Noise standard Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Noise standard - Essay Example s of exposure that represent conditions under which it is believed that nearly all workers may be repeatedly exposed without adverse effect on their ability to hear and understand normal speech. Their TLV publications can be accessed through purchase since their publications have copyrights. ACGIH-TLVs do not have a legal force in USA; they are only recommendations/ guides and not regulatory limits due to individual susceptibility, hence ACGIH is not a standard setting body. Regulatory bodies view ACGIH’s guidelines as an expression of scientific opinion. ACGIH has several committees set up that decides which substance is to be selected for study and votes once a year on action terms. Each substance / element is selected based upon its availability, relevance and scientific data. ACGIH has established exposure guidelines for occupational exposure to noise in their Threshold Limit Values (TLVs), 85 dBA PEL with a 3 dBA exchange rate. ACGIH guidelines are used to measure workpla ce and personal noise exposure limits, assess risk of hearing loss, determine the need for hearing conservation program and identifying practical methods of controlling noise exposures. As compared to ACGIH’s guidelines, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) a part of the USA’s Department of Labor (USDOL) publish Permissible Exposure Limits (PEL). PEL are regulatory limits enforced on all employers. These PELs were initially based on ACGIH TLVs in 1971. If OSHA determines the need for a specific standard it calls for advisory committees (ad hoc or standing) to develop recommendations. OSHA requires that when workplace exposures exceed 100% of the PEL i.e. exposure exceed 90dBA, feasible engineering or administrative controls must be deployed to reduce noise levels. Engineering control includes redesigning space and operations to reduce noise at source, transmission path or at receivers end. Administrative controls include scheduling and controlling the level of exposure

Case study of fostering team in nuneaton

Case study of fostering team in nuneaton The background to your involvement I am currently on placement with the fostering team in Nuneaton which has in excess of seventy five carers in and around the Nuneaton/Bedworth area. The fostering team consists of 4 full time social workers, whose role encompasses assessment work along with supervisory responsibility of foster carers in line with the Department for Children, Schools and Families Working Together to Safeguard Children March 2010 which sets out how organisations and individuals should work together to save and promote the welfare of children and young people in accordance with the Children Act 1989 and the Children Act 2004 ( (DCSF, March 2010) and to identify placements for children being accommodated under various sections of the Children Act 1989. While on placement I shadowed a social worker involved in supporting 14 yr old Philips foster carers to deal with particular behavioural issues that had led to his placement breaking down. The foster carers have 3 foster children currently in their care, Phillip 14, James 15 and David 16. The 2 foster carers Mike 49 and Jane 46 live in a 4 bedroom house in Hinckley. Philip had left the house and was refusing to return, stating that his foster carers did not like him and that he wanted to live on his own. Bed and breakfast accommodation was arranged for him for a few days while the situation was re-assessed and a meeting with the foster carers arranged. Fundamental to all relationships and particularly the interaction between Philip and his mother, Philip and his foster carers and social worker and foster carers, communication is a central component. Analysing how effective communication plays a vital part in this clients circumstances will form the basis of this discussion. Good communication skills are a principle component of effective social work practice. They include active, attentive and empathetic listening, recognition of verbal and non verbal communication and general formal and informal interview techniques, as Payne has suggested, the application of communication theory gives practical help in controlling and understanding relationships and interactions with clients and a technology of interviewing and interpersonal skills (Payne, 2005, pg 178). Over recent year the children looked after by foster carers have included an increasing proportion of distressed adolescences along with the disruption rate for these placements as being high (Farmer et al 2003). One of the aims of the fostering social worker is to conduct detailed assessments of parenting approaches and strategies used by the foster carers looking after a teenager in a long term placement and how these strategies can change and develop during the course of the placement. Research has been conducted into fostering task with adolescents by Farmer et al (2004), found that they were concerns about the behaviour and well being of children when they move into a new placements. The findings in this case study highlighted a number of factors that contributed to the breakdown in the relationship with the foster carers and Philip and finally the placement. In this situation I had found out the Philips social worker had not communicated the nature and context of behavioural issues associated with him to the foster carers social worker so that foster carers could have been better informed. Following the placement breakdown the foster carers had reflected on their own lack of knowledge and experience at dealing with young people with behavioural problems had highlighted the need for specific training in this area for foster carers. Part 2 Using the material from part 1, critically analyse the challenges in ensuring good practice in communicating with this service user/s or carer/s What theory underpins your interaction? Modern social work theory incorporates social psychology and social construction theory to understand the way groups in society relate to each other and create and maintain social identities. Social psychology has influenced social work practice specifically with concepts from role theory and communication theory. Role theory offers a viewpoint in sociology and also within social psychology that includes most of everyday activities to be the acted out of socially defined categories such as mother, supervisor, and lecturer. Each defining social role comes with a set of rights, duties, expectations, norms and behaviour a person has to be able to fulfill. Communication theory uses a range of concepts from the scientific to the humanistic, to help us understand how people conduct themselves in creating, exchanging and interpreting messages (Farrell, 1987). These concepts help us to understand patterns of language and identify how people construct their social world.helping them to recon struct the world by using language differently to identify possibilities for change (Payne, 2005, pg 161). Communication theory is concerned with a range of ideas that can explain how individuals, groups and organisations communicate with each other. Linguistically, in the form of the spoken and written word and other mediums, and non verbal forms, such as body language and the way we speak, including tone, pitch, intonation and speed. Communication is more than the mere transmission