Free sample - The Hilton Concept of Quality. translation missing

The Hilton Concept of Quality. The Hilton Concept of QualityAll representatives and franchiseesâ follow Brand acknowledgment; offer reasonable and pleasant lodgings and are a piece of a multi worldwide system of inns of one to four stars. The system is developing each day asâ Hilton Worldwide procures inns everywhere throughout the world. The system guarantees an office of reservations, brand acknowledgment and internal controls that are known as the Hilton Way . This was the maxim of Conrad Hilton framing the organization in the 1940's. His first Hilton inn goes back to 1925 in Texas. Hilton Worldwide runs it's companies underâ Total Quality Management (TQM) as they train just their administration and the administration of every lodging whether it be corporate or diversified managedâ toâ brand acknowledgment and to be client centered. All procedures done must be done the Hilton way (process thinking, legitimate condition). The inside running of lodgings is the duty of the individual inn. With the end goal of this Paper the Embassy Suites and the Beverly Hilton will be utilized to show how the Hilton way has not generally been adequate in quality appraisal and it has been important to include extra controls.. Hilton Worldwide has made an entangled in house program of RevPar record, the Balanced Scorecard and Brand Equity. A large number of dollars have been spent in an information organize adjusting all inns with the goal that their monetary and factual information can be a piece of the Hilton Network. Every inn pays roughly $70 000 to have the framework introduced. One can't be called Hilton without holding fast to the network.â Everything is estimated, measured and sent back to corporate to pass judgment on their degree of administration and as far as incomes. (hiltonworlwide) RevPar list (income per accessible room) is an essential measurement used to test the money related reasonability of a lodging. Hilton Corporation utilizes the RevPar Index, brand value and the fair scorecard. Each lodging in their framework from the 1 star to the 4 stars tries to do the Brand Hilton says others should do Convey an incentive for Money Income per accessible room or the % of inhabitance x the normal day by day rate is to show the money related feasibility of an inn contrasted with another in a similar zone simultaneously and a similar kind. (strglobal) A four star Hilton Embassy Suite saved at 90% inhabitance during the Christmas season in Los Angeles contrasted with a four star Embassy Suite saved at 85% inhabitance at a higher rate in San Francisco won't work out quite as well. What gets estimated gets oversaw is a piece of Hilton's system (TQM) and strategic procedures. The phrasing they have created has become to be known as theâ Adjusted Scorecard Corporate administration, corporate possessed and oversaw inns and diversified inns are influenced. It is a piece of Hiltons long and momentary system. All quality affirmation depends on the information got from execution measure information set up from the kind of work, the goals accomplished and the advancement made. Nothing remains out. Anything which can be evaluated is utilized for quality. The Scorecard is placed into a complicated detailing information framework that every lodging is required to have purchased and set up so as to keep up the Hilton picture. Contingent upon the outcomes, every individual in the association has impetuses as inspirational elements. Their exhibition and desires are consistently a significant piece of the framework. Hilton utilizes the information and insights to pass judgment on results. TQM depends on internal execution and CEM depends on outward execution. RevPar Index, Balanced Scorecardâ and Brand Equity have been estimated in the Hiltons over the world to pass judgment on consumer loyalty. Hilton began with Brand Equity with the utilization of Hilton Hotel 50 years back. Probably the most punctual lodging was the Beverly Hilton. Brands with client mindfulness and relationship with quality or consistency are powerful value brands. A client knows in any Hilton inn on the planet, he will get a similar kind of service.â Now they have developed or extended in utilizing an extra H withâ Hilton Hotel, HHonors program, Homewood Suites, Hampton. All under the umbrella of H. Measurementsâ of brand value can be made yet they are just approximations. Keller K.L., 1993 Hilton's fair scorecardâ has empowered to measure the nature of the day by day development and expanded brand value by quality control of the information that one Hilton is the equivalent from another. Also, notwithstanding share-of-advertise development, non-budgetary estimates show improvement, too. Among organization possessed and - oversaw lodgings, current consumer loyalty contemplates uncover solid increments in clients' suppositions on generally fulfillment, their probability of suggesting Hilton inns, and their probability to come back to a given property. The three variables contain a proportion of reliability Hilton tracks closelyand that score as of late arrived at its most significant level ever. Hensdill (2009) The scorecard tests neatness and conditions. Administration measures are left to the individual lodging. (News Release, 2003) The inns are kept to the Hilton Way due to the inward information arrangement of check and balance and factual controls. Though administration has become a significant piece of the present business to separate between inn networks and set up client reliability, it is kept separate from the testing procedure of the quality confirmation .(beverly) Hilton Worldwide made an extra two segment of the Balance Scorecard to incorporate quality confirmation and visitor fulfillment for the Embassy Suites. They have shock visits, assessments of kitchens, and guestrooms. Visitors are approached to rate various administrations in the lodging. Everything is still measured and nothing is managed on an enthusiastic level. (News Release, 2003) This means they depend on Total Quality Management. Beverly Hilton is an exclusive lodging which just uses the point arrangement of HHonors of the Hilton program. It was imperative to keep the name and have the brand value of the H as the Beverly Hilton is one of the most seasoned post war lodgings. As a private inn, they are not required to hold fast to TQM nor the Hilton Way. They utilize an outer organization for Quality Assurance and areâ administration situated. Their administrative group utilizes client experience the executives reasoning. In spite of the fact that they depend vigorously on testing and inspecting, they question each part of their activities. The voice of the client is the need of the inn. The outer organization has their own quantitative trial of value: research is done during the time in client experience and inspiration ofâ representatives through remuneration and acknowledgment, devices are built up to prepare staff in client care (understanding); passionate reviews, studies, and shock visits. Getting rea dy for the yearly quality confirmation review, with LRA Worldwide, the Beverly Hilton can react rapidly and on the spot ofâ any inadequacy found. Measurable examinations are finished utilizing the CEM (client experience management).(The Beverly Hilton,2005) 1. Examination of CEM versusâ TQM by Hilton Worldwide. Measurements of the successful on incomes between two kinds of the board - Motivation: administrations or requirements - Fidelity: enthusiastic or area - Emotions: need or joy Control Chart to think about the vacillation of RevPar per establishments during the Christmas season 2. In spite of the fact that Hilton is top of the rundown in consumer loyalty, more should be possible to change the Henry Ford chain line feeling that everything must be the equivalent. With a more client orientated administrative framework, Hilton inns will appear to be all the more plain and less mechanical. 3.â Hilton stays up with the latest with the different national tests. They are at the highest priority on the rundown of the vast majority of its rivals: image value: (Equitrend study) Visitor fulfillment is the most noteworthy for as far back as three years with the Customer Satisfaction record (ACSI)(Big Gains,June 2010) They have inward testing of the better quality lodgings and factual investigation of the entire system: balance scorecards ( The interior working of the inns are up to the proprietors of the franchisees. As the desires for the budgetary objectives are high, the enterprising demeanor doesn't take into consideration a low degree of laborers' presentation. Persuasive pay in monetary honors is given for the individuals who meet set objectives. The entire framework depends on money related achievement. In spite of the fact that visitor fulfillment is the most noteworthy in the business, it depends on American measurements. Brand acknowledgment is turning out to be increasingly more significant as globalization is without outskirts.

They Will Be Proud free essay sample

I lived in a modest community in Mexico named Tepalcingo. The boulevards made of little shakes, the streets self-destructing a lot of like the houses. Children would go around playing with old toys and mud. I was that kid, my family battled. We lived in a little house made of tree limbs with mud that helped them keep awake; and the wet earthy colored mud was our floor, one bed for five individuals; my folks, my two more seasoned sisters and myself. We didn’t have a spot to shower, and we utilized a huge canister with a little holder to pour water over ourselves and warmed water over a carefully assembled chimney. My father was rarely home, he was away working in a processing plant, while my mother remained at home and dealt with us.My sisters and I generally trusted that my father will get back home he would present to us our preferred yogurt, until one day he didn’t appear. We will compose a custom exposition test on They Will Be Proud or then again any comparable point explicitly for you Don't WasteYour Time Recruit WRITER Just 13.90/page I didn’t know why at the time nor would I comprehend: I was just 2, however my mother did, so did my sisters. After a year I was on a plane made a beeline for the U.S. The whole time I thought my father hadabandoned us; he was striving to get us to a greener, better spot. As I grew up, we moved around a great deal. Cash was tight, when I was seven we imparted a two room condo to my uncle and his companion. They had one room, and we had the other. Living in Oregon was distinctive contrasted with Mexico. Rather than remaining at home with my mother and aiding around the house, I never observed my mother or father. My more established sister Marlen resembled my mom. Each morning for school she’d wake me up, we would eat our grain half sleeping. I would sit on a seat before my television watching music recordings, my eyes half shut and my body fretful. I have to wake up I can’t miss school. It was uncommon to have my mother home when Id wake up for school. I was use to it. To see her there one morning it was peculiar, and I proceeded with my morning schedule. While I was eating my grain with my sisters, my mother disclosed to me she would take me to my bus station. I had never been so upbeat I immediately got up and hurried to get my rucksack. We hurried out the entryway and advanced toward the bus station, most of the way there we heard a humming sound; it was her chief. All I heard was â€Å"Ill be prepared in 5 minutes† she cleaned condos with different women so her getting called haphazardly was nothing unexpected. My mom stooped down and kissed me and said sorry. She strolled back home, and I strolled to my bus station. The whole transport ride I hushed up. No words no outward appearances just tears gradually advancing down my face. Do my folks detest me? Is that why they never need to be near. Some time passed by, and I started to get everything. My folks didn’t despise me, truth be told, they cherished me so much they buckled down all day every day to accommodate our family. They may have been depleted, yet they never surrendered. When I was ten my folks were maintaining two sources of income. I saw them both return home late around evening time. Drained, exhausted and focused on, they never realized I saw them thusly on the grounds that when I exited to embrace them, they would grin and imagine they were alright. I’d embrace them and kiss them goodnight. I trust they’re alright. They appear to be so worn out please God let them rest.I grew up, and things were showing signs of improvement. We got our own condo, and my folks were home all the more frequently now, not as pushed yet at the same time tired. My folks have endeavored to get our family to where we are currently. No, we dont have a great deal of cash, however we are wealthy in affection. They encouraged me numerous significant exercises I despite everything convey with me right up 'til the present time. Exercises that I attempt to utilize each day, in circumstances that are considered reasonable. In a large number of my classes in secondary school, I have made some unpleasant memories understanding what is happening or what I need to do. I sit in class my folks experienced so a lot and got past it I can as well. It spurs me to connect and have a go at something new. Im pleased to have guardians like mine. I may not live in an enormous house and have every one of these extravagances, yet theyve given me what I need if not more, my family under one rooftop sound and that to me is extremely valuable. I need to make my folks glad, I challenge myself and will keep on provoking myself to arrive at my objectives to show my folks t hat their difficult work has paid off also.

