Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Is the American Dream Dead? Essay

The notion American dream is a fundamental part of the American society and culture, dozens of books, articles and songs deals with this topic, politicians often mention it in their speeches. Though the phrase has different meanings to different people, it suggests an underlying belief that hard work pays off and that the next generation will have a better life than the previous generation. Nowadays this belief is challenged and more and more concern is articulated in connection with the American dream in the 21st century. As comedian, author and social critic George Carlin have put it: â€Å"It’s called the American dream because you have to be asleep to believe it.† In what follows I would like to explore the theme of the American dream as a whole and consider its juncture in the 21st century by elaborating on its past and present. The evolution of the American dream Historian James Truslow Adams is credited for being the first popularizing the idea of the American dream in his book The Epic of America (1931). He characterizes the American dream as â€Å"that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement.† But the same idea existed since the colonist times. In 1630 John Winthrop give a sermon to his fellow Puritan colonists in which he detailed his vision of a society in which everyone would have a chance to prosper, as long as they all worked together and followed Biblical teachings. Eventually, the hope for equality of opportunity evolved in colonists’ mind into a God-given right. More than a hundred years later Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence  asserted that every American – except the slaves – have the right to â€Å"life, liberty and pursuit of happiness.† As grew America in the 19th century, so did the number of immigrants who saw the continent as a land of opportunity where anything could be achieved if a person dared to dream big enough. The words â€Å"American dream† gradually began to appear in newspaper articles and books in the mid- to late-1800s. The first difficulties appeared during the Great Depression in the 1930s. It affected both the rich and the poor. The self-made millionaires lost their fortune, Americans of humbler means lost their jobs and homes. With the beginning of Roosevelt’s presidency a new era begin in the American history and so did in the evolution of the Dream. In a 1941 speech Roosevelt visioned a new, government-assisted American dream, which included full employment, government help for the elderly and those unable to work, and â€Å"enjoyment of the fruits of scientific progress in a wider and constantly rising standard of living.† Previously the achievement of the American dream depended on the individual’s ability and hard-work, now, due to the Depression the government’s assistance was needed. The post-World War II prosperity meant for many Americans the fulfillment of the Dream, so that he faith in the American dream was restored least for the majority. By this time the American dream was equal to amassing wealth, but the other important aspect sank into oblivion. In a 1964 speech entitled â€Å"The American Dream,† civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr voiced this other aspect which Thomas Jefferson’s statement: â€Å"All men are equal†. For King the Dream was that same rights and opportunities would be granted for everyone regardless of skin-color. In the 1970s, with the U.S. economy stalling, inflation on the rise and the nation torn by both racial strife and an angry divide over the Vietnam War the idea of the American dream got questioned once again. A french historian Ingrid Carlander in her book (Les Americaines) claimed that the American dream was dead. These circumstances lead to the transform of the Dream again. In 1980 Ronald Reagen took office, who was the embodiment of the American dream. He had risen to presidency from a humble farm family in Illinois.  Therefore his words seems to be credited when he claimed that America is still a place where â€Å"everyone can rise as high and far as his ability will take him†. His solution to the crisis of the Dream was to disestablish the dependency on the government by cutting taxes. At first sight it seemed to be successful, but Congressional Budget Office data shows the opposite. Between 1979 and 2005, the income of the bottom 99 percent of U.S. households grew 21 percent after taxes, a rate of less than one percent a year, not enough to keep up with inflation. But during that same period, the after-tax income of the richest one percent of Americans grew by 225 percent. In 1979, the richest one percent made eight times as much as the typical middle-class family. In 2005, the richest made 21 times as much as the middle-class. The data shows that the inequality between the rich and the poor broadened the tax cuts were too efficient for the rich. The American dream in the 21st century In the modern American society the faith in the American dream is declining. Zachary Karabell in his article â€Å"American Dream May Have Waned for Some, But Lives On for Many† claims that opinion about the American dream’s existence appears to be split 50-50. In spite of this the lost in faith is much more emphasized in the press. The skepticism grows and it is mainly because of the Great Recession. The financial and opportunity differences between the poor and rich which started under Raegen deepen. A recent New York Times study confirms the inequalities, it shows that income mobility greatly depends on what part of the U.S. you live in. As Karabell have put in his other article† A new American dream for a new American century† â€Å"Those who live in metropolitan areas, as well as those with more higher education and wealthier parents, have significantly more upward mobility than many in rural areas.† These obstacles to the upward movement on the â€Å"income ladder† is something truly against the American dream. Those who did not lose faith in the dream completely, redefined it. The survey, conducted by GFK Custom Research for Credit.com, found that most respondents (27.9%) said the American Dream is retiring financially secure at 65, though coming in at second place, 23% defined it as being debt-free. The other options were owning a home (18.2%), graduating from college or  paying off your student loans (6.6%) and joining the 1% (4.3%). The responses were rounded out by: other (11.4%), none (0.2%) and don’t know/no response (8.5%). The old definition of the American dream was two and a half thriving, college-bound kids, a dog or cat and not one, but two cars in the garage that were owned outright, finally and most importantly owning a house according to Adam Levin (â€Å"The New American Dream: It’s Not What You Think†) As we can see the new generation have much less expectation, the dream would come into reality if they could achieve basic financial stability. To conclude, the American dream is an as old idea as the country itself. It went through hardships erstwhile and thrived after them, what changed is that Western-Europe closed up in providing equality of opportunity so that America lost its uniqueness in this respect. Stating the American dream’s death is maybe premature, but in the long run its distinctness as a land of potential and possibility will fade out, and becomes one out of my where the individual can realize his/her dreams.

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Balanced Scorecard in Telecom

