Clostridium Difficle Infection In Health-Care Workers Essay

According to Bouza (2005), Clostridium Difficile is a bacillus that is gram positive and forms spores. Its main mode of distribution is the environment whereby it also colonizes 3-5% of all healthy adults without causing any symptoms that can be noticed. At infancy, clostridium difficile colonizes between 2% and 70%, but the rates decrease with advancement in age and falling to about 6% when the infant grows to two years. Above the age of two, the rate of clostridium difficile is much similar to that of an adult, around 3% (APIC, 2008). The strains responsible for the production of clostridium difficile are characterized by their ability in the production of both toxins A and B. The most common and rampant symptom of CDI is diarrhea that is not always bloody, but can range from the soft and unformed stools to the watery and mucoid stools. Other outstanding symptoms include abdominal pains and fever and cramping in others. Clostridium difficile spores are highly resistant to destruction by most of the environmental agents and conditions. Their resistance can go as far as resisting some of the chemicals used in disinfection (Zanotti-Cavazzoni, 165). Therefore, this gives clostridium difficile the ability to survive for months or longer in the environment and even in healthcare facilities and the surrounding community. Mainly, the spread of clostridium difficile is through the transfer of spores from a contaminated environment to the patient, or perhaps through the hands of health care givers who do not follow proper hygiene and gloving practices. The only proper control measure that can be adopted is the thorough disinfection and cleaning of the patient’s environment and also through the physical removal of the spores. In recent decades, there has been a recorded increase in the number of reported rates of clostridium difficile-associated disease (CDAD). There has also been a recording in the increase in the number of outbreaks accompanied by severe disease and also an increase in mortality. The increase in CDAD is mainly characterized by the following; changes in the use of antibiotics, a change in infection control practices or the emergence of new strains of clostridium difficile that have increased virulence or antimicrobial. It is also important to comprehend the life cycle of clostridium difficile in order to understand how to control it and if possible, prevent it. Its life cycle begins in the spore form whereby they are because they are resistant to heat, antibiotics or even acid. In a hospital setting, clostridium difficile can be found in bedding, medical equipment, and furniture and on the caregivers. Upon ingestion, the spores pass through to the intestines whereby they germinate and later colonize the colon. Studies have indicated that this bacterium colonized about 21% of patients who are in the process of receiving antibiotics and at the same time admitted to a general hospital. Through the release of both toxins A and B, clostridium difficile later induces diarrhea and colitis. However, the major risk factors associated with clostridium difficile are advancement in age, hospitalization, and antimicrobials. There are two major reservoirs of clostridium difficile in the healthcare setting, which are humans (asymptomatic and symptomatic) and inanimate objects (medical equipment and furniture). The level of environmental contamination depends primarily on the severity of the disease of the patient. However the asymptomatic colonized patients should be regarded as the potential primary source of the contamination. Clostridium difficile infection is more rampant among the elderly in the society. The main reasons for this are not fully, but it can be attributed to the fact that the elderly patients have a much less effective barrier to infection. The importance of having age as a risk factor is characterized by the age distribution in lab reports as was received by CDSC during the research period of 1990-1992. Results showed that there was a bias for adults over the age of 65 and they were more susceptible to having severe cases of clostridium difficile infections. There have also been suggestions that clostridium difficile is endemic in facilities that are considered long-stay for the elderly. However, other studies indicate that the difference in the endemic nature of clostridium difficile may be as a result of case mix whereby patients are from other facilities whereby the infection rate was high. Also, clostridium difficile is endemic in many of the long-stay facilities because the elderly t end to stay longer in the acute wards than the other younger generations. Therefore, their increased risk of infection is attributed to the increased exposure to antibiotics and nosocomial pathogens. There are several patient care activities that provide a rife opportunity for the fecal-oral transmission of clostridium difficile (CDC). Such activities include; sharing of electronic thermometers that have been used for measuring rectal temperatures, oral care or suctioning whereby the hands or equipment have been contaminated, administration of contaminated food, medication or with contaminated hands and emergency procedures like intubation. Other factors like poor hand hygiene, improper environmental and equipment cleaning and disinfection have also been reported as a cause for infection and spreading of clostridium difficile. It has been rubber stamped that the environment is the major medium of spreading for clostridium difficile whereby it has been spread so widely that that it is impossible to point out a single location that has not been contaminated. However, the environment of the infected patients is rifest with clostridium difficile, for instance, the toilets, floors, si nks and linen. Despite disinfection, clostridium difficile spores are found to exist longer than five months. Prevention and control of clostridium difficile is the responsibility of every individual who is aware of its existence. Therefore, prevention measures must be endorsed by everyone, and especially in care giving facilities whereby individuals are more likely to spread the infection. Standard precautions refer to those practices at work that are applied to every person regardless of their confirmed or perceived infectious status. Standard precautions are the front line in the war against clostridium difficile. They help control the rate of infection from person to person, even in the most prolific risk scenarios. They include; hand hygiene before and after contact with the patient, the safe use as well as disposal of sharps, the use of protective equipment and the processing of reusable medical equipment. The proper handling of linen, safety in the management of waste as well as aseptic non-touch technique should also be in the standard precautions to be implemented in hospital facili ties. However, when the first line of defense does not seem to work efficiently, there should be a backup plan in place. Thus, when standard precautions do not seem to do the job, transmission based precautions should be implemented. These are additional work practices for individually identifiable situations that are put in place to interrupt the transmission of clostridium difficile. These precautions are tailored to specific infections and their mode of transmission. They include; continued implementation of standard precautions, having patient dedicated equipment, proper handling of equipment, enhanced cleaning and disinfection of the patient’s environment and the restriction of patients within the facilities. Since healthcare settings differ greatly in terms of their day-to-day functioning, it is hard to come up with a management proposal that would fit all facilities. Therefore, all healthcare facilities should conduct infection prevention risk assessment on a regular basis alongside adoption of detailed protocols and processes for infection control. In acute care setting, personal protective equipment should be provided for nurses and visitors outside the room of a patient who has confirmed clostridium difficile infection. Healthcare givers should use gloves and gowns in order to prevent further spread of infection. Conducting effective hand hygiene is necessary for limiting the spread of clostridium difficile. They should be performed frequently and with the following considerations; should be performed using the Four Moments of Hand Hygiene, should be performed at the point-of-care using a dedicated staff sink or the use of hand wipes that have been impregnated with antimicrobials or alcohol and soap. In acute care setting, especially where the elderly are residing proper care has to be considered primarily because they are more susceptible to infection (Rupnik, 2007). One such measure of preventing clostridium difficile infection is placing the suspected or confirmed patients with CDI in a confined room that has dedicated toilets, sinks and personal equipment. Moreover, there is little need for special treatment for linen in an acute setting for both confirmed and suspected patients. Linen for symptomatic and asymptomatic patients should be in the same way. The soiled linen should be carefully. For example, it should be placed in a no-touch receptacle in order to avoid contamination of both the environment and the persons around. In cases of outbreaks, routine infection control measures are of grave importance in order to prevent the spread of the clostridium difficile infection to patients who have not yet been affected. The antibiotic policies have to be monitored as well as their compliance in order to successfully control the spread of infection. Hand washing procedures should be followed to the latter by any person who is in contact with infected patients such as doctors, nurses, paramedical staff and students. Nurses present challenges in combating clostridium difficile outbreaks especially because of the necessity to create a homely environment for the patients. This means that they have to constantly check in with the patients and therefore they become constantly at risk of infection themselves in proper precaution is not taken. For patients in the elderly acute care wards, the surroundings are also tailored to ensure a comfortable stay in the hospital. Therefore, their soft furnishings and carpeted floors provide a challenge in cases of outbreaks. For instances like this, preventive methods of combating the spread of clostridium difficile have to be implemented. One such measure that should be used during cleaning is steam. Although the heat does not kill the pathogen, it helps in the containment of its spread. Patients are also susceptible to contracting infection from the care devices used in the hospital. Such devices include electronic thermometers or glucose measuring devices. These devices are in constant use and may be used by a variety of patients. These devices are with pathogens derived from body fluids. Thus it is important to have measures in place to sterilize these devices especially more thoroughly in times of outbreaks. Another piece of communal apparatus used in wards is the linen, clothing, uniforms, lab coats and isolation gowns. Because clostridium difficile is commonly in the environment and can last for more than five months, these pieces of clothing are always in contact and possible contaminations are likely (Dubberke, 17). However indirect contact of such clothing comes from bedpans, toilets and sinks of patients who are either suspected or confirmed to be infected. The presence of soiled linen is also an area of importance that should be looked into carefully. Because bed linen is in hospitals and wards, they should be cleaned and sanitized before they can be issued to a different patient. In order to help combat the spread of clostridium difficile, the CDC has come up with the Spaulding classification system, which identifies three risk levels that are associated with surgical and medical instruments (Michel, 1095). These levels are; critical, semi-critical and noncritical. Critical items include needles, indwelling urinary catheters and intravenous catheters. These are the items that normally enter the sterile tissue, the vascular tissue or through which blood flows. Based on one of the accepted sterilization procedures, the equipment has to be sterile before penetrating any tissue. Semi-critical items include thermometers, electric razors and podiatry equipment and they are as those that touch mucous or skin which is not intact. They require meticulous cleaning and thereafter followed by high-level disinfection. Disinfection is done using a chemo sterilizer agent that is approved by the FDA. In conclusion, clostridium difficile has been on the rise in recent decades and it is only through proper prevention and control measures that it can be. Since it can live in an environment in spore form for up to five months, it poses a challenge in terms of containment. On the other hand, the elderly are more susceptible to clostridium difficile primarily because of their low immunity and their prolonged stay in hospitals. However, with proper care, chances of outbreaks can be kept at a minimum and more lives can be through prevention instead of cures. References DelmÃÆ' ©e, Michel. â€Å"Clostridium Difficle Infection In Health-Care Workers.†Ã‚  The Lancet  334.8671 (1989): 1095. Print. Dubberke, Erik. â€Å"Strategies for prevention of Clostridium difficile infection.†Ã‚  Journal of Hospital Medicine  7.S3 (2012): S14-S17. Print. â€Å"Patient Cloth Chairs and Clostridium difficile Outbreak.†Ã‚  American Journal of Infection Control  37.5 (2009): E102-E103. Print. Rupnik, Maja.  Abstract book: Clostridium difficile : organism, disease, control & prevention. s.l.: [Organizing committee ICDS], 2007. Print. Zanotti-Cavazzoni, S.l.. â€Å"Analysis of an outbreak of Clostridium difficile infection controlled with enhanced infection control measures.†Yearbook of Critical Care Medicine  2010 (2010): 164-166. Print. â€Å"clostridium difficle.†Ã‚  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 Mar. 2013. Web.  30 Apr. 2014. http://www.cdc.gov/HAI/organisms/cdiff/Cdiff_infect.html Source document

