Facing the problem of market positioning for Qatar Airways bran

Facing the problem of market positioning for Qatar Airways bran Introduction Statement of the problem The current research addresses the problem of positioning of corporate brand of Qatar Airways through strategies for improving customer satisfaction. This problem is significant since brand development and brand management encompass one of the important aspects for making an organization gain global competitive advantageAdvertising We will write a custom report sample on Facing the problem of market positioning for Qatar Airways bran specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Purpose of the study and delimitations Purpose of study The purpose of this study is to aid in resolution of the problem of determining ways of positioning the corporate brand of Qatar Airways through strategies for improving customer satisfaction. It seeks to draws knowledge from the body of literature on techniques of marketing research and their applications in solving marketing problems and formulating marketing strategies in helpi ng to resolve likely marketing problem of positioning the corporate brand image for Qatar Airways Limitation and delimitations In the quest to achieve this concern, this research has a major limitation since it uses a small sample size (34 respondents). However, this limitation is countered by random distribution of questionnaires to persons of different demographical characteristics so that the responses to questionnaires reflects general customer views about Qatar airways Theoretical perspective Research findings such as Wirtz and Chung Lee (2008) and Yelkur (2007) contend that customer satisfaction comprises one of the most important aspects for incorporation in the marketing planning strategies for organizations considering global growth plans as a measure for securing competitive advantage. Qatar airline is one of such companies Research hypotheses It is hypothesized that Qatar Airways has poorly positioned its corporate brand Image by building strong local customer relationshi ps, but insufficient customer relationships to global clientele. Various factors and variables may affect satisfaction of consumers depending on the industry within which a business operates. For the airline industry, it also hypothesized that independent variables such as product (which include services, quality and brand image) offered by Qatar Airways affect perceived satisfaction and hence customer satisfaction. Literature review Research on the best strategies for positioning cooperate brand of an organization has yielded huge body of literature on organizational brand inventories and brand elements to induce customer satisfaction. Customer satisfaction is a critical element of retention of existing clients for an organization coupled with attraction of new ones (Yelkur, 2007). Customers possessing good organizational reputation share it with other people. This aspect creates the urge amongst potential customers to experience the service or product offered by an organization. B rand inventories are aimed at availing comprehensive profile of the manner in which products coupled with services that are sold by a given organization are branded and marketed.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Hill and Ettenson (2005) note that profiling a product or a service â€Å"requires marketers to catalogue visually and in writing various products or services sold, the names, logos, symbols, characters, packaging, slogans, or other trademarks used† (p.86). Outcome of any product profile requires accuracy, high precision, comprehensibility, and reflective of the status of a product or service brand for a given organization. Brand inventories should highlight the brand elements utilized to build brand loyalty and the manner in which this goal is accomplished coupled with how it is reflected on any necessary marketing program. Qatar Airways’ com petitive brand profiling is done to unveil the probable points of difference coupled with points of parity. In these extents, brand’s inventory is valuable at Qatar Airways, as it helps in determining the platforms anchoring customer perceptions. A brand identifies and distinguishes an organization from other organizations even though two or more organizations offer similar products or services. Organizations not only sell products or charge for their services, but they also sell their brands (Hill Ettenson, 2005). A number of elements including the brand name, logo sounds, tagline, tastes, and scents among others identify brands (Hill Ettenson, 2005). The Qatar Airlines protects its brand name consisting of ‘Qatar Airways’ with the symbol (logo) of the Arabian Oryx. People living within the Arabian region are highly familiar with the animal. Any attempt to use a brand name possessing the Arabian Oryx symbol and the brand name ‘Qatar Airways’ amoun ts to a legal challenge by the organization. In a bid to enhance its brand identification and association, Qatar Airways uses the slogan ‘World’s 5 Star Airline’. The recognition of the extent to which an organization meets satisfaction of its customers is critical in aiding to channel the efforts of employees to meet the anticipated needs and perceptions of services provided. In this extent, marketing scholars such as Yelkur (2007) and Farris, Neil, and Pfeifer (2010) perceive customers’ satisfaction as entangling the dominant business strategy that may affect the profitability of an organization positively if it is cutely developed. Given this merit, it is significant for an organization to be in a position of developing metrics of measuring customers’ satisfaction and determine the marketing factors that help to induce the same (Farris, Neil, Pfeifer, 2010).Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Facing the problem of market positioning for Qatar Airways bran specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Some metrics measure customers’ satisfaction, but the applicability and appropriateness of any metric depend on the industry of operation of an organization. One of the metrics entangles the number and frequency of the complaints raised by clients (Farris, Neil, Pfeifer, 2010). However, this research does not adapt its research methodology to measure customer satisfactions for Qatar Airways via this way; rather, customers’ surveys through responses to questionnaires act as a resourceful way of measuring customers’ satisfaction. The focus of this research is not on measuring customers’ satisfaction. Rather, the measures are used to establish factors that may influence customers’ satisfaction. Marketing mix comprises one of such factors. After the establishment of an appropriate brand, the next phase of corporate brand positioning entails it s supporting. Holt and Quelch (2009) support this assertion and further add that for success of any brand, a means of supporting it to ensure that its preferences among customers do not fall when new competitors in the same industry emerge should be created. For Qatar Airways, brand promotion is a central component for supporting its brand. Promotion is done through various ways such as sponsorships. The main aim of collaborating with Barcelona FC in the 2013/2014 Spanish premier league season is to create a global image for the existence of the Qatar Airways brand. Through this partnership, Qatar Airways endeavors to display passion for its brand as being the best in the airline industry tantamount to that of FC Barcelona in the football industry. In the effort to access the perception of customers on the brand of an organization, brand exploratory is important. The concept refers to any research executed by an organization to garner information, which upon analysis, helps to give an indication of the manner in which customer feel or think about a given product or service and their associated classes of brand equity sources (Hill Ettenson, 2005). Conducting brand exploratory requires the execution of a number of preliminary activities. One of such activities entails conducting an interview to an organization’s personnel to acquire an understanding of manner in which they think coupled with determining their beliefs and perceptions about the brand (Hill Ettenson, 2005). Opinions accruing from the above interviews are normally diverse and they serve several functions in determining the manner in which consumers of a given product or service may be feeling or thinking about the same. Among such functions includes the generation of vital and informing ideas about products from an organization’s perspective and providing likelihoods for understanding any preconceived internal misconceptions and on inconsistencies on the way people internally percei ve the products and services (Hill Ettenson, 2005).Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This exercise is necessary since customers think about products that they consume depending on how the communications personnel within an organization portray the products (Farris, Neil, Pfeifer, 2010). However, even though it is important to unveil an organization’s internal inconsistencies and misconceptions about products, such an endeavor is not adequate to develop brand explorations fully. Conducting additional research on customers is necessary to establish how their own experiences with the products or services of an organization shape their thoughts and feeling about the products. This aspect is the central concern of brand exploratory, as a component of successful corporate brand positioning strategy at Qatar airlines addressed in this research. Methodology Research design A research can be designed as one of four main approaches, viz. qualitative, quantitative, mixed methods (pragmatic approach), and emancipator approach (participatory or advocacy approach). In thi s research, pragmatic approach is utilized. Freshwater, Sherwood, and Drury (2006) posit, â€Å"Pragmatic researchers grant themselves the freedom to use any of the methods, techniques, and procedures typically associated with quantitative or qualitative research† (p.295). The freedom of choice of method depends on the researchers’ perception and evaluation of methods that best suit the particular kind of research they are conducting. The best choice is the one that utilizes methodologies that complement one another. This aspect forms the basic logic for designing this research to use pragmatic approach deploying aspects of both quantitative and qualitative research. Population, sample, and participants Thirty-four (34) copies of questionnaires were distributed without selection of certain demographic characteristics of people that received the questionnaires. Rather, the respondent was required to indicate these characteristics in the questionnaires. The entire sample (34 people) answered all the questions in the questionnaires promptly. Hence, no questionnaire was rejected. Data collection instruments, variables, and measurements The research used questionnaire as the primary data collection tool. The independent variable was the impact of positioning of the Qatar airline product and services. Independent variable was customer response and prevalence to the positioned brand as is an indication of customers’ satisfaction, which is measured from the context of quantitative number of Qatar Airways’ customer perceptions and preferences on the product and services. Some questions requiring qualitative information were also used to help in the provision of data on specific perceptions about the products and services offered by Qatar Airways. Ten (10) questions were used to capture the aspects of customer satisfaction with the company’s product and services as shown in appendix 1 Data analysis procedures Data was analyzed through computations of percentages of responses for each question in the questionnaire. These results were then used to conduct an analysis of the brand positioning challenges likely to be encountered by Qatar Airways, which helps in the identification of areas that pose challenges in the positioning of the Qatar brand to correspond to its global growth strategy. Validity and reliability Quality research should possess several characteristics, which include credibility reliability, use of rigorous methods, and verification (Cohen Crabtree, 2008), validity, clarity, and coherence in reporting (Yardley, 2000) among others. Validity can both be internal and external. Validity entangles the â€Å"best approximation to the truth or falsity of proportions† (Rolfe, 2006, p.307). Validity and reliability in this research were enhanced by the choice of primary method for data collection (questionnaires) as a tool for ensuring that the research findings add significant knowledge to the body of knowledge (market research) that the research seeks to amplify. However, the sample was too small. The demographic characteristic of the sample are perhaps not exact representation of the population seeking service from Qatar Airlines, which poses challenges to the reliability and validity of the research. Nevertheless, given that the sample was small, it was possible