Influence of Brand Name on Consumer Decision Essay Example for Free

Influence of Brand Name on Consumer Decision Essay In the present developing and modern day world, consumerism has dominated all the aspects of life. The life in the society follows the pattern of the capitalist culture where the human values have a different measure, ‘you are known by what you have not by what you are’. This naturally leads to the life in a society where everyone wants to have a unique place in the society, by possessing the things which sets them apart from the rest of people in the society. In present society and living way, the Brands not only represent the symbol of the company or product but to a larger extent define the general life of a person. What the person uses can reflect his taste of life, his status in the society, his economic background and many other things. This makes a deep connection between the company and its brand, with the consumer. In this two way relation both are dependent on each other for various different reasons. In today’s time customers are very deeply connected to the brands. When they purchase any product like a car, mobile, items of daily need, brand name influence the consumer’s choice. Some customers purchase the specific branded things just due to the brand name. Customers believe that brand name is a symbol of quality. I found this interesting and wanted to find out whether brand name influences the consumer choice when they go for purchasing any product. I chose to for the specific product because  this is one of the products which got my attention because of many reasons. Initially the car production was dominated by few companies and one or two countries. With the time, the market started to grow and once considered to be luxurious commodity, cars became a need  rather than a choice. This increased the demand and with that many more  companies entered the arena to have their share of profit and exploit the growing market. This made the companies to put more efforts and money to creating brand awareness of their product. With the Huge sum of money and effort invested by the companies to create the awareness of their brand in the market, many questions arise; does this really affect the purchasing decision  of the customer? Does the brand awareness somehow influence the sale of the product? Etc. On the basis of these questions, I formulated my problem as follows: The purpose of this thesis is to create deeper consideration of what influence a brand name can have, when people go for purchasing, choose the products between different brands in automobile industry. Further I want to identify, if there is a connection between brands and the consumer decision making process. I conducted this study based on theories and surveys. I analyzed the result of the survey in order to be able to draw conclusions and find answers to my problem. I came to the conclusion that when consumer purchases a car, brand names influence his choice. Customers choose the well known branded car among other brands which are new or not so known. The study shows that branded cars have a great place in consumer mind, when customers go for purchasing a car, they prefer to purchase a well known branded car. Customers do not want to try new or unknown branded cars because they have no much information about the  lesser known brand. Usually, people purchase well known branded cars because they might have heard before about brands or they have some information about them from other sources. This makes customer feel more comfortable during the time of decision making as they are not so confident about the knowledge they have gathered about the other brands. The consumers are very conscious about branded and unbranded cars because they have the view that branded cars are more reliable than unbranded car. This study also explains that customers trust the branded cars’ quality. Before purchasing a car people do not consider the lesser known brand car, as people are very attached to some specific brands. Some people are loyal to specific brands, over time they want to purchase the same branded car because the specific brand has satisfied the customer’s needs and in turn has gained the trust in the brand name. I feel that the purpose of this study has been fulfilled to some extant. The theory describe that brand name has a power, which attracts the customers towards branded products. The reason  is that customer gets special connection with specific brands product and become the loyal with brand.

Hidden Traps In Decision Making

Hidden Traps In Decision Making Q1. Referring to the hidden traps in decision making, briefly describe one decision you (or someone you know) made that may have been influenced negatively by one of the traps (please stipulate which bias you are referring to). [>60 words]Approximately five years ago, my mom fell prey to the status-quo trap. She made a decision not to pursue other investment opportunities for her 403B funds after her job turned the responsibility of managing these funds over to the employees. With limited investment knowledge, my mom used this as a convenient reason to do nothing thus, leaving her 403B funds invested the same way her employer had always done. This was a big mistake because the company had her entire funds invested in stocks and during that time the stock market went belly up and so did her investment. It was a bad decision for my mom because she did not force herself to develop some investment skills. She took what she thought was an easy and safe option by going with the status-quo or simply going with the flow because it was comfortable and she thought less risky than doing it herself. My moms way of thinking was typical for victims of the status-quo trap.Q2. Many decision makers fall into the trap of seeking confirmatory evidence. What does this statement mean, and what other types of information should managers also consider to avoid this bias? [>60 words]Decision makers fall into the trap of seeking confirmatory evidence when they approach decision making with a closed mind by intentionally ignoring information that does not confirm their perceptions or hypotheses regardless of whether the information is true. These decision makers have a tendency to test ideas in a one-sided way, focusing on one possibility, their way or idea, thus ignoring alternatives. They tend to seek information to confirm rather than challenge or falsify their hypothesis, thus falling prey to selective collection of evidence. To avoid the confirmatory evidence trap, decision makers should seek advice from others whose opinions they respect and as stated in the article, The Hidden Traps in Decision Making, avoid surrounding themselves with yes-men. Managers can also avoid the confirmatory trap by building counterarguments against their own decisions by selecting and ranking possibly several alternatives in the order of strongest to least strong reason to do something else. People tend to gather and recall information from memory and interpret it in a bias way. For example, if a manager has an employee in his department that is labeled as a troublemaker, the manager will take notice of any negative actions surrounding the employee, with less attention to other employees committing the same negative infractions. A tendency to do this over time unjustifiably strengthens the managers belief that the employee is a troublemaker, which is also suggests that people are bias towards confirming their existing beliefs.Q3. What is a prescriptive model of decision making? H ow does this contrast with a descriptive model (empirical accounts) of decision making? Name and briefly explain a prescriptive decision making model you have learnt from another class in your degree studies. [>50 words] [See lecture notes and do some internet sleuthing (cite any references. PS. Wikipedia has an incorrect defn. so leave it alone)]A prescriptive model of decision making is an analytical approach to decision making following an accepted standard model that produces a correct solution based on the proper data input. In essence, it implies what people should and can do based on a solution derived from a normative decision making theory that produces an optimum output. Like the word prescription in a medical sense, the prescriptive model is the best recommended cure for the problem based on extensive research. Descriptive models, unlike prescriptive models, are theories of choice related to the mental state of the decision maker influenced by misconceptions, biases and o ther tricks of the mind. Therefore, the descriptive model is more prone than the prescriptive model to being afflicted by the hidden decision making traps referred to in the article.One current decision making model that I am currently learning how to do in my quantitative analysis class is linear programming which consist of determining a way to achieve the best outcome ranging from maximum to lowest profit for a given outcome. In order to do this I Input my values and limitations into a pre done excel formula spreadsheet and it computes the best possible outcome by using an excel computer known as solver.Q4. What is meant by the term bounded rationality? [>40 words] [See lecture notes and do some internet sleuthing]I see bounded rationality as the best satisfactory rational choice made by a decision maker based on his ability and also influenced by his time and resource constraints. However, the decision maker is aware that his decision may not be the optimum solution but it is go od enough at that point in time for his situation. For example: when taking a test, I, the decision maker, choose and write down what I perceive as the correct answers to the test questions gathered from the available resources I had on hand to use in preparing for the test within an allotted time frame.   