areasin the same order every time: Prose Fiction/Literary Narrative, Social Science, Humanities, and Natural Science.If you know that one or two of these will be easier for you to get through based on your interest in the subject matter, you should target those ones first. If, for example, you're more of a science person and end up running out of time on the last passage, you could be missing out on some easy points.Instead, you should skip straight to the subject where you're most comfortable. That way you know you’re getting the most out of your reading section score. Tip #2: Skim the Passage First (Or Skip Straight to the Questions) It’s not necessary to read the passage in full right away, especially if youstruggle with time on the ACT Reading section. One tactic is to skim first so you get a sense of the main ideas of the passage before reading the questions.The best way to skim is by reading the introduction and conclusion along with the first and last sentences of each body paragraph.You’ll save time and be able to answer most big picture questions about the passage.You can go back and read certain parts of the passage more closely later if necessary. Another tactic is to skip the passage at first and go straight for the questions.You can answer most detail questions without reading the full passage.Later, when you move onto big picture questions, you'll already have a sense of the main ideas of the passage based on what you learned in answering other questions.You can always go back and skim the passage, paying special attention to the introduction and conclusion, if you're struggling with big picture questions. Tip #3: Get Interested in the Passage It’s easy to adopt a negative attitude about the passages and treat them as a chore you just have to get through. However, you’ll have a much better time if you persuade yourself to be interested in the material you’re reading. Some of the passages present interesting information that you wouldn’t have learned otherwise. If you think of this as a learning experience, you’re more likely to absorb the material.That means a better performance on the questions and a more pleasant testing experience overall! Wear a party hat if you think it will get you in a more festive mood. If your peers judge you, just say you're going to an awesome party after the test and THEY'RE NOT INVITED. Tips for Answering Questions Tip #4: Use Connotation and Keywords When you’re thinking about how to answer a question, look for words and phrases that will help you determine positive or negative connotation as well as keywords that provide context clues about the answer.If you can figure out whether an answer should have a positive or negative connotation, this will help eliminate at least a couple of choices. If you can find keywords that indicate a contrast or a comparison in the passage (such as "however" or "rather than"), that can also lead to logical conclusions about the type of answer you want. Here's an example where we can detect connotation and use it to eliminate answer choices: The passage indicates that at the time Frank and Sigwarth presented new evidence supporting the small-comet theory, Frank most nearly felt: A. relieved but bitter about how he had been treated.B. grateful that ridicule of his work would end.C. proud that he had been proved right.D. satisfied and filled with anticipation of glory. The passage reads that after the new evidence was presented: Rather than gloating or anticipating glory, Frank seemed relieved that part of a long ordeal was ending. "I knew we'd be in for it when we first put forth the small-comet theory," Frank conceded, "but I was naive about just how bad it would be. We were outvoted by about 10,000 to 1 by our colleagues." Here, we see the words "Rather than", which tip us off to a contrast. We know for sure that Frank was NOT "gloating or anticipating glory". This means choice D can be eliminated for sure. Choice C can also be crossed out because pride wasn't the main component of Frank's feelings (as evidenced by the fact that he wasn't gloating about his accomplishment). The words "relieved" and "ordeal" show that Frank was just happy to be less vulnerable to criticism - he didn't have the energy to throw his success in everyone's faces. For the remaining two answer choices, you can see that there is a very strong adjective in the form of the word "ridicule" in choice B. This makes choice B questionable, because it doesn't seem like Frank's colleagues actually made fun of his work. They just didn't believe his theory. Choice A fits much better, and the word "relieved" is even used in the passage to describe Frank's feelings. Based on this question, you can see that paying attention to keywords is a beneficial strategy for eliminating answer choices on the ACT. Tip #5: Predict the Correct Answer When answering a reading question, try to think of the correct answer in your own words first.This will help you to avoid pitfalls with confusing answer choices.If you already have an idea of what the answer should be, you won’t get tripped up by answer choices that seem plausible but aren’t objectively correct. If the question is confusing to you, you canrephrase it in your own words before you even look at the answers to make it a bit easier. Usually, ACT Reading questions have pretty straightforward wording, but sometimes they can be confusing. If you think you might get the question muddled, write down what it's asking in your own words before choosing an answer. Tip #6: Eliminate Incorrect Answers This is the fundamental rule of ACT Reading: There's only one absolutely correct answer, and you will be able to find concrete reasons to get rid of all the other choices. Learning to eliminate wrong answers is vital because it’s much easier to get rid of the duds than to find the correct answer right away.Instead of puzzling over a couple of answers that you think might be right, you should think about why at least one of them has to be wrong.Train your focus on finding reasons to get rid of answers - every incorrect answer has something completely wrong about it. It’s your job to find reasons to eliminate answers until you are left with only one correct choice! If it helps, you can eat a milk dud for each time you eliminate a dud answer. The horrible stomachache you get later will be a helpful reminder of just how wrong the answers were. Logistical Tips Tip #7: Skip Difficult Questions If you struggle with running out of time on ACT Reading, which is one of the major challenges of this section, this tip is super important!If you find yourself lingering on a Reading question for more than 30 seconds, skip it and move on.Sticking with one difficult question for too long can jeopardize your chances of getting to easier questions later in the section. Especially on the ACT, it’s critical to have a strong grasp on time management.Since there’s only one Reading section,you need to make sure you get to all the questions.Circle the questions you skip on the first pass so that you can come back to them once you finish going through the whole section. Also, keep in mind that the ACT has no guessing penalty! If you're still totally stumped by a question after you come back to it, pick a letter at random and bubble it in. You can miss up to ten questions on the ACT reading section and still end up with a 25, so depending on what your target score is, you can give yourself some leeway for guessing. Bonus Math Question: If the correct answer choices for all the ACT Reading questions have equal chances of being correct, and you guess the same letter for 10 questions, how many points should you get, just by guessing? (Answer: you have a 1/4 chance of choosing the right answer choice, which x 10 = at least 2 points!) Long story short: guess the same letter pair (A/F, B/G, and so on) for questions that stump you and you have no idea how to answer. Tip #8: Double Check Your Answers If you have time at the end of the section, don’t waste it!Take the opportunity to go back through your answers and make sure you’re happy with all of them.This is the best way to eliminate any silly mistakes you might have made on the test. To make sure you're doing this in the most efficient way, circle any questions you're slightly unsure about in the section as you go along (even if you end up bubbling in an answer). That way you can just double check questions that confused you instead of wasting time checking questions that were no-brainers in the first place. Tip #9: Bubble at the End You can increase your efficiency on the ACT by waiting until the end of the section to bubble in all of your answers. You'll avoid looking back and forth between the test booklet and answer sheet during the test, which saves a few seconds per question.Just circle your answer choices in the test booklet when you first go through the questions. Be careful about using this tip though! You should only do it if you already know you can get through all the questions with 3-5 minutes to spare. Tip #10: Remain Calm Since there’s only one Reading section on the ACT, it’s important to keep it together and move forward even if you come across questions that stump you.Don’t let yourself get flustered by difficult questions. If you run up against something you can’t answer, just skip it and continue with the section.You might come back to it at the end and realize it wasn’t as hard as you initially thought.Confidence is key! Stay as cool as a cucumber. Are cucumbers really any cooler than other vegetables? I mean, clearly carrots and broccoli are trying too hard. But what about cauliflower? All the flair of broccoli but with a little more subtlety. I'll have to think about this. Let’s Review! Tips for Reading Passages: Start with your most comfortable subjectSkim first (or skip the passages initially and read the questions) Get interested in the passages Tips for Answering Questions: Use connotation and keywordsPredict the answer Eliminate wrong answers Logistical Tips: Skip difficult questionsDouble check answersBubble at the end Don’t freak out Remember to focus on in-depth strategies for improvement before applying these tips. You can’t just put a bandaid on a shark bite (or whatever other mortal wound you want to envision as a proxy for ACT content weaknesses).If you can master your content weaknesses AND follow these ACT Reading tips, you’ll be on your way to a great Reading score! What's Next? Looking for more ACT Reading strategies? Take a look at our articles on how to score a 36and the best way to practice for the reading section. If you want to be super prepared for whatever the test throws at you, check out my article on the hardest questions you'll see on the ACT Reading section. Here's a link to our complete study plan for the ACT so you can get started preparing for the test! Want to improve your ACT score by 4 points? Check out our best-in-class online ACT prep program. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your ACT score by 4 points or more. Our program is entirely online, and it customizes what you study to your strengths and weaknesses. If you liked this Reading lesson, you'll love our program.Along with more detailed lessons, you'll get thousands ofpractice problems organized by individual skills so you learn most effectively. We'll also give you a step-by-step program to follow so you'll never be confused about what to study next. Check out our 5-day free trial:

