The Silver Kiss by Annette Curtis Klause Essay Example for Free

The Silver Kiss by Annette Curtis Klause Essay Point of View There are two points of view. One view is from the Simon (the vampire), and the other is from Zoà «, the girl whose mother is dying of cancer. Zoe is having a really hard time dealing with her mother’s sickness, especially since her father has become more and more distant as his wife gets sicker and sicker. Zoe is feeling like she has nowhere to turn, especially when she finds out her best friend is moving far away. Then she meets a very mysterious pale boy, and she feels like she can trust him. Perhaps he even needs someone like she needs someone. Simon, on the other hand, has been a vampire for hundreds of years. He is on the search for his brother, Christopher, who made him a vampire. Christopher was horrifyingly brutal and he killed their mother, which has made him Simons sworn enemy. Simon has been trying for most of his afterlife to find and kill Christopher for good, and he has finally tracked his brother to the town where Zoe lives. Once there, though, he finds himself drawn to Zoes loneliness. Before long, he is confiding in her and feeling compassion for the first time in a very long time. Setting in time and place The setting was more on a contemporary period, most usually at Zoà «Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s house and the hospital, at time when her mother is dying of cancer. However, flashbacks of past centuries bring back Simon’s memories of his mother. The setting blooms more about the understanding of love and how it blends no matted how different two beings might be. List all main characters and a brief description of each Zoà « – The 16-year-old girl whose mother is dying of cancer. Simon has been a vampire for hundreds of years. He is on the search for his brother, Christopher, who made him a vampire. Zoà «Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s mother – terminally ill, she is dying because of cancer. A brief plot summary 16-year-old Zoà « is faced with the reality that her mother is dying of cancer. When she meets the mysterious and handsome Simon, she feel he can understand her pain better than anyone else has. As Zoà «s life goes from bad to worse, Simon becomes her one true support. Conflict There is something very creepy about the pale young man. The question and conflict is will that creepy something (that is, the fact that Simon is a vampire) force the two apart? Theme How odd or incomparable two hearts may seem, love will always make them perfect for each other.

Study on stress management for teachers in Malaysia

Study on stress management for teachers in Malaysia Teaching is one of the most stressful jobs in Malaysia. The talk on Stress Management for Teachers (Kolej Disted-Stamford news, 23 February 2008) declared that teaching is a challenging profession and hence, teachers could do with learning how to de-stress to maintain good health and high spirits.  There are two main sources of stress which affect teachers; heavy workload and students problem. Nowadays, a teachers duty is multifaceted as they undertake not only teaching but also matters associated with curriculum, students, parents, the school community as well as departmental initiatives. Another key point to note, the success of the newly launched National Education Blueprint has given a big impact on the development of the schools and teachers themselves. This plan is expected to produce intellectual students who are able to collect information and acquire knowledge and skills, instead of purely memorizing knowledge. Education system should cater to the needs of all students; smart, mediocre, weak or disabled. The success of the National Education Blueprint depends on the teachers ability, quality, skills and effectiveness in educating students. Teachers are required to have proficient skills in teaching and educating students to fulfill the governments aspiration in providing world class education. As a result of this new system, married female teachers may face an increase in workload which will in turn affect their work performance as well as their psychological well-being. According to Smylie (1999), These are tough times being a teacher (p. 59). Ewing and Smith (2003) reported that between 25% and 40% of beginning teachers in the Western World countries are leaving teaching or facing burnout syndrome. Over the past ten years, many researchers focused on the effect of work overload on work-family conflict. Generally, they found that high levels of work overload led to higher levels of work-family conflict (WFC). From a personal perspective, {suggested that the demands that employees have to fulfil considering their resources namely time and emotions to devote to work with less devote to their families.} work demands require employees to devote more resources namely time and emotions to work, leaving them with fewer resources to devote to their families. Greenhaus and Beutell (1985) define work-family conflict as a type of inter-role conflict in which role pressures from work and family are mutually incompatible. That is, work demands are not compatible with family demands (Allen, Herst, Bruck, and Sutton, 2000). Allen et al. (2000) reviewed the relationship between work-family conflict and (a) work-related outcomes, (b) non-work-related outcomes, (c) stress-related outcomes and generally found significant relationships across these areas. They concluded that work-family conflict has important personal and organizational consequences. It is important to note that the early research on multiple roles focused almost on women, particularly on women who occupied the roles of wife, mother, and employee. The multiple roles of women may affect the well-being of the family such as the husband, children and including the wife herself. Conflict occurs when a family is unable to cope with this multiples roles effectively and the result has been found to affect work satisfaction and psychological well-being (Greenhaus and Beutell, 1985; Loscocco and Roschelle, 1991; Phelan et al., 1991). In order to maintain the health and success of teachers and schools, greater understanding of WFC is fundamental. Consequently, the influence of WFC in the prediction of psychological well-being is receiving increasing attention (e.g., ODriscoll, Brough, and Kalliath, 2004). This has led to an increment in the number of occupational stress researchers as well as WFC variables in their estimates of both individual health and work performance (Brough O Driscoll, 2005). Research suggests that an individuals self-efficacy in a specific domain provides information regarding how the individual perceive and cope with challenges. In the case of managing conflict that inevitably arise between personal and professional responsibilities, assessing work-family conflict efficacy may provide a unique perspective on what might ultimately help to reduce the negative outcomes namely decrease in life and job satisfaction that are associated with work-family conflict. Understanding how self-efficacy function in the relationship between work-family conflict and these outcomes could bring about meaningful therapeutic measures for women experiencing work-family conflict. Self-efficacy is defined as, peoples judgments in their capabilities to organize and execute courses of action required to attain designated types of performance (p. 391). Bandura (1977) described self-efficacy as a key determinant of psychological change, choice of settings and activities, quality of performance in a specific domain, and level of persistence when one meets adverse or negative experiences. Having mentioned about efficacy, other predictors may also have significance in contributing to WFC and well-being. Religious coping and religiosity that have been found to affect health status positively, including overall morbidity and mortality, acute conditions, fatal ailments, pain and chronic illness (Levin, 1994). Religious belief has been perceived as one way of coping with conflict. The positive influence of religious certainty on well-being was found to be direct and substantial, whereby individuals with a strong religious faith reported higher levels of life satisfaction and greater personal happiness (Ellison, 1991), as well as lower levels of distress (Ross, 1990). Religious activities especially prayers are usually regarded as positive coping devices directed toward both the problem and personal growth (Folkman, Lazarus, Dunkel-Shetter, De Longis Gruis, 1986). Due to the insufficient of information on the psychological outcomes of combining work and family roles among Malaysian women, the present study is aimed at investigating the direct and indirect relationships between WFC efficacy, religious coping, WFC and well-being. The study hypothesized that the relationship between WFC efficacy, religious coping and well-being is mediated by WFC. Therefore, the proposed model hypothesized WFC to act as an intervening variable between WFC efficacy and religious coping and well-being among female teachers in Malaysia. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM Changes in family structures are transforming the workplace while adjustments in parental work patterns are altering family life. Thus, there has been a dramatic increase in rates of paid employment globally among mothers with children. Research on WFC since the past 30 years has been fuelled by the growing proportion of employees who are dual-earner partners or single parents. As the number of working women with young children at home and dual-career households rise, so does the need for research and organizational attention towards potentially reducing stress due to WFC. Research to date suggests that high levels of work-family conflict are related to dysfunctional outcomes such as life dissatisfaction, anxiety, depression, and poor health in individual, increased interpersonal conflict and divorce in relationships, and as for the organizations, namely absenteeism, tardiness and loss of talented employees. Besides that, The National Union of The Teaching Profession (NUTP) Secretary, General Lok Yim Pheng, in New Sunday Times, May 18, 2008, informed that teachers are overloaded with paper work and they are pressured to train students on how to answer examination questions. Teachers must always maintain the quality of their work, try to improve their productivity and acquire knowledge and skills to develop human capital in the globalized world. Moreover, teachers play an essential role in shaping a community as their products of educating efforts contribute to its functionality. These are the demands of teaching profession nowadays. Researchers have identified various stressors that may affect the psychological well-being of teachers and one of the stressor is workload that may lead to burnout. Although some researchers may argue that social status is one of the most important factors for psychological well-being (Bredemeier, 1979), it seems that excessive workload could impose an undue level of stress that is more serious than any other stressors. A large number of studies show that teachers are exposed to workload which results particularly in stress and strain. At least one third of teachers can be seen as suffering from extreme stress and/or burnout (e.g., Boyle, Borg, Falzon Baglioni, 1991; Friesen Sarros, 1989). Researchers have considered various unique antecedents to WFC (Greenhaus and Beutell, 1985; Frone, 1992). However, the role of personality factors on womens well-being, on the other hand, is less well documented. Only a few researchers have assessed the relationship between WFC efficacy and religious coping. For instance, Carlson (1999) found negative affectivity to be directly related to greater WIF conflict. There is a need to identify how WFC efficacy and religious coping can be linked with WFC and well-being in a causal relationship in the school setting. The present study uses the Structural Equation Model (SEM) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) to examine relationships among two independent (exogenous) and dependent (endogenous) variables simultaneously in a causal framework. With regard to personal resources, why do some teachers succeed in being good teachers continuously enhancing students achievements, setting high goals for themselves and pursuing them persistently, while others fail to meet expectations imposed on them and tend to collapse under the burden of everyday stress? Based on this statement, the study examines the problem by investigating the influence of teachers WFC efficacy and religious coping on work-family conflict and well-being of female teachers in Malaysia. If teachers WFC efficacy and religious coping can be proven to reduce WFC among female teachers, it seems possible to increase teachers WFC efficacy and improve teachers coping style using religious approach which in turn may boost teachers well-being. Again, if WFC efficacy and religious coping are causally related to WFC as hypothesized, this relationship will reduce teachers WFC and increase teachers well-being respectively. PURPOSE OF THE STUDY In generally, this study serves the purpose to examine the impact of WFC efficacy and religious coping on WFC and well-being of secondary school teachers in Malaysia. To validate the instruments utilized in this study, the researcher adopted the two-step Structural Equation Modeling. Then, the researcher estimated the hypothesized relationships. The primary purpose of this research is to construct-validate the instrument to assess WFC of female teachers in Malaysia which are Work-family conflict (WFC), Work-family conflict efficacy (WFC efficacy) Religious coping (RC), Well-being (WB) consisted of Health (GHQ) and Job-Family Dissatisfaction (JFD). The study also estimates the relationships of WFC, WFC efficacy, RC and well-being of female teachers in Malaysia. RESEARCH QUESTIONS The following research questions are formulated to address the hypothesized relationships: 1. Are the constructs of work-family conflict, work-family conflict efficacy, religious coping and well-being valid and reliable? 2. Does work-family conflict efficacy directly influenced the well-being of female teachers in Malaysia? 3. Does work-family conflict efficacy indirectly influenced well-being via work-family conflict of female teachers in Malaysia? 4. Does religious coping directly influenced well-being of female teachers in Malaysia? 5. Does religious coping indirectly influenced well-being via work-family conflict of female teachers in Malaysia? Does teachers work-family conflict directly influenced by their well-being? Does WFC-efficacy and religious coping significantly correlated? THE CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK OF WORK-FAMILY CONFLICT The model of this study, which is derived from Frone et al., (1992), examines the interrelationships among the two predictors WFC efficacy and RC that may affect well-being directly and indirectly via work-family conflict. This research focuses on the variables that are considered vital to increase well-being and to reduce WFC. The hypothesized interrelationships and interdependency among these variables are presented in Figure 1. The model depicts four measurement models, labeled as efficacy accounted for the variability in WFC efficacy and FWC-efficacy. First, work-family conflict-efficacy (WFC efficacy) which acts as a predictor or an independent variable comprises work-family conflict efficacy (WFC efficacy) and family-work conflict efficacy (FWC efficacy) of work-family conflict and well-being. This type of personality may improve or increase ones well-being because it strongly affects a persons ability to do a task. Teachers WFC efficacy should aim at reducing teachers experiences with WFC aside from functioning as a personality booster. Thus, an individuals personality plays a role in the amount of work-family conflict that he or she experiences. The second latent variable, religious coping illustrates the underlying factors for positive religious/spiritual coping (POS RC) and negative religious/spiritual coping (NEG RC). In order for teachers to cope with work-family conflict, they need to choose an effective coping style. In this study, religious coping as a second predictor of WFC and well-being may have significant relationships with both dependents. It is certainly reasonable to argue that teachers who manage their religious coping well would most likely have less WFC and a better well-being. In addition, the relationship between the two constructs namely WFC efficacy and religious coping would covary. In other words, the researcher believes that the constructs are correlated, but does not assume that one construct is dependent upon another. This relationship is depicted by a two-headed arrow connection as shown in Figure 1. In the current study, WFC efficacy and religious coping will be tested as predictors of WFC and w ell-being. The third latent variable, WFC, represents the underlying factor for Work-interfering-with-family and Family-interfering-with-work. WFC occurs when participation in the work role and the family role is incompatible in some respect. Work-family conflict can arise from; 1) the time demands of one role that interfere with participation in the other role and; 2) the stress that originates in one role that spills over into the other role which, only detracts from the latters quality of life. As a result, participation in one role is made more difficult by virtue of participation in the other role. Individuals who invest more time or more psychological involvement in their work rather than their family experience the highest levels of work-to-family conflict and life stress, which ultimately reduce their quality of life. The fourth latent variable, well-being, accounts for the variability in General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) and Job-Family Dissatisfaction (JFD) which is hypothesized to represent participants reported well-being. Thus, it is not what the situation offers but rather how we react to a situation that determines our well being. If work and family roles were imbalanced, conflict might occur which would eventually affect the well-being of a person. Effects will range from job-family dissatisfaction to health problems, which are viewed as psychological distress. Work-Family Conflict Efficacy H3 Well-being (distress job dissatisfaction Work-family Conflict (wif,fiw) H2 H7 H6 H3 Religious Coping H5 Figure 1 The Hypothesized Model of Work-family Conflict and Well-Being Note: Exogenous Construct: WFC efficacy; religious coping; WFC Endogenous Construct: WFC; well-being RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS In the hypothesized model, six hypotheses are tested to depict the relationships between work-family conflict and the three variables identified above. In the following discussion, each of these six hypotheses are identified and explained. The Reciprocal Relationship between Work-Family Conflict Efficacy, Work-Family Conflict and Well-Being Studies have shown that the personal resources that women bring with them into their roles explained more of the variance in reported strain symptoms than the role stressors alone (e.g. Amatea Fong, 1991). Self-efficacy in a particular domain has been indirectly and directly linked to outcomes in that domain. For instance, Lent, Brown and Hackett (1994) suggested that self-efficacy promotes academic and vocational outcomes, such as interest, choice and performance. The conservation of resources model proposes that individuals act to acquire and maintain a variety of resources, such as objects, energies, condition and personal characteristic. On the basis of these findings, the following hypotheses are proposed: H2 Those with high work-family conflict efficacy will portray increased well-being (low distress and low dissatisfaction) H3 The effects of work-family conflict efficacy on well-being are mediated by work-family conflict, such that those with high work-family conflict efficacy demonstrate less conflict which will leads to increased well-being (low distress and low dissatisfaction). The Reciprocal Relationship between Religious Coping, Work-family Conflict and Well-Being In recent years, a growing body of literature has explored the implications of religion and spirituality for various mental and physical health outcomes (Koenig 1994). Other findings have also indicated that various dimensions of religiousness and spirituality may enhance the subjective states of well-being (Ellison, 1991). A report by the Fetzer Institute (2003), stated that a few studies in the US show that the subjective beneficial effects of participating in religious services, prayer and Bible reading are primarily due to their role in strengthening religious belief and individuals who describe themselves as having a strong religious faith report being happier and more satisfied with their lives. Most recently, Lapierre and Allen (2006) had used conservation of resources model to study the different coping methods employed by individuals to avoid WFC. They found that some coping methods are more useful than others to help individuals gain or conserve resources. Thus, the followi ng hypotheses are proposed: H4 Those with high religious coping show increased well-being (low distress and low dissatisfaction). H5 The effects of religious coping on well-being are mediated by work-family conflict such that those with high religious coping portray less conflict which leads to increased well-being (low distress and low dissatisfaction) The Reciprocal Relationship between Work-Family Conflict and Well-Being Work-family conflict has been found to have a significant negative relationship with measured of psychological health rather than physical health (Mikkelsen Burke, 2004). Noor (2006) presented some selected research findings on work, family and womens well-being. The result showed that women were more strongly affected by the changes in their lives compared to men because even when employed they are still primarily responsible for the home and family. Role theory and spillover theory are the underpinning theories to explain the connection between WFC and well-being. Thus, the following hypothesis is proposed: H6 WFC negatively influences well-being. The Reciprocal Relationship between Work-Family Conflict Efficacy and Religious Coping Covary Judge, Erez and Bono (1998) suggested that self-efficacy has a strong influence on individuals, whether they adopt an optimistic or pessimistic coping style (Seligman Schulman, 1996). They suggested that those with high generalized self-efficacy believe in their ability to change bad situations. The type of coping strategy selected has been shown to be related to the experience of work-family strain and overall well-being. Researchers have also found that self-efficacy is linked to the effectiveness of coping (Anderson, 1977; Bandura, 1977). On the basis of these findings, the following hypothesis is proposed: H7 WFC efficacy and religious coping significantly correlated. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY This is a fundamental area of study for both researchers and practitioners, as more and more female teachers struggle having to take up with multiple roles in life being a wife, a parent and even a caretaker of elderly parents aside from her teaching profession. Teachers are the main doers in the process of forming a community and students are the products of teachers educating efforts. Due to the above basis, there are three important research areas that need focus namely; theory, methodology and practicality. Firstly, from the theoretical viewpoint, less attention is devoted to examine how WFC and well-being are indirectly related to efficacy and RC. The studies by Frone (2003) called for the examination of personality dispositions as antecedents of WFC. The role of personality factors on womens well-being, on the other hand, is less well documented. Carlson (1999) found negative affectivity to be directly related to greater WIF conflict. Although many studies on WFC involved nurses, managers, clericals, doctors, lawyers and engineers there were not many studies related to work and family conflict in the teaching profession. According to Kinicki et al.s (1996) review, the basic proposition which states that environmental and personality variables influence the choice of coping strategies, has been generally supported by empirical research, but the relationships between coping strategies and outcomes are inconsistent. Research on coping should address both the effects of coping on appraisal and strain as well as vice versa (Harris, 1991). It is vital to note that this study focus on the relationships between religious coping and work-family conflict and well-being. Furthermore, knowing how women deal with the realities of their conflicts rather than how they feel about them seems particularly important. Therefore it is of great interest to get a deeper knowledge of the antecedents/predictors of the teachers work-family conflict. Secondly, is/from the methodological component/perspective. There are inconsistent findings regarding the relationship between WFC and well-being. Due to this reason, this study also investigates the direct and indirect relationships concurrently. Apart from that, this study also examines WFC efficacy as a predictor of WFC due to the inconclusive findings related to efficacy and stress. In the current study, the researcher examines work-family conflict efficacy that may play an important role as a predictor of WFC in increasing teachers well-being. Unfortunately, not much is known about the relationships between WFC efficacy, religious coping, WFC and well-being in Malaysian studies. Thus, this study examines direct and indirect relationships between WFC, WFC efficacy, religious coping and well-being. By using Structural Equation Modeling, the direct and indirect relationships can be simultaneously tested. To achieve this purpose, the data are analyzed using Confirmatory Factor Analy sis (CFA) and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Additionally, there is only few research on WFC among teachers in the Malaysian population utilizing SEM. The result of the study would substantiate understanding about the phenomenon of work-family conflict in teacher population with the use of SEM. Thirdly, in practicality, it is important to study WFC and the psychological well-being of female school teachers. Studies has indicated that many teachers are incapable of juggling their professional and family roles effectively (Elbaz-Lubisch, 2002; Spencer, 1986). Teachers in Ackers study (1992) clearly thought that the combination roles of being a teacher and a mother were not at all convenient. Job satisfaction and teaching competence are important variables in regard to teachers continuity in the profession. For instance, studies by Certo and Fox (2002) indicated that job satisfaction in teaching was associated with aspects such as workplace conditions, administrative control, and organizational culture. It also touched on how teachers felt about their own competencies like teaching accomplishments and their general feelings coming to work. When teacher satisfaction was examined by Scott and Dinham (2003), they found that it was influenced by students achievement and personal e fficacy. Hence, it may be plausible to argue that a teachers well-being is influenced by job satisfaction and competence plus, reduced well-being associated with work may lead to stress that will in turn affect job performance. This study hopes to contribute to the importance of the relationships between WFC, WFC efficacy, religious coping and well-being of female teachers. Work-family problems, if they are not effectively managed, will not only affect individuals and their families, but also adversely affect their employers and ultimately the society at large. Hence, the responsibility for developing and implementing effective ways to reduce work-family interference and increase development should be shared by organizations, individuals and their families, as well as policy-makers. This study may also assist the policy-makers and administrators to implement intervention strategies aimed at managing teachers WFC, if possible reducing their workload. Additionally, practitioners are interested in the extent to which various interventions like family-friendly policies and programs, and the supportiveness of the work-family culture would actually reduce employees work-family role conflict. They are also interested in how this can have significant impact on a number of work, family and personal outcomes, as mentioned above. Therefore, future research should be aimed at examining the effectiveness of such interventions. LIMITATION OF THE STUDY First, limiting the generalizability of current findings, even though the sample represents the organizations population, they were female. Secondly, the disadvantage of using a survey method is that it influence the willingness of individuals to respond accurately. Finally, the present study is clearly limited by the cross-sectional nature of the research. DELIMITATION OF THE STUDY This study focused only on married female secondary school teachers in the District of Hulu Langat in Selangor. This sample size was limited to only those who were in one district in one state. The researcher controlled the influence of participants marital status, number of children, working experience on WFC and level of institutions (secondary schools) that were expected to have high significant levels of conflict between work and family roles. The presence of children within the home has been identified as a factor that affects conflict. Regarding the influence children have on work and family conflict, research has suggested that FWC and WFC are exacerbated by the number of children living within the home (Kinnunen Mauno, 1998; Voydanoff, 1988). This research also included in-depth open-ended interviews to further explore the mechanisms that explain teachers WFC. DEFINITION OF THE OPERATIONAL KEY TERMS For the purpose of this study, the key terms or constructs under the study are operationally defined as follow, with some elaborations on the definitions. Work-Family Conflict Work-family conflict has been defined as a form of inter-role conflict in which pressures from work and family roles are incompatible (Greenhaus Beutell, 1985). For instance, when one devotes extra time and energy into one role, the other role is compromised. This study defines work-family conflict according to Netemeyer et al., (1996, p. 401) as a form of inter-role conflict in which the general demands of, time devoted to and strain created by the job interfere with performing family-related responsibilities. Work-Family Conflict Efficacy Work-family conflict efficacy is defined as an individuals beliefs in her or his ability to manage work-family and family-work conflict (Cinamon, 2003). In this study, work-family conflict efficacy refers to the perceptions of self-efficacy to manage work-family conflict and family-work conflict. Self-efficacy was theoretically defined in this study as self-regulatory efficacy, which is a specific type of perceived self-efficacy. The given attainment in this study was à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Bandura (1997) defined a specific type of self-efficacy, self-regulatory efficacy, as the ability to guide and motivate oneself to get things done that one knows how to do. The issue is not whether one can do them occasionally but whether one has the efficacy to get oneself to do them regularly in the face of varied dissuading (p.43). Religious Coping Various definitions