The Lives of the Working Class During the Industrial Revolution

The lives of the on the job category during the Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution foremost started in Great Britain during the 18Thursdaycentury. It was a period when the chief beginning of work changed from agribusiness to industry, and society from rural to urban. Before the Industrial Revolution, fabricating normally took topographic point in people’s houses utilizing basic tools and machines. Most people’s lives were hard, because of their meager incomes, so people produced their ain vesture and nutrient. When the Industrial Revolution started, powered machines, mills and mass production took topographic point. Peoples began to travel into metropoliss to acquire occupations in industry. It besides improved transit, communicating and banking. The Industrial Revolution improved the criterions of life for most people, but the on the job category suffered from the Industrial Revolution because they worked for long periods of clip with small remainder and gaining small income, their living conditions were intolerable and allo wed disease to distribute easy. Although, during the Industrial Revolution, people began migrating to the metropoliss for a better life, the vicinities and lodging for the on the job category were insecure, unhealthy and cramped. For illustration, in 1750, the population of London was merely approximately 670,000 and by 1900, it was 3 million. With so many people migrating in, the mill proprietors had to construct lodging rapidly. These houses were called back-to-back houses. Back to endorse houses were literally built back to back ; sharing a rear wall with another house or mill, and most consisted of one room ( Troolin ) . Often one room housed a whole household and the whole edifice was shared between 15-20 households. The houses were tightly packed with no plumbing systems. Vicinities were foul ; people frequently threw their family waste out into the streets. Peoples had to have on long boots to traverse the soiled streets full of excrement and dead animate being organic structures. Sanitation was about non-ex istent and many lavatories were found outside of the houses, because they smelt bad ( â€Å"Everyday Life in the Industrial Revolution.† ) . Lack of patroling led to an addition in the offense rate. Banks, warehouses and sign of the zodiacs were new marks for larceny. More offense led to overcrowded prisons, and with that, it led to more decease sentences. ( â€Å"Did the Industrial Revolution lead to more crime.† ) . The unprecedented velocity and graduated table of migration into towns caused a important alteration in life style which did non better the quality of life for the on the job category. In dumbly populated, industrial towns, diseases spread easy and wellness was affected. As there was no cognition of sources, diseases spread quickly and easy over broad countries. Diseases such as cholera, enteric fever, and typhus were really common. Cholera was a menace ; because it was caused by contaminated H2O. Cholera hit Britain in the clip about 1830 to 1867, with a bantam interruption in the center. When sewerage came into contact with the H2O, as people largely used rivers as their beginning of imbibing H2O, the disease spread fast. In London, in 1831-1832, approximately 7,000 people died of cholera. The disease was non ever fatal when you got it, but it had a 50 per centum likeliness of deceasing. 15,000 died of the disease in 1848-49. The disease largely affected the poorer people ( working category ) but the upper category was non wholly unaffected, despite better life conditions. Another common disease was TB, which killed one tierce of all the people who died in Britai n. It was caused by hapless diet and moist places ( â€Å"Diseases in industrial metropoliss in the Industrial Revolution.† ) . Peoples became less immune because of their hapless diet. Normal in-between category people ate three repasts a twenty-four hours, whereas the working category Ate one time or sometimes twice a twenty-four hours with merely a piece of staff of life and a bowl of porridge. Compared to the countryside, life in the dumbly jammed towns with hapless sanitation made diseases dispersed rapidly and easy. Another ground for mortality was the on the job category had to work long hours ( 12-14 hours a twenty-four hours ) in mills. They could merely hold a small sleep ( 4-6 hours a dark ) and continued to work the twenty-four hours after, which reduced their opposition to disease. Air pollution had a major consequence on people’s lungs. London became a metropolis with high air pollution concentration. When fog and fume combined, smog formed, which could be lifelessly ; in 1873, 700 Londoners died of smog in a hebdomad. The combination of deficiency of slumber and smog in towns resulted in people falling badly more easy, sometimes even ensuing in decease. Working in mills was non good paid and conditions were rough. Peoples had to work 12 to 14 hours a twenty-four hours, 6 yearss a hebdomad. The rewards for working in a mill were besides highly low. The whole household had to work ( including kids ) in order to back up themselves ( Troolin ) . Work force earned between 20-30 shillings a hebdomad, adult females earned a 3rd of that and kids were non paid, but given nutrient and shelter ( Herman ) . Peoples would wake up early in the forenoon, eating their breakfast while running to the mill and work continuously until tiffin. Lunch breaks merely lasted 30 proceedingss and after that the workers would hold to work once more until around 9 p.m ( some until 11p.m ) and get down once more tomorrow ( â€Å"Everyday Life in the Industrial Revolution.† ) . Factory proprietors maximized net incomes by maintaining rewards low because of the copiousness of workers. Working in coal mines was likely the most unsafe occupation during the Industrial Revolution. There were many dangers, with roof fall ining being the most common. The tunnels linking the land and the mine were really narrow and low. It made it difficult for workers to travel from topographic point to topographic point. Explosions besides occurred which frequently killed a batch of people. Working in a coal mine for excessively long, the coal air that the workers breathed in would finally do serious harm to their lungs. Workers in coal mines did non hold a long life anticipation. Women and kids besides were employed in coal mines and did the same occupations as work forces ( â€Å"Coal Mines in the Industrial Revolution.† ) . Coal provided the fuel for the Industrial Revolution, but the human cost was high. Child labor was besides a serious job during the Industrial Revolution. 80 per centum of the full work force was made up of kids. Children were truly easy to engage. There were plentifulness of them in orphanhoods and they could be replaced easy if accidents happened. Some of the richer mill proprietors would take the kids to his attention to feed them and supply them a topographic point to kip in exchange of the kids working in their mill. Children did non gain the rewards that they should hold. It merely provided them with the basic demands and it’s hardly plenty to last. Children were lot cheaper than engaging grownups as the mill proprietors could pay less to back up the mill and the kids were little plenty so they could creep under machines and repair them. The unsafe conditions and the long working hours made them hold no clip to make other excess activities. These kids had no instruction. This meant they had nil better to make but to work in mills for the remainder of t heir lives, and it continued on to the following coevals. At first, there were no Torahs to protect these kids. The mill proprietors would merely corrupt the mill inspectors and that would be the terminal of it. By the early 1800s, 107,000 kids were employed in the fabric industry ( Thatcher ) . Numerous Torahs were passed to protect kids. The first act was in 1819 that stated that kids under the age of 9 could merely work a upper limit of 12 hours. The most of import labor jurisprudence that the British parliament passed was the Ten Hour Bill of 1847. It limited the working hours for kids and adult females to 10 hours with better rewards. Although Torahs were passed to protect kids, they were non followed by the mill proprietors and parents needed their kids to supply for the household. Life anticipation did non better until after the Industrial Revolution. In rural countries in Britain the life anticipation was 45 old ages ; in London, it was 37 old ages. Other topographic points like Liverpool it was 26 old ages and in the early nineteenth century 25-33 per centum of English kids died before the age of 5. In decision, the Industrial Revolution was a major alteration in life style and brought new sorts of engineering. Without the Industrial Revolution, the modern universe would non hold railwaies, mills, or mass production of goods. The upper and in-between categories had better and wealthier life conditions. The in-between category could afford non merely the basic demands, but other excess luxuries like more vesture, furniture, some vino on the dinner tabular array and a bigger house. The rich got richer and the hapless, unluckily, got even poorer. The working category clearly suffered from the Industrial Revolution. They had to populate in hapless and crowded houses, with the menace of diseases. Most of them didn’t have a batch to eat and many starved to decease. Whole households had to work and members were separated. In this period kids were one of the groups which suffered the most out of it. With the deficiency of instruction and because they were inexpensive to engage by mills proprietors, they became the chief work force and were frequently beaten. Although there were good long term effects for the on the job category and labour Torahs set to protect workers, it was still difficult for the working category to populate in industrial towns in such atrocious conditions after the Industrial Revolution. Plants Cited â€Å"Coal Mines in the Industrial Revolution.†HistoryLearningSite.History larning site.co.uk. n.d. Web. 3 March. 2015. â€Å"Did the Industrial Revolution lead to more crime.†National archives.n.d. Web. 8 April. 2015 â€Å"Diseases in industrial metropoliss in the Industrial Revolution.†HistoryLearningSite.History larning site.co.uk. n.d. Web.3 March. 2015. â€Å"Everyday Life in the Industrial Revolution.†mylearning.Huddersfield Local Studies Library n.d. Web. 3 March. 2015. â€Å"Factories in the Industrial Revolution.†HistoryLearningSite.History larning site.co.uk. n.d. Web. 3 March. 2015. Herman, Samantha. â€Å"Minimum Wagess for the Poor Class of the Industrial Revolution.†eHow.eHow.com. n.d. Web. 8 April. 2015. Lobley, Pam. â€Å"Differences Between Wealthy, Middle Class and Poor in the Industrial Revolution.†Synonym.eHow.com. n.d. Web. 3 March. 2015. Thatcher, Wade. â€Å"Child Labor During the English Industrial Revolution.†wathatcher.iWeb Ball State University.n.d. Web. 8 April. 2015. Troolin, Amy. â€Å"The Working-Class During the Industrial Revolution: Growth & A ; Ideologies.†Study.Study.com. n.d. Web. 3 March. 2015.