Cola Wars Continue: Coke and Pepsi in 2010 Essay

Read and Apply: Michael E. Porter (2008), â€Å"The Five Competitive Forces that Shape Strategy†, Harvard Business Review, (January 2008), pp. 2-17 Assignment Questions (AQ) (a) Why has the soft drink industry been so profitable for concentrate producers? Compare the economics of the concentrate business to the bottling business: why is the profitability so different? [50% points] The soft drink industry has been extremely profitable for Concentrate producers. When we study the 5 forces analysis, we come to a conclusion that almost all the forces have contributed significantly in this massive profit generating mechanism. Threat of new entrants is low and there are multiple high barriers to entry. Despite the low cost of establishing a concentrate production plant, the producers have to develop exclusive relations with bottling plants and support them in marketing research, advertising and setting up distribution channels which is difficult for new entrants and require huge capital infusion. Bargaining power of Buyers used to be negligible as concentrate producers used to make bottlers abide by fixed price contracts which made them operate on razor thin margins. After adoption of incidence pricing, the bottling plants renegotiated for different distribution channels and different product ranges as the bargaining power shifted and the prices were increased based on consumer price index and inflation. But this bargaining power was kept in check since concentrate producers did not allow a bottling plant to gain significant market influence and they regularly bought out bottling plants to maintain their control.(Exhibit 3b) Bargaining power of suppliers was minuscule since all products are basic commodities like sweetener, caffeine and color with multiple suppliers who do not hold much bargaining power with a large corporation. Threat of substitute product is suppose to be high since there are a variety of substitutes available which meet the end purpose of quenching the thirst and consumer being open to healthy or low calorie substitutes like tea, juice or energy drink. But the conventional concentrate producer has diversified its product portfolio to meet all demands and keep its consumer base loyal. Also strengthening distribution networks and creating advertisement campaign has led to consumer retention.(Exhibit 8) Competition is high since major brands competing are Coca cola and pepsi who compete at every level, from product range and bottling plants to retailer selection and advertisement. Both concentrate producers are have deep pockets to execute swift decisions and they have adopted similar strategies to gain market share and consolidate. They have a staggering market presence controlling nearly 3/4th of the market and they have surgically acquired or contained all other competitors.(Exhibit 2) By the 5 force analysis, it is visible that the immense market experience and availability of funds had led concentrate producers to use almost all the forces in their advantage to maintain high profitability. In contrast to the concentrate producer, the bottling plants operate on one-third of the profit margin percent, this can be explained by the contrasts in the economics using the 5 force analysis for bottling plants. Threat of new entrants was traditionally low since high capital requirement acts as as high barrier of entry but the threat from the concentrate producer entity emerging as a bottler is high ever since they have started vertical integrations by providing concentration at lower rates for better margins to self-owned entities. Bargaining power of buyers is high since bottling plants have no unique value proposition and they compete with identical competitors for a vastly segmented market. They conduct extensive negotiations with different channels on stock, pricing and space. They develop complex price strategies for maintaining exclusive contracts with nation wide restaurant chains. They have to bid for higher presence among mass merchandisers and retail stores. They also have to provide low-margin fountains and vending machines services to sustain market presence. Threat of substitute is low among bottling plants since they have invested a huge capital on set-up, operational efficiency and R&D. They have a established ground of operations which cannot be easily substituted and they enjoy massive support from concentrate producers in supplier contracts, marketing research and advertisements Bargaining power of suppliers is average where commodities like packaging material and sugar can be obtained easily while concentrate producers control prices due to high dependency on them. But due to the reciprocity nature of dependency, concentrate producers extend advertising support, marketing surveys and strategic integration to loyal bottling plants to focus on volume and carry a wider range of products. The variation of business economics where bottling plants face price constraints, negotiations with every supplier at an individual level, cut-throat competition, high operating costs and an increasing threat of being acquired by the concentrate producer hits the profitability of the bottlers and gives a huge edge to the concentrate producers. (b) How would you characterize the nature of the competition between Coke and Pepsi and how has it impacted the profits of the US carbonated soft drinks (CSD) industry as a whole? [20% points] Coca-cola had maintained high profitability acting as a monopoly since its inception since it did not face any competition. When Pepsi entered the market as a prominent player, it struggled to gather market traction but after the â€Å"Blind taste test† it became a real competitor. The nature of competition has been fierce ranging from better positioning at a single store, to going beyond international borders. Although both the companies have adopted similar strategies, the timing and focus has led to significant success and more significant failures. Some major initiatives by Coca-Cola were developing infrastructure in European countries and Asia which paid heavy returns. It was also a pioneer in introducing new flavors and brands(Exhibit 2) which sharply increased its market share and vertical integration by acquiring bottling plants for better margins(Exhibit 3a) which resulted in stellar financial performances. Pepsi on the other hand gained significant domestic US market when Coca-cola focussed internationally, it was first to get exclusive contracts with restaurant chains and introduce bigger family-size bottles. It also led diversification by transforming into a beverage and food giant by acquiring Frito-Lay, Gatorade and Lipton. Pepsi Bottling Group optimized its operations and maintains a higher % profit/sales over CCE till date(Exhibit 3b). Both companies have also made big mistakes like Coca-cola introducing â€Å"New Coke† and Pepsi giving first-movers advantage to Coke in international markets. Also engaging in a bitter price wars saw their balance sheets in red(Exhibit 5). But they have also worked excellently in rectifying their mistakes like Coke diversifying by acquiring Minute-Maid and Vitamin water drinks. Since over half of Pepsi’s sales were domestic and Coke already had a lead in the International market, Pepsi focussed on markets still up-for-grabs like China, India, Africa and Middle-east. It has since gained significant market share in emerging economies after learning its lesson. Recently, both the companies have undergone significant media bashing with environmental concerns of the PET bottle, health and obesity uproars and sugary content in CSDs, so they have realized the shift in market focus to non-CSDs and diet soft drinks(Exhibit 7). New strategies include more focus on these drinks and both companies are looking to leverage their existing market domination to gain a better market shares and higher profits since margins on these drinks are much higher than CSDs. (c) Compare and contrast the structure and profitability of the emerging non-CSD industry with the key aspects of the traditional CSD industry structure that you covered in part (a). Can Coke and Pepsi repeat their success they had with CSDs in the non-CSDs industry, or will a new competitive landscape & dynamic emerge? [30% points] In late 1990s the soft-drink industry showed signs of permanent shift as the demand for carbonated soft drinks began to fizzle out(Exhibit 7) due to the rising health concern with obesity, high sugar content and perceived risks of high-fructose corn syrup. Diet sodas had already caught a lot of attention and they were quickly replacing conventional sodas, Coke and Pepsi broadened their product range by offering more Diet and herbal drinks. Pepsi was more aggressive in this transformation by acquiring Gatorade and Lipton which outsold Coke products in these categories, Coke followed suit by acquiring EnergyBrands, its largest acquisition ever, but Pepsi maintained a commanding lead in non-carb segment. Both companies also launched bottled water which is the largest sector in non-CSD market by volume(Exhibit 9) The structure and profitability in an emerging non-CSD industry has dynamics very different from the conventional CSD industry which has been played out and matured. The stark contrasts that the structure of this industry lies in the fact that this market is very young and entry of new products changes its dynamics rapidly. The threat of new entrants in this market is very high as concentrate production does not require a lot of investment and innovative products attract a lot of clientele which have led to a stronger position among competitors like Nestle, Unilever and DPS. The bottling plants have strengthened their position in this sector as they have not led Coke and Pepsi influence this market completely. They have been reluctant in introducing non-CSD products as they have no brand loyalty and their existing infrastructure does not support new products. Setting up new infrastructure and pressure from concentrate producers to increase non-CSD turnovers require higher operation costs and lesser profit margins. Concentrate producers are building better relationships with independent bottlers to push non-CSD and alternate drinks since they have much higher margins than CSD(Exhibit 10), concentrate producers are willing to assist bottling plants and they started selling finished goods to bottlers. They have also leveraged the company owned bottling plants by purchasing at lower prices and even marketing directly to retail chains to gain higher profit margin and gain market penetration It is most likely that Coke and Pepsi will repeat their success with this new industry like they did in CSDs for the first and foremost reason that these companies are financially very strong and they have the ability to acquire or contain an emerging competitor. Also they have invested and will continue to invest in understanding the market, so they have established a market trend analysis and they are prepared to tackle upcoming threats by taking the appropriate action. That is the reason that Coke and Pepsi are directly competing with every new product launched in this category and gaining popularity like tea, water or energy drinks. Early diversification in products has strengthened their brand equity which they can leverage in gaining further control in the non-CSD market. Another reason that these companies are likely to succeed is because of vertically integrated network that they have established from manufacturing concentrate to marketing to retailers, they have exclusive contracts with bottling plants and they have spent decades perfecting the distribution network. They can introduce new products in this chain with much more ease and effect rather than new players developing an entire new network. Lastly, since the market in US is moving faster towards non-CSDs than the rest of the world, Coke and Pepsi have gained experience in tackling this change and then they can apply it to the international markets and be the driving force in influencing emerging economies due to their vast strategic global presence.

