Scholarly vs. Popular Media Focus on Sexuality Essay

Scholarly vs. Popular Media Focus on Sexuality - Essay Example Flyers and lucid media images that stir up teenager girls to prime their fancy on sexuality and looks are injurious to self-esteem and physical health (Jayson 12). Conversely, this revelation can encourage girls and young women to view themselves and their bodies as sexual objects. The article also cuts across other issues like dolls which are used in TV, and or commercial advertisement. Ideally, Brazt dolls use suggestive clothing to dress their dress up their dolls that feature in advertisements. These dolls usually appear in MTV advertisements in sleazy miniskirts, fishnet stockings, and feather boas. According to Jayson (12), this sleaziness is what has led critics to label the dolls as potential motivators of sexualization of women and girls. It is a reality to contend with, as these are designed by default for four to eight olds, while they are still connected to objectifying adult sexuality. In her article, Jayson notes that these dolls with suggestive clothing have made some parents anxious and nervous over the uncalled for sexualization of their children. This is partly due to the sense of moralization around the advertisement. However, they is a huge difference of opinion between the teens and the older generation that views, although provocatively, teenage fashion as far too-concealing. On the other hand, teens may not view themselves as mere objects of sex. The two article speak, although, using different levels of thinking and perspectives, about women as sexual objects. The articles touch on advertisements, which would either be aired on commercial TV, and fashion magazines. Either way, both articles talk in depth about how advertisement may encourage young women and girls to change their perceptions into crasser sense of awareness about themselves. This... The articles talk in depth about how advertisement may encourage young women and girls to change their perceptions into crasser sense of awareness about themselves. This may negatively impact on the self-esteems of the teens and young women, who start to view themselves as sex objects. Even so, they reveal to us despite the companies’ objective behind their advertisements, there still is some moralizing about it.Women’s bodies are portrayed to be persistently on display with a view to be judged. Therefore, when women are represented as veritable sex objects in more than two, in fact three advertisements, the point becomes clear to both men and women: A woman’s significance is based on her physical appearance and sexuality. Moreover, this view suggests that women are objects to be looked at, rather than players with their own sexual craving. Granted, seeing women as sex objects doubles the rate of sexual violence against them. This view in turn makes sexual violen ce towards women appear justifiable. The two articles, examined here, were rather written professionally and independently, whereupon the authors have used different perspectives to pass across vital. The scholar approach article was presented in a more detailed form, while the popular media article was presented in one-off outline. Both articles have a deep wealth of information, but the scholarly approach carry’s the day with its informative and detailed style it was written.

Plato vs. Aristotle Essay Example for Free

Plato vs. Aristotle Essay Numerous experts in modern time regard Plato as the first genuine political philosopher and Aristotle as the first political scientist. They were both great thinkers in regards to, in part with Socrates, being the foundation of the great western philosophers. Plato and Aristotle each had ideas in how to proceed with improving the society in which they were part of during their existence. It is necessary therefore to analyze their different theoretical approaches regarding their philosophical perspectives, such as ethics and psychology. This paper however will mainly concentrate on Aristotles views on friendship and how it impacts todays society. The main objective in Platos philosophy is a creation of a perfect society. He constructs a foundation for a utopian society in his book The Republic. The purpose of his thought process was to cleanse his society of the woes he felt plagued it and construct a new one. Plato lived during the Peloponnesian War, which consequently lead to the end of the Athenian democracy. He had eyewitness account of his mentors (Socrates) trial and execution. Bitter and angered by the political corruption that gripped the Athenian democratic government, he disengaged from participating in politics. He strongly felt that neither a moral individual nor a state that is rational could be established in a democratic environment. Plato felt that the common man wasnt intelligent or capable of dealing with concepts that influence the state such as economics, policy of foreign affairs and other relative matters. He viewed political incumbents in Athens government as being elected for matters that were irrelevant to main factors that affected the state. Another danger was that excessive liberty for the people of the democratic society could potentially lead to anarchy. In Platos perfect society, he forged ahead to eliminate the disease (pluralism of friendship) that plagued the human character and society (Class Notes). Essentially, Plato wanted to establish the perfect form of society, linked by one single entity. Aristotle, unlike Plato, was not focused or concerned about the idea of a perfect society, instead he wanted to improve upon the one that he was part of during his existence. Rather than develop a framework for a society that is perfect, he suggested that society should, in it self, strive to utilize the best system it can attain. He felt that utopia was abstract and superficial. It wouldnt allow for realistic problem solving solutions. He felt that Platos view of a strict