Jazz and Poetry free essay sample

There are many different types of music in the world, and each one Is deferent because of certain characteristics that help to make that genre stand apart from all the others. One of these genres Is Jazz. Jazz Is a type of music that was created mainly by black Americans during the early twentieth century, and is a combination of American and African tribal music.There are many different characteristics that set Jazz apart from every other kind of music, but there are three main distinctions; the first is its particular combination of rhythm, melody and harmony, second is the butte differences that make every Jazz player almost instantly recognizable and finally Is the way that Jazz players Interact and react with their surroundings, they do not simply play a designated set of notes. The flirt characteristic that helps to make Jazz so different from other genres of music is the rhythm, melody and harmony. We will write a custom essay sample on Jazz and Poetry or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Not only do these apply to the music of the Jazz era though, these same rhythms can be found in some of the poetry of that time. One of the poems that demonstrates a particular rhyme Is T. S. Elites The Love Song of J. Alfred Froufrou. In this Eliot does not stick to a common rhyme scheme Like some of the more simple poems. He does use end-rhyme, but It does not alternate for every line, sometimes there are two or three lines that have no rhyme between two lines that do. It is because of this unorthodox rhyme scheme that his poem relates to the seemingly random rhythms of Jazz music. Another poem that shows harmony similar to that of Jazz is The Tropics in New York by Claude McKay. In this he uses a simple end-rhyme scheme, and alternates with each line. But the way he has written the poem It seems to flow endlessly, not causing the mind to drift or to become confused. These are only two out of the thousands of poems that display the first characteristic of Jazz music. The next attribute of Jazz music is the subtle differences that musicians would put in that would make each player distinguishable from the next. One poet who demonstrated this quality greatly was Longs Hughes.Hughes was one of the most prolific and successful African-American poets of the 1 asss. In each one of his poems e would display his great pride for his heritage, as well as his displeasure with the oppression he witnessed. One of his poems that greatly illustrates this quality is Refugee in America. In this poem he speaks of sweet and wonderful words like Freedom, and how he thinks about it every day. He goes on to say that there are words like Liberty that nearly make him cry. This shows his great resentment of the oppression of his race.Another one of his poems that shows his strong pride for his heritage Is The Negro Speaks of Rivers. In this poem Hughes Illustrates how his race has been around for thousands of years and has known rivers all across the globe. By this he is stating that his race has been everywhere and will continue to last, just as the rivers of the world. But that is not the last trait that spans across both the music and literature of that era. The way that the musicians would flow almost randomly throughout the music, reacting to the audience, as well as their band mates, and not simply playing a single, designated set of notes.One of the first examples that comes to mind is William Carols Williams The Great Figure. This poem seems to make almost no sense, and have no reason for being written. It is the simple story of a fire truck going through the city on a rainy day. There were not too many styles of music, or literature, which produced poems as seemingly random, yet meaningful as the Jazz era. Another example of this is by the poet Hilled Doolittle, who is actually said to be the creator of the Images style of poetry. In Doolittle poem Heat she speaks of a wind that is miming through to cool down the heat.

Avoid Beginning a Sentence with With

Avoid Beginning a Sentence with With Avoid Beginning a Sentence with â€Å"With† Avoid Beginning a Sentence with â€Å"With† By Mark Nichol Sentences (and clauses) that begin with with are doomed to be weak. The following sentences suffer from this affliction; discussions describe how to improve the sentence, and revisions demonstrate the solutions. 1. With a quarter-billion-dollar industry possible, there is a real possibility of supporting the community with something other than an economy based on a nearby prison. To strengthen this sentence, simply delete with, slightly alter the main clause and present it as a parenthetical phrase, and close the sentence with a verb to transform what was originally a subordinate clause into the main clause: â€Å"A potential quarter-billion-dollar industry, and a real possibility of supporting the community with something other than an economy based on a nearby prison, awaits.† 2. With almost one in three residents below the poverty line, the business of mass incarceration has had mixed effects on the community for twenty-five years. With the promise of good jobs, four prisons opened. With a 10 percent tax on potential cultivation revenue, the company has the chance to make more money in a year than it would off the prison industry in two centuries at the current rate. All three sentences in this paragraph start with with. As in the previous example, convert the introductory subordinate clause in the first sentence into a main clause, and insert a conjunction to change the main clause to a subordinate one: â€Å"Almost one in three residents lives below the poverty line, so the business of mass incarceration has had mixed effects on the community for twenty-five years.† For the second and third sentences, simply substitute a stronger word or phrase for with: â€Å"Based on the promise of good jobs, four prisons opened. Thanks to a 10 percent tax on potential cultivation revenue, the company has the chance to make more money in a year than it would off the prison industry in two centuries at the current rate.† 3. A company can adopt a standardized approach or an internal models approach, with the former generally leading to much higher capital charges and the latter requiring regulatory approval. Here, a subordinate clause headed by with ends rather than begins the sentence. In this case, simply omit the word and alter the form of the verbs that follow, then set the clause- now a main rather than subordinate clause- off with a semicolon or a period (and insert a comma to divide the two independent clauses within it): â€Å"A company can adopt a standardized approach or an internal models approach; the former generally leads to much higher capital charges, and the latter requires regulatory approval.† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the General category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Grammar Test 145 Synonyms for â€Å"Old† and â€Å"Old-Fashioned†One "L" or Two?

Knee Injury Medical Treatment Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Knee Injury Medical Treatment - Case Study Example SH: the patient is the first born in a family of three siblings. Lives with the parents and two brothers. She is in college and is a sportswoman has been playing football since elementary schools, it has become her hobby as well as the reason she obtained a scholarship in the college. Her mother is a nurse while the father works as lecturer at a local college.O/E: The patient appears to be in pain (Davies et al. 2011, p.8). The knee appears deformed. The patella bone is visible towards the inner side of the thigh, medial and superiorly to the knee joint. Cannot move the affected leg which have started to swell around the knee joint. She is literary guarding any attempt to touch the affected leg.ROM: There is intense pain in each movement of the knee joint affected by the injury. Active: Flexion- Intense and unbearable painExtension: intense pain Abduction-, intense painAdduction- intense painMedial Rotation- intense painPassive: Flexion- intense painExtension- intense painAbduction- intense painAdduction- pain free movementMedial Rotation- intense painResistive: intense painExtension- intense painAbduction- intense painMedial Rotation- intense painPhysical assessment shows no other abnormality.Impression: Total Right knee-cap dislocation.Plan: Immobilise the knee joint. Prepare for x-ray to identify the position of the patella. Apply strong anti-inflammatory agents to reduce swelling.

Tourism and economic developement policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Tourism and economic developement policy - Essay Example ensive and extensive research article essentially and fundamentally delves deep into the advantages and challenges of the bottom up approach to tourism development in influencing and strengthening the economic growth of the region. The historical and geographic context of tourism development is also traversed in this study, consequently with in depth research into the socioeconomic and governmental involvement and significance and the overall efficacy and benefit of sustainable tourism. In this context the study is concentrated on one of the most promising emerging economies – India specifically its state of West Bengal. Dating back to the Roman Empire, the rich and the prosperous community only could afford to visit places to enrich experiences, to splurge in luxury and leisure, Baiae being one such seashore vacation place. â€Å"Tourism† was coined in 1811 and â€Å"tourist† by 1840. Whereas in 1936 the â€Å"tourists† were elaborately demarcated by the then ‘League of Nations’ as one journeying outside of country for a minimum of twenty-four hours – which was modified by the United Nations at the end of World War II in 1945 and conceived tourism as which expanded for the time period of maximum six months. The concept of eco-tourism was initiated in 1989. In the present scenario tourism is deemed to be the most rapidly evolving and vastly expanding global business with an approximate growth rate of 4 percent to 5 per cent per annum which is responsible for 10% of global gross domestic product (WTO). The advanced as well as emerging nations have attracted an enormous influx of foreign tourists with an estimate of 760 million in 2004 and another 1.6 billion anticipated by the World Tourism Organization (WTO 2005a) by the year 2020. With globalization and open-door policies being implemented world wide, more and more emerging and advancing nations are becoming the hot tourists’ hot attractions since 1950 at which time there was a record influx of 25 million

