Thursday, October 31, 2019

This paper aims to define a class of consumers and to cater to their Essay

This paper aims to define a class of consumers and to cater to their wants and needs - Essay Example How to define a class of consumers' How to cater to their wants and needs' For an effective and efficient Marketing strategy, segmentation is an important tool, but segmentation research data precedes selection and segmentation methods models and procedures are based on customer profiles. Profiling requires certain pre-conditions and they are that a group of customers need specific products and there is nominal variance in their expectations. This will result in effective and profitable Targeting. There is the ultra-conservative type. This segment is highly consistent with their way of doing things. In their case any deviation might alienate them therefore it is very important to cater to them repeatedly in the same form and manner as the last time. Once established they seldom change preferences. They become wary if discounts are offered or premium charged as for them it translates into loss of consistency. Cost effectiveness is acceptable if it does not disturb the status quo and bulk offerings are acceptable on similar conditions. They are very negative towards complex offerings. Then there are the conservative ones who will veer towards the new or unknown only if it involves low risk and competitive pricing. They are neutral to complex offerings and prefer to stay within a wide band of preferences, making few experiments. Lastly the Liberals who would like to try anything new and w... They are neutral to complex offerings and prefer to stay within a wide band of preferences, making few experiments. Lastly the Liberals who would like to try anything new and willing to take up a challenging offer. For them the price is secondary and the end result is foremost. They are the daring types who will experiment with new offerings. The fundamental factors for an organization deciding on segmentation can be explained as: Similarity of customer needs and wants and the customers are willing to pay premium for the products. Customers cluster into groups by need (viz., Religion, Ethnicity, Race) Cost of serving may be higher but is lower than the customer expectations and thereby a premium price can cover that escalation Purchase Decisions Four different reasons influence a buyers' decision. They are also known as 7Ps as described by Kotler and Armstrong (1994) and Booms and Bitner (1981). This needs careful study to understand customer behaviour. 1 Product. The buyer is greatly influence if the product or service is perceived as useful for him. Sometimes it may not be of immediate use but its uniqueness is the attraction. Future valuation is also a decision making factor. 2 Price. The price is not usually a stand-alone factor. It has to be comparable with other products or services but with weight given to factors like quality and after sale service. It is often the case that the customer perceives the middle price to be the best for him/her as it is neither too outlandish nor too low to belie quality. There is also a play on the mind of the buyer that the product or service should not be mediocre and the price is usually the barometer of quality.

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Case study Corporate social responsibility and NGOs ( International Essay

Case study Corporate social responsibility and NGOs ( International Business) - Essay Example Precisely, enterprises have operation chains that cut across different societies, communities, cultures and national frontiers where they encounter unique business environments that pose both challenges and opportunities; most importantly, multinational corporations must be responsive to the myriad social and ethical concerns in their specific environments of operations (Husted & Allen 2006 p.838). Ethics and social values are integral aspects of management since businesses have an obligation to take responsibility for the adverse effects of their actions and operations both on the local environment and on the populations in the global business environment (Bennett 2002, p.394). In view of the ambivalent nature of the global business environment, thanks to the challenges and opportunities of globalization and technological advancements, the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility has emerged as one of the crucial areas of management focus today (Lim & Tsutsui 2012, p.69). The heightened global focus on ethical behaviour and societal values implies that multinational corporations have to prove themselves as responsible global actors in their dealings in markets where their operations are hosted across the world. For that reason, multinational corporations the world over are increasingly paying more attention to Corporate Social Responsibility today more than ever before, par ticularly given its crucial significance in determining not only business success, but also enterprise survival in the long term (Branco and Rodrigues 2006, p.111). For all the good reasons conceivable, international businesses as well as organisations of various kinds are starting to explore the significance of pursuing a more proactive and comprehensive approach towards CSR as a solution to the myriad challenges of globalization, which undermine sustainable development (Herrmann 2004, p.205). Given that actions

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Technologies to Analyze Big Data

Technologies to Analyze Big Data Hassan, Ruman Ul Currently, most of the companies like Facebook, Google, and Amazon are generating an extensive data and this data is termed as big data. In addition to the above mentioned sources, there are many other sources like banking, airlines, stock market, and digital media that generates big data. Nandimath, Patil, Banerjee, Kakade, and Vaidya (2013) state that the volume of data being generated daily is increasing rapidly and the size of this data is nearer to zeta bytes (p. 700). This means the size of the data is increasing quickly. This data holds a value that can benefits business organizations to improve their business stability and to increase their profit. However, this big data creates the problem of storage and processing. Prior to ten years ago, the data was stored and processed in a traditional database management system. This system is called as Relational Database Management System (RDBMS). After the rise of big data, it is really difficult for the RDBMS to process this large d ata. Thus, many researchers focuse their study in developing a technology that can effectively analyze the big data. After extensive research, Google has proposed a google file system for storing the big data and a map reduce algorithm for processing this data. Moreover, Nandimath et al. (2013) assert that Apache hadoop is used for distributed processing of big data (p. 700). This framework helps many organizations in efficiently analyzing their big data. Beside Hadoop, the other technologies that help in analyzing the big data are Pig, Hive, Hbase, Zoo Keeper, and Sqoop. Each tool has their own requirements, so the usage of these tools depends on the criticality of the data and the requirement of the organization or business. However, the three major technologies to analyze big data are hadoop, hive, and pig. Hadoop is one the major technologies to analyze the big data. It is the framework developed by Apache for processing extensive data sets. This framework helps business firms to effectively process their unstructured data like video, audio and image. In addition, this framework benefits many business organizations to improve their financial stability by effectively analyzing their data. Furthermore, the hadoop framework consists of two main components, hadoop distributed file system (HDFS) and map reduce programming paradigm. The function of HDFS is to store the comprehensive datasets in distributed environment. Distributed environment allows the developer to store the large data sets on multiple machines. Thus, it helps in improving the retrieval process of immense data. In addition, Nandimath et al. (2013) state that â€Å"Hadoop uses its own file system HDFS which facilitates fast transfer of data which can sustain node failure a whole† (p. 700). It also helps developer to o vercome the storage problem. For example, if immense data is stored on a single machine then it creates a problem of processing and retrieving because of its size. Thus, if that data is distributed on multiple machines then it provide an ease for the developer for processing and retrieving. Beside fast processing and retrieving, reliability is also a benefit of HDFS. HDFS achieve high reliability by replicating the data on different machines. Therefore, if any machine fails in distributed environment, then the data of that particular machine will be easily recovered through backups. According to Dittrich and Ruiz (2012), the benefit of map reduce is that developers need to define only single functions for map and reduce task (p. 2014). This map reduce paradigm helps developers to overcome the problem of efficiently processing the data. Moreover, Nandimath et al. (2013) believe that the purpose of map is to divide the job into smaller parts and distribute it to different nodes, while the purpose of reduce is to generate the desired result (p. 701). For instance, if Facebook wants to analyze the user interest then the Facebook will first deploy the generated data on HDFS and performs the map task to divide the zeta byte of data and then perform the reduce task to get the desired result. Thus, it shows that hadoop helps organizations for efficiently analyzing their extensive datasets. Another technology to analyze big data is hive. It is a data warehouse framework build upon hadoop. It provides an ability for the developer to structure and analyze the data. In hadoop, the data processing task is performed using Java programming language where as in hive, processing a task is performed using structured query language (SQL). In addition. Borkar, Carey, and Liu (2012) assert that â€Å"Hive is SQL-inspired and reported to be used for over 90% of the Facebook map reduce use cases† (p. 2). Thus, the main goal of hive is to process the data through SQL like interface. Moreover, the traditional SQL standards were restricting the hive from performing some intensive operations like extracting, transforming and loading the big data. As a result, hive developed their own query language called hive query language (HQL). Besides traditional SQL standards, HQL includes some specific hive extensions that provide an ease for the developer to effectively analyze the big data. Furthermore, hive helps developer to overcome the scalability issue by using distributed file system mechanism. It also helps them to achieve the fast response time through HQL. For example, general SQL statements like SELECT and INSERT will consume more time on traditional database management system for big data where as in hive the same operations can be performed efficiently. Moreover, Liu, Liu, Liu, and Li (2013) conclude that with precise system parameter tuning in hive, an acceptable performance can be achieved (p. 45). This means if the developer precisely changes the system parameters for analyzing the data, then performance efficiency can be improved for that task. Besides hadoop and hive, pig is also a major technology to analyze the big data. Pig allows the developer to analyze and process the enormous datasets quickly and easily through transformation. It is also called dataflow language. The pig framework is used along with HDFS and map reduce paradigm. The working of pig is similar to that of hive except the query language. In pig a task is performed using pig latin whereas in hive, the task is performed using HQL. The main benefit of pig is that pig latin queries can be integrated with other languages like Java, Jruby, and Python and it also allow users to define their own functions to perform the task as per their needs. Moreover, as pig is a dataflow language it helps developer to illustrate the data transformation process. For example, in pig it is easy to perform the data transformation operations like Split, Stream, and Group compare to SQL. In addition, the pig framework is divided into two parts pig latin language and pig interpret er. The pig latin is a query language to process big data. In addition, Lee, Lee, Choi, Chung, and Moon (2011) assert that in pig framework a task is processed using pig latin language (p. 14). The pig latin queries help developer to process the data efficiently and quickly. Another component of pig framework is pig interpreter. The work of interpreter is to convert the pig latin queries into map reduce jobs and also to evaluate the bugs in pig latin queries. For example, if Facebook developer writes the pig latin query to find the people in India that like rock music, then this query is first interpreted by pig interpreter to identify bugs and then it is converted to map reduce jobs. Thus, with the help of pig latin queries, developers can avoid the stress of writing a tedious code in java to perform the same action. In conclusion, the three technologies to process the big data are hadoop, hive, and pig. These frameworks help business organizations to find the value from their data. In addition, each technology is useful for performing a task differently. For instance, Apache Hadoop is useful for analyzing the offline data and it cannot process the real time data like banking data. Moreover, hive provides a SQL like interface that makes the processing a lot easier because the user does not have to write the lengthy tedious code. Hive is good for those user who are not good at programming and best in SQL. Similarly, pig also makes the processing task much easier for  users. All the map reduce jobs can be written in pig latin queries to get desired results. Therefore, organizations should select the technology based on their data formats and requirements. However, all these technologies help organizations to process and store their data efficiently.