of coping have been proposed, including coping as a psychoanalytic process; as a personal trait, style or disposition; as a description of situationally specific strategies; and as a process. In this study, coping in the context of religious approach is used. Thus, religious coping is defined as dealing with life effectively within the search for significance towards the sacred (Pargament, 1997). Religious coping includes a positive and negative religious/spiritual coping factor that reflects benevolent religious involvement in the search for significance and a negative factor that reflects religious struggle in coping. Well-being Kathryn Dianne (2009) argued that employee well-being consists of subjective well-being (life satisfaction and dispositional affect), workplace well-being (job satisfaction and work-related affect) and psychological well-being (self acceptance, positive relations with others, environmental mastery, autonomy, purpose in life and personal growth). In this study well-being refers to symptoms of psychological distress and job-family dissatisfaction. Symptoms of psychological distress Goldberg (1978) has identified symptoms of psychological distress through somatic and affective of distress. Job-Family Dissatisfaction Job-family dissatisfaction refers to a respondents perception of negative spillover from his or her work to family (Small Riley, 1990), for example the negative impact of a respondents work demands or stressors on her marital and parental roles. Mediator Mediators are intervening variables, which could explain why relationships exist. Mediation exists when an exogenous construct indirectly influences an endogenous construct via a third variable or construct. That is, the effect of a third variable or construct (mediator) intervenes between two other related constructs. In this study, work-family conflict functions as a mediator. SUMMARY Chapter one is organized into nine sections. The first section presents the background of the study, followed by the statement of problem and purpose of the study. To achieve the purpose of the study, several research questions have been formulated and explained more on the conceptual framework part, a set of relationships (work-family conflict efficacy, religious coping, work-family conflict and well-being) in a path diagram is depicted. Sixth, on the basis of

Influence of External Factors on Business: Gym

Influence of External Factors on Business: Gym Introduction: World has become a global village and globalization has opened doors for people of different backgrounds and countries to come closer and interact with each other. As a consumer, our decisions are heavily influenced by socio-cultural factors. Therefore, to understand rationale behind consumers decisions related to any product or service, it is vital that we evaluate the external factors involved. Being a new student at University of New England, Australia I had the opportunity to use many facilities that SportUNE offer. With the establishment of University of New England (UNE) in 1938, SportUNE also became operational. Since its inception, it is open to not only to students studying in UNE, but also for community usage boosting an overall culture of wellbeing and staying active. SportUNE offers many facilities for students which includes state-of-the-art Gym, playing fields along with two multipurpose halls, a climbing wall, 25 meter heated indoor pool, multiple courts and a cafà © along with group fitness classes, health and wellbeing programs, personal trainers, and access to more than twenty sporting clubs from a variety of different sports. (SportUNE, 2017) Among various facilities that SportUNE offers, the facility that I choose for this assignment is the Gym and Synopsis for this decision-making is explained below. Main Body: In our lives there are many decisions that we take on daily basis whether it is the brand of milk we buy, model of a car, neighborhood we choose to live in, school our kids go to or holiday destination we choose. Decisions are an integral part of every humans life, which are influenced by various internal and external factors (Schiffman et, al., 2014, p: 24). For assignment 1, we will examine how these external factors namely culture, social class, reference groups and family that provides an input in a consumer decision-making. Decision-Making Process: The decision-making is a five-stage process which includes problem recognition, pre-purchase search, and evaluation of alternatives, purchase and post-purchase. (Schiffman et, al., 2014, p: 488) I along with my husband and two children moved to Australia from Pakistan when I got admission in UNE. We moved to Armidale before my coursework started. As my youngest child was born just before we relocated to Australia, I did not have enough time to exercise and return to my pre-pregnancy weight. Now with mounting pressure of managing home and studies with baby around, I had my hands full and was unable to take out time for my own self and I felt stress all the time. This situation gave rise to problem recognition stage. Living in Armidale, I searched online for different activities that can incorporate with my hectic routine. My search revealed that there are few fitness clubs in Armidale like Anytime fitness, Feelgood Gym, chilli gym, Mick Colleens Fitness Centre etc that offered various facilities. I searched all my options, visited their premises to evaluate all alternatives to shortlist which facility best suited my requirements. SportUNE attracted my attention the most because it was very close to my residence as all other facilities were concentrated in middle of city Centre. Also, as a student at UNE, I received 20% discount on 12-month membership (SportUNE, 2017). So I decided to purchase 12-month membership of SportUNE and arranged my daily routine in a way that I was able to take time out for myself in between my classes and home. I believe that it was the right decision I made of choosing SportUNE gym and happy with my post purchase. Next step is to understand how external factors influenced my decision making process of choosing SportUNE gym. Influence of External Factors: Influence of Family: Former Sociologists articulated that children learn basic consumption behaviour from their parents (Riesman and Roseborough, 1955). Brought up and raised in an extended family (Schiffman et, al, 2014p: 326), many family members played vital role as a stimulant to shape values and attitudes to lead a healthy lifestyle. Socialization of Family members: Parents play major role in shaping the consumer socialization of children where parents act as socialization agents. Through the perceptual and analytical stage (John, 1999), as a child I grew up observing my parents take decisions and follow a healthy lifestyle. I used to accompany my mother to the gym and shadowed her exercise routines followed by healthy eating habits developed my positive attitude towards achieving physical fitness. (Schiffman, 2014d, p: 328) Family Life cycle: As an adult and passing through the parenthood stage engaging in primary school phase of traditional family lifecycle (Schiffman, 2014d, p: 335), it is difficult to manage time with two kids for ones own self. Juggling time between kids school, day care, karate classes, house chores and studies is a difficult job and results in over exhaustion and stress. SportUNE offers free crà ¨che service (SportUNE crà ¨che, 2017) for young children so I was able to enjoy my workout routines without worrying about finding a babysitter for my baby. Also, added incentive that service is free of cost so it was not added burden financially. Dynamics of Husband-wife decision-making: Multiple decisions in our household are influenced by the husband-wife decision-making dynamics. Generally as husband and wife, as identified by (Sciffman et, al., 2014, p: 345) we took syncretic/ joint decisions when choosing our childs primary school, deciding