of facts, as has been suggested information might be facts, or other things that might be learned, such as emotions, memories, bodily sensations or an idea about how someone feels about you (Payne, 2005, pg 171 or 178) and furthermore that language informs the way we think, the way we experience, and the way we interact with each other. Language provides the basis of community, but also the grounds for division (Thompson 2003:36) This suggests that communication networks are inextricably linked to social identity, ethnicity, culture and class. As Payne suggests, networks of communication build up and how we communicate and with whom, becomes part of our culture and social relations, for example, ethnic and class division are marked by separation in communication networks and patterns of communication often express power, domination and subordination. Communication may, therefore, help us to identify oppression and inequality (Payne, 2005, pg 171). If we use language, along with the capacity to communicate, to form our lives and to relate to others, then social workers need to be sensitively aware how their choice of words and mode of communication in intensely personal and emotional charged situations, can increase and decrease oppression in their interactions with young people. For example, use of professional jargon without explanation may alienate a client by creating a language barrier between social work er and the service user or carer. Where a child is suspected of being in need of protection the social worker must balance the needs of the young persons safety along with the potential of breaking up the family. The social worker that I shadowed believed that the needs of young people in foster care could be met through meaningful, consistent and positive relationships with the foster carer whilst on the other hand you have child care policy which is primarily about safeguarding, outcomes and accountability. A crucial time for young people spans 12-19 years, this is when they ask themselves: Who am I? Where do I want to be? During this period they are also concerned with how they appear to others and what groups and networks they identify with. Erikson terms this psychosocial stage as the Identity versus Role Confusion period (Beckett, 2002 ). Attachment theory Attachment theory offers an understanding of personality development and behaviour in close relationships and provides an account of the difference in peoples emotional and relationship styles. (Howe, 2000).  John Bowlby is considered to the psychiatrist that developed the attachment theory. Bolwby suggests that when children are separated from their parents or care giver they suffer loss because of the attachment between them. I can see how Philip may have felt when he thought the he had to leave his home for a second time having already lost the home of his birth mother, it is thought by the social worker and the foster carers that one of the reason that Philip does not want to return is because he does not want to suffer loss again. This has had an obvious affect of Philips behaviour, the tenets of this theory is that close relationships or attachments have a direct effect on the emotional and social development across a lifespan (Howe 2000). Avoidant Attachments Howe (2009) describes avoidant attachments as children and young people whom display avoidant attachments as having parent(s) that are either indifferent whom have their own trauma going on or are emotionally rigid or completely rejecting of their childs needs. Although parents will react well when their child is happy and content that soon changes when the child needs change for instance when their child is in distress and is need of comfort. Howe suggest that attempts at intimacy only seem to increase parental distance, even rebuff, this communicating to the child that they are not wanted. Attachment to home and a safe place is a primary ways in which people preserve self-identity. the way in which people identify and become attached to places, buildings, objects, and how this attachment can contribute to personal well-being or how we feel about ourselves (Low et al 1992). To look at why these places, building and objects become important provides us with insight into what happens when people have to move and the dilemmas that they may face. Attachment is an emotional relationship that provides reliability, continuity, care and comfort. John Bowlby writes in his research relating to the concept of attachment, describing it as a lasting psychological connectedness between human beings (Bowlby, 1969, p. 194). Bowlby held the psychoanalytic view that early years experiences of a child has an important propensity toward development and behaviour later in life, most attachment styles are formed in the early years of childhood developed through the relationship with the care -giver. Mary Ainsworth during the 1970s built on the work of Bowlbys work in her study called Strange situations which looked at children where they were left alone for a short period of time then quickly comforted by the care giver/mother (Ainsworth, 1978). These help her to formulate the attachment classification system, which examine specific differences in a childs use of attachment figures as a constant and reliable base from which they can then explore the environment. Change requires personal adjustment, and some change can be more stressful than others. When facing a move fears of adjustment and a change in familiar environment and living conditions can be seen as a major problem for young people. Philip was reluctant to move out of the area that he lived at with his foster carers, he felt that if he had to move to supported lodging that it would be in an are where he has had problems in the past. Care Management involves assessing needs and keeping a watchful eye over a number of services that are provided by workers other than the social worker, the role of care manager is not new to social work and has existed for many years, historically the social worker would arrange a package of care, seek the views of the service user, engage with other professionals when collecting information relevant to the care package following that there would be an assessment then the social worker would engage appropriate services that met the need of the service user. Discrimination ,Inequality and oppression, Separation and Loss Solution focused (brief) theory Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT)is based on solution-building rather than problem-solving. SFBT explores the here and now and planned aspirations opposed to solving the current problems this method of working with young people can be practiced as well as other interventions. The theoretical underpinnings of solution-focused brief therapy have been developed out of philosophy as well as an appreciation of communicating positive outcomes through a creative process. Primary because the focus of this intervention is on future goals set by the young person, more importantly because with this method of intervention shows that problems are not limited by boundaries therefore neither the social worker (and other professionals) cannot be wrong the tends to lead to agreements being forged. This had been found to help build the relationship with David so that he felt that he was being heard through his verbal and non verbal communication. However whilst there is not a