Monday, September 30, 2019

Jane Addams – Biography

The argument Addams makes that â€Å"educational matters are more democratic in their political than in their social aspect† (197), I believe she is referring to the long struggle between the teachers and the Chicago School Board. The Chicago School Board was politically corrupt. Many of the teachers and custodial engineers were friends of politicians who secured their positions in exchange for certain kickbacks. The school board maintained control over the school administration for many years. During which they restricted the types of children that were able to attend the public schools and they restricted the amount of freedom and authority the teachers were able to use in their classrooms. On several different occasions the â€Å"Dunne† members of the board attempted to lower the restriction on the teachers side but were warned-off with tales of the politicians and the difficulties previous attempts encountered. Addams' describes the situation between the superintendent and the Teachers' Federation as â€Å"an epitome of the struggle between efficiency and democracy† (171). She clearly understood both standpoints and why they both felt compelled to make their argument, although she does mention that they both â€Å"inevitably exaggerated the difficulties of the situation† (171). As a member of the school board, Addams tried to influence the Federation to make changes that would be in the best interest of the children, but after the legal struggle and following months of constant change, many of the important measure were withdrawn. Although she did have an opportunity to debate these measures in a democratic way, they were dismissed because of (more or less) political reasons. Jane Addams' role for education in an effort to reform the city was to take the disruptive delinquents the public schools rejected and accept them unconditionally into the settlement. Give them the opportunity to learn domestic training and trade teachings. She felt that even people of lesser means were interested in the same topics as the â€Å"well-to-do† people of society. She also thought that if you give a child encouragement and a sense of self-worth combined with an opportunity to become something in society that they would try to become productive. Hull-House offered educational opportunities for anyone who wanted to attend with no political or economic restrictions. Hull-House also offered the opportunity for recreation, such as supervised sports matches, which hundreds of youths seemed to prefer. Jane Addams' makes an important statement that â€Å"The educational activities of a Settlement, as well as its philanthropic, civic, and social undertakings, are but differing manifestations of the attempt to socialize democracy, as is the very existence of the Settlement itself,† (206). That illustrates her idea of education, which I believe is what she wanted for the public school system, but was unable to achieve while she was a member of the board.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Cyberspace and Human Relationships Essay

There was a time when people were divided into 2 groups: those with social skills that help them in interacting with others, and those without the needed social skills to interact thus causing them to retreat into a shell or their own little vacuum of a world. These groups no longer exist in today’s world because of that technological marvel that has been bridging social gaps in the 21st century, the Internet. The Internet has introduced both the socially adept and inept people to new forms of communication that do not cause them to get tongue tied nor have muddled thoughts when trying to relate to others. Using chat room, email, forums, blogging, and other forms of electronic communication has allowed people, as a collective society to redefine human relationships in relation to the existence of cyberspace. Cyberspace, more popularly known as the Internet has allowed people to discover the full extent of their social skills within the safe confines of their unknown locations and aliases. According to Norman N. Holland in his paper entitled The Internet Regression: Current estimates say 23 million people communicate on the Internet from most of the nations on the globe, and that number is increasing at 12% a month. One would normally say that these statistics are a good sign. People are finally communicating with each other regardless of nationality, ethnicity, and race. Nothing could be further from the truth. Mr. Holland’s research has indicated that: Talking on the Internet, people regress. It’s that simple. It can be one-to-one talk on e-mail or many-to-many talk on one of the LISTs or newsgroups. People regress, expressing sex and aggression as they never would face to face. He proceeds to explain that these regressions can be seen in 3 aspects that he terms as Internet primitivism. These acts of primitivism are flaming, sexual aggression, strangely enough, extraordinary generosity over the Internet. He defines flaming as Flying into a typewritten rage at some perceived slight or blunder and is the most common form of Internet primitivism usually found in forums, blogs, newsgroups, and emails. Sexual harassment is a: Crude invitations to people about whom one knows no more than their online signatures (which may well be â€Å"gender-benders† that hide the sex of the speaker). Just like in the physical world, this kind of attack is aimed towards women and can happen even in the most professional and intellectual of forums. Although, due to the anonymity that cyberspace offers, males also get their fair share or indecent proposals. Finally, you are probably wondering as to how extraordinary generosity can be considered a type of regression influenced by the use of the Internet. Mr. Holland explains that The one comment you hear over and over again about online communication is the openness, the sense of sharing and, mostly, tolerance. Total strangers will give up hours of their time to send one another research data. Even goods. This is because of the aura of safety and comfort that Internet relationships provide. Mr. Holland tells his readers that Kristina Ross coined the term â€Å"Identity play† to define this sort of openness. The idea being that People try out new ways of being, often in very playful ways: different professions, the opposite gender, altered self-descriptions. There is a sense that ‘it doesn’t matter,’ a feeling of invulnerability. Summing up his belief about Internet relationships, he indicates that Communication on the Internet has its plusses and minuses. The plusses are the generosity and openness. The minuses are aggressive flaming, sexual attack, and increased vulnerability. I think they are two sides of the same coin: sex and aggression in positive and negative, active and passive, forms. Both begin because of a lack of inhibition–a regression. Therefore, he believes that the relationships built over the Internet allow man to give in to his most basic animal desires without anyone to answer to simple because the Internet cannot be controlled nor censored. The main problem I see with Internet based interaction is that the human aspect of socialization has disappeared. Cyberspace gives us a false sense of security and does not provide any boundaries that teach the users how to treat our cyber neighbor. Inhibition does not exist when one does not physically interact with others and this offers a different kind of freedom that allows one to express himself too freely at times in ways and means that one would not even dare to try when face to face with another person. MIT professor Sherry Turk whose article â€Å"Who Am We? † was published by Wire Magazine has found that: Computer screens are the new location for our fantasies, both erotic and intellectual. We are using life on computer screens to become comfortable with new ways of thinking about evolution, relationships, sexuality, politics, and identity. Due to the ease of creating an Internet identity, man has developed the ability to become the Internet character version of a chameleon. It is not uncommon for a person to have more than one online identity depending upon the type of site being frequented. Each identity also has an accompanying character and background that could either be based on the actual personality of the person or totally made up in order to serve a certain purpose for the individual. Now, according to a 2004 survey done by the Elan University / Pew Internet Project: By 2014, use of the Internet will increase the size of peoples’ social networks far beyond what has traditionally been the case. This will enhance trust in society, as people have a wider range of sources from which to discover and verify information about job opportunities, personal services, common interests and products. Cyberspace has bridged a communication gap worldwide. It allows us to have a tremendously extensive social network using community websites like Friendster, My Space, and other similar websites. Using these avenues, we have developed virtual worlds where we can become comfortable with other people and decide if it would be worth it for us to meet them face to face, or if it will be worth it to speak to them over the phone. Due to the ease of creating an Internet identity, man has developed the ability to become the Internet character version of a chameleon. It is not uncommon for a person to have more than one online identity depending upon the type of site being frequented. Each identity also has an accompanying character and background that could either be based on the actual personality of the person or totally made up in order to serve a certain purpose for the individual. The existence of cyberspace has redefined one of the most basic social and human relationships. I am talking about the Dating relationship. Gone are the days of worrying and embarrassment over wanting to talk to a person you have a crush on or talking to a person you really want to ask out and fearing being rebuffed. Dating services such as match. com proliferate the Internet and, for low monthly fees, the company wants you to believe that they can find you that perfect partner all through the use of technology supported match making. Millions of people worldwide are signed up for similar services in their home countries. The questions are (1. ) Does it really work? (2. ) Is there a more dominant sex in this kind of dating set-up? (3) Have the gender roles been reversed because of this new form of finding and going on a date? (4. ) Dating a matter of trust. Can you trust someone you just met online? Since cyberspace allows us to communicate from great distances, personal and romantic relationships that are based on this arena centers mostly around trusting the other person. Somehow, people who interact online seem to be more comfortable talking about them and use the anonymity of the Internet as confidence boost towards becoming more intimate. Online dating allows both participants to find someone they have a lot in common with before actually going on a physical date. This helps lessen or eliminate the uncertainty of the physical date because they assume that they already know each other and already know they are mentally compatible. Hence, a different level of comfort and trust. According to Tiberius Brastaviceanu, author of The Future of Online Dating: Technology-mediated communication provides a less stressful environment where dating people can better control their self-presentation, and better strategize. Some manifestations of this difference are: Misrepresentation: for various reasons people tend to portray a persona that is unrealistic to a greater degree. End of conversation: exchanges can be ended abruptly, as this action bears insignificant consequences. Intimacy: people tend to disclose more intimate information, as this action bears less-significant consequences. Rudeness: extreme behaviors, normally inhibited in a real social environment, are common in computer-mediated communication. Indeed, dating these days is now a far cry from when our parents were dating. Maybe because dating people met online is more exciting. It provides and element of surprise and according to Brastaviceanu: The ultimate cause is that it makes the dating game more interesting, by providing huge payoffs: intimacy, each independent rejection is less harmful (go here for more in-depth), putting an end to a stillborn relation is less complicated, access to a larger pool of potential matches, etc. Online dating is a type of dating service that relies mostly on technology, and offers daters the possibility to meet and to communicate online. Although, just like anything too good to be true, it has some grave downsides that are considered just as dangerous as speed dating and blind dating. According to Brastaviceanu, these complications are quite similar to real life dating woes. As an example, he states: Misrepresentation Security A torrent of unpleasant messages from non-serious daters As some of the dangers posed by online dating. Yet people still seem to enjoy using the online dating services or going out with people they meet online. Some would say, â€Å"the payoff exceeds the nuisance† that according to Brastaviceanu has provided the single people with a highly modified dating model that has left us with one certainty: The dating game has been greatly modified, but on a background of continuity. It still holds important elements form its traditional version. And that is because the players (daters) are still real beings manifesting real needs, and the aim of the game (relational goals) is something that has to be cherished in real-life. It is true that online dating has made everything easier for people who are painfully shy or do to have the first idea as to how to get or ask for a date with a person they like. But online dating will never replace actual dating. There are certain elements of physical dating that cannot be erased because of the importance it carries in terms of a long-term physical, or even cyberspace based relationship. One of these more important factors is the role each person plays in the relationship. Even in cyberspace, there can be no role reversal, as one will always prove to be the more dominant sex. But, because these people met and discovered each other similarities and differences in cyberspace, they may find it easier to meet halfway and come to an agreement regarding the role each person will play in the date or relationship. In terms of sexuality though, theorists such as Sherry Turkel advocate the belief that: Interaction in cyberspace to be liberating in that anonymous users can put on and take off gender identities at will. According to some of those who shared their beliefs in the 1999 article Gender and the Internet: Sex, Sexism, and Sexuality, theorists such as Alan Ryan believe otherwise indicating that: If I pass myself off as a Chinese drag queen of uncertain age, I do not become any such thing, any more than I would do so if I played some part in a play. From the same article, Don Slater further reaffirms the notion that sexual roles are not reversed once meeting people online by explaining that: While one would expect the construction of new kinds of bodies, identities and connections between them, a liberation, an experimentalism or at least a diminished conventionality, his study of sexpics trade on IRC found that participants reaffirmed heterosexual, male norms. Cyberspace has influenced more than just the dating game played by society. It has also managed to alter the face of human relationships due to the vast communities online dedicated to social interaction among its members. Entire communities are built solely for the purpose of meeting new people who share the same interests or simply staying in touch with friends who now live miles away from each other. Lisa R. Hoffman, author of the article Gender and the Internet: Sex, Sexism, and Sexuality explains who human relationships have evolved with the emergence of cyberspace as a social tool and gathering place for individuals and groups as: Rather than representing a dichotomy between good and evil, oppression and resistance, the Internet and its use reflects society’s complexity. Theoretically speaking, it therefore reflects the epistemological insights of feminist, postmodernist, and cultural studies scholars, who posit a multiple versus dualistic conception of society and social change. Moreover, it appears that the Internet and gender represents just one more case of how the more things change, the more they stay the same. The virtual world of cyberspace mimics the real world situations and problems on sites such as Friendster, Facebook, and MySpace. These cyber communities share the same real world problems of envy, lying, pretending, and bullying. The big difference in the problems lies in the way the cyberspace user chooses to handle the situation because, unlike in real life, in a cyber community, you can unsubscribe, block emails and private messages, or quite simply, just turn off the computer. These are options not available to us in the real world. I believe that the best explanation as to how cyberspace has helped human relationships evolved into a higher degree comes from the article by Margot Morse entitled The Chaos of Cyberspace Brought to Order: Social Networking Sites. She successfully explains that: One undeniable fact is that sites such a these ones allow individuals to remain connected through various outlets and areas of interest. Relationships between friends and family can be more in touch with each other close to â€Å"real time† through messaging. The sites also makes connections and can show how people know each other through the degrees of separation- thus creating a smaller and more connected world and reinforcing our personal relationships. All of these theories, analysis, surveys say the same thing about our society and the effect of cyberspace on the relationships in the virtual and real world. Anything done in excess will have severe consequences. Cyberspace or the Internet was originally developed as a military tool to help aid in warfare program and development. It has come a long way from being a tool of mass chaos, to a tool aimed at developing relationships and fostering goodwill. The actual effect that cyberspace will have on dating and human relationship is solely based in the hands of man. Cyberspace can easily be used in bad ways as it can be used for good. It is up to man to make sure that the right decisions are made and that cyberspace remains a tool of peace and an avenue meant to keep the peace and foster understanding, love and friendship among mankind. Work Cited â€Å"Gender and the Internet: Sex, Sexism, and Sexuality†. ProQuest CSA. May 1999. April 10, 2007 < http://www. csa. com/discoveryguides/archives/gender. php> â€Å"Prediction on Social Networks†. Imagining the Internet. 2004. April 12, 2007 < http://www. elon. edu/e-web/predictions/expertsurveys/2004_socialnetworks. xhtml â€Å"The Chaos of Cyberspace Brought to Order: Social Networking Sites†. ConNetion : The Cultural Phenomenon of the World Wide Web. April 2007. April 10. 2007 â€Å"The Future of the Dating Industry†. Dating Industry. March 19, 2007. April 11, 2007 < http://tiberius-dating-industry. blogspot. com/search/label/online%20dating> â€Å"The Internet Regression†. The Psychology of Cyberspace. January 1996. April 12, 2007

