Psychology and Language: Research Proposal Essay

The relationship between psychology and language is a moot point among some scholars. However, when the two disciplines are taken into account in terms of their contrast and comparison, it merges jarringly clear that a relation exists between them. The two are either inextricably bound, or one of the discipline is overly dependent on the on the other. This study is aimed at unveiling the relations that exist between the two. And for this to be realized, the opinion of various targeted respondents will have to be solicited through interviews. Besides, scholarly opinion will also be collected and collated from publications, both recent and past. Their review will therefore assist to come up with a condensed conclusion about the study. In essence, this research will bring to the connection between the two disciplines, how one influences the development of another. Literature Review The relationship between language and psychology can hardly be gainsaid. Various scholars have delved into this discourse, offering their varied opinion supported by their informed arguments.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   According to some theories, language do exists as a system of signs, the meaning and implications of which are entirely dependent on their relation to other signs of the system, and of the structure of linguistic expressions in which they occur. Other theories have it that language is a system of syntactic forms which come ready made in the mind of the speaker from birth, and which gives speakers the competence to generate and understand infinitely many different propositions. And this is independent of the experience and knowledge that speakers have of that which they speak or of the context in which the propositions are generated and understood. (Paetorius, 98)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The study of languages, otherwise termed as linguistics can sometimes be a technical discipline with a reality and a vocabulary of its own. This best explains why psychologists have often waited for linguists to offer them education on the meaning of language.   This meaning helps the psychologists in the quest to further study its comprehension, processing and acquisition. (Tomasello, 1)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In The Grammar of Autobiography, Quigley aptly relates the two disciplines by arguing that psychology operates in an unstable, developing world that is open to change as a consequence of our communicative activity, rather than in the independent knowable reality of cognitive psychology. He adds that linking psychology with our social world is hardly a new phenomenon. Instead, proposing language as the mediator between the two is novel. (6) Currently, language isn’t only representative but also formative. It does functions to construct situations as they are, instead of just to reporting them. He argues that our thoughts aren’t just the source of our talk; they are constituted and/or formulated in our talk. Since psychology is the science of the mind, then the objects of psychology is not individuals but what goes on in the space between them. While studying the relation between words and world, it is not cognition but language that gives us the world. (6) In Language as Social Action: Social Psychology and Language Use, another scholar, Holtgraves, point out that language use is interpersonal in many ways. For one, it is a rich source of identity- relevant information. This is because many aspects of language use, for instance accent, speech rate and politeness level, provide crucial information that can be used by others in forming impressions of people. (6) Besides, many of these variables can be changed strategically as means of managing the impressions that people convey to others. Holtgraves therefore concludes that the use of language plays a significant role in both person perceptions; how people perceive one another and impression management: how people vary their talks strategically to achieve particular effects. (6) From the above discourse we can infer that the correlation between psychology and language is best demonstrated by the fact that words, which are the predominant tools of human communication bear meaning which are not independent from the though process of individuals. Michael Forrester argues in Psychology of Language: A Critical Introduction, that there has always existed a link between psychology and philosophy which has been close and occasionally complementary. And this is particularly the case within psychology of language, especially when the question of meaning arises. Therefore it is hard, even impossible to discuss to discuss language as such without looking into the nature of meaning. This makes it difficult o consider key topics in language for instance, communication, language acquisition and comprehension, without the understanding of what is at issue when people use the word ‘meaning’. (56) Forrester adds that the use of a word or a phrase in appropriate way makes one immediately accountable for whatever they say. As a result, we assume that people mean what they say and also intend others will understand the acceptable meaning of the utterance and act accordingly. Therefore, language without meaning is not language at all. This overview study of meaning, otherwise termed as semantics, makes it clear that although there are particular gains in adopting approaches where appropriate, any consideration of what language user mean when they make an utterance in context imputes us to go beyond truth-conditional semantics. In sum, the contemporary study of semantics can hardly be taken without due consideration of the function of language. (56) One universal design feature of language is that their meaning bearing form is that they are divided into two different subsystems: the open class otherwise known as the lexical and the closed class otherwise refereed to as the grammatical. The difference between the two is that open classes do have many members and can easily add many more. These include nouns, verbs and adjectives. On the other hand, closed classes have relatively few members and are hard difficult to augment. They consist of such bound forms as inflections as found in verbs and such free forms as prepositions, conjunction and determinants. The meaning that open-class forms do express are virtually unrestricted, whereas those of closed-class forms are highly constrained both as the conceptual category they can refer to and as to the particular member notions within any such category. (Tomassello, 15) In essence language has a more profound implication s fro our social existence. It plays a role in virtually every aspect of our dealings with others.   Therefore understanding what we are doing when we use language can help us to understand what it means to be a social being. (Holtgrave, 8)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Possibilities have been explored for studying language at its functional roots as well as its structural realization. This is in the sense that human speech may be formed by general adaptive semantics at the limbic core of the brain as it is then articulated within specific sensory and motor routines of the neocortical shell. (Givon and Malle, 71) This argument can be made on anatomical grounds, interpreting function through the density of connections. It can also be made on psychological grounds, interpreting the excitability of limbic-cortical connections as reflective of the process of memory consolidation. (Givon and Malle, 71)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Research Hypothesis The conduction of this research will involve both the independent and dependent variables. The independent variables in this study are language as a tool that facilitates communication and psychology as the science of the mind. On the other hand the dependent variables are language speakers, communication and psychologists.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The independent variable in this study are related to the dependent variable in that, it is from the language speakers that the in-depth meaning of words is unveiled, further revealing the underlying intentions behind the spoken words. This relations goes ahead to shed additional light on how the mind is the source of words. Therefore, the spoken word does betray the intention of the mind. The other independent variable, in this case the psychologists, through their informed opinions help to shape the realism and surrealism of the link between psychology and language. Research Methods Research Design The relevant data that will facilitate the comprehensive conclusion of this study will be gathered by the use of both qualitative and quantitative techniques. In essence, both primary and secondary data will be whereas probability and non-probability methods of sampling will be employed in selecting the representative sample of the population.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Target Population. The study will be conducted nation-wide amongst language students (those learning a new language), language teachers, linguists and psychologists. The targeted respondents will fall within the age bracket of 16 and 60 years of age.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Data Collection Instruments For constructive findings to be reached, this study will warrant that various instruments of data collection be employed. For one, quantitative data will be collected by the use of structured interviews: questionnaires will be served to the targeted populations, with questions bearing some slight differences according to the specific ages or occupation of the respondents. Other quantitative data will be gathered by the use of service statistics, which will compare the results of a particular previous relevant studies conducted nationwide. Secondary data sources from books, magazines, journals and legal documents will also offer quantitative data. On the other hand, qualitative data will be gathered through unstructured interviews, whereby experts in law and sociology will be interviewed. Qualitative data will also be gathered from focus group discussions, direct observation in the court proceedings and juvenile jail routine, and content analysis of published material.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Expected Results This study will likely reach the following results: It is anticipated that most respondents will concur with the fact that there is a relation between language and psychology; this response is likely to come from linguists, language scholars and psychologists, who through in-depth study have come into access of this relation. The relationship between language and psychology can easily escape the knowledge of many. This is expected to be the confession of many language speakers who have never had the opportunity through study to both consider how the two disciplines differ and compare. They of course will confess their ignorance about the subtle technical similarities and difference between the two disciplines. However, given a chance to muse over it, the above respondents will readily agree that there is a relation between the two disciplines. This will come easily since they can visualize the link between their thoughts and words. The literature from which the secondary data in this study will be gathered will likely demonstrate views of the correlation between the two disciplines. Some scholars will definitely beg to differ with this argument, though they are not going to outnumber those who support the argument that indeed a relationship exists between the two. Reference Michael Tomassello, The New Psychology of Language: Cognitive and Functional Approaches   to Languages   Structure, 1. Nini Praetorius, (2003) Principles of Cognition, Language and Action, 98.   Thomas M. Holtgraves (200) Language as Social Action: Social Psychology and Language Use,   6, 8. Givon and Bertram F. Malle (2002) The Evolution of Language out of Pre-Language, 71. Jean Quigley, The Grammar of Autobiography, 6. Michael A. Forrester, (1996) Psychology of Language: A Critical Introduction, 56.   

