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An Introduction to Genre Theory Essay An Introduction to Genre Theory Daniel Chandler 1. The problem of definition A number of perennial doubts plague genre theory. Are genres really out there in the world, or are they merely the constructions of analysts? Is there a finite taxonomy of genres or are they in principle infinite? Are genres timeless Platonic essences or ephemeral, time-bound entities? Are genres culturebound or transcultural? Should genre analysis be descriptive or proscriptive? (Stam 2000, 14) The word genre comes from the French (and originally Latin) word for kind or class. The term is  widely used in rhetoric, literary theory, media theory, and more recently linguistics, to refer to a distinctive type of text*. Robert Allen notes that for most of its 2,000 years, genre study has been primarily nominological and typological in function. That is to say, it has taken as its principal task the division of the world of literature into types and the naming of those types much as the botanist divides the realm of flora into varieties of plants (Allen 1989, 44). As will be seen, however, the analogy with biological classification into genus and species misleadingly suggests a scientific process. Since classical times literary works have been classified as belonging to general types which were variously defined. In literature the broadest division is between poetry, prose and drama, within which there are further divisions, such as tragedy and comedy within the category of drama. Shakespeare referred satirically to classifications such as tragedy, comedy, history, pastoral, pastoral-comical, historical-pastoral, tragical-historical, tragical-comicalhistorical-pastoral (Hamlet II ii). In The Anatomy of Criticism the formalist literary theorist Northrop Frye (1957) presented certain universal genres and modes  as the key to organizing the entire literary corpus. Contemporary media genres tend to relate more to specific forms than to the universals of tragedy and comedy. Nowadays, films are routinely classified (e. g. in television listings magazines) as thrillers, westerns and so on genres with which every adult in modern society is familiar. So too with television genres such as game shows and sitcoms. Whilst we have names for countless genres in many media, some theorists have argued that there are also many genres (and sub-genres) for which we have no names (Fowler 1989, 216; Wales 1989, 206). Carolyn Miller  suggests that the number of genres in any society depends on the complexity and diversity of society (Miller 1984, in Freedman Medway 1994a, 36). The classification and hierarchical taxonomy of genres is not a neutral and objective procedure. There are no undisputed maps of the system of genres within any medium (though literature may perhaps lay some claim to a loose consensus). Furthermore, there is often considerable theoretical disagreement about the definition of specific genres. A genre is ultimately an abstract conception rather than something that exists empirically in the world,  notes Jane Feuer (1992, 144). One theorists genre may be anothers sub-genre or even super-genre (and indeed what is technique, style, mode, formula or thematic grouping to one may be treated as a genre by another). Themes, at least, seem inadequate as a basis for defining genres since, as David Bordwell notes, any theme may appear in any genre (Bordwell 1989, 147). He asks: Are animation and documentary films genres or modes? Is the filmed play or comedy performance a genre? If tragedy and comedy are genres, perhaps then domestic tragedy or slapstick is a formula. In  passing, he offers a useful inventory of categories used in film criticism, many of which have been accorded the status of genres by various commentators: Grouping by period or country (American films of the 1930s), by director or star or producer or writer or studio, by technical process (Cinemascope films), by cycle (the fallen women films), by series (the 007 movies), by style (German Expressionism), by structure (narrative), by ideology (Reaganite cinema), by venue (drive-in movies), by purpose (home movies), by audience (teenpix), by subject or theme (family film, paranoid-politics movies). (Bordwell 1989, 148) Another film theorist, Robert Stam, also refers to common ways of categorizing films: While some genres are based on story content (the war film), other are borrowed from literature (comedy, melodrama) or from other media (the musical). Some are performer-based (the Astaire-Rogers films) or budget-based (blockbusters), while others are based on artistic status (the art film), racial identity (Black cinema), locat[ion] (the Western) or sexual orientation (Queer cinema). (Stam 2000, 14). Bordwell concludes that one could argue that no set of necessary and sufficient conditions can  mark off genres from other sorts of groupings in ways that all experts or ordinary film-goers would find An Introduction to Genre Theory acceptable (Bordwell 1989, 147). Practitioners and the general public make use of their own genre labels (de facto genres) quite apart from those of academic theorists. We might therefore ask ourselves Whose genre is it anyway? Still further problems with definitional approaches will become apparent in due course. Defining genres may not initially seem particularly problematic but it should already be apparent that it is a theoretical minefield. Robert Stam identifies four key problems with generic labels (in relation to film): extension (the breadth or narrowness of labels); normativism (having preconceived ideas of criteria for genre membership); monolithic definitions (as if an item belonged to only one genre); biologism (a kind of essentialism in which genres are seen as evolving through a standardized life cycle) (Stam 2000, 128129). Conventional definitions of genres tend to be based on the notion that they constitute particular conventions of content (such as themes or settings) and/or form (including structure and style) which  are shared by the texts which are regarded as belonging to them. Alternative characterizations will be discussed in due course. The attempt to define particular genres in terms of necessary and sufficient textual properties is sometimes seen as theoretically attractive but it poses many difficulties. For instance, in the case of films, some seem to be aligned with one genre in content and another genre in form. The film theorist Robert Stam argues that subject matter is the weakest criterion for generic grouping because it fails to take into account how the subject is treated (Stam 2000, 14). Outlining a fundamental problem of  genre identification in relation to films, Andrew Tudor notes the empiricist dilemma: To take a genre such as the western, analyze it, and list its principal characteristics, is to beg the question that we must first isolate the body of films which are westerns. But they can only be isolated on the basis of the principal characteristics which can only be discovered from the films themselves after they have been isolated. (Cited in Gledhill 1985, 59) It is seldom hard to find texts which are exceptions to any given definition of a particular genre. There are no rigid rules of inclusion and exclusion (Gledhill 1985, 60). Genres are not discrete systems, consisting of a fixed number of listable items (ibid. , 64). It is difficult to make clear-cut distinctions between one genre and another: genres overlap, and there are mixed genres (such as comedy-thrillers). 2 Specific genres tend to be easy to recognize intuitively but difficult (if not impossible) to define. Particular features which are characteristic of a genre are not normally unique to it; it is their relative prominence, combination and functions which are distinctive (Neale 1980, 22-3). It is easy to underplay the differences within a genre. Steve Neale declares  that genres are instances of repetition and difference (Neale 1980, 48). He adds that difference is absolutely essential to the economy of genre (ibid. , 50): mere repetition would not attract an audience. Tzvetan Todorov argued that any instance of a genre will be necessarily different (cited in Gledhill 1985, 60). John Hartley notes that the addition of just one film to the Western genre changes that genre as a whole even though the Western in question may display few of the recognized conventions, styles or subject matters traditionally associated with its genre (OSullivan et al. 1994). The issue of difference also  highlights the fact that some genres are looser more open-ended in their conventions or more permeable in their boundaries than others. Texts often exhibit the conventions of more than one genre. John Hartley notes that the same text can belong to different genres in different countries or times (OSullivan et al. 1994, 129). Hybrid genres abound (at least outside theoretical frameworks). Van Leeuwen suggests that the multiple purposes of journalism often lead to generically heterogeneous texts (cited in Fairclough 1995, 88). Norman Fairclough suggests that mixed-genre texts are far from uncommon in the mass media (Fairclough 1995, 89). Some media may encourage more generic diversity: Nicholas Abercrombie notes that since television comes at the audience as a flow of programmes, all with different generic conventions, means that it is more difficult to sustain the purity of the genre in the viewing experience (Abercrombie 1996, 45; his emphasis). Furthermore, in any medium the generic classification of certain texts may be uncertain or subject to dispute. Contemporary theorists tend to describe genres in terms of family resemblances among texts (a notion derived from the philosopher Wittgenstein) rather than definitionally (Swales 1990, 49). An individual text within a genre rarely if ever has all of the characteristic features of the genre (Fowler 1989, 215). The family resemblance approaches involves the theorist illustrating similarities between some of the texts within a genre. However, the family resemblance approach has been criticized on the basis that no choice of a text for illustrative purposes is innocent (David Lodge, cited in Swales 1990, 50), and that such theories can make any text seem to resemble any other one (Swales 1990, 51). In addition to the definitional and family resemblance approach, there is  An Introduction to Genre Theory another approach to describing genres which is based on the psycholinguistic concept of prototypicality. According to this approach, some texts would be widely regarded as being more typical members of a genre than others. According to this approach certain features would identify the extent to which an exemplar is prototypical of a particular genre (Swales 1990, 52). Genres can therefore be seen as fuzzy categories which cannot be defined by necessary and sufficient conditions. How we define a genre depends on our purposes;  the adequacy of our definition in terms of social science at least must surely be related to the light that the exploration sheds on the phenomenon. For instance (and this is a key concern of mine), if we are studying the way in which genre frames the readers interpretation of a text then we would do well to focus on how readers identify genres rather than on theoretical distinctions. Defining genres may be problematic, but even if theorists were to abandon the concept, in everyday life people would continue to categorize