Bmx Cycle Solutions

Question # 1 What business is LCI in? What are the key success factors? How operations can contribute? LCI BUSINESS: LCI was founded in 1994 by Mr. Sheikh Ubaidullah, a Former Chairman of Pakistan Cycle Cooperative Society Limited. LCI is located at Ferozpur Road, eighteen miles south of Lahore Pakistan. LCI marketed its bicycles under the brand name of Leader bicycles. LCI was in bad shape and financially bankrupt , all shops run by one supervisors , its production was practically zero when Managing director at Descon Mr. Razaq Dawood acquired LCI in June 1999. He hired new 6 engineers since 1999 in following departments like production planning, production scheduling, inventory control and quality control to set up all the necessary systems and procedures in order to turn LCI around. In May 2002 Five bicycles –manufacturing companies (competitors) existed in market, combined capacity of these companies producing bicycles were 580,000bicyles per annum, and all were running at or near capacity, the competition was very tough. Up to May 2002. LCI was producing 60,000 bicycles/annum, in May 2002, LCI started producing manufacturing its new product named BMX cycles, for betterment in this new product, after a year-long negotiation with Hercules of England, Decscon acquired from them the manufacturing and technology right, in Pakistan, for the very popular BMX cycle, Hercules also agreed to send engineers to Lahore for ten-week periods in order to help in set up the plant, tooling and train the staff. KEY SUCCESS FACTORS: * Senior Management of LCI wanted to introduce the BMX Cycle in market before competitors, and Mr. Mansoor Waraich, Senior Planning Engineer, had a lot of pressure by the top management of LCI to complete this huge production of BMX Cycles. That massive production was carefully planned and all the processes where closely monitored and upgraded. * Mr. Razaq Dawood, Managing Director, of Descon, took over the LCI in very bad shape , and he set up all necessary systems and procedures like production planning, production scheduling, inventory control and quality control in order to turn LCI around , it is also a factor of the success of LCI * Another key success factor was that Descon called Hercules of England engineers to train LCI’s staff. LCI’s staff can also go to England for the same training for a specific period. OPERATIONS CONTRIBUTION: LCI is a Production Company so operations plays very important role. Outsourcing and subcontracting of different raw materials is done for the better result of operations. All the plants structure was designed in a way so that they can minimize the wastage and can maximize the production. Manpower was also assigned according to their expertise and labor was hired on daily wage system. Question # 2 What is your Analysis of the BMX production process? How would you characterize this process? ANALYSIS OF BMX PRODUCTION PROCESS: BMX production process is almost in sequence, all processes depends on each other, if one process is skipped then they cannot complete other part of cycle, in other wards they cannot ignore only a single process, As LCI wanted to introduce BMX in market before competitors and management wanted to produce huge quantity of BMX cycles so LCI purchased different finished parts for BMX cycles from several suppliers, like, seats , pedals, handle bars, frame pads, and tires were directly purchased and installed , but other side , several parts, like sheet metal, metal coils, steel bars and pipes were manufactured from raw materials acquired locally and abroad. Management hired permanent and daily paid labor in all shops to complete tasks efficiently and in timely, this planning was proved very helpful to complete huge production. First process is cutting shop: This shop having 3 machines for cutting metal pipes into different lengths to use prepare bottom bracket shell, frames and handle bar, this shop run under one supervisor and 4 full time employees Second process is Bottom bracket shell shop: This Shop contained three 600 tons processes and 6 presses ranging from 60 to 100 tons, heavy parts of bicycle like BB shell were manufactured in this shop , this shop run under supervision of one supervisor and 4 full time employees. Handle Shop: BMX bicycle handles were manufactured at this shop completely, a specific machine automatically bent the placed pipe in a few seconds into appropriate configuration and cut the handle bars to length and knurled. These Knurled to help retain the handle bar grip. BMX enameling and Phosphating Shop: All parts of bicycle were enameling and phasphating, phaspating treatment enabled the steel surface to retain the enameled paint for a long time and provide a durable finish, all partes were placed on jigs and hang on a conveyer, this conveyer passed through a drying oven at a speed allowing each part to be baked at 1500C for approximately 50 minutes. Rim Shop; Bicycle Rims contained at this shop, One mm thick and 83 mm wide metal coils required to prepare rim and these rims imported from barazil or Japan, then front end coil was welded with back end coils and finally, the rims was bent into a required radius and cut after buffing and polishing. Press Shop: A specific machine at press shop for grinding and buffing the parts of rims and two ends of strips had been welded together Saddle, Brake and Hub Shop: Hubs and saddle for BMX cycle were assembled at this shop, loop clips of were manufactured at LCI , other parts like saddle frames and saddle covers were procured by vender and assembled manually at other end of same shop. Machine Shop: Four production lathes like a grinding machine, a milling machine and four drilling machines are contained at this shop, some parts of BMX cycle check-nut, lock-nut and wheel valve produced in machine shop, this machine was operating 50% of its capacity Electroplating Shop: Some parts of BMX like Hub flanges, steel rims , lamp brackets, spanners and chain wheels electroplate at this shop, this machine have limited equipment capacity so double shift running six days per week for electroplating. BMX Welding line: This shop have 5 welding stations and a mitering machine , different parts of cycle welded and metering machine give a smooth curve at the ends of tubes (pipes) once this machine was set then all tubes automatically mitered the tube. Final Assembly Area: This area have 6 work stations, fitting machine and an assembly track conveyor, all manufactured parts of BMX cycle assemble on these 6 stations, finally all the assemblies and accessory packets were packed in a cardboard carton for delivery. Characteristics, All shops worked very efficiently and all work stations busy to prepare assigned parts on same time so it’s very helpful to produce huge production, management took decisions for daily paid and monthly paid employees, and paid them attractive salary. Question # 3 Given the investment in BMX cycle manufacturing line, what is the payback period? Each bicycle Price = 2400 Gross margin = 8. 3% Profit margin for each bicycle = 2400 x 8. 3% = 199. 2 Production Capacity = 60,000 Profit margin for 60,000 bicycles are = 199. 2 x 60000 = 11952000 Payback on gross margin = 2 Years & 2 Months Question # 4 Assume the enameling plant capacity is 3000 bicycles per month, as senior planning Engineer, what alternatives are available to increase BMX cycle production? As per upper management’s drive to expand operations, a ten year old enameling unit that was purchased for Rs 3 Million in 1999. In order to increase production LCI in addition to subcontracted enameling should start in house production in parallel by utilizing the unit purchased. It may have to invest on up-gradation of the unit as required to meet the current production standards. Company purchased enameling machine but they did not use it, because outsourcing and subcontracting was present in LCI’s tradition so upper management should change it and it’s better to utilize enameling machine, bring it in use, so BMX production will definitely be increased. Question # 5 What is your recommendation and why? Following are the Recommendations and the reasons LCI should do some forecasting for identifying the real need of their product in the market, * They should give advertisement though email, news paper and web TV add etc, * They should do SWOT analysis of their o wn company and their competitors. * They should improve their weaknesses, and they should produce bicycle for elders * They should hire some vender for parts of BMX so it is suggested that they should arrange of those machines at their company, it’s also saving the cost and time. * For sustaining the market position more innovation is required, the designs of bicycles should be upgraded and changed to attract the customers towards the product.

Macbeth: A Failure As King? Essay

To be regarded as a great king involves many important factors such as being honorable, gracious, and fair. It is far more difficult to regard a king as being great than as being a failure. In Macbeth there are examples of great kings as well as failures as kings. Duncan is a fair and gracious king who is kind to all of his subjects, and Malcolm has the potential to be a great king through the way in which he fights to overthrow Macbeth. Macbeth, however, through his lack of noble qualities is another story. Through arrogance, actions, and cowardice versus bravery Macbeth emerges as the only true failure as a king. Arrogance surfaces in Macbeth because the protagonist believes that he knows better about everything than anyone else. For example, Macbeth is arrogant to his own thoughts and feelings. He easily lets Lady Macbeth manipulate him into killing Duncan by questioning his manhood. Again, Macbeth is just as arrogant when he quickly dismisses Macduff as a threat because an apparition tells him that â€Å"none of a woman born shall harm Macbeth† (IV. i 86-87). Only after a short while does Macbeth decide to kill Macduff, and only as a precaution in case Macduff was actually not born of a woman, which Macbeth does not know, and does not even plan on finding out. Finally, Macbeth is very arrogant when an apparition tells him that he will be overthrown when Birnam wood comes to him: That will never be: Who can impress the forest, bid the tree Unfix his earth † bound root? Sweet bodements! Good! Rebellious dead, rise near till the wood Of Birnam rise, and our high plac’d Macbeth Shall live the lease of nature, pay his breath To time and mortal custom (IV. i 103-109) Macbeth feels very secure in his position as king of Scotland, and that he has absolutely nothing to worry about. He does not even attempt to decipher the riddle. Macbeth’s arrogance is brought on by the seeming sureness of his position and by excess pride, and it is a huge cause of his downfall. Actions reflect largely upon the type of person one is and whether one will be a success or a failure. To begin with, Macbeth kills Duncan, who is also a king. The only reason he kills Duncan is that Macbeth has ambition to become the king. Subsequently, Macbeth kills Banquo because he is a threat to him, and he, or his sons, could take the throne away from Macbeth at any  time, or so Macbeth believes: To be thus, is nothing, But to be safely thus: our fears in Banquo Stick deep; and in his royalty of nature Reigns that which would be fear’d: â€Å"tis much he dares, And, to that dauntless temper of his mind, He hath a wisdom that doth guide his valour To act in safety. There is none but he Whose being I do fear; and under him My genius is rebuked, as it is said Mark Anthony’s was by Caesar. He chid the sisters, When first they put the name of king upon me, And bade them speak to him; then prophet like They hail’d him father to a line of kings: Upon my head they placed a fruitless crown, And a barren scepter in my gripe, Thence to be wrench’d with an unlineal hand (III. i 52-67) This heartless murder demonstrates Macbeth’s ruthless actions which cause chaos, since the Great Chain of Being has been disturbed. Last of all, Macbeth once again shows his cruelty with the murders of McDuff’s family. Macbeth originally set out only to kill McDuff, and only slaughters McDuff’s family just to make sure that in the future none of them will be able to harm him. Macbeth is not remorseful in any way for any of his actions, and is a cold-blooded killer. Cowardice and bravery determine whether a character will become a success or a failure in life. If one is a coward, one cannot properly rule a country because one will not be able to stand up to any opposition, and be a guide to doing the right things for others. In fact, Macbeth fulfills his own destiny knowingly when he and Lady Macbeth plot to murder Duncan. Even though Macbeth wants to become king desperately, right before the murder he becomes a coward and tries to back out: We will proceed no further in this business: He hath honour’d me of late; and I have bought Golden opinions from all sorts of people, Which would be worn now in their newest gloss, Not cast aside so soon. (I. vii 33-37) Only after Lady Macbeth’s persuasion and manipulation does Macbeth regain a bit of bravery to proceed with the murder. In addition, Macbeth is a coward because he manipulates others into doing his â€Å"dirty work† for him, as for example, arranging the murder of Banquo: Do you find your patience so predominant in your nature, That you can let this go? Are you so gospell’d, To pray for this good man and for his issue, Whose heavy hand hath bow’d you to the grave And beggar’d yours for ever? (III.i 93-98) Macbeth is not involved in any of the killings, other than Duncan’s, and he cowardly hides behind murderers to avoid any guilt he  may have. In comparison, Macbeth shows bravery at the end of the play. Macbeth shows that he is capable of bravery when he does not give up without a fight: I will not yield, To kiss the ground before young Malcolm’s feet, And to be baited with the rabble’s curse. Though Birnam wood be come to Dunsinane, And thou oppos’d, being of no woman born, Yet I will try the last. Before my body I will throw my warlike shield: lay on, Macduff, (V.viii 32-38) Macbeth knows that he will be overthrown since everything the apparitions said would have to happen for him to be overthrown actually happened, but he still has faith in himself, and continues fighting. Though Macbeth demonstrates both cowardice and bravery, his cowardice far more apparent and intentional, and his bravery is only self beneficial and, therefore, selfish. Through arrogance, actions and cowardice versus bravery, the protagonist in Macbeth , is regarded as a failure because of his selfishness, and utter lack of remorse for his actions. While other kings strive to do good, Macbeth dwells further and further into evilness and makes it apparent he is the only true failure as a king.

