Self-Verification

Self-verification is a social psychological theory that asserts people want to be known and understood by others according to their firmly held beliefs and feelings about themselves, that is self-views (including self-concepts and self-esteem). Because chronic self-concepts and self-esteem play an important role in understanding the world, providing a sense of coherence, and guiding action, people become motivated to maintain them through self-verification. Such strivings provide stability to people’s lives, making their experiences more coherent, orderly, and comprehensible than they would be otherwise.Self-verification processes are also adaptive for groups, groups of diverse backgrounds and the larger society, in that they make people predictable to one another thus serve to facilitate social interaction. To this end, people engage in a variety of activities that are designed to obtain self-verifying information. According to self-verification, people prefer feedback that i s consistent with their self-concept even when that feedback is unflattering. They will not accept feedback that is at odds with their self-concept.In our hypothesis, men who chose to use urinals for urination are meant to be more confident and have a stronger self-esteem than those who chose to use toilet bowls. They have a stronger self-concept and hence stronger self-verification. They would consider that they did a good job and deserved a more positive feedback. Therefore, a more positive feedback would increase their motivation and performance. If less positive feedback is given to this group of people, they would not receive this feedback as the less positive feedback did not match with their self-concept.For those chose to use toilet bowl, which showed that they had less confidence and lower self-concept, a less positive feedback would cause a higher motivation and performance since they think they deserved less positive feedback. They would accept it and hence it satisfied t heir self-esteem. Once their self-esteem is satisfied, they would promote to a higher hierarchy: self-actualization. P. s. I dun know when to use self-concept, self-esteem, self-verification these suck words. Since I only got the fucking old both without these suck words and definitions.

