Business Entities Essay

As the manager of Acme Fireworks, I need to gather information to help the owner determine whether or not he should continue to be a sole proprietorship or if he should switch to another business entity. I will help him do so by explaining each entity and how they relate to his business situation. I am the manager of Acme Fireworks, a fireworks retailer who sells fireworks, puts on ground display fireworks, and large aerial display fireworks. The company started in the owner’s garage two years ago and now has 15 employees that you manage. The company started as a sole proprietorship, and the owner has never changed the entity. The owner has informed me that the company has received inquiries from several large businesses wondering if the company could create several fireworks displays on a regular basis. The owner told the inquirers that the company could fill such display orders, and a price per display was agreed upon. It was discussed that most of the cost for a fireworks display is for skilled labor, insurance, and the actual service of setting off the fireworks. No other details were discussed. The owner is anticipating that new employees will need to be hired, but he is worried that if the large orders for fireworks displays do not continue, the company will not have the funds to pay the new employees. The owner is now considering changing the business entity, but he does not know what entity to form or how to form it. The owner has asked me to do the following: Determine if the contracts with the businesses will be governed by common law or the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), and explain why. Analyze whether the owner formed a contract with the businesses, and apply the five essential elements of an enforceable contract. Explain the potential personal liability to Acme Fireworks if a spectator is injured by a stray firework  from a fireworks display. Discuss the different employment types and relationships relevant to agency law, and analyze the advantages and disadvantages of each type specific to Acme Fireworks. Explain why Acme Fireworks should not operate as a sole proprietorship. Recommend a new business entity, and provide rationale to support your recommendation. To address the first concern the owner’s contract should be Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) rather than Common Law due to the following: â€Å"Contracts law principles in general are uniformly understood and applied across the United States. Contract Law is governed b y the common law and the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC Contracts vs Common Law Contracts, 2014).† â€Å"Common Law would lead to rejections if any changes were made to the contract (quantities, counter offers, etc.). Its terms include quantity, price, performance time, nature of work and identity of offer. Common Law does not allow revoking of the option contracts† (UCC vs Common Law, 2014). â€Å"Common Law is primarily used in real estate and the law is made by the decisions of judges in individual cases† (Rogers, 2012). â€Å"In Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) minor changes do not have any impact and the original contract does not get canceled. The quantity is the main focus of the term in UCC. Offers made by a firm are irrevocable if the deal is made in writing in UCC† (UCC vs Common Law, 2014). â€Å"Uniform Commercial Code is a statutory law for certain types of commercial transactions, including sales of goods, which has been adopted by all 50 states. Many of its rules are similar to Common Law, but it contains important differences† (Rogers, 2012). After reviewing both types of contracts I would advise the owner of Acme Fireworks to enter into a Uniform Commercial Code contract rather than a Common Law contract because it is a better type of contract for commercial needs. The next thing I am supposed to do is to analyze whether the owner formed a contract with the businesses, and to apply the five essential elements of an enforceable contract. â€Å"A contract is a legally enforceable agreement. A contract comes into existence from the voluntary assent of two or more individuals to enter into a legally binding agreement. Mutual accord is crucial to the formation of a contract. One party, referred to as the offeror, makes an offer –a business proposition- to another; the other, known as the offeree, accepts. Provided that the other three requirements are present (consideration, capacity, and legality), a valid contract is formed.† (Rogers, 2012) The  five elements of a contract are as follows: 1. Offer 2. Acceptance 3. Consideration 4. Legality 5. Capacity According to the owner of Acme Fireworks, an offer was made and accepted, they discussed price and display orders, labor and insurance, and they were all of sound mind. Whether or not the owner of Acme Fireworks realizes it or not, he has entered into an enforceable contract. The next thing I will get into is the personal liability aspect. At this moment in time Acme Fireworks is a sole proprietorship; this means that if a spectator is injured by a stay firework from a firework display the owner is fully responsible. In other words, his personal assets are not protected and could be sold to pay for the injuries that occurred. There are several different types of business entities that would better protect the owner’s assets if something like this would occur. â€Å"A sole proprietorship is the simplest form under which one can operate a business† (The Basics of Sole Propreitorships, 2014). It is not a legal entity and the person that owns the business is personally responsible for its debts. A partnership has at least two partners. In a general partnership, both parties would be equally liable for the businesses debts. In a limited partnership one partner would be the liable party and the others would just lose their investments. A Limited Liability Corporation (LLC) is sort of the middle ground. In an LLC the business is responsible for its own debts and the people that make up the LLC are not. (LLC Basics, 2014) This means that all of the businesses assets can be liquidated, but the owners personal assets cannot. A Corporations liability is equal to that of an LLC, but it is normally very large businesses that are interested in marketing that run corporations. It is for people who want their business or idea to go public. â€Å"A corporation is the most common form of business organization, and one which is chartered by a state and given many legal rights as an entity separate from its owners† (Investor Words, 2014). A Corporation is the most expensive form of business entity. According to all of the data that I have gathered about this business, I believe, as the manager of Acme Fireworks that it is best to change the business from a sole proprietorship to a Limited Liability Corporation (LLC). I think that this is the best way to go because the product that we are selling does have some potential danger and someone could get injured. As of right now if someone was to get injured then the owner of Acme Fireworks would be held responsible. If the owner was to switch to an LLC then the business would be liable and the owner would not. References: Investor Words. (2014, 12 1). Retrieved from What is Corporation: http://www.investorwords.com/1140/corporation.html LLC Basics. (2014, 12 1). Retrieved from Nolo: http://www.nolo.com/legaencyclopedia/llc-basics-30163.html Rogers, Suzy. (2012). Essentials of Business Law. San Diego : Bridgepoint Education Inc. The Basics of Sole Propreitorships. (2014, 12 1). Retrieved from Entrepreneur: http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/77798 UCC Contracts vs Common Law Contracts. (2014, 12 1). Retrieved from The Presser Law Firm: http://www.assetprotectionattorneys.com/legal_business_counsel UCC vs Common Law. (2014, 12 1). Retrieved from Differences Between UCC and Common Law: http://www.differencebetween.net/miscellaneous/politics/

Law Exam

The law ensures that Coos and Scoffs cannot claim they were not aware of financial problems and wrong doings. They are required to take individual responsibility that the financial records are being reported accurately. The law also require that audits are performed by external and independent auditors to avoid conflict of Interest. The firms used for audits cannot perform non-adult related work for the company. Auditing firms must also be rotated. 2. Employees that make the decision to whistle low are protected from retaliation from their employer.They cannot be fired, 3. Tort reform in Texas currently only covers medical malpractice and caps damages that can be received at $250,000. This strips away the ability for a jury to decide the monetary amount to be paid. This cap also makes it more difficult for a victim to find a lawyer to even take their case, which often results in them never getting their day in court. Tort reform in Texas is saving money, but the beneficiaries of that savings are medical practitioners and insurance companies.The lower cost of medical care for the citizens from this reform has not been shown. Insurance is lower for doctors now but that savings Is not being passed on to the patients, many of whom voted for tort reform for that reason alone. 4. Equal employment opportunity has Improved since the Call Rights Act of 1964. 5. Honesty Integrity – Doing what is right when no one is looking. Employees must make ethical decisions Transparency Fairness Respectful 6. Violation of intellectual property law can include copyright, trademark or trade secret infringement as well as patent damages.In order for the general public to continue to benefit from the creation of new technology, art, music etc. The Inventors of IP must have confidence that their work Is protected and they will be able to benefit off of It. Along the Invention on new IP follows new Jobs as well. By protecting the rights of the owners of this property, we are also e nsuring new jobs for the future. 7. Affirmative action should continue because the disparity is still too significant to ay things are now equal.While we have certainly come a long way by opening doors that would have otherwise been closed; however, the difference is mostly seen on lower and some mid-level positions. It is argued that affirmative action is reverse discrimination for white men, but with 95% of senior level managers being men and 97% being white, but the static do not support this being true. An alternative to affirmative action would be to trust that companies will be fair and not discriminate; forever, as with other Issues companies mostly have a track record of doing the right thing when they are forced to.BY -reel 579 are performed by external and independent auditors to avoid conflict of interest. The firms used for audits cannot perform non-audit related work for the company. Can be received at $250,000. This strips away the ability for a Jury to decide the mone tary amount to be paid. This cap also makes it more difficult for a victim to find now but that savings is not being passed on to the patients, many of whom voted for rot reform for that reason alone. 4.Equal employment opportunity has improved since the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Continue to benefit from the creation of new technology, art, music etc. The inventors of IP must have confidence that their work is protected and they will be able to benefit off of it. Along the invention on new IP follows new Jobs as well. By protecting the rights of the owners of this property, we are also ensuring new Jobs for the however, as with other issues companies mostly have a track record of doing the

Marketing and operations plan Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Marketing and operations plan - Assignment Example In approaching the course of studying the market successfully, the research into the market will entail engaging both secondary and primary sources of data. The secondary approach entails covering the publications on the industry that reflect the factors influencing the market. Additionally, the primary sources entail conducting individual research to collect data on the market. However, primary data is expensive to achieve, as such, this section will rely extensively on the secondary data on the market. The primary sources engaged include sample interviews and questionnaires on the niche of the business to get firsthand expectation of the market, for successful planning. The US fast foods industry is on the rise, with high density of businesses offering food services including bakery options. The total market is vast, entailing a population of about 500,000 people at the local town setting where the first venture will be located (Giovannucci, Barham & Pirog, 2010). Additionally, the business expects to expand significantly and own a share of the national market in bakery options. Thus, we expect to own at least 6% of the market share as we launch and grow accordingly to about 15% to remain equally competitive. The market has a high demand for bakery products, considering the high consumption of the products. the consumer preferences for bakery products remains high for low sugar content products, considering recent developments requiring he regulation of sugar content in products due to increasing cases of obesity (MÃ ¶ller, 2006). Nonetheless, the business will engage all legal measures to establish its product and grow accordingly as there is a n otable potential of capitalizing on the local market size accordingly. The aspect of high capital costs, training skills and marketing and consumer acceptance may prove challenging to the business entry. Nonetheless, as a