overhaul of society in general wasnt necessary. He believed that society was at its optimum and you can only improve upon the existing one. Platos perfect society would consist of three basic groups, which are Guardians (Gold), Auxiliaries (Silver), and the Artisan (Bronze). The highest of these classes are the gold people, which consist of rulers and non-rulers. Those that are rulers are societys decision policy makers and non-rulers occupy levels of civil servants. The fundamental prerequisite to becoming a genuine philosopher is to have knowledge of forms, thus enabling you to know the truth. Platos theory of the forms is partly logical and part metaphysical. Armed with the truth, he believed that philosophical ruler will always make the right decision, and rule with total wisdom, justice and virtue. The rulers, he felt, wouldnt posses any money or property, they would be free of desires, excesses, and vices. The Auxiliaries (Silver) are people of strength, courage, and military capacity; they occupy a small sector of society. All auxiliaries would be subjected to a series of tests, which will check their powers of resistance to self-interest, pleasure and other temptations. The last level, Artisan (Bronze), are the workers which might be composed of farmers and artist, essentially non-skilled workers. They would produce all the consumable and non-consumable goods deemed necessary for consumption and the continued economic viability of the society. Plato whole-heartedly felt that if ever the bronze or iron people rule the state would collapse (Class Notes). He sought to establish the concept of the gold class having wisdom, thus they should be wise and good rulers. It was imperative that those who rule be philosophers and skilled in areas that pertained to the interest of the state. Aristotles disagreed with Plato in regards to allowing one particular class to govern the state politically for indefinite period of time. He felt that to not allow interaction among the various classes would inhibit those who posses the ability to engage in political life, an injustice. He feels Platos structure of classes is politically incorrect for the state. He quotes It is a further objection that he deprives his Guardians even of happiness, maintaining that happiness of the whole state which should be the object of legislation, ultimately he is stating that those who rule (Guardians), sacrifice their happiness for control and absolute power. Those who are of the gold class, lead such a rigid life, that it will become necessary to impose the same strict way of life on those being governed. He places the idea of moderation on a high pedestal. Many individuals come to favor the concept of moderation because it is flexible, part liberal and part conservative. Platos ideal society is so difficult to conceive that Aristotle believes that no human being can achieve its rudimentary requirements. He decided to express in the Republic how men should conduct it self in a perfect society and what attitude they should posses. In retrospect, Aristotle felt by using real world experience along with real people, he can see first hand how and what way can he improve society. Plato and Aristotle both agreed on justice and viewed it objectively; that is it controls the belief a life of good nature would be provided for all people no matter their ranking in society. Aristotles states In democracies, for example, justice is considered to mean equality, no oligarchies, again inequality in the distribution of office to considered just. Plato views the idea of law and justice as what sets the standard for societys behavior in a state. Aristotle puts emphasis on the institution of the polis or civilized community. The polis was structured to allow the average individual in society to participate in political matters. This institutional forum is not the city-state or the community, but merely the larger of the two entities. It is rather a partnership between households, clans, and villages for the sake of a fully developed and self-sufficient life. The polis enables those individuals who naturally posses moral intellect and wisdom an opportunity to rise to higher positions (Class Notes). Justice is the political good within the polis, and it must promote the common interest of the people of the state. What is seen as good must be distributed and regulated through out the state. The law is also the regulating factor that arises from equal and free people in civil institution. The well being of a society is solely based upon the connection between the effort in which the citizens of the state adhere to the law of the land. A good citizen of the state will posses prudence, moderation, and justice, and above all to rule and be ruled. His belief contradicts Plato theory of one controlling class, governing the political matters and decisions that effect the state. The Theory of Democracy that Aristotle states is that democracy is a perversion form of government of polity (Class Notes). He clearly states The people at large should be sovereign rather than the few best. Plato on the other hand, wouldnt permit citizens to engage in public participation concerning governmental issues, as Aristotle would have enjoyed. Plato also felt that public judgments of disapproval and approval were based on emotional belief, instead of factual knowledge. He believes that if a revolution occurred it would happened within the corridors of the palace, hence palace revolution. This type of revolution happens when there is a transmission of power from one holder of power to another. Aristotle perceives such an event occurring between the wealthy and less fortunate in society. He feels to prevent such actions, one must participate in them. Plato thinks that in a utopia a disgruntled group of Guardians will emerge and disengage themselves from the ruling law of the state. He feels that an oligarchy two things may initiate a possible revolution: the first one is the ruler and their offspring would grow to be weak, sympathetic, and second is that the number of poor individuals will grow larger and there for be taken advantage of by the ruling class. Aristotle states that to know the factors that caused the revolution, which destroys the constitution, is to also know the principal of effect, which in turn ensure its preservation. Aristotle and Plato also have contrasting views on ethics, psychology and metaphysics. In regards to ethics, Aristotle believes that virtue is necessary for happiness, while Plato says virtue is enough for happiness. The psychological difference between the two is that Plato feels the body is a prison for the soul; body and soul are two different entities, capable of maintaining independence from one another. As for Aristotle, he claims that the body and soul are two different things, one consisting of matter the other form. He sees everything in the universe being composed of matter and form, so its not surprising that he perceives human being are too. To him form is simply the way matter is arranged. For example, a cat is composed in a feline way; thats what makes a cat. Human being for that matter, have a unique method of structure, too; thats their form. In fact, Aristotle strongly feels that nothing in existence can be without form and matter. If you eliminate its structure and form you have nothing left. So for Aristotle, the concept of soul without body or body without soul is incoherent. In regards to form, Plato expressed how things should be through utilizing vague language and poetry. In respect to friendship, I firmly believe that Aristotles views on friendship holds value in todays society. First we will touch on the various points that Aristotle makes regarding friendship, then expand on his main principle in connection to modern time, if possible. Aristotle distinguishes between three types of friendship: friendships of utility, friendships of pleasure and friendships of virtue. The idea behind friendship of utility is that it is founded on the idea of usefulness. The interaction among friends is only valued if there is usefulness between the two individuals. An example of this would be any automobile dealer and car buyer. Factoring in that they know each other, both need what the other can provide. The bond that unites the two people is based on usefulness. As long as they each can provide what the other needs, it satisfies the friendship. The second concept would be friendship of pleasure, which is basically the amount of pleasure generated between the participants. An example of this would be two people engaging in a social event, such as an outdoor festival. Each of the participants enjoys the others company. They are friends because of the pleasure they bring to themselves. The last kind of friendship is the friendship of virtue. This friendship is special and unique, such that it can only be between two people. Rather than utility and pleasure, where it can establish a group of people, this type of friendship is connected solely between two people. This type of friendship is also unique based on the fact that it can only hold any true value if both individuals are of the same virtue. People in general might regard these definitions of friend objective. Some believe that doing something for someone is solely based on the act of self ? fulfillment. Aristotle, I believe is not incorrect in stating that the idea in friendship in utility and pleasure is for our own sake, and the concept behind friendship of virtue is for the sake of the friend. These three categories are arranged in a certain format that there are influenced by the next level. These bonds of friendship can arise from various forms of potential fraternal groupings. Present day possibilities can include: various college organizations, union members, national communities and any other form of groups that people find a common denominator. For Aristotle Aristotle is more philosophically inclined than Plato; he tends to get rid of ideas that are irrelevant, and he believes that the concept of forms existing separate from matter is somewhat superfluous. He dives right into the heart of the matter. You can see Aristotle as someone who believes the world in which he occupies very satisfying just the way it is. His main focus is always connected with things that are consistent with ideal experience, without introducing unnecessary notions of concepts that cant be proven. Platos vague, poetic language in metaphysics and physics didnt stimulate inspiration; it made him uncomfortable. Both Plato and Aristotle were two men who envisioned methods on ways to improve their existing society. Plato, the political philosopher, was basically in pursuit of philosophical truth. Aristotle was more concerned with citizenship and institutional politics. They both had developed ideas and concepts to improve society as a whole. Aristotle and Plato have had a tremendous impact on political scientists of today. In Aristotle case, he was responsible for developing various democratic ideas. Even in modern democracies like our own Aristotles ideas hold true. When we vote in the election of the ruler of our country we, theoretically, are voting for the single most excellent citizen of our nation. That is we are voting for that citizen who can do the best job of working toward our common interest. The citizen of a state who has the greatest ability to work towards the salvation of the constitution has a great gift that can benefit all citizens. It only makes sense to allow that particular individual to lead the rest of the citizens in working towards the common interests of the state. In conclusion, these men were great thinkers. Their opinions on society and its function were quite different, but they both had the same concern, to build a better way of life for their societies they in lived in and for the societies that would come to be in the future.