grounded understanding that identify the nature of the problem SFBT it creates problems in being able to measure efficacy. In this instance SFBT was used to build confidence, trust and capacity with David so that he would be prepared for his future with the current foster carers. Task centred practice Task Centred social work provides a clear framework for professional intervention, it deal with current (here and now) problems. It focuses on the problem and tries to negotiate and agree a method of dealing with the problem by identifying goals and setting timescales. There are 2 primary components of this approach which are Task Crisis intervention theories Outcomes Led Approach Child development Children do not have the same language skills or the emotional development of adults and therefore their attachment anxieties are triggered stopping them expressing themselves verbally and producing dysfunctional or attachment behaviours. Attachment behaviours can include minimising expressions of distress, that is the child knows that when their parent is shouting at them and the child is distressed this results in further parental rejection, so the child learns to minimise expressions of distress. The child acts happy even when frighten. In contrast the child express graet distress, especially when a parent is about to leave a type of attention seeking behaviour is communicating but not saying verbally show me you love me. Parenting a teenager in foster care can be vastly different from the ordinary parenting a birth child that is now a teenager. With the foster child there need to be a recognition and understanding of the young person background along with any previous placement breakdowns whether there are any disturbed and difficult behaviours. Foster carers must assist in adjusting the young persons defence mechanisms, developing attachments with the foster family whilst wherever possible maintaining links with the birth family. The foster carers felt that due to a recent argument with Philips birth mother he felt that no one liked him as his birth mother had chastised him for his language toward her. What skills are necessary? Report writing in accordance to the BAAF standards, work load and time management. Correspondence and record keeping Empathy is a dominant concept within social work. Recieving empathy enhances a clients feeling of self worth by communicating to them that they are understandable and are worth understanding. A social workers verbal and non verbal responses are crucial to communicating to the client they are being understood and entails skills to filter out and feedback themes and core messages in the client communication( ) Communications skills are essential in effectictive social work practice throughout the stages of assessment, planning, intervention and review. Questioning skills need to be employed to gain greater clarification concerning extremely personal issues and to constructively challemge client to recognised their responsibilities. For example, in the assessment process the accuracy of information is vital. However, the nature of this information is often sensitive and loaded with emotion and feeling from the past. If foster carers and young people are able to share this type of information they need to be convinced that there are being understood. What knowledge is required? In my interaction with service users and specifically in this case service providers (foster carers) human development theory influences my approach and form of communication. What techniques are appropriate? Interview formal and informal Assessment Reflection From my learning perspective, this case study highlights the complexities associated with working with children with behavioural issues. It was an opportunity to examine how social work can and does address thiese issues through the legislative and policy frameworks, along with our own knowledge and experience as well as the values and ethics set out in the National Occupational Standards. Your analysis should also include reflection on your skills and learning needs (500 words including 500 word description of an interaction with a service user) References Department of Children, Schools and Families (2010) Working Together to Safeguard Children: A Guide to Interagency Working ToSafeguard and Promote the Welfare of Children Nottingham: DCSF Publications. Thompson, N. (2003) Communication and Language: A Handbook of Theory and Practice. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Low, S, Altman, I. (1992) Place attachment: a conceptual inquiry in Altman, I. and Low, S.M. (eds) Place Attachment, New York: Plenum Press. Thompson, N. (2005) Understanding Social Work, Preparation for Practice- Second edition. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Department of Health (1991). Care Management and Assessment: a Practioners Guide. London: HMSO. Howe, D. (2000) Attachment Theory. In Davies, M. (ed). The Blackwell Encyclopaedia of Social Work. Oxford: Blackwell (pp 25-27). Howe, D. (1995) Attachment Theory for Social Work Practice. New York: Palgrave. Farmer,E.,Moyes,S.,Lipscombe,J, (2004) Fostering Adolescents Jessica Kingsley: London Farmer,E,. Moyers,M,(2003) Parenting skills adolescents: Skills and starategies, London School for policy Studies, University of Bristol: Bristol Care Management Care management is gathering information and seeking out how needs can be best met whilst enabling the service user to access services required, it also monitors service delivery ensuring that their services are continuing to meet the identified needs. The relationship between social worker and carer is a continually developing one whereby the negotiating with other professionals and giving and receiving information, this is all done in a non judgemental way enabling the carer to also develop their own skills of negotiating. I this case the carer was concerned with achieving a form of agreement or understanding as to the amount of foster children she could have at her home. It is important not to make the carer feel that care management is all about ticking boxes and ensuring that the correct piece of paper have been completed, if this where the case then there would not be the need for social work skills when manage care packages. Characteristics of Attachment Bowlby held that there were four characteristics of attachment: Proximity Maintenance The desire to be near the people we are attached to. Safe Haven Returning to the attachment figure for comfort and safety in the face of a fear or threat. Secure Base The attachment figure acts as a base of security from which the child can explore the surrounding environment. Separation Distress Anxiety that occurs in the absence of the attachment figure. (Bowlby, 1969). Care Management, involves overseeing the provision of a package of care services geared toward maintaining someone in the community who would otherwise need to rely on institutional provision (Thompson 2005 p69). Good care management encompasses a macro overview when completing the assessment, it should be completed in partnership with the service user and family paying regard to the strength and weaknesses as well as their ability to look at their life history and communicate the reason they find themselves in the current situation. Care Management is defined in government guidance as the process of tailoring services to individual needs (DOH, 1991:b).

