Evaluate how the NATIONAL GRID TRANSCO applies the expectation and Essay

Evaluate how the NATIONAL GRID TRANSCO applies the expectation and requirements of corporate governance - Essay Example This framework even encompasses procedures and rules which are undertaken while framing corporate affair decision. It highlights the process by means of which are objectives are set and achieved in terms of market, social and regulatory environment. Governance mechanism takes into consideration different elements such as monitoring decisions, actions and policies of agents as well as corporations. On basis of this framework, actions undertaken by management are closely monitored in order to eliminate any form of agency risks. However contemporary interest of this concept is related to mitigating conflicting interests amongst stakeholders. There are various approaches implemented to prevent such conflicts such as well defined processes, institutions, laws, policies and customs. An important component of corporate governance is extent and nature of corporate accountability. In this study corporate governance framework of a particular firm will be thoroughly analyzed known as National G rid Transco. It is a multinational company of electricity and gas utility, and has its headquarters in London. The firm has its principal operations in North-eastern United States and United Kingdom. National Grid Plc., was founded in 1990 and in current decade has a market capitalization of  £31.4 billion. The company has gone through a series of mergers and acquisitions but the most important merger took place in 2002 where Transco’s owner Lattice Group Plc., merged with National Grid Group. This in turn resulted into a new organization which came to be known as National Grid Transco Plc. In this study corporate governance expectations will be analyzed on the basis of practices undertaken by National Grid Transco. There are different theoretical frameworks related to corporate governance but some amongst them holds great deal of significance in modern era. Finance or principal-agent model is a well known corporate

Penelope lively Essay Example for Free

Penelope lively Essay All 3 of the short stories carry a similar main theme, a theme which derives from the classic tale of Hansel and Grethal by the Brothers Grimm. A theme of disregard, procurement of the nieve and coincidentally, murder. The first of these stories is The darkness out there by Penelope lively. This story doesnt follow the theme as strictly as the others but it is loosely based upon it. The time set is not at first overly apparent. But it soon becomes clear that it was set not long after world war two, late 40s early 50s. Probably in Kent or some other country side place. The narrative is a story of generosity, which is shattered by evil. The goodness is symbolised by the children and the evil by the old woman. The crime is one of murder and the turning point is when the boy realises how evil the old woman is. In the next story, the lost hearts by M R James, the time set is a lot earlier around the time of 1811. Its a ghost story as opposed to the darkness out there, which is a 20th century fairy tale. Its is set in a mansion in Lincolnshire called Aswarby hall, a typical house in the reign of Anne. By the way of language structure, this story uses some colloquial language with generally longer, more complex sentences and metaphorical language than the first story, A lot of the vocabulary used would be classed as archaic or old fashioned. The narative carries a simular feel as the first story, the child trusting the witch character, and be procured into a trap. But the ending differed from the first as the criminal is punished. Leaving the story on a much higher note than the first. The final story is The landlady by Roahl Dahl. More a horror story than a fairytale, but there is still an element of procurement. Set in a picturesque town called Bath, more than likely in the 1950s. There are only two main characters in this story, there is a one Billy weaver, who plays the part of the innocent victim and there is a seemingly sweet old woman, who plays the witch character. The use of English is, in the main, standard and the colloquial language of the time would be considered as standard to a younger generation. When signing the guest book, Billy realises that something foal was afoot. He recognises seeing both the names in the paper under a murder column, this is the turning point. At the end of the story, we are made to believe that he is also poisoned, but this is not confirmed by the cliff-hanger ending. The darkness out there and the landlady are both set in the 20th century, This is made clear in the darkness out there by many lines, the main giveaway being a German plane came down there in the war, I am sure that we are all aware that German planes would not have came down in England, in the 19th century. And the time set is proven in the landlady by the line probably lost a son in the war. This point of proof could be arguable, there have been wars in both centauries which she could have lost her son in, but only the wars in the 20th century which stated compulsory enrolment. The lost hearts is set in the 19th century, there is much proof of this and it is apparent right from the beginning. The line in September of the year 1811 makes the time setting of the 1800s unarguable. There is of course further evidence to suggest this, the post chaise in line 4 and of course the more archaic language used such as as far as I can ascertain and tinged with the sort of melancholy. Both the C20 stories carry the same style as far as the use of Standard English with a little colloquial language of the time. They are both written in a more modern style, with shorter and less complex sentences than more classical pieces of writing; And a big chest, jutted under washed out jerseys. Of the modern story, rather than It was as far as I can ascertain, in September of the year 1811 that a post-chaise drew up before the the door of Aswarby Hall, in the heart of Lincolnshire. If a theme had to be assigned to the stories, the theme would be procurement in each story, but if it was to be a style that would be assigned, the styles would vary. The darkness out there would be a murder/ thriller story. The landlady would defiantly be a 20th century fairytale. And the lost hearts would be more difficult to determine. It is a style of murder, fairytale and horror, with a hint of science fiction. I have touched on the archaic language used by James in a previous paragraph. He uses verbs and adjectives that would not be used so much today such as congruous, acquaintance and afore. Some of the language used in the other stories could also be described as now archaic. Words like spinney and lodgings. I feel that the only reason Liveleys and Dahls use of description appears quite simple compared to that of James, is because it uses adjectives we are far more familiar with such as fairly, wide, pretty and plump. Rather than adjectives such as purer and gently beating. As I have previously stated, all 3 stories carry a general theme of procurement, a theme which derives from the Grimms fairytale Hanzel und Grethel. It is clear in each story who plays the role of the wicked witch and who plays that of the innocent children. In the darkness out there, old Mrs Rutter plays thw witch character whilst the children play the innocent victims of procurement.

Anorexia and Bulimia Essay -- Causes of Bulimia, Eating Disorders

Anorexia and Bulimia: A Concise Overview As many as 20% of females in their teenage and young adult years suffer from anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa (Alexander-Mott, 4). Males are also afflicted by these eating disorders, but at a much lower rate, with a female to male ratio of six to one. Those with anorexia nervosa refuse to maintain a normal body weight by not eating and have an intense fear of gaining weight. People with bulimia nervosa go through periods of binge eating and then purging (vomiting), or sometimes not purging but instead refraining from eating at all for days. Both of these disorders wreak havoc on a person's body and mental state, forcing them to become emaciated and often depressed. There is no known exact cause of either anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa, but many factors play a role in the initial onset, such as: personality traits, low self-esteem, and social and cultural influences (Costin, 21). Many anorexics have specific personality traits that urge them to refrain from eating. Many are perfectionists that will diet and exercise and not eat until their bodies are perfect. Unfortunately, however, he or she never thinks their body is perfect, and continues their destructive cycle. Anorexics that are perfectionists also tend to want to be in control at all times. Often , they feel as though others are trying to force them to do Breaux 2 things, and so, take complete control of their bodies. Marcia, an anorexic, wrote in her diary "I am in control; people are just jealous because I have will power" (D., 6). Another factor is low self-esteem. One anorexic said of her low self-esteem, "My goal in life was to please; like a chameleon, I'd change to suit whomever I was with. I always felt I was in the way†¦" (D., 1). Anorexics with low self-esteem often feel they are worthless and do not deserve to eat. Not only do they not eat, but they constantly berate themselves with insults. They hate their bodies, and cannot realize their true appearance, instead seeing a distorted image. When she weighed a mere 98 pounds, Marcia told herself, "You are a pig. You are disgusting. You must suffer" (D., 5). Bulimics also suffer from low self-esteem and feel ashamed of their behavior. Feeling guilty after eating is a co... ...orted self-image, low self-esteem, and a need for control. "Eating disorders are not about food or weight but about a disordered 'sense of self' looking for approval and finding it, however Breaux 5 temporarily, in the pursuit of thinness or the comfort of food" (Costin, 48). Treatment is an option for anorexics and bulimics, though it can take years, and sometimes it never succeeds. Hopefully, though, friends and loved ones of anorexics and bulimics will see the warning signs and seek help for them. Bibliography Alexander-Mott, LeeAnn. Understanding Eating Disorders. Washington, D.C.: Taylor & Francis Ltd., 1994. Costin, Carolyn. The Eating Disorder Sourcebook. Los Angeles, CA: Lowell House, 1996. K.D.K. "My Story." Online. March 3, 2000 <http://www.dana.ucc.nau.edu/ ~kdk2/mystory.html> D., Marcia. "My Story." Online. March 3, 2000 <http://www.members. Tripod.com/~MarciaD/index.html> Thayne, Becky. Hope and Recovery. New York, New York: Emma Lou Thayne, 1992.

