Business And Cultural Environment Of Syria Economics Essay

Business And Cultural Environment Of Syria Economics Essay Syria (officially the Syrian Arab Republic) is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest. Syria has been governed by the Baath Party since 1963, although actual power is concentrated to the presidency and a narrow grouping of military and political strongmen (Wikipedia, 2010). Moreover, the nature in Syria is distinctly diversified. It contains seashores, mountains, forests, dessert, rivers, caves, natural and artificial lakes, and a lot summer resorts. All this along with the diversity in the antiques, the ancient cities with its markets, khans and old domiciles, the handicrafts and the traditional industries contribute to formulate a unique attracting compound tourism product. Analysis of Syria Business Environment Cultural Environment in Syria Languages Arabic is the official language, spoken by 89% of the population, while 6% speak Kurdish, 3% Armenian and 2% other languages. Otherwise, English and French are spoken in business circles (Arabic German Consulting, 1999). Ethnic groups Syrians are an overall indigenous Levantine people, closely related to their immediate neighbors such as Lebanses, Palestinians, and Jordanians. While modern-day Syrians are commonly described as Arabs by virtue of their modern-day language and bonds to Arab culture and history; they are in fact largely a blend of the various Aramaic speaking Syriac groups indigenous to the region who were Arabized when Muslim. Arabs from the Arabian Peninsula arrived and settled following the Arab expansion. Religions The overwhelming majority of the Syrian population is Sunni Muslim. Other Muslims which include: Ismailis, Shiites, and Alawites. Of the non-Muslims in Syria, most are Christians, primarily Greek and Armenian Orthodox. Religious minorities include Druze, who follows a religion related to Islam, and a community of approximately 1000 Jews. Syria has 70% Sunni Muslim, 12% Christians (almost is Orthodox and Greek Catholic) and 18% other minority groups including Jews and Druzes (Arabic German Consulting, 1999). Syria Culture Syria is a traditional society with a long cultural history. Importance is placed on family, religion, education and self discipline and respect. The Syrians taste for the traditional arts is expressed in dancing such as the al-Samah, the Dabkeh in all their variations and the sword dance. Marriage ceremonies and the birth of children are occasions for the lively demonstration of folk customs (Advameg, Inc., 2010). Traditional Houses of the Old Cities in Damascus, Aleppo and the other Syrian cities are preserved and traditionally the living quarters are arranged around one or more courtyards, typically with a fountain in the middle supplied by spring water, and decorated with citrus trees, grape vines, and flowers. Political and Legal Environment in Syria The Syria government hopes to attract new investment in the tourism, natural gas, and service sectors to diversify its economy and reduce its dependence on oil and agriculture. Syria has begun to institute economic reforms aimed at liberalizing most markets, but reform thus far has been slow and ad hoc. For ideological reasons, privatization of government enterprises is still not widespread, but is in its initial stage for port operations, power generation, and air transport. Almost sectors are open for private investment except for cotton mills, land telecommunications, and bottled water. Syria has made progress in easing its heavy foreign debt burden through bilateral rescheduling deals with its key creditors in Europe, most importantly Russia, Germany, and France. Syria has also settled its debt with Iran and the World Bank. Syria and Poland reached an agreement by which Syria would pay $27 million out of the total $261.7 million debt in December 2004. Moreover, in January 2005, Russia forgave 73% of Syrias $14.5 billion outstanding debt and in June 2008, Russias parliament ratified the agreement. In 2007, Syria and Romania reached an agreement by which Syria will pay 35% of the $118.1 million debt. In May 2008, Syria settled all the debt it owed to the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Economic Environment in Syria Syria is a developing country with an economy based on agriculture, oil, industry, and tourism. However, Syrias economy faces serious challenges and impediments to growth, which including: a large and poorly performing public sector; declining rates of oil production; widening non-oil deficit; wide scale corruption; weak financial and capital markets and high rates of unemployment tied to a high population growth rate. Furthermore, Syria currently is subject to U.S. economic sanctions under the Syria Accountability Act, which prohibits or restricts the export and re-export of most U.S. products to Syria (World Harvest Now, 2002). Source: (Encyclopedia of the Nations, 1999). Moreover, the IMF recently projected real GDP growth at 3.9% in 2009 from close to 6% in 2008. The two main pillars of the Syrian economy used to be agriculture and oil, which together accounted for about one-half of GDP. Agriculture, for example, accounted for about 25% of GDP and employed 25% of the total labour force. On the other hand, higher crude oil prices countered declining oil production and led to higher budgetary and export receipts (Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, 2010). The Nature of Advantage Advantage in the context of International Trade Theory can be classified into five categories and defined: 1) Natural advantage by means of climate, soil and etc; 2) Acquired advantage through the processing of one of the basic factors of land, labour and etc; 3) Comparative advantage against another nations endowment of assets; 4) Country size as a proxy for the range of natural factors such as climate, soil, minerals and etc,; 5) Factor proportions that suggest their optimum utilisation in production (Daniels, J. D., Radebaugh, L. H. Sullivan, D. P., 