Marketing Plan for Coca-Cola Co Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Marketing Plan for Coca-Cola Co - Term Paper Example To create awareness about a healthy lifestyle should be the focus of its strategy and the sales would automatically follow. Regular monitoring is essential to know where the strategy is moving. 1. Company History Started in 1886, Coke was marketed as a tonic containing extracts of cocaine and caffeine-rich kola nut until 1905 (Bellis 2011). As the popularity of soda fountain declined, the company released the â€Å"New Coke† formula in 1985. Today more than one billion drinks of Coke are consumer every day. In 125 years of its existence the company has developed more than 160 low and no calories drinks in its range of products (The Coca-Cola Company 2010). It currently has more than 500 brands and is available in more than 200 countries across the world. Coke now plans to launch an energy drink in the UK market and since the market is already saturated, it has to evaluate the market characteristics, which would help the company to formulate the marketing strategy. 2. Environme ntal Analysis 2.1 Economic Analysis The UK is one of the most globalized countries and its economy is the sixth-largest economy in the world. The UK has a GDP of 1.353 Euro or 23.300 Euro per inhabitant, which is the European average (Senior Watch n.d.). The UK has the opportunity to invest at the national as well as the individual level. The UK economy is just recovering and hence even short-term tax imposed on soft and energy drinks could jeopardise the fragile economy recovery (BSDA 2011). The food and drink sector represents over 15% of manufacturing turnover and employment (IfM 2010). Its output was not affected even during the recession. The weekly earnings of people employed in this sector are above average and the job tenure is over nine years; the sector has only 6% temporary workers. 2.2 Social Analysis The wealth of an individual elderly person in UK is high (Senior Watch n.d.). The education level of the people is also high in UK. Obesity levels are very high in UK. Almo st two in every adult in the UK are overweight. The quality of food and drink, as well as the sedentary lifestyle has been identified as the reasons for overweight in UK (EMIS 2008). UK soft drinks consumption has gone up by 4% since 2009 as per chart shown in Appendix A. People are keen to include daily exercises and workout because of this the health and energy drinks market has high growth potential. 2.3 Political analysis The UK does not have a President and historically most British governments are composed of ministers from a single political party although at times there is a small opposition party (Darlington 2011). Generally the UK enjoys high political stability and hence the regulations for sectors such as food and drinks sector would not change drastically. The three parts of the UK have their own local administration and responsibilities. 2.4 Legal and regulatory analysis Since soft drinks contain high caffeine levels and since their popularity is growing, the BSDA (Bri tish Soft Drinks Association) has released a code of practice stating how the drinks should be labeled and marketed so that consumers have all the information. The labels are also expected to carry the statement, â€Å"Not suitable for children, pregnant women and persons sensitive to caffeine†

Niche Bakeries Essay Example for Free

Niche Bakeries Essay Niche bakeries are becoming more popular though the last few years. These types of bakeries specialize in a certain type of baked goods and showcase them for their customers as well as having other types of more common baked goods available. This is the type of business that I would create. My niche bakery would specialize in individual cupcakes and pies as well as baking larger cakes and pies to order. Local customers will consist of area residents, business owners and students that can easily walk over to the bakeries location while on lunch break or after school and work to purchase what they want, and with the Internet available, I can expand my consumer base and ship my goods all over the United States. Customers can place their orders online, and I will be able to ship the product to their door. The area in which I reside does not have a type of bakery like this. We currently have a Wal-Mart and a Kroger’s Grocery if we want to purchase baked goods. While they are both good and they are also cheap considering their product, my bakery would offer a fresh home baked quality of product that could offer them some competition. I would say in this area, my niche bakery would be a monopoly market as that it would be the only one in this location. I would be able to set the prices for my product but would still need to keep in mind that if the price is too high, my potential customers will go back to purchasing their goods from the grocery chain bakeries. Looking at a broader area as with the Internet, I could say that I am in a monopolistic competition. Each niche bakery that sells baked goods such as this have relatively the same pricing, no one business sets the price for the other businesses. It is still a smaller industry but there are others in which I must compete for business. So advertising and a well made website will figure prominently in showcasing the goods I am selling in the best possible light. Elasticity of demand in a bakery is very important to know. If the price of ingredients goes up, the bakery owner must adjust for this increase. The higher the price elasticity of the product the less volume of the product that will be output, if for instance the demand for the product was highly elastic, then it wouldn’t make sense to increase the price of the product. The company would lose business because of this. Below in figures 1A and 1B is data that has been taken from the Bureau of Economic analysis from three different industries that are related to the niche bakery business. Between the years of 2007 to 2011, there shows a decrease in the earlier years but an increase within the year of 2011of growth in the food service and food and beverage industries. The retail industry has show a sharp increase and decrease in these years. Taking into consideration the growth in each of the food industries though, I can make the assumption that this is a business that could flourish and grow with the right type of marketing, promotion, and sales products. In looking at this type of business for my area, I have talked to some of the local residents and have found that they were amenable to a new specialty bakery in the area. This impromptu survey showed that the residents in the area expressed an interest in purchasing baked goods that were of homemade quality rather than mass produced market products. Increasing Revenue In order to increase revenue in this business, there are several things that would be necessary. Below are charts and tables regarding costs and revenues showing where breakeven points are and where profits can be made. However, one way to increase revenue, is to offer something the bigger superstores in the area are not. Make the product stand out by creating those special items like fruit compote filled cupcakes, special flavors not normally offered by the larger stores like Orange flavored cupcakes. Even offering some gluten free and vegan types of baked goods can bring in increased  revenue. Another way to increase revenue is to offer free samples; welcome customers in with a smile and offer them a free sample of some of the products available. By doing this, the customer can get an idea and a taste of the product and if they like it they may turn into a return customer and bring others with them. Also, offering a loyalty program can help to keep repeat customers coming in. Using a stamp card that offers a free product after so many purchases is one such loyalty program that other bakeries have used in the past that have worked. And in a small town region such as the one I live in, being a part of the community can go a long way to getting the name of my business out there and creating a customer base that can increase my revenue. People are more apt to purchase products from someone they know in order to help support businesses in the community. Profit maximizing Determining the profit maximizing quantity shows the incremental changes in profit for a company’s product. In calculating the profit maximizing quantity I will need the sales and expense reports for my proposed business. From this is can gather the profits at each level of sales. These numbers can then be calculated to show the marginal profit for each incremental change in profit. The marginal profit is defined as the change in profit for each additional unit sold. We can then use this information to determine the maximizing quantity. This is the amount that can be sold before the marginal profit starts to recede into the negative. By doing this I can figure out how much of a discount I could give on my products if they were bought in a bulk batch. For example if someone wanted a several dozens of cupcakes or miniature pies for a party. Marginal Costs and Marginal Revenue Marginal costs and revenues are used to find out how much it will cost to product additional units of goods for a company. I could use this as a way to figure out my total costs I would need to produce a product in my bakery. For instance below in Figure 1C I have created a chart to calculate the total revenue, marginal revenue, marginal cost and profit of different quantities of one type of cupcake. For this data I used a fictional total cost of 0.91 cents. This is what I figured it would cost to make just one  cupcake. From there I was able to calculate each of the columns using the formulas in Figure 1D. Figures 1E shows the startup costs and the estimated monthly costs of running a niche bakery of this kind. Figure 1F and 1G show the total fixed costs, total variable costs, the total cost and total revenue as well as the profits to be made in a table and a graph. The chart and graph also show the breakeven point. This is the point where that the production of a certain quantity of cupcakes will allow me to break even and then after that be able to show a profit. The breakeven point for the quantity of cupcakes is 6.5 cupcakes which means a profit will start showing at 7 cupcakes with a profit of 31 cents. Pricing and Non-pricing Strategies Pricing strategies that I could use for my bakery would be to offer lower prices on my website to customers that I will be shipping my product to, in location I can keep my prices competitive with other bakeries that are in larger cities. As a way of keeping waste to a minimum I can offer goods that are left over to the next day at half the original price. This was something I saw as a child at a local doughnut shop. The proprietor offered the day old goods at a fraction of a price. He was still making a profit,  but also there was less unnecessary waste because people would buy these up quickly. For non-pricing strategies I would rely on advertising of my product as one that is made with quality ingredients. As well as letting the customer base know that each of the goods available are made from scratch. I do not believe that a barrier can be created or increased because the bakery business has been in the market for a number of years. Also, because it is a niche bakery, it is a branch off the traditional type of bakery. Product Differentiation Some ways to introduce product differentiation would be to make my product with seasonal items and local produce. Where I live we have raspberry and strawberry farms as well as apple, and other fruits. It would be easy to have the produce shipped to the store when it was in season from the local farms, or even picked up to create fillings, jellies, and other sundry items that I could sell in my bakery to the local residents. Cost Minimization Cost minimization would be hard to do in this instance, because I want to retain a quality product from good quality ingredients. I could minimize cost by purchasing my ingredients in bulk. This would give me a lower price per unit of measure. I could also purchase lower end products. However, if I were to purchase lower end products like margarine instead of real butter, this would be a significant drop in cost; however it would also be a significant drop in quality. I believe minimizing cost may not be feasible given the quality of the product. Conclusion Creating a business is a large endeavor not to be thought on lightly. There are many avenues to pursue in order to figure out and find the data needed to find out if the business a person wants to create is the right one for their location and meets the needs of their community. If they do create a business, there are different ways to figure out how to keep revenue coming in and finding ways to create more revenue. Each of the sections of this proposal allowed me to take a better look at the type of business I would consider opening. References Bureau of Economic Analysis. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.bea.gov/iTable/iTable.cfm?ReqID=5step=1 Gaines, M. (2012). Guide to the Bakery Business. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/guide bakery-business-2400.html Isidro, I. (2009). Starting a Bakery: Success in the Niche Food Business. Retrieved from http://www.powerhomebiz.com/blog/2009/10/starting-a-bakery-success-in-the-niche-food-business/ Kimmons, R. (2012). Pricing Vs. Nonpricing Strategies. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/pricing-vs-nonpricing-strategies-14166.html moffatt, M. (2012). Marginal Revenue and Marginal Cost Practice Question. Retrieved fro http://economics.about.com/od/coststructure/ss/revenue_costs.htm

The Chained Women: When Religion and the State Intersect :: Free Essays Online

The Chained Women: When Religion and the State Intersect When Israel was conceived as a Jewish state, questions arose over the division between the religious and the secular. Judaism is grounded in halakha, a detailed set of laws which guides observant Jews, but debate continues over whether Israel should adopt these religious laws to govern a largely secular population. Contradictions exist between the ancient laws and modern ideals, especially regarding women’s rights. Most developed states strive to enact laws that treat men and women fairly, but in Israel, where the rabbinical courts still adhere to ancient Jewish law, women’s rights suffer. Divorce laws in particular give men excessive power over their wives, resulting in large numbers of women being denied their basic human right to marriage and family. According to halakhic law, a marriage can only be terminated in two ways: the death of a spouse, or the giving of a get. A get is a formal statement of divorce which can only be granted by the husband to his wife, and he can refuse to give a get indefinitely. Until a get is both given and accepted, the wife remains an agunah, a chained woman. She cannot remarry, and any child born to an agunah becomes a mamzer, a bastard child (Haut 17). A husband who withholds a get is guilty of violating Article Sixteen of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (the right to marriage and family), but is not violating halakhic law and has the support of the rabbinical courts in Israel. Usually giving and accepting a get is a routine part of divorce proceedings in Israel, but a get is sometimes used as a bargaining tool during a divorce. A man can refuse to release a â€Å"chained woman† until he receives a divorce settlement he prefers. If she refuses to accept an unfair or demeaning settlement, then she remains an agunah. According to the Israel Women’s Network, â€Å"estimates of the number of ‘anchored’ women in Israel today vary, the rabbinate claiming that there are ‘only’ some 500, while women’s organizations claim that there are thousands† (IWN).