Impulsive Decisions

Impulsive Decisions Happy Holidays everyone! I cant believe another semesters done and over with pushing me officially past the halfway point at MIT. (AHHH). Im now sitting at home, trying to relax but not quite, because there is a LOT of work to be done. But how could this be! Its Christmas! Well, lets back up a little bit… For one reason or other that I cannot fully explicate, this semester has been a blur, passing by faster than I could process. While one always needs a certain level of conscious judgment to go to classes, carry on coursework, etc., I feel like this semester, Ive been putting school on cruise control. This functionality might come from having been at MIT for a while already from becoming an upperclassman and developing a programmed rhythm for handling a semester, all the way from pre-registering classes to finals… A parallel (or antithesis?) to this apparent cruise control on the school side is a burgeoning urge to just LET. LOOSE. and jump on everything not class related. Im not sure if this makes sense, but basically this has been an impulsive semester. Early in the school year, I kept getting emails about spending IAP  all-expenses paid in Korea, teaching kids science/English. I never gave it a second thought, because its just not something I imagined doing during IAP. But one night in September, I was checking my emails, writing down my French Word of the Day and then  Korean Word of the Day, and then a lightbulb literally went off in my head. I could be learning Korean from these emailsor I could be learning Korean in Korea !? I mean, why CANT I be on the other side of the world during IAP? Why MUST I do something completely career-related (the career part of which Im not totally sure about yet anyway)? So I just grabbed a notebook, jumped on my bed, wrote down ideas, and sent in an application. So here I am on Christmas Day, putting together several weeks of teaching materials for this Jeju Global Initiative, which is a very new project aiming to connect MIT students with talented young students in Korea who already have some experience in English. The bigger goal here then is to inspire an interest in science, technology, debate, and thinking-out-of-the-box in general. Twenty-two students, myself included, will be heading to Jeju Island, Korea and teaching courses on site at Jeju National University. Over the month of January, I will be teaching a three-week class on the impact of design and a one-week class on the power of modern media. Were also doing night-time lectures on random, fun topics. Some of my topics are: typography, American slang, hip-hop, and rapid prototyping. And Jeju Island itself isnt too shabby :P But well be going in Januaryso maybe itll be more like this. Anyways, side story This semester, I also got my ears pierced for the first time. You know, if youre a girl and you didnt get your ears pierced by your parents when you were a baby, or before 7 years old, or during that preteen phase when everyone did it its going to take some convincing. Or maybe I just think too much. Anyway, Ive been considering getting my ears pierced for several years now, but  just couldnt go through with it. The first phase of doubt was simply pain. (But I didnt want to admit to being a baby and got over that.) Then it was the practical concern of too much maintenance and inconvenience. (Again, this seemed lame.) And most recently, I preoccupied myself with a more high-brow excuse: I dont want any part of my body altered from the way it originally was. (Yeah….ok.) Despite this towering pyramid of the stages of psychological defense, I went to a piercing parlor with my good friend Juhee on a random Wednesday and got it done. (Shoutout to the Juhee who got the industrial piercing that day and made sure I did not back out).  At the turn of November, I havent really gotten over all those previous concerns but getting my ears pierced suddenly felt like somethingIjusthavetodonow. Inexplicable, but I did it! And its done! And theres no going back! And Im very happy about it :) I was chatting with a friend in studio in the middle of the night about one thing weve both learned this semester so much can change in just one week.  It took just a minute or two for me to decide I want to do the Jeju program, and another to decide on pierced ears. Live anticipating nothing but surprise, often from yourself. :) On that note, I am leaving on Wednesday and will update from Korea! Have good winter breaks everybody ~

Italian Verbs Invitare Conjugations

invitare: to invite; urge; ask, induce Regular  firt-conjugation Italian verbTransitive verb (takes a  direct object) Indicative/Indicativo Presente io invito tu inviti lui, lei, Lei invita noi invitiamo voi invitate loro, Loro invitano Imperfetto io invitavo tu invitavi lui, lei, Lei invitava noi invitavamo voi invitavate loro, Loro invitavano Passato Remoto io invitai tu invitasti lui, lei, Lei invit noi invitammo voi invitaste loro, Loro invitarono Futuro Semplice io inviter tu inviterai lui, lei, Lei inviter noi inviteremo voi inviterete loro, Loro inviteranno Passato Prossimo io ho invitato tu hai invitato lui, lei, Lei ha invitato noi abbiamo invitato voi avete invitato loro, Loro hanno invitato Trapassato Prossimo io avevo invitato tu avevi invitato lui, lei, Lei aveva invitato noi avevamo invitato voi avevate invitato loro, Loro avevano invitato Trapassato Remoto io ebbi invitato tu avesti invitato lui, lei, Lei ebbe invitato noi avemmo invitato voi aveste invitato loro, Loro ebbero invitato Future Anteriore io avr invitato tu avrai invitato lui, lei, Lei avr invitato noi avremo invitato voi avrete invitato loro, Loro avranno invitato Subjunctive/Congiuntivo Presente io inviti tu inviti lui, lei, Lei inviti noi invitiamo voi invitiate loro, Loro invitino Imperfetto io invitassi tu invitassi lui, lei, Lei invitasse noi invitassimo voi invitaste loro, Loro invitassero Passato io abbia invitato tu abbia invitato lui, lei, Lei abbia invitato noi abbiamo invitato voi abbiate invitato loro, Loro abbiano invitato Trapassato io avessi invitato tu avessi invitato lui, lei, Lei avesse invitato noi avessimo invitato voi aveste invitato loro, Loro avessero invitato Conditonal/Condizionale Presente io inviterei tu inviteresti lui, lei, Lei inviterebbe noi inviteremmo voi invitereste loro, Loro inviterebbero Passato io avrei invitato tu avresti invitato lui, lei, Lei avrebbe invitato noi avremmo invitato voi avreste invitato loro, Loro avrebbero invitato Imperative/Imperativo Presente invita inviti invitiamo invitate invitino Infinitive/Infinito Presente invitare Passato avere invitato Participle/Participio Presente invitante Passato invitato Gerund/Gerundio Presente invitando Passato avendo invitato

Gender Equality Women And Women - 1570 Words

Gender Equality Throughout history, gender equality has been a recurring issue. In different cultures across the world there has been an imbalance between the roles of men and women in society. Women, in particular, have had a difficult time being treated with the same respect and privileges as men. In society today gender equality as become less of an issue because women have fought hard to be where they are today. Starting from early civilization, men have held the power within government and society, while women have been seen as housewives. This can be seen through many literary works, which tells a lot about the time in which the work was written. Many authors represent the time period they live in through the ideas in their works. In â€Å"Assemblywomen†, Aristophanes shows that in that time period, the role women played in society was that of the housewife. They were thought of as the person who should be taking care of housework and the men were the ones who were in charge of the gove rnment. In â€Å"Vagabond† the author, Colette, shows the struggles that women faced trying to live on their own in a society where the men have been the ultimate breadwinners. Through Plato’s â€Å"Republic†, he shows a different viewpoint on the role that women should play in society. To begin, â€Å"Assemblywomen† teaches the reader a lot about the time period in which Aristophanes lived. His play is a comedy in which the men and women change roles in society. In this play, the ideas behind the societyShow MoreRelatedGender Equality : Women And Women1802 Words   |  8 Pagesimbalance between the roles of men and women in society. Gender equality has been a recurring issue dating back to the start of civilization. Women, in particular, have had a difficult time being treated with the same respect and privileges as men. In society today, gender equality as become less of an issue because women have fought hard to get to where they are. Starting from early civilization, men have held the power within government and society, while women have been seen as housewives. This canRead MoreGender Equality For Women And Women1215 Words   |  5 Pagesman at a time, across that line, so that ultimately, men can stand alongside women and be on the right side of histo ry, making gender equality a reality in the 21st century†. (TED) Now in order to direct her language to the right audience, Elizabeth must choose the level of language that best suits her audience and who her target audience is. Since she’s presenting her vision and advocating for change to both men and women, with a variety of intellectual levels, we can see that Elizabeth uses a transparentRead MoreGender Equality And Equality In Gender Men And Women728 Words   |  3 PagesGender Men and women can definitely work together and support each other to make the society better.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the days when a woman’s entire obligation was to be a good daughter,a good wife and a good mother,men and women were far from equal.Women suffered sexual discrimination until the so-called feminism came into being.Nowadays,feminism has been running for over a century.Result?It ran into the extreme of equality from my perspective. Most of us agree that men and women should enjoy equalityRead MoreGender Equality And Women s Equality1326 Words   |  6 Pagesmany decades women have been fighting for gender equality, both at home and in work place. Women have to suffering in unequal treatment in their life and struggling to be equal to men. Gender equality is really important in our society. People born equally but the society continues to push the tender roles. The gender discrimination becomes more and more common in our life but this needs to stop. People should respected each other with no matter what gender they are and gender equality is a more andRead MoreGender Equality And Empowerment Of Women1562 Words   |  7 PagesThe United Nations Millennium Declaration states that the main focus should be on gender equality and empowerment of women in order to fight poverty, hunger and with that, help development that is sustainable. (O’Brien Williams 2013,212) Taking gender into the account while obser ving global economy shows that men and women are impacted in various ways considering trade, production and financial flows. (O’Brien Williams 2013,212) The term â€Å"feminization of poverty† originates from about 1970sRead MoreGender Equality And The Empowerment Of Women Essay1212 Words   |  5 Pagesimportant advances for gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls. It is important to know how women impacted sports and opened doors for new possibilities. The principal objective of Title IX is to stop the use of federal money to support sex discrimination in education programs and to provide individual citizens helpful protection against those practices (Casey). Over the past 40 years, women sports have changed based on broken records, superior performance, and equality. Title IX disallowsRead MoreWomen s Rights Of Gender Equality And Women1005 Words   |  5 PagesHistorically women have not been provided equal opportunities in competitive and collegiate sports. In the late 1800’s, social perception was that females were weak and although they were admired by men, they were treated like objects (Lumpkin, 2013). Competitive and collegiate sports were dominated by males, with little opportunity for women to participate. Females eagerly wanted to participate, however sports were perceived inappropriate which would put their femininity in question and putRead MoreGender Equality and Women Empowerment2012 Words   |  9 PagesResearch and Literature Review Assignment 8th Semester Department of Family Medicine Scoring the Third Goal A commentary on Nepal’s efforts to promote gender equality and empower women Posan Samser Limbu R. N. 593 MBBS, 2005 BPKIHS â€Æ' The once mystical women have fallen from being worshipped as goddesses and possessors of the mystery of child birth1 to mere child bearers. If females are the oppressed among humans, perhaps they can take heart from the fact that failing to escape after mating, theRead MoreGender Equality And Women s Rights1274 Words   |  6 Pages Women in the world still face discrimination and gender equality takes action to achieve women’s rights. AAUW provides and gives women the chance to have an education, while Catalyst reaches out to women to carry out equal pay, equal participation in the workplace, and remove discrimination. UN Women attains to human rights for women. Throughout history women have fought for gender equality in the workplace and in education, and every year organizations like AAUW, Catalyst, and UN Women haveRead MoreGender Equality Between Men And Women1288 Words   |  6 Pagesbifocal phases were taking steps in the right direction toward including women, the y were far from perfect. Women were still being viewed as inferior submissive beings, even with public works now focusing on their oppression. Women’s curriculum thrust women from all walks of life into the spotlight, and showed that they were capable of much more than previously thought. The gender-balanced curriculum sought to equalize men and women and enlighten the world to the similarities, as well as the vast differences