Participatory Research Design Essay

The changing nature of the global business culture has necessitated various aspects of organizational behavior. This is the spirit of the overwhelming variables that define how employees interact and integrate with the corporate processes with the basic goal of meeting the corporate objectives and missions. Understanding the requirements of the organizational behavior is an important aspect which helps to align its procedures and processes in line with the behavioral conception within the corporation (Dan, 1998) The research team  The parameters that provide the best knowledge would involve carrying out a research study across various organizations aimed at learning the statutory components of the concepts of organizational behavior. This would involve a controlled dissemination of research team across the sample of selected corporations. The layout of the research process would involve the evaluation of the aspects that articulate within the fundamental concept of organizational behavior as an important factor in the success of the corporation. Investigating the issue and its assumptions. The concept of organizational behavior is chiefly incorporated at a diverse autonomy within different cases of organizations. This research study will therefore aim at studying the scope of influence of organizational behavior to the functionality of different organizations that differs in terms of capacity, functions, and managerial processes. The underlying assumptions will also be developed in terms of the result provision of the research process about what impacts are endowed by the concept of organization behavior (Dan, 1998) Developing an action pal and data collection strategies In order to collect the most reliable data, the researcher would pursue various methods of data collection strategies and methods that would help to yield the most reliable research results and outcomes. This would include the use of methods such as observation, questionnaire and survey. A stream of related data responses shall be collected through these methods which would then be used in arriving at rational conclusions and recommendations about the impact of organizational behavior to the contemporary functionality of the organization (Dan, 1998) Data analysis The research process would not be fully met until the collected data in passed through various methods of data analysis that would help to yield the most reliable results and findings. This could be through methods such as correlation, T-test, F-test, barographs, pie-charts and other significant methods of data analysis.

Comprehensive Balance Sheet and Income Statement

Course Project Comprehensive Balance Sheet December 31st 2012 Assets Current Assets Cash $42,485 Account Receivable$165,824 Allowance for Doubtful accounts 1,850 Net Accounts Receivable 163,974 Inventories 499,493 Securities (available for sale/at fair market value) 28,250 Notes Receivable (due next year) 23,000 Prepaid Expenses 16,252 Total Current Assets†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦$773,454 Non-Current Assets Investments in Warren Co. $87,500 Land 125,000 Building$975,800 Accumulated Depreciation 341,200 Net building 634,600 Goodwill 100,000 Patents 125,000Copyrights 105,000 Trademarks 80,000 Deposits with Vendors 50,000 Total Noncurrent Assets†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢ € ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ $1,307,100 Total Assets $2,080,554 Liabilities and Stockholder’s Equity Liabilities Current Liabilities Accounts Payable $197,532 Income Taxes Payable 62,520 Salaries Payable52,000 Notes Payable to Banks50,000 Mortgage Payable-current portion18,000 Accrued Liabilities 9,500 Accrued Interest on Notes payable 500 Customer Deposits (expected to be paid next year) 420 Total Current Liabilities†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. $390,472Non-Current Liabilities Mortgage Payable $290,000 Twenty-year, 12% Bonds, due 1/01/13500,000 Total Non-current Liabilities†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. $790,000 Total Liabilities$1,180,472 Stockholder’s equity Preferred Stock, 7%$300,000 Common Stock 400,000 Additional Paid-in Capital 37,500 Retained Earnings 162,582 Total Stockholders’ equity†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ $900,000 Total Liabilities and stockholders’ equity$2,080,554 Income Statement For the Year ending December 31st 2012 Sales Revenue$2,000,000 Sales Discounts 120,000 Net Sales Revenue $1,880,000 Costs of Goods Sold 1,000,000Gross Profit $880,000 Less: Operating Expenses Selling Expenses Selling Expenses$300,000 Depreciation Expenses 60,000 Total Selling Expenses†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã ¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 360,000 Administrative Expenses Administration Expenses$350,000 Depreciation Expenses 40,000 Total Admin Expenses†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 390,000 Total Operating Expenses 750,000 Total Operating Income $130,000 Other Operating Income Rental Income$50,000 Dividend Income 30,000 Interest Revenue 25,000 105,000 Earnings before taxes $235,000 Income Tax expense 82,250 Net income $152,750