texts. John Swales does note that a discourse communitys nomenclature for genres is an  important source of insight (Swales 1990, 54), though like many academic theorists he later adds that such genre names typically need further validation (ibid. , 58). Some genre names would be likely to be more widely-used than others: it would be interesting to investigate the areas of popular consensus and dissensus in relation to the everyday labeling of mass media genres. For Robert Hodge and Gunther Kress, genres only exist in so far as a social group declares and enforces the rules that constitute them (Hodge Kress 1988, 7), though it is debatable to  what extent most of us would be able to formulate explicit rules for the textual genres we use routinely: much of our genre knowledge is likely to be tacit. In relation to film, Andrew Tudor argued that genre is what we collectively believe it to be (though this begs the question about who we are). Robert Allen comments wryly that Tudor even hints that in order to establish what audiences expect a western to be like we might have to ask them (Allen 1989, 47). Swales also alludes to people having repertoires of genres (Swales 1990, 58), which I would argue would also be likely to repay  investigation. However, as David Buckingham notes, there has hardly been any empirical research on the ways in which real audiences might understand genre, or use this understanding in making sense of specific texts (Buckingham 1993, 137). Steve Neale stresses that genres are not systems: they are processes of systematization (Neale 1980, 51; my emphasis; cf. Neale 1995, 463). Traditionally, genres (particularly literary genres) tended to be regarded 3 as fixed forms, but contemporary theory emphasizes that both their forms and functions are dynamic. David Buckingham argues that genre is not simply given by the culture: rather, it is in a constant process of negotiation and change (Buckingham 1993, 137). Nicholas Abercrombie suggests that the boundaries between genres are shifting and becoming more permeable (Abercrombie 1996, 45); Abercrombie is concerned with modern television, which he suggests seems to be engaged in a steady dismantling of genre (ibid. ) which can be attributed in part to economic pressures to pursue new audiences. One may acknowledge the dynamic fluidity of genres without positing the final demise of genre as an interpretive framework. As the generic corpus ceaselessly expands, genres (and the relationships between them) change over time; the conventions of each genre shift, new genres and sub-genres emerge and others are discontinued (though note that certain genres seem particularly long-lasting). Tzvetan Todorov argued that a new genre is always the transformation of one or several old genres (cited in Swales 1990, 36). Each new work within a genre has the potential to influence changes within the genre or perhaps the emergence of new sub-genres (which may later blossom into fully-fledged genres). However, such a perspective tends to highlight the role of authorial experimentation in changing genres and their conventions, whereas it is important to recognize not only the social nature of text production but especially the role of economic and technological factors as well as changing audience preferences. The interaction between genres and media can be seen as one of the forces which contributes to changing genres. Some genres are more powerful than others: they differ in the status which is attributed to them by those who produce texts within them and by their audiences. As Tony Thwaites et al. put it, in the interaction and conflicts among genres we can see the connections between textuality and power (Thwaites et al. 1994, 104). The key genres in institutions which are primary definers (such as news reports in the mass media) help to establish the frameworks within which issues are defined. But genre hierarchies also shift over time, with individual genres constantly gaining and losing different groups of users and relative status. Idealist theoretical approaches to genre which seek to categorize ideal types in terms of essential textual characteristics are ahistorical. As a result of  their dynamic nature as processes, Neale argues that definitions of genre are always historically relative, and therefore historically specific (Neale 1995, 464). Similarly, Boris Tomashevsky insists that no firm logical classification of genres is possible. Their de- An Introduction to Genre Theory marcation is always historical, that is to say, it is correct only for a specific moment of history (cited in Bordwell 1989, 147). Some genres are defined only retrospectively, being unrecognized as such by the original producers and audiences. Genres need to be studied as historical phenomena; a popular focus in  film studies, for instance, has been the evolution of conventions within a genre. Current genres go through phases or cycles of popularity (such as the cycle of disaster films in the 1970s), sometimes becoming dormant for a period rather than disappearing. On-going genres and their conventions themselves change over time. Reviewing evolutionary change in some popular film genres, Andrew Tudor concludes that it has three main characteristics: First, in that innovations are added to an existent corpus rather than replacing redundant elements, it is cumulative. Second, in that  these innovations must be basically consistent with what is already present, it is conservative. Third, in that these processes lead to the crystallization of specialist sub-genres, it involves differentiation. (Tudor 1974, 225-6) Tudor himself is cautious about adopting the biological analogy of evolution, with its implication that only those genres which are well-adapted to their functions survive. Christine Gledhill also notes the danger of essentialism in selecting definitive classic examples towards which earlier examples evolve and after which others decline (Gledhill 1985, 59). The cycles and transformations of genres can nevertheless be seen as a response to political, social and economic conditions. Referring to film, Andrew Tudor notes that a genre defines a moral and social world (Tudor 1974, 180). Indeed, a genre in any medium can be seen as embodying certain values and ideological assumptions. Again in the context of the cinema Susan Hayward argues that genre conventions change according to the ideological climate of the time, contrasting John Wayne westerns with Clint Eastwood as the problematic hero or anti-hero (Hayward 1996, 50). Leo Baudry (cited in Hayward 1996, 162) sees film genres as a barometer of the social and cultural concerns of cinema audiences; Robert Lichter et al. (1991) illustrate how televisual genres reflect the values of the programme-makers. Some commentators see mass media genres from a particular era as reflecting values which were dominant at the time. Ira Konigsberg, for instance, suggests that texts within genres embody the moral values of a culture (Konigsberg 1987, 144-5). And John Fiske asserts that generic conventions embody the crucial ideological concerns of the time in which they are popular 4 (Fiske 1987, 110). However, Steve Neale stresses that genres may also help to shape such values (Neale 1980, 16). Thwaites et al. see the relationship as reciprocal: a genre develops according to social conditions; transformations in genre and texts can influence and reinforce social conditions (Thwaites et al. 1994, 100). Some Marxist commentators see genre as an instrument of social control which reproduces the dominant ideology. Within this perspective, the genre positions the audience in order to naturalize the ideologies which are embedded in the text (Feuer 1992, 145). Bernadette Casey comments that recently, structuralists and feminist theorists, among others, have focused on the way in which generically defined structures may operate to construct particular ideologies and values, and to encourage reassuring and conservative interpretations of a given text (Casey 193, 312). However, reader-oriented commentators have stressed that people are capable of reading against the grain. Thomas and Vivian Sobchack note that in the past popular film-makers, intent on telling a story, were not always aware of the covert psychological and social  subtext of their own films, but add that modern film-makers and their audiences are now more keenly aware of the myth-making accomplished by film genres (Sobchack Sobchack 1980, 245). Genre can reflect a function which in relation to television Horace Newcombe and Paul Hirsch referred to as a cultural forum, in which industry and audience negotiate shared beliefs and values, helping to maintain the social order and assisting it in adapting to change (Feuer 1992, 145). Certainly, genres are far from being ideologically neutral. Sonia Livingstone argues, indeed, that different genres are concerned to establish different world views (Livingstone 1990, 155). Related to the ideological dimension of genres is one modern redefinition in terms of purposes. In relation to writing, Carolyn Miller argues that a rhetorically sound definition of genre must be centered not on the substance or form of discourse but on the action it is used to accomplish (Carolyn Miller 1984, in Freedman Medway 1994a, 24). Following this lead, John Swales declares that the principal criterial feature that turns a collection of communicative  events into a genre is some shared set of communicative purposes (Swales 1990, 46). In relation to the mass media it can be fruitful to consider in relation to genre the purposes not only of the producers of texts but also of those who interpret them (which need not be assumed always to match). A consensus about the primary purposes of some genres (such as news bulletins) and of their readers is probably easier to establish than in relation to others (such as westerns), where the very term purpose sounds too in- An Introduction to Genre Theory strumental. However, uses and gratifications researchers have already conducted investigations into the various functions that the mass media seem to serve for people, and ethnographic studies have offered fruitful insights into this dimension. Miller argues that both in writing and reading within genres we learn purposes appropriate to the genre; in relation to the mass media it could be argued that particular genres develop, frame and legitimate particular concerns, questions and pleasures. Related redefinitions of genre focus more broadly on the relationship between the makers and audiences  of texts (a rhetorical dimension). To varying extents, the formal features of genres establish the relationship between producers and interpreters. Indeed, in relation to mass media texts Andrew Tolson redefines genre as a category which mediates between industry and audience (Tolson 1996, 92). Note that such approaches undermine the definition of genres as purely textual types, which excludes any reference even to intended audiences. A basic model underlying contemporary media theory is a triangular relationship between the text, its producers and its interpreters. From the perspective of many recent commentators, genres first and foremost provide frameworks within which texts are produced and interpreted. Semiotically, a genre can be seen as a shared code between the producers and interpreters of texts included within it. Alastair Fowler goes so far as to suggest that communication is impossible