ABC Healthcare Company Essay

Healthcare companies, like ABC Healthcare, that operate as for-profit entities, are facing a multitude of challenges. The regulatory environment is becoming more restrictive, viruses and worms are growing more pervasive and damaging, and ABC Heathcare’s stakeholders are demanding more flexible access to their systems. The healthcare industry is experiencing significant regulatory pressures that mandate prudent information security and systems management practices. Furthermore, the continued pressure to reduce cost requires that management focus on streamlining operations, reducing management overhead and minimizing human intervention. The regulatory focus at ABC Healthcare is on the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX). Both pieces of legislation highlight the need for good systems administration and controls, but focus on different aspects of the business. The main focus of HIPAA is to protect personally identifiable health information while SOX is concerned with data that impacts financial reporting. Violations may be met with both civil and criminal penalties. Therefore, the company must be ever watchful of new threats to their systems, data, and business operations. The most prevalent security related threat to on-going business operations is the continued development and propagation of viruses and worms. Virus and worm prevention or containment is a vital component to the overall risk mitigation strategy. Virus and worm outbreaks have multiple cost aspects for the company including lost patient charges due to system unavailability, lost productivity because of recovery efforts due to infection, and potential regulatory impacts depending on the virus or worm payload. However, the company must balance risk with opportunities in order to serve the stakeholders and grow the business. ABC Healthcare’s stakeholders include multiple groups that depend on or need access to clinical and/or financial systems in order to help support and grow the company. The access requirements and associated risk model varies by user group. The main access groups are internal only users (i.e. nurses, hourly employee, etc.), internal/remote users (i.e. salaried employees, doctors, etc.), and business partners (i.e. collection agencies, banks, etc.). Risk mitigation solutions must be developed for each user group to help ensure that the company recognizes the benefit that each group brings and to minimize the risk to business operations. The high-level management goals of the network design implementation are as follows: †¢Support the business and balance security requirements without introducing significant overhead and complexity; †¢Maintain and enhance security without significantly increasing management overhead or complexity; †¢Implement systems that are industry supported (standards where appropriate), scalable, and fault-tolerant; †¢Ensure that the design is implemented to help ensure compliance with any and all applicable regulations; †¢Proper management of access control for legitimate users and malicious users is of the utmost importance for the security of the ABC Healthcare management system. The threat is not limited to outside malicious users but also legitimate users engaged in illegitimate activity. Based on the above description you are to provide a recommendation of how you would address each of the following ABC Healthcare’s computer network security requirements. Note, whereas cost is typically an important factor, this is not a consideration for this case analysis. Therefore, you do not need to include cost estimates. Your solution should have the â€Å"right feel†, despite the lack of depth or details necessary to be accepted by upper management. Be specific in your answers. Write them as if you were writing a proposal to your boss. You do not need to include citations. Since you are developing a solution to a specific circumstance, material that is copied from an outside source will not likely fit so everything should be in your own words. 1.Describe your vision for addressing the security requirements in the  overall technical design of the ABC Healthcare network. This should include both internal and external (untrusted and trusted) aspects. Untrusted would include user connectivity to the Internet. The â€Å"trusted† network has the main purpose of supporting the business functions of known entities (i.e. partners, suppliers, etc.) which have a business relationship with the company. Note that you are to concentrate on the high level, and you are not expected to provide low level details for your recommended design. (40 points) A threat is defined as â€Å"a potential for violation of security, which exists when there is a circumstance, capability, action, or event that could breach security and cause harm† (Stallings & Brown, 2008, p. 13). In essence a threat is a possible danger that may reveal vulnerabilities. There are many threats associated with online services especially when you add in personal information. The first threat to ABC Healthcare that should be identified is the â€Å"continued development and propagation of viruses and worms† In the development phase of the network design program managers has to ensure not only that there will be antivirus software which will be ran continuously (maybe a network scan done daily after hours) but also ensure there are intrusion prevention and intrusion detection systems (IPS/IDS) in place that would identify network intrusions. A simple antivirus software like McAfee is easy to use and will not drastically increase their budget which in my opinion would be the first balanced approach. Although they may have to pay a little more for other services to ensure a proper IPS or IDS many companies (including the Navy, uses SNORT which is an open source product). Another area that will have to be identified deals with both trusted users and untrusted users and that is unauthorized disclosure which in essence is the ability for someone to gain access to information which they shouldn’t be allowed to view. This does not always have to be malicious in nature as it could simply be a glitch in the system which allows a user the ability to view others information indirectly. We also can’t rule out the threat of deception, when dealing with medical information you want to ensure a patients privacy is kept as just that, private. To gain access hackers can pose as someone who should have access to a system. This could be accomplished by simply calling a help desk and providing them with  information and having them reset your password (which is one reason why I am glad we finally did away with the infamous â€Å"mothers maiden name† security question†¦well for the most part). The third threat would be disruption which would challenge system availability and in some cases the integrity of the system. This threat could be carried out in numerous ways; one would be a denial of service attack which would prevent users from accessing the website. Some more basic disruption techniques could be simply damaging network devices or even theft. Overall to prevent or reduce such threats ABC Healthcare will have to take the different defense-in-depth strategy (people, technology, operations) into consideration. Vulnerability is â€Å"a flaw or weakness in a system’s design, implementation, or operation and management that could be exploited to violate the system’s security policy† (Stallings & Brown, 2008, p. 13). One example of a vulnerability to this system would be system performance. A slow running network is just a useless as one that is unavailable and as such will usually result in users opting to find other means to conduct business. Although I can understand the importance of keeping the cost of network security low at times you will have to remind yourself that you get what you pay for. It is paramount that ABC ensures they have well trained and qualified IT personnel to run their networks (hence my further education into the cybersecurity field) Not only do you have to ensure you have qualified and well trained IT support personnel you have to ensure that each user (employee) that is operating the system is well trained. The biggest threat to a network system is the end user as such they should be trained as to what to look out for such as social engineering. Social engineering could be simple questions asked to a user that they feel are innocent in nature but really provide information to someone who they think would be using the information to help them but in essence be using the information to deceive the user to gain access to network resources or patient information. Additionally, I would first ensure there is some type of disclaimer provided that the user would have to acknowledge stating something to the effect of: the passing of medical records or privacy information is not recommended  unless you can for certain ensure the person you are passing it to will use the information as agreed. Though I am sure it could be written a tad bit better it’s important that users know even though they’re on a secure site their information could still be leaked and disseminated. By having this in place, if something were to happen IT personnel can refer back to this acknowledgment page as issues arise. To protect patients or other groups that utilize the network outside of the ABC Healthcare organization such as collection agencies and banks, along with the above disclaimer I would ensure that the website utilized port 443 for secure connectivity. Although it can still be breached and users can still become victimized, it adds an extra level of security and prevents sniffer attacks. 2.Discuss the way you will address requirements for system monitoring, logging, auditing, including complying with any legal regulations. (15 points) The first thing ABC Healthcare IT personnel should consider when conducting security checks is starting with a checklist. This will allow the administrator to ensure they are able to catch all necessities. This is where risk management should come into effect. According to Kathy Schwalbe, there are six major processes involved in risk management: †¢Planning risk management involves deciding how to approach and plan the risk management. †¢Identifying risks involves determining which risks are likely to affect a network and document the characteristics of each. †¢Performing qualitative risk analysis which involves prioritizing risks based on their probability and impact of occurrence. †¢Performing quantitative risk analysis which involves numerically estimating the effects of risks on objectives. †¢Planning risk responses involves taking steps to enhance opportunities and reduce threats. †¢Monitoring and controlling risk involves monitoring identified and residual risks, identifying new risks, carrying out risk response plans, and evaluating the effectiveness of risk strategies. (Schwalbe, 2010, p.427). With auditing it is a good practice if using Microsoft to utilize the â€Å"Event Viewer† which would allow you to track events that occur on your system. Eckert and Schitka states that â€Å"events that occur on a system are tracked and recorded in different log files, and you can use Event Viewer to view  the contents of these logs. For example, you can use Event Viewer to view the contents of the Systems log to determine when and possibly why, a specific service failed to start† (Eckert, J. & Schitka, M. 2006). It would also be a good idea to have a disclaimer on the login screen informing all users that they are subject to monitoring when using the IT asset that way the user (although it may not always help) will be aware that what they do on the network can be traced and the user has the potential to be brought up on disciplinary charges if the matter warrants. Another thing ABC Healthcare IT administrators should be doing is reviewing files and folders for accuracy. All common server operating systems provide the capability to specify access privileges individually for files, directories, devices, and other resources. By carefully setting access controls and denying personnel unauthorized access, ABC Healthcare IT personnel can reduce intentional and unintentional security breaches. For example, denying read access to files and directories helps to protect confidentiality of information, and denying unnecessary write (modify) access can help maintain the integrity of information. Limiting the execution privilege of most system-related tools to authorized system administrators can prevent users from making configuration changes that could reduce security. It also can restrict an attacker’s ability to use those tools to attack the server or other hosts on the Healthcare’s network. 3.Describe how the system will identify and authenticate all the users who attempt to access ABC Healthcare information resources. (15 points) ABC Healthcare administrators should consider Group Policies. According to Microsoft (2003) â€Å"Group Policy is an infrastructure that allows you to implement specific configurations for users and computers.† Additionally, Microsoft (2003) states that: Group Policy settings are contained in Group Policy Objects (GPOs), which are linked to the following Active Directory service containers: sites, domains, or organizational units (OUs). The settings within GPOs are then evaluated by the affected targets, using the hierarchical nature of Active Directory (Microsoft, 2003). Active Directory in this case would be an added benefit to ABC Healthcare as it allows for the deployment of the Group Policy feature which in turn will allow network  administrators the ability to manage each user and computer object. By creating security GPOs an administrator can apply settings to affect the whole network and not just a standalone computer. This saves time and allows an administrator to affect multiple computers. Another benefit to using GPOs is the ability to define settings for wireless network connectivity. GPOs allow you to configure which wireless networks’ workstations can connect to, and automatically configure Wireless Encryption Protocol (WEP) (Aubert & McCann, 2006). If ABC Healthcare ensures GPOs are set up and followed correctly, users will not be allowed to alter many functions without having advanced administrator privileges and with auditing in place if foul play is suspected it will be quickly noticed. The best form to ensure that a site is available to authorized users would be to enforce the use of a username and password. This would ensure that the right person is accessing their appropriate material. Some security concerns would be that a hacker may try to access a user’s account without the appropriate credentials. There would be steps in place that would prevent access from repeated incorrect password attempts; many times this is covered by having a lockout function. Additionally the ability for users to be able to utilize the â€Å"forgot username and password† function will be readily available. Another option that can be utilized (much like that in the military) would be the use of Common Access Cards (CAC) and Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) which will carry the â€Å"non-repudiation† clause that states that what is sent or uploaded is indeed authenticated by the user and as such cannot be disputed. 4.Discuss how the system shall recover from attacks, failures, and accidents. (15 points) In order to safely ensure that you will be able to maintain information that is stored on your network it is key to ensure IT personnel are conducting backups. Backing up the system is another quality assurance feature that should be viewed by the management personnel. It is paramount that IT management personnel ensure administrators are conducting daily, weekly, and monthly backups of their network. A full backup should be conducted at least once a week with daily differential backups and, with maybe an incremental backup being performed mid-week. This will ensure that in the  event of a data loss IT personnel can restore lost material with minimal downtime. Ensuring there is a baseline in place that has all the original configurations is another way to ensure data safety. When looking at attacks if the system has the IPS/IDS and antivirus software installed the risk could be minimized. Michael Goodrich and Roberto Tamassia also states that administrators should ensure to have checksums and data correcting codes in place. â€Å" Checksums are the computation of a function that maps the contents of a file to a numerical value. A checksum function depends on the entire contents of a file and is designed in a way that even a small change to the input file is highly likely to result in a different output value. Checksums are like trip-wires, they are used to detect when a breach to data integrity has occurred. Data correcting codes are methods for storing data in such a way that small changes can be easily detected and automatically corrected. These codes are typically applied to small units of storage, but there are also data –correcting codes that can be applied to entire files as well† (Goodrich & Tamassia, 2011). 5.Discuss how the system will address User Account Management and related security improvements. (15 points) ABC Healthcare would have to ensure they had proper polices, procedures, standards and guidelines in place to ensure user account management and the improvement of their network security. Although many times in conversation we tend to think that policies, procedures, standards, and guidelines are coupled together. Policies are set rules established by a company or organization. A policy usually is the stepping stone for the creation of standards, guidelines and procedures. A policy would not have to incorporate the other three whereas it would be virtually impossible to create standards, guidelines or procedures without the reference of a policy which is your governing documentation. Having a standard in a way would be a rule used to measure as to how something should be. In the military we have what is called ‘Standard Operating Procedures’ which are rules that provide step-by-step instructions as to how to accurately operate equipment. This  prevents users from using the â€Å"I didn’t know excuse†. ABC Healthcare would have to have policies in place if they want to create a governing document that should be followed. This would establish rules that are to be followed by the organization. In order for a policy to be changed it must first be approved by leadership personnel. Having something like the military’s standard operating procedures wouldn’t be a bad idea either. The procedures would be the instructions that a user would follow to ensure something is operating appropriately. Like stated in question 4 for base-lining they should also have standards. So it would be understood how something is to be completed. For security improvements ABC healthcare can for example create a policy stating that the use of USB drives on computer systems are no longer authorized (as evident by military policy). This is a governing documentation that if not followed could have punitive damages associated with it. References Aubert, M. and McCann, B. (2006). MCSE Guide to Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Active Directory, Enhanced. Boston, MA: Course Technology. Eckert, Jason W. and M. John Schitka. (2006). Linux+ guide to linux certification (second edition). Boston, MA.: Course Technology. Goodrich, M.T. & Tamassia, R. (2011). Introduction to Computer Security. Boston, MA: Pearson Education INC. Microsoft TechNet. (2003). Windows Server TechCenter. Retrieved Nov. 29, 2012. from: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc779838(WS.10).aspx Stallings, W. and Brown, L. (2008). Computer Security: Principles and Practices. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Educations, Inc. Schwalbe, K., (2010). Information Technology Project Management (sixth edition). Boston, MA: Course Technology.