International Financial Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

International Financial Management - Essay Example Therefore it can be said that Nokia is responsible for rapid growth in cellular communication and is a pioneer in this field. These four groups are serviced by two other horizontal groups, which are Customer and Market Operations and Technology Platforms. These groups are further supported by various other groups and teams centered mostly in headquarters, related with corporation functions. From 2008 onwards however, three different groups involved in mobile device business and their respective horizontal groups have been integrated into a single unit and named Devices & Services. The main reason for this integration is to increase horizontal integration across the company. Another important aspect of Nokia’s business model is its sales and customer services units. These units are dispersed across more than 150 countries. There are ten different factories across nine countries involved in cell phone manufacturing operated by Nokia. Some models are outsourced to various contractors as well. Nokia is controlled by a group executive board which is responsible for its operative management. The appointments on group executive board in turn are made by the Board of Directors. The Group Executive board currently has eleven members. In line with its long term vision of flexibility and innovation Nokia has recently decided to bring central changes to its management structure. The move is not only marked by a management strategy but a major change in business strategy as well. As mentioned earlier mobile phone market is saturated with many different players such as Apple, Samsung, and Philips etc in tough competition. Therefore Nokia’s group executive board has decided to shift its focus towards making Nokia an internet company. The management structure will therefore be changed into three main units i.e. devices, software and services and markets. The main focus of Nokia’s corporate governance strategy

