A paper on a material object during the medieval period Essay

A paper on a material object during the medieval period - Essay Example However for the bulk of this period the availability of the Holy Bible as a material object was restricted for practical as well as theological reasons.1 During the medieval period access to the Holy Bible, as a material object was in fact restricted due to various intentional and unintentional factors. Books of any description were generally very expensive material objects throughout the medieval period taken as a whole.2 The high cost of books put all but the wealthiest people off buying them in the first place. Books were highly expensive because of the methods used to produce them, paper and parchment was costly to make, meaning that writing errors and mistakes were often just crossed out, or even ignored completely.3 The Holy Bible during the majority of the medieval period was hand written as the Chinese invention of the movable printing press took a long time to reach Europe (not doing so until the late fifteenth century).4 Therefore the production of the Holy Bible was slow as well as painstaking if done properly. Then again it could take just as long to produce copies of the Holy Bible, which were riddled with mistakes, and inaccurate wording.5 Indeed it frequently took days for people usually monks to write out new copies of the Holy Bible in full by hand. There was not a high demand for new copies of the Holy Bible due to the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches wanting to control who actually read the gospel, as well as they interpreted the content of the gospel.6 The Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern orthodox churches were particularly keen on restricting access to the Holy Bible to those it trusted. In other words they’re own clergy, monks, nuns, and the wealthier citizens within European societies. For the majority of the medieval period it was only the clergy and the members of the religious orders that were predominantly literate, although the male

Dykeman Article Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Dykeman Article - Essay Example Bureau of the Census, 1996 (Dykeman, 2003, p. 41). No doubt, theses parental divorces can adversely affect the future life of such children; these can negatively affect the psychological health of children and their performance at school. Children are also very much affected by the manner of interaction between their parents both before and after the divorce; children fail to meet academic and social expectations at school and are moved by feelings of anxiety, depression, aggression, lack of emotional well-being and self-esteem (Dykeman, 2003, p. 42). This highlights the role of school counselors and pinpoints the need of introducing primary, secondary and tertiary interventions among these children. The purpose of Dykeman’s study was to observe the effects of pre-referral tertiary-intervention program on such children who were referred for special education assessment due to behavioral difficulties that stemmed from their parents’ separation or divorce. 21 students (even though only 15 of them completed the treatment and follow up) were thus selected and the community agency counselors administered a conflict-resolution model of family-systems intervention on both the children and their respective custodial parents. The treatment focused mainly on the â€Å"cognitions and behaviors operant within the family environment that both preceded and followed classroom misbehavior and the strategies used by the custodial parent to discipline and socialize the child† (Dykeman, 2003, p. 43). The participant children were enrolled either in their seventh or eighth grade and the 15 custodial parents were middle aged, with 13 mothers and 2 fathers. The progress made by t he children were measured using the Conflict Tactics Scale in terms of their reasoning, verbal aggression, and violence. It is worthwhile to attempt a critique of the statistical analysis presented throughout the article. As already mentioned

Economic development Essay Example for Free

Economic development Essay Today, education is the most important tool for the development of society. There is a direct correlation between education and development of society. The countries that realize this fact, giving the required importance for their education system, have become highly developed. Education should be promoted since it is the most important factor for the development of a country. The promotion of the education is depended on the factors like literacy rate in a country, schooling rate in the primary, secondary and higher education, proliferation of training technologies, and the quality of the education. This promotion process should be considered as a necessary condition for economic, technological and social development for a nation. In other words, the process of a successful development depends on the fact of gibing the society a conscious of change which is highly connected to education. Fist of all, education enlightens people. The educated person is the person who improves oneself. A person increases her/his level of knowledge through education, so he/she has a better understanding and analyzing of daily matters and an agenda. That person can make logical deductions based on the knowledge he gains and refuses the traditional corrupted understanding. Individual’s ability of the interpretation of knowledge through one’s intelligence and skills is supported by education; accordingly, increasing the creativity and intellectual thinking. An individual can learn about different cultures, lifestyles and history from past to present; hence education provides universal perspective to an individual. The most important differential of uneducated person is having a narrow point of view. A person should be educated in order to learn taking objective decisions and being liberated from the social pressure. Besides, educated people respect the rights of others and they have a fair understanding of the concept of equality, right to life, and right to property. The reason why developed countries show highly respect