Social Evils of India

India, the cradle of civilization, is now beset with a number of social evils. They are so numerous that one shudders to think of them. There have been social reformers like Raja Ram Mohan Ray, Maharishi Daya Nand and Swarni Shradhanand. They fought against social evils but these evils were so deep-rooted that try as they did some of them persist to this day. We may first take the position of women. Women do not enjoy a social position equal to that of men. The constitution does allow them equal status with men but it is all on paper.In practice they do not enjoy this equality. They are still treated as inferior to men. In villages which practically constitute seventy percent of the population, women are treated as second class citizens. Although they have been granted the right of voting, yet in practice they are still under the thumb of their men. They are mostly illiterate. In cities, however, they enjoy better status. We have teachers, professors doctors, lawyers, ministers and h igh officials and it is expected that with their education they would rise still high.Of course, it is a small fraction of women but with the spread of education it is expected that their condition would improve and they would work shoulder to shoulder with men. Another great evil is the dowry system. A man with a number of daughters is a cursed creature. Whatever he has is given away in marriages and he becomes a pauper. The dowry system has done a great harm to the social growth of Indian life. A man with a number of daughters has to sell his property or borrow money at a high rate of interest so that he might give a dowry to his daughter.In case he fails to do so his daughter has to hear taunts and harassment to such an extent that the poor girl is forced to end her life. Everyday we hear of the burning of young brides because of this harassment from their in laws or husbands. The sooner this social evil is removed, the better it will be for all concerned. Another great evil whic h is the bane of Indian life is child marriage. Marriage is a sacred institution and the persons going in for matrimony should be of marriageable age and not that either the girl is married to an old men or she is married at an age when she does not understand what arriage is. We hear of this social evil prevalent in Rajasthan where girls are married off at an age when they do not understand what marriage is. Some of them become widows before they know that they had been married off. A total war against these and a few other evils like drinking and smoking is of utmost necessity. There is legislation against these evils but they can be effectively checked only if the people decide to check them.