2010). According to Daniels, Radebaugh and Sullivan (2004) framework, the evolution of International Trade Theory is depicted as below: Apart from Porters Competitive Advantage of Nations theory, I have chosen to relate Product Life Cycle theory and Factor Proportions theory. Raymond Vernons International Product Life Cycle Theory Raymond Vernon (1966) International product life cycle (PLC) theory of trade states that the location of production of certain kinds of products shifts as they go through their life cycles, which consists of four stages: Introduction, Growth, Maturity, and Decline (Daniels, et al. 2004, pp. 153). Therefore, the business environment in Syria would relate to figure (C) less developed countries. Heckscher-Ohlin Factor Proportions Theory Heckscher-Ohlin Factor Proportions theory suggests that each country has important factor endowments and as a result will tend to export products which make use of factors that are abundant there. The country will tend to import products that are locally scarce (Chacholiades, M., 2006). Justification of Foreign Investment Opportunities in Syria Although a government decree prohibits confiscation of foreign investments, there are no safeguards against nationalization of property. In principle the judicial system upholds the obligations of contracts but in practice decisions are subject to outside pressures. In addition, poor infrastructure, power outages, lack of financial services, and complex foreign exchange regulations have all contributed to Syrias failure to attract significant amounts of foreign investment. 4 major pieces of legislation have been passed to encourage foreign investment (Encyclopedia of the Nations, 2010). The most significant foreign investment in Syria had been in gas and oil. In 1990, 12 foreign oil firms had operations in Syria but until mid-2002, only 5 remained: Shell, Total-Fina-Elf, Mol (Hungary), INA-Naftaplin (Croatia) and Conoco. Other foreign investors included Mitsubishi, Samsung, Mobil, Nestle, and Prince Walid Bin Talal of Saudi Arabia. Foreign investment is complicated by Syrian requirements of import and export licenses on every item imported and then re-exported, no matter the value, and with US sanctions on supplying Syria any dual use items such as computers, oil exploration equipment (Encyclopedia of the Nations, 2010). Summary of Syria current Foreign Investment using Porters Diamond of National Competitiveness form Source: (Porter, 1990) According to Porter (1990), there are four principal attributes of a countrys economic system that together shape the environment in which local companies compete. Another research by Dunning (1993) found that there are secondary attributes that contributes to the extended form of the model. The secondary attributes are identified as the role of chance, the role of government and multi-national business activities. Relating to foreign investment opportunities into Syria, the 4 principal attributes are: Factor conditions would be land, labor, capital, educational level of workforce and quality of infrastructure. The education scenario in Syria has developed since the last few decades. There are about 97% of the children in Syria avail the primary education and the literacy rate of the children in Syria is over 90%. 87% of the male population in Syria is literate. The literacy rate among the women in Syria range to 73.9%. Demand conditions would be the governments efforts in spending to develop more into the international trading industry. Tourism is one of the most dynamic activities in the country. The government has adopted a new vision for tourism, with plans to make it a pillar of the national economy. Acquired skills should make it possible to advance to a new stage of development, with new hotels and leisure equipment that meet demand for elitist, cultural tourism. The countrys middle-level hotel infrastructure is insufficient and in any case outdated and there is not much in the way of leisure facilities, aside from services offered at luxury hot (animaweb.org). The countrys transport infrastructure needs to be developed, upgraded, and modernized. Syria should invest the equivalent of US$ 523 million for development of its eastern regions over the next five years (From 2006 to 2010), nearly LBP17 billion ($323 million USD) in investments in the Hassake area and LBP10.2 billion in the region of Deir Al-Zor area. Recommendations for Syrias International Trade Strategy In conclusion, I conclude my research based on SWOT Analysis as below: SWOT Analysis Strengths Syrias chief exports are petroleum, textiles, food, live animals, and manufactured goods which are exported to Germany (which received 21% of exports in 1999), Italy (12%), France (10%), Saudi Arabia (9%), and Turkey (8%). Syrias main import products are machinery, food and live animals, transport equipment, and chemicals. Tourism is one of the most dynamic activities in the country. Syria Ministry of Tourism proposed 33 project ideas to foreign investors, 13 initiatives were contracted, worth $600 billion USD and for the first time hotel management companies were authorized to enter Syria: Intercontinental, Holiday Inn, Royal, and Accor (animaweb.org). Weaknesses Some basic commodities, such as bread, continue to be heavily subsidized, and social services are provided for nominal charges. The subsidies are becoming harder to sustain as the gap between consumption and production continues to increase. Syria has a population of approximately 21 million people, and Syrian Government figures place the population growth rate at 2.37%, with 65% of the population under the age of 35 and more than 40% under the age of 15. Every year, approximately 200,000 people enter the labor market. According to Syrian Government statistics, in 2009 the unemployment rate was 12.6%. Opportunities According to International Monetary Fund, because of the discovery of large oil fields, Syrias foreign trade volume has immensely increased over the last 3 decades. During this