How Effectively the Barnardos Website Presents its Campaign to Prevent Child Poverty Essay Example for Free

How Effectively the Barnardos Website Presents its Campaign to Prevent Child Poverty Essay * The layout of material * The way in which language is manipulated * The effect on the intended audience In this essay I will analyse how the use of graphics, language, lay-out and links in this website are effective in raising peoples awareness so that Barnardos can help to stop and prevent child poverty. Barnardos deals with many situations and projects such as day care and play schemes, after school clubs, advice and counselling for parents and parenting education. There are over three hundred of these projects, run by Barnardos, around the UK. In this website, Barnardos are appealing to a younger audience. In the text it tells us that they have launched an e-card campaign asking 1 million children and young people to respond. I think this is a good idea because most of the young people are on the Internet now as opposed to the older generation. The other aspect of the article that appeals to young people is the fact that it is related to people of the similar age groups and the case study can be related to more easily by younger people as it is about a young person. Although it is aimed at younger people it is going to get passed on to the adults anyway by asking for help on the Internet, telling a teacher as part of a school project. The idea of having this campaign on the Internet is more appealing as more people would look on the Internet for a campaign instead of calling in to a store and picking up a leaflet. In this campaign, Barnardos use pictures to try and persuade us to help. They persuade us by making us feel sympathetic towards the children, which will make us want to help the children. They do this by showing us pictures that we can relate to, pictures such as school halls and corridors, outer doors and swing parks. They show us these pictures because these are places that would be related to children. But the difference, however, is that they show them as being derelict and vandalised. The other thing they use is dull colours, which makes the pictures seem sad, lonely and also evil. By making them derelict and dull they make us think that the victims feel sad and lonely because that is the emotion the pictures give across and because of these emotions we feel entitled to help change their lives. The position, on the page, of the pictures also makes us feel different about helping the campaign. The photographs are placed in the centre of the page and the text is surrounding them. This means that you cannot read the text without looking at the pictures and the emotion in the text with the emotion in the pictures makes it appeal more to us and makes us feeling even more obliged to help the children. At the top of each page Barnardos have placed their logo and slogan. It is placed at the top left-hand corner of each page and I think this is effective because people would look there first. The logo is a picture of what looks like two adults with a child and they look quite cheery which makes you think that the lives of children who are victims of child poverty will end up like that if they get the help from Barnardos and the nation-wide public. The slogan underneath this backs it up, it says Giving Children Back Their Future, which is what Barnardos are trying to do with this campaign. The slogan and logo are effective, when presented in this way, because they make you feel like you can trust Barnardos to give them a better future. Throughout the website, Barnardos keep mentioning the other facilities they operate, which reinforces its stability and reliability. On the first page it leans on the fact that it is safe and offers a safe environment, safe and stimulating place to play. The charity does this to show their audience that they are reliable and determined about stopping and preventing child poverty and about getting all the help they can with the campaign. You see can that they always are looking towards the future of the children. The case study that is included supports this. The case study is a human appeal about someone who was a victim of child poverty and the conclusion of the study tells us how Barnardos helped and how the boy is going to change his own life and turn everything around. People can relate to a case study like this because they want a better world and their instincts make them feel sorry for the boy and make them want to help others like him. The other techniques they use are the emotive phrases in the case study. They use phrases such as neither of the adults had much time for Michael and they tell us the boy had no sense of stability. These phrases are quite harsh and can make you think twice about not wanting to help, especially to an older audience because they wouldnt want their children growing up like that. The links on the web page are very clear and helpful, they use FAQs (frequently asked questions) such as who we are and what we do. These sorts of phrases are also used as headings at the top of each page. The links also include a support us heading which you could take as a plea or cry out for help. The contact us link means that if you have any additional questions or need help with anything you can contact them easily and even help them more if they need it. The sort of support and help they want is for young people to send an e-card which is also a link at the concluding page. Because it is set out in this format means you dont need to give any money and it means you have no way out of it because it is eye-catching and you would feel obliged to help because it is any easy thing to do. When people start to read about the campaign they might think they will have to give money but it appeals to the reader because it doesnt involve an awful lot to change someones life. The language in the campaign is very simple and plain in the text. They dont use a large variety of vocabularies so that younger people can understand it better because it isnt difficult or challenging. The text has a lot of emotive language such as, inescapable aspect and lacks local amenities. The word you is used, in the context You can be a force for change, which makes you think that they are talking directly to you and makes you feel that the childrens lives are dependant on you. In the section headed the facts bullet points are used which makes the text a lot easier to read and you think that you are reading very little but you actually take in a lot of information. I think that the idea of a web page is very effective because I know that I would prefer reading something of the Internet than reading a leaflet on a campaign. The most effective technique, I think, is the case study because I thought it was very moving and after I read it I could slightly relate to it because the person seemed to be about the same age as me and obviously wanted to change his life around. What Barnardos did to try and change that boys life was spectacular. After I finished I sent an e-card because I was persuaded into doing the right thing which was the whole point of the campaign.

