Extract from posted Dissertation:  One of the goals of the discipline of nursing is to increase and strengthen the scientific foundation upon which to base clinical practice. The use of research evidence in practice is an accepted way to achieve this goal and in turn can improve nursing care, optimise patient outcomes, and decrease costs (Higgs, Bum, & Jones, 2001; Titler et al., 1994). However, while the requirement to remain current in knowledge and deliver efficient quality patient care has led to an enthusiastic interest in using research evidence in nursing, as a strategy for the fortification of the basis of the science of nursing, little is known about how evidence is actually translated into nursing practice.

One strategy that has been suggested for increasing awareness and the use of evidence in nursing practice is revising and updating organisational policy and procedure manuals based on the best available evidence (Coyle & Sokop, 1990; Michel & Sneed, 1995). Organisational policies and procedures refer to the policies and procedures developed by organisations to guide their employees in their daily operations. Policies are distinct from procedures although they are related. According to the Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary (2005), a policy refers to “a definite course or method of action selected from among alternatives which in light of given conditions guides and determines present and future decisions.” A procedure, on the other hand, refers to “a series of steps followed in a regular definite order” (Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary). For example, the current body of evidence on intravenous (IV) angiocatheter insertion suggests that chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG) should be used to cleanse the skin prior to IV insertion. A policy would state that CHG is to be used to cleanse the skin prior to inserting an IV angiocatheter whereas a procedure would state the steps to be followed to cleanse the skin using CHG.

Despite some support in the literature that organisational policies/procedures may play a role in evidence-based nursing practice, promote the science of nurses and reaffirm nursing as an art, or the art if nursing, research about their use is limited (Coyle & Sokop, 1990; Luckinbill-Brett, 1987; Michel & Sneed, 1995). Thus, a broader understanding of how policies/procedures are perceived and used by nurses is needed before it can be determined if revising and updating organisational policy and procedure manuals holds promise as a strategy to promote research utilisation and evidence-based practice (EBP) among nurses.
 

Abstract from posted Dissertation:  This study proceeds from the premise that depression is fast evolving as one of the more serious of the mental health problem affecting the nation. Its growth and spread across ethnic and racial groups and across generations and genders, underscore the status of disease as a public health concern which demands immediate action and confrontation. Psychologists have, in near-unanimity, acknowledged the aforementioned and many have engaged in the formulation of constructive responses to the problem of depression. Within the context of the stated, several psychologists have focused their efforts on the development of etiological theories which seek to explain the causes of depression. Each of these theories, as might be expected, proposes a treatment plan which is consistent with its proposed conceptualization of the disorder and its roots causes. Among the more popular of these is Beck’s Cognitive Theory of Depression.

The study commences with an overview of the disorder and a critical analysis of its various definition, causes and symptoms. Following that, it progresses towards a focused analysis of Beck’s Cognitive Theory of Depression. The third chapter, which is devoted to a critical analysis of Beck’s Cognitive Theory of Depression, breaks the theory down to its composite elements and, in so doing, embarks upon a thorough analysis of each. Special attention is devoted to the role of self-efficacy in the said theory.

While the study presents the Cognitive Theory of Depression from Beck’s own perspective and as presented in his many writings, it also pays attention to his critics. As such, the weaknesses of the theory are highlighted. The most prominent of these, according to the research literature, is the minimal role which self-efficacy appears to play within the said theory. The reasons why this constitutes a weakness is addressed and the value of self-efficacy is, accordingly highlighted.

Proceeding from the above stated, the research, supported by a wealth of academic literature, proposes that Beck’s Cognitive Theory of Depression be complimented by, and fortified with, Bowlby’s Attachment Theory. Doing so would invaluably contribute to a better understanding of depression and hence, to a more effective treatment plan.
 

Abstract from Posted Thesis:  The study critically analyzes corporate venture capital investment decisions and frameworks. In so doing it analyses existent real options frameworks on CVC investments which complement existing research focusing on information asymmetry and agency concerns. The real options view adopted provides a coherent theoretical framework to analyze how salient features of CVC investments such as uncertainty, usage-flexibility and growth influence CVC investment decisions. This real options view suggests that the major concerns in entrepreneurial investments remain how to manage uncertainty for economic value creation. As such this study can positively contribute to a real options theory of venture capital and entrepreneurship.

Added to the above, the dissertation focuses on the emerging real options literature in two aspects. The first aspect is that this dissertation comprehensively investigates the interactions between uncertainty, usage-flexibility, growth potential and competition while existing research has usually examined one interaction, e.g., between uncertainty and growth, between uncertainty and irreversibility, and between uncertainty and competition. The second aspect is that the dissertation provides further empirical evidence to real options theory of investment in addition to existing research studies.

 

Extract from posted chapters: In the U.S., heart disease is the leading cause of death in all racial/ethnic groups except Asian Americans (US DHHS, 2000). For Asian Americans, cancer is the leading cause of death in both age categories 25-44 years and 45-64 years (Chu, 1998). In fact, cancer has been the leading cause of death for Asian Pacific Islander (API) women since 1980 (National Center for Health Statistics, 1996). National data also show that cancer mortality rate for Asian Americans is rising rapidly. Between 1990 and 1993, the increase in cancer mortality among the API population was greater than any other racial/ethnic group in the U.S. (Ho, 1998). National Center for Health Statistics also reported the API age adjusted death rate was underestimated by approximately 11% (Rosenberg et al. 1999). Therefore, the disparities and distinctions of having cancer as the leading cause of death for Asian Americans are even more striking (Chen, 2005).

Breast cancer is one of the top two cancers for Asian Pacific Islander (API) women and prostate cancer as one of the top five causes of cancer mortality among API males (Chu & Chu, 2005). Breast cancer is the leading site of new cancer cases for Asian American women (ACS, 2005a), whose rates have increased about 1.5% per year (ACS, 2005b). Compared to Caucasians, Chinese Americans have lower rates of cancer incidence at a number of sites, most notably at lung, skin, breast, corpus uteri, prostate, urinary bladder and kidney (Jenkins & Kagawa-Singer, 1994). However, Chinese American males experience a higher incidence of cancers of oral cavity and pharynx, nasopharynx, esophagus, stomach, and liver. Studies also show that Chinese American women have considerably higher incidence rates for cervical cancer than whites (Olsen & Frank-Stromborg, 1993; Lee, Lee, & Stewart, 1996). Among Asian American subgroups, cancer incidence rates among Chinese were consistently among the lowest (Kwong, Chen, Snipes et al., 2005). However, Chinese have the highest mortality rates for lung and bronchial cancer (34.3 per 100,000) among all Asian subgroups (Kwong et al. 2005).

Cancer rates of ethnic and racial groups often change when members of a group migrate from their native country to another (Frisbie, Cho, Hummer, 2001; Li & Pawlish, 1998; Jenkins & Kagawa-Singer, 1994). Migration studies conducted in many parts of the world show that with successive generations, the offspring of immigrant families experience cancer rates similar to the host country population rather than their native countries (Li & Pawlish, 1998; Jenkins & Kagawa-Singer, 1994; Stanford et al., 1995; Ziegler et al., 1993). One study’s findings show that the incidence rate of prostate cancer, a significant cause of mortality in the Chinese American population, is 11.6 times higher in Chinese immigrants in the U.S. than their similar cohorts in China (Yu et. al, 1991). King et al. (1985) studied distinct patterns in rate differentials between Asians and U.S. Chinese and found that U.S. Chinese experience higher mortality for colon/rectum cancer when compared to the homeland population. This study’s findings are consistent with the transitional patterns reported for European and Japanese migrants to the U. S. (King & Locke, 1980; King et al., 1985).

Several other studies also show that breast cancer incidences in Chinese and Japanese women after migration to the U.S. are significantly higher than those in their native countries (Yu et al., 1991; Stanford et al., 1995; Jenkins & Kagawa-Singer, 1994). The study of Ziegler et al. (1993) even noted a six-fold gradient in risk of breast cancer with migration patterns. They found that Asian-American women with three or more grandparents born in the West have a 50% higher risk of breast cancer than those with all grandparents born in the East.

Immigrants who were born in rural areas of Asia and have a shorter length of stay are at a much lower risk. Another study (Deapen, Liu, Perkins et al., 2002) also found that after immigration, the rate of increase in breast cancer among Japanese-American women surpasses the rate of white women in Los Angeles County. The longer these new immigrants have lived and acculturated in the U.S., the more likely they experience the types of cancers with similar rates found in the American white population. This may be attributed to their exposure to Western lifestyles and their adoption of American dietary patterns and behaviors (Lasky & Martz, 1993; Jenkins & Kagawa-Singer, 1994; Kagawa-Singer, 1995; Ziegler et al., 1993). If this assumption is true, one may expect that the differences in risk between Chinese immigrants and the local white population to gradually diminish over time as the immigrant lifestyle and dietary habit resemble that of local population in the U.S.

Proceeding from the above-stated acknowledgement pertaining to the ever-increasing growth of cancer as a risk to Asian American women, this study will focus on breast health education amongst the said ethnic group and the role of children therein. The role of children will be examined from both the perspective of the impact of a diagnosis of breast cancer in the mother upon them and that of the ways in which they may motivate increased awareness of breast health education amongst mothers.
 

Extract from posted Chapter:  In the early 1960s, and in response to the demand for a comparatively more economic, faster and less invasive method for extracting and testing infant blood for a variety of congenital, infectious and hereditary diseases, chief among which was phenylketonuria, Dr. Robert Guthrie developed the earlier version of the Dry Blood Spot testing method. The DBS method involved the use of a heel stick to extract a few drops of blood from newborns, the transference of the collected fluid specimens onto a filter paper and allowing it time to thoroughly dry before screening for disease. The method, as described, and despite reservations, proved to be efficient and effective (`History of Blood Spot Testing,’ 2005).

Even though, as stated in the above, DBS was developed over four decades ago, the method did not enter into general use until 2002, following the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval. For the health care provider and consumer communities, the mentioned approval, signifying the entrance of DBS testing into popular use, is regarded as a constructive and exciting development.

Extract from posted Research: The first overwhelming impression experienced by the reader of PNY is of alienation, immediately relates to the collection’s uncompromising emphasis on negation, absence, destruction and disintegration. Consequently, many critical commentaries are dedicated to denouncing the social evils plaguing New York. the symbol of modern technocracy and the text's assumed object of reference. While the notion of a corrupt world is central to the apocalyptic tradition which Garcia Lorca makes conscious use of, it is further imperative to consider the transformations or stages of the lyrical subject's discourse.

The high degree of non-referentiality or subjectivity characterizing this poetry signals that that readers are in the presence of discourse; that they are not directly interpreting an objective, but rather a spoken reality. Although the word "hueco" is notably reiterated throughout PNY, to fully appreciate the extent to which this collection is alienating and expressive of alienation, it is imperative to examine those poems in which the subject lapses into negation or silence as a consequence of being unable to envision any exit from the crushing weight of meaninglessness.

Fragmentation is a common feature of twentieth-century art, together with the notion of the void but, whereas Mallarme's work manifests an exaltation of and a desire for pure form and infinity, in accordance with the Dadaist's conviction that Nothing is the truth, a the void in PNY appears to constitute a stage of consciousness in which the subject finds alienated, marginalized and incapable of ordering the shattered world into some meaningful pattern. The loss of self can thus be related to the existential malady of angst caused by contemporary man's inauthentic existence in a dehumanized and, as some would maintain, desacralised world. This text, however, resists such coherent ideological interpretations because in spite of its affinity to existentialism, it simultaneously celebrates the void as both the apocalyptic means to, and the transcendent end of, an ultimate liberation and a new world.
 

Extract from posted Chapter:  During the earlier decades of the twentieth century, Intelligence Quotient [IQ] was hailed as the ultimate measurement of human intelligence and assessment of individual competence. Evaluating intellectual, logical, analytical and rational skills and capacities, the IQ measurement and scoring paradigm was perceived of by society as the definitional competence measurement methodology and the predictor of performance and success potentialities. Those who scored high on the IQ measurement were assumed to possess the requirements for success and leadership. This assumption, predicated on belief in the scientific accuracy and comprehensiveness of the IQ test and measurement, sustained the usage of IQ measurements for several decades.

Perceptions regarding IQ as the ultimate, and most comprehensive, measurement of intelligence and as the predictor of success and leadership potentiality began to wane, as argued by Stein and Book (2000), consequent to the intervention of psychologists and psychological research. The arguments raised maintained that while IQ could function as a partial predictor of success, it was hardly a predictor for leadership potentiality or, for that matter, long-term sustainable success. Long term, sustainable success and leadership potentiality were determined by the possession of the “ability to tune into the world, to read situations and connect with others while taking charge of their own life” (Stein and Book, 2000). The aforementioned, in other words, were inextricably connected to emotional intelligence [EI].

While not disputing the validity of IQ as a measurement of intellectual capacities, psychologists have argued that EI specifically functions as a more accurate predicator of long term success and as an effective measurement of leadership potentialities. As this assertion can only be supported through an exploration of the definitional parameters of EI, the interrelationship between leadership and EI, measurement methodologies, and the underpinning theories, this shall be the focus of the current literature review.
 

Extract from posted Chapters: To watch the New York Intellectuals wrestle with the social and literary problems of their day is to be present at the construction of the new cultural and intellectual identity that this group is forging for itself and by extension for the involved public. Although the New York Intellectuals tended to be generalists rather than specialists, they could be roughly classified according to the main area of their involvement. They included the following well known Jewish participants: Eliot Cohen (editor of Menorah Journal and founding editor of Commentary); Sidney Hook, Hannah Arendt (who focused on political philosophy, and political and intellectual journalism); William Phillips and Philip Rahv (editors of Partisan Review, and who centered their attention on literary criticism and intellectual journalism); Lionel Trilling, Diana Trilling, Leslie Fiedler, Alfred Kazin, and Susan Sontag (for whom literary criticism was central); Robert Warshow (film and cultural criticism); Isaac Rosenfeld, Delmore Schwartz, Paul Goodman, Saul Bellow, and Norman Mailer (who wrote fiction, poetry, and literary criticism); Irving Howe (produced political journalism and literary criticism); Melvin J. Lasky, Norman Podhoretz, and Irving Kristol (political journalism); Nathan Glazer, Seymour Martin Lipset, Daniel Bell, Edward Shils, David Riesman, and Michael Walzer (focused on sociology); and finally, Lionel Abel, Clement Greenberg, George L. K. Morris, Meyer Schapiro, and Harold Rosenberg (whose interest was art criticism) (Macdonald 215).
 

Extract from posted Research:  Gabriel Garcia Marquez maintains that he writes history, not fiction, that his novels are about the unwritten history of his people and land. Needless to say, the fantastical context in which his stories unfold, and which constantly defy readers’ credulity, make the Columbian novelist’s contention quite hard to accept. How is it possible to read One Hundred Years of Solitude as the history of the Columbian banana massacres of 1928, or Del Amor y Otros Demonios, as the history of colonialism and the true story of Saint Cajetan of Thiene and his well-recorded relation with the Augustinian nun, Laura Mignani? Yet, Marquez has repeatedly affirmed that his works are historical, that they tell the history of events as they were seen, understood and remembered by those who lived through them Official Columbian, Latin American history, as Marquez has persistently and repeatedly maintained, is a watered down version of the truth; it is a history written by, and for, those in power, designed, not to preserve the truth but, to sustain the power holders of the present and preserve the legend and memory of those of the past. Official history, within the parameters of such concerns, is a politically motivated re-telling of the truth which deliberately displaces the people, those who have lived through and experienced history and, challenges the national memory. As Marquez has often said, his works are designed to resurrect the true history, the version of history which official history has tried to bury. As such, he encourages readers to approach his works as realistic and truthful renditions of historical events. In Del Amor y Otros Demonios, the focus of this research, Marquez quite openly demands this of his readers. Just in case they fail to comprehend the narrative as the `true’ history of the interrelationship between the church and colonialism, between religion and the immiseration of countless of innocents, he alternately alludes to and explicitly names real historical characters. Few of his Latin American readers would not recognise Cayetano as a clear allusion to Saint Cajetan and, his protagonist’s surname, Delaura, as a reminder of his relationship with Sister Laura Mignani; a relationship which is echoed by Cayetano and Sierva Maria’s.

Extract from posted Research:  This research will analyse samples from the works of three contemporary photographers through a Greenbergian perspective. Focusing specifically on the works of Cindy Sherman, Sherrie Levine and Barbara Kruger, the research has two primary purposes. The first is to review Greenberg’s modernism/post-modernism theory and its applicability to the photographic arts and the second is to determine the extent to which the listed photographers-artists subscribe to Greenberg’s theory. Within the context of the stated, the research aims to respond to the question of the applicability of Greenberg’s modernism/post-modernism theory to contemporary photographic art. In an attempt to satisfy the stated purposes, the research will first overview Greenberg’s writings, following from which it will define and discuss the concepts of modernism and postmodernism. Finally, it will also look towards the works of female photographers and critically analyse the works of three photographers. Prior to proceeding, it is necessary to clarify that the essay focuses on female photographers and the feminist artistic movement. The said approach/focus was determined by the importance of establishing a clear and precise focus for this research and, secondly, by the fact that the feminist movement, especially in the arts, is often argued to have been enabled by both modernism and postmodernism, on the one hand, and to have promoted and popularised modernism and postmodernism, on the other.