for the researcher to administrate the process of filling the questionnaires so that ambiguity of the question was addresses. This move helped to improve both reliability and validity of the responses and hence research findings Data analysis, findings and discussion Table 1 below shows the findings obtained on administration of the questionnaires. Table1: Results for questionnaires for a sample of 34 respondents Responses Questions A B C Total response Gender 8 26 34 Age 26 4 4 34 Nationality 26 2 6 34 2- used Qatar airways 32 2 34 3- if yes 2 14 16 32 4- if the answer c 12 2 2 16 5- if other Turkish 1 6- depend on 5 2 2 7- depend on 6 0 8- raise concern 12 20 32 9- responses 6 6 12 6 6 12 4 4 8 Many routes, great schedule 4 10 30 4 34 Ninety-four percent (94 %) of the respondents had used Qatar Airways while 6% percent had not used it. While only one person (3%) prefers Turkish Airlines, 3% did not cite their preferred airline. This aspect indicates that some people are undecided on their preferred airline brand. It also shows that Turkish Airlines may become the biggest competitor. While deciding on the most appropriate strategy to position Qatar Airways to win these people, gender preferences and tastes for airline services play a significant role because most people who have used Qatar Airways are more likely to be women (76%) as opposed to men (24%). Nationality is another important demographic factor to consider when choosing brand-positioning strategy for Qatar Airways. Although the company seeks to grow its global courier capacity, the adaption of brand promotional strategies to meet local tastes should not be abandoned. Most people using the airways are Qatari (76%) compared to other people of the Middle Eastern nationality (6%). The low number of people from other Middle East nations using Qatar Airways suggests that the airline should position its brand as a regional courier. This strategy also needs to extend to global platforms as the company seeks to become a global courier as suggested by the low percentage of people from other nations (18%) using the airline. This positioning reflects well on the strategy of the company to position itself on a global scale through partnership with Barcelona FC in the 2013/2014 season. As at the time of conducting the research, the results show the ability of Qatar Airways to position its brand to young people, 18-28 year (76%) as compared to 29 -39 (12%) and 40 and above (12%). This aspect means that the company needs to adapt its services and produc ts to meet the needs of all customer age groups while attempting to become the world’s best courier. Customers are also more interested and satisfied by good flight experience (50%) and easiness of accessing booking and tickets (44%) than the cost of travelling. This realization explains why Turkish Airlines may not become the Qatar Airways’ near future competitor, as customers prefer it only on low cost basis, which is not an important factor in positioning an airline brand seeking to compete with Qatar Airways. Indeed, customers are not interested at all (0%) with flight experience. Customers define flight experience to encompass good entertainment (75%), as opposed to seating arrangements (12.5%) and on board customer experience (12.5%). This element means that Qatar Airlines will face the problem of marketing itself as the global best onboard entertainer. A major problem for Qatar Airways encompasses convincing its customers to express their concerns on areas where the company may need to improve to serve them better, as evidenced by 37.5% of people who have raised their concerns with the services and 63.5 % of those who have not. The media for collection of customer concerns should be hybrid in nature since 50% percent of persons raising concerns over the services and product of Qatar Airways prefers the Internet while 50 % prefers traditional means such as suggestion boxes and registering their concerns at the customer-service front desk. Customers are also happy when Qatar Airways responds to their concerns since this element may (50%), or may not (50 %) make them alter their air travel company. As the company works hard to positions itself as a customers’ needs and concerns centre Airways, many routes and schedule flexibility are important factors to consider when seeking to enhance customer satisfaction among 100 % of the customers who consider the current response mechanisms of Qatar Airway inappropriate. The establishment of dem otic or popular travel routes and positioning of the Qatar’s brad image as the best global leader in this extent remains the most important driver of Qatar Airlines success and marketing challenge. Recommendations and conclusion Summary of the research problem, objective, findings, and discussion The research’smain problem was the determination of ways of positioning the corporate brand of Qatar Airways through strategies for improving customer satisfaction. The objective encompassed the identification of mechanisms in which Qatar Airways can position and manage its brand to achieve global, regional, and local success. The findings indentified gender, nationality, and age demographic factors as important elements in facing the problem of brand positioning strategies focusing mainly in good on board customer experience (specifically good entertainment) and easiness of accessing booking and tickets while also capitalizing on increasing the number of flight routes and fle xibility in schedules. The discussion of the results treated this challenge to entail facing the problem of enhancing customer satisfaction with the product and services offered by Qatar Airways. Limitations Although the research indicates customers’ perception about the Qatar Airways, the research has some limitations. Questionnaires were administered to a sample of 34 respondents. No scientific method was applied to recruit this sample in a bid to ensure that it demographically reflected the population. A small sample size of 34 respondents also presents difficulties for construing into a perfect technique for marketing research or even a random sample. Ethical issues in the study In collecting primary data, addressing ethical concerns of the respondents is important. Respondents may be concerned about the intentions of seeking information from them. Another concern encompasses whether giving truthful and accurate information on their perceptions about an organization would lead to the victimization or any other unprecedented consequences. These ethical concerns were addressed by providing an