Zara Fast Fashion: Case Study

Zara Fast Fashion: Case Study Describe how Zara uses technology to improve operational responsiveness to customer expectations, and at the same time to reduce costs in certain areas. Zaras main strategy is to give a quick answer to end consumer demands and anticipate consumer trends through information technology and human resources. It operates on the basis of heavy backward vertical integration, working its way from the end consumer all the way back to the manufacturing and distribution. It ensures a very tight control of production through simple and effective IT systems as well as a high tech distribution center (DC.) It realizes cost optimization on its basic items for production and also time optimization in terms of speed to market of its fashion items making use of technology. Zara adapted to trends and differences across markets by interacting regularly with the store managers using the PDA and phone systems to get updates on customer feedback, fashion sense etc. The Point of Sale system (POS) in the store computers also provided valuable sales data to the distribution center which had a mobile tracking system that docked hanging garments in appropriate bar coded areas. The various garments were given Stock Keeping Units (SKUs) and orders were placed from the hand-held computers in the stores twice a week or more, to the distribution center where if particular items were in short supply, allocation decisions were made on the basis of historical sales levels and other considerations. After the orders were approved, the warehouse issued lists for delivery to the stores. Zara design teams tracked customer preferences and used sales information such as sales analysis, store trends and product life cycle information from the store managers, based on a consumption information system to transmit repeat orders and new designs to internal/external suppliers and the DC. The design teams thereby bridged merchandising and the backend of the production process and they developed the right products within the season to meet consumer demands. Zaras product development teams attended high fashion fares and exhibitions to translate the latest seaso nal trends into the designs. Hence, a super fast rate of operational responsiveness to customers was maintained and the DC was more of a place to merchandise than merely for storage. Technology also helped keep Zaras costs under control. By using the POS systems in store computers, handheld PDA devices for store managers and phone systems, accurate information regarding orders required were transmitted to the DC. The SKUs ensured accuracy in terms of which products needed to be produced and in what quantities and the DCs could use all this information and feedback from the design teams to make orders of the right quantity of each kind of product. Thus, inventory costs were very low, runs were limited and production costs were maintained at very manageable levels in spite of the large number of new items that are continuously produced. Zaras factories were also heavily automated, specialized by garment type and focused on the capital intensive parts of the production process, like pattern design and cutting as well as final finishing and inspection. A Just-in-time system was installed in collaboration with Toyota in these factories and this helped in faster comple tion of work and controlling of costs through continuous improvement processes. Management Information System technology plays a crucial role in Zaras customer responsiveness and cost control measures. From what you see in the case, does Zara price to market or on the basis of other factors? Zara always followed a market based pricing method. In each country, Zara always placed more focus on the market prices (local pricing levels) rather than on its own costs to forecast prices of items in particular markets. These forecasts were later overlaid on cost estimates that included all considerations such as distance, tariffs, and taxes and so on to see whether the potential market could achieve profitability in a year or two of opening the first store. Zara followed a different pricing strategy in each country, for example, in Italy and Paris the focus was more quality oriented and so the price of the same items were much higher, however, in Germany where consumers are price sensitive the items were lesser priced. This figured in the different marketing strategy followed in each country. Zara controlled its costs through its production and distribution processes and was positioned in many countries as high fashion at affordable prices which though were centrally determined, much lower than competitor prices for comparable products in its major markets. Percentage margins still held up, this was possible because of the direct efficiencies of short, vertically integrated supply chain, reduced advertising costs, and markdown requirements. Thus Zara competed at reasonable prices through a cost leadership strategy, completing Porters generic strategy through differentiated products and broad segmentation. Zaras customers in many countries bore the extra costs of supplying the items from Spain though the prices were market based, for example, prices were 40% higher in Northern Europe and 70% higher in the Americas than in Spain. This