Historical Analysis Of Leather In India Research Paper

Historical Analysis Of Leather In India - Research Paper Example Sankar, an eminent expert on leather technology at the Oxford University, says that the industry releases harmful effluents and chemicals that pollute rivers and other water bodies (86). Moreover, much of this waste is released in a solid form that cannot be absorbed or disposed off effectively and is therefore contributing to the pollution of the environment. The Indian leather industry is composed of both established manufacturers as well as thousands of cottage industries engaged in the production of various types of leather. In 2010, the industry processed over 65 million animal hides and over 160 million skins to produce leather of various types and quality (Kaul 108). In fact, the latter constitute over three-fifths of the total industrial output. While leather production has existed in India for thousands of years, the modern practice of leather production were introduced by the British rules in the mid-nineteenth century. Over 60% of the industry’s output constitutes h ides and skins. Other leather products manufactured by these industries include leather garments, suitcases, belts and shoes (Kaul 95). Sawhney, a noted professor on Leather Technology at the Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University in Hyderabad, India states that there are more than 2300 tanneries in the country with a combined turnover of $7.5 billion and are primarily concentrated in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and West Bengal (109). The industry exports most of its produce mainly to the western countries, Japan and Australia. The following figure shows the growth of the leather industry in India over the last 50 years. The information in this graphic is of importance as it highlights the gradual growth of the industry, its relative contribution to the national GDP and the extent to which the sector has come to dominate leather production in the global market. Fig. 1. Growth of the leather industry in India 1951-2007. Source: Sawhney, The new face of environmental management in India, 2008. While India remains a top exporter of leather, it has fallen behind Pakistan and Argentina in annua l output due to several factors. India has the highest population of cattle and enjoys lower labor costs that are essential for leather production. Such conditions would make one believe that India holds a distinct advantage when it comes to manufacturing leather (Sahasranaman 46). However, despite having the basic raw material required for the manufacture of leather, the Indian leather industry suffers from adequate technology and financial incentives required to operate the industries in a clean and pollution-free manner. Further, Indian leather manufacturers are driven by the incentive to keep costs at the very minimum and look upon treating effluents or utilizing cleaner techniques as additional expenditure (Sahasranamam 50). The presence of favorable conditions combined with the present inability of Indian leather manufacturers in coping with global demand has forced them to adopt cheaper and quicker means of production to enhance output volumes. Such pressures have however com e at the expense of the environment. In fact, Jenkins says that tanneries depend on as many as 700 different chemicals to treat and process animal hides, most of which are water insoluble and capable of rendering land and water toxic and unfit for human use (65). For instance, most leather companies situated near the banks of the Ganges River have simply preferred to dump their wastes directly into the river. These effluents contain large