Finance and Accounting Individual Assignment Essay

Finance and Accounting Individual Assignment - Essay Example It was later reorganized in 2001 to become the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). In 1973 the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) was also born. The accounting standards that the FASB helps formulate for accountants in the United States are the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). Over 100 countries around the world are currently using the international financial reporting standards (IFRS) created by the IASB. The amount of countries that have adopted the IFRS has drastically increase in the 21st century since prior to 2002 only eight countries were using IFRS (Fasb, 2011). In the 1990s the concept of accounting convergence began to raise interest among the business community which caught the attention of FASB and IASC. In 1994 the FASB and IASC undertook their first standard setting project together. The purpose of the project was to improve the earnings per share (EPS) standards to eliminate any differences in the calculation of the metric between the two standard setting bodies. The following year both standard setting bodies collaborated in another project whose purpose was to compare the U.S. GAAP and the IASC standards. Once the IASC was converted into the IASB in 2001 the pace of convergence accelerated a lot. One of the major events that helped the IASB gain credibility worldwide was the adoption of the European Union of IFRS. A project that was signed in 2002 in which the FASB and IASB agreed to improve convergence between U.S. GAAP and IFRS was the Norwalk Agreement. â€Å"The Norwalk Agreement set out the shared goal of developing compatible, high-quality accounting standards that could be used for both domestic and cross-border financial reporting† (Fasb, 2011). In 2006 the FASB and IASB issues a Memorandum of Understanding that created a two year deadline to achieve greater progress in the convergence project by 2008. In 2007 the Securities and Exchange Commission released a concept released that allowed com panies the optional use of IFRS by U.S issuers in the financial statements filed by companies for the SEC. Another sign of progress in the convergence project was the creation in 2007 of a converged standard by the FASB and IASB for business combinations. In 2008 the SEC issued a proposed roadmap to adoption of IFRS in the United States and a proposed rule on optional early use of IFRS. The latest update on the convergence project was issued on April 21, 2011 in a document called Progress Report on IASB-FASB Convergence Work (Fasb, 2011). The MSA program is a great opportunity for me to develop my skills and abilities in the accounting profession. In the competitive work environment of the 21st century gaining a graduate education can give me a competitive advantage over other candidates. In the United States only about 6.8% of the population has a master’s degree (Info, 2005). The five courses accounting courses in the UOP MSA curriculum look like outstanding courses that wi ll help me gain more specialized knowledge in accounting. I am looking very forward to taking the forensic accounting course. â€Å"Forensic accounting is a specialty requiring the integration of investigative, accounting, and auditing skills† (Answers, 2011). Forensic accounting can be used by corporations to solve legal problems. Once I complete this program the doors of opportunity are going to open for me. Accounting is one of the hottest professional fields. Due to the complexity

Introduction to Psychology ( Discuss Quesition ) Essay

Introduction to Psychology ( Discuss Quesition ) - Essay Example Many crucial links are available to determine which type of personality a person chooses to have. Generally, the demarcations between and extrovert and an introvert are established through many factors like the overall levels of energy available and can also be attributed to certain physiological differences in the brain. Apart from that, the surrounding environment and the nature of the parental brought up also decides the levels of sociability of an individual in life. People choose to stay in battering situation when they are either scared of the offender or believe that the batterer is actually correct and knows what they are doing. Financial dependency, social norms, emotional voids, religious and cultural obligations, loneliness, etc are some of the reasons that draw people into the ‘Stockholm’ or the ‘Hostage’ syndrome. A general sense of fear, the presence of unreasonable false gratitude accompanied with a total lack of awareness that help is available are some of the other reasons that explain this. Therefore, a personality flaw, as a defense mechanism, develops more often than not as a result of holding on to the batterer and continuously suffering and may not be the principal cause of staying in a battering relationship. Learned helplessness increases the probability of a person staying in a battering relationship, as the person involved is already predisposed towards a feeling of utter helplessness and

Research Lifetime Appointment of Federal Judges Essay

Research Lifetime Appointment of Federal Judges - Essay Example On the other hand, they can decide on their own to resign or retire whenever they feel the need to do so. The security of tenure provided for by article 3 of the constitution, was informed by the need to ensure that the judiciary is independent and free from political interference (Federal Judicial Center n.d). It goes without saying that if the judges were subjected to a situation whereby the appointing authority has the capacity to terminate their employment at will, it would be extremely difficult for them to dispense justice without favoritism. This is especially when they are called to make judgment on matters that have a political dimension and where the issues are touching on the party affiliated to the appointing authority. In this context, they would be easily compelled to rule in favor of their boss’s interests so as to avoid being removed from office. The dilemma in making such a decision is that in a democratic society such as the US, the opposition may come to win elections in the future to form the government and if the leaders have had problems with some of the judicial officers, they may take this opportunity to remove them and replace them with friendlier ones. Security of tenure ensures that these judges are not affected by such a change, which has the capacity to ruin their lives especially from the financial perspective. In addition, it is a well known fact that experience in any field of service is acquired through long time participation. Opponents of lifetime employment of federal judges argue that having a limited term creates opportunity for introducing new members, probably younger, to the judiciary, who have the capacity to bring new and fresh ideas, which would help build more jurisprudence as they would be more conversant with current trends and issues affecting the society (Carpenter 73). In this context, the opponents insinuate that judges, who have served for a long time, for example 20 years, may tend to take a conservati ve approach, while interpreting the law, to issues brought before them. On the contrary, being old does not necessarily mean that one loses his or her cognitive abilities and therefore is no reason for one to be discriminated in the work place. They still have the potential to serve the people, who really need their expertise and experience in law. On the other hand, it does not escape the minds of opponents that old age inhibits timely delivery of services as aged people tend to succumb to fatigue at a faster rate than young people. In the judiciary, the consequence of this fatigue is an impediment to justice as it may result to backlog of cases in the courts. Mental debilitation and dementia also becomes an obstacle for a person to think or remember important aspects of law, which may lead to the making of irrelevant judgments (Federal Judicial Center n.d). For example, Justice William Douglas of the Supreme Court failed to acknowledge his inability to make healthy contributions a fter he suffered a debilitating stroke and anosognosia in 1975, even after his colleagues on the bench voted to bar him from participating and disqualifying any decisions he made (Carpenter 36). This shows that life tenure of office by judges gives

Paul is an Artist of International Fame Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 7

Paul is an Artist of International Fame - Essay Example He will be with us in Houston, for two days. The conference venue is at Richmond.† On the conclusion of the first day of the seminar, at my insistence, Paul uncle gives a brief introduction about his art. â€Å"The sponsoring UNO agency has made all the arrangements for my boarding and lodging. I dislike the ambiance of staying in a 5 Star hotel. I eat simple home food. I live with my three children and we have an ancestral house in a two-acre plot in the suburbs of Port-au-Prince.† â€Å"My children are married, and we live as a joint family. My two sons are not interested in this vocation and the eldest one takes a limited interest in this art which is full of intricacies.† But in general, Paul gives lots of information on the copper-art and the present condition of art in Haiti. â€Å"Many traditional art-forms of Haiti are dying a slow death with no appreciation of genuine art and lack-luster approach of the Government authorities. Materialistic civilization has impacted life in all the segments of life. People have lost love for art. By pursuing this as art as a vocation, it is difficult to eke out a living†¦.my children are right perhaps to pursue alternative careers, where there is money. My second son has already migrated to Australia. † I visit him after 5 years. His house is on a hillock in the distant suburbs of Haiti. He has problems in recognizing me but with the mention of â€Å"Houston,† he embraces me. We speak a lot about Haiti art and his copper plates and pitchers in particular. He shows some of his centuries-old family collections of pitchers. When I tell him that â€Å"Traditional Art of Haiti† is one of the subjects that I teach at the college level, he is greatly fascinated.   