to the individual rights is that the education level of the country is being fairly high. On the other hand, the reason why there are deep inequalities between women and men or rich and poor in under-developed countries is that the education level in there is being fairly low. Besides, there is also a lack of respect to the human rights in these under-developed countries due to low education level. Secondly, education affects the development of science and technology of a country. Technological developments increase by knowledge and research which is provided by education. It is the advancement and proliferation of technology that makes countries developing by the production of knowledge, schooling of creative minds leads countries develop economically, technologically and politically. Education, advancement of technology and development are in a circle movement which produces itself. Cakmak also says that as a result of the creation of science and technology, mobility of scientific knowledge, and nurturing of individuals with creative minds, countries have experienced important economic and political changes which lead to infinitive competition among them in the fields of education, development and innovation (Cakmak O. 2008). In addition, developed countries use technology as a part of their education system. Thus, every student can follow technology and learn about the newest advancements which lead them learn better and improve their intelligence. Finally, education leads knowledge turn into money that improves the economy of a country. Educated people knowing to learn how to invest, produce, expand the business adjusts and improves the economy causing the increase of gross domestic product per capita. Education also gives more job opportunities to people in the business sector. According to OECD, the effect of education to the economic development is proved in the researches of economic growth in 1960s. The researches show that contribution of education to the economic growths is really important and this percentage differs as %7 in England, %15 in USA, %14 in Belgium, %16 in Argentina, and %25 in Canada (OECD, 2005). Some may argue that education does not affect the economic development of a country. There are lots of uneducated but successful business men. People can learn how to run a business without an education. To illustrate, â€Å"Sak? p Sabanc? , who is the founder and chairman of the Sabanc? Holding due to the reason suffering from pneumonia three successive years, had to leave the high school and start to work in BOSSA Flour Factory in 1950 with a wage of 50 TL† (NTV Haber). Considering his life, it is obvious that one can learn how to run a business without education. Hence, it is not only education but also experience that makes one successful in business. All in all, economic, social and technologic development of a country is highly related to the education level of that country. Without education, a country can not develop. The only way of individual’s enlighten and learning to use knowledge, and increase of technology is education. Thus, education should be promoted since it is the most important factor for the development of a country. Oznur Sakar.

How Useful Is Robert Mertons Anomie Theory?

How Useful Is Robert Mertons Anomie Theory? This essay is about how Robert Merton theory accounts for crime and deviance within a contemporary society. I will look at how he believes crime is a result of an ambitious society, and whether or not we can blame crime on the wider society and not on the deviant themselves. I will show how Merton and also Durkheim (1958-1917) construct their theories of crime from different principles, However, both use the theory of `anomie (also referred to as strain theory) in their bid to explain the negatives of society and the effect it has on the individuals who live here in retrospect to crime. I will look at the different approaches each functionalist uses to explain anomie, and how it fits in with their theories of contemporary society. I will also look at how they both agree on this theory, but differ on its initial causes. I also investigate how both believe that crime at some stage is a normal integral part of a contemporary society, and a result of ones self, but they differ on it valu e to society. Emile Durkheim, a French sociologist and functionalist, introduced the concept of anomie in his book The Division of Labour in Society, published in 1893. He used anomie to describe a lack of morale that was occurring in society. Durkheims book was first published 119 years ago however astonishingly his theories can still be applied to todays contemporary society. Anomie is a state were social norms are in crisis. They are vague and confused or even perhaps not present. Durkheim strongly felt this was a cause of deviance. In 1897 Durkheim used the theory again in his study on suicide. http://www.criminology.fsu.edu/crimtheory/week8.htm Durkheims One Cause of Suicide, Barclay D. Johnson, American Sociological Review, Vol. 30, No. 6 (Dec., 1965), pp. 875-886, Published by: American Sociological Association Merton works within the overall functionalist perspective which puts a great deal of emphasis on the role of society, particularly its merging aspects, it states that crime and deviance is a positive attribute to society due to many aspects which I will delve into further on in this essay. Merton now adapts a concept he adopts from the book suicide written by the functionalist, Durkheim in 1897. Durkheim strongly suggested that it is not the individual but culture that creates deviance. He stated that Crime is an integral part of society. He went on to further say that a deviant could also be viewed as a visionary to society and that deviance strengthens society by bringing communities together in times of crisis. In order to illustrate the importance of collective forces on the individual, Durkheim examined the subject of suicide. In Durkheims work, anomie referred to a situation in which cultural norms in a society break down because of sudden rapid change. He stated that rapid social change disrupts such norms and controls producing anomie, characterised