Internet And Culture Free Essays

Discoveries and innovations in technology have directly and indirectly brought about profound changes in most basic institutions, social groups, worldviews and human values, ethical issues, the character of everyday life, and ways and means of satisfying human needs and international relations in modern society. Yet, the technological element which could be said that has deeply penetrated both the developed and developing nations of the world is the internet, bringing with it changes towards a more fluid flow of different cultures. The accessibility of the internet enables the differences and complexities mongo cultures to be presented to the world and be understood. We will write a custom essay sample on Internet And Culture or any similar topic only for you Order Now If long ago, traditions of some ethnic minorities and far-flung societies were unknown, people nowadays could have a glimpse of what is happening at the other side Of the globe. This proliferation Of information and knowledge is one of the benefits of the internet phenomenon since people are no longer ignorant of the intricacies among cultures. Moreover, biases and prejudice are reduced because people can have the chance to comprehend the rationales behind some traditions and rituals that they might find strange and disturbing. Other than this, the internet also made way for the fusion of cultures as one internet user may acquire the habits, literature, and entertainment of other countries. Transferring of cultures is not actually rare in mankind’s history. A civilization adapts to the culture of its predecessor, and a group of people borrows some elements from another race, at the same, combining it with their existing culture. The Romans had done this with the Hellenic culture, and colonized countries gained the influences from their colonial masters while retaining their indigenous culture. Hence, it is not only technological knowledge itself that is being transferred and exchanged in the internet but also cultures, traditions, and ideas. In line with this is the advent of popular culture that seems to transgress every culture and race in the world. Popular culture is a micro-culture that exists within the spheres of the World Wide Web. It is no question that popular music, movies, fashion and literature are consumed more by the youth than any other age group. The young people appear to agree on what is â€Å"in†, who is to follow and what will be the next â€Å"it† thing. Moreover, Hough culture has long been thought as heterogeneous, encompassing various races and groups, the internet made the world to look like just one big community of people hooked on the wires of social en;irking, files sharing and online gaming. There has indeed emerged a new culture entirely different from the previous cultures created before the invention of the internet. The World Wide is actually a huge community, bigger than any other existing or past communities in human history, which has developed its own culture, language and identities. Only entities would understand what â€Å"101† means, how to â€Å"tweet’, or what makes Faceable so popular. Furthermore, the internet community acquired a voice that is able to spread information and news so quick that a world leader would resign from just a clamor from the internet users. However, as much as the internet culture has become a good vehicle for change, it has also become a mode for destroying one’s life by just one click. No other culture could be as unforgiving and as offensive as the culture in the internet. Internet culture also does not respect privacy and intellectual property. Music and videos are illegally downloaded and private pictures loud be shared to almost anyone. Actions allowed by technology precipitate conflicts in values, yet these values seem to be disregarded on the internet, whatever culture one may belong. Technology, specifically the internet, has contributed largely not only to the shaping of the world in which we live but also to the modification, creation and transfer of cultures. Its influences and impacts are all pervasive. Therefore, the intimacy with and the dependence on this technology in our lifestyles and culture are expected to become stronger in the future. How to cite Internet And Culture, Papers

The Basic Process of Program Evaluation in Non

According to W.K. Kellogh Foundation (1998), program evaluation is the â€Å"efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability of a department, program or agency.†It applies â€Å"systematic measures and comparisons so as to provide the outcome of the program to executives who in turn use the results in making decisions for the program† (W.K. Kellogh Foundation 1998).Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Basic Process of Program Evaluation in Non-Profit Sector specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More An outcome is usually a description of â€Å"short or long term effects, including those that were not planned for but occurred as a result of the program’s outputs†(United Way of America, 1998).The basic process of program evaluation involves outcome evaluation as discussed below. â€Å"Outcome Evaluation† (W.K. Kellogh Foundation,1998) According to W.K. Kellogh Foundation (1998), ther e is no specific method or approach can suit all programs in outcome evaluation. However, W.K. Kellogh Foundation (1998) recommends that â€Å"it is important to start with the overall goals and outcomes of the program and then come up with a way of measuring these outcomes.† The initial step is to identify outcomes (W.K. Kellogh Foundation, 1998).This can be achieved by creating a team which may comprise of internal and external stakeholders to help you have a wider view of the outcomes of your organization (Herman Associates, 2005). The next step is to think about areas whereby change is eminent in the program. It could be change in clients, in the society or even in the larger systems (W.K. Kellogh Foundation, 1998).The outcomes can be classified into three groups: †initial outcomes, intermediate outcomes and longer-term outcomes† (Herman Associates, 2005). One way in which these outcomes can be measured is by is by identifying indicators. According to Lanzer otti Lanzerotti (2004), an indicator should be something that is visible, audible, tangible or something that can be verified and â€Å"every outcome should have at least one indicator†. Their main purpose is usually to determine the extent to which an outcome has been realized. The indicators can also be compared with targets and benchmarks. In this case, targets are your expected achievements in form of numbers while benchmarks are data from a past program that one can use to compare with a current program.Advertising Looking for research paper on public administration? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Logic models can also be used to measure outcomes in program evaluation. According to W.K. Kellogh Foundation (1998) a logic diagram is a â€Å"diagram that helps clarify the links between the components of your program design.† The logic diagram is usually composed of â€Å"inputs, activities, outputs, initial outcomes, intermediate outcomes and long term outcomes† (W.K. Kellogh Foundation, 1998). This diagram can them be compared with the program’s outcomes. Quantitative and qualitative approaches can also be used in evaluating the program outcomes (United Way of America, 1998). According to Lanzerotti Lanzerotti (2004), quantitative method involves â€Å"experimentation and testing, a reflection of changes introduced by a program in numeric form, interviewing a large group of people, and analyzing relationships between hypothesized variables and the outcomes.† On the other hand, United Way of America (1998) notes that â€Å"qualitative evaluation seeks to explain how a program functions, the views of the program implementers and the clients as well as the extent to which the objectives are met.† Some of the qualitative measures that can be applied include â€Å"collection of non- numeric, in depth descriptions of the program, sorting through large amounts of data and allowing for in-depth study of selected issues† (United Way of America, 1998). The other evaluation method of outcomes is â€Å"effectiveness and efficiency† (Lanzerotti Lanzerotti, 2004).Effectiveness seeks to examine how well the program performed. According to Lanzerotti Lanzerotti (2004), this can be achieved by â€Å"identifying standards, benchmarks or criteria against which progress or performance can be assessed.† On the other hand, â€Å"efficiency seeks to find out whether the cost was worthy the outcome by determining the output to input ratio† (United Way of America, 1998).Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Basic Process of Program Evaluation in Non-Profit Sector specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More If the output ratio is greater than the input ratio, then there was efficiency but in case the input ratio is greater than the output ratio, then there was la ck of efficiency in the program (W.K. Kellogh Foundation, 1998).The problem of inefficiency can be solved by looking for ways to minimize costs. The final evaluation method of outcomes is by use of cost benefit analysis (W.K. Kellogh Foundation, 1998).although this method is commonly applied in the profit sector, it can also be applied in the non-profit sector. One is supposed to determine the relationship between the costs and the benefits. According to W.K. Kellogh Foundation (1998) the cost benefit relationship is â€Å"the relationship of the cost of the program to the cost of achieving them.† â€Å"Politics of Goal Definition†(Hellriegell Slocum, 2007) Political behavior often occurs in organizations due to â€Å"different opinions over goals, different views about the organization and it’s limitations, different knowledge about dealing with situations as well as how to make use of resources that are scarce† (Hellriegell Slocum, 2007).These are the basic forces that result in politics of how goals are defined. However, doing away with these forces is not possible because there is no point in life when all people will have similar views. Similarly, organizations are always striving to make use of the scarce resources so as to obtain the required goals. As a result, political behavior must be exhibited as every individual in the organization strives to acquire their preferred results (Hellriegell Slocum, 2007). In cases whereby such situations arise, a manager should not use force to stop such behavior but instead should work to see that such behavior does not impact the organization in a negative way (Herman Associates, 2005). According to Hellriegell Slocum (2007) the political behavior among employees can be stimulated by the actions of a manager. For instance, as Hellriegell Slocum (2007) notes â€Å"in departments like accounting, human resources, and quality control, legal and information systems among others† employees’ performance is hard to measure.Advertising Looking for research paper on public administration? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Thus, leaders processes give yield to inadequate resources in terms of â€Å"pay, bonuses, and benefits† (Hellriegell Slocum, 2007).Other leaders tend to give the political behavior in the process of appraisal a blind eye and assume that it does not exist. However, politics in appraisal is a fact that can not be done away with and which can have several impacts. Some of these impacts as noted by Hellriegell Slocum (2007) include â€Å"organizational goals and performance are undermined; increase political behavior in other decision making processes and expose the organization to litigation if employees are terminated.† In conclusion, program evaluation involves several steps. The first step should be to identify the outcomes. After that, other processes follow. These other processes include: identifying indicators, use of logic model, use of quantitative and qualitative methods, determining effectiveness and efficiency as well as determining the cost-benefit analysis . On the other hand, political behavior is often displayed in organizations when it comes to formulation of goals. It is important for managers to know that this can not be avoided but can be minimized. One of the ways in which a manager can minimize political behavior is by ensuring that the goals are clear and specific. References Hellriegel, D. Slocum, J.W. (2007). Organizational behavior. New York: Thomson Learning. Herman, R. D. Associates. (2005). The Jossey-Bass handbook of nonprofit leadership management. 2nd ed. San Francisco: John Wiley Sons. Lanzerotti, R. Lanzerott, L. (2004). Measuring Change to Make Change: The Fundraising Case for Program Evaluation. Grassroots Fundraising  Journal, 23, 4-8. United Way of America. (1996). Measuring Program Outcomes: A Practical Approach. Alexandria: United Way of America. W. K. Kellogg Foundation. (1998).Outcomes Logic Model. Mexico: Kellogg Foundation This research paper on The Basic Process of Program Evaluation in Non-Profit Sector was written and submitted by user Stephanie Harvey to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