Performance measurement concerns all stake holders of business. Owners without executive powers are obviously most keen to know how their savings and investments are deployed. Employees, especially the ones with many alternate career options, would also like to know the state of health of their organizations, apart from the aspect of how superiors view their contributions. Suppliers worry about the future prospects of the business of a client because it has cascading effects on their own fortunes.Finally, regulators use corporate performance as feedback of macro-economic policies; customers also have tangential interests in the well-being of service providers and manufacturers on whom they depend. There is an increasing disconnect between statutory financial reporting and statements by executive teams about the states of enterprises for which they are responsible. There are many significant events in a corporation’s history which do not find places in profit and loss accounts or in balance sheets.Further, all statutory reporting is historical, whereas many modern lines of business such as telecommunications are in very fluid states. Everyone wants to know the future impacts of present developments, rather than what has already transpired in the past. There is an explosion of interest in non-financial information (Neef, and Cefola). Trends in customer loyalty and retention, development of more effective human resources, the capabilities of corporation to meet future competitive pressures, and the internal ‘engine-room’ operations are typical areas about which little is known through traditional financial reporting.While executives must be pleased at the lack of comprehensive business intelligence for competitors, the lack of directional information can lead to poor coordination and loss of control inside a corporation. All levels of hierarchy require guidance in terms of overall strategy, and how broad directions bear on individual jobs. The concept of a Balanced Scorecard is a popular and widely respected method of translating strategy in to specific implementationThis document constructs a hypothetical case of a telecom company, and attempts the application of the Balanced Scorecard methodology to translate the strategy of this company in to reality. The document concludes with an appraisal of the utility of the method. Business Distinctions of Telecom It is useful to consider the broad structure of the global telecom industry in order to construct a hypothetical case of some relevance.Telecom has shot in to the limelight of late after dramatic developments in technology and extensive consolidation of the industry structure as well. The industry shares a high profile with consumers and regulators alike. The telecom business is integral to modernization of society (Bonocore, 2001). High speed, wireless communication networks have transformed lives, bringing what was almost science fiction to the realm of reality. It is now possible to stay in touch with the world from the comfort of a home, and save on travel and commute times.Convergence between mobile or cellular telephones and computers is another major trend, and the revolution in the work-place of old is now in the process of unfolding at homes, with developments such as Internet telephones and music downloads from this medium as well. The industry is full of dramatic discontinuities; some of these are due to mergers and acquisitions, while the rest is because of disruptive changes in technology (Bonocore, 2001). The technological changes are likely to continue, with exponential jumps in processing speeds of micro-processors, while costs are headed distinctly south.The huge and rapid technological improvements keep creating excess capacities (Bonocore, 2001). The fixed infrastructure costs of telecom players are not sustainable, unless price reductions spur major jumps in demand. There is a fierce battle to capture new customers, to induce t hem to use their telephones as much as possible, and to hold on to them as well. Regulatory changes are breaking restrictions, as between local and long distance telephony (Bonocore, 2001). Large global players can also now break in to new domestic territories.The industry nature as outlined above makes non-financial parameters as important drivers of success (Neef, and Cefola). It is therefore eminently suited for the application of the Balanced Scorecard methodology (Tenhunen, Ukko, Markus, Oy, and Rantanen, 2002). Hypothetical Case Construction Telephone and Data Systems Inc. is a real company listed on the New York Stock Exchange (Form 10-K, 1998). It is a diversified telecommunications operator in the United States, and participates in both the wireless and line telephone segments.A hypothetical case has been created in this document on the historical basis of the company’s 10-K statement for 1997, presented to the Securities and Exchanges Commission in 1998 (Form 10-K, 1998). This document details the company’s strategy exactly a decade ago. The Balanced Scorecard methodology can be applied to this historical but factual situation in a hypothetical way. The numbers and facts in the following paragraphs are not entirely factual, with some simplifications made for the purpose of clarity. Telephone Data Systems Inc.is a relatively small and niche player in the telecom industry. It does not operate at all outside of the United States, and serves customers in only 36 States of its home country. It has less than 10 million customers. The company depends on the United States Cellular Corporation for its wireless services, which includes broad band, and has a wholly owned subsidiary for this line of business. The company operates printing and distribution activities through Suttle Straus, Inc in which it has a controlling stake.TDS is focused on rural and suburban USA. It has about 11 thousand employees. Its basic approach is to combine organic gro wth with appropriate acquisitions. It operates each lines of business through a company which it either owns wholly or controls. The company has proprietary access to technology which reduces noise, provides seamless inter-connections, and which also offers cost advantages. Its network is capable of upgrades for value-added services. However, the company does also need to enter new technology areas.The company focuses on geographic clusters in order to control costs, but emphasizes full customer satisfaction in its chosen clusters. Overall, the broad strategy of Telephone Data Systems Inc. is to hold a leadership position in rural and suburban America, making necessary investments to support such a competitive advantage. An Overview of the Balanced Scorecard Concept It is useful at this junction to consider the general nature and principles of the Balanced Scorecard before the concept is applied to the hypothetical case constructed as above.The Balanced Scorecard is essentially a wa y of translating strategic concepts in to action (Keyes, 2005). It can also be used for holistic performance appraisal of an organization. The Balanced Scorecard seeks to integrate the contributions of all stake holders and levels of an organization for the joint implementation of strategic goals (Kaplan, 2002). It eliminates gaps between visionary thinking at the top of an organization and the daily actions of people up to the periphery. The Balanced Scorecard makes a large corporation nimble and responsive.The Balanced Scorecard was first introduced in the early 1990, and is now used by about half of all U. S. corporations (Neely, 2002). Measurement is crucial for building teams and common commitments (Kaplan, 2002). This is at the heart of the Balanced Scorecard system. These measures are a part of a cause and effect link spanning the entire organization; each measure is linked to an organizational outcome. The Balanced Scorecard is built along 4 axes: the financial perspectives drive customer values, while the internal perspectives focus on productivity, and value creation.The customer perspective gives body to differentiation, while the learning and growth perspective dwells on human resources, systems, business climate, and organization culture. Overall the Balanced Scorecard is a means of implementing strategy, and works primarily through simple and transparent measurement of financial and qualitative goals (Neely, 2002). Implementation Priorities and Sequencing This section relates to the hypothetical case constructed earlier in the document. Telephone Data Systems Inc.is ready with a strategy and would like to use the Balanced Scorecard to ensure measured and effective implementation. The process must start with widespread communication of the evolved strategy, because this has been prepared by a mere handful of the most senior and trusted executives in the company (Mai, and Akerson, 2003). Telephone Data Systems Inc. has more than 11 thousand employe es, and the Balanced Scorecard system requires that each of them understands what their company wishes to achieve and how (Kaplan, 2002).Some people are formally employees of owned or controlled, but independent entities: they must also be carried in the massive effort to implement the strategy quickly and well. Share holders, financiers, and technology associates are other stake holders with important roles in strategy execution, so they too must know the direction their company has chosen to take. Finally, competitors also need to be aware of the nuances of company strategy since the industry is in a phase of consolidation.Overall, the management should make special efforts to carry people with them by integration with the Human Resources Management strategy (Kearns, 2003) and by viewing the organization as a living being Communication with such a large and diversified audience is likely to suffer from both dilution as well as distortion (Segil, and Goldsmith, J, 2002). Further, t he subject matter is a top management prerogative, so any word from anyone other than the Chief Executive Officer, will not carry adequate weight or authority (Kaplan, 2002)This communication issue is also an opportunity for the company to showcase its strengths. The Chief Executive Officer, apart from physical one-on-one meetings with the most influential stake holders, decides to use email and video conferencing infrastructure to communicate interactively with each stake holder directly. The core message is that Telephone Data Systems Inc. will be the leader in telecommunications within rural and suburban America. The company will back this super-ordinate aim with all the financial and non-financial investments needed for its realization.The Chief Executive Officer and the core strategy team have decided to launch the Balanced Scorecard on a pilot basis before extending the methodology throughout the Group (Tenhunen, Ukko, Markus, Oy, and Rantanen, 2002). This will serve as a lear ning process and will help the company deal with the potential problems which such a process may entail. Telephone Data Systems Inc. is new to the Balanced Scorecard, and it is known that some phases of the process, such as tying personal remuneration with measured goal achievement may cause instabilities.

Monday, July 29, 2019

Critical Paper Dulce Et Decorum Est Essay

Wilfred Owen’s Dulce et Decorum Est is a forlorn poem of his experience in the First World War. Owen recounts his story as he and fellow infantrymen march ‘knock-kneed, coughing like hags’ across the wasteland that is the battle front(line 2). Most of the focus is on the exhaustion from battle, but changes attention when ‘hoots’ of gas-shells rain down on their position. Weariness quickly turns to ‘An ecstasy of fumbling’ (line 9) as the soldiers fit their gas masks, but one soldier is not fast enough. Owen then relates his first hand tale and demise of the footman chocking to death from mustard gas. The reader is forced to witness this horrid death and ask ourselves; ‘Dulce et descorum est,/Pro patria mori’ (line 27-28). Lines 1-8 are used to describe a scene of war-torn men on a forced march across a wasteland. Such phrases as, ‘old beggars’, and ‘coughing like hags’ gives the reader an idea of what condition that the infantrymen are in. Such phrases denote a negative image as to associate the infantrymen as vagrants in poor physical condition. With those who ‘lost their boots’ now find themselves ‘blood-shod,’ rather than being bare foot. The word shod is an old English term for shoeing a horse, again negative connotation of the infantrymen as sub-human beings. Lines 5 and 7 give depth to the state of despondency that general infantrymen are in. Owen chooses the phrase ‘Drunk with fatigue’ to show the depth of exhaustion the infantrymen are experiencing. To be drunk, as to be intoxicated with the absolute exhaustion; denoting fatigue as some drug that overwhelms the senses and coordination. They do not give credence to the reality they are in until a gas shell sends them into an ‘ecstasy of fumbling’ for a gas mask. Ecstasy’ is used not to give the connotation of delight and happiness, but rather the stark contrast of frenzy. Lines 9 and 11 end with ‘fumbling’ and ‘stumbling’, respectively, to give depth the infantrymen’s state of condition. Later, in lines 14 and 16, an association is draw between the engulfing gas and a man drowning. Owen depicts a ma n in a green sea drowning (line 14) to be later plunging at him (line 16); both giving the allusion between being engulfed in water or noxious gas. Again, in line 17, Owen asks the reader to ‘pace.. in some smothering dream’; a reoccurring theme of being deprived of air. The second stanza utilizes the most guttural connotation of such words as to describe the corpse. From the ‘gargling†¦froth-corrupted lungs’, to the ‘vile, incurable sores’, Owen wants to galvanize the true wickedness of war. The reader is told of how gas can ‘corrupt lungs’ and put ‘sores on innocent tongues’. This contrast is vital because it depicts how war can taint that which is most holy. In saying that the corpse’s face hung ‘like a devil’s sick of sin,’ gives yet another reference between evil and war, but it has another meaning. To imply the devil would be overwhelmed with such amount of evil implies that one cannot grasp the horrors of war. The poem then ends with a sort of thesis statement that to die for one’s country is neither right nor sweet. Dulce begins as a slow trudge of despondent soldiers, to a fanatic race for safety, then a slow, visceral portrayal of life being wrenched away from man, opposed to the titles suggestion for war hysteria and propaganda. But the main theme is not to just illustrate the dregs of war but to give the reader the truth of war. He makes the reader place themselves on the front line to look death and despair in the eye.

A background briefing memorandum for an upcoming hearing on the Assignment

A background briefing memorandum for an upcoming hearing on the proposed Safe Chemicals Act, - Assignment Example The Congress passed the (TSCA) Toxic Substances Control Act in 1976 to accredit the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regiment chemicals that were potentially arbitrary risks to the environment and health of human beings. Whether or not the TSCA submits the EPA with sufficient tools to protect human health and the environment against exposure to chemical pollution is questionable. Using common sense principles and current science, the Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families coalition is working with Congress to repair our broken chemical system so that chemicals are proven safe before being added to our schools, places of work and even our homes. The 1976 (TSCA) is outdated and ineffective at protecting the public from chemicals. The chemicals may be of good use, but they are also counterproductive essentially because they have been linked to learning disabilities, reproductive problems, asthma, cancer and other serious diseases. Signaling our clear intention to protect families from toxic chemicals associated with serious health problems, Senators Frank Lautenberg, Amy Klobuchar, Charles Schumer , and I, with the support of others presented Senate Bill S.847, the "Safe Chemicals Act" to upgrade America’s out of date system for managing chemical safety. The E.U., like the U.S. has laws governing the use and production of chemicals. I will begin by looking into activities surrounding (REACH) Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals and the (TSCA) Toxic Substances Control Act. In the recent past, the E.U has amended its policies for chemical control through legislation known as (REACH) Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals in order to improve the identification and mitigation of risks from chemicals. The comparison of the TSCA and the recently enacted REACH approaches has the following results: Both legislations, TSCA and REACH, have accouterments to guard information rendered by chemical