A Critical Evaluation of the Engagement and Psychosocial Asessment of a Client Living with Psychosis in the Health and Social Care Practitioners Work Setting.

INTRODUCTION This assignment is a critical evaluation of the engagement and psychosocial assessment of a client living with psychosis in the community. It provides a critical and analytical account which encapsulates assessments, psycho education, problem solving, implementation and evaluation of strategies used. I will also use Gibbs (1988) model of reflection to reflect on my assessment process and how learning can be taken forward in terms of my own practice development and that of the service setting. My client l shall call Emily a pseudo name used to maintain confidentiality in accordance with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) 2002 Code of Professional Conduct that outlines guidelines of confidentiality. Emily was initially on the acute ward where l started the process of engagement with her before she was discharged under our team in the community to facilitate early discharge. Emily was suitable for psychosocial based interventions (PSI) and this was identified as part of her care plan in order to provide support in adapting to the demands of community living and managing her illness. PSI should be an indispensable part of treatment and options of treatment should be made available for clients and their families in an effort to promote recovery. Those with the best evidence of effectiveness are Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and family intervention. They should be used to prevent relapse, to reduce symptoms, increase insight and promote adherence to medication, (NICE 2005). Emily is 33 year old woman with a diagnosis of schizophrenia. She was referred to my team to facilitate early discharge from the ward as part of her discharge. She lives in supported housing and had had several hospital admissions and some under the mental health act. Emily was being maintained in the community on medication but it was felt that there was still an amount of distress in her life and that her social functioning was suffering as a result. Emily presented with both delusional and hallucinatory symptoms and as part of her treatment cognitive approaches were considered to help alleviate the distress and modify the symptoms. Emily was brought up in a highly dysfunctional family. Both her parents had problems with drugs and the law. Emily had been introduced to drugs at an early age but due to her illness she had stopped using them at the age of 30 when she went into supported accommodation. There was family history of schizophrenia as her grandfather had it and he had killed himself. Emily identified that her problems started in 2007 when her grandfather passed away as she was close to him and had lived most of her life with her grandparents. I completed a time line to look back at while she talked about her life history (see Appendix 1). It is vital that the client is allowed to tell their story with the minimum intervention from the practitioner and the timeline can be used to examine if there are any links to their relapses and psychotic episodes (Grant et al 2004). In the community setting we have a variety of patients with different diagnosis of mental health problems. The rationale for choosing this patient is that she had had various interventions such as medication changes and a lot of experience with the mental health professionals including compulsory treatment under the mental health act (1983). All these factors are likely to have an impact on the individual’s degree of willingness to engage in psychological interventions (Nathan et al, 2003). Hence initially it was a challenge to engage Emily and establish a relationship and build rapport. (Nelson 1997) states rapport is built by showing interest and concern and be particularly careful not to express any doubts about what the patient tells you. The development of a therapeutic relationship is critically important in work with persons with schizophrenia, which maybe difficult with patients struggling with mistrust, suspicion and denial (Mhyr, 2004). Rapport took some time to develop and was established by core conditions of genuineness, respect and accurate empathy (Bradshaw 1995). I met with Emily to set the agenda and explained to her that she was free to terminate the session anytime should she feel it necessary. It was also vital to ensure that the sessions were neither confrontational and totally compliant with Emily’s view of the world ( Kingdom & Turkington, 1995) I encouraged Emily to describe her current problems and to give a detailed description of the problems and concentrate on a more recent problem. l was directive, active, riendly and used constructive feedback, containment of feelings to develop the relationship(Tarrier et al,1998). l used her interest in Christianity to engage her and because l showed an interest this became a regular point of conversation and strengthened the connection. I also demonstrated some flexibility in response to Emily’s needs and requirements at different stages of the t reatment and intervention. It is not possible to maintain a sound collaborative therapeutic relationship without constant attention to the changing situation and requirements of a patient (Gamble and Brennan, 2006). Since the development of antipsychotic medication and dominance of biomedical models during the 1950`s mental health care has changed and evolved. The dependency on the sole use of medication was found to have left patients with residual symptoms and social disability, including difficulty with interpersonal skills and limitation with coping (Sanford&Gournay, 1986). This prompted the return of PSI to be used in conjunction with medication management. The aim was to reduce residual disability and to include in the treatment process social skills and training rehabilitation (Wykes et al, 1998). As part of my assessment process l carried out a comprehensive assessment using CPA 1, 2, and 4 in conjunction with the Trust Policy. This was to establish what her problems were and formulate a clear plan. A process of structured, comprehensive assessment can be very useful in developing an in-depth understanding of issues surrounding resistance to services (Grant et al 2004). I carried out a Case Formulation (CS) using the 5W`s What? , Where? , When? , With Whom and Why, and Frequency, Intensity, Duration and Onset ( FIDO) model to explore and get a detailed explanation of the problem and explore the `Five aspects of your life experiences` (Greenberger and Padesky 1995) (see Appendix 3). CS maps out the relationship on how the environment impacts on your thoughts, emotion, behaviour, physical reactions (Greenberger and Padesky,1995). While the assessment helped to form a picture of Emily’s suitability for PSI it also provided a scope for further work on her coping skills. Given the assumption that a person may feel reluctant to give a particular way of coping as this maybe the only means of control (Gamble & Brennan, 2006), the exploration was collaborative. From the assessment and case formulation Emily’s goal was to go out more and reduce the frequency and intensity of her voices or even have them disappear. l explained to Emily that we had to be realistic about her set goals and having voices disappear was unlikely. Kingdom (2002) states that though patients desire to make voices disappear are unlikely since voices are, as far as reasonably established, attributions of thoughts as if they were external perceptions. Goals are positive, based in the future and specific (Morrison et al 2004) and the golden rule in goal setting is to be SMART, Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time Limited. Emily then rephrased her goal statement to that she wanted to reduce the intensity of her voices in the next few weeks by using distraction techniques that she had not tried before. I used the KGVM Symptom Scale version 7. 0 (Krawieka, Goldberg and Vaughn,1977) to assess Emily’s symptoms which focuses on six areas including anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts and behaviour, elevated mood, hallucinations and delusions. A KGV assessment provides a global measure of common psychiatric symptoms (feelings and thoughts) experienced with psychosis. The framework ensures that important questions are asked and a consistent measure of symptoms is provided. The KGV is a valid tool with a considered level of high reliability (Gamble and Brennan, 2006). Assessment is a process that elicits the presence of disease or vulnerability and a level of severity in symptoms (Birchwood & Tarrier, 1996). This gathering of information provides the bases to develop a plan of suitability of treatment, identifies problems and strengths and agree upon priorities and goals (Gamble & Brennan,2006). l also used the Social Functioning Scale (SFS appendix 6) (Birchwood et al,1990) which examined Emily’s social capability and highlighted any areas of concern. Emily was a loner and though living in supported accommodation she was hardly involved with the other residents or joined in with community activities. She expressed that she was afraid people could hear her voices and were judging her at all times and used avoidance as a coping strategy. On using the KGV assessment and from the results (see Appendix 2) Emily scored highly in four sections hallucinations, delusions, depression and anxiety. It appeared during assessment that her affective symptoms were econdary to her delusions and hallucinations, which were initiated and exacerbated by mostly stressful events in her life. Her hallucinations were noted to be evident at certain times and were followed by sleep deprivation. Emily expressed fleeting suicidal thoughts but denied having any plans or intentions. She also experienced sporadic moments of elation which appeared to be linked to stress. It was important for Emily to understand how life events had an impact on her difficulties an d the use of the Stress Vulnerability Model SVM (Zubin and Spring 1977) demonstrated this (see Appendix 4). Practical measures arising from an assessment of stress and vulnerability factors seek to reduce individual vulnerability, decrease unnecessary life stressors and increase personal resistance to the effects of stress. One of Emily’s highlighted problems was a lack of sleep and this could be linked to the stress vulnerability and her psychotic symptoms. Normalisation was used to illustrate this to Emily. Her increase in psychotic symptoms could then be normalised through discussing about the effects of sleep deprivation on her mental state and reduction of the associated anxiety. Emily was able to recognise how stress impacted on her psychosis. Emily identified the voices as a problem from the initial assessment. She was keen to talk about them but listened to suggestions l made to tackle the voices. The assumption of continuity between normality and psychosis has important clinical implications. It opens the way for a group of therapeutic techniques that focus on reducing the stigma and anxiety often associated with the experience of psychotic symptoms and with diagnostic labelling. Kingdom and Turkington(2002) have described such approaches as normalising strategies, which involve explaining and demystifying the psychotic experience. They may involve suggesting to patients that their experiences are not strange and no one can understand, but are common to many people and even found amongst people who are relatively normal and healthy. Normalising strategies can help instil hope and decrease the stigma and anxiety which can be associated with the experience of psychotic symptoms. This rationale emphasises the biological vulnerability to stress of individuals with schizophrenia and the importance of identifying stresses and improving methods of coping with stress in order to minimise disabilities associated with schizophrenia (Yusupuff & Tarrier, 1996). (Grant et al 2004). The problem l encountered when applying and using this model with Emily was that she realised and understood that she was not the only one experiencing voices but she wanted to find out why she experienced the voices. I used the belief about voices questionnaire (BAVQ-R appendix 5) which assesses malevolent and benevolent beliefs about voices, and emotional and behavioural responses to voices such as engagement and resistance (Morrison et al 2004). We identified the common triggers of her voices such as anxiety, depression and social isolation. During my engagement with Emily l emphasized enhancing existing coping strategies (Birchwood& Tarrier, 1994); (Romme &Escher 2000). The idea was to build on Emily’s existing coping methods and introduce an alternative. We agreed upon distraction as a coping strategy. The plan was for Emily to listen to music or carryout breathing exercises when the disturbing voices appear and to start interacting with them by telling them to go away rather than shout at them. Emily used this plan with good effect at most times as it appeared to reduce the psychological arousal and helped her gain maximum usage of these strategies in controlling the symptom (Tarrier et al, 1990). To tackle Emily’s social functioning we identified activities that she enjoyed doing and she enjoyed going to church but had stopped due to her fears that people could hear her thoughts and found her weird. I suggested that she could start with small exposure, like sitting in the lounge with her fellow residence and going on group outings in the home as these were people she felt comfortable with as she knew them. This would then hopefully lead to Emily increasing her social functioning and enable her to attend church. Emily expressed that she felt more in control of her voices REFLECTION My work with Emily was made easy as she agreed to work with me although l did face some reluctance initially. As my intervention and engagement with Emily started while she was on the ward this made it easier for me to engage her in the community. We developed good rapport and she felt she could trust me, which made the process of engagement easier. Through my engagement and assessment process l improved on my questioning and listening skills. Emily was clearly delusional at times and working with the voices present proved a challenge at times, but l realised that l had to work collaboratively with her and gain her trust and not question her beliefs. At times though l felt l was interrogating her and did not follow a format and also because of the constraints on time l did not allow much time to recap and reflect and could never properly agree the time of next meeting. I also worked at her existing strengths and coping strategies that she had adapted throughout her life and this empowered her and made her feel like she was contributing. At times though l felt we deviated from the set goals and l lost control of sessions. On reflection this is an area that l will need to develop and improve on and be able to deviate but bring back the focus to the agreed plan. My interventions were aimed at Emily’s voices and increasing her social functioning. This l discovered was my target areas and not necessarily Emily’s. n future l will aim at concentrating more on what the client perceives as their major problem as this will show client involvement in their care. This will also help me have a clear and rational judgement and appreciate every improvement the client makes no matter how small. I did not focus much on Emily’s family which l realised was a topic that she wanted to explore but l felt l was not equipped in exploring this part of her life in relation to her illness. The other difficulties l faced was because of my working pattern l had to cancel some of our meeting appointments. As part of the set agenda l had to reintroduce myself and the plan and goals that we had set out in the initial stages and this always proved to bridge the gap. It was also difficult for continuity in the team that l work in as one did not carry a personal caseload so delivering interventions was not always easy and there was not always continuity as some of my colleagues were not familiar with some applications of PSI. This highlighted as a service that there was a need for us as nurses in the team to have PSI training in order to continue with the work if the main practitioner was away and also as a team we hardly ever sed assessment tools and were therefore not confident and competent in their use. l also had difficulties in completing assessment in time due to constricted time frames. l could not always spend as much time with Emily because l had other clients to see in a space of time. In future l will have to negotiate my time and improve on my time management. In this assignme nt l had to carry out a critical evaluation of the engagement and psychosocial assessment of a client living with psychosis and carry out a critical self reflection on the assessment process and how this could be improved on. From my case study l deduced that use of some applications of PSI remains highly experimental and requires considerable research and more theoretical models. Furthermore discussion is also lacking on the details as to ways in which symptoms improved or social functioning enhanced in behavioural terms in relation to social context. However the interventions used in this case study highlighted considerable strength in supporting claims that PSI can work and does help reduce symptoms of psychosis. REFERENCES Birchwood M and Tarrier N (eds) (1996) Psychological Management of Pschizophrenia. Wiley Publishers Bradshaw T (1995) Psychological interventions with psychotic symptoms; a review. Mental Health Nursing. 15(4) Birchwood, M, Smith, J, Cochrane, R, Wetton, S, Capestake, S (1990) The social functioning scale: development and validation of a scale of social adjustment for use in family interventions programmes with schizophrenia patients, British Journal of Psychiatry,157, 853-859 Chadwick, P, Birchwood, M, Trower ,P (1996) Cognitive Therapy for Delusions, voices and paranoia, Wiley & Sons. Gamble,C, Brennan,G (2000) Working with serious mental illness:a manual for clinical practice. Grant, C, Mills, J, Mulhern, R, Short, N (2004) Cognitive Behavioural Therapy in Mental Health Care, Sage pub. Greenberger,D, Padesky,C A(1995) Mind over mood: A Cognitive Therapy Treatment Manual for clients. Guilford Press. Krawieka, M, Goldberg,D, Vughn,M (1977) A Standardised Psychiatric Assessment scale for rating chronic psychotic patients. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica 1977;55: 299-308. Kingdom , D and Turkington,D (1994) Cognitive Behaviour Therapy of Schizophrenia. Hove Lawrence Erlbaum. Kingdom, D and Turkington (2002) The Case Study Guide to Cognitive Behaviour Therapy of Psychosis. Wiley. Mhyr, G(2004) Reasoning with Psychosis patients; Why should a general psychiatrist care about Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Schizophrenia. Morrison,AP, Renton, JC, Dunn, H, Williams, S, Bentall, RP (2004) Cognitive Therapy for Psychosis, Brunner- Routledge. Nathan, P, Smith, L, Juniper, U, Kingsep, P, Lim, L (2003) Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Psychotic Symptoms, A Therapist Manual, Centre for Clinical Interventions. Nelson H (1997) Cognitive Behavioural Therapy with Schizophrenia. A Practice Manual. Stanley Thornes. National Institute for Clinical Excellence (2003) Schizophrenia: core interventions in the treatment and management of schizophrenia in primary and secondary care, NICE publications. Nursing & Midwifery Council, Code of Professional Conduct (2002). Romme M and Escher A Eds (1993) Accepting Voices. MIND Publications Sanford T and Gournay K (1996) Perspectives in Mental Health Nursing. Bailliere Tindall. Tarrier, N, Yusupoff, L, Kinney C, McCarthy E, Gledhill A, Haddock G and Morris J (1998) Randomised controlled trial of intensive cognitive behaviour therapy for patients with chronic schizophrenia. British Medical Journal 317,303-307. Zubin, J, & Spring, B (1997) Vulnerability: A new view on schizophrenia. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 86, Topic: Students will carry out a critical evaluation of the engagement and psychosocial assessment of a client living with psychosis in the health and social care practitioner`s work setting. Word Count: 2826

Another Story Began On Show †Creative Writing Story

Another Story Began On Show – Creative Writing Story Free Online Research Papers Another Story Began On Show Creative Writing Story Time ran very fast. The Grade Nine’s lessons have been taught. Someone said, â€Å"Time is the best medicine to cure your broken heart.† Alice became ration than before. At the same time, my lessons were the heavier in the whole Junior Time. I couldn’t go bed until 12:00 every night. Everybody was busy in prepare the big test that relate to high school. Everyone felt tons of pressure on the shoulder. Because my classmates and I participated in the big test, which also is a test to schools quantify teaching quality. So my teacher and principle managed us very strict, especially the couple. In this hypersensitive time, Cathy made a boyfriend. Another story began on show. â€Å"Cathy, don’t you scare that the teacher would know it?† â€Å"I don’t know, but I know my parents would do something crazy to me if they know that.† So Cathy’s issue only Alice and I knew I don’t know and even been her good friend, I still didn’t know who her boyfriend was. It became a top national secret. Under our teacher rigorous stakeout, Cathy only hoped she could last this relationship for this year. Unfortunately, the teachers would know that. Three days after we knew Cathy had a boyfriend, I was called into the teacher’s office. â€Å"Michelle is Cathy’s roommate?† my headmaster’s voice was even colder than the robot, without any emotion. â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"So do you know she has a boyfriend?† Was he a spy? I was astonishing. How could he know that? â€Å"I know you won’t say anything even you give me an answer, I won’t trust. However, you had better tell Cathy that stop making this dirty thing, or I will call her parents and expel her out of school!† his tones were still frozen. â€Å"When I saw her again, she was packing her luggage. â€Å"Where are you going, Cathy? Stop!† I was moving said. â€Å"Michelle, I was expel by the school.† â€Å"Shit!† Cathy said with a sorrow smile. â€Å"Shit happened every day. Don’t feel frustrate. Michelle, you should know that you are a lucky girl. Actually, I was quite jealous you, because your mark always in the top 10 of our grade and you don’t make any big mistake. I am different from you. School said my mark was too low and broke the school rule. What I did was influence school’s image. So they asked my parents to take me home. Tell Alice that I am history. Don’t miss me. Michelle, you’re my good roommate, I’ll miss you guys. Bye.† â€Å"What about him?† â€Å"He is still in here, but we are†¦game over.† She pretended degage said. â€Å"Why he can stay here, but not expel from school?† â€Å"Because his mark is higher than mine!† When I am writing here, my story is close to the end. However, I still want to write more about them, especially Cathy’s story, there are many details that worth me to continue moving my pen, but I find that’s a tough job, because their unfair treatments are full of my mind. I don’t know why the adult always treat us as the puppet. When we seek for more freedom, they would say that â€Å"I have already given you broad space.† But they never teach us how to manager our lives or how to make a rational decision, but once we make a mistake, then they would immediately dominate you again and we just like the chick, can’t fight for ourselves. They didn’t teach us some useful things, except engraft a thought that we need to get a high mark. The reason I choose to talk about my roommates’ love story is because their stories are the mark’s tragedy. Yep, the textbook is not my life, in our lives, we still have many things need to learn. Like how to work and communicate well with other people, how to manager our own money. These skills will follow us until the moment we die, but textbook cannot be as useful as these skills. Unfortunately, we can’t learn this from my textbook. Cathy’s leaving gave me a big shock. I used to think that school was a place can develop a person, now when I though about it again, my though used to be so childish. Chinese school is only a place can upgrade your mark, but only the practical skill. That’s Chinese education’s tragedy. Do you think a student who often gets a high mark would be an outstanding person and contribute more than the other student whose mark is not as high as him? Love is a blooming flower. My friends often say that the first love is a saline immature apple. It’s a foredoom failure’s love from the beginning. I wonder why people see the love in a negative attitude. Now that each girl dreams to meet her Mr. Right and have a romantic love, why we are so sorrow? I felt hurt when I saw Cathy leaving. She didn’t do anything wrong. Why school can’t be use a soft and human way to educate her? Why school can’t give student a correct attitude to treat it? I wanna tell Cathy: Seeking for love is right. You are not the study machine. You are young and you still need to figure out many things. Please bravely seek for your love. Good mark can’t follow you forever, but your lover can beside you and walking with you to the end of your life. I will support you forever. Research Papers on Another Story Began On Show - Creative Writing StoryStandardized TestingHip-Hop is ArtMind TravelThe Masque of the Red Death Room meaningsHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows EssayPersonal Experience with Teen PregnancyHonest Iagos Truth through DeceptionThe Spring and AutumnEffects of Television Violence on ChildrenThe Relationship Between Delinquency and Drug Use

Free Essays on Nutcracker

The Nutcracker ballet is an essential part of the holiday season. The story and the music never change from year to year but people are always enchanted by it. This year I attended a performance of The Nutcracker by the American Repertory Ballet at McCarter Theater. The music for the ballet was composed by Peter Tchaikovsky during the Romantic era. Tchaikovsky was asked to compose music for a ballet based on a story called â€Å"The Nutcracker and the Mouse King.† However, at this performance there was not a live orchestra, the music was recorded but still sounded professional. While most people in attendance focused on the dancers on stage, my main focus was on the music coming out of the speakers. I’ve heard the music from the Nutcracker Suite before while watching the ballet but had never given much thought to the music that the dance is derived from. The instruments I could recognize consisted of flute/piccolo, oboe/bassoon, trumpets, castanets, tambourine, triangle, harp, and a xylophone (which I later learned was actually a celeste). The entire suite had homophonic texture. There were many shifts in dynamics and mood which the characters reflected in their movements. For example in the opening piece the music was light, bouncy, had instruments playing higher notes, and children were dancing on the stage. When the music changed to a more serious tone with a slower tempo, key shifted down, less flute and more use off lower sounding instruments, during that time the adults were dancing. Different instruments also represented separate characters. Military drums and horns often signaled the presence of the Nutcracker. When the Mouse King appeared the violins created a sense of urgency and danger when his army began fighting with the Nutcracker’s. The Sugar Plum Fairy danced to the music of the celeste which has a very light and dainty tinkling sound as opposed to the marching beat of the Nutcracker’s military drum.... Free Essays on Nutcracker Free Essays on Nutcracker The Nutcracker ballet is an essential part of the holiday season. The story and the music never change from year to year but people are always enchanted by it. This year I attended a performance of The Nutcracker by the American Repertory Ballet at McCarter Theater. The music for the ballet was composed by Peter Tchaikovsky during the Romantic era. Tchaikovsky was asked to compose music for a ballet based on a story called â€Å"The Nutcracker and the Mouse King.† However, at this performance there was not a live orchestra, the music was recorded but still sounded professional. While most people in attendance focused on the dancers on stage, my main focus was on the music coming out of the speakers. I’ve heard the music from the Nutcracker Suite before while watching the ballet but had never given much thought to the music that the dance is derived from. The instruments I could recognize consisted of flute/piccolo, oboe/bassoon, trumpets, castanets, tambourine, triangle, harp, and a xylophone (which I later learned was actually a celeste). The entire suite had homophonic texture. There were many shifts in dynamics and mood which the characters reflected in their movements. For example in the opening piece the music was light, bouncy, had instruments playing higher notes, and children were dancing on the stage. When the music changed to a more serious tone with a slower tempo, key shifted down, less flute and more use off lower sounding instruments, during that time the adults were dancing. Different instruments also represented separate characters. Military drums and horns often signaled the presence of the Nutcracker. When the Mouse King appeared the violins created a sense of urgency and danger when his army began fighting with the Nutcracker’s. The Sugar Plum Fairy danced to the music of the celeste which has a very light and dainty tinkling sound as opposed to the marching beat of the Nutcracker’s military drum....