Role Of Data Structures In Programming Languages

Role Of Data Structures In Programming Languages In computer science, a data structure is a particular way of storing and organizing data in a computer so that it can be used efficiently. It is also known as the logical or mathematical model of a particular organization of data. Data structures are generally based on the ability of a computer to fetch and store data at any place in its memory, specified by an address a bit string that can be itself stored in memory and manipulated by the program. Thus the record and array data structures are based on computing the addresses of data items with arithmetic operations; while the linked data structures are based on storing addresses of data items within the structure itself. Many data structures use both principles, sometimes combined in non-trivial ways Choice of particular data model depends on 2 considerations:- It must be rich enough in structure to mirror the actual relationships of the data in real world. Structure should be simple enough that one can effectively process the data when necessary. Classification of data structure Primitive and Non-primitive : primitive data structures are basic data structure and are directly operated upon machine instructions.Example Integer,character. Non-primitive data structures are derived data structure from the primitive data structures.Example Structure,union,array. Homogeneous and heterogeneous : In homogeneous data structures all the elements will be of same type.Example array. In heterogeneous data structure the elements are of different types.Example structure. Static and Dynamic data structures :In some data structures memory is allocated at the time of compilation such data structures are known as static data structures . If the allocation of memory is at run-time then such data structures are known as Dynamic data structures.Functions such as malloc, calloc,etc.. are used for run-time memory allocation. Linear and Non-linear data structures : Linear data structure maintain a linear relationship between its elements and whose elements form a sequence and every element in structure has unique predecessor and successor. Example array. Non-linear data structures does not maintain hierarichal relationship between the elements. Example tree Some Data Structures And Their role in Programming Languages Stack In computer science, a stack is a last in, first out (LIFO) data structure. History The stack was first proposed in 1955, and then patented in 1957, by the German Friedrich L. Bauer. The same concept was developed independently, at around the same time, by the Australian Charles Leonard Hamblin.. Operations on stacks A stack can have any abstract data type as an element, but is characterized by only two fundamental operations: push and pop. The push operation adds to the top of the list, hiding any items already on the stack, or initializing the stack if it is empty. The pop operation removes an item from the top of the list, and returns this value to the caller. A pop either reveals previously concealed items, or results in an empty list. Simple representation of a stack A stack is a restricted data structure, because only a small number of operations are performed on it. The nature of the pop and push operations also means that stack elements have a natural order. Elements are removed from the stack in the reverse order to the order of their addition: therefore, the lower elements are typically those that have been in the list the longest. In modern computer languages, the stack is usually implemented with more operations than just push and pop. Some implementations have a function which returns the current length of the stack. Another typical helper operation top (also known as peek) can return the current top element of the stack without removing it. Basic architecture of a stack Role of stacks in programming languages Languages such as Adobe PostScript are also designed around language-defined stacks that are directly visible to and manipulated by the programmer. C++s Standard Template Library provides a stack templated class which is restricted to only push/pop operations. Javas library contains a stack class that is a specialization of vectorthis could be considered a design flaw, since the inherited get() method from vector ignores the LIFO constraint of the stack. The simple model provided in a stack-oriented programming language allows expressions and programs to be interpreted simply and theoretically evaluated much more quickly, since no syntax analysis needs to be done, only lexical analysis. The way programs are written lends itself well to being interpreted by machines, which is why PostScript suits printers well for its use. However, the slightly artificial way of writing PostScript programs can result in an initial barrier to understanding the PostScript language and other stack-oriented programming languages. Whilst the capability of shadowing by overriding inbuilt and other definitions can make things difficult to debug and irresponsible usage of this feature can result in unpredictable behaviour it can make certain functionality much simpler. For example, in PostScript usage, the showpage operator can be overridden with a custom one that applies a certain style to the page, instead of having to define a custom operator or to repeat code to generate the style. Implementation In most high level languages, a stack can be easily implemented through an array. What identifies the data structure as a stack in either case is not the implementation but the interface: the user is only allowed to pop or push items onto the array or linked list, with few other helper operations. The following will demonstrate both implementations, using C. Array The array implementation aims to create an array where the first element (usually at the zero-offset) is the bottom. That is, array[0] is the first element pushed onto the stack and the last element popped off. The program must keep track of the size, or the length of the stack. The stack itself can therefore be effectively implemented as a two-element structure in C: typedef struct { int size; int items[STACKSIZE]; } STACK; The push() operation is used both to initialize the stack, and to store values to it. It is responsible for inserting (copying) the value into the ps->items[] array and for incrementing the element counter (ps->size). In a responsible C implementation, it is also necessary to check whether the array is already full to prevent an overrun. void push(STACK *ps, int x) { if (ps->size == STACKSIZE) { fputs(Error: stack overflown, stderr); abort(); } else ps->items[ps->size++] = x; } The pop() operation is responsible for removing a value from the stack, and decrementing the value of ps->size. A responsible C implementation will also need to check that the array is not already empty. int pop(STACK *ps) { if (ps->size == 0){ fputs(Error: stack underflown, stderr); abort(); } else return ps->items[ps->size]; } Procedures A procedure in a stack-based programming language is treated as a data object in its own right. In PostScript, procedures are denoted between { and }. For example, in PostScript syntax, { dup mul } represents an anonymous procedure to duplicate what is on the top of the stack and then multiply the result a squaring procedure. Since procedures are treated as simple data objects, we can define names with procedures, and when they are retrieved, they are executed directly. Dictionaries provide a means of controlling scoping, as well as storing of definitions. Since data objects are stored in the top-most dictionary, an unexpected capability arises quite naturally: when looking up a definition from a dictionary, the topmost dictionary is checked, then the next, and so on. If we define a procedure that has the same name as another already defined in a different dictionary, the local one will be called. Anatomy of some typical procedures Procedures often take arguments. They are handled by the procedure in a very specific way, different from that of other programming languages. Let us examine a Fibonacci number program in PostScript: /fib { dup dup 1 eq exch 0 eq or not { dup 1 sub fib exch 2 sub fib add } if } def We use a recursive definition, and do so on the stack. The Fibonacci number function takes one argument. We first test whether it is 1 or 0. Let us decompose each of the programs key steps, reflecting the stack. Assume we calculate F(4). stack: 4 dup stack: 4 4 dup stack: 4 4 4 1 eq stack: false 4 4 exch stack: 4 false 4 0 eq stack: false false 4 or stack: false 4 not stack: true 4 Since the expression evaluates to true, the inner procedure is evaluated. stack: 4 dup stack: 4 4 1 sub stack: 3 4 fib (we recurse here) stack: F(3) 4 exch stack: 4 F(3) 2 sub stack: 2 F(3) fib (we recurse here) stack: F(2) F(3) add stack: F(2)+F(3) which is the result we wanted. This procedure does not use named variables, purely the stack. We can create named variables by using the /a exch def construct. For example, {/n exch def n n mul} is a square procedure with a named variable n. Assume that /sq {/n exch def n n mul} def and 3 sq is called. Let us analyse this procedure. stack: 3 /n exch stack: /n 3 def stack: empty (it has been defined) n stack: 3 n stack: 3 3 mul stack: 9 which is the result we wanted. Expression evaluation and syntax parsing Calculators employing reverse Polish notation use a stack structure to hold values. Expressions can be represented in prefix, postfix or infix notations. Conversion from one form of the expression to another form may be accomplished using a stack. Many compilers use a stack for parsing the syntax of expressions, program blocks etc. before translating into low level code. Most of the programming languages are context free languages allowing them to be parsed with stack based machines. Example in C #include int main() { int a[100], i; printf(To pop enter -1n); for(i = 0;;) { printf(Push ); scanf(%d, a[i]); if(a[i] == -1) { if(i == 0) { printf(Underflown); } else { printf(pop = %dn, a[i]); } } else { i++; } } } Runtime memory management A number of programming languages are stack oriented, meaning they define most basic operations (adding two numbers, printing a character) as taking their arguments from the stack, and placing any return values back on the stack. For example, Postscript has a return stack and an operand stack, and also has a graphics state stack and a dictionary stack. Forth uses two stacks, one for argument passing and one for subroutine return addresses. The use of a return stack is extremely commonplace, but the somewhat unusual use of an argument stack for a human-readable programming language is the reason Forth is referred to as a stack based language. Almost all computer runtime memory environments use a special stack (the call stack) to hold information about procedure/function calling and nesting in order to switch to the context of the called function and restore to the caller function when the calling finishes. They follow a runtime protocol between caller and callee to save arguments and return value on the stack. Stacks are an important way of supporting nested or recursive function calls. This type of stack is used implicitly by the compiler to support CALL and RETURN statements (or their equivalents) and is not manipulated directly by the programmer. Some programming languages use the stack to store data that is local to a procedure. Space for local data items is allocated from the stack when the procedure is entered, and is deallocated when the procedure exits. The C programming language is typically implemented in this way. Using the same stack for both data and procedure calls has important security implications (see below) of which a programmer must be aware in order to avoid introducing serious security bugs into a program. Linked Lists In computer science, a linked list is a data structure that consists of a sequence of data records such that in each record there is a field that contains a reference(i.e., a link) to the next record in the sequence. A linked list whose nodes contain two fields: an integer value and a link to the next node Linked lists can be implemented in most languages. Languages such as Lisp and Scheme have the data structure built in, along with operations to access the linked list. Procedural languages, such as C, or object-oriented languages, such as C++ and JAVA, typically rely on mutable references to create linked lists. History Linked lists were developed in 1955-56 by Allen Newell, Cliff Shaw and Herbert Simon at RAND Corporation as the primary data structure for their Information Processing Language. Role of linked lists in programming languages Many programming languages such as Lisp and Scheme have singly linked lists built in. In many functional languages. In languages that support Abstract Data types or templates, linked list ADTs or templates are available for building linked lists. In other languages, linked lists are typically built using references together with records. Here is a complete example in C: #include /* for printf */ #include /* for malloc */ typedef struct node { int data; struct node *next; /* pointer to next element in list */ } LLIST; LLIST *list_add(LLIST **p, int i); void list_remove(LLIST **p); LLIST **list_search(LLIST **n, int i); void list_print(LLIST *n); LLIST *list_add(LLIST **p, int i) { if (p == NULL) return NULL; LLIST *n = malloc(sizeof(LLIST)); if (n == NULL) return NULL; n->next = *p; /* the previous element (*p) now becomes the next element */ *p = n; /* add new empty element to the front (head) of the list */ n->data = i; return *p; } void list_remove(LLIST **p) /* remove head */ { if (p != NULL *p != NULL) { LLIST *n = *p; *p = (*p)->next; free(n); } } LLIST **list_search(LLIST **n, int i) { if (n == NULL) return NULL; while (*n != NULL) { if ((*n)->data == i) { return n; } n = (*n)->next; } return NULL; } void list_print(LLIST *n) { if (n == NULL) { printf(list is emptyn); } while (n != NULL) { printf(print %p %p %dn, n, n->next, n->data); n = n->next; } } int main(void) { LLIST *n = NULL; list_add(n, 0); /* list: 0 */ list_add(n, 1); /* list: 1 0 */ list_add(n, 2); /* list: 2 1 0 */ list_add(n, 3); /* list: 3 2 1 0 */ list_add(n, 4); /* list: 4 3 2 1 0 */ list_print(n); list_remove(n); /* remove first (4) */ list_remove(n->next); /* remove new second (2) */ list_remove(list_search(n, 1)); /* remove cell containing 1 (first) */ list_remove(n->next); /* remove second to last node (0) */ list_remove(n); /* remove last (3) */ list_print(n); return 0; Queue A queue is a particular kind of collection in which the entities in the collection are kept in order and the principal (or only) operations on the collection are the addition of entities to the rear terminal position and removal of entities from the front terminal position. This makes the queue a First In First Out. In a FIFO data structure, the first element added to the queue will be the first one to be removed. This is equivalent to the requirement that whenever an element is added, all elements that were added before have to be removed before the new element can be invoked. A queue is an example of a linear data structure. Representation of a Queue Example C Program #include int main(){ int a[100],i,j; printf(To DQueue Enter -1n); for(i=0;;){ printf(NQueue ); scanf(%d,a[i]); if(a[i]==0) break; if(a[i]==-1){ a[i]=0; if(i==0){ printf(Wrongn); continue; } printf(DQueue = %dn,a[0]); for(j=0;j a[j]=a[j+1]; i; } else i++; } for(j=0;j printf(%d ,a[j]); return 0; }

Quest for The Dream in Black Girl Lost and Makes Me Wanna Holler :: Comparison Compare Contrast Essays

Quest for "The Dream" in Black Girl Lost and Makes Me Wanna Holler      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Donald Goines Black Girl Lost (1973) and Nathan McCall's Makes Me Wanna Holler (1994) are two works written by male authors who have first hand knowledge about the African American experience. A difference between the two works is that McCalls story is an autobiography of his life growing up in the streets/ghetto and Goines is a fictional story about growing up in the streets/ghetto, but from a young black female perspective. Although Goines Black Girl Lost is not an autobiography, he and McCall share similar struggles and hardships in their backgrounds that give them the motivation to write about the black experience. Both authors have been praised for the "realism" in their writing (Lamb 1997,OCAAL 1997). Goines has been specifically recognized by critic Greg Goode, for his "ghetto realism" w/o glamorization (OCAAL 1997).    Black Girl Lost (Goines 1973) and Makes Me Wanna Holler (McCall 1994), both give a voice to the African American minority. The African American and minority themes: "The Dream" and "Choice / Self Determination" are very significant in the two texts. The right choices have to be made and one must continue to have self- determination in order to reach "The Dream". In the two texts, both characters make plenty of good and bad choices and continuously try to have self- determination in order to achieve "The Dream", but their choices and determination led the characters to very different places. There are three variables that may not cause, but can contribute to the African American not being able to achieve "The Dream" by causing conflict in their choices and self- determination. The three variables are: family and friend environments, individual needs and anxieties, and low motivation among minority members. Some of the variables are causes and consequences of prejudice & discrimination (Marger 1997).    The environment that people are surrounded by can have an enormous effect on their actions or circumstances that they are in. Therefore, the first variable to compare and contrast in the two texts is the Family and Friends Environment. In Black Girl Lost (1973), Goines has his main character, Sandra, being the only child of a single parent home were her mother is constantly drinking, entertaining different men, partying and never taking the responsibility for herself or her daughter. They hardly ever eat or have any money.

