Defining the Advantages and Disadvantages Cultural Similarities in the Context of the Recruitment Process

Introduction Historically, much debate exists surrounding the cultural role and its place within the labour market system. Research examining the labour market has posed that culture is peripheral within occupational sorting with regard to status attainment (Blau & Duncan, 1967; Tilly & Tilly, 1998). While comparatively, sociologists who are concerned with culture indicate that culture plays a crucial part in placing value on materials and rewards, this often includes accessibility to distribution of the most desirable jobs and occupations (Lareau & Weininger 2011). In today’s global economy, many firms across all sectors are competing for talent. In particular, firms in the knowledge based industries, such as IT industry, financial services, engineering and pharmaceuticals, have engaged in a war of talent (Cubik 2013). Given the costs involved in recruitment including advertising and agency fees, selection criteria has become a paramount consideration. However, in spite of its known importance, limited empirical evidence exists to fully capture the role that culture plays in occupational attainment. It has been suggested that hiring within the labour market is one of the most crucial decisions for organisational success (Bills, 2003). In a study by Bills (2003) it is noted that the attainment of occupational status while ensuring stable income is a predominant factor within the hiring transaction. Within the literature it has been hypothesised that existing similarities amongst employers and perspective employees are crucial and influential in how employers make their decision to hire (Lamont, 1992). To date, there is very limited empirical literature which has been successful and systematic in explaining culture and its role in hiring (Huffcutt, 2011; Stainback, Tomaskovic-Devey & Skaggs, 2010). The process of recruitment and selection has in the past focused on skills and experience (Marcel et al., 2013). Indeed, it makes a lot of sense to recruit employees with the right set of skills and experience for a job which is similar to their attributes. While skills and experience continue to play an increasing role in the recruitment and selection of employees, research has pointed out to ‘culture fit’ as a key differentiator in the selection process (Hunt 2014). Nowadays, human resource professionals have gone to great lengths to build the organisational culture right into the selection criteria (Croteau 2014). Empirical literature is limited on the impact of cultural matching in determining organisational success. Systematic empirical research on the impact of cultural matching in hiring decisions is virtually non-existent (Rivera, 2012). This literature review will contribute to informing current knowledge on advantages and disadvantages of cultural similarities within the candidate evaluation process. Questions addressed will include: does cultural matching really matter in the hiring process, and is it worthwhile dismissing a highly skilled and innovative candidate for not satisfying the criteria around cultural fit. Defining the context of this area of research Culture is increasingly becoming the peripheral for occupational sorting. This has been driven by the popular view that organisations with employees that fully embrace the culture find it easy to navigate through tough economic times (Cubik 2013). Contrary to the popular view, does cultural matching really matter in the hiring processIs it worthwhile dismissing a highly skilled and innovative candidate for not satisfying the criteria around cultural fitExploring this topic is important considering the recent ‘skill gap’ crippling engineering firms. In the UK, there is currently a shortfall in most areas of graduate recruitment. According to the Confederation of British Industry, the national shortage in graduate recruitment in many areas especially engineering sector may put a brake on economic recovery (Paton 2014). Tens of thousands of engineers are retiring without graduates to replace them (Osborne 2013). Many organisations across the globe are yet to put in place means to measuring cultural fit in their recruitment and selection process (Cubik 2014). It is time to re-examine the advantages and disadvantages of such cultural matching. Such an objective assessment will act as a wakeup call for managers and HR professionals to critically review their recruitment processes and ascertain whether conformity to mainstream organisational culture gives the best outcome. Past literature has provided a useful case study which considers elite professional service firms. It was suggested that an often untested hypothesis within this field is how similarities which exist culturally and can be reflected in shared experiences, preferences, individual characteristics or even presentation of self (Bourdieu, 1984). Additionally, that these cultural similarities which are at interplay between employers and those applying for jobs are crucial in determining the employers hiring decision. It is posed that hiring as a process has many more intricacies than just a basic recognition and sorting of skills; rather, a complex process exists which incorporates the cultural matching of potential employees between those who apply for jobs, those who evaluate and the companies who hire them. Past literature indicates that employers seek out those perspective employees who are competent and importantly seem to possess cultural similarities. It was uncovered that culture si milarities were of upmost concern to employers, often overriding concerns solely surrounding productivity (Rivera, 2012). Considerations relating to the advantages and disadvantages of the