The Impact of Advertising in Our Daily Lives Student

Advertising is a form of communication whose purpose is to fix the attention of a target to induce the desired behavior: purchase product, election of a politician, encouraging environment.. Advertising, to make public action or statement of what is public has come to mean all modern means used to publicize a product, an industrial or commercial to1830. Advertising does influence our consumption? Indeed, advertising influences our choices as consumers, initially targeting its message, then the presence of subliminal image and ending with propaganda. However, advertising is not that this aim, it can also be humanistic objects. Advertising is ubiquitous. Advertising does not leave us indifferent: She seduces,entertains or otherwise irritated, exasperated. The goal is to make known and to bring a product to purchase behavior. Advertising is a product of mass consumption. Theadvertisement conveys the norm of internality: â€Å"You can as long as we confine the means. † Advertising is the vector, creates or reinforces stereotypes. She teaches the components of a lifestyle (hygiene, meals †¦ ) desirable. It relays the consumer aspects of the practice groups that are in dominant positions and luxury products are presentedas accessible to all. They played on and reinforces stereotypes. Advertising is fundamentally conservative. Advertising adapts to customer segments. . Advertising inventing anything. An advertising is so easy for her to come to encourage there are several steps. The development of a commercial complex, the general approachbegins by defining strategy with targets thereof, objectives and constraints, we must then develop the message you want to go and find media to disseminate the advertising. Everything is considered and calculated. Developing a message inside of an advertisement is done by â€Å"copy strategy â€Å". It has promise, a concrete proposal to the consumer, the evidence supporting the promise corresponding to a distinguishing feature of the product, the consumer benefit, as provided by the use of this product, and tone, the elements of messages to create an atmosphere. Then there is the advertisement which consists of visual, written and sound effects. All items are calculated based on the target (the slogan, color, text, grip). Advertising also encourages us through subliminal image. The subliminal image is an image that is undetectable to the naked eye but the brain processes anyway. It should be noted that most existing laws prohibiting such images in advertising. A subliminal message is a stimulus that is not consciously perceived by the person who receives it ,it is beyond the level of consciousness, but it excites the senses well. An example of a subliminal message is in the re-election of Francois Mitterrand to the presidency. The daily of Paris â€Å"accusing him of having received subliminal messages contained in the Generic of journal TV france2. We can clearly see when it stops the picture is a picture of Mitterrand in the credits. However, the trial for â€Å"electoral manipulation† has been lost because the image lasted more than one twenty-fifth of a second, thereby excluding the qualifying subliminal. But there are many other examples. One can see that M6(French TV ) Is taken in offense by the HAC (Higher Audiovisual Council) for airing during the credits to sponsor the show â€Å"Camera Cafe† a subliminal image representing the logo Freedent White, a chewing gum brand Wrigley's . Propaganda is also a way to encourage consumption in our advertising. It is primarily a tool of manipulation. All those who hold power use it to convince, manipulate, and getmembership bid. Religions, sects, governments use them to achieve their ends. For their part, traders, sellers, use advertising which is a form of propaganda. Traders, vendors, seeking to convince people that they hold the secret to make them happy, the secret is obviously their products supposedly miraculous. And the dream continues. Propaganda or advertising, used in all areas: consumer products, sporting, cultural, fashion, electronic gadgets, etc.. All are using advertising to convince people to buy their products. The power of propaganda or advertising is not from the veracity of the facts or the quality of the product and it comes from the persuasiveness of the seller and his ability to convince. The means used must touch the emotions of the customer. It is the intent of the religions, governments, traders, sellers. Everything is used to transfer theresistance and get people to buy, to become passionate followers, fanatics. Wealways call to emotions rather than reason, as it is with emotion that we submit to it as easily. Despite the manipulative side of advertising, communication can be more humanistic goals. Road safety has constantly need to communicate, need to be present in the eyes of drivers. It therefore makes advertising campaigns to sensitize the impact of alcohol, drugs, phone or driving too fast. In this case, the short films that can be seen on television as advertising are not intended to influence or manipulate but to educate, raise awareness to the driver that he is endangering himself and others and should therefore be careful. The images are harsh, violent, traumatic. By dint of constantly saying that we should not drink and drive, using advertising campaigns, present and future generations will be increasingly sophisticated and advertising will be served with human goals. Advertising against alcohol and drugs at the wheel are more common on our television screens to educate young drivers and other road hazards. The side of the advertising that appears next is a more objective, we do not sell anything, it merely gives advice that is useful. Do not take the road hazards and the lightly advertising makes us feel good. Found in this type of advertising to target a more human side. Manipulation is not the goal of this campaign. The AIDS campaign is high profile, many commercials are created, like those for road safety awareness, prevent risks. These are general interest campaigns to raise awareness of a social or economic problem. They are nonprofit. There are different kinds of campaigns of this kind, such as prevention against smoking, the presidential campaigns, the introduction of TNT on all TV. These ads are aimed to prevent, anticipate, fight, act on economic or social problems. In conclusion, advertising is a form of communication that greatly influences our consumption. One can almost qualify as a science because everything is calculated for one is like to eat what we saw, or we will create the need for what we heard. Advertising manipulates us in our buying behavior. We identify with the characters in advertisings; we create needs, and must be filled. Advertising hide flaws because it transmits he new movements of fashion or appearance to the company embarks and followsthis movement with no questions asked to fit the new mold. However, advertising has a positive side when it comes to raise awareness of the dangers of drinking and driving, or protect themselves against AIDS. It therefore has a more human purpose when not used for profit to sell us the latest product of such a mark. Chapter one: The origin of advertising 1-history of advertising: Egyptians used papyrus to make sales messages and wall posters. Commercial messages and political campaign displays have been found in the ruins of Pompeii and ancient Arabia. Lost and found advertising on papyrus was common in Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome. Wall or rock painting for commercial advertising is another manifestation of an ancient advertising form, which is present to this day in many parts of Asia, Africa, and South America. The tradition of wall painting can be traced back to Indian rock art paintings that date back to 4000 BC. ]History tells us that Out-of-home advertising and billboards are the oldest forms of advertising. As the towns and cities of the Middle Ages began to grow, and the general populace was unable to read, signs that today would say cobbler, miller, tailor or blacksmith would use an image associated with their trade such as a boot, a suit, a hat, a clock, a diamond, a horse shoe, a candle or even a bag of flour. Fruits and vegetables were sold in the city square from the backs of carts and wagons and their proprietors used street callers (town criers) to announce their whereabouts for the convenience of the customers. As education became an apparent need and reading, as well as printing, developed advertising expanded to include handbills. In the 17th century advertisements started to appear in weekly newspapers in England. These early print advertisements were used mainly to promote books and newspapers, which became increasingly affordable with advances in the printing press; and medicines, which were increasingly sought after as disease ravaged Europe. However, false advertising and so-called â€Å"quack† advertisements became a problem, which ushered in the regulation of advertising content. As the economy expanded during the 19th century, advertising grew alongside. In the United States, the success of this advertising format eventually led to the growth of mail-order advertising. In June 1836, French newspaper La Presse was the first to include paid advertising in its pages, allowing it to lower its price, extend its readership and increase its profitability and the formula was soon copied by all titles. Around 1840, Volney B. Palmer established the roots of the modern day advertising agency in Philadelphia. In 1842 Palmer bought large amounts of space in various newspapers at a discounted rate then resold the space at higher rates to advertisers. The actual ad- the copy, layout, and artwork- was stilled prepared by the company wishing to advertise; in effect, Palmer was a space broker. The situation changed in the late 19th century when the advertising agency of N. W. Ayer & Son was founded. Ayer and Son offered to plan, create, and execute complete advertising campaigns for its customers. By 1900 the advertising agency had become the focal point of creative planning, and advertising was firmly established as a profession. Around the same time, in France, Charles-Louis Havas extended the services of his news agency, Havas to include advertisement brokerage, making it the first French group to organize. At first, agencies were brokers for advertisement space in newspapers. N. W. Ayer & Son was the first full-service agency to assume responsibility for advertising content. N. W. Ayer opened in 1869, and was located in Philadelphia. At the turn of the century, there were few career choices for women in business; however, advertising was one of the few. Since women were responsible for most of the purchasing done in their household, advertisers and agencies recognized the value of women's insight during the creative process. In fact, the first American advertising to use a sexual sell was created by a woman – for a soap product. Although tame by today's standards, the advertisement featured a couple with the message â€Å"The skin you love to touch†. . In the early 1920s, the first radio stations were established by radio equipment manufacturers and retailers who offered programs in order to sell more radios to consumers. As time passed, many non-profit organizations followed suit in setting up their own radio stations, and included: schools, clubs and civic groups. When the practice of sponsoring programs was popularised, each individual radio program was usually sponsored by a single business in exchange for a brief mention of the business' name at the beginning and end of the sponsored shows. However, radio station owners soon realised they could earn more money by selling sponsorship rights in small time allocations to multiple businesses throughout their radio station's broadcasts, rather than selling the sponsorship rights to single businesses per show. This practice was carried over to television in the late 1940s and early 1950s. A fierce battle was fought between those seeking to commercialise the radio and people who argued that the radio spectrum should be considered a part of the commons – to be used only non-commercially and for the public good. The United Kingdom pursued a public funding model for the BBC, originally a private company, the British Broadcasting Company, but incorporated as a public body by Royal Charter in 1927. In Canada, advocates like Graham Spry were likewise able to persuade the federal government to adopt a public funding model, creating theCanadian Broadcasting Corporation. However, in the United States, the capitalist model prevailed with the passage of theCommunications Act of 1934 which created the Federal Communications Commission. [5] However, the U. S. Congress did require commercial broadcasters to operate in the â€Å"public interest, convenience, and necessity†. 6] Public broadcasting now exists in the United States due to the 1967 Public Broadcasting Act which led to the Public Broadcasting Service and National Public Radio. In the early 1950s, the Dumont Television Network began the modern practice of selling advertisement time to multiple sponsors. Previously, DuMont had trouble finding sponsors for many of their programs and compensated by selling smaller blocks of advertising time to several businesses. This eventually became the standard for the commercial televi sion industry in the United States. However, it was still a common practice to have single sponsor shows, such as The United States Steel Hour. In some instances the sponsors exercised great control over the content of the show—up to and including having one's advertising agency actually writing the show. The single sponsor model is much less prevalent now, a notable exception being the Hallmark Hall of Fame. The 1960s saw advertising transform into a modern approach in which creativity was allowed to shine, producing unexpected messages that made advertisements more tempting to consumers' eyes. The Volkswagen ad campaign—featuring such headlines as â€Å"Think Small† and â€Å"Lemon† (which were used to describe the appearance of the car)—ushered in the era of modern advertising by promoting a â€Å"position† or â€Å"unique selling proposition† designed to associate each brand with a specific idea in the reader or viewer's mind. This period of American advertising is called the Creative Revolution and its archetype was William Bernbach who helped create the revolutionary Volkswagen ads among others. Some of the most creative and long-standing American advertising dates to this period. The late 1980s and early 1990s saw the introduction of cable television and particularly MTV. Pioneering the concept of the music video, MTV ushered in a new type of advertising: the consumer tunes in for the advertising message, rather than it being a by-product or afterthought. As cable and satellite television became increasingly prevalent, specialty channels emerged, including channels entirely devoted to advertising, such as QVC, Home Shopping Network, andShopTV Canada. Marketing through the Internet opened new frontiers for advertisers and contributed to the â€Å"dot-com† boom of the 1990s. Entire corporations operated solely on advertising revenue, offering everything from coupons to free Internet access. At the turn of the 21st century, a number of websites including the search engine Google, started a change in online advertising by emphasizing contextually relevant, unobtrusive ads intended to help, rather than inundate, users. This has led to a plethora of similar efforts and an increasing trend of interactive advertising.

