Corporate Responsibility McDonalds and the US Society

Mobile Social Networks and Social Practice A Case Study of Dodgeball

Mobile Social Networks and Social Practice A Case Study of Dodgeball Introduction This article critique concerns an article titled â€Å"Mobile Social Networks and Social Practice: A Case Study of Dodgeball† authored by Lee Humphreys. The research explores the communicative differences between the Dodgeball users and internet users in relation to how they influence the informants experience on public space and social relations.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Mobile Social Networks and Social Practice: A Case Study of Dodgeball specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The study notes that Dodgeball is an MSNS facilitating the social networking and relationship among friends leaving in the urban public space (Lee, 2008, p.1). The main purpose of the study is to explore the use and perceived effects surrounding Dodgeball as a mobile social network system (MSNS) as integrated into everyday life. Research questions To help examine this claim, the researcher developed two research questions . The first research question relates to the examination of the nature of interactions created around the MSNS that is, the users and the purpose for use. The second question concerns the effects of the interactions to the thinking of and experience of the users in the public urban spaces. Lee (2008) utilizes a normative questioning while generating the first research question. In his second question, the author maintains an impact-based research approach to establish the effects of the research independent variable on the subjects of study (dependent variable). From the analysis, the research questions posed by the researcher have captured the main essence driving the study. They constitute clearly articulated statements that can ascertain the understandability of an average reader. Because the study aims at exploring the effects of this mobile network service on the nature of face-to-face social communications, posing a research question of the second nature serves to address the research purpose. A research question, according to Rubin and Babbie (2009) and Bulmer (1982), should be able to inform the research purpose, measurable, and capable of eliciting a research insight. These two questions have merited this particular criterion. Review of the literature It entails the process of researching the previously conducted researches about the topic of study or a related theme. This ensures that the researcher gains insight into the issue under review in order to build a theoretical framework upon which the research shall address the fundamentals of the study.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In his article, Lee (2008) clearly forms a basis of the research through laying a vivid background that allows one to gain requisite knowledge about the subject of study (Bulmer, 1982). To accomplish this task, a researcher must devote him or herself towar d researching relevant and current literatures that give a quality and up to date secondary data about the research topic. The use of this type of data literatures remains critical to the extent of scope, relevance, and need for the study. In this evaluation, the researcher has ventured into ensuring an extensive and in-depth examination of the background of the subject to provide necessary picture and idea, which helps in building theories and assumptions. The literature review has served to illuminate on the purpose for which the social mobile service is used. Therefore, the background information has aided the qualitative methodology used in establishing a solution to the first research question posed by the researcher. Research Design Framework for collection and analysis of data The research framework within which the researcher positions the study allows for an informed study. Firstly, the researcher has embedded the research with a theoretical conceptual framework examining t he need for the study (Bulmer, 1982). Secondly, the previous examination into the use of MSNS suggests a plausible research chosen by the author. The framework has enabled a smooth ride from the previously studied materials through a transition to the material present research. The framework gives an in-depth analysis of the subject matter while ensuring that the topic of study remains within the province of the study. The conceptual framework further allows the researcher to identify and utilize an appropriate study design, type of respondents and the methods of data collection to ensure validity and reliability of the research findings. A conceptual framework has succeeded in using both historical and contemporary literature. This has ensured that the research benefits from all the phases surrounding the research topic Data collection The researcher has utilized focused interviews as the primary sources of data for the research. The interviews sought by the author of the research aimed at examining the effects of the social mobile service to the regular users of the Dodgeball MSNS service. The background analysis had indicated that the users were mainly urban public dwellers. Therefore, the author’s target respondents became this type of study group. This imperative has been ensured due to laying down the background and the conceptual framework. The choice of the method of data collection is in tandem with the type of research undertaken by the researcher. As Bryman (2008) noted, social research demands that qualitative study be taken to explain the social phenomenon that the researcher attempts to examine.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Mobile Social Networks and Social Practice: A Case Study of Dodgeball specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Clearly, the study phenomenon attempts to explore a socially occurring issue worth of examination. To ensure a proper understanding of the topic, a researcher should posit a scenario far enough to demonstrate themes capable of generating theories around the study topic. Qualitative study approach beholds the ability to pursue this process to yield desirable results. However, the study would have employed other methods of data collection such as surveys and observation in order to develop the best-of-breed data analysis that promotes the principle of generalization. Method used The researcher used a qualitative methodological design to develop his research. The data collection method methods used could help to establish information needed in explaining the phenomenon. The use of qualitative method serves to address the question of the research because the research is qualitative in nature. According to Rubin and Babbie (2009), qualitative research aims at explaining issues related to human behavior by examining the phenomenon from its natural setting. Therefore, Lee (2008) appropriately uses the method in his study in order to build theories around the topic of study. Sampling techniques used The sampling techniques used in a research remain a key element of ascertaining the quality, validity, and reliability of the study findings (Rubin and Babbie, 2009). The purposive or sampling used by the researcher aimed at obtaining a sample that could represent the hypothesized scenario that the Dodgeball mobile service had an effect on the social relationships of the underlying users. Although the sampling type allows the researcher to explain the causal-relationships, arguably, the results of this type of sampling possess threats of lack of validity. The researcher utilized 21 in-depth interviews on urban public dwellers using the social networking service. Although the research narrowed to fewer interviewees or respondents, the type and demographic nature of the interviewees allows for the establishment of internal validiAty. This is because the selection of the respondents attempted to consider the effective u se, since regular users may exhibit these effects. Further, the sampling group emerged through a randomly established technique of sampling.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This process ensures that the researcher addresses the challenges of validity of data, which inherently affects the authenticity of the results. This implies that even though the sample may not be representative of the population defined by the users of Dodgeball mobile social network service, the results from the analysis may serve to explain the correlation between the usage and the effects on social relationships. This argument bases on the descriptive data showing the representativeness of the data based on the number of friendships that the informants had, their average number or frequency of use, and the age of the users. Ethics and their relevance to the topic of interest Safety and confidentiality of the participants The article of the research does not mention issues leading to the establishment of safety of the participants of the research (interviewees). A good research must clearly set out the confidentiality rules and safety of the information sought for by the research er (Renzetti and Lee, 1993). Because the research examined a social aspect of a population involving their aftermath behavior, it is expected that the researcher designs a participant confidentiality form aimed at ascertaining their privacy of their â€Å"back-yard† information (Gilbert, 2001). Validity To ensure that the findings were valid, the researcher used QSR’s N6 qualitative data analysis software to analyze the data collected during the interviews. The researcher set off the procedures based on grounded theory to generate themes and theories as contrasted to testing previously demonstrated theories by former studies. Descriptive statistics described the demographics of the informants. This clearly gives the image of the type and nature of the participants underpinned by the research (David and Sutton, 2011). Unbiasedness Although the study affords to eliminate the possible internal factors that may cause invalidity, the extraneous elements are highly likely to cause threats of external invalidity. It means that other factors other than sampling methods may impede on the validity of the final findings, hence lacking sound generalizations. The study indicates that the users of Dodgeball defined as highly active utilized the service in their daily activities. A study conducted showed that they were technically involved in the social networking service (Gilbert, 2001). The implication of this observation is that other factors outside the study variables might explain the effects examined on the independent variable. Findings of the research It is fundamental to ask, has the research answered the questions of the research? The question helps in establishing whether the research has managed to achieve its primary objective. The data collected formed homogeneous sets of data, which the researcher used to formulate or design themes. Through the analysis, the researcher developed five relevant themes (David and Sutton, 2011). Limitations of the s tudy As the researcher notes, Dodgeball does not offer itself as the representative of the rest of social network sites and mobile servicing. Therefore, Dodgball does not afford a space to presume that people using social network services behave in some particular style. However, the study of Dodgeball user-effects offers the scenario from which future researches may base their studies (Sherri and Jackson, 2008). The other limitation that may impair on the validity of the findings relates to actively engaged Dodgeball users defined as â€Å"first time users† or early adopters. This implies that they do not appear to depict a representative sample of all Dodgeball users. It is worth noting that the users or Dodgeball mobile social network does not confine its usage to urban or semi-urban users only. The study thus, fails to inform the study of a general picture of the causal-relationship existing between the use and aftermath effects on the users. Significance of the study and its future insight Up to this end, the question that draws relevance is, what future insight does the research afford to the field? The study has contributed in innumerable ways toward the field and especially in illuminating on the concept of social media networking and their potential effects of human behavior. This study can lend numerous lessons for future use in developing entities based on the findings from related studies. The research offers future insights into the study of the correlation between Dodgeball and other social networking services with the development of spaces. Changes in technology are likely to cause changes in how people utilize these technologies as the enablers for social lives. Therefore, the research asserts that future researches should focus on this area since it provides a rich ground for plausible research. Recommendations The sampling technique utilized by the researcher should have considered a mixed sample of Dodgeball in order to derive a sampl e representing the Dodgeball population. It is arguable that the participants of the study tied well with the demands of the research as obtained from its demographics. However, had the researcher utilized a mixed and relatively larger sample the results would have had a general feel of the entire population. The research has failed to examine the aspect of confidentiality and codes of behavior when examining issues that require disclosure of privately held information by the participants. For a research to address the objective underpinned by it, he should have objectively informed the study participants of the reasons and purpose of their participation (David and Sutton, 2011). In future, such a research should utilize these provisions in order to avoid biased responses inherent in interviews that fail to communicate their purpose of engaging the respondents. The research by Lee (2008) offers a great insight into how social networking services can influence developments in space a nd place. I would recommend the article for future reference because it has established the framework upon which other future empirical studies will develop (Locke, 2004). A good research should yield results or findings that are representative of the larger population. The research can utilize quantitative data analysis method, which shall ensure ease of establishing results from a relatively larger sample. This method would go a long way in eliminating the challenges or threats of internal invalidity occasioned by the qualitative analysis. A mixed research would have an implication of a research gaining from the advantages of both methods while neutralizing the weaknesses of each approach. For the research to merit based on rigorousness, it should embrace all possible analyses that a research may address. The research would have benefited on this element had it utilized other social mobile networking services in order establish conclusive results that can sustain generalization (L ocke, 2004). References Bryman, A., 2008. Social Research Methods. 3rd ed. New York: Oxford University Press. Bulmer, M., 1982. Social research ethics: an examination of the merits of covert participant observation. New York: Holmes Meier Publishers. David, M., and Sutton. C.D., 2011. Social Research: An Introduction. 2nd ed. London: Sage Publications Ltd. Gilbert, N., 2001. Researching Social Life. London: Sage Publications. Locke, T., 2004. Critical discourse analysis. New York: Continuum International Publishing Group. Renzetti, C.M., and Lee, R., 1993. Researching Sensitive Topics. London: Sage. Rubin, A., and Babbie, E.R., 2009. Essential Research Methods for Social Work. New York: Cengage Learning. Sherri L., and Jackson, S.L., 2008. Research Methods and Statistics: A Critical Thinking Approach. New York: Cengage Learning.

Pressure Ulcer Prevention Using Skin Bundle Research Paper

Pressure Ulcer Prevention Using Skin Bundle - Research Paper Example Once the skin succumbs to bacteria or sustains injuries from friction and shear, healing takes longer because reduced flow of blood brings nutrients and removes wastes more slowly. Ischemia due to unrelieved pressure is usually observed in the elderly, malnourished patients, patients reduced to immobility because of their medical condition, fecal incontinence, and patients under less than conscious condition (Mauk 2009, p. 501). Pressure Ulcers: Incidence, Prevalence and Prevention In 2004, the National Home Survey reported that for every 10 residents in nursing homes all over the United States, 11% have succumbed to pressure ulcers with stage 2 pressure ulcer as the most common (see Fig. 2). Both whites and non-whites had equal percentage with the males edging the females at 13% and 10%, respectively (Park-Lee & Caffrey 2009). In 2007, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services reported some 257,412 preventable pressure ulcers as secondary diagnoses at cost averaging at $43,180 for every stay in the hospital. This compelled Medicare to give up shouldering pressure ulcer costs so as to encourage its prevention (Mauk 2009, p. 501). The Institute for Healthcare Improvement has recommended a set of simple interventions collectively known as ‘bundle’ for pressure ulcers prevention in 2003. Hospitals are encouraged to develop their own â€Å"bundle† in approaching pressure ulcer prevention (Paciella 2009, p. 43). The SKIN bundle, which is an acronym for Surface, Keep Moving, Incontinence and Nutrition, was developed by the Ascension Health facilities in 2004. In the succeeding pages a sample of change in practice program is outlined for a fictitious hospital ward called HTMC for the prevention of pressure ulcer using the SKIN bundle. Change in Practice for Pressure Ulcer Prevention Name of Ward (fictitious): East Wing 13 Holy Trinity Medical Center (HTMC) Demographics: 24-bed unit, 10 private and 14 semi-private; Staff is composed of ARNP, RN s, patient care technicians, nutritionists, therapists, and others Scope of Service: Patients in the ward are admitted for the following conditions: strokes and seizures, multiple sclerosis and other diseases that make them prone to develop pressure ulcers. A. ASSESSMENT In the first quarter of 2010, the East Wing 13 of the HTMC had reported 27% incidence of pressure ulcer cases compared to the National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators or NDNQI’s report of 3.8%, for Stage I-IV and 2.7%, for Stage II-IV for the year 2010. This is not a good development, not only because the ward’s statistic paled in comparison with the NDNQI’s but also because the CMS has stopped shouldering costs for pressure ulcers that are acquired in the ACFs. B. LINK The US DHHS recommended several measures in the prevention and care of pressure ulcers. These recommendations can be used by the East Wing 13 to reduce the percentage of pressure ulcer incidence. They include the following : skin inspection of patients at least once daily; skin cleansing in accordance to the needs of each patient; skin care such as moisturizers for dry skin and less exposure to humidity and cold; moisture due to incontinence, perspiration, or wound

The benefits of using a web portal in high schools Essay

The benefits of using a web portal in high schools - Essay Example A web portal is a very important tool used to develop scientific knowledge. People bond with one another to develop an education community using web portals. The portal serves as podiums where all the facts, resources, and professional in the field of science can be retrieved (Cappel and Huang, 2007). The portal is a full time available source of information that helps in the growth of the learning community as they engage in discussions, exchange views, and conduct activities that promote learning. Online document libraries available in the portal are constantly updated with latest research findings. Simulation of real life is also made available through the web portal (Cappel and Huang, 2007). 3) Brief relevant background literature A web portal gives information that is assorted in a combined manner. These are sites of information, which developed during 1990s and in 2000. A web portal operates just like an investigative or an explore mechanism (Becker, 2005; Luke, 2005). However, this portal as argued by Becker (2005) has several features or purpose than the search device itself (Becker, 2005). A web portal, provides information a researcher wants to discover or search, as well as certified web portal. Apart from this, it also provides email internet services, entertainment cites to the users (Cappel and Huang, 2007). ... Therefore, the horizontal portal covers several areas, while the vertical portal covers specific areas (Pang et al., 2009). The web portal has the following major functions; search, navigate, provides information or manages content, personalization, push technology, management of tasks, conducts the integration of applications and organizes business infrastructure (Pearson and Pearson, 2008). The web portal aims at increasing student interaction (Preece, Rogers and Sharp, 2002). It provides students with an opportunity to interact with their lecturers and their fellow students, and be more engaged in their studying (Preece, Rogers and Sharp, 2002). It also tends to provide students with learning resources and campus sources from library subject to achieve curses offered online. Through it, the faculty members get accesses to teaching and learning resources. Lectures also use the web to assess their students, record their grades, and communicate the outcome to the students and their c olleagues (Preece, Rogers, and Sharp, 2002). The students can use the site to register for their classes, get access to financial assistance, pay for their tuition, sign up for programs like lunch programs, and indicate any absences (Adonis, 2006). Through it, the school can create communities that interact online that include the students, administration, faculty members, and alumni to work together (Abdous, 2005). A web portal is an online opening where learners can log into a website to access significant information (Townsend, Schaffer & Deon, 2004). Portals are normally used in schools and universities where quick information and school bring up to date available information to a big number of learners within the institution. Education departments

Immigration, Politics and Policy Contribution Assignment

Immigration, Politics and Policy Contribution - Assignment Example This proposal favors the Latino portion of the population who make up the highest number of immigrants from Mexico, but the government should consider many underlying factors, including the reasons for immigration and the effects on the United States’ resources. This paper will state an overview of reasons to consider when formulating an immigration policy; then propose a possible policy change and implementation plan using the fifth and sixth steps Jansson’s policy plan respectively (Jansson, 2010). According to Guyette, Tavalin and Rooker (2012), the United States has historically attempted to control illegal immigration into the country by passing restrictive policies and increasing border security. These approaches have failed if the ongoing debate for and against illegal immigrants is gouged. Data concerning illegal immigration is mostly hypothetical since transactions concerning immigrants are mostly not recorded in any official documents. For instance, Barnes (2010) in his opinion claims that it costs each native household $ 1,117, per annum to support illegal immigrants, totaling to $113 billion a year for the whole nation. The influx of illegal immigration cases can be traced to a myriad of reasons, but the main cause, in my opinion, is the government’s inefficiency in enforcing its policies on immigration. Therefore, the country needs to refrain from a complete overhaul of policies and ensure enforcement of policies to reduce illegal immigration. The country can adopt a stable policy that can be monitored and improved continuously. Any policy proposal change should ensure accounting for all the positive and negative aspects of immigration, by being fair to illegal immigrants if the merits of having them in the country outweigh the disadvantages. An effective policy should contribute positively to various aspects of the  United States society. It should be implemented and assessable.

Can a Historian Look at the Past Objectively?

Can a Historian Look at the Past Objectively? In the following lines, it is going to be discussed the statement It is impossible for an historian not to view the recent past through a moral or ideological lens. In order to offer a deeper insight in the topic, it has been considered appropriate to reformulate the statement, turning it into a question and formulating it in a positive way. As well, though we will go back to it later, it has been considered as well to remove the nuance recent from the question. Thus, this is the result: It is possible for a historian not to view the past through a moral and ideological lens?. These modifications, that as we may see dont distort the essence of the original proposal, will make easier to think about the topic, as facilitates the task of consider it from a historical and epistemological-based perspective, which enables us to give a broader picture about it and its historical roots. Anyway, in the conclusion, the original statement will be brought back again, and answered. The first step before going deep in this issue, is to define briefly what do we understand for moral and ideological lens. To question if history is written through a moral lens, applied to the case of historical studies, can be understood as questioning whereas all studies in the field are morally biased or not; what is to say, if beneath any text is it possible to find some clues about the moral position of the author. To explain what it is understood by ideological lens, it has been judged appropriated the definition given by professor Michael Hunt: an interrelated set of convictions or assumptions that reduce the complexity of a particular slice of reality to easily comprehensive terms and suggests appropriate ways of dealing with that reality[1]. Maybe this definition can seem too broad, but it has been chosen precisely because of that: it allows to include in thiscategory not only the structures of thought that are usually considered as ideologies, such as Marxism or Liberalism, but as well different intellectual trends or other theories of knowledge. In other words, ideology is understood as an accepted body of ideas that helps to conduct a research and explain processes, in the field of social sciences. Hence, an approach through an ideological lens consists on the analysis and reconstruction of historical events through the referential points given by this structure. So, the discussion about if it is possible for a historian whether to see or not the recent past through a moral or ideological lens is about his capacity of keeping his own position and concerns outside the view of the past that is offering through his writings. In the end, the issue under discussion here can be identified with the recurring argument in historiography about objectivity and subjectivity in historical research. Therefore, along the essay we will make a lot of references to it. Once the concepts have been focused, everything is ready to continue diving in our issue. As it has been seen, the matter that occupies us can be identified with the historiographical discussion of whether objectivity is possible or not. In the following lines, we will bring up the main positions stood among scholars around this question, and the shifts that those views have experienced along the last century. This will help to give some steps towards a solution to it. Traditionally, related to the issue of objectivity and subjectivity, from the theoretical positions among the scholars in the field, we could distinguish two currents. On one hand, those who defend that objectivity can be achievable, and that is mandatory; on the other, those who think that is not only an unrealistic aim, but an undesirable one. Of course, as always in social sciences, this distinction must not be intended to be pure and rigid. On the first group, we could find the pioneer of the discipline Leopold Von Ranke, and his line has been followed by other historians such as Trevelyan or David Thomson[2]. Quoting Ranke, the main position of this group can be summarized in the idea that history is about simply to show how it really was[3]; to learn it in its own terms. They justify this main statement in the idea that there is a need to give primacy to the facts, that them should be the main point of departure of any historical research. Hence, history should be about establishing facts in a first stance, and identifying connections, but with a total detachment from the object of study, without contaminating historical reality with personal prejudices[4]. Of course, we can find some variants among this group, as some objectivists will concede some space to speculation or personal interpretation. This is the case of Trevelyan indeed, or of a XIX century intellectual who stated that facts are sacred, opinion is free[5]. But they all share the main standpoint that primacy have to be given to the facts, and that interpretation and historical reconstruction must be perfectly distinguished. On the other hand, we could find a school of historians which can be englobed in a more subjectivist trend. In this group, we can find historians such as Benedetto Croce, in the early XX century, or Carr himself, in the sixties. One of the most enlightening summaries of this view Croces statement all history is contemporary history[6]; they understood that the task of the historian was to see the past through the eyes of the present, and to evaluate it (from it)[7]. Therefore, they argued that all his ideas, theories and assumptions, his ideological and moral background, were reflected upon the text. In this way, Carr would argue that, despite facts are the backbone of historical studies, are not its reason[8]. It can be said that what he was trying to say is that facts are necessary condition, but not sufficient. But this group distinction is not useful anymore, since the outbreak in the late XX Century of a new school of thought that shivered, and still doing, the foundations of historical theory: postmodernism. Despite all the differences of perspective that confronted both trends, they were discussing inside a shared paradigm: modernity. Maybe they didnt agree in the relationship of the historian with his work, in the idea of detachment, or on the primacy of the facts doctrine, but all of them agreed on the idea that the achievable aim of the discipline was related to historical truth. It can be counterargued that they stood a different conception of the concept of historical truth, but undoubtedly shared the standpoint that his works where referring to an external truth. The outbreak of postmodernism from the late sixties onwards broke with this shared paradigm. From the field of philology and philosophy, the idea that there is not linkage between reality and the works that try to explain it, spread to the other branches of knowledge. Postmodernists, such as the French philosopher Jacques Derrida, regarded that objectivity in historical studies must be understood as an unachievable myth, a mere product of what might be called the referential illusion[9]. Following the path charted by the early postmodernists on the sixties, some historians such as Theodore Zeldin[10] accepted these basis, assuming a relativism through the acceptance of the premises that historical texts are not bound to any historical truth, so are to be seen as mere subjective personal views.[11] These assumptions were elevated to the category of rights, understanding that every historical explanation should be regarded as a personal tale, concluding therefore, as Zeldin states, everyone has the right to find his own perspective[12]. As we can see, if we want to preserve the binary distinction of two confronted groups, to gain a faithful picture of the current discussion, we have to reformulate it. Then, in one side we find the post-modernist view, which claims not only that any view in history is biased by moral and ideological concerns, but that everything is ideology and morals, those of the author, who stands behind the tale. On the other, those who believe that reference to historical truth is achievable. Inside this group, we may find some differences about the specific definition of truth or the role of ideology and so on, but this main point unifies them. Nowadays, it is commonly accepted that some ideological and moral bias is unavoidable[13], but among this group it is denied that this doesnt allow to reach certain objective conclusions. So, if we want to stay in the frame of the current polemics in the field, the question about whether it is impossible not to view the past through a moral or ideological lens requires to inquiry in which way historians pre-assumptions are reflected on his work, to which extent does it distort the vision about the past, and whether this enables us to talk about an achievable objective historical truth or not. Until now, we have been focusing the question: first, by clarifying the concepts; later, by having a brief look to the status of the issue among scholars. The latter point lead us to the stance that is widely accepted that moral and ideology are present in any historical work. There is no one easy answer to what are the implications of it, and we have thought that the best way of understanding it is by revising some of the main elements that take part in historical research. Through a brief study of how history is made, we will be able to understand how the moral and ideological assumptions of the author, his subjectivity, are present on his works. But before that, as are very related to the question of How?, it would be interesting to have a brief look to the question of What is the historian looking for? and the reasons of why is it judged of interest. Of course, the questions of What? and Why history? would deserve a whole essay. But our aim is not to tackle with the topic of the nature of history. Therefore, we will devote just a few lines to these matters. 4.1) What? The question of what history is was first critically formulated by Ranke, who developed the idea that historys aim was to study it in its own terms, how it really was[14]. The idea was that the historian had to go to the archives, and collect facts which would explain how was the past. So, we can say, he understood that history was a reality that resided in the sources, and that was within reach for the historian, who could carry on a reconstruction of it. This conception of history explains why some historians from the positivist school, in the late XIX Century, thought that they were near the moment where, been all the archives revised, definite historical truth was going to be reached[15]. The problem is that it seems to be an out-of-focus vision. The past is not out there anymore, it is dead. This have been emphasized by some historians along the XX Century, such as Marwick who remarks the idea that past doesnt exist anymore, and that all we have from it are relics and traces through which the historian has to work in order to offer a more or less plausible synthesis of the past[16]. And this can be complemented with Carrs emphasis on the fact that historical research is made from the present, from a different context and perspective than its object of study[17]. Though sometimes is near falling in a relativist view often criticised by other scholars, asElton did[18], he has helped to develop among the discipline a valuable concern about how our study of the past is conducted by interests and ways of doing moulded by the present time. So, this leads us to a new idea of history as a discipline: instead of the reconstruction of the past, it is a representation where the role of the historian should be taken into account. The past is dead, and it is not going to be brought into live again. What we only have are traces, rests, ruins of it, and the task of the historian is to create explanatory models from them, trying to be faithful to the historical reality they refer to. In a metaphorical way, we can say that history is like the representation of a landscape painted by a painter backwards it, guided by the indications of a man in who he relies. He doesnt see the landscape, but he can create a more or less faithful image of it; depending on how skilful he is, on his capability of asking the accurate questions to his friend, on his ability of deduction and his experience and so on, he would create a better or worse representation of it. But the representation would not be an exact reproduction of the landscape. First, because it would not be the intention: it is a 2-D representation of a 3-D reality. But as well because a lot of data would be missed, even being his friend a good guide, and the painter would have to deduce some of the connections made on the canvas, implying all his capacities of reasoning, deducing, comparing, thinkingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ always at service of the, for him fragmented, reality that is trying to portray. Following this example, a postmodernist could argue that is pointless to think that there could be a real bond between our blind painters representation and the landscape. So, he shouldnt try it; what he would have to do is to be conscious that his representation is a totally disengaged vision of the landscape, so what he would only be able to do is to create freely his own personal interpretation. But then he wouldnt be accomplishing the task he has been initially asked: to reach a proper representation of the landscape. He would create a beautiful and colourful composition, but a meaningless one. Coming back from the metaphor,the historian who is unaware of the object of study, history, cannot be conceived as a writer of history, but of poetry or literature. Hence, post-modernism is not applicable to history, as both are incompatible: the historian who fully accepts that premises cannot be called a historian, as he is rejecting the main foundation of the discipline: to offer a proper representation of history. So, what we can conclude from all this is: a) Historian aspires, at most, to a representation of the past. b) Hence, the historian, with his moral and ideological beliefs, is present on his work, as he interprets and establishes connections from the present. c) This doesnt mean that the outcome is a mere creation: his construction is supposed to be bonded to reality, to the ideal of how it was. If he rejects that, reducing it to a mere self-expression of personal moral and ideological points of view, is doing anything but history. 4.2) Why? This issue will be briefly sketched out, with the main aim of presenting the point of view stood along the essay. Why history? Why is historical inquiry of interest? We have found an almost infinite range of points of view along the bibliography selected, from its justification due to the explanation of development of human values through history, to the argument that is the only way of understand our contemporary context.[19] As we will see on following lines the Why? stood by the historian determines the How? is the research carried on. But, however, there is an essential characteristic that lies under any of the different points of view: interest in history stems from the interest of understanding the human being in society. And from there, different ways of facing this issue enrich the whole. Hence: a) There is not a specific answer to the question Why history?, but all can be summarized in the study of the past of the human being in society. b) The different ways and perspectives through it is studied enriches the whole. 4.3) How? Once the questions of the What? and Why? history have been overviewed, we are reaching the central point of this essay: to see which is the role played by the ideological and moral own views of the historian in his work through answering to the question of How is it done?. Having a look to some of the essential aspects that intervene in the process of writing history will enable us to see how historians personal concerns are reflected on his work and how does this happen. First, a brief insight to the relationship between the historian and the facts and sources[20]. Carr defines it through a comparison with fishery: [Facts] are like fish swimming about in a vast and sometimes inaccessible ocean; and what the historian catches will depend [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] on what part of the ocean he chooses to fish in and what tackle he chooses to use- these two factors been determined by the kind of fish he wants to catch.[21] What he is trying to explain is how the historian is not a mere passive processer of data, but an active agent from the very starting point of selecting the information in which is going to root his research. But the question is: in base to what does he make the selection? In base to his own concerns? Or in base of the preferences of history? What is to say: the facts he looks for are determined by his own interests or by what history demands? As we have argued previously, history is about a representation of the past, where it is the main character, the object of study. So, it seems that would make sense to assert that the questions that the historian asks to the raw materials may be pounded faithfully to the preferences of history. Of course, at a first stance, when he hardly knows anything about the topic is going to study, his research will be driven by questions raised in the present, related to his concerns. But this will change progressively as he makes progress. Through inquiring the raw sources, to make them talk[22], the historian comes up with more questions, but this time not formulated in base to the present but to the foreign country[23] which is been re-visited. And by keeping this process, he manages to go deeper in the past, to understand better the people who lived there, the process that affected their lives. So, in theory, it appears to be possible the goal set by Ranke of getting to know the past in its own terms[24]. But when we examine any work of history, even the considered to be the best ones, we discover that, indeed, this doesnt happen. Every history book or paper can be classified in an ideological or moral spectrum due to its conclusions. In order to understand properly why does this happen, in the next lines we are going to proceed to an insight to what has been called the nature of the historian. Through this, we will go back to some of the issues which have just been covered. So, in the following lines we are going to deal with the issue of the nature of the historian in what pretends to be an invitation for the reader to think about who is the historian and how does his moral and ideological point of view affects his historical production. We will focus on three aspects, which are those who have been seen to be the most problematic: context, ideology as framework and categories as a vehicle for indirect judgement. As is aforementioned, the historian is not a machine, but a human who has his own beliefs and experiences emotions, who is part of his society, so shares the cultural background of his epoch and is affected by academic theories or trends. As Jordanova argues all historians have ideas already in their minds when they study primary materials- models of human behaviour, established chronologies, assumptions about responsibility, notions of identity and so on[25]. On the other hand, the historian is a professional devoted to the study from the past, through the construction of explanatory models of it in the most accurate way possible. Hence, we can detect the dual reality of the historian, which causes tensions. Lets have a look to how all this corpus of premises affects the historians craft. First of all, we have to bear in mind that the historian is part of a specific time and society that constrains him when creates his explanatory models about the past. For example, a historian in the sixties would be attracted by schools such as the cliometricians in the US or Annales in France, based on theories that championed more integration of the discipline with other social sciences such as sociology or economy, as some of them they understood that it was the way of reaching certain and objective conclusions[26]. This was translated into the predominance of a history based on the processing of data, quantifiable perspectives of the past, on analysis rather than narrative, predominance of social perspective rather than the study of individuals and so on.[27] Part of this schools where Emmanuel Roy de Laudurie and Lawrence Stone, who argued respectively that history that is not quantifiable cannot claim to be scientific[28] and that quantification was the way of pushing back widely spread historical myths[29]. But this conception wrecked partly because of its own exhaustion, partly because new trends surpassed it, such as post-modernist trends (that emphasized the study of the unconscious instead of data at a social level), radical historians (that argued for a more narrative history instead of analysis and promoted new objects of study such as what they understood of the hidden and oppressed of history)[30], and so on. And with this change of paradigm, a lot of supporters of the quantitative view changed their mind, as is the case of both Le Roy and Stone. The former wrote in the sixties a book about the collective imagery in a French medieval village; the latter is well known for having written a high-impact paper claiming for the revival of narrative[31]. As we can see, if changes the context where the ideological premises of the historian have been built, also changes the way of understanding it. In the end, changes the anthropological conception of who and how the human being is. Is the case of Le Roy: his idea of human as a being constrained by the means of production rooted in a materialist view of the world gave way to a new vision where the un-material (imaginaries and so on) was judged as more relevant in order to explain his anthropological basis. Hence, we can see that the context may influence heavily the ideological premises of the historian; and with a shift on it, changes, consequently, his way of ponderingthe past. Especially important is the case of that historiography explicitly based on an ideology. Maybe the most remarkable case is the Marxist historiography, which has kept a strong presence in the field during almost the whole XX century. Great historians such as E.P Thompson, Christopher Hill or Eric Hobsbawm didnt hesitate in defending Marxism as an especially useful point of departure for historical research[32]. As confessed Marxists they were, his studies focused on topics related to the world of labour from a materialistic perspective and dealt with categories and concepts such as bourgeois, class and class struggle, means of production à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ full of Marxists implications. The use of categories in history is another example of how present is historians moral and ideological point of view in his work. Categories are not neutral, but full of implications. As we have seen, Marxist historians are predisposed to explain history through Marxist categories. But we can think on an infinite range of examples: categories such as democratic or fascist, and so on, are often used as a way of setting moral judgements. Hence, through the mere choice of categories, the historian is, though implicitly, judging. Facing this picture, it could seem that post-modernist assumptions about the impossibility of getting over ones point of view and reach historical truths are certain. To counterargue this conclusion, has been found (as Evans also does) [33] to be very useful the concept of objectivity encouraged by Thomas Haskell, which regards it more as a quality of the historian itself than of the text: ascetic self-discipline that enables a person to do such things as abandon wishful thinking, assimilate bad news, discard pleasing interpretations that cannot past elementary tests of evidence and logic, and, most important at all, suspend [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] ones own perceptions long enough to enter sympathetically into the alien and possibly repugnant perspectives of rival thinkers.[34] In the end, we could say that writing good history, capable of reaching historical truth, is about been able of transcending ones point of view and subordinate it to the historical reality faced along the study of the sources. It could be said that is a matter of primacy, of been able to give primacy to the history rather than to ones position. Lets examine this with some of the examples aforementioned. We have mentioned the case of Hobsbawm. As it has been said, he developed a historical analysis from a Marxist point of view. But when we say that we are not assuming that he was fitting his conclusions into that premises, enforcing reality to fit it into his ideological point of view. Indeed, he was able to reach conclusions which challenged the traditional Marxist point of view, as happens when asserts that macro-social analysis difficulties to understand the nature of Revolutions by exaggerating structure and devaluating situation, as them can only been explained historically, focusing on the specific, and not theoretically, through generalisations[35]. Or when writes about nationalism in a much more cultural way than just based on Marxists social theory and framework[36]. Marxist theory guided his historical inquiry, but he was not closed to re-interpreting it if the sources demanded it, and was opened as well to consider historical problems without absolutizing any kind of historical causes or perspectives. His capacity of considering all the points of view, of not closing his historical inquiry to his ideological preferences, and to giving primacy to the historical sources rather than to his personal ideological premises, makes his work valid until today[37]. A counter example would be the case of Carr, whose History of Soviet Russia has been often criticised because of overlooking Stalinist repression[38]. And is a precise critique: in what he said was an accurate accountant of the development of the Soviet state, he disregarded that crucial point due to a strong ideological bias. Or the case of some ideologically-motivated gender history, that absolutizes ahistorical concepts, such as patriarchy, fitting history into its predetermined framework[39]. Another example are Foucaultspseudo-historical writings, which are more a kind of philosophical works based on historical examples, where theory clearly outweighs historical rigor.[40] In this cases, the primacy of history is not preserved; far from that, it is toughly violated, as is placed at the service of the moral and ideological framework of the writer. We have mentioned as well the issue of categories as a way of implicit moral and ideological judgement. The historian will never get rid of it, but can perfectionate his ability to represent history accurately through them. Lets bring again the example of the category fascist. If the historian is able to understand it properly, and is conscious of all its implications, he will be able to make an appropriate use of it, according to historical standards. Then, if he remains faithful to the sources, would be in the position of identifying fascist movements, or fascist behaviours as were historically understood in the time studied. It will, for example, help him to differentiate it from other kind of authoritarian ideologies, point which is often confused. And this is the way that objectivity should be understood: as a capacity of detachment that allows the historian to overcome a fully present-minded and ideological interpretation. And departs from the assertion that primacy must be given to the demands of history, to the guidance of the sources. A way of assessing if this has been achieved is through the test of time: the validity of its conclusions through a wide span of time. Quoting again Tosh, is what made him to assert that Hobsbawms Age of Revolution still unsurpassed[41], even when Marxism is not anymore seen as a reliable framework of interpretation. All of this can be achievable only if this principle of objectivity is assumed. But it is just a necessary condition, but not sufficient. To accomplish it depends as well on the skill of the historian. But without it, doesnt matter how much skilful the historian is, that his work will not stand the test of time. Along this essay, we have revised some polemic aspects about the historians relationship with his object of study. First of all, after fixing definitions of moral and ideology, we have revised some of the attitudes across the historiography about our topic. Then, through answering to the questions What?, Why? and How? we have explored the relationship between the historian and history, between his perso

Criminal Activity Then and Now Essay -- Criminal Justice, Law

Criminal Activity Then and Now Criminal justice is composed of many lateral departments that help us as a society to better understand the process that is started when criminal activity is suspected. We will examine how individuals learn how to commit crime and what motivates them to do so. This paper will discuss the steps that are taken once a crime is determine and how the Criminal Justice System is put into place to help solve and come to some type of resolution for the crime. This paper will further discuss the types of deterrence that are placed into society minds to help curve criminal behavior and activity. After reading this paper the reader should have a better understanding on how the Criminal Justice System works and why it is needed help promote a safe environment for our society. In order to understand what crime is we must first look at the definition of what criminal activity is. The term crime comes from a classification of wrongdoing that were established by state or Congress as a felony or misdemeanor, which is committed against a public law. Crime is defined as all deviance involving violating norms, but some norms attract the attention of the authorities. Acts that have been declared illegal by some authority are called crime (Curry, Jiobu, & Schwirian, 1999). Crime develops from the wanting of certain things that attract or bring attention to certain individuals. A subject that is involved in breaking the law or a moral can be considered a criminal suspect according to the law. Crimes can range from violating less serious traffic code, which is basically a breach of a charter that is imposed by a city and up to the more serious things like murder. Anything that goes against the penal system of a country i... ..., 2010). Criminal Justice is composed of many lateral departments that help us define and better understand how crime can come about in our society. Crime can be learned and used to help one satisfy their personal gain and utilized to replace what is missing. Crime can be reduced by developing rules that enhance the social support that is needed to help families and the community educate them to keep their surrounding safe. By implementing custodial control and punishment can deter some crime but not eliminate it altogether. The criminal justice system is not a system that will stop crime but more of guidelines that come with committing crimes. Our society deserve to live in a safe and healthy environment and by providing policies and rules that help regulate criminal activity will ensure our society that crime will be prosecuted and carried out to the fullest.