cultural role in determining how employers hire Processes are evident which are interpersonal in nature and apparent in evaluating cultural similarities to determine candidate evaluation. These processes empirically demonstrate how cultural similarities predict hiring within the workforce. The process of hiring an employee is a very influential and powerful determinant in influencing outcomes of the labour market. The protocol for hiring practice is a mechanism which can be the cornerstone in facilitating employment opportunities for some, while disabling for others. Hiring is crucial in order to prosper or excel in most occupations and advance in income brackets, therefore, considering the intricacies of hiring are important to understand social closure or opposing economic stratification (Elliot and Smith, 2004). The hiring process between employers and employees is typically interpreted as a matching process which exists to filter organisational characteristics, with the job requirements, and perceived skill of the job candidate (Tilly & Tilly, 1998). Previous literature has summarised how employers’ hiring decisions as based on: evaluating the potential employee on what has been described as human capital, for example their hard or soft skills and attributes; secondly their potential for social capital, represented by their social connections; and finally in evaluating their demographic characteristics (Pager & Shepherd, 2008). Moreover, research is recognising that gaps exist in our current knowledge on the processes of hiring. It should be noted that when human capital, social capital, demographic traits are all accounted for in understanding how employers hire, there remains unexplained variance. Consequently, investigating how employers carry out their decision making is an area which needs to be informed in the literature (Heckman and Siegelman, 1993). Much of this unexplained variance could be implicated in methodological and data limitations. A majority of the existing literature in this area is quantitative in nature and places focus on the type of individuals in the application process or comparisons between pre and post hiring, leaving the decision making process unexplained (Fernandez & Fernandez, 2006). Furthermore, constraints are evident in keeping to assessing what is easy to access or observe by using information which is quite often extracted from records of employment. Thus it is clear that in order to fully understand the hiring process, decision-making is an important factor to investigate, to distinguish between how employers evaluate, make comparisons and select new employees. By further investigating this decision making process it is hoped that more subtle factors will be revealed to explain employers’ decisions in relation to the outcomes of hiring (Gross, 2009). The Role of Culture Previous investigations into how the employer selects employees have predominantly focused on individual characteristics, the organisational context, or factors within the institution (Pager & Shepherd, 2008). Perhaps, however this process of employment incorporates more than the context of candidates, or companies and recruitment should be recognised as an interpersonal process. Overall, within most industries the main components of an interview for a job are key determinants of success or failure in hiring. Job candidates create impressions of themselves within the interview situation and this impacts upon the likelihood of them getting hired, it has even been posed that this carries more weight than their qualification achievements (Graves & Powell, 1995). However even with this knowledge, within the literature focus often reflects pre or post factors regards hiring. Therefore it is apparent that focus should be placed on interpreting the dimensions which represent the interperson al nature of the recruitment process (Roscigno, 2007; Stainback et al., 2010). Within a micro-social setting existing literature describes dynamics which are interpersonal and has concluded that similarities are one of the most substantial indicators in determining how an individual is evaluated and how desirable they are to an employer (Byrne, 1971) and this has been confirmed within an interview setting (Huffcutt, 2011). Research in this area has previously examined gender or race similarities, and in addition similarities in tastes, life experiences, leisure activities, or self-presentation which can greatly impact interpersonal attraction and therefore stratification (Lareau and Weininger, 2003; Wimmer & Lewis, 2010). Upon a first meeting, typically people seek out shared commonalities which could be in knowledge, an experience, or personal interests (Gigone & Hastie, 1993). It is through uncovering these similarities that people connect emotionally and this then facilitates a trusting and comforting environment, creating excitement, and building bonds betw een individuals (Collins, 2004; DiMaggio, 1987; Erickson 1996). Within psychology there is a well-known hypothesis which poses similarity creates attraction (Byrne, 1971) and similarly within sociology what is known as the ‘homophily’ principle (Lazarsfeld & Merton, 1954) also infers that similarities culturally promote attraction. However, it should be noted that having similar cultural identities equates to more than simply having shared interests. It is posed that cultural identity importantly determines our evaluation strategy (DiMaggio, 1987; Lamont & Molnar, 2002). Past literature, (Weber, 1946), concluded that having the same interest in things like leisure pursuits, or similar experiences, presentation style, and other life factors create membership within certain groups and are fundamental in determining an individual being included in a desirable