Teaching ESL Adults Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Teaching ESL Adults - Essay Example However, good times are not always why people seek overseas settlement (Yen, 2012). According to the United States 2010 Population Census, of the 26.4 million immigrants in the United States, almost 80% are adults (Yen, 2012). English as a Second Language (ESL), as a result, has turned into the fastest growing and developing segment in government financed adult education program. A majority of the adult ESL students do not have much education in their home country, and hence, lack proper study skills vital for academic success and accomplishment. They tend to face great financial distress, as well as family responsibilities, which oftentimes avert them from focusing on their education, as well. Educating them can be a vital challenge for both the curriculum developer and the teacher (Yen, 2012). Therefore, a proper lesson plan should be devised, which seeks to incorporate all adult ESL students in the classroom. The title of the lesson will be "Finding a Job: An Introduction to Apply ing for Entry Level Positions". The plan will incorporate 15 adult students of varying ages, origins and language proficiency who are concerned in discovering what it takes to find employment. The course will run for two-hours, twice a week for eight weeks. The three main goals of the lesson plan will include enabling to listen actively, speak so others can understand and also enable adult ESL learners to read with understanding. In Colorado state, the capability of listening and understand English incorporates goals, which mainly revolve around survival and personal safety (Fullan & Stiegelbauer, 2008). A case of a survival skill at an indispensable stage is understanding when a person asks for your name. Also, in Colorado, understanding someone can be positively influenced by education. Not being understood is annoying for a non-native English speaker. An easy goal is the ability to inquire the price of an item in the market especially a crowded one (Starr, 2013). A higher goal is the ability to hold a discussion with your child's teacher at school, or to give details about a book adequately, which a librarian can assist in locating the title. Understanding and interpreting the written English language is also vital. The skill to understand and interpret road signs or pick a meal from a menu is a recessed skill, while a high-level skill is the capacity to select suitable classes from a college course catalog (Starr, 2013). This talent permits the adult language learner to feel more contented and happy in a language, which is not his or her own. Many adult ESL learners find this the most natural place to begin their English language acquirement. Benchmark standards of the adult ESL students with regards to Colorado state standards include: All ESLs have to take state educational achievement tests in language arts, apart from ESLs who have been in the United States for less than one year. If available from the state, ESLs students can seat for these language a rts tests in their native languages so as to understand how the vocabularies are used in language. Adult ESLs students who have been in United States for three successive years should be tested in language arts/reading using an examination written in English, even though on a case-by-case basis, this phase can be prolonged up to five years. Adult ESLs students as a group should meet annual targets of Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP). States, districts, and

The gospel of Mark supports the idea that the messiah (Jesus Christ) Term Paper

The gospel of Mark supports the idea that the messiah (Jesus Christ) must receive dominion, glory, and kingship - Term Paper Example Verse 14 of the same chapter says that dominion, glory and a kingdom were all given to the image he saw, people of all nations and languages should serve him (what resembled the son of man). Further, the son of man's dominion over the nations is everlasting and shall not pass away and his kingdom shall not be destroyed (Daniel 7: 14). Although what Daniel saw was just a vision, the description befits the character of Jesus as recorded in the New Testament. Hundreds of years after Daniel' vision, the fulfillment came through the birth of Jesus. According to Mark 1: 2, the birth of Jesus came as a fulfillment of what was written by the prophets. Hence, God send a messenger to prepare the way for the coming of Christ. After Jesus' birth, what transpired as recorded in the Gospel of Mark only supports the idea that Jesus was indeed the Son of man as predicted by Daniel and that he had in his power the ability to be the messiah and deliver the world from earthly sins. All the aspects of Jesus were unique, right from the time he was baptized to the time he died on the cross. This papers bases its discussion against a backdrop of the events that led to the birth of Jesus, right from the prophesies in the Old Testament to the fulfillment of all the anticipated occurrences. Hence, the paper will evaluate the significance of Daniel's visions as well as the relevance of the prophesies. In order to get concise ideas from the