Friday, October 25, 2019

The life of Richard :: essays research papers

born Leipzig, 22 May 1813; died Venice, 13 February 1883). He was the son either of the police actuary Friedrich Wagner, who died soon after his birth, or of his mother's friend the painter, actor and poet Ludwig Geyer, whom she married in August 1814. He went to school in Dresden and then Leipzig; at 15 he wrote a play, at 16 his first compositions. In 1831 he went to Leipzig University, also studying music with the Thomaskantor, C.T. Weinlig; a symphony was written and successfully performed in 1832. In 1833 he became chorus master at the Wà ¼rzburg theatre and wrote the text and music of his first opera, Die Feen; this remained unheard, but his next, Das Liebesverbot, written in 1833, was staged in 1836. By then he had made his dà ©but as an opera conductor with a small company which however went bankrupt soon after performing his opera. He married the singer Minna Planer in 1836 and went with her to Kà ¶nigsberg where he became musical director at the theatre, but he soon left and took a similar post in Riga where he began his next op era, Rienzi, and did much conducting, especially of Beethoven. In 1839 they slipped away from creditors in Riga, by ship to London and then to Paris, where he was befriended by Meyerbeer and did hack-work for publishers and theatres. He also worked on the text and music of an opera on the 'Flying Dutchman' legend; but in 1842 Rienzi, a large-scale opera with a political theme set in imperial Rome, was accepted for Dresden and Wagner went there for its highly successful premiere. Its theme reflects something of Wagner's own politics (he was involved in the semi-revolutionary, intellectual 'Young Germany' movement). Die fliegende Hollà ¤nder ('The Flying Dutchman'), given the next year, was less well received, though a much tauter musical drama, beginning to move away from the 'number opera' tradition and strong in its evocation of atmosphere, especially the supernatural and the raging seas (inspired by the stormy trip from Riga). Wagner was now appointed joint Kapellmeister at the Dresden court. The theme of redemption through a woman's love, in the Dutchman, recurs in Wagner's operas (and perhaps his life). In 1845 Tannhà ¤user was completed and performed and Lohengrin begun. In both Wagner moves towards a more continuous texture with semi-melodic narrative and a supporting orchestral fabric helping convey its sense.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