The Gambia Visit Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Gambia Visit - Essay Example He pointed out that the 1970 constitution divided the government into independent legislative. The constitution finds a safe bode in 1996, including a strong presidential government and protection of human rights. Regarding future political prospects, he was very optimistic. We got more than expected during this visit. Monday 2nd May: A lecture delivered by Dr. Emmanuel focused on Gambian law enhancement. He touched upon the sensitive issue of transatlantic diplomacy injuring the interests at home. Quoting a renowned work in this area, â€Å"states have traditionally from time to time reviewed the operation and effectiveness of their foreign ministries and diplomatic services. More often than not such inquiries have been occasioned by wide economic moves in the public sector or institutional rivalry.† His speech included issues harboring international peace and their implication, and foreign forces which are major players in devising the state’s internal policies. Recalling a piece of verbose from Dr. Emmanuel, â€Å"there is more to it than meets the eye†, brings to the forefront many of the devils at work. Nevertheless, the British ambassador in Tehran, Sir Anthony Parsons, does not support this. â€Å"The Embassy†, he notes â€Å"was primarily organized as an agency for the promotion of British exports and for the general commercial, financial and economic interests of the Britain†.... â€Å"The last incumbent also from Africa challenged the might of the empire, but Kofi Annan is known for his reconciliatory approach, than confrontatist posture. Like any other African congregation this one also brought out different diplomats in their colourful traditional attires. The accompanying music made every foot tap† (Gupta, 2005: page 123); A ground had been set for a positive and peaceful image of the country. â€Å"After 1871, political and cultural leaders recognized the instrumental and local music in cultural diplomacy† (Jessica C.E. Gienow-Hecht, 2009: page 36). This shows the impact art and craft has had on the nation’s subconscious mind of the diplomatic visage. This experience gave me some paradigms that had for quite some time remained at the back of my mind. Wednesday 4th May: The African Centre for Democracy and Human Right Studies was officially opened in 2001. During the visit, we were exposed to the eventful history gone through by the c enter. For the African Charter on Human and people’s rights to be effective, it was to be elaborated and comprehended by all Africa. This vision brought forth the formation of this center which was established to promote and insure respect of freedom, and to oversee that these freedoms do not go astray. â€Å"In order to find practicable solutions to institutional and existential problems caused by accelerating globalization diplomacy needs inter-disciplinary guidance by social sciences† (Bolewski, 2007: page 6). Adding to the already elaborated verbose in context of the need for social sciences to grow and take control of the growing diplomacy in trans-Atlantic relations, â€Å"Given that the issues cannot be ducked altogether, international human rights bodies have been reduced to

Psychological and Social Factors in Informed Consent for Patients with Case Study

Psychological and Social Factors in Informed Consent for Patients with Autism - Case Study Example (2011) examined the levels of understanding and perceptions on the need to conduct randomized controlled trials among professionals, users and care givers concerned with provision of intellectual care, including care for autism cases. There was poor understanding of the principles attributable to randomized controlled trials among care givers and users, but understanding was higher among professionals. The authors noted that lack of understanding has negative implications on social validity of random controlled trials. Chen, Xu, Huang and Dhar (2013) conducted research into the levels of awareness, attitudes and experiences among a sample that comprised parents of children who were undergoing genetic testing owing to their condition. More participants were in support of genetic testing research, mainly citing early intervention and motivation, identification of the causes of the condition, and family planning as their motivations. Competence of medical staff handling the tests was highlighted as a major concern among participating parents. Minority groups in the sampled population appeared to have lesser understanding of the importance of the procedure. At the psychological level, researchers are encouraged to learn the needs of such individuals to encourage their participation. Chen, L., Xu, L., Huang, T. & Dhar, S. U. (2013). Autism genetic testing: A qualitative study of awareness, attitudes, and experiences among parents of children with autism spectrum disorder. Genetics in Medicine. 15(4): 274-281. Robotham, D., King, M., Canagasabey, A., Inchley-Mort, S. & Hassiotis, A. (2011). Social validity of randomized controlled trials in health services research and intellectual disabilities: A qualitative exploration of stakeholder views. Trials. 12:

Critically evaluate the evidence suggesting that mTOR inhibitors can Essay

Critically evaluate the evidence suggesting that mTOR inhibitors can help induce tolerance to foreign antigens and discuss the i - Essay Example It integrates the cell signals that give information about the energy status of the cell, nutritional status, mitochondrial potential, oxygen tension, aminoacids, ATP, and growth signals. During nutritional deficiency, the mTOR signaling becomes active and increases the protein synthesis and increases the cell size. If something is lacking inside the cell, then mTOR will decrease the protein synthesis and thus decreases the cell size and there by reduces the energy expenditure of the cell and prevents cell proliferation. The mechanical induced overload-hypertropy is due to the mTOR and their activity is inhibited by the introduction of Rapamycin. (Polunovsky and Houghton, 2010). Immune system consists of many types of regulatory cells. The regulatory cells contribute to the immune tolerance and immune homeostasis through many different mechanisms. The manipulation of these cells therapeutically to improve the transplant tolerance has become the most important field of interest nowada ys. The important subsets of T cells are the CD4 (helper T cells) and CD 8 (Cytotoxic T cells) cells. Of these two types, CD4 T cells are called as regulatory or suppressor T cells. These cells are responsible for the immune toleran ce. (Fernandez 2010). These cells instead of increasing the immune response, decreases it there by enabling the transplant to get adapted to the body. They play an important role in auto immune reaction. The balance between the regulatory and the effector T cells are much necessary for the immune response and also for the controlling of many diseases. The developments of these regulatory cells are mediated by the mammalian target of rapamycin signaling protein. (mTOR protein complex). Rapamycin is isolated from the soil bacterium Streptomyces hygroscopicus. Rapamycin is commonly used as the immune suppressive drug in the transplant recipients and also found to inhibit the intracellular kinase of mTOR. (Polunovsky and Houghton, 2010). mTOR the check point protein kinase was found to have a major effect on the cell proliferation and growth, it is also found to have many downstream targeting based on phosphorylation of the protein. The major inputs for this protein are obtained from the growth factors and growth hormones such as insulin, IGF-1 and IGF-2 and some extracellular amino acids. (Polunovsky and Houghton, 2010).mTOR can also identify the status of the energy requirements and the redox level of the cell. Considerable progress has been made in understanding the signaling network only after the identification of the mTOR protein kinase. If this pathway is dysregulated in the human system, it leads to certain diseases in the human, most importantly some cancers. So a detailed study about the protein is very important. mTORs are high molecular weight molecules with many conserved structural domains. They contain 2549 amino acids with N-terminal containing 20 tandem HEAT repeats. (Hay and Sonenberg 2004). mTOR contains two protein complexes mTORC1 and mTORC2. mTORC1 is the main upstream centre for growth factors, stress signals and nutrients. They also help to convert the anabolic and catabolic pathways of the cell for the normal functioning. The mTORC1 cell signaling is high associated with the human cancer. The signaling network of the mTOR contains many oncogenes such as EGFR, PDGFR, PI3K, Ras, Raf, S6K1, Akt and tumor suppressors such as PTEN, LKB1, PDCD4, NF1 and REDD1. (Polunovsky