opportunity. Very specifically, Weber indicated that lifestyle factors are cornerstone in estimating status within group reproduction and social closure. In weighing up the advantages and disadvantages of hiring and the role culture plays, even if this is unconscious, cultural similarities may be greatly at play during the evaluation process and be a determinant of rewards. A classic study in this research area was based on interviews in a college between counsellors and students within the community (Erickson & Schultz, 1981). It was reported that similarities which were established within this relationship were the most crucial determinants in shaping the councillors view about a student’s potential and future success. Even within the presence of co-membership, the most important indicator seemed to be perceived similarities in experience. Moving on form this, more recent literature (Lamont, 2009) implicated that within academia research proposals were favoured for academic fellowships when the proposal was similar to the interests of that particular scholar who was evaluating the applicant. These types of selection bias have many important implications, are inclusive of access to resources as well as social rewards, and also in predicting long term trajectories within an educational, social or economic setting (DiMaggio & Mohr, 1985). Much literature is apparent which has been based on examining culture with stratification and this is disproportionate due to its focus on the educational setting (Stevens, Armstrong & Arum, 2008). Apparent limitations are evident in examining cultural similarities post-graduation. An important area of research clearly appears to be to determine outcomes for students who have gained similar qualifications in the process of applying for jobs within the labour market. A good example to illustrate this phenomenon could be to further investigate the hiring process within the power of stratifying through shared cultural similarities. Understanding the advantages and disadvantages of cultural similarities could further be explained by assessing if students gain financial reward through cultural similarities and this would be recognised through the attainment of a desirable job and matching salary. Useful research would investigate the advantages of cultural similarities and if this transla tes economically (Bourdieu, 1986) within the labour force, this hypothesis has been neglected within empirical literature (Bills, 2003). Furthermore it is known that the qualities upon which we make our assessments are generally not context specific (Lamont, 1992), therefore it cannot be representative that culture similarities are identical, perhaps in both a classroom and interview situation. Within cultural research there has been a lack of systematic assessment in relation to hiring, and in contrast to this those who academically assess hiring may have previously under-theorised the role of culture. Overall a majority of hiring research in a sociological setting has examined the process of employers evaluating their prospective employees’ hard skills and specifically cognitive skills. Whereas those papers that have explored non-cognitive skills will most likely focus on things that will impact upon productivity and include soft skills (Farkas, 2003). A disadvantage in this field of research is how cultural contexts and lifestyle have been classed as non-productive entities and therefore under studied in an empirical setting (Tilly & Tilly, 1998). On the other hand, an advantage in this particular area of research has been that investigations which have examined the employment process, have recognised that similarities are an important predictor of candidate employment however, this research has previously been limited by focusing on gender or ethnicity (Gorman, 2005). This may be explained partly by limited data on informative information as it is not always an easy task to capture similarities on underlying tastes or lifestyle factors, and if this information has been obtained then it is somewhat difficult to quantify (Stevens, 2008). Moreover, within empirical literature it is common to use similarities which are demographic in nature when estimating shared culture. It should be clear that both culture and a set structure are mutually reinforcing entities, whereas an individual’s gender or ethnicity can greatly impact their cultural identity (Sewell, 1992; Swidler, 1986). It would be advantageous to examine the varia tion represented by individual values, experience or beliefs and common behaviour among unique demographic culture (Lamont & Small, 2008). Thus, in order to gain a true and reflective picture of a cultural hiring prospective, research must consider demographics as well as cultural similarities and life experiences between those who are hiring and potential employees (Turco, 2010). Research exists which has made the assumption that gender and ethnic similarities override any other shared common experiences. These ethnic and gender similarities should be recognised as being greatly influential attributes in determining interpersonal attraction and likelihood of a positive evaluation. Continuing research in this area has confirmed a hypothesis which was outlined by Tajfel and Turner’s (1986) suggesting that in and out group preferences can vary. Importantly, more current literature has revealed that demographics can moderate preferences in a within group setting (Ely, 1995). When examining the hiring process, gender and ethnic similarities between those hiring and potential job candidates have produced inconsistencies in effect (Huffcutt, 2011). Conclusion To clarify, previous literature efforts should be made to investigate a range of similarities which incorporate more than gender and ethnicity with their impact on the labour market (Castilla, 2011). The current literature review has presented a review of the literature in this area and it can be concluded that it would be advantageous to assess the relationships between interpersonal characteristics and how people are evaluated based on their shared cultural attributes. From the current literature it can be perceived that shared characteristics are important in a variety of contexts however it is also clear that identifying cultural similarities in the context of employment success would be an especially useful and important piece of research. In psychology it has been shown that between those who perceive themselves as similar, this can actually impact and control the effects of attraction and similarity. Subjectively believing that an individual shares similarities with you on mul tiple dimensions within a unique context may be a crucial determinant in dis-entangling our understanding of interpersonal attraction (Tajfel and Turner, 1986). Subjective impressions of perceived similarities may be most influential within an interaction which is personalised, run over an increased duration of time and based on identifying additional information to what is visible (Montoya, Horton & Kirchner 2008), this is apt in the setting of a job interview. Previous literature has indicated that having perceived similarities are possibly more important than true similarities on the overall decision within the employment process (Graves & Powell, 1995). Shared culture is imperative to consider if we want to fully understand how perceived similarities operate (Lamont & Molnar, 2002). In spite of this information and within sociological research the process of hiring has usually overseen shared culture in determining how employers are influenced. Some literature does exist which recognises the importance of cultural similarities and has been seen in a qualitative study by Neckerman & Kirschenman (1991). Here, in relation to urban employers it was hypothesised that cultural similarities predict employers’ decisions. DiMaggio (1992) was responsible for labelling recruitment as a ‘cultural matching’ process. In spite of knowing that cultural similarities are influential predictors of job success (Turco, 2010), cultural factors have typically been excluded or overlooked and deemed as not productive or observable in past research (Pager, Western & Bonikowski, 2009). A number of authors have emphasised the importance conformity to mainstream organizational culture when making hiring decisions. For example, in their study on the impact of organisational culture on human resource practices, Omotayo & Anthonia (2013) argued that the congruence between individual values and organisational culture was crucial in the recruitment and selection process. They argued that it helped reduce absenteeism and turnover, and that it increased employee morale and satisfaction leading to increased productivity and better performance. In a similar vein, Silverthorne (2004) argues that employees who are better fit to the organisational culture are more likely to experience higher job satisfaction and become more committed to the organisation. However, to some extent these arguments are debatable; it is not necessarily true that cultural matching in recruitment and selection leads to the best outcome. There is a greater tendency for HR managers to hire people that they think are similar to them rather than hiring those who are objectively good at their job (Booth, 2002). A phenomenal candidate who would have taken the company to another level can be missed out just because he/she could not satisfy the criteria around cultural fit (Marcel et al., 2013). Moreover, a considerable amount of bias in talent acquisition may result when invoking cultural matching. What is the likelihood of missing out on innovative perspectives is an important consideration for future research (Marcel et al., 2013). For the purpose of this literature review, systematic and empirical literature has been presented to understand the advantages and disadvantages of cultural characteristics in determining job success. References Blau, P. M., & Duncan, O. D. (1967). The American occupational structure. Bourdieu, P. (1984). Distinction: A social critique of the judgement of taste. Harvard University Press. Byrne, D. E. (1971). The attraction paradigm (Vol. 11). Academic Pr. Collins, R. (2004). Interaction ritual chains. Princeton university press. DiMaggio, P. (1987). Classification in art. American sociological review, 440-455. DiMaggio, P., & Mohr, J. (1985). Cultural capital, educational attainment, and marital selection. American journal of sociology, 1231-1261. Elliott, J. R., & Smith, R. A. (2004). Race, gender, and workplace power. American Sociological Review, 69(3), 365-386. Ely, R. J. (1995). The power in demography: Women’s social constructions of gender identity at work. Academy of Management journal, 38(3), 589-634. Erickson, B. H. (1996). Culture, class, and connections. American journal of Sociology, 217-251. Erickson, F., & Shultz, J. (1982). The counselor as gatekeeper: Social interaction in interviews. New York: Academic Press. Farkas, G. (2003). Cognitive skills and noncognitive traits and behaviors in stratification processes. Annual Review of Sociology, 541-562. Fernandez, R. M., & Fernandez-Mateo, I. (2006). Networks, race, and hiring. American Sociological Review, 71(1), 42-71. Gigone, D., & Hastie, R. (1993). The common knowledge effect: Information sharing and group judgment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65(5), 959. Gorman, E. H. (2005). Gender stereotypes, same-gender preferences, and organizational variation in the hiring of women: Evidence from law firms. American Sociological Review, 70(4), 702-728. Graves, L. M., & Powell, G. N. (1995). The effect of sex similarity on recruiters’evaluations of actual applicants: a test of the similarity?attraction paradigm. Personnel Psychology, 48(1), 85-98. Gross, N. (2009). A pragmatist theory of social mechanisms. American Sociological Review, 74(3), 358-379. Heckman, J. J., & Siegelman, P. (1993). The Urban Institute audit studies: Their methods and findings. Huffcutt, A. I. (2011). An empirical review of the employment interview construct literature. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 19(1), 62-81. Kotter, E. H. and Heskett, O. K..(1992). ‘Culture: The Missing Concept in Organizational Studies’. Administrative Science Quarterly, 4(2), 229-240. Lamont, M. (1992). Money, morals, and manners: The culture of the French and the American upper-middle class. University of Chicago Press. Lamont, M., & Molnar, V. (2002). The study of boundaries in the social sciences. Annual review of sociology, 167-195. Lamont, M., & Small, M. L. (2008). How culture matters: Enriching our understanding of poverty. The colors of poverty: Why racial and ethnic disparities persist, 76-102. Langfeldt, L. (2011). How Professors Think: Inside the Curious World of Academic Judgment. International Studies in the Philosophy of Science, 25(1), 92-95. Lareau, A. (2011). Unequal childhoods: Class, race, and family life. Univ of California Press. Lareau, A., & Weininger, E. B. (2003). Cultural capital in educational research: A critical assessment. Theory and society, 32(5-6), 567-606. Madu, B.C.(2012). ‘Organizational culture as a drive of competitive advantage’. Journal of Academic and Business Ethics, Vol. 5, pp. 1-9. Marcel, M.F., Roeske, J., and Parrilla, R.(2013).Bias and cultural competence in recruitment and selection. Multicultural Forum on Workforce Diversity, Language & Culture Worldwide, LLC. Martins, E. C., and Terblanche, F.(2003). ‘Building Organizational Culture that Stimulates Creativity and Innovation’. European Journal of Innovation and Management, Vol. 1(1), pp.30-43. Montoya, R. M., Horton, R. S., & Kirchner, J. (2008). Is actual similarity necessary for attractionA meta-analysis of actual and perceived similarity. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 25(6), 889-922. Neckerman, K. M., & Kirschenman, J. (1991). Hiring strategies, racial bias, and inner-city workers. Social Problems, 433-447. Oliver, P.(2003)Writing Up Your Thesis. Oaks, CA. Sage Publications. Omotayo, O. and Anthonia, A.(2013). ‘Impact of organizational culture on human resource practices: a study of selected Nigerian private universities’. Journal of Competitiveness, vol.5, No. 4, pp. 115-133. Osborne, A.(2013). Shortage of engineers is hurting Britain, says James Dyson. The Telegraph. [viewed on 4th July 2014] available from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/industry/engineering/10287555/Shortage-of-engineers-is-hurting-Britain-says-James-Dyson.html Pager, D., & Shepherd, H. (2008). The sociology of discrimination: Racial discrimination in employment, housing, credit, and consumer markets. Annual review of sociology, 34, 181. Pager, D., Western, B., & Bonikowski, B. (2009). Discrimination in a Low-Wage Labor Market A Field Experiment. American Sociological Review, 74(5), 777-799. Partington, D. E.(2002).Essential Skills for Management Research: Oaks, CA:Sage Publications, ISBN 07619 70088. Paton, G.(2014). STEM Awards: business facing major ‘skills shortage’. The Telegraph. [viewed on 4th July 2014] available from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/10696388/STEM-Awards-businesses-facing-major-skills-shortage.html Rivera, L. A. (2012). Hiring as cultural matching the case of elite professional service firms. American Sociological Review, 77(6), 999-1022. Roscigno, V. J. (2007). The face of discrimination: How race and gender impact work and home lives. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. Saunders, M., Lewis, P., and Thornhill, A.(2012).Research Methods for Business Students.(Sixth Edition), New Jersey, FT Prentice Hall. Schneider, B. and Smith, D. B.(2004). ‘Personality and Organizational Culture’. In: B. Scheneider & D. B. Smith (Eds.), Personality and Organization. Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Sewell Jr, W. H. (1992). A theory of structure: Duality, agency, and transformation. American journal of sociology, 1-29. Sheridan, J.E.(1992). ‘Organizational culture and employee retention’. The Academy of Management Journal, vol. 35 (5), pp.1036-1056. Stainback, K., Tomaskovic-Devey, D., & Skaggs, S. (2010). Organizational approaches to inequality: Inertia, relative power, and environments. Sociology, 36(1), 225. Stevens, M. L., Armstrong, E. A., & Arum, R. (2008). Sieve, incubator, temple, hub: Empirical and theoretical advances in the sociology of higher education. Annu. Rev. Sociol, 34, 127-151. Swidler, A. (1986). Culture in action: Symbols and strategies. American sociological review, 273-286. Tilly, C., & Tilly, C. (1998). Work under capitalism (p. p205). Boulder, CO: Westview Press. Turco, C. J. (2010). Cultural Foundations of Tokenism Evidence from the Leveraged Buyout Industry. American sociological review, 75(6), 894-913. Watt, B., Busine, M. and Wienker, E.(2005).Recruiting for culture fit: are you getting values from your selection activities. Australia, Development Dimensions International Inc. Weber, M. (1946). Class, status, party (pp. 180-95). na. Wilson, J.(2010).Essentials of Business Research, Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Wimmer, A., & Lewis, K. (2010). Beyond and Below Racial Homophily: ERG Models of a Friendship Network Documented on Facebook1. American Journal of Sociology, 116(2), 583-642.

Distance Education Versus Face-to-Face Learning Essay

December 1 , 2009 Persuasive Essay – Game Theories Has Virtual Reality Taken Things Too Far? Distance Education versus Face-to-Face Learning In Clive Thompson’s â€Å"Game Theories†, the author illustrates how virtual worlds, such as Everquest and Second Life, have surprisingly become much like the real world. Everquest is an online virtual reality video game that allows individuals to create fictional characters to â€Å"generate goods as they play, often by killing creatures for their treasure and trading it† (Thompson 332). This has created an economy-like setting in he game but has eventually evolved to leak into the real world economy by exchanging real money for the purchase of virtual characters and their winnings. Thompson’s article shows how the line between virtual reality and real world reality often becomes blurry, encouraging people to consider ways where virtual technology can enhance and possibly replace the current systems already in place. However, not everything done through computers and virtual technology are as effective as one thinks. Sometimes, the traditional way of doing things are perfectly fine and more effective Just the way they are. Distance education, in particular, is a phenomenon that has been a growing popular alternative to traditional face-to-face education. I am here to argue that learning behind a computer at home cannot effectively replace the traditional face- to-face education offered at colleges and universities. Difficulty in self-directed learning and instructional misunderstandings can occur in any online course, a lack of a set schedule allows for distractions and procrastination, non-existent interaction inhibits growth and learning, and the probability of cheating is greater among online tudents versus campus students. Although there are many people who favor the online-learning alternative, this paper will challenge their confidence and counter- arguments on the issue. Distance education can be quite difficult. There are several courses that have concepts that can be quite tricky and complicated to understand, especially if one is learning on their own using a textbook. Shelia Tucker, an assistant professor at East Carolina University, stated that â€Å"students learn far too little when the teacher’s personal presence is not available because the student has far more to learn from he teacher than texts† (par. 2). For example, an accounting teacher can easily explain the advanced calculation of earnings per share and diluted earnings per share through the use of their own methods and organizational charts. Learning the same topic but reading texts from a course book can be quite challenging without a teacher to provide tips and tricks for remembering the formulas. As I am an accounting student aspiring to be a CGA, I am tremendously afraid of entering their factors influencing completion and non-completion of community college online ourses, â€Å"students indicated that online learning did not fit their learning style preference. Comments were received from students that they could not get a response from their instructor, the materials were not available, and the course was confusing† (Aragon & Johnson 155). Because of the difficulty experienced in online courses, â€Å"some community colleges are reporting drop-out rates 20% higher than in face-to- face classrooms† (Aragon & Johnson 146). Another drawback of online learning is the lack of a set schedule. Without a fixed timetable, the opportunity for distractions and procrastination often presents itself. These online courses require motivation and self-discipline to complete the courses and programs in a timely manner. This will be especially hard for those who tend to procrastinate and need the extra push from teachers to complete the work or require constant reminders of assignment due dates and examination dates. Because the online courses are quite flexible, these courses can often be put on the â€Å"backburner†, because the students are aware that some of these courses are self-paced. One major downfall of distance education is non-existent interaction that results from learning and working behind a computer. Communication with the teacher is limited to text correspondences and even replies to the emails may be delayed. Comparing this scenario to a classroom course, questions are answered and uncertainties are clarified immediately after the teacher is asked. There is no personal attention given to students and these learners are expected to find their own resources for completing assignments. Not only is interaction limited with teachers, but interaction with other students is limited as well. Randy S. Hanson, Ph. D. , made a point that the only interaction with classmates are through email, chat ooms and discussion boards. Parties and offline get-togethers [were] rarely experienced among online students (par. 17). In her article about the controversy of distance education, Roda Joanna Abaya asserts that â€Å"students do not learn only on formal and educational conversations. As social beings, it is important that they too interact with others and have informal talks or converse with lighter topics† (par. 8). Another concern that Abaya has about distance education is the lack of hands-on training in online courses (par. 7). Interaction with people and objects are vital in the earning process and because of these missing components in online courses, the effectiveness of education falls short when compared to the traditional face-to-face classes. According to an article about academic honesty in online courses, â€Å"some claim that because students and faculty do not interact directly in such classes, online classes will invite more cheating than traditional classes† (GriJalva, Therese C. et al. par. 2). This is certainly true in that distance education is being carried out at home, away from teacher supervision. Anne Mullens exclaims that â€Å"cheating appears to be ncreasing at universities, especially at the larger campuses and impersonal classes†¦ † (23). In an examination of cheating in both traditional and online criminal justice and legal studies courses, Lanier (2006) found the behavior to be more common in online courses† (Dobbs, Rhonda R. et al 13). Who knows how many students cheat during an online exam, having their books open in front of them while actual student writing the exam? Cheating is unethical and universally wrong but there are many students who cannot help themselves from get ting all the help they can get to score the good grades. There are several counter arguments that can be raised against the thesis of this paper. After â€Å"googling† and researching the pros of distance education, the recurring and most significant point was the flexibility of online courses. There are no set class times and it is the student’s discretion when to complete the assignments and readings so those with busy schedules are able to accommodate education. Stephen Downes states that there is â€Å"more work in the distance ed version†¦ simply because it tries to make up for the lack of any class contact† (par. 1). I have heard students and riends complain about the amount of work required for the online LIBS 7001 course at BCIT, where as the in-class version compares much favorably. With the course load being heavy for online courses, the flexibility to dedicate time to other priorities is hindered with the stress of work to be done for distance education. Some argue that online learning benefits those who requires more time, are language challenged, or are introverted. But on the contrary, it hinders rather than allows growth and learning. Those who require more time will always have that excuse to fall back on. Next thing they know, a year has passed since having started the course. The things learned at the beginning of the on-line class will have been forgotten and time would have been wasted. Those who are foreign students that struggle with the language barrier would benefit much more with an available teacher who is able to give them personal attention and needed help. To leave them on their own, trying to understand the course concepts from a textbook or a set of written notes can leave them overwhelmed and confused. Even those who are shy do not gain any benefit for enrolling in online courses. In fact, it is more of a detriment to their development and knowledge. Attending campuses and universities allows students to interact with classmates, and even encourages group projects to develop team buildings skills for individuals. At BCIT, students are often required to do presentations in front of the class and even in lecture halls. This is because the real world will often put people in similar situations and the training for that is attained easily when attending school on campus. This will also develop individuals’ interpersonal skills, and will help them overcome any shyness they may have. Another counter argument that can be raised is that costs are reduced when taking distance education. Not only are travel costs and commuting time decreased, but the necessary housing costs and meal plans are also saved if one is required to move to campus for attending university. However, the â€Å"cost of training teachers, the cost of hardware and software, human resources such as technicians and other people involved are to be considered, we can say that establishing online education is not as cheap as it may seem for others† (Abaya par. 6). These costs will certainly rickle down to the students, eventually having them pay through the increasing course fees.

Competency to Stand Trial in the United States Research Paper

Competency to Stand Trial in the United States - Research Paper Example 2). Many other cases cited these legal landmarks. Ten (10) of those cases offered by Elkins, James R. are listed in the appended Table of 10 CST Cases from 1975-2001. II. Testing for Sanity Incompetence to stand trial is not the same as insanity defense. According to the SHouse Law Group (2012), citing the following: â€Å"Penal code 1370 PC (a)(1)(A)†, and â€Å"People v. Crosier (1974) 41 Cal App 3d 712, 716†, and â€Å"Penal Code 1367(a) PC†, and â€Å"Penal Code 1367(the distinction is that insanity defense is a complete legal defense whereby the defendant will be deemed not guilty permanently, whereas CST was created to treat the defendant for a future trial after treatment and can still be convicted for a criminal offense. It also matters to know that insanity defense is the condition of a defendant being insane at the time of the commission of the crime, whereas CST is during the trial. According to People v. Crosier (1974), the insanity defense depends o n (in California courts) the results of the â€Å"M Naghton Test† which considers the answers to two questions, namely, â€Å"†¦first, did the defendant have sufficient mental capacity to know and understand what he was doing, and second, did he know and understand that it was wrong and a violation of the rights of another?† III. How CST Was Established Pirelli, Gianni; Gottdiener, William H.; and Zapf, Patricia A.(2011, p.2) traced that people in USA have been enjoying the constitutional â€Å"right to be competent to stand trial† since the early 19th century. In a review of 68 cases from 1967 to 2008, incompetent and competent defendants were compared and analyzed. Their findings showed: (1) there was 8 times the number of defendants found to be with psychotic disorder among those found incompetent. (2) Unemployed defendants deemed incompetent to be tried in court were twice the number among those incompetent. (3) Those previously hospitalized due to psyc hiatric disease were twice the number of those without record of hospitalization for the same purpose among the defendants found incompetent for trial. The US Supreme Court (1960, p. 402) defines competence as the â€Å"ability to consult with his lawyer with a reasonable degree of rational understanding – and whether he has a rational as well as factual understanding of the proceedings against him† aside from knowing the time, place, and having some recollections. The National Judicial College (NJC,2012) has an online list of SC decisions pertaining to the issue of Mental Competency since 1960 to 2008. These cases serve as precedents used as landmarks decisions for new cases with similar issues. Such rulings should never be negated in the course of history without any sound basis for doing so, since they are models of sound judgement in a civilized society. IV. Mental Illness and Criminal Behavior Since mental illness is commonly used as a defence, the apprehension wi ll normally be about the development of a trend that can acquit most criminals. How then does the court assure the public that this cannot happen? CST should not prejudice criminal complaints against defendants because the law presumes â€Å"competence to stand trial† (Elkins, J.R. 2011, par.5). It will take some facts for the defendant’s lawyer to question his client’

Quantitative Geography Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Quantitative Geography - Essay Example It is not a surprise that GIS data today is used by thousands of organizations from different segments of life, from businesses, governments, educators and scientists, environmental and conservation organizations to natural resource groups and utilities. GIS is helpful in solving problems and improving processes, increasing profits, improving services, bettering education at all levels and allowing for more proper use of our natural resources.(GIS website,2007) Â  The combination of geography as a scientific branch and GIS as a way of utilizing geographic information brings us a new idea, one of geographic approach. It is a new way of thinking and problem solving that integrates geographic information into how we understand and manage our planet. This approach allows us to create geographic knowledge by measuring the earth, organizing this data, and analyzing and modeling various processes and their relationships. The Geographic Approach also allows us to apply this knowledge to the way we design, plan, and change our world. All of the above became really essential in the aftermath of the industrial and technological boom in the last two centuries, one that came at a great price of serious depletion of natural sources and serious worries about the future of our planet. Â  In its nutshell, the Geographic approach is just like any scientific, analytical method. It calls for several steps, all of which are necessary for obtaining an end result that is scientifically tested and valuable.

Customer Orientation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Customer Orientation - Essay Example The subject of customer orientation, that was discussed in this essay has become a subject of interest not only to the business world, but also to the scholarly world. In the recent past, companies have committed a lot of resource on researching on the subject of customer orientation behavior and building of organization culture that is customer oriented. There have been systematic effort by many companies to come up with programs especially in their production and sales department that are customer oriented. Companies have encouraged their sales people to implement behavior which are customer oriented and which focus on the integration of marketing concepts and customer oriented behaviors. Satisfaction of customers has been the guiding principle in the operation of many companies. Concept places more emphasize on the need to listen to the needs of the customer. In this regard it tries to find out what kind of products the customer needs in the market and what response customer gives about the product that they are provided with. The researcher then concluds that this concept as used in management and business can be seen as a way of staying closer to the customers or putting the customer at the to pf o the organization chart. This means that the customer become the most important person in the business organization. It is also stated that the main focus of customer orientation is in production and in sales. This knowledge will help the researcher to provide his customers with servicers that are tailored to their needs. ... This means that the customer become the most important person in the organization. The main focus of customer orientation is in production and in sales. (Berneisten, 2004) Which behavior can be considered as customer oriented There are several behaviors which can bee seen as customer oriented. These are behavior and actions that are aimed at meeting the satisfaction of the customers. These action include thinking and talking about clients, assessing customer perception, resolving priority issue in favor of customer, making amends for poor treatment of customers, employing any policy at hand in order to satisfy the needs of the customers, re-aligning processes and redeployment of resource which are geared toward ensuring high quality services to the customers, and many other action all which are aimed at satisfying the needs of the customers. (Hunt, 2000) Therefore customer oriented actions are those actions which will be opposed to sales action that are geared toward achieving immediately increased sales of a product rather than satisfying the needs of the customers. Sales oriented actions are geared towards achieving immediate sales with no regard to the benefit the product will have on the customers. Therefore as opposed to sales oriented actions, customer oriented actions will be looking at satisfying the needs of the customer and hence it will involve collecting the view of the customer about products and services and likewise giving redeploying service and process to suit the needs of the customers. How can a corporate create a customer oriented culture The culture of a corporation is one of the most important aspects that determine how an organization performs. Different Corporations have been known by different culture where they

Reading response Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 16

Reading response - Essay Example The emotions that one feels as an audience include the following: (1) empathy: (â€Å"I do not want the public smoking of marijuana around my kid -- I do not† (Smith par. 1); (2) affirmation (â€Å"Threatening people who consume marijuana in public with arrest and a 60 day jail sentence will not deter this behavior† (Smith par. 3); and (3) distraught (â€Å"the criminalization of public smoking could perpetuate these same racial and class disparities in marijuana law enforcement† (Smith par. 5). Councilmembers appear ready†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Smith par. 3); (2) â€Å"I want my daughter to grow up into a society†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Smith par. 10); and (3) â€Å"We should discourage people from smoking marijuana in public areas†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Smith par. 10). These statements affirm the convictions of the author and those that he wants to elicit from the readers. Councilmembers appear ready†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Smith par. 3); (2) â€Å"Threatening people who consume marijuana†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Smith par. 3); and (4) â€Å"Thousands of displaced and homeless residents who have no other choice but to survive in public spaces should not be punished more severely for smoking marijuana than their more affluent neighbors† (Smith par. 5). These words are emotionally packed that elicits the intended reaction and response from the target audience. Smith, Grant. "Locking People Up for Public Marijuana Smoking Is Not the Answer." 28 February 2014. Huffington Post. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/grantsmith/locking-people-up-for-pub_b_4876164.html. 3 March

A Strategic Challenge HMV Faces Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

A Strategic Challenge HMV Faces - Essay Example The researcher states that HMV Group Plc (HMV) was one amongst the world’s leading retailers of music, DVD/ video, pc games and books within the United Kingdom, North American country and Asia. A rise in the range of online purchase of CDs and DVDs, an increase in digital downloads associated stiffer competition from general supermarkets had an adverse impact on HMV’s revenue in 2005. Changes in musical tastes conjointly affected HMV’s sales adversely. HMV has to enhance its profit by initiating contemporary worth cuts and increasing its online product offerings. HMV is fraught from three sides. On one flank, there are competitive street retailers with similar business models. On the opposite flank, grocery chains, which are progressively entering into the HMV’s recreation product territory? Additionally, arising quickly from behind, are pure-play online retailers. Online pure-play retailers above all create an excellent threat, as they will operate at a v alue advantage ensuing from associate degree absence of physical stores and lowest staffing needs. Within the past decade, as online penetration has inflated and shopper familiarity with  online searching has expanded, pure-play online retailers like Play.com have emerged as important rivals to venerable chains of HMV. The diversion product mix furnished by HMV (CDs, DVDs, video games) is especially suited to on-line merchandising. Merchandise square measure extremely standardized and commoditized (a videodisk is a videodisk, in spite of the channel it is purchased from), simply transferable through the post, and promoted heavily by the show business (meaning customers can ‘pull’ merchandise through distribution channels).