The Role of Service Industry in the Economic Development

Research Journal of Finance and Accounting ISSN 2222-1697 (Paper) ISSN 2222-2847 (Online) Vol 3, No 5, 2012 www. iiste. org The Comparative Growth of Service Sectors in Bangladesh Mohammad Shahidul Islam1, Md. Musa2, Rajib Kanti Das3 1. Assistant Professor, School of Business, University of Information Technology and Sciences, 40/1 Jakir Hossain Road, Khulshi, Chittagong, Bangladesh Tel: 88-01190-955692 E-mail:[email  protected] com 2. Lecturer, School of Business, University of Information Technology and Sciences, 40/1 Jakir Hossain Road, Khulshi , Chittagong, Bangladesh,Tel: 88-01819-619269 .E-mail: [email  protected] com 3. Assistant Professor, Faculty of Business Administration, BGC Trust University Bangladesh * E-mail of the corresponding author: [email  protected] com Abstract The Economy of Bangladesh is classified into three sectors. Of these, the average contribution of service sector, industry sector, agriculture sector to the GDP are 49. 33%, 28. 42% and 22. 42% resp ectively. So, the service sectors contribute most of the development of national economy.The research aims are to analyze the comparative contribution of service sector with other sectors, the impact of trade liberalization of service sector and to provide the recommendations for development of service sector. It is taken a sample of ten years data of GDP from 2000-01 to 2009-10 for analyzing the comparison of service sector with other sectors (industry and agriculture). The average growth rates between service sectors and industry sectors or agriculture sector or total GDP are analyzed with‘t’ test. The average growth rate of service sector, inudsty sector, and agriculture sector are 6. 17%, 7. 49%, 3. 21% respectively.The growth of service sector is more than the agriculture sector but less than the industry sector (result of‘t’ test). The paper also reveals that total trade deficit of service is increasing over the year. The average employment of Agricul ture, Industry, Service to total employment are 58. 89%, 12. 39% and 25. 36% respectively. The paper emphasizes for the development of Tourism sector, Software, Transportation and Financial srvice, Education with quality, etc. Keywords: GDP, Service, Agriculture, Industry 1. Introduction The Economy of Bangladesh is growing one. It is basically divided into three basic sectors viz.Service, Agriculture and Industry. Among the Economic Sectors in Bangladesh, Service sector is most important. The contribution of service sector to the GDP is about 50% (Bangladesh Economic Review-2010). So, Service sectors influence the development of national economy. There is a latent demand for services in Bangladesh. To specify the need of services for huge population of Bangladesh, such sectors are to be opened for private entrepreneurs with required control. The enormous contribution of service sector and an increasing trend therein have played an important role in high growth of GDP.The analysis o f last few years’ data gives a clear idea on the phenomenon. The contribution of the industry sector to the economy of Bangladesh has been increasing day by day. For the purpose of national income accounting, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) divides the economy into fifteen sectors (Bangladesh Economic Review-2010, Ministry of Finance). 2. Problem statement From the growth of overall size of Economy, it is difficult to identify the significance of specific sector. Proper nurturing of significantly contributory sector, the growth of Economy may be resisted.Previously there was no difference between Services and Products. Service concept is the modern issue in the world. The most of the business is related to services. Even the product itself provides the service to the customers. So the services are the vital issue now. The economic sectors classified by Bangladesh Government are Hotel and Restaurant, Retail trade and Wholesale trade, Transportation and Communication, Rea l state and Renting, Financial Institution, Public Administration and Defense, Education, Health and Social Services, Community and Personal Services are included under Service Sectors.So they occupy a major share of total economics sectors. As a result, importance of service is significant. For Economic development we always think regarding industry and agriculture sectors rather service sectors. But major sector in the economy is service sector. In the modern world, service is required in every phase of life. People expect better service. Our public sectors 178 Research Journal of Finance and Accounting ISSN 2222-1697 (Paper) ISSN 2222-2847 (Online) Vol 3, No 5, 2012 www. iiste. org including public enterprises are largest sectors in the economy. But these sectors are losing concern.The public sector is unable to provide competitive service. So, people go to private sectors such as financial institutions, transportation, hospitals, educational institutions, and communication media for better service. But the growth rate of service sectors is either below expected level or not as per its importance in the economy. From this research the problems of service sectors are identified. For increasing the living standard of the people the service concept has come to lime light. Service marketing and service management will get the importance to develop the service sectors in Bangladesh.The research aims are to analyze the comparative contribution of service sector with other sectors, the impact of trade liberalization of service sector and to provide the recommendations for development of service sector. 3. Objectives of the Study Some specific objectives are set for this research. The principal objective of this study is to evaluate the comparative position of service sector. To accomplish this basic objective, following specific objectives are set: i. To conduct the comparative analysis of service sector with Agriculture and Industry sectors. ii..To analyze the im pact of Liberalization on Service sectors iii. To provide the recommendations for development of Service sector. 4. Methodology This research has used mostly secondary data have been used for analysis. Data have been collected from Bangladesh Economic Survey, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, Bangladesh Bank, World Bank, and Internet web sites, Books, Newspapers, Magazines and Journals. We have used required data for ten years from 2000-01 to 2009-10 for analyzing the contribution of economic sectors, growth rate of each sectors viz. service, industry and agriculture.Data of service export and import from 2004-05 to 2009-10 (five years) and the data of employment contribution for 9 years have been explained. 4. 1 Analysis of data: The data have been analyzed using graph, chart and some other simple statistical tools. The growth rate of service sectors (trend) is shown by graphical presentation. The total contribution of service sectors and sector wise share of major sectors are shown graphically. The average growth rates between service sectors and industry sectors or agriculture sector or total GDP have been compared by student’s‘t’ test. 4. 2 Hypothesis test 4. 2. H 0 :  µ1 =  µ 2 (There is no significant difference between the growth rate of service sectors and industry sectors. ) 4. 2. 2 H 0 :  µ1 =  µ 2 (There is no significant difference between the growth rate of service sectors and agriculture sectors) 4. 2. 3. H 0 :  µ1 =  µ 2 (There is no significant difference between the growth rate of service sectors and the growth rate of total GDP) 5. Analysis and Results 5. 1. The Contribution of Service Sector Off all the sectors, service sector is prominent one. Service sector has the growing potential to be driver of sustainable economic growth and significant poverty alleviation in Bangladesh.Service sector in Bangladesh is the largest sector. From the table 2(a), it is observed that the contribution of the service sector is a verage 49. 33%. It is steady over the period. The contribution of service sectors are 48. 77% in 2000-01 and 49. 90% in 2009-10. Figure-1 demonstrates contribution of different sectors in GDP. The groth rate of srvice sector is steady. The average growth is 6. 17%. The growth rates are 5. 43% ,6. 40%, and 6. 59% in 2001-02, 2005-06, 2009-10 respectively. 5. 2. Growth of Sub-sectors of Service Sector Growth rate of service sector is consistnent and contineous.From the Table 1(b), it is shown that the four sub sectors –(i) Trade (ii) Transport, storage and communication (iii) Realstate renting and other Business activities (iv) Community, social and personal services contribute more in GDP which are 14. 06%, 10. 07%, 7. 98%, 7. 39% 179 Research Journal of Finance and Accounting ISSN 2222-1697 (Paper) ISSN 2222-2847 (Online) Vol 3, No 5, 2012 www. iiste. org respectively. But The growth rate is more for the Education, Banking, Public administration, Transportation which are 8. 4 2%,8. 13%, 7. 88% ,7. 48% respectively. 5. 3.Comparative Analysis of Service Sector with Agriculture and Industry Sector From the comparative presentation of the sectors, it is found that service sector is sustaiable in terms of growth and contribution to toal GDP. From the Table 2(a), 2(b) and figure -2, it is shown that the average contribution of service sector, industry and agriculute sectors are 49. 33%, 28. 42%, 22. 25% respectively. So, the service sector is the half of total sector of economy. The growth rate of service sector, inudsty sector,and agriculture secture are 6. 17%, 7. 49%, 3. 21% respectively.Here, from the figure-2, it is seen that the contribution of service sector is steady. The contribution of industry sector is increasing with the reducing trend of agriculture sector. Here, aparently it is seen that the average growth rate of service sector is more the agriculture sectors and the total GDP growth and the average gorwth rate of industry sector is slightly mo re than the service sector. Now we shall statistically test whether the average growth rate of service sector is more than the agriculture sectors and total GDP growth and whther there is significant difference of growth rate between service sectors and industry sector. . Hypothesis test Since in the given data variances of population are unknown and the sample size is small we have used t-test from the table -6. The result of hypothesis test is in table 3. 6. 1. H 0 :  µ1 =  µ 2 (There is no significant difference between the growth rate of service sectors and industry sectors. ) Table 3: Paired Samples Test Details 95% Paired Std. Std. Confidence Differences Deviation Error Interval of the Mean Mean Difference Lower Upper 1. 1152 . 3717 -2. 1783 -. 4639 t df Sig. (2tailed) Pair 1 Growth rate of Service sector – Growth rate of Industry sector -1. 211 Growth rate of Service sector – Growth rate of Agriculture sector Growth rate of Service sector – Growth rat e of Total GDP sector 8 3. 554 .007 Pair 2 2. 7722 1. 2957 . 4319 1. 7763 3. 76826. 419 8 . 4806 . 1602 7. 3847E- . 6650 1. 845 8 02 .000 Pair 3 .2956 .102 Source: Compiled by authors through SPSS The table value is -2. 306 So, the calculated value (-3. 554) is outside the critical region. So, the alternative hypothesis is accepted. There is significant difference between the growth rate of service sector and industry sector.The growth rate of industry is more than that of service sector. 6. 2. H 0 :  µ1 =  µ 2 (There is no significant difference between the growth rate of service sectors and agriculture sectors) The table value is 2. 306. The calculated value(6. 1. 77) is outside the critical region. So, the growth of service sector is more than the growth of agriculture sector. 6. 3. H 0 :  µ1 =  µ 2 (There is no significant difference between the growth rate of service sectors and total GDP) The table value is 2. 3306. The calculated value (t=1. 84) is inside the critical region. So, the null hypothesis is accepted.Though the average growth rate of service sector is more than the growth rate of total GDP, but there is no difference with t test. 180 Research Journal of Finance and Accounting ISSN 2222-1697 (Paper) ISSN 2222-2847 (Online) Vol 3, No 5, 2012 7. Trade of service and Trade liberization www. iiste. org Trade liberlization has opened a new horizon for service exports. Service export is the amount which is paid by the foreign national for using the service of Bangladesh. Service import is the amount which is paid by the Bangladeshi national for using the service of other countries. GATS was formed to eliminate the trade barriers.Here we shall see the impact of trade liberization on the service sectors of Bangladesh. From the table 4, the figure-3 is drawn. It is found from the figure -3 that the import of service average Tk. 199368 million is more than the export of service average Tk. 112214. 5 million. The total trade deficit is increasing over the year. The average rate of growth of service export is more than service import which are 16. 16% and 15. 89% respectively. This is a good symptom for Bangladesh. 8. Employment opportunity in Service sector Service sector has created a great scope for employment.Bangladesh is a labor intensive country. Population is an important resource of Bangladesh. From the table 5 (data is taken from world Bank data bank) the figure-4 is drawn and it is shown that average employment of Agriculture, Industry, Service to toal employment are 58. 89%, 12. 39 5and 25. 36% respectively. But employment of service sector is increasing. The employment of industry sector is increasing but agriculure sector is decreasing. 9. Recommendations for Service Sectors After analysis, it can be said that the contribution of service sector is about 49. 22% and the growth rate of service sector is 6. 75%. The contribution is about half of the total economic sectors and the growth rate is more than the avera ge growth of GDP. Emphasis is given on the service sector for development. Since the industry sector is growing rapidly (7. 