Imperfect Competition Essay

In a perfectly competitive market—a market in which there is many buyers and sellers, none of whom represents a large part of the market—firms are price takers. That is, they are sellers of products who believe they can sell as much as they like at the current price but cannot influence the price they receive for their product. For example, a wheat farmer can sell as much wheat as she likes without worrying that if she tries to sell more wheat, she will depress the market price. The reason she need not worry about the effect of her sales on prices is that any individual wheat grower represents only a tiny fraction of the world market. When only a few firms produce a good, however, the situation is different. To take perhaps the most dramatic example, the aircraft manufacturing giant Boeing shares the market for large jet aircraft with only one major rival, the European firm Airbus. As a result, Boeing knows that if it produces more aircraft, it will have a significant effect on the total supply of planes in the world and will therefore significantly drive down the price of airplanes. Or to put it another way, Boeing knows that if it wants to sell more airplanes, it can do so only by significantly reducing its price. In imperfect competition, then, firms are aware that they can influence the prices of their products and that they can sell more only by reducing their price. This situation occurs in one of two ways: when there are only a few major producers of a particular good, or when each firm produces a good that is differentiated from that of rival firms. Monopoly profits rarely go uncontested. A firm making high profits normally attracts competitors. Thus situations of pure monopoly are rare in practice. Instead, the usual market structure in industries characterized by internal economies of scale is one of oligopoly, in which several firms are each large enough to affect prices, but none has an uncontested monopoly. The general analysis of oligopoly is a complex and controversial subject because in oligopolies, the pricing policies of firms are interdependent. Each firm in an oligopoly will, in setting its price, consider not only the responses of consumers but also the expected responses of competitors. In monopolistic competition models, two key assumptions are made to get around the problem of interdependence. First, each firm is assumed to be able to differentiate its product from that of its rivals. That is, because a firm’s customers want to buy that particular firm’s product, they will not rush to buy other firms’ products because of a slight price difference. Product differentiation thus ensures that each firm has a monopoly in its particular product within an industry and is therefore somewhat insulated from competition. Second, each firm is assumed to take the prices charged by its rivals as given—that is, it ignores the impact of its own price on the prices of other firms. As a result, the monopolistic competition model assumes that even though each firm is in reality facing competition from other firms, each firm behaves as if it were a monopolist—hence the model’s name. Reference: http://classof1.com/homework-help/international-economics-homework-help

Maya Angelou Essay

As a woman you are created with a special gift, it’s like little extra ingredients that all women have within them. The poem â€Å"Phenomenal Woman† by Maya Angelou, she speaks about the elegance of a woman, her inner being the way she glow without saying a word Maya expressed how men are amazed by her presence â€Å"men themselves have wondered what they see in me† (line 31-32). It’s hard to put your finger on it all women were born with the power. In the poem â€Å"Still I rise† by Maya Angelou she described the struggles of life trials and tribulations you face in society and the way people may judge you. As if she was writing about a woman â€Å"does my sassiness upset you? †She also wrote in another stanza â€Å"does my sexiness upset you? †She used this comparison to show she is a sexy woman who demands respect. Maya’s attitude in this poem is portraying a confident black African American woman. She is really laughing at men challenging them. They cannot stop her from rising above all expectation. This poem gives you not only inspiration encouragement to be fearless; to the end of it all you must believe you still rise above it all. The title gives a sense of entity and power. This masterpiece the poem â€Å"phenomenal woman† has also empowered women to get more in touch with their inner beauty. Maya describes in great detail the mystery of women and the behavior of men and their reaction. It shows women to not only love your-self but to embrace every aspect of your mind, body and soul. Maya show that sexuality isn’t only related to outer beauty, or by the way you dress it more about how you feel within your own skin  she shows you instead of hating your body love it from the crown of your head to the sole of your feet. In society today women enhances their body by doing plastic surgery to feel accepted. She feels inferior clearly stating that every part of a woman is beauty. In comparisons to â€Å"Phenomenal Woman† and â€Å"Still I Rise† both poems Maya speaks about not bowing to the â€Å"oppressor†. You can feel her compassion in every word in Phenomenal Woman â€Å"now you understand why my head’s not bowed† (lines 47). Still I Rise forth stanza â€Å"with head bowed and eyes lowered?†, Within these lines she stresses that she will not conform to what society made her out to be, that she will soar above and beyond everyone expectations. The little gives a sense of entity and power. In conclusion these two poems have few similarities; Maya characterized the strength of an African American woman. By using powerful words she described the emotional aspect of inner beauty, standing proud professing no one will ever bring her down not by the color of her skin nor the fact of being a woman that there’s more within.

Owning a Pet

You go to the mall, and there in center court is a bunch of cute, soft, wiggly puppies and kittens; some of them are in cages and some are being walked around by handlers. There is a crowd of adults and children surrounding them. You just have to hold one of them for just a minute, and then you are hooked. Everyone knows that pets are loveable, soft and cuddly; what we forget about is the responsibility that comes with pet ownership. Outside of the time commitment to caring for a pet, there is also the financial aspect.When you own a pet, they have to be fed, groomed, exercised and loved; most of the time, with puppies, there is the training aspect of getting them to let you know when they need to go outside to eliminate waste and not to chew on furniture or other house fixtures. Try to avoid the use of second person â€Å"you† in your writing. Pets also add to the normal housekeeping routine due to pet hair and shedding which may require additional vacuuming. And, with cat ow nership, there is the need to keep the litter box clean.All of this takes time from an already busy schedule. Add to that the expense of owning a pet: food, grooming, veterinarian and training expenses, to name a few. Consequently, what seemed like a good idea can have a drastic impact on your life. Most of us work; what do you do with the pet during the day when you are away from home? Or, what if you plan a trip and are unable to take the pet with you? Do you have a family member willing to take on the responsibility of caring for your pet while you are gone?Or, do you pay to have the pet boarded while you are gone? Cats are fairly self-sufficient and can be left alone for long periods of time; dogs, not so much. If you own a dog and are away at work, what do you do about the dog using when it needs to go outside? These are all important considerations prior to walking out the door with that cute, fluffy pet. We all know that pets are loving and loyal companions. Above all, one sh ould consider the consequences of pet ownership, in terms of time and expenses.

Interpersonal Communication Skills Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Interpersonal Communication Skills - Essay Example Culture is the factor that gives human beings their identity. Human beings are considered unique among the animal kingdom on the planet due to their culture and hence, culture is the basic concept in sociology (Kornblum 2012, p.46). The existence of social organizations like family, group, corporations etc., depends on the culture they adhere to (Kornblum 2012, p.46). All the aspects of social organizations like thinking and communicating with each other depend on the culture and hence, society cannot exist without culture (Kornblum 2012, p.46). Culture is defined as â€Å"all the modes of thought, behavior and production that are handed down from one generation to next by means of communicative interactions-language, gestures, writing, building and all other communications among humans-rather by genetic transmission, or hereditary† (Kornblum 2012, p.46). This definition shows that everything that is made by man becomes a part of his culture (Kornblum 2012, p.46). As culture i s ingrained in a person right from his birth, it gets deeply rooted in the heart and mind of a person. It is this aspect of culture that poses challenge for human beings when it comes to communicating with people from other culture. Interestingly, understanding other culture is not as easy as it seems, as even though culture is a social aspect of human being, it is also an inseparable personal part of identity. Culture is a complex set of beliefs and behaviors and hence is not a simple thing to understand (Kornblum 2012, p.46).

Is the Judicial Branch Still the Weakest Branch of Government Essay

Is the Judicial Branch Still the Weakest Branch of Government - Essay Example Every day, Linda Brown together with her sister had to pass through a risky railroad switchyard to reach the bus stop for the drive to their all black elementary school. The elementary school near the Brown’s house was only for the white students. This prompted Linda Brown together with her family to present this issue to court since it breached the 14th Amendment. The judgment passed by the federal district court was that discrimination in public education was detrimental to black students but since both all- white schools and all black schools had similar transportation, buildings, teachers, as well as, curricula, the court declared the segregation lawful (Olivo 123). Being dissatisfied with the court verdict, the Browns took their case to the Supreme Court asserting that although the facilities were the same, discriminated schools could never be alike to one another. Eventually, the Supreme Court passed their judgment that state laws demanding segregated but equal schools b reached the EPC (Equal protection clause) of the Fourteenth Amendment. This case was relevant since it set the basis for the civil rights movements and provided African Americans with the hope of the removal of segregated but equal on every front policy. In fact, it reversed decades of the segregationist practices in America. Therefore, it is a transformational event, which brought the birth of social and political revolution, and opened the entrances of all public schools to every individual within the US. Additionally, it enabled individuals of different colors have equal chances to a public and free education irrespective of their races and residential places. The judicial unit of the US lacks power to judge, and this choice to carry decisions and make the judgment lies on the executive. As noted by the court’s decision in Brown v. Board of Education, the executive delegates the privilege and holds the communitys sword (Court

Leadership theories in a changing context Essay - 1

Leadership theories in a changing context - Essay Example Dorfman’s statement, ‘If we think of leadership research as flowing as a stream, it flows in a meandering, intertwining and constantly shifting manner’, creates the perfect example of how leadership works and in particular the hybrid nature of leadership styles which borrow from each other. I am a finance manager for a veterinary university in which I have to supervise and delegate to three or four staff. I also work with other veterinarians and hospital staff at another three animal hospital sites. Dealing with this large and diverse of a workforce in the healthcare system, it was imperative that I already have developed and used my existing leadership skills. â€Å"Leadership cannot exist without followership† (Conger 1990). This helps highlight the relationship that is shared between both leader and follower. We work together as a collective and without the followers; there is no need to lead. It is also important to distinguish between the two different types of leaders: the maximum man and the minimum man. The maximum man is the charismatic leader who inspires change and the minimum man is a manager interested in maintaining the status quo (Conger & Kanungo 1998). There are two leadership styles in particular that I utilize on a daily basis: transformationa l leadership and transactional leadership. Transformational leadership is a leadership style in which the leader works on transforming the individual by helping develop them. According to Sendjaya and Sarros (2002), transformational leadership can be described that, â€Å"it raises the level of human conduct and ethical aspiration of both leader and led†. This means that transformational leadership transcends to effect both the leader and the follower. It transcends the work environment to influence moral and personality development. In particular this comes into play when I teach a new topic or skill to those following me. It requires both patience as well as effective communication skills.

