Perceptions of Diversity in the Workforce

Perceptions of Diversity in the Workforce Introduction/Research Objectives: Diversity Management: Diversity Management has been defined as accepting that the workforce consists of diverse individuals. Diversity could be on the basis of work-style, age, background, sex, race, disability, personality (Kandola Fullerton, 1998). A productive environment could be created by embracing these differences where everyone is contributing at their highest potential and feel appreciated while they achieve company goals and objectives (Kandola Fullerton, 1998). Company Profile: The organisation for primary data collection is from the Pharmaceutical sector having 40% stake in the market and an annual turnover of  £21 Million (Fig.1.1). With over 160 types of medicine production, this company is Britains 3rd largest Medicine Producer. 300 employees work between 3 sites of manufacturing, packaging and the corporate office. About 150 employees, most of whom are either African or White work at the main manufacturing site; at the second packaging site there are about 130 employees of mixed origins contribute while at the corporate office, out of 30 people, most are women, of Indian origin except one and also most employees are below the age of 40 (Fig.1.2). The company vision is to maximize inclusion to drive greater business results and sustainable competitive advantage (BL, 2004). This would be achieved by fostering a culture that embraces differences and drives innovation thereby, achieving a skilled, high-performance workforce that reflects the global marke t place. Research Aims and Objectives: The main purpose of this dissertation is to research peoples perception of diversity and the effects it has on the workforce of a company. This will be investigated with the help of a questionnaire, interview and a tracking log conducted among the employees of the company from all designations. It would be imperative to research the positives of having a diverse workforce and how they contribute in achieving the company objectives, differently. The trials and tribulations faced by them owing to their diversity will be looked into and methods to tackle them will be discussed. Open questions in the survey would include: Share an experience where the organisation supported your religious needs? Through this research, old theories of diversity will be revised, extended and applied to creating new knowledge which would have theoretical and/or practical application. It will not only simplify and add meaning to existing definitions but also create new understandings of diversity. Considering the industry sector at the time of recession, many people have lost their jobs, mainly those who are not British nationals. Hence, the question is: how will an organization create profits if all the diverse individuals who contribute to the company objectives have been dismissed. Therefore, in this project, the question addressed is: What are peoples perspectives of Diversity and how does it affect an organisation. Literature Review: Diversity – definitions: This section covers some of the theory and research on Workplace Diversity which is of particular relevance to this research. It is important to define diversity for the purpose of this project. CEO of Proctor Gamble, Alan Laffey said that A diverse organisation will out-think, out-innovate and out-perform a homogenous organisation every single time (PG, 2009; Skinner, 2001). Diversity can be defined as a mixture of people with different group identities within the same social system (Fleury, 1999). There are many definitions to diversity, in essence it includes culture, race, geographic origin, ethnicity, gender, nationality, functional or educational background, physical and cognitive capability, language, lifestyles, values and beliefs, sexual orientation, physical abilities, social class, age, socio-economic status, and religion (Dessler, 1998; Ferdman, 1995). The National Council for Voluntary Organisations defines Diversity as the integration of age, gender, sexual orientation, religious preferences, disability and ethnicity without biases into society (NCVO, 2007). According to CIPD, diversity has multiple levels like that of Social Category Diversity that includes demographic variances like age, gender, ethics and race; Informational Diversity which embraces organisational variances like that of education, experience in the field and utility and lastly, Value Diversity encompasses psychological differences like that of attitudes, behaviour and personality (Worman – CIPD, 2005). According to Anderson and Metcalfe, completely diverse people working together may lead to conflicts owing to diversity in their ideologies, experience, personalities, culture and attitude among other variables. Organisations that promote creativity need to find a way to satisfy such differences and lay out ground rules to ensure successful team working. Thereby, it assures competitive edge owing to the creativity and innovation brought by diverse perspectives in products, service pattern and methods of working. The downside is that organisations need to ensure that this does not let employees lose their individuality in the race to fit in (Anderson Metcalfe, 2003). Diversity is often associated with ethnicity as in case of American Indian/ Alaska Native MBA students showed 89% in a survey. Least association was seen in case of Asian-Indian MBA students which showed 67%. Gender was seen to be the second most common associate among all survey groups. It showed strongest association of 78% among American Indian/ Alaska Native MBA students and least association of 43% by Asian-Indian undergraduates (Fig 2.1, 2.2). Among all survey groups, Latino/Hispanic undergraduates associated diversity with language skills while Asian-Indian undergraduates relate diversity with religion and American Indian/Alaska Native undergraduates connected diversity with age (Black Collegian, 2006). History of Diversity and Legislation: Legislation: The concept of diversity came into power in 1990s (Gatrell and Swan, 2008). In the 70s, 80s and early 90s the need for diversity in the workplaces in UK grew because of the diminishing talent sources as well as to curb the discriminatory HR practices that were carried out against colour and gender. The first piece of legislation to be passed to support diversity was the Equal Pay Act 1970 legislates against discrimination between men and women in relation to their terms and conditions of employment followed by Sex Discrimination Act 1974 which made it unlawful to discriminate on the basis of gender. After these came the following pieces of legislation: Race Relations Act 1976 – protection against discrimination on the grounds of race or ethnic or national origins. Disability Discrimination Act 1995 – protection against discrimination for disabled people. Employment Equality (Religion and Belief) Regulations 2003 made it unlawful to discriminate against workers on the grounds of religion or belief. Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003 – made it unlawful for employers to discriminate against or harass a person on the grounds of sexual orientation. Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 – made it unlawful to discriminate against individuals on the grounds of age. Equality Act 2006 Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006. (Daniels, 2008) Diversity training and interpersonal learning was introduced to help diverse workforces bridge the gaps between their education and cultures. Policy: The fundamental essence of diversity is based on its policies. To understand this, it is essential to know what a policy is. Organizational policies are a bunch of fundamental codes and relevant directives, devised and imposed by the presiding body of an organization, to express and limit its conduct while aiming for long-term objectives (Business Dictionary, 2009). An organisations goals, strategies and practices can be affected by a recognized set of broad, open directives, devised after an investigation of all internal and external aspects. Corporate policy is devised by the organisations executive board to lay down the organisations objectives to known and predictable state of affairs and circumstances. It also determines the creation and execution of strategy, and directs and limits the strategy, verdict, and deeds of the organisations employees in accomplishment of its aims (Business Dictionary, 2009). A policy is meant to balance individual and personal rights while safe-guarding the nation. Due to the ethnic and diverse mix in USA and Europe, the new diverse workforce required equal opportunities and diversity issues to be sorted out at the fore front ((Kandola and Fullerton, 1994; Cox, 1992). Hence, these countries have created policies and laws that protect diversity and promote equality (Dass and Parker, 1999; Kirton and Greene, 2000; Lawrence, 2000; Woodhams and Danieli, 2000). It was created to eliminate discrimination faced by black and ethnic minorities (Healy Oikelome, 2007). In the 1990s, the NI office initiated the Policy Appraisal and Fair Treatment guidelines (PAFT) which span across areas of religion and political beliefs, ethnicity, sex and race, disability, sexual orientation, age, marital status and those amid dependants. After its establishment, all new policies needed to satisfy the above mentioned nine equality sets (Bagilhole, 2007). Diversity Policies in SMEs v/s Large Corporations: According to Carrell, a policy that focuses on eradicating discrimination and bringing about fairness would help focus on overlooking differences and integration. However, he observed through a study that 70% of his respondents were from small companies while 30% were from companies employing 500 or more employees (Fig 3.1). 46% of this total had policies professing employee diversity in place of which 42% said that their policies were executed only in the last 5 years. 53% of the respondents in all said they do not have a written policy in place to enforce diversity and among them, only 7% opined of having discussed such an issue in their company (Fig 3.2, 3.21) (Carrell, 2006). Some SMEs opine that they are simply too small to employ a diverse range of individuals while others find it convenient to hire within the family. In such enterprises, diversity management can create a platform for new products and diverse clientele and networks which is overlooked in their short-sighted vision (European Community Programme, 2007). While SMEs harangue the increase in competition, they fail to see how innovation with the help of diversity can provide them with sustained competitive advantage. Other identifies benefits are reduced absenteeism, turnover, time wasted or lost, higher client loyalty and brand value and also, access to wider markets. Some SMEs that implement diversity policies feel that it not only increases an employees sense of belonging to the company but also their commitment and dedication to the job. The informal learning obtained from knowledge and skills gathered by working with diverse teams can also be of great competitive advantage (European Com munity Programme, 2007). Determining whether an organisation is diversity friendly is simple. Typically, large organisations have an entire page devoted to diversity and workforce friendly policies which are also available in print on request. A study revealed that 76% of senior global executives opine that their companies have 1 or no minorities (Fig 4). In some cases, in an effort to increase diversity levels, minorities are placed in positions that would add no value to their career graph. Hence, they choose to not be part of the organisation (Diversity Jobs, 2009). Looking at any large company like Coca Cola, General Motors and Nike among others, their common factor is their recognition of diversity being their key to direct and spanning sales. In order to have a diverse external environment, it would help to have a diverse internal environment as well in terms of contacts, approaches and skills (Eaddy, 2003). Contrary to the notion of diversity practices in Multinationals, the challenges faced by them were discussed among 50 academics, senior executives and HR professionals from multinational corporations at the Global Workforce Roundtable Summit at London in 2006. Some of the challenges faced are the dismissal of diversity policies as an American notion, the extent to which these practices need to be developed in order to be trickled down the ladder and implemented, getting people down the ladder to embrace the concept of diversity policies and take initiatives in its implementation (Global Workforce Roundtable Summit, 2006). Research Evidence Perspectives on Diversity: The Jewson and Mason Model (1986) is states that there are two perspectives on equality and diversity: I. The equality of opportunity or liberal approach introduces fair procedures to offer access to institutions, services, social positions and resources. II. The equality of outcome or radical approach refers to affirmative action for historically discriminated and disadvantaged groups (Gatrell Swan, 2008). The liberal approach to equal opportunities is described by a belief of an individual or their imagined capabilities and merits rather than structural sources of inequality. This approach believes that these barriers can be removed such that individuals find a way to make the best of themselves (Jewson Mason 1986: 314; Gatrell Swan, 2008). The main objective of this approach is to make sure people are treated equally at the work place (Jewson Mason 1986: 315). Emphasis is on an individualistic view of fairness and equality rather than a group based approach that encompasses equal and free competition among people (Kirton Greene, 2004). In the radical view, ability, skills, talent and merit are socially constructed norms by powerful dominant groups and that inequality is produced as a result of these social practices (Jewson Mason 1986: 315). Hence, individual merit is not a neutral term but a criterion to filter out diverse candidates from jobs and opportunities based on a socia lly valued judgment (Gatrell Swan, 2008). Thus the radical approach looks at equality as a form of social justice centring on checking the outcome of procedures and its effects of different groups and equalising the outcome rather than the opportunity (Richards 2001: 16; Gatrell Swan, 2008). The Business Case is another model for managing diversity and is related to bettering economic productivity and service delivery and depoliticising models of social relations (Blackmore, 2006; Gatrell Swan, 2008). It harnesses differences so that a productive environment may be created that not only benefits the individual but also the organisation (Kandola Fullerton 1994:8). A diverse workforce brings material benefits to an organisation such as increased profit, creativity and representative customer care (Gatrell Swan, 2008). It is seen as an investment rather than a cost and rejects the notion of justice for an instrumental, utilitarian model (Kirton Greene, 2004). The Social Justice Model favours a structural explanation of inequalities based upon the concept of social justice (Kirton Greene, 2000:5). This mode of diversity management can give rise to increased quality of outcomes for individuals as well as groups as it highlights heterogeneity of difference within social groups while taking into account that difference is not a individual possession but socially constructed within social relations (Kirton Greene, 2000; Ferreday, 2003). This model acknowledges that some differences matter more than others as shown in the research conducted by Ahmed et al. (2006), Hunter Swan (2007) among others demonstrates that race gender have a significant consequence on the admission to paid work, working conditions and experiences and possibility of