holiday but in-case of deciding whether SportUNE, facility, it was an autonomic decision (Schiffman et, al., 2014, p: 345) as I became the decider, by taking a gym membership, I became buyer and by going to the gym regularly to exercise made me the user of the facility (Schiffman et, al (2014, p: 342). Reference Group: Bearden and Etzel (1982) identified that the products and brands nominated by the individuals can be subjective to their reference groups. According to (Sciffman et, al., 2014, p: 289), reference groups classifies different individuals in consumers life as role model for their attitudes and behavior. Staying happy, healthy, active and confident is the attitude that was religiously practiced in my family throughout my life becoming normative reference group in my decision. When I visited SportUNE gym, I noticed that there were many women using gym with their little kids being taken care of in Crà ¨che, I felt association with them because of similar parenthood stage. So they acted as an associative reference group. (Sciffman et, al., 2014, p: 290). Jillian Michaels, a successful American personal trainer acted as an Aspirational reference group (Sciffman et, al., 2014, p: 290), for my decision to join gym because I grew up watching her Television program The Biggest Looser which inspired me to develop healthy lifestyle and stay in shape. Similarly fitness trainers and experts like Emily Skye, Kristy Welsh and Bob Harper, are few of the notable people who acted as an Aspirational reference in my decision to join gym and get in shape. Few of my friends who are already studying in UNE, Armadale and are regular user of SportUNE gym facility put great confidence in the gym environment, friendly and helpful trainers, up to date gym equipment and awesome gym environment became the opinion leaders (Sciffman et, al., 2014, p: 295) making me an opinion receiver (Sciffman et, al., 2014, p: 295)in my assignment. Social Class According to latest survey conducted by ANU Centre for Social research and Methods, 19th ANU Polls (ANUpoll, 2015), Dr Jill Sheppard Dr Nicholas Biddle identified that 92% of the Australians identified themselves as middle class or working class with 52% identified as middle class and 40% as working class. There are multiple factors that work as a catalyst for identifying different social class categories one belongs to depending upon objective measures of social class. These variables are occupation, income and education. My husband and I both work in managerial roles and our accumulated income is higher than 100,000 per annum, which categorizes my family in an established middle class category, which according to the survey conducted by BBC concludes 25% of the estimated population (Dr Jill Sheppard Dr Nicholas Biddle, 2015). As a middle-class household, I consider myself as a non-affluent consumer (Schiffman et, al, 2014, p:380) considers Gym as a disposable income. Culture: Culture is nurtured from the early age where family teaches acceptable behavior and values to children. Parents spread it through traditions, bedtime stories, customs, religious festivities and customs. Culture defines who we are, what we believe in and how we spend our lives. We learn what is acceptable in society and how to behave though values that are instigated either at home or through informal learning (Schiffman et, al., 2014). When I moved to Australia from Pakistan, I encountered big cultural gap. It was pertinent that I learn Australian culture through Acculturation (Schiffman et, al., 2014, p: 398) to settle and enjoy the lifestyle I wish for myself and my family. I decided to join SportUNE gym with core values of achievement, stimulation and conformity (Schiffman et, al., 2014, p: 411-414) was achieving my desired goal of losing weight, state of art facilities and fitness classes as stimulation for change and conformity to myself for respecting my body. Ethnic Subculture: When I bought SportUNE membership, my husband gifted me with new pair of Nike Sneakers to motivate and encourage me. This gifting behavior (Schiffman et, al., 2014, p: 436) is commonly practiced in Southeast Asian culture where every occasion is celebrated. Age Subculture: As part of generation Y cohort, multiple things attracted my attention when I visited Gym for evaluation of alternatives. All the cardio equipment is technologically advance with touch screen displays and personal entertainment, free gym accreditation service along with friendly and helpful staff (SportUNE, facilities, 2017). Relationship between External Factors and Decision-making Process: In given assignment, parenthood stage of family lifecycle, aspirational reference groups, social core values and being a generation Y member provided sufficient influence to initiate process in decision-making model. Conclusion: Following the above discussion, I have concluded that external factors like family, culture and subculture, social class, reference groups and opinion leaders all play important role in providing information to consumer to recognize the need for a change. These all factors are either directly or indirectly inter-related e.g. family members act as reference groups, which can be associative or dissociative in nature. Culture acts as a cornerstone in shaping values and beliefs of an individual that influences the family decision-making.

G Proteins :: Biology Essays Research Papers

G Proteins Proteins play various important roles in inter-neuronal communication. Receptor sites are made up of proteins and the ion channels in the cell membranes are proteins. The link between the receptor sites and the protein channels sometimes is the guanine nucleotide-binding protein, better known as G Protein. (1) The basic structure and function of these shall be explored in the following. In order for neuron communication to occur, the post-synaptic neuron must have receptor sites for the neurotransmitters released by the pre-synaptic neuron. Also, these neurotransmitters, by binding on to the receptors, must bring about a change in the post-synaptic neuron, namely an EPSP (excitatory post-synaptic potential) or an IPSP (inhibitory post-synaptic potential), which may or may not lead to an action potential triggering in the post-synaptic neuron. EPSPs and IPSPs are produced in the post-synaptic neuron due to variations in either the Na+ or Cl- concentrations within the neuron. A change in concentration occurs when the protein channels which gate ion flow, permit Na+ or CL- to migrate across the cell membrane. The question now is, what causes the protein channels to open to Na+ or Cl-. In essence, there are three manners in which the ion flow can come about. The simplest way in which neurotransmitter-receptor binding can cause the opening of the protein channels is when the receptor is located immediately on top of the protein channel. Once a neurotransmitter binds on to the receptor, it causes the protein channel to permit ion flow. Receptors can also be acting on protein channels in more indirect fashion, via a second messenger system. A second messenger system is characterized by a G Protein's inclusion in the transduction of "signals from the transmembrane receptors to intracellular effectors." (1) That means, the binding of a neurotransmitter to a receptor activates a G Protein, which causes the protein channels gating ion flow to open. For this, two general mechanisms exist. Before they can be explained, however, the structure and dynamics of the G Protein must be considered. G Proteins are heterotrimic substances, i.e. they are composed of three subunits, alpha, beta and gamma. The alpha subunit of a G Protein is looked upon as the active subunit, as it binds GDP (guanine diphosphate) when it is inactive, but exchanges GDP for GTP (guanine triphosphat) when active (2) and acts as the "messenger" between the receptor sites and the effector. The beta and gamma subunits aid the alpha subunit to bind to membranes.