could be seen on the garments price tag which was an atlas to the customers. These higher prices outside Spain affected Zaras positioning overseas as high end instead of mid market range products to better validate the price differences. Like in Mexico where the target consumer base is narrow, it is geared towards the upper and middle class that knows fashion. Moreover, as in Europe, the artificial scarcity that Zara creates of its products in its stores urge the customers to pay the price and buy rather than wait it out. Markdowns are very low for Zara in Europe and elsewhere, 15-20% of its sales as compared to 30-40% for its European peers. Zara does not completely compete on basis of price as the usual Zara customer is not that price sensitive; instead, it competes on fashion and its quick response capability. Zara (2010) has just launched an on-line, e-retail distribution service. For an apparel retailer what are the advantages and disadvantages of online distribution? Can Zara make it work? Inditex has long used the internet to promote its various lines and corporate image and is also popular on Facebook, where it has 4.5m fans. Its Smartphone application, launched about a year ago, has been downloaded by 2m people. Zara can very easily make its online e-retail distribution service work successfully. Familiarity with the Zara stores thus provides name recognition for the online retail site, and the combination of customer data gathered by the store and the online retail site (through Google Analytics, for example) could lead to substantial personalized marketing efforts, using various channels. With Zaras policy of a lean advertising budget, an online retail portal will add greatly in terms of branding and awareness. Zara had initially decided not to sell clothes on the internet since the returns rates were too high. However, as of September 2010, Inditex put Zara branded products online for its customers, waiting for online demand to build. Customers can choose from the usual range of paying methods and opt either for a free store pick-up or paid-for postal delivery. The online return and exchange policy is identical to the store system, with shoppers given 30 days to change their minds. iPhone and iPad applications that allowed purchasing will soon be available and online sales will help Zara reach potential customers who have no easy access to physical stores. For an apparel retailer, the advantages of online distribution would be providing convenience to the shoppers to buy from the comfort of their home, save on travel time and costs and have easy access to the products. Customers will have 24 hour access to the shopping platform online and make better buying decisions through online chat and discussion. Researchers identify convenience as a fundamental objective related to online shopping (Schaupp Belanger, 2005). This is relevant to 72% of online shoppers claim that they would rather surf online than go to retail store to attain information about a product (Lokken et al., 2003). Costs on human resources (Vendors, shop assistants, managers) can be saved by the retailer and customers can make relaxed wise buy decisions without pressure from vendors. Infinite shelf space will be available in that, products available at all store locations and around the world without geographical boundaries, to the customers to choose from. Comparison sh opping in terms of styles and prices will be easier on the online portal than in the store for the consumer. Boston Consulting Group analysts Evans and Wurster theorize that the three main strategic draws of online retail are reach, affiliation and richness. Reach is defined as access and connection: how many customers a business can access and how many products it can offer. Moreover, a retailers range of product offerings was traditionally limited by the size of its stores and the cost of carrying inventory while online retailers as intermediaries between customers and suppliers need not necessarily have an inventory at all, only a catalog, often transparent to the customer. Affiliation refers to whose interests are represented by the online retailer who can treat the products from their various vendors more objectively, providing more objective information and better product comparisons for their customers. Richness refers to the depth and detail of information, about products and about customers. Evans and Wurster argue that traditional retailers still are at an advantage to supply expe rt information about products to their customers, and that they also are still in a better position to gather information about product sales and customer profiles and buying patterns. Online retailers are quickly catching up, however, gathering data about customer browsing behavior, purchasing history, and demographics. Online retailers are subsequently able to use this data to provide their customers with a fully customized online shopping environment, including individualized web pages, targeted ads and offers, and specific product suggestions, something traditional retailers cannot effectively do at their retail outlets. Some of the disadvantages of online retail would be the difficulty to gather trend information, product sales and customer suggestions. Zara could remedy this by using analytics and customer feedback