Tuesday, August 6, 2019
Business Mgt Essay Example for Free
Business Mgt Essay Part I. Assume you have taken over responsibility to play the lead Information Technology (IT) management role in Magnum Enterprises. Your boss, Rachel Heigl, is Magnumââ¬â¢s CIO. The IT management group is comprised of six people who you will be supervising. Ms. Heigl is an enlightened manager, and she believes that if you are to carry out your responsibilities effectively, you need to work with her in defining your IT management role. As a first step, she invites you to write a short statement where you describe what you see to be your role as head of the IT management effort at Magnum. Proper IT Management requires researching and discerning information technology as a company resource guiding both operational and crucial company capabilities. Using information technology to maximize satisfaction of the customer alongside productivity and profitability will ensure that our competiveness with other business stays at a maximum. In turn IT can make business processes more effective and efficient to provide said resources to customers. The lead IT shall ensure performance of the company through managing technology while encompassing priorities of the business into the role. Striving to be a partner with great initiative this business will discover its leader will have accomplished and achieved what they desired. My first role of business would be to establish the parameters and to understand the IT knowledge areas. These are made up of development processes; management challenges information technologies, business applications and foundation concepts. Concepts of the foundation are making sure the role of information systems paired with business and technical concepts are a familiarity with the end user. Familiarity of concepts in entry level information systems bind with a competitive strategy can lead to an overwhelming strategic advantage. Educating Magnumââ¬â¢s team upon the significance of information technology with the three roles that the business world performs in order to combine business management, software, and hardware capabilities. At the Management level, decision making would lead to significant improvements for IT utilization. Business operations see information systems as a huge support to review and collect data from financial operations, managing manufacturing processes that are very sophisticated, tracking company inventory, and productivity. The use of metrics paired with identifying trends to assist the company in making informed decisions faster to provide information about our competitors. ITà is used quite often to provide a strategic support advantage for the company. Automated inventory and ordering systems an assist with the savings costs. With this information we would need to review our mission statement that identifies the companyââ¬â¢s functions, provides oversight on the overall goal, a sense of direction, and guides decision making. Investigating and development towards understanding how we generate money and ensuring a customer base for our company. Envisioning the business plan, mission, with current IT structure and the ability to communicate with senior leadership will guide me with necessary tools to assist the Chief Information Officer (CIO). To ensure a strategic IT plan is created in which will be shared and implemented with my team. Planning to have Magnumââ¬â¢s team familiar with data resource management capabilities, hardware, networks, telecommunications, and software within the company is the second area of information systems known as information technologies. In todayââ¬â¢s society PDAââ¬â¢s (personal digital assistants; IE. Blackberryââ¬â¢s ETC.) Personal computers and network servers are integral computer hardware and are crucial in our business environment. Being extremely knowledgeable is vital to our team troubleshooting and resolving hardware issues instead of having to call anot her company for maintenance. We have the ability to break down our companyââ¬â¢s software into two categories, application software and system software. Both types normally off the consumer shelf as commercial software instead of having an employee on the team write the software codes for these programs. I plan to ensure my teams are extremely familiar with all software programs and have a firm foundation when troubleshooting and resolving technical issues. Additionally, if not already formed, I will institute a configuration control board and implement test scenarios to ensure future hardware and software being purchased will not have compatibility issues. Also a part of information technologies is data resource management. This is essential in sustaining and maintaining our company. We will require a database management system of good quality that is capable of data consolidating into a database in turn can be accessed my several program applications. Within the past fifteen to twenty years networks and telecommunications software have played a vital role. To ensure the expansion and growth for Magnum Enterprises, we will need out network to be consistent, reliable, monetary sufficient. I would prepare the team toà either install or review and change as needed our network management system that assists with traffic management, capacity planning, network monitoring, and security in essence that our system will grow and change with modern day business culture and practices as the company expands. In order to have the most dependable and proven with the cost of it a ring network should be put into place. The next area, development processes, deals with designing, planning, identifying ideas, and implementing information systems to meet potential business opportunities. It is critical that we ensure our business management capabilities alongside our hardware and software are integrated successfully within our company. Basis within t he development process and depending upon the circumstance, there are a couple of processes we want our team to employ as resolving problems com along with our business systems. Those processes are considered or known as the prototyping approach and he systems development life-cycle. The synopsis of prototyping involves quickly developing or constructing test modules of a desired system in which we will engage when we cannot determine or classify the end user requirements. These systems would be used to assist our personnel with the capabilities to design or create an information system that will be intuitive and easy to navigate for consumers. Prototyping involves four steps with the first being investigation and analysis step. This step, requirements grouped and defined. Second, is the analysis and design step in which a model is developed and constructed to meet consumer business requirements. Next, in the design and implementation, this finalizes the model that was tested and begins the initial installation. The last step to this four step process is implementation and maintenance, which would consist of the business system being accepted, used, and maintained. Prototyping advantages are: decrease in the development time, development costs and requires user i nvolvement. This generates higher satisfaction results. I plan to employ this type of approach to small initiatives. The next area is business application for information systems. This will consist of being familiar with commerce and business applications for our employees and which are used within the company to make strategic leadership and management decisions. A few of the most used business applications within a majority of companies are accounting, human resource management, enterprise resource planning, supply chain management, customer relationship management, financial management,à and supply chain management. An Architectural picture of or IT business applications will ensure that I will have familiarity with all applications that we use. This approach will identify the current interrelationships, interfaces with customer, employees, business applications, and stake holders. We will then need to review the chart and see if there are any potential process improvements that we can make to integrate those systems cross functionally and keep operational costs to a minimum. The systems devel opment lifecycle employs the systems approach to create IT solutions. This lifecycle is often utilized for large applications and it is composed of five processes that I expect my team to know and become familiar when employing the systems development lifecycle: systems investigation, systems analysis, systems design, systems implementation and systems maintenance. The first process, systems investigation, involves project brainstorming, planning and performing a feasibility study. During the brainstorming and planning initiative, a project management implementation plan is created identifying the detailed steps that will be accomplished during the creation and development of the system. The