Empowerment Essays

Empowerment Essays Empowerment Essay Empowerment Essay There have been countless studies on how to improve the teaching profession. But what do educators themselves think What do they say they need to excel in their jobs And what obstacles do they commonly face . Teachers want to work in schools where they can thrive, and theyâ„ ¢re not going to thrive and extend themselves if they donâ„ ¢t feel comfortable with their colleagues and the management. | | It comes down to leaders creating a clear and compelling vision around learning and really going to bat for teachers. They have to create a safe environment for teachers†an environment where teachers feel they can make decisions that matter in both their classrooms and their institute. More broadly, effective leaders create structures in which itâ„ ¢s clear that teachers have a certain authority. In some states, according to our surveys, we have only a third of teachers agreeing that they are centrally involved in school decision-making. What they want from leaders is to have processes where they can really understand their role in learning and can really respond to situations and engage in ways that make sense to them. The pressures on principals today are overwhelming. Principals must deal with federal and state accountability systems, assessments, parents and community, and in the end, they are ultimately accountable for performance. It is difficult to let go and empower others when you know it is your neck on the line for results. But of course, in the end, it is that team effort and drawing the best from staff that will generate improved performance. Thatâ„ ¢s just a tough leap. And itâ„ ¢s even tougher for principals if they donâ„ ¢t have supportive environments, either. Many were not prepared to serve as the visionary, instructional leaders we now expect. They receive little induction and professional development of their own, and are often not empowered to make decisions at their school that they believe are necessary due to local, state, and federal policy. This is why we have started to ask principals specific questions about their support and work environment on the survey. To better understand how to empower teachers we need to understand how to empower and support strong school leaders. Are there things that teachers themselves can do to improve their career satisfaction Thatâ„ ¢s a great question, and itâ„ ¢s something weâ„ ¢ve had to think about a lot. I mean, can you have teacher empowerment when the school leadership isnâ„ ¢t necessarily willing to create safe structures and engage teachers as partners I think the answer is yes, but itâ„ ¢s not easy. I think teachers in that situation need to find other outlets to be advocates for themselves, for their profession, and for their students. Between opportunities at the state and district levels, and working with parents and other community members, I think there are ways teachers can be engaged in their work and take on more active roles even when not encouraged internally to do so. The other thing weâ„ ¢ve seen is teachers working with colleagues on their own to start creating the kind of environments they want in their schools. They create professional learning communities, finding time to collaborate. They seek out their own professional development opportunities and advocate for themselves to be able to go and learn, so they can bring that knowledge back to their colleagues. But again, this takes a lot of care and commitment†and time. Itâ„ ¢s hard for teachers to sustain over the long haul if they arenâ„ ¢t given support from leadership. What changes do you see in the teacher profession in the years ahead Schools and districts are already starting to look at recruitment and retention in very different ways. For a number of reasons, for a long time teaching has been viewed as a life-long career. We had this expectation that teachers would kind of come in on day one and have their classroom and then 30 years later theyâ„ ¢d be doing the same thing. But now you have younger people†the Gen-X and Gen-Y folks†who are looking at different ways of engaging in teaching and serving schools. The perception among many elite students who are interested in teaching is that itâ„ ¢s less of a career and more of a short-term way to gain experience and engage in meaningful work. I think this is just reality, and schools are starting to acknowledge this and figure out how to leverage the staff diversity it creates†and this involves using teachers differently. There are still going to be a lot of amazingly accomplished teachers who want to make education their lives. The important question is going to be, how can we design schools to give these teachers the flexibility and leadership capacity to mentor and get the best out of younger teachers who are maybe only planning on being in the profession for two or three years We need to draw upon our best teachers to ensure that these short-term educators are the best they can be and that they are really hitting on all cylinders while they are in the profession. We need to find new ways to identify these core, accomplished teachers and to give them new avenues to spread their expertise†through technology, for example. We need to create new career-advancement opportunities for them, give them greater decision-making authority and responsibility, and allow them to be successful in their work. So I think weâ„ ¢re going to see a greater diversification of roles for teachers. Teaching and Teacher Education 20 (2004) 277â€Å"289 Influence of teacher empowerment on teachersâ„ ¢ organizational commitment, professional commitment and organizational citizenship behavior in schools Ronit Boglera,*, Anit Somechb aDepartment of Education and Psychology, The Open University of Israel, P.O. Box 39328, 16 Klausner Street, Tel Aviv 61392, Israel b Faculty of Education, University of Haifa, Mount Carmel, Haifa 31905, Israel Abstract The present study focuses on the relationship between teacher empowerment and teachersâ„ ¢ organizational commitment, professional commitment (PC) and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). It examines which subscales of teacher empowerment can best predict these outcomes. The data were collected through a questionnaire returned by a sample of 983 teachers in Israeli middle and high schools. Pearson correlations and multiple regression analyses indicated that teachersâ„ ¢ perceptions of their level of empowerment are significantly related to their feelings of commitment to the organization and to the profession, and to their OCBs. Among the six subscales of empowerment, professional growth, status and self-efficacy were significant predictors of organizational and PC, while decisionmaking, self-efficacy, and status were significant predictors of OCB. Practical implications of the study are discussed in relation to teachers, principals and policy-makers. r 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. During the past decade, teacher empowerment has received a great deal of attention from researchers who studied its relationship to various organizational outcomes. In their extensive literature review, Sweetland and Hoy (2000) state that though a thorough examination has been conducted to study the relationship between teacher empowerment and various organizational and personal characteristics, [t]he results are confusingâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ (p. 710). The current study aims to examine teacher empowerment in relation to outcomes that reflect the behavior of teachers in school. These outcomes†teachersâ„ ¢ organizational commitment (OC), professional commitment (PC), and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB)†are key factors in their performance in a school setting (Howell Dorfman, 1986; Diefendorff, Brown, Kamin, Lord, 2002). 1. Theoretical framework 1.1. Teacher empowerment Research on teacher empowerment began to appear in the literature in the late 1980s (Edwards, ARTICLE IN PRESS *Corresponding author. Tel.: +972-3-6460617; fax: +972-3- 6465468. E-mail addresses: [emailprotected] (R. Bogler), [emailprotected] (A. Somech). 0742-051X/$ see front matter r 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.tate.2004.02.003 Green, Lyons, 2002). Empowerment, as perceived by Short, Greer and Melvin (1994) is defined as a process whereby school participants develop the competence to take charge of their own growth and resolve their own problemsâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ (p. 38). It is individualsâ„ ¢ belief that they have the skills and knowledge to improve a situation in which they operate. In their national study on empowerment of teacher leaders, Rinehart and Short (1991) found that reading recovery teacher leaders were more highly empowered than reading recovery teachers or classroom teachers. This finding was explained as a result of reading recovery teacher leadersâ„ ¢ having more opportunities to make decisions and grow professionally, having control over daily schedules and feeling a high level of teaching competency. According to Maeroff (1988), teacher empowerment consists of improved status, increased knowledge and access to decisionmaking. Short and Rinehart (1992) identify six dimensions of teacher empowerment: decisionmaking, professional growth, status, self-efficacy, autonomy and impact. In a study devoted to the concept of teacher empowerment, Short (1994a) describes the six dimensions in detail. Decisionmaking refers to teachersâ„ ¢ participation in critical decisions that directly affect their work, involving issues related to budgets, teacher selection, scheduling, and curriculum. To be effective, teachersâ„ ¢ participation in decision-making must be genuine, and the teachers need to be confident that their decisions actually impact real outcomes. Professional growth refers to the teachersâ„ ¢ perception that the school provides them opportunities to grow and develop professionally, to continue to learn, and to expand their skills during their work in school. Status refers to the professional respect and admiration that the teachers perceive that they earn from colleagues. Respect is also granted for the knowledge and expertise that the teachers demonstrate, resulting in support of their actions from others. Self-efficacy refers to the teachersâ„ ¢ perception that they are equipped with the skills and ability to help students learn, and are competent to develop curricula for students. The feeling of mastery, in both knowledge and practice, that results in accomplishing desired outcomes is critical in the teachersâ„ ¢ sense of selfefficacy. Autonomy refers to the teachersâ„ ¢ feeling that they have control over various aspects of their working life, including scheduling, curriculum development, selection of textbooks and planning instruction. This type of control enables teachers to feel free to make decisions related to their educational milieu. Impact refers to the teachersâ„ ¢ perception that they can affect and influence school life. Teacher empowerment has been studied in relation to job satisfaction (Rinehart Short, 1994), participation in decision-making (Gruber Trickett, 1987; White, 1992), commitment (Wu Short, 1996), conflict (Johnson Short, 1998; Rinehart, Short, Johnson, 1997; Short, 1994b), instructional practice and student academic achievements (Marks Louis, 1997; Smylie, 1994), and principal leadership (Blas!e Blas!e, 1996; Johnson Short, 1998; Kirby Colbert, 1994; Rinehart, Short, Short, Eckley, 1998). Previous research (Sweetland Hoy, 2000), supports four assumptions regarding teacher empowerment: first, teacher empowerment is most effective when it is oriented to increase teacher professionalism; second, empowerment has at least two dimensions: organizational and classroom; third, empowering teachers has its greatest impact on student achievement when the emphasis is on the core technology of teaching and learning in schools; fourth, to be effective, teacher empowerment needs to be authentic (pp. 710â€Å"711). Teacher empowerment is, therefore, perceived as a crucial factor that affects school effectiveness (Wall Rinehart, 1998). In the present study, we chose three variables that the literature found as related to school effectiveness: organizational commitment, PC and OCB. Teachersâ„ ¢ commitment to the organization†the school†has been found to predict school effectiveness (Howell Dorfman, 1986; Rosenholtz, 1991). A positive relationship has been found between organizational commitment and regular employee attendance, and an inverse relationship between organizational commitment and turnover intention (Balfour Wechsler, 1996; Porter, Steers, Mowday, Boulian, 1974). Employees who are highly committed to both the profession and the organization were found to perform better than the less committed ARTICLE IN PRESS 278 R. Bogler, A. Somech / Teaching and Teacher Education 20 (2004) 277â€Å"289 ones, a behavior which results in improved overall effectiveness of the organization (Aranya Ferris, 1984). Teachersâ„ ¢ PC has been found to be critical to good instruction (Firestone Pennell, 1993). Finally, the impact of OCB on the school organization is dramaticâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢; it contributes to the overall effectiveness of the school and reduces the management component of the administratorâ„ ¢s roleâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ (DiPaola Tschannen-Moran, 2001, p. 434). OCB promotes organizational performance because it presents effective measures to manage the interdependencies between members of a work group, and consequently increases the outcomes achieved by the collective (Organ, 1990, Smith, Organ, Near, 1983). This study aims to investigate the relationship between teacher empowerment and these three outcomes: teachersâ„ ¢ organizational and PC and their OCB. More specifically, we attempt to determine which subscales of teacher empowerment can best predict these outcomes. 1.2. The relationship between teachersâ„ ¢ empowerment and their organizational and PC Organizational commitment, as defined by Mowday, Steers and Porter (1979), is the relative strength of an individualâ„ ¢s identification with and involvement in a particular organizationâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ (p. 226). This concept is based on three factors: the acceptance of the organizationâ„ ¢s goals and values (identification), the willingness to invest effort on behalf of the organization (involvement), and the importance attached to keeping up the membership in the organization (loyalty). These characteristics imply that the members of the organization wish to be active players in the organization, have an impact on what is going on in it, feel that they have high status within it, and are ready to contribute beyond what is expected of them. This is especially true when the leaders of the organization are perceived as adopting consultative or participative leadership behavior, where shared decision-making is prevalent (Yousef, 2000). In this case, when leaders are perceived as participative, employees feel more committed to the organization, express higher levels of job satisfaction, and their performance is high. Among the empowerment subscales, the literature refers to a number of dimensions that relate to organizational commitment. In a number of studies (reviewed by Firestone Pennell, 1993), teachersâ„ ¢ autonomy in making classroom decisions, their participation in school-wide decisionmaking, and their opportunities to learn were among the organizational conditions that showed a strong association with teacher commitment to the organization. A positive relationship was also found between organizational commitment and job involvement (Blau and Boal, 1989). PC is the degree to which a personâ„ ¢s work performance affects his self-esteemâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ (Lodahl Kejner, 1965, p. 25). For a person who is professionally committed, work is a vital part of life. This means that both the work itself and the co-workers are very meaningful to the employee, in addition to the importance s/he attaches to the organization as a whole. Active participation in decision-making increases involvement and PC, which result in a higher level of acceptance and satisfaction. Evers (1990) suggested that teachersâ„ ¢ successful participation in decision-making could be explained by the feeling of ownership that comes from initiating ideas rather than responding to othersâ„ ¢ proposals. Gaziel and Weiss (1990) claimed that teachersâ„ ¢ participation, based on establishing a strong voice in decisions and policies, was a characteristic of professional orientationâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢, and fostered better working relations among staff members. With regard to self-efficacy, studies have shown that teachers with a greater sense of efficacy are more enthusiastic about teaching (Guskey, 1984), report a higher level of commitment to teaching (Coladarci, 1992; Evans Tribble, 1986), and are more likely to remain in teaching (Glickman Tamashiro, 1982). Wu and Short (1996), who studied the relationship between teacher empowerment and teacher job commitment and job satisfaction, found that among the six subscales that compose the teacher empowerment scale (SPES), professional growth, self-efficacy and status were significant predictors of job commitment. We were interested to see whether similar results would be found in this study with regard to other outcomes, such as organizational commitment and OCB. ARTICLE IN PRESS R. Bogler, A. Somech / Teaching and Teacher Education 20 (2004) 277â€Å"289 279 1.3. The relationship between teacher empowerment and OCB The concept of OCB, derived from Katzâ„ ¢s (1964) conception of extra-role behavior, was first introduced by Organ (1977) who defined it as behavior that is discretionary, not directly or explicitly recognized by the formal reward system, and that in the aggregate promotes the effective functioning of the organizationâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ (Organ, 1988, p. 4). Researchers have recognized the significant impact of OCB on the success of an organization (e.g., Chen, Hui, Sego, 1998; Karambayya, 1989). As several scholars have noted (e.g., George, 1996; Katz Kahn, 1966; Organ Konovsky, 1989), OCBs are important to the organization because through formal job descriptions, organizations cannot anticipate the whole range of behaviors needed for the achievement of organizational goals (Vanyperen, van den Berg, Willering, 1999). OCB provides the organization with additional resources and eliminates the need for expensive formal mechanisms otherwise crucial to successful restructuring processes. Today, as schools move into a new era of reorganization (Blas!e Blas!e, 1996; Clement Vandenberghe, 2000; Reitzug, 1994; Wall Rinehart, 1998), performancedefined as prescribed by task roles†is necessary but not sufficient for predicting school effectiveness. Therefore, schools will have to be more dependent on teachers who are willing to exert considerable effort beyond formal job requirements, namely, to engage in OCB. (Somech Drach-Zahavy, 2000). OCB refers to various dimensions such as altruism, conscientiousness (also termed generalized complianceâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢), sportsmanship, courtesy, and civic virtue (Organ, 1988); obedience, loyalty, and various types of participation (Van Dyne, Graham, Dienesch, 1994); and helping and voice (Stamper Van Dyne, 2001; Van Dyne LePine, 1998). The notion of behaviors directed towards the individual and the organization was first introduced by Williams and Anderson (1991), and in the educational setting, it corresponds to behaviors directed towards students, teacher colleagues, and to the whole school. OCBs operate indirectly; they influence the social and psychological environment of organizations, which in turn influence the technical core (Diefendorff et al., 2002). OCB affects the technical core since it involves extra role behaviors of some teachers toward students and teachers. These teachers help students with class materials, acquire expertise in new areas that contribute to their work, prepare special assignments for higher- or lower-level students, volunteer for school committees, set up learning programs for substitute teachers, help absent colleagues by assigning learning tasks to their classes, and work collaboratively with others. All these OCBs relate to the technical core of the organization. However, in the case of teachers who exhibit OCBs, they also help to achieve organization goals. This is reflected through extra role behaviors toward the organization, expressed by teachers organizing social activities for the school, volunteering for roles and tasks that are not part of their jobs, providing innovative suggestions to improve the school and by organizing joint activities with parents above the norm. Research on OCB in schools is very limited (DiPaola Tschannen-Moran, 2001). In this study, we have adopted the concept of OCB as investigated in educational settings. Based on Zimmerman and Rappaport (1988) who view the concept of empowerment as a sense of civic dutyâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ involving democratic participation and affecting community life and social issues (p. 136), one can expect to find a relationship between empowerment and OCB. Participation in decision-making, one of the characteristics of teacher empowerment, has been found to lead to engagement in OCB in various contexts (Porter, Lawler, Hackman, 1996). Self-efficacy has been found to be related to OCB toward the team and the organization, but not related to the student (Somech Drach-Zahavy, 2000). To date, limited research has been conducted on the relationship between teachersâ„ ¢ commitment to the organization, their PC, OCB, and teacher empowerment. Since the current literature cannot lead to definite hypotheses regarding the relationship between the subscales of teacher empowerment and school outcomes, it is our goal to determine which subscales best predict the three outcomes: teachersâ„ ¢ organizational commitment, ARTICLE IN PRESS 280 R. Bogler, A. Somech / Teaching and Teacher Education 20 (2004) 277â€Å"289 PC and OCB. The findings of the study may have important implications for teachers and principals, and consequently for the entire school. 2. Method 2.1. Participants The teachers in this study were sampled from a random sample of schools located in the northern and central parts of Israel. The sample consisted of 983 teachers in 25 middle schools (grades 7â€Å"9) and 27 high schools (grades 10â€Å"12). Although it was not possible to reach a random sample of all schools in Israel, care was taken to select urban, suburban and rural schools from diverse populations that represent the composition of teachers in Israel with regard to gender and religion, age and education. Seventy-two percent were women; 73 percent Jewish and the rest Arab. Of the Jewish teachers, 78 percent were female, and of the Arab teachers, almost half (46 percent) were male. The average age was 38.5, with an average of 10 years of seniority in the current school, and 13.5 years of seniority as teachers. Sixty-four percent had a Bachelorâ„ ¢s degree, 26 percent had a Masterâ„ ¢s degree and 10 percent had a professionalâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ degree (equivalent to a junior college diploma, with teaching credentials). These demographic characteristics were similar to those found in comparable studies on teachers in Israel (Rosenblatt, 2001; Somech Drach-Zahavy, 2000). 2.2. Research instrument A quantitative questionnaire, combining four Likert scales measuring OC, PC, OCB and teacher empowerment, was mailed in 2001 to teachers in 52 middle and high schools. The respondents were asked to refer to their current school, and to answer a range of questions about their feelings of empowerment, their commitment to the school and the profession, and their OCB in school. Teacher empowerment was measured using the School Participant Empowerment Scale (SPES) (Short Rinehart, 1992). The SPES measures teachersâ„ ¢ overall perception of empowerment. It is a 38-item instrument on a 5-point scale (scored from 1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree). Factor analysis of the SPES revealed six dimensions at the basis of the construct. The dimensions and their internal consistency estimates (coefficient alphas) are: involvement in decision-making (0.89); opportunities for professional growth (0.83); status (0.86); self-efficacy (0.84); autonomy (0.81); and impact (0.82). The overall scale has reliability of 0.94 and the same reliability level of alpha was found in the current study. Examples of items are: I make decision about the implementation of new programs in the schoolâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ (decisionmaking), I am treated as a professionalâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ (professional growth), I believe that I have earned respectâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ (status), I believe that I am empowering studentsâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ (self-efficacy), I have the freedom to make decisions on what is taughtâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ (autonomy), and I believe that I have an impactâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ (impact). Organizational commitment was measured using Mowday et al.