Critical evaluation of a research article The WritePass Journal

Critical evaluation of a research article Introduction Critical evaluation of a research article IntroductionReferencesRelated Introduction This work presents a critical evaluation of the research article entitled, ‘How traumatic is breast cancer? Post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and risk factors for severe PTSS at 3 and 15 months after surgery in a nationwide cohort of Danish women treated for primary breast cancer’, written by O’Connor et al. and published in 2011 in the British Journal of Cancer, volume 104, pages 419-426. The evaluation provides a description of the aims, findings and arguments put forward in the article, a critical appraisal of the issues, theories and concepts included in the article and an assessment of the sources of information used in the article. The title of the article How traumatic is breast cancer? Post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and risk factors for severe PTSS at 3 and 15 months after surgery in a nationwide cohort of Danish women treated for primary breast cancer is an accurate representation of what is included in the article, as the article, indeed, talks about PTSS and risk factors for severe PTSS in Danish women treated for primary breast cancer. The title is a very accurate description of what is included in the article. The aim of the article is clear: as noted in the abstract for the article, the stated aim of O’Connor et al. (2011; 419) was to, â€Å"†¦explore the prevalence of and risk factors for cancer-related PTSS in a nationwide inception cohort of women treated for primary breast cancer†. The clarity of the aim, coupled with the clear and accurately descriptive title, allows the reader of the article to orient themselves as to what the authors will be discussing in the body of the article. It is easy for the reader to feel that the authors ha a clear idea of what their research was, where it fits in the body of research and literature in this subject and, on this basis, how they would carry their research out. The objectives of the article are made not made so clear by the authors, but it can be understood, from the very clear stated aim, that the objective of the article was to determine what the prevalence and risk factors are for PTSS in primary breast cancer survivors in Denmark. In terms of the rationale for the study, the authors make clear, in the first sentence of the abstract, that the literature in this area, whilst extensive, is not concurrent, in that there are variations, across the reports in the research, as to the prevalence of PTSS in women living with and recovering from breast cancer. The rationale of the O’Connor et al. (2011) study was, therefore, to add to the literature in this area with a definitive study of PTSS, and its risk factors, in a sample of Danish women. A search of PubMed, for example, using the search terms ‘breast cancer PTSS’ returns five results: the O’Connor et al. (2011) article; an article by Andersen et al. (2008) looking at the search for sense in breast cancer survivors with low quality of life; an article by Morrill et al. (2008) looking at the interaction of post-traumatic growth and PTSS on the presence of depression in breast cancer survivors; an article by Tjemsland et al. (1998) looking at PTSS in breast cancer survivors one year after surgery; and the fifth and final article which is not relevant to the topic. It is clear, therefore, that the rationale for the study is valid: there are, indeed, few published articles looking at the specific research topic proposed by O’Connor et al. (2011). In terms of the sample and data collection, as O’Connor et al. (2011) note, the sample for the research was 4917 women from Denmark, aged between 18 and 70, all of whom had been diagnosed with, and were recovering from, primary breast cancer and who had undergone surgery for their breast cancer during a very specific time period, namely October 2001 and March 2004. In terms of the inclusion criteria for the sample, it was important that all women included had no history of other cancers and that the women could read and write in Danish (to ensure that they fully understood, and could respond to, the questionnaire used to collect the data). It is important to note that all women selected for inclusion in the O’Connor et al. (2011) research were breast cancer free at the time of the data collection. The women’s medical histories were checked and only women treated via the same treatment modality, namely the standardised guidelines as set out in the Danish Breast Cancer Cooperative Group, were included in the sample used in the research. This was to ensure that the women had all received the same treatment, at the same time, to ensure that any potential bias was reduced. Bias could have been introduced, for example, if the women selected for study had been in recovery for longer or if the women had all received different treatment modalities or if the women was still living with breast cancer: by selecting women on the basis of a certain date for the surgery, and a certain treatment modality, and by applying the strict inclusion criteria, the researchers minimised the potential effects of bias, ensuring as high a possible validity and reliability for the results found (Gerrish and Lacey, 2010). As Roberts et al. (2006) note, â€Å"†¦reliability and viability are ways of demonstrating and communicating the rigour of research processes and the trustworthiness of research findings†. For research to be helpful, the research process and the results reported need to be as clear and transparent as possible: misleading information will cause the reader to doubt the research process and, therefore, the validity of the results reported. As Roberts et al. (2006) suggest, the trustworthiness of a research article depends on many factors including the research question posed, the initial research question, the ways in which the data is collected, the ways in which the data is analysed and the conclusions that are drawn from the findings presented (see, also, Cormack, 2000). At the moment, on the basis of the research question posed and the data collection methods, the O’Connor et al. (2011) seems to be trustworthy and, therefore, reliable. Reliability, in this context , can be understood as the degree to which a particular set up can, â€Å"†¦produce similar results in different circumstances, assuming nothing else has changed† (Roberts et al., 2006). Regarding the data collection method, O’Connor et al. (2011) utilised a mailed-out questionnaire to obtain data from the sample of women regarding their post-traumatic stress symptoms, as measured using the IES, which is utilised widely in the literature as a measure of PTSS, given the strong correlations in interviews between IES scores and clinical diagnoses of PTSS. Additional covariates were gathered from the women via the questionnaire, including demographic and socioeconomic variables such as age, marital status, number of children, income, educational level, social status and net wealth, amongst