feasibility study is critically important as this outlines all requirements for the system. It also explores four major areas, organizational, economic, technical, and operational feasibility, which determines if itââ¬â¢s worthwhile to invest in potential business ventures. In reviewing the organizationââ¬â¢s feasibility, we need to determine if the system is in line with and supports our companyââ¬â¢s strategic objectives. The economic feasibility identifies and evaluates the projectââ¬â¢s tangible and intangible cost and benefits. Technical feasibility is assessed by confirming if the necessary hardware and software will be available or can be developed and tested before implementation. Operational feasibility is determined by the motivation, desire, willingness, and competence of the stakeholders (management, employees, customers and suppliers) to use and operate the proposed system. Systems Analysis consists of consolidating requirements and includes a detailed breakdown of the business needs and requirements of the organization. This starts with an organizational analysis from one of the business end users. This individual must be keenly aware of the organizational management structure, business requirements, and current IT systems operati ons and its proposed relationship with the newly created system. Some of the outputs generated from the systems analysisà include system flowcharts, data flow diagrams, and connectivity diagrams which aid in the development of the analysis report The next process, systems design, focuses on the design, process diagrams, business rules, and developing specifications for the hardware, software, data resources that will meet the proposed requirements for new business system. The three major outputs produced from the systems design phase are user data, interface, and process design. The fourth process of the systems development lifecycle is system implementation. This encompasses either acquiring the hardware or software or developing it from company resources and then testing the products in a test environment to see how well they operate and integrate with your existing IT architecture. If testing goes well, an implementation plan including training end users and developing system documentation will be accomplished prior to incorporating and execu ting this system within our IT architecture. The final process, systems maintenance consists of consistently monitoring and evaluating the newly implemented system. This also includes correcting errors and discrepancies not identified during the testing phase and continuously making system improvements, advancements and upgrades. The final area of information systems is management challenges. There are numerous challenges that our IT team may be faced with at Magnum Enterprises. One challenge is addressing our security concerns which involve several areas. For instance, our IT team needs be constantly vigilant and on the alert for potential competitors trying to or actually hacking into our systems to steal or damage our data. Additionally, we may also be challenged with setting up restrictions and locking down the network for personnel to only use the network and its software applications for official business. Ensuring that our software is controlled and that employees are not illegally making copies of software for personal use is another area of concern. Preventing virus attacks to our network and installing anti-virus software to diagnose and remove computer viruses is of utmost concern. Failure to maintain a secure network can potentially halt our business from being productive and resulting in thousands of dollars in lost revenue. Additional challenges the IT team may be faced with may involve expanding our infrastructure and network to address our growing business. Ensuring our network provides our employees accessibility to the data they need, wherever they require it, regardless of their location will test our innovativeness.à The company may not have a backup plan to allow it to operate effectively and efficiently in the event of a forced relocation. If that is the case, I will recommend to our management staff that we establish a continuity of operations plan enabling us to relocate with minimum impact to our business operations like a hot site for temporary functionality. In the dynamic world of IT we will always be faced with challenges, however, utilizing IT and being on the leading edge of new IT systems provides our business with many benefits and makes our organization more effective and efficient. For example, IT can be used to improve and promote new business processes such as creating an automated inventory system which will save money in additional labor costs. Another use of IT in making it more efficient and effective is that using certain software programs enables us to identify and target our top customers in terms of profitability to our business. In summary, IT enables our company to successfully plan, integrate, manage, and carry out strategies which lead to profit. Part II. Six months after you take over the lead IT management role at Magnum, the CIO, Ms. Rachel Heigl, is pleased with your work. She has just attended a meeting of Magnumââ¬â¢s executive committee (the committee comprised of the most senior managers of Magnum), where the CEO and Vice President of marketing have indicated that Magnumââ¬â¢s mediocre e-business capabilities must be strengthened. As CIO, Ms. Heigl is given primary responsibility in improving Magnumââ¬â¢s e-business performance. She in turn puts you in charge of a small task force comprised of representatives from the marketing, operations, finance, and legal departments. In order to advance and improve Magnumââ¬â¢s e-business performance operations, itââ¬â¢s vital I establish a cohesive team with representatives from the marketing, operations, finance, and legal departments. Their input and perspective is necessary and essential in developing a way ahead and strategic plan for the future of our e-busin ess department. Developing success with our e-business begins with marketing the company. Marketing is concerned with developing and creating an innovative plan so that the product or service can be promoted and sold. Promoting our products and services are key and critical in attracting new customers as well as maintaining our current customer base. It is important that I develop an understanding of the marketing role and how it can benefità by using Information Technology systems. Marketing information systems support well established and e-commerce processes that sustain major elements within the marketing function and is described as a continuing and interacting structure of people, equipment and procedures to gather, sort, analyze, evaluate, and distribute pertinent, timely and accurate information for use by marketing decision makers to improve their marketing planning, implementation, and control. The major components of marketing information systems include interactive marketing, sales force automation, customer relationship management, sales management, product management, targeted marketing, and market research. Two of the seven components I will be discussing are interactive marketing and customer relationship management. In our environment today, marketing information systems aid marketing personnel in a variety of tasks associated with branding products and customer service initiatives. For instance, interactive marketing is largely dependent on utilizing the internet, which permits the business and its customers and potential customers to become partners in developing, socializing, acquiring and advancing products and services. With the IT department enabling this type of communication, the company benefits from generating new ideas for other products and services as well as establishing strong customer loyalty. Another area within the marketing information systems is C ustomer Relationship Management (CRM). This incorporates and automates many customer service processes. It consists of utilizing an IT framework to construct, automate, and integrate marketing processes with the companyââ¬â¢s business operations. CRM is usually comprised of a software suite that allows a business to provide efficient, effective and reliable service to its customers. Additionally, CRM permits a company to identify and target their most important customers as well as facilitate real-time customization of products and services based on the customerââ¬â¢s wants and desires. Understanding the marketing departmentââ¬â¢s views and concerns enables the IT department to implement and install an IT infrastructure that will be capable of supporting various information technologies. Some of the benefits that can be obtained from the marketing department are: an opportunity to increase sales and revenue, a chance to touch new market areas, 24/7 accessibility for the customer, and more flexibility and convenie nce for the customers. The production and