Sibling Incest

J Fam Viol (2009) 24:531–537 DOI 10. 1007/s10896-009-9251-6 ORIGINAL ARTICLE Sibling Incest: A Model for Group Practice with Adult Female Victims of Brother–Sister Incest Kacie M. Thompson Published online: 5 June 2009 # Springer Science + Business Media, LLC 2009 Abstract Working with groups of people who have been sexually abused introduces mutual experiential themes into the process that can be beneficial and meaningful. This paper discusses brother–sister incestuous sexual abuse with implications for group work. Literature and research is reviewed concerning sexual abuse, incest, family relationships, and theories that aid in explaining incest. Themes covered include: effects of incest, coping methods, blaming, and family of the victim. Common themes are explored and implications for group work are suggested on the basis of length, detail, structure, content, and pre-group contact. Keywords Sibling incest . Group practice . Group therapy Sibling incest is widely believed by researchers and clinicians to the most common type of incest (Carlson et al. 006). Historically, the issue of father–daughter incest has been most often referred to when speaking of incest as a form of sexual abuse; and the concept of sibling incest has been ignored. Despite the high occurrence of sibling incest and its negative effects, attention to this issue by the family, researchers, and professionals has been lacking (Bass et al. 2006). In fact, violence between siblings is much more prevalent than child abus e by parents (Kiselica and MorrillRichards 2007). The purpose of this discussion is to highlight the experience of victims of sibling incest by shedding light on their feelings, thoughts, and mental and emotional issues that are a result of incestuous abuse. Based on the understanding of the sibling relationship and aspects of sibling incest, a model for group therapy is introduced K. M. Thompson (*) University of Montana, Missoula, MT, USA e-mail: [email  protected] com for adult female victims of brother–sister incest. Aspects, such as sibling elationships, effects of brother sister incest, the family, blaming, coping, and theoretical frameworks, are discussed to inform group work with victims. The Sibling Relationship & Incest Siblings share a unique relationship bound by genetics, social class, history, and family connections. The sibling relationship often outlasts many other relationships (Bass et al. 2006). The sibling relationship is unique in longevity and can be one of the most influential relationships in oneâ₠¬â„¢s life. Because of this, the impact siblings have on one another should not be underestimated (Kiselica and Morrill-Richards 2007). This unique relationship that siblings share is sometimes the reason why incidences of sibling incest are regarded as â€Å"sexual curiosity†. This view of sexual curiosity is often accepted by family members and the details of that curiosity are not fully understood (McVeigh 2003). Sibling incest is defined as sexual behavior between siblings that is not age appropriate, not transitory, and not motivated by developmentally appropriate curiosity. Sexual abuse between siblings is not limited to intercourse. It has been shown that unwanted sexual advances, sexual leers, and forcing a sibling to view pornographic material can have as much of a psychological impact on the victim as actual intercourse (Kiselica and Morrill-Richards 2007). There are many forms of sexual abuse, but the negative effect incest poses on the victim and the family cannot be ignored. The sibling relationship and the causes of sibling incest have been addressed in several ways. Some authors such as McVeigh (2003), note the importance of the power dynamic between the brother and sister, as that dynamic is caused by age difference and gender expectations. Haskins (2003) 532 J Fam Viol (2009) 24:531–537 states that incest with a younger sibling by an older sibling is motivated largely by urges to satisfy underlying emotional needs for nurture and comfort rather than a need for sexual gratification. The offender’s behavior has sometimes become an outlet to express his unconscious needs. To fully understand the victim and offender’s relationship, family contexts should be examined. Perhaps the victim feels and behaves in similar ways due to the dysfunction in the family environment and the possible need for comfort and acceptance, which will be discussed in relation to family details. Common Experiences: The Effects of Sibling Incest Reactions to incestuous sexual abuse vary from person to person, depending on the severity, duration, and family reaction to the abuse. Victims of sexual abuse experience long-term difficulties including psychological, sexual, and relationship problems (Brand and Alexander 2003). Victims of incest have many feelings, emotions, and issues to deal with in order to cope with the abuse they experienced. Victims of sibling incest exhibit a wide variety of psychological problems. Sexual sibling abuse creates fear, anger, shame, humiliation, and guilt (Kiselica and MorrillRichards 2007). Along with those feelings, victims can also have severe depression and feelings of helplessness (Martens 2007). Sometimes these feelings can lead to suicidal thoughts, and sexual promiscuity; two aspects that are very common in sexually abused women (Rudd and Herzberger 1999). In order to understand the many effects of abuse and the long-term consequences, aspects, such as blaming, coping, and forgiveness, will be addressed under the framework of issues to be addressed during group work with victims of sibling incest. Family of the Victim Family systems theory has been utilized by clinicians to aid in the understanding of sibling abuse. Family systems theory supports the understanding of the sibling relationship within the familial realm by viewing the sibling relationship as just one piece in the family puzzle. The family environment is an interactive, interdependent network in which the behavior of each individual or subsystem modifies the behavior of other individuals or subsystems. This environment is quite intimate, and if the network begins to break down, it often fosters violence. Through this, the family systems outlook shows that sibling abuse and incest cannot be considered an isolated problem but should be seen as a manifestation of family dysfunction (Haskins 2003). The importance of the family should always be examined in cases of sibling incest. Bass et al. (2006) note that each member of the family will hold a unique perspective and position on the issue of incest and sexual abuse; which in turn models how the woman involved in that abuse will react or respond to the abuse and the treatment that may follow. Sibling incest occurs in families with some common characteristics (Phillips-Green 2002). Abusive and incestuous families have high levels of personal, social, and economic stress; substance abuse; and exaggeration of patriarchal norms; and parenting skills are consumed with high levels of frustration, with punitive or harsh childrearing styles (Haskins 2003). Systems theory aids in the understanding that what one person does effects another, which effects another. The family dynamics that housed the sibling abuse can have negative effects on the victim in how she views herself and how she will parent her children based on how she was raised. Whatever the case, sibling incest is painful and damaging, whether the families are relationally connected or distant (Bass et al. 2006). Not only does the family play an important role in examining the bigger picture of the victim’s life, but it also provides insight into the individual and her treatment process. With brother–sister incest, the victim and the perpetrator are both in the family unit, and that unit can be strongly effected by disclosure of abuse. Disclosure can create emotional distress which may lead to the breakdown of the family, disclosure can also cause blaming to occur. It has been shown that blaming is often a large factor in the disclosure process. The parents and teachers often blame the victim for the abuse instead of providing support (McVeigh 2003). The victim has already endured the abuse, the shroud of secrecy, and in the moment she thinks she will begin to overcome this abuse she is often ridiculed and blamed for causing the abuse that was inflicted upon her. Cyr et al. (2002) hypothesize through their research that when blaming from the parents occurs, the mother is placed in a loyalty bind, having to choose between her daughter and her son. Depending on the type of relationship the mother has with each child, the blaming could be greatly influenced. The issue of blaming can be reciprocal, as the victim may then blame herself and her mother. Blaming Just as the victim is often blamed for the abuse she endured, blaming can occur by the use of self-blame or by motherblaming. Blaming the self for events that happened are not only damaging but are often associated with feelings of guilt relative to the abuse (Morrow and Sorell 1989). Women that have experienced brother–sister incest may also feel unsafe, and when she believes that she is the one J Fam Viol (2009) 24:531–537 533 to be held responsible for the wrongdoing, she will turn any feelings of rage and hostility away from the perpetrator or her family and place them on herself (Schlesinger 2006). Self-blame and mother-blaming are common ways to deal with feelings of guilt and anger. Mother blaming is supported by the notion that the mother is in some way responsible for the acts of the victim’s brother. Victims of incest often internalize anger, directing hatred and aggression against themselves. When these feelings become too intense, the victim copes with this by focusing her anger on her mother, which allows the victim to externalize her feelings (Jacobs 1990). Looking at family dynamics as well as the specific relationship the victim has with her mother can be useful in understanding coping methods through blaming. processing for the resolution of the trauma, as well as increase the likelihood for poor day to day adult functioning (Brand and Alexander 2003). With a deeper understanding of coping methods, there may be an enhanced opportunity for educating the individual who exhibits those behaviors, as well as other group members. Group Therapy The use of group therapy can be very effective with a variety of populations, especially those that have experienced incest. Group therapy can provide a unique opportunity for self and interpersonal learning because it allows for members to address effects of interpersonal victimization by identifying with other members who have had similar experiences (Wanlass et al. 2006). Although little is known regarding best practice measures to treat victims of sibling incest, options for treatment have been discussed based on the fact that each victim of sexual abuse will be different in the treatment process (Martens 2007). There are several characteristics of sexual abuse that can affect not only the victim, but the treatment process as well. Aspects such as duration of the abuse and the use of force should be examined. As mentioned earlier, the family dynamic should be looked at as well though the lens of how the victim’s disclosure of abuse was received. The victim will be coping with not only the abuse, but the impacts