Boy Soldiers in the First World War

A. Plan of Investigation The purpose of this investigation is to evaluate how allowing underage soldiers to fight affected Kitchener’s Army during the First World War. To examine this, the investigation will focus on the increase of soldiers in Britain’s army, and out of those, how many were under the required recruitment age of 18. Also, the increase in casualties that occurred due to inexperienced, underage soldiers will be assessed. Lastly, the social issues that arose due to young boys being allowed on the Western Front will be examined.The investigation will be conducted using a variety of sources, the main source being Boy Soldiers of the Great War by Richard Van Emden, which will be evaluated for it’s origins, purposes, values and limitations. B. Summary of Evidence Increased Enlistment Rates in Kitchener’s Army ?During August of 1914, Britain’s Army had approximately 750,000 men ? Lord Kitchener (Field-Marshall) needed at least another 500,0 00 soldiers to fight in the war. In August 1914, Lord Kitchener started an intense recruitment campaign that used many propaganda posters saying things like â€Å"Your Country Needs You† and â€Å"A Call To Arms† which encouraged many men and youths to enlist. ?By September 1914, over 500,000 men had enlisted to Britain’s Army ? It is approximated that a quarter of those soldiers were under the required recruitment age of eighteen. ?These boys enlisted for many reasons: to fulfill their own patriotism, to join friends who were also enlisting, or to even get away from their own parents. By the end of the war, more than a quarter of a million boy soldiers fought for Britain in World War One. Increased Casualties Due to Inexperienced Underage Soldiers ?Many soldiers would become emotionally and physically unstable when facing the horrors of war, and experience â€Å"shell shock†. ?Especially in underage boys who were not used to witnessing death, soldiers wo uld panic and act hysterically ? Many soldiers who suffered from shell shock would run from the trenches, and be executed for desertion or cowardice. ?Over 300British soldiers were court-martialed and executed by fellow British soldiers ? Young (and old) soldiers resorted to suicide in the trenches, due to shell shock, however the exact number of suicides is not known because it is too hard to track ? Training for all soldiers was a short period of time before heading off to the front lines, and for soldiers under age eighteen, no amount of training could prepare them mentally of physically for trench warfare ? Because of their lack of training, young soldiers were usually not the best soldiers and would be killed easilyIncrease of Social Concern ?Many boy soldiers joined the army without telling their parents, so mothers and fathers were very worried, and wanted their sons to be sent back home ? Sir Arthur Markham (Liberal MP for Mansfield) was known for fighting throughout the dur ation of World War One, to get the underage soldiers sent back home to their families ? Not only were the parents of the young boys concerned, but people in general were hearing gruesome stories of war, and were upset that boys as young as fourteen were involved D. AnalysisDuring World War One, over 8 million brave soldiers fought for Britain, all of them at various ages and stages of their lives. During Lord Kitchener’s recruitment campaign in 1914 , thousands of soldiers enlisted for a variety of reasons. Out of these soldiers, more than 250,000 of them were under the age of eighteen . Boy soldiers that had been allowed to enlist affected Kitchener’s Army because of increased recruitment rates, a rise in casualties due to inexperienced, underage soldiers, and a growing social concern about these young boys.By August 1914, Britain’s Army was in desperate need of more men to fight against the Germans . Throughout the same month, the field-marshall at that time, Lord Kitchener, launched a forceful campaign to recruit soldiers by using propaganda posters with phrases like â€Å"Your Country Needs You† and â€Å"A Call To Arms†. This campaign was extremely successful and by September of 1914 the recruitment rates of the army increased significantly. Not only had hundreds of thousands of men enlisted, but boys had been allowed to join as well.These young boys chose to lie about their age and enlist for a variety of reasons: their own sense of patriotism, wanting to follow friends/family into war, pressure from their own cities and towns, and even wanting to get away from austere parents . At this point of World War One, expanding Britain’s Army was the primary goal, not necessarily recruiting the ‘right’ type of soldier. Although these underage men were beneficial to Lord Kitchener’s Army by augmenting the number of combatants, these boys were still extremely young, and had not fathomed the horrors of w ar.After soldiers had officially joined, all men and boys were subject to an exceedingly short period of time dedicated to training , after which they would immediately be sent to the front lines. For soldiers that were as young as 14 years old, no amount of training could prepare them physically or mentally for trench warfare. As a result of this, there was an increase in casualties within Kitchener’s Army because boy soldiers were usually not the best fighters, and would be killed easily. Also, many youths were not used to witnessing death and would experience â€Å"shell shock† in the trenches .One young boy described his experiences in the trenches , saying, â€Å"It was hell, absolute hell. † By not taking the time to verify a soldier’s age, and not allowing for a more extensive training period, Lord Kitchener unknowingly sent these young soldiers to their deaths, deaths that could have been prevented. â€Å"We were doing things we knew nothing abou t. † stated on sixteen-year-old. This â€Å"hell† earlier described would cause soldiers to panic, act hysterically, run from the trenches, or even commit suicide.These unfortunate injuries and deaths demonstrated how Lord Kitchener seemed to favour quantity over quality, which, in a military sense, is a poor idea. These unnecessary casualties affected Kitchener’s Army, not only in a numerical way, but it also produced a great social concern, which, in turn, affected the British Army. Seeing as the required recruitment age was eighteen, a majority of the boy soldiers joined Kitchener’s Army without telling their parents, causing much worry amongst the families of these young boys. The British people’s view on the government and the British Army changed and thought that by allowing nderage boys into the army, â€Å"[Families] have been tricked, deceived, and lied to, in the most scandalous and un-English fashion. † This worry then turned into anger, and families started fighting to get their sons off of the Western Front and back home. This presented a serious issue to the British Army because, according to the enlistment laws, allowing underage soldier’s into the army was against the law, and they had not only numerous upset families writing them letters regarding their sons, but several politicians had started a campaign to bring the young boys home.One of the most well known political leaders of this campaign was liberal MP Sir Arthur Markham who continually questioned Lord Kitchener and the Under Secretary of War what they were going to about these underage boys in the trenches, and insisted that â€Å"no system of enlistment can be satisfactory which allows boys like that to be taken. † By allowing these immature boys to enter into World War One, Kitchener’s Army lost support from his own country, as the general public would not tolerate sending innocent boys into such a harsh environment.

Cause and Effect Essay

According to Brougham (2009), â€Å"College women reported higher overall level of stress and greater use of emotion-focused coping strategies than college men† (Brougham, 2009, pg 85). Recent avoidance of my problems is not helping to solve them. As a college student, my two main stressors are family problems and night-eating. Considering that the old coping methods are not working, a new method needs to be taken into effect. College is a new setting for most students, especially the ones no longer living at home. The transition can be easy and worry-free, or a challenging and stressful time. Brougham states, â€Å"Growth and change were often accompanied by the experience of stress. The cause of stress varies from person to person. Overall there can be similarities such as ’academics, social relationships, finances, daily hassles and family relationships’ (Brougham, 2009, pg 86). As student, academics is the reason why we are in school; we are aiming to get ed ucated and to learn. Family relationships vary from student to student depending on how close the family is. My immediate family and extended family have such a close bond that when I am needed at home, I drop everything for them. Social relationships are smaller support systems individuals can count on. Finances all come down to economic status and a person’s unique financial aid package. Daily hassles range from what I should wear today to not having enough time in a day. The one that affects me the most since I have been growing up is family relationships. I was always taught to put family first and being in college has challenged me to the extreme because not being able to be there for my family when they need me most hurts. It was not until last year that I realized that my dad actually meant something to me. Since I was born until 2010 my dad was an alcoholic, therefore, my memorizes of him are usually negative. Recently since we have found out he has liver failure and he is constantly in and out of the hospital I do not know what else to do but love him. He is currently in the hospital right now and me being school pretending everything is okay just does not feel right. Even thought I had such strong dislike for him everything has changed for that reason and that is why I am his potential liver donor but it is hard to see him slowly struggle to live. For stress, the â€Å"five coping responses are self help, accommodation, approach, avoidance and self punishment† (Brougham, 2009, pg 87). Each type is associated with a positive or negative outcome: The goals of the coping responses are to: (1) self-help by sustaining  emotional well being, (2) approach stress using problem solving strategies, (3) accommodate stress through acceptance and reframing negative outcomes, (4) avoid st ress through denial and blaming others, and (5) self-punish through self-focused rumination and self blame (Brougham, 2009, pg 87). Some of these coping strategies are so hard to break away from if that is how one learned to deal with stress. Stress is not a positive word, but something that brings fear to people. I am constantly stressed, consequently, can never think straight and losing my focus at school. My dad has given me all the opportunities I have never had and even though he was not there for me when I was younger I would do anything for him. Even though I do not know how to cope with family problems I am willing to learn considering that the way I deal with my stress is a negative way usually. Now realizing there are other ways to worry, I would consider trying accommodation. The reasoning behind that coping strategy is that one needs to constantly remind themselves to not think negatively. Hurting yourself is just so much easier than thinking positively. Brougham claims that â€Å"avoidance and self-punishment coping strategies were associated with greater negative outcomes† (Brougham, 2009, pg 87-88). The reason for this is because we do not know any other way to cope. My way of thinking is hard to change, but there has to be change in order to get somewhere in life instead of continuing bad habits. The second stressor correlates to stress: night-eating. â€Å"The transition into college life has been associated with weight gain† (Wichianson, 2009, pg 236). The infamous â€Å"freshman fifteen† refers to the fifteen pounds freshmen in college tend to gains. One main reason for this is because college students tend to eat at night. From my experienced I gained my fifteen pounds yet it was so hard to stop eating. When I was invited to eat at midnight I was always willing to go never realizing how bad that was for me. â€Å"Poor coping and high levels of stress resulting from such a transition make students prone to engage in problematic eating behaviors such as nigh-eating syndrome, which can lead to weight gain† (Wichianson, 2009, pg 236). In college, one is independent – there is no need to ask for permission. Eating usually being scheduled at hope versus college you have the liberty to set your own schedule made it hard. I could never turn down a whooper from burger King, an ice cream sundae from McDonalds, chicken wings from hooters, and breakfast food from  Denny’s. I wondered why I could not tell myself no but it was just so hard because I love food. In college one can eat when they chose and their choice of food is up to them. To some extent, as a teenager, I never learned about nutrition and how many calories one individual is supposed to have. I also never learned to avoid certain food groups. It makes it especially hard to even decide what is healthy to eat in the cafeteria considering nothing is even healthy for you in a school cafeteria. What I found myself doing was eating everything in front of me even when I was full. The way my mom raised us she told us to eat everything and not leave anything on the plate out of respect but food cost money. Currently in our culture the portion sizes of food are huge. At a restaurant a dinner plate is so large yet, you feel guilty not eating it all. Even at fast food restaurants they give you the option of small, medium, large, x-large and sometimes even bigger, eating all this food in general is not good but eating it at night is a heart attack waiting to happen. At night, one eats and goes to bed; the food that was just eaten never gets digested or really has time to go anywhere in your body. The night eating stressor â€Å"grouped coping into two different categories: problem fo cused and emotion focused† (Wichianson, 2009, pg 236). These where the two reasons the article came up with for why we eat at night and cannot stop. I never thought eating at night was problem but as my weight increased and I slept with stomach aches, I knew it was something I no longer wanted to do. In the article it states â€Å"problem-focused coping strategies have been considered adaptive, while emotion-focused coping strategies have been considered maladaptive† (Wichianson, 2009, pg 236) Emotion-focused is eating your feelings as a negative result associated with maladaptive. To some extent any feeling I had I wanted to eat. If I was happy I would eat, if I was sad I really wanted to go eat out. Problem focused is forcing you not to eat at night associated with adaptive. Adaptive in the way that you adapt to a certain eating schedule that way at night I am not hungry and will not feel the need to go out and eat. Research was done and results showed that an â€Å"increase use of maladaptive and decrease use of adaptive coping have been associated with problem eating† (Wichianson, 2009, pg 236). Meaning that I am not alone and many people eat because of the way they feel. The better way to understand this is by scheduling time aside to go and eat. That is what I have done since the  beginning of the school. I give myself one hour three times a day to eat a meal not just a snack the reason for it is because I am at risk. As an overweight student it is difficult to figure out the healthiest way to live life. The reason I eat at night is because I am stressed, yet that is making me more at risk for diabetes because it runs in the family. The best thing for me is to actually set time aside and keep reminding myself that I cannot eat past a certain time usually around seven o’clock. There are many more stressors in my life but currently these are the two I struggle most during college. Being a college student in the nursing program makes me more nervous and afraid of not having time with my family as well as my emotional need to eat all the time. Consider that we are so active all the time it feels that there are never enough hours in a day it makes it that much harder. A quote I was fond of was, â€Å"†¦stress is balancing multiple demands and roles at work, at school, and in their personal life† (Giancola, 2009, pg 246). These basically generalize everything I cannot do. I cannot balance things when I have something higher on my list of prioritizing. Hopefully using these new coping mechanisms I can better myself as a person, student and even daughter.