Dont Know Essay -- essays research papers

Everyone knows that it is illegal to consume alcohol until the age of 21. Many people are In agreement with this legal restriction. Some would even say that it needs to be raised. Why is 21 the "magical" age that makes one intelligent and mature enough to consume alcohol? Surely, some adults abuse alcohol and some teenagers would be perfectly able to drink responsibly. Many have asked the question, should the drinking age be lowered from age twenty-one to age eighteen. The national drinking age for men and woman should remain at age twenty-one. Before 1982 there was no national conformity in the laws dealing with alcohol consumption legal age. Each state had different laws and regulations set on the drinking age. In the mid-1980's this changed. "The drinking age was set by federal law in the mid-1980's mostly because of pressure from Mothers against Drunk Driving (MADD)" (Dogan 1). This gave conformity throughout the nation with a national drinking law.?????????? ????????????????????????? Today there are many arguments put forth to justify attempts to lower the drinking age. One of the most prevalent arguments for the drinking age heard is, "if were old enough to be sent to war and die we are old enough to drink alcohol" (Heffernan 1). This argument has an underlined fallacy. When an eighteen-year-old youth is drafted into the military he is subjected to many months of rigorous training and preparation for his duties as a solider. Not only is he ...

MANAGERS’ ATTITUDES TOWARDS PEOPLE Essay

The way in which managers approach the performance of their jobs and the behaviour they display towards subordinate staff is likely to be conditioned by predispositions about people, and human nature and work. Drawing on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs model (which is discussed in Chapter 12), McGregor put forward two suppositions about human nature and behaviour at work. He argues that the style of management adopted is a function of the manager’s attitudes towards people and assumptions about human nature and behaviour. The two suppositions are called Theory X and Theory Y, and are based on polar assumptions about people and work. Theory X assumptions about human nature Theory X represents the carrot-and-stick assumptions on which traditional organisations are based, and was widely accepted and practised before the development of the human relations approach. Its assumptions are that: the average person is lazy and has an inherent dislike of work; most people must be coerced, controlled, directed and threatened with punishment if the organisation is to achieve its objectives; the average person avoids responsibility, prefers to be directed, lacks ambition and values security most of all; and  motivation occurs only at the physiological and security levels. The central principle of Theory X is direction and control through a centralised system of organisation and the exercise of authority. McGregor questions whether the Theory X approach to human nature is correct, and the relevance today of management practices which are based upon it. Assumptions based on a Theory X approach, and the traditional use of rewards and sanctions exercised by the nature of the manager’s position and authority, are likely to result in an exploitative or authoritarian style of management. Theory Y assumptions about human nature At the other extreme to Theory X is Theory Y which represents the assumptions consistent with current research knowledge. The central principle of Theory Y is the integration of individual and organisational goals. Its assumptions are: for most people work is as natural as play or rest; people will exercise self-direction and self-control in the service of objectives to which they are committed; commitment to objectives is a function of rewards associated with their achievement; given the right conditions, the average worker can learn to accept and to seek responsibility; the capacity for creativity in solving organisational problems is distributed widely in the population; the intellectual potential of the average person is only partially utilised; and motivation occurs at the affiliation, esteem and self-actualisation levels as well as the physiological and security levels. McGregor implies that a Theory Y approach is the best way to elicit co-operation from members of an organisation. It is the task of management to create the conditions in which individuals may satisfy their motivational needs, and in which they achieve their own goals through meeting the goals of the organisation. McGregor develops an analysis of the implications of accepting Theory Y in regard to performance appraisal, administration of salaries and promotions, participation, staff–line relationships, leadership, management development and the managerial team. MANAGERIAL BEHAVIOUR AND EFFECTIVENESS Managerial strategies Although Theory X and Theory Y are based on polar extremes and are an oversimplification, they do represent identifiable philosophies which influence managerial behaviour and strategies. For example, as Lord Sieff comments: Now and again it is necessary to criticize people, but rather than tick them off, provided you can leave them in no doubt as to what the issue is, I am sure it pays to avoid being censorious but try instead to appeal to the innate capacity for self-criticism. Whatever you do, avoid making a mountain out of a molehill. Most people have the potential to be self-motivating. They can best achieve their personal goals through self-direction of their efforts towards meeting the goals of the organisation. Broadening educational standards and changing social values mean that people today have wider expectations of the quality of working life, including opportunities for consultation and participation in decisions which affect them. Managers should develop practices based more on an accurate understanding of human behaviour and motivation. The Theory Y approach, however, is not a ‘soft’ option. In practice it is often difficult  to achieve successfully. It can be frustrating and time-consuming, and mistakes will occur. Since 1952 I’ve been stumbling around buildings and running primitive Theory Y departments, divisions, and finally one whole Theory Y company: Avis. In 1962, after thirteen years, Avis had never made a profit (except one year when they jiggled their depreciation rates). Three years later the company had grown internationally (not by acquisitions) from $30 million in sales to $75 million in sales, and had made successive annual profits of $1 million, $3 million, and $5 million. If I had anything to do with this, I ascribe it all to my application of Theory Y. And a faltering, stumbling, groping, mistake-ridden application it was. Robert Townsend6 Demands of the situation The two views of Theory X and Theory Y tend to represent extremes of the natural inclination