Allied and Central Powers :: essays research papers

Allied Powers Fance has not forgotton its humiliating defeat at the hands of Germany in 1871. France was waiting for the chance to reestablish its power on the continent. France was willing to ally itself with another longtime enemy, Britain, to strenghten its hand against Germany. Great Britain had traditionally followed a policy of neutrality, which served it well. Yet some Britains were now calling for a new alliances, to counter the rising power of the German Empire. Britain depended on industrial strength for survival. Germany was a threat to that strength, as well as to Britains naval power. Russia had been defeated by the Japanese in 1905 and was troubled by unrest within borders. Russia felt a need to prove its strength to the other nations of Europe. It also desired to extend its influence and protection over Slavs in Balkan countries. Central Powers The German Empire had been created in 1871. Included in its territory were the provinces of Alsace and Lorraine, taken from France. Now Germany was the leading power on the Continent. But Germany was not secure. Directly to the west was France, waiting for the chance to reclaim Alsace-Lorraine. To the east was Russia, recently allied with France. And on the seas the rapidly growing German navy competed with the more powerful British navy. The Austro-Hungarian, Empire was not a nation of one people, but an empire of many nationalitites. The peoples that made up the empire were mainly Austrians, Hungarians, and Slavs. But the Austrians and Hungarians ruled the empire. Many SLavs who lived in the provinces of Bosnia and Herzegovina wanted to be part of the new nation of Serbia. Furthermore, Rumania and Italy had designs on territory within the empire. Russian ambitions in the Balkans brought them into conflict with the Austro-Hungarians.

My own communication and interpersonal skills Essay

I will be assessing my own communication and interpersonal skills in relation to each interaction. Verbal Communication My placement is at a pre-school, I have good verbal communication as I interact well with the children when I am speaking to them I listen to what their saying when they are speaking to me, I keep an open mind and concentrate on the main direction of the children’s message to me, I avoid distractions to make sure I am effectively listening to them at all times, usually the children speak to me about the toys they are playing with and they tell me about the activities they are doing. For example the in my last one to one interaction I was talking a girl in the nursery about her pets at home and if she looks after them, even though I don’t have any pets I listened to the girl and gave her appropriate feedback and questions. I make sure I am in a comfortable environment so I can hear the children effectively so it’s not noisy; I am always prepared to listen to everything the children say to me. In a one to one interaction I find it easier to communicate verbally as I’m only speaking to one child so I can stay focused on that particular child and what they’re saying to me to make sure I am actively listening to the child, this is an area I communicate well with and many skills in this area improve every time I go. Whereas in group interaction I find verbal communication harder so I need to improve on this, I find it hard to speak to more than one child at a time because they are children they are all speaking at the same time so I am getting a lot of information at the same time I try my best to effectively listen to them but with a lot of information being told to me it’s hard to process the information, I need to improve on this by making sure the children are taking turns so I can listen to them without getting bored. For example in my last group interaction I was making a puzzle with the three children and they were all asking me questions at the same time to I found it hard to listen to all the questions. I also need to improve on the questions I ask the children to make a conversation with them; I ask them questions but then I run out of questions to ask them so then the conversation stops, I should ask more questions that interest the children so my communication skills improve. In a group interaction I am better, so I am good at asking questions as there are more children with more questions to ask me so the  conversation run more better and information is shared quicker and more effectively, compared to a one to one interaction I run out of questions to ask the child as I do not obtain information well. I need to improve on this skill to I can communicate better with a single child to give them more involvement in the conversation. I can respond to questions more effectively as I find it easier to understand the question they have asked me because they are children and the questions are quite simple. I let the children tell me what they want to say to me so I can clarify my info rmation. Reflective speaking I think this skill is something I need to improve on; I do try my best to give the best feedback to the children in both types of interactions. In a one to one interaction I find it easier to communicate as I can understand the child’s message clearly and I am able to give feedback as the how the message is received, however sometimes I struggle to speak back to them if I haven’t understood what they are saying, this skill is vital and I need to improve on it every time I go to placement. In a group I interaction it’s the same with the listening as lots of children