Study on nightmares and there causes

Study on nightmares and there causes Nightmares are essentially negative emotions felt during the dream state. They elicit no movement during sleep and when a person wakes up from it, he or she can recall many but not all details. The environment, consisting of the society in which one lives and the experiences to which one is exposed, can affect types of dreams. These sociocultural factors can be considered the nurture side of the nature-nurture debate. Innate factors of age and presence of mental disabilities can be regarded as the nature argument. To what extent do sociocultural and innate factors influence nightmares in children? Young children have nightmares, many out of fear of abandonment; at that age, they have the need to be loved more than most other ages. However, this fear is not contained to a single culture; children have nightmares in every nation. Many parents try to avoid nightmares by putting their children to bed early; common culture shows that people sleep early to be well-rested but maybe sleep do es much more than that; it might be part of the de-stressing process each person needs at the end of the day, an outlet to renew and apply the adage every day is a new day. Sociocultural causes include movies children may have watched the night right before the nightmare. It was long believed that scary movies would induce nightmares and children would wake up in the middle of the night, scared to go back to sleep. In addition, children who have suffered war trauma and orphans are prone to nightmares. The environment has an effect on ones dreams. Children need more care from parents or guardians than another age; and those who are not guaranteed such mental safety relieve that stress in their dreams via nightmares. Sociocultural factors that may influence nightmares in children include TV/movies, stress, and war trauma. TV/Movies Fisher and Wilson (1987) reported that many parents blamed their childrens nightmares on TV shows. Their children said that scary dreams were related to something they watched on TV (Muris et al., 2000). Children report watching TV as the most often done activity weekly, followed by playing computer games (Schredl et al., 2008). When children four- to eleven-years-old watched TV, they developed sleeping disorders (Owens et al., 1999). Thompson Christakis (2005) found that infants and toddlers also developed irregular sleeping schedules due to excessive TV-viewing. Schredl and Pallmer (1997) concluded that the content of nightmares was influenced by fairy tales, cinema, and TV. One possibility for this excess in nightmares could be the mental insecurity in their lives and the viewing of movies that elicit a similar fear that triggered the nightmare from their real-life fear, not the fear from the movie. However, Schredl et al. (2008) found that fourteen percent of their sample report ed watching police and criminal fiction without having an expected increased amount of nightmares. This discrepancy could be due to the fact that they have an interest in the topic or they feel secure in their environment. An experiment (Foulkes et al., 1967) consisted of thirty-two male children, ages ranging between six and twelve, with families in the middle class staying two nights in the laboratory for the experiment with one night at home in between the two to rest. Half the boys watched a short film about the old West, a hostile stimulus about Native Americans attacking European settlers, while the other half watched a non-violent film about baseball on the first night, and on the second night, the boys watched the other film. Both the younger and older boys showed more interest in the Western film. They had nightmares twice as much on Baseball nights than on Western nights. The difference in the two films had no effect on sleep onset or time to the initial REM period. The myth of watching scary or violent movies before bedtime is false. The nonaggressive Baseball film elicited more vivid dreams that were more aggressive and scary than those elicited by the violent Western film. Even though the Baseball film preceded a more frightening dream, the boys had no greater difficulty in falling asleep on that night than on the night they watched the Western film. Watching a more intense, violent movie worked off more stress, and then the stress did not have to be relieved in the boys dreams through nightmares. It seems as if the greater viewing involvement the young boys have towards the films may release accumulated psychological tensions as opposed to the seemingly obvious effect of exposing them to more stress leading to nightmares (Foulkes et al., 1967). Another study has found a greater number of nightmares after adults watch a violent film as opposed to a peaceful film. The subjects were sophisticated intellectual types who did not pay much attention to the films shown to them. As opposed to the young boys interest in the violent film, these adults were more interested in the nonviolent film (Foulkes Rechtschaffen, 1964). This cause in nightmares is due to the stress-relief effect; watching violent films releases anxiety and such emotions, and without them, people will have such emotions permeate their dreams. Both studies, regarding adults and children viewing violent and nonviolent films, suggest that if the film that attracts more interest from the individual viewer contains more violence, the less aggressive the plot will be in their dreams. However, most adults did not have much interest in the violent film which explains their higher amount of nightmares. Stress After watching the violent and nonviolent films, the low distortion of the boys dream content indicates that everyday experiences interfere with dreams and that the content is rarely out of the ordinary (Foulkes et al., 1967). Berrien (1935) found that more activity during the day precedes emotionally devoid dreams. Events right before sleep have some impact on the nature of some of his participants dreams. Attendance in usual day activities has little influence on dreams. Unusual night or evening activities that cause lack of sleep inhibit the frequency of dreams. According to parental reports of their young children and preteens (Owens et al., 1991) and self-reports of seventeen- and eighteen-year-olds who watch enticing television shows (Van den Bulck, 2000), the children sleep less as a result of watching too much television. Sleep deprivation is also linked to computer game play (Tazawa Okada, 2001) negatively in relation to time. Sadeh, Raviv, and Gruber (2000) said that sleep in children is sensitive to cultural and psychosocial influences. Social influences include but are not limited to parents, personality, and education (Morrell, 1999; Rona, Gulliford Chinn, 1998; Sadeh Anders, 1993; Van Tassel, 1985). Stress and trauma can cause nightmares and scare the child awake. They defined poor sleep as sleep that is characterized by à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ a sleep percentage lower than 90 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ or à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ waking three times or more per night on average. The parents higher education level had improved sleep quality, and family stress caused poorer sleep quality. Families living in areas exposed to war conditions have children who are more concerned about their parents and take adult responsibilities earlier than do children in safe conditions (Yule, 2002; Punamaki, 1987, 2000). As a result, they are more concerned about threat towards their family, friends, and homes in their dreams. The stress they get from worrying about others induces nightmares, reality imposing on the unconscious mind. Crugnola et al. (2008) compared childrens dreams in April and June. Exams for the end of elementary school were held in June and it may have been stressful for the children. Males showed an increase of female characters in their dreams and an increase in aggressive interaction, but a decrease in physical aggression. Dreams involving positive emotions and events increased in frequency as well. Girls showed a similar decrease in the male/female percentage of characters in their dreams and a decrease in physical aggression. Spain (Oberst, Charles, Chamarro, 2005), the United States (Saline, 1999), and Switzerland (Strauch Lederbogen, 1999) have similar distributions concerning aggression. Stress in real-life decreased physical aggression possibly because stress is generally caused by fear that one cannot do anything about the situation or fear over the outcome of the situation. Also, stress increased physical interaction, possibly as a stress release. In the case of watching TV, night mares decreased from watching TV as a stress reliever. In the case of exams, the stress that needs to be relieved is the childs reality, and the fear increases nightmares. Orphans reported more dreams than did non-orphans. Girl orphans reported more dreams than did the boys, while there was not a difference among the boy and girl non-orphans. Boys reported more aggression, while girls dreams involved anxiety. Older children reported more bizarre dreams. Children who have had traumatic experiences have dreams with death and destruction and negative feelings (Punamaki et al., 2005). Although the general effect of being an orphan is dominant in this study, there is still an inconsistency between demographic factors. There seems to be more of an effect of gender and age probably due to environmental factors, the way older children are treated, the difference in treatment between girls and boys, etc. War trauma Children in war conditions have more nightmares from the traumatic events. The nightmares serve as an outlet to protect survivors mental health (Hartmann, 1995). Military trauma in Palestinian children did not negatively affect mental health; they had dreams with mixtures of feelings and bizarre plots, while there was high psychological stress in children with common dreams (Punamaki, 1998). Children whose dreams related to their traumatic events adjusted better than children without that relationship (Barrett, 1996). Also, since bizarre dreams are easily remembered (Punamaki, 1997; Schredl, Kleinferchner, Gell, 1996), children living in traumatic conditions remember their dreams. Traumatic events had an effect on earlier developmental stages and included negative feelings. Severe trauma can cause children to regress and lose cognitive and emotional skills (Smith et al., 2002). Along with the fear from exams, fear from war trauma is stress in reality. The increase in nightmares could be due to the increase in the need to reduce stress, while the decrease in nightmares from watching violent films is due to the actual watching as the stress reliever. Revonsuo (2000) developed the Threat Simulation Theory of dreaming (TST) that states that peoples dreams replicate threatening events and that those events activate the threat simulation system. Dreams come from the long-term memory, which is traced from the degree of negative emotions and most recently encoded or activated memory trace. The TST failed to explain responses to threats in dreams