Q5. Provide examples of three structured decisions and three unstructured decisions that you, as a person, have had to make. Briefly explain why each example is structured/unstructured. [>75 words] [See lecture notes and do some internet sleuthing (cite any references)] Structured decisions, as stated in the Decision Support Encyclopedia on line, are decisions in which all three decision components (the data, process, and evaluation) are determined since these type decisions are made on a regular basis in business environments. These structured decision support systems may use a checklist or form to ensure that all necessary data are collected and that the decision making process is not skewed by the absence of data. Unlike structured decision, unstructured decision makers do not follow a systematic routine to arrive at an answer; they use their expertise or experience to reach a conclusion.The following are examples of structured decision making because standard formulas were in place for analyzing collected data to reach a precise output:(1) The ROI (return on investment) of a piece of equipment in a manufacturing plant. I was assigned to a task force during one of my summer jobs to help collect recorded revenue output generated from the use of a piece of equipment in production and input the data into a spreadsheet that used a standard accepted formula to determine the revenue collected over a specific period to determine if the equipment output was justifying its cost. This is an example of a structured decision that is made on a regular basis in business environments to justify equipment costs.(2) During a summer employment in a production facility I was responsible for testing production samples on a routine basis in a quality control testing lab with the responsibility of notifying the production manager if his production crew was generating a quality product. This is a structured decision because the production samples were routinely taken and tested in a laboratory with standard test procedures and the results were compared to a standard set of product specifications to determine if a quality product is being produced. (3) In my family business my responsibility for generating employees pay checks is done using struct ured decisions because I use standard accounting software that uses recorded hours and set employee pay scales to generate pay checks.The following are examples of unstructured decisions because I did not follow a set routine to accomplish the desired end results. I had to use my ability and available resources to set up a plan for accomplishing the desired outcome:(1) Assigned research paper. Last semester I had to do a research paper on an assigned topic following no given step by step instructions for how to research and format the paper. I had to use my knowledge gathered through my academic career to generate the research paper. (2) High school science fair project. Using my science expertise and knowledge I designed experiments necessary for testing a hypothesis and displaying the results.(3) Scoring the most points in a video game against my roommate. This was accomplished using unstructured decision making because I had to rely on my video game playing experience and experti se to score points in the game.   Q6 Click here to display a list of HBR articles related to management decision making. Choose any two of these articles and write an article summary of each. Click here for guidelines for writing article summaries. [about 200-250 words for each summary] The Judgment DeficitByChristopher Simmons The article The Judgment Deficit by Amar Bhide appeared in the September 2010 issue of Harvard Business Review. In this article, Bihide insists that the replacement of human judgment with computer models was instrumental in the recent near-collapse of the global economy. He further insists that the human judgment model is no better than the computer model if it is allowed to escalate out of control with no forms of control stops such as the right blend of centralized and decentralized controls. Behide uses financial examples such as the recent housing crisis and technology examples consisting of the sophisticated programming of IBMs Deep Blue computer to Microsofts Windows technology and their influences on the economy to show the pros and cons of each model in both a centralized and a decentralized setting. The outcomes in these examples show the importance of balancing authority and autonomy in decision making. According to Bhide, problems began to arise in the economy with the conversion from the old fashioned way (book keeping, accurate committees, and autocrats) to the new fashion way of using statistical models and algorithms in decision making. By doing this, some of the human filtering processes used in the human judgment model were omitted thus making it rather easy to make bad decisions. This kind of bad decision making continued to spiral out of control over the past months creating our present day financial crisis. The article does not say that use of statistical models and algorithms are the sole cause of the financial crisis and should not be used, instead it states that we must learn to harness and control these models and not rely solely on them. In the article The Judgment Deficit Bhide explains that the right blend of the computer models and the human authority models are necessary to keep our economy in balance. Make Better DecisionsByChristopher Simmons The article Make Better Decisions by Thomas H. Davenport appeared in the November 2010 issue of Harvard Business Review. In this article, Davenport insists that recent large number of well publicized poor decisions made in both the public and private sectors have resulted because of the lack of focus on improving decision making techniques. He asserts that there are just as many opportunities to improve decision making as there are to improve any other process. He appears to condone the need for more businesses to incorporate structured decision making techniques. Davenport states that a number of useful insights for improving the decision making process have been around for a long time but have remained unnoticed by many organizations. Recently, few businesses have actually paid attention to recent popular business books that are addressing a large number of decision making alternatives and have actually adopted some of these alternatives with good results. However, the need is increasing to recognize and incorporate the recent ly publicized decision making techniques into business operations. Davenport suggests that the framework for improving decisions can focus on examining the accessible components of decision making such as which decisions need to be made, what information is supplied, and the key roles in the process rather than focusing directly on the manager. He states that smart organizations that incorporate a framework for improving decisions can accomplish this in four steps consisting of identification of the important decisions that require immediate attention, identification of the key factors that go into each important decision, design the steps to incorporate the decision making process, and finally, enlist experts to work with company executives in improving the process. Davenport identifies two organizations that have successfully incorporated decision making techniques and the outcomes of their success. He states that analytics and decision automation are among the most powerful tools for improving decision making however he warns managers not to incorporate analytical models into their operation that they do not understand. He also states that it is important to keep track of and monitor the models to determine if they are working and always have a human backup in place just in case a model malfunctions. In the article Make Better Decisions Davenport stress that organizations encouragement for their manager to employ better decision making techniques does not guarantee that they will make better decisions but it can result in the likelihood that they probably will. (No attachments) Comments: Mon Aug 30 11:05:26 EDT 2010 Section Instructor Adrian Gardiner Chris Excellent work. Exceeds expectations Way to go. woo woo Sun Aug 29 23:35:55 EDT 2010 Student Christopher Simmons The HTML video u referred us to method did not work for me when i clicked enable HTML it would not let me paste anything in the box. Also on q 6 it will not indent the lines when clearly did it when i typed it up for the summary

