Tuesday, August 6, 2019
Richard vs Richmond Essay Example for Free
Richard vs Richmond Essay 1. The first recruitment poem, named Fall In follows the style of a simple ABABCDCD pattern, found most commonly within poems. However the second of which is the focus of our analysis, In Flanders Field, is much different. The first verses pattern is AABBA whereas the second verse is different yet again. Fall In has a style the is a lot more colloquial then Flanders Field relying on using more slang terms to attract the attention of the reader while Flanders Field has a tone that is a lot more easy going and not as in your face. 2. Fall In is much lengthier than Flanders Field; its words are much more direct and to the point. It contains questions that would make young men think about; how would their families and friends think about them given that they made the choice not to go to war. Flanders field arouses the memories of fallen friends and family members within the minds of men throughout the land, persuading and coercing them to join the ranks with many others. 3. The first poem Fall In is attempting to recruit young men to the forces by using what could be assumed as a sort of blackmail tactic. One can only assume that at the time of its publication the words found within its verses would have struck several chords in the hearts of the audience of young men, no doubt accomplishing its task; relying heavily on planting the seed of doubt into the minds of the young men, making them wonder just what indeed their family, friends and potential partners and children would think of their actions and absence from the forces during their countrys time of need. In Flanders Field follows a totally different path. I feel its words are meant to reverberate mostly in the hearts of those who have lost loved ones to war before; its words encourage those young people to pick up the torch and pride and carry it anew. I think personally that this poem would appeal to the more highly educated members of society, its words and underlying message would probably be more attractive to those with a higher education and a deeper understanding for poetry; Fall In uses colloquial language, slang and terms used on the street at the time, it would be much more likely to be understood by the lower class of educated men. 4. Despite my earlier comment that the second of the two poems under analytical scrutinising, I find the poem Fall In much more affective. It is easy to see how the questions would arose feelings within a young man of the time, not so much forcing but using a clever play on words to make them think that they would be lesser men if they did not do what many other men were doing and signing up for the forces. Being coerced and herded like so many sheep before them. 5. The structure of the first poem War Exalts is an unusual one, it is made up of question and answers throughout; one question is cheering on the war effort and the act of war itself while the reply completely disagrees with it, using religion as a main argument in retort. Anthem for Doomed Youth is a sonnet while the other is not; it follows the standard Shakespearean style consisting of 14 lines and five syllables per line. Both poem and sonnet respectively rely on de-idolising war itself; trying, one can only assume, to show the deadlier side to it by bringing attention to the point that not every one comes back alive to be praised by their loved ones, many will mourn. Too many. 6. I feel on a personal level that the shorter of the two poems is much more affective, this is due mainly to its mention of God. Most armies will use God to raise the morale of their troops, or simply to give good reasoning to their cause; with God on their side how could they lose? War Exalts will raise the question within any religious mind; what exactly does God think of war itself? To see your creations killing themselves in your name would upset anyone. Beliefs are harder to change, people fight against them and dont wish to have them altered, is it not better to have a good idea? Truthfully and from the heart this poem touched me, bringing to mind yet again the family members that have, and still are, fighting overseas in the name of God and country. Truly an affective poem.
Monday, August 5, 2019
Ataxia Telangiectasia Mutated in Glucose Transport
Ataxia Telangiectasia Mutated in Glucose Transport A role for ataxia telangiectasia mutated in insulin-independent stimulation of glucose transport Abstract Literature reports suggest that ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM) can activate the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), a protein that can stimulate glucose transport in skeletal muscle. We hypothesized that 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleotide (AICAR), an AMPK activator, would increase glucose transport in mouse extensor digitorum longus (EDL) muscles in an ATM-dependent manner. AICAR-stimulated glucose transport was prevented by the ATM inhibitor KU-55933 and in ATM-deficient (ATM-/-) muscle despite normal stimulation of AMPK phosphorylation. S231 of TBC1D1 matches the sequence motif of ATM substrates, and phosphorylation of this site is known to inhibit TBC1D1 and lead to increased glucose transport. Accordingly, we assessed TBC1D1 phosphorylation and found that AICAR-stimulated phosphorylation of TBC1D1 at S231did not occurin ATM-/- muscle. However, activation of ATM without activation of AMPK was insufficient to increase TBC1D1 phosphorylation.The data suggest that AT M plays a role in AICAR stimulated glucose transport downstream of AMPK. Keywords: AMP-activated protein kinase; ataxia telangiectasia mutated; TBC1D1; AICAR; glucose transport; skeletal muscle Introduction The serine-threonine kinase ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM) appears to play a role in glucose homeostasis. For example, recent genome-wide association studies have found that genetic variations near the ATM gene are related to glycemic responses to metformin [1, 2], a commonly-prescribed drug for blood glucose control. While the mechanism for metforminââ¬â¢s effect on blood glucose levels is under debate [3-6], it is known that metformin acutely stimulates glucose transport into skeletal muscle concomitant with activation of the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) [7]. Activation of AMPK is sufficient to stimulate insulin-independent glucose transport into skeletal muscle [8, 9]. Intriguingly, ATM dependence has been reported for activation of AMPK in response to DNA damage or insulin-like growth factor 1 in HeLa cells and fibroblasts, exposure of lung cancer cells to ionizing radiation,exposure of lymphoblaststo H2O2, or treatment of HeLa cells and mouse embryonic fibroblasts with the adenosine analog AICAR [10-14]. Despite these suggestive data on the role of ATM upstream of AMPK, the potential role of ATM in AMPK-dependent stimulation of glucose transport has not previously been investigated in skeletal muscle, the predominant whole-body storage depot for glucose. Accordingly, the purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that glucose uptake stimulated by the AMPK activator AICAR would be dependent on ATM in skeletal muscle. Methods Materials Antibodies against TBC1D1, AMPK, phosphorylated AMPKà ± T172 (P-AMPK), and phosphorylated ATM S1981 (P-ATM) were purchased from Cell Signaling Technology (Beverly, MA, USA). Antibodies against phosphorylated TBC1D1 (P-TBC1D1) S237 (S231 in mouse) were purchased from EMD Millipore Corporation (Billerica, MA, USA). Antibodies against tubulin and ATM were obtained from Sigma-Aldrich Corporation (St. Louis, MO, USA). Horseradish peroxidase-conjugated secondary antibodies were obtained from Pierce Biotechnology (Rockford, IL, USA). The ATM inhibitor KU-55933 was a generous gift from Dr. Graeme Smith (KuDOSPhramaceuticals, Cambridge, UK). The AMPK inhibitor Compound C was provided by Merck Co., Inc. (Rahway, NJ, USA). Doxorubicin was purchased from Sigma-Aldrich Corporation. Radiolabeled 2-deoxyglucose and mannitol were purchased from American Radiolabeled Chemicals, Inc. (St. Louis, MO, USA). Collection and Processing of Animal Muscle All procedures using live animals were approved by the Saint Louis University Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. Transgenic mice expressing a truncation mutation of ATM [15] were obtained from The Jackson Laboratory (Bar Harbor, ME, USA). Mice that were heterozygous for the transgene were used to breed wild type (ATM+/+) and ATM deficient (ATM-/) mice. After weaning, each mouse was anesthetized with ketamine/xylazine (55 mg ketamine and 5.5 mg xylazine per kg), and a tail sample was obtained for genotyping as previously described [15, 16]. Mice were anesthetized with sodium pentobarbital (50 mg/kg) and extensor digitorum longus (EDL) muscles were removed and incubated in vitro as described previously [16, 17]. The incubation media for the muscle consisted of Krebs Henseleit bicarbonate buffer (KHB) containing 8 mM glucose and 32 mM mannitol. Vials containing EDL muscles were gassed with 95% O2 : 5% CO2 and kept gently shaking at 35à ºC. Muscles were incubated for one hour to allow recovery from dissection. Muscles were then transferred into KHB containing 32 mM mannitol and 8 mM glucose in the presence of 0.1% dimethyl sulfoxide vehicle (DMSO) or 1 à µM KU-55933, a concentration sufficient to inhibit ATM [18, 19] but low enough to avoid inhibition of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase [19]. After 30 minutes, muscles were incubated in KHB with 8 mM glucose and the absence or presence of 2 mM AICAR for one hour with the continued presence of DMSO or KU and 32 mM or 30 mM mannitol to keep osmolarity constant across media. At this point, some muscles were blotted and clamp-frozen with aluminum tongs cooled in liquid nitrogen and stored at -80 à ºC for later western blot analysis. Other muscles were subjected to 2-deoxyglucose (2DG) uptake assays as described below. In parallel procedures, EDL muscles from wild-type or ATM-deficient animals were allowed to recover in vitro for one hour, incubated in KHB containing mannitol as described above and in the absence or presence of 2 mM AICAR for one hour and then either clamp-frozen or subjected to 2DG uptake assays as previously reported [16, 17] and briefly described below. 2DG uptake Muscles were washed at 30 à ºC in glucose-free KHB containing 40 mM mannitol in the absence or presence of KU-55933 (DMSO vehicle) or, for procedures with the ATM-/- mice, in medium containing neither KU nor DMSO. Muscles were then incubated in KHB containing 4 mM 2DG, 2 à µCi/ml 3H-2DG, 36 mM mannitol, 0.3 à µCi/ml 14C-mannitol, and 0.1% DMSO or 1 à µM KU-55933 if they had been present in earlier incubations. Muscles were clamp-frozen and stored at -80 à ºC. Muscles were then homogenized in Kontes ground glass tubes in ice-cold buffer containing protease and phosphatase inhibitors (50 mM HEPES, pH 7.4, 2 mM Na3VO4, 150 mM NaF,10 à µg/ml leupeptin, 10 à µg/ml aprotinin, 0.5 à µg/mL pepstatin and 1 mM phenymethylsulfonylflouride). Homogenates were centrifuged at 4 à ºC for 10 minutes at 14,000Ãâ¹Ã £g, and supernatant protein concentration was analyzed by the bicinchoninic acid (BCA) method (Pierce Protein Technologies, Rockland, IL, USA). Supernatant aliquots and aliquots of the incubation media were mixed with Ultima Gold XR scintillation fluid (Perkin Elmer, Boston, MA, USA), and samples were assessed by scintillation counting (TriCarb 3110TR, Perkin Elmer, Boston, MA, USA). The disintegrations per minute (DPM) of 14C-mannitol were used to measure the extracellular volume, and intracellular 2DG was calculated from 3H DPM after accounting for 3H DPM in the extracellular space. 2DG transport was expressed as nmol 2DG/mg protein/10 minutes. Western Blotting Samples were homogenized, centrifuged, assayed for protein content as described above, diluted in Laemmli sample buffer containing dithiothreitol, and boiled for 5 minutes. Samples were then analyzed using SDS-PAGE as described previously [20]. Samples were run on 4-20% Tris-HEPES gels (Pierce) and then transferred onto nitrocellulose membranes. After transfer, membranes were blocked with 5% non-fat dry milk in Tris-buffered saline containing 0.1% Tween. Proteins on the nitrocellulose membranes were probed with primary and secondary antibodies described in the Materials section and then visualized using enhanced chemiluminescence (Western Lightning; PerkinElmer, Waltham, MA, USA). Western blots were quantified using TotalLab software purchased from TotalLab Nonlinear Dynamics (Newcastle on Tyre, UK). For probing ATM and P-ATM, samples were run on 3-8% Tris-Acetate gels (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA, USA) alongside HiMark (Invitrogen) molecular weight markers. Statistics Data were analyzed by ANOVA with post hoc LSD comparisons. A level of P Results AICAR-stimulated glucose transport ATMââ¬â¢s role in AICAR stimulated glucose transport was assessed in isolated EDL muscle by using either ATM deficient mice or by using the specific ATM inhibitor, KU-55933. As shown in figure 1A, ATM protein was present in only background levels in EDL from ATM-/- mice. As shown in figure 1B, AICAR increased glucose transport in muscle from wild type mice(P AICAR-stimulated phosphorylation of AMPK It has previously been reported that ATM plays a role in AICAR-stimulated AMPK phosphorylation in HeLa cells and mouse embryonic fibroblasts [12]. Thus, we assessed phosphorylation of AMPK to determine whether ATMââ¬â¢s role in AICAR-stimulated glucose transport was through an influence on AMPK phosphorylation. As shown in figure 2A, AICAR-stimulated AMPK phosphorylation was normal in muscle from ATM-/- mice. Likewise, AICAR-stimulated AMPK phosphorylation was unaffected by the ATM inhibitor KU-55933 (figure 2B). Phosphorylation of TBC1D1 The RabGTPase activating protein (GAP) TBC1D1 is required for stimulation of glucose transport by AICAR [21]. Furthermore, phosphorylation of mouse TBC1D1 at S231 (corresponding to S237 of human TBC1D1) in response to AICAR occurs concomitant with an increase in glucosetransport [22-24], and S231 phosphorylation appears to be necessary to convey insulin-responsiveness to TBC1D1 [25]. Intriguingly, S231 and the surrounding amino acids (F-S-Q) match the consensushydrophobic-serine/threonine-glutamine (à ¯Ã â⬠-S/T-Q) motif of ATM targets [26, 27]. While phosphorylation of this site is increased by the AMPK activators phenformin and AICAR [28], and the site is an in vitro target of AMPK [28], this does not rule out the possibility that another kinase could act on the site. Thus, we hypothesized that S231 phosphorylation in response to AICAR would be dependent on ATM. As shown in figure3, AICAR increased phosphorylation of TBC1D1 S231 in EDL from wild type mice (P Discussion The new information provided by this study is that AICAR-stimulated glucose uptake in skeletal muscle is dependent on ATM. Additionally, this role for ATM in AICAR-stimulated glucose uptake does not involve an effect at the level of AMPK phosphorylation but instead is associated with altered phosphorylation of TBC1D1, downstream of AMPK. Based on data that the ATM inhibitor KU-55933 blunted activation of AMPK by metformin in a hepatoma cell line, Zhou et al proposed that ATM acts upstream of AMPK [2]. However, two independent groups have shown that KU-55933 prevents AMPK activation by metformin through inhibition of the cation transporter responsible for metformin uptake rather than through inhibition of ATM [3, 4]. In hepatocytes, ultraviolet light irradiation stimulated phosphorylation of the ATM target H2AX, but had no effect on AMPK activity [4]. Additionally, caffeine, which inhibits ATM,suppressed phosphorylation of H2AX but not activation of AMPK by metformin [4] . Finally, while hydrogen peroxide activated both AMPK and ATM in HEK293 cells, KU-55933 prevented ATM autophosphorylation but did not interfere with AMPK activity [4]. Together, these data [4] suggest that ATM does not act upstream of AMPK, at least in hepatocytes or HEK293 cells. While it has been reported that ATM acts upstream of AMPK inHeLa cells, lung cancer cells, fibroblasts, lymphoblasts, and embryonic fibroblasts [10-14], it seems unlikely that tissues corresponding to these cell lines would play a meaningful role in glucose homeostasis. Intriguingly, however, the increase in insulin sensitivity and a concomitant increase in autophosphorylated ATM in L6 myotubes in response to serum starvation was found to be dependent on AMPK, while inhibition of ATM prevented increased insulin action but not an increase in AMPK phosphorylation in serum starved myotubes [18]. Together, the data from serum-starved myotubes [18]suggest that ATM could act downstream of AMPK in regulation of glucose transport. The current data showing blunted glucose transport despite normal phosphorylation of AMPK in response to AICAR in ATM-deficient skeletal muscle or muscle exposed to KU-55933 are consistent with the idea of ATM acting downstream of AMPK. AMPK is a heterotrimerof à ±, à ², and à ³ subunits, each with multiple isoforms [30]. The two main activating upstream kinases for AMPK are liver kinase B1 (LKB1) and calcium/calmodulin-dependent kinase kinase à ² [31], though there are some reports that ATM-dependent phosphorylation of AMPK does not require LKB1 [11, 32] and could indeed be through direct phosphorylation of AMPK by ATM [11]. Intriguingly, LKB1 is an in vitro substrate for ATM [33], suggesting a potential mechanism for the ATM-dependent phosphorylation of AMPK [14]. However, phosphorylation of LKB1 by ATM does not affect LKB1 activity in vitro or LKB1 localization in vivo [33], so the precise role of LKB1 phosphorylation in activation of AMPK remains uncertain. Clearly, there are cell-type differences in the role of ATM upstream of AMPK, and perhaps these are influenced by factors including the expression profile of AMPK subunit isoforms or the subcellular localizations of ATM, AMPK, and LKB1. The current study, as the first to demonstrate a role of ATM in insulin-independent glucose transport, adds to the growing body of literature suggesting a role for ATM in glucoregulation. For example, young mice that lack functional ATM are hyperglycemic compared to wild-type animals during oral glucose tolerance tests [34]. Likewise, for mice with an ApoE-/- background, animals that have only one allele ofATMthat codes for functional protein are hyperglycemic during intraperitoneal glucose tolerance tests and insulin tolerance tests compared to mice with two wild-type ATM alleles [35]. Finally, inhibition of ATM decreases insulin-stimulated glucose uptake in muscle-derived cell lines [16, 32], and insulin-stimulated glucose uptake is blunted in L6 cells expressing kinase-dead ATM and in mouse skeletal muscle from animals deficient in ATM [16, 32]. Quite interestingly, while ATM plays a role upstream of Akt in response to insulin in some cell lines and in glycolytic skeletal muscle [ 16, 20, 36], the point of influence of ATM in insulin signaling leading to glucose transport in oxidative muscle is downstream of Akt at theRabGAP AS160/TBC1D4 [16, 20]which, like TBC1D1, acts on Rabs 2A, 8A, 8B, 10, and 14 [37]. Thus, ATM influences both insulin-stimulated phosphorylation of AS160 [16, 20] and AICAR-stimulated phosphorylation of TBC1D1 in skeletal muscle. In summary, this study provides the first evidence for a role of ATM in AICAR-stimulated glucose uptake by skeletal muscle. Thus, ATM plays key roles in both insulin-dependent [16]and insulin-independent stimulation of glucose uptake in skeletal muscle, suggesting a basis for the association of ATM variants with glycemic profiles recently reported [2, 7].
Sunday, August 4, 2019
Living with Epilepsy :: Personal Narrative Essays
Living with Epilepsy It was a cold, rainy day. I could see most of the kids at the bus stop had winter coats and hats. The clouds were particularly low in the sky. After evading the numerous puddles in the road, I reached the bus stop and walked up to a group of friends. A girl in my class spotted me and asked, "Are you going to the dance tomorrow?" I froze. I had forgotten about the dance and now was uncertain about whether I was going or not. "Yeah, probably," I answered. She nodded and we discussed other things, but my mind never wandered away from the question she had posed. Suddenly, the bus appeared and I climbed on and took a seat in the front. I needed some time to think. Ever since the doctors told me I had epilepsy, I have lived with an added stress. When I was younger it was not as stressful as it is now that I am in high school. I know that I have become increasingly self-conscious about it. The first seizure I ever had was in fourth grade. The doctors do not know what triggered the seizure, and I do not remember it. The students and teachers told me that I screamed and lost consciousness. Then I started jerking with muscle contractions. Later, the doctors told me I had epilepsy, specifically the type known as grand mal. Immediately, the doctors put me on some medications to prevent the seizures. They also gave my parents a bunch of packets of information about epilepsy. When I got older, some of those packets informed me that 20-25 million people have suffered from an epileptic seizure. Many people grow out of childhood epilepsy or they take medicine to control it. However, there is still a risk of having a seizure even if you take medication. Over the past few years, I have become increasingly aware of the chance of a seizure at any time. The day after my seizure, I came to school and the kids were a little frightened of me. It only took a little time for them to forget, but the few days after the seizure were unbearable. The kids acted like epilepsy was contagious. Of course, I understand that a seizure is a dramatic and frightening event. I can only speculate at what the kids in high school would do if they saw me having a seizure. Living with Epilepsy :: Personal Narrative Essays Living with Epilepsy It was a cold, rainy day. I could see most of the kids at the bus stop had winter coats and hats. The clouds were particularly low in the sky. After evading the numerous puddles in the road, I reached the bus stop and walked up to a group of friends. A girl in my class spotted me and asked, "Are you going to the dance tomorrow?" I froze. I had forgotten about the dance and now was uncertain about whether I was going or not. "Yeah, probably," I answered. She nodded and we discussed other things, but my mind never wandered away from the question she had posed. Suddenly, the bus appeared and I climbed on and took a seat in the front. I needed some time to think. Ever since the doctors told me I had epilepsy, I have lived with an added stress. When I was younger it was not as stressful as it is now that I am in high school. I know that I have become increasingly self-conscious about it. The first seizure I ever had was in fourth grade. The doctors do not know what triggered the seizure, and I do not remember it. The students and teachers told me that I screamed and lost consciousness. Then I started jerking with muscle contractions. Later, the doctors told me I had epilepsy, specifically the type known as grand mal. Immediately, the doctors put me on some medications to prevent the seizures. They also gave my parents a bunch of packets of information about epilepsy. When I got older, some of those packets informed me that 20-25 million people have suffered from an epileptic seizure. Many people grow out of childhood epilepsy or they take medicine to control it. However, there is still a risk of having a seizure even if you take medication. Over the past few years, I have become increasingly aware of the chance of a seizure at any time. The day after my seizure, I came to school and the kids were a little frightened of me. It only took a little time for them to forget, but the few days after the seizure were unbearable. The kids acted like epilepsy was contagious. Of course, I understand that a seizure is a dramatic and frightening event. I can only speculate at what the kids in high school would do if they saw me having a seizure.
Saturday, August 3, 2019
How Fish Swim Essay -- physics fish swimming
Water and all forms of water travel have long fascinated man. With his fascination and the realization that humans are ill-suited for water travel that doesn't involve remaining on the surface, an appreciation for a fish's ability to move in three dimensions with relative ease was also devloped. Although we may not fully understand the physics involved how fish swim, it is obvious from the fascination and the breadth of reseach that it will remain a goal of the modern sicientist. A fish's ability to propel itself efficiently through water is paramount to its likelihood to succeed. But before a fish need worry about any of the complications associated with moving through water (hydrodynamic drag, turbulence, buoyancy, etc.) it must first solve the problem of locomotion. The most common method for solving this problem is by muscle contraction and relaxation. The forward thrust force is created by movement of the caudal (tail) fin and varying amounts of the surrounding muscle (up to the entire body for fish that swim similar to eels) in an undulating motion. The importance of this mechanism manifests itself in the fact that 80% of a fish's body is composed of muscle used for propulsion and maneuvering. Since fish live in an environment in which they need to move in three dimensions, buoyancy plays a significant role in determining a fish's ability to swim efficiently. Fish use a couple of different strategies to solve this problem. Denser fish use their pectoral fins to create dynamic lift, similar to planes and birds. As these fish swim, their pectoral fins are positioned in such a way as to create a difference in pressure which allows the fish to maintain a certain depth. The two major drawbacks of ... ... Anjem and Marko, John. University of Illinois, Chicago. Department of Physics http://www.uic.edu/classes/phys/phys461/phys450/MARKO/N004.html Smits, A. "Drag of Blunt and Streamline Bodies" Princeton University. Department of Engineering http://www.princeton.edu/~asmits/Bicycle_web/blunt.html Moore, Bobby and Warren, Michael. "The Bouyancy of Fish and the Physics Behind it" http://kingfish.coastal.edu/physics/projects/2000_fall/fish/ Tu, Xiaoyuan. "Structure of the Dynamic Fish Model". University of Toronto http://www.dgp.toronto.edu/people/tu/thesis/node50.html
The Power of Place :: Essays Papers
The Power of Place ââ¬Å"The main thing is to root politics in place. The affinity for home permits a broad reach in the process of coalition building. It allows strange bedfellows to find one another. It allows worldviews to surface and change. It allows politics to remain an exercise in hope. And it allows the unthinkable to happen sometimes.â⬠Allen Thein Durning, This Place on Earth , P.249 The concept of place, home and community is a transnational and trans-community concept. Human places have just recently been given political boundaries. Previously, human boundaries were determined the same way that animal, plant, and ecosystem boundaries were defined. They were defined by ecology and they were defined by geography of region and hemisphere. Tony Hiss Author of The Experience of Place brings to our attention that as humans ââ¬Å"We react, consciously or unconsciously, to the places where we live and work, in ways we scarcely notice or that are only now becoming known to usâ⬠¦In short, the places where we spend our time affect the people we are and can become.â⬠Place defines characteristics in both human and extended moral communities. Place is not necessarily specific to gender, race, generation or specie. This understanding and recognition of place is fundamental when thinking about institutionalizing ecological and social responsibility. Because of human and nonhuman connections to specific places including knowledge, experience and community, using a sense of place and permanence as a green transnational multilateral initiative could be a successful step towards green democracy and ecological citizenship. Robyn Eckersley offers the suggestion of a constitutionally entrenched principle that would enhance ecological and social responsibility: the precautionary principle. I suggest connecting localized, place-specific boundaries with the principle. This addition is meant to aid in fostering ecological citizenship, expanding the moral community, and creating a responsible society. This addition would also be meant to unite a transnational issue that all nations could agree upon. This would create a binding multilateral principle that would be thoroughly accepting of specific ecological needs and characteristics of specific places. In short, the big picture of an international perspective needs the resolution of the peculiarities of place that can't be emphasized in a global viewpoint. The second major international environmental conference was held in Rio de Janeiro, in 1992. It was at Rio that the precautionary principle first became known to the public. Called principle 15, the precautionary principle provided that: ââ¬Å"Where there are threats of serious or irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing cost-effective measures to prevent environmental degradationâ⬠(p.
Friday, August 2, 2019
Women Leadership
WOMEN AND LEADERSHIP Leadership: A simple definition of leadership is that leadership is the art of motivating a group of people to act towards achieving a common goal. Put even more simply, the leader is the inspiration and director of the action. He or she is the person in the group that possesses the combination of personality and skills that makes others want to follow his or her direction. In business, leadership is welded to performance. Effective leaders are those who increase their companiesââ¬Ë bottom lines. To further confuse the issue, we tend to use the terms ââ¬Å"leadershipâ⬠and ââ¬Å"managementâ⬠interchangeably, referring to a company's management structure as its leadership, or to individuals who are actually managers as the ââ¬Å"leadersâ⬠of various management teams. Is a leader born or made? While there are people who seem to be naturally endowed with more leadership abilities than others, all believe that people can learn to become leaders by concentrating on improving particular leadership skills. 1. A leader plans. 2. A leader has a vision. 3. A leader takes charge . A leader shares her vision 5. A leader inspires through example. Women Leadership: When modern feminists movement emerged it dint feature much discussion of leadership. There was virtually no analysis of what feminist leadership might entail. Because leadership has been largely a privilege of men, and feminism focused on women. It is understandable that study of leadership dint have much sali ence. Feminists wanted to understand the womenââ¬Ës experiences and routes of womenââ¬Ës oppression. Psychologists is particular have neglected study of women. Therefore, new topics emerged ââ¬â sexual harassment, rape, math anxiety, family violence and the politics of reproductive rights, to name just a few. To study leadership is it in organizations or in politics would have meant focusing on men. The discovery and development of women focus topics made a good sense. Much has changed. Women are now far more common in ranks of leaders. For example, women occupy 24% of chief executive positions in United States (U. S Bureau of Labor Statistics- 2006). They constitute 44% of school principles (U. S National Center for Education Statistics, 2005) and 21% of college and University presidents (Corrigan, 2002). It makes sense that feminists find the study of leadership appropriate now that it addresses the experiences of women as well as men. Although women remain rare in the corporate leadership and greatly under presented in politics, womenââ¬Ës increasing presence in these and other leadership roles raises many questions about their functioning as leaders. When it comes to leadership, does gender matter? Is there a difference between women leaders and men who lead? Characteristics that distinguish women leaders from men in leadership: ? Women leaders are more assertive and persuasive, have a stronger need to get things done and are more willing to take risks than male leaders. ? Women leaders were also found to be more empathetic and flexible, as well as stronger in interpersonal skills than their male counterparts enabling them to read situations accurately and take information in from all sides. ? These women leaders are able to bring others around to their point of view because they are leading feel more understood, supported and valued. Four specific statements about women's leadership qualities: ? ? ? ? Women leaders are more persuasive than their male counterparts. When feeling the sting of rejection, women leaders learn from adversity and carry on with an ââ¬Å"I'll show youâ⬠attitude. Women leaders demonstrate an inclusive, team-building leadership style of problem solving and decision making. Women leaders are more likely to ignore rules and take risks. This evidence ââ¬â that the leadership style of women is not simply unique but possibly at odds with what men practice ââ¬â begs the question: Do these qualities have value in the marketplace? Is this type of leadership welcomed by society and by the public and private sector? Differences between women and men leadership: There are several key ways in which people respond differently to women and men who are leaders. Conflicting, sets of expectations, high-profile women leaders in the United States are relentlessly held to a higher standard than their male counterparts. ? Different Responses to Women and Men in Leadership Roles Researchers have identified four key ways in which female and male leaders elicit different responses from those around them. These different responses appear to be due, not so much to different leadership behaviors by women and men, as to the stimulus value of women or men in these roles. A woman leader stimulates a different reaction than a male leader because of learned expectations, shaped and supported by the surrounding social structure, that invalidate and undercut womenââ¬Ës attempts to be effective, influential, and powerful. ? Women are expected to combine Leadership with Compassionââ¬âand are disliked when they donââ¬â¢t Researchers have long found that people think ? male? when they think ? leader?. Because of perceived incompatibility between the requirements of femininity and those of leadership, women are often required to ? soften? their leadership styles to gain the approval of their constituents. Women who do not temper their agency and competence with warmth and friendliness risk being disliked and less influential. Women who lead with an autocratic style are the targets of more disapproval than those who enact a more democratic style; men may choose the autocratic style with relative impunity, if they are effective leaders. Often requires the application of a ? harder? eadership style, they are disliked and disparaged. ? People do not listen to or take direction from women as comfortably as from men The stereotype that women are more talkative than men is unsupported by evidence. Women report that they do not feel listened to, that when they speak in meetings their comments and suggestions are ignored or belittledââ¬âand that the same comments or suggestions from men have more impact. Field studies of small group meetings in organizations show that women leaders are targets of more displays of negative emotion than men leaders, even when both sets of leaders are viewed as equally competent. Women who promote themselves and their abilities reap disapproval Women who act more confident and assertive than is normative for women run the risk of disapproval. Research demonstrates that when women promote their own accomplishments it can cause their audience to view them as more competentââ¬âbut at the cost of viewing them as less likeable. Men who promote their own accomplishments do not reap the same mixed outcomes: as long as they do not overdo it, self-promotion brings them both higher evaluations of competence and likeability. ? Women require more external validation than men do to be accepted as leaders in some contexts In competitive, highly-masculinized contexts, simply having leadership training or taskrelated expertise does not guarantee a womanââ¬Ës success unless accompanied by legitimating by another established leader. Gender stereotypes interfere with observersââ¬Ë ability to see womenââ¬Ës competence; it is sometimes necessary to for a high-status other to provide them with credibility. Qualities of Women Leader: ? Committed. ? Outspoken. ? Enthusing. ? Vivacious. ? Happy. ? Creator. ? Charismatic. ? Lively. ? Talented. ? Friendly. ? Free-Spirited. ? Outgoing. ? Measured. ? Reflective. ? Spirited. ? Open and Honest. ? Determined. ? Cheerful. Altruistic. ? Keeping my interests ? Feisty. ? Inspirational. ? Trustworthy. ? Positive. ? Forthright. ? Energetic. ? Passion. ? Inspiring. ? Supportive. ? Optimistic. ? Cosmopolitan. ? Impressive. ? Eclectic. ? Fair. ? Hardworking. ? Confident. ? Assertive. ? Caring. ? Articulate. ? Humorous. to my self. ? Complex. ? Resilient. ? Calm. ? Spar kling Women Empowerment: ââ¬ËWomen's empowerment' is the ability to exercise full control over one's actions. The Government of India had ushered in the new millennium by declaring the year 2001 as ââ¬ËWomen's Empowerment Year' to focus on a vision ââ¬Ëwhere women are equal partners like men'. The last decades have witnessed some basic changes in the status and role of women in our society. There has been shift in policy approaches from the concept of ââ¬Ëwelfare' in the seventies to ââ¬Ëdevelopment' in the eighties and now to 'empowerment' in the nineties. The Constitution of India grants equality to women in various fields of life. Yet a large number of women are either ill equipped or not in a position to propel themselves out of their traditionally unsatisfactory socio-economic conditions. Leaving a meager number of urban and sub-urban women, Indian women are still crying for social justice. A review of government's various programmes for women empowerment such as Swashakti, Swayamsidha, Streeshakti, Balika samrudhi yojana and another two thousand projects reveal that little has been done or achieved through these programmes. The discrepancy in the ideology and practice of the empowerment policy of women in India constitutes its continued social, economic and social backwardness Empowerment would not hold any meaning unless they are made strong, alert and aware of their equal status in the society. The need of the hour is to improve female literacy as education holds the key to development. Empowerment would become more relevant if women are educated, better informed and can take rational decisions. The greatest challenge is to recognize the obstacles that stand in the way of their right to good health. To be useful to the family, community and the society, women must be provided with health care facilities. They should be provided with proper wages and work at par with men so that their status can be elevated in society. In recent years there have been explicit moves to increase women's political participation. The Women's reservation policy bill is however a very sad story as it is repeatedly being scuttled in parliament. In the Panchayati Raj system, however, women have been given representation as a sign of political empowerment. There are many elected women representatives at the village council level. However their power is restricted, as it the men who wield all the authority. Their decisions are often over-ruled by the government machinery. It is crucial to train and give real power to these women leaders so that they can catalyst change in their villages regarding women. All this shows that the process of gender equality and women's empowerment still has a long way to go and may even have become more difficult in the recent years. The main reason for the contradiction is that, targeted schemes tend to have only limited impact when the basic thrust of development is not reaching an average woman, making her life more fragile and vulnerable. To make a positive change basic infrastructure should be provided in every village and city. To begin with, providing safe drinking water supply and better sanitation not only directly improved the lives and health of women but also reduces their workload in terms of provisioning and ensuring such facilities. An access to affordable cooking fuel reduces the need to travel long distances in search of fuel wood. Improved transport connecting villages with each other and with towns can also directly improve living conditions as well as unpaid labour time spent in transporting household items. It can also lead to access to a wider range of goods and services plus a better access to health facilities. Expenditure on food subsidy and better provisions for public distribution services directly affects the lives of women and girl children in terms of adequate nutrition. The patterns of resource mobilization by government also have significant effects on women that are usually not recognized. When taxes are regressive and fall disproportionately on items of mass consumption, once again these tend to affect women more. This is not only because the consumption of such items may be curtailed but also because the provisioning of such items is frequently considered to be the responsibility of the women of the household. Also credit policies reduce the flow of credit to small-scale enterprises thus reducing the employment opportunities for women. There is a need to have womenfriendly economic policies that can enhance their social and economic position and make them self-reliant. There is no doubt about the fact that development of women has always been the central focus of planning since Independence. Empowerment is a major step in this direction but it has to be seen in a relational context. A clear vision is needed to remove the obstacles to the path of women's emancipation both from the government and women themselves. Efforts should be directed towards all round development of each and every section of Indian women by giving them their due share. Impact women leaders contribute to business: ? There are three key drivers why businesses are interested in women today: leadership, talent and markets. There is now data and studies to prove that more women in leadership means better bottom-line performance. Fortune 500 companies with the most women at the top have a 35 percent higher return on shareholder return to equity, and a Catalyst study showed boards with more than three women on them have an 83 percent higher return to shareholder value than boards without women. It's not about women taking over everything, it's about having gender balance because that really does seem to tie into much greater profitability and striking performance financially. ? One of the most compelling reasons for an organization to pay attention to the demographic makeup of its workforce is that a diverse employee base can have significant bottom-line impact. Yet, when the issue is workplace gender balance and actualizing women's economic and leadership potential, India trails behind less developing countries. ? Oftentimes when the subject of women in business is discussed, comparisons with men are made as if men are the barometer for business. This is a false perception and false too is the language. Business is not an entity separated from life; it is an entity encompassed by life. The definitions of a business consists of a line of work, to work, a profession, a job, a trade, a position, a vocation, a field, a calling and a career. Before today, societies around the globe have claimed that women didnââ¬Ët work and therefore couldnââ¬Ët understand the parameters of ? formal? business. This misconception rivals some of the largest platitudes in history: the near-sighted earth is flat, the purposeful stork delivers babies and the perforated theory of evolution. The business world has presented itself to women as if it spoke a foreign language on an uncharted map. But the truth is that the language is fabricated and the world of business operates in a land not unknown to women. By definition, everything women do and have always done is in fact a business. Women have labored the child, harvested the crop, fed the hungry, nursed the needy and educated the willing. All of those are jobs, careers, trades, vocations and callings. Women arenââ¬Ët new to business; theyââ¬Ëre only new to the financial rewards. ? Today, more than ever, women are in the workplace and now own the workplace. Women have always been established in business but now they are in business for profit by way of monetary means. Today over 10 million businesses are owned or controlled by women and those businesses account for over two (2) trillion dollars in sales. Thatââ¬Ës an astounding number and a resounding accomplishment when all considerations are factored. This doesnââ¬Ët come as a result of women learning anything new. This is a manifestation of which women already are: industrious, innovative, instinctive and intelligent. The traits of women are not to be compared with that of men, just shared in composition of a more productive and progressive society. Every household around the world that houses women, women manage and most commonly manage well. The interactive and intuitive management style of women is a prerequisite to a thriving business and a productive workplace environment. Women-owned businesses employ almost 20 million people and steadily rising. ? There was a time not long ago when any man in a three-piece suit could qualify for a business loan. Those times are no more, as much money was lost and many laws were circumvented. The measures applied in todayââ¬Ës market are far more reasonable and more accessible to female entrepreneurs. Commercial lenders and Venture Capitalists want to see that the company has done its research in that respective field. Itââ¬Ës important for them to know that you have experience in this area of expertise. Another major factor will be how you intend to market the product and what the infrastructure of the company is. As you design your company, research successful companies already in that industry, introduce yourselves to other women in business and network to assist each other. Those around you that make claims of what you canââ¬Ët do must be excluded from your conversations, so that you may focus on the task at hand. Whether you are single, a single mother or married, taking advantage of free enterprise is the way to independence and interdependence. The success in business that any male has experienced is not because males possess some superior trait over women; itââ¬Ës because men have been the only players. Women can compete in any and every business. Itââ¬Ës just a matter of choice and now that choice is ours. For one to operate a successful business, they must first define what su ccess is in their own terms. ? The sole reason why the numbers of women-owned businesses arenââ¬Ët more reflective of the population is because they havenââ¬Ët been encouraged to do and supported when doing so. Itââ¬Ës been a blight on the world community and a recessive gene to societal growth. Today we see women straightening that crooked path and every society will become a more powerful force because of it. Yesterday, we gorged the bitterness of bigotry. Today, we taste the fruits of unity and diversity. Today, we plant the untainted seeds of effortless innovation and boundless meritocracy. Today, little girls and little boys will witness the ubiquitous talents of women in power and exalt their leadership. Young women will know they have a reasonable option before them and no law will disallow their choices. Itââ¬Ës paramount that not only young women see their defined roles as unrestrained but that young men do and work in concert as we brave a new world. Itââ¬Ës true: Today is the greatest day in the history of the world and tomorrow will be even better. Challenges for women leadership: In spite of decades of organization and legislative support for gender equality, it appears that there is still very much a glass ceiling facing women in many aspects of leadership. Most women gaining or holding leadership roles ââ¬â whether in the workplace or in community organizations ââ¬â Face many challenges and oppositions which can be very hurtful and demoralizing. Women leaders still face many unique challenges brought on by a combination of social and cultural stereotyping, gender bias, family demands and also their innate female tendencies. Women leaders still earn less in general, receive less recognition and less support especially in the male dominated, competitive corporate world but also in other professional fields, such as medicine. The most common challenges faced by women leaders are: ? The challenge of family responsibility: It is a common lament that women are expected to juggle the demands of career and family, with constant criticism from both sides for failure to achieve perfection. For women leaders, the constant struggle to balance their responsibilities in both the professional and personal arena can be overwhelming, especially given the lack of support and the constant fight they have against the obstacles generated from traditional prejudices and gender stereotyping. In the greatest majority of break ups it is the woman who leaves. She leaves because her needs werenââ¬Ët given sufficient weight in the relationship. However still men around with a 1950ââ¬Ës masculinity are happy for their women to work if they can manage it around all their other commitments at home. They expect their working wives to do everything that their stay -at-home mothers do. ? The challenges from personal inclinations: For many women, learning to operate and succeed in a male dominated world means having to learn to over ride or ignore their more feminine inclinations. When the women get overwhelmed by the responsibility of looking after everyone and everything, these men offer no support except to tell their wives that they will have to quit their job if they canââ¬Ët cope. ? Woman has a potential and power to be a leader. However women often lack opportunities skills and resources for realizing their potential. Much of womenââ¬Ës leadership over the centuries has been invisible because the question of leadership has been viewed through gender ââ¬â biased lenses. Women have been pulling together to make something happen , but all of these have been viewed as ordinary and domestic work, performed in the private sphere that did not qualify for leadership. So the first challenge is to make womenââ¬Ës leadership visible. ? Gender biased lenses see leadership as happening in the ? public sphere ? hich was for generations and still is to an extent the domain of men. Ironically even women have and still reinforce this bias, which is an indication that the way we are socialized determines how we think and act. a very big challenge is becoming aware that we need new lenses that will make us see thing differently. How to overcome the challenges faced by women in leadership: When we have seen each other 's work we learned the value of different work and further understood the roles of women in disasters and communities and how to strengthen their leadership. Leadership has no gender does it? May be women are more conscious of themselves, they can lead as well as men. The Leader at home is mostly a woman who have created talented children, built savings, assets and they can built Nation with character 1. The philosophy of Panchayati Raj is deeply steeped in the tradition and culture of rural India and is by no means a new concept. ?The rationale behind the concept is to involve the public in local planning, identification of beneficiaries, decision making and proper implementation of policies and programmes of the people as described by them. Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) have today the basic commitment towards rural development. 2 . Panchayati Raj, as a system of governance, has had its ebbs and flows in the Indian polity ever since Indian attained independence. Various committees headed by Balwant Rai Mehta, Ashok Mehta, V. P. Naik, P. B. Patil, G. V. R. Rao, L. N. Singhvi overhauled these institutions which gave necessary impetus to the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act. Gender equality and gender equity are emerging as major challenges in the global development debate. Social scientists and development activists are giving increasing emphasis to these fields in their agenda for research and development. 4 As Noble Prizewinning economist Amartya Sen has pointed out, ? Democracy is not only the goal of development, it is the primary means of development. 5. Womenââ¬Ës participation in political processes is important for strengthening democracy and for their struggle against marginalisation, trivialisation and oppression. Emergence of women as a strong group would change the prevailing political practices, the nature and content of debates in the legislature and womenââ¬Ës issues can be taken care of from the feminist perspective both in policy formulation and implementation. .6. In fact, right from the days of the freedom struggle the Indian women have been consistently encouraged to take part in active politics. But due to the vitiated political milieu, resulting from increasing politicization and criminalization of politics, he level of political participation of women has been adversely affected despite the fact that there has been a marked increase in the level of literacy and political awareness among women. . India is perhaps the first country to recognize this social fact underlined by Lenin on the International Working Womenââ¬Ës Day in 1921,8 and to have taken concrete measures to draw women into leadership positions and thereby into politics by giving them one-third reservation in wha t may now be called the third tier of governanceââ¬âthe Panchayati Raj. The constitutional amendment providing one-third representation to women in elected bodies as well as reserving one-third of the offices of chairpersons for them will have far-reaching consequences in Indian political and social life. Now, some general observations can be made regarding the role of women in grassroots level governance. It has come to the notice that the percentage of women at various levels of political activities has increased formally. The general trend is that those in politics are women belonging to the younger age-group between 25-45. It is also revealed that women take up political career as an extension of their domestic role. While women have been active in mass movements, their presence is not felt in decisionmaking. The influence of the husbands and close relatives is quite palpable. This tendency is due to lack of confidence. This dependency is a stumping block in their empowerment. ?Another positive impact of the grassroot level experiment is the increase in the female literacy rate. Studies reveal that after two years of their election to PRIs, many women demanded literacy skills and also felt the need to educate their daughters. Issues in which women representatives generally take interest are drinking water supply, primary health, child care, public distribution system and environmental protection. One quality observed among women representatives is their patience to hear the problems of the public. They also work in adverse circumstances. It has been observed that women representatives are honest and accurate in presenting issues to the decision-making bodies and authorities. Women would bring new ideas in local governance. They believe in a sustainable development and their emphasis is on natural resources management. Women representatives working at the grassroot level also believe that communal harmony is an important element of development and they strive to achieve this objective. Another promising fact is that they do not indulge in corrupt practices. The elected women have exhibited their leadership in solving some of the local problems and creating facilities for betterment of the rural society. Women are considered an extremely pivotal point in the process of change in the rural areas. Womenââ¬Ës participation in panchayats provided opportunities to women to participate in the decision-making process. Womenââ¬Ës participation proved to be the most effective instrument in bringing about a change in their way of life in terms of economic well-being and adoption of new technology. Womenââ¬Ës entry into PRIs, both as members as well as heads of Panchayats, has pushed them into the policy-making and policy-implementation process in a very big way. Whether their husbands, fathers, brothers or other relatives compelled them to take up these roles, or whether they assumed these roles as dummy incumbents, one thing is certain: they crossed the rigid boundaries drawn through their households by the same male relatives. omen are leading in ensuring that families function well and have necessities for development. Women are running the ? Caring Industry,? by managing the well being of the sick, the children and the elderly etc. Women are resolving conflict and finding solutions for issues in communities, whether it is getting clean water in a village or a streetlight fixed to prevent ch ildren and pedestrians from being knocked down by cars. Women throughout history have always been making priorities, budgets, and action plans. Women have as managers of families and communities to the management of our nations, our businesses, religious institutions and our world. This is about making the personal public and the private political. It is about tearing down the walls of dualism and discrimination. Negotiating to ensure that women are in positions at every level of public governance beginning from kindergarten through parliaments, businesses all the way to the United Nations require strong women-led politically-motivated civil societies to support their leaders and hold them accountable. Advocacy work ust show that both women and men must work together for common good. There has to be a critical mass of women in leadership so that they can be companions with each other and allow themselves to be what they want or be allowed to be themselves and not to prove themselves . The first sign of success is when the women pioneers in leadership have space and voice to be visible on their own terms and to practice their leadership in positions commensurate with their skills . Female leadership including the skills that mothers use to manage sibling fights there will be possibilities for new beginnings. We should have more women in politics. workshops are essential to train potential leaders as well as encourage the ones who are successful at the local governance level to enter the State Assemblies and National Parliament. More women should participate in political system to set an example for the entire world by efficiently working on issues that are close to their heart?. Top 10 women leaders in India: ? Pratibha Patil- Pratibha Devisingh Patil, the current President of India, is the first woman to hold the office. She was also the first woman Governor of Rajasthan (2004-2007). ? Vasundhara Raje Scindia- Vasundhara Raje, the daughter of Rajmata Vijayraje Scindia and Jivaji Rao Scindia of Gwalior, entered the politics in 1984. Besides being the first women Chief Minister of Rajasthan, she was the Minister of State for External Affairs. ? Uma Bharti- Uma Bharti held various state-level portfolios in India including Youth Affairs & Sports, Human Resource Development, Tourism and Coal & Mines. ? Sushma Swaraj- Sushma swaraj, a lawyer by profession, was elected as a member of Rajya Sabha in 1990. Later, she became the Minister of Information and Broadcasting and president of Hindu Sahitya Sammelan for Four years. ? Sonia Gandhi- Sonia Gandhi, the President of the Indian National Congress Party (NCP), was married to Rajeev Gandhi in 1969. Now a widow of former Prime Minister of India, Sonia was named the sixth most powerful woman in the world by Forbes magazine. ? Mehmooba Mufti- Mehmooba Mufti, the president of the Jammu and Kashmir people Democratic Party, is the daughter of the former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Mufti Mohmmad Sayeed. Brinda Karat- Brinda Karat was the first women member of the Communist Party of India. ? Mamta Banerjee- Mamata Banerjee is the founder and chief executive of the All India Trinamool Congress Party. Later, she was also made the Youth Affairs and Sport, Union Minister of State for Human Resources Development and Women and Child Development. ? Sheila Dixit- Sheila Dixit, belonging to the Indian National Congress, is the Chief Minister of Delhi since 1998. ? Mayawati Kumari- Mayawati Naina Kumari, the current Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, is the highest income tax payer among all politicians in India. Besides these top 10 women leaders in India, Late Indira Gandhi has also been an epitome of leadership in India. References: Women and Leadership ââ¬â Jean Lau Chin, Bernice Lott, Joy K. Rice http://www. emergingwomenleaders. org/ http://books. google. co. in/books? id=ZyhRWzTm_RwC&pg=PR4&lpg=PP1&ots=IPACfy zBWQ&dq=women+leadership#v=onepage&q&f=false http://www. emergingwomenleaders. org/2009/11/women-leadership-and-personalityinsights-form-the-myers-briggs-type-indicator/ Team Members: V. Ashwini Reddy Mala Mankotia Manjusha. P Ramya Sree Rashmi Kumari G. Swetha Reddy R. Swathi Sree Usha Kiran
Thursday, August 1, 2019
What is Behaviorism?
In the United States, there are two conflicting psychology schools of thought. The first is the introspective psychology which has also been considered as speculative psychology and the other being behaviorism psychology, which is also considered as objective psychology. Although introspective psychology has long been accepted in the field of psychology, behaviorism has not only begun to gain more ground among psychologists but it has also begun to contest and question the premise of introspective psychology and their method of analysis and research.It was only during the 19th century that development of the field of psychology began to become evident through the efforts of Wundt who is considered to be the father of experimental psychology. Wanting to find a solution on the mind-body problem, Wundt decided in 1879 to develop psychology as a science rather than a field of study associated with philosophy. He substituted the term ââ¬Å"soulâ⬠with the concept of the ââ¬Å"consc iousnessâ⬠and eventually developed the introspective approach in the study of psychology.According to this approach to the study of psychology, the consciousness of the individual is the primary subject matter of psychology which led to psychologists such as William James to define psychology as the study aimed to describe and explain the various states of an individualââ¬â¢s consciousness. In order to do this, psychologists observe the consciousness through catching it as it occurs. This school of thought had become highly accepted that it had reached the United States from Germany and became the dominant form of psychological analysis in American universities.Among the most noted introspective psychologists in the United States were E. B. Thchener of Cornell University and William James of Harvard University. In 1912, a new group of psychologist emerged. These were the behaviorists or behavioral psychologists. They began to see the shortcomings of introspective psychology . As a result, behavioral psychologists decided that the information being discovered and disseminated are no longer sufficient and they began to create their own methods for the study of psychology.The first thing done by behavioral psychologists was to change the subject matter of the field of psychology. Because the consciousness is deemed to be unobservable, they began to search for some characteristic or trait of individuals that could be observed. It was then that they began to observe the behavior of individuals which has been defined as what an individual says or does. Hence, this approach of the study of psychology as the behaviorism school of psychology. Behaviorism has also been considered as the objective approach to the study of psychology.This is because behavioral psychologists gather facts about an individualââ¬â¢s behavior and analyze the data through the use of logic and mathematics. This is why behaviorism has been defined as a natural science that is intereste d in the adjustments done by individuals through the study of changes in the physiological conditions of the individual which they termed as the stimuli and the response the individual would have as a result of the stimulus presented. Based on the studies done by behavioral psychologists, there are four kinds of responses exhibited by individuals.The first kind of response is classified as overt or external responses. These responses are those responses that the individual in consciously aware of such as the act of sitting, standing or walking. The second kind of response is termed as internal or implicit responses. These responses are more difficult to observe since they involve responses that occur within the body of the individual such as digestion in the stomach of the individual after the individual takes in food. The third type of response is the unlearned response which refers to instinctive responses to stimuli such as breathing.The last form is classified as learned respons e which includes the habits done by the individual such as observed when an individual sits, facial reactions and hand gestures while communicating. Analysis Up to the 1900s, the study of the human psyche was hindered by the teachings of religion. Even today, people remain to be apprehensive if the new information that is presented is contrary to the generally accepted belief. Back then, it was the teachings of the Church that provided answers and explanations to life and the universe.This is why despite the desire of Wundt to establish psychology as a branch of science, the influence dualism had on him while he was growing up provided him a subject matter that cannot be observed. As a result, all the observations done and the theories conceptualized based on these observations were viewed as speculative and were frequently contested by fellow psychologists. Behaviorism psychology developed as a result of a group of psychologists who realized that the only their theories would not b e susceptible to much speculation from their peers is by substantiating these theories with verifiable data and results.This could only be done if their subject matter could be observed. Seeing that they would be able to observe the behavior of individuals, these psychologists broke away from the accepted notion that the consciousness of the individual is the basis of the study of psychology and instead viewed that it is the behavior, and not the consciousness, of the individual that is the prime subject of study of psychology.Today, it is clear to see that behaviorism has superseded introspective psychology as the practiced school of psychology with the association of the field of psychology as the field of science that is associated with the study of an individualââ¬â¢s behavioral patterns and the causes for such behavioral patterns to arise. This does not mean to say that introspective psychologists failed to contribute to the current accepted school of psychology. On the cont rary, introspective psychologists paved the way for psychology to develop as it is known today.Through the introduction of the introspective school of psychology, men in the field of neurology and the other sciences were presented a field of study that would allow them to understand the human psyche and the human mind more comprehensively. Being men of science, they would eventually find loopholes to a theory or finding made by one of their peers. This would result to them further studying the human mind. It was through this process that behavioral psychologists were able to determine the shortcoming of this field of science.As a result, behaviorism through the scientific method used to validate assumptions may be able to determine just how close the speculations stipulated by the introspective psychologists were in their assumptions about the human mind and psyche. Finally, the development of behaviorism shows that psychology is continuously evolving. This is because the subject ma tter being studied is the human mind, which is considered as the most complex body part of one of the most complex, if not the most complex, organisms on this planet.
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