explanation of the purposes of the data sought in the questionnaires in the first part of the questionnaire. The introduction and statement of the purpose of the questionnaire explained that Qatar Airways endeavors to develop a global brand by expanding its courier capacity and the number of routes. It also explained that in deriving its marketing planning, the company should get right a number of interrogatives based on its ability to gain competitive advantage in both Middle East domestic markets and global markets. The respondents were further made aware that these interrogatives formed the basis of the questionnaires, which then would be deployed to conduct a research into the problem likely to be encountered by the airways courier in its effort to reach global markets. Recommendations for managers, and for other researchers For Qatar Airways, the customersâ €™ perceptions shaping their satisfaction and preference to the product and services are dependent more on the nature of the product and service experience than the costs of the product and services. To the managers of Qatar Airways, this aspect implies that even though some airline companies elsewhere in the world have successfully positioned themselves as low costs couriers, in the context of the operational environment of Qatar Airways, such a positioning strategy might not work. The research suggests the existence of a correlation between positioning strategy for an organizational brand and the degree of customer satisfaction in the airline industry. However, the exact correlation coefficients were not determined. Therefore, research opportunity exists in which regression analysis can be deployed to determine the correlation coefficients between brand positioning and customer satisfaction. Amid, the view that the research has not considered to determine the correlation coeff icient within its scope, the hypothesis that independent variables such as the product (which include services, quality, and brand image) offered in the airlines industry affect perceived satisfaction. Hence, a relationship between brand positioning and customer satisfaction has been confirmed. The first hypothesis was unconfirmed since although the main clients of Qatar Airways studied were Qatari, a significant number of customers from the global market have developed loyalty to airline’s services. References Cohen, D., Crabtree, B. (2008). Evaluative criteria for qualitative research in health care: controversies and recommendations. Criteria for Qualitative Research, 6(4), 331-339. Farris, P., Neil, P., Pfeifer, D. (2010). Marketing metrics: The definitive guide to measuring marketing performance. New Jersey, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc. Freshwater, D., Sherwood, G., Drury, V. (2006). International research collaboration: Issues, benefits and challenges of the global ne twork. Journal of Research in marketing, 11(4), 295-303. Hill, S., Ettenson, T. (2005). Achieving the ideal brand portfolio. Sloan Management Review, 2(1), 85-90. Holt, A., Quelch, T. (2009). How global brands compete. Harvard Business Review, 7(3), 68-75. Rolfe, G. (2006). Validity, trustworthiness and rigor: Quality and the idea of qualitative research. Journal of Advanced Marketing Research, 53(3), 304-310. Wirtz, J., Chung, M. (2008). An empirical study on the quality and context-specific applicability of commonly used customer satisfaction measures. Journal of Service Research, 5(4), 345-355. Yardley, L. (2000). Dilemmas in qualitative marketing research. International Journal of Marketing Research, 15(3), 215-228. Yelkur, R. (2007). Customer satisfaction and service marketing mix. Journal of Professional Services Marketing, 21(1), 105-115

Business and Society Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Business and Society - Assignment Example 80). This report discusses the organizational codes of conduct that a company should possess with analytical conduct through benchmarking and implicative proceedings that ensure the sustainable relevance of such codes in the years ahead. Eventually, a conclusive section will be drawn, covering the generic scope of the focal idea of the study. 2.0a Company Background The company in this section refers to an entity that centers on manufacturing building products and services. As such, stipulations have been made to formulate the codes of conduct of the company through benchmarking the Louisiana-Pacific Corporation, Skanska, and Simpson Manufacturing Corporation’s codes of conduct. Simpson’s codes of conduct have been adopted, e.g., workplace health and safety, product and service quality, confidentiality, and the encouragement of reporting an illicit and unethical behavior (Simpson Manufacturing Co., Inc., 2011). Skanska's personnel development, employment terms, proper d isclosure of information, and environmental concerns are also instilled (Skanska, 2012). Finally, adopting LP’s proposition of having an honest and truthful means of communications and compliance with laws, rules and regulations (Louisiana-Pacific Corporation, 2012) will complete the codes of conduct for the company. 2.0b Rationale of Choice of the Code of Conduct Numerous companies of today have codes of conduct that implicate a developing organizational norm and the infringement of which might entangle cost and risk. The cost is the one which melts the opportunity to use a contingently efficient management scheme, and the risk is the one which pertains to not having a solemn code of conduct (White & Montgomery, 1980, p. 86). Abiding by the legal matters can help the organization sustain its operations in the long term. Provisions should be given to ensure the safety of workers in the workplace. Because of the technological developments, the labor environment is altering as well, and the company should implement policies that further protect its workers. One of them may pertain to employment terms such as age, gender, race and other employee’s personal matters. The social and cultural aspects are altered because of the workforce variations such as oversea workers. An honest and truthful means of communication would further uphold proper disclosure of information among the stakeholders of the organization. This notion is governed by the political concerns such as regulatory policies that emerge to be mandatory in all types of organizations. Confidentiality and discouragement of unethical conducts within the company can help the business achieve its corporate goals. When all of the internal facets of the operations are well-suited to the attainments of goals, quality service will then be the next target of the company. That is a manifestation of the quality product offerings of the business. Lastly, it should not omit the importance of environment in the codes of conduct. In the first place, the environment is where everything takes place, and it should be preserved well for the next generation. The economic issues are by far the most crucial factor in developing the codes of conduct because this can affect the entire industry if the violation is proven by the

