Identity In Contemporary European Cinema Film Studies Essay

Analyse the subject of individuality ( e.g. national, gender ) in two movies that you have studied on the faculty. Trainspotting follows the lives of groups of friends in Edinburgh. This movie has been known as an illustration of a ‘ new Scottish film, ‘ which leaves the stereotypes of tartanry and kailyadism which is imposed by film makers from outside Scotland, embraces urban and modern-day Scotland, and is the merchandise of a Scots movie industry. Trainspotting â€Å" non merely breaks with many traits typical of earlier cinematic representation of Scotland, but besides demonstrates the troubles of building a discourse conveying a new Scottish individuality, which is meant to replace the old Tartan and Kailyard stereotypes † . The regional individuality of Trainspotting is Scottishness. This is established through the speech pattern of the characters in the movie and besides the mise-en-scene. The Scots slang is another individuality of Scottishness, and the dark nine scene, Sput and Tommy ‘s conversation is captions, this distinctivness to the non-Scottish audiences have in the apprehension of Scots accents.In the five-a-side game at the beginning of the movie, Renton and Begbie are both have oning viridity and white shirts as one of the Edingburgh squads. This gives the characters their portion of Edinburgh and that they are portion of the Catholic community. The soiled kit they are have oning gives the presence of economic marginalization and low life style. The thought of Scots national individuality is seen throughout the movie. The tourer ideal of Scotland is taken off from the mundane experiences of the characters, and Renton expresses the rejection of â€Å" official † Scotland in the movie ‘s most celebrated scene when the male childs visits the Highlandss. In Trainspotting the Scots idiom in the movie shows the Scots heritage, giving a continual reminder to the viewing audiences of the chauvinistic differences between the English and Scottish. The movie is made amusing by the idiom, which opens a new angle from which to near the audience. In Trainspotting there the female, she is shown as a Heroin nut, compared to the other five males. This goes with the traditional manner to understand the drug subculture as male dominated. The grounds are linked to gendered thoughts about adult females, even the intensions of diacetylmorphine dependences are criminalism, foulness. These things are by and large understood to use to male members of the low societal category. The other female character, Diane, she is seen as strong articulate confident immature miss, really mature for her immature age. She blackmails me to see Renton once more and if he does n't she ‘ll state the constabulary. Nakedness is outnumbered in more with male childs than misss. Renton and Diane in full frontal nakedness, Spud nevertheless is undressed by his girlfriend as he lies on the bed, we see Mother Superior rear as Alison injects Heroin into the venas of his phallus. The camera does non travel in the bare shootings, and there are no close-ups on the private parts and nor does the camera cover the bare organic structures shot ; this objectifies the nudity of the characters in the movie. There is no female or male regard, and the manner which nakedness is shown in the movie, Trainspotting is gender-neutral. This movie is known to be for â€Å" one for the male childs † , it deals with gender issues such as the inquiring of both the male and female duality and the hegemony of heterosexualism. By overstating the gender stereotypes are one of the chief agencies that are used to movie to appeal to the audience is humourous ways. One illustration is Begbie. He is seen depicted as being happening troubles to work out struggles with aid of anything but force. He is seen sitting about in Renton ‘s level have oning his underclothes, and ptyalizing beer on the floor, he is seen being represented as a wholly devoid of emotions that he does non even see his friends dislike him and all this work stoppages is to being over the top but we merely laugh at it. Jamon Jamon is a Spanish movie, filmed in Spain. In this movie there are many elements to the Spanish patriotism that keeps the movie in tradition with Spain. First image that is normally seen throughout the film is the black Bull hoarding. You see the Bull bumper spines are seen throughout Spain, and the intension is linked with Spanish culturalisim, including Bullfighting. In the topographic point Catalunya you would see donkey bumper spines, as significance of Catalan individuality, the low donkey being the symbol of that part. The Bull is the official emblem of Spain, associating it to bull combat. In the decision of the credits, in Jamon Jamon, the black background is shown to be a mammoth hoarding advertisement brandy and stand foring a bull. As the field of vision unfastened to uncover the infinite of narrative action, ( desert scarred by a busy expressway ) a concluding handbill spot of inkiness ( the testiss of the bull ) remains dominant in frame and provides the background for the manager ‘s name. The most obvious, manner the movie defines the position and involvement to be the relationship between the narrative the actions the topographic point and assorted ( symbolic and iconic ) representation of maleness. Another illustration of muscularity and individuality in national civilization is the scene where Raul is practising bullfighting utilizing a wheel-barrow. Raul shootings of him have oning a tight blue trunkss, and gray sleeveless jersey, and shut up shootings are being used to demo his muscularity and shut up of his large phallus pouching through the trunkss. The individuality of male is frequently played with intension of meat. Hence the interlingual rendition of the movie name Jamon Jamon, as Ham Ham. Throughout the movie, there are a batch of shootings of male venereal countries. The scene where they are looking for their following underwear theoretical account, there is a line of good built muscular work forces standing, merely have oning underpants. This gives the intension of the male ‘s meat, shown with close up shootings of each adult male ‘s underpants. Female individuality is shown both dominant, but besides stereotyped. Jose ‘s female parent, Conchita plays the function of a high category concern adult female. She is seen looking glamourous, clean, expensive white apparels, and seen driving a Mercedes. She stands out from the other characters, as even the auto, is much more expensive than other vehicles around in the movie. Lorries and broken minibikes are seen. She seems to hold power with money, corrupting Raul with money to seek and score Silvia to interrupt matrimony with her boy. Silvia nevertheless is like the antonym ; she is seemed to be the on the job category miss of Spain. She has no power, but her gender and artlessness and good expressions bring her ain sort of power. The stereotyped is shown, as she is seen working in a mill, chiefly female workers, who all are run uping underwear for work forces. The male individuality starts off with being masculine. Many scenes of the male, particularly Rauls, are shown to look tough, strong and sexy looking adult male. Audience for the female regard. But so once more, there is little intension to stand for him with jambon. Him being treated like a piece of meat, he is bribed with money and gifts to make things for Conchita. She offers him money to kip with Silvia, and offers him a motor motorcycle and Mercedes if he continues to kip with her. It shows that he has nil, and will be willing to to make anything at a monetary value. The line of meat in the mill all lined up, on ropes, are seen once more in intension traveling back to the scene where they are choosing an underwear theoretical account. They are all lined up similar to the jambon that is tied up in Rauls place. ( 1248 ) Mazierska E and Rascaroli L 2003 From Moscow to Madrid: Postmodernist Cities, European Cinema. London and New York: I.B. Tauris. McArthur C 1982 Scotland and film: the wickedness of the male parents, in C McArthur ( ed. ) Score Reels: Scotland in Cinema and Television. London: BFI: 40-69. Smith M 2002 Trainspotting. London: BFI. Street S 1997 British National Cinema. London: Routledge. Welsh I 2004 Trainspotting. London: Minerva.

Lord of the Flies Essay

In society there are leaders for examples Presidents and Prime Ministers. These leaders need to have certain characteristics, which include respect, maintaining order, and to protect the people. When these leaders start to ignore their responsibilities the society starts to get uncontrollable and mistakes will happen. For an example when leaders ignore protection and safety their actions undermine the groups ability to function, also when leaders ignore respect their actions undermine the groups ability to function. All of this happens in the story written by William Golding Lord of the Flies. All in all when leaders ignore their responsibilities their actions undermine the groups ability to function. To begin, when leaders ignore respect their actions undermine the groups ability to function. When Ralph gets assigned Chief by a vote he makes the rules where some of Jacks choir boys will go hunting and some watch the fire so it does not go out. When Ralph and Jack got into a fight about how Jack does not help out the group with their hunting, and how they are just wasting time because they barely catch a pig or any food for the group he disrespects them: â€Å"Boys armed with sticks.† (Golding,127) This shows that Ralph does not really care for them and their skills that they seem to have according to Jack. After Ralph had said this Jack left the group and asked anybody who wanted to join him could do so if they wanted to. After Jack left with his group him and Ralph are always fighting now but one occasion it gets a little out of hand: â€Å"You’re a beast and a swine you bloody, bloody thief!† (Golding,177) After Ralph said this it made Jack furious he stole Piggys glasses for fire for themselves instead of asking for it he just took it. After this was said Jack also killed Piggy. Ralph being leader and ignoring respect undermines the groups ability to function. As leader, Jack also fails to respect people and keep peace. Jack disobeys Ralphs orders to have to choir boys watch the fire because Jack feels that they need the men to hunt and not get rescued. When the fire went out it could of saved them in that time frame as a symbol of help but he decides to disrespect Ralph and not listen to his orders: â€Å"We had to have them in the hunt.† (Golding,69) After Ralph confronted Jack about the fire going out he refused that he was wrong although he knew he disobeyed Ralphs orders, which in the end could of resulted in getting rescued by the boat that drove by. Now Jack in his own group decided that they need to attack Ralphs camp and steal Piggys specs so they can have fire instead of just asking him: â€Å"Ralph remember what we came for. The fire. My specs.† (Golding,161) Jack invaded Ralphs camp here to steal Piggys glasses to have fire. As Jack said that he came for fire and that the specs were his, although the specs are Piggys. Piggy even asked Jack to give back his glasses but he refused and killed Piggy. Jack is just disrespecting Piggy and Ralph here not listening to them at all. Jack refusal to have respect undermines the groups ability to function. Both boys, clearly fail in their responsibility to have respect. Ralph being voted leader should have respect for others and enforce it instead of ignoring it, having thee problems caused the group to fall apart. Jack on the other intentionally disrespected everybody in the group to get what he wanted . In both cases, however, when leaders ignore respect, their actions undermine the groups ability to function. To begin, when leaders ignore protection and safety their actions undermine ability to function. Ralph being the leader of the group tries to keep it safe for everyone to live so he decides that they need to make shelters for the group. Ralph is trying to make the shelters for everyone but no one will help him except Simon because he failed to maintain order from everyone: â€Å"But you like it!†¦You want to hunt! While I-† (Golding,125) Ralph is clearly upset here with Jack of how he wont help them make the shelters while they go out and hunt for pigs. Ralph not being able to control the group early on had failed him now, since no one will listen to him they have a lack of safety due to them not have shelters for them sleep in. Also at camp the boys have to sleep in the dark one night when the fire burned out: â€Å"We cant get any more wood Ralph not in the dark not at night† (Golding, 125) As shown here there is a lack of protection due to not having the fire at night because it resembles hope. That night they had no hope they had fear. The fear of darkness was scaring the littluns and some others to go in the forest to get wood to keep the fire burning. Jack also fails in his responsibility to keep it safe and protected. During the storm when everybody was dancing, Simon was walking to all the boys and Jack thought he was the beast and went to attack him: â€Å"Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood! Do him in!† (Golding,141) Jack is not having safety for the group because he is getting them to kill a human who they think is the beast which is not. After they killed Simon they realised how small the beast was and the found out that it was Simon. Jack saying â€Å"Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood! Do him in!† got the group all hyped up and not paying attention who or what the beast was and they just acted and attacked it. After Jack killed Piggy and killed the conch, he attacked Ralph and saying he is the new chief: â€Å"See? See? There isn’t a tribe anymore! The conch is gone†¦ Im Chief† (Golding, 181) Jack is furious here just after he killed Piggy he threatened Ralph that he would do the same. Jack is totally ignoring safety and protection is actually doing the complete opposite ignoring it a killing other people in his tribe. When Jack ignored his responsibility to maintain protection and safety it undermines the groups ability to function. Both boys, clearly fail in keeping the island safe and protected. Ralph tried to protect the group but since he joked around when he was first chief no one took him serious when he needed them to help. Jack totally ignored safety and did the opposite he tortured people, and also killed people. In both cases, however, when leaders ignore their responsibilities to maintain safety and protection it undermines the groups ability to function. In conclusion, when leaders ignore their responsibilities their actions undermine the groups ability to function. When leaders ignore protection and safety their actions undermine the groups ability to function, also when leaders ignore respect their actions undermine the groups ability to function. If all of this happened in our life, we would all become epic fails, just like how everyone did in this book.

Jfk Cuban Missile Crisis Essay

The speech made people aware that action was being taken to prevent any unexpected attacks and that every aspect of the crisis was being looked into. The speech itself upset many Americans and put them into a state of fear, but it also reassured them that Kennedy was aware and ready to take control to protect his country. Kennedy’s impact on the United States was not as remembered for what he did, but more for what he could have done. This particular speech helps illustrate the greater aspects of American history and shows why we are still a united nation. The Kennedy family had a passion for success. The public attention and fame that the family possessed came from â€Å"personal wealth and politics. † (Gale, 1994. Biography In Context) John Kennedy’s father, Joseph P. Kennedy, was ambassador of the United States and the United Kingdom. His wife, Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy, was an American philanthropist. The couple had nine children together, John F. Kennedy being the second oldest son. He was born on May 29, 1917. His father put a great deal of his faith into his first born, Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. , his goal being to make him president of the United States. With the family’s competitive nature, this caused a lot of rivalry between the two brothers. This issue followed them into their adult lives where â€Å"Jack,† as John was called, and his older brother both went to Choate and Harvard. Kennedy had not had a set plan for pursuing a career, but he was â€Å"certain of eventual American involvement in the expanding war. † (Gale, 1994. Biography In Context) He was assigned to Naval Intelligence in Washington when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. He was reassigned to sea duty on PT boats. On August 2, 1943, after a Japanese destroyer crashed into Kennedy’s PT-109, he was declared a â€Å"hero† by The New York Times for rescuing the surviving crew members. This story was circulated in each of Kennedy’s campaigns helping him move up as a politician. A year later his older brother, Joseph was killed while on a dangerous volunteer mission in Europe. He died instantly do to the explosion of an aircraft carrying dynamite. Kennedy’s political career really started up around this time because of his feelings of an â€Å"unnamed responsibility† to his parents, brothers, and sisters. In 1946, his father felt it was necessary to have John Kennedy take his brothers place and run for the same seat in Congress John’s grandfather â€Å"Honey Fitz† held nearly five decades earlier. (Gale, 1994. Biography In Context) Kennedy went into politics with no plan or philosophy. Even without direction in his campaign he still did win. People looked at him indifferently due to the fact that he wasn’t very involved in the debates. His health started depleting and it was obvious to the public that he was suffering from illness. He was diagnosed with Addison’s disease in 1947. It is a disease that occurs when the adrenal glands do not produce enough hormones. He was then given only a few years to live, but when he started his cortisone treatments in 1950, his health improved along with his spirits. In the 1960 Presidential election, Kennedy defeated Richard Nixon by 12,000 votes. Kennedy began his presidency with grace and huge expectations for the nation. His inaugural speech focused on what America’s role was with the rest of the world and his obligations as â€Å"Leader of the Free World. † The Cuban Missile Crisis came about when Premier Nikita Khrushchev announced that Soviets plan to support â€Å"wars of national liberation† against noncommunist regimes around the globe. Kennedy sharpened the American military’s watch on communist rebellion against the government. In April, 1961 he authorized a CIA plan to invade Cuba. The invasion failed horribly at the Bay of Pigs and the U. S. was on the edge of war when President Kennedy confronted Khrushchev about the presence of missile sites in Cuba. After two weeks they had reached a compromise: Soviets would withdraw their missiles in Cuba and the U. S. would withdraw its missiles in Turkey. The Cuban Missile Crisis speech was given on October 22, 1962 at the White House. It addressed our nation’s allies and enemies along with all American citizens. Kennedy used logos, pathos, and ethos in his address. He used logos by stating â€Å"unmistakable evidence that a series of offensive missile sites are in preparation. He let everybody know that the evidence was proven true and that no lies are coming from the address.

THE CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES POSED BY SOCIAL MEDIA FOR DESTINATION Research Paper

THE CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES POSED BY SOCIAL MEDIA FOR DESTINATION MARKETING - Research Paper Example This new and renewed focus on the tourism therefore also requires a new and fresh approach for tourism destination marketing as an essential and critical component of the overall process. This has also required the marketers to take a very strategic approach towards the destination marketing and design and develop their strategies in such a manner which can optimize the use of the resource. Social media has recently emerged as one of the key trends in the information technology market wherein connecting people through web has become a new norm. Social media however, also presented an opportunity for marketing by using the social networking websites such as Facebook and Twitter. This paper will present a review of how the social media can actually have an impact on the destination marketing, what challenges and opportunities it presents and how marketers can actually take advantage of this new and emerging trend in the market. Destination Marketing Destination marketing is a relativel y new and unique concept outlining as to how the destination marketers can actually take a more robust and strategic view of the destination marketing and use it for strategic purposes. This view is considered as in-line with the mainstream marketing which is managed as a strategic business planning tool to achieve the overall business objectives. Destination marketing therefore is also viewed as a market oriented strategic approach to develop the locations in such a manner that they take into consideration the overall interests of the customers while at the same time balancing the requirements and interests of other stakeholder groups in the community also. (Blumberg, 2005) This approach to destination marketing therefore views this as a very conscious and thoughtful process which requires a commitment of time and resources to develop and build the locations in such a manner that they can reflect the overall market sentiments. What is however, different for the destination marketer s is their inability to control the product because of the overall nature of the product they are marketing. This therefore also offers them an insight into how to tap the target market in order to ensure that the location attracts the people who are willing to visit it and spend there. This change or shift from the traditional marketing concepts where more focus is being given on the product, destination marketers will have to face a dual challenge of balancing the act between the product and the target market for the product. The focus on the target market is also based on the assumption that different individuals prefer different locations due to different reasons. In order to tap into the different niches which the differences in the choices of the consumers can offer therefore require an strong focus on the target market and how it behave and react to different changes taking place in the marketing. Since in destination marketing, marketers often do not control the product dire ctly therefore this leaves a little room for them to actually modify or change the product but rather use its existing attributes to attract the target market. As such marketers therefore often tend to create a kind of experience which can develop the customer satisfaction and can generate the repeat customers. This is because of the fact that the destinations offer different and unique experiences and each one have their own strengths and

Delivering Education To The Poor Via The Mobile Phone Essay

Delivering Education To The Poor Via The Mobile Phone - Essay Example Current paper focuses on the potential use of mobile phones for educational purposes among poor people. In order to cover all aspects of the issue under examination the research developed for this study has been based on both theory and empirical findings. In this context, this paper has been structured as follows: a) in the Introductory section the theme of the study is briefly presented, b) in the literature review section, the existing theories in regard to learning are presented; the theories and views presented in this section help to understand whether online education could fully cover the educational needs of poor people; c) the next part of the study is the Research question and method where the terms under which empirical studies have been involved in this paper are presented; d) the findings of the empirical studies are presented in another section, the Analysis and Results section; e) in the Discussion and Implications section the practical implications of the use of mobi le phones in education and the potential benefits of such educational approach for poor people are made clear; f) the conclusions developed from the findings of the literature and the empirical research are presented in the Conclusion section of the paper where recommendations are also made for increasing the effectiveness of mobile phones when used for covering the educational needs of poor people. ... ented in the Conclusion section of the paper where recommendations are also made for increasing the effectiveness of mobile phones when used for covering the educational needs of poor people. 2. Literature Review Online learning has been proved as an effective scheme to respond to certain educational needs that cannot be covered otherwise. At the same time, online learning can be used as a complementary educational tool for saving time and cost in the delivery of curriculum (Bach, Haynes and Smith 2007). However, in practice, online learning have resulted to key major problems: a) the lack of safety in regard to the work of each student and b) the creation of inequalities according to the technology used for accessing online learning programs (Bach, Haynes and Smith 2007). Indeed, it seems that there is mechanism for guaranteeing the protection of the work of each student in the context of an online learning program even if the development of technology related to online learning has been impressive (Bach, Haynes and Smith 2007). Moreover, online learning has led to the increase of the gap between rich and poor students: the former are able to use advanced technology for participating in online learning programs, a fact that promotes inequality in education (Illeris 2008). Under these terms, it would be necessary to review how the use of mobile phones as a tool for supporting the educational needs of poor people would be feasible and which measures should be taken for securing the quality of education provided through this mechanism. The performance of individuals in team-working and in handling advanced technology has been often considered as a significant advantage, even higher from these persons’ educational background (Remenvi 2008). In particular, the ability of

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT - Essay Example horough research on the present scenario of the international markets and puts forward the viable options that PALTEK can take to enter the international market successfully. The report also highlights the challenges and obstacles that the company might encounter when venturing internationally. Patek is a company basd in Bedfordshire and has around 70 employees currently. The annual turnover of PALTEK is  £5 million and the company is headed by Jack Leiter . They had earlier attempted to sell its products in international markets; however they didn’t succeed as expected, probably because they did not have a clear strategy to market their products internationally. That is the reason why PALTEK is looking for a better overall strategy which can enable them to be a successful global player in printed circuit board sector. The company is searching for potential international markets and also a restructuring of their internal organization for better management of its foreign operations. Presently, PALTEK supplies circuit boards for the B2B market and their main clients are the IT sector and the military. Although they have been successful in the UK market, they want to enter the Nordic as well as the US markets in a major way. They also have a presence in Asia, but they are primarily looking to expand their European market. They’ve been approached by a Swedish company for a partnership but the negotiations have not materialized. PALTEK’s goal now is to generate 20-25% of their total profit from the foreign market in the next two years. Internationalization is a process which involves a change in various facets of the organization. In order to succeed, PALTEK would require an in-depth knowledge of the international market, particularly the Nordic market for printed circuit boards. It also needs to modify its marketing approach according to the local needs of the particular market. Other major areas to change include development of better logistics,

Wk 11 (2nd Discussion) Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Wk 11 (2nd Discussion) - Article Example is really about questioning the authenticity of something regarded as fact, and this perspective should be adapted and not disregarded if one aspires to grow in truthful information.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   One way to interact with information is by delving deeper into its research basis. If a claim is made, one should ask, â€Å"What scientific research supports such claims?† (Pope, 1998). If none can be provided, then this claim can be dismissed as mere hearsay, or looking at it as a challenge, is a statement which can fuel a research study to be conducted to determine whether it is true or not. If a research study is provided as a support though, then it is but proper and fitting to scrutinize the instruments and methods utilized in gathering and analyzing data. For example, if s survey questionnaire was given out by a psychologist to the respondents, validity of the tool should first be established to ensure that the questions will not bring about bias to the study or it should undergo face and content validation by experts in the field first to ensure that the questions are not leading towards specific results. This should be done since the anomalie s may be rooted foremost in the methodology, which also paved way for erroneous conclusions.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Now, the aforementioned approach can be likened to the scrutiny of the branches of a plant. Another way to determine the accuracy of information is to examine closely vague and ambiguous terms. Repressed memories of sexual abuse during childhood have been studied by many, but the definition of repressed memories has been haphazardly used by in media, literature and in legal proceedings. A gray area has clouded the vivid demarcation of whether repressed memories are figments of the unconscious defense mechanisms or whether it is a scheme of forgetting (Pope, 1998). Defining terms and allotting which definition is described in which study can provide a much clearer way of assimilating information, and a way to determine

Intellectual Property Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Intellectual Property Law - Essay Example He is just as responsible as the Ph.D. student for having come up with a cure for the common cold. However, there are some things that Trevor might want to consider before applying his name to the patent. Coming from a relatively unknown Ph.D. student, this â€Å"cure for the common cold† could have major consequences (good and/or bad). The good consequences that could happen is that the cure for the common cold could be a huge success and garner both Trevor and the Ph.D. student international acclaim—since this would be such a huge discovery. On the other hand, there have been no clinical trials on the medication/drug. If something were to go wrong with the drug being used by actual people, Trevor could also be liable for damages claimed against him if he were to be named in a lawsuit which could prove the drug was faulty. Thus, whether Trevor puts his name on the drug discovery patent or not may have a lot to do with liability, as shall be seen in the future. In the s ubsequent follow-up question, we will speak more about this thread or line of thought as well. Trevor has to think in terms of dollar signs as well—or, in his case, Euros. This is because trial medications can actually cost a lot of money to get approval for to get them to take off in terms of popularity. Also, a lot of doctors need to proffer the medication before the drug starts to gain popularity. In addition, Trevor should think about all these aspects before he assigns his name to anything. With so many things that could possibly go wrong, it doesn’t make sense for Trevor to wildly assign his name to a product that he’s not completely sure about in terms of safety. The other unknown element that might be difficult to ascertain is what Trevor’s legal recourse would be in... In the same manner, torts could come into play were people to complain about this new medication slash prescription drug. The Consumer Protection Act basically guarantees that any product that a consumer consumes will be safe for them to consume. Trevor and this Ph.D. student have no idea what they are doing in terms of reassuring that they have adequate protection against the retributions that they could face, if, indeed it is the case that the medication is faulty. Thusly, the copyright alone will not protect Trevor and the Ph.D. student in case the drug does turn out to be faulty. It is simply a matter of judging what should be done in this case. Copyright law aims to protect those who have patented the item—but on the other hand, someone must be at fault if the drug turns out to be faulty. The government should not assume that weighty responsibility unless it wants to take the risk of having class action lawsuits filed against it in the case that the drug either: a) does n ot indeed work; or b) is faulty in some way, shape, or form. The Consumer Protection Act was basically put in place to protect the consumer. Basically, even though the people who made the product (Trevor and the Ph.D. student) have a copyright on the patent, that does not excuse the pair from being either negligent or having neglected a duty of care. Trevor and the Ph.D. student (and possibly, the person that signed off on the patent) could be in trouble if the drug were presumed to be faulty. Trevor and the student conducted no tests—other than a single trial, with no controls—in order to legitimize the drug’s supposed positive effects. So, in effect, having a copyright on a product does not prevent the public from suing against the maker of the product, in essence.

Small business and its challenges Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Small business and its challenges - Case Study Example Long term forecasts allows company time to better position itself in the market competitively and at the same time enable it to implement any new approaches. Advance planning will help her reduce expenses, organize her resources, and cope with new trends therefore avoiding unnecessary surprises. With regard to her services, she should be more focused on how to ensure that they are satisfying to her customers hence ensuring a stable operation that can last for long. In every business, slight changes are necessary in order to better meet the needs of the target market. Therefore, it would be of benefit if Mort introduced slight changes or advance versions of her old service, such that she is able to keep up with the new trends. It will ensure that the business future is stable and at the same time keep the legacy of the family. The long term planning will help her know what modifications to make and know when to implement them which will help her business stay afloat regardless of competition, (Morrell, 2001). Capital expenditure is cash spent by an enterprise to obtain or renovate fixed, tangible, non-consumable assets, like buildings and equipment or a new business for a profitable purpose. Since Mort’s business has been there for long, is obvious that the building is worn out and might as well require renovation. She should, therefore, put aside some money that would cater for an overall upgrade. It can involve a little more partitioning of the entire building into a customized way that almost match the current models. Also, she should acquire newer versions of equipment used, such as freezers, in order to better preserve the bodies. Since technology is here to stay and new and advanced ones get introduced very often, it would be advisable if she embraced technologies such as computers. They will assist her in keeping records and vital information in good state and even upgrade her way of keeping tabs on which bodies are

Questions and answers Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Questions and answers - Assignment Example This time the Americans won the battle. On May 1945, the US dropped an atomic bomb at Hiroshima which claimed 78000 lives. The second atomic bomb which took place at Nagasaki led to Japanese to seek for peace. 1. Braceros program is series of diplomatic agreements and laws which were in introduced in August 1942 by an interchange of notes among diplomats from Mexico and United States, with the agenda of introducing temporal contract laborers from United States and Mexico. 2. Manhattan project it was the first atomic bomb research and development project that was done during the Second World War. United States was the leader in these research and development project though with assistance from Canada and United Kingdom. The purpose of these project was to produce atomic bombs and in collection of intelligence on another project for Germans on nuclear energy. 2. Taft-Hartley act which is also known as labor management Relations Act of 1947 is a law in United States that inhibits power and activities of labor unions. The significance of Taft-Hartley is to protect people’s welfare and their rights in relation to labor organization. 3. The relevance of Trauma Lewis confrontation was that he changed the nation from war to peace yet he was also maintaining a prosperous and a stable economy. Though most of this significance attained was not predictable by the time he took on the government. 4. National Security Act of 1947 was the base for reformation of the United States governments intelligence and military agencies due to the second world war. The Act became effective on 18th September 1947. This was exactly one day after confirmation of the first secretary of defense, James Forrestal. 5. Containment was the foreign policy announced at the beginning of the Second World War by the United States. It was aimed at

Creative Writing Aptitude Essay Example for Free

Creative Writing Aptitude Essay Being a writer is someone who uses writing on a regular basis. You have to be a writer before you can be a good writer. Its about being good or at least good enough. But students dont see themselves as writers at all because they have been structurally defined as deficient. This means that a student is someone who does not write up to a certain standard of performance with academic discourse. A writer does not simply write at someone elses command but on their own initiative. So as a writer and a student you need an independent plan into which you fit into a certain given curriculum and writing assignments. That doesnt mean you should be single-minded, but rhetoric and composition needs be a place where students should realize they need to take control for their educational experience. Rhetoric and composition have become a part of how we do things since we have been young. We are eventually taught in school the types of writing we will need to use in our everyday situations to help us communicate to others for a specific purpose and effectively. This writing informs, persuades, or explains what it is we want the audience to know or come away with. R C studies use academic essays, papers, memos, or class handouts while creative writing studies primarily create literary works. Students are not there to compare one another as writers, artists, or human beings in general. It is a way for each of us to develop our own writing style and self-expression. It builds up the individuals ability to express his or her own thoughts and technique more clearly by engaging into writing to get our mind working. Creative writing and compositions studies†¦ seem to operate with a distinct sense of a constituency for its teaching, an audience for its writing, and a function it performs† (Lardner, 770). Creative writing is a way to express what you feel inside your heart or the ideas that are in your head. It gives the writers a means for expressing their views of their surroundings and their world. Individuality exists in creative writing because the work is never the same as someone elses. It is a personal expression that comes from each individual writer at each individual moment. However, the true test of creativity occurs when the writing can be said to give readers an experience. For that the reason the writing is called Creative because it creates an experience in the minds of its readers. Examples of some these writing forms are: poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. Each form has its own concepts involved with R C because creative writing uses your self-expression as a big part of development than formality. Let’s start off with poetry. Poetry is possibly the most comprehensive way we have of expressing ourselves. Poetry works at a deep level of emotion. â€Å"To feel emotion is at least to feel. The crime against life, the worst of all crimes, is not to feel† (MacLeish, 66). Poetry opens up your emotions and helps you express anything through the use of metaphors, images, and feelings. â€Å"Often the poet operates by suggestion and implication† as well (Adams, 11). Poetry starts in odd phrases, an image, a tune in the head, a deeply incoherent pain. The originating emotion still congests the lines or, in striving for uniqueness, the work becomes untidy, exaggerated or confused. So each property (meaning, association, weight, color, duration, shape, texture, etc. ) changes as words are combined into phrases, rhythms, lines, stanzas and eventually completed poems. Out of those properties the poetry is built, even if the end cannot be entirely foreseen. In responding to what has been written; feeling it, understanding it, and extending its potential with imagination, honesty and sensitivity that very fine lines, vocal use, ample sympathies, kindness of heart and a consideration for the human condition become essential. But poetry is nothing without extended labor. In contrast to the development of a delicate tension between speaker and subject, between various parts of a poem and between the feelings warring within the speaker,† there also can be a â€Å"considerable looseness and vagueness† (Adams, 15). You can either have a clear understanding of what you think the poetry is portraying or you can be at a complete loss. Poetry trains the personality needed to be an artist, an unlimited capacity to be honest and take pains. It calls for self-criticism, which becomes essential as a writers talents develop. Criticism also â€Å"hones† skills that involve the poet’s needs by close reading, clarification and evaluation. It also requires the analysis and growth out of the very development between audience response and the poet. â€Å"The poet writes to [an audience] representing artistic perfection rather than to a reader chosen at random† (Adams, 143). Poetry may be complex, requiring a good deal of sorting out, but there has to be an immediate impact of some sort that allows the reviewer to be in awe. Poets need to know whats been done before, and how comparisons may be objectively undertaken. The next form I will discuss is fiction. Fiction is most definitely my favorite. The first thing you need to know is the age group you are writing for. You can write for children, teenagers, young adults, adults, etc. This is perhaps a really important step before writing because you need to know what your audience wants and expects. After you have selected your age group then take the time to see what is out there in the age range that you want to write for. If the current rage is spaceships and outer space themes then writing about cowboys just wont cut it unless the cowboy is somehow swept into outer space. You also need to research what you will be writing about because some of the time you won’t know much about the topic you’ve chosen. â€Å"Research gives you a chance to investigate all those subjects you’ve always wanted to know about and it gives the breath of life and authenticity to your work† (Kubis, 150). Once you’ve done some research, now it is time to get started. Remember all fiction has a beginning, middle and an end. You need to start your story at the point that something happens to change it all by giving your characters a problem. It must be a worthwhile dilemma. For example, a girl who wants to move out of her parents house and is trying to find an apartment that she really wants when her parents refuse to help her because she can do it on her own is not an interesting problem. On the other hand, a lady who has three days to move out of her parent’s house is a more intriguing problem. Give your audience a reason to support your main character. â€Å"You want to achieve a character that is so real, so human, it seems inevitable that [she] does the thing you’ve determined [she] must do† (Kubis, 49). Your story should progress toward the middle, the climax of your story. â€Å"The hero had to solve the dilemma [herself], without having outside forces do it for [her]† (Kubis, 3). It should climax into a problem that is worth caring about, and â€Å"it should influence the outcome of the story†¦ [but it] does not necessarily resolve the story [only] provides information that leads to the resolution† (kubis, 113). From there you need to let the readers know how it was adequately resolved with a positive result or a defeat. Then there is view point is which the story being told. Who is telling the story or through whose eyes is the story being related? Is it a narrator, the main character, a secondary character? Once you start with a viewpoint stick with it. Do not switch from character to character. Also stay away from over used phrases. Over done phrases are a definite no. Describing something as black as night is too boring. Look for a different way of saying the same thing. You could say ‘black ink dark’ or ‘all encompassing black’. Make a list of all the overdone phrases you can think of and then practice saying them a different way. Nothing is ever said in your story that doesnt lead you somewhere. Know how to correspond properly. It will make all the difference to a readers understanding of what you are trying to say. Never throw in information that does not lead your story forward. Try to find a fresh way of telling a story by saying it again but differently. If everyone is writing about pirates it can get pretty boring after awhile if you use a similar plot line like everyone else. Find a fresh way of telling the same story, maybe from a captive’s point of view or how someone became an unwilling pirate. Use the phrase what if. Ask what if such and such happens what would be the result and if this happened what would be the outcome. This is the time to use your imagination. Get creative and see where it leads you. The last form I will talk about is creative nonfiction. Not a lot of people know what it is and it can take on different styles: a narrative, personal essays, memoir, travel writing, food writing, biography, literary journalism, short stories, etc. Its where you research a topic just as a journalist does but the writer must write in scenes. They don’t think of facts as the basic building blocks of their stories; they think scenes instead. A scene in creative nonfiction occurs in a specific place (where); usually the narrator and one or more others are there (who); at a particular time (when); something happens (what); people converse (dialog or captured conversation); and sometimes someone thinks about something. We like to see scenes in front of us since life does seem to occur as a series of scenes. To get a story from a particular subject you may have to be pokey by uncovering innermost thoughts and feelings of those interviewed. There’s highly involved research effort required that the writer should be willing and financially able to stick with a story for weeks, months, or even years. The creative nonfiction writer can’t work out of his or her memory and imagination alone, he or she must conduct research out in the real world, the raucous world, the dirty world. You should go around collecting facts from dusty records at City Hall, interviewing experts, and talking with the people involved. Also talk with the people immediately involved in the tory to flush out, and add fresh ideas, ideas you might never have come up with on your own, provide different angles, views, perspectives, and insights on the person or the topic under study. This requirement to work away from the studio or the study turns some writers away from this form of writing. Others love that side of the profession, it’s what draws them in. An important consideration before you begin to write in scenes is choosing the structure of your writing in the first place. â€Å"Structure is the arrangement of parts and all the techniques you use to hold the parts together and make it do what it is intended to do† (Gerard, 156). Most creative nonfiction writers may have a structure well in mind before writing at all because the material is promoted in the subconscious. Having the security of structure, or even just some structure, enables the writer to relax and play with any number of creative possibilities to perk up each scene. Since creative nonfiction is typically written scene by scene and is usually joined or separated by passages from a running account of what is happening at the moment, you need to study and perfect the structure. Some of these potential scenes will be embedded in the narrative synopsis, but it’s important to first identify the scenes that make up a story. The writer needs to select only those events that seem to have the greatest potential and then organize them into what seems will be the best sequence, which is not always chronological. â€Å"The hardest part of writing creative nonfiction is that you’re stuck with what really happened – you can’t make it up† (Gerard, 5). The goal is to communicate information, just as a reporter does, but in the way you construct a story. The relationship between the one who tells the story and the story itself may help determine if the story should be told in the first or third person point of view. Some say the third person point of view is the most difficult but the most rewarding since the author has to stay more out the way. In writing in first person narrative you need to learn how to get out of the way by being subjective but maintain objectivity. Just remember that you are the first person or narrator. It’s a balancing act but it has to do with finding a voice. Once the voice is found, the writer can posture, say things not meant, imply things not said, and have fun. Once you find the right voice for a piece of writing, it allows warmth, concern, compassion, flattery, and shared imperfections. You can also show something about a person by letting the reader hear him or her speak when people appear, particularly when they begin to converse, to help the story come to life. We have to learn to watch people unusually close, especially for anything unusual or distinct. Include in your report poses, posturing, habitual gestures, mannerisms, appearances, and glances. Writers frequently describe a group’s entertainment as a way to understand the group frequently looks at the way people dress. Writing about the typical daily life of a person helps illuminate a book and brings in the focus. The creative nonfiction writer can and should occasionally vividly describe the day-to-day life of one person. You should capture conversations and also show the reader how things look to your character in the world, leaving the reader to interpret what it all means. Although usually done sparingly, you might introduce your thoughts on the situation or the people. This emotional content enables you to create dramatic, vivid, accurate scenes. Creative nonfiction is the ability to capture the personal and the private by making it mean something significant to a larger audience. It also provides intellectual substance that will affect readers perhaps even provoke them to action or to change. The relationships of Creative Writing and R C to one another deserve attention in a number of ways. When we put words onto a paper, it’s our own individual way of expressing what we want to say. As I stated earlier, poetry is possibly the most comprehensive way we have of expressing ourselves. Poetry works at a deep level of emotion. The fact that poetry and prose have coincided in a long line in rhetorical study is, of course, a rewarding area of study. In fact, there’s much to be learned about audience and rhetorical situation by positioning oneself as the writer of poems. Even though rhetoricians might cringe at the idea of having students write styles of poetry, this area of study would be of great benefit to those examining the practice of rhetoric. It might also help rhetoric’s become better communicators to examine their own language to become more fluid, more colorful, and more imaginative. Also it would benefit all audiences to think of writing as a beautiful relationship of language and author. That’s if only because the process has such potential to benefit from the voices and views of others on their own journeys and might allow a fuller recognition of ways composition studies and creative writing coincide.