Ceo – Kevin Plank

Kevin Plank, the Chief Executive Officer and President of Under Armour (UA), is an entrepreneurial hero that was recently added to the Forbes 400 list. He is also seen on other lists such as Forbes 40 under 40 and America’s 20 most Powerful CEOs 40 and Under. The youngest of five brothers, Plank always had the entrepreneurial spirit and a competitive drive to win. He started shoveling snow at the age of ten and held several jobs throughout his school days. He even had a small annual business, Cupid’s Valentine, which sold roses for Valentine’s Day.Plank says he put away $17,000 from the rose business, which was used as the start-up money for UA. Plank played football for Maryland, and as recalled by his teammates, he wasn’t the â€Å"biggest guy† or the â€Å"fastest guy,† but the one who â€Å"worked harder than anyone. † What he learned over the years on the football field is still used by him and has helped make him one of the most successful entrepreneurs today. In all the stories about Planks childhood, schooling, athletic, and professional careers, he is described as an outgoing, people person.On the Big Five Personality Trait chart, he would be high on extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness and openness to experience. He always wanted to win, was good at motivating his teammates, he got along well with everyone and he was original and daring to take a risk and start up his own business. His internal locus of control probably contributed to him starting his own sports apparel business. Instead of being frustrated and blaming outside forces, he was able to figure out how to make it better and use it to his advantage.The story of Under Armour begins in Maryland where Plank was a walk-on special-teams football player at the University of Maryland in 1995. He was fed up of having to change shirts often during his games and practice because he would sweat so much, his shirts would weigh him down and feel uncomfortable. During his senior year, he was in his dorm room drawing the first UA shirt. His idea was to combine the snug fit of a Hanes cotton T-shirt and the lightness and fast-drying texture of synthetic, stretchy fabrics used in women’s lingerie or compression shorts. His first batch cost him $480 for seven prototypes from a local tailor.He had his teammates at the University test out the ingenious â€Å"performance apparel† that would wick the sweat from their bodies and make them lighter and faster. With positive feedback, he ordered 500 more shirts from the New York Garment district and gave them to his high school and college teammates and also mailed them to college and professional football player friends from around the country. Player recommendations were very important to the success of his start-up company. He always emphasized that â€Å"making yourself look bigger than you were† is important.Starting in his grandmothers basement, using his $17 ,000 in savings, running up $40,000 in credit card debt and with great athletes on board he was on course to a successful sports apparel company, which can compete with the likes of Nike and Adidas. Plank noted in 2010: â€Å"We went from $17,000 in revenue in 1996 to $110,000 in 1997 to $400,000 to $1. 3 million to $5 million to $20 million, $50million, $115, $205, $285, $405, $606, $725 and this last (third quarter of fiscal 2009) quarter $837 million. It’s one of those only-in-America stories that went from 1 employee to more than 2,700 today. In 2012 the company is worth over $1. 4 billon with over 4,000 employees, and is expected to have revenues of over $1. 8 billion this year. In the beginning Plank served as both CEO and the entire sales force for UA, selling his performance shirts up and down the east coast out of his car, with his head quarters in his grandmothers basement. Today, he has 63% share in UA’s stocks, and his headquarters in Baltimore, MD with in ternational sales throughout North America, Europe and even some parts of Asia. UA has taken over 3% of the athletic apparel market share in 11 years compared to Nikes 7%.If Plank continues to set high goals for his company, they are bound to be as popular as or even more so than their competitors Nike, Adidas and other athletic apparel companies. As stated earlier, Kevin Plank still uses what he learned on the football team. He runs his company like it’s a team; he is the Captain/Coach and each employee is a team member. The company refers to meetings as â€Å"Under Armour Huddles,† which include rules such as: â€Å"be prepared to huddle,† â€Å"manage the clock,† â€Å"know your position,† â€Å"run the huddle,† â€Å"execute the play† and â€Å"respect your teammates. An Under Armour manufacturing manager in Asia explained: â€Å"We do not have a front end and a back end, we have offense and defense. We do not have colleagues, w e have teammates. We do not have meetings, we have huddles. Everything is related to sports. † Her statement hits the core of Corporate Under Armour. In many of the articles online, it is clear that Plank is still a humble and regular person. He keeps in touch with his old teammates and friends and is a very personable individual. Plank definitely shows organizational commitment. After graduating college he started this ompany and invested everything he had. He believes his company to be young and uses the analogy that â€Å"UA, at 16, is not unlike a 16-year-old. It’s a good kid, but still screws up sometimes. By 21, he reasons, the kid will be more mature. Plank has managed to stay in charge of Under Armour as it went from being a startup to an established company. He believes that what he can get the company to â€Å"has been galaxies beyond what anyone else ever dreamed. † His was the first brand to disrupt an industry in a down economy where many businesses were shutting down.He is not afraid to explore unorthodox ideas and implement them to make his company more established. Looking at the Trait Model of leadership we can evaluate the characteristics that Kevin Plank displays. First, with Intelligence, knowledge and experience, it is seen that Plank took a problem he had with sweat soaked shirts that weighed him down during football games, came up with a solution and was able to implement it and spread the idea. He also shows dominance and self-confidence because since the day his company started he has worked in almost every position including: research, development, sales, marketing and leading.Because he knows every detail of his business, he can walk with confidence knowing that his employees look up to him and can go to him with questions and concerns. Also, because he treats his company like a football team, he is knows to always show high energy. He walks to his â€Å"huddles† wearing under armour gear (UA Polo, sneaker s, etc. ) and talks to his â€Å"team† as he was a coach preparing them for a game. In an interview with leadersmag. com, Plank was asked what his management style is. He emphasized that UA is an empowering brand and that like the brand he wants to inspire people. Empowerment is the process of giving employees at all levels the authority to make decisions, be responsible for their outcomes, improve quality and cut costs. † When Plank hires someone he wants to make sure that they bring in someone innovative, and someone capable of thinking for themselves and come up with better more efficient ways of doing things. In another interview on Inc. com, Plank was asked how he kept his employees motivated. He responded saying, â€Å"motivation, passion, and focus have to come from the top. He believes that attitudes are contagious and how he feels about the company is how his employees are going to see it. Also, he talks about the importance of communication, and how employees feel more motivated when they feel needed, appreciated, and valued. He can’t necessarily meet with every single one of his employees, but he still goes out of his way to meet the employees that are going above and beyond. He then strategically places them throughout his company so that their attitudes reflect on the other employees.From his responses to those interview questions, it is pretty simple to see that he is more of a Relationship-oriented leader. Although he wants innovation in his company, he sees it as important that the employees are taken care of and the moral is always high. The â€Å"culture† at the headquarters in Baltimore is very unorthodox. They have it set up on the inside like a little football field almost, where the employees can take breaks and throw around a foot ball, go for a jog, or even lift weights. The 23-year-old Kevin Plank took a problem he had, was innovative, and came up with a solution.Starting from his dorm room, followed by his grandmother’s basement, he never gave up on his idea and till this day, his views and what he expects from Under Armour are beyond what anyone can imagine or comprehend. Plank is now 40 years old and was recently inducted to the Fortune 400, a lit of the wealthiest people in America. From humble beginnings and a drive to achieve greatness, he has become part of the sport apparel industry and is challenging established companies such as Nike and Adidas. The mission statement for UA is â€Å"TO MAKE ALL ATHLETES BETTER THROUGH PASSION, DESIGN AND THE RELENTLESS PURSUIT OF INNOVATION. UA promises us to always come up with bigger and better ideas to improve athletes everywhere. Also, Plank proves himself to be a true entrepreneur. He mentions â€Å"There’s an entrepreneur right now, scared to death, making excuses, saying, ‘It’s not the right time just yet. ’ There is no such thing as a good time†¦ Get out of your garage and go take a chance, and start your business. † That is very inspirational because many times great innovators get stuck with the idea because they are too afraid to take the first step. Kevin Plank can be looked upon as a role model for entrepreneurship and endurance against odds.He is also a very influential CEO because even after 16 years, UA is still moving up with no intentions of ever selling out or being lame. Works Cited Brown, Abram. â€Å"Under Armour Sprints To Higher Sales And Profits, Lifts Full-Year Outlook. † Forbes 24 July 2012: 45. Print. Dessauer, Carin. â€Å"Team Player. For Under Armour CEO and Kensington Native Kevin Plank, It’s Always Been about the Huddle. † BethesdaMagazine. com Mar. 2009: n. pag. Print. Jones, Gareth R. , and Jennifer M. George. Essentials of Contemporary Management. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2004. Print. Melby, Caleb. Meet The 20 Newcomers To The Forbes 400. † Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 19 Sept. 2012. Web. 13 Nov. 2012. . Roberts, Daniel . â€Å"Under Armour Gets Serious. † Fortune 7 Nov. 2011: 152-62. Print. Subramanian, Ram, and Pradeep Gopalakrishna. â€Å"Under Armour. † Business Case Journal 19. 2 (2012): 62-83. Print. â€Å"Under Armour’s Kevin Plank on How to Motivate Employees. † Interview by Ben Chase. Inc 1 June 2009: n. pag. Web. â€Å"An Empowering Brand. An Interview with Kevin A. Plank, President, CEO, and Chairman of the Board, Under Armour, Inc. † Leaders Aug. -Sept. 2012: 18. Web.

Interest Group Profile Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Interest Group Profile - Assignment Example It has no board of directors, but rather Norquist makes all broad decisions on objectives, goals, finances etc. himself. The group indicates it has a state chapter in every state, but information on the structures and size of those chapters is not available publically on the group’s website. It has a number of affiliated groups, all of whom have similar low-tax goals. The most prominent of those groups include the cost of government centre, the Stop Etax group, and the Alliance for Worker Freedom, which pushes for so called â€Å"right to work† legislation that weakens union memberships. Grover Norquist and Americans for Tax Reform have one main accomplishment, which is not legislative in nature but has shaped the state of congress for more than a decade. This is called the â€Å"Taxpayer Protection Pledge† – which essentially amounts to a declaration that a Congressperson is asked to sign, indicating that they will never, regardless of circumstances, rais e taxes in any way (meaning, broadly speaking, that they will not allow the government to raise more revenue, so if loopholes are closed then tax rates must be lowered an appropriate amount). To date, every single Republican member of congress has signed this pledge, and it has shaped public policy debate for years, especially in the last four years since Barack Obama was elected as president. It has also pushed the Republican party rightwards historically, as any Republican who refused to sign the pledge would face a primary challenge from someone who would. Though this is not legally binding (obviously), the pledge has provided serious trouble to some politicians in the current environment, when a majority of Americans agree that taxes should be raised on the wealthy. They either have to demonstrate that they do not hold to their election promises, making their chances for re-nomination or re-election much more difficult, or must continue to hold to a pledge that is growing increa singly unpopular and could even mean not doing what they think is right given the circumstances in the economy at the moment. Americans for Tax Reform is structured as a non-for-profit and thus does not have a Super PAC but rather has a 501(c)(4), a separate kind of entity that focuses on â€Å"issue ads† and does not have to disclose its donor roles. It has spent somewhere in the range of the tens of millions of dollars, all of which went to supporting Republican candidates or opposing Democratic ones. It is interesting to note that this group also spends a great deal of money in pushing for particular candidates during Republican primaries, seemingly trying to select the most anti-tax, conservative leaning politician. This non-for-profit technically does not even list itself as a lobbyist, because it does not actively lobby members of congress, rather, it focuses on pushing them to sign pledges before being elected into office. It has, in general, been one of the greatest f orces pushing the country rightwards since 1985, a date from which, it is

Consistent Application of IAS on European on Companies Essay

Consistent Application of IAS on European on Companies - Essay Example The Europe Union has been aiming to have an efficient capital market (Toporowski, 2000; Davis, 1997; Dermine and Hillion, 1999) for its Member States through an efficient and effective financial information system in a transparent European capital market even prior to the Enron scandal in 2002.   The subsequent US scandals in securities market may have triggered the early adoption of IAS in 2002 to require its application to all listed companies in Europe as of 2005. For EU, the issue of efficient capital market is of course broader than the issue of these international standards. Attainment of EU’s purpose therefore under this field is part of its desire for economic advantages (Carroll, Thomas, 1983; Slavin, 1996; Samuelson and Nordhaus, 1992)   of its   member states in the global economy as it hastens its economic integration (Graetz, et. al, 2006; Halkos and Salamouris, 2003, European Economic Integration, 1994). The Enron scandal cannot be separated from the failur e of the US generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) on financial reporting (Choi and Fisch, 2003) that became the basis for the European Union (EU) members to be unable to find their trust on said accounting rules and conventions.   Persuading the US to change its GAAP with the IAS due to ineffectiveness of the former in the Enron scandal is part of the process. With European Commission having urged the SEC to adopt IAS in February 2002, an overwhelming adoption of the IAS by European Parliament in March 13, 2002 was evident by a vote of 492 for, 5 against and 29 abstentions. The European Parliament endorsed the Commission’s proposal for all EU listed companies to follow standards issued by the International Accounting Standards Board in their consolidated financial statements not latter than 2005.   Non-listed companies on the other hand were permitted to decide whether to adopt IAS. Member States were also given the option to exempt some companies temporarily fr om IAS requirement under some cases until 2007. The option is only available in the case listed companies in the EU and in on a non-EU exchange and are following another set of internationally accepted standards and in the case of   companies that have only publicly traded debt securities (Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, 2008e).  