operations function is supported byà manufacturing information systems. Manufacturing information systems are designed to be used specifically in an operations and production environment. Different types of manufacturing information systems consist of computer integrated manufacturing (CIM), process control, machine control and robotics. CIM involves using computers to control the total manufacturing process, from design to distribution, to produce produces products of the highest caliber. Process control involves utilizing computers to oversee and control continuing physical processes. Machine control consists of using a computer based system to direct the actions of a machine. Robotics involves designing, constructing, and building machines that have the intelligence of a computer and human like physical capabilities. Itââ¬â¢s key I understand how the operations representative depends on these information systems to operate effectively as well as their expec tations for these systems. Working together as a team will enable the IT and operations department to develop better ideas to increase the manufacturing and production process. Developing an understanding of all the accounting and financial based systems within our business and discussing these systems with the finance representative enables our IT and finance departments to plan effectively when troubleshooting and performing upgrades. These systems include but are not limited to order processing, inventory control, accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll, general ledger, cash management, investment management, capital budgeting and financial planning. The success of these systems is integrally connected with its information technology and services. For example, the order processing system ââ¬Å"captures and processes customer orders and produces data needed for sales analysis and inventory control and the accounts payable system keeps track of data concerning purchases from and payments to suppliers. Communicating with the finance representative is essential in setting up or modifying these systems to meet the needs of our business. Any interrupti on or degradation in service can lead to severe damage to the business and financial services that Magnum Enterprises relies on to function and operate. As with any business, competitors are always looking for an advantage to get them ahead in their particular discipline or industry. Unfortunately, being extremely aggressive and ambitious can sometimes cloud your decision making capabilities to the point that you mayà be committing breaking privacy laws and monitoring and copyright violations. As the IT lead manager for Magnum Enterprises, Iââ¬â¢m charged with ensuring our network infrastructure and IT systems are operating proficiently. However, when it comes to addressing privacy issues from an IT perspective, opinions and viewpoints from a legal expert are necessary. In regards to privacy, several websites accumulate usernames and passwords and personal information such as home addresses and phone numbers without authorization from users. Applying internet monitoring technology within the workplace raises concerns about where the boundaries lie between personal use and public resource use. Copyright concerns and violations has become an issue with the development of the Internet and upgrades to technology. Discussing these concerns with a legal expert and implementing and adhering to strict guidelines will help prevent our company from committing these violations. In addition to the goals of strengthening the capabilities of the e-business, attention must be paid to some key technical challenges. Overseeing secure information throughout our business is extremely difficult to implement and maintain successfully. Key technical issues that may be encountered when re-engineering our e-business include privacy and confidentiality, authenticity, data integrity, access control, availability and infrastructure. Privacy and confidentiality involves businesses protecting and securing personal information while being stored or t ransmitted through email. This can be accomplished by utilizing encryption devices or firewalls. Authentication is used to confirm an individualââ¬â¢s identity and during e-business transactions, the purchaser and buyer wants assurance that proper identity is established. A secure way to assist with confirming identity to both individuals is to utilize a virtual private network. Data integrity means the data is correct and has not been altered while being stored or transmitted. The use of firewalls assists in preventing unauthorized users and safeguarding data. Another way to ensure data integrity is through the use of antivirus software which also aids in keeping your data free from viruses. Access control exists when youââ¬â¢re authorizing certain individualââ¬â¢s permission to restricted systems or data. Several measures that can help with access control include firewalls, access privileges, passwords, digital certificates and virtual private networks. Availability is an issue when customers and employers need informationà without any disruptions. Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) systems, data backups and the use of anti-virus software assist with ensuring data is always available. Our e-business infrastructure constantly needs to be monitored to ensure its meeting the needs of our business. An infrastructure that is unable to consistently support the network traffic load can potentially cost our company thousands of dollars in lost sales. If the network is continually slow, increasing the speed of the network backbone will assist in providing faster and reliable support for our customers. In addition to increasing the speed of the network backbone, implementing cross-functional enterprise systems will assist in improving critical business processes throughout Magnum enterprises. A final technical challenge is ensuring all of our systems are compatible and can operate on several different hardware platforms. By having this capabi lity, our operating costs from a technical refresh perspective will decrease. While strengthening capabilities and addressing technical issues, there are management challenges within the e-business that must be addressed. As discussed earlier, our team must be vigilant in addressing security challenges such as hacking into our systems, software theft, and protecting our software applications. In addition to security issues, there are ethical concerns that must be addressed. Privacy has always been a serious and contentious issue amongst employers and employees. For instance, computer monitoring is considered by many personnel to be an infringement on the employeeââ¬â¢s privacy and shouldnââ¬â¢t be allowed. However, employers argue that since the computer is a company owned resource, they should be allowed to monitor the work of their employer. In reality, many employers are concerned as to whether or not the employee is actually working and producing or just goofing off and surfing the internet. Utilizing IT equipment at work has been mentioned to cause a variety of health issues which management must address. For example, if your job consists of being in front of a computer all day, some of the health problems you may experience damage to the neck and arm muscles, eye strain, carpal tunnel syndrome, job stress, poor posture and poor circulation. Resolutions to some of these health concerns can be through the science of ergonomics. The objective of ergonomics is to devise and create safe health work conditions with the goal of decreasing health issues and increasing employee morale and work productivity. Ifà Magnum Enterprises has customers internationally, they also may be faced with political, geo-economic and cultural challenges. From a political concern, there are countries that have restrictions regulating or denying the transfer of data across their borders which can potentially result in customers or businesses from having to pay import or export fees. Geo-economic concerns involve issues such as identifying and locating personnel with IT skills to work at remote sites and communicating with personnel across all 24 time zones. Cultural challenges ââ¬Å"include differences in languages, cultural interests, religions, customs, social attitudes, and political philosophiesâ⬠. For example, if Magnum Enterprises was conducting a business transaction via a Video Teleconference it would be disrespectful to look them in the eye when introducing yourself. Before meeting an international customer, it would prudent to review their customs and courtesies to ensure a smooth business relationship. Improving Magnumââ¬â¢s e-business performance faces several challenges. Consulting with key department personnel from operations, marketing, finance and legal as well as addressing technical and management obstacles will assist me in charting a plan to put our e-business on the right track towards success.