Sunday, July 28, 2019

The interior structure of Venus Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The interior structure of Venus - Essay Example Interior structure of Venus is therefore slightly different from the Earth`s. The reasons for this are partly to do with their core and partly it could basically have to do with their motion. Venus rotates very slowly and it takes more than 243 of Earth days to rotate once on its axis. This is even longer compared to the time Venus takes to orbit the Sun which is about 225 Earth days. This may be mainly the reason Venus doesn't contain a magnetic field like majority of the other planets. The core might also be absolutely solid, or could not even exist in the first place. Venus`s average density which is 5.25g/cm3 reveals that Venus, just like the Earth, must be composed of silicate rocks as well as be a differentiated planet. sustaining data for internal models hails from gravity as well as magnetic field readings from Venera, Pioneer Venus together with Magellan spacecraft. It is thought that Venus created a differentiated core made up of the heaviest elements for instance iron sinking to middle of the Venus. It`s however, not known if the core of Venus has yet solidified to the same level as of the Earth's core. Despite the proportions of core, crust and mantle being similar to Earth, the surface revelation is that there are none of moving 'plates' as there exist on Earth that can mean. This shows that either the crust is a bit thicker and planet cannot form, or Venus mantle is not convecting a fast way as Earth's mantle so as to stir the plates around. Previous mission Very less is well-known concerning the interior of Venus compared to what is known about its atmosphere and surface. Previous mission to the space and exploration of the other planets focused more on their surface and atmosphere. These m issions were of atmospheric probe and orbiters types. However, my mission is quite different as it explores the interior of Venus, I mission that is hardly undertaken by scientists. Venus is much like the Earth in density and in overall size and because it most probably accreted from similar materials, as planetary scientist, I expect that Venus formed at least a crudely alike internal state. Therefore, it almost certainly has mantle of dense rock, a core of metal, as well as the crust of lesser dense rock. The

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Research Paper Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Research Paper - Article Example Congress’ objectives are largely represented by policies and legislation, but most of them are implemented by the public sector where the public manager belongs. Therefore, members of this provision are implementers of decisions or ideas envisioned by law makers; they are instruments of reform and progress in the sector. The legislative arm of the government has the desire to make public administration systems more effective and efficient. It is for this reason that it may introduce policies and laws designed to achieve this goal. Currently, new public reform, based on neoliberalism or market economies has been implemented in the US and several other European countries with varied reactions. In the US, managers in the public sector are expected to cut down on bureaucratic coordination and instead adopt market competition or coordination as they carry out their duties. Most elected representatives aim at minimizing government expenditure, and a number of them believe that the reform movement of the day (neoliberalism) can help them achieve this. Therefore, Congress’s convictions and aims affect how public managers carry out their work as they are expected to share these objectives, as well. Provision of quality public services is seen as something desirable by the legislative arm and the public manager’s job is how these abstract ideas can be actualized (Pollitt & Bouckaert, 2000). In essence, some advocates in the legislature believe that reduction in government growth is a positive attribute as this allows it to work within its financial limits. Public managers are in charge of actual spending within various federal agencies, so they are expected to make reasonable discretions when doing their work. The neoliberal reform movement currently implies a move towards privatization rather than too much dependence on

Friday, July 26, 2019

Marketing Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Marketing - Assignment Example Threats are competitions who are strongly positioned while opportunity is the growing interest of coffee drinkers for a sophisticated taste of coffee. As a formulation of an international marketing strategy, recommendation is for entry of Costa Coffee using a differentiated business approach. The purpose of this report is to analyze the critical factors required in entering a foreign market. The chosen country is Azerbaijan which is located in Southwestern Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Russia, with a small European portion north of the Caucasus range. (CIA 2012). Costa Coffee needs to decide on the four types of entries to this market, namely: exporting, licensing, joint venture, and direct investment (Washington Secretary of State. Corporations Division). Costa Coffee has also need to plan the appropriate strategy in its entry. The market strategies established are the technological innovation, (the superiority of the product); product adaptation (modifications in the existing product); Availability (low price strategy); or total adaptation (conformity strategy). Azerbajan has a total population of 9,643,000 as of 2011 (CIA). It is composed of 3,436,459 females and 3,307,88l males in the bracket of ages 15-64 and a male population of 227,172 and 367,675 bracket of 65 years and above. Population is composed of Azeri 90.6%, Dagestani 2.2%, Russian 1.8%, Armenian 1.5%, other 3.9% (1999 census). Population growth rate is 1.017% with a rank of 114 in world comparison. Baku, its capital holds 1.9 million people. 2. Economy. Its high economic growth is attributable to a large and growing oil exports, construction, banking, and real estate. Obstacles to its progress is said to be the public and private sector corruption and infrastructure inefficiencies. The country also needs a stepped up foreign investment in the non-energy sector. It imports

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Globalization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Globalization - Essay Example Collectively, they explained the dynamics of the global business landscape and the variables that drive the numerous processes at work within it. Concepts such as culture, technology, knowledge and the legal and political diversities found in various national economies all combined to demand new and complex requirements for multinational companies. These has called for their transformation as truly global organizations through changes in their organizational structure and the adoption of new business strategies in order to address the unique challenges and issues posed by the global environment. Before this module began, I have an inkling on what globalization is and its impact on both organizations, national economies and consumers. But my knowledge was limited to the superficial, abstract and general concepts. For instance, I know that globalization threatens local companies and could endanger their very survival because of the superior strength of the resources available to multinational companies that are invading the local market. But this module enlightened me further on the fact that it is not always easy for multinational companies to do this. ... † (p8-9) Secondly, there is the form of globalization that relates to the way organizations structure, control and manage their value-chains in terms of global operations. This is done â€Å"according to the availability of resources, cost levels, skills, quality and a host of other variables. (p. 9) These two forms of globalization supposedly were responsible for the emergence and the perpetuation of multinational companies who have already surpassed small national-economies in revenue generation. The third form, is characterized by how globalization adversely impacts several areas such as the democratic system, the environment, national cultures and identities, among others. (p. 12) The sheer complexity of the globalization economic model, hence, calls for a multidimensional approach by which stakeholders navigate its processes. Stonehouse, Campbell and Hamill emphasized, for example, that it should already be obvious how multinational/transnational companies must never adop t a global strategy that is primarily characterized by global standardization because it will fail. (p. 8) Companies have to make some fine-tuning in their strategies every time they enter a market. The reason is that each country has its own national circumstance. This can also be demonstrated in the numerous organizational configurations developed in order to pursue different objectives and address specific areas in the global business environment (see figure 1). Motives, Strategies and Organizational Configurations (Source: Bartlett and Beamish) As I saw from the diversity in organizational structure, I understood the sense in rejecting a global standards in strategy. For example, the Centralized Hub organizational model may work in some economies or markets with fierce competition but may not

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Economics of housing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Economics of housing - Essay Example The two main historic junction points that can be identified are in the years of 1915-1919 and also in the year 1979. Occupation of ownership as well as social housing amplified their comparative size in the period of 1915 to 1979. At the same time the private renting contracted drastically. After 1979 till the early phases of 2000 owner occupation augmented at the cost of social housing. Since the year 1995 the comparative size of the private rented sector began to take the steep rising curve. The trends in tenure can be accounted to be the combination of political, economic as well as social drivers that played their role in the short and in the long run. Political transformations like supports from the local government and Rights to Buy interacted with the cycles of the economy to bring changes in attitudes to different tenures. The current trends suggest a mix in tenure of the housing system of UK. For the first time the comparative size of the owner occupied sector took the decl ining curve while at the same time the private rented sector took the oppositely sloping curve. The reason for such a drift may be the supreme numeral of households in owner occupation while the social rented sector remained stable. In the phase of 2005 to 2009 the number of households in the private rented sector augmented by more than one million households. ... If the recent trends sustain in 2013 then the private sector is expected to be larger than the social rented sector. Forecasts also point to the fact that by the end of the decade one in every five households would be private renters. The forecasting trends are based on the continuation of the recent trends. The figures point towards quick changes in tenure mix but the figures do not state how quickly the changes would take place. The key drivers that forced the recent changes in tenure mix are depicted in the diagram below: (Pattison, Diacon and Vine, 2010, p. 5). The three pillars taken in the diagram are owner occupation, private rented sector as well as social housing. The panel above the key drivers are regarded to be the drivers that act to increase the relative size while the panel below the drivers act to decrease the relative size. The structures above the pillar of owner occupation are tax advantages relative to other tenures, political support, preferred tenure and the Rig ht to Buy sales. The structures above the pillar of private rented sector are affordability relative to owner occupation, lifestyle changes increasing desire for mobility. The structures above the social housing pillar are financial stability, demand for social housing. The structures below the pillar of owner occupation are income constraints, wealth constraints and mortgage constraints. The structures below private rented sector are investment constraints, lack of political support, and tax incentive relative to owner occupation. The structures below social housing are Right to Buy sales and pressure on government spending. Question (ii) The report published by the HomeOwners Alliance states the owner occupation in UK is set to go below

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Reflection paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 5

Reflection paper - Essay Example I was told that this was the group to join as a college freshman from the UAE because the members were mostly sophomore and upper classmen who could help me learn the ropes and feel my way around the school community as a freshman. I was hesitant to approach the group at first because I felt embarrassed being a new comer to the school. I was not sure about how to introduce myself and ask to become a member of the group. Little did I know that my fears were totally unfounded. I was totally surprised when Ahmad Kabalawi, the president of the Middle Eastern Student Association himself approached me one time to introduce himself and ask if I wanted to attend a group meeting after classes the coming Saturday. Relief swept over me as I accepted the invitation. It turns out that it was not hard to join the group at all and they had been wondering as to why I had not approached them yet after a month of classes opening. I was so happy to join this group because they helped me overcome a lot of personal inhibitions that I had at the time. Being a new student whose first time it was away from home and my parents, I had a tendency to become very homesick. The senior members of the group helped me overcome my homesickness and desire to go home by keeping me busy in between classes. I was never alone because they always had group activities that I could participate in after classes and, most specially, I had a group of friend who understood my culture and belief system. That was very important to me because I needed to be able to keep a sense of home and my individuality while I attended school in the USA. I celebrated the important Middle Eastern and UAE holidays with the members of this group. When we were not busy bonding with each other, I helped them with their cultural information dissemination activities. We would sponsor mixers and hold friendly gatherings both on and off campus with others who were not from the Middle East in