New Testament, the Gospel of Mark will be used to highlight the life of Jesus right from baptism and therefore show why Jesus was indeed the figure to receive dominion, glory and kingship to rule over the world. The birth of Jesus and commencement of his ministry There is every bit of evidence that the life Jesus would be no ordinary right from the time he was baptized. To begin with, he was baptized by a very special man, John the Baptist, who had been born just to prepare a way for him (Mark 1: 2). While John was used to baptizing people with water, he was categorical that Jesus would have powers to baptize people using the Holy Spirit. This portrays Jesus as a being that would possess supernatural powers that would rule over the people. Indeed when the time came for Jesus to be baptized, the service was provided by John the Baptist. That would seem ordinary since baptism was part of John's normal activities, but the amazing aspects of the baptism are the events that followed the baptism activity. As recorded in Mark 1: 9-10, after Jesus was baptized, the heavens opened and Jesus saw the spirit of God descending upon him in the form of a dove. This was followed by a voice from heaven that said that Jesus is "my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased". This was probably the voice of God and the statement shows that Jesus was indeed being monitored at all times. In the early days of Jesus' ministry, he went to Galilee to preach, at a time when John the Baptist had been imprisoned (Mark 1: 14). The choice of words that Jesus used implied that he indeed had a right to the kingdom (of God). Jesus told the people that the time had been fulfilled, and that the kingdom of God was at hand, they only had to repent and believe the Gospel (verse 15). That the kingdom of

The Development of Korean Pop Culture

The Development of Korean Pop Culture Korean pop culture has risen as the most developed pop culture in Asia over the last ten years. American pop culture does not dominate Asian cultural market anymore. Asians are giving their attentions to the cultural media in which they can find their identities. Many have recently preferred Korea pop culture, which is fresh, trendy, and something that contains Asian sentiments. More and More people in Asia are selecting to listen to Korean pop songs, watch Korean movies, and travel to Korea to visit places shown in Korean dramas. The sudden rise of Korean pop culture in its popularity and its dissemination throughout Asia is innovative, unprecedented, and fascinating. This cultural flow in contemporary Asia is called the Korean Wave. Starting point of the Korean Wave in China The term Korean Wave refers to the phenomenon of Korean popular culture, disseminated primarily through the mass media and enjoying a broad popularity outside of Korea. It includes Korean dramas, movies, pop music, fashion, games, and any other cultural contents. Public media began recognizing Korean popular culture in mainland China in 1997, when the Korean television drama Star Is in My Heart was broadcast in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and other Asian countries. China broadcasting company broadcasted the drama throughout Asia under its Chinese title, and the drama aroused broad popular appeal especially in mainland China. Among many elements composed the drama, the main actor, Ahn Jae Wook, caught peoples attention by his good looking. Ahn Jae-Wook, therefore, became a symbol of the Korean wave in China. Following to Star Is in My Heart, Autumn Story, Winter Sonata, What Is the Love and many other drama fascinated people in China.  [1]   Korea pop music has also taken a huge role of the Korean Wave from the beginning. Young dance music groups, H.O.T and Clone ignited the Korean Wave in China in 1999. Various radio stations in China began to create programs specializing K-pop. Moreover, it is known that the number of fans of H.O.T. was eight million only in China in 2002. Afterwards, at least 50 different Korean pop albums were produced in China, and more than three million albums in total were sold by 2002.  [2]   Beyond simply consuming the media contents, Chinese teenagers repeated Korean pop songs and imitated Korean actors and singers fashion and hairstyle. In addition, Korean restaurants in China became popular among people who were enjoying Korean pop culture.  [3]  Through the indirect experience of Korean food in television drama, people became familiar to it and such familiarity made people walk to Korean restaurants. As the effect of the Korean Wave, the national image of Korea was recognized as positive. As a result, Korean products raised their own value as well. Samsung mobile phones and LG air conditioners and microwaves took bigger portions at Chinese market as people demanded more of such products.  [4]   Started with the drama, Star Is in My Heart, and Korean pop music sung by H.O.T and Clone in China, the Korean Wave outstretched to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Vietnam, and other Asian counties. The Koran Wave started to link Asian regions in a huge boundary of cultural kinship. The Second round of Korean Wave in Japan Even though people in most Asian countries showed deep interests in Korea pop culture, Japan, which is geographically the nearest neighbor, was not affected by the Korean Wave until Winter Sonata hit Japan. In 2003, the Korean drama, Winter Sonata, was first shown on Japanese television in twenty episodes. It captured 22% of the prime time viewing audience. In 2004 Winter Sonata had its second showing. This time it captured 24% of viewing audience.  [5]   Japanese response to the Korean drama was not passive but aggressive. Japanese positively embraced the Korean drama, especially the television drama Winter Sonata and its Korean associations. Some of the Japanese fans elevated Winter Sonata to cult status. For example, the DVD of the Winter Sonata series sold out within few hours of its release in 2003.  [6]  Korean actors in many dramas become celebrities in Japan. Indeed, the male leading actor in Winter Sonata, Bae Yong Joon, was addressed as Yon Sama, an honorific usually assigned only to royalty in Japan. During visits to Japan actors and actress of popular dramas were mobbed by their fans. Demand by fans for Winter Sonata merchandise has created an industry with an annual turnover in Japan and Korea worth 2.3 billion US dollars.  [7]  The industry produces clothing, accessories, jewelers, stationery, magazines, books, DVDs and supports fan clubs. Significantly this interest extended beyond the characters of Winter Sonata toward a more general interest in Korea. The Korean Wave greatly affected to the tourism industry in Korea. In 2004, Japan was the source of nearly half of Koreas 5.6 million overseas visitors, and was its major source of tourists. In 2006 Korean Air announced special film in flights from Japan so that Japanese fans could have more information of the Winter Sonata location sites. In the same year, NHK television media and publishers announced an increase of its annual sales of its Korean language textbook to 20,000 copies.  [8]  As Japanese have enjoyed the Korean cultural media, their interest toward Korea in general also grew. Three main reasons why the Korean Wave became popular in Asia The good quality of cultural media comes to the foremost reason. According to the Chinese local analysis, Korean dramas have outstanding storylines, well designed characters, and sophisticated directing system.  [9]  Plus, original background music (OST) are excellent as well. Whether Chinese or Taiwanese dramas repeat the obvious storylines making people already bored by watching only the first episode, Korean dramas own various styles and types of story raging widely. Their creativities in developing stories fuel peoples curiosities to see the next episode. Korea actors handsome appearance, stylish fashions and hairstyles, and outstanding acting abilities are said to the best among Asian actors. Improved technology in film producing helps background settings and music to be wonderfully assimilated to each other. Camera walking and well designed composition of pictures improve overall quality of the video. The second reason is that the economic decline of Asia forced television producers to seek out products cheaper than Japanese and Western products. The drama series were the starting-point of the Korean Wave in Taiwan. The Korean Wave arose mainly because of the media liberalization that swept across Asia in 1990s, when the economic crisis made Asian buyers prefer the cheaper Korean products compared with Japanese and Hong Kong products. The primary producer of K-Pop Entertainment at Gala-TV in Taiwan told that the main reason that GTV began programming Korean dramas was because of their cheap prices compared to Japanese products, and Korean dramas were even cheaper than domestic ones.  [10]  According to her, Korean dramas were of much better quality then Taiwanese products, but were much cheaper, so GTV dubbed in Mandarin and aired the programs as if they were locally made dramas.  [11]   In 1999, GTV began buying old dramas from the Korean Broadcasting System under the considerations that it costs less than the domestic dramas and the quality of the Korean dramas could be guaranteed. GTV was informed that KBS had invested a huge amount of money in production. Indeed, Korea has long invested in dramas, and after 1993 it has encouraged the investment of private capital in the media industry. Therefore, to supplement domestic dramas, GTV introduced Korean dramas of low cost and good quality.  [12]   Thirdly, Korean movies, dramas, and sometimes even pop music show virtue and kindness. In Korean movies and dramas, people are amiable, and families are harmonious. Juniors respect elders and elders cherish juniors. Lovers love sweetly each other, and spouses care for each other. Korean dramas illustrate the harmonious and pure-hearted feelings. First of all, such heartwarming stories attract wide age groups. It is appropriate for elementary school kids to elder grandma and grandpa to watch altogether. Most western dramas or movies contain suggestive scenes to express passionate love between lovers which made family members to be apart to watch them. However, all family members gather around and can watch Korean dramas or movies which mostly depict pure-hearted loves between friends, families, and lovers. Second of all, pure love between lovers especially attracted Japanese women. Winter Sonata which delivers the story of pure love between main characters evoked Japanese Womens memories of their first love. Since purity in love was already old-fashioned culture in Japan, women who watched Winter Sonata brought out their nostalgic feelings toward pure love. Husband and wife do not talk a lot because Japanese people do not directly reveal their emotions and feelings to others which were regarded as the most secret part of individuals.  [13]  The actions, that spouses sincerely care for each other, stirred desires of Japanese women to be loved from their love directly and in a gentle way. Lastly, the family value commonly dealt in Korean drama evoked nostalgic feeling toward family among Chinese people. Through the Cultural Revolution and through the national campaign, One family, one child, large families were exterminated in China. Naturally, the older generations miss memories they had in large families. The older generations in China could be vicarious satisfaction as they enjoy Korea drama. Even though Asian countries are bound with the similar cultures and traditions, purity in love and family value were lost in Japanese and Chinese society. Pure-hearted feelings and harmonious aspects of Korean society reflected on drama played the significant role to promote the Korean Wave in two societies. The Range of Economic Effects Since the Korean Wave is a Korean pop-culture syndrome, the exportation of cultural industry is at the core of its economic effects. To calculate the whole economic impacts, however, the exportation of cultural industry is not fully satisfied. The derivative products due to the Korean Wave, ripple effects on national economy, and immeasurable effect such as diplomatic effect should be regarded as economic effects that the Korea Wave brought.  [14]   Category Range Cultural industry (effect of direct exp.) Movie, broadcast, music, game, book, concert Derivative products (effect of indirect exp.) Cosmetics, tour, accessories, clothes, mobile phone, home appliance, automobile, food Ripple effects on National economy Active production of cultural industry and derivative goods, creating jobs Immeasurable effects Hangeul, Korean food, diplomacy, national image Table I. The Range of Korean Wave Products First, cultural industry includes movie, broadcast, music, game, book, and concert at which people directly show their enthusiasm. Second, derivative products are products such as cosmetics, tour, accessories, clothes, mobile phone, home appliance, automobile, and food which are indirectly linked with the cultural contents. Automobile that one Korean star drove in drama or the place where the drama was directed are in this category. Third, ripple effect on national economy is that effect on the other economy as cultural industry and derivative products are exported. For example, if the cultural contents were exported and therefore if the mobile phone meets the great demand, the mobile phone company needs to employ more people to produce the phone. As a result, more jobs are created in domestic market. This is a ripple effect on national economy. Fourth, immeasurable effects is, as it says in its word, it is not measurable by numeric values or by statistics. It is invisible effect suc h as people who are big fan of Korean culture learning Korean language. The Effects of Cultural Industry Table II. Exports of Cultural Industry in 2005 unit: million KRW Korean exports in cultural industry to overseas amount to eleven million dollars in 2007. It shows 11.3% of annual growth from 2005 to 2007. In the case of movie industry, the movie, in which Bae yong-Jun (Yon-sama) acted in 2005, was exported at a high cost to Japan. The success of this movie resulted out exporting 76 million dollars. However, the following year reported the exports of only 25 million dollars which fells 68%. Japan China Asia Other Total Movie 48,479 436 5,393 327 54,634 broadcast 74,235 12,473 23,241 642 110,592 Game 120,854 60,188 41,669 3,021 225,732 Music 2,661 461 186 3,308 Book 14,461 2,726 5,152 1,767 24,106 Concert 1,004 50 1,054 total 261,694 76,285 75,455 5,993 419,427  [15]   Table III. Exports of Cultural Industry in 2006 unit: million KRW Japan China Asia Other Total Movie 7,944 344 5,036 260 13,584 broadcast 61,141 9,475 43,656 1,137 115,409 Game 101,981 75,768 50,462 4,296 232,507 Music 2,079 1,821 6 3,906 Book 9,330 2,510 47 11,887 Concert 937 956 47 1,939 total 183,413 90,874 104,454 7,354 386,094  [16]   Table IV. Exports of Cultural Industry in 2007 unit: million KRW Japan China Asia Other Total Movie 4,723 696 5,281 329 11,028 broadcast 83,154 11,208 29,365 1,188 124,916 Game 110,634 112,121 45,079 4,411 272,246 Music 1,604 1,153 18 2,775 Book 7,246 3,938 11,803 1,800 24,787 Concert 911 929 46 1,886 total 208,273 130,046 91,528 7,792 437.639  [17]   The broadcast industry is especially strong in Japan than any other Asian countries. While the broadcast industries in Japan and China show fairly steady outcome, other Asian countries and non-Asian region suddenly consumed the doubled volume of Korean