Extract from Extended PhD Research Paper:  Globalization, transnationalism, migration and diasporas are all current names which we definitely learn about very often today since they refer to incidents that have become part of our modern lives. The world today is moving and people keep on moving with it, otherwise they might not be a part of it. No place on the globe is homogeneous anymore. Because modern life is in a continuous change, it pushes the individual to change with it otherwise, he will not be able to feel the coherence and affiliation to the society of which he belongs.

In this paper, I would like to address the matters of immigration in our modern life and the influence on the immigrant himself as well as on the native resident. To support the issue, it is necessary to speak about migration in general focusing on its definition, types and reasons. Being an immigrant, living in Germany for the last sixteen years, I found the idea of writing about this issue very convenient to me although the literature to be addressed deals with Asian writers living in the United States of America. Nevertheless, immigration is immigration when it comes to deal with moving from home, regardless of the reasons, impacts, and consequences. Only an immigrant can truly understand what another immigrant means when the question of identity is to be addressed.

To treat the paper systematically, it will consist of three sections that contain five chapters. The first part treats the different aspects of immigrant literature, the search for identity, the exploration of ethnicity and, ultimately, the negotiation between the now and the then, the here and the there, for the purposes of defining one’s self.

To present how this issue is revealed in the contemporary literature, in the second section I would support my study with three novels: The Kite Runner, Jasmine, and Manhattan Music in the second section. These novels have been written by an Afghan writer and two Indian writers, who left their countries to migrate to the USA and experienced immigration for themselves. Throughout the novels, the writers keep swinging between the past, which represents their lives in their previous homelands, and the present, i.e. in the USA. The two different societies change their lives and attitudes leaving them to struggle with inner conflicts and their changing identities.

The third part treats the issue of identity in the three novels and how, immigrants in general and the protagonists in particular, struggle to prove their identity, not forgetting who they are and who they desire to be. It is living away from home that makes them discover their own realities.
Because the concerns of immigration have a wide range of components and aspects, which could be discussed and presented, this paper could be too short to deal with all of them. The focus will be imposed on how immigration, maybe, revises and changes one’s character, once he/ she preserves the cultural, social and religious aspects or takes up the American culture and gets absolutely “Americanized”. It is not only the protagonist's attitude towards this access that matters but also how the natives look at the immigrants and approve them to integrate in the American society.
 

Extract from posted Dissertation introductory chapter:   The events of 9/11 acted as a wake-up call for the United States, which seems to be the world’s uncontested hegemonic power and unequalled by any other state, or group of states, but it was not immune to unconventional , and potentially devastating , attack by non-state actors and terrorist groups(Talbott and Chanda,2001;Chomsky,2002;Wolin,2002).The United States foreign policy could no longer simply address state actors and disregard non state actors; it could no longer support , or turn a blind eyes towards , oppressive, authoritarian and dictatorship regimes , and , above all, it could not allow a religious wave of anti-American/Western sentiment to sweep through the Middle East and negatively affects American strategic interests in the region(Talbott and Chanda,2001;Chomsky,2002;Wolin,2002). 9/11 imposed the necessity of the United States to revise, and possibly completely redesign its foreign policy towards the Arab/Islamic world, especially towards the oil-states of the Persian Gulf.

The U.S foreign policy towards the Middle East took a more dramatically aggressive turn following 9/11. Despite the absence of any connection between it and the terrorist acts of September 11th, and despite the lack of any concrete and persuasive evidence for the existing of weapons of mass destruction which threaten the United States, Iraq was invaded. The invasion of Iraq was in immediate opposition to international law, and violated the UN Charter regarding the conditions under which war may be legitimately declared (Falk, 2003; Fare, 2003; Benn, 2004).Saudi Arabia, long recognized as an invaluable ally within both the Muslim and Arab worlds and vital to the United States’ economic interests, came under severe public, and official, criticism from the United States. Not only was the acknowledged head of al-Qaeda, the world’s most wanted man, Osama bin Laden, Saudi-born but the majority of the nineteen terrorists identified as the perpetuators of 9/11 attack were Saudi citizens, but Saudi Arabia was accused of being the major financial supporter of fundamentalist groups in the Middle East like al-Qaeda and Hamas. Yet, it was Iraq, not Saudi Arabia, which the United States targeted.
While the United States’ foreign policy towards Saudi Arabia did not assume an overly aggressive posturing, the facts surrounding 9/11, alongside evidence implicating wealthy Saudis in the financing of Islamic fundamentalist groups such as al-Qaeda, motivated the United States to revise its foreign policy towards Saudi Arabia. Even as it maintained a close relations with Al-Saudi regime, The United States began to pressure for domestic political reforms, calling for greater democracy and the redesign of the school curricula , especially as regards to religious education (Taheri,2004;Rhodes,2005;Braude,2005).

The United States did not interpret its demands as unjustified intervention in the domestic affairs of sovereign nations. To the extent that it identified the proliferation of religious schools and the religious curriculum in state-run schools as being a primary cause for the evolution of a religiously sanctioned form of global terror which immediately targeted the US’ national interests and security , and insofar as it assessed the Saddam Hussein regime to be an untenable threat to US interests in the region post-September 11, it justified its interventionist policy in terms of national interest and security(Kaplan,2002;Carr,2002;Alvarez,2003).

From the perspective of these states and the Middle East region, the U.S foreign policy towards the Middle East, and the Persian Gulf in particular is unjustifiably interventionist and seems to be a violation of the sovereign identity of these countries .The Arab masses, fuelled by the media, interpret it as being motivated by the United States’ single-minded determination to control the region’s oil wealth (Donovan, 2003; Hanley, 2005).
In the present study, the central issue is how U.S. foreign policies in two key Middle Eastern states(Iraq, and Saudi Arabia) are shaped. The study shall seek to identify and define the variables and factors which influence and shape these policies post-September 11th. These variables are oil, power politics, and democracy promotion (Asner & Hall, 2004, Katzman, 2003).

The terrorist attack of 9/11 convinced the Bush administration that existing policies toward the region needed to be reestablished and restructured. The War on Terror, the identification of an axis of evil , including Iran , Iraq , and North Korea, the defeat of Taliban, and the U.S decision to remove Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq have all occupied centre stage in Washington’s policy after 9/11. This comes somewhat more than a decade after President George Herbert Walker Bush led a coalition inclusive of a number of Arabic Middle Eastern states(such as Egypt and Syria) to liberate Kuwait from Iraqi invaders (Gaddis, 2005; Harding, 2003).
 

Abstract from posted Dissertation Proposal:  The research examines the state of the office equipment market for determination of whether or not it can withstand new entrants. Focusing on three technologies and types of equipment, copiers, printers and facsimile machines, the findings indicate that this is an innovation driven and innovation-based market. The implication here is that the first-mover advantage principle holds, wherein new entrants are not likely to succeed. Indeed, the technologies and resources available to the first movers and early entrants render this a closed market in the sense that it is unlikely to absorb new entrants. An application of the resource-based view of the firm confirms this hypothesis.

The dissertation, however, finds that while the opportunities for new entrants in the referenced market are limited, they do exist. Quite simply stated, should the first-movers cease their continued drive towards innovation, thus, leaving a gap in the market, new firms can enter. They, however, can only do so if they have timed their innovations to coincide with the mentioned gap.

As the study concludes, the opportunities for new entrants are far and few between and, indeed, their chances for success are minimal at best, considering resource variances between them and the early entrants. The fact remains, however, that such opportunities exist with the key being innovation and product timing.
 

Extract from posted Archeology Dissertation:  The intrusive nature of the Philistines in southern coastal Canaan during the first half of the twelve century is not m doubt; moreover, their material culture suggests that the Aegean/Mycenaean world was their homeland. In contrast to the scholarly focus that has been placed upon their origins and compared to their well-understood settlement in Philistia, very little is known or has been ventured in the scholarly literature about how the Philistines transported themselves and their culture overseas.

At first glance, there are two main reasons to suppose that the Philistines migrated mainly, if not entirely, by sea: 1) almost all “Sea Peoples” sites are coastal and distributed discontinuously so as to appear as beachheads, thus strongly suggesting that the people who settled them arrived by sea; and 2) there is ample, ancient textual evidence to connect the Philistines and their congeners with ships and seafaring. Two basic preliminary assumptions need to be established, however, before reconstructing a seaborne migration: 1) there was a population influx from elsewhere and 2) this population's place of origin necessitated travel by sea in order to reach their ultimate destination (i.e., southern coastal Canaan). An examination of the excavated Philistine Pentapolis sites (i.e., Ashdod, Ashkelon, Tel Miqne Ekron) reveals the simultaneous and uniform appearance of numerous, unprecedented material culture traits. These traits reflect innovations in a variety of cultural and conceptual ways, which include pottery production, animal husbandry, food preparation, textile manufacturing, architecture, and cultic practice. When viewed collectively, they reveal a significant break from the preceding material culture of the region, namely, the indigenous Canaanite. Combined with contemporary (i.e., Papyrus Harris 1) and later (i.e., Onomasticon of Amenope, Hebrew Bible) textual notices attesting to the settlement and continued presence of the Philistines in southern coastal Canaan, little doubt can remain regarding the first assumption above.

The problem of Philistine origins bas been taken up by many, and yet remains largely unresolved. Now that the Philistine material culture is more clearly understood as a result of extensive excavations at major Philistine Pentapolis sites and its similarity to the material culture of the Mycenaean world is readily apparent, the geographical range of their putative homeland has come into sharper focus. By the end of the Late Bronze Age the Mycenaean cultural sphere of influence encompassed mainland Greece, the Aegean Islands, coastal Asia Minor, Crete, Cyprus, and Cilicia. With the exception of coastal Asia Minor and Cilicia, settlers from the rest of these regions must have traveled by sea in order to reach southern coastal Canaan.

The journey from coastal Asia Minor and/or Cilicia to southern coastal Canaan - although possible by land - was much easier when made by sea. Beyond the question of the historical existence of a seaborne migration, there are also questions concerning details of the migration: 1) what was the scale?; 2) if it was large, were maritime technology and seamanship of the time commensurate to the task?; 3) was it an abrupt or gradual peopling of southern coastal Canaan?; 4) was there an additional component of overland movement, as the Medinet Habu relief of Ramses III seem to indicate?; and 5) what was the nature of the Philistines' initial encounters and interaction with the previous inhabitants of the region?

The primary sources of data bearing upon these questions are: 1) ancient texts relating to the Sea Peoples in particular and to maritime matters in general; 2) the archeological site and survey data from Philistia as well as other regions of the eastern Mediterranean that were part of the Mycenaean culture koine; 3) depictions of ships roughly contemporary with initial Philistine settlement; 4) Late Bronze Age shipwrecks from the eastern Mediterranean, especially the Uluburum wreck; 5) biblical accounts.

A secondary source of data is later, better-documented seaborne migrations, such as the Greek colonization of the western Mediterranean, the Viking settlement of the North and the European peopling of the Americas. Contemporary histories combined with extensive excavation of the settlement regions provide a clearer picture of every aspect of these later migrations by sea than is available for the Philistines. Although the historical, technological, and geographic circumstances varied greatly from one migration to another, consistencies m certain details may still emerge, which can be beneficially applied to the Philistine seaborne migration.

When attempting to reconstruct the scale of migration, two problematic issues arise: 1) the estimation of ancient populations based on site excavation and regional survey and the identification of ethnicity in the archeological record.

Calculating ancient populations based on excavated sites and/or a regional survey is always a difficult matter, especially in the case of Philistia. Only three of the five Pentapolis sites (i.e., Ashdod, Ashkelon, Tel Miqne) have been excavated down to Early Iron Age strata. Of these, only Ashdod and Tel Miqne have wide enough exposures of the twelfth-century settlements to allow for reasonable estimates of size. Excavation at other sites in Philistia and survey work has yielded few sites with significant amounts of Mycenaean IIIC: 1b pottery, the hallmark of the earliest Philistine presence. Therefore, population estimates for Philistia, and in turn for the initial Philistine settlement, must remain speculative.

Despite the widespread agreement regarding the existence of a Philistine ethnicity (Sherratt 1998), opinions differ as to the percentage of Philistines at Philistine sites. The perseverance of Canaanite traits the material culture at Pentapolis sites has led many to conclude that indigenous peoples constituted some portion of the population of Philistia (Bunimovitz 1990). Whether this amalgamated material culture - Cypriote and Egyptian stylistic elements in the pottery are also evident (Dothan 1982a: 160-85) - reflects the Philistines' tendency to acculturate (Stone 1995), or, indicates a mixed population will significantly affect one's conception of the size of the incoming population.

The reconstruction of the historical events leading up to the Philistine settlement is closely connected to this problem of mixed populations and migration scale. If the Philistines assumed the role of foreign conquerors, destroying Canaanite cities and driving out their inhabitants, then it is likely that few Canaanites would have been a part of the subsequent Philistine settlement. If however, the Philistines were forcibly settled in southern coastal Canaan (as suggested in Papyrus Harris I), or, if they peaceably coexisted alongside the Canaanites, then the size of the incoming Philistine population was probably smaller. Egypt's status in Canaan during the Twentieth Dynasty (1190-1075) would have greatly affected the circumstances surrounding the Philistine settlement. Whether Egypt controlled all of southern Canaan or just the interior and the Jezreel Valley would have dictated the ease or difficulty with which the Philistines established a new homeland.
Once having established that there was a seaborne migration and that it involved a significant number of people, it then becomes nec

ssary to demonstrate that maritime technology was sufficiently developed to have permitted such a population movement. This movement does not simply entail the ability to sail from their place of origin to their ultimate area of settlement, but also involves the capability to transport themselves and their fully developed, urban culture (Dotban 1992a:97; Stager 1995:345) across considerable distances. Therefore, these Philistine settlers would have required ships with cargo holds sufficiently large to accommodate those items necessary for the establishment upon their arrival, of urban centers that were built atop the destroyed, LB Canaanite settlements. A fleet of such ships would have been needed m order to populate the Pentapolis, assuming that the Philistines were the main inhabitants of these sites during the twelfth century.

Fortunately, there is a wealth of information about Late Bronze Age shipping and seamanship in the eastern Mediterranean derived from a variety of sources: crew sizes can be inferred from the number of oars shown on various ship depictions (Wachsmann 1995:28), as well as £torn the Linear B tablets (Wachsmann); Ugaritic texts refer to fleet (RS 20.238, RS 20.18, KTU 2.47) and cargo sizes (RS.20.212); and shipwrecks (i.e., Uluburun, Cape Gelidonya) reveal a great deal about ship size, construction as well as the types and amounts of cargo taken on board (Pulak 1988; 1997; Bass 1967).
 

Extract from posted Criminal Psychology Dissertation Proposal: Eyewitness evidence in general is not only accepted but valued by the legal system (Goldstein, Chance, & Schneller, 1989; Brigham, 1983). One of the roles of a witness is often that of identification: recognizing and identifying a suspect (Beal, Schmitt, and Dekle, 1995). The aforementioned holds true for both child and adult eyewitnesses. Indeed, even where children are not required to present testimony in court, they may provide police with critical information that is important in the crime investigation and in decisions concerning whether to prosecute the case (Goodman & Reed, 1986). Witnesses to crimes are often asked to view a line-up of suspects to assist the police and the prosecution in determining whether the perpetrator of a crime is the suspect under investigation or in custody.

Photographic identification is used at different stages in a criminal investigation. It may be used to assist police in identifying a suspect who is not yet in custody; for trial preparation; and for identification when a suspect is in custody. Sobel (1981) describes the use of photo identification procedures at three stages: investigation, custody, and the "defendant stage" (Sobel, 1981, Section 5:l). The investigation stage refers to the use of photographic procedures to assist in identifying the suspect (Sobel, 1981, Section 5:2). When a suspect is in custody, Sobel argues that a “corporeal lineup” is available and should be used.

However, most courts permit the use of photo procedures (Sobel, 1981, Section 5:3). Sobel also expresses concerns against use of photo procedures after a defendant has been charged (the custody stage), noting specifically that among the concerns is that there is no right to counsel at “photographic identification procedures” (Sobel, 1981, Section 5:4, citations to legal cases omitted). For practical and methodological reasons, most eyewitness research is conducted using photographic identification procedures.

Proceeding from the above stated, it is important to emphasise that, despite the weight which law enforcement and the courts give eyewitness accounts and testimony, the potential for inaccuracies is enormous. This is amply illustrated by cases such as the one reported by Haber and Haber (2000), who described a bank robbery in which 13 witnesses, including tellers, a guard, bank officers, and customers, were present. After the robbers told the customers to lie down on the floor and demanded the tellers to hand over the money, they promptly left, all while video cameras recorded the event. When interviewed by police, witnesses had differing accounts of the number of robbers, presence of weapons, descriptions of perpetrators, and how long the robbery lasted. During a lineup, 4 out of 13 witnesses mistakenly identified somebody else from the incident (tellers or customers) as one of the perpetrators, and 3 out of 13 identified someone who was never at the scene of the crime. Further, each of these seven witnesses was certain he/she had made a correct identification and was willing to testify in court. The confidence and inaccuracy of these witnesses exemplifies the need to understand individual and situational factors that contribute to eyewitness memory error.
As may have been inferred from the foregoing, the proposed study will focus on child and adult eyewitness accounts of events, critically investigating the potential for error and, importantly, the probable causes and sources of eyewitness inaccuracy.
 