International Production and Trade Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

International Production and Trade - Essay Example As a result of this shift, the United States and much of Western Europe aligned itself with a free market capitalist system whereas the Soviet Union and many parts of the remainder of the world aligned themselves with socialist communism. As a result of this bipolar powershift, the capitalist nations throughout the world realize that one of the only ways to ensure that wealth generation and sustained growth could proliferate was by engaging in a system of capitalism that prized reductions in trade barriers and liberalize nations in trade. The authors further specify the fact that this desire to reduce trade barriers and liberalize trade was ultimately the impetus which helps to give rise to such global entities as GATT, WTO, and the World Bank. Yet rather than each and every nation throughout the world integrating their economies and seeking to provide goods and services with little to no trade barriers, a somewhat different dynamic has been realized. As such, the difference between theory and practice is denoted by the authors with respect to the way in which different trade blocs and trade alliances have developed between the regions and entities throughout the globe. As such, whereas the world might have been previously defined based upon religion and/or ideology, nationality, ethnicity, or any other litany of different qualifiers, the modern world has largely been defined with regards to which nations agreed to a level of unimpeded trade. What this has ultimately affected is a situation through which the world has come to be redefined based upon trade and not based upon many of the other qualifications that had previously constrained and defined the way in which nations have interacted historically. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, this particular trend has only been increasing as more and more nations throughout the globe seek to develop their own trade blocs and alliances in something of a macro form of protectionism. Evidence of this can of course be seen with regards to the way in which the EU, NAFTA, and ASEAN treaties now exists which helped to promote trans regional trade and block the advances of true international liberalism that might otherwise helped to differentiate and grow these respective economies. As a result of this particular approach, the authors discuss the way in which this dynamic shift has encouraged specialization with regards to different industries and regions/economies. Moreover, as well has been generated and regions of the world have come to supply the raw material for finished goods and services in other parts of the world, the authors note the fact that many individuals view this as something of a neo-mercantilist system. Although this is not quite the case, the comparisons are nonetheless existence and should not be dismissed out of hand. As the more wealthy nations, represented by powerful trade alliances and blocs are able to outsource their unskilled labor and raw material extraction to poore r nations, the benefits of these inputs are realized on both entities. Whereas the neo-mercantilist would point to the fact that these nations are being taken advantage

Monday, July 22, 2019

Social Media and Social Issues Essay Example for Free

Social Media and Social Issues Essay A study on the role of social media in shaping and publicizing Social issues Mohana Sudhan Mayilsamy, Assistant Professor, School of Communication, Dr. G. R. Damodaran College of Science, Avinashi Road, Coimbatore 641014. e-mail:[emailprotected] com, Mobile: 9944223455, Fax: 0422-2591865. Abstract Social media, especially social Networking Sites are turning up as an essential mode of interactive and informing media in the recent past. Especially, it is being considered as a platform for both promotion and publicizing social issues. But, the credibility and the truth of the news travelling in the networks as blogs and posts is a debatable issue. The paper starts with examining the powers enjoyed by the social networking sites and social media in the controlling the mass, uncategorized audience as well the informed citizens. Focus group observation method has been employed and analysis of the media in content handling have been done despite the rules and regulations imposed by the self-regulatory bodies in India and the loopholes present. With the findings the author concludes the need for a regulation of content in social media and a code of conduct for content management in Indian scenario. Key Words: Media, Social Networking Sites, Media effects, Social Media, Opinion seeking Introduction to the study: Do we rule the media or the media rules us? Has always been the question of researchers in media and in common users of media as well. The prophecy â€Å"Medium is the message† by Marshall McLuhan, gives a clear picture of how media has been ruling us and is ruling even now though the communication tools change, and he has emphasised this in many of his works including the Global village concept to technological determinism, where media plays a major role in deciding the content and ideology of users and not the users. But with the advent of advanced technologies and interactive devices, wiz, computer, mobiles and the increasing usage of Internet and other communication technologies, communication has got a radical change. Each and every day, yet another new technology is being diffused into the minds of the people every day and even people keep on getting used to all the technologies. The gratifications approach has been found valid for the day, as people select media in a wide spread manner. Social Networking Sites, an outcome of interactive services offered by social media and communicative tools like Internet and intranet have brought the world too handy, enabling people to interact and discuss virtually. A share in a social networking site can reach hundreds even millions in time depending upon the connectivity of the users. This makes people getting flattered on the networking sites and makes them spend hours and hours hanging over the net. It offers various services like e-mailing, instant messaging, sharing photos and videos, make friends and so on. With the increase in its need and usage, the information flowing in the Social Networking Sites is unpredictable. The content travelling in the social media is very vast and in an uncontrollable way, thereby creating a non-centred authority to control news. The news gets its own form in the media as it delineates to people and gets a different perspective and form as it reaches the end user. This makes Social Networking sites, a threat to harmony in society. Maybe they are perceived as elements of social elevation, but it depends on the audience it reaches. If the audiences are well informed and are able to take a good decision, then the flow of news would not be a problem, but since social networking sites are being used by diversified audience, there should be a control imposed over the content to have a good and healthy environment in the country and make it stable in development. Social Media: The term  Social Media  refers to the use of web-based and mobile technologies in communication and making it interactive. Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein, define social media as a group of Internet-based applications that allow the creation and exchange of  user-generated content†. Social media is rather a media for social interaction, than social communication. Equipped with modern technologies and speedy Internetworking, social media has changed the way of communication between people, groups and organisations too. There are various categories of social media which includes online magazines, Internet forums, weblogs, social blogs and Social Networking forums. Further Kaplan and Haenlein categorises Social media into six types, namely, collaborative projects, likewise Wikipedia, blogs and microblogs likewise twitter, content communities like Youtube, social networking sites like Facebook, Orkut, virtual game worlds and virtual social worlds. Among them Social Networking sites have become the most popular and highly used media as it provides more chances for Interactivity and presence. It is also being used as a marketing tool to market ideas, products, as well business. Social Networking Sites: Social networking sites, commonly abbreviated as SNS, are the interactive websites and forums that allow users to maintain an account, create a profile, find friends, chat, interact, conduct discussions, ask questions and so on. They act as a platform between users to share ideas of their own to the known and unknown, as per their wish. Social Networking sites, hit India with the increased number of Indian immigrants to the entire globe for employment. It arose as a tool for communicating with their families, and later on with the increased usage of technologies, it became a part and parcel of day to day life. We can easily say that there are hardly 10 out of 100, without at least an account in any of the social networking sites. Facebook – a general introduction: Facebook presents a lot many features and is being listed as the first in social networking sites on usage. It is basically a forum started in a university to keep in track with the friends and alumni and soon the interactive features, that it provided and the regular usage of people made it an eminent site. Soon it fore run social networking giants Orkut and yahoo that where dominant in India and has a membership of more than 800 million active users throughout the world. It allows the users to connect with people they know or do not know, share photos and videos of themselves or general interest, post comments and update any information as stories and comments, and comment and give opinions on others inputs. The ethical concerns noticed are Invasion of Privacy, dissemination of information without consent, unknown affiliation and so on. The status in India: Taking the case of India, the Social Networking sites are taking a new form and are becoming the lobby for people to hang out and discuss on various issues, ranging from personal to public, make posts and opinions on various social concerns and create pages on whatever issues they wish to. But this is going to a level that anyone can write or post any material on an issue without the approval of either the administrator of the networking site or the Government and transport down to any user of the network despite the user is a friend or not, through public postings. This poses a threat to the privacy of the users and also the news that gets transported. It takes a new form at every user’s page depending upon the understanding of the user on the issue. This increases the diversion of the perspective of the news. The most important social Networking sites in India based on their usage are Facebook, Twitter, Orkut and MySpace. A recent study in the UK showed that most Britons have a strong desire for the regulation of social network sites like MySpace and Facebook. In fact, 9 out of 10 people said there should be tighter regulation and, according to  The Guardian, 89% said there should be a set of widely accepted rules to help prevent personal information from being abused. – An article by Bobbie Johnson, Technology correspondent, The Guardian. With Social Media playing a major role in India, and especially Social Networking Sites, acting as monsters in the media arena, and as catalysts in determining the social issues, people who use these media are not mere demographies and rather perspective targets of the messages travelling in Media. So they need to be approached as careful as possible and since each and everyone differ in ideologies and conceptual, utmost attention should be paid in transferring news that help in decision making. Objective of the study: The study aims at understanding the media content that has always been a debatable issue ever since its inception. It is the final output which reaches the audience as the face of media. Various media disseminate the same content at the same point if time in various formats, under various control factors. Here, the aspects various controls and various formats determine the content, controls more on a large and aspects on a lesser part. Because, the amount of control decides what the message should be and what it cannot be. In the context of social media, which has tremendous feathers waving along 360 degrees, content management is a tedious process. That too, in a country like India, with diversified users of media, with a diversified mindset, content can be a dangerous thing, if it is not taken due care of. For example, we can quote the Anna Hazares IAC campaign, which gained the utmost interest of the social media, and has been listed as the best discussed topic of the year in the Facebook. India, as a democratic country has vested its own citizens with the Right to Speech and expression, but on the other hand, those rights are limited to the extent where the harmony and peace of the country is not disturbed. Social Networking Sites, because of the freedom they provide, intuit people to speak on all the news they wish and give chances for opinion by anyone, no matter whether they are aware of the topic or not. This may account to false perception of any News by the society and can bring in confusions and problems to the society. This does not mean that there should be restriction on using the sites, which can account to anti – democratic, but there needs a monitor over the information that flows in the Net, so that there can be a check over what can be discussed and what need not be. Theoretical perspective: The study works on the theory of Media effects finds its impact on the study and in specific, Catharsis effects and Reinforcement theory holds well. The theory goes as follows: Reinforcement theory  is one of the limited effects media model applicable. The theory generally states that people seek out and remember information that provides cognitive support for their pre-existing attitudes and beliefs. The central assumption of the theory stated that people do not like to be wrong and often feel uncomfortable when their beliefs are challenged. The theory of Catharsis effects also applies to the impact of media on user attitude behaviour. The term â€Å"catharsis† is derived from the Greek word ‘katharsis’ which means cleansing, purging, or purification. In the way, the theory is used in communication research, it implies that the execution of an aggressive action under certain conditions diminishes the aggressive drive and therefore reduces the likelihood of further aggressive actions. Secondly, the theory of Media advocacy also holds good for the study. Media advocacy is a sort of development communication, which involves the strategic use of media in shaping public opinions, mobilising community activities and in influencing decision makers in policy change. It shifts the focus of an issue from persona frame to social frame. Since Media advocacy stresses on policy change, it always confronts interaction with power vested authorities and hence it has the following advantages: i. Since media advocacy is always focused in gaining access to news than advertising it is highly cost effective and the users need not spend more on promotion of ideas and issues. ii. The effects of public policy are long lasting. They set the standards for the expected change, and transform it down to more number of users for a long period of time. Hence , though Media advocacy is involves planning, skill sets, creativity and also long time commitment, it is preferred more in addressing public issues on a major. Sometimes, Media also needs advise where it lags behind and need to be changed. The media academicians stand as the resource providers when media needs an advice and change. Methodology used: Content analysis of the social networking sites, has been done to analyse where some social networking sited go wrong and fail to cater to the needs, security and safety of the data and content of the society. This has been taken as a primary data which is further analysed and some predominant flaws in the dominant Social Networking Sites were exposed. A panel discussion on â€Å"The Need for a National Media Policy† to regulate the content and functioning of all the media including print, electronic and Internet and Social Networking Sites was conducted to analyse the trend prevailing in Media, and the situations that create the need for a National Policy on Media in India were arrived at. This was carried out with an expert panel of five members from various industries of media with around seventy five media students from various colleges as participants and was also allowed to interact and give their inputs wherever needed. Intensive observation method has been applied for analysis of the transmission of news in SNS. A sample size of fifty respondents comprising of teachers and media students who have a base knowledge of news and society is selected and were posted a question and asked to give opinions on that. Then the responses with the comments were again posted in for discussion and the results were analysed based on the parameters set and analysis was done. Outcome of the study: The content analysis of Social Networking Sites arrived at the below mentioned flaws prevalent as well with some earlier cases that were stated as the disadvantages of Social Networking Sites. I. Lack of Identity of users: There is no strict measure in verifying the real identity of the users in all the Social Networking Sites. So, anyone can own any number of accounts in a single SNS, provided they have an additional e-mail id. This in turn also does not look for any identity verifications. This shows the lag of control over the identity of the user and hence cannot execute actions or take action on ignorant people, which may lead to causalities. The case carried by The Times of India, reveals that how a genuine person has been under custody of the court for around 55 days. Lakshman Kailash, employed as software engineer by HCL and a resident of Kodihalli gets arrested in Bangalore on August 31, 2007 under the Information Technology Act, 2000 and spends 50 days at Yerawada Jail in Pune. He is charged with defaming Chatrapathi Shivaji, one of the founders of the Maratha Empire, by allegedly uploading an insulting picture of the latter on Orkut, a social networking site (SNS). This was based on the complaint filed by a Pune resident, Dhiraj Ramchandra Ghate, the Pune Police arrests Kailash apparently based on his IP address through Airtel, his Internet service provider. However, they later learn that one Kiran Reddy, a resident of Bangalore, was the actual culprit. After the intervention of the State Human Rights Commission of Maharashtra, the police set Kailash free. This can show the level of trauma, the convicted would have underwent, when he was in jail, and this is a single incident and if there would have been identity of the members in all SNS, this would have been avoided. II. Invasion of Privacy: Case I Facebook has had a lot many issues regarding Invasion of privacy ever since beginning. You can protect your data to general public users but cannot narrow down to the level of protecting them from being viewed by your friends. Facebook explicitly states their restrictions and user expectations of user content in their terms of use. In particular, Facebook does not allow users to in any way make available any content that we deem to be harmful, threatening, unlawful, defamatory, infringing, abusive, inflammatory, harassing, vulgar, obscene, fraudulent, invasive of privacy or publicity rights, hateful, or racially, ethnically or otherwise objectionable. In January 2006, Facebook shut down a group titled I Hate Jesus after Facebook received complaints from other users about the group. As Facebook explained to the groups creator in an email, Hate groups of any kind are not tolerated on the site, even if they are meant to be comedic. Even then, this has been done after a bombarding of complaints have been filed to the administrator to close the group. Hence, in this way Facebook does not have an automatic control over the management of the content. Case II Also, as per the rules there is no practical way to protect public content so that only trusted friends can view it. Not only does the publisher risk their pers onal information being used for offensive purposes (identity theft or otherwise), but if they change their minds, it is nearly impossible to remove something permanently from the Internet. Search engines can keep copies of web pages long after they have been removed. So, one cannot confine that their privacy is secured even if the user has deleted the account. Information Gathering by Social Networking Sites: Another major issue that raises substantial privacy concerns is the accumulation of private information by social networking services. With more than  800million users, Facebook stores an immense volume of private data that is constantly expanding: 250 million photos  new photos are uploaded to Facebooks servers every day. In addition to private photographs, Facebook stores many other types of personal information that users submit, including relationships, political views, sexual orientations, and credit card numbers. Facebook also keeps track of its users purchasing habits through the Beacon affiliate program: even when users decline to publish stories on Facebook about their purchases, the information is still sent to Facebooks servers. This Information Gathering by Social Networking Sites, has been posing a threat in content management of users. Intensive Observation Method: Intensive observation method of Social Networking sites revealed at the following flaws, which cannot be a major issue to discuss, but can become at a point of time. Dissemination of Information without consent: The Facebook users can comment, share, like and post stories create any blog in Facebook in any of the user’s links, irrespective of privacy. This can be delivered down to all the Facebook users throughout the world, if posted as a public post. In this the content can become inappropriate to some users, which gives a chance for misleading opinions, deviating audience to a wrong perspective, and even leading to mishaps depending on the intensity of the issue. This has been experimented by selecting a sample size of 50 respondents, segmented in two categories: i. General Audience: People who are users of Facebook and members of Social Networking sites, but do not have an in-depth knowledge of Media effects and other terms. 25 people comprising of students and college teachers represented the sample. i. Informed Citizenry: People who are users of Social Networking sites, equipped with the knowledge of effects of Media were selected. 25 people comprising of students and teachers from the Media Department represented as samples. A question was posted into the Facebook profile of the respondents, and responses for the question is analysed. Question for Response: Do you think India is in a need to change its way of governance. Wha t will be your options? Please post your opinion and comments. Options: 1. Military Regime 2. Monarchy ( Again Colonialism) 3. Communism 4. Leave as it is (Democracy). Analysis and Interpretation of data: I. The content analysis of Social Networking Sites revealed up with the following ethical concerns: i. No confirmation of identity of the users is carried out in any of the Social Networking Sites, which can be avoided. ii. Facebook does not have an automatic control over the management of the content. iii. One cannot confine that their privacy is secured even if the user has deleted the account. Hence it raises the possibilities of data being utilised by anyone later on. iv. This Information Gathering by Social Networking Sites, has been posing a threat in content management of users. II. The analysis of collected data of Intensive Observation revealed that a majority of people opining Military regime as the need for the day. If such surveys or opinions can be posted in a site which contains most vulnerable audience likewise, youth and teenagers, that can pose a threat to the harmony of the country. Outcome of the study: †¢ Although these are serious ethical constraints, there are reasons to believe that, for the most part, social networks are counteracting to these challenges. For example, although large centralized repositories of data are necessarily vulnerable to malicious insiders, social networks have had few reported problems of this variety. This may be the result of an organised content management and highly scrutinized employees. †¢ Users post information to social networking services in order to share it with others: a breach of privacy that lets anybody view photos that you only intended for your friends to view may be damaging, but it is likely less damaging than a breach of privacy that reveals your PIN number or your medical history, which you intended for nobody else at all to see. Though these advantages exist, Social Networking sites, on a whole are a threat to the society, unless and otherwise, a content management code is defined to manage the content keyed into Social Networking sites, and also a team to monitor the content in sites, and if possible, the real identity of the members of the sites can also be kept in track, so that any mishaps, demeaning of personality’s images cannot happen. Suggestions of the Panel Discussion Committee: Indian Media is in the stage of its peak at development, though it’s in a learning curve on the part of ethics to be maintained and measures in finding newsworthiness. †¢ There can be a self-regulatory body to reframe the working nature of the Social Networking Sites and on the content they carry. †¢ If media is not ready to go with that, Government can formulate and execute a Media Law, which is still under progress since 2003, that can make the Indian Media come under control. †¢ The policies cannot be called as controls, but regulations on a moderate level, that cannot curb the working nature of media. Some regulations on governing International media clients operating in India, can be arrived at, because it is observed that more than 50% of the Indian media is under the monopoly of Foreign media organisations. I would like to thank the Indian Government, that i was fortunate they have come up with a notion to develop a code of conduct for the content of Social Networking Sites. To conclude with, we can again remember the quote by Marshall McLuhan,† Medium is the message†, which states the deciding authority lies in the hand of media, which should look upon the well being of the society as the first and foremost function. References: Klaus Bruhn Jensen (2003). â€Å"A Handbook of Media and Communication Research: Qualitative and Quantitative Methodologies†. Routledge Publishers. Lelia Green (2001). â€Å"Communication, Technology and Society†. Sage Publications. http://www. communicationencyclopedia. com/public/tocnode? id=g9781405131995_yr2011_chunk_g97814051319958_ss9-1 http://www. facebook. com/press/info. php? statistics http://startups. in/view/asides/software-engineer-sues-airtel-for-20-crore-rupees/

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Medical Device Regulations in the European Union

Medical Device Regulations in the European Union INTRODUCTION TO MEDICAL DEVICE REGULATIONS IN THE EUROPEAN UNION: A Medical Device under the jurisdiction of the European Union is defined as â€Å"an instrument, apparatus, appliance, material or other article, whether used alone or in combination, together with any software necessary for its proper application, which a) is intended by the manufacturer to be used for human beings for the purpose of i. diagnosis, prevention, monitoring, treatment or alleviation of disease, ii. diagnosis, monitoring, treatment, alleviation of or compensation for an injury or handicap, iii. investigation, replacement or modification of the anatomy or of a physiological process, or iv. control of conception; and b) does not achieve its principal intended action in or on the human body by pharmacological, immunological or metabolic means†.1 The clinical investigation and the subsequent introduction of a medical device in the European market is primarily regulated and governed by the MHRA (Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency) with the assistance of competent regulatory institutions called the Notified Bodies. â€Å"A Notified Body is a certification organization which the national authority (the Competent Authority) of a Member State designates to carry out one or more of the conformity assessment procedures described in the annexes of the Directives.†3 The MHRA regulates with the help of two sets of medical device regulations viz. the Statutory Instruments 2002 No.618 (Consolidated legislation) and 2003 No.1697. These legislations employ the three device directives issued by the competent authority into the european law. The directives help the manufacture in better understanding of the manufacturing and the requirments for inroduction into the market of the devices. These directives are: Directive 90/385/EEC: Active Implantable Medical Devices directive Directive 93/42/EEC: Medical Devices directive Directive 98/79/EC: In vitro Diagnostic Medical Device directive Directive 90/385/EEC: Active Implantable Medical Devices directive: This directive encompasses medical devices that are active(i.e powered) and implanted(i.e left in the human body). These include pacemakers, implantable defibrillators, implantable infusion pumps, cochlear implants and implantable neuromuscular stimulators etc. Regulations realizing the Directive came entirely into force in the United Kingdom on January 01 1995. Directive 93/42/EEC: Medical Devices directive: This directive covers an extensive array of devices from uncomplicated bandages to orthopaedic implants and high-end radiology apparatus. Regulations realizing the Directive came entirely into force in the United Kingdom on June 13 1998. Directive 98/79/EC: In vitro Diagnostic Medical Device directive: â€Å"This Directive covers any medical device, reagent, reagent product, kit, instrument, apparatus or system which is intended to be used for the invitro examination of substances derived from the human body, such as blood grouping reagents, pregnancy testing and Hepatitis B test kits. Regulations implementing the Directive came into force in the UK on 7th June 2000 with a transitional period until 7th December 2003. There is no clinical investigation system for in-vitro diagnostic medical devices. Performance evaluations of in vitro diagnostic devices that are performed outside the manufacturers premises should be notified to the UK Competent Authority in accordance with the Medical Devices Regulations 2002: Section 44.†2 The rationale backing these directives is to permit easy movement of the medical devices throughout the European Union whilst upholding high standards of device safety and up-to-the-mark quality. Classification of medical devices: Devices are classified purely based on risk associated with their use. Ranging from low risk to high risk, they are Class I, IIa, IIb and III. A classic example of a class III medical device is a cochlear implant, which is both active and implantable and thus comes under the purview of Directive 90/385/EEC: Active Implantable Medical Devices directive. Let us discuss in detail the regulatory requirments specified as per the MHRA to bring an active implantable cochlear implant into the market designated bt the European Union as the EFTA(European Free Trade Area). â€Å"Examples of AIMDs include: implantable cardiac pacemakers implantable defibrillators leads, electrodes, adaptors for 1) and 2) implantable nerve stimulators bladder stimulators sphincter stimulators diaphragm stimulators cochlear implants implantable active drug administration device catheters, sensors for 9) implantable active monitoring devices programmers, software, transmitters.†4 Cochlear Implants: â€Å"Cochlear implants are electronic hearing prostheses that bypass the damaged hearing components by providing electrical stimulation directly to the auditory nerve fibres in the cochlea. The electrical stimulation is interpreted by the brain as sound. Cochlear implants consist of an external microphone, speech processor and transmitter coil, and an internal stimulator (implanted under the skin just behind the ear) attached to a stimulation electrode which passes into the cochlea. A variation of the cochlear implant is the auditory brainstem implant where electrodes are implanted directly into the auditory area of the brainstem. This can be used in patients who do not have a functional auditory nerve.†5 The regulatory process of bringing a cochlear implant in the European market: It is mandated by law that the manufacturer who intends to bring the device into the EFTA abides by the Essential Requirments stated in the Directive 90/385/EEC: Active Implantable Medical Devices directive and demonstrate the compliance of the device with the safety and efficacy standards set forth in the directive. There are essentially two ways to do it viz. â€Å"either a compilation of the relevant scientific literature currently available on the intended purpose of the device and the techniques employed, together with, if appropriate, a written report containing a critical evaluation of the compilation; or the results and conclusions of a specifically designed clinical investigation†2 Product launch on the basis of evaluation and review of scientific literature can be considered as acceptable if equivalence can be scientifically demonstrated with a device existant in the market and routinely used in clinical practice. Equivalence has to be demonstrated w.r.t technology, critical performance, design, principles of operation, biological safety, population involved, conditions of use and clinical purpose. However, unless satisfactory evidence can be collected by means of scientific literature review, the use of a well-planned clinical trial/investigation should be considered as the best way to attest permissible levels of safety and efficacy. In case of scientific review or pre-clinical assessment, the following fees apply: Class I, IIa, or IIb other than implantable or long-term invasive:  £3,000 (Re-notification incase of objection by MHRA  £2,100). Class IIb implantable or long-term invasive, Class III, and active implantable:  £4,100 (Re-notification incase of objection by MHRA  £2,700). Applications for a proposed clinical investigation of the medical device should be made by filling the forms PCA1 and PCA2 along with the necessary information required by the clauses in the forms. Applications should be labeled clearly as â€Å"documentation only†. The use of English language is mandatory. Documentation should be clear and legible and remain so after reproduction. Electronic applications should be discussed with the MHRA. The manufacturer, for scrutiny by the MHRA should make a total of eight full submission copies available. The charges for the scrutiny of applications are laid out in the Medical Devices Regulations 2002: section 56. They are as follows: â€Å"Fees for Group A (low risk) devices are  £2,700 (initial application) or  £1,800 (resubmission). Increasing to  £3,000 and  £2,100 on 1st April 2008. Fees for Group B (high-risk) devices are  £3,800 (initial application) or  £2,400 (resubmission). Increasing to  £4,100 and  £2,700 on 1 st April 2008.†2 Applications should be forwarded to: Mrs Daniella Smolenska, Medicines Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), European and Regulatory Affairs, Market Towers, 1 Nine Elms Lane, London, SW8 5NQ, Tel: 020 7084 3363, Email [emailprotected]. Approval from the MREC (Multi-centre Research Ethics Committee)/LREC (Local Research Ethics Committee) can be obtained along with the notification to the Competent Authority. However, a clinical investigation can begin only after approval has been obtained from the MREC/LREC and the Competent Authority has not raised an objection to the investigation within the 60 days time constraint period; or approval has been obtained from both the authoritative bodies. General Requirements: A well-defined clinical plan whose methodology and ethical considerations conforms to the standards set forth in the Medical Devices Regulations 2002: section 16 and section 29, the Active Implantable Medical Devices Directive, Annexes 6 and 7, and the Medical Devices Directive, Annexes VIII and X. Supplementary standards are set forth in Standard BS EN ISO 14155-1; 2002, â€Å"Clinical Investigation of Medical Devices for Human Subjects-part 1: General Requirements†, and BS EN ISO 14155-2:2002, â€Å"Clinical Investigation of Medical Devices for Human Subjects-part 2: Clinical Plan†. The CA should be notified incase of differences in the EU and non-EU protocols and the reasons for the same. â€Å"All applications must contain a statement (Active Implantable Medical Devices Directive: Annex 6,2.2; Medical Devices Directive: Annex VIII, 2.2): that the device in question conforms to the Essential Requirements except with regard to those aspects of the device that are to be investigated and that in respect of those aspects, every precaution has been taken to protect the health and safety of the patient. By signing this statement, the manufacturer is declaring that the device meets all of the relevant Essential Requirements, other than those subject to the investigation. Manufacturers must therefore ensure that at the time a notification is made to the Competent Authority, they have all documentation required to demonstrate conformity with the relevant Essential Requirements available for submission to the Competent Authority when requested.†2 Device information like name, model, materials used and sterilization standards etc must be provided as set forth in the directive. Pertinent information about the clinical investigation plan, investigation parameters and design, data collection and analysis methods etc. should be made available to the CA. It is strongly advised that Class III devices follow a well-designed post-marketing plan under the Medical Devices Vigilance. Extra care should be taken when labeling devices meant for clinical investigations. â€Å"All devices intended for clinical investigation must bear the wording exclusively for clinical investigation (Medical Devices Directive: annex 1, para 13.3(H) and the Active Implantable Medical Devices Directive: annex 1, 14.1).†2 Reporting of adverse incidents: â€Å"A serious adverse incident is one which: led to a death led to a serious deterioration in the health of the patient, user or others and includes: a life threatening illness or injury a permanent impairment to a body structure or function a condition requiring hospitalisation or increased length of existing hospitalisation a condition requiring otherwise unnecessary medical or surgical intervention and which might have led to death or serious deterioration in health had suitable action or intervention not taken place. This includes a malfunction of the device such that it has to be monitored more closely or temporarily or permanently taken out of service led to foetal distress, foetal death or a congenital abnormality or birth defect might have led to any of the above†2 All such incidents should be recorded and reported to the CA as set forth in the Regulation 16(10)(a) of the Medical Devices Regulations 2002 (SI 618) and Annex X of the Medical Devices Directive 93/42. Final written report: A report in conjunction with the Medical Devices Directive (Medical Devices Regulations 2002: Section 16(10) and Section 29(9)) should be submitted to the CA for devices undergoing investigation for a CE marking. However, Class III devices need to be highly regulated, before, after and during the clinical investigation. Owing to the high risks associated with their use, some say the risk can be quantified only as social and not scientific. â€Å"Risks, rather than being inherent within these implant devices, may be seen as socially derived, in processes of negotiation and conflict such as those in the case of hip and breast implants†¦.most recently, in the wake of the controversies surrounding breast implants and the 3M Capital hip, attention has been drawn to the uneven performance of notified bodies in the EU, which approve new products. This has led to the setting up of a new European Notified Bodies Operations Group (NEBOG) and calls by the MDA for all implants to be reclassified as high risk, Class III. A review of the operation of EU EMDD is also about to begin (MDA, 2001b). It thus appears that increased political scrutiny is being focused on this sector.†6 BIBLIOGRAPHY: THE MEDICAL DEVICES REGULATIONS: IMPLICATIONS ON HEALTHCARE AND OTHER RELATED ESTABLISHMENTS, BULLETIN No. 18, COMPETENT AUTHORITY (UK), Amended January 2006 EC MEDICAL DEVICES DIRECTIVES GUIDANCE FOR MANUFACTURERS ON CLINICAL INVESTIGATIONS TO BE CARRIED OUT IN THE UK, COMPETENT AUTHORITY (UK), Updated November 2007 THE NOTIFIED BODY, BULLETIN No. 6, COMPETENT AUTHORITY(UK), Amended January 2006 http://www.mhra.gov.uk/Howweregulate/Devices/ActiveImplantableMedicalDevicesDirective/index.htm, Last Date Accessed: April 08 2008 http://www.mhra.gov.uk/Safetyinformation/Generalsafetyinformationandadvice/Product-specificinformationandadvice/Cochlearimplants/index.htm, Last Date Accessed: April 08 2008 Kent, Julie and Faulkner, Alex (2002) Regulating human implant technologies in Europeunderstanding the new era in medical device regulation, Health, Risk Society, 4:2, 189 209 Medical Device Development: From Prototype to Regulatory Approval, Aaron V. Kaplan, Donald S. Baim, John J. Smith, David A. Feigal, Michael Simons, David Jefferys, Thomas J. Fogarty, Richard E. Kuntz and Martin B. Leon, 2004;109;3068-3072 Circulation, DOI: 10.1161/01.CIR.0000134695.65733.64,Circulation is published by the American Heart Association. 7272 Greenville Avenue, Dallas, TX, 72514, Copyright 2004 American Heart Association. All rights reserved. Print ISSN: 0009-7322. Online, ISSN: 1524-4539.