of children exposed to war trauma. Their dreams self-reacted to only one-third of the threats. Children exposed to trauma had longer, more frequent, severe, and aggressive dreams than children unexposed and out of those dreams, they had more threatening ones. The children were most often the ones most threatened, followed by their loved ones, strangers, and then their homes. The children who suffered from trauma had dreams that self-reacted more from life-threatening events than any other threats, while normal children had no difference in self-reaction (Valli et al., 2006). Seligmans (1980) learned helplessness theory explains why traumatized children reacted to threats as frequently as the non-traumatized children; in real life, they learned that efforts to fix the situation were futile. The non-traumatized children did not learn from real life experiences and reacted to try and resolve the situation Hartmann (1995) described dreaming as a type of homeostasis, a process by which these children can return to a balanced center mentally. Dreaming is such an outlet to rid the negative emotions and wake up to a positive reality, serving as a mood regulation process (Punamaki, 1999; Cartwright, Luten et al., 1998; Kramer, 1993). Without such dreaming, a child will develop post-traumatic stress disorder (Breslau, 1998). Innate causes Innate factors also have an effect on nightmares. Ability to recall dreams has also been a factor in the existence of nightmares. If children cannot remember their dreams, then they will tell researchers and psychologists that they did not have nightmares the night before. Girls have a higher level of dream recall in comparison to boys; however, they may have not actually had more nightmares than the boys; they maybe have only recalled more. Innate factors that may influence the prominence of nightmares in children include mental deficiencies, age, and gender. Mental deficiencies Participants of another study were six- to twelve-year-old children admitted to the Allentown State Hospital in Pennsylvania for people who have mental deficiencies. The children had dreams of two categories: emotional or devoid of emotion, indeterminate emotion. On the fourth day, only one dream with emotional coloring was reported. The average amount of emotional dreams during the first three days was approximately twelve and for the fifth to seventh, there were around fifteen instances of emotional coloring. The fourth days events consisted of watching a movie and sleeping an hour later than on average nights. On the ninth day, they saw a play and also had an increase in emotional coloring (Berrien, 1935). This increase in emotional coloring could be due to the fact that their increase in activities resulted in a higher exposure to daylight which could influence depth of sleep, declining the frequency of dream activity. Berrien (1935) took count of emotions and actions during their sleep. The five most frequent emotions included pleasure, commanding, fear, anger, and resent in order of frequency. The most recurring actions the children exhibited during the night were mumbling, and walking or talking. He also recorded dreams hourly and found that it differed from a study he found of college students who dream more at the beginning and end of their sleep, with less frequency in the third hour, while his findings in children shows a gradual decline in dreaming as time progresses. This difference might be the result of innate tendencies; the mental deficiencies and problems could be causing the time lapses in the childrens dreaming. There is an overall trend in dreaming as morning approaches and both IQ and age have a slight positive influence on the frequency of dreams. Age Older children, in their teenage years, had pleasant dreams after watching TV; and Computer games caused 10% of nightmares in boys, twice as much as in girls who had only 5%. Boys watch significantly more TV than girls do in Sweden possibly because they are targeted more by television programs. First-year students had TV-related nightmares occur most often; although there is no distinction between boys and girls regarding nightmares. Boys also play more video games than girls do in both years; first-year girls play video games twice as often as boys do. Interestingly enough, first-year boys have both more nightmares and pleasant dreams than the other three age groups after playing video games and after watching TV. TV and video games caused a significant amount more pleasant dreams than nightmares in all age groups. Ignoring age, TV has a stronger effect on dreams in general disregarding whether it was a nightmare or a pleasant dream. (Van den Bulck, 2004) Even though older children and children of older parents fell asleep later and mostly woke up earlier than their counterparts, sleep quality remained the same. Sleep schedule is best estimated with the age of children and their parents and sleep quality was measured with the parents education and family stress. (Sadeh, Raviv Gruber, 2000) Foulkes (1982) found in dreams of children ages 3 to 15 years that developmental changes in their dreams imitated their actual emotional and cognitive changes. Children of median age had adult-like dreaming and older childrens dreams differences were from lifestyle differences. Since children are still developing during preteen years, dream content is changing at the same time (Foulkes, 1982, 1999; Foulkes et al., 1990; Strauch, 2005; Strauch Lederbogen, 1999) until it stabilizes after late adolescence (Domhoff, 1996). Foulkes (1982) study of children showed that it was only around that age that their dreams began to have dreams on a higher intellectual level as adults. With age, children report longer dreams that involve more emotions and thinking (Foulkes, 1999; Punamaki, 1998). Older children had more bizarre dreams. Age might not directly influence the prominence of nightmares. Children of different ages are treated differently by each other and by adults. They feel different levels of responsibilities and put tasks in different orders of importance. Gender Males predominate in mens dreams, while males and females appear equally in womens dreams (Strauch and Lederbogen 1999; Domhoff, 1996; Hall Van de Castle, 1966). Avila-White, Schneider, and Domhoff (1999) conducted a study with twelve and thirteen year-olds and found that boys dreams differed from girls in the same ways mens dreams differed from womens in Hall and Van de Castles (1966) study with young adults; girls dreams contained an equal proportion of male and female characters in their dream as in womens dreams, and boys had an excess of male characters like in mens dreams. The male/female character ratio increased with age in girls; the seventeen- and eighteen-year-old girls had a higher male/female ratio than the younger groups (Oberst, Charles, Chamarro, 2005). The children in both Crugnola et al. (2008), and Giudicis (2008) and Salines (1999) studies also show that the most significant differences between men and women are similar to those found in preadolescents, like agg ressive/friendly interactions and male/female percentage. Males are more likely to report physical aggression in dreams (Oberst, Charles, Chamarro, 2005; Hall, et al, 1982), while women are more often victims of aggression (Saline, 1999; Domhoff, 1996) and have more introspective aggression, depression, and solution-seeking (Punamaki et al, 2005; Schredl, Sahin, Schafer, 1998). Children encounter more aggression, express more aggression, and come across more hardship than adults in their dreams (Hall and Domhoff, 1963; Domhoff, 1996). The youngest boys had a higher level of frequency and severity of receiving aggression in their dreams (Oberst, Charles, Chamarro, 2005). Strauch and Lederbogen (1999) found children to be victims in their dreams, while in waking life, they are the aggressors. Vulnerability, dependency, and fear of aggression could account for younger children having more aggression in their dreams than in those of older children, especially for young boys, who tend have more exposure to aggression than girls. More aggressi ve exposure, specifically in preadolescent boys, leads to more aggressive content in dreams (Achenbach Rescorla, 2007). The children with aggressive personalities were more prone to having aggressive personalities in their dreams, and children with unaggressive personalities had unaggressive personalities in their dreams. Also, women who do not work and stay at home have more dreams fitting the pattern for females, while women who work have dreams that follow a male pattern (Lortie-Lussier et al., 1992; Lortie-Lussier, Schwab, De Koninck, 1985). Dream content of males and females imitate the pattern of the social roles they have (Schredl, Sahin, Schafer, 1998). Foulkes (1982) studied positive social interactions among teenagers and found less negativity in their dreams. Avila-White, Schneider, and Domhoffs (1999) teenagers in study had more aggression than Hall and Van de Castles (1966) young adults; girls had a higher friendliness per character than did the women, while boys had lower friendliness per character than men. Boys have more aggressive interactions than girls (Crugnola et al., 2008). Nightmare frequency was significantly higher in girls than in boys, a finding explained by girls heightened dream recall frequency (Schredl et al., 2008). The tone of TV watched was not related to the emotional tone of the following nights dream; however, negative evening mood caused emotional dream to be negative, more pronounced in girls than in boys. Six- to eight-year-old boys could recall dreams better than the ten to twelve year old boys (Foulkes et al., 1967). The discrepancy in nightmare frequency, female/male ratio, presence of aggressive interactions, etc. could be a result of environmental factors. People put different pressures on girls as opposed to on boys; they set different expectations for each. Conclusion The studies used were done with small sample populations and could probably have been expanded on with populations of other samples. Also, some studies had multiple dependent variables, and the innate causes like gender and age had a causal relationship with the increase or decrease of nightmares. A single study determined that age, TV, and gender are all factors that caused a change in nightmares, making it difficult to see which is the initial cause. The innate factors seem to be caused by the sociocultural factors. Boys are exposed to more aggression and in turn have more aggression in their dreams because the way their parents treat them or what their teachers and peers expect of them. Girls have more depression because what society imposes on them. They fear becoming ugly, fat, or unwanted; therefore, these factors are incorporated in their nightmares; they face more emotional aggression than actual physical aggression. Age might have an influence based on the fact that older children may watch scarier TV shows or movies and younger children in normal cases fear losing their parents, their main caretakers. Innate factors for nightmares are less innate than they seem as they are caused by the childrens environment.