Olympics games and a permanent home Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Olympics games and a permanent home - Essay Example Financial hazards are pertinent problem where many hosting cities fail to cope up with. But apart from financial hazards, political calamities are also one of the very obvious hazards which the event has to face due to rotating sites. Polarisation and corruption also easily get into the scheme of things of such an auspicious event due to its shift in place. There was a massive boycott in participation during the Montreal, Moscow and Los Angeles games. Moreover, the dark day in the history of Olympics which occurred in the event of 1972 Munich Games where Israeli athletes were attacked, will remain an unforgettable event. All these happened due to myriad polarised selection of places which fell under the regime of different socio-political blocks. Nevertheless, the myth that after hosting the games many cities are able to improve their human rights conditions under the compulsion of the international pressure have been proven time and again and Jacques Rogge, The President of Internat ional Olympic Committee even held the perception till the Beijing Game that the games would â€Å"have a good effect for the evolution of China†. At the same time he also maintained that the Olympic Games would turn out for China as â€Å"a great catalyst for change†. But the government’s increasing restriction for the visit to Tibet and clamping down its dissidents proved the attempt of better human rights condition under international exposure into a complete vain. Olympic Games are far beyond.... At the same time he also maintained that the Olympic Games would turn out for China as â€Å"a great catalyst for change†. But the government’s increasing restriction for the visit to Tibet and clamping down its dissidents proved the attempt of better human rights condition under international exposure into a complete vain. Olympic Games are far beyond the parochial politics of nation, society and economy. Thus for the sake of the maintenance of healthy spirit of the game, it is essential to give it a permanent home possibly in a neutral zone to free the game from corruption, politics and polarisation which will render a strong platform for a game like Olympics to flourish with healthy spirit and competition. Even luminaries associated with the sports world feel the need of a permanent home for the Olympics. Bill Bradley, a Senator and a Democrat of New Jersey seriously felt that the permanent home of the Olympics would be â€Å"suitable for insulating the Games from u nwarranted and disruptive international politics† (Banks-Altakruse, â€Å"Give the Olympics a Home†). Task 2 Today’s low-cost airlines are able to offer fast and cheap travel. However, some people believe this is at a cost to the planet. Suggest ways that governments and individuals could tackle the environmental impact of low-cost flights. Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience. The current market scenario of the global aviation industry is apparently competitive. The competition is also at a rapid increase which is influencing the marketing strategies of the major industry players. For instance, in the global airline industry companies

Information and computer technology on banking Essay Example for Free

Information and computer technology on banking Essay For over a decade, the rapid advancement in information and communication technology has significantly affected the banking industry. The banking sector has embraced the use of technology to serve its client’s faster and also to do more with less. Emerging technologies have changed the banking industry from paper and branch based banks to â€Å"digitized and networked banking services†. Unlike before, broadband internet is cheap and it makes the transfer of data easy and first. Technology has changed the accounting and management system of all banks. And it is now changing the way how banks are delivering services to their customers. However this technology comes at a cost, implementing all this technology has been expensive but the rewards are limitless. The banking sector was one of the first to embrace rapid globalization and benefit significantly from IT development. The technological revolution in banking started in the 1950s, with the installation of the first automated bookkeeping machines at banks. This was well before the other industries became IT savvy. However, in Bangladesh the revolution started in 1990s. Present Status: A good number of technology driven services are provided to the customers by the Private Commercial Banks (PCBs), Foreign Commercial Banks (FCBs)and Nationalized Commercial Banks (NCBs). The FCBs operating in Bangladesh like Standard Chartered Bank and HSBCare the pioneers to introduce technology driven banking facilities. Thesebanks provide services like ATM, debit card, credit card, Point of Sale (POS)services, internet banking, phone banking, any branch banking, ElectronicFund Transfer (EFT). Along with these services Standard Chartered Bank isproviding KIOSK service to its customers. Among the local banks, the PCBs are ahead of the NCBs in providingtechnology driven banking services. A limited number of technology drivenservices are being provided by the private Islamic banks in Bangladesh. For sending foreign remittance NCBs and some PCBs are working collaboratively with mobile phone service operators. Application of computer based services in Bangladesh: Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT), SWIFT and MICR cheque are being provided by all the banks. All the banks except Uttara Bank are providing any branch banking to the customers. All banks have debit card facilities for their clients except Citi Bank NA. First Security Islami Bank Limited, Uttara Bank Limited and Citi Bank NA have no own ATM booth. First Security Islami BankLimited is going to establish their own ATM booth. They have already selected the palce for 100 ATM booth and expect to launch within very short possible time.