are speaking to me at the same time I need more time to process and give feedback but as they are children they get impatient waiting for me, I do have an interest in what the children are saying it’s just a matter of finding balance in my communication and interpersonal skills. Even though I am good at speaking to them effectively but I can’t give them feedback or start a conversation if I struggle to make a conversation but I can speak to the children and make sure they understand what I am saying to them. For example I was speaking to a child about her family and what jobs her mum and dad does but I couldn’t think of what to respond back to her so she got confused even though I did try my best. Non-verbal communication skills My non-verbal communication skills could do with some improvement, when I am communicating one to one my body movements can sometimes show to the child that I am not enjoying a conversation with them I try and show as much interest in possible but sometimes things like my posture if I am slumped while talking to a child it can communicate to them that I have a negative attitude to the conversation. In both types of interaction I struggle to  make eye contact it’s something I need to improve on I often don’t look at the children, in a group interaction I can’t keep eye contact with every child but I try my best to make them realise that I am going to talk to them and to let them know when it is their turn to speak to me, in a one to one I only have one child to focus one so I find this easier to do, however I am still nervous and this is why I struggle to keep eye contact , I think with more confidence I will be able to keep eye contact with the children when I am speaking to them. My closeness towards the children is a thing that I am doing well I make sure I give the appropriate space for the children to feel relaxed and for me to also to feel relaxed to effectively communicate with them. I thing I think I am good at in both type of interactions is my facial expression I always make sure i am smiling at the children to make it seem like I am interested in what they are saying to me so it then makes them realise that I am interested in what they have to say to me it makes sure that my communication with the children is effective. I am also good at gestures I do gestures a lot to express to the children what I am feelings, if I am speaking to them about something exciting I use my hand gestures to show them that I am interested in what they are saying to me. In my one to one to interactions I can focus more on what a child Is saying to me so my hand gestures express to them how I am feelings about what they or saying or what I am saying to them, this is the same with group interactions as I am able to use gestures to what all the children or saying as they are often talking about near enough the same things. However, I need to improve on negotiating with the children, a s they often argue with each other and I find it hard to stop the argument and reach an agreement. I need to make sure a negotiation is best for themselves, this is in a one to one interaction I do not need to negotiate but in a group I need to find common interests so they don’t argue. I need to improve on ending the conversation as I often don’t end the conversation so then the children might still have something they want to say to me, I should tell the children that I am going to go elsewhere so that they know the conversation is over or make it aware by body language or my facial expressions. One of the main things I need to improve on is my communication with the staff; I don’t communicate with the staff much. When they ask me to do something like helping the children wash their hands, I listen effectively and give appropriate feedback this is  something I can do well. But I need to speak to them more if I am unsure of things, but it is the children who I communicate with every time I go, the staffs are busy doing other things and they communicate with me when it is needed. I don’t really need to improve on this but I can talk to the staff and communicate with them if I need to for the benefit of the children. Overall I have more things I need to improve on for my communication and interpersonal skills. I find it easier to communicate in a one to one interaction as it is only one child and I can speak to them better as I am able to process my information faster and give the correct feedback to the child in order for them to understand. In a group interaction there is more than one children speaking to me and sometimes too much information is given to me at once and I can then not give feedback to the children, this is something I need to improve on and this can be done through effective turn taking so the children understand that they need to take turns in communication this will then make my skills better so I will be able to communicate more effective. I am able to stay calm and stay focused when communicating with both the staff and the children this is my main skill that I can do well, but my main skill that I need to improve on is my non-verbal communication skills as this is where I often find myself communicating that I am bored to the children because they can go on for a while and I do get bored of what they are saying so I can fold my arms and yawn portraying bad body language , this is why I need to make sure I am listening to what they are saying, I could ask different questions to change the subject of the conversation to something that I understand better. Good