of managers towards a particular style of behaviour. In practice, however, the actual style of management behaviour adopted will be influenced by the demands of the situation. Where the job offers a high degree of intrinsic satisfaction or involves a variety of tasks, an element of problem-solving and the exercise of initiative, or where output is difficult to measure in quantitative terms, an informal, participative approach would seem to be more effective. It is more likely to lead to a higher level of staff morale. In many cases this would apply to work of a scientific, technical or professional nature. Where commitment to the goals of the organisation is almost a prerequisite of membership, such as in certain voluntary or charity organisations, for example, then a Theory Y approach would clearly seem to be most appropriate. Use of a Theory X approach However, even if a manager has a basic belief in Theory Y assumptions there may be occasions when it is necessary, or more appropriate, to adopt a Theory X approach. When the nature of the job itself offers little intrinsic reward or limited opportunities to satisfy higher-level needs, a more dictatorial style of management might work best. Some jobs are designed narrowly, with highly predictable tasks, and output measured precisely. This is the case, for example, with many complex production processes in manufacturing firms. With these types of jobs a Theory X approach may be needed if an adequate level of performance is to be maintained. MANAGERIAL BEHAVIOUR AND EFFECTIVENESS The cynic might describe efforts to turn Theory Y into practice as doing with difficulty what comes naturally to the Japanese. There, excellent managers apply principles of behaviour which translate perfectly into western language – and which have long been echoed in the progressive areas of the west. Yet you still encounter the old ostrich attitudes that caused western companies so much damage in the past: for instance, the argument that to emulate Japan is impossible because of its peculiar culture. But the famous national enthusiasm for good business and effective management isn’t simply a product of Japan’s culture. After all, sloppy western habits, like investing too little in productive capacity, new products, training, quality and marketing are hardly cultural – not unless bad business economics are built into the western mentality. Robert Heller 12 THE MANAGERIAL/LEADERSHIP GRID ® One means of describing and evaluating different styles of management is the Blake and Mouton Managerial Grid ® (see Figure 7.1). First published as the Managerial Grid in 1964, restated in 1978 and 198513 and republished in 1991 as the Leadership Grid,14 the Grid provides a basis for comparison of managerial styles in terms of two principal dimensions: concern for production; concern for people. Concern for production is the amount of emphasis which the manager places on accomplishing the tasks in hand, achieving a high level of production and getting results or profits. This is represented along the horizontal axis of the Grid. Concern for people is the amount of emphasis which the manager gives to subordinates and colleagues as individuals and to their needs and expectations. This is represented along the vertical axis of the Grid. Five basic combinations ‘Concern for’ is not how much concern, but indicates the character and strength of assumptions which underlie the manager’s own basic attitudes and style of management. The significant point is ‘how’ the manager expresses concern about production or about people. The four corners and the centre of the Grid provide five basic combinations of degree of concern for production coupled with degree of concern for people (see Figure 7.1(a)). the impoverished manager (1,1 rating), low concern for production and low concern for people; the authority–compliance manager (9,1 rating), high concern for production and low concern for people; the country club manager (1,9 rating), low concern for production and high concern for people; the middle-of-the-road manager (5,5 rating), moderate concern for production and moderate concern for people; and the team manager (9,9 rating), high concern for production and high concern for people. Managers with a 1,1 rating tend to be remote from their subordinates and believe in the minimum movement from their present position. They do as little as they can with production or with people. Too much attention to production will cause difficulties with staff and too much attention to the needs of staff will cause problems with production. Team management Thoughtful attention to the needs of people for satisfying relationships leads to a comfortable, friendly organisation atmosphere and work tempo. Concern for people Work accomplishment is from committed people; interdependence through a ‘common stake’ in organisation purpose leads to relationships of trust and respect. Middle-of-the-road management Adequate organisation performance is possible through balancing the necessity to get work out while maintaining morale of people at a satisfactory level. Impoverished management Authority–compliance management Exertion of minimum effort to get required work done is appropriate to sustain organisation membership. Efficiency in operations results from arranging conditions of work in such a way that human elements interfere to a minimum degree. In Opportunistic management, people adapt and shift to any Grid style needed to gain the maximum advantage. Performance occurs according to a system of selfish gain. Effort is given only for an advantage or personal gain. 9+9: Paternalism/maternalism Reward and approval are bestowed to people in return for loyalty and obedience; failure to comply leads to punishment Figure 7.1   The Leadership Grid (Source: Blake, R. R. and McCanse, A. A. (1991) Leadership Dilemmas – Grid Solutions, Gulf Publishing Co., Houston (1991), Grid Figure, p. 29, Paternalism Figure, p. 30, Opportunism Figure, p. 31. Reproduced by permission of Grid International, Inc.) MANAGERIAL BEHAVIOUR AND EFFECTIVENESS Managers with a 9,1 rating are autocratic. They tend to rely on a centralised system and the use of authority. Staff are regarded as a means of production and motivation is based on competition between people in order to get work done. If staff challenge an instruction or standard procedure they are likely to be viewed as unco-operative. The 1,9 rating managers believe that a contented staff will undertake what is required of them and achieve a reasonable level of output. Production is secondary to the avoidance of conflict and maintenance of harmony among the staff. Managers will seek to find compromises between staff and solutions acceptable to everyone. Although innovation may be encouraged, they tend to reject good ideas if likely to cause difficulties among the staff. The 5,5 rating is the middle-of-the-road management with the