Extract from posted Dissertation Proposal:  The research is aimed at analysing the state and extent of E Learning initiatives in the Saudi Arabian Universities. This research will encompass an analysis of the available E Learning tools, its proliferation within the Saudi Arabian academic domains, the future E Learning based projects and suggestions to implement its use in the future. In short the research is to “Analyse the extent of implementation of E Learning in Saudi Arabian Universities.”

Extract from posted Dissertation Proposal:  The role of the nurse within the health care delivery system is an important one, whether assessed in terms of in or out patient care, of hospital or community care settings. The importance of the professional nurse within the health care delivery system is acknowledged and supported throughout much of Europe. This, as noted by Kelly and Symonds (2003) is evidenced in the nature of the nursing professional education and training curricula, the ethics guidelines governing the practice, and the professional and national law which define nursing professionals as health care service deliverers. Both society and the medical profession have recognised the integral role which professional nurses play within the health care service model and, within the context of the stated recognition, actively encourage students to select a nursing career (Kelly and Symonds, 2003).

Apart from acknowledging the importance of professional nursing, European countries have further conceded to the importance of community nursing. Community nursing, alternatively called Visiting Home Health Care nursing, is regarded by many as an integral componential element of the health care delivery system (Avery, 2005), further identified as possessing both healthcare and economic benefits (Miller et al., 2005). On the one hand, community nursing, as extended and provided by professionally trained and educated registered nurses, positively contribute to the welfare of the community, especially as pertains to the elderly, the disabled or other special needs patients, inclusive among which are the substance dependant (Wegner, 2001; Brox and Froystein, 2005; Pelc et al., 2005). On the other hand, community nursing, to the extent that it is defined as an out patient service, is substantiated by economic imperatives which indicate that its availability allows for the discharge of elderly and special needs patients from in-care settings, thereby significantly reducing health care costs without jeopardising the quality and level of health care the patients in question may require (Miller et al., 2005). It is within the context of the articulated advantages and benefits that many European nations have acknowledge the importance of a strong community nursing system and have supported its expansion.

While European society and the medical professional acknowledge the importance of community nursing, the Arab countries have yet to attain that level of understanding. As noted in the Cross Cultural Health Care Programme’s 2005 report on the status of the health care system in the Arab World, not only is their health care expenditure significantly below the international average, with this observation also being applicable to the richer Gulf states of the region, such as Kuwait but, while there is a recognition for the value of doctors within the health care delivery system, the nurse tends to be significantly undervalued (`Voices of the Arab communities,’ 2005, n.p.). As noted in the mentioned report, rather than be acknowledged as an integral link in the health care service system or as a health care provider, the nurse is perceived of as a “helper” (`Voices of the Arab communities,’ 2005, n.p). Within the context of a significant portion of the Arab medical profession’s understanding, not to mention society, the nurse is not an independent and capable health care provider but a doctor’s helper.

The above articulated conceptualisation of the nurse within the context of Arab countries is further supported by World Health Organisation reports. In its 2005 report on Kuwait, WHO observes that while state and society actively encourage citizen students to study medicine, there is no encouragement or support for the academic study of nursing (`Country report,’ 2005).

One may observe that an important reason for the gulf between the quality of health care service in European countries and Arab countries lies in the undervalued status of the nurse, implying a dearth in professionally trained nurses, absence of community nursing and a lack of professional independence. As Burau (2005) observes, the independent nature of the nursing profession is fundamental to a strong and capable nursing profession.

The fact that Arab countries, such as Kuwait, are in dire need of community nursing programmes is most evident in relation to the elderly. Abul et al., (2004) contend that the absence of community nursing programmes in Kuwait has severely constrained the ability of the medical profession to deliver the requisite healthcare attention to the nation’s aged population. Since this absence implies that there are few nursing homes for the elderly in the country and those that require constant care can only receive it within a hospital setting or through the services of a home nurse who may not be qualified, the elderly population is likely to suffer accordingly (Abul et al., 2004).

As may be inferred from the above, the dissertation shall focus on the importance, not only of professional nursing but of community nursing. Following an explication of the function of community nursing within the health care system, the dissertation shall review the consequences of its absence within the context of the Kuwaiti health care delivery system and, through reference to European countries, outline the benefits of its support and adoption. More specifically, the dissertation proposes to focus upon the benefits of community nursing programmes for the elderly and the economic and healthcare consequences of its absence in a country such as Kuwait.
 

Abstract from posted dissertation: Economic globalisation has become a reality. The growth of international trade has increased the transnational practice of law. The present study concludes that an international code of ethics is needed to govern this practice. Drafters of the code will face a number of challenges, including preventing the independence of the legal profession from being subsumed by the interests of multinational business clients and complying with the provisions of the General Agreement on Trade in Services. Existing codes, especially that of the CCBE, can serve as models for development of a globalised code, and drafters will need to rely on negotiation and consensus-building in order to arrive at a code that will be acceptable and enforceable on a global scale.

Abstract from posted Extended Ph.D Research Paper:  The Genesis Project, a not for profit charitable trust, founded in 1996 by Tim S., is classified as a nature-oriented enterprise. Genesis, predominantly preoccupied with environmentally oriented and friendly projects, is primarily financed by visitor admission fees and spending. As this dissertation argues throughout, however, neither the non-profit nor the environmentally-oriented organisational frameworks negate the exigencies of structured organisational management, concomitant with formalised project development and execution processes. Currently, the Genesis Project lacks the project and organisational management tools and resources associate with formalisation and this, needless to say, has had discernable negative outcomes.

Genesis, as determined by the aforementioned classification, is a unique organisation. While that, in itself, complicates management, the former is further complicated by the Genesis’ identity as a young but dynamically growing enterprise. Dynamic growth, concomitant with the artistic and creative nature of the organisation, dictates the exigencies of formulating and implementing a genesis-specific organisational and project management paradigm. Existing management models, insofar as they are not informed by this particular organisation’s definitional framework, will be foreign impositions and, thus, would hardly enhance organisational efficiency and effectiveness, let alone allow for the uncomplicated attainment of organisational strategic goals and objectives.

Evaluation of the existent array of project and organisational management models, and as affirmed through experiential implementation within the mentioned organisation, reveals that none attain a fit with Genesis’ needs and organisational and structural particularities. It is, thus, imperative for the Genesis Project to design and formulate its own unique organisational and project management model.

Arguing the exigencies of formulating a unique management model does not imply that genesis should not benefit from existent models. Instead, it need study available models, articulate its organisational goals and particularities and, on that basis, select a number of models which come closest to satisfying the articulated requirements. Selection, however, will not lead to blind implementation but will function as an integral step towards model customisation. In other words, following the selection of a set of organisational and project management paradigms, Genesis need rework and modify the selected to produce that one which attains an ideal fit with the organisation’s requirements and specifications.

The objective of this study, articulated in the above as the evaluation of the operative project selection, development and management models in Genesis, has dictated a composite methodological approach, combining between a literature and intra-organisational fieldwork research. This particular research approach is uniquely suited to this study insofar as it has enabled a review and critique of industry standard project management paradigms, and an analysis of Genesis’ requirements, as determined by organisational members’ subjective perceptions and the researcher’s objective analysis of available data.

Prior to the undertaking of such theoretical research as would inform later critique of operative management model in Genesis and the presentation of recommendations, a precise identification of Genesis’ definitional framework and unique organisational characteristics was imperative. Within the context of this exigency, the author undertook an analysis of Genesis’ organisational structure, primary activities, management paradigms, development strategies and strategic objectives.

An organisational and structural analysis of Genesis revealed that, as an organisation, it has multiple unique characteristics, all of which combine to render the adoption of existent, non-specified, management models and tools, counterproductive. In defence of the stated, one may note that while the analysis determined that Genesis is a creative and artistic organisation, it further clarified that the blind adoption of existent creative organisation management strategies and associate tools was erroneous. It was erroneous because, in addition to the stated organisational categorisation, Genesis is also a young and growing organisation and, as such, demands the deployment of those management tools specifically designed for organisations in growth stages. Furthermore, being a project-based organisation, the adoption of Genesis-specific project management methodologies is imperative. In other words, Genesis’ multiple organisational characteristics demand the formulation of an organisational and project management model which addresses all of the stated.

