Purchase Journal Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Purchase Journal - Case Study Example Less attention on the goods and products needed for daily use. This creates pressure on the budget and sometimes the expenditure is not well planned. If goods for day to day use are not bought regularly and in a planned way, serious problems in consumption patterns may arise. The individual has spending power, but he is reluctant to buy the food products, fruits, vegetables, detergent, etc. This may give rise to health and hygiene problems. In the case too much money is spent to buy branded goods, there will be no funds left for medical emergencies, sudden price hike, etc. The expenditure is already high, so funds are being exhausted rapidly. It is necessary to revise the present purchase pattern. If the present purchase pattern is maintained, it will simply lead to financial mismanagement. However, the problem appears to be at a preliminary state. There is too much tendency of buying expensive, branded goods (this tendency can be checked, of course). No plan for significant savings discernable. More attention is needed on the daily expenses. The daily expenses must be focused to obtain a quality diet. Bank deposits or suitable investments at small scale are a good savings option. There should be more planning for a more economic living. The plans may include proper fund allocation, stoppage of buying expensive and sometimes unnecessary goods, investment in saving scheme,

Ethnicity and Gender in Late Childhood and Adolescense Essay Example for Free

Ethnicity and Gender in Late Childhood and Adolescense Essay Abstract This paper focuses on an study that was conducted to examine the awareness of gender and ethinic bias along with gender and ethnic identity in late childhood and early adolescence. Data was collected on children in 4th, 6th, and 8th grades from various elementary and middle schools. The ethnic groups that were represented were White/European American, African American, an Latino. Daily diaries and individual interviews displayed that ethnic, gender, and grade level differences affected the awareness of bias ( Developmental Psychology, 2011). It was further proven that children in this age range were more aware of gender bias than ethinic bias. Keywords: gender identity, ethnic identity, bias During adolescent development a child’s need to be identified based ethnicity and/or gender becomes more prevalent and is further influenced by their peers. In addition, during this stage of development, social identity can have a deeper impact on intergroup attitudes. In the text, chapter 3 discusses gender schemas and how they evolve from being inflexible to flexible though the development of a human being (Wade Tavris, 2011). In the Development Psychology article, â€Å"Ethnicity and Gender in Late Childhood and Early Adolescence: Group Identity and Awareness of Bias†, 2011, psychologists, Alabi, Brown, Huynh, and Masten examined the awareness of gender an identity bias and its impact on the individuals/groups. The hypothesis is the possibility that children can be aware of one type of bias and oblivious to the another based on their group identity. The study was conducted with 350 students from three participating elementary schools and three middle schools in Southern California. The schools represented various ethnic/racial make-ups and socioeconomic statuses that included 67 African American, 120 White, and 167 Latino students. Two methodologies were used during this study, case study and naturalistic observation. The case study methodology as described by the text is the description of an individual based on their observation of behavior during a specified period (Wade Tavris, 2011, p. 18). During the first week the case study was conducted by each participant receiving a diary to document their assessment of what identity was most important to them. The approach was referred to as identity centrality and the children received an ethnicity and gender score based on the results. The second portion of this test, identified as the identity salience approach involved students documenting whether or not they thought about gender, ethnic, or no identity at all during each period of the school day. The results of this test revealed that 51% of the children mentioned ethnicity and 63% mentioned gender. Following this portion of the study, the students were assessed through individual interviews with the same ethnicity, same gender experimenter. To assess ethnic identity, the students were presented five items with opposing questions, in which they had to choose the statement that they most identified with. A similar assessment was conducted to determine the degree of their gender identity. The final results of these assessments revealed that 51% of the students were aware of ethnic bias associated with ethnic identity while 49% were unaware. The relationship between bias and group identity was determined by eight ethnic and gender identity measures to include: gender and ethinic identity, salience, centrality, positivity/importance of ethnicity, contentedness with gender, felt gender typicality, and felt pressure to conform to gender norms. Over 38% of the students felt positive about their ethnicity and felt content/typical with their gender. 26% percent felt that their ethnicity was not important and felt no pressure to conform to gender norms. 20% of the students felt that their ethnicity was not important but was discontent with the gender norms. Finally, 9% felt that their ethnicity was positive and important and were content with gender norms. In this study the awareness of gender and ethnic bias varied by age group. It comes as no surprise that children become more aware of gender bias than ethnic bias at a young age. As the text mentions, gender identity is discovered at preschool age in which the process of gender typing begins. This is where boys and girls begin to get in touch with their masculine and feminine characteristics (Wade Tavris, 2011, pg. 107). Ethinic identity creates a sense of emotional attachment to the group and the individual feels the need to conform to the values set forth (Wade Tavris, 2011, pg. 350). This study further showed that European American students were more aware of gender bias than ethnic bias. In middle school all students were equally aware of both biases but African american and Latinos were likely to be aware of ethnic bias in elementary school. The potential cause of this stemmed from belonging to a negatively stereotyped group which raised the earlier awareness. This showed that European American students were less likely to be targeted for ethnic bias ( Developmental Psychology, 2011). In early adolescence girls were more aware of gender bias than boys and could attest to being targets of discrimation. Conclusion The conduction of this study proved that children in late childhood and adolescence were more aware of gender bias than ethnic bias. In addition the results showed that children who were non European-American experienced and identified with ethnic bias at an earlier age. The limitations to this study was the demographics. This study was conducted in Los Angeles which has a very unique demographic because it is essentially a melting pot of ethnicities. The different socioeconomical factors and educational inequalities impacted the outcome of the results. Children in the poorest schools had more challenges to encounter in school than their peers in this study. These experiences molded their ethnic identities and the biases associated with it. During late childhood an adolescence development, group identity and intergroup relations became important factors. It is expected that this age group no matter the gender/ethnicity will witness or be a target of discrimination. Although legal segregation is a thing of the past, gender and ethnic bias can greatly impact society but the attitudes and beliefs of individuals can be contained through intervention. With intervention at the earlier stages of development, children can fully witness equality. Future research methods inspired by this article should focus on the data collected from various locations throughout the country. Keeping this research generalized to one location compromises the true validity of the study. New research methods will determine how different ethnicities identify with gender and ethnic bias. Other areas of concentration that should be included in this study are the workforce, judicial system and media/television. Successful results of these research methods can pave the way for some individuals to change their ideologies. These studies can impact the lives of everyday people and potentially unveil solutions to discrimination. As we become a more multicultural country, we must realize the importance of cultural awareness so that we can better interact with different ethnicities/genders. Parents should encourage their to children to foster positive relationships with their peers despite cultural difference. These solutions will alleviate the stereotypes associated with gender and ethnic identity. References Brown, C. , Alabi, B. , Huynh, V. , Masten, C.. (2011). Ethnicity and Gender in Late Childhood and Early Adolescence: Group Identity and Awareness of Bias. Developmental Psychology, 47(2), 463. Retrieved May 21, 2011, from Research Library. (Document ID: 2321539051) Wade, C. , Tavris, C. (2011). Invitation to Psychology, fifth Edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Comparative Study Of The Electoral Systems Politics Essay

Comparative Study Of The Electoral Systems Politics Essay A democracy cannot exist without elections which represent the will of the people, and elections cannot function without an electoral system that sets fair and transparent rules that govern the structures of elections. The study of electoral systems is a field of research that aims at analyzing the different electoral systems used in the world and how they put democracy into practice by making the different voters of the country represented in the parliament. A voting system can simply be defined as the procedures by which we cast votes and elect our public officials,  [1]  or that part of the electoral law and regulations which determine how parties and candidates are elected to a body as representative.  [2]  However, the importance of the electoral system lies in its consequences on the political scene of the country especially when choosing one type of electoral system over another, because electoral systems are, according to Sartori, the most speci ¬Ã‚ c manipulative instrument of politics.  [3]   In general there are twelve electoral systems that fall under three categories: majority, proportional representation and mixed systems. First, the voting systems that fall under the majority system are: first past the post, block vote, party block vote, alternative vote, and the two round systems. Second, under the proportional representation lie two systems: list proportional representation (List PR) and single transferable vote (STV). Third, the mixed system includes two systems: mixed member proportional and parallel systems. Finally, three other voting systems cannot be classified into one of the three systems mentioned above, there are: single non-transferable vote (SNTV), limited vote and borda count.  [4]  The main concern [of electoral systems] is [the] balance between decisiveness of government and representation of various minority views.  [5]  And sometimes, if not always, governments have to choose either one of these because of the difficulty of encompassing bot h those strong government and full representation in one type of electoral system. Regarding my thesis the two electoral systems that are important for my study are: list PR which is used in both Morocco and Algeria and SNTV which is used in Jordan. According to Samuel Huntington, the world has experienced three waves of democracy, the first one on the eve of the twentieth century until 1926; the second one emerged with the end of World War II until 1962 and the third one started in 1974.  [6]  The region of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) seems to be one of the few areas of the world where democratic waves did not arrive, or to be more accurate did not flourish, as there are few countries who are ranked by the Democracy Index of the Economist as either hybrid systems and many as authoritarian regimes. In the MENA region, few countries hold free and fair elections, among them are Morocco where proportional representation is used to elect the members of the parliament, Jordan, where the Single Non-Transferable Vote (SNTV) system is used and Algeria where proportional representation is used in parliamentary elections. However, in all these three countries the elections were characterized by low turnouts, invalid votes and boycott in addition to producing fragmented governments. The choice of those three MENA countries has to do with their similarities in terms of geography, culture, religion, language and their relative free and fair elections, according to international observers. On top of that, Having two kingdoms and one republic makes my comparison more interesting with Morocco at the focal point sharing similarity with Jordan in terms of the regime type and with Algeria in terms of the voting system. The objective of my thesis is to test two hypotheses: a) electoral systems in the MENA region are manipulated to produce fragmented governments and b) the geographical concentration of the vote for pro-regime parties in rural areas in contrast to the opposition base in urban areas. My thesis will compare the components of the electoral systems of the three countries and come up with patterns regarding the political party structure, the electoral reforms requested by the political parties and the elections results. Literature Review According to Andreas Schedler in his article The Nested Game of Democratization by Elections, electoral law can be used to prevent an eventual loss of votes from translating into a loss of power.  [7]  The major aim of the manipulation of the electoral system is the containment of its uncertain outcomes, therefore fair and free elections are allowed as long as the results can be predicted or controlled. In his book Rethinking Arab democratization: Elections without Democracy, Larbi Sadiki invented the terms electoral fetishism  [8]  and routinization  [9]  to describe the elections in the Middle East because their outcomes do not translate into major changes in society. However, even the manipulation of the voting system is not enough to guarantee an unsurprising outcome from the ballots as exemplified by the elections of 1991 in Algeria and 1989 in Jordan. The two cases of Algeria and Jordan show the autonomy of institutions exemplified by the electoral system that produ ces results that can either empower or weaken the candidates. So if the election results cannot be controlled they can at least be maneuvered to prevent a landslide victory of the opposition. Refraining from cancelling the result of elections is explained by the need of the regimes to obtain foreign aid and avoid international criticism. According to the author electoralism, being the creation of regimes, has become another state resource that the ruling elites use for legitimation purposes within and without.  [10]  The term electoralism refers here only to one of the three requirement of democracy; therefore having election is not enough for democracy to emerge. Therefore, the election`s main goal is to legitimate the regime and provide a way for the opposition to participate in the political life of the country but of course after guaranteeing its fragmentation. Moreover, According to Lise storm, a democracy is based on three core elements: holding free and fair elections, re specting civil liberties and strengthening the power of the elected government to govern. The aim of my study deals with the first core of the democratic principles, the free and fair elections which are instituted by the electoral law. Lise Storm stated that a country that provides for one of the three principles can still be deemed to be a democratic country, however if none of the principles is available then the country is authoritarian. Concerning the literature on the comparison of electoral systems in MENA, Ellen Lust-Okar and Amaney Ahmad Jamal analyzed the electoral systems in MENA, in their article Rulers and Rules: Reassessing the Influence of Regime Type on Electoral Law Formation. by differentiating between monarchies that prefer PR system in order to balance the strength of parties and republics that opted for plurality system in order to prevent the opposition from being elected. I will add the regime typology and election mode to make a pattern on the MENA that monarchies prefer proportional system while republics passed laws to enable the pro-regime parties to win a landslide victory. The article`s findings do not explain the use of PR in Morocco with more laws being passed to raise the threshold that will hinder small parties or the Jordanian change from a proportional system of plurality (bloc vote) to SNTV, which means one man one vote, which is supposed to reduce gerrymandering but did not. Many authors used the new institutionalism framework to analyze electoral systems. The theory is advanced by J. G. March and J. P. Olsen in their article The New Institutionalism: Organized Factors in Political Life. The theory is used in the field social science such as sociology and political science to account for the crucial rules of institutions in influencing the behavior of individuals based on norms, prohibitions or simply because an alternative does not exist. The basic aim of the theory is to prove that the organization of political life makes a difference,  [11]  which entails that those institutions are endogenous entities that benefit from an autonomy to exert its influence on individuals either by empowering them or confining their power. The institutions can be reinforced by third parties to exert actions that protect their interest without being in power. Andreas Shedler applied the theory of new institutionalism on the authoritarian regimes so that instead of ruling with coercive and undemocratic means; authoritarian rulers can use institutions to survive. The new institutionalism can be observed in four major ways: imperatives, landscape, containment, ambivalence. Regarding my study I will focus on the containment area regarding the electoral system and political parties. According to Shedler the electoral system can be manipulated by disempowerment or excluding sensitive areas from the hands of the elected officials; supply restriction which limits the choice available to the voter by banning, subverting or fragmenting certain parties; demand restriction by restricting the opposition access to the media; suffrage restriction by controlling the voting age ; preference distortion through the use of both violence such as intimidation and money such as vote buying; and vote distortion and rigging under the supervision of biased institu tions.  [12]  Regarding the legislative the manipulation includes disempowerment, agent control by directly appointing members of legislature and fragmentation.  [13]   My study will include the categorization made by the author and apply them to the three countries. The theory of new institutionalism will be useful to analyzing the electoral system in all the three countries and how the system influences the behavior of both the voters and candidates. The electoral system and constitution are institutions that have an immense influence on individuals. Who decides the winner from the loser in elections is not the regime nor the elections but rather the electoral system which has autonomy but it still can be manipulated. In the case of Morocco, George Joffe, in his article Moroccos Reform Process: Wider Implications, argued that the aims of the political reforms introduced by the regime were not due to external pressure or the triumph of the opposition to insert them, but rather to ensure the survival of the dynastic rule of the ruling family. As a result, the multiparty political system was adopted since the first constitution of 1962 to induce the political fragmentation in the country culminating in the hegemony of the palace over the political process of the country. Another interesting view of the Moroccan electoral system is by Andrew Barwig who argued, in his article How Electoral Rules Matter: Voter Turnout in Moroccos 2007 Parliamentary Elections, that the lower voter turnout in the election of 2007 was not only due to sociological factors but also to the electoral system as it produced an artificial and highly fragmented political landscape regardless of who wins the largest share of the na tional vote.  [14]  He pointed also to the aim of a multiparty system for the regime to divide and rule by preventing the emergence of a strong opposition, in addition to the role of the Ministry of Interior in controlling the electoral process since 1958 instead of assigning it to an independent commission. Third, John Grumm, the author of the article Theories of Electoral Systems, stated that the electoral system used in Morocco prevents a landslide victory of any party. The author indentified that the combination of largest remainder formula and gerrymandering induced a fragmented government and a situation whereby parties ended up with fewer seats compared to their amassed votes especially the major parties, In the case of Jordan, Glenn E. Robinson stated, in his article Can Islamists Be Democrats? The Case of Jordan, that the fear of the opposition, mainly the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan, had motivated the king to have an electoral system that favors tribal affiliation rather than partisan one. Moreover, the same scholar in another article Defensive Democratization in Jordan, affirmed that the new electoral system adopted in 1993 benefited the tribal areas, mainly Eastern and Southern Jordan at the expense of urban areas, mainly the region of Amman-Zarqa which is Palestinian-dominanted. The authors conclusion is that electoral systems can be managed and controlled to prevent undesirable outcomes. In the case of Algeria, Ayln Guney and Aslihan Celenk, in their article The European Unions Democracy Promotion Policies in Algeria: Success or Failure?, stated that the Algerian regime passed a new electoral system before the election of 1991 by increasing the number of seats and districts in rural areas. The basic aim of the changes was to allow the pro-regime party, FLN, to win the elections but ironically the electoral system benefited the Islamist party of FIS instead. Mohand Salah Tahi, in his article Algerias legislative and local elections: Democracy denied (1997), indentified the Algerian military as the institution in control of the political life exemplified by the creation of parties such as RND and introducing changes to the constitution and electoral system that would not challenge its authority. For instance, to pass an amendment to the constitution the opposition needs the vote of three quarters of the upper house, in which one third directly appointed by the preside nt. These laws exemplify the fear of the regime from creating the same outcome of 1991, therefore passing some amendments both to the electoral system and the constitution allowed the regime to be in a position to control and manage the outcomes of elections without the need to annul them. What emerges from the literature review concerns the criteria that define the fairness and freedom of election, having international observers and abiding by the electoral law make is it apparent that the elections are transparent but what if the issues that undermine the fairness of the elections relate to the electoral system itself. The literature reviewed above shows that Jordan and Algeria introduced two electoral systems in the early 1990s believing that they would be suitable for making the pro- regime party the obvious winner in the case of Algeria and tribal candidates in the case of Jordan. However, the outcome of the elections persuaded the two countries to adopt different electoral system: PR in Algeria and SNTV in Jordan. Regarding the case of Morocco the shift from Plurality into PR in 1997 did not produce surprising results therefore the electoral system was kept. So the question here is why did three countries diverge in terms of the electoral system used, especially regarding Jordan and Morocco? There is huge body of literature written about electoral systems arguing about the list PR as the most propositional system in terms of allowing smaller parties to be represented in the parliament, the high turnout due to the absence of the wasted vote phenomena in contrast to the plurality system, more representation for women and a higher proportionality between seats and votes. However, from the elections results in both Morocco and Algeria the PR did not produce the same results expected of the system exemplified by the low turnout, high invalid votes, a high threshold that prevents small parties from gaining seats in the parliament while the negative outcome of PR which is a fragmented government seems to be present in both cases. In the case of Jordan, the resentment of the SNTV system pushed many parties to ask for a reform debate with Islamic Front Action (IFA), an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood, asking for PR system and other parties asking for a mixed system. My thesis will analyse the abnormalities of the three systems that generated much discussion about the ineffectiveness of the voting system and the need to reform it. According to Andrew Reynolds , Ben Reilly and Andrew Ellis, the electoral system is the easiest political institution to be manipulated and the choice of the electoral system determines the winners. However, the usual distinction between Plurality and Proportional systems as the former encourages two party systems while the other induces multi-parties is not always accurate as many examples contradict these findings such as Spain, Namibia, South Africa and India.  [15]  This has to do with many variables besides the electoral system used such as the socio-political context of the country. Therefore, The electoral system cannot be seen in isolation of other political institutions such as the constitution, the political parties among other socio political variables, thus a PR system can have two different outcomes in two countries .The case of the three countries of Algeria, Morocco and Jordan have quasi-similar political context so the outcome of particular voting system will have the same effect based on the elections results in 2003 and 2007. Theoretical Framework According to   Gallagher and Mitchell: Government is representative government, in which the people do not govern themselves directly but rather delegate the task of political decision-making to a smaller set of public officials. In democratic societies these representatives are elected.  [16]  In order to understand how governments are elected, we need to understand the system that allows them to be elected which is the voting system: The set of procedures that determine how people are elected to office. These procedures include how the ballot is structured, how people cast their votes, how those votes are counted, and how the winners are decided.  [17]  The electoral system does not only determine how people are elected to the office but also serves as a link between the voter`s preferences and the policies of the government; at least, theoretically speaking, the majority of the voters will have their opinion respected in terms of the parties and candidate they elected.  [18]   Based on these two quotations, the electoral systems are accurate examples to assess democracy, because electoral systems can tell more about the country. Reynolds, Reilly and Ellis divided the different aspects represented by electoral systems into four categories: geographic representation, which means that the different regions of the country are represented in the parliament; ideological representation, which implies that all the different political doctrines are represented in the parliament and at least the minor, ones, can compete in the elections; party-political situation which denotes that power is not in the hand of one party while excluding other parties from participating in the elections;  [19]  and descriptive representation, which entails that its different ethnic, linguistic, religious and gender components are represented; or, as Reynolds, Reilly and Ellis put it, serves as the mirror of the nation.  [20]  My thesis will include those four categories to anal yze electoral systems of the three countries based on the parliamentary elections held after 2000. On top of that, I will also use the theory of new institutionalism with the framework of Andreas Schedler which will be useful in identifying the reasons behind choosing a particular type of electoral system and targeting the areas that were manipulated. Aims of the Study My aim is to explain that it is possible to have free and fair elections but that does not mean that the country is democratic as the elections are based on the choice of the electoral system that produces fragmented government through the use of such policies as rising the threshold, gerrymandering and requiring difficult measures to pass an amendment to the electoral law. My thesis will analyze the electoral systems in MENA region by identifying three case studies: Morocco, Jordan and Algeria. My aim is to study the development of electoral systems in those three countries; the reason behind choosing those three countries has to do with their similarities. All of those countries are newly-formed democracies that gained their independence or emerged as a state in the second half of the twentieth century: Jordan in 1946, Morocco in 1956 and Algeria in 1962. All those three countries share geographic, linguistics and religious similarities. According to the findings of Freedom Houses Freedom in the World 2009 Survey, the only free country in the MENA is Israel, while only 6 countries are qualified as partly free: Morocco, Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain, Lebanon and Yemen and the rest of the MENA is classified as not free. Another index that ranks countries in terms of their democracy is the Economist Index of Democracy which ranked Jordan, Morocco and Algeria a s authoritarian regimes. Based on these indexes, I chose two monarchies: Morocco and Jordan and adding one republic: Algeria. On top of that, while Morocco and Jordan share the same political regime, Morocco and Jordan share the same voting system. I want to prove that the lack of democracy in MENA is not due to cultural, religious or colonial history but rather to the manipulation of the electoral system to prevent a certain group from gaining majority, this manipulation is driven by the fear from the rise of the opposition such as the leftist and Islamist parties. My hypothesis is that the lack of democracy is not only due to the falsification of the election results but also by the manipulation of electoral systems. Therefore, even if the elections are organized in a free and fair environment with the presence of international observers, the electoral system used will prevent a group from attaining a majority. This hypothesis will back up my second hypothesis regarding the concentration of the pro-regime parties-vote in rural areas. The second aim of my thesis is to find the rationale behind the selection of a particular election mode by those three countries and the reasons behind its change, in addition to analyzing the di fferent amendments passed to the electoral system and reforms that are pressed for? Finally, my thesis will compare between the three countries to find if there are similarities in terms laws that fragment or exclude the opposition, the geographical concentration of the vote, the election results in terms of winners and losers, the turnout, the categorization of parties. The electoral system used in both Morocco and Algeria is PR (Proportional representation) while the SNTV is used in Jordan. The chart below identifies the different components of the electoral system of each country: Morocco Jordan Algeria Electoral System Plurality PR in 1997 Block Vote inherited from Britain SNTV in 1993 by a royal decree Absolute Majority Run-off in 1999 PR in 1997 Threshold 2% in 2002 6% in 2007 N/A 7% in 1997 5% in 2007 Quotas 10% women: 30 seats 6 seats for women, 9 for Christians, and 3 for the Circassian and Chechen minorities. Turnout (Latest Legislative Election) 2007 election 37% 2007 election 54% -80% in rural areas and 28% in some constituencies in the capital 2007 election 35% Invalid vote and blank vote 2007 election 19% 2007 election 15% Parliamentary System Bicameral: -The Chamber of Counselors: 270 seats. -The Chamber of Representatives: 325 seats. Bicameral: -The Assembly of Senators: 55 seats -The Chamber of Deputies: 80 seats Bicameral: -The Council of the nation: 144 members, 96 members elected by communal councils and 48 members appointed by the president. -The National Peoples Assembly: 380 seats. Political System Monarchy Monarchy Republic System of Counting the Votes Largest Remainder N/A Hare Formula Electoral Districts 2007: 95 2007: 45 districts -3 closed tribal electoral districts. 2010: 45 districts divided into 108 sub-districts 1997: 56 electoral districts : 48 and 8 for the Algerian Diaspora District magnitude Between 1 and 5 1 Ballot structure Nominal/categorical Nominal/categorical Reforms of the electoral law -2009: law number 9: from 110 to 120 Addition of sub-districts Constitution -1962 -1970 -1972 -1980: article 21, 43 and 95 -1992: increasing the seats of the parliament from 306 to 333 -1996: bicameral systems, 162 seats for the upper house indirectly elected, 81 by chambers of commerce and 27 by trade unions The 325 for the lower house directly elected. -1952 -1963: single party system -1976: socialism -1986: free market reforms -1989: multi party system -1996: banning parties formed under religious, regional or linguistic crtieria -12 November 2008: article 74 amendment and giving more rights to women Political parties categorization -Pro-palace: RNI, MP and UC -Conservative: PI -Leftist: USFP and PPS -Islamist: PJD -right: -Leftist: JCP -Islamist: IAF and MCP Pro-regime: FLN and NRD -Right: FNA -Leftist: PT and FFS -Islamist: MSP and MRI Voting Day Friday Tuesday Thursday Voting list closed N/A Closed Electoral reform asked for -Rising the threshold -changing the highest remainder formula -two systems: plurality in rural areas and PR in urban areas -PR -Mixed system: 2 votes one for the district and one for the bloc Number of independents -2002 -2007 -2003 -2007 -2010 -2002 -2010 Women representation in the lower house -34/10.5% (2007) -13/ 10.8% (2010) -30/ 7.7% (2007) By-elections The DesignMethods and Procedures   -Analyze the recent legislative election results of Morocco, Jordan and Algeria in 2002 and 2007. -Identify electoral systems as the independent variable while the outcomes are the dependent variables in addition to using correlation analysis to see if there is a relationship between those two variables. This will be helpful in testing the theory that PR systems produce fragmented governments and plurality systems produce strong governments. -Since my data is mostly qualitative, I will use nominal level of measurement. -do a simulation of the three recent elections using different electoral systems -count the wasted vote Hypotheses Voting systems are manipulated to produce fragmented government Votes supporting pro-regime parties are geographically concentrated in rural areas in contrast to the opposition which is based in urban areas Research Questions What are the differences and similarities between the electoral systems of Morocco, Jordan and Algeria? How representative are electoral systems in MENA? Is there a relationship between government type and electoral system? Is there a relationship between the electoral system and the turnout? Is there a relationship between the electoral system and the number of parties? Can we make some conclusions based on the case studies and apply them to all Arab countries? What is the electoral system that best suits the region of MENA? How is the dilemma of Strong and Well-represented government dealt with? Why is the lower turnout and invalid vote prominent in urban areas in contrast with rural areas? Partition of Thesis My thesis will be divided into five chapters; the first one will be about an introduction about the electoral systems and their importance in sustaining democracy. The second chapter will be devoted to the electoral systems in Morocco and the analysis of its recent legislative election in 2007. The third chapter will include the analysis of Jordans electoral system and its recent legislative election in 2007 and 2010. The fourth chapter is devoted to the electoral system in Algeria and its recent 2007 legislative election. The fifth chapter will serve to connect the three case studies by comparing their similarities and differences and making some concluding statements on the relationship between the type of electoral system, government type and democracy. Data Collection Primary Data Sources: The constitution, electoral law and the amendments passed in the three countries. The Moroccan and Algerian 2007 legislative election results and the Jordanian 2007 and 2010 legislative election results Geographical maps of the elections results Secondary Data Sources Interviews with some political parties in Morocco -analysis of interviews conducted with politi

Tim Obriens On the Rainy River Essay -- Tim Obrien On the Rainy Riv

Tim O'brien's "On the Rainy River" Tim O'brien's "On the Rainy River" is a true story told by a 41 year old of his life at the age of 21. The fact that O'brien is writing this 20 years later adds a new aspect to the story. He describes himself as a young man with the world in his back pocket. O'brien has just graduated from Macalester College and has a free ride to Harvard. Unfortunately, his storybook world collapses when he receives a draft notice for the Vietnam war, a war that he has "taken a modest stand against"(44) in 1968. Upon receiving his draft notice, O'brien was thrown into a world of what he calls "moral confusion"(44). As a 21 year-old, he follows every rule put forth in front of him, even though he says "he couldn't tolerate authority"(45). If O'brien didn't follow authority, though, he never would have been successful. This is one of the causes of his moral confusion. O'Brien has never had to make moral testing decisions in his life, like whether to face his family or to run to Canada. Another cause for his moral confusion was his stand on the war. He thought it was wrong for numerous reasons, such as not knowing why they were fighting. O'Brien would have gladly fought in a war that he believed in but the draft board didn't let him choose his war. All of these pressures came down to whether he would be the conformist of the past or believe in what he thought was right. All of the pressures built up and something inside of him cr...

Dramatic Intentions Essay

The play ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ is complex on various levels. Comedy is a key level of complexity. I would focus on comedy associated with slapstick, this would aid in the development of my key dramatic intention of a victim theme. Examples of this theme can be found throughout the play but I am going to concentrate on Act 3 Scene 1. This is the scene were the mechanicals enter the wood. I feel slapstick would help aid the other comedy elements in this scene. Bottom’s misuse of language, wit and physical comedy will also feature highly in this scene. When staging the play, I would use an apron stage; this would establish a closer actor/audience relationship. It would also allow me to use a backdrop, yet bring the action nearer to the audience. This would also help create a more intimate atmosphere and aid in creating tension. My backdrop would be dark, using, browns, olive greens and black. I would use these colours in the form of huge tree trunks with olive green leaves; the black would fill the gaps and help create the idea of night. This would also add to the tension, as the mechanicals would be anxious of entering the wood. For the lighting, I would have it simple yet effective. I would wash the thrust in plain white, with a slight yellow/straw colour. I would want this to remain quite dim, but bright enough so that the audience could still see the action. With this lighting the actors are in the middle of the light, then surrounded by darkness, this would also help create tension as it would symbolise how the actors don’t know what surrounds them, and can only see in the area which they are rehearsing. To light the backdrop, I would use, batten floodlights to give a dim, but general wash. I would use green and purple; these colours would represent the fairy world, magic and a fantasy element, as the light is not from a natural source. I would have my mechanicals dressed in browns. I would use different browns but keeping them all similar. I think of the mechanicals as being dressed rather scruffily to represent their class and place in society. Bottom however would be dressed slightly differently. I would have Bottom in a suit, with a different jacket and trousers. I think this would convey his trait of his false sense of seniority. The other mechanicals, although wearing trousers and shirts, would wear brown, smocks/cloaks as no characters other than Bottom and Quince distinguishable from the group. There would be a suspended ‘fairy bed’ for Titania in the middle of the stage. This allows her to be onstage, but away from the action so she is not noticed until needed. I would highlight her presence with a pink light on her. The suspended platform would be draped in white material with flowers interwoven. This shows how she relates to nature. In the begging of Act 3 Scene 1 when the mechanicals enter, I want to establish some tension, but then break it suddenly with comedy. To do this, when the scene is set, I would have to actors walk on together huddled in a group. Bottom would be at the front of the group, leading the way. Although he is leading he would be cautious. The actor would keep his facial expression smirking nervously, with his eyes always moving and searching. The remaining mechanicals would look petrified and hold onto each other desperately, constantly looking round and moving closer together for reassurance. To help with the tension, I would add sound effects of twigs snapping when stepped on, and animal noises such as an owl. When the characters hear these sounds, they would look round with complete terror on their face and move on, slightly quicker then before. As the actors reach the thrust, they would form a rough line, and then push Bottom forward, then running forward to him when realising they have no one at the front. All the characters’ speech would be delivered rather nervously, but Bottom although nervous, would speak in an authoritive tone. When discussing the killing scene and the lion scene, the characters would be taking it very seriously, not considering the fact that they lack the experience or talent to fool the audience. Although this would not get an audible response from the audience i. e. a laugh, this would be designed to entertain the audience because of the characters’ nai veti. ‘†¦ that I Pyramus, am not Pyramus, but Bottom the Weaver’ The audience would find this particularly amusing when the actors sit to rehearse their play. While they are concerned they will be too convincing, Bottom and Flute both pronounce words wrong and must be corrected. To emphasise the word misuse from Bottom ‘†¦ For there is not a more fearful wild fowl, than your living lion†¦ ‘ and ‘ †¦ saying thus, or to the same defect†¦ ‘ the characters would have a puzzled look on their faces as Bottom continued their speech. The fact that no character corrects may show their ignorance or respect for him. Through out the scene up to ‘Come sit down every mother’s son†¦ ‘ the characters would be nervous but at this line they would become more easy in their surroundings, yet still nervous. This then helps with the irony of what happens next. As the characters become less afraid, puck enters unseen; the audience then know something comic will come soon. I find interpreting Puck as being dark and manipulative helps enforce the slapstick comedy in this scene, as he chooses victims for his amusement. I see Puck as small in height, mainly due to the way he walks, crouching low to the ground. He has very dark eyes but the white of his eyeballs stand out brilliantly. Puck has a tendency to rub his hands, which gives him a sinister air. With his line when Pyramus exits ‘†¦ I will to thee appear†¦ Puck: A stranger Pyramus than e’er play’d here†¦ ‘ the audience know Puck has selected Bottom as his victim and wait to see how he will amuse himself. When Bottom and Puck enter again would use slapstick for the mechanicals reaction. Bottom would enter from behind the actors so the audience could react first, Bottom would then deliver his line confidently, and over acting. The mechanicals then recoil towards the wings, falling over each other, the faces displaying the same fear the audience saw at the beginning of the scene. With Bottom left on his own, he becomes very nervous. The stage would then transform and I would add a slight purple wash on the thrust of the stage by using maybe a par can or single flood. This shows the audience that there’s a change in atmosphere and prepares them for something to happen. When Bottom nervously sings the bed would lower. There is irony in Titania’s line ‘What angel wakes me from my flowery bed? ‘ The audience know Titania has the juice on her eyes and that to her she is being serious. I would again use the word play in Bottom’s song ‘†¦ and dares not answer nay’ on nay the character would whiney like a donkey. This is wit and should make the audience to laugh, as it is visual also. In conclusion, I am using comedy to amuse and entertain the audience, but also it helps with the theme of victims when using slapstick. I find that when comedy if I use it to it’s full potential and bring the comedy to a high, the following scenes would have a greater impact on the audience. The following scene is Demetrius scorning Helena, which if performed well can bring the audience to a low. The scene could be so moving, the audience feel guilty for laughing at and enjoying the previous scene. The audience could then relate to the victims in the play, as they would feel that they have been a victim of guilt themselves. This is what I would hope the audience would get from my performance.

Alternative Meanings for Names of the Head and Its Parts

Alternative Meanings for Names of the Head and Its Parts Alternative Meanings for Names of the Head and Its Parts Alternative Meanings for Names of the Head and Its Parts By Mark Nichol The head and its components, so prominent in our awareness, inspire us to use their names for other meanings. Here are ten words, including head, with their additional connotations. 1. Brain: intellect or the mind, someone considered very intelligent, or something considered the inanimate equivalent of an organic brain; as a verb, to strike someone on the head 2. Brow: a projecting browlike feature, especially at a height, or one’s demeanor or expression 3. Cheek: something similar in form to a human cheek, especially as one of a pair (including, informally, a buttock), or insolence or self-assurance 4. Face: a side or surface, or outward appearance or a facial expression, or confidence or insolence; also used in idioms such as â€Å"save face,† meaning â€Å"to preserve one’s dignity†; as a verb, to stand in the direction of something, or to confront or deal with something 5. Head: the mind, a person in the sense of that person’s mental abilities (â€Å"Wiser heads prevailed†), or natural ability or talent, or one of a number of things, including people, a director or leader, a place of authority or honor, an enthusiast or a drug addict or user, a crisis point, a higher or upper end of an object or one opposite its foot, the source of a stream, creek, or river (also called the headwaters), or a reservoir of water or the structure containing or restraining it, or a moving body of water, the end of a plant, especially with compact fruit or leaves, or the front of a line of moving things; as a verb, to lead or to go toward 6. Jaw: a friendly conversation, or something resembling a jaw, as the side of a narrow passage or an implement for crushing or holding, or, figuratively, in plural form, a threatening situation (â€Å"the jaws of death†); as a verb, to converse in a friendly fashion 7: Lip: something resembling a lip, as an edge or a rim of an object, the use of lips and other mouth parts in playing a musical instrument or the instrument’s mouthpiece, or impudent talk 8. Mouth: a mouthlike entrance or opening, a grimace or other unpleasant expression, speech or voice, impudence or verbosity; as a verb, to pronounce or speak, or to move the mouth as if speaking without making sounds 9. Skull: the mind or brain 10. Tooth: an object resembling a tooth in form or function, or a projecting part of a tool used for cutting or for pushing another part, liking or taste, effective enforcement, or something destructive. Alternative meanings for the names of the facial sense organs, as well as skin, are treated in this post. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:How to Format a UK Business Letter50 Diminutive Suffixes (and a Cute Little Prefix)20 Movies Based on Shakespeare Plays

Roman Empire

During the time of the Roman Empire the Roman military was a very powerful military war machine(Nardo 259) that conquered most of the known world of that time. The Roman military of the Empire was the best-structured, organized, and maintained military through 31BC-400AD. According to the size of the Roman Empire, which was about 50 million people, the military was relatively small. The Roman military consisted of three main branches: the legions with the auxilia, the Praetorian Guard, and the fleet. Each branch of the Roman military had its own distinct features, which made them different than the others. Due to its structure and leadership it became the greatest power in its time. The units called legions formed the core of the Roman army. During the first three centuries of the empire the army contained no more than 25 to 34 legions. Each of these units consisted of about 5000 to 6000 men recruited among the citizen body. The legion was subdivided into ten regiments know as cohorts and these cohorts were grouped again into centuries(Mills 418). A centurion who was appointed by the emperor commanded each century. Although the soldiers of the legion were Roman citizens, this did not mean that they were born in Rome. With the rise of population through the conquered territories provincials quickly became the most important source of new recruits for the auxilia. Roman legionary soldiers generally enlisted for a term of twenty years and on the date of discharge legionaries were given 3,000 Denarii in addition to land for retirement. Most discharged legionaries regularly settled in colonies throughout the empire.The legions were miniature armies that containe d within its rank troops trained and equipped to perform all kinds of different duties both on and off the battlefield (Tingay 312). Although the vast majority of soldiers served as heavy infantry, other legions fought as cavalry, arche...

Electron Definition in Science

Electron Definition in Science An electron is a stable negatively charged component of an atom. Electrons exist outside of and surrounding the atom nucleus. Each electron carries one unit of negative charge (1.602 x 10-19 coulomb) and has a small mass as compared with that of a neutron or proton. Electrons are much less massive than protons or neutrons. The mass of an electron is 9.10938 x 10-31 kg. This is about 1/1836 the mass of a proton. In solids, electrons are the primary means of conducting current (since protons are larger, typically bound to a nucleus, and thus more difficult to move). In liquids, current carriers are more often ions. The possibility of electrons was predicted by Richard Laming (1838-1851), Irish physicist G. Johnstone Stoney (1874), and other scientists. The term electron was first suggested by Stoney in 1891, although the electron was not discovered until 1897, by British physicist J.J. Thomson. A common symbol for an electron is e-. The electrons antiparticle, which carries a positive electric charge, is called a positron or antielectron and is denoted using the symbol ÃŽ ²-. When an electron and a positron collide, both particles are annihilated and gamma rays are released. Electron Facts Electrons are considered to be a type of elementary particle because they are not made up of smaller components. They are a type of particle belonging to the lepton family and have the smallest mass of any charged lepton or other charged particle.In quantum mechanics, electrons are considered to be identical to each other because no intrinsic physical property may be used to distinguish between them. Electrons may swap positions with each other without causing an observable change in a system.Electrons are attracted to positive-charged particles, such as protons.Whether or not a substance has a net electric charge is determined by the balance between the number of electrons and the positive charge of atomic nuclei. If there are more electrons than positive charges, a material is said to be negatively charged. If there is an excess of protons, the object is considered to be positively charged. If the number of electrons and protons is balanced, a material is said to be electrically ne utral. Electrons can exist free in a vacuum. They are called free electrons. Electrons in a metal behave as if they were free electrons and can move to produce a net flow of charge termed an electric current. When electrons (or protons) move, a magnetic field is generated.A neutral atom has the same number of protons and electrons. It can have a variable number of neutrons (forming isotopes) since neutrons do not carry a net electric charge.Electrons have properties of both particles and waves. They can be diffracted, like photons, yet can collide with each other and other particles, like other matter.Atomic theory describes electrons as surrounding the proton/neutron nucleus of an atom in shells. While its theoretically possible for an electron to be found anywhere in an atom, it is most probably to find one in its shell.An electron has a spin or intrinsic angular momentum of 1/2.Scientists are capable of isolating and trapping a single electron in a device called a Penning trap. From exam ining single electrons, researchers have found the largest electron radius is 10-22 meters. For most practical purposes, electrons are assumed to be point charges, which are electrical charges with no physical dimensions. According to the Big Bang theory of the universe, photons had sufficient energy within the first millisecond of the explosion to react with each other to form electron-positron pairs. These pairs annihilated each other, emitting photons. For unknown reasons, there came a time when there were more electrons than positrons and more protons than antiprotons. The surviving protons, neutrons, and electrons began to react with each other, forming atoms.Chemical bonds are the result of transfers or sharing of electrons between atoms. Electrons are used in many applications, too, such as vacuum tubes, photomultiplier tubes, cathode ray tubes,  particle beams for research and welding, and the free-electron laser.The words electron and electricity trace their origins to the ancient Greeks. The ancient Greek word for amber was elektron. The Greeks noticed rubbing fur with amber caused the amber to attract small objects. This is the earliest recorded experimentation with electricity. The Engli sh scientist William Gilbert coined the term electricus to refer to this attractive property.

Islam and Secularism in Turkey Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Islam and Secularism in Turkey - Essay Example The provision which declared that the religion of the state was Islam was removed through the constitutional amendment. A great percentage of the citizens in Turkey subscribe to Islam. However, the current constitution which came into effect in 1982 does not recognize or promote an official state religion, including Islam (Kuru 28). Secularism in Turkey did not strictly advocate that the state and religion be separated. It simply describes the stance of the state as one that supports dynamic neutrality. Turkish position on religion and its relationship with the European Union has caused some issues with how it relates to the West and the East. Turkey’s history of secularism can be traced back to the Ottoman Empire (Kuru 56). During this period, the toleration of diversity was a major issue for country’s the administration. The beginning of secularism in Turkey is said to have been very dramatic as it negated the Islamic system of the Ottoman Empire. Islamists spent the entire 20th century opposing

Critically appraising the superman Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Critically appraising the superman - Essay Example A different kind of hero, however, is also frequently found in the comic books, graphic novels, and silver screens of the world-the "not-so-super hero." Some heroes, such as DC Comics' Batman, have no super powers at all. Rather, they combat injustice and fight on in the war against crime by more conventional means. Batman, for instance, is a well-trained fighter whose powers are derived from his unwillingness to give up, his uncommon, but not impossible, physical capabilities, and his commitment to righting the wrongs that cost him his own parents. Heroes such as Batman are just as alluring for the avid comic book reader, the graphic novel enthusiast, and the average dreamer because his success in crime fighting, his superheroism, in fact, is absolutely attainable. This hint of reality and touch of hope has put millions upon millions of children and adults squarely in Batman's corner as he persists against the injustices in Gotham City to protect the innocent. Two specific graphic novels, both released by DC Comics, present both the super and non-super version of comic book heroes for the enjoyment of fans everywhere. The first graphic novel, Moore and Gibbons' Watchmen (1995), is a collection of comic books about a world on the edge of nuclear warfare, where superheroes have ceased to enjoy the public support of the past. In fact, in this story, superheroes are distrusted and dismissed as untrustworthy, especially since it is difficult to keep them in check and watch for suspicious behavior among them. As such, the heroes in the book, who are notably without real superpowers-Dr. Manhattan is an exception to this rule-find themselves distrusted and practically underground since public sentiment removes them so far from their favor. This graphic novel masterfully exposes the human aspects of the superheroes, including their struggles with the same issues grappled with by the average human being. Public distrust of the heroes is magnified with graffiti written on the walls throughout the book posing the question "who watches the watchmen" (Hughes 546). It is important to point out that, in The Watchmen, thought bubbles were not used at all, leaving only an objective perspective for the reader and eliminating the thought bubble clarification style that is so common in comic books. While this is more widely used today, this piece was seminal in its use of such a technique. All the superheroes in this story experience real-world problems throughout the unfolding of the plot, and several are captured, even succumbing to psychiatric testing. As the doomsday clock continues to tick toward the end, the heroes' ability to tap into the ordinary in the realist piece of comic history sets the story apart from so many of the average superhero comics and graphic novels that are available for readers to devour. The other graphic novel for consideration, Wade and Ross' Kingdom Come (1997), involves a surprising similar set of themes as those found in Moore and Gibbons' work. Like The Watchmen, this graphic novel deals with a situation in which many people believe the Apocalypse is imminent. The story is full of a new type of superhero. These superheroes are younger, less moral, and more willing to do whatever is necessary to

Adding Customer Value to Your Financial Prganisation for Competitive Essay

Adding Customer Value to Your Financial Prganisation for Competitive Advantage - Essay Example Background Financial institutions are increasingly facing a complex environment which directly relates with the competitive environment in the industry. The current financial crisis has relatively shaken the confidence of many in the viability of financial institutions and as such doing business in such an environment is really a challenge task. One of the most important ways through which any institution including financial institutions can compete and withstand the difficult economic situations is to develop its core competencies and create competitive advantage. One of the most important ways through which it can be achieved is the delivery of customer value to the customers of our organization. This could be helpful in order to allow the bank to actually lock in the existing base of customers while at the same time ensuring that new customers are also attracted.( Bill, 2003) To create a value for the customers, an organization however, have to incur the costs in order to ensure t hat the value delivered to the customers outpaces the cost incurred on generating such value. Resultantly an organization also develops its competitive advantage in order to become relatively stronger as compared to the competition. It is critical therefore that the customer value is generated to achieve the competitive advantage. ... In order to achieve this, there are real chances that the overall customer value may decline as the increasing cost pressures as well as liquidity crunch may force many banks and financial institutions to generate new avenues to achieve profitability. For any firm, its current base of customers is considered as one of the most valuable assets to care of and as such it is critical to understand that delivering value to the customers can be one of the key drivers of growth in an economy which is on decline. It is important therefore that strategic direction must be set to ensure that the delivering value to the customers is integrated with the generation of competitive advantage for the firm.( Shirley, 2000) Financial organizations are also relatively more regulated as compared to other industries therefore working in an environment which is heavily regulated requires innovativeness and creativity to develop and market products and services which can cater to the different needs of the customers while at the same time generating the relative value for the firm also. It is therefore critical that when an organization delivers customer value, the same must also result into the increase for the firm value too. Translation of the customer value to the firm value therefore is critical for manages to ensure because once competitive advantage is generated, it is important that the same must also develop into the firm level value for the firm. Commonwealth Bank’s effort to generate customer value and subsequent generation of competitive advantage therefore must result into the increase in the value for its shareholders and investors. Generation of

Voting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Voting - Essay Example Therefore, the other option is indirect democracy. In indirect democracy, people vote to choose representatives, and the representatives then take decisions to govern the country. Similarly, the United States of America is an indirect democratic country. In the country, to elect a president people cast their votes. Nonetheless, there are some issues regarding the voter turnout. A low turnout rate has become a dilemma for several past decades. Thus, the claim to become a role model for the rest of the world has become almost shattered. It is evident that the turnout was policy-based, which affected the election of 1988. Thus, in an election we may discern a link between the policy preferences of individuals and their voting ratio. Definition of voter turnout First, we will have to define a voter turnout. Voter turnout refers to the overall number of people who cast their vote in any election. The turnout, generally, exhibits with percentage; however, there are other methods to ascerta in the turnout rate of voters. The most general way to evaluate turnout of voters is counting the overall number of votes. This method is known as Total Vote. Obviously, this is the most direct way to count the vote and measure the turnout. However, this method has some setbacks; for example, it counts all votes whether valid or invalid (Pintor et al., 2002). In addition, the method is unable to supplement comparison aspects. The residency requirement for new citizens after that they would be able to cast a vote is another reason for a lower turnout. In 2003, the issue of new residents arose in 44 states. However, these requirements of residency have been set to 30 days before the federal election, yet there are still chances that several eligible voters would not be able to cast their votes (Patterson, 2009). The Election of 1988 in United States In the 1988 presidential election, the voter turnout was 50.1%. The turnout was lower than the standards of American presidential electio n. They were several reasons for the lower turnout, which will be discussed latter on; however, the present question is who suffered due to the low turnout, George Bush (Republican) or Michael Dukakis (Democrat). The statistical calculations exhibit Dukakis was going to win the election of 1988 if the individuals took part fully in the elections. Most of the individuals who remained unmoved during the elections were the supporters of Democrats. Briefly, one can observe the Republican had the advantage of low turnout of votes; thus, it can be concluded that the election of 1988 – specifically, its result – was not the real picture of the preferences of people. In this regard, in the current paper Radcliff’s aggregate study on the presidential elections from 1928 to 1980 has been examined to evaluate the American National Election of 1988. It has been identified in the current study that the minimum turnout shows harmful results and suggests encouraging voters to take part in voting. Citizens should understand that their votes are a representative of their choice. The lower turnout of the voters has become a significant debatable issue in American society. Moreover, researchers and scholars are being pressurized to find out the real reason of individual voter absentees. In addition, a significant relation is found between Democratic vote division and turnout (DeNardo, 1980). Furthermore, in presidential elec

Virtualization Across the Board Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Virtualization Across the Board - Assignment Example ehensive performance metrics was done on an environment that had 38 physical servers, and x-servers that were providing a variety of services like running an oracle database. On analysis, it was realized that some servers were used constantly while others were idle for some large amounts of time. This research has therefore been able to highlight some hardware was inefficiently used, and thus proved some worthy points on the advantages of using hardware virtualisation as discussed below. On cost management, the study proved that cost savings could be increased by using some of the virtualization products offered by Oracle. In this case, the number of physical servers could be reduced from 38 to 10 (sagelogix, 2011). This reduction in physical servers would therefore ensure that management of the systems would be easier. Cost would be taken into consideration as the reduction of the physical servers would ensure that the data centre would reduce in size by 78%. This would additionally save on costs through reduced electricity bills, space bills and requirements for cooling. Managing of the system would be simplified by the above factors. Cost of licensing all the servers would also be greatly reduced (sagelogix, 2011). It is thus wise that hardware virtualization is a real business asset. The system architecture which then becomes homogenously interconnected would greatly improve the scalability of the system. This would be due to the fact that it would be simpler to load applications through the Oracle Virtual machine, which is highly available, at no additional costs in terms of hardware and software. A uniform architecture and a uniform operating system would easily improve the management of the system (sagelogix, 2011). Software virtualization is double edged. It has brought quite some changes in the way businesses run their trade and improved their services, and at the same time has had an impact on the way vendors licence their wares. According to Greenward

Goal Attainment & Social Responsibility Critique Essay

Goal Attainment & Social Responsibility Critique - Essay Example Many people assume that they know how to set goals for a better life. However, very few people understand the importance of setting goals and put it in practice. It is only about 20 percent of people who set effective goals and pursue them. This group mostly involves those people who are involved in business or other entrepreneurial activities that promotes goal setting. More worse is that, though these people set small and easily attainable goals only about 30 percent of them do achieve their goals. This makes one wonder how anyone can achieve anything remarkable in business or in life. Goals can be categorized as ‘be’ goals or ‘do’ goals. ‘Be’ goals are about what one wants to be while ‘do’ goals are about what one wants to do. In each category there are four areas of goals: wealth, health, relationship and self-fulfillment. Any goal will fall into one of these categories. When business professionals set goals, they are either wealth or relationship goals. Achievement however will involve the four areas there should be a balance in the four areas. In order to be successful in life one needs to have both ‘be’ and ‘do’ goals. However, when setting any goal it is advisable for one to identify the traps to avoid as he will be pursuing the goal. There are a number of reasons that hinder people from achieving their goals as they will be discussed in this essay (Tracy, 2004) Some people fail to achieve their goals because of fear of failure or even fear of success. Those who fear to fail feel that if they set goals and then fail to achieve people will think negatively about them. This makes them to fear to take even the first action towards the goal. Some also fear that if they succeed people will be jealous and think negatively about them. So this creates lose-lose situation, no matter how much effort they put. Achieving the goal has a

Voting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Voting - Essay Example Therefore, the other option is indirect democracy. In indirect democracy, people vote to choose representatives, and the representatives then take decisions to govern the country. Similarly, the United States of America is an indirect democratic country. In the country, to elect a president people cast their votes. Nonetheless, there are some issues regarding the voter turnout. A low turnout rate has become a dilemma for several past decades. Thus, the claim to become a role model for the rest of the world has become almost shattered. It is evident that the turnout was policy-based, which affected the election of 1988. Thus, in an election we may discern a link between the policy preferences of individuals and their voting ratio. Definition of voter turnout First, we will have to define a voter turnout. Voter turnout refers to the overall number of people who cast their vote in any election. The turnout, generally, exhibits with percentage; however, there are other methods to ascerta in the turnout rate of voters. The most general way to evaluate turnout of voters is counting the overall number of votes. This method is known as Total Vote. Obviously, this is the most direct way to count the vote and measure the turnout. However, this method has some setbacks; for example, it counts all votes whether valid or invalid (Pintor et al., 2002). In addition, the method is unable to supplement comparison aspects. The residency requirement for new citizens after that they would be able to cast a vote is another reason for a lower turnout. In 2003, the issue of new residents arose in 44 states. However, these requirements of residency have been set to 30 days before the federal election, yet there are still chances that several eligible voters would not be able to cast their votes (Patterson, 2009). The Election of 1988 in United States In the 1988 presidential election, the voter turnout was 50.1%. The turnout was lower than the standards of American presidential electio n. They were several reasons for the lower turnout, which will be discussed latter on; however, the present question is who suffered due to the low turnout, George Bush (Republican) or Michael Dukakis (Democrat). The statistical calculations exhibit Dukakis was going to win the election of 1988 if the individuals took part fully in the elections. Most of the individuals who remained unmoved during the elections were the supporters of Democrats. Briefly, one can observe the Republican had the advantage of low turnout of votes; thus, it can be concluded that the election of 1988 – specifically, its result – was not the real picture of the preferences of people. In this regard, in the current paper Radcliff’s aggregate study on the presidential elections from 1928 to 1980 has been examined to evaluate the American National Election of 1988. It has been identified in the current study that the minimum turnout shows harmful results and suggests encouraging voters to take part in voting. Citizens should understand that their votes are a representative of their choice. The lower turnout of the voters has become a significant debatable issue in American society. Moreover, researchers and scholars are being pressurized to find out the real reason of individual voter absentees. In addition, a significant relation is found between Democratic vote division and turnout (DeNardo, 1980). Furthermore, in presidential elec