without the agreed codes of genre (Fowler 1989, 216). Within genres, texts embody authorial attempts to position readers using particular modes of address. Gunther Kress observes that: Every genre positions those who participate in  a text of that kind: as interviewer or interviewee, as listener or storyteller, as a reader or a writer, as a person interested in political matters, as someone to be instructed or as someone who instructs; each of these positionings implies different possibilities for response and for action. Each written text provides a reading position for readers, a position constructed by the writer for the ideal reader of the text. (Kress 1988, 107) Thus, embedded within texts are assumptions about the ideal reader, including their attitudes towards the subject matter and often their class, age, gender and ethnicity. Gunther Kress defines a genre as a kind of text that derives its form from the structure of a (frequently repeated) social occasion, with its characteristic participants and their purposes (Kress 1988, 183). An interpretative emphasis on genre as opposed 5 to individual texts can help to remind us of the social nature of the production and interpretation of texts. In relation to film, many modern commentators refer to the commercial and industrial significance of genres. Denis McQuail argues that: The genre may be considered as a practical  device for helping any mass medium to produce consistently and efficiently and to relate its production to the expectations of its customers. Since it is also a practical device for enabling individual media users to plan their choices, it can be considered as a mechanism for ordering the relations between the two main parties to mass communication. (McQuail 1987, 200) Steve Neale observes that genres exist within the context of a set of economic relations and practices, though he adds that genres are not the product of economic factors as such. The conditions provided by the capitalist economy account neither for the existence of the particular genres that have hitherto been produced, nor for the existence of the conventions that constitute them (Neale 1980, 51-2). Economic factors may account for the perpetuation of a profitable genre. Nicholas Abercrombie notes that television producers set out to exploit genre conventions It makes sound economic sense. Sets, properties and costumes can be used over and over again. Teams of stars, writers, directors and technicians can be built up, giving economies of scale (Abercrombie 1996, 43). He adds that genres permit the creation and maintenance of a loyal audience which becomes used to seeing programmes within a genre (ibid. ). Genres can be seen as a means of controlling demand (Neale 1980, 55). The relative stability of genres enables producers to predict audience expectations. Christine Gledhill notes that differences between genres meant different audiences could be identified and catered to This made it easier to standardize and stabilise production (Gledhill 1985, 58). In relation to the mass media, genre is part of the process of targeting different market sectors. Traditionally, literary and film critics in particular have regarded generic texts (by which they mean formulaic texts) as inferior to those which they contend are produced outside a generic framework. Indeed, film theorists frequently refer to popular films as genre films in contrast to non-formula films. Elitist critics reject the generic fiction of the mass media because they are commercial products of popular culture rather than high art. Many harbor the Romantic ideology of the primacy of authorial originality and vision, emphasizing individual style  and artistic self-expression. In this tradition the An Introduction to Genre Theory artist (in any medium) is seen as breaking the mould of convention. For the Italian aesthetician Benedetto Croce (1866-1952), an artistic work was always unique and there could be no artistic genres. More recently, some literary and film theorists have accorded more importance to genre, counteracting the ideology of authorial primacy (or auteurism, as it is known in relation to the emphasis on the director in film). Contemporary theorists tend to emphasize the importance of the semiotic notion of intertextuality: of seeing individual texts in relation to others. Katie Wales notes that genre is an intertextual concept (Wales 1989, 259). John Hartley suggests that we need to understand genre as a property of the relations between texts (OSullivan et al. 1994, 128). And as Tony Thwaites et al. put it, each text is influenced by the generic rules in the way it is put together; the generic rules are reinforced by each text (Thwaites et al. 1994, 100). Roland Barthes (1975) argued that it is in relation to other texts within a genre rather than in relation to lived experience that we make sense of certain  events within a text. There are analogies here with schema theory in psychology, which proposes that we have mental scripts which help us to interpret 6 familiar events in everyday life. John Fiske offers this striking example: A representation of a car chase only makes sense in relation to all the others we have seen after all, we are unlikely to have experienced one in reality, and if we did, we would, according to this model, make sense of it by turning it into another text, which we would also understand intertextually, in terms of what we have seen so often on our screens. There is then a cultural knowledge of the concept car chase that any one text is a prospectus for, and that it used by the viewer to decode it, and by the producer to encode it. (Fiske 1987, 115) In contrast to those of a traditionalist literary bent who tend to present artistic texts as nongeneric, it could be argued that it is impossible to produce texts which bear no relationship whatsoever to established genres. Indeed, Jacques Derrida proposed that a text cannot belong to no genre, it cannot be without a genre. Every text participates in one or several genres, there is no genre-less text  (Derrida 1981, 61). Note *In these notes, words such as text, reader and writer are sometimes used as general terms relating to texts (and so on) in whatever medium is being discussed: no privileging of the written word (graphocentrism) is intended. Whilst it is hard to find an alternative for the word texts, terms such as makers and interpreters are sometimes used here as terms non-specific to particular media instead of the terms writers and readers. 2. Working within genres John Hartley argues that genres are agents of ideological closure they limit the meaning-potential  of a given text (OSullivan et al. 1994, 128). Robert Hodge and Gunther Kress define genres as typical forms of texts which link kinds of producer, consumer, topic, medium, manner and occasion, adding that they control the behavior of producers of such texts, and the expectations of potential consumers (Hodge Kress 1988, 7). Genres can be seen as constituting a kind of tacit contract between authors and readers. From the traditional Romantic perspective, genres are seen as constraining and inhibiting authorial creativity. However, contemporary theorists, even  within literary studies, typically reject this view (e. g. Fowler 1982: 31). Gledhill notes that one perspective on this issue is that some of those who write within a genre work in creative tension with the conventions, attempting a personal inflection of them (Gledhill 1985: 63). From the point of view of the producers of texts within a genre, an advantage of genres is that they can rely on readers already having knowledge and expectations about works within a genre. Fowler comments that the system of generic expectations amounts to a code, by the use of which  (or by departure from which) composition becomes more economical (Fowler 1989: 215). Genres can thus be seen as a kind of shorthand serving to increase the efficiency of communication. They may even function as a means of preventing a text from dissolving into individualism and incomprehensibility (Gledhill 1985: 63). And whilst writing within a genre involves making use of certain given conventions, every work within a genre also involves the invention of some new elements. An Introduction to Genre Theory As for reading within genres, some argue that knowledge of genre conventions leads to passive  consumption of generic texts; others argue that making sense of texts within genres is an active process of constructing meaning (Knight 1994). Genre provides an important frame of reference which helps readers to identify, select and interpret texts. Indeed, in relation to advertisements, Varda Langholz Leymore argues that the sense which viewers make of any single text depends on how it relates to the genre as a whole (Langholz Leymore 1975, ix). Key psychological functions of genre are likely to include those shared by categorization generally such as reducing complexity.

Age and gender influences on fashion

Age and gender influences on fashion Fashion orientation In our contemporary society, we may not understand fashion, you may not like fashion, but most of us can not not come into contact with fashion. Craik (1994) said that fashion is confusing, interesting, exciting, obsessive-compulsive. Whether we like it or not, it has greatly influenced with people even those who want to avoid it. What is the fashion? Fashion have experienced a serious of style popular during a specfic period of time(Nystrom,1928).Craik (1994) can divided into two ways: West High Fashion and Everyday Fashion; High Fashion refers haute coutureor elite designer fashion, Everyday Fashion is people everyday clothing, so everyday Fashion Street Fashion another similar statement. Fashion can be explained as psychology, sociology, and consumer behaviour studies. fashion will be described as a social and psychological response to the external environment (Westers,1966). What is the fashion orientation? Fashion Orientation defined wearing different style of clothing items make a gorgeous overall look(Evelyn,2005). Fashion orientation can be describes when consumer go shopping, they always look for fashionable items(Ko and Kincade 2007). consumer do not lost interested in fashion even time goes by. fashion orientation represents when it come out with fashion awareness, it can not ignore how important people’s life-style are. Because fashion comes from human daily life, life style includes people living and spending time and money† (Engel, Blackwell, Miniard, 1990, p. 342). People can be not mentioned about their values in their lifestyles and a life style has great impact on fashion orientation. Moreover, according to GutmanMills (1982) study, it described fashion orientation comprised of four dimensions: fashion interest, importance of being well dressed and anti-fashion attitude and fashion leadership. Darley johnson (1993) mentioned that fashion orientation is fashi on innovativeness together with fashion leadership. Both Jonathan and William defined fashion orientation is in relation to shopping orientation. a few studies analysis that fashion orientation should be separated from shopping orientation together. In this study, it consist of four dimensions based on Gunmans study: fashion interest, fashion leadership and importance of being well dressed and anti fashion attitude. Gutman and Mill theory According to Gutman and Mills(1982)mail survey with 6,261 female respondents, it created a fashion scale with its four dimensions: 1) fashion leadership, 2) fashion interest, 3) importance of being well-dressed, and 4) anti fashion attitude. This study was cited in many researches currently. Fashion Leadership The character of Fashion leadership is a good sense of fashion trends, knowledge of fashion trends and a self conscious concept of clothing.Many people think that if someone is very familiar for a product, and often ask them related questionsto this person can be called opinion leaders, the advantages of fashion leader is that they can influence people attitudes or behavior toward fashion due to the wealth of knowledge, expert ability and correctly filtering variety of product information. Because the new fashion styles need to be adopted for a period of time(Barber Lobel, 1952), fashion leaders should be very active in social activities and close to other people, they play a vital role in the community and make people accept style innovation by influential power.