approach of ‘live and let live’ and a tendency to avoid the real issues. This style of  management is the ‘dampened pendulum’ with managers swinging between concern for production and concern for people. Under pressure, this style of management tends to become task management (9,1). Where this strains relations and causes resentment from staff, however, pressure is eased and managers adopt a compromise approach. If there is a swing too much the other way (towards 1,9) managers are likely to take a tighter and more hardened approach. Managers with a 9,9 rating believe in the integrating of the task needs and concern for people. They believe in creating a situation whereby people can satisfy their own needs by commitment to the objectives of the organisation. Managers will discuss problems with the staff, seek their ideas and give them freedom of action. Difficulties in working relationships will be handled by confronting staff directly and attempting to work out solutions with them. These five styles of management represent the extremes of the Grid. With a nine-point scale on each axis there is a total of 81 different ‘mixtures’ of concern for production and concern for people. Most people would come up with a score somewhere in an intermediary position on the Grid. Two additional grid styles 1991 edition of the Grid also covers two additional styles: opportunism and 9+9 paternalism/maternalism, which take account of the reaction of subordinates. In opportunistic management, organisational performance occurs according to a system of exchanges, whereby effort is given only for an equivalent measure of the same. People adapt to the situation to gain maximum advantage of it. (See Figure 7.1(b).) In 9+9 paternalistic/maternalistic management, reward and approval are granted to people in return for loyalty and obedience; and punishment is threatened for failure to comply (see Figure 7.1(c)). A summary of the seven basic combinations of the Grid is given in Table 7.1. FRAMEWORK FOR PATTERNS OF BEHAVIOUR The Managerial Grid provides a framework in which managers can identify, study and review their patterns of behaviour. Instead of viewing management styles as a dichotomy of ‘either/or’, Blake and Mouton claim that the Managerial Grid illustrates that the manager can gain the benefits of maximising, simultaneously, methods which are both production-oriented and people-oriented. The 9,9 position, although an ideal, is worth working for. Based on their experience of using the original Grid, Blake and Mouton give three reasons why it is important to consider which style of management is used to achieve production through people. THE ROLE OF THE MANAGER The 7-S organisational framework In order to get people to accept solutions, the manager needs continually to co-ordinate and balance in order to compromise conflicting values. The  leader creates excitement in work and develops choices that give substance to images that excite people. In their relationships with other people, managers maintain a low level of emotional involvement. Leaders have empathy with other people and give attention to what events and actions mean.  Managers see themselves more as conservators and regulators of the existing order of affairs with which they identify, and from which they gain rewards. Leaders work in, but do not belong to, the organisation. Their sense of identity does not depend upon membership or work roles and they search out opportunities for change. The differences between leadership and management have been applied by Watson to the 7-S organisational framework of: strategy, structure, systems, style, staff, skills and superordinate (or shared) goals. Watson suggests that whereas managers tend towards reliance on: strategy, structure, systems, leaders have an inherent inclination for utilisation of the ‘soft’ Ss of : style, staff, skills, and shared goals. Watson also suggests, although cautiously, that 7-S management could be seen as the province of leaders. Managers will not ordinarily be capable of achieving sufficient mastery of all seven factors to attain a consistently high level of organisational performance. Distinction between management and leadership Based on experience of management approaches in both commerce and the military, Hollingsworth questions how many managers consider themselves first and foremost as leaders, relegating ‘manager’ to their job title. He argues that commercial managers need to learn from the armed forces if they wish to be viewed as leaders. Having accepted that there are some links between management and leadership, Hollingsworth lists six ‘fundamental differences’. A manager administers – a leader innovates. A manager maintains – a leader develops. A manager focuses on systems and structure – a leader focuses on people. A manager relies on control – a leader inspires trust. A manager keeps an eye on the bottom line – a leader has an eye on the horizon. A manager does things right – a leader does the right thing. Not everyone would agree with this list. Robinson, for example, suggests that if the word ‘manager’ is replaced by ‘administrator’ then the lists works. However, whatever your view the list makes for a helpful basis for critical discussion on the nature of management and leadership.25 In Chapter 6 we discussed management as getting work done through the efforts of other people. To be an effective manager it is necessary to exercise the role of leadership. A common view is that the job of the manager requires the  ability of leadership CHAPTER 8 THE NATURE OF LEADERSHIP THE QUALITIES OR TRAITS APPROACH The first approach assumes that leaders are born and not made. Leadership consists of certain inherited characteristics, or personality traits, which distinguish leaders from their followers: the so-called Great Person theory of leadership. The qualities approach focuses attention on the man or woman in the job and not on the job itself. It suggests that attention is given to the selection of leaders rather than to training for leadership. For example, Drucker (writing originally in 1955) makes the point that: Leadership is of utmost importance. Indeed there is no substitute for it. But leadership cannot be created or promoted. It cannot be taught or learned. There have been many research studies into the common traits of leadership. However, attempts at identifying common personality, or physical and mental, characteristics of different ‘good’ or ‘successful’ leaders have met with little success.Investigations have identified lists of traits which tend to be overlapping, contradictory or with little correlation for most features. It is noticeable that ‘individuality’ or ‘originality’ usually features in the list of traits. This itself suggests that there is little in common between specific personality traits of different leaders. It is perhaps possible therefore to identify general characteristics of leadership ability, such as self-confidence, initiative, intelligence and belief in one’s actions, but research into this area has revealed little more than this. In a series of interviews with headhunters, and senior figures in industry and the city, Management Today came up with a list of Britain’s most powerful women in business. A conclusion from the list is that the ‘top 50 women do not fit any pattern. They wield the kind of power and influence that defies stereotypes.’ Limitations of the traits approach There are two further limitations with this approach. First, there is bound to be some subjective judgement in determining who is regarded as a ‘good’ or ‘successful’ leader. Second, the lists of possible traits tend to be very long and there is not always agreement on the most important. Even if it were possible to identify an agreed list of more specific qualities, this would provide little explanation of the nature of leadership. It would do little to help in the development and training of future leaders. Although there is still some interest in the qualities, or traits, approach, attention has been directed more to other approaches to leadership. The qualities or traits approach gives rise to the questions: whether leaders are born or made; and whether leadership is an art or a science. The important point, however, is that these are not mutually exclusive alternatives. Even if there are certain inborn qualities which make for a good leader, these natural talents need encouragement and development. Even if leadership is something of an art, it still requires the application of special skills and techniques. THE FUNCTIONAL (OR GROUP) APPROACH This approach to leadership focuses attention not on the personality of the leader, nor on the man or woman in the job, per se, but on the functions of leadership. Leadership is always present in any group engaged in a task. The functional approach views leadership in terms of how the leader’s behaviour affects, and is affected by, the group of followers. This approach concentrates on the nature of the group, the followers or subordinates. It focuses on the content of leadership. WORK MOTIVATION AND REWARDS Maslow’s hierarchy of needs model Once a lower need has been satisfied, it no longer acts as a strong motivator. The needs of the next higher level in the hierarchy demand satisfaction and become the motivating influence. Only unsatisfied needs motivate a person. Thus Maslow asserts that ‘a satisfied need is no longer a motivator’. Not necessarily a fixed order Although Maslow suggests that most people have these basic needs in about the order indicated, he also makes it clear that the hierarchy is not necessarily a fixed order. There will be a number of exceptions to the order indicated. For some people there will be a reversal of the hierarchy, for example: Self-esteem may seem to be more important than love to some people. This is the most common reversal of the hierarchy. It is often based on the belief that the person most loved is strong, confident or inspires respect. People seeking love try to put on a show of aggressive, confident behaviour. They  are not really seeking selfesteem as an end in itself but for the sake of love needs. For some innately creative people the drive for creativity and self-actualisation may arise despite lack of satisfaction of more basic needs. Higher-level needs may be lost in some people who will continue to be satisfied at lower levels only: for example, a person who has experienced chronic unemployment. Some people who have been deprived of love in early childhood may experience the permanent loss of love needs. A need which has continued to be satisfied over a long period of time may be undervalued. For example, people who have never suffered from chronic hunger may tend to underestimate its effects, and regard food as rather an unimportant thing. Where people are dominated by a higher-level need this may assume greater importance than more basic needs. People with high ideals or values may become martyrs and give up everything else for the sake of their beliefs. Maslow claims that the hierarchy is relatively universal among different cultures, but he recognises that there are differences in an individual’s motivational content in a particular culture. THE INDIVIDUAL Degrees of  satisfaction Maslow points out that a false impression may be given that a need must be satisfied fully before a subsequent need arises. He suggests that a more realistic description is in terms of decreasing percentages of satisfaction  along levels of the hierarchy. For example, arbitrary figures for the average person may be: satisfied 85 per cent in physiological needs; 70 per cent in safety needs; 50 per cent in love needs; 40 per cent in esteem needs; and 10 per cent in self-actualisation needs. There is a gradual emergence of a higher-level need as lower-level needs become more satisfied. The relative importance of these needs changes during the psychological development of the individual. Maslow subsequently modified his views by noting that satisfaction of self-actualisation needs by growth-motivated individuals can actually enhance these needs rather than reduce them. Furthermore, he accepted that some higher-level needs may still emerge after long deprivation of lowerlevel needs, rat her than only after their satisfaction. Evaluation of Maslow’s theory Based on Maslow’s theory, once lower-level needs have been satisfied (say at the physiological and safety levels) giving more of the same does not provide motivation. Individuals advance up the hierarchy as each lower-level need becomes satisfied. Therefore, to provide motivation for a change in behaviour, the manager must direct attention to the next higher level of needs (in this case, love or social needs) that seek satisfaction. Applications to the work situation However, there are a number of problems in relating Maslow’s theory to the work situation. These include the following: A useful basis  for evaluation People do not necessarily satisfy their needs, especially higher-level needs, just through the work situation. They satisfy them through other areas of their life as well. Therefore the manager would need to have a complete understanding of people’s private and social life, not just their behaviour at work. There is doubt about the time which elapses between the satisfaction of a lower-level need and the emergence of a higher-level need. Individual differences mean that people place different values on the same need. For example, some people prefer what they might see as the comparative safety of working in a bureaucratic organisation to a more highly paid and higher status position, but with less job security, in a different organisation. Some rewards or outcomes at work satisfy more than one need. Higher salary or promotion, for example, can be applied to all levels of the hierarchy. Even for people