Business intelligence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Business intelligence - Essay Example lped shape firms business strategy as cross-functional and global processes that help business activities to be conducted across boundaries of time, distance, and function (El Sawy et al, 2013). The authors argue that digital technologies cannot be separated from businesses because it helps firms operate in distinct forms of dynamic capabilities relevant for difficult environments. In addition, digital technologies are reshaping the structure of social interaction in both the enterprise and consumer space with social sites and social media easing the means of interaction. The author wants to make it clear that digital technologies have introduced new trends in business strategy (El Sawy et al, 2013). They include emergence of huge information, pervasive connection between businesses and customers, enhanced price, growth of cloud computing and international supply chains. The author observes that digital business strategy has led to emergence of new organization shifts such as trans-functional role for information technology, increased knowledge with information technology and limitation of old business models. Furthermore, the emergence of digital business strategy has resulted in digitization of services and products and data or information around them (El Sawy et al, 2013). This incorporates the design of services and products with other related platforms using digital resources. The increase in speed of digital business strategy makes firms to reason about time and distance in significant

Economics - to develop an understanding of what has happened in the Essay - 1

Economics - to develop an understanding of what has happened in the economy of the United Kingdom over the last two years - Essay Example The GDP of a country signifies the country’s overall growth. This indicates the heightened level of the economic activities and the high demand for the currency. The increase in the GDP always raises questions regarding the raised inflation levels as well which acts as an indicator to the monetary authorities to increase the interest levels within the country. The GDP and Inflation are normally based on two main concepts a) Consumer Prices Index and b) Retail Prices Index. The United Kingdom has seen a growth in the CPI over the years so as in the RPI. According to the national statistics, the CPI increase has been 5.2% and that of the RPI has been 5%. The increase in CPI and RPI is based a lot on the government and Bank of England contributions and looking at the stats it is very evident that the two have been contributing positively to the growth of the country (National Statistics: Inflation, 2008). The graph shows the growth over the past 4 years and if noticed there has b een an increase however this is expected to fall drastically over the next year. The Government and the Bank of England have made solid efforts to help the economy of the country. After studying the economy for the period 2006 – 2008, it has been noted that the Government and the Bank have played a very important role in the growth of the country’s economy. There have been constant efforts from the Government and the Bank of England to help the banks improve the current situation the government has taken steps of 50 billion pounds plan to nationalize the banks partly and also a promise of 250 million pounds has been made in the future. The Prime Minister has referred to this as a radical plan to assists the banks recover and get back into the normal course of business at the earliest. The Bank of England on the other hand has made available at least 200 billion pounds as short term loans to help

Operations Decision Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Operations Decision - Assignment Example le is very common with those people with high incomes; that is, those who can afford to use microwaves as a substitute to the traditional cooking methods. Since the use of microwaves has become so popular, microwavable food products have become popular too. Some of the leading brands in microwavable low calorie foods, which will be analyzed in this paper, include Lean Cuisine and Healthy Choice. Lean Cuisine, which belongs to Nestle,  was formed in 1998, and it is currently being sold in Canada, US, and Australia.   On the other hand, Healthy Choice is a leading low calorie food brand, which gives Lean Cuisine a run for its money. The brand is owned by ConAgra Foods, and its idea was generated in order to offer a line of healthier frozen foods in 1985 (Gregson 25).   Ã‚  Ã‚     There are several factors that determine the effectiveness of low-calorie microwavable food industry’s market structure. The first one is the number of buyers and sellers. If there are few sellers of the commodities in the market, then the firms will have an ability to influence price of the commodities, but if the sellers are many, then they will lose the ability to have a great control over the prices. The second determinant is the nature of the commodity. In this case, if the microwavable food products produced by different suppliers are homogenous, then all the suppliers will be forced to sell it at the same price. However, if the food products are differentiated, then different producers may have different prices. Unfortunately, food products do not lack close substitutes, and hence the producers may not be able to charge higher prices on such a basis. Third, if there would be no restriction of entry and exit of firms, then it would be most suitable if prices are stabilized. On the other hand, if there is no freedom of entry and exit of firms, then the threat of competition will be minimal, hence the existing firms can practice a control over their prices. Fourth, knowledge of the

Individual Report- To be effective, leadership and management Coursework

Individual Report- To be effective, leadership and management development must be aligned to organisational strategy - Coursework Example dership and Management Development (LMD) must be aligned with organizational strategy, because effective leadership aids in developing an effective culture, so that the employees and leaders are able work in a collaborative manner to accomplish the organization goals. Through effective leadership and management of operations, complexities in an organisation can be mitigated and it is also possible to build a healthy relationship among the management and employees (Burgoyne & et. al., 2004). In this context, the coursework intends to explain about LMD along with the purposes and objectives of LMD. The effectiveness of LMD and its linkage to the performance as well as productivity of an organisation has been discussed. It also intends to explain about the association between talent management and management development cycle along with performance measurement as well as assessment. Explanation has also been made in relation to training and development activities, which are part of LMD. Leadership can be defined as a motivation factor through which leaders are able to motivate the junior employees to perform their tasks effectively to attain the organizational goals. LMD can be defined as one of the major strategies, which is essential for the development of organisational as well as leadership culture along with effective management of operations. Leadership and management are identified to be similar in terms of motivating the junior employees and both required people to work together to accomplish organizational goals (Kotter, 2015). But in certain cases, leadership and management are recognised to be different owing to the fact that leadership have the ability to change the attitude of subordinates and on the other hand, management only can change the behaviour of employees. In this context, LMD is required for the development of an organisation in terms of economic growth and business sustainability in the long run. LMD is a vital concept for enhancing

Global governance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Global governance - Essay Example As such, global governance is understood to be a process that yields guidelines and treaties through consensus. These agreements and regulations in turn influence the operation of each country in the global perspective. No single definition of global governance has escaped criticism. In the same dimension, there has never been a common understanding of the meaning of the term global governance, with different scholars trying to find their won suitable definitions, which have only proved controversial.3 Global governance is an unstructured term with numerous interpretations. However, all users of the term global governance conform to the idea of absence of global anarchy.4 The concept of sovereignty is that every nation can make decisions and act autonomously without interference of other nations. On the other hand, global governance demands that each country should make decisions and act in such a manner that does not violate global regulations and agreements. Therefore, global governance, in as much as it appears to challenge national sovereignty, does more on the reinforcement and balancing relationship between national governments than it challenges the concept of sovereignty. Pattberg, Philipp. Global Governance: Reconstructing a Contested Social Science Concept, GARNET Working Paper: No 04/06, Accessed on November 9, 2014

Iranian Revolution and Persepolis Booklet Conventions Essay Example for Free

Iranian Revolution and Persepolis Booklet Conventions Essay High and Low cultures are terms given to value the quality of the text. Low culture text is usually the text written for entertainment and pleasure and does not encourage complex reflection and thoughts . Comics are considered as a Low culture and comics and graphic novel are similar to each other but graphic novel are not considered to be Low culture. High culture text is written to encourage complex reflection and thought. High culture are usually full of literary features while low culture has low literary features. Text with high culture also called privileged text and text with low culture is called marginalized . 2- Everyone has his own way of thinking, if three people read a book they will think differently and will have different opinions about it that’s why we respond to the text is shaped by our ideology because everyone understand it from a different perspective. The same thing happens when different people read a graphic novel , they all have different opinions and ideas and they discuss it some people may change their opinions after they heard someone’s else opinion ,that’s how it changes our beliefs, attitudes and values toward literature 3- Symbols in a Graphic novel are easy to understand cause most of the are colours , body language , objects and clothing etc.. .In Persepolis Satrapi has made it different than any other graphic novels , she made no colours only black and white and this is a symbol of something that happened in the past . 4- Satrapi choose to write Persepolis in form of a graphic novel to tell her story ,because she want us to understand what she understands .She is writing her story so she wants us to feel how it feels to grow up during a revolution and a war , and how it feels to move from your country to a different one having a new life she wants us to feel what she felt and she actually succeeded at it Style and Literary Traditions: Persepolis is more bildungsroman than a memoir, because Satrapi didn’t only want to tell the story of her childhood but she wanted to show the way she lived in Iran at the time of the Islamic revolution, also she wanted to show how she grew morally, socially and spiritually making herself an example of how a young girls grew up at this time and bildungsroman is when protagonist must progress from childhood to adulthood, leave home to undergo a journey, and develop a more mature understanding of his or her self. Satrapi also shows how is feels for a young girl to grow up during a Revolution and live in Iran while it was at war with Iraq, those young girls saw communists getting shot and killed by the shah army and hearing stories about political prisoners being tortured during the revolution and saw planes blowing up buildings and other events too. Although it was horrible but Satrapi use a satirical tone sometimes when talking to the revolution guardians Literary Features: Satrapi has been able to manipulate the literary features well though it is a graphic novel which sometimes authors find it hard to use the literary features. Satrapi has used alot of symbols and one of the most important symbol was â€Å" the veil â€Å" which shows the rebellious side of Satrapi and that she was against wearing it but the Islamic government said it is obligatory for women and girls to wear veil. She has also been hyperbole about it Satrapi has used many allusions; most of them are people some are rebellious figures like : Che Guevara, Fidel Castro , they symbolize how a young generation is forced to become revolutionary even though they know little about the turmoil they fight , most of the allusion are about being rebellion and the war. Unlike other writers, Marjane Satrapi has it a little easier because she is able to literally show us what she wants us to see , and the Major thing about persepolis is that it has no colours it’s all black and white to give the story a more ancient feel, she wants us to see that all of this has already occurred. Moreover, the simplicity of her images allows her to demonstrate that this time in her life was not a great one, and that most of it is blurry. Perhaps the lack of color also signifies how somber that time was. Furthermore, she usually draws herself in the background, this shows how inferior she unworthy of being at the same level of men. As she gets older in the novel, she starts to show herself more, it is almost as if she is starting to believe that she is finally getting to the level of men. She begins to talk more to people, and not only speaks her thoughts to herself. Themes: Any young woman growing up is going to face struggles especially during her adolescence. However, to grow up in the midst of the Iranian revolution is undoubtedly a life changing experience. In a society where one certain religion is forced upon you, and where you go, what you wear, who you see, and all that you do is restricted, it is clearly difficult to accept. Especially to a determined and independent young lady such as Marjane Satrapi. In Persepolis one of the most important themes of the novel is government and society and its role in determining the sequence of events that Satrapis life takes on such as in the first chapter veils are forced on the women of Iran. In Persepolis Satrapi has used many themes and as mentioned one of the most important themes is government and society. The Iranian society after the revolution was forced to do what their government tells them like wearing the veil and this is also connected to the theocracy and dictatorship theme that the Islamic government turned into a dictatorship , dictatorship was not only with the government but also in Satrapi’s house she calls her mother a â€Å" the dictator guardian of the revolution of the house The government played a big role in 1980’s Iran by implementing new laws and restricting old freedoms, whoever does obey is either sent to jail and tortured or being executed and a lot of people where being executed for doing things forbidden by Islam ,the government used Islam as a cover to do whatever they want without people questioning them. Even though the Islamic government prevented partying and drinking, people went to illegal parties and drank wine this is considered as an act of rebellion which is also a theme. Rebellion is also a major theme in Persepolis, rebellion is not only against a government it can also be rebellion to what people say. Satrapi uses cigarettes as a symbol of rebellion, she want to show that she can do whatever men can do because at this time in Iran there were feminism. Moreover , Satrapi uses more rebellion figures to support her rebellion theme like Che Guevara, Fidel Castro and Trotsky they are a symbol for freedom Iran was in an outer war with Iraq and internal war against Iranians. Those are the best words that could describe what is happening inside Iran in that time, the army was fight the Iraq’s and was also killing communists and people that have a secular thoughts. Although, the kids of the lower class are sent to war to fight for their country, but before they are sent, they are given this golden key which sybolizes the riches and wealth they will have if they go into war for their country. Not having much, these kids end up joining the army being promised these dreams that never happen. While on the other hand the higher classes are partying and enjoying themselves, not doing anything to protect their country, but only themselves. Isnt that sad. Also in the case of Marjane her maid doesnt sit with her and her parents had a cadillac showing that they were wealthy, but Marjane didn like the idea of that. If you are a powerful person that has a lot of money, or if you were a king, you were part of the high class people. If you are poor or a peasant, you are considered to be in the lower class. What also exists is a middle class who refers to those who can make enough money to dress properly and own certain things that peasants can’t. Being a part of the middle class doesn’t make you a high class person because you don’t have power and don’t have a fortune, but it’s enough for good living Martyrdom was also a major theme in Persepolis since the war started and Satrapi describes it â€Å"To die a martyr is to inject blood into the veins of society.† Marjane reflects that the regime depends on the war to retain its political control of the country. A million people lose their lives in the war. The regime becomes more repressive and seeks to stop â€Å"the enemy within† by arresting and executing those that defy its rule. Heroism is also a theme which is connected to Persepolis where Satrapi symbolizes the political prisoners that were tortured and executed as heroes and when she found out that her uncle Anoosh was tortured too ,she thought of him as a hero At this time in Iran the social classes was also a major theme in the novel mostly all social classes were unequal and this wasnt fair to Marjane at some points. She comes to learn that if you are not in the same social class as someone else, you are not able to marry them. Also, higher social classes were treated better and were paid more attention to, other than the lower class people. There was a specific part of the book where some kids asked Marjane if she had any star wars toys, and she didnt. All little Marjane had were some boring books to offer them. Persepolis is very powerful and informative. It showed the history of Iran’s civil war and revolution and the fall of the Shah. When someone would say the word Iran people would think of oil, criminals, and communist. they never knew that they would be able to relate Iran to family, love, peace, hope, Michael Jackson. It has definitely given a new meaning behind the word Iran. It has also given a new outlook of the people of Iran.