forms online that are user friendly and attractive. The experience of shopping in a Zara store would be lost, but Zara would need to make its retail platform very interactive and spellbinding. Zaras prime store locations cost a lot of investment, and the advent of online shopping could mean cannibalization of its retail outlet sales and a waste of upkeep costs, this could put Zara into a fix. Customers will not be able to touch and try the product like they can in an actual store, [t]he likelihood of purchasing on the Internet decreases with increases in product risk (Bhatnagar, Misra, Rao, 20000, p. 100). Apparels in particular had negative rating in online shopping because of it is difficult to feel and see the texture of colour online that is incomparable to going to a retail store. The biggest drawback itself would be the concept of infinite shelf space that an online distribution will bring, for Zara. Being a company that thrives on the creation of artificial scarcity of its products, the online distribution channel will have to be very carefully controlled to ensure that customers buy the products with the same fervour as when they visit the store, knowing that it might not be available the following week. Zara can remedy this situation by advertising only a limited number of units of each product online so customers will know if the numbers are dwindling and that they need to act fast in order to acquire the product just as in the case of the actual store.

Security in dorm halls Essay examples -- essays research papers

Security in dorm halls on universities across the nation is a huge problem that each campus must address, due to the amount of people living in such close quarters. Residence hall security should be an important factor in the college decision making process. Today’s college freshman arrives for the first day of his/her college career hampered with personal property of substantial value. Most students come to college equipped with an advanced computer system and can be the target of burglary. Many other items of value accompany the student. Sexual assaults are also a potential problem. The possibility of theft and sexual assaults make residence hall and individual room security a basic prevention strategy. To ensure a safe campus, it is imperitive to secure residence halls and escort all guests.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Most college students do not think about the repercussions of being lazy about security in their respective residence halls. However if there is no attention paid to who comes in and out, many crimes can and usually do happen. For instance, at the University of Connecticut, a survey of 690 undergraduates found that more than half of dorm residents say they have propped open a secured door. Nine out of ten know someone else who have also done the same. Half of those students who had witnessed these doors left partly open, knew of incidents where strangers had come into the building unescorted. Of those strangers, one in five knew of a crime that resulted b...

The Health Care Crisis :: American Health Insurance Essays

It is hard to imagine life without health insurance. If you have any type of medical problem that requires attention, and you have appropriate health care insurance, you can be cared for in the finest of private hospitals. You can get great treatment and your ailments, depending on the severity, can be treated as soon as possible. Doctors, physicians and surgeons are willing to put out a big effort if they know that they are dealing with patients who are insured and have the money to go under extensive medical treatment. But imagine life without such luxuries. For example, what happens if a relative requires much needed surgery, but does not have health insurance to cover the procedure? What happens if a lack of medical insurance prevents you or your family from seeing a doctor, which could result in health problems that had not been identified but could have been treated before they became life threatening? These scenarios may seem far-fetched, but these types of s ituations happen to people who lack health coverage everyday. There is a true story about a patient who was insured and diagnosed with treatable cervical cancer. Unfortunately, she lost her job and with it her insurance. She was then unable to see her private doctor, and was turned away from other hospitals because ?cancer treatment is not considered an emergency in a patient who can?t pay? (?Help for D.C.?s Uninsured?). The woman later died at her home without ever being treated. This example raises the question, since when are people with less money less deserving of health care or appropriate treatment? The District of Columbia fares terribly when it comes to health care. Avram Goldstein is a journalist from the Washington Post who has written numerous articles on the health care situation in D.C. Goldstein has worked for the Post for nine years but has been covering health care for numerous years as an investigative reporter and as an editor in many newspapers. As an expert on the issue of health care, he states in one of his articles, ?If you live in the District without health insurance or a regular doctor and you get sick, city officials and health administrations have an important message for you.