Home remedy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Home remedy - Essay Example In this essay some ingredients commonly available will be described with reference to their medicinal value. Honey is a natural sweet material that is produced by honey bees from the secretions of various parts of living plants. It is defined as "the nectar and saccharine exudation of plants, gathered, modified and stored as honey in the honeycomb by honeybees, Apis melifera" (Olaitan, Adeleke, Oha, 2007). Many published studies have proved that honey application to wounds clears the infection of the wounds rapidly without any prolongation in wound healing. Infact, there are some reports that honey promotes active wound healing. Research in the antimicrobial action of honey has shown that the substance has many antimicrobial properties against various bacteria like pseudomonas aeruginosa which is resistant to antibiotics (Olaitan et al, 2007). Researchers are often perplexed by the beneficial effects of honey because it is the medium for many organisms like bacteria and yeast. The material is made up of mainly water and sugar. Other than these compounds, honey also has minerals, enzymes wh ich have their origin from the saliva of the bees, and multivitamins. Honey has a characteristic taste and composition. It is highly viscous, acidic, hygroscopic and hyperosmolar (Olaitan et al, 2007). Thus the microorganisms which are present in honey are those which survive the physical and chemical properties of honey. They are mainly bacteria like Bacillus and Micrococcus and yeast like saccharomyces which come from bees, nectar and comb material (Olaitan et al, 2007). Research has shown that most of these microorganisms are in the dormant stage in the material and cannot grow or reproduce in that medium (Olaitan et al, 2007). Majority of these bacteria lose viability within 1-4 weeks (Olaitan et al, 2007). Those who continue to survive are spore forming organisms like clostridium species and bacillus cereus which can

Theodore Roosevelt Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Theodore Roosevelt - Essay Example He also initiated food acts in the country for the betterment of the citizen residing in the country (Klose et al 2001). His presidential term can be labeled as a golden era in the history of the country. Theodore Roosevelt was sworn as the president of the United States in the year 1901 following the death of his predecessor. The first major step after taking over the presidency was seen in the year 1902. There was a strike by coal mine workers in the state of Pennsylvania and they demanded better working conditions and higher wages. The President intervened and formed a committee to look into the matters. He assisted the workers and forced the mine owners to increase their wages and decrease the working hours. Further, he also worked towards establishing laws for the safety of the workers. Roosevelt termed it to be his policy that all Americans would be treated the same irrespective of their classes and he truly stood by his statement (In Hodge et al 2007; Klose et al 2001). The next step taken by Theodore Roosevelt was to work towards the elimination of monopolies of the large trusts operating in the country. He wanted to put an end to the misuse of power that was practiced by these corporations. The ending of J.P. Morgan’s Northern Securities was an implementation of this policy. Many other trusts were dissolved in a similar way. Roosevelt made it clear that his aim was to put an end to the exploitations done by these trusts but he did not wish to discourage the initiation of new businesses. He also intervened in the railway sector so that the state could exercise greater power over the infrastructure. With the assistance of the Hepburn Act in 2006, he granted greater power to the Interstate Commerce Commission for the regulation of railways (In Hodge et al 2007; Klose et al 2001). Roosevelt created reforms in the agricultural sector.

Management & Health Information Systems Assignment

Management & Health Information Systems - Assignment Example This study would therefore, like to use a system that utilizes reporting programs to view trends of patients under patient care. This is to be adopted as a Clinical Data Repository (CDR) project with clear objectives and deliverables. 1. Project scope: This report will study clinical components that will constitute an integrated Clinical Data Repository (CDR) which will allow the elements to be fed into it ultimately allowing family physicians and doctors to view holistically the attributes of a patient while enhancing the quality of healthcare given to patients. Family members will be able to qualify for incentives like bonuses and patient oriented medical home rewarding programs. There is a principle engine that comprises a mix of elements to guarantee a clinical decision. This project will involve creating a secure Clinical Data Repository that is able to provide data of patients under authorized access. The objectives of this project will be: i) Assess how family physicians will maximize their professional quality care given to patients ii) Examine how family members will benefit from the bonuses and reward systems facilitated by CDR project. iii) Explore the strategies of bringing on board a more secure clinical data repository. Outputs of the project will prioritize the needs of both physicians and patients, creating a patient-doctor relationship. This project will cost $ 23,000 to meet personnel and technical costs with International Health Research Institute (IHRI) being the key sponsor. It is expected to be done 14 months to cover 9 tasks. Tasks will include data collection, system design, implementation, tests and project go live. Time implications and focus will be on how the outcomes of the feasibility studies have on planning and implementation of the project. The progress of the project will be communicated by the project manager at regular basis. This project is expected to commence on 30 June 2012 The report will also be issued at completion of the project August 2013. Project duration: 14 months 2. Project outlines business case - purpose & rationale: Health institutions continue to experience delays in receiving payer contracts because of the indecisiveness brought by irregular procedures and managerial bureaucracies. The CDR project will allow for maximization of health informatics expertise through quick report generation, easy collection of benchmark data and data ownership. Electronic health records are crucial in hospital administration but owing to insufficiency of tools to perform such tasks, family physicians have been at the receiving end. Analysis from feasibility studies has shown that existing patients’ data reporting programs are weak and bureaucratic. Aligning this function will bring more benefits to both physician and patients during treatment and claims from health insurers. Process claims will be done quickly and pay-for-performance incentives will be due on time. The benefits can be tabulated as below. 3. Options for project delivery: During the phase of project implementation, information system designers can use different ways to execute their work. Conventional methods used in the IT industry today are being challenged by clients and consultants in an attempt to reduce time wastage, limit