Communication Characteristics in a Team

Communication Characteristics in a Team 1: How teams differ from groups, how to develop groups into teams. Its important to remind team members that they share a common purpose and to direct their energy toward business-unit or corporate goals. The leader should periodically highlight how everyones work fits into the companys overall strategy and advances its position in the market (Neeley, 2015) 2: The characteristics of high-performing teams. Success in the workplace depends on your ability to build a team, as well as to interact with others on that team. Together, people are able to accomplish what one person alone cannot. This is known as synergy. Following are the characteristics of a Good/Effective team: A clear, elevating goal: This is a goal which has been communicated to all. A results-driven structure: The goal has been jointly decided by all the team members. They are fully committed towards achieving it. Competent members: Each team member has the required skill set in order to achieve the team objectives. Unified commitment: There is nothing happening in silos. With the total commitment from team members, achieving organizational goals becomes easier. A collaborative climate: Commitment from team members and a good leadership leads to a collaborative team with a productive work environment. Standards of excellence: Quality orientation is vital to the success of any organization. External support and recognition: Appreciation as well as appraisal is required to keep the morale of the team high. Principled leadership: Leadership defines a team. An able-bodied leadership can chart the teams path to success. Each team member participates actively and positively in meetings as well as projects. This shows a persons commitment as well as understanding towards a project. Team goals are clearly understood by all: Communication is vital for achieving successful completion of any project. Individual members have thought about creative solutions to the teams problem. Thinking out of the box is vital in todays economic scenario. Members are listened to carefully as well as given a thoughtful feedback. Listening is an important skill for any team. Each team member is important. The thoughts and ideas of each team member have to be listened to, with respect, no matter how silly they may sound at first. Everyone takes the initiative in order to get things done. There is no concept of passing the buck. This is an indication of clear communication leading to understanding of individual responsibilities. Each team member trusts the judgment of others: Mutual trust and respect is highly important for the team. This is the only way to achieve the organization goals. The team has to be willing to take risks: Risk taking is an attitude which comes with confidence. Confidence on yourself as well as on the team, besides the ability to face all consequences. Everyone has to be supportive of the project as well as of others. A team is one unit. Unless these cohesive forces are there, the team will never be able to work efficiently enough. There is ample communication between the team members. Team decisions are made by using organized as well as logical methods. Dissenting opinions are never ignored: In fact, they are always recorded in order to be revisited in case the future situations dictate so. Teams are given realistic deadlines: External support as well as aid is vital to the success of any team. An efficient team needs support from both inside and outside. It needs to meet the individual needs of its members in order to achieve the organizations goals. 3: Handling challenges within the team. 4: Team motivation for better performance. A team is formed when individuals with a similar interest come together to realize a common dream. The team members must think of their team first and all other personal interests should come later. Every individual must contribute equally as per his capability to achieve the predefined targets successfully within the desired time frame. Motivation and attitude go hand in hand in increasing the output of any team. You need a match stick for fire, you need ink for a pen to write, and similarly an individual needs motivation to perform. Every individual has some latent talent and needs a push for the talent to come out. Without motivation, the team members feel reluctant to work and also tend to spread negativity around. Human beings are hungry for praise and appreciation. It is the prime duty of the team leader to appreciate his team members whenever they have done something great. This way they feel happy and motivated to perform even better the next time. Set a deadline for the submission of work. All the employees submitting the work within the stipulated time frame must be appreciated in public. Circulate a mail among all the employees appreciating your team members efficiency. Any person coming out with a brilliant idea should be suitably rewarded. It is not always you give cash to motivate your employees, but even small tokens of appreciation can make a difference. Reward your team member with anything he likes. Appreciating one member does not mean you will neglect or criticize the other members of the team who could not perform up to the mark this time. It is the duty of the team leader to motivate them so that they perform well the next time. Ask them to BUCK UP. A single members performance can hardly make a difference to the teams performance; every member has to contribute equally for the maximum output. Celebrate your teams success inviting all your team members. Take them out for a lunch to a nearby restaurant. They will feel happy and also come closer to each other this way. Give a pat on their back to appreciate their hard work. Titles such as Best Employee of the month and Best Team Member also go a long way in motivating the team members. The names of the best performers must be displayed on the notice boards for everyone to see. Incentives and perks also motivate the employees to a large extent. If any team member does something outstanding do not forget to appreciate him on an open forum and also ask the other members to reach to his level as well. Avoid making fun of your colleagues. It is considered highly unprofessional. Dont spread negativity around. Dont depend on blame games or spread unnecessary rumours about your team members. Motivation alone cant create wonders; it needs to be coupled with positive attitude of the team members to ensure high performance of the team. Adopt a positive attitude at work. Do not always find faults in others. Listen to your team members as well. Dont assume things or draw conclusions on your own. Be a little more flexible and adjusting to avoid conflicts at work place. Sit and discuss issues with your team members to reach to an alternative. Results cant be achieved unless and until you believe in yourself. The will power to do something is important. One should have the urge to perform. Always try to look at life from a larger perspective. Things can not always be the way you like, its better to accept things as it is sometimes. Remember after heavy rains, there is always a clear sky. Problems might crop up anytime, but it is always better to grin and move on. Do not overreact on petty things. Dont be too adamant or rigid, instead be a little forgiving. It is absolutely okay if you take the initiative and say Sorry. This magical word goes a long way in reducing conflicts to a large extent. Dont unnecessary create tensions for others and yourself as well. Dont be disheartened if someone comes to you and corrects you for your mistakes; do take it in a positive and healthy way. Do not step in the office with a mind clouded with negative thoughts. Everything seems wrong to you and you unnecessarily fight with people around. Team members must adopt a positive attitude to avoid tensions and misunderstandings at work place. Positive attitude with a little motivation can actually create wonders for the team.

