Cultural studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Cultural studies - Essay Example This ‘selective selfishness’, as the author calls it, is the essence of all great things that have happened in the world. The author also talks in detail about what he calls as historical men, men who take history as the basis of their future actions (p 65). The author debates that history should not be treated as a pure science and that it is neither a source for pure knowledge. Hence, he concedes to the theory that it can merely be used as a reference to take life forward. While total lack of history and too much of history are both derogatory, it is essential that human beings take the middle path and recognize its relevance in human life. According to the author, man should be able to selectively switch off and on his awareness and reverence for the past and must not fall a prey to delusions provided by historical anecdotes. In "On the Uses and Disadvantage of History for Life", Friedrich Nietzsche, analyses the importance of history in the guiding the modern generations. He lays out a path, a dogma, that is to be followed by all those who are desirous of attaining enlightenment in their lives. For example, he says that history that speaks of the past and provides nothing new, does not invigorate the mind (p 113). On the contrary, history shows its heroes and heroines as those who questioned a dogma is to be followed, if we are to make any sense of history and the future. Hence, Friedrich Nietzsche tells us that we need to be path finders in a world that is dominated by historical data that could be biased and one-sided and does not take into consideration information that has many perspectives to it. History, further can be conceived as a biased fabrication of an individual or a group of persons for furthering some rested interests. We have seen instances where historical information which ere believed to have been facts, had been challenged later on. Nietzsche, in particular,

Prader-Willi Case Essay Example for Free

Prader-Willi Case Essay This essay will discuss the role of the nurse in the context of Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) which is caused by a genetic disease by a deletion in chromosome 15. This can lead to insatiable hunger, excessive eating and result in obesity. This syndrome requires management from the multidisciplinary team which includes dieticians, doctors, mental health team, nurses, occupational therapist, physiotherapists and social services. This is where the role of the nurse and nursing staff can stand out as they are actively involved in patient care providing support to the patient and their family, as well as playing a role in preventing disease progression. â€Å"Make the care of people your first concern, treating them as individuals and respecting their dignity† (NMC, 2010). This is of utmost importance in the management of PWS, and how the individual can be educated by managing the syndrome. This essay will relate across the lifespan; childhood, adolescence and adulthood. This will be discussed in the following paragraphs. PWS is an uncommon genetic disorder that is present at birth in either male or female. It is the most common genetic cause of morbid obesity and can vary at different weights. Although the cause is complex, it results from a deletion or unexpression of genes from the paternal chromosome 15. This condition affects approximately 1 in 10,000 to 1 in 25,000 new-borns (Killeen, 2004). Individuals with this condition have serious problems controlling their weight as they have a very strong food compulsion before the age of six. The condition is diagnosed through genetic testing. It is specifically DNA-based methylation testing to distinguish the absence of the paternal chromosome; chromosome 15.This test is recommended for new borns with pronounced hypotonia (praderwillisyndrome, 2010). An early diagnosis allows for early intervention as well as early provision of growth hormone (GH) treatment. GH gives an increased muscle mass and supports linear growth. GH treatment also advantageous because it decreases food preoccupation and weight gain. During pregnancy, there can be a few abnormal signs which can indicate, but are not limited to PWS. In utero, there can be excessive amniotic fluid; a condition known as polyhydraminos. There can also be reduced fetal movements and the fetal position within the uterus may be suboptimal i.e. breech presentation. Once the baby is born, other signs such as feeding difficulties- due to poor muscular tone affecting the sucking reflex and generalised hypotonia-poor muscular tone (FPWR, 2011).The baby may feel floppy when held as their joints may be loosely extended instead of being firmly in position. An early diagnosis of these can point to an early diagnosis of PWS, hence lead to early management. The clinical presentation of PWS is not limited to physical signs and symptoms but includes linear growth and development, which can cause mental and behavioural problems. These can be presented early in childhood. Physical features can include short stature, small hands and feet, low birth weight, and classic facial features including narrow forehead, almond-shaped eyes and â€Å"down-turned† mouth (Holm et al, 1993). Behavioural symptoms can include obsessive behaviours, unpredictable temper tantrums, skin picking, stubbornness and resistance to change. Individuals with this condition are not mentally stable as they have an increased risk and suffer from depression and psychosis. They also suffer from hallucinations, loss of interests, changes in mood and poor concentration levels. As mentioned earlier, Hypotonia is poor muscle tone. Hypotonia improves with age, however if it persists by the age of two to three, it is very likely that the child may not have started walking. Walking is a crucial milestone that should be reached within the first two years of life (NLM 2010).This is because their weight gain has made it difficult to move around and their condition is already exacerbated by the hypotonia. They can be referred to physiotherapy to try and improve the muscle tone. They also have a failure to thrive and their rate of physical growth is less than their peers’. With failure to thrive, these infants may not respond to simulation as they tire easily. Infants with this condition gain weight more slowly and start to put on more weight by the age of 2-3. A child with PWS may start speaking later than other children as their verbal skills are delayed. Speech and language therapy is advisable at this point as the child will benefit with input from a ther apist. Most common speech concerns include problems with voice quality, articulation, usage as well as resonance patterns (Munson-Davis, 1988). The child constantly craves for food and eats more than they should. They constantly gain weight and may eat things most people wouldn’t deem edible; such as expired or frozen food. There is a serious compulsion towards food, and a lack of awareness of hunger satiation. In childhood, they have a tendency to be stubborn, argumentative and possessive (Nordqvist, 2010). Some infants can develop obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) along with repetitive behaviours. They can throw tantrums as they can only consume a certain amount of food per day so they do not gain weight (as per their dietary management plan). During adolescence, height becomes more noticeable as the individual is much shorter than others. The height of a female with PWS on average is 4 feet 10 inches while that a male with PWS is 5 feet 2 inches (nhs.uk, 2011). The individual would still suffer from hypotonia up until adulthood and would be extremely flexible due to poor muscle tone. Once the individual has reached adulthood, they cannot reproduce as they are infertile due to delayed puberty in both male and female from a young age. The reproductive system would not have produced enough sex hormones, which results in undeveloped sex organs. Hypogonadism is a medical term for the reduction or absence of hormone secretion or other physiological activity of the gonards. Individuals with PWS have some degree of a learning disability. Learning disability nursing practice reflected current philosophies of supporting people with learning disabilities (Clifton et al. 1992). The presence of PWS in a family can create substantial stress. Families would have had to adapt to changes within the household to be able to manage the individual with the syndrome. Parents are often exhausted from the demands of their time and energy for diet control, specialized programmes, therapy appointments and behavioural supervision. Siblings are also affected as they often feel neglected as the PWS sibling receives more attention and appears to be more loved. (Tomase-ski-Heinemann 1998) It is a nurse’s responsibility to help support and manage a patient with the condition along with supporting the individual and their family. The uncontrollable appetite leads to obesity. Obesity is a global epidemic, and is also known to be a significant risk factor for other health related problems which include heart disease, diabetes, high cholesterol, hypertension, hypoventilation and right sided heart failure (WHO, 1948). Some people with PWS also develop type 2 diabetes mellitus which is the most common form of diabetes, where the body either does not produce enough insulin or the insulin is not working properly; insulin resistance. In addition, part of the due diligence of nurses is that in providing care for a patient with PWS that they holistically look after the patient starting from the first interaction. For example, in PWS this involves first building a rapport with the patient explaining their diagnosis and describing the nurses’ role in the management (monitoring weight, supporting diet). It should be stressed to the patient and their family the importance of confidentially and that their information will not be told to anyone outside the medical team. This ensures that the nurse has fulfilled their responsibly within the multi-disciplinary team. The Data Protection Act (1998) was put in place to maintain patient records and information. Therefore the nurse would be upholding these legislations by practising patient confidentiality. When visiting a patient at home or in the hospital, a nurse should ask for consent for patient contact i.e. assessing vital signs. Nurses’ must follow the NMC guidelines although the patient may not understand what the nurse is saying because of a learning disability for example. However, consent must be indicated in some form such as nodding of the head. The NMC (2010) states that â€Å"you should ensure that you gain their consent before you begin to provide care†. If the patient is unable to give consent and is alert, the next of kin is assigned to making the decision due to the best interest of the patient. A nurse is accountable to manage, maintain and monitor the individuals’ weight. The nurse does not only have to keep track but also the family should be involved in managing the weight. Nurses can book weekly appointments with the individual and their family/carer so their weight can be monitored to check for any improvement to the weight or not. The family should monitor the amount the individual consumes daily. They are constantly hungry and cry for more food if it is not given to them. Locks must be placed on cupboards or on the kitchen door to stop them from eating (PWSAUSA, 2009). It will be hard for the individual to cope once this is introduced as they do not know when to stop. This is where the nurse should explain to the individual how important it is to manage their weight and what it can lead to if it is not controlled. The nurse should be there to support them when the individual starts to show aggressive behaviour as it will be hard for the family as well. Adults with PWS are inactive due to their low muscle tone and therefore only require 1,000-1,200 calories a day (PWSA, 2010). Encouraging the individual to be healthy is important. Although the nurse must understand that the patient may be unable to exercise properly due to poor muscle tone, they should encourage the patient to eat healthily for example fruit and vegetables. The individual must not have too many fatty foods i.e sweets and chocolate. By promoting healthy foods will ensure that the individual does not gain more weight than they should. It will be hard for the individual to cope with the new foods introduced to them which is why a nurse will be there to support the individual and family. The nurse can also advise the family on encouraging the patient to do some exercises i.e. helping with house chores. Any sorts of movement can help burn calories. Communication skills is one of the key skills a nurse should have. â€Å"To understand the process of communication, we must understand how people relate to each other† (Faulkner, 1982). Supporting and helping patients and their families, communication is crucial. By managing the individual and their condition, team work is fundamental. It is important to work as team as the main focus in the patient care plan is the individual. Each health care professional has a role to play to help improve the individuals well-being. The main focus is the role of the nurse and how their professional issues can impact on the health and illness of people across the life span. It is important for a nurse to understand individuals and their condition because they can help make it somewhat easier for the patient and their family. This is because the nurse is an allied health professional who enjoys more interaction with the patient than many other members of the multidisciplinary team. Nurses need to respect patients from various backgrounds as PWS can affect people of all ethnicities. This syndrome can be found in people of any ethnic background (Zelweger, 1983). Nurses’ must respect the patients’ background and understand that they may not be able to communicate or understand what is being said. Makaton could be used to enhance communication and is a language programme, which is designed to provide a means of communication to individuals who cannot communicate well by speaking (Beukelman. D.R Mirenda). Makaton can also be used with individuals who have cognitive impairments and specific language impairment that have negatively affected the ability to communicate. An interpreter is also a form of communication as they are translating what the other is saying if English is not their first language. By using interpreters (sign language or foreign languages) will help the patient and the nurse understand what the other is saying i.e. explaining what the condition is. This will also leave the patient happy so they do not feel angry and upset. Some individuals may have a language barrier or cultural beliefs which can go against some forms of treatment. The syndrome is lifelong and unfortunately has no cure, but with the support and advice the nurse will have given the patient and the family, the patient will be happy and content (FPWR, 2010). This essay has included the role of the nurse for this condition and how it can be managed. Overall, the main point is to promote a healthy way of what the individual eats and how it can be managed. Keeping such foods out of sight and having a positive family, helping the individual through the tough times can promote a healthy way of living for the individual. Exercise is crucial in maintaining a healthy weight.

Crisis Communications Toyota UK’s sticky accelerator pedal

Crisis Communications Toyota UK’s sticky accelerator pedal Toyota UKs sticky accelerator pedal recall of January 2010 was considered by journalists as a disaster for its reputation with UK customers (Booth and Teather, 2010 and Hutton, 2010). Yet just three weeks after the crisis broke comments left by customers on the companys UK website revealed that they did not share this opinion. This essay will seek to understand these reactions, explain them and suggest ways Toyotas own crisis communication efforts may have helped and hindered them. After establishing the Toyota recall as a crisis, the essay will undertake a content analysis of customer comments to the companys UK website. The Situational Crisis Communications Theory (SCCT) of Coombs and Holladay (1996, 2001 and 2002) will then be applied to the results to start to explain these responses. The essay will then move on to assess how Toyotas own crisis communication efforts, as evidenced by a content analysis of company statements uploaded to Toyotas UK website, followed the tenets set o ut by SCCT. The aim will be to demonstrate how Toyotas crisis response strategies could have negatively and positively influenced these customer reactions. The essay will then conclude by suggesting further research needs to be done to prove any direct causal relationship between Toyotas crisis communication strategies and the resulting customer reactions. Before beginning this analysis it is important we give the essay a strong foundation by establishing that the Toyota accelerator recall was in fact a crisis and therefore warrants the application of crisis communications theory. Underpinning this process is the definition of a crisis as a an event or a perception of an event that threatens or violates important value expectancies of stakeholders and [where] stakeholders reactions can seriously impact the organizations performance and generate negative outcomes (Coombs, 1999, quoted in Tomasz and others, 2010, p. 637). Within this definition is the concept of stakeholders, which is interpreted as any group or individual who can affect or is affected by the achievement of the organisations objectives (Freeman, 1984, p. 46). In the case of Toyota this could include the customers who buy the cars; the staff, who make them and the shareholders, who finance the company. According to Tomazs and others (2010) the expectations mentioned in this definition above centre on what they perceive to be an agreement or promise by the organisation. These are formed from exposure to information about the organisation, published by the organisation itself and the media; societal norms and interpersonal interactions with the company and other parties. Tomasz and others (2010) go on to explain that an episode that threatens or violates these expectations can be considered a crisis. The result of which can make stakeholders change their attitudes towards the organisation and/or change their behaviours, thus negatively affecting profitability and stockholder value. How well a company is meeting expectations can be described as reputation (Coombs, 2004a). So, it is important that, before applying this theory to the sticky accelerator pedal recall, we ascertain Toyotas reputation. From Toyotas own corporate material (Toyota, 2010a and Toyota, 2010b) and media articles (The Telegraph, 2010) about the car marque, the brand promises are clear. By buying a Toyota customers are promised safety, reliability and quality. By applying the theory above to the accelerator recall, it is reasonable to suggest that if the sticky accelerator fault occurred, a car could become unpredictable thus making the vehicle unreliable and unsafe to drive, and threatening two key customers expectations As a consequence, because these issues had never occurred before, customers could begin to feel like the quality associated with the marque had diminished, thus potentially violating the third brand pillar. With Tomasz and others (2010) placing a direct link between the threat or violation of expectations and negative stakeholder behaviour, it is also reasonable to suggest that the recall episode could have some damaging consequences for Toyota and its business goals, including a potential drop in car sales as customers stopping purchasing the marque, which would then lead to a drop in the companys share price. This therefore shows that the sticky accelerator pedal recall defiantly fits into definition of a crisis, as outlined above. What was at stake was Toyotas relationship with its customers. That is why this essay will focus on looking at the crisis from their point of view, in particular its UK customers. In the next part of the essay I will seek to start to understand how customers reacted to this crisis by analysing messages this stakeholder group left on Toyotas UK website. The aim of this examination is to start to build a picture of what damage was done to the relationship between Toyota and its customers due to the crisis episode. This analysis is heavily influenced by the work of Tomasz and others (2010) and as a result breaks the possible harm into two categories; negative changes in customer attitudes to the organisation and negative changes to customer behaviours. With these categories in mind 400 posts were analysed that had been left on Toyotas UK website in reaction the companys pleas for Your Experiences of the Recall (Toyota, 2010c).Toyota uploaded this appeal to their blog two weeks after the countrywide fix of affected models began, therefore giving an indication of the final thoughts of customers. Firstly, these posts were coded as positive, negative or neutral in their attitude towards Toyota. Each post was then broken down further and coded for evidence that the customers perceived Toyota to be responsible for the crisis, that their opinion of the car marquee had been damaged and that the crisis had affected their purchase intentions. Reputation was examined by looking for evidence of the three stakeholder expectations, as established above. These results showed that only 16% of customers in this sample had a negative attitude towards Toyota and only 1.3 % blamed the car marque for what had happened (Purnell, 2010). As for the three pillars of Toyotas reputation, just 2.6% of the customers sampled thought Toyotas were now unsafe, 1.9 % considered them unreliable and 1.3 % thought quality had dropped (Purnell, 2010). However, most interestingly just 2.7 % said the crisis had put them off buying a Toyota (Purnell, 2010). It is therefore fair to say that overall the posts were positive, with comments including not a major problem; not changed my loyalty ; will keep buying Toyotas and 11 out of 10 for Toyota acknowledging the problem and actually doing something about it. With percentages high in the not mentioned categories it is also interesting to stop for a moment and look at the topics that customers were concerned about. Many customers were concerned and confused about how they were affected by the way the recall had been handled. In the next section of the essay I will apply the tenets of SCCT as developed by Coombs and Holladay (1996, 2001 and 2002) to the sticky accelerator crisis in a bid to shed light on why customers may have reacted in the ways established above. The reason SCCT was chosen was because the core proposition of the theory is that during crisis situations organisations need to protect their reputations. The way they can do this is by developing crisis responses based on the specific circumstances of a particular situation. Successfully implementing such tailored responses will have a positive effect on stakeholder perceptions. The match between the situation and the response strategy is based on attribution of responsibility and different responses strategies imply different degrees of responsibility (Coombs and Holladay, 1996, 2001 and 2002). SCCT ( Coombs and Holladay, 1996, 2001 and 2002) suggests that a match between the Toyota crisis and the suggested crisis response strategy can be identified using a two step process, which involves determining the frame stakeholders use to categorise the crisis and then establishing if any intensifying factors are present. SCCT (Coombs and Holladay, 1996, 2001 and 2002) offers three frames, victim, accidental and intentional. The categories present increasing levels of attributions of responsibility and therefore threat posed by the crisis. Using this model in relation to the Toyota recall, reveals that the episode fits into the accidental crisis category which has a low attribution of crisis responsibility. This is because the situation was caused by the failure of a mechanism in certain models of their cars that could not be detected by normal inspection and could therefore be considered technical error product harm, one the subsets of the accidental crisis category. With this base level of threat established the next step is to look at whether any intensifying factors were present during Toyotas sticky accelerator pedal recall. SCCT identifies two intensifying factors, a crisis history and prior reputation (Coombs, 2004b). In SCCT if an organisation had a similar crisis in the past or is suffering from a poor reputation with stakeholders, the current crisis will be a much greater reputational threat because it will establish a pattern of behaviour by an organisation (Coombs and Holladay, 2004). In Toyotas case one of the two intensifying factors is present. The company, despite having a strong reputation with customers, had been having problems with product recalls since 12 months before the accelerator pedal problem. In January 2009, Toyota issued a global recall of 1.3million cars, including some in Britain, because of seatbelt and exhaust problems. The companys woes in this department were also exacerbated by the fact that two weeks into the sticky accelerator pedal crisis, the company issued another global recall for its Prius model because of suspected brake problems. SCCT (Coombs, 2007b) then combines these factors to evaluate the reputational threat presented by the crisis. Therefore Toyotas accelerator pedal recall rates as an accidental crisis, with minimal attributions of crisis responsibility but because of the intensifying factor it has the potential to produce greater reputation damage than would normally be for this category. This means that although customers see the event as largely out of the control of Toyota and unintentional, there is an increased chance that it will damage the companys reputation with customers The application of SCCT to the Toyota recall supports the results of the content analysis above and goes a long way to explain by customers reacted this way. A much stronger attribution of crisis responsibility and therefore threat would have been levelled at Toyota, if customers considered the product recall has been intentional, perhaps a human error crisis caused by someone not doing their job properly(Coombs, 2007a; Coom bs and Holladay, 2002). Although the SCCT model (Coombs, 2007a; Coombs and Holladay, 2002) starts to explain the customers reactions represented above, especially as to why they did not blame Toyota, what we cant forget is that SCCT to the predicts that the episode has the potential to create serious damage to Toyotas reputation with its customers in the posts analysed. It is reasonable then to expect to see a significantly larger proportion of negative feedback from this audience group. However, this is not evidenced, which suggested that Toyotas own crisis communications efforts may have helped to minimise the impact the crisis had on the companys relations with its customer base. The next section of the essay will analyse how well Toyotas own crisis communication efforts met the tenets of SCCT (Coombs, 2007a; Coombs and Holladay, 2002). By analysing statements made by the company on its UK website between January 28 2010- when the crisis began and February 10 when the company began fixing the affected v ehicles. On January 28 Toyota UK issued its first public statement explaining that the accelerator pedal problem currently affecting the US could now affect the UK and Europe (Toyota, 2010d). It focussed on explaining to drivers what signs to look out for and what Toyota was doing to rectify the situation. This is the type of message that SCCT would consider to be instructing information, i.e. information that would help affected people cope physically with the crisis. Instructing and adjusting information are the two types of information that SCCT suggests begin and are part of every crisis response strategy (Coombs, 2010). So it was entirely appropriate that Toyota began its crisis communication efforts in this way. But it is equally important that this hard work was sustained Organisations must protect their stakeholders to protect themselves (Coombs, 2010, p. 29). However, Toyota did not do this. Once the first statement was issued Toyota waited three days before issuing any further statement (Toyota, 2010 e) on their website or elsewhere, leaving customers with no instructing information during this period. To make matters worse there was also a complete lack of adjusting information. Adjusting information are expressions of compassion and the efforts the company is making to prevent a repeat of the crisis (Coombs, 2010) Such information makes victims feel better about the crisis and hold less animosity toward the organisation (Cohen, 2002). Yet until day five of the crisis, February 1(Toyota, 2010e), Toyota had not expressed any sympathy towards those affected and had not announced what steps the company was making to prevent a reoccurrence. This evidence shows that during the initial stages of their crisis response Toyota broke both of the basic tenets set out by SCCT, which Coombs ( 2010) would suggest meant that the company failed in helping customers deal practically or psychologically with the crisis. Although this was not a strong start Toyotas efforts from February 1(Toyota, 2010e) were significantly better. They regularly updated their website with instructing information, including confirming what vehicles were affected, that a fix had been found and how the fix process would work (Toyota, 2010f, Toyota, 2010g, Toyota, 2010h, Toyota, 2010i, Toyota, 2010j, Toyota,2010k, Toyota, 2010l and Toyota, 2010m). This instructing information was also supported by a steady flow of adjusting information, including comments by President and CEO of Toyota Motor Europe, Tadashi Arashima, on February 1( Toyota, 2010e), which expressed regret that it( the crisis) was causing concern; and a statement by the world-wide President of Toyota, Akio Toyoda, on February 5( Toyota, 2010i), which indicated that the company deeply regretted the inconvenience and concern caused to our customers(by the crisis) and confirmed that he would lead a special quality task force to address the problems. This demonstrates a strong use of both instructing and adjusting strategies, but Toyotas crisis response efforts did not stop there. The companys January 28 release also shows the start of a third strategy (Toyota, 2010d). Toyota explains that the accelerator problem only occurs in rare instances which this author interprets as the beginning of what SCCT theorists would consider a diminishing strategy. This strategy continues in subsequent posts and is Toyotas bid to minimise the seriousness of the crisis. This strategy continued throughout the crisis, as evidenced by statements such as Toyota is not aware of any accidents resulting from this condition in Europe (Toyota, 2010e) and that the recall is merely a precautionary measure to guarantee the highest quality standards to all customers (Toyota, 2010e). These efforts are in line with the SCCT tenets for crises which attract minimal responsibility but have an intensifying factor. The use of such strategies significantly strengthene d Toyotas efforts and these are further bolstered by correct application of reinforcing strategies alongside these primary strategies, as suggested by SCCT (Coombs, 2006). These are demonstrated through the use of comments such as those made by MD of Toyota GB, Miguel Fonseca, on February 4 (Toyota, 2010g), which state that customer safety has been and will remain our top priority. These seek to add positive information about the organisation and remind people of its past good works. In summary then, it is reasonable to say that, despite a weak start, Toyotas crisis responses efforts did follow the tenets set out by SCCT (Coombs, 2010) and should therefore have worked to minimise the possible damage the recall had on the companys reputation, by positively influencing customer opinions. It is interesting at this point to return to the findings of the content analysis of customers reactions ( Purnell, 2010), which showed that minimal damage had been done to Toyotas relationship with important stakeholder group and where there was negative feelings towards to company, these reflected the areas of weakness subsequently found in Toyotas crisis response strategies. An example of this is that the lack of information and detail about the product recall and how the fix would be handled that occurred in the first few days of the crisis. The company then paid for this weakness, with many of the negative customer comments expressing confusion and worry about how the recall a ffected them and frustration about how the process was being handled. These findings are very useful because they strongly point to the fact that the weaknesses in instructing and adjusting information at the start of Toyotas response strategy did have an ultimate affect on customer perceptions. With this in mind, it is also reasonable to suggest that where Toyotas efforts correctly followed the tenets of SCCT (Coombs 2010), these may have had a positive effect on customer impressions of the organisation. But, although this analysis strongly suggests such a direct relationship, it far from proves one. It is therefore suggested that further research is needed to substantiate such claims and prove that Toyotas strategies actually influenced the resulting customer reactions and therefore definitely diminished the impact of the crisis episode had on the company. In conclusion, this essay would like to propose that, despite media warnings to the contrary ((Booth and Teather, 2010 and Hutton, 2010), the sticky accelerator recall of 2010 was not a disaster for Toyotas reputation with UK customers. Critical to understanding why this occurred is the recognition that despite threatening to violate customer expectations, the product recall did not actually do so. Insight into why this did not occur can be found by applying SCCT (Coombs, 2007a; Coombs and Holladay, 2002) to the episode. This predicted that Toyota customers would attribute minimal responsibility to Toyota because the episode was caused by a technical fault; something that goes a long was to explain why so few customers blamed Toyota for the episode. But, nevertheless, SCCT (Coombs, 2007a; Coombs and Holladay, 2002) points out that the recall still remained a substantial threat, because of Toyotas crisis history. This essay proposes that this threat was successfully minimised by Toyot as own crisis communication response. Despite weaknesses in the provision of instructing and adjusting information, the brand successfully followed the tenets of SCCT (Coombs, 2010) and used diminishing and reinforcing strategies to minimise the negative effect the recall had on customer perceptions. However, despite customer reactions appearing to mirror the strengths and weaknesses of Toyotas strategy, how they influenced them remains unconfirmed. It is therefore suggested that further research in undertaken to try to prove a direct causal relationship between Toyotas strategies and the resulting customer responses.

Group Dynamics Essay -- essays research papers

The characteristics of effective Groups Much can be learned about the art of building an effective group. We now understand many of the principles that create the proper environment in which groups can blossom and flourish. Yet we remain unable to "guarantee" that any given group will reach its goals or be anything more than modestly successful. However, even a group composed of "the very best people" has some probability of failure.( ) Groups can take on so much more risk than individuals and can attempt a level of greatness that is beyond the realistic hope of any individual. To unleash the full power of groups, members need to sort out for themselves where and how they can best make use of their group and what, for them, group work means. Below are characteristics of effective Groups. Clear Purpose The group members must agree on a clear purpose or goal and each team member is willing to work to achieve these goals. The team is aware of and interested in its own processes and examines norms operating within the team. The team identifies its own resources and uses them, depending on its needs. The team willingly accepts the influence and leadership of the members whose resources are relevant to the immediate task. Listening The team members continually listen to and clarify what is being said and show interest in others’ thoughts and feelings. Differences of opinion are encouraged and freely expressed. The team does not demand narrow conformity or ...

Jose Rizal: the Portal of Hope from the Past

Considered as the national hero of our country, Dr. Jose Rizal played a significant role in our history. He was known as one of the most prominent writers of his time. Among his famous works were the novels Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo. These notable stories gave way for his nationalistic thoughts which became the wick of the long revolts in the past. He believed on the power of pen in contrast to Bonifacio’s view. His death made us face a reality that undeniably tells us the deplorable image of our nation. But do you think he succeeded in opening the eyes of each Filipino? Of course, he did. His works, legendary writings and exemplary lifestyle formed who he was and became to be. Most people live similarly in that they progress through stages of life that ultimately make them who they are. Rizal inspired all the Filipinos to fight for their own freedom. But sadly, most of what he contributed was just left behind and taken for granted. Everyone searches for different pleasures in life, whether it is money, power, fame, knowledge, peace, understanding of self, or just the thrill of adventure whatever it takes. Somehow, we are already forgetting the roots of our valued land. For instance, the crimes are becoming widespread. Due to our fears, we neglect the importance of seeking for truth and justice. We let others decide for ourselves. We do not have anymore the will to struggle for righteousness. As long as we live, we opt to stay away from scenarios involving critical thinking and vital decision-making. So did Rizal’s existence made sense? Appreciation is where we all need to start. Now that we’re aware of how essential his works are, we must open our eyes and make changes. Let us show our deep love and concern for this hero of democracy. In fighting for what we think is right, we are opening the portals of hope from the past. We eagerly face the future with valor and optimism. And we indeed show this great person of yesterday that we still value what he valiantly fought for us.

Use the French Faire to Build Castles in the Air

Use the French Faire to Build Castles in the Air The French verb faire  means  literally  to do or to make and is used in many idiomatic expressions. Learn how to build castles in the air, turn a deaf ear, act like a child and more with these expressions using faire.2 et 2 font 4 (math)2 plus 2 equals 4faire infinitive (causative)1) to cause something to happen  Ã‚  Ã‚  Le froid fait geler leau.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Cold makes water freeze.2) to have something done  Ã‚  Ã‚  Je fais laver la voiture.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Im having the car washed. faire beau or mauvais  (weather expressions)il fait beau or  il   fait beau tempsto be nice weather;  Ã‚  its nice out; the weather is fine/niceil fait mauvais or il fait mauvais tempsto be bad weather; its bad out; the weather is bad/nasty faire 5 kilomà ¨tres, 3 heuresto go 5 km, be on the road for 3 hours faire acte de prà ©senceto put in an appearancefaire sa tà ªteto act impulsively, to have ones wayfaire attention to pay attention to, watch out forfaire bon accueilto welcomefaire cadeau des dà ©tailsto spare the detailsfaire de la peine quelquunto hurt someone (emotionally or morally)faire de la photographieto do photography as a hobbyfaire de lautostopto hitchhikefaire demi-tour (figurative)to make a U-turn; do an about-facefaire des bà ªtisesto get into mischief faire une bà ªtiseto do something stupid faire des chà ¢teaux en Espagneto build castles in the air faire des coursto give classes, lecturesfaire des à ©conomiesto save up; to save money; to economizefaire de son mieuxto do ones bestfaire des progrà ¨sto make progressfaire des projetsto make plansfaire du bricolageto do odd jobs; to  putter aroundfaire du lard (familiar)to sit around doing nothingfaire du sportto play sportsfaire du thà ©Ãƒ ¢treto be an actor; to do some actingfaire du violon, pianoto study violin, pianofaire dune pierre deux coupsto kill two birds with one stonefaire face to oppose; to face up tofaire fito scornfaire jour, nuitto be daytime; to be nighttimefaire la bà ªteto act like a foolfaire la bise, le bisouto kiss hellofaire la connaissance deto meet (for the first time)faire la cuisineto cookfaire la grasse matinà ©eto sleep in; to sleep latefaire la lessive; faire le lingeto do the laundryfaire la moue; faire la tà ªteto pout; to sulkfaire la queueto stand in line; to line upfaire la sourde oreilleto turn a deaf earfaire la tà ªteto sulkfaire la va isselleto do the dishesfaire là ©cole buissonnià ¨re  Ã‚  to be truant; to play hooky  from schoolfaire le jardinto do the gardeningfaire le litto make the bedfaire le marchà ©,  faire les achats  to do the shoppingfaire le mà ©nageto do houseworkfaire lenfantto act like a childfaire le pontto make it a long weekendfaire les bagages, faire les valisesto packfaire les carreauxto do the windowsfaire les coursesto run errands / to go shoppingfaire les quatre cents coupsto sow ones wild oats, get in trouble, lead a wild life   The list of French expressions with the irregular verb faire  continues.  faire le tour deto go / walk aroundfaire lEuropeto travel to / visit Europefaire lidiotto act the foolfaire le singeto act the foolfaire mal quelquunto hurt someonefaire part de quelque chose   quelquunto inform someone aboutfaire partie deto be a part offaire peau neuveto turn over a new leaffaire peur quelquunto frighten someonefaire plaisir quelquunto please someonefaire preuve deto display a quality / virtuefaire sa toiletteto get up and get dressed, to wash upfaire savoir quelque chose   quelquunto inform someone of somethingfaire semblant de faire quelque choseto pretend to do somethingfaire ses adieuxto say good-byefaire ses amitià ©s quelquunto give ones regards to someonefaire ses devoirsto do homeworkfaire ses à ©tudes to study atfaire son bacto study for the baccalaureatefaire son droitto study for a law degreefaire son litto make ones bedfaire son possibleto do ones bestfaire suivre (s es lettres)to forward (ones mail)faire toute une histoire de quelque choseto make a federal case of somethingfaire un beau coupleto make a nice couplefaire un cadeau quelquunto give someone a giftfaire un clin doeil to wink atfaire un coursto give class(es) / to lecturefaire un temps de Toussaintto have grey and gloomy weatherfaire une bà ªtiseto make a blunder; do something  stupidfaire une croix dessusto give up on / kiss something  goodbyefaire un demi-tourto do a U-turn, an about-turnfaire une drà ´le de tà ªteto make a strange / funny facefaire un fromage (de)to make a big stink / fuss (about)faire une fugueto run away from homefaire une gaffeto blunder, make a mistakefaire une malleto pack a trunkfaire une partie deto play a game offaire une promenadeto take a walkfaire une promenade en voiture  to take a ridefaire une questionto ask a questionfaire une rà ©clamationto make a complaintfaire une visiteto pay a visitfaire un tourto take a walkfaire un tour en voituret o take a ridefaire un voyageto take a tripfaire venir leau la boucheto make ones mouth water(click the numbers below to read the other pages of this lesson and learn more expressions with faire)Faire conjugations | All about faire Article Edited by  Camille Chevalier Karfis The French verb faire literally means to do or to make and is also used in many idiomatic expressions. Learn how to build castles in the air, turn a deaf ear, act like a child, and more with this list of expressions with faire.Laccident a fait 5 victimes.Five people were killed in the accident.Aussità ´t dit, aussità ´t fait.No sooner said than done.Cela / Ça fait un an que...Its been a year since...Ça fait mon affaireThat suits me just fine, thats just what I needÇa lui fera du bien.That will do him / her some good.Ça me fait froid dans le dosThat gives me the shiversÇa ne fait rienThats OK, it doesnt matter.Ce film a fait un tabacThat movie was a hitCest bien fait pour toi  !It serves you right!Cest plus facile dire qu faire.Easier said than done.Cette pià ¨ce fait salle comble.This play draws a full house.Les chiens ne font pas des chatsThe apple doesnt fall far from the treeComment se fait-il ...?How come ...?Fais gaffe !Be careful! Watch out!Fais voirSh ow me, Let me seeFaites comme chez vous. Make yourself at home.Il fait encore des siennes.Hes up to his old tricks again.Il fait toujours bande part.He always keeps to himself.Il le fait contre-coeurHes doing it unwillingly(Il ny a) rien faire.Its hopeless, no use insistingIl te fait marcherHes pulling your leg.la goutte qui fait dà ©border le vasethe straw that broke the camels backUne hirondelle ne fait pas le printemps (proverb)One swallow doesnt make a summerOn a fait une nuit blanche.We pulled an all-nighter.Que faire  ?What is to be done? What can we do?Que faites-vous dans la vie  ?What do you do for a living?Quel mà ©tier faites-vous  ?What do you do for a living?Quel temps fait-il  ?Hows the weather?Quest-ce que cela peut bien te faire  ?What could that possibly matter to you?Quest-ce que jai fait avec mes gants  ?  Ã‚  What have I done with my gloves?Si cela ne vous fait rienIf you dont mind.Tu as fait un beau gà ¢chis  !Youve made a fine mess of it!Tu as fait courir ce bruit.You spread this rumor.(click the numbers below to read the other pages of this lesson and learn more expressions with faire)Faire conjugations | All about faire Article Edited by  Camille Chevalier Karfis The French verb se faire literally means to become and is also used in many idiomatic expressions. Learn how to earn money, make friends, worry, and more with this list of expressions with se faire.se faire attributeto becomese faire infinitiveto have something done to / for oneselfse faire nounto make something for oneselfse faire 10 000 eurosto earn 10,000 eurosse faire quelque chose oseto get used to somethingse faire des amisto make friendsse faire des idà ©es, des illusionsto be fooling oneselfse faire du mauvais sangto worryse faire du souci / des soucisto worryse faire fort de infinitiveto be confident, claim that one can do somethingse faire malto hurt oneselfse faire passer pourto pass oneself off asse faire tout(e) petit(e)to try not to be noticed, make inconspicuousse faire une idà ©eto get some idease faire une montagne de quelque chose to exaggerate the importance of somethingse faire une raisonto resign oneself to somethingsen faireto worryCela / Ça ne se fai t pasThat isnt done, one doesnt do thatCela / Ça ne se fera pasThat wont happenComment se fait-il que subjunctiveHow is it that... / How does it happen that...Il sest fait tout seulHes a self-made manJe men fais. (familiar)Im worried.Je ne te le fais pas dire  !Im not putting words in your mouth!ne pas se le faire dire deux foisnot to have to be told twiceFaire conjugations | All about faire | Pronominal verbs Article Edited by  Camille Chevalier Karfis