Monday, August 5, 2019
Research and study on the deviant woman
Research and study on the deviant woman Living in a period which had totally ignored women and the study of female deviance (prior to 1960s), Professor Frances Heidensohn saw, as other criminologists, the immediate need for research and study on the deviant woman. As a pioneer of feminist perspectives in criminologyà [i]à , Heidensohns work provided the too much mans land of criminology and how women have been unfairly treated and neglected in previous studies. Heidensohn is considered to be a revolutionist in this field of criminology due to her pre-feminist work (Heidensohn 1968 and 1970) on the invisibleness and silence surrounding the female offenderà [ii]à .Throughout her work and extensive research on a variety of different writers and criminologists, she stressed the lack of attention on gender dimensions and the tendency to over-sexualise women crimes. Clearly upset of this status quo, she pointed out also the necessity of taking into account autobiographical experiences of female offenders, who are the act ual objects of this study. Frances Heidensohn; a professor in the Department of Sociology at London School of Economics, by her investigation on the study of gender in the context of crime, could be said to have set the foundations for next generations studies on feminist perspectives in criminology. Her biggest question mark was why the chapter of women and crime has been buried for such a long time and why there has been a failure to examine such an important issue. Most of her books and articles try to provide adequate aetiologies to all these question marks. Fortunately, things changed since the 1960s and feminism criminology was developed. As Heidensohn suggested in a metaphorical way, Like a wardrobe of new exciting clothes, a whole treasure generated in criminology. It offers us a great deal more to enrich our knowledge of women and crime. But there is much more on offer too.à [iii]à In other words, Professor Heidensohn held that even thought feminist criminology has been developed there are still many gaps and much more to be done. Thus, Heidensohn illuminated the path towards the understanding of female criminology. In the field of criminological study and most sociological research and writing, analyses of criminal women cannot be found before the 1960s. But even where they are considered, they are subject to marginalising and distorting treatment as Oakley noted in 1982à [iv]à or similarly as Klein suggested female criminality has often ended up as footnote to works on men that purport to be works on criminality in generalà [v]à . This lack of interest was really surprising in Heidensohns eyes.à [vi]à As Frances Heidensohn noted in an important early article on deviance, virtually no serious scholarship has been undertaken to explain the dramatic difference between male and female lawbreaking.à [vii]à Hence, this status quo, which was much more due to male dominance, impelled her to start an extensive research on the subject to provide sufficient answers to all these questions raised. What was central to her work was the amnesia and neglect of women in previous studies in crimi nology and the fact that even where women were recognised, they were depicted in terms of stereotypes and based on their supposed biological and psychological natureà [viii]à . Her major argument which she highlights in all of her books, articles is the necessity of exploring gender in terms of understanding crime. Her discussion was concerned with personal experiences and autobiographies of women offenders in relation to the courts, the law and the police. She strongly stressed that at all levels women have been treated differently than men and in some cases harsher. Under the provisions of criminal law, women are theoretically equal to men. Conversely, she underlined that in many cases the laws on prostitution, for instance, prejudice against women and in general there is tendency to over-sexualise female crime. Frances Heidensohn objected this attitude towards female crime. Prostitution was seen only as sexual deviance and not as the rational choice for some women who need the financial support for themselves and their children (Heidensohn, 1968, p.168)à [ix]à . Klein also shared this opinion. Furthermore, criminal laws and lawyers tended to apply stereotype notions of what a proper woman is and does and dual assumptions such as virgin and whore were made when dealing with female offende rs. Yet, Heidensohn did not criticise that and she recognised that one cannot divorce the law and lawyer from the society in which they operate with its enormous cultural heritage and traditionsà [x]à .Although she did argue about the too much mens world that existed, truly annoyed by the domination of men in administration as well as in the draft of legislation because of the implications that had on female offenders. Further, the courts even though women committed fewer and less serious crimes than men, were often harsher with women. According to Frances Heidensohn, there were several reasons that explained this stance by the courts. One of the strongest arguments that she made was that female criminals were considered to be doubly-deviant. Women criminals were very rare phenomena, a fact that biased the behaviour of the courts towards them. As Heidensohn had pointed out in one of her earliest presumptions, Women defendants therefore seem stranger and thus less comprehensible than men: they offend both against societys behavioural rules about property, drinking, or violence and also against the most fundamental norms which govern sex-role behaviourà [xi]à (Heidensohn, 1970, p.134). In other words, if they had been morally wrong, then they will be punished more; Courts and other agencies treat women as deviant twice over: they have broken criminal law and social expectations of proper female behaviour.à [xii]à In addition, the whole court procedure is something particularly bewildering, alien and unfair to female offenders.à [xiii]à While doing her research, Frances Heidensohn gave a great emphasis on the stereotype notions and the social standards that the society held for criminal women. In patriarchal societies, women were perceived as a source of disorder. Moral values and accepted social standards, especially in previous periods of time, rendered women subject to stricter rules. Moreover, the witch image as well as that of the whore seemed to be the key portrayals of the deviant women. The stereotype of witchcraft, which has always been linked to women, gave the idea of deviant women as especially evil, depraved and monstrousà [xiv]à . On the other hand, the tendency to sexualise the female offences portrayed them as whores. Professor Heidensohn argued that no such notions exist, equivalent to male deviants. On the contrary, male deviants either receive public approval-boys will be boys,- or are at least more positively portrayedà [xv]à . She continued her argument and she strongly criticized the ro le the media had overplayed in forming these ideas; male offenders in novels, films were presented as heroes, something that affected the public reaction and opinion. In reviewing traditional criminology and classical criminological writers, Heidensohn observed that female criminality was determined by their biology and psychology. Lombroso; the father of criminology, and Ferreros research, which focused on the meditation of the skulls, bones and appearance of female criminals, came to the conclusion that women deviants could be recognised by their physical appearance and they had very similar characteristics to male deviants. Women criminals like their masculine counterparts, had certain allegedly atavistic features, notably unfeminine features and built and dark masculine hair.à [xvi]à Additionally, they claimed that criminal women are abnormal. Following these lines, Professor Heidensohn found herself contrary to this presumption. She argued that his analysis of photographs of fallen women is as objective as adjudication in a beauty contest.à [xvii]à Furthermore, Lombroso and Ferreros theories did not provide us an adequate and precise understanding of female crime.What they did show us was the attempt to rationalise and justify the status quo, the existing position of women and the double standard of morals of their day.à [xviii]à Thus they did not draw away from the stereotype notions and the dual assumptions about women (good or bad, normal or abnormal). Deviant Womens experiences was a central method used by Frances Heidensohn and feminist writers towards the understanding of female delinquency; concentration on the researched and their experiences. Even though this methodology received much criticism (Ramazanoglu and Holland 2002)à [xix]à , Heidensohn and Gelsthorpe argued that close reading of feminist discussions ultimately reveal no fixed absolutes beyond the need for sensitivity in the research task, for personal reflexivity and commitment to make the research relevant to women.à [xx]à This methodology vested women the right to speak for themselves, their experiences, their feelings and thoughts. The technique of viewing the world through womens eyes was successful in making women visible in criminology and additionally created awomens world too. The concentration on womens experiences led to some crucial developments in female criminology and feminist contributions to criminology. Feminism standpoitism as Harding puts it (1987)à [xxi]à reflected the concept of viewing the world through womens eyes and encouraged both theoretical and personal reflexivity in relation to knowledge and the process of knowledge production through research.