Introduction to Indigenous Australia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Introduction to Indigenous Australia - Essay Example Religious men referred to Aborigines as immoral, unfit to be in any divine presence and that they were in the same level as brutes. The opinions of scientists were by far the crudest of them all. Scientists classified Aborigines based on the blood types and brain functioning as if they were some animal that needed to be analyzed for further understanding. They further said that aborigines were more of apes that the human race. Learned people looked into the life of Aborigines with contempt and disregard. They claimed that Aboriginal people were adept at making poor judgments and thus needed direction to make sound decisions (Dodson, 2003). These were particularly nasty perspectives and Dodson seeks to review them with a critical eye. He says that these early settlers do not know the Aborigines and so they are not in a position to refer to them in any way. According to him, these early settlers should have a firsthand experience with the Aboriginal people before judging them. This pap er will try to review Dodson’s perspective of Aboriginality critically with the aim of understanding his perspective of the issue. Dodson shows his concern for the colonizers being obsessed with the aborigines and aboriginality. These colonizers have made it their passion to look into the aborigines and also labeling them all kinds of this they deem fit. Dodson concern is seen when he notes that colonizers have made aboriginality seem like a mystery to be solved. He says that there are cases where aborigines have been referred to half bloods, full blood, hybrids, real and inauthentic. At some point, there was a suggestion that for one to be a legitimate aborigine, then he was to have more than 50% of aboriginal blood. His concern is also seen when he speaks of how aborigines were initially considered heroes. He then this compared to how they are being ridiculed today by artists in films and other artworks. According to Ethnologists, there was a need to rescue the aborigines f rom their wayward animalistic behaviors. The aborigines were considered cannibals, savages and infanticides. They are also known to be vulnerable just like the other lesser races in the world. This is strongly contested as these aborigines are seen to be out of control of the fact that they are in their â€Å"twilight† days. Aboriginal people are voiceless in the society as no one has given a chance to speak for themselves. It is saddening that people do not give an ear to the Aboriginal people. The arguments the early settlers pass are based on narratives from early settlers who were biased. The biases of the colonizers are seen in their obsession to brand aborigines as a lesser race com pared to the other races. A study by the United Nation aimed at unearthing the issue of discrimination that was faced by the aborigines and other indigenous groups that were considered on the verge of extinction. The indigenous community was given legitimacy based on the race, dressing, ance stry, as well as, dialect. In cultures across the world indigenous people are considered marginalized, backward, illiterate, and with an archaic mode of speech. These indigenous groups have been objectified in the eyes of the early settlers. The United Nation report emphasized the need to allow an indigenous community to decide whom they wanted to be part of their community. The report further emphasizes the need for an indigenous group having their own definition of whom they are thereby giving all the other â€Å"fake† definitions a cold shoulder. It is their responsibility

Reserach Proposal on Leadership Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Reserach on Leadership - Research Proposal Example Transformational leadership is increasingly seen as critical, not only in the competitive landscape of an organization, but also to the leader’s impact on team effectiveness (Grant, 2012; Ozaralli, 2003). Increasingly, leaders are not only faced with the challenge of how to introduce change, but also how to manage change (Watkins, 2004), which seems especially important when the introduction of the new leader is the change. Watkins (2003) notes that on average twelve employees are impacted by a new manager. This finding implies that what the new leader in transition does would affect a wide network of employees and, hence, performance within the organization. Since transformational leadership is deemed as critical for team performance, this research study seeks to examine the relationship between transformational leadership style and team effectiveness for new leaders in transition, with a special focus on professional knowledge-based work teams Problem / Opportunity Statement Most organizations in the current business climate are highly dependent on leaders to lead organizations to success. This dependence is especially so in the current high competitive business environment characterized by high leader turnover, frequent change, and high accountability to stakeholders (Grant, 2012; Hoffman, Bynum, Piccolo, & Sutton, 2011; Stewart, 1992). The problem is that organizations and leaders have failed to execute effective leadership transition action plans, which may lead to negative effects, such as leader stress, decreased productivity, higher turnover, and ineffective team performance (Gilmore, 2003). Understanding the role of transformational leadership in leadership transition and the impact that it has on team effectiveness would be an essential resource in understanding develop effective leadership transition plan. Both Wageman, Hackman, and Lehmen (2005), who proposed a model of team effectiveness in an organizational context, and Manderscheid and Ard ichvili (2008), who proposed a paired model integrating leadership transition theory that proposes effective team relationships are the result of successful leadership transitions, posit that transformational leadership style may be a critical success factor for team effectiveness and the success of new leaders (Appelbaum & Valero, 2007). Watkins (2004) maintained that, to accelerate the transition and build momentum, the new leader must have the ability to engage and influence many individuals throughout the organization â€Å"using vision, expertise and drive† (p. 16). Unlike well seasoned leaders who may have some understanding on what works in teams or how to handle various challenges that arise in newer teams that they are faced with, new leaders lack the experience of having to deal with such challenges. Most only have theoretical knowledge. Past literature have depicted transformational leadership as the most effective in enabling team performance and effectiveness (Wa geman, Hackman, and Lehmen, 2005). Although there is substantive research on leadership style and team effectiveness, there is less on new leader transition (Manderscheid & Ardichvili, 2008). Most of the research have focused on strategies to be employed in transitioning a leader (Manderscheid, 2008), formal interventions that organisations need to undertake in helping

Essay about Sufferings in Life

Essay about Sufferings in Life Throughout the world almost every living person on the planet will witness suffering at least once in a life time. Suffering as we know it is defined as the pain we experience due to an injury, medical malpractice or even disruptions in ones family life and etc. Although we endure suffering, do we constantly suffer? According to the German Philosopher, Arthur Schopenhauer who proposed that life is full of suffering and that this suffering is directly caused by the will of the individual. I wish in this short paper to carry this claim further and try to explain why Schopenhauer thinks that life is full of suffering and how he believes that this suffering can be overcome. I will also attempt to show my perspective of why I dont agree to his arguments. Schopenhauer proposed his pessimistic view on an individuals condition in this world by stating that life is filled with suffering, and that this suffering that we experience is directly caused by our will. We know Life tends to want, and because its wants are regularly unfulfilled, it largely exists unfulfilled and in a state of deprivation. By the wanting or expecting something, an individual is setting himself up to sufferÂÂ  until that objective is met. Then, upon fulfillment of the desire, a new aim is set forth, and thus the cycle of suffering begins again. When Schopenhauer says that all life is suffering he means everything that lives and strives, is filled with suffering, he puts it as It is absurd to look upon the enormous amount of pain that abounds everywhere in the world.(Pg 63) Suffering is ultimately caused by the frustration and conflict that arises from competition between individual wills. For Schopenhauer suffering seems to be such a great cause that the world is subjected to, he feels happiness that we experience at times is not actually happiness in life. In fact, if an individual is to measure the joy they experienced in the world it would have to be measured through Schopenhauers ways, as he states; not by its joys and pleasures, but by the extent to which it has been free from suffering (pg 64) He goes even further to say that Suffering is the purifying process through which alone, in most cases, a person is consecrated. Schopenhauer claimed that more intense the willing, the more intense will be the suffering. So, now, the problem here is how to diminish the capability of ones willing such that we may get a relief from suffering? Schopenhauer answer is actually a very simple one, although according to me not, by any means, easy to accomplish. The answer is; being capable of denying what will wants. This practice is called Aestheticism or self-denial and, according to Schopenhauer, is the one adequate solution to the central life problem. Schopenhauer ideology of life filled with suffering is a total contradiction to want to live without wanting to suffer. Of course that contradiction over here again is his metaphysics of Will. The question, really is do we suffer all the time? I would go on to disagree with this argument. Even if we do suffer, between periods of suffering, there is concise happiness as wants are fulfilled. Schopenhauer claims that this pleasure can never be more than liberation from pain, further suggesting that humans only experience happiness through the memory of suffering and pain. This view is opposite to the modern view of suffering and happiness. We dont necessarily experience happiness from suffering as a memory. If for example I have bad memories of being bullied in school, I would not attain pleasure by remembering those memories and therefore I find this argument unsound. Life to some extent has suffering, this fact is unavoidable. However, by realizing this, and by focusing on the positives, human beings can lead reasonably enjoyable lives. Therefore, an individual should do exactly the opposite of what Schopenhauer suggests, and experience each emotion, good or bad, as fully as possible. If we are to consider the roles played by both the ordinary perception and aesthetic state, it seems that it is actually desirable that things are as they are. That is, we need to recognise that our suffering serves a great good and that is the promotion of our own survival. I find Schopenhauer to be mistaken; we do not always suffer, as there are little things that make life joyous. Furthermore, Schopenhauer compares our lives to animals, he states; The lower animals appear to enjoy a happier destiny than men. (pg64) On the same side with Schopenhauer I believe that animals live better lives than us. The fact that animals dont construct memories from their past and replay it, they obviously live better lives than us. Take for example a gold fish; most experiments claim they have a life span of three seconds, comparing that to a human life it can be said that we would suffer by recollecting old memories that brought us pain and suffering. Unlike us humans animals dont bother about the future or the past. They live in the present. So when it comes to animals I would agree that they live better lives than us and thus the argument is sound. Schopenhauer Aesthetic system according to me is a completely feeble. Even if it were possible to forget and give up all of our will, why would we ever do such a thing? I understand that our will at times is totally pointless and at times a lot of desires arise, and we are only capable of fulfilling some or none of them, but this does not mean we should practice aesthetics. The one problem that I see with the aesthetic system is that, Will, is the ultimate cause of our suffering. And we can be freed from our suffering through practising aesthetic. This idea seems to be contradictory, how can we be free of suffering by losing our individualism and perceiving the will objectively when the will is evil in nature? As Schopenhauer puts is. What is believed is that it is essential for us to see the world subjectively and not objectively, using our own experiences in order to survive. It is therefore fair to claim that our will is acting in our best interest. It also allows us to have desires that are needed in order to survive. For instance, it is essential for us to have a will to eat regularly in order to nourish ourselves; if we failed to do this we would die. And therefore I find this argument unsound. It would be fair for me to say that I totally find Schopenhauers ideology of life being filled with suffering invalid. However, I do find his argument on animals living a better life than human to be somewhat valid. The idea of aestheticism for combating suffering according to me is also not valid. I have tried to show that his conception of the will was mistaken on the grounds that he failed to properly appreciate the great good that our will actualises: our survival. Overall I believe that life is good, it has its ups and downs which Schopenhauer failed to realise. However one should live to the fullest and enjoy every single moment in life before we leave this world for good.

Jean Paul Sartres No Exit And Its Existentialist Themes Essays

Jean Paul Sartre's No Exit And Its Existentialist Themes I would like to take this opportunity to discuss Jean Paul Sartre's philosophy and it's integration into his play "No Exit". Embedded within the character interactions are many Sartrean philosophical themes. Personal attributes serve to demonstrate some of the more dominant ideas in Sartre's writings. Each of the three characters in the play show identifiable characteristics of sexual perversion, bad faith, and interactions of consciousness.This play takes an interesting setting, that of the afterlife. The plot centers around three main characters, Joseph Garcin, Estelle Rigault and Inez Serrano. Hell, as portrayed in this work, is no more than a room with three couches and Second Empire decorum. There are no mirrors, no windows, no books, generally no form of amusement. Some very human privileges that we take for granted have also been taken away: sleep, tears, and even momentary reprieves of blinking. Each of the three characters is introduced into the room by a surprisingly polite Valet. Initial confrontations are "uncomfortable", each person knowing that he/she is deceased, but they are not impolite. However, as the true reasons why each person has been sentenced to Hell are revealed, the true nature of the place takes shape. Rather than try to explain the chronological progression of the play, I would rather take each character and their opinions individually in an attempt to highlight what I believe are the important parts. The first person to appear in the play is Mr.Garcin. At first glance, he is a very polite, gentlemanly, and moral individual. However, the further into the play that we read, we find that he is none of these things. Instead, he represents some of the worst ails that afflict humankind (according to Sartre). He was graced with a wife that loved him unconditionally, and he loathed for no other reason. In fact, one the first memories that he has of her is how "she got on his nerves". There is one story that is obviously intended to shock the reader, and provide a good interpretation of Garcin's true character. He states:"Well here's something you can get your teeth into. I brought a half-caste girl to stay in our house. My wife slept upstairs; she must have heard - everything. She was an early riser and, as I and the girl stayed in bed late, she served us our... ...tolen away their ability to close their eyes. There is no way to turn off the sinks! Oaklander gives us a good description of the system, and how it applies to this situation:Rather it appears that the world has a kind of drain hole in the middle of its being and that it is perpetually flowing off through this hole. The universe, the flow, and the drain hole are all once again recovered, reapprehended, and fixed as an object. All this is there for me as a partial structure in the world, even though the total disintegration of the universe is involved. Moreover these disintegrations may often be contained within more narrow limits.. (Oaklander, pg. 284)In conclusion, Jean Paul Sartre takes less than fifty pages to materialize his existentialist ideas for the stage. He has given us interpretations of sexual desire, bad faith, and conscious interactions. As a note: I truly believe that this play could be analyzed on an even deeper level. Each comment could be dissected and applied to part of Sartre's theory. However, this scope was limited to stay within the bounds of this paper. Works Cited Sartre, Jean Paul. No Exit and Three Other Plays. 1944. NY: Vintage Books, 1989.

The differences between goals and objectives

AbstractWhen clearly defined, goals and objectives can be used as major management strategies which in turn lead to the success of an organization. It is important to note that the differences between goals and objectives have important practical meanings. Hence, this paper will briefly explain the differences between these two from the strategic management point of view. Differences between a goal and an objective Goals are extensive while objectives tend to be narrow. This means that having set important goals, one may move on to objectives as they are more of sub goals.In other words, achieving any set goal will require one to formulate a number of questions that will enable one reach their goals in any project. Therefore, these questions make up the objectives which are specific and narrow and which also act as a milestone that aids in achieving a set goal. Thus, goals can be differentiated from objectives as they have general intentions with objectives being more defined (Lewis, 1996). In addition, goals can also be differentiated from objectives as they are abstracts with objectives being more concrete.This means that goals are more of a summary with objectives bearing more details with regards to the abstracts. As well, the goals will only stipulate where one wants to be with objectives giving the steps needed to get there or actions that will enable one be where they want to be. In turn, from the strategic management point of view, goals end up indeterminate as their intentions cannot be measured with objectives being measurable (Lewis, 1996). Further more, a goal can be said to be intangible while objectives may be tangible.This means that a goal is something that may be directed towards achieving non measurable tasks with objectives directed towards achieving measurable things. Moreover, the two can also be differentiated as they take different time frames. For instance, goals tend to have longer time frames when compared to objectives. As well, since objectives are more precise and existing under a goal, they are mostly set to achieve certain targets with the time frame being short term (Lewis, 1996).

Learning Analysis

I wanted to apply for a job maintaining databases; however, the company I was applying for used a different program which I needed to learn before being considered for the application. Although I had no assurance of being hired, I bought the program and the book and resolved to learn the program on my own. Whether I get the job or not, I have learned something new to add to my rà ©sumà ©. In my Human Resources Management class, we were taught that the best way to gather information about the prospective applicant is to look at their rà ©sumà ©Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s and that it is often the most used preselection tool. A rà ©sumà © that is complete and presents current information about one’s qualifications and skills will get the most points during selection (Newell & Scarborough, 2002). Moreover, it is also important that when a skill or expertise is listed on a rà ©sumà © it is actually verifiable and that one could demonstrate it if needed.This meant that if I really wanted that job, I should be able to master this program or be able to work with it before I submit that application letter. I approached the task with a sense of urgency since the deadline for the application was in a week. I recalled that in the recruitment process, it is important to have a time frame of the recruitment activities as sometimes the need for an applicant to the position is immediate (Newell & Scarborough, 2002), since the time frame for the application process was in a week, I figured the company must really be in a hurry to fill the job vacancy.A vacancy in the company can be brought about by external turnovers, where the employee voluntarily leave the company, or an internal turnover, where the employee is promoted to a higher position (Mathis & Jackson, 2006). Database administrators usually work alone and it is a very specific job that its job description is basically about how to enter and update information in the company’s database and based on this, I deduced t he former employee of the company I was setting my eyes on resigned. Voluntary resignations often occur because of the need for better paying jobs, job dissatisfaction, disagreement with the management and a whole lot more. However, it would be too much of me to think so far ahead about the reasons why the former database administrator left; it’s the case of counting the rotten eggs even before finding the hen.I was in the middle of my thoughts when I realized that I was not yet working on the program. So I proceeded to install the program on my computer and scanned the guidebook to familiarize myself with the icons and the layout of the interface. Setting up the program on my computer was easy; I followed the instructions carefully and installed the software tutor to help me. Then, I had the book of instructions and proceeded to punch out some commands and clicked on the icons on the screen in front of me. Then after 10 minutes, I realized I was not learning anything!I could not make heads or tails about what the program was about really, and it was like a tangle of senseless letters and numbers. Besides, my head was spinning from straining my eyes at the monitor and then looking at the guide book and asking help from the program tutor. In this predicament, I found myself looking back at the human resource management theories that I took up this semester at the university. HR concepts and theories are actually valuable instruments that would help organizations become productive (Ulrich& Brockbank, 2005)I remembered that motivating people to learn something new or to have them attend skills training is one of the most difficult tasks that an HR manager have to face. Research had found that employees willingly attend trainings and workshops since it would free them from their daily work routines, however, whether they learn anything from it or not has not been established (Kraiger & Ford, 2006). Although, researchers agree that an employee who have posit ive attitudes towards the training program would likely benefit more from the training while a negative attitude towards the training sessions would mean that the possibility of learning has already been blocked. Designing an effective training program should be based on motivation theories and adult learning.Motivation theories indicate that in order for the individual to accomplish a task, the goal itself should be one that the individual values (Mathis & Jackson, 2006). This would mean that the training should be one that is related to the work tasks of the employee and that it could be perceived as an opportunity for growth and development. Training activities should also be designed to provide opportunities for the participants to succeed and feel that they are competent, thus, if the skills training is about making performance evaluation instruments then the participants could be asked to make their own instrument and input can be given in how to make performance evaluations w hich would either validate the participants skills or teach them new ones.The needs theory of motivation also says that trainings should answer a need; this means that the employee will perceive the training as personally important to him/her if it satisfies a need. The need for growth, for achievement, for competence and for affiliation is answered by training programs. When an employee is required to attend a training workshop, it tells him that the company wants him to become better at his job, that they care about his personal quest for professional growth, and that the company is looking after their employees (Pfeffer &  Veiga, 1999). Aside from motivation, a key factor in effective training programs is adult learning theories.The effectiveness of trainings and workshops is measured by the amount of skills transferred from the training to the actual job (Kraiger & Aguinis, 2001). However, literature says that training effectiveness in terms of learning transfer has not been a dequately studied due to the difficulty of monitoring learning in the workplace. Adult learning theories suggests that adults learn experientially, that is by doing and applying what is being taught (Nkomo, Fottler & McAfee, 2005). Thus, if the skills being taught are customer service courtesy, it would be more effective if the skill is taught using role playing techniques and applying it to real life situations than if it was just taught using lectures.Moreover, learning happens in a continuum, one being effective learning and remembering and the other is end is forgetting and decay. Thus, trainings should be given periodically, it should not be a one-shot deal where you would expect that everything is learned and that it should not be repeated (Salas,  Cannon ­Bowers,  Rhodenizer  &  Bowers, 1999), however it makes no sense to train employees on something that they do not need or one that is not relevant to their jobs. After, this musings and theoretical exercise, I went back to my database program and begun learning it in a different approach.First off, I delegated a time for my learning schedule that is on the same time everyday, then I chose between the guide book or the tutor to help me since using both would be confusing and exhausting. From what I learned on adult learning, the training session should be interactive, one that I can work on and see concrete results or outputs, so settled for the tutor and ditched the guidebook. Second, on my first session, I read the introductory part of the program and had the tutorial run to give an overview of the program, because the HR texts said one must first understand what the training is for and where it could be used to make the person’s job easier or more meaningful.The tutorial was interactive so I got to associate the different commands with its specific functions and I remembered it easily because I could visualize the icon, no wonder programs have icons, it makes the manipulation of the program simpler. After several tutorials I then proceeded to work on the program on my own, I printed the sample exercises and then proceeded to work on the database using the exercises and if I could not make sense of it, I then asked the tutor for help.The best thing about the activities was that it worked on an actual data, although it was fictitious, I had something to work with and could treat them as real. What was gratifying was that every time I was able to complete an exercise and produce the output exactly as it was presented in the training program, I felt I accomplished something and I was sure that I was really learning. At present, I am still on the third chapter but it has been a good run, and that job application seems to be on the positive side since many of those who applied are also not familiar with the program.ReferencesKraiger, K. & Ford, J. K. (2006). The expanding role of workplace training: Themes and trendsinfluencing training research and practice.   In L. L. Koppes (Ed.), Historical perspectives in industrial and organizational psychology.   Mahwah, NJ:   Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Kraiger, K. & Aguinis, H. (2001). Training effectiveness: Assessing training needs, motivation,and accomplishments.   In M. London (Ed.), How people evaluate others in organizations:   Person perception and interpersonal judgment in I/O psychology.Mathis, R. & Jackson, J. (2006). Human resource management 11th   ed. Boston:Thomson/Southwestern.Newell, H. & Scarborough, H. (2002). HRM in Context – A Case Study Approach. London:Palgrave.Nkomo, S.,   Fottler, M. & McAfee, R. (2005). Applications in human resource management:Cases, Exercises, and Skill Builders 5th   ed. Boston: Thomson/Southwestern.Pfeffer,  J.,  &  Veiga,  J.F.  Ã‚  (1999).  Ã‚  Putting  people   first  for  organizational  success.   Academy  ofManagement  Executive,  13,  37 ­48.Salas,  E.,  Cannon ­Bowers,  J.,  Rhodeniz er,  L.,  &  Bowers,  C.  (1999).  Training  inorganizations:  Myths,  misconceptions,  and  mistaken  assumptions.  Research  in  Personneland  Human  Resources  Management,  17, 123 ­161.Ulrich, D.& Brockbank, W. (2005). The HR Value Proposition. Boston: Harvard BusinessSchool Press.