Describe a place, environment or setting where you feel completely Essay

Describe a place, environment or setting where you feel completely content. What are your experiences there and why is it significant to you - Essay Example The bright colored paint on the wall sends everyone a feeling of liveliness and vibrancy. It also brings a dynamic atmosphere to the room which allows us to showcase our talents and be true to ourselves. They have people who are from different countries, different casts, different religion but we all live like a family. We respect each other, our ideologies and learn from each other. We all don’t care who we are and where we come from. All we care is, we share the same passion and that is why we all are here enjoying at the fullest. Then in the same room, there’s this beautiful and dramatic cityscape wall mural of New York City and Paris which helped me to come up with many interesting ideas such as backpacking and planning to visit New York and explore around Europe. All of these feelings and aura coinciding and balancing each other out creates a perfect harmony flowing throughout the room. Personally, BPP is more significant to me more than anywhere else. Not only it helps me escape from the noisy world but also gives me the courage to grow up and the motivation to bring out the talent which was hiding inside me. It has given me a new life by helping me coming out of my shell. I have been associated with them for more than four years now and have taken part in dancing, modeling and choreographing and still want to do more, learn more and share my talent to others. I had modeled for Dillard’s prom dresses, Halloween costumes, summer clothing and business attire. I also modeled for W by Azwell Clothing Store. I even went to Dallas for Model and Talent Expo. I joined the model competition, one-person monologue, and two-person monologue. I surprisingly won 2nd Place in two-person monologue! I was so impressed by myself. I also performed at the Mrs. Arkansas America Pageant in Hot Springs, Arkansas in 2011, 2012 and 2013. BPP has completely changed my personality; I am no more hesitant neither I escape from people or gatherings. I love to hang out with

Paul is an Artist of International Fame Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 7

Paul is an Artist of International Fame - Essay Example He will be with us in Houston, for two days. The conference venue is at Richmond.† On the conclusion of the first day of the seminar, at my insistence, Paul uncle gives a brief introduction about his art. â€Å"The sponsoring UNO agency has made all the arrangements for my boarding and lodging. I dislike the ambiance of staying in a 5 Star hotel. I eat simple home food. I live with my three children and we have an ancestral house in a two-acre plot in the suburbs of Port-au-Prince.† â€Å"My children are married, and we live as a joint family. My two sons are not interested in this vocation and the eldest one takes a limited interest in this art which is full of intricacies.† But in general, Paul gives lots of information on the copper-art and the present condition of art in Haiti. â€Å"Many traditional art-forms of Haiti are dying a slow death with no appreciation of genuine art and lack-luster approach of the Government authorities. Materialistic civilization has impacted life in all the segments of life. People have lost love for art. By pursuing this as art as a vocation, it is difficult to eke out a living†¦.my children are right perhaps to pursue alternative careers, where there is money. My second son has already migrated to Australia. † I visit him after 5 years. His house is on a hillock in the distant suburbs of Haiti. He has problems in recognizing me but with the mention of â€Å"Houston,† he embraces me. We speak a lot about Haiti art and his copper plates and pitchers in particular. He shows some of his centuries-old family collections of pitchers. When I tell him that â€Å"Traditional Art of Haiti† is one of the subjects that I teach at the college level, he is greatly fascinated.   

Developing business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 1

Developing business - Essay Example be specific considering the underlying report discusses the growing dimensions with respect to different in sustainability in social and environmental factors as well as financial sustainability that is interpreted as going concern for business. In addition, the ways to reconcile the difference between two concepts, obstacles and future implications with respect to the operation and reporting are discussed. In due course, different conceptual aspect is noted and discussed with examples. Finally, the recommendation based conclusion is proposed to adapt the real sustainability imperative that brings financial, social and environmental aspects all on a single page. The raising concerns related to the adverse impacts that businesses are creating on society traces its history in the 1700. The concerns arose as a result of growing child labor and working conditions in factories and mines in UK. However, it was late in 1970s when the voice gained momentum and finally with the turn of the century, the concept is now set as among the priority concerns of the business (Honeyman, 2007 and Ceres, n.d.). The overall evolution of sustainability has grown from rejection for the concept of the transformation of business as shown waves of sustainability as follows: According to the definition put forward by United Nation’s Global Compact, a sustainability is an imperative for the for success in the long-term with the assurance that the business also delivers value all across the society (UN Global Pact, n.d.). However, the concept of value varies. For example, Golub, et al. (2000) discussed the value delivery to customers while Hartlen (2014) clearly states that the definition of value varies from the interest of one stakeholder to another. Hence, for providing the direction for value to the business, UN Global impact has identified five dimension of delivering value to the society. The five dimensions are depicted in the image below: All these collectively result in the