Karl Marx and His Work Essay -- Karl Marx Communist Manifesto Essays

Karl Marx and His Work German Economic/Political Philosopher 1818 - 1883 This year marks the 150th anniversary of the Communist Manifesto, written by Karl Marx and his partner Friedrich Engels. The document first appeared in 1848 and has been a manuelfor the following political parties: Socialist, Social Democratic, Labor, and Communist. In the time of its existence it has created disagreement all over the world. Friedrich Engels said these words in 1888 to summarize the Communist Manifesto. "In every historical epoch, the prevailing mode of economic production and exchange, and the social organization necessarily following from it, form the basis upon which is built-up, and from which alone can be explained, the political and intellectual history of that epoch;†¦consequently the whole history of mankind (since the dissolution of primitive tribal society, holding land in common ownership) has been a history of class struggles, contests between exploiting and exploited, ruling and oppressed classes;†¦the history of these class struggles has been reached where the exploited and oppressed class (the proletariat) cannot obtain its emancipation from the sway of the exploiting and ruling class (the bourgeoisie) with out, at the same time, and once and for all, emancipating society at large from all exploitation, oppression, class distinctions and class struggles. This proposition†¦is distined to do for history what Darwin’s thory has done for biology†¦1". Engels quote is explained by saying the pattern developed is the class that is being ran by the higher class will soon grow angry and revolt by starting a revolution to take over the ruling class. It is only natural that a group of people being pushed around by another grou... ...th the possibilities of new ideas on how to govern our world. Although, many people object to these propositions, they are supported by some. This concept has been responsible for shaping other forms of government, such as the Socialist, Social Democratic, Labor, and Communist parties for 150 years. It will continue to add reference to governments that wish to practice parts of it and may one day be used solely as a form of government. Bibliographies 1. Gilman, Antonio. "The Communist Manifesto, 150 years Later." Aniquity. Dec 1998. Pp. 910-913. 2. Kessler, Gary E. Voice of Wisdom. Belmont: Wadsworth Publishing Company. 1998. 3. McGoven, Arthur F. "World Christianity and Marxism." Theological Studies, INC. Dec 1998. Pp. 796-770. 4. Tyler, Gus. "150 Years Later: Marx’ Manifesto revisited." The New Leader. Oct 5- Oct 19. Pp. 11-14.

Powdered Coconut Husk, Okra Mucilage, Water Hyacinth and Starch as Alternative Plastic Composites Essay

The present condition of our country regarding the use of plastics demands that people explore other means whereby proportionate products can be produced out of raw materials which are commonly disregarded. One of these is the utilization of solid wastes which could yield excellent useful results. Largely an agricultural country, Philippines provides various local raw materials, the utilization of which may lead to the country’s industrialization. Philippines provide ample farm products having great possibilities for some purposes. An example of which is the coconut husk fiber or cocos nucifera. Although some use this for making native products, this study used this for an alternative bioplastic product making it more different than the usual ones. Water hyacinth, which is commonly found almost in some rivers and considered as another solid waste is to be used also in this project study. Although it has the same function as the coconut husk fiber, this is used to lessen the number or amount of water hyacinth in our environment because of its abundance and bad effects. To improve the quality of the bioplastic product,the researchers used okra wherein mucilage can be found which lessens the brittleness of the said product because of the so called, glycirin. Another concerned material in the study is cornstarch. It is the source of polymer which is said to be the building blocks of the eco-friendly plastic product. What makes this study different is that the researchers used raw materials which are seldomly used in a more different way and utilize it to make a new product which could yield useful results. Moreover, the main purpose of this study, is to make plastic that can be decomposed easily since it uses raw materials, to use starch instead of chemicals and to utilize some of the solid wastes in our society. Plastic is a versatile and potentially indestructible material, which makes it ideal for a number of commercial and household uses. Indeed, plastic has become a substitute for many items which used to be made from other substances, such as plastic bottles for drinks, condiments and many other more. In many cases, this is extremely useful and convenient. However, usage of plastic has caused many environmental downsides. This is because, plastic is so resilient that even burying it deep within the Earth doesn’t keep it from impacting the environment. Although plastics can be recycled, many people still burn them and we all know that it is harmful to the environment. It may also affect people’s health because plastics contain many chemical additives which causes illnesses like endocrine disruption which can lead to cancers, birth defects, immune system suppression and developmental problems in children. And worse it can also lead to toxicity of living organisms and marine animals. This ecological problem impelled the development of new materials that can be substitutes in producing biodegradable plastic which led us to think the utilization of eco- friendly materials that can be an alternative in making bioplastic. Scopes and Limitations The research study was concerned with utilizing coconut husk fibers or cocus nucifera and water hyacinth in producing a bioplastic product. The research focused not only on the simple production but also the quality of the said product in terms of brittleness and flexibility. Mucilage was obtained from okra where glycirin is found and improves the brittleness of the product. Furthermore, this study is also concerned in using cornstarch as the source of polymer considered as the building blocks of the product. Statement of the Problem The purpose of this study is to produce an alternative plastic made up of organic materials. Another purpose of this study is to answer the following questions: 1. What will be the organic material used in making the plastic? 