Viual Aid and Gantt Chart Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Viual Aid and Gantt Chart - Essay Example The high coÃ'•t of breakdown maintenance could be unbearable Ã'•uch that the need for preventive maintenance becomeÃ'• obviouÃ'•. The Ã'•afety of equipment and employee iÃ'• improved by preventive maintenance Ã'•erviceÃ'•. ThiÃ'• haÃ'• Ã'•ignificant impact on the production proceÃ'•Ã'•. Reaching maximum plant availability through minimal delayÃ'• and breakdownÃ'• and optimal equipment working condition reduceÃ'• or eliminateÃ'• the need for Ã'•ubcontracting Ã'•ome aÃ'•pectÃ'• of the job (Chen and Liao, 2005; Cheung et al., 2005). ThiÃ'• haÃ'• a reducing effect on the uÃ'•ually large maintenance budget of many organizationÃ'•. Maintenance Ã'•cheduling iÃ'• uÃ'•ually baÃ'•ed on preventive maintenance activitieÃ'• (Oke, 2004). In an organization where a large number of equipment are operated, preventive maintenance Ã'•cheduling offerÃ'• a meanÃ'• of achieving continuouÃ'• induÃ'•trial operationÃ'• without which Ã'†¢yÃ'•tem Ã'•uÃ'•tenance would be extremely difficult. Ð…ince the coÃ'•t of implementing preventive maintenance Ã'•cheduling iÃ'• more economical than that of replacing broken down equipment, in the long term, it iÃ'• more economical to implement thiÃ'• maintenance option. Ð…ound maintenance Ã'•cheduling iÃ'• indiÃ'•penÃ'•able for high maintenance performance, which in turn facilitateÃ'• the production proceÃ'•Ã'• to yield maximum output. ThiÃ'• iÃ'• attained when preventive maintenance Ã'•upportÃ'• continuouÃ'• improvement programmeÃ'•. Effective maintenance Ã'•cheduling requireÃ'• Ã'•pecific time and labor allocation, knowledge of equipment hiÃ'•tory, Ã'•pareÃ'• availability, knowledge of work and facility priority rating, job Ã'•pecification, etc.

Social Commentators and Modern American Society Research Paper

Social Commentators and Modern American Society - Research Paper Example This is done in light of the fictitious characters and plots that may either be based on fact, or on fiction. In fact, there are many who have successfully pointed out that change emanates from literary works. As literary works are read and analyzed, life in the society gets revisited, with benevolent values being strengthened and malevolent ones being abrogated; and hence the exaction of reforms. Summary On one hand, Gilman’s novel Herland was published in 1915 by the Forerunner and depicts a utopia of a female-only society which reproduces through pathogenesis. The culmination of this development is the realization of an ideal fully functioning social order which is devoid of war, oppression and subservience. On the other hand, there is playwright Arthur’s Miller Death of a Salesman was first premiered on February 10th, 1949. The play is about a father who has a lot of expectations on his sons, especially Biff. Later on, he comes to the harsh reality that he has not b een perfect himself, and commits suicide as an artifice to help Biff start a business. He kills himself in a traffic accident so that his insurer can indemnify Biff and Happy. He assumes that with the indemnity, Biff can start off a business. Interpretive analysis students on key themes: Who were Charlotte Perkins Gilmore and Arthur Miller Arthur A. Miller (1915- 2005) was an American essayist and playwright. Not only did Miller leave a lasting impact in American theatre industry, but he also remained a public figure in the Interwar and the Cold War periods. Miller’s dexterity in literary works is underscored by the Prince of Asturias and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama Awards. Miller’s consciousness for American politics is well underscored by several instances in which he castigated the unjust racist systems in America, even before civil rights movement made an advent. Charlotte Perkins Gilmore (July 3rd, 1860- August 17th, 1935) was an American writer, novelist, poet, short storyteller, sociologist, a nonfiction writer, social reformer, a lecturer and a feminist. As a matter of fact, many scholars and analysts have grouped Gilman as a utopian feminist, since her works were exceptionally suited for women. The veracity of this standpoint is well exemplified by the novel Herland, where she envisions a world that is strictly populated by women and as such, is totally perfect. The Literary Devices Gilmore and Miller Used to Write Their Works there are many literary devices that Miller and Gilmore used to communicate their message. Miller in the play, The Death of a Salesman strongly uses flashbacks to weave his plotline together and into a complex whole. This is seen in the instance where Willy, an old salesperson remembers an instance where he overstated his earnings, and only got to admit this folly when his wife Linda calculated his commission and found an anomaly. It is in this same instance where Willy remembers his conversation with his wife whe re he complained about feeling inadequate about his looks. His wife Linda reassures him that he is good looking. At this point, the playwright lets the audience and analysts into Willy’s insecurity. It is insecurity that leads him into overstating his earnings, and

Discuss the history (literature), art, sculpture, architecture, other Essay

Discuss the history (literature), art, sculpture, architecture, other archaeological nds, inscriptions, coins, and so forth abou ROMAN VILLAS - Essay Example o sectors in the Britain, those who were known as the well-off only had to occupy the villas and the poor who were the majority occupied the Celtic houses. The villas have paints on the tops which were different and the changing artistic styles. The walls were not or never plastered, this different information in the artist’s works was mostly borrowed from the Greeks art. The arts found in the Romans are presumed to be borrowed from the Greek hence most of the art work of the Roman villas and the Greek villas are same and closely related (Elaine K. Gazda). The presences of the Romans villas in other provinces show Romanization and the acceptance of the architectural forms and practices by the local elite. The proliferation of the villas in the Italy is a drastic transformation of the economy, it is regarded as capitalism in the empire and it was a clear indication of division in the social class. The villas are considered in two forms; the social and the economic way in which the intensity of change between different empires are considered (Grant). The roman art is considered in two ways; the public work and the private work. The public work is more pronounce than the private because as it’s per the public monument will always continue to provide a chronological armature in the field of the roman art with abroad view of the history. The public work of the roman art is more commemorate major historical events, religious rites and imperial policies through public monuments which express the collective ideas and achievements of the roman people. For the work of the private sphere it is upon them to turn forms and images that express the personal belief, taste and self-perceptions of the Romans. This art work helps to know the place and the position of individuals (Kemp). The private work art poses certain problem in that the scant documentation is available to student of art but the student is outside the purview of the official Rome. Also the meaning of the

Andrew Jackson and the Tariff or Bank Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Andrew Jackson and the Tariff or Bank - Essay Example Jackson’s problem with the Second Bank started when he noticed that the Bank controlled most of the country’s financial issues; loans, monetary notes, and deposits. According to Jackson, this was a threat to his re-election since it manipulated the voting patterns and the electoral process. He settled with the decision of seeing to it that the Bank is shut down. The Bank noticed the move Jackson was plotting against it making it to initiated counter moves. The Bank embarked on negotiating for an early four-year re-charter from the Congress which succeeded. However, Jackson and his team formulated a veto against the re-charter when it came time for its approving it. Jackson supported his decision by reiterating that the Bank’s policies were contrary to what the government promoted equality, fairness, and honesty. The veto went to Congress which, unfortunately, was unable to overturn it. After the polls, Jackson was again determined to destroy the Bank by withdrawi ng governments fund from it. That was done through the Treasury ordering all government deposits be put in state banks (Sauers & Weber 14). Jackson’s conflict with the Bank resulted in a nationwide panic when the Second Bank stopped giving out loans. Although Jackson was protecting his self-interest, it was at the cost of the country which suffered in turn. His fellow Democrats were terrified with his moves resulting in there demise from the party. All in all the moves against the Bank proved to be successful since it died in 1834 and Jackson  triumphed.

Human Services Theory Design and Specification Essay

Human Services Theory Design and Specification - Essay Example The cosmopolitan structure of today’s society has also put great pressure on society and specially the young minds who are bombarded with a plethora of pressures through media, family circumstances and multifarious social patterns prevalent in the society. No wonder that their young minds fail to cope up with this enormous pressure and the modern medical fraternity looks at shortcuts to solve the problem at one go. My design to overcome this problem will be to create an environment and facility for such children where they are brought in contact with nature and protect them completely from the diversions and pressures brought on by the onslaught of technology. Such facilities can be developed in form of institutions which are ideally located in rural areas which abound with natural beauty and balance. The children need to be reared as young saplings and education needs to be delivered by imbibition rather than by forcing a prescribed curriculum on them. The facility needs the capability to house, feed and nurture the children in a non polluted and healthy environment. The major problem with today’s parenting is the preoccupation of both in their own jobs and responsibilities with the child left at the mercy of either baby sitters or nursery schools and crà ¨ches where they are left at the mercy of mechanical employees. Children are exposed to too much television which keeps them hypnot ized to a screen. No wonder they are found wanting in learning the simplest of skills which the children in the pre TV era did automatically. Increased artificial mobility in cars and other means of transportation has made them forget walking and running. This leads to the piling up of certain neurotransmitters in the brain which otherwise would have been harmonized and balanced due to physical activity. The facility I envisage in the form of special

