Genetically Foods Essay

Genetically-modified foods (GM foods) have made a big splash in the news lately. European environmental organizations and public interest groups have been actively protesting against GM foods for months, and recent controversial studies about the effects of genetically-modified corn pollen on monarch butterfly caterpillars1, 2 have brought the issue of genetic engineering to the forefront of the public consciousness in the U. S. In response to the upswelling of public concern, the U. S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) held three open meetings in Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Oakland, California to solicit public opinions and begin the process of establishing a new regulatory procedure for government approval of GM foods3. I attended the FDA meeting held in November 1999 in Washington, D. C. , and here I will attempt to summarize the issues involved and explain the U. S. government’s present role in regulating GM food. What are genetically-modified foods? The term GM foods or GMOs (genetically-modified organisms) is most commonly used to refer to crop plants created for human or animal consumption using the latest molecular biology techniques. These plants have been modified in the laboratory to enhance desired traits such as increased resistance to herbicides or improved nutritional content. The enhancement of desired traits has traditionally been undertaken through breeding, but conventional plant breeding methods can be very time consuming and are often not very accurate. Genetic engineering, on the other hand, can create plants with the exact desired trait very rapidly and with great accuracy. For example, plant geneticists can isolate a gene responsible for drought tolerance and insert that gene into a different plant. The new genetically-modified plant will gain drought tolerance as well. Not only can genes be transferred from one plant to another, but genes from non-plant organisms also can be used. The best known example of this is the use of B. t. genes in corn and other crops. B. t. , or Bacillus thuringiensis, is a naturally occurring bacterium that produces crystal proteins that are lethal to insect larvae. B. t. crystal protein genes have been transferred into corn, enabling the corn to produce its own pesticides against insects such as the European corn borer. For two informative overviews of some of the techniques involved in creating GM foods, visit Biotech Basics (sponsored by Monsanto) http://www. biotechknowledge. monsanto. com/biotech/bbasics. nsf/index or Techniques of Plant Biotechnology from the National Center for Biotechnology Education http://www. ncbe. reading. ac. uk/NCBE/GMFOOD/techniques. What are some of the advantages of GM foods? The world population has topped 6 billion people and is predicted to double in the next 50 years. Ensuring an adequate food supply for this booming population is going to be a major challenge in the years to come. GM foods promise to meet this need in a number of ways: Pest resistance Crop losses from insect pests can be staggering, resulting in devastating financial loss for farmers and starvation in developing countries. Farmers typically use many tons of chemical pesticides annually. Consumers do not wish to eat food that has been treated with pesticides because of potential health hazards, and run-off of agricultural wastes from excessive use of pesticides and fertilizers can poison the water supply and cause harm to the environment. Growing GM foods such as B. t.corn can help eliminate the application of chemical pesticides and reduce the cost of bringing a crop to market4, 5. Herbicide tolerance For some crops, it is not cost-effective to remove weeds by physical means such as tilling, so farmers will often spray large quantities of different herbicides (weed-killer) to destroy weeds, a time-consuming and expensive process, that requires care so that the herbicide doesn’t harm the crop plant or the environment. Crop plants genetically-engineered to be resistant to one very powerful herbicide could help prevent environmental damage by reducing the amount of herbicides needed. For example, Monsanto has created a strain of soybeans genetically modified to be not affected by their herbicide product Roundup  ®6. A farmer grows these soybeans which then only require one application of weed-killer instead of multiple applications, reducing production cost and limiting the dangers of agricultural waste run-off7. Disease resistance There are many viruses, fungi and bacteria that cause plant diseases. Plant biologists are working to create plants with genetically-engineered resistance to these diseases8, 9. Cold tolerance Unexpected frost can destroy sensitive seedlings. An antifreeze gene from cold water fish has been introduced into plants such as tobacco and potato. With this antifreeze gene, these plants are able to tolerate cold temperatures that normally would kill unmodified seedlings10. (Note: I have not been able to find any journal articles or patents that involve fish antifreeze proteins in strawberries, although I have seen such reports in newspapers. I can only conclude that nothing on this application has yet been published or patented.) Drought tolerance/salinity tolerance As the world population grows and more land is utilized for housing instead of food production, farmers will need to grow crops in locations previously unsuited for plant cultivation. Creating plants that can withstand long periods of drought or high salt content in soil and groundwater will help people to grow crops in formerly inhospitable places11, 12. Nutrition Malnutrition is common in third world countries where impoverished peoples rely on a single crop such as rice for the main staple of their diet. However, rice does not contain adequate amounts of all necessary nutrients to prevent malnutrition. If rice could be genetically engineered to contain additional vitamins and minerals, nutrient deficiencies could be alleviated. For example, blindness due to vitamin A deficiency is a common problem in third world countries. Researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Institute for Plant Sciences have created a strain of â€Å"golden† rice containing an unusually high content of beta-carotene (vitamin A)13. Since this rice was funded by the Rockefeller Foundation14, a non-profit organization, the Institute hopes to offer the golden rice seed free to any third world country that requests it. Plans were underway to develop a golden rice that also has increased iron content. However, the grant that funded the creation of these two rice strains was not renewed, perhaps because of the vigorous anti-GM food protesting in Europe, and so this nutritionally-enhanced rice may not come to market at all15. Pharmaceuticals Medicines and vaccines often are costly to produce and sometimes require special storage conditions not readily available in third world countries. Researchers are working to develop edible vaccines in tomatoes and potatoes16, 17. These vaccines will be much easier to ship, store and administer than traditional injectable vaccines. Phytoremediation Not all GM plants are grown as crops. Soil and groundwater pollution continues to be a problem in all parts of the world. Plants such as poplar trees have been genetically engineered to clean up heavy metal pollution from contaminated soil18. How prevalent are GM crops? What plants are involved? According to the FDA and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), there are over 40 plant varieties that have completed all of the federal requirements for commercialization (http://vm. cfsan. fda. gov/%7Elrd/biocon). Some examples of these plants include tomatoes and cantalopes that have modified ripening characteristics, soybeans and sugarbeets that are resistant to herbicides, and corn and cotton plants with increased resistance to insect pests. Not all these products are available in supermarkets yet; however, the prevalence of GM foods in U. S. grocery stores is more widespread than is commonly thought. While there are very, very few genetically-modified whole fruits and vegetables available on produce stands, highly processed foods, such as vegetable oils or breakfast cereals, most likely contain some tiny percentage of genetically-modified ingredients because the raw ingredients have been pooled into one processing stream from many different sources. Also, the ubiquity of soybean derivatives as food additives in the modern American diet virtually ensures that all U. S. consumers have been exposed to GM food products. The U. S. statistics that follow are derived from data presented on the USDA web site at http://www. ers. usda. gov/briefing/biotechnology/. The global statistics are derived from a brief published by the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA) at http://www. isaaa. org/publications/briefs/Brief_21. htm and from the Biotechnology Industry Organization at http://www. bio.org/food&ag/1999Acreage. Thirteen countries grew genetically-engineered crops commercially in 2000, and of these, the U. S. produced the majority. In 2000, 68% of all GM crops were grown by U. S. farmers. In comparison, Argentina, Canada and China produced only 23%, 7% and 1%, respectively. Other countries that grew commercial GM crops in 2000 are Australia, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Mexico, Romania, South Africa, Spain, and Uruguay. Soybeans and corn are the top two most widely grown crops (82% of all GM crops harvested in 2000), with cotton, rapeseed (or canola) and potatoes trailing behind. 74% of these GM crops were modified for herbicide tolerance, 19% were modified for insect pest resistance, and 7% were modified for both herbicide tolerance and pest tolerance. Globally, acreage of GM crops has increased 25-fold in just 5 years, from approximately 4. 3 million acres in 1996 to 109 million acres in 2000 – almost twice the area of the United Kingdom. Approximately 99 million acres were devoted to GM crops in the U. S. and Argentina alone. In the U. S. , approximately 54% of all soybeans cultivated in 2000 were genetically-modified, up from 42% in 1998 and only 7% in 1996. In 2000, genetically-modified cotton varieties accounted for 61% of the total cotton crop, up from 42% in 1998, and 15% in 1996. GM corn and also experienced a similar but less dramatic increase. Corn production increased to 25% of all corn grown in 2000, about the same as 1998 (26%), but up from 1. 5% in 1996. As anticipated, pesticide and herbicide use on these GM varieties was slashed and, for the most part, yields were increased (for details, see the UDSA publication at http://www. ers. usda. gov/publications/aer786/). What are some of the criticisms against GM foods? Environmental activists, religious organizations, public interest groups, professional associations and other scientists and government officials have all raised concerns about GM foods, and criticized agribusiness for pursuing profit without concern for potential hazards, and the government for failing to exercise adequate regulatory oversight. It seems that everyone has a strong opinion about GM foods. Even the Vatican19 and the Prince of Wales20 have expressed their opinions. Most concerns about GM foods fall into three categories: environmental hazards, human health risks, and economic concerns. Environmental hazards Unintended harm to other organisms Last year a laboratory study was published in Nature21 showing that pollen from B. t. corn caused high mortality rates in monarch butterfly caterpillars. Monarch caterpillars consume milkweed plants, not corn, but the fear is that if pollen from B. t. corn is blown by the wind onto milkweed plants in neighboring fields, the caterpillars could eat the pollen and perish. Although the Nature study was not conducted under natural field conditions, the results seemed to support this viewpoint. Unfortunately, B. t. toxins kill many species of insect larvae indiscriminately; it is not possible to design a B. t. toxin that would only kill crop-damaging pests and remain harmless to all other insects. This study is being reexamined by the USDA, the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other non-government research groups, and preliminary data from new studies suggests that the original study may have been flawed22, 23. This topic is the subject of acrimonious debate, and both sides of the argument are defending their data vigorously. Currently, there is no agreement about the results of these studies, and the potential risk of harm to non-target organisms will need to be evaluated further. Reduced effectiveness of pesticides Just as some populations of mosquitoes developed resistance to the now-banned pesticide DDT, many people are concerned that insects will become resistant to B. t. or other crops that have been genetically-modified to produce their own pesticides. Gene transfer to non-target species Another concern is that crop plants engineered for herbicide tolerance and weeds will cross-breed, resulting in the transfer of the herbicide resistance genes from the crops into the weeds. These â€Å"superweeds† would then be herbicide tolerant as well. Other introduced genes may cross over into non-modified crops planted next to GM crops. The possibility of interbreeding is shown by the defense of farmers against lawsuits filed by Monsanto. The company has filed patent infringement lawsuits against farmers who may have harvested GM crops. Monsanto claims that the farmers obtained Monsanto-licensed GM seeds from an unknown source and did not pay royalties to Monsanto. The farmers claim that their unmodified crops were cross-pollinated from someone else’s GM crops planted a field or two away. More investigation is needed to resolve this issue. There are several possible solutions to the three problems mentioned above. Genes are exchanged between plants via pollen. Two ways to ensure that non-target species will not receive introduced genes from GM plants are to create GM plants that are male sterile (do not produce pollen) or to modify the GM plant so that the pollen does not contain the introduced gene24, 25, 26. Cross-pollination would not occur, and if harmless insects such as monarch caterpillars were to eat pollen from GM plants, the caterpillars would survive. Another possible solution is to create buffer zones around fields of GM crops27, 28, 29. For example, non-GM corn would be planted to surround a field of B. t. GM corn, and the non-GM corn would not be harvested. Beneficial or harmless insects would have a refuge in the non-GM corn, and insect pests could be allowed to destroy the non-GM corn and would not develop resistance to B. t. pesticides. Gene transfer to weeds and other crops would not occur because the wind-blown pollen would not travel beyond the buffer zone. Estimates of the necessary width of buffer zones range from 6 meters to 30 meters or more30. This planting method may not be feasible if too much acreage is required for the buffer zones. Human health risks Allergenicity Many children in the US and Europe have developed life-threatening allergies to peanuts and other foods. There is a possibility that introducing a gene into a plant may create a new allergen or cause an allergic reaction in susceptible individuals. A proposal to incorporate a gene from Brazil nuts into soybeans was abandoned because of the fear of causing unexpected allergic reactions31. Extensive testing of GM foods may be required to avoid the possibility of harm to consumers with food allergies. Labeling of GM foods and food products will acquire new importance, which I shall discuss later. Unknown effects on human health There is a growing concern that introducing foreign genes into food plants may have an unexpected and negative impact on human health. A recent article published in Lancet examined the effects of GM potatoes on the digestive tract in rats32, 33. This study claimed that there were appreciable differences in the intestines of rats fed GM potatoes and rats fed unmodified potatoes. Yet critics say that this paper, like the monarch butterfly data, is flawed and does not hold up to scientific scrutiny34. Moreover, the gene introduced into the potatoes was a snowdrop flower lectin, a substance known to be toxic to mammals. The scientists who created this variety of potato chose to use the lectin gene simply to test the methodology, and these potatoes were never intended for human or animal consumption. On the whole, with the exception of possible allergenicity, scientists believe that GM foods do not present a risk to human health. Economic concerns Bringing a GM food to market is a lengthy and costly process, and of course agri-biotech companies wish to ensure a profitable return on their investment. Many new plant genetic engineering technologies and GM plants have been patented, and patent infringement is a big concern of agribusiness. Yet consumer advocates are worried that patenting these new plant varieties will raise the price of seeds so high that small farmers and third world countries will not be able to afford seeds for GM crops, thus widening the gap between the wealthy and the poor. It is hoped that in a humanitarian gesture, more companies and non-profits will follow the lead of the Rockefeller Foundation and offer their products at reduced cost to impoverished nations. Patent enforcement may also be difficult, as the contention of the farmers that they involuntarily grew Monsanto-engineered strains when their crops were cross-pollinated shows. One way to combat possible patent infringement is to introduce a â€Å"suicide gene† into GM plants. These plants would be viable for only one growing season and would produce sterile seeds that do not germinate. Farmers would need to buy a fresh supply of seeds each year. However, this would be financially disastrous for farmers in third world countries who cannot afford to buy seed each year and traditionally set aside a portion of their harvest to plant in the next growing season. In an open letter to the public, Monsanto has pledged to abandon all research using this suicide gene technology35. How are GM foods regulated and what is the government’s role in this process? Governments around the world are hard at work to establish a regulatory process to monitor the effects of and approve new varieties of GM plants. Yet depending on the political, social and economic climate within a region or country, different governments are responding in different ways. In Japan, the Ministry of Health and Welfare has announced that health testing of GM foods will be mandatory as of April 200136, 37. Currently, testing of GM foods is voluntary. Japanese supermarkets are offering both GM foods and unmodified foods, and customers are beginning to show a strong preference for unmodified fruits and vegetables. India’s government has not yet announced a policy on GM foods because no GM crops are grown in India and no products are commercially available in supermarkets yet38. India is, however, very supportive of transgenic plant research. It is highly likely that India will decide that the benefits of GM foods outweigh the risks because Indian agriculture will need to adopt drastic new measures to counteract the country’s endemic poverty and feed its exploding population. Some states in Brazil have banned GM crops entirely, and the Brazilian Institute for the Defense of Consumers, in collaboration with Greenpeace, has filed suit to prevent the importation of GM crops39,. Brazilian farmers, however, have resorted to smuggling GM soybean seeds into the country because they fear economic harm if they are unable to compete in the global marketplace with other grain-exporting countries. In Europe, anti-GM food protestors have been especially active. In the last few years Europe has experienced two major foods scares: bovine spongiform encephalopathy (mad cow disease) in Great Britain and dioxin-tainted foods originating from Belgium. These food scares have undermined consumer confidence about the European food supply, and citizens are disinclined to trust government information about GM foods. In response to the public outcry, Europe now requires mandatory food labeling of GM foods in stores, and the European Commission (EC) has established a 1% threshold for contamination of unmodified foods with GM food products40. In the United States, the regulatory process is confused because there are three different government agencies that have jurisdiction over GM foods. To put it very simply, the EPA evaluates GM plants for environmental safety, the USDA evaluates whether the plant is safe to grow, and the FDA evaluates whether the plant is safe to eat. The EPA is responsible for regulating substances such as pesticides or toxins that may cause harm to the environment. GM crops such as B. t. pesticide-laced corn or herbicide-tolerant crops but not foods modified for their nutritional value fall under the purview of the EPA. The USDA is responsible for GM crops that do not fall under the umbrella of the EPA such as drought-tolerant or disease-tolerant crops, crops grown for animal feeds, or whole fruits, vegetables and grains for human consumption. The FDA historically has been concerned with pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and food products and additives, not whole foods. Under current guidelines, a genetically-modified ear of corn sold at a produce stand is not regulated by the FDA because it is a whole food, but a box of cornflakes is regulated because it is a food product. The FDA’s stance is that GM foods are substantially equivalent to unmodified, â€Å"natural† foods, and therefore not subject to FDA regulation. The EPA conducts risk assessment studies on pesticides that could potentially cause harm to human health and the environment, and establishes tolerance and residue levels for pesticides. There are strict limits on the amount of pesticides that may be applied to crops during growth and production, as well as the amount that remains in the food after processing. Growers using pesticides must have a license for each pesticide and must follow the directions on the label to accord with the EPA’s safety standards. Government inspectors may periodically visit farms and conduct investigations to ensure compliance. Violation of government regulations may result in steep fines, loss of license and even jail sentences. As an example the EPA regulatory approach, consider B.t. corn. The EPA has not established limits on residue levels in B. t corn because the B. t. in the corn is not sprayed as a chemical pesticide but is a gene that is integrated into the genetic material of the corn itself. Growers must have a license from the EPA for B. t corn, and the EPA has issued a letter for the 2000 growing season requiring farmers to plant 20% unmodified corn, and up to 50% unmodified corn in regions where cotton is also cultivated41. This planting strategy may help prevent insects from developing resistance to the B.t. pesticides as well as provide a refuge for non-target insects such as Monarch butterflies. The USDA has many internal divisions that share responsibility for assessing GM foods. Among these divisions are APHIS, the Animal Health and Plant Inspection Service, which conducts field tests and issues permits to grow GM crops, the Agricultural Research Service which performs in-house GM food research, and the Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service which oversees the USDA risk assessment program. The USDA is concerned with potential hazards of the plant itself. Does it harbor insect pests? Is it a noxious weed? Will it cause harm to indigenous species if it escapes from farmer’s fields? The USDA has the power to impose quarantines on problem regions to prevent movement of suspected plants, restrict import or export of suspected plants, and can even destroy plants cultivated in violation of USDA regulations. Many GM plants do not require USDA permits from APHIS. A GM plant does not require a permit if it meets these 6 criteria: 1) the plant is not a noxious weed; 2) the genetic material introduced into the GM plant is stably integrated into the plant’s own genome; 3) the function of the introduced gene is known and does not cause plant disease; 4) the GM plant is not toxic to non-target organisms; 5) the introduced gene will not cause the creation of new plant viruses; and 6) the GM plant cannot contain genetic material from animal or human pathogens (see http://www. aphis. usda.gov:80/bbep/bp/7cfr340 ). The current FDA policy was developed in 1992 (Federal Register Docket No. 92N-0139) and states that agri-biotech companies may voluntarily ask the FDA for a consultation. Companies working to create new GM foods are not required to consult the FDA, nor are they required to follow the FDA’s recommendations after the consultation. Consumer interest groups wish this process to be mandatory, so that all GM food products, whole foods or otherwise, must be approved by the FDA before being released for commercialization. The FDA counters that the agency currently does not have the time, money, or resources to carry out exhaustive health and safety studies of every proposed GM food product. Moreover, the FDA policy as it exists today does not allow for this type of intervention. How are GM foods labeled? Labeling of GM foods and food products is also a contentious issue. On the whole, agribusiness industries believe that labeling should be voluntary and influenced by the demands of the free market. If consumers show preference for labeled foods over non-labeled foods, then industry will have the incentive to regulate itself or risk alienating the customer. Consumer interest groups, on the other hand, are demanding mandatory labeling. People have the right to know what they are eating, argue the interest groups, and historically industry has proven itself to be unreliable at self-compliance with existing safety regulations. The FDA’s current position on food labeling is governed by the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act which is only concerned with food additives, not whole foods or food products that are considered â€Å"GRAS† – generally recognized as safe. The FDA contends that GM foods are substantially equivalent to non-GM foods, and therefore not subject to more stringent labeling. If all GM foods and food products are to be labeled, Congress must enact sweeping changes in the existing food labeling policy. There are many questions that must be answered if labeling of GM foods becomes mandatory. First, are consumers willing to absorb the cost of such an initiative? If the food production industry is required to label GM foods, factories will need to construct two separate processing streams and monitor the production lines accordingly. Farmers must be able to keep GM crops and non-GM crops from mixing during planting, harvesting and shipping. It is almost assured that industry will pass along these additional costs to consumers in the form of higher prices. Secondly, what are the acceptable limits of GM contamination in non-GM products? The EC has determined that 1% is an acceptable limit of cross-contamination, yet many consumer interest groups argue that only 0% is acceptable. Some companies such as Gerber baby foods42 and Frito-Lay43 have pledged to avoid use of GM foods in any of their products. But who is going to monitor these companies for compliance and what is the penalty if they fail? Once again, the FDA does not have the resources to carry out testing to ensure compliance. What is the level of detectability of GM food cross-contamination? Scientists agree that current technology is unable to detect minute quantities of contamination, so ensuring 0% contamination using existing methodologies is not guaranteed. Yet researchers disagree on what level of contamination really is detectable, especially in highly processed food products such as vegetable oils or breakfast cereals where the vegetables used to make these products have been pooled from many different sources. A 1% threshold may already be below current levels of detectability. Finally, who is to be responsible for educating the public about GM food labels and how costly will that education be? Food labels must be designed to clearly convey accurate information about the product in simple language that everyone can understand. This may be the greatest challenge faced be a new food labeling policy: how to educate and inform the public without damaging the public trust and causing alarm or fear of GM food products. In January 2000, an international trade agreement for labeling GM foods was established44, 45. More than 130 countries, including the US, the world’s largest producer of GM foods, signed the agreement. The policy states that exporters must be required to label all GM foods and that importing countries have the right to judge for themselves the potential risks and reject GM foods, if they so choose. This new agreement may spur the U. S. government to resolve the domestic food labeling dilemma more rapidly. Conclusion Genetically-modified foods have the potential to solve many of the world’s hunger and malnutrition problems, and to help protect and preserve the environment by increasing yield and reducing reliance upon chemical pesticides and herbicides. Yet there are many challenges ahead for governments, especially in the areas of safety testing, regulation, international policy and food labeling. Many people feel that genetic engineering is the inevitable wave of the future and that we cannot afford to ignore a technology that has such enormous potential benefits. However, we must proceed with caution to avoid causing unintended harm to human health and the environment as a result of our enthusiasm for this powerful technology.

A Study in Adaptation Essay

Among the monographs found in the Culture and Ecology in East Africa Project is that of the work of Walter Goldschmit, entitled â€Å"The Sebei: A Study in Adaptiona. † It is among the ethnographic studies conducted to shed light on a particular community, which is that of Sebei. The project previously mentioned to which the monograph belongs is that of the University of California in Los Angeles which also carries the research design that was followed by the entire project (Mead 938). It has become important to evaluate this study because of the important role it plays in the field of ethnography and in the lives of the Sebei people. This paper will include the synopsis, a critique of the book, and the relationship with the materials and discussions found in the class. Synopsis of the Book The book primarily focuses on the people of Sebei, the socio-economic modes followed by the people there, and the adaptations which has happened throughout the existence of the community. People from Sebei speak Nilotic and have a connection with the Nandi and Kipsigis (MacGaffey 110). These people lives in the southeastern portion of Uganda and the elements of this community which has been discussed include the â€Å"history, environment, policy, social organization, animal husbandry, agriculture, a cash economy, sexual roles and marriage, child rearing, initiation, and the Sebei belief system† (Beidelman 542). The wide variety of the factors that have been covered in the study has been instrumental to the focus of the book, which is that of the ways of living of the people and how they have economically survived the environment they lived in. There are two environments which have been considered in the book to show the adaptive processes of the community under study. One is the area which is well-watered and is situated in the slopes of the mountains and the second is in the dry lands of the plains. With the conditions found in the said communities, there are also adaptive measures which have been taken by the people in terms of the production of their food and ways of living. One community concentrated on the hunting and gathering means of production because of the factors in the environment which makes this the most acceptable form of gathering food and sustaining the needs of the community. On the other hand, it is agriculture which has become the primary mode of economic production followed because of the availability of fertile soil that could be used for crops. Moreover, access to water is available that makes this a better option for the people. More so, it is seen to be the most effective in consideration of the available resources and conditions for the people. Economics-wise, this is the best methods for the respective communities discussed. Through time, it has been proven that Sebei people have the capability to adapt easily to changes in their environment and new situations which they are placed in (Mead 938). It has been shown in the book that the people have been able to be in contact with the Europeans when this group has been in a point where they are trying to adapt with the demands brought about by intra-African connections. The flexibility in adapting to such cultures has been carried out by the group by following the previous methods which have been used before by the group. It has been proven to be an effective pattern for the people since their first interaction with other cultures. Critique of the Book This particular book can be considered as one of the best monographs that have been written of an Ugandan community because of its succinctness and thoroughness. The ability of the author to present facts and data near what is real is considered to be a vital element of the author’s work. The author’s ability to record and research the past of the community has been helpful. The author, himself, has done quite an extensive job in proving the authenticity of his claims where there are primary evidences, such as photos, that has been shown together with the narratives provided. In writing a book, the ability of the author to provide evidences, especially in the field of ethnography, is considered to be vital in establishing the credibility and authenticity of the monograph. In a sense, this adds to the ability of the monograph to convince its readers that what is being said and shown in the account is true. Moreover, the book has shown one community but the picture that has been drawn and what has been learned over the discussions made of the particular community studied can be used in order to understand the African perspective. More so, the means of adoption that has been studied can be taken to a larger picture where it is also seen to exist in other areas and in different times. It has been found that the general perspective that can be used in order to interpret that of the Sebei culture is that â€Å"the maladies of the social system seem to outweigh their strengths† (Goldschmidt 338). With this particular statement, the author is then able to show that he has been able to observe the communities with a keen eye and relate it to the rest of the elements in the environment that surround the community. The author does not simply focus on what can be found within the community but also observes how it relates to the different links formed. More so, there is judgment that is found for these relationships from where a strong conclusion can be made. This monograph serves as a very good reading material for the members of the academic institutions and the epistemic communities from a wide variety of fields. Where field observations and thorough data collection has been done, there is the worthiness of examining the material and using it as a foundation of different researches. More so, an understanding of the different elements of the community can be easily derived through a reading of this material because of the substantial data that can be found here. This is not only for the purpose of studying communities but can also be taken by people from different fields such as psychology, economics, policy-making, sociology, and others in order to make researches and decisions. Relation to Class Materials and Discussions Understanding the book has been made easier because of the foundation laid by the class discussions and materials. The concepts that have been clarified in relation to culture, communities, and globalization has become an integral part of understanding how and why the Sebei communities had to adjust to the changing setting of the world and the communities which belong to it. It is difficult for a reader to understand the complex parts of the monograph if one would not take into consideration the aspects which relate the community to the changes in its surroundings. If the reader would not have the respective concepts and ideas, he/she might be limited to understanding the community in isolation and forget to relate it to the world outside the said community. There are factors which might be missed by the reader in understanding the community, in this case, and forget about the other forces that could change communities. Works Cited Goldschmidt, Walter. Culture and behavior of the Sebei: A study in Continuity and Adaptation. Berkeley, Los Angeles: University of California, 1976. MacGaffey, Wyatt. â€Å"Review. † ASA Review of Books 4 (1978): 110-111. Mead, Margaret. â€Å"Review. † American Anthropologists 79. 4 (1977): 938-939.

Bio-ecological systems theory

Bio-ecological systems theory Abstract This paper is about the Bio-Ecological Systems theory of Urie Bronfenbrenner. Bronfenbrenners’s Bio-Ecological Systems Theory concerns the environmental influences on a child’s development. He observed that these influences were comprised of relationships around the child and these relationships have layers of interaction between the child’s and the child’s environment. He called these layers ‘systems’. These events start with direct influence on the student and progress outward until the events have only minimal, indirect influence. Next it will discuss a minority population which is deafness. There are two main forms of hearing loss and five levels of severity. After the child’s hearing loss is identified the parents need to choose what technology they want their child to use. The next obstacle for parents is how and where to educate their child. Then it will discuss how the theory applies to a particular student of this min ority population. And lastly it will discuss the educational considerations and recommendations revealed from applying the theory to this student. It will also consider which educational theorists apply to this student. By considering the student more holistically, rather than only what happens presently in the classroom, it will help the instructor develop a teaching plan for this student to maximize his learning potential. Bronfenbrenner’s Bio- Ecological Systems Theory: As Applied to a Deaf Student Bronfenbrenners’s Bio-Ecological Systems Theory concerns the environmental influences on a child’s development. He observed that these influences were comprised of relationships around the child and these relationships have layers of interaction between the child’s and the child’s environment. He called these layers ‘systems’ and they consisted of five different levels of influence. These events start with direct influence on the student and progress outward until the events have only minimal, indirect influence. The five systems that were recognized by Bronfenbrenner are as follows: 1. Microsystems- the immediate environment of the child which has the most impact on the child’s development, for example the relationship between the child and his parents, the child and his peers, or the child and his school. 2. Mesosytems- the connections between the microsystems, where the systems overlap, these also have a direct impact on the child’s development; for example, the interaction between the child’s peers and the child’s parent or the interaction between the child’s parents and the child’s school. 3. Exosystems- the next level of events in the environment are further from the child but nevertheless have impact on the child’s development; for example, problems with the parents’ work (indirect events) which causes tension in the home (direct event) 4. Macrosystems- the larger cultural environment that the family lives in; for example the economy of the area the family lives which contributes to the work opportunities for the parents 5. Chronosystems- the transitional events in the child’s life as he grows up; for example the changes incurred by moving from middle school to high school. The â€Å"otheredness† of my student is deafness. I believe deafness is a minority condition because the â€Å"National Center for Health Statistics places the number of profoundly deaf in the U.S. at more than 400,000, while people classified as hard-of-hearing number over 20 million, or about 8 percent of the total population†. (Bacon, 2002) Even though deafness has received some attention through television shows and movies, there are still many misconceptions about deaf people and their social and educational needs.

Capital Investment Decisions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Capital Investment Decisions - Assignment Example The stated aim of this recently introduced legislation is â€Å"to promote the financial stability of the United States by improving accountability and transparency in the financial system, to end ‘too big to fail’, to protect the American taxpayer by ending bailouts, to protect consumers from abuse financial services practices, and for other purposes† (GPO, n. d.). Even though this Act was passed with intent to protect the nation from another financial crisis, it adversely affects banks’ ability to extend financial assistance to various business sectors. This legislation noticeably reduces banks’ lending limits. For instance, the Act strictly requires banks not to lend money to risky projects or business organizations that are less likely to repay debts. Often, it cannot be possible to accurately evaluate the potentiality of capital projects or business acquisitions because those ventures depend on a set of uncertain future events. According to the American Bankers Association (2012), this Act has limited price thresholds for certain lending segments and framed new disclosure forms and procedures for all types of mortgages. As a result, large business corporations would face potential challenges in meeting business expansion needs timely. Another disappointing feature of this Act according to the American Bankers Association (2012) is that it has mandated many stronger legal liabilities in connection with real estate finance. Although these policy changes are effective to ensure the accountability and transparency of banking transactions, business houses often find it difficult to raise adequate funds to finance capital projects and acquisitions. Consequently, entrepreneurs and other business organizations would hesitate to undertake new business development ventures; and this situation would adversely affect the growth rate of the US economy as a whole. The Forbes writer Lenzner (2012) argues that the Dodd-Frank Act is a â₠¬Ëœconfused, bloated law’ because this policy change has failed to address many concerns including cost, efficiency, and growth. 2. No economic policy can assure 100 percent that it can prevent a financial crisis in the future. In contrast, economic policies or legislative amendments are introduced to lessen the chances of economic downturns or to reduce the impacts of a future financial crisis. The Act implies that the US economy has to make some regulatory changes in order to forecast and respond to the next crisis effectively. Hence, the Dodd-Frank Act itself says that it would not guarantee the prevention of a future financial crisis. The US policymakers hold the view that America’s largest financial firms represent some of the major huge pillars supporting the US economy. They point out that damages to these pillars during the 2008 global financial crisis worsened the economic status of the nation. It is identified that the increased governmental support persuaded these big companies to borrow cheaply and to take greater risks. In short, the â€Å"too big to fail’ status of those large financial companies can be considered as a major factor contributed to the recent recession. According to Will Melick, the Gensemer Professor of Economics (as cited in Kenyon College Alumni Bulletin (2012), the Dodd-Frank Act contains provisions for certain restrictions on financial firms’ operational activities in exchange for the protection from

Final reflection Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Final reflection - Essay Example The paper will rely on knowledge gained throughout the semester on child-language development to appropriately advice these parents. How Children Develop Speech and Language Skills Human communication is an acquired skill gained over time. Human communication can be compared to technology in that both have a basic structure of function, but change over time as the needs of a society change. While human communication development is procedural, the amount of time it takes should not result in a child taking too long to understand comprehensively their first language. Children start developing their language skills immediately they get born. However, at the very early stage of their life, these developments can hardly be noticed (Bochner & Jane 122). As a child grows, their parents should keenly observe how their development in language is fairing. Parents must be in a position to realize any cases of abnormality in their children’s language development. This should help them add ress the problem as early as possible. At the age of six months, a child should have started showing signs that indicate that they are indeed learning how to communicate. They should be able to turn to sources of sound upon hearing them. They should further respond in shock to sudden, loud noises. Children in this age start making cries for different needs watches people's face as they walk and start to imitate coughs and other sounds (Bochner & Jane 123). These are the first signs that a child is learning their communication skills. Although the skills can hardly be noticed by most parents as signs of language development, they help a child to start having a memory on how to respond to different situations. This includes when they are in shock, hungry or in pain. At the age of nine months, a child should manage to respond to their name and anything else that rings around them, for example, a telephone. At this age, a child understands when they get told ‘no’. They can also get what they want through gestures and starts playing social games with those around them. A child gets to enjoy when people are around her and starts to babble or repeat sounds. Communication skills at this age can be identified. It is, however, worth noting that some children may take a slightly longer period than this. The period should not extend one year since they were born. At the age of one year, a child can follow simple one-step instructions like ‘sit down’. When someone near them points to something, a child gets to look for it. A child at this age uses three or more than three words in their communication but will mostly use gestures. A child also combines many sounds as though talking (Pressley & Christine

Scan of Emerson, American Scholar and Factory Life As It Is Assignment

Scan of Emerson, American Scholar and Factory Life As It Is - Assignment Example an amendable constitution, which can be revised by the people as they please, is a political innovation that guarantees peace and happiness through self-governance. James Winthrop, a public official from Massachusetts, emphasized on the importance of the constitutional Bill of Rights. In reference to theoretical frames of politics, Winthrop asserted that systems of government belonging to the majority have inherent tendencies to disregard fundamental rights of the minority. Majority rulers exert tyrant principles upon minority subjects (Winthrop, 269). In order to safeguard the fundamental freedoms of the minority, Winthrop opposed the federal ratification of the constitution. Winthrop maintained that ratification of the constitution would consolidate constitutional powers to tyrant majorities, thus threatening the self-governance of American states. In order to prevent governmental despotism and usurpation against citizens, Winthrop proposed that the Bill of Rights should remain an essential constitutional component. With respect to the principle of representation, David Ramsay favors proportional representation of citizens in deliberation assemblies. Ramsay stated that proportional representation is a miniature form of communities; hence the representatives have interests and feelings of the majority (Ramsay, 268). On the contrary, James Winthrop opposes the concept of proportional representation. According to Winthrop, proportional representation does not guarantee preservation of minority rights against the wanton use of numerical tyranny by the majority (Winthrop, 269). Instead of proportional representation, Winthrop says that laws should be made by local officials who can establish immediate contact with their

Study of Reflective Practice and Continuous Learning Research Paper

Study of Reflective Practice and Continuous Learning - Research Paper Example On the other hand, half a century later, David Schon (1983; 1987) introduced his concept of reflective practice emphasizing the importance of context and experiential knowledge for continuous improvement. The integration of ideas from these two theorists is evident in current reflective practice literature. â€Å"As is often the case, the answer is not ‘either/or’ of Dewey and Schon but ‘both/and’† (York-Barr et al., 2006, p. 5). Reflective practice is borne out of the basic premise that changes in an organization starts within each individual. It is regarded as a â€Å"meaningful and effective professional development strategy† (Osterman and Kottkamp, 2004, p. 1). Although the goal remains synonymous (the development of individual competencies leading to improved organizational performance), reflective practice offers an alternative approach to traditional professional development approaches. The emergence of reflective practice in the educational setting, as discussed by Osterman and Kottkamp (2004), was a response to the failure of educational reforms to effectively address the need of academically and socially preparing students to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing world. The independent studies done by Fulla and Hargreaves (1996); and Ingersoll (2003) reveal that â€Å"for many teachers working conditions are still characterized by overload, isolation, exclusion from decisions about thei r work, and a lack of meaningful professional development opportunities† (as cited in Osterman and Kottkamp, 2004, p. 4). Educators on a daily basis â€Å"routinely juggle multiple tasks, process information on many levels, manage a continual stream of interruptions, and make on-the-spot decisions to meet the changing needs and demands in the teaching environment† (York-Barr et al., 2006, p. 2). Though teachers are guided by their knowledge, a significant margin of uncertainty accompanies their

Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 49

Case Study - Essay Example , important to determine if a similar relationship exists between oral proficiency in the first-language and development of literacy in a second language. I chose to focus on this area because the student I am working with is a South Korean student trying to learn English as her second language. She has steadily shown improvements in various aspects of learning English despite changing her environment from Korea to California. This research will enable me to understand whether the student’s oral proficiency in her first language plays a role in facilitating her understanding of the English language. This research is base on two sets of data, that is, data about the school and the student. Data about the school includes information about the education system, the objectives of the school, number of students enrolled in the school, and the teachers in the school. The data about the students include information about her age and academic performance. There is also information about the student’s past performances. Both sets of data are important in creating a general picture of the student’s literacy skills and proficiency in English. Data about the school will mainly be collected from the records available in the school. Some of the data will also be gathered from interviews with teachers and administrators in the school. Information about the student will come from conducting the interview with the student, teachers, and her

Gallery Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Gallery Paper - Essay Example A reflection of the Impressionist style is seen in Poppy Field whereby Monet depicts his perception through rough stokes of brush, vivid hues on a light colored canvas. The painting captures a spontaneous approach and depicts a snapshot of a scene that the artist has chosen. The most enthralling part of this painting is that it looks simplistic as opposed to complex; as if it were drawn with much ease. The painting depicts a typical day in Argenteuil’s summers (Murray). The most prominent part of the painting is the arrangement of various elements under consideration in the painting. The flat, horizontal flower bed is in strike contrast to the vertical stance of the trees. Furthermore, the striking green leaves stand in sheer contrast to the grass in the field which has been painted brown with a slight tinge of green as if it were dried. The essence of the painting is captured by the poppies that are painted vividly red with roughly six to seven random strokes of red brush at the bottom of the painting. To add to it, the sky stands in deep contrast to the rest of the painting with light blue hues and several scattered feathery clouds portraying a bright summer’s day. Monet has been more than just successful in outlining the sky with the aid of trees and the earth. The soil, although it encapsulates the largest space in the painting, gives an enthralling effect whereby its dark colors cause it to retreat and the white hues in the clouds cause it to become more prominent. Since the sky is in stark contrast to the trees and the soil, the ground and the trees drift the viewer’s attention to the sky. The perception of the artist is such that he controls the viewer’s eye movements by positioning the objects in a particular fashion. Hence, the viewer’s eyes first roll to the sky then towards the trees on the left side, and in the end towards the ground itself. It is a common mistake to think that because the ground depicts a lot of p eople that would be the most capturing position in the entire painting. In reality this is certainly not the case. Rather, the people become the most insignificant part of the painting, and that is simply because the people stand small in front of the greatness of the sky. At another instance also the painting demonstrates the insignificance of people by portraying three different people on the ground; the boy in the front who waves to the audience, and two women in the backdrop. Finally, the insignificance of man is further highlighted by the fact that the artist depicts a holistic view of man; he does not go into details and does not show the features of the boy of the women, in an attempt to merge them with the rest of the scenario. The boy is merely a figure and the artist does not even give the slightest hint of where his features ought to be. Furthermore, the hues used by Monet are bright ones, such as yellows, blues and greens; however, they tend to be not so bright or appear somewhat faded out by the scorching rays of the sun. We can, therefore, confidently say that the painting captures at length the sentiments of experiencing a typical summer’s day. Perhaps a significant aspect of this painting was that the outlines were thinned; the painting articulately depicted a melodrama of colors, a colorful fusion of brightly colored hues all blended together in an eloquent

Marketing Budget Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Marketing Budget - Essay Example The above spread sheet is the explanation of the actual workings, response rate, CPM, Prospects generated, and conversion rates. The spa is actually expected to have 842 conversions a month from these promotions and an average sales per head of $80 will result in sales of $67360 per month. Response rates have been taken at the following percentages News paper ads at 2%, Magazine -1 % and Bill Boards - .5%, in the Print media. As the spa is using the pull strategy to market its services, hence it currently will not employ a telesales team to actively push sales over the phone. Besides, the spa does not possess a large calling base. However, with an existing base of 250+ names and numbers it decides to send direct mail and a 5% conversion on this generates 12 prospects. Sales Force: The spa operates only with a minimum of 2 salesmen who make 7 calls a day, 5 days a week with 20 % prospects and a 35% conversion rate on the prospect. A senior member will accompany them to a corporate house once a week and the sales men will take the lead from there to generate further business. Events and Sponsors: This will generate an additional 50 % conversion rate considering the celebrities who would visit the spa as this lures people to be present in the spa during their visit to the spa. The CPM for Television is $6 per 1000 viewers and this would result in $60 for a 30 second commercial aired once. Airing this 4 times a day, 30 days a month costs $7200. The CPM on the internet for Face book and MySpace is $.5 for 1000 views a day ,$50 for 1,00,000 views 30 days a month is $1500. The conversions for all print and non print prospects have been kept a conservative 15%. The budget mentioned is both viable and comprehensive and even a 15% slip on the expected rate will leave the spa with a healthy Net Profit

Useful Steps to Overcome the Fear of Public Speaking Essay Example for Free

Useful Steps to Overcome the Fear of Public Speaking Essay http://www.toastmasters.org/tips.asp (retrieved on 26/06/2013) This website provides some useful tips that should be followed to overcome the fear of public speaking. First, it instructs presenters to choose a topic that they are interested in, and try to know more about it than they include in their speech. Second, rehearse loudly with all the material that they plan to use and try to practice with a timer. Third, imagine themselves giving their speech with clear, loud, and confident voice, and visualize the audience applauding for them because that will enhance and boost their confidence. Then, they should arrive early to the room that they will present in and rehearse using visual aids. In addition to that, they should know the audience by greeting them when they arrive and address them because that will subside their nerves. Also, they should not apologize for any problem or nervousness, for the audience may not notice it. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/fear-of-public-speaking/AN01979 (retrieved on 26/06/2013) Tips that are given in this website to handle the fear of public speaking are slightly different from the first one. First, presenters should know that the goal of their presentation is not to convey data, but it is to motivate and inspire their audience. Second, they should read a lot about their topic because the better they understand their subject, the less they will make mistakes. Then, they should practice many times and try to do it in front of people who they are comfortable with and ask for feedback. In addition to that, they should speak with conviction, for when they believe in what they are saying, they will convince their audience effectively. They should do some deep breathing before presenting because that will help them relax and mitigate their nerves. Moreover, they ought to prepare some stories because they will get their thoughts across much better than charts and numbers, and because they will make their audience engage with them. Next, they should know that the a udience is in their side, and they want them to succeed.

Theories in the marketing communication framework

Theories in the marketing communication framework According to Kotler (2003, p.563) A way of looking at the whole marketing process from the viewpoint of customer Fundamentally, marketing communication is the essential process to convey the message between corporations and consumers which is to make the target audience trust the brand and marketer Burnett (1993). It has the different methods to reach the audience but the main aim is to build the medium which can inform and persuade the consumers. Also, marketing communication is the method to establish the invisible relationship between firm and customers. To ensure the audience correctly received the message is primary step. By using marketing communication, consumers can understand about firms, products and brands (Kotler and Keller, 2006). One fact which needs to be noted is that the difference between advertising, marketing communication and promotion. It has been claimed that advertising is part of marketing mix which is wider and complex than advertising. However, it is hard t o distinguish the slight difference between. Therefore, they mean the same meaning in this report. Traditionally, there are several elements in the marketing communication which includes advertising, sales promotion, sponsorship, public relations, direct marketing, and personal selling (Pickton and Broderick, 2005). Even though there has been divided into several elements to distinguish the difference. There is still some room which is overlapped. Hence, it shows the importance of integrated marketing communication. Moreover, it has been claimed that there are some tools which also can be in the marketing communication mix such as packaging, word of mouth, point of sales, E-marketing and exhibitions. It has been stated that there are two categories, namely, above the line and below the line. Above-the-line include advertising which needs to pay the space for promotion such as TV commercial, radio or newspaper and magazine of press. Below the line consist of sales promotion and publi c relations (Smith and Taylor, 2004). The main reason to choose integrated marketing mix is that the message and information can extensively reach the target audience by all channels as well as more suitable and effective methods to achieve marketing communication objectives. By multi-channels promotion, it increase the awareness of brand and comprehend the message. After this, the purchase action could be expected happen by consumers Patrick et al., 2004, Smith and Taylor, 2004) Hence, each marketing communication mix element has the particular function to promote the brand in marketing campaigns. Nowadays, TV commercial, sponsorship, sales promotion are popular and essential marketing communication tools to be used in beer promotion campaign. Also, it has been found that words of mouth play the major role to influence the some beer customer. These marketing communication mix elements will the discussed as below. In beer promotion campaign, Advertising: Advertising is the primary element in the marketing communication mix. It is common to find that majority of audiences consider advertising equal to promotion. According to Kotler and Keller (2006) Any paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of idea, goods or services by an identified sponsor. It is a general definition of advertising but shows the key point of characteristic which are the promotion for product or service by a sponsor. It has also been admitted that advertising is suitable to build the long term brand image and create the initial awareness. It is controversial issue to distinguish which element is the most influential one in the marketing mix. However, it still needs to be admitted that advertising take the majority part of promotion budget in the campaign regularly as well as widely reach the mass target audience. Furthermore, TV advertising would is arranged the most money because it costs more than other categories like press or radio. In other words, although advertising takes most spend of promotion, it is still the low cost for each unit person (Kotler and Armstrong, 2006). Therefore, from firms perspective, advertising seems to be the economical methods to reach most consumers (Pickton and Broderick, 2005). Moreover, advertising can play the major role to supplement the rest of tools which efficiently enhance the awareness of campaign and increase sales. For example, it is evidential that most sales promotion messages are conveyed by advertising to reach most audiences. In addition, public relations event such as event sponsorship needs the advertising support to announce the information which also can enhance the awareness (Burnett, 1992). However, there are some limitations of advertising which have been argued. Firstly, it is hard to prove that audience would purchase the products after receiving the commercial message. In other words, the sequenced process needs to be demonstrated more evidences. (Pickton and Broderick, 2005). Also, there are several vital cause which can influence the purchasing such as reasonable price, convenient location and quality product (Burnett, 1992). Therefore, advertising can be the influential facts to brand awareness and attitude. Even the direct effect for stimulating purchasing needs to be considered the relationship, it still can be the functional tools in marketing communications. Sponsorship: Sponsorship is in the sub-category of public relations which is to build a relationship and corporation image (Kotler and Armstrong, 2006). The definition of sponsorship is that the firms invest the money or in kind to expect the potential revenue to achieve the marketing objectives (Meenaghan, 1991; Berrett, 1993). In recent years, sponsorship has been popular and divided from public relations to be an independent tool in the marketing communication mix which show that the use of sponsorship is increasing and more different types of sponsorship are developing (Pickton and Broderick, 2005). Although most of firms keep a limited budget for sponsorship, in some sponsored activities the cost is still a great deal of money such as Carling sponsor as a title to Carling cup. Moreover, the world cup and Olympic both are the popular event which have attracted many aggressive sponsor to invest in it. It has been claimed that sport, arts, education and broadcast are the most popular categories for sponsorship (Smith and Taylor, 2004). It has been claimed that audiences can be aware of the sponsor brand and evoke the brand in the purchasing occasion which increase the brand recall and add the brand into the considered brand portfolio. The brand awareness would be higher than advertising promotion and get more involvement. Moreover, sponsor would evaluate the applicability of event which can be expected to convey the positive emotion and attitude to audiences. Therefore, sponsor expects to link the positive to their brand. In the sport, audiences also can be persuaded with the sport stars endorsement which can enhance the purchasing possibility (De Pelsmacker et al, 2004). It can be concluded that perfect sponsorship could to increase the positive attitude to sponsor and sponsored activities both. However, there are some potential risks of sponsorship which need to be noted. For example, the negative facts influence the sponsored entities which impact the sponsors directly or indirectly. It often happens in sport sponsorship like the sponsored teams or players do not play well in the match. It can be found that Carling and Guinness sponsor the different sport league not particular teams or player that would be a considered sponsorship strategies. In addition, overlapped sponsorship shows the extreme commercial image which could make audiences ignore the message (Pickton and Broderick, 2005). Hence, even sponsorship cost generally would be lower than advertising, it still need to be consider punctiliously. Ensuring the sponsored objective will be achieved and can be suitable to marketing communication objective. Also, budget and effectiveness measurement have to be planned in the process. After these, to integrate sponsorship into other communication mix element will reinforce the promotion campaign effectiveness (De Pelsmacker et al, 2004). Sales Promotion: Sale promotion is a short-term promotion to stimulate the consumer buying behaviour (Kotler and Armstrong, 2006). The function of sales promotion is not similar with other elements which to increase the long term relationship with consumers. It focuses to increase the sales immediately. There are two ways to achieve the sales. One of these is to encourage the current customers purchasing more products or another one is to attract the new customers attention to purchase. Therefore, it can be concluded that the features of sales promotion is to use simulative offers encourage the customers buy product in the limited time. Also, the measurement of sales promotion is easier to conduct than other communication mix tools (De Pelsmacker et al, 2004). Many tools can be used in the sales promotion such as couponing, sampling, premiums, contest and money-off. Those of instruments are planned to be used in different categories of products. Also, there are some particular sales promotion tools f or trade like point -of tail materials and merchandising. One fact which it needs to note is that sales promotion would be often implemented with advertising which can enhance the effectiveness of campaign. By using sales promotion information in advertising, it would be effective to encourage from awareness to purchase (Pickton and Broderick, 2005). Even though sales promotion has been admitted to increase short-term sales influentially, the long-term effect to the brand and sales also needs to be considered. It has been stated that consumers would be used to the price reduce and disregard the quality of products. Moreover, sales promotion would offer a reference price in their mind which makes them more sensitive to the price. Therefore, sales promotion would need more striking price promotion to attract the consumer in the future (De Pelsmacker et al, 2004). In beer industry, sales promotion is often used to compete with other brewers in special period like world cup or Xmas. The re also has some regular sales promotion which tried to be incentive for consumers. In recession, sales promotion are increasingly important to the total sale and integrate more communication mix elements to boost the sales. Hence, it can be expected that more sales promotion would be emphasized in the future. Words of mouth: Word of mouths is a strong medium for marketing communication. It is difficult to contend with friends recommendation by advertising or other communication mix elements. Also, it has been claimed that consumers are more likely to change their brand preference by advice than promotion mix. Thus, by people communication, experience, reputation and recommendation can be conveyed and believed effectively. Moreover, mass media has been claimed that it is not efficient to reach the besieged audience. Words of mouth can be the tool to break the barrier (Smith and Taylor, 2004). With the development of internet, the communication channel is convenient and the information is overload. The experience and feeling can be spread extremely fast which is not like other communication mix elements that could not be measured and control simply by promoters (Berrett, 1993). Even it is complicated to control words of mouth and ensure the content of communication to the brands or products, the impressive communication mix campaign could be the topic to be discussed and increase the positive attitude (Smith and Taylor, 2004). Therefore, words of mouth would be the most influential and uncontrollable part of marketing communication mix. Hierarchy of effect models: One of the prime theories in the marketing communication framework is hierarchy of effect model which logically explains the sequential tasks of marketing message influence. On other words, it affects the consumers awareness to purchase action which is assumed that the relative step would ideally push through to next process. First process is cognitive part which means consumers have received the message and like to awareness. Second process is affective part that shows the attitude and reaction to the promotion messages have been generate in the step. The final process is behaviour part which is the actual purchase to the promoted brand (De Pelsmacker et al, 2004). According to these three main processes, many different models have been created and AIDA is one of the models and often to be referred. AIDA: AIDA model is the fundamental theory in the hierarchy of effect model. It was created by Elmo Lewis who claimed that the influential process of marketing communication can be divided into four steps: Awareness, Interest, Desire and Action. It used to be used for sales training. However, it has been the most influential theory to explain marketing communication work nowadays. The model is explained that the process how to shift consumers from the beginning of unawareness to perceived the message and shows the reaction to action (Pickton and Broderick, 2005). Firstly, awareness is that the audiences have noticed and been aware of the promotion. Then, the audiences understand and believe the messages as well as feel interested to the advertising or brands. Following this, the message arouse consumer desire to look for this advertised product or brand. Finally, consumers do the action to purchase. In addition, it has been claimed that each marketing communication mix element can be influ ential to particular step in AIDA model. Firstly, Advertising and public are suitable to build awareness to make consumers know the brand as well as feel interested for the product. However, advertising are not effective to increase the immediate purchase. Meenaghan, T. (1991) The role of sponsorship in the marketing communications mix, International Journal of Advertising, 10 (1) pp.35-47 Berrett, T (1993) The sponsorship of amateur sport-government, national sport organization and corporate perspectives, Society and leisure, 16(2), 323 346. De Pelsmacker et al, (2004) Marketing Communications: A European Perspective, 2nd ed. Essex: Pearson Prentice Hall.

Leadership Style Adaptability

Leadership Style Adaptability Overview of Leadership theories in Consideration   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Situational leadership theory (SLT) is developed by Hersey and Blanchard (1968) and is based on the leaders task behaviour, relationships and the maturity or ability of the employees. Task behaviour is based on how the leaders define role, how and what to do .Relationships are based on how leaders maintain relations with followers by supporting them. Maturity shows the followers experience, willingness and ability to do the task. Based on this, 4 types of leadership styles s1, s2, s3, s4 are identified by Hersey and Blanchard (1996). SLT is useful in understanding the relationship between leadership style, level of maturity of follower and importance of leadership style adaptability. Several other researchers worked further to develop the model for application on various platforms.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Transformational theory is the latest theory which developed in the last two decades and is of high relevance and practice. The idea was first developed by Burns (1978) through Transformational leadership theory. Bass (1985) further developed the theory. The Transformational leaders put passion and energy into the work atmosphere. They develop a vision for their followers and the followers try to achieve the goal via the energy from the excitation. Leaders have to constantly convey or sell the vision to their followers. They will be always with the followers in charge of the task and have solution to most problems. Bass (1985) suggested that transformational leaders try to increase the task awareness, motivates followers to work for the team and organisation and makes the followers to aspire for needs. He proposed 5 factors or transformational leadership factors, Charismatic leadership, idealized influence, inspirational motivation, Intellectual stimulation an d individualized consideration. Based on these factors large number of researcher has studies the relevance of transformational leadership in various fields and have tried to develop the model further. Objective of the review   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The review tries to relate the various studies that have happened in the current decade on situational leadership and transformational leadership. Various authors who have studied the relevance of situational leadership theory and Transformational leadership theories are considered and their findings are taken into account for the development of the theories. The review checks the adaptability of both the theories in various work environment which helps to find the areas which require further studies on the models. Situational Leadership Theory Situational Leadership Theory-Supporting Views   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Several studies by various researchers were conducted on the application of the SLT in organisational contexts. (Arvidsson et al.2007) contend that leadership style adaptability vary according to group and individual situations and situations where success and hardship is present for the employees. The author further asserts that the leadership was relationship oriented and supportive in success and group situations and task oriented in hardship and group situations. This requires variability of leadership styles of the leader according to the situation, task and ability of the followers. Silverthorne Wang (2001) further supported this finding by asserting that leadership adaptability by managers requires better task behaviour and relationships and this increases productivity. They asserts that this require different leadership styles which vary according to situations. This requires managers to exhibit different leadership styles according to the task and ab ility of the followers. Arvidsson et al (2007) further contend and support this showing the importance of varying leadership style according to the ability of the followers. They should be able to guide on the task, and have successful and influencing relations with the followers. As far as my experience, this view holds in many sales environments where the influencing leadership styles give the focus and motivation to the followers. These leaders also understand the maturity or ability level of the followers and support them in various situations and thereby creating a strong rapport. My managers are seen to be exhibiting task behaviour more towards junior managers whom are new to the job. They guide them and tell them how to perform the task and thereby create a strong rapport with the followers. All this shows light to the ability of the leader to adapt to the situation according to the various needs and motives of the followers and situation which supports the SLT by Hersey and Blanchard (1996). Successful leaders thus vary their leadership styles and ability of the leaders to be adaptive to the environment leads to the success of organisation Silverthorne Wang (2001). (Silverthorne Wang (2001): Arvidsson et al.(2007)) state that leadership adaptability and exhibiting of different leadership styles depending on task, relations and ability of followers are important and thereby supports the SLT. My personal work experience as a leader supports this finding and thereby supports SLT.I have experienced the importance of task detailing, relationships and the ability of followers to execute the task as an important factor for success. Situational Leadership Theory -Against   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There was also some finding s which goes against the SLT. Papworth et al (2009) questions the applicability of SLT of Hersey and Blanchard (1996).They contend that their findings and research gave little support to the SLT model. They argue that the level of supervisor behaviour was independent of the supervisee experience. Support to SLT was only found when the supervisee is highly experienced and skilled and the supervisor have to do less task behaviours which were supported by Silverthorne Wang (2001). Butler Rees (1991) was also against the SLT model. They argue that the leadership style adaptability had little relations with the performance of the employees in a highly competitive sales environment (Insurance). They asserts that there are more factors that may affect the performance and readiness of the salesperson like followers perception of managerial style ,the difficulty of task involved in the sale process and difference in follower readiness. Sil verthorne Wang (2001) argues and supports SLT by asserting that leadership styles should vary according to situations and depending on follower readiness. The finding of Butler Rees (1991) are quite relevant because from my own experience in the Insurance industry over 2 years, I do understand that the varying perception of managerial style and difficulty of the task in hand do have an impact on the performance. Even though the managers vary their style according to situations of task and ability, the factors proposed by Butler Rees (1991) do contribute to the performance of employees. I would like to add that leadership adaptability is only one among many factors that determine performance in competitive sales environment. The objectivity and the provenance of the finding of Papworth et al (2009) are really questionable based on the type of the research and the area of research they conducted. They used clinical sessions and tapes from a very low sample and made all the assessme nt about the situational leadership theory. The relationships and tasks In these sessions were compared to leadership and task of SLT. This causes wide criticism and questions the relevance of their finding on SLT. Moreover Papworth et al (2009) gives only some theoretical evidence instead of an actual research result. All this studies point to the fact that SLT may not be widely accepted in all fields of study and industries. This also points that SLT may be suited to certain industries and may not be fitted into some other .There are external and internal factors which are to be considered depending on the type of industry and environment, like task involved and external factors. Situational Leadership Theory-Alternate Views Johnson (1998) proposes an alternate or modified model of SLT. The author combines SLT model which uses directing and supporting styles of leadership. He also takes stage theory of group development by Tuckman Jensen (1977) and the stages of development of the followers by Blanchard (1985) along with the SLT. This model varies from SLT by considering each of the four leadership styles may be appropriate some of the time, the most broadly applicable style combines structure and empathy Johnson (1998).The author further asserts that the model can be applied to individuals and only to the groups which are performing at the same level. VanderVen (1998) further supported this modified situational leadership model. The model tries to overcome some of the short falls of SLT. But my management experience shows that managers do tend to show situational approach based on the varying levels of their follower performance. It is not likely that in real world you will get a team of followers (gr oups) who perform In the same level. Discussion of Situational Leadership   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The findings of Arvidsson et al. (2007) and Silverthorne Wang (2001) favouring the SLT was across different cultures (Swedish Taiwanese) .They also researched in different industries of Information technologies and air craft. Butler Rees, (1991) and Papworth et al (2009) found no support to the leadership style adaptability and SLT in their respective studies. All these findings makes and echo to the fact that situational leadership varies according to industries and cultures. This calls for further studies on the modification and application of the SLT across various environments. The efforts put forward by Johnson (1998) is commendable and more research work should be done on further rectifying the limitations of the SLT model .One of the key areas which require research is the heterogeneity of the levels of subordinates and the behaviour of leaders accordingly.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Transformational Leadership Theory   Ã‚  Ã‚  Transformational Leadership Theory-Favourable factors   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Purvanova et al. (2006) conducted further studies on the impact of Transformational Leadership Theory (TLT) on job perception of the employees. Transformational leaders irrespective of the type of different jobs they were involved in exerted a positive influence on the employees perception of jobs. Employees with transformational managers found their job as, meaningful, challenging and inspiring .The studies further supported Bass (1985) views that transformational leaders inspire followers to see their jobs as important and seeks them to perform beyond expectations which they does. Chan Chan (2005) asserts that leaders with high usage of transformational leadership factors have more positive influence of job perception and performance. He further contend and support that, all the transformational leadership factors in the Bass (1985) TLT has direct impact on the leader effectiveness, performance of employees , their perception of job and its satisfaction. Sc hyns Sanders (2006) contend that solidarity of follower with colleagues and leader is related highly to Transformational leadership style of the leader. Higher the transformational style perception of the employees , better solidarity to the leader and the team was found. Panagopoulos Dimitriadis (2009) contend that a positive TL behaviour of managers will cause increase the performance of the sales person, high satisfaction due to their supervisor and creates or increases commitment to the organisation. This was predicted in a behaviour based control sales environment rather than an outcome based sales environment.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The works by these authors are related and focuses on the impact of TL styles on the followers and their behaviour in work .These works support that a high TL style surely increases the behaviour, focus, job satisfaction, and performance and commitment levels of the followers. Purvanova et al. (2006) and Chan Chan (2005) argue that exhibition of TL causes higher positive job perception of the employees. . Chen Baron (2006) further supports this by highlighting the impact of one of the TL style which causes higher job perception to the followers. I personally have experienced transformational leadership styles (factors) from my manager during my work as a junior sales manager. This caused an increase in motivation and commitment towards the organisation and manager resulting in high performance and achievements. ( Purvanova et al. (2006); Panagopoulos, Dimitriadis (2009)).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  All these findings (Purvanova et al. (2006); Chan Chan (2005);Panagopoulos Dimitriadis (2009)) shows that transformational leadership styles of leaders do have an impact on the employees perceptions of their own jobs. TL style increases the responsiveness, satisfaction, performance, inspiration, meaning and a vision for the followers jobs. TL motivates followers to perform beyond expectation of the employer and thereby creating more successful persons and organisations. Further TL creates a commitment and focus in the followers for the job and leader. TL generates a feel for team work and solidarity to colleagues among the followers. Thus TL as a whole helps in creating a focussed and motivated atmosphere were people work enthusiastically. My view is that, the application of TL in an organisation will lead to a motivated and successful organisation subjected to other factors. These calls for the ability of managers and leaders to adapt learn and implement TL style for a better and successful work environment. Transformational Leadership Theory Limited favourability.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Although the majority of studies showed support to the TLT model, there were some findings that offered limited support to the model and questioned the universality of the TLT model. Mannheim Halamish (2008) tested the TL model in the context of army training camps. They conclude that the only in the beginners learning culture the TL style is related to group result. The authors found little support for the leadership styles, group outcome and cohesion in other higher levels. This lead to the moderation of TLT in various contexts and also this may be due to many other factors which require further research. Barnett et al. (2001) supported this view by suggesting that the TL behaviour have a negative association with student learning culture. Kelloway et al. (2000) argued that leadership training and feedback together will have little effect on the TL style perception, where in the mean time both individually can have an impact on the TL perception. Chen Baron (2006) ech o a similar but slightly variant view. They argue that the leaders do tend to show high transformational leadership skills. But only the idealised influence style of TL increases the job satisfaction of the followers and if the leader don show this aspect of TL style, the level of satisfaction may be low. These findings do questions the variability of TL styles and the impact of each style over different situations, work environment and cultures. The findings of Mannheim Halamish (2008) and Barnett et al. (2001) questions the usage of TL style in the learning and training culture. Both of them conducted their studies in an environment where training has an important role to play.   Ã‚  Ã‚  The arguments of Mannheim Halamish (2008) and Barnett et al. (2001) clearly indicates that the TLT applicability in the learning and training culture is questionable as they found little evidence in favour of that in higher experienced levels. My personal experience supports this finding as experienced followers find it difficult to adapt to TL model due to their exposure to other styles of leaderships, whereas beginner can be trained and moulded to the desired form initially as they are fresh in mind. Chen Baron (2006) asserts that only one type of TL style have an impact over job satisfaction of followers. All these views calls for further research for the application of TLT in these areas and the factors which causes this effect on TL should be found and due consideration must be given for this. Transformational Leadership Theory -Alternative views   Ã‚  Ã‚  Mitchell Boyle (2009) developed a model based on TL for mitigating against destructive emotional barriers to group effectiveness Mitchell Boyle (2009 ).Their model was based on TL impact on knowledge creation in diverse groups and how TL will help in doing this. The model tries to explain the variation of diverse team performances through the impact TL has on knowledge creation. Dunn (2007) developed a modified leadership model which was different from the TL model. They found a difference in leadership style changes according to the gender of the leaders. Author argues that this moderated model will be advantageous to the organisation. Both Mitchell Boyle (2009) and Dunn (2007) tried to develop a model in order to adapt TL to the varying environments and to develop the model to a new level. Discussion of Transformational Leadership   Ã‚  Ã‚  To conclude, Most of the researchers do found favourable factors for TL even though there are limited support findings for the TL. Purvanova et al. (2006), Chan Chan (2005), Schyns Sanders (2006) and Panagopoulos Dimitriadis (2009) underline the fact that TL increases job perception, satisfaction and performance among employees. Mannheim Halamish (2008) and Barnett et al. (2001) contend that TL have impact on learning culture in beginners level only and TL dont have much impact in higher experience employee learning culture. Chen Baron (2006) highlights the impact of one TL style higher than other styles. Mitchell Boyle (2009) developed TLT further for applicability for diverse team performance. TL has found to have a high impact on the job perception of employee and their applicability in the learning and training culture requires further research. Also the impact of TL on cultures and team diversity requires further research. Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Arvidsson et al. (2007) and Silverthorne Wang (2001) studied and supported the SLT. Their studies in these fields are commentable and is of high relevance. They together assert the need for adaptability of leadership and variation of leadership style. I would also like to view up on Butler Rees (1991) who drew on the leadership adaptability of competitive environment. There are many factors apart from leadership adaptability and styles which need consideration in such an environment. Johnson (1998) tried to study in the aspect of groups and the idea of SLT requires further research and studies on factors from external environment which effect the followers and environment. Purvanova et al. (2006), Chan Chan (2005) and Panagopoulos Dimitriadis (2009) finding on TL supported and is of high significance in the industry. They show the effect of TL on job perceptions of followers. It also shows the significance of TL style in organizations. Their finding shows the relevanc e of TL in the business world. Mannheim Halamish (2008) and Barnett et al. (2001 question the adaptability of TL in training culture of highly experienced employees leading to limitations in applicability of TLT in all work environments. Mitchell Boyle (2009) modified the TL model and tried to study and implement the impact of TL on knowledge creation and thereby impacting the diversity in team performance. Further research is recommended on TLT for application on learning cultures and its variance over cultures. All the above studies are of high relevance to the leadership studies and helps in the development of situational and transformational leadership theories. In general situational and transformational leadership styles have high impact on the employees and work environment and requires further studies for application in various work environments. References: Arvidsson, M., Johansson, C .R., Ek,A. and Akselsson,R. (2007) SITUATIONAL LEADERSHIP IN AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL, Journal of Air Transportation, Vol. 12, No. 1. Barnett,K., McCormick,J., and Conners,R.(2001) Transformational leadership in schools Panacea, placebo or problem?, Journal of Educational Administration, Vol. 39, No. 1, 2001, pp. 24-46. Butler, J. K. and Reese, R.M. (1991) Leadership Style and sales performance: A test of Situational leadership model, Journal of persona l selling and sales management, Volume XI, Number 3, Chan, A.T. S. and Chan, E. H. W. (2005) Impact of Perceived Leadership Styles on Work Outcomes: Case of Building Professionals, Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, Vol. 131, No. 4, pp 413-422 Chen, H. And Baron, M. (2006) Nursing Directors Leadership Styles and Faculty Members Job Satisfaction in Taiwan, Journal of Nursing Education, Vol. 45, No. 10, 404-411 Dunn, M. (2007) British army leadership: is it gendered?, Women in Management Review, Vol. 22 No. 6, pp. 468-481. Johnson, M.M (1998) Applying a Modified Situational Leadership Model to Residential Group Care Settings, Child Youth Care Forum, 27(6). Kelloway, E.K., Barling, J. and Helleur, J.(2000) Enhancing Transformational leadership: the roles of training and feedback. Leadership and organisational Development Journal, 21/3, pp 145-149. Mannheim,B. and Halamish,H. (2008) Transformational leadership as related to team outcomes and contextual moderation , Leadership Organization Development Journal ,Vol. 29, No. 7, pp. 617-630 Mitchell, R. J. and Boyle,B (2009) A theoretical model of transformational leaderships role in diverse teams, Leadership Organization Development Journal ,Vol. 30, No. 5, pp. 455-474 Papworth, M.A., Milne, D. and Boak, G. (2009) An exploratory content analysis of situational leadership . Journal of Management Development, Vol. 28, No. 7, pp. 593-606 Purvanova, R.K., Bono, J, E., and Dzieweczynski.J (2006) Transformational Leadership, Job Characteristics, and Organizational Citizenship Performance, Human Performance, 19(1), 1-22. Sanders, K and Schyns,B (2006) Leadership and solidarity behaviour Consensus in perception of employees within teams, Personnel Review, Vol. 35 ,No. 5, pp. 538-556 Silverthorne, C. and Wang, T. (2001) Situational Leadership Style as a Predictor of Success and Productivity among Taiwanese Business Organizations, The Journal of Psychology, pp 399-412 VanderVen,K . (1998) Modelling and Modified Situational Leadership: Some Comments on Johnson, Child Youth Care Forum, 27(6) London Metropolitan University, MBAPage 5

Ethan Frome Essays -- essays papers

Ethan Frome ‘He was but the ruin of a man’. What factors have contributed to Ethan’s tragic fate? The first factor which adds to Ethan’s tragic fate is time. The book is mainly set in the nineteenth century and in those times things like divorce and adultery were less acceptable. Ethan would have felt morally wrong to leave this wife working on a poor farm or just leaving her money. Ethan’s birth into a poor family and in the time he was born, meant that he couldn’t really do anything so he was left unhappy. There was no welfare state in the nineteenth century America so again Ethan had to accept the burden of looking after his parents and wife, paying all of Zeena’s medical ’needs’ with no help. Ethan must have found these times hard because he received no help, he was the one who had to help everyone else. Ethan Frome’s wife Zeena is quite a hypochondriac, as we hear in the prologue that the post-master at ‘intervals’ would hand him medicine packages. Again we hear of this at page forty seven that Zeenaâ€⠄¢s last visit to the doctor cost Ethan twenty dollars, money he can’t afford to be wasted. We are also told about Ethan’s desire to learn about science but with no university grants at that time and Ethan being part of a poor health stricken family he had to stop studying and go back to ’caring’ just like he does for the rest of his days. He runs a farm which seems to be run down and again because of the time there were no farm subsides to help Ethan out so the farm worries add to his plight. Mattie’s ‘coming to [the] house’ was due to her having no work to do or anywhere to stay. After her father’s death she was ’left on her own to make her way on fifty dollars’. There were fewer job... ...up’. Ethan and Mattie realise that because they can’t be with each other because of these factors I have discussed they discide to end it together. Both Mattie and Ethan express their love for each other on the top of the slope, the first time that they actually kissed and expressed love for one another. They sooner realised ’what’s the good of either of [them] going anywheres without the other one now?’ ‘Some erratic impulse’ and their love drove them to try and commit suicide. Ethan suffered after the ’smash up’. He became ’the ruin of a man’ through his ’warped right side’ and ’red gash’ across Frome’s forehead. The accident scared both Mattie and Ethan for life and changed their life forever and with the mental factors for example the economic problems along with the last physical factor, the ’smash up’ has contributed to his tragic fate.