To gain insight into Genesis’ peculiar project and organisational management requirements, as predetermined by its above explicated organisational characteristics, a literature research was undertaken. That research, to the extent that it enabled clarification of the theoretical underpinnings and dominant assumptions of organisational and project management, allowed for an informed critique of Genesis’ current management structure and the proposal of valid and practicable reform recommendations.

Proceeding from Genesis’ status as a creative but, young and growing organisation, management models pertaining to the latter and former were explored and their theoretical assumptions investigated.

Research into management models for young and growing organisations revealed that dynamic growth, while a positive development, enforced a set of complex requisite management paradigms and tools upon an organisation. Dynamic growth implies that an organisation is in a state of flux and has a, somewhat, mercurial identity. As it evolves from one organisational type into another, as predicated by growth, management strategies which might have been adequate for previous forms become inadequate, even obsolete. For instance, as Genesis evolves from a smaller to larger organisation, and becomes involved in more projects and activities, its organisational and project management structures must undergo a parallel evolution to avoid the possibility of organisational activities falling from beyond the parameters of managerial control, culminating in eventual loss consequent to inefficiency and ineffectiveness.

Young and growing organisations, such as Genesis, must, even as they promote and encourage growth, be in control of the organisational growth and development process. To attain the requisite control within a mercurial evolutionary organisational environment, management must be, at any time, able to accurately identify the organisation’s growth stage and deploy the management tools particular to the identified stage.

Accurate identification of an organisation’s growth stage, especially within the context of dynamic growth, is not as simple as one may assume. Management must first understand the causal factors of organisational change and whether they emanate from organisational evolution or are an outcome of organisational crisis. Often, and as the research findings indicate, the organisational development process is marked, or induced, by a combination of both.

Following identification of the change-inducing factors, management must articulate the growth model that it will employ as a benchmark for assessment of the organisation’s growth stage. As may be inferred from the vast array of organisational growth theory and literature, growth models cannot be haphazardly selected but need be chosen in accordance with the degree to which they reflect the relevant organisation’s characteristics. In other words, if Genesis is to experience a stable organisational evolutionary process, characterised by seamless transition from one growth stage to another, management must first assess available growth theories/models and select that one (or a combination thereof) which most precisely pertains to Genesis and embraces as many of its unique characteristics as possible.

While exploration of growth model theories may appear impractical and of little immediate value to an existent organisation, that is an erroneous belief predicated on the assumption that theory contains little practical value. To the extent that theory provides a guideline for the identification of growth stages, the `challenges particular to each and the range of strategies that may be deployed to defeat those challenges, Genesis’ management has to correlate theory to practice.

The exigency of theory to practice correlation is evidenced in the difficulty Genesis is facing in designing and instituting the formalised project and organisational management processes demanded by each stage of growth. The organisation, whether evaluated in terms of projects or employees, is expanding beyond the institutionalised management paradigm with the consequences being that many critical activities are increasingly falling from without the control framework. Resources are, consequently, inefficiently and ineffectively allocated and projects are vulnerable to mismanagement. In other words, as a young and dynamically growing organisation, Genesis’ failure to exploit theory for practical usage is impacting its ability to attain organisational strategic objectives.

Genesis may not be operating as efficiently and effectively as it could, consequent to organisational expansion beyond the parameters of the institutionalised management paradigm but that neither negates Genesis’ evident success nor does it imply that solutions are not within reach.

The existent literature on organisational management and management strategies pertaining to specific organisational types and particular growth stages, supports the contention that a shift in management strategies and tools can, quite effectively, transform Genesis into a more structured and efficient organisation, whose evolution from one growth stage to the next withstands stabilisation through the adoption of a set of formalised processes and well-selected organisational and project management models which, are reflective and supportive of the organisation’s unique characteristics and strategic objectives.

While the benefits of formalisation of organisational processes are undeniable, insofar as they would endow Genesis’ management with greater degrees of control over projects and the capacity to undertake a more efficient and effective allocation of resources, as argued in the body of the dissertation, there are fears regarding the impact that formalisation and structuralisation may have on creativity.

Genesis is an inherently creative organisation and derives its primary identity from the stated. That a more structured and controlled organisational environment could negatively impact Genesis’ creative spirit and, ultimately, undermine its primary identity is predicated on the assumption that creativity requires a free rein. That, as supported by the reviewed literature on creativity, is largely accurate. Creativity is the by-product of interaction between a group of creative individuals operating within a social environment which allows, and encourages, creative expression, is infinitely patient with the creative incubation process, and tolerates ambiguity. The presence of these factors, as articulated by the reviewed literature and substantiated through theoretical and experiential evidence, is integral to the survival and growth of creativity.

From the organisational and project managerial perspectives, the above cited creativity-inducing factors are antithetical to efficient and effective management. Whereas creativity requires free rein, the attainment of organisational efficiency and effectiveness, let alone the fulfilment of strategic objectives, is predicated upon tight control; whereas creativity requires a patient environment which does not operate according to deadlines and timetables, effective and efficient organisational and project management require the exact opposite. Where we to continue along this particular vein, we would be forced to conclude that the implementation of effective and efficient management models, concomitant with the deployment of strategically selected management tools, would stifle creativity.

Within the context of carefully designed management models, the requirements of creativity, on the one hand, and organisational and project management requirements, on the other, can be satisfied without the one threatening the other. Creativity, in other words, can be managed without being stifled. Proposed creativity management models, in an effort to attain the stated, suggest the amalgamation of creativity and management requirements. Within the context of the stated, creativity is allowed free rein and expression in its incubation phase. However, upon the conclusion of the creative process, the outcome, expressed in a project proposal, is subjected to formalised project evaluation, design and management processes. Consequently, should Genesis implement this particular management model, explicated in greater detail within the body of the dissertation, it will be able to maintain its status as a creative identity and, even as it exercises strict managerial control over organisational activities and project execution, furnishes the requisite environment for the constructive stimulation and active encouragement of creativity.

Apart from the imperatives of designing and implementing an organisational management paradigm which reflects Genesis’ peculiarities and requirements as a young but dynamically growing and creative organisation, the study further focuses on the exigencies of project management. The undeniable need for designing and implementing project management models, as would guide project development from the selection to the concluding stage, has been unequivocally imposed upon management by the organisation’s identity as an inherently project-oriented one. Paradoxically, however, despite the centrality of project development, selection, design and execution, Genesis has not articulated a consistent and effective project management model. Without doubt, this has negatively impacted the outcome of projects, whether through the transgression of assigned budgets or the failure to abide by deadlines. From the organisational managerial perspective, this is a serious shortcoming and needs to be addressed through the selection and implementation of a project management paradigm.

Selection, or design, of the aforementioned paradigm is, without doubt, a complex undertaking which will require the expenditure of scarce organisational resources, and the expenditure of time and effort. It is, nevertheless, integral to Genesis’ sustainability and survival.

There is a wealth of literature on project management. This literature addresses the exigencies of project management and formalised project selection processes and efficient and effective resource allocation mechanisms, while proposing a range of practicable paradigms. The proposed project management paradigms, reviewed in detail in the dissertation, are informed by theoretical and experiential evidence and are, consequently, valuable organisation management strategies. However, none of these models embraces the particularities specific to Genesis, fortifying the recommendation for the design of a genesis-specific project selection, design/development and execution/management model.

The imperatives of designing a Genesis-specific project management methodology is supported by data collected from within the organisation. The fieldwork dimension of the study solidified the articulated contentions insofar as it evidenced a peculiar intra-organisational mis-communication, the absence of an effective and efficient centralised management philosophy and mechanism as would correspond to Genesis’ uniqueness and support the successful attainment of organisational objectives, and the absence of either a project portfolio management strategy or a project support office, culminating in resource wastage and, at times, project mis-selection.

To reiterate, Genesis’ success from 1996 to the present is not to be treated lightly nor has the outlined criticism sought to negate the organisation’s substantial achievements. Instead, in the spirit of academic analysis aiming towards the presentation of constructive criticisms and the proposal of corrective mechanisms, the study has analysed Genesis’ organisational; and project management strategies to determine whether or not success is sustainable.

In examining the sustainability of organisational success, the study’s findings were not optimistic. Due to the absence of model project management methodologies and templates which are specifically designed for fit with the Genesis Project’s environmental peculiarities and which reflect the exigencies of attaining the organisation’s expressed strategic objectives, or goals, one judges the organisation as vulnerable and success to be unsustainable. Quite simply stated, success has determined dynamic organisational growth and development, culminating in a situation wherein management strategies are at odds with Genesis’ current growth stage and hardly have the requisite inbuilt flexibility upon which the evolution of management models, whether organisational or project, is contingent. In other words and as earlier stated, Genesis is confronting a situation in which the organisation’s activities have expanded beyond the boundaries established by the operative organisational and project management paradigms.