Safe Alternative to Toxic Chemicals Used in Agriculture :: Environment Environmental Pollution Preservation

Safe Alternative to Toxic Chemicals Used in Agriculture    "Let the earth bring forth vegetation: every kind of plant that bears seed and every kind of fruit tree on earth that bears fruit with its seed in it. ‘And so it happened: the earth brought forth every kind of plant that bears seed and every kind of fruit tree on earth that bears fruit with its seed in it. God saw how good it was’" (Genesis 1:11-12). The world once consisted of a "Garden of Eden" where all was good and pure. Weather or not you believe in the Catholocists theory of how the earth was created is irrelevant. What we do know from research, technology, and tradition among cultures is that there was a period of time, in the beginning of time, where productivity did not rely on the "necessities" of a modern world. Although the world of technology has improved many aspects of the lives of humans and other fortunate creatures on this earth, it is also causing the destruction and extinction of other entities. The good earth that once occupied the land of this existing world is one of the unfortunate recipients of tragedy caused by the advancements of the improving world we live in. We live in an environment that is altered in every way by man. Every piece of material used each day is contaminated from humans trying to "improve" the normal lifestyle. This community we live in is no longer a natural one due to the products being used and the food being processed. Through the destruction of man, by man, an increase of deaths by serious illness has expanded. Humans should have reason to question the causes of these fatalities. The solution to this problem needs to be sought. It is pertinent that we educate ourselves and take interest in what is happening to the earth in order to ensure our future. The first goal that needs to be met is to determine and evaluate the chemicals that exist in the agricultural environment. Certain criteria such as evaluating statistics of illness and death caused by these chemicals, how government officials are regulating pesticidal use, and establishing alternative methods of living need to be included when evaluating this dilemma. The Industrial Revolution although a time of immense prosperity for the United States brought such inventions and chemicals to society that changed the world forever. The chemical and pesticide use on crops after World War I also contributed to the decline of the quality of

India and Future of Asia Essay

Introduction- As the world increasingly acknowledges India’s rising power status, India is adapting its foreign policy to meet the international challenges of the 21st century and to increase its global influence and status. For many years, India took pride in its role as leader of the Non-Aligned Movement and viewed itself as the primary defender of the rights of the less developed countries. In the past few years, New Delhi has expanded its strategic vision, most noticeably in Asia, and has broadened the definition of its security interests. While India has focused special attention on cultivating ties to the United States since 2000, the overall thrust of its foreign policy has been to seek geopolitical partnerships in multiple directions to serve its national interests. It has pursued special relationships with the U.S., Russia, China, and key European countries. In June 2006, Indian Defense Minister Pranab Mukherjee (the current foreign minister) described India’s foreign policy: â€Å"Premised on the twin policies of no extra-territorial ambition and no export of ideology, India seeks the peaceful resolution of all disputes.† He went on to say that â€Å"[s]imultaneous improvement in ties with the U.S., EU, and Russia and Southeast Asia, Japan, Korea, and China demonstrates that for the first time in its diplomatic history, India is forging significant strategic ties with both West and East Asia.† Broadening Indian engagement across the globe, especially in Asia, is in the U.S. interest and should be further encouraged. Washington’s and New Delhi’s strategic perceptions are increasingly converging, and there is tremendous opportunity to cooperate and coordinate in this dynamic region. Because India is a fellow democracy without hegemonic interests and with a propensity to seek peaceful resolution of conflicts, its increased economic and political involvement in Asia will help to further overall U.S. goals in the region. India’s involvement in Asia will help both to ensure that one country does not dominate the area and to encourage stability in a region that will take center st age in the 21st century. The period since India adopted the new economic paradigm and the LEP has witnessed substantial transformation of its global relations, including with the rest of Asia. This has primarily been due to the recognition of India’s increasing capacities to address its developmental challenges, and the potential of its soon to be USD 1000 billion economy to provide substantial commercial opportunities. India has grown at an annual rate of nearly 6 % per annum since 1980. Contrary to perceptions, India has been able to sustain high levels of growth without significantly increasing income inequality8. India has no parallel in managing relatively peaceful and democratic transfer of political and economic power among different social classes. It thus appears that India’s growth experience has been inclusive, though there is no room for complacency. Compared to East Asia, India’s growth strategy has relied relatively more on domestic markets, consumption rather than investments, decentralized entrepreneurial rather than state-led development9, and on financial and capital market intermediation in allocation of savings10 (Das, 2006; Huang, 2006, Morgan Stanley, 2006). India’s de-facto growth strategy is consistent with bottoms-up diagnostic approach to reforms advocated by Rodrik. However as India begins to pursue policies leading to higher savings and investments,11 and as the role of external sector increases12, differences in India’s growth characteristics on the one hand and those of East Asia may narrow13. India is also attempting to develop a robust diversified manufacturing base14 (Bradsher, 2006); and modernize its agricultural and plantation sectors. The emphasis is thus on creating a more balanced and resilient economy, and increasing India’s share in the world economy. India’s growth strategy and trajectory thus provide an avenue for global risk diversification for businesses and investors from around the world. India ranked 43rd on the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) moving up two places from last year. India scored well in indicators relating to innovation and sophistication of firm operations as well as in adoption of technologies from abroad. However weaknesses remain in the large budget deficit, (about 9 per cent of GDP), inadequate infrastructure investments, low level of efficiency in delivery of governance services, and a need for wider access to and improvements in quality of health and educational services. India in the changing scenario- So many things is changing in India. The launching of the manufacturing industry, the new importance given agriculture, the good, even excellent, level of scientific training, openings in the financial sector†¦ all generate optimism and international interest in a country with the possibility of achieving the highest growth rate in the coming 50 years. India enjoys this potential despite problems like monumental bureaucracy and lack of infrastructure. Meanwhile, democracies and a smoother path of development than China’s appear to be holding possible social agitation at bay. The novelty is not so much the policy of the new government of the Congress party: in power for just a year, it has hardly had the time to implement any real changes. The rampant India which emerged from the rule of defeated Nationalist party, Janata, has certainly not disappeared; thanks to use of English, this India focused on the services sector, primarily computers and also international de-localization of computerization and call centers. However, such a model is no longer viewed as an end goal to reach in the future. Even in India, euphoria and riches even excesses generated by the so-called new economy for a few to enjoy, have given way to a realization that the â€Å"old† economy is still relevant after all. International trends especially the lack of energy and increase in prices of petroleum and other raw materials have in fact revealed how the famous â€Å"light† development, based primarily on factory chimneys, is limited in its incomes evanescence saving on, and at the end of the day, it is immaterial. This new awareness has led to an overall change of direction. This means a new emphasis on: manufacturing industries, like textile industries; primary sources, like energy; exportation of certain raw materials, like iron minerals. And certainly not least in importance, agriculture has today become once again the focus of attention, that old Cinderella of the Indian economy, neglected and portrayed as the legacy of an archaic society, although a large proportion of the population still depends on it. Today, it has been recast as a strong point of some export industries like the textile sector, which can make the most of local availability of cotton to successfully counter the near-monopoly China enjoys in this market. In this overall change in direction, the government, for its part, is seeking to regain lost ground in comparison with Asian giants, China and Japan at least one year in guaranteeing energy sources for the industrial sector. In these very weeks, a diplomatic offensive is under way to ensure resources of petrolium and other raw materials wherever possible, not only in traditional and logical choices of Indian territory, but also in places both geographically and culturally distant, like Latin