Industrial Relations And Labour Studies Architecture Essay

The Penan is a mobile native that roamed on the land of Sarawak Bumi Kenyalang and some other parts on Brunei Bandar Seri Begawan. They are a extremely evolved classless society and small gender division. Man and adult females shared largely the jobs among them. Such as, garnering the forest merchandise and extracted sago from the sago thenar. But they are still some portion of jobs was male dominated. For illustration, hunting. The Penan practiced the rite of ‘Molong ‘ which means ‘never return more than necessary ‘ . That had made them the hunter-gatherers. Not every of the Penans are mobile hunter-gatherers. The present Penans are consisted with settled, semi-nomadic and entire mobile communities that to the full reliant to the wood merchandises. Presents, the figure of Penan had officially stated approximate to 10,000 people and around 350-500 of them are mobile that scattered over Ulu Baram, Limbang, Tutoh and Lawas of Sarawak. Normally the mobile Penan moves in group that consisted about 40 people included kids and old people. They do non stayed for a long clip in a peculiar topographic point. Once the resources at the topographic point that they stayed became fewer, they will take other suited topographic points and moved once more. ( Figures retrievedfrom:hypertext transfer protocol: //www.survival-international.org) I have to contract down the range to the group of mobile Penan that I would wish to analyze approximately. The mobile people that lived in the forest rely much on their traditional diet- Sago ( amylum from the Sago thenar ) . As the Penan people valued the environment so much, merely the matured and to the full adult sago thenar trees will be cut down. The leader will do certain an sum of sago starched plenty from a individual or a few sago thenar trees and kept adequately for their supply. After that no more sago thenar will be chop down until they are ran out of nutrient. Besides that, the Penan besides preys on meat. And the protein result in their day-to-day diet was contributed by largely wild Sus scrofas, mouse cervid and monkeys. The huntsmans Hunt by utilizing a blowtube, made with the Belian wood and carved out with a bone drill. The darts that they used are made from the sago thenar ‘s tree bark and on its tip ; the Penan dipped it with sort of powerful toxicant latex that extracted from a tree from the wood. However, their manner of life is about to alter due to the force per unit areas that forced them to accommodate the cultivation of seting and domestic animate being genteelness.Issue to lift:As the Real GDP ( gross domestic production ) growing in Malaysia since the twelvemonth of 1999 to 2007 had improved in great per centum, Malaysia authorities had put a tonss of affords on the lumber industry in Sarawak territory. Sarawak was blessed with tonss of valuable trees. The authorities puts a strong accent on the processing lumber that can maximise the local net incomes. It is believe vital to maintain up with the big demand from Japan, India and the Far East states. Ironically, logging seems to convey great blessings to the state, in Sarawak it destroys legion of sago thenar and consuming a huge country of rain forest that the Penan people lived in. Poorly planned logging trails had caused the issues of Earth eroding, landslides and the silting of watercourses happened. The state of affairs had affected the functional relation among the Penan and the wood. Once the large trees were removed, shortly the secondary bushy forest will take over the bare wood bed. Meat becomes difficult to track and fruits that used to be big go less abundant. The Penan is holding troubles in roll uping and runing their nutrient. Resistance from both the settled and nomads were fierce. The authorities faced a difficult clip from those natives. The Sarawak authorities had frequently stated to convey upon the issue and promised to offer development to the Penan. About all nomads Penan go up against with logging and it happened to be immense spread of swearing and understanding between the authorities and the Penan. The authorities puzzled why would anyone desire so much to populate in the jungle and trusting thoughtfully the Penan will comes to their senses. On the other manus, the Penan had lost faith in their authorities as more and more bulldozers driven through their forest. In their position, logging merely convey them catastrophes and they will lose it all if they move a measure rearward from their base on protecting the forest. What is more, at the same clip they see the pristine forest been tear down, holding their districts distorted into oil thenar and acacia plantations is a calamity. Anyhow, as now the Penan had come across the job, they have a pick to do. Shall they stand firmed on their rule and allow the resistance of deforestation continued or merely accept what the authorities had offered and worked in tandem to predominate societal harmoniousness and peace? Can they defy the Penan society to alter? Surely it is a difficult determination to do, there are excessively many valuable things will hold to waive and finally became memory. Harmonizing to Bilton T, Bonnet K and the bookmans,the diverseness and changeableness of societal constructions are a centre subject, together with the disclosure that human action can recast societal dealingss and establishments ; it reveals the human potency for release and originative societal Reconstruction. ( Introductory Sociology: 2nd edition, Bilton T, Bonnet K, Jones P, Stanworth M, Sheard K and Webster A. 1987. Mackays of Chatham PLC, Kent ) Harmonizing to the statement above, societal alterations that happened to the Penan folk was due to the ground of rewording and retracing into a broad and originative society. But the point that I want to reason here is- Does the folk want to alter? Considered upon the motivation that they fight over their rights on the land and the forest, I strongly doubted their willingness in altering their societal concept and their societal life. There was a cause that forced them to travel out from the jungle ; there was a cause to necessitate them to give up their nature root. And it is our responsibility to unveil the secret. Social alteration was defined as the clip when external events happened, such as war and conquering and civilization contact and diffusion, or environmental factors or internal events, such as inventions, innovation and population displacements harmonizing to Barbara Marliene S. & A ; Mary Ann A. Schwartz ( 2006 ) In this point of position, the society of Penan changed when development and wealth interfered. Some of them accepted it and follow a new life manner yet some resisted it and willing to pay any monetary value to defence their existent life. Yet, this diffusion, the spread of civilization traits from one society to another, is the inevitable consequence of contact between civilizations. With modern communicating engineerings making into the most distant corners of the Earth, the rate of diffusion has accelerated dramatically since the bend of the 20th century. ( Sociology: Making sense of the societal universe, 2nd edition, Barbara Marliene Scott & A ; Mary Ann A. Schwartz. 