Genesis must reassess its management models, particularly as pertains to project initiation, selection, design, development and execution, so that growth can be both sustained and maintained. The referenced maintenance is ultimately predicated upon the adoption of a set of articulated recommendations, most of which centre around the imperatives of the development of formalised project management paradigms and methodologies, culminating in the evolution of a formal and more structured organisation, as compared to the current informal and rather unstructured organisational format, capable of a more efficient and effective resource allocation and project selection process.

As the study, therefore, emphasises, Genesis’ dynamic growth, while desirable, has determined the exigencies of the articulation and implementation of a more precise project and organisational management definitional framework, as would harmonise between creative and management requirements. It is only through the design and subsequent adoption of the stated that Genesis will be able to maintain successful and stable organisational development.
 

Extract from posted Dissertation Proposal:  Over six decades ago, the American Philosophical Association sought to reassert the historic relationship between philosophy and education, calling for nation-wide educational policy and curriculum to be informed by fundamental philosophical precepts (Balz and Larrabee, 1942). Forming a committee for the analysis of the then operative educational policy and curriculum, the American Philosophical Association issued its findings in 1942. As per the findings, 82% of all educational institutions in the United States acknowledged the correlation between philosophy, educational curriculum and educational policy but hardly any employed a specified philosophic ideology to inform policy, frame curricula, or provide educators with that set of tools deemed integral for effective teaching. Accordingly, the American Philosophical Association recommended the comprehensive reassessment of national educational policy, curriculum and teaching strategies, asserting the exigencies of adopting a philosophy of education as would not only guide the redesign of national educational curricula but which would do so upon moral foundations and which would, thus, function to inculcate ethical and moral precepts into the learning population (Balz and Larrabee, 1942).

The exigencies of a philosophy of education are inarguable. In emphasising the stated, Bilsky (1954) observes that the formulation of educational policies and curriculum without the a priori articulation of the philosophy that would guide and inform them, constitutes the unnatural separation between knowledge/philosophy and education/communication and society/morality. Consequently, it is incumbent upon educators and educational policy makers to elucidate that philosophy of education which best satisfies and addresses society’s present and future expectations of the educational system, and which best subscribes to their vision of society, before the actual design of the curriculum or the articulation of educational policy.

Proceeding from the above explication of the exigencies of formulating educational policies and designing educational curricula only after the selection of that philosophy which will function as the definitional parameters for the aforementioned, it is contingent upon us to question the most suitable philosophy of education. In light of the fact that the inculcation of ethical and moral precepts into generations of learners, from the earliest stages of primary education to the final stages of higher education, is an overwhelming concern especially within the context of the proliferation of corruption across the professions and on both the governmental and the economic levels, the articulation of a philosophy of education which addresses the defined imperatives is a valuable, albeit complex, undertaking. It shall function as the primary concern and objective of the proposed dissertation.
 

Extract from posted Education Management Extended Essay:  Compulsory adult education programmes are integral to widening participation through the provision of the literacy, numeracy and linguistic skills necessary for the empowerment of the marginalised and disenfranchised. The government, acknowledging the imperatives of widening participation, has actively involved itself in the identification of the linguistic needs of L2 speakers and in the design of programmes and strategies intended to satisfy those needs and provide L2 speakers with the requisite linguistic and numeracy skills. The government’s programme and position on the subject are articulated in two White Papers, entitled “Skills: Getting on in Business and Getting on in Work” and “Starting Points: Initial Assessment in Adult Learning.”

The objectives of the referenced White Papers, both of which shall be discursively critiqued in greater detail shortly, are clear. They are intended, as explained by Gottlieb (2006) to clarify ESOL needs and requirements and provide colleges and other stakeholders with a framework for constructively responding to those needs. However, the capacity to respond to the identified L2 needs is partially, arguably largely, predicated on the accurate assessment of the new learner’s linguistic proficiency level and in the subsequent placing of these learners in a class which corresponds to their level (Gottlieb, 2006).

As a pre-entry level to basic ESOL tutor, I can confirm the imperatives of accurate assessment of individual learner levels. While conceding to the fact that differentiations in linguistic proficiency, areas of weakness, strengths and capacity to assimilate exist between any two learners, the tutor’s capacity to design an effective Group Learning Plan (GLP), is largely dependant on the accuracy of the assessment tests. Quite simply stated, should assessment be inaccurate, resulting in some learners being placed in a higher level, they will not be able to follow the GLP and may not comprehend the tutor’s in-class explanations and instructions. Samway (2006) confirms this last point and provides confirmatory empirical evidence which effectively illustrates that should initial assessment tests erroneously place ESOL students in a higher level, the student in question, not having the requisite linguistic proficiency skills to assimilate lectures and discussions or to comprehend the assigned reading material, will simply not benefit. Consequently, it is absolutely imperative that initial assessment tests accurately reflect the new students linguistic and numeracy skill level.

Bearing the import of initial assessment in mind, this research aims to determine whether or not Carshalton College, where I work, has an effective assessment strategy and constructively exploits assessment to promote the government’s widening participation objective.
 

Abstract from the posted Ph.D thesis: Even though veritable tomes have been written on the benefits of implementing diversity management, numerous scholars argue that there is no empirical evidence to suggest that diversity management has measurable financial benefits. Nevertheless, this group of scholars does not contest the popular belief that diversity management is essential, given the increasingly multicultural, multinational and multi-religious nature of the post-globalisation workforce.

Following a rather comprehensive review of the literature on diversity management, in which both points of view are given voice, the literature review examines the benefits of implementing diversity management programmes. The general consensus, or the findings of Chapter II, is that diversity management is a strategic response to globalisation. Having argued the aforementioned, the study proceeds to examine the implementation of diversity management in a Dubai-based organisation. The rationale for the selection of this particular area is two-fold. In the first place, Arab Middle Eastern countries are not bound by law to embrace diversity. In the second place, Dubai has an extremely diverse workforce, whereby the majority of the workforce is foreign-born and not native to the country. Accordingly, the ways and means by which a Dubai-based multinational organisation reacts to the stated is explored.

As the study shows, Eamar, the Dubai-based organisation upon which the study focused, has embraced diversity management. It invests in diversity training, with the rationale being the proven benefits of doing so: teamwork and a more harmonious workplace, at the very least.
 

Extract from posted Research Paper:  With the fastest growth rate in last three decades, China has become one of the largest markets for international business. "China is emerging as one of the great growth markets," says Intel China President James W. Jarrett. Hundreds of international companies have been competing for business opportunities in China in the form of joint venture or direct investment. Both successful joint ventures and failed investments were reported with mixed feelings and evaluations. As is known generally, the situation in China is quite complicated, where holdovers of the Communist Party's planning apparatus heap demands on multinationals, especially in politically important sectors such as autos, petrochemicals, and telecom equipment. Companies are shaken down by local officials, whipsawed by policy swings, railroaded into bad partnerships, and squeezed for technology. McDonnell Douglas, Peugeot, BellSouth, and Japanese retailer Yaohan have all been burned on big investments.

Research addressing the issues of conflicts between different cultures, traditions, as well as value systems has appeared in the recent literature, but few focuses on identifying key factors for foreign investors to successfully enter China's market under its current political and economic systems. This thesis, through a case study of China Motorola, shows that for foreign investors, by identifying key success factors and then incorporating those factors into a firm’s long-term business strategies and policies can enhance their business opportunities in China for the long time to come, even under China's current complex economic and marketing conditions.
 

Extract from posted Research Paper:  Cross-border or international mergers and acquisitions (IM&As) have become the preferred method of foreign direct investment (FDI) over the past two decades (United Nations, 2000). For example, the number of national and international mergers involving European Community-based companies nearly tripled during fiscal years 1983-1987 and increased further in the 1990s (Lyroudi, Lazaridis, & Subeniotis, 1999). The trend shows that IM&As go both ways: toward developing countries and from them, "reshaping the world's economic boundaries" (Chapman, 2003). This trend of increasing numbers of IM&As has been discussed by several researchers, such as Hennart and Reddy (1997), who have focused on IM&As' success or failure. They have found a failure rate of more than 40 percent (Rondinelli & Black, 2000), while Marks and Mirvis (2001) commented that three out of four IM&As fail to achieve their financial and strategic objectives. In short, researchers suggest that "the expected financial benefits of M&As are often not realized" (Auster & Sirower, 2002).