Introduction to business Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Introduction to business - Assignment Example One of the key challenges which it reported lately is the resistance to its expansion in the urban areas. While the store is striving to gain market in the urban areas, it is facing many challenges and oppositions by companies, the government and also prominent individuals. The main reason as to why the store if facing so much resistance is due to its size and its control over the market. Wal-Mart can enter different markets in different countries through acquisitions, formation of joint ventures or even establishment of its own stores (Roberts & Berg, 192). Therefore, it poses a threat to the small scale businesses in the urban market. With Wal-Mart in the urban markets, many businesses fear that they may not be able to maintain the same market size as before. This is because; being a large store, it can acquire items at cheap costs and thus, charge cheap prices. On the other hand, the government resists Wal-Mart’s extension to the urban because the store is large and could p ose a competition to the government parastatals. Over the past years, study shows that Wal-Mart has been able to maintain excellent relations with different kinds of people. The store reported that all these nifty relationships between its buyers and all other institutions that it dealt with all arose out of trust (Soderquist, 165). It is through this building of trust that Wal-Mart was able to win the approval of zoning commissions and committees. The managers of the store also reported that they also won the approval through being a staunch and involved citizen in the United States of America. This was mainly through participation in the charitable giving and general caring of the communities (Soderquist, 190). Thus, the management of Wal-Mart changed its operations from entirely profit oriented goals to both service oriented and profit oriented objectives. A manager of the Store recently reported that the store creates a

The Impact of Social Networking on Academic Performance Essay

The Impact of Social Networking on Academic Performance - Essay Example Conducting a survey of the various literature indicates that social networking positively impacts on students’ academic performance. In a study to ascertain this postulate, Helou, Abrahim, and Oye (8) observe that students use SNSs to communicate with their faculties and other authorities in the institution so as to get directions on relevant academic issues. The researchers also observed that the students use the same platform to communicate to their lecturers and supervisors who guide them on various academic issues. In fact, this improves on their relationship which fosters academic achievement. Furthermore, chatting with fellow students on topics of educational interest positively impacts on their academic performance. Taking a view from students but considering the impact on students, Jabr (94) observes that a majority of institutions have adopted collaborative teams together with scientific structures so as to offer courses through SNSs. Indeed, it has been observed that such web-based learning provides more personal and autonomous learning which are key components for successful learning. Therefore, SNSs present an effective platform for e-learning which promotes learners’ autonomy. Additional benefits that students stand to acquire for active engagement in social networking as noted by Mehmood and Taswir (113) includes improved reading skills due to constant reading associated with SNSs. The third way in which social networking positively impacts on academic performance.... These age brackets indicate students as majority SNSs’ users. Arguments Against Conducting a survey on various literatures indicates that social networking positively impacts on students’ academic performance. In a study to ascertain this postulate, Helou, Abrahim and Oye (8) observe that students use SNSs to communicate with their faculties and other authorities in the institution so as to get directions on relevant academic issues. The researchers also observed that the students use the same platform to communicate to their lecturers and supervisors who guide them on various academic issues. In fact, this improves on their relationship which fosters academic achievement. Furthermore, chatting with fellow students on topics of educational interest positively impacts on their academic performance. Taking a view from students but considering the impact on students, Jabr (94) observes that a majority of institutions have adopted collaborative teams together with scientifi c structures so as to offer courses through SNSs. Indeed, it has been observed that such web-based learning provides more personal and autonomous learning which are key components for successful learning. Therefore, SNSs present an effective platform for e-learning which promotes learners’ autonomy. Additional benefits that students stand to acquire for active engagement in social networking as noted by Mehmood and Taswir (113) includes improved reading skills due to constant reading associated with SNSs. The third way in which social networking positively impacts on academic performance as cited by Mehmood and Taswir (113) is in providing teachers and lecturers with a platform to acquire teaching material and additionally

Effects of global warming on the weather(climate) in Europe Essay

Effects of global warming on the weather(climate) in Europe - Essay Example The TAR (Third Assessment report) also reported on a range of evidence of qualitative consistencies between observed climatic changes and model responses to anthropogenic forcing, including global temperature rise, increasing land - ocean temperature contrast, diminishing article sea ice extent, glacial retreat and increase in precipitation at high northern latitude. The main findings of the IPCC TAR (McMichael et al., 2001) were as follows: -Any regional increases in climate extremes (e.g., storms, floods, cyclones, droughts) associated with climate change would cause deaths and injuries, population displacement, and adverse effects on food production, freshwater availability and quality, and would increase the risks of infectious disease, particularly in low-income countries. -In some settings, the impacts of climate change may cause social disruption, economic decline, and displacement of populations. The health impacts associated with such socioeconomic dislocation and population displacement are substantial. - Changes in climate, including changes in climate variability, would affect many vector-borne infections. Populations at the margins of the current distribution of diseases might be particularly affected. -Climate change represents an additional... This would increase the number of undernourished people in the low-income world, unless there was a major redistribution of food around the world. -Assuming that current emission levels continue, air quality in many large urban areas will deteriorate. Increases in exposure to ozone and other air pollutants (e.g., particulates) could increase morbidity and mortality. Since the beginning of the 20th century the earth's climate has changed rapidly and experienced 0.7oC increase in temperature overall and 0.95oC in Europe (climate Research unit CRU, _ 2003). These changes are unusual in terms of both magnitude and rate of temperature change. The 1990's were seen as the warmest decade and temperature is expected to increase even further. There is new and stronger evidence that most of the warming is the result of human activities especially the emission of green house gases (IPCC, 2001 a). Significant increase in green house gases results in the substantial increase in temperature. The main green house gas to human activities is carbon dioxide. Anthropogenic emission has increased the atmospheric concentration of CO2 from 280 PPM to 375 PPP at present. Due to increase in the concentration level of GHG, it has been estimated that global average surface temperature by 2100 will be between 1.4oC to 5.8oC more than the 1990 level. Due to unp0recedented increase in temperature the following potential future singular events may occur: " a shut down of the thermohaline circulation in the North Atlantic (the so called North Atlantic current). This may lead to considerable cooling in northern and western Europe- emission of large amounts of methane from natural gas hydrates in the ocean, deep lakes and polar sediments which could accelerate

The European Occupation of the Middle East Literature review

The European Occupation of the Middle East - Literature review Example The problems which had begun with the European occupation continued to increase after independence to such an extent that they led to the Arab Spring between 2011 and 2012. Despite the fact that these countries were given independence, the western powers have continued to exert their influence on the region to such an extent that they have come to inspire the hostility of the Middle Eastern population. During the European occupation of the Middle East, the population in the occupied territories was denied any political freedoms. They could not directly elect their representatives, and where they were allowed to do so, these representatives did not have enough power to effectively represent their people. Many in the Middle East, therefore, agitated for the independence of their countries in order to regain the political freedoms that they had lost. They felt that it was their right to have self-determination, and not have their future decided for them by the European colonial powers. When the occupied territories in the Middle East were finally given independence, there was a high expectation among the populace that it was the start of a new age of freedoms (Cleveland 2010, p.408). This, however, turned out not to be the case because the governments which came to power tended to be autocratic which worked towards further denying their people their basic freedoms so that they could remain in power. The failure to deliver on their promises at independence led to their lack of legitimacy among the populace and the only way that they could legitimately remain in power was through the use of force. The vast oil reserves that were discovered in the Middle Eastern countries were used by these regimes to gain the necessary financial power to retain their authority (Cleveland 2010, p.514). It is the lack of political freedom in their countries which led the populations of various Middle Eastern nations to recently stage demonstrations against their governments, and it is these demonstrations, and at times military conflict, which came to be termed as the Arab Spring. One of the means through which the European powers established their dominance in the region was the favoring of the Christian population over the Muslim one. Since the European powers were Christian, they chose to strengthen the influence of their fellow Christians in the Middle East as well as to protect them from what they perceived to be a threat from the Muslim population.

TheLife and Influence of Kate Chopin Research Paper

TheLife and Influence of Kate Chopin - Research Paper Example The Life of Kate Chopin Kate Chopin was born in February of 1851. Her Father was a noble business man who was successful at his work. Unfortunately, he died when Chopin was only 4 years old, leaving her in the care of her mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. It can be assumed that being raised by these three powerful women in the absence of a man had a great impact on Chopin’s perceptions about life. To her, life was not only in the hands of a man to command, but women had power too. While watching her mother and grandmothers work and successfully maintain surely a strong sense of feminism developed in the young Chopin. As a child, Chopin loved to read. Her family mostly kept encyclopedias and Bibles in the home library, but Chopin did not limit herself to these. She came to have many favorite authors and regularly read the works of scientific authors like Darwin in order to train her own rational thinking. The author that had the most impact on Chopin’s writing was Guy de Maupassant, a French writer whom she admired for his â€Å"nonjudgmental and unsentimental appreciation of reality† (Skredisrig 1975; p. 90). ... Following the example of her mother, Chopin continued to manage her husband’s business alone. Eventually, she returned to St. Luis, the city that she had called home since birth. Chopin wrote in order to provide for her family. During her writing career, Chopin produced a few works that have earned some notoriety, including At Fault (1890), Bayou Folk (1894), The Story of an Hour (1894), A Night in Acadie (1897), and The Awakening (1899). However, Chopin wrote constantly and is responsible for many other works. She has written 100 short stories, a play, some poetry, various essays, sketches, literary reviews, journals, letters, translations, and some nonfiction material (Skredsrig 1975; p. 89). Of her written works it was said that the reflected the needs, despairs and desires of the people in her society that she was able to observe (Ostman 2008; p.10). The Influence of Chopin Even though her book, The Awakening, had been criticized for lack of morals and open sexuality by ma ny, there was some who found appreciation for it. Her other works were not as harshly scrutinized. She was a popular enough writer in her day to be able to support her large family with the money that she made writing. The Awakening was the last piece that Chopin ever published. She died a few years after the work. While many think that Chopin had ceased to write because of the harsh judgments that she faced because of this last work, the truth is that there are other short stories written by Chopin after this time that were never published. Possibly, if she had not died, there would have been other works from her that were published. It took about five more decades before The Awakening could lose its bad reputation and be better appreciated. In the 1950’s with the activism that