within the same level of the hierarchy, the motivating factors will not be the same. There are many different ways in which people may seek satisfaction of, for example, their esteem needs. Maslow viewed satisfaction as the main motivational outcome of behaviour. But job satisfaction does not necessarily lead to improved work performance. Although Maslow did not originally intend that the need hierarchy should necessarily be applied to the work situation, it still remains popular as a theory of motivation at work. Despite criticisms and doubts about its limitations, the theory has had a significant impact on management approaches to motivation and the design of organisations to meet individual needs. It is a convenient framework for viewing the different needs and expectations that people have, where they are in the hierarchy, and the different motivators that might be applied to people at different levels. The work of Maslow has drawn attention to a number of different motivators and stimulated study and research. The need hierarchy model provides a  useful base for the evaluation of motivation at work. For example, Steers and Porter suggest a list of general rewards and organisational factors used to satisfy different needs (see Table 12.1).29 WORK MOTIVATION AND REWARDS Applying Maslow’s need hierarchy Needs levels General rewards Organisational factors 1 Physiological Food, water, sex, sleep a. Pay b. Pleasant working conditions c. Cafeteria 2. Safety Safety, security, stability, protection a. Safe working conditions b. Company benefits c. Job security 3. Social Love, affection, belongingness a. Cohesive work group b. Friendly supervision c. Professional associations 4. Esteem Self-esteem, self-respect, prestige, status a. Social recognition b. Job title c. High status job d. Feedback from the job itself 5. Self-actualisation Growth, advancement, creativity a. Challenging job b. Opportunities for creativity c. Achievement in work d. Advancement in the organisation Saunders contends that despite the time that has elapsed, Maslow’s theory remains watertight.  When prehistoric man first took shelter in a cave and lit a fire, he was satisfying his lowest – physiological and safety needs. When a Buddhist achieves a state of nirvana, she is satisfying the fifth and highest – self-actualisation †¦The cave these days might be a three-bedroom semi with garden and off-street parking, but the fact remains that once we’ve got enough to feed, clothe and house our families money is a low-level motivator for most people. The dash for cash is soon replaced by the desire for recognition, status and ultimately (although Maslow reckoned that a lot of us never get this far) the need to express yourself through your work. Pyramid of employee commitment Revisiting and developing Maslow’s hierarchy, Stum looked at the dynamic between an individual and the organisation, and proposes a new employee/employer social contract that enables organisations to improve employee commitment and retention. The five levels of workforce needs hierarchy are shown in a ‘Performance Pyramid’. Safety/security – the need to feel physically and psychologically safe in the work environment for commitment to be possible; Rewards – the need for extrinsic rewards in compensation and benefits; Affiliation – the intrinsic need for a sense of belonging to the work team or organisation; Growth – addressing the need for positive individual and organisational change to drive commitment; Work/life harmony – the drive to achieve a sense of fulfilment in balancing work and life responsibilities.

“The Veldt” (Analysis) by Ray Bradbury

Timeless lessons or themes are featured in the stories that end up being classics. The authors who illustrate these ideas are the ones who remain in schools and therefore in the minds of many generations. In Ray Bradbury’s short story â€Å"The Veldt† he portrays how disastrous it is to rely completely on technology. Intertwined with this are lessons of greed and inattention. Almost immediately the technology of the time is introduced by the stove that is cooking a meal without the help of human hands.The mother and father named George and Lydia discuss the house they bought purposely so that they wouldn’t have to do anything for themselves. â€Å"They walked down the hall of their soundproofed Happylife Home, which had cost them thirty thousand dollars installed, this house which clothed and fed and rocked them to sleep and played and sang and was good to them† (Bradbury). Like many parents they wanted the best for their children but lost sight of what wa s truly important along the way. While there isn’t anything inherently wrong with technology itself, it is society’s reliance on it that can and will cause problems.As George and Lydia are talking about their home and the effect it’s had on their son and daughter named Peter and Wendy, the author reveals a frightening idea. He starts to insinuate that the children prefer the house to their parents because it has assumed their roles. Neither parent is involved in any aspect of their lives because the house can do it all. â€Å"†That's just it. I feel like I don't belong here. The house is wife and mother now, and nursemaid. Can I compete with an African veldt?Can I give a bath and scrub the children as efficiently or quickly as the automatic scrub bath can? I cannot. And it isn't just me. It's you. You've been awfully nervous lately†Ã¢â‚¬  (Bradbury). They have allowed the ultimate in convenience technology to rob their family of any feeling of clos eness that comes about from obligations, love, conversation and simple interactions. By the time anything is decided upon to make a change to the direction of their lives it is too late. The parents have realized their mistake and are taking measures against their past infractions.However, their path has been set and they are unable to avoid their fate at the hands of their own children. By voluntarily giving up their parental roles out of a greed for the latest and best technology, George and Lydia have given Peter and Wendy a frightening freedom: that of no family obligations or ties except to each other. Their inattentiveness towards their children alienated them even further helping to create a chasm that has become impassable. Ray Bradbury felt that a warning against technology was in order and wrote an exceptional example.This story is timeless because technology continues to grow and evolve as society asks for more and more. With such growth continuous and inevitable, it is i mportant to keep in mind the significance of human interaction in everyday life. While the end result is drastic, it is this clear and direct manner that brings home the importance of participation within a family and the warning against greed. Most importantly, it impresses upon the reader the mistake of entrusting everything, up to and including personal existence, to technology.