We Must Put an End to Frivolous Inmate Lawsuits Essay -- Argumentative

We Must Put an End to Frivolous Inmate Lawsuits Our forefathers were bright enough to establish a system of government with a series of checks and balances to maintain a balanced government. For the past decade a series of checks and balances has begun to fail our government. In our failing system of government inmates have taken advantage of the court system and have flooded it with an inconceivable number of frivolous lawsuits. Laurel Walters, a writer for the Christian Science Monitor, investigated inmates' lawsuits and found that these "recreational litigators...are suing the courts as an intramural sports activity." Action needs to be taken in order to rectify and protect "US" from this squandering of our tax payer provided funds and resources. Today in a world when knowledge is power, I'm ready to hand other tax payers an entire empire. The United States (US) and "us" the tax payers are being taken advantage of and it is time that those in power begin to notice. Linda Greenhouse, in a New York Times article, cites one of the few to become aware of this problem. Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist feels, "prisoners often squander judicial resources with little offsetting benefit to anyone." Our Supreme Court Chief Justice has realized this shortcoming, and it is about time the rest of "us" wake-up too. For over a decade our legislative branch has been dragging its feet and slow to react to this extremely costly prison industry. Eight-hundred inmate lawsuits costing $1.7 million were filed in Ohio in 1995 and as many as 95 percent of those cases were dismissed. A total of 53,312 inmate lawsuits were filed nationwide in federal courts in 1994, this comes at a total of $113 billion dollars* of tax money esse... ...Cited Duhaime, Lloyd. "Outrageous Lawsuits." WWLIA: World Wide Legal Information Association. http://wwlia.org/lawsuit.html Freedman, Eric. "Two inmates ordered to pay costs of lawsuits." Detroit News. Aug. 13, 1993. B6. Fugate, Larry. "New law cracks down on frivolous inmate lawsuits." Source News & Reports." July 19, 1996. http://sddtsun.sddt.com/~columbus/Files3/9607193.html Greenhouse, Linda. High court, changing recent course, makes it harder for prisoners to sue. New York Times. June 29, 1995. B7. Harris, Sandra Ann. "People Are Talking: Crime: Inmate lawsuits costly to taxpayers." Detroit Free Press. October 23, 1995. Officials to fight frivolous inmate lawsuits." New York Times. February 5, 1996. B2. Walters, Laurel Shaper. "States rewrite laws to week out suits for cruel and unusual Jello." Christian Science Monitor. October 16, 1995. Â   Â   Â   Â  

Psychological Disorders and Therapy Essay

I. Introduction Schizophrenia is not only the most dreaded psychological disorder but also one of the most heavily researched. Some important new discoveries link schizophrenia with biological factors, such as brain abnormalities and genetic predispositions. Schizophrenia is one of the most heavily researched psychological disorders. Several factors have been proposed as causes of schizophrenia, from biochemical imbalances in the brain to faulty family relationships and socioeconomic environment. Although a great deal of interesting research has been carried out, to date no single factor has been isolated as the cause of schizophrenia. II. The Understanding and Search for Causes Schizophrenia a) Brain, Structure, Function and Abnormalities Recent advances in the measurement of brain structure and function have set the stage for comparing normal individuals with those suffering from schizophrenia. One brain-imaging technique, computer-assisted tomography, or CT scan, uses many low-energy X-rays of the living brain taken at a number of different points and integrated into pictures by a computer. Studies using this technique show that many individuals with schizophrenia have enlarged brain ventricles, compared to normal persons. Some researchers believe a link sexists between the enlarged ventricles and the lower frequency of alpha waves observed among individuals with schizophrenia. The idea that imbalances in brain chemistry might underlie schizophrenia has long intrigued scientists. Strange behaviors, they knew, can have strange chemical causes. The saying â€Å"Mad as a hatter† refers to the psychological deterioration of British hatmakers whose brains, it was later discovered, were slowly poisoned as they moistened the brims of mercury-laden felt hats with their lips (Smith, 2003). Scientists are beginning to understand the mechanism by which chemicals such as LSD produce hallucinations. These discoveries fuel hope that a biochemical key to schizophrenia might be found. One chemical key to schizophrenia involves the neurotransmitter dopamine. When researchers examined patient’s brains after death, they found an excess of receptors for dopamine (Wong, 2000). What is more, drugs that block dopamine levels, such as amphetamine and cocaine, sometimes intensify schizophrenia victims overactive to irrelevant external and internal stimuli. Modern brain scanning techniques reveal that many chronic schizophrenia patients have a detectable brain abnormality. Some have abnormally low brain activity in the frontal lobes (Cohen, 1999). Others, most often men, have enlarged, fluid-filled areas and a corresponding shrinkage of cerebral tissue (Andreasen, 2000). b) Genetic Factors A popular line of research in recent years has been the search for a genetic link in