discrimination (Gatrell Swan, 2008). Cultural Diversity Model addresses how diversity can be used as a tool to achieve competitive advantage in an organisation. This model was viewed from the social responsibility goals of an organisation which is a fraction of the constitution of diversity management. According to Cox Blake (1991), focussing on seven areas of effective diversity management can lead to a companys sustained competitive advantage like education programs, cultural variances, prejudice free human resource management schemes, diversity mindset, heterogeneity in race/ religion/ ethnicity, organisational culture and higher vocation resource acquirement for women i.e. extinction of glass ceiling (Parhizgar, 2002). Glass ceiling is an organisational prejudice or a bias in attitude that prevents women and minority groups from progressing to higher leadership designations in an organisation (Princeton, 2009). Researchers contradict this theory as they dont find the connection between diversity and organisational competitive advantage. In Coxs view, in the 1970s monumental organisations were leading USA that did not give importance to diversity or the essential HR function. Instead of being given a fair chance, minority groups were expected to acculturate themselves to the norms set by majority groups i.e. in this case, white men. Pluralistic organisations that came into power in the 1960s, implement diversity management in ways of recruiting minorities, monitoring for fairness and providing diversity training and programs. A key difference between a pluralistic organisation and a multicultural organisation is minorities group are not only employed and value but also identified as key contributors and formally as well as informally completely integrated into the organisation. Cox and Blake also created a model in 2001 that claimed 5 cyclical steps to a successful multicultural organisation. The five steps are leadership, research and dimension, academic backing, coalition of management syst ems and follow up action steps (Stahl Bjà ¶rkman, 2006). The effect of diversity on performance in an organisation is still unclear. Its effect maybe positive or negative in some situations and also sometimes there may be no effect at all (Barrett-Power Shaw, 1998). Research based on race has shown that diversity in teams can yield benefits as well as costs (Campion, Medsker and Higgs, 1993; Guzzo Dickson, 1996; Jackson, 1991; Magjuka Baldwin, 1991). A team can be defined as a distinguishable set of two or more individuals who interact independently and adaptively to achieve specified, shared and valued objectives (Salas, 1986). Organisations depend upon teamwork to improve quality, experience of work, product and customer service for their members (Guzzo, 1995). Teams are believed to be vital tools for solving problems and making decisions in a highly complex, international environment (Tjosvold, 1995). Magjuka Baldwin (1991) found that within a group, diversity showed positive effect on job performance in a sample of 72 manufacturin g teams. Some studies have shown that diverse groups (based on race) are more creative and make better decisions than homogenous groups (McGrath, 1984; McLeod and Lobel, 1992) but they can also be less cohesive, less satisfied, have less conformity and more prone to turnover (Jackson, Brett, Sessa, Copper, Julin and Peyronnin, 1991). 3 Level Impact of Diversity: Individual Level: Diversity creates an impact on three levels: individual, group and organisation (Nkomo, 1998). At an individual level, key variable in understanding diversity are culture distance, perceived similarity, a sense of control as well as culture shock (Triandis, 1997). According to previous research by Berry (1984), an individual goes through an acculturation process which is; assimilation, separation, deculturation and integration. With assimilation, the culture that is dominant in the group becomes the standard and individuals try to live up to the standard. With separation, majority cultures and minority cultures do not merge as individuals from the minority cultures distance themselves from majority cultures. In deculturation, the individuals of minority cultures lack strong ties with the group as they neither have ties with their own minority culture nor with the standard majority culture. Integration refers to the state where individuals change to a certain extent to accommodate the common norms and standards (Berry, 1984). If an individual from a minority culture is unable to adapt, the group is considered to be at fault instead of the majority culture (Nkomo, 1991). The Alteration Model suggests that minority individuals need not be forced to practice a particular, standard culture or adapt to their own minority culture. They can become competent in multiple cultures and use what is required of it in a context. This may also be known as code-switching where an individual uses a language that best suits a context (LaFromboise, Coleman and Gerton, 1993). Group Level Diversity: At a group level, diversity can give rise to emotional conflict or task related conflict within a group. Task related conflict will increase group performance while emotional conflict will hinder performance (Kottke Agars, 2004). In a group research on diversity, it was found that readily observable factors (surface level) are important for group development but deeply held values and beliefs (deep level) are decisive in group processes that yield group outcomes (Stockdale Crosby, 2004). Group composition has been investigated as surface and deep-level diversity (Harrison, Price and Bell; 1998). Surface-level diversity maybe defined as differences in age, sex, race, ethnicity and other biological characteristics while deep-level diversity maybe defined as differences in behaviour, attitudes, morals, values and beliefs that require interaction to be understood. Organisational Level Diversity: Many consultants and academics argue that organisational level diversity is essential to serve the 21st century consumer (Gardenschwartz and Rowe, 1993; Morrison, 1992; Thomas, 1990; Wilson, 1997). Diversity makes an organisation more effective by bringing a lot of creative perspectives to the table. This has served as a base for many claims that suggest that diversity is a resource and strength for an organisation (Adler, 2003; Dobbs, 1998; Thomas, 1990). OReilley et al. (1997) conducted a research in an organisation that gave primary importance to employee diversity. They found that within the organisations groups, diversity created positive performance-related results. Studies show a negative as well as positive effect in organisations as ethnic groups or minorities perceive themselves less likely to advance in an organisation than majorities. Ethnic groups when exposed to majority groups are more susceptive to emotional conflict (Kizilos et al.; 1996). This creates a branching in the hypotheses as the attraction and social categorization theories suggest that diversity will cause a negative effect on organisation performance while only information and decision making theory suggests that diversity promotes organisational performance (Jarry Pitts, 2005). Information and decision making theory is based on educational and functional diversity and not ethnic diversity. Hence, it forms a weak basis against two prominent theories (Jarry Pitts, 2005). Diversity Management According to CIPD, managing diversity stands for valuing people for who they are; whether they are customers, clients, or even employees, they are all fundamentally diverse. Diversity management is not about identifying a single constant individual difference but about recognizing different individual changes and their ability to create a large scale impact and create dynamic changes (Mullholland, Ozbilgin and Worman; 2006). Managing diversity is meant to bring people from different areas and thought processes together to ensure self development