Feminist Criticism Essay -- Feminism Female Essays

Feminist Criticism Contemporary feminist criticism focuses on various specified topics such as women’s biographical writings, lesbian and literature, and the role of film and the media in portraying feminine gender. It is no longer easily separated into categorical goals by nationalities or land boundaries. Instead, feminist criticism is now characterized according to whether the category of "woman" is the major focus, or whether gender identity is defined by sexual and other identities as well. These other differences include, but are not limited to, cultural identities as a woman, lesbian writings, sexual preference, and religious differences. Most feminist critics today stress the fact that while all women are female, they are much more than that. Each woman’s goals and problems make them who they are by creating a unique identity. The understanding of woman not as a single group has led modern feminist critics to advocate personal and autobiographical criticism. It has also fostered contemporary gender criticism. Gender critics explore different categories of gender and sexuality. Gender criticism does not only focus on women’s gender and sexuality, but also includes male gender issues. Gender criticism began solely as feminist criticism, and now the two are still overlapped. Elaine Tuttle Hansen has applied feminist criticism in her analysis of "The Miller’s Tale" in a segment of the chapter "Women as the Same" from the book Chaucer and the Fictions of Gender. While earlier critics have focused on the humorous side of what they consider an innocent prank, Hansen focuses on Alisoun’s escape from punishment. At the same time she recognizes that it was only by accident that Nicholas intervened to receive the punish... ...astly, I found reference to Alisoun being objectified as something only to look at in two separate, yet closely related examples. First, in lines 3247-3248 of her portrait, the Miller states that "She was ful more blisful on to see / Than is the newe pere-jonntte tree." Secondly, Absolon refers to Alisoun’s objectification by stating "to loke on hir him thoughte a merye lyf" (3344). Valued objects are often set away from "normal" areas to look upon for enjoyment purposes. And happiness is sometimes thought to be achieved through viewing a thing of beauty; this is how these men viewed Alisoun. In conclusion, it is clear to see through these examples how Chaucer used animal characteristics to objectify Alisoun. Furthermore, I feel that Hansen’s views on "The Miller’s Tale" were correct and justified. Overall, I feel that the views expressed by Hansen are enlightening.

Emotional Intelligence Essay

The ability to express and control our own emotions is important, but so is our ability to understand, interpret, and respond to the emotions of others. Imagine a world where you couldn’t understand when a friend was feeling sad or when a co-worker was angry. Psychologists refer to this ability as emotional intelligence, and some experts even suggest that it can be more important than IQ. Learn more about exactly what emotional intelligence is, how it works, and how it is measured. What is Emotional Intelligence? Emotional intelligence (EI) refers to the ability to perceive, control and evaluate emotions. Some researchers suggest that emotional intelligence can be learned and strengthened, while others claim it is an inborn characteristic. Since 1990, Peter Salovey and John D. Mayer have been the leading researchers on emotional intelligence. In their influential article â€Å"Emotional Intelligence,† they defined emotional intelligence as, â€Å"the subset of social intelligence that involves the ability to monitor one’s own and others’ feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them and to use this information to guide one’s thinking and actions† (1990). The Four Branches of Emotional Intelligence.  Salovey and Mayer proposed a model that identified four different factors of emotional intelligence: the perception of emotion, the ability reason using emotions, the ability to understand emotion and the ability to manage emotions. 1.Perceiving Emotions: The first step in understanding emotions is to accurately perceive them. In many cases, this might involve understanding nonverbal signals such as body language and facial expressions. 2.Reasoning with Emotions: The next step involves using emotions to promote thinking and cognitive activity. Emotions help prioritize what we pay attention and react to; we respond emotionally to things that garner our attention. 