Viracocha and the Legendary Origins of the Inca

Viracocha and the Legendary Origins of the Inca Viracocha and the Legendary Origins of the Inca: The Inca people of the Andean region of South America had a complete creation myth which involved Viracocha, their Creator God. According to legend, Viracocha emerged from Lake Titicaca and created all of the things in the world, including man, before sailing off into the Pacific Ocean. The Inca Culture: The Inca culture of western South America was one of the most culturally rich and complex societies encountered by the Spanish during the Age of Conquest (1500-1550). The Inca ruled a mighty empire that stretched from present-day Colombia to Chile. They had complicated society ruled by the emperor in the city of Cuzco. Their religion centered on a small pantheon of gods including Viracocha, the Creator, Inti, the Sun, and Chuqui Illa, the Thunder. The constellations in the night sky were revered as special celestial animals. They also worshiped huacas: places and things that were somehow extraordinary, like a cave, a waterfall, a river or even a rock that had an interesting shape. Inca Record Keeping and the Spanish Chroniclers: It is important to note that although the Inca did not have writing, they had a sophisticated record-keeping system. They had a whole class of individuals whose duty it was to remember oral histories, passed down from generation to generation. They also had quipus, sets of knotted strings which were remarkably accurate, especially when dealing with numbers. It was by these means that the Inca creation myth was perpetuated. After the conquest, several Spanish chroniclers wrote down the creation myths they heard. Although they represent a valuable source, the Spanish were far from impartial: they thought they were hearing dangerous heresy and judged the information accordingly. Therefore, several different versions of the Inca creation myth exist: what follows is a compilation of sorts of the major points on which the chroniclers agree. Viracocha Creates the World: In the beginning, all was darkness and nothing existed. Viracocha the Creator came forth from the waters of Lake Titicaca and created the land and the sky before returning to the lake. He also created a race of people - in some versions of the story they were giants. These people and their leaders displeased Viracocha, so he came out of the lake again and flooded the world to destroy them. He also turned some of the men into stones. Then Viracocha created the Sun, Moon and stars. People are Made and Come Forth: Then Viracocha made men to populate the different areas and regions of the world. He created people, but left them inside the Earth. The Inca referred to the first men as Vari Viracocharuna. Viracocha then created another group of men, also called viracochas. He spoke to these viracochas and made them remember the different characteristics of the peoples that would populate the world. Then he sent all of the viracochas forth except for two. These viracochas went to the caves, streams, rivers and waterfalls of the land - every place where Viracocha had determined that people would come forth from the Earth. The viracochas spoke to the people in these places, telling them the time had come for them to come out of the Earth. The people came forth and populated the land. Viracocha and the Canas People: Viracocha then spoke to the two that had remained. He sent one to the east to the region called Andesuyo and the other to the west to Condesuyo. Their mission, like the other viracochas, was to awaken the people and tell them their stories. Viracocha himself set out in the direction of the city of Cuzco. As he went along, he awoke those people who were in his path but who had not yet been awakened. Along the way to Cuzco, he went to the province of Cacha and awoke the Canas people, who emerged from the Earth but did not recognize Viracocha. They attacked him and he made it rain fire upon a nearby mountain. The Canas threw themselves at his feet and he forgave them. Viracocha Founds Cuzco and Walks Over the Sea: Viracocha continued to Urcos, where he sat on the high mountain and gave the people a special statue. Then Viracocha founded the city of Cuzco. There, he called forth from the Earth the Orejones: these big-ears (they placed large golden discs in their earlobes) would become the lords and ruling class of Cuzco. Viracocha also gave Cuzco its name. Once that was done, he walked to the sea, awakening people as he went. When he reached the ocean, the other viracochas were waiting for him. Together they walked off across the ocean after giving his people one last word of advice: beware of false men who would come and claim that they were the returned viracochas. Variations of the Myth: Because of the number of conquered cultures, the means of keeping the story and the unreliable Spaniards who first wrote it down, there are several variations of the myth. For example, Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa (1532-1592) tells a legend from the Caà ±ari people (who lived south of Quito) in which two brothers escaped Viracocha’s destructive flood by climbing a mountain. After the waters went down, they made a hut. One day they came home to find food and drink there for them. This happened several times, so one day they hid and saw two Caà ±ari women bring the food. The brothers came out of hiding but the women ran away. The men then prayed to Viracocha, asking him to send the women back. Viracocha granted their wish and the women came back: the legend says that all the Caà ±ari are descended from these four people. Father Bernabà © Cobo (1582-1657) tells the same story in greater detail. Importance of the Inca Creation Myth: This creation myth was very important to the Inca people. The places where the people emerged from the Earth, such as waterfalls, caves and springs, were venerated as huacas - special places inhabited by a sort of semi-divine spirit. At the place in Cacha where Viracocha allegedly called fire down upon the belligerent Canas people, the Inca built a shrine and revered it as a huaca. At Urcos, where Viracocha had sat and given the people a statue, they built a shrine as well. They made a massive bench made of gold to hold the statue. Francisco Pizarro would later claim the bench as part of his share of the loot from Cuzco. The nature of Inca religion was inclusive when it came to conquered cultures: when they conquered and subjugated a rival tribe, they incorporated that tribes beliefs in their religion (although in a lesser position to their own gods and beliefs). This inclusive philosophy is in stark contrast to the Spanish, who imposed Christianity on the conquered Inca while attempting to stamp out all vestiges of native religion. Because the Inca people allowed their vassals to keep their religious culture (to an extent) there were several creation stories at the time of the conquest, as Father Bernabà © Cobo points out: With regard to who these people may have been and where they escaped from that great inundation, they tell a thousand absurd stories. Each nation claims for itself the honor of having been the first people and that everyone else came from them. (Cobo, 11) Nevertheless, the different origin legends have a few elements in common and Viracocha was universally revered in Inca lands as the creator. Nowadays, the traditional Quechua people of South America - the descendants of the Inca - know this legend and others, but most have converted to Christianity and no longer believe in these legends in a religious sense. Sources: De Betanzos, Juan. (translated and edited by Roland Hamilton and Dana Buchanan) Narrative of the Incas. Austin: the University of Texas Press, 2006 (1996). Cobo, Bernabà ©. (translated by Roland Hamilton) Inca Religion and Customs. Austin: the University of Texas Press, 1990. Sarmiento de Gamboa, Pedro. (translated by Sir Clement Markham). History of the Incas. 1907. Mineola: Dover Publications, 1999.

Ancient Egyptian Religion Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Ancient Egyptian Religion - Research Paper Example While studying ancient religion of Egypt it is clearly understood that most of the concepts of that religion was due to the people’s observation of environment surrounding. The basis of the religion was based on the concepts like attraction and worship of sunlight, satisfaction gained by changing tones of the nature (Watson). Agriculture due to changes in flow of river Nile was also in the core concepts of the ancient religion of Egypt. Every aspect of Egyptian culture like laws, medicine, arts and crafts carried a clear image of religious concepts. Another concept greatly raised during those days of Egypt was concept of gods. It is very difficult to differentiate between gods worshipped by Egyptians. There was a time when Egyptians worshipped 2000 gods. Gods of Ancient Egypt Gods worshipped by ancient Egyptians were evolved and diminished with time. These gods had some individual properties and they also used to fight one another to get hold of the powers possessed by each ot her. One God was used to split into multiple forms of gods at a time like Amun-em-Opet, Amun-Ka-Mutef, and Amun of Ipet-swt (Teeter,  E., & Brewer, 2004). Every God had a specific role to play for the people used to worship them. Gods were in human form, they were used to born and die after a certain age and some of them had rebirth. They were like human males and females and families. One of the common such case is Amun, his wife Mut and their child Khonsu. Ancient Egyptian civilization was over the era of 3000 years. Creation of World Egyptians used to have different concepts regarding creation of the world. According to one of the beliefs the whole world was a part of a big dark ocean. Suddenly a large portion of land appeared with reappearance of Sun god. Sun as a god is of great importance in ancient Egyptian religion as it created all things. This Sun god had many versions one of them is the emerging of Sun god from a large piece of mud. This concept was believed by most of ancient Egyptians. One of the great evolutions the ancient Egyptian civilization gave to mankind was place of worship to gods (Brown, 2007). Temples were considered as sacred places where Gods should be worshiped by the people. There was a time in ancient Egypt when every city had its own god and its own temple for the worship of that god. These were the places where communications with those gods was supposed to happen. Priest was an essential part of society. Priest was responsible for taking care of god and fulfilling the needs of god. Also these priests used to advise people for their problems. One example that needs to be mentioned for such case was ancient Egyptians thought Nile as a god. Each ever a virgin girl was sacrificed to keep god Nile happy by drowning her in river Nile. In return Nile irrigated crops of the people. Concept of Life and Death. Ancient Egyptians having unique civilization also had a unique concept of life. They believe in life after death and considered life as a preparation period for the life after death. Many civil laws of ancient Egypt were based on this concept of life. It is amazing to note that in present day modern world this concept of life after death is adapted or believed by followers of major religions of the world (Parsons, 2011). Ancient Egyptians considered death as a transfer to life after death. This concept of death is an important part in the funerals that took place at that time. The body was preserved for the next life with help of â€Å"Natron† and placed in a coffin. These bodies are now known as mummies. After 70 days the final ritual performed on the mummy was â€Å"

Entrepreneurship & Small Business Management Essay - 2

Entrepreneurship & Small Business Management - Essay Example I am hopeful that the company I would be working with would also be willing to fund my MBA for me. Thus in these two fruit-ful years I will not just be taking home a fat income but would also have completed by MBA. While pursuing my MBA , I would also be doing my cost savings. I am not keen on being head to mouth by the time I retire. I want to save up for investment later on in a business of mine. I will be saving 40 percent of my salary and it should be possible as I have no obligations at that moment. Thus at this rate in the next five years, I would have savings of above 2 Lakh dollars. I will invest this money in gold as the gold market is enjoying a huge boom these days and it is stipulated that the boom will continue for a while. By the time I graduate, I would expect my salary to have multiplied by atleast 2 folds. I would continue to keep a low-key lifestyle and would spend $60,000 per year only. The remaining amount will go in savings. I feel that all this compounded would give me more than 3 lakh dollars in the next two years. It is then when I will opt for an early retirement with the goal of getting into and starting my own business. By then I would have around 8 lakh dollars in s avings, gold and and other things. With the capital that I would have saved, I will start my own venture of a computer franchise company. The income through this company will increase by 40% every year and I would become a millionaire in just two years with net value of above 3 million in five years after

Arabs And Westerners Attitude To Perfumes Industry Assignment

Arabs And Westerners Attitude To Perfumes Industry - Assignment Example Good and branded perfumes are quite expensive and wearing them is part of the trademark luxurious style of the Arab elite. Another reason behind this difference might be the fact that Arabs generally have less variety of outfits. Talking about men, most Arab men wear the same long white cloak that hangs from their shoulders till their toes and covers their heads with the red checkered handkerchief-like fabric. While outwardly there is not much variety, they tend to distinguish themselves from others by wearing a unique brand of the perfume of their own choice. The perfume becomes an essential part of their identity, so they feel driven toward purchasing a new bottle as soon as the previous one finishes. On the other hand, Western men have so much variety of clothes to wear ranging from pants to jeans, and nickers to pajamas. Likewise, there is a lot of variety of shirts, jerseys, T-shirts, and jackets. Wearing a perfume becomes a secondary thing since it is not outwardly noticeable u nless the seller is within the range of the wafting fragrance. Even if someone wears the perfume, there is so much more to concentrate upon in the clothes that perfume is not the highlight unlike in the case of an Arabian getup. Another cause of increased liking for perfumes among Arabs compared to the Westerners is the fact that Arabs, being rich and opulent, have more time to spend with family members and friends than the Westerners, many of whom do more than one job to be able to afford the high standard of living. While an average Westerner is busy working in the office, taking care of the children, helping them with the studies, and doing other domestic works, many Arabs spend their time in camel-racing and partying. Indigenous inhabitants of the oil-rich countries have money pouring in from all sources and they have the time and affordability to care about perfumes more than an average Westerner.