Consumer Loyalty in UK Sports Leisure Industry

Consumer Loyalty in UK Sports Leisure Industry The sports leisure industry in UK is booming with possibilities. The consumer spending pattern across the entertainment hubs such as online casinos, outdoor sports and other holiday sports has been growing as a sweeter spot for both consumers as well as service providers (Skills Active, 2009). The core purpose of this study is to analyze through research findings if the consumers are loyal to a type of leisure sport based on socio-economical factors such as income, education and occupation etc. The sport and recreation industry as a whole employs around 621,000 people. This is spread across the public, private and voluntary sectors. (Skills Active, 2009) In such a highly competitive environment, customer loyalty has become an increasingly effective means for securing a firms profitability (Reinartz Kumar, 2002). Consumer loyalty refers to a customers repeated same brand purchase within a given category, based on a favorable attitude toward and preference for the particular brand. Empirical findings have revealed that increased market share and decreasing price sensitivity among customers are particular contributions of customer loyalty to a firms profitability (Chaudhuri Holbrook, 2001). The establishment and maintenance of a loyal customer base should, therefore, be (and in many cases already is) a key objective for service providers, since it promotes a sustainable competitive position in the market place. Customer loyalty rests in particular on the brand, which plays an important role in customer retention. A brand can be described as a cluster of functional and emotional values that promises a unique and welcome experience (de Chernatony et al., 2006, p. 819) for its customers. By creating unique associations and feelings among customers that are directly and exclusively connected to the given, the brand helps service providers differentiate themselves from their competitors. In addition to its differentiation function, the brand serves as a potential relationship partner for the customer. The customer brand relationship can evolve and develop through continuous positive interactions between the customer and the brand (Grà ¶nroos, 2007, p. 331) and provides them with the opportunity to offer their customers benefits that go beyond the core service (cf. Hennig Thurau et al., 2002, p. 234). In such relationships, customers perceive a brand as a legitimate partner in the relationship ( Sweeney Chew, 2000;). Customers construct relationships with brands so that they provide and add meaning and value to their lives (Fournier Yao, 1997). This value is generated by the relational benefits resulting from the relationship with the brand as perceived by the customer (cf. Aaker, 2002, p. 95). Ultimately, the customer decides whether the relationship with a given brand generates value or not. Hence, it is fundamental for the establishment of customer loyalty to understand what potential and existing customers expect from their relationship with the brand. However, since customers personalities and lifestyles differ, as does their evaluation of the relationship with the brand, customer characteristics must also be taken into account. With the objective of fostering customer loyalty, sports leisure service providers in UK introduced loyalty schemes. These so called club memberships, sports complex memberships and other hospitality tie ups through credit card providers etc (Plimmer, 2006). While these programs attract a great number of leisure sports customers, skepticism has been expressed whether such programs in fact lead to true customer loyalty based on a positive attitude toward and preference for the brand. Critics assert that the reason why customers repurchase a service again from the service provider rests alone on the rational and economic benefits the hospitality provider offers (Dowling Uncles, 1997). In the past two decades interest in service quality has strengthened as research has shown how improvements in quality can lead to improved organizational performance and competitiveness (Douglas Connor, 2003). To evaluate how well their companies are meeting customer needs, service managers often use measurements of service quality and customer satisfaction (Dabholkar, 1995). Therefore, service quality and customer satisfaction have received much attention from service marketers and academic researchers (Spreng MacKoy, 1996). In addition, Taylor (1997) has noted that the two constructs (service quality and customer satisfaction) have became very important for marketing theory and practice, since many researchers have indicated their relationship to desirable consumer outcomes (Spreng MacKoy, 1996). The majority of services, including sport services, have helped create more demanding and discerning customers. Increasing expectations of sport services have led managers to become customer focused, which in turn has resulted in the introduction of customer care initiatives in order to improve the quality of service provision (Guest Taylor, 1999). A sport service provider can reduce the detrimental impact of effective factors by first ensuring that its customers are as highly satisfied with its services as possible (Javadein, 2008 Sports Leisure Service Loyalty). Sport organizations are better positioned to reap the positive outcomes associated with having a largely satisfied customer base if they have an understanding of those factors that contribute to their customers satisfaction because meeting customers expectations for key service quality attributes should lead to satisfied customers who, in turn, will remain loyal to the service and recommend it to other potential customers (Javadein, 2008 Sports Leisure Service Loyalty). In summary, sport managers should be interested in understanding what it is about their service that specifically influences their customers behavior. They need know that, what specific aspects of their services influence customers in terms of their satisfaction and their perceptions of service quality, which, in turn, lead to behavioral loyalty. Unfortunately, the work that integrates the role of service loyalty within the context of service marketing variables like service quality and customer satisfaction has received less attention. There have been very limited attempts to investigate the relationship between service quality and loyalty in the context of sport (Javadein, 2008 Sports Leisure Service Loyalty). In this research, it is examined if their exists loyalty amongst the consumers for sports leisure services based on their strata segmentation based on their education, income, occupational status and segregated residence. PROBLEM DISCUSSION Leisure sport seekers can get to indulge in sporting and recreation in schools, offices, and while on vacation and at other times too (Mintel, 2009). Briefly the following avenues for leisure sports can be availed by one and all in UK: Outdoor Sports education Outdoor pursuits Area, club and duty management in a range of venues, including casinos and bingo halls; Online games Adventure tourism Managers of sport and leisure organizations are faced with rising customer expectations of their services. As a result of increasing competition, a greater awareness of consumer rights and improvements in service quality, customer expectations of sport and leisure services are in danger of spiraling out of control. Indeed, the ability to manage customer expectations to ensure that they remain appropriate and realistic is a skill that has become increasingly essential for those who manage the industry. Reference Changing social trends will require more effective and efficient management. The population is getting progressively older, couples are having children later, society is becoming more litigious, there is a trend towards sports, home-based leisure is becoming increasingly important and society is becoming globalised. This will have implications for programming, marketing, image and competitive edge. These changes will all require better management (Mintel, 2009). The concept of customer loyalty in leisure sports industry of UK has been not studied properly. The principles of marginality have not been put to use in trying to understand if there exists customer loyalty in this space based on the number of hours spent in the sports leisure activities, types of activities and other such parameters. And also at this point of time it is unknown if there exists some differences between consumers preferences based on their social class segmentation such as income wise, education wise or occupational status wise etc. Reference OVERALL PURPOSE RESEARCH QUESTIONS Based upon the problem discussion the core purpose of the research is to provide an insight on the customer loyalty in sports leisure industry of UK based on parameters such as social class segmentation, consumer leisure behavior towards such options, types of leisure trips selected and to measure or explain these differences through marginality principles. The following are the key Research Questions that will be addressed in the research work: Q1. Are there any significant differences in the leisure behavior of UK population? Q2. Can such differences be measured using Marginality Principles? Q3. What would be the key recommendations for boosting Customer Loyalty in sports leisure industry of UK? LITERATURE REVIEW In this chapter the research work and related entities are discussed at length viz. pertaining to sports leisure industry as a whole, the social classes in UK and other relevant factors which affect a consumers behavior towards the offered services. A conceptual framework for the research would also be presented in this chapter. ELEMENTS IN SPORTS LEISURE With high levels of investment planned by government and employers, mainly in response to the successful London Olympics bid for 2012, there are more graduate career opportunities in the sport and leisure industry than ever before.  The introduction of the Smoking Ban Law in 2006-2007 has had a big impact on the casino and bingo industry.   While many bingo clubs have suffered from falling revenue, there has been a big increase in the number of players visiting online bingo sites and as a result many new job opportunities now exist in the online gaming industry (Mintel report, 2009).  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Types of Leisure Sports There is a growing awareness and understanding of health and fitness activities in the UK. More people than ever are actively taking part in sport and leisure as a hobby and this is also fuelling a growth in the number of available jobs. The major types of sports leisure areas include Health and fitness, Club and duty management, Sales and marketing, Instructing and coaching, Consultancy work based on Group Policy referrals usually with particular sections of the population, e.g. those with diabetes, arthritis, Lifestyle consultancy and nutrition opportunities are increasing as the sector embraces the concept of wellness, Sport development performance, administration and facility management (Lucie Johnston, Sports Leisure January 2010). For those who are employed in sports leisure industry the working hours can be long.   Employees are often required to work shift patterns and weekends. Typical salaries after training range from  £20,000 to  £35,000 (Graduate Recruitm ent Bureau, 2009). Manpower Overview Just over half of the sport and recreation workforce in England is female. It has a higher proportion of young people (16-24) than the workforce across England as a whole (SkillsActive Workforce and Skills Summary 2009). 95% of employees are currently from white ethnic groups, compared to 91% in the whole economy (SkillsActive Workforce and Skills Summary 2009). The sport and recreation industry as a whole employs around 621,000 people. This is spread across the public, private and voluntary sectors. (SkillsActive, 2009) There are a huge number of volunteers working in sport and recreation.   The latest Active People survey estimates that two million people in the UK commit at least one hour a week to volunteering in sport. There are currently just over 140 casinos, employing 14,000 people in the UK. There are 17,000 employees in the bingo club industry and 57,000 in the betting industry. The Gambling Act 2005 permitted online casinos to operate from the UK and consequently there are now over 320 online operators of betting and gambling sites employing almost 8,000 people. (The Gambling Commission Annual Report 2008/2009). There are 3,000 private health clubs and over 2,500 leisure centers in the UK, which together employ over 45,000 staff.   An additional 800 clubs are expected to open over the next few years in this growth in dustry (Skills Active, 2009). CUSTOMER SEGMENTATION In order to define distinct target groups, customers are typically segmented along demographic, psychographic, and/or behavioral dimensions (cf. Peter Olson, 2008, pp. 370; Solomon et al., 2006, p. 9). The sports leisure seekers market is segmented as follows: The upper class in Britain is statistically very small and consists of the peerage, gentry, and landowners. These people were traditionally the wealthiest in the land having inherited money and position. Typically they would speak with Received Pronunciation accent and have been educated at schools. Reference The upper middle class in Britain typically consists of professionals with tertiary education, speaking Received Pronunciation. The higher upper middle class are traditionally educated at more prestigious Public Schools. The lower section of the upper middle class tends to occupy less prestigious public schools. Middle class in Britain typically consists of bourgeois with degrees from the less prestigious universities, or possibly no tertiary education. They would speak in accents which are provincial as well as Estuary English . They would be engaged in owning and running local businesses; working for larger corporations as junior and middle management; teaching, social work an d engineering, accountancy, information technology, nursing and other skilled jobs. Reference Nouveau riche, are people from poorer backgrounds who have made money themselves, primarily in business, middle-class professions, or entertainment. They may retain the mannerisms of their original social group or may imitate the behavior of the traditional upper class by, for instance, sending their children to public school or taking elocution lessons, but often in a way that is seen as gauche by the real upper class and middle classes (satirized as Mr Nouveau Richards by Jilly Cooper). This group is characterized by ostentatious displays of conspicuous consumption. Premier League Footballers are typical of this group. Spiralist Meritocracy as another group was identified by Jilly Cooper in her book Class as people from working class or lower middle class backgrounds who gained an education at grammar school and university and have subsequently obtained professional or managerial jobs wit hin companies or government (Wikipedia, Social Structure of United Kingdom). Mondeo Man group are of people employed in the private sector in a salesman or entry level management position that drives a company car such as a Ford Mondeo. These people would have had limited education and cultural aspirations but are keen to move up in the world .The lower middle class in Britain consists of people in white collar jobs living in less prosperous suburbs. They would typically not have had a university education, at least before the 1980s expansion in higher education. Reference These people would speak in local accents, although relatively mild. Skilled working class in UK represents people who would be in skilled blue collar jobs, traditionally in industry but in recent decades showing entrepreneurial development as the stereotypical white van man, or self employed contractors. Reference Unskilled working