International Change and the Social World Essay Example for Free

International Change and the Social World Essay In meeting the demands of a global economy, technological advancements especially in the field of telecommunications and information technology are key factors in making possible various transactions faster, cheaper, more reliable and convenient. Needless to say, these technological advances are important tools if companies and other business ventures are to survive in the digital economy. These technological advancements however, are evolving far too fast which consequently generate pressing problems that ought to be considered. On a preliminary note, the aforementioned rapid technological evolutions pose serious questions if our societal structures can rapidly adapt to these changes and more importantly, if we, ourselves can rapidly adapt and be able to integrate for ourselves these changes. In line with this, what follows is a discussion of how such changes affect the global economy. Within this context, the task of this paper is to discuss the effects of work transformation in society with a particular emphasis on how it affects the people management systems around the world. Weick and Quinn (1999) contend that changes in the organization of work within societies may either be characterized as â€Å"discontinuous and episodic† or â€Å"continuous and emergent† (p.361). The difference between the two lies in the emphasis on intentionality, planning, management control, and specific outcomes in the former and the emphasis on improvisation, spontaneity, and ongoing action in the latter. The two perspectives stated above have a direct effect in the formation of an organizational framework. This is another way of saying that the manner in which organizational change is perceived supports an appreciation of the multidimensional nature of organizational phenomena. The organization of phenomena stems from the human need to conceptually order reality. Such a process is ensured through the creation or adoption of a language that may account for the reality perceived by the individual or by the social group. The importance of such a process stems from its issuance of a fixed and thereby more manageable reality. Such a reality, however, is continuously distorted due to the steady input of new forms of conceptualizations that also opt to enable the manageability of reality. Such a process is apparent within the business sector in the gradual shift from an information-based economy to a knowledge-based economy. The later form of economy recognizes that knowledge occupies a focal point in relation to the function of society. As a result of this, organizations became increasingly aware of the need for a ‘knowledge focus’ in their organizational strategies as they respond to changes in their environment. ‘Knowledge focus’ refers to the deobjectifcation of knowledge in favour of the codification of knowledge into systems (Bell, 1999, p.x). Within such an economy, organizational actors and the complex social interactions that take place amongst them recreate organizations through the continuous process of change. According to Tsoukas and Vladimirou (2001), what makes knowledge organizational is it codification in the form of propositional statements set within a group’s collective understanding (p.974). It is important to note that such a process of knowledge codification requires the existence of local knowledge. Within an organization, such forms of local knowledge are evident in the company’s culture; the development of such is dependent upon the existing organizational framework. Such a point brings to focus one of the main elements of the labour market that determines the existing workforce’s productivity and performance within a particular society. The reason for such a focus is evident if one considers that the current shift in economy [from an information based economy to a knowledge-based economy] gives precedence on the role of the members of the workforce in the maintenance of an organizations overall knowledge based culture. In line with this, Davinport (1999) contends that such a culture necessitates a new mode of framing the human capital. According to Davinport, it is time to conceive of workers â€Å"not as human capital but as human capital owners and investors† (1999, p.7). Davinport argues that such a conception is not entirely new since it echoes the conception of the employee as an asset. The difference of such a view stems from the conception of the worker as the owner of the capital since workers are the ones who decide in which field they will contribute the specific talents and expertise they possess within the current market. The organization’s role thereby is fixed to the extent that its main role lies in utilizing and developing the skills offered by the member’s of their workforce. Organizations must thereby adopt new working practices or upgrade workplace skills. An example of this is evident in the content of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) of the United Kingdom which states that â€Å"in a mass customisation environment, where systems of production and distribution are readily imitated and leapfrogged, organisations must therefore continually invest in physical and human capital to keep ‘ahead of the game’†(2001, p.10). As a result of the above stated paradigmatic shift from an information-based economy to a knowledge based economy certain developments occurred within the economic, political, and technological fields. Such developments are evident in the increase in business competition and the advent of information technologies (Weatherly, 2003, p.2). Political and economic developments are evident in the increase in business competition which is a result of the globalization of trade and key