America. Re-orientation towards the manufacturing industry is certainly a consequence of changing trends at international level, but it also falls within the strategy of the Congress Party currently in power, which still enjoys a strong working-class base. Anyhow, the traditional style of industry, typical of a socialist and working class party, holds several winning cards. The new stimulus in the manufacturing industry is a key factor in determining the future of all societal structures. On the one hand, it provides more interesting and better paid jobs, on the other it calls for more qualified human resources, for training, ongoing commitment and improved tuition in economics, maths and computers. All this requires secondary and tertiary education systems which ensure proper scientific and technological teaching. So there is more than low salaries behind the meteoric growth spurt of India and China. The secret probably lies in the swift upgrading of training and tough selection, based on merit, of students. This is confirmed by the preference shown by American enterprises and research institutes for graduates from the Indian Institute of Technology. Indian excellence in mathematics has always been well known the numbers of the decimal system used for calculation are of Indian origin and more recently, Indians have now been shining at physics too. In view of all this, few would imagine that the expansion of manufacturing in India would be limited to the textile and computer industries alone. Already today, India is promoting itself, with high hopes of success, as a base for the de-localization of strategic industries like aerospace. In this sector, India can count on the importance of avionics, that is, of electronic control systems. India could exploit its dominance in the computer sector, as well as the low cost of a workforce which is highly qualified in science and engineering. Development opportunities are considerable even in the telecommunications sector, in the automobile industry especially in the spare parts sector, after foreign participation of up to 100% of investment was liberalized in 2002 and in pharmaceutical che mistry, as well as food industry. Indian economic growth is not due to external factors, a consequence of general Asia-wide expansion. Rather it is a gradual process over a long period, even if not everyone is involved. Dalits, that is pariahs, are still marginalized. The growth rate of India before this global slowdown was nearly 8%. With such growth rates, in 2022, the overall size of the Indian economy will surpass that of the UK, its former colonial master. According to research undertaken by Deutsche Bank, in 2020 India and China would have left Japan behind at fourth place, while the US would still take first place as the largest economy. Compared to China, India’s economic growth rate, although considerable, has not flourished so much in recent years, and it is inferior by around 20%. However, India and Malaysia will surpass China in terms of economic expansion rates within the next 15 years, most of all thanks to demographic expansion, to the increased size of the population’s working-age bracket. While the China’s average growth rate will be around 5.2% per year, that of India will be 5 .5% and that of Malaysia, 5.4%. So China will soon have to pay in economic terms for its one-child policy. According to Goldman Sachs, India’s economic growth will beat China’s from 2015 onwards. Dominic Wilson of Goldman Sachs said: â€Å"India has the potential to produce the highest growth rate in the next 50 years with an average of 5% per year over that entire period. The growth of China is predicted to fall below 5% around 2020.† However, India is meeting obstacles along the road towards growth. First because large sectors of the population, not only dalits but also peasants, are cut out And in the long term, development along two tracks of very different speeds is not sustainable: the risk is that profound and endemic social exclusion from new-found wellbeing will take root in unmanageable massive cities, a situation which would have clearly explosive potential. Another tough obstacle in the way of development is the imposing fiscal deficit of the public sector, both central and local. According to the International Monetary Fund, this deficit, at around 10% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) puts economic development at risk both because of insufficient fiscal collection as well as increased public debt, a carryover from previous decades. This constitutes a real risk because the financial system, and especially banks, are naturally obliged to favor investment in public debt stocks, which are considered, rightly or wrongly, to be more secure. This even if lessons could have been learnt from Argentina, although there were differences between that case and India’s. The end result is that savings are not pumped into productive activities and the capital market then lacks liquid cash. The state of the Indian stock exchange has so far been determined by decisions of big foreign institutional investors, the funds of specialized stocks investment in emergent countries. Certainly the 26 October decision of the Central Bank to keep the discount rate at 6%, the lowes t since 1973, is a positive one for industrial development. Also positive was the recent government decision to allow, in the near future, investment in shares of up to 5% of the value of the patrimony of private pension funds. However, these measures are insufficient to maintain sustainable development in the long-term. Besides, the current debts of India’s pension system constitute a hidden risk, although, as in Europe, they are about to be shared, not accumulated, meaning that future generations will be called upon to square the bills of those who work today. But, as in Europe, if demographic growth is stalled, the commitments, or better the lies, of the past will eventually impact on all society. Faced with estimates which foresee that future pension commitments will be increased by around 40% of the GDP, measures which the Indian government apparently intends to propose are too timid. Yet another obstacle standing in the path of Indian economic development is an endemic lack of infrastructure: roads and highways, bridges, airports and ports require important investment, but they are not completely compatible with the current state of public finances. Other urgent and hefty investments regard energy production and distribution plants. In these infrastructures, as well as for oil refineries, it would be possible to resort to private and foreign investment. However, complications caused by electricity tariffs established for political reasons have not permitted such a solution so far. The unresolved problem is guarantees of remuneration of capital , Enron, which went bankrupt some years ago. Such incidents are proof of the intricate web of powers and the widespread rivalry between local authorities and central government, which has a paralytical impact on global finance which deals in such transactions. Not least in this list of woes are health and education problems in rural areas. Contradicting aspects are inherent in India’s health system. On the one hand, it offers pockets of excellence in some private sectors, which have served to draw patients from all over the region to Indian clinics. In such structures, it is possible to conduct operations comparable to those in western countries and at a vastly inferior price. On the other hand, however, the total cost of health spending does not exceed 0.9% of the GDP, much less, even half what other countries at a similar stage of development would spend. It is this aspect which best illustrates the contradiction between optimism engendered by economic market growth and a group of significant social indicators. The bottom line is that although India’s development process is certainly more smooth than China’s its income redistribution curve is evolving in a more uniform manner and the middle classes are increasing in size and also in income per capita much remains to be done so that the marginalized are not excluded from the country’s growth. Two factors certainly confirm the initial optimism about India’s future and they guide estimates on its economic growth. One initial reason for optimism comes from the existence of valid internal financial markets, more because of their structures and regulations based on British standards than for their size. According to Richard Batty of Standard Life Investments, the balance of economic global power will change radically in the next 50 years and the stock market could provide an average annual yield of 10% in this period. The second reason for optimism is to be found in Indian political institutions, which although far from perfect, are nonetheless able to allow for changes in power. This offers a precious guarantee of stability which China, for example, cannot offer. Despite their limitations, especially at local level, Indian political institutions appear better able than their Chinese counterparts to better reconcile various sectors of the population. Triangle of India, China and Pakistan- Indian policy-makers have been facing a great challenge today to construct a peace-oriented but pragmatic long-term policy framework in an atmosphere where its neighbour Pakistan is hell bent for MAD (mutual assured destruction) persuasions and China is modernizing itself fast with DF-31 and DF-41 missile programmes along with MIRV (multiple independent re-entry vehicle) potentials. The shadow of the ghost of cold war days are still moving around and the principles of real politik are significantly being included in inter-national agenda. Recently held International Defence Exhibition And Seminar (IDEAS 2000 Pakistan) between 14th to 17th November at Karachi with its theme â€Å"Arms For Peace† and China as a significant participant could be perceived as catalytic to the rise of arms race in the South Asian region. On 17th