49%), support can be given by providing the quality and smooth service. The employment in service sector is increasing day by day. So, there is lot of opportunity for employment in this sector. Though there is negative Trade Balance of service of Bangladesh, the growth rate of srvice export is more than that of import. It is a good symptom for us.So we have to emphasize the service export such as Tourism, Software, Transportation and Financial srvice etc. The prospects of some promising service sectors are pointed out below. 9. 1. Development of Tourism Tourism is one of the most promising sectors for Bangladesh with her huge natural beauty, heroic historical background and archaeological resources (Das & Chakroborty 2012). Bangladesh is a country of natural beauty. She has lot of tourism places. These places are of different interest like beaches, historical p laces, archaeological sites, religious palaces, forest and jungle etc. . 2. Development of Software and IT With the passage of time, the globe is being changed from analogue to automation. During last few years Bangladesh showed enormous success in Software and IT Sector which can enlarge the extent of her service market (BASIS 2010). The current size of Bangladesh IT Industry and software/ITES industry is still smaller compared to the overall economy and the number of population (over 150 million). Over the last few years the industry has been grown considerably and is expected to grow at that rate for some time. 9. 3.Information Communication Technology (ICT) With the hope of great development, the govrnment of people republic of Bangladesh introduced National Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Policy in October 2002. This policy document guides the development of a country-wide ICT-infrastructure for human resources development, governance, e-commerce, banking, public utility services and all sorts of on-line ICT-enabled services by 2006. 9. 4. Improvement in Transportation Transportation is an important sub-sector of total service sector. It includes different type of transport for example road transport, waterways, railways, and airlines.Of these, road transport is mostly used means of transport. Road transport in Bangladesh is a private sector affair operating predominantly in domestic routes. 181 Research Journal of Finance and Accounting ISSN 2222-1697 (Paper) ISSN 2222-2847 (Online) Vol 3, No 5, 2012 www. iiste. org Rates are among the cheapest in the world. Express and non stop services are available. Total Highways is 204,022 km of which paved is 25,095 km and unpaved is 178,927 km (1996 est. ) (bangla2000. com). 9. 5. Quality Financial Services Financial service is another important part of total service sector in Bangladesh.It is a promising sub sector which consists of the Bangladesh Bank (the central bank), four nationalized commerci al banks (NCBs), 5 stateowned specialized banks (SBs), more than 30 private sector commercial banks (PCBs) and more than 9 foreign commercial banks (PCBs). The rest of the financial sector consists of more than 29 non-bank financial institutions, the capital market, 3 general and 17 life insurance companies, the cooperative banks and the microfinance institutions. 9. 6. Development of Education sector For increasing of people and literacy rate, the demand of higher education is increasing.The technical institution, Business education, health education create the demand to the people. The development of government and private universities is the indicator of growing demand of education sector. 10. Concluding Remarks The contribution of service sector is about 50 percent of the total GDP. So, the growth rate of GDP depends on the service sectors. The service sector provides the support for the development Industry sector and agriculture sector. For the international trade (export and import), the smooth transportations, financial and insurance service is required.For the improvement of the GDP sector, it has to give special emphasize on service sectors. There is lot of scope of development of service sector. Bangladesh is providing transit and transshipment to India, Nepal and Bhutan that will increase return from the transportation and communication sector. The manufacturing sector is growing rapidly. So, the need of financial service and education is increasing in future. Tourism, hotel service is promising in Bangladesh. The trade liberalization on service will cause the opportunity for service export. So, we have to take the initiatives for development of service sectors.This paper has analyzed the comparative contribution of service sector, the growth of service sector, service export and the employment in service sectors. There is scope for further research about the ways of development of service sectors. References: Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation n. d. SUNDARBAN Royal Bengal Tiger and Mangrove Forest accessed 2 May 2011, www. parjatan. gov. bd/forest. php Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services 2010, BASIS Resource Center, Bangladesh, accessed 2 May, 2011, http://www. basis. org. bd/index. php/resource Bhuyan A. R. , Hossain M. I. and Hossai M.A. , 20007, Study on the Services Sector of Bangladesh, The Bangladesh Trade Support Programme (BTSP) Brahs, Stuart J. 2002. Priorities for WTO Financial Services Negotiations Fund Management and Pensions, Principal Financial Group, Washington DC. Bangladesh Bareu of Statistics, BBS (Labour Force Survey) 2006, Dhaka Comjagat. com 2010, Status and Prospects http://www. comjagat. com/home/articles/morearticles/5515 of ICT in Bangladesh, Bangladesh, Choudhury T. A. , Raihan A. , Habib S. and S. Chowdhury. 2000. â€Å"Effects of WTO on Financial System of Bangladesh†: A Research Report, BIBM, 2000.Das, RK & Chakroborty J 2012, An Evaluative Study on Tourism in Banglade sh, Research Journal of Finance and Accounting Vol 3, No 1, accessed June 20 2012 http://www. iiste. org/Journals/index. php/RJFA/article/view/1305/1225 Dobson, Wendy. 2002. Financial Services Liberalization in the WTO, International Economics Policy Briefs, No. PB02-8. International Institute of Economics,Toronto. 182 Research Journal of Finance and Accounting ISSN 2222-1697 (Paper) ISSN 2222-2847 (Online) Vol 3, No 5, 2012 Kothari, C. R. , Research Methodology, 2nd ed. , Newdelhi, New Age International Pvt. Ltd. , 2005. www. iiste. org 0. Lovelock, Cheristopher, Service Marketing, 4th ed. , Simgspore, Sddison Wesley Longnian Pvt. Lyd. , 2001. Mattoo, Aaditya. 2002. Financial Services and the World Trade Organization:Liberalization Commitments and the World Trade Organization, World Bank, 1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC. Ministry of Finance(2010), Bangladesh Economic Servey 2010, Ministry of Finance, Dhaka. Mascarenhas, Romeos, Service Sector Management, 1st ed. , Mumbai, VipuPrak ashan, 2002. 3. 5. Tour to bangladesh. com (Tour Operator of Bangladesh) 2010, Tourism Vision 2020, Bangladesh, accessed 2 May 2011, http://www. tourtobangladesh. om/Bangladesh-Tourism-Vision-2020. php Transportation, accessed 2 May, 2011 Appendices Table 1(a): Contribution of total service sector in GDP 2000-2001 2001-2002 2002-2003 2003-2004 2004-2005 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-2010 49816 2519 37464 6608 25033 10505 9624 8373 23832 173774 6. 60 7. 31 7. 48 8. 13 3. 67 7. 88 8. 42 7. 02 4. 14 6. 17 Trade (Retail & Whole sales Hotel & Restaurants Transport, Storage & Communication Banking & Insurance Real Estate, Renting & other Business Activities Public Administration and Defense Education Health and Social Work Community, Social and Services Total Service Personal 8021 1335 19579 3270 18096 5322 4651 4548 16538 101360 29868 1427 20863 3489 18715 5637 5004 4789 17073 106865 31687 1527 22292 3722 19374 5932 5384 5059 17640 112617 33770 1635 23676 3983 20068 6351 5 798 5371 18340 118992 36155 1751 25552 4338 20801 6860 6256 5768 19082 126563 38596 1881 27592 4707 21569 7420 6822 6217 19863 134667 41700 2023 29809 5139 22381 8044 7433 6693 20733 143955 44543 2176 32357 5596 23221 8543 8013 7163 21731 153343 47309 2341 34949 6099 24106 9142 8658 7678 22753 163035 Source: Bangladesh Economic Review, 2010 Table 1(b): Contributions and growth of sub sectorsService sub-sector Trade (Retail & Whole sales Hotel & Restaurants Transport, Storage & Communication Banking & Insurance Real Estate, Renting & other Business Activities Public Administration and Defense Education Health and Social Work Community, Social and Personal Services Total Std. of Service sub-sector 7526. 08 398. 47 6109. 71 1140. 47 2336. 93 1678. 77 1647. 75 1289. 33 2471. 01 24576. 02 Std. of Service sub-sector growth 0. 75 0. 29 0. 80 1. 04 0. 14 2. 85 1. 17 1. 17 0. 58 0. 54 Avg. Contribution % 14. 06% 0. 68% 10. 07% 1. 72% 7. 98% 2. 71% 2. 48% 2. 27% 7. 37% 49. 33% Avg. f subsecto r total 38146. 50 1861. 50 27413. 30 4695. 10 21336. 40 7375. 60 6764. 30 6165. 90 19758. 50 133517. 10 Avg. of subsector growth Source: Bangladesh Economic Review, 2010 183 Research Journal of Finance and Accounting ISSN 2222-1697 (Paper) ISSN 2222-2847 (Online) Vol 3, No 5, 2012 Table 2(a): Sector wise contribution in GDP (in percentage) 2000-2001 2001-2002 2002-2003 2003-2004 2004-2005 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-2010 www. iiste. org Contribution of Agricultures Contribution Industry Contribution of service Total 25. 03 26. 20 48. 77 100 23. 98 26. 75 49. 27 100 3. 47 27. 24 49. 30 100 23. 08 27. 69 49. 22 100 22. 27 28. 31 49. 42 100 21. 84 29. 03 49. 14 100 21. 38 29. 45 49. 17 100 20. 83 29. 70 49. 47 100 20. 48 29. 86 49. 66 100 20. 16 29. 95 49. 90 100 1. 6 1. 38 0. 31 0. 00 22. 25 28. 42 49. 33 100 Source: Bangladesh Economic Review, 2010 Table 2(b): Sector-wise growth of GDP (in percentage) 2001-2002 2002-2003 2003-2004 2004-2005 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2 008 2008-2009 2009-2010 Average 3. 21 7. 49 6. 17 5. 88 112214. 5 16. 16% 51510. 798 199368 15. 89% 24606. 842 (87153. 5) 16. 69% Average Agriculture Industry Service 0. 01 6. 53 5. 43 3. 8 7. 26 5. 38 4. 09 7. 60 5. 66 2. 21 8. 28 6. 36 4. 94 9. 74 6. 40 6. 63 4. 56 8. 38 6. 90 6. 43 3. 21 6. 78 6. 52 6. 19 4. 12 6. 46 6. 32 5. 74 4. 39 6. 42 6. 59 6. 00 1. 53 1. 13 0. 54 0. 68 Total GDP 4. 42 5. 26 6. 27 5. 96 Source: Bangladesh Economic Review, 2010 Table 2(c): Growth of service and other sector (Chain base) 2001-2002 2002-2003 2003-2004 2004-2005 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-2010 Average 7. 02 5. 61 5. 88 SDEV 28849. 471 Service 5. 30 5. 64 6. 17 7. 39 7. 78 7. 66 Other 3. 52 5. 14 6. 82 5. 59 6. 83 6. 01 Sectors Total GDP 4. 42 5. 26 6. 27 5. 96 6. 63 6. 3 growth Source: Bangladesh Economic Review-2010 Table 4: Service Receipts and Payments (in million Taka) 2004-2005 2005-2006 2006-2007 7. 02 5. 89 6. 19 7. 19 5. 21 5. 74 9. 05 5. 46 6. 00 1. 17 1. 00 0. 68 200 7-2008 2008-2009 Service Receipts 75067 89780 102352 129103 Growth of Service 19. 60% 14. 00% 26. 14% Receipts Service Payments 124871 156279 189649 231667 Growth of Service 25. 15% 21. 35% 22. 16% Payment Services(net) (49804) (66499) (87297) (102564) Growth of Service 33. 52% 31. 28% 17. 49% (net) Source: Bangladesh Balance of Payment-2010, Bangladesh Bank 122451 -5. 15% 236634 2. 4% (114183) 11. 33% 154534 26. 20% 257108 8. 65% (102574) -10. 17% 184 2009-2010 STDEV STDEV Average STDEV Research Journal of Finance and Accounting ISSN 2222-1697 (Paper) ISSN 2222-2847 (Online) Vol 3, No 5, 2012 Table 5: Employment contributions Year 1984 1985 Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) 58. 8 57. 7 Employment in industry (% of total employment) 11 11. 5 Employment in services (% of total employment) 24. 2 26 Source: World development index, World Bank Table 6: Growth of economic sectors 2001-2002 2002-2003 2003-2004 2004-2005 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-2010 ww. iiste. org 1986 57. 1 12. 5 26. 5 1989 64. 9 15. 4 14. 8 1991 66. 4 13 16. 2 1996 63. 2 9. 6 25 2000 62. 1 10. 3 23. 5 2003 51. 7 13. 7 34. 6 2005 48. 1 14. 5 37. 4 SD 6. 06 1. 95 7. 35 Avg. 58. 89 12. 39 25. 36 Agriculture 0. 01 3. 08 4. 09 2. 21 4. 94 4. 56 Industry 6. 53 7. 26 7. 60 8. 28 9. 74 8. 38 Service 5. 43 5. 38 5. 66 6. 36 6. 40 6. 90 Total GDP 4. 42 5. 26 6. 27 5. 96 6. 63 6. 43 Source: Bangladesh Economic Review-2010, Ministry of Finance 3. 21 6. 78 6. 52 6. 19 4. 12 6. 46 6. 32 5. 74 4. 39 6. 42 6. 59 6. 00 1. 53 1. 13 0. 54 0. 68 . 21 7. 49 6. 17 5. 88 Figure 1: Contrubution of Service, Industry and Agriculutre Figure 2: Comparative Sector-wise Growth Rate 185 Average STDEV Sectors Research Journal of Finance and Accounting ISSN 2222-1697 (Paper) ISSN 2222-2847 (Online) Vol 3, No 5, 2012 www. iiste. org Figure 3: Service Export and Import Figure 4: Employment of Service Sectors. 186 This academic article was published by The International Institute for Science, Tech nology and Education (IISTE). The IISTE is a pioneer in the Open Access Publishing service based in the U. S. nd Europe. The aim of the institute is Accelerating Global Knowledge Sharing. More information about the publisher can be found in the IISTE’s homepage: http://www. iiste. org The IISTE is currently hosting more than 30 peer-reviewed academic journals and collaborating with academic institutions around the world. Prospective authors of IISTE journals can find the submission instruction on the following page: http://www. iiste. org/Journals/ The IISTE editorial team promises to the review and publish all the qualified submissions in a fast manner.All the journals articles are available online to the readers all over the world without financial, legal, or technical barriers other than those inseparable from gaining access to the internet itself. Printed version of the journals is also available upon request of readers and authors. IISTE Knowledge Sharing Partners EBSCO, Index Copernicus, Ulrich's Periodicals Directory, JournalTOCS, PKP Open Archives Harvester, Bielefeld Academic Search Engine, Elektronische Zeitschriftenbibliothek EZB, Open J-Gate, OCLC WorldCat, Universe Digtial Library , NewJour, Google Scholar