Rene Descartes On Discourse on Method Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Rene Descartes On Discourse on Method - Essay Example He explained that since mathematics has achieved the certainty for which human thinkers seek, the traditional persons should rightly turn to mathematical reasoning as a model for progress in human knowledge. Expressing perfect confidence in the capacity of human reason to achieve knowledge, Descartes proposed an intellectual process that suggested the architectural destruction and rebuilding of an entire town. In Part 2, he writes: It is true, however, that it is not customary to pull down all the houses of a town with the single design of rebuilding them differently, and thereby rendering the streets more handsome; but it often happens that a private individual takes down his own with the view of erecting it anew, and that people are even sometimes constrained to this when their houses are in danger of falling from age, or when the foundations are insecure. What is true of buildings and constitutions is also true for knowledge. The fact that the existing sciences have often grown up gradually with no uniform plan explains this as a key role of processing the â€Å"unlearning† of what we have previously learned. Descartes used that as an example to explain that in order to be absolutely sure that we accept only what is genuinely certain, we must first deliberately renounce all of the firmly held but questionable traditional beliefs we have previously acquired by experience and education. However, he later warns about the consequences of the reconstruction, such that:

Surfing Culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Surfing Culture - Essay Example Educational systems have changed; students are given the chance to learn different communities and their cultures, inter-country school programs have changed the perception of culture exclusion. Many multinational industries help in exposing certain cultures and people to the world through their commercials enabling people learn and practice what they come across as a way of appreciating different cultures. Surf culture has been in existence since nineteenth century but became more popular in the twentieth century. Surf over several years ago was associated with the quasi religious practices which highlighted on the significance of valuing natural world and the spiritual way of being. It is said that surf culture originated from Hawaii (Taylor 925). This sport was dismissed by the missionaries as it was associated with laziness of the Hawaiians who could not do any other job but to practice their life style which led to a drop in the number of people surfing. Most of these individual s who value surfing are found living along the coast. It was until the late 20th century when female beings in the community fully ventured into the activity (McGloin 79). Surfing is a sporting activity which has influenced the lives of several people in the United States. Surfing in not only a culture exclusive to one community but is appreciated globally in running marketing promotions, sporting, tourism and for scenic and aesthetic attractions (Taylor 928). Outsider perspective Surfing has been associated with economic development in United States of America; its contribution to the economy through tourism, commercial industry and as a sporting activities. Surfing as a sporting activity in United States of America has been upheld and upgraded in that it is being held annually. People have a chance to expose their talent which they had not been able to through other activities. It is a very relaxing activity which any body can take part in as long as the individual has the passion and interest for it. It does not have to be the Hawaiians. In the process of organizing the sport, tickets are sold, many business individuals can sell more of their products to the participants and the spectators resulting into an improved business returns. McGloin states that the sport had not gained popularity among the female but the perception has changed over time where ladies have engaged themselves (68). The competition draws competitors from different parts of the country, people with different cultures and interests. Employment opportunities have been realized from surf in various parts of United States because clubs and associations were formed and managers were on demand. Local and international tourism has been promoted by surfing both as a culture and as a sport. Many people who live along the coastal areas especially the beaches spend most of their leisure time in the sport. It is a source of joy to most of them (Wagner, Nelsen & Walker 2). International tourisms mos tly visit California which was one of the towns where surfing was established in U.S. The amount of revenue tourists pay to the government of U.S is huge. Tourists enjoy watching the activity that pay a lot of money just to have more opportunity to observe the surfers. The beautiful scenery and the artistic features associated with surf are great. Visitors

Personal essay on one thing I would change in the world

Personal on one thing I would change in the world - Essay Example I grew up in a small village, where I saw girls aged five or six, carrying younger siblings, and begging on the streets for food. They were dirty, unkempt and wore clothes that were little more than rags. I wondered, why their parents would not give them enough to eat, till I was told that their parents probably gave them all they had, and went hungry themselves. They lived in hovels, and often while the older children begged, the younger ones were asleep on the roadside probably having exhausted themselves crying. As I grew up, and left the village to pursue my studies in a bigger town, these images stayed with me. However, to my dismay, I found that there were more such beggars there, than I had seen in my village. It struck me then, that I lived in a poor country where poverty was a curse suffered by large numbers of the population. It was at this stage of my life, that I made up my mind to do my bit to ease the pain of these poor, unfortunate people. My parents were happy to see that I felt so much sympathy for those less fortunate than me, and encouraged me to do small things like offering food, sweets or clothes to poor people nearby on my birthday, instead of having a party for my friends. Fortunately, my school too was at the forefront of social work, involving educating those who did not have the means to go to a proper school. We students, were taken to nearby rural areas, to mingle with the villagers and understand their problems. We also sometimes helped the younger children with t heir homework, and encouraged them never to stop their schooling, because many children are forced to stop going to school, and instead help their parents out in small jobs. As I graduated from high school, I realized that the means to end poverty was education. I found that poor children were less healthy, and more prone to disease than their peers in more advantaged homes. Living in unhygienic surroundings, and never having the benefit of being educated in the

Marxist tradition Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Marxist tradition - Essay Example In fact, Karl Marx presented this new logic of political economy in a statement: â€Å"An increase in the productivity of labour means nothing more than that the same capital creates the same value with less labour, or that less labour creates the same product with more capital† (Marx, 1863-1883, p. 271). In other words, industrial development neglected the value of working class, as capitalists had put their incomes on the pedestal of social relations. In short, the dialectical type of antagonist relations that showed up after capitalist change was the main object of Marxist critique.On the one hand, Marx clearly understood the key trends of his time based on the prevalence of economic relations in all social spheres. In this context, Marxism proposed the pioneer theoretical framework; it stated that working hard means nothing in the new society. In contrast, classical liberalism that believed in market self-regulatory power to human prosperity (Smith, 2007) could not overcom e this new type of social inequality. Moreover, Marxism served as a good base to further investigation of capitalist transformations in the society. For instance, modern ‘theory of oppressed† shows that Marx was convincing and predicted the main challenges of capitalist social order. In general, Marxism noticed the main danger of the twentieth century that led to huge transformations of the world order; in this context, Marx and Engels (1848) widely discussed the position of proletariat as neglected by revolutionary class, whose voice is important but not heard.

Journal Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 9

Journal - Assignment Example Men will spend most of their time watching sports and playing video games as well as watching violent actions. What they see will make them think that to be a real man you need to be violent and aggressive like the stars they watch in movie actions. Men should know that that is not true because to be successful you don’t have to be powerful and dominating women. Women on the other hand spend most of their time building relationships in the media. They visit social sites in pursuit of relationship which times become more involving than the face-to face meetings. Such a use of media by women should stop because they will make them think that part of their life is looking for men who to depend on. Women should spend most of their time reading on their fields and ways to make money and run a family rather than building relationships on the media. Media personalities in their programs especially commentators use some rather harsh words against women athletes. Like Don Imus refer to women basketball team as â€Å"nappy-headed hoe.† Commentators also focus on physical attractiveness of female athletes like Maria Sharapova. On the other hand they portray men as skillful and talented. Commentators’ should focus only on the skillful and how talented the athletes and should not brought in to athletics the sexual natures of the athletes. They sports like the super sport only bring us and analyze in dept the European leagues and women have very little space. We also see only men rugby on our sports channels and rarely do we see women rugby. This will affirm our cultural believe that because men participate in more physical games like rugby then they are strong. The gatekeepers in the media houses also majority are men and this should be changed to have a 50/50 representation. The gatekeepers are responsible for what we regard as more important. The first news headlines or what is on cover page of the newspapers

Final exam essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Final exam - Essay Example To avoid consequences, we make an agreement with other people in the society by denouncing the unacceptable ways and practice doing the acceptable things. Contract theory lays emphasis on the need for justice in the society. For a peaceful coexistence and satisfaction of basic needs people should seek to have a contract where they exchange goods and services. John Locke had the view that the ethical pre-political state of the society is assured by a divinely ordered natural commandment. John Rawls’ Theory of Justice argued that a group of rational and unbiased individuals will create a beneficial principle of justice as the basis for regulation of all duties, power, rights, and wealth. Social contract theory plays the role of setting up rules that govern behaviors that are acceptable by all people in the society. Contract theory creates an orderly society and enhances cooperation in the production of social goods (Gauthier1990). For this to be possible everyone in the society should be involved in the contract. This will ensure that the life and property of the people in the society has been protected. Contract theory aims at removing the notion of utilitarianism or self-interest. It argues that people follow the set rules for the advantage of the society as a whole. Contract theory has been applied by the Government in the form of a constitution. A constitution is a list of things that serve the society to enhance orderliness. The laws in the constitution are amended to accommodate the needs of the individuals in the society. I believe that the constitution ensures that politicians who refer themselves as public servants though they mostly follow their self-interests. The purpose of the constitution is to keep the politicians in check. The constitution bars the politicians from overusing their powers (Gauthier 1990). The success of the Contract theory has been widespread and this has attracted critics as well. Feminists and race conscious philosophers have

Management Information and Communication System Essay

Management Information and Communication System - Essay Example Because of this capability, the buying and selling of goods and services are expedited and streamlined. Producers and consumers could now directly transact with each other, making it possible to eliminate middlemen, in the process. This is called e-commerce or e-business and it could take the form of several models. The businesses that operates an internet business model primarily to establish and maintain relationships with other businesses is called B2B business model. Here, the emphasis is for the Internet to facilitate transactions between business organisations. For instance, there is the case of Dell, who manufacture computers according to specifications provided other business organisations. Through the Internet, sales transactions between the company and its corporate clients take place, beginning with the placement of order details, the manufacture according to the specifications and the delivery of goods. Pride, Hughes and Kapoor (2011, p.484) explained that in this B2B pro cess, Dell reduces storage and carrying costs and avoids unsold inventory while consumers who directly transact with them eliminate costs associated with wholesalers and retailers. This latter aspect in the model receives more emphasis on the other business model called B2C or business to consumer model. Business organisations such as Amazon.com and Landsend.com are examples of companies using the B2C model. They primarily cater to individual consumers. In addition to product and service offering provided 24 hours every day and 7 days a week, B2C firms often attempt to build long-term relationships with their consumers (Pride, Hughes and Kapoor, p. 484). This is the reason why a core element in the online strategies of these organisations is customer services and extensive analysis of consumer data. The above models demonstrate how the Internet can provide innovations. The transactions that transpire over the web are electronically documented, which makes it easily organized and acc essed for consumer analysis, market research among other initiatives to determine consumer behavior and needs. These data inform business organisations to create new and effective products that can be successfully marketed and sold to the market. The information gathered over the web could help address emergent consumers needs and requirements as well as solve problems and challenges. For example, back in 1990s, Wal-Mart introduced its Retail Link system, an integrated and store-shelf data made more powerful by the Internet in automatically triggering manufacturing orders to its suppliers when stocks were low (Wailgum, 2007, p.50). Since then, Wal-Mart was able to introduce pioneering systems in supply-chain management such as the evolution of its revolutionary point of sale system and the communication of information therein. The above variables are just some of the many instances wherein Internet contributes to the competitive advantage of a business organisation. The fact is that this technological breakthrough is a fundamental component in the manner by which it can create consumer value. Because of this platform, the organisation can respond immediately to problems and challenges in the trading process. In addition, the Internet is an

Traditional Media Outlets Essay Example for Free

Traditional Media Outlets Essay Introduction The presence of media as a tool of information dissemination has increased largely because of the technological innovations consistently being introduced not only in advancing the productivity rate of media organizations but also in expanding the capacity of the various media outlets to include a wider range of topics (Hudson, 1986). With this expansion, the subjects incorporated into the mass media has also been augmented (Graber, 1980) such that former topics that were once rarely untouched have now been constantly infused with unceasing publicity such as those that tackle Information and Communications Technology (ICT) . The changes made by mass media are evidently found on a series of notions due to consciousness, certain perceptions on reality and the palpable alterations of the masses’ individual lives concurrent on what had reconstituted by the mentioned technological change (Palmer Young, 2003).   Technological or digital innovation dwelled on to by human beings had been observed to have been conducting a protective bubble of fixed racial, cultural and ethnic identity resulting to a sense of detachment which lies on the physical state of the screen persona as well as with the transcends in the reality of social culture (Barker Petley, 2001). Analysis Such innovations which transcribed on media analysis in accordance with meeting customer or audience satisfaction on the lame side had been a crucial issue of competition as well as with the question of product or service advantage (Orlik, Anderson, Day, Patrick, 2007).   These media offers are considerably getting the â€Å"just† amount of credit for whatever level of service they are able to offer, thus, the viewing masses seem to be unaware of the whole gist of the surfing censure and is actually following the hoax of the concern.   What becomes evidently floating in the scene lately, are the so-called â€Å"alliance† of participating media advertisers and the respective network.    Examples of these ‘participating’ network providers which are sought to be the most persistently visited sites are Google, yahoo, and Amazon Online (Beckwith, 2003). The efficiency catered by these online information providers also power the divergence of other web pages which also serves as an upgrade in the websites’ name.   Ã‚  Consequently, the more surfers sweeping on their site, the more money they are able to generate.   Considerably, a mutual benefit from that of the web provider and the viewer are being fulfilled (Beckwith, 2003). Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The exactness of the cost and the revenue generated by the aforementioned sites are but indefinite to be defined, for the reason that the scheme and the flow of the advertising differ dependently upon the ‘season’ or under the discretion of the contemporary society. It would seem quite hard to distinguish which of the sites are assumed to be the most significant or rather the one which is offering the best service for the majority (Beckwith, 2003).   Since that, those who are apt to surf actually depend on what they wish to find.   In addition to that, given the fact that each layer of the society hold different jobs or activity with diverse enthusiasm, it is evident that it is possible to shift sites which then give the argument abstain on conviction with regards to the matter (Seelye, 2005). References: Barker, M., Petley, J. (2001). Ill Effects: The Media/violence Debate. London: Taylor and Francis. Beckwith, S. L. (2003). Complete Publicity Plans: How to Create Publicity That Will Spark Media Exposure and Excitement. New York: Adams Media Corporation. Graber, D. A. (1980). Mass Media and American Politics. Political Science Quarterly, 95(4), 701. Hudson, H. (1986). New Communications Technologies: Policy Issues for the Developing World. International Political Science Review, 7(3), 334. Orlik, y. P., Anderson, S., Day, L. A., Patrick, W. L. (2007). Exploring Electronic Media. New York: Blackwell Publishing Limited. Palmer, E., Young, B. M. (2003). The Faces of Televisual Media: Teaching, Violence, Selling to Children. Mahwah N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc. Seelye, B. K. Q. (2005). AP plans multimedia wire aimed at younger readers (Publication. Retrieved July 14, 2007, from The New York Times: http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/09/14/business/ap.php

Temperature change for CaCO3 and HCI

Temperature change for CaCO3 and HCI Research questions: When the temperature is digressed, or increased will the CaCO3 and HCI have a faster reaction? What happens when the reaction is happening? What happens when Caco3 and HCI meet each other? Answers: When calcium carbonate is heated it first reacts to the acid then after a while it turns CaCO3 into calcium Hydroxide. Its formed when ions bonds react to the acid which makes electric charge so it heats up. When CaCO3 and HCI reacts, it forms calcium chloride, water and carbon dioxide. The reaction between both compounds requires two parts HCI and CaCO3. The reaction is rapid and energetic at high concentrations. Large part due high affinity of calcium ions for chloride ions Depending on the temperature when Calcium chloride and Hydrochloric acid meet. Its charges start moving rapidly and a reaction will start to begin much faster. Both charges combine for a reaction to occur. Background info: The topic we have chosen is how temperature can change   calcium carbonate and hydrochloric acid In different temperature like the normal temperature cold and hot. (dont know the science behind it yet) A reaction rate is the speed on how fast or slow the chemical reaction proceeds It is often said in terms of either concentration the amount of unit volume of a product that is formed in a unit of time.   When you increase the temperature, the particles speed up a lot but when you cool them down they get slower.   when its heated there is a faster reaction rate but when temperature is lowered, the reactions takes a lot longer cause the particles dont have a lot of energy has they would when heated. The collision theory is for ta chemical reaction to occur the reactant particles must collide together. Collisons with too little energy do not produce a reaction. It must have enough collisions to the energy can make the particles react. (still got to add research) The experiment the team is doing is testing what temperature change does to calcium carbonate and hydrochloric acid. The way my research questions are going to help with the experiment is the ones I have are what we are manly looking for like. How long it takes for a reaction to occur, will the temperature change the original element. (forgot what my third was) they are what we manly are curious of and trying to find. (using photos as diagrams if I can) The chemical equation for calcium carbonate and hydrochloric acid is CaCO3+HCI-CaCI2+CO2+H20 Aim: The aim of the experiment is to exam if temperature changes the rate of reaction for CaCO3 and HCI for cold, hot and medium temperature. Hypothesis: It is hypothesised that when CaCO3 meets HCI it will react faster depending of the temperature. If the temperature is hotter it will have more energy cause its warm but if its colder they will react much slower cause they have a cold and have less energy. Its like real life people when cold we dont want to do anything but hot we want to do lots. When its medium temperature it will have a medium reaction rate. Equipment list: Beakers (x3) Thermometer Hot plate Ice cream bucket with ice Measuring tube Stop watches (x3) Calcium carbonate (3 grams) Scales Hydrochloric acid (144m total) Safety glasses Apron Gloves Method: Throughout the experiment everyone was required to wear the following safety gear glasses, apron and gloves. For the experiment after the group put all the Safety gear on the bench and on them. they moved on to grabbing the equipment then moving it slowly and carefully to the work bench. Once everything was out on the bench ready then the group grabbed the Calcium carbonate(CaCO3) and hydrochloric acid (HCI) then measured out the right amount for both scales were used for the CaCO3 and measuring tube for the HCI. After the HCI was poured into the beaker it was put in bucket full of ice or on a hotplate then the calcium went in. After five minutes of the hot plate or ice been in the bucket check the temp also make sure you remember the reaction rate time. After the experiment is complete pack up and clean the equipment then return all of it. Make sure you let the hotplates cool down before touching them. Experiment diagram: Risk table: Possible risks Solutions Glass break Get a dust pan and brush then put the glass in the hazard box also warn others about the glass Chemical spill on you If in eyes wash for a couple of mins at the eye wash but if on skin wash it off straight away at the sink or the shower Tripping Make sure all chairs and charger cords are not on the ground also make sure shoe lace is done up Hot plate Dont touch if hot wait for it to cool down Ingestion Dont swallow the chemicals Breathing in the chemical Dont sniff or purposely breath in the chemical Temperature results for CaCO3 and HCI: Calcium carbonate and hydrochloric acid temp change Temp before combining the two elements Temp after (checked (degrees) Time for the reaction to occur and finish (start of reaction -finish of reaction) 1 cold 5 5 30 seconds 1 Medium 24 25 14 seconds 1 hot 45 47 7 seconds 2 cold 5 5 32seconds 2 medium 24 25 14 seconds 2 hot 45 46 8 Seconds Observations: When the calcium carbonate and hydrochloric acid was put together for the cold test it triggered a reaction straight away a lot of bumbles built up and punched to the top almost going over the top of the beaker. All the calcium was all gone except some tiny parts for the normal temperature test it did the same put after the calcium started to dissolve. Discussion: In the test, there was some patterns that we saw for the results such as cold temp had a slow reaction at the end but it was a bit fast at start cause the water around the beaker was still getting colder the temperature stayed the same. A reaction for cold lasted for around 20-25 seconds. For the medium test, it started at a temp of 24 for both and only increased by one, a reaction started and ended in about 10-15 seconds. Hot was a lot different with a starting temperature of 45 and increased to 47 the reaction happened rapidly in about 5 seconds for it to start and end. The information I collected was accurate about what would happen and thats what happened in the test. It said hot temperature reaction is faster because it has a lot more energy in it but when cold and medium the temperature is much slower especially for the cold. Some parts of the research werent fully accurate but some of it was. My hypothesis was supported for this experiment I did predict that the hotter the faster reaction but cold has a much more slower reaction. Hot warms up everything giving it a lot more energy to do stuff so when it reaches a curtain heat a reaction will start. Cold has a slower reaction because it has a cold just like humans when we get a cold we have no energy at all and just cant do anything. The this could be used is finding out the right temperature to use to craft medals or just products in general or to test for whats the right temperature for plants and stuff to grow. Evaluation: The experiment went well at the start and all through except for a couple of miss calculation with our choice of measuring. There was a bit to much HCI added to test when we should have had less of it, when they elements combined it almost overflowed out of the beaker. But in the last test everything still ended up as the same results and finished with no drama. The team did well but sometimes one member kept touching and ruining what we just fixed up. A couple of things that could be improved is the team work and making sure we do our calculations right so the beaker doesnt almost overflow. Conclusion: The full experiment went mostly perfect but it was solved in the end. Evan that we have some bad teamwork and miss calculations we got it done. Our results were normal and weird the reaction went fantastic as well did the time. Our calculations were a bit off with a bit too much but all solved in the end. Things that could be improved next time is the team work. Its the key part for a perfect experiment. Some things that went fantastic would have to of been the time we go each one down and the perfect times and temperatures. If all the bad part were gone it would have been the perfect test. Reference list: Pearson science text book https://www.reference.com/science/calcium-carbonate-s-reaction-hydrochloric-acid-332b0b7065612e18 http://www.answers.com/Q/What_happens_if_Calcium_Carbonate_is_added_to_hydrochloric_acid?#slide=6 YouTube Class notes Had other websites but forgot what they were

Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale-Short Form (BSES-SF)

Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale-Short Form (BSES-SF) The objectives of this study were to determine the reliability and validity of a Malay-version questionnaire Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale-Short Form (BSES-SF) among respondents. METHODS Participant Target population for this study is primiparous mothers who gave birth to a single, healthy, term infant who were planning on breastfeeding were eligible to participate in this study. The study applied convenience sampling, in which researcher recruited volunteer primiparous mother who have delivered baby and hospitalized at postnatal ward, Hospital USM between one to three days. Mothers were excluded if they had a factor that could significantly interfere with breastfeeding, such as a mother whose illness, have maternity complication or infant admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and the infant had a condition that prevented ingestion of breast milk via the breast such as cleft palate. Sample Size For the sample size, the study needed 38 of respondents to validate the questionnaire base on the internal consistency of the items from previous study. Cronbachs alpha will be used to measure reliability because it is the most common form of internal consistency reliability coefficient. The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for internal consistency of the items from previous study was 0.89 (Wutke, Dennis, 2006). The sample size was determined by using Stats ToDo software. The questionnaire will be administered to primiparous mothers which breastfed their baby after delivered to one week postpartum. Sample size calculation where; Type I Error (ÃŽ ±) = 0.05 Cronbachs Alpha expected or required = 0.8 Power (1-ÃŽ ²) = 0.8 Testing Null Hypothesis against Ref Alpha of = 0.6 Number of items = 14 Delta (ÃŽ ´= (1-Ref Alpha) / (1 Alpha)) = 2 Sample size required = 38 Instrument Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale The confidence level will be measured by using the Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale Short-Form (BSES-SF) which was adapted from a previous study (Dennis, 1999, 2003) with the permission from the author. The BSES-SF is used to assess breastfeeding confidence among mothers intending to breastfeed and has had extensive use and evaluation in a wide variety of settings and populations (Dai Dennis, 2003; Dennis, 1999; Dennis, 2002; Dennis, 2003; Dennis, Hodnett, Gallop, Chalmers, 2002). Breastfeeding confidence and self-efficacy have sometimes been used interchangeably in prior literature. For the purposes of this study, the term of â€Å"confidence† is preferred. It is a 14 item self-report instrument developed to measure a mother’s perceived ability to breastfeed her infant. All items are preceded by the phrase â€Å"I can always†¦Ã¢â‚¬  and use a five-point Likert scale for rating from 1 (â€Å"not at all confident†) to 5 (â€Å"always confident†). Items ratings will be summed to produce a total score from 14 to 70, with higher scores indicating higher confidence. The means score points will be used as the cut-off point between high and low scorers. This instrument is based on the breastfeeding self-efficacy theory, and was synthesized from a longer tool. It has been utilized in women as early as 36 weeks gestation and found to predict breastfeeding continuation up to three months postpartum. Dennis, (2003) who also were using the BSES-SF, found that BSES-SF was a good measurement tool for evaluating breastfeeding self-efficacy. The original BSES-SF (English version), the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for internal consistency of the items is 0.89 (Wutke Dennis, 2006). This questionnaire will take about six to ten minutes to fill up. Translation process The Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale Short-Form (BSES-SF) in English version will be translated into national language which is Malay language in order to help the respondent understand the questions. The translation was done by two people who are experts in both English and Malay language using back translation technique. The questionnaire was sent to linguistic department and two bilingual experts were invited in translation process. Back translation is the process of translating a document that has already been translated into a foreign language back to the original language. Thus, through the translation and back-translation process and expert review, minor alterations were made to the instrument to improve clarity and eliminate cultural bias and translation inaccuracies. Then, the content and face validity will be done. VALIDITY TEST Content validity Validityis theabilityof aninstrumenttomeasurewhatit is supposedtomeasure. This questionnaire has been validated by five experts from; obstetrics and gynecology specialist, midwifery, and health education, linguistics and statistician to determine the validity of the content. The experts were invited to review, evaluated and provide feedback on the content of each BSES-SF item. This is to comply with the recommendations Sekaran which is to ensure reliability, the question shall be given to the experts made à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹the correction and evaluation called Expert Judgment Validity (Sekaran, 2005). Based on this evaluation, five modifications were made: (1) the item â€Å"I can always motivate myself to breastfeed successfully† was changed to â€Å"I can always motivate myself to do well at breastfeeding,† (2) the item â€Å"I can always breastfeed my baby without using formula as a supplement† was changed to â€Å"I can exclusively breastfed my baby without using formula as a supplement to at least 4 months,† (3) the item â€Å"I can always refrain from bottle feeding for the first 4 weeks† was changed to â€Å"I can refrain from exclusively bottle feeding for the first month,† (4) the item â€Å"I can always feed my baby with breast milk only† was changed to â€Å"I can always feed my baby with breast milk only for at least 4 months,† and (5) the item â€Å"I can always keep feeling that I really want to breastfeed my baby for at least 6 weeks† was changed to â€Å"I can always keep feeling that I really want to breastfeed my baby for at least one and a half months.† The modified instrument was presented to the experts a final time and after several discussions, all items were considered relevant to Malay speaking mothers. Face validity Finally, the translated BSES-SF was administered to five respondents which are primiparous mothers who have breastfeed their baby and hospitalized at postnatal ward during the first to three days postpartum. This recruitment as a part of this study to identify the problems in the translated questionnaire. This method requires researchers to ask participants to rephrase the items using their own words immediately after answering the items. Respondent’s suggestions for the improvement of the questions were noted and were being analyzed and discussed with the experts. This allows the researchers to assess whether respondents understand the items totally as well as to evaluate the comprehension and readability of the Malay BSES-SF version. PILOT TEST AND RELIABILITY TEST Results from content and face validity actually improve the items in the questionnaire to be applied in this study. After making improvements, the questionnaire was done a pilot study on 30 respondents at postnatal ward, Hospital USM to test the reliability of the questionnaire. RESULT Internal Consistency Reliability of instrument refers to the extent to which an instruments score is consistent or stable (Ananda, 2007). Reliability is obtained when the same result each time the test is made. Thus, the reliability of the instrument can be defined as a standard of measurement that is free from error in which they give consistent answers. According to Sekaran (2005), the closer to 1.0 Coefficient of reliability, the reliability is higher. Generally, reliability of less than 0.60 can be defined reliability is low, in the range of 0.70 if it is acceptable, while above 0.80 indicates higher reliability. Therefore, the questionnaire in this study can be categorized as good and reliable for use in this study. The IBM SPSS Statistics Version 21 was used for statistical analysis. Results of a pilot study of 30 respondents are as follows: The internal consistency of the translated BSES-SF was evaluated by considering the following: (1) item summary statistics; (2) inter- item correlations; (3) corrected item-total correlations; (4) Cronbach’s alpha coefficient; and (5) the alpha estimate when an item was deleted (Strickland,1996). Poorly functioning items were defined as (1) items that when deleted increased the alpha coefficient by more than 0.10 or (2) items that had a corrected item-total correlation less than 0.30. Cronbach’s alpha for the translated BSES-SF was 0.87; there was no increase of more than 0.10 in Cronbach’s alpha with removal of any item. The Cronbach’s alpha estimated when an item was dropped from the scale ranged from .86 to .87. All corrected item-total correlations were positive ,the lowest item-total correlation was 0.37 and the highest was 0.73, with 92.8 %, falling within the recommended range of 0.30–0.70. The mean BSES-SF score was 56.74 (SD _7. 01). The ov er all item mean was 4.05, ranging from 3.74 to 4.39. The item variance mean was 0.65, ranging from 0.35 to 0.96. Table 1: Reliability Statistics Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale Short-Form (BSES-SF) Cronbachs Alpha N of Items .877 14 Table 2: Item Corrected Item-Total Correlation Cronbachs Alpha if Item Deleted Saya sentiasa dapat memastikan bayi saya mendapat susu yang mencukupi .376 .876 Saya sentiasa dapat mengatasi masalah penyusuan sepertimana tugasan mencabar yang lain .586 .867 Saya sentiasa dapat memberikan susu ibu kepada bayi saya tanpa menggunakan susu formula sebagai makanan tambahan .500 .871 Saya sentiasa boleh memastikan mulut bayi saya sentiasa melekap dengan betul bagi keseluruhan tempoh penyusuan .543 .868 Saya sentiasa dapat menguruskan situasi penyusuan dengan rasa puas hati .595 .866 Saya sentiasa mampu menyusu bayi walaupun bayi saya sedang menangis .729 .859 Saya sentiasa mempunyai keinginan untuk menyusukan bayi .446 .873 Saya sentiasa dapat menyusu bayi dengan selesa walaupun dengan kehadiran ahli keluarga yang lain .472 .872 Saya sentiasa berpuas hati dengan pengalaman penyusuan saya .565 .868 Saya sentiasa dapat menerima hakikat bahawa penyusuan anak memang mengambil masa yang lama .453 .873 Saya sentiasa dapat menghabiskan penyusuan bayi dengan satu payu dara sebelum beralih kepada payudara yang satu lagi .531 .869 Saya sentiasa dapat menyusukan bayi setiap kali waktu penyusuan .605 .865 Saya sentiasa memenuhi keinginan bayi saya apabila dia ingin menyusu .586 .866 Saya sentiasa tahu apabila bayi saya sudah habis menyusu .640 .864 Table 3: Mean Minimum Maximum Range Maximum / Minimum Variance Item Means 4.053 3.737 4.395 .658 1.176 .030 Item Variances .652 .353 .956 .602 2.704 .027 Inter-Item Correlations .340 -.018 .683 .701 -38.161 .020 Table 4: Statistics for Scale N Mean Variance SD 14 56.74 49.064 7.005 Procedures After university and hospital ethics was obtained, eligible mothers were recruited in hospital from the postnatal ward by a researcher. Potential participants were identified by the researcher at 1 to 3 days postpartum from the registry book in the postnatal ward. The eligible participants who are willing to participate in this study has been approached, they will be given further explanation clearly to understand the aims of the study. Once the participant expressed an interest and willingness to participate, they will be provided with inform consent, which is must be documented and signed. After that, finalize translated BSES-SF Malay questionnaire was administered to the participants as soon as possible after respondent agreed and volunteer to answer the questions. The respondents were given self-administered questionnaires and the researcher will be waiting until respondents completed answer the questions and the completed answer questionnaire were collected back at the same time after the respondent has finished answering all the questions. Limitation of the study It is a pilot study, so the small number of samples is the most limitation of the study. DISCUSSION Psychometrics properties The results from this methodological study are consistent with the original study (Dennis Faux, 1999) and provide evidence that the translated BSES is a reliable measure of BSE among a representative sample of Malay women in Kota Bharu, Kelantan. The Cronbach’s a was .88, exceeding the recommended a for established instruments (Nunnally Bernstein, 1994). CONCLUSION The BSES-SF Malay version is reliable and valid for assessing mothers’ breastfeeding confidence. 1

Isabellas Accusations in Measure for Measure by Shakespeare :: essays research papers

Near the end of all plays there is the climax, the part of the play where all the action comes together, the most important part of the play. Near the end of Measure for Measure, Isabella confronts Angelo in front of the Duke. This is the climax of the play. Although there are many important parts in Measure for Measure, by William Shakespearem, Isabella's accusations of Angelo is the most important because of the language used, the charactor development that comes out, and the emphasis of the plays themes. Shakespeare is famous for his ability with words, and this short passage is no exception. In iambic pentameter, this passage consists of Isabella telling the Duke about Angelo's inappropriate actions towards her. In current english the lines translate to Isabella saying that she is not insane and that although Angelo may seem to be innocent and perfect, the Duke must look past that to see the truth. She asks the Duke to believe that Angelo can actually be a bad person. When the Duke calls her insane once again, Isabella asks him to look past what appears to be the truth, and find what is actually the truth. Isabella changes a lot throughout the play, but it all becomes more evident in this short passage. She finally sticks up for herself, by telling people about what Angelo attempted to do to her. Her way of talking changes as she feels more and more helpless. The Duke not beleiving her is a huge blow to her arguement, as it is ultimatly the Dukes decision on what to beleive. She becomes more and more desperate as she feels more and more helpless. At the start of the passage she is confident, explaining to the Duke that Angelo is not as perfect as everyone thinks. In the second part of the passage Isabella seems to be begging with the Duke to beleive her, asking him to "harp not on that", talking about how the Duke believes she is insane. This passage emphasizes the major theme of the play, justice. The whole passage is about Isabella trying to create justice. Angelo did something wrong, and therefore should be punished for it. The whole issue that Isabella is fighting for is about justice. She beleives her brother was executed for something that should not be considered wrong.

Macbeth by William Shakespeare :: Papers

Macbeth by William Shakespeare Recently in class we have read and studied one of Shakespeare's most famous plays: Macbeth. I found the language a bit difficult to understand and rather archaic but the themes as relevant as they were when the play was written and set. The play was an intriguing one. Whilst studying the play we were focusing on the main character whom the play was based upon and named after, Macbeth. Having finished the play, I felt a sense of pride and achievement that I have read a Shakespearean play. In this evaluation I wish to consider the accuracy of Malcolm's comment that Macbeth died a "butcher" Macbeth towards the end of the play appeared extremely cold and heartless yet at the beginning was a hero who did have good qualities which is why it was such a tragedy that he turned evil. Macbeth is a very complex character and Shakespeare began by highlighting his good points, portraying him as a decent person thus making us care what happens to him. Macbeth being hailed a hero,(in Act1Sc2) was a well-deserved title. He was a brave and gallant soldier, ironically fighting against traitorous behaviour to the king. We are told in gory detail that he "unseamed" one traitor by ripping him apart with his sword from his navel to his mouth showing his military capability Described as "Belona's bridegroom" by Rosse, Macbeth was being compared with Mars, the Roman God of War a compliment by any standard. This reinforces the bravery and ability of Macbeth and showed that in the context of his times, Macbeth was a first class soldier and admired by many. In fact, to the bitter end Macbeth remains a brave character fighting against all odds when he himself has become the traitor. Another virtue of Macbeth's is that he is held in high regard by the king. On several occasions, King Duncan praises Macbeth going as far as saying on one occasion, " we love him highly". King Duncan obviously held a lot of trust in Macbeth even visiting his castle and

Euthanasia :: Medical Assisted Suicide Drugs Essays

Euthanasia In recent years, Euthanasia has become a very heated debate. It is a Greek word that means "easy death" but the controversy surrounding it is just the opposite. Whether the issue is refusing prolonged life mechanically, assisting suicide, or active euthanasia, we eventually confront our socity's fears toward death itself. Above others, our culture breeds fear and dread of aging and dying. It is not easy for most of the western world to see death as an inevitable part of life. However, the issues that surround euthanasia are not only about death, they are about ones liberty, right to privacy and control over his or her own body. So, the question remains: Who has the right? Under current U.S. law, there are clear distinctions between the two types of euthanasia. One group of actions taken to bring about the death of a dying patient -withdrawal of life support, referred to by some as passive euthanasia- has been specifically upheld by the courts as a legal right of a patient to request and a legal act for a doctor to perform. A second group of actions taken to bring about the death of a dying patient -physician-assisted death, referred to by some as active euthanasia- is specifically prohibited by laws in most states banning "mercy killing" and is condemned by the American Medical Association. Although it is not a crime to be present when a person takes his or her life, it is a crime to take direct action intentionally designed to help facilitate death--no matter how justifiable and compassionate the circumstances may be.1 With active euthanasia, it is the doctor who administers the lethal drug dose. Since it is tantamount to homicide, the few U.S. docto rs who perform it have been brought to trial but none of them have ever been convicted and imprisoned. Modern interest in euthanasia in the United States began in 1870, when a commentator, Samuel Williams, proposed to the Birmingham Speculative Club that euthanasia be permitted "in all cases of hopeless and painful illness" to bring about "a quick and painless death." The word "painless" is important: the idea of euthanasia began gaining ground in modern times not because of new technologies for agonizingly prolonging life but because of the discovery of new drugs, such as morphine and various anesthetics for the relief of pain, that could also painlessly induce death. Over the next three decades Williams's proposal was reprinted in popular magazines and books, discussed in the pages of prominent literary and political journals, and debated at the meetings of American medical societies and nonmedical professional associations.

Cycle of Violence and Child Abuse Intergenerational Transmission

The â€Å"cycle of violence hypothesis† is a theory that mainly seeks to clarify why and how the behavior of an individual who commits family and domestic violence may transform dramatically with time. Furthermore, this theory provides an understanding of the reasons why an individual who has been a victim of either domestic or family violence would go on facing the violent situation (Finkelman, 1995). The term â€Å"intergeneration transmission† refers to the occurrence of something between generations.It further described as a process that allows for people to recognize the modalities of conflict that relate to the generations which preceded the birth of an individual (American Heritage Dictionary, 2006). It is the objective of this paper to explain in detail the â€Å"cycle of violence† hypothesis as it relates to the intergenerational transmission of mistreating children. The â€Å"cycle of violence† hypothesis relates to the intergenerational transmis sion of mistreating children as exhibited via the principles of social learning theory.Here a parent that is usually physically punitive would most likely have a child that becomes aggressive because that is the kind of response pattern the child has been accustomed to (Kalverboer, Genta, & Hopkins, 1999). This theory puts it that violent actions are learnt through positive reinforcement patterns and is more often than not imitated. It is important to note that when a child grows up with such a parent, the child will exercise such kind of an approach in raising their own offspring, thus this cycle of violence is in a position to persist through to the future generations.In addition to this, a parent plays that most crucial role in the life a child (Tomison, 1996). Genetic components of aggressive behavior (Kalverboer, Genta, & Hopkins, 1999) equally result in a cycle of violence in which children are maltreated and it is generational. Under this, it is assumed that the predispositio n of a parent for violence is inherited by a child. This inherited predisposition perpetuates the cycle of maltreatment especially towards children thus increasing the probability of such children subsequently maltreating their own children.Thus the cycle is fueled in the sense that through genes, generations of abusive parents persist. The interaction of environmental and genetic factors is a major factor to consider when relating the cycle of violence to intergenerational transmission of mistreating children. A mere genetic predisposition simply puts a person at the risk of expressing violent behavior but then it takes the interaction of environmental and genetic factors to actually produce the greatest risk of the display of violent behavior (Kalverboer, Genta, & Hopkins, 1999).When a child has inherited the genes of abusive character from the parents, it is the surrounding environment that fuels the degree of this behavior because of the experiences and thus they are carried for ward to their children. As a consequence, the cycle of violent behavior in terms of child maltreatment is perpetrated (Tomison, 1996). According to a research done on intergenerational transmission of abuse, an examination was done where by the history of a parent in terms of abuse in relation to their abusive behavior toward the children was hypothesized (Pearsa & Capaldi, 2001).Furthermore, the effect of the extent of an abuse and the possibility of the concerned individual becoming abusive were equally considered. From this study it was reported that the parents who had an abusive childhood were more likely to take part in abusive behavior in the next generation. These findings illustrate that the â€Å"cycle of violence† has a great link to the intergenerational transmission of mistreating children (Tomison, 1996).Much as there is a lot of evidence to connect the cycle of violence to the intergenerational transmission of mistreating children it is important to note that n ot all people who experience an abusive childhood become abusive parents in future. In addition, the cycle of violence can be broken via social support programs especially to the single parents (Langeland & Dijkstra, 2006). Another way through which this vice can be eradicated is via the support from the spouse who realizes the partner could have been a victim of abuse in their childhood.It is also important to consider positive moves such as focusing on interventions that would prevent the cycle of violence from persisting through to other generations. References: American Heritage Dictionary. (2006). The American Heritage ® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition . New york: Houghton Mifflin . Finkelman, B. (1995). Child Abuse: Short- and long-term effects. London: Taylor & Francis. Kalverboer, A. F. , Genta, M. L. , & Hopkins, J. B. (1999). Current issues in developmental psychology: biopsychological perspectives.New Mexico: Springer. Langeland, W. , & Dijkstra, S. ( 2006). Breaking the intergenerational transmission of child abuse: Beyond the mother-child relationship. Child Abuse Review , 4 (1). Pearsa, K. C. , & Capaldi, D. M. (2001). Intergenerational transmission of abuse: a two-generational prospective study of an at-risk samplesmall star, filled. Child Abuse & Neglect , 25 (11). Tomison, A. M. (1996). Intergenerational Transmission of Maltreatment. Retrieved May 10, 2010, from http://www. aifs. gov. au/nch/pubs/issues/issues6/issues6. html

Gun Control vs. Crime Rate

Jessica Vickers Dr. Jonne Akens Engl 1302 25 February 2013 Gun Control vs. Crime Rate According to the Second Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America, â€Å"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed. † In this very amendment lies the main issue of gun control. â€Å"To many, the language of the amendment appears to grant to the people the absolute right to bear arms. However, the U. S.Supreme Court has held that the amendment merely protects the right of states to form a state militia. † (Kimberlin) Gun control, or the controlling of firearms, is any act or proposal by any local, state, or federal agency to inhibit, deter, or prohibit the possession of firearms by any law abiding U. S. citizen. Some believe that by controlling the people’s possession of firearms, the violent crime rate will decrease. However, this is not the case. The contro lling of firearms, also known as an infringement of the second amendment, is irrelevant to the reduction of violent crime.Instead, further investigation into the criminals’ motives and state of mind will better resolve the rate of crime in our country. The Second Amendment is a mere twenty-seven words long. However, both campaigns of the gun control debate obtain such different interpretations from those words. â€Å"The gun-control campaign interprets the Second Amendment as if it is specifically referring to militias. The Gun-rights supporters say all the other amendments focus on individual rights, as does â€Å"â€Å"2A. † The Second Amendment helps protect what is promised in the other nine and that it is a line the government is forbidden to cross. † (Kimberlin) Kimberlin also states that, â€Å"not many nations have firearms enshrined into their constitutions, but in 1789 the Founding Fathers thought that guns were important enough to deserve one of 10 amendments that make up the Bill of Rights. † If the possession of guns for our personal protection were not an important factor, they would not be included into such an important document to our country. What the Second Amendment means, more than two centuries later, seems to depend on which side of the gun issue you are on. † (Kimberlin) This being so, further investigation of this amendment is necessary to becoming more informed on this fiery debate. Gun control is a very heavily debated topic at this point in time, especially since the shootings at Newtown and Sandy Hook have taken place. But this has been a topic of debate ever since the Prohibition Area of the early twentieth century. However, these mass shootings have triggered new debates on this controversial issue.In the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary, Adam Lanza entered the school carrying multiple firearms and shot at students, as well as teachers, after shooting his mother at their home in Newtown, CT. Th ese shootings prompted further debate on the rising issue of gun control and have brought a proposal to legislation in which the sale and manufacture of certain semi-automatic firearms and magazines holding more than ten rounds of ammunition would be banned, and reduced access to certain firearms would be enforced.Although this shooting was a very tragic event, are firearms really the problem? Or should we be venturing further and investigating the minds of these criminals before they even pick up a weapon? According to Joe Wicked, â€Å"on the other side of this debate, there are concerns addressing the mental health aspect, addressing the illegal activities associated with firearms and that the law abiding citizens should be left the right to own the types of firearms and magazines that they desire and have the ability to maintain access to both the firearms and/or magazines that they choose. This side of the gun control debate points to a story in which, â€Å"a young man prese nt when a gunman began shooting at the Clackamas Mall in Portland Oregon, Nick Meli, heard the first shots fired and pulled out his concealed weapon and confronted the shooter. He did not fire, as he did not want to risk bystander’s lives. The gunman then ran and took his own life (Benner, 2012). The latter side of the debate shows how civilians are capable of stopping a crime before the police are able to arrive. â€Å"Some even claim that more guns will help to control the crime and prevent mass shootings from occurring. (Wicked) After being subjected to so much information, how is the reader to know which side is right? According to Wicked, â€Å"This can be a difficult question to answer and requires detailed analysis to come to an informed decision. Studies that have been done on the issue of gun control have found many things that gun control affects and many things that it does not affect. One key item that studies have found is that gun control laws affect the use o f specific guns in violent crimes, but do not affect the rate of crime itself. The controlling of firearms by either banning the sale, transfer, importation, or manufacture of, as well as controlling the amount of ammunition available and the storage of that ammunition, is irrelevant to the reduction of violent crime. When debating the effect that a particular law, or ban of item, has on the rate of violent crime, it is beneficial to look back at the effect that laws and bans similar to these have had on the crime rate throughout history. The 1994 Assault Weapons ban which Dianne Feinstein proposed and that of which Congress passed would be a prime example. This ban specifically selected fire arms that looked like the firearms militaries around the world used. These types of weapons are weapons not commonly used in crime. In 2010 handguns comprised 68. 5% of all gun murders in the United States (FBI, 2010). This means that in the remaining 31. 5% of gun murders, shotguns, hunting ri fles, and the banned assault weapons. Rifles constituted 0. 6% of all murders by gun. The banned assault weapons make up a subset of these rifles. We know that less than 0. 6% of all murders were by these weapons that were banned. (Wicked) Another way to look at the effectiveness of prior firearm bans, according to Wicked, is to look at the crime rate after the ban was lifted or, as in the case of the 1994 Assault Weapons ban, the ban expired. â€Å"The FBI data from 2010 shows that the five year trend in crime is that it continues to decline. Further drill downs of the data show that on average the crime rates in all categories are on the decline in the United States. If the ban were effective on reducing violent crime, the expectation would be that the crime rates would increase when the ban is lifted or it expires.Crime rates continuing to decline after the lifting of the ban suggests that factors other than the ban are affecting crime rates. (FBI, 2010). † (Wicked) This i nformation further supports the fact that there is no correlation between the controlling of firearms and the reduction of violent crime. Crime rates decreased after the expiration of the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban, and the evidence clearly shows that the banning of a certain weapon, causing that particular weapon to be more difficult to purchase, or causing a firearm to be too expensive to purchase will only ffect which weapon is chosen to commit a crime, not reduce the rate of crime. â€Å"Instead of deciding to ban a weapon as a response to a tragedy, the leaders of our country would better serve the people of the United States by conducting a study into the causes in society which create the situations that lead to violent crime and addressing those root causes, whether it be mental health, violent movies and games, lack of access to proper education, or whatever other root factor.Addressing the causes of the crimes will produce better long-term results in reducing violent crimes . † (Wicked) The shooters in these violent crimes were denied from purchasing firearms and in most cases resorted to taking them from a legal owner. How would gun control laws prevent this situation from happening in the future?Perhaps a mental health screening and identifying there might be a problem with these citizens in a mental aspect would be more effective than further gun laws that already denied the shooter the ability to purchase these firearms. We should be focusing on the mental aspect of this situation rather than the firearms themselves. If someone is planning on killing a massive amount of people, they most likely are not concerned with the legality of obtaining firearms. No laws against or banning of firearms have worked in the past, and they will not work now.Taking the politics out of the issue, and researching the true causes behind the crime while addressing them effectively would best serve both sides of the gun control debate. Jessica Vickers Dr. Jonne Ak ens Engl 1302 25 February 2013 Works Cited Kimberlin, Joanne. â€Å"The Second Amendment: two interpretations. † Virginian Pilot. 02 03 2008: n. page. Web. 3 Mar. 2013. Wicked, Joe, ed. â€Å"Does Gun Control Reduce Violent Crime? † Cold Dead Hands. Cold Dead Hands, 30 Jan 2013. Web. 2 Mar 2013.

Cultural Assessment – Nursing

Cultural Assessment The population of the United States is continually rising. The birth rate continues to rise, but more importantly, the number of foreign-born immigrants that relocated to the United States in 2003 was a staggering 33. 5 million, and that number rises every year (Jarvis, 2008). With such a large immigrant population comes the need for medical professionals that are culturally competent.Being culturally competent means that the caregivers, â€Å"understand and attend to the total context of the individual’s situation, including awareness of immigration status, stress factors, other social factors, and cultural similarities and differences† (Jarvis, 2008, p. 38). Because the United States is so diverse, it is a federal law that all caregivers must be culturally competent. It should be noted, however, that is not something that can be accomplished so easily. It is a process that can take a lifetime. To become culturally competent one must have knowledge in several areas.These include, but are not limited to, knowing one’s own personal heritage, the heritage of the nursing profession, the heritage of the health care system, and the heritage of the patient (Jarvis, 2008). When performing a cultural assessment of an individual one must take into account five important aspects of the individual’s heritage. These aspects will give the nurse an idea of the patient’s heritage consistency. First, is the individual’s culture. Everyone has a culture. There are four basic characteristics of culture. First, it is learned; from birth one is learning the language and socialization of that culture.Second, it is shared. All the members of the same group share that culture. Third, it is adapted. Culture adapts to environmental and technical factors, as well as the groups availability to natural resources. Finally, it is dynamic. Meaning, it is always changing (Jarvis, 2008). The second aspect of one’s heritage is ethnicity. This is a group within the social system that have a common geographical origin, race, religion, values, traditions and food preferences. The term ethnic is tricky in the United States (US) because of how large the US is, and the large diversity of ethnic differences it has.Religion is the third aspect of one’s heritage. Religion is extremely important because an individual’s religious beliefs play a huge part in one’s health-related behaviors and how someone perceives illness and death. There are roughly 1500 different religions in the United States which is why this aspect is so important when performing an individual’s cultural assessment (Jarvis, 2008). The fourth aspect of one’s heritage is socialization. When someone is raised in a specific culture, the person naturally acquires the characteristics of that group.Many people in the United States are bicultural, acquiring certain customs and traditions of the United States while stay ing loyal to their traditional culture as best they can. Time orientation is the fifth and final aspect of one’s heritage. Every culture has a different understanding of each other’s perception of time. Depending on the individual’s heritage, that person may focus on the past, the present, the future, or a combination of the three. It is important for the nurse to recognize the individual’s perception of time to gain a better understanding of how to individualize a plan of care.To gain a better understanding of cultural assessment and how it relates to health care and being culturally competent, a sit down interview was performed with an 84 year old female of German-American heritage, who believes that any belief or view differing greatly from hers are strange, and usually wrong (Riley, 2008). In order to preserve her right to privacy, she will be referred to as G. E. Heritage Assessment Cultural Group G. E. is 84 years old and was born and raised in the United States. She considers herself an American who is extremely proud of her German heritage. She is 100% of German decent.She had one older sister who is deceased. Her immediate family was all born in rural Illinois. Her father built a house in Coal Valley, IL when she was very young, where she lived until she was married at the age of 18. Her paternal grandparents were both born in Germany. It is unknown what city or village in Germany they came from, other than the northern part of Germany. They immigrated to the United States shortly before her father was born. She remembers her grandparents speaking little to no English, then, eventually broken English. Her father spoke English as a first language and some German. Her mother, her sister and she ever learned the German language. English was the only language spoken in the home. Her father was a coal miner and her mother took care of the home. In her culture, each generation lived in separate homes, whereas in some cultures, mu ltiple generations live in the same household. However, her grandparents and extended family members did live nearby, so she spent a lot of time playing with her cousins, and saw her grandparents, aunts and uncles on a regular basis. They would all get together on Sundays after church, and have lunch together. She lived at home until she married at the age of 18. G. E. ent to public schools, then to secretary school after graduation. Her husband was also 100% of German decent. They had two sons and a daughter. Both of her sons live close by, but her daughter lives in Nebraska. Her daughter and she talk on the phone every day. Her husband was in the US Navy during WWII and her husband and she were very patriotic. Like she has stated earlier, she is an American. Other than that, she did not know much about the war or Hitler or just did not remember. What she did remember when asked about this subject was the fact that a few of her husbands’ ancestors were drivers for Hitler dur ing his reign.Ethnic Group G. E. ’s ethnicity focuses around her family and church. Even though her father’s parents were born in Germany, there is no indication that they were passing down many values, traditions, or food preferences to the new generations. By all accounts, they wanted to completely immerse themselves into the American way of life. The only German recipes that were passed down to her were for sauerkraut, German pigs-in-a-blanket, which included sauerkraut, and German potato salad. Her family also eats a lot of beef, pork, and chicken. Potatoes are also a staple of her diet.For many years, G. E. and her husband would grow a big garden and produced enough vegetables for the entire winter months. Traditions are very important to G. E. For many years her family would come to her house after church for Sunday lunch and also for Thanksgiving. The day after Thanksgiving the grandchildren would come over to decorate the Christmas tree. She still has her famil y over every Christmas Eve. She says she does not cook a meal anymore, she orders a meat and cheese tray, and makes some side dishes. The other family members bring over the desserts.She also used to have a birthday party for her children and grandchildren. She baked a cake and the family would come over and eat dinner. The birthday person got to pick the dinner, and would then open presents. Her grandchildren bring her great-grandchildren to see her at least once a month. She says she enjoys it when they come to visit. She really enjoys seeing the great-grandchildren. She says that it makes her feel proud. Religious Group Religion is the most important aspect of G. E. ’s life besides her family, and always has been. G. E. and her family are Protestants.Knowing that most of her ancestors came from the northern part of Germany, this is interesting because in Germany, Protestantism is practiced predominantly in northern Germany (Fuller & Vossmeyer, 2004), which is where her anc estors lived. This is proof that their religion has been passed down through the generations and still continues to be practiced. Her husband and his family, who are all deceased now, shared the same ethnic and religious background as her family. She regularly attends a Presbyterian church at least once a week and is a very active member of the church.Her husband would fill in as pastor when the regular pastor could not. She practices her religion in her home every day by praying and reading the Bible. G. E. celebrates all of the holidays of her religion which are Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas with her family. She states that her religion has no influence on her diet or health practices. G. E. believes in heaven and hell, which is common to many German religions (Fuller & Vossmeyer, 2004). She insists that younger family members who do not go to church attend church with her at least once a year. She does not like the fact that her other family members do not attend church.She feels in order to get into heaven one has to attend church occasionally. Social Group Most, but not all, of her friends share the same ethnic and religious background. She also has a few Hispanic friends whom she enjoys spending time. She still lives in her home in the same neighborhood in which she has lived for over 50 years. The neighborhood is located close to the church and most of her neighbors are close in age. Most of them attend the same church and are of the same ethnic background. She has always had a very active social life which can contribute to her excellent health.She goes to a senior activities hall twice a week to play bingo and has a swimming class twice a week to exercise and socialize with friends. She goes to have her hair done every Saturday which she has done for many years. She regularly goes out to lunch and to watch a movie with friends once or twice a month and is on the phone a lot with family and friends. She made sure to mention is that she absolutely does not like to travel and has never been outside of the United States. When her children were young they would take camping trips to Wisconsin and Minnesota. That was pretty much the extent of her travels.As a result, her sons do not like to travel much either but her daughter enjoys traveling. Her daughter has been to many countries and G. E. does not understand why she enjoys it so much. Time Orientation G. E. ’s time orientation focuses on the present and the future with little to no focus on the past. She feels at her age, focusing on the past is a waste of time. She says, â€Å"I just move on† (G. E. 2011). She does not like to dwell on the past. She says, â€Å"what’s done is done†. Although she misses her husband very much she believes she will meet up with him in heaven one day. She enjoys the thought of that.She does not think of health care in terms of the past either. She follows her doctor’s advice and is open to new treatments and m edications. This is another reason she is in excellent health for an 84 year old woman. She does not like the thought of a doctor not knowing the latest in medical technology and treatments. She also is not bothered if health care personnel are not culturally sensitive to her heritage since she sees herself as an American who is proud of her German heritage. G. E. is uncomfortable with doctors who are not Caucasian. She also does not like to be cared for by male nurses or other male caregivers who are not doctors.Health Related Beliefs and Practices G. E. has health insurance and Medicare, so she is able to see the doctor on a regular basis. Lack of insurance coverage is not a factor for her. She never goes without her medication because of lack of prescription coverage. Also, with the money she and her husband saved over the years, plus both of their retirement packages and social security benefits, she lives comfortably and does not have to worry about not having enough money to l ive out the rest of her life in the lifestyle she leads. Developmental Situation G. E. remembers things her mother did when G.E. was a child to maintain and protect her health. She had to wash her hands regularly, especially before and after meals and after using the bathroom. She always had three meals a day which consisted of foods from all of the food groups. In the winter she could not go outside until she was bundled up. When she did get sick, she had to stay home in bed until her mother thought she was feeling better. This was solely the job of her mother since her father worked long hours in the coal mines. She states that her mother was the stereotypical strict, but loving, German mother.When she started her own family, she ran her home in the same manner. She was raised during the Great Depression and was raised to be hard working and to appreciate what one has, which G. E. has instilled in her children. G. E. is accomplishing all the developmental tasks of her age group an d has successfully resolved Erickson’s last ego stage, which is the psychological conflict of ego integrity versus despair. In this stage, â€Å"resolution to this final conflict occurs when the adult accepts one’s one and only life cycle as something that had to be and that, by necessity, permitted of no substitutions† (Jarvis, 2008, p. 8). Causes of Illness G. E. describes illness as not being able to do the things she normally does and she defines health as having no aches or pains. She rates her health as good to excellent for a woman of her age. She has never smoked, however, her husband smoked a pipe for years. She does not use any devices to help her get around and she still goes up and down the stairs to do laundry. She states she has fallen a few times but has never broken a bone as a result, and was able to get back up on her own. She has never been hospitalized as a result of an illness, only for an occasional elective surgery.What she believe causes illness are environmental change, God’s punishment, grief and loss, stress and anxiety, incorrect food combinations, poor eating habits, smoking, inactivity, and viruses and bacteria. Cultural Practices in Healing and Health She maintains and protects her health by washing her hands regularly, taking her prescribed medications, staying active, eating a well-balanced diet based on the food pyramid, taking vitamin supplements, seeing her doctors regularly, staying inside when it is too hot or too cold, avoids people who are sick, and does not take on more than she thinks she can handle.When she does get sick she does not make a big deal out of it and does not feel the need to worry family members. She stays at home because she fears getting others sick as well, especially her great-grandchildren. She takes care of herself by getting enough rest, keeping herself hydrated, not eating certain foods she knows will make her feel worse, taking needed medications, and calling her doct or when she feels she needs to be seen. When G. E. feels she needs some lab work done, other tests, or has any concerns, she immediately calls her doctor. She trusts in her doctor’s advice and always follows his or her orders.It is because of all of this, she believes she is still living an active and healthy life. G. E. is also extremely concerned with the health and well-being of her family. When her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren are sick, she worries about them and calls them regularly to check on them. She also prays for them to get well. Cultural Expressions of Illness G. E. does whatever her doctor suggests and does not believe he would do anything to jeopardize her health. However, as far as family and friends go, she will not outwardly express indications of pain.She states that it is because she does not want people to worry about her. G. E. believes this is due to her strict German up-bringing and growing up during the Great Depression. She believe s one can never work too hard, so pain is seen as a weakness to her. The more she expresses pain or illness, the weaker she is seen, and possibly unable to effectively take good care of herself. Alternative assisted living is not an option G. E. needs at this point. G. E. feels she does not need it, and she absolutely will not burden her children with having to care for her.Cultural use of Alternative Therapies G. E. sometimes uses home remedies when she is ill. When she was a child her mother would use some vapor rub then put a sock around G. E. ’s neck. G. E. ’s mother would feed her chicken soup and give her juice or hot tea to drink, and keep her in bed. G. E. believes that healing and curing are the same and believes that praying, following the doctors orders, getting recommended treatments and taking prescribed medications brings healing. In the past few years G. E. has used alternative therapies to help with pain and arthritis.She gets acupuncture once a week, a nd sees a massage therapist occasionally. She admits, ten years ago she would have never done these types of alternative therapies, but her daughter is a nurse, and recommended it as an alternative to pain medication. She also admits that it does help, or she would not pay to go, but she feels it does not cure anything. She still has to supplement the pain with medications from time to time. Summary G. E. ’s interview was conducted at her home, and it took about an hour and a half. She would often change the subject, so having to restate questions happened often.She felt comfortable being in her home answering these questions, but often asked why an assessment of this type was so important. She has no issues with cultural sensitivity, or nurses being culturally competent, and has had little experience with other cultures. G. E. does not understand the need for such learning. Her views are ethnocentric, and at 84 years old, that will probably not change. During the interview, both open-ended and close-ended questions were used to gain the most information. She was very open to doing the interview, but stated she did not think she had much to contribute.She states she has lived a wonderful, privileged life with a loving husband, and a great family. She has never been disappointed by her family and is extremely proud of them. The only regret she has, has to do with her sister. They lived about five properties apart from each other, and some land next to her sister that G. E. owned, her sister planted a garden there for years. Well, G. E. gave the property to her daughter and son in-law to build a home. Her sister got extremely upset, which ended up with their families not talking for years. Then she received word that her sister was diagnosed with breast cancer, and G.E. called her up, and they reconciled. Unfortunately, she died shortly after that. G. E. has never gotten over that. Because of that, she is continually telling her family not to bicker over the small stuff, and that one’s family is all one has, and the people who love them the most in this world. Even though G. E. will not openly express pain to anyone except her doctor, the rest of her family will openly talk about any illness they have or pain they are experiencing. This is something she practically requires of them. She says it is like â€Å"do as I say, not as I do†.This goes back to her not wanting to be a burden on anyone, yet she has to know that her family is alright. It is perfectly fine for her family to be a burden on her, because to her it is not a burden. She sees it as her responsibility. She states that her family always tells her she will never be a burden, but she is too stubborn to listen to them. She is the mother and she knows best. She says her family jokes to her that they are 50 something year old adults, yet they still feel like children when they are around her and have to do what their mother says or there will be trouble. She fi nds this very amusing.She does not believe in cremation and plans to be buried alongside her husband. She has all of her final arrangements already planned and paid for, again, as not to burden her family. Many members of her family plan to be cremated and she cannot understand why. She believes one’s soul will not go to heaven if the body is cremated. There were no communication barriers while interviewing G. E. It was a very easy and pleasant interview. G. E. enjoyed talking about her heritage and family. G. E. is a very active and healthy woman for her 84 years, and she cannot wait until she can reunite with her husband in Heaven.She prays to her husband every night. Personal Reflection Writing a cultural assessment about someone from a different generation was very interesting for me. While some of the information I received during the interview was similar to my own personal beliefs, most were not. Being two generations younger than G. E. makes a huge difference in certa in beliefs. My mother is 100% Swedish and my father was a Vietnam veteran who is 50% German, with some English, French and more German. Growing up, my family did not follow any ethnic traditions and had no heritage related beliefs other than being American.We were a middle class family and as a child I thoroughly enjoyed life. I have one younger sister, and we, for the most part, were spoiled. I think that has to do with having baby boomers for parents. We took dance classes and I was a gymnast through junior high school. We had a whole neighborhood of other children our age. We were outside from morning until evening, especially in the summer. Both of my parents worked and provided us with whatever we needed. My parents made me attend Sunday school every week until I was about 12. After that, I attended church only a few times a year. Religion does not play a big role in my culture.Even at Sunday school, it did not make much sense to me, but I was too young really understand. My pa rents and grandparents always had a strong work ethic and I also do as a result. My parents wanted me to be my own person and choose my own path as long as it was an honest path. I live within a mile from my parents and from my sister so we see each other frequently. My parents help out my husband and me with our children. I have two sons and a daughter who are ages three, four, and six. One thing that differs from G. E. and me is that I like to know about the past as well as the present and future.One thing that we agree on is that we see our doctor regularly and rely on the latest in medical technology and medications. When we are both ill, we tend to use the same methods to take care of ourselves. However, I am not one to hide any pain or illness I have from my family; when I am sick or in pain, everyone knows about it. Also, the way we in which we raise our children is different. G. E. raised her children in a loving, but more strict, manner. I do not raise my children in such a strict manner. I raise them like my parents raised me. They are very different styles, but I do not know that one is better than the other.They both have positive and negative parts to them. In G. E. ’s generation the woman usually stayed home to take care of the family. In my generation I feel many women enjoy getting an education and usually find it a necessity to work outside of the home. I know I would enjoy the best of both worlds, to contribute to the family income, yet limiting my work outside the home to part time until the children are older. One thing about religion I also learned was how important it was to G. E. Other than her family, her religion was most important to her life, which is very different from me.As I stated earlier, religion has virtually no importance in my life. Also, I do not consider myself to be ethnocentric. I have yet to meet a person whose religion, culture, ethnicity, or heritage shocked or bothered me. As long as I do not feel that I am b eing pushed into one belief or another, I am fine. Everyone needs to find the path that makes one happy, healthy, and whole. I want to be a nurse because I like people. I feel I can make a difference in this career by letting my patients know that I genuinely care for their well-being and want them to lead the best possible life they can.I have been a Certified Nursing Assistant for the last 6 years and I enjoy it. I think by becoming a nurse I can do even more to help them. It is an awful experience to go to see the doctor, and feel like cattle being shipped in and out of the office at record speed. I like the thought of, as nurses, we take a holistic approach to healing that I feel doctor’s lack. Patients need to feel they can openly discuss their problems and that someone is actually listening to them and taking time to talk about it with them without judgment or prejudice; to come up with a plan of care that suits everyone involved, as much as possible.I realize since I d o work in a hospital that there will not always be a happy ending. Some patients can be difficult to care for, but as a nurse, I need to understand that they are there because they are ill, which has an effect on their personality and mental status. I must have empathy for them, as difficult as that may be sometimes. I know that when I am not feeling well, my personality changes, as does everyone’s. I feel the issues I need to work on most is the language barriers when they arise, and patient’s family dynamics. The diverse and often complex dynamics of a patient’s family is extremely difficult to understand.It will take time to develop a way to handle these often difficult situations. No family has the same relationship, so as a nurse I must go in prepared for anything, and keep an open, non-judgmental frame of mind while performing a cultural assessment on the patient. Writing this paper has made me even more sensitive to people’s cultural differences. N o matter what background one comes from, most people essentially want similar things when it comes to healthcare. One wants to be seen as an individual, rather than a number. We want compassionate care. We want to be listened to. We want to get well. We do not want to be judged or belittled.We want to be understood and we do not want to be dismissed as just another â€Å"crazy patient†. Nobody reacts well to negativity especially when there is no need to be. These are the things I must keep in mind while doing cultural assessments in the future. References Alexopoulos Y. (2007). Illness, Culture, and Caring: Impact on Patients, Families, and Nurses. In Chitty, K. K. & Black, B. P. (Ed. ), Professional nursing concepts & challenges (5th ed. , pp. 237-269). St. Louis, Missouri: Saunders. Baxter, A. (2001). In search of your German roots, A complete guide to tracing your ancestors in the Germanic areas of Europe (4th ed. . A. Baxter (Ed. ), Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publ ishing. Carter R. (2008). Cultural competence: Cultural care. In Jarvis, C. (Ed. ), Physical examination & health assessment (5th ed. , pp. 35-53). St. Louis, Missouri: Saunders. Downing J. (2008). Understanding each other: Communication and culture. In Riley, J. B. (Ed. ), Communication in nursing (6th ed. , pp. 46-62). St. Louis, Missouri: Mosby. Santos S. (2004). In Fuller, B. & Vossmeyer G. (Ed. ) Cultures of the world, Germany (2nd ed. ). Tarrytown, New York: Marshall Cavendish.