T.S. Eliots The Waste Land and Morality :: Eliot Waste Land Morals Essays

T.S. Eliot's The Waste Land and Morality T.S. Eliot and Yulisa Amadu Maddy both address the topics of fear of death and then correlative love of life, but from entirely different points of view. T.S. Eliot wrote during a time when people were questioning relativity, especially moral relativity and it's effect on life after death. Maddy wrote about young boys who were going through that time in a teenager's life when they realize that they will die someday. Thus, teenagers begin to acknowledge death while embarking on their search for love and the meaning of life. During the time period that Eliot wrote "The Waste Land" people were questioning relativity. If time is relative then are not all things relative, including morals? People may have thought that they were living a moral life, but what was that moral life relative to? This lead me to the assumption that people were more fearful of life after death because the had no way to really know how they measured up morally to the standards of God. Eliot used these questions and fears in his poem, "The Waste Land." He displays the feelings of love for life as well as fear of death. Eliot writes of a "dead tree that can give no shelter," and a "dry stone no sound of water." Water symbolizes life and the dry stone implies the lack there of. The tree is dead and thus no shelter from the elements. Eliot continues, "There is shadow under this red rock,/ (Come in under the shadow of this red rock). Shadows imply darkness, death, and sinister dealings . Then Eliot writes, "And I will show you something different from either/ Your shadow at morning striding behind you/ Or your shadow at evening rising to meet you;/ I will show you fear in a handful of dust." These are signs pointing to death. Eliot claims he will show you something different than the shadows you see in the morning and at night. The opposite of having a shadow would be not having a shadow, and if someone, other than Peter Pan, ceases to have a shadow then they obviously have ceased to have an earthly existence. The lack of water, a barren tree, the loss of shadows, and finally what I believe to be a Biblical allusion, "I will show you fear in a handful of dust." There is mention in the Bible about originating from ashes and dust and returning to ashes and dust as well.

Tex Rickard :: essays research papers

Tex Rickard: the story of his life. The man who was known as Tex Rickard, was born on Jan 2, 1870 with the byname of George Lewis Rickard. He led a life of different jobs, I guess you could say he was a jack of all trades. His life, or the part of it that dealt with the gold rush, was what I would say as, short lived. After raising cattle in Texas, and ruling a little town as the town marshal he decided to move on to something different. He moved to a small city in Nevada called Goldfield. Goldfield was a boom town, which came about with the help of gold, and the fact the Rickard set up a casino. Now Tex didn't make his money by mining for gold in California or in Nevada, but instead he was a professional gambler, and fight promoter. It is his final profession that he decided to stick with, and to say the least, he was most prosperous in this final job. As a fight promoter his life was very active. To publicize the community he decided to promote the world lightweight title fight between Joe Gans and Oscar Nelson. The fight was a long one, not only was it more then the normal 12 rounds, but it was nearly 4 times the normal, being 42 rounds in length. This would be the start of something big for Rickard. In 1920 he gained control of Madison Square Garden, and in his new arena he would stage the first million dollar fight, this would be the first of five million dollar crowds. Rickards achievements didn't just come to him by luck. He made boxing a sport for all races and both the sexes. He appealed to the racism in people by posing a black against a white. He also aroused the patriots in the country by fighting a draft dodger and a war hero,

Anxiety, stress and burnout in nursing Essay

Anxiety, stress and burnout in nursing is a significant issue, which affects many nurses during their professional career (McVicar, 2003). Graduate nurses transitioning from university education to a hospital setting face additional causes of stress and new challenges at this time and require accommodating measures such as a supportive work environment (Chang & Hancock, 2003). At present the nation is experiencing a severe nursing shortage that is impacting greatly on the work conditions of nurses that remain (Chang & Hancock, 2003). In this critical appraisal stress and burnout will be defined, as will all major terms throughout this paper. The author will discuss the critical nursing shortage and describe the symptoms of stress and burnout. Causes of burnout and stress will be discussed in relation to the graduate and experienced nurse. The author will present and discuss stress and burnout prevention strategies. Throughout this essay empirical evidence will be used to demonstrate validity of concepts. A literature search was conducted using computerized databases that were searched over the time period 2003-2008 and included Academic Search Premier, psycINFO, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, EJS E-Journals Database, Professional Development Collection, Medline, Health Source: Nursing/Academic Edition, Health Source: Consumer Edition and Cinahl. Key words searched included burnout, nursing, anxiety, stress, shortage, graduate, and strategies. Stress is thought to be connected to an individual’s response to specific demands, if the individual assesses the demand as beyond their resources this generates a stress response (Clancy & McVicar, 2002, as cited in McVicar, 2003). Stress responses include variation in an individual’s biochemical, physiological and behavioural processes (Billter-Koponen & Freden, 2005). According to McVicar (2003) the ability of the individual to handle the stress response is dependent on specific experiences, coping mechanisms and the environment where demands are produced. Stress is usually part of a larger problem and is noted as the first phase of a ‘chronic process’ (Gillespie & Melby, 2003). If severe stress and anxiety persist without interventions being implemented this may lead to burnout, which is typically characterized by emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and reduced personal accomplishment (Maslach & Jackson, 1986 as cited in Chang &  Hancock, 2003). Chang, Daly & Hancock et al., (2006) suggests that stress from work reduces the quality of work environment, job satisfaction, psychological wellbeing and physical health on nurses. Since stress has been identified as prevalent in nursing there have been various research studies discussing the causes and impacts of stress (Billter-Koponen & Freden, 2005). As well as the effects of work