Final Project Essay Example for Free

Final Project Essay Brandt, V., England, W., Ward, S.. (2011). Virtual Teams. Research Technology Management, 54(6), 62-63 In this article Brandt, England, and Ward define what virtual teams are, they state â€Å"virtual teams are individuals working together who have never met each other in person and probably will not meet face-to-face during the assigned project (Brandt, England, Ward 2011).† The next part of the article is used to define what virtual teams consist of. Virtual teams mainly consist of members from different locations working together on a specific project. Although some members of the team may meet each other at some point, they will never see each other on a frequent basis. In the main body of the article Brandt, England, and Ward give 6 common dimensions of successful virtual teams, they are as follows: 1. Trust-Trust generally develops from a history of interpersonal interactions through which people come to know one another. In virtual teams, trust must be established through other means since team members may have no past experience to draw on and no future to reference (2011). 2. Cultural Differences-Cultural and language differences become magnified in virtual teams because it is much easier to hide errors and problems and make wrong assumptions. Unintended non-inclusive behaviors based on cultural norms can be interpreted as rudeness or intimidation. Fostering cultural understanding breaks down the barriers that can hamper success and leads to more effective virtual teams (2011). 3. Communication-Communication issues for virtual teams include both the tools or technologies for communication and the rules of engagement. Both are critical for virtual team success and what works well for co-located teams is generally not effective for virtual teams. Shared electronic workspaces such as shared websites on an intranet are preferred communication tools for virtual teams (2011). 4. Social Skills-Use caution when assembling virtual teams solely on the basis of people’s expertise and availability. Social skills should be considered as a major prerequisite for good teamwork within the virtual team. If the team is unable to establish a basis for the effective exchange of know-how, performance will suffer (2011). 5. Mission and Goal Clarity-While all teams need clear missions and goals to be effective, virtual teams have more opportunities for diverse assumptions about the team’s mission and goal to take root. Clarity comes from discussion among all team members to reach a common understanding of the team’s deliverables. Another key requirement for the virtual team is the need to highlight the expertise of each member of the team and how that expertise relates to the team’s goals (2011). 6. Rewards and Recognition-Finding appropriate ways to compensate virtual teams with global membership require creativity. The diversity of the individuals on the team along with local rules and regulations makes a common reward for all approach difficult to execute. Incentives for both project and personal performance need to take into account the diversity of the team (2011). While all of these dimensions of virtual teams are important to their success, it is also noted that all virtual teams are not the same. The importance of each dimension can vary from team to team and each separate component should be emphasized more or less depending on the team make up, assigned task, and time permitted. Wally Bock. (2003). Some rules for virtual teams. The Journal for Quality and Participation, 26(3), 43. In this article Wally Bock describes what the best uses for virtual teams are. Virtual teams are best used for problem solving, quality assurance, product development, information sharing, and a variety of other team related activities. Within the concept of virtual teams it is important understand how the team is going to work together to accomplish the activities that are assigned. In today’s modern company virtual teams are interacting in different ways tan with traditional physical teams. Bock lists three ways virtual teams are getting their assigned activities accomplished, and what the company must provide for them to be successful. 1. Meetings-Virtual meetings will be the primary way to handle specific, narrowly focused issues quickly on these types of teams; however, virtual teams that are working on long-term projects will benefit from occasional physical meetings-especially in the early stages of their work (Bock, 2003) 2. Virtual Conferences-These interactive discussions offer an effective way to bring in an expert or to allow one team member to make a presentation to others without having to gather all participants in the same place (2003). 3. E-mail Groups-A team leader or manager can use the grouping, nickname, or list making feature on a company’s email software to increase the effectiveness of a virtual team. This ensures that when any member of the team sends any communication about the project, all of the other members receive it. For most virtual teams email is the primary means of communication (2003). The essence of this article is noting the fact that virtual teams are only going to be effective when technology is involved. When virtual teams first started, there wasn’t much effective meeting technology available, but now there is. New technology allows virtual teams to be on the same page, stay in constant communication with one another, can keep the team organized, increase the ability of each member to make contributions, and can also decrease the expenses associated with physical meetings. Bock also notes that â€Å"using the available technology allows virtual teams to be more innovative, and more successful than their physical counterparts. (2003).† Dobson, Sarah. Canadian HR Reporter. Toronto: Oct 10, 2011. Vol. 24, Issue. 17 In this article Sarah Dobson gives reasons and facts why many companies are increasing their virtual team workforce. In today’s tough economy companies’ are focusing a lot of attention to cost cutting. In a survey conducted by Dobson she found that â€Å"over 50% (56%) of companies are planning on using more virtual teams, as a direct relation to cost cutting (Dobson 2011).† Another reason for the spike in virtual teams is the widespread downsizing that has been seen globally. By hiring workers in less costly markets and managing these new employees as virtual teams, companies have seen a drop across the board in expenses related to labor, travel, real-estate, and taxes. Dobson goes on to talk about the advantages of virtual teams. â€Å"One of the advantages is having the ability to move in quickly and work with people from almost any location, having a broad pool of people to pull from allows a company to get terrific team members no matter where they were located (2011). The notion of being able to pull employees from any part of the world is one of the key success factors of virtual teams. There are many multinational organizations growing rapidly in emerging markets such as China and Brazil fueling, the abundance of talent, demand for new skill sets, and a more distributed and diverse workforce. Although this article is heavy on the importance and advantages of virtual teams in today modern workplace, Dobson also points out that a virtual team can pose many challenges to other parts of a corporation. As a result of her survey Dobson found â€Å"66% of HR professionals need to do more work with virtual teams with the top three challenges being additional training, communication issues, and time zone or distance issues (2011). HR’s role in building and supporting virtual teams is extensive, this includes selecting the right people, understanding the skills and capabilities required, enabling policies over great distances, and getting separate departments such as IT working together. It’s a balancing act for HR in managing budgets and ensuring the sustainability and growth of their companies, said Dobson (2011). Mancini, Dale J. (2010). Building organizational trust in virtual teams. Journal of Behavioral Studies in Business, 2, 1-5. This article contends that trust is the root of any team’s success and states that cross-cultural understanding and communication play significant roles in building organizational trust. People’s sense of trust is developed between every interaction with each other. Trust cannot be forced into an organization or group. A virtual team, brought together to complete a major task, does not already have a foundation upon which trust already lies and therefore starts its project without established trust. Organizational trust can be hampered by cultural and communication difficulties. When team members originate from different cultures, the cultural differences in communication can create major obstacles that need to be overcome. To help foster communication in a virtual team that consists of members from different cultures there must be knowledge of each member’s national culture, which can help with understanding expected behavior in a variety of situations. If an understanding is not apparent within the team there may be a lot of unintended miscommunication which can derail a project from the start. Mancini notes that â€Å"protocols, appropriateness, mon itoring, and feedback mechanisms must all be dynamically adjusted in this unique communication environment (Mancini, 2010).† Trust is defined as reciprocal faith in others’ intentions and behavior. When dealing with a multitude of cultures in a virtual group it is important to understand that each culture has its own unique characteristics that function as a moral compass guiding the way they meet the challenges of life. Each group member must not judge but understand each of the beliefs of their fellow group members to help establish clear goals, a commitment to open communication, and trust and accept the rules and procedures of the virtual team. Only when all parties involved in the virtual team â€Å"seek not to judge but to understand (2011),† can real success begin. Naish, Richard. (2009, October). Take the virtual lead. E. learning Age. This article talks about being an effective leader in a virtual team. Nash notes a 2001 study among students by Kayworth Leider that found the most effective leaders demonstrate mentoring skills, understanding for others and empathy (Naish 2009). This is import to note as being a leader in a virtual team requires a different leadership technique than the traditional command and control style utilized in many co-location teams. Leaders must use trust over control in these virtual team environments because in many cases with the team members being in separate locations it will be difficult for a leader to oversee what is going on with the group at all times. The second part of this article is used to define the different stages of trust that develop in a virtual team. Initial trust comes from team members personal characteristics, this type of trust can be re-enforced by team members sharing information about them. Naish notes a 1999 research study that found â€Å"high-performing virtual teams spend up to half their time in the first two weeks exchanging social information (2009).† Over time initial trust can erode in a virtual team, the next phase of trust in a virtual team is cognitive trust which will take the place of the eroding initial trust. Cognitive trust is based on people’s experience with each other. It is a kind of trust that is earned not given. In a virtual team cognitive trust can be earned by prompt replies to emails, sticking to deadlines, attending virtual meeting on time, and following up on all of the promises that are made in a group. Neish concludes his article by giving three tips for being a successful leader on an effective virtual team. â€Å"A leader must develop awareness of similarities and differences in the team members (2009). Virtual leaders need to encourage team members to share information. This allows members to see how similar they are even though they are working far apart. â€Å"A leader must watch out for misunderstandings (2009).† Face-to-face meetings are important at the beginning of the project and at points during; this allows a mutual understanding to develop and allows team members to build relationships with others. â€Å"A leader must give appropriate skills and support (2009).† Virtual leaders need to ensure all team members have essential virtual team skills: self-management, communication skills, and inner-personal awareness. Leaders must also monitor performance, reward team outcomes, and make sure team member have the resources they need to be successful. It is a ba lance of all of these skills that make for an effective virtual leader. Stephen Morris. (2008). How to get real results from virtual teams: Recognize that people, tasks and technology are different but equal. Human Resource Management International Digest, 16(4), 33-35. This article is all about making sure each member of a virtual group has the proper training with the technology used to make a virtual team successful. Stephen Morris first notes that while technology is very important it is not an end all solution to having a functional virtual team. Technology can only work properly when it is put to proper use by the people using it; Morris says â€Å"people who have had no formal telephone or e-mail training can find themselves in a world where they spend hours dealing with the issues of technology and not focusing on the project at hand (Morris 2008).† It is important for group members to have the proper training on the technology they are using to help the virtual team function. In many instances virtual teams are put in pressure situations, in these types of conditions, if a group leader has made the assumption that all members have had proper training the affect can be detrimental to the group. When team members are physical present with one another, especially in high pressure situations, they tend to monitor the impact of communication. In the fast-speed communication of the new digital age, people often transmit communication without taking into consideration the impact it may have. Morris next talks about intent versus impact, his definition of intent is as follows, â€Å"Most virtual teams probably have an urgent need–intent. We are surrounded by technology, feeling under pressure and often isolated. If no thought is applied, off go the e-mails like rockets–we are under pressure to deliver, right? There is little time for small talk here. Telephone calls are to the point. ‘‘They have to understand that I am in a hurry.’’ But if we treat virtual-team members as ‘‘human doings’’ and not ‘‘human beings,’’ they often delay the work flow (2009). The important thing to understand here is even thought technology is driving the work that is being done in a virtual team situation leaders can’t view the people using the technology as technological pieces themselves. A successful virtual leader assures that all participants have the proper training in all of the technology used; they can then balance the people, tasks, and technology usage, and recognize they are all different but not equal. While technology may not be the savior it is thought by some, it is not the demon seen by others, it simply is what it is. The human element brings it to life and defines its use and impact on the world. With a little care it can be turned into the most amazing enabler for co-creation and collaboration. With a very little carelessness, it can create total disconnect.