2006, Allyn and Bacon Pearson. ) The societal alteration of the Penan folk was occurred because of the civilization contact and diffusion harmonizing to the statement above. When the civilization of new economic bloom and the up raise national income due to timber industries scatter to the land Sarawak, the districts of the Penan folk was the chief locale to be affected. For illustration, big graduated table of logging operation encroach their land doing them to endure under the pollutions. Their H2O catchment countries were polluted with sediment supplanting, many sago thenars were lost ; wild Sus scrofa, cervid and other game became scarce, the fruit trees and medical specialty purposed herb were difficult to happen. Therefore, their epinephrine prepared them to contend or flight. The consequence of societal alteration among the Penan is staying negative in footings of the authorities position. The Penan chose to contend. For illustration, many encirclements were set up in effort to halt logging operations on their land. Unfortunately, the attempts were difficult to transport on and the state of affairs turns bad with huge graduated table of clangs between the autochthonal community and the province supported logging company. For illustration, SamLing Corporation, lead by CEO Yew Chee Ming, COO James Ho Yam Kong. In association with the honest main curate ‘s privilege company known as STIDC. The Malayan Timber Certificate Council ( MTCC ) had granted the companies with a logging grant. It is average that they have the power to log even on the land that traditionally inhabited by the natives of Sarawak. Apart from the ground of civilization diffusion, the societal alteration that happened among the Penan was due to the cause of demographic tendencies. That is to state every birth, decease, and migration rates can impact the size and composing of a population, which in bend, can hold a major impact on a society.Barbara Marliene Scott& A ; Mary Ann A. Schwartz ( 2006 ) .For illustration, scarceness of nutrient and taint of environment. Presents, the Penan is covering with the exact jobs that I have stated above. Their nutrient becomes difficult to achieve and the inhabited environment was contaminated. These sorts of state of affairs makes their life in the jungle becomes tough and unease. On the other manus, the member in the group is keep diminishing due to migration. Migration refers to the motion of people into or out of a geographical country ( Barbara S & A ; Mary A, 2006 ) . This is to state, many child who grew up in the mobile group choose to travel out from the community and headed to the life manner in the metropolis. The birth rate in the group becomes lesser and lesser as the immature people instead choose a partner from the metropolis than they own people that stayed in the group. As clip base on ballss, merely old coevals and some few immature people will remain on. Finally, their group will turn out to be a smaller group and possibly faded off. It was non something surprise with the reactions that the mobile presented. Harmonizing to Barbara S & A ; Mary A ( 2006 ) ,the behaviour that is likely to emerge in such state of affairs is called corporate behaviour, the comparatively self-generated and unstructured behaviour engagevitamin D in by big Numberss of people who are responding to a common stimulation. ( Sociology: 2nd edition, doing sense of the societal universe. Pg63. 2006. Barbara Marliene Scott & A ; Mary Ann A. Schwartz. Allyn and Bacon Pearson ) The corporate behaviours that the Penan folk had were the attitude that they had shown. Such as, the confrontations with the logging companies and the encirclements that they had made. Corporate behaviours take many signifiers. Some are short-period, self-generated and unstructured. But some are durable, formalistic and well-planned. The signifier the Penan folk used to oppose their dissension was categorized in the center, which is societal motion. It tends to be long -lasting because it has to accomplish a certain end of altering societal order in some cardinal method. For case, the leaders of the Penan folk have a good organized program to achieve their end of continuing their rights on the land. They even met with Al-Gore and Prince Charles sing to their jobs. Harmonizing to Barbara Marliene Scott & A ; Mary Ann A. Schwartz, 2006 in Sociology 2nd edition-making sense of the societal universe, contemn the tremendous power of social establishments and other societal forces against the control of persons, formal organisations of single activism are frequently important to societal alteration and can sometimes agitate the foundation of a society. Such has been the instance with assorted actions that had taken to demo their dissatisfaction, including the protesting that brought upon the media and how the folk fought against the political power and obtained the opportunities to talk out to the universe. In my sentiment, the ways that the Penan took in protesting their disfavor was in the in-between portion of corporate behaviour and societal motion. It is non every bit well-structural as the societal motion because of their by and large free-form attack. Apart from that, it does non involved big Numberss of people. Compares to societal motion, t he manner that the Penan acquired was merely engaged comparatively little sum of people, such as their leaders and alders. It besides consisted a end ; a ground to contend for. So, it can besides be said a end oriented corporate behaviour. But, by deriving the impulse in their opposition and expostulation, they are to state a little measure from becomes societal motion and possibly, it might win in the hereafter!Decision:As everyone can see, societal alteration is non a little affair. Many facets in life have to be considered. Individual, groups, communities are loath to alter and confronting large battle to set from the life manner and conditions that they had used with. At the same clip the society have to differ themselves to keep existing conditions. For case, as jersey and denim has been introduced to the Penan, they have ever preferred chawat. However, when the clip has come, alterations have to be done. Conflicts and contradictions will happen within the procedure for certain . The Penan resists change because of their romanticized impression of traditional values and â€Å" the good old yearss † . ( Barbara S, Mary A, 2006 ) For illustration, the Penan people valued their forest home ground and their traditional rites really much, they like to bathe in the river ; they enjoyed the hunting activities ; they have used to every trees in the jungle. The fright of losing each of them caused them hesitated to have alterations. Not merely that, mobile Penan resists alterations merely merely because of inactiveness ; they have becomes complacent, even if their lives are far less than ideal. ( Barbara S, Mary A, 2006 ) Changes required people to make something different, and it may do a batch of uncomfortableness. Often, the leaders who accept the legitimacy of position quo would likely defy alterations the most. This is because with the credence, it might coerce them to reconsider the genuineness in the old society that used to specify their full intent and power. They might besides afraid of losing their people Black Marias and their prestigiousness in the society to the present authorities. Some mobile Penan refuses to accept alterations due to the miscommunication and misinformation. ( Barbara S, Mary A, 2006 ) . For illustration, the Penan regarded the present authorities as something bad, and they are bad in the context of infiltrated their land and infringed on their rights. It was clearly shown with the logging systems. During the stay of Bruce Parry, the leaders came from afar merely to inquire Bruce to direct their message to the authorities of British so that they can take over the authorities once more. They felt ferocious and anguish towards the Sarawak authorities ‘s making. Affords to advance societal alteration expected to see opposition been provoked as there will ever be person who do non derive anything or lost something if non everything due to the procedure of alterations. So, the phenomenon of the Penan opposition is natural and it is common if they persisted in their expostulation. Personally to state, the 1 who in charge of the forestation in Sarawak should hold been more justness to the people. Government should be the listening ear for the people non the taking manus. Merely the righteous authorities can last everlastingly in the people Black Marias.Mentions:hypertext transfer protocol: //www.survival-international.orgIntroductory Sociology: 2nd edition, Bilton T, Bonnet K, Jones P, Stanworth M, Sheard K and Webster A. 1987. Mackays of Chatham PLC, KentSociology: 2nd edition, doing sense of the societal universe. Pg63. 2006. Barbara Marliene Scott & A ; Mary Ann A. Schwartz. Allyn and Bacon Pearson