class in UK represents people who would work in blue collar jobs with low incomes. They would typically have left school as soon as legally permissible and not value education (Wikipedia, Social Structure of United Kingdom). As per Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), 2007 the socio economic graph as per these roles with the median salary clearly depicts the relationship between occupational and age as variables against the income levels (refer Appendix I). CONSUMER LOYALTY Defining Consumer Loyalty As the comparison of the different definitions of customer loyalty illustrates, two key dimensions exist: a behavioral (cf. Cunningham, 1956) and an attitudinal (cf. Day, 1969) dimension. Both are described below in more detail and an equal consideration of both dimensions is advocated, if true loyalty is to be achieved. Behavioral loyalty refers to the consumers actual behavior of repurchasing specific bran within a given category over time (e.g., Day, 1969; Chaudhuri Holbrook, 2002). Kumar and Shah (2004, p. 318) describe behavioral loyalty as loyalty of a consumer as observed from the customers purchase behavior. This explicitly means that the consumer repeatedly chooses the same brand when he needs a specific product or service. This behavior may be a result of a true preference for the brand. However, repeat purchases of the same brand may also be attributable to mere convenience, habit, or because the barriers to change (i.e. the switching barriers) are too high. While proponents of the one dimensional construct of consumer loyalty argue that attitude is irrelevant in determining loyalty toward a brand and consider the debate on the notion of true loyalty a waste of time (Sharp et al., 2002) opponents claim that behavioral definitions of consumer loyalty are inadequate for explaining how and w hy customers are loyal to a specific brand, and call for an analysis of the individuals dispositional basis for repeated purchase (Dick Basu, 1994, p. 100). Zins (2001, p. 270) further criticizes that the observation of behavioral loyalty alone does not leave room to draw any substantiated conclusions about customers future actions. Only measuring behavioral loyalty actually overestimates the share of true loyalty, since it does not account for those customers who buy a brand simply because no other alternative is available or because a particular brand is offering a special promotion (Day, 1969). Prior research has demonstrated a direct relationship between reasons for liking a particular sport team and loyalty. The current study replicates and extends this line of inquiry by examining the mediating role of attachment, a process by which an individual moves from merely liking a team (attraction) to becoming loyal to a team (allegiance). Data (Collegiate N = 194; Collegiate and Professional N = 402, Favorite Sport Team N = 808) were collected to examine 13 benefits and attributes associated with liking a sport team, 3 attitude formation properties, and allegiance. A three stage test of mediation using MLR revealed that attachment mediated the relationship between allegiance and Vicarious Achievement, Nostalgia, Star Player, Escape, Success, and Peer Group Acceptance. The results indicated that allegiance is the outcome of a developmental process by which an individual places greater symbolic value on, has stronger emotional reactions, and has more functional knowledge in relat ion to attractive benefits and attributes associated with a sport team (Frank Daniel C., 2006 Loyalty, Attachment, Sport Consumers, Attitude Development, Participation). Low attitudinal loyalty combined with low behavioral loyalty indicates an absence of loyalty (cf. Dick Basu, 1994, p. 101). Day (1969, p. 30) categorizes those customers as spuriously loyal who exhibit high repeat purchase behavior, but lack any attachment to the brand and can easily be captured by another brand offering a better deal. Latent loyalty, in contrast, is reflected by high attitudinal loyalty combined with low repeat purchase. True loyalty, firms preferred condition, can be conceptualized as an attitudeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ based behavioral loyalty toward the given brand (see Kim et al., 2008, pp. 99à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ 100). A direct relationship between customer loyalty and relationship marketing has been proposed by a number of authors. Webster (1994, p. 26) claims that Customer loyalty has meaning only within the context of relationship marketing. Similarly, Aaker (2002, p. 23) proposes that one approach for enhancing consumer loyalty is the development or strengthening of customers relationship with the brand, which constitutes the basic objective of relationship marketing. Relationship marketing thus serves as a concept that contributes to the understanding of the factors that drive customer loyalty. The conceptualization of the loyalty construct has evolved over the years. In todays changing global environment, every organization is searching for innovative ways to achieve competitive advantage, increase customer loyalty, and improve efficiency without sacrificing quality of service (Javalgi Moberg, 1997). Service loyalty, with its final effect on repurchasing by customers, is perhaps one of the most important constructs in service marketing. Indeed, loyal customers that indulge in repeat purchases are the base of any business (Caruana, 2002). Some have tagged customer loyalty as a key source of competitive advantage (Bharadwaj et al., 1993) and a key to firm survival and growth (Reichheld, 1996). However, how loyalty has been conceptualized and measured has varied considerably across studies, resulting in calls for more research into the fundamental meaning of loyalty (Oliver, 1999). Three conceptual viewpoints have been suggested to define customer loyalty: the behavioral perspective, the attitudinal perspective and the composite perspective (Bowen Chen, 2001; Zins, 2001). The behavioral perspective, purchase loyalty, strictly looks at repeat purchase behavior and is based on the customers purchase history. Here, the emphasis is on past -rather than on future actions. Moreover, no other loyal behavioral actions such as price tolerance, word of mouth, or complaint behavior can be interpreted. Concentrating on the behavioral aspect of loyalty could overestimate true loyalty. The attitudinal perspective, in contrast, allows gain in additional understanding of loyal behavior (Zins, 2001). Here, customer loyalty is approached as an attitudinal construct. Attitude denotes the degree to which a consumers tendency towards a service is favorably inclined. This inclination is reflected by activities such as the customers recommending service providers to other consumers or their commitment to repatronize a preferred service provider (Gremler Brown, 1996). Based on a favorable attitude towards a service provider, customers may improve preference loyalty (De Ruyter et al., 1998). Lastly, the composite perspective combines attitudinal and behavioral definitions of loyalty. The composite perspective might be considered as an alternative to affective loyalty since using both attitude and behavior in a loyalty definition disputably increases the predicting power of loyalty (Pritchard Howard, 1997). In the present study loyal are defined those customers who hold favorable attitudes toward an organization, recommend the organization to other consumers and exhibit repurchase behavior Consumer Loyalty in Sports Consumer loyalty is of great value to recreational sport agencies in terms of their effectiveness and success. In recent decades, students in the field of recreation and leisure have paid growing attention to the phenomenon of customer loyalty. This paper reviews how exploration of consumer loyalty began, especially in the field of recreation and leisure. There have been three stages of evolution: the one-dimensional approach, two-dimensional approach, and multidimensional approach. The latter two developed out of critiques of an established approach. The authors find the multidimensional approach to be the most comprehensive, and thus the most promising, perspective for future research on consumer loyalty in the field of recreation and leisure (Tian-Shiang Kuo Evolution of Scholars Approach to Studying Consumer Loyalty in Recreational Sport and Fitness Business). Because it is much cheaper to serve loyal customers and easier to maintain their support, customer loyalty is of great value to organizations (Seybold, 2001). Rosenberg and Czepiel, whom Park and Kim cite (2000), claim that attracting a new customer costs 6 times more than retaining an existing customer. To a great extent, the success of a recreational sport and fitness business depends on how the business manages customers loyalty (Backman Crompton, 1991a, 1991b). As Park and Kim note, consumer loyalty is embodied not only in economic transactions with a business but more broadly in general support for the organization (Park Kim, 2000). Glimpsing the importance of consumer loyalty to sport-related businesses, in recent decades scholars in the field of recreation and leisure have paid growing attention to the phenomenon of customer loyalty (Gahwiler Havitz, 1995; Howard, Edginton, Selin, 1988; Park Kim, 2000). What has been the result of this increased focus? For one thing, a gradual evolution in how researchers approach the phenomenon of customer loyalty has resulted. Three stages can be roughly identified. In the very beginning, most investigators focused on only one dimension of consumer loyalty, either the behavioral or attitudinal dimension. Next, as a result of criticism of this initial research model, models that approached both behavioral and attitudinal dimensions of customer loyalty were developed. Finally, the latest studies of customer loyalty incorporate multiple attitudinal or psychological facets. This has led to a deeper, better-integrated understanding of loyalty. The following describes in more d etail each evolutionary stage of the historical development of customer loyalty research. Behavioral Approaches The majority of early studies of consumer loyalty looked only at its behavioral dimension. A customer was viewed as loyal to a product or service if he or she demonstrated consistent purchase of one brand over time (Backman Crompton, 1991b). According to Prichard and colleagues, one-dimensional behavioral approaches were classified in four groups by Jacoby and Chestnut (Prichard, Howard, Havitz, 1992, pp.156-157). The first group comprises researchers who located loyalty in the customers purchasing sequence, for example George N. Brown. The second group comprises researchers such as Ross M. Cunningham who defined loyalty on the basis of the proportion of the customers purchases that featured the brand in question. Jacoby and Chestnuts third group includes the scholars who applied probability models to analyze consumers purchasing behavior. To this group belongs Ronald E. Frank, who in the early 1960s investigated repeat-purchase probabilities using a simple chance model. The fourth and last of Jacoby and Chestnuts group integrated several behavioral variables for generating definition of customer loyalty (Prichard et al., 1992). Burford, Enis, and Paul (1971), as an example, put forward an index combining three behavioral measures of customer loyalty: proportion of resources spent on brand or store, amount allocated to switching, and the number of alternative brands or stores. While operationalizing such behavioral approaches is easy enough, at the same time they may exhibit fatal weaknesses as theoretical frameworks upon which to hang studies of consumer loyalty. Beginning in the late 1960s, some consumer loyalty researchers began to criticize behavioral approaches to their task (Howard et al., 1988, p. 42). They pointed out, for example, that because the associated measures relied on overt, observable behaviors, behavioral conceptualizations of consumer loyalty were doomed to such error as the classification of particular consumers as loyal in one study and non-loyal in the next (Backman Crompton, 1991b, p. 206). Moreover, failure to identify relations between loyalties measured by different patterns of use brought many researchers to the conclusion that brand loyalty encompassed more than repeat use (Backman Crompton, 1991b, p. 206). Attitudinal Approaches Conceptually, behavioral models could not, Day noted (1969), discriminate between true or intentional loyalty and spurious loyalty (Backman Crompton, 1991b; Prichard et al., 1992). Day (1969) and Jacoby (1971) proposed an attitudinal conceptualization of customer loyalty in order to better understand it. According to Jacoby (as cited in Prichard et al., 1992), a customer who shows brand loyalty by implication repeat[s] purchase based on cognitive, affective, evaluative and predispositional factors: the classical primary components of an attitude (1971, p. 26). Prichard et al. (1992) also briefly review those early researchers who looked at psychological aspects of consumer loyalty as well as behavioral. Guest, Monroe, and Guiltinan; Bennett and Kassarijia; and Jain, Pinson, and Malhotra all made an effort to study consumers attitudes or intentions. Just like approaches focused one-dimensionally on consumer behavior, however, approaches focused one-dimensionally on attitudinal loyalty had limitations. According to Prichard et al., the early studies of the attitudinal components in consumer loyalty, when they were reviewed by loyalty theorists, were often found to lack adequate theoretical conceptualization. A result of this was a multitude of measures that confounded research. Examination of the theoretical and empirical rigor underlying the development of various attitudinal measures raised certain questions about construct validity (Prichard et al., 1992). Overall, then, early definitions of customer loyalty as solely a behavioral construct or solely an attitudinal construct could be accused not only of superficiality but also of insufficiency. In time, a two-dimensional approach would replace these flawed perspectives. Reference Consumer Loyalty in Leisure Leisure activities could be said to be more important than ever before. International comparisons show that the British work long hours, and lengthy commuting times only add to the burden. It is increasingly likely that both partners in a household work full time, and household duties such as food shopping and cleaning must be shared, placing a premium on the time available for more enjoyable activities. Reference There is also the increasing problem of sedentary occupations, with many people spending their working day sitting in front of a computer terminal or talking on the telephone. This produces a demand for active leisure or recreation, but developments in technology mean that there is also an increasing temptation to sit in front of the television or to spend hours on the Internet or playing video games (Research Markets UK Leisure and Recreation Market Review 2002). The Most Popular Leisure Activities The survey, which was carried out on a nationally representative sample of 1,012 adults in August 2002, simply asked people about the leisure activities they considered `enjoyable, either in the evening or at the weekend. Unsurprisingly, the leisure market is dominated by in-home activities, with 92% of people content to spend their evenings or weekends watching television (or, with some more initiative, watching bought or hired videos). Listening to music or the radio at home is another popular choice (80%). Even when they wish to socialize, most people now think first of entertaining friends or family at home (79%), rather than going out. Venues providing entertainment and cultural services have to work harder than ever to persuade people out of their comfortable homes. Most consumers (77%) are content to go out for a meal as their main leisure experience outside the home (Research Ma