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

In recent years Essay

In recent years, the selective and mobility promoting function of education has become more important than its socialising function` Do you agree? Explain I agree with the opinion that in recent years, the selective and mobility promoting function of education has become more important than its socialising function. While both these functions retain their importance, the selective and mobility one has received greater prominence. In the US, education has always been a gateway to professional life and a vehicle for social mobility. In a sense, this is a great advantage of the US society compared to those with traditionally rigid social structures since promotion to upper classes through education opens the way for those from low-income families to move up in their socioeconomic status relatively quickly. With years, however, educational institutions became a tool for sorting school graduates into those who qualify for professional careers and those who do not. Reliance on standardised tests has turned the US system of education into an institution that selects those fitting into the standards and gives them chances for social mobility. At the same time, the socializing function has become less important. Modern adolescents still seek to make new friends, to have cheerful college years. Their professors remind them that socializing is also important for social mobility, prompting them to build a network of acquaintances that will later contribute to their career. Thus, even socializing has been turned into a vehicle for social mobility. Students increasingly view their educational experience as a step toward career progress rather than a chance to gain friends or broaden their world outlook. This is visible, for instance, in graduate students’ aspirations to get into top MBA programs that many see as a gateway to high-salaried executive world. The main advantage of the top programs as compared to the rest, in the eyes of a large part of student body, is that they have sifted through applicants at the beginning, chosen the best ones and sent them off to high posts in business organisations. Socializing takes a second place in these considerations because students are mostly interested in career ambitions and see education as a way to realize them.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

How to Study for Objective Test Questions

How to Study for Objective Test Questions Objective test questions are those that require a specific answer. An objective question usually has only one potential correct answer (although there may be some room for answers that are close), and they leave no room for  opinion. Objective test questions differ from subjective test questions, which have more than one potential correct answer and sometimes have room for a justified opinion. Objective test questions may be constructed as a list of possible answers, requiring the students to recognize the correct one from the list. These questions include matching, true/false, and multiple choice. Other  objective test questions, like fill-in-the-blank questions, require that the student recall the correct answer from memory. How to Study for Objective Questions Objective questions with short, specific answers require memorization. Flashcards are a helpful tool for this process. However, students should not stop with memorizing terms and definitions, as memorization is only the first step. As a student, you must gain a deeper understanding of each term or concept in order to understand why some potential multiple choice answers are  incorrect. Imagine that you need to know the effects of the Emancipation Proclamation for your history test. To succeed on the test, It is not enough to remember what the proclamation  did  accomplish. You must also consider what this executive order  did not  do. For example, you should know that the proclamation was  not  a law and that its impact was limited. This knowledge will help you predict which  wrong  answers might be presented on the test and will enable you to outsmart any trick questions. Because you should go beyond memorizing answers for your test terms, you should team up  with a study partner  and  create your own  multiple choice practice test. Each of you should write out one right and several wrong answers. Then, you should discuss why each potential answer is correct or incorrect. Tackling Objective Test Questions Ideally, you have studied hard and you know all the answers. Realistically, however, there will be some questions that you find a little tricky. Sometimes, a multiple choice question will have two answers that you can’t quite decide between. Don’t be afraid to skip these questions and answer the ones you feel most confident about first. That way, you know what questions you need to spend a little more time on. The same goes for matching style tests. Eliminate all the options you know are wrong and mark out the answers youve already used. This process will make the remaining answers a little easier to identify.

