Art Appreciation Essay

While it is and can be said that what art is truly up to the viewer to interprete is true; it is up to the artist to display his definition of art. Thru his skills of observation, imagination, he displays to his thoughts and feelings condensed. Whatever their medium maybe it be painting, sculpture, or any of the many others. The world may or may not agree what art is, but the saying is true. It is with in the eyes of the beholder. The definition of Art has been a long debated topic I society. Some say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. These being the case several people have tried to put a definition of it into words. One definition listed is â€Å"an occupation requiring knowledge or skill†, and goes on to say â€Å"the conscious use of skill and creative imagination especially in the production of aesthetic objects; also: works so produced† (Merriam-Webster, 2012). Also a far more simple worded, yet complex in thought definition is â€Å"Art is form and content† (Shelly Esaak, 2012). While both say two seemingly different things, they are part of the ever evolving definition and essence of Art. There are several types of art; with in this paper I will cover eight types. They include painting, sculpture, architecture, photography, printmaking, conceptual art, installation art, and performance art. While these are a small cross section of art, they are important pieces. The first example is painting. While there are several noticed painters and examples of their work, the example I chose to give is â€Å"The Adoration of the Shepherds†, painted by Andrea Mantegna (1450). This piece is currently on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. While this piece does fit the definition of works so produced, what about the rest? While painted in the Middle Ages, Mantegna couldn’t have been able to witness the birth of Christ. He draws from the biblical tale of the birth and his own imagination to paint a portrait of the adoration of the lord, as well as his parents doting over him. He uses his skill to not only paint the adoration in the foreground, but also the landscape for miles. The way Mantegna paints the entire picture, while he could not have been there having happened centuries before, displays he posses the skill and imagination to product a true masterpiece even though he was only in his early twenties. One of the most widely known sculpture pieces is â€Å"The Thinker† by Auguste Rodin (1902). The painting was originally made to be a piece included in his â€Å"Gates of Hell†, a mass door made for the Paris Museum of Art (www. statue. com, 2012). While Rodin completed the sculpture he saw something greater in the form and made it stand alone piece. Rodin applied his skill and creative imagination to craft and see the greater potential within the sculpture. Although not talked about as paintings and sculpture Architecture is a form of art as well. One of the most highly noted Architects is Frank Lloyd Wright. Applying his personal motto of â€Å"Form follows function† (Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, 2012), he applied the artist eye to everything he created from building to furniture. One of his most noted pieces, the house at Falling Water. Wright used his skill and experience to craft the large stone house at the family’s request. Although the family originally wanted the home to face the falls; Wright chose to have it located on top of the falls as an integral part of the structure (http://www. fay-west. com/fayette/fallingwater, 2005). Ansel Adams integrated his keen observation and use of skill to capture the rugged land of the western United States during the period of 1916 to his death in 1986 (http://www. anseladams. com/ansel-adams-information/ansel-adams-biography, 2012). He took several photographs of the west, but is most famous for his photos of Sierra Nevada Mountains. Adams took photos of the wildlife and terrain, and using his skill and depth of knowledge of the medium he was a major contributing factor to the conservation of Yosemite National Park and the Serria Nevada Mountains. Although famous for numerous reasons, Andy Warhol was also a highly commended Printmaking Artist. Using his highly creative imagination and skill he took everyday objects such as soup cans and even people and made art of them. He refined a process involving projection photo images to a silk screen thus speeding up his production process (http://arthistory. about. com/cs/namesww/p/warhol. htm, 2012). This gave the public a new outlook on ordinary things. Joseph Kosuth is one of the most famous artists in the realm of Conceptual Art. His piece aptly name â€Å"Three Chairs† is currently on exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. The exhibit has a blank and whit picture of the chair, the actual chair, and lastly the printed definition of the word chair (http://www. moma. org/collection/browse_results. php? object_id=81435, 2012). While this may seem strange on the surface the artist is trying point out our lack of observation and is trying to make use want to study and dive deeper into his intended meaning (The Museum of Modern Art, MoMA Highlights, New York: The Museum of Modern Art, revised 2004, originally published 1999, p. 257). Ilya Kabakov’s â€Å"The Man Who Flew into His Picture† Installation Art piece displays a look inside the artist true mindset. He displays true creative imagination and skill. It is a room modeled after a Soviet apartment and has a miniature version of the artist flying thru the fog on the white board. Possibly look for outside validation (http://www. moma. org/collection/browse_results. php? object_id=81057, 2012). Lastly is Performance Art. This style of art is defined by a piece of performance art must be centered on an action carried out or orchestrated by an artist (Kyle Chayka, 2011). â€Å"The Mirror† that has been created by Iselin Bruff and Torsten Klimmer aka Omananda, Liquid Crystal Vision is a current example of performance art (http://www. omananda. com/movies/performance-art/143-neon-pink-mangas-emerge-from-pyramids-into-qthe-mirrorq, 2012). The performers use light, projectors, film, dance and other mediums to explain the Star of David. While I personally feel this is the strangest of all art forms, it does fulfill the definition of art. While it is and can be said that what art is truly up to the viewer to interprete is true; it is up to the artist to display his definition of art. Thru his skills of observation, imagination, he displays to his thoughts and feelings condensed. Whatever their medium maybe it be painting, sculpture, or any of the many others. The world may or may not agree what art is, but the saying is true. It is with in the eyes of the beholder. References http://www.musee-rodin.fr/

Girl by Jamaica Kincaid

The short story â€Å"Girl† by Jamaica Kincaid is a story of the belief that happiness steams from a life of domesticity. The central topics of gender roles in a family structure, and the expression of female sexuality and will be examined. A look into the mother’s beliefs on the necessity of serving your husband and remaining sexually conservative will be the focus. Secondly, the importance of food and clothes in the story will be looked at, providing evidence to the central claim of being content with this lifestyle. Lastly, the relationship between the mother and daughter will be discussed, reflecting on if the views of the mother will ultimately make the decisions for the daughter, as to the path she will follow in her own life. The portrayal of gender roles in this story shows the husband as the breadwinner and the wife staying home to tend to the house and children. This could be considered traditional, however we would consider it outdated in western society today. This story has the mother, teaching her daughter her place in Antiguan society, most likely in the fifties, and in a marriage. This is demonstrated though the teaching of everyday tasks she will need to know to run a household smoothly. It is also clear that the mother’s life reflects these ideals that a husband should be the one working and the wife is to be happy and content by taking pride in her home. The mother also has very strong views on behavior and throughout the story gives many warnings on this such as â€Å"on Sundays try and walk like a lady and not like the slut you are so bent on becoming†. This is a very clear statement giving us an idea of the mother’s values with female sexuality as well as a reflection on the values at that time. She wants her daughter to find a husband and she believes kept pure, and with the knowledge of how to run a successful household, she will be a prize for any man. Abstinence sounds great in theory, but this is not always the case for young women. In this time, expectations are to be wed and then have sex. As much as the mother would like to keep her daughter from having sex, from warning her, and teaching her things like letting then hem of her dress down to be longer, she does realize this may not happen. It is interesting how she feels it necessary to teach her how to get rid of a baby. This reference to abortion at this time shows how crucial the need to keep up appearances at any cost can be, even if it is illegal or against moral and religious beliefs. Food and clothes play an important role in many of the mother’s teachings. The mother shows the daughter how to cook pumpkin fritters, bread pudding, pepper pot and doukona. Some of these dishes are traditional Antiguan which shows the importance of tradition and doing things the way they always have been done. The mother also teachers her how to set tables specifically for different meals. This shows how in the household, eating together is an important part of her ideal home and family. The role of bread in this story is crucial. At the end, he mother teaches her how to squeeze the bread to tell if it is fresh. The daughter, replies â€Å"but what if the baker wont let me feel the bread? † The mother frustrated after all of her lessons is upset that her daughter has not gotten the point that if you do all of these things, you will not have to worry about it because the baker will respect you. The role of the clothes is quite similar to that of food. She teaches her daughter to keep things clean, how to separate the colors from the darks and lights, as well as when to wash each. This particular example shows how much importance the mother places on routine. She also mentions the pressing of her husband’s khaki pants, showing that the way he presents himself can be a reflection of her. Hemming dresses and skirts was looked at with relation to female sexuality earlier, but it also is an example of how much importance is placed on appearances. The relationship between the mother and daughter in this story is important to recognize because the mother seems to hold preconceived notions about what daughter will or will not become. Following most instructions her mother provides, the mother concludes the set with some mention of her daughter being bent on becoming a slut. It seems like she uses this word to encompass any from of deviance from the social norm. It’s questionable as to why her mother has such a strong fear that her daughter will become his—we do not have any specific examples identifying any reason for her to think such things of her own child. Therefore, we lack the ability to argue for or against such a point. However, this might be a difference in generation, perhaps the girl’s mother is stuck in the ways to which she was taught by women in her family before hand. Perhaps her mother has a fear that her daughter is going astray from her values or living a modernized life that she is so unfa miliar with. We tend to fear what is unfamiliar, especially when it happens so close to home. Parents always want to teach their children what they know, however, children don’t always choose to follow. Whether the daughter chooses to listen and follow, or listen and lead her own life, it is clear that her mother has had a significant impact on the daughters life. The importance of domesticity to the mother, and having her daughter display a conservative sexuality ties back to the behaviours related to food and cloth in this story. The mother places this vital importance on household knowledge and respectable appearances, believing they are the key to overall happiness. This is clearly not the case. For some people this type of life could bring them a sense of fulfillment or accomplishment. However, for others, this may not feel like a life of their own and could live always feeling empty or wanting something more. People should be given the choice to do what they want. Unfortunately in this time, women did not get that luxury.