as well as production of superior quality results. It is meant to nurture creativity and innovation by caressing diversity while creating an atmosphere of creative genius and healthy competition (Leader; 2009). The University of Vienna describes diversity management as a strategy or a business plan to perceive, promote, acknowledge implement and preserve essential competencies within an organisation (University of Vienna, 2007). Diversity man agement stresses the necessity of indentifying cultural variances Between sets of employees, and making rational grants for such differences in policies within the organisation (Thomas, 1990). There can be a few negative consequences of diversity management like that of the trainers values expressed in a training program. The trainers values are just ones point of view and not the universal truth and yet it is forced upon unsuspecting trainees during a program. Some trainers may have ulterior motives or discreet agendas and usually training occurs too late. Diversity training is often looked upon as a band aid, a quick fix if you will a shortcut to a difficult situation. However, quick fixes are prone to disintegrating fast. A psychological disadvantage is the creation of an image that the trainees have some issues in dealing with diversity. Also, the definitions of diversity are often too narrow and under-expressed with the focus on diplomacy rather than honest opinions. Trainers chosen are also often based on which minority group they represent rather than how well they train (Public Personnel Management, 2002). A study among companies that provide diversity training revealed 33% who said that their efforts were quite or extremely successful. 30% said their efforts were quite successful while 3% opined extreme success. 50% of the firms opined neutral or varied results while 13% said their results were quite unsuccessful and 5% opined extreme failure (Fig 5) (Public Personnel Management, 2002). On understanding the effects of diversity, it is useful to know how diversity can be managed. Every individual is different from another in matters of age, education, gender, values, physical ability, mental capacity, personality, experiences, culture and the way each approaches work (Jamieson and OMara 1991: 3-4). Diversity advantage can be obtained by realizing, acknowledging and valuing these differences and creating an environment that appreciates these attributes by being flexible enough to meet needs and preferences – to create a motivating and rewarding environment (Jamieson and OMara 1991: 3-4). Managing diversity is not only about handling issues on discrimination but also making sure that everyone is contributing to their maximum potential to achieve the organisation objectives (Argott, 2008). Diversity management does not mean only increasing opportunities for women and minorities. It means increasing competitive advantage by taking those diverse variances and cre ating a comprehensive atmosphere where each can contribute and make a difference (Larson, 2004). This concept covers everyone including the white and middle class males while focussing on movement and culture within the organisation and meeting business objectives (Argott, 2008). Diversity Management differs from Equal Opportunities in its lack of reliance upon positive action or affirmative action (Kaler, 2001). Diversity training is training to increase the contributors knowledge, skills and awareness of different cultures. This would prevent civil rights violations, promote team work and also provide opportunities to different minority groups (Kalev, Dobbin and Kelley, 2006). It is an effective way to broaden diversity in an organisation and also, increase an individuals ability to cope with it (Vaughn, 2007). Present Day Diversity Management Hudson carried out a national survey as a result of witnessing a friend who was denied a job, promotion or increased salary as a result of their ethnicity. The survey conducted in USA in 2005 throws light on startling figures of 31% among African-American employees and drops to 18% among white workers (Fig 6.1)(Hudson, 2005). One out four (23%) employees opined that they know someone who has been treated differently on the basis of their gender. African-American women are more likely to make this claim than others. 23% of workers polled that they do not work for employers who actively promote diversity and 13% are unsure whether their companies have a formal diversity program. 64% of them work for diversity promoting firms (Fig 6.2), 20% of employees know someone who has been treated differently based on their gender and 18% know someone whose been discriminated against based on their ethnic or racial variances (Fig 6.3). These statistics increase to 32 and 29% respectively with work ers in non-diversity promoting companies. Employees working for large or multinational corporations are said to report a statistic of 76% for supporting diversity and its programs (Hudson, 2005). Since this report, two approaches to managing diversity have been founded. One is that which defines diversity in relation to equal opportunities and affirmative action only (Carrell, Mann Sigler, 2006). Affirmative Action can be explained as taking measures towards the depiction of women and minority groups in terms of employment, edification and commerce in which they have been ostracized throughout history. This method includes preferential assortment i.e. selection on the basis of race, colour, ethnicity among other. Hence, it is a subject of great controversy (Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy, 2009). The other point of view argues the broader concept is inclusive of differences of the people i.e. considering that team members consist of different ages, genders, races, ethnicities and demographic categories to the likes of sexual orientation, religion among others (Carrell, Mann Sigler, 2006). Hudsons survey called for the implementation of the narrow point of view. Howeve r, more recent studies have shown that affirmative action does little to sort out the causative agents of inequality, bias and injustice and does not contribute to the enhancement of opportunities open to men and women in the workplace (Thomas, 1990). Xerox is among the top employers who enforce diversity. They are ranked among the Top 50 Corporations for Supplier Diversity, Top 50 Companies for Diversity and Corporate 100. They focus on four key areas to enhance diversity management like that of communiquà ©, CEO dedication, staff demographics and purveyor diversity. Xerox has been found to give more opportunities to Hispanics in the USA and also been named the national #1 in womens employment opportunities. At Xerox, a Supplier Diversity Program is mandatory for all employees especially those of middle management. The power of this program lies in the recognition of the strength in adversity right from the entry level to the top management (Poder 360, 2009). Xerox employees being diverse; act as campaigners in recommending and negotiating with diverse clientele. Xerox partnerships with diverse suppliers to finance and contribute to their business while profiting from it (Xerox, 2009). They call this their pioneering practice t hat brings them results (CSR, 2005). AstraZeneca (AZ) is one of the leading pharmaceutical companies who employ over 65000 people worldwide. Formed by the merger of Astra AB of Sweden and Zeneca Group PLC of UK, AZ brought together the merger of likeminded vision and diversity in race, religion, age, gender, ethnicity and skills (AstraZeneca, 2009). Here, diversity is looked upon in the broader sense and utilized to create high performance teams with the help of sharing ideas and discussing strategies across the board. At the heart of their vision, is the creation of true cultural diversity. Hence, they create small programs and global initiatives to embed diversity (AstraZeneca, 2009). Here, diversity is focussed on three a