communication and interpersonal skills are vital when I am in my placement setting as I need to communicate well with service user to develop a good relationship with them so they understand what I am saying and for me to give them feedback to them. As I now know the things I need to improve on every time I go to placement I can improve my communication skills with the children and adults in order for my communication and interpersonal skills to be effective. I am going to be evaluating factors that influenced the effectiveness of both the one to one and group interaction. (D1) Effective Factors in one to one interactions Having good confidence– In my one to one interactions I have more confidence  as I am only talking to one child, I felt like I had more control over the conversation as I only had to deliver information to and from the person. Only talking to one child made me less anxious and nervous and I was speaking clearly and calmly as my nerves weren’t making me stumble on my words so this meant that the child could understand what I was saying so she was able to give me good feedback and I was able to respond without feeling anxious that I was going to mess up. My good confidence influenced my communication to make it better because I felt like I was enjoying the conversation instead of it being all over the place this enabled the conversation to run more smoothly and fun. Only having one child to speak to doesn’t overwhelm me with information so as I said earlier I had more control over what I was saying to the child and what I would respond so it made me feel better a bout the communication I was saying so I could then think of more questions to ask so the conversation between me and the child would last longer. It also helped that the child I was speaking to had good confidence she’s outgoing and she always has something to say to me so this influenced the effectiveness of the interactions because she wasn’t quiet and this helped me to speak to her so it didn’t effect my nerves as she kept asking me questions so it made the conversation more enjoyable. Knowing the child well– In my one to one interactions I speak to a child I know best, a child that I feel more comfortable speaking to because I speak to them a lot compared to the other children. It helps me because if I know the child then I have more things that I know about them e.g. favourite singers or their favourite foods, so I can then speak to them about a specific thing that they like to talk about then that child speaks to me a lot about that, so I am then able to respond better as I already know things about the child from previous conversations. The conversation is influenced by this as my confidence is better when I speaking to them because I know them better and I know how they interact with me so this then enables me to be more engaged with that child. As I know more things about them I can ask them questions related to something they like so they feel happier speaking to me about it as it excites them to tell me more about it so I more information is given and the conversations runs more effectively. When I child knows me better it helps as they then feel more comfortable speaking me as they know who I am so when I’m having a conversation with the child like in my last one to one  interactions we are happier speaking to each other so we are more likely to find common interests and make the communication more effective as we can listen better to each other and respond better. Environmental factors – good amount of space- In my one to one interactions I have more space a around me as I am only talking to on e child compared to several in a group interaction. Having more space around me made me more relaxed and comfortable to talk to the child as I don’t feel like I am consumed to one area, this makes me more less nervous when I’m speaking to a child as I know that I have more space around me to express how I’m feeling in a conversations through gestures and this can make a conversation more funnier. Having personal space around me means I can move around while I’m speaking to a child and I can do some actions to get the child more involved. Space influenced the effectiveness in my one to one interactions as when I have a good amount of personal space around me I can think my thoughts through better without getting paranoid that I don’t have enough space this enables me to deliver my information clearly and effectively so the child understand what I am saying to them. The amount of space I have is always at a reasonable amount as there is only one child, so this means I can effectively respond to what the child’s saying to me without getting panicked and I can then think of more questions to ask so this means that the communication is effective. Also this meant that the child had space to talk to me effectively so she didn’t get panicked that she didn’t have enough space to move around like through her gestures, so we were able to speak to each other clearly and all these reasons enabled me to communicate effectively with the child. Environmental, Good noise level – When I’m having my one to one interaction with a child the room has some background noise but its fairly quiet and it makes sure I am able to concentrate on the children without getting distracted by other noises that the staff or children could be making, I can listen to them effectively to them as the noise is at a respectable level, as I am listening to them effectively the conversation runs faster and more smoothly. Being able to hear everything the child is saying helped them to understand what I was saying to them therefore I gave them appropriate feedback. It also allowed me not to misunderstand anything the child said to me so I didn’t make mistakes in what I said back to them so this influenced the effectiveness of my  communication between the child as it helped me to have full concentration on everything the child was saying, as the room was at a good noise level and the information to be delivered effectively and me and the child was able to carry on the conversation without the noise level being to loud, as it was just one child I could understand what she was saying to me as she was close to me so the noise levels were good so I was relaxed and so was the child so it made our communication effective as we were ab le to talk more freely. Group interactions Questions being planned out – In my group interaction there was four children in the group and all of them were confident and they each had lots of questions to ask me and each other. On child asked a question to me and I was able to answer it effectively as the questions were straightforward and every child on the table understood them so they were able to effectively listen to the question and they all responded well, this allowed the conversation to run smoothly without any arguments happening as the children all agreed on the questions and they were interested in them so it made the conversation more enjoyable so it was effective as all children participated because they were interested in the questions being asked or explained. Having the questions being planed out before hand allowed me to have some kind of structure to what I was going to ask so I had a basic idea of how the children would respond and how I would respond to them, I looked at what children was in the gro up and what type of questions they would enjoy answering to help the communication be effective, this then made sure no-one was left not knowing what to say as I always had a back up question. Once one child asked a question all the rest of the children thought of a question to ask as it related to the first question, so they all took turns and asked their questions it influenced the effectiveness of the interaction as questions were being asked so more information was being shared and the communication was effectively being listened and responded to. I had some good questions to ask the children and they were all interested in them so they listened to what I was saying and if a child got stuck on a question I aided them along. Having good and relatable question effectively helped the conversation as the more information was being responded to, as the children understood and were interested in what was being asked the listen nicely to  other children’s answers, I was listening to the children and giving good feedback and the overall conversation was enjoyable and fun and all the children were interacting well with me and each other from the questions said. Me bein g the group leader – As I was talking to a small group I was in charge of the conversation as I was the oldest and the most responsible in the group. Having a group leader helped me to have control of the conversation as I was able to help the children if they were struggling with the activity I was doing to I guided them through step by step so they understood what they had to do. When we had a group discussion I guided the group and made sure that everyone was having a turn so it was a fair conversation and it gave chance for other children to think of something to say. I had control over the conversation so when the children started disagreeing with each other I can stop them from arguing so this made sure that the conversation was running smoothly and calmly without arguments. I made sure that the if a child wasn’t speaking much I prompted them to speak so everything was fair and in order, and when the children went of topic I could ask a question to that was related to what we were previously speaking to, me being their made sure that the communication was effective as it could make sure that the children were listenin g to each other and responding to each effectively so I could make the group function better without the children getting frustrated. For example, I was making sparkles with my group and I talked them through step by step and made sure that they were sharing out the equipment fairly without them arguing with each other so I could effectively communicate and that they could listen and respond with each other, all these reasons helped me to effectively guide the group conversation so the communication was effective, so I was effectively interacting, listening and speaking to them as a group leader and that they were effectively listening and speaking to me. As a group leader me smiling and being open armed encouraged the children to participate with me as I was the group leader so they were looking up to me. Having a good amount of time to speak – In my group interactions I have a good amount of time to listen to what the children are saying to me, having a good amount of time to listen to the children allows to think through what I am saying and what I will say to them without being rushed by other things tha t are happening. I also allows the children to have enough time to listen to what I am saying  so they didn’t misunderstand what I was saying to them, this influenced the effectiveness of the conversation as having time to communicate made things not rushed so I was more relaxed when speaking to the children. I could then speak to the group of children without feeling that I had to rush things with them so I was speaking clearly, as it was a group and there was more then one person having an effective time to communicate helped me to speak to all of the children and it made sure everyone had a turn so there was no arguing. I was able to clarify my information so it was correct and it helped me and the children as I wasn’t anxious about what I was saying, my body language showed that I was relaxed and I was interacting well with the children, having enough time to do the discussion/activity with the children helped me to not rush things and it influenced the communication as it was pla nned out well and everyone was listening and responding well to each other. Having common interests – In my group interaction, picked a group of children that were all doing the same activity which was playing with the dinosaurs, I then went over and started to talk to the children and asked them questions like ‘what is your favourite dinosaurs’ and ‘what shall we call this dinosaur’, this influenced the communication as they were all doing the same thing so all the children were interested in what I was asking them, so this helped the conversation to flow better as more information was being delivered from each child. As I was interested in what they were playing with so I listened well to the children and then I responded well to them to keep the interested, having common interests helped the effectiveness of my group interaction as everyone was interested in the topic of the conversation so it made me and the children more relaxed. My good confidence, knowing the child well, having a good amount of space and it not being noisy influenced the effectiveness of my one to one interactions they each helped in different ways and they allowed me to have good listening and speaking skills as well as portraying good non-verbal communication skills. They helped me to understand the child better and to give good feedback to him/her. Questions, common interests, having enough time and me being a group leader all influenced the effectiveness of my interactions with four children in different ways, having more children to speak and listen helped me in some ways compared to my one to one interactions, but all these factors helped me to communicate  better with the children and for them to communicate with me. References Sheet given in class on what to do for the tasks (Accessed 08/12/14) PowerPoint on learning box – ‘Barriers to effective communication’ (Accessed 08/12/14)

Perception About Fairness Creams Essay

Research Problem: There has been an increase in the advertisement for Fairness cream for men. Several new brands have cropped up following the lead of Fair and Handsome from Emami, the House of Fair and Lovely, the most popular fairness. We now have Vaseline and Nivea running the race to capture the market of men who wish to have fairer skin. We wished to analyse how the youngsters of today perceive this cream for fairer men, which breaks the conventional image of â€Å"Tall, Dark and handsome†. Hence, the question, â€Å"What do the Indian youth think about the Fairness Cream for men?† Objective: To understand the perception of the youth towards Fairness Cream for men. Research Methodology: As the first step towards finding the answer to this question, a qualitative research was needed. The projective technique of Association was used. Association tasks, the most commonly employed projective technique, require subjects to respond to the presentation of an object by indicating the first word, image, or thought elicited by the stimulus. The respondents were provided with two stimuli. First, Fair and Lovely to gauge their idea about fairness cream in general and fairness for women. Next stimulus was Fair and Handsome, the fairness cream for men from the same house. This was done to understand what they felt about fairness for men. Apart from the projective technique, the next method of data collection was obtrusive observation. The respondents were observed to understand and cross check the response of the respondents. Some of the respondents were further probed to understand the reason for their response. Observations: After collecting the data from a sample size of around 50, which were a good mix of both men and women, ranging from the age of 20 – 28 years, following observations have surfaced: 1. Majority of the people associate fairness cream with the brand ambassador, who generally represent beauty and grandeur. 2. While the most obvious and common association for Fair and Lovely cream was fairness or beauty, the response for Fair and Handsome was mixed. While some people associated it with handsome men, many people responded â€Å"Gay†. They believe fairness is associated with women and not something men desire. 3. The third type of response was of those people who believe fairness for men or women is more of stereotyping and not good for the society in general. These people were further probed to inquire  about the reason for the same. The response was, â€Å"India was ruled by the Whites for a long time. Somehow, Indians associate fair skin with superiority. This is also what the fairness cream advertisement also imply. A girl with fairer skin fares better in all aspects, be it personal or professional life. Similar is the scenario for men with fair skin.† 4. The last perception about fairness cream for both men and women was that they do not work and are just a gimmick to which people fall prey to.