by agitation, dissatisfaction, anxiety and a myriad of other characteristics relative to suicide and other deviance. Anomic suicide, for example is a result of the economic cycle. This can occur during a major economic depression such as the much recent recession, when people are not able to achieve the goals that they have learned to pursue, but it can also occur when the economy experiences a sudden and peoples once reasonable aspirations are now easy to achieve if not already achieved and they no longer have goals or something to work towards, also people do not know how to limit their aspirations and be satisfied with their achievements. Merton however changes Durkheims theory slightly, to refer to a situation in which there is an apparent lack of adequa cy between the cultures norms about what constitutes success in life, goals, and the cultures norms about the appropriate ways to achieve those goals otherwise known as the means. Durkheim, E, Spaulding, j, Suicide: A Study in Sociology, Free Press; Reissue edition (11 May 2010) Mertons take on anomie became the explanation for extremely high rates of deviant behaviour occurring in the United States compared with other societies, and also gave an explanation for the spread of deviant behaviour across groups defined by class, race, ethnicity and gender. Merton views the United States as a polar example of a society in which aspiration and goals are an integral part of society and pressure is put upon the people of America to aim towards a goal, however the goal is already set, The American Dream. The social structure in America, is however, characterised by major divisions and harsh economic inequality. Along with this huge division in social classes, people are also criticised as being quitters if they diminish their goals. On the other hand, however, the culture is at best indecisive in its norms about the appropriate means of being successful. Hard work in school and then in the economic workplace are favoured and are the culturally approved means of succe ss, but theres also an element of appreciation for the successful rogue who breaks the rules using immoral or illegal avenues and still achieves success. The end result is more appreciated then the journey to get there, so sometimes a blind eye can be turned to certain corners that may be cut in order to achieve success. A highly successful billion pound American company has recently been exposed for how it cuts corners to obtain high revenues; nobody asked how they were so successful until it was challenged. Some people saying Starbucks had a very good financial advisor as they were actually not doing anything illegal but morally it was wrong. Starbucks were very happy to continue their tax avoidance practices knowing it was probably immoral, however slightly this has tarnished Starbucks they are still a success story and whatever measures they are doing now is only to protect the brand, not because they feel they have a moral duty. In America, in other words, success is probably rated a lot more highly than virtue. http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/dec/03/amazon-google-starbucks-tax-avoidance A Critical Look at Mertons Anomie Theory, Alex Thio, The Pacific Sociological Review, Vol. 18, No. 2 (Apr., 1975), pp. 139-158, Published by: University of California Press. The Legacy of Anomie Theory: Advances in Criminological Theory, Freda A. Adler, William S. Laufer, Robert King Merton, Transaction Publishers, 1 Nov 1999 In addition, the United States, along with all other countries has minority groups whose access to success by conventional means is clearly limited. In the period in which Merton was writing, Society as a whole was a clearly racist. Black Americans were severely limited when it came to education and the workplace. Even so, the same goals were not just emphasised to the white middle class American however to all of their society, Thus therefore creates an influx in crime as people fight by any means to achieve their dreams, the collective American dream. http://www.criminology.fsu.edu/crimtheory/merton.htm Tony Sopranos America: The Criminal Side of the American Dream, David R. Simon, Perseus Books Group, 2 Mar 2004 In order for people to respond to this disjunction of goals and means, Merton created a typology of adaptations. The first of these being a conformist. Most individuals in society are conformists, they accept the culturally defined goals and choose these within their means, they then go on to pursue them using legitimate means of achieving them through the socially-acceptable avenues of educational and occupational advancement and work diligently. An example of this being University students wanting a degree and successful job in the workplace, however using their available means to pay for the study and achieve these goals. Although many citizens; majority being working class and lower middle class, are unlikely to attain the desired, unrealistic ends, they obey social rules anyway and grin and bear it (Winfree Abadinsky) without deviation or grievance. When unable to achieve their goals or to achieve success, they claim responsibility for such failures themselves (I didnt work as hard as I could have at school), and continue to conform to social expectations. The second possible reaction to Mertons anomie is that of innovation. Merton believed that much of criminal behaviour could be categorised as innovative. Innovators are people who tend to accept the goals of society for success and social status however lack the means of achieving such goals and therefore turn to immoral, illegal and deviant techniques in order to achieve these. Gomme stated that a good example of an innovator was a drug dealer or a gangster who perhaps come from a working class background who wish to attain wealth and success however lack the intelligence and money which is needed to achieve such goals, so therefore they maintain their goals but use socially unacceptable means to accomplish these aspirations. Innovators, however, are not necessarily violent or serious offenders: people who lie about their work experience or educational background on a job