place stress on nurses, there is the larger issue of the consequences for the health care system, with many nurses finding the only way to cure burnout is leaving the workforce, this is further impacting the serious shortage of nurses world wide (Chang et al., 2005; Edwards and Burnard, 2003 as cited in Chang, Bidwell & Huntington, 2007). A literature review of stress in nursing by Chang, Hancock & Johnson et., 2005 commented that currently the severe shortage of nurses in Australia is the largest since World War II and reports that by 2010, there will be a shortage of approximately 40, 000 nurses (RMIT University, 2003 as cited in Chang, Hancock & Johnson et al., 2005). A report by AIHW (2005), found that the nursing work force has persisted to age, with the average age of nurses increasing from 42.2 years old in 2001 to 45.1 years old in 2005 and the amount of working nurses aged over 50 years has increased from 24.4% to 35.8%. The older population of nurses will eventually be leaving the profession in years to come when the shortage of nurses is at its worst, this will further compound the issue (Janiszewski Goodin, 2003). The Australian government has responded to the issue of an aging workforce by encouraging older nurses to continue with further study and actively discouraging them from retiring (Wickett, McCutcheon & Long, 2003). After many years of decline of enrolments to tertiary nursing courses there has been a considerable influx of applicants, this is thought to be created by the governments increasing media campaigns to generate interest in nursing as a career, however, the boost in enrolments does not necessarily solve the nursing shortage as the larger issues of why retention of nurses has not been successful have not been addressed and media campaigns could almost been seen as a ‘band-aid’ covering up the larger problems (Wickett, McCutcheon & Long, 2003). The nursing shortage has seen many ‘unskilled’ workers entering the aged care sector as a ‘substitution’ of registered  nurses; currently the aged care system is overwhelmed with demand and †˜patient complexity’ (Wickett, McCutcheon & Long, 2003). Duffield & O’Brien-Pallas (2002, as cited in Wickett, McCutcheon & Long, 2003) suggest three main reasons for the growing nursing shortage, these include, personal issues that pertain to stress, burnout and an inadequacy of balance in their personal lives. Secondly Duffield & O’Brien-Pallas (2002, as cited in (Wickett, McCutcheon & Long, 2003) cite organizational and management issues, which relate to workplace violence, either verbal or physical between patients or staff, as issues of concern in retention of nurses as well as professional issues with dissatisfaction stemming from the ability of the nurse to provide quality of care in circumstances of high demand (Chang, Hancock & Johnson, 2005; Wickett, McCutcheon & Long, 2003). These unresolved problems contributing to the nursing shortage emphasize the urgency of studying the nursing profession and environment so that the sustainability of the health care system can continue (Chang, Hancock & Johnson, 2005). There are multiple symptoms of anxiety and burnout, as noted, prolonged stress and anxiety can result in burnout. Physical effects of stress include persistently elevated arterial blood pressure, indigestion, constipation or diarrhoea and weight gain or loss (McVicar, 2003). In cases of severe prolonged stress physical effects can progress to clinical hypertension, gastric disorders, nausea, fatigue, headaches and exacerbated symptoms of asthma (McVicar, 2003; Billter-Koponen & Freden, 2005). The possible cause of fatigue in severe stress and anxiety is high levels of cortisol, which is a hormone that can be produced in excess when a person is stressed leading to cortisol affecting sleep patterns and resulting in sleep difficulties (Billter-Koponen & Freden, 2005). According to Hugo (2002, as cited from Billter-Koponen & Freden, 2005) symptoms of stress in European countries are rising, in 2003 over 5,000 nurses in Sweden were sick for over 30 days with approximately 40% of the diagn osis for the long-term absence from work being emotional exhaustion (burnout), the 2003 statistics were reported to have increased by 20% from the previous year. Billter-Koponen & Freden (2005) suggests that the larger proportion of demands for nurses are psychologically related and in turn this creates more psychological  disturbances than physical symptoms. The three core elements of burnout; emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and reduced personal accomplishment can produce various psychological effects. Emotional exhaustion may occur when the nurse experiences the inability to function professionally at a psychological level, the symptoms may include depression, sleep disturbances and the inability to control emotions (Maslach et al., 1996 p.4 as cited in Gillespie & Melby, 2003; Patrick & Lavery, 2007). A nurse who develops depersonalization may have feelings of irritability, anger and a general negative attitude towards clients, according to Leiter (1993, as cited in Patrick & Lavery, 2007) depersonalization transpires from a need to create distance from the work that is emotionally draining (Maslach et al 1996 p.4. as cited in Pa trick & Lavery, 2007; Chang & Hancock, 2003). Reduced personal accomplishment can create feelings of inadequacy, self-doubt, low self-esteem and the predisposition to view their level of skill and care negatively (Chang & Hancock, 2003; Patrick & Lavery, 2007). These symptoms are especially worrying as they can reduce quality of care and decrease patient satisfaction (Janssen et al ., 1999; Garrett & McDaniel, 2001 as cited in Chang & Hancock, 2003). It is generally accepted that nurses who are excessively stressed or experiencing burnout typically have poor job satisfaction, high absenteeism rates and many nurses contemplate leaving the profession altogether (Larson, 1987; Callaghan & Field, 1991 as cited in Chang & Hancock, 2003). A qualitative study by Billter-Koponen & Freden (2005) interviewed nurses about their own experiences regarding work place anxiety, stress and burnout, the nurses commented they felt ‘powerless’ to avoid burnout and had inadequate time or energy to take on patient demands. The nursing profession involves demands beyond clinical technical skills, teamwork and constant care of patients; the role of nursing requires a high level of ‘emotional labour’, which can lead to many complex causes of stress and burnout (Phillips, 1996 as cited in McVicar, 2003). Gillespie & Melby (2003) found that the length of shifts and shift patterns, which included night duty contributed to emotional exhaustion, personal relationship problems, difficulty concentrating and fatigue. Similarly, Efinger et al., (1995 as cited in McVicar, 2003) reported shift work as  having a negative influence on social and personal aspects of the nurses’ lives, it was also mentioned that