Strategic public relation - Philadelphia Spread Cheese Research Paper

Strategic public relation - Philadelphia Spread Cheese - Research Paper Example e something that makes them noticeable from the crowd, something that makes them more attractive and fascinating to both the media and members of the public (Heath 103). A positive image can help augment a companys sales and unconstructive publicity can harm a companys reputation and decrease sales. Many people perceive PR as a way to turn news and information, thus portraying the news or information in the best possible way for the company (Doyle 2). For instance, if a company announces retrenchments, its PR department will allege that the company is cutting down on its costs and making itself more proficient to serve its customers better and offer lower prices (Walter 42). As long as it is true, then the PR section will be doing a great job of guarding its reputation and image. Stretching the true reality to create a positive image, on the other hand, can end up being damaging to the company if hyperboles or even half-truths are exposed (Jacque 4). The globalization of the food and beverage industry has transformed the process of producing and distributing food products in a way that clearly separates food production from food consumption (Agee 19). As a result of this circumstance, the links between productions and consumption are diverse and consist of elements of technology and heterogeneous socioeconomic producers, suppliers, and consumers (Lindenmann 3). In the current, very dynamic and multifaceted business environment, the importance of a product and its reinforcement is one of the key areas in the spotlight. The large, modern Middle East markets such as Saudi Arabia also show that significant further long-term growth is potentially high. This report sets out the market position of Philadelphia (philly – world-renowned cream cheese) cheese spread in UAE and Saudi Arabia. Philadelphia is a billion-dollar brand by Kraft. Philadelphia cheese spread is trying to break into the Middle East market. This report provides a background in which to view public

Rhetorical analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 3

Rhetorical analysis - Essay Example The audience, who happen to be the citizens of United States and Ohioans to be precise, and the topic, came in time when the United States was in a verge of collapsing economically and addressing economic issues and combining them with the political good will was objective. The use of pathos, logos and ethos by the Ohio governor, Mr. John Kasich, combined with imagery and rhetoric questions was not only objective but convincing in delivery of his speech on opportunities and the appropriate approach to end the Ohioans’ misery of poverty and joblessness. The use of imagery to describe the wellbeing of Ohioans in the wake of a new political era drove the point home of what Ohioans wanted for a long time. For instance the use of â€Å"digging into a bowl of chicken soup at a Bob Evan’s restaurant† signifies the economic wellbeing of the consumer, who in this case is the Ohioan, which is a revelation of good leadership focusing on the common citizen. This is because n ot all of Ohio residents would afford chicken and/or an expensive meal in one of the remarkable restaurants and creating job opportunities would somehow guarantee such a meal even if it means thrice a week. The use of figurative language in the description of importance of helping the poor, Mr. John Kasich drives his point home and the authoritative aspect of his speech is broadly brought out. For instance, when he stresses out the need for uplifting the needy by asking, â€Å"when you die and go to heaven, St. Peter is not probably going to ask you much about what you did to keep the government small, but what you did for the poor†, he broadly brings out the political will he has for the people of Ohio and the outcome of his actions which will be graded by satisfaction of the people. As an experienced politician and longtime serving public servant, Mr. Kasich uses ethos to lure Ohio residents into re-electing him again in the polls. For instance, his experience on matters of finance and taxation enabled him sign the biggest tax cut in the country after converting a $7.7 billion budget deficit into a $2.5 billion surplus. The authoritative aspect is brought out by his connective aspect of politics and religion in a bid to drive his mission of â€Å"More Aid for Poor† forward and still maintaining the cliche of the people and political future. For instance, by arguing that he was raised as a catholic but drifted in faith at adulthood converting to evangelical protestant for the last 25 years and claiming that â€Å"to a larger mission one of his Christian faith has called him to shoulder; helping the poor, the beleaguered and the downtrodden, and trying to heal them and lift them up, shows the connective aspect of politics and religion in a bid to solve the long-term historical miseries. The timing of the speech rhymed well with the economic hardship moment in the United States economy in that during the time there were struggles by the national government to increase national tax to finance its spending. The use of a practical approach, guided by his exemplary experience in the management field, gave him a hand of driving his agenda home and convincing the residents. His agenda

Accounting for Leases Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Accounting for Leases - Assignment Example This assignment focuses on the alternative treatments which the lessee might adopt. Two, it looks into the current accounting treatment of leases. Finally, it will look into the impact of the proposed lease standards on the users of financial statements. a) Three alternative accounting treatments which might be adopted when lessees account for lease transactions. The lessee capitalizes an asset or a liability in the balance sheet using amounts equal to the present value of the rental payments. Generally, there is four criteria’s used in capitalization of lease payments (Nikolai, Bazley and Jones 1120). They include: Transfer of ownership of lease property to the lessee The lease has a bargain and purchase option The term of lease is the major part of the assets economic life The present value of the minimum lease payments to the fair value of the leased asset. In practice, three of the four criteria are difficult to apply due to the controversies involved (Nikolai et al 1117). Criteria number one on transfer of ownership is practical and easy to apply. Our major focus on this discussion is limited to only three criteria’s. a) The bargain and purchase option This criterion gives the lessee an option to either buy the property at a price lower than the expected fair value of the property at the option date deemed exercisable (Nikolai, Bazley and Jones 1117). ... b) Economic life test criteria When an assets economic life is a major part of the lease term, all risks and rewards are transferred to the lessee from the lesser. Capitalization in this case is therefore necessary. It is difficult to determine the economic life of the asset. In practice, the International accounting and standards board (IASB) requires a 75 percent threshold on the economic life when evaluating the economic life test (Nikolai, Bazley and Jones 1117). For example, assume company X leases Lenovo PCs for a period of two years at monthly payments of $100 per computer. It can also lease these computers for $10 per month on each computer for extra two years. The lease offers a bargain renewal option. It is difficult to determine the estimated economic life especially if the item leased is specialized. c) Recovery of investments test Capitalization is essential if the present value on the minimum lease payments equals or exceeds substantially all the fair value of the asset . At this point, a company can purchase the asset since the minimum payments are close to the fair value. The US GAAP uses 90 percent threshold on fair value in assessing the recovery of investment test (Nikolai, Bazley and Jones 1117). Lessees and lesser also consider all other factors in evaluating the lease classification criteria rather than focusing on a single element. b) Current IAS 17 Leases in the financial statements of lessee In the current International accounting standard, (IAS 17), lessees are required to provide extensive financial statement disclosures on leases than even before (Epstein, Nach and Bragg 866). This is because the accounting treatment for real estate and equipment leasing transactions has changed. In the current lessee standards, all operating

Shape Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Shape Strategy - Essay Example This kind of technology helps to improve effectiveness, efficiency, productivity, cost, elasticity and service quality of the business entity. IT enabled facilities of the organization help to build up the competitive advantage of the company by providing consumers with superior services. The successful deployment and adoption of IT will enable the company to accomplish success more easily. Five specific areas where IT represents a risk to a company’s competitive advantage: The five risks that the company has to consider during the course of its business are: â€Å"the bargaining power of buyers, the bargaining power of suppliers, the threat of substitute products or services, and threats from new entrants† (Mishra, 2012, par. 1). Threat of Entry: The entry of new firms to an industry bring new ability and a need to gain market share that puts stress on costs, prices and the price of investment essential to compete in the market. Microeconomics justifies that profitable industries attract new competition until the downward pressure on costs has forced our all financial profit from the industries. The most obvious sign of a company deteriorating is its failure to address to IT communications, which is the foundation for the break of the efficiency of IT generally. This vulnerability most frequently manifests itself in insufficient environment management tools, unreliable? old hardware etc. The power of suppliers: Powerful suppliers play a significant part in controlling the price of their products and services by charging high cost for limited services, high costs in general, or changing costs according to different customers. Suppliers are powerful if they are capable of charging differentiated price. Leading IT risk units have performed extensive research and have reached the conclusion that organizations which proactively deal with IT risks reap the most profits and benefits. The power of buyers: IT risk most frequently occurs during the breakdo wn of the enterprise business management to help with oversight of IT in some rational governance structure. The threat of substitutes: A substitute product functions similarly to that of the organization’s products but only by a different means. Positive IT risk management creates three competitive advantages for an organization. First, there is fewer firefighting. This permits the enterprise to concentrate on more strategic and productive work. Second, the base is better prepared thus freeing personnel, resources and dollars to focus more on efforts that can increase the price of the product. Third, the project is located in a stronger location than others to charge risk and? therefore? potentially employ chances that others would think too risky. Rivalry among existing competitors: Risk both downside and upside may happen from globalization, emerging technology, data growth, vendor chain complexities, economic ebbs and flows, client expectations as well as compliance suppl ies. Five specific areas in which IT may support or promote a company’s competitive advantage. Threat of new entrants: The increased usage of Information technology globally has many sides to it? one of which makes the threat of new entrants high. Mainly the entry of new firms has been made possible from the transition of wired technology to wireless? and such related facilities. The power of suppliers: Strategic systems have been used to give new facilities to

Christian Theology in A Good Man is Hard to Find Essay Example for Free

Christian Theology in A Good Man is Hard to Find Essay â€Å"A Good Man is Hard to Find† by Flannery O’Conner reflects the Christian belief that even the most unlikely of people can be recipients of God’s grace. The grandmother and the Misfit, both â€Å"bad† in their own ways, are each unlikely and undeserving recipients of grace. According to Christian theology, humans are granted salvation through God’s grace, which can be bestowed upon to even the most unlikely. The grandmother’s and the Misfit’s moral codes they live by that affect their actions, decisions and perceptions. The term â€Å"moral† doesn’t necessarily mean good, but is simply the way people choose to live their lives. At first it seems as if it is the Misfit who lacks guidance as he continuously murders people. It is the grandmother whose moral code is weak and inconsistent. She has built her morals solely on what she believes make people â€Å"good.† She pays a great amount of attention in being a lady, repeatedly deceives her family, and lacks a clear standpoint on the world around her. She boasts about her love for Christianity, but does not seem to be able to pray when she finds herself in crisis. She even begins to question the power and divinity of Jesus. It is clear the grandmother is not sincere and aware of her actions. The Misfit has a strong and consistent moral code. The Misfit believes that the punishments he received from his experience of being a convicted criminal were always disproportional to his crime, and the crime doesn’t even matter at the end. He also shows a genuine curiosity about religion. The grandmother accepts faith unquestioningly while the Misfit challenges these beliefs and thinks deeply on how he should follow them or not. The Misfit has chosen to live under his assumption that religion is pointless and goes with his own belief â€Å"No pleasure but meanness.† (OConner 941). The Misfit only wishes he was present to see Jesus rise from the dead so he could know the events were factual. It is obvious the grandmother in â€Å"A Good Man is Hard to Find† lies to her grandchildren, manipulates her son, and makes several remarks as to why the  past times have superiority to the present. She believes she is morally superior to those younger than her. She also believes she has the right to judge the goodness of others and tell them how to live their lives. The grandmother seems quite oblivious to reality as she heads the family to somewhere completely different than where she thought they were. The tragic wreck was all due to the grandmother’s ignorance. Towards the final moments of her life, she instructs the Misfit to pray, despite the fact she lacks the sincere qualities herself necessary to form a prayer. As she grows afraid of what will happen to her, she agrees with the Misfit and changes her mind about Jesus rising from the dead. Her doing so reflects she is confused and unsure of her beliefs making her a very unlikely recipient of grace. The Misfit is an unrepentant murderer who finds no pleasure in anything but meanness. He shows no remorse for his actions. The Misfit was aware of Jesus being crucified, but felt that he would have had to see it to believe it for sure. Both characters show habitual sins and ultimately are each undeserving recipients of grace. Even people like the grandmother and the Misfit have potential to be saved by God, according to Christian Theology. The grandmother experiences a moment of grace after the Misfit’s wish to know for sure what Jesus did and didn’t do. Her head clears momentarily and she says â€Å"Why you’re one of my babies. You’re one of my own children!† (O’Conner 948). This suggests that the grandmother is realizing that they both are of the same kind. Given the circumstances, her comment seems pretty insane, but this is the g randmother’s clearest moment in the story. She shows compassion which implies that God has granted her grace just before she is shot by the Misfit. The Misfit too, is open to grace at this moment. He claims earlier in the story there was â€Å"no pleasure but meanness† in life, and now denies there is any pleasure in life at all after killing the grandmother. All his killings have quit giving him happiness, suggesting that he, too, may foster the possibility to change. â€Å"A Good Man is Hard to Find† has a strong, somewhat harsh portrayal of religion. The characters in this story are both awakened and their faith is altered. The Christian idea of moments of grace in this story apply to real life. It is believed among many Christian followers that God’s grace is very powerful, unlike any other human could give to another. Most people misunderstand this and think that blessings are granted upon those who do good works and  punishments through bad works. The use of grace has nothing to do with any kinds of works, which is where most people are mistaken. Rather, the principle to the Christian theology of grace is recognized in the bible by Solomon. He said it is vain to judge God on matters of good or bad works. God can surely do as he pleases and His ways are opposite of man’s ways. Solomon says: â€Å"There is vanity that is done under the earth; that there be just men, unto whom it happens according to the work of the wicked; again, there be wicked men, to whom it happens according to the work of the righteous: I said that this is also vanity.† (Ecclesiastes 5:14) This quote suggests that despite the actions one may do, it is up to the grace of God that determines what that person deserves or does not deserve. The use of grace is all part of God’s plan for humans. No matter how many men judge a person, it is only God’s judgment that determines who receives grace. The grandmother and Misfit have been awarded the positive aspects of grace, which is not dependent on works of any kind. According to Christian theology, humans are commanded to be righteous and not evil. It says in the bible that God loves his creations so intensely he gave his only son to die for all human sins, which was a big question mark for the Misfit. If only he had known for sure maybe he would have never committed the immoral crimes he did. If the Misfit would have only known that according to Christian theology, all humans are destined by God’s divine grace no matter what deeds that have been done on earth, he would have made wiser decisions. If only th e grandmother had been shot every day all of her life, according to the Misfit, would she have been a better lady. When thinking of Christian theology, one would agree it just pertains to religion and God. Theology is the study of religion, and God’s relation to the world. Theology is based upon the Old and New Testament in the Bible, as well as historic traditions practiced by Christians. It has been practiced for thousands of years. People have always tried to make justifications to argue, examine, clarify, defend or promote Christianity. The Misfit seems to know most aspects when it comes to the Christian religion, as he talks about all of Christ’s works in the story. The way he viewed Christian beliefs was all an outcome on how he lived his life. â€Å"Our concepts about the divine  inform our lives more deeply than most people can trace. Whether God is viewed as distant or near, as gracious or capricious, as concerned or apathetic, the conclusions we reach—whether the result of careful reflection or negligent assumptions—guide our lives.† (Kapic 1) The wa y people live their lives depends on an individuals’ belief about theology and the way God relates to the world. It is the beliefs people choose to accept that ultimately guides everyday lives. Whether people choose to accept or deny that there is a God, it is all based on individual experiences and beliefs. The grandmother seemed to have thought she knew all about Christianity, but judging by her actions, it is clear she did not genuinely live righteously. There is no factual evidence that Jesus is real, but many have come to receive grace in their final moments, as shown in â€Å"A Good Man.† Believers of Christian faith are thought out to be hypocritical and this stereotype fits the grandmother’s character in â€Å"A Good Man Is Hard to Find.† Just like the grandmother and Misfit in the story, it is grace that enabled them to come to Christ sincerely. The final lines in the story depict both the grandmother’s and Misfit’s realizations as if they have received answers to all questions about life. â€Å"A Good Man is Hard to Find† reflects the Christian theology of grace. The grace of God is a gift, and if willing to accept it, even when undeserving, humans can be granted salvation like the grandmother was. The grace of God has been shown not to bestow upon the mere form of actions, but onto ones who are open to Christ, according to â€Å"A Good Man Is Hard To Find.† Works Cited New King James Version. Thomas Nelson, Inc., 1982. Print. Kapic, Kelly M. A Little Book for New Theologians. InterVarsity Press, 2012. Print. O’Conner, Flannery. â€Å"A Good Man Is Hard to Find.† The Writer’s Presence. Bedford/St. Martins; Fourth Edition, 2003. 931-943. Print.

Financial Markets in Pakistan Essay Example for Free

Financial Markets in Pakistan Essay A financial market is a place for buying and selling of financial securities such as stocks and bonds. It facilitates: * The raising of capital (in the capital markets) * The transfer of risk (in the derivatives markets * In matching those who want capital to those who have it. Financial Market in Pakistan consists of (i) Money Market which provides short term funds and (ii) Capital Market which makes long terms funds available to businesses and industries. The Financial market can be reclassified into (i) Primary Market in which new shares or bonds are issued and (ii) Secondary Market in which securities previously issued are traded such as Shares, Bonds, Commercial Papers, Options and Mutual Fund. Of this, the banking sectors and non-banking sectors are regulated by the central bank, State Bank of Pakistan. While rest of the market (lease, stock exchanges, modarba, mutual funds and insurance) is regulaled by Secruities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan. FINANCIAL MARKETS AND THEIR ROLES: COMMERCIAL BANKS A type of bank providing checking and saving accounts, credit cards and business loans. Such a bank induces general public to deposit their savings in the banks and offers a wide range of services such as: * Deposit Mobilization * Money transfer * Financing Working Capital * Financing other trade related mode (import and export) * Investing in government securities * Call money operations These banks are of three categories (i) Public Sector Banks, (ii) Private Bank and (iii) Foreign Banks. LEASE -FINANCE EQUIPMENT INVESTMENT BANKS Investment banks perform a variety of functions. Primarily, they assist corporations to raise equity-capital by underwriting the public issues. They also assist companies desiring of mergers and acquisition and derivatives. In addition, they provide services like trading of derivative, foreign exchange, fixed income instruments and shares listed on the stock exchanges. Such banks cannot take deposits. They manage their affairs by charging fees such as (i) retainer fee, (ii) advisory fees based on the transactions, (iii) commission on underwriting and (iv) other financial services. PICIC was once a premier development in Pakitan but has merged with a commerical bank. BOND MARKET OUTLOOK DEVELOPMENT BANKS These banks provide guidance in selection of industrial units and extend direct financial assistance to partly cover their financial requirements. Also, they engage themselves in promotional activities to attract investors towards neglected sectors through publishing brochures and research papers. Besides, they help in assessing feasibility of potential projects. Such banks are responsible for speeding up the pace of economic growth in the country in conformity with the national objectives, plans and priorities. Their core functions are: * Direct financial assistance * Catalytic function * Mobilization of domestic savings * Ensuring balance regional and industrial growth * Expanding entrepreneurial base by encourage new comers At one time, there were 14 Development Banks in Pakistan. However, most of them have been closed one after another as their bad debts mounted up. It is natural as they take substantial risks in promoting new types of industrial projects in underdeveloped areas sponsored preferably by new-comers. Nevertheless, their contribution brings fruits to the economy in the shape of successful industrial units and transfer of technology. At present, 8 development banks are operating which mostly are joint-venture with other Islamic Countries. MICROFINANCE BANK A microfinance bank would cater to the credit needs of poor households and their small enterprises. Thus microfinance bank provide credit to those poor who are not considered creditworthy by the commercial banks and other financial institutions. On the other hand, the microfinance bands recognize every single human being as a potential and creditworthy entrepreneur. In addition, they provide basic training in start of a small business, simple book-keeping and accounting. The main aim of microfinance institutions is alleviation of poverty through helping poor persons to earn some money especially the women. ISLAMIC BANKS In Islam, it is prohibited to charge interest on any loan. However, it is acceptable to pass on funds to a needy person or corporation for trade purpose in which case profit could be shared on an agreed basis whereas loss should be shared according to the funds invested. Besides, there are certain businesses where any form of deal is forbidden like alcohols and pork. Accordingly, Islamic bank refer to a banking activity which is consistent with the Sharia, the Islamic Laws. Otherwise, there is no difference between the traditional banks and the Islamic bank. DISCOUNT HOUSES These are firms which buys and discounts bills of exchange, banker acceptance, commercial paper, etc. Discount houses also tender for treasury bills, deal in short-dated government bonds, and are an important part of the short-term money markets. INSURANCE COMPANIES Insurance is a hedge against the risk of a contingent and uncertain loss. In other words, it is the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. For this service, the insurer charges a fee called premium depending upon the risk involved. Besides traditional insurance companies, there are many Islamic insurance companies in Pakistan known as Takaful operators. Takaful is an Islamic insurance concept based on mutual co-operation, responsibility, assurance, protection and assistance between groups of participants. These companies believe in promoting the cause of Takaful as well as promoting the insurance business in a Shariah Compliant i.e. halal and absolutely Riba-Free insurance. STOCK EXCHANGES Stock exchange is a place where securities are bought and sold. Such securities include shares, derivative, unit trusts and bonds. It also provides facilities for the issue and redemption of securities. Prices of shares and bonds are influenced by their demand and supply like in other commodities. In order to list a security on the stock exchange, there are certain requirements. Transactions in the stock exchange are conducted by members only. Stock exchange serves both as a primary market for the initial public offerings and as a secondary market for their subsequent buying and selling Investors are not bound to sell stock or bond through the stock exchange. They can directly deal with the seller. Similarly, there is no compulsion that stock must be traded on the exchange. The securities can change ownership out of the exchange which is called ‘over the counter† or â€Å"curb dealings.† LEASING It is a contract where owner of an asset agrees to allow someone to use it for a fixed rental. It can be for fixed or indefinite period of time. It is a binding contract which sets out terms of lease agreement between the owner and the user. Leases are of various types mainly (i) a financial lease and (ii) an operating lease. The financial lease is long-term and non-cancellable contract where the user assumes some of the risks of ownership and has the right to keep the assets or get it transferred to its own name after fulfilling the necessary conditions. In operating lease, the owner transfer only the right to use the assets which is returned back at the end of the lease. There are some other types especially in the aircraft industry like wet lease and dry-lease and. In wet lease, a company agrees to provide an aircraft along with pilot and crew and would be responsible for the maintenance of the aircraft. Dry lease, on the other hand, refers to leasing only the aircraft. MODARBA If is a form of partnership which has two distinct parties: (i) the financier and (ii) the manager. The financer takes no part of management of the business. The profits are distributed among the subscriber while the manager is paid the usual salary. Modarba is one the modes of Islamic finance. It is like mutual fund minus its un-Islamic features. Not only in Pakistan, the Islamic financial services industry has witnessed a phenomenal growth all over the Islamic world. In particuar, the Modaraba Sector has been able to create a market niche for itself in the corporate sector. This model is enjoying a unique recognition due to its well designed structure with proper rules and regulations defined by the regulators. It has proved its resilience in this time of global financial turmoil. MUTUAL FUND It is a professionally managed type of pooled investment for acquiring securities like stocks, bonds, marketable securities and commodities. The profit is distributed by way of dividend to all investors. Financial market in Pakistan experienced boom conditions in1991 due to liberalization policies of the government. There was a manifold increase in the number of listed companies; number of commercial banks, local and foreign and financial instruments like commercial paper. But it has still to develop and a number of suggestions have been made: * The public sector should reduce its dependence on State Bank of Pakistan. * The infrastructure projects should be financed through domestic bonds of longer maturities (10-20 years). * The financial sectors (capital markets, micro credit, banking and non-banking sector) should have a better and more clearly delineated division of responsibilities. * Foreign institutional investors should be encouraged to take up (i) private equity funds, (ii) private pension funds, (iii) provident and gratuity funds and (iv) Real Estate Investment Trusts. * Mortgage financing should be encouraged.

Factors Influencing Decisions to Undertake Financial Savings

Factors Influencing Decisions to Undertake Financial Savings Background Information The concept of saving does not provide itself to a concise definition leading to diverse definitions put forward by various researchers and economists in the economic literature. In the macroeconomics literature, it is considered as disposal income less consumption. Issahaku (2011) contended that saving goes beyond the proportion of disposable income that is not spent and that, spending on durable goods such as furniture, home accessories, appliances, computer, equipment and accessories, automobiles among others are ways of saving too. Andrea and Francisco (1998) also pointed out that investment in human capital such as medical products, apparatus and equipment, professional health services, health insurance and so forth are forms of saving. Nonetheless, the short coming of this view is that it conceals the clear distinction between expenditure and saving because several of the human capital components mentioned are more or less current expenditure items. This study seeks to consider saving as deposits in savings accounts which are done with banks, microfinance institutions, susu groups and other saving avenues (Schultz, 2005). This definition is in line with the definition put forth by the 2013/2014 Ghana Living Standard Survey (GLSS 6) report as the setting aside of unspent income in a bank or a non-bank financial institution or in other forms of arrangement such as pension plans and some insurance products. The reason for this definition is that, it is through these saving window that financial institutions get to increase their credit standing and promote investment. Notwithstanding the lack of a common definition for the concept saving, it is an important macroeconomic variable to be studied under the purview of the economic arena of an individual as well as household level. Saving according classical economist like Adam Smith, David Ricardo and J.S. Mill is an important determinant of economic growth. For the individual or household, savings serves as a cushion against future unforeseen and uncertain circumstances of life while for a country’s economy as a whole, it leads to higher economic growth. For Rao (1980), saving constitute the basis for capital formation and capital formation constitute a major determinant of economic growth. Unlike developed economies where income is generated at a higher rate which encourages more saving thereby translating into more capital formation, developing economies like that of Ghana where income standard is almost uncertain coupled with low rate of financial inclusion of the various sectors of the eco nomy, it will be appropriate to pay more attention to the patterns and determinants of saving in the economy. On average East Asia saves more than 30 percent of gross national disposable income (GNDI) while Sub-Saharan Africa saves less than 15 percent. Regional differences have been rising: over the past three decades, saving rates have doubled in East Asia and stagnated in Sub-Saharan Africa and in Latin America and the Caribbean (Loayza et al., 2000). By a hike in aggregate saving, the social value of saving can exceed its private value in many developing countries. National savings of every economy can be broadly categorized into three saving type namely the household sector saving, private sector saving and finally the private sector saving. Public savings is the saving done by government such as state, local and federal government while private savings is the saving done by corporate business, institutions and organisations. Household sector savings is the saving done by families and individuals. Among these three savings type, the household sector savings is said to contribute a larger share to the total domestic savings of the economy (Rehman et al., 2011). Household sector savings is of utmost importance to the capital formation of every economy in that, the sector engages in substantial financial and non-financial investment and make possible both private and public investment by transferring accumulated savings. The Ghanaian household sector savings is made up of savings from urban households and that of rural households. Rural household sector is vital to the Ghanaian economy not only because of its potential in generating employment and income, rather, because of the limit set by this sector to the growth of some other sectors. Hence the growth of the aggregate economy is enormously dependent on the amount of savings emanating from this sector and how they are transferred into the hands of the enterprising investors. Ghana’s quest to mobilizing enough domestic resource through financial savings for capital formation which will eventually manifest itself in economic growth is believed to have begun when the country embarked on a comprehensive financial sector reform. Preceding this era, the country’s financial system was shallow , fragmented and almost at the verge of collapsing as a result of excessive state control and weak institutional framework leading to lower rate of financial savings. Many were the significant strides made in the economy during the reform which was mainly driven by liberalization policies such as interest rate deregulation and credit allocation, improved regulatory and supervisory frameworks especially in the financial sector. All these were geared towards enhancing banking intermediation that would improve financial savings mobilization. Despite these significant strides made, it is worth noting that most of the expansions in the financial sector were only c oncentrated in the urban areas at the expense of the rural societies (Osei-Assibey and Baah-Boateng, 2012). In recent times, the economy has witness a considerable increase in the number of both foreign and local financial institutions with the licenced Micro Finance Institutions leading with a total of 409 as at July 2014. Rural/Community Banks follows with 137 and finally, 58 Non-Bank Financial Institutions. (Data source: Bank of Ghana Website). Despite these significant increase in the number of financial institutions, the 2005/2006 and 2013/2014 Ghana Living Standards Survey (GLSS 5 and 6) reports have revealed that rural areas have higher percentages(78% and 78.5%) of households that do not owns a bank account or undertake financial savings as compared to that of urban households( 61% and 53.6%) respectively. This leaves us with mind boggling questions such as; what factors at all are responsible for these high percentages of rural households without savings account? What are the factors that influences the decision by rural households/individuals to hold bank account or undertake fin ancial savings? Do the operations of financial intuitions actually play a role in influencing the decision by rural households to hold bank accounts or/undertake financial savings? These questions and many other more are begging for answers. It is against this backdrop that the study seeks to investigate the factors that determines the decision by Ghanaian rural households to undertake financial savings or hold bank account. The hypothesis to be tested is whether operations of financial institutions actually play a significant role in the decision-to- save by rural households in Ghana. For the purpose of this study, it must be emphasized that â€Å"saving† refers to an individual having a bank account or is financially contributing to a loan/savings scheme in any of the financial institutions (i.e. banks, microfinance institutions, susu groups and other saving avenues). Problem Statement: It is now widely understood that saving has great potential impact. This insight is grounded in evidence that the poor do save in cash and in-kind—whether as a way to build assets, manage household cash flow, or effectively cope with risk. However, much of their savings remain informal and outside of the financial system (The SEEP Network 2013). Savings makes it possible for combating or meeting any emergency accrued by the individuals or the households or any corporate agencies. Saving is more often meant for meeting contingencies but sometimes it also acts as a form of investment. People are sometimes not inclined towards saving and the very reason for this, is the lack of awareness. Given the proliferation of financial intuitions (both locally and foreign owned) in recent times, one will expect that the percentage of households (particularly rural households) that undertake financial saving or/ holds bank account will be higher or at least match the increase in the number of financial institutions. Rather, the opposite is what is being observed. According to the 2005/2006 and 2013/2014 Ghana Living Standards Survey (GLSS 5 and 6) reports, rural areas have higher percentages(78% and 78.5%) of households that do not owns a bank account or undertake financial savings as against that of urban households(61% and 53.6%). This reflects a worrying phenomenon and leaves us with mind boggling question such as; what factors are accounting for these high percentages of rural households without savings account? What are the factors that influences the decision by rural households to hold bank account or/undertake financial savings? Do the operations of financial intuitions a ctually play a role in influencing the decision by rural households to hold bank account or/undertake financial savings? This is where the study becomes relevant in providing answers to the above mentioned mind boggling questions. Aggregate saving in any economy is dependent on a number of variables. For effective economic planning, the planners should have an idea regarding the capacity of saving of different groups of people and the method by which saving can be improved. To advocate for financial saving, there is a need to know about the saving motives of the individuals. An understanding of the saving preferences also helps in calculating the saving instruments which can efficiently arouse saving. Objectives of the Study: The study seeks to investigate the factors influencing the decision to undertake financial saving in rural Ghana. 1.3.1 Specific objectives: The above objective of the study will be achieved by; Analysing rural households’ attitude towards financial savings Examining whether the operations of financial institutions such as proximity to financial institution and the extent of flexibility in opening accounts significantly play a role in influencing the decision by rural households to save. Research Questions: Some of the questions that this study is seeking to answer are; What are the factors that influence the decision by rural households to undertake financial saving or/ hold bank accounts? Among the factors, which of them significantly influence the decision-to-save? Do the operations of financial institutions such proximity to financial institution and the extent of flexibility in opening accounts have significant bearing on the decision by rural dwellers to save? Significance/Justification of the Study: Recounting the saving potential of rural households, Meyer (1985) provided some reasons in support of the saving potentials of rural households and these are; 1) rural households save automatically between harvests, and/or sell a portion of their crops to pay off debts or to expand consumption; 2) rural households are heterogeneous rich and poor; rich households can always save over long and/or short periods while poor households can save only over short periods; and 3) more modern farming methods allow farmers to increase income and, therefore, savings. It appears the intervention measures (such as interest rate deregulation and the liberalization of financial sector) which has resulted in the upspring of a number of financial institutions and establishment of Rural/Community Banks put forward by Ghana to take the maximum advantage of the saving potentials of the rural households is not yielding its intended objectives as indicated by the 2005/2006 and 2013/2014 Ghana Living Standa rd Survey (5 and 6) reports. It is just appropriate that more time and resources are spent in studying and paying more attention to the savings decisions of rural households so as to take advantage of their saving potential if the objective of mobilizing enough financial resources for capital formation is to be achieved as a country. This is what the study stands to furnish us with. Also, many are the studies that have been found in the literature to exist on saving prior to (Mills and Ricardo 1884) through Harrod and Domar’s postulation about the essence of savings on economic growth to date. These studies rather focus on the determinants of the amount or rate of savings (Issahaku, 2011; Alma and Richard, 1988), macro level analysis (Gupta, 1970; Khan et al., 1992 😉 and description of savings behaviours using descriptive statistics (Komla, 2012) leaving out the quantitative analysis as gap in the literature. In the Ghanaian context, studies done on the determinants of saving of rural households using a micro level approach have mostly been skewed toward a specific rural area, on gender basis or a group of rural areas in Ghana such as Issahaku, (2011); Munin et al. (2013); Komla, (2012), Oduro et al. (2012 ) etc. This study takes a micro level approach and a nationwide analyses of the determinants of financial saving decision of rural households i n Ghana by employing quantitative and descriptive statistics. This study again gives an insight into the correlation between the decision to save by individuals in the rural areas and the operations of financial institutions. Financial institutions such as banks and other non-bank financial institutions also stand to benefit from the findings of this research as the findings will make them aware of opportunities to provide rural communities in the Ghana with accessible savings outlets which will enable these businesses to make profit. Finally, the current study will add to the existing literatures on financial savings and shall be a reference material for future study. Methodology: The study is focused on using secondary data from the Ghana Statistical Services on the Ghana Living Standard Survey 6(GLSS 6). This is because it captures well most of the variables of interest such as age, marital status, educational status of household heads family size, income dependency rate etc. The study takes a look at two analysis i.e. descriptive analysis and quantitative analysis. The quantitative analysis takes a look at the determinants of the decision to hold bank account/undertake financial savings by rural households (being binary in nature) with the other independent variables carried out by adopting the model employed by Munin et al (2013) with some modifications. Organization of Study: The study is organized into six chapters including the present one. The second chapter of the study covers an overview of financial saving in general, the importance of rural financial savings to an economy especially the economy of Ghana etc. The third chapter includes related theories of saving, views on the savings potentials of rural households and studies conducted on the saving behaviour both rural and urban households in Ghana and other countries . The fourth chapter presents the methods used in this study and the source of the data used. The fifth chapter includes the empirical estimation and discussion of the results generated. The sixth and last chapter includes the summary, recommendations and conclusion.

Its Time to Lift the Embargo Against Cuba :: Argumentative Persuasive Essays

It's Time to Lift the Embargo Against Cuba I waited an hour and a half for my first camello. It was too hot at the bus stop to do anything but stand and stare at the corner where the camello-a semi carrying a small jail, as a friend described it-would turn onto 23rd. The line was long, maybe forty people. When the camello finally arrived, the line broke into a desperate mob. I let myself be pushed inside. A pregnant woman in front of me panicked and began swearing and throwing elbows. I caught one in the ribs and tried to make space for her. Inside I kept one hand on my bookbag, one hand on the rail. But there was no way I could have fallen; we were like sardines in a can. They let in more people at the second stop. Now the camello was too full to close the doors. A man next to me joked, "Quà © subdesarrollo"-"What underdevelopment." Camellos were introduced in Havana to help solve the public transportation crisis in 1995. They are city buses, capacity of probably two hundred, pulled by flatbed trucks. Their two humps give them the popular name camello, Spanish for camel. The running joke is that they are like the Saturday night movies and may contain sex, violence, and adult language. I used camellos to get around Havana in July because it was cheap-one cent per trip-and I had time. But also because it is what Cubans do. I invariably got off the camello drenched in sweat, clothes wrinkled from being packed in, and not feeling well. I met Cubans who spend three hours taking camellos one way to work each day. Waiting in long lines is part of living Cuban. There are other quirks that an economics professor might call "inefficiencies endemic to socialism," or maybe just underdevelopment. To get things done requires a contact and a special favor. For instance, to get a phone line out of the country I would ask my friend Mario to call his cousin who works at the phone company. Electricity blackouts and water shortages are common. Another friend has the money to buy a car-relatives in Tampa send money- but it will take him years to get through the paperwork.

The Detrimental Effects of Deforestation Essay -- Environment Environm

The Detrimental Effects of Deforestation Deforestation has been around for many years. Before America was discovered, fuelwood was the main source of energy, so many trees were being cut down all over Europe to provide energy for the inhabitants. Even still today, 2000 million people in low income countries still rely on wood for cooking and heating (Causes, 1). The rate at which we are loosing our world’s forests is steadily increasing. During the 1980’s, worldwide deforestation rates were at 15 million hectares per year for tropical forests alone (WRM, 1). This compares with 11.3 million hectares that were lost annually during the 70’s- a 50 percent increase (The Problems, 1). And as one might expect, this trend is being continued into the 90’s, as in most parts of the world, the rate of deforestation accelerated during this decade (WRM, 1). There are billions of people living on this earth and we all use paper and wood. So why do we need to concern ourselves with deforestation? I would like to point out several reasons why I feel that deforestation is a problem that we need to work towards correcting. First of all, the effects of deforestation are felt in the atmosphere. Trees soak up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere so that we can breath clean, healthy air. If trees help us breathe, then why are we cutting so many of them down? Besides, forests help stabilize the climate. Cutting down forests releases carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide, causing 25% of the net warming effect on this planet (Durning, 21). Forests provide us with beauty as well. Deforestation takes away some of the beauty of our great country and world. There is nothing I enjoy more than driving through a forest and feeling pride to liv... ...Guide To Working with the Public. Timber Press: Forest Grove, Oregon 1977. Paper Recycling. http://www.org.gov.tw/english.now/hpr.htm. The Challenge of Sustainable Forest Management. Food and Agriculture Organizationof the United Nations: Rome 1993. The Committee for National Arbor Day. http://www.nationalarborday.org/426a.htm. The Problems of Forest Loss. http://www.wri.org/biodiv/intl-ll.html. World Resources Institute, 1998. Thomson, M. and Warburton, M. "Uncertainty on a Himalayan Scale." Deforestation: Social Dynamics in Watersheds and Mountain Ecosystems. Routledge: London 1988:1-13. WRM. World Rainforest Movement. http://www.wrm.org.uv.english/u.causes/. Wadsworth, Frank H. Forest Production for Tropical America. U.S. Department of Agriculture Handbook. December, 1997. Why Recycle? http://www.wvwc.net/recycle/why.html. Wesleyan Recycling Program. Â  

Free Narrative Essays - Dodging Bullets -- Example Personal Narratives

Dodging Bullets It was a warm fall day in early October, a day that I recall quite vividly. The smells of the transition from summer to fall were in the air, accompanied by the sounds of birds singing and the wind blowing through the trees. It was on this beautiful day that my existence was almost terminated. After school on this day, a friend and I decided to go hunting before our evening basketball practice. I really don't know why we called it hunting, because we didn't have an idea exactly what we were hunting for. We had forty acres of my backyard to do our merciless killing of defenseless animals. We were two ignorant kids with semi-automatic and lever-action .22 caliber rifles. As we strolled into the woods to see what terror we could create for the creatures of the forest, we noticed a large abundance of squirrels. They seemed to be dancing around as if they were gathering there before us in groups--laughing at us, begging us to shoot them. We had to keep walking, for we were still too close to the neighboring houses to be shooting these rifles. So we trudged along, occasionally commenting on how the leaves crunching beneath our feet would scare off the squirrels, as if we were some fierce snipers in desperate need of stealth. At last we made it to an area far enough from the houses. My friend was the one with the semi-automatic, and he immediately started unloading his clip on everything in sight. The sound of the bullets being propelled from the barrel echoed throughout the woods. After his barrage of shots, I noticed a large oak tree with squirrels in i... ...e to dodge bullets. I felt that I could see those bullets in their spiraling motion coming at me. This idea made me laugh, but I didn't engage it for long, for I was still shaken by the event. What if I'd been hit by the onslaught of bullets and turned into a bloody piece of Swiss cheese? Worse yet, I could have been killed. I lay there for what seemed to be a short eternity until the shadow of my friend appeared over me. "I ran out of bullets," he said in a relaxed tone. After I voiced a few choice words to my companion, he helped me up, and I slowly but surely went home. Naturally, neither of us mentioned this scenario to our parents. Later that evening, I decided that playing video games was a safer way to kill time before practice. It was quite a while before we went hunting again.

Analysis of a Pertinent Issue in Management from an Internet

Analysis of a Pertinent Issue in Management from an Internet Magazine ArticleThis is an analysis of Rodier’s (2007) write up focusing on the issue of risk management. First in the analysis is a discussion on risk management. Next, it embarks on the key points for a successful risk management. Finally, it weighs the soundness of the article’s recommendation.The Internet and digital transactions are a huge opportunity for businesses like banks and other financial institutions. Businesses may choose to exploit this opportunity or be petrified and refuse to jump in the next big thing. The first option requires risk management while the second option is plain risk avoidance that masks a bigger risk—that of being obsolete and hence, out of business. In the sample article, Rodier discusses risk management in the use or exploitation of a great business opportunity rather than being obsolete or out of business. Hence in this sense, risk management is really an issue of op portunity management. Simply put, a business action is a risk worth taking than inaction or doing nothing at all.Rodier’s key points for successful risk management are: a) industry collaboration; b) outsourcing specialized knowledge; and c) being informed about trends that are likely to turn into full blown threats in the operation of a business. Since the finance industry is affected as a whole, Rodier asserts that industry collaboration is necessary to counter a risk such as organized crime from all parts of the world. This is sound observation since the industry’s resources combined can be a great force in countering a serious threat. Moreover, faster learning curves in the industry will be possible to counter the growing community of cyber criminals. Outsourcing specialized knowledge also contributes to faster problem resolution while being informed makes businesses adapt to changes in terms of threats, vulnerabilities, and the various modus operandi of cyber crimi nals.Finally, the article’s final say in Josh William’s quote is very sound risk management advice. Processes, people and technologies indeed have to be consistently and constantly considered, reviewed, and changed. After all action is ultimately the best risk management strategy than doing nothing at all.ReferenceRodier, M. (2007). Online Security Attacks Against Financial Institutions Rapidly Increasing. WallStreet & Technology. US: CMP Media LLC. Retrieved October 7, 2007, from the WallStreet & Technology Web sites: http://www.wallstreetandtech.com/ showArticle.jhtml?articleID=201806928 for page 1 and http://www.wallstreetandtech.com/online-security-attacks-against-financial-institutions-rapidly-increasing/d/d-id/1258922?page_number=2 for page 2.Required Attachment of Reference – Page 1Online Security Attacks Against Financial Institutions Rapidly Increasing As the number of hack attacks continues to rise, experts say companies must use multiple factors of au thentication, risk analysis and people to protect themselves. By Melanie Rodier Wall Street & Technology September 17, 2007Hacking is a multibillion-dollar business. Gone are the days of teenagers sitting in their parents' basements trying to hack into a company's computer system just to prove a point. Today, hacking is an organized crime enterprise — and it is bigger than ever.The number of online hack attacks against banking organizations soared 81 percent in the first half of this year, according to U.S. security services provider SecureWorks. At the World Economic Forum in Davos earlier this year, Vint Cerf, one of the codevelopers of the TCP/IP standard that underlies all Internet traffic, said up to a quarter of computers on the Internet might currently be used by cyber criminals in so-called botnets. Botnets are made up of large numbers of computers that malicious hackers have brought under their control after infecting them with Trojan virus programs. While most owner s are oblivious to the infection, the networks of tens of thousands of computers are used to launch spam E-mail campaigns, denial-of-service attacks or online fraud schemes.Cerf, who now works for Google, likened the spread of botnets to a pandemic. Of the 600 million computers currently connected to the Internet, between 100 million and 150 million are already part of these botnets, he said.The dramatic rise in the number of hack attacks is being driven by the increase in transactions now taking place online. â€Å"People are depending on the Internet for all sorts of services, and as usage increases so does negative fraud,† explains Joe Stensland, SVP at Scivantage, a provider of Web-based front- and middle-office solutions for financial services.And as the stakes rise, so does the sophistication level of attacks. Today's IT attacks are regional, targeted after specific people and companies, and entirely driven by profit, experts warn.â€Å"Hackers are professional, motiva ted, have lots of cash and are doing it for the cash,† says David Rand, CTO of security firm Trend Micro. â€Å"It's all about the money, and the money is huge.† In today's underground economy, consumers' stolen account information is currently priced at $1,000 to $5,000, a credit card number with PIN is valued at $300, birth certificate information goes for $150, and a credit card number with security code and expiration date is currently valued at $7 to $25, according to Rand.A large number of hackers are based in Eastern Europe. â€Å"It's a big source of blackhat hackers who are finding vulnerabilities,† says Gartner analyst Peter Firstbrook. â€Å"But attacks are coming from all over. Malicious Web servers are evenly distributed across the world,† he adds, noting that attacks also originate in Brazil, India, Thailand, Argentina and the United States.An Elaborate UnderworldCriminals operate in an elaborate networked underworld of Web sites and chat roo ms, where they tout their wares and avidly recruit new members. They sell each other stolen account numbers, tools for making credit cards, scanners to pick up card numbers and PINs from ATMs, and viruses and other malicious software, relates Karim Zerhouni, an analyst with BearingPoint. Recently, he says, criminals were offering on the Internet a Trojan virus for $600.â€Å"They were even offering you one year of technical support for free with the Trojan,† Zerhouni adds. â€Å"With that you can target specific financial institutions to get all the information you want.†Bulletin boards used by fraudsters are often â€Å"set up like eBay, with a reputation system,† points out Louie Gasparini, chief technology officer for the consumer solutions business unit with security vendor RSA. â€Å"They'll say, ‘Hi, I'm a good fraudster — you can trust me.' Or, ‘Buyer beware — fraudster unverified,'† he explains. â€Å"Then you have secti ons talking about informants, where they'll say, ‘Don't do business with John. He ripped me off.' There's also a whole training section — Fraudster 101 — which shows how to change billing addresses of credit cards, how to change PINs. They talk about new scams and new vulnerabilities.†Online criminals are also quick to tailor their scams to any newsworthy event. When Wells Fargo's computer system crashed in August, knocking out its Internet, telephone and ATM banking services for several hours, criminals immediately started discussing plans on bulletin boards to send out E-mails to the bank's clients acknowledging the computer problems and asking victims to log on to phony Wells Fargo sites to validate their user information, which could then be used to steal their account information.Required Attachment of Reference – Page 2Online Security Attacks Against Financial Institutions Rapidly IncreasingAs the number of hack attacks continues to rise, exper ts say companies must use multiple factors of authentication, risk analysis and people to protect themselves. By Melanie Rodier Wall Street ; Technology September 17, 2007A Constant VigilSo how can companies protect themselves against the looming threat of hackers? One key is to be constantly aware of the threats lurking on the Internet. As such, security watchdog Financial Services Information Sharing and Analysis Center (FS-ISAC) announced a partnership with MessageOne to provide urgent, fully automated cyber (and physical) security alerts to its 4,000-member firms. Members are automatically notified of a new threat by their preferred method of communication — cell phone, E-mail, home phone, etc. Firms also receive recommendations for solutions and can join conference calls to brainstorm about the threats.Smaller organizations that might not have invested in top-notch security need to be particularly vigilant. â€Å"Everyone is going to concentrate on [large institutions s uch as] Citigroup,† says BearingPoint's Zerhouni. But since a bigger firm usually has relatively tight security, â€Å"The value of hacking into them is not very high,† he adds. But a small community bank with lesser defenses still might have more than $100 million in assets, Zerhouni notes.Security professionals agree that multifactor authentication is essential. You have to make sure the people who come through the front door are who they say they are. Experts suggest that employees or clients should input at least two or three nuggets of information before they receive access to a network.To prevent phishing, users also can be asked to recognize a picture they had previously selected. Tokens, which are increasingly popular in the financial industry and are used by firms such as JPMorgan, provide a new six- or seven-digit password every 15 seconds — a better method than trying to commit a range of different passwords to human memory. (According to a recent RSA survey, almost a quarter of employees are required to remember 15 passwords or more at work.)But while having multiple layers of security is important, it is not enough. â€Å"Once hackers are able to phish for one thing, they can phish for others. Plus, it won't protect you from inside threats, such as if an employee puts an infected USB device in their own office computer,† says Zerhouni. â€Å"This happened at one bank, and 5,000 credit reports were compromised.†Ultimately, experts say, the best solution is to use multiple methods of authentication in conjunction with risk analysis — looking at someone's normal behavior, such as an IP address usually located in Manhattan, and verifying that this behavior is consistent.Bank of America, for instance, uses RSA's SiteKey to help clients recognize that they're at the valid online banking site at Bank of America, rather than at a phony look-alike site, and to help the bank recognize the clients as the true owners o f the accounts. SiteKey is made up of three parts: an image, an image title and three challenge questions. If a user suddenly signs on from a different computer, the bank asks one of the client's challenge questions to verify his or her identity. If answered correctly, the secret SiteKey image title and image will then appear.However, no single method is foolproof. Ultimately, says Josh Williams, manager in the business consulting practice for Devon, Pa.-based SMART Business Advisory and Consulting, â€Å"Any solution has to be a blend of processes and people and

How Males Are Socialised Into Traditional Masculinities Essay

Explain and briefly evaluate how males are socialised into traditional masculinities Hegemonic masculinity describes the patriarchal working class males, those who have labouring or manual jobs. He has to be physically tough and dominant to assert his masculinity. He is definitely heterosexual, technically competent, is sexist and aggressive. Males are socialised into traditional masculinities by a variety of socialisation agents. The school is instrumental in the socialisation of males into traditional hegemonic roles. Becky Francis (2000) found that, although they were more harshly disciplined than the girls, boys’ behaviour was tolerated more by the teachers. This encourages the boys to demonstrate the traditional masculinities. Subject choice is also an important factor in male socialisation as they were traditionally gender biased. This was studied by Grafton in a comprehensive school in which he showed that there were only a limited number of placements available for those who wanted to study non-traditional subjects for their gender. This reduces interest in those subjects and guides males into the more traditional, craft subjects. Males are canalized meaning they are directed into playing with certain toys and activities. For example, boys may play football while the girls play ‘house’. While the education system is very important in the socialisation of males into traditional masculinities, the family is the main socialisation agent. Parents may encourage and reward behaviour that they deem appropriate and discourage that which they think is inappropriate. For example, parents may encourage their daughters to focus on their appearance and their sons to watch and support sports. Also, Oakley referred to the labels (For example, ‘princess’ and ‘pretty’ for girls; and ‘brave soldier’ and ‘strong’ for boys) as verbal appellation and says they teach the children society’s expectations. Children also imitate their parents because they are their significant others. They learn norms and values through this process. In addition, children learn important messages about gender identification through dress up games where they pretend to be their role models. While it is assumed that parents are successful agents in the socialisation of children, not all adults acquire the necessary skills for nurturing their children. Palmer (2007) suggested that childhood socialisation is not as effective as it was in the past. He proposed that this is because parents no longer spend enough quality time with their  children and are relying on ‘electronic babysitters’, like the television, which produce a ‘ toxic childhood’. The peer group, on the other hand, consist of people of similar status who come into regular contact with one another (for example, groups of friends and school children in the same year). It is and agent of secondary socialisation and is arguably the most influential for young people during adolescence. The peer group often impact gender-role socialisation. Skelton and Francis (2003), said that boys dominate playground space playing football while girls are on the margins, skipping or talking. This encourages boys into the traditional masculinities of noisy, ‘laddish’ behaviour. Frosh et al (2002) said that boys identified characteristics such as ‘hardness’, holding anti-school values and being sporty as those to aspire to. These were characteristics of hegemonic nature that would give them popular status. He also found that boys wanted to make their heterosexuality very clear to avoid being teased or bullied. Judith Rich Harris (1998) said that boys need to know which groups are popular, which are feared, and which are pitied. They need to understand what they can say and how they can act within their group. This shows that masculinity has to be carefully negotiated as they cannot afford to be too different. Each socialisation agent can be criticised but they all have a role in the socialisation of males into traditional masculinities but it seems they play their part at different times in the male’s life. Family is the primary socialisation agent which affects children the most at a young age. The peer group affects males in their adolescence and can often be more influential to the males than education and family at this time.

Herzberg’s Motivation-Hygiene Theory and Job Satisfaction in the Malaysian Retail Sector

Asian Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 16, No. 1, 73–94, January 2011 HERZBERG'S MOTIVATION-HYGIENE THEORY AND JOB SATISFACTION IN THE MALAYSIAN RETAIL SECTOR: THE MEDIATING EFFECT OF LOVE OF MONEY Tan Teck-Hong* and Amna Waheed Sunway University, School of Business 5, Jalan Universiti, Bandar Sunway 46150 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia * Corresponding author: [email  protected] edu. my ABSTRACT This paper examines what motivates employees in the retail industry , and examines their level of job satisfaction, using Herzberg's hygiene factors and motivators.In this study, convenience sampling was used to select sales personnel from women's clothing stores in Bandar Sunway shopping mall in the state of Selangor. The results show that hygiene factors were the dominant motivators of sales personnel job satisfaction. Working conditions were the most significant in motivating sales personnel. Recognition was second, followed by company policy and salary. There is a need to d elve more deeply into why salespeople place such a high importance on money.Further analysis was performed to assess how much the love of money mediates the relationship between salary and job satisfaction. Based on the general test for mediation, the love of money could explain the relationship between salary and job satisfaction. The main implication of this study is that sales personnel who value money highly are satisfied with their salary and job when they receive a raise. Keywords: Herzberg's motivation-hygiene; job satisfaction; love of money, mediator, pay satisfaction, retailing, MalaysiaINTRODUCTION This paper explores the effect of motivational variables on the job satisfaction of salespeople in the Malaysian retail sector. Retail is crucial to the economies of most countries, mainly because of its large scale at all levels; local, national and even international. The retailing sector in Malaysia has undergone continuous and significant change over the last few decades. N ew facilities ranging from superstores to retail warehouses have widened the retail landscape (Market Research, 2009).Retail has become one of the most dynamic sectors of the Malaysian economy because it is not only employs 20% of Malaysia's entire population, but is also the second largest contributor to the national GDP,  © Asian Academy of Management and Penerbit Universiti Sains Malaysia, 2011 Tan Teck-Hong and Amna Waheed contributing about US$ 35 billion in 2009, with a projection of US$ 58 billion in 2014 (PwC, 2009). Tourism contributes greatly to Malaysia's retail sales growth, as shopping revenue, which totalled US$ 4. 6 billion in 2008 (Market Research, 2009), is the second highest component of the country's tourism revenue.Thus, the retail industry is considered to be a significant contributor to the growth, economy and stability of Malaysia. The retail industry is subject to various problems and challenges. First, intense competition has resulted in price wars between foreign and local retailers. The majority of modern retail operations are foreign-owned and located in urban areas, whereas local stores dominate outside urban areas. Foreign retailers in Malaysia include Daily Farm (Giant), Tesco, Jaya Jusco, and Carrefour. As reported by Bailey (2009), Giant has the greatest market share with 8%, follow by Tesco (4%), Jusco (3%) and Carrefour (2%).Most local retailers are not geared to meet the challenges of globalization and do not have sufficient knowledge to compete with foreign retailers. Second, consumers these days prefer spacious shopping areas, attractive and trendy products, and ample parking space; preferences that are a major concern of many local retail stores as they attempt to combat competition. Third, consumer demands and shopping patterns are changing. Retailers are struggling to change their marketing strategy to suit consumer preferences. Malaysian shoppers have become more knowledgeable and discerning, and are ot easily influe nced by advertisements and promotions. In addition to being price- and quality-conscious, and they also care about the service they receive in stores. According to ACNielsen (2006), 75% of customer purchase decisions are influenced by the service the customer receives. With the expansion of the retail industry, the issue of how retailers strive to capture and retain their best staff becomes relevant. The effort and contribution of employees is a key competitive advantage and is crucial to the success of the firm (Bent ; Freathy, 1997).In any institution, be it in the retail industry or any other industry, it is important for management to increase workers' productivity by allowing workers to achieve their maximum potential. Keeping sales people inspired is one of the most difficult tasks faced by retail organizations. In the retail sector, employees have a direct impact on the customer, and the employee-customer relationship is an important consideration in a company's success. Sale speople deal directly with customers, so salespeople's attitudes, behaviour, and how they treat customers will determine whether customers will be loyal to a particular retailer.Companies spend millions of dollars every year recruiting, training and compensating their sales personnel in an effort to inspire them to perform well and thus increase company profits (Susan, 2003). An unmotivated workforce could lead to high sales force supervision costs, high absenteeism, and high turnover rates. In Malaysia, sales jobs are far from 74 The mediating effect of love of money exciting, and the majority of retailers employ a large number of poorly paid parttime staff, which may contribute to low morale and high turnover.Organizations, regardless of their size, are facing retention challenges (Ramlall, 2004). Sempane (2002) mentioned that voluntary turnover is a major problem f or companies in Malaysia and that job-hopping has become a part of the country's culture. This paper explores what m otivates sales personnel in the retail industry, and explores their level of job satisfaction, using Herzberg's motivation-hygiene factor theory. Senior managers may benefit from the results of this research because they could alter their reward system to better motivate their staff, which could lead to higher job atisfaction and better performance. Based on previous research, salary seems to be very important to salespeople. However, it is reasonable to believe that the results of such findings by various scholars may be overstated. Therefore, further analysis has been conducted to examine whether there is a mediating variable affecting the relationship between salary and job satisfaction. As pointed out by Tang, Luna-Arocas, Sutarso and Tang (2004), one such mediating variable is the love of money. LITERATURE REVIEW Herzberg's Motivation-Hygiene Theory of MotivationAs pointed by Vroom (1964), the word â€Å"motivation† is derived from the Latin word movere, which means â₠¬Å"to move†. Motivation is an internal force, dependent on the needs that drive a person to achieve. Schulze and Steyn (2003) affirmed that in order to understand people's behaviour at work, managers or supervisors must be aware of the concept of needs or motives, which will help â€Å"move† their employees to act. According to Robbins (2001), motivation is a needs-satisfying process, which means that when a person's needs are satisfied by certain factors, the person will exert superior effort toward attaining organizational goals.Theories of motivation can be used to explain the behaviour and attitude of employees (Rowley, 1996; Weaver, 1998). The theories include content theories, based on the assumption that people have individual needs, which motivate their actions. Theorists such as Maslow (1954), McClelland (1961), Herzberg (1966) and Alderfer (1969) are renowned for their works in this field. In contrast to content theories, process theories identify relationship s among variables which make up motivation and involve works from Heider (1958), Vroom (1964), Adams (1965), Locke (1976) and Lawler (1973).The main focus of this paper, however, is on Herzberg's theory of motivation. 75 Tan Teck-Hong and Amna Waheed Herzberg's motivation-hygiene theory, also known as the two-factor theory, has received widespread attention as having a practical approach toward motivating employees. In 1959, Herzberg published his analysis of the feelings of 200 engineers and accountants from over nine companies in the United States. These professionals were asked to describe experiences in which they felt either extremely bad or exceptionally good about their jobs and to rate their feelings on these experiences.Responses about good feelings are generally related to job content (motivators), whereas responses about bad feelings are associated with job context (hygiene factor). Motivators involve factors built into the job itself, such as achievement, recognition, re sponsibility and advancement. Hygiene factors are extrinsic to the job, such as interpersonal relationships, salary, supervision and company policy (Herzberg, 1966). In the retail setting, Winer and Schiff (1980) have conducted studies using Herzberg's two-factor theory. They found that â€Å"achievement† was the highest rated motivator.Likewise, â€Å"making more money† received the second-highest rating in the study, followed by â€Å"chances of promotion† and â€Å"recognition†. In contrast, Lucas (1985) discovered that the â€Å"supervisor-employee relationship† was a significant factor influencing worker satisfaction in a study of U. S. retail stores, and two hygiene factors were reported as significant, namely â€Å"company policy† and â€Å"relationship with peers†. Herzberg perceived motivational and hygiene factors to be separated into two dimensions affecting separate aspects of job satisfaction.This belief differed from the traditional approach of viewing job satisfaction and dissatisfaction as opposite ends of the same continuum (Herzberg, 1966). Hygiene factors prevent dissatisfaction but they do not lead to satisfaction. They are necessary only to avoid bad feelings at work. On the other hand, motivators are the real factors that motivate employees at work. The two-factor theory was tested by many other researchers, who showed very different results. Some research has shown that some of the factors declared by Herzberg (1966) as hygiene factors are actually motivators.The results of Herzberg's theory can vary if the test is conducted in different industries. The differences are due to the intensity of the labour requirement and the duration of employment (Nave, 1968). Extensive commentary has emerged about how to distinguish between hygiene factors and motivators. While some factors have proved to fall clearly in one of the two categories, other factors, particularly salary, have proven to be ambig uous as to whether they are motivators or a hygiene factors. 76 The mediating effect of love of money Job SatisfactionJob satisfaction is important to an organization's success. Much research has been conducted into ways of improving job satisfaction of workers in various sectors of the Malaysian economy, including the academic sector (Wong ; Teoh, 2009; Noordin ; Jusoff, 2009), the hotel sector (Abd. Patah, Radzi, Abdullah, Adzmy, Adli Zain, ; Derani, 2009), the government sector (Yahaya, A. , Yahaya, N. , Arshad, ; Ismail, 2009), the non-profit sector (Ismail ; Zakaria, 2009), the naval sector (Mohd. Bokti ; Abu Talib, 2009), and the automobile manufacturing sector (Santhapparaj, Srinivasan, ; Koh, 2005).There has been relatively little research into the determinants of job satisfaction in the retail sector using Herzberg's two-factor theory. Therefore, this paper endeavours to address this literature gap. Previous studies generally found that job satisfaction is associated with s alary, occupational stress, empowerment, company and administrative policy, achievement, personal growth, relationship with others, and the overall working condition. It has been argued that an increase in job satisfaction increases worker productivity (Wright ; Cropanzano, 1997; Shikdar ; Das, 2003).As mentioned by Dunnette, Campbell and Hakel (1967) and Robbins (2001), job satisfaction is an emotional state in which a person perceives various features of his/her work or the work environment. Therefore, job satisfaction has a major effect on people's lives. Locke (1976) indicated that job satisfaction most commonly affects a person's physical health, mental health and social life. Moreover, Rain, Lane and Steiner (1991) wrote that job satisfaction is connected to life satisfaction, whereby people who are satisfied with their jobs will tend to be happy with their lives as well, and vice versa.Coster (1992) supported the view that work can have on people's lives. Furthermore, Breed a nd Breda (1997) indicated that job satisfaction may affect absenteeism, complaints, and labour unrest. Therefore, it is understood that satisfied workers will be much more productive and be retained within the organisation for a longer period, in contrast to displeased workers who will be less useful and who will have a greater tendency to quit their jobs (Crossman, 2003). More importantly, satisfied workers not only perform better but also provide better service to customers, which could result in improving customer satisfaction.According to Dawson (2005), employee satisfaction is associated with positive employee behaviour. It is undeniable that satisfied workers generate customers who are satisfied and loyal. It is assumed that motivation and satisfaction are very similar and that, in many cases, they are considered to be synonymous terms. According to Hersey and Blanchard (1988), motivation and satisfaction are quite different from each another in terms of reward and performance . The authors pointed out that motivation is influenced by forward-looking perceptions about the relationship 77 Tan Teck-Hong and Amna Waheed etween performance and rewards, whereas satisfaction involves how people feel about the rewards they have received. In other words, motivation is a consequence of expectations of the future while satisfaction is a consequence of past events (Carr, 2005). Huselid (1995) believes that if workers are not motivated, turnover will increase and employees will become frustrated and unproductive. Various other researchers who have investigated motivation and job satisfaction support this statement (Maidani, 1991; Tietjen ; Myers, 1998; Robbins, 2001; Parsons ; Broadbridge, 2006).Under Herzberg's (1966) theory, workers who are satisfied with both motivation and hygiene factors would be top performers, and those who are dissatisfied with both factors would be poor performers. Christopher (2005) found no support for this, and his research concluded that Herzberg's results prove accurate only under his original methodology. Theories of worker motivation address a model connecting job satisfaction, motivation and performance. Considerable importance is attached to these concepts, and there is a need for clarification on how satisfaction and motivation differ from each other.Job satisfaction is an emotional response accompanying actions or thoughts relating to work, whereas motivation is the process that activates behaviour. As satisfaction is an attitude, it is possible for a worker to be satisfied with his job but not be motivated. Hence, motivation and satisfaction are not synonymous with each other. It is vital to clarify the distinction between the concepts so that it is easier to understand that motivation leads to satisfaction, which ultimately leads to enhanced performance.The Role of Salary, the Love of Money, and Pay Satisfaction It is undeniable that sales managers always use high salary to attract, retain and motivate wor kers. Robbins (2001) pointed out that money can be considered as â€Å"scorecard† through which workers can assess how much an organization values them. However, there have been quite a few nonconformist views on the role of salary. Kochan (2002) argued that money results only in temporary obedience from workers and that money does not transform workers' attitude and behaviour in the long term.He pointed out that money only motivates workers to seek further rewards and that, in the process, can undermine workers' intrinsic interest in their jobs. Money may or may not motivate people. According to the contingency view, workers from different countries, age groups, income levels, career stages, and cultural backgrounds may rank the desire for money differently. As mentioned by Furnham (1994), the desire for money is rated higher by young workers in Far East and Middle East as compared with those in North America and South 78 The mediating effect of love of moneyAmerica. Based o n a study of 1,000 employees, Kovach (1987) showed that younger workers with low incomes are more concerned about money, whereas older workers with high incomes and management positions are motivated more by job security, interesting work and recognition. Under Maslow's hierarchy of needs theory, salary is associated with the lowerlevel needs, such as physical and security needs. Maslow (1954) stat ed that once the lower-order needs are met, higher-order needs will become most important. Thus, additional salary increases do not motivate employees any further.To improve job satisfaction and performance level of workers, managers must work on motivators by providing opportunities for career advancement and development, as workers value motivators more than hygiene factors (Ramlall, 2004). As indicated in most of the literature, salary plays an important role in motivating salespeople. However, the strength of the relationship between salary and job satisfaction may be influenced by a mediator. The mediator may serve to clarify and explain how and why such relationships occur. The concept of love of money was introduced by Tang et al. 2004), who argued that the love of money reflects an employee's wants and values, and stated that someone who values money highly will be satisfied with his salary and ultimately his job when he receives a desired raise. Sloan (2002) mentioned that a person never has enough money and wants to have more money as having money is considered to be the most important goal in life. According to Lawler (1973), employees' pay satisfaction usually influences their job satisfaction. Tang et al. (2004) found that pay satisfaction is a part of job satisfaction, which could lead to higher worker productivity.Workers are inspired to achieve more and to give full effort only if they are satisfied with their pay. Lawler (1973) reported that absenteeism can result when pay dissatisfaction is present. According to Mani (2002), workers who were absent from their works frequently were not satisfied with their pay, whereas 69% who were absent once or more in six months were not satisfied with their pay. Based on the discussion above, there are two research questions for this paper. The first research question is to determine job satisfaction of sales personnel by using Herzberg's two-factor theory.The second research question is to assess whether the love of money mediates the relationship between job satisfaction and money. Research Question 1: Which of Herzberg's motivation-hygiene factors is valued more by salespeople in Malaysia? 79 Tan Teck-Hong and Amna Waheed Research Question 2: To what extent does love of money mediate the relationship between money and job satisfaction? METHODOLOGY In this study, 180 sales personnel from women's clothing stores in the shopping mall of Bandar Sunway in the state of Selangor were administered a questionnaire after they had been selected through convenience sampling.Of the 180 questionnaire s, 152 were found to be useful for analysis. The other 28 questionnaires contained incomplete information. The questionnaire, written in English, was handed to the salespeople at their place of work. Researchers did not ask permission from the store manager to conduct the survey. The questionnaire included a series of statements and the respondents were asked to indicate their degree of agreement with each statement. Responses were scored on a five-point scale: 1 for â€Å"strongly disagree†, 2 for â€Å"disagree†, 3 for â€Å"neutral†, 4 for â€Å"agree†, and 5 for â€Å"strongly agree†.All questions used in the survey pertaining to determinants of job satisfaction were derived from Ewen, Smith, and Hulin (1966), Graen (1966), Sergiovanni (1966), House and Wigdor (1967), Lindsay, Marks, and Gorlow (1967), Maidani (1991), Pizam and Ellis (1999), Klassen, Usher, and Bong (2010), and Tang et al. (2004). Linear regression analysis was performed to tes t the relationship between Herzberg's motivation-hygiene factors and job satisfaction. Further analysis was performed to assess to what extent the love of money mediates the relationship between money and job satisfaction.According to Baron and Kenny (1986), testing for mediation involves a four-step process. First, the relationship between the predictor variable and the criterion variable is examined to determine whether those two variables are correlated. Second, the relationship between predictor and mediator variables were examined to determine whether those variables correlate. Third, the relationship between the mediator and the predictor on the criterion variable, controlling for the predictor, is assessed to establish the effect of the mediator on the criterion variable.Fourth, the effect of the predictor on the criterion variable, controlling for the mediator, is examined to determine whether the mediator completely or partially mediates the relationship between the predict or and the criterion variable. The effects in both step 3 and 4 are estimated in the same equation to determine whether the beta levels change. If all four of these steps are fulfilled, then the mediator completely mediates the predictorcriterion relationship. If only the first three steps are satisfied, then partial mediation is shown. 80 The mediating effect of love of moneyMotivation levels of participants were measured using the scales developed by Ewen et al. (1966), Graen (1966), Sergiovanni (1966), House and Wigdor (1967), Lindsay et al (1967), Maidani (1991), and Pizam and Ellis (1999). For each factor, several questions were asked in order to compute an average and to enhance the accuracy of the measure. A person's attachment to money was measured using eight items and employees' satisfaction with their pay was measured using three items. Both of those scales were adopted from Tang et al. (2004). Job satisfaction was measured using four items from Klassen et al. 2010) (see Appendix 1). ANALYSIS AND RESULTS A reliability test was performed to check the consistency and accuracy of the measurement scales. Table 1 shows that the results of Cronbach's coefficient alpha were satisfactory (between 0. 70 and 0. 84), indicating questions in each construct are measuring a similar concept. As suggested by Cronbach (1951) and Nunnally (1978), the reliability coefficients between 0. 70–0. 90 are generally found to be internally consistent. Table 1 Testing reliability with Cronbach's coefficient alpha The job satisfaction factors Number of items Cronbach's alpha Achievement (AC) 0. 70 Recognition (R) 3 0. 71 Advancement (AD) 2 0. 70 Work Itself (W) 3 0. 72 Growth (G) 3 0. 71 Company Policy (P) 3 0. 72 Security at Work (S) 3 0. 76 Relations with Peers (RP) 3 0. 80 Money Factor (M) 2 0. 84 Relations with Supervisor (RS) 3 0. 74 Working Conditions (WC) 2 0. 80 Love Of Money Scale (LM) 8 0. 84 Pay Satisfaction (PS) 3 0. 80 Job Satisfaction (JS) 4 0. 75 Table 2 s hows the profile of respondents in terms of gender, age, ethnicity, education level, number of years of work experience, and monthly income. Of the 81 Tan Teck-Hong and Amna Waheed 152 respondents, 91 were men (59. %) and 61 were women (40. 1%). In terms of age, 73% of the respondents were between 15 and 24 years of age, 22% in the 25–35 age range, 3. 3% in the 35–44 age range, and 1. 3% aged 45 and above. Most respondents were Chinese (46%), followed by Malays (32. 2%), and Indians (21. 3%). The education level of 76. 3% of the respondents was below an undergraduate degree. In terms of number of years of work experience, most of the respondents had 5 years or less (79. 6%), followed by 6–10 years (16. 5%), and 10 years or above (3. 9%). As for the monthly income, 39. 5% of the respondents earned between RM1,000 and RM2,000, 37. % earned less than RM1,000, and 23% earned RM2,000 and above. In this survey, respondents were generally young and had received only a primary or secondary education, which is quite similar to the profile of the respondents in the study of Parsons and Broadbridge (2006). Because about three-fourths of the respondents were less than 25 years old, the analysis may not be generalizable to the whole population of sales personnel. Older salespeople may differ from their younger colleagues in attitudes, beliefs, behaviour, and attributes related to motivation and job satisfaction. Table 2Characteristics of the respondents Respondents' characteristics Number Percentages Male 91 59. 9% Female 61 40. 1% Gender Age 15–24 111 73% 25–35 34 22% 35–44 5 3. 3% 45 and above 2 1. 3% Malay 49 32. 2% Chinese 70 46% Indian 32 21. 3% 117 76. 3% 35 23. 7% Race Education Below Bachelor's degree Bachelor's degree and above (continued) 82 The mediating effect of love of money Table 2 (continued) Respondents' characteristics Number Percentages Years of Experience 0–5 years 121 79. 6% 6–10 years 25 16. 5% 6 3. 9% Below RM1000 57 37. 5% RM1000–2000 60 39. 5% RM2000 and above 35 23% 10 and above IncomeTable 3 presents the correlation matrix of the motivational factors and job satisfaction. Work itself (r = 0. 271) and recognition (r = 0. 055) correlated in a statistically significant manner with job satisfaction at the 0. 01 level, while only achievement (r = –0. 135) was significantly correlated to job satisfaction at the 0. 05 level. As far as hygiene factors are concerned, company policy (r = 0. 017), relationship with peers (r = 0. 381), money (r = 0. 383), and working conditions (r = 0. 376) were significantly and positively associated with satisfaction. Table 3 Correlation analysis Note: * Correlation is significant at the 0. 5 level (1-tailed); ** Correlation is significant at the 0. 01 level (1tailed) Regression analysis was conducted to determine the relationship between Herzberg's two-factor theory and job satisfaction in Malaysia. To assess whether the regressio n analysis suffers from multicollinearity, the variance inflation factor (VIF) was calculated. As indicated in Table 4, all VIF values are less than 5, indicating there is no multicollinearity problem in the model. The results suggested that 54% of the variance in job satisfaction in Malaysia could be explained by Herzberg's motivational and hygiene factors. The F-ratio of 14. 0 83 Tan Teck-Hong and Amna Waheed (p = 0. 00) indicated that the regression model of work motivation and satisfaction on the motivational variables assessed was statistically significant. The results also revealed that only four of the ten motivational variables were found to be significant in the Malaysian context. The analysis demonstrated that the most significant motivational variable of job satisfaction was the working condition s, indicating that salespeople value most the working environment provided by sales managers. Recognition was the second significant factor, followed by company policy, and the m oney factor.Of four main motivational variables of salespeople in Malaysia, only recognition was a significant motivator. The evidence is sufficient to conclude that hygiene factors are more effective than motivators in motivating salespeople in Malaysia. Table 4 Regression analysis (Dependent variable: Job Satisfaction) Motivational factors B Std. error t VIF AC .063 R .241* .113 .563 1. 758 .100 2. 416 1. 543 AD .039 .089 .440 1. 637 W .067 .088 .759 1. 601 G .019 .091 .215 1. 736 .215* P S RP RS M WC F .094 2. 283 2. 745 –. 060 .085 –. 702 2. 572 –. 059 .060 –. 984 1. 754 .073 –. 191 1. 574 .199** .073 2. 711 1. 03 .262** .091 2. 888 1. 555 –0. 14 14. 9 R2 .540 Adjusted R2 .504 Note: *significant at the 0. 05 level (1-tailed); ** significant at the 0. 01 level (1-tailed) Similarly, the problem of multi-collinearity was addressed before performing mediation analysis. Again, VIF values are less than 5 for the variables of money (M), love of money (LM), and pay satisfaction (PS). As shown in Table 4, money was one of the significant factors in motivating salespeople in terms of job satisfaction. However, there is a need to delve more deeply into the reasons that salespeople place such high importance on money.To provide a clearer picture of the role of salary, the general test for mediation was performed to examine whether there is a mediating variable affecting the relationship between the money factor and job satisfaction. As indicated in literature, the love of money 84 The mediating effect of love of money may explain why there is a strong relationship between money and job satisfaction. Based on Tang et al. (1992), pay satisfaction was used in this study to indicate job satisfaction. As pointed out by Lawler (1973), pay satisfaction usually influences the job satisfaction of workers.Following Baron and Kenny (1986), mediation analysis was used to assess whether the love of money mediates the relationship between m oney and pay satisfaction. The results in Table 5 show that money was significantly and positively related to pay satisfaction (significant at ;lt; 0. 01). The results of the regression test of money (predictor) on love of money (mediator) showed that money significantly correlated with love of money at the 0. 05 level. The results also showed that the effect of love of money (mediator) on pay satisfac tion (criterion) was significant at the 0. 05 level after controlling for the money variable (predictor).Finally, the effect of money (predictor) on pay satisfaction (criterion), controlling for the love of money (mediator), was also statistically significant. As a result, it is reasonable to believe that the love of money may explain why there is a relationship between the money factor and job satisfaction among salespeople in the retail sector. In this survey, salespeople who value money highly are satisfied with their salary and job when they receive a desired raise. Table 5 Testin g love of money (LM) as a mediator on the relationship between money (M) and pay satisfaction (PS) DV: PS DV: LM DV: PS w/o mediator) (w mediator) B M t B t B t 0. 510** 7. 234 0. 137* 2. 496 0. 168* 2. 042 0. 21** 2. 638 LM Note: *. significant at the 0. 05 level; ** significant at the 0. 01 level) DISCUSSION This paper examines what motivates sales personnel in the retail industry in Malaysia and examines their level of job satisfaction as a result of Herzberg ‘s hygiene factors and motivators. The first research question addresses whether motivators actually do lead to job satisfaction, as proclaimed by Herzberg in his study on sales personnel in Malaysia, and addresses whether hygiene factors contribute to job satisfaction. 5 Tan Teck-Hong and Amna Waheed The results obtained reveal that only four of the 11 determinants are found to be significant in the context of Malaysian retail workers. Contrary to the finding of Herzberg (1966), the analysis demonstrates that the stro ngest motivation factor with the highest significance level on job satisfaction in the women's clothing store was the working conditions, which is a hygiene factor. It was observed that retail outlets in the surveyed mall are air-conditioned and have music playing and that salespeople deem the stores to be comfortable.In line with the findings of Winer and Schiff (1980) and Lucas (1985), recognition, company policy, and the money factor seem to be important factors in motivating sales personnel in this survey. Of four significant factors, only recognition is a motivator as defined by Herzberg's two-factor theory. Therefore, it is observed that hygiene factors dominate the motivators in terms of job satisfaction among sales personnel in Malaysia. This observation is supported by Islam and Is mail (2008).They say that compared with American workers, Malaysian workers are generally more concerned about hygiene factors (money and working conditions) than about motivators (full appreciat ion of work done). Similar findings are also reported in Bangkok (Sithiphand, 1983) and Yemen (Al-Mekhlafie, 1991). This study observes the importance of money in the lives of sales personnel. The second research question examines whether the love of money mediates the relationship between money and pay satisfaction among employees in the retail sector. Similar to the findings of Tang et al. 2004), the love of money appears to be identified as a mediator influencing the relationship between money and job satisfaction. Sales personnel generally are not the highest paid people in Malaysia, and they may experience pay compression even if they have been in service for a long time. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Salespeople in Malaysia place greater emphasis on hygiene factors than motivators, namely working conditions, money and company policy. Among the motivators defined by Herzberg, only one – recognition – was found to be significant in this survey.The study also foun d that the love of money has a mediating effect on the relationship between money and job satisfaction. These findings suggest that any retail organization in Malaysia preparing a reward scheme may need to consider the four motivational factors of working conditions, recognition, company policy, and money and emphasize them over other motivational factors. Those four factors can be used to help improve job satisfaction, productivity and performance of salespeople.The main implication of this study is that sales managers and supervisors need to keep salespeople happy and take care of workers' concerns and needs. Satisfied 86 The mediating effect of love of money salespeople will talk about how great their j ob is and they will perform better in their jobs. That will result in retailers making higher profits due to customer satisfaction. Additionally, if retailers improve working conditions, employee turnover will be lower, which, in turn, will reduce the considerable costs that retai lers incur in training new salespeople.The importance of money to salespeople in the Malaysian retail sector is clearly shown in this study. Sales managers and supervisors should consider: 1. Providing salespeople with a flexible working schedule 2. Linking the performance of salespeople with the appropriate monetary rewards and incentives 3. Providing salespeople with opportunities to grow in their job In addition, the morale of salespeople can be improved if company policy toward salespeople is productive. A good policy can exert significant influence on how salespeople perform their jobs.For example, a company needs to build a strong sales culture as the first step to improving performance. Without the right sales culture, sales managers will not build a powerful sales force. In many smaller retail companies, the sales leader does not know how to build a sales force and relies heavily on hiring experienced salespeople in the hope that they will build the company. In mid-size and large-size retailers, the typical culture is â€Å"nothing matters but results†. Most of these sales managers want results but they do not adequately train or motivate the salespeople.If a company develops a strong sales culture, sales leaders and salespeople can work together successfully to achieve the company's goals. The results discussed here indicate that workers can be concurrently intrinsically and extrinsically motivated. With that in mind, managers should use a mixture of methods – including monetary rewards, praise and recognition – to effectively motivate workers and promote job satisfaction. LIMITATIONS AND FUTURE RESEARCH Given the scarcity of empirical studies on the Malaysian retailing industry, there is a need to undertake more research addressing the motivations of sales personnel.Although quantitative research was used in this study, it is believed that qualitative research would be beneficial in helping to enhance our understanding of how sal espeople are motivated. Observing employee behaviour and interviewing employees can enable researchers to gain insight that typically is difficult to acquire through quantitative analysis. The findings obtained from the questionnaire administered in this study are limited by the perceptions and opinions of the respondents. It is assumed that the respondents have answered the questions accurately and honestly. The findings 87Tan Teck-Hong and Amna Waheed apply only to sales personnel in Bandar Sunway in Selangor. This means that the results may not be generalizable to other regions in Malaysia. Future research needs to obtain information relating to sales personnel in other regions of Malaysia to permit a comparison of perceptions and expectations from salespeople throughout Malaysia. Additionally, further research could include a study comparing job satisfaction levels of salespeople in Malaysia and other countries. Another concern is that the questionnaires used in this study were available only in English.Although the respondents could understand English, it is recommended that in the future the questionnaire be translated into Malay, Chinese and Tamil to minimize the risks of misunderstanding and misinterpretation that might influence the results. It also must be noted that the research focuses only on Herzberg's theory. 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APPENDICES Appendix A Measurement scales of the study Factor Questions Motivators Achievement I am proud to work in this company because it recognizes my achievements I feel satisfied with my job because it gives me feeling of accomplishment I feel I have contributed towards my company in a positive manner Advancement I will choose career advancement rather than moneta ry incentives My job allows me to learn new skills for career advancement Work itself My work is thrilling and I have a lot of variety in tasks that I do I am empowered enough to do my jobMy job is challenging and exciting Recognition I feel appreciated when I achieve or complete a task My manager always thanks me for a job well done I receive adequate recognition for doing my job well Growth I am proud to work in my company because I feel I have grown as a person My job allows me to grow and develop as a person My job allows me to improve my experience, skills and performance Hygiene Factors Company policy The attitude of the administration is very accommodative in my company I am proud to work for this company because the company policy is favourable for its workersI completely understand the mission of my company (continued) 92 The mediating effect of love of money (continued) Factor Relationship with peers Questions It is easy to get along with my colleagues My colleagues are he lpful and friendly Colleagues are important to me Work security I believe safe working at my workplace I believe my job is secure My workplace is located in an area where I feel comfortable Relationship with supervisor I feel my performance has improved because of the support from my supervisor I feel satisfied at work because of my relationship with my supervis or My supervisors are strong and trustworthy leadersMoney I am encouraged to work harder because of my salary I believe my salary is fair Working conditions I feel satisfied because of the comfort I am provided at work Job Satisfaction I am satisfied with my job I am proud to work for my company because of the pleasant working conditions I am happy with the way my colleagues and superiors treat me I am satisfied with what I achieve at work I feel good at work Love of Money Money reinforces me to work harder I am motivated to work hard for money Money reflects my accomplishments Money is how we compare each otherMoney is a sy mbol of success for me Money reinforces me to work with more enthusiasm and vigor Money is attractive Money is an important factor in our lives Pay Satisfaction I am satisfied with my pay The pay I receive is appropriate for the work I do My pay is high in comparison to my colleagues pay for doing a similar job 93 Tan Teck-Hong and Amna Waheed Appendix B Conceptual Model Advancement Work Itself Achievement Recognition Job/Pay Safisfaction Working Condition Growth Love of Money Policy Peer Relationship Work Security Supervisor Relationship Money 94