November, Sonmiani Tactical Firing Range in Pakistan witnessed an unprecedented show of arms and ammunitions in its f ull range. Air Officer Commanding of the Southern Air Command Air Marshal Parvez Iqbal Mirza, while boasting the might of Pakistan defence, said to the attending guests that â€Å"all Pakistan-made weapons and ammunitions, which was of NATO standard, could not be displayed at the demonstration and only selective weapons would be shown off†. Few remarkable demonstrations at the exhibition were – Super Mashshak Trainer (produced at Pakistan Aeronautical Complex, Kaura), Karakoram-8 advanced jet trainer (co-produced by Pakistan and China), MirageIIIs, mobility display of Al-Khalid and Al-Zarrar main battle tank (a joint venture of Pakistan, China and Ukraine), T-59 IIM tanks, T-85-2APS, Anza MK-11 missiles, Ghauri and Shaheen missiles. Even the Pakistani sources confirm that never before Pakistan had put on display its full range of military might. And unlike any other initiative of Pakistan in the past, these military demonstrations were wedded to â€Å"show of strength† configured against India. Also, it was a psychological display of Pakistan’s claim for military self-confidence in the wake of mounting international pressure on Pakistan, especially from the U.S, to go slow on military hardware and to stop abetting the terrorist groups. In such upcoming adverse condition, Pakistan while on the one hand has been trying to reinforce its confidence amongst the Islamic states, on the other hand, apart from the clandestine supports from China, it has been pressing for new strategic and military partnerships. Ever since its coming into existence, the fundamental goal of Pakistan’s foreign and defence policies has been of â€Å"defiance† of international norms and values and to co-opt the tools that destabilise India’s territorial integrity and domestic tranquility. Defiance of international norms means violating the principles of non-interference in other country’s domestic affairs, or for that matter to launch attack on other’s territory. The nature of Pakistani involvement in Afghanistan during and after the cold war has always been a subject of international criticism and condemnation. Further, Pakistani statesmen and academia for the reasons only known to them are still justifying al l previous five misadventures of Pakistan against India. More so, Pakistan is being labeled as supporter to several terrorist outfits round the globe, and considered as a hot pursuant of weapons of mass destruction. Pakistan’s missile and nuclear development programmes are being increasingly encouraged by the Chinese politics towards the regional strategic triangle involving Pakistan, India and China. Subsequently, the regional adversaries not separately but jointly against India are raising the prospect of an arms race breaking out between India and China. Of course Pakistan has been acting and responding in a manner that definitely exceeds its strategic defence requirements. Hence, it is imperative to the Indian policy-makers to comprehensively understand, analyse and foresee the complexities and contours of Chinese international and regional behaviours. Evoking a sense of â€Å"mystery and fear† in international relations has long been a significant foreign policy characteristic of China. Historically, it is an aggressive and expansionist state. And in the post cold-war world, with regard to South Asian security environment China is likely to take moves on two basic premises – one related to the Sino-U.S relations, and the other directly linked to India. First, while advocating for multi-polar world order, China desires to become a potential alternative centre of power in any given international system. For this reason, despite glaring limitations in technological advancements in China, they inadvertently find the clash of interests with America at almost all the present and prospective conflict areas of the world. South Asia is definitely not any exception to it. The recent improvements in U.S-India ties and the increasing gulf between the U.S and Pakistan are being seen as direct threat to the Chinese predominance in this region. Subsequently the mutual distrust and misperceptions between China and the U.S.A, on the one hand, directly affect the Sino-U.S relations and, on the other hand, indirectly but substantially it would affect the South Asian regional security configurations. It may further provide scope for Pakistan to take more strides towards misadventures against India. Second, China desires to remain the sole â€Å"power† state in the Asian region. The rapid growth in Indian economy, especially its IT sector, together with the convincing progress in Indian defence advancements pose direct threat to the Chinese dominance in the region. Whether India is being referred directly or not in the Chinese world propositions, it is a fact today that India matters a lot to the Chinese strategic thinkers. Now, it is understandable by several means that Beijing could face considerable, if not devastating, reaction if anything done undesirable or against the vital interest of New Delhi. After all, future possibility of ‘engagement’ or ‘containment’ depends mainly in the development of India’s strategic build-ups. Chinese moves to contain the Indian strength are based on its policy of â€Å"encirclement of India†. Long back in 1983 U.S intelligence agencies had reported that China had transferred a complete nuclear weapon design of 25 KT nuclear bomb to Pakistan and had been helping to Pakistani centrifuge programme. Again in 1986, it was revealed that China sold Tritium (that is used to achieve fusion in a nuclear device) to Pakistan and Chinese scientists assisted Pakistan with the production of weapons-grade fissile material (Uranium) at A.Q.Khan laboratory, Kahuta. Further, in 1991, Wall Street Journal reported that Pakistan was buying nuclear-capable M-11 missiles from China. In addition, apart from the controversial Chinese sale of 5000 ring magnets, China has also been involved in transferring M-9 missiles to Pakistan. Thus, China has long been recklessly providing Pakistan with nuclear technology, conventional weaponry and missile systems to keep Pakistan’s ambitions high against Indian defence preparedness. Subsequently, by keeping the Pakistan-India hostility alive, China acts on the two-pronged foreign policy towards India. Further, towards its policy of â€Å"encirclement of India†, China has also established a radar base in Coco island (belonging to Myanmar) that is only a gunshot away from the Indian Andmand and Nicobar islands. More so, recently the Indian Coast Guards that raised apprehensions across the Indian line of defence interrupted a Chinese trawler fitted with modern electronic surveillance equipments off the Indian shores. In addition, it has been widely reported of Chinese move of deployment of nuclear forces in Tibet and other bordering provinces and the advancements towards Chinese DG-25 missiles are being specially planned as counter move to Indian development of Agni II and III missiles. It has also been reported that a further upgrade of Hong Niano-3 (HN-3) is now being developed with range increased to 2.500Km for ship, submarine and aircraft launch. India’s motivation towards its strategic defence build-up flies in the face of conventional wisdom with recently achieve d vigour of deterring the Chinese threat of â€Å"encirclement of India†. And the proclamation of the Indian Defence Minister George Fernandes just after the launch of Agni II that â€Å"with this launch, no one, from anywhere, will dare to threaten us from now†, wisely stages India at a considerable level across the spectrum of rivaling strengths in the South Asian region. Although Indian moves for weaponisation programmes are primarily driven by the combined hostile attitudes of its neighbours, this may further lead Pakistan to more destructive engagements against India. The present environment of this region is so complicated, that even after a decade since the end of cold war, the western and Indian scholars have been facing difficulty in coming out with any definitive future trend in the South Asian strategic arrangements. In such volatile circumstances, the Standing Committee on Defence in its Report projects the level of Indian defence readiness as â€Å"The Kargil conflict of 1999 has been referred as wake-up call†. It includes the long -term vision and planning for enhancing the defence capabilities. No doubt, the real and immediate need for India today is a solid back up of conventional hardware. Priorities are to be delimited for the speedy acquisition of defence equipment and technologies. Overestimation of indigenous potential in a given period of time may lead to further delays and might cost wastage of valuable resources. Areas of strengths and weaknesses are to be carefully drawn and closely monitored for effective conventional warfare in time of need. No doubt, it is proud to hold ‘minimum credible nuclear deterrence’, but at the same time ‘ignorance’ or ‘negligence’ on its ‘command and control’ mechanism part may prove fatal for the nation. Only an effective inter-linkage within C-3I (Command, Control, Communication and Intelligence) could really boost the inner strength in holding the â€Å"nuclear button†, and to maintain some level of ascertained minimum deterrence capability. As far as dealing with international environment is concerned, tough task ahead for India is to maintain and build better India-U.S relations and to re-strengthen the hands of cooperation with Russia. It is always preferable for India to go for constructive engagement with China along with other interested partners than to seek Pakistani engagement only due to domestic compulsions. Last but not least, at first, to have a healthy relationship with China, India needs to break the mental blockade of its past experience. After all, now onwards India is a declared nuclear weapon power state with an emerging strong economy.