Factors Influencing Sanitation Conditions

Factors Influencing Sanitation Conditions ABSTRACT This thesis examines the socio-cultural and demographic factors influencing sanitation conditions, identifies the presence of Escherichia coli in household drinking water samples and investigates prevalence of diarrhoea among infants. It is based on questionnaire interviews of 120 household heads and 77 caretakers of young children below the age of 5years, direct observation of clues of household sanitation practice as well as analyses of household water samples in six surrounding communities in Bogoso. Data collected was analysed using SPSS and the Pearson Product Moment Correlation Value(R) technique. The findings revealed that the sanitation condition of households improved with high educational attainment and ageing household heads. On the contrary, sanitation deteriorated with overcrowding in the household. Furthermore, in houses where the religion of the head of household was Traditional, sanitation was superior to those of a Christian head and this household also had better sa nitary conditions than that with a Moslem head of household. Water quality analysis, indicated that 27 samples out of the 30 representing 90% tested negative for E. Coli bacteria whilst 17(56.7%) samples had acceptable levels of total Escherichia coli. Finally, it was found out that diarrhoea among infants were highly prevalent since 47 (61.04%) out of the 77 child minders admitted their wards had a bout with infant diarrhoea. Massive infrastructural development, supported by behavioural change education focussing on proper usage of sanitary facilities is urgently needed in these communities to reduce the incidence of public health diseases. Intensive health education could also prove vital and such programs must target young heads of household, households with large family size and households whose heads are Christians and Moslems. CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY Efforts to assuage poverty cannot be complete if access to good water and sanitation systems are not part. In 2000, 189 nations adopted the United Nations Millennium Declaration, and from that, the Millennium Development Goals were made. Goal 4, which aims at reducing child mortality by two thirds for children under five, is the focus of this study. Clean water and sanitation considerably lessen water- linked diseases which kill thousands of children every day (United Nations, 2006). According to the World Health Organization (2004), 1.1 billion people lacked access to an enhanced water supply in 2002, and 2.3 billion people got poorly from diseases caused by unhygienic water. Each year 1.8 million people pass away from diarrhoea diseases, and 90% of these deaths are of children under five years (WHO, 2004). Ghana Water and Sewerage Corporation (GWSC) had traditionally been the major stakeholder in the provision of safe water and sanitation facilities. Since the 1960s the GWSC has focussed chiefly on urban areas at the peril of rural areas and thus, rural communities in the Wassa West District are no exception. According to the Ghana 2003 Core Welfare Indicators Questionnaire (CWIQ II) Survey Report (GSS, 2005), roughly 78% of all households in the Tamale Metropolis, 97 percent in Accra, 86% in Kumasi and 94% in Sekondi-Takoradi own pipe-borne water. Once more, the report show that a few households do not own any toilet facilities and depend on the bush for their toilet needs, that is 2.1%, 7.3%, and 5% for Accra, Kumasi, and Sekondi-Takoradi correspondingly. Access to safe sanitation, improved water and improved waste disposal systems is more of an urban than rural occurrence. In the rural poor households, only 9.2% have safe sanitation, 21.1% use improved waste disposal method and 63.0 % have access to improved water. The major diseases prevalent in Ghana are malaria, yellow fever, schistosomiasis (bilharzias), typhoid and diarrhea. Diarrhea is of precise concern since it has been recognized as the second most universal disease treated at clinics and one of the major contributors to infant mortality (UNICEF, 2004). The infant mortality rate currently stands at about 55 deaths per 1,000 live births (CIA, 2006). The Wassa West District of Ghana has seen an improvement in water and sanitation facilities during the last decade. Most of the development projects in the district are sponsored by the mining companies, individuals and some non-governmental organisations (NGOs). Between 2002 and 2008, Goldfields Tarkwa Mine constructed 118 new hand dug wells (77 of which were fitted with hand pumps) and refurbished 48 wells in poor condition. Also, a total of 44 modern style public water closets, were constructed in their catchment areas. The company also donated 19 large refuse collection containers to the District Assembly and built 6 new nurses quarters. The Tarkwa Mine has so far spent 10.5million US dollars of which 26% went into health, water and sanitation projects, 24% into agricultural development, 31% into formal education and the remaining went into other projects like roads and community centre construction ( GGL, 2008). Golden Star Resources (consist of Bogoso/Prestea Mine and Wassa Min e at Damang) also established the community development department in 2005 and has since invested 800 thousand US dollars. Their projects include 22 Acqua-Privy toilets, 10 hand dug wells (all fitted with hand pumps) and supplied potable water to villages with their tanker trucks (BGL, 2007). Other development partners complimenting the efforts of the central government include NGOs WACAM, Care International and Friends of the Nation (FON). WACAM is an environmentally based NGO which monitors water pollution by large scale mining companies. They have sponsored about 10 hand dug wells for villages in the district. Care International sponsors hygiene and reproductive health programmes in schools and on radio. They have also donated a couple of motor bicycles to public health workers in the district who travel to villages. The aims of all these projects were to improve hygiene and sanitation so as to reduce disease transmission. Despite efforts by the development partners, water supply and sanitation related diseases are highly prevalent in the district. Data obtained from the Public and Environmental Health Department of the Ministry of Health (M.O.H., 2008) showed that the top ten most prevalent diseases in the district include malaria, acute respiratory infections, skin diseases and diarrhoea. The others are acute eye infection, rheumatism, dental carries, hypertension, pregnancy related complications and home/occupational accidents. A lot more illnesses occur but on a lower scale and these include intestinal worms, coughs and typhoid fever. A complete data on the top ten diseases prevalent in the district is attached as Appendix D but below is a selection of the illnesses that directly result from bad water and sanitation practices. The number of malaria cases decreased from 350 in 2006 to 300 cases per 1000 population in 2008. Despite the decrease, the values involved are still quite high. The incidence of diarrhoea among infants and acute respiratory infection remained 30 and 60 cases per 1,000 populations respectively. This can be attributed to several reasons, including population boom, lack of uninterrupted services and inadequate functioning facilities. In fact, according to the World Health Organization (WHO, 2004), an estimated 90% of all incidence of diarrhoea among infants can be blamed on inadequate sanitation and unclean water. For example, in a study of 11 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, only between 35-80% of water systems were operational in the rural areas (Sutton, 2004). Another survey in South Africa recognized that over 70% of the boreholes in the Eastern Cape were not working (Mackintosh and Colvin, 2003). Further examples of sanitation systems in bad condition have also been acknowledged in rural Ghana, where nearly 40% of latrines put up due to the support of a sanitation program were uncompleted or not used (Rodgers et al., 2007). The author had a personal communication with the District Environmental Officer and he estimated that, approximately there are 224 public toilets, 560 hand dug wells, 1,255 public standpipes and 3 well managed waste disposal sites in the district. According to the 2006 projection, the population of the district is expected to reach 295,753 by the end of the year 2009 (WWDA, 2006). Development partners in the past have concentrated their efforts on facilities provision only. They have not looked well at the possible causes of the persistence of disease transmission despite the effort they are making. Relationships between households socio cultural demographic factors and peoples behaviour with respect to the practice of hygiene could prove an essential lead to the solution of the problem. The fact is, merely providing a water closet does not guarantee that it could be adopted by the people and used well to reduce disease transmission. Epidemiological investigations have revealed that even in dearth supply of latrines, diarrhoeal morbidity can be reduced with the implementation of improved hygiene behaviours (IRC, 2001: Morgan, 1990). Access to waste disposal systems, their regular, consistent and hygienic use and adoption of other hygienic behavioural practices that block the transmission of diseases are the most important factors. In quite a lot of studies fro m different countries, the advancement of personal and domestic hygiene accounted for a decline in diarrhoeal morbidity (Henry and Rahim, 1990). The World Bank, (2003) identifies the demographic characteristics of the household including education of members, occupation, size and composition as influencing the willingness of the household to use an improved water supply and sanitation system. Education, especially for females results in well spaced child birth, greater ability of parents to give better health care which in turn contribute to reduced mortality rates among children under 5years (Grant, 1995). In a study into water resource scarcity in coastal Ghana, Hunter (2004) identified a valid association between household size, the presence of young children and the gender of the household head. It was noted that, female heads were less likely to collect water in larger households. Furthermore, increasing number of young children present increased the odds of female head/spouse being the household water collector. Cultural issues play active part in hygiene and sanitation behaviour especially among members of rural communities. For example, women are hardly seen urinating in public due to a perceived shame in the act but men can be left alone if found doing it. Also, the act of defecation publicly is generally unacceptable except when infants and young children are involved. The reason is that the faeces from young people are allegedly free from pathogens and less offensive (Drangert, 2004). Ismails (1999) work on nutritional assessment in Africa, detected that peoples demographic features, socioeconomic and access to basic social services such as food, water and electricity correlate significantly to their health and nutrition status. Specifically, factors such as age, gender, township status and ethnicity, which are basic to demography, can play a role in the quality of life especially of the elderly. This research assessed peoples practice of personal hygiene in Bogoso and surrounding villages. It also identified the common bacteria present in household stored water sources. Furthermore, the research identified the relationships between some socio-cultural demographic factors of households and the sanitation practice of its members. THE PROBLEM STATEMENT The Wassa West District in the Western Region is home to six large scale mining companies and hundreds of small scale and illegal mining units. Towns and villages in the district have been affected by mining, forestry and agricultural activities for over 120 years (BGL EIS, 2005). Because of this development, the local environment has been subjected to varying degrees of degradation. For example, water quality analysis carried out in 1989 by the former Canadian Bogoso Resources (CBR) showed that water samples had Total coliform bacteria in excess of 16 colonies per 100ml (BGL EIS,2005). Most of the water and sanitation programs executed in the district exerted little positive impact and thus, diarrhoeal diseases are still very high in the towns and villages (See Appendix D on page 80). However, in order to solve any problem it is important to appreciate the issues that contribute to it; after all, identifying the problem in itself is said to be a solution in disguise. Numerous health impact research have evidently recognized that the upgrading of water supply and sanitation alone is generally required but not adequate to attain broad health effects if personal and domestic hygiene are not given equivalent prominence (Scherlenlieb, 2003). The troubles of scarce water and safe sanitation provisions in developing countries have previously been dealt with by researchers for quite some time. However, until recent times they were mostly considered as technical and/or economic problems. Even rural water and sanitation issues are repeatedly dealt with from an entirely engineering point of view, with only a simple reference to social or demographic aspects. Therefore, relatively not much is proven how the socio-cultural demographic influences impinge on hygiene behaviour which in turn influences the transmission of diseases. The relationship between household socio cultural factors and the sanitation conditions of households in the Wassa West District especially the Bogoso Rural Council area has not been systematically documented or there is inadequate research that investigates such relationship. THE RESEARCH QUESTIONS The following research questions were posed to help address the objectives; Why are the several sanitation intervention projects failing to achieve desired results? Why is the prevalence of malaria and diarrhea diseases so high in the district? What types of common bacteria are prevalent in the stored drinking water of households? OBJECTIVES The main aim of this research was to investigate peoples awareness and practice of personal hygiene, access to quality water and sanitation and the possible causes of diarrhoeal diseases and suggest ways to reduce the incidence of diseases in the community. The specific objectives were; To assess the quality of stored household drinking water To establish the extent to which sanitation behaviour is affected by household socio-cultural demographic factors like age and education level of the head. To investigate the occurrence of diarrhoea among young children (0-59 months old) in the households. To identify and recommend good intervention methods to eliminate or reduce the outbreak of diseases and improve sanitation. HYPOTHESIS In addition to the above objectives, the following hypotheses were tested; Occurrence of infant diarrhoea in the household is independent on the educational attainment of child caretakers. There is no relationship between households background factors and the sanitation conditions of the household. CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW In this chapter, various literature related to the subject matter of study are reviewed. Areas covered are sanitation, hygiene, water quality and diarrhoeal diseases. Theories and models the study contributed to include USAIDs Sanitation Improvement Framework, the F diagram by Wagner and Lanois and the theory of Social learning. SANITATION Until recently, policies of many countries have focused on access to latrines by households as a principal indicator of sanitation coverage, although of late there has been a change and an expansion in understanding the term sanitation. Sanitation can best be defined as the way of collecting and disposing of excreta and community liquid waste in a germ-free way so as not to risk the health of persons or the community as a whole (WEDC, 1998). Ideally, sanitation should end in the seclusion or destruction of pathogenic material and, hence, a breach in the transmission pathway. The transmission pathways are well known and are potted and simplified in the F diagram (Wagner and Lanois 1958) shown below by figure 3.1. The more paths that can be blocked, the more useful a health and sanitation intervention program will be. It may be mentioned that the health impact indicators of sanitation programmes are not easy to define and measure, particularly in the short run. Therefore, it seems more reasonable to look at sanitation as a package of services and actions which taken together can have some bearing on the health of a person and health status in a community. According to IRC (2001:0), issues that need to be addressed when assessing sanitation would include: How complete the sanitation programme is in addressing major risks for transmitting sanitation-related diseases; Whether the sanitation programme adopted a demand driven approach, through greater peoples participation, or supply driven approach, through heavy subsidy; Whether it allows adjustment to peoples varying needs and payment; If the programme leads to measurably improved practices by the majority of men and women, boys and girls; If it is environmentally friendly. That is; if it does not increase or create new environmental hazards (IRC, 2001) Sanitation is a key determinant of both fairness in society and societys ability to maintain itself. If the sanitation challenges described above cannot be met, we will not be able to provide for the needs of the present generation without hindering that of future generations. Thus, sanitation approaches must be resource minded, not waste minded. HYGIENE Hygiene is the discipline of health and its safeguarding (Dorland, 1997). Health is the capacity to function efficiently within ones surroundings. Our health as individuals depends on the healthfulness of our environment. A healthful environment, devoid of risky substances allows the individual to attain complete physical, emotional and social potential. Hygiene is articulated in the efforts of an individual to safeguard, sustain and enhance health status (Anderson and Langton, 1961). Measures of hygiene are vital in the fight against diarrhoeal diseases, the major fatal disease of the young in developing countries (Hamburg, 1987). The most successful interventions against diarrhoeal diseases are those that break off the transmission of contagious agents at home. Personal and domestic hygiene can be enhanced with such trouble-free actions like ordinary use of water in adequate quantity for hand washing, bathing, laundering and cleaning of cooking and eating utensils; regular washing and change of clothes; eating healthy and clean foods and appropriate disposal of solid and liquid waste. Diarrheal Dise ases Diarrhoea can be defined in absolute or relative terms based on either the rate of recurrence of bowel movements or the constancy (or looseness) of stools (Kendall, 1996). Absolute diarrhoea is having more bowel movements than normal. Relative diarrhoea is defined based on the consistency of stool. Thus, an individual who develops looser stools than usual has diarrhoea even though the stools may be within the range of normal with respect to consistency. According to the United States Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2006), with diarrhoea, stools typically are looser whether or not the frequency of bowel movements is increased. This looseness of stool which can vary all the way from slightly soft to watery is caused by increased water in the stool. Increased amounts of water in stool can occur if the stomach and/or small intestine produce too much fluid, the distal small intestine and colon do not soak up enough water, or the undigested, liquid food passes too quickly through the small intestine and colon for them to take out enough water. Of course, more than one of these anomalous processes may occur at the same time. For example, some viruses, bacteria and parasites cause increased discharge of fluid, either by invading and inflaming the lining of the small intestine (inflammation stimulates the lining to secrete fluid) or by producing toxins (chemicals) that also fire up the lining to secrete fluid but without caus ing inflammation. Swelling of the small intestine and/or colon from bacteria or from ileitis/colitis can increase the haste with which food passes through the intestines, reducing the time that is available for absorbing water. Conditions of the colon such as collagenous colitis can also impede the capacity of the colon to soak up water. Escherichia coli O157:H7 is probably the most dreaded bacteria today among parents of young children. The name of the bacteria refers to the chemical compounds found on the bacteriums surface. Cattle are the main sources of E. coli O157:H7, but these bacteria also can be found in other domestic and wild mammals. E. coli O157:H7 became a household word in 1993 when it was recognized as the cause of four deaths and more than 600 cases of bloody diarrhoea among children under 5years in North-western United States (US EPA, 1996). The Northwest epidemic was traced to undercooked hamburgers served in a fast food restaurant. Other sources of outbreaks have included raw milk, unpasteurized apple juice, raw sprouts, raw spinach, and contaminated water. Most strains of E. coli bacteria are not dangerous however, this particular strain attaches itself to the intestinal wall and then releases a toxin that causes severe abdominal cramps, bloody diarrhoea and vomiting that lasts a week or longer. In small children and the elderly, the disease can advance to kidney failure. The good news is that E. coli O157:H7 is easily destroyed by cooking to 160F throughout. Reducing diarrhoea morbidity with USAIDs Framework To attain noteworthy improvement in reducing the number of deaths attributed to diarrhoea, its fundamental causes must be addressed. It is approximated that 90% of all cases of diarrhoea can be attributed to three major causes: insufficient sanitation, inadequate hygiene, and contaminated water (WHO 1997). According to USAID, for further progress to be made in the fight against diarrhoea, the concentration will need to include prevention, especially in child health programs. The first method, case management of diarrhoea, has been tremendously successful in recent years in reducing child mortality. The primary process of achieving effect has been through the initiation and operation of oral rehydration therapy; i.e. the dispensation of oral rehydration solution and sustained feeding (both solid and fluid, including breast milk). In addition, health experts have emphasized the need for caretakers to become aware of the danger signs early in children under their care and to obtain suitable, appropriate care to avoid severe dehydration and death. The second approach, increasing host resistance to diarrhoea, has also had some victory with the enhancement of a childs nutritional status and vaccination against measles, a familiar cause of diarrhoea. The third element is prevention through hygiene improvement. Although the health care system has dealt comprehensively with the symptoms of diarrhoea, it has done insufficiently to bring down the overall incidence of the disease. Despite a drop in deaths owing to diarrhoea, morbidity or the health burden due to diarrhoea has not decreased, because health experts are treating the symptoms but not addressing the causes. Thus, diarrhoeas drain on the health system, its effects on household finances and education, and its additional burden on mothers has not been mitigated . Programs in several countries have confirmed that interventions can and do reduce diarrhoea morbidity. A critical constituent of successful prevention efforts is an effective monitoring and appraisal strategy. In order to reduce transmission of faecal-oral diseases at the household level, for example, an expert group of epidemiologist and water supply and sanitation specialist concluded that three interventions would be crucial. These are: Safer disposal of human excreta, particularly of babies and people with diarrhoea. Hand washing after defecation and handling babies faeces and before feeding, eating and preparing food, and; Maintaining drinking water free from faecal contamination in the home and at the source (WHO, 1993). Studies on hand washing, as reported in Boot and Cairncross (1993), confirm that it is not only the act of hand washing, but also how well hands are washed that make a difference. To prevent diarrhoea, its causes must first be fully tacit. According to the USAIDs hygiene improvement framework, a thorough approach to diarrhoea at the national level must tackle the three key elements of any triumphant program to fight disease. These are; contact with the necessary hardware or technologies, encouragement of healthy behaviours, and assistance for long-term sustainability. The concept is explained by figure 3.3 below; The first part, water supply systems, addresses mutually the issue of water quality and water quantity, which reduces the risk of contamination of food and drink. Similarly, ensuring access to water supply systems can greatly ease the time women spend collecting water, allowing more time to care for young children and more time for income generating activities. The third element, household technologies and materials, refers to the increased accessibility to such hygiene supplies as soap (or local substitutes), chlorine, filters, water storage containers that have restricted necks and are covered, and potties for small children. The second element of the hardware component, toilet facilities, involves providing facilities to dispose off human excreta in ways that safeguard the environment and public health, characteristically in the form of numerous kinds of latrines, septic tanks, and water-borne toilets. Sanitation reporting is important because faecal contamination can spread from one household to another, especially in closely populated areas. WATER QUALITY STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES Water quality is defined in terms of the chemical, physical, and biological constituents in water. The word standards is used to refer to legally enforceable threshold values for the water parameters analyzed, while guidelines refer to threshold values that are recommended and do not have any regulatory status. This study employs the world health organization (WHO) and the Ghana standards board (GSB) standards and guidelines in determining the quality of water. Water Quality Requirements for Drinking Water – Ghana Standards The Ghana Standards for drinking water (GS 175-Part 1:1998) indicate the required physical, chemical, microbial and radiological properties of drinking water. The standards are adapted from the World Health Organizations Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality, Second Edition, Volume 1, 1993, but also incorporate national standards that are specific to the countrys environment. Physical Requirements The Ghana Standards set the maximum turbidity of drinking water at 5 NTU. Other physical requirements pertain to temperature, odour, taste and colour. Temperature, odour and taste are generally not to be objectionable, while the maximum threshold values for colour are given quantitatively as True Colour Units (TCU) or Hazen units. The Ghana Standards specify 5 TCU or 5 Hazen units for colour after filtration. The requirements for pH values set by the Ghana Standards for drinking water is 6.5 to 8.5 (GS 175-Part1:1998). Microbial Requirements The Ghana Standards specify that E.coli or thermotolerant bacteria and total coliform bacteria should not be detected in a 100ml sample of drinking water (0 CFU/100ml). The Ghana Standards also specify that drinking water should be free of human enteroviruses. WHO Drinking Water Guidelines Physical Requirements Although no health-based guideline is given by WHO (2006) for turbidity in drinking water, it is recommended that the median turbidity should ideally be below 0.1 NTU for effective disinfection. Microbial Requirements Like the Ghana Standards, no E.coli or thermotolerant bacteria should be detected in a 100 ml sample of drinking water. Water Related Diseases Every year, water-related diseases claim the lives of 3.4 million people, the greater part of whom are children (Dufour et. al, 2003). Water-related diseases can be grouped into four categories ( Bradley, 1977) based on the path of transmission: waterborne diseases, water-washed diseases, water-based diseases, insect vector-related diseases. Waterborne diseases are caused by the ingestion of water contaminated by human or animal faeces or urine containing pathogenic bacteria or viruses. These include cholera, typhoid, amoebic and bacillary dysentery and other diarrhoeal diseases. Water washed diseases are caused by poor personal hygiene and skin or eye contact with contaminated water. These include scabies, trachoma and flea, lice and tick-borne diseases. Water-based diseases are caused by parasites found in intermediate organisms living in contaminated water. These include dracunculiasis, schistosomiasis and other helminths. Water related diseases are caused by insect vectors, especially mosquitoes that breed in water. They include dengue, filariasis, malaria, onchocerciasis, trypanosomiasis and yellow fever. The Theory of Social Learning Learning is any relatively permanent change in behaviour that can be attributed to experience (Coon, 1989). According to the social learning theory, behavioural processes are directly acquired by the continually dynamic interplay between the individual and its social environment (Mc Connell, 1982). For example, children learn what to do at home by observing what happens when their siblings talk back to their parents or throw rubbish into the household compound. The learning process occurs through reinforcement and punishment. Reinforcement refers to any event that increases chances that a response will occur again (Coon, 1989). Reinforcement and punishment can be learned through education where the person can read about what happens to people as a result of actions they make. The elementary unit of society is the household and this can be defined as a residential group of persons who live under the same roof and eat out of the same pot (Friedman, 1992). Social learning is necessary for the household in acquiring the skills pertinent to the maintenance of health promoting behaviour. Most of our daily activities are learned in the household. Individuals begin to learn behaviour patterns from childhood by observing especially the parents and later on their siblings. The environment is understood as comprising the whole set of natural or biophysical and man-made or socio-cultural systems, in which man and other organisms live, work or interact (Ocran, 1999). The environment is human lifes supporting system from which food, air and shelter are derived to sustain human life. Humans interact with the physical and man-made environment and this interaction creates a complex, finely balanced set of structures and processes, which evolve over the history of a people. These structures and processes determine the culture of the society, their social behaviour, beliefs and superstition about health and diseases. Social relationships seem to protect individuals against behavioural disorders and they facilitate health promoting behaviour (Barlow and Durand, 1995; Ho Factors Influencing Sanitation Conditions Factors Influencing Sanitation Conditions ABSTRACT This thesis examines the socio-cultural and demographic factors influencing sanitation conditions, identifies the presence of Escherichia coli in household drinking water samples and investigates prevalence of diarrhoea among infants. It is based on questionnaire interviews of 120 household heads and 77 caretakers of young children below the age of 5years, direct observation of clues of household sanitation practice as well as analyses of household water samples in six surrounding communities in Bogoso. Data collected was analysed using SPSS and the Pearson Product Moment Correlation Value(R) technique. The findings revealed that the sanitation condition of households improved with high educational attainment and ageing household heads. On the contrary, sanitation deteriorated with overcrowding in the household. Furthermore, in houses where the religion of the head of household was Traditional, sanitation was superior to those of a Christian head and this household also had better sa nitary conditions than that with a Moslem head of household. Water quality analysis, indicated that 27 samples out of the 30 representing 90% tested negative for E. Coli bacteria whilst 17(56.7%) samples had acceptable levels of total Escherichia coli. Finally, it was found out that diarrhoea among infants were highly prevalent since 47 (61.04%) out of the 77 child minders admitted their wards had a bout with infant diarrhoea. Massive infrastructural development, supported by behavioural change education focussing on proper usage of sanitary facilities is urgently needed in these communities to reduce the incidence of public health diseases. Intensive health education could also prove vital and such programs must target young heads of household, households with large family size and households whose heads are Christians and Moslems. CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY Efforts to assuage poverty cannot be complete if access to good water and sanitation systems are not part. In 2000, 189 nations adopted the United Nations Millennium Declaration, and from that, the Millennium Development Goals were made. Goal 4, which aims at reducing child mortality by two thirds for children under five, is the focus of this study. Clean water and sanitation considerably lessen water- linked diseases which kill thousands of children every day (United Nations, 2006). According to the World Health Organization (2004), 1.1 billion people lacked access to an enhanced water supply in 2002, and 2.3 billion people got poorly from diseases caused by unhygienic water. Each year 1.8 million people pass away from diarrhoea diseases, and 90% of these deaths are of children under five years (WHO, 2004). Ghana Water and Sewerage Corporation (GWSC) had traditionally been the major stakeholder in the provision of safe water and sanitation facilities. Since the 1960s the GWSC has focussed chiefly on urban areas at the peril of rural areas and thus, rural communities in the Wassa West District are no exception. According to the Ghana 2003 Core Welfare Indicators Questionnaire (CWIQ II) Survey Report (GSS, 2005), roughly 78% of all households in the Tamale Metropolis, 97 percent in Accra, 86% in Kumasi and 94% in Sekondi-Takoradi own pipe-borne water. Once more, the report show that a few households do not own any toilet facilities and depend on the bush for their toilet needs, that is 2.1%, 7.3%, and 5% for Accra, Kumasi, and Sekondi-Takoradi correspondingly. Access to safe sanitation, improved water and improved waste disposal systems is more of an urban than rural occurrence. In the rural poor households, only 9.2% have safe sanitation, 21.1% use improved waste disposal method and 63.0 % have access to improved water. The major diseases prevalent in Ghana are malaria, yellow fever, schistosomiasis (bilharzias), typhoid and diarrhea. Diarrhea is of precise concern since it has been recognized as the second most universal disease treated at clinics and one of the major contributors to infant mortality (UNICEF, 2004). The infant mortality rate currently stands at about 55 deaths per 1,000 live births (CIA, 2006). The Wassa West District of Ghana has seen an improvement in water and sanitation facilities during the last decade. Most of the development projects in the district are sponsored by the mining companies, individuals and some non-governmental organisations (NGOs). Between 2002 and 2008, Goldfields Tarkwa Mine constructed 118 new hand dug wells (77 of which were fitted with hand pumps) and refurbished 48 wells in poor condition. Also, a total of 44 modern style public water closets, were constructed in their catchment areas. The company also donated 19 large refuse collection containers to the District Assembly and built 6 new nurses quarters. The Tarkwa Mine has so far spent 10.5million US dollars of which 26% went into health, water and sanitation projects, 24% into agricultural development, 31% into formal education and the remaining went into other projects like roads and community centre construction ( GGL, 2008). Golden Star Resources (consist of Bogoso/Prestea Mine and Wassa Min e at Damang) also established the community development department in 2005 and has since invested 800 thousand US dollars. Their projects include 22 Acqua-Privy toilets, 10 hand dug wells (all fitted with hand pumps) and supplied potable water to villages with their tanker trucks (BGL, 2007). Other development partners complimenting the efforts of the central government include NGOs WACAM, Care International and Friends of the Nation (FON). WACAM is an environmentally based NGO which monitors water pollution by large scale mining companies. They have sponsored about 10 hand dug wells for villages in the district. Care International sponsors hygiene and reproductive health programmes in schools and on radio. They have also donated a couple of motor bicycles to public health workers in the district who travel to villages. The aims of all these projects were to improve hygiene and sanitation so as to reduce disease transmission. Despite efforts by the development partners, water supply and sanitation related diseases are highly prevalent in the district. Data obtained from the Public and Environmental Health Department of the Ministry of Health (M.O.H., 2008) showed that the top ten most prevalent diseases in the district include malaria, acute respiratory infections, skin diseases and diarrhoea. The others are acute eye infection, rheumatism, dental carries, hypertension, pregnancy related complications and home/occupational accidents. A lot more illnesses occur but on a lower scale and these include intestinal worms, coughs and typhoid fever. A complete data on the top ten diseases prevalent in the district is attached as Appendix D but below is a selection of the illnesses that directly result from bad water and sanitation practices. The number of malaria cases decreased from 350 in 2006 to 300 cases per 1000 population in 2008. Despite the decrease, the values involved are still quite high. The incidence of diarrhoea among infants and acute respiratory infection remained 30 and 60 cases per 1,000 populations respectively. This can be attributed to several reasons, including population boom, lack of uninterrupted services and inadequate functioning facilities. In fact, according to the World Health Organization (WHO, 2004), an estimated 90% of all incidence of diarrhoea among infants can be blamed on inadequate sanitation and unclean water. For example, in a study of 11 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, only between 35-80% of water systems were operational in the rural areas (Sutton, 2004). Another survey in South Africa recognized that over 70% of the boreholes in the Eastern Cape were not working (Mackintosh and Colvin, 2003). Further examples of sanitation systems in bad condition have also been acknowledged in rural Ghana, where nearly 40% of latrines put up due to the support of a sanitation program were uncompleted or not used (Rodgers et al., 2007). The author had a personal communication with the District Environmental Officer and he estimated that, approximately there are 224 public toilets, 560 hand dug wells, 1,255 public standpipes and 3 well managed waste disposal sites in the district. According to the 2006 projection, the population of the district is expected to reach 295,753 by the end of the year 2009 (WWDA, 2006). Development partners in the past have concentrated their efforts on facilities provision only. They have not looked well at the possible causes of the persistence of disease transmission despite the effort they are making. Relationships between households socio cultural demographic factors and peoples behaviour with respect to the practice of hygiene could prove an essential lead to the solution of the problem. The fact is, merely providing a water closet does not guarantee that it could be adopted by the people and used well to reduce disease transmission. Epidemiological investigations have revealed that even in dearth supply of latrines, diarrhoeal morbidity can be reduced with the implementation of improved hygiene behaviours (IRC, 2001: Morgan, 1990). Access to waste disposal systems, their regular, consistent and hygienic use and adoption of other hygienic behavioural practices that block the transmission of diseases are the most important factors. In quite a lot of studies fro m different countries, the advancement of personal and domestic hygiene accounted for a decline in diarrhoeal morbidity (Henry and Rahim, 1990). The World Bank, (2003) identifies the demographic characteristics of the household including education of members, occupation, size and composition as influencing the willingness of the household to use an improved water supply and sanitation system. Education, especially for females results in well spaced child birth, greater ability of parents to give better health care which in turn contribute to reduced mortality rates among children under 5years (Grant, 1995). In a study into water resource scarcity in coastal Ghana, Hunter (2004) identified a valid association between household size, the presence of young children and the gender of the household head. It was noted that, female heads were less likely to collect water in larger households. Furthermore, increasing number of young children present increased the odds of female head/spouse being the household water collector. Cultural issues play active part in hygiene and sanitation behaviour especially among members of rural communities. For example, women are hardly seen urinating in public due to a perceived shame in the act but men can be left alone if found doing it. Also, the act of defecation publicly is generally unacceptable except when infants and young children are involved. The reason is that the faeces from young people are allegedly free from pathogens and less offensive (Drangert, 2004). Ismails (1999) work on nutritional assessment in Africa, detected that peoples demographic features, socioeconomic and access to basic social services such as food, water and electricity correlate significantly to their health and nutrition status. Specifically, factors such as age, gender, township status and ethnicity, which are basic to demography, can play a role in the quality of life especially of the elderly. This research assessed peoples practice of personal hygiene in Bogoso and surrounding villages. It also identified the common bacteria present in household stored water sources. Furthermore, the research identified the relationships between some socio-cultural demographic factors of households and the sanitation practice of its members. THE PROBLEM STATEMENT The Wassa West District in the Western Region is home to six large scale mining companies and hundreds of small scale and illegal mining units. Towns and villages in the district have been affected by mining, forestry and agricultural activities for over 120 years (BGL EIS, 2005). Because of this development, the local environment has been subjected to varying degrees of degradation. For example, water quality analysis carried out in 1989 by the former Canadian Bogoso Resources (CBR) showed that water samples had Total coliform bacteria in excess of 16 colonies per 100ml (BGL EIS,2005). Most of the water and sanitation programs executed in the district exerted little positive impact and thus, diarrhoeal diseases are still very high in the towns and villages (See Appendix D on page 80). However, in order to solve any problem it is important to appreciate the issues that contribute to it; after all, identifying the problem in itself is said to be a solution in disguise. Numerous health impact research have evidently recognized that the upgrading of water supply and sanitation alone is generally required but not adequate to attain broad health effects if personal and domestic hygiene are not given equivalent prominence (Scherlenlieb, 2003). The troubles of scarce water and safe sanitation provisions in developing countries have previously been dealt with by researchers for quite some time. However, until recent times they were mostly considered as technical and/or economic problems. Even rural water and sanitation issues are repeatedly dealt with from an entirely engineering point of view, with only a simple reference to social or demographic aspects. Therefore, relatively not much is proven how the socio-cultural demographic influences impinge on hygiene behaviour which in turn influences the transmission of diseases. The relationship between household socio cultural factors and the sanitation conditions of households in the Wassa West District especially the Bogoso Rural Council area has not been systematically documented or there is inadequate research that investigates such relationship. THE RESEARCH QUESTIONS The following research questions were posed to help address the objectives; Why are the several sanitation intervention projects failing to achieve desired results? Why is the prevalence of malaria and diarrhea diseases so high in the district? What types of common bacteria are prevalent in the stored drinking water of households? OBJECTIVES The main aim of this research was to investigate peoples awareness and practice of personal hygiene, access to quality water and sanitation and the possible causes of diarrhoeal diseases and suggest ways to reduce the incidence of diseases in the community. The specific objectives were; To assess the quality of stored household drinking water To establish the extent to which sanitation behaviour is affected by household socio-cultural demographic factors like age and education level of the head. To investigate the occurrence of diarrhoea among young children (0-59 months old) in the households. To identify and recommend good intervention methods to eliminate or reduce the outbreak of diseases and improve sanitation. HYPOTHESIS In addition to the above objectives, the following hypotheses were tested; Occurrence of infant diarrhoea in the household is independent on the educational attainment of child caretakers. There is no relationship between households background factors and the sanitation conditions of the household. CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW In this chapter, various literature related to the subject matter of study are reviewed. Areas covered are sanitation, hygiene, water quality and diarrhoeal diseases. Theories and models the study contributed to include USAIDs Sanitation Improvement Framework, the F diagram by Wagner and Lanois and the theory of Social learning. SANITATION Until recently, policies of many countries have focused on access to latrines by households as a principal indicator of sanitation coverage, although of late there has been a change and an expansion in understanding the term sanitation. Sanitation can best be defined as the way of collecting and disposing of excreta and community liquid waste in a germ-free way so as not to risk the health of persons or the community as a whole (WEDC, 1998). Ideally, sanitation should end in the seclusion or destruction of pathogenic material and, hence, a breach in the transmission pathway. The transmission pathways are well known and are potted and simplified in the F diagram (Wagner and Lanois 1958) shown below by figure 3.1. The more paths that can be blocked, the more useful a health and sanitation intervention program will be. It may be mentioned that the health impact indicators of sanitation programmes are not easy to define and measure, particularly in the short run. Therefore, it seems more reasonable to look at sanitation as a package of services and actions which taken together can have some bearing on the health of a person and health status in a community. According to IRC (2001:0), issues that need to be addressed when assessing sanitation would include: How complete the sanitation programme is in addressing major risks for transmitting sanitation-related diseases; Whether the sanitation programme adopted a demand driven approach, through greater peoples participation, or supply driven approach, through heavy subsidy; Whether it allows adjustment to peoples varying needs and payment; If the programme leads to measurably improved practices by the majority of men and women, boys and girls; If it is environmentally friendly. That is; if it does not increase or create new environmental hazards (IRC, 2001) Sanitation is a key determinant of both fairness in society and societys ability to maintain itself. If the sanitation challenges described above cannot be met, we will not be able to provide for the needs of the present generation without hindering that of future generations. Thus, sanitation approaches must be resource minded, not waste minded. HYGIENE Hygiene is the discipline of health and its safeguarding (Dorland, 1997). Health is the capacity to function efficiently within ones surroundings. Our health as individuals depends on the healthfulness of our environment. A healthful environment, devoid of risky substances allows the individual to attain complete physical, emotional and social potential. Hygiene is articulated in the efforts of an individual to safeguard, sustain and enhance health status (Anderson and Langton, 1961). Measures of hygiene are vital in the fight against diarrhoeal diseases, the major fatal disease of the young in developing countries (Hamburg, 1987). The most successful interventions against diarrhoeal diseases are those that break off the transmission of contagious agents at home. Personal and domestic hygiene can be enhanced with such trouble-free actions like ordinary use of water in adequate quantity for hand washing, bathing, laundering and cleaning of cooking and eating utensils; regular washing and change of clothes; eating healthy and clean foods and appropriate disposal of solid and liquid waste. Diarrheal Dise ases Diarrhoea can be defined in absolute or relative terms based on either the rate of recurrence of bowel movements or the constancy (or looseness) of stools (Kendall, 1996). Absolute diarrhoea is having more bowel movements than normal. Relative diarrhoea is defined based on the consistency of stool. Thus, an individual who develops looser stools than usual has diarrhoea even though the stools may be within the range of normal with respect to consistency. According to the United States Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2006), with diarrhoea, stools typically are looser whether or not the frequency of bowel movements is increased. This looseness of stool which can vary all the way from slightly soft to watery is caused by increased water in the stool. Increased amounts of water in stool can occur if the stomach and/or small intestine produce too much fluid, the distal small intestine and colon do not soak up enough water, or the undigested, liquid food passes too quickly through the small intestine and colon for them to take out enough water. Of course, more than one of these anomalous processes may occur at the same time. For example, some viruses, bacteria and parasites cause increased discharge of fluid, either by invading and inflaming the lining of the small intestine (inflammation stimulates the lining to secrete fluid) or by producing toxins (chemicals) that also fire up the lining to secrete fluid but without caus ing inflammation. Swelling of the small intestine and/or colon from bacteria or from ileitis/colitis can increase the haste with which food passes through the intestines, reducing the time that is available for absorbing water. Conditions of the colon such as collagenous colitis can also impede the capacity of the colon to soak up water. Escherichia coli O157:H7 is probably the most dreaded bacteria today among parents of young children. The name of the bacteria refers to the chemical compounds found on the bacteriums surface. Cattle are the main sources of E. coli O157:H7, but these bacteria also can be found in other domestic and wild mammals. E. coli O157:H7 became a household word in 1993 when it was recognized as the cause of four deaths and more than 600 cases of bloody diarrhoea among children under 5years in North-western United States (US EPA, 1996). The Northwest epidemic was traced to undercooked hamburgers served in a fast food restaurant. Other sources of outbreaks have included raw milk, unpasteurized apple juice, raw sprouts, raw spinach, and contaminated water. Most strains of E. coli bacteria are not dangerous however, this particular strain attaches itself to the intestinal wall and then releases a toxin that causes severe abdominal cramps, bloody diarrhoea and vomiting that lasts a week or longer. In small children and the elderly, the disease can advance to kidney failure. The good news is that E. coli O157:H7 is easily destroyed by cooking to 160F throughout. Reducing diarrhoea morbidity with USAIDs Framework To attain noteworthy improvement in reducing the number of deaths attributed to diarrhoea, its fundamental causes must be addressed. It is approximated that 90% of all cases of diarrhoea can be attributed to three major causes: insufficient sanitation, inadequate hygiene, and contaminated water (WHO 1997). According to USAID, for further progress to be made in the fight against diarrhoea, the concentration will need to include prevention, especially in child health programs. The first method, case management of diarrhoea, has been tremendously successful in recent years in reducing child mortality. The primary process of achieving effect has been through the initiation and operation of oral rehydration therapy; i.e. the dispensation of oral rehydration solution and sustained feeding (both solid and fluid, including breast milk). In addition, health experts have emphasized the need for caretakers to become aware of the danger signs early in children under their care and to obtain suitable, appropriate care to avoid severe dehydration and death. The second approach, increasing host resistance to diarrhoea, has also had some victory with the enhancement of a childs nutritional status and vaccination against measles, a familiar cause of diarrhoea. The third element is prevention through hygiene improvement. Although the health care system has dealt comprehensively with the symptoms of diarrhoea, it has done insufficiently to bring down the overall incidence of the disease. Despite a drop in deaths owing to diarrhoea, morbidity or the health burden due to diarrhoea has not decreased, because health experts are treating the symptoms but not addressing the causes. Thus, diarrhoeas drain on the health system, its effects on household finances and education, and its additional burden on mothers has not been mitigated . Programs in several countries have confirmed that interventions can and do reduce diarrhoea morbidity. A critical constituent of successful prevention efforts is an effective monitoring and appraisal strategy. In order to reduce transmission of faecal-oral diseases at the household level, for example, an expert group of epidemiologist and water supply and sanitation specialist concluded that three interventions would be crucial. These are: Safer disposal of human excreta, particularly of babies and people with diarrhoea. Hand washing after defecation and handling babies faeces and before feeding, eating and preparing food, and; Maintaining drinking water free from faecal contamination in the home and at the source (WHO, 1993). Studies on hand washing, as reported in Boot and Cairncross (1993), confirm that it is not only the act of hand washing, but also how well hands are washed that make a difference. To prevent diarrhoea, its causes must first be fully tacit. According to the USAIDs hygiene improvement framework, a thorough approach to diarrhoea at the national level must tackle the three key elements of any triumphant program to fight disease. These are; contact with the necessary hardware or technologies, encouragement of healthy behaviours, and assistance for long-term sustainability. The concept is explained by figure 3.3 below; The first part, water supply systems, addresses mutually the issue of water quality and water quantity, which reduces the risk of contamination of food and drink. Similarly, ensuring access to water supply systems can greatly ease the time women spend collecting water, allowing more time to care for young children and more time for income generating activities. The third element, household technologies and materials, refers to the increased accessibility to such hygiene supplies as soap (or local substitutes), chlorine, filters, water storage containers that have restricted necks and are covered, and potties for small children. The second element of the hardware component, toilet facilities, involves providing facilities to dispose off human excreta in ways that safeguard the environment and public health, characteristically in the form of numerous kinds of latrines, septic tanks, and water-borne toilets. Sanitation reporting is important because faecal contamination can spread from one household to another, especially in closely populated areas. WATER QUALITY STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES Water quality is defined in terms of the chemical, physical, and biological constituents in water. The word standards is used to refer to legally enforceable threshold values for the water parameters analyzed, while guidelines refer to threshold values that are recommended and do not have any regulatory status. This study employs the world health organization (WHO) and the Ghana standards board (GSB) standards and guidelines in determining the quality of water. Water Quality Requirements for Drinking Water – Ghana Standards The Ghana Standards for drinking water (GS 175-Part 1:1998) indicate the required physical, chemical, microbial and radiological properties of drinking water. The standards are adapted from the World Health Organizations Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality, Second Edition, Volume 1, 1993, but also incorporate national standards that are specific to the countrys environment. Physical Requirements The Ghana Standards set the maximum turbidity of drinking water at 5 NTU. Other physical requirements pertain to temperature, odour, taste and colour. Temperature, odour and taste are generally not to be objectionable, while the maximum threshold values for colour are given quantitatively as True Colour Units (TCU) or Hazen units. The Ghana Standards specify 5 TCU or 5 Hazen units for colour after filtration. The requirements for pH values set by the Ghana Standards for drinking water is 6.5 to 8.5 (GS 175-Part1:1998). Microbial Requirements The Ghana Standards specify that E.coli or thermotolerant bacteria and total coliform bacteria should not be detected in a 100ml sample of drinking water (0 CFU/100ml). The Ghana Standards also specify that drinking water should be free of human enteroviruses. WHO Drinking Water Guidelines Physical Requirements Although no health-based guideline is given by WHO (2006) for turbidity in drinking water, it is recommended that the median turbidity should ideally be below 0.1 NTU for effective disinfection. Microbial Requirements Like the Ghana Standards, no E.coli or thermotolerant bacteria should be detected in a 100 ml sample of drinking water. Water Related Diseases Every year, water-related diseases claim the lives of 3.4 million people, the greater part of whom are children (Dufour et. al, 2003). Water-related diseases can be grouped into four categories ( Bradley, 1977) based on the path of transmission: waterborne diseases, water-washed diseases, water-based diseases, insect vector-related diseases. Waterborne diseases are caused by the ingestion of water contaminated by human or animal faeces or urine containing pathogenic bacteria or viruses. These include cholera, typhoid, amoebic and bacillary dysentery and other diarrhoeal diseases. Water washed diseases are caused by poor personal hygiene and skin or eye contact with contaminated water. These include scabies, trachoma and flea, lice and tick-borne diseases. Water-based diseases are caused by parasites found in intermediate organisms living in contaminated water. These include dracunculiasis, schistosomiasis and other helminths. Water related diseases are caused by insect vectors, especially mosquitoes that breed in water. They include dengue, filariasis, malaria, onchocerciasis, trypanosomiasis and yellow fever. The Theory of Social Learning Learning is any relatively permanent change in behaviour that can be attributed to experience (Coon, 1989). According to the social learning theory, behavioural processes are directly acquired by the continually dynamic interplay between the individual and its social environment (Mc Connell, 1982). For example, children learn what to do at home by observing what happens when their siblings talk back to their parents or throw rubbish into the household compound. The learning process occurs through reinforcement and punishment. Reinforcement refers to any event that increases chances that a response will occur again (Coon, 1989). Reinforcement and punishment can be learned through education where the person can read about what happens to people as a result of actions they make. The elementary unit of society is the household and this can be defined as a residential group of persons who live under the same roof and eat out of the same pot (Friedman, 1992). Social learning is necessary for the household in acquiring the skills pertinent to the maintenance of health promoting behaviour. Most of our daily activities are learned in the household. Individuals begin to learn behaviour patterns from childhood by observing especially the parents and later on their siblings. The environment is understood as comprising the whole set of natural or biophysical and man-made or socio-cultural systems, in which man and other organisms live, work or interact (Ocran, 1999). The environment is human lifes supporting system from which food, air and shelter are derived to sustain human life. Humans interact with the physical and man-made environment and this interaction creates a complex, finely balanced set of structures and processes, which evolve over the history of a people. These structures and processes determine the culture of the society, their social behaviour, beliefs and superstition about health and diseases. Social relationships seem to protect individuals against behavioural disorders and they facilitate health promoting behaviour (Barlow and Durand, 1995; Ho