â„ ¢s (1979) Organizational Commitment Questionnaire (OCQ). This 15-item instrument measures affective rather than normative or continuance commitment, by asking the respondents to refer to their identification with and involvement in a particular organization. Examples of items are: I tell my friends that this school is a great school to work forâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ and I feel very little loyalty to this schoolâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ (reverse coded). A 7-point scale (scored from 1=strongly disagree to 7=strongly agree) was used. Scores on the 15 items were averaged to yield a summary score representing organizational commitment. The internal reliability estimates for the OCQ scores were strong across Mowday et al.â„ ¢s (1979) six samples (ranging from 0.82 to 0.93) and resulted in a single-factor solution. In the current study, the reliability level of alpha was 0.87. Professional commitment was measured using Lodahl and Kejnerâ„ ¢s (1965) 20-item scale, specifically adjusted to the educational setting. This instrument focuses on teachersâ„ ¢ job involvement and on the importance of work to them in general. Examples of items are: I live my job as a teacher 24 h a dayâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ and Most things in my life are more important than my workâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ (reverse coded). A 5- point scale (scored from 1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree), was used. Scores on the 20 ARTICLE IN PRESS R. Bogler, A. Somech / Teaching and Teacher Education 20 (2004) 277â€Å"289 281 items were averaged to yield a summary score representing PC. The reliability level of alpha in this study was 0.87. Organizational citizenship behavior was measured using a 23-item scale developed and validated in the school context (Somech Drach- Zahavy, 2000). This instrument refers to discretionary behaviors that go beyond existing role expectations and are directed toward the individual, the group, or the organization as a unit. The OCB scale consists of three subscales: (a) eight items relate to students (e.g., I stay after school hours to help students with materials covered in classâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢), with a reliability level of alpha of 0.80; (b) seven items relate to colleagues (e.g., I help an absent colleague by assigning learning tasks to the classâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢), with a reliability level of alpha of 0.77; and (c) eight items relate to the school as a unit (e.g., I make innovative suggestions to improve the schoolâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢), with a reliability level of alpha of 0.87. A 5-point scale (scored from 1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree), was used. Scores on the 23 items were averaged to yield a summary score representing OCB. The reliability level of alpha in the current study was 0.92. 3. Results Preliminary analyses of t-tests were performed to determine whether there were gender and type of school (secondary/high schools) differences with regard to the research variables (i.e., teacher empowerment, organizational commitment, PC and OCB). The results revealed no significant differences (p > 0:05). In addition, the correlations between the other demographic variables (education and length of tenure) and the research variables were marginal (below 0.09); hence, we treated the participants as one group. Means, standard deviations and intercorrelations for the research variables are shown in Table 1. An examination of the means of the subscales of the SPES revealed that the subscales that received the highest scores were status (M ? 4:1), professional growth (M ? 3:8), impact (M ? 3:7) and self-efficacy (M ? 3:7). The lowest average score was ascribed to decision-making (M ? 3:1). The Pearson correlation matrix revealed that all six subscales were significantly (po0:0001) and positively correlated with organizational commitment (ranging from 0.34 to 0.65), PC (ranging from 0.37 to 0.68) and OCB (ranging from 0.21 to 0.61). The more the teachers perceived themselves as practicing any of the teacher empowerment components, the more they expressed commitment towards the organization, the profession, and OCBs. In addition, the correlation between organizational commitment and PC was positive and significant (r ? 0:68). Multiple regression analysis was employed to identify which empowerment dimensions best ARTICLE IN PRESS Table 1 Descriptive statistics and correlations Variable Mean s.d. 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1. Decision-making1 3.1 0.73 0.54 0.34 0.60 0.63 0.63 0.34 0.41 0.61 2. Professional growth1 3.8 0.69 0.72 0.74 0.55 0.73 0.65 0.60 0.36 3. Statusa 4.1 0.62 0.62 0.44 0.67 0.58 0.51 0.21 4. Self-efficacya 3.7 0.65 0.56 0.77 0.53 0.58 0.50 5. Autonomya 3.3 0.84 0.61 0.37 0.37 0.39 6. Impacta 3.7 0.72 0.50 0.54 0.44 7. OCb 4.3 0.83 0.68 0.41 8. PCa 3.4 0.59 0.20 9. OCBc 3.1 0.72 Variables 1â€Å"6 are subscales of teacher empowermentâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢. All correlations are statistically significant, po0:0001: a Rating scale: 1=Strongly disagree; 5=Strongly agree b Rating scale: 1=Strongly disagree; 7=Strongly agree c Rating scale: 1=Very seldom; 5=Very often 282 R. Bogler, A. Somech / Teaching and Teacher Education 20 (2004) 277â€Å"289 predict teachersâ„ ¢ organizational commitment, PC and OCB (see Tables 2â€Å"4). Tables 2â€Å"4 show the results of the multiple regression analysis for each of the outcomes: organizational commitment, PC and OCB, respectively. For each regression, all six components of teacher empowerment were included in the equation. Table 2 shows that three predictor variables† professional growth, status, and selfefficacy† were statistically significant predictors of organizational commitment and explained 44 percent of its variance (F?3674? ? 173:65; po0:0001). Results of the second multiple regression analysis (Table 3) indicate that the same three predictors†self-efficacy, professional growth, and status†were statistically significant predictors of PC and explained 40 percent of its variance (F?3665? ? 148:1; po0:0001). Results of the third multiple regression analysis (Table 4) indicate that three predictors†decision-making, self-efficacy, and status†were statistically significant predictors of OCB and also explained 40 percent of its variance (F?3640? ? 144:23; po0:0001). An evaluation of the assumptions of each of the three regression models yielded no violations of assumptions of linearity, normality, and homoscedasticity of residuals. 4. Discussion The findings regarding the means of the six dimensions of teacher empowerment appear to be consistent with previous studies. Wall and Rinehart (1998), for example, found that the most frequent dimensions of empowerment, amongst high school teachers, were in descending order: status (M ? 4:14; s.d.=0.51), self-efficacy, impact, professional growth, autonomy and decisionmaking (M ? 2:94; s.d.=0.72). In the present study, we found very similar results: status (M ? 4:10; s.d.=0.62), professional growth, impact, self-efficacy, autonomy and decision-making (M ? 3:06; s.d.=0.73). These findings imply that teachers feel that they are respected (status), have opportunities for professional growth, are effective at their job (impact) and perform well (selfefficacy). Yet, in both the American sample and in our population, teachers did not feel that they were involved in the process of decision-making. We can speculate that either teachers are not aware of their involvement, or that they really ARTICLE IN PRESS Table 2 Regression coefficients and F-test value for organizational commitment Variable B SE b F R2 Professional growth 0.62 0.07 0.44___ 87.69 0.44 Status 0.36 0.07 0.22___ (6,671, po0:0001) Self-efficacy 0.23 0.07 0.15 Autonomy 0.01 0.05 0.01 Decision making 0.03 0.06 0.02 Impact 0.12 0.07 0.09 Constant 0.63 0.20 ___po0:0001: Table 3 Regression coefficients and F-test value for professional commitment Variable B SE b F R2 Self-efficacy 0.25 0.05 0.29___ 75.47 0.41 Professional growth 0.19 0.05 0.23___ (6,662, po:0001) Status 0.11 0.04 0.12_ Autonomy 0.05 0.03 0.07 Decision making 0.06 0.04 0.08 Impact 0.05 0.04 0.06 Constant 1.08 0.12 _po0:01; ___po0:0001: Table 4 Regression coefficients and F-test value for organizational citizenship behavior Variable B SE b F R2 Decision-making 0.46 0.04 0.46___ 71.88 0.40 Self-efficacy 0.39 0.06 0.35___ (6,637, po:0001) Status 0.17 0.05 0.14___ Autonomy 0.002 0.04 0.002 Impact 0.003 0.06 0.003 Professional growth 0.04 0.06 0.03 Constant 1.04 0.16 ___po0:0001: R. Bogler, A. Somech / Teaching and Teacher Education 20 (2004) 277â€Å"289 283 were not given the opportunity to participate in various forms of school decision-making. (Wall Rinehart, 1998 suggest these considerations in their discussion about the role of the school councils in the schools they sampled). The results of the present study showed that two of the six subscales, self-efficacy and status, significantly predicted all three outcomes: organizational commitment, PC and OCB. Another subscale, professional growth, predicted two of the outcomes: organizational and PC. Participation in decision-making predicted OCB. The results regarding the criterion variable, organizational commitment, correspond with earlier findings that investigated the SPES subscales (Wu Short, 1996). In their study, Wu and Short found that professional growth, self-efficacy and status predicted organizational commitment and explained 45 per cent of its variance. These same subscales were found to explain 44 per cent of the variance of organizational commitment in the present study. Self-efficacy is oneâ„ ¢s perception of oneâ„ ¢s competence and ability to act. In educational settings, it was found that when teachers believe that they can make a difference with their students, they do (Gibson Dembo, 1984). The importance of selfefficacy as a predictor of all three outcomes can be understood if we relate to the original concept of self-efficacy developed by Bandura (1977). According to Bandura, self-efficacy is based on two dimensions that he labeled outcome expectancyâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ and efficacy expectancyâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ (p. 79). Outcome expectancyâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ implies that an individual estimates that a given behavior will result in certain outcomes. Efficacy expectationsâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ refer to behaviors toward the expected outcomes. Not surprisingly, where teachers report higher levels of self-efficacy, they exhibit more organizational behaviors. Teachers who have high expectations of themselves to perform effectively and successfully in school will carry out extra functions beyond the formal ones and will feel more committed to their school and to the teaching profession. With regard to status, our findings demonstrate that teachers who have a high sense of status in their work tend to invest in more OCBs and to feel more committed to the organization and to the teaching profession than teachers who do not express that level of status recognition. Teachers who perceive that they have the professional respect and admiration of their colleagues, in addition to acknowledgement of their expertise and knowledge, will be more inclined to contribute to their schools. Their contribution will be exhibited in the expression of greater commitment to the profession and the organization and in practicing OCBs that reflect helping others (students, colleagues, and the organization as a whole). Professional growth, oneâ„ ¢s belief that one works in a supportive and nurturing environment that stimulates professional growth and development, may impact oneâ„ ¢s feeling of commitment to the organization and the profession. The more teachers perceive that they have opportunities for professional growth, the more they will strive to act for the good of the organization and the profession. According to Firestone and Pennell (1993), the knowledge demands of the new teaching strategies have stimulated the need to bring about the professionalization of teaching, of which professional growth is one measure. Teachersâ„ ¢ commitment depends on their drive and will to grow professionally, a fact that has implications for the quality of instruction that the teachers will maintain. Lastly, participation in decision-making, the subscale of teacher empowerment that was one of the predictors of OCB, was found in previous research to be linked to OCB (e.g., Vanyperen et al., 1999). Participation in decision-making is joint decision-making or decision-making that is a product of shared influence by a superior and his or her employee (Koopman Wierdsma, 1998). It was found to affect job satisfaction (Rice Schneider, 1994) and as such, it is reasonable to assume that teachers satisfied with their jobs will, among others, exhibit more OCBs. A number of studies have shown a positive relationship between participation in decision-making and organizational commitment (e.g., Hoy, Tartar, Bliss, 1990; Louis Smith, 1991). In the present study, there was significant positive correlation between the two; however, decision-making was not found to be a predictor of organizational commitment ARTICLE IN PRESS 284 R. Bogler, A. Somech / Teaching and Teacher Education 20 (2004) 277â€Å"289 but rather of OCB. One might expect that teachers who report that they participate in decisionmaking processes in their school will show more OCBs that are reflected in activities beyond their existing role expectations. However, it was surprising that participative decision-making was not found to be a predictor of organizational commitment. One explanation for this finding may be the fact that decision-making was treated as a onedimensional construct rather than a two-dimensional one. Decision-making in the school setting involves participation in decision-making in the technical domain (i.e., dealing with students and instruction), and in the managerial domain (i.e., dealing with school operations and administration). By combining these two dimensions, which may sometimes conflict, we may have caused cancellation out of both. In another study, Somech and Bogler (2002) found that teachersâ„ ¢ participation in technical decisions did not predict organizational commitment; however, teachersâ„ ¢ participation in managerial decisions was found to predict organizational commitment. Findings regarding the significant positive correlation between organizational commitment and PC confirm previous research (e.g., Cohen, 2000), and contradict other research that asserted that there may be a conflict between the two concepts (e.g., Wallace, 1993). The results of the present study may imply that there is no inherent conflict between organizational commitment and PC, although a tension between the two may exist (Aranya Ferris, 1984). Teacherâ„ ¢s perceived autonomy and impact were the least effective predictors of any of the outcomes examined, since both these variables were excluded from the regression equation. Although these findings are consistent with other research which examined the predictors of job satisfaction and organizational commitment among the six dimensions of teacher empowerment (Wu Short, 1996), they are somewhat surprising. One would expect teachers who experience a high level of autonomy and feel that they have great impact on what is going in school, to report higher levels of commitment to the school and to their profession and to contribute more than expected of them to the school. The current results imply that the two constructs, autonomy and impact, may not be directly related to the outcomes examined here since individuals who feel that they are autonomous and have impact in their workplace do not necessarily translate these feelings into behaviors that reflect great commitment to the organization, to the profession, or to OCB. It is interesting to relate OCB to the concept of a teacher professional community or a teacher learning community (Darling-Hammond Sykes, 1999). A professional community of teachers is characterized by three key features: a common set of activities that provide frequent face-to-face interaction, specific organizational structures to assist in developing common understandings, values and expectations for behavior to evolve, and a core of shared values regarding what students should learn, how faculty and students should behave and the shared goals to maintain and support the community (Louis, Kruse, Bryk, 1995). Obviously, such a professional learning community involves the establishment of a school-wide culture that makes collaboration expected, wide-ranging, authentic, continuing, and focused on student outcomes (Toole Louis, 2002, Chapter 8). In order for such a community to exist, it is expected that extra-role behaviors, in addition to in-role behaviors, should be implemented in the school setting. Without applying discretionary behaviors that go beyond the existing role expectations, and that are directed to the students, the teachers and the school organization as a unit, it would be almost impossible for a community of teachers to become a professional learning community. Kruse, Louis and Bryk (1995) indicate that one of the preconditionsâ„ ¢Ã¢â€ž ¢ for the development of a professional learning community is the openness to improvement, trust and respect, access to expertise, supportive leadership and socialization. To achieve these human and social resources, it is crucial that teachers demonstrate OCB, since this affects the social and psychological environment of the organization reflected in shared norms and values, a focus on student learning, reflective dialogue with colleagues, and peer collaboration. ARTICLE IN PRESS R. Bogler, A. Somech / Teaching and Teacher Education 20 (2004) 277â€Å"289 285 5. Conclusions and implications This study primarily investigated the relationship between teacher empowerment and organizational commitment, PC and OCB. The findings demonstrate that a number of teacher empowerment dimensions have an impact on these outcomes in the school setting, but a number of limitations should be considered when interpreting these findings. First, since all measures used are self-reports, common method variance is a problem, as well as social desirability effects. Although self-report data are commonly used to measure individual self-perception (Spector, 1994), one should bear in mind that they may not reflect the actual performance of the respondents. Second, although in selecting the sampled schools, care was taken with regard to the representation of urban, suburban and rural schools serving diverse populations that represented the composition of teachers in Israel with regard to gender, religion, age and education, we cannot generalize from this sample to all middle and high schools in Israel since the schools were located in the northern and central parts of Israel. Related to the issue of sampling is our 41 percent response rate, a rate not unusual in social science studies (e.g., Bogler, 1994; Kidder, 2002; Williams Shiaw, 1999), but a factor which should be kept in mind when attempting to generalize to a larger population. A study that randomly and representatively samples all the middle and high schools in the country could allow such generalization. In addition, this study viewed each variable as a single scale rather than as a multi-faceted one. In contrast, organizational commitment was studied elsewhere (Hartmann Bambacas, 2000) as a multi-method scale with three dimensions: affective commitment, continuance commitment, and normative commitment. This multi-level method may provide a better understanding of the phenomenon than using a single scale. One of the important contributions of the present study is that it underscores the relative effects of four teacher empowerment dimensions on the important outcomes of organizational commitment, PC and OCB in the school. These outcomes have been found to be beneficial to organizations. PC is considered a major determinant of organizational effectiveness (Pfeffer, 1994) and individual motivation (Hackman and Lawler, 1971). Organizational commitment has been found to affect employee identification with the organization, level of effort, and turnover (Stroh Reilly, 1997). OCB has been linked to increased performance (Brief Motowidlo, 1989). Two of the teacher empowerment dimensions, self-efficacy and status, appear to be crucial in predicting all three organizational outcomes and should therefore be strongly acknowledged by school principals who strive to raise teachersâ„ ¢ commitment to the organization and to the profession and to increase teachersâ„ ¢ motivation toward OCB for the benefit of the school. Principals need to establish working conditions that will bring teachers to perceive themselves as having a high level of competency, and experiencing high status and selfesteem. Second, teachers who view themselves as professionals or perceive opportunities to grow professionally may contribute more to the school as their commitment to the organization and to the profession increases. Principals need to recognize that the feelings and perceptions of teachers about their schools, and their desire to attain opportunities for professional growth, are beneficial to the organization itself. Finally, based on the finding that participation in decision-making is a predictor of OCB, school principals should acknowledge the significance of the extra-role, rather than the inrole, nature of OCB since it carries great advantages for other members in the organization, including other teachers, students and the school as a whole. Thus, principalsâ„ ¢ practice of jointdecision- making should be recognized as highly important to the organization and its members. The findings of the study should also be acknowledged by policy-makers outside the school on the assumption that achieving high levels of organizational commitment, PC and OCB are important to them. Thus, the Ministry of Education, as the centralized office, and its operational units on the local level, should encourage participation of teachers in seminars and programs that stress teachersâ„ ¢ professional growth and self-efficacy. It is assumed that once the teachers experience ARTICLE IN PRESS 286 R. Bogler, A. Somech / Teaching and Teacher Education 20 (2004) 277â€Å"289 greater opportunities for professional growth and acquire greater trust in their ability to achieve high-order goals (i.e., greater self-efficacy), their status will rise as well. As a result, and in addition to participating in shared decision-making with the principal, teachers may feel empowered at school, a fact that will reflect on their feelings of commitment toward the organization, the profession and their extra-role behavior. Possible extensions of this study could be to examine the effects of other variables, such as perceived supervisory support (Vanyperen et al., 1999) or job satisfaction, as mediating variables in the relationship between teacher empowerment (or its subscales) and school outcomes (either those that were examined in the present study or others). In addition, since the current study was conducted in middle and high schools, it may be worthwhile to investigate elementary schools to determine whether the results presented here reflect the general situation of teachers on all levels. References Aranya, N., Ferris, K. R. (1984). A re-examination of accountantsâ„ ¢ organizational-professional conflict. The Accounting Review, 59, 1â€Å"15. Balfour, D. L., Wechsler, B. (1996). Organizational commitment: Antecedents and outcomes in public organizations. Public Productivity and Management Review, 29, 256â€Å"277. Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84, 191â€Å"215. Blas!e, J., Blas!e, J. (1996). Facilitative school leadership and teacher empowerment: Teachersâ„ ¢ perspectives. Social Psychology of Education, 1, 117â€Å"145. Blau, G., Boal, K. (1989). Using job involvement and organizational commitment interactively to predict turnover. 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Reitzug, U. C. (1994). A case study of empowering principal behavior. American Educational Research Journal, 31, 283â€Å"307. Rice, E. M., Schneider, G. T. (1994). A decade of teacher empowerment: An empirical analysis of teacher involvement in decision-making, 1980â€Å"1991. Journal of Educational Administration, 32(1), 43â€Å"58. Rinehart, J. S., Short, P. M. (1991). Viewing reading recovery as a restructuring phenomenon. Journal of School Leadership, 1(4), 379â€Å"399. Rinehart, J. S., Short, P. M. (1994). Job satisfaction and empowerment among teacher leaders, reading recovery teachers, and regular classroom teachers. Education, 114(4), 570â€Å"580. Rinehart, J. S., Short, P. M., Johnson, P. E. (1997). Empowerment and conflict at school-based and nonschool- based sites in the United States. Journal of International Studies in Educational Administration, 25, 77â€Å"87. Rinehart, J. S., Short, P. M., Short, R. J., Eckley, M. (1998). Teacher empowerment and principal leadership: Understanding the influence process. Educational Administration Quarterly, 34, 630â€Å"649. Rosenblatt, Z. (2001). Teachersâ„ ¢ multiple roles and skill flexibility: Effects on work attitudes. Educational Administration Quarterly, 38, 684â€Å"708. Rosenholtz, S. J. (1991). Teachersâ„ ¢ workplace: The social organization of schools. New York, NY: Teachers College Press. Short, P. M. (1994a). Defining teacher empowerment. Education, 114(4), 488â€Å"492. ARTICLE IN PRESS 288 R. Bogler, A. Somech / Teaching and Teacher Education 20 (2004) 277â€Å"289 Short, P. M. (1994b). Exploring the links among teacher empowerment, leader power, and conflict. Education, 114(4), 581â€Å"584. Short, P. M., Greer, J. T., Melvin, W. M. (1994). Creating empowered schools: Lessons in change. Journal of Educational Research, 32(4), 38â€Å"52. Short, P. M., Rinehart, J. S. (1992). 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Parallel Structure Supports Meaning