economic sectors [e.g. telecommunication, electricity, transportation, financial services]. Technological developments, on the other hand, are evident in the advent of information technology which can best be seen through the continuous popularity and easy accessibility of the internet. According to Lev (2001), such developments within the above stated fields have dramatically changed the structure of organizations to the extent that intangibles [human capital] became the major value drivers of business within developed economies (p.8-14). The reason for this is evident if one considers that from a strategic perspective it has been noted that â€Å"fully one-third of the information used to justify the investment decision is non-financial† (Ernst Young, 1997, p.10). Examples of such factors are â€Å"quality of management, effectiveness of new product development, strength of market position, strength of corporation culture, and effectiveness of compensations policies† (Weatherly, 2003, p.4). Such factors have an overall link to business systems since they are partially if not fully determined by the company’s culture maintained by its overall organizational framework. Furthermore, since the above stated factors are considered in the determination of investment decisions, it also follows that they have a direct effect in terms of the economic conditions of a business organizations and hence the economic side of society as a whole. As was stated above, one of the defining factors of the current paradigm shift within the market can be traced from the shift of importance from the tangible assets to the intangible assets. Tangible assets consists of financial assets [financial capital] and physical assets [e.g. property, equipment, and other furnishing] whereas intangible assets consists of intellectual capital [e.g. patent formulas and product designs] and human capital. The focus of this paper from the onset has been to lay down the current transformations of work in the period of globalization. What follows is the specification of how these changes have affected society at large. In Work, Self, and Society, Catherine Casey specifies the manner in which changes in work have affected society. Casey (1995) argues that the current conception of work which is defined by the effects of industrialization has turned the worker into a product or a commodity of the market. She states, The convergence of work and virtue (through methodical adherence to one’s ‘calling’)†¦set in place a type of citizen-worker that would subsequently come to typify modern forms of social organization. In modern society people have defined themselves and in turn have been socially defined, by the type of work that they do in the public sphere. (1995, p.28) In other words, the results of industrialization have led to the commodification of the individual as the individual derives his value from his work. The manner in which this is enabled is further evident in the current shift from an information based economy to a knowledge based economy as the value of the worker is considered to be dependent upon his knowledge. This shows how the nature of work within a post-industrial society has changed to the extent that the market has become dependent upon the mental labour and the mental knowledge of the worker [mental labour is considered to be the core of industrial activity] (Lawson, Jones, Moores, 2000, p.99).   To a certain extent, one might note that this may prove to be beneficial for individual societies since the aforementioned paradigm shift has enabled the development of regional specialties and economies. Sabel (1999) states that the changes in the work paradigm within the post-industrial society has led to the development and growth of â€Å"twentieth century variants of industrial districts in Italy, West Germany, Japan, Denmark, Austria, France, and the United States† (p. 243). Such an assumption however may be considered as the result of a form of hasty generalization since although such developments have enabled organizations around to world to place greater focus upon the members of the workforce as well as upon the development of industrial districts around the world [the development of such is expected to pave the way for the industrialization of all countries and hence the development of these countries] such developments still place the worker in a disadvantaged position as he remains to be a commodity within the market whose value is dependent upon what the work system prescribes. References Bell, D. (1999).   The Axial Age of Technology, Foreword. The Coming of the Postindustrial Society.   New York: Basil Book. Casey, C. (1995). Work, Self, and Society: After Industrialism. London: Routledge. Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, 2001.   Raising U.K. Productivity: Why People Management Matters. Davenport, T. (1999).   Human Capital: What It Is and Why People Invest.   San Francisco: Doubleday. Ernst Young LLP. (1997). Measures that matter. Retrieved March 22, 2009 from www.cbi.cgey.com. Lawson, T., M. Jones, R. Moores. (2000). Advanced Sociology Through Diagrams. Oxford: Oxford U.P. Lev, B. (2001). Intangibles: Management, measurement and reporting. Washington, DC: Brookings Inst. P. Sabel, C. (1999). Flexible Specialisation and the Re-emergence of Regional Economies. Modernity: Critical Concepts Ed. M. Waters. London: Taylor Francis. Tsoukas, H. Vladimirou, E. (2001). What is organizational knowledge? Journal of Management Studies, vol. 38, no.7. 973-93 Weatherly, L. (2003). Human capital-the elusive asset: Measuring and managing human capital: A strategic imperative for HR. Research Quarterly, Society for Human Resource Management. Weick, C. Quinn, R. (1999). Organizational change and development.   Annual Review of Psychology, vol. 50: 361-386.