application can also fall into this category, These acts are not criminal or illegally wrong however these indiv iduals are trying to achieve success through immoral socially unacceptable means. Another of Mertons possible explanations to anomie is called ritualism. The ritualist accepts a lifestyle of hard work and ambition, but rejects the cultural goal of deferred gratification. This individual goes through the avenues of getting an education and working hard, and therefore has the means, yet is not committed to the goal of accumulating wealth or social status. Ritualists ease the strain of anomie by lessening their own aspirations of success to a point where goals are more attainable. They accept their social position, and consistently obey the path they are required to follow. Ritualists tend to avoid taking any risks and are comfortable living within the confines of daily routines, for example a mundane job etc. without complaining or striving for better. Ritualists are fearful of rejection and failure, so therefore do not set themselves up for one in order to not get hurt. As Gomme describes, for ritualists, the means become ends in themselves, A tele marketer for exa mple may be comfortable with the knowledge of not attaining wealth or status within their field of work, they are almost fearful of having to base their life on prospects and a dream and therefore almost make do with their current situation. The fourth explanation is retreatism. Retreatists make a more dramatic reaction to the stress of anomie, which is usually a permanent procedure. The stress and anxiety of the forced upon expectations of social success through conventional and traditional avenues forces the individual to essentially give up. They almost withraw from society as the individual rejects both the cultural goals of success and the socially legitimate means of achieving it. . The retreatist removes themselves or retreats from society and may become an alcoholic, drug addict, or vagrant. They have no means and no goal and have no ambition to change this.. As Durkheim observed, suicide can be seen as the ultimate retreat. The fifth type of adaptation to anomie outlined by Merton is rebellion. Rebellion can be seen as the most threatening and dangerous reaction to society. Rebellion occurs when an individual rejects both culturally defined goals and means and substitutes new goals and means. For example, gang members may make a new goal of gaining power in their gang and using violence and other illegal activities to achieve this. When alienated from society and social structures, rebels propose new goals and means for success. Their view of success differs from the usual law abiding citizen. Rebels may advocate new groups and work together to attain success, perhaps by radical terrorist attacks; suicide bombings. Society however may not be to blame for such radical movement as religion is at the forefront of terrorism. Siegel, L, Criminology: Theories, Patterns, and Typologies, Cengage Learning, 18 Jan 2012 Lauri Taylor however criticises Mertons typology and compares it to her own theory of a fruit machine what Is rigged. She stated that Conformists play the fruit machine and delude themselves thinking that it is fair. She stated that we are fooling ourselves having dreams that are more catered to society and not an indivual dream for our own self. Although a criticism of Taylors approach is perhaps there needs to be a protocol for quickness of time and economical reasons. Whether this is because we want to be accepted by society or for a consistent easy life without any trauma. Taylor stated that the second reaction to anomie, innovators, try to rig the fruit machine in their advantage. Perhaps this is an alternative approach to gaining success but can still ultimately fail as we are trapped in the confines of society. Although the people who judge what acts are illegal are those in the bourgeoisie, were crime is being committed daily; corporate veil, however it goes unseen. Perhaps the goals and the means are not consistent with one another and this is purposely set out as the upper classes wish to restrain those of a less social position from achieving success and wealth. The third approach, ritualism, as stated by Taylor is played blindly and obsessively by the ritualist. Ritualists do not like taking risks and therefore play the fruit machine blindly. They therefore never win any prize and do not have any expectation of winning any prize. They are quite content with their life and do not wish to be burdened with any goals or aspirations which they must base their life or work on. There is no end goal, they are ultimately like a hamster in a wheel working and not getting any reward. Retreatists as stated by Taylor, ignore the existence of the fruit machine. They almost live a day to day life with no sight of a foreseeable future. They have no end goal and wish to not any persue any dreams. Lastly, rebels. These individuals smash up the fruit machine and re build it in their favour according to Laura Taylor. They have the same goals; receiving a prize from the fruit machine, however lack the means of attaining such success so therefore use an alternative route; re building the machine, in order to gain a prize, there is however, no certainty of a prize at the end of it. Page 192, Durkheim and Modern Sociology, Steve Fenton, CUP Archive, 19 Jul 1984 Page 101, Understanding Deviance: A Guide to the Sociology of Crime and Rule-Breaking, David M. Downes, Paul Elliott Rock, Oxford University Press, 2007 This essay has discussed whether Mertons theory of anomie can give an understanding for the reasons behind crime in a contemporary society. It has established that the goals and aspirations set up by society have a big effect on the individual and also that in a lot of cases the means do not coincide with the goals and therefore people take a different avenue to achieve success, whether this being legal or illegal. Contemporary society has made wealth, education and success achievable for all classes, genders, races and ages. Because these goals are now available to everybody, this has created an influx in crime due to