Lost Foam Casting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Lost Foam Casting - Essay Example The pattern is made through the use of polystyrene foam. If the cast is to be made on the basis of a simple geometrical form, then the use of a hot wire foam cutter can be done. In case the volume of casting is large, then a mass production usage pattern is sued which is similar to the injection molding technique. The foam cluster done for the casting is coated with ceramic material via the use of brushing, dipping, flow casting and spraying. This form of coating is known as the refractory coating technique. After this coating dries, then the cast is put into a container and baked up on a vibration table with unbounded sand. The system of automatic pouring is significant in the Lost Foam Casting (LFC) because the pouring process is most critical in this form of casting technique (Youtube.com, 2013). The common metals that are used for casting in the Lost Foam Casting (LFC) are cast irons, nickel alloys, aluminum alloys, copper alloys, stainless steels and steels. The size of the cast ing ranges from 0.5 kg to hundreds of tons. The minimum thickness of the walls of the casts is 2.5 mm. There is no upper limit for the thickness of these types of castings. The linear tolerance of these casting is 0.005 mm/mm and the general surface finish ranges from 25 to 23 mm in RMS. There are different types of LFC employed in the arena of engineering and construction (Figure 3). There are many industrial applications of the Lost Foam Casting (LFC) technique. This casting process is commonly used in small scale and large scale engineering and manufacturing of products.

Movie Review of Revolution Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Of Revolution - Movie Review Example The film focuses on their battles and struggles in this war over the next several years such as the Battle of Brooklyn Heights. During the course of the film, Dobbs son is both sheltered by the local Indians as well as captured by the British, only to be rescued by his father. Donald Sutherland appears as Sergeant Major Peasy, a harsh archetype of a British soldier. During his travels Dobbs meets and falls in love with Daisy McConnahay, played by Nastassja Kinski. Daisy comes from a wealthy Torry family, yet she rejects the hypocrisy of the status quo in favor of the revolutionary cause. Along his journey, Tom Dobbs appears at Valley Forge as well as The Battle of Yorktown and its subsequent surrender, which concludes the movie. Revolution creates the character of Tom Dobbs as a microcosm for the real American colonists that were forced by circumstance to fight against British rule. While his character is fictional, the battles he encounters actually were waged. The Battle of Brooklyn christened the Declaration of Independence, and it did result in both the occupation of New York by the British Army for the entire war along with the execution of Nathan Hale (Gallager 1995). Of course, odds are that an individual soldier would have never actually experienced as many significant battles as Tom Dobbs; however, it is his travels that allow the audience the scope of these battles. Furthermore, the film does include the Huron and Iroquois tribes presenting the Indian presence of New York as both friend and foe. Even though the two tribes were enemies, and even though colonists had alliances with the Huron, it is interesting to note that the Hurons also sided with the British during the revolutionary war (www.tola tsga.org). Still by making a fur trapper the protagonist, the film takes on a specific reality, the reality of the common man that fought the Revolutionary War. Other war movies about other wars often focus on the plight of the common man such as Saving Private Ryan. But Revolutionary War movies are unique in that they almost always focus on the reality of a Washington, Adams, or Jefferson. Maybe this is because the reality of the time was that for the most part only wealthy educated individuals documented their experiences. There is in fact a scene in which Tom Dobbs cannot read a list of names in his quest to find Daisy. Thus, the reality was that the majority of the individuals responsible for battling the British were exactly common men, just like the character of Tom Dobbs. The settings in Revolution are a mixed blessing. Sometimes the shots of the English countryside stand in well for the forests of 18th century America. Other times, especially with some of the scenes shot in Norway, the foreign coastline indeed appears foreign and unlike the East Coast of the United States. Nevertheless, some scenes do ring true such as the shot of the British Army staking out their claim of superiority through the use of tents on a hillside only to see their stake washed away by the reality of a morning downpour. The costumes in the movie also seem to reflect quite an attention to detail, especially in the opening scenes of the 18th Century New York citizenry as well as the uniforms

Korean Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Korean Art - Essay Example One of the leaders in the Monochrome Art Movement, Ha Chong-Hyun (1935) used landscaping techniques in his works so to express the way he saw man as not being separable to nature (Art World of Ha Chong-Hyun). Kwon Young woo (1926) on the other hand, used simple composition out of paper by tearing, sticking, perforating, and coloring paper to create abstract modern paintings. His purpose was to break down the gap between Korean painting and the Western painting - This was obviously what the Minjung Art Movement was against (The 11 Great Korean Artists). Minjung artists, on the other hand, used a more revolutionized technique in painting. This is one of the biggest differences between the two movements. They used different vivid colors and facial expressions in their works to show their feelings toward capitalists and imperialists. Their techniques though were adopted from Buddhist paintings and narrative art. In this image ECRITURE NO. 000105, Park Seo-bo used one color pattern only although it dramatically shows the lights and shades, as well as for image 2 - Ecriture 000105 2000. ... Both paintings resemble nature. They show movement and harmony. Although the works of Minjung Art painters were quite different from those of Monochrome Art Movement because of their use of colors, they are similar in the use of patterns. Both painting techniques use patterns in design and color as well. In the next images, you can see vibrant colors in the Minjung Art paintings, but still, they follow a certain pattern as to the color of the clothes used, accessories, and background. The next images represent the Minjung Art Movement: (SoRi-MoRi Philadelphia Korean Cultural Troupe www.sorimori.org/eng/aboutus/mission.php) ("The Kabo Peasants' War" koreaweb.ws/minjungart) Both paintings used different colors and detailed faces. It is also similar in some way to the Monochromatic Art technique because it also follows a certain pattern in direction. Both have symmetry and balance. Works Cited Jung, Jun-mo. The 11 Great Korean Artists. Kim, Yong-na. 20th Century Korean Art. NJ: Laurence King Publishing, 2005 Seo-bo, Park. "Ecriture 000105" Online image. "Ecriture 000105 2000" Online image. Park Ryu Sook Gallery. Path: Galleries; Asian Artists Smith, Edward Lucie. Art World of Ha Chong-Hyun. 2007/08/02Path: Criticism; Art World of Ha Chong-Hyun-Edward Lucie-Smith l Art Critic "SoRi-MoRi Philadelphia Korean Cultural Troupe" Online image. Yon'guso, Kyore Misul. "The Kabo Peasants' War" Online image. Our People's Art

Tianxia in Chinese Moral or Political Thinking Essay - 1

Tianxia in Chinese Moral or Political Thinking - Essay Example This paper illustrates that Tianxia is interesting in the sense that it gives a Chinese replica of global order that is generally applicable, and gives Chinese-style resolutions to global issues more so how the traditional concept of Tianxia in international relations is combined with the long-held Chinese diplomacy of nationalism. Therefore, the Tianxia system has become the answer to such questions as to what is the role of China in the current world in terms of international relations and diplomacy. This research work is to examine how the Tianxia system is employed to solve the world’s problems and the institutions that come with it; it also examines the theoretical and past problems caused by the Tianxia system and its application in the present world order. It also examines what the Tianxia system must be applied domestically before it can be applicable or viable on the world stage. This is a legitimate world order that is quite distinct from the Western world order in i nternational relations; it is a framework for solving the world problems through the conceptualization of ideas and practically implementing them. Tianxia as a term in international relations should be construed in three different ways to have the relevant meaning when employing it in international relations. Geographically speaking, tian refers to the heavens, the sky and what is on top while Xia means below, inferior or below when the two words are joined, they mean what is below the universe or the sky. Normatively, Tianxia refers to all the people or the world institution, in understanding this, scholars have interdependently directed arguments that would solve problems not only in political philosophy, but also in political science, and this has the effect of unifying the world and the thoughts too.