Technology Trends and Issues :: essays research papers fc

Defining Technological Literacy Given the current state of technology, a researcher should have little difficulty in finding relevant definitions that embody a spirited understanding of underlying technical and societal interactions that craft a view of the technically literate person. As an exercise, extracting the common elements from various experts’ definitions of technological literacy should result in a generalized perspective that would provide a foundation supporting further literacy definitions for aspects of technology such as computers or genetics. However, this is easier than it sounds. As Gagel (1997) confirms, â€Å"defining technological literacy has proven to be an unexpectedly complex and difficult task†. The difficulty in defining technological literacy is exposed by a number of factors. One factor relates to understanding perspective and determining whether the term is best defined by putting the emphasis on â€Å"technology† or â€Å"literacy† or whether the subject is best approached laterally. Indeed, Gagel describes the technological literacy from a technology perspective as opposed to defining literacy and then establishing parameters supporting technological literacy. Perhaps this approach contributed to the author’s difficulty in defining the term. As technology is so diverse and crosses many boundaries, perhaps the definition of technological literacy should do likewise, and not be restricted to either a â€Å"technology† or â€Å"literacy† perspective. Another factor contributing to the difficulty in defining technological literacy involves the improperly weighting of computer influence on the term’s definition. In a speech given by former President, Bill Clinton, this misunderstanding is propagated further. He states, â€Å"Today, technological literacy – computer skills and the ability to use computers and other technology to improve learning, productivity and performance – is a new basic that our students must master. â€Å" (Clinton, n.d.) Clearly, this mindset is remiss and precludes the contribution of myriad other technologies affecting our daily lives. According to Harrison, â€Å"Computer literacy is but a subset of technological literacy, but if this mindset is not encouraged, then the richness of technological literacy will not be passed on to next generations. As technologists, we have the daunting task of reversing this rapidly flowing river.† (Harrison, 2000) So, the question is how to define â€Å"technological literacy† without being trapped in too narrow a perspective and without utilizing a specific technology to add meaning to the term. It is important that society controls technology for it to serve us purposefully in our daily lives and lifestyle in general. For us to control technology, an understanding and knowledge is required to allow us to make informative decisions on how it will affect our lives.