Monday, October 21, 2019

Weimar Constitution of Germany essays

Weimar Constitution of Germany essays After the recent signing of the Treaty of Versailles, the current German government is under great criticism. Extreme left wing political parties are pushing for Revolution. One such group is the Spartacists, a group following the example set by Lenin, in the successful communist movement in Russia. After the abdication of the Kaiser, leader of the Social Democratic Party, Ebert, received the position of Chancellor. Only two days later the armistice was signed, indicating the end of the war. The most urgent task facing the Ebert government was to create a new constitution for Germany. Germany was, after the war, in great economical, emotional and physical disrepair and man political groups were fighting for power. The task of drafting a constitution was given to Hugo Preuss, a lawyer and prominent figure of the German Democratic Party. The constitution guaranteed basic rights to the German people. All were to be equal in the eyes of the law, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of association and freedom of religion are all written into the constitution. This new constitution meant Germany would have a president, elected every seven years. The president was Head-of-State and Supreme Commander of the armed forces. It gives the president power and not just a position. The president appoints and dismisses the chancellor and has the power to dissolve the Reichstag and call elections if the need arises. Under article 48, the president can also intervene, using the armed forces, to restore order, in an emergency situation. This power also means the president can suspend the basic rights of the people, the ability to rule by decree in times of emergency. Under the new system, Germany will have two houses of parliament. The German states were represented by the Reichstrat, and a more powerful house, the Reichstag, representative of the German people. The constitution also gave voting right ...

Sunday, October 20, 2019

How to get the best severance package

How to get the best severance package So†¦it happened. You’ve gotten the bad news that you’re fired, or laid off. It may feel like the world is ending- or you may just feel shock. Whatever you’re feeling, the fact remains the same: you’re leaving your job, and not by your own choice. While you do need to embrace that reality, you don’t necessarily have to take the severance package that was initially offered to you. When the worst happens, take these considerations into account to see if you can improve your severance.Talk to a lawyer.An employment attorney can help you navigate the waters after you’ve been terminated, particularly if you feel like you weren’t fired for proper cause or you were marched out of the office quickly without the chance to take stock of the situation. This doesn’t mean â€Å"sue the bastards,† but it does mean you should get a professional’s advice on whether you do have grounds for a potential suit. An attorney can also help you figure out if you have any wiggle room for negotiation.Negotiate yourself.Even if you do have an attorney, it’s usually the best course to do the negotiating yourself (unless you are likely to file a lawsuit- then it’s best to have your attorney either present or speaking on your behalf). Having someone negotiate for you can escalate the tension, so be careful to keep the tone civil if you’re hoping to get a better deal.Ask for more.At this point, you have little to lose, so you should request a higher severance payment. You should definitely be realistic- the payment is unlikely to double or triple from an initial offer, but you may be able to negotiate a lump sum payment vs. continued salary or an increase in the total payment.Nail down insurance information.One of the trickiest parts of unemployment can be insurance coverage, especially if you’re used to having solid coverage through your job. The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Ac t of 1995 (a.k.a. COBRA) means you can likely continue your insurance coverage for up to 18 months, but at your own expense. If coverage is a concern, this is a point to raise with the company. You may be able to get the company to keep paying for your insurance for a period of time after you leave.Ask about unused benefits.Some companies may offer a check in exchange for unused vacation or personal time, so be sure to see what’s on the table and fully understand what your company’s policies are on that front.Be clear on what’s in the severance agreement.Always, always, always read the fine print. Some severance agreements contain â€Å"non-compete† language, which limits your ability to go work for a competitive company. Others contain a non-disparagement clause, which means you may have to forfeit your total severance package if you’re busted saying anything negative about the company after you leave (even if it’s true). Make sure you unde rstand what the conditions are if you accept the severance package.Once you get the bad news, the important thing is†¦don’t panic. Or if you do panic, try to get it out of your system and then settle in for the next phase of talking through the logistics of your leaving. Just like negotiating a salary, you may have the chance to improve your package- if you ask for it.

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Its My Job Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Its My Job - Assignment Example t restore the employee to the same position upon return to work, on condition that if the position is no longer available, the returning worker will be given a new position with a substantially the same benefits, pay, and responsibilities. Jean did her best to compromise by giving Betty a part-time position (presumably commensurate with her previous position) as long as it is permanent position also and not a temporary job. This is also in view of Bettys previous request to work only on the days when her husband is available and be at home to care for the new baby. The exigencies of the service required a full-time employee (Joanne) be put in place of Bettys old position as it is an important job function at the hospital (Kilpatrick & Johnson, 1999, p. 56) 3. The responsibilities of the hospital administrator include ensuring hospital operations are efficient and not disrupted due to absences of personnel (whether on leave or not) and to comply with pertinent labor laws (Bernstein, 2004, p. 330). The department director (who is Jeans supervisor) should make sure all employees are familiar with FMLA and its

Friday, October 18, 2019

Culture and costums of Korea Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Culture and costums of Korea - Assignment Example Culture refers to a set of socially transmitted human behaviors, beliefs, arts, among other thoughts and works of the human mind. The definition implies that culture is reliant on the interaction and integration of humans. Historically, regions had secluded boundaries owing to the numerous geographical barrier such as mountains, seas and rivers, which enclosed specific regions thus cutting off human interactions. At such times, regions had specific cultures defining their languages, arts, dietary and religion among many other aspects of human lives. However, with the onset of industrial revolution, the use of machines resulted in the invention of better ways of transportation and communication thus overcoming the previously existing geographical barriers. Located in North East Asia, Korea is an expansive territory currently divided into two political territories; North Korea and South Korea because of divergent political interests of both the leaders and the citizens (Kleiner, 2001). The use of the internet in the modern society and the advanced modes of communication such as mobile phones have resulted in the creation of a global village in which people can live anywhere and work anywhere. The intensified human interactions in the contemporary society have therefore revolutionized culture. A conflict between the previously definite traditional cultures and the modern culture has diverse effects depending on the type of the society. Whenever cultures conflict, the people abandon their previous cultural practices that they consider backward and adopt certain features of the new culture that they feel appropriate. Culture in the modern global society is relative and liberal with every individual and social institution choosing only the specific cultural practices that best protects their interests. Korea is one such region in which the conflict between the traditional culture and the modern culture is evident and the effects of the modern culture on the tradition al culture thus manifest itself. The division of the region into two might have affected the culture of the people in the region but since culture is reliant on the interaction of humans, the regions still share some of their cultural practices as they had throughout history with their neighbors in the eastern bloc such as China and Japan. Both the south and North Korea are developed economies and industrial hubs. South Korea for example is home to some of the leading electronics manufacturing companies such Samsung and HTC among many other local and international brands. With an internet infiltration of more than seventy percent, Korea is an active part of the global village as her citizens interact with others throughout the world. Korea has numerous international airports and attracts millions of tourists annually. Such features of both the economy and social structure imply that the intensified human interactions in the modern Korea presents numerous cultural conflicts as the mo dern culture through the revamped interactions and economic activities in the modern society. Previously, Korea had definitive cultural practices and arts. Such practices included specific languages, religions, arts such as ceramics and dietary among others. However, with time the region opened up for trade with the West and other parts of the world such as African and South America. Coupled with the concepts of urbanization, globalizations seamlessly turned the expansive Korean region into a metropolitan society habiting people from diverse cultural backgrounds. Korea thus forms an effective choice for the study assignment since the cultural conflict between the traditional and new culture is evident. The society is developed and industrial; the living pattern of the people has changed with time to the perfect urban settings in the modern Korea. Such a society thus exhibits diverse cultural patterns as native Koreans continue holding onto some of their traditional cultural practice s

Opinonated Questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Opinonated Questions - Essay Example There is no communication that occurs between the 99 % on Wall Street and the 1 % that are heavily burdened by the economic times (Eagle, 2005). They are in the real sense creating losses and a cumbersome time for fellow citizens. These are the ones that are situated in strategic business centres trying to earn a living. Their businesses incur huge losses that require compensation. Each and every person has a different understanding in any situation. Dissent is normal in each and every situation. It is necessary to ensure that any situation that brings about dissent is analyzed clearly. Analysis involves thorough research to the dissenting views. They are discussed and the best ideas formulated (Tushnet, 2008). Dissent cannot be hashed. This is because it will bring about rebellion and the dictatorial tendencies that are a result of the quieting of dissents. The Supreme Court, just like any other entity should allow the dissenting voices to present their voices of reason (Wright, 2007). This should always be supported by logical observations, laws and expectations. Many great ideologies are a result of people who went against the grain of the status quo. This was by voicing their dissents and their reasons. Their success was based on the forum to voice and discuss their issue is a calm forum (Sunstein,

Discussion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 147

Discussion - Essay Example As much as the Protagoras by Plato fails to identify specific benefits that come with staying within such a community, upholding moral requirements within a community would bring such benefits. The theory’s major argument is that when individuals engage in moral actions that are mutual, or reciprocated, then all of them are certain to benefit from such a relationship. It is important to note that as much as most communities reciprocate an individual’s moral actions, it is only in communities that are well-functioning and cooperative that such reciprocation is assured. Since communities involve individual efforts towards a single goal of development, this theory provides a perfect framework towards which all members of a community can benefit by each acting not in their own but in the interests of others. The society ought to establish collective rules that would govern the intentions of each independent individual towards the good of each of the members of the society. As such, through the Protagoras theory, justice is portrayed as indispensable and

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Gender and development projects which focus only on women are doomed Essay