Saturday, July 20, 2019

OPV Cell Fabrication

OPV Cell Fabrication To fabricate the inverted OPV cells with the structure of ITO/ZnO/P3HT:PCBM/PEDOT:PSS/Ag, the ITO was first coated onto a glass substrate. The ITO coated glass substrate was then cleaned by ultra-sonication in detergent solution, deionized water, acetone and isopropanol sequentially for 10 minutes each. After that, the pre-cleaned and pre-patterned ITO substrate was exposed to a UV-ozone treatment for 10 more minutes. A solution of ZnO was prepared for spin coating onto the ITO coated glass substrate. To prepare the solution, 0.15g of ethanolamine (NH2CH2CH2OH) and 0.6g of zinc acetate dihydrate [Zn(CH3COO)2à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â€ž ¢2H2O] were dissolved in 5 mL of 2-methoxyethanol [CH3OCH2CH2OH] with continuous stirring for 24 hours. After that, 1mL of ammonia (NH3) was added to the solution and stirred for 2 more hours. To remove the inpurities, the solution would need to be filtered through a 0.25mm PVDF filter. With the technique of spin coating at 3500 rpm for 90 s, a ZnO film of about 40 nm would be coated onto the pre-cleaned ITO coated glass substrates. Mild washing would then be performed on the ZnO films with isopropyl alcohol and it was blown dry in air. In the next step, poly (3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) are mixed in the proportion of 10 : 8. The mixture was then dissolved in 1,2-dichlorobenzene solution and to be spin-coated to a thickness of approximately 200nm on the ZnO/ITO layer prepared. Annealing at 120 oC was then carried out to the film for 10 minutes. The hole transport layer of PEDOT:PSS was then spin-coated on the bulk layer of P3HT:PCBM from a commercial solution (Clevios) under the temperature of 120 oC for 10 minutes. In the last step, under a pressure of about 1 milliPascal, the silver electrode of a thickness about 100 nm was coated onto the PEDOT:PSS layer. The devices then needed to be annealed for 10 minutes at around 70 oC under a pressure of about 1 milliPascal. After that, the device was cooled down to room temperature. Using a source meter at AM1.5G illumination with a solar simulator, the photovoltaic characteristics of the cell were measured. The photocurrent measurements were done by using a source meter at AM1.5G illumination. This value of photocurrent was used to calibrate the illuminator for measurements later on. The area of the devices was 0.9 cm2. Intro of OPV, normal and inverted geometry In recent years, there has been great interest in organic photovoltaic cells (OPVs) due to various advantages over the conventional silicon solar cells. Some of the prominent advantages include low cost of manufacturing, light cell weight, high power conversion efficiency reaching 10% 1 and being environmentally friendly. The structure of the photoactive layer in these organic photovoltaic cells is usually an amalgamation between a fullerene derivative as an electron acceptor and a p-conjugated polymer as an electron donor. Among different materials, poly (3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) have attracted wide attention for being developed to bulk heterojunction [2]. This is because of their outstanding conductivity for both electrons and holes and good stability in atmospheric conditions [3]. Aside of these advantages, a major challenge in the study of OPV cells is to combine the high power conversion efficiency and operational stability. To tackle this problem, there are two device structure set forth, namely the conventional geometry and inverted geometry. For devices made according to the conventional geometry, as shown in Fig 1, the photoactive layer, which is usually a blend of the P3HT:PCBM, is lodged between two electrodes, such as an aluminum electrode and an indium tin oxide (ITO) electrode. Upon shining of light, the electrons and holes are photo-excited and then separated to be collected at the two electrodes. Electrons are gathered at the aluminum electrode and holes are collected at the ITO electrode. Devices with such geometry usually have relatively high power conversion efficiency. Nevertheless, the stability of such devices is compromised because these devices are easily affected by oxygen and humidity present in the atmosphere. This is due to the fact that the aluminum electrode has a low work function and it is much susceptible to oxidation [4]. Thus, the stability of devices made with the conventional geometry is restricted. However, the oxidation of aluminum electrode is not the only factor responsible for device degradation. Other factors such as: (1) charge carriers being accumulated at the interface between the photoactive layer and the electrode, (2) metal ions diffusing from the electrodes to the photoactive layer [5], (3) the photoactive layer being unstable and degrade in atmospheric conditions [6], (4) the morphology of the photoactive layer varies in the nanoscale [7]. One of the suggested ways to improve the stability of such OPV cells is to add a layer of encaps ulation to prevent the oxygen and moisture from entering the devices [8]. Nevertheless, the encapsulation cannot prevent the degradation reaction from happening within the OPV cells. Therefore, the intrinsic stability of devices needs to be improved. One achievable way is to use the inverted geometry with reversed charge collection. For OPV cells manufactured with the inverted geometry, as shown in Fig 2, the photoactive layer is middled between an electron transport layer (ETL) and a hole transport layer (HTL) which are in turn lodged between two electrodes, which are usually indium tin oxide electrode and a metal with high work function like silver. Upon photo excitation, the electrons generated will go through the ETL and be collected by the ITO electrode; the holes generated will go through the HTL and be gathered by the metal electrode [9]. The high work function of the metal electrode used makes the electrode unreactive to the oxygen and moisture present in the atmosphere, thus, a higher stability of the OPV cells can be maintained in a relatively long time period. However, the power conversion efficiency of OPV cells with inverted geometry is generally lower than those OPV cells made with conventional geometry [10]. Info on ZnO Several materials are commonly used for constructing ETL, some examples are ZnO, LiF[11], and Ca [12]. Currenly, ZnO is most recognized as a good material for ETL because of its high electron mobility, high photo-stability, low work function and optical transparency [10]. Study done by Krebs et al. [2] has shown that inverted OPV cells with ETL made of ZnO exhibit an extended lifetime. In their study, I–V measurements were performed under illuminated conditions in both presence and absence of UV light. Their results showed that there is increased recombination when the oxygen molecules are desorbed from the surface of ZnO layer due to the photoelectrons when the cell is in operation. In the night time when the cell is not in operation, oxygen molecules are adsorbed onto the ZnO layer again from the atmosphere, thus restoring the OPV cells’ performance. This cycle of desorption and re-adsorption of oxygen molecules causes the inflection point in the I-V measurement to di sappear first and re-appear later. Other than the factors affecting the OPV cells in operation, manufacturing factors exert equally significant influence on the performance of OPV cells. One of such factors is the trap state. In the band gap of ZnO which is a metal oxide semiconductor with nanostructure, there is presence of localized energy states, which are also called trap states. These trap states make the charge transport in ZnO to be different from the bulk material and they exert adverse effect to the charge transport in ZnO [13]. The amount of such trap states increase exponentially from the top of the valence band to the bottom of the conduction band. According to previous research, different amount of trap states can even be present in the band gap of materials which are chemically identical. The different amount of trap states is a result of difference in crystallinity which means the perfectness of the crystal. High electron diffusivity and mobility is usually associated with materials which have higher crystallinity [14]. The crystallinity can be varied by undergone ZnO film through annealing process in different temperature, different density of trap states can thus be achieved. The devices which undergo annealing in higher temperature will have lower depth of trap states, thus consequently exhibiting a better photo-conversion efficiency and greater operational stability. Annealing effect on ZnO, FF, Voc Isc info To further illustrate the effect of annealing on the crystallinity of ZnO layer and consequently the effect on the OPV performance, a study was done by N. K. Elumalai et al.[1] with two devices which have their ZnO thin films annealed at two different temperatures after the ZnO film is coated onto the ITO substrate. As shown in Fig. 3, the current–voltage measurement was done under the illuminated condition of 1 sun for both device A and device B. Device A had its ZnO film annealed at 240 oC, whereas device B had its ZnO film annealed at 160 oC. In the current–voltage measurement, the value of the current when the voltage is zero is called the short circuit current (Isc). In the significance of an OPV cell, Isc is the amount of current going through the cell when the cell is short circuited, which means the voltage across the cell is zero. Hence, the Isc is the maximum current which can be possibly drawn from the OPV cell. The light conversion ability of the OPV cell has a direct influence on the value of Isc. Hence, Isc is useful in characterizing the OPV cell performance. The value of the voltage at the point when the current is zero is called the open circuit voltage (Voc). Voc is the maximum voltage which can be possibly drawn from the OPV cell. In theory, the Voc is dependent either on the work function of the electrodes used or the energy difference between the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) of the electron donor material and the lowest occupied molecular orbital (LOMO) of the electron acceptor material in the OPV cell, depending on whether the contact is non-ohmic or ohmic. With the current–voltage measurement, the fill factor (FF) can be determined. Fill factor is the ratio of maximum power to the product of Voc and Isc. By going through every point on the (I–V) measurement curve, there is such a point with the current (Imax) and voltage (Vmax) values that maximize the fill factor value according to equation, Hence, the fill factor is determined. In addition, the power conversion efficiency (PCE), can be found from the current–voltage measurement. PCE is the ratio of the energy output from the OPV cell to the solar energy the cell received from illumination source. The energy output from the OPV cell is defined as Pcell, the solar energy the cell received is defined as Psun. The PCE can be calculated from the equations shown below. With reference to Fig. 3, it is obviously that device A has a better performance since it shows a higher short circuit current density and a higher open circuit voltage than device B does. With some simple calculation, the fill factor and the power conversion efficiency of both device A and device B can be determined and summarized in Table. 1. From the Isc, Voc and PCE, it is obvious that the device A is superior that device B in terms of photovoltaic performance. Hence, it proved that annealing of ZnO film changes the crystallinity of the nanostructure, reduced trap states density and consequently lead to better photovoltaic performance. In layer ZnO, Voc vs. T in detail examine To examine the effect of trap states of ZnO in more details, the concept of trap depth should be introduced. The trap depth, represented by the symbol , is the depth of the distribution of the trap states in the band gap of ZnO layer. An equation relating the trap depth and Isc is employed [15], as shown below. From this equation, it is obvious that the trap depth is related to the short circuit current which in turn is a function of temperature and illumination intensity. The pre-exponential term Io in the equation summarized factors such as mobility and density of the photo-excited carriers. Researches have been done by N. K. Elumalai et al.[1] to find the effects of different temperature and illumination intensity on the Isc. By a semi-log plot, it is easy to find the trap depth at different condition of temperature and illumination intensity. For this study, it is evident that the trap depth of device A is much lower than device B. This is in line with the theoretical prediction which says that the annealing at higher temperature make the nanostructure have a more perfect crystallinity and thus less trap states distribution. The operational stability of these inverted organic solar cells is influenced by the trap depth and variation of the open circuit voltage. Hence, the effect of temperature and illumination intensity on Voc should be noted. There is on such equation proven to be useful as shown below In this equation, the recombination is assumed to be Langevin type, Eg signifies the effective band gap, which is the energy difference between the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) of the electron donor material and the lowest occupied molecular orbital (LOMO) of the electron acceptor material; the effective density of trap states is represented by Nc; p and n represent the hole density and electron density respectively; e and kB have their usual meaning of elementary electron charge and the Boltzmann constant [16]. From the equation above, when the temperature decreases, the Voc will approach more closely to the effective band gap. Nevertheless, this is only true under the condition that the contacts in the device are all ohmic. When contacts are all ohmic, the barriers for charge carriers are low at the interface. However, in the case which contacts are non-ohmic, charge carriers will stuck and accumulate at the interface due to the higher barrier present. Hence, the Voc will be determined by the difference in the work function of the two electrodes. In Fig 5, the effect of temperature and illumination intensity on the Voc is illustrated. In Fig 5 (a), the ZnO layer in the device is annealed at a higher temperature, the Voc decreases almost linearly when the temperature increases for different illumination intensity. This observation can be explained by an increase in the phonon scattering in the photoactive layer and the ZnO interlayer when the temperature increases. In Fig 5 (b), Voc remains relatively constant when temperature is below 180 K for various illumination intensities, but the linear decrease of Voc is observed again when the temperature increases above 180 K; this may be due to the fact that the resistivity of the ZnO layer decreases at lower temperature. By comparing the two figures, the difference in shape can only be associated to the difference of crystallinity which is a result of annealing at different temperature. Hence, it can be suggested that the Voc is affected by the trap states at low temperature. To va lidate this proposition, the plot of Voc in Fig 5 (a) can be extrapolated to a temperature of 0 K, it will yield a value of 0.8 to 0.9 V. Comparing to the work function difference of the two electrodes which is around 0.7 V, this open circuit voltage is much higher, and it is indeed determined by the effective band gap.

Essay --

CAT Question: Do balanced scorecards increase performance in organizations? †¢ Management challenge and research question The research question is when an organization has implemented a balanced scorecard does performance improve within an organization? Many organizations have balanced scorecards that contain metrics that do not necessarily contribute to increased performance. They may also try to measure areas that are not easy or impossible to measure like values or engagement. In addition, organizations may focus more on meeting milestones or deadlines of activities rather than achieving the desired outcomes of the initiative. Another issue is that organizations may focus solely on the measures on the balanced scorecard while ignoring other important operational initiatives. Lastly, balanced scorecards may increase organization performance due to the Hawthorne effect or the observer-expectancy effect that claims individuals will modify their behavior when it is being measured as a response to the fact that they know they are being studied. Studies have also shown that high performance may be reflected through the balanced scorecard, but this is more of a reflection of the manager’s relationship with a certain employee than it is of the outcome of a particular initiative. †¢ Results / evidence summary (including limitations of research found, if any) Study in the Journal of Management Accounting Research (Ittner & Larcker, 1998) surveyed the effectiveness of the balanced scorecard versus performance measurement methods used in the past. The results showed that only 5% of respondents thought the balanced scorecard approach was significantly higher in its effectiveness. In the International Journal of Business Administration, a ... ...mance. There are several factors that play a role in this observation, many of which have to do with the nature of the balanced scorecard model. First, balanced scorecards create an atmosphere where performance is being looked at and often when an individual’s performance is being monitored, they are more susceptible to the observer-expectancy effect that means these individuals try harder. Second, balanced scorecards increase the accountability of managers. These contribute to managers â€Å"walking the talk† so that their staff and others view them â€Å"living’ the balances scorecard. Third, when putting measures, objectives and initiatives on the balanced scorecard this highlights their importance. This in turn brings more attention to achieving the proper outcome and increases performance, but only when the proper objectives, initiatives and measures have been selected.