3.Understanding Emotions: The emotions that we perceive can carry a wide variety of meanings. If someone is expressing angry emotions, the observer must interpret the cause of their anger and what it might mean. For example, if your boss is acting angry, it might mean that he is dissatisfied with your work; or it could be because he got a speeding ticket on his way to work that morning or that he’s been fighting with his wife. 4.Managing Emotions: The ability to manage emotions effectively is a key part of emotional intelligence. Regulating emotions, responding appropriately and responding to the emotions of others are all important aspect of emotional management. According to Salovey and Mayer, the four branches of their model are, â€Å"arranged from more basic psychological processes to higher, more psychologically integrated processes. For example, the lowest level branch concerns the (relatively) simple abilities of perceiving and expressing emotion. In contrast, the highest level branch concerns the conscious, reflective regulation of emotion† (1997).  What everyone needs to know. Emotional Intelligence Is the Other Kind of Smart.  When emotional intelligence first appeared to the masses in 1995, it served as the missing link in a peculiar finding: people with average IQs outperform those with the highest IQs 70% of the time. This anomaly threw a massive wrench into what many people had always assumed was the sole source of success—IQ. Decades of research now point to emotional intelligence as the critical factor that sets star performers apart from the rest of the  pack. Emotional intelligence is the â€Å"something† in each of us that is a bit intangible. It affects how we manage behavior, navigate social complexities, and make personal decisions that achieve positive results. Emotional intelligence is made up of four core skills that pair up fewer than two primary competencies: personal competence and social competence. Personal competence is made up of your self-awareness and self-management skills, which focus more on you individually than on your interactions with other people. Personal competence is your ability to stay aware of your emotions and manage your behaviour and tendencies. †¢Self-Awareness is your ability to accurately perceive your emotions and stay aware of them as they happen. †¢Self-Management is your ability to use awareness of your emotions to stay flexible and positively direct your behaviour. Social competence is made up of your social awareness and relationship management skills; social competence is your ability to understand other people’s moods, behaviour, and motives in order to improve the quality of your relationships. †¢Social Awareness is your ability to accurately pick up on emotions in other people and understand what is really going on. †¢Relationship Management is your ability to use awareness of your emotions and the others’ emotions to manage interactions successfully. Emotional Intelligence, IQ, and Personality Are Different. Emotional intelligence taps into a fundamental element of human behaviour that is distinct from your intellect. There is no known connection between IQ and emotional intelligence; you simply can’t predict emotional intelligence based on how smart someone is. Intelligence is your ability to learn, and it’s the same at age 15 as it is at age 50. Emotional intelligence, on the other hand, is a flexible set of skills that can be acquired and improved with practice. Although some people are naturally more emotionally intelligent than others, you can develop high emotional intelligence even if you aren’t born with it. Personality is the final piece of the puzzle. It’s the stable â€Å"style† that defines each of us. Personality is the result of hard-wired preferences, such as the inclination toward introversion or extroversion. However, like IQ, personality can’t be used to  predict emotional intelligence. Also like IQ, personality is stable over a lifetime and doesn’t change. IQ, emotional intelligence, and personality each cover unique ground and help to explain what makes a person tick. Emotional Intelligence Is Linked to Performance. How much of an impact does emotional intelligence have on your professional success? The short answer is: a lot! It’s a powerful way to focus your energy in one direction with a tremendous result. Talent Smart tested emotional intelligence alongside 33 other important workplace skills, and found that emotional intelligence