more competition and more people aspiring for the acceptable goals. Furthermore with the new coalition governments abolishing of the education maintenance allowance and the hiking up of University fees has meant there is more stream lining and again only the wealthy can be perceived as achieving their goals which could result in an increase in anomie amongst the indivi duals who lack the money and are at a disadvantage who are unable to access higher education. Mertons Anomie Theory however has come under criticism due to the overlook of Richard Quinneys conflict theory, crime in the suites. Crimes by the wealthy and powerful seem to not be discussed. Merton also seems to turn a blind eye to Cloward and Ohlens research on illegitimate opportunities and labelling theory and how this perhaps gives an understanding on individuals committing crime. This essay therefore concludes that anomie is a reasonable explanation for crime in contemporary society. A Critical Look at Mertons Anomie Theory, Alex Thio, The Pacific Sociological Review, Vol. 18, No. 2 (Apr., 1975), pp. 139-158, Published by: University of California Press

Workplace Ethics Starbucks Case Study

Workplace Ethics Starbucks Case Study 1.0 Introduction What is workplace ethics? Workplace ethics is a group of moral principles, standards of behavior, or set of values regarding proper conduct in the workplace. Workplace ethics are most often related in decision making processes because it is the most important responsibilities that we place on the leaders of organization is upholding the highest standards of ethical behavior. Ethics at workplace refer to choosing the option that is determined to be the moral or right choice. Starbucks is one of the world’s most ethical companies. Starbucks makes conscious efforts to be a responsible company and conduct business in an ethical manner. In its business, Starbucks was proud of it ethical ways in doing their business. They are through community, sourcing, environment, diversity and wellness. Starbucks has openly display its commitment to being socially responsible and they want their customers to know exactly how they doing. In Starbucks, Business Ethics and Compliance is a program that supports their mission which is â€Å"To inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time.† It helps to protect their culture and their reputation by providing resources that help partners make ethical decisions at work. Starbucks has makes conscious efforts to fulfill its company’s mission. The majority of reports received by Business Ethics and Compliance involve employee relations issue that provides alternative reporting mechanisms as part of a comprehensive ethics and compliance program. Starbucks believes that conducting business ethically and striving to do the right thing are vital to their success. The program develops and distributes awareness materials, including the Standard of Business Conduct. In social responsibility, the Standard of Business Conduct is a statement of some of the company’s expectations of how they conduct Starbucks business, consistent with their mission and core value. In workplace, Starbucks has emphasis in three sectors of their employees. First, are global human rights, their commitment to basic human rights as a core component of the way they do business and how they engage with their partners. Second is equal employment opportunity, their non-discrimination policy help the large number of their employees have a steady working situation. Third is health care, their support for healthcare reform that allows them to continue to offer affordable coverage to our partners. 3.0 Case Study Starbucks lead by its CEO Howard Schultz is an international coffeehouse chain based in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the largest coffeehouse company in the world with 16120 stores in 49 countries. Products of Starbucks include drip brewed coffee, espresso-based hot drinks, other hot and cold drinks, snacks and items such as mugs and coffee beans. Many products are specific to the location of the stores. Starbucks Italian styles coffee, espresso beverages, teas and confectionaries had made it one of the world’s biggest specialty coffee chain. With the intention of communicating to employees and customers of the values and principles that the company upholds, Starbucks Coffee Company has outlined its mission statements; â€Å"To inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup, and one neighborhood at a time† (â€Å"Our Starbucks Mission† ,n.d ) . Even though Starbucks has a unique style of combining both Mission Statement and Vision Statement ( Garfieldml, 2012) its meaning is clear and concise. Viewing the statement in ethical perspective relating to its workplace it can be broken down into 4 key principles: Ethical sourcing of coffee – meaning a holistic approach to ethically source the highest quality coffee carefully blending, roasting and packing fresh. Our partner where Starbucks refer to its employees will be treated with respect and dignity with safeguarded by health coverage. Ethical environment stewardship – are committed to the conservation of environmental resources. 3.1 Critical and Main Issues Starbucks commitment to ethical practices in the workplace environment is reflected in its setting up of a Standard of Conducts for its partners. The main ethical issues addressed in the code of conduct can be broadly categorise as commitment of partners to provide quality service to customers, conducive workplace environment for the partners and emphasis on integrity and fairness on all dealings. Commitment to provide quality service Partners should be committed not to harass or discriminate against customers, protect customers’ health and safety by following all proper procedure relating to storage, handling, preparation and providing service for Starbucks products. Conducive working environment Consistent with global human rights standard, Starbucks promote equal opportunity in its hiring and promotion practices make decision solely on job related criteria. Employment of partners under age of 18 will take into consideration legal requirement of age, hour task