(Workman Johnson, 1993). Moreover, because fashion leaders affect not only customer purchase decision but also give the marketers fashion ideas and advice. Summers and King (1969) defined female clothing fashion opinion le aders are care about trying new products and building up fashion knowledge about new clothing collection. Similarly, Myers and Robertson (1972) examined opinion leadership should have wide range of fashion knowledge such as women’s clothing, fashion, cosmetics, and personal care and are willing to discuss fashion thing with people and spend lot of time women’s clothing and fashions. Because fashion leaders prefer share new fashion collection and propose a unique opinion, these features of fashion leader can good to develop the other aspects of fashion orientations such as fashion interest, importance of being-well dressed, and antifashion attitude (Evan, 1989; Morganosky Vreeman, 1986; Wilkie, 1990). Fashion interest According to Katz Lazarsfield (1960), the definition of fashion interest is that a person who is interested in clothes, makeup and hair styles. High level of fashion interest people prefer spend a large amount of time on exploring the latest fashion collections and trends such as reading fashion magazine and purchasing lastest clothes collection. Also, they collect widely various clothes associated with different events. The Importance of Being Well Dressed Importance of being well-dressed refers that standing out group with appropriate dressing, reflecting one’s good life, and dressing representing their opinion of themselves(Summers,Belleau Wozniak 992). For example, when people go to interview with a well dress, they think the clothes make people have good impression on them. Another example is that people with high attire believe their clothes show that the self-image is. The important part of goals is their self- satisfaction. When it is low, people do not care about their outfit. In other word, they think there is no correlation between their clothing and their self image. Anti-fashion attitude Anti-fashion attitude means that people do not care about fashion and not buy so-fashionable clothing. They think that buying fashion clothing is a way to waste money and they do not like listening so-called fashion expert what to wear. In other word, in term of their shopping process and attitudes, they are often apathetic. people who have the antifashion attitude do not regard current fashion and fashion leaders’ opinions when they make a decision on their clothes. Thus, those with antifashion attitudes tend to display unfavorable attitudes toward fashion. Fashion is a visual communication of one to others, and fashion orientation as a theory of fashion expresses the psychological aspects of self through a self-concept. An individual’s own ideas of self develop self-concept theory, and self-concept influences fashion orientation. Relevant studies on fashion orientation In this study, the authors intend to test the scale, originally developed for females, with current male and female fashion shoppers. Gender roles have greatly impact on fashion shopper in social environment.(Otnes and McGrath, 2001). According to Kwon(1987)research, it found that current male and female fashion shoppers.are affected by different motivating factors. For woman, their concept of clothing may in relation to self-enhancement, whereas man may have positive relationship between the concept of appeal and social status. Another research is that Kwon (1991) found that when woman chose their fashion clothing, they will affect by mood states more than man do. There are many conflict findings about fashion consciousness. Kinley, Conrad and Brown (2001) found that woman are more fashion awareness than men counterpart, other research findings show that young male shoppers are more fashion awareness than female young shoppers(Manrai et al. 2001). Another similar research is that fashion conscious for generation Y male shoppers in the UK were important but there is not clear relationship between fashion consciousn ess and new fashion style (Bakewell, Mitchell, and Rothwell2000). In terms of clothing-fashion lifestyle segment, Gutman and Mills (1982) proposed that there is correlation between the concept of fashion orientation and shopping orientation. According to some studies, it examined that people purchase product, shopping orientations will generate different preferences(Darden Reynolds, 1972). Gutman and Mills(1982) reported that fashion orientations consist of four major dimensions: fashion leadership, fashion interest, importance of being well dressed, and antifashion attitude which connect with shopping behavior, clothing-fashion lifestylesegment, and compulsive consumer purchase behaviour.(Chung, 1996; Darley Johnson, 1993; Huddleston, Ford, Bickle, 1993; Lee, Park, Chung, 2004; Park Burns, 2005). GutmanMills (1982) defined that fashion orientation to have three dimensions:fashion priority(fashion interest, importance of being well dressed and anti-fashion attitude), time frame and initiative (fashion leadership). Darley johnson (1993) defined fashion orientation to comprise of fashion innovativeness and fashion opinion leadership. Both Jonathan and William analyzed fashion orientation together with shopping orientation. Little work has been done on fashion orientation separately since many scholars consider fashion orientation and shopping orientation together. Although Huddleston (1993) used fashion orientation to identify lifestyle characteristics that directly related to shopping behavior and Lumpkin (1985) included it as a variable in identifying shopping orientation segments, it might still be necessary to indentify shopping orientation and fashionOrientation separately. In this thesis we define fashion orientation to consist of three dimensions based on Gunmans elimita tion: fashion interest, fashion leadership and importance of being well dressed. The younger, the more fashionable Rose (1989) indicated that in the nineteenth century, the difference between children and adult was officially appeared on legal and social, before that children are living with what adults think such as children clothing follow the footsteps of adult clothing. design the children wear was not special in the past. As long as adult clothing are immersed in fashion concept, they will be extended to the field of childrens clothing. This phenomenon from a historical point of view is quite reasonable. How do fashion enter the field of childrens clothing? Firstly, it is common global phenomenon that our birth rate is gradually dropping. In competitive society, people are busier and busier, the population are getting married at a more and more later age. Under the circumstances, salary figures are is out of proportion to the number of children. According to United Nations estimation, the worlds total fertility rate from 1950 to 1955 of 4.92 people, down to 2000 to 2005 of 2.67 people (United NationsPopulation Division, 2009); lower total fertility rate in Taiwan, Taiwans fertility rate of women in 2006 only 1.115 people, compared to 2.515 in 1980, and plentifully reduced by about 56% (Ministry of the Interior Department of Justice, 2007). Whether or not in Taiwan or other developing or developed countries, falling birthrates might lead to childrens products a considerable change on supply and demand market. In term of consumer demand , after the raise of quality of life the awaking of individual consciousness, parent are focus more on all aspects of their daily life quality for example, they see the children as their own unique treasure and they expect give them enjoyable ilfe in the material and spiritual life. In modern times, parents are willing to spend the money on their baby; therefore childrens clothing demand will be more and more branding and fashionable, meanwhile and also promote the development of brand management on childrens clothing. Moreover, going out with the well dressed children do not only show their parents own taste, but also meet their unique personal style. and even some parents want children go to school wearing designer clothing to care about their own and their children feeling. Consumer demand for childrens wear has entered emotional consumptionthe stage, high purchasing power family toward childrens wear is to meet childrens emotional and spiritual life. When parents chose the children wear, the clothing which is to meet social status of the family or to reflect the style and personality is very important factors for parents. brand clothing in Japan is expensive, but it is always able to break record of high sales figures in the annual Golden Week in Japan. Those fashionable and young Japanese female consumers who have children usually pursuit fashion, it will not stop because of the mothers identity, and even want to wear the same style of clothing as their children. These situation has expanded childrens wear market. In the market of supply aspect, due to a small number of children, the amount of consumers are naturally failing. In this case, the children industry wants to survive and trys to introduce high-priced goods to the market to get customers attention who has a small number of children and good economy. In Taiwan, there are lots of luxurious childrens wear reports, it refers a market phenomenon that in many countries high-priced adult clothing brands are starting to have to join with childrens wear. For instance, according to the Apple Daily news, it reported the famous Taiwan brand les Enphants decided to start selling Armani Junior childrens clothing; also liberty Times Holiday introduced many Hollywood celebritiess childrens fashion wear. Changes in consumer attitude and purchasing power lead high spending power on childrens market the important reason is that fashion concept fights into childrens market. Childrens clothing industry holdsof high spending power parents and focus on parent mind that care about childrens appearance so the industry introduce stylish clothing to childrens wear market. Fashion in contemporary world show how influential on childrens clothing. Moreover the word fashiona gradually emerges by many foreign magazines, designers and consumer society and so-called Kids Fashion Expertappears in response to childrens fashion trends. For example, a New York childrens fashion expert Michelle Kouzmine (2005) indicated that children fashion has begun to seriously attention in today.