International Business Essay Example for Free

International Business Essay Q.2 a) Evaluate the different ways in which Bata has interacted with foreign political systems in its investments and operations abroad. ANS Multinational enterprises (MNEs) like Bata must operate in countries with different political and legal conditions, so the political impact on the foreign investments is very important. This paper explains this issue based on the Bata case in three parts. The first part evaluates the different ways in which Bata has interacted with foreign political systems in its investments and operations aboard. In the second part, the advantages and disadvantages, which MNEs bring to their company and the host-country when doing foreign direct investment, are analyzed relating to the Bata case. And the last part gives a detailed analysis of the complex political impact on international business with reference to the political environment in general; also supply the way of formulating effective political strategy. * Batas effective organizational structure and managing style With activities in 60 countries, Canada-based Bata Shoe Organization has much operational experience both in developed countries and developing countries and can deal with different political systems. It has an effective organization structure, which consists of  · Bata Limited located in Toronto, Canada, acts as headquarters of the operating companies. Regional offices exist in Toronto, Mexico City, Singapore, Paris, Calcutta and Harare.  · The International structure: a decentralized organization, where operating companies are independent businesses, supported by a global management team.  · Private Ownership: Bata shoe organization companies have also entered into a number of joint ventures, retail franchising and brand licensing agreements [1]. By and large Batas operations are independent units established in each country where the firm does business. As such, Bata is able to decentralize control of its politica l strategygiving subsidiaries significant autonomy in managing relations with their respective government. b) Should Pizza Hut put more of its efforts in expanding in Brazil or somewhere in South East Asia? Why? ANS – Pizza Hut, one of the most popular food chains, opened their 10000Th shops in the Brazilian market in 1994. Pizza Hut’s parent company is PepsiCo. PepsiCo was trying to penetrate in Brazilian market in various ways. However, the path was not as easy as assumed. Pizza Hut faced decline in the Brazilian market. Experts said that there were two probable reasons for this. One is Pizza Hut’s less successful introduction of new products and the second is the low price strategy of the competitors. However, Pizza Hut had a high hope to make Brazils their second or third major market because Brazil had many location specific advantages like urbanization, size, population, Gross National Product etc. Brazil endured erratic political situations since 1964. After a long military dictatorship, a stable political reformation was done by the year 1997.Economically; Brazil has a mixed history as well. It has a very good economic potential. It has access to several natural resources and well knit infrastructures. However, inflation affected the economy very badly. Pizza Hut entered in Brazil in 1988, during the period of high inflation. It followed the practice of corporate franchise. Later, Pizza Hut bought some of the franchises. But still different problems arose like- difference in cultures, cost of maintaining large pool of employees and of course inflation. Gradually, the inflation rate of Brazil normalized. People made more informed decisions and Pizza Hut began to flourish. However, in 1995, sales of Pizza Hut dropped. As a mean of counterattack, Pizza Hut took two different strategies. One was to cut the price by 25% and another was to announce various sales related decisions by mingling with local cultures like Samba dance. But both of the plans failed miserably. In these ways, Pizza Hut struggled to succeed in the Brazilian market. Q.3 a) what factors threaten India’s future competitive positions in cashew nut productions? ANS – Since the opening of China’s doors to world trade in the late 90’s, it has become an emerging super power. Hence, China may be a threat to India’s current competitive position in the cashew nut production because it is also capable to support cashew processing with its abundance of human resources, low-wage rates, and possible training in the manual dexterity required in the premium cashew nut production. China is currently engaging in new markets and providing cheap manual labor to other manufacturing. With this, China can see that the increasing profitable cashew nut industry and decide to enter it because it has the capability to do so. Moreover, the current formulation of the European Union (EU) provides that its members eliminate trade barriers for imports and exports between each other may be a possible threat to India’s United Kingdom market. Since the UK can virtually import anything from its neighboring countries without any cost, it might affect the demand of cashew nuts –the Europeans may divert their attention from cashew nuts to other products popular in its neighboring countries. India’s competitiveness could also be threatened by the increased Research and Development improvement that countries worldwide are engaging in nowadays. Brazilians (India’s most prominent competitor in the cashew nut industry) may possibly find machinery that can be substituted for the needed hand dexterity for the flavor that India’s cashew nut has. b) Should the United States seek to tighten the economic grip on cube? If so, how should it be done? ANS – U.S. should not seek to tighten economic grip on Cuba as it is already a weak economy as compared to U.S. due to the political environment of the country for the past few decades. For U.S. industries and companies Cuba is a very potential market. Also the workforce is efficient, so there is a possibility of efficient labor at lower cost for U.S. industries. Also, other countries of the world started favoring Cuba and also doubted the rationale of U.S. on imposing the embargo. 1. Attitude: An attitude may be defined as a learned disposition to behave in a consistently favourable or unfavourable way with respect to a given object (Schiffman and Kanuk, 2000). Stated differently, it positions people into a frame of mind of liking or disliking things, of moving toward or away from them‘ (Kolter and Armstrong, 2008: p144). It is acknowledged that people have attitudes toward almost everything religion, politics, clothes, music, food (Kotler, 2003). For instance The demand for life insurance in a country may be affected by the unique culture of the country to the extent that it affects the population‘s risk aversion (Douglas and Wildavski, 1982). Henderson and Milhouse (1987) argue that an individual‘s religion can provide an insight into the individual‘s behaviour; and understanding religion is an important component of understanding a nation‘s unique culture. Also, Zelizer (1979) notes that religion historically has provided a strong source of cultural opposition to life insurance as many religious people believe that a reliance on life insurance results from a distrust of God‘s protecting care. But historically, some form of social insurance existed in Nigerian and Africa society long before the introduction of the modern insurance in Nigeria (Osoka, 1992). These social schemes evolved through the existence of extended family system and social associations such as age grades, and other unions. The simplest form of the â€â€"social insurance‘ was practiced by means of providing cash donations, materials or sometimes organized collective labour to assist members of extended family and members of social or communal associations who suffer a mishap. 2. Lack of Knowledge of Insurance Culture: In a recent study of quality of life in developing countries with reference to South Africa (Moller, 2004), income and social security (own wages, ability to provide for family, insurance against illness/death and income in old age) have been treated as one of the major indicators of quality of life. This standpoint stresses the significance of insurance to human life. Ironically, insurance services seem not to have been so accepted enthusiastically in developing countries. The abysmal level of insurance culture in developing economies has attracted relative interests among researchers and practitioners alike. Risk has been identified as a central fact of life in the rural areas of less-developed countries (Udry, 1994). Some of the problems associated with this have been marketing. For example, Omar (2005) assesses consumers‘attitudes towards life insurance patronage in Nigeria and found out that there is lack of trust and confidence i n the insurance companies. Other major reason for this attitude is lack of knowledge about life insurance product. 3. Low Level of Education: Educational status of Nigerians has significant influence on their attitude towards insurance. Educated people have more positive attitude to insurance than less educated ones. In a recent insurance conducted in Lagos, Nigeria. The choice of Lagos is due to its nature as a metropolitan city where most Nigerian ethnic groups are largely represented. Fact shows that respondents with higher education outperformed others even though no statistical significant difference was observed with vocational education. 4. Unemployment Issue: Employees working status has a significance effect on Nigerians attitude towards insurance. Retired and Employed Nigerians with means attitude scores of 28.50 and 28.14 respectively outperformed their competitors. No significant difference was observed between retired, employed and Self-employed respondents. On the other hand, self-employed people have significantly higher attitude towards insurance than unemployed, student and part time workers. This result is quite similar to findings in most developed world. In Conclusion, The findings of this study suggest some major implications for marketing of insurances services in Nigerian businesses environment which is a big market. Given that attitude is strongly linked to behaviour, marketers of insurance services targeting Nigerians are confronted with the challenge of encouraging people to embrace insurance institution and its associated benefits. Based on the findings, this article confirms negative attitudes of Nigerians to insurance services further. But apart from this broad finding in respect of the negative attitudes to this line of business, this study suggests some specific findings based on different demographical factors of the respondents. The findings serve as inputs to marketers of insurance services on how they formulate and implement relevant marketing strategies towards addressing the nonchalant attitude of Nigerians to insurance. For instance, specific marketing strategies are required to encourage the young generation below 46 years of age, the divorced/separated, and the less-educated to embrace and appreciate the role of insurance. Since, the basic issue associated with this lack of interest rests mainly in their lack of appreciation of the roles of benefits of insurance services; it is recommended that significant marketing communication activities with instant compensation to both marketers be targeted more at this set of people highlighted. This will help to kindle their interest in the business and brings the insurance institution to the highly exalted position it belongs in their perception.