television dramas in 2006 compared to that of 2005. The game industry, which takes the biggest portion in the cultural industry, gradually increased it exports. The Effects of Derivative Product Derivative products are not the cultural contents; however, they are closely related to the Korean Wave. The car appeared in drama or the cosmetics which Korea celebrities advertising are included in the realm of derivative products. Therefore, they are second biggest part in calculating the economic effects of the Korean Wave. Korean cosmetic brands such as The Face Shop and Misha rapidly grew in size in the international market and exported three hundred million dollars in 2005 and three hundred fifty million dollars in 2007. Cosmetic brands are sensitive to their models; therefore, companies frequently change the models to the most popular one at the time. Interestingly, Korean cosmetic brands use male Korea celebrities who are at the center of the Korean Wave because, in this way, it is easier for companies to appeal to female Korean fans in overseas. This is the strategies Korea cosmetic companies are using to target the international market. In the case of clothes, clothes industry resulted out the exports of twenty-three million dollars in 2005; however, exporting volume has been gradually decreased to seventeen million dollars in 2007. Decrease in home appliance exports can be explained by the increasing supply of Chinese products with the developing qualities in China mainland. When the exports of clothes, accessories, mobile phone, and home appliances were decreasing, automobile industry stretched its competitiveness in the international market with the grow rate of 12.5%. Koreas developed technology in automobile production and positive image toward Korean automobile brand established such consequence. Abroad fans interest and familiarity to Korean food helped its industry internationally. Japan China Asia Growth rate Cosmetics 306 319 346 6.3 Tour 1,139 935 791 -16.1 Clothes 2,313 1,9556 1,705 -14.1 Accessories 405 320 296 -14.5 Mobile phone 19,095 16,799 18,644 -1.2 Home appliance 14,656 14,553 13,433 -4.3 Automobile 27,256 30,597 34,482 12.5 Food 875 1,030 1,154 14.8 Table V. Exports of Derivative Products unit: million KRW, % 18 Table VI. Inflow of Foreigners Tour expenses 2005 2006 2007 Growth Rate(%) Number of tourists 6,022,752 6,155,047 6,448,240 3.5 The rate of tourists due to the Korean Wave (%) 14.2 11.8 10.0 Number of tourists due to the Korea Wave (KOR) 855,231 726,296 644,824 -13.2 Total consumption due to the Korea Wave (million KOR) 1,166,329 893,419 735,099 -21.6 19 The number of tourists is increasing from 2005 to 2007 with the growth rate of 3.5%. However, the number of tourists who visited Korea because of the Korea Wave is decreasing with the rate of -13.2%. Winter Sonata sensationally hit Japan in 2003. Thus, the rate of tourists, who came to Korea by the influence of the Korean Wave, in 2005 is comparatively higher than in 2006 and in 2007 as the aftereffect of Winter Sonata. As Japanese tourists who were deeply impressed by Winter Sonata increases after 2003, interesting thing happened in the streets in Korea. The shops near the locations appeared in Korean drama have Japanese explanations on each products. Moreover, the shop assistants in Myung-doing streets tout people in Japanese. They speak Japanese more than Korean to tout Japanese tourists. The decreasing number of tourists due to the Korean Wave does not mean that the Korean Wave has less impact on other cultures. Rather, people, who already visited Korea, would not make a second trip in near future. Therefore, it is quite natural that the number of people visiting Korea due to the Korean Wave gets smaller and smaller, regarding the huge impact of Winter Sonata in 2003. Instead, increasing number of tourists shows the general perception on the image of Korea is improving and it is ultimately the result of the Korean Wave. Therefore, I conclude that the Korean Wave yet fosters the tourism industry in Korea. Riffle Effects on National Economy Through the Korean Wave, Korean international economy was vitalized. Growing demands of Korean cultural contents from abroad have increased supplies, and therefore, Korean cultural industry has grown in a large scale. Numerous companies which create the cultural contents require more labor force as they extend their business. The Korean Wave not only vitalized the Korean economy but also opened the labor market to support industry. Considering the fact that companies, which directly or indirectly related to the Korean Wave, inevitably employ more labors, unimaginable number of people would come into the economic activities, relieving unemployment and boosting the national economy. The Korea Wave started with few dramas and pop songs now controls the whole national economy. Immeasurable effects Korean fans outside of Korea often learn Korean language and eat Korean food. More and more people have interest in Korean culture and favorable impression toward Korea. These sociological phenomena raise the power of Korea very softly everywhere in the world where the Korea cultural syndrome has hit. This is the Soft Power that