The Increase of Illicit Stimulant Use on College Campuses

The Increase of Illicit Stimulant Use on College Campuses Stephanie Lobe Upper Iowa University December 5, 2011 ABSTRACT Numerous studies are finding that college students in the United States are relying on stimulant medications prescribed for ADHD without a prescription and for nonmedical reasons, most commonly because students believe these medications can enhance their cognitive performance. Research finds that students report these stimulants have become a part of the college culture and are easier to obtain than alcohol.This paper will discuss the prevalence of use on college campuses in the United States and both the academic and nonacademic motivations these students use prescription stimulants illicitly. In the United States, the domestic sales for prescription stimulant ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) medications such as Ritalin, Adderall, and Dexedrine are increasing at significant rates. Between 1991 and 1999, sales of these prescription stimulants increas ed over 500 percent. As the rate of legal use increases, so does the rate of illegal or nonmedical use, especially on our college campuses.Data shows that these drugs have high abuse potentials and produce effects very similar to cocaine. Because of the potential for physical and psychological dependency and risk of abuse, the US Drug Enforcement Administration classifies these stimulants as Schedule II substances (Woodworth, 2000). Unfortunately, most students consider these drugs safe and do not realize the potential side effects and risk for abuse. There is a perception that nonmedical use of these drugs is morally acceptable if used for academic rather than recreational purposes (DeSantis, 2008).In, 2002, there had not yet been a lot of research conducted on illicit stimulant use on campus. At this time, Graf Low and A. E. Gendaszak surveyed undergraduates at a small college in the United States to gather information on the legal and illegal use of stimulants on the college camp us. The authors also wanted to explore how perfectionism and sensation seeking behavior contributed to abuse of both legal and illegal stimulants. Low and Gendaszak hypothesized that students influenced by perfectionism would be likely to abuse prescription stimulants (i. e.Ritalin, Adderall) and sensation seeking students would be more likely to abuse both prescription stimulants and illegal stimulants (i. e. methamphetamines, cocaine). Of 160 questionnaires distributed to students in an undergraduate psychology course, 150 questionnaires were returned. The questionnaires assessed selected demographic variables and the abuse of prescription and illegal stimulants during the previous 12 months. It is important to note that for this study, illicit stimulant use is defined as taking prescription stimulants (Adderall, Ritalin, etc) without a prescription.Illegal stimulant use is defined as taking the illegal â€Å"street† stimulants cocaine or MDMA (ecstasy). Participants were a lso questioned about their reasons for using stimulants. Two measures that have demonstrated reliability and validity with college students were administered to assess possible correlates of use: the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale and the Sensation Seeking Scale. Ten percent of the students participating were prescribed stimulants by a medical professional and researchers automatically categorized them as non-abusers.In this journal article, the authors do not report the total number or percent of participants that were considered illicit users. They do report that analysis of the illicit users showed that 10% abused stimulants monthly and 8% weekly. There were a significantly higher number of men than women reporting illicit use, but no difference in their motivations for use. The common motivations for use were: to improve intellectual performance, to be more efficient and to use in combination with alcohol. Of the total of students participating, 34% reported taking cocaine , MDMA or both within the last 12 months.It was found that illegal stimulant use was highly correlated with illicit use of prescription stimulants. Researchers also found there was a correlation between having a prescription for stimulants and using illegal stimulants. Eighty-eight percent of the illegal users reported using MDMA vs. cocaine with men reporting greater use than women. Almost always, the motivation for illegal stimulant use was for recreational purposes. Sensation seeking and perfectionism were dichotomized based on a median split to produce categorical variables for analysis of variance.A two by two analysis of variance was carried out (high or low perfectionism by high or low sensation seeking) with the illicit use of prescription drugs as the dependent variable and gender as a covariate. The main effect for sensation seeking was significant, but perfectionism was not associated with self-reported use. However, the two-way interaction between sensation seeking and p erfectionism was significant. High sensation seeking perfectionists had the greatest self-reported abuse of prescription stimulants (Low, 2002).In the research study, Illicit Use of Prescription ADHD Medications on a College Campus: a Multimethodical Approach, both quantitative surveys and qualitative interviews were conducted to collect data on college students’ perceptions of illicit prescription stimulant use and the prevalence of use. With the combined methods, 1,811 undergraduate students from a large, public, southeastern research university participated. Seventy-eight of these students had a prescription to treat ADHD and were removed from the study, leaving a total of 1,733 participants.This study found that of those participants, 34 % of used prescription stimulants illegally and for nonmedical reasons. The results suggested that illicit use of the stimulants was more common in Caucasians, men, upperclassmen, and students belonging to Greek organizations. Interviews with students allowed researchers to gather detailed information about their perceptions of stimulant prescription drugs, the circumstances of the first time they used a stimulant and what their motives were.During the interviews, it was discovered how prevalent illicit use of these medications are as well as how casually this use was discussed on campus with many students stating, â€Å"it’s no big deal†. Of the illegal users in the study, 63% used stimulants for the first time in college and for most the first time of use was at a time of high academic stress. For more than two-thirds of these users, this occurred during finals or when they had multiple tests in one day. First time users had little knowledge about the side effects of stimulant medication, the appropriate doses, or the legal consequences of using these drugs illicitly.Of illegal users, 72% reported using the drugs to stay awake and study longer or to concentrate on work. Many students claimed they cou ld be more productive and reported being able to study for up to 3-5 hours straight without getting distracted or taking a break. Others reported the stimulants made them â€Å"smarter† because they were able to memorize & retain information, grasp ideas and recall information better. One participant’s description of the drug Adderall was, â€Å"the stuff is like an academic anabolic steroid†. There were a few students that reported use of the stimulants for nonacademic purposes.Some these reasons included that the drugs gave them the ability to stay up all night for parties, be more talkative and social at parties and feel the effects of alcohol quicker. Students also reported that when crushed and snorted, the drugs produced a high similar to cocaine (DeSantis, 2008). In the study, Illicit Use of Prescription Stimulant Medication Among College Students, authors also investigate how prevalent illicit use is at a Midwestern campus as well as why students are abu sing these drugs. Three different methods were used to recruit students for the study.A list of randomly selected students residing in residence halls, 500 female and 500 male, was obtained from the university’s registrar office. A cover letter and questionnaire were sent to these students and then a second questionnaire was mailed to those who had not responded within two weeks. The researchers also held three sessions that were open to introductory psychology students who would receive credit for completing the questionnaire. The last effort to recruit students included researchers going door to door on men’s wings in residence halls.The combined total of responses was 552. The survey completed consisted of 85 items with the first section including questions about demographics and personal information. The questions on the remainder of the survey used a Likert-type scale (1=strongly disagree, 2=disagree, 3=neutral, 4=agree, 5=strongly agree). Questions were separated into two sections for statistical analysis. The second section obtained specific information from individuals who reported they had illicitly taken stimulant medication.Results from the survey found that 17% of the men surveyed and 11% of the women surveyed had used prescription stimulants for non-medical reasons. Forty-four percent of the students surveyed reported that they knew someone who had used prescribed stimulant medication illicitly for academic or recreational reasons. Authors found that the main reason for use was to increase alertness and energy and use was associated with experiencing time and academic pressures of college life (Hall, 2005). The purpose of a study published in the Journal of Human Pharmacology andDrug Therapy was to explore illicit use of specific prescription stimulants among college students and the reasons and routes of administration associated with illicit use of these drugs. The study was conducted at a large Midwestern university in 2005. A ran dom sample of 5,389 full-time, undergraduate students were selected from the total population of 20, 138 full-time students. In order to produce reliable prevalence estimates for minority racial and ethnic groups, researchers oversampled 652 Hispanic, 634 African American and 244 Asian students.Students in the sample were mailed a letter describing the study and inviting students to self-administer a confidential web survey. Participants were eligible for a sweepstakes that included cash prizes, travel vouchers and other prizes. The final response rate exceeded the average rate for national college based studies of alcohol and other drugs with a 66% response rate. The final sample closely resembled the demographics of the overall student population and consisted of 4,580 undergraduate students.The results from the survey indicated that 8. 3% of the participants had used illicit prescription stimulants in their lifetime and 5. 9% had used them in the past year. Three out of four of t he illicit users reported taking Adderall and one out of four illicit users reported taking Ritalin. Unlike other studies of this nature, the authors report there were no differences in past year illicit prescription stimulant use between men and women. They did find statistically significant ethnic-racial differences in past year use with 8. % of Hispanics having used illicit prescription stimulants, 7% of Caucasians, 3. 4% of Asians, 1. 9% of African Americans and 3. 6% of those categorized as other. Sixty-five percent of the lifetime users began using illicit prescription stimulants during college rather than before starting college. Logistic regression showed students who began using prescription stimulants illicitly before entering college were three times as likely to use these drugs during college compared to those who had not used them before entering college.When looking at the motivations of students using illicit prescription stimulants, researchers found significant diff erences between gender and ethnic-racial groups. Men were more likely than women to report using these drugs to experiment, get high, and counteract the effects of other drugs. Women were more likely than men to report using prescription stimulants to lose weight, to help study, and to increase alertness. There was not a difference between sexes regarding the most frequently cited motive which was to help with concentration.There were no African Americans that reported using illicit prescription stimulants to get high, but over 20% of Caucasians, Hispanics, Asians, and others reported this as a motive. The results for experimenting as a motive were similar. Most African American students who reported using prescription stimulants illicitly listed the motives to help concentrate or to help study. Students who reported using prescription stimulants illicitly before entering college were more likely to use these drugs during the past year to get high, lose weight or experiment.Students who did not start using prescription stimulants until enrolled in college were more likely to report the motive to help study. The results of this study also revealed findings about the routes in which students administered illicit prescription stimulants. Ninety-five percent of illicit users reported oral administration. Thirty-eight percent reported snorting the prescription stimulants and a very small percentage reported smoking, inhaling or injecting these drugs. Neither gender nor race-ethnicity were associated with routes of administration.However, students who began using illicit prescription stimulants before college were more likely to report snorting the drugs than those who started using during college. The authors report their study is the first to empirically document the claim that use of Adderall is the primary prescription stimulant used illicitly by college students. Hypothesizes to why the use of Adderall may be growing relative to other stimulants such as Ritlan, generally fall into three categories: availability, pharmacokinetic differences between stimulant drugs, and pharmacologic differences.In another study cited by the authors, college students reported Adderall was used more frequently because it was easily accessible, caused fewer emotional ups and downs, and was believed to work better overall. The authors explain that there are differences in the mechanism of action of Adderall that may result in this drug being more appealing to college students. The effects of the drug will last longer and may generate higher dopamine levels in the brain than occur when taking Ritalin (Teter, 2006).A study done by Rachel Judson & Susan W Langdon investigated illicit use of stimulant medications on college campuses considering the theory of planned behavior. This theory states that attitudes, beliefs about social norms, and perceived control work together to create intentions which predict health related behavior. The study included a total of 33 3 participants from two small competitive New England college campuses. Two survey forms were distributed – one for current stimulant prescription holders and one for non-prescription holders. The surveys were self-administered online.The study found that 20% of all participants reported illicit use of stimulants. Of the prescription holders, 46% reported illicit use (using for reasons other than prescribed or at increased doses) and of the non-prescription holders, 18. 3% reported illicit use. The two most predominant motives were to improve concentration and to increase alertness or stay awake. This indicates that academic reasons were more prevalent than recreational reasons for taking the medication. For non-prescription holders, the results were consistent with the theory of planned behavior.Attitudes, perceived norms and a sense of low control held by illicit users may act as rationalizations for their illicit use of stimulant medication (Judson, 2009). Many studies hav e been done investigating how perceived harmfulness influences nonmedical drug use and there have also been separate studies done investigating the association between nonmedical drug use and high sensation-seeking characteristics. This study takes both variables into consideration and explores whether the association between perceived harmfulness and nonmedical drug use vary by level of sensation-seeking.Participants included 1, 253 first year college students from a large, publicly-funded university in the mid-Atlantic region with an ethnically diverse student body. Personal interviews were conducted with participants and then participants were followed up with twice at six month intervals. Researchers examined the association between the two variables of perceived harmfulness and level of sensation-seeking characteristics because they believed it was important to consider the possibility that sensation-seeking characteristics can influence risk perception.Results from this study indicated that one in four students perceived a great risk of harm from occasional nonmedical use of prescription stimulants and analgesics. Low perceived harmfulness and high sensation-seeking were independently associated with increased risk of nonmedical use. At most levels of sensation-seeking, high perceived harmfulness did affect nonmedical prescription drug use; however, among high sensation-seekers, perceived harmfulness was not related to nonmedical use of prescription analgesics.This study found that individuals with low perceived harmfulness were approximately 10 times more likely to use prescription drugs for both stimulants and analgesics, as compared to those individuals with high perceived harmfulness. Another important finding was that individuals with low or moderate sensation-seeking tendencies were especially susceptible to the influence of perceived harmfulness (Arria, 2008). An article published online, New Findings on the Misuse of ADHD Medications by College S tudents, reviews one of the largest studies conducted regarding nonmedical use of stimulants on college campuses.In 2001, nearly 11,000 students attending 119 nationally representative, 4-year colleges in the United States were surveyed about their nonmedical use of prescription stimulants. The involvement of such a high number of universities across the country overcomes one of the major limitations of other studies done on this topic. Because most studies collect data from only one college, the results cannot be accurately generalized to college populations outside of that type of institution or region. This study found that the average rate for nonmedical use of stimulants during the participant’s lifetime was 6. %; during the last year was 4. 1% and during the last month was 2. 1%. The rate of use of stimulants varied dramatically across the campuses surveyed with rates ranging from 0% to as high as 25%. Findings from this study indicate that the highest rates of nonmedic al use of prescription stimulants are highest at colleges with competitive admission standards. More than 80% of schools with a past year prevalence rate higher than 10% had highly competitive admission standards and were located in the Northeast or Southern United States.Results of the motives for illicit stimulant use were comparable to other studies with the three top motivations being to help with concentration, to help with alertness and to get high (Ashley Children's Psychology Center, n. d. ). Most research studies regarding the illicit use of prescription stimulants on college campuses use a randomly selected sample size of over 1,000 participants. In the study, Illicit Use of Prescription ADHD Medications on a College Campus: A Multimethodological Approach, students participating in part I of the research, a quantitative survey, are recruited through a large introductory communications course.This course is a social science requirement and was selected to represent students from different majors across the campus. To ensure the upperclassmen were also represented in the study, additional surveys were distributed in an upper division communications course as well as the general student body. The second part of the study included qualitative interviews with 175 full-time, undergraduate students. The authors fail to report how these students were recruited.It is not know if these students were randomly selected from the general student population or if they were selected from the group of students who completed the survey. This research was done at a large, southeastern research university in the United States (DeSantis, 2008). Studies relating to the illicit use of stimulants on college campuses have found a significant variance in the prevalence of usage depending on factors such as admission standards and location of the university (Ashley Children's Psychology Center. (n. . ). Due to this, the study done at this southeastern research university canno t be generalized to the college population as a whole. This study used both quantitative and qualitative studies. Data was collected from surveys administered in the classroom as well as from scripted, in-depth interviews with students. The authors designed and pretested the 25-item survey for this study by conducting a pilot study of 94 students. After receiving feedback from the students, question wording and survey structure were revised.The interviews were conducted by students who had all completed an upper-division research methods course and were certified by the university’s institutional review board. Interviewers were assigned specific demographic groups to facilitate the comfort and trust levels of interviewees. Interviews with students allowed researchers to gather detailed information about their perceptions of stimulant prescription drugs, the circumstances of the first time they used a stimulant and what their motives were. Interviews revealed that many student s viewed illicit prescription stimulant use as part of the culture of ampus life (DeSantis, 2008). This study showed that 34% of the students who participated in the study had used prescription stimulant medications for nonmedical purposes. This rate is significantly higher than most published studies about stimulant use on college campuses; however, studies have found that rates vary greatly depending on demographic factors (Teter, 2006). The authors offer three explanations as to the reason their study reported a significantly higher prevalence rate of use on campuses: 1.ADHD stimulant use may be rising nationwide and as time passes, this phenomenon continues to grow; 2. Rates of use may vary on different college campuses and this campus may have a higher prevalence of use; and 3. The relatively high proportion of Greek students in the student body may have contributed to the higher prevalence rate. In relation to explanation 2, it was also noted that this study took place in a st ate that has been ranked as one of the top three states in the nation for ADHD diagnosis.To estimate the proportion of individuals who used illicit stimulants by demographic category, the number of users in each category was divided by the total number surveyed in each category. Using results displayed by demographic category use and non-stimulant use, data was cross tabulated by the same demographics factors and a chi-square analysis was conducted to examine statistically significant differences. The resulting data suggested that illicit prescription stimulant use was more common in men, white students, upperclassmen, and members of Greek organizations. Most other studies have published similar results (DeSantis, 2008).The study, Illicit Use of Specific Prescription Stimulants Among College Students: Prevalence, Motives and Routes of Administration found that there is a significantly higher prevalence of use in Caucasian and Hispanic students. These two ethnic groups reported rates of use at 8. 5% and 7%, respectively. Use for African Americans students was only 1. 9%. Another notable difference related to ethnicity was that while over 20% of Hispanic and Caucasian students reported one of the motives of using prescription stimulants was to get high; 0% of African American students reported that motivation (Teter, 2006).Quantitative data showed students’ primary motive for taking ADHD medication was to earn better grades in school. With the augmentation o the qualitative data, researchers discovered a myriad of more subtle motives defining when and why these students took stimulants. Researchers found that most students used prescription stimulants during finals week or periods of high academic stress. They also discovered some what some of the non-academic motives were such as staying up all night for parties, getting drunk quicker, and to be more social (DeSantis, 2008).Other studies have revealed similar findings with other non-academic motives bein g to help with losing weight, to get high, to experiment and to counteract the effects of other drugs (Teter, 2006). As discussed, the possible biases of this study were the fact that there was a high number of students in Greek organizations in the student body and that the study focuses on one campus noting the prevalence of use can vary greatly depending on the region the university is located in as well as other factors such as the competiveness of the school.The authors did not attempt to control these biases in their study, but in future studies an oversampling of students not involved in Greek organizations as well as a sample from several schools across the country could help control these biases (DeSantis, 2008). Each of these studies identifies the prevalent, increasing illicit use of stimulant medications for nonmedical uses, primarily motivated by academic reasons. It is apparent that most students do not know the dangers or risks of taking these medications and prescrip tion stimulants are more socially acceptable than other drugs.Many students appear rationalize their use because it is for academic reasons rather than recreational reasons. This is a terrifying trend that can result in many unwanted outcomes, the worst being death. References: Arria, A. M. , Calderia, K. M. , Vincent, K. B. , O'Grady, K. E. , & Wish, E. D. (2008, July 17). Perceived harmfulness predicts nonmedical use of prescription drugs among college students: Interactions with sensation-seeking. In National Institutes of Health. Retrieved November 10, 2011, from http://www. ncbi. nlm. nih. gov/pmc/articles/PMC2574828/ Ashley Children's Psychology Center. (n. d. . New Findings on the Misuse of ADHD Medications by College Students. In Ashley Psychology. Retrieved December 2, 2011, from http://ashleypsychology. com/Articles/010608. html [pic] DeSantis, A. D. , Webb, E. M. , & Noar, S. M. (2008, November). Illicit Use of Prescription ADHD Medications on a College Campus: A Multimet hodological Approach. Journal of American College Health, 51(3), 315-325. Retrieved November 12, 2011, from EBSCOhost. Hall, K. M. , Irwin, M. M. , Bowman, K. A. , Frankenberger, W. , & Jewett, D. C. (2005, January). Illicit Use of Prescription Stimulant Medication Among College Students.Journal of American College Health, 53(4), 167-174. Retrieved November 30, 2011, from EBSCOhost. Judson, R. , & Langdon, S. W. (2009, January). Illicit Use of Prescription Stimulants Among College Students: Prescription Status, Motives, Theory of Planned Behaviour, Knowledge and Self Diagnostic Tendencies. Psychology, Health & Medicine, 14(1), 97-104. doi:10. 1080/13548500802126723. Low, G. K. , & Gendaszek, A. E. (2002, August 1). Illicit Use of Psychostimulants Among College Students: A Preliminary Study. Psychology of Health and Medicine, 7(3), 283-287. doi:10. 1080/13548500220139386Teter, C. J. , McCabe, S. , LaGrange, K. , Cranford, J. A. , & Boyd, C. J. (2006, October 26). Illicit Use of Speci fic Prescription Stimulants Among College Students: Prevalence, Motives and Routes of Administration. The Journal of Human Pharmacology and Drug Therapy, 26(10), 1501-1510. doi:10. 1592/phco. 26. 10. 1501 Woodworth, T. (2000, May 16). DEA Congressional Testimony. Presented to the Committee on Education and the Workforce: Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Youth and Families. Retrieved November 13, 2011 from http://www. dea. gov/pubs/cngrtest/ct051600. htm.

buy custom False Confessions essay

buy custom False Confessions essay A false confession refers to an admission of guilty in a criminal offence in which the confessor is not the real culprit (Siegel, 2010). False confession can occur because of a number of instances such as coercion through police investigative tactics or techniques, incompetence of the accused, and disease or mental disorder. False confessions might seem to be an unlikely event and exceptional, but they regularly occur in case law, which is among the reasons for why jurisprudence has laid down a series of rules to determine the presence of false confessions, and subsequently reject them (Siegel, 2010). This discussion will consider the reasons for choosing false confession, the responsibility of an investigator upon discovering a false confession in case he or she is investigating, consequences for ignoring the knowledge of a false confession, the relationship between false confession and Miranda warnings, and whether the Criminal Justice System should compensate the wrongly imprisone d individuals because of false confession. A number of individuals with mental disorders encounter the police as suspects and falsely confess to criminal offenses that they did not commit (Siegel, 2010). Research has shown that the probability of arrest for persons with symptoms of mental illness is about 67 times greater than that of the mentally normal individuals (Siegel, 2010). People with mental disorders often falsely confess to criminl offenses they did not commit because of a temptation to reconcile and agree with authority figures. Most of the law enforcement interrogators do not receive any training concerning questioning suspects suffering from mental illnesses (Siegel, 2010). Therefore, an impaired state because of mental illness, alcohol, or drugs may also evoke false admissions of guilt. Another cause of false confession is police coercion. This is an involuntary confession that occurs when a suspect overbears police behavior instead of a free will and rational intellect. The police employ physical abuse or psychological abuse to intimidate, bully, confuse, exhaust, and cajole the suspect so that he or she can confess to a criminal offense that they did not commit (Siegel, 2010). A suspect can confess to a crime that he or she did not commit in order to placate interrogators and avoid bullying. An example of cases that involved coercion includes Brown v. Mississippi (Brooks, 2001). In this case, the defendants confessed to murdering Raymond Stuart because the police officers subjected them to brutal whippings as well as tree-hangings. When an investigator discovers that a suspect has confessed falsely to a crime, he or she is responsible to process for the exoneration of the suspect (Siegel, 2010). An investigator can discover false confession through DNA testing. It is extremely significant for investigators to consider the knowledge of ffalse confessions. Ignoring the knowledge of false confessions brings about grievous consequences such as wrong convictions, which may lead to life imprisonment and death penalties (Siegel, 2010). Miranda warning refers to a police warning given to a criminal suspect who is under interrogation or in the custody of law enforcement within the United States before the suspect can ask questions, concerning what occurred during the crime (Goldstein Goldstein, 2010). False confession has a close relationship with Miranda warning because both of them may involve psychological and physical intimidation of the suspect. A suspect may falsely confess to an offence so that to avoid psychological and physical intimidation. The police may use psychological or physical intimidation to get a suspect to make a statement after receiving a proper Miranda warning. Information that the suspect willingly offers to the police after receiving a Miranda warning is admissible in court (Goldstein Goldstein, 2010). The Criminal Justice System should not compensate the wrongly imprisoned individuals because of false confession. This is because some individuals may falsely confess to crimes that they did not commit in order to get compensation after exoneration. Therefore, compensation of wrongly imprisoned individuals due to false confession may encourage people to confess to criminal offenses that they did not perpetrate. Buy custom False Confessions essay

Battle of Peachtree Creek - Civil War - Atlanta Campaign

Battle of Peachtree Creek - Civil War - Atlanta Campaign Battle of Peachtree Creek - Conflict Date: The Battle of Peachtree Creek was fought July 20, 1864, during the American Civil War (1861-1865). Armies Commanders Union Major General William T. ShermanMajor General George H. Thomas21,655 men Confederate General John Bell Hood20,250 men Battle of Peachtree Creek - Background: Late July 1864 found Major General William T. Shermans forces approaching Atlanta in pursuit of General Joseph E. Johnstons Army of Tennessee. Assessing the situation, Sherman planned to push Major General George H. Thomas Army of the Cumberland across the Chattahoochee River with the goal of pinning Johnston in place. This would allow Major General James B. McPhersons Army of the Tennessee and Major General John Schofields Army of the Ohio to shift east to Decatur where they could sever the Georgia Railroad. Once done, this combined force would advance on Atlanta. Having retreated through much of northern Georgia, Johnston had earned the ire of Confederate President Jefferson Davis. Concerned about his generals willingness to fight, he dispatched his military advisor, General Braxton Bragg, to Georgia to assess the situation. Arriving on July 13, Bragg began sending a series of discouraging reports north to Richmond. Three days later, Davis requested that Johnston send him details regarding his plans for defending Atlanta. Unhappy with the generals noncommittal reply, Davis resolved to relieve him and replace him with the offensively-minded Lieutenant General John Bell Hood. As orders for Johnstons relief were sent south, Shermans men began crossing the Chattahoochee. Anticipating that Union troops would attempt to cross Peachtree Creek north of the city, Johnston made plans for a counterattack. Learning of the command change on the night of July 17, Hood and Johnston telegraphed Davis and requested that it be delayed until after the coming battle. This was refused and Hood assumed command. Battle of Peachtree Creek - Hoods Plan: On July 19, Hood learned from his cavalry that McPherson and Schofield were advancing on Decatur while Thomas men marched south and were starting to cross Peachtree Creek. Recognizing that a wide gap existed between the two wings of Shermans army, he resolved to attack Thomas with the goal of driving the Army of the Cumberland back against Peachtree Creek and the Chattahoochee. Once it was destroyed, Hood would shift east to defeat McPherson and Schofield. Meeting with his generals that night, he directed the corps of Lieutenant Generals Alexander P. Stewart and William J. Hardee to deploy opposite Thomas while Major General Benjamin Cheathams corps and Major General Joseph Wheelers cavalry covered the approaches from Decatur. Battle of Peachtree Creek - A Change of Plans: Though a sound plan, Hoods intelligence proved faulty as McPherson and Schofield were in Decatur as opposed to advancing against it. As a result, late in the morning of July 20 Wheeler came under pressure from McPhersons men as the Union troops moved down the Atlanta-Decatur Road. Receiving a request for aid, Cheatham shifted his corps to the right to block McPherson and support Wheeler. This movement also required Stewart and Hardee to move to the right which delayed their attack by several hours. Ironically, this sidestep right worked to the Confederate advantage as it moved most of Hardees men beyond Thomas left flank and positioned Stewart to attack Major General Joseph Hookers mostly unentrenched XX Corps. Battle of Peachtree Creek - Opportunity Missed: Advancing around 4:00 PM, Hardees men quickly ran into trouble. While Major General William Bates division on the Confederate right became lost in the Peachtree Creek bottomlands, Major General W.H.T. Walkers men assaulted Union troops led by Brigadier General John Newton. In a series of piecemeal attacks, Walkers men were repeatedly repulsed by Newtons division. On Hardees left, Cheathams Division, led by Brigadier General George Maney, made little headway against Newtons right. Further west, Stewarts corps slammed into Hookers men who were caught without entrenchments and not fully deployed. Though pressing the attack, the divisions of Major Generals William Loring and Edward Walthall lacked the strength to break through XX Corps. Though Hookers corps began strengthening their position, Stewart was unwilling to surrender the initiative. Contacting Hardee, he requested that new efforts be made on the Confederate right. Responding, Hardee directed Major General Patrick Cleburne to advance against the Union line. While Cleburnes men were pressing forward to prepare their attack, Hardee received word from Hood that Wheelers situation to the east had become desperate. As a result, Cleburnes assault was cancelled and his division marched to Wheelers aid. With this action, the fighting along Peachtree Creek came to an end. Battle of Peachtree Creek - Aftermath: In the fighting at Peachtree Creek, Hood suffered 2,500 killed and wounded while Thomas incurred around 1,900. Operating with McPherson and Schofield, Sherman did not learn of the battle until midnight. In the wake of the fighting, Hood and Stewart expressed disappointment with Hardees performance feeling that had his corps fought as hard Loring and Walthall the day would have been won. Though more aggressive than his predecessor, Hood had nothing to show for his losses. Quickly recovering, he began planning to strike at Shermans other flank. Shifting troops east, Hood attacked Sherman two days later at the Battle of Atlanta. Though another Confederate defeat, it resulted in the death of McPherson. Selected Sources Historynet: Battle of Peachtree CreekNorth Georgia: Battle of Peachtree CreekCWSAC Battle Summaries: Battle of Peachtree Creek

Scholarly Research Writing Assignment on Nursing Paper

Scholarly Writing Assignment on Nursing - Research Paper Example Health and Illness Health, illness, psychosocial aspects of health and their interrelations are an area that receives much debate among medical practitioners, psychologists and other stakeholders besides being accompanied by confusion among the public. Questions abound about the difference between health and illness and whether the absence of one translates to presence of the other, whether they are absolute or relative terms and particularly whether health means absence of all diseases in an individual’s body. The role of personal attitudes in disease causation and development in relation to the known psychosocial aspects of health and illness also elicits discussion. This calls for studies into the existing evidence on the entire concept of health, illness and the psychological influences on the two. 1. Health and Illness Before the two concepts can be compared and contrasted, it is important to understand why there is a need to define each of them. Data on morbidity is an i mportant aspect in healthcare systems around the world, and the views of individuals or societies on what health is and what it means to be ill is crucial to epidemiology. Different sections of the society seem to have different perspectives on the two concepts; lay people have their own views not necessarily based on biomedical tenets while even expert opinion appears unresolved. Moreover, illness and health perspectives or traditions impact the decisions of individuals to seek medical care or other alternatives. The patients’ views on health also may have an interesting comparison to what a medical practitioner diagnoses (Unden and Elofsson, 2001). Health is usually defined as a state, meaning that it is absolute rather than relative. In the state of health, one is completely well in terms of physical, social and psychological aspects. This description of health means that absence of diagnosable disease is not the only qualifier to determine whether a person is healthy or n ot. The other aspect that can be derived from this definition is that health is a positive concept. Illness on the other hand is defined as a state of not being well as self-reported by a patient. It is based on the physical or psychological symptoms that the patient reports and can vary from minor problems to serious ones. Illness is thus a negative concept. However, the health and illness concepts have been understood in several different perspectives. Most people’s understanding is that the two terms have an inverse relationship in that the more there is of one, the less there is of the other. This creates a scenario where health is not viewed as an absolute state and rather much of a relative state. Further perspectives are that health is an entirely different concept unrelated to illness hence definitions such as the capacity of action towards goals that are vital or the possibility of living meaningfully (Wikman, Marklund and Alexanderson, 2004). Van Dalen, Williams and Gudex (1994) explored the views of lay people on the concepts of health and illness. They found that the two concepts were closely related to such individuals, with health being termed as the absence of illness. Other individuals stated that health is the functional capacity of an individual, while other groups related it to fitness. Their study found out that personal health was less related to the

Factor effecting staff turnover in hsbc call centre(uk)and how it is Essay - 1

Factor effecting staff turnover in hsbc call centre(uk)and how it is effected & related with job satisfaction of employee - Essay Example To improve the competitive position, banks used cost-cutting weapons. They streamlined their processes, shifted back-office operations, boosted workforce productivity and tried to use as much as information technology as possible. Banks rate managing customer experience as the most important factor of success (Wisskirchen et al., 2006). Call centers are expected to give them this competitive edge. Call centers are the perfect embodiment of the ‘new’ service oriented economy (Moriset, 2004). Call centers use the latest technology and thus enable a day’s work to be done in an hour. These employees are often compared to the workers on the shop floor of a manufacturing unit. Call centers in any nation follow the same technique and have the same attributes. They usually have very flat management structures which provide very little scope for career advancement. Job satisfaction is call centers is very low which accounts for attrition and high turnover in the industry. There is a strong relationship between job satisfaction and staff turnover. If employees are satisfied and their needs are met, it can limit staff turnover. Job satisfaction has been defined as an attitudinal state which reflects all the affective feelings that a person has about the job, cite Biggs and Swailes (2006). This includes growth, pay, co-workers and supervisors that contribute towards satisfaction in varying degrees. The level of satisfaction differs across permanent workers and the agency workers. Many call centers appoint agency workers so that the parent employer does not have the responsibility of the staff. Permanent employees become de-motivated when their organization uses agency staff but agency workers are used to prevent layoffs and their commitment to organization is much lower than the permanent employees. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs suggests that the basic physiological needs have to be met first before a person can look ahead. Only when the basic needs are

How Has Hooliganism (Spectator Violence) Permeated The World Of Essay

How Has Hooliganism (Spectator Violence) Permeated The World Of English Soccer - Essay Example The activities or manner is now known as soccer hooliganism which began in England near the beginning of 1950's (Giulanotti, 1994, Pp 12-13). In other European countries, parallel models of behaviour appeared about fifteen or twenty years later, near the beginning of 1970's. Italian fans fashioned a mainly obsessive variety of football support known as Ultras, who are now a chief force in the Italian sport and are widespread in a some other EU states. Football hooliganism is extremely complicated to describe, mostly for the reason that the media have been tremendously supple and undefined in assigning the "hooligan" tag to diverse occasions. The majority to mean disarray or confusion concerning football enthusiasts sees football hooliganism. Frequently this engages illegal actions and in the majority - but surely not all - cases takes place either at or just earlier than or after a football contest. Much football-throng chaos is impulsive, but a lot is set by bunch of criminals or gangsters who connect themselves to football societies and assemble to meet, and clash, from other societies (Crawford, 2004, Pp 42-43). It is frequently stated that hooliganism at football competitions turn out to be much more widespread in the 1970's and 1980's, with extra details of range of violence at contests. Nevertheless, yet again it is hard to know whether the quantity of chaos amplified or whether the rising media attention in, and exposure of, throng's chaos has destined it is reported faraway more often. Fundamental Problems Of Hooliganism Hypothetical explanations of football spectator hostility dwell in four different categories. First, there is the early on approach which accentuates that hooligan activities is a representative effort by blue-collar fans to reinstate some power over a game which they feel gradually more estranged from. Second, there is the ethogenic approach, which sees football watchers fighting as a custom appearance of mannish violent behavior. A third clarification, the planned segmentation approach focuses the implication of lower working class group arrangements and premature socialization as the key to perceptive the models of violent behavior shown by football hooligans. A concluding group of approaches see football viewer's chaos as a way of recompensing for the defeat of society sourced by post-war business and municipal expansion. This analytical research supplies a critical evaluation of some key features of the outcomes of comebacks to racism within British football. Other three features are recognized as: the conflation of racism with hooliganism'; the responsibility of antiracist operations within the sport; and the refutation of the trouble of racism within football sport. It is disputed that even as some of these interferences are praiseworthy, a common flaw is a malfunction to understand the environment and forcefulness of diverse racisms. This worry reflects more universal debates about the need to theories the intricacy and variety of the notion of racism and to recognize its opposing temperament. Writers in the past have stressed out the significance of touching away from extraordinary outsets of

Pepsi And Analysis Product Life Cycle

Pepsi And Analysis Product Life Cycle The PLC model is of some degree of usefulness to marketing managers, in that it is based on factual assumptions. Nevertheless, it is difficult for marketing management to gauge accurately where a product is on its PLC graph. A rise in sales per se is not necessarily evidence of growth. A fall in sales per se does not typify decline. Furthermore, some products do not (or to date, at the least, have not) experienced a decline. Coca Cola and Pepsi are examples of two products that have existed for many decades, but are still popular products all over the world. Both modes of cola have been in maturity for some years. Another factor is that differing products would possess different PLC shapes. A fad product would hold a steep sloped growth stage, a short maturity stage, and a steep sloped decline stage. A product such as Coca Cola and Pepsi would experience growth, but also a constant level of sales over a number of decades. It can probably be said that a given product (or products collectively within an industry) may hold a unique PLC shape, and the typical PLC model can only be used as a rough guide for marketing management. This is why its called the product life cycle. Pepsi-Cola is still second in the carbonated drinks market and remains in the shadow of Coca Cola in terms of market share, perception and image. (Business Week, 2010) However, Pepsis insightful marketing techniques (comic strips, television ads etc.) prevented a fall of its position in the beverage industry. The study shall aim to critically analyse the product life cycle of Pepsi and would further extend to assess the consumers behaviour and satisfaction towards Pepsi in New Delhi Market (India) Limitations: There are some limitations bound with this study, Such as shortage of funds, limited resources and Small sample size (n=100). The random sampling which will be used in this study may not represent the complete population. 1C. WHY IS THIS PARTICULAR TOPIC CHOSEN? By using diversification techniques and brand management, Pepsi was able to increase its volume of sales and get a stronger market position. Nowadays, Pepsis carbonated beverages division clearly remains behind the snack division in terms of profitability and share percentage of operation earnings. Our impression is that the profits of the snack division help create the illusion that the beverage sector is as successful as the management wishes it to be. The present study aims to analyse in detail the product life cycle of Pepsi in Indian market, the study shall also focus on analysing the consumers behaviour towards Pepsi in New Delhi market. 1D. WHAT CONTRIBUTION WOULD THE PROJECT MAKE? Brand loyalty is a buyers preference for the products of Pepsi. Pepsi can create brand loyalty through continuous advertising of brand and company names, patent protection of products, product innovation achieve through its research and development programs and emphasis on high product quality and good after-sales services. It is effective influence in the way in which people perceive the product or the company. By creating feelings of warmth, affection and belonging to a product, a firm is able to relate brand to human personalities. The study would contribute towards identifying the customer needs and expectation towards Pepsi in New Delhi 1 e. objectives and research questions of the study Research objectives To analyse the product life cycle of Pepsi To determine the customers behaviour and satisfaction level towards products of Pepsi in New Delhi market To know from the consumers about the specific reasons behind the preference of products of Pepsi over other Cola drinks Research Questions Why do consumers prefer Pepsi over other Cola drinks What attracts/draws consumers towards Pepsi in India? 2.0 METHODOLOGY AND METHODS OF ENQUIRY RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Research Methodology defines the purpose of the research, how it proceeds, how to measure progress and what constitute success with respect to the objectives determined for carrying out the research study. (Kothari, 2007) The appropriate research design formulated is detailed below. RESEARCH DESIGN The research design is the basic framework, which provides guidelines for the rest of the research process. (Prasad, 2006) The present research can be said to be exploratory. The research design determines the direction of the study throughout and the procedures to be followed. It determines the data collection method, sampling method, the fieldwork and so on. NATURE OF DATA PRIMARY DATA: Primary data is basically fresh data collected directly from the target respondents; it could be collected through Questionnaire Surveys, Interviews, Focus Group Discussions Etc. SECONDARY DATA: Secondary data that is already available and published .it could be internal and external source of data. Internal source: which originates from the specific field or area where research is carried out e.g. publish broachers, official reports etc. External source: This originates outside the field of study like books, periodicals, journals, newspapers and the Internet. DATA COLLECTION Primary data: Primary data will be selected from the sample by a self-administrated questionnaire in presence of the interviewer in New Delhi (India). SAMPLE SIZE The survey will be conducted among 100 respondents in New Delhi (India) Sample Area: New Delhi (India) Sample unit: It will not be possible for the investigator to survey all the consumers of Pepsi so this study is based on the sampling study that will be done on the sample size of 100 persons residing in Central Delhi (New Delhi-India), this central part of New Delhi is chosen for a simple reason that it is a wonderful mix of people belonging to middle class/upper middle class/higher class SECONDARY DATA: Secondary data will be collected through Articles, Reports, Journals, Magazines, Newspapers and Internet SAMPLING TECHNIQUE Random sampling technique is employed to extract the fruitful results. This includes the overall design, the sampling procedure, the data collection methods, the field methods and the analysis procedures SAMPLING PROCEDURE ACTUALLY EMPLOYED The process that will be employed to select the sample in New Delhi (India) is simple random sampling. Simple random sampling refers to that sampling technique in which each and every unit of the population has an equal and same opportunity of being on the sample. In simple random sampling, which item gets selected is just a matter of chance. ANALYTICAL TOOLS Simple statistical tools will be used in the present study to analyze and interpret the data collected from the field. The study will use percentiles method and the data will be presented in the form of tables and diagrams. INITIAL LITERATURE REVIEW Product life cycle management (or PLCM) is the succession of strategies used by business management as a product goes through its life cycle. The condition in which a product is sold (advertising, saturation) changes over time and must be managed as it moves through its succession of stages. Like human beings, products also have their own life-cycle. From birth to death human beings pass through various stages e.g. birth, growth, maturity, decline and death. A similar life-cycle is seen in the case of products. The product life cycle goes through multiple phases, involves many professional disciplines, and requires many skills, tools and processes. Product life cycle (PLC) has to do with the life of a product in the market with respect to business/commercial costs and sales measures. To say that a product has a life cycle is to assert four things: that products have a limited life, product sales pass through distinct stages, each posing different challenges, opportunities, and problems to the seller, profits rise and fall at different stages of product life cycle, and products require different marketing, financial, manufacturing, purchasing, and human resource strategies in each life cycle stage. There are many stages in a products life cycle, some of them are explained below: Stage Characteristics 1. Market introduction stage costs are high slow sales volumes to start little or no competition demand has to be created customers have to be prompted to try the product makes no money at this stage 2. Growth stage costs reduced due to economies of scale sales volume increases significantly profitability begins to rise public awareness increases competition begins to increase with a few new players in establishing market increased competition leads to price decreases 3. Maturity stage costs are lowered as a result of production volumes increasing and experience curve effects sales volume peaks and market saturation is reached increase in competitors entering the market prices tend to drop due to the proliferation of competing products brand differentiation and feature diversification is emphasized to maintain or increase market share Industrial profits go down 4. Saturation and decline stage costs become counter-optimal sales volume decline or stabilize prices, profitability diminish profit becomes more a challenge of production/distribution efficiency than increased sales It is claimed that every product has a life period, it is launched, it grows, and at some point, may die. A fair comment is that at least in the short term not all products or services die. Jeans may die, but clothes probably will not. Legal services or medical services may die, but depending on the social and political climate, probably will not. Even though its validity is questionable, it can offer a useful model for managers to keep at the back of their mind. Indeed, if their products are in the introductory or growth phases, or in that of decline, it perhaps should be at the front of their mind; for the predominant features of these phases may be those revolving around such life and death. Between these two extremes, it is salutary for them to have that vision of mortality in front of them. However, the most important aspect of product life-cycles is that, even under normal conditions, to all practical intents and purposes they often do not exist (hence, there needs to be more emphasis on model/reality mappings). In most markets the majority of the major brands have held their position for at least two decades. The dominant product life-cycle, that of the brand leaders which almost monopolize many markets, is therefore one of continuity. Studies shave revealed that the customers are attracted more towards the companies which are innovative in nature and enjoy good brand image in the market. Innovation is now a priority in most firms around the world just as quality was two decades ago. The challenge then was how to transform a quality program and results into a quality image. Today the need is to gain image credit for developing an innovative organization and a flow of innovative products. Having a reputation for creativity not only interjects energy and respect, but adds new product credibility to support a firms culture and strategy. Business Week recently ran a story on the 25 most innovative companies (e.g. Apple, Google, 3M, Toyota, Microsoft, G.E., Procter Gamble, Nokia, Starbucks, IBM and Samsung) as determined by a survey of over 1,000 executives. Among the ideas these firms used to foster innovation was freeing time to experiment, patent sharing, having an innovator-in-chief and developing innovation metric s. While interesting, the story made the unfortunate implication that a reputation for innovativeness was due to the current strategies, processes, culture and product flow of the firm and, further, that such a reputation would result in financial success. The reality is far different. Perceived innovativeness is driven by many factors, some reaching far into the past. One factor is undoubtedly the heritage of imagination. For over 50 years, 3M has been known for its philosophy of empowering innovators. Apple, the No. 1 firm in the survey, is still drawing on Steve Jobs legacy of the first Apple nearly 30 years ago. IBM gets credit for establishing the computer industry some five decades ago. G.E.s reputation may be influenced more by the legacy of the founder, Thomas Edison, than the Jeff Immelt revolution. (Aaker, 2006) The effect of brand awareness on buying decisions tends to regard product choice as a very intricate problem-solving process (Foxall, 1992). However, in many low involvement situations, consumers do not have the time, the resources, or the motivation to engage in such EPS processes. They are used to being passive recipients of product information, who need to spend minimal time and effort to determine brand choice (Foxall, 1992). A simple heuristic method, such as buying well-known brands used as a basis for brand choice when consumers undertake commonly repeated product purchases, may explain why firms marketing low involvement products often invest considerable sums of money into advertising, in order to generate and maintain brand awareness. (Hoyer, 1984) Brand awareness is a dominant factor in both initial (trial) and repeat-purchase decisions, even when the quality of the national brand was inferior to that of a non-national brand. Hoyer and Brown (1990) Similar conclusions were obtained in the replicated study of Macdonald and Sharp (2000), further evidencing the effect of brand awareness on purchase decisions. Familiarity with a brand has an influence on consumer confidence towards a brand, which, in turn, affects the intention to buy that brand (Laroche et al.1996). Familiarity is measured by the experience and information possessed by the consumer for a specific brand hence such information will exert some effects on purchase intentions, thus constructing one of the loyalty dimensions (Bloemer et al., 1999). If we look at the Pepsi-Cola Company from the outside, there has been a certain amount of repetitiveness in its development. By following the trends and focusing on how to lower the price as much as possible, they managed to create a successful company. By investing in the development of the bottling and distribution sector, Pepsi found their balance in the market. (Nels, 2008) Then in 1920s Pepsi-Cola Company failed because they didnt concentrate enough energy on branding. Within a few years Pepsi was declared bankrupt twice. By the end of the 1930s the company was reorganized from inside and the marketing policy drastically changed. Major investment was now directed towards making people more familiar with the product. After acquiring Mountain Dew, new sources of financing and revenue opportunities were needed because the acquisition was not an instant success. Therefore, in 1965 Pepsi merged with Frito Lay. In the 1980s the decreasing sales in the beverage market induced the industry to adjust with more aggressive marketing strategy and new products. In fact, Coke marketed a new cola formula, whereas Pepsi persisted with promotional efforts and improved customer responsiveness to increase sales volume. (Thomas and Alexander, 2005) Following these cyclical changes in the marketing policy of the firm (every 20 years there is a huge turn over), one could conclude that this is the time for PepsiCos to readjust. The circumstances underlying the merger with Quaker Oats are significant. Nowadays, the market is rapidly changing and its becoming saturated. The entrance into potential new markets is more complex than ever consequently, the only way for the company to expand is by gaining market share by mergers or strategic alliances. Furthermore, the marketing strategies in foreign markets like China and India are experiencing problems in customer responsiveness. Currently, the beverage sector is following a trend of continuous launch of new products in order to attract new customers. In this sense, the challenge for Pepsi is to be able to sustain such a trend and conversely, to remain a leader in their market.