Gender and development projects which focus only on women are doomed to fail - Essay Example In this paper we will start with the theoretical approaches regarding women and development. Various gender and development projects especially those directed only towards women will also be discussed. We will restrict our study to Latin America only. We will discuss a few development projects actually designed and implemented in Latin America. For this purpose we will take the example of the projects conducted by World Bank. We will also try to analyze the impact and success of these projects. There is general view that development projects directed towards women only, are doomed to fail we will also try to form an opinion about it and will try to find the answer as well.A theoretical debate on development has identified three major paths upon which the framework for development is based. They are namely Women in Development (WID), Women and Development (WAD), and Gender and Development. In order to develop a sound understanding of these frameworks we will discuss them in detail. 1( Nalini Visvanathan, Lynn Duggan, Laurie Nisonoff, 2005).Women in Development (WID) is the most dominant and probably the oldest framework as well. WID subscribes to the assumptions of the modernization theory. Modernization theory assumes that traditional theories are male dominated and authoritative whereas modern theories were democratic and egalitarian and they did not believe in oppression by men. But it was realized that the benefits of modernization actually did not helped the position of women. Its benefits did not reach them but to the contrary in some cases it undermined their existing position. The focus of this theory was to integrate women in the productive role in the economic and welfare of the society. Strategies were devised even if that requires changes in the legal system to minimize disadvantages against the productive role of the women. Questions regarding women became important and visible in the development theory and practice. This theory had non-confrontation al approach. It did not question the existing social structures. It made no attempt in identifying the factors which resulted in modernization non beneficial for women. It ignored the influence of social, cultural, religious factors on the state of women. The second theory Women and Development (WID) emerged as the critique of the modernization theory and WID. It is derived from the dependency theory. With the onset of capitalism it is believed that men had greater opportunities and hence it resulted in the spread of gender hierarchy. Production for exchange which was dominated by men replaced production for use and hence it became the public opinion. The main focus of this theory was that women have always been part of the production process so the concept of integrating women in development is a myth. Its main emphasis is on the processes so this theory focuses on the relationship between woman and development process. The main contribution of this theory is that recognizes the im portance of women as an important economic actor in their

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Social groups Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Social groups - Essay Example The podcasts portray targeted actions that cause immense psychological or even physical injuries to the victims. Just as with any other form of crime, the actions of the perpetrators did not only disregard the basic rights of the victims but also caused them varied forms of injuries. However, the listening process elicited a number of emotions beginning with anger especially after assuming the position of the people the various speakers discriminated. After listening to the experiences of the speakers a sense of guilt engulfed me because I have often prejudged others based on their physical appearance. Hate crimes have varied psychological effects both to the perpetrators and to the victims. Most victims often suffer from depression and anxiety among other psychological distress. Such victims may often acquire antisocial behavior while others may develop an equal measure of hatred for others thus decide to retaliate whenever possible. The psychological effects are varied and systemat ic. As explained earlier, hate crime affects the identity and self-esteem of the individual victims. The crime affects the minority group thus instigating a social disharmony in the society. The society acquires a systematic disruption as people form groups with people of similar identities. Listening to the seven sections of the broadcast presented the diverse nature of hate crime prevalent in the society. The section included racial discrimination, gender based discrimination and other prejudiced comments against individuals.

Gender and development projects which focus only on women are doomed Essay

Gender and development projects which focus only on women are doomed to fail - Essay Example In this paper we will start with the theoretical approaches regarding women and development. Various gender and development projects especially those directed only towards women will also be discussed. We will restrict our study to Latin America only. We will discuss a few development projects actually designed and implemented in Latin America. For this purpose we will take the example of the projects conducted by World Bank. We will also try to analyze the impact and success of these projects. There is general view that development projects directed towards women only, are doomed to fail we will also try to form an opinion about it and will try to find the answer as well.A theoretical debate on development has identified three major paths upon which the framework for development is based. They are namely Women in Development (WID), Women and Development (WAD), and Gender and Development. In order to develop a sound understanding of these frameworks we will discuss them in detail. 1( Nalini Visvanathan, Lynn Duggan, Laurie Nisonoff, 2005).Women in Development (WID) is the most dominant and probably the oldest framework as well. WID subscribes to the assumptions of the modernization theory. Modernization theory assumes that traditional theories are male dominated and authoritative whereas modern theories were democratic and egalitarian and they did not believe in oppression by men. But it was realized that the benefits of modernization actually did not helped the position of women. Its benefits did not reach them but to the contrary in some cases it undermined their existing position. The focus of this theory was to integrate women in the productive role in the economic and welfare of the society. Strategies were devised even if that requires changes in the legal system to minimize disadvantages against the productive role of the women. Questions regarding women became important and visible in the development theory and practice. This theory had non-confrontation al approach. It did not question the existing social structures. It made no attempt in identifying the factors which resulted in modernization non beneficial for women. It ignored the influence of social, cultural, religious factors on the state of women. The second theory Women and Development (WID) emerged as the critique of the modernization theory and WID. It is derived from the dependency theory. With the onset of capitalism it is believed that men had greater opportunities and hence it resulted in the spread of gender hierarchy. Production for exchange which was dominated by men replaced production for use and hence it became the public opinion. The main focus of this theory was that women have always been part of the production process so the concept of integrating women in development is a myth. Its main emphasis is on the processes so this theory focuses on the relationship between woman and development process. The main contribution of this theory is that recognizes the im portance of women as an important economic actor in their

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Ecological survey of the Lime Cay Essay Example for Free

Ecological survey of the Lime Cay Essay Lime Cay, the man islet of the Port Royal Cays, located 17 degrees north and 76 degrees west, is one of the many cays in Jamaica. By definition, a cay is a small low elevated sandy island formed on the surface of a coral reef. These types of islands are usually found in the Caribbean Sea, Pacific, Indian and Atlantic Ocean. Also they are circular in shape. A cay is home to many different species due to the formation of habitats such as the rocky shore habitat. A cay is formed when the current of the ocean transport lose sediments across the surface of a reef to a depositional node, which is where two currents converge and the sediment load is released. Layers of deposited sediment gradually build up on the reef surface resulting in a low island forming on this reef. Cays provide a variety of habitats ranging from marine to terrestrial. Hence, Cays are important protectors of the biodiversity of our planet. Cays provide several habitats for its organisms such as rocky shores, sea grass beds, sand bed, coral beds and inner terrestrial land. Prominent organisms that occupy the marine and the coastal habitats include echinoderms, crabs, fishes etc. The terrestrial portion of Cay is usually dominated by various Mangrove species. Method: A trip was made to Lime Cay to carry out a comprehensive ecological study of Lime Cay. It was done in 4 parts: Project 1: The Impact of Man on the Environment Persons walked along the cay and waded in the water to find evidence of the presence of man to determine the ways in which he affects the habitat. Evidence of the presence of animals was also investigated and a possible food web was made based on the animals (or evidence of animals) that were observed. Project 2: Echinoderm Distribution A group of 8 swimmers went into the surrounding sea of the cay with snorkelling gear in order to observe the abundance and distribution of echinoderms in habitats where they were likely to be found. A quadrant was randomly thrown 5 times in each of the different sea habitats. These included the sea grass, sea sand and the rocky habitats. The number of echinoderms in the quadrant for each throw in each habitat was recorded in a table. Project 3: Mangrove Distribution Persons walked around the cay and into the mangrove, and identified the different mangrove types, making note of the characteristics of each plant, as well as the ambient conditions and how they could affect the distribution of the mangroves. Project 4: Rocky Shore Study A suitable area of the rocky shore was investigated and notes were made on how conditions in this area varied (in terms of temperature and salinity) and how organisms were adapted to live in this environment.