The Major Feminist Theoretical Perspective In Iran Sociology Essay

The Major Feminist Theoretical Perspective In Iran Sociology Essay Iranian women have fought for the equal rights throughout the 20th century. In this paper I intend to argue about feminism in the present urban communities in Iran. Iran is a vast country and discussing women situation in the rural areas makes this essay totally different. The womens movement in Iran has both expanded and transformed since the revolution. Before the revolution the liberation of women was connected to the process of secularisation. Under the Islamic Republic, however, women are increasingly making arguments for the expansion of their rights by pointing to protections under the constitution, while others are reinterpreting Shariah law. Some scholars have referred to the emergence of Islamic feminism, a term that highlights the difference of approaches that coexist within the womens movement in Iran. As a result, the terrain of womens rights is one of unprecedented cooperation among disparate groups on the one hand and severe ideological and political struggles on the o ther. In discussing these approaches in present urban areas of Iran, it is of vital importance to distinguish between three groups of women who I will talk about them. The first group is women who identify themselves as Secular feminists and are under the influence of women movement in western societies. The second group are women who try to reach equal rights for men and women but as they try to do so under the guidance of Islam and national identity, they make a distinction between themselves and western feminism which they believe will lead to corruption as there is now in the West. They can be named state feminists or Islamist feminists in Islamic Republic of Iran. Minoo Moallem writes about one of these women, Zahra Rahnavard who is one of the equal rights activists and the wife of opposition leader Mir Hossein Musavi in the recent demonstrations against government after the 2009 presidential election in Iran: Zahra Rahnavard charged the West with being a system where women are made into decorative objects. She calls upon her Muslim sisters to question what the sham civilizations have made of women, not to act like dolls, and not to display a debilitated will. She asks women to refuse to be part of the harems of the rulers and the communal harems of the streets. Her allusion to the collective appropriation of women in the streets and her rejection of unveiling have made it possible for her to think of contractual structure of the Muslim family and veiling as sites of womens agency. For Rahnavard, it is through unveiling and Westernization that Muslim women have been turned into objects to be possessed by all men in the public sphere. To resist capitalist rulers and challenge sexual objectification, she asks women to return to veiling and the Muslim family, where women are considered subjects rather than objects of the marriage contract. (2005; 185) The third group includes mostly secular educated women who are not familiar with the notions of western feminism but as a result of modernisation in Iran and under the influence of global mass Media are aware of women situation in other countries and try to simulate a modern life like the ideal type of a western woman for themselves. They have combined some traditional values of an Iranian woman and some modern values of a western woman. As Reza Ghasemi in his acclaimed novel, The Nocturnal Harmony of the Wood Orchestra, describes Iranian women in their transition to modernity: The history of invention of Modern Iranian women is like the invention of car. The difference is that the car was first a carriage with changed content (They removed the horses and replaced the engine) and then slowly the appearance changed but the modern Iranian women first changed the appearance and then when they had been looking for appropriate content, they faced the trouble So everyone as to their personal tastes and their mental demands made a combination of traditional female with modern woman which can be stand in a range of a woman wearing Chador to miniskirt. This woman asks to share in all decisions, but asks all the responsibilities from manShe asks man to work equally in home but at the same time considers the man who works in home of poor character and weakness. (1996; 86) Considering the distinction between these groups, I will argue about feminism as a political movement to gain equality and to free women from oppression in Islamic republic of Iran and the role that each group plays in obtaining this goal. Liberal Feminism: Actually in todays Iran, liberal feminism is the only perspective that can hardly breathe under the pressure of the Islamic government. This feminism always has two aspects which are against the governments will in Islamic republic of Iran. Abdee Kalantari believes that in a political theology that divides the political sphere into good and evil and sees the west as enemy (evil), feminism as a modern western movement is a threat to the whole existence of this theology (2007). In other hand, fighting for the equal rights in law usually opposes Islamic rules which are not easy to face. Hence, women movement not only has to fight with the deep traditions of Islam in the society but also to protect itself against the fundamentalist government which obtains its legitimacy from these traditions. The Islamist ideology denies women individuality, autonomy and independence and this is inside this Ideology that the key objective of Iranians womens rights activists, both secular and Islamic, became the modernization of family law and womens equal rights in matters of marriage, divorce, and child custody. Other concerned issue is domestic violence, with many articles in the feminist press describing domestic violence as both a social problem and a violation of womens rights. A third concern was womens under-representation in formal politics and the need for greater participation in parliament, the local councils, and the highest political offices. These are the reforms that both Islamist and Secular activists are still fighting to reach them. The Islamist feminist do not seek to deny the rules of law and they insist on the preservation of Islam, family and marriage even when it comes in opposition of equal rights. Their aim is to suggest a more flexible interpretation of Islam rather than the one that the government presents. This group can be criticized in the same way that Zillah R. Eisensteins has criticized the liberalism because of feminizing the private sphere and the separation they make between public and private spheres. She argues that this separation could be the basis to liberalisms downfall. As it becomes clear that liberalism is incompatible with equal rights for women, feminism will search for alternative grounds to build its agenda. This gendered separation of spheres will lead liberalism to a lack of concern with the forms of oppression that take place in the private sphere(1981) and that is the same concern that secular feminist in have in Iran. In contrast, the secular feminists work through small-scale Non Governmental Organizations (NGO) and try to develop some analyses of womens collective interests and their oppression in private as well as public life. They have noticed the issues that have been argued in the history of feminism in the west. They write about equal rights as well as body, sexuality, power, homosexuality, violence, pornography and so forth. The problem is that they cannot publish their ideas and normally internet is the only media they can use to raise their voice to be heard. There are many feminist websites that represent this group and they keep working despite the filtering of the government. (e.g. http://www.irwomen.com, http://www.meydaan.com, http://www.feministschool.com ) .Hence, the middle class urban women are the most common audiences of these activists, since the other groups access to the internet is limited. This lack of audience urges this question that whether there is a feminist women m ovement in Iran? If there is, will it stand against Repression, censorship and attacks of the fundamentalist government and even the traditions of a religious based society? As Ahmadi argues that secular feminism faces two barriers in its way, first is the framework of an Islamic republic where fundamentalists hold absolute power over certain state institutions and the other is an inside force, a from within perspective which has been needed to alter the dominant fundamentalist discourse(2006). Hence, in obtaining liberal demands of women movement in Iran is of vital importance for secular feminism to keep its unity with the Islamist feminists, since as Ahmadi elaborates it is the group that not only can expand the domain of dialogue with clerical scholars, but also are able to overcome long-term hatred toward western feminism in Cultural context of Iran (2006) These activists could has been labelled as a group of urban middle class ladies who could not be regarded as speaking for all women in Iran until the August 27th of 2006, when they launched a campaign named One Million Signatures for the Repeal of Discriminatory Laws. The aim was to collect one million signatures in support of changing discriminatory laws against women in their country, but what made this effort important and even a danger for the government, though the organizers of the campaign considered that its demands conform to Islamic principles, was the way they used to collect these signatures. The concept is simple and revolutionary, melding education, consciousness-raising and peaceful protest. Starting last year, women armed with petitions began to go to wherever other women gathered: schools, hair salons, doctors offices and private homes. Every woman is asked to sign. But whatever a woman decides, she receives a leaflet explaining how Irans interpretation of Islamic la w denies women full rights. The material explains how Irans divorce law makes it easy for men, and incredibly difficult for women, to leave a marriage, and how custody laws give divorced fathers sole rights to children above the age of 7.  [i]   The One Million Signatures Campaign is a new and innovative movement because it has not taken shape around one progressive and famous central figure, rather it is a broad movement, where activists visit with other women, engage in face to face discussions with them, they go home to home, and explain to each woman about womens rights. Any signature is equal to conscious these activists tried to make for women from any background and any class. Their main goal is to create a dialogue among citizens and educate them about their rights and it makes women to become sensitive to their status under the law and in society. It seems that the Consciousness raising groups are the inspiring idea of this campaign. The Idea that women should gather in small groups and give accounts of their own lives and how they became a woman and then they will understand to which extent, they share similar problems with other women with different backgrounds and ages and these problems produce by social relatio ns and institutions. As Pilcher and Whelehan argue we can consider the main success of these groups in inspiring many women to turn to feminism (2004) and that is the same success that Iranian secular feminists try to reach. They hope to involve women, not all of whom were actively involved in feminism, but all caught up in the debates of the time and seized by the urge to fight for their equal rights in law and make the process of one womans coming out of false consciousness into enlightenment, possible. The campaign success in changing the laws is comparable with NOW, (National Organization for Women) founded by betty Friedan in 1966, as both expressed not as a self-conscious political theory, but as a common sense application of pre-existing values to womens situation. As Bryson argues NOWs campaigns gained some early legal victories changing laws and could amend the United States constitution to give women equal rights which very nearly succeeded, and it has been a major force in changing attitudes to women in education, employment and the media. Despite the criticisms that later feminists made about equal rights campaigns such as NOW for focusing narrowly on formal legal and political rights which ignores economic (2003), cultural and sexual exploitation and oppression of women, I think that such campaigns are the basic steps of opening debates about other forms of oppression in the traditional and religious society and fundamentalist government of Iran that will take a position against such debates in that level. Marxism Feminism vs. Post Feminism: Since Russia has been the most powerful neighbour of Iran in the contemporary history, this country has had a great influence on the history of Iran. That is why Marxism as an ideology has the greatest effect on the history of modern Iran after Islam. Before the Islamic revolution in 1979, Classical Marxists worked within the conceptual notions laid out by Marx, Engels, Lenin, and other nineteenth-century thinkers and dreamed of a society without classes as they believed that existed in USSR. These groups were an undeniable factor in the triumph of revolution, but due to vast suppressions and executions of the new Islamic government in 80s, these groups lost their power and prevalence within the society, but the Marxism discourse has still an inevitable impact on the Iranian intellectual prospect. The secular feminist as a part of Iranian intellectual discourse are not an exception. This group besides the equal rights movements has always tried to theorize the roots of patriarchy in Iran and Marxism feminism has been one of the most useful perspectives for them to do this work. Many of these theories regard classism and capitalism as a key factor which work parallel with patriarchy in womens oppression (Look at Afshar; 1983). This analysis suggests women to fight with all the displays of capitalism to free them from oppression. They criticize the new Iranian woman in her support of capitalism and the way that Iranian women present their bodies which is one of the most important areas they see as capitalism system uses to oppress woman. As Shahidi states a practical consequence of this approach to the woman question was the de-sexing of woman, clearly visible in the baggy clothes and absence of cosmetics among female activists. These women oppose the compulsory veil but believe that with or without a scarf, a woman-doll will remain the same (1994). In the contemporary history of Iran, the woman body has been the main indication of political change.  [ii]  It is an interesting point that the binary of mind/body which is traceable in western thought, present itself in Iran with the beginning of the project of modernization. Reza shah saw unveiling as one of the most important markers of Westernizing and the Islamic republic made veiling compulsory in order to make an anti-western society and in all these fundamental changes womens body has been the object of change. If the Reza shah project made many women to stay in home and even quit going to school  [iii]  the veiling did not make the modern Iranian woman who I recognized them as the third group of women who make efforts having equality with men, to leave the public sphere. They continued to work and study alongside men and they used their body especially their faces to object compulsory veiling which had tried to ignore their body. Young and older, the Iranian women d efy the Islamic hijab publicly, and confront the states Islamic body politics with a body politics of their own. The youth mock the Islamic hijab, deconstruct it, reform it, and make it succumb to their modern desires. They reveal their hair in public by pushing back their mandated headscarf, transforming it into a garment used for their beautification. Against all cultural mandates of the Islamic state, they reveal their body curves under their remodeled and modernized Islamic garb. They wear loud makeup, walk elegantly, and bring their sexuality to the public. They reject the control of their body by the state, and celebrate their womanhood by defying the Islamic hijab. Since eyes, nose and hands are the only features on show, eye make-up is applied with scientific precision and Tehran has become the nose-job capital of the world. Iranian women spend one million dollar in make-up industry every year  [iv]   Oppressing by the government and morality police, these women have been always criticised by a large group of secular feminists who believe that wearing make-up and presenting the sexual body are the representation of objectifying woman by capitalism. Ezzat Goushegir in his praise of Ariel Levys book; Female Chauvinist Pigs, writes in his personal weblog  [v]  that this is the same raunch culture in Iran that in the universal capitalist system, uses the ideas of feminism about equality and emerge women to appear as a face of capitalism in the society and by this way marginalizes the true demands of women movement. He considers Marxism as a perspective that challenges this objectification and Commodification  [vi]  . (2007) Marxist feminists believe that cosmetic surgeries and make-up industry are two effective instruments of capitalism which not only objectify women, but also make them to pay money for correcting their body image into the Ideal body of Capitalist society. They deny these things as Levy denies them to be liberating and rebellious. Levy argues that how women decide to give meaning to sex industry by producing the fake idea that presenting their sexuality would empower them (2006). I am not going to criticize this book and even I agree with Levy to some extent. The problem is that how Iranian feminists use the book and translate western feminists ideas to apply them on the totally different context. Levy in this book refer to sexist TV shows which distribute the illusion of liberation among women, shows that means the pornoization of culture for Levy (2006). It is the culture that benefits Capitalism, but how about Iran? As I mentioned the history of Iran is not the history of capitalism, it is the history of religious ideology. In Iran power is not within the bourgeois class but at least in contemporary Iran in the hands of clerics (Mullahs) who do not necessarily own economical capital. The most obvious reason for this claim is that the opposition in Iran never could blame the leaders of Islamic republic for having wealth. This is religious capital that structures the power in Iran and ironically this power agrees with secular feminists in the issue of objectification of women and two different thoughts leads to same consequences in the cultural context of Islamic Iran. If Levy talks about shows such as Girls Gone Wild in America, Iranian Women appearing in television programs will not be allowed to wear make-up because it is against Islamic law, repulsive jokes between men and women on television or radio is also prohibited  [vii]  No Magazine has the right to publish a womans face on the cover and using plastic woman models with head (even with hijab) in clothing shops is forbidden. In this cultural context a new reality has emerged in Iran, a reality created by women. The Iranian women are playing an instrumental role in the grassroots challenge to the Islamic Republic through their deconstruction of the hijab and their direct challenge of the states body politics. Challenging the Islamic dress code, they use the everyday life as the site for gaining rights and respect from the society and the state. They demand the right to live as free women. Humiliated, assaulted, and arrested randomly for being women, they have gained resilience, lost the ir fears of confronting the state, and battled the repressive social and cultural Islamic codes of conduct. Using deviance as a weapon, they are creating a reality unimagined by the architects of the Islamic Republic. Naomi Wolf in her book beauty myth has the similar idea as Levi and argues that Women should be able to adorn themselves with pretty objects when there is no question that we are not objects. She believes that they cannot be free of the beauty myth unless they can choose to use their faces and clothes and bodies as one form of self-expression out of a full range of others. She claims that public interest in a womans virginity has been replaced by public interest in the shape of her body (1991). We cannot ignore that Iranian women still live in a society that virginity is more than a public interest; it is a religious and legal rule. The rule that has been ignored by these women using solutions such as Hymenoplasty  [viii]  and this is a surprisingly hot topic in Iran. It is of vital importance to consider if any great theory which we believe in is applicable in other contexts. Wearing make-up and cosmetic surgery is kind of self-expression for Iranian woman, a self who express it self standing against the fundamental laws of ignoring her. It is a kind of resistance against the discourse of fundamentalism. Hence, Body and sexuality is the battlefield of first and third groups. Two secular groups which must be united in opposition with fundamentalism that does not believe in basic rights for women, while both these groups to some extent believe in equal rights for men and women. The ironic side of this battle is that how secular Marxist feminism and Islamist feminism with two different approaches to women issue; blame the third group which is the main potential force of fighting patriarchy, to objectification of women or in their word for acting like dolls. It is true that strong roots of tradition still exist in the third group. They do not identify themselves as feminist because what they have learnt about feminism is women who try to work and wear like men; women who make them misunderstand feminism when there is not a long history of feminism in Iran to make the idea clear for them. Although they do not identify themselves as feminists they have almost same ideas with the new genera tion of feminists in west: the third generation or wave, which its life powerfully has shaped by popular culture, particularly music, television, film and literature as they believe to fight with women oppression. Media figures represent third wave icons in their tendency to refuse to adhere to a feminist party line, but also in their resistance to comply with the types of feminine behaviour deemed compatible with media and mainstream success. (Pilcher Whelehan; 2004) In other words these women as Genz and Brabon reveal are merging notions of personal empowerment with the visual display of sexuality. These women does not manipulate their appearance to get a man on the old terms but has ideas about her life and being in control which clearly come from feminism (2009; 93). Although these Iranian women do not identify themselves as feminist but their notions of sexual freedom come directly from the Iranian feminism that has fought for women freedom and equality during the last 100 year s.  [ix]   Secular feminism has two ways to walk in. The first is to stand against this group and blame them of objectifying their femininity and the other is to stand beside them to fight against fundamentalism which is the greater force of oppression for both groups than patriarchy. In the second solution I believe that Secular feminism should try to make other women familiar with basic notions of feminism such as economical independence and equal payments and other non-radical ideas that is bearable for a society in transition to modernity and not completely modern. Secular feminist must notice that Islam as an ideaology has a great power in the life of even most of secular women. Mohanty in her article on the problem of western feminism on theorizing women issues in developing coutries, referring to Modares, criticizes feminist writings which treat Islam as an ideology separate from and outside social relations and practices, rather than a discourse which includes rules for economic, social and power relations within society (1988; 70). Hence secular feminism which is affected by the west must look over the feminism history and experiences in the west and try to match them with the cultural context of Iran. I do not believe that feminism in Iran and west has to go to the same way. Although the third wave feminism is an idea that comes after the long history of first and second wave feminism in west, the Idea of sexual power that this generation emerge is the fact that young women in Iran practice against the government every day. This practices influence is obvious by the number of morality polices that the government use to control these women. Hence, post feminism is a perspective that worth applying not only imagined as a chronological distinction between second and third wave feminism in the cultural context of Iran. This attitude in Iran must not consider as backlash but as a conjunct to the first group to be influent in Iran. Secular feminism has to satisfy thes e women who object feminist theories which failed to address their problems. Conclusion: In this essay I distinguished three groups of women who can be helpful to reach equality and freedom from oppression in the current cultural context of urban middle class women in Iran. The conjunction between secular feminists and Islamist feminists who try to find liberation through the organized movement for constitution amendment and consciousness rising is traceable. I see this trend as the most relevant perspective for Iranian society that benefits both urban and rural communities in Iran. In the second part I tried to criticize the orthodox Marxism that has a deep root in the history of Iranian intellectualism and its influence on secular feminism in Iran as well. I think that this trend will lead to a separation between secular feminist and secular women who both are fighting against the fundamentalism in Iran. Secular feminism, using the postfeminist notion of sexual power can analyze the practice of these women instead of blaming them to objectifying their sexuality. If fem inists look at postfeminism as a turn to cultural differences and not as a chronological event in the west, they can move on faster and easier in the way of freedom from fundamentalism and patriarchy as well. Notes: