Again with the Erosion of Income

Again with the Erosion of Income Tired of hearing about how writers are not getting paid? I imagine the writers needing to eat from that income arent. I had a quick unsubscribe of 19 readers within 30 minutes of releasing last Fridays newsletter. Some people do not want to hear that writing on the cheap is not a good thing, because its all they know how to do. People, listen. When pricing is the only factor, you will likely not have a long term relationship with someone. That means editor or reader. When people want to buy you cheap, thats their driving force. There is no LIKE in the factor. Dont make cheap a habit or that becomes your brand. Here are comments from readers that showed they understood the severity of this issue: I agree wholeheartedly that as writers we need to support one anothers efforts If more writers ignored these requests (**from editor for free writing), those markets would either have to find the funding to pay writers properly or realize that if they cant, then maybe they need to look closer at how well they run their businesses. When you give away your work or go for the easier low pay ones you subconsciously tell yourself that you are not good enough to get paid. Worse, getting into the poor or non-paying markets offers a false sense of success. The result of all of this is that you dont have any reason to improve your skills, which would get you into better paying markets. So, I was feeling a little under the weather, and gave my doctor a call. I asked him if he wouldnt mind seeing me for free, since it wouldnt really take much time and he was just fitting me in last minute anyway. Can you believe he turned me down? Claimed hed spent eight years in school, worked his ass off as an intern, was still paying off med school bills, yada yada yada. Well, Ive got options. I go down to the corner drugstore and ask my buddy the manager to give me some free meds. And he starts this whole rant about costs and staffing and insurance and he wouldnt give them to me. I figure, what the hell, Ill just suck it up and get to work. I call up one of my authors and tell him hes booked for a signing, and I promised twenty copies at authors price to the group. Told him I wont be paying him royalties on those. I mean, I cant work for nothing, right? Thank you for this! Ive turned down fabulous projects because of ridiculously low pay and said no to fabulous money because of ridiculous contract clauses. I would never treat anyone that poorly. Its up to each of us to do the right thing and say no. Were saying no for ourselves and for all writers. When we all say no, the low pay and egregious contract clauses would disappear overnight. Good smackdown, Hope. Im with you. If you give your work away, thats what your work is worth. In a race to the bottom, everyone drowns. I was reading an online article from The Guardian this morning on the widening gap between top earners in our industry and the rest of us (theguardian.com/books/2016/jan/15/earnings-soar-for-uks-bestselling-authors-as-wealth-gap-widens-in-books-industry). It was interesting, but much more interesting were the comments, which appear to have been from readers rather than writers. Not only do they not care, but they also think writers are in the wrong in complaining about how much (or rather, how little) they get paid. Definitely an issue for us to resolve in private rather than in public, Philip Pullmans recent action notwithstanding. (NOTE: Regarding that last comment, in case you didnt know, Philip Pullman, author of The Golden Compass, stepped down as patron from the Oxford Literary Festival because they were not paying writers to make appearances. Good man.) A festival organizer asked an acquaintance of mine for names as presenters. She gave them mine. But without me saying anything, she told me she understood my stance about being compensated, and shed let me have that conversation with them. Like I was the exception, but Ill take that reputation all day long. Wouldnt you like to be known as a decent writer who expects payment for their services, or rather someone who gives it away and can be easily had for free?

NHS

NHS Most juniors and seniors aim for graduating with a diploma. Obtaining a high school diploma may be important for a graduates future education, perpetuate job as well as his/ her income for living.Colleges require a diploma in order to enroll into the school. Specific colleges required higher diplomas. For instance, a person plans on attending the University of Virginia or Harvard Law School, which requires an advance diploma as well as a spectacular grade point average. Attending college will control the out come of ones future. The area one majors in depends on the college they enroll their self into.A satisfying job requires a high education from college. The importance of a person's job leads toward their future. Which corresponds to what he/she does for a living. Providing money for them to survive off of. Without a good job, they have a low possibility of them being capable of supporting his/her self and maybe even their family.Photograph of front facade, Austin Hall, Harvard L. ..A person would probably be bereft later in life. Compare a doctor's salary and education opposed to a cash registers salary and education. Obviously the doctor has a better job and is more opulent because of the higher salary and a higher education. A person jeopardizes his/her future without an education. So don't start off your life unkempt!When you graduate from high school you definitely want a diploma. Why go through all those years without getting a purpose out? Just the sensation of accomplishing all four years of high school! Majority of parents muse and want their kids to graduate high school with a diploma. Just the extraordinary sensibility of walking down the aisle as they call out your name. Throwing your hat in the air at the same time as your fellow classmates. Wouldn't you want to...

The Role of the Student in Higher Education Essay

The Role of the Student in Higher Education - Essay Example The Gibbs reflection model seeks to understand the feelings that were experienced, and also allows for the evaluation of an incident in terms of what was bad or good about it (Wilding 2008). The Gibbs model also includes an analysis of the critical nursing situation and then the suggestion of an action plan that will deal with the issue if it should arise again (Curzon 2003). According to (Hinchiff 2004), reflection is particularly important for student nurses because they work in environments in which they have to perform numerous tasks almost without thinking about them previously. Being compelled to work swiftly among emotionally and physically wounded people can affect the student nurses. Engaging in reflective practices allow for the student nurses to be able to deal with the reality of being exposed to human anxieties and needs on a daily basis (Watson 2008). This is important because nurses will not be able to function well if they are stressed from being forced to deal with p eople when they are most vulnerable. Reflection allows for student nurses to be able to develop self-awareness among other interpersonal skills that make them more effective in their nursing duties (NMC 2011). Reflection also helps student nurses to be able to understand ways in which they can better improve their services to their patients (Stuart 2007). For student nurses, reflection thus changes a situation which previously may have been filled with doubt, anxiety, and conflict into being one which is manageable (Price 2004). Description: In considering the situation that he or she is in, the student nurse is able to consider the ways in which she can approach her patients or even plan on studying patterns. Feelings: The student nurse is able to reflect on positive or negative feelings that he or she may be experiencing in regards to the studying practices that he or she has adopted or even regards to patients assigned. The student nurse can then make decisions based on that asse ssment in order to rectify the situation or at least make it manageable (Johns and Freshwater 2005). Evaluation: once the student nurse understands the feelings that he or she has in regards to definite situations, he or she will be in a better position to make decisions on how to solve or amend the situation so that it is more manageable. Analysis: After making an evaluation and deciding about the best way in which to progress, the student nurse is then able to make the decision about the existing situation(s). Different student nurses use Gibb’s reflective model in different ways to ease their studies as well as responsibilities within medical facilities (Johns and Freshwater 2005). Many student nurses make use of journals in which they make entries detailing the situations they are working with and how they feel and plan to manage them. This also helps the student nurses in their learning experiences. For example, if a student nurse comes across a new medical procedure or fairly rare disease, she can record her own feelings about the first time that she saw it and her gut reactions about what caused it. She will then, after writing about her own first feelings about it, can add what she discovered about it on consulting a textbook.

Romantic music in Renaissance painting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Romantic music in Renaissance painting - Essay Example Another purpose of Romantic music was that it had non-musical influences. Changes and events that occur in the society such as discoveries, ideas, inventions, attitudes and historical events which will affect the music at all the time. For instance, by early 19th century the industrial revolution was in fully effective and it had a great effect on music. One effect was that there were great improvements in the mechanical valves. This meant that due to the innovative instruments music could be played with more simplicity and easiness. Also the instruments became more reliable. Development in music was also caused by increase of middle class. Composers previously lived on the benefaction of the aristocracy. The audience was small most of the times and the music was only composed by people who had music knowledge and the upper class ones. On the other hand romantic composers wrote mainly for public festivals and concerts, they had large audiences. Nationalism was another theme during Ro mantic era. For instance, Jean Sibelius is mainly read to represent the Finland nation which was rising during that period and which was expecting to gain freedom one day from the Russians. Another example of musical nationalism which is well seen in the productivity of the romantic ages is where Joseph Machlis states that`` Poland’s struggle for freedom from tsarist rule aroused the national poet in Poland.† The development of Renaissance painting is an odd age in the history. It is not only that the time.

Discuss at least one conceptual idea, model or theory in respect of Coursework

Discuss at least one conceptual idea, model or theory in respect of your topic area and evaluate it using case study material - Coursework Example This report has been organised into eight parts, and it has been appropriately numbered throughout the document. The methodology that was used is reviewing of secondary sources. Unexpected and rapid change has become a modern society norm. However, the world has become a steadily volatile place with water shortages, health epidemics, terrorism, changing consumption patterns, economic crises, increasing fuel prices, food and global warming confronting most countries (Sterman, 2012). The impact combination of such factors has reignited focusing of sustainable development as a continuing problem for governments and businesses in general, and for tourism specifically. It has been argued that the tourism sector is required to be prepared to address current and forthcoming problems in order to maintain the viability of the industry and the resources upon that it is depending; and therefore, there is a need for proactive strategic planning and decision-making by governments, businesses and any other stakeholders to increase opportunities, reduce adverse impacts as well as maintaining competitive merits. Furthermore, Sharpley (2000) argued that the sustainable tourism principles are accepted in general, but the function of tourism remains justified by the economic development objectives. Recently, Sharpley (2009) stressed that the discourse of sustainable tourism has been all going around in circles without a breakthrough and little use in the sector, suggesting a need to go beyond sustainable tourism so that tourism development can progress. However, it is still apparent that the rising focus on the climate change, environment, and sustainable development has led to wider planning perspectives for tourism worldwide, overcoming previous fixations with marketing growth and economic strategies (Kozak & Baloglu, 2010). Such a shift toward a sustainable development platform is representing a major step forward for the tourism

Concepts of Marriage: Reflective Essay

Concepts of Marriage: Reflective Essay What is marriage? To many marriage is a milestone accomplished over the course of their life, and once achieved, giving them the feeling of being complete. To others, marriage is what makes their relationship official in a way and is what keeps them monogamous to one another. Where a big party, wedding cake, and wedding bands are what make a couple no longer available to anyone else but their spouse. In better terms, the definition of marriage is a legal or formal recognized union of a man and a women or even same sex- as partners in a solid relationship. It seems that the entire concept of marriage has always been here, there, and everywhere. After reviewing videos and material written about marriage, it is clear to see that there are many stand points on the topic. Though many people advocate marriage and preach all that it stands for. Others on the other hand are fighting and argue to get rid of marriage altogether. On one of the videos that was shared in class called, Cancel Marriage consisted of a lengthy video where Merav Michaeli went deep into defining marriage and the true meaning behind husband and wife. Husband ultimately turned out to origin from the word householder or owner, while wife is derived from the terms shame and vulva. It makes you question why from the beginning of marriage, a married couple who have children were only able to carry the fathers name. To go further in to detail and really have a better understanding behind marriage in todays society, as a class we were all to collaborate amongst ourselves to put together a survey in which we could use as an instrument to interview five couples- ten individuals. The task was limited and the questionnaire added up to twenty-four unique and bold questions that the individuals asked could either answer or refuse to answer. Each question consisted of either short answer responses and even long ones. We were instructed not to write any names down and keep all answers given to us confidential and anonymous. Once each of us had the opportunity to put our final survey questionnaire to use, we counted the answers to each question and brought the total to class. Some of the questions involved in the questionnaire where, Do you respect your spouse?, Do you ever think about divorce?, and What is your secret for sustaining your marriage? Explain. No doubt that the result received from the final survey questionnaire were intriguing but the lessons learned from the responses and the event altogether was what we all walked away with. Some lessons about the survey method that even though we all had our own questions in mind to contribute, it took a while for the survey to be put together and finalized. The lesson behind this struggle taught us to think outside the box and be open to other peoples viewpoints. The lesson learned the topic stood out to us because marriage is something that has crossed our minds at least once before and we learned that even though you may not relate to a topic because you are not married, does not mean you cant connect to the topic and work together to find answers. Of course, many of us were able to take away important factors that contribute to a strong research process. If asked what lesson I learned from the research part of this assignment, was simply the interviewing part to it. I was incredulous on how to go about approaching ten individuals and ask about their married life. Though in class we were instructed to approach everyone and introduce ourselves as students and ask the subject to help with our assignment. This seemed harder said than done. Lesson learned here was that even though you may have done excellent and extensive research on the topic sometime the actual act of getting answers may be hardest part. With all this said, a lesson that I learned about myself are a couple. Firstly, I learned that it is fine to not always know how to approach a hard topic that you cant relate with because it doesnt pertain to you, but this could be turned into an even better reason to tackle it on anyway just to be more self-aware on the matter. Another lesson I learned about myself came from the subjects that I interacted with and how everyone you encounter knows something that you do not know. At the end of each questionnaire I was able to have a fulfilling sense of accomplishment because I was holding information about people who I either knew or didnt know, and with this task done I was able to have a different perspective on the topic of marriage and people.ÂÂ   I learned that I have a way with speaking to people and despite being convinced that approaching others is not my strong suit, I did very well for my first time. The lesson I took away about myself was to give myself more credit whe n faced in these situations and never stop searching for answers no matter what my inner voice may negatively say to myself. All things considered, the total of answers put together as a class was not at all to shocking. Marriage seemed to be divided into an act that genuinely rooted from love and the other half seemed to have happened in order to benefit from what we know as The Marriage Premium which included happiness, health, and economic security. Though overall, there was much satisfaction from the marriages we surveyed, I still stand with my personal views on the matter. Marriage was an institution made up in a time where women had absolutely no status before the law and were merrily property. Why is that today in 2016, where we live in a modernized world with modern women and men, that we still have such an institution as this that still exists. When this institution was created, its sole purpose was for a woman to make a living and be able to stand up on her own, therefore, a woman could not afford not to get married. After all, marriage to me is an understanding that in order to move up in life I must become a wife and be wed to a man. I dont buy into this whatsoever when we live in a world where women are continuing to fight for equal pay and rights. This to me is proof that marriage is a myth in order to keep women from rising to power and ultimately their true potential. Marriage to me equals control, and if Ive learned anything about the government system in the U.S; it is that control means a lot to those who obtain it and that is why the government practically pushes the population to marry in order to keep the control. This can easily be proved by the fact that governments give money and visas based on marriage. Marriage is a default option that must be taken down. To sum up, marriage is one of the many institutions pushed among us that must be teared down in order to build something new. If times are changing so must our ideas and the ways we approach things that will benefit everyone not just certain individuals who agree to take part of an institution that does not cover everyone. References Seccombe, Karen. Exploring marriages and families. Boston, MA: Allyn Bacon, 2012. Print.

Deviant Behavior/Tattoos Essay

Beginning from a child we begin to experience different situations and interactions with others. We start getting taught the difference between right and wrong, what may be considered good and what is considered bad, and also taught the things we should and should not do. As we grow older we try to refrain from behavior of which society may disapprove of. Society see’s certain types of behavior as being deviant. First let’s begin by explaining what is a deviant behavior? Deviant behavior can be any behavior that does not conform to what people may consider normal, a behavior that does not meet with many expectations in society. Societies are both social structure and culture. Robert K Merton developed structural strain theory which is a perspective on what is deviance (Crossman, (n. d. )). There are many variations or meanings of what can be considered a deviant behavior. Merton has five categories in which he classified as conformists, ritualists, innovators, retreatists and rebels. Everyone at some time in their life has done a deviant act, some may have continued on with that behavior. Rebels stands up to their own opinions and disregard what is norm or others opinions. Rebels can be considered deviant because of their choices in life. Tattooed people are considered rebels because they decided to mark the skin with art. For instance are tattoos considered a deviant behavior? There was a study done at the Texas Tech University which its findings stated that the number of tattoos that a person has then the more â€Å"deviance† they are involved in (Beck, (n. . )). Their findings were based off of people who may have one tattoo versus those with four or more tattoos. Some would say that people with tattoos are rebels and deviant. Tattooed people considered risk-takers and non-conforming (Arndt, A. , Glassman, M. , 2012). Today tattoos have started to become more accepted from work environments to everyday life. Some view tattoos as a form of art. Tattoos h ave become increasingly common among the current generations. Tattoos have become somewhat of a fashion statement. Tattoos are stigmatized as aggressive and deviant because it was once commonly known among â€Å"out group†, outlaws, criminals, bikers, prisoners, and etc. , (Heywood,Patrick, Smith, Pitts, Richters, Shelley, (n. d)). People who obtain tattoos are more perceived negatively towards tattooed figures than that of non-tattooed adults. Women with tattoos are more negatively looked upon than men. There is a type of control over people with tattoos and employment. Many employers try not to hire people with tattoos especially as sales representatives. Studies have showed that people with tattoos that are interested in what is sold would gravitate more towards a sales representative with tattoos. As a female with tattoos, I can say that I have personally seen the difference in the way that people may treat me because of my body modifications. Even with body modifications studies may show that the more tattoos and piercings the more deviant the person. I cannot truly agree with this. Tattoos in the tattoo wearer’s eyes are more of a creative freedom or an art form.

I Am Mirror: A Historical Critique Essay

Claribel Alegr? a in Nicaragua in 1924 and a year later her family was exiled to El Salvador because of her father’s support of Nicaraguan guerrilla leader Augusto Cesar Sandino, Alegria’s family was forced into exile by Anastasio Somoza, a Nicaraguan politician who later became commander-in-chief of the Nicaraguan army and eventually the nation’s president. Her poem I am Mirror was translated in 1978. And is the topic for this critique. In 1978 Alegr? a would be in the United States she left El Salvador in 1943 to study at George Washington University. From 1924 to her departure to the United States there was much violence in her home country in 1932 there was a massacre in which over a period of eight days thirty thousand peasants were estimated to be slaughtered by the vastly superiorly armed El Salvador army. The country also has vast disparity of wealth with one half to one percent controlling ninety percent of the nation’s wealth. The poem states: Water sparkles on my skin and I don’t feel it water streams down my back I don’t feel it I rub myself with a towel  I pinch myself in the arm I don’t feel frightened I look at myself in the mirror she also pricks herself I begin to get dressed This is identifying that wealthy portion of the population that controls 90 percent of the country’s wealth. It is describing their lack of humanity to allow the rest of the population to suffer in great poverty. The author uses this lack of feeling to question if their humanity has been lost. Given that Claribel was able to afford an American education like many of the wealthy amilies did it stands to wonder how much she associated herself with the wealthy. Perhaps it’s contributed by her support for non-violence and the poor given that she did come from some resemblance of wealth herself. In the following stanza it gives evidence that the character of the poem was wealthy: I wander through the streets: children with dirty faces ask me for charity The children could be desperate enough to be asking anyone but the character given that they were doing better than most at the time. But then again it does say paint a pretty desperate picture with â€Å"child prostitution† and â€Å"shouts like lightning bolts† Military enforced oppression was the times. The use of a mirror as a metaphor could also be alluding to the killing of one and wounding of five students protesting the government spending of one million dollars to bring the Miss Universe pageant to El Salvador. Of course during the program all that was shown were the beautiful sandy beaches and failed to show the massive poverty or military security around the contest. This is a portion from the poem: â€Å"I am a blank mirror that nothing penetrates my surface is hard is brilliant is polished I became a mirror and I am fleshless scarcely preserving a vague memory of pain. † This demonstrates how the government oppression and the atrocities resulting from the oppressive military rule were covered up by the government. Going back to the massacre of 1932 the government swiftly removed all accounts of the event from the libraries and replaced them with more favorable accounts. It was the way of life in El Salvador. The poor see much of the same everywhere they go poor. While rich control so much of the wealth they can afford to shield themselves from it. And the atrocities they never happened because the government says they didn’t. As it says in the poem: I simply reflect what happens at my side the tanks are not tanks nor are the shouts shouts The above demonstrates the denial that the people have even goes as far to describe them as â€Å"phantoms† with how they do nothing to change. Which leads me to one of my favorite lines â€Å"I hurt, therefore I exist† which is likely an adaptation of Descartes’s â€Å"I think therefore I am. † In this situation she is saying that the lack of humanity of those who are the oppressors have stripped them from their existence. Furthermore as you read the poem it seems as if the character is coming to an epiphany but then recedes back right after the stanza â€Å"I think, therefore I exist. † This is probably used to show how permanent the stories last in the media how quickly something like the killing of the student protester outside of the Mrs.  Universe can become a national headline and then slip from the attention of any news outlet. The symbolism of a mirror is also further represented with how a mirror project a current image but does not contain any of its past. In 1979 a year after this poem was translated and Alegr? a was awarded the Casa de las Americas poetry prize for Sobrevivo. It is also the same year that the National Liberation overthrew the Somoza government. She continues to write about El Salvador and Nicaragua politics and resides in El Salvador, Spain and Nicaragua.

Why Im Writing The Book On 10x Marketing - CoSchedule Blog

Why Im Writing The Book On 10x Marketing Blog Many of you have asked when  (not if) I’d write a book. Answer: Now! So for those of you who are already totally on board with getting the book on marketing from your friends at †¦ †¦subscribe to this exclusive email list to get the first chapter for FREE right now. You’ll also stay up to speed on its progress and get early access for pre-ordering. And youll get access to the 10x Marketing LinkedIn Group to bounce ideas off other 10x marketers (including your friends at ). Do it now! Now: If the fact that so many marketers have asked me to write this book isn’t enough reasoning behind its creation†¦ read on (or watch) to learn why  Ive decided to write the  book on The 10x Marketing Formula. Yet Another  Marketing Book? The world doesn’t need another â€Å"copycat† marketing book. In fact, the world doesn’t need any more â€Å"copycat† content whatsoever. So†¦ what sets this  book apart? And more importantly†¦ why do marketers like you need this  book? Why Im Writing The Book On 10x MarketingContent Marketing Isn’t Living Up To Its Promises For the past several years, content marketing has been all the rage. There are current success stories seemingly everywhere. But even though content marketing has been a successfully established tactic for more than a century, lately†¦ it’s not living up to the hype. The thing is, you’ve already petitioned your boss to try this. You have the software. You have the processes. But actual results? Crickets. As marketers, we’re struggling more than ever before to prove that what we’re doing is really working. And even with all of the promises of content marketing†¦ we’re hitting what Gartner calls the trough of disillusionment. Gartner has discovered a pattern in technology adoption for business use they call the â€Å"Hype Cycle†. Essentially, it looks like this: Something new emerges (new channels, tactics, technology, etc.). Early adopters embrace the new. Expectations soar due to a few success stories. Way more people jump on board expecting the same success. Then†¦ crushing defeat. Does that sound like your  content marketing? ^^^ It was feeling that way to us at . That is†¦ until we embraced The 10x Marketing Formula. Heres why @embraced the 10X marketing formula.The Solution To Actually  Generate Results = The 10x Marketing Formula Like I imagine so many of you have experienced, we adopted content marketing with high hopes here at . When we started up, we needed the traffic†¦ we needed the success story to be our  story†¦ but we weren’t getting it. Instead, we found quality + consistent content wasn’t- and couldn’t- be the promised driver of ROI. It just wasn’t enough. What we discovered was the need to develop and refine the content marketing process. All of that with the goal of driving real growth, measurable return, and 10x results. Since then, we’ve honed The 10x Marketing Formula to grow from zero customers to 9,000+, zero email subscribers to 250,000+, and pageviews from zero to 1.5 million every single month. And we did it all in less than four years. This book gives away everything we’ve learned along the way. It’s the secret to unlocking results, getting your boss off your back, and justifying better resources. When we started, we looked for books like this. They just didn’t exist. But we needed this  book- this  10x Marketing Formula- to get our own marketing team out of content marketing’s trough of disillusionment. That’s why Im writing it now. This book shares the growth levers we’ve discovered as we matured. We’ve reached some major growth numbers. And this book teaches you how to blow up your numbers, too. Because in the end†¦ it’s not publish or die. It’s results or die.

Environment-behaviour relationships have been systematically studied by psychologists The WritePass Journal

Environment-behaviour relationships have been systematically studied by psychologists References Environment-behaviour relationships have been systematically studied by psychologists Introduction Some Important Issues in Previous Studies A concept of the store environmentThe Mehrabian-Russell environmental psychology model The Relationship between Emotions and Shopping Behaviours PleasureArousalDominance Discussion of Other Previous FindingsMultiple effects of store environment Moderating role of consumer characteristics MethodologyReferencesRelated Introduction Environment-behavior relationships have been systematically studied by psychologists and a discipline was produced which known as ‘environmental psychology’, however, rarely attention was directed to the retail store environment. Meanwhile, there was a growing appeal to explain the variation in buyer behaviour by situational influences due to limitations in the ability of consumer characteristics. Thus, the purpose of this thesis is to analyse and understand the effect of store environment on shopping behaviour. First, some important issues applied in this area should be clarified. One is related to the description of store environment. The other is about the Mehrabian-Russell model, which played a vital role in the study of store atmosphere. Then the paper proceeds by summarizing and comparing some findings related to the relationship between three emotional states aroused by the environment and shopping behaviours. In the next chapter, it is concerned other previous fi ndings, such as multiple effects of store environment and the moderated role of consumer characteristics in this relationship. The final part of the essay will give rise to thinking of the methodology authors used and the statistical validity of those findings. Some Important Issues in Previous Studies A concept of the store environment An adequate concept of the store environment is the premise of the study of situational influence in consumer behaviour. Although there is not a complete definition of environment, it is widely accepted that environment is an extended concept which at least includes situations and behavioural settings. A situation comprised a point in time and space was proposed by Belk (1975a) and according to Barker (1968), a behaviour setting is not only bounded in time, also by a complete sequence of behaviour or an action pattern. Additionally, Mehrabian and Russell (1974) also attempted to develop three comprehensive situational descriptors (pleasure, arousal and dominance) in their model; however, none of them depicts a satisfying array of situational dimensions. On the basis of Belk’s (1975b) definition which comprises five groups of situational characteristics, the store environment could contain the physical and social surroundings of a store, the temporal dimension (ranging from tim e of day to season of the year), task definition features (an intent or requirement for a general or specific purchase) and antecedent states (momentary moods and conditions). The Mehrabian-Russell environmental psychology model A leading environmental psychology approach, the Mehrabian-Russell (M-R) model, was firstly introduced by Donovan and Rossiter (1982) in the retail context. It has become the basis of most research about the impact of environmental factors on shopping behaviour since that time. This model is based on the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) paradigm, relating features of the environment (S) to approach-avoidance behaviours (R) within the environment, mediated by the individual’s emotional states (O) aroused by the environment; but this model mainly focuses on the O-R aspects and proposes a general measure of S. Mehrabian and Russell (1974) also proposed three basic emotional states (pleasure, arousal and dominance, acronym PAD) which mediated approach-avoidance behaviours in the environment and were adopted in majority of studies in emotional respond. The Relationship between Emotions and Shopping Behaviours There are some debates in the study of the relationship between emotions induced by a particular environment and shopping behaviours in this environment. The rest of the chapter will respectively exam the related findings based on three emotional states proposed in the M-R model. Pleasure Donovan and Rossiter (1982) concluded that store-induced pleasure was a powerful determinant of approach-avoidance behaviours within the store and also showed moderate relationships with specific within-store behavioural intentions: time (Coefficient=.51) and spend (Coefficient =.40). Afterwards, Donovan et al. (1994) extended that study and demonstrated shoppers’ emotional states within the store can predict actual purchase behaviour, not only just attitudes or intentions. That is, pleasure is significantly related to extra time and unplanned spending in pleasant environment. What the foregoing suggests is that pleasantness has a consistently positive effect on shopping behaviour in the literature. Arousal Arousal dimension, refers to store-induced feelings of alertness and excitement, was found not consistent with the two studies between Donovan and Rossiter (1982) and Donovan et al. (1994). In Donovan and Rossiter’s (1982) study which involved different types of retail stores, arousal was not significantly related to approach-avoidance behaviours, but according to the M-R model, arousal should be hypothesized to interact conditionally with pleasure. After given a pleasant store environment, arousal emerged as a significant predictor of approach intentions for time (Coefficient=.40) and the regression coefficient for spend (Coefficient=.18) was also in the right direction but did not reach significant. In other words, inducement of arousal amplifies approach behaviour in pleasant store environment and enlarges avoidance behaviour in unpleasant store environment. Hence, emotional states sometimes can be presented by some combination of two major dimensions: pleasure and arousal. However, Donovan et al. (1994) failed to confirm this relationship in the study conducted only in discount stores. First, arousal was not significant in pleasant environment. Second, arousal approached significance for unplanned spending, but in the negative direction. From Kaltcheva and Weitz’s (2006) point of view, this inconsistent finding implied arousal effects might be moderated by a previously unidentified situational variable, namely, the consumers’ motivational orientation. They have conducted two experiments using ANOVA on those three elements, motivational orientation, arousal and pleasantness to confirm the interactive effect. Finally, it was concluded that arousal and motivational orientation had an interactive effect which was mediated by pleasantness on shopping behaviour. Specifically, high arousal environments, which create rich shopping experiences, have a positive effect on pleasantness for recreation-oriented motivational consumers. Conversely, aro usal had no significant effect on shopping behaviour intentions with regard to task-oriented consumers. Dominance The dominance factor is usually been deleted when using the M-R model. Although Donovan and Rossiter (1982) retained the initial tridimensional (PAD) classification, the analysis indicated that the dominance dimension was not significantly related to any of the approach-avoidance measures apart from the general regression results. Furthermore, a slight negative relationship between dominance and spend was shown, but that result was very tentative because it was based on two of the weakest measure (Coefficient Alpha .7). In contrast to regarding the role of dominance as unimportant, several authors supported that future theory development should include it as a vital emotion influencing shopping behaviour. One reason for that is a new relationship between dominance and shopper behaviour has found in certain types of consumers. As Babin and Darden (1995) stated, feelings of dominance could significantly alter shopping behaviour among those in self-regulation and it only affected state -oriented shoppers who possessed a cognitive structure guided more by social and emotional elements of some internal or external state. The other reason attributes to the poor scope of consumer settings was employed which leaded to the disappointing results for dominance (Foxall and Greenley, 1999). After employing Mehrabian-Russell’s approach to environmental psychology based on a systematic theory of consumer situations, namely the Behavioural Perspective Model (BPM), the relationships between dominance and approach (positive) and dominance and avoidance (negative) appeared. Therefore, those results support the adoption of the BPM model in environmental consumer research, which makes a contribution to the selection of a range of consumer situations and the distinction between open and closed consumer behaviour settings. To summarize, two generally recognized findings were drawn in the study of the relationship between emotions induced by a particular environment and shopping behaviours. First, shoppers’ emotions can be largely represented by the pleasure and arousal factors (Donovan and Rossiter, 1982; Donovan et al., 1994) and the dominance dimension seems to be important for certain types of shoppers and retail settings (Babin and Darden, 1995; Foxall and Greenley, 1999). Second, those three emotional states, mainly pleasure and arousal dimensions, affect a variety of shopping behaviours and outcomes, including extra time spent and actual unplanned spending (Donovan and Rossiter, 1982; Donovan et al., 1994). Discussion of Other Previous Findings Apart from some important findings discussed in the previous chapter, issues of multiple effects of store environment and moderating role of consumer characteristics were also considered in the previous research. Meanwhile, several propositions for future research will be suggested. Multiple effects of store environment The effects of store environment elements could be complex and they could influence shoppers’ behaviours through their impacts on emotion (PAD), cognition (attention, evaluations, information search, etc.) and physiological state (Lam, 2001). With the exception of Donovan et al. (1994), all studies discussed in this thesis are only focus on the emotional effects of store environment on behaviours. In Donovan et al.’s (1994) research, they investigated the multiple effects (emotional factors and cognitive factors) of store environment simultaneously. By adding the emotional variables to the cognitive variables to predict the change in extra time, the variance accounted for increased from (a non-significant) 5% (F=1.72) to (a significant) 21% (F=3.62), and to the prediction of unplanned spending, went up from 18% (F=4.34) to 35% (F=6.40) (both significant). Hence, those results explain that the effects of the emotional factors of pleasure and arousal can be additional to cognitive factors such as quality, variety, specialing and value for money.   It was displayed that some environmental elements may have multiple impacts on shoppers’ behaviours. Therefore, it is worth studying the single and hybrid effects and analysing which is the primary effect in a particular environment. Moderating role of consumer characteristics Due to the fact that researchers used the environment of different stores as manipulations in their analysis, many considerable works about store-based emotions’ consequences were addressed (Lam, 2001). Though Donovan and Rossiter (1982) suggested that the impact of individual differences should also be pursued especially in the same physical environment, relatively little attention been given to the effect of personal characteristics on the relationship between shoppers’ emotions and behaviours in the environment. Donovan et al. (1994) only considered that effect at the stage of collecting the data. They selected shoppers who were relatively unfamiliar with the store as their sample to minimize self-selection effects on their findings. In addition, Babin and Darden (1995) regarded this topic by concerning the role of individual differences and ultimately examined consumer self-regulation as a partial explanation for the variance in consumer behaviour and postshopping e valuations. In sum, the moderated role of consumer characteristics has extended the knowledge concerning the effects of retail environment on behaviour. However, consumer self-regulation is just one of the factors of consumer characteristics, so many other elements could be developed in future research, for example, consumer shopping experiences with the store. Variable reactions in the same environment may be performed between new consumers and regular consumers. New customers may more rely on some tangible cues and merchandise because of their little knowledge or experience about other attributes of the store environment. Methodology It is widely known that the correlation between explanatory variables and the experimental design will has an influence on the power of hypothesis testing and validity of the conclusion. In terms of the data analysis, although all the journal articles reviewed here used quantitative methodology, qualitative methodology was also adopted by others (Lam, 2001); for example, using the method of in-depth interview with shoppers or participant observations to record their responses to the environment. With regard to sample selection and situational manipulation, methods applied in earlier studies were limited in three aspects. Firstly, the sample was confined to student (Donovan and Rossiter, 1982; Kaltcheva and Weitz’s, 2006). Second, verbal descriptions of situations were employed or a simulated store environment was created rather than exposing respondents to actual consumer environments (Babin and Darden, 1995; Foxall and Greenley, 1999; Kaltcheva and Weitz’s, 2006). Third, the study is lack of theoretical coherence, relying on invented situations rather than conceptually linked environments. However, some authors have made some improvements in their researches. For example, Donovan et al. (1994) impressively overcame two of these limitations by using actual consumers (60 female shoppers) in real consumer settings (at two discount department stores), but the generality of their findings was lower because it was only conducted in one type of store environment. Lik ewise, Kaltcheva and Weitz (2006) improved two limitations by employing 142 actual consumers who responded to and selecting a range of consumer situations based systematically on the BPM framework. Although the coefficients of the test were small, all results of three emotional dimensions were significant and in the predicted direction, however, their research did not overcome all those three limitations. In order to increase the external validity, future research could incorporate actual consumer settings to the range of BMP-generated environment instead of simulated environments because verbal descriptions can be value-laden (Baker et al., 1992). Moreover, Belk (1975b) suggested that the best means of manipulation is to ‘combine written descriptions of features with visual and auditory input of physical and social surroundings. References Babin, B. J. and Darden, W. R. (1995), ‘Consumer Self-Regulation in a Retail Environment.’ Journal of Retailing, Vol. 71 (1), pp. 47-70. Baker, J., Levy, M. and Grewal, D. (1992), ‘An Experimental Approach to Making Retail Store Environmental Decisions,’ Journal of Retailing, Vol. 68 (4), pp. 445-60. Belk, R. W. (1975a), ‘The Objective Situation as a Determinant of Consumer Behaviour,’ in Mary Jane Schlinger (ed.), Advances in Consumer Research, Vol. 2, Chicago: Association for Consumer Research. Belk, R. W. (1975b), ‘Situational Variables and Consumer Behaviour.’ Journal of Consumer Research, Vol. 2 (December), pp. 157-164. Donovan, R. J. and Rossiter, J. R. (1982), ‘Store Atmosphere: An Environmental Psychology Approach.’ Journal of Retailing, Vol. 58 (1), pp. 34-57. Donovan, R. J., Rossiter, J. R., Marcoolyn, G. and Nesdale, A. (1994), ‘Store Atmosphere and Purchasing Behaviour.’ Journal of Retailing, Vol. 70 (3), pp. 283-294. Foxall, G. R. and Greenley, G. E. (1999), ‘Consumers Emotional Responses to Service Environments.’ Journal of Business Research, Vol. 46, pp. 149-158. Kaltcheva, V. D. and Weitz, B. A. (2006), ‘When Should a Retailer Create an Exciting Store Environment?’ Journal of Marketing, Vol. 70 (January), pp. 107-118. Lam, S. Y. (2001), ‘The Effects of Store Environment on Shopping Behaviours: A Critical Review.’ Advances in Consumer Research, Vol. 28, pp. 190-196.

Cango Analysis Report Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Cango Analysis Report - Research Paper Example ment deals with the process of implementation of the project related activities with regards to the process of conformation to the deadlines set towards the progress and completion of the project. It is of utmost importance to highlight that the lack of proper project management process results to the fact of duplication of efforts which leads to the process of increasing the organizational costs and thereby hampering the performance of the company (PM4DEV, 2007, p. 13). It is quite evident that the process of implementation of new technology like the ASRS is in line with the display of the project management skills of the employees of the company. 2. Better Awareness for Capabilities of new technology: It has to be increasingly taken into account, that the company officials are quite aware of the functional abilities regarding the new technology that is going to be implemented in the new company. This can be increasingly counted as a significant strong point for the company as it ca n be commonly assumed that the better availability of knowledge within the company with regards to the implementation of the new technology will help in the better and optimum utilization of the new technology in the course of implementation of the technology in the business processes of the startup company, Cango. 3. Better Identification of Needs: A very significant point of strength which is often considered critical from the perspective of an organization is increasingly highlighted in this case. It can be said that the people in the IT department of the company has a better identification of the needs in terms of the business process and this has led to the proper identification and feasibility study of the demand regarding the need for multiple ASRS and the probable benefits that the... The recommendations will definitely provide considerable amount of improvements as well as related benefits to the handling of business processes in the company besides the establishment of a proper business format for certain processes in the startup company.1.  Documentation of Problems: The process of documentation of the problems will help the company to address the issues that are being raised by the clients. Also, the process of documentation will help the company to identify and prioritize the problems on the basis of their urgency. This will also enhance the company’s ability to develop further solutions in the future, that will enable them solving similar kinds of issues when raised by the clients and customers.2.  Maintaining E-Memo: The process of lack intercommunication between inter-departments as well as intra-departments can be handled by the process of maintaining an online memo. This will streamline the process of updating team members as well as other dep artments about the progress of shared projects or assignments. This will also significantly benefit the employees by helping them to understand the priority order of assignments, and thereby help them to manage their time in a better manner.3.  Evaluation of ROI: It has to be increasingly taken into account, that there should be a proper policy regarding the process of evaluation of the investment towards the implementation of new technologies (Grembergen, 2001, p. 194). Apart from judging the functional as well as demand fulfilling abilities.

Recommendation letter for admission Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Recommendation letter for admission - Essay Example I write this letter to you to highly recommend the application of Mr. xxx for admission to Columbia University’s LLM program. He is an excellent fit for Columbia’s unique program and I take great delight in acknowledging below, the accomplishments and service that Nicholas has rendered to our esteemed firm.In November 2004, Baker & McKenzie started a selective hunt for a single candidate to join our Corporate and Merger & Acquisition departments. After interviewing nearly 80 candidates and assessing them with case method tests, we accepted Nicolas. For a young man of 23, he already had a remarkably full resume and his overall experience was one of the deciding factors in our decision.After joining our firm, Nicholas rapidly became a key player in our Corporate and Merger & Acquisition departments. In the months that followed, Nicolas joined a team of 10 attorneys in developing last year’s largest merger that involved an International Communications Company. Nicol as worked smoothly with the other members of the team—all of whom were at least 15 years older—and proved to be the communications link between all departments for that important transaction. Ever since that merger took place, Nicolas has always been the communications liaison in every operation that he is involved with. As a senior associate of the Merger & Acquisition Department, I am in charge of important international transactions.... In a two-hour meeting, Nicolas helped find a simple but brilliant solution by using nominal local shareholders for the bid and then transferring the shares to our client. In terms of undertaking and completing assignments, Nicolas is able to handle pressure with professionalism and responsiveness to both the clients' needs and the firm's needs. He was recently entrusted with closing the urgent sale of a large International Pharmaceutical Company in Uruguay and Mexico. Within two weeks, he had traveled to both countries and successfully executed the agreements. He is now in charge of reviewing all documents at closing and creating a checklist that is appended to the agreement. Nicolas's biggest strength is Client Care. His experience in the Criminal Underage Court and Labor Law firms has given him extensive and quality training in terms of dealing with people from all walks of life. His great sense of humor and dynamic personality has also saved us on many occasions. A particularly difficult account comes to mind: We were facing severe miscommunication glitches with a multinational Italian company, a European-style family business that had recently decided to settle in Argentina. Based on Nicolas's cultural background, language and people skills, we invited him to come aboard. Once he had analyzed the case, he indicated our weakness lay in the lack of personal contact and suggested that we invite the client's General Legal Counsel, who lived in Milan, to a meeting at our Buenos Aires office. Nicolas had learned that the Counsel's family and his own family (mother's side) were from the same Italian town, xxx. This was a good starting point for the meetings, most of which Nicolas led in fluent Italian. After