Korean has. Conclusion The Korean Wave hit China in 1997 for the fist time and now its influence prevails all over Asia. By watching the same drama, by reading the same comic book, and by listing to the same pop songs, people have a strong sense of solidarity. Reflecting on my own experience, Asian teenagers become intimate to each other easily by sharing their cultural interests. In the fact that cultural contents take the large portion on students lives, there is nothing better which connects the students so tightly. They would forget the time flying away when they talk about their own favorite dramas and celebrities. The Korean Wave was directly connected to the domestic economy. Numerous cultural industries have expanded their influence in Asia and related manufacturing industry also has been thrived. The cultural industry established the average exports of 414,387 million Won from 2005 to 2007 and the derivative industry reached to the average exports of 2,204,567 million Won from 2005 to 2007. The whole economic impacts including the ripple effects during the past few years are tremendous in Korean domestic economy. There are several shortages of the Korean Wave that the Korean cultural contents overwhelmingly attract female but only mimic influence to male and that the current Korean Wave is not as sensational as the past few years. The Korean dramas and movies mostly deal with romantic love stories which women love and do not take action or thriller genres which men like. To embrace a broader range of people, Korean production companies need to develop creative and interesting scenarios in various genres. Plus, the economic effects are diminishing in many sectors of industry such as clothes, home appliance, and mobile phone. It is because there are recently no big contents such as Winter Sonata and Dae Jang Geum which rose fanatical boom about Korean media. The more efforts to create the high quality cultural contents enable to continue the glory of Korean Wave in 2004 and 2005. Asian countries and people have never gathered and shared the same cultural contents before as they do these days. Even though there are worried voices that Asian cultures are losing diversity in arts and culture, I valued more on the Korean Waves positive effects that connecting many countries and people in Asia in a close bound. I hope the unified the cultural market in Asia region would be the chance for cultural industries in each Asian countries to cooperative each other to create more developed cultural contents opening up new visas of the future.

Essay --

Podcast Paper: Troubled Asset Relief Program Name: Institution: The Global Financial Crisis and Troubled Asset Relief Program In 2008 the global economy experienced its worst economic turmoil in 2008 since the Great Depression of the 1930s. The effects of the crisis started to show in mid 2007 and by September 2008, the situation was out of hand. The world stock market had plummeted, huge financial institutions had collapsed and the government in the developed economies had put in place measures to rescue their economies from disintegrating. The first clear indicator of the crisis was in 2007 when the high prices of homes in the United States nose-dived and there were massive defaults on mortgages. The US financial sector soon started trembling and before long the world’s financial markets were in tatters. The US financial sector was the main casualty and the effects were felt by many businesses and people that rely on credit. The auto industry was on its knees with a number of players in the industry filing for bankruptcy; indeed, they only stayed afloat through government bailouts. Indeed, every se ctor of the global economy felt the stinging impact of the crisis with the US bearing the blunt effects. Even though massive fiscal and monetary policies prevented the US economy from collapsing, recovery has been very slow. The government policies were not applauded by many Americans who believed that the government was bailing out the same institutions responsible for the crisis. Among the government programs initiated during the recession was the Troubled Asset Relief Program. It was created by the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act to address the biting financial crisis that was at its peak in September 2008. The trea... ... captured by the interests of Wall Street that usually do not serve the welfare of the American people. In fact he pointed out that no single presidential candidate had the willpower to streamline the operations of the financial systems. However, he states that since there are Members of Congress, who severed relations for the sake of the economy and its people, the same people can be the driving force towards meaningful reforms. The American people should never be subjected to such humiliation by a few large financial institutions that have the material resources to influence the decision makers in the economy. In fact, if political will as well as proper legislation and regulation existed, the American people would have reaped optimum returns from the bailout program. Equity stake at the collapsing huge banks would have given the taxpayer greater returns.

