Advertising across Different Countries and Cultural Contexts

Abstract This research proposal is designed to help us better understand the effectiveness of advertising strategies applied across different countries with similar cultures.Advertising We will write a custom proposal sample on Advertising across Different Countries and Cultural Contexts specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Using a survey consisting of Likert items and corresponding scales, subjects consisting of advertising executives from Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom will be asked to rate their responses regarding a number of items relating to the effectiveness of different advertising strategies in their corresponding countries. It is hypothesized that there will be differences in what constitutes effective advertising materials in different countries with similar cultures. This research builds upon other studies in the field which reveal the differences in advertising strategies employed across different cultu res. This study could help the company save significant financial resources on advertising in the future. Introduction The firm under research is a food supply company that operates and advertises in Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States. Understanding how to craft effective strategies for advertising campaigns in these countries is a vital part of its continued success. In the recent difficult economic times, the firm has faced increased pressure to save money wherever possible and has been encouraged to consolidate operations wherever they have been shown to be feasible. One of the most significant expenditures in terms of financial resources is the money spent on advertising budgets for the three countries of operation. Individual, localized campaigns have always been the firm’s strategy, because it believed crafting one advertising strategy for use in all three countries would be ineffective considering the differences between the three national markets of oper ation. As a multi-national food supply company, understanding how best to adapt strategies of advertising across the different cultures the firm serves is of paramount importance.Advertising Looking for proposal on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More While a number of different studies have looked at the effectiveness of advertising between countries and companies, few have examined the subtle nuances of differences with regard to advertising between cultures with more subtle nuanced differences. It is for this reason that the research should be conducted by the company in order to explore the differences in what works in advertising across different countries with similar cultural contexts. Indeed, while a body of research exists relating to differences in advertising between very different cultures, the company could benefit from a greater understanding of the differences across several countries with simila r cultures. It is proposed that research be conducted to determine the most effective strategies for advertising the company’s business in the different countries of operation. Review of Related Literature Research on advertising across different cultures has revealed many important differences in terms of the type of advertising considered to be most influential to customers especially in terms of customer preference. A number of studies have looked at differences between individualistic and collectivist cultures, contrasting advertising in Western and Eastern countries (Han Shavitt, 1994; Jeon Beatty, 2002). Other studies have focused on how different types of advertising are perceived in different cultures, looking at Western and Eastern countries and their reactions to humour in advertising (Alden, Hoyer Lee, 1993). In Han and Savitt (1994) research looking at advertising in individualistic and collectivist cultures, data revealed significant differences in what consti tuted persuasive advertising across individual and collectivist cultures. In this study, the authors looked at cross-cultural differences in advertising materials in Korea and the United States as examples of collectivist and individualistic cultures respectively (Han Shavitt, 1994). The researchers conducted a content analysis of magazine advertisements and found that American advertisements focused on appeals to the individual while those in Korea appealed to the collective.Advertising We will write a custom proposal sample on Advertising across Different Countries and Cultural Contexts specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The findings of these researchers showed that cultural differences played an important part in determining how influential a particular advertisement was at the level of both the society and the individual (Han Shavitt, 1994). The research study conducted by Han and Savitt (1994) is relevant to our study becaus e it demonstrates that there are more pronounced differences in what constitutes effective advertising of products used across individual and collectivist cultures. Because the firm’s products are almost exclusively bought to be used with other products, it helps us to understand whether or not other differences may exist across different countries with similar cultures. In this case, all of the countries the company operates in entail individualistic cultures and Western democracies. Therefore, the findings of the study especially in the American context have a direct description of the best practices in advertising that can be extended to Canada and the United Kingdom. Researchers Jeon and Beatty (2002) looked at the effectiveness of three different types of advertising in terms of their ability to persuade audiences across two different cultures. In examining both the United States and South Korea, the researchers compared advertisements that relied on direct comparisons a s well as others that relied on indirect comparisons between products. The findings indicated that indirect comparative advertisements were most effective in the United States, where advertisements employing direct comparisons were most common. Conversely, it was found that the opposite applied in South Korea: direct comparison advertising was most effective while indirect advertising was most common in the country’s media (Jeon Beatty, 2002). These findings builds on a body of research that relates to comparative advertising, but it also highlights an important fact regarding the current research study proposed here. The effectiveness of advertising can depend a great deal on the cultural context in which it is viewed. However, this also highlights the fact that we know little about the effectiveness of advertising in similar cultures in different countries.Advertising Looking for proposal on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The findings assist in reflecting on the consequences of specific preferences in advertisements of western cultures as compared to other cultures. They highlight on the perceptions that should be expected from the countries under study towards advertisements. Finally, a study performed by researchers Alden, Hoyer and Lee (1993) has relevance to the research study being proposed here. In their study, the researchers looked at the use of humour in different television advertisements across four different cultures including the United States, Germany, Thailand and Korea. The findings of these researchers revealed that while humour in advertising often has universal underlying themes, it can vary in the way it is specifically comprehended across different countries and cultures (Alden, Hoyer Lee, 1993). While prior research has demonstrated the effectiveness of humour as a component in successful advertising, understanding what worked and what did not across cultures was problematic. H umour in advertising has been shown to positively affect recall and individual intention to purchase a product when the humour lines up with the overall objectives of the advertisement (Alden, Hoyer Lee, 1993). The researchers looked at the inappropriateness of humorous advertising across cultures in order to better identify the contrasts between cultures and ultimately allow for easier standardization for advertising between them. The findings suggested that there were incongruities in these advertisements across different cultures. The finding of incongruity in advertising across cultures is very relevant to the research proposed here because it suggests that there may be ways we can create advertising strategies which can be more easily adapted across different cultural contexts. Research into the differences and similarities between effective advertising in the different countries in which the firm operates can build on the information yielded from the study conducted by Alden, Hoyer and Lee (1993) and ultimately allow the firm to design advertising strategies that work effectively across different cultural contexts. We cannot ignore the fact that a certain level of diversity exist in the countries under study especially due to tourists, foreign students, expatriates and other foreign professional, and the incongruity findings in this study fits best in harmonizing the results expected with such limitations. Assumptions For the purposes of this study, it is assumed that the findings of previous researchers were based on advertisements targeted to customers with similar characteristics such as product preference, purchasing behaviour and financial circumstances. This is because the results observed must not have been influenced by other factors expect cultural aspects. It is also assumed that Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom can be defined as having â€Å"similar† cultural contexts. The assumption is made confidently based on a numb er of different factors. While there are obvious demographic differences between these three nations, they are all Western democracies, comprised of a populous of similar ethnic makeup. They are all individualistic cultures. There exists significant diversity in all three societies, but both the United States and Canada emerged from United Kingdom society. It is for these reasons that for the purposes of this research study, it is confidently assumed that Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom are three different countries with similar cultural contexts. Hypothesis There is a difference between what constitutes effective advertising strategies across different countries with similar cultural contexts. Null Hypothesis There is not a difference between what constitutes effective advertising strategies across different countries with similar cultural contexts. Methodology Subjects The survey will be administered to members of the advertising executive board in each of their different countries of origins. Four advertising executives from the United States will be surveyed as will four executives from the United Kingdom and four executives from Canada. Each of these executives is originally from the country in which their position is located and lives there full time. Of these 12 subjects, all make budgetary and campaign decisions with regard to advertising within the countries where their positions are located. Among the twelve subjects eight are men, while the remaining four are women. All subjects are between the ages of 46 and 58 years. These subjects are all experts in advertising the company’s food products in their respective countries; they know what works and what does not work. Of the four subjects from the United Kingdom, three work from the same office in London while one works in a satellite office in Devonshire. All four advertising executives from the United States work from the same New York office. The four advertising executives from Canadian operations are all based in the same Toronto office, which happens to be the company’s corporate headquarters and original office location. The twelve executives have a diverse cultural makeup; nine of the twelve executives have at least one parent born outside their country of origin. Instrument The instrument that will be used for the research is a survey questionnaire consisting of 19 Likert items with accompanying Likert scales for respondents to rate according to their agreement with the particular item. All of these items reflect specific elements of advertising strategies such as timing, mode of communication, place, content, mood, type, preferences among others. The 20th item on the survey is a simple question regarding to the advertisements currently employed in the country where individual subjects are located. This survey measures the attitudes and opinions of advertising executives with regard to their experience on what constitutes effective advert ising in the country of operation. Subjects rate their feelings to items on a five-point scale of a range of responses that will be presented as follows: 5 for strongly agree, 4 for agree, 3 for neutral, 2 for disagree and 1 for strongly disagree. This Likert scale survey questionnaire is located in the appendix at the end of this paper. Procedure Data will be obtained by an interviewer asking subjects to rate their feelings on a number of Likert items relating to the effectiveness of advertising in their country. The respondents will fill the questionnaires provided by an interviewer at their convenient time and place. The interviewer will also act as the guide on how to fill the responses on the Likert scales in case a participant is stuck. The complete role of the interview is given in the appendix. The expectations are that the exercise will take place in the offices during break sessions especially in the evening after work. For every participant, the interviewer might ask some open-ended questions after the session to clarify on the issues directly related to advertising strategies. This is not expected to take more than ten minutes of the entire session. Analysis Once all the data has been collected, its validity will be tested by considering the consistency and relevancy of the responses as reflected in the relevancy of the questions. In fact, this will be achieved by first grouping the questions according to their relatedness in terms of advertising strategies after the exercise. A valid response should not deviate with more than one point in the Likert scale from the response of the next related question. Once the validity is tested, the items from the Likert scale will be tabulated to allow for comparing ratings of different elements of the advertising strategies the participants think should be employed in the three countries as suggested by them. If we find a majority 51% of differences in responses between countries, then the hypothesis will be accepted. Individual items can also be scored and examined to provide a more granular analysis and help the company obtain more specific details, which could prove helpful in operations going forward. Limitations The proposed research study detailed herein does contain a number of limitations. Because of the limited sample size, we must be careful not to make wide generalizations with respect to the findings. Furthermore, because all of the subjects are advertising executives between the ages of 46 and 58, the study is limited in terms of the demographic representation of data we can obtain. Any data obtained here will not be used to make inferences with regard to the attitudes of younger audiences. Moreover, if future research is conducted, there may be disparities with regard to the attitudes of these executives and the audiences of the countries they operate in. The use of the Likert scale also creates some limitations thus must be considered. Because each item has a preset scale with predetermined ratings, respondents may see their feelings on particular issues somewhat distorted by conforming to the rating which best matches their feelings on a particular item. It is hoped that the presence of an interviewer to administer the questionnaire can mitigate the damage caused to the findings by this inherent limitation. Discussion The research is expected to find some differences in what constitutes effective advertising across three countries with similar cultures. There are a number of conclusions that could be drawn from such findings which may prove valuable to the company’s operations. Specifically, the data gleaned from this study could be used to design effective advertising campaigns that work across all countries in which the firm operates, allowing it to save considerable financial resources on advertising strategies. This could effectively reduce the total advertising expenditures by as much as two-thirds. The implications of this include wide r profit margins and a greater ability to take risks in trying out new advertising strategies. Moreover, over the long-term, it may be possible to consolidate advertising operations for the different countries served by the firm based on one centralized location. This could prove another valuable measure that would allow the company to save even more costs on its overhead expenditures such as rent, heating and related costs from the offices in different countries. It has long been held that localized operations were vital to advertising success, but research such as this may help the management to move away from this strategy and adopt a more cost effective model. Given the increasingly global market, this may even allow the firm to begin exploring opportunities to expand into other markets. This has been a goal pursued by the firm that has gone unfulfilled heretofore. This research study will provide the company with valuable data regarding the effectiveness of advertising across d ifferent countries with similar cultural contexts, as well as encourage future research on the same subject. Indeed, this study may provide the impetus for a much larger study to be conducted by an academic institution, using a randomized sample and enough subjects to provide for greater confidence in the results they may obtain. In addition to helping our company save important and potentially considerable financial resources, this research could also improve the field of study around global advertising and the challenges that similar multi-national companies face. References Alden, D. L., Hoyer, W. D. Lee, C. (1993). Identifying global and culture-specific dimensions of humor in advertising: A multinational analysis. The Journal of Marketing, 57(2), 64-75. Han, S. Shavitt, S. (1994). Persuasion and culture: Advertising appeals in individualistic and collectivistic societies. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 30(4), 326-350. Jeon, J. O., Beatty, S. E. (2002). Comparativ e advertising effectiveness in different national cultures. Journal of Business Research, 55(11), 907-913. This proposal on Advertising across Different Countries and Cultural Contexts was written and submitted by user Francisco Talley to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

The Crucible, by Arthur Miller. Essay interpretes quote Good people...are good because theyve come to wisdom through failure.

The Crucible, by Arthur Miller. Essay interpretes quote Good people...are good because theyve come to wisdom through failure. Arthur Miller's The Crucible: Gaining Integrity through FailureIntegrity is achieved through the gaining of wisdom; the gaining of wisdom is a direct result of failure. Arthur Miller wrote the moralizing drama, The Crucible, in this play the main character John Proctor was wrongly accused of witchcraft and served the death penalty along with two others. The story of John Proctor was indirectly summarized by the American author William Saroyan when he said, "Good people...are good because they've come to wisdom through failure," meaning that a person willing to sacrifice for his beliefs is good because although he has failed, by not according to his moral codes he has gained integrity and the ability to refuse to live a life of hypocrisy; further, John Proctor is good because he died refusing to lie in order to live. Proctor failed because his commitments wavered depending upon his own personal needs. Miller demonstrated Proctor's failure, and later redemption and goodness throughout the text by means of characterization, conflict, and theme.Map of West Peabody, MA, indicating the 20th centu...Miller uses the literary element of characterization to show John Proctor's transformation from failure to goodness. There is a definite contradiction in Proctor; additionally, he says that he loves his wife; but, he adulters her as soon as she becomes ill. Also he does not attend church because he dislikes the way in which Reverend Samuel Parris governs the church, as well as the way he preaches. Proctor abhors how Parris uses donations for the church to buy superfluous things, " ...When I look to heaven and see my money glaring at his elbows- it hurt my prayer, sir, it hurt my prayer" (69).Williams 2Proctor's commitment wavers depending upon his own personal needs. Arthur Miller characterized him as one with weak theology and one who struggled with personal commitment,

Art Critique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Art Critique - Essay Example The tails wind around from the normal spot on the creatures and become plugs that are each inserted into an electrical outlet that sits in the center foreground. One creature sits facing away from the picture plane, revealing the depth of the TV and the source of the cords. The other creature sits facing it and its face, or TV screen, is visible. This reveals that the creature is reflecting an image that is a mirror reflection of the creatures from the perspective of the human viewing the painting. The image is clearly making a statement about the current state of existence among especially the younger generations. His approach is described as combining the â€Å"age-old aesthetic of realism with the conceptual ideologies of pop art and the absurdities of surrealism† (Zucker, 2009). The blue-green color palette is deliberately representative of the color that the television screen paints the room when it is the only light source. There is even the discernable bright light immediately surrounding the TV set at the horizon line that glows with pale yellow. The creatures are the blue-gray that human skin becomes when seen in the light of the TV. This introduces the idea that the creatures are really people who have dedicated themselves so fully to the entertainment of the television that they have become symbiotically connected to it – they cannot survive without it. But the message seems to go deeper in the scene found on the TV screen. â€Å"Williams’ biti ng wit and shady humor have become more honed and subtle in his recent body of work† (Mukul, 2009). In this scene, the artist is also sending the message that the television can only reflect the experience of real life. If the people aren’t doing anything, than that’s all that the television can reflect. When I first looked at this image, I simply felt amused looking at these two things looking at each other. The longer I

Strategic Marketing Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Strategic Marketing Plan - Essay Example The valley of Swat is known for its amazing natural beauty and therefore there is a huge attraction for domestic and international tourists. In order to resume tourism in the valley after the removal of terrorists hold, this report presents a three year long marketing strategy which is categorized into three phases. The first phase will focus on attracting domestic tourists; the second will focus on domestic and international tourists, while the third phase will concentrate only on attracting international tourists towards Swat valley. The marketing plan presents an overview of the financial aspects of the strategy. Strategic Marketing Plan Resuming Tourism in Swat Valley (Pakistan) Introduction This report covers a strategic marketing plan for resuming tourism in the Swat valley located in the South Asian state, Pakistan. The valley of Swat had been under the control of terrorists and extremists before a successful military operation conducted by the Pakistan Armed Forces in 2009 (K han 2010). The structure of the report is based on the marketing plan structure presented by McDonald (2008). The marketing plan is based on the following structure: Part 1: Goal Setting This part presents the goal set to be achieved from the marketing plan presented in this report. ... Moreover, the monitoring of the outcomes of the marketing plan after its implementation are also being discussed in this part. 1. Goal Setting The aim of this market plan is to resume tourism activities in Swat Valley in Pakistan by taking into consideration the competitive advantages of the place as against the tourist destinations in the region of South Asia. 1.1. Marketing Objectives In order to present a direction for the goal of this marketing plan based on SMART objectives (Doran 1981), following are the strategic marketing objectives which are planned to be attained: To resume tourism activities in Swat valley; To promote the soft image of Swat valley and its people by conducting various events and projecting them to the outside world; To resume tourism activities in Swat by following a step wise strategy which focuses on domestic tourists first and then international tourists; To generate positive cash flows from tourist activities in the second year of the implementation of the marketing plan; To increase cash inflows from domestic tourists visits by 60 percent as compared to the first year in comparison with the first year; To increase cash inflows from international tourists’ visits by 33.33 percent in the third year in comparison with the second year. 2. Situation Analysis Following is an analysis of the situation relating to tourism in Swat valley, which considers different aspects relevant in devising a tourism marketing strategy for Swat. 2.1. Swat Valley Swat is a famous tourist destination in the northern regions of Pakistan, administered under the government of â€Å"Khyber Pakhtunkhwa† Province of Pakistan. The valley of Swat lies in the upper parts

Astronomy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Astronomy - Essay Example And the solar system was created through a gaseous cloud. According to the book of (Ramsey, 1983) â€Å"The nebular hypothesis explains that the nebula slowly rotates, it gradually condensing and flattening due to gravity and eventually form the stars and planets.† It assumes that at one time the sun was a large mass of gas extending out beyond the farthest limits of what is now the entire solar system. The mass of hot gases was rotating slowly, and as the gases cooled and contracted, the mass began to rotate faster and faster until a ring separated from the main part. Its rotation eventually turned this region into a disk. Matter continued to fall toward the center of the solar nebula, making the central parts hotter. The sun was beginning to grow at the center of the disk. Are planets orbiting stars other than the Sun. Astronomers study of possible life in the universe, because life is more likely to develop on planets than in the extremes of stars and empty space. According to (Ramsey,1983) Astronomers have found that most young stars are surrounded by disks composed of dust and gas. Some of these disks show evidence of comet-like objects. For instance, â€Å"The disk around the star Fomalhaut, show an empty area around the star, or a stripe of empty space in the disk. Astronomers believe that dust in this area could be in the process of condensing into a planet.† The theory states that a disk of dust and gas collects around a star as the star forms. Bits of dust in the disk collide and stick together, forming larger and larger chunks of rock and ice. Farther out from the star (where the temperature is cooler), the gases in the disk freeze, adding to the mass available to form these chunks. The pieces of rock continue to collide, forming large objects called protoplanets. Four protoplanets grew close to the central sun. These were inner planets or (terrestrial) planets: Mercury, Venue, Earth and Mars. Four other

History Of Danish Furniture Design Cultural Studies Essay

History Of Danish Furniture Design Cultural Studies Essay Scandinavia is generally well-known for its design represented by pure and simple lines which is focusing on users needs. Nowadays people generally meet with design from north mainly in IKEA store however this is only one direction which was developed from Scandinavian Modernism with its origin in 1920 as Fiells (2002, pp. 8,16,18) explain. Denmark as one of the Scandinavian country also excels in design and especially in furniture objects. For example name as Arne Jacobsen speaks for success of Danish furniture design from 1950s and 1960s as this period has been so far the most celebrated (Danish Design Centre, 2009) not only among Danes. However does this affirmation automatically leads to a conviction that the same can be asserted about Danish graphic design? It should not be a matter of fact to consider that product design and graphic design are developing the same and therefore they need to be on the same level. These two disciplines are not identical to which heads an attitude that Danish graphic design is in the shadow of Danish furniture design. To advance towards to the design situation in Denmark this work will concentrate on development of these two art disciplines from their beginnings through the contemporary works up to the young artists and companies who supposedly can form the future of the furniture and graphic design in Denmark. 2. HISTORY OF DANISH FURNITURE DESIGN To better understand why Danish product design and specially furniture design became internationally rather well known than the graphic design, in the first following paragraphs will be described certain parts of the history which had an impact on the development of design in Denmark. Furthermore these two areas of design will be firstly analysed separately based on historical consecution which caused future international success or failure of these disciplines. One of the most iconic design from Denmark according to Fiells (2002, p. 30) which brought fame to Danish furniture design is a chair number 3107 created by Arne Jacobsen. However before all of the achievements of this talented man can be enumerated, much more have to be described from the history of Denmark. Fiells (2002, pp. 20,22) indicate that Danish tradition of craftsmanship go down back up to the Viking Age when Danes learned how to process existing materials for producing objects for everyday use. With such deep history of craftsmanship, they were able to learn how to create quality made products. Nevertheless the production of industrial design absolutely began at the end of eighteenth century by foundation of Royal Copenhagen Porcelain Manufactury. During many years Danes were influenced by various elements but the main principles always stayed the same. Function, beauty and good choice of material can be found in almost all designs which were created in Denmark even tens y ears ago. The Authors who are engaged in the theme of Scandinavian design (Fiells, 2002, p. 23; Bhaskaran 2005, p. 168) clarify that all these elements formed in late 1930s art movement Danish Modernism which is a part of Scandinavian Modernism and last up to the present days. 2.1 Kaare Klint Since there are many significant designers in the history of Denmark it is impossible to mentioned all of them. Therefore only the most important names which moved Danish design forward will be presented. As Fiells (2002, p. 352) assert, Kaare Klint was the first furniture designer who accentuated the importance of proportions of human body with a design of chairs. With his students at Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen at the furniture department he examined previous styles in order to develop better objects which would satisfied user even more. This different approach towards a process of designing helped him for example to create in 1933 the Deck chair (figure 01). This specific rest chair let to relax head due to added pillow or legs by movable lengthening part. By his unique attitude Klint influenced many of his students and moved Danish furniture design to another level. Furthermore as Fiells (2002, p. 23) emphasise since the days of Kaare Klint the origins of Dani sh and Scandinavian Modernism can be dating. 2.2 Poul Henningson designer of PH lamps In relation to the iconic Danish design objects, the PH lamps (figure 02) need to be involved. PH stands for the name of Poul Henningson who produced during his life more then 100 projects of lights as Fiells (2002, p. 243) indicate. Henningson as Klint also came with new approach, however not to the design of furniture but to the lightning. As Fiells (2002, p. 26) point Poul Henningson demanded a new view to the design. With an invention of light bulb the designer himself argued (Louis Poulsen Lighting, 2008) that not many lamps creator knew how to design pleasant artificial light. Henningson studied stages of the daylight and tried to applied found knowledges to his design of lightening. As Fiells (2002, p. 242) emphasize, Henningson was able to create set of lamps with shadings and coloured edges which did not illuminate the room by direct light. He was one of the first who required to design products for everyday use which can be bought not only by high classes of society in Denm ark but by everyone. Therefore while Klint was producing his furniture in few pieces from each design, Henningson started to manufacture his products massively. As Lauritsen (2004, p. 128) indicates the dark winter in Denmark forced people to use artificial lightning. Because of long dark evenings and affordable prices, it is supposed that PH lamps became very popular among Danes. In addition due to the well-developed concept and modern design, Henningsons lightings became a cult design object which is well-known in Denmark as well as abroad. 2.3 Arne Jacobson the most iconic Danish designer However the designer who brought most fame to the Danish design in general and whose works continue to be produced and sold successfully all over the world was still not mentioned. His name is Arne Jacobsen and as Fiells (2002, p. 296) assert, he is known for being the most famous designer and architecture creating in the middle of the twentieth century in Denmark. In area of architecture according to Byars (1994, p. 277) Jacobsen was inspired by European architects such as Le Corbusier or Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. Due to this influence, in late 1920s he was the first who introduced Functionalism to Denmark by his project House of the future. Nevertheless this was only the beginning of his all achievements. Between the years 1958-1960 Jacobsen was in charge of a construction of SAS Royal Hotel in Copenhagen. But Jacobsen was not responsible for the building only as a architect but also as a designer of interior including furnishing from chairs to door handles. Comparing design of the building with the furniture and other objects which were created mainly for the guest rooms and lobby, Jacobsen succeeded more as a designer then an architect. The building of the hotel (obrazek) is identified by straight lines and cannot be overlooked mainly because of its heigh. Even Jacobsen himself admitted (Republic of Fritz Hansen, 2009) that many people who saw the building did not like its architecture. The furniture with its most famous Swan and Egg (figure 03) chair originally compete to the exterior by rounded lines. Regarding the design of mentioned Egg chair, few literature exploring design of products (Phaidon Design Classics 334-666, 2006, pp. 493,513; Byars, 1994, p. 277) claim that the firs t concept of this chair was resembling to the creation of Norwegian designer Henry Klein. Warning which was sent to Jacobsen need to be taken positively because he was forced to improve the Egg chair with futuristic rounded shapes of shell which made the design timeless. In addition Jacobsen designed also the Swan chair which creates the remaining part of the couple. As Fiells (2002, p. 302) emphasize, these two design objects were not significant only in the  hotel lobby and rooms but later on for furniture design generally. However the Swan not even the Egg chairs are still not the most famous. Before Arne Jacobsen started to work on project for SAS he designed the Ant (figure 04) and the Series 7 (figure 05) chairs. The Ant chair which was designed firstly in the year 1952 created big design attention when was introduced to public, as Heaths and Jensen (2000, p. 160) clarify. Moreover in 1955 Jacobsen presented developed version of the Ant chair the Series 7 chair, known also as a chair no. 3107 which Fiells (2002, p. 30) describe as one of the best-selling chairs of all-time, but also one of  the most iconic products of Danish design. With the first fabrication of the Ant chair is engaged a  story when Arne Jacobsen came to the front manufacturer Frintz Hansen with a  plea for a  production of his design. Unfortunately Hansen refused his request because of the high expenses for output. However he would offer him a cooperation but only if Jacobsen found a purchaser for his order. As Bo Rasmus sen (konggullerod, 2006), a factory manager of Fritz Hansen tells, Jacobsen found a costumer with demand after 300 chairs and the production could start. This anecdote clearly shows that behind the success of Jacobsens chairs is not only modern design but also a luck. Another statement pointed by Heaths and Jensen (2000, p. 113) which can clarify the success of the Ant and the Series 7 chair is its lightness and storage ability. This made the product easy to export and helped to spread this furniture out of Denmark and become known internationally. 2.4 Verner Panton designer of one-piece chair The last dominant designer who will be introduced in the next paragraphs, took completely different approach to the design of furniture than all mentioned artists above. Verner Panton, as Dickson (2006, p. 265) indicate, tried to use different materials than wood or leather, for example plastic. He was also avoiding natural colours and rather preferred colours such as red, yellow, purple or blue. As Byars (1994, p. 424) describe, before Panton started to work on many of his psychedelic furniture he was a part of Arne Jacobsens studio where he got a chance to be present in development of many well-known objects such as mentioned Ant chair. As Dickson (2006, p. 267) asserts, although Panton studied in Denmark and was surrounded by its design his gamesome fantasy and admiration for future were reflected in his work so dramatically that no company in Denmark was able to manufacture his projects. Therefore he decided to leave to Switzerland and to cooperate with Vitra company which had necessary technology to produce his most famous Panton Chair (figure 06). This iconic design object was long time in process before it could come to the production in 1967. While this chair was interesting for not having back abutment and for its utilization of a plastic with which there was not much experience, this design was created only from one piece, as Dickson (2006, p. 267) emphasized. These reasons and facts made Panton design world famous and contributed to the larger admiration of Danish product design. 3. HISTORY OF DANISH GRAPHIC DESIGN TILL 1960 In relation to all mentioned famous design products from Denmark, the Danish graphic design history also need to be mentioned to compare achievements of these two areas. 3.1 Thorvald Bindesbà ¸ll first Danish graphic designer According to Ejlers (1997, pp. 58-59) the first artist who can be signed as a graphic designer was an  architect and product designer Thorvald Bindesbà ¸ll. Number of his works in area of graphic design is not extensive however for the Danish graphic design history there is one work which need to be mentioned. Architect Bindesbà ¸ll designed a logo and a label for Danish famous beer Carlsberg (figure 07) in 1904. Folkmann (2007) emphasizes that until then most of the graphic works produced in Denmark adapted typefaces mainly from Germany, except for Bindesbà ¸ll. Although he did not produced much works in area of graphic art he is reputable for the new approach to a design of typefaces. Instead of only accepting offered design from abroad, Bindesbà ¸ll created new type only for Carlsberg which the company with small changes has been using up to this day. This logo and its designer showed new direction to the Danish graphic design. Nevertheless in the course of several years the solution for Carlsbergs logo can be understood similar to typeface of Coca Cola. Although the typeface of Carlsberg does not appear handwritten as Coca Cola, there still can be found certain resemblance which does not make the logo outstanding for its design in the period when most of the letter design where inspired by a handwriting. Generally people are buying beer for its taste not for the logo itself and this is also a case of Carlsberg. Ejlers (1997, p. 61) himself assumes that graphic works of Bindesbà ¸ll usually did not follow any typographic rules because he treated letters as pictures. On the other hand he was the only artist among the famous graphic designers of the first half of twentieth century who achieved to created logo which has been in use both nationally and internationally for more than 100 years. 3.2 Architects in graphic design As was mentioned above, the logo was made by artist whose original profession was an architect. In the article by Ejlers (1997, p. 58), the author discusses a subject about graphic works done mainly in the first half of the twentieth century such as street signs, telephone directories, book covers or posters which where mostly created by architects. This reality could be caused by a fact that in Denmark during the first 50 years of twentieth century were no graphic design schools. As was already written, most of the typefaces where applied from German design therefore there was no need to employ graphic artists. When Carlsberg wished to have an original logo the company asked Thorvald Bindesbà ¸ll however not as an architect but as a graphic designer. Another well known architect and designer Knud V. Engelhart who was creating after Bindesbà ¸ll were influenced by his few works that he produced in the area of graphic design. Ejlers (1997, p. 62) explains that Engelhardts first work s were affected by Bindesbà ¸lls ornamental lettering. While later on he was able to develop his own style which can be seen for example on the typeface design of street signs done for north part of Copenhagen. His successor Gunnar Billmann Petersen, who cooperated with Ib Andersen who as well studied at School of Architecture, was also influenced at the beginning by works of his teacher. All these mentioned artists were sharing their experience and were influencing their successors however they created imaginary closed line of graphic designers which could not be often entered by others. This was true till year 1951 as Dickson (2006, p. 485) describes when Billmann Petersen became a professor of the first Department for Industrial design in history of Denmark at Copenhagens Royal Academy of Fine Arts. Students studying under this department were taught to design posters or typefaces as well as products such as lights or cars. More specialization was achieved in 1959 when the department was divided into the Industrial design programme and the first Graphic design programme leaded by already mentioned Billmann Petersen. Opening of this department gave new possibilities to students and to Danish graphic design in general. 3.3 Comparison with Europe However from comparing a foundation of the first Danish Department of Graphic design with for example German Bauhaus explicitly results how late this department was opened. Arntson (2007, p.  32) indicates that the Bauhaus was founded already in 1919 which shows a difference of 40 years. While the Bauhaus was already influencing not only graphic design but also other areas of art in Europe, Denmark was locked in a line of graphic architects creating one by one. On the other hand to point that in Denmark at the beginning of twentieth century was also another name than Bindesbà ¸ll or Petersen, an artist Valdemar Andersen must be mentioned. As Dickson (2006, p. 497) described, this painter worked also as an illustrator, interior designer or creator of packagings. His art was influenced and inspired mostly by French Art Nouveau which is visible from one of his commercial poster done for the newspapers The Politiken (figure 08) in 1908. His works were ornamental and simply ingenious. The use of colours and decoration elements in Andersens posters makes from him truly artist with feelings for composition. Nevertheless beside the graphic art growing in Europe in the first half of the twentieth century, Danish graphic design was not so courageous. From the works of Danish typeface designers can be remarked that they did not experiment much with the typography such as artist of the Bauhaus or Dadaism. Therefore they were not so remarkable and memorable as for example Guillaume Apollinaire or generally Swiss design. Moreover, if the Danish graphic design history will be compared to the history of Danish furniture design some differences showing backwardness of this art discipline could implicate. When graphic design started to be taught at Royal Academy in Copenhagen in 1959 the furniture design department was already training its students for 35 years. In addition while first students began to form the future of graphic design, Denmark could already be proud of design objects such as PH lamps or Jacobsens Ant chair. Till the year 1959 Denmark was still missing graphic design pieces which could be proudly sent to the international environment. 4. DANISH GRAPHIC DESIGN AFTER 1959 So far the paragraphs above were examining the events from the first half of the twentieth century. To be more precise till the year 1960, except for the Pantone chair which was produced in 1967. During the mentioned period the Danish art of graphic design did not succeed internationally as the  furniture products. Most of the iconic furniture design where created around 1950 while graphic design works were still at the beginning of its development. However when the first graphic department was established Danish graphic design expected improvement within this art area by arrival of new talented graphic designers. 4.1 Claus Achton Friss designer of Kingdom of Denmark To see how the graphic design situation has developed or not after the foundation of the first graphic department, the works of current designers will be introduced. The first artist who will be presented is Claus Achton Friss. Even he established his own studio already in 1950, most of his famous works came into being within next 30 years as Ejlers (1997, p. 71) reported. His design is well-known among Danes because most of them were done for the Kingdom of Denmark, for example Queen Margrethes monogram (figure 09) from the year 1976, embassy sign or national arms. As Ejlers also emphasized (1997, pp. 71-72) Friss was exceptional by his solutions of situations when he missed suitable fonts. He designed his own to fit with the client identity therefore Friss left behind a big amount of fonts. To examine the Queens monogram, as it is one of his most significant work, this design will be compared to monogram of the Swedish and British royal family members (figure 10,11). So far as both of the shown Danish and British monograms are for the queens, Frisss design appeals more feminine then another. The elegance in the design of thin lines suits to women generally more than bold letters. However the British solution shows power and hide femininity which can indicate to a  vulnerability that is a character incongruous with governance. Overall Friss was able to design suitable projects for Danish kingdom to represent itself with dignity which classified him among reputable Danish designers. 4.2 Ole Sà ¸ndergaard designer of pictograms and traffic signs If a good artist was determined by number of prizes, Ole Sà ¸ndergaard would be certainly one of them. Since the 1980 when the IG prizes for Danish graphic designers began to be awarded, from the information given by Schenstrà ¸m (2010) Ole Sà ¸ndergaard has already received six prizes given by Danish Design Centre. Additionally as Sà ¸ndergaard (Ole Sà ¸ndergaard, no date) indicates he was awarded by another 7 prices but only one of them from 1992 the European Community Design Prize was international. Considering the time period when he was working on most of his projects the number of awards should be interpreted as a success for Sà ¸ndergaards works. According to Dickson (2006, pp. 489,496), Sà ¸ndergaard is known in his home country as a designer of pictograms and road signs which he was creating during the last 10 years of twentieth century. Pictograms and all signs generally need to be simple and understandable therefore most of the Sà ¸ndergaards works are mainly simplified forms of symbols which were in the use before 1990. However comparing Ole Sà ¸ndergaards logo design to another graphic designer who was living and creating in the same time but in the different country shows lack of creativity in his works. Jan Solpera is a Czech graphic artist who also studied at university during 1960s as DvoÃ…â„ ¢Ãƒ ¡k (2010) affirms. Solpera was designing logos as Sà ¸ndergaard but on the contrary he participated in projects where he literally played and experimented with typography which is visible from his posters (figure 12). Sà ¸ndergaard on the other hand created technically clean design however with standard quality ( figure 13) where the creativity which would move his design to another level is missing. 4.3 Per Mollerup designer of Copenhagens airport signs Dickson (2006, p.493) suggests that Per Mollerup is also an important part of Danish graphic design since him with his studio was awarded for the Copenhagens airport signage (figure 14). With projects such as information and navigation systems the emphasis is placed on the user and his easier understanding of symbols rather than on a graphic aspect which is also important however it goes to the second place. While Per Mollerup was designing the airport sign he decided to stay with the proven combination of dark background and light lettering as many other airports (figure 15), in his case black and yellow. Therefore he was able to create simple navigation for travellers passing through Copenhagen airport which has been in use already for 20 years, as Dickson (2006, p.493) indicates. 4.4 Bo Linnemann and Kontrapunkt Another contemporary designer which can compete with Ole Sà ¸ndergaard by numbers of received awards is Bo Linnemann. Except approximately 12 prizes from Danish Design Centre, Linnemann received also several international as different sources (Danish Faces, 2007; Schenstrà ¸m, 2010) show. In comparison with Sà ¸ndergaard, Bo Linnemann together with two other partners founded about 25 years ago the Kontrapunkt firm. It is a design and brand company which operates not only in Denmark but also in Japan, as the agency (Kontrapunkt, 2010) reports. Graphic works of Kontrapunkt are distinguished mainly by light colours and simplicity of design solutions which make them appeal purely, modern and minimalistic. The best examples which would represent style of the studio are projects of visual identities for Danish chemists (figure 16) or Japanese Tasaki which produced pearl jewellery (figure 17). It is probably because of Danish liking for simplicity that Kontrapunkt is in charge of design for public places such as Billund airport, Movia transfer, Danish Railways or Copenhagens tourist centre where the Danish graphic design is mediated to tourist and foreigners. 4.5 Graphic and furniture design at the end of twentieth century These mentioned designers has been working in graphic area after the first graphic design department at Royal Academy was established. Even they have created larger amount of works than graphic designers from the line of architects, compared to success of furniture designers this art continuously missing the iconic design as appeared in Danish product design in form of Ant chair or PH lamps. Graphic design works are considerably less imaginative, challenging and playful than the furniture design objects. Although all the design is technically well-done the idea for the design solution is in general standard. Awarded graphic designers such as Kontrapunkt, Ole Sà ¸ndergaard or Per Mollerup, as Schenstrà ¸m (2010) reported, were given repetitively the prizes for commercial projects which were limited in area of creativity. These designers were not awarded for creative works which would allowed them express themselves entirely. But for more serious works such as airport or traffic sign s that need to follow given rules. In general from all presented graphic works and designers can be seen that Danes understand graphic design more as a means for a commercial communication rather then an art tool. 5. FUTURE OF DANISH DESIGN Even nowadays, time is passing faster then ever, the Art cannot become iconic over a night. Designers who were designing their works within past 10 years still cannot be fairly appreciated because society needs to evaluate these arts with some time distance. This statement is supported by the fact that Danish Design prizes for graphic design were not awarded right after the establishment of the first graphic department. It toke 20 years when the first graphic design project was given the IG prize as is known (Danish Design Centre, 2008, p.35) because Denmark had a need of time for graphic designers to gain experience. Artist who were presented in the paragraphs before are according to different mentioned sources so far the best of Danish graphic design. However they cannot be equaled to names such as Arne Jacobsen or Verner Panton as their works are not so iconic as works of Danish furniture designers. 5.1 Young Danish graphic designers and studios With arrival of new technologies, forms of graphic design are changing all around the world. From the end of nineteenth century till almost the end of twentieth one of the most powerful medium was a poster, in general prints. Despite of its previous popularity this medium has being supplied by more digital art such as websites or digital panel and it is presumptive that posters will slowly disappeared (BlaÃ…Â ¾ek et al., 2010). Therefore future generation of graphic designers are adapting themselves to the new call in graphic industry. There are many artists who were influenced by the digitalization and now mainly work with popular computer graphic such as Aastrud Sigrid and Bay Thomas (Worldwide graphic design, Scandinavia, 2009, p. 222) as can be seen from examples of their works for Ford (figure 18). Or Stefan Mylleager (Worldwide graphic design, Scandinavia, 2009, p. 223) who creates mainly motion graphic videos (figure 19) and CD covers. Not only these artists but many other s will probably develop this art direction which is due to the internet and other modern technologies, which spread information quickly and everywhere, a matter not only of Denmark but global. However there is another group of artists which creates in different direction. It could be probably caused by the big digital press that some young designers rather based their creations on handwork, usually in illustrations which are afterwards retouched in graphic programs than only on computers. Some of them can be seen in the publication presenting Scandinavian graphic designers (Worldwide graphic design, Scandinavia, 2009, pp.  222-223) such as Ehlers Sune who illustrates his Duudle creatures (figure 20), brothers Rune and Esben Fisker who create animation videos and illustrations (figure 21) or Thoberk Jakob who worked in Spild Af Tid design studio focusing on different kind of media done by animation or illustration. Another young artist Karina Petersen who is mentioned by Devroye (2010) experiments with typography by different forms of expression (figure 22). All these mentioned designers present new view to graphic design either by digital art or illustrations. Nevertheless most of them express themselves more openly and playfully than the generation before which is the approach that Danish graphic design was missing. Moreover nowadays modern era with its technologies helps present artists easier and faster beyond the borders of Denmark. On the other hand they are facing to large competition in which they have to success. 5.2 Future of Danish furniture design The biggest success for Danish design was in 1950s and 1960s but since this time period Danish furniture products have not achieved such popularity. It seams that designers are aware of this situation because as Danish Design Centre (Danish Design Centre, 2009) remarked, within past several years relatively young companies began to introduce new quality products to the market. Hay is one of the firm which realises that Denmark cannot live only from the fame of previous generation but need to continue and develop. As Danish Design Centre (Danish Design Centre, 2008) also indicates, by cooperation with young artists Hay was able to create successful company with creative furniture solutions only within seven years. Their products such as the Blow chair (figure 23) or the Princess chair respects the elements of Danish Modernism as simplicity, importance of good usage of materials, quality technics of production and focus on user. Furthermore they do not only copy existing products howev er they bring something new and original into the Danish design of furniture. 6. CONCLUSION From the beginning of the twentieth century when the line of architects was working on graphic design projects and not even after the first establishment of the graphic design department. Danes have not been able to create graphic art which would become so iconic as furniture products from 1950s and 1960s. Most of the works were technically well made but missed ideas which would create from them better art then only standard. Comparing Danish graphic design works with others from Europe a lack of creativity can be found in their design solutions. This can be caused by working mostly on commercial projects where the creativity is usually limited by instructions and wishes of client. However this cannot be asserted about the furniture design consisted of iconic Ant, Egg or Panton chairs and PH lamps which are admired and well-sold even after 60 years from the day they were created. The Danish modernism, as the furniture design in Denmark is collectively called, is known for the emphasis on function, the use of simple lines, the focus on good choice of materials and quality production. These principles were consider by Arne Jacobsen in 1950s as well as by designers working on chairs for Hay more than 50 years later. And this is the matter which creates Danish furniture design so powerful. 7. REFERENCES Arntson, A.E. (2007) Graphic Design Basics. 5th edn. United States of America: Clark Baxter. Bhaskaran, L. (2005) Designs of the Times. Translated by Jana Novotnà ¡. Reprint, Prague: Nakladatelstvà ­ Slovart s.r.o., 2007. BlaÃ…Â ¾ek, F., Bosà ¡k, P., Jans, R., Novà ¡k, R.V. and Solpera, J. (2010) Role and future of the poster. [Discussion]. 18 November. Byars, M. (ed.) (1994) The design encyclopedia. New York: John Wiley Sins, Inc. Danish Design Centre (2009) Danish Design Past and Present | DDC Dansk Design Centre. Available at: http://en.ddc.dk/article/danish-design-past-and-present (Accessed: 20 October 2010). Danish Design Centre (2008) Hay: Growth via sustainable and innovative design | DDC Dansk Design Centre. Available at: http://en.ddc.dk/case/hay-growth-sustainable-and-innovative-design (Accessed: 20 October 2010). Danish Design Centre (2008) The Danish Des

Sharing Meals With Arabs :: Essays Papers

Sharing Meals With Arabs Arabs enjoy inviting guests to their homes for meals; you could be a guest at meals any time. Meals provide the host and hostess with a perfect opportunity to display their generosity and demonstrate their personal regard for you. Arabs usually invite guests through an oral invitation and by sending a written invitation. If you plan to visit a family in Bethlehem, for example, you must know the time of the invitation and how to act during and after the meal. Most of the Arab families have specific times for lunch and dinner, so it is very important to be on time. Lunch is at 12:00 p.m., and dinner is at 6:00 p.m. To be on time is very important if the dinner is formal and official. If the guests arrive early, there is plenty of time for conversation before the meal. Conversation does not generally take place after the meal for an everyday invitation. Most of the members of the family will be waiting for the guests; they all have helped in preparing the meal. Separation between the men and women while eating is very important in the Arab society. Many families prefer to let the women eat alone; therefore, if the meal were for men only, you would not find any women sitting at the table. In some cases, if the guests are both men and women, women can sit at the table. At wedding parties, for example, the men sit alone and the women sit alone. This separation of men and women is very important at wedding parties. When the guests sit at the table, they find many kinds of food that the host and hostess have prepared. Arabs serve a great quantity of food when they entertain. They are famous for their munificence, or great generosity, and are very proud of it. They usually prepare two or three times more food than the guests can eat. In fact, they do not try to calculate the amount of food actually needed; on the contrary, the intention is to present abundant food that shows generosity and esteem for the guests. The food does not go to waste; it is consumed by the family afterwards. Encouraging guests to eat is a part of the Arab custom and is also required for good manners. You can expect to be offered second and third helpings of food, and you should make the gesture at least once for accepting.

Best sentencing for alcohol offenders Essay

ABSTRACT This paper will argue the fact that house arrest is the best option for alcohol offenders. It will prove through research that most alcohol offenders that have been sentenced to prison time become repeat offenders. Research will also show that offenders sentenced to SCRAMx were less likely to abuse alcohol once released. It will also show how house arrest saves the state money by making the offender pay a fixed rate for their time served on house arrest. Alcohol offenders are those who commit a crime while under the influence of alcohol. Some examples of these offenders are First-time and Repeat DUI/DWI offenders, offenders who commit homicide or assault while in an automobile, alcohol offenders who are charged with domestic violence, people on parole or probation who are known to use alcohol, minors that have been arrested for alcohol abuse, adults that take care of or oversee minors, offenders trying to reinstate their driving privileges, and licensed professionals who abuse alcohol. Most of these offenders are fined, have their driver’s license revoked and made to attend MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Drivers) meetings and MASEP (Mississippi Alcohol Safety Education Program) classes. Offenders are required to get SR22 insurance on their automobile and pay a reinstatement fee of $125 in the state of Mississippi, before they can have their license reinstated. Repeat offenders are sentenced to pay a higher fine and spend a longer time without their license. In some states third time offenders are sentenced to serve time in prison, in others, however, offenders are fined, have their licenses revoked for three years and made to spend twenty four to forty eight hours in jail. Would it not be more effective to sentence alcohol offenders to house arrest after the first offense? Some people feel that prison sentences are the best options for  alcohol offenders, however, house arrest is the best option. Secure Continuous Remote Alcohol Monitoring System (SCRAMx) combines the Continuous Alcohol Monitoring system with the traditional house arrest bracelet. It provides alcohol monitoring every thirty minutes, twenty four hours a day, seven days a week instead of having to set up an appointment for the offender to come in and be tested for alcohol in his or her system. It saves the county and state in which the offender is serving his or her sentence considerable time, resources, and budgets because it is paid for by the offender and he or she is monitored continuously by GPS tracking. (AMS, Inc., 2012) It saves time and resources by letting the probation officer and other officials monitor the offender’s actions from a computer in his or her office. It saves the budget of the county and state by having the offender pay a fee for his or her time served. SCRAMx effects long-term behavioral change that cannot be achieved by incarceration. By helping the offender become alcohol free and find the reason for his or her alcohol abuse, SCRAMx is changing the life of the offender. SCRAMx offers significant advantages to the courts and supervising agencies that use it, as well as to the offenders themselves. The majority of judges hearing cases involving SCRAMx have recognized that the device is accurate, reliable, and generally accepted. The accuracy and reliability come from measuring the alcohol intake of an offender through transdermal alcohol concentrations in the sweat and insensible perspiration (oils) of the skin cells. Since these tests are done every thirty minutes it omits the possibility of the offender drinking the night before the test is set up to be done in an office setting. Courts accept these results because they are accurate and tamper resistant. SCRAMx allows probation officers and courts to manage hundreds of offender’s right from their desk. The non-invasive testing frees up time and requires no labor from the parties involved. SCRAMx helps improve offender outcomes by letting them maintain family obligations, hold jobs, and contri bute positively to the community they live in. (AMS, Inc., 2012) SCRAMx helps ease the problem of jail overcrowding by keeping non-violent  offenders out on house arrest. SCRAMx provides a cost-effective alternative to jail for those prisoners who are not a threat to the community when they are sober. County jails and prisons are populated by a high number of offenders awaiting trial. SCRAMx would reduce jail/prison overcrowding for offenders awaiting trial by providing a way for court officials to monitor and track those offenders from their offices. (Mitchell, 2012) SCRAMx helps individuals get the help they need to sober up, thus ending the revolving door of incarceration. (AMS, Inc., 20120) The revolving doors of incarceration are also known as recidivism. According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, recidivism is a tendency to relapse into a previous condition or mode of behavior; especially: relapse into criminal behavior. (Merriam-Webster, 2012) SCRAMx gives offenders a sense of security, continuous accountability, financial responsibility and much more. First, it helps protect public safety, and provides a sense of security for the offender often saving their lives because they stop drinking. Second, Participants of the SCRAMx program give credit to the bracelet for saving their lives. Other programs are easy to beat while drinking. SCRAMx reminds the offender that they are not supposed to drink thus for keeping them sober. Sober days are twenty four hour periods in which the offender has no confirmed alcohol consumption and no confirmed tamper attempts or circumvent testing in order to mask the consumption of alcohol. Third, financial responsibility comes from the offender having to pay for their time on the program. Offenders feel that they are responsible for their own success in finishing the program. (AMS, Inc., 2012) Some people feel that SCRAMx gives offenders too much freedom unlike prisons where they are under constant supervision. Incarcerating an offender costs prisons approximately $25,251 a year and keeps them off the streets while they serve their sentence. (Lappin, 2011) Once released from prison the offender is required to pay a fine and attend alcohol treatment related therapy. The one common program they are asked to attend is Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). This type of therapy is held in a group setting where people with alcohol addictions meet to talk about their lives and the time they  have spent sober. Offenders must meet with a parole officer on a monthly basis to ensure they are meeting the terms of their parole. Most terms of probation are simple. Some examples are letting the parole officer know where you live and work and if there are any changes in residence and work, letting them know if you are going to be more than 50 miles away from home, and how long you will be away. (C DCR, 2010) There are very strict rules that offenders participating the SCRAMx program must follow. Offenders participating in the SCRAMx program have a set schedule and curfew which keeps them off the streets during popular drinking hours. Offenders are only allowed to leave when it is cleared by the probation/parole officer monitoring their sentence. Most common schedules revolve around work schedules and appointments to meet with the probation/parole officer. They are monitored by a Continuous Alcohol Monitoring system that tests every thirty minutes for alcohol levels in their system. Offenders on the SCRAMx program are held accountable for their actions so the first time they try to tamper with the device or have a bad test are returned to prison custody. (AMS, Inc., 2012) Sentencing alcohol offenders to prison sentences is the number one punishment handed down by courts of law. These sentences cost the state and counties in which the crime is committed millions of dollars a year. SCRAMx, the house arrest program for alcohol offenders, has been proven to offer a better solution for the overcrowding problem in our prison systems. It also helps the offender maintain sobriety and keep them from becoming repeat offenders. Some people feel that prison sentences are the best solution, however, house arrest is the best option for alcohol offenders. In many ways it benefits both the state and the offender. Wouldn’t you agree? REFERENCES AMS, Inc., (2012) SCRAMx for AMS, The SCRAMx System, Retrieved on December 29, 2012 from www.alcoholmonitoring.com/index/scram/the-scramx-system AMS, Inc., (2012) SCRAMx from AMS, The Benefits of SCRAMx, Retrieved on December 31, 2012 from www.alcoholmonitoring.com/index/scram/scramx-benefits Mitchell, Matt (July, 2012) NACo Passes Resolution Supporting Transdermal Testing for Pre-Trial Populations, Retrieved on December 31, 2012 from www.alcoholmonitoring.com/blog/2012/07/naco-passes-resolution-supporting-transdermal-testing-fro-pre-trail-population/#.UNCStneE21o AMS, Inc., (2012) SCRAMx for AMS, Solutions, Jail Depopulation, Retrieved on December 31, 2012 from www.alcoholmonitoring.com/index/programs/jail-depopulation Merriam-Webster, Inc., (2012) Definition of recidivism, Retrieved on December 31, 2012 from www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/recidivism AMS, Inc., (2012) SCRAMx for AMS, About Us, The Offender Perspective, Retrieved on December 31, 2012 from www.alcholmonitoring.com/index/scram/offender-perspective Lappin, Harley G (February, 2011) Annual Determination of Average Cost of Incarceration, Office of the Federal Register (US) Retrieved on December 31, 2012 from www.federalregister.gov/articles/2011/02/03/2011-2363/annual-determination-of-average-cost-of-incarceration California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (2010) Division of Adult Parole Operations, Parolee Conditions, Retrieved on December 31, 2012 from http://www.cdcr.ca.gov/parole/parolee_conditions/index.html AMS, Inc., (2012) SCRAMx for AMS, The SCRAMx System, Retrieved on December 31, 2012 from www.alcoholmonitoring.com/index/scram/the-scramx-system

The Three Branches of American Government

The Three Branches of American Government In theory, the three branches of government serve to maintain the system of checks and balance, to prevent one branch from having more power, or too much power, than the others. This is to uphold Democracy and to prevent dictatorships and authoritarian government practices, to keep the country free, Capitalistic and Democratically fair to the people. The three branches making up the United States government are the Executive, Legislative and Judicial branches, as seen in the President, the Supreme Court, and Congress. To understand why things are done this way, it’s important to know a little about each branch, what it does and why it is important. This further assures the American citizen that they live in a country run, in theory, by the whole population who select people to represent them, their needs and their challenges. The President of the United States of America is not the only one running the show. For their time, for at least four years, they are essentially heading the Executive branch of the United States government. Though they are the commander-in-chief of the American military, the President does not have unlimited power to rule the country. The President is intentionally limited in power so as to prevent a regime, where a leader has complete control over every single government entity. The Vice President supports the president in various affairs as part of the Executive branch and becomes a liaison with the Senate. Cabinet members are also part of the Executive branch and assist the President in decision-making and other responsibilities. The President can veto some bills not passed by Congress, which means the President does have certain powers not shared by members of the other branches. The Supreme Court and its Justices make up the Judicial branch. They determine if certain laws work in correlation with the United States Constitution. The President nominates each Justice, and their positions have to first be approved by a majority of those in the Senate. The Judicial branch makes sure the country’s entire law-making system is done correctly, fairly and in the name of true and fair justice and Democracy. This branch sees that the country is run legally with respect to providing citizens their Constitutional rights. The Judicial branch has the power to decide if certain laws should be incorporated into the life of everyday Americans. Most recently, the Supreme Court Justices determined that Federal bans on same-sex marriages were unconstitutional. Once that bill passed and became a Federal law, individual states were able to vote to determine if they would allow same-sex marriages. And the Legislative branch, essentially the United States Congress, in many ways collectively chooses the country’s laws and what becomes part of the Constitution, which is always being amended to reflect today’s society, its people, and its needs, challenges, and limitations. The Senate and the House of Representatives make up the Legislative branch of the American government. The Senate has 100 members, exactly two from each of the 50 states; and the House of Representative has 435 members, representing the various districts of the American population (the most populous places get more representatives). Together, they determine if certain bills should be laws to protect the rights of the people. In conclusion, the three branches of the American government works – and this system has worked for more than 200 years. The system of checks and balances is by no means perfect, as seen in how President vetoes some bills that Congress is unwilling to pass. This, of course, creates mistrust among the various branches, in turn preventing effective cooperation between the departments of the government. Nonetheless, as time goes on, this system will evolve and will one day become the common way governments all around the world will run. It equates to happy citizens who make up a happy, successful and self-preserving society.

The digital revolution essays

The digital revolution essays The Digital Revolution is upon us. People, as a whole, have become so dependent on digital technology that they would not know how to survive without it. I went without a cell phone up until about two to three years ago. I thought that I didnt need a portable telephone. My thought process was that if I wanted to get a hold of someone I could or if someone wanted to get a hold of me bad enough that they could. Now I must admit, that was the way I use to think but now after having a cell phone for a couple of years I honestly do not know what I would do without it. If I leave my house without my phone now I have to turnaround and come back to get it. My phone is one of those cheap phones, not like those phones that have the internet, two-way, cameras, and video recorders. Ive even seen hand held palm pilots that are phones. Whatever happened to the days when cordless phones were revolutionary? I remember when my family bought its first cordless phone. We thought it was the greatest thing since sliced bread. When was the last time that I went to a library to do research? I can not honestly remember. My research is now done on the world wide web (pg. 169). The reason being, why go to a library and take all that time and look for books upon books and read a bunch of stuff that has absolutely nothing to do with what I am looking for when all I have to do is sit down in front of my computer, type a key word in a search engine and sort through all the hundreds or sometimes even thousands of hits all at the convenience of my home. I think that libraries are becoming a thing of the past and as the internet becomes more advanced and more reliable libraries will become extinct. They will be replaced with buildings filled only with computers. I personally believe that television is one of the worst inventions of mankind. Now I know that television is not as bad as guns or bombs but TV does destroy part of a per...

Write your own opinion Is there any relationships between dominant Essay

Write your own opinion Is there any relationships between dominant U.S. cultural patterns and global attitudes - Essay Example on towards the United States varies and explains differences in the relationship between elements of the nation’s dominant culture and attitude from other countries. In the year 2008, for example, South Koreans, Polish, and Tanzanians had the highest proportions of positive attitudes towards the United States respectively, while the Kenyans, South Koreans, and French citizens held the highest percentage of positive attitude towards the nation in the year 2009. Variation in countries with highest proportion of favourable attitudes towards the United States continued up to the year 2013. Attitudes that nations hold towards the United States also vary to suggest effects of changes in elements of the nation’s dominant culture on people’ attitudes. Percentage of populations with positive attitudes towards the United States, by countries, increased from the year 2008 up to the year the year 2010 before assuming a gradual decrease from the year 2011. The highest percent ages that favoured the United States show this (Pewglobal 1). Data on attitudes towards the United States shows that elements of the nation’s dominant culture varies to affect general attitudes across the globe and that the elements may be influencing specific variable interests in different nations to influence their attitudes towards the United

Work control and conflict in formal organizations Essay

Work control and conflict in formal organizations - Essay Example Using Edwards’ definition of labor markets, Company A is an Independent Primary Market (p.418). Employment is stable and job security high because there is never a lack of criminal offenders. There are possibilities of being promoted to a higher rank, or transferring to one of many other positions within the jail. Specific physical and educational requirements must be met and the pay is competitive. In 2004 Company A won a battle to decertify the existing Teamsters Union and form its own Guild in an attempt to secure a better bargaining position with the county. The conflicts at Company A are many and diverse. The line officers and administrative staff (the decision makers) have different views on inmate and officer safety concerns, work hours and conditions and types of initiatives the officers are permitted to take regarding inmate discipline or operating procedures. Teams of personnel who work well together are being assigned separate posts, and there is no longer the feeling of camaraderie that was the norm a few years ago. On a daily basis, the work environment at Company A exemplifies several of Dalton’s descriptions of conflict (p. 153). The new administration, in its attempt to exert control and in an honest effort to improve efficiency, holds many meetings to develop new policies, techniques, and work standards. Whether to return to prior norms or to antagonize management, line officers frequently and deliberately create situations so that these new ideas will fail. The main reason for this worker behavior is that, with few exceptions, management style at Company A tends toward the Initiating Structure Leadership style (Pool, p. 272) and technical control (Edwards, p. 415). The result is micro management. Leaders utilizing the Initiating Structure Leadership style as defined by Pool organize and define the relationships of the group and dictate how the work is to be