Friday, September 27, 2019

Proofing Memo Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Proofing Memo - Essay Example Then I automatically spell and grammar check through a computer program. After completing the computer program, I reread the piece one more time. While creating this document, I do not sit continuously at the computer. I get up every once in awhile to stretch, take a bathroom break, or get a drink. This helps me refocus upon my task. This is a good time to check margins and tabs. Formatting a word document depends on the computer program being used. Spacing, paragraphs, and margins are important for several reasons. The most primary reason is so your document can be printer ready. Without the correct formatting, printing can cause the document to run together, lose page numbers, or have incorrect headers or footers. Formatting is also vital for email and faxing documents. No matter how good an item is proofread, if the formatting is wrong, the document will not arrive to the intended target in a professional manner. When checking a document’s formatting, searching for one type of mistake at a time can help catch more mistakes. For example, first look for spelling errors only. Then grammar errors can be searched for in your document. Page numbers, headings, footnotes, font size and type, or any other error can be looked for one type of error at a time. This helps focus your attention on one type of mistake, instead of trying to take the whole document in at once. If I try to look for all the mistakes at once, I generally miss one type, due to my focus being divided. Then I practice another familiar technique. I walk away from my project for the day. After a good night’s sleep, I come back to my computer. Sometimes, I only take a nap. The point is to rest before continuing work. Then I reread what is written. Many times I can see where in the heat of the moment, I did not logically write what I meant. Since some spelling and grammar mistakes will not be picked up by a computer

Elementary School Observation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Elementary School Observation - Essay Example Most of the curriculum was centered around counting and the alphabet. The kids did have the opportunity to explore their creative sides by doing art projects, playing with Legos, and working on the computer. It was necessary for the teacher to break up the day into smaller chunks because the kids became restless quickly. After spending the first hour with the teacher, the students broke off into smaller learning groups of 5-7 children monitored by the teacher and her aides. The classroom was very clean and the supplies were readily available. There was a variety of learning tools for the students to use. Puzzles, blocks, and Legos were the tools most frequently used. All of the tools were well organized in bins. Overall, the classroom was well-organized. According to Kohlberg’s stages of moral reasoning, a child exhibiting bad behavior can be trained to behave. Middle childhood falls under stages 1 and 2 of Kohlberg’s theory of Preconventional Morality. In Stage 1, children follow rules to avoid punishment. In Stage 2, children follow rules for their own benefit (reward). (Feldman 2006). The reward system figures very prominently into a Kindergarten classroom. Children can collect prizes for doing their work well and staying on task. Conversely, they lose their chance to win prizes when they cause disruptions and refuse to do work. Children at this stage of development are seeking to establish their own identity. Self-esteem may play a role in how children view their relationships with their peers. According to Feldman, â€Å"Sometimes children make downward social comparisons with others who are obviously less competent or successful to raise or protect their own self-esteem.† Erickson’s Psychosocial Stages can be broken down as follows: Basic Trust vs. Mistrust, Autonomy vs. Shame or Doubt, Initiative vs. Guilt, Industry vs. Inferiority, Identity vs. Role Confusion, Intimacy vs. Isolation, Generativity vs.

Thursday, September 26, 2019

The Body in Health, Lifestyle or Sporting Magazines Essay

The Body in Health, Lifestyle or Sporting Magazines - Essay Example The myth about beauty will be broken by revealing the real benefits media enjoy by impacting the values of women. The paper also focuses on identifying ways through which this insecurity can be prevented or remedied. Changing standards of feminine beauty with time The portrayal of women as a marketing object has a long history in media but the trend of extremely thin models is not very old. Earlier, the idea of female beauty was closely linked to her realistically voluptuous body. In the early 20th century, the culture of fashion underwent a shift from the chubby female figure to a thinner fragile look. However, this thinner new female ideal was not really misleading and made women think about taking care of their health. This description of a female figure initially created a healthy trend in common people as they started to incorporate sports activities in their free time to make their bodies healthier and more active. During the mid 20th century, ideal female body image became thi nner (someone like Marilyn Monroe who was a size 14 was considerably overweight as compared with today’s standards). After initial acceptance of this idea, the trend went on following the notion, â€Å"the thinner the better†. Unfortunately, with the passage of time, these underweight models became the representatives of female beauty, which is still the case today. However, with the development of digital imaging techniques, the beauty ideal presented today to young women is more unrealistic and unattainable than ever before. The recent hype for promoting the thin beauty is increasing towards unattainable thin figures, most of the time being artificially â€Å"perfect† which is facilitated by digital tools and computer. In this way, the media can be held responsible for creating stereotyped notions of beauty, being linked with skinny, ultra-slim and very female bodies (Arya, 2009). The myth of beauty Being surrounded by so many media with so many skinny women r aises the question of what actually can be called an ideal or perfect female figure. The description of beauty described by the media seems to be quite similar to a Barbie doll:   a thin and tall figure, always smiling and ready to be played with. The ideal body shape broadcasted by media is actually of the skeletal and underweight woman. The representation of skinny women is supported by media to such an extent that it became the standard for the ideal body for Miss American contests, where most of the contestants weigh much less than 15% of their expected body weight and therefore giving a clear-cut message that it’s ok to be underweight but still you can look pretty (University of California, 2007).

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Evolution of Computer Technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Evolution of Computer Technology - Essay Example By doing so the CPU is never idle and optimizes the use of resources. It is a combination of various scalar and vector processing which is responsible for Instruction level parallelism within a single processor. It executes more than one instruction during a clock cycle. It also includes pipelining and makes sure that instructions are taken from a sequential stream are dynamically checked for dependencies between instructions. It enhances the speed of the computer by executing in the following manner: It is a concept where several jobs would run parallel using the common processing resources like CPU and memory. It switches from one job to another taking the processes to execute simultaneously the tasks. This switching is called context switching. The security aspects of multitasking would be the ability of a process to impact inadvertently or deliberately overwrite memory allocation that belongs to another program. The complexity of various operations would make sure that memory requires to be protected from other processes and can be done using semaphores. The semaphores employ two basic functions namely wait and signal to synchronize the process operation and functioning. It allows concurrent access of the processes to memory resources for direct access and control. The memory management schemes involve garbage collection which is more dependent on various memory allocation and release methods for removing objects from memory. Researchers at Xerox PARC have developed a powerful formal model for describing the parameter spaces for collectors that are both generational and conservative. A garbage collection becomes a mapping from one storage state to another. They show that storage states may be partitioned into threatened and immune sets. The method of selecting these sets induces a specific garbage collection algorithm. A pointer augmentation provides the formalism for modeling remembered sets and imprecise pointer identifications. Finally, they show how the formalism may be used to combine any generational algorithm with a conservative one. They used the model to design and then implement two different conservative generational garbage collectors. Their Sticky Mark Bit collector uses two generations and promotes objects surviving a single coll ection. A refinement of this collector (Collector II) allows objects allocated beyond an arbitrary point in the past to be immune from collection and tracing. This boundary between old objects, which are immune, and the new objects, which are threatened, is called the threatening boundary. More recently, these authors have received a software patent covering their ideas. Any type of dynamic storage allocation system imposes both CPU and memory costs. The costs often strongly affect the performance of the system and pass directly to the purchaser of the hardware as well as to software project schedules. Thus, the selection of the appropriate storage management technique will often be determined primarily by its costs. Cache memory: It is a faster and speedier memory which is placed between the CPU and the main memory and is

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Challenges in implementing a Total Quality Management system in a Thesis Proposal

Challenges in implementing a Total Quality Management system in a culturally diversified workforce - Thesis Proposal Example The research proposal critically analyzes the problems faced by management in implementing Total Quality Management for better services and concludes on the efficient steps that top management can take (Perry & Heron, 2003). Total Quality Management (TQM) is an essential business strategy which creates and embeds awareness of quality in the institutional process of implementing its duties. It is the organization-wide management of quality and it encompasses planning, organizing, control and assurance. It is the concern of many organizations to ensure that the services they offer are of high quality to satisfy the stakeholders. Quality of products is the basis of TQM. The approach is centered on the quality as a way forward of realizing long term success through customer success (Perry & Heron, 2003). What are the effects of cultural diversity on implementation of Total Quality Management (TQM) process? What are the challenges that organizations face in implementing TQM in culturally diversified workforce? The questions of the research proposal are very paramount and interesting since the research will be driven by the questions. The questions guide the researcher especially when collecting information or data to be used in ascertaining the actual impacts of cultural diversity on organizations. The research questions will act as the framework throughout the research work. When the researcher is out in the field, he will be using the questions to know whether they are collecting the right data. On the other hand, the questions are very relevant to the management of an organization because they use them to take corrective measures. Diversity in the workplace is a common phenomenon that has both negative and positive impacts on management and implementation of different operations in an organization. Past research conducted reveals that differences between different stakeholders impact the process of

Monday, September 23, 2019

Wang Gang Referral Consuming Fashion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Wang Gang Referral Consuming Fashion - Essay Example The essay "Wang Gang Referral Consuming Fashion" discovers the generation Y, fashion and consuming. Stating precisely, there are various apparent characteristics deciphered by the Gen Y group. For instance, this group is learnt to be culturally and racially diverse. Additionally, this group is regarded to be highly independent, rendering meagre consideration towards collectivism approaches. The populace belonging to the Gen Y group also feels empowered to take every requirement according to their wants indicating a higher degree of consumer bargaining power in the international context. Focused on the significance of Gen Y customers in today’s international marketing phenomenon, the discussion presented henceforth will intend to render a comprehensive understanding of the behavioural traits deciphered by the populaces. In this regard, the demographic, psychographic and lifestyle choices of the customer group will be studied, which will further be analysed to identify the chall enges and the opportunities rewarded to the marketers worldwide. In keeping with the recent market conditions, ‘Gen Y’ people are learnt to have an enormous potential as the prospective customers for various products and/or services. The people belonging to this group have grown up in the period of economic stability and affluence which, in turn, were quite effective in bringing up constancy as well as rapid advancement in their lifestyle. Therefore, the people belonging to this generation largely desire.... Gen Y group Demographic Characteristics of Gen Y In keeping with the recent market conditions, ‘Gen Y’ people are learnt to have an enormous potential as the prospective customers for various products and/or services. The people belonging to this group have grown up in the period of economic stability and affluence which, in turn, were quite effective in bringing up constancy as well as rapid advancement in their lifestyle. Therefore, the people belonging to this generation largely desire to pursue an affluent lifestyle. These people are often monitored to be highly persuaded towards entertainment and style deciphering lesser significance concerning the monetary attributes. Thus, it can be argued that people belonging to this age group can be more effectively lured with attractive features rather than offering price concessions (Aeffect, Inc., 2000). According to the US Census Bureau, in relation to the figures published in 2000, the Gen Y group comprised people who fund amentally belonged to the age group of 5 years to 22 years, including around 70 million people, i.e. 25.9% of entire population of the nation (Aeffect, Inc., 2000). From a generalised perspective, the families of Gen Y are observed to be very much culturally diverse and lead a busy life. For instance, according to the recent statistics of US demographics, the entire population of Gen Y customers include 15% of African-American, 5% of Asian and 14% of Hispanic citizens. Consequentially, this considerable diversity has resulted in creating a significant distinctness among the buying behaviours of the consumers belonging to this segment. Thus, in order to provide complementary products to the Gen Y buyer segment, the marketers need to come up with varied offerings to meet their needs (Aeffect, Inc.,

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Grim First-Quarter Results for Newspapers Essay Example for Free

Grim First-Quarter Results for Newspapers Essay This particular article talks about the continuing decline in newspaper subscriptions and purchases by the general public.   Many people believe that the newspapers and all print magazines are well on their way to being extinction.   Many critics believe the reason for this is because the news can easily and efficiently be found and read on the internet.   The world wide web offers a great source of news but beyond that it allows for people to have a discussion about news topics.    This leads to a more well rounded approach to every issue that becomes news worthy.   No longer is the public blindly fed whatever the newspapers want them to read. The public can aggressively seek out information, both sides of the story, on the internet.   Obviously, as an online news reader you have to be good at research and just as good at telling the truth from fiction.   However, I think the decline of the newspaper has very little to do with the internet and blogging. In todays world, newspaper are so focused on selling adds and inserts that they fail to offer the public any interesting information.   Who wants to wade through all the advertisements only to find the information you want squished between what is on sale at the grocery store and whats one sale at JcPenneys.   When you pay for a newspaper you are paying for the news not be manipulated by marketing companies telling you what you should be, buy, and strive for.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Online I can search for exactly the news story I want.   I have direct access to all the information and I dont have to dispose of all those paper inserts trying to sell me shoes.   Newspapers have failed to keep up with the demands on a now much more well informed public.   Instead of having better articles written by better authors to increase circulation (thus increasing profit) they have chosen to fill up every extra piece of space with marketing junk that most news reader could care less about.   Newspapers will die out but only because they believe money was more important than truth. lGrim First-Quarter Results for Newspapers lAd Revenue From Web Operations Become More Important to Publishers By Nat Ives Published: April 14, 2006 NEW YORK (AdAge.com) Newspapers made a bit of a grim display this week when they reported their first-quarter earnings, revealing profit declines at The New York Times Co., Tribune Co., McClatchy Co. and powerhouse Gannett Co., but displayed at every turn the rising importance of the Web to their businesses. The New York Times Co. reported perhaps the brightest results yesterday, even though first-quarter profit fell 68.5% to $35 million from $111 million a year earlier. That apparent free fall, however, mostly reflected the extra income in last years first quarter when the company sold its headquarters in Times Square. About.com boosts Times Co. The Web played a big role in the companys overall respectable results. Ad revenue rose 3.9% in the first quarter to $554.6 million, up from $533.8 million in the year previous quarter. The Times Co. ad increases were largely delivered by About.com; without that property, ad revenue would have increased just 0.7%. Earnings per share were 4 cents, a penny higher than the analysts consensus expectation compiled by Thomson Financial. Our results in the first quarter reflect higher advertising and circulation revenues at The New York Times Media Group and the Regional Media Group, in part due to the introduction of innovative new products, said Janet L. Robinson, president-CEO. But The Boston Globes unit, The New England Media Group, was again hit hard by consolidation among advertisers and a tough competitive environment, she said. Tribune looks to Web assets Another heavy-hitter, The Tribune Co., reported yesterday that its first-quarter earnings also fell to the tune of 28%, with flat ad revenue. The Tribune owns newspapers including The Los Angeles Times and The Chicago Tribune. Tribune expects online ad revenues to contribute about $350 million in 2006; it counts a stake a CareerBuilder.com among its Web assets. McClatchy Co., which agreed last month to buy Philadelphia Inquirer parent Knight Ridder, reported a 14.2% decline in first-quarter net income. Ad revenue at McClatchy, which houses newspapers including the Sacramento Bee, grew 1.4% to $237.1 million. The powerhouse that is Gannett turned in perhaps the most surprising report on April 12, announcing that net income sank 11.5% in the first quarter. Its newspapers ad revenue grew 5.7% to nearly $1.3 billion, but that factors in acquisitions without which first-quarter ad revenue would actually have fallen 1.8%. At its flagship USA Today, ad revenues declined 4.2%.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Suicide terrorism

Suicide terrorism Suicide terrorists are said to be fanatics. Discuss this statement with regard to the analysis of suicide terrorism and Asymmetric warfare. This paper is a discussion on modern suicide terrorism, starting with a brief history of suicide terrorism, moving onto definitions, characteristics, theories and the asymmetries of suicide terrorism. Suicide terrorism can be dated back to ancient times; it is the evolution of the suicide bomber that brings the most notoriety. With many analysts such as (Gunaratna, 2000; Winkates, 2006), trace the evolution of modern suicide terrorism to Sri Lanka and Lebanon in the 1980s. Acts of suicide terrorism in the past have been relatively confined and their use limited to a small number of locations around the world. In the last decade there has been a significant expansion in the scope and frequency of suicide terrorist attacks. The number of terrorist attacks fell from 660 in 1988 to 250 in 1998; the number of suicide terrorist attacks was climbing rapidly (Clayton, 2003, p. 18). This increase in suicide attacks during the period 2000-2005 is 2.7 times greater in comparison to the period b eginning in the 1980s and lasting until 1999 (Pedahzur Perlinger, 2006, p. 1987). During the period 2000-2009 the scope of suicide terrorism expanded dramatically, with suicide terrorist attacks in Indonesia (Bali), Sri Lanka, Jordan, Israel, Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United States, England, Spain, Russia, Chechnya and Bangladesh. Although there have been suicide attacks within the west, it is the rapid increase of attacks within countries such as Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq that is the notable with a year on year increase. Saudi Arabia became so alarmed with the rise in suicide terrorism that in April of 2006 the Saudi government announced plans to build a multibillion-dollar electrified fence along its 560 mile border with Iraq (Dreazen Shiskin, 2006, p. A1). According to ISAF, in 2008 suicide bombings increased 26 percent from 2007(ISAF, 2009, toward Security and Stability in Afghanistan, January 2009). There has also been a noticeable change in the individuals who carry out suicide attacks, once seen as mainly carried out by you ng men for either Religious or political reasons and yet there has been an increase in the number of women and children now playing an increasing part in suicide missions . One of the latest attacks took place on the Moscow subway, killing 35 and wounding many more; both of these attack where carried out by female suicide bombers. Suicide terrorism can be seen as inexpensive, deadly, and especially effective in accomplishing terrorists goals (Hoffman, 2003, p. 1; Jalalzai, 2005, p.110) attacks have also become increasingly effective in terms of the destruction they cause and the number of people they kill, as the suicide terrorists adopt new innovations such as explosive vests (Gall, 2006, p. A15).There is an asymmetry within suicide terrorist attacks, western countries have a reliance upon smart weapons in the conflict against those seen as terrorists. These weapons can cause huge amounts of damage without the need to directly attack the enemy with ground troops, thus lessoning the casualties sustained during combat operations. The use of a suicide bomber in effect becomes the human equivalent to the smart bomb. The weapon is self directing to the target, it can make changes to the target location, timing and delivery method on an ad hoc bases making the suicide bomber the ultimate smart bomb (Hoffman 2003). The use the human body as a weapon is not a new phenomenon being well documented through the ages. Pape (2005, p.11) calls the Zealots and the Sicarii the worlds first suicide terrorists. The name sicarrii means dagger-men, who would infiltrate Roman-controlled cities and stab Jewish collaborators or Roman legionnaires with a sica, kidnap the staff of the Temple Guard for ransom, or poison their enemies (Bloom, 2005, p. 8). The Zealots and Sicarii used violence to encourage public uprising, including the Jewish War of AD 66. They would attack their victims in broad daylight and in highly public places with little apparent regard for their own safety or escape. Pape (2005) notes that many of these attacks must have been suicide missions, since the killers were often immediately captured and put to death typically tortured and then crucified or burned alive (p. 12). Assassins were an 11th 12th century Shia Muslim sect from the Nizari state, their name, the assassins comes from the Arabic word hashishiyyin. According to Pape (2005), the Assassins created an effective organization f or the planned, systematic, and long-term use of political murder that relied on suicide missions for success. Pape (2005) reports that between 1945 and 1980, suicide attacks temporarily disappeared from the world scene (p.13). Pape (2005) and others (Laqueur, 2003) note the occurrence of politically- and/or religiously driven hunger strikes and suicides (particularly self-immolations) during this period but Pape (2005) claims there is not a single recorded instance of a suicide terrorist killing others while killing himself (p. 13). Reuter (2004) disagrees, citing a pro-Palestinian Japanese Red Army-sponsored attack on Israels Ben Gurion International Airport on May 20, 1972. In what Reuter (2004) notes as the first suicide attacks in the Middle East, on this day three Japanese gunmen with machine guns killed twenty-four people at the airport. They made no effort to escape, and two were shot dead by the airport guard (Reuter, 2004, p. 136). Inspired by Irans use of human minesweepers against Iraq, Hizbollah, launched a series of attacks against Western and Israeli targets in Lebanon (Winkates, 2006, p. 92). Hizbollah suicide attackers killed 80 and wounded 142 in its April 1983 attack on the American Embassy in Beirut, killed 241 and wounded 81 in its October 1983 attack on the US Marine headquarters near Beirut and its attack against the French Multinational Force, killed 58 and wounded 15 (Winkates, 2006, p. 92). In November 1983, Hizbollah suicide terrorists killed 88 and wounded 69 in an attack on the Israeli Defence Force headquarters in Tyre and a month later killed four and wounded 15 in an attack on the American Embassy in Kuwait (Winkates, 2006, p. 92). Sprinzak (2000) notes that Hizbollah leaders were initially very uneasy about the decision to launch suicide attacks, under the reasoning that Islam does not approve of believers taking their own lives. Hezbollahs spectacular success at achieving its goals of ex pelling foreign forces from all of Lebanon inspired other organizations such as Hamas, Tamil Tigers and al-Qaeda to adopt the suicide terrorist method of attack (Pape, 2005, p. 14). The Tamil Tigers were founded in 1972 as a Marxist, ethnic Tamil, Hindu separatist group seeking independence from the Sinhalese Buddhist majority in Sri Lanka. Their Black Tiger division trained to launch suicide attacks against Sri Lankan political leaders, military targets and civilians (Pape, 2005; Winkates, 2006). Hafez (2006) observed that outside of the Middle East, the Tamil Tigers have led the pack in the number and sophistication of suicide missions. It is estimated that the organization completed some 250 successful suicide attacks between 1987 and 2006 (Hafez, 2006, p. 5). In the early 2000s, ethno nationalist and Islamist Chechens began launching suicide attacks against Russian targets (Hafez, 2006, p. 5). Al Qaeda began launching attacks against American and Saudi targets in the Middle East in the mid-1990s. Al Qaedas spectacular entry into the suicide terrorist hall of fame occurred on August 7, 1998 when suicide terrorists used two delivery trucks loaded with explosives to blow up within minutes of each other, the American embassies in Nairobi, Kenya and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, killing a total of 224 people and injuring more than 4,300 persons (Reuter, 2004, p. 142). A little more than two years later, in October of 2000, Al Qaeda suicide bombers detonated 225 kg of explosive charges alongside the American destroyer, the USS Cole on a refuelling stop in the Yemeni port of Aden, killing 17 American sailors and injuring forty. A year later, Al Qaeda suicide terrorists launched their principal suicide operation and what is described as one of the big gest single suicide terrorist action to date, the 9/11 attacks in the United States, killing about 3,000 (Reuter, 2004, p. 144). This attack lead to explanations of suicide terrorism becoming defined as, first, that the suicide terrorist was irrational and/or mentally ill (Brym Araj, 2006; Pastor, 2004; Wintrobe, 2003).Secondly that the deprivation hypothesis this theory uses the explanation that that suicide terrorists were educationally, economically or otherwise deprived compared to their peers (Brym Araj, 2006; Krueger Maleckova, 2002 .In recent years the Bush Administration has advanced both of these theories in some of its anti-terrorist expression. President Bush repeatedly spoke out against the evil and irrational terrorists who commit these actions. The Bush Administration argued that poverty reduction programs in terrorism-prone regions will reduce the incidence of suicide terrorism (Pastor, 2004; Pape, 2005). Numerous studies have found little or no support for these t wo theories of suicide terrorism, recent studies have provided evidence which directly refutes these theories. Krueger Maleckovas, study in 2002, on the economics and education of suicide bombers directly refutes the deprivation hypothesis of suicide terrorism. Krueger Maleckova 2002 concluded that, the evidence that we have assembled and reviewed suggests that there is little direct connection between poverty, education, and participation in or support for terrorism. Indeed, the available evidence indicates that compared with the relevant population, participantswere at least as likely to come from economically advantaged families and to have a relatively high level of education as they were to come from impoverished families without educational opportunities (Krueger Maleckova 2002 p. 9). Numerous studies have established that overall, suicide terrorists do not suffer from personality disorders or mental illnesses which would explain their participation in suicide terrorism (Berko Erez, 2005). As Wintrobe 2003 argued, it is possible to explain suicide terrorist acts in rational choice terms, and that, while such acts are indeed extreme, they are merely an extreme example of a general class of behaviour in which all of us engage (Wintrobe 2003 p. 2). Explaining that, suicide terrorist is not necessarily irrational. A third theory of suicide terrorism focuses on the influence of culture, especially religious culture, on suicide terrorists (Brym Araj, 2006). These explanations have often been used to explain suicide terrorism among Shia Muslims, based on the tradition of the cult of sacrifice (Hafez, 2006; Bloom, 2005). Although this fails to explain the existence of suicide terrorism among cultures and religions with no established cult of sacrifice and it cannot suff iciently explain suicide terrorism among secular, nationalist groups (Pape, 2005; Hoffman, 2003). Furthermore, as Brym Araj 2006 point to, while such cultural resources likely increase the probability that some groups will engage in suicide attacks, one must be careful not to exaggerate their significance. One difficulty with the clash of civilizations argument is that public opinion polls show that Arabs in the Middle East hold strongly favourable attitudes toward American science and technology, freedom and democracy, education, movies and television, and largely favourable attitudes toward the American people. They hold strongly negative attitudes only toward American Middle East policy. This is less evident of a clash of civilizations than a deep political disagreement (Brym Araj 2006 p. 1973). A more recent theory of suicide terrorism has been offered by Robert Pape (2003, 2005). Based on his analysis of suicide terrorism from 1980 through 2004, Pape presented a three-part model describing the causal logic of suicide terrorism. Papes theory de-emphasizes the role of religion including Islamic fundamentalism and focuses on the role of terrorist organization strategy and secular nationalist objectives. Pape argues that suicide terrorism follows a strategic logic aimed at political coercion (Pape, 2005, p. 21). Pape argues that suicide terrorism is part of an organizations broader campaign to achieve political objectives, usually in response to a foreign occupation. Pape goes on to argue that suicide terrorism also follows a social logic since terrorist organizations often command broad social support within the national communities from which they recruit (Pape, 2005, p. 22). A number of analysts, including Bruce Hoffman (1998, 2003) have advanced explanations of suicide terrorism which propose rationale-choice models emphasizing the role of organizational factors that support Papes theory. Theorists have argued that Papes theory is overly simplistic (Atran, 2006; Bloom, 2005; Brym Araj, 2006). Brym Araj 2006 argues that strategic thinking is only one element that may combine with others in the creation of a suicide bomber (Brym Araj 2006 p. 1972). Atran has recently challenged Papes theory on a number of points, including Papes sampling methods which completely discount the explosion of suicide terrorism in Iraq (Pape 2005, p. 130). Atran calls into question Papes dismissal of the role of ideology and religious fundamentalism as well as his assessments of the effectiveness of suicide terrorism (Atran, 2006, p. 132). Other recently emerging theories of suicide terrorism include Pedahzur Perlingers 2006 social network perspective explaining suicide ter rorism in terms of social motivations and Blooms multi-factor model of suicide terrorism (2005). There is a development towards more complex models of suicide terrorism accounting for the role of individual, social, cultural, strategic, ideological, and organizational motivations and factors in suicide terrorism (Smith, 2004). Defining terrorism especially the suicide terrorism will never be an easy task, as Dershowitz (2002, p.4) observes, there is difficulty in a definition that everyone can agree upon is illustrated by the catchphrase, One mans terrorist is another mans freedom fighter. Dershowitz (2002, pp. 4-5) breaks down most definitions of terrorism into three main elements: 1) the nature of the targeted victims; 2) the nature of those who commit the violence; and 3) the method by which the terrorist seeks to influence their audiences. Atran (2003, p.1535) observes that the concept of terror as systematic use of violence to attain political ends was first codified by Maximilien Robespierre during the French Revolution. Robespierre saw terror as an emanation of virtue that delivered swift justice (Atran, 2003, p. 1535). Another major difficulty occurs in separating the concepts of terror and terrorism. Pape (2005, p. 9) explains that terrorism involves the use of violence by an organization other th an a national government to intimidate or frighten a target audience. Pape (2005, p. 9) explains further that most terrorist strikes or campaigns have two general purposes: to gain supporters and to coerce opponents. While Papes (2005) definition excludes the possibility of state-sponsored terrorism, numerous other definitions are wide enough to include terrorist acts conducted by or on behalf of a nation state as well as those conducted by private organizations or individuals (Dershowitz, 2005; Winkates, 2006). Winkates (2006,pp. 88-99) defines terrorism as the premeditated threat or use of violence against persons or property, designed to intimidate non combatant victims, the object of which is to change or to stabilize private or public policy. Definitions of suicide terrorism combine the concepts of terrorism and suicide. As with definitions of terrorism, the definitions of suicide terrorism found in the literature vary. Hafez notes, one problem in defining suicidal terrorism concerns the various possible perspectives on the act: how one describes acts of self-immolation committed in order to kill others is a task fraught with controversy. Those whose support these acts of violence prefer to call them martyrdom operations, and their perpetrators heroes and freedom fighters. Those who oppose them prefer to call them homicide bombers, suicide terrorists, or suicidal murderers (Hafez, 2006, p.4). Hafezs own definition of suicide terrorism relies on the more descriptive term of suicide bomber or human bomb which is defined as an individual who willingly uses his or her body to carry or deliver explosives or explosive materials to attack, kill or main others (Hafez, 2006,p. 4). Blooms definition of suicide terrorism is defined as a violent, politically motivated attack, carried out in a deliberate state of awareness by a person who blows himself or herself up together with a chosen target. The premeditated certain death of the perpetrator is the precondition for the success of the attack (2005, p. 76). In terms of the objectives of suicide terrorism, Bloom describes this as, although a suicide attack aims to physically destroy an initial target, its primary use is typically as a weapon of psychological warfare intended to affect a larger public audience. The primary target is not those actually killed or injured in the attack, but those made to witness itThrough indoctrination and training and under charismatic leaders, self contained suicide cells canalize disparate religious or political sentiments of individuals into an emotionally bonded group (Bloom, 2005, p. 77). Pedahzur states that suicide terrorism includes a diversity of violent actions perpetrated by people who are aware that the odds they will return alive are close to zero (2005, p. 8). Pape agrees in that , What distinguishes a suicide terrorist is that the attacker does not expect to survive the mission and often employees a method of attack such as a car bomb, suicide vest, or ramming an airplane into a building that requires his or her death in order to succeed. In essence, suicide terrorists kill others at the same time that they kill themselves (2005, p. 10). Pape further argues that a broad definition of suicide terrorism could include any operation that is designed in such a way that the terrorist does not expect to survive it, even if he or she is actually killed by police or other d efenders. Pape also argues that We might call such operations suicide missions instead of suicide attacks (2005, p. 10). Winkates argues that the best litmus test for definitive suicide terrorism is the intentional and successful sacrifice of a human life to achieve a terrorist objective (2006, p. 89). Hoffman (2003) argues that two key characteristics of suicide terrorism explain its growing popularity with terrorists groups around the world: suicide bombings are inexpensive and effective (p. 2). While coordinated multi-target attacks such as the 9-11 attacks and the London bombings may require extensive planning and considerable investment, even these types of suicide terrorist attacks are less expensive than many conventional terrorist attacks and definitely less expensive than funding an army. The majority of suicide attacks are carried out by individuals, minimizing the amount of investment and administrative overhead. The reliance on human bombs provides terrorists with the ultimate smart bomb (Hoffman, 2003, p. 2). Such smart bombs can be extremely efficient and effective. One of the characteristics of suicide terrorism is its effectiveness against the selected target. As of 2003, suicide terrorism accounted for just three percent of all worldwide terrorist acts, but for 50% of all terrorism-related deaths (Clayton, 2003, p. 18). This is another factor contributing to its effectiveness. The high-kill rate of suicide terrorism increases the amount of terror such attacks instigate in target populations. As Furedi 2007 notes, The threat represented by mass-casualty terrorism is not confined to its capacity for destruction. Public dread of this phenomenon is underpinned by the assumption that this is a treat that is unpredictable and random and its effect incalculable (Furedi, 2007, p .7) adding further to the overall result; suicide terrorism becomes effective in producing fear, justifying its deployment in conflict, by highlighting the unpredictable ability of the act, to produce more fear than the actual act. The act of suicide terrorism highlights an important asymmetry; terrorist need to be successful only once to kill Americans and demonstrate the inherent vulnerabilities they face, (US Congress, 2002). The asymmetry of suicide terrorism is not only the causation destruction, but to seize the attention of Governments and the population of the nation it targets, as Laqueur (1999) notes;Terrorism has been with us for centuries, and it has always attracted inordinate attention because of its dramatic character and its sudden, often wholly unexpected, occurrence. (Laqueur, 1999: p, 3) Asymmetric terrorism reaches out not merely through the use of physical violence but through the symbolic transgression of social morality and national security. Terrorism, as Townshend, (2000); Laqueur, (1999); Chomsky, (2001) have suggested, goes right to heart of what makes us safe; it forces us to pay attention to it whether we want to nor not. The proliferation of video taped messages from leaders of suspected terrorist groups such as Al Qaeda is a testament to the symbol over the actual act of physical violent; there is nothing violent in the images of Osama bin Laden addressing the world through the Aljazeera television networks but it has symbolic presence in a world that is dominated by media and communication technology, as Van der Veer and Munshi (2004) suggest, one of the major successes of modern terrorist organisations is their ability to use the resources of their enemies: the Internet, satellite television, mobile phones and the mass media. Even the condemnation of t errorists in the media, can aid the cause of terrorist organizations; by describing physical acts of violence through the duality of good and evil or right and wrong, the Western media merely serve to elevate and obfuscate the real nature of terrorism which, as research has shown[1], is far more fractured and complex. In this sense, much of the terrorist organizations aim, of seizing attention, is actually carried out by the opposing media; eager for a story and for a simple answer. Suicide terrorism has become a relatively successful military and political strategy; the 9/11 attackers commanded the attention of the world not only through their own efforts but through their targets media; the American television companies, the European press and the global media conglomerates all shared in the process of captivating the publics imagination that, as Towshend(2000) notes; dramatically amplifies the anxiety about security which is never far from the surface of society. (Townshend, 2000 : 8), the communication of the message and the success of this are inextricably linked to the terrorist organisation itself. A highly ordered group with distinct political aims is likely to be more successful in delivering its message than a disparate, non-focused organisation whose aim is to spread confusion and fear. Douglass McFerran(1997) details that many of the IRA campaigns of the 1970s and 80s had distinct short term as well as long term political aims, very often terrorist attacks on mainland Britain were specifically concerned with achieving a specific political target such as protesting over the widespread imprisonment of suspected terrorists or the treatment of those all ready in prison. As Townshend details this is not the case in every terrorist act; the PanAm flight 103 attacks for instance that saw a plane explode over town of Lockerbie in 1988 had no prior demands or message attached to them and very little admission of guilt after (Just, Kern and Norris, 2003: 285).The nature of the attack is likely to influence the success of the communication of demands; Dobkin (1992) details that in 1970 members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) hijacked three airliners in order to not only secure the attention of the worlds media in which they were successful, but to demand the release of a number of Palestinian prisoners in British military jails. Their demands were largely met and most of their hostages were released; however when compared to the contemporary Munich terrorist kidnapping where members of the Black September group killed eleven Israeli athletes in an attempt to secure the release of 236 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.Hoffma n (1998) details that the Munich kidnappings were not only failures in terms of communicating and achieving recognisable demands but also in media manipulation: The Palestinians had not only failed to obtain their principal, stated demand the release of terrorists imprisoned in Israel and West Germany but, to many observers, had hopelessly tarnished the morality of their cause in the eyes of the world. Indeed, international opinion was virtually unanimous in its condemnation of the terrorists operation. (Hoffman, 1998: p, 72). But, again, this can often have the opposite to the desired effect. Robert Singh (2003) suggests that the 9/11 attacks merely served to strengthen the socio-political position of the American people, the very group that came under attack; he also suggests that the security systems around the globe became more vigilant and aware of any gaps in their processes: Rather than initiating a transformation, 9/11 accelerated trends, policies and approaches that were well established. If the attacks most immediate political effects were certainly dramatic the Bush administrations approval ratings soared and public confidence in the federal government attained levels unseen since the early 1960s (Singh, 2003: p,52). Al-Qaeda, built upon this position when coalition forces invaded Iraq and later Afghanistan, the fear that is produced by asymmetric warfare attacks is sometimes seen as the main outcome, Somali rebels succeeded in influencing the American public, after pictures of dead American soldiers where broadcast on CNN, in the same way as the Madrid Suicide bombings had on the Spanish public, directly influencing government policy and leading to the withdrawal of Spanish troops from Iraq, the American government forced by the public outcry pulled troops out of Somalia. With limited resources and limited damage to western societies al-Qaeda, has managed to change the very ideals for which it is said the war on terror is conducted. It has become a norm in Europe that after a terrorist attack, new security legislation and other measures are established to combat the threat of terrorism; however most of these policies seem to neglected the human rights of the citizens. These changes are highlight ed by Arce (et,al 2009) the traditional treatment of terrorism-as-asymmetric-conflict in terms of the relative resource disparity between terrorists and their ultimate targets, an additional asymmetry exists through the definition of success. For the target government, success is defined in terms of security against all possible attacks; whereas for terrorists one success is often enough to alter the political landscape, airways, etc. If one target is successfully attacked, then counter terror policy and the competency of the government itself can be subject to public scrutiny.(Arce, et,al, 2009). Thinking and organizing in a different manor than an opponent in order to amplify advantages and by doing so also exploit an opponents weakness. Changes to asymmetrical warfare have been greatly affected by the digital age, no matter the policy initiatives in trying to undermine the terrorists propaganda and promote its own; the forum of the internet allows suicide attacks to be displayed to a world audience. The filming of Martyr videos and attacks can serve both as a recruitment campaign reaching to all corners of the world and a forewarning to those who oppose terrorism. Understanding and defining suicide terrorism is open to debate; there have been a number of successes in terms of securing specific demands in the past not least of all the 1970 skyjacking operation by the PFLP. However, we have also seen how terrorism can be divisive, how it can engender the very opposite of what it sets out to do. As we saw with the London bombings, a post 9/11 society is one that treats the threat of terrorism as a consequence of modern city living. This is perhaps the one main reason why terrorism may become considered a strong military strategy: today the more terrorist activity there is, the more political value it has, yet the less it affects every day individual life. However, of course, terrorism is perhaps the only strategy that many disenfranchised groups have which may account for its constant presence on the global political stage. Ultimately, however, terrorism is a symbolic act, an act that depends upon fear for its meaning; as the public becomes more and more exposed to images and symbols of terror they also become more and more immune. As Baudrillard suggests (2003) the violence of the terrorist is likely to become merely just another image in the media and the terrorist themselves just another face on the television screen and it is this, ironically, that provides its greatest counter measure. In this essay the difficulty in defining, theorising and understanding has been discussed. The asymmetries involved within terrorism have also been discussed, showing that with the use of digital media and little resources the ability of the target to respond to attack within its own borders can become limited to the change of political policy, which in turn may undermine the authority of the government within its own borders. The September 11 attacks and during the post Cold war era, the world has seen no greater power than the United States. International Relations have seen the control and dominance of the United States over the worlds structure. However, after the Twin Tower attacks, the world started realizing the role of others inside the international arena, these others preferably labeled terrorists; questioned the validity of several theories that were formulated as soon as the end of the Cold War was announced, these theories were trying to predict the shape and attitude of the world as it entered a new era. It has always been known that every era in history adapts an indication that will mark it as distinctive, and therefore all of those theories were simple speculations on the nature of what could be such an indication. Theories valid, some predicted the rise of democracy and liberalism, others feared the return of barbarism and anarchy. Also, other theories predicted a clash that will divide the borders of the world according to culture, civilization, ethnicity, and most importantly religion. The world has dramatically changed with terrorism as the key player. It is also very clear that the asymmetries involved in terrorism are very powerful, as it was able to question the strength of the United States, and was able to reform the political policies of many world countries. Terrorism is the worlds most fearful enemy, an enemy that is powerful, aggressive, and most importantly ambiguous. There is no concession within society on terrorism, for many it is not a problem and life continues, for others it has change their view of world order and politics. BIBLIOGRAPHY 2008 National Defense Authorization Act (Section 1230, Public Law 110-181) http://www.defense.gov/pubs/OCTOBER_1230_FINAL.pdf Accessed 06/04/2010, Arce, Daniel G; Kovenock, Dan; Robertson,B, Suicide Terrorism and the Weakest Link, CESIFO WORKING PAPER NO. 2753,CATEGORY 2: PUBLIC CHOIC

Friday, September 20, 2019

Link between Household Debt and Savings

Link between Household Debt and Savings Many analysts and business executives are becoming apprehensive with the recent rises in the consumer debt burden, defined as the level of consumer debt relative to ability to repay which may predict an economic growth slowdown. A higher debt reduces the credit worthiness of households who would then experience financial anguish caused by unfavourable economic shock, such as the loss of a job or large uninsured medical expenses. In the event of this situation, they would be less disposed to spend on consumer goods, particularly big ticket items such as automobiles and home computers. Consequently, the reduction in consumer spending would hurt economic growth as firms cut back on the production of consumer goods and laid off workers. Households have spent in excess of income, in part because increased house prices have led to increased household wealth. The rise in house prices reflects an adjustment to sustained low inflation and interest rates, among other factors. However, activity in the housing market cannot be sustained at the pace seen in recent years. As the housing market cools, growth in consumer spending should ease and household saving rise, resulting in a tendency for the current account deficit to fall, everything else equal. The increase in household debt also partly reflects the removal of government controls of the financial system over the past two decades. Based on the results of empirical works of many authors, most studies favour the hypothesis that the causality is from economic growth rate to growth rate of savings. Based on the empirical results, the main conclusion of this study is that income class of a country does play an important role in determining the direction of causality. A rising consumer debt burden also might predict future activities in broad methods of economic activity, such as real gross domestic product. A decline in consumer spending on durable goods would lower real GDP growth because such spending is a large constituent of real GDP. 1.2 Objectives and Organisation of the dissertation Many tests have been carried out by many authors throughout the world to see if there is a link between household debt, household savings and economic growth and hence, analyse its impact on the discussed variables. A panel cross country analysis has been carried out on 25 countries to determine how household savings and debt may act as a deterrent for economic growth. Chapter 2 reviews the literature and empirical evidence pertaining to the works of various authors concerning economic growth, household debt and household savings. The next chapter deals with the review of variables of interest to us, which will be used in the empirical testing part, hence, the household savings as a proportion of disposable income, household debt as a proportion of GDP per capita, growth rate of Real GDP per capita, consumption share of GDP per capita, price level of GDP, investment share of GDP per capita, interest on savings will be scrutinized in the chapter. In Chapter 4, the Haussman tests have been mostly used to predict the impact of these independent and exogenous variables on the dependent variable of economic growth. Finally in Chapter 5, we conclude on the subject and make some policy recommendation and alongside cite some limitations of the work carried out. 2.1 THEORETICAL LITERATURE When there is a positive change in the level of production of a countrys goods and services over a certain point in time, it is referred to as economic growth. It is also influenced by many factors but one of the pinnacles of economic history is the impact household saving and debt has on economic growth. Most working papers and journal articles on cross countries studies assume a positive relationship between household saving and economic growth and an adverse relationship between consumer debt and economic growth. The difference between a households disposable incomes (primarily wages obtained, proceeds of the self-employed and net property returns) and its consumption (spending on products) is known as household saving. When the household saving is divided by household disposable income, the household savings rate is computed. When a household uses more than it obtains as expected income and funds some of the spending through credit (growing debt), through returns coming from the sale of resources, or by making cash and deposits, there is usually a negative savings rate. These discrepancies are fairly due to institutional distinctions between countries. These include the degree to which old-age pensions are financed by government rather than through personal savings, and the level to which governments offer insurance against sickness and unemployment. The age composition of the population is also significant, as the elderly tend to run down financial assets obtained during their working life. This implies that a country with an ageing population will generally have a low household saving rate. The conformist view is that savings contribute to higher investment and hence higher GDP growth in the short run (Bacha, 1990; DeGregorio, 1992; Jappelli and Pagano,1994). The central idea of Lewiss (1955) traditional development theory was that increasing savings would accelerate growth. Kaldor (1956) and Samuelson and Modigliani (1966) studied how different savings behaviors induced growth. On the other hand, many recent studies have concluded that economic growth contributes to savings (Sinha and Sinha, 1998; Salz, 1999;Anoruo and Ahmad, 2001). Over the last 10-15 years, household saving rates have increased in Austria, Germany and Sweden and remained stable in Belgium, France and Switzerland. A downward trend over the same period has occurred in Canada, Italy, Japan, Korea, Poland and the United States. (OECD (2010), National Accounts of OECD Countries, OECD, Paris) The main factors contributing to differences among countries are listed below: The income effect: in general higher income leads to a higher saving rate; The wealth effect: profits or losses on financial and non-financial assets and liabilities affect built up wealth, and thus probably expenditure, but not on income. Higher wealth may then lower the saving rate; Credit facilities: in countries (e.g. UK and US) where consumption credit was easier to finance, saving rates may be comparatively lower; Institutional factors such as differences in social security schemes, especially pension schemes and the tax system; The proportion of own-account entrepreneurs and small unincorporated enterprises, within the household sector, because producers may have a different saving behaviour; Households expectations as regards the future economic situation; Cultural and social factors. Hondroyiannis (2004) analyses the long term and short term causal factors of aggregate private savings in Greece using data for the time frame of 1961-2000. By considering the financial and demographic advances during this phase, the long run savings utility which is susceptible to real interest rate, public funds, liquidity, old dependency ratio and fertility changes, is approximated on the foundation of an absolute life-cycle hypothesis. The significance of short-run divergences is obtained using vector error-correction model estimation. The empirical evidence proposes the continuation of a stable long-run savings function in Greece both in the long- and short-run periods and the policy inferences of such an association are accessible. According to Barba and Pivetti (2008), rising household debt in USA made low wages and increasing aggregate demand to arise simultaneously. In the USA, according to the figures of the Federal Reserve Board, consumer credit outstanding reached 25% of disposable personal income (DPI) in 2006. This was the peak of an upward trend that has characterised the period since the first half of the 1980s, following 15 years during which the consumer credit-income ratio averaged around 18%. Increasing household debt in developed countries like USA has been mostly due to the noticeable fall in household savings and this had an adverse effect on economic growth. Salotti (2009) claims that the current account is inclined by changes in US private savings which aid to generate and maintain world imbalances. A panel of 18 developed countries for the time dimension of 1980-2005 is used to check this claim by examining the components of total household savings. They merge two lines of literature: the first line from consumer theory, bearing in mind particularly the `wealth effect, the second line from aggregate private savings theory. Unit root and cointegration tests are performed to evaluate the most suited method for estimation of the long run savings function and to derive the cointegrating relationship. The group means FMOLS is exercised to approximate the model. The empirical evidence goes in line with the theory where a rise in wealth should adversely affect the household savings. In addition, when significant descriptive variables, such as national savings and populace dependence ratios, are incorporated in the model, material wealth becom es the only type of wealth to (inadequately and negatively) control household savings in developed countries. Howitt, Agnion, Comin and Tecu (2009) wanted to test if a country can grow more rapidly by saving further as they believe that household saving is of deep concern as it allows entrepreneurs to undertake their business and also reducing the agency cost that usually acts a hindrance for foreign investors. Since domestic saving counts for improvement, and consequently growth, it thus allows the home industrialist to put equity into this joint enterprise, which reduces an organization setback that would else discourage the foreign shareholder from contributing. In rich countries, domestic entrepreneurs are already known with limit know-how and consequently do not need to draw foreign outlay for investment, so domestic saving is not important for growth. The higher the household savings and the lower the household debt a country has, the more economic growth it can at least forecast to make. The finding is based on a cross-country non-overlapping panel over the period from 1960 to 2000. T hey use a sample of 118 countries, all those for which there exists data on per-worker GDP and on the saving rate. The cross-country regression shows that lagged savings is positively related with productivity growth in poor countries but not in rich countries. 2.0 EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE Empirical evidence deals mainly with the previous works of various authors all around the world. There have been many works carried out by different authors and they reached certain conclusions which may be further developed and their results vary among the countries. The first case considered is on the United States of America (USA) and then they further scrutinise what happened in the developed and emerging countries. 2.1 STUDIES ON THE USA As noted in Thomas and Towe (1996), research into household saving/consumption behaviour in recent years has inclined to centre on probing for long-run relationships between saving (or consumption) and selected macroeconomic variables. In large part, this shows the fact that the data involved have been found to be non-stationary. This implies that conventional statistical methods cannot be used to test relationships between movements in the savings rate and other (non stationary) macro variables. This approach also implies that short-run movements in the savings rate may be driven by deviations from the long-run relationship between saving and its fundamental determinants. Callen and Thimann (1997) studied the empirical determinants of household saving in USA using cross sectional and panel data from 21 OECD countries for 1975-95.) They find that household saving fell from 13% during 1975-81 to only 11% in 1982-89 but it has then stayed stable in general. Variables that capture the structure of the tax system and the financing and generosity of the social security and welfare system are added to the set of potential explanatory variables. The results indicate that there is an central role for public and corporate saving, growth, and demographics in controlling household saving, while some role is also established for inflation, unemployment, the real interest rate, and financial deregulation. The results also propose that the tax and the social security and welfare systems have an important impact on household saving. Bà ©rubà © and Cà ´tà © (2000) examine the structural factors of the household savings rate in Canada over the previous 30 years, using co integration techniques. The main result is that the real interest rate, expected inà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡ation, the ratio of the all-government à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ scal balances to nominal GDP, and the ratio of household net worth to personal disposable income are the most significant causal factors of the trend in the personal savings rate, as calculated in the National Income and Expenditure Accounts (NIEA). The outcomes also recommend that the fast fall in the NIEA personal savings rate in current years mainly shows a change in the trend constituent of the savings rate, rather than a temporary different approach from the trend. Tipett (2010) uses many methodological approaches and draws on longitudinal data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 and also uses multilevel logistic regressions to investigate the relationship between the hypothesized mechanisms and the probability of holding non-collateralized debt. Analysis of Survey of Consumer Finance data shows that the amount of household debt increased faster than household asset increases (see also Bucks, Kennickell, Moore, Fries, and Neal 2006; Kennickell 2009), and Keister (2000) shows that overall wealth has been growing at the same time that the percentage of households with zero or negative net worth has also been rising. 2.2 STUDIES ON DEVELOPED ECONOMIES Carroll and Weil (1994) present Granger-causality tests for 38 countries for which they have fine data, and show that increases in growth radically head increases in saving. Dekle (1993) presents comparable Granger causality regressions for a group of fast-growing countries and finds that growth positively Granger-causes saving in every country in his sample. Edwards (1995) looked at data from a panel of 36 countries over the period 1970-92. Using lagged population growth, openness, political instability, and other lagged variables as instruments, he concludes that the rate of output growth has an important, positive effect on saving. Andersson (1999) believes that the worldly interdependence between saving and output has been measured in recent empirical studies which obliged some authors to question the conventional idea of a causal chain where saving precedes growth via capital accumulation. As divergent to the previous studies, which have mostly used panel-estimation processes, the tests of causal chains are performed in time-series sets. Saving and GDP are approximated in bivariate vector autoregressive or vector error-correction models for Sweden, UK, and USA, and tests of Granger non-causality are executed within the estimated systems. The core results shows that the causal chains linking saving and output vary across countries, and also that causality linked with amendments to long-run dealings might go in diverse directions than causality associated with short-term instabilities. Jappelli and Padula (2007) reconsidered savings inclinations in Italy, summarizing existing empirical evidence on Italians motives to save, relying on macroeconomic indicators as well as on data drawn from the Bank of Italys Survey of Household Income and Wealth from 1984 to 2004. The macroeconomic data indicate that households saving has fallen considerably, although Italy continues to class above most other countries in terms of saving. The microeconomic data show a strong correlation between the propensity to save and the level of current income, as well as a strong correlation between income and indebtedness. International panel data put forward that saving is robustly linked with the growth rate of income, and that saving changes parallel growth change, as shown by Attanasio, Picci and Scorcu (2000) using the 150 countries of the World Bank Saving Database. 2.3 STUDIES ON EMERGING MARKETS Emerging markets are economies which are currently in the process of fast growth and industrialisation. There are at present 28 emerging markets in the world with the economies of China and India being considered certainly as the two largest. New conditions were surfaced in recent years to portray the largest developing countries such as  BRIC  standing for  Brazil,  Russia,  India, and China. The relationship between savings and economic growth has received increased notice in recent years especially in developed and emerging economies [see Bacha (1990), DeGregorio (1992), Levine and Renelt (1992), and Jappelli and Pagano (1994)]. This might not be distinct to the central foundation of Lewiss (1955) traditional development theory that increasing savings would accelerate economic growth. Research efforts by Kaldor (1956) and Samuelson and Modigliani (1966) examined how different savings behaviours would induce economic growth. Caroll and Weil (1994) used five year averages of the economic growth rate and savings for OECD countries and found that economic growth Granger caused savings. However, the reverse was obtained when dummies were included in their estimation. Using Granger causality tests, findings by Sinha and Sinha (1998) and Sinha (1999) found that economic growth rate Granger caused the savings growth rate for Mexico and Sri Lanka respectively. Jappelli, Tullio and Marco Pagano (1994) test whether the measures of liquidity constraints help to explain the international differences in national saving rates, as forecasted by their model. They also test an outcome of that model, namely that the effect of growth on saving is greater where liquidity constraints are more determined. The data cover a panel of 19 countries (all the main OECD countries are included) and are drawn from Modigliani [1990]. Observations are averages of annual data for three periods: 1960-1970, 1971-1980, and 1981-1987). Findings show that the two variables are negatively linked (the correlation coefficient for the entire sample is -0.55). They have empirically measured the soundness of three propositions, namely that liquidity constraints on households raise the saving rate, strengthen the effect of growth on saving, and promote productivity growth in models in which growth is endogenous. Using cross section data between 1960 and 1997 and Granger causality methodology, Anoruo and Ahmadi (2001) observed the causal relationships between the growth rate of domestic savings and economic growth for seven African countries -namely Congo, Cote dIvoire, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa and Zambia. Their studies established that savings are co-integrated in all of the countries except for Nigeria and that economic growth Granger-causes the growth rate of domestic savings for all the countries considered except Congo where reverse causality was obtained. Matos (2002) used among other parameters, the ratio of residents funds deposited in the financial system to aggregate monetary asset M2 (1947-2000) as a proxy of financial development, empirical tests support the view that it is vital to maintain the publics confidence in domestic financial assets to improve GDP growth prospects. This ratio may reflect an intangible asset of the financial intermediaries, i.e. the general publics confidence that contracts between customers. Kwack and Lee (2005) investigate the extent to which income growth and uncertainty and demographic factors affect the domestic real saving rate in Korea. They test an extended life cycle hypothesis and demography hypothesis with Korean time series data from 1975 to 2002. The results of the tests show that the aggregate saving rate is positively affected by the moving average of the growth rate of income and the variance of the income growth. The positive effect of the income growth differs from the negative effect found household survey data were used. Adebiyi (2005) employed quarterly data spanning between 1970 and 1998 to examine savings and growth relationships in Nigeria using Granger causality tests and impulse response analysis and concluded that growth, using per capital income, is sensitive to, and has an inverse effect on savings. Mohan (2008) believes that household savings in India has contributed significantly to its economic growth which recorded a steady rise over the last decades. Mohan found some empirical relations whereby in the argument that high levels of debt-GDP lead to high interest payments relative to GDP, which crowd out government capital expenditure and reduce the overall saving rate, two relationships are of critical importance: the responsiveness of changes in the saving ratio with respect to changes in the fiscal deficit levels; and the responsiveness of government capital expenditure to changes in the level of interest payments. Mohan (2006) experienced the path of causality between economic growth and savings in different economic income classes. The ADF test indicates that both log GDP and log GDS have unit roots in the level data. In the presence of unit roots, the variables need to be differenced in order for the series to be stationary. Without differencing the data, a causality tes t would lead to misspecification. To examine the direction of causality between saving and economic growth in Nigeria during the time frame 1970-2007, Oladipo ( 2009) used the Toda and Yamamoto (1995) and Dolado and Lutkepohl (1996) TYDL methodology. The variables of interest for savings and economic growth are positively co-integrated indicating that there exists a steady long run equilibrium relationship. Furthermore, the findings also revealed a unidirectional causality between savings and economic growth and thus the corresponding role of FDI in growth. In order to establish the link between economic growth and saving in Nigeria during the time frame of 1970-2007, Abu (2010) used the Granger-causality and co-integration techniques. There exists co-integration and long-run equilibrium between the variables savings and economic growth according to the Johansen co-integration test. There is also the causality runs from economic growth to saving, implying that growth triggers and Granger produces saving. Hence, the Solows hypothesis that saving leads to economic growth, and recognize the Keynesian theory that it is economic growth that leads to higher saving, is discarded. CHAPTER 3-DATA ANALYSIS 3.1 Sources of data The economic growth rate, household debt and household saving rate, price level are available on the Global Finance website. The interest on savings, consumption and investment are available on the Nationsmasters website, the World Bank website and the Penn World Table website. 3.2 The Econometric Model In this section, a model is developed to measure the impact of household debt and household saving among other factors, on economic growth. The model for growth for country i in time t is as follows: EGit= ÃŽÂ ± +ÃŽÂ ²1 HDit + ÃŽÂ ²2 HSit + ÃŽÂ ²3 Rit + ÃŽÂ ²4 Pit + ÃŽÂ ²5 Cit+ ÃŽÂ ²6 Iit + Uit Where EGit= Growth Rate of Real GDP per capita at constant prices HDit = Household Debt as a % of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) HSit= Household Savings as a % of Disposable Income Rit = Interest on Savings Pit= Price Level of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Cit= Consumption Share of CGPD (GDP PER CAPITA) Iit= Investment Share of CGDP (GDP PER CAPITA) Uit = the disturbance term 3.3 Economic Growth When per capita GDP or any other means of calculating total income rises, economic growth arises and this is usually registered as the yearly rate of change in GDP. Economic growth results from advances in productivity in terms of more production of goods and services with the same factors of production. The dependent variable economic growth is measured by real GDP per capita. At times, total GDP figures are not reflective of the actual performance in the economy. Hence, GDP per capita is a better measure as it is liable to fewer errors and some errors tend to affect population estimates and thus they have offsetting impacts. Furthermore, the natural log of real GDP will be taken into account to avoid any large outliers. Screen-shot-2009-09-01-at-14 3.4 Household Saving Household saving can be defined as a percentage of household disposable income which is not consumed and household savings rate can be calculated on gross or net basis. Depreciation is considered in the net savings rate which is more commonly used compared to the gross savings rate. Comparisons of savings rate among countries become hard by these two different measures of gross and net savings rate due to distinct social security and pension programmes, variable tax schemes which have an impact on disposable income. The household savings rate of a country can be affected by age of the economys population, the accessibility of credit, general wealth issues, cultural and social factors. Nevertheless, household savings rates are still a good a measure of an economys income in relation to consumption over time. A country can finance its debt domestically if it has a relatively high level of household savings. High debts levels funded mostly by foreign creditors are less persistent than high debts levels financed by internal savings. Consumption allows GDP to grow and this is a significant factor in economic expansion. With the existence of financial crisis, the whole economy could be dampened with lower consumption due to higher debt and lower savings level. A larger portion of GDP growth should then come from FDI, exports and government expenditure. Household saving is the most essential domestic source of funds to back capital outlay and this is a substantial boost for economic growth on the long term basis. Household savings rate vary greatly among countries as shown in the chart. This is partially due to the level pensions schemes are financed by government rather through personal saving and also to the extent governments offer insurance against sickness and unemployment. savings01 Considering the time dimension in the table above, the savings rate were relatively steady or somehow rising mildly in France, Austria, Italy, Norway and Portugal but have been decreasing in United States, Canada, Japan and Australia. If the social security and insurance payments of USA are considered, its savings rate would be striking. 3.5 Household Debt When a country has a substantial degree of household debt, it increases its inclination to financial crisis and this acts as a hindrance for economic growth. There have been forecasts about house bubbles which were caused and thus creating the countries to be overheated. A large portion of the economic growth was centred on household consumption which was backed by loans from banks. When banks noticed the lack of credit worthiness from consumers who even lost their confidence in the financial system, there had been strict controls over the lending conditions for loans. As a result, the ongoing vicious circle preceded a major decline in economic growth following the fall in consumption and repayments of debts. Analysing the graph results with the conclusion that USA is not the only main country having experienced the worst GDP slowdown but many other countries like Iceland and Portugal are following suit with the level of household debt actually rising substantially. It would not be logical for a country burdened by a large level of household debt to expect its economic performance to flourish in the coming years. HouseholdDebtSelectedCountries household-debt-vs-savings Source:   Lew Rockwell 3.6 Rates of interest The rate of interest has a great influence on the given level of aggregate disposable income which is divided between consumption and saving. However, it cannot be predicted with conviction that a lower interest rate would imply more disposable income will be dedicated to consumption and less to saving or vice versa. As a matter of fact, there can be a rise or fall in the total amount saved following a change in interest rate and this depends on the income and substitution effects and their strengths of their net effects. A higher level of future consumption arises at the detriment of present consumption with substitution effects due to higher interest rates and thus resulting in more savings in the present period. On the other hand, a consumers future income compared to his present income can be increased following higher interest rate and this leads to higher consumption by borrowing from future income and hence, less is saved. However, this may not be necessarily the case for lower income earners who would save only a small part of their incomes even when interest rates are high. The substitution effect will then outweigh the income effect and there will be a direct link between income and rate of interest. For some people who prefer to save a greater portion of their incomes, the income effect may offset the substitution effect and thus higher interest rates would result in lower present savings level real-interest-rates 3.7 Price level/Inflation One of the theoretical concepts of economics says that when there is a change in the price level, this may affect consumption and savings positively or negatively. It is usually believed that households confidence in money erodes when there is inflation and hence, they have the tendency to save more since inflation actually raises the variance of expected real income. The fact that consumers have greater preference for unplanned increases in savings compared to withdrawals, it usually incites consumers to save more when inflation is high. There is also an indirect effect of inflation whereby the real value of nominal asset is diminished and thus the real value of liquid assets decreases the net household wealth. Real consumption is often reduced and savings rate increases. 080625_global_inflation (1) 3.8 Consumption The total value of goods and services purchased by people aggregated over time is called consumption and it is usually the greatest GDP component. A countrys economic performance is often assessed on its consumption levels. Different income earners would be consuming differently depending on their standard of living and purchasing power. Consumption is usually determined by current income, accumulated savings and expectations on future income. Consumption and consumer debt trends 3.9 Investment When an owner usually acquired property for the purpose of generating income like plants and equipments, this is called investment as it is spending on income-generating assets. If a country wants to achieve long term sustainable economic growth, it should be able to the rates of accumulation of capital be it human or physical so that it can result in more efficient assets and so that the whole population can have access to those assets. With the help of financial instruments, markets, and institutions, the extent to which information, enforcement and transactions costs can have their impact on savings rates, investment decisions, technological innovations and steady-state growth rates can be improved. Average annual investment growth in the first six quarters of recovery Source: National Bureau of Economic Research; National Inco