schizophrenia. Several approaches to the study of genetic relationships have been used. Overall, results of this research are consistent with a genetic basis for the disorder. For example, identical twins are more likely to share schizophrenic diagnoses than fraternal twins, whether the twins are reared apart or together. The greater the severity of schizophrenia, the more pronounced this relationship is. Furthermore, children whose parents both have schizophrenia are three times more likely to develop the disorder than are children with only one parent with schizophrenia, whether children are reared with their parents or not. Children who are reared by an adoptive parent with schizophrenia but whose biological parents are normal do not have higher rate of schizophrenia (Kestenbaum, 2001). The most convincing evidence for a genetic relationship comes from research showing a characteristic defect on c hromosome 5 among family members who have some types of schizophrenia (Sherrington, 2000). Naturally, scientists wonder whether people inherit a predisposition to these brain abnormalities. The evidence strongly suggests that some do. The 100-to-1 odds against any person’s being diagnosed with Schizophrenia become 10-to-1 among those who have an afflicted identical twin. Although there are only a dozen such known cases, it appears that an identical twin of schizophrenia victim retains that 50-50 chance whether they are reared together or apart. Adoption studies confirm a genetic link (Gottesman, 2001). Children adopted by someone who develops schizophrenia are unlikely to â€Å"catch† the disorder. But adopted children do have an elevated risk if a biological parent is diagnosed with schizophrenia. The genetic contribution is beyond question. But the genetic role is not so straightforward is beyond question. But the genetic role is not as straightforward as the inheritance of eye color. After all, about half the twins who share identical genes with a schizophrenia victim do not develop the disorder. Thus, behavior geneticists Susan Nicol and Irving Gottesman (2000) conclude that some people â€Å"have a genetic predisposition to the disorder but that this predisposition by itself is not sufficient for the development of schizophrenia.† c) Psychological Factors If, by themselves, genetically predisposed physiological abnormalities do not cause schizophrenia, neither do psychological factors alone. As Nicol and Gottesman report, â€Å"no environmental causes have been discovered that will invariably, or even with moderate probability, produce schizophrenia in persons who are not related to a schizophrenic.† Nevertheless, if genes predispose some people to react to particular experiences by developing schizophrenia, then there must be identifiable triggering experiences. Researchers have asked:   Can stress trigger schizophrenia? Can difficulties in family communications be a contributing factor? The answer to each question is a strong, clear maybe. The psychological triggers of schizophrenia have proved elusive, partly because they may vary with the type of schizophrenia and whether it is a low-developing, chronic schizophrenia, or a sudden, acute reaction to stress. It is true that young people with schizophrenia tend to have unusually disturbed communications with their parents. But is this a cause or a result of their disorder? It is true that stressful experiences, biochemical and abnormalities, and schizophrenia’s symptoms often occur together. But the traffic between brain biochemistry and psychological experiences runs both ways, so cause and effect are difficult to sort out.   It is true that schizophrenic withdrawal often occurs in adolescence or early adulthood, coinciding with the stresses of having to become independent, to assert oneself, and to achieve social success and intimacy. So is schizophrenia the maladaptive coping reaction of biologically vuln erable people? Most of us can relate more easily to the ups and downs of mood disorder that to strange thoughts, perceptions, and behaviors of schizophrenia. Sometimes our thoughts do jump around, but we do not talk nonsensically. Occasionally we feel unjustly suspicious of someone, but we do not feat that the world is plotting against us. Often our perceptions are distorted, but rarely do we see or hear things that are not there. We have felt regret after laughing at someone’s misfortune, but e rarely giggle in response to bad news. At times, we just want to be alone, but we do not live in social isolation. However, millions of people around the world do not talk strangely, suffer delusions, hear nonexistent voices, see things that are not there, laugh or cry at inappropriate times, or withdraw into their private imaginary worlds. Because this is true, the scientific quest to solve the cruel puzzle of schizophrenia continues. d) Environmental Stress Approaches to schizophrenia have not been exclusively biomedical. Even studies of identical twins show that more than half these pairs do not have share diagnoses of schizophrenia. Because they do share all genetic material, there must be environmental factors that also contribute to the disorder, either by protecting constitutionally vulnerable individuals or by precipitating symptoms of the disorder (Kestenbaum, 2001). One way of conceptualizing the relationship between the environment and schizophrenia is through the concept of stress. A stress hypothesis holds that individuals are genetically vulnerable to the disorder. III. Treatment Behavioral Therapy