Monday, October 14, 2019

Cognitive Behavior Therapy: Palliative Care

Cognitive Behavior Therapy: Palliative Care Individuals that have been deemed by their medical team to have serious diseases that are resistant, nonresponsive or have failed reasonable treatments are often referred to specialists for comfort measures only. According to the World Health Organization, Palliative care is the active total care of patients whose disease is not responsive to curative treatment. Control of pain, of other symptoms, and of psychological, social and spiritual problems is paramount. The goal of palliative care is the achievement of the best possible quality of life for patients and their families (WHO, 1990). The National Center for Health Statistics (1996) estimated that 20% of all deaths and 30% of the deaths of elderly individuals occurred in extended care facilities. Extended care facilities are but one place where end-of-life issues are a common fact of daily life. However, regardless of the setting, each individual faces the end of life with his or her own view of life, death and the dying process. The estimated number of patients in palliative care varies due to the difficulty in capturing the actual numbers from hospitals, primary care practitioners, families and emergency rooms. The estimate of patients receiving the Medicare benefit for hospice and palliative care is approximately  ½ million, and it is estimated that, in 2000, approximately 20% of patients dying in the United States received hospice or palliative care services. It should be noted that although many, if not most, individuals in hospice/palliative care settings are age 85 or older, this level of care is not limited to older adults. Motor vehicle accidents, post-traumatic incidents, drug overdoses and other physiologically devastating disorders may result in permanent damage to the younger body as well as the older body. Mortality rates at a young age for those with mental illnesses is decreasing therefore it is estimated that by 2030 there will be 15 million individuals with mental illness residing in long term care facilities (SAMHSA, 2004). This chapter will focus on the reduction or modification of autonomic, psychiatric, or sensory symptom experience of these individuals through use of cognitive behavioral therapy. Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) uses a structured and collaborative approach while helping individuals to recognize, evaluate and restructure the relationships between their thoughts, feelings and behaviors. Through a process of targeted interventions, the therapist assists individuals to identify, monitor and cognitively restructure the dysfunctional thoughts and/or to modify behaviors that are maladaptive, useless or even harmful (Beck, 1976; Turk, Meichenbaum, Genest, 1987; Freeman Freeman, 2005). CBT includes a range of both cognitive and behavioral techniques such as relaxation, guided imagery/visualization, biofeedback, behavioral experiments, guided discovery, stress management, training in pain or stress management strategies, and cognitive restructuring for dysfunctional thinking and many others . Although there is a paucity of research on the use of CBT in palliative care settings, CBT is effective for many of the psychological issues that are prevalent in palliative care including, depression, anxiety, pain management, and insomnia. The purpose of this chapter is to provide an overview on the use of CBT for assessment and treatment of psychological distress in palliative care settings. Assessment of Emotional Functioning in Palliative Care There are many challenges to the assessment of mood disorders in palliative care settings. An initial challenge is the myth that psychological distress is a normal reaction to end of life. Despite expectations, most individuals in palliative care settings do not have symptoms of anxiety, depression or dementia. Many individuals arrive at this stage of their lives or illnesses with a sense of calm resignation, if not expectations of relief and of going home to God, heaven or family members waiting for them in the hereafter. Therefore those individuals that are experiencing symptoms that require intervention may achieve significant benefit from the interventions. The most common presentations are those of depression, anxiety, pain management failures with exhaustion and anguish, and sleep disorders. The healthcare provider requires tools necessary to differentiate major depression from anger, sadness, and anxiety associated with the symptoms of an untreatable or chronic illness. Assessment of preparatory grief and depression. Another obstacle to the assessment process is simply overcoming the challenges of differentiating symptoms from normal grief of the illness itself. Differentiating between preparatory grief and depression is a key component to the proper assessment of depression in palliative care and has important treatment implications. Preparatory grief can be defined as what an individual must undergo in order to prepare himself for his final separation from this world (Kubler-Ross, 1997). Symptoms of preparatory grief include 1) Mood waxes and wanes with time, 2) Normal self-esteem, 3) Occasional fleeting thoughts of suicide, and 4) Worries about separations from loved ones (Periyakoil and Hallenbeck, 2002). Preparatory grief is a normal, not pathological, life cycle event (Axtell, 2008; Periyakoil and Hallenbeck, 2002). Major depression is defined as five or more of the following symptoms during the same two week period: depressed mood, marked diminish in pleasure, weight loss or gain, insomnia or hypersomnia, psychomotor agitation/retardation, fatigue/loss of energy, feelings of worthlessness or inappropriate guilt, lack of concentration/indecisiveness, and recurrent thoughts of death and suicidal thoughts or plans (APA, 1994). Table 1 provides a symptom list. The list is not intended to be all inclusive however it gives the clinician an overall view of symptoms that may be observed in the individual dealing with depression in a palliative care setting. Although some symptoms of grief and depression overlap, there are ways to distinguish between grief and depression. Table 2 summarizes the ways to differentiate symptoms of grief versus depression according to temporal variation, self-image, hope, anheonia, response to support, and active desire for an early death (Periyakoil Hallenbeck, 2002). The first step to proper recognition of depression involves the identification of possible risk factors (Wilson, Chochinov, de Faye, and Breitbart, 2000). Certain demographic characteristics, such as younger age, poor social support, limited financial resources and family history of a mood disorder, as well as a personal history of previous mood disorders place individuals at a greater risk for developing depression or anxiety in end of life situations. Risk for developing a mood disorder also is elevated with certain types of diagnoses, including pancreatic cancer and brain tumors, and particular medical interventions such as radiation therapy (Hirschfeld, 2000). Symptoms of the illness, including poor symptom control, physical disability, and malnutrition also place individuals at higher risk. The second step to the proper assessment of depression includes utilization of appropriate assessment tools. Many times it is the degree and persistence of symptoms that provide the information necessary when considering major depression. Major depression, which is estimated to occur in fewer than 25% of patients in end of life care, may be best screened with targeted questions such as: How much of the time do you feel depressed? In addition, for those individuals that have a difficult time describing their symptoms or history, asking family members to provide information about a previous history of depression or a family history can be very useful. Although studies validating assessment tools vary greatly, many of the self-report measures have been shown to be effective in palliative care patients. The most common utilized tools in palliative care settings frequently omit physical symptoms of depression. Many symptoms of depression overlap with the terminal disease process (Noorani Montagnini, 2007). Examples of self-report measures that omit somatic symptoms include the Beck Depression Inventory II (Beck, Steer, and Brown, 1996), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Inventory (Zigmond Snaith, 1983), and the Geriatric Depression Scale (Yesavage et al., 1983). The Hayes and Lohse Non-Verbal Depression Scale (Hayes, Lohse, and Bernstein, 1991) is a third party observational measure that can be completed by staff, family, or friends to assist with the diagnostic process. Terminally Ill Grief or Depression Scale (TIGDS), comprising of grief and depression subscales, is the first self-report measure designed and validated to differenti ate between preparatory grief and depression in adult inpatients (Periyakoil et al., 2005). Assessment of anxiety. The symptoms of anxiety may differ in individuals in the palliative care environment. Many times symptoms of anxiety have a physiologic component. For example in those individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases difficulty breathing, low oxygen levels and overall compromised respiratory function causes air hunger which is experienced as anxiety and even panic. Table 3 lists some of the common anxiety symptoms seen in this population. Family members are often at a loss as to what they can do to assist their loved one that is experiencing anxiety, and especially fearfulness. It is often useful to provide significant others with a checklist of items that are important to report to the healthcare provider. Involving the family has the benefit of giving them a structured guide for response which reduces their own anxiety in response to the patient. In addition the patient may relax more knowing that a family member is involved with their care in an approved, helpful manner. An example of a list of items for family members to watch for and report to the healthcare team is listed in Appendix 1. Cognitive Behavioral Interventions in Palliative Care Psychological intervention in the palliative care setting includes those aspects of treatment that would provide relief from emotional distress while an individual is dying. Often this time period includes depression, anxiety, grief and organic brain dysfunctions such as dementia and/or cerebral vascular diseases. Individuals and their family members are both considered the patient during these times. Many of these individuals are suffering from chronic, unremitting pain conditions which negatively impact their emotional health. Treatments for pain and chronic conditions also play a part in the individuals mental status. The use of Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) is extremely useful for these individuals. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy has the strongest empirical support of any psychological intervention for the management of symptoms typically seen in a palliative care setting. The most common presentations of psychological distress in the dying patient include anxiety, depression, hopelessness, guilt over perceived life failures and remorse. Persistence of these thoughts and feelings interfere with functioning, makes the person generally miserable as well as those around them and can severely affect his/her quality of life. Medical treatments, such as antidepressants, anxiolytics and cholinesterase inhibitors, exist for these problems however supportive psychotherapy such as relaxation training, imagery, distraction, skill training, and negative thought restructuring improves the possibility of remission. CBT can also improve the symptoms of spiritual distress that may include feelings of disappointment, guilt, loss of hope, remorse, and loss of identity. CBT for depression. Symptoms of depression are common in end of life care. It can be one of the most distressing groups of symptoms an individual can experience and may interfere significantly with daily tasks of life. Some experts have estimated that up to 75% of patients with terminal illnesses experience symptoms of depression. Amelioration of some of the symptoms of depression can increase the amount of pleasure and meaning in life, as well as add hope and peace. Treatment for depression can reduce the experience of physical pain as well as general misery and suffering. In addition, reduction of the symptoms of depression may improve the treatment of coexisting illnesses more effective. Most importantly, given that one of the most serious symptoms of depression is suicidal ideation, it makes sense to treat depression in order to prevent successful suicidal outcomes. There is a paucity of literature in the area of the use of CBT with depression in Palliative Care, due to the high attrition rate resulting from physical morbidity and mortality (Moorey et al., 2009). Therefore, these factors pose significant barriers to conducting randomized clinical trials in Palliative Care to address these components. The following is a review of the sparse literature on CBT in Palliative Care with depression. In an attempt to address this problem, Moorey et al., conducted a cluster randomized controlled trial in order to determine if it was possible to teach nurses CBT techniques in order to reduce anxiety and depression symptoms in patients with advanced cancer (2009). Eight nurses were trained in CBT by attending several 1- and 2-day workshops and then were rated on the Cognitive Therapy First Aid Rating Scale (CTFARS) for CBT competence. Seven nurses did not receive training and served in the control group. A total of 80 home care patients entered the trial; however most of these participants were excluded due to being too ill to participate. A total of 16 patients were in the CBT group and 18 patients were in the control group. The participants received home care nursing visits in which assessments were conducted at 6-, 10-, and 16-week intervals. The individuals who received CBT reported lower anxiety scores over time, but no effect of the training was found regarding depression. It was noted that both groups experienced lower rates of depression over the course of the study. The authors noted the heterogeneity of the sample and the high attrition rate due to physical morbidity and mortality presented several barriers to conducting the study and may have played in a role in the findings (Moorey et al., 2009). Cole and Vaughan (2005), in their review on the feasibility of using CBT for depression associated with Parkinsons disease (PD), found that it is a promising option. The authors noted that depressed inviduals with comorbid PD experienced a significant reduction in depressive symptoms and negative cognitions. In addition they experienced an increased perception of social support over the course of treatment (Cole Vaughan, 2005). The recommended course of action for individuals in this setting included: stress management training, relaxation training, behavioral modification techniques for sleep hygiene, and cognitive restructuring. Modification of life stressors contributing to depressed mood should be identified and plans made to minimize stress and maximize quality of life. The use of thought restructuring is recommended in order to maintain a sense of purpose and fulfillment through meaningful activity and to adjust expectations of self and others. Individuals are also encouraged to return to previously enjoyed activities in order to maximize feelings of pleasure and happiness. Through systematic defocusing on physical conditions the person is able to experience more pleasant activities, which are also encouraged. Similarly, Dobkin et al, conducted a study which explored the effects of modified CBT for depressed patients with PD, in conjunction with a separate social support intervention for caregivers (2007). The patients received 10-14 sessions of modified CBT, while caregivers attended three to four separate psychoeducational classes. The modified CBT sessions were comprised of the same components of the previous Cole Vaughan, (2005) study, such as, stress management training, behavioral modification techniques for sleep hygiene, relaxation training, cognitive restructuring, modification of life stressors, and increasing engagement in pleasurable activities. The classes were targeted at providing caregivers with ways to respond to the patients negative thoughts and beliefs, as well as, strategies to offer appropriate support. As in the previous study, the modified CBT sessions were comprised of training in stress management, behavioral modification, sleep hygiene, relaxation techniques, an d cognitive restructuring. Participants reported a significant reduction in their depressive symptoms and cognitions and increased perception of social support at treatment termination and one-month post-treatment. CBT for anxiety. Along with depression, anxiety is a common mental health problem in palliative care settings and also appears to be alleviated with CBT interventions. In a small feasibility study examining the use of cognitive behavioral therapy techniques for mild to moderate anxiety and depression in hospice patients, four sessions of CBT techniques was found to significantly reduce anxiety and depression in a majority of patients (Anderson, Watson, Davidson, and Davidson, 2008). Overall, participants in the study found the CBT techniques acceptable, helpful, and qualitatively reported improved mood. A significant reduction in anxiety symptoms also was seen in a randomized controlled trial of CBT administered by home care nurses in patients with advanced cancer (Moorey et al., 2009). CBT techniques are particularly effective to assist with the management of anxiety related to breathing difficulties commonly seen with pulmonary diseases, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In a group of individuals with COPD, six sessions of guided imagery, a CBT relaxation technique, was found to significantly increase the partial percentage of oxygen saturation, which is a physiological indicator signaling more effective breathing (Louie, 2004). In another study, as little as 2 hours of CBT group therapy yielded a decrease in depression and anxiety among older patients with COPD, but there was no change in physical functioning (Kunik et al., 2001). CBT for pain management. Pain is not simply a biological response to unpleasant stimuli. It is a complex phenomenon that includes biological, psychological, behavioral and social factors that interact in complex ways to influence the pain experience. Some of the factors that can influence a persons experience of pain include: a) previous pain experiences, b) biologic and genetic predispositions, c) mood disorders such as anxiety and depression d) their beliefs about pain, e) fear about the pain experience, f) their individual pain threshold and pain tolerance level, and f) their skill with coping methods. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy has the most empirical support for the management of chronic pain, especially when used as part of an interdisciplinary treatment approach to manage pain symptoms (Turk, Swanson, Tunks, 2008). Cognitive behavioral techniques can be used independently to assist with pain management or integrated into a comprehensive cognitive-behavioral case conceptualization framework to address pain (Turk, Swanson, Tunks, 2008). The three components to CBT for pain management are 1) Education and rationale for the use of CBT, 2) Coping skills training, and 3) Application and maintenance of CBT skills (Keefe, 1996). Useful behavioral interventions to assist with pain management include goal setting, relaxation strategies, such as deep breathing and guided imagery, and activities scheduling. Cognitive interventions would include increasing problem-solving skills and addressing an individuals maladaptive thoughts related to pain management. Examples of maladaptive thoughts include: 1) Ive tried every pain management intervention with no success, 2) I cannot do any of the things that I used to do, 3) nothing will help manage my pain, and 4) no one can help me feel better. CBT for pain manage ment has demonstrated efficacy in various diagnoses often addressed in palliative care. CBT has been found to be efficacious in the management of cancer-related pain in single studies (Syrjala, Donaldson, Davis, et al., 1995) as well as in systematic reviews (Abernethy, Keefe, McCrory, Scipio, Matchar, 2006). CBT for sleep hygeine. Insomnia, sleep duration and quality are major concerns for people with pain disorders such as osteoarthritis (Vitiello, 2009). Approximately 60 percent of individuals with chronic pain disorders report frequent nighttime awakening due to pain during the night. Disrupted sleep patterns exacerbate chronic pain intensity and experience which in turn causes more disturbance of the sleep/wake cycle. Successful treatment of interrupted sleep may reduce the pain experience as well as improve the overall quality of life for these individuals. Psychotherapeutic techniques that target sleep disturbances are easily incorporated within behavioral and cognitive management of other co-occurring disorders as well. Sleep disorders are common in patients who suffer from Parkinsons disease (PD) (Stocchi, Barbato, Nordera, Berardelli and Ruggieri, (1998). Specifically, insomnia, nightmares, REM sleep behavior disorder, sleep attacks, sleep apnea syndrome, excessive daytime sleepiness, and periodic limb movement in sleep result from changes in sleep structure, movement disturbances in sleep, disturbances in neurotransmission and medications. Individuals who are sleep deprived are at risk to develop infections, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, diabetes, depression, and require increased time to recover from stress (Schutte-Rodin, Broch, Buysse, Dorsey, and Sateia, 2008). CBT improves sleep by addressing unhelpful beliefs regarding sleep and misperceptions about the amount of sleep that one obtains. Many misperceive the amount of time they are actually asleep. People who suffer from insomnia actually sleep more than they are aware of because they are only attentive of when they are awake. Furthe rmore, many people believe they require 8 hours of sleep in order to be able to function during the day and any amount of sleep that is less is insufficient and will result in reduced ability to function during the day. Therefore, these beliefs and misperceptions can increase ones stress level about sleep and a stress response may result when one thinks about going to sleep. Clearly, a heightened stress response is not conducive to sleeping. CBT increases ones control over their unhelpful and inaccurate beliefs and enables them to replace them with more helpful and accurate beliefs (Whitworth, Crownover, and Nichols, 2007). CBT also addresses the behavioral components of ones sleep routine or patterns that interfere with ones ability to obtain restful sleep. Exercising, smoking, or drinking caffeinated drinks just prior to bedtime can interfere with ones sleep. All of these activities are stimulants that energize the body. Also, not having a bedtime routine, a regular sleep-wake pattern, or taking naps may interfere with ones ability to get restful sleep. Increasing ones sleep hygiene by developing positive habits that influence sleep such as, having a bedtime routine to prepare ones mind and body for sleep, regular exercise several hours before one intends to prepare for sleep, and avoiding coffee, alcohol, and smoking in the evening, as well as, increasing activities that produce relaxation (e.g., taking a hot bath one to two hours before going to bed, meditation, deep breathing, or muscle relaxation) can increase the likelihood of obtaining restful sleep. Another behavioral strategy utilized in CBT i s sleep restriction. This technique attempts to match ones actual sleep requirement with the amount of time one spends in his/her bed. The theory behind this approach is that reducing the amount of time spent in bed without sleep will increase ones desire to sleep (Harvey, Ree, Sharpley, Stinson, and Clark, 2007). Results of a study by Vitiello showed that treatment improves both immediate and long-term self-reported sleep and pain in older patients with osteoarthritis and comorbid insomnia without directly addressing pain control (2009). This study included 23 patients with a mean age of 69 years were randomly assigned to CBT, while 28 patients with a mean age of 66.5 years were assigned to a stress management and wellness control group. Participants in the control group reported no significant improvements in any measure while Individuals treated with CBT reported significantly decreased sleep latency (onset of sleep) by an average of 16.9 minutes and 11 minutes a year after treatment. Interruptions in sleep after sleep onset decreased from an average of 47 minutes initially to an average of 21 minutes after one year. Pain symptoms improved by 9.7 points initially to 4.7 points. Sleep efficacy (how rested does the person feel upon awakening) initially increased by 13 percent and 8 percent a year after treatment. The improvements remained robust in 19 of 23 individuals at a one-year follow-up visit. Furthermore, while many older adults experience insomnia, it is reported that up to two-thirds of those who experience these symptoms have limited knowledge regarding available treatment options. Sivertsen (2006), conducted a randomized controlled trial to compare the efficacy of non-benzodiazepine sleep medications with CBT. This study included 46 patients with a mean age of 60.8 years who were diagnosed with chronic primary insomnia. Participants were randomly assigned to either the CBT intervention (information on sleep hygiene, sleep restriction, stimulus control, cognitive therapy, and progressive relaxation), sleep medication (7.5 mg zopiclone each night), or placebo medication. Treatment lasted 6 weeks, and the CBT intervention and sleep medication treatments were followed up at 6 months. Data regarding total wake time, total sleep time, sleep efficiency, and slow-wave sleep was collected utilizing sleep diaries, and polysomnography (PSG; monitors physiological activity during sleep). Results revealed that total time spent awake improved significantly more for those in the CBT group compared to the placebo group at 6 weeks and the zopiclone group at both 6 weeks and 6 months. In comparison, the zopiclone group did not reveal significant results from the placebo group (Sivertsen, 2006). The CBT group experienced a 52 percent reduction in total wake time at 6 weeks compared with 4 percent and 16 percent in the zopiclone and placebo groups respectively. A statistically and clinically significant finding was that participants receiving CBT improved their PSG-registered sleep efficiency by 9 percent at posttreatment, opposed to a decline of 1 percent in the zopiclone group. Total sleep time increased significantly between 6 weeks and 6 months for the CBT group. The zopiclone group showed improvements at 6 weeks and maintained these improvements at 6 months, but did not show further improvements. The CBT group showed significant improvements compared to the zo piclone group in total wake time, sleep efficiency, and slow-wave sleep; total sleep was the only area that did not yield a significant difference (Sivertsen, 2006). ADAPTING CBT TO THE PALLIATIVE CARE SETTING Overview of CBT in Palliative Care Cognitive-behavioral therapy is effective for many of common mental health issues seen in palliative care and often augments the success of pharmacological interventions. In addition to the individual with the terminal illness, their family members, as well as multiple health providers are considered integral members to the success of the collaborative relationship. Use of a CBT case conceptualization framework and various components offer flexibility, which makes the CBT approach feasible to implement within a palliative care setting. The following section provides an overview of the components of cognitive-behavioral therapy and necessary adaptations to palliative care settings. Collaborative Relationship As mentioned in previous chapters in this book, a collaborative relationship is a core component of an effective cognitive-behavioral intervention. In a palliative care setting, the collaborative relationship often involves more than just the client and the therapist. The interdisciplinary treatment team works with the individual to develop an individualized treatment plan that is central to the case conceptualization and goal setting of CBT. A variety of disciplines, such as nursing and social work, use CBT techniques in palliative care settings. Individuals receiving palliative care often need assistance with CBT interventions as their illness progresses. Individuals receiving palliative care often need assistance from the treatment team with practicing skills, such as relaxation techniques, and adapting CBT interventions as goals of care change. Some individuals in the Palliative Care setting may not be facing death in the near future, and if they are facing impending death, they may not be aware of it. In these cases the primary patient may be the family member or significant other. It is also common practice for most individuals to seek help for mental health problems from their family practitioner even though the typical family practitioner has very little training in psychiatric/mental health assessment, diagnosis and treatment. In cases where the family is relying on an under-trained health care provider it may be incumbent upon the mental health provider to negotiate the gap between family and medical care. Case Conceptualization and Goal Setting Therapy with the dying person should begin with having the person identify, explore and determine outcome goals regarding the issues at hand. Similarly to the primary care setting, case conceptualization and goal setting need to occur almost immediately. The therapist uses the Socratic Dialogue to explore the persons concerns and worries. This gives the individual more of a sense of control over what will be happening in the therapy session. Once this sense of control is established it becomes easier to explore other, more emotion laden topics. Goals should be small, obtainable and proximal to the session to be most effective. For example, Mrs. Jones I will be back to see you tomorrow. One of the things you have decided to practice is your deep breathing at least twice tonight and again in the morning. When I return I will check with you to see how you are doing with the practice. In palliative care setting, it may be necessary to discuss how other people involved in care can assist with reaching goals. For example, nurses might remind individuals to practice relaxation strategies during wakeful periods, as well as talk an individual through the relaxation technique when experiencing a high level of pain. Behavioral Interventions Pleasant Events Scheduling. Activities scheduling is a useful intervention to assist with mood disorders, pain management, and sleep hygiene issues seen in a palliative care setting. Engaging in pleasant events distracts an individual from negative thoughts and provides experimental evidence to support more adaptive thinking styles. Often times in palliative care the first barrier to overcome is identifying pleasant events that can occur in a palliative care setting due to health limitations. Pleasant events need to be person-centered, meaningful, and feasible activities that can be built into a daily routine. Meaningful pleasant events can be identified through both clinical interview and self-report methods. Clinical interview queries should include taking a history of an individuals daily schedule and identify activities the individual enjoyed engaging in on a routine basis prior to their illness. From the generated list of previously enjoyed pleasant events it needs to be determined which activities the individual can continue to enga