period, exports have grown from US$203 million in 1970 to US$4.8 billion in 2000, while imports have risen from US$360 million in 1970 to US$3.5 billion in 2000 (Advameg, Inc., 2010). The services sector also offers many investment opportunities. Ongoing reforms, in particular in the financial sector, reflect the commitment of Syrian authorities to carry out a vast modernization program and a new legal framework for privatization that will ease market access (animaweb.org). The banking and insurance sectors have been opened to private and foreign operators. In information technologies, the countrys telecom and internet grids will be extended and new operators, in particular on the web, are expected to propose new services and content (animaweb.org). Threats Water and energy are among the issues that sprit all over the agriculture sector. Another difficulty the agricultural sector suffered from is the governments decision to liberalize the prices of fertilizers, which have increased between 100% and 400%. Drought was an alarming problem in 2008; however, the drought situation slightly improved in 2009. Wheat and barley production about doubled in 2009 compared to 2008. In spite of that, the livelihoods of up to 1 million agricultural workers have been threatened. Syria has been on the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism since the lists inception in 1979. Because of its continuing support and safe haven for terrorist organizations, Syria is subject to legislatively mandated penalties, including export sanctions and ineligibility to receive most forms of U.S. aid or to purchase U.S. military equipment (Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, 2010). (Word: 2,124 words, including heading title, diagram and table)

Counseling Psychology :: Graduate Admissions Essays

Counseling Psychology    When I began my studies at the University of Northern Iowa, I had an interest in the field of psychology, but I was not yet sure that I wanted to pursue a career in that area. The classes that I consequently took and the professors that taught them solidified my desire to receive a degree in psychology.    Interacting with my professors as a teacher's assistant and research assistant gave me a chance to discover at a more personal level what psychology is all about. Although I am seeking a M.A. in General Psychology at this time, I do have specific goals for my future. I hope to continue my education past the M.A. and receive a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology, counseling individuals and eventually acquiring a teaching position with a college or university.    I am currently doing research in the area of Cognitive Psychology with Dr. Jack Yates, Professor of Cognitive Psychology, University of Northern Iowa. This research is related to how people conceptualize concrete and abstract terms, but my research interests vary widely. Other research interests include gender differences in the workplace and how socialization affects stereotypic gender roles among the sexes.    I have qualified for the dean's list three of the last four semesters, currently carry a 3.59 junior/senior GPA and a 3.75 GPA in my major. I also have been accepted into Psi Chi and belong to the Psychology Club on campus.    I expect that graduate work at the University of Somewhere will be demanding, challenging, and exciting, and I look forward to attending a program of this sort. During my time in graduate school I expect to receive the opportunity to learn, grow, and evolve as a person and a psychologist.

The True Cost of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Essay -- PTSD Es

In 2010, veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) cost the government about $1.3 billion (United States of America 17). This is an enormous amount of money, but it hasn’t even been helping veterans. Many vets aren’t finishing treatment but continue to receive disability checks from the Veterans Health Administration, abbreviated to VHA. Not only this, but some veterans are faking their way into the system and evading the diagnosis process by coming up with an tall tale. It is on the Veteran’s Affairs (VA) to determine whether these stories are fake (Department of Veterans’ Affairs), which is many times impossible to regulate. New laws that are being passed that make it easier for veterans to receive disability checks are not helping this problem either (Brown and Thompson 43). The government is spending too much money on a system that is failing our veterans; the public should not have to pay when the money is going to waste on misdiagnosis, fa iling treatment, and unjust laws. PTSD, also known as post-traumatic stress disorder, is an anxiety disorder. It affects people that have experienced, witnessed, or were confronted with a life threatening event. It can cause flashbacks, depression, nightmares, and change of mood. Other common symptoms of PTSD are difficulty sleeping, anger outbursts, decreased interest in activities, avoidance of people and places that can trigger a memory, and inability to recall part of the trauma. Symptoms can occur right after the incident but also much later in life. Other common occurrences with PTSD are depression, suicide, and alcohol or drug abuse (FAQs about PTSD). Treatment can last from three months to sometimes longer than 4 years. Treatment types are exposure therapy, using me... ...Angeles Times, 21 Dec. 2013. Web. 20 Mar. 2014. . United States of America. Congress of The United States. Congressional Budget Office. The Veterans Health Administration’s Treatment of PTSD and Traumatic Brain Injury Among Recent Combat Veterans. Congressional Budget Office, Feb. 2012. Web. 24 Feb. 2014. Wood, David. "Iraq, Afghanistan War Veterans Struggle With Combat Trauma."The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 4 July 2012. Web. 20 Mar. 2014. . "The human cost our veterans are paying.." The human costs our veterans are paying. Expedition Balance, n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2014. .

Enzymes in Brewing Industry :: essays papers

Enzymes in Brewing Industry Bioengineering Research Paper Enzymes are catalysts or proteins that are produced by a living cell, but in process are independent of the cell itself. There are two types of enzymes i.e 1) Cell Independent enzymes 2) Non-enzymic enzymes Enzymes are long chains of amino acids held together by peptide bonds. They exist in all living cells, usually controlling the metabolic process whereby nutrients are converted into energy. Enzymes are also catalyst, this mean that enzymes can speed up chemical processes that would normally move very slowly. Enzymes unfortunately don’t last forever they have limited stability or lifespan when they have completed their function in the chemical reaction. Science shows that enzymes work on raw material. Fruit, cereal, milk, beer or wood are some typical products for enzymatic conversion. Enzymes are specific, they usually break down or synthesize one particular compound, and in some cases enzymes limit their actions to specific bonds in the compound with in which they react. An example gluconases is one of the many enzymes used in beer brewing. This enzyme is used in industrial applications of brewing beer and is a very efficient catalyst. It breaks down the wheat and converts the carbohydrates into sugars that speed up the reaction in the aspect of the beer’s fermentation. Enzymes need certain types of conditions to operate, these conditions are usually mild in the areas of temperature and acidity. Many enzymes function around 30Â º- 70Â ºC and their acidity are usually around neutral(ph 7). Enzymes are very important to industrial processes, enzymes they are energy saving and also protect the lifespan of equipment used in processes and also having to buy special equipment resistant to heat, pressure or corrosion. Industrial enzymes can be produced in an ecological way, one of the main ways enzymes can be produced industrially is to culture enzymes in vats. Man has been exploiting enzymes in nature unknowingly for centuries. Also for thousands of years the beer brewing processes of many countries has relied heavily on barley malt. In this period of time barley was malted without brewers understanding what happen to the barley during the malting process. The idea back then was good beer couldn’t be made without malted barley. The unknown

Models of Organized Crimeexecutive Summary

Models of Organized Crime Executive Summary Jennifer Peel CJA/384 November 26, 2012 Marco Faggione Models of Organized Crime Executive Summary Within the criminal justice field there are two different types of organizations and those organizations are bureaucratic and patron-client organizations. This paper will discuss the several assorted reasons why and how the bureaucratic and patron-client organizations are different. The patron-client organization chooses to break the law. On the other hand, the bureaucratic organizations are those that are there to enforce it.Although there are many differences between these two organizations, they also have commonalities. This paper will address so many more ways that make these two unique types of organizations different. The Patron-client Organization A patron-client organization is an assembly of criminal individuals who swapped data and assembled a successful system between the main bosses and important political figures. The patron-clien t organization is typically organized using a hierarchy system which consists of one boss, an underboss, an advisor, captains, and members.The main boss hands down commands to the underboss. The underboss relates the information to captains, who also has lackeys to do the dirty work. All members of a patron-client organization must go through prior initiation. Moreover, patron-client organizations are similar to a very close family in the top tier. The patron-client appears to recruit solely within their group. They tend to identify members with a common factor for recruitment. All members may be of the same ethnic group, family or other common factor.When it comes to the lower level, with the members, that tightness spreads out some. With this allowance of a somewhat spider web manner, there is a better chance of elusiveness when it come to the head figures. This way, the main bosses are able to evade apprehension as well as initial detection form the justice system. The organizati on is then able to continue daily operations with no issues (Lyman, 2007). When it comes to the patron-client organization control is a special problem ecause of the amount of people in the organization and the length of communication of commands have to travel. So the inability to establish command oversight with the leaders in management with the members in the lower tiers is a large problem (â€Å"Florida International University†, 2007). Something that this group provides is economic aid and protection from outside influences that their clients may be facing. While the group is providing this service, the client will repay the organization with such things like intangible items like loyalty to the organization in the future and esteem.The patrons of the organization will act as power brokers for their clients and the rest of society. The Bureaucratic Organization Bureaucratic organizations are more official consisting of hard guidelines, protocols, practices, and procedur es. This is unlike the patron-client organization because without administrative approval, the low ranked members may not make any decisions. Called the red tape rule, administration must process the formal documentation before processing all major decisions.Unlike the patron-client organization, which the lower level members can make small decisions without any approval as long as it benefits the organization. If there are no benefits to the organization, the member will receive some sort of punishment. A bureaucratic organization, blames financial troubles solely on the administrations whereas in a patron-client organization, holding everyone financially responsible and involving all members in the success or failure of the organization (WeeKoh, 2009). The SimilaritiesAll criminal organization models consist of comparisons and contrasts but the main purpose is to benefit law enforcement, researchers, society, and professionals with a better understanding of how criminal organizati ons develop domestically and internationally. Professional psychologists, sociologists, and criminologist’s base models on corroborating studies, data, facts, and creditable arguments collected. The information that presented focuses on organizational structure, function and reason, participants, and clients.In addition, each model incorporates detail specific unique features. The models presented are tools that provide answers to questions, offer an explanation to why individuals engage in illegal activity, how criminal organizations develop, and why most criminal organizations are successful. These are just a few of the similarities that exist (Lyman, 2007). Although it appears there are more similarities in both the bureaucratic and patron-client organizations such as their involvement in both legitimate and illegitimate means of business.Both parties hide behind legitimate businesses to cover alternative means of business opportunities, and both parties follow a structure d and strictly regulated organization with various levels of power. The Differences The main difference between the two organizations is the shared opportunities and contributions to the organization. The patron-client appears to welcome the input and contributions of each member which gives each member the sense of pride and empowerment as a group that is lacking with the bureaucratic organization.Failure in the bureaucratic organization is blamed on the negligence of those in charge, not in the failure as a group which would be the perception of the patron-client organization. The differences between bureaucratic and patron-client organizations are visible as bureaucratic deals with offices that do things by the law. They do not take extensive training in customer service and do not concentrate on being nice. The offices that are being referred to are government offices such as Welfare, DMV, and Section 8.In contrast, patron-client facilities are offices or places that focus upon pleasing their clients because if they don’t, the patron will go to another facility to get their needs met. This brings us to the similarities and differences of the models of organized crime. These types of models are exceedingly important to understanding organized crime as each provides a wide-range of valuable information. Models just like theories can present what environmental locations are more likely to show signs of developmental progress of criminal organizations than other sites.This in return can be extremely useful in many ways as it allows law enforcement the ability to implement methods that will deter, prevent, detect, and apprehend individuals involved with illegal organizations and operations. Furthermore, law enforcement can educate society on crime prevention methods, and establish numerous anti-crime and awareness programs, such as neighborhood watch (Lyman, 2007). After carefully researching the patron-client and bureaucratic organization, one clearly c an see that legal and illegal organizations have one main purpose to profit.Each organization has numerous similarities and differences, but structuring both in such a fashion that there is always someone who is in charge of maintaining the organizations success. Models just like theories provide useful information to law enforcement, society, and professionals. Consider these models as tools that allow law enforcement and society an opportunity to protect assets while detecting, preventing, apprehending, and deterring the individual wrongdoer or a highly developed criminal organization.References Florida International University. (2007). Retrieved from http://chua2. fiu. edu/faculty/byrnesj/organizedweek1-1. htm Lyman, M. D. , & Potter, G. W. (2007). Organized crime (4th ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Prentice Hall. WeeKoh. (2009). Bureaucratic organization. Retrieved from http://weekoh. wordpress. com/2009/02/28/briefly-identify-the-main-features-of-bureaucratic-organizati ons-why-has-bureaucracy-been-accused-of-wiping-out-the-individual-responsibility-of-the-employee/

Why Was Stormont Dissolved in 1972?

Why was Stormont Dissolved in 1972? Eighty- seven years have passed and partition within Ireland still remains the island’s defining feature. Since the six county country of Northern Ireland was formed under the umbrella organisation of the United Kingdom in 1921, Northern Ireland has experienced two periods of its history that are so extreme in their differences. For the first fifty or so years of Northern Ireland’s existence the situation between both sides of the community, the Protestants and the Catholics was peaceful and there was very little hostility or violence between them. Northern Ireland was essentially governed by peaceful co- existence as the government at Stormont ruled with relative ease. However, towards the late 1960s, the history of Northern Ireland changed, as what was to become the darkest period in the country’s short history, ‘the Troubles’, ensued between the Protestant and Catholic sides of the community and threatened to destroy Northern Ireland. In a period that lasted around thirty years, Northern Ireland became a war zone, characterised by bombings, shootings and sectarian violence as the two communities fought to defend their beliefs and protect one another from the so- called ‘other side’. However it is the first three years of ‘the Troubles’, from 1969- 1972 and the dissolution off Stormont that will be the focus of this essay. The dissolution off Stormont in 1972 ended fifty years of Home Rule in the province and led to over two decades of Direct Rule from Westminster. But why was Stormont dissolved in 1972? In this essay I will answer this question but it is important to note that there is no single reason why. The dissolution off Stormont was a multi- causal event brought about, by what I see, as five key causes; the failures of the Unionist Government to reform and control security; the formation of the Provisional IRA (PIRA) and its escalation of violence; Internment and the subsequent PIRA backlash; the formation of the UDA and its systematic killing programme and finally Bloody Sunday and its aftermath. The failures of the unionist government’s to provide sufficient reform, satisfying to both sides and their failure to control the security situation within Northern Ireland from 1969- 1972 was an important factor in the eventual dissolution of Stormont in 1972. During the latter part of Terence O’Neill’s premiership the failure of unionism was on the cards, even then, as his attempted ‘five oint programme’ of reforms was greeted with scepticism by both unionists and nationalists â€Å"and the Paisleyites were fired by what was seen as a concession to militant pressure†¦while others- as events demonstrated- saw only a mixture of weakness and