Voluntary behaviors are strongly influenced by their consequences. This sample fact enables behavior therapists to reinforce desired behaviors, while withholding reinforcement for undesired behaviors. Using operant conditioning to solve specific behavior problems is called behavior modification, a therapy that has raised hopes for some cases thought hopeless. Retarded children have been taught to care for themselves. Autistic children have learned to interact. People with Schizophrenia have been helped to behave more rationally on the hospital ward. Physical   methods or therapy This includes electroshock therapy and brain surgery. It consists of passing electric currents through the brain, producing convulsion coma. Psychoanalysis A procedure requiring that the patient and analyst meet for hour- long sessions several times a week for many months. During these hours the analyst helps the patient bring into consciousness the repressed conflicts that have caused the illness. If the treatment is successful, the patient learns realistic methods of dealing with conflicts. The technique of free association is an important part of psychoanalysis. The patient is encouraged to talk about whatever comes to mind, without regard to apparent relevance or propriety of the material. The analyst helps the patient to understand the meaning of this material. Patients develop resistance in their efforts to talk freely, and it is the analyst’s task to help them overcome such resistance. Resistances are usually associated with feelings of guilt in regard to fantasies about hostility, dependency and sexuality. IV. Conclusion Schizophrenia literally translated means â€Å"split mind.† Split mind refers not to a multiple-personality split, but rather a split from reality that shows itself in disorganized thinking; disturb perceptions, and inappropriate emotions and actions. The schizophrenia victim experiences an altered world. Minute stimuli, such as the grooves on a brick or the reflections of a voice, may distract attention from the whole scene or from the speaker’s meaning. Worse, the person may perceive things that are not there. Such hallucinations are (sensory experiences without sensory stimulation) usually auditory. The person may hear voices that seem to come from outside the head and that make insulting statements or give orders.   The voices may tell that patient that she is bad or that he must burn himself with a cigarette lighter or even commit murder. Less commonly, people see, feel, taste, or smell things that are nonexistent. Such hallucinations have been compared to dreams breaking into waking consciousness. When the unreal seems real, the resulting perceptions are at best bizarre and at worst terrifying.

The Reflection Of The Cosmic Lottery - 1497 Words

The path one takes to perceiving their faith is essential for it to grow and mature during the walk of life. Faith is the belief in something to the point that it becomes a point of reference for the other parts of your life. Faith has always been personal and built upon with obtaining more knowledge of God, but in the pursuit of more knowledge could bring about disbelief and skepticism. Skepticism and disbelief comes along in the faith when answers are not answered to the extent that we would like or are beyond our grasp. â€Å"A God that we can fully understand is not worthy of our praise† is a phrase that could either bring light to why we can never find a concrete answer or is not satisfactory to the skeptic. Skepticism and doubt are catalysts to make faith grow. Skepticism towards the Bible can lead to the acceptance of beliefs that pertain to your own individualistic ideology. Evans uses her cosmic lottery to explain the reason and circumstances a person is dealt with in their lives. The cosmic lottery is Evans perception on predestination, but cosmic lottery takes more into account the societal aspect and then later their souls. I have read plenty of articles about the Bible to learn new things and one day I came across an article about the Red Sea being able to part naturally on unusual occasions. I was skeptic at first by responding in my head â€Å"no it was a miracle†, but I could not really suppress the article because it changed how I could see miracle. I concluded notShow MoreRelatedA Critical Review of â€Å"the Ambiguities of Football, Politics, Culture, and Social Transformation in Latin America† by Tamir Bar-on.14147 Words   |  57 Pagesthrough sport. They sought a game that was distinct from British or European cultural influence, and instead defined and expressed the American way (Waldstein and Wagg, 1995: p. 73). In this context, American football has been seen as a miniature reflection of the emerging aggressive, Darwinian capitalist environment. Baseball and basketball, too, flourished, while football (soccer) maintained a kind of nostalgic and underground following. 1.4 Ironically, between the 1920s and 1940sRead More_x000C_Introduction to Statistics and Data Analysis355457 Words   |  1422 Pagesresearchers’ conclusion that elderly people who live in more polluted areas have higher medical costs? Explain. 5.18 ââ€"  Researchers asked each child in a sample of 411 school-age children if they were more or less likely to purchase a lottery ticket at a store if lottery tickets were visible on the counter. The percentage that said that they were more likely to purchase a ticket by grade level are as follows (RJ Child Development Consultants, Quebec, 2001): Percentage That Said They Were More Likely