Ethical Concerns and Background for Tobacco Companies Essay

Ethical Concerns and Background for Tobacco Companies - Essay Example The purpose of this paper is to discuss and analyze the unethical actions of the tobacco industry. Cigarettes are one of the most addictive drugs in the world due to the fact that it contains nicotine. People that smoke cigarettes are slowing killing themselves since smoking causes lung cancer, heart diseases, and stroke among other diseases. Cigarette smoking causes the death of approximately 5 million per year and the number of yearly deaths is expected to climb to 8 million by the year 2030 (Cdv, 2012). The ethnic group that smokes the most in the United States is Indian Americans possibly due to the fact that tobacco smoking has been ingrained into their culture. One of the most unethical aspects about cigarette companies is the fact that people that do not smoke are at danger due to second hand smoking. It is estimated that 53,800 innocent people die each year from second hand smoking (No-smoke, 2012). The tobacco companies are willingly producing a product that puts at risk the health of the entire global population. Tobacco companies are generating billions of dollars in revenues, but the industry is not accountable for the damage it causes to society. The governments of all 210 countries around the world are suffering a major financial blow due to the actions of this unethical industry. It is estimated that the tobacco industry is costing society $193 billion a year in lost productivity and health care expenditures. Everyone suffers from this epidemic due to the fact that the medical expenses of ill people that suffer from lung cancer and other diseases caused by smoking are passed on to the payers of medical plans. The United States has one of the highest medical costs in the world. Since tobacco smoking does not discriminate between smokers and non-smokers nobody is safe. Tobacco smoking is extremely dangerous in certain demographic groups such as minors and pregnant women. Usually under age teenagers try cigarette smoking for the first time during hi gh school. Due to the addiction of the drug people that smoke early in life are more susceptible to becoming lifetime smokers. Some of the health problems caused by tobacco smoking among children and teens include coughing spells, frequent headaches, respiratory illnesses, reduced physical fitness, shortness of breath, and addiction to nicotine (Cancer, 2012). Adults that smoke should try to avoid smoking around children. Smoking is extremely dangerous for women that are pregnant. Smoking is harmful to the pregnant women and the unborn baby. Babies that are born from pregnant women that smoke are more likely to have birth defects and premature pregnancies. Pregnant women should also avoid being near smokers during pregnancy due to the fact that second hand smoking can also hurt the unborn child. One of the reasons that that tobacco companies are so powerful is due to the fact that governments place hefty taxes on the sale of cigarettes. In 2006 in the United States the government wa s generating $2 in taxes for every box of 20 cigarettes sold (Axdor, 2006). The government has become dependent on the tax revenues generated by cigarettes. Tobacco companies have also over their history utilized questionable advertising tactics. Their promotions make it seem as if smoking is something cool and safe when in reality it is a heath hazard. The time has come for the world to take a stronger stance

Antebellum America Essay Example for Free

Antebellum America Essay Regions are specializing The period of time in America before the civil war proved to bring out the specialties in each region. The West brought America true farming and allowed livestock to succeed. The eastern part of America prevailed in industrialization, creating many cities and businesses. The southern part of the United States was the dominated by slavery, plantains, and growing cotton. America had many skills but these talents were not mixed well, and each region had its very own specialty. The west began expanding at an extremely fast rate, and the best use for the land as to provide food for America. Livestock began to take over the West, and helped providing America with many animals. The west looked to provide for America by growing plants, due to the very fertile soil. The west quickly became known as the nations breadbasket. The sold animals and crops to America, and this westward expansion developed a talent that America craved. The west played a role in the antebellum period of America, but didnt nearly touch the relationship issues between the east and south. The northeastern states of America were advancing in their talent of industry. Textile mills flourished and business became widely known in the east of the Unites States. The east contained eighty-one percent of Americas industrial capacity, and this specialization of industry continued in antebellum America. The big industry, business, and many opportunities brought many people to the north east. As a result, many families and people came to start a business of their own. The northeast gained many supporters due to its business attraction, an important factor in the nearby Civil War. This industry sparked a talent in America that only the east could accomplish.

Virtue theory Essay Example for Free

Virtue theory Essay Abstract: This paper develops and explores a pedagogical innovation for integrating virtue theory into business students basic understanding of general management. Eighty-seven students, in 20 groups, classified three managers real-time videotaped activities according to an elaboration of Aristotles cardinal virtues, Fayols management functions, and Mintzbergs managerial roles. The studys empirical evidence suggests that, akin to Fayols functions and Mintzbergs roles, Aristotles virtues are also amenable to operationalization, reliable observation, and meaningful description of managerial behavior. The study provides an oft-called-for empirical basis for further work in virtue theory as an appropriate conceptual framework for the study and practice of management. The results indicate that virtue theory may be used to re-conceive our fundamental understanding of management, alongside its capacity to weigh moral judgment upon it. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed. Neither by nature, then, nor contrary to nature do the virtues arise in us; rather we are adapted by nature to receive them, and are made perfect by habit. we become just by doing just acts, temperate by doing temperate acts, brave by doing brave acts. —Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics V irtue theory has generated increasing interest among moral philosophers (e. g. , Maclntyre, 1981) and business ethicists (e. g. , Hartman, 1998; Koehn, 1995; Mintz, 1996; Moberg, 1999). While limitations of virtue theory have been justly noted (Koehn, 1998), scholars have effectively drawn on Aristotles (1999) virtues to help business students develop their moral capacities (Hartman, 1998; Mintz, 1996; Solomon, 1992). However, a significant challenge remains to help business students incorporate ethical concerns into a more integrated understanding of the practice of management (Park, 1998) and enhance their ability to recognize ethical issues (Gautschi and Jones, 1998). Our study seeks to address the moral integration problem by exploring a pedagogical strategy aimed at providing business students a moral lens via placing the virtues alongside other well-known frameworks of management. In  ©2001. Business Ethics Quarterly, Volume H, Issue 4. ISSN 1052-150X. pp. 561-574 562. BUSINESS ETHICS QUARTERLY particular, students enrolled in a general management course were asked to observe managers actions and classify them according to tbree frameworks: our version of Aristotles (1999) four cardinal virtues; atextbook adaptation of Fayols (1949) functions of management; and our operationalization of Mintzbergs (1973) managerial roles. Most management textbooks are organized according to Fayols four functions (planning, organizing, controlling, and leading), with Mintzbergs roles being the second most-mentioned approach (Carroll and Gillen, 1987). We argue that, just as Fayol and Mintzberg provide frameworks that have proven helpful in talking and thinking about management and for helping students and practitioners to develop good habits of organizing, planning, making resource allocation decisions, and so forth, so also an Aristotelian approach will help us to talk and think about management in a way that permits integrating good ethical habits into management practice. Put differently, as expressed in the familiar maxim, A way of seeing is also a way of not seeing, at the heart of tbis current study is a pedagogy to provide management students an Aristotelian way of seeing what management is, to place alongside the more familiar and entrenched Fayolian and Mintzbergian ways of seeing. Providing students witb a lens drawn from virtue theory, to use alongside their lenses of managerial functions and roles, promises to help students integrate moral theory into general management thinking and practice. The remainder of our paper is divided into three parts. We begin by describing how we adapted Aristotles four cardinal virtues for our study, and present the tbree general research questions that guided our research. In the second part we present our method and our findings. The final section provides a discussion of the implications of our findings, future directions for research, and the potential usefulness of the virtues for integrating ethical concerns into management education. Virtue Theory and Management. It is commonplace to see management in terms of Fayols functions (planning, leading, organizing, and controlling) and in terms of Mintzbergs roles (interpersonal, informational, decision-making, etc. ). In particular, most management textbooks suggest that these ways of seeing provide the essential, basic lenses for developing an understanding about management (Carroll and Gillen, 1987). In this paper, we contend that virtue theory can be used in a similar way to provide a basic foundational view of management. Indeed, to make our case as forcefully as possible, we claim tbat virtue theory is primarily about management. For example, from Aristotles (1999) assertion tbat tbe purpose of life is to maximize bappiness, and that bappiness can only be maximized by practicing virtues in community, it follows that how we manage our communities is of main concern. Whereas for Aristotle ethics culminated in politics, we are suggesting tbat today etbics culminates in management, as managers play a critical role in society (cf. Maclntyre, 1981). Solomon (1992: 104 emphasis added bere) concurs that an Aristotelian approach to business ethics ARISTOTLES VIRTUES AND MANAGEMENT THOUGHT 563 conceives of business as an essential part of the good life, living well, getting along with others, having a sense of self-respect, and being part of something one can be proud of. Because managers in our society have a great say in what practices occur in business and organizations, and thus in facilitating social purpose, we contend that they are a central figure in virtue theory, Aristotles Virtues Reformulated for Todays Business Organization Just as Fayols original functions have been adapted and reformulated over time to fit and reflect contemporary concerns, so also we have adapted Aristotles four cardinal virtues for our study. Toward this end, we found the work of Solomon (1992) particularly helpful. Thus, our description of wisdom, justice, courage, and self-control takes into account the contextual and embedded qualities of virtues as relevant for present-day managers. We hasten to add that for our present purposes, our focus is on examining whether a virtue theory-based approach to conceptualizing management is empirically possible; it is not critical to our present enterprise that the particular virtues we have chosen, or our particular operationalizations, are the most appropriate. Similar to Aristotle (1999), we conceive of practical wisdom as a capacity for deliberation and action by individuals to obtain what is good for themselves and others in general. Practical wisdom entails the ability to ask insightful questions, evaluate real-world business situations, and apply relevant knowledge to the-individual-in-the-organization (Solomon, 1992: 111) unit of analysis. Instead of an individual or community focus, the business manager who possesses practical wisdom views individuals as embedded in community and understands that a potential dichotomy between the two is more apparent than real. S/he recognizes the reciprocity of individual and community good despite the complexities associated with a plurality of different stakeholders. When Mintz (1996: 829) notes that wisdom is an intellectual virtue and is considered to be the consequence of teaching and for that reason requires experience and time to be cultivated, it draws particular attention to the responsibility of scholars and leaders who shape how we think about and understand management. Solomon (1992) views justice, in the sense of fairness and everyone connected with an organization getting their due, as the basic virtue that holds institutions together. This emphasizes a personal responsibility as essential to business organizations, and reflects present-day concerns with the accountability of private and public institutions as citizens in society as well as organizational citizenship behavior by individuals. With the growth of highly complex multinational corporations, burgeoning bureaucracies, and unregulated cyberspace, it is more incumbent today than ever for individuals to act justly with promptitude and pleasure (Pieper, 1965: 63, 113) and to develop personal responsibility for their participation in organizations and larger communities. Our view of the virtue of courage in organizations today differs from traditional notions of courage in battle or courage of ones convictions—both instances 564 BUSINESS ETHICS QUARTERLY of extraordinary virtue which depend on especially threatening contexts (Solomon, 1992). To nurture oneself as an intimate part of a community, we see courage as a continuous fortitude or stamina to resist the ongoing pressures for impression management, job-hopping, and self-aggrandizement in todays organizations, which all potentially undermine other virtues necessary for community, such as honesty, loyalty, trust, and so forth. Courage implies hope and acting for the good of all even if this may diminish ones own status. Courage may involve speaking out on matters of injustice and personal conviction, and generally concerns maintaining ones integrity or wholeness (Solomon, 1992) in an increasingly fragmenting corporate context. The last of the four virtues, self-control or temperance, we see as relating to contemporary concerns with managers emotional regulation and impulse control. Such internal regulation is likened to Aristotles (1999) notion of virtue as a kind of mean, with excess and deficiency as vices (e. g. , see Aristotles commentary on anger). For instance, it is widely accepted that assertive, instead of aggressive or passive-aggressive, communications are more helpful in building relationships. Intermediate, rather than excessive or deficient, emotion is necessary for fostering other corporate virtues such as caring, gentleness, and compassion (Solomon, 1992). Self-control entails keeping focus on the whole, rather than over-reacting to details. Temperance in moderating desires is important (e. g. , reducing exorbitant individual and organizational consumption levels), but self-control vis-a-vis emotionality is especially relevant in todays crowded organizations, cities, and societies. Of course, the challenge that others have raised (e. g. , Hartman, 1998; Maclntyre, 1981; Mintz, 1996), and which underlies our current study, is to make virtues observable in management practice and a relevant guiding framework for management theory. More generally, this reinforces our overarching goal of placing this alternative way of seeing management alongside the two most common current ways of seeing (i. e. , Fayol and Mintzberg), and having virtue theory viewed as a partner framework for understanding and guiding management theory and practice. Research Questions We did not enter this study with a particular set of hypotheses we wished to test. Rather, ours is an exploratory study aimed at examining whether Aristotles virtues are similarly observable in managerial behavior by students as are Fayols functions and Mintzbergs roles. This leads to our first research question, to determine whether there are any differences between how able management students are to capture and classify managerial behavior using virtue theory versus the more commonly used managerial functions and roles frameworks. Can students be trained to see the four virtues as often as the managerial functions and roles? In terms of anticipated results from this first question, since our methodology was adapted from Mintzbergs original study, we expected students to be able to. ARISTOTLES VIRTUES AND MANAGEMENT THOUGHT 565 classify a greater proportion of managers activities using his framework than Fayols. We were not sure how well virtue theory could be used to classify behavior, but, given that it is a less common lens through which to view management, we would not have been surprised had students observed virtues less frequently. Of course, the less frequently virtue theory is able to categorize management behavior, the less utility it might have as an overarching approach on par with function and role theory. Our second research question is a deeper examination of the first. We wanted to compare how the various students applied the tbree frameworks, with an eye toward seeing whether there was some consistency in classifications of managers activities across students. Again, given the kinship between our methodology and Mintzbergs, we expected his framework to generate the highest inter-rater reliability. And, given the fact that management virtue theory is relatively underdeveloped, we might expect to see the least consistency in this framework. Of course, we were interested in this question because, in order for the virtues to be a useful framework for understanding management, they must be amenable to operationalization and consistent observation. We are using virtues as a way of understanding or (re)conceiving what management is, not as a way to pass moral judgment on it. In sum, we are interested in whether the consistency of students classifications of virtues were comparable to managerial functions and roles. Finally, we were curious to examine whether there were any inter-relationships between virtue theory and the other two frameworks. Again, as there is virtually (pun intended) no research in this area, our a priori expectations were based on speculation and intuition. Thus, for example, we might expect that managers who exhibit relatively high levels of justice might be more likely to manifest the controlling function and the decisional role. In asking this third exploratory question, we wanted to investigate how the virtues might be related to functions and roles in the behavior of actual managers, and how the three frameworks may be integrated. Method The methodology used for this study was adapted from the original method Mintzberg (1973) used in developing his managerial roles. We videotaped three managers from the same manufacturing firm during their regular work hours. The total amount of taping for all three managers combined was 9 hours, 39 minutes, and 56 seconds, and included the general manager, the financial controller, and a sales manager. These managerial positions comprise a reasonable representation of the variation in managerial job categories of the focus organization. The data reported here are based on the work of twenty student groups enrolled in one of three sections of an Introduction to Management and Organization Theory course offered in a midwest public university. The data reported here are based on the work of 87 students, with 4 or 5 students in each group. Each group was given the task of classifying one of the three different managers behavior according to each of the frameworks developed by Aristotle, Fayol, and 566 BUSINESS ETHICS QUARTERLY Mintzberg. To help students operationalize each of the categories within each of the three frameworks, the instructor provided them with templates of each. An abridged overview of the templates is provided in Table 1. The templates described various behaviors that represent each of the managerial virtues, functions, and roles. Readers wishing more detailed information on Fayols functions may consult any introductory management textbook (the template used in this study was based on the description presented in Starke and Sexty, 1992, the textbook used in the students course). Similarly, further information on Mintzbergs managerial roles can be found in Mintzberg (1973), which was used to prepare the template for this study. Table 1: Operationalization of Virtues, Functions, and Roles Category Sample Actions. Aristotles Virtues Practical Wisdom Justice Courage Self-control Using appropriate knowledge required to size up a real world situation and making a decision that increases the common good; helping subordinates to improve in a way that allows them to feel good about themselves; asking insightful questions Giving credit for success where credit is due; assigning appropriate accountability and responses for failure; accepting and acknowledging the merit in advice/wisdom from others. Treating set-backs as temporary; empowering others rather than hoarding power; complimenting others; accepting others counsel even when it may seem to diminish self status Making other-full decisions; calming a situation where over-reaction might be tempting; correcting a mistake in a self-controlled manner; letting go of details to embrace a larger perspective Fayols Functions Planning Organizing Controlling Determining new industries to enter in the future; setting and priorizing market share goals; determining tevel of vertical integration; choosing strategic focus; implementing and evaluating plans. Setting policy statements; establishing procedures; setting rules; determining how a specific service is to be performed or product to be manufactured; ensuring payroll or accounting functions are performed uniformly across the organization Touring facilities; reviewing financial/productivity reports; evaluating individual, group and/or organizational performance; rewarding good performance or taking corrective action for poor performance Mintzbergs Roles Interpersonal Informational Decisional. Helping a subordinate to leam a new task; making job assignments for subordinates; meeting with other managers at the same level within the organization; talking to competitors/suppliers/customer organizations Readitig industry newspapers; attending industry conferences; reading fmancial reports; sending memos; attending weekly staff meetings; relaying information fiom upper level managers; lobbying for organizational unit Develop a new way to produce or to market a product or service; responding to day-to-day crises; setting budgets; deciding how to increase capacity; conducting union negotiations. ARISTOTLES VIRTUES AND MANAGEMENT THOUGHT 567 An earlier study based on these data provided a much more detailed rationale for how each of the various categories and sub-categories were established. For the present study, it is sufficient to make two notes. First, rather than provide a detailed analysis of each of Mintzbergs ten roles, we here report data only for his three basic roles: interpersonal, informational, and decisional. This allows for a much more parsimonious presentation. Second, our analysis includes data on only three of Fayols roles: planning, controlling, and organizing. Students were not asked to code Fayols leading function for several reasons, but mostly because the curriculum in our university covers the leading function in a different course. 2 Results The data from the twenty reports were analyzed in several ways to address our three guiding research questions. We used simple descriptive statistics to examine the first question, namely, whether there were any differences between how ably students could classify managers behaviours using the three conceptual frameworks (i. e. , virtues, functions, and roles). As shown in Table 2, the findings were different than expected. First, because our methodology is adapted from Mintzbergs, we expected that his roles would be evident more often in the videotapes than Fayols functions and Aristotles virtues. We found that the opposite occurred. Although the students did classify 80 percent of the managers behavior using Mintzbergs roles, this was slightly less than the 82 percent of the time they classified using Fayols functions, and both these are statistically significantly less than the 89 percent of managers behavior students classified using Aristotles virtues (p . 01). Practical wisdom was the most frequently categorized virtue at 48. 4 percent, followed by justice at 26. 6 percent, courage at 8. 6 percent, and self-control at 5. 3 percent. Fayols functions were categorized at 17. 1 percent for planning, 22. 5 percent for organizing, and 42. 4 percent for controlling. Mintzbergs roles were categorized 51. 3 percent for interpersonal, 24. 5 percent for informational, and 4. 4 percent for decisional. Our second research question was to examine how much consistency there was between students in observing the various virtues in managers. For virtue theory to be a useful way to understand management, and for it to be most helpful in developing students ethical competencies, there should be consistency. Thus, inter-rater reliabilities were calculated to measure the consistency of student group observations vis-a-vis each framework (see Table 2). As we expected, inter-rater reliability scores among the 20 groups were the highest for Mintzhergs roles at . 98 and lowest for Fayols functions at . 82; Aristotles virtues ranked between these two frameworks, at . 91. 568 BUSINESS ETHICS QUARTERLY. Table 2: Descriptive Statistics and Inter-Rater Reliability Category n Category mean (†¢/o of time) Wisdom 20 48. 4 20. 3 Justice 20 26. 6 19. 9 Courage 20 8. 6 8. 3 Self-control 20 5. 3 Framework mean (†¢/. of time) Framework inter. rater reliability 88  » 5. 1 5d .91 82. D .82 80. 2 n Aristotles Virtues Fayols unctions Planning 20 17 1 14. 5 Organizing 20 22. 5 18. 7 Controlling 20 42. 4 19. 8 Interpersonal 20 SI. 3 14. 4 Infonnational 20 24 5 5. 5 Decisional 20 4. 4 3 1 Mintzber gs Roles Finally, our third research question was to explore how the virtues related to the other frameworks. Toward this end we calculated Pearson correlations between each virtue, function, and role (see Table 3 below). As this is an exploratory study, we used an alpha level of . 10 to examine significant correlations. We found four significant correlations between the virtues and the categories of the other frameworks. Practical wisdom correlated positively with both Fayols planning function (. 38, p=. O99) and Mintzbergs interpersonal role (. 55, p=. O12), and negatively with the controlling function (-. 41, p=. O74). Justice correlated negatively with the interpersonal role (-.40, p=. O78) and had an almost statistically significant positive correlation with the controlling function (. 36, p=. 118). Two more statistically significant correlations were found within the four virtues: (i) a negative correlation between justice and practical wisdom (-. 77, p=. OOO); and (ii) a negative correlation between justice and courage (-. 51, p=. O21). Finally, three other significant correlations emerged among categories outside of virtue theory: (i) a negative correlation between the organizing function and the controlling function (-. 70, p=.OOl); (ii) a negative correlation between the informational and decisional roles (-. 45, p=. O49); and (iii) a positive correlation between the planning function and the interpersonal role (. 61, p=. 004). In sum, it may be noteworthy that, of the nine statistically significant correlations found, most included at least one of the virtues (six), and fewer included one of the functions or one of the roles (four each). ARISTOTLES VIRTUES AND MANAGEMENT THOUGHT ao S p O g o 9 q o o o II 569 p o CN Z 9 tn so rn o e s o I o 00 I o 10 (N 2 g o o o o o 2S8 e o ci d o 8 i o. b O o U  § i  § 9 U , . ; N .2 s 3 570 BUSINESS ETHICS QUARTERLY Discussion For proponents of a virtue theory of management, the results of our exploratory study are encouraging. Our findings offer preliminary empirical support for the contention that Aristotles virtues provide a useable framework for integrating moral concerns into a holistic view of management. Our results, that students are able to observe the virtues in actual managerial behavior, encourage their further use and development as a framework for education in management theory and business ethics. We will now discuss the implications of our findings, and future research opportunities, in more detail. Research Question #7 In regard to our first research question concerning the different frameworks efficacy to classify managerial behavior, Aristotles virtues performed better than the two most commonly used conceptual frameworks in management teaching. Students were able to use virtue theory to categorize almost ninety percent of managers behavior, about ten percent more than functions or roles. Thus, the further use and development of a virtue theory framework for teaching students about the responsibilities of management is supported. Future researchers may examine the link between the training that students receive and their subsequent ability to observe virtues, and also whether their ability to observe virtues is related to their likelihood of putting them into practice. This latter linkage, between being able to see in others and doing oneself, also undergirds mainstream management theory (e. g., students who observe the managerial roles will be more able to play those roles themselves) and is of particular relevance from a virtue theory perspective. Students who traditionally are taught to pose questions like What function or role should I be trying to improve as a manager? can be provided a framework to also ask Which virtue do I need to pay more attention to in order to develop as a manager? Do I practice enough justice in my interactions with subordinates? Have I been courageous in my dealings with upper management when advocating for my staff? Am I adequately temperate in my work aspirations? This approach to incorporate an ethical dimension within students professional identity is welcome given the competing complexities and demands of business life, and may help to address Parks (1998) concern with business students integrating ethical issues with other business frameworks. Unfortunately, current business ethics courses may be perceived as unrelated to the rest of what students are taught in business schools if they do not define a set of ethical responsibilities and practices in conjunction with other functional and role requirements of management proper. As a result, when students come to fill managerial positions, they may be left virtually point-of-viewless regarding their responsibilities as managers vis-a-vis ethical issues, and have a constrained ability to define managerial success. ARISTOTLES VIRTUES AND MANAGEMENT THOUGHT 571 Research Question #2 In examining our second research question, we found a relatively high level of inter-rater reliability across student group categorizations of the virtues, comparable to the categorizations for the two more mainstream views of management. Beyond providing additional empirical support to continue to develop a virtue theory of management, this finding also draws our attention to further study what the key management virtues are and how we should describe them. In particular, partially in response to readers who might be surprised at the high incidence of virtuous behavior observed in our managers (e. g. , Maclntyre, 1981), our exploratory study begs future research to more closely examine the content of what the students were observing to be virtuous behavior. The consistent student observations are striking because operationalizing the virtues is not an easy task. For example, a person can act fairly without manifesting the virtue of justice if he does so without promptitude and pleasure (Pieper, 1965) and, similarly, performing a courageous act does not make a person courageous. In this light, the consistency of observations in our study should serve to encourage researchers who focus on specifying which virtues are most important for contemporary managers, because it lessens their need to limit or compromise their choice to easy-to-operationalize virtues. In any case, we suggest that future research use multiple method research designs to study virtues. For example, researchers could collect self-report data alongside videotapes, where managers are asked to describe, say, what prompted them to act fairly in a given situation. Similarly, researchers may interview subordinates and colleagues with whom focal managers interact. There may also be merit in developing a grounded theory of virtuous management, and analyzing observers classifications. As the research stream matures, there is potential for experimental designs and even survey instrument research. In short, empirical research within a virtue theory perspective has the potential to utilize and draw from the same methods and design strategies that have proven useful for other theoretical points of view. Research Question #5 The answer to the third research question provides a final point of departure for future research. For example, what do the positive correlations between practical wisdom and planning, practical wisdom and interpersonal roles, and the negative correlation between wisdom and controlling suggest? Is the wise manager one who controls less and pays more attention to issues of planning and interpersonal relations? Or, do these correlations reflect a bias in students towards the rightness of more participatory management styles that have become increasingly in vogue? Another question arising from the correlational analysis is the meaning of the negative association between justice and practical wisdom and justice and the interpersonal roles. Does the manager who displays more 572 BUSINESS ETHICS QUARTERLY practical wisdom do so at a cost to justice as we have operationalized them? Further, does the negative correlation between justice and the interpersonal role (and the almost-statistically-significant positive correlation between justice and controlling) indicate that students regard exhibiting the interpersonal role as somehow unjust and manipulative and not concerned with giving employees their due? Do managers who act justly perhaps do so at a cost to interpersonal relationships (e. g. , perhaps students perceived as just managers who enforce rules without adequate regard to unique personal needs)? The negative correlation between justice and courage draws further attention to issues around managerial manipulation, if students viewed managers ability to act unjust as something that takes courage. Alternatively, perhaps students see as courageous managers who protect their employees, even if this is not just toward shareholders. Along a different line, perhaps future research should examine the complementarity of virtues among managerial teams. Following Nadler and Tushmans (1990) argument that management teams should have leaders with complementary skills, so also the managers in our study may have complementary virtues. Thus, for example, one manager may be wiser while another more just. Such an approach leads to fascinating opportunities to examine the interplay between these virtues across managers. Finally, a comment on a non-finding in the correlational analysis. What about self-control? Is the lack of significant relationships with other categories, and the relatively low frequency of temperate behavior observed, an artifact of the methodology as might be the case if, for example, self-control is the least amenable to direct observation? Future research might find higher levels of self-control through self-reports asking managers about their feelings and stress levels during particular interactions. Similarly, one might design experiments using confederates to create highly frustrating interpersonal scenarios to assess the level of self-control displayed by subjects. These types of questions are indicative of potentially important directions in future research. Alternatively, perhaps our data suggest that future researchers should consider replacing self-control as a primary virtue for managers. Recall that the primary focus of our paper was to develop empirical support for the development of a virtual theory to conceptualize and understand management; we do not contend that the four virtues we have used here are necessarily the best or most appropriate. Our findings do demonstrate the merit in developing a virtue theory of management, and we now invite others to join us in the task of deciding which are the most important virtues for contemporary managers, a task which requires specifying its undergirding moral point of view (Frankena, 1973). Conclusion Our exploratory study provides welcome empirical support.

Thailand And Japan After The Economic Crisis Economics Essay

Thailand And Japan After The Economic Crisis Economics Essay The relationship between Thailand and Japan were influenced from the beginning primarily by considerations of trade, and this is still the outstanding feature. However, according to the globalisaton, business relations and trade have expanded and have become increasingly intermingled with political affairs, economic cooperation, and investment. Objective To study and analyse the advantage and disadvantage of JTEPA to Thailand. To evaluate whether the cooperation between Thailand and Japan under the JTEPA framework will provide and create common interests and guide to the more interdependent relations. Hypothesis Upon the singing of the JTEPA, it seems to be that Thailand will closely dependent on Japan, which contradicts the Thai governments expectation on JTEPA to be an effective instrument to develop the unequal practices and relations between the two nations. Research Questions What are the character of Thai and Japanese economic relations? What does the Thai government look forward from JTEPA? How does JTEPA contribute to the alteration of relations between Thailand and Japan? Scope This research primarily focuses on Thailands role and its perspectives on international policy and relations with Japan after the great economic crisis in 1997, particularly the case of JTEPA. This study will look at the economic relations between Thailand and Japan and try to answer the question of whether JTEPA would contribute to the more dependent relationship between these two countries. Conceptual Framework In this research, Realism and Interdependence theories will be used as an international theory to answer the research questions and also to clarify the Thailand and Japan in term of economic relations. Realism Realism, or classical realism, is an approach of the study and practice of international relations. The core of realism is national and state survival. As Han J. Morgenthau who was the leading realist thinker of the twentieth century, was stated that Politic is a struggle for power over men. Power is its immediate goal and the modes of acquiring, maintaining, and demonstrating in determines the technique of political action () From this theory, the key point of international policy is to protect and defend the interest of the nation in the global politics. This purpose includes high political concerns of guaranteeing state survival. Security matters, as well as the low political purposes in such areas such as the pursuit of wealth and economic growth and power. In making international policy, the governmental decision-makers evaluate each option, and selecting the one that maximizes advantage or minimize cost associated with attaining the purpose sought. At the present time, Thailand is negotiating FTA with several countries. These FTAs will advantageous for Thailand in term of greater market access in goods and services due to the reduction of trade barrier, increased investment opportunities in oversea markets and decreasing of business costs arising from the dismantling of tariffs and non-tariff barrier. JTEPA is a part of Thai foreign policy toward the Japanese government, especially the economy. The national interest is the significant part in making foreign policy of state. Thailand has achieved to maximize its national interest in any situation it faced. Nevertheless, in negotiation of JTEPA which was the economic cooperation that provided shared interest, the Thai government selected the best option that takes advantage of its national interest without interfering Japanese interests. Although, this agreement made shared interest by enhancing cooperation and reducing the obstacles on trade for Thailand and Japan, it is suspici ous whether both countries are so rational in practice. Interdependence Nowadays the world has become interdependent in economics, in communications and in human aspirations. Interdependence in the global politics refers to situations characterised by reciprocal effects among countries or among actors in different countries. There are two different perceptions that can be adopted for analysing the costs and benefits of an interdependent relationship. The first perception focuses on the joint gains and joint loses to parties involved. The second is relative gains and distributional issue. It is important to remember that interdependence by no means implies equality. Such uneven relations are quite common in contemporary world politics, especially between developed and less develop countries. Interdependence may be highly asymmetrical; one actor may depend on another can often use the interdependent relationship as a source of power in bargaining over an issue perhaps to affect other issues. Due to the geographical proximity of Thailand and Japan, it would be beneficial to develop an economic partnership between them. It will bring economic gain and prosperity to both countries. Thailand is expected that JTEPA will strengthen and improve unfair relations between Thailand and Japan. Although Thailand needs equal treatment, it realises that symmetry interdependence is barely possible. When asymmetry is common in economic interdependence, the question of how much is permissible in a relationship, it should properly be interdependence, rather than one way dependence. The politics of economic interdependence involves competition even when large net benefits can be expected from the cooperation. Methodology The method to be applied in the course of doing this research was mainly a documentary research. To conduct the research, content and statistic analysis were used. Content and statistic was collected from various sources to get the accurate information. They were used to study the changes of economic relations between Thailand and Japan from JTEPA. The statistic of import, investment and ODA were used as a measure to access the degree of dependency between Thailand and Japan. Although dependence will not be eliminated immediately after signing the agreement, it should continually decrease. This research will study the changing of economics crisis with the relations after signing of the JTEPA. Thailand and Japan: Post War relations Thailand and Japan relations have involved several aspects including politics, economy and culture. During the postwar period, the political relations between them were not much mentioned since there were no serious conflicts between them. Moreover, during the Cold War both countries had joined the free world under the leadership of the United States, and supported each other politically. On the economic aspects, Thailand has imported a large amount of Japanese goods and services. Since Thailand had limited capital resources for national development, it had to import capital goods, especially machinery, transportation equipment, chemical, and other industrial materials from Japan. Difference in context of development level, types of product, and price had generated a large trade deficit between Thailand and Japan in favor of the latter, during the 1960s. (Dhiravagin, 1983) The said trade deficit les to the anti-Japanese movement in the 1970s according to the fact of Thai people were terrified of the Japanese domination of their economy. The anti Japanese attitude did come out not only in Thailand but also in other countries in Southeast Asia, including the Philippines and Indonesia. Therefore, the Fukada Doctrine was declared to develop the economic relations between Japan and Southeast Asian countries, including Thailand. (Sudo, 1988) However, this doctrine was likely to slightly ease the strained situation, the trade deficit between Thailand and Japan was still about US$ 2 billion or 15 percent of the total trade in 1979. (Akrasanee, 1983) Afterward, the Thai government demanded for an equivalent treatment on trade by asking the Japanese government to firstly open their market to the Thai products; secondly, to establish the export-oriented industries in Thailand; and thirdly, to enhance the economic cooperation through more active transfers of techn ology. (Thai MOFA, 2010) In the White Paper on the restructuring of the Thai-Japanese economic relations, established in June 1985, the Thai government requested a reconsideration of the engineering-service conditions on the projects funded by the Japanese government, the Oversea Economic Cooperation Fund (OECF) and Yen Loan, in order that the Thai contractors could have more chance in bidding. (Doner, 1991) However, the result of this negotiation was unsuccessful for the Thai government according to the Japanese government did not guarantee to do anything seriously. Thailand started to industrialise its economy in 1950s. By reason of, the shortage of technology and capital, the Thai government necessitated foreign direct investment (FDI) for its Thailand development projects. (Ismail and Yussof, 2003) The Investment Promotion Act 1962 was established for FDI attraction. According to the rapid rise in the wage level in Japan, labor demanding Japanese firm actively undertook FDI in Thailand and other countries in Asian countries. (Wannitikul, 1996) As a result, the Japanese investors have been one of the most important direct investors of Thailand, particularly in the manufacturing area. Importance Japanese industries were textiles, transport equipment, chemical products, electrical appliances and automobiles. Most of the Japanese registered capital was in the form of the joint ventures; only 17 percent of them were in the form of wholly owned Japanese firms. However, the relationship among staff in their joint ventures did not go effortlessly. A number of Thai partners in the joint ventures complained about the unwillingness of Japanese staff in the interfering technological know-how to the Thai staff. In some companies, the high level technology was realised only among Japanese technicians and engineers. The transfer of management authority was another difficulty found in Thai-Japanese joint venture firms. The Japanese head-quarter provide a lot of Japanese staff to control the managerial positions in affiliates, which really prevented Thai staff from learning the management know-how. As a result, several local partners had not been able to create their own business even after several years of joint investment with Japanese companies. (Tho, 1991) For Official Development Assistance (ODA), Thailand has considered Japan as one of the most significant benefactors. It had received a big amount of Japanese ODA for its national development projects through several types including grant, loan, and technical cooperation. From 1961 to 1986, due to the five national economic and social development plans, Thailands development strategy had focused on industrialisation programs. Therefore, Thai government had to set up sufficient infrastructure to support these programs. However, according to the budget constraint, it was required that Thai government had a loan of money from foreign sources. The total overseas loan of Thai government during 1961-1986 amounted to 15,529 million dollars, of which 2,851 million dollars or 18.4 percent came from Japan. (Tinakorn and Siroros, 1991) Apart from bilateral loans, Thailand had also received technical assistance and grant supporting from the Japanese government. Japans yen loans were concentrated on infrastructure which was the foundation of industrialisation while the grants went to agricultural, educational, scientific, technological, health, and community development. Overall, it seems that Thailand was heavily dependent on Japan during the post war era. It was clearly seen that Thailand had faced the trade deficit problems with Japan, it still imported Japanese capital and industrial goods according to the requirement for industrial development. At the same time, Japanese partners did not fulfill the Thai anticipation of technological transfer so Thai staffs must rely on Japanese technicians in operating high technology. In addition, Thailand, at the same time, still depended on both grants and loan of Japanese ODA for its domestic development projects. Thailand-Japan Post-Cold War Relations In the first half of 1990s, trade between Thailand and Japan continued to increase. With the high rate of economic growth of Thailand, Japan was the largest supplier of Thai imports and one of the top targets of Thai exports. Thailand imported capital and industrial products from Japan. These types of products were used for expanding industrial ability and supplying many export industries whereas Japan imported agricultural and consumer products from Thailand. Changes have taken place since the beginning of 1996 according to the economic recession. Thailands imports from Japan had been decreasing. (National Statistical Office, 1992) The trade inequality between Thailand and Japan was becoming slighter. Nevertheless, trade between two countries was increasing again during the recovery of the Thai economy. Regardless of the changing trade relations, trade deficit was still the main problem in the relations between Thailand and Japan. Taking the investment part into consideration, Thailand was a favorite target of foreign direct investment according to its lower labor costs, reasonable infrastructure and stable society, and when Japan faced another period of yen appreciation that made the raised production costs. Japanese investors started strengthening or expanding their production bases in Thailand trough the production of supporting industries, including basic industries such as steel and petrochemicals. Thailand laid the foundations for its strong investment partnership with Japan. These further strengthened economic ties between Thailand and Japan (Japan External Trade Organisation, 2010) However, Japanese investment declined during 1997 according to the unfavorable environment for foreign investment in Asia in 1997. The technology transfer continued to be the difficulty of the Thai-Japanese joint ventures companies. On the Thai side, the lacking of technology manpower, particularly engineers and technicians, and the shortage of capability to adopt and utilize technical knowhow and production technology were the difficulties of Japanese technology transfer. (Prayoon, 1990) On the Japanese side, the Japanese style of management, characterized by intra-firm training and promotion, the seniority system, and lifetime employment always results in a slow transfer of managerial posts from Japanese to local staffs. (Japans MOFA, 2010) With regard to Japanese ODA, although the Thai economy smoothly and increasingly grew in the first half of the 1900a, Thailand still obtained technical assistance from Japan of which the total value amounted to 147.46 billion US dollars. In the second half of the 1990s, Thailand faces a great economic crisis in 1997. (Glassman, 2001) Then, in the midst of the economic crisis, Japans role as a supporter was very important for Thailand because it had provided more than 12.6 billion US dollars for both the financial and technical aid apart from the 4 billion US dollars in August 1997 under the IMFs support package. (Japanese MOFA, 2010) Thailand had also received a large amount of financial and technical support from the Japanese government to raise productivity and competitiveness in Thailand after the economic downturn in 1997. Another Japanese ODA was the New Miyazawa Initiatives which amounted to 1.9 billion US dollars for pushing the Thai economy out of the economic crisis. All in all, since the post-Cold War, the relations between Thailand and Japan have improved in an optimistic direction. Thailand and Japan have became a good partners in the good and crucial moments; however, Thailand has went on facing the trade deficit with Japan and has still depended on Japan both in term of investment and ODA. They have been significant suppliers for each other. The foreign direct investment is essential for the Thai government to develop its economy and society. Japanese investments have completed some parts of the Thai domestic development plans. Japan was as well as an essential donor when Thailand in the economic recession. Nevertheless, the Thai government has made an attempt to develop the relations from this heavily dependence on Japan to be more interdependence. Thailand and JTEPA In the last few decades, the global and regional context has become more complex, with rise of the People Republic of China and India, and the breakdown of the multilateral agreement on trade and investment under the World Trade Organisation (WTO). Many countries in the global community, including Thailand and Japan, have been using trade agreement to improve competitiveness. According to compete in the new type of global context and to retain their profits in the global market, both of Thailand and Japan had to create the strong and effectiveness economic links between the two countries, which is befitting that the agreement between them is named the Japan-Thailand Economic Partnership Agreement or JTEPA. During 1997-2010, in Thailand, there are six governments governing the country after the economic crisis in 1997. Although, each government had its own economic policy, it is clearly that all of six governments were focused on economic cooperation with other countries, develop mutual interest and avoided conflict among them. Thailand had completed FTA (Free Trade Agreement) with several countries including China, Australia. Thailand is also developing FTA with the essential trading countries; such as U.S.A. and Japan. Being one of Thailands primary trading partners, the Japanese governments attempt to promote with EPA with Thailand will be advantageous to Thailand. Thailand and Japan were negotiating the Japan-Thailand Economic Partnership Agreement. This agreement did not concentrate only on trade but also other dimensions, including investment, labor, intellectual property rights and so on. It is expected that JTEPA would further widen and deepen Thai-Japanese relations and jointly beneficial cooperation by foreign closer economic relations, enhancing a more favorable investment climate, and generating greater business opportunities through cooperation, liberalisation and facilitation in trade and investment between the two countries. It is also considered that JTEPA will spot a new dimension for Thailand-Japan strategic partnership. (Thai MOFA, 2010) In order to complete economic development and industrialisation, Thailand badly requires foreign investment and technology transfer to shore up its flagging economy (The Nations online, 2000) Japan is not only an important trading partner but also a key investor and source of technology for Thailand. The Thai government understands that the comparative disadvantage if it does not build up and develop FTA with Japan. From the Thai governments point of view, concluding the free trade agreement with Japan may be one instrument to success the Thai economic development according to increasing trade value and foreign investment to Thailand. At the same time, it could also contribute to strengthen Thailand-Japan relations and improve the cooperation between the two countries. Since JTEPA will provide more opportunities for Thai goods and services to entrance into the Japanese market and technology transfer from Japan, these will support Thai industrialisation and develop Thai capability. (S riratanaban, 2004) From Japans point of view, Japan had realised about its disadvantaged competition in this region as the market share would be smaller after China concluded their free trade agreement with ASEAN countries. (ASEANWEB, 2010) Consequently, Japan was looking to set up and develop economic cooperation with its Asian neighbors by offering the Japan-ASEAN Economic Partnership to ASEAN members individually and multilaterally. (Singh, 2002) Japan also completed the Japan-Singapore Economic Partnership Agreement in 2002. Thailand was the second nation in Southeast Asia which Japan supposed to conclude the economic agreement after Singapore. It is considered that JTEPA will support with good conditions for Japanese investment in Thailand and provide greater access in Japanese industrial goods, especially automotive and steel industry, to Thai markets. While Thai government considers that JTEPA will be advantageous to Thailand-Japan relations, especially in the economic dimension, according to reducing obstacles on trade and developing cooperation between them, the researcher does not believe that this agreement will be beneficial to Thailand as it is expected, because of the reason that Thailand is a less developed country with economic status. This research will study whether JTEPA would make Thailand and Japan to be more interdependent or vice versa. The impact of JTEPA During the negotiation of the JTEPA, there were several sensitive topics becoming a matter of public concern. According to Pasuk Phongpaichit (2007), there are two points in the negotiation of the JTEPA which indicate what is the impact of this Agreement. In addition, these key points also influence whether the JTEPA is subsequently judged an achievement or disappointment from the Thai perspective: 1. Process 2. Intellectual property Process The first topic focused on the process of JTEPAs negotiation. Bilateral relations in trade and investment agreement are created for share interests. (Anderson, 2008) Accordingly, it means that there is no one party able to obtain all of the profits and there is no one will bear all the loss. General speaking, in international trade agreement, the inequity of power between the two countries can conclude the distribution of the gains. (Phongpaichit, 2007) Up to this point, in the negotiation process, the skill of the individual negotiating parties is very necessary. Due to the process of negotiation is secretive and non-transparent, there always misunderstand between what the negotiators think advantageous and what the public opinion consider beneficial. Up to this point, in Thailand, the negotiations process was condemned for the reason of insufficient transparency. During the negotiation continued from 2004-2006, several significant information was not review visibly available for Thai public opinion. Regarding to Thai law, there was not obligation for this Agreement to be discussed to Thai parliament. It was just discussed and debated in the Legislative Assembly, where Thai legislators were given with little information of the Agreement. Moreover, they had no power to judge and vote anything on the detail of the Agreement. On the other hand, in Japan side, the information on the detail of JTEPA submitted through the Japanese parliament and provided the detail of the Agreement to the public. While there was no public controversy in Japan, there were issues left with suspicion in Thai society. These left suspicions on the Agreement reflects the best interest of Thailand, because there was no mechanism to guarantee those interest wer e appropriately articulated and taken into account. Intellectual property According to Thai protecting intellectual property law, it is hard to get intellectual property right upon a natural organism. Moreover, under the Agreement on trade-related aspects of intellectual property right (TRIPS), each state are authorised to protect themselves by such a law. (WTO, 2010) However, by a clause in the Article 130 of the JTEPA states that each party shall ensure that any patent application shall not be rejected solely on the grounds that the subject matter claimed in the application is related to a naturally occurring micro-organism. () When this issue of the Agreement was disclosed to the public, this issues was questioned that why a clause on intellectual property rights appeared to give Japan with more advantages than those available in TRIPS. Up to this point, Phongpaichit also adds in this point that Thailand provided Japan more benefits of intellectual property rights than Japans EPA was provided by Malaysia. (2007) In sum, given the strong and effectiveness economic links with Japan for the development of the Thai economy, it can be said that it is essential for Thai economy to conclude an agreement with Japan, especially in point of the parallel negotiation between the two countries. However, regarding to this Agreement, it seemed to be that Thailand has become more dependence with Japan. Becoming more dependence with Japan, it gives rise to fear that the weaker parties may be disadvantage in the negotiations. Chapter 2 Literature Review The literature and research that related to the Thailand and Japan economic relations topics had focused on several aspects, namely trade, investment and assistance. Those articles outlined the gain and loss that Thailand would obtain from the economic links between the two countries, for example, Japanese investment that helped Thai industrialisation, trade deficit problems, technology transfer difficulties, the exploitation of resource etc. Some authors recommended a resolution to the problems. After the economic crisis, the economic between the two countries were deepened in view of the fact that Japan became the key actor to help the Thai economy from the economic regression. On the other hand, the assistance of Japan in the revival period caused the dependent problems between Thailand and Japan to be more obvious. As a result, the Thai government continued to improve the economic policy which increase its national interest and decrease economic problems between two countries. This research studies the Thai foreign policy towards Japan in the context of JTEPA, with the expectation that this agreement can be an important factor to develop economic links and decrease economic problems between them. Articles which relate to Thailand and Japan economic relations are reviewed as following: Regarding to Japan was an important trade and investment partner since it resumed economic relations after the World War II, the Thai government focused on attention to improve Thai foreign policy to deal with Japan, particularly economic dimension. Prapat Thepchatree, who wrote Thai-Japanese Economic Relations, analysed the Thai-Japanese economic relations after the World War II (2007).For the trade, He outlined that the trade deficit between Thailand and Japan caused by the nature of trade of both countries was on the same scale in which Thailand exported agricultural goods to Japan while the most of Japanese exports to Thailand were capital and industrial goods. In addition, the protectionism was the important non-tariff barrier for Thai product that reasoned the trade deficit problems. For the investment, the author pointed that although Japanese investment played a critical role to develop Thai industrial, Japanese investment caused several problems such as technology transfer. For ODA, he considered that the Japanese ODA did not suit with Thailands demand, consequently, the Thai problems were not solved by ODA. Regarding to his study, the economic relations trend between Thailand and Japan would be closer and as a result trade, investment and cooperation would be increased. Regarding to Theerawongseri (1990), Although Japan was a key factor in the Thai economy, there were the economic problems between the two countries. It was obviously that Thailands economic dependence rooted from the structural imbalance of this economic link. The Thai government hoped that the White Paper that proposed to redistribute the Thai-Japanese economic relationship would be proper the inequality problems. (Trinidad, 2007) Under the White Paper, both of the two countries required to restructure its economic structure in the face of the rapidly changing global economic context. Accordingly, Thailand needed to pay more attention to enhance its agro-industrial goods to be value-added commodities. Moreover, Thailand should keep the cooperation with the Japanese public and private firm to create the mutual interest and aspiration for the peace, stability, and well-being of the relations between the two countries. (Theerawongseri, 1990) For the investment issue, Johzen Takeuchi (1991) outlined the technology transfer between Thailand and Japan in Technology Tranfer and Japan-Thai Relations. Takeuchi (1991) analysed that Thailand and Japan were misleading in a technology transfer concept and process. Up to this point, Thailand realised that the technology transfer was a piece of baggage with a bundle of handbook manuals (Takeuchi, 1991) while most of Japanese manufacture considered the concept of technology as meaning accumulative and dynamic process. Due to Thailand was an agricultural based country and its economic was condemned as undeveloped (Limskul, 2004), this factor was partly responsible for the lack of inadequate of various skills which was necessitated in the industrial issue. Therefore, Japan did not transfer high technology to Thailand but Thailand did not understand this point. According to the study of Takeuchi (1991), there are four main reasons that Thailand criticised in the issue of Japanese reluct ance to transfer the latest technology and the research and development (RD) sections: 1. The scale of Japanese firms was smaller than the European and American Firms, particularly in terms of employment, Therefore, Japan did not have enough beneficial effects on employment creation. 2. Japanese forms were uninterested to adopting local materials and intermediate goods, and their business activities did not advantage on national industrial sector. 3. Japanese firm did not export their products, which showed that they transferred out of date production systems that lack the potential to gain competitiveness in international market. 4. Japanese firms did not point out the complete handbook manual for operation and management. Moreover, the author (Takeuchi, 1991) also recommended that it would be useful that both of Thailand and Japan to collect more information as well as do more case studies to enhance the sympathetic in order to reduce the perception gap. Shiowattana (1990) also studied in the issue of technology transfer between Thailand and Japan but in other context. According to her study, the importance of introducing new of technology was not the key factor leading to successful industrialization, but the capability to learn and improve the acquired technology was much important in order to ensure healthy industrial development. Shiowattana (1990) pointed that the cause of the problem was that Thailand lacked the ability in technology reproduction. Therefore, the Thai government became more aware of the necessity to promote and strengthen the technological capabilities of industry. On Japans side, the technology transfer was determined by the policy of Japanese MNCs. In addition, the author outlined that the Japanese joint venture had successful records in technology transfer. As Japan wish for dominating as a self-contained network in the Thai economy, it realised that technological strength was a dynamic force, consequently, p ressing for further growth of its economic abilities in Thailand. Xiaodong (1994) analysed the effect of Japanese Investment in Thailand since 1986 in What Thailand has gained and lost from Japanese investment. The author mentioned that Japanese Direct Investment (JDI) after 1986 was a significant event which changed the situation in the Thai economy. Acording to Xioadongs study, this study paid much attention on the issue of contributions and conflicts in the JDIs process towards to the Thai economy. For the contribution, JDI stimulated economic growth and industrialisation in Thailand. For example, one fifth of JDI flew into the Thai manufacturing export sector, this stimulated Thai exports and