Parallel Structure Supports Meaning Parallel Structure Supports Meaning Parallel Structure Supports Meaning By Mark Nichol A lack of parallel structure in sentence construction can lead to confusion. Make sure that statements are scaffolded correctly to convey the intended meaning, as explained and demonstrated in the discussions to and revisions of the following sentences. 1. The poll found that 24 percent of voters said they would either abstain from voting in the general election rather than vote for Trump or Clinton or vote for a third-party candidate. The meaning of this sentence is ambiguous. As written, it implies that 24 percent of voters would vote neither for Trump or Clinton nor for a third-party candidate, but it could mean that 24 percent of voters either would abstain from voting or would vote for someone other than Trump or Clinton. If this is the case, the wording should be â€Å"The poll found that 24 percent of voters said they either would abstain from voting in the general election rather than vote for Trump or Clinton or would vote for a third-party candidate.† 2. The act requires the removal of any personally identifiable information not relevant to threat identification or protected by privacy laws. As written, this sentence implies that not applies both to â€Å"relevant to threat identification† and to â€Å"protected by privacy laws.† However, the removal requirement applies to information that is not relevant or that is protected, so the language should emphasize this distinction: â€Å"The act requires the removal of any personally identifiable information that is not relevant to threat identification or that is protected by privacy laws.† 3. You will learn a new method for weight loss without neglecting your work or rearing your children. The implication of this sentence is that the new weight-loss method will not require one to neglect one’s work and will absolve one of the chore of rearing one’s children. But the meaning is that adopting the method will not affect one’s abilities to work or to raise children, and the wording should reflect that meaning: â€Å"You will learn a new method for weight loss without neglecting your work or your parental responsibilities† is one possible revision. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Style category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Apply to, Apply for, and Apply with15 Words for Household Rooms, and Their Synonyms8 Great Podcasts for Writers and Book Authors