begrudgery. [1] In February 1969, O’Neill’s failure to secure an indisputable mandate showed that the collapse of unionism was beginning to develop because as he suggested, â€Å"old prejudices were too strong for people to break out of the mould of sectarian politics once and for all,†[ 2] His successor James Chichester- Clark inherited what was a difficult situation, that became worse during the marching season of 1969. The failure of the unionist government to successfully control security and the devastating riots, which spread to Belfast following the annual Apprentice Boy’s demonstration in Derry in August, showed just how incapable they were of protecting the people of Northern Ireland and forced Chichester- Clark to request the support of the British army. This was a humiliation, and it underlined the failure of the Stormont administration to deal with either the political or the policing challenges of the popular uprising that was occurring: the decision added a military dimension to the complete financial dependence of the regime on London, and thus paved the way for direct rule. [3]The army was a last desperate measure and although welcomed by Catholics at the beginning, the GOC Lieutenant- general Sir Ian Freeland warned that â€Å"the Honeymoon period between troops and local people is likely to be short lived†. [4] Indeed it was as Catholics lost faith in the army’s ability to protect them, due to â€Å"the failure to ban the 1970 Orange parades, and the massive arms search and curfew of the Lower Falls Road† and directed their support towards the increasingly more militant PIRA. 5] By bringing in the British army, the Unionist Government aroused â€Å"great fear and passion†¦and many Catholics believed that the Unionists had neither the will nor the capacity to make the changes the British Government proposed†, therefore alienating the Nationalist community and gave fuel to the PIRA’s rise because of its inability to bring in reforms that would have a positive affect on them. 6] Together with an inability of the unionist party to rule itself, as a â€Å"vote of no confidence by the Unionist Party executive in the Government’s law and order policies† illustrated in 1970, these factors showed the weak and futile nature of the unionist Government. Further more, alongside later factors which will be discusse d later in the essay, such as Internment, these unionist failures helped to pave the way for Stormont to be dissolved in 1972. The formation of PIRA in 1970 proved to be a major downfall of Stormont. The nationalist community left alienated and feeling unsafe under the Stormont administration increasingly turned their support to Sean MacStiofain and the PIRA and its military policies allowing it to gain momentum in its aims, â€Å"to provide all possible assistance to’ or people’ in the North, left defenceless against the violence of ‘sectarian bigots† and free the Irish people from British rule. [7] The strategy of PIRA was in three phases, designed to eventually bring about the eventual overthrow of British rule in Northern Ireland. Phase one was of a purely defensive nature, avoiding confrontation with the army and â€Å"providing material, financial and training assistance for Northern PIRA units. †[8] â€Å"As soon as it became feasible and practical, the Provisional IRA would move from a purely defensive position to a phase of ‘combined defence and retaliation. †[9] The final phase, therefore, was â€Å"launching an all- out offensive action against the ‘British occupation system’. †[10] The PIRA came into action after Orange Order parades in June 1970, which Catholics saw as a â€Å"demonstration of Protestant power†. 11] The riots which followed saw the killing of five Protestants by the PIRA. Unfortunately for the people of Northern Ireland, the Falls Road curfew imposed by the Chichester- Clark government following this PIRA involvement only served to increase the paramilitary movement’s support base and lose support for the British army and it led to the escalation of violence within the province. The PIRA’s â€Å"campaign was stepped up from the bombing of economic targets to attacks on British army personnel† and on February 6th 1971 the first member of the regular British army was killed. 12] The violence only escalated further during 1971, as the Stormont administration struggled to cope with the unprecedented ferocity of the PIRA’s violence. â€Å"By July 55 people had died violently; In the first seven months of 1971 there were over 300 explosions and 320 shooting incidents†, which heaped an enormous amount of pressure upon Stormont, that it ultimately was not able to cope with and as we will see later in the essay this led brain Faulkner to undertake what became one of the defining nails in the coffin of Stormont, the introduction of ’Internment’. 13] The aspect that strikes you the most about Internment is the scale on which it was a failure, not to mention just how bias it was. It was a major blunder by the Unionist Government under Brian Faulkner â€Å"because it failed to bring about the seizure of the leading members of the Provisional IRA† simply because it lacked the necessary and relevant intelligence that was needed. â€Å"Internment was entirely one- sided. No attempt was made to arrest loyalist suspects despite the UVF’s record of violence†¦There was not a single person on the army’s list of 452 names who was not an anti- partionist. [14] The result of Internment â€Å"was massive alienation among the minority, and mounting enthusiasm for the PIRA. It exacerbated the levels of political violence within the region as â€Å"from 1 January to 8 August 1971, thirty- four people had been killed†¦but from the introduction of Internment until the end of the year139 people died as a result of political violence. †[15] Internment also underpinned the SDLP’s boycott of Stormont, and therefore destroyed Faulkne r’s very tentative move towards power- sharing. 