Management Essays Management Coach

Management Essays Management Coach Management Coach Taking the role of a management coach, you have been requested to analyse the leadership style of a specific business leader. Outline the process of the individuals leadership through a period of change and critically evaluate the outcome of the leadership approach in the organisation. Support your briefing paper with reference to a significant range of leadership and organisational development theories. Leadership, management style, organisational and national culture, organisational structure communication, team management and ethic/values are likely to be addressed. Identify and evaluate how a knowledge of leadership and or and organisational development can improve a managers efficiency and effectiveness in managing an enterprise. You are encouraged to take a holistic perspective and provide a critique of contemporary research and practice. An essential part in the running of an organisation is directing the efforts of their members towards the goals and objectives. This involves the process of Leadership. In simple terms leadership can be interpreted as getting others to follow or getting people to do things willingly or more specifically, the use of authority in decision-making. This essay will consider theoretical accounts of leadership behaviour and compare them to the chosen leader. The organisation that has been chosen is the Disney Corporation. Since the company was formed there have been two charismatic, but strikingly different leaders. A few years ago the Walt Disney Company was famous for a little mouse, a collection of vintage animated films for children, and two aging theme parks. Today, the sun never sets on the Disney entertainment empire. Along with its animation business, creator of blockbusters such as Beauty and the Beast, Disney now owns three other studios. After a problematic start Disney has exported the park business to Japan and France. There are two new Disney cruise ships, Wonder and Magic, and 725 Disney stores at locations all around the world. The driving force behind Disneys metamorphosis has been Michael Eisner, who became CEO and chairman in 1984 after a brief but intense battle for the position (Wetlaufer, S. 2000). The founder of the organisation Walt Disney, employed the best talent available, and by means of his own drive and enthusiasm, encouraged them to reach new heights. Walt Disney strived to maintain absolute, unchallenged control over every detail of his empire. Employees worked under an autocratic visionary; they expected big ideas and decisions to come from the top. When Walt Disney died in 1966, the company floundered creatively and financially for years. There were competent, dedicated people in management and talented, hard-working artists in the creative departments, but there was no vision, no leadership (Hightower, D. 1993). The choice of Michael Eisner as CEO of Disney has been a triumph of creativity in American business. Choosing creativity over financial know-how was a tremendous risk, but it has paid off: in the past eight years, revenue has grown on averaged 25 percent annually, Disney stock has increased tenfold in value and the company has been transformed into the worlds most successful entertainment empire. For the first time in Disneys history, an outsider was going to run the company (Hightower, D. 1993). Leadership is different from management; company leaders in action illustrate the practice of leadership. It is not just leadership that is required, both management and leadership are needed. However, during times of high-stakes change, organisations will fail without widespread good leadership (Coyle, J. 2000). Managers promote stability within an organisation, while leaders press for change. An organisation requires leadership at all levels, from the Directors board down to the Shop floor and cleaners. However, leadership is not a uniform command, for example the Waitress on the Shop floor will not receive identical commands and relationships from their manager as someone working in the finance department would from his or her manager. There are different forms of leadership and behaviour from which managers can implement to what they feel best suits the situation. The type of leadership adopted at different levels is a crucial part in achieving the aims and objectives and thus the success of the company (Burnes, B. 2000). Webber (n.d.) defined the types of authority of leaders in organisations into three categories, (1) Traditional, authority is legitimised by custom, and belief in the right to rule. There are traditional proper right to rule, example of this is the sovereignty, the church or a paternalistic employer. (2) Charismatic organisations, authority is legitimised by the quality of the leader, there strengths, personality and inspiration. There is a need for some routine; with the demise of the leader the organisation can change structure unless another charismatic leader is found, (3) Bureaucratic organisations, authority is based on the acceptance of the formal rules, the law within the organisation, authority comes from the hierarchical position within the organisation, examples of this are the armed forces and schools (Webber (n.d.) cited in Mullins, L, 2005: 77). Transformational leaders are able to effectively communicate their vision to an organisation and provide an environment where individuals are empowered to achieve that vision. Instead of telling employees what to do, transformational leaders provide the tools that can help employees achieve greatness. A subset of transformational leadership is charismatic leadership, which is built on the idea that sheer force of personality can be enough to provide leadership to an organisation and inspire high levels of personal loyalty from employees to leaders. The Disney Company has had two charismatic leaders in its history: Walt Disney and Michael Eisner. Disneys tenure was followed by lacklustre performance at the company after his death, and none of the executives at the organisation possessed a personality strong enough to replace the founder (Mullins, L. 2005). The trait approach assumes that the leaders are outstanding through their specific personality traits, cognitive abilities, interpersonal styles and other ability factors that distinguish them. This concept implies that leaders are rather born than made. Grint (2000) argued, There is no hope for those of us, not born with certain gifts or talents for leadership (Grint, K. 2000). The research done by Fleischman and Harris (1962) found two explicit behaviours: consideration and task-orientation. The first factor, consideration, involves a high regard for the leaders subordinates, sharing ideas and incorporating the subordinates as close as possible into the area they are involved. The second one, task-orientation, is mainly connected with the production and ignoring the subordinates to a great extend (Fleischman and Harris (1962) cited in Grint, K. 2000). The relatively new concept of charismatic leadership is based on the belief that the leader can broaden the awareness and interest of his/her followers. Consequently, the aims of the leader are of greater importance and are placed prior to the personal goals. Steers (1996) defines charismatic leadership as a special quality that enables the leader to mobilise and sustain activity within an organisation through specific personal actions combined with perceived characteristics. Employees are motivated by charisma beyond their original expectations. This is done in three ways, awareness about certain key issues and processes are raised, organisational goals are placed above the own interests and adjusting the needs level, so they have a stronger drive for responsibility, challenge and personal growth (Steers, R, 1996:693). Strength in Grint (2000) theory is it does not introduce quantifiable factors; hence it cannot be treated as a rigid science, such as Mathematics. Grint says that leadership is essential an interpretative affair, it casts doubt upon those claiming scientific legitimations for their claims and buttresses an approach to leadership that firmly within the arts not the sciences. It is not a rigid formula that applies to all leaders (Grint, K. 2000). Therefore the more scientific our methods of analysis become, the less likely we are to understand leadership because it is not accessible to scientific approaches. Taking this statement into considerations, it is clear that the charismatic leadership approach is a significant development, since it does not try to quantify. Henry Mintzberg discussed that the behaviour is hard to reconcile, on the surface at least, with traditional notions of what top managers do. It is hard to fit the behaviour into categories like planning, organizing, contro lling, directing, or staffing (Henry Mintzberg Cited in Kotter. J 1999). Even when times are hard, work was fun and exciting, and this has been incorporated in Eisners management style. But there are limits to the autonomy. Senior management delegates authority, not autonomy, downward in the organisation. Sometimes in large companies, too much gets delegated, especially now that empowerment is the rage. Eisner stated I just believe that those with the most experience should be given the most opportunity to handle really tough situations, these situations can put a company or a division at risk (Eisner, M. cited in Wetlaufer, S. (2000). So autonomy has its place. Delegation has its place. But sometimes you have to push problems back up to the top. Otherwise, you just might bump into the biggest corporate problem of all. Eisner, M. (2002) described what the most important areas of management are (1) youve got to be an example. (2)Youve got to be there. (3)Youve got to be a nudge, which is another word for motivator, really. (4) And youve got to show creative leadership, you have to be an idea generator, all the time, day and night (Eisner, M. (2000) cited in Wetlaufer, S. 2000). Thats not really a role. Its an underlying responsibility, its always there. Leading by example also means showing a combination of enthusiasm and loyalty to the institution, and it certainly means demanding excellence in the organisation (Wetlaufer, S. 2000). The two fundamental challenges to a manager are to (1) figure out what to do despite uncertainty and an enormous amount of potentially relevant information. (2) Get things done through a large and diverse group of people despite having little direct control over most of them. These challenges have severe implications for the traditional management functions of planning, staffing, organizing, directing, and controlling. To tackle challenges, effective general managers rely on agenda setting and network building. The best ones assertively seek information (including bad news), skilfully ask questions, and seek out programs and projects that can help accomplish multiple objectives. When a new manager starts their role they spend a considerable amount of time establishing their agendas. Effective executives develop agendas that are made up of loosely connected goals and plans that address their long, medium, and short-term responsibilities (Kotter, J.1999). This pattern of network-building is typical of a managers role and is aimed at more than just direct subordinates. Managers develop cooperative relationships with and among peers, outsiders, their bosses boss, and their subordinates subordinates. Indeed, they develop relationships with (and sometimes among) any and all of the hundreds or even thousands of people on whom they feel in some way dependent. Just as they create an agenda that is different from, although generally consistent with, formal plans, they also create a network that is different from, but generally consistent with, the formal organisational structure (Kotter, J.1999). This networking commence as soon as Eisner was appointed, gaining valuable contacts within the organisation. Managers of organisations have responsibility to get the strategic intent right, not just for the advantage of the organisation. Drucker (1989) discussed the responsibility of management as being decisive not only for the enterprises itself, but for the Managements public standing.for the very