From Determinism to Cognitive Theory

From Deterministic Behaviorism to Cognitive Theory: An Evolutionary Trail Alesia G. McDaniel University of the Rockies Abstract The Behaviorist theory, introduced by Pavlov and popularized by Watson and Skinner is discussed based on its roots in the philosophy of determinism which maintains that all behavior is the result of a specific cause. The theory of evolution and the consequential nature-nurture debate following contributes to the search for the meaning of behavior. A relationship to present day behaviorism theory and the rise of cognitive behavioral theory with its branches of cognitive behavior therapy and neuroscience will be explored. An analysis of the similarities and differences between the two constructs in the field of psychology, leads to a discussion of how these theories are used in current psychological practice. Keywords: Determinism, Behaviorism, Cognitive Theory, Cognitive Behavioral Psychology From Determinism to Cognitive Theory: An Evolutionary Trail The history of psychology is informative. It began 100 years ago with an introspective search for mind (Skinner, 1990) that came from philosophy and metaphysics. A philosophical principle called determinism appears to serve as a root for what later became behaviorism. This paper will outline an evolutionary trail. Beginning at the sea of determinism and crossing the plains of evolution, through the jungle of experimental psychology to find the path leading to the oasis of explanation of behaviorism where after a short rest, the trail winds around the curve of cognitive theory ending at a fork in the road. At this point, one path leads to current cognitive therapy practice and the other to current applications of behaviorism. The Sea of Determinism Determinism emerges as the explanation of a principle of physics called cause and effect which asserts that all behavior is the result of some cause (Bargh, 2000). Causation comes as a direct result of purpose or reason. No event is uncaused and all events are of necessity. Philosophy tends to use introspection to flesh out concepts of how the mind interacts with the body. Introspection was rejected by the experimental psychologists. The Plains of Evolution Behaviorism is the idea that all behavior can be traced to specific causes either environmental or reflexive. Thompson (1994) states that behavior of the organism as a whole is the product of three types of variation and selection and that natural selection is the first type. It is responsible for the evolution of the species and hence for species behavior. The Jungle of Experimental Psychology Watson attacked introspection in his behaviorist manifesto of 1913, and for that or other reasons, introspection was essentially abandoned (Bargh, 2000). Behaviorists came out of structuralism and functionalism as a protest of the mentalism that guided the careers of Wundt and Titchener. Experimental psychologists hoped to isolate compounds of images, feelings and sensations in a way that they could measure them and us the measurements to predict the cause of human behavior (Bargh, 2000). It was hoped that these elements could be organized into a type of table as is used in physics. The failure of experimental psychologists to isolate behavior in this manner gave rise to Behaviorist theory. An Oasis: Behaviorism Pavlov’s conditioned reflex formed the basis of Watson’s behaviorism (Thompson, 1994) B. F. Skinner and John Watson developed â€Å"nurture focused† determinism with in two models of behavioral conditioning (Bargh, 2000). B. F. Skinner is known for development of Operant Conditioning which differed from Watson’s version by addition of operation procedures in addition to the CS and the UCS in his S-R model. Operant conditioning addressed the causality of human behavior and as such involved specification of how stimuli, responses, reinforcers, and drive states are woven into relationships that change and sustain an organism’s behavior (Herrnstein, 1977). This method had some limitations that contributed to the rise of cognitive theory as the answer to the question of why humans behave as they do. This process lacked objectivity to sustain its vision and goals. Psychological study without consideration of internal process in unproductive. It is missing a significant variable. Behaviorism came about as a reaction to the subjectivity and unreliability of methods used in experimental psychology and strove to provide a mechanical account of human behavior (Bargh, 2000). It was based on the physiological concept of reflex as a result of external stimulation. The S-R unit was seen as the basic building block of human behavior with no theoretical base. There isn’t any empirical evidence to prove its actual existence. As long as the S-R units of the behaviorist experiments remained contained in labs and boxes, it proved successful, but when taken to higher level processes such as language and social interaction, the S-R unit was no longer plausible. It was thought that what was discovered in the lab with pigeons and rats was transferrable to human behavior outside the lab. The failure of behaviorism’s model to explain higher mental processes of language acquisition, social interaction, memory, and judgment led to cognitive theory to find the missing link (Bargh, 2000). The Curve of Cognitive Theory Behavioral theory exposed the rudimentary or first principles of human behavior from which cognitive therapy evolved. Behaviorism denied internal processing and focusing only on external stimuli leaves much to be desired. The behaviorist held to the idea that the mediating internal constructs and processes hinder achieving the results of the assumption that human behavior can be explained by nurture focused determinism (Bargh, 2000). An integration of cognitive and dynamic psychology to understand all processes that cause