A Macroeconomic And Financial Outlook Of New Zealand

Abstract There have been a lot of changes in the economic status of each and every country in the world over the last century. This is attributed to a number of factors. One of the major causes of this is the industrialization and civilization of countries.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on A Macroeconomic And Financial Outlook Of New Zealand specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In the last century, many countries have shifted from agriculture and other primary sources of income to industrialization. New Zealand is one of these countries. This paper will discuss the current economic status of New Zealand and its prospect of a more stable economy in the coming one or two years. In order to achieve this, the paper will mainly focus on the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Since factors affecting the GDP also have a significance effect on the macroeconomic stability of a country, they will also be discussed in detail . Some of this factors are the level of consumption of the country’s population, the level of savings and investment and the government’s fiscal and monetary policies. Primarily, this paper seeks to clarify the point that New Zealand’s economy is slightly resilient and will probably become even more stable in one or two years’ time. The Economic History Of New Zealand In order to determine the growth rate and progress of the economy of New Zealand, it is necessary to look at its past economy. Until the second half of the twentieth century, New Zealand was a traditionally agricultural country. Agricultural goods formed the bulk of the country’s exports. This was long after the deposits of gold in New Zealand had been exhaustively mined. Some of these goods were dairy products such milk and cheese, wool, fruits, vegetables, meat and forest products. The entire agricultural system was efficient hence a lot of revenue was collected from the sector. The rich agricultural harvest were influenced by fertile soil and abundant rainfall received throughout the year. New Zealand’s economy wasn’t resilient by then due to the fact that the country imported almost twice as much as it exported. The income earned from exports was barely sufficient to pay for the importation of other significant goods that lacked in the country. Until 1973 when it joined the European Economic Community, the United Kingdom was the main trading partner of New Zealand. After this year, New Zealand suffered a tremendous slump due to reduced export of its products to the United Kingdom. Such circumstances have prompted New Zealand to diversify its sources of revenue. If this was to be achieved, the country would no longer have to depend on agriculture as the main source of revenue. It also won’t be affected much if the market for agricultural goods or their price tumbles down. This decision has seen New Zealand regain its earlier trading partn ers and even attract other foreign markets. Currently, its main trading partners include the United States of America, Japan, the United Kingdom, China, Australia and the Republic of Korea. With such powerful and relatively financial stable trading partners, New Zealand’s economy will probably get better in the following years.Advertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Current Economic Activities In New Zealand The transition of New Zealand from an agricultural economy to a market economy has led to the tremendous growth in its economy. Currently, the country has a lot of manufacturing and service industries. These industries are appropriately planned and managed for the economic empowerment of the citizens and the country at large. The industries are also manned by efficiently skilled and highly trained and qualified personnel that have the interests of the countryâ⠂¬â„¢s economy at heart. Apart from the locally available labor, New Zealand also hires the services of professional experts from neighboring countries such as Australia. Apart from abundant and quality labor supply, New Zealand boasts of a highly technological and computerized production process. The country has implemented and also imported the latest technology in the world that not only speeds up the production process but also ensures high quality output (Taylor and Henisz, 1994, page 156). The machines have greatly helped to cut on the production costs. The overall effect is that goods and services produced are offered at affordable prices to both the local and international market. This is the exact reason why New Zealand is making it big in the international market. The Role Of International Trade In New Zealand’s Economy New Zealand’s economy is greatly dependent on International Trade. In fact, most critics say that the economy of New Zealand owes its growth to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). According to Arthur (2000, page 38), exports form a large percentage of the country’s revenue. An estimated value of US $ 83 billion of New Zealand companies is owned by foreign parties, including whole governments, organizations, or at times rich individuals. It is common to come across clusters of businesses in New Zealand that are owned by foreign investors. International trade has been fostered by a number of factors: Political Peace And Stability New Zealand maintains a smooth relationship with almost all the countries in the world. In the recent past, New Zealand has not been involved in any war or conflict. As a matter of fact, it is ranked among the most peaceful nations in the world. Political peace and stability are what have boosted international trade in New Zealand to greater heights.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on A Macroeconomic And Financial Outlook Of New Zealand specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More A lot of businesses have been established in New Zealand by foreign countries due to this peace and stability. The investors are assured of security and benefit because of the conducive business environment provided by a sound political system. Most of the investments in New Zealand are owned or controlled by foreign countries. It is estimated that the USA alone has injected a total of U.S $ 2.3 billion into the economic system of New Zealand. In fact, business ties between the United States of America and New Zealand have always been there. Some US-based companies also have branches in New Zealand. This is because they can rely on the prolonged bilateral ties that have existed between New Zealand and the United States of America (Shooks and Lewis, 1981, page 34). The establishment of the American Chamber of Commerce in Auckland, New Zealand points to the fact that foreign companies feel secure with their investments in this coun try. Furthermore, in a survey dubbed ‘Doing Business 2008’ by the World Bank, New Zealand was ