Tuesday, August 6, 2019
Organisation Learning Essay Example for Free
Organisation Learning Essay Where Argyris and Schon were the first to propose models that facilitate organizational learning, the following literatures have followed in the tradition of their work: Argyris and Schon (1978) distinguish between single-loop and double-loop learning, related to Gregory Batesons concepts of first and second order learning. In single-loop learning, individuals, groups, or organizations modify their actions according to the difference between expected and obtained outcomes. In double-loop learning, the entities (individuals, groups or organization) question the values, assumptions and policies that led to the actions in the first place; if they are able to view and modify those, then second-order or double-loop learning has taken place. Double loop learning is the learning about single-loop learning. ?March and Olsen (1975) attempt to link up individual and organizational learning. In their model, individual beliefs lead to individual action, which in turn may lead to an organizational action and a response from the environment which may induce improved individual beliefs and the cycle then repeats over and over. Learning occurs as better beliefs produce better actions. ?Kim (1993), as well, in an article titled The link between individual and organizational learning, integrates Argyris, March and Olsen and another model by Kofman into a single comprehensive model; further, he analyzes all the possible breakdowns in the information flows in the model, leading to failures in organizational learning; for instance, what happens if an individual action is rejected by the organization for political or other reasons and therefore no organizational action takes place? ?Nonaka and Takeuchi (1995) developed a four stage spiral model of organizational learning. They started by differentiating Polanyis concept of tacit knowledge from explicit knowledge and describe a process of alternating between the two. Tacit knowledge is personal, context specific, subjective knowledge, whereas explicit knowledge is codified, systematic, formal, and easy to communicate. The tacit knowledge of key personnel within the organization can be made explicit, codified in manuals, and incorporated into new products and processes. This process they called externalization. The reverse process (from explicit to implicit) they call internalization because it involves employees internalizing an organizations formal rules, procedures, and other forms of explicit knowledge. They also use the term socialization to denote the sharing of tacit knowledge, and the term combination to denote the dissemination of codified knowledge. According to this model, knowledge creation and organizational learning take a path of socialization, externalization, combination, internalization, socialization, externalization, combination . . . etc. in an infinite spiral. ?Nick Bontis et al. (2002) empirically tested a model of organizational learning that encompassed both stocks and flows of knowledge across three levels of analysis: individual, team and organization. Results showed a negative and statistically significant relationship between the misalignment of stocks and flows and organizational performance. ?Flood (1999) discusses the concept of organizational learning from Peter Senge and the origins of the theory from Argyris and Schon. The author aims to re-think Senges The Fifth Discipline through systems theory. The author develops the concepts by integrating them with key theorists such as Bertalanffy, Churchman, Beer, Checkland and Ackoff. Conceptualizing organizational learning in terms of structure, process, meaning, ideology and knowledge, the author provides insights into Senge within the context of the philosophy of science and the way in which systems theorists were influenced by twentieth-century advances from the classical assumptions of science. ?Imants (2003) provides theory development for organizational learning in schools within the context of teachers professional communities as learning communities, which is compared and contrasted to teaching communities of practice. Detailed with an analysis of the paradoxes for organizational learning in schools, two mechanisms for professional development and organizational learning, (1) steering information about teaching and learning and (2) encouraging interaction among teachers and workers, are defined as critical for effective organizational learning. ?Common (2004) discusses the concept of organisational learning in a political environment to improve public policy-making. The author details the initial uncontroversial reception of organisational learning in the public sector and the development of the concept with the learning organization. Definitional problems in applying the concept to public policy are addressed, noting research in UK local government that concludes on the obstacles for organizational learning in the public sector: (1) overemphasis of the individual, (2) resistance to change and politics, (3) social learning is self-limiting, i.e. individualism, and (4) political blame culture. The concepts of policy learning and policy transfer are then defined with detail on the conditions for realizing organizational learning in the public sector. Organizational knowledge What is the nature of knowledge created, traded and used in organizations? Some of this knowledge can be termed technical ? knowing the meaning of technical words and phrases, being able to read and make sense of economic data and being able to act on the basis of law-like generalizations. Scientific knowledge is ?propositional; it takes the form of causal generalizations ? whenever A, then B. For example, whenever water reaches the temperature of 100 degrees, it boils; whenever it boils, it turns into steam; steam generates pressure when in an enclosed space; pressure drives engines. And so forth. A large part of the knowledge used by managers, however, does not assume this form. The complexities of a managers task are such that applying A may result in B, C, or Z. A recipe or an idea that solved very well a particular problem, may, in slightly different circumstances backfire and lead to ever more problems. More important than knowing a whole lot of theories, recipes and solutions for a manager is to know which theory, recipe or solution to apply in a specific situation. Sometimes a manager may combine two different recipes or adapt an existing recipe with some important modification to meet a situation at hand. Managers often use knowledge in the way that a handyman will use his or her skills, the materials and tools that are at hand to meet the demands of a particular situation. Unlike an engineer who will plan carefully and scientifically his or her every action to deliver the desired outcome, such as a steam engine, a handyman is flexible and opportunistic, often using materials in unorthodox or unusual ways, and relies a lot on trial and error. This is what the French call ? bricolage, the resourceful and creative deployment skills and materials to meet each challenge in an original way. Rule of thumb, far from being the enemy of management, is what managers throughout the world have relied upon to inform their action. In contrast to the scientific knowledge that guides the engineer, the physician or the chemist, managers are often informed by a different type of know-how. This is sometimes referred to a ? narrative knowledge or ? experiential knowledge, the kind of knowledge that comes from experience and resides in stories and narratives of how real people in the real world dealt with real life problems, successfully or unsuccessfully. Narrative knowledge is what we use in everyday life to deal with awkward situations, as parents, as consumers, as patients and so forth. We seek the stories of people in the same situation as ourselves and try to learn from them. As the Chinese proverb says A wise man learns from experience; a wiser man learns from the experience of others. Narrative knowledge usually takes the form of organization stories (see organization story and organizational storytelling). These stories enable participants to make sense of the difficulties and challenges they face; by listening to stories, members of organizations learn from each others experiences, adapt the recipes used by others to address their own difficulties and problems. Narrative knowledge is not only the preserve of managers. Most professionals (including doctors, accountants, lawyers, business consultants and academics) rely on narrative knowledge, in addition to their specialist technical knowledge, when dealing with concrete situations as part of their work. More generally, narrative knowledge represents an endlessly mutating reservoir of ideas, recipes and stories that are traded mostly by word or mouth on the internet. They are often apocryphal and may be inaccurate or untrue yet, they have the power to influence peoples sense making and actions. Individual versus organizational learning Learning by individuals in an organizational context is a well understood process. This is the traditional domain of human resources, including activities such as: training, increasing skills, work experience, and formal education. Given that the success of any organization is founded on the knowledge of the people who work for it, these activities will and, indeed, must continue. However, individual learning is only a prerequisite to organizational learning. Others take it farther with continuous learning. The world is orders of magnitude more dynamic than that of our parents, or even when we were young. Waves of change are crashing on us virtually one on top of another. Change has become the norm rather than the exception. Continuous learning throughout ones career has become essential to remain relevant in the workplace. Again, necessary but not sufficient to describe organizational learning. What does it mean to say that an organization learns? Simply summing individual learning is inadequate to model organizational learning. The following definition outlines the essential difference between the two: A learning organization actively creates, captures, transfers, and mobilizes knowledge to enable it to adapt to a changing environment. Thus, the key aspect of organizational learning is the interaction that takes place among individuals. A learning organization does not rely on passive or ad hoc process in the hope that organizational learning will take place through serendipity or as a by-product of normal work. A learning organization actively promotes, facilitates, and rewards collective learning. Creating (or acquiring) knowledge can be an individual or group activity. However, this is normally a small-scale, isolated activity steeped in the jargon and methods of knowledge workers. As first stated by Lucilius in the 1st century BC, Knowledge is not knowledge until someone else knows that one knows. Capturing individual learning is the first step to making it useful to an organization. There are many methods for capturing knowledge and experience, such as publications, activity reports, lessons learned, interviews, and presentations. Capturing includes organizing knowledge in ways that people can find it; multiple structures facilitate searches regardless of the users perspective (e. g. , who, what, when, where, why,and how). Capturing also includes storage in repositories, databases, or libraries to insure that the knowledge will be available when and as needed. Transferring knowledge requires that it be accessible to everyone when and where they need it. In a digital world, this involves browser-activated search engines to find what one is looking for. A way to retrieve content is also needed, which requires a communication and network infrastructure. Tacit knowledge may be shared through communities of practice or consulting experts. It is also important that knowledge is presented in a way that users can understand it. It must suit the needs of the user to be accepted and internalized. Mobilizing knowledge involves integrating and using relevant knowledge from many, often diverse, sources to solve a problem or address an issue. Integration requires interoperability standards among various repositories. Using knowledge may be through simple reuse of existing solutions that have worked previously. It may also come through adapting old solutions to new problems. Conversely, a learning organization learns from mistakes or recognizes when old solutions no longer apply. Use may also be through synthesis; that is creating a broader meaning or a deeper level of understanding. Clearly, the more rapidly knowledge can be mobilized and used, the more competitive an organization. An organization must learn so that it can adapt to a changing environment. Historically, the life-cycle of organizations typically spanned stable environments between major socioeconomic changes. Blacksmiths who didnt become mechanics simply fell by the wayside. More recently, many fortune 500 companies of two decades ago no longer exist. Given the ever-accelerating rate of global-scale change, the more critical learning and adaptation become to organization relevance, success, and ultimate survival. Organizational learning is a social process, involving interactions among many individuals leading to well-informed decision making. Thus, a culture that learns and adapts as part of everyday working practices is essential. Reuse must equal or exceed reinvent as a desirable behavior. Adapting an idea must be rewarded along with its initial creation. Sharing to empower the organization must supersede controlling to empower an individual. Clearly, shifting from individual to organizational learning involves a non-linear transformation. Once someone learns something, it is available for their immediate use. In contrast, organizations need to create, capture, transfer, and mobilize knowledge before it can be used. Although technology supports the latter, these are primarily social processes within a cultural environment, and cultural change, however necessary, is a particularly challenging undertaking. Learning organization The work in Organizational Learning can be distinguished from the work on a related concept, the learning organization. This later body of work, in general, uses the theoretical findings of organizational learning (and other research in organizational development, system theory, and cognitive science) in order to prescribe specific recommendations about how to create organizations that continuously and effectively learn. This practical approach was championed by Peter Senge in his book The Fifth Discipline. Diffusion of innovations Diffusion of innovations theory explores how and why people adopt new ideas, practices and products. It may be seen as a subset of the anthropological concept of diffusion and can help to explain how ideas are spread by individuals, social networks and organizations.
Monday, August 5, 2019
Motivations for Reading Online Blogs
Motivations for Reading Online Blogs 1. Introduction Computer mediated communication (CMC) has brought about a great shift in the way we interact and look for information (Papacharissi and Rubin, 2000). Using the internet, today, users have access to thousands of sources, get information that is presented in a wide range of formats, and can also interact with people anywhere in the world. With the turn of the new millennium there has been a fundamental shift in the way people all over the world communicate even using the internet. This phenomenal change has occurred with the arrival of the Web 2.0 technology which has enabled increased amount of interaction and community formation. Of all the Web 2.0 applications, one of the most interesting and rising Web 2.0 innovations is weblogs, popularly referred to as blogs. Blogs are frequently-updated websites by the owner of the site, where multimedia content can be posted. Blogs form a new genre of computer-mediated communication (Blood, 2002). Blog posts are generally in the reverse chronological order and the older posts can be archived. Readers of blogs can comment, rate, bookmark or link to the blog. Such linking forms an entire network of highly connected people (Wilde, 2007). This clustered network of interconnected texts form what is called the â‚ ¬Ã…“blogosphereâ‚ ¬?. Simply put, the blogosphere comprises of groups of authors of content and their readers/ users. Blogs are rising in popularity. The total number of blogs in Technorati, a popular blog indexing site had reached a 133 million mark by 2008, with 900,000 blog posts in 24 hours (Sifry, 2008). With such exponential growth, in recent times the academia and industry has taken good notice of the medium. Research has been conducted on blog writer and reader motivations and final behaviour (Huang, Chou Lin, 2008). Studies say that motivation is a function of intrinsic and extrinsic factors (Guay, Vallerand Blanchard, 2000). Hence one can infer that motivation to use a blog will change with the type of blog. However, studies have not considered blog user motivations in the context of the blog types. Not much academic research has been done in studying blog readers (Huang, Chou Lin, 2008). This research is an attempt at developing an understanding of the motivations behind reading of blogs, in relation to different types of blogs. The present study aims at understanding the key drivers that motivate blog reading among Indians and hence develop a model which clearly brings out the association of these motivating factors with various types of blogs. The classification of blogs will be on the basis of reader perception. Hence, it is expected that the study will help developing a consumer-centric classification schema for blogs. Existing literature in the area of blogs indicates that little research has happened in this field. However, of whatever work has been done, most of the research focuses on the blog itself or on the blogger, and very rarely on the blog reader (Huang et al., 2008). This section talks about the existing body of knowledge on blogs. Huang et al., (2008), have suggested a good way of classifying the existing academic research on blogs. They say that â‚ ¬Ã…“previous research of blogs has investigated blog categories, motives for use, or motives for writing. Scholars also consider readers responses after reading blogs, such as trust and interactionâ‚ ¬? (p. 351). There are even studies done on the structural and systems aspects of blogs (Wilde, 2008; Herring, Scheidt, Wright Bonus, 2005; Schmidt, 2007) and blogging benefits (Baker and Moore, 2008). Looking at studies that have gone into the details of blog categories, a lot of work has been done by blog authors themselves (Herring, Scheidt, Wright Bonus, 2005). Some of the most important ones which are oft-quoted in literature are those of Blood (2002), Krishnamurthy (2002) and Herring et al. (2005), who have all significantly contributed to the field of classification of blogs. Blood (2002) classified blogs into three types on the basis of their functions as filters, personal journals and notebooks. Krishnamurthy (2002) went on to classify blogs into four types using two dimensions of a blogs orientation: personal versus topical and community versus individual. Herring, Scheidt, Wright, and Bonus (2005) used Krishnamurthys categorization and further developed a five-category scheme for classification of blogs on the basis of frequency of updating. Dearstyne (2005) suggests five types of blogs based on their uses. Corry and Mundell (2006) have arrived at a certain blog classification scheme on the basis of the purpose of existence of the blogs. However, all these classifications have either come from content analysis of blogs and do not take the readers view into consideration for classifying. There has been a lot of research done on specific genres of blogs. Apart from analyses of personal blogs, extensive research has been done on journalist blogs (Haas, 2005; Lasica, 2002; Matheson, 2004; Tremayne, 2006). Political blogs form another interesting topic of reserahc (Bahnisch, 2006; Bruns, 2007; Singer, 2005). A growing area of research is the role of blogs as organizational communication vehicle through corporate blogs (Charman, 2006; Efimova Grudin, 2007; Kaiser, MÃÆ' ¼ller-Seitz, Pereira, Pina, 2007; Kelleher Miller, 2006). Yet another practical use of blogs that is being studied is its use for expert communication and personal knowledge management (Ewins, 2005; Halavais, 2006; Walker, 2006) or professionals from other disciplines (Bar-Ilan, 2005). A second set of research work has been done on the blog users in general and their behavioural patterns. Numerous researchers have tried to look into what are the various factors that go into what users of blog do. Bloggers use blogs for several reasons including using it as a personal journal, as a discussion space, as a collection of links, as an opinion center among many others (Figueredo, 2005). It may be inferred that, due to its multifarious uses, there may be numerous motivations, both intrinsic and extrinsic, that lead to blog usage (Huang, Shen, Lin Chang, 2007). Baker and Moore (2008) have studied the perception of social well-being, social support and social satisfaction of bloggers as against those of non-bloggers. They found that bloggers social integration, reliable alliance and friendship satisfaction increased significantly compared to non-bloggers, suggesting that blogging has beneficial effects on social well-being, especially with respect to perceived social support. Trevino (2005) has tried to study the reasons why people are in the blogosphere concluded that the most important factor motivating peoples presence in the blogosphere is that self-expression. Shen and Chiou (2009) study the aspects that go into blog community formation and the factors which cause an individual to be a part of the blog community. They say that community identification increases willingness to be a part of the community thereby positively influencing an individuals attitude towards the community to remain a member of the community. There is another body of knowledge which discusses the issue of trust and self-disclosure on blogs (e.g., Qian and Scott, 2007; Ko and Kuo, 2009). Qian and Scott (2007) explore the issues of anonymity and self-disclosure on blogs. This study concludes that bloggers whose target audience does not include people they know offline report a higher degree of anonymity than those whose audience does. Ko and Kuo (2009) reveal that â‚ ¬Ã…“self-disclosure of bloggers significantly and directly affects a bloggers perception of social integration, bonding social capital, and bridge social capital, which in turn promote bloggers subjective well-being.â‚ ¬? A subset of research on blog users is those on blog writers or bloggers. Some researchers have tried to understand bloggers motivations in great depth (e.g.. Blood, 2002; Blumenthal, 2005; Herring, Scheidt, Wright Bonus, 2005; Lenhart and Fox, 2006; Huang, Shen, Lin Chang, 2007). However, Nardi, Schiano, Gumbrecht and Swartz (2004) analysed this issue in detail. They conducted ethnographic interviews and concluded that bloggers have five fundamental motivations that drive them to blog: â‚ ¬Ã…“to document their life experiences, to provide commentary and opinions, to express deeply felt emotions, to articulate ideas through writing, and to form and maintain community forums. Huang, Shen, Lin Chang (2007) conducted an empirical study which concluded that interaction by blogging is driven by the motivations of self-expression, life documenting, and commenting while on the other hand, content gathering by blogging is found to be driven by the motivations of commenting, forum participation, and information seeking. They also went on to say that these motivations drive two types of behaviour: interaction-oriented behaviour and information-oriented behaviour. There is also an attempt at understanding self-presentation strategies that blog writers adopt (Jung, Youn McClung, 2007). This study shows that the reasons for hosting personal mini-homepages are entertainment and self-expression followed by the professional advancement and passing time. According to the uses and gratification theory, users are seen as active gratification seekers interacting with the media as opposed to passive recipients of media content (Goffman, 1959). Having said this, blog readers are consuming content, and have the choice to read content that they want to at any given point of time. While all the above mentioned areas of research lay huge emphasis on the blogger, the blog reader, who forms an important component of the blogosphere, has been sparsely researched on (Huang, Chou Lin, 2008). Huang, Chou Lin (2008) tried to study the fundamental motivators behind reading blogs. This research work has arrived at a causal relationship of motives with blog reader responses. After secondary research and exploratory research, the authors have used five distinct motives in their study: affective exchange, information search, entertainment, and getting on the bandwagon. The behaviours that the paper proposes are opinion acceptance, interaction intentions, and word-of-mouth (WOM) intentions. While looking at the existing literature on blog user behaviour (both blogger and blog readers), it has been found that most of the blogs are of the personal blogs type. However, researchers have not tried to explore behaviour on the basis of blog type. From the above literature review, it is evident that there is a void in the area of research that concerns blog readers as a category of individuals on the blogosphere. Also, there is no work that has tried to bring a readers dimension to classification of blogs. Hence, this study will aim at bringing about a relationship between the motivating factors for reading blogs and the various types of blogs that may eventually emerge from the blog-consumers perspective. 3. Problem Definition This research aims to study the various factors that motivate reading of blogs corresponding to the various types of blogs that exist. This is a study that will be conducted among Indian blog readers. 3.1. Research objectives The key objective of the study is to identify factors affecting blog-reading and try mapping them to the various types of blogs in order to better understand motivators that drive reading through this new medium. This main objective can be achieved through the following objectives. * To identify the various drivers that motivate blog-reading among Indian * To develop a customer-centric blog classification schema on the basis of these drivers 4. Proposed Research Methodology 4.1. Research Design The research design will largely be a combination of exploratory and descriptive methods. Since the model cannot be built without further exploratory research, the study will have a mix of qualitative and quantitative techniques. The study will be conducted in two stages. The first stage will involve exploratory research which will help arrive at the factors that motivate reading of blogs. The output of this stage of the research, i.e., the list of motivators would be the input for the next stage which would involve quantitative validation of the factors using a semi-structured questionnaire. Stage 1: This involves understanding the motivating factors for blog reading in order to make a comprehensive list. This list of factors would be obtained from  · Analysis of secondary data This involves collecting the list of motivating factors in existing literature in the area of blog reading and general online reading.  · Primary research: In-depth interviews To determine the various factors that influence blog reading among online users in a manner that facilitates respondents to interact freely while giving the interviewer also the scope to probe deeply. Stage 2: This is the point where descriptive research is carried out. This is done to understand the most important motivating factors associated with different classes of blogs.  · Primary research: Semi-Structured Questionnaire The questionnaire would carry the factors determined at stage 1 which would be rated by the respondents. Administration of the questionnaire to the respondents would be done online. 4.2. Proposed Method of Analysis After the questionnaire is administered and the responses, collected, data analysis has to be done in order to arrive at the final model that the research proposes to develop. The following analytical tools will be used in order to arrive at the motivational model.  · Factor Analysis: Factor analysis has been proposed in order to arrive at the most important set of motives for reading blogs after the exploratory research.  · Regression: The factors and their relationship with different blog types can be determined through regression. 4.3. Universe Definition The following are the specifications of the target group. SEC: A, B Age: 15 30 Element: Indian male or female individual having access to internet at home,                                           college or workplace who are readers of blogs. Place: India 4.4. Sampling Structure The sampling unit in this case is individuals. The sample design is described separately for the two stages as follows. Stage 1: Qualitative Study  · Sampling Technique Purposive sampling would be used for conducting the depth interview.  · Sample Size This would be conducted among 9 individuals.  · Sampling Plan The respondents would be blog readers selected from the city of Ahmedabad. Recruiting will be done on the basis of respondents frequency of reading blogs. Hence there will be three categories of blog readers with 3 individuals in each category extremely regular, moderately regular and irregular readers of blogs. Stage 2: Quantitative Study  · Sampling Technique Snowball Sampling would be used for administering the questionnaire. Taking the route of references will ensure response.  · Sample Size The proposed sample size for the study will be approximately 200. Depending on the number of variables in the final model, the sample size will undergo change.  · Sampling Plan The geographic dispersion will be taken care of at the stage of online administration of the questionnaire to account for the four major zones (North, South, East West) of India. 5. Expected Contribution So far, research has seen blogs mainly from the blog writers perspective. There is almost a dearth of academic research in the about blog readers. This research will contribute to bridging this gap in knowledge. Existing research talks about blog reading motivations without taking blog types into consideration. By taking blog types also into account, this research adds a very important dimension to the existing knowledge. There has been no published, academic research done on blogging behaviour in India. Being specific to Indian blog-readers, the will add to the Indian academic body of knowledge. 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Blogging, Citizenship, and the Future of Media. New York:              Routledge.Bahnisch, M. (2006). The political uses of blogs. In A. Bruns J. Jacobs              (Eds.), Uses of Blogs, 139-149. New York: Peter Lang. Trevino, E. M. (2005). Blogger motivations: Power, pull, and positive feedback. Internet              Research, www.blog.erickamenchen.net. Walker, J. (2006). Blogging from inside the ivory tower. In A. Bruns J. Jacobs (Eds.),              Uses of Blogs. 127-138. New York: Peter Lang. Wilde, E. (2008). Deconstructing blogs. Online Information Review, Volume: 32,Issue: 3,              401 414.
Sunday, August 4, 2019
Euthanasia and Futile Care :: Euthanasia Physician Assisted Suicide
Euthanasia and "Futile Care" Imagine visiting your 85-year-old mother in the hospital after she has a debilitating stroke. You find out that, in order to survive, she requires a feeding tube and antibiotics to fight an infection. She once told you that no matter what happened, she wants to live. But the doctor refuses further life-sustaining treatment. When you ask why, you are told, in effect, "The time has come for your mother to die. All we will provide is comfort care." Sound far-fetched? It's not. It's already happening. Just as doctors once hooked people up to machines against their will, now many bioethicists advocate that doctors be permitted to refuse life-sustaining treatment that a patient wants but that they deem "futile" or "inappropriate." Alarmingly, hospitals in California and throughout the country have begun to implement these "futile-care" policies that state, in effect: "We reserve the right to refuse service." Medical and bioethics journals for several years kept up a drumbeat advocating the implementation of medical futility policies that hospitals -- for obvious reasons -- don't publicize. The mainstream news media have generally ignored the threat. As a consequence, members of the public and their elected representatives remain in the dark as "futilitarians" become empowered to hand down unilateral death sentences. Indeed, futile-care policies are implemented so quietly that no one knows their extent. No one has made a systematic study of how many patients' lives have been lost or whether futile-care decisions were reached according to hospital policies or the law. The idea behind futile care goes like this: The patient wants life- sustaining treatment; the physician does not believe the quality of the patient's life justifies the costs to the health institution or the physical and emotional burdens of care; therefore, the doctor is entitled to refuse further treatment (other than comfort care) as "futile" or "inappropriate." Treatments withheld under this policy might include antibiotics to treat infection, medicines for fever reduction, tube feeding and hydration, kidney dialysis or ventilator support. Of course, physicians have never been -- nor should they be -- required to provide medical interventions that provide no medical benefit. For example, if a patient demands chemotherapy to treat an ulcer, the physician should refuse. Such a "treatment" would have no medical benefit. But this kind of "physiological futility," as it is sometimes called, is not what modern futile-care theory is all about.
Saturday, August 3, 2019
Free Will Versus Determinism Essay -- essays research papers
Free Will Versus Determinism The controversy between free will and determinism has been argued about for years. What is the difference between the two? Looking in a dictionary, free will is the power, attributed to human beings, of making free choices that are unconstrained by external circumstances or by an agency such as fate or divine will. Free will allows free choice. Yet, determinism is the total opposite. Determinism has this definition: The philosophical doctrine that every event, act, and decision is the inescapable consequence of antecedents that are independent of the human will. Determinism states that humans have no free will to choose what they wish. That seems real extreme and harsh. Even though this is what determinism is, doesn't mean that the determinists are trying to steal your freedom. It's only what they believe because of religion and cause and effect. In religion, many people believe in the existence of a god supports determinism. The basis of god is that he is all-knowing and all-powerful. If free will is allowed, there would be decisions and actions in which God could not know due to the person's choice. This would limit God's omnipotence, which is unacceptable to some. The other argument for determinism is causation, or causes and effects. This argument depends on relationships that should happen with the same results every time, such as a baseball breaking a window, breaking the window. Basing on this, everything in the universe has a cause. And if all the causes and the events were known, then it would be possible to easily predict the future. If everything can be foreseen, then this proves that nothing that anyone does can change the courses of the future. This, of course, is not possible. Determinism says that what you do can be the cause of what your life turns out to be. This can be true. Yet, you can act otherwise that would steer you off that path of where your life was heading. Common sense tells us that we can change, which determinism opposes to. It also says that if we feel we are not forced, we could have acted differently. That is why I choose to side with free will. Determinism has too many extremes and limits that, already shown, is not possible in this world. Free will is the mind's ability to choose with intelligence. That doesn't mean that our choice has all the freedom in the world. Our choices cannot and ob... ...ermined by previous events. Therefore we can not change our behavior. Previous events do affects us; we cannot ignore that. But, like the previous examples, if the previous events' consequences were not good, we would mostly likely change, unless that individual was deranged. These arguments on free will definitely does not pertain to all people. Everyone is different. Yet mostly likely, individuals think towards free will. An implication to determinism is that man becomes nothing more than a puppet. That may sound cruel, but it is true. Under the rules of determinism, man must go by past events, doing the same thing he did in the past, right or wrong. He can not change his behavior, unable to let out his emotions. The man has become a puppet, being controlled and restricted. And in everyday life, determinism does not exist in most lives. It is logical and reasonable to say that the all of free will is a measure of our humanness. Whatever we choose will effect our future. But we will base our decisions on what we feel is right, taking in our moral feelings. Free will is a measure of self-determination that people feel themselves to possess and by which they make moral judgments.
Friday, August 2, 2019
Lacanian Mirror Stage: Oedipus the King :: Oedipus the King Oedipus Rex
Lacanian Mirror Stage: Oedipus the King The essence of this paper is to determine whether or not Jocasta played a more important role in the rise and fall of the title character. The paper will examine the play Oedipus Tyrannus through the eyes of the French theorist Jacques Lacan. Specifically the paper will focus on the mirror stage of Lacan's theories. As to the criteria that the paper will use, there are some "truths" that need to be established about the Lacanian division of thinking. In Lacan's way of thought, we all have repressed desires, and these desires can never be fulfilled. In language, there are similar"eternal desires" that cannot be satiated. Lacan carries this further in identifying the patriarchal society with which we live in as being founded on men's words. Therefore, women have no voice in this world and cannot be satisfied in their life times. For one to better understand Jocasta's character, one must have a knowledge of Lacanian theory, on which it is based. Lacan's mirror stage, originally espoused by Freud, and its relationship to the conscious and un- consciousness. Freud believed that when a baby looked at an image of him/herself in a mirror, they would at a certain point in their development "realize" that the reflection was him/herself they were seeing. It is at this moment in a child's life that the "ego" is formed, or the formation of a "self-awareness". This ego is present in all people; it serves as a reminder of who we are and where we came from. However, Freud reasoned that to be a fully developed human, we must move on from the simple realization that we are ourselves. We must know or come to know that we aren't the only ones in the mirror. The "child," our selves and our egos, must also realize that our "mother" is there in the reflection with us. In doing so we begin to understand that we are not the only ones in the image, and therefore, not the center of being. Moreover, we "turn" to our mothers and look at them, breaking the egotistic stare. It is the ability to break the primary concern of viewing ourselves that allows us to move into society. We must be able to break that self concerned stare and focus it on our "Mothers" or society as it were. Thus constitutes the mirror stage of Freud's theory.
Survey In Forensic Toxicology Health And Social Care Essay
The province of alcoholism and the blood intoxicant concentration of a individual at the clip of decease can sometimes be hard to construe due to the assorted post-mortem artefacts that can change the true ante-mortem blood intoxicant concentration. The opportunity of intoxicant being produced in the organic structure after decease is a continuously encountered issue in everyday casework [ 2 ] . The status and province of the organic structure, the clip between decease and sample aggregation, the environmental conditions and besides the type of samples collected, preserved and analyzed are all of import factors that should be considered carefully during reading. Under certain status ethyl alcohol can be produced after decease by agitation of glucose and due to bacterial activity [ 3,4 ] . Some illustrations in which the blood ethanol concentration at the clip of decease can be altered are: The possibility of ethanol production in the organic structure after decease or after sample aggregation due to microbic production ; If ethanol remains in the tummy after decease, the possibility is of continued local diffusion into the environing tissue and blood is raised ; In instances of caput injury which has rendered a individual unconscious for a few hours prior to decease, the blood ethanol concentration during this clip continues to diminish due to metamorphosis in the liver. Some other instances that may be debatable to cover with are instances where the organic structures are recovered from H2O in which the possibility of sample dilution can play a important function [ 2 ] . These are merely a few illustrations of the many possibilities that can change ethanol concentration and do reading of post-mortem ethanol concentration really hard. It is hence of great importance in forensic post-mortem ethanol instances to execute accurate and precise analysis for ethyl alcohol, to utilize the optimum specimen and to cognize the restrictions and significance of ethanol findings in these specimens [ 5 ] . The optimum specimen picks, aggregation site, and preservatives, every bit good as the deductions and reading of ethanol findings in post-mortem ethyl alcohol instances will be discussed in this paper.2. Postmortem Specimen for analysis of Ethanol.In malice of the troubles encountered with post-mortem ethanol consequences, an necropsy offers the chance to roll up specimens that are non readily available in ante-mortem cases.A A In add-on to trying blood from different vascular sites and piss, samples collected from vitreous wit and stomachic contents every bit good as musculus, encephalon and liver tissues, cerebrospinal fluids and gall are all possible during necropsy. Although there is a possibility to roll up and analyse ex tra specimens during post-mortem ethanol analyses, this will merely partially counterbalance for the increased interpretative troubles encountered by the assorted post-mortem artifacts.A A It is hence necessary to use a greater grade of cautiousness during the reading of post-mortem ethanol consequences and to take into history the entirety of the information obtained. A individual post-mortem blood ethyl alcohol concentration is by and large uninterpretable without a coincident piss and/or vitreous wit ethanol concentration ; therefore it is of import that every bit good as information sing the instance history and inside informations gathered from the scene of decease [ 1 ] .A A Due to this it is of import alternate specimen should ever be collected and analyses in order to right and safely confirm ante- mortem ethanol ingestion. In this chapter the different types of specimen used for post-mortem ethanol analyses every bit good as there deductions and restrictions will be discussed.2.1 Blood Alcohol ConcentrationAlthough there are multiple samples available for aggregation at necropsy for toxicological analysis of ethyl alcohol, blood is a important in leting valid decision of whether the deceased has consumed intoxicant and was under influence at the clip of decease. The basic information required, on construing the blood intoxicant concentration in post-mortem samples harmonizing to Plueckhahn [ 6 ] , who has researched the reading of the blood intoxicant concentration extensively, are: The site of aggregation of the blood sample ; The clip after decease and province of the organic structure when the specimen was collected ; The storage status of the sample, the preservative used, and the clip elapsed before analysis ; The method used for analysis of the sample. Furthermore in add-on to the above, one might besides see the status and visual aspect of the blood sample such as the odor, colour, fluidness and/or the presence of blood fabrics. Despite the fact that blood from a femoral vena is the recommended specimen to be collected for toxicological analysis, some diagnostician still be given to subject cardiac blood or worse fluid scooped from the thorax and or plural pit as a replacement for the appropriate specimen [ 7 ] . This questionable manner of roll uping samples increases the potency for taint of ethyl alcohol entered by the lung due to inspiration of tummy content or ethyl alcohol which might hold diffused from the tummy in to the environing tissue. Blood from the femoral vena is least susceptible to postmortem alterations and as stated earlier the recommended specimen of pick for toxicological analysis. Additionally blood from the interior integral Chamberss of the bosom is besides suited as a auxiliary specimen to compare with femoral blood intoxicant concentration or when there is limited sum of femoral blood available to roll up and/ or analyse [ 8 ] . Furthermore Arterial blood is up to 40 % higher in eth anol concentration during the absorbent stage compared to venous blood, whereas there is undistinguished difference between the two 1s the intoxicant has reached the station optical density stage. Therefore blood from the big vass or bosom may demo differences compared to blood from other beginnings due to incomplete distribution [ 9 ] . This difference was shown by comparing cardiac blood with femoral blood, in which 35 out of 51 instances, had a bosom intoxicant blood was that was by and large higher, with the highest difference observed being 0.09/dL [ 10 ] . Poutry and Anderson [ 11 ] , besides analyzed cardiac and femoral blood in 100 instances, nevertheless, found bosom to femoral ratios being near 0.98. In 17 instances at that place were differences of greater than 20 % between the two in which merely 6 with a bosom to femoral ratio greater than 1. These 6 instances were either in early phases of soaking up or the femoral intoxicant blood degree was unnaturally low due to low volume specimen available in the sample tubing. Harmonizing to this survey circulation equilibrium occurs quickly, which means that differences in blood beginnings occur merely in rare post-mortem instances. This does n't intend that important differences can non happen, particularly in instances affecting possible decomposition, injury a nd in instances of recent consumption when the deceased has been in the soaking up stage and equilibrium has non set in anterior to decease. Because hazard of taint of bosom and upper organic structure blood beginnings, it is recommended to get and analyse blood from a femoral vena [ 2 ] . Some writers even province that the blood straight taken from the chest pit or from a unsighted needle stick into the thorax, is the worst possible sample that can be taken [ 2 ] . The necessary blood intoxicant concentration to do decease is often an unfastened inquiry and depends much on the individual ‘s gender, age, overall wellness, imbibing experience and developed tolerance [ 9 ] .2. Collection and Storage of Specimen for Ethanol Analysis.Among forensic toxicologists and analytical chemists the normally used quoted proverb, that is peculiarly valid in the field of post-mortem forensic toxicology, which emphasizes that right specimen aggregation is the most of import measure in drug analysis is that: â€Å" the analytical consequence will ne'er be better than the sample from which is was derived â€Å" [ 2,6 ] . The intent of roll uping organic structure fluids and executing forensic analytical analysis for ethyl alcohol is to find the significance, if any, of ethyl alcohol in a forensic probe. Not merely the check used to find ethyl alcohol in de samples should be precise, accurate and specific, but the penetrations given should supply information as to whether the measured ethyl alcohol degrees are basically the same as when they were collected [ 5 ] . The concern of possible ethanol loss or addition in clinical or forensic probe at changing times after the specimen was collected is an inevitable factor encountered in many instances affecting the finding of ethyl alcohol. Furthermore post-mortem samples present an extra challenge: does the measured ethanol concentration reflect the concentration at the clip the deceased passed? There are several factors that play a important function in replying these inquiries. In this paragraph the principle and processs for properly aggregation and cont inuing post-mortem specimen will be discussed and categorized in three bomber bunchs ; 1.The loss of ethyl alcohol, 2.The production ethyl alcohol and last but non least 3.The saving of the gathered specimen for ethanol analysis.2.1 The loss of EthanolThe loss of ethyl alcohol from collected specimen has been a concern and a ground for probe for most of the history of forensic toxicology. To day of the month, three major theories are used to explicate the loss of ethyl alcohol from the gathered biological specimen. These include 1. Vaporization, 2. Oxidation and 3. The action of micro-organisms.A. Vaporization
Thursday, August 1, 2019
How sharing of findings affects practice Essay
Serious case reviews and inquiries are required to identify how, when and why a child has died from abuse or neglect. These reviews identify the way in which organisations and local professionals have worked both together and separately to safeguard, protect and promote the welfare of children and young people. These reviews also help to identify how these organisations could have worked better to ensure that this doesn’t happen again to another child. Victoria Climbie was born 2nd November 1991. She was brought to the UK in 1999 by her aunty, who the authorities thought was her mother, when she was 8 years old. She suffered 128 injuries from being beaten with sharp and blunt instruments and after Victoria’s post mortem was carried out, her cause of death was found to be hypothermia brought on by malnourishment and living in a damp environment with restricted movement. Victoria’s Aunty was arrested at the hospital on 25th February 2000 on suspicion of neglect. Victoria had been a part of multi agency child protection plan and had visited and been visited by multiple hospitals, social services teams, police and churches before her death on 25th February 2000 at just 8 years and 3 months old. All agencies involved were too willing to listen to her Aunties stories of incontinence, possession and behavioural problems. The social services teams didn’t even follow up a disclosure of sexual abuse towards Victoria with an investigation after her Aunty retracted the allegations she had made towards her partner. All agencies seemed very trusting of Victoria’s Aunty who was reinforced by her presentation and behaviour. She co-operated with meetings and visits from professionals, initiated communication with professionals and even responded positively to offers of help. After Victoria’s death all agencies that were a part of her short life within the UK were looked into and were found to be lacking in organisation, thoroughness and insufficiently focused on the child’s welfare. The result of the Victoria Climbie case meant a review on the child protection plan. Practitioners have to be extra vigilant when working with children and have to ensure they follow correct procedures with regards to safeguarding and child protection. If a child discloses information to a member of staff they must record all information including the date and time that the child disclosed. This information will then be passed onto management who will contact and inform the correct agencies. 2.2 – Identify the policies and procedures required in the work setting for safeguarding children and young people. The policies and procedures needed within the setting for safeguarding children and young people are: Safeguarding and Child Protection This policy and procedure ensures the protection of the children within the setting with regards to disclosure, abuse and neglect. Practitioners must follow the correct procedure with regards to disclosures from children or incidents witnessed. All practitioners have a DBS check before being able to work closely with the children to ensure they are suitable for the position. Health, Safety and Risk Assessment This policy ensures that all health and safety matters are addressed within the setting so that the children are entering a safe and secure environment. Daily risk assessments are carried out to ensure that all hazards and risks are minimized or removed to ensure the complete safety of the children and young people within the setting and its outdoor environment. First Aid This policy and procedure ensures that practitioners within the setting are sufficiently trained to administer first aid to children, young people and other staff members. Following the correct procedure they must ensure that a first aid form is filled out including all relevant information with regards to the child. Data Protection This policy and procedure ensures that all children’s and young people’s information is sufficiently stored within the setting. It also states that practitioners must not discuss nursery business outside of the setting.
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