Bystander Intervention

Bystander Intervention 1—-Social Psychology Eye Skip to contentHomeAboutDisclaimerFeatured JournalsNews Editors Bystanders†¦ just standing by. When do people help and when do they not? Posted on March 13, 2011 by ezaiser| 1 Comment By Erica Zaiser Understanding when and why people intervene to help others, or when they don’t, is at the heart of social psychology. All students of psychology study the famous case of Kitty Genovese, whose screams while being attacked failed to elicit help from the nearly 40 bystanders. Most research on bystander intervention has found that the size of the group greatly impacts the likelihood of intervention. Too big of a group and everybody shifts responsibility assuming that someone else will help but the more people the less likely that any individual will help. It seems hard to imagine that people would not help when someone is in trouble, wounded, or in danger, yet it happens all the time. Recently I myself stumbled upon a scene of bystander non-intervention which I have since struggled to understand. The other day while walking home I came upon a man running up and down the street with no shoes or coat holding a phone out shouting at the people on the street and stopping cars banging on the windows. I took a second to survey the scene and it was clear this man was trying to get something from those around him. However nobody was answering him and none of the cars even rolled down their windows to listen. I heard his questions loud and clear, albeit in broken English, â€Å"How to call an ambulance? † Still nobody was saying anything. I shouted to him that he needed to call 999 and he came over profusely grateful for my help and I helped him make his emergency call and assisted him and his family until paramedics could arrive. His mother had fallen unconscious in their flat and he had run into the street esperate to know how to call emergency services in this country. I learned that he and all his family was from eastern Europe and they knew very little English. He also told me that he had been trying to get the number for quite some time but nobody had been willing to help. Having read work on bystander behaviour I shouldn’t have been that surprised that nobody hel ped but the situation just didn’t fit the common notion that with greater numbers people are less likely to help. Most of the famous incidents involving non-helping behaviour has been within large crowds. There were maybe 7 or 10 people on the street when I arrived. Most were just standing and watching. I don’t have a great answer for why people didn’t help, maybe they couldn’t understand his question†¦ but it seemed quite clear to me. Maybe they feared that it was some type of scam.. but certainly it can’t hurt to tell someone a phone number. Even more frustrating than not understanding the lack of help was the sneaking suspicion that had he been British, white, or at least a native English speaker, maybe someone would have helped. Research by Levine and colleagues suggests that there might be an element of truth to that. In a study of non-intervention, their research suggests that bystanders are much more likely to help people when they feel that the person seeking assistance is part of their ingroup. This effect holds true even when controlling for the severity of the situation and the emotional arousal felt by bystanders. In other words, no matter how bad the situation or how badly the bystanders felt, they were still less likely to help when the victim was an outgroup member. ————————————————- This all makes sense from a social psychological perspective and lines up with other research. People tend to behave better to people in their own group in general. But seeing it play out†¦ was still a little depressing. 2-Masculinity inhibits helping in emergencies: Personality does predict the bystander effect. By Tice, Dianne M. ; Baumeister, Roy F. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol 49(2), Aug 1985, 420-428. Abstract Tested 4 competing hypotheses (masculinity as enhancer, femininity as enhancer, interactive, masculinity as inhibitor) regarding the potential effects of dispositional sex-role orientation on bystander intervention in emergencies. 0 undergraduates, classified on the Bem Sex-Role Inventory, participated in a simulated group discussion via headphones. One member of the group apparently had a choking fit and called for help. Highly masculine Ss were less likely to take action to help the victim than were other Ss. Femininity and actual gender had no effect on likelihood of helping. Results are interpreted according to past research evidence th at highly masculine Ss fear potential embarrassment and loss of poise, so they may be reluctant to intervene in emergencies. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) ___________________________________________________________ _____________________- 3-HELP NOW CONSENT Confidential Reporting HOME How to HELP What is †¦? Substance Use and Sexual Assault Parents Faculty – Staff Community Commitment Education Opportunities F A Qs Police Services and Legal Issues Bystanders Can Help A bystander is someone in a crowd who sees a potentially dangerous situation and makes a choice to assist or not to assist. A bystander can protect the values of safety, trust, and honor that are central to our community. The Good Samaritan – Less common than you might think. In 1968 researchers Darley & Latane conducted an experiment in which a student pretended to have a seizure and the experimenters recorded how often others stopped to help. When only one bystander was watching the scene, the student was helped 85% of the time. However, if there were five bystanders, the student was only helped 31% of the time. Does this make sense? Shouldn't having more people present increase the chances that someone will get help? Amazingly, this is not the case. We all take cues from those around us about how to act in different situations. In emergency situations, many things prohibit bystanders from intervening:  ¦If no one else is acting, it is hard to go against the crowd.  ¦People may feel that they are risking embarrassment. (What if I'm wrong and they don't need help? )  ¦They may think there is someone else in the group who is more qualified to help.  ¦They may think that the situation does not call for help since no one else is doing anything. With each person taking cues from people around them, a common result is that no action is taken. What can we do about this problem? As members of the WSU community we all have a responsibility to help each other. Avoid being a bystander! Intervene regardless of what others are doing and don't be worried about being wrong; it is better to be wrong than to have done nothing at all. 1. I am a bystander. What can I do? Be on the look-out for potentially dangerous situations. – Learn how to recognize indications of potentially dangerous situations. Here are some examples of â€Å"red flag† behaviors related to sexual assault:  ¦Inappropriate touching  ¦Suggestive remarks  ¦Testing boundaries  ¦Disregarding set boundaries Inappropriate intimacy  ¦Attempts to isolate someone  ¦Pressuring someone to drink  ¦Violent behaviors  ¦Targeting someone who is visibly impaired 2. If I were in this situation, would I want someone to help me?  ¦If a situation makes us uncomfortable, we may try to dismiss it as not being a problem. You may tell yourself that the other person will be fine, that he or s he is not as intoxicated as you think, or that the person is able to defend him/herself. This is not a solution! The person may need your help more than you think!  ¦When in doubt, TRUST YOUR GUT. Instincts are there for a reason. When a situation makes us feel uncomfortable, it is a generally a good indicator that something is not right.  ¦It is better to be wrong about the situation than do nothing. Many people feel reluctant to intervene in a situation because they are afraid of making a scene or feel as though a person would ask for help if it were needed. 3. You have the responsibility to intervene. You may be thinking:  ¦No one else is helping; it must not be a problem  ¦People who are sober don't think this is a problem, maybe I'm wrong?  ¦Jim's really responsible and he's not intervening†¦ why should I? Many people do not intervene in a potentially dangerous situation because they are looking to others for cues on how to act or they believe someone else will intervene. But IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to act – as a Cougar, as a friend to all other students, and as a member of WSU’s community of trust and safety. 4. You have the skills to act!  ¦Learn effective intervention techniques!  ¦Watch out for other members of the WSU community!  ¦Come up with a plan beforehand!  ¦Talk to your friends about how they would want you to intervene if they are in an uncomfortable situation. Choose the intervention strategy that is best for the situation.  ¦Take a breath and make your move! References Berkowitz, A. Understanding the role of bystander behavior. US Department of Education's 20th Annual National Meeting on Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse and Violence Prevention in Higher Education, Arlington, VA Darley, J. M. , ; Latane, B. (1968). Bystander intervention in emergenci es: Diffusion of responsibility. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 8, 377-383. Cialdini, R. B. (2001) Influence: Science and Practice. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn ; Bacon ————————————————- Counseling Services, PO Box 641065, Washington State University, Pullman WA 99164- 4-New York News ; Views Interactive Reporting from CUNY Graduate School of Journalism site Skip to contentHomeAboutWhat Would You Do? NYC Robbery Bystanders Fail to Help Posted on October 8, 2010 by Brendaliss Gonzalez Courtesy NYPD CompStat Unit You think you’re the only one, and then you remember, you live in New York- you’re never the only one. According to New York City Police Department reports, by September this year, 66,691 people had been victims of robbery, including assault, burglary and grand larceny. It’s amazing how many people can tell you their story of being mugged in the city, even more surprising are the stories that occurred in broad daylight, with witnesses who seemed to have pulled a disappearing act during the occurrence. Two weeks ago, a pair of robberies at ATM’s in Columbus Circle and West 23rd occurred in broad daylight, shocking each of the victims who believed they were playing it safe by going out at early hours. The report fails to mention anyone around them stopping to help. A pregnant woman was also robbed and attacked in Gramercy Park when coming home from a doctor’s appointment- any witnesses? Who knows? And let’s not forget the story in April when a homeless man lay dead for hours after being knifed to death in a heroic attempt to save a woman being robbed- witnesses and passerby’s caught on camera walking past the dead body without even calling for help. The excuse? Most assumed another already called the police. You would think that with so many people having experienced being mugged, most would readily lend a hand or just dial 911 when seeing someone else be mugged. Yet most of the time, no one even flinches. In a busy, dog-eat-dog city like New York, the attitude seems to be more of â€Å"each man for himself. † ————————————————- So, this poses a question that will require you to look deep down and really be honest. Would you stop to help someone being robbed or assaulted? Or would you leave them to fight their own fight? Besides, you don’t want to have to relive that kind of experience, putting yourself in danger – that would just be stupid, right? 5-The Bystander Effect Carol Hensell Program Manager ADHS SVPEP Phoenix, AZ October 2009 If you work in the field of violence prevention, you are probably familiar with the story of Kitty Genovese. In New York, 1964 Kitty Genovese was murdered on the street while 38 witnesses watched from their apartments and failed to intervene. Her story has become influential to the field of social psychology and has promoted the development of ideas around the psychology of helping or â€Å"bystander effect† (Latane ; Darley, 1970). The bystander effect is described as the idea that individuals are more likely to help when alone than when in the company of others (Latane ; Darley, 1970). There is a large amount of literature examining helping behaviors and trying to understand under what conditions do people decide to help others and models of the bystander effect have developed over time. The literature includes studies that examine individual and situational factors that promote or hinder pro-social bystander intervention (Banyard, Moynihan, ; Plante, 2007). Factors that have been found to affect helping behavior are group size, which accounts for the diffusion of responsibility or the idea that someone else will intervene. Perceptions and reactions to situations are negatively affected by the presence of other people. These perceptions can be either real or imagined. Other studies have found that if a group is cohesive and communication occurs, a consensus to help develops and they are more likely to intervene (Banyard, Moynihan, ; Plante, 2007). Living in a rural environment may increase the likelihood of someone intervening (Banyard, Moynihan, ; Plante, 2007). Interpersonal factors that affect if a person intervenes includes: mood, individual perceptions of the event, mood, nature of relationship to the person in need of help, and perceptions that will be able to actually help the person (Banyard, Moynihan, ; Plante, 2007). There appears to be ambiguity around intervening in several situations, especially those that are violent. Norms about what is appropriate and inappropriate behavior in particular social contexts are found in most aspects of individual’s daily lives and they also exist in the area of helping behaviors (Hart ; Miethe, 2008). Understanding these norms can facilitate a greater understanding of bystander behaviors and contribute to creation effective programs for increasing bystander awareness and behaviors in the area of sexual violence prevention. Exploring the bystander effect is important because bystander actions and reactions may affect both the risks of violence and consequences of violence for a victim. A witness or bystander may deter a crime from occurring or their intervention may help a victim if a violent attack is in progress (Hart ; Miethe, 2008). Many people believe that violent crimes occur in secluded places out of the site of others. However, many crimes are committed in the presence of a social audience (Hart ; Miethe, 2008). According to a National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) completed in the 1990’s, bystanders were present in approximately 70% of assaults, 52% of robberies, and 29% of rapes and sexual assault (Planty, 2002 as cited in Hart ; Miethe, 2008). ————————————————- When faced with a potentially dangerous situation, bystanders have choices. They can choose to do nothing, provide indirect support (calling police or others to help), or directly intervene. 6 ————————————————- RemNot So Innocent Bystanders ———————————————— By Sara on March 11, 2010 3:38 PM | 1 Comment | 0 TrackBacks Should bystanders of crime be convicted? There is almost always something t hat a bystander can do to help stop crime against another human. If the criminal is waving a weapon around, it is understandable that not many bystanders would step up to the plate. However, there have been many cases lately that have shown how little bystanders do to help a person in need, when they are fully able to. Some of these bystanders actually JOIN the perpetrator. The links I have posted here show video of a woman being beaten in a subway, with subway officers there. The officers say that it is not their job to step in, and they called for reinforcement. Whoever said that stepping in is not permitting was obviously not there, and did not see how important it is that they DO step in. The second video is a news report of a high school girl who was gang raped outside of her homecoming dance. People watched and jeered, and some who had just been walking by joined in to rape her. Some even recorded the event on their cell-phone cameras. But no one helped these victims. Last semester I took Social Psychology and learned about the Kitty Genovese case. This woman was killed outside of her apartment complex as her neighbors watched and listened. They were given ample time to go out and help her or call for police after the killer had left. No one did anything. This is known as the bystander effect, which is sometimes caused by diffusion of responsibility. Bystanders think, â€Å"Someone else will surely help, someone else has probably already done something, yea, I don't have to do anything. † But often no one helps! This cannot be used as an excuse. These people are almost as guilty as the perpetrator and should be convicted too. Tags:Bystander,bystander effect,diffusion of responsibilty,Kitty Genovese,Social PsychologyNo TrackBacksember, when people intervene for the good of others, it creates a safer community. 7- Don't Just Stand There – Do Something A community where people intervene for the good of others is a safer community. â€Å"The Bystander Effect† Forty years ago, Kitty Genovese was attacked and murdered outside her New York City apartment building. Thirty-eight people heard her calls for help s they watched from behind their apartment windows. The attack lasted more than half an hour. After it was over, someone called the police, who arrived within two minutes. That 1964 incident became a textbook case. Why did so many witnesses fail to act? Phoning the police would involve no risk, and likely would have saved Ms. Genovese's life. Social psychologists Latane and Darley 1 suggested reasons such as diffusion of responsibility or failure to recognize the true significance of the incident. They concluded that the more people witness an event, the less likely each individual is to intervene. This became known as the Bystander Effect. When a violent incident or emergency occurs, the Bystander Effect is not a mere academic concept. In an unpublicized case last summer, seven young men robbed and knifed the 16-year old nephew of a Canada Safety Council staff member, who happened to be walking through a downtown park in a major Canadian city. No one helped the victim or called the police. If the attackers had been caught, they could have faced criminal charges instead of likely going on to commit more crimes. Someone in the crowd must have had a cell phone. Why didn't anyone at least call the police? Numerous incidents like this happen in communities across Canada. Police estimate that only one out of every 10 swarmings is reported. The victims, often teenagers, are left scarred and traumatized for life. Such attacks lead many Canadians to fear their communities are unsafe. This fear only makes matters worse by creating abandoned, dangerous streets. It's not that Canadians don't act when they see an urgent situation. There are countless examples of successful intervention, including people who have risked their life to save a stranger. Nonetheless, police and community safety leaders would like to see more bystander involvement. Simply by reporting an urgent situation, a witness can prevent it from becoming more serious. Everyone Can Help How can the power of bystanders be harnessed in the interest of public safety? Several factors can encourage people to help strangers in distress. When a victim makes it very clear help is needed, people are more likely to intervene. Don't expect bystanders to figure out you're in trouble. Make sure they know. For example, look directly at someone in the crowd and ask for help. Perceived ability to help and perceived risk also determine whether or not a bystander will help. For example, the ubiquitous cell phone empowers users to call for help from almost anywhere, immediately and with little or no risk. Close to six million emergency calls are placed from mobile phones in Canada each year – about half of all calls to emergency numbers. Every day, thousands of Canadians use mobile phones to call for help when they see a crash, a crime in progress or a life-threatening medical emergency. Police urge witnesses of crimes to be observant and to call 9-1-1 as quickly as possible. Give a good description of the perpetrators, where they came from and where they go after the incident. In 1993, two-year-old James Bulger was murdered in the UK by two older children. Ironically, 38 witnesses saw the toddler being led away against his will by two older boys. UK researchers looked at the role of bystanders in the tragedy. Dr. Mark Levine2 found that they did not intervene because they thought the three boys were brothers and considered â€Å"family† a private space. After examining other instances of bystander intervention and non-intervention, Dr. Levine concluded that members of a group take responsibility for the safety of others they see as belonging to the same group — and that the sense of group membership can be broadened. All Canadians must do their part to ensure we continue to live in a safe and civilized society. When you see someone in trouble just think — if you were that person, what would you want passers-by to do? 9-1-1 Tips for Mobile Phone Users Calls to 9-1-1 are free of charge. Do not preprogram 9-1-1 into your phone's speed-dial function. Dial 9-1-1 only when the safety of people or property is at risk (e. . a fire, crime in progress or medical emergency). Provide your 10-digit phone number so the operator can call you back. Give your precise location or the location of the emergency. Describe the emergency clearly. Stay on the line until the operator tells you to hang up. Then, leave your phone turned on in case the operator calls back. 1 Latane, Bibb ; Darley, John M. (1968). Group inhibitio n of bystander intervention in emergencies. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 10(3), 215-221. 2Levine, Mark (2002). Walk On By? Relational Justice Bulletin (Issue 16, Nov 2002) Safety Canada January 2004 Safety Canada January 2004 ————————————————- Canada's Silent Tragedy 8- AP PSYCHOLOGY NILAND Chapter 13 – Social Psychology Page 1 of 5 When Will People Help in a Crisis? John M. Darley and Bibb Latane Most of America lives in cities, and it is one of the major tragedies of these times that our cities are in deep trouble. In small towns throughout the country, people still leave their houses unlocked and the keys in their cars when they park. No one living in a rural community would dream of stealing from someone else, because everyone knows everyone. Who wants to steal from people he knows? And if you stole a friends car, where could you drive it in a small community that it wouldn't instantly be recognized? When everyone knows everyone, complex social systems are not needed to help alleviate those disasters that strike-the fire and police departments are staffed chiefly by volunteers (who never go on strike), and the welfare department consists of charitable neighbors rather than squads o f social workers. Cities are supposed to be collections of small towns, but in at least one important sense, they are not: in a rural community, everyone sees the (often rather crude) machinery of government and feels that it is available to him. In large cities, this machinery is mostly invisible, hidden away in inaccessible Kafkaesque corners. Involvement in local affairs is almost forced on the small-town citizen; the apartment dweller in New York withdraws into his own little world not so much because he wants to as because he has no ready means o f participating actively in the life o f his city even if he wants to. And, as John M. Darley and Bibb Latane point out, withdrawal from and lack of concern about one's fellow citizens can become a terrible habit. Kitty Genovese is set upon by a maniac as she returns home from work at 3 A. m. Thirty-eight of her neighbors in Kew Gardens come to their windows when she cries out in terror; none comes to her assistance even though her stalker takes over half an hour to murder her. No one even so much as calls the police. She dies. Andrew Mormille is stabbed in the stomach as he rides the A train home to Manhattan. Eleven other riders watch the seventeen-year-old boy as he bleeds to death; none comes to his assistance even though his attackers have left the car. He dies. An eighteen-year-old switchboard operator, alone in her office is the Bronx, is raped and beaten. Escaping momentarily, she runs naked and bleeding to the street, screaming for help. A crowd of forty passerby gathers and watches as, in broad daylight, the rapist tries to drag her lack upstairs; no one interferes. Finally two policemen happen by and arrest her assailant. Eleanor Bradley trips and breaks her leg while shopping on Fifth Avenue. Dazed and in shock, she calls for help, but the hurrying stream of executives and shoppers simply parts and flows past. After forty minutes a taxi driver helps her to a doctor. The shocking thing about these cases is that so many people failed to respond. If only one or two had ignored the victim, we might be able to understand their inaction. But when thirty-eight people, or eleven people, or hundreds of people fail to help, we become disturbed. Actually, this fact that shocks us so much is itself the clue to understanding these cases. Although it seems obvious that the more people who watch a victim in distress, the more likely someone will help, what really happens is exactly the opposite. If each member of a group of bystanders is aware that other people are also present, he will be less likely to notice the emergency, less likely to decide that it is an emergency, and less likely to act even if he thinks there is an emergency. This is a surprising assertion-what we are saying is that the victim may actually be less likely to get help, the more people who watch his distress and are available to help. We shall discuss in detail the process through which an individual bystander must go in order to intervene, and we shall present the results of some experiments designed to show the effects of the number of onlookers on the likelihood of intervention. Since we started research on bystander responses to emergencies, we have heard many explanations for the lack of intervention. â€Å"I would assign this to the effect of the megapolis in which we live, which makes closeness very difficult and leads to the alienation of the individual from the group,† contributed a psychoanalyst. A disaster syndrome,† explained a sociologist, â€Å"that shook the sense of safety and sureness of the individuals involved and caused psychological withdrawal from the event by ignoring it. † â€Å"Apathy,† claimed others. â€Å"Indifference. † â€Å"The gratification of unconscious sadistic impulses. † â€Å"Lack of concern for our fellow men. † â€Å"The Cold Society. † All of these analyses of the person who fails to help share one characteristic; they set the indifferent witness apart from the rest of us as a different kind of person. Certainly not one of us who reads about these incidents in horror is apathetic, alienated, or depersonalized. Certainly not AP PSYCHOLOGY NILAND Chapter 13 – Social Psychology Page 2 of 5 one of us enjoys gratifying his sadistic impulses by watching others suffer. These terrifying cases in which people fail to help others certainly have no personal implications for us. That is, we might decide not to ride subways anymore, or that New York isn't even â€Å"a nice place to visit,† or â€Å"there ought to be a law† against apathy, but we need not feel guilty, or reexamine ourselves. Looking more closely at published descriptions of the behavior of witnesses to these incidents, the people involved begin to look a little less inhuman and a lot more like the rest of us. Although it is unquestionably true that the witnesses in the incidents above did nothing to save the victims, apathy, indifference, and unconcern are not entirely accurate descriptions of their reactions. The thirty-eight witnesses of Kitty Genovese's murder did not merely look at the scene once and then ignore it. They continued to stare out of their windows at what was going on. Caught, fascinated, distressed, unwilling to act but unable to turn away, their behavior was neither helpful nor heroic; but it was not indifferent or apathetic. Actually, it was like crowd behavior in many other emergency situations. Car accidents, drownings, fires, and attempted suicides all attract substantial numbers of people who watch the drama in helpless fascination without getting directly involved in the action. Are these people alienated and indifferent? Are the rest of us? Obviously not. Why, then, don't we act? The bystander to an emergency has to make a series of decisions about what is happening and what he will do about it. The consequences of these decisions will determine his actions. There are three things he must do if he is to intervene: notice that something is happening, interpret that event as an emergency, and decide that he has personal responsibility for intervention. If he fails to notice the event, if he decides that it is not an emergency, or if he concludes that he is not personally responsible for acting, he will leave the victim unhelped. This state of affairs is shown graphically as a â€Å"decision tree. Only one path through this decision tree leads to intervention; all others lead to a failure to help. As we shall show, at each fork of the path in the decision tree, the presence of other bystanders may lead a person down the branch of not helping. Noticing: The First Step Suppose that an emergency is actually taking place; a middle-aged man has a heart attack. He st ops short, clutches his chest, and staggers to the nearest building wall, where he slowly slumps to the sidewalk in a sitting position. What is the likelihood that a passerby will come to his assistance? First, the bystander has to notice that something is happening. The external event has to break into his thinking and intrude itself on his conscious mind. He must tear himself away from his private thoughts and pay attention to this unusual event. But Americans consider it bad manners to look too closely at other people in public. We are taught to respect the privacy of others, and when among strangers, we do this by closing our ears and avoiding staring at others-we are embarrassed if caught doing otherwise. In a crowd, then, each person is less likely to notice the first sign of a potential emergency than when alone. Experimental evidence corroborates this everyday observation. Darley and Latane asked college students to an interview about their reactions to urban living. As the students waited to see the interviewer, either by themselves or with two other students, they filled out a preliminary questionnaire. Solitary students often glanced idly about the room while filling out their questionnaires; those in groups, to avoid seeming rudely inquisitive, kept their eyes on their own papers. As part of the study, we staged an emergency: smoke was released into the waiting room through a vent. Twothirds of the subjects who were alone when the smoke appeared noticed it immediately, but only a quarter of the subjects waiting in groups saw it as quickly. Even after the room had completely filled with smoke one subject from a group of three finally looked up and exclaimed, â€Å"God! I must be smoking too much† Although eventually all the subjects did become aware of the smoke, this study indicates that the more people present, the slower an individual may be to perceive that an emergency does exist and the more likely he is not to see it at all. Once an event is noticed, an onlooker must decide whether or not it is truly an emergency. Emergencies are not always clearly labeled as such; smoke pouring from a building or into a waiting room may be caused by a fire, or it may merely indicate a leak in a steam pipe. Screams -in the street may signal an assault or a family quarrel. A man lying in a doorway may be having a coronary, suffering from diabetic coma, or he may simply be sleeping off a drunken night. And in any unusual situation, Candid Camera may be watching. A person trying to decide whether or not a given situation is an emergency often refers to the reactions of those around him; he looks at them to see how he should react himself. If everyone else is calm and indifferent, he will tend to remain calm and indifferent; if everyone else is reacting strongly, he will become aroused. This tendency is not merely slavish conformity; ordinarily we derive much valuable information about new situations from how others around us behave. It's a rare traveler who, in picking a roadside restaurant, chooses to stop at one with no cars in the parking lot. AP PSYCHOLOGY NILAND Chapter 13 – Social Psychology Page 3 of 5 But occasionally the reactions of others provide false information. The studied nonchalance of patients in a dentist's waiting room is a poor indication of the pain awaiting them. In general, it is considered embarrassing to look overly concerned, to seem flustered, to â€Å"lose your cool† in public. When we are not alone, most of us try to seem less anxious than we really are. In a potentially dangerous situation, then, everyone present will appear more unconcerned than he is in fact. Looking at the apparent impassivity and lack of reaction of the others, each person is led to believe that nothing really is wrong. Meanwhile the danger may be mounting, to the point where a single person, uninfluenced by the seeming calm of others, would react. A crowd can thus force inaction on its members by implying, through its passivity and apparent indifference, that an event is not an emergency. Any individual in such a crowd is uncomfortably aware that he'll look like a fool if he behaves as though it were-and in these circumstances, until someone acts, no one acts. In the smoke-filled-room study, the smoke trickling from the wall constituted an ambiguous but potentially dangerous situation. How did the presence of other people affect a person's response to the situation? Typically, those who were in the waiting room by themselves noticed the smoke at once, gave a slight startle reaction, hesitated, got up and went over to investigate the smoke, hesitated again, and then left the room to find somebody to tell about the smoke. No one showed any signs of panic, but over three-quarters of these people were concerned enough to report the smoke. Others went through an identical experience but in groups of three strangers. Their behavior was radically different. Typically, once someone noticed the smoke, he would look at the other people, see them doing nothing, shrug his shoulders, and then go back to his questionnaire, casting covert glances first at the smoke and then at the others. From these three-person groups, only three out of twenty-four people reported the smoke. The inhibiting effect of the group was so strong that the other twenty-one were willing to sit in a room filled with smoke rather than make themselves conspicuous by reacting with alarm and concern-this despite the fact that after three or four minutes the tmosphere in the waiting room grew most unpleasant. Even though they coughed, rubbed their eyes, tried to wave the smoke away, and opened the window, they apparently were unable to bring themselves to leave. These dramatic differences between the behavior of people alone and those in a group indicate that the group imposed a definition of the situation upon its members that inhibited action. â€Å"A leak in the air cond itioning,† said one person when we asked him what he thought caused the smoke. â€Å"Must be chemistry labs in the building. † â€Å"Steam pipes. â€Å"Truth gas to make us give true answers on the questionnaire,† reported the more imaginative. There were many explanations for the smoke, but they all had one thing in common: they did not mention the word fire. In defining the situation as a non-emergency, people explained to themselves why the other observers did not leave the room; they also removed any reason for action themselves. The other members of the group acted as non-responsive models for each person-and as an audience for any â€Å"inappropriate† action he might consider. In such a situation it is all too easy to do nothing. The results of this study clearly and strongly support the predictions. But are they general? Would the same effect show up with other emergencies, or is it limited to situations like the smoke study involving danger to the self as well as to others-or to situations in which there's no clearly defined â€Å"victim†? It may be that our college-age male subjects played â€Å"chicken† with one another to see who would lose face by first fleeing the room. It may be that groups were less likely to respond because no particular person was in danger. To see how generalize these results were, Latane and Judith Rodin set up a second experiment, in which the emergency would cause no danger-for the bystander, and in which a specific person was in trouble. Subjects were paid $50 to participate in a survey of game and puzzle preferences conducted at Columbia by the Consumer Testing Bureau (CTB). An attractive young woman, the market-research representative, met them at the door and took them to the testing room. On the way, they passed the CTB office and through its open door they could see filing cabinets and a desk nd bookcases piled high with papers. They entered the adjacent testing room, which contained a table and chairs and a variety of games, where they were given a preliminary background information and game preference questionnaire to fill out. The representative told subjects that she would be working next door in her office for about ten minutes while they completed the questionnaires, and left by opening the collapsible cu rtain that divided the two rooms. She made sure the subjects knew that the Curtain was unlocked, easily opened, and a means of entry to her office. The representative stayed in her office, shuffling papers, opening drawers, and making enough noise to remind the subjects of her presence. Four minutes after leaving the testing area, she turned on a high-fidelity stereophonic tape recorder. AP PSYCHOLOGY NILAND Chapter 13 – Social Psychology Page 4 of 5 If the subject listened carefully, he heard the representative climb up on a chair to reach for a stack of papers on the bookcase. Even if he were not listening carefully, he heard a loud crash and a scream as the chair collapsed and she fell to the floor. â€Å"Oh, my God, my foot . . . I . . . I . . . can't move it. Oh . . . my ankle,† the representative moaned. â€Å"I . . . can't get this . . . thing . . . off me. † She cried and moaned for about a minute longer, but the cries gradually got more subdued and controlled. Finally she muttered something about getting outside, knocked over the chair as she pulled herself up, and thumped to the door, closing it be hind her as she left. This drama lasted about two minutes. Some people were alone in the waiting room when the â€Å"accident† occurred. Some 70 percent of them offered to help the victim before she left the room. Many came through the curtain to offer their assistance, others simply called out to offer their help. Others faced the emergency in pairs. Only 20 percent of this group eight out of forty offered to help the victim. The other thirty-two remained unresponsive to her cries of distress. Again, the presence of other bystanders inhibited action. And again, the non-interveners seemed to have decided the event was not an emergency. They were unsure what had happened, but whatever it was, it was not too serious. â€Å"A mild sprain,† some said. I didn't want to embarrass her. † In a â€Å"real† emergency, they assured us, they would be among the first to help the victim. Perhaps they would be, but in this situation they did not help, because for them the event was not defined as an emergency. Again, solitary people exposed to a potential emergency reacted more frequently than those exposed in groups. We found that the action-inhibiting effects of other bystanders works i n two different situations, one of which involves risking danger to oneself and the other of which involves helping an injured woman. The result seems sufficiently general so that we may assume it operates to inhibit helping in real-life emergencies. Diffused Responsibility Even if a person has noticed an event and defined it as an emergency, the fact that he knows that other bystanders also witnessed it may still make him less likely to intervene. Others may inhibit intervention because they make a person feel that his responsibility is diffused and diluted. Each soldier in a firing squad feels less personally responsible for killing a man than he would if he alone pulled the trigger. Likewise, any person in a crowd of onlookers may feel less responsibility for saving a life than if he alone witnesses the emergency. If your car breaks down on a busy highway, hundreds of drivers whiz by without anyone's stopping to help; if you are stuck on a nearly deserted country road, whoever passes you first is apt to stop. The personal responsibility that a passerby feels makes the difference. A driver on a lonely road knows that if he doesn't stop to help, the person will not get help; the same individual on the crowded highway feels he personally is no more responsible than any of a hundred other drivers. So even though an event clearly is an emergency, any person in a group who sees an emergency may feel less responsible, simply because any other bystander is equally responsible for helping. This diffusion of responsibility might have occurred in the famous Kitty Genovese case, in which the observers were walled off from each other in separate apartments. From the silhouettes against windows, all that could be told was that others were also watching. . To test this line of thought, Darley and Latane simulated an emergency in a setting designed to resemble Kitty Genovese's murder. People overheard a victim calling for help. Some knew they were the only one to hear the victim's cries, the rest believed other people were aware of the victim's distress. As with the Genovese witnesses, subjects could not see each other or know what others were doing. The kind of direct group inhibition found in the smoke and fallen-woman studies could not operate. For the simulation, we recruited male and female students at New York University to participate in a group discussion. Each student was put in an individual room equipped with a set of headphones and a microphone and told to listen for instructions over the headphones. The instructions informed the participant that the discussion was to consider personal problems of the normal college student in a high-pressure urban university. It was explained that, because participants might feel embarrassed about discussing personal problems publicly, several precautions had been taken to, ensure their anonymity: they would not meet the other people face to face, and the experimenter would not listen to the initial discussion but would only ask for their reactions later. Each person was to talk in turn. The first to talk reported that he found it difficult to adjust to New York and his studies. Then, very hesitantly and with obvious embarrassment, he mentioned that he was prone to nervous seizures, similar to but not really the same as epilepsy. These occurred particularly when he was under the stresses of studying and being graded. Other people then discussed their own problems in turn. The number of other people in the discussion varied. But whatever the perceived size of the group two, three, or six people-only the subject was actually present; the others, as well as the instructions and the speeches of the victim-to-be, were present only on a prerecorded tape. When it again was the first person's turn to talk, after a few comments he launched into the following AP PSYCHOLOGY NILAND Chapter 13 – Social Psychology Page 5 of 5 performance, getting increasingly louder with increasing speech difficulties: I can see a lot of er of er how other people's problems are similar to mine ecause er er I mean er it's er I mean some of the er same er kinds of things that I have and an er I'm sure that every everybody has and er er I mean er they're not er e-easy to handle sometimes and er I er er be upsetting like er er and er I er um I think I I need er if if could er er somebody er er er er er give me give me a little er give me a little help here because er I er I'm er h-h-having a a a a a real problem er right now and I er if somebody could help me out it would it would er er s-s-sure be sure be good be . . because er there er er a cause I er uh I've got a a one of the er seiz-er er things coming on and and and I c-could really er use er some h-help s-so if somebody would er give me a little h-help uh er-er-er-er-er c-could somebody er er help er uh uh uh [choking sounds] . . . I'm gonna die er er I'm . . . gonna . . .. die er help er er seizure er er . . . [chokes, then quiet]. While this was going on, the experimenter waited outside the student's door to see how soon he would emerge to cope with the emergency. Rather to our surprise, some people sat through the entire fit without helping; a disproportionately large percentage of these non-responders were from the largest-size group. Some 85 percent of the people who believed themselves to be alone with the victim came out of their rooms to help, while 62 percent of the people who believed there was one other bystander did so. Of those who believed there were four other bystanders, only 31 percent reported the fit before the tape ended. The responsibility-diluting effect of other people was so strong that single individuals were more than twice as likely to report the emergency as those who thought other people also knew about it. The Moral Dilemma Felt by Those Who Do Not Respond People who failed to report the emergency showed few signs of apathy and indifference thought to characterize â€Å"unresponsive bystanders. † When the experimenter entered the room to end the situation, the subject often asked if the victim was â€Å"all right. † Many of these people showed physical signs of nervousness; they often had trembling hands and sweating palms. If anything, they seemed more emotionally aroused than did those who reported the emergency. Their emotional arousal was in sharp contrast to the behavior of the non-responding subjects in the smoke and fallen-woman studies. Those subjects were calm and unconcerned when their experiments were over. Having interpreted the events as non-emergencies, there was no reason for them to be otherwise. It was only the subjects who did not respond in the face of the clear emergency represented by the fit who felt the moral dilemma. Why, then, didn't they respond? It is our impression that non-intervening subjects had not decided not to respond. Rather, they were still in a state of indecision and conflict concerning whether to respond or not. The emotional behavior of these non-responding subjects was a sign of their continuing conflict; a conflict that other people resolved by responding. The distinction seems an academic one for the victim, since he gets no help in either case, but it is an extremely important one for understanding why bystanders fail to help. The evidence is clear, then, that the presence of other bystanders and the various ways these other bystanders affect our decision processes make a difference in how likely we are to give help in an emergency. The presence of strangers may keep us from noticing an emergency at all; group behavior may lead us to define the situation as one that does not require action; and when other people are there to share the burden of responsibility, we may feel less obligated to do something when action is required. Therefore, it will often be the case that the more people who witness his distress, the less likely it is that the victim of an emergency will get help. Thus, the stereotype of the unconcerned, depersonalized homo urbanis, blandly watching the misfortunes of others, proves inaccurate. Instead, we find a bystander to an emergency is an anguished individual in genuine doubt, concerned to do the right thing but compelled to make complex decisions under pressure of stress and fear. His reactions are shaped by the actions of others and all too frequently by their inaction. And we are that bystander. Caught up by the apparent indifference of others, we may pass by an emergency without helping or even realizing that help is needed. Aware of the influence of those around us, however, we can resist it. We can choose to see distress and step forward to relieve it.

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Forensic Psychology and Criminal Investigation - Essay Example Plea bargaining is seen to let ‘professional’ criminals get off the hook too easily as they are familiar with the criminal justice system (Miceli, 1996). There are evident advantages for guilty offenders to opt for plea bargain as it significantly reduces their sentence as per the Sentencing Guidelines Council (2007) despite convincing evidence. Similarly, imprisonment may be substituted by alternatives such as home detention, probation period, or community service and even immediate release. Sexual offenders can greatly benefit by pleading guilty to violent behaviour instead of sexual charges that would save them from public registration, special discharge terms, and restricted parole conditions. A defendant who is found guilty of a serious felony in a jury trial on average receives a prison sentence twice of that offered in plea bargain for the same crime (Soni & McCann, 1996). The point of time in a trial when a defendant negotiates plea bargain is critical as it sign ificantly affects sentencing. The Runciman Report demonstrated how knowledgeable criminals use plea bargain to their advantage when they are certain of the verdict, which ensues in a cracked trial (Runciman, 1993). Criminal justice systems based on plea bargain subtly rob defendants of their constitutional rights simply on the excuse of lack of time or money to listen. In reality, plea bargaining creates unconstitutional conditions and exerts impermissible burden on a variety of chief constitutional liberties (Baker & Mezzetti, 2001). In consideration of this, Justice Powell contended (OHear, 2007): Plea bargain deprives the defendant of three fundamental rights protected by Fifth and Sixth Amendments, namely, the right of jury trial, self-incrimination, and confronting hostile witnesses. Weak cases are more likely to enter into plea bargains, as it is difficult to

Civil Liability Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Civil Liability - Essay Example Without an adequately stated cause of action the plaintiff's case can be dismissed at the outset. It is not sufficient merely to state that certain events occurred that entitle the plaintiff to relief. All the elements of each cause of action must be detailed in the complaint. The claims must be supported by the facts, the law, and a conclusion that flows from the application of the law to those facts.2 To prove a cause of action for negligence, you need to prove the four elements of the tort. The four elements of a tort are the following: a) the existence of a legal duty owed by a person to others which is usually provided by common or statutory laws; b) the breach of the duty by one person (or the negligence itself); c) the breach of the duty being the proximate cause of damages suffered by a person; and, d) damages incurred by a person. In a car accident for example, you need to prove the following to hold the driver who caused the crash liable for negligence; a duty to operate the vehicle properly, that they breached that duty by driving improperly, that the breach of the duty by the offending driver caused the accident; and, that the person was damaged by the accident, in the form of injuries.3 In general, a party who has caused an injury or loss to another as a consequence of his negligence is responsible for all the consequences.4 The usual penalty for negligence is the payment of damages. Damages, in a legal sense, are the sum of money the law imposes for a breach of some duty or violation of some right.5 It place a monetary value on harm done following the principle of restitution in interim (Lain term for "restoration to the original condition. Thus, for most purposes connected with the quantification of damages, the degree of culpability in the breach of the duty is irrelevant. Once the breach of duty is established, the only requirement is to compensate the victim. One main test that is posed when deliberating whether a defendant is entitled for damages is the "reasonable person" test. This answers the question: would a reasonable person (to be determined by a judge or a jury) be damaged by the breach of duty This test is important in deciding whether or not a defen dant is entitled to compensation for negligence or tort. Generally, there are two types of damages: compensatory and punitive. The term "damages" typically includes categories, but the term "actual damages" is synonymous with compensatory damages, and excludes punitive damages. Compensatory damages, like the name suggests, are intended to compensate the injured party for his loss or injury. This may include past and future economic losses, including medical expenses and loss of wages, and general damages such as such as pain, suffering, and mental anguish.6 Each of the four elements of a tort typically must be present to be compensated. Slip and Fall Accident A typical source of cause of action because of negligence in the United Kingdom is the slip and fall accident. This happens when a person slips and falls over a private or public property because of the wet, rough, or oily floor or due to the dangerous condition of the place that resulted to injury. It is normal to slip and fall, however, if the accident was caused by negligence of the property owner (or occupier), then he can be held liable for the injuries sustained by a person, whether the victim is an expected

Feminism and International Relations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Feminism and International Relations - Essay Example However, there are no agreed standards on how to achieve the equality standards. While most problems in international relations field are considered to reveal around the issue of war and security  as most realists assume, there are numerous groups that are liberal in nature, which are concerned in human rights groups, civil society, international political economy, development in the social space among others. For many years, realism and liberalism have been the two main theorists that address issues in international relations. Vibrant societal networks with entrenched confidence and practice leads lead to acknowledgement of important objectives in the country’s systems.The feminist movements and groups do influence international relations decisions by advocating new and better approaches to global to promote justice, equality, and maximise the value of humanity in globe affairs. Literature Review Feminism is currently a political movement and continues to challenge traditio nal approaches of conceptualising politics in the society and the political disciplines (Randall 1995, 118). There are two types of feminism: radical and Marxist feminism that had a revolutionary mind while the liberal feminists have portrayed themselves as reformists in international relations. As a result, in most western countries, the reformist mindset has won the political space, with many women, feminists included, making an impact in political institutions and professions (Randall 1995, 118). Feminist empiricism advances the perspective that states and interstate relations have been governed by dominating gendered structures, and interactions that have been neglecting women in leadership. Feminist standpoint is that women in their varied experiences in life have gained expertise and knowledge in the political life, which offers different perspectives on social issues that provide reliable and effective solutions to most problems in the world political system (Keohane 1989, 24 5). Therefore, the role of feminisms in international relations is to criticise any patriarchal thinking and introduce gendered structures in the society. The social and political integration have an impact on women discrimination since they diversify foundation of political competition and contribute to formation of diverse identities and understanding among citizens. Societal revolutions such as relocation from rural to city resolution areas, speedy population change, democratic politics, and improvement affect women rights. The political protests by women aim at convincing authorities of particular policies as well as create social norms through endorsing particular social behaviors. Problems Feminist Face in International Relations Women discrimination narrows the potential range of policy responses, undermines the capacity of the society to respond autonomously to the demands of their citizenry thereby weakening the legitimacy of traditional political intermediaries and state a uthorities. These new arrangements promoted the diffusion of new values of good governance, human rights, institutional structures, policy formulation, and democracy. One of the major problems that feminists have sought to deal with is in sovereignty of nations. For many years, sovereignty has been related to reciprocity (Keohane 1989, 247). In other words, as Koehane explains, while states have to claims their sovereignty, such states have a duty to respect the sovereignty of other states. These traditional international relation perspectives were discriminatory and tend to separate a nation from others. As Cohn (1987,

Somali Pirates Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Somali Pirates - Personal Statement Example They possess automatic weapons along with loads of AK-47s, tracking equipments, advanced communication devices. They have different levels of attack and methods of dealing within each level. In my line of thinking, they are the true masters of deception and entrapment although this includes physical attack; their camouflaging is better than the chameleons themselves. One aspect of piracy which surprises me a great deal is the inability to sustain security onboard and on the seaways. In other words, world’s massive trade is moved through these very seas estimated to be at more than 90% of the world’s economy is most prone to attacks and loss of billions of money through piracy! The only explanation I can think of is a refusal to attend to the indifference. But then in my opinion these areas have the largest amount of poverty and are, one way or the other, entitled to the world’s money. And the corporations suffering the loss deserve it because poverty began when the world denied people the right to have money. Although several corporations are involved in helping the Somali pirates buy the latest technology; getting their hands on such technology is something that they cannot accomplish by themselves. It is a known fact that the waters of Somalia cannot be regulated at all much less 24/7, the reason being as simple as the government being unable to impose further responsibility on their already strained assets. Although in my opinion is it is not entirely impossible because if a huge force is to arrive on the scene, piracy can be lessened. NATO and other such organizations are patrolling the area though without guarantees of any sort. Piracy has become socially acceptable in Somalia; after all what is one supposed to do after almost two decades of unending conflict. Somalia’s need for food aid is estimated to be at about 50 % of

The Best Sports Day Ever Essay Example for Free

The Best Sports Day Ever Essay Our school, SMK Mohd Khalid, had an Annual Sports Day recently. The event took place at the school field on the 30th of June 2012. Parents and students arrived and settled down on chairs located under big yellow tents. Once they were all settled in, our beloved principal Tuan Hj Suleiman kicked things off with an opening speech. He welcomed the parents and gave words of encouragement for our spiritual athletes. Meanwhile, the students participating in the school sports house march had gathered in the school field for further preparation. All of the school sports house tents are adorned with big banners and flags. Mascots of each team appeared like cartoon characters such as Angry Birds, Minecraft Guy and even the feared Lord Megatron! Some mascots even had electrical gimmicks such as Megatron’s glowing fusion cannon and Angry Birds theme song. However. The weather was bad. It had rained but this did not stop them. They had trained long and hard for this day. By the time it was 8 in the morning the school sport houses such as red house, yellow house, green house, blue house and red house had started their march. They saluted past the parents’ tent and the juries’ table. It was slightly drizzling but they continued on around the field. Various events were held after. Events such as the 100 metre race, 4 times 100 metre race and tug of war had taken place on this heavenly day. After all of the athletes showed their skills in the games, there The sound of the marching band drowns all the cheering of the crowds. Our drum major, Amir Reza and his band of enthusiastic boys marched with military precision until the band resembles the U. S Navy Seal marching. Once everything had died down, they had a prize giving ceremony to all the winners for the events. Apparently the house with the highest medal tally was the red house. Also, our athlete Lim Jia Qing a. k. a the ‘Giant Panda’ had been nominated as the best 100m sprinter and would be competing in the coveted SUKMA Games. But above all is not about the medals, it is not about the achievements but it is about the competitive spirit of athletes and the sheer determination and teamwork that all our athletes had portrayed. We are now waiting eagerly and zippy about the next and upcoming sports week.

Case Study - Early Alzheimers Essay Example for Free

Case Study Early Alzheimers Essay This paper reviews the use of cognitive rehabilitation treatment of early stage of dementia Alzheimer’s type. The case study examines a 72 year old male patient diagnosed with early stage dementia of Alzheimer’s Type. This study used visual imagery, as well as cues and expanding rehearsal during the cognitive rehabilitation. The evaluation of cognitive rehabilitation treatment included the psychological, physiological, neurological assessments and self-reports. Results suggested that extended use of cognitive rehabilitation treatment ensued longer lasting improved cognitive functioning.  With the results of the study discussed, implications suggest that combining longer treatment of cognitive rehabilitation could help reduce the progression of early onset dementia of the Alzheimer’s Type. Case Study Clare, Wilson, Carter, Hodges, and Adams (2001) studied a 74-year old single man, named â€Å"VJ† who lived with his sister in a single case study. VJ was formerly employed in the construction industry. VJ started to attend the memory clinic in 1993. He was then diagnosed having an early stage of dementia of Alzheimer type (DAT). His sister joined him at the clinic. The researchers started with a process called, cognitive rehabilitation (CR) intervention. Cognitive rehabilitation (CR) focuses on memory functioning. Although CR was at first developed for patients with traumatic brain injuries, it was proven to be efficient for people experiencing cognitive difficulties (Savage, 2009, p. 31). In order to define CR, it is necessary to define cognition. Katz and Hadas (1995) quote Lidz in defining cognition, â€Å"†¦as the individuals capacity to acquire and use information to adapt to environmental demands† (p. 9). Sigelman and Rider (2012) say that cognition is, â€Å"the activity of knowing and the process through which knowledge is acquired and problems solved† (p. 210). Cognitive rehabilitation is quoted by Katz and Hadas (1995) â€Å"†¦the therapeutic process of increasing or improving an individuals capacity to process and use incoming information so as to allow increased functioning in everyday life, this includes both methods to restore cognitive functioning and compensatory techniques (p. 29). Interventions aimed in CR are divided into remedial and adaptive/functional strategies (Katz Hadas, 1995). The main aim of the remedial strategy is the individuals impaired capabilities. The functional strategies are aimed to enhance the strengths of the individual for functioning. The assumption these two strategies are built upon is, â€Å"†¦that functional activities require cognitive perceptual skills†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Katz Hadas, 1995, p. 30) and cognitive impairments can be modified and treated in the adult dysfunctional brain which will enhance reorganisation or recovery of the brain. Based on these assumptions the remedial strategy is directed towards functional abilities by retraining perception skill components of behaviour, while the functional strategy in contrast assumes that the affected adult brain has limited recovery potential and that retraining of the brain should be focused on specific activities as required (Katz Hadas, 1995). The unique feature of all occupational therapy models, are the emphasis that treatment is based on purposeful activities that are analyzed and adapted to the patients cognitive and functional ability level. This therapy is not without controversy. As the critics of CR indicated, memory training for people with DAT increases frustration for the patients, because the improvement in cognition is short term (Clare et al. , 2001). Sigelman and Rider (2012) agree by saying, â€Å"†¦over time, individuals cannot recall even with the aid of cues and become increasingly frustrated† (p. 541). Neuroplasticity is possible before or in the early stages of AD, but diminishes in later phases of AD. Clare et al. 2001) found empirical research to prove that CR is an effective method of slowing the decline of cognitive functions in early AD. Questions about CR which remain to be answered include impact of CR on well-being and life quality, the ability to sustain longevity of gains in cognitive therapy and what type of contributions can CR make in AD? (Clare et al, 2001). Lately, â€Å"identifying cognitive markers of a preclinical phase of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) has been a major research focus in neuropsychology† (Jacobson et al. 2009, p. 278). Cognitive Rehabilitation Intervention Clare and colleagues, (2001) predicted in theory, that the possibility cognitive rehabilitation may be responsible for the maintenance of memory gains over time. The researchers set to prove through long-term follow-up data that memory retraining had lasting effects and showed gains beyond the treatment sessions as demonstrated by previous cognitive rehabilitation studies. The researchers used 11 Polaroid photos of VJ’s club members to teach the face-name associations. This was performed by the method of combining visual imagery, vanishing cues, and expanding rehearsal (Clare et al. , 2001). The researchers took VJ to the familiar environment of the club to do generalisation sessions using the photos and found the initial recall was 20% and raised to 98% over time and became 100% at the one, three, six and nine months follow-up sessions. VJ practiced every day using the photographs. â€Å"In the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease, free recall tasks are difficult but memory is good if cues to recall are provided†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Sigelman Rider, 2012, p. 41), like the photos in this case study. After the ninth months, the researchers took the photos away to use them only once a month, at the club with VJ. VJ was to recall the first names of the people in the photos with zero feedback given to VJ. After the first and second year, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was completed. At the same times neuropsychological assessment were completed to evaluate the results of changes in cognitive functioning compared to the initial and post-intervention assessments. Several tests were used in the neuropsychological assessment such as the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE); National Adult Reading Test (NART); Standard Progressive Matrices (SPM); Speed and Capacity of Language Processing (SCOLP); Visual Object and Space Perception Battery (VOSP); Unfamiliar Face Matching; Digit span, forwards and backwards; Rivermead Behavioural Memory Test (RBMT); Doors and People; Famous Faces and Famous Names. Self-report measures were used as well to assess VJ’s perceptions of memory problems, behaviour, affect and VJ’s sister on caregiver strain. The following measures were used: Memory Symptoms Questionnaire; Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS); Caregiver Strain Index (CSI) VJ’s sister rated herself on strain experienced (Clare et al. , 2001). The initial and post-intervention neuropsychological assessments shown VJ’s general cognitive abilities before he contracted DAT were in the high average ranges, his post-intervention scores were above average, though speed of processing was slower. VJ’s perceptual skills and processing of unfamiliar faces were in normal ranges. Memory was severely impaired, having difficulty recalling names of famous people. Overall there was not much of a change between the initial and post-intervention assessments, but only a mild decline in abstract reasoning and speed of processing information. While some of VJ’s cognitive functions remained the same, â€Å"†¦a gradual decline in abstract reasoning, speed of information processing, working memory, episodic memory, and semantic memory over the study period was evident. MMSE scores, too, showed a mild decline†¦assessment of coronal T1 images (MRI) revealed mild, but definite, bilateral hippocampal atrophy as indicated by enlargement of the temporal horn of the lateral ventricle and reduction in height of the hippocampal formation† (Clare et al. , 2001, p. 486-487). After all the results were taken in consideration it seems that this case study provides the evidence that long-term maintenance of specific gains can be achieved with a CR procedure. The use of CR in dementia was criticised as not being an intervention that can assure any gains beyond the treatment sessions. It is clear from the results of this study that this claim is untrue. Another case study in 2003 was done with the same interventions. The same results were found and support the finding that CR maybe a valuable comprehensive intervention for persons with early identified dementia of the Alzheimer type (Clare, Wilson, Carter, Hodges, 2003). Conclusions The results of this case study indicate the importance of length in cognitive rehabilitation for individuals diagnosed with early staged dementia of the Alzheimer’s type. The use of cognitive rehabilitation over an extended period of treatment allowed the researchers to evaluate the importance of visual imagery, recall and extended rehearsal strategies in treatment. The positive results indicated possible development in the treatment of diagnosed patients, as well as duration and techniques applied. Future studies will need to focus on the exact parameters of duration for treatment with cognitive rehabilitation in patients diagnosed with early stage dementia of Alzheimer’s Type. Implications arrived from the longevity of treatment could also improve the overall quality of treatment, evidence to substantiate financial support/funding for treatment and improve motivation and expectations from patients and family members. The importance to involve cognitive stimulation with patients diagnosed with early stages of Alzheimer’s disease is apparent in subsequent research and continues to be implicated in other similar cognitive dysfunctions.

