Gender Stratification & Women

Gender stratification and women in developing nations is a serious issue women struggle to overcome. They are not respected by their own husbands let alone others within their communities. Women are forced to work in deplorable conditions with no financial rewards. They are denied jobs, education, healthcare and resources to provide good healthy homes for their children. Even in the United States where women are independent and hold many male-dominated professions there are still situation of gender discrimination. Developing† nation is a word often used to describe underdeveloped, peripheral, or less developed countries. Women constantly struggle to hold their own in these developing nations. The responsibility to care for and support their families along with the added burden of finding the resources to accomplish it makes life hard on women in these countries. In 1960 The Modernization Theory was introduced to these countries encouraging the change from traditional, technologically simple to the modern industrialized nation. The theory was to provide these nations with the technological knowledge to develop â€Å"Western-style institutions and market-based economies. † Policymakers based their theory on statistic from Europe and the United States as a basis for establishing standard economic and political policies. The developing nations found the theory to have little association with the experiences of their countries. In response to the push for modernization theory, the development of the dependency theory came about. Clearly this push for development was to come at the expense of the host country. These countries began producing their own goods so they were not dependent on the developed nations. The view of the dependency theory was that developed nations found it beneficial for these countries to remain underdeveloped. Whereas big corporations often relied on the natural resources and cheap labor, found in these countries, to maximize their profits (Wermuth & Monges, 2002). The role that women play in developing nations, such as Africa, is very important. However, women are not given credit for their contribution to the development taking place. Unrecognized as full partners either in the family or in society, women have been denied equal access to education, job training, employment, health care, ownership and political power† (Anunobi, 2003, p. 62). The effects of economical and political problems in Africa make life difficult for men and women. The societal concerns of their community include the lack of opportunity, poverty, and inequality within their countries. The female is generally the main supporter of the family, she is responsible for the children and making sure they are fed and cared for. The increased establishment of commercialized agriculture has added to the burden of these women. The men were provided with commercial opportunities by selling their crops for money, and acting on their rights to land and the labor of their wives for their own benefit. In some areas men have many wives to work their land as free labor, and they are not obligated to share their profits with the family. â€Å"Gender bias is especially pernicious in African nations where most of women’s activity takes place in the non-wage economy† (Anunobi, 2003, p. 9). Womens’ work was basically for survival and not wage earning therefore they were not seen as being economically productive. The men used their wives and children as laborers in their family fields to produce crops taken into town and sold from money. The wife was forced to perform the domestic duties for her husband and yet she was not able to claim any share of his income. This gave further opportunity for men to expand their land ownership and financial stability. However, the burden of caring for the family was placed on the female. Unable to obtain jobs of their own many women resorted to selling sex, food, or other domestic services to other men to support their families. â€Å"In parts of the region, rural tribal authorities were given the right to prevent unmarried women and children from moving to the towns, and urban authorities had the power to send those who defied such restrictions back to the villages† (Anunobi, 2003, p. 67). This left women virtually helpless against the stronger more powerful men of their nation. Unable to own property or be a part of decision making for their families, these women themselves have become a orm of property to be controlled. It was purely a survival tactic for women to stay with their husbands because, if divorced, they had no rights to the wealth that she helped her husband to obtain thus further compounding her economic vulnerability. â€Å"Gender bias or gender discrimination is thus a fundamental cause of poverty in its various forms it prevents hundreds of millions of women from obtaining the education, training, health services, childcare, and legal status needed to escape from poverty† (Anunobi, 2003, p. 69). This bias against women is a major contributor to the high birth rates in the developing nations. Unable to control their family income or have access to productive resources, the children are forms of social status and economic security for these women. To reduce the number of children being born into poverty is to increase the womans’ productivity and give her control over resources. â€Å"In poor households, women and girls are generally allocated less food than men and boys; two thirds of the world’s illiterate adults are women. Women tend to be more malnourished, less educated and less involved in public decision making than men† (Alvarez-Castillo & Feinholz, 2006, p. 115). It is clear to see that women in poor developing countries have very little command over productive resources. Women are not able to obtain title to land in their own name and have no legal right to the land of their husbands. Even upon the death of a husband, the widow has no legal right to the marital property. It is the combination of all these disadvantages against women in developing nations that keep them from gaining independence and self control. Women were seen and not heard, as they did not complain or disagree with their husband as they were oftentimes beaten. In an effort to combat these inequalities the poor and peasant women formed self help groups to aid one another in their efforts toward equality. It is these groups that provid economic assistance, credit for farming, childcare and, assistance toward business ventures. The husbands were powerless over these groups of women, unlike the power they hold over their wives. The women’s groups made huge strides in improving the lives of women and the welfare of their families and communities. The greatest problem for these groups was the lack of challenging the gender roles that kept them subordinate to males, and because of the gender division the wealth and power remained primarily to the men. â€Å"Development should encourage more cooperation between the sexes with the goal of ending poverty, reducing fertility, and securing the environment† (Anunobi, 2003, p. 74). Improving the status of women and allowing them to be a vital part of improving the economic and industrial aspects of their nation will benefit and establish an environment in which women and men can prosper together. The front line in the struggle for women’s rights appears to lie in the poorest, most patriarchal, least democratic nations† (Walker, 2005, p. 32). The Women’s rights campaign focus mainly on the underdeveloped nations. Women are beaten in the Middle East for not adorning the traditional Islamic clothing. In Afghanistan women are abused and deprived of their legal rights with or without the Taliban. The Pakistani women endure domestic violence and â€Å"honour crimes† in which they are attacked with acid. (Walker, 2005) This is a continuous struggle to establish universal women’s rights within these poor developing countries. The sad truth is â€Å"developed countries hardly offer a good example in their treatment of women – in fact they help make things worse† (Walker, 2005, p. 32). In Japan, pornography and its display is a common site in the mainstream of their society. Men are known to frequent bars offering expensive sexual service of women. These women are typically being trafficked from the Philippine nations in hopes of alleviating the poverty of their families at home. The control of men over women’s sexuality goes beyond that of social behavior and employment. Contraception was not legal for women until the availability of the pill in 1999, and still many physicians refuse to prescribe it. The Japanese nation may be a technical pioneer and one of the biggest global aid contributors but the treatment shown to the women in this nation is far less advanced (Walker, 2005). Examining the United States and its support of human rights; the United States is labeled as the world leader in this area. Women represent two thirds of poor Americans, and the majority of households living below poverty level are headed by females. Many American women are deprived of healthcare and those who do have coverage are 68% more likely to pay more out-of-pocket expense (Walker, 2005). â€Å"According to Amnesty USA, guns in American homes increase the risk of someone in a household being murdered by 41%, but for women the risk increases by 272%† (Walker, 2005, p. 33). These statistics are not that surprising as 85% of women in the United States are victims of domestic violence (Walker, 2005). Unfortunately, these instances of abuse on women’s ights are generally seen as isolated instances in the United States, unlike the widespread abuse of women’s rights in developing countries. The unbalanced relationship seen between women themselves is somewhat disturbing. This is displayed when women hire cheap foreign nannies to care for their children or buy clothing made in sweatshops. If women play a role in the gender-bias system they are just as capable of fighting to change it. The familiar image of poor women is seen as very similar, yet approached somewhat differently. The women who live in the third world are seen as victims of poverty in a developing country. The other women live in America and are referred to as the â€Å"welfare queen† (Mehta, 2009). These images both portray women of poverty and powerlessness, yet each images paints a different picture of their lives. The United States foreign policy makers and international development institutions strive to remedy this image of Third World women by encouraging them through empowerment; so they can be an asset to their families and community. Development policies have supported women’s rights and increasing their economic and educational opportunities. Local community centers were developed to provide poor women with education and job skills to start their own business. On the other hand, a completely different message is sent about the image of the welfare queen. She is seen as being lazy and unwilling to work and a burden on her family and community. The reform laws did little to build their level of education, or potential to be leaders within their communities. Instead there were limits on the single mother’s receipt of aid, family caps on additional children born while on welfare, and taking away benefits from those mothers who are attending school. The goal was to get these women into work, and it did not matter if it was a low paying dead end job, at least they were working (Mehta, 2009). It seems in the developed nation more attention should be given to pushing for higher education and building of work skills so that these women could be a beneficial part of the growing economy. â€Å"U. S. policy evinces skepticism that U. S. women could be affected by the same kinds of oppressive economic and cultural forces that keep women in poverty in the developing world† (Mehta, 2009, p. 68). American poor women are denied the potential of becoming strong leaders within their communities, unlike the opportunities for success given to their sisters in developing countries (Mehta, 2009). The negative image of the welfare queen has stunted the U. S. Welfare Policy to create laws that punish poor women. â€Å"The United States loses out on the positive effects of women’s empowerment that are already accepted and highlighted by the United States as sound policy abroad† (Mehta, 2009, p. 69). The potential that the developing nations have by empowering their women is very beneficial to their economic growth. Women always have been the strongest contributing influence on the family unit. Future development should encourage cooperation between men and women with the ultimate goal to end poverty, reduce population growth, and secure the environment. It seems obvious that not capitalizing on the talent and skills of women to protect men’s privileges is a waste of human resources (Anunobi, 2003). Hillary Rodham Clinton said, â€Å"Supporting women is a high-yield investment, resulting in stronger economies, more vibrant civil societies, healthier communities, and greater peace and stability† (USAID, 2009).

The Cost of Complying with Sarbanes-Oxley Act Section 404 Research Paper

The Cost of Complying with Sarbanes-Oxley Act Section 404 - Research Paper Example â€Å"Sarbanes-Oxley Act†, otherwise known as â€Å"SOX†, is the America’s federal law which sets latest or improved standards for all U.S.A based management and public accounting firms. (Coffee, 2006). In 2002, SOX was introduced in retort to frequent occurrence of major accounting and corporate scandals, including scandals such as Tyco International and Enron. (Coffee, 2006). The main purpose of the â€Å"Sarbanes-Oxley Act† is to regain the confidence in the capital market by enforcing mandatory standards and rules for companies. The scandal involving Enron Corporation was one of the main drivers behind the enactment of Sarbanes-Oxley Act. CEO, Kenneth L. Lay, was responsible for hiding billions of dollars in debt from failed deals and projects. â€Å"Nearly $11 billion were lost by Investors when stock quotes of Enron, which remained at the top of $90 per stock during the middle of 2000, plunged to less than $1 at the close of November 2001.† (Benston, 2006). In December 2001, Enron filed for bankruptcy and Lay was found to be involved in one of the biggest accounting fraud crimes in U.S. history. As a result of scandals like Enron and the public bankruptcy of such well-recognized businesses, US Congress passed the â€Å"Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.† (Coffee, 2006). This bill made it mandatory for all public companies to have internal financial auditing controls and an external auditor. Sarbanes-Oxley Act amplified consequences for destructing, changing, or cooking up accounting records during investigations conducted by Federal agencies or for trying to deceive stockholders. The accountability of auditing firms has been increased by SOX so as to make them to remain unprejudiced and autonomous of their clients. (Coffee, 2006). Sarbanes-Oxley Act demands that the â€Å"Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)† to put into practice rulings on needs to adhere

Motivational Design Plan Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Motivational Design Plan - Term Paper Example This is due to the fact that while one employee will only be motivated by a mere word appreciation others will require material rewards while others still value their welfare such as good treatment and day off at work for their motivation. This motivational design plan therefore refers to an act whereby resources are arranged as well as procedures laid in an organization in order to bring about changes in how the company stakeholders are motivated. This form of design plan is applied to the motivation of the employees to work, to develop specific motivational characteristics in individuals as well as to improve people’s skills when it comes to motivation. When making such design plans some form of creativity and understanding of the people, who work for you is required. This is because not all employees will find the same form of reward worthwhile for him or her given the uniqueness of each individual. Another consideration, which is even termed a challenge, is the mode of com ing up with a flexible and cost effective way of ensuring that all the employees are engaged in their work. There are many ways of motivating employees but according to by plan, I am going to talk about informal rewards, specific achievement and activities, formal rewards (Keller). Just as their names suggest, informal rewards reflects on the sincere and honest appreciation of individual employees efforts through a mere thank you or by writing them an appreciation letter. This mode of motivation does not have any significant costs to the organization while it influences so much in terms of its impact on the employee and organizational output as a result. The employer can as well give random time offs like early dismissal, full day off or late arrival at work and an employee will feel much motivated to work. Occasionally, the HR departments can organize events like sports, dinners or any form of social gathering and this enhances bonding. Employees also may feel part of the organizat ion if occasionally they are involved in decision-makings process to bring new ideas into the organization. Such informal rewards or motivational techniques bust the employee confidence while enhancing their management and how they relate. Therefore, such rewards ought to be consistent and immediate. As an HR, one must take note of the needs of specific individuals in the organization. Those whose needs are growth in the firm must be recognized for promotions and incentives as they show their prowess. Such specific achievement and activity rewards are formulated and publicly awarded to the achievers as all the other company employees watch. Such efforts can be recognized in the weekly newsletters or simply pinning a notice on a notice board for the rest of the company to see. Employee ideas that save the company money have to be recognized through rewards such as trophies, this may to an extent entail an award like an employee of the month trophy with the employees name engraved on them. Bonuses may also be given to employees recognized by customers are exemplary. The basic idea with such a phase of the plan is to reward the specific achievements of employees who does extra for the organization. This will make them even do more and as well influence the whole work force to start competing, which would be healthy for the organizations success in terms of productivity, revenue and competitiveness as well as customer service (Keller). Formal

Developing autonomous practise in mental health nursing Essay

Developing autonomous practise in mental health nursing - Essay Example In addition, I will explore the therapeutic efficacy of the current clinical environment or the services provided to service user and also discuss the appropriate alternative service options available to the service user by analysing the pros and cons of the alternatives to the user. George, 41 year old Irish man, had been diagnosed with schizophrenia and past depression. His first contact with mental health services was when his mother expressed concerns about him having the potential to harm someone. He was born by vacuum extraction and unlike other normal children he had experienced retarded mental health development accompanied with slow speech. At 6 years of age, he was admitted to a special needs school in London for two years. Joining at mainstream school, he was bullied and had difficulties in forming friendships with other children. At age 15, he was expelled from the school for fighting with other children in the school and since then he never turned back to school. At the age of 25, he started working with his father but again he was unable to build cordial relationships due to his aggressive behaviour. He began to consume drugs and alcohol that further acted as a source of conflict between the father and the son that often culminated in a physical al tercation. As a result of this event, he had to leave his family house. During the assessment, George describes that he hears a voice inside his head that others do not telling him to harm other people. It was reported that similar voice provoked him to harm local councillor and a person who worked in his borough housing department. On his observation by psychiatric doctor, it was reported that George’s presentation was unusual and believed he did experience regular psychotic symptoms. It was reported that he was suffering from schizophrenia disorder with the risk of violent and

Introduction to Organisations and Management Essay - 3

Introduction to Organisations and Management - Essay Example To what extent and in what specificity the businesses differ would be analysed in a critical and comparative way in the next parts of this report. Understanding the structural and design differences of the organizations. The importance of an organization’s structure is not only in defining the firm’s formal reporting relationships, procedures, authority, control and decision making process but it also works effectively as a tool of implementing strategy. The organizational structure plays an important part in defining how the work is done and by whom it is done, how managers work and also define the accountability of individuals within the organization (Hitt et. al, 2009). Various organizations can implement different forms of organizational structure in accordance to their strategic goals and objectives. The major types of structure that are widely used across most organizations can be put into 4 categories: The Functional Structure, The Divisional Structure, The Matri x Structure and the Horizontally linked structure. The functional structure groups people of similar set of skills together under a department managed by an individual having knowledge of such skills. The Divisional Structure is rather concerned with putting together a group with similar abilities required for various works or departments across the organization. The Matrix structure brings together a group of people from an already existing department to work in another function where their set of skills may be useful, besides working in their pre designated department. Under the Horizontally linked structure the organizations group its workers depending upon the activity and processes it puts in place to offer its services (Wheelen & Hunger, 2010). Putting together the understanding of the above theories of organizational structure and looking at the two organizations of the case study, a distinct difference can be seen of how both organizations are set up and working. Watson Engi ne Components looks to be working on a stricter approach of the Functional Structure whereas H&M Consulting is inclined more towards a Matrix Structure. However one can also argue that while catering to different projects with different set of skills through a networked structure it implements more than a single organizational structure to enhance its performance. This thought is also put forward by C.W. Fontaine who says that often organizations with tens of thousands of people, implement different organizational structures to benefit different parts of the organization. (Fontaine, 2007) The criticality of such structural differences It is not only important to understand what differences lie between two organizations, but is also important to fully evaluate why such difference exist and what are the resulting effects on both. In the case of Watson Engine Components, the impact of being formed as a family business has probably played a decisive role in setting the organization stru cture and working policies. More so the business operates within a single type of production and engages a substantial level of blue-collar workers who are highly unionised. These issues probably have not escalated in a single day but working over a period of time under a certain structure has definitely made the organization heavily hierarchical. This coupled with lack of communication between employers and

Foreign market entry and its implication (Starbucks case study) Essay

Foreign market entry and its implication (Starbucks case study) - Essay Example In particular, the paper looks at Joint Ventures as an example of the company’s market entry into Spain, and its marketing implications. Generally, the company applies market entry modes and marketing mix to build its brand appeal as well as create a unique product appeal and customer loyalty. These choices have long-term implications in the success of the company. Introduction/Company Background Starbucks Corporation is an international company that deals with coffee products, with its headquarters based in Seattle Washington, America. During its commencement in 1971, the company was a retailer and a local coffee roaster; but it has since stretched out swiftly. It has Italian-style coffeehouse chain and it is the world’s largest coffeehouse company, with presence in more than 60 countries and more than 20,000 stores (Starbucks Corporation 2011). It deals with coffee beans, salads, hot and cold drinks, hot and cold sandwiches, snacks, mugs and tumblers, and sweet pastri es. In addition, Starbucks distributes some of its brand through grocery stores, including coffee and ice cream. Its other products include markets films, music, and books through the Hear Music and the Starbucks Entertainment division. Scores of the company’s products are either location specific or seasonal. Starbuck’s most remarkable expansion, when it used to open new stores days on end, was in the 1990s till 2000s. The company started establishing oversees stores in 1990s; and currently, roughly third of its stores are oversees (Starbucks 2012). Market entry According to Albaum and Duerr (2011), market strategy comprises of an entry mode and a marketing plan. Numerous entry strategies that an organization can adopt when venturing into new markets and regions are available. Each strategy comes with differing degrees of advantages, disadvantages, risks and legal obligations (Gilligan & Hird 1986). According to Albaum and Duerr (2011), the entry strategy to be adopte d should take into consideration company objectives and expectations in terms of volume of business to be gained. The strategy should also take into consideration resources required to effectively implement the strategy and patterns of involvement in other regions. On the other hand, political infrastructure, degree of competitive rivalry within the target market, as well as nature of product to be introduced into the target market should be factored (Yavas, Verhage & Green 1992). Starbucks uses different approaches to market entry, especially in its internalization process. Its entry approach is aimed at satisfying the needs and requirements of every market, seeking to fulfill its traditions and cultures. Presently, the company uses three differently entry methods, including licenses, joint ventures and wholly-owned subsidiaries (Webster 2005). Starbucks entered Spain by signing joint venture agreements with VIPS and El Moli Vell and in 2001. This strategy allow for quicker penetra tion, risk diversifications and faster entry into new markets. It also helps the business to avoid barriers of entry. Like any other strategy, this strategy has its shortcomings; which include loss of management control and lack of the ability to recover capital invested among other (Yavas, Verhage & Green 1992). Group VIPS is a leading European retail and food service operator, while El Moli Vell is a retail operator of pastry shops and cafes in Barcelona area. In

The history of art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The history of art - Essay Example Ancient Roman architecture consists of elements like paintings, mosaics and statues made up of concrete and cement. One chief feature of ancient Roman architecture was the construction of vault in the ceiling or roof. The vaults can be semicircular in shape (barrel vault) or elliptical (groin vault). The two most common perspectives used by the Roman artists in their works were the linear perspective and the atmospheric perspective. Another technique that was mastered by the Romans was chiaroscuro or the strong contrasts between light and dark. A very good execution of the same can be seen in the painting ‘Still Life with Peaches’. The use of a garden scape is yet another feature of Roman wall paintings. The Tomb of the Reliefs and The Tomb of the Leopards are two of the most well-known tombs of Tarquinia. Sarcophagus from Cerveteri is an Etruscan sculpture depicting a married couple together in the afterlife. The four styles of Roman painting are Masonry Style, Illusion istic Style, Ornate Style and Realistic Style. In sculpture, the equestrian statue, or the statue of a rider mounted on a horse, was very popular. An example is the Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius. The Capitoline Wolf is a bronze figure of a female wolf feeding her two infants, inspired by the myth of the founding of Rome. Such female personification is another dominant trait of erstwhile Roman sculpture. Most of the famous historic buildings and archaeological sites in Italy can be found in Colosseum and Pantheon.