How Far Do You Agree with the Opinion That the Boer Was Acted as a Spur to Much Needed Reform in Britain

How far do you agree with the opinion that the Boer war acted as a spur to much needed reform in Britain? The Boer war acted as a catalyst to reform in many ways. It had considerable impact politically and socially. Many changes were put in place, from improving the army to public health care. Initially what acted as a spur was the amount of deaths and the cost of the war, 22,000 were killed costing ? 200 million therefore this led to a wake up call for the Army.However one may argue that it was not just the Boer war that induced reforms to be made in Britain; individuals such as Richard Burton Haldane who was appointed war minister could have implemented changes without the Boer war being a significant factor. The Committee of Imperial defence was set up in 1903 addressing that critical reform was needed in regards to the way Britain defended itself and strategy of planning.This was introduced to learn lesson from the Boer war furthermore Lord Salisbury established the Royal Commiss ions under Lord Elgin, some of the changes that were implemented was the abolition of the post of Commander in Chief, this was highly significant as it allowed other posts to be introduced and the elite class did not buy there way into the Army and posts were given by merit hence allowing more competent individuals to run the Army. Source B shows that inefficiencies of the armed forces and the how important the Esher Report was in reforming it.The source highlighted that there was much needed reform in the army and much of these reforms that were introduced were due to the Boer war, â€Å"it coolly analysed the confusions and ineffectiveness of military administration† considering the provenance I can see that it is from a Book by the historian Corelli Barnett who studied English military history and it was published in 1970 hence implying that Barnett must have collected a wide range of sources over a long period of time and judged them fairly before coming to a rational con clusion.Source A suggests that Britain has had â€Å"an imperial lesson† and will learn from it and will strengthen the Empire. The nature of the source is an extract from a poem by Rudyard Kipling. The provenance could be challenged as it was written by Kipling who was pro Empire, so it may have an exaggerative nature however one may argue that the idea of reform as a result of the Boer war was widespread and accepted at the time, moreover source B which is reliable also accepts the viewpoint.There were huge numbers of men that were deemed unfit for military service; this was made apparent when they led an investigation into why it took so long and why it was so expensive just to defeat 50 000 farmers, from this investigation they saw that they had to make changes hence why the Committee on Physical Deterioration was established; it was set up in 1903 and found that it was not physical deterioration regarding physical health but there was a growing need to improve living, wo rking and education conditions.This produced the need for national efficiency. Many different groups wanted to improve Britains social system by making the Empire efficient and putting more children into Education for longer to allow the spread of social mobility. A meritocracy was also introduced thus allowing individuals to embark of a career based on qualifications and not social class. This could only have been put in place because of the Boer war. Source D evidently shows the need for national efficiency, it shows that 26. % of people were rejected out of 3600 recruits in Sheffield, York and Leeds. â€Å"3 out of 5 volunteers were rejected† this was astonishingly high and highlighted the pressing need to change Britain socially. Free school meals were introduced in 1906 and provision of medical inspections of children. The National Insurance Act of 1911 which provided free medical health for the working class. As a results of the many deaths that occurred in the Second B oer war, new administrative structures were put in place.From acknowledging the fast reactions, skills and talented nature of the Boers, the British needed to put some hard reforms in place. Firstly they removed the traditional bright scarlet uniform for the khaki which allowed a better disguise, new weaponry was introduced such as the Lee Enfield rifle and quick firing guns were produced which were learned from massacres like the one at spion kop. Hence showing that all these changes were due to the learning of mistakes from the Boer war.Source C is an extract from a memorandum from Haldane on military reform published in 1907 this was written by Haldane who was appointed the war minister thus implying that this source is accurate as a war minister would not make exaggerated claims on reforming the military, therefore the provenance of this source is reliable, this source explains the mobilisation of the territorial or home force. However some may say that it was not largely due to the result of the Boer war but because of political changes that were inevitably going to take place.Whenever a new party comes into power is it understandable that they would make important decisions on how to run the country, nevertheless one may argue that the Boer war had an impact on decision making. Furthermore judging from the sources most of them all are in agreement with each other Sources B, C and D are written by reliable people, Historian and politicians were are Source A is a poem written by an individual who is pro empire however there is substantial evidence to support what is written in this poem. Hence why I agree with the view that the second Boer war resulted in much needed reform in Britain.