Leadership Theories Essay

Classical and humanist management theories have had a major influence on modern theories of leadership. Making effective use of appropriate models and theories critically examine whether this is the case. In order to answer this question, it will be appropriate to look at how classical and humanist theories emerged and outline some of their theories relating to management. Further discussion will be on the role of management in comparison to that of leadership with concluding arguments on how far these theories have influenced modern leadership. The stride towards industrial development in the 19th century led to the emergence of classical management theories with several approaches. One such approach was how managers should act, manage task and deal with day to day problems of managing the business (Mullins 2004). Example of theories on the above approach is command and control by Henri Fayol, bureaucratic organisation by Max Weber and scientific management by F W Taylor. Fayol cited in Dilys Robinson (Training Journal, Jan 2005) favoured the idea of management organising task and managing people through a hierarchy system. He saw senior level managers as having authority not only by virtue of their position within the organisation but also on the increasing amount of decisions that managers had to make. Senior level managers cascaded orders through a command chain system to employees and had almost no interaction with workers. In addition Fayol taught that managers and workers had to abide by certain principles for the greater good of the organisation. For instance manager’s had to treat workers with some degree of fairness whiles workers on the order hand were expected to accept and follow plans from one leader, sub-ordinate their interest and not step beyond their responsibilities. In the same way Max Weber in Derek Pugh & J Hickman (2007) like Fayol supported the idea of a formalised organisation structure as it legitimised authority and helped to remove problems that authority based on tradition and charisma created. He was also concerned about the likelihood of managers using their authority to abuse workers within the hierarchy system hence his  idea that the relationship between the organisation and managers had to be impersonal in such a way that managerial roles are assigned and their authority based on competence. Additionally, Taylor in Dilys Robinson (Training Journal, Jan 2005) suggested that managers must be responsible for organising work and the task given to selected and trained workers to perform in accordance to the way managers deemed it. His idea seems to assert that there is one best way of performing task and that work task should be tailor made to fit those who have to perform them. Alternatively, humanist theorist which began to emerge on the background of classical management started to teach that workers were not only motivated by reward factors and that consideration of human needs was also a key in motivating workers. Humanist theories also began to look at the behaviour of employees within the organisation. Examples of humanist management theories are Douglas McGregor’s X and Y theory and Rensis Likert’s management systems and styles. Douglas McGregor under theory X proposes that in certain situations managers must use their authority in order to get things done and achieve desired results. Under theory Y, also based on certain assumptions he proposes that managers must be more democratic in their approach as this will motivate staff to contribute more to the organisation. Furthermore Rensis Likerts in Derek Pugh & J Hickman (2007) identified four varying types of management styles bordering on the exploitative – authoritative, benevolent – authoritative, consultative and participative system. The first is characterised by imposed decisions and use of threats and the second the use of rewards mainly to motivate staff. The third is were motivation is by rewards and some participation and the fourth seen as the best solution in that management have confidence in their workers, real responsibility is felt by all, communication is abundant, team-work exists and where motivation is on economic rewards based on agreed set goals between management and staff. McGraw Hill (1967) the human organisation,  agrees that all organisation should adopt this. (http://www.accel-team.com/human_relations/hrels_04_likert.html) However in modern organisations the exploitative – authoritative style of management is less than ideal as this usually results in staff feeling more de-motivated and demoralised. Staffs are also more likely to rebel and challenge management by lodging their grievances with internal or external arbitration systems that are in place today. From the above, it can be that whiles views generated by the classical theorist thinks managers can only lead effectively through a formalised structure, by rules and command, humanistic views provides an alternative as to how managers must lead, they must consider the needs of their workers, encourage participation to motivate and utilise the full potential of workers for the good of the organisation. To further develop this discussion, it would be useful to examine what management and leadership involves as arguments abound as to whether management and leadership are the same or not. However the difference between the two has been shown to be in what both does. Management as a term is generic in meaning and is defined by Terry and Rue in Ernest Dale (1969) as a process or form of work that involves guidance and directing of a group of people toward organisational goals and objectives. It also covers many areas such as planning, organising, problem solving, controlling and putting appropriate structures in place. These are now seen as functions performed by individuals who have been assigned formal roles as managers. Leadership in contrast is defined by Richard L Daft, Patricia G lane (2007) as ‘an influence relationship among leaders and followers who intend real changes and outcomes that can reflect their share purpose’. Mullins, L. J (2004) also defines leadership as ‘getting people to follow’ or getting people to do things willingly. From this definition what stands out is that leaders must have followers whiles management use available resources such as people to get things done. Tom Swanick & Judy Mckimm in ABC of Clinical Leadership supports this by citing management as involving the directing of people and resources to achieve organisational values and strategic  direction established and propagated by leadership. One example of what distinguishes leadership and management is when it comes to authority, leaders do not derive authority from a hierarchy system as managers do. An example of this is a case study in John Adair (2007) which was conducted at the laboratory of a molecular biology. The study found out that it was an environment which assigned offices did not exist and all workers regardless of position integrated with one another. It allowed ideas to flourish and be shared which lead to great works being produced by the laboratory. Mullins (2007) mentions also that in the performance of work task under the 7 S’s within the organisational frame work, leaders often make use of what is called the soft S’s, style, staff skills and shared goals whiles managers use the hard S’s which is structure, system and strategy. Zaleznik (1977) cited in Brooks (2005) lends his support and suggests that managers during conflict situations usually focus on achieving compromise to maintain order and do so in an unemotional and lay back manner which does not result in change. For example the parties involved in a conflict may resolve their differences through compromise but does it guarantee that such a conflict will not arise again. Bennis and Nanus (1985) cited in ABC of clinical leadership give additional weight to the above and quotes ‘Managers are people that do things right’ but ‘leaders are people that do the right thing’. Leadership is also associated with being visionary. Gower (2010) for example cites leadership as being an ‘activity that is visionary, creative, inspirational, energising and transformational’. Managers in contrast are seen as being less so. This may stem from the way management developed and trained from the past. Managers are usually assigned to be heads of departments within the organisation and as such tend to look at how they can meet targets within their departments rather than thinking about what direction the whole organisation is heading or needs to head in today’s ever complex and changing environment. In light of these differences, management is still seen as being intertwined with leadership as the former has to  exercise leadership in the performance of their duties. For example Bolman & Deal (1997) see both as necessary for success as organisations that are over managed with little leadership involvement or vice versa results in failure. In conclusion it can be said that classical and humanistic theories have had a great impact on modern leadership in various ways. One of these is that it has changed the way leadership is viewed worldwide. Calls have been made for leadership to be exemplary and moral. A recent example was the leader of Italy, Mr Berlusconi who faced a lot of criticisms on certain aspects of his behaviour whiles in office and as a result was forced to resign from his position. Increase in communication between organisations and with external bodies has been another. Leaders are seen as the face of the organisation and to promote its success, leaders go to great strengths to forge good relations with the communities within which they operate. Finally another impact on modern leadership has been the increase in innovative ideas and technology which has resulted in economic growth. An example of a leader who has shown innovation and vision is Mark Elliot Zuckerbery, owner of Facebook, who transformed the idea of creating a college social website into a global enterprise. References: Brooks Ian (2005), Organisational behaviour: individuals, groups and organisation, 3rd ed, Pearson Education [online] Available at www.dawsonera.com Buechlar Peter; Martin David; Knaebel Hans Peter; Buechlar Markus W, Leadership characteristic and business management in modern academic surgery, Langenberks Archives of Surgery, Volume 391, Issue: 2, Pages149-156. [online] Available on ISI web of knowledge, Accessed 12/12/2011 Derek S Pugh & David J Hickson, (2007), Great writers on organisations, 3rd omnibus ed, Ash gate Publishing Ltd, [online] Available on www.dawsonera.com] Dilys Robinson, http://www.trainingjournal.com/feature/2005-01-01-management-theorists-thinkers-for-the-21st-century/ [Accessed 15/12/11] Ernest Dale (1969), Management: Theory and Practice, Copyright 1993, Carlos C. Lorenzana & Rex Book store [online] Google Books, Accessed 18/12/2011 Gower handbook of leadership and management development, GB: Gower (2010), Edited by Jeff Gold, Richard Thorpe, Alan Mumford [online] Available on www.dawsonera.com http://www.accel-team.com/human_relations/hrels_04_likert.html) John Adair (2007), leadership for innovation, kogan Page Ltd [online] Available at www.dawsonera.com, Accessed 21/12/11 Mullin, L. J (2004), Management and Organisational behaviour, 7th ed., Pearson Education Mullin, L. J (2007), Management and Organisational behaviour, 8th ed., Harlow: Financial Times Prentice Hall Richard L Draft, Patricia G Lane (2007), The leadership experience, [online] Available on Google books, Accessed 21/12/11 Tom Swanick & Judy Mckimm, ABC of Clinical leadership 1st edition, (2010) Bmj Books, [online] Available on www.dawsonera.com, Accessed 12/12/2012 Bibliography: John P kotter, What Leaders really do, Harvard Business School Press, Boston, Available [online] www.HBSPress.org , Accessed 20/12/11.