Affirmative Action Initiative in South Africa

Affirmative Action Initiative in South Africa Affirmative action is an initiative adopted by the South African government, which seeks to correct the imbalance of wealth and provide opportunities to the people who were adversely affected as a result of the apartheid regime. It has created a situation where organizations are required to meet specific employment targets for persons of colour in order to operate to the satisfaction of the state. As a result, these people are able to participate in the corporate environment at an accelerated rate. On the contrary, many white South Africans are finding it difficult to obtain their most select employment. The efficiency of affirmative action is best analyzed by assessing its objective of promoting black representation in the workplace and comparing it to empirical evidence. Figures provided by the government indicate that the unemployment rate has steadily declined annually since the inception of the study (September 2001). The September 2007 average unemployment rate of 23% is significantly lower than 29.4% in September 2001. This provides evidence that the policy is doing well to provide work to more South Africans. (www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P0210/P0210September2007.pdf) However, a more in-depth study reveals the change in unemployment rates amongst each population group. The best results have been for black people with a decline from approximately 35% (September 2001) to 26.8% (September 2007). The Indian people in the country also improved from approximately 19% to 10% over the same period. White and coloured unemployment rates have remained relatively static over this period at approximately 5% and 20% respectively. This bodes well for black and Indian people and is a strong indicator that affirmative action is achieving its goals. The policy seems to be failing in its attempt to compensate the coloured population. (www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P0210/P0210September2007.pdf) However, there are problems that are emerging from affirmative action that is having a detrimental effect on the performance on enterprises and the overall success of the economy. The instantaneous and rapid enactment of affirmative action has seen unqualified persons attaining important positions. Many of these people were/are incapable of fulfilling the roles they have been assigned. This has a negative impact on, firstly, the corporation employing these people as they incur costs without the required level of service from their employees. It also adversely affects the consumer, who is dependant upon those employed by organizations to make the best decisions in order to obtain maximum reward. A situation exists whereby unskilled employees are filling skilled positions. (www.sairr.org.za/press-office/institute-opinion) Another concern is that many white South Africans are leaving the country, resulting in a major shortage of fundamental skills. The South African Institute of Race Relations (SAIRR) revealed that between 1995 and 2005, one million white South Africans moved abroad. The lack of adequate services has left the country in desperate need of professionals. These people also served as mentors/teachers to inexperienced employees and accelerated their development in the organizations thus exacerbating the problem of their departure. (www.fin24.com/articles/default/display_article) Many contend that a weakness of the affirmative action policy is that it creates a minority of rich black people and does not help the rest (www.new.bbc.co.uk). The majority of the black population are unskilled workers without educations. These people are likely to struggle even with affirmative action in place as their employment options are limited to low income earning sectors due to educational and language problems. It is anticipated that the current generation of black children will reap the benefits of the policy. The government has put facilities in place to ensure these people are schooled and can attain funding for universities. These are the real beneficiaries of the system as their employment options are diverse. It would therefore seem that the efficiency of affirmative action should only be interpreted to a significant extent when the current black youth reaches adulthood. A contentious issue arises when deciphering whether affirmative action is fair. The reality is that apartheid deprived groups of basic needs such as education which hindered their development in the economy. It is necessary that policies are in place to accelerate their participation due to their unfortunate position. Therefore it seems fair that such policies are in place. The people of colour suffered through the white government. Many will never have a fair opportunity of creating a rich lifestyle for themselves. Affirmative action could be perceived to be unfair to the current and future white youth. These people are borne into a system whereby they are automatically limited in their options. The effective state of affairs is that many white people are paying the price for crimes for which they (the youth) did not commit and played no part. Although the task is more difficult, these people are still able to lead wealthy lifestyles in South Africa. One could engage the matter from another perspective with regards to ‘fairness’. Perhaps the current white generation are beneficiaries of the apartheid system. This is due to the fact that during that era, white people were able to acquire employment very easily which often paid high incomes. As a result, much of the white youth of South Africa have attended good schools and experienced financially stable upbringings. This has substantially increased their ability to attain a high level of education at universities leading to success in the working environment. Therefore, white people have an unfair advantage over others due to the inequalities of the past. It would therefore seem appropriate that this advantage were lessened, which is achieved through the affirmative action system. There is definite reason to believe that affirmative action has had a ‘demeaning’ effect on persons from all groups. On the one hand, many white people lose faith in their future as they get rejected by enterprises. This would likely result in a loss of confidence in not only the system but in themselves. White people would feel inadequate and begin to doubt their abilities. This presents a situation where affirmative action has impacted the self-esteem of individuals. Similar consequences could occur for persons of colour, although for different reasons. The fact that people are employed by organizations solely due to the colour of their skin may well have a negative psychological impact on these employees. They are made to feel undeserved of attaining their positions by much of the public through widespread publications in the media. At the same time, many of these employees are in fact incapable of performing the roles that they are required to do, exacerbating their feelings of unworthiness when asked to perform such functions. Therefore, the affirmative action policy is potentially depriving these people of natural emotions of success, especially feelings of self-pride or achievement in the workplace as well as a sense of belonging to their organizations. There is a key issue to analyze prior to assessing the overall accuracy of accusing affirmative action to be inefficient, unfair and demeaning. One needs to clarify the purpose of the policy which is best defined through court law, â€Å"The purpose of affirmative action is not to make identified victims (of past discrimination) whole, but rather to dismantle prior patterns of employment discrimination and to prevent discrimination in the future. Such relief is provided to the class as a whole rather than to individual members. No individual is entitled to relief and the beneficiaries need not show that they were victims of discrimination† (www.deneysreitz.co.za). The intentions of affirmative action are not to make white people worse off, but instead improve the economic position of other groups. There are no ideals in place that seek to harm or discriminate against white people. The other key question that must be asked is whether affirmative action is necessary for South Africa? The country suffers from widespread poverty, especially the black people. These people make up a majority of the population, yet they continuously struggle to assert themselves in the economy. There is an obvious need to alter the difficult living conditions of these people, both now and in the future. The long term solution to the survival and success of these groups is to get them involved actively. Affirmative action ensures that this occurs. The current ‘exodus’ of white people makes it even more important that persons of colour are learning the skills necessary to ensure South Africa is able to run effectively and experience adequate growth. Affirmative action cannot be perceived as unfair, it should rather be perceived as a necessary initiative for the benefit of the country as a whole. The white group should be willing to forfeit ‘absolute equality’ as a result of their past racism which greatly harmed and setback the country. However, as noted above, there are inefficiencies and demeaning repercussions that have emerged due to affirmative action. It is still too early to interpret overall efficiency. It would make sense to expect improvement in the future as more black children come through the educational system which creates a solid platform for their development and participation. It is clearly not a perfect method, but seems to be the best available solution to counter the current economic imbalance. References Statistics South Africa, Labour Force Survey, pg 11,24, September 2007, [Online],  Available: http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P0210/P0210September2007.pdf [2008, June 3]. Deneys/Reitz Attorneys, Affirmative Action Case Law Developments, Sheet Metal Workers Industrial Association v EEOC, 11 May 2004 [Online],  Available: http://www.deneysreitz.co.za/seminars/item/affirmative_action_case_law_developments,446.html [2008, June 3]. Vuyo Jack, Business Report: The Income Gap is Closing but not Fast Enough, 16 March 2008, [Online],  Available: http://www.busrep.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=2512fArticleId=4304342 [2008, June 3]. Peet van Aardt, FIN24.com: Million Whites leave SA –Study, 24 September 2006, [Online], Available: http://www.fin24.com/articles/default/display_article.aspx?Nav=nsArticleID=1518-25_2003186 [2008, June 4]. South African Institute of Race Relations : Signs that South Africa’s affirmative action debate is growing up, [Online], Available:  http://www.sairr.org.za/press-office/institute-opinion/signs-that-south-africa2019s-affirmative-action-debate-is-growing-up.html [2008, June 4]. BBC News: SA Poverty Gap Remains, 27 July 2000, [Online], Available:  http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/854306.stm [2008, June 4].

Rose :: Personal Narrative Drawing Art Papers

Rose I am accustomed, now, to being in a room with seven men who are drawing my pubic hair. I have been on the other side of the drawing board, and I know that bodies are reduced to shape, distance, and shadow: hold up the pencil. This is how far the nipple is from the armpit. Squint. It is not even a nipple anymore, not to them, though my nipple has not changed any since I took off my clothing. The first time I posed naked in the basement of the man whose ad I answered there were only two artists. The host would grimace and then relax his face in quick succession like a broken smile doll while he sketched. The other rubbed my shoulders over the thick blue robe during a break. The music was incredible: blues, and old music from 1940's Japan. Bad luck for the band, my host comments, because then Hiroshima happened. I found something to focus on so my body would hold still and steady. One time it was a finished drawing. Something about the light on the woman's breast made it look like the shape bread dough takes before rising. When I arrived I asked for the bathroom. Perhaps because I come from a place where basements and attics are rare I love them, and his basement smelled pleasant and damp, pastel and cardboard everywhere, with a cat who wound round the artist's legs. But the kitchen and bathroom betrayed the smell of the five cats who live there total. I have five cats also, but they spend their time outside accruing foxtails. The wife had headphones on and didn't look at me as she hurried into the car he had taken to pick me up from campus. He spoke to her as if he didn't know she had tuned him out. I stood bare under the hot lamp unsure of whether I was welcome, holding onto the curtain so my arm would catch the light, staring into the face of the clock until it became an object representative of nothing important, bread, an elbow, skin, scattered records. I do not know why there are no women in this group. I wonder sometimes if I would feel differently about shedding my clothing for a woman. I do no t think I would; though I am using my naked body in a way a man dictates, I have sanctioned this and am making forty dollars in three hours.