future of our economic and social system and the survival of enterprise. The decisions that managers make, do not just affect the organisation, they have an affect on the whole of society, with ethical, environmental and social considerations. Misjudged and misguided strategies have in the past brought down organisations both financially and in their reputation, damaging the publics opinion of them (Drucker (1989) cited in Mullins 2005:214). Therefore strategic decisions are likely to affect the operational level of an organisation, which needs to be in tune with long term goals of the organisation. This factor is important in decision making; firstly if the operational level is not in line with the strategic level this can cause conflict and jeopardise the strategy, secondly it is at the operational of an organisation that the real strategy is achieved (Johnson G , Scholes, K 2004). The Walt Disney Company continues to prosper, by maintaining and ever improving quality standards across the board. Walt Disneys Employee Forum is a publication created not only to motivate employees but to discuss past, present, and future accomplishments of the company. Disneys large corporation has very detailed and clear segmentation, and strives for quality in every product. Others in the entertainments industry, including, for example, Time Warner, MCA, and DreamWorks, also have their own unique quality factors. It is this differentiation and distinctiveness that may be the key to their recognition for what they do, and why they are so good (Anonymous1997). Successful organisations are fluid, forever moving and adjusting to the market forces. From the previous years performance new goals are set, brining in innovative fresh activities that make the organisation more effective. These criteria include increased employee versatility/flexibility; increase of expertise; broadening of the market base; increasing production capacity; improved production economy; and the ability to respond to change. Although some of these decisions are at a strategic level, others will show results with the year. These can be measured to ensure that the strategies are working for the organisation (Mullins, L, 2005). Creativity can be one of the key drivers in business today. At the Walt Disney Company, creativity is not just a tool or a technique to increase productivity; it is the heart of the business. The creative process is practiced and nurtured at Disney, and the application of a similar approach could dramatically impact businesses in a multitude of industries (Hightower, D. 1993). Eisner stated that Disney is a company built on a powerful combination of institutionalised creative friction, an environment that produces a constant stream of ideas and good, old-fashioned common sense. Together, he stated conflict and common sense yield creativity, and creativity has a way of cleaning up the balance sheet and making the income statement shine very brightly (Eisner, M. cited in Wetlaufer, S. (2000). The opinion that all knowledge is viewed as objects to the organisation, and therefore can pass between different states, has contributed to the focus of knowledge management systems (KMS) that they should be externalised and merged with tacit forms of knowledge. This theory is backed up by Cohendet et al.s (1999) recent attention to the codification of experience, know-how and localised tacit knowledge Through the processes of conversion between employees triggers the process of intuiting, interpreting, and integrating them into the organisation (Cohendet et al 1999:523). Healthy organisations would like to be viewed as containing harmonious working relations, committed to working together towards the common goal. Conflict is a reality within the organisational climate; therefore conflict has to be managed. The most specific level the culture of the organisation can be seen as the aggregation of the cognitive interpretations of the organisation workforce, conflict can reveal itself. This conflict arises from the personalities and experience of the individuals, together with the interactions between employees that can cause distortion (Hamlin, B. et al 2000). Diversity is a great force toward creativity. For many, Disney has made its members, (that is what they call employees) a diverse group of people. The more diverse an organisation, the more diverse are the opinions that get expressed, which sometimes create friction, and friction slows down the machine. When the machine slows down, good things can happen. If it is just sliding along with no friction, you get the easy solution; you get mediocrity. We work very hard on getting diversity at the top of the organization, and like many organisations we still have room to improve. That will make us more creative. This diversity is not just about skin colour or ethnic background, it is diversity in point of view. They encourage individualism, wanting employees who view the world differently (Wetlaufer, S. 2000). This whole business starts with ideas that come out of an environment of supportive conflict, which is synonymous with appropriate friction. This is an environment where people are not afraid to speak their minds or be irreverent. Uninhibited discussion gets ideas, which can be look at, made better or just get rid of them (Eisner, M. cited in Wetlaufer, S. 2000). Corporate creativity requires an innately creative leader and the managerial capability to syndicate creativity at the organisational level (Hightower, D. 1993). Cultural descriptions distinguish one organisation from another, and influence the people in the company as individuals as well as company performance. Such culture is a diffuse and nebulous notion, encompassing the underlying values, beliefs and principles of the personnel as they are expressed within the management, structure and practices (B Fletcher, F  Jones, 1992). Although Trompenaars suggests that all societies view time in different ways which may in turn influence business activities. The American dream is the French nightmare. Americans generally start from zero and what matters is their present performance and their plan to make it in the future. This is noveau riche for the French who prefer the ancien pauvre; they have an enormous sense of the past. This clash in national culture between the organisation and the country it is in, was experienced by the Disney corporation when they first tried to expand into new markets (F, Trompenaars (n.d) cited in N, Brealey, 1993: 66). The Aston School points to convergence of organisational culture. An example of this is the work of Hickson et al which suggests that there is a relationship between factors such as size/technology and structures which transcends culture. A bureaucracy in all societies and bureaucratic structures are more likely to occur in particular sectors of the economy. Other Commentators have followed Kerr et al who suggest that industrial or post-industrial societies would in any case become more alike as they are developed in the future. The contrary argument that culture does matter when studying organisational behaviour can be seen in the work of Geert Hofstede. During his work Hofstede identified four dimensions of culture; power distance; uncertainty; avoidance; individualism; and masculinity (Hofstede, G 1980). Ensuring that Disney cast members are committed and motivated, and that they behave appropriately, is the most challenging part of Eisners role (Wetlaufer, S. 2000 a). There are various cultural and structural factors that have a direct affects on organisations that can impinge on the very success of the organisation. These are highlighted when an organisation attempts to redefine itself, to change their image in an attempt to maintain or to enhance their competitive capabilities (L Gratton, 1999). Creating a worldwide brand also means creating a common vision and, to create synergy among its businesses worldwide, Disney runs a program, Disney Dimensions, for senior executives drawn from every division of the company to ensure they work in a common aim. Eisner describes this program as a synergy boot camp. Participants have eight days of meetings, covering every aspect of the business. They dress up as Disney characters, oversee the catering, learn how beds are made and spend time in all the different Disney divisions learning what these do and how they work. Basically they are learning for 16 hours a day how to do every single job in the business (Wetlaufer, S. (2000 a). Disney entertains people, so an energised culture is encouraged. This is reinforced in weekly meetings that anyone could offer up an idea and gets other people to react to it. These are big, unruly, disruptive meetings, which supports institutionalised conflict. The honesty in the teams and culture is vital in this culture. This is in the environment where criticism goes up as well as down. In this culture where every one is equal, there is no pecking order it produces creativity (Wetlaufer, S. 2000). Managers achieve more indirect influence through symbolic methods. They use meetings, language, stories about the organisation, even architecture, in order to get some message across indirectly. The symbols of the Disney Corporation are everywhere, reinforcing the values to employees (Kotter, J.1999). An important aspect that adds to organisational effectiveness is synergy, when the whole performance is greater that the performance of the individual components, that the performance of the organisation outstrips the performance of the individual, this is positive synergy (Mullins. L. 2005).Positive synergy occurs when two or more processes or activities complement each other. The concept of synergy can be considered and implemented by changing the links that bind certain departments together, linking new departments together (Johnson G, , Scholes K, 2004). Mullins (2005) stated that his could lead to a broadly and powerfully defined culture which is strongly customer focused and capable of leap frogging the competition through continual and radical innovation (Mullins, L. 2005:256). Synergy occurs at Disney, because they all pull together. The products scream out for synergy. When launching a new product it is on the cover of our magazines, on the Disney channels around the world and displayed in the windows of the shops. All employees around the world know what is happening and are involved (Wetlaufer, S. 2000). Classical writers discussed the organisation in terms of its purpose, with its formal structure; the hierarchy of the organisation. The emphasis placed on planning work, achieving this through managing the technical requirements, and the presumption of logical and rational behaviour from within the organisation. Each individual classical writer puts forward their own interpretation of similar theories (Mullins, L 2005). Baker (1972) discussed these principals as it offered simple principals which claimed general application it also followed architectural and literary styles which emphasised formality, symmetry and rigidity (R Baker (1972) cited in Buchanan D and Huczynski A 1991: 430) The Disney Corporation treats its members with reverence, respecting the individuals diversity. However the uniform of its customer facing members demonstrates rigidity within the structure. Although the payment received from the employer is not the sole motivator it satisfies the contract of employment. Hegewisch (1991) wrote the pay packet is one of the most visible expression of the employment relationship, its main issue is the exchange between employer and employee, expressing a connection between the labour market, the individuals work and the performance of employing the organisation itself(Hegewisch (1991) cited in Beardwell I Holden L 1994 :500). The organisation pays employees well; their reasoning was to compensate employees enough so they didnt have to worry about money. This way, they argued, employees were made able to do their job, service the customer. Tom Peters focuses on this point when discussing closeness to the customer. To overspend on service people keeps customers happy and Disney knows what its customers like. It may cost Disney a lot and be unprofitable in the short run, but the company looks to the long run to keep those customers (Tom Peters cited