Critically evalutate the evidence that criminal profiling is effective Essay

Critically evalutate the evidence that criminal profiling is effective - Essay Example It is usually carried out in a three stage process: â€Å"First, police officers collect crime scene data and forward it to a profiler; second, the profiler conducts an analysis of the crime scene data; and third, the profiler provides predictions about the type of individual likely to have committed the crime in question.† (Snook et al,, 2007, 438) There was initial enthusiasm for this approach, especially in the United States where the FBI set up a special ‘Behavioral Science Unit’ which analysed crimes and made recommendations for the application of criminal profiling in serious crime cases. From the beginning it was clear that the process involves multiple skills and multiple agencies, being a technique that combines elements of both art and science (Cook and Hinman, 1999, 230) and crosses over traditionally constructed professional boundaries. There has been discussion about some of the tensions arising from this multi-disciplinarity, and the gulf between res earchers and practitioners. (Alison et al, 2004). Critical opinion on the practice of criminal profiling has been mixed, ranging from positive evaluations to serious doubts as to whether criminal profiling is any more valuable than common sense. This paper reviews the underpinning theories behind criminal profiling, discusses its methodologies and the problems that can arise in its use, and then finally evaluates its effectiveness. Theories behind criminal profiling. Psychology is the major science behind criminal profiling and its origins can be traced back to the beginning of the twentieth century: â€Å"the inferring of general characteristics of a person on the basis of a limited amount of information about them, has scientific roots in psychometric testing.† (Canter, 2000, p. 3) This in turn is based on a large body of research into the variation that exists between individuals. Psychologists searched for ways of isolating small individual features which, when considered together and against a large database can predict with some degree of accuracy what type of personality a person has and how they are likely to behave in different situations. The predictions are inferred, which means they start with what is known, but move into speculation based on a number of different areas of knowledge including past experience and databases collected and collated over the years. The so-called â€Å"homology assumption† asserts that â€Å"criminals who exhibit similar crime scene actions have similar background characteristics.† (Doan and Snook, 2008, p. 61). In practice this means that investigators in a case of rape, for example, will go on the assumption that there is â€Å"a positive linear relationship between the similarities of the crime scene actions and the corresponding similarities in the background characteristics for a sample of rapists.† Any inferences that are made are deliberately not absolute statements, but are based on li kelihood and similarity: â€Å"It’s certainly possible for some characteristics to be consistent or homologous, and indeed this can be demonstrated in some cases. However, it is not a reasonable assumption in every case or even in most cases.† (Turvey, 2008, p. 540) Additional factors such as drug or alcohol use and mental illness with or without adequate medication can affect the offender’s behaviour in unpredictable ways, causing a depart at times from his or her enduring characteristics. Because of these variables, some of which cannot be known by

Family centred care Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Family centred care - Essay Example The author has rightly presented that the family plays a vital role in the nursing of the patient. Since the discovery of this fact, there has been vast interest on the topic of family-centered care. For purposes of establishing the role of the nurse in family centered care, the essay has its basis on a case study. The patient, Joan, who is in hospital, has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. It is evident that she has a family, a husband. In planning the discharge of this patient, the nurse has to consider a number of issues. Some of these issues are the feelings that her husband has, and the fact that he may be unable to cope with her condition, managing Joan’s agitation, assessing the risk that the disease brings about to Joan. In addition, the nurse should consider the stress that Joan’s disease puts on the relationship between the members of the family and the possibility that the family might have limited knowledge on the disease and may need guidance on how to cope. The paper will focus on four major topics with regard to family centered care. The first of these is the risk posed by Alzheimer’s. Secondly, the paper will look into the issue of the stress that Joan’s sickness could cause on the relationship between members of her family. The third topic entails the possible reasons for Joan’s agitation and the best way to manage it. The last issue to be discussed is the feeling that the family members may have towards Joan, and with regard to her condition and the part, they play in caring for her.... This kind of care, the institute adds, is applicable to patients of all age groups, and is recommended in all settings that deal with health care. This would mean that for the sake of quick recuperation of patients, the family would have to be heavily involved in the process of nursing, while acquiring relevant and vital information on what steps to take from the nurse in charge of their sick relatives. In the case study, Joan has dementia. Joan is set for discharge from the health facility where she has been. Family centered care begins from within the hospital. This means that the family is also heavily involved in the decision to discharge. At this point, the family needs to get reassurance that Joan is in a stable enough condition to go home. In addition, the dependent state of the patient warrants their involvement for purposes of establishing whom her primary caregivers will be and where she will be living (Davidson et al. 2007). Before the nurse releases her into the care of h er family, it is important that they come up with a family care plan that will aid in assessing the situation at home (Gulanick & Myers 2011). An example of the nurse’s family care plan is as shown. Table 1: Family care Plan for Joan with dementia Family Problem Goal of care Objectives of Care Intervention Measures Method of nurse-family contact Resources Evaluation -little knowledge on risks posed by Alzheimer’s . - possible source of stress for family - patient agitated - To put the patients at ease -Prevention of self-harm by patient Enabling the family to empathize with the situation and learn the understand the sickness -provide health teachings to the family on Alzheimer’s

Depiction of women in Deserted Village by Oliver Goldsmith Essay

Depiction of women in Deserted Village by Oliver Goldsmith - Essay Example In this poem, Goldsmith, the persona of this poem is complaining about the deeds of the government who together with the rich people of his village decided to drive away the poor. This was is because they wanted to get rid of the bad image the poor people brought to the village. He, therefore, conducts his argument by making use of an assortment of clear material that supports this argument. This includes scenery, interiors and sharp human portrayal. In his laments, the persona seems to send out the message of equal importance to anyone in the society. This is because the society benefits from the contributions of ever member no matter how much contribution he avails. Therefore, Oliver Goldsmith represents the absolute country life and happiness. He is worried about the disappearance of life that once existed in this once vibrant village. Therefore, all through the life of the speaker, he had been yearning to go back to his village after being evicted so that he could get to spend hi s last years in rest and peace. He had thus dreamt of overpowering his youthful poor friends with the knowledge and the story about the things he has achieved. However, these expectations to come and set home in the beloved village are now in vain, for they have been shattered. For him, life that follows sequestration must take that form of a blissful life. This is because it is only these conditions that will lead to graceful death and make a smooth transition from his people. To pass across this message, he has used a variety of female characters such as the solitary poor widow and the betrayed country girl in the city. In line 29 of the poem, he talks of the bashful virgins whose looks symbolized love that existed in his boyhood years. He depicts this woman as a symbol of love that normally existed during those days when love rocked his life and those of his age mates. This was mostly experienced during the dances that were organized in the village with most of them dancing in pa irs. Therefore, the persona uses the term virgin to symbolize how love used to be pure during those days, and that it formed a significant part of his life (Greenblatt, 54). However, to counter this, the persona uses the matrons as a measure of how love was a guarded value that the matrons that attended the dances kept a close eye on the virgins. This may be because they were everyone’s desire to court. In line 31, he admits that this was the charm of those days that kept their life moving (Greenblatt, 54). However, he is sad that this life is no more in line (34). The persona uses the solitary widow to depict women as pedestals that make the community strong. This is because as he brings in this character it is amidst the absence of all other things that once existed in the village but they are all gone. However, there still stands the solitary widow who continues to carry out her duties as pertains of her even though she has no strength. Another woman used in the poem is th e betrayed country girl in line (332) (Greenblatt, 54). In using this girl, he depicts women as symbols of humility. This is because the persona describes the woman as having stooped to a low position just to make both ends meet. In the village, this woman used to be a respectable person with plenty of food, clothes and the other basic needs. However, due to her sending off from the village, she is homeless and in a foreign land. However, the humility and the struggle for her survival, as it is normal for women to struggle fending for family in the absence of a father, she is capable of getting a warm place to have a nap. This depicts women as down to Earth and always wanting the best for the family. However, this

Family centred care Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Family centred care - Essay Example The author has rightly presented that the family plays a vital role in the nursing of the patient. Since the discovery of this fact, there has been vast interest on the topic of family-centered care. For purposes of establishing the role of the nurse in family centered care, the essay has its basis on a case study. The patient, Joan, who is in hospital, has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. It is evident that she has a family, a husband. In planning the discharge of this patient, the nurse has to consider a number of issues. Some of these issues are the feelings that her husband has, and the fact that he may be unable to cope with her condition, managing Joan’s agitation, assessing the risk that the disease brings about to Joan. In addition, the nurse should consider the stress that Joan’s disease puts on the relationship between the members of the family and the possibility that the family might have limited knowledge on the disease and may need guidance on how to cope. The paper will focus on four major topics with regard to family centered care. The first of these is the risk posed by Alzheimer’s. Secondly, the paper will look into the issue of the stress that Joan’s sickness could cause on the relationship between members of her family. The third topic entails the possible reasons for Joan’s agitation and the best way to manage it. The last issue to be discussed is the feeling that the family members may have towards Joan, and with regard to her condition and the part, they play in caring for her.... This kind of care, the institute adds, is applicable to patients of all age groups, and is recommended in all settings that deal with health care. This would mean that for the sake of quick recuperation of patients, the family would have to be heavily involved in the process of nursing, while acquiring relevant and vital information on what steps to take from the nurse in charge of their sick relatives. In the case study, Joan has dementia. Joan is set for discharge from the health facility where she has been. Family centered care begins from within the hospital. This means that the family is also heavily involved in the decision to discharge. At this point, the family needs to get reassurance that Joan is in a stable enough condition to go home. In addition, the dependent state of the patient warrants their involvement for purposes of establishing whom her primary caregivers will be and where she will be living (Davidson et al. 2007). Before the nurse releases her into the care of h er family, it is important that they come up with a family care plan that will aid in assessing the situation at home (Gulanick & Myers 2011). An example of the nurse’s family care plan is as shown. Table 1: Family care Plan for Joan with dementia Family Problem Goal of care Objectives of Care Intervention Measures Method of nurse-family contact Resources Evaluation -little knowledge on risks posed by Alzheimer’s . - possible source of stress for family - patient agitated - To put the patients at ease -Prevention of self-harm by patient Enabling the family to empathize with the situation and learn the understand the sickness -provide health teachings to the family on Alzheimer’s

What drives social entrepreneurs Research Proposal

What drives social entrepreneurs - Research Proposal Example Social entrepreneurship (SE) in most countries is defined as an activity that aims to advance the human life and seek a solution to the social problem. A social enterprise could be both for-profit and not-for-profit (see for instance, Ridley-Duff & Bull, 2011), though often the profit is reinvested into the business or the society. Social entrepreneurs work beside public institutions and distribute the innovation and wealth for the private sector where it is needed in shorter time and with fewer hierarchies. The question for this research is not what role they play in the society, but what are the factors and forces that drive the motivation in people to become social entrepreneurs. Social entrepreneurs vary in their patterns of thinking, quantity, and intensity of social entrepreneurship (Light, 2005). In order to have a thorough understanding of the skills, capabilities, and tendencies of social entrepreneurs, it is imperative that their behavior and thinking is analyzed in detail. This research is directed at achieving this goal by studying the variations and modifications in the behavior and thinking of a large sample of social entrepreneurs from a variety of backgrounds. Exploring social entrepreneurs’ perceptions of life and commitment provides guidelines for providing entrepreneurial education and facilities that are not built merely for purposes and the benefit of shareholders but also for the social and economic well-being of people. This section provides a review of the past research on the subject that paved the way for framing the research question. The field of social entrepreneurship is rather new and many scholars think there is dearth of theories and studies about it, though many mutually consent that the field proceeds quickly and has room for development (Lehner & Kansikas, 2011). Zahra et al. (2009) defined three categories for social entrepreneurs, each having a