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Autism Spectum Disorders Definition - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 6 Words: 1741 Downloads: 7 Date added: 2019/02/14 Category Medicine Essay Level High school Tags: Autism Essay Did you like this example? There have been many medical advancements through research and technology. Unfortunately, there are still many unanswered questions when it comes to those who a neurotypical and those who are atypical, particularly younger individuals who have been diagnosed with a developmental disability. Throughout this paper, I will be using past findings and research to define Autism Spectrum Disorders, contrast milestones that neurotypical children and children with autism, and mention a few options for families who have a child with this disorder. Developmental psychology is one of many branches, in which there are many different definitions, however a similar tenet. Through the different developmental theories, it is agreeable that the majority of everyone that development consists of a series of changes that results on interactions that vary between biological and environmental factors (Whitley, 2009). The first few years of childrens learning and development are crucial. For neurotypical children, what are the developmental milestones and timeline? Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Autism Spectum Disorders Definition" essay for you Create order According to Wallace (2018), the term developmental disability is used to describe multiple disorders that can affect different domains of a child life such as their cognitive, language, and behavioral functioning. Specifically, Autism Spectrum Disorders are disabilities that can cause challenges with social and communication that vary with functioning levels (Wallace, 2018). This paper focuses on neurological development disorder called Autism. Autism can negatively affect a childs ability to communicate and interact socially. Those who have been diagnosed with Autism could show trouble in different areas, including emotion. For instance, children with Autism will not be able to communicate whether they are sad, mad, happy, etc (Wallace, 2018). Developmental Milestone The developmental milestone has been established in different domains, such as fine and gross motor, problem-solving, social, and language (Scharf, Scharf Stroustrup, 2016). During the first month of birth, the infant starts the attachment and security phase. Between six and eight weeks, the infant should be able to make appropriate responses such as cooing. At the age of four months, the infant will reach the milestones of rolling back and forth, shake objects and reach for things as well. When five and six months roll around, infants should be able to sit up, feed themselves with easy food, and become more aware of strangers. By nine months the infant should be very mobile and active when playtime and socializing (Schard, Scharf Stroustrup, 2016). A child can have delays in all ranges, which is own as global delay, which is defined as having delays in all areas of development. Those who show a delay in the developmental area does vary based on the individual. During the neonatal period of an infant, the delay might show lack of responding to loud sounds or the indifference between the infant and caregiver. An infant will show a delay around four months that has the possibility of being unable to make appropriate sounds, inability to roll. Those infants who are around the age of 6 months might not be able to smile, laugh, or express emotions with caregivers. At nine months, the infant will still not be able to be active and mobile and will show a disinterest with other babies their age (Scharf, Scharf Stroustrup, 2016). Those infants who may have a delay may not be able to respond to loud sounds during the neonatal period. According to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (2011), some few developmental delays include language delay, loss of speech, reduced responsiveness of expressions, rejection of cuddles, and absent awareness of personal space or interest with peer socialization. Those who have delays also tend to have repetitive behavior. Children like to have a daily schedule and tend to be very distraught if something messes up their schedule (Wallace 2018). Imitation is also a very crucial component of development during the first years of life. During the second year, imitation of sounds, gestures, and actions should increase as part of the process of learning about the world and negotiating social relationships. One study compared Autism Spectrum Disorders and development which showed that those who have delays in imitation might suggest something that could lead to social or communication deficits (Young, Rogers, Hutman, Rozga, Sigmanv Ozonoff, 2011). However, even though there is some consistency with these results from research it is still unclear on whether these developmental symptoms can be reliably diagnosed due to the young age of the participants. Red Flags A con to a developmental delay includes worry from parents. There are many reasons as to why a child could have delays in the developmental area. Children do not reach milestones at the exact same age as other children. Everyone varies when it comes to developments. Research has mentioned some red flags that is a reason for concern. These concerns can not only come from children but also from the parents as well. Previous data has shown that those caregivers who are unable to recognize infants cues, struggling with a disorder of their own, or decrease in opportunities for their child to play and learn attribute red flags for developmental delays of their children (Scharf, Scharf Stroustrup, 2016). There are many different reasons as to why an individual might show developmental delays. Past research has shown that prematurity, malformations in the cerebral area, chromosomal disorders, infections, and other diseases might be contributed to developmental delays (Premature infants are the leading cause of neurodevelopmental disabilities in children. Research supports this by stating those infants who are born prematurely have a significantly higher risk of behavioral and learning delays when compared to infants who make are born full term ( Scharf, Scharf Stroustrup, 2016). These delays that are seen in premature infants include cognition, language, and social fields. There studies that hav e shown that preterm infants are one of the leading causes of neurodevelopmental disabilities in children. When compared to those who are carried full-term, there are significantly increased risk of behavior disorders and learning (Scharf, Scharf Stroustrup 2016). Diagnostics and Factors Autism is considered to be among the most heritable neuropsychiatric disorder. A study done in Denmark, Fin-land with twins found higher concordance for monozygotic twins than for dizygotic twin and estimated a heritability of greater than ninety percent for Autism. The concordance rates were higher when Autism Spectrum Disorder was considered in addition to the strict diagnosis of Autism. However, even though there were high heritability estimates, identification of the genes responsible for the disorder remains elusive. Also, there has been data that has supported chromosomal structural alterations, such as duplications or deletions of chromosomes that have been identified in three to five percent of autism subjects (Brkanas, Rasking King, 2018). There are two major theorists in developmental psychology. Piaget and Vygotsky are both highly influential. Piaget’s theory uses four stages of development, while Vygotskys theory focuses more on human interaction as a way of development (Smith, 2003). Both have had an impact on todays developmental fundamentals. The learning process and social life are known to impact a child developmental stages. As stated earlier, there have been many advancements in the medical world. Comparing to just twenty years ago, there are many tools that can be used for screening which is more beneficial to rapidly identify individuals for further evaluation. Families have the option to have their child screened. What is screening? According to Wallace (2018), screening is defined as the administration of a standardized tool that will help is a diagnostic evaluation to determine if that child has a developmental disorder. Even though it is the parents final choice on whether they make the decision to allow their child to be screen early, if the parents say ‘yes’ to screening and their child has an identified â€Å"positive† for a disorder they make that decisions to have a clearer diagnosis by using more comprehensive history, testing, and examinations (Scharf, Scharf Stroustrup, 2016) . The earlier delays are detected the more time for medical professionals to be able to provid e intervention services. Early screening for Autism is now becoming a standard clinical practice, so for those who decide to opt into these early screenings, can being earlier interventions and treatments. The standard for diagnosing Autism Spectrum Disorder is based on clinical history and patient observation performed by trained clinicians.In today’s time, there are many kinds of services that are available for those individuals who show developmental delays. There are new technological discoveries in the genetics of autism that are allowing medical professionals to look into different approaches for diagnosis and treatment. With children who show delays, there is a range of domains that might be affected by this delay. For example, domains in social, cognition, or motor skills will be affected and render the ability to play with other kids, communication impairment, etc. (Scharf, Scharf Stroustrup, 2016). Tools such as the Denver Developmental Screening Test, Ages Stages Questionnaires, and the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers are used by clinicians, each test used for specific assessments (Scharf, Scharf Stroustrup, 2016). There are also other diagnostic tools t hat can be used by trained clinicians. These structured diagnostic tools are the Autism Diagnostic Interview and the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (Brkanas, Raskind King, 2008). Children who do exhibit red flags are usually referred to as therapy. For example, those who show language delays can be sent to therapists that focus on speech and language such as speech pathologists. There are also options for children who show delays but have no known history of disorders can be referred to a genetic specialist to run different assessment and genetic testing (Scharf, Scharf Stroustrup, 2016). Basic goals for intervention services are to enhance the childs current development trajectory and reduce the potential for long-term disability. Past data has shown that those children who do receive early intervention are developing better than those who do not receive early intervention services, which showed improvement in cognition, social interaction, and communication skills (Wallace, 2018). Conclusion There are new technological discoveries in the genetics of Autism that are enabling different approaches to the diagnosis and treatment. Being able to fully emerge and understand the role of genetics, the approach to Autism will be altered forever. Autism is such a complex disorder that that with any of the still-emerging understanding of the different roles of genetic, environmental, and social domains that there will continue to undoubtedly affect diagnostic and treatment approaches. However, it is important to remember that although there are milestones that are used to determine developmental growth, if an individual does not meet that age-appropriate milestone that does not mean that they for certainty have a disability, the individual could easily be contributed to late development. ?

Addiction Counseling An Bright Future Essay - 1191 Words

Addiction Counseling: An Unfortunately Bright Future As a child, I was surrounded by drug and alcohol addiction. In fact, I didn’t realize this was even abnormal until I was nearly a teenager and saw that not all of my friends’ parents used illegal drugs on a regular basis or threw wild parties every weekend. It was unfortunate, but it was my reality. Being surrounded by addiction made me do everything that I could to stay away from drugs and other illegal substances. I saw the toll it had taken on my friends and family and wanted no part of it. I wondered for years if there was even anything that I could do to help the ones I loved as they battled their demons. Over a year ago, my younger brother was placed in the drug court program. I began to ask about the process, his meetings, I wanted to hear anything he would share. My wife was in a counseling program and began to talk about addiction counseling and it peaked my interest. I made an appointment to talk to the enrollment coordinator for the program and the wheels began to spin in my head. I began to feel like there might actually be a way for me to reach out to a population that I knew needed help and that I felt close to. It was then that I began to think that I might have a calling to be an addictions counselor and help people who battled the same demons as many of my friends and family. Addiction Counseling Defined According to the Association for Addiction Professionals (2016), addiction counselors areShow MoreRelatedBest Practices Of Service Delivery For Homeless Woman?981 Words   |  4 Pagestheir needs and preferences; the services are adjusted if their needs change over time. (â€Å"Permanent supportive housing: assessing the evidence†, 2014). In summary, the permanent supportive housing approach will provide homeless woman for a successful future. 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Woolworths Group Limited Operating in Australia †Free Samples

Question: Discuss about the Woolworths Group Limited Operating in Australia. Answer: Introduction The report is based on the company Woolworths Limited is a major Australian company that deals with supermarket or grocery store accounting for about 80 percent of the Australian market. The company particularly deals with fruit, vegetables, meat, magazines, DVD, beauty and health products, household products, stationery as well as baby and pet supplies. The corporate giant operates 1000 stores, 968 supermarkets and 19 additional convenience stores in Australia. The company aims at delivering best in value, convenience and quality for its customers. The company giant ensures that their sustainability approach has a significant impact on then community, environment and economy of the nation with a view to create a better future. Woolworths: Corporate Social Responsibility Corporate social responsibility (CSR) refers to the persisting commitment of an organization to exhibit ethical behavior and make significant contribution to the economic development along with an improvement in the quality of the life of the employees and their families (King and Thobela 2014). The corporate social responsibility of an organization requires it to focus on not only the economic development and welfare of its workforce but also to ensure welfare and development of the society and local community significantly. Corporate social responsibility at the Woolworths Group has always been about doing what is right. The company believes that profits and growth are not the only means to measure the success of the company. It significantly depends on the ways in which the operations of the organizations can have a reduced impact on the environment. The corporate giant strives ensure that integration of the financial performance of the company with non-financial criteria enhances the value for all the stakeholders and the Members. The company asserts the following corporate social responsibilities that it strives to achieve: To create a safe and comprehensive working environment for the employees and creating opportunities for them to outshine; To recognize the environmental impact on the value chain of the company and ensure to work with the service providers, suppliers thus, making innovations to make a healthy planet; To shift to a globular economy and source environmentally sustainable commodities thus responding to climate change; The brand products of the company are free from genetically modified ingredients; Carrolls four-part definition of CSR defines CSR of an organization as a responsibility that encompasses the legal, economic, ethical and philanthropic expectations of the society from a business at any point of time (Comyns 2015). These four responsibilities laid down the foundation or an infrastructure that describes the nature of the responsibilities of any business towards the society of which such business is an essential part. In order to assess the Woolworths CSR based on the Carrolls four-part definition, the responsibilities carried out by the company are discussed below: Economic responsibilities According to the definition, it is essential for a company to have an economic responsibility towards the society that has enabled the company to sustain and develop. Although an economic expectation cannot be perceived as a social responsibility at the first place but a society requires a business organization to sustain themselves which is only possible by being profitable. Profits are essential for rewarding the owners or the investors and for business growth by reinvesting the profits back into the business (Comyns 2015). The strong financial indicators of Woolworths Limited signify that the company comprehends the importance of their economic obligations. According to the Woolworths Holding Limited (WHL) Integrated report of 2014, WHL posted a profit of Rs 3.86 billion before tax up 20.1% year on year for the financial year while its earnings per share (EPS) were as high as 356c/share. These numbers are not mere numbers on a report but are numbers that have been actually translated into return capital to the shareholders in the form of share value or dividends and to the employees in the form of salaries and stock options. The remaining profit was served to safeguard its stakeholders that were financially dependent. Legal responsibilities Legal responsibilities refer to the responsibilities of a business to fulfill its legal obligations and societys codification of wrong and right. Laws are rules that are implemented and created on a national, international or local level, which regulates the conduct of the company in relation to employment, corruption, environmental protection, product safety and human rights (Wu et al. 2015). It is the fundamental duty of an organization to comply with national, local international laws to avert legal consequences and safeguard the future business operations. Legal obligations of a company are implemented to safeguard stakeholder of businesses including the consumers, suppliers, shareholders, public, suppliers, and employees as well as safeguard the business from financial instability and unethical business practices. Woolworths Group being a public company aims at maintaining clean legal profile and carries out all its legal obligations. The WHL Integrated Report is evidence that establishes that the company fulfills its legal obligations and is consistent with the national, local and international laws applicable to the business operations. In the annual report of the company, WHL strongly supports its commitment to fulfill legal requirements and the legal framework that has been stipulated under the Integrated Reporting Council. Ethical Responsibilities Most of the societies expect that though fulfilling the legal requirements is essential but it is not sufficient. It is equally important for a company to conduct their business operations in an ethical manner. Part of the ethical expectation is that businesses will be receptive to the spirit of law instead of just the letter of law. Another significant aspect of ethical expectation from businesses is that the business operations are conducted in an objective and in a fairly manner even under circumstances when laws do not provide any course of action for the organization (Corkery, Mikalsen and Allan 2017). Woolworths Group maintains a value-based approach towards the company and its wide ethical behavior. The company is a global leader in retail brands that draws attraction of people who are concerned about the innovation, quality, sustainability and value. The company envisions that the understanding of the society is leading towards a rapid and constantly progressive future and in order to meet the desire of the people who are concerned about the ethical practice and sustainability, a company must be ethical in its operational conduct. The fact that the company is ethical in its practice is evident from the several International Awards that the company has received for its CSR initiatives. Philanthropic Responsibilities Corporate philanthropy includes the discretionary or voluntary activities where discretionary activities refer to the desirable yet voluntary acts of the company that significantly contributes to the welfare of the community (Wu et al. 2015). These activities take the form of charity and aim to provide resources associated with the business to the society for improving quality of life. These philanthropic contributions go beyond the legal or ethical requirement or something that is beyond the societal expectations. The contributions aim at giving back to stakeholders either in the form of money, time or other resources. These discretionary activities not only uplift the community but also compliment the brand from the perspective of the stakeholders and the customers thus fulfilling employee satisfaction. Woolworths has a significant impact on the societal wellbeing as the company considers trust and valuing customers as fundamental to customer satisfaction. The company strives to move towards a circular economy due to which the company aims at improving their recyclability of their brand packaging and contribute to circular economy. To play their part, the company has reduced use of plastic bags. The company is partner with the Redcycle where soft plastics are collected and recycled into furniture. Stakeholders The company includes Board of Directors and Leadership team as its internal stakeholders and the employees, suppliers, customers, logistic companies as its external stakeholders. The Australian government is the primary stakeholder of the company. In addition, the other stakeholders include media, franchisees, unions organized business, community interest groups and NGOs. Environment The core values of the Woolworths Limited are embedded within the culture of the organization. From its contribution in recycled plastic bags to its ethical sourcing initiatives, the company has been proved a company that not only permitted its progressive company values from different situations but also implements the core values to fortify the culture, business philanthropy and strategy of the organization (Corkery, Mikalsen and Allan 2017). The company is a proud member of the Consumer Goods Forum (CGF) and is a signatory to the CGF Deforestation Resolution of 2010 to achieve net zero deforestation by 2020. Further, since the customers require more sustainable products and independently certified products, in FY17, the brand products of the company were sold containing 28,883 tons of coffee, sugar and chocolate that were certifiably sustainable. Furthermore, the company has produced almost 880 million paper catalogues that were made using sustainable resources. The health and beauty products under the companys own brand are produced significantly considering the welfare of the animals by not testing the products on animals. The company has been supporting Childrens Hospital Foundation to safeguard lives of children, especially, the sick children and has successfully raised $50million. Further, it has been associated with White Ribbons work through Dan Murphy and BWS in FY17 to prevent violence against women in New South Wales. The Chief Legal Officer and Company Secretary and the Audit, Risk management and Compliance Committee of Woolworths limited is accountable for monitoring and reporting the performance and effectiveness of the business operations. The Board of the company confers these responsibilities upon the Committee. In regards to the auditing of the company, the company has an independent internal audit function (Group Internal Audit) that is managed by the Risk and Assurance team. The external audit is conducted by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu which is subjected to review and monitoring thrice every year. Human Rights Woolworths Group has been in association of programs and foundations that aims at safeguarding human rights. The company raised around $25000 donation through Red Cross Kaikorua Earthquake immediately after the occurrence of the earthquake. The company strived to promote gender equity and it aims to fill the position of senior manager and executive with women by 2020 to achieve gender equity. The company employs almost 202,000 people from all communities and cultural diversities as a contribution to alleviate international poverty. The company is committed to enhance indigenous employment opportunities in the organizational business. The company is member of Pride in Diversity which is NGO supporting the LGBTI community. The company has committed to work in cooperation with the National Union of Workers (NUW) and other interested stakeholders for addressing and identifying human rights in fresh food supply chains in Australia. The corporate giant deals with interests groups and emphasizes on maintaining a healthy relationship with the stakeholders (Bolton 2015). Woolworths assure ethics and values its suppliers by making efforts to improve the social and environmental practices with them. The company has a good ethical record of providing safe workplace and ensures job security and a motivating environment. Governance The Board serves and represents the interests of the shareholders and the Board approved strategy is delegated to management through the CEO who implements such strategy. The Chairman is independent and non-executive who assesses the development plans of non-executive directors and monitors the contribution of individual directors, thus, providing feedback on the effectiveness and performance. The performance of the Chairman is subjected to review every year. The Board reviews the desired and current experience or skills of independent directors as well as that of the Board. Company Philanthropy The company aims at publishing report on social impact of the company on the community in which it operates to measure the positive changes that it is undertaking by emphasizing on the economic, health development and emergency belief. The company strives to fulfill the needs of the customers because of the policies adopted by the company and put in efforts to resolve the issues and complaints of the stakeholders regularly. The remaining profit of the company is served to safeguard the stakeholders that are financially dependent on the company. Conclusion The company has been carrying out its corporate social responsibility and it claims to make further significant contribution in achieving sustainable development and ensure conducting its business operations ethically. As per Carrolls definition of corporate social responsibility, the corporate giant seems to be fulfilling all the four essential elements of corporate social responsibility accordingly, ensuring its sustainability approach has significant impact on the community as well as the environment. Recommendations In the contemporary era, the corporate sector is more focused on maximizing profit and becoming the leading organization than they are concerned about the social welfare. Though the companies claim to carry out their corporate social responsibilities, the growing competiveness in this sector often cause the corporations go off their course to maximize their profit and retain the top positions in the global markets which results in environmental degradation, affecting the community altogether. Therefore, it is recommended, that corporate giants like Woolworths Limited must persist to carry out their corporate social responsibilities and set an example that it is possible to strike a balance between maximizing profits and ensuring social welfare for any organization, to create a better tomorrow. References Bolton, S., 2015. Woolworths workers back at work.Green Left Weekly, (1065), p.3. Comyns, B., 2015.Our spoons came from Woolworths. New York Review of Books. Corkery, J., Mikalsen, M. and Allan, K., 2017.Corporate social responsibility: The good corporation. Centre for Commercial Law. King, L. and Thobela, S., 2014. Woolworths farming for the future.International Food and Agribusiness Management Review,17(B). Woolworths.com.au (2018). Woolworths.com.au. Retrieved 05, 2018 from https:///www.woolworths.com.au. Wu, J.H., Neal, B., Trevena, H., Crino, M., Stuart-Smith, W., Faulkner-Hogg, K., Louie, J.C.Y. and Dunford, E., 2015. Are gluten-free foods healthier than non-gluten-free foods? An evaluation of supermarket products in Australia.British Journal of Nutrition,114(3), pp.448-454.