Poetry Buffalo Bill’s Defunct Essay

Buffalo Bill’s Defunct is a short poem; it tells a story and creates a picture of a hardworking cowboy named Bill. The poem is about a dead, handsome blue eyed cowboy. It is written in the narrative form and in the first person. The author personifies death and he is upset with death for taking away Bill the cowboy: â€Å"†¦ and what i want to know is how do you like your blueeyed boy Mister Death.† (Clugston, 2010) Theme The theme is about death; however the author did not take the usual path of a sad tone or mournful words. Bill’s memory is simply about what he does, how he looks coupled with the speed and dexterity with which he accomplishes his task. Language The language that the author uses creates the image of a healthy looking blue eyed man sitting atop a silver haired steed, and rounding up the horses in the corral. Buffalo Bill could break/tame five wild horses in a short time. The words one to five running into each other creates the effect of the speed at which Buffalo Bill executes the horse breaking/taming exercise; â€Å"onetwothreefourfive pigeonsjustlikethat.†(Clugston, 2010) Pigeon is the name for a particular breed of horses that are very wild, dangerous and hard to tame. The author respects Buffalo Bill’s ability to repeatedly accomplish the difficult task of taming pigeon horses with seeming ease and confidence. These horses have a reputation of killing cowboys and it is highly probable that they are Mister Death’s accomplices in Bill’s demise. Imagery Cummings used imagery to tell the story. Culture influenced my response to this piece of work in that I still watch cowboy movies and as a child I used to listen to old cowboy songs. By the time I got to line six; I was drawn into piece. â€Å"Buffalo Bill’s†¦ride a watersmooth-silver stallion.† (Clugston, 2010) Immediately I could visualize the ranch setting, the noise of the horse, cowboy lasso making circles in the air over his head. (Up to that point I thought that Bill was an old man who had stopped working on the ranch). He continued to build on the image by mentioning that Bill is a blue eyed boy. I also pictured that Bill had light brown or blonde hair, was a white well-built man. The author skillfully chose and condensed his words to create this light and easy to read piece about death. Personification Cummings personifies death but does so with respect when he refers to it as â€Å"Mr. Death.† Death itself is an abstract noun but he had to get at someone for taking Buffalo Bill. As a result, Cummings could take a parting low jab at death: â€Å"How do you like your blueeyed boy Mister Death.† (Clugston, 2010) Tone The poem carries a sad and angry tone. The narrator is sad that Buffalo Bill is dead and he is also angry at â€Å"Mr. Death† for taking him away. Symbolism Cummings uses descriptive words such as: â€Å"Watersmooth† and â€Å"Blueeyed† both as symbolizing Buffalo Bills presence on the ranch. Water symbolizes life and regeneration and blue symbolizes peace. (Clugston, 2010) Conclusion Buffalo Bill’s Defunct is a short poem; it tells a story and creates a picture of a hardworking cowboy named Bill. Cummings personifies death but does so with respect when he refers to it as â€Å"Mr. Death.† The narrator is sad that Buffalo Bill is dead and he is also angry at â€Å"Mr. Death† for taking him away. Bill’s memory is simply about what he does, how he looks coupled with the speed and dexterity with which he accomplishes his tasks. The appearance of the piece is interesting and unusual. It does not conform to the poetic norms; however it is entertaining and it flows straight to the point. I connected with it because of the simple style that Cummings used to tell Buffalo Bill’s story. Reference Clugston, W. R., (2010). Journey Into Literature, San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education Inc.

Review For Enhancing Cultural Competency - 1559 Words

ANALYSIS OF REVIEW FOR ENHANCING CULTURAL COMPETENCY IN NEW NURSING GRADUATES Cultural competency is an indispensable in nursing practice so that nurses can deliver optimal care for patients from diverse cultural backgrounds. Therefore, insufficient knowledge and skills of cultural competency have continued to increase racial and ethnic inequalities in health care service for minority groups (Dunagan et al. 2013; Long, 2012). As nurses interact with clients they provide nursing care, education and advocacy at any point in need. Cultural awareness remains the basis for nurses to develop interest and continue to advance in knowledge and skills to deliver culturally competent care (Calvillo, 2009). To complete the critical analysis of the†¦show more content†¦RESULTS To discuss the result of the integrative review, studies selected consist of articles that used multiple research methods. The essence to combining different research methods was to improve the strategies to enhance data collection and extraction (Whittemore Knaffle, 2005). The primary focus was to enhance the rigour of the critical analysis to discuss current of knowledge on enhancing the cultural competency of new graduates (Whittemore Knaffle, 2005). DATA REDUCTION Although seven studies included in the review, two of the study used qualitative methods (Hart Mareno, 2014; Kokko, 2014). The research methods were found suitable for the designs of each study. Chircop et al., (2013) used quantitative research designs which are supposed adequate for obtaining measurable data on student competence and knowledge acquisition. While the two mixed method designs (Alpers, Hanssen, 2014; Dunagan et al., 2013) are considered effective for exploration of self-assessment for to enhance cultural competency. Two other studies used quasi-experimental research methods (Mareno and Hart, 2014; Noble et al., 2014). The summary of the selection process is illustrated in Appendix II. DATA DISPLAY To describe the pattern and relationships between the primary data sources, the extracted data are displayed in Appendix III In â€Å"Caring for ethnic minority patients† published in 2014, Alpers, Hanssen, concluded that