Goal Attainment & Social Responsibility Critique Essay

Goal Attainment & Social Responsibility Critique - Essay Example Many people assume that they know how to set goals for a better life. However, very few people understand the importance of setting goals and put it in practice. It is only about 20 percent of people who set effective goals and pursue them. This group mostly involves those people who are involved in business or other entrepreneurial activities that promotes goal setting. More worse is that, though these people set small and easily attainable goals only about 30 percent of them do achieve their goals. This makes one wonder how anyone can achieve anything remarkable in business or in life. Goals can be categorized as ‘be’ goals or ‘do’ goals. ‘Be’ goals are about what one wants to be while ‘do’ goals are about what one wants to do. In each category there are four areas of goals: wealth, health, relationship and self-fulfillment. Any goal will fall into one of these categories. When business professionals set goals, they are either wealth or relationship goals. Achievement however will involve the four areas there should be a balance in the four areas. In order to be successful in life one needs to have both ‘be’ and ‘do’ goals. However, when setting any goal it is advisable for one to identify the traps to avoid as he will be pursuing the goal. There are a number of reasons that hinder people from achieving their goals as they will be discussed in this essay (Tracy, 2004) Some people fail to achieve their goals because of fear of failure or even fear of success. Those who fear to fail feel that if they set goals and then fail to achieve people will think negatively about them. This makes them to fear to take even the first action towards the goal. Some also fear that if they succeed people will be jealous and think negatively about them. So this creates lose-lose situation, no matter how much effort they put. Achieving the goal has a

The character of Blanche Dubois Essay Example for Free

The character of Blanche Dubois Essay Explore the ways in which dramatic ways in which Williams presents the character of Blanche Dubois in a streetcar named desire. Tennessee Williams presents Blanche Dubois as Stellas older sister, until recently a high school English teacher. She arrives in New Orleans as a chatty, witty, arrogant, fragile, and ultimately breakdown figure. From the beginning of the play, the character of Blanche is depicted as a very shy character. The setting and talk of the other characters help illustrate the contrast between the arrival of the Blanche, the southern, old-fashioned belle and New Orleans, a very cosmopolitan place at the time. It is a bustling, busy, hectic city. Negro entertainers at a bar room around the corner. Race is less of an issue here then it was in the rest of the U. S at the time, and it is really publicized at the beginning of the book with a white woman (who we find out is called Eunice) and a negro woman. It is accentuated by the fact that the women are talking comfortably to each other, no sense of tension can be found during their speech. Soon enough, Blanche arrives, and the stage directions and her facial expressions give us an immediate idea of what kind of person she is. Her appearance is incongruous to this setting She looks incredibly out of place in this rough surrounding, in her dainty white dress. As the stage directions put it: There is something about her uncertain manner, as well as her white clothes that suggests a moth A moth is delicate and fragile, which is what Tennesse Williams is trying to get at when comparing her to a moth. The light, which Blanche shuns away from, makes the reader feel that she is very pure, white, the colour used suggests a virgin. We can tell she has put a lot of effort into her looks and appearance and seems very well off in the clothes she is wearing. She is daintily dressed in a white suits with a fluffy bodice ,necklace and earrings of pearl All this suggests that this well off, well dressed, delicate and fragile women is very out of place in these rough, mean streets of New Orleans. Tennese Williams then goes onto show, that our first impressions of Blanche are perfectly correct, she seems faintly hysterical and distressed when she speaks, due to the fact that she cannot believe that her little sister is living in such surroundings. She enters the house, after finding out that this is the correct address, and sits down in her sisters kitchen in a stunned state. This is where we learn that Blanche is from an aristocratic background, the name Dubois is originally French, and so her ancestors must have been French immigrants. She is unused to the negro woman being so close and friendly to her and finds is unsettling and rather rudely shoves her away. What I meant was Id like to be left alone The next actions Blanche make, have a deep impact on our perspective of Blanches character, not only is she a drinker, but it seems like she is an alcoholic, and a heavy one at that. She pours half a tumbler of whiskey and tosses it down After the two sisters meet up again, from Blanches speech, we learn that she still treats Stella like her little sister, talks to her in a very patronising way, almost as though she is trying to relive, or recount on past days. Oh, my baby! Stella! Stella! Stella for a star! Precious lamb! Another important part of the play is when she lies, she pretends to look for an alcoholic beverage, knowing where it actually is. She pretends to her sister, lying that its her first and that shes not an alcoholic. From her actions, we can she that Blanche is highly strung up, shes very nervous, anxious and worried. Their conversation eventually leads to talking about the house, which she describes as something out of an Edgar Allen Poe horror book, although it shows her having a good education (shes an English teacher after all), Blanche isnt very tactful at all. If its on her mind, she will say it, without any consideration to the person it may be offending. Tennessee Williams, in the first 11 pages, has given us a glance into the fragile life of Blanche Dubois, as a main character, she will have an important part to play, what that part is we will have to wait a see.