behavior is needed. Cognitive theory focuses on the internal processing of external events as the cause of behavior and as such relates to determinism. Perhaps behaviorism failed to completely answer the questions of causality of human behavior because it denied that consciousness plays a role, with consciousness, representing those processes that motivate behavior internally. Perception, interpretation, memory, judgment, evaluation, and goal pursuit all serve to cause behavior. Maybe behaviorists were trying to disprove religious teachings of their time and the belief that God or the Devil had something to do with behavior. They were not willing to deal with what they did not know how to measure. As cognitive science picked up where Behaviorism left off, psychology begins to unravel a process by which an understanding of how the internal processes of the human mind work in combination with individual differences in consciousness and how that influences and directs human behavior. The Fork in the Road: Cognitive Behavior Therapy and Current Behaviorism Applied Cognitive behavior theory and behaviorism theory translated to cognitive-behavioral therapy currently helps practitioners to flesh out the root causality of problematic behavior with their clients. An understanding of why we do, what we do or, what thinking leads to certain behaviors is crucial to eradication of self-destructive behavior as well as restoration and growth after experiencing trauma or victimization. Applications of these theories have contributed to advances in treatment of addiction and trauma. The practices of psychotherapy and medication therapy have also benefited from advances in this area. The End of the Trail? The trail began seeing behavior as the effect of a cause. It continues to evolve from the present path of thinking processes being the cause of behavior. Experimental psychology, behaviorism blazed new trails toward the manifest destiny that is the mind. As new trails are being blazed to understand how thought is related to behavior the evolution continues. . References Bargh, J. A. (2000). Beyond behaviorism: On the automaticity of higher mental processes. Psychological Bulletin,126(6), 925-945. doi:10. 1037/0033-2909. 126. 6. 925. Goodwin, C. (2008). A history of modern psychology, 3rd ed. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley Herrnstein, R. J. (1977). The evolution of behaviorism. American Psychologist, 32(8), 593-603. doi:10. 1037/0003-066X. 32. 8. 593 Skinner, B. F. (1990). Can psychology be a science of mind? American Psychologist, 45(11), 1206-1210. doi:10. 1037/0003-066X. 45. 11. 1206 Thompson, R. F. (1994). Behaviorism and neuroscience. Psychological Review, 101(2), 259-265. doi:10. 1037/0033-295X. 101. 2. 259

Aspartame and Holland Sweetener Co.

27-Feb Bitter Competition: The Holland Sweetener Co. vs. NutraSweet (A) (HBS 9-794-079) 1. How should Vermijs expect NutraSweet to respond to the Holland Sweetener Company’s entry into the European and Canadian aspartame markets? Ans: 1. NutraSweet had a very high Cost of Goods Sold in producing the Aspartame. So it was not a wise move for NutraSweet goes for Price war with Holland Sweetener Company, which might possibly results in a negative gain on the product. . Even though price war is not expected, NutraSweet possibly might use his advantage as the first one introducing the market to continue dominated the market. NutraSweet might also increase its advertisement expense to reintroduce and redirect consumers’ interest back to NutraSweet. 3. In response to Holland’s sue against the company; NutraSweet might probably try their best to fight against it, since they wanted to continuously dominate the soft drink industry.However, even though NutraSweet succeed to defend its anti-competitive, if Holland Sweetener Company or other sweeteners offered a rather better price, similar quality, and comparable distribution offer, in a long run, the drink industry might go to the use of multi-sweetener to lower the suppliers’ control power and to follow government’s suggestion. 4. Since the market shares for NutraSweet will drop with the entry of Holland Sweetener and other Sweetener companies, NutraSweet may expect a sales decrease. Thus, NutraSweet will continue to improve their operation to make it more profitable. . Specifically, how should Vermijs assess the relative likelihood of the two scenarios—price war and normal competition—he has in mind? Price war Anw: Vermijs can use game theory to assess the relative likelihood (N -0. 7, H-0. 3) Holland Enter the Market Normal (N 0. 6, H 0. 4) Nutra Holland did not enter the Market (Nutra 1, Holland 0) When Vermijs think about the likelihood of the two scenarios, he needs to stand in NutraSweet’s shoes to think what Holland will do. If Holland did not enter the market, then Holland will get nothing.But if Holland enter the Market, there’s 50% chance Holland will get some revenue. So Holland will enter the market. When Holland enter the market, Nutra had price war, then they both lost revenue, but if Nutra just normally compete with Holland, then at least Nutra still have positive revenue gain. So Nutra will not start a price war. 3 Other Notes: NutraSweet once reached 711 million for Aspartame business from 1965 to 1987 (patents’ expiration in European and Canadian market); 1986, Holland Sweetener Company prepare to enter this market.NutraSweet’s decision: Normal competition & Price war. NutraSweet has limited production capacity, which hinders the growth of sales and limited their profit; so either NutraSweet increase more capacity to expand their market shares, or after the expiration of exclusivity, let other company get in. Extensive advertising led to wide use of Aspartame by food/beverage manufacturer. Huge price discount first to raise awareness and then put its foot onto soft drink and powdered drink industry.