and ensure the partners’ education, health, safety and mental or physical development is not affected. Starbucks partners should respect each other’s dignity. All partners are entitled to work in an environment that is free of harassment, bullying or discrimination. Officers are assigned to enforce the rules and practices pertaining to workplace health, safety and security to safeguard the partners. Starbucks is committed to comply with laws and regulation applicable to wages. It emphasizes that work performed should be compensated accordingly. Thus partners compensated on basis of hours must report accurately (Ali., Haris, Arslan, Jan., Asad-ud, Bashir., Sufwan, Usman, Ali, n.d). Starbuck College Achiever Plan motivates all benefits eligible partners to complete a bachelor degree with full tuition reimbursement through Arizona University top-ranked degree programs, delivered online (‘Working At Starbucks n.d ). Emphasis on integrity and fairness on all dealings Partners must be committed to work fairly and honestly with government official and are not permitted to influence outcome by exchanging bribes. Partners must be truthful and straightforward in their dealing with government so as to meet high ethical and legal standard. Sales practice and advertising must compete on merit of product and services and communication with customers must be accurate and truthful. Partners committed to fair and open competition and must not use unethical means to eliminate competitors or control market price. Partners are prohibited from offering, giving, soliciting or recovering any form of bribe or inducement. Partners must ensure accuracy and integrity of Starbucks corporate reports and honest in disclosure of information to the authority. 3.2 Starbucks Application of Relevant Organizational Behaviour Principles and Concepts To monitor and enforce the ethical conduct of its partners at the workplace Starbucks had developed asset of Standard of Business Conduct which is a resource distributed to all partners to help them make appropriate decision at work. To further help the partners facing with ethical problems Starbucks had set up a Business Ethics and Compliance unit headed by a partner resource. Considering partners who are not comfortable facing an officer to report unethical practices, Starbucks Ethics and Compliance Helpline is an avenue to report issues through free phone call. This facility operates 24 hours every day. Ethics And Compliance Webline is another way for partners to ask for guidance which can be submitted anonymously and treated in confidential manner. The above enforcement measures reflect Starbucks attempt to promote ethical behaviour at the workplace by applying the concept of motivation by rewarding partners through fair wages and benefits, interpersonal communication with the resource partner of the Business Ethics and Compliance to assist in preventing and resolving problem and the most important is through setting up a structure standard code of behaviour to modify the behaviour of its partners. All these efforts had resulted in the company being awarded one of the most ethical companies by Ethisphere for the year 2007 to 2012 Allegra strategies had also voted Starbucks as the ‘Most Ethical Company , European Coffee Industry for the year 200 to 2011 (Ali et.al n.d). 3.3 Criticizes or Comments First and foremost, we would like to have some comments on the critical issues of Starbucks identified by us in our study. Those issues found by us are the commitment of Starbucks to provide quality service to customers, the providing of a conducive working environment for employees and the emphasis on integrity and fairness on all dealings in the company. It is very important for a company to have commitment to provide quality service to customers. This is because it will increase the satisfaction of customers towards the company. The quality service provided will act as Starbucks’s competitive advantage to create loyal customers. Starbucks’s reputation can also be enhanced through the spreading of news about the good service provided by the company through blogs and social media. This will attract more customers and increase the revenue of Starbucks. A working environment which is conducive is a key element to the performance of the employees and also is one of the individual rights for the employees. The work environment creates behavioural patterns in human development and has both physical and psychological influences on employees in the company. A harmonized and comfortable environment will increase the productivity and job satisfaction of employees. When the employees are in a peaceful environment without any disturbance or unethical problems created by others in the company, they can be more focused in their work and put more effort in it as well as have a better performance. The emphasis on integrity and fairness on all dealings by Starbucks is a key factor to support the ethical principles which are individual rights and distributive justice. Managers that are being fair and integral can avoid conflicts happen between employees and a peaceful as well as friendly working environment will be created in the company. This will also enhance employees trust on Starbucks and improve their loyalty to the company. In conclusion, we have positive comments on the main issues in Starbucks and they are quite important to support the ethical principles. 