How Consumer Attitudes & Behaviors Affect Their Purchases Essay

How Consumer Attitudes & Behaviors Affect Their Purchases - Essay Example These savvy marketers understands their consumers’ behavior and thus able to distinguish between attitudes and beliefs. Every year, firms (through their marketing departments) heavily invest in researches to identify consumers’ attitudes which are more likely influence their purchasing behavior. Marketers go ahead to persuade consumers through promotions and advertising in order to win consumer loyalty. Consumer Attitudes In marketing, attitude is defined as â€Å"the general evaluation of a product or service formed over time† (Maxfield, 2012). Attitude greatly affects the purchasing and buying habit of consumers as well as satisfying personal motives of the consumers. As such, consumer attitude is defined as a composite of beliefs, behavioral intention and feelings. On the other hand, behavioral intention of consumers is defined (in marketing content) by consumers’ beliefs and feeling about a given product. Consumer feeling and behavior are treated toget her as they are relatively interdependent, thus collectively representing purchasing force of the consumer. This relationship and interdependency can be represented as below: Attitude is majorly a psychological term that applies in all fields involving human beings. Attitude refers to the inner feelings and understanding of individuals towards certain object or concepts. Attitude may be either negative or positive depending on the existing environmental factors triggering the feeling. Behavior on the other hand, refers to individuals’ reactions or actions towards certain environmental elements in response to the internal or external stimuli. Attitudes and behaviors of customers have almost similar effects on the buying trend of certain product. Attitudes exist in three main components that include cognitive, affective and behavior. Cognitive component of consumer attitude relates to the general consumer’s belief about a certain product. Affective component of the consu mer attitude attributes to feelings and emotional response of customers towards particular objects. Behavior component on the other hand, entails learned tendency by consumer to react in particular manner towards particular activity or objects. In this way, the psychological effects that drive the understanding of consumer/rational choice are clearly understood and noted. Beliefs Belief is a fundamental component of consumer’s purchasing powers and influences. A consumer may either hold a positive or negative belief towards a product or a store. For instance, some consumers may belief that coffee tastes good while those with negative belief towards this product will say that it stains papers and is easily spilled. Though rare, some consumers have a neutral belief on a product (e.g. coffee is black). Other group of consumers may have an indifference belief about a commodity. Notably, the beliefs consumers carry on products have no to be accurate and at times may be very contra dictory. Since consumers hold a number of beliefs towards the range of products, it is quite had to reach the ‘bottom line’ of such variations in beliefs. Brand equity and consumer attitude Brand equity is an important concept in building and developing marketing strategy. Brand equity is an indication of profitability index as perceived by marketers. However, brand equity depends on brand attitude. From consumers’ point of view, brand equity entails positive brand attitude founded on