à [xxii]à However, the key aspect of focusing on the experiences of female criminals was that it rendered gender as the basis of understanding and interpreting crime and social conduct rather than simply as a statistical variable. As a synopsis of her study, Frances Heidensohn argued that what seems to be needed in the study of female deviance is a crash programme of research which telescopes decades of comparable studies of males.à [xxiii]à Also, she was consistent with what Mannheim recommended, who held that an objective and scientific approach should try to treat female crime as a topic in its own right.à [xxiv]à She therefore concluded in her book on Women and Crime that in order to gain understanding on women and crime other analyses such as family life, position and social control of women, male dominance should be taken into account. Arguably, she supported that this could not be achieved through feminist criminology or sociology of deviance.à [xxv]à Frances Heidensohns observations have not been subject to too much criticism as Lombrosos or other criminologists theories. However, some points that she did make were subject to debate and disapproval. Allison Morris was one of those who contravened with some of her presumptions. Her enantiosis was basically on the fact that the criminal justice system is a peculiarly alien an unfamiliar worldà [xxvi]à only for women. Morrison focused on the belief that criminal law is sexist in the treatment of deviant girls and women and she went on to say that such factors as race, family circumstances and commitments, types of offence and previous record all clearly mediate the treatment of both female and male defendants and may be that some of those factors are as important as gender, if not more so.à [xxvii]à Indeed, Heidensohn relied on this assumption; that sex is the most crucial aspect and that it is not only women who are being deprived in the criminal justice system. However, wh at Morrison strongly argued was Heidensohns failure to identify other groups of people who could be treated unfairly under the criminal system or the court could be biased against them and to whom the whole process might be unfamiliar and alien. Such groups of people, as Morris suggests could be for young black and working -class men or minorities.à [xxviii]à Finally, she pointed out that it is wrong to present womens experiences in the criminal justice system as a unitary experience. We know that black women are over-represented in our prisons. We need to be able to account for this.à [xxix]à In my personal opinion Morrison made a full disclosure of the reality; that minorities or black people or people of different social standards, could also be treated unfairly in court or could be subject to discriminatory wrongs. She made a very strong argument which did take into account and tried to defend other social and powerless groups and not only women, something that Heidensoh n failed to do. Moreover, that could be the basis for other perceptions that Heidensohn provided. This is the one of economic rationality or that of stigma. Consequently it is not only women who can be motivated by the economic needs to commit a crime; people of a lower class can commit crimes as a result of poverty; or it is not only women who fear the idea of being stigmatised by their offences. Carlen Pat also argued at this part that this stance could cause race or class conflicts. Finally, in general Carlen suggested that no feminism theory could offer aetiologies to three major issues concerning female delinquency; that womens crimes are in the main, the crimes of the powerless; that women in prison are disproportionately from ethic minority groups; and that a majority of women in prison have been in poverty for the greater part of their lives.à [xxx]à Synoptically, Frances Heidensohns contribution to criminology was enormous in relation to female offenders. It could be said as having two sides of a coin. Her research in conjunction with that of other feminist criminologists illuminated the path towards the understanding of the female deviance. However, even though they shed some light on it there are still some dark aspects. As Frances Heidensohn pointed out, the study of female deviance has still a long way to go. The most crucial drawback that I can identify in her work was the lack of consideration of other factors that could play a valid role in the field of understanding crime such as race, class, nationality, age and other social characteristics rather than only focusing on gender dimensions and giving privileges only to women.
International trade and restrictions such as tariffs
International trade and restrictions such as tariffs Introduction A tariff is a duty levied on a product when it crosses national borders. The most popular tariff is the import tariff, which is tax levied on an imported product. Most of the time, tariff is imposed for protection or revenue purposes. A protective tariff is designed to insulate import-competing producers from foreign competition. Though protective tariff is not indented to totally prohibit imports from entering the country, it does place foreign producers at a competitive disadvantage when selling in the market. A revenue tariff is imposed for the purpose of generating tariff revenues and may be placed on either export or imports. The important thing to be considered about tariff is who gains and who suffers. It means the impact of tariff on stakeholders. Government gains, because it gains revenue from the tariff. Domestic producers gain, because tariff protects them from foreign competitors. Consumers lose because they pay more. In general, two conclusions can be derived from the effect of import tariff. First, tariff is pro-producer and anti-consumer (domestic). While tariff protects domestic producer, at the same time it increases domestic price of the product. Second, Import tariff reduces overall efficiency of the world economy (large country). It reduces efficiency because protective tariff encourages domestic firms to produce more at home, but they can produce more efficiently abroad. The result is insufficient using resources. Besides, tariff raises employment in the protected industry (such as steel) by increasing the price of competing import goods. Industries that are primary suppliers of inputs to the protected industry also gain jobs. However, industries that purchase the protected product (such as auto manufactures) face higher costs. These costs are then passed on to the consumer through higher prices, resulting in decreased sales. Thus unemployment falls in these related industries. Tariff Welfare Effects (large country) http://internationalecon.com/Trade/Tch90/90img47.gif Source of: http://internationalecon.com, International Trade Theory and Policy Welfare Effect of Tariff Welfare Effects of Import Tariff on Steel Stakeholders Imported country Exporting country Consumer Surplus -(A+B+C+D) +e Producer Surplus +A -(e+f+g+h) Govt. Revenue +(C+G) 0 National Welfare +G-(B+D) -(f+g+h) World Welfare -(B+D)-(f+h) Source: Suranovic S. (2004), International Trade and Investment Policy, ch 90 Domestic Consumers The consumers are affected by the market price. High price will reduce the consumer surplus because tariff reduces the purchasing power of consumers. As it is mentioned in the table, consumer loses: (A+B+C+D). Domestic Producers Producers are also affected by the market price. An increase market price will lead to increase the supply, and producer surplus will rise. High price is an incentive for the producers to increase production. It is obvious from the table producer gains: +A Domestic Government The government receives revenue as government impose import tariff. Beneficial from the revenue depends on how government will spend it. + (C+G) Domestic welfare Domestic welfare is summing gains and losses of the stakeholders. As a result, the domestic welfare is positive. +G-(B+D). Tariff Effects on Exporting Countrys Consumers As a result of the tariff, export countys consumers are happy. The price reduction in the export countries increases consumer surplus. . A decrease in the market price will lead to an increase in the quantity purchased and a large consumer surplus. +e Exporting Countries Producers Tariff leads price falls in the exporting country and the producer surplus reduces. Production decrease because, demand for the product diminish as it mentioned above for the large country. (e+f+g+h) Exporting Countrys Government Export country gains nothing, as tariff has no effect on the revenue. 