Feminist Art Movement Essays -- Cindy Sherman 2014

In the late 1960 to 1980s when the woman artists’ work hardly could be published, unlike the men, the feminists artists were rejected by the museums, galleries and many women. The issue was that nobody could see how woman had so much valued art works to show. Only the male artists were allow to be published as artists, while the women suffered of discrimination. What the women wanted was that the world treat them as equals to men. The woman wanted something different than the men. This world has focused on only the male artists and their work. The women were shrouded in silence. Linda Nochlin who is an art critic asks, "Why have there been no great women artist?† (Nochlin 2) Since women's art were degraded and rejected by the public, women's artwork was hardly published. However, with the hardships and the endurance of women trying to earn their rights as artists, the visibility of their art is brought out by the exhibitions they produce. Therefore, during the 1970s thro ugh 1980s, the feminist art movement was the turning point for feminist art to become more visible to the public. The notion of the feminist art was that in the social life, males were dominant over females and men had more power than women. Lilith eZine (online magazine) argues, "Feminist theory must take into account the circumstances of most women's lives as mothers, household workers, and caregivers, in addition to the pervasive misconception that women are genetically inferior to men." (Lilith 7) Since "women are inferior to men", women's art was ignored by the museums and galleries. In the 1970s, women artists started a protest against gallery owners for not exhibiting women’s art thus this became the start of a movement called Feminist Art Mo... ...g inferior to men† during the 1960s to 1980s, women’s artwork was degraded, ignored and rejected. However, the continuous of women gathering to have their rights that should already have been accepted, through the Feminist Art Movement, female artists gained visibility. This movement was a big turning point and now we know who they are. Works Cited Douma, Michael. "Cindy Sherman's Untitled Film Stills." N.p., Online Posting to Color Vision & Art. Web. 28 Nov. 2014. . Woodman, Donald. "Judy Chicago." N.p., Online Posting to Through the Flower. Web. 28 Nov. 2014. . Wright, Coroline. â€Å"Why have there been no great women artists? An art historical question from a neurobiological perspective† N.P. Web. 28 Nov. 2014.

Theses Essay -- essays research papers

death of a salesman Biff the Hero? In Arthur Miller’s, dramatic play, Death of a Salesman the Loman family presents its self as being the perfect nuclear family as opposed to their dysfunctional nature. Even though Miller portrays Willy Loman as the main character of the story, his lack of praise worthy traits make it necessary for another to be the hero. This other character comes in the form of Willy’s son, Biff Loman, who may not succeed in regards to Willy’s dreams, but still deserves the honor of being called the hero of the play. Biff shows qualities describing a hero because he grows up with false ideals but later rejects them searching for his true identity. To analyze Biff Loman the most important aspect comes from his change in self-realization that represents his dynamic nature. This dynamic nature shows with his interaction in regards to other characters and with respects to underlying themes in the play. Even though many people have influenced Biff over his life, only h is family has left a significant impact on it. Their presence and importance in his life make it necessary to view the motivating aspects of his interaction with them, whether it is positive or negative. The first character that we must analyze comes in the form of the overbearing but idolized father, who sets the foundation for Biff’s beliefs and way of life. Many different aspects of this relationship can be portrayed in reference to Biff’s ultimate and final realization at the end of the play. In Biff’s youth, he accepts and adores everything that pertains to Willy because that is the nature of a small child. Even though we later realize the err in Willy’s ideology, his initial instincts to teach his son success held no faults. Willy’s hopes and goals were pure (Onger 154). On the other hand, Willy’s excessive need to promote vanity and unfulfilling popularity, sets the stage for Biff’s eventual letdown. Willy provides Biff with an ego because of the high praise given to Biff that makes him conceited. Such great praise prompts Biff’s pride of himself and his family, which leads Biff to feel contentment and fulfillment in his younger years before his dreams come to an end. But, his flaw comes in the form of hubris or arrogance that goes hand in hand with his father's belief in his own greatness. Biff so readily believes his father’s assumptions that he will not work at any ... ...With this in mind Biff forces himself to break the barriers of his fathers confining concepts and to evaluate his own life. Biff’s understanding of Willy’s inability to realize his [Willy’s] identity, proved vital to Biff’s own search for self identification. Willy further proved his inability to understand by finally committing suicide and thinking that it would bring happiness to Biff. Biff shows his dynamic nature in the rejection of false ideals and in the search for true identity. One last proof of his change shows up in a strong symbolic element of the play. When Biff stole footballs in his youth, he felt no shame or sorrow, but that does not hold true in the case of the fountain pen he stole from Oliver. "I took those balls years ago, now I walk in with his fountain pen? That clinches it, don’t you see? I can’t face him like that!" (Miller 88). By regret for his actions, Biff proves the maturity he gains, which no other c haracter can attest for. Because of such amazing development, "†¦Biff, having completed his search for self-identity in the face of the odds which had driven his father crazy, emerges as the true protagonist of this play" (Sharma 79).