Economic development in China and India Essay Example for Free

Economic development in China and India Essay Foreign trade in China is almost completely dominated by the state. In 1979, China relaxed certain trade restrictions, paving the way for increases in the relatively small foreign investment and trade activity. By the late 1980s, yearly exports totaled about $41. 1 billion and imports $46. 4 billion, and both have increased sharply since then. China has been undergoing a dramatic transformation to a market economy. As a result, it currently is the world leader in terms of economic growth, industrial expansion, and exports. It contains an array of potential consumers that far exceeds the markets in Europe or the Western Hemisphere, and it is rapidly emerging as a new epicenter for industry, commerce, and finance. In addition, the so-called â€Å"greater China† has substantial amounts of technology and manufacturing capability, outstanding entrepreneurial, marketing, and services acumen in Hong Kong, a fine communications network and a tremendous pool of financial. When these resources are combined with the very large endowment of land, resources, and labor on the mainland, China already is a major superpower in the global economy. The people’s Republic of China (PRC or China, for short) has had a long tradition of isolation. In 1979, Deng Xiaoping opened his country to the world. Although his bloody 1989 put-down of protestors in Tiananmen Square was a definite setback for progress, China is rapidly trying to close the gap between itself and economically advance nations and to establish itself as an economic power in the Pacific Rim. Southeast China in particular has become a hotbed of business activity. Presently, China is actively encouraging trade with the West, and it is a major trading partner of the United States. Despite this progress, many U. S. and European multinationals find that doing business in the PRC can be a long, grueling process that often results in failure. One primary reason is that Western-based MNCs do not understand the role and impact of Chinese culture. Since the last few decades there has been a multifold increase in the FDI in China. The Chinese economy has now gaining the power of effecting the decisions of the economic bodies of the world. History of FDI growth in China: The country launched its open door policy 26 years ago. Since the policy introduction the FDI flows in the country received a quick response. In 2004 China was at no. 2nd position in the world of FDI with $64 billion. The Chinese FDI trends can be examined in two phases. First phase: 1979-82 Second phase: 1984-91 Third phase: 1992-99 In the first phase the government establish for special zones with incentive policies. Although there was a high inflow into those regions, the total FDI flow reached US $ 1. 8 billion. In the second phase the provinces were opened and recorded US $ 10. 3 billion. In 1989 however the trend dropped. In the third phase Deny Xiaoping opened China for overall economic reform. The phase was very fruitful for China. The government introduced new policies and market oriented economic reform. In result of these reforms the FDI’s started flowing into the Chinese economy at rocket speed. In November 1999 US-China had an agreement regarding the WTO, according to which many new reforms were made (Sandra, 2001) those included †¢ The sectors relating to the distribution services will be opened for repair and maintenance and China will phase in trading rights and distribution services over three years. The Government for the investment opened the telecommunication industry of China. †¢ The professionals were also allowed access to the service markets of China. The services included according, consulting, Information Technology and Engineering. (Lardy, 2000). FDI in China rose to a peak level of US $ 45463 million in 1998. In the first six months of 2002, actual foreign direct investment (FDI) in China rocketed to 24. 58 billion U. S. dollars, setting a record growth rate of 18. 69 percent year-on-year. (Beijing Time, 2002) On June 22, 2005, CNOOC, a Chinese company made a $18. billion bid to purchase Unocal Corporation, an U. S. energy company. News of the bid raised concern among several Members, many of who contend that the deal would threaten U. S. national security. On June 30, 2005, the House passed H. Res. 344 (Pombo) by a vote of 398 to 15, expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that a Chinese state-owned energy company exercising control of critical United States energy infrastructure and energy production capacity could take action that would threaten to impair the national security of the United States. On the same day, the House passed an amendment (H.  Amdt. 431) to an appropriations bill (H. R. 3058) that would prohibit the use of funds from being made available to recommend approval of the sale of Unocal Corporation to CNOOC. On May 20, 2005, the Chinese government reported that first quarter real GDP grew by 9. 4% in 2005 over the same period in 2004. On April 15, 2005, the Chinese government reported that its foreign exchange reserves had risen to $659. 1 billion by the end of May 2005. (Morrison, 2005) Some researchers state the fact that the data reported for FDI in China is different from the reality. The Chinese FDI data is overstated. About ? of flight capital later returns (â€Å"round-trips†) as FDI when opportunities emerge. (Gunter, 2004) From the early 1990s most of the researchers from International bodies have calculated wrong FDI. It is Mainland Chinese monies that flowed out to access better financial, regulatory and legal services and round-trip by returning to China as apparent FDI to access the fiscal incentives and improved investor protection offered in China to foreign investors. (Erskine, 2004) Outward FDI: â€Å"The figures on FDI outflows vary. According to China’s BOP statistics, the cumulative total during 1990 to 1997 was US$18. 9 billion, consisting exclusively of equity capital. Since the 1980s, China has been fast acquiring assets abroad. Researchers7 estimate that Chinese FDI in Hong Kong totaled US$20-30 billion by the end of 1993 or 1994. In fact the net wealth of Chinese affiliates abroad can be measured in hundreds of billion dollars. Officially, the Chinese SOEs had as many as 5 666 affiliates abroad at the end of 1998 with a combined FDI of US$6. 33 billion. (Chandra) Both the in-ward and the out-ward FDIs are a strong influencing forces which effect the trade performance of a country. This can be further explained by conducting the following case study. The study reveals increased value to Economy of China due to FDI. Source countries: Among the developed countries Japan United States are the most important investors in China. Hong Kong is also an important investor and newly industrialized (NIEs. From 1990’s some of the countries like Philippines Malaysia Indonesia have also increased their investment levels in China. Other countries are also showing interest in investing in China in future. In 2003, Sino-Japan trade reached a record high $132 billion. Examining the fast expansion of the bilateral trade suggests that direct investment from Japan performed a critical role in strengthening the economic integration between the two economies. Japanese affiliated manufacturers in China contributed to the soaring bilateral trade in dual ways: exporting their products as final products and intermediate inputs to Japan, and importing intermediates inputs from Japan for their production in China. In 2002, Japanese affiliated manufacturers exported 1,057 billion yen products to Japanese market (METI, 2003). The effect on China’s exports and its national economy is tremendous. (Xing, 2004) FDI from China: Not much material is provided regarding the subject. Although Hong Kong can be viewed as the destination for out ward flow of FDI from China. Sector and geographical distribution of FDI in China Sector Distribution: â€Å"So far, the major proportion of FDI is drawn for the manufacturing field, which takes up almost 60 per cent of the total contracted FDI by 1998. Next follows real estate with the share of 24. 4 percent. The portion of the distribution industry including transport, wholesale and retailing is 6. 0 percent. Construction comes next with 3. 1 percent. The primary industry such as agriculture, forestry and fishing takes 1. 8 per cent. In the future, service trade, such as finances, telecommunications and wholesale and resale commerce, will take up a larger share as a result of Chinese accession to WTO and further liberalization. Further investment liberalization should also take place in traditional industries. Especially, the expansion of FDI in agriculture will depend on the degree of opening up to the market circulation of agricultural products and the industrialized process of production operations. FIEs also generated nearly one fifth of the total tax revenues and 23. 5 million job opportunities, employing about one 10th of urban workers. These numbers suggest FDI has contributed nearly one quarter to one third of China’s GDP growth. †(OECD, 2004) Barriers in the way of FDI in China: The Chinese government has applied a controlled competition culture which against the liberalization provided by the WTO which lift most of the regulations from the trade commerce (Yoost, 2005) Many assets in commercial and industrial sectors are state owned. This in turn gives rise to the problem of hidden state regulation imposition of the government on the foreign investors. This strengthens the view that China does not practice liberty in Business. Some of the sectors of economy are still protected by the government. Due to the situation the WTO commitments are not fulfilled which gives rise to local competition for foreign investors Factors attracting FDI in India: â€Å"India is a prime offshore location for low and high-tech activities, its low-cost, English-speaking and IT-savvy labor force, coupled with a large market potential, underpin global executives improved outlook and investment confidence this year. † (Rediff. com, 2003) The first set of factors which was involved in bringing the FDI to India was the improvement in technology, cheap labor, cost effective production of the goods, cheap and efficient supply chain. The Indian Government also has the cutting edge of Channeling the FDI in the right direction. They are attracting most of the MNEs towards India because at present the Chinese economy can provide them with all the suitable factors desired. Due to its increase in population India has become a growing and profitable market for most of the MNEs products (Ahluwalia) The second set of factors, relating to SOEs, will change significantly and alter the market environment that foreign firms will face in India. Many if not the majority, of India’s best SOEs in industries accessible to foreign investors have set up joint ventures with foreign companies. In the foreseeable future, as the number of SOEs in the national economy continues to shrink, India will facilitate the entry of private domestic firms. MNCs will tend to build up their own affiliates rather than look for Indian domestic partners. At the same time, they will face more competition from private Indian firms as their numbers increase. All of these will become attractive features of the Indian market. Foreign invested enterprises (FIEs) have provided an alternative to private entrepreneurship because private Indian firms have been largely discriminated against. In the past 20 years, the highly efficient FIEs have contributed a great deal to the Indian economy. In 2002, even though FDI accounted for only one 10th of the gross fixed capital formation, FIEs contributed one third of the industrial output, one quarter of the value added, more than half of the exports, and nearly three quarters of the foreign exchange balances held in Chinese banks by corporations (Zhang, 2005). â€Å"The government of India eliminated export quotas as part of its effort to double Indian exports to more than $80 billion by 2007. India is the largest cotton cultivating country. The country has vast reservoir of scientific talent, established pharmaceutical industry, diversity of population and unique natural resources. Key to Indias development of biotechnology is the need for a science-based, rules-based regulatory approach, which is the best way to attract private sector investment. † (Larson, 2002) The major empirical conclusions of this paper are: (1) Much of the measured trade effect is through FDI rather than cost, as the theory of FDI would indicate, and that studies which concentrate on cost as the channel significantly understate the extent of such expansion. 2) On the whole bilateral country level, outward FDI has a larger predicted impact on Chinas exports than does inward FDI. On the other hand, inward FDI is found having a larger predicted impact on Chinas imports than does outward FDI. (3) There is much cross-regional variation and differences in the patterns of FDI-trade links. Regarding to the impact of inward FDI on Chinese trade, FDI is found to boost both export and import growth in Asia, Europe and Oceania. As far as outward FDI is concerned, a unanimous complement link between FDI and trade exists only for Asia, and Africa. (Yong, 2003) The work undertaken in this paper is an improved one because it takes into account all the aspects related to the FDI including a set of countries which contributes towards the FDI in China India, the contribution made by this paper is in more fully evaluating an important policy question regarding the effect of FDI. Second, it takes into account national changes both in inward FDI and outward FDI over a considerable period of time.