0 Exporting Countries Welfare As usual the aggregate welfare is the summing of the gains and losses to consumers and producers. The welfare of the exporting country decreases. (f+g+h) Tariff Effects on: World Welfare If small country imposes tariff, it does not affect the world price. Contrary, if large country imposes import tariff it reduces the world price of the product as the demand decrease. If the world price falls, it diminishes world production and consumption. So the world welfare reduces. (B+D)-(f+h) Bushs Steel Tariff Case of U.S. Background of the Case Steel has traditionally been a very important industry worldwide. Steel is an important ingredient and symbol of an economy. As a result, governments around the world are willing to be highly protective of their steel industry. Global consumption of steel rose from 28million tons at the twentieth century to 780 million tons at the end-an average increase of 3.4 percent per year. Source: Michael, R. Czinkota (2005), International Business, 7th edition, part 2, p137 America is one of the worlds largest steel producer and consumer. But 31 American steel producers went bankruptcy, because of the cheap steel import. In November 2001, the International Trade Commission realized that the U.S industry had suffered serious injury from imports. It recommended that president impose tariff from 15 percent to 40 percent, depending on the type of the steel. Substantial tariffs on steel imports would raise U.S domestic price and will boost the industry. Without protection, nearly 60,000 U.S steel workers can lose their jobs. Besides, there are many steel consumers, such as automakers and construction companies. Increase the price hurt the consumers businesses. Steel consuming producers argue that because of the high price, they would lose competition with foreign rivals. Imposing tariffs on steel imports goes against U.S trade liberalization and EU warned U.S. Making the Decision President George W. Bush faced difficulties. If he eliminated the tariff it would lead more domestic steel producers to bankruptcy. On the other hand if he did too much of the tariff, it would cause trade war with steel-producer countries. On 5th of March 2002, President Bush decided to impose 30 percent tariff on importing steel. President Bushs Steel Trade Remedy Program of 2002-2003 Tariff Rates Products year1 Year 2 Semi finished slab Plate, hot-rolled sheet, cold-rolled sheet 30% 24% Tin mill products 30% 24% Hot-rolled bar 30% 24% Cold-finished bar 30% 24% Rebar 15% 12% Welded tubular products 15% 12% Carbon and alloy flanges 13% 10% Stainless steel bar 15% 12% Stainless steel rod 15% 12% stainless streel wire 8% 7% Source: Robert, J. Carbaugh (2006), International Economics,10th edition, ch 4,p122 According to political, it was the most aggressive action take by George Bush in order to protect domestic steel industry. http://www.bized.co.uk/images/steel_tariff.gif Source: http://www.bized.co.uk/images/steel_tariff.gif Reactions As it was expected, the first reaction was by leading steel-producing countries. Americas largest trading partner EU also increased its tariff against U.S producers. But Japan, South Korea, Brazil and Australia promised to take the United States to WTO arbitration panel. Despite U.S officials protested that it was just temporary safeguards. According to EUs Trade commissioner, Pascal Lamy: The international market is not the Wild West where everyone acts as he pleases. German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder declared the Bush decision against free world markets, while French President Jacques Chirac called the move serious and unacceptable. The Major steel-Producing Countries, 2001 and 2000 Source: Michael, R. Czinkota (2005), International Business, 7th edition, part, p138 Russians said the tariff had a profound impact on the relations between the two countries. Russian official claimed that U.S hit a blow to one of the Russias major export industries. As a result, in March 2002, Russia began trade war between U.S as putting embargo against U.S poultry import as a reason of health concern. Impact of tariff on domestic market The Bush tariff provided some relief to U.S. steelmakers from cheap imports. But some cost-cutting occurred among steelmakers during 2002-2003: some producers merged and labor contracts were renewed. Large number of U.S. companies who use steel for production opposed against the Bush tariff. Chief executives of these firms noted that, tariff drove up their costs and imperiled more jobs across the manufacturing belt than they saved in the steel industry. President Bush found himself in difficult situation by opposing interests of steel producers and steel users. Removing Bush tariff After reviving the steel industry, Bush removed steel tariff in December 2003. He noted that the tariff provided steelmakers time for restructuring and regain competitiveness. But his removal of the tariff was primarily in response to the WTOs ruling. Impact of tariff on stakeholders However, both the issuing and the lifting of the tariffs caused controversy in the United States. All evidence points to the fact that the move seemed to have backfired as the price of raw material have risen, inadequate supply of these raw materials (steel scrap) leading to delivery delays, all of which are transferred to the consumers of steels (automobile manufactures) in form of high prices. In some cases, these steel consumers found it even cheaper to source from abroad, further cutting the steel market in the U.S. and eventually loss of jobs. Most of the car makers shifted their resource from steel to plastic. It left the consumers such as automobile makers to competitive disadvantage situation; because car prices were high and low quality (most of the parts were plastic). Steel scrap is an essential raw material for steel mills around the world. Mini-mills, which run on electricity instead of coal-fired furnaces, produce about one-third of the worlds roughly 900 million metric tons, and they rely exclusively on scrap steel. Nucor Corp. a Charlotte, N.C., a large U.S. steelmaker that operates electricity-fired furnaces, raised prices on its steel-sheet products by $40 a ton as rising demand gave it room to pass on rising raw-material costs to customers. Weirton Steel Corp. followed suit by adding a $25/ton surcharge to all its products. These price hikes has made U.S. steel uncompetitive in the global market. In addition, non-unionized and more efficient steel company (Nucor Steel Corp.), have as a result of the move, taken most of the market share from unionized companys operating old lines. The tariff also meant that Europe was bound to be flooded by the diverted steel, which was cause for concern. However, by 2002, whatever global steel glut that existed had vanished as a booming Chinese economy sucked in more steel imports, further undermining the American steel market. Hence, other foreign producers took the advantage presented by the emerging market s and kept the steel trade going while the U.S. suffered. Amid the fears of the tariffs imposed on steel imports, many in the U.S. regarded the move as wealth destroying and politically escapable. They argued that it did nothing to help the people it intended to in the short term and it failed to address the ensuing high costs, including legacy liabilities in health-care and pension benefits. The argument that the tariff gave the steel industry breathing space to adapt to a new market, has been viewed by some as the developed world version of the old infant industries line that has long been discredited by the Third World. In the global arena, the United States poised at the receiving end of retaliatory levies from Japan and some European countries. The Japanese threatened to impose retaliatory duties on a range of American products, from steel to gasoline and clothing if the U.S. did not drop the tariffs on foreign steel imports the WTO considered illegal. This move was intended to add $85 million a year to the price of American goods exported to Japan. Similarly, in August 2002, the WTO told the European Union it could impose some $2.2 billion in punitive tariffs on imports from the United States, ranging from textiles to pool tables and citrus products. Under retaliatory threat, the Bushs administration spent a good deal of time coming up with a package that would both avert a trade war and blunt criticisms from the domestic steel industry and its workers. The tariffs were lifted by Bush on December 4, 2003. The lifting of the 30 percent steel tariff was welcomed with applause although the administration indicated that it will still be monitoring imports in order to respond if cheap steel surges into the U.S. A major trade war was consequently avoided and within minutes of the announcement, the European Union had dropped its threat of retaliatory tariffs on $2.2 billion of U.S. products. Also joining the celebration were U.S. steel-consuming industries that had watched prices jump by more than 30%. An International Trade report found that in their first year alone the levies exacted a $680 million hit on the economy. Soon after the tariffs were lifted, steel prices in the U.S. rose. This continued through the first quarter of 2004. As of early April, 2004, steel warehouses saw no sign of significant in-bound steel from foreign shores that could drive the price of steel down to the level it had reached before Bush withdrew the tariffs. This indicates that U.S. steel producers may have imp roved its equipment and processes as intended, thereby, putting them at favorable competitive stance to trade steel within and outside the U.S. This can be improved more, if U.S. manufacturers reach a deal with labor unions in order to rid the industry of its legacy costs to employees. Though tariff saved about 60,000 of Americans who worked for steel using manufactures, it increased unemployment in steel consuming industries such as automobile manufacturers. Conclusion The lessons from this act of protectionism vary among individuals and groups of individuals. Indeed, some of the presidents political opponents, such as Representative Dick Gephardt, criticized the plan for not going far enough and some of the steel manufacturers advocated for more time and that tariff exemptions should not be made to countries, especially those that were threatening to impose retaliatory duties. The early withdrawal of the tariffs also drew political criticism from steel producers, as well as supporters of protectionism, but was cheered by proponents of free trade and steel importers. It is however, difficult to determine with certainty if President Bushs tariffs was the necessarily way to go. We have seen that while the tariffs have been somewhat restrictive, they have not fully prevented foreign steel from coming into the United States. In the global economy today where the tenets of free trade have been embraced by most nations, where nations are seeking ways of conveniently eliminating barriers to trade for the purpose of domestic and international economic emancipation the lesson learned is that protectionism will always backfire and it is in the best interest of the U.S. and other nations to stick to and defend the free trade principles.