other variables (O’Conner et al, 2011). These variables were collected in order to test, statistically, the relationships between the degree of PTSS found in the patients and all of the variables, to see if there were any pervasive links between the presence of PTSS and any particular variable. It could be, for example, that a patient’s age predisposes them to be m ore likely to experience PTSS following surgery for breast cancer, or that the person’s educational attainment affects their likelihood of experiencing PTSS. It was important, therefore, that O’Connor et al. (2011) controlled for all potentially confounding variables, in order to be sure that any relationship found between the presence of PTSS and the most probable risk factors were actually true and not simply an artefact of the data collection method (Black, 1999). In terms of the data analysis, the data analysis was conducted using non-parametric tests, namely Mann-Whitney or Kruskal-Wallis (O’Connor et al., 2011). Comparisons between the independent variables and the PTSS score, as measured via the IES, were conducted using chi-squared tests. Adjusted analyses were conducted using logistic regressions with PTSS being the dependent variable (O’Connor et al., 2011). The results found were reported as adjusted odds ratios (O’Connor et al., 2011). It can be seen, therefore, that the statistical tests used were appropriate for the type of data collected: the use of non-parametric tests, for example, was appropriate, given the fact that the variances were found to differ markedly amongst respondents   (Bryman and Cramer, 1990). The use of the chi-squared test in this case is also appropriate, as discussed in Siegel (1957), given the fact that all participants were independent and that frequency data was collected from the par ticipants via the questionnaire. Overall, then, the selection and use of the statistical tests to analyse the data were appropriate, giving confidence that the data analysis was conducted appropriately and that the results found from the analyses are reliable. Regarding the interpretation of the results and the main findings of the article, around 20% of the women surveyed exhibited PTSS at 3 months after surgery, reducing to around 14% at 15 months following the surgery (O’Connor et al., 2011). Regarding the predictors of PTSS in women surviving breast cancer, the presence of severe PTSS was related to older age at 3 months post-surgery. Being a mother of small children also increased a woman’s chances of developing PTSS following their surgery. The data analysis also found that several socioeconomic variables were also strong predictors of PTSS: education, occupational status, personal income and household net wealth (O’Connor et al., 2011). Higher educational attainment was strongly related to a reduced chance of developing PTSS. It is clear, then, that there are various factors that are related to a woman’s chance of developing PTSS following surgery for primary breast cancer. In terms of whether the article makes any contribution to the field of health psychology, it is clear from the article that there are various factors that are related to a woman’s chance of developing PTSS following surgery for primary breast cancer. Given the strong link between these factors and the development of PTSS, there is an argument to be made that women patients with breast cancer who have such risk factors should be offered counselling pre- and post-surgery in order to be able to help to mitigate the risk factors and help these women to avoid developing PTSS. Regarding the conclusion of the article, in terms of whether the conclusions drawn are justified, as has been discussed in the critique of the article, the authors took every precaution possible to ensure that the sample selection and data collection were designed in such a way that the risk of bias was minimised, this increasing the reliability and validity of the findings, and conclusions, presented in the article. This means that the conclusions drawn are not only justified, in terms of the aim of the article, but also that the conclusions from the article can be considered robust and, therefore, trustworthy. The significance of the article, in terms of the contribution it makes to knowledge in this area is great. As O’Connor et al. (2011) themselves note, this is the first article to look at the prevalence of, and risk factors for, PTSS in breast cancer survivors. Additionally, given the large sample size of the article and the rigour of the data collection and data analys is, the results obtained can be argued to be very robust (Creswell, 2008) and, therefore, of high reliability. Regarding the extent to which people who have experienced breast cancer might be helped by the findings of the article, as O’Connor et al. (2011) note, breast cancer and surviving breast cancer is a highly traumatic experience for women. Knowing what factors cause women to experience greater levels of trauma post-surgery is very useful as this knowledge can be used to target those women at greater risk of suffering PTSS and, equipped with this knowledge, delivering counselling to these women to ensure that their risk of developing PTSS is lessened. As O’Connor et al. (2011) suggest, to have this knowledge is akin to being forewarned: pre-emptive measures can be taken to mitigate the potential negative effects of the risk factors and to reduce the chance of women at risk of developing PTSS. In general terms, then, the article – if its findings were transmitted through the general media – would be helpful to women as women could, if they were at risk of deve loping PTSS following surgery, seek help themselves from their medical team. As PTSS has been linked to depression and other psychiatric problems in breast cancer survivors (Morrill et al., 2008), any preventative measures that could be offered to such women would help save them from further trauma and help them to live with a better quality of life (Andersen et al., 2008). References Andersen, M.R. et al. (2008). Frequent search for sense by long-term breast cancer survivors associated with reduced HRQOL. Womens Health 47, 19-37. Black, T.R. (1999). Doing quantitative research in the social sciences. Sage. Bryman, A. and Cramer, D. (1990). Quantitative data analysis for social scientists. Taylor Francis. Cormack, D. (2000). The research process in nursing. Blackwell. Creswell, J.W. (2008). Research design: qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods approaches. Sage. Gerrish, K. and Lacey, A. (2010). The research process in nursing. Wiley. Morrill, E.F. et al. (2008). The interaction of post-traumatic growth and post-traumatic stress symptoms in predicting depressive symptoms and quality of life. Psychooncology 17, 948-953. Roberts, P. et al. (2006). Reliability and validity in research. Nursing Standard 20, 41-45. Siegel, S. (1957). Nonparametric statistics. The American Statistician 11, 13-19. Tjemsland, L. et al. (1998). Posttraumatic distress symptoms in operable breast cancer III: status one year after surgery. Breast Cancer 47, 141-151.

Killing Hitler

Killing Hitler RP CAT - Killing HitlerDear Friedrich,[Ca] I very much appreciate your request for me to take revenge on the German mass murderer Adolf Hitler. [IC] After much consideration I have come to the conclusion that I will take part in the assassination.I, similarly to Joseph Fletcher (founder of Situation Ethics) and Jeremy Bentham, am a hedonist whom attempts to bring "the greatest good for the greatest number". This means that I am a strong consequentialist and [R1] would certainly kill one man to save the lives of 6,000,000 innocent Jews. [R2] I am also a relative moralist and would do what seems the most beneficial in the long term as opposed to committing myself to a set of rules to be followed throughout my life. From this you can gather that I am undeniably a Hedonist. On the other hand I believe that most altruistic decisions are actually made for egoistic purposes and that the majority of decisions are made purely for the benefit of us.[Ex] For example, walking an old lady across the road; you are doing her a favour but thus giving yourself a feeling of pleasure and well-being.My views could then be contradicted by famous followers of the Natural Law such as Thomas Aquinas [CA] who would say that murdering a person is going against the responsibility to preserve life and say that although you are a consequentialist you may be causing more pain to more people by killing Hitler because someone, perhaps more evil than Hitler, could come into power and kill double the amount of innocent people. He would state that consequentialists cannot predict the future and therefore cannot know what will do the greatest good for the greatest number. My views could also be argued against by followers...

Teaching Reading Comprehension to Dyslexic Students

Teaching Reading Comprehension to Dyslexic Students Reading comprehension is frequently very difficult for students with dyslexia. They are challenged by word recognition; they may forget a word even though they have seen it several times. They may spend so much time and effort in sounding words out, they lose the meaning of the text or they may need to read a passage over and over to fully understand what is being said. An in-depth report, completed by the National Reading Panel in 2000, provides a look at how teachers can best teach students reading comprehension. This skill is considered essential, not only in learning to read but also in lifelong learning. The panel held regional public hearings with teachers, parents, and students to help form an understanding of what was required in making sure students had a solid foundation of reading skills. Reading comprehension was listed as one of the five most important skills in developing reading. According to the panel, there were three specific themes within reading comprehension that were discussed: Vocabulary InstructionText Comprehension InstructionTeacher Preparation and Comprehension Strategies Instruction Vocabulary Instruction Teaching vocabulary increases reading comprehension. The more words a student knows, the easier it is to understand what is being read. Students must also be able to decode unfamiliar words, that is, they must be able to derive the meaning of the word through knowledge or similar words or through the surrounding text or speech. For example, a student can better understand the word truck if they first understand the word car or a student can guess what the word truck means by looking at the rest of the sentence, such as The farmer loaded hay in the back of his truck and drove away. The student can assume that the truck is something you drive, thereby being like a car, but is bigger since it can hold hay. The panel found that using a variety of methods to teach vocabulary worked better than simple vocabulary lessons. Some of the successful methods included:Using computer and technology to aid in vocabulary instruction Repetitive exposure to wordsLearning vocabulary words prior to reading textIndirect learning of vocabulary, for example, using vocabulary words in a number of different contextsLearning vocabulary in both written text and oral speech Teachers should not rely on a single method of teaching vocabulary but instead should combine different methods to create interactive and multi-faceted vocabulary lessons that are age-appropriate for the students. Text Comprehension Instruction Text comprehension, or understanding what the printed words mean as a whole rather than understanding individual words, is the basis of reading comprehension. The panel found that comprehension is enhanced when readers actively relate the ideas represented in print to their own knowledge and experiences and construct mental representations in memory. Further, it was found that when cognitive strategies were used during reading, comprehension increased. Some of the specific reading comprehension strategies that were found to be effective are: Teaching students to monitor their understanding of the material as they readHaving students practice reading comprehension skills as a groupUsing pictures and graphics to represent the material being learnedAnswering questions about the materialCreating questions about the materialDetermining the structure of the storySummarizing the material As with vocabulary instruction, it was found that using a combination of reading comprehension strategies and making lessons multisensory was more effective than using a single strategy. In addition, understanding that strategies may change depending on what is being read was important. For example, reading science text may require a different strategy than reading a story. Students who are able to experiment with different strategies better equipped to determine which strategy will work for their current assignment. Teacher Preparation and Comprehension Strategies Instruction In order to teach reading comprehension, the teacher must, of course, be knowledgeable of all of the components of reading comprehension. Specifically, teachers should receive training in explaining the strategies to students, modeling thinking processes, encouraging students to be curious about what they are reading, keeping students interested and creating interactive reading instruction. There are two main approaches to teaching reading comprehension strategies: Direct Explanation: Using this approach, the teacher explains the reasoning and mental processes used to make text meaningful. Teachers can explain that reading and understanding text is a problem-solving exercise. For example, when summarizing what has been read, a student can play the part of a detective, looking for important information in the text. Transaction Strategy Instruction: This approach also uses direct explanations of the strategies used in reading comprehension but includes class and group discussions on the material in order to develop a deeper understanding of the material. Source Teaching Children to Read: An Evidence-Based Assessment of the Scientific Research Literature on Reading and Its Implications for Reading Instruction, 2000, National Reading Panel, National Institutes of Health, U.S. Government

Current topic III Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Current topic III - Essay Example se they are aware of the expectations and needs of different groups in the society on health care provision services (World Health Organization, 2012). This knowledge is derived from closely interacting and communicating with patients, their family members, doctors and other health care stakeholders. By making their contributions on the needs of different groups, nurses can ensure that health policies that exist reflect the diverse nature of the population. Nurses can make a difference to health policies by highlighting the changing disease patterns, and by seeking information from the patients on their medical treatment preferences. 100 powerful women in the world for 2012- slide (in this section). Find a woman that you admire and write how come she is an inspiration of hope for you? What leadership traits do you see in her? Do you have those traits also? I admire the IBM President and CEO Virginia Rometty. Mrs Rometty is a force to reckon with because of 30 years skills and experience at the company. She is the first female CEO of the company. She has also established and is implementing a business strategy at the company that is set to increase the revenue generated by the company by approximately $ 20 million. Rometty is resilient and hardworking; very admirable qualities. She began her career at the company as a systems engineer, went on to be in charge of global sales then CEO and president. I have similar qualities as her because I am hardworking and resilient. I believe that I am creative and innovative since I am committed to serving the society in all my capacity. In my opinion, Michelle Obama is a better role model. Mrs. Obama has been able to win public support through her wise speeches to the public. The current First lady reflects a positive image due to her confidence, firm and seemingly caring nature. Michelle Obama is very determined to raise awareness on obesity and curb its effect on a large population of American nationals (Forbes, 2012).

On Golden Pond Film Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

On Golden Pond Film - Essay Example The chief protagonist’s roles are played by ace actor and actress – Henry Fonda and Katherine Hepburn. ‘On Golden Pond’ is based on an affectionate and loving couple who spend their twilight years with each other and the different experiences that come in the wake of their life. The film portrays the difficulties faced by this couple in old age and how despite these difficulties they maintain their dignity and respect right through the end of the film. The thing that makes the film all the more interesting is that the audience can easily relate to it and identify themselves in similar situations. The inherent sentiment in the film is greatly enhanced and reinforced through the visual metaphor of a beautiful sunset over the Golden Pond. The breathtaking beautiful natural scenery of New England highlights the concept of emotional sentiment between the elderly couple and how they interact towards each other in specific situations. ‘On the Golden Pondâ₠¬â„¢ is all about real – life relationships and personalities which is what makes it much easier for the audience to connect and relate to. The filmmaker draws from the extensively publicized problems that were faced by Henry Fonda with his son and daughter. However, the central theme of the film is all about how a college professor and his wife take the much deserved privilege of a holiday in this idyllic spot to explore â€Å"life’s inner meaning†. The main plot of the film involves contrasting male senility against female strength. Though the characters are vulnerable to their situation, yet they do not appear to be so, due to Rydell’s technique of using high angle and bird’s eye shots that helps to maintain the illusion of his characters. This technique helps the characters to integrate and adapt themselves well with their environment. Rydell’s female protagonist, Katherine is a very devoted wife who is quite a free- spirited and carefre e character who even goes singing in the woods and picking up firewood, strawberries and flowers for the home. As a female pillar of strength, she forces the audience to understand the reversal of gender roles and their consequences. On the other hand, the male protagonist Fonda is always seen bemoaning his uncertainty of life because he is faced with the fact of gradually losing his memory and the deterioration of his physical health. The conflict between the Fondas emerges quite early in the film as Henry’s mental health seems to be getting even worse. For example, he accuses the operator of having called them a classic ‘Exhibit A’ memory loss. He also looks at an old photograph of him and his wife with their child Chelsea and enquires who that child was. In Fonda, we could understand the serious consequences of retirement that manifests itself through unpleasant confrontation with his daughter and constant nagging which he uses as a recourse to be in control o f his status and situation which becomes more complex as he increases in age. He is unable to accept the reality of his situation and a feeling of uselessness creeps over him. These behaviors are exhibited by the character Norman due to aging according to his chronological age and also due to the fact he is unable to accept the fact of aging, retirement and other physical and mental disabilities that accompany it. On close observation of this character we come to understand that he is unable to come to terms with himself by accepting his infirmities and

WILDLIFE TOURISM IN SOUTH AFRICA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

WILDLIFE TOURISM IN SOUTH AFRICA - Essay Example The international wildlife tourists however comprise of such people who are mainly keen of conducting tours inside Africa (Avitourism in South Africa, 2010,pp.12-13). The target market identified for the marketing plan presented here accounts for 21000 to around 40000 wildlife tourists visiting the region on an annual basis. Domestic tourists comprise the major chunk of the wildlife tourist population and range from 13 to 24 thousand while the international tourists account for 8 to 16 thousand people on an annual basis. These target groups accounting for making wildlife tourism in South Africa render around 1025 to 1975 billion rand to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product on an annual basis (Research and Analysis Report, 2010, p.9). The report therefore intends to provide a clear-cut plan to attract these tourists by strategies in marketing and promotion and therefore add to the economy in terms of revenues as well. WILDLIFE TOURISM IN SOUTH AFRICA – A Marketing Plan Ma rketing Plan for Promoting Wildlife Tourism in South Africa South Africa is home to a large amount of biodiversity spread along its natural parks and wildlife habitats and accounts for drawing visitors from a worldwide base. This activity of ecology based wildlife tourism in the region helps in drawing huge revenues for the South African economy. In South Africa the amount of tourists coming to visit the wildlife sectors accrue to about 79 percent of the total number of tourists visiting the region on an annual basis. In terms of economic value the wildlife tourism in South Africa account for around 50 percent of the total amount of income generated from tourism activities. To attract the tourists visiting the South African region for their interest in wildlife, the South African government has rendered space for the development of natural parks, which hosts a large number of flora and fauna. These natural parks help in hosting a large number of tourists in several rest camps contai ning both lodging and hotel facilities. An example of a national park in the South African region is the Kruger National Park, which helps hosting a large number of tourists in both caravan and camps along with other guesthouses and guest cottages. These latter ones are built to present to the visitors a huge variety of opportunities to live and enjoy their tour. These hotels, rest houses and guest camps are designed in such a fashion as to provide to the people dwelling and food based on international standards. Estimates made show that only the Kruger National Park in South Africa draws around 1.4 million wildlife tourists in the region. This national park also helps to accrue huge amount of revenue for the South African economy. Estimates made show that on an average annual basis the national park amounts to around 40 million dollars of revenue for the South African government (Spenceley, 2006, pp.652-653). It is found from the above discussion that the impact of wildlife tourism in South Africa has helped the development of the economy of the region. The marketing and promotional activities designed would help greatly in enhancing the growth of wildlife tourists in the region, which would thereby augment the revenue patterns of the economy. However the marketing and promotional activities that would be taken to enhance the development of wildlife tourism in South Africa by helping in attracting large number of tourists must be developed in an organized fashion to optimize the utilization of available resources. Thus the design of the marketing plan for developing wildlife tourism in South Africa must function on the basis of the following agenda. Firstly the marketing plan