4.0 Recommendations After studying about the topic that we chose that is ethics at workplace, we found that there are many ethical practices practised by employers as well as employees in Starbucks which is the company that we chose. We have some suggestions on how they can further improve practising ethics in Starbucks. First of all, we suggest Starbucks to use ethical screening for job applicants during interview. Ethical screening is the process of checking these job applicants against certain moral standards and removing those who do not conform. This can be done by checking the resumes of those applicants which contain the behavioural information that reflects the attitude of the applicants. The interviewers should also interview them about how they managed the ethical issues faced by them at their previous workplace and how they are going to solve the ethical problems cases when they face them in the future. Besides, they should also make sure the applicants share the same ethical values with the company and will maintain them on the job. This can prevent one unethical employee to have a bad influence on others in the company that may ruin the good image of an ethical company. Moreover, Starbucks can expose new employees to the company’s code of ethics, code of conducts and ethical decision making process during the orientation to improve the ethics in the company. The company’s codes of ethics and conducts act as its conscience and provide a common ethical reference point for employees. By reviewing these conducts, employees will know about what they should do and what they should not do in the company. They also know whether the issues appear in the future are considered ethical or not ethical according to the company’s code of ethics and code of conducts and solve it with the best and necessary solution. Furthermore, Starbucks can improve ethics in the company by providing ethics training workshops for all employees annually to supplement ethics codes. The managers that organise these training workshops should provide some real cases with ethical violations of Starbucks’ ethics code and let them think carefully and discuss among themselves about what they should do for those scenarios. After that, the managers should teach them the correct and best solutions to solve these kinds of ethical problems. Through these workshops, the employees will know what to do when they face these kinds of ethical issues in the future and the relationship between employees will also be enhanced through the interaction in the workshop as well as build trust between each other. We also recommend Starbucks to strengthen the ethics which are individual rights and distributive justice of the work unit by rewarding those employees with ethical behaviours equally and punish those with unethical behaviours through work goals and performance appraisals. The managers should praise those employees that achieve the goals in an ethical way or even give them a certificate for being an ethical employee to encourage them. This will also act as a motivation for other employees. At the same time, they should give the same punishment to those employees with unethical behaviour by giving them a warning letter so that they will not do it again in the future. This can also act as an example for other employees so that they will not make the same mistake as these unethical employees. By doing this can avoid developing moral confusion in the company. The next suggestion for Starbucks is the managers or the direct supervisors of the employees should model appropriate behaviours in themselves as they are actually the most important ethics reference point for the employees. Ethical behaviours in a company start at top management because the employees tend to follow the behaviour and action of their managers towards an ethical issue. It has a greater influence on employees compared to the stated policies of the company. Therefore, the words and actions of the managers should always be aligned with the company’s code of ethics and code of conducts. They should act with integrity all the time in order to maintain an ethical workplace. In conclusion, there are many other ways that Starbucks can further improve ethics in the company other than what we suggest here. Improving ethics at workplace is very important in order to be a famous company with good image and quality as well as employees and employers can work together harmoniously without creating any unethical issues on behalf of the company and the customers. 5.0 Conclusion Starbucks is one of the most ethical companies in the world. Starbucks was proud of it ethical ways such as community, sourcing, environment, diversity and wellness in doing their business. It has openly display its commitment to being social responsibility. The program of Business Ethics and Compliance is to support their mission and help to protect their culture and reputation. Starbucks has emphasis their employees into three sectors which is global human rights, equal employment opportunity and health care. In Starbucks, they are using three principles in workplace ethics. First is utilitarianism, it can divide into two types which are act-utilitarianism and rule-utilitarianism. Second is distributive justice who means sharing of the benefits and burdens of our lives among people. Third are rights, rights played a central role in ethics and it is important to ensure that the freedom and well-being of each individual will be protected when others threaten that freedom or well-being. There are 3 key principles in Starbucks. (1) Ethical sourcing of coffee, (2) Our partner and (3) Ethical environmental resources. The main ethical issues addressed in Starbucks’s code of conduct for its partners can be categories as commitment of partners to provide quality service to customers, create a workplace environment which is conducive for the partners and emphasis on integrity and fairness on all dealings. After study, we found that there are many ethical practices practiced by employers as well as employees in Starbucks. Starbucks should use ethical screening for job applicants during interview. Starbucks also can expose new employees to the company’s code of ethics, code of conducts and ethical decision making process during the orientation to improve the ethics in the company. Besides that, Starbucks can improve ethics in the company by providing ethics training workshops for all employees annually to supplement ethics codes. Moreover, Starbucks also need to strengthen the ethics which are individual rights and distributive justice of the work unit by rewarding those employees with ethical behaviours equally and punish those with unethical behaviours through work goals and performance appraisals. Last but not lease, Starbucks should model appropriate behaviours in themselves as they are actually the most important ethics reference point for the employees.