disclosure may have had on the family and the victim as well. Rudd and Herzberger (1999) note four common characteristics among victims coming to receive treatment: enforced secrecy, interpersonal power differentials, influences on sexual development, and individual aftereffects. These researchers state that abused women often felt that by tolerating the abuse and keeping it a secret was a way to hold the family together. This aspect of secrecy in the incestuous relationship is also connected to power dynamics within the relationship. These characteristics as well as sexual development and individual aftereffects can be examined including other issues discussed earlier. Focusing on building strength and resilience in group therapy has been noted by Wanlass et al. (2006) and Anderson (2006). Both authors contend that working through the abuse during the group process can be seen as â€Å"surviving† the abuse, which is an example of resiliency. The group therapy process can be structured and focused to maximize skills associated with resiliency, leading to improved treatment outcomes (Wanlass et al. 2006). Anderson (2006) discusses a change in perspective of how the victim views herself; from the victim to the survivor; which can aid in the process of forgiveness. The topic of forgiveness may be valuable to group members, depending on where each member is in her process of Coping When considering group therapy with women who have experienced sibling sexual abuse, coping mechanisms should be examined to understand what issues and problems the individuals may have due to their coping skills. The way each individual copes with the abuse can be connected to any diagnosis that they may have been given as a result of the abuse. For example, many victims of trauma, especially sexual related trauma display characteristics of Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome (Banyard and Williams 1996). In these situations, group members may need to be taught coping strategies to manage traumarelated anxiety (Foa et al. 1999). Paying close attention to the possibility of or presence of a disorder will be very helpful in group work. Coping has been examined in many ways to aid in the process of understanding how individuals respond to trauma and stress. Brand and Alexander (2003) state there are two types of coping strategies: emotionfocused coping, and problem-focused active coping. Becoming more aware of both of these style of coping will greatly influence effectiveness of group work. Emotion focused coping is rooted in the individual trying to regulate their emotions in dealing with the abuse, and problem-focused active coping is when individuals engage in behaviors in an attempt to manage the problem situation. An example of problem-focused coping is when an individual tries to manage her stress from the abuse through an eating disorder behavior. While the group facilitator learns more about the group members, behavior such as these may arise in discussion. Other coping methods that have been identified include the coping strategy of avoidance. Previous studies have stated that avoidance may be an initial way to cope with the stress of sexual abuse, but in the long term sense the avoidance strategy may increase future symptoms and cognitive 534 J Fam Viol (2009) 24:531–537 understanding the abuse she experienced. Working on forgiveness with group members may aid in the reduction of feelings that cause depression, fear, and anxiety by channeling those feelings and discussing options for positive coping though forgiveness and resiliency. Theoretical Frameworks Guiding Practice Research and information discussed thus far has roots in theory. These theories could lead to a deeper understanding and an enhanced framework for the discussion of incest as well as aid professionals in group work. Attachment theory, symbolic interaction theory, family systems theory, and feminist theory outline the theoretical framework that guides practice with female victims of incest. As mentioned earlier, much of the discussion of incest has its foundation in family systems theory and the significance of relationships family members have ith one another. Alexander and Anderson (1994) note that the family context associated with the abuse often explains more of the long-term effects than the abuse itself. Attachment theory lends itself to this notion by stating that the parent–child relationship is just as important to the child as eating and sleeping. Based on the child’s â€Å"internal working model† of relationships modeled by the parent–child relationship, that model governs how interpersonal relationships are viewed and experienced (Alexander and Anderson 1994). The goal of incorporating an attachment perspective is one of helping the client increase flexibility of though and views in interpersonal relationships beyond the parent– child relationship. This could be especially useful if there have been negative interactions as well as if blaming is occurring. Symbolic interaction theory aids in the exploration of incest by looking at aspects, such as frequency of abuse, degree of self-blame, and family disruption, in relation to how the victim will manifest her self-concept (Morrow and Sorell 1989). Through this theory, how the individual who experienced the abuse views herself is viewed as a social product constructed and developed by the social interactions around that individual. Once again, family relates to this theory and explanation of factors surrounding incest and sexual abuse, but it also reaches beyond to include other important social interactions, such as friends, classmates, etc. Understanding the social constructs present in the victim’s life can create a better understanding of what needs to be dealt with and recognized for effective group therapy to occur. The feminist framework of incest and the victim is centralized around gender and oppression, and the roles that males and females play in society. As discussed earlier, Anderson (2006) speaks of the importance of changing the viewpoint of â€Å"surviving† abuse to overcoming and resisting the abuse through resiliency. This idea of becoming resilient by resisting oppression is focused in categories found to represent resiliency in the face of oppression: being powerless, being silenced, and being isolated. Not only do all three of these aspects describe how an incest victim feels, but Anderson (2006) also argues that they correlate with oppressive resiliency. Introducing this idea of not being an incest ‘survivor’, but being a resilient person with qualities to be proud of, seems much more empowering, and is a great representation of an example of how feminist theory can be applied to group work with victims of incest. Moving past sentiments of oppressed within one’s feelings as well as within society due to one’s gender can be helpful for the victim, especially within a group setting. People can often find strength in numbers, and if other members are making the same conclusions about their lives and their experiences, positive progression can occur. Kreidler and England (1990) make an important point: â€Å"Because incest isolates victims and encourages feelings of guilt, incrimination, and shame, group experiences allow survivors to build self esteem and develop relationships in a protected environment†. Through this, the group process fosters autonomy and a sense of control in its members. Group Model Group therapy for adult female victims of sibling abuse can be approached in many ways. Group facilitators must be able to assist their clients in making sense of their trauma and work through negative emotions, as well as to teach group members healthy and adaptive coping strategies (Wanlass et al. 2006). The basics of group work will be rooted in helping group members work through their experiences while processing their emotions. Through this, connections will often be made with other members based on the shared experience of brother–sister incest. Focus should not only be on the present, but the victim should be able to make connections to the abuse and how her life has been affected. Victims of sibling incest have lifelong problems in many areas including marriage, work, and parenting (Phillips-Green 2002). Once group members begin to make those connections, the possibility for positive change may increase. Northen and Kurland (2001) emphasize the importance of thorough and thoughtful planning to the success of group work (p. 109). In order to address the topics and concerns discussed throughout this paper, the intake process should be thorough in detail and always take into account the elements of the brother–sister incest, finding out if force was used, how long the incest occurred, etc. The facilitator in charge of creating the group should be involved in the intake of members, as well as choosing the time and place J Fam Viol (2009) 24:531–537 535 where the group will meet. The length of the group sessions should be considered. Group therapy can be short term or long term, depending on the desired goals of the facilitator and the needs of group members. Sparks and Goldberg (1994) propose a short term group that is centered within re-educating victims about the dynamics of incest. Victims are often unaware of the widespread incidence of sibling incest experiences, and may feel much less alone in their feelings and issues as a result of the abuse. These authors note the sense of empowerment that women feel by telling their story to others who share similar experiences, as vocalizing the abuse sets it â€Å"free† and places it in the open, as well as helps the woman to continually break feelings of secrecy. There can be advantages and disadvantages to short-term and long-term group models. Short-term groups are more effective for creating connections between victims around a shared experience, but due to the severity and seriousness of sibling incest, the author proposes a long-term group specifically for women who have experienced brother– sister incest. Long-term groups offer more of an opportunity to address issues such as sexuality, sexual dysfunction, and other issues such as secrecy, isolation, and suicidal thoughts that victims often carry with them throughout their lives. This long-term group is a 12-week format, with meetings once per week at two hours per session. Depending on the size of the group and the characteristics of members, private individual sessions outside group meetings may also be arranged. Size can vary, but should be limited to 10 women. Northen and Kurland (2001) make the point that the smaller the group, the more demand on members to be fully involved in the group, and then there is more demand for intimacy of relationships (p. 136). Sparks and Goldberg (1994) mention the importance of realizing that many survivors will be suspicious of anyone in the counselor/professional role because they many have felt they experienced further violation and betrayal from any previous treatment. To begin to look at this, it may be helpful to ask women during intake if they have gone to any treatment previously, as well as how they felt about it. The facilitator should be aware of this prior to the first meeting. The facilitator also needs to make group members aware of the time commitment during the intake process, making sure they know that missing sessions