is the strongest predictor of performance, explaining a full 58% of success in all types of jobs. Your emotional intelligence is the foundation for a host of critical skills—it impacts most everything you say and do each day. Emotional intelligence is the single biggest predictor of performance in the workplace and the strongest driver of leadership and personal excellence. Of all the people we’ve studied at work, we’ve found that 90% of top performers are also high in emotional intelligence. On the flip side, just 20% of bottom performers are high in emotional intelligence. You can be a top performer without emotional intelligence, but the chances are slim. Naturally, people with a high degree of emotional intelligence make more money—an average of $29,000 more per year than people with a low degree of emotional intelligence. The link between emotional intelligence and earnings is so direct that every point increase in emotional intelligence adds $1,300 to an annual salary. These findings hold true for people in all industries, at all levels, in every region of the world. We haven’t yet been able to find a job in which performance and pay aren’t tied closely to emotional intelligence. Emotional Intelligence Can Be Developed. The communication between your emotional and rational â€Å"brains† is the physical source of emotional intelligence. The pathway for emotional intelligence starts in the brain, at the spinal cord. Your primary senses enter here and must travel to the front of your brain before you can think rationally about your experience. However, first they travel through the limbic system, the place where emotions are generated. So, we have an emotional reaction to events before our rational mind is able to engage.  Emotional intelligence requires effective communication between the rational and emotional centers of the brain. â€Å"Plasticity† is the term neurologists use to describe the brain’s ability to change. Your brain grows new connections as you learn new skills. The change is gradual, as your brain cells develop new connections to speed the efficiency of new skills acquired. e. Generalization The student learns that Emotional Intelligence? Emotional intelligence (EI) refers to the ability to perceive, control and evaluate emotions. Some researchers suggest that emotional intelligence can be learned and strengthened, while others claim it is an inborn characteristic. Since 1990, Peter Salovey and John D. Mayer have been the leading researchers on emotional intelligence. In their influential article â€Å"Emotional Intelligence,† they defined emotional intelligence as, â€Å"the subset of social intelligence that involves the ability to monitor one’s own and others’ feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them and to use this information to guide one’s thinking and actions† (1990). The Four Branches of Emotional Intelligence Salovey and Mayer proposed a model that identified four different factors of emotional intelligence: the perception of emotion, the ability reason using emotions, the ability to understand emotion and the ability to manage emotions. 1.Perceiving Emotions 2.Reasoning with Emotions 3.Understanding Emotions 4.Managing Emotions What everyone needs to know. 1. Emotional Intelligence Is the Other Kind of Smart. Personal competence is made up of your self-awareness and self-management skills, which focus more on you individually than on your interactions with other people. Personal competence is your ability to stay aware of your emotions and manage your behaviour and tendencies. Self-Awareness is your ability to accurately perceive your emotions and stay aware of them as they happen. Self-Management is your ability to use awareness of your emotions to stay flexible and positively direct your behaviour. Social competence is made up of your social awareness and relationship management skills; social competence is your ability to understand other people’s moods, behaviour, and motives in order to improve the quality of your relationships. Social Awareness is your ability to accurately pick up on emotions in other people and understand what is really going on. Relationship Management is your ability to use awareness of your emotions and the others’ emotions to manage interactions successfully. 2. Emotional Intelligence, IQ, and Personality Are Different. 3. Emotional Intelligence Is Linked to Performance. 4. Emotional Intelligence Can Be Developed. â€Å"Plasticity† is the term neurologists use to describe the brain’s ability to change.