Clinical Supervision for Nurses Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Clinical Supervision for Nurses - Essay Example According to Johns (2003), Clinical supervision serves to enhance professional functioning of the junior members under the supervision; the supervisors monitor the quality of services given to patients. Supervision also creates an environment that promotes creativity in supervisees; this supports them so that they have the ability to face patients confidently. As Benfer  (1979) asserts, during clinical supervision, as a clinical supervisor, I will assess the work of the nurse and give her guidelines on how to best deals with patients. Bernard and Good year claim that clinical supervision is similar to training in that it involves a formal process of learning and professional support, which enables the supervisees to develop competence and knowledge in their profession. Because of clinical supervision, nurses identify room for improving their nursing practice (Bernard &  Goodyear 1998). Falender& Shafranske (2004) argue that a variety of approaches and models can be applied in cli nical supervision; in order to assist nurses faced with difficulties. McDaniel, Weber, & McKeever (1983) assert that clinical supervisors often apply various models when training nurses and other supervisees. The most common models of clinical supervision include the developmental model, key issue model, functions model, and process model. As a Clinical supervisor, I would use these models to serve the nurse facing challenges, in her profession. Based on this, the various models of supervision can be used when the training needs of the supervisees vary from one supervisee to another. In training the nurse, who has difficulties in dealing with patients, I would use the developmental model (Benfer 1979). The developmental model proposes that the trainees pass through several stages, which both the supervisors and the supervisees have to take into account. Using this model, I would train the supervisee to cope with the challenges, resulting from complexity of duties (Johns 2003). There fore, as a clinical supervisor, I would apply this model to train the nurse, who has had a promotion to grade E. A nurse who has been promoted to a higher level needs to develop the necessary skills required to perform better in the new position. Promotions come with additional responsibilities in one’s profession.  

International business enviroment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

International business enviroment - Essay Example According to the literature on international business, FDI level is dependent on the effects of location of the business environment within a country. Due to uneven distribution of resources in a certain country, the firms will have different advantages in different countries (Hufbauer 2013, p. 1). Studies carried out on determinants of inflow FDI reflects a positive correlation between the economic performance and FDI. Location factors explain the differences in foreign penetration between countries. According to Pentecost and Miner (1996), competitive advantage within the host economies, levels of protection and the size of the reporting market affects the distribution of FDI positively. Studies also show that FDI is significantly affected by the policy measures directed at FDI (Lee 2001, p. 100). The current paper uses a range of relevant theories and data as illustrated in Tables 1 and 2 to critically evaluate variation over time between and within countries in their inflow and outflow of FDI activity. In this case, FDI flows as a percentage of the GDP. These indicators are a representation of the provision of the external financing resources in terms of direct investments within a reporting economy derived from foreign investors and external economies as derived by the domestic investors. The negative FDI values of net inflows within a certain country is a reflection of the disinvestment value from foreign investors being higher than capital value of investments within the reporting country. The negative value for the net outflows indicate that value derived from the direct investments from domestic investors to the external economies is less than the repatriated value of the direct investments from the external economies (Rutten and Boekema 2007, p. 39). Most countries use FDI for evaluation of their economic development processes. The contribution of FDI to national output and

Paraphrase Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Paraphrase - Essay Example One form hijab is the niqab, which cover the whole person and leaves only a small gap intended for the eyes. The aim of this dressing is to maintain social order and familial peace therefore the Islamic religion requires the female Muslims to cover themselves fully especially in their interactions with men whom they are not related to since the Muslim religion considers a woman’s hair as half her overall beauty. There are two types of niqabs that are used by the Muslim women, one is the half niqab, which consist of a headscarf and a face veil, the facial fail veil covers part of the face leaving the eyes and the forehead uncovered. The other type of niqab is the full or Gulf niqab that covers the entire face leaving a very narrow space for the eyes, this type of niqab is common in the Muslim countries especially the Gulf States where it is widely worn. The other type of hijab is the burqa, this veil usually has no space for the eyes and the wearer sees through a special mesh s creen. The veil is part of the Islamic religion especially among the women who are required to wear it always especially when going out of their residences. Since the seventh century, Islam has grown to be a major religion in the world having followers in almost all the countries in the world. As the religion spread across the globe especially in the Middle East, Saharan and the sub-Saharan Africa, central Asia and to other communities and tribes within the Arabian Sea, it adopted the cultures and traditions of those communities regarding the veil while in other instances it influenced the practising of veiling in the communities in the region. However, in the recent past some countries, which are governed by the sharia law such as Iran, have made it mandatory for the women to wear the veil, which they call ‘Chador’ and it covers the entire body. The niqab originated in Greece from the Byzantine Christian world in the Persia, and Muslims, especially in the first century of the religion were not much concerned with the way women dressed and the introduction of the veil came only in the second century. In the first century, the women who were veiled were mainly those in the urban regions and the nomadic and village women were not required to wear the veil. Wearing of veil especially among urban women and women of the higher social classes was considered as a sign that the families the women came from could be able to sustain her. This was based on the interpretation of the quaranic message ‘draw their veils over their bosom’ which was considered to mean that women should cover their breasts with a veil to avoid attracting men with their physical beauty. With the growth of the Islamic religion, a lot of rules were made that curtailed the freedom of women in public, for instance during the period of mamluks in Egypt, strict rules were made that required the women in the country to observe the strict dress code of the veil and not to parti cipate in public activities. Shopkeepers were even urged by the authorities not to carry out any business transactions with women who had not observed the guidelines in wearing of the veil and were requested to turn their backs towards them when such women approached their stores until they left. With time reformers and liberals started opposing