Sunday, August 4, 2019
How Progress Makes Us Sick Essay -- Science Scientific Papers
How Progress Makes Us Sick By now, Im sure nearly everyone has heard of SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome). If youve watched all news channels like CNN or Fox News over the past month with their alternating images of people hurrying through airports wearing surgical masks and bombs exploding over Baghdad, youd think there were only two news stories worth reporting: the growing body counts created by SARS and the Iraq war. However the attention that has been focused on SARS has startled people rather than educated them about the disease. Lack of information leads to fear. According to J. Michael Bishop in Enemies of Promise: We live in an age of scientific triumph. Science has solved many of natures puzzles and greatly enlarged human knowledge. And the fruits of scientific inquiry have vastly improved human welfare. Yet despite these proud achievements, science today is increasingly mistrusted and under attack. The parade of frightening new maladies continues, each on confirming that our species, for all its cleverness, still lives at the mercy of the microbe. In May fifths issue of Newsweek, Geoffrey Cowley states: Many of the advances that have made our lives more comfortable have also made them more dangerous. Some thirty new diseases have cropped up since the mid-1970scausing tens of millions of deaths. What exactly is SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome? It is a respiratory illness that has recently been reported in Asia, North America, and Europe. SARS begins with a fever greater than 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit. Some others symptoms may include headache, an overall feeling of discomfort, body aches, and sore throat. After two to seven days SARS patients may develop a dry cough and have trouble breathing. S... ...the natural world. In consequence, we are admired but also feared, mistrusted, even despised. We offer hope for the future but also more conflict and ambiguous choice. The price of science seems large, but to reject science is to deny the future. Will there ever be an answer for SARS? Will there ever be a cure? Science is a process and I think that is what most people dont see. In order to make the right decisions, there is a process that scientists have to follow. Sometimes that process takes time. We cant unplug from what we believe, but we can meet somewhere in the middle and work together as a team. Works Cited Bishop, Michael. Enemies of Promise. The Presence of Others. Marilyn Moller. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2000, 237-243. Shih, June. A City Masked in Fear and Distrust. U.S. News. May 5, 2003. Cowley, Geoffrey. SARS. Newsweek May 5, 2003.
Saturday, August 3, 2019
Faulkners Human Spirit Essay -- Authors
William Faulkner accepted his Nobel Peace Prize in December 1950. During his acceptance speech, Faulkner proclaimed that the award was made not to him as a man, but to his lifeââ¬â¢s work, which was created, ââ¬Å"out of the materials of the human spirit something which did not exist before.â⬠(PF ) He felt that the modern writer had lost connection to his spirit and that he must reconnect with the universal truths of the heartââ¬âââ¬Å"love and honor and pity and pride and compassion and sacrifice.â⬠(PF ) Through his characters voice and exposure of their spirit, Faulkner solidified manââ¬â¢s immortality by ââ¬Å"lifting his heart, by reminding him of the courage and honor and hope and pride and compassion and pity and sacrifice which have been the glory of his past.â⬠(PF ) Although some critics have characterized his work as violet, dealing with immoral themes and the miseries and brutality of life; it can be argued that even his most sad and dep raved characters express positive virtues and personal strengths, even if by a negative example. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the portrayal and manifestation of the human spirit in a select few of William Faulknerââ¬â¢s literary characters, showing that they possess both human strength and flaws. So what is the human spirit and why is it significant? It is a somewhat indefinable concept. According to Faulkner the human spirit is the connection to the universal truths of the heartââ¬âââ¬Å"love and honor and pity and pride and compassion and sacrifice.â⬠(PF) But more than that, he was concerned with the idea that man had become oblivious to the problems of the spirit; that he lost his awareness of the inner struggle of heart in conflict with itself. The human spirit can also be described in terms of survi... ...., 1996. 209- 234. Utley, Francis L., Lynn Z. Bloom, and Arthur F. Kinney, eds. Bear, Man, and God: Eight Approaches to William Faulknerââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"The Bear.â⬠New York: Random House, 1971. Volpe, Edmond L. A Readerââ¬â¢s Guide to William Faulkner. New York: Noonday Press, 1965. Waggoner, Hyatt H. William Faulkner: From Jefferson to the World. Lexington: Univ. Kentucky Press, 1959. Wagner, Linda W., ed. William Faulkner: Four Decades of Criticism. East Lansing, MI : Michigan State Univ. Press, 1973. 139 Warren, Robert Penn, ed. Faulkner : A Collection of Critical Essays. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1966. . ââ¬Å"William Faulkner.â⬠William Faulkner: Four Decades of Criticism. Linda W. Wagner, ed. East Lansing, MI: MSU Press, 1973. 94-109. Webb, James W. and A. Wigfal Green, eds. William Faulkner of Oxford. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State Univ. Press, 1965.