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Words Made Using Periodic Table Element Symbols Chemical element symbols are one- and two-letter abbreviations for the element names. They are used to make the periodic table and chemical formulas easier to read. You can combine the symbols to make words. Here is  a list of English words made from periodic table  element symbols. There are thousands of words that can be written using these symbols, so experiment to see if you can write your name or fun messages that show your chemistry savvy. Words Made From Element Symbols AcAcIAs AcNe AcTiON AgITaTiON AgNOSTiC AlCoHoLiC AlIMoNY Am AmErICaN AmISH AmPUTaTiON ArGeNTiNa AsPIrIn AtLaNTa AtTeNTiON AuTiSTiC BaNaNa BAlLiSTiC BaPTiSm BArF Be BeArS BeErS BErSErK BODy BONFIRe BUNCH BrUNCH BUTaNe CaN CaNDY CaNNIBAl CHeErS CHINa ClOCK CoOK CoPErNiCuS CuFFLiNKS CuIrAsS CuISiNe CuP CuTeNeSS CYCLiC CYClONe CYNiCs CYSTeINe DYEs DyNAmITe DySFUNCTiONAl FeTiSH FIRe FLaSH FrAcTiOn FrOLiC FrY GeNeSiS HeINOUS HeLiCoPtEr HeReTic HOOK HOOKErS HoSe HYMn HYPErBOLiC I IRaN IReLaNd IrON KNIFe LaDy LaOs LuBrICaTiON LuCIFEr MoCK MoCKEry MoNaCo MoNTaNa MoRe MoTiOn, MoTiON NArC NAtO NeON NePAl NO NON AlCoHoLiC NUN OF OHIO OsMoSiS PaKISTaN PAlEsTiNe PIRaTe PLaY POISON PoLiSH PSYCHIC SCaNdAl ScOTCH SePTic SiCKNeSS SiNGaPoRe SiPHON SNIPEr SOCIOPaTh SPAm SPaN TeAm ThAt TiCK US USe UTaH VAtICaN VIRuS VOICe VOTe WAr WAtEr WAtCH WASH WASP WITh YArN YIKEs YOU YOUTh YUCCa YUCKY YUPPIEs