The Brain and Cognitive Functioning

The Brain and Cognitive Functioning Jessica Johnson PSY 360 March 11, 2013 Donna M. Glover-Rogers, Ph. D The Brain and Cognitive Functioning The following describes the role of the brain and the impact it has on a person’s cognitive functions, including how injury to certain part of the brain can affect specific cognitive functions while leaving others intact. To support this idea we look at the case of Phinneas Gage, and how his brain injury affected his cognitive abilities. In order to understand what role the brain plays in cognitive functioning one must understand cognitive functioning and what it is.Cognitive functioning refers to a person’s ability to coordinate thought and action as well as the ability to direct it towards a goal. It is needed to overcome environmental obstacles, orchestrate plans and execute complex sequences of behavior. When a person thinks, gives their attention to something, has or feels some kind of emotion, makes a plan, learns a new task or information, or recalls a memory they are using their cognitive functioning all of which starts in the brain. As the world has progressed so has science and technology; as theses fields have grown so has the ability to learn about the brain and how it works.Today we know that the brain is made up of millions small parts all working together to serve a final outcome. However technology is not the only thing that assists researchers in the study of the brain; people who have suffered traumatic brain injury have equally aided scientist in understanding how the brain functions. One of the most remarkable examples of the impact a brain injury can have on a person’s life is that of Phinneas Gage. This case proves to be one of the first to confirm that damage to a person’s frontal cortex could result in a significant personality change despite other neurological functions remain intact.In September of 1848 an accidental explosion caused a 20 pound iron rod from the railroa d tracks to penetrate Gage’s Left cheek bone and exiting just behind his right temple (BSCS 2005). To everyone’s shock Gage never lost consciousness through the injury; however, the injuries to his brain caused a complete change in personality. Prior to the accident Gage was reported to be calm and collected man. He was said to be very level-headed and it was reported by his supervisors that his calm demeanor made him the best foremen on his team. The trauma to Gage’s brain caused a severe and unpleasant change in his character.Upon recovering and returning to work he was said to be highly volatile, full of rage, impatient and vulgar. Despite making a full physical recovery his behavior made such a negative change he was never able to work as a foreman again. Gage’s case was one of the first and often considered the most dramatic cases of personality change caused by brain injury that has ever been documented. The injuries that Gage sustained to his brain raised several questions about the impact the brain has on cognitive functioning. It has become clear that a common side-effect of frontal lobe damage is drastic change in one’s behavior.An individual’s personality can significantly alter after damage to the frontal lobes, particularly when both lobes are involved (Hernandez, 2008). Many important things were learned from Gage’s life altering accident, first and possibly most important it shows that not every brain injury will cause death. In addition researchers learned that not all brain injuries will cause loss to all brain functions (2008). Although being over 100 years old the injury Phineas Gage suffered to his brain is still known as one of the most educational injuries in history.Not only did it prove one could survive such a traumatic injury to the brain but it proved they could still function physically and mentally. This case was also the first to prove that the frontal cortex of the brain directly i mpacts personality, and although one could recover to physically function as they had before the altered personality may never change. Along with cases like Phinneas Gage, advancements in technology have given researchers a picture of how the brain controls cognitive functioning but to what extent remains unclear.References Hernandez, Christina. (2008). Phineas Gage. Retrieved March 08, 2013 from http://www. associatedcontent. com/article/831073/phineas_gage_pg3. html? cat=4 National Institue of Health Office of Science Education BSCS (2005). Retrieved March 07, 2013 from http://science. education. nih. gov/supplements/nih4/self/guide/info-brain. htm Willingham, D. T. (2007). Cognition: The thinking animal (3rd ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Prentice Hall. Retrieved from Ebsco Host

Pleasantville Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Pleasantville - Essay Example and polished world they represented did not express the truth about life, thus giving people a false belief about what it means to live in the United States. Looking at the writings of Cornelius Plantinga Jr. and Bruce Epperly, the film Pleasantville is analyzed against writings that express the meaning of God within the life of the Christian, creating a discourse on how the perfection of this world is measured against the expectations of God. Plantinga reminds his readers that God expects us to embrace suffering, to go out into the world and serve without expecting to find glory. Epperly reminds us that the world is bigger than the human experience, that finding the whole world gives the human experience the authenticity that God had intended. Through looking at Pleasantville through the writings of Plantinga and Epperly, the Christian experience in the world is expressed as more than just the illusions of perfection as it is sought after within the confines of the American dream. The film Pleasantville (1998) is a fantasy in which the idea of what is the ideal of American life is explored through the concept of 1950s television. Television shows such as Leave it to Beaver and Daddy Knows Best are often used as measures against which the American dream is examined for the best case scenario. In the film Toby McGuire and Reese Witherspoon are sucked into an alternate universe of Pleasantville, a black and white television program. Pleasantville is McGuire’s favorite television program and a bit of magic occurs during a marathon which pulls them into this universe. The perfection of the world is challenged as the black and white life of the characters begin to give way to bursts of color as they emerge on landscapes and people when their belief systems are challenged by the two interlopers. This symbolizes the nature of the oppression of emotions as they are released so that a greater depth is experienced. The restrictive, always content and serenely bla nd

International management behaviour Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

International management behaviour - Essay Example ets and dimensions of cross cultural presence in organizations, ways to manage cultural diversity as well as the resultant implications on organizational competitiveness. Finally, the article by using a combination of tools, approaches and methods guides the reader to analyze and implement the aspects learned in managing the diverse climate of their organizations in an effective and efficient manner. Organizations, today, are increasingly becoming multi cultural given the large presence of culturally diverse workforce. In the light of this fact it has become essential and inevitable for the leaders and managers to understand the various implications of such diversity and adapt to the rapidly changing workplace scenario by adopting policies and measures to suit the requirements that such situations demand. This article presents opportunities for the managers to learn and understand the concept and successfully cope with the pressures and challenges that circumstances arising out of the presence of such factors, demand. Managing a culturally diverse workplace is rapidly emerging as a new challenge for the management which is evident from the vast amount of studies carried out by various authors and researchers to analyze and understand this emerging trend. Some of the key concepts, theories and approaches included in this article are discussed below. In order to understand the actual essence of the concept of managing cultural diversity it is essential to study the diverse theories put forward by various authors which attempt to define the word diversity. Thomas (1991) believes that workplace diversity has a deeper meaning which transcends beyond race and gender and tends to engulfs within its gamut several other elements such as lifestyle, tenure, sexual preferences, etc among others. Cultural diversity is commonly found in almost all organizations and it is essential to understand and learn to manage such diversity in order to manage the organizations in the

In terms of child protection critically examine the policy Essay

In terms of child protection critically examine the policy developments that have been introduced to facilitate collaboration of - Essay Example 2006, p.67). On the other hand, Mattessich and Monsey defined collaboration as ‘a mutually beneficial and well-designed relationship entered into by two or more individuals or organizations to achieve common goals’ (Mattessich and Monsey, in Raspa et al. 2000, p.23). Moreover, Hamric et al. (2005) explained that collaboration is ‘a dynamic process which focuses on the sharing of goals, values and commitment’ (Hamric et al. 2005, p.91), while Haussler (2006) highlights the voluntary character of collaboration as an activity developed in the context of social relationships or of commercial partnerships. Current paper is based on collaboration as defined by Hamric et al. (2005) – which emphasizes on the necessity of shared values and commitment – for explaining and evaluating the child protection initiatives in England and Wales, especially regarding the level at which these initiatives have managed to facilitate the collaboration among relevant b odies in England and Wales. 2. ... tive text on which the protection of children in UK is based is the Children and Young Persons Act 1933; the above law is used jointly with the main law on child protection in England and Wales, the Children Act 1989 – as updated through the Children Act 2004. The above law establishes the principle of the parental responsibility (section 3) for the protection of the child but also the right of the Court to intervene and make an Order – if necessary – for ensuring the protection of the child (section 1). Moreover, the power of local authorities to intervene and take measures for the protection of the child is clearly defined (section 47, NSPCC, 2011). In Children Act 2004 (section 10) ‘a duty has been set for agencies to cooperate in order to improve the well being of children’ (Children Act 2004, Surrey community). The above legislative text is followed by two guidance texts (published in 1991), which establish the cooperation among the agencies for increasing the protection provided to children; furthermore, guidelines are given for assessing the needs of children within their families; the first of the above guidelines, under the title ‘Working together to safeguard children: a guide to inter-agency working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children’ (DCSF 2010 in NSPCC fact sheet, 2010, p.2), is of key importance, setting the framework of the collaboration among agencies operating in the particular sector. Other legislative texts have been published, after the Children Act 2004, aiming to address specific needs of children: for example, the Children and Adoption Act 2006, the Children and Young Persons Act 2008, the Sexual Offences Act 2003 and Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004 (NSPCC fact sheet, 2010, p.5-7). The key agencies

Contingency Theories of Leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Contingency Theories of Leadership - Essay Example Fiedler's contingency theory states that the manner in which a leader can be effective is dependent on what he calls as 'situational contingency', or the resultant product arising out of the interspatiality or interaction of leadership style and situational favourableness (or situational control). Fiedler holds that in situations of extreme importance, as during floods, tsunamis, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, a task-orientated style of leadership would be more beneficial than a considerate (relationship-orientated) style. This is so, as because in such an uncertain situation the leader-member relations get strained, due to fear or anxiety, the task becomes haphazard or unstructured, and the subject position of power becomes weak. In such a situation, the task-orientated leader who gets things accomplished proves to be the most successful. On the other hand, Fiedler emphasises that the considerate style of leadership is appropriate when the leader-member relations are good, the task is unstructured, and the locus of power is weak. ... For instance, there is some doubt whether the LPC is a true measure of leadership style. In 1986, Fiedler proposed another contingency model. This was called the Cognitive Resource Theory and attempted to analyse the conditions whereby intelligence, experience, and expertise are predictive indicators of leadership effectiveness. Fiedler stated that the effects of cognitive resources shall be significant only when the leader is able to be direct, when he/ she suffers from little stress, and when the leader has some unique expertise that cannot be performed by other subordinates. The theory formulates the idea that in low-stress situations, the intelligence of the leader has a great impact on the effectivity of the workers, and in high-stress conditions, the leader's expertise gets important. Interestingly, this assumption is not supported by Fiedler's research. An participatory discourse of the contingency theory is Vroom and Yetton's concept of Normative decision theory. Going by this variation, effectiveness of a decision procedure in an organisation is dependent upon various parts of a situation. It emphasises on the significance of the decision quality and acceptance by the people. What is interestingly is the fact that it values the criteria such as the amount of relevant information possessed by the leader and subordinates; under what circumstances would the subordinates accept a decision or try and co-operate in following a decision and the amount of disagreement among subordinates with respect to their preferred alternatives. This variation is definitely preferred over Fiedler's assumptions simple because it takes into account a thorough circumference of problems that the idea of decision making may face. The sheer flexibility, at times

International business Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

International business - Personal Statement Example As an undergraduate student I have been able to get the most out of my academic experience through the boundless knowledge that has been offered to me by my professors, something that should be noted, is not available in the simple purchase of a textbook. The academic lessons offered to me have increased my understanding of the business world and molded my marketing perspectives to views that I consider unique and will play a big role in my career in the future. The next step in my path is the subject of International business, and I would like to continue my personal and academic growth with this respected base of education. I believe that I will be able to get the most out of my learning experiences if I am surrounded by not only what I see as familiar, but progressive surroundings as well. I have a great resolve to succeed in life, and I hold firm in my belief that this institution would be the best means of my doing that. I hope that you will humbly consider my application to continue with my education in your prestigious

Characteristics in Managment Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Characteristics in Managment - Case Study Example Unlike other organisations that are hierarchical in their structures, power and control Google are vested in the employees. The employees are treated as equal and they are given the autonomy to make decisions in their operations. Innovative and creative ideas are generated when the employees are involved in the decision making process. A flexible working environment is fostered at Google given that it does not have a hierarchical structure. Work is delegated on the basis of the skills and knowledge of the employees. On behalf of the employees, it can be seen that this structure is very effective since they can interact freely. However, it is not sustainable since there is need for some form of formal authority in the organization such that its goals can be attained. Toyota is another good example of an organization with a flat organization structure. The employees are involved in the decision making process and they are motivated by this type of structure. The South West Airlines is another example of organization with a decentralised structure and the employees are given the autonomy to make decisions in their operations. They are highly motivated and they are productive in their tasks. 2. There are mainly two types of organizational structures namely tall and flat (Robbins, 1993). A tall organizational structure is hierarchical in nature and it follows a strict line of authority. On the other hand, it can be seen that a flat organizational structure is subdivided into different departments. Both structures have their own benefits to the organization depending on its core values and objectives. A tall structure is advantageous in that it is goal oriented. Management in the organization is from top to bottom and it is very efficient in terms of attainment of the goals. The decisions are made by the top management and these are mainly concerned with the attainment of the desired

Counselling psychology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Counselling psychology - Essay Example Person centred therapy is closer to being a pure form of therapy as compared to psychodynamic therapy. The credit for developing this approach is given to the noted psychologist, Carl Rogers, who came from the humanist tradition. For the most part, this approach to therapy can be considered counselling since the idea in this approach is for the therapist to create a personalised relationship with the individual that is receiving therapy. Rogers () himself has suggested that, â€Å"The more the therapist is himself or herself in the relationship, putting up no professional front or personal facade, the greater is the likelihood that the client will change and grow in a constructive manner (Rogers, 1980, Pg. 115)†. In fact, Carl Rogers wanted the therapy sessions to be a journey of discovery for both the therapist and the patient in which they come to a realisation where patients can help themselves come to terms with their psychological problems. With this approach, the patient is pointed towards the idea of personal growth that connects itself with the future and the present situation of the patient rather than events that happened in the past. Therapy is given through verbal communications and is non-directive since the patient is allowed to express feelings and emotions while the therapist helps him/her in understanding why these emotions or feelings are coming through (Rogers, 1980). Person centred therapy has a two pronged approach to managing psychological issues. The first is to improve the patient’s level of self-esteem through therapy and positive communication while the second is to create a greater openness to new experiences. This form of therapy also seeks to create related changes such as a deeper connection between the patients idealized self and actual self. It also seeks to create an improved understanding of the self-image, lowered levels of defensive behaviour and to improve the quality of the relationships the client has with others