Friday, August 2, 2019
Cognitive Development of an Infant and Toddler Essay
Piaget based the sensorimotor stage on his observations of his own children The Circular Reaction: a. Circular reactions are the means by which infants explore the environment and build schemes by trying to repeat chance events caused by their own motor activity. b. These reactions are first centered on the infantââ¬â¢s own body. Subsequently, they change to manipulating objects and then to producing novel effects in the environment. Substage 1: Reflexive Schemes ââ¬â a. Piaget regarded newborn reflexes as the building blocks of sensorimotor intelligence. b. At first, babies suck, grasp, and look in much the same way, no matter what the circumstances. Substage 2: Primary Circular Reactions-The First Learned Adaptations ââ¬â a. Infants develop simple motor skills and change their behavior in response to environmental demands. b. The first circular reactions are primary in that they are oriented towards the infantsââ¬â¢ own bodies and motivated by basic needs. Substage 3: Secondary Circular Reactions-Making Interesting Sights Last ââ¬â a. Circular reactions of this substage are secondary in that the infants repeat actions that affect the environment. b. Infants can imitate actions that they have practiced many times. Substage 4: Coordination of Secondary Circular Reaction ââ¬â a. Intentional, or goal directed, behavior is the combination of schemes to solve problems. b. Piaget regarded meansend action sequences as the first sign that babies appreciate physical causality. c. Object permanence is the understanding that objects continue to exist when they are out of sight; it is not yet complete in this substage. d. AB search errors are committed by infants in this substage. Infants 8- to 12-months-old only look for an object in hiding place A after the object is moved from A to hiding place B. Substage 5: Tertiary Circular Reactions-Discovering New Means through Active Experimentation ââ¬â a. Circular reactions in this substage are tertiary in that the infant repeats actions with variation-exploring the environment and bringing about new outcomes. b. Experimentation leads to a more advanced understanding of object permanence. Toddlers no longer make the AB search error. Substage 6: Mental Representation-Inventing New Means Through Mental Combinations ââ¬â a. mental representations are internal images of absent objects and past events. b. The toddler can now solve problems through symbolic means instead of trial-and-error. c. Representation allows deferred imitation-the ability to copy the behavior of models that are not immediately present. d. Functional play is motor activity with or without objects during the first year and a half in which sensorimotor schemes are practiced. e. At the end of the second year, representation permits toddlers to engage in make-believe play.
Thursday, August 1, 2019
Deviance, Labeling Theory, Secondary Labeling and their Effects On Society
Deviance can be defined as anything that flouts social norms and values. As an example we can take the Ten Commandments, that other than being a religious document is also a set of regulations to assist in creating a comfortable social climate for all people in a social environment. Simple laws such as not to steal, commit adultery, murder or abuse, are set in order to make sure that all involved are protected from possible harm. When one individual decides to break these regulations the balance is out of kilter.In this essay we will define and explain the terms: deviance, secondary deviance and labeling theory and attempt to ascertain their importance and effects within a social stratum. Deviance is, as mentioned above, a conscious disregard for the norms and values specifically designed to protect the public. Deviance is often seen in terms of juvenile delinquents who by means of deliberate or forced action break the laws that protect the public or community. Deviance takes its for m in a number of ways that are socially relevant such as drug abuse, rape, murder, theft and armed robbery.The father of labeling theory, Howard Becker believed, however, that sufficient rehabilitation of said criminals leads to another set of problems altogether. ââ¬Å"Being a ââ¬Å"criminalâ⬠becomes a person's master status. It controls the way they are identified in public. Others do not consider their other statuses ââ¬â that of spouse, parent, or worker ââ¬â only that they are first and foremost a criminal. â⬠In this instance, as Becker believes the identity of the person becomes that of a criminal immediately after they are found guilty and have a criminal record.The person therefore undergoes an identity change and a moral crisis. The concept of self becomes divided by the Me and I being shifted from an integrated whole, to two very different people. One person is the ââ¬Ëinherent goodââ¬â¢ and one is the ââ¬Ëpublic badââ¬â¢, yet they are the same person. If one looks at crimes such as gang violence, one sees a specific stigma, one of fear by the public and another of status by those involved. The need to belong becomes greater than the need to be right. Those that grow up without an effective social purpose (ie.Those that do not have parents or grow up in inefficient parental guidance) search for meaning elsewhere. Those that are not seen as acceptable by their general environment will almost certainly find acceptance in a gang or crime syndicate. This is because it grants them some degree of importance and power. These individuals derive power out of others fear. In terms of other abuses of status, rape is a particularly devastating form of deviance where debate surrounding public labelling can be touchy to say the least.A crime of this nature, regardless of the age of the perpetrator is one that is on the increase today. Theoretically, justice should seek to curb violent and deviant behaviour, but as Becker believes, it often undermines the rehabilitation process because once the individual has been labelled as a criminal they tend to be seen as such years after the punishment has been served and inhibits their ability to earn a decent, respectable income once they have left prison. It makes sense that when a convicted criminal applies for a job after they have served their sentence, the label of ââ¬Ëcriminalââ¬â¢ is already recorded.Naturally, the prospective employer is dubious as to whether to employ them or not. In relationships too, it becomes difficult for a spouse, friend or family member to trust the person again, leaving the convict alone and jobless. There is an immediate loss of self esteem, social concept, self-concept and value to society. Becker and his fellow symbolic interactionists believe that this is a self-fulfilling prophecy which is nearly impossible to break. More importantly, is the consequence of this labelling.As an example, we could use 11 September 2001, otherw ise known worldwide as Ground Zero, to illustrate a social problem such as labelling is responsible for. After the Twin Towers bombing, it became known that the perpetrators were Muslim fundamentalists and possible al-Qaââ¬â¢ida insurgents. Once this became known, Muslim mean were searched at airports and appeared to be discriminated against by general public. This is neither partyââ¬â¢s fault in the end, as fear is a defence mechanism that the public drew up in order to protect themselves from further threat.Also apparent though, is that not all Muslims are potential mass murders or are genocidal. The same becomes apparent on another macro-level with the Germans and Adlof Hitler. That not every German is a Nazi may momentarily have escape some families of victims. The real problem, however with labelling of deviants, is that since they are unable to regain social status and unable acquire employment, they are forced back into deviant behaviour. This is termed secondary devian ce. The self-fulfilling prophecy as mentioned before becomes apparent.With no job or social support, theft seems to be the first port of call in order to survive. In order to do this, the person may be forced to join another gang and the snowball starts to roll. It is extremely difficult to re-integrate a criminal with a record back into society, so where does the answer lie. If it were possible to change the attitudes of the general public, it could be the difference between an integrated society and a dysfunctional one. Unfortunately, there is no guarantee that the individual will choose to keep their name clear after they are released.In conclusion it can be seen that deviance, secondary deviance and labelling are all integral parts of societal functioning, but donââ¬â¢t necessarily yield any solution to the growing trend of deviant behaviour among juvenile delinquents. The process remains as follows: due to some fate of upbringing the person in initiated into a deviant form o f behaviour; they are labelled delinquents, criminals and rehabilitants; they are unable to change their status due to criminal record, so they revert to deviant behaviour in order to survive. It would seem that the only appropriate solution or cure for this deviant culture, lies in the upbringing.
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