Concepts and principles of business to business marketing

Concepts and principles of business to business marketing The purpose of this paper is to discuss business-to-business marketing requires a special, unique set of marketing concepts and principles versus business-to-business marketing is really not that different and the basic marketing concepts and principles apply. The basic concepts and principles for business-to-consumer have been studied and the researcher agreed that the basic marketing and principles do apply. However, the application and implementation of the marketing strategy may need to be attuned to the nature of business-to-business activity. Business-to-business (B2B) can be explained as business that sells products or provides services to other businesses. These organisations in turn, may re-sell the products and services to final consumers; or they may use the products or services as an input for manufacturing of final consumer goods; or use it provide services to final consumers; or government that use these products and services to serve the society. While B2B activity may exist in both traditional form and online, the acronym B2B is commonly refer to the online variety (Jobber, 2007, p. 19). Whereas Business-to-Consumer (B2C) is defined as business that sells products or provide services to final consumers. These consumers can be either individuals or family units and these products or services is purchased for own consumption purposes. Although B2C activity may exist in both traditional form and online, the acronym B2C is generally refer to the online variety (McDaniel, et al., 2006, p. 196). Modern marketing concept can be defined as identifying and meeting targeted consumer needs and wants better than the competitor, for the benefit of the organisation and its stakeholders. Therefore, the function of marketing management will include formulating and implementing a suitable marketing strategy to achieve organisation goals; through satisfied customers (Kotler Keller, 2009, p. 45). To understand the marketing function, marketer needs to understand the core marketing concepts: the production concepts, the product concepts, the selling concepts, the marketing concepts, holistic concepts and societal marketing concepts. 1 In order to satisfy the targeted consumers, the marketer needs to understand the market environment and the consumer. Based on this understanding, a company will work out a Marketing mix and develop suitable marketing activities and deliver the value to the consumer. The traditional marketing mix consists of four elements: product, price, promotion and place (4-Ps). However, marketing in todays business world has evolved. It is important for todays marketer to include three additional Ps: people, process and physical evidence (Jobber, 2007, p. 19). One of the crucial exercise while developing marketing strategy, marketer will need to evaluate the companys general strength, weakness, opportunity and threats. This constructive methodology is also known as the SWOT analysis. It is recognised that from the basic marketing concepts and the marketing mix which have been mentioned earlier, there is a crucial element which a marketer must remember consumers. Consumers may be divided into two categories: final/ultimate consumers and organisational consumers. However, they are both the source of revenue for the organisation. They are the targeted people which the marketer would need to satisfy, in order to make the sales. Therefore, the basic marketing concepts and principles may be applied to both types of consumers. Only adaptation of the targeted consumer type is needed. The 4-Ps is a useful marketing tool in determining the marketers trade channels and their final consumers. The Product element in the 4-Ps is where the company needs to choose what type of product or service to provide to a group of customer, in order to satisfy their wants. This is especially crucial in new product development. A product may be in the form of physical goods, such as mobile phones, isotonic drink, LED television and etc. Service is intangible benefits that a company or individual can offer to the customers, such as financial consultant, medical care, and etc (Kotler, et al., 2003, p. 17). 2 Price is one of the most important components in the 4-Ps. This is due to the fact that it signifies the benefits that the company will receive from the sale of products and services. As compared to other elements of the 4-Ps, which represent costs. It is crucial for company to determine the most suitable pricing of its product. This is because product price may influence the purchasing decision of the buyer. Some companies may opt for lower price strategy by offering a lower price version of the same product offered by competitor (McDaniel, et al., 2006, p. 196). Promotion is the means for a marketer to communicate with the targeted customer, to enable the awareness of the product existence and availability. Marketer will be required to decide the channel of promotional activities suited for the product or service its offering. Some larger companies may choose television advertisement as the promotional activity, because it is able to cover wide audiences in a fast way. Some companies with a lesser resources may choose internet as their promotional tools, where the cost is lower and it is not limited by geographical boundary (Elliot, et al., 2008, p. 34). Place involves ensuring the products and services is available to the targeted customers. Marketer needs to decide on the distribution channels and the management of the product location, transportation and etc. A good distribution method is able to create competitive advantage for the company. This is apparent in the case for Dell computers (Kotler, et al., 2003, p. 17). People play an important role in todays business. The quality of service by the companys employee very much influence customers impression on the companys product. This is particularly essential to the service industry. Potential customer may walk away from a purchase if they feel that they receive ill-treatment from the sales staff. Study has shown that a company is able to generate more sales by improving customer service (Mathe and Shapiro, 1993). Physical evidence represents the ambience where the service is being carried out. The physical environment, decoration and colour which are visible to the targeted customers have the ability to affect the customers decision (Kotler Keller, 2009). 3 Process is the flow of activity or the medium of transaction where customers obtain services. Process decisions completely influence how the company delivers the service to the customer. It is understood that in order to establish a suitable marketing mix, a company must understand its targeted customer. And this customer can be divided during the process of market segmentation and target marketing. A company should be able to differentiate its customer base; whether they are final consumer (B2C) or organisational consumer (B2B). After identifying this, the same seven Ps may be applied to targeted consumers. Coviello and Brodie (2001) found that existing business process for both B2C and B2B companies is concerned with managing the marketing mix to attract customers. This is also known as transaction marketing. Either final consumer or organisational consumer, the marketer should consider all the seven elements in marketing mix to derive on the most suitable marketing strategy. Some might argue that basic marketing concepts are suitable for a B2C environment. However, study has shown that even international company like Levi Strauss (a renown clothing brand, specialise in jeans) needs to make certain adaption in developing its marketing mix. By understanding each countrys local cultural, physical environment, legal issues, and etc; Levi Strauss is able to apply the right marketing mix to the right consumer group (Vrontis Vronti, 2004). 4 Further the seven Ps, the SWOT analysis of the company is also important to the marketer. The analysis examines the companys internal environment (strengths and weaknesses) and external environment (opportunities and threats). By knowing the companys resources and capabilities, it is possible to turn weaknesses into strengths. Knowing the market environment and trends, it is possible to convert threats into opportunities. SWOT analysis is not limited to certain type of business or consumer. It is about the study of the companys internal and external environment. Therefore, this same basic concept is applicable to both B2B and B2C companies (Elliot, et al., 2008, p. 34). Todays business environment is very dynamic; a marketer should realise that the older marketing concepts is insufficient for a successful marketing strategy. In order to have a more comprehensive strategy, marketers have adopted the Holistic marketing concept. It is the concept that accepts everything matters in marketing, extensive outlook of the business environment is necessary for successful marketing campaign. It is concern with relationship marketing, integrated marketing, internal marketing and performance marketing (Baines, et al., 2008, p. 12). 5 The holistic marketing concept is another evident that shows it does not limit to B2C environment, and the basic concept can be applied to B2B environment. However, some adaption may be required during the application and implementation process. Study has indicated that marketing comprises the whole business; as a result, it includes top management, administration, production, finance and other functional departments. Marketing-oriented management signifies todays business environment. A company who recognises this phenomena would be able to swift its organisation to a more competitive edge; performing better than its competitor (Polese, 2004). It has been established earlier that basic marketing concepts and principles apply to both B2B and B2C business environment, only the application of the marketing strategy needs to be adapted accordingly. The objective of marketing is to identify and satisfy the needs and wants of targeted customers, better than the competitor. The targeted customers of B2B are the organisational buyers. Business marketer faces the same challenges of consumer marketer. However, there a few aspects of business market which are undoubtedly differ from consumer market (Baines, et al., 2008, p. 659). 6 It was found that organisations in USA, Argentina and New Zealand still uses the traditional four marketing mix as a general guide in their marketing practices. Although the new modern marketing concepts are included in their effort to reach out to targeted customers. Some countries may uses transaction marketing, or some may opt for network marketing. It shows that basic marketing concepts are applicable to both B2B and B2C (Pels, et al., 2004). In order to the understanding of business market, the marketer should be concerned about the buying process of the organisation. The organisational buying process has a few stages more than of consumer buying process. There are eight stages involved, please see figure 4 below. Understanding the difference between business market and consumer market is necessary. Lilien (1987) argued that B2B market is distinctive due to several reasons. The business market generally has few and larger buyers, i.e. the purchase quantity will be large. And the buyer is unable to take any risk of errors, because it may be part of the organisations cost saving strategy. The difference between consumer and business marketing were also documented by Simkin (2000). Simkin believed that business market is conventionally involves the business market structure and market demand; the nature of the buying unit within the organisation; and the type of decisions and the decision process involved (Kotler et al., 2001). Hakansson (et al., 1976) also characterise B2B companies as containing a lot of customers and require to be handled individually. 7 There is close relationship between supplier and customer. As argued by Gruen (1995), B2B marketing is motivated very much by relationship. From strategic aspect of business, it is more beneficial to the company to maintain its current customer, compared to attracting a new customer. The long term customer who is satisfy with the companys service may act as the ambassador to the company; spreading the goodwill of the company which may encourage new customers (Cann, 1998). A research into organisational buying behaviour done by Sheth (1996) has shown the organisation behaviour is changing from a transaction-centred to a relational-centred value. Adaptation is needed from the traditional marketing concepts. This is crucial in order to provide the right products and services to the targeted consumers (Hallen et al., 1991). Professional purchasing, this may consist of a team of procurement staff or a few business units. Multiple buying influences, whereby buying process is required to go through several formal and legal documentations and approval. Multiple sales calls; derived demand; inelastic demand; fluctuating demand; geographically concentrated buyers and direct purchasing. Although both business market and its buying process contrast dramatically from that of consumer market, the basic market concepts and principles is still applicable; which is meeting and satisfying customers needs. Only adaptation to the targeted organisational buyer may be needed. In summary, a special and unique sets of marketing concepts and principles is not necessary for B2B, only application process may be adapted. 8 List of References Baines, P., Fill, C. and Page, K., 2008, Marketing, Oxford University Press, New York. Cann, C.W., 2004 Eight Steps to Building a Business-to-business Relationship, Journal of Business Industrial Marketing, vol. 13, no. 4/5, 1998, pp. 393-405. Coviello, N.E. and Brodie, R.J., Contemporary Marketing Practices of Consumer and Business-to-business Firms: How Different Are They?, Journal of Business Industrial Marketing, vol. 16, no. 5, 2001, pp. 382-400. Elliot, G., Rundle-Thiele, S., Waller, D., Paladino, A., Pride, W. and Ferrell, O., 2008, Marketing: Core Concepts and Applications, 2nd Asia-Pacific edn, John Wiley Sons Australia Ltd., Queensland, Australia. Hallen, L., Johanson, J. and Seyed-Mohamed, N., 1991, Interfirm Adaptation in Business Relationships, Journal of Marketing, vol. 55, April, pp. 29-37, cited in Brennan, S., Turnbull, P.W. and Wilson, D.T., Dyadic Adaptation in Business-to-business Markets, European Journal of Marketing, vol. 37, no. 11/12, 2003, pp. 1636-1665. Hakansson, H., Johanson, J. and Wootz, B., 1976, Influence Tactics in Buyer-seller Processes, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 5, December, pp. 319-32, cited in Reed, G., Story, V. and Saker, J., Business-to-business Marketing: What is Important to the Practitioner?, Marketing Intelligence Planning, vol. 22, no. 5, 2004, pp. 501-510. Jobber, D., 2007, Principles and Practice of Marketing, 5th edn, McGraw-Hill Education, London. Kotler, P., Armstrong, G., Saunders, S. and Wong, V., 2001, Principles of Marketing, 3rd edn, McGraw Hill, New York, NY, cited in Reed, G., Story, V. and Saker, J., Business-to-business Marketing: What is Important to the Practitioner?, Marketing Intelligence Planning, vol. 22, no. 5, 2004, pp. 501-510. Kotler, P., Ang, S.H., Leong, S.M. and Tan, C.T., 2003, Marketing Management an Asian Perspective, 3rd edn, Prentice Hall, Singapore. Kotler, P. and Keller, K.L., 2009, Marketing Management, 13th edn, Pearson Education Inc., New Jersey. 9 Lilien, G.L., 1987, Business Marketing: Present and Future, Industrial Marketing and Purchasing, vol. 2, no. 3, pp. 3-21, cited in Coviello, N.E. and Brodie, R.J., Contemporary Marketing Practices of Consumer and Business-to-business Firms: How Different Are They?, Journal of Business Industrial Marketing, vol. 16, no. 5, 2001, pp. 382-400. Mathe, H. and Shapiro, R.D., 1993, Integrating Service Strategy in the Manufacturing Company, Chapman Hall, London, cited in Gebauer, H., Wang, C.Z., Beckenbauer, B. and Krempl, R., Business-to-business Marketing as a Key Factor for Increasing Service Revenue in China, Journal of Business Industrial Marketing, vol. 22, no. 2, 2007, pp. 126-137. McDaniel, C., Lamb, Jr., C.W. and Hair, Jr., J.F., 2006, Introduction to Marketing, 8th edn, Thomson South-Western, Ohio. Pels, J., Brodie, R. J. and Johnston, W.J., 2004, Benchmarking Business-to-business Marketing Practices in Emerging and Developed Economies: Argentina Compared to the USA and New Zealand, Journal of Business Industrial Marketing, vol. 19, no. 6, 2004, pp. 386-396. Polese, F., 2004, Lintegrazione Sistemica Degli Aggregate Reticolari di Impresa, CEDAM, Padova, cited in Gummesson, E. and Polese, F., B2B is Not An Island, Journal of Business Industrial Marketing, vol. 24, no. 5/6, 2009, pp. 337-350. Reed, G., Story, V. and Saker, J., Business-to-business Marketing: What is Important to the Practitioner?, Marketing Intelligence Planning, vol. 22, no. 5, 2004, pp. 501-510. Simkin, L., 2000, Marketing is Marketing Maybe!, Marketing Intelligence Planning, vol. 18, no. 3, pp. 154-8, cited in Reed, G., Story, V. and Saker, J., Business-to-business Marketing: What is Important to the Practitioner?, Marketing Intelligence Planning, vol. 22, no. 5, 2004, pp. 501-510. Vrontis, D. and Vronti, P., 2004, Levi Strauss: An International Marketing Investigation, Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, vol. 8, no. 4, pp. 389-98, cited in Levis Adaptable Standards, Strategic Direction, vol. 21, no.6, 2005, pp. 14-15. 10 11