is not encouraged. A possible therapy method that can be incorporated in group work is the use of Cognitive Processing Therapy for Sexual Abuse (CPT-SA). This treatment is an adaptation by Chard et al. 1997) of Cognitive Processing Therapy for rape victims and is intended to extend treatments for childhood sexual abuse by addressing sexual abuse responses and aspects of the abuse (Chard 2005). This 17week therapy method combines the use of individual and group therapy to maximize positive results by utilizing the benefits of group work as well as giving group members individual attention throughout the group process. Alt hough this method is not discussed at length in this paper, it may be useful to examine facets of CPT-SA for possible incorporation in group work with incest victims. The goals, strategies, and topics included in treatment will vary from therapist to therapist; and the goals and topics included in therapy typically reflect the therapists’ own assumptions of the impact of child sexual abuse (Beutler et al. 1994). This author suggests topics that should be addressed in the group are: emotions and feelings, sexuality, family history, effects of disclosure, power/feeling of powerlessness, secrecy, relationship with the offender, relationship with family members, current coping skills, and options for positive change for the future. These can be modified week to week. There really is no way to run a group in a step-bystep manner, as the group process is unique in itself as it takes shape and changes course all on its own. Topics can be presented to the group if there seems to be a lack of conversation or comfort with one another, but once the group members get to know one another topics and discussions will take shape and find their way into discussions even if there isn’t a definite â€Å"plan† for the group that day. For the use of an example, a basic proposed model for group may include: Week 1: Learning about each other What brings you here? Tell us about yourself. How do you feel about being here? Activities may be used to â€Å"break the ice†, writing exercises, etc. Week 2 & 3: The Family and Disclosure What is your relationship with your family like? Discuss dynamics of the family. What happened when you told about your abuse? Blaming may be discussed here. Week 4 & 5: Relationship with your brother Relationship changes, start and end of abuse, where the perpetrator is, how that makes you feel. Week 6 & 7: Depression, guilt, anger, sexual promiscuity. What are you dealing with now? How has the abuse effected you long term? How have you changed? Week 8 & 9: Coping strategies, positive outlets, self esteem, strength, resilience Week 10, 11, & 12: Reflection and growth, closure and celebration The topics included in this example will likely blend and flow from week to week, and should not serve as a rigid foundation for group. Through these suggestions, the facilitator can help the abused woman feel that her sense of victimization is valid, she can help the victim remove 536 J Fam Viol (2009) 24:531–537 self blame, and identify change patterns of self-abuse and self-degradation to promote growth and a higher selfesteem (Kiselica and Morrill-Richards 2007). Given the unique relationship that siblings share, this relationship may become a backdrop to the group process, as well as the family relationships that connect within the sibling subgroup. It is likely that these relationships will go through an on-going assessment and re-definition as group members discover more about themselves in regard to their behaviors, feelings, and relationships with others. Although topics outlined in the example could be introduced to the group for discussion, most of these topics will likely come up due to the nature of the experience and the common aspects that are seen frequently in sibling abused women. The author suggests that the group should be allowed to take their session in the direction they want it to go. To exemplify the power of each group member’s story, it is proposed that letting the group decide what they would like to discuss proves most effective. Sparks and Goldberg (1994) state that the group becomes a forum for humor and creativity as members take advantage of the unique opportunity to express what can not be expressed until someone who can appreciate it is willing to hear it. This creativity of the members should not be underestimated, and every moment of that process should be an empowering reminder for the group members. Most of the literature argues that the group facilitator(s) should be female. The possibility for a co-facilitator should be considered, depending on the size of the group. If the group is small, only one facilitator is needed. The facilitator (s) should have some knowledge and/or experience in crisis and group work. Age should also be taken into consideration. Group members should be 18 years of age and older, as this group is restricted to adult female victims. Commonality and shared experience are extremely important to the success of this group process, and grouping members based on age range will be helpful for members to relate to each other on more levels than one. During the intake process, the facilitator should attempt to arrange the groups based on what they conclude to be the most effective combination of members based on what was discussed with members prior to the initial meeting. The option for diversity should not be ignored, but O’Hare and Taylor (1983) make the important point that the group composition should always be considered in relation to making sure one person in the group does not stand out; for example, one African American woman, one lesbian woman, etc. Once again, thoughtful design of the group cannot be ignored. Group closure may include a celebration of connections and alliances made within the group. The format of closure and celebration should largely be decided by group members. Conclusion Group work with victims of sibling incest can be complex and challenging. It is clear that many factors influence the victim’s life other than the actual abuse. Family dynamics and overall relationships at the time of the abuse and disclosure prove to be extremely important in determining the entire picture of the victim. Once the facilitator becomes more educated about the details of incest and what to expect from group members, she will be able to design the group in the most effective manner. With the help of shared experience and shared knowledge, group members will find connections with one another that will maximize their growth and value of the group therapy experience. References Alexander, P. C. , & Anderson, C. L. (1994). An attachment approach to psychotherapy with the incest survivor. Psychotherapy (Chicago, Ill. ), 31, 665–674. doi:10. 1037/0033-3204. 31. 4. 665. Anderson, K. M. (2006). Surviving incest: the art of resistance. Families in Society, 87, 409–416. Banyard, V. , & Williams, L. (1996). Characteristics of child sexual abuse as correlates of women’s adjustment: a prospective study. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 58, 853–865. doi:10. 2307/353975. Bass, L. A. , Taylor, B. A. , Knudson-Martin, C. , & Huenergardt, D. 2006). Making sense of abuse: case studies in sibling incest. Contemporary Family Therapy, 28, 87–109. doi:10. 1007/s10591006-9697-0. Beutler, L. E. , Williams, R. E. , & Zetzer, H. A. (1994). Efficacy of treatment for victims of child sexual abuse. The Future of Children, 4, 156–175. doi:10. 2307/1602529. Brand, B. L. , & Alexander, P. C. (2003). Coping with incest: the relation ship between recollections of childhood coping and adult functioning in female survivors of incest. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 16, 285–292. doi:10. 1023/A:1023704309605. Carlson, B. E. Maciol, K. , & Schneider, J. (2006). Sibling incest: reports from forty-one survivors. Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 15, 19–34. doi:10. 1300/J070v15n04_02. Chard, K. (2005). An evaluation of cognitive processing therapy for the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder related to childhood sexual abuse. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 73, 965–971. doi:10. 1037/0022-006X. 73. 5. 965. Chard, K. , Weaver, T. , & Resick, P. (1997). Adapting cognitive processing therapy for child sexual abuse survivors. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 4, 31–52. doi:10. 016/S1077-7229(97) 80011-9. Cyr, M. , Wright, J. , McDuff, P. , & Perron, A. (2002). Intrafamilial sexual abuse: brother–sister incest does not differ from father– daughter and stepfather œstepdaughter incest. Child Abuse & Neglect, 26, 957–973. doi:10. 1016/S0145-2134(02)00365-4. Foa, E. , Dancu, C. , Hembree, E. , Jaycox, L. , Meadows, E. , & Street, G. (1999). A comparison of exposure therapy, stress inoculation training, and their combination for reducing posttraumatic stress disorder in female assault victims. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 67, 194–200. oi:10. 1037/0022-006X. 67. 2. 194. Haskins, C. (2003). Treating sibling incest using a family systems approach. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 25, 337–350. Jacobs, J. L. (1990). Reassessing mother blame in incest. Journal of Women in Culture and Society, 15, 500–514. doi:10. 1086/494607. J Fam Viol (2009) 24:531–537 Kiselica, M. S. , & Morrill-Richards, M. (2007). Sibling maltreatment: the forgotten abuse. Journal of Counseling and Development, 85, 148–161. Kreidler, M. C. , & England, D. B. (1990). Empowerment through group support: adult women who are survivors of incest. Journal of Family Violence, 5, 35–41. doi:10. 1007/BF00979137. Martens, W. H. J. (2007). Optimism therapy: an adapted psychotherapeutic strategy for adult female survivors of childhood sexual abuse. Annals of the American Psychotherapy Association, 10, 30–38. McVeigh, M. J. (2003). ‘But she didn’t say no’: an exploration of sibling sexual abuse. Australian Social Work, 56, 116–126. doi:10. 1046/j. 0312-407X. 2003. 00062. x. Morrow, B. K. , & Sorell, G. T. (1989). Factors affecting self-esteem, depression, and negative behaviors in sexually abused female adolescents. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 51, 677–686. doi:10. 2307/352167. Northen, H. , & Kurland, R. (2001). Social work with groups. New York: Columbia University Press. 537 O’Hare, J. , & Taylor, K. (1983). The reality of incest. Women & Therapy, 6, 215–229. doi:10. 1300/J015v02n02_22. Phillips-Green, M. J. (2002). Sibling incest. The Family Journal (Alexandria, Va. ), 10, 195–202. doi:10. 1177/1066480702102009. Rudd, J. M. , & Herzberger, S. D. (1999). Brother–sister incest— father–daughter incest: a comparison of characteristics and consequences. Child Abuse & Neglect, 23, 915–928. oi:10. 1016/S0145-2134(99)00058-7. Schlesinger, N. J. (2006). Treatment implications of a female incest survivor’s misplaced guilt. Psychoanalytic Social Work, 13, 53– 65. doi:10. 1300/J032v13n02_04. Sparks, A. , & Goldberg, J. (1994). A current perspective on short-term groups for incest survivors. Women & Therapy, 15, 135–147. doi:10. 1300/J015v15n02_11. Wanlass, J. , Moreno, K. , & Thomson, H. M. (2006). Group therapy for abused and neglected youth: therapeutic and child advocacy challenges. Journal for Specialists in Group Work, 31, 311–326. doi:10. 1080/01933920600918808.