Sports textile Essay Example for Free

Sports textile Essay Sports textile is one of the branches of technical textiles. Now a day’s sophisticated technology are used in technical textile to produce sports wear. Hi-tech textiles in sport are 1 S. NO TOPIC PAGE NO 1 Introduction 2 2 Objective 3 3 Properties/Function required for sports wear 3 3. 1. Desirable attributes of functional sports and leisure wear 5 3. 2. Properties of sports textiles 6 4 Textile material and fabric structure for sports wear 7 4. 1. Development of fibers 7 4. 2. High-performance fibers 8 4. 3. Special fibers used 10 4. 4. Types of fabrics 11 4. 5. Layered fabrics 13 5 Market size for sports wear 14. 5. 1. The key impediments to the growth of sporttech product 15 6 Application/Uses of sportswear 16 7 Conclusion 16 8 Bibliography 17 nothing new. In twenty first century, clothing is an important issue for general consumer, active athletes and for those who practice sports just for fitness in their leisure time. The sports fabrics are generally ultra-breathable and have high heat and moisture management properties, light weight, fast drying properties and feature elasticity properties. These fabrics also have superior strength and durability. The latest sports textile materials are much more function for fulfilling  specific needs in different sports activities. The sports such are i. Winter sports ii. Summer sports iii. Outdoor games iv. Indoor games v. Football vi. Cricket vii. Climbing viii. Cycling ix. Flying and sailing sports x. Athletics xi. Other sports The people are paying more attention to sports activity and that the market for sportswear continues to expand. So the consumers seem to be prepared to spend considerable amounts of money on sportswear and other functional fabrics, which have made the market attractive to many producers. In sports, previously a traditionalapparel textilewas used. For that theplayer hasto face so many problems such as: i. Sweating – which stick the fabric with body ii. Feeling hot during run iii. Improper stretch ability iv. Extra weight of the fabric v. Give protection to body skin during fall on the ground vi. Inadequate fabric for fluid resistance for swimmer vii. Windproof, waterproof fabric for sailor 2 viii. Light weight shoe with proper strength air circulation ix. High tenacity resistance to abrasion for the skiwear uniform x. Improper gripping of the shoes during run etc. Therefore,technologyhastodevelopfortheaboveshortcomings. Andforthattheresearch activity took place; and the country who were in the foremost are: Japan, Sweden, Spain and United State. To bridge the gap and promote the partnership and collaboration between the stakeholders government-end users. 3. PROPERTIES/FUNCTIONS REQUIRED FOR SPORTSWEAR Many different aspects have to be considered when designing clothing for a particular sport. 1. The protection/safety functions to protect wearers from adverse weather (wind, rain and snow, etc). 2. The comfort function which gives wear comfort (thermo-physiological comfort, skin sensorial comfort, body movement comfort) to wearers, 3. The exercise function to assist positively improvement of athletic records and attainment of one’s target, 4. Aesthetic appeal and high fashion ability. In order to meet such requirements, waterproof/moisture permeable fabrics, perspiration absorbing/ fast drying fabrics, warmth retentive fabrics, stretchable fabrics, etc. have been developed. From sensitivity or aesthetics point of view softness, surface texture, handle, luster, colour comfort are important factors. 3 5. For active sportswear requires super lightweight, low fluid resistance, super high tenacity stretchablility. For those who are seeking comfort healthy pursuits critical features include thermal regulation, UV resistance, sweat absorption fast drying, vapour permeability. 6. Moisture management is one of the key performance criteria in todays apparel industry. It is defined as the ability of a garment to transport moisture away from the skin to the garments outer surface. This action prevents perspiration from remaining next to the skin. In hot conditions, trapped moisture may heat up and lead to fatigue or diminished performance. In cold conditions, trapped moisture will drop in temperature and cause chilling and hypothermia. Excess moisture may also cause the garment to become heavy, as well as cause damage to the skin from chafing. Table no. 1 Function of sports textiles. S. No Function Description 1. Heat transport performances The sport fabrics require to maintain body temperature during various sports activities. The heat transport properties of fabric make possible to feel the sportsman cooler in summer and warmer in winter. The fibrous material, bulk entrapped air within the fabric affects the heat transport properties of the sportswear. 2 Moisture transport performance By changing the cross sections of the fiber and by using special chemicals; fabrics are made which have high moisture transport properties. Such fabric keeps the body dry by keeping moisture away from body surface in vapor and/or liquid form. 3 Anti-static performances Sportswear fabrics have a very high electrical conductivity, so they can dissipate electrical charge. 4 4 Antimicrobial performances Keeping a normal level of bacteria on the skin offers a high level of comfort and personal hygiene, especially during athletic activities. 5 Ultraviolet protection Sports fabrics can remove UV-A and UV-B rays that are dangerous to the skin, and guarantees an improved level of defense compared to the majority general natural and man-made fibres. 3. 1. Desirable attributes of functional sports and leisurewear: a. Optimum heat and moisture regulation. b. Rapid moisture absorption and conveyance capacity. c. Good air and water permeability d. Prevention of a long term feeling of dampness. e. Low water absorption of the layer of clothing facing the skin. f. Quick drying fabric to prevent catching cold. g. Pleasant to skin, soft, non-abrasive and non-chafing. h. Dimensionally stable even when wet. i. Durable j. Lightweight k. Soft and pleasant touch l. Easy care m. Smart and functional design Table no: 2 Required functions on the main sportswear S. No. Sportswear Required Function 1. Shirts for tennis,volleyball, golf, football, rugby, base ball uniform, tracksuits etc. Sweat absorption, fast drying, cooling. 2. Skiwear, wind breakers, rain wear Vapor permeability, water proofing 3. Skiwear, wind breakers, tracksuits Sunlight absorbing and thermal retention 5 4. Swimming race and skating costume, ski jump and downhill skiing suits, cycling costumes Low fluid resistance (for water and air) 5. Swimwear, leotards, skating costume. Stretch ability, opacity 6. Skiwear, snowboard wear, football and base ball uniform High tenacity, heat melt resistance to abrasion 3. 2. Properties of sports textiles: Sports textile must have comport ability, easy to wear, easy handling. Sports textiles fabrics have a very high electrical conductivity, so they can permit the effectual dissipation of electrical charge. It should be light as best as possible. Fabric filaments are made highly effecting in moisture management thus they can wick the moisture as known as sweat away from the body keeps body dry. Sports textile should have good perspiration fastness.As this sports fabric has a special property well known as heat conductivity make possible to feel the user cooler in summer warmer in winter. Garments manufactured from sports textiles fabrics, keeps the normal stability of body comfort, because these fabrics are ultra-breathable, fast drying and possess outstanding moisture managing properties, which rapidly wick moisture away from the body. These garments are also very less in weight feature elasticity properties, which provides immense comfort and independence of movement.Keeping a normal level of bacteria on the skin offers a high level of comfort and personal hygiene, especially during athletic activities. Sports textiles fabrics remove UVA and UVB rays that are dangerous to the skin, and guarantees an improved level of defense compared to the majority general natural and man-made fibers. It also provides superior strength and durability. The athletics the leisure activities for their better performance in the sports. 4. TEXTILE MATERIAL AND FABRIC STRUCTURE FOR SPORTSWEAR: 6 It is not possible to achieve all required properties for sportswear in a simple structure of any single fiber. The right type of fiber should be in the right place. The behavior of the fabric is mainly depending on its base fibers properties. The most important properties are: fiber type;weave construction; weight or thickness of the material and presence of chemical treatments. 4. 1. Development of fibers: The evolution of fiber developments has gone through the phases of conventional fibers, highly functional fibers and high-performance fibers. Polyester is the single most common fiber used for sportswear and active wear. Other fibers suitable for active wear are polyamide, polypropylene, acrylics and elastanes. Wool and cotton fibers are still finding applications in leisurewear. Synthetic fibers can either be modified during manufacture, e. g. by producing  hollow fibers and fibers with irregular cross-section, or be optimally blended with natural fibers to improve their thermo-physiological and sensory properties. Synthetic fibers with improved UV resistance and having anti-microbial properties are also commercially available for use in sportswear. Improved fiber spinning techniques in melt spinning, wet spinning, dry spinning as well as new techniques such as gel spinning, bi-component spinning and microfiber spinning, have all made it possible to produce fibers, yarns and fabrics with unique performance characteristics suitable for use in sportswear and sports goods. New technologies for producing microfibers have also contributed towards production of high-tech sportswear. By using the conjugate spinning technique, many different types of sophisticated fibers with various functions have been commercially produced which has resulted in fabrics having improved mechanical, physical, chemical and biological functions. The technique of producing sheath/core melt spun conjugate fibers has been commercially exploited for producing added-value fibers. Unitika produced the first heat-degenerating conjugate fiber with a core containing zirconium carbide (ZrC). S0ince ZrC absorbs sunlight (visible and near-infrared radiations) and emits far-infrared radiation, one feels warmer when one puts on a jacket made from such fibers. Other types of heat-generating fibers contain ceramic micro-particles. 4. 2. High-performance fibers: Today, a wide range of high-performance fibers is commercially available for technical and industrial applications. These types of fibers are used in sports protective wear/equipment 7 developed for impact protection and in textile reinforcement in sports products for different applications. Among the speciality fibers already established are the following. Aramidfibers: Figure no: 1 aramid fibers Figure no: 2 Gloves made from aramid  ± p-aramid fiber will provide high strength and ballistics.  ± m-aramid fiber will provide flame and heat resistance. Ultra-high tenacity polyethylene fibers (UHMWPE): Gel spun, ultra high molecular polyethylene fibers with extremely high specific strength and modulus, high chemical resistance and high abrasion resistance. Polyphenylene sulphide fibers (PPS): Crystalline thermoplastic fiber with mechanical properties similar to regular polyester fiber. Excellent heat and chemical resistance. 8 Polyetheretherketone fibers (PEEK): Crystalline thermoplastic fiber with high resistance to heat and to a wide range of chemicals. Novoloid (cured phenol-aldehyde) fibers: High flame resistance, non-melting with high resistance to acid, solvents, steam, chemicals and fuels. Good moisture regain and soft hand. PBO (p-phenylene-2,6-benzobisoxazole) fibers: The strength and modulus of this fiber exceed those of any known fibers. Table no: 3 Characteristics of High-performance fibers High-performance fibers Characteristics Glass fiber High resistance. Aramid Mechanical strength and high resistance to flame and heat. High tenacity polyethylene High mechanical strength, chemical  and abrasion resistance. Polyphenylene sulfide Excellent chemical and heat resistance. PBO(polybenzoxazole) High mechanical strength. . 4. 3. Special fibers used: †¢Hygra20 †¢Killat N23 Killat N from Kanebo Ltd is a nylon hollow filament. The hollow portion is about 33 per cent of the cross section of each filament due to which it gives good water absorbency and warmth retentive property. The manufacturing technology of Killat N is 9 very interesting. The yarn is spun as bicomponent filament yarn with soluble polyester copolymer as the core portion and nylon as the skin portion. Then by giving alkali weight  loss treatment the soluble polyester copolymer of the bicomponent filament will dissolve and a large hollow portion (exceeding 30 per cent of the cross section) will be created as shown is Figure 5. †¢Dacron 4-Channel Polyester a generic term for a high-performance four-channel fiber engineered to move moisture and speed the evaporation of perspiration. It is a superior fabric for wicking action, drying time, moisture absorption and transport. A high-performance, four-channel fiber engineered to move moisture and speed the evaporation of perspiration. It is a superior fabric, for wicking action, drying time,moisture absorption and transport. Lycra25 Figure no:3 Swimwear made by lycra Lycra, a truly synthetic fiber of long chain polymer composed of at least 85% segmented polyurethane, finds wide range of end uses such as swimwear, active sportswear, floor gymnastics because of its comfort and fit2O. Adding Lycra to a fabric gives it stretch and recovery, particularly in gymnastics and swimwear where body skin flexing and stretching are inevitable. Lycra T-9026 requires still effort for the same extensibility. Roica and Leofeel 10 Roica is a polyether type spandex made by dry spinning method and Leofeel is asoft nylon-66 yarn developed by Asahi Chemical. The combination of Roica and Leofeel in mixed knitted tricot fabric gives a soft touch and excellent stretch. It is mainly used in swim wear . 4. 4. Types of fabrics: A wide range of woven, knitted and nonwoven fabrics are commercially available for sportswear and normal wear. These fabrics differ in their structure such as entrapped air, pore shape and size, bulk and surface properties etc. which may affect the heat and moisture transmission characteristics of the fabrics. For sportswear, knitted fabrics are preferred as these fabrics have greater elasticity  and stretchability compared to woven fabrics, which provide unrestricted freedom of movement and transmission of body vapour to the next textile layer in the clothing system. With new combinations of fabrics and yarns, and with developments in fabric construction, knitted fabric appears to be the ideal base for active sportswear. Knitted garments are mainly worn next to the skin and therefore deserve particular attention.Entrant Dermizax EV is a lightweight fabric having a feather smooth texture with excellent waterproof/moisture permeability and durable water repellency such as 20,000 mm of water pressure resistance and moisture permeability of 30,000 g/m2/24 hrs. It is an excellent and original active sportswear fabric with globally top class water proof/moisture permeability, as well as excellently durable water repellency. Its action of waterproofing moisture permeability. fig no:4 Entrant Dermizax EV fiber †¢Entrant HB is a new generation fabric with hybrid structure that synergistically integrates the advantages offered by a coating (well-balanced moisture permeability) and lamination (high waterproofness). It has high resistance to water pressure and high 11 durability against repeated washings (80 points or higher after 20 wash cycles). Its main application is outdoor wear. Toray has developed H2OFF made up of polyester microfibre fabric with a unique high-density weave structure comprising millions of microcrimped fiber loops. It also feature superb and durable water repellency, superior breathability and wind-chill resistance and attractiveness with soft hand. †¢Naiva30: Unitika has developed Naiva fabric by combining the Naiva yarn with a nylon microfibre. Naiva is an Eval/nylon bicomponent filament yarn and Eval is nothing but a copolymer resin of ethylenevinylalcohol. Naiva yarn composition is 55% Eval (23% ethylene + 32% vinyl alcohol) and 45% nylon. In the Naiva fabrics there are many nylon micro loops on the surface, which are formed by making use of high thermal shrinkage property of Naiva yarn. Naiva fabric not only has good moisture permeability but also has some other positive features like lightweight, softness and has capability of secondary finishing. The fabric is very successfully used in mountaineering wear and other active sportswear. fig no:5 structure of Naiva 30. Field Sensor21: Field Sensor is a very popular high-performance fabric from Toray,  which employs a multilayer structure that not only absorbs perspiration quickly but also transports it up to the outer layer of fabric very rapidly using principle of capillary action. It is composed of coarser denier yarn on the inside surface (in direct contact with skin), and fine denier hydrophobic polyester yarn in a mesh construction on the outer surface to accelerate quick evaporation of sweat. COOLMAX: DuPont CoolMax is a high-performance fabric that can help the athletic performance of the people who wear it. CoolMax ® moves sweat away from the body to 12 the outer layer of the fabric, where it dries faster than any other fabric. In moisture management tests, garments made with CoolMax dried almost completely in 30 minutes. Cotton, by comparison, remained wet by nearly 50%. Better evaporation means you spend less energy to cool your body, which increases your performance and endurance. CoolMax fabrics are specially designed to provide not only superior moisture management, but also to enhance the wearers comfort. All of the benefits of CoolMax fabrics are permanently built right into the fiber, requiring no chemical treatments. 4. 5. Layered fabrics: Layered fabrics became common for active sportswear. The performance of layered fabric in thermophysiological regulation is better than single layer textile structure. Each layer has distinct function; the layer next to the skin is to wick away the perspiration rapidly to the outer layer, which absorbs and dissipates it rapidly to the atmosphere by evaporation. In doing so, it takes away some of the body heat and keeps the body cool. On the inside, a synthetic material with good moisture transfer properties, e. g. polyester, nylon, acrylic or polypropylene is used whereas on the outside, a material which is good absorber of moisture, e. g.cotton, wool, viscose rayon or their blends can be placed. The conductive inner layer transfers the liquid perspiration rapidly to the absorbent outer layer chiefly as a result of the capillary effect. The absorbent outside of the textile material functions as a buffer zone for excess perspiration. In another way of constructing a physiologically functional fabric is three-layer structure. The use of superfine or microfibre yarn enables production of dense fabrics leading to more effective capillary action, with better thermo-physiological regulation. 13 14 Cellulosic or other Hydrophilic Fibres. Fig no:6 Two layered fabric structure for active wear 15 16 Cellulosic or Hydrophilic fibres Polyester micro fibres Polyester or other wicking fiber Fig no:7 Three layered fabric structure for active wear 5. MARKET SIZE FOR SPORTS TEXTILES: The technical textiles usage in the Sportech segment is valued at Rs 2,632 crore in 2007-08. The sports footwear components account for around 85% of the total segment value followed by technical textiles usage in sports composites with around 11%share. The sports footwear components are valued at Rs 2,250 crore and are expected to grow at around 11% y- o-y over the next 5 years. The technical textiles usage in sports composites is valued at Rs 293 crore. Sport composites include inflatable balls (footballs, volleyball, basketballs, etc), cricket protective equipments and boxing equipments. Around 30% of the sports composites are exported. Artificial turfs are valued at Rs 26 crore and account for about 1% of the segment only. The artificial turfs are not manufactured in India and the demand is met through imports.The usage of technical textiles in parachute fabrics, sleeping bags and hot air balloon fabricsisestimatedasRs18. 4crorein2007-08whichisexpectedtoincreasetoRs28crore by 2012-13. The consumption of sail cloth in India is negligible. †¢Sports nets, high performance swimwear and tents account for the remaining technical textiles consumption in Sportech with market size of Rs 5 crore, Rs 0. 84 crore and Rs 39 crore respectively in 2007-08. India exports around 40% of its sports nets production and around 25% of its tents production. The usage of technical textiles in sports nets and tents is expected to increase to Rs 30 crore and Rs 49. 8 crore respectively by 2012-13. Overall, the usage of technical textiles in the Sportech segment is expected to increase 17 fromRs2,632crorein2007-08toaroundRs4,358croreby2012-13,growingata CAGRof just below 11%. Sportech segment of technical textiles is estimated to provide employment to 88,000 peopleofwhomnumberoftechnicalemployeesisestimatedat70,000andnumberof non-technical employees is estimated at 18,000.The sports footwear industry is expected to grow by at least 8 percent per annum and accordingly, the demand potential for sports shoes and the attendant requirement of fabrics would be as below Table no: 4 Market Potential for fabric requirement for sports wear Year Sports Shoes Requirement of fabric (million meters) Million Pairs Value(Rs. Crore) 2001-02 570 5100(1020). 105 2003-04 595 5950(1200) 120 2007-08 804 8040(1600) 140 Note: Figures in brackets indicate approximate value of technical textile shoe component 5. 1. The key impediments to the growth of Sporttech products:- Inadequate domestic demand The raw materials and machinery for products like Ballooning fabric and Artificial turfs is not available in India which render these products expensive as compared to other manufacturing countries Demand for products like parachute fabrics, tents, etc is driven primarily by the  defense sector onlySportech products are typically labour intensive, availability of skilled labour is a major impediment to growth Licenses and clearances required for products like Ballooning fabric are a major impediment as well. This interactive workshop on Sports Textile focuses on building bridges between the Users and Manufactures. It will provide thought leadership and strategic vision to the technical textile industry in general and Sports textile in particular. 6. APPLICATIONS/USES OF SPORTSWEAR: Sports textile has versatile use. Some uses of Sports Textile are given below: 18 i. Sports composites ii. Artificial turf iii. Ballooning fabrics iv. Parachute fabrics v. Sail cloth vi. Sports nets vii. Sports footwear viii. Tents for sports ix. Swimming costume x. Sleeping bags xi. Sports equipment xii. Cycling xiii. Golf xiv. Tennis xv. Mountaineering, xvi. Skiing, xvii. Cricket, etc. 7. CONCLUSIONS Modern peoples are paying more attention to sports activity. The use of sports fabric is increasing day by day in various sports and leisure activities. The consumers seem to be prepared to spend considerable amounts of money on sportswear and other functional fabrics. During designing the sportswear fabrics, the aspects which are considered: protection/safety functions to protect wearers from adverse weather, comfort functions which gives wear comfort (thermal, sensorial and body movement comfort), exercise function to enhance performance of athlete, and aesthetic appeal and high fashion ability. The required functions of sportswear fabrics differ in different situations such as type of sports, environmental conditions and level of activity etc. Sportswear developed by using special type of polymer, type of fibrous material, modifying the fiber/yarn/fabric structure, lamination,  finishing technology and manufacturing technology etc. The introduction of high functionality and comfort in the sportswear fabrics provide unlimited scope for sportswear fabrics. 19 8. BIBILIOGRAPHY: ?Development Active Sportswear Fabrics and Synthetic Fibre Producers, JTN, Dec. ,1983, ?Sports Textile/Sporttech | Properties of Sports Textile | Application/Uses of Sports Textile, http://textilelearner. blogspot. in/2012/03/sports-textilesporttech-properties-of. html Assessed on 24. 12. 2012 ?International Journal of IT, Engineering and Applied Sciences Research (IJIEASR) ISSN: 2319-4413 Volume 2, No.1, January 2013 ?i-Xplore International Research Journal Consortium www. irjcjournals. org ?Active Sportswear Fabrics ? Dr. Devanand Uttam, Assistant Professor, Punjab Technical University, Giani Zail Singh Campus, Bathinda, India ?FICCI Presents interactive workshop on sports textiles by Ministry of textiles. ?COOLMAX ® Performance Fabrics, 11495_CoolMaxSS_v3 2/25/04. ?Textiles in sports† by R. Shishoo ?An emergence of sport-tech in technical textile industry by M. Nithiyakumar,G. Thamotharam ?www. indiantextile journal. com ?www. fibre2fashion. com ?www. texmin. com ?www. design-technology. org/sportsshoes1. htm .

British Phonographic Industry: Structure and Competition

British Phonographic Industry: Structure and Competition Olivia Boachie Business Economics and Industrial Organisation The following analysis attempts to assess the structure and sources of competitive pressure in the British Phonographic Industry using Porters five forces framework model, and how the advent of the internet has affected the structure and performance of the industry. Michael Porter’s Five-Forces model of the music industry Michael Porter’s Five-Forces framework model recognises the economic forces that affect industry profits. The five forces are: Internal rivalry, Entry, Substitutes and complements, Supplier power and Buyer power. These forces may affect and abolish the revenues of current businesses. The five forces framework is a business study and industry strategy improvement instrument which lets marketers eventually generate stakeholder value through industry events. The key factors of appeal are the demand and supply of products in the market, quantity of entrants presently in the market and their strengths and weaknesses. In response to the essay question, the British Phonographic Industry will be examined critically through each of the five forces. A graphical representation of Porter’s Framework is shown below: British Phonographic Industry â€Å"BPI (British Phonographic Industry) represents the UK’s recorded music industry, which is one of the most exciting and thriving music sectors in the world. British artists account for one in eight albums purchased by fans around the globe† (http://www.bpi.co.uk/about-bpi.aspx). BPI co-owns the Official Charts Company in â€Å"a joint venture with the Entertainment Retails Association (ERA). The Official Charts Company is responsible for the commissioning, distribution, marketing and promotion of the UK’s industry standard music and video charts and sales data. BPI also maintains the industry standard for certifying Gold, Silver and Platinum sales awards† (http://www.bpi.co.uk/about-bpi.aspx). There are three major record companies within the British Phonographic Industry which are: Warner Music UK, Sony Music Entertainment UK and Universal Music UK. Internal Rivalry Internal Rivalry refers to the jockeying for shares by firms within a market. It is fierce if competition drives prices towards costs. This is more likely when there are many firms, products are perceived to be homogeneous, consumers are motivated and able to shop around, prices may be set secretly, sales orders are large and received infrequently and the industry has excess capacity. The UK music business has been contested for by three big recording studios for years. There is severe rivalry amongst these recording studios; their market shares continued to be steady for years as new opposition hardly went into the market due to great entry barriers. The music industry is booming when associating online and offline sales collectively. The product distinction attainable in the music business is very low due to all types of music being approximately the same. The diversity could be attained through the setups of music delivered such as CD’s and online formats such as MP3’s. Downloading is now becoming more common than the constant visits to the music stores, the music business has unremittingly decreased the amount of stores and fixated on emerging an online approach. Through doing this they have been successful at reducing high fixed costs including store rentals and incomes of a high number of store employees which has assisted with their margins. In terms of competitive pressure, the music industry can be thought to be extremely competitive due to predictions of the music boom which started in the 1990s. Due to more talent coming out through shows such as X-factor, Britain’s Got Talent and the Voice in the UK, potential performers are now being presented in the music industry. Entry The threat of entrants is another force that determines the industry’s competitive pressure. If â€Å"new entrants move into an industry they will gain market share and rivalry will intensify† (http://www.tutor2u.net/business/strategy/porter_five_forces.htm). The position of existing firms is tougher if there are barriers to entering the market. If barriers to entering the industry are low then the threat of new entrants will be high and if the barriers to entry are high then the threat of new entrants will be low. Barriers to entry are very significant in determining the threat of new entrants. An industry can have more than one barrier. The following are well-known examples of effective barriers: Access to suppliers and distribution channels Product differentiation Economies of scale available to existing firms The selection of a gifted artist and turning them into a success involves skilled use of advertising, talent supervision and investment. Recognised music labels devote a lot to undertaking appearance improvement campaigns, and experiment with advertising before the artist’s work is free for the public to see. These particular parts require professional abilities and involve having money. Substitutes and Complements Substitutes wear down profits in the same way as competitors entering the market by stealing business and increasing internal rivalry. Complements boost the demand for the product in question; thereby improving profit chances for the industry. In the music business, the alternatives for music purchases or downloads can be recognised to be plagiarised music downloads online and Radio stations that play music 24 hours. Plagiarised music websites which offer music for free are the distinguishable alternatives for the music industry. The consumer having a choice of whether or not to buy music or to download it continues to be a fight in their mind. So the risk of this alternative is very high. Music such as those on Jango or Napster allows consumers to listen to songs an unrestricted number of times without the need to purchase them. While they don’t obtain the luxury of downloading music for free and listening to the songs on the move, it can still be seen as an alternative as it permits for the entertainment of consumers. When it comes to TV and Radio music stations, the necessities for setting up those services such as TV set boxes and regular subscriptions are fairly costly in comparison to the price of an album. But with other facilities such as the ability to record channels and the choice of other stations on offer, they may have chosen the better option when compared to a music album. Supplier Power If a firms suppliers â€Å"have bargaining power they will exercise that power, sell their products at a higher price and squeeze industry profits† (http://www.tutor2u.net/business/strategy/porter_five_forces.htm). If the supplier drives up the price paid for inputs, revenues will be condensed. Suppliers find themselves in an influential position when there are only a few suppliers, the resource they supply is scarce, there are no or few substitute resources, the product is easy to differentiate and faithful consumers are unwilling to switch. The bargaining powers of performers are high as it is believed that the voice and skill of each performer is distinctive and cannot be replaced. Buyer Power Buyer power is analogous to supplier power. â€Å"It refers to the ability of individual customers to negotiate purchase prices that extract profits from sellers† (Economics of strategy 6th edition, David Besanko). â€Å"Buyers have indirect power in competitive markets, and the price they pay will depend on the forces of supply and demand. The willingness of consumers to shop for the best price could instead be considered a source of internal rivalry, not indirect buyer power. When buyers are focused, or suppliers have made relationship-specific investments, buyers may exert direct power† (Economics of strategy 6th edition, David Besanko). Buyers then demand lower prices when suppliers are thriving and accepting higher prices when suppliers are struggling. The consumers for the UK music business can be either individual or corporate. Corporate consumers in the music business contain online and offline traders who buy albums in large quantities from the music label. Stores included could be HMV and Game and online music stores which include stores such as iTunes and AmazonMP3. The negotiating power of the corporate consumers can be assumed to be low due to prices being settled amongst them and the labels at the time of signing the contract. Advent of the Internet I will now analyse how the advent of the internet has affected the structure and performance of the music industry. The Internet is â€Å"a global computer network providing a variety of information and communication facilities, consisting of interconnected networks using standardized communication protocols† (http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/Internet). The structural attractiveness of the UK music industry is determined by five underlying forces of competition. These include: The intensity of rivalry among existing competitors, the barriers to entry for new competitors, the threat of substitute products or service, the bargaining power of suppliers, and the bargaining power of the buyers. Below are points under each of the forces on how the internet influences the music industry which are taken from Michael. E Porter’s Competitive strategy free press, 1980. Rivalry among existing competitors The Internet has enlarged the amount of competitors in the music industry and decreased the significance of geographic boundaries. â€Å"There is increased rivalry because companies have a stake to succeed with use of the Internet. Rivalry increases when there is less differentiation between products. There is highly intense competition due to the Internet becoming an online platform for commercial use† (www.ukessays.com). Barriers to entry for new competitors The internet has decreased the fixed costs needed for a business to get to their end users. Most record labels find it easier to launch online ventures since they are positive about brand loyalty and trust. Threat of substitute products or services The internet has assisted in increasing the pressure from alternative products, as it may increase the diversity of products available to consumers. This can be done by customers being able to now purchase CD’s online or download songs for free. Bargaining power of the suppliers â€Å"The internet offers a channel for suppliers to reach end users, decreasing the power of intervening companies† (Michael. E Porter’s Competitive strategy free press, 1980). Procurement and digital markets tend to give companies equal access to suppliers and to standardised products that decrease variation. Buyers bargaining power of channels and end users â€Å"Moves bargaining power to end customers† (Michael. E Porter’s Competitive strategy free press, 1980). The customers have the bargaining power as they have the choice to either purchase CD’s from a store or download the songs for free online. From the analysis above, it is assumed that the UK music business is booming. The music industry is conquered by three big companies who have been around for a number of years and who operate great shares of the market. Applying Porters five forces framework is tremendously significant in industry analysis as it allows businesses to understand the overall attractiveness of the industry itself. However, one could say that the advent of the internet has affected the sales of CD’s. The need to purchase a CD with one song on it is no longer a necessity as you can just download the song from the internet. â€Å"Music piracy online is quite widespread, which affects artists and record labels profits. Anybody that has an internet connection can find illegal music downloads anywhere. Unsurprisingly the labels lose more money than the artists since the label keeps the majority of the money and the artist only sees a small percentage. It is now easier for artists to self-promote and se lf -release nowadays with all the opportunities for advertising and promoting online. Therefore, it could be said that the advent of the internet has decreased the music industry’s performance. References About The BPI. (n.d.). Retrieved March 20th, 2014, from The British Recorded Music Industry: http://www.bpi.co.uk/about-bpi.aspx Answers. (n.d.). Retrieved March 21st, 2014, from wiki.answers.com: wiki.answers.com David Besanko, D. D. (n.d.). Economics of Strategy. John Wiley. Illangakoon, S. (2010, November 5th). Porters Five Forces analysis for music industry. Retrieved March 17th, 2014, from Assignment help series: http://assignmenthelpseries9.blogspot.co.uk/ Internet. (n.d.). Retrieved March 21st, 2014, from Oxford Dictionaries Language Matters: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/Internet Our Work. (n.d.). Retrieved March 20th, 2014, from British Phonographic Industry: http://www.bpi.co.uk/our-work.aspx Porter, M. (1980). Competitive Strategy. Riley, J. (2012, September 23rd). Overview of the five forces model. Retrieved March 18th, 2014, from tutor2u: http://www.tutor2u.net/business/strategy/porter_five_forces.htm The UK expert provider of custom essays. (n.d.). Retrieved March 15th, 2014, from ukessays.com: http://www.ukessays.com/essays/information-technology/the-internet-on-the-macro-environment-information-technology-essay.php Business Organisation And Environment: Mcdonalds Business Organisation And Environment: Mcdonalds There are 2 types of business environment, namely internal environment and external environment. Internal environment is also known as controllable environment. The internal environment of McDonalds includes the following: Aim The aim of McDonalds is to be the best fast service restaurant experience. Marketing The marketing of McDonalds is very large. McDonalds was one of the eight corporate sponsors of Millennium Dome Experience. It invested  £8 million in the Domes community programme and learning experience. Besides that, McDonalds is also a major sponsor of the World Cup since 1994 and the Champions League from 1996 to 2000. McDonalds also sponsors British athletics since 1993 and formed the McDonalds Young Athletes League to train 11 to 17 years old teenagers. Moreover, McDonalds sponsors Child Safety Week since 1994. Management McDonalds also has a good management for their business. Such as, they have high recruitment standards. They care about the skills, talents and performance of their staffs. They also consider gender, marital status, disability, race and nationality when recruiting. McDonalds also provides a safe and secure working environment. All staffs will have opportunities for training and development. Moreover, McDonalds provides education of staff matters for their staffs. They have a good communication with their staffs. The pay of the staffs at McDonalds reflects their working performance. Besides that, over 40% of McDonalds managers started as hourly-paid staff members in the restaurant. McDonalds motivates their staffs by giving them free meals. They will also have paid holidays. The staffs will get free life assurance and the value is dependent upon their service. Those employees that are 19 years old or older with 3 years service with get private health care from McDonalds. Besides that, McDonalds has a sponsorship programme for their staffs. The employees of McDonalds will also get an employee discount card. There are also service awards for those employees with 3, 5,10,15,20 and 25 years of service. All employees will also get a stakeholder pension from McDonalds. Production McDonalds has their production of foods. There are five main ingredients for food, like beef, chicken, bread, potatoes and milk. The Big Mac is one the basic food offered by McDonalds. Moreover, McChicken is also known as chicken sandwich and McNuggets is also known as chicken nuggets which are products of McDonalds. McDonalds also serves desserts such as the McFlurry ice-cream. Moving on, the following shows the external environment (uncontrollable environment) of McDonalds: Political McDonalds is highly influenced by the policies set by the government of the various countries it operates in. For example, in the country of India, the local religious law restricts its residents from eating beef, thus it is considered an insult to have beef in the local McDonalds menu. In order to obtain the license to open a fast food restaurant, McDonalds has to obey the business regulations implemented by the local government. To succeed in the foreign market, McDonalds has to act according to the markets rules and regulations, and create a good relationship with the government by obeying the markets tax obligations and any environmental laws. Economic The markets economy has an impact on the branches and franchises of McDonalds. A weak economy would influence the customers buying power which would in turn affect the general sales of McDonalds. McDonalds imports most of its material as the local market cannot provide materials in abundance to meet the demands of the market. Inflation or changes in the exchange rate of the market would affect the operations of the company. A rise in the exchange rate of currencies would increase the cost of purchasing. Socio-Cultural Every country has a unique culture. McDonalds has to create a menu that is suitable to the local taste and culture. For example, the Hindu residents of India do not take beef, Muslim countries do not take pork and only consume halal food, Asian countries like to eat rice, Chinese likes to associate their meals with good fortune such as prosperity, and Americans eat big-sized meals. Additionally, the development of technology creates the need for better services and convenience for customers. For instance, McDonalds should provide wireless internet services and allow credit card payments at their stores. Technological McDonalds uses technological means for a variety of things. For example, television advertisements are used for marketing. Customers can order by phone for a delivery to be made. Besides that, in Singapore, McDonalds accepts EZ-link card payments as a means of convenience for customers. Moreover, the advancement in internet technologies allows McDonalds to implement web-based ordering and online payment. Legal McDonalds has to follow many regulations in order to be legally allowed to operate its business, for example, business registration, tax requirements, and employment laws. Besides that, McDonalds also has to acquire a halal certification in order to get Muslim customers. Environment As McDonalds serves millions of customers per day, it needs a large supply of materials. The large amount of animals slaughtered to create a supply for McDonalds is frequently criticised by world environmentalists. In addition, forests have been lost due to large scale plantation. Before using paper packaging, McDonalds used Styrofoam based packaging for its products, which is hard to recycle. Organisation structure McDonalds is a fast food franchising company and its success comes from its various franchisees all over the world. About 70% of McDonalds worldwide restaurants are run by independent businessmen and businesswomen. A franchise is a business licensed to use the name, logo and expertise of an existing, well-known business (123helpme.com n.d.). McDonalds provides licenses to the markets local operators to start a McDonalds restaurant. McDonalds may take away the license if the franchisee fails to meet the franchise agreement or requirement. All of McDonalds restaurants have a flat structure. A manager controls all the employees and makes all the decisions. This allows the staffs to only carry out their simple routine works such as selling and serving customers. On the other hand, the McDonalds corporation has a tall and complex structure. The corporation is highly formalized, has a limited information network, is centralised and has extensive departmentalisation. The departmentalisation of McDonalds is structured along functional lines. The various departments in McDonalds are operations, development, finance, marketing, and human resource. Operations The operations department of McDonalds controls the equipment and franchising of restaurants. They ensure that the franchisees are following the agreements set by the McDonalds corporation. They provide support for the franchisees in all aspects of the business. All in all, they make certain that the business of McDonalds runs smoothly. Development The development department plans and manufactures products. They ensure that the products made are up to the qualities set by the corporation. Besides that, they also develop new products for McDonalds. Finance The finance department keeps record of the profits of the company. They keep account on all the transactions done by the company. They also pay the salaries of the employees. They keep track of how the business is doing. Marketing The main role of the marketing department is to attract new customers. They organise advertisements and promotions. Moreover, they cooperate with the development department to ensure that the design, quality and price of a product are what the consumer wants. Human Resource The human resource department recruits and appoints all new staffs. They handle the affairs of all employees which include retirement, dismissal and etc. They employ quality staffs and motivate them to do their best. Culture in Society Cultures in societies are affecting the organization. An organization will change its way or structure to adapt to the culture in the society. It might also change the communication style with its customers in order to stay in business. In other words, McDonalds must understand that they must make their organization structure compatible with the various cultures in societies. Otherwise, the amount of customers will reduce when the organization does not adapt to the markets culture, or goes against it. When there are less customers, McDonalds will not have enough income and motivation to continue running their business. Culture of Religion Halal is a term designating any object or an action which is permissible to use or engage in, according to Islamic law.'(wikipedia) When someone wants to operate a McDonalds restaurant, they have to consider about religion issues such as Halal in certain countries, for example Islamic countries like Malaysia, Pakistan, Iran, Sri Langka and so on. McDonalds have to comply with the regulations given by the government and the culture of the residents. Therefore in these Islamic countries, McDonalds have to provide Halal food due to the large population of Muslim and Arab people to run the business successfully. However, Halal issues are not only applicable in Islamic countries, there is also an exceptionally large number of Muslims and Arabs in non-Muslim countries like in Dearborn (Michigan, United States). McDonalds have introduced Halal chicken nuggets there. Culture of Food Different countries might have different food cultures. It will affect the food menu of McDonalds as well. In order to expand the business, or to increase the income, McDonalds has to do research on the food culture of the markets residents. Only foods that adhere to their food culture are able to attract more local customers. For example, at German, McDonalds serves beer. In India, there is no Big Mac because Indians do not consume beef. However, they do have a Maharaja Mac which contains lamb or chicken meat instead of beef. They also provide a vegetarian burger named McAloo Tikki, since a certain amount of Indians are vegetarians. Besides that, for rice-loving Chinese in countries like Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore, McDonalds introduced rice burger. In other words, McDonalds will modify their menu according to the food culture of the local customers so that they would be able to earn more customers as well as income. Culture of Social Women are also affecting the income of McDonalds. As there are more and more women that work nowadays, most of them will have less time to spend in the kitchen to cook for their family. The job of preparing a meal will fall onto their parents or even their husband, but they often choose to eat fast food. Therefore, McDonalds has become one of the places for these families to have their meal. This has directly increased the income of McDonalds. There are many more cultures in societies that affect McDonalds, it must clearly know the change of the culture in order to keep its business updated. If there are no customers due to the structure of the organization which is against the customers culture, McDonalds will not have the motivation to run its business in that market. The reason McDonalds run successfully is because it able to adapt with the local culture of the market. It also structures its internal environment well and has a good reaction to the external environments.

Joe Clark in Lean On Me :: Film Movies

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  East Side High School was labeled a â€Å"cauldron of violence.† After they were designated this harsh term, Joe Clark becomes the head principal and changes it all around – or does he? Lean on Me is a story of hope, development, love, hate, and dependence. As a father figure and friend, Clark’s strict disciplining and harsh attitude helps heal, strengthen, and bring to life a struggling high school in New Jersey. But is this plot just a story for the movie screen? Did the true story really happen like this and end like this? Lean on Me might be moving and powerful, but we must look deeper into the real personality of Joe Clark and how he treated others.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Crazy† Joe Clark does not get his name from out of the blue. He is violent, angry, and set in his own ways and beliefs. His wife that left him and the one friend that he has are all reflective signs of his horrendous behavior. He walks around the school with a baseball bat, rather than a clipboard or briefcase. The fear that he â€Å"earns† is more prevalent than the respect that the students and teachers have for him. He likes to be known as â€Å"HNIC† – the â€Å"head nigger in charge.† His absurd manners are strongly disliked by his fellow colleagues. He insults teachers in front of students and fires them when they do not comply with his harsh rules. The first disturbing aspect of this movie is Joe Clark’s personality; although he changes around the school, he does it in a bizarre and vicious manner.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another bizarre aspect of the movie is how the director, ---, portrays East Side High. After there is a time change from the 60s to the 80s, East Side transforms from a nice, well-kept, and clean school to a graffiti filled, prison-like, school that resembles an alleyway, not a high school. There are fights in the hallway and the bathrooms every time class lets out. Drug dealers are let in by other students to exchange money and drugs. East Side is portrayed as a rundown and scary – to say the least – learning institution.

Frankenstein :: Essays Papers

Frankenstein6 In the story, Frankenstein, Victor (who is the main character) experiences many tragedies resulting from the creation of his â€Å"Monster†. One of which – the leading cause, eventually pushing him to hunt down his creation – is the guilt for which he feels for indirectly being the cause of the deaths of his family members, his only close friend (Henry), and the family housekeeper, Justine Moritz. Mary Shelly is noted for having incorporating her own experiences within the novel. In class, we’ve already discussed how Mary incorporated little bits of information in the story that related to her own experiences. Even though found many similarities between Victor and Mary’s experiences, we failed to discuss the guilt that, in my belief, both Mary and Victor had in common. Like Victor, many of Mary’s close relatives, friends , and associates past away. From the deaths of her three children, the death of her biological mother, her husband’s deceased first wife, and the death of her half-sister, Fanny (who took her own life), Mary too had many tragedies occur in her life. However, in class we failed to mention if Mary, like Victor, felt in any way responsible for any of these tragedies that occurred – if she felt any guilt. A perfect example would be Percy’s first wife Harriet, who killed herself (probably because she couldn’t bare the fact that her husband left her for another woman – Mary). Another would be the death of her three children (who she could have felt some guilt, being that she was always traveling rather then being present at all times to tend for them, or maybe not taking the necessary precautions that an expectant mother should take). I strongly believe that Mary and Victor shared a similar guilt; Victor created a monster and Mary stole Percy from Harriet as well as provided absence in her home. It is well accepted that Mary wrote many pieces to Frankenstein as symbolism to what went on in her life as well as what was going on in history at the time she wrote it. I believe that she went on to include not only events, and descriptions of her many travels in the Eastern Hemisphere, but also incorporated her feelings and emotions as well (in this case, her guilt is just one of them). Frankenstein :: Essays Papers Frankenstein6 In the story, Frankenstein, Victor (who is the main character) experiences many tragedies resulting from the creation of his â€Å"Monster†. One of which – the leading cause, eventually pushing him to hunt down his creation – is the guilt for which he feels for indirectly being the cause of the deaths of his family members, his only close friend (Henry), and the family housekeeper, Justine Moritz. Mary Shelly is noted for having incorporating her own experiences within the novel. In class, we’ve already discussed how Mary incorporated little bits of information in the story that related to her own experiences. Even though found many similarities between Victor and Mary’s experiences, we failed to discuss the guilt that, in my belief, both Mary and Victor had in common. Like Victor, many of Mary’s close relatives, friends , and associates past away. From the deaths of her three children, the death of her biological mother, her husband’s deceased first wife, and the death of her half-sister, Fanny (who took her own life), Mary too had many tragedies occur in her life. However, in class we failed to mention if Mary, like Victor, felt in any way responsible for any of these tragedies that occurred – if she felt any guilt. A perfect example would be Percy’s first wife Harriet, who killed herself (probably because she couldn’t bare the fact that her husband left her for another woman – Mary). Another would be the death of her three children (who she could have felt some guilt, being that she was always traveling rather then being present at all times to tend for them, or maybe not taking the necessary precautions that an expectant mother should take). I strongly believe that Mary and Victor shared a similar guilt; Victor created a monster and Mary stole Percy from Harriet as well as provided absence in her home. It is well accepted that Mary wrote many pieces to Frankenstein as symbolism to what went on in her life as well as what was going on in history at the time she wrote it. I believe that she went on to include not only events, and descriptions of her many travels in the Eastern Hemisphere, but also incorporated her feelings and emotions as well (in this case, her guilt is just one of them).

Are Genetics Responsible for Allergies? :: Biology Essays Research Papers

Are Genetics Responsible for Allergies? A Study In Identical Twins Everyone has either suffered from some kind of allergy, or knows somebody who has suffered from allergies. Allergies are the source of irritating symptoms, ranging from a painless skin rash to life-threatening breathing problems. For years, researchers have been trying to find out the source of these allergies. Some have suggested that environmental factors or early exposure to certain foods can cause allergies later in life, while others say that allergies are caused by genetics. To test the latter theory, many researchers study identical twins to see if sets of twins share allergies. If both twins were to share a particular allergy, than this may prove that allergies are genetic. To completely understand the remainder of this essay, one must understand the difference between identical twins and fraternal twins. Twin zygosity is the genetic relationship of twins. There are two types of twins: monozygotic twins, also known as identical twins, and dizygotic twins, also known as fraternal twins. Identical twins have exactly identical DNA strands; they are same sex and they have very similar physical traits. They come from one egg that is fertilized by one sperm. Some time after conception, the egg splits resulting in two babies. Fraternal twins only have half identical DNA; that is, only one strand of the double-stranded DNA is the same. They come from two individual eggs that are fertilized by two individual sperms. They are either same sex or different sex, and are just like siblings of same parents born at different times. There are other kinds of twins as well; for example, "mirror-image twins," "polar body twins," and "half-identical twins." These names refe r to the time that the egg splits in identical twins. This essay, however, will deal with only identical and fraternal twins (5). The question now is, Are identical twins allergic to the same things? Since identical twins have exactly identical DNA, the sharing of allergies can shed some light on the role of genetics in allergies. All sorts of food allergies affect eight percent of children and two percent of adults in the United States. Allergic reactions happen because one's immune system overreacts to regular foods that are ordinarily harmless to the general population (7). An allergy affecting many children and adults recently in the United States is an allergy to peanuts. In the last few years, tremendous amounts of people have developed this allergy, which seems, in most cases, to be very severe.

Counterfactual Thinking Essay

The experience of regret arguably relies on a multifaceted, counterfactual analysis of two previously possible outcomes. An important question to consider is at what age these counterfactual emotions develop, and what enables these responses to occur. Previous research proposes that regret emerges at around 4 years old, marginally earlier than more recent studies conducted by Guttentag and Ferrell, who suggest that the experience of regret occurs relatively late in child development. The results of these studies argue that understanding, rather than simply experiencing counterfactual emotions relies heavily on a child’s ability to simultaneously conceive alternate realities, and that a recognition of differing outcomes is a necessary, rather than sufficient component of the development of regret. These findings accumulate and extend previous research, and demonstrate that the development of counterfactual thinking in children is positively correlated with a complex cognitive p rocessing of two alternate realities. The experience of regret and relief are counterfactual emotions based on a comparison of reality with a better, alternative situation. Counterfactual emotions are considered to perform important emotional regulatory functions, and require additional complex cognitive processing than more basic emotions such as anger, fear or happiness. They require us to consider ‘dual possibilities’ (Byrne, 2002) in which both outcomes were possible at some point in the past. The ability to experience emotions such as regret is  believed to play an important role in decision-making following the emergence into adulthood. Significant differences however, exist between when children are thought to first experience regret. It is arguable that children’s understanding of regret develops relatively late due to the complex nature of not only comprehending counterfactual thinking (Guttentag and Ferrell, 2004), which requires an identification and comparison of two equally possible, alternate actions. If children are unable to generate these comparisons, they are unable to experience the emotion of regret. Little research has been done on the cognitive processes behind the emergence of regret in young children, and thus many questions still exist as to why the experience of counterfactual thinking develops relatively late in childhood. Many inconsistencies exist in the theoretical understandings of regret, and subsequently further research is required in order to overcome these age-related discrepancies. Counterfactual thinking refers to an ability to think â€Å"about what could have been had an alternative decision been made or had the outcome been different† (Roese, 1991). It is within the intriguing paradigm that the ongoing research into the experience of regret takes place. Recent findings have shed further light into the development of regret during the early years of childhood. Beck et al (2006) proposed the theoretical perspective that counterfactual emotions develop relatively late because it requires more complex cognitive processing to conceive two possible outcomes, as opposed to recognizing basic emotions of happiness and sadness. This perspective is widely agreed upon, however theories differ in the age at which the emotion of regret actually emerges. Daniel Weisberg (2001) located the emergence of regret at about 4 years, however Guttentag and Ferrell (2004) speculated that it was not until children are 6 or 7 years old that they are able to simultaneously comp rehend counterfactual and actual situations. Further research however, has revealed that within the emergence of counterfactual thinking, is a distinction between experiencing and reasoning about regret. The latter involves a reflection on the reasoning behind the emotion, i.e. _why_ does the child feel bad that he/she picked box ‘A’ containing nothing, when he/she could have picked box ‘B’, containing the chocolate. Experiencing regret however, involves a comparison  of reality with a better, alternative outcome. Given that it is a difficult task to simultaneously comprehend two equally plausible realities, it must be even more difficult to understanding the reasoning behind _why_ this feels bad. Interestingly, although Guttentag and Ferrell (2004) located the experience of regret early in childhood, they argued that it wasn’t until later in life – around 7 years old – that a child was able to demonstrate _why_ an alternative reality might affect the emotional reaction to the actual outcome. Guttentag and Ferrell (2004) suggested that children less than 5 or 6 years old cannot generate a comparison between a real and counterfactual re ality. According to this perspective, the comparison between two previously possible outcomes is critical. In 2009, Beck and Crilly adapted this theory, and hypothesized that â€Å"an inability to compare the two worlds limits children’s thinking about regret.† (Beck, & Crilly 2009). Beck, Robinson, Carroll and Apperly (2006) proposed a similar perspective, arguing that it wasn’t until children were 5 or 6 years old that counterfactual and actual events were two equally plausible events. Studies conducted following this proposal revealed corresponding results. Children between the ages of 3 and 6 were asked an open and a closed question regarding the pathway chosen by a toy mouse. Children aged 3 found it difficult to correctly answer the question â€Å"what if he had gone the other way, where would he be?† as opposed to the simpler â€Å"could he have gone anywhere else?† Comparatively, children aged 6 and older performed significantly better, with 85% answering the open question correctly. Beck et al reasoned that regret could not be felt if the child had no understanding of the possibility of a counterfactual reality replacing the actual reality. In 2009, Beck and Crilly replicated these studies, but alternatively used an open question and a regret question to measure children’s ability to comprehend regret. The results indicated that, contrary to Beck et al, it is in fact not sufficient to simply distinguish two counterfactual possibilities in order for children to recognize regret. The study gave more weight to Guttentag and Ferrell’s 2004 claim that the comparison of two alternate realities is critical in the development of regret. Beck and Crilly (2009) went on to suggest that perhaps understanding two counterfactual realities was a necessary rather than sufficient developmental goal in the cognitive processing of regret. In 2003, German  and Nichols proposed that the experience of counterfactual thinking could occur as early as 4 years of age. In their study, a group of 3 year olds were given stories that involved two possible outcomes. When given the negative alternative, the children were asked whether the character in the story would feel happy or sad. German and Nichols reported that children answered more than two thirds of the simple counterfactual questions correctly . This data was used to theorize that children as young as 3 could comprehend basic counterfactual realities, and thus indicated the early emergence of regret. Although much discrepancy exists as the to the exact age at which regret begins to emerge, the view that counterfactual thinking develops much earlier than previously thought has become widely accepted amongst both cognitive and developmental psychologists. However, evidence exists that contradicts this perspective. Beck et al argue that the studies used by German and Nichols contain a number of false positives. Further research has suggested that the supposed counterfactual thinking demonstrated in the 3 year olds tested, could simply be use of the child’s general knowledge, and that the questions used were too simple to reliably indicate an experience of regret. Questions used in the experiment by German and Nichols arguably lead to answers that could be answered using the child’s general knowledge, such as recognizing that squashed flowers make people unhappy, and ‘unsquashed’ flowers make people happy (Beck, Robison, Carroll, & Apperly 2006). Where German and Nichols may have revealed an emergence of counterfactual thinking; may simply have been the child’s expression of past experience. The most widely agreed upon theory of regret in childhood appears to be ability to not only distinguish two previously possible realities, but to also compare them in order to come to an emotional understanding. Theorists including Guttentag and Ferrell (2004), and Beck and Crilly (2009) argue that a distinction must be made between simply experiencing a counterfactual emotion, and understanding _why_ someone may feel unhappy when comparing the actual reality with a counterfactual world. This theory is based on the premise that counterfactual thinking is a complex cognitive process, requiring a multifaceted understanding of two dual possibilities. Research on counterfactual thinking in childhood also suggests children may  experience regret as early as 4 years old, however this view has generated much criticism and requires further research in order to rule out experimental limitations, such as small research groups and over generalized questions. Future research may focus on overcoming these limitations in order to generate reliable data. Compiling the findings from these and future studies will enable researchers to form a much clearer of picture of exactly when children not only experience, but also understand the emotion of regret, and what cognitive processes underpin this development. In conclusion, research examining children’s regret has focused on the criticality of the moment children begin to comprehend two dual realities, and feel remorse after choosing one outcome over another. Current studies lend weight to the complex nature of the role of cognition in emotional experiences, and this data, taken in conj unction with earlier studies, suggests a number of age-related stepping stones are implicated in the development of counterfactual thinking. REFERENCE LIST Beck, R. S., & Crilly, M. (2009) Is understanding regret dependent on developments in counterfactual thinking? _British Journal of Developmental Psychology_. 27, 505-510. Beck, R. S., Riggs, J. K., & Burns, P. (2001) Multiple developments in counterfactual thinking. _Understanding Counterfactuals, Understanding Causation_. 2-21. Beck, S. R., Riggs, J. K., & Gorniak, L. S. (2009) The effect of casual length on counterfactual conditioning reasoning. _British Journal of Developmental Psychology_. Doi: 10.1348/026151009X450836. Beck, S. R., Robinson, E. J., Carroll, D. J., & Apperly, I. A. (2006) Children’s thinking about counterfactuals and future hypotheticals as possibilities. _Child Development._ 77, 413-426. Burns, P., Riggs, J. K., & Beck, R. S. (2012) Executive control and the experience of regret. _Journal of Experimental Child Psychology_. 111(3), 501-515. Doi: 10.1016/j.jecp.2011.10.003. Brocki, K. C., & Bohlin, G. (2004) Executive functions in children aged 6-13: A dimensional and developmental study. _Developmental Neuropsychology_. 26, 571-593. Diamond, A. (2006) The early development of executive functions. _Lifespan Cognition: Mechanisms of Change_, Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. 70-95. Ferrel, J. M., Guttentag, R. E., Gredlein, J. M. (2009) Children’s understanding of counterfactual emotions: Age differences, individual differences, and the effects of counterfactual-information salience. _British Journal of Developmental Psychology_. 27, 569-585. Guttentag, R. E., Ferrell, J. (2004) Reality compared with its alternatives: Age differences in judgments of regret and relief. _Developmental Psychology_. 40, 764-775. Mitchell, P., Riggs, K. J. (2000) Children’s reasoning and the mind. _Psychology Press_. 121-147. O’Connor, E. (2011) The emergence of regret in childhood. _Pediatrics for Parents_. 27, 11-12. O’Connor, E., McCormack, T., & Feeney, A. (2012). The development of regret. _Journal of Experimental Child Psychology,_ 111, 120-127. Doi: 10.1016/j.jecp.2011.07.002. Roese, N. J. (1997) Counterfactaul thinking. _Psychological Bulletin_. 121, 133-148. Rafetseder, E., & Perner, J. (2011) When the alternative would have been better: Counterfactual reasoning and the emergence of regret. _Cognition and Emotion_, 26, 800-819. Rafetseder, E., Schwitalla, M., & Perner, J. (2012) Counterfactual reasoning: From childhood to adulthood. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology. 114(3), 389-404. Doi: 10.1016/j.jecp.2012.10.010. Weisberg, D. P. (2011) Children’s thinking about regret and relief. _University of Birmingham (thesis)_. 56-83. Weisberg, D. P., & Beck, S. R. (2010) Children’s thinking about their own and other’s regret and relief. _Journal of Experimental Child Psychology_. 106, 184-191. Weisberg, D. P., & Beck, S. R. (2011) The development of children’s regret and relief. _Cognition and Emotion._ 26, 820-835. Van Duijvenvoorder, K. C. A., Hulzenga, M. H., & Jansen, R. J. (2013) What is and what could have been: Experiencing regret and relief across childhood. _Cognition and Emotion_, 28, 926-935. Zeelenberg, M., Van Dkik, W. W., Manstead, A. S. R., & van der Pligt, J. (1998) The experience of regret and disappointment. _Cognition and Emotion_, 12, 221-230.