Like some other researchers, Gilkey (1991, p. 331) argues that the high percentage of failures is mainly due to the fact that "M&As are still designed with business and financial fit as primary conditions, leaving psychological and cultural issues as secondary concerns" (Bijlsma-Frankema, 2001, p. 192). But paying attention to cultural factors in IM&As is becoming crucial as new countries enter the free-market economy (Rondinelli & Black, 2000). A close examination of cultural factors could bring about a learning process in IM&As between developed and developing countries, a situation in which the cultural gap is wider than that between developed countries (Bijlsma-Frankema, p. 192). The wider cultural gap and the current trend of IM&As between developed and developing countries increases the urgency of understanding the effects of culture on the dynamics of IM&As and issues such as corporate governance and local adaptation strategy.
 

Abstract from posted Systemic Review: 

Background: Nurse prescribing has become increasing popular over the last 6 years, due to Government policy directives. The Government announced in May 2001, that nurse prescribing would be extended to many nurses working in the following areas, palliative care, minor ailments, minor injuries and health promotion. This was intended to provide more patients with quicker and efficient ways to access medicines, and make the best use of nurse’s skills. (DoH, 2002). Nurses began to prescribe independently in April 2002, after provisions had been made to train and support nurses to manage to prescribe. The government also around this time, introduced supplementary prescribing, whereby nurses and pharmacists would be able to prescribe medicines to patients after an initial assessment by a doctor or dentist had taken place. This was thought to be very beneficial to nurses especially when working with patients with asthma, diabetes and mental illness. With independent and supplementary prescribing, the Government pledged that by 2004, over half of all nurses would be able to prescribe medicines. (DoH, 2002). Due to the increase in numbers of nurses prescribing and the future forms of health provisions, a systematic review on the effectiveness of nurse prescribing will be undertaken. This will focus on the cost benefits to the NHS and what patients and other health care professional’s views of nurse prescribing are.
Objectives: The aim of this review is to evaluate the impact and effects of nurse prescribing to date and to highlight areas of further research, which may be needed. The review will provide a summary of the current state of knowledge into nurse prescribing, to hopefully inform policy and practice and identify areas of need and shall rely upon nurse prescribing literature published from, 2000 until the present. Literature from other countries will not be included.
Design: Systemic Cochrane review
Search Strategy: The search strategy for this review complied with Cochrane standards. To obtain the literature electronic databases were searched, using key words (The impact of nurses prescribing). The databases searched were CINAHL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, SERFILE, Oxford Journals Online, Jstor, ProQuest, ABI Inform and Academic Search Premier.
Selection Criteria: Articles published from 2000 onwards and whose methodological approach was both clearly stated and appropriate were deemed suitable for inclusion, provide that they were both scholarly and peer-reviewed. Another criterion for inclusion was article focus as the reviewer had, early on decided on the imperatives of the equal representation of the identified four measures: patient opinion, nurse opinion, doctor opinion and impact on cost. As for final determination regarding inclusion, article quality was assessed.
Data Collection and Analysis: The reviewer evaluated all potential studies meeting the selection criterion noted in the above for inclusion.
Main Results: Despite the multitude of articles published on nurse prescription from 2000 to the present, only a handful met the inclusion criterion. Of these eight were selected. The studies tended towards the support of nurse prescription.
Reviewer’s Conclusions: The evidence from the studies supports the implementation of nurse prescription as a cost-effective strategy for the partial resolution of the NHS’ increasing inability to meet patient demands and extend them the timely quality service expected. Stakeholders supported the expansion of NHS’ nurses’ responsibilities to include prescription authorities. The majority expressed belief in the capacity of NHS nurses to efficiently and effectively execute this responsibility but specialists remained sceptical. The impact of the policy upon cost is, as yet, indeterminate but is expected to positively contribute to the evolution of a more cost-efficient NHS, capable of extending patients the expected quality of service.
 

Abstract from posted Dissertation:  This study examines the prison and probation services’ reform programme, in an attempt to evaluate its validity and potentials for success. The prison and probations’ reform programme, known as the National Offender Management Programme (NOMS) proposes a merger between the prison and the probation services, predicating its rationale on the assumption that separation creates a disconnect between the two offender management divisions, culminating in inefficient offender management. The merger, as argued by the Home Office and NOMS’ proponents, will allow for more efficient and effective communications between the prison and the probation services and, as such facilitate the timely exchange of vital information of individual offenders/parolees, ultimately allowing for the formulation of end-to-end offender management programmes.

The study concedes to the fact that NOMS has numerous critics, both within and without the offender management services and that the majority perceive of it as either an overly ambitious programme which cannot withstand successful implementation and operationalisation, or as an unnecessary waste of valuable, and limited, resources. While the study agrees that criticisms of NOMS are partly valid, it maintains, through the use of theoretical and empirical evidence, that were NOMS to be successfully implemented, its operationalisation will positively contribute to the reduction of recidivism rates.

The study posited a hypothesis which was later addressed through both the literature reviewed and the field study conducted. The hypothesis maintained that the implementation of NOMS will lend to a more efficient and effective programme for the management of offenders and cut down on recidivism rates because it utilises strategic management and total quality management tools and paradigms. In other words, to the extent that NOMS is founded upon proven organisational and human management theories, strategies, tools and paradigms, it has the potential to significantly contribute to the rehabilitation f offenders and the prevention of re-offending.

Following an extensive review of the literature on all of NOMS, the offending and re-offending problems in the United Kingdom and their causal factors and, total quality and strategic management, the study found in support of the hypothesis. This particular finding was validated by the results of the field study, wherein the majority of the 60 stakeholder-respondents expressed support for NOMS on the grounds that it provided for end-to-end offender management.

The study concludes that NOMS is, indeed, a positive contribution of effective offender management and has the potential to significantly reduce reoffending rates across the United Kingdom, or at least where implemented.
 

Extract from posted Exam Model Answers:  The literature on participation of citizens and groups can be traced to the writings of Rosseau in the Social Contract, which according to Pateman (1970) is vital for the theory of participatory democracy. Notions and principles of participation have become important concepts in the tradition of political theory. Rosseau insists on the individual participation of every citizen in political decision-making. This he believes will have a psychological effect on citizens and which in effect ensures that there is a "continuing interrelationship between the working institutions and the psychological qualities and attitudes of individuals interacting within them" (Pateman, 1970, p 22). Rosseau (1968) writes that citizens will readily accept policies where the benefits and burdens are shared equally among the citizenry. This however can only be achieved through a participatory process, which ensures political equality in decision-making. Ironically, Rosseau's ideal participatory process for decision-making is contrary to contemporary theories of collective action and coalition formation. He suggests an ideal situation where no organized groups or "tacit associations" would enforce their "particular wills" on individuals. The power of organized groups he contends could be curtailed by allowing the existence of many other groups with equal political power (Rosseau, 1913).

Abstract from posted Dissertation:  Parenting styles differ across cultures and nations. These differences tend to be quite marked when comparing Western and East Asian parenting styles, as a direct consequence of the cultural differences between these two regions. Much has been written about these differences and how they affect parenting styles but only very little about the parenting styles of East Asian parents who were living in the West or had received a Western education. This study investigates this question, proceeding from the assumption that exposure to Western culture, whether through education or immigration, will influence the parenting styles of East Asian parents and render them more like the parenting styles particular to Western parents.

For the purposes of determining the ways in which culture affects parenting styles and the identification of the parenting styles particular to East Asian versus Western parents, the study extensively reviewed a select range of scholarly studies and researches on the topic. Following that, a survey was conducted for the determination of whether or not differences occur as a consequence of exposure to Western culture. The study found that there was no single answer to this question. Instead, whether or not the parenting styles of East Asian parents was affected by exposure to western culture was determined by the parents’ extent of acculturation into Western culture.
 

Abstract from posted Dissertation: This study examines the division between the public and the private sector, seeking to determine whether that division, or separation, inhibits the implementation of management strategies traditionally associated with the private sector to the public sector. Following an extensive literature review, the study determined the division as largely artificial, in the sense that it has been imposed on either sector by the management paradigms favoured by either. The implication here is that the private sector is not inherently decentralized, informal and organic and the public sector is not, by definition, the antithesis of all of the stated. Instead, management paradigms and strategies have imposed decentralization versus centralised, formality versus informality and dynamism versus mechanism on either. The findings of the literature review, as summarized, were confirmed by a field study which involved the extensive interviewing of top level management at one public sector (Organisation A, City Council) and one private sector (Organisation B, Financial Institution) organisation. With the findings concluding that there are no insurmountable structural barriers to the implementation of private sector management strategies to the public sector, the strategies by which TQM can be implemented within the public sector are critically discussed. Overall, the study contributes a greater understanding of the similarities between the public and the private sector and the means by which to implement TQM in the public sector, and the benefits of doing so.