in Anonymous1997). As the first leader in the Disney Corporation that is not a family member Michael Eisner has turned the organisation around. The success is world wide, with new products being launched continually. Michael Eisner style of leadership is completely the reverse of the way the organisation had been run. Ultimately, Michael Eisner is seeking to generate enthusiasm and involvement among Disney employees. Enthusiasm and involvement leads to motivated employees. This is achieved through reinforcing the culture of fun and innovation. The employees are paid well, to motivate them and to reduce financial worries that could impinge on their performance. Although creativity and innovation is encouraged it could be argued that the knowledge of the employees is viewed as objects to the organisation. Eisners leadership is transformational and charismatic. Transformational leaders provide the tools that can help employees achieve greatness. There are networks in place that increase the synergy within the organisation, all employees knows what the strategic plans are. Although the organisation has been reformed, we must not lose sight of the ultimate goal. Michael Eisner values the ideas of every individual and endeavours to offer a creative, fun environment in which they may ultimately see their ideas grow and take shape, adding to the Disney magic and of course, the bottom line Bibliography Beardwell I and Holden L,(1996) Human Resource Management Pitman Publishing, London Buchanan D, and Hucczynski A, (1991)Organisational Behaviour Prentice Hall, Padstow Burnes, B. (2000) (3rd Edition)  A Strategic Approach to Organisational Dynamics Pearson Education, Edinburgh Gratton, L (1999) Strategic Human Resource Management: Corporate Rhetoric and Human Reality.; Oxford University Press (UK), Oxford Grint, K. (2000) The Art of Leadership, Oxford University Press, Oxford. Hamlin, B. et al (2000) Organisational Change and Development,  Pearson Education, Edinburgh Hofstede G (1980) Cultures Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values, Pitman Publishing, London Johnson, G Scholes J (2004) (6th Edition) Exploring Corporate Strategy Prentice Hall, Hemmel Hempstead. Marchington M and Wilkinson A, (1997) Core Personnel and Development IPD publishing, London Rose M Industrial Behaviour (1978) Penguin Harmondsworth Steers,R. (1996) Motivation and Leadership at work McGraw-Hill Trompenaars F (1997)(2nd Edition) Riding the Waves of Culture, Nicholas Brealey London : Mullins, L (2005) (7th Edition) Management and Organisational Behaviour Prentice Hall, Pearson Education, Edinburgh Anonymous(1997) How Disney uses differentiation to maintain distinctive quality Strategic Direction.  Bradford: May 1997 Cohendet, Pet al (1999). Knowledge co-ordination, competence creation and integrated networks in globalised firms Cambridge Journal of Economics Coyle, J. (2000) John P. Kotter on What Leaders Really Do (An interview with the author) Human Resource Planning Vol.23,   Drucker, P. et al (1997) Looking ahead: implications of the present. Harvard Business Review, Sept-Oct 1997 v75 Fletcher, B   Jones, F (1992) Cultural Auditing Managerial Auditing Journal Hightower, D. (1993) Creativity is your business too! Planning Review.  Sep/Oct 1993. Vol.21, Kotter. J. (1999) What Effective General Managers Really Do. Harvard Business Review, March-April 1999 v77 Wetlaufer, S. (2000) Common Sense and Conflict An Interview with Disneys Michael Eisner. Harvard Business Review, Jan 2000 v78 Wetlaufer, S. (2000 a) Reinventing Disney Strategic Direction, Sep 2000.Vol.16,

The Crisis of the American Teen Essay -- Teenager Youth

The Crisis of the American Teen Premature adulthood is imposed upon teenagers in today’s society. It affects them in two different but closely related ways. One is in which a teenagers needs to find a sense of self and needs protection on trying to do so. The other is the stress that is being forced upon them. Teenagers need to be given time , support and guidance to form from child to adult, but that must come from the parents. Many parents either feel powerless to give a child what they need in life because the child can get it else where: they may do whatever it is that they want behind a parent’s back. They could also be insecure about themselves and that they did not receive the guidance themselves when they needed in growing up. Teenagers need protection against the dangers that they may face so that they can be prepared for the future. Teenagers now are highly stressed. There are more things for teenagers to stress about then there was years ago. Since teenagers are given so much freedom which doesn’t give them much time to focus on their future. Freedom also makes it hard for a teenager to adapt to new situations because they are already conformed to do what they want rather then for what is best in that situation. In relation to the two different ways in which premature adulthood is forced upon today’s teenagers is that it can be hard for a teenager to form a sense of identity because they are faced with many challenges in life. Since they are given so...

Internet Security Systems :: essays research papers fc

According to a 2002 survey by the FBI, "the threat from computer crime and other information security breaches continues unabated and...the financial toll is mounting." Some disturbing statistics include: * 90 percent of those responding had at least one security problem. * 85 percent had detected viruses on their computers. * 80 percent said that they had lost money due to a security problem. * 75 percent reported frequent online attacks. Financial losses from Internet security problems continue to grow. At least 20% of organizations reported losses from online theft of private information in 2002. The average size of those losses was over $6.5 million, which was seven times as much as in 1997. Some of the increase is attributed to better reporting and more awareness of the problem, but much of the increase is due to increasing sophistication and persistence of online attackers (Kent & Piscitello 49). Threats to Internet security used to take the form of viruses, worms, and malicious code designed to make a system unstable, or delete certain files. These unwelcome intruders even often announced their arrival with an announcement on the screen or some other visual disturbance that signaled a problem to the user. In contrast, security threats today are much more sophisticated, and are often undetectable. Rather than simply wanting to cause trouble and inconvenience for a user, these threats have the purpose of stealing confidential information from the target computer, including things like passwords, keys for reading encrypted messages, or even recording keystrokes (Martin 18). Known commonly as spyware, these programs often are used to track the Web sites that a user visits, so as to gather marketing information. But there is less benign spyware that is able to change browser settings, scan files on a hard drive, or install programs without the user knowing. A user may unwittingly download a spyware program along with games, media players, peer-to-peer programs, or other utilities. In some cases, the user unknowingly agrees to the spyware installation by clicking â€Å"yes† to a user agreement without reading it through first. Spyware consumes memory and processing resources, invades privacy, and can promote system instability. It is often difficult to remove once installed on a computer. Ways to reduce the risk from spyware include updating security policies to allow only trusted software for download, and investigating the source of any program before downloading it, to make sure it is reputable.

Life in Outer Space †Lets explore Essay

Life in outer space is one of those topics mankind has tried to find an answer for through out its entire history. But the question still remains unanswered, mysteries unsolved. The vast space is one of the most mysterious and undiscovered mysteries man kind had ever thought of and the question is will it ever be solved Unlimited discoveries and mysteries lie uncovered within them. Over the years, we, as human beings have constantly been challenging and pushing our limits by venturing into space and beyond. But what I believe is, the only proof we have; that some smart creatures exist in outer space. That they have never tried to contact us dumb human beings, The proof isn’t too attractive. Personally speaking about life in outer space, I think most of this is all stupid and great money is pushed into all this research which bears not much evidence of aliens up there. giving some way to second thought, even if someone convinces me there is life on the moon which I know there isnt, because some kind of an atmosphere is essential for life to exist which isnt present. NASA talks about finding seas on our moon, mars, and the moon of Jupiter, but is it still proven or a stationary cloud of dust close to the surface of the moon or mars looks like a sea to these man made picture taking satellites. Then this question arises of why is it all there? The space, the moon the sun, the planets, every thing out there why is it present? The gods werent crazy when all this was made or the big bang theory isnt totally wrong. There is a meaning to all of this, to all the planets, the natural satellites and all which is up there but the true meaning hasnt been found yet. We all think from different minds and have different perspectives. Its all  what we think it is. If I think that mars has strange creatures with one eye and ten hands living on it, its totally fine. You may not agree with me, you may think mars doesnt have shit, its Jupiter which assists aliens of some different specie living on it. So you see its all as you want it. In science that is called Ocidebtal thinking, â€Å"Some actual facts, presented to you in a convincing way, now no one can convince you otherwise† Mind & body, 1999thinking about all of, which goes on in the space fascinated me once too, but when I think of disasters happening to our astronauts and for one, example Kalpana Chawlas space ship which was blown to pieces due to some miscalculation and a human error, who will be held responsible for that, you, me us or poor aliens which dont even exist. So in the end of all my arguments and all the worthless theory people present what I will say is, being human beings which are supposed to be the smartest beings on the entire universe. We stop thinking about fantasies and wait until something solid comes to us. So that I really am proved wrong; and existence of life outer space is really proved to be fact. Saad AftabSources:Space and beyond – 1999 (Phillips jr)Nataional Grpgraphic magazine September issue – John QuinnWebWorksIcon – Research paper (2005)

Chinese Foreign Policy & National Security Essay