Accounting and Finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Accounting and Finance - Essay Example Accounting and finance plays a crucial role in the modern era which is also observed to be strongly business centric. As accepted by majority of the experts, accounting and finance have been into operations since ages. As accepted by majority of the experts, accounting and finance have been into operations since ages. With a continuous development of the mankind and human civilisation the implication of accounting and its importance also have changed to a considerable amount. As stated by Elliott & Elliott (2007), â€Å"Accountants are communicators. Accountancy is the art of communicating financial information about a business entity to users such as shareholders and managers.† This statement provides a brief reflection of the role played by accountants and the implication of accountancy in the modern day phenomenon. Hereby, the paper intends to critically evaluate the statement with due consideration to the modern day perspective of accountancy. The discussion of the paper w ill initially aim at analysing the role of accountancy in the 21st century and later proceed with the intention to evaluate the similarities and dissimilarities between two major facets of modern accountancy, i.e. financial accounting and management accounting. The major users of these accounting methods will also be considered in the paper. Furthermore, it will aim at identifying the implications of these accounting standards. Conclusively, the paper will produce a comprehensive reflection of the learning outcomes from the paper. 2. Critical Discussion of the Statement It is of no doubt that accounting plays a central role in maintaining records of the financial transactions of businesses. It is often referred to as a process that encompasses a series of actions from collecting financial data on a regular basis to communicating the information to its users through financial statements. Thus, it emerges as a complex and broad concept to be defined concisely (Banerjee, 2010). Moreove r, it was also observed that accounting had a vital influence on the strategic decisions of the businesses which provided the concept with a managerial definition of a communicator. Emphasised on these characteristics of modern day accounting, experts have intended to categorise the concept in two parts, i.e. financial accounting and management accounting (Tyagi & Tyagi, 2003). Financial accounting is considered to be the pathway of gathering financial information and analysing the effects of such information on the managerial decisions of the business unit. As stated by Albrecht & Et. Al. (2007), financial accounting is particularly â€Å"concerned with reporting financial information to interested external parties†. In this regard, the accounting process emphasises on maintaining records of the financial transactions. It further concentrates on the analysis of the obtained information with the aim to assist the management in decision-making. The accounting process also tend s to identify various strengths as well as weaknesses possessed by the business units in financial terms. Through the implication of the accounting process, accountants concentrate on communicating the information with the assistance of variou9733436912s financial statements, such as balance sheets, cash-flow statements, annual income statements and others (Jagels & Ralston, 2006). Similarly, the concept of management accounting is referred to as the process to inform the management of a business regarding the financial status of the company. In a broader perspective, the accounting process intends to analyse the financial information strategically with the aim to relate the financial strengths along with weaknesses of the company with its strategic decisions. Notably, the decision can be related to the investment of working capital, future expansion of the product line or market area, mergers and acquisitions or even solvency (Albrecht & Et. Al., 2007). According to various profess ionals, management accoun

Finance and Accounting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Finance and Accounting - Essay Example Return on Capital Employed EBIT/ Shareholders funds + LT Liabilities EBIT $ 13,302 $ 11,876 Capital employed $ 69,326 $ 66,864 ROCE = 19% 18% Net Margin Net Income/ Net Sales Net Income $ 9,197 $ 8,081 Net Sales $ 98,458 $ 91,115 Net Margin 9% 9% Gross Margin Gross Profit / Net Sales Gross Profit $ 57,745 $ 53,198 Gross margin = 58.6% 58.4% Finance and Accounting P 4 Overheads as % of Turnover Distribution & Admin (Excl amortization of Goodwill) Distribution $ 8,244 $ 7,402 Marketing & Admin $ 34,465 $ 32,421 Total Overheads $ 42,709 $ 39,823 Turnover $ 101,805 $ 102,718 Overheads as % of Turnover 42% 39% Distribution as % of Turnover 8% 7% Marketing & Admin as % Turnover 34% 32% Turnover / Capital Employed 1.47 1.54 Turnover / Fixed Assets Fixed assets $ 20,230 $ 18,990 Turnover / Fixed Assets 5.03 5.41 Turnover / Net current Assets Net Current Assets $ 35,305 $ 41,765 Turnover / Net current Assets 2.88 2.46 Turnover / Stock $ 5,926 $ 5,926 stock Finance and Accounting P 5 Turnover / Stock 17.18 17.33 Current Ratio Current Assets $ 35,305 $ 41,765 Current Liabilities $ 32,479 $ 35,854 Current Ratio 1.09 1.16 Acid Test current assets less stock/ c liabilities...The ratios as computed showed that these are the financial indicators distilling the relevant information with regards to the entity of business by quantifying the relationship among the selected items appearing on the financial statement. The ratios of the entity may also be compared with the different ratios of a different period and to the industry's ratios. These comparative analyses shown below were able to identify the trends that may be very significant with the investors, the lenders and at the same time other parties who are very interested. The profitability ratios of both companies are for purposes of measuring the income in relation to some base and the more general is due to profit wherein these are the results of many factors such as the operating decisions, the leverage and the other considerations necessary for both companies. The liquidity ratio or simply the solvency Both companies have shown that they are good indicators in terms of current ratio because as compared with the last year's performance, both companies are doing very well. These ratios are designed for the purpose of highlighting the relationships considered to be meaningful between those financial data.

Supply chain management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 3

Supply chain management - Essay Example To achieve this objective, there is a need of an organization to have an efficient supply chain that will make it possible for the organization to supply their products without passing on the extra costs of supply to their customers. In achieving this objective, the organization under consideration will manage to obtain a competitive advantage over its competitors. However, this is not the case, and it is because there are a variety of factors that determine the supply chain of a product. Some of these factors are beyond the control of business organizations (Lee and Lee, 2007). This is because they are influenced by the environmental conditions. This research paper is an examination of the global supply chain of coffee. It is important to denote that coffee is an important product, that is traded worldwide, and the balance of trade in regard to coffee production and manufacturing, is in favor of the developed countries, as opposed to the developing countries (Lindgreen and Maon, 2013). Coffee is one of the major sources of revenue for less developed countries, and it is always grown on large scale, for purposes of exportation. On this basis, coffee is a very valuable crop in less developed countries, since it is a source of livelihood. In analyzing the global supply chain of coffee, this paper will identify the power in which different actors in this supply chain hold in the market. It is important to denote that most production of coffee emanates from the third world countries, while the manufacturers of this coffee, popularly referred to as roasters are found in the first world countries. Global trade in coffee has been made possible because of the international liberalization of trade. Liberalization of trade involves reducing international barriers to trade in services and goods (Sherer, 2005). This principle is based on the concept that a market works better and most efficiently when competition existing in it, is less regulated. It is important to

What is the globalization and impact of drug trafficking Research Paper

What is the globalization and impact of drug trafficking - Research Paper Example e international consumption increasing greatly, the people engaged in the administration have also participated in this trade forgetting about the negative impacts it imparts on the general population and hampering the future. Although in the recent years genuine efforts have been given on reducing the drug trafficking by focusing on the supply side, demand side in this paper is highlighted as a more important dimension for attaining solutions. Intensification of the term ‘globalization’ is indeed a dominant phenomenon unleashing its practicability in diversified gesture from the second half of the twentieth century to the instance we are standing today1. Technically speaking, theme of globalization encompasses around the notion that, nation states are intertwined with information exchange along with amalgamating culture, religion, tradition, business practices and so on2. Now within the domain of business perspective globalization among its multifarious dimensions imparts a significant part. Globalization has brought many opportunities but at the same time has imposed a lot of critical challenges and adverse effects. Drug trafficking is one such arena where the adverse effects of globalization has made its full interventions. Rational individuals are required to be bestowed with tasks of analyzing, understanding as well as harnessing the benefits for eliminating the negative consequences that come with it. Th e paper will be discussing the negative impacts of globalization with respect to drug trafficking (special emphasis on Latin American countries) with an attempt to find out potential solution to curb down its evil effects. From theoretical perspectives globalization can be visualized as a platform where the private organizations are operating in a global forefront with a disciplined behavior with equilibrium occurring at the intersecting point of demand and supply curves. Similarly it can be stated that the market of illicit drugs and its trafficking