Nature And Purpose Of The Conceptual Framework Accounting Essay

Nature And Purpose Of The Conceptual Framework Accounting Essay Introduction The accounting conceptual framework has been criticized for not providing an adequate basis for standard setting. This inadequacy is evidenced through the FASBs standards becoming more and more rule-based. Nevertheless, no empirical evidence has been gathered to support the criticisms of the conceptual framework. We analyzed the five qualitative characteristics of accounting information from the conceptual framework in conjunction with an individuals intention to use/rely on financial statements. Using structural equation modelling, we found that only one qualitative characteristic, reliability, affected a persons intention to use financial statements. Additionally, it appears that the greatest factor that influences whether an individual rely on financial statements is their familiarity with accounting. Based on our findings, it appears that not only does the conceptual framework need to be altered, but it also needs to be changed to help create principle-based accounting standards that are useful to all people, regardless of their background. Criticism has been directed towards the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) for not requiring firms to report information that is interpretable and useful for financial statements users (CICA, 1980). The FASBs conceptual framework is the core in which all accounting standards are derived. Therefore, the accounting conceptual framework must embody a set of qualitative characteristics that ensure financial reporting grants users of economic statements with sufficient information for assessments. The U.S. financial accounting conceptual framework was established between late 1970s and early 1980s. Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts (SFAC) No. 2 (1980) indicates that there are five main qualitative characteristics of accounting information; understandability, relevance, reliability, comparability, and consistency. Nature and Purpose of the Conceptual Framework The conceptual frame work has some disadvantages. It is broad based in nature and principles and may not help when actually producing the financial statement. Its standards contents may conflict with those of other boards. This framework, with minor changes, still provides the basis for the FASBs standard setting today. Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts (SFAC) No. 2 (1980) develops and discusses the qualitative characteristics that make accounting information useful. SFAC No. 2 separates the qualitative characteristics as possessing either user-specific or decision-specific qualities. The overall user-specific characteristic of accounting information is that it must be understandable. Today, the accounting conceptual framework is being blamed for accounting standards becoming rule-based, which leads to the structuring of transactions (Nobes, 2005; SEC 108(d)). In fact, FASB has even acknowledged that the conceptual framework might be inadequate for current accounting standar ds (AICPA, 2002). The conceptual framework was formed with the intention of providing the backbone for principle-based accounting standards (Nobes, 2005). However, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has recently criticized the accounting standards setting board for becoming overly rules-based, which paves the way for the structuring of transactions in the companys favour (SEC 108(d)). Critics of the framework have stressed that the move towards rule-based standards are a consequence of inadequacies in the accounting conceptual foundation. Nobes (2005) argues that the need for rule-based accounting standards is a direct result of the FASB trying to force a fit between standards and a conceptual framework that is not fully developed. A coherent and strong conceptual framework is vital for the development of principle-based accounting standards and the progression towards convergence in international accounting standards. However, researchers are unaware of any empirical evidence that supports the criticisms of the current conceptual framework. Additionally, none of the critics have looked at the conceptual framework from the most important viewpoint, the users perspective. Therefore, the rationale of this paper is to practically analyze the sufficiency of the conceptual framework, from a users perspective, in relation to an individuals reliance on financial statements for decision making. We developed a survey instrument to analyze an individuals intention to rely on financial statements using Ajzens (1991) Theory of Planned Behaviour. We found that the reliability characteristic of the conceptual framework represented the only significant dimension of a persons attitude affecting their intention to rely on financial statements. However, the understandability characteristic was approaching significance. Within the context of the theory of planned behaviour, social pressures was not significant influe nce on the intention to use/rely on financial statements, yet familiarity with accounting was found to significantly influence intention. The conceptual framework and potential financial statement users intentions can be analyzed within the context of Ajzens (1991) Theory of Planned Behaviour. Ajzen (1991) indicates that empirical evidence suggests that we can determine an individuals intention to perform behaviour through analyzing their attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioural control. Within this perspective, we adapted Ajzens (1991) theory of planned behaviour to an individuals propensity to rely on accounting financial statements as shown in the figure below (figure 2): (Draw a figure) The purpose of this study was to provide an empirical analysis to the criticism against the FASBs conceptual framework. Our overall results suggest that the current conceptual framework does not adequately align the objectives of financing reporting with the users of financial statements. Nevertheless, available findings have some interesting implications for the conceptual framework and future standard setting. Reliability is the only qualitative characteristic that has a positive statistical significant relationship with intention. The accounting profession is facing a choice between reliability and relevance in financial reporting, as there is an inherent trade-off between reliability and relevance (Paton and Littleton, 1940; Vatter, 1947). Reliable information possesses the characteristic of objectivity and verifiability, which is associated with historical cost accounting. Relevance, on the other hand, pertains to any information that will influence the users financial decision. Many times the most relevant information is often current or prospective in nature. Thus, we cannot have accounting information that maximizes the characteristics of both relevant and reliable because relevant information is not always verifiable. We would have expected to see relevance as a significant factor in users intention to use financial statements since the recent accounting standards have moved toward fair value accounting measures, which are considered to be more relevant than reliable information (Ciesielski Weirich, 2006). However, our results show that reliability is a significant factor. The current accounting curriculum could be the cause of our results since it is rooted in Paton and Littletons historical cost approach, which focuses on reliability of information. In the context of the Theory of Planned Behaviour, we found that familiarity to be a statistically significant factor to an individuals intention to use financial statements. Thus, as an individual becomes more familiar with financial statements, he or she is more likely to have the intention to use or rely on them when making decision. An ANOVA analysis provides further support for this as it indicates that intention to use or rely on