Economic Conditions Essay -- essays research papers

To analyze an economy, certain statistics can be used to predict the economy’s future. This is important because it helps prepare people for prosperity or hard times. Certain indicators can be used to determine the future of aggregate demand and others can be used to determine aggregate supply. Using eight aggregate demand indicators and four aggregate supply indicators we developed a prediction for the economy in the near future. Changes in aggregate demand are reflected in changes of GDP. To find valuable indicators of the future aggregate demand is to find statistics that tell about change in the components of GDP (C+I+G+Nx). Aggregate supply is influenced by the costs of production to producers and the advent of new or better factors of production and technologies. The indicators we chose as meaningful are also ones used by the Federal Reserve to determine interest rates, automatically validating them as important. The trade deficit is one of the aggregate demand statistics. It shows the balance between imports and exports of the United States. This is the Nx part of GDP. Recently imports have risen while exports have remained constant, making the trade balance more negative and draining GDP. Consumer Confidence is an important indicator of GDP. This is an index created to reflect the sentiment of consumers and how likely they are to spend. This is the C in GDP. The index of Consumer Confidence has fallen for a fourth month in a row and is at a four year low. This sharp...

Compare two poems by wilfed owen Essay -- essays research papers

Compare two poems by Wilfred Owen, showing how they reflected contemporary attitudes to the ‘Great War’. Refer closely to language and poetic techniques.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  World War 1 broke out in 1914. At the beginning of the war, there was a great feeling of patriotism and enthusiasm. Young men were eager to join the armed forces, as they thought the glory and heroism of war would be enjoyable. Fighting in France was expected to be an exciting adventure. Thousands of men joined so they would have the honor of serving their Queen and country. Underage age boys lied about their age in order to join, which showed that the English people thought the war would be won and over quickly. Many patriotic poems and songs were written which encouraged the war effort even more. However, by 1917 the true horror and cruelty of fighting in the war was unveiled. The soldiers experienced true pain, hardship and psychological damage. For those who were left in England, there was huge grief for the loss of life, and people’s attitudes to the war changed dramatically. Wilfred Owen was a teacher who fought from the begging of the ‘Great War’. Owen himself displayed a contrasting attitude as the war progressed through his poems. Before he signed up, he shared the view of the British public, and wrote ‘Ballad of Peace and war’ in 1914. He thought that peace was good but it was better to fight for the country. By 1917, his poetry had changed from blind patriotic disillusion and encouragement, to bitterness and anger. â€Å"Dulce et Decorum Est’, and â€Å"Disabled† were poems he wrote during his time in Craig Lockheart hospital, where he was suffering from shell shock. He had seen the tragedy and graphic brutality of trench warfare, and the trauma he had seen and experienced had sunk in. Both the poems focus on one main person or event. Wilfred Owen wrote these poems to highlight the reality of war, they were ‘protest poems’ to propaganda declaring fighting for soldiers as an honor. ‘Disabled’ focuses on a dingle victim of war, now disabled and in a wheelchair, spending his life in an institute, lonely and unloved. The emphasis of the poem is the tragic consequences of war, and the man’s pain and suffering evokes great empathy for the disabled man in the reader. Losing his legs in the war has robbed him of his masculinity and youth forever. The message of this poem is t... ..., portrays the man as a hero. Now the man is lonely and unloved, ‘Only a solemn man †¦ thanked him; and then inquired about his soul.’ He has been forgotten, and even feels lonely in the institute ‘Why don’t they come and put him to bed? Why don’t they come?’ The repetition of the line emphasizes his despair and frustration. Owen talks about the man being happy in the old day, and the fact that now he will never again have the feeling of happiness in a relationship. The man is now a charity case ‘take whatever pity they may dole.’ If he had not fought in the war then this would never have happened to him. Owen uses striking images and vivid imagery in both poems to clearly show his anger of people who were disillusioned about war, and to show the harsh reality of war. A sense of pathos runs throughout the poems in the reader for the men. The sarcasm used in ‘Dulce et Decorum est’ shows Owens passion of getting his point across. Many peoples attitude of war in England had changed drastically by the time Wilfred Owen wrote these two poems. ‘Dulce et Decorum est’ and ‘Disabled’ both realistically reflected contemporary attitudes to the ‘Great War’ at the time they were written.