2. What content(s) is/are most effective in making the bioplastic more efficient than than Plastics- any of a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic organic solids that are moldable. Plastics are typically organic polymers of high molecular mass, but they often contain other substances. They are usually synthetic, most commonly derived from petrochemicals, but many are partially natural. Biodegradable Plastics- plastics that will decompose in natural aerobic (composting) and anaerobic (landfill) environments. Biodegradation of plastics occurs when microorganisms metabolize the plastics to either ssimilable compounds or to humus-like materials that are less harmful to the environment. They may be composed of either bioplastics, which are plastics whose components are derived from renewable raw materials, or petroleum-based plastics which contain additives. Glycerol- (or glycerine, glycerin) is a simple polyol compound. It is a colorless, odorless, viscous liquid that is widely used in pharmaceutical formulations. Glycerol has three hydroxyl groups that are responsible for its solubility in water and its hygroscopic nature. The glycerol backbone is central to all lipids known as triglycerides. Glycerol is sweet-tasting and of low toxicity. Polymer- is the main building block of all plastics. It is a large molecule (macromolecule) composed of repeating structural units. These sub-units are typically connected by covalent chemical bonds. Although the term polymer is sometimes taken to refer to plastics, it actually encompasses a large class of compounds comprising both natural and synthetic materials with a wide variety of properties. Mucilage- a thick, gluey substance produced by nearly all plants and some microorganisms. It is a polar glycoprotein and an exopolysaccharide. Mucilage in plants plays a role in the storage of water and food, seed germination, and thickening membranes. Starch- or amylum is a carbohydrate consisting of a large number of glucose units joined by glycosidic bonds. This polysaccharide is produced by all green plants as an energy store. It is the most common carbohydrate in the human diet and is contained in large amounts in such staple foods as potatoes, wheat, maize (corn), rice, and cassava. Starch is made of two basic components: amylose and amylopectin. Amylose- is a very long and straight polymer like we want to have in our study. Amylopectin- on the other hand is a branched and short polymer meaning it will yield brittle and weak plastic which is not good. Vinegar- a liquid substance consisting mainly of acetic acid (CH3CO2H) and water, the acetic acid being produced through the fermentation of ethanol by acetic acid bacteria. By adding a small amount of vinegar to the plastic, we can break up some of the branches of the amylopectin which otherwise would make it brittle. Water hyacinth- is a free-floating perennial aquatic plant native to tropical and sub-tropical South America. With broad, thick, glossy, ovate leaves, water hyacinth may rise above the surface of the water as much as 1 meter in height. The leaves are 10–20 cm across, and float above the water surface. They have long, spongy and bulbous stalks. The feathery, freely hanging roots are purple-black. An erect stalk supports a single spike of 8-15 conspicuously attractive flowers, mostly lavender to pink in colour with six petals.

History of Rock Worksheet

History of Rock Worksheet Write a 500- to 750-word explanation regarding the role of plate tectonics in the origin of igneous rocks. Igneous rocks can come from two hot liquid like materials, which are lava and magma, these to substances are a lot alike, magma is what lava is before it is taken to the Earth's surface by a volcano eruption. These substances being such a large part of the forming of Igneous rocks is where the rock gets its name, the word igneous comes from the word ignis, which is the Latin word for fire.Magma and Lava are a consistency like molten metal and they carry crystallized minerals and are hot enough to change existing rocks forms. Igneous rocks are created in three places. The first is where the lithospheric plates pull apart making a gap in the at the ridges under the ocean. The second is where the continental crust is forced together. The third is where the plates come together. As the lava or magma moves they collect different minerals and these minerals b egin to crystallize as the lava or magma cools. The speed of the cooling process helps to determine the physical characteristics of the rocks.With the movement and the new minerals that come this will change the rock. There are two types of Igneous rocks. The first kind of Igneous rock is Extrusive rock, which is formed when magma escapes through the where the plates meet, these rocks cool very quickly some in a matter of seconds which makes their grains very small called the Aphanitic texture. The second kind of Igneous rock is Intrusive rock, which is made underneath the Earth's surface which makes it cool very slowly some take thousands of years, which makes larger size grains called Phanertic texture.The classification of each rock is based on the minerals that it is made up of, some of the common minerals found in Igneous rocks are olivine, mica, feldspar, quartz, and pyoxenes. The most well known Igneous frock is Granite, which is also the most commonly used Igneous rock. It i s used for many things that we see daily like, paving stones, counter tops, flooring tiles, curbing, and many other things. Granite can be found under the Earth's crust almost anywhere on Earth. The movement of the plates is what allows magma to move and causes volcanic eruptions which allows Igneous rocks to be created.Write a 500- to 750-word explanation regarding the role of plate tectonics in the origin of metamorphic rocks. Magma also plays a very large role in creating and forming Metamorphic rocks. To create a Metamorphic rock there has to be an extreme amount of pressure and very high temperatures. This high temperature must be hot enough to reorganize the matter within an existing rock but not hot enough to melt it all the way. There is two places where hot magma can push itself through to the Earth's surface. The first place is divergent plate boundaries.And the second is convergent plate boundaries. The process of creating Metamorphic rocks is called Metamorphism. Metamor phism is when magma is pushing its way to the Earth's surface and comes into contact with different rocks, the hot magma will heat these rocks. This much heat on the rocks causes them to change and then they have become Metamorphic rocks. This change will usually completely change the original rocks physical, structural, and textural characteristics, because new minerals come and change the original minerals.These rocks are a result of the continual movement of plate tectonics. New Metamorphic rocks can be created from the original rock being Sedimentary rocks, Igneous rocks, or even other Metamorphic rocks. When two plate collide they cause the Earth's crust to fold and fault, this intense pressure makes the process of Metamorphism, which makes sometimes large areas on the Earth's crust become Metamorphic rock. Which would make landmarks such as Mountain ranges. During this process it will only become a Metamorphic rock if the rock stays a solid, if it melts then that makes an Igne ous rock.