The Lingual Theory A Hybrid of Semiotics and Stand Point Theories of Analyzing Films

The Lingual Theory A Hybrid of Semiotics and Stand Point Theories of Analyzing Films The media is an avenue through which occurrences taking place in a society are communicated to the audience. Such communication is usually guided by specific frameworks meant to deliver information in a certain manner. Colombo (2004) points out that film and other forms of mass communication ascribe to particular theoretical frameworks to deliver their message to the target audience.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Lingual Theory: A Hybrid of Semiotics and Stand Point Theories of Analyzing Films specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More However, some of the theories used in this field have been overtaken by events, rendering them irrelevant in contemporary society. As such, it is incumbent upon the stakeholders to come up with new theoretical frameworks that respond to the evolving needs in these changing times. In the current paper, the author seeks to develop a new theory of communication with regards to film. Colombo (2004) points out that generation of new theories is made possible by building upon existing models. To this end, the author of this paper relies on the semiotics and standpoint theories to come up with a new structure of communication. The utilization of these two theories in the field of film generation and distribution is critically examined in this essay. Such assessment helps the author to come up with a hybrid theory whose concepts build on the weaknesses of the other two. The applicability of the new theoretical model, dubbed the lingual theory, will be tested against a real life scenario in contemporary media. The Semiotics Theory of Communication The theoretical structure is developed from the study of signs and their related processes and applications in communication. According to Friedman and Thellefsen (2011), the theory is closely related to the linguistic model of analyzing the structure of a particular language. The model helps to determine the meaning of the various languages used in communication. Friedman and Thellefsen (2011) add that the theory of semiotics builds on linguistic studies. To this effect, it makes use of sign systems that are not themselves linguistic in nature. In a bid to illustrate the components of the semiotics model of communication, Friedman and Thellefsen (2011) point out that signs form the backbone of the theory. Friedman and Thellefsen argue that the theoretical framework is applied in a wide array of platforms in the communication and media arena. For example, Friedman and Thellefsen (2011) are of the opinion that the theory is used in the fashion and the science fiction movie industries. The developers of this framework suggest that human beings are naturally animals. Friedman and Thellefsen (2011) add that, due to their animalistic nature, humans have the ability to develop and interpret signs. It is this development and interpretation of symbols that forms the basis of the semiotics theory.Advertising Looking for research paper on communications media? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In analyzing this theory, Li (2011) posits that there are three main branches that give it its meanings. The first is the branch that focuses on the semantics of the language. Here, the meaning of the signs used in communication is deciphered. In addition, the theory looks at the structural relations between the given signs. It is these relations that Li (2011) refers to as the semantics. Finally, the model has a pragmatic component to it. The element helps to determine the relationship between the sign using agents and the signs developed. In other words, it identifies the language in relation to the user. The theory is widely used in communication given that language and linguistics are major components of this phenomenon. In such cases, the signs are developed to form some kind of code. Such codes represent a particular element of the society (Alsina Jimenez, 2010). An example of its application is found in the imagery used to depict a specific phenomenon in the society through the media. Alsina and Jimenez (2010) hold that advertisements and films make use of sexual allure to pass across their message to the target audience. In this case, the symbol of a woman is mostly used. The need to develop this theory stems from the two of the assumptions that are made. Friedman and Thellefsen (2011) point out that the model assumes that cultures are formed through language. Consequently, the use of a language that appears to be private creates an atmosphere of unfairness. Another supposition is made with regards to speech in the society. The theory presupposes that all individuals have the ability to communicate in more than one ‘speech community’ (Colombo, 2004, p. 44). The two assumptions are evidently in conflict with each other. As a result, a need arises to generate a blend between the two (Friedman Thellefsen, 2011). The model insists that everybody can participate in the various speech communities. As a result, the theory implies that all cultures have a similar signage in their languages (Friedman Thellefsen, 2011).Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Lingual Theory: A Hybrid of Semiotics and Stand Point Theories of Analyzing Films specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Such an assumption is not entirely true. An example of the erroneous nature of such a supposition can be seen in the generational gap between people. For instance, there was a time when certain depictions that are not in use today were accepted in the media. Alsina and Jimenez (2010) make a case for feminism and how its acceptance varies depending on one’s age group. The generation that lived in the fifties accepted the image of a submissive woman in the media. The same is unacceptable in today’s society (Friedman Thellef sen, 2011). To the female watching a 50s film today, an image of a woman working out in the kitchen appears like a foreign language. Such are the reasons why the theory needs to be changed since imagery is viewed as a private language to people of different speech communities. Standpoint Theory of Communication In modern society, there exist various forms of communication which are inter-subjective in nature. The standpoint theory is a framework developed to analyze discourses of this form (Anderson Baym, 2004, p. 589). The theoretical model is of the view that people’s opinions are formed by their knowledge. As a result, the opinions vary depending on the levels of knowledge among different individuals. The perspectives of the audience in relation to a particular subject matter are based or informed by their past experiences. Anderson and Baym (2004) provide a working definition of the standpoint concept to illustrate this model. Anderson and Baym (2004) conceptualize the c oncept as a specific location from where an individual looks at their society. The standpoint model of communication focuses on a number of issues. The elements addressed include gender, race, and social class (Anderson Baym, 2004). An example of the use of this theory is evident in the way one perceives a person from the African American community. The media depictions of the said racial group’s association with crime support the biased nature of such individual perceptions. A similar situation is seen among the Hispanic community. However, a change in their social class may lead to variations in the perceptions accorded the individuals. The theory is synonymous with feminism in mass communication (Anderson Baym, 2004). Like any other social science model, the standpoint theory makes a number of assumptions. In their research, Buzzanell (2003) affirms that the standpoint model of communication is feminist in nature. The same stems from the assumption that social relations are understood on the basis of societal classes (Buzzanell, 2003). In addition, the theory postulates that the elite members of a society lord their opinions on their inferiors. The upper classes suppress the opinions and welfare of persons in the lower echelons of the social ladder. The view further assumes that the ‘standpoints’ of the social elite rank higher than those of persons from the lower cadres.Advertising Looking for research paper on communications media? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The assumptions made by the standpoint theory fuel the sentiments of those opposed to it. The critics argue that it focuses on the marginalized groups in the society, leaving out the others. According to Intemann (2010), the conceptual framework is applied in instances where there is a need to illustrate marginalization in the community. The most common example of the application of this theory is in the analysis of the issue of slavery. At the time of the slave trade, the Africans sold to slavery were believed to be from an inferior school of thought. Consequently, films created in this field tend to depict persons of African origins as inferior to the Caucasians (Intemann, 2010). In the modern times, feminism appears to be the most common channel through which the standpoint theory conveys information to the general public (Buzzanell, 2003). An example of this application is made apparent in the African context where radio is used by women to highlight their sufferings in the soci ety. Such is a biased perspective given the fact that it is discriminatory to use the radio to address the issues related to women along. Buzzanell (2003) points out that mass media exhibit feminism by depicting women as inferior to men. Intemann (2010) points out that the internet age has made information accessible to many people. As a result, the class and gender biases associated with this theory are increasingly becoming irrelevant, necessitating a new framework. The standpoint model attempts to build on previous theories by insisting that experience is not necessary in formulating perceptions about a group of people. However, by creating class and gender biases, the theory appears to erect hurdles with regards to information access. As a result, it is important to develop a better framework to reduce this bias. The Need for a New Theory of Communication Anderson and Boym (2004) posit that communication should be beneficial to the audience targeted. The said benefit can be real ized through elimination of biases. Effective communication makes use of coded language in a bid to discriminate against or pour contempt on another group of people. The two theories discussed above fail to meet the high threshold of fairness. Based on this, the need to develop an effective communication framework requires the advancement of a new theory. The shortcomings of the two theories above are grounds enough for the formulation of a new theoretical framework. The author of this essay responds to this need by developing a hybrid theoretical concept. According to Anderson and Boym (2004), communication philosophy should evolve with time. Hybridization of existing theories is a way through which this evolution is realized. The New Lingual Theory of Communication Termed the lingual theory, the new framework borrows various concepts from the two theories discussed above. According to Mejias (2001), communication is a dynamic social behavior. It follows that the frameworks through which information is communicated to the masses must respond to these dynamics. In line with this, the lingual theory attempts to introduce dynamism to the semiotics and standpoint theories. In essence, the new model brings together the two ‘antique’ frameworks and builds on their weaknesses. The underlying principle of this new framework is the language factor. Wright (2001) argues that communication should develop in tandem with the changes taking place in the language sector. The changes are usually in the semantics and the demographic perceptions associated with particular languages. In such cases, the semiotics theory addresses the issue through the signage concept. On its part, the standpoint theory donates its concepts on knowledge. By fusing the two dimensions, the lingual theory seeks to reduce the biases and prejudices attributed to the earlier conceptualizations of communication. Theories are usually formulated by making several assumptions (Wright, 2001). T he lingual theory presupposes that communication is a phenomenon characteristic to all living organisms. For the purposes of this discourse, the phenomenon is assumed to be present in all human beings. The second conjecture of this theory is that people from all walks of life are free to access information. Consequently, communication will phase out signs and analogies that lock out some groups in the society. Mejias (2001) illustrates that in today’s cyber age, access to information is not restricted. On the basis of this reality, the lingual theory makes the assumption that information should be made available to all people. The theory proposes the elimination of coded language that creates some form of secrecy. The objective is to ensure that information is communicated without a tinge of prejudice whatsoever. The propositions made in the lingual theory are aimed at reducing the identified biases. The model promotes innovativeness in communication. According to Anderson an d Boym (2004), the dynamic nature of language implies that certain semantics do not make sense to some clusters of people in the society. The theory homes in on such circumstances and proposes innovativeness in the semantics and symbols used in language. For instance, instead of using sexual allure as a symbol for advertising female related products, media outlets should introduce some form of euphemism. In this sense, innovativeness is likely to increase the number of target audience The theory provides that communication should not discriminate against some groups in the society. Lack of discrimination will increase access to information. The suggestion rides on the assumption that information should be open to everyone in the society. Anderson and Boym (2004) make a similar suggestion by arguing that communication is expected to be a universally uniting form of art. To this end, the element should reduce racial, gender, and class discrimination, which characterize most forms of v isual art. Mejias (2001) affirms that theoretical frameworks are developed from various paradigms. The paradigms are schools of thought that tend to explain the perceptions of the various elements in the community. The lingual theory relies on a positivist paradigm given its focus on reality as defined by a person’s senses. The need to eliminate biases and prejudices informs the use of this paradigm. The theory seeks to be objective and realistic. The selected paradigm makes it possible to communicate by expressing concrete aspects of a society, including events and situations. The theory borrows heavily from the Shannon and Weaver traditions of communication models. Mejias (2001) points out that the model comprises of a sender, a medium, and a receiver. The lingual theory is based on the fact that modern communication relies on different media for transmission, upholding this tradition in the long term. The tradition adopted also stems from the fact that the new model addres ses the issue of parties involved in communication. Application of the Lingual Theory The theory can be used in different situations in a societal setting. As already indicated, it seeks to eliminate biases and prejudices in communication. It can be utilized to address complaints touching on feminism. According to Cuklanz and Sujata (2006), the depiction of women in the media is a major concern to many people. There are groups of people who feel offended by the feminist approach in highlighting women in films and other communication platforms. The lingual theory comes as a relief to women and other anti-feminist groups. Feminism can be used to understand the injustices meted out on women due to their gender (Cuklanz Sujata, 2006). Some media personalities find it important to use women to pass across information. However, such depictions are associated with various prejudices and biases. An assumption is made to the effect that women belong to a certain category. Such depictions of women as housewives were prominent in the 1950s. However, with changing times, women are increasingly embracing new professions. As a result, a portrayal of women as inferior beings goes against the ethics of communication. The most common element of feminism in communication is evident in the illustration of women as sexual objects. Cuklanz and Sujata (2006) argue that most films and advertisement campaigns seek to attract the attention of their clients by creating sexual images of women. In most cases such forms of communication are targeted at the male audience. In a way, the sexual highlight is prejudicial since women can be much more than objects of primal satisfaction. Communication of such nature is driven by the two theories discussed earlier. The lingual theory seeks to respond to anti-feminism, especially in mass media. An example is made of a fashion advertisement targeting women who are in the working class category. Bearing in mind that the lingual theory focuses on th e content, the creator, and the recipient of messages, innovativeness is expected to minimize bias. In line with this, the theory comes up with signs and semantics that sit well with the professional woman of modern times. For instance, rather than advertise a dress that has sexual connotations, the emitter can go for a comfortable, yet appealing, professional look. Figures 1 and 2 below illustrate this: Figure 1: Sexy dress Source: Women sexy dress lady party mini dresses backless clubwear evening (2013) Figure 2: Professional look Source: Ladies’ sweater ol fashion large size knitted coat women’s modern outer wholse, ladies’ autumn outerwear fall clothing (2014) Figure 1 creates an evident sexual appeal illustrated through the dress worn by the model. Such an impression is common in advertisements. However, the model in figure 2 helps to bring in some sense of self-worth to suggest that a woman can be comfortable and happy without the need to appeal to the s exual emotions. Symbols and signs inform most communication processes (Alsina Jimenez, 2010). However, according to the lingual theory, the symbol used in figure 2 lacks bias and prejudice. Semantics are key components of communication processes (Anderson Baym, 2004). By borrowing from the semiotics theory, the lingual framework incorporates semantics in the new equation. The textual language used to pass information should be non-prejudicial. In such instances, the emitter of a given piece of information is expected to make use of euphemism. An example can be made in the film industry. An example can be given of a film featuring women. Intemann (2010) argues that derogatory language may be used to refer to female characters. Such language is offensive to the women folk. The lingual theory restricts individuals from making use of such offensive language in a bid to accommodate everyone. Conclusion The author of this paper argues that the standpoint and semiotics theory limit the e ffectiveness of communication. Anderson and Boym (2004) hold the opinion that effective communication should not discriminate against some parties in the society. The shortcomings of the two theories necessitate the creation of an alternative model. However, it is important to note that the new lingual theory has its own shortcomings. By assuming that information is universally accessible, the theory goes against the need for privacy under sensitive circumstances. Nonetheless, the lingual theory provides an alternative framework of communication. References Alsina, R., Jimenez, L. (2010). Communication theory and research in Spain: A paradigmatic case of a socio-humanistic discipline. European Journal of Communication, 35(3), 273-286. Anderson, A., Baym, G. (2004). Philosophies and philosophic issues in communication. Journal of Communication, 54(4), 589-615. Buzzanell, P. (2003). A feminist standpoint analysis of maternity and maternity leave for women with disabilities.  Women and Language,  26(2), 53-65. Colombo, M. (2004). Theoretical perspectives in media-communication research: From linear to discursive models. Forum: Qualitative Social Research,  5(2), 26-28. Cuklanz, M., Sujata, M. (2006). Televisions â€Å"new† feminism: Prime-time representations of women and victimization. Critical Studies in Media Communication, 23(4), 302-321. Friedman, A., Thellefsen, M. (2011). Concept theory and semiotics in knowledge organization. Journal of Documentation, 67(4), 644-674. Intemann, K. (2010). 25 years of feminist empiricism and standpoint theory: Where are we now?. Hypatia, 25(4), 228-796. Ladies’ sweater ol fashion large size knitted coat women’s modern outer wholse, ladies’ autumn outerwear fall clothing [Image]. (2014). Web. Li, Y. (2011). Nonwestern semiotics and its possible impact on the composition of semiotics theory in the future. Semiotica, 2011(187), 229-237. Mejias, U. (2001). Sustainable communicational realit ies in the age of virtuality. Critical Studies in Media Communication, 18, 211-228. Women sexy dress lady party mini dresses backless clubwear evening [Image]. (2013). Web. Wright, M. (2001). Gestalt psychological theory’s value in rhetorical criticism. Quarterly Journal of Speech, 87, 208-215.

AdBlue Fluid and Cleaner Diesel Emissions

AdBlue Fluid and Cleaner Diesel Emissions AdBlue is the German brand name for a clear, non-toxic- though slightly corrosive to some metals- aqueous urea solution used to treat exhaust on  modern clean diesel engines. The generic name for a chemically equivalent solution used in the non-European market (predominantly North America) is Diesel Emissions Fluid (DEF). The primary use of AdBlue and similar DEFs is to be used in conjunction with a Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) converter to control oxides of nitrogen (NOx) diesel emissions. On average, NOx emissions are reduced by approximately 80 percent because of this process. How DEFs Work The AdBlue solution is comprised of 32.5 percent high purity urea diluted in distilled water and carried onboard the diesel vehicle in a special independent tank. Under the direction of the onboard computer and a NOx sensor, the fluid is pumped into the exhaust stream at the rate of 2 to 4 ounces to a gallon of ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel (ULSD) consumed. There, in the hot exhaust stack, the urea solution is converted into ammonia (NH3) which reacts with NOx in the exhaust. The resulting chemical breakdown  and re-bonding of the constituent elements of each reactant produce plain nitrogen and water vapor instead of harmful oxides of nitrogen.   Standardized as Aqueous Urea Solution (AU) 32, the AdBlue solution is trademarked to German company the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA), but there  is a variety of other DEFs available on the American market including BlueTec by German automotive corporation Daimler AG and the Canadian version H2Blu. How and Where Is AdBlue Replenished? Refilling the AdBlue tank is  not a do-it-yourself task. Although it is possible to purchase the solution at the retail level, it is generally available only through a dealership or service shop. The systems are designed with a capacity of several gallons (seven to ten) which translates into several thousands of miles. Under normal vehicle operating conditions, the DEF tank needs to be refilled only during regularly scheduled maintenance. However, as of 2013, trucks and diesel engine cars have been created to allow users to refill their own DEF tanks. As a result, a number of truck stops and gas stations have begun offering a DEF pump next to the diesel fuel pump. You may even purchase small quantities- or order large containers for commercial use- to keep at home. Although safe to handle and non-toxic, AdBlue can eat through some metals. It is recommended that DEFs be stored at cool temperatures away from direct sunlight and moisture in a well-ventilated area. According to a Cummins Filtration report on the standard, AdBlue freezes at 12 degrees Fahrenheit, but the process of freezing and thawing does not degrade the product as the water in the urea  solution will freeze and thaw as the fluid does.

Strategic problems facing HRM operating in multi-national companies Essay

Strategic problems facing HRM operating in multi-national companies - Essay Example This paper will talk about the possible strategic problems faced HR managers while working in multinational organizations. The three key problems discussed here are ‘Compensation and Reward Systems’, ‘Training and Development’, and ‘Job Expectations and Motivation Policies’. The symptoms are that HR departments are getting ready to take full advantage of their capital as well as staff when businesses need to progress. One of the most frequently talked about criticisms regarding HR is that several experts do not have the progressive thinking and strategic counseling focus considered necessary to be an successful business partner (Ulrich, 2013, p. 22). They do not use the time to know the business they sustain as well as concentrate additional on transactional HR activities that do not have the influence the business needs. HR managers have to be trusted consultants to the organizations as well as to the leaders they work with. They have to be effectual coaches and are responsive to their vital part as to successfully review workforce abilities and facilitate scheduling for potential requirements (Becker & Huselid, 2006, p. 899). HR should concentrate on turning into a trusted mentor to their business with the aim of give power to managers to drive better organizational performance. Human resources departments are in front of major problems as their responsibilities turn out to be broader as well as more strategic in the recent times. HR is â€Å"more than a basic function† (Dowling et al, 2008, p. 32) that includes appointment, development and retention of workforce. It is a main factor in developing a workforce that focuses on the objectives of the business. With bigger significance comes bigger hindrances - according to a study by Shipton et al (2006), the major problems faced by HRM are compensation and reward systems; training and

Lighting Critique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Lighting Critique - Essay Example The placing of lights at the stage has been a success to the musical play. However, some times the lights have caused some hitches during different performances. According to a number of people, many different lights are involved in the musical and create complexity in the operation. For example, the scene of be our guest involves computerized pop up candles. If the computer fails, the scene cannot take place as it is supposed to and information the candles bring cannot be achieved. The musical, beauty and the beast has been written with many short and different scenes. In theatre, the scenes have been differentiated to show day and night by use of light. At the beginning, light is used to show the stage arrangement hence creating a high-quality view for the audience to study the stage setting. In this scene, light is used to illuminate the stage. Light has also been used to emphasize different moments that differ in their moods. When the beast and belle have a romantic scene, there is a lavender lighting. This lighting has been able to emphasize on the romantic scene despite having a human being and a beast act this part. When the merchant is lost in the forest, he finds himself in front of a palace where he is forced to seek for shelter. In theater, lights are usually used to show the difference between the forest and the palace. Lights used for the palace bring a dazzling look into the building providing the audience with a beautiful view. Light can be used to establish the altering position in time and space during a performance. This is shown in the scenes that have to run concurrently on stage. Light has been used to emphasize the scenes as they run. Dim lights are used on the dormant scenes and brighter ones on the current scene. For the musical, this has been a success. In the musical, lighting has been perfectly used to emphasize different times of the day. Blue has been used to show scenes created in the night, whereas red and orange has been used to

Gender Differences In Politeness

Gender Differences In Politeness Nowadays the difference between mens and womens use of language is one of the most important research subjects among sociolinguistic scholars as a result of its importance in communication. Understanding the different communication patterns which women and men typically use assists interlocutors to reach to better understanding and finally to achieve effective communication. Numerous studies have been widely and deeply conducted to come to conclusion that women and men are dissimilar in the way of interacting and communicating in terms of minimal responses, turntaking, changing the topic of conversation and self-disclosure. As a noticeable feature in cross-gender communications, politeness has begun to draw a lot of interests from many researchers during the past forty years. Therefore, there has been an upsurge in discussions, seminars, journals and researches in such fields as word choice, syntax and intonation to portray how dissimilarly men and women use politeness strategies. It is a high likelihood that gender differences in polite behavior will lead to failure in cross-sex communication. So as to get effective communication, speakers need to understand verbally politic behavior in different genders well. There is a general agreement that women are more likely to use politeness patterns than men in their speech. Lakoff, one of the most significant pioneers in this issue, distinguishes womens speech from mens speech in these striking features including the use of words related to their interests, empty adjectives, question intonation, hedges, hypercorrect grammar and superpolite forms (1975, p. 53-55). Based on Lakoffs commonsense beliefs and stereotypes about differences in the way of being polite between men and women in daily conversations, Montgomery concludes that womens speech is more polite than mens (1995, p. 151). This claim is supported by a great number of well-known empirical works. There is a substantial body of evidence supporting the view that, in general, womens linguistic behaviour can be broadly characterized as afliliative or cooperative, rather than competitive or control-oriented (Cameron (1985), Kalcik (1975), Smith (1985)) and as interactively facilitative and positive politeness-oriented (Holmes (1984b, 1986), Thorne, Kramarae and Henley (1983)) (as cited in Holmes, 1988, p. 451). In fact, every study makes a marked contribution in building an assumption on the difference between men and womens speech. In order to continue forming a clear sociolinguistic picture of gender differences in communications, this research is dedicated to a Vietnamese social setting. It will provide a profound study of whether female speakers are more polite than male speakers or not in foreign language centers. In this research, some linguistic politeness devices are focused to contribute to better understanding about dissimilarities in polite ways of talking between women and men. Methodology Based on the theoretical study in politeness-related differences between males and females, this project uses the noticeable findings as a data elicitation procedure to investigate the following question: To what extent do the male and female English learners from the foreign language center of Ho Chi Minh Technology University use similar or different politeness devices in daily conversations? Participants In this small-scale research, 50 male and 50 female speakers aged between 18 and 25 from the foreign language center are selected to answer some questions. The selection is carried out through the background questions in the first part of questionnaire given to 100 English learners at the foreign language center. All of chosen participants are native speakers of Vietnamese from different family, social and educational backgrounds. In details, the majority of objects are university students whose level is intermediate. They spend a lot of time studying English because they believe that a good command of English will provide a better chance of getting a good job in the future. Instruments The questionnaire used as the instrument for this project contains 3 opened-ended questions and 3 closed-ended questions. The reason why the questionnaire is used and there is no interview is that they can have more time to think about the answer and give response naturally in English. Most importantly, in this way, they can avoid losing their face when they encounter some confusing situations. First of all, the open-ended questions contain some common scenarios in day-by-day communication, namely making compliments and requests. In particular, every situation requires students to provide two responses in which one is for the same gender and the other is for the different sex. It is widely known that the level of politeness partly depends on many variables including age, social status, and relationship; therefore, two control settings are designed for aforementioned speech acts. Additionally, each part is set up to ask the participants to respond to friends or strangers. All the situations are divided into two main topics. Topic 1: Situation in which participants give a compliment. Topic 2: Situation in which participants ask a person to do a favor. Secondly, in the closed questions participants are asked to rate the level of politeness as well as the frequency of some functions according to their perceptions of using tag-questions and requesting in cross-sex conversations. These multiple-choice questions are created for categorizing and summarizing the results in any meaningful way. Procedures The data were gathered by employing questionnaire used to evaluate the participants politeness performances in their daily conversation. To strengthen the argument, each question asked them to write down their responses in either verbally or nonverbally. There is no time limitation so that they cannot suffer from the time pressure. Presentation and analysis of data After collecting the date, participants are classified into two main categories in terms of gender. One is the male group and the other is the female group. Next, under each group, their performance of politeness is analyzed in line with syntactic structure and lexical items among the same sex or different sex interlocutors. The result is gathered into three major parts, namely using tag-questions, complimenting, and making complaints. Tag questions It is widely acknowledged that the major grammar function of a tag question is seeking agreement from the listeners. Besides, tag questions are considered a kind of polite statement in which it does not force any agreement or belief on the addressees as in Lakoffs pioneering research, she concludes that womens speech sounds much more polite than mens in terms of linguistic forms like tag-questions and requests (p.17-19). Therefore, using tag questions is one of linguistic features which this research is primarily concerned to verify gender differences in politeness. The finding of question about the frequency of using tag-questions reveals that men tend to use more tags questions than women in communication. The number of male speakers who often use tag-questions doubles that of female speakers with 7 and 3 out of 30 respectively. Although the result is completely opposite to the description of womens speech given by Lakoff, one of the most significant pioneers in gender-difference research, that women have a tendency use more tag questions than men (1975, p. 53). However, it matches with Dubois and Crouchs surprising findings that in at least one genuine social context, men did, and women did not, use tag questions both formally and informally. In this context, the claim that tag questions signify an avoidance of commitment, and cause the speaker to give the impression of not being really sure of himself, of looking to the addressee for confirmation, even of having no views of his own, is open to serious doubt (1975, p. 294). A small number of people choose tag questions when interacting with other speakers is that they are not familiar with the structure of tag questions. For them, the grammatical rules are too complicated and various to acquire in a foreign language as it is a new terminology which does not exist in their first language. In fact, Zhang explains that mistakes arising in the process of learning English tag questions are caused by students incomplete application of rules. In order to produce some sentence structures, more than one rule should be used or a rule is used to some different degrees. But learners sometimes fail to understand or apply these rules completely. For example: She hardly plays with you, doesnt she? (does she) I never said she was wrong, didnt I? (did I) The learner knows the agreement rule of forming an English tag question. But when there are some words which denote negative without the word not, the learner has some difficulties in dealing with the whole sentence. Thus he produces the above sentences instead of correct ones. (2010, p. 580) Another reason for low level of frequency in using tag questions is the variation of intonations. In English, the intonation on the tag questions determines the function of the tag. In other words, communicators can change the meaning of a tag question with their pitch of voice. For instance, with rising intonation, tag questions sound like a real question. Notwithstanding, when the intonation falls they sound like a statement which does not require partners to give a real answer. If the tag is spoken with a rising intonation, as in a question, the function of the tag is much closer to that of an interrogative. The speaker indicates that he has made an assumption about the state of affairs but he is not sure as to the validity of that assumption. The listener is requested to indicate whether the assumption is valid. If the tag is spoken with a falling intonation, as in a declarative sentence, the speaker indicates that he has made an assumption and is requiring only confirmation of its validity from the listener (Mills, 1981, p. 643). In addition to the frequency of using tag questions, there is a big gap in the purpose male and female speakers use in daily conversation. The following table presents the result after investigating how similarly men and women use tag question. Function Men Women Expressing uncertainty 54% 30% Facilitative 23% 27% Softening 23% 43% It is clearly seen from the table that male and female interlocutors have completely different purpose in using tag questions. While numerous men use tag questions to signal doubt about what they are asserting and look forward to information confirmation, a large number of women consider them as facilitative devices and softening tools for negative comments. This finding is the same as Holmes summary in her research into tag questions as politeness devices. She identifies that women put more emphasis than men on the polite or affective functions of tags, using facilitative positive politeness devices. Men, on the other hand, use more tags for the expression of uncertainty (1992, p.320). This finding is mainly explained by the most widely-identified difference theory which reveals that men and women use language for different social purposes, having been socialized in different ways from earliest childhood (Edwards, 2009, p. 137). In his large-scale study, he clarifies that womens gossip traditionally focuses on personal relationships, experiences and problems in a generally supportive atmosphere. They consider the world as a network of connections and conversations as negotiations for closeness in which people seek support and reach consensus. Men, on the contrary, are more concerned with factual information, often in a competitive or combative format. They see the world in a hierarchical social order in which they are placed either up or down. For them, life is a contest and a struggle to achieve and maintain their power (Edwards, 2009, p. 137). Compliments In everyday life, there are a large number of speech acts we can use to show positive politeness like greetings, seeking agreements, avoiding disagreements, joking and showing sympathy. Among them, a compliment serves the function of not only positive politeness strategies but also potential face threatening acts (Holmes, 1988, p. 445). The questions four and five are designed with the intention of measuring how many politeness linguistic patterns both male and female speakers use when they pay their friends or a stranger a compliment. Response to friends Response to strangers From the two above bar charts, in general, women are more polite than men in paying and receiving compliments, which matches with Wardhaughs claim that women are reported to use more polite forms and more compliments than men (2010, p. 343). In details, in the scenario in which the participants is required to give a compliment on their same sex friends new clothes, the figure of female speakers choosing to compliment in an extremely polite way is four times more than that of male speakers. The percentage of the former is nearly 80% and the latter is 20%. They use some compliments such as It really looks good on you, doesnt it?, How pretty your dress is and What a pretty blouse youre wearing! as positive politeness devices. Another evidence is that when they compliment on a strangers a pair of shoes, men use less polite compliments than women to either the same sex or the opposite sex partner. The dominance theory is one of most significant explanations of the commonly held belief that women are more polite than men in cross-sex conversations. The relationship between gender-related difference in politeness and power has been investigated for the past a few decades. After OBarr and Atkins (1980) explore the complexity of the aforementioned relationship, they find out that the different language features particularly politeness strategies between males and females are related to the status rather than the sex of the speaker. They indicate that more females use polite linguistic forms than males in everyday interaction because they are more likely to be in lower-status positions (as cited in Kendall Tannen, 2003, p. 549). Thus, in the society women wish to gain higher status; for example social class, occupation, etc. by using more standard language and more polite forms in day-by-day conversations. As a result, they become more aware of the importance of linguistic politen ess in maintaining communication. In a word, higher speaker power will be associated with lower level of politeness. However, it is interesting to find that male participants use as many politeness linguistic strategies as females when they have a cross-sex conversation with both friends and strangers. It means that men tend to compliment more politely to women than to men. In addition to the belief that womens self-esteem is lower; hence, their face needs to be protected, females are more nurturant, more emotional, and more sensitive to the needs of others than males (Bern, Eagly, Piliavin and Unger, as cited in Durkin, 1995, p. 456). That is the reason why male participants pay much more attention to their use of words and speak more politely when having a talk with female partners in order to avoid the risk of hurting their feelings. In this case, gender plays an indispensible part in the choice of polite language forms. Requests Most sociolinguists remarkably appreciate the role of indirect requests in building up the politeness in conversation. Ervin and Tripp, for instance, illustrate that it is useful for speakers to use indirect interrogative requests because they give listeners an out by explicitly stating some condition which would make compliance impossible (as cited in Saeed, 2003, p. 234). In terms of requests, from the above data, not only female participants but also male interlocutors prefer using indirect and polite structures so as to reduce the risk of threatening the addressees negative face. Will you please close the door?, Wont you close the door? and I wonder if you could be so kind as to close the window are used by over 60% of men and women when they are required to ask a person to do a favor. The finding is partly against the general agreement that female communicators use more superpolite forms than male ones. This result offers some new insights into how gender influences the way men and women uses politeness strategies. Therefore, a new way of studying the gender difference in politeness-related linguistics is found in the 1990s. Many recent sociolinguists appreciate the social constructivist approach in explaining the variation of politeness behavior between men and women. A social constructivist approach shifts the emphasis to language as a dynamic resource used to construct particular aspects of social identity at different points in an interaction. Social categories are not fixed but are subject to constant change; talk itself actively creates different styles and constructs different social contexts and social identities as it proceeds. (Holmes, 2001, p. 14565) Additionally, in her research, Goodwin view activities rather than society as the relevant unit for the analysis of the data. She concludes that stereotypes about womens speech fall apart when talk is arranged in a range of activities. In order to construct social personae appropriate to the events of the moment, the same individuals articulate talk and gender differently as they move from one activity to another (1990, p. 9). In other words, speakers do not hold the same communication style across a wide range of activities. For example, a woman may choose linguistic forms which can contribute to the construction of a more feminine identity in a romantic date. Nonetheless, in a meeting in the role of a chairwoman, she will linguistically construct a powerful identity. When interacting with her children at home, she may use linguistic devices with the intention of creating a maternal identity. Therefore, the way speakers use structures to construct proper events changes in their comm unication activities. Criteria It can be clearly seen from the table that it is the relationship between the communicators that affects how politely participants speak, not the gender difference. Both men and women claim that they will take the relationship into consideration when they make a request (the figure of the former is 56% and that of the latter is 67%). The closer the relationship is, the more direct their request is. Their answer is supported by Samovar, Porter and McDaniels conclusion in their 2009 work. They find out that the closer the relationship between two persons, the less the power differential between them and smaller the magnitude of imposition the less likely it is that they will employ conversational indirectness (2009, p. 173). The implication in a language classroom All the results of this small-scale study not only confirm the previous findings discovered by numerous celebrated sociolinguists but also reveal some new findings from Vietnamese foreign language classrooms. These interesting findings about the differences in politeness use between male and female learners lead to some implications for the process of language teaching and learning. The first implication centres on the acquisition of tag questions in classrooms. From the survey, a great number of Vietnamese students whose level is intermediate or even advanced hardly use tag questions although they can adequately manipulate the form, usage as well as intonation when they are required to do so. Therefore, as an English teacher, a well-prepared presentation and a lot of intensive exercises and drills should be used in order to get students to apply them to real life situations. Besides the basic rules, some exceptions and complications should be introduced to learners so that they give a correct form of tag questions in no matter what conversation they have. More importantly, educators should help students recognize the importance of this grammar points in communication. Whenever learners know that tag questions are regarded as an extremely useful tool in daily conversations regardless of their complexity in the forms, meanings and intonations, they prefer using tag questions more often. For example, tag questions are not normal questions which are used for asking new information but powerful devices for addressers to confirm certain information, express uncertainty, facilitate and soften negative comments. Last but not least, owing to the complicated system of tag questions, Beardsmore (1970) recommends that the teaching should be undertaken from an easy to more difficult stage. The difficulties come on three levels including form, meaning, and intonation. To achieve a positive use of tags, the teaching should pay more attention to basic patterns and leave some anomalies to the end (p. 18). Another implication for English teaching and learning comes from the new results in complimenting and requesting. It cannot be denied that the gender difference plays an important part in selecting appropriate polite forms; nevertheless, there are other criteria such as age, social status, culture and relationship which communicators should bear in mind before making up their mind to use a certain politeness strategy. Accordingly, in their 1985 book, Tillitt and Bruder advise that in many cultures it is considered inappropriate to compliment babies while in the U.S it is common to say What a cute baby!. Moreover, when you are invited to a dinner in an English family, the host is happy to hear that you appreciate the food. Hence, you should compliment the food no matter how delicious the real food is. However, you do not need to compliment each dish separately. You can give a general compliment which is followed by a s specific one. For example, the meal was delicious, especially the lamb (p. 68). Additionally, based on many ELT researches into communicative approaches, Canale and Swain summarize that communicative competence consists of three components like grammatical competence, sociolinguistic competence and strategic competence. In their well-known work Theoretical Bases of Communicative Approaches, they write: In view of Chomskys (1965) strong claim that competence is to be associated exclusively with knowledge of rules of grammar, both Hymes (1972) and Campbell and Wales (1970) propose a broader notion of competence, that of communicative competence. This notion is intended by them to include not only grammatical competence (or implicit and explicit knowledge of the rules of grammar) but also contextual or sociolinguistic competence (knowledge of the rules of language use). Furthermore, Hymes (1972) explicitly and Campbell and Wales (1970) implicitly adopt the distinction between communicative competence and performance, where this latter notion refers to actual use (as cited in Canale Swain, 1980, p. 4) Therefore, I strongly suggest that the procedure of teaching and learning either compliments or requests consists of three following steps: Teaching and learning some possible patterns used in compliments and requests in line with the scale of politeness (from less polite to more polite and then to superpolite) Teaching and learning sociolinguistic competence of these patterns. Practising these patterns in real life exercise so that learners can get used to the patterns. As a result, they can use these politeness devices naturally. Lets take a clear illustration. Firstly, teachers ought to provide learners with the knowledge of requests especially the importance of indirectness of requests in maintaining politeness. For instance, the function, whom to request, what to request, how to request and how to reply to a request need to be presented in various situations in daily life. Next, social knowledge about how and when to use utterances appropriately should be given for Vietnamese learners to acquire sociolinguistic competence. In this way, they can know when to use some superpolite forms or when to use less formal language. After that, they are given some authentic drills to practice how to give and reply to a request appropriately. Conclusion In summary, this paper gives a view on politeness gender difference between Vietnamese male and female learners. The findings make a positive contribution in portraying the picture of both similarity and difference in the way men and women use polite language. It can be concluded that women are not always more polite than men in Vietnamese context. Many interesting insights; for example, the gender of the listeners is one of crucial factors influencing polite behaviors of the speakers are found in this research. Besides, language educators can know that Vietnamese students see politeness as an effective way to avoid conflicts and to save face in conversations. Lastly, Vietnamese leaners politeness strategies change with the relationship between addressers and addressees. In this case, gender becomes less significant factor affecting the change of interlocutors politeness strategies. Thanks to the result of this paper, language planners can know more about their leaners communicative competence especially in using politeness linguistic devices in the process of language teaching and learning. Gender Differences in Politeness Gender Differences in Politeness From my experience and observation in teaching English in a great number of mixed-gender classes, there is a big gap in the way men and women use a certain language. For example, when both male and female students are asked to discuss one particular topic, men interrupt women more often than women do. The differences lead me to the wonder whether or not there is a correlation between language and gender. In fact, differences in the way men and women use a certain language have been of interest in the study of sociolinguistics. Therefore, there has been an upsurge in discussions, seminars, journals and researches in gender-related differences. A lot of issues such as word choice, syntax and so on have been taken into account so as to portray how dissimilar men and women use a language. Not understanding gender differences when interacting in either formal or informal situations will result in communication breakdowns. In order to communicate effectively, communicators need to make use of some appropriate politeness strategies as speakers always hope to obtain the respect from the counterparts. Hence, based on a great number of theoretical bases and empirical studies, my paper examines gender differences in conversations in in terms of politeness. My review comprises four sections. The first part looks at the definition and the function of politeness. There is an analysis and synthesis of differences in the way men and women use politeness strategies in the second section. From some explanations for these differences in section three, I suggest some implications for teachers to help learners to avoid misunderstanding and misinterpretation in conversations by using politeness techniques in the teaching process. The definition, genres and strategies of politeness A multitude of researches on politeness have been carried out to explore and expand the classic sociolinguistic work of Brown and Levinson (1987), who state that it is important to avoid causing offence in communication by showing deference to other interlocutors. They consider deferential responses as forms of politeness to avoid communication breakdown between individuals (as cited in Meyerhoff, 2006, p. 84). From the above definition, I assume that the focus of politeness is on the hearer. In this way, tactful consideration of other peoples feeling assists to avoid some potential conflicts, to gain better understanding and then to achieve effective communication. Conversely, modern linguists consider politeness as proper social behavior. In ordinary language use, according to Geyer (2008), politeness is associated with civil or well-mannered behavior and with social attributes such as good upbringing, status and formal etiquette. In addition, Watts (2003) adds his idea to validate the current conceptualization of politeness. Politeness is not something we are born with, but something we have to and be socialized into, and of politeness are available (p. 10-11). Accordingly, Holmes suggests that making decisions about what is or is not considered polite in any community involves assessing social relationships along the dimensions of social distance or solidarity and relative power or status (Holmes, 1992, p. 297). In order to be linguistically polite, communicators should choose some proper expressions which show the degree of social distance and the status difference. Based on two aforementioned dimensions, politeness is classified into two different genres. Positive politeness which is solidarity oriented emphasizes shared attitudes and values while negative politeness involves expressing oneself appropriately in terms of social distance and respecting status differences (Holmes, 1992, p.297). In terms of the social significance especially politic behavior, Lakoff (1989) distinguishes three kinds of politeness: (1) polite behavior, which is manifest when interlocutors adhere to politeness rules, whether expected or not; (2) non-polite behavior, amounting to non-conforming with politeness rules where conformity is not expected; and (3) rude behavior, where politeness is not conveyed even though it is expected. (as cited in Kasper, 1990, p.208) It is advisable to use some proper strategies in order to maintain politeness between speakers and listeners in the conversation. Following the above notion of politeness, Brown and Levinson (1987) point out that some linguistic strategies need to be realized in language to minimize the risk of losing face. They outline four main super-strategies such as bald on-record, negative politeness, positive politeness, and off-record. Firstly, bald on-record strategies used in situations where the speaker has a close relationship with the addressee are direct and unmitigated. The next strategy is positive politeness one which is often utilized to make the hearer comfortable when communicators know each other rather well including using in-group identity makers, seeking agreement, joking, and raising common ground. In contrast, negative politeness strategies are chosen to avoid imposition on the audience through distancing styles like giving deference, hedging, questioning rather than asserti ng, and apologizing. Lastly, off-record or the indirect strategy explores conversational implicatures by using hints and involving irony. For example, a speaker may use a proverb A penny saved is a penny earned to serve as criticism You are always spending a lot of money instead of a piece of advice You should save money (p. 91- 227). Some politeness variations between men and women Differences in the ways that men and women use politeness language strategies have been one of the most important research subjects in sociolinguistic. Lakoff is one of the most significant scholars of gender-difference research for the past forty years. Her 1975 study into language and womans place plays a key role in launching the issue of gender-related differences in politeness. In her influential research, she concludes that womens speech sounds much more polite than mens sound in terms of linguistic forms like tag-questions and requests (p.17-19). In other words, in conversation females are more likely to use politeness strategies in their speech than males. One aspect of politeness strategies is that the speaker should not impose a viewpoint on other people. Thus a tag-question is a kind of polite statement in that it does not force agreement or belief on the addressees. Using tag-questions is a special linguistic feature of gender differences in politeness. Holmes agrees that in general the women use more tags than the men, as Lakoff predicts. She summarizes her findings in the following table after she carries out a research into a sixty-thousand word corpus containing equal amounts of female and male speech collected in a range of matched contexts. On the contrary, as it is clearly seen in the result that Holmes identifies that men and women do not use tag questions for the same purpose. Women put more emphasis than men on the polite or affective functions of tags, using facilitative positive politeness devices. Men, on the other hand use more tags for the expression of uncertainty (1992, p.320). In fact, women tend to consider tag questions as an indicator of politeness while men use them to express uncertainty in colloquial situations. The different conversational strategies of men and women can be analyzed in terms of compliments to demonstrate that women tend to be more polite than men. Like tag questions, compliments are regarded as exemplary positive politeness strategies as the apparently main function of compliments is to consolidate the solidarity between participants. The remarkable gender difference in politeness is the way women and men use compliments. From the obvious data given by Holmes (1988), it is clearly seen that women give and receive significantly more compliments than men do. Holmes does not only focus on the frequency of complimenting patterns but also the purpose men and women use compliments. Her study finds out that women generally perceive compliments as positively affective speech acts, while men may perceive them differently (Holmes, 1988, p. 451). This claim is supported by many well-known empirical works. There is a substantial body of evidence supporting the view that, in general, womens linguistic behaviour can be broadly characterized as afliliative or cooperative, rather than competitive or control-oriented (Cameron (1985), Kalcik (1975), Smith (1985)) and as interactively facilitative and positive politeness-oriented (Holmes (1984b, 1986), Thorne, Kramarae and Henley (1983)). Linguists describe womens contributions to interaction as other-oriented, and then come to conclusion that women regard compliments as positive politeness devices. Therefore, the assumption that women use more compliments than men is consistent with this orientation. (as cited in Holmes, 1988, p. 451) While many linguistic studies on gender and language agree with the hypothesis concerning that women are more polite than men, there are also some researchers who disagree. Based on the data drawn from voice mail messages in a legal setting, Hobbs argues that the frequency of male speakers negative politeness markers is roughly equal to that of womens whereas men prefers to use more positive politeness techniques than women (Hobbs, 2003, p.243). Hobbs collected 22 informational messages of which 11 were gathered from the males and 11were from the females to analyze the dissimilarities in the way men and women use politeness strategies. The findings indicate that the general claim about women being more polite than men turns out to be incorrect in the legal voice mail messages. Positive politeness strategies such as compliments, joking, claiming reciprocity, etc. were used almost exclusively by male speakers; only one female speaker used any of these strategies. Moreover, positive politeness was used only by attorneys; five of the six male attorneys, as well as the sole female attorney, used positive politeness in their voice mail messages. (Hobbs, 2003, p. 249) The research analysis mainly falls into two kinds of politeness including positive and negative ones. In contrast with positive politeness strategies which are used by the majority of male speakers, the 2003 study of Hobbs reports that men and women use an equal number of negative politeness strategies in their voice mail messages. Such strategies as thanking, taking blame and apologizing, softening the force of requests are frequently used by both male and female lawyers. (p. 252) Why women and men use differ in the way they use politeness strategies The commonly held belief that women are more polite than men in cross-sex conversations has been well documented in range of linguistic features from tag-questions to directives. This assumption enables innumerable scholars to undertake a number of researches to explain why this difference exists. Some researchers argue that innate biological differences account for gender differences in politeness while others place an emphasis differential distribution of power between men and women in society. First of all, dominance perspective is used to interpret gender variations in politeness. After OBarr and Atkins (1980) explore the complexity of the relationship between gender and language concerning with polite strategies, they find out that more females use polite linguistic forms than males in everyday interaction because they are more likely to be in lower-status positions.(as cited in Schiffrin, Deborah Heidi, 2003, p.549) Moreover, Edwards (2009) concurs that most explanations centre on womens allegedly greater status-consciousness. If women in the society are more status-conscious than men, they may wish to gain status by using more standard forms and polite strategies. Therefore, they are more aware of the social significance of linguistic politeness variables to make their speech a sort of surrogate status. If womens and mens speech differs because the status of the genders differs, then it is clear that large social issues of power and subordination are involved. As a subordinate social role implies less freedom of movement, greater insecurity, uncertainty and lack of confidence, womens speech is expected to be more polite than mens speech (p. 134-135). In fact, it is necessary for women to secure their social status linguistically especially through the use of politeness strategies. Thanks to politeness strategies in daily conversations, women avoid straightforward statements as politeness involv es an absence of a strong statement, and womens speech is devised to prevent the expression of strong statements (Lakoff, 1975, p. 19). Another answer to the questions why the way men and women use polite strategies varies is associated with the difference approach. This philosophy is mainly based on gender socialization. According to Edwards (2009), a great number of noticeable analyses of gender differences in speech reveal that womens features especially using greater politeness forms imply more about genuine facilitative and supportive desires than about insecurity and lack of confidence. In other words, men and women may use language for different social purposes, having been socialised in different ways from their early childhood. Women are traditionally expected to focus on personal relationships, experiences and problems in a supportive atmosphere in which networking is a key whereas men are more concerned with factual information often in a combative context. (p. 137) It can be clearly seen that two above theoretical explanations of gender-related differences in politeness are influenced from diverse philosophies. However, Weatherall (2002) discovers the connection of two assumptions by giving an obvious illustration. The interactional styles of women and men as co-operative and competitive, respectively, have also been viewed as reflecting mens powerful social position relative to women. Being polite and co-operative is likely to be most effective at promoting positive interactions for those who hold little power. (p. 80) Although these explanations come from two different strands of thinking, they have the same goal that is why in cross-sex interactions, polite strategies are used by more women than men. However, they are not an explanatory factor for Hobbs finding from his research. His surprising findings are elucidated by the social constructionist approaches. A social constructionist approach shifts the emphasis to language as a dynamic resource used to construct particular aspects of social identity at different points in an interaction. Social categories are not fixed but are subject to constant change; talk itself actively creates different styles and constructs different social contexts and social identities as it proceeds. (Holmes, 2001, p. 14565) For example, a woman may select linguistic forms contributing to the construction of a more feminine identity in a romantic dinner. Nevertheless, in a meeting she will linguistically construct a powerful identity, for she is a chairwoman. When interacting with her children at home, she may use linguistic forms so as to build a maternal identity. Therefore, the way members of a society use structures to construct proper events changes across the communication activities. The implication in a language classroom It is widely acknowledged that understanding the different polite patterns which women and men typically use makes speakers to achieve more effective communication. The fact that interlocutors make fewer attempts to involve politeness in daily conversations because they have been taught not to expect participation!, Stereotyping can have intense negative effects, especially The conception of gender-differentiated politeness use leads to some implications for language teaching and learning. The first implication for foreign and second language classroom centres on social power awareness. As an educator, we had better reduce the role gap between men and women by selecting materials that represent identity groups more equally, by reorganizing classroom interaction so that all students have the opportunity to talk and demonstrate achievement in their everyday conversations regardless of gender (McKay Hornberger, 1996, p. 261). Another implication for teaching focuses on gender difference in stereotype rather than on so-called dominance approach. Because womens interactional style is absolutely different from mens, the interaction between teachers and females students differs from males. While men consider conversations as negotiations to compete women regard as a social network to gain support. It is difference in interactional styles that teachers should take into account when they perform, monitor and conduct one certain activity in class. Due to their opposite viewpoint, teachers had better balance the number of male and female students when they ask students to cooperate to fulfill one task. A group of men is likely to be over-competitive whereas a women group tends to be more supportive. As a result, there will be an imbalance of arguments in a discussion or debate. Last but not least, teachers should design some tasks related to gender-related differences in politeness so that students can acknowledge what kind of polite linguistic form they use in a cross sex communications. It will result in a more effective interaction in their real life. Teachers help students to realize that stereotypes of womens speech cannot stay the same style from one activity to another activity. The question is that how and when male speech and female speech are similar or different depends on the conversational contexts, not gender. Conclusion As a result of womens liberation movements, researches on gender and language in politeness started dramatically in 1970s. During the past several decades, many investigators examine politeness variations between women and men in daily interactions. Based on many well-known studies of gender-specific language, this literature review leaps to the conclusion that women tend to be more polite than men through a range of differences in tag-questions, compliments, etc. Most of these linguistic forms are used by more females than males to maintain politeness in cross-sex conversations. Notwithstanding, there are some oppositions to this belief in sociolinguistics. Many researches into language and gender in term of politeness rely on three distinct approaches including dominance approach, difference approach social constructionist approach to give an explanation for these discrepancies. In summary, I have explored politeness variations between men and women and questioned the validity of the assumption that womens speech is more polite than mens. In an attempt to determine the truth of this statement I have concluded that in daily conversations, politeness is regarded as a social lubricant which helps to create rapport. Knowing the differences in polite behavior between men and women can be very helpful to achieve effective communication as well as to enhance relationship. Therefore, politeness plays an indispensible in todays modern world in which a lot of interactions take place at both personal and business-related level.