Dell creates global business sales operations to better serve Coursework

Dell creates global business sales operations to better serve customers - Coursework Example Among the many companies that operate in the manufacturing sector now, the computer manufacturing companies like Dell Inc are making sizable impacts. The last few decades of the 20th century saw the emergence of sizable computer manufacturing companies, which first started manufacturing basic level Personal Computers. Now, these companies including Dell Inc. have expanded into the manufacturing of many computer related or information technology related hardware, which are having applications in the various facets of human lives. Dell Inc was established in year 1984 by Michael Dell, originally under the name of PC's Limited. When he was a student at the University of Texas, Dell started selling IBM PC-compatible computers from an off-campus dorm room at Dobie Center in Austin, Texas. The thing that made this computer different from the computers sold by other companies at that time was, it was manufactured or even assembled from various computer stock parts. Michael Dell, with the ai d of external financing and technological know-how, then started manufacturing their own computers under the name â€Å"Turbo PC†. From that initial initiative, the company grew strongly even changing the name from PC’s Limited to "Dell Computer Corporation" in 1988. Then in 2003, it re-branded to simply Dell Inc. to reflect its expansion beyond computer related products. Now, it designs, manufactures and sells personal computers, other computer and electronic related products. Although, Dell Inc. also sells products manufactured by third part manufacturers like Televisions, it directly manufactures many computer related hardware in its various manufacturing facilities located worldwide. In those manufacturing centers, Dell manufactures Desktops, Laptops, Servers, printers, ink cartridges, Mobile phones and various other IT and electronics based components, making Dell Inc. one of the top manufacturing companies of the world. Organizational Structure Dell Inc. is a pub lic limited company, as it went public in the year 1988 itself, with the selling of around 3.5 million company shares at rates of $8.50 a share. (Ireland, Hoskisson and Hitt 2008). Although, it operates as the Pubic Limited Company in majority of the operations, in key markets like India, it operates as a private limited company. That is, in United States and UK, it operates as a public company only, with the word Incorporation or Inc used in the end for US operations, while in UK, according to the United Kingdom Company Law, the abbreviation Plc is added to the company name. However, in other emerging markets like India, it operates as private entity, taking the name Dell Private India Ltd. Thus, Dell’s identity or sector depends on the market it operates. After going public only, Dell focused on large clients particularly large contracts from the government agencies, thereby expanding and diversifying its organizational structure. When the company earned good profits in the years just before 1988, Dell Inc. thought going public can help generate sizable funds, which can be further utilized to tap the opportunities available then. â€Å"In 1988, Dell after becoming public added a sales force to serve the large customers and began selling to government agencies† (Thompson et al. 2006, p.36). Headquartered in Round Rock, Texas, Dell is run by a board of directors consisting of nine people. Its founder

The Healthcare Facility and Staff †You Decide Essay Example for Free

The Healthcare Facility and Staff – You Decide Essay I. Identification The dilemma is that Mrs. Margie Whitson a patient at Golden Oaks Rehabilitation Center is going through some very hard times after just loosing her son William about a week ago. She has also had to deal with loosing her husband in the past 5 years leading up to this. She is also reflecting back to when she lost her first son to a motor vehicle accident. Margie is having a very difficult time taking this all in and now feels all alone and wants the one and only thing keeping her alive removed. Margie suffered a heart attack 2 years ago that almost took her life and she had to have an electronic pacemaker implanted. The pacemaker is what is keeping her alive by keeping her heart rhythm at a 100% pace. Without the pacemaker she would not be able to live. Now that all of her family is gone she is requesting that her pacemaker be removed so that she can pass and go on to be with her family because she now feels like she has nothing to live for anymore. She has talked to the Rehabilitation Center Administrator Cindy Mackin and has told her what she wants to happen and has requested her to call Dr. Vijay who was the Cardiologist Surgeon who placed the pacemaker in her to remove it. Morals are principles of right and wrong in behavior, expressing or teaching a conception of right behavior, conforming to a standard of right behavior, sanctioned by or operative on one’s conscience or ethical judgment, and capable of right and wrong action. (Merriam-Webster) According to our book the moral principles of ethics that are involved in removing Margie’s pacemaker are: †¢Beneficence- is the principle of doing good, demonstrating kindness, showing compassion, and helping others. †¢Nonmaleficence- is an ethical principle that requires caregivers to avoid causing patients harm. †¢Justice- is the obligation to be fair in the distribution of benefits and risks. †¢Autonomy- is recognizing the right of a person to make one’s own decisions. (Legal Aspects of Healthcare) The morals that are in conflict with this issue is nonmaleficence because the doctors, nurses, social worker, and ethics committee main priority is to make sure that nonmaleficence is not being implemented by any means. Other morals that are in conflict would be justice and autonomy because the committee has to take in consideration the patient’s right to make her own decision about wanting to live or not but they also have to take into consideration the benefits and risks of the patient that could come along with going through the patient’s request of removing her pacemaker. II. Information The ethics committee goals consist of: †¢Promote the rights of patients. †¢Promote shared decision making between patients and their clinicians. †¢Assist the patent and family, as appropriate, in coming to a consensus regarding the options that best meet the patient’s goal for care. †¢Promote fair policies and procedures that maximize the likelihood of achieving good, patient-centered outcomes. (Legal Aspects of Healthcare) It is clear that this dilemma consists of Margie wanting her doctor to assist with taking her life by removing her pacemaker. She has been through so much with the loss of her immediate family members that she wants to pass away as well to be with them because she feels like there is nothing else to live for. There are many theories of ethics that play apart in this dilemma. One of the theories is the Normative Ethics where all attempts are made in determining what moral standards should be put into place to ensure that human behavior and conduct are morally right. Another theory that can be can be applied is the Consequential Ethical Theory that focuses on the morally right action that will lead to the maximum balance of good or evil. The Utilitarian ethics believes that the moral worth of an action is only determined by its contribution to happiness as summed by all people. The last theory would be the Deontologic ethics that is focuses on the duties to others, which consists of telling the truth to all patients. III. Communication The ethics committee then sits down together and communicates with each other about the dilemma while going over the morals values and theories that apply to this particular dilemma to ensure that all of the rights steps and decisions are taken before they come to a conclusion on what to do for Margie. This step in communication is very critical to make sure that the committee review the dilemma properly, resolve any ethical dilemmas, resolve any conflicts, and to figure out if any additional support is needed. The committee does not necessarily come up with final decisions but they provide the needed advice to guide doctors, nurses, etc. towards making the right decisions. The ethics committee members all agree that there is indeed a dilemma with Margie wanting the aid of a doctor to take her life by removing her pacemaker, which is the only thing that is keeping her living. After meeting with all of the members of the ethics committee we are all on the same accord and have been informed with all the information about the case. The Cardiologist Dr. Rana Vijay, the Social Worker Jane Robison, the Rehabilitation Center Administrator Cindy Mackin and the Ethics Committee Chairman David Jamison have all come together and presented all information and facts that they know about this issue to all the members of the committee to ensure that no one was left out about any details of this dilemma. All members concur with my understanding and all other parties that had information about Margie’s dilemma. IV. Choice After speaking with the Cardiologist Dr. Rana Vijay, he informs the committee that removing Margie’s pacemaker would violate Beneficence, Nonmaleficence, and Justice. He stated that he would be going against helping others if followed through with Margie’s request, he would also be going against avoiding or causing harm to patients, and lastly he would be disregarding the benefits and risks of Margie by performing the requested actions. The Social Worker Jane Robison also expressed that doing this would not be good for Margie or his profession due to the ethics standards they have to withhold for all patients. She believes that with time she will have a change of heart and will appreciate her life being spared. The Rehabilitation Center Administrator Cindy Mackin agrees with everyone else in not assisting Margie with taking her life due to the sad circumstances that she has been faced with in the past few years. After all the members have reviewed the suggestions and recommendations from everyone involved everyone on the ethics committee have agreed that Margie’s request to have her pacemaker removed will be denied due to all ethical standards and the fact simply that it is just not right to let someone take their own life or assist with taking someone’s life. One of the most important things is to never cause harm to any patient, which taking a patients life goes above and beyond of causing harm to a patient. References Legal Aspects of Health Care Administration/George D. Pozgar.-11th ed.p.cm Moral. Retrieved from: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/moral