financial statements is significantly different between accounting majors and non-accounting majors. This provides evidence that accounting could be becoming too difficult for individuals who are not proficient in accounting to understand. It appears that the movement towards rule-based accounting standards could be a contributing cause of this disparity in intention. That is, the accounting standards have become so technical upon their execution that the average reader of accounting can no longer discern the main objective of each financial statement element. This finding is troubling to accounting since it contradicts the primary objective of accounting, which is to offer practical book-keeping information for judgment making. Book-keeping information should be useful for all people who want to use it rather than only being useful to those who understand it. Additionally, under no circumstances, should accounting information provide an advantage to individuals who happen to be experts within the field. Accounting should be a tool and not a barrier At the-present, the accounting profession is grappling with a problem, which it has identified as the need for a conceptual framework of accounting. This framework has been painstakingly developed over centuries, and it is merely the professions task to fine tune the existing conceptual framework because of the need for continual development due to changing conditions. This conceptual framework has never been laid out in explicit terms; consequently, it is continually overlooked. A conceptual framework has been described as a constitution, an articulate arrangement of interconnected objectives and rudiments that can guide to reliable standards and that stipulates the character, purpose, and confines of financial book-keeping and fiscal statements. For many accountants, the conceptual framework project is difficult to come to grips with because the subject matter is abstract and accountants are accustomed to dealing with specific problems. In resolving those problems, accountants may unconsciously rely on their own conceptual frameworks, but CPAs have not previously been called on to spell out their frameworks in systematic, cohesive fashion so that others can understand and evaluate them. It is essential that a framework be expressly established so that the FASB and those evaluating its standards are basing their judgments on the same set of objectives and concepts. An expressly established framework is also essential for preparers and auditors to make decisions about accounting issues that are not specifically covered by FASB standards or other authoritative literature. It is considered that if the conceptual framework makes sense and leads to relevant information, and if financial statement users make the necessary effort to fully understand it, their confidence in financial statements and their ability to use them effectively will also be enhanced. No one who supports the establishment of a conceptual framework should be labouring under the illusion that such a framework will automatically lead to a single definitive answer to every specific financial accounting problem. A conceptual framework can only provide guidance in identifying the relevant factors to be considered by standard setters and managers and auditors in making the judgments that are inevitable in financial reporting decisions. A Classical Model of Accounting: The Framework Expanded Historically, the particularized information, which constituted the emergence of accounting, was embedded in a framework for control of human behaviour. With the advent of exchange replacing a sustenance society, and with exchange ultimately producing a private economy, accounting derived its second, and in modern times considered its most important, function as a planning instrument. The classical model simply states that behavioural patterns do exist in the structural development of accounting; that is, given a stimulus there will be a response which is direct reaction (an expected reaction) to that stimulus. One can relate this model to the classical model in economics, in which supply and demand for a commodity react in an expected manner due to a change in price. Figure 3 is a geometric illustration of the classical model. The special features of the model are: (a) Stimulus (S) = Demand; Response (R) = Supply (b) Equilibrium (E) = Stimulus = Response (c) Environmental Condition (EC) = Price (d) Accounting Concept (AC) = Product A Test of the Validity of the Model If the classical model does exist in accounting, the historical observations (see table I) should then bear testimony to its existence. The evidence to support this model is purely historical. However, no parallel should be drawn between this thesis (stimulus/Response) and Toynbees (1946, 88) line of inquiry: Can we say that the stimulus towards civilization grows positively stronger in proportion as the environment grows more difficult? Consequently, the criticism directed at his work should not be considered even remotely as applicable to this inquiry (Walsh 1951, 164-169).On the other hand, only in the extreme can the accusation levelled at Kuhn [1962] be directed here, that the conceptual framework (classical model of accounting) as presented may subsume too many possibilities under a single formula (Buchner 1966, 137). More appropriately, this study is undertaken along the lines suggested by Einthoven (1973, 21): Accounting has passed through many stages: These phases have been largely the responses to economic and social environments. Accounting has adapted itself in the past fairly well to the changing demands of society. Therefore, the history of commerce, industry and government is reflected to a large extent in the history of accounting. What is of paramount importance is to realize that accounting, if it is to play a useful and effective role in society, must not pursue independent goals. It must continue to serve the objectives of its economic environment. The historical record in this connection is very encouraging. Although accounting generally has responded to the needs of its surroundings, at times it has appeared to be out of touch with them. The purpose of this line of inquiry is to put into perspective concepts which have emerged out of certain historical events. (In this treatise, accounting concepts are considered to be interlocking with accounting measurement and communication processes; thus, whenever the term concept is used herein, it is to be understood that accounting measurement and communication processes are subsumed under this heading.) These concepts collectively constitute, or at least suggest, a conceptual framework of accounting. The classical model is postulated as follows: For any given environmental state, there is a given response function which maximizes the prevailing socio-economic objective function. This response function cannot precede the environmental stimulus but is predicated upon it; when such response function is suboptimal, the then existing objective function will not be maximized. In a dysfunctional state, a state in which environmental stimulus is at a low level a level below pre-existing environmental stimuli, disequilibrium would ensue. In any given environment, the warranted response may be greater or less than the natural or actual response. When environmental stimuli cease to evoke response, then the socio-economic climate will be characterized by stagnation as the least negative impact of disequilibrium conditions, and decline when such environmental stimuli are countercyclical. Stage 1 In this period, (1901 to 1920) the environmental stimulus was corporate policy of retaining a high proportion of earnings [(Grant 1967, 196-197); (Kuznets 1951, 31); (Mills 1935, 361,386-187)]. This period is the beginning of corporate capitalism. The term corporate capitalism is used because it emphasizes the role in capital formation which corporations have ascribed to themselves. Hoarding