Foreign policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Foreign policy - Essay Example Realism was predominant during the Cold War between U.S and Soviet Union and guided the international affairs at the time. Realists are of the view that â€Å"self-interested states compete constantly for power or security† (Walt, 1998, p. 31). States are often in conflict as they struggle for power and dominance in the world order and as long as the balance of power is not maintained, war between powerful states is inevitable. The U.S and Soviet Union during the Cold War were thus fighting for power; U.S wanted to spread capitalism while the Soviet wanted to spread communism and secure its borders.There are various divisions of realism. Classical realists like Hans Morgenthau believe that states innate desire to dominate others is the cause of war while neorealists like Kenneth Waltz believe the reason for war and conflict is that states are just seeking to survive (Walt, 1998 p. 31). Recently new branches of â€Å"defensive† and â€Å"offensive† realists have e merged. Defensive theorists such as Robert Jervis, Jack Snyder and Van Evera believe in power of military in guaranteeing security and for their survival. These states have much faith in military force and exaggerated perceptions of threat thus use force to defend themselves but have no intrinsic interest in military conquest (Walt, 1998 p. 37). Offensive realists like John Mearsheimer on the other hand, believe the conflict arises from state of anarchy. States are thus encouraged to maximize their strengths in preparation for any emergence of revisionist power. This is because realism is based on Marxism which emphasized the role of capitalism in enhancing conflict among nations and whose solution is a revolution. For example, the U.S feels threatened by the rise of China which a socialist nation is and would do anything to maintain its dominant position in international affairs. International organizations such as NATO and UN are only of value if they serve the U.S interests and n ot when trying to equalize affairs among nations. Defensive realist like Evera think that war is not profitable and that in absence of militant forces such as in the post-cold war Europe, there would be peace. However, offensive realists are of the view that great powers are doomed to compete irrespective of internal characteristics hence security competition is inevitable. The U.S role is to act as Global police hence maintain peace in the world. Liberalism Just like realism, its main focus is the states. This theory advocates for cooperation among nations as the only way to end conflicts. Scholars in this field (Michael Doyle & Robert Keohane) do not believe that power is important in international affairs. Instead, they argue for democracy in believe that â€Å"democratic states are inherently more peaceful than authoritarian states† (Walt, 1998 p. 32). The democratic states aspire to be prosperous and as such, avoid being in conflict with each other but rather cooperate for future gains. This was the rationality used by U.S during Cold War to institute democracies all over Europe.