The China-South Korea axis is perhaps the most overlooked variable in the strategic environment of Northeast Asia. For nearly five decades their relationship was characterized by war, lack of dialogue and non-recognition; then, over a period of some three years, this situation gave away to fully normalized and amiable relations in 1992. Rapprochement between Seoul and Beijing in 1992 opened one of the first frontiers of the post-Cold War thaw in the region, and future security will hinge at least partly on this core relationship. In this context, Cha analyzes the evolution of Sino-South Korean reconciliation, and argues that the South Korea’s engagement policy from the late 1980s in the political, economic, and cultural arenas played a major part in eliciting unprecedented cooperation from Beijing, however, its initiatives alone were not a sufficient condition to prompt this cooperation. A prior and necessary condition was a change in the strategic context surrounding China and the Korean Peninsula that raised both the benefits of cooperation and the costs of non-cooperation; the end of Cold War . In the context of security environment in Northeast Asia, South Korea’s success in engaging China has implications for future security on the Korean Peninsula. On balance, the axis is a stabilizing factor but not without its share of future challenges. With this in mind, the key questions of the article include: (1) How does one explain the growth of cooperation between China and South Korea? (2) To what extent has Sino-ROK rapprochement been the result of successful strategies on the part of South Korea to ‘engage’ China? (3) What are the implications on North Korea? For a quarter-century after the Korean War, Sino-South Korean relations sat at the intersection of the global East-West conflict and the Sino-Soviet split, making any hint of cooperation impossible.1 However, since the middle 1980s, Sino-South Korean relationship has moved from being sworn enemies and opposed combatants in the Korean War, to being potential economic partners (but still strategic adversaries), and fully normalized diplomatic relations in 1992. Three key drivers propelled the change in the relationship: (1) the transformation of strategic environment concomitant to the end of Cold War, which established the baseline for post-war interaction. In this context, Sino-Soviet reconciliation was a significant factor in Chinese calculations to normalize with Seoul. In particular, the end of Sino-Soviet rivalry reduced in Chinese minds the strategic consequences of ‘losing’ North Korea to Moscow, and made opening to South Korea more feasible. Furthermore, in South Korea’s view, China had evolved from being a revisionist power to being a status quo one, in the degree to which Beijing emphasized ‘unification’ or ‘peace maintenance’ as the security priority for the Peninsula. ‘Unification’ was associated with China’s revolutionary power and support for North Korea to overthrow the South – the essence of China’s one Korea policy of the Cold War. On the other hand, ‘peace maintenance’ implied stability outcome for Korea by recognizing South Korea and opposing provocative acts by the North which might upset the unstable peace on the Peninsula. (2) Domestic change in China concomitant to Deng Xiaoping’s modernization reforms, and subsequent separation of politics from economics. The initial economic trade was largely indirect, transacted through third-party intermediaries or South Korean trading firms in Hong Kong. By 1985, however, total Chinese-South Korea trade surpassed that between China and North Korea. During the 1980s, while the two sides still viewed one another as military adversaries, they increasingly recognized each other as economic opportunities. The beginnings of a diplomatic relationship also emerged in the 1990s with the establishment of trade offices between the Korea Trade Promotion Association (KOTRA) and the Chinese Chamber of Commerce in 1990, which facilitated shift from indirect trade to open and direct transactions, and subsequently in establishing formal diplomatic relations in August 1992. (3) South Korea’s conscious policy of engagement to elicit cooperation from China, in particular using non-punitive, non-coercive diplomacy and seeking mutual accommodation. South Korea’s engagement strategy contained the following tiers: first, economic linkages, investment and trade ties to increase the benefits to China of cooperation, and the costs of non-cooperation, providing foreign capital and technology, separating political cooperation with economics, but gradually produce cooperative behavior in other arenas. The growth of trade ties in the 1980s was a major reason why China chose to participate in the 1986 Asian Games and the 1988 Olympics hosted by South Korea, which served as key event to normalize relations. Second tenet of South Korea’s engagement strategy was to treat the opposing state’s perspectives as legitimate per se. This meant engaging China’s divergent position into official dialogues on the proposals for enhancing peace and stability in the region such as the Four-Party talks, and more importantly South Korea’s recognition of One China Policy, acknowledging Beijing as the only legal government in China. These initiatives at the diplomatic front were followed by general increase in communication flows on the business, educational, and cultural levels to cultivate goodwill. In this context, South Korea’s engagement strategy included the following goals: (1) cultivate Beijing’s cooperation by tying Chinese national interests to stability on the Peninsula; (2) improve South Korea’s credibility in the international arena by enhancing its image as a ‘regional player’ willing to reduce tensions and foster dialogue; and (3) engage North Korea through alternative channels. In order to pursue these goals, South Korea utilized the following means: in the macro-political perspective, the strategy of engagement of China was pursued through the policy of Nordpolitik and Globalization (segyehwa) which implied mutual economic prosperity as a means of expanding diplomatic ties with former adversaries as well as assuming a leading role for South Korea in international organizations and the continued expansion of program multi-directional diplomacy (i.e. using meetings of multilateral bodies such as APEC, ASEAN, non-governmental track-t wo diplomacy, high-level military exchanges). The second method of engagement has been sports diplomacy – participating in athletic competitions hosted by each country provided a useful means by to express good will and interest in expanding the economic cooperation (Seoul 1988 Olympics, Beijing Asian Games 1990). What was the benchmark of success of South Korea’s engagement strategy? The key was not only engaging China, but also the terms of policy toward North Korea. The following measure could be used: (A) Failure – Chinese support of North Korea (B) Minimal Success – ‘1.5’ Korea policy; formal support of North Korea and de-facto recognition of South Korea (C) Moderate Success – equidistance between North and South Korea (D) Very Successful – discourage North Korean provocation and aggression (E) Most Successful – China supports only South Korea Cha argues that the outcome of South Korea’s engagement falls in the middle range (B to D). For example, Chinese behavior on the North Korean nuclear issue in 1993-94, when Beijing sided with the US and South Korea on many aspects (such as opposing North Korea to renege Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and abide to non-nuclear Peninsula), however, at the same time Beijing expressed strong opposition against any acts of coercion against the North. It persistently pressed for dialogue and negotiona as the only acceptable means of settling the dispute, and opposed any U.S. led sanctions thought the UN Security Council. A more successful outcome was the redefined Chinese behavior on UN admission of the two Koreas in 1991, in which Chinese accepted dual membership of the two Koreas in the UN. Arguing that South Korean engagement of China has been sustained, comprehensive and moderately successful, the next question is how this new relationship will affect security on the Korean Peninsula and throughout the broader region? Salient issues include the impact of the Asian financial crisis, the dynamics of second U.S.-North Korea nuclear crisis, the effect of Bejing-Seoul dà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½tente on South Korea’s alliance with Washington, and the future challenges that could be posed by Korean unification. (1) The impact of the Asian Financial Crisis didn’t affect China-South Korean relations thus far. In-fact, in 2003 China has surpassed the U.S. as South Korea’s largest trading partner (2) Sino-South Korean relations have important implications in understanding current relations between North and South Korea. Under Kim Dae Jung, South Korea initiated Sunshine Policy that rests on Seoul’s assurances of no-isolation, no destabilization, and no absorption. The Sunshine Policy is in many ways similar to the engagement strategy toward China, both in form and potential success. In particular, it is consistent (despite North’s provocations) and designed to elicit cooperation from the opposing state. However, there are also differences- regarding intentions; for cooperation to emerge, the opposing state has to be engageable. North Korea’s behavior does not suggest she is open to an improvement of relations. Second, there are differences in South Korea’s capabilities of early 1990’s and late 1990s, in particular, in the early 1990s South Korea that engaged China did so from a position of relative strength and prosperity; however, in the late 1990s, the Asian financial crisis put South Korean position to a relative weakness., because conciliatory gestures are more likely to be interpreted as appeasement rather than engagement. Hence success to engagement of North Korea is not likely. (3) Looking beyond the immediate North Korean nuclear problem, Korean unification raises a plethora of new factors that would test the resilience of China-South Korea engagement. The absence of the North Korean buffer would give rise to a situation in which two powers with different regimes share a contiguous border. Another future challenges is on the economic front – the rising China may hange its trade needs and increase competition with Korea. A final potential conflict between a united Korea and China centers on nationalism, and the two-million ethnic Korean living in Chinese Jilin province, which a unified Korea might claim. In the final analysis, the dramatic transformation of Chin-South Korean relations in the 1990s represents the most successful case of engaging China in East Asia. The lessons stemming from this engagement include: (1) consistency- a policy can only be successful if it is applied consistently and deliberately, (2) engagement requires will and domestic political support to sustain the policy even in the face of little reciprocity by the other state; (3) engagement applied from a position of strength conveys credibility, but applied from a position of weakness connotes appeasement. For the foreseeable future, the burden of managing the confrontation on the Korean Peninsula falls even more on the new China-South Korea dà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½tente and the continuing U.S.-South Korea Alliance. My Observation: Victor Cha offers a plausible analysis of the South Korea’s engagement strategy and the factors that have significantly improved Sino-South Korean relations, nonetheless, I would argue that he underestimated the historical factors that bind China and South Korea together, which might have accelerated the rapprochement on both sides. Traditionally, Korea has fallen under the Chinese sphere of influence, with Korea belonging to the first-tier state of the Sino-centered worldview. In this context, another traditional binding element is the continuing anti-Japanese sentiments and mistrust in both Koreas and China that target Japanese sense of irresponsibility and demand apology for its war atrocities. Taken together, I would argue that these factors also facilitated the relatively rapid transformation of the relations, on a personal level between Korean and Chinese officials. In the context of enhancing peace and security on the Korean Peninsula, positive Sino-South Korean relations certainly play an important role. Both states are aware of this factor, and share similar interests. However, Beijing seems to be in a dilemma, it desperately does not want to face a collapse of North Korea nor does it want to see a nuclear North Korea. Hence, China’s actions in the foreign policy arena are still bound to the minimum necessary level to ensure stability. Ironically, while the Chinese officials have been claiming that they are making efforts to persuade North Korea to enter multilateral dialogue and negotiation, they also claim that North Korea doesn’t listen as it used to. In this regard, my question is: How much leverage does China have over North Korea? 🙂 1 From the ROK perspective, during the Cold War China was part of the communist bloc, a patron of revolutionary regimes in Asia, and thus one of the primary threats to South Korea’s survival. China’s intervention in the Korean War in 1950, in conjunction with the July 1961 Friendship Treaty between China and North Korea with its automatic intervention clause cemented South Korea’s perceptions of China as a threat. At the same time, China’s hostility toward South Korea was equally intense. South Korea was the ‘fascist’ axis of the ‘iron triangle’ that included ‘U.S. imperialism’, and ‘Japanese militarism.’