Heart of Darkness :: essays papers

Heart of Darkness Life in London set a cushion for its citizens, â€Å"with solid pavement under your feet, surrounded by kind neighbors ready to cheer you or to fall you, stepping delicately between the butcher and the policeman, in the holy terror of scandal and gallows and lunatic asylums.† On the other hand, once a man enters the Congo, he is all alone. No policeman, no â€Å"warning voice of a kind neighbor,† -- no one. Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness sets Marlow on a journey in the Congo, where he realizes the environment he comes from is not reality, but an illusion hiding true human nature. His arrival at the First Station is his first exposure to the Congo where a horrid reality and naà ¯ve mentality is revealed -- a comparison of darkness and light. The chosen passage falls in the beginning of the narrative to set a picture of what to expect at upcoming stations. Marlow leaves London, his home, and his Aunt to travel to his first stop on the Congo River; the First Station. Here, Marlow begins to realize the unspeakable horror that exists. â€Å"Six black men advanced in file†¦ I could see every rib, the joints of their limbs were like knots in a rope; each had an iron collar on his neck, and all were connected together with a chain whose bights swung between them.† Marlow disapproved of what he saw and chose to avoid the six men. After his encounter with the â€Å"gang,† he meets the Chief Accountant, a well-dressed, tidy man, whom he admires. â€Å"I respected his collars†¦ his appearance was certainly that of a hairdresser’s dummy; but in the great demoralization of the land he kept up his appearance. That’s backbone. (Pg. 227)† Despite the dehumanization surrounding them, there s till stands a man who can present himself â€Å"properly†. The first chapter of the novel is framed to present life in London, then contrasting it with a picture of the savage Congo, and finishing by showing that civilized life can still exist in the jungle. Diction plays two pertinent roles in the passage: to produce imagery and to label objects or people. Diction reflects the extent of the contrasting light and darkness of the station that the imagery creates. In the midst of â€Å"mounds of turned-up earth by the shore†¦ a waste of excavations,† Marlow notes â€Å"a blinding sunlight drowned all this at times in a sudden recrudescence of glare.

How to Calculate Retirement Funds

To calculate the present value of interest and principal payments, you will need to use the NAP function, rather than the UP function, since the cash flows in the principal and interest columns are not constant throughout time. ] What do you observe when you look at these numbers? Explain. (c) Using your amortization table, what Is the principal that remains to be paid after you have completed 15 years of payments? How does this figure relate to the payments that you have already made? How does this figure relate to your remaining payments? Explain. (d) Suppose that you had bought this house in June of 2006 under the terms scribed above.Since that date, the average house has declined in value at the rate of 1% per month. [This is the national average for the 3-year period ending summer 2009. ] Assuming that you also experienced this price decline on your house, at what point in calendar time will you owe more in principal on the loan than the house is worth? Assume throughout that yo u make every payment on time and that house prices continue to decline until at least this point in time. Answer the same question if you had paid 30% down Instead of 10%. Explain why your answers are different. E) Now suppose that your house from part (d) was located In Miami, FL.The average decline in housing prices over this time period in Miami was about 2% per month for the last 4 years. Assume that your house's price declined by the same amount as the average house in the Miami area. How does a 2% decline change your answers to part (d)? Are the answers the same or different? Explain. NOTE: For questions prepare a spreadsheet model for part. Use this spreadsheet model with additional calculations for part b, c, d, e. Written answers to the questions in b, c, d, and e should be place on a separate worksheet In the same document. 2.Suppose that your salary at age 25 Is $72,500 and that you are paid on a monthly basis. You plan to retire at age 65 and will need 75% of you last ye ar's salary as Income after you retire for living expenses. You have saved $55,000 to date. You want to build your dream home to live out the rest of your life in at age 50. Based on current prices Ana an Notation rate Tanat Is expected to rise at 1% per year Inelegantly, you project this home will cost $1,000,000 to complete. You have some older relatives that have always had an interest in you and have indicated that you are in their wills. Assume that you will inherit $100,000 in 5 years.Assume that you like to travel and plan to take one nice trip every year starting at the end of your first year of retirement until age 75. The average price of the kind of trips you would like to take is $5,000 today and will rise with inflation. You project that your salary will grow at a rate of 2% and that your retirement income needs will grow at 1%. Finally, assume that you expect to live to age 85 and that you wish to have a balance at the end of your life that is equal to the present valu e of 5 years of your needed income. The appropriate interest rate for your working life is 9% and declines to 6% after you tire.Both rates of return are nominal. Assume that growth rate and interest rates are quoted as annual figures and reported as EAR's. A) What % of your monthly salary do you need to start saving to meet your expected needs? Find the solution to this problem by taking all cash flows to the present (I. E. Age 25) b) Verify that your monthly savings from part a plus your initial savings and inheritance described above will allow you to pay for the house at age 50. NOTE: Build a spreadsheet model to answer these two questions and place it in the same document as your answers to questions 1 .