night shift work was particularly draining in terms of physical health and disrupted family life. Furthermore a study by Chang, Daly & Hancock et al., (2006) consisting of 320 randomly selected Australian registered nurses who were listed on the New South Wales registration board database found that workload was the most common source of stress with indications that high workload negatively affected the mental health of nurses. Chang, Daly & Hancock et al., (2006) also comment on the legal requirements of providing a safe work place in which workers are not under excessive stress, which is affecting their mental health. However, a study by Patrick & Lavery ( 2007) based on a random sample of 574 division 1 Victorian Australian Nursing Federation members were surveyed on burnout in nursing stated that hours worked by nurses have a weak correlation with emotional exhaustion. Yet it could be argued that these results are not a true indication of full-time nurses feelings as 65.73% of the participants worked part-time or casual nursing roles with the average amount of hours that nurses worked in this study being 32.17 hours, which amounts to a ‘lower average’ than full time work (Patrick & Lavery, 2007). A cross-sectional study by Spooner-Lane & Patton (2007) found that nurses who worked full-time experienced higher levels of emotional exhaustion compared to part-time or casually working nurses. Increases in workload exist in other areas such as recent updating of technology, extra responsibilities, paper work and increasing staff shortages (Chang & Hancock, 2003). A study by Gillespie & Melby (2003) that consisted of a triangulated research design, which incorporates both qualitative and quantitative methods as well as using questionnaires, focus groups and interviews found that staff shortages were cited numerous times as a significant cause of anxiety and stress. The nurses specifically identified the use of agency staff as a concern as many nurses expressed the issue of spending valuable time assisting agency staff in locating equipment and explaining the way that particular ward operated (Gillespie & Melby, 2003). A nurse that was interviewed in Billter-Koponen & Freden’s (2005) study reported trying to bridge the gap of time lost from extra demands by coming in early, working through meal breaks, and staying back to work longer. Nurses interviewed in  Gillespie & Melby’s (2003) study also stated that ‘junior nurses’ were forced to take on roles beyond their experience. A focus group by the Australian Governmen t further reports levels of growth in turnover and the increased amount of more acute patients as a source of stress due to staff levels remaining stagnant while demands escalate (Chang & Hancock, 2003). Considering levels of demand are high and staff levels are not increasing as well as substituting agency staff or pressuring junior staff to meet senior roles these pressures would certainly contribute to anxiety, stress and potentially, burnout. Role ambiguity can be described as insufficient information about specific responsibilities and roles that a nurse must undertake (Chang & Hancock, 2003). Role ambiguity can occur in the form of objective ambiguity, which arises from ‘lack’ of information for that particular role, and subjective ambiguity, which is associated with the ‘social’ and ‘psychological’ features of ‘role performance’ (Kahn et al., 1964, as cited in Chang & Hancock, 2003). Chang & Hancock (2003) conducted a qualitative study of 110 tertiary nursing graduates from 13 institutions across New South Wales, Australia who work in one of four teaching hospitals about role stress in graduate nurses, the participants were surveyed during 2-3 months of working and then again between 10-11 months. Chang & Hancock (2003) reported the graduates experienced role ambiguity within the first few months of working and this continued throughout the 12 months as well as being a contributor to lower job satisfaction. However, Chang & Hancock’s (2003) study was limited due to the use of self-reporting by the graduates, which is subjective and not objective data. Patrick & Lavery (2007) suggests role ambiguity is an extra stressor as graduates endeavor to fulfill their expected roles whilst experiencing new challenges. Role overload typically occurs whilst graduates are learning time management skills and learning new roles (McVicar, 2003). Chang & Daly (2001, as cited in Chang & Hancock, 2003) identify that role overload can intensify the effects of role ambiguity. Chang & Hancock (2003) found that role overload became a larger contributor to stress than role ambiguity in nursing graduates after 10-11 months of working. Gillespie & Melby (2003) notes a significant difficulty for graduate nurses  as they transition into a hospital environment as opposed to learning at university, this ‘gap’ between skills learned in theory within university education and the ability of realistic demands within the hospital environment could present additional stress on the graduate nurse. Madjar et al., (1997 as cited in Chang & Hancock, 2003) describes this as the ‘theory-practice gap’, which causes a clash between personal standards and own values (Jasper, 1996; Reutter et al., 1997 as cited in Chang & Hancock, 2003). Patrick & Lavery’s (2007) study supports this ‘theory-practice gap’ and goes on to further state that nurses who acquired their nursing degree at a university have higher levels of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization than hospital-trained nurses. Graduate nurses also report low levels of confidence, lack of support, unrealistic expectations of other clinical staff, unexpected work situations, adjusting to shift work and the increase in responsibility as added sources of stress (Chang & Hancock, 2003; Kelly, 1998 as cited in Chang, Hancock & Johnson et al., 2005; Patrick & Lavery, 2007). Allenach & Jennings (1990, as cited in Chang & Hancock, 2003) explain that stress from these new challenges includes anxiety. It could be assumed that normal stressors that affect all nurses regardless of age and experience affect graduate nurses as well as other specific experience- related stressors. Patrick & Lavery (2007) found that age and experience was negatively associated with burnout, suggesting that young and inexperienced nurses have a higher rate of burnout compared to older and more experienced workers. This finding is consistent with Spooner-Lane & Patton’s (2007) study of 273 nursing staff, which reported age as a signif icant indicator of burnout. Jackson et al., (2002, as cited in Chang, Hancock & Johnson et al., 2005) suggest nurses are at risk of workplace violence in the forms of verbal or physical violence from their patients, relatives and staff. Participants from Chang, Daly & Hancock’s et al., (2006) study completed four different questionnaires regarding workplace stressors and findings suggested workplace conflict between nurses and physicians was a significant cause of stress. According to Ball et al., (2002, as cited in McVicar, 2003) conflict between staff has become a more important issue throughout the previous 10  years. Due to the nature of nurses’ work where patients’ emotions are highly sensitive, as they may be scared or have a higher expectation of required care than they are receiving, nurses can be venerable to violence and research by Carter (2000, as cited in Chang, Hancock & Johnson et al., 2005) comments workplace assault is more common for nurses than any other health professi onals. The consequences of workplace violence are increased levels of anxiety, high levels of sick leave, lower levels of job satisfaction, burnout and lower retention rates (Jackson et al., 2002 as cited in Chang, Hancock & Johnson et al., 2005; RCN, 2000 as cited in Gelsema & Van Der Doef et al., 2006). The flexibility of working hours and shift patterns was a significant cause of stress for nurses, it would be safe to assume that greater flexibility in working hours could possibly reduce stress, assist nurses in achieving a more balanced life as they contend with family and other personal pressures. Strategies to achieve greater flexibility in working hours will require a concentrated effort by management and staff to achieve ‘equity’ when allocating shifts and empowering nursing staff to have preferences regarding overtime and in particular, night shift (McVicar, 2003). The workload of nursing is consistently reported to lead to an increase in anxiety, stress and burnout, therefore lowering workload would be a reasonable intervention, however workload is a complex issue which includes determinants that can be influenced by the individual or organization in which they work (Gelsema & Van Der Doef et al., 2006). The main issue that needs to be addressed is to ensure staffing levels are sufficient for that particular setting, this would greatly reduce pressures relating to patient care and reduce the incidence of staff working outside of their roles (McVicar, 2003). Other measures such as time management skills and delegation skills may further assist in reducing workload pressures. Hayhurst, Saylor & Stuenkel (2005) recommends further research into workload pressures that are associated with specific specialty areas so that programs can be implemented to target the needs of that specialty. In Chang & Hancock’s (2003) study of role stress and role ambiguity in  Australian nursing graduates it was noted that graduates experienced a high level of role ambiguity in their transition from university to the workplace. A study by Mrayyan & Acorn (2004) assessed nursing students to determine causes of burnout and invited students to suggest solutions to stressors affecting burnout. The nursing students highlighted role ambiguity as a contributor to stress and suggested a comprehensive update of job descriptions that included the scope of practice, skills and experience needed, explanation of knowledge required and a regular assessment if changes of the job expectations change. Greenwood (2000. as cited in Chang, Hancock & Johnson et al., 2005) reported that preceptor programs, orientation programs, ‘open communication’, and staff development considerably aids graduates transition and experience of role ambiguity throughout the year. Violence in the workplace in the form of verbal abuse from other colleagues is a negative experience for nurses and is the cause of significant amounts of anxiety and stress Chang, Daly & Hancock et al., 2006). McVicar (2003) suggests that conflict with staff is the responsibility of management, nurses and all other professionals. Tourangeau & Cranley (2006) advise that relationships with co-workers have a potential influence on the retention of nurses and suggests further strategies, which include praise and recognition of co-workers as well as team building strategies that increase social interaction. A qualitative study by Abuairub (2004) surveyed 303 nurses from various locations throughout the world on the effect of social support from co-workers in which, participants who ‘perceived’ having additional social support from co-workers reported lower levels of stress. Abuairub (2004) comments that extra social support from co-workers may assist in creating a more friendly and pleasurable working environment as well as nurses feeling they could call on co-workers for assistance. Graduate nurses would benefit from social support as they are constantly challenged and require guidance from all staff. Chang, Daly & Hancock et al., (2006) further support the notion of social support by reporting that a positive social climate can decrease levels of stress and ‘prevent’ burnout. The leaders of the work  environment need to foster a more socially supportive culture by demonstrating co-operation, encouraging teamwork, social equality, supportive attitudes and ed ucation about stress education and helpful coping mechanisms (Abuairub, 2004; Hayhurst, Saylor & Stuenkel, 2005). Coping strategies can be defined as psychological and ‘behavioural efforts’ to control demands that are considered as â€Å"exceeding the resources of the person† and are either problem focused which attempts to deal with or alter the problem that is the source of the stress or emotionally focused which attempts to ease ‘emotional distress’ (Lazarus and Folkman 1984, p. 141 as cited in Chang, Daly & Hancock et al., 2006). Chang, Daly & Hancock et al., (2006) comment that many studies suggest problem-focused coping to be more effective in preventing burnout than emotion-focused coping. It would be beneficial to address coping strategies with nursing staff to educate them about different methods and to assist them in recognizing coping methods that are unhelpful so that they may employ personal control to their responses of stress (Chang, Bidwell & Huntington, 2007). These strategies would greatly assist nurses in reducing stress and burnout as well as providing graduate nurses with a firm foundation of clear guidelines and support. In conclusion, the nursing profession is under high demand as our population is growing older and the acuity of patients is increasing. To ensure sustainability of the nursing profession it is essential that graduate nurses are supported in their transition from university to a hospital environment so they continue to remain in the profession. To retain more experienced nurses there must be change within nursing environments and organizations to create a more flexible and supportive workplace. The main causes of anxiety, stress and burnout have been well documented, and it is the implementation of strategies that is lacking. Further investigation into the effectiveness of prevention strategies for burnout should be explored, as better working environments will encourage more people and ex-nurses into the profession and therefore lessening the staff shortages that directly contribute to anxiety, stress and burnout.

Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong

Who Am I? Close your eyes and imagine a backdrop of densely packed trees in shades of olive and emerald green, a military supply helicopter on the helipad, blades swooshing around stirring up dust, and out steps a beautiful, young, blonde girl. Right in the middle of war-torn Vietnam, at the Tra Bong outpost, Mary Anne Bell arrives at the request of her boyfriend. When first reading â€Å"Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong,† by Tim O’Brien, one might believe it is a love story turned sour, but on closer inspection, it is apparent that this story is about much more than that.This story is about the loss of innocence, personal evolution, and the attempt to define one’s self. A bit tired and out-of-place, a young Mary Anne steps off a helicopter and into Nam. A war is raging beyond the concertina wire, and she is oblivious to the enormous magnitude of the situation. Mary Anne is a naive, barely 17 year old girl. She is cheerful, wide-eyed, and inquisitive all rolled up into one bundle. She is fresh out of high school with no life experience and no idea of how the world works; how it can tilt and sour one’s perspective.In the beginning, Mary Anne is very fascinated by the country, the culture, and the people. She sees Nam through untainted curious eyes, wanting to experience the customs and feel the culture. She probes the soldiers at the outpost with many questions and listens intently to their answers, consuming all the information given. She learns about claymore mines, trip wires, how to assemble and disassemble an M-16 machine gun, as well as how to cook over a can of Sterno. Like a sponge, she soaks up all the knowledge.She even learns the language; her thought is to take advantage of her situation and learn as much as possible while in Nam. Believing that the locals are safe, ordinary people, Mary Ann wants to venture to a close-by village to interact with them. This shows just how wet behind the ears she is; Mary Anne does not see t he threat or danger in heractions, â€Å"It did not impress her that the VC owned the place† (O'Brien 214). Some of the other soldiers were impressed with her courage, but not so much with her intelligence. The NCO of the outpost, Eddie Diamond described her best as â€Å"D-cup guts, trainer bra brains† (O'Brien 215).However, Eddie knew that eventually she would learn the cold, hard truth like everyone else, and it would change her forever. Rat Riley, one of the medics at the outpost and new friend of Mary Anne’s, makes a direct comparison between her, him, and others, â€Å"†¦like you and me. A girl that’s the only difference† he declared, â€Å"†¦when we first got here – all of us – we were real young and innocent, full of romantic bullshit, but we learned pretty damn quick† (O'Brien 215). Mary Anne would learn as well, she would lose the innocence that came with ignorance of the truth.The change was slow and murky to the untrained eye, but there it was, the progression from a pure untainted soul to one that had fallen into a dark abyss. It started with small things, the lack of emotion when dealing with injured soldiers, all the blood and guts. Not being the least bit frightened or put off by what she was seeing, Mary Anne would jump right into the middle of all the gore. â€Å"In times of action her face took on a sudden new composure, almost serene†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (O'Brien 217). A new and different person was immerging; the young, innocent, bubbly, wideeyed girl was disappearing.There were other subtle changes showing how Mary Anne was becoming one of the guys. Just like the men, she cut her beautiful blonde hair short and wrapped her head in an army issue green bandanna to blend in. Gone were the small things that made her Mary Anne-her make-up, taking care of her fingernails, jewelry, and â€Å"hygiene became a matter of small consequence† (O'Brien 216). It was, by pure design of n ature, she had to adapt to the environment to survive. The softness as well as her exuberance were gone and replaced by rigidity and indifference.She no longer engages in activates with the others, instead; she stares intently into the dark jungle with a look of contentment on her face. Nam was claiming her, sucking her into the abyss. Mary Anne starts going out on patrol in the jungle with the â€Å"Greenies†, the Green Beret soldiers. Eventually, she becomes so comfortable with her surroundings that she ventures out on her own. Mary Anne makes the final transition; the innocent girl disappears within the new person she has become. She is now a war-born soldier. Now, there is no trace of the young girl who stepped out of the helicopter and into Nam for the first time. The girl joined the zoo† Mary Anne became just another animal in the vast Nam jungle (O'Brien 221). The naive, innocent girl was gone; she vanished into the shadows. Mary Anne found her true self and was perfectly at peace. The wilderness succeeded in drawing her in, changing her, and making her part of the earth. Mary Anne wants â€Å"†¦to eat this place. Vietnam. I want to swallow the whole country-the dirt, the death-I just want to eat it and have it there inside me† she adds â€Å"I get scared sometimes-lots of times-but it’s not bad. You know? I feel close to myself† (O'Brien 223).Perhaps for Mary Anne, she found something that was lurking deep inside her prior to arriving in Nam. Maybe Nam just expedited digging that part of her out. Mary Anne was alive, full of electricity, â€Å"perfectly at peace with herself† she explains â€Å"because I know exactly who I am† (O'Brien 223). â€Å"Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong,† shows us all that no one can survive a war and walk away unscathed by it. One can never return the same person that went over to another country on a mission that involved killing. Rat Riley describes it best,  "you come over clean and you get dirty and then afterward it’s never the same† (O'Brien 225).This story is not about Mary Anne Bell, but about what she embodies. She personifies all the young, inexperienced boys that went to Vietnam and their stories. Mary Anne represents the loss of purity in the many young men that went by choice or by force to a foreign land. Nam devoured their souls transforming them forever, as if the very country cried out for a piece of them as payment for damages rendered. Nam claimed its price of those that trampled on her soil. Some young men may have found their inner killer and like Mary Anne did in the end, they became content.But on the other hand, many others were forced to become something alien just to endure the war. These are the souls that returned tortured. Oh my soul that I should weep for I no longer close my eyes and find innocent sleep. These haunted souls look in a mirror and ask, â€Å"Who am I? † Perhaps on some days, they see a glimmer of the person they once were when they were young and innocent. Works Cited O'Brien, Tim. â€Å"Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong. † World Views Classic and Contemporary Readings. Ed. Macy, et al Felty. 6th. Boston: Pearson, 2010. 210-226.