Psychoanalytical Analysis Of Tsotsi Essay

The film Tsotsi, directed by Gavin Hood, portrays how an individual’s childhood and experiences effect the individual’s psychological development in his struggle for redemption. The narrative centers on Tsotsi, whose name when translated, literally means â€Å"thug†- a nickname he has accumulated through his atrocity as gang leader. The opening scene of the film establishes a strong sense of direction for the story – a glimpse of a person rolling dice is shown, drawing attention to the archetype of the dice representing chance and having no control over what will happen. This reveals the context that Tsotsi’s life is more distinctly influenced by outside forces, rather than his own free will. Following this scene, Tsotsi is introduced on screen wearing a leather jacket – the same one he is seen wearing for the entirety of the film with the exception of the ending, confirming that what viewers see during that time is only an exterior, securely hiding his true identity that was formed by his childhood and experiences. Gaining awareness about the major outside forces that influence the development of Tsotsi’s character in the past and the present are essential in understanding the reason behind his seemingly cold-hearted exterior. Tsotsi’s character is greatly developed by his interactions with his friends and family. His childhood without his parents has a significant effect on him, allowing him to be taught neither proper morals, nor how to behave with others. After their brutal murder of a man, Boston preaches Tsotsi, including him saying, â€Å"Jesus, Tsotsi. A dog? What about a dog† (Hood, 2005). The didactic tirade triggers a stream of muffled emotions in Tsotsi, who beats up Boston. After this incident, Tsotsi runs from his friends, and more importantly, himself. The frenzied expression revealed in the close up shot of his face not only expresses his id that caused the incident, but also clearly expresses his disappointment in himself acting the same way towards Boston, as his dad had to their dog when Tsotsi was younger. â€Å"Get out I said! Out damn it! Out you fucking dog† (Hood, 2005). This metaphorical representation of Boston as a dog reveals Tsotsi’s lack morality throughout his childhood. Hood uses meaningful pathetic fallacy to portray the view that viewers should have on Tsotsi. The long shot emphasizes his insignificant effect over the controlling outside forces, and lighting illuminates the sky, while Tsotsi is still left in  darkness; symbolizing his dark exterior. In addition to being strong influences that have caused Tsotsi to become who he is, his friends also aid him in his path to atonement. Tsotsi looks for redemption against such poverty-induced inhumanity in a place that seems to provide no possibility of doing so. However, such substitute, namely â€Å"decency† makes an appearance in an instructive manner, digging through to Tsotsi’s superego, as Sigmund Freud would suggest. Boston or â€Å"Teacher Boy,† who, true to his nickname, is the only gang member still possessing conscience, castigates Tsotsi for his wrongdoi ngs, â€Å"Decency Tsotsi – Decency – Do you know the word† (Hood, 2005). Viewers see glimpses of decency as described by Boston – making a living in a way that makes you respected – in Tsotsi as the film progresses, along with his character. This is seen when Tsotsi pays a final visit to Boston and leaves his gun with him – a symbolism of him finally revealing his true identity with no armor. Additionally, Tsotsi shoots Butcher, a character with whom he had many similarities with at the start of the narrative, revealing that he no longer shares those similarities with him. Therefore, Hoods use of outside forces further develops Tsotsi’s character. Furthermore, Tsotsi steals a baby in his attempt to steal a car from Pumla. At this point, the critical question stands: Can a small baby redeem a cold-hearted thug? Clearly, the baby plays a major role in Tsotsi’s development as a dynamic character in his path to redemption. Tsotsi becomes occupied with caring for the baby as his pathway out of his odious life. To implement a psychological association to Tsotsi’s repressed humanity, Hood uses sentimental flashbacks. Tsotsi’s involvement with gangs is explained by Tsotsi’s harsh father who restricts him from seeing his ill mother. â€Å"You†¦stay away from your mother† (Hood, 2005). The baby serves as a representation of what Tsotsi has lost; revealed when he visits the baby’s room, and realizes what he has stripped from the baby. As the film progresses, Tsotsi develops a strong admiration towards Miriam, a female figure that he associates with his own mother, and therefore tells Miriam that the baby’s name is ‘David,’ the name he himself was given by his own mother. This is also revealed when Boston says, â€Å"Everyone has a name. A real name from him mother† (Hood, 2005). Miriam reveals the Oedipal Complex at work in the film as Tsotsi revives memories of his mother’s affections. The ‘decency,’ that Boston continuously mentions, is finally revealed to be seen  in Tsotsi when he finally hands the baby over to its parents. However, his reluctance to let the baby go symbolizes his fear in forgetting his past experiences and starting over, clearly emphasized by the depressing music, meant to tug at the viewer’s heart-strings, in contrast to the upbeat music played throughout the rest of the film. Here at the end of the film, Tsotsi’s surrendering to the police confirms that he is no longer seen as a ruthless killer, but as a man with decency. In doing so, Hood offers readers an association with Tsotsi, along with a clear insight of his struggle to redeem himself in a cruel world with little guidance from his childhood and past experiences.