buy custom McCarthy Construction Company essay

buy custom McCarthy Construction Company essay One of the Companies that are not currently in my country is McCarthy Construction Company. McCarthy is a Construction Company that was founded in 1864 in the United States of America and is therefore one of the nations largest provider of construction services. It first started by building farmhouses. The Company is a pivotal partner that is involved in the building and construction of the countrys civil and industrial infrastructure. The companys portfolio is further marked with the construction of railways, key roads, dams and ports. The Company has been listed as one the leading construction Company in United States. If the company was to enter into my country with a view of taking construction contracts, then it is vital for it to change its business model in order to succeed in its business. With the globalization of markets as well as production, it is essential for the company to evaluate its international strategy when entering new markets through the use of various options. In order to compete on the global arena, the company will have to change its business model through employing and implementing the 3As strategy in order to succeed. This refers to Adaptation, aggregation and Arbitrage. The use of Adaptation by McCarthy Construction Company when entering a new market in my country will be aimed at boosting the companys market share and revenues through maximization of the companys local revenue. Adaptation will also enable the company to adapt towards the different cultures of the societies that it has established in their operations making it easier for it to make sales locally. This will be done through the creation of local units responsible for handling the supply chain in each of the national market. In addition, McCarthy Construction Company, as it seeks to enter into a new market in our country will have to use aggregation as a strategy for its expansion. This will ensure that the Company make attempts at delivering economies of scale through c reation of either regional or global operations which will involve standardization of services or products grouping and offering together with the production and development process. McCarthy Construction Company will have to make the necessary changes in its business model when entering the new country and market through application of arbitrage. This will involve the exploitation of existing differences between regional or national markets through the location of separate parts in the supply chain that is prevalent in different places. McCarthy Construction Company will therefore be obliged to choose one or more of the 3 major strategic options of Aggregation, Adaptation and Arbitrage because they are associated with different types of organizations. However, McCarthy Construction, as a company must place major emphasis on Arbitrage because being functional and vertical, it will put explicit attention towards the balancing of demand and supply across and within organizational boundaries. Business leaders in the company should therefore figure out the elements which will meet McCarthy Construction Companys needs and accordingly prioritize them (Ogbor, 2009). In conclusion, the entering of McCarthy Construction Company in my country and the subsequent changes that will be made by the company on its business model will either break it or make it to succeed. If the changes made to the companys business model are carried out positively, it is definite that the company will succeed in its business endeavors in the country. However, if such changes on the companys business model are not done carefully, then it is obvious that it will be difficult for the company to succeed in my home nation. In order to succeed, the company should therefore ensure that the new elements meant to change its business model become good organizational fits and focus is placed on either one or two of the three As. The McCarthy Construction Companys Business Model should therefore be done carefully and strategically with a view of enabling the companies succeed in its business career in the new country. First Solars Multinational Business Context (Technology, Competition, Markets e.t.c) and its internal resources First Solar was founded as a glass company by Harold McMaster who was a glass genius. The company is known for changing the way through which the world is powered through creation of sustainable solutions of solar energy. Technology The current photovoltaic industry was categorized into two technological camps namely: those that believed in the achievement of lower costs through the application of high efficient but high costs cells and those that believed in low cost, moderately efficient solar aimed at reaching these goals. First Solar therefore made use of much cheaper glass commodities to back its cells instead of making use of high-cost c-Si that was ultra pure. Only a small amount of expensive semiconductor material which was light-converting was used to coat the cells. First Solars Market Strategy First Solar, during ts first decade of operation depended on markets having large current subsidies in order to sell its modules. Subsidies were the only channel of encouraging investment in technology because solar had not yet been cost competitive with generational conventions. Shifting towards sustainable markets that supported the demand of PV solar with economic fundamentals and transition became the long term plan for First Solar as a company. Experience curve learnings were provided through subsidy markets which allowed the company to increase their competitiveness in relation to conventional generation. Scaling up enabled the companys cost to drop fast (Winslow, 2011). First Solar Started talking openly about its intentions of pursuing sustainable markets and transition in 2009. For the company, transition markets are those with a light subsidy like for instance the ITC in the United States together with favorable conditions for generation of solar. These transition markets resulted in high cost applications and competition in PV solar costs having peak loads. On the other hand, sustainable markets regard those ones which needed no subsidy and whose conditions are favorable enough to manufacture PV solar costs at competitive prices and conventional generation. The application of this strategy by First Solar was different with that of its competitors who sought their expansion by growing within the existing subsidy markets. First Solar was therefore capable of accessing markets with the lower price points as compared to its competitors because of its superior cost position in the industry. First Solar attained a sustainable competitive advantage over its rivals because of the downstream integration. The company was able to maintain profitability even though the United States Solar market matured to the extent that the company could no longer find it necessary for it to participate in EPC and development to drive the volume growth. The use of the integrated model by First Solar abolished conflicts as well as helped the company achieve all its benefits. How First Solar should use home base, portfolio, hub, platform, and/or mandate approaches as options for its multinational business structure in the next decade First Solar should use a Homebase approach in its multinational business structure by establishing a base of its major operations or headquarter to enable it coordinate its business from both local and international chains. This will enable the company be better placed in addressing the challenges facing its branches in various parts of the world. The creation of a home base will serve as an office or administrative centre for the company. First Solar should also use portfolio management to make decisions regarding policy and investment mix, match its investments to objectives, asset allocation for institutions and individuals and to balance risk against the companys performance. The company should therefore use portfolio management to ascertain its weaknesses, strengths, threats and opportunities in order to maximize returns. In order to establish a good multinational business structure, First Solar should establish a hub, or a city in which its major operations or facilities should be housed so that the companys operations are efficient. The company should also use relevant platforms like facebook, Google, Windows Mobile, twitter and other social networking to market its products. This will help the company to manage and deploy its range of products in a competitive manner. Platform strategies will also enable the company to achieve generation and innovation of new revenue growth through leveraging of existing modules, brands and sub-system technologies. Anatina Toyss Value Chain and Key Competencies Since the year 1949, the Anatina Toys is known to have manufactured close to 400 billion tiny tyres, plastic bricks and inter-compatible play pieces making it to become the fifth largest toy maker in the world. In 1992, the group was able to achieve remarkable success by attaining or capturing 80% of the United States toy market. However, from the year 2001 to 2004, the group underwent significant financial difficulties because of internal problems and adverse industry changes. As a result, the group has launched a turn around strategy aimed at the establishment of a profitable core platform to prepare the Group for growth. Further, the company aims at using the best offshoring or outsourcing in order to increase the company profits (Ireland, et al, 2008). Despite the fact that ANATINA TOYS brand is a unique resource in the Group, the Groups former portfolio which was horizontally integrated did not become the best alternative strategy of leveraging the Groups name. Key themes are run known to run through the Anatina Toyss changes to its value chain. This is through changes in the Companys Sales, Marketing and Product Generation. The Company refocused on its brink products in order to differentiate itself from its rivals with lower quality. Through making relevant changes in manufacturing and distribution, the Company was able to drive its costs down in order to move closer to the Groups effiiciency frontier. Anatina Toys has been successful in pushing for Willingness to Pay Volume and Cost through refocusing on the companys core competency of marketing and developing creative products while cooperating simultaneously with its partners across the companys Value Chain. In order to augment the companys position in the industry as a premium toy brand, Anatina Toys has established a long term operating margin for Manufacture, Distribution, product generation and generation sourcing. Good performance was sustained in LEGOs single product through building the companys value chain and thus greatly enabled it to succeed. The Anatina Toys, having a production of about 24 billion annually, rationalized sourcing using economies of scale together with the opportunity of drastically reducing production complexity through targeting large sub-contractors. A decision was made that Production was to be outsourced to various partners. For instance, most of the products were outsourced predominantly to Flextronics. Flextronics, which was a leading multinational company dealing in electronic manufacturing services and based in Singapore became Anatina Toyss biggest partner in production that was undertaken. The outsourcing and offshoring services offered by Flextronics did not satisfy or meet the needs of Anatina Toys and thus the company withdrew from the deal. However, at the end, ANATINA TOYS was not satisfied with the effectiveness offered by Flextronics in the facilities that were outsourced. It was learnt by the company that even though outsourcing looked liked the best solution towards their problems, it was later ascertained that this was not to be. LEGOs production Value Chain is based on the Development function, Molding, Development of Molding Machines, Pre-pack, assembling, Post-pack and distribution. Given the three stages of Anatina Toys Outsourcing or offshoring, there is need for the company to adopt the best outsourcing/off shoring functions that will enable the company to achieve maximum profits. The challenges encountered in the Pre-Flextronics, during Flextronics and in the Post-Flextronics eras should serve as a lesson for the Anatina Toys to select the best outsourcing/offshoring functions of the value chain. This will ensure that Anatina Toys achieves its business targets and increases its profitability. For a start, the company should back source the plants that were operated by its Strategic partner-Flextronics and maintain its relationships with a small number of its smaller external suppliers. This will enable faster and easier distribution of its products towards the intended markets thus increasing the companys productivity. However, the company should be ready to overcome some of the challenges that may arise as a result of adapting the new methods of outsourcing. Among some of the possible challenges that may arise includes optimization and stabilization of operations during the various stages of transition. The company should also be capable of predominantly balancing the internal supply capacity with the Groups market demands. Overcoming such challenges will make it possible for the company to get the best partners for offshoring or outsourcing its products and services. Anatina Toys should apply the district forms of global strategy of the three As of Adaptation, Aggregation and Arbitrage in order to succeed in its business activities. By maximizing the Groups local relevance, the companys market share and revenue will be greatly boosted. This can be achieved through creating of local units or branches in each of the companys national market to carry out the task of supplying. This strategy should be used by the company as it starts its new expansion strategies beyond their markets based in home. In order to achieve economies of scale and therefore ensure that the best outsourcing channel is selected, attempts should be made to achieve economies of scale through aggregation. This will involve the standardization of Anatina Toyss service or product offering together with the production and development process. In addition, Anatina Toys should also exploit the differences between its regional and national markets when selecting the best methods of out sourcing or offshoring. This will involve the location of various parts of the supply chain located in different places of the Groups operations. Through the use of the AAA triangle, Anatina Toys will be having a clear strategy for its managers and thus be better placed in choosing the best strategies for outsourcing or offshoring. The percentage of sales that is spent on the companys advertising costs will be an indication of the importance of adaptation for the company while the percentage that is incurred in R D will serve as a proxy for the importance that aggregation has on the Anatina Toys. The importance of arbitrage is gauged through the percentage that is spent on labor. The Anatina Toys should therefore strive at achieving best production and distribution standards and select best outsourcing and offshoring partners which will ensure that the company is driven towards greater heights. Buy custom McCarthy Construction Company essay

Competition or Bust essays

Competition or Bust essays The world in which we live is a extremely competitive environment. It is nothing less than a doggy-dog world, where only the strong survive. It was become a fast-paced ruthless business environment. Those who cannot cut it can pack up their bags and find a job shining shoes on the streets. However, we strive in our economy for this competition. Competition, although vicious at times, has many positive effects on our economy in a whole. The most important benefit of a competitive environment is the creation of incentive for change. Since firms are in competition to sell their products or services, they must continuously keep a competitive advantage over the market. In order to do this they must constantly react to meet the improvements made by other companies in their products and services. For instance, Nintendo when it first started was very profitable for a while selling its game player, but when Sony came out with a 32-bit player which intern took allot of the business away from Nintendo. So as a reaction of Sonys new player, Nintendo created a 64-bit version, that was even better in all aspects of Sonys play station. It is a continuous cycle to make companies products better than the other. Without competition what incentive would there be? Atari might still be the number one game player, because there is no one else to come up with a better idea in that product line. Competition forces people to learn more and be more creative with there knowledge. Most of the technology that we have created in the last century has been form companies trying to out do each others product line. Another very important aspect of a competitive market is the affect on price. Prices are lowered in this environment. A firm has to be competitive with the prices of other close substitutes. If a Coke was two dollars for one can while Pepsi sold theirs for fifty cents, then Coke would loose mo ...

Ford to Cut New-Car Greenhouse Emissions 30% by 2020 Research Paper

Ford to Cut New-Car Greenhouse Emissions 30% by 2020 - Research Paper Example The company has failed to meet its goals that were to improve the mileage on sport-utility vehicles by the year 2005 to 25%. According to the views of Susan Cischke, although the company has failed to meet its commitments, its SUV (Sports-Utility Vehicle) mileage goals has been a blueprint demonstrating where the company wants to go and thus stated that she is confident that this time the company will be able to achieve the goal. However, Alan Mulley (Chief Executive Officer) stated that the company will try to focus upon the environmental friendly issues. According to Friends of the Earth, which is an environmental group stated that the announcements that has been made by the Ford Motors has been quite unimpressive since the stated targets of 30% reduction meets the regulatory requirements (Koenig, â€Å"Ford to Cut New-Car Greenhouse Emissions 30% by 2020 (Update4)†).   The most important point in the article that has been agreed with is the Vice President’s stateme nt that stated, the difficulties Ford Motors might face while implementing the policies of greenhouse gas emissions, however, it is not impossible task at all. The statement makes it evident that the company seems to perceive the social responsibility as an opportunity to serve the society and other participants rather than a damage control initiative. If the leader is of such views then the company as a whole can be prepared to work with the similar enthusiasm and mindset as that of the Vice  President, Susan Chischke.  

Picassos Three Musicians Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Picassos Three Musicians - Research Paper Example The essay "Picasso’s Three Musicians" gives a review on "Three Musicians", painting of Pablo Picasso. Picasso’s painting â€Å"Three Musicians† offers the viewer greater visual cues as to the intended subject than some of his other work. It was used to portray Picasso’s understanding of the realism of his subject by exploring the result of reflections of the artist’s pure emotion as it became associated with the subject’s elemental or primitive shapes and forms. In the early years of the 20th century, the industrial age led to the perfection of the photograph, which reduced the prestige of hand-made art as the primary means of image capture. In reaction to the idea that art offered no greater means of expression than the simple representation of the external world that was much more economically and efficiently captured by the camera, artists such as Pablo Picasso launched into abstraction. They developed the ideas of abstraction as a means o f representing the concept that there remained an element in the world that defied definition and could not be achieved by the photograph. This element was a concept they referred to as the sublime – an idea that remained just out of reach of definition and therefore could only be suggested, never represented. This element has also been referred to as the meaning of an image as opposed to its form. It was the conveyance of this meaning that these artists were trying to suggest was the result of the audience’s understandings of the artist’s conception.