The Myth's of Innovation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Myth's of Innovation - Essay Example The Apple team realized that there was a potential to improve on the design of existing digital music players using existing technology. The iPod wasn’t developed as the result of a sudden epiphany; it was a product of the steady design process to refine the digital music player. The development of the iPod shows that good ideas are not hard to find. The important components that make the iPod work were all taken off the shelf (Grossman 68). The FireWire connector that allowed data to be transferred to the iPod much faster than the USB connection used by the rival Nomad was existing technology from Apple. The hard drive for the device was developed by Toshiba without any idea what such a small hard drive could be used for. The battery had already been developed by Sony for cell phones. The iPod was not developed by some lone inventor. A team of designers at Apple worked on the device and used components developed by teams of engineers at other companies (Grossman 66). While th e iPod has become a popular electronic device, it also shows that innovation is not always good. The popularity of digital music players has created problems for music producers due to rampant electronic piracy. The Internet was originally created as a network of computers for the military. With the threat of a nuclear attack during the Cold War, the Internet was developed to be a robust computer communications network (Berners-Lee 80). The Internet was not the product of some epiphany. It was steadily developed over several decades before becoming what it is today. Despite being initially developed for military applications, the Internet eventually became a popular computer network for personal and commercial usage. The Internet was not created by some lone inventor. Many teams of individuals worked on developing the network protocols (Berners-Lee 81). These teams worked on developing the Internet over several decades, and these teams worked towards many different outcomes during t his time as the network slowly transitioned from a military network to a predominantly civilian network. Many of the developments in the Internet over the years haven’t been a bottom up approach of the best ideas winning. Many of the changes have been enforced in a top down manner to force users to adopt new network protocols (Berners-Lee 81). When changes were not the result of top down pressure, innovation in the Internet was not based on solving an existing problem. Instead, the Internet was frequently a solution in search of a problem. Much of the content on the Internet was created to attract ad revenue instead of being the product of the communication possibilities in the new medium (Berners-Lee 84). Although it accounts for a sizeable portion of the bandwidth, the Internet wasn’t created to stream movies, music, pornography, and e-mail spam. Those applications were developed to use the potential of the Internet. The zipper is one of those devices that was invent ed independently several times until it caught on. But once it did catch on, the zipper dominated the market in clothing fasteners. The independent discoveries of the zipper show that good ideas are not hard to find (Stringer 18). If the idea was so hard to come up with, multiple people would not have invented it independently. Despite the problems with the zipper after years of use, the convenience factor allowed it to eventually beat out the button that has been around for thousands of years. The difficulty faced by the zipper

Why do you think different administrations differ so greatly on this Essay

Why do you think different administrations differ so greatly on this point - Essay Example The American expansion was a strategy to show the right and anyone who opposed the Americans was considered to be wrong. Roosevelt saw that there was no chance for the white man to eliminate the dark race, hence opted to have them under control and tried to change their culture like in China and India. He was confident that other people could not overpower the whites in their own country in the temperate zone. He felt that the Chinese will push the Western European out of indo-China. At the time, many advocates of racism didn’t see the people as primitive, but regarded them as inferior. For having yellow skin, one was considered inferior. The racial differences had become greater and there was no hope of modernizing China. He also believed that Africans would become civilized or become a danger to the white race. Nevertheless, the Americans believed that the Negroes, Filipinos and Chinese could develop like the white man. Roosevelt believed that an individual member of a particular race could attain qualities superior to those of other members of the backward society. He also firmly believed and stated that the spread of English-speaking people meant an achievement to the world’s peace and the spread of civilization. This belief controlled his views on foreign policy. He stated that peace can’t be achieved until the nations are civilized. This meant that co-operation of the civilized people shaped the earth. Roosevelt associated superior civilization with the English-speaking people. He advocated for many virtues and power to defend ones effectiveness, and he spread the ability to ensure that there is an orderly and democratic government. Many viewed England as a civilized nation and one that should have overthrown the Mahdists in Sudan. England rule in India and Egypt had benefited it, as well as India and Egypt as they acquired civilization (Beale 45). Roosevelt stated that the English speaking race should control South Africa and that the

Intelligence uses at Abu Ghraib Military prison Research Paper

Intelligence uses at Abu Ghraib Military prison - Research Paper Example In 2004, however, the Abu Ghraib prison scandal erupted, putting the US’s human intelligence and counter-intelligence strategies at the center of international attention and generating massive criticism from human rights advocates. The perceived human rights violations that the Iraqi prisoners were subjected to were condemned and highlighted the need to review and make reforms in human intelligence and counter-intelligence in the military. This paper is an attempt to revisit exactly how human intelligence and counter-intelligence were deployed by the United States in Abu Ghraib. It begins by first discussing the rationale and purpose of HUMINT and counterintelligence, then it proceeds to discuss the means with which these strategies were deployed by US soldiers in Abu Ghraib, and finally, it looks into the reforms that were undertaken as a result of the worldwide controversy that was generated. The rationale and purpose of HUMINT and counterintelligence The primary justificati on for HUMINT and counterintelligence is reposed in the National Counterintelligence Strategy of the United States of America, to wit: The United States faces substantial challenges to its security, freedom, and prosperity. Transnational terrorism, continued proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD), asymmetric warfare, extremist movements, and failed states present severe challenges to a just and stable international order. Our ability to meet these challenges is threatened by the intelligence activities of traditional and non-traditional adversaries. Our adversaries – foreign intelligence services, terrorists, foreign criminal enterprises and cyber intruders – use overt, covert, and clandestine activities to exploit and undermine US national security interests. (2007: iv) In essence, therefore, the primary rationale for the adaption of HUMINT and counterintelligence is to adequately respond and neutralize the threats posed by the opponent. More specific to t he Iraqi context , military intelligence and counterintelligence experts were purposely deployed in Abu Ghraib in a calculated effort to enforce an active quest in eliminating the fatal problem of insurgency. The same was also done in the hopes of gathering intelligence advantageous in maintaining a more viable democratic Iraq. The person in charge of Abu Ghraib in 2004, Brigadier General Jane Krapinski, â€Å"was an experienced operations and intelligence officer who had served with the Special Forces and in the 1991 Gulf War† (Hersh, 2004). This strategy faced a number of challenges, not least of which was the nature of Iraqis their training and culture that makes them choose death over surrender. Another important purpose of HUMINT and counterintelligence specific to the Global War on Terror is that in Iraq, â€Å"it has become increasingly difficult to distinguish insurgents from citizens within the population† (Lane: 2009, 3). Hence, to avoid fatalities, it became necessary to extract inside information from insurgents that were captured. How HUMINT and counterintelligence were deployed: Abu Ghraib and the issue of human rights Abu Ghraib, which was already a prison in Iraq even before the war broke out, served as a significant place in gathering intelligence for the coalition forces. The originally Iraqi prison -- uninhabited and abandoned after its fall to the coalition for

Chinese and US Negotiation Styles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

Chinese and US Negotiation Styles - Essay Example This stems from the fact that cultures, objectives and situations may influence people's behaviour. There have been certain characteristics that are distinctly common among certain negotiators. This means that one can identify particular countries with particular negotiating styles. This particular essay will focus on the characteristics prevalent among the American negotiations and the Chinese. This is because the latter parties are quite different. There have bee major conflicts that have arise from those differences. However, one must not under estimate the fact that there are in deed some similarities between these two groups. (Bazerman & Carroll, 1987) Sun Tze is undoubtedly one of the most influential war strategists and authors in the Chinese traditional culture. His teachings shaped the cultural beliefs held by the natives of his homeland. In his book, the Art of War, the author stresses the fact that real prowess is depicted when an opponent uses wit to subdue his enemy rather than direct confrontation. The main message behind his teachings was psychological manipulation. This is something that has been adopted by Chinese negotiators and businessmen. They usually engage in psychological warfare of wits where they attempt to change their adversary's state of mind through the use of intellect. Sun Tze' came up with thirty six proverbs that brought about one hundred Chinese characters. These are still features eminent when conducting negotiations with them. (Sun Bin Tze, 2001) Agrarianism versus urbanism In present day, most of the Chinese inhabitants live in the country side. This is deduced from the fact that close to sixty seven percent of the population is largely a labouring one. This implies that those inhabitants are largely influenced by their agrarian values. There are certain features that are necessary in order to survive in that system. First of all, there is a strong sense of loyally among them. On top of this, the whole system is holistic rather than individualistic. There is a need for a lot of harmony and cooperation for the agricultural community to achieve success. These farmers remain true to their family hierarchies. Consequently, these values and beliefs trickle down to most members of the population. It should be noted that even those people residing in the City, were brought up in the country side and most of them still hold true to agrarian values. (Zhang and Yang, 1998) Agrarian values take up greater precedence than business values as highlighted by some Chinese philosophers like Fung Yu-Lan. He believed that agriculture symbolised the roots while commerce symbolised the branches. Even economic and social theories were more biased towards the roots than the branch. This is the reason why merchants who mainly dealt with 'branch' issues were not held in high regard as compared to others. In contrast, most of the US population is largely urban. Consequently, their values will depict the urban culture and beliefs. However, when one traces American culture, there is a large influence from the cowboy culture. In this sort of culture, there was a tendency to jump into issues head on. For example, cowboys were notorious for shooting suspicious characters on sight even before finding out where they were coming