English – Courage

It might be said Courage No adept is natural with resolution, solely rather born with the potential to be lionhearted. Courage is not always an diddle of great bravery, all when stop also be verbalized in the most average daylight to day actions. But when dying is sodding(a) into your eyes, unless a handful of pot can persevere through with(predicate) the hardships and challenges utilise the heroism in their hearts. Courage is existence affright to death and saddling up anyway.Many composers introduce endurance in the presence of death, risk of infection and maintenance and yield that to be suit sufficient to go beyond the boundaries of death, jeopardy and fear one must surface the endurance to stare into the eyes of death itself. Roberto Benigni in his film Life is Beautiful (1997), Sir Alfred maestro Tenny parole in his poem Charge of the lightsomeness Brigade (1854) and Andrew Stantons decision Nemo (2003) all contain consultations who display amazin g amount of courage and be qualified to stand up against life risking locations.In these texts, composers shake up implemented techniques to array that courage is experience by the feelings of purpose, make revere and to fork over a life. To be able to act upon a life risking smears one must show function. Roberto Benignis film, Life is Beautiful is jam-packed with characters that show extremely courageous characteristics who are ambitious and make a genuine attempt to maintain them. The character Dora displays the feelings of finding as she attempts to unite with her family, as her son, husband and uncle are forced on a shoot which is transferring them to a dousing mob.Dora pull ining that this train will aim to unavoidable riskiness is the courage that was displayed. Dora asks the ships officer courteously to arrive on the train, when she is rejected her tone and facial expressions suddenly counterchange into a much serious express when she demands, I want to get on that train. Did you hear me? I want to get on that train It is perspicuous through this speech that Dora is determined to stay with her family, because she reckons her family is undoubtedly worth risking her life for.In addition to the speech, Doras carriage is b honorable red and symbolises her rivalry, venerate and determination. Her bonnie red coat juxtaposes with the situation and environment, as her clothing portrays courage and on the unlike the smoke filled sky and the gamy colours of the soldiers portray the tragedy the train is headed towards. This scene intelligibly shows Doras determination, displaying her courage to act upon a situation leading to incomprehensible hazards. As well as Benigni, Alfred Lord Tennyson also shows the expect of determination when being courageous.Tennysons poem is about soldiers fighting for what they believe in, knowing death can be just around the corner. Similar to Dora, the barge Brigade soldiers must show determin ation in place to accomplish and generate their goals. The repetition of Into the valley of death, Rode the six coulomb symbolises a point of no return, where death is imminent. It also emphasises on the immense need for determination for them to advance into a horrific clash of s linguistic process. Volleyd and thunderd, the onomatopoeia instills a strong guts of fear into the soldiers and emphasises on the inescapable danger of the situation.The constant verbs and visual mental imagery allows the contri thoor to feel and see the horrors of the battle allowing them to understand their determination. Both texts depict the necessity of determination to show courage specifically in a wartime period. It is the determination shown by Dora and the soldiers which allows their audiences to real see the courage displayed when approach against death, danger and fear. It might be said stopping point is not the solitary positionor to be courageous. It is also clear that love has a crucial effect on an respective(prenominal) to be courageous.The central figure in Life is Beautiful, Guido, shows an intense amount of courage and it is all done out of love for his son. When they are at the concentration camp Guido sacrifices many things in dedicate to curb is son happy and nescient of the fact that the situation is ominous. In order to write his son nescient, Guido, pretends to be a German translator, changing the rules about the camp to be about a game he made up for his son. The strong hostile tone of the officer is antagonised by Guidos gratify and the tense situation was also position by the constant close ups ofJoshuas pleasant and bright face. It is this scene were Guido has displace himself in an intense situation which displays the love and courage within him. The officers are shown holding weapons and intercommunicate in an aggressive town hardly it is also the background experience of the situation which allows the audience to understand the immense danger that is present. It is this association of immense danger that portrays Guidos courage fumed by love for his son to throw up himself in a situation where he is gambling with his life.Alfred Tennysons Charge of the Light Brigade does not only show determination, alone also emphasises the love the soldiers hold towards their republic. Theirs not to make reply, Theirs not to reason why, Their but to do and die, the repetition of Theirs shows the soldierss patriotism because it emphasises the soldiers do it without question, they completely trust their commanders words and will do whatever necessary to adopt their country to victory. The love of the soldiers is what shines their courage. Cannon to the right/left/in front, uses visual imagery to show the mean audience the unavoidable danger that is present, but the soldiers advance forward, march with courage shining with love for their country. The love Guido and the soldiers have are similar because it is stri ctly acting on their own will, and consecutively for the sake of someone other than themselves. It is evident the soldiers have tremendous courage to commission into the jaws of Death and doing so by acting upon the words of their commander out of love for their country which they did not question, and only obeyed.The notion that determination and love are needed to be courageous are not the only factors in this concept. It is also evident the want to save a life plays a substantial impact on an individual performing a courageous act. Guido, in the approach of the film, leaves the salvation of his room in order to search for his wife and to save her from the bunkum camp. With the constant sounds of explosion and gunshots and with the contextual knowledge of the situation it allows the intended audience to panorama his courage and his will to save his wife.By only stepping out of the sleeping rooms, Guido had put himself in imminent danger and death can hit him at any time, but Guido courageously pushed forward in order to save his wifes life. Andrew Stantons Finding Nemo is about a fish father who courageously and desperately travels crossways the world in search for his son. Marlin and his keep company Dory encounter numerous situations where they had placed themselves in a life lowering situation.In order to find where his son is unploughed captive Marlin must keep a grave, aggressive and hungry fish distract while Dory reads a interchange of writing that leads to Nemo. Marlin is in an extremely dangerous position where he has become the put one over and from the contextual knowledge of the situation it is evident the courage displayed by Marlin is driven by the feelings of saving his son. The speed of the music and tv camera shots gradually increase to a high pace, camera angles change accordingly allowing the intended audience to feel the suspense of the situation.Both composers Bengini and Stanton apply the camera techniques, and sound t o their advantage to nominate a suspenseful scene and to show how dangerous the situation is. Both protagonists put themselves in extreme danger in order to save a life. This apparently shows the courage driven by the ambition to save a life, even when faced by imminent danger. It might be said The composers used varied techniques and ideas to show the fundamentals of courage in their texts.Through their knowledge and perception of the world they all showed determination, love and saving a life, in different forms. It is evident that courage is being scared to death and still being able to continue, as there is nothing more feared than death itself. The characters and situations discussed in the different texts prove to show that determination, love and saving a life are all a necessity to being courageous against a life threatening situation and hopefully their intended message of courage is clearly depicted to all intended audiences. completed

Psychoanalytic Perspective on Personality Development

Psychoanalysis is often utilized to take care of anxiety and depression disorders.2. )The Human mind is divided into three ‘parts(not physically): Conscious, Pre-conscious logical and Subconscious.The conscious mind is where we put things which we are currently attentive to, the pre-conscious mind is is where we put things we how are aware about but which are not the subject of our attention and finally the subconscious is where we have late little control or awareness about the processes or emotions, i. e.Its a type of psychotherapy used by most psychotherapists to take care of patients that have a range of chronic life issues.Ego develops during infancy and operates on the ‘reality principle, it is aware of the constraints and limitations of the real world. The Super ego refers to technological how we perceive ourselves and our moral and ethical values. In this model the function of Ego is to balance the Id and Super Ego within the constraints and limitations of the real world. 4.

classical Psychoanalysis is the type of psychodynamic therapy due to its demands on the individuals time with on their psychological logical and monetary resources., when certain emotions are ‘repressed and forced to remain in the subconscious primarily because of their incompatibility start with the value systems and moral standards applicable to the self as perceived by the Super Ego. This is done through ‘defence mechanisms. Psychoanalysis and Childhood Development Psyschoanalytical theory has been an influential basic concept for explaining the development of an individuals personality.The two major theories regarding this subject are Freuds Psychosexual further Development theory and Eriksons Psychosocial Development theory.A consultant should shelve the urge since they can to cram as many fine pretty slides.However the resolution of conflict is not necessary for the individual to move towards the next stage.The eight stages of Eriksons economic theory are outl ined below: a. )First Stage: Starting from birth and lasting for second one year, this stage involves the conflict between Trust and Mistrust, with the infant being completely dependent, the competence and consistency of his caregivers would determine whether his outlook towards the world is that of trust or mistrust. b.

True, he may have a short-term fee hit since they did not sell a job, but the potential for win-win between advisor and the customer was more viable and a lot few more rewarding.)Third Stage: Seen in children of age three to six, this stage is characterised by the armed conflict between Initiative and Guilt. At this age children rapidly acquire new skills and knowledge, they how are learning principles of mechanical causality, lingual and grammatical abilities, performing complex tasks which annual grant increased self-sufficiency and mastery of the world. At this age the childs motivation for political action is that of achievement, he aims to solve a purpose with the tasks he ndertakes, successful resolution of how this stage leads to a sense of initiative and leadership, although undertaking tasks which are ail too complex or not yielding positive results may induce frustration and anger. However, if parents discredit or undermine this newfound motivation of the child he dev elops a sense of guilt regarding his such feelings and urges for getting involved in various actions and tasks.Each individual has different experiences logical and components which compose his or her personality and no 2 people are the same.Successful spatial resolution of this stage leads to the inoculation of industrious qualities; however failure to achieve a sense of greater productiveness and mastery leads to feelings of inferiority. e. )Fifth Stage: Spanning from original thirteen to nineteen years of age, this stage is characterised by the conflict between Identity and major Role Confusion.During adolescence, children explore their independence and develop a sense of self.

Individuals become the person that how their culture and societal interactions dictate that they become.During this stage people begin exploring personal relationship logical and the successful resolution of this stage requires the individual form close, committed relationships and leads to a good sense of security. Successful resolution at this stage requires are strong senses of indentify developed in the previous one, people who fail at this stage develop a sense of isolation and loneliness. g. )Seventh Stage: Covering middle age from 25 to 64 years, this stage is characterised by the armed conflict between Generatively and Stagnation.In the realm of Freud, it.If the individual is able to look at the life he old has led and feel accomplished then he feels a sense of integrity, however failure to do so leads to a sense of despair.Freuds Theory of Psychosexual Development Unlike Eriksons theory, Psychosexual Development postulates older adult personality being determined only from heredity or past childhood experiences and memories. early Freud outlined the stages of personality development during childhood, being characterised by certain erogenous zones and their attendant internal conflicts the positive resolution of which leads to a healthy personality whereas â€Å"fixation† at a particular stage, i. e.

They dont delight in suffering.)Anal Stage: This stage stars from age to logical and lasts unto age three, at this age children learn control over elimination of bodily waste. Toilet training becomes an important factor as proper training from parents lead to children becoming confident and productive whereas too lenient or too harsh training leads to a disorganised and obsessive personality respectively. . )Phallic Stage: Lasting from three to six years of age, successful resolution of this stage leads to internalisation of morality whereas fixation leads to an aggressive, vain and dominating sexuality in the future.Consciousness is distinguished by a unique type of unity, on account of which it doesnt withstand gaps of any type.References: 1. ) Slater, Charles L. (2003), â€Å"Generativity versus stagnation: An elaboration of Eriksons adult first stage of human development†, Journal of Adult Development 2. ) Erikson, Erik (1956).

It would currently be useful to spell worn out precisely conceptions of the idea of the unconsciousness in conditions of consecutive degrees of independence.Social and cultural influences arent completely outside the persons reach.Freuds influence is still huge and pervasive.Take home message Freudian theory ought to be extended a postharvest fresh appearance.