360 Degree Feedback In Developing Leadership Skills Management Essay

360 Degree Feedback In Developing Leadership Skills Management Essay There is a great deal of controversy about the relevancy of using 360-degree feedback as a tool to develop leadership skills. Some view 360-degree feedback as a collaborative tool, a tool offering a more balanced circle of feedback based on the assessments of superiors, peers, and subordinates. These views lead me to wonder, how effective can this tool be if it does not factor in leadership styles and the potential for bias based on popularity? Will personality and popularity play a role in the assessment? Though extreme, there is some merit to my position. This realization guided me to my decision that 360-degree feedback is an effective tool to provide self assessment and can also be used to enhance performance measures during annual counseling such as leadership, communication, and mission effectiveness. Background The underlying theory of 360-degree feedback asserts that an assessment received from multiple sources provides unique and meaningful information to the recipient. Rapid growth of its use was fueled by the need to adapt to a changing human resources management environment and by numerous studies that supported the effectiveness of multi-source ratings in post-feedback management development. A significant complaint of the traditional performance appraisal system voiced by services is that feedback is generally one-sided and can lack objectivity. In the 1940s, the Army implemented a tool called the multi-rater system, also known as the multisource assessment process.  [1]  The multi-rater system allows a persons evaluation to encompass reviews from not only a rater, but also a persons subordinates, peers, clients, and organizational hierarchy. This allows a reviewer to get a more complete picture of a person and removes a singular rater from being able to determine the fate of a career. If an officers boss dislikes a subordinate, but he gets top marks from everyone else, it puts the bosss review in context, and would likely generate questions from the senior rater over the rating ability of the boss. In 2006, the Navy tested a prototype model of the 360-degree feedback process in the Surface Warfare Community. Similar to Army results, the Navy prototype showcased a strength of the 360-degree feedback process is its ability to provide varying perspectives of raters. The Navy prototype findings also emphasized that a supervisor cannot observe all the interactions, strengths and opportunities for improvement of his subordinates for evaluation reports, especially if the span of control is broad.  [2]  So why should the supervisor be the only person to provide performance feedback? Discussion A major advantage to the 360-degree feedback process is that it provides an opportunity for people with whom a person comes into frequent contact to offer feedback. This is an important consideration because the rater should be the person that has observed the employee on a frequent basis. It would be unfair and impractical to ask a rater for input when the opportunity to observe an employees skills, talents and abilities have not been provided on a regular basis. Lets look at two examples of 360-degree feedback in action; first lets look at an Army Captain who serves as a signal officer in an infantry battalion. His rater is the Battalion Executive Officer, a combat-arms officer, who does not know much about communication other than how to operate a radio. If the signal officer performs his job well, the XO will likely give him a reasonably favorable review on a traditional Evaluation Review. Now lets use a 360-degree feedback process and involve his higher-echelon counterpart, the Brigade S6 Officer, who is a Major and a signal officer, who gives the Captain an excellent rating based on his technical proficiency. If we involve his section, they can comment on his leadership, management style and his ability to explain complex technical issues in plain English. His peers in the battalion, other captains and the company commanders, all give him high marks for working with them to resolve communication issues. Now the 360-degree feedback proces s is given to his senior rater, the Battalion Commander, who now has a more complete view of this officer and how he has performed based on additional feedback from numerous sources, rather than the traditional counseling from one rater that would have communicated a generic, but reasonably positive review. Another example of how this method is beneficial is to look at an Army infantry platoon leader, a 1st Lieutenant, who routinely sucks up to his company commander, volunteers his platoon for the toughest assignments, scores expert in marksmanship and fitness and has impressed the battalion commander in a field operation. This 1st Lieutenant would normally excel in the traditional counseling process, because his rater and senior rater have the impression that he is above and beyond the standard. Using the 360-degree process, lets say his platoon sergeant reports the 1st Lieutenant delegates much of his work to him and leaves work as early as possible. Some of his squad leaders complain that they always get stuck with volunteer duty while the 1st Lieutenant is off somewhere sleeping. His fellow 1st Lieutenants do not like the guy and view him as a show-off. When this review hits the senior raters desk it will give him a very different view and provide more insight than the traditional c ounseling report would provide. The above example showcases that when feedback comes from many sources, its more difficult for a person to brush aside constructive criticism and rationalize that the boss just has it in for me. If several people suggest that a leader needs to improve verbal communication skills, chances are high that this is indeed a necessary area for improvement. Another advantage of the 360-degree feedback process is that it is designed with a leadership focus in mind. Sometimes its difficult for individuals to understand the impact that their behavior may have on others. However, if they receive direct and frequent feedback on how their behaviors affect others they are more likely to be attentive. Studies show that the 360-degree feedback process is particularly strong when joined with an action plan developed by the person receiving feedback and shared with those providing the feedback. The action plan demonstrates the feedback was heard and the suggestions will be put to use as soon as possible. Studies also strongly suggest that each person receiving feedback, especially for the first time, should have a coach to help assess the comments and help to develop the action plan.  [3]  I recommend the 360-degree feedback process be coupled with competency-based job descriptions; this aids in placing an individual in a position based on the competencies of the position and it ensures the individual is evaluated on those same competencies. Now looking at 360-degree feedback from the perspective of what we learned in seminar about leadership styles. The trait theory assumes people are born with inherited traits and that some traits are particularly associated with great leaders. For instance, there is a scene in the highly-acclaimed and offbeat 1949 World War II film, 12 OClock High, in which Army Air Corps Colonel Keith Davenport, played by Gary Merrill, is the commander who becomes too close to his flyers and eventually cracks under the strain of seeing one of them commit suicide. Colonel Davenport portrayed significant traits to be successful as noted in the trait theory (willing to assume responsibility and alert to social environment). If he was assessed using the 360-degree feedback model, he would have received rave reviews from his supervisor, peers and subordinates based on his leadership style, but if evaluated on technical proficiency he would receive low marks due to the squadrons inability to perform precis ion daylight bombing. Major General Frank Savage replaced Colonel Davenport and pounded discipline and accountability into the squadron, and managed to get them back in the air with a new level of success. If General Savage was given the 360-degree feedback assessment, his rating would have surely required him to make an adjustment in his tough leadership style. This was evident by the number of transfer requests received from the pilots and the short fused IG inspection to assess squadron morale. General Savages tough leadership style ultimately proved to be successful with a significant increase in putting bombs on target as required for mission success. General Savage also projected many of the traits that are considered necessary to be a successful leader such as decisive, dependable, assertive, dominant and persistent. 360-degree feedback is not a substitute for managing poor performance. Instead it is a tool that can be implemented to help employees gain a rich, accurate perspective on how others view their leadership skills, interpersonal style and mission effectiveness. 360-degree feedback should not replace leaderships assessment and evaluation of performance. This is an important point because leaders may be tempted to use 360-degree feedback as a tool to facilitate behavior changes in poor performers. Rather than manage an employees day-to-day performance, leaders may view the multi-rater feedback process as a panacea. Although feedback from a 360-degree process can stimulate self-awareness, it cannot replace direct communication between an employee and his or her superior. An organization should exercise great care in implementing a 360-degree feedback system because unfamiliarity with a person, differences in job and task characteristics, differences in rank, and cognitive differences betwe en an employee and rater can distort assessments. Leaders should also be mindful not to view the 360- degree feedback process as a special event, using it once as part of a training or coaching session. If leaders make this mistake, the goal of ensuring that feedback is incorporated into continuous improvement plans will not be accomplished. Counter Argument To counter my thesis, I must mention that there are potential pitfalls that deal with trust and confidentiality. The key to overcoming pitfalls are to inform everyone of the plan and to stick to it. Additionally, privacy to recipients, and confidentiality to raters regarding the feedback they provide, is an absolute must. As previously described, the tricky part is that we are nearing the line of subordinates possessing the capability to directly influence a leaders career. While 360-degree feedback is not a panacea, impact from any of the above risks would likely be minimal at best with todays motivated, quality all-volunteer force. Nevertheless, it would make sense to establish safeguards wherever possible. Looking at the big picture, the benefits of 360-degree feedback far exceed the pitfalls that can be remedied with careful implementation and changes in organizational culture. Despite the benefits of 360-degree feedback, there are several potential risks which weaken its validity and effectiveness. The most common risk is wrongfully assuming that using feedback from multiple sources will compensate for intentional or unintentional distortion ( i.e. lying). The truth is that feedback collected incorrectly increases rather than decreases the occurrence of error; thus, destroying the credibility of the results. Conclusion I believe that 360-degree feedback should be incorporated into performance measures more specifically leadership, communication and mission effectiveness. The 360-degree feedback program is an excellent performance feedback tool and should be designed for counseling purposes only. There are a couple of ways to regulate the use of this information. The first way is to introduce this technique as a leader developmental tool. Initially, the services could use the train-the-trainer model at the deck plate level, while incorporating it into its school systems. This method will train all leaders and supervisors in the proper use. Given that all leaders have supervisors, I do not envision significant difficulties. I strongly believe our current leader development system can provide leaders for the future force; however, I strongly believe we can improve the system to make leaders more self-aware and thereby more effective. By implementing the 360-degree feedback method into our system, we w ill grow leaders who will win the many literal and figurative wars this nation faces in the future.