16] It was a world- wide disaster for unionism. It portrayed unionism as being sectarian and bias and brought the collapse of Stormont into its home straight as PIRA lashed out against it with a ruthless offensive. â€Å"During August 1971 there were 131 bomb attacks, 196 in September and 117 in October. It seemed that the PIRA was making a concerted attempt to destroy Northern Ireland’s economy, with the short- term aim of drawing the security forces away from Catholic enclaves and the long- term objective of forcing Britain to abandon the region. [17] It seemed to be working as the economy was only rising by one percent in 1971 and British opinion was that it was willing to ditch Northern Ireland. The PIRA were it seemed successfully bringing about the British withdrawal from the region. The protestant reaction to this enormous offensive being carried out by the PIRA was to fight fire with fire, as they formed their ow n paramilitary group, the ‘Ulster Defence Association’ (UDA). The formation of the UDA in September 1971 was the crystallisation of the fears of working- class Protestants, who believed that the threat which the PIRA posed was too great and was not being dealt with by Stormont or Westminster. Instead they saw both governments as giving in to Nationalist pressure and giving them too many concessions. Just like Republican paramilitarism, â€Å"the growth of loyalist paramilitarism was related to the increasing levels of violence and the perception that the security forces could not contain violent republicanism. [18] The Unionist community did not feel safe or protected by the Unionist Government under Faulkner, and like Nationalists sought protection from a paramilitary organisation that could fight the PIRA. At the same time, however, the UDA’s formation served to add to the already hostile situation that was raging within Northern Ireland and as a result put another nail into the coffin of the Stormont administration. By now Direct Rul e was inevitable, and it was a question of when not if it would be introduced. The UDA’s formation and systematic outbreak of violence did nothing but heighten the tension between the Protestant and Catholic sides of the religious divide. â€Å"The UDA’s long- term aim was the ‘DEFENCE of ULSTER against ALL who would destroy her’; its short- term aims were the ‘restoration of law and order to every street in N. Ireland,’ to ‘prevent further disintegration of our society,’ and to ‘begin rebuilding our Community both materially and spiritually. †[19]Throughout late 1971 and 1972, when it killed over one hundred Catholics, who were seen as being disloyal to Northern Ireland, the UDA, along with around another forty loyalist paramilitary groups carried out unplanned and usually spontaneous and unjustified attacks upon Catholics in a response to the IRA’s campaign of violence. As a result the violence within the province reached an all time high heading into 1972, widely considered to be the wo rst year of ‘the Troubles’. This violence came to a head on the 30th January 1972, or ‘Bloody Sunday’ as it is known. It was this day and its aftermath that would become the final nail in the coffin of the Stormont administration. By the end of 1971 Northern Ireland was in danger of disintegrating into a state of anarchy due to the failures and â€Å"break- up of the traditional unionist party, the alienation of the SDLP, and the growth of the PIRA and the Protestant paramilitaries. [20] With Northern Ireland entirely reliant upon the security forces of the British Government in 1972, the reality of just how committed it was in the province was beginning to hit Britain. â€Å"The events of Bloody Sunday brought home both the extent of this involvement and the price being paid. †[21] After thirteen people were shot dead by the army in the Bogside area, Nationalist and Catholic Ireland exploded with anger. For the first time, the South ecame emotionally involved in the crisis occurring in the North and indeed it became occasionally violent (the British embassy in Dublin was burnt down on 5th February 1972). The PIRA and the Official IRA (OIRA) began a violent and bloody bombing campaign in both Northern Ireland and mainland Britain, as it bombed â€Å"the officers’ mess of the 16th Parachute Brigade at Aldershot on 23rd February 1972† as well as the crowded Abercorn restaurant in Belfast on 4th March 1972, one of the cruellest of many violent incidents that took place in the country. 22] Such incidents, proved to be the final straw for the British Government, after what had been a disastrous three years for both Stormont and Westminster. Northern Ireland was a war zone, incapable of ruling itself and Britain recognised this, declaring an end to Home Rule on 24th March 1972. Alvin Jackson asks the question, ‘Why did Stormont fail? and although the question might seem irrelevant given what precedes it, it is still important to sum up just why it happen ed and what the main causes were. In his book ‘Ireland 1798- 1998: Politics and War’, Jackson concludes that â€Å"in terms of proximate causes, Stormont failed because it was no longer compatible with the exigencies of British policy , and because it showed no signs of being able to cope with the street violence and organized terror. In the longer term, it had been unable to represent any other than Unionist opinion, and had been at best grudging towards Catholic aspirations. †[23] The Stormont administration under Unionism was quite simply incapable of organising its own security, as its decision to request the support of the British army in 1969 showed, and it was entirely one –sided, as policies such as Internment showed (a policy that had a massive part to play in the failure of torment. Along with these causes, the rise of the UDA and other loyalist paramilitaries and the events of ‘Bloody Sunday’ contributed largely to its failing, by creating more political violence and alienating the Nationalist community further. However, perhaps, â€Å"the underlying cause†¦was Irish Nationalism. †[24] Thomas Hennessey writes that â€Å"the single most disastrous decision that produced the next two and a half decades of conflict was the decision of the PIRA’s Army Council in January 1970 to begin a war- their war- against the British state. [25] In many ways, Hennessey is totally correct, for had it not been for the bombings and killings of the PIRA within Northern Ireland, then Stormont may well have survived because it would not have had to rule a country that was virtually in a civil war, a country that was in effect untenable. ———————– [1] Alvin Jackson, ‘Ireland 1798-1998:Politics and War’ (Blackwell Publishing, Oxford, 1999) p373 [2] Diarmaid Ferriter, ‘The Transformation of Ireland 1900-2000’ (Profile Books Ltd. Great Britain, 2004) p620 [3] Alvin Jackson, ‘Ireland 1798-1998: Politics and War’ (Blackwell Publishing, Oxford, 1999) p374 [4] Jonathan Bardon, ‘A History of Ulster’ (The Blackstaff Press, Belfast, 1992) p672 [5] Thomas Hennessey, ‘A History of Northern Ireland 1920-1996’ (Gill & Macmillan, Dublin, 1997) p174 [6] Hen ry Kelly, ‘How Stormont Fell’ in John Magee, ‘Northern Ireland: Crisis and Conflict’ (Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd, London, 1974 ) p121 [7] Thomas Hennessey, ‘A History of Northern Ireland 1920-1996’ (Gill & Macmillan, Dublin, 1997) p173 [8] Ibid p173 9] Ibid p173 [10] Ibidp173 [11] John Whyte, ‘Interpreting Northern Ireland’ (Oxford University Press, New York, 1990) p31 [12] Thomas Hennessey, ‘A History of Northern Ireland 1920-1996’ (Gill & Macmillan, Dublin, 1997) p175 [13] Ibid p193 14] Jonathan Bardon, ‘A History of Ulster’ (The Blackstaff Press, Belfast, 1992) p682 [15] Patrick Buckland, ‘A History of Northern Ireland’ (Gill & Macmillan, Dublin, 1981) p156 [16] Alvin Jackson, ‘Ireland 1798-1998: Politics and War’ (Blackwell Publishing, Oxford, 1999) p376 [17] Jonathan Bardon, ‘A History of Ulster’ (The Blackstaff Press, Belfast, 1992) p685 [18] Thomas Hennessey, à ¢â‚¬ËœA History of Northern Ireland 1920-1996’ (Gill & Macmillan, Dublin, 1997) p201 [19] Ibid p201 20] Patrick Buckland, ‘A History of Northern Ireland’ (Gill & Macmillan, Dublin, 1981) p156 [21] Ibid p156 [22] Ibid p157 [23] Alvin Jackson, ‘Ireland 1798-1998: Politics and War’ (Blackwell Publishing, Oxford, 1999) p376 [24] Thomas Hennessey, ‘Northern Ireland: The Origins of the Troubles’ (Gill and Macmillan Ltd, Dublin, 2005) p385 [25] Ibid p394

Correlation between Employees’ Job Satisfaction and Demographic Variables

An Analysis of the Correlation between Employees' Job Satisfaction and Demographic Variables Over the last decades, Job satisfaction has been identified as the major research traditions in organizational psychology. Job satisfaction can significantly influence the company as Job satisfaction can positively affect employee commitment and working performance, which will determine the overall success and development of the company (Feinting, 2000).Empirical research has shown that there are certain variables which may play an important role in mediating Job satisfaction in the oracle. The factors affecting employee Job satisfaction include the personal traits of individuals, Job scope, and organization characteristics. (Gilson and Derrick, 1998). The study of the relationship between length of service and Job satisfaction variables remains among the most promising of these studies (Kirk, 2003). Other demographic variables to consider include age, gender and nationality.Several studies ( e. G. , Betel and Brenner, 1986; Creighton, 1977; Wilting, Arnold, and Conrad, 1978; Gomez-Mejia, 1983; Griffin and Bateman, 1986) indicated that these demographic rabbles (gender, age, education, length of service and nationality) affect work values, which are related to Job satisfaction and commitment to a certain extent. There are also studies that tackled the issue from another perspective, which reported that there is a correlation between Job satisfaction and performance (Herbert, Amasser, Peterson & Capable, 1957).According to Bedpan, Ferris and Kumar (1992), age and Job satisfaction are positively related because an older employee will be able to hold a higher position and obtain a higher salary since they are more experienced, thus aging them more satisfied than younger employee. Besides age, the correlation between gender differences and Job satisfaction have also been widely studied. Witt and Nee (1992) suggested that there is no correlation between the gender differences and the Job satisfaction.In addition, Kirk (2003) has also proposed that there will be significant relationship between the length of service and Job satisfaction, but there is no conclusive evidence that a longer length of service means a higher Job satisfaction. The present study aimed to investigate the degree to which employees' anemographic variables are related to their level of Job satisfaction at work. Based on the literature review, it was hypothesized that age is positively related to Job satisfaction among the employees.Similarly, it was also hypothesized that the length of service is also positively correlated with Job satisfaction. From the research examined, it was anticipated that gender difference and nationality does not have any correlation with Job satisfaction. Methods Participants A total number of 30 employees, who are currently working in the marketing apartment of an international company called Singapore International Chamber of Commerce, took part in the s urvey conducted for the purpose of the research.Out of these 30 participants, 50% of them were men with the remaining 50% were female. The sample has an age range from 18 to 48 years old with a mean age of 29. 63 (SD = 9. 13). In term of nationality, there were 15 Australians, 5 Singapore, 5 New Zealand, 2 Irish, 1 South African, 1 German and 1 English. All participants completed the questionnaire voluntarily with no remuneration. Materials The questionnaire consisted of two parts: The Job Satisfactory Survey and a Demographic Data Sheet.The 3-item Job Satisfactory Survey was constructed to measure the overall Job satisfaction of the participants. It was designed to assess their level of Job satisfaction towards three areas: their Job, scope of work and working in the current organization. The participants were asked to rate their overall level of Job satisfaction based on the three questions on a 7-point Liker scale from 1 (Extremely Dissatisfied) to 7 (Extremely Satisfied). Theref ore, the total scores for the three questions could theoretically range from a minimum score of 3 to a maximum score of 21 .A Demographic Data Sheet was also included in the questionnaire to obtain basic profile information such as gender, age, nationality and length of service from the participants. Procedure All the 30 participants were instructed to gather outside an enclosed meeting room on a Friday evening where they were provided with a set of questionnaire. Each participant was given a maximum time of 15 minutes to complete the survey in the eating room and only one participant was allowed to enter at a time so as to ensure that there would be no distraction.At the end of the session, the questionnaires were collected and placed in a sealed envelope to ensure that all information provided were kept confidential. None of the questionnaires were left uncompleted, thus ensuring the validity of all data collected. The data was being computed and analyzed using the Statistical Pac kage for Social Scientists (SPAS, standard version 19, 2011). Results The results of the analysis of the correlation between the employees' overall Job distraction and demographic variables (length of service, age, gender, nationality) are presented in Table 1.The internal consistency of the 3-item Job Satisfactory Survey was an excellent reliability of 0. 87 in Cockroach's alpha test.