Word Length effects in visual word recognition

Word Length effects in visual word recognition The way letters in words are processed in our orthographic system is subject to considerable controversy. Theorists argue that letters in words are processed either in series or in parallel. This study attempts to resolve this debate by examining the effect of Word Length on decision speeds for words in a lexical decision task. A multiple regression analysis which included other linguistic descriptors such as Familiarity and Age of Acquisition was performed. The analysis indicated that Word Length is not a determinant of decision speed which implies that letters in words are processed via a parallel processing system. Further research needs to be conducted in this area in order to answer the research question. Implications of these findings in relation to word recognition models are discussed. Introduction Are letters within a word processed one at a time, in series, or does the skilled reader process all the letters in a word in parallel? Despite the deceptively simple nature of this question, researchers are still in disagreement as to how exactly we execute such a complex process. Early models of word recognition argued that words are read letter-by-letter serially from left to right (Gough, 1972). This model is consistent with Herons (1957) findings that when English speaking participants are briefly presented with a sequence of letters, they are more accurate at recalling left-hand letters compared to right-hand letters. This observed effect is reversed in readers of Yiddish (who read from right-to-left) which supports the notion that letters are processed in series (Mishkin Forgays, 1952; Sperling, 1963). The serial letter recognition model has been criticised for the fact that it fails to explain the Word Superiority Effect, which demonstrates how readers are better able to identify letters in the context of a word than in isolation (Paap et al., 1982). Over the past few decades, psychologists have therefore developed parallel distributed models (PDP) of reading which assume that letters in words are encoded simultaneously and draw heavily on what we know about the human neural system (Seidenberg Harm, 1991). http://www.microsoft.com/typography/ctfonts/science_of_word_recognition_files/Figure4.gif Figure ; Rumelhart McClellands Interactive-Activation Model (1981) An example of a PDP model is shown in Figure 1. According to this model, when a reader is presented with a word such as WORK, each letter either stimulates or inhibits different feature detectors (e.g. a circular shape for O, or horizontal and vertical bars for K,). These feature detectors then stimulate or inhibit different letter detectors, which finally stimulate or inhibit different word detectors. Each activated connection carries different weights, and therefore the word WORK in Figure 1 is activated more than any other word and is the one recognized by a reader. Although most recent findings are generally assumed to support the parallel processing hypothesis; a model which has recently gained attention is the Self-Organizing Acquisition and Recognition (SOLAR) model which implies an element of serial processing (Davis, 2010). Davis argues that visual word recognition relies on the formation of a spatial code to understand the orthographic input which is formed by a rapid left-to-right scan across letter representations that combines letter identity information with letter position information. A common way of studying how letters in words are processed is by measuring Word Length (WL) effects in Lexical Decision Tasks (LDT). In these tasks participants are presented with a word/non-word and their correct Decision Speeds (DS) are measured. The SOLAR model strongly predicts a WL effect in such tasks as the length of vector across the input layer should impact processing time. In contrast, parallel models such as the Interactive-Activation model predict no WL effects as it shouldnt matter how many letters there are in a word because they are all processed simultaneously. Several studies have examined WL effects however the findings are inconclusive with some observing significant WL effects; Forster Chambers ,1973; Whaley ,1978; ORegan Jacobs ,1992; Gilhooly Logie, 1982, whilst others failed to find a significant effect of WL; Frederiksen Kroll , 1976; Richardson ,1976. It is therefore clear that more research needs to be conducted in this area in order to resolve these conflicting findings. One of the main problems faced in investigating WL effects is the observed collinearity between over properties of words such as Familiarity, Age of Acquisition and Frequency which have been observed as predictors of DS in previous word recognition tasks (Gernsbacher, 1984; Gerhand Barry, 1998). Therefore when conducting an experiment which seeks to examine WL effects it is also important to account for other linguistic properties. A multiple regression analysis allows the experimenter to calculate the unique contribution of each linguistic predictor to the variation in DS and so is a popular method employed by many researchers in this area of research where collinearity amongst other variables is so high. The aim of this experiment therefore is to examine the effect of WL on DS in a LDT in which the linguistic stimuli has been generated taking into consideration; WL, familiarity, frequency, Age of Acquisition (AoA), Number of Neighbours (NoN) and Imageability, which have all been found to predict DS in previous research. If WL emerges as a significant predictor of DS then this is evidence for serial word processing and thus provides experimental support for the SOLAR model (Davis, 2010), whereas if no WL effects are found then this supports the assumptions underlying PDP models. Method Participants 12 second year undergraduate Psychology students (M= 19.75 years, m=2, f=10) from the University of Bristol with normal/corrected vision were recruited via an opportunity sample. Materials A computer based LDT was created using DMDX software. The stimuli in the task comprised of 150 words (all of which were nouns) and 150 non-words which were manipulated by the experimenter by changing a vowel in a word to another vowel or a consonant to a different consonant (Appendix 1). Linguistic stimuli were generated using the MRC psycholinguistic database (Coltheart, 1981) which selects lists of words, together with linguistic descriptors based on a number of selection criteria. Table 1 shows the linguistic descriptors and selection criterion of stimuli used in this experiment. Design This experiment used a within subjects repeated measures design. The LDT comprised 300 trials split into 6 test blocks; each block contained 25 words and 25 non-words which were randomly intermixed. Linguistic stimuli were displayed on the screen for 100ms. There was a 50ms break in between trials and participants had 2000ms to make their decision before the next trial commenced. Participants were given a break in between blocks to reduce fatigue effects. The experiment lasted approximately 30 minutes. Procedure In the computer based LDT Words or Non-words were presented individually to participants in the centre of a 1414 computer monitor in size 14 bold black Arial font with white background. Participants were instructed to press the Right Hand Shift button if they saw a Word or the Left Hand Shift button if they saw a Non-Word. Participants were informed of their confidentiality of results. Data analysis Participants correct Decision Speeds (ms) were recorded. Non-words were used as fillers and were not statistically analysed. Words with error rates of over 25% were excluded from the data set. Participants who responded incorrectly to over 50% of stimuli were excluded. Table 2 shows the 16 words that were removed from the data set as they failed to meet the criteria. The final data set is based on N=134 words and 12 participants. Results In the LDT, speeds of correct responses to words were recorded (M=669.62ms, SD=81.54, Error rate=8.28%). The experimental hypothesis aimed to examine the relationship between DS and WL; no significant correlation was found between WL and DS (r=.04), which is visually presented in Figure 1. Figure 1; Scatter graph demonstrating the non-significant correlation between Decision Speed (ms) and Word Length. A significant negative correlation was found between DS and Familiarity, which suggests that participants respond faster to words that are highly familiar (r= -.34, p Word length was found to be intercorrelated with AoA, Imageability and NoN (Table 3) which highlights a potential problem of collinearity. Correlations among measures of word attributes and decision speed, together with summary statistics. N=134 words. A simultaneous and a stepwise multiple regression analysis was conducted on the correlation matrix to assess the contribution of the independent variables in predicting DS. In the simultaneous analysis all variables were entered into the regression at the same time and the effects of all other variables were partialled out from each other (Table 4). The overall fit of the model was R2=.121, F(6,132)= 3.24, p Simultaneous multiple regression analysis on correct response speeds in the LDT. Next, a stepwise multiple regression analysis was conducted (Table 5). This analysis differs from the simultaneous analysis in the way that it enters variables into the regression one at a time on the basis of their contribution to improving the predictive power of the equation. The findings of the stepwise regression analysis was essentially the same as the simultaneous regression with Familiarity emerging as the only variable in predicting DS (F1,132= 18.693, p Stepwise multiple regression analysis on correct response times in the LDT. Discussion This experiment failed to demonstrate that Word Length (WL) is an effective factor in visual word recognition. There was no correlation between WL and decision speeds (DS) on the lexical decision task (LDT) which refutes the notion that letters in words are processed in series and therefore questions the theory underlying the SOLAR model (Davis, 2010) which postulates that we recognize words by performing a left-to-right scan across letters and so would have strongly predicted WL effects in the performed study. The results from this experiment therefore imply that letters in words are processed in parallel and thus support the assumptions embedded in parallel and connectionist models of reading (Seidenbery Harm, 1999; Rumelhart McClelland, 1981). The only linguistic predictor to emerge as an effective factor in decision speeds was familiarity, which is consistent with previous studies that have reported its contribution to the efficiency of word processing (Gilhooly Logie, 1982; Connine et al., 1990). The fact that familiarity emerged as a predictor of DS may in fact provide support for parallel processing. It can be argued that if a participant is more familiar with a word, this suggests that they may have formed some internal representation of the word within their mental lexicon and therefore recognize it faster by processing letters in parallel. In this study WL was significantly correlated with several of the other linguistic descriptors such as AoA and NoN which highlights the problem of collinearity and so it is difficult to draw any clear conclusions from our data. Another factor which may have affected our results is the fact that WL was restricted to 9 letters. In a study conducted by Gilhooly Logie (1982) they used words of various lengths and found WL to be the strongest predictor of DS. This raises an interesting research question as to whether there is a maximum capacity of letters that we can process in parallel and then perhaps after a certain length, the demands on our processing system are too large and so we have to rely on other processes. It is therefore plausible that visual word recognition may involve a combination of both serial and parallel processing depending on WL, which challenges the assumptions of current models of word recognition. It would be interesting to expand upon this study by making several alterations; firstly by abolishing the word letter restriction to see if we observe WL effects, and also by increasing the number of linguistic stimuli used and the number and age range of participants. Furthermore it would be of interest to examine saccade movements whilst participants are doing the LDT which may provide further insights into whether words are processed in parallel or series. One of the aims of this paper was to try and clear up some of the confusion in the literature surrounding serial and parallel processing models; unfortunately we were somewhat unsuccessful in doing so. However the findings from this study do provide several interesting thought questions and future research expansions and suggest that maybe word recognition relies on elements of serial and parallel processing. References; Coltheart, M (1981). The MRC Psycholinguistic Database, Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 33A, 497-505. Connine, C.M., Mullennix, J., Shernoff, E., Yelen, J. (1990). Word familiarity and frequency in visual and auditory word recognition. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 16 (6), 1084-1096. Davis, C. J. (2005). N-Watch: A program for deriving neighbourhood size and other psycholinguistic statistics. Behavior Research Methods,. 37, 65-70. Forster, K. I., Chambers, S. M. (1973). Lexical access and naming time. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 12,627-635. Fredriksen, J. R., Kroll, J. F. (1976). Spelling and sound: Approaches to the internal lexicon. Journal of ExperimentalPsychology: Human Perception and Performance, 2, 361-379. Gerhand, S., Barry, C. (1998). Word frequency effects in oral reading are not merely age-of-acquisition effects in disguise. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 24, 267-283. Gilhooly, K.J. and Logie, R.H. (1980). Age of acquisition, imagery, concreteness, familiarity and ambiguity measures for 1944 words. Behaviour Research Methods and Instrumentation, 12, 395-427. Gilhooly, K. J., Logie, R.H. (1981). Word Age-Of-Acquisition And Lexical Decision Making. Acta Psychologica. 50; 21-34. Gough, P.B. (1972). One second of reading. In Kavanagh Mattinglys Language by ear and by eye. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Heron, W. (1957). Perception as a function of retinal locus and attention. American Journal of Psychology, 70, 38-48. KuÄ era, H., Francis, W. (1967). Computational analysis of presentday American English. Providence, RI: Brown University Press. McClelland, J. L. Rumelhart, D. E. (1981). An interactive activation model of context effects in letter perception: Part 1. An account of Basic Findings. Psychological Review, 88, 375-407 Mishkin, N., Forgays, D. G. (1952). Word recognition as a function of retinal locus. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 43,43-48. ORegan, J. K., Jacobs, A. M. (1992). Optimal viewing position effect in word recognition: A challenge to current theory.Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 18, 185-197. Paap, K. R., Newsome, S. L., McDonald, J. E., Schvaneveldt, R. W. (1982). An activation-verification model for letter and word recognition: The word-superiority effect. Psychological Review, 89 (5), 573-594. Richardson, J. T. (1976). The effects of stimulus attributes upon latency of word recognition. British Journal of Psychology, 67,315-325. Seidenberg, M.S., Harm, M.W (1999). Phonology, Reading acqusition, and dyslexia: insights from connectionist models. Psychological review, 106 (3), 491-528. Sperling, G. (1963). A model for visual memory tasks. Human Factors, 5, 19-31. Woodworth, R.S. (1938). Experimental psychology. New York; Holt. Toglia, M.P. and Battig, W.R. (1978). Handbook of Semantic Word Norms. New York: Erlbaum. Whaley, C. P. (1978). Word-nonword classification time. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 17, 143-154.