of funds by corporations has reduced the role and importance of the primary equity securities market. The resource allocation process has been usurped by corporations (Donaldson 1961, 51-52, 56-63). The implication of such a condition is accentuated in the following statement: It is the capital markets rather than intermediate or consumer markets that have been absorbed into the infrastructure of the new type of corporation. (Rumelt 1974, 153). The hard empirical evidence of this condition was revealed by several tests of the Linter Dividend Model, which maintains that dividends are a function of profit, and are adjusted to accommodate investment requirements [(Kuh 1962, 48); (Meyer and Kuh 1959, 191); (Brittain 1966, 195); (Dhrymes and Kurz 1967, 447)]. Given the new role assumed by the corporation in capital formation, the investment community (investing public) became concerned with the accounting measurement process. The accounting response was verifiability (auditing) to demonstrate the soundness of the discipline. Productivity of existing measurements had to be verified to satisfy the investors and creditors. The Companies Act 1907 required the filing of an audited annual balance sheet with the Registrar of Companies [(Freer 1977, 18); (Edey and Panitpadki 1956, 373); (Chatfield 1956, 118)]. Thus, auditing became firmly established. The function of auditing measurements is the process of replication of prior accounti ng. Accounting is differentiated from other scientific disciplines in this aspect of replication. Replication is a necessary condition in sound disciplines; however, replication is generally undertaken in rare instances. In accounting, on the other hand, replication is undertaken very frequently for specified experiments business operations at the completion of the experiments business (operating) cycle. These experiments business operations, cover one year; at the end of the year, the experiments are reconstructed on a sampling basis. Auditing is the process by which replication of accounting measurements are undertaken. Publicly held and some privately held corporations are required to furnish audited annual financial statements which cover their business activities on an annual basis. Stage 2- This period, (1921 to 1970) witnessed the reinforcement of corporate retention policy. This condition shifted the emphasis of the investor to focus on the Securities market in the hope of capital gains, because of the limited return on investment in the form of dividends. Indubitably, investors concern was shifted to market appreciation through stock price changes reflecting the earnings potential of the underlying securities (Brown 1971, 36-37, 40-41, and 44-51). With the securities market valuation of a companys share (equity) inextricably linked to the earnings per share, the emphasis is placed on the dynamics of accounting as reflected in the income statement. The Companies Act of 1928 and 1929 explicitly reflect this accounting response by requiring an income statement as a fundamental part of a set of financial statements [(Freer 1977, 18); (Chatfield 1974, 118)]; although an audit of such statement was not explicitly stipulated, it was implied. The accounting response of this period is extension of accounting disclosure [(Chatfield 1974, 118); (Blough 1974, 4-17)].The Wall Street Crash of 1929 and subsequent market failures constitutes the environmental stimulus. In the U.S.A., the Securities Act of 1933 and then the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 were enacted, providing for a significant involvement of the government in accounting. Stage 3- This period is characterized by the social awareness that business as well as government must be held socially accountable for their actions. Business can transfer certain costs to other segments of society, thus business benefits at the expense of society; and government can not only squander hard earned dollars but through its policies affect adversely the welfare of various segments of society. This awareness is epitomized in the thesis posited by Mobley [1970, 763]: The technology of an economic system imposes a structure on its society which not only determines its economic activities but also influences its social well-being. Therefore, a measure limited to economic consequences is inadequate as an appraisal of the cause-effect relationships of the total system; it neglects the social effects. The environmental stimulus of corporate social responsibility evoked the accounting response of socio-economic accounting a further extension of accounting disclosure. The term socio-economic accounting gained prominence in 1970, when Mobley broadly defined it as the ordering, measuring and analysis of the social and economic consequences of governmental and entrepreneurial behaviour. Accounting disclosure was to be expanded beyond its existing boundaries beyond the normal economic consequences to include social consequences as well as economic effects which are not presently considered (Mob1ey 1970, 762). Approaches to dealing with the problems of the extension of the systemic information are being attempted. It has been demonstrated that the accounting framework is capable of generating the extended disclosures on management for public scrutiny and evaluations [(Charnels, Co1antoni, Cooper, and Kortanek 1972); (Aiken, Blackett, Isaacs 1975)]. However, many measurement problems have been exposed in this search process for means to satisfy the systemic information requirement of this new environmental stimulus [(Estes 1972, 284); (Francis 1973)]. Welfare economics, as a discipline, has always been concerned with the social consequences of governmental and entrepreneurial actions, but the measurement and communication problems are, and always have been that of the discipline of accounting (Linowes 1968; 1973). The Conceptual Framework: A Continuing Process Presented above, the stimulus/response framework exhibiting structural adequacy, internal consistency and implemental practicality has demonstrated, unequivocally, its effectiveness over the centuries. The systemic information of financial accounting is the connective tissue of time in a financial perspective. The systemic information of managerial accounting is non-connective, but rather reflects events in a decision-making perspective. This can be best illustrated in the table below: (Draw a table) The process of concept-formation is a special type of learning. The formation takes time and requires a variety of stimuli and reinforcements. The process is never fully determinate for even when the concept is well, it can suffer neglect or inhibition and it can be revived by further reinforcement or modified by new stimulation (Emphasis added.) (Meredith; 1966, 79-80). A body of concepts and interlocking measurement and communication processes (types of information stocks and flows; constraints on information allowable values and methods of measurement; media of communication quantitative and qualitative) has been developed over the centuries. This set of concepts and interlocking measurement and communication processes has emerged as responses to specific stimuli at specific points in time to satisfy specific information needs. It is this body of concepts and interlocking measurement and communication processes, which is subject to amplification and modification that constitutes the conceptual framework of accounting. Possibly, with other modifications or amplifications deemed necessary, the conceptual framework as presented above can serve as an expressly established framework to enable preparers and auditors to make decisions, which would conform and be upheld, about accounting issues that are not specifically covered by FASB standards or authoritative literature. A conceptual framework is necessary because in the first place, to be constructive, paradigm setting must develop and connect to a reputable body of perceptions and objectives. A severely developed theoretical outline should facilitate the FASB to issue additional functional and reliable standards in due course. A coherent set of principles and regulations should be the outcome, since they would be constructed upon a similar basis. The framework should augment fiscal statement users indulgence of and self-assurance in economic reporting, and it has to improve comparability amongst companies fiscal reports. Secondly, latest and emerging realistic problems ought to be more rapidly unravelled by reference to an existing outline of fundamental supposition. It is complicated, if not unfeasible, for the FASB to recommend the appropriate accounting action promptly for circumstances like this. Accountants in practice, nevertheless, ought to resolve such exertions on a routine basis. With the application of excellent verdict and with the facilitation of a commonly acknowledged conceptual scaffold, practitioners may discharge certain options promptly and then centre their attention on a tolerable dealing. Over the years various associations, commissions, and concerned persons developed and printed their personal theoretical frameworks. However, no particular framework was unanimously acknowledged and relied on practically. Identifying the necessity for a commonly acknowledged structure, the FASB in 1976 initiated effort to construct a conceptual structure that would possibly be a foundation for setting book-keeping principles and for reconciling fiscal reporting disagreements. The FASB has given out six Statements of Financial Accounting Concepts that recount to monetary reporting for commerce schemes. These include: 1, Objectives of Financial Reporting by Business Enterprises, that presents objectives and intentions of book-keeping. 2, Qualitative Characteristics of Accounting Information, that inspects the descriptions that make book-keeping information helpful. 3, Elements of Financial Statements of Business Enterprises, that offer descriptions of objects in economic statements, for instance, revenues, assets, expenses and liabilities. 4, Recognition and Measurement in Financial Statements of Business Enterprises, that lays down elementary acknowledgment and dimension standards and direction on the kind of information that should be officially integrated into economic assertions and at what time. 5, Elements of Financial Statements, which substitutes number 3 and increases its extent to comprise non-profit institutes.6, Using Cash Flow Information and P resent Value in Accounting Measurements, that gives a structure for using probable expectations of cash flows and outline principles as a foundation for measurement. The figure below is an overview of the conceptual framework. (Diagram) In the initial stage, the purposes classify the aspirations and rationale of book-keeping. Ideally, book-keeping principles developed with accordance to a theoretical structure will upshot in book-keeping reports that are extra helpful. At the subsequent stage are the qualitative descriptions that make book-keeping information functional and the essentials of monetary report, that is, liabilities, assets, among others. In the third stage are the dimension and acknowledgment perceptions employed in instituting and affecting book-keeping principles. These conceptions include suppositions, ideologies, and restrictions that illustrate the current reporting atmosphere. First Level: Basic Goals The major goals of monetary reporting are to give information which is: (1). Helpful to those concerned with the creation of savings and credit judgment and have a sensible perception of commerce and financial performance. (2). Useful to current and prospective financiers, creditors, as well as other users in gauging the quantities, instances, and ambiguity of prospective cash flows and (3). Concerns financial capital, claims to such possessions, and the adjustments in them. The goals consequently, begin with a broad concern regarding information that is valuable to financier and creditor assessments. That apprehension constricts to the financiers and creditors concern in the outlook of accepting cash from their investments or credits to commerce ventures. Ultimately, the goals centre on the monetary declarations that provide information useful in the assessment of prospective cash flows to the business enterprise. This advancement is known as judgment effectiveness. It has been said that the golden rule is the central message in many religions and the rest is elaboration. Similarly, decision usefulness is the message of the conceptual framework and the rest is amplification. In giving information to users of monetary reports, general-purpose financial statements are prepared. These reports give the most helpful information feasible at negligible expenditure to diverse consumer groups. Principal to these goals is the conception that consumers require logical acquaintance of commerce and economic book-keeping issues to comprehend the facts contained in economic reports. This fact is essential. It implies that in the groundwork of monetary statements, a stage of rational proficiency on the part of consumers can be alleged. This has an effect on the method and the scope to which data is accounted for. Second Level: Fundamental Concepts The objectives of the first level are concerned with the purposes and intentions of book-keeping. Between the second and third levels, it is essential to give particular theoretical construction blocks that elucidate the qualitative descriptions of book-keeping knowledge and describe the essentials of monetary reports. These theoretical construction blocks outline a connection involving the why of book-keeping (the goals) and the how of book-keeping (acknowledgment and capacity). Qualitative Descriptions of Book-keeping Facts Deciding on a suitable accounting technique, the quantity and kinds of facts to be revealed, and the layout in which data ought to be presented entails establishing which option provides the most helpful information for assessment making intentions (judgment convenience). The FASB has recognized the qualitative descriptions of book-keeping facts that differentiate enhanced (extra valuable) facts from substandard (less valuable) facts for assessment creation intentions. Additionally, the FASB has acknowledged particular restrictions (cost-benefit and materiality) as a component of the conceptual structure. The descriptions might be analysed as a hierarchy. Assessment Creators (Users) and Understandability The makers of judgement differ extensively in the nature of assessments they formulate, the way they formulate these assessments, the facts they already have and any other relevant information that they may acquire from their own trusted sources, and their aptitude to process the facts. For knowledge to be helpful there ought to be a correlation (relationship) involving these consumers and the judgment they create. This connection, understandability, is the eminence of facts that authorizes realistically knowledgeable users to distinguish its connotation. To demonstrate the significance of this connection; suppose that IBM Corp. gives a three-month income statement (interim statement) that illustrates temporary income way down. This statement gives appropriate and dependable facts for assessment creation intentions. A number of users, upon evaluation of the statement, choose to retail their stock. While others do not comprehend the content and importance of the report, they are aston ished when IBM proclaims a lesser year-end share and the worth of the stock turns down. Therefore, even though the facts presented were exceedingly appropriate and consistent, it was futile to those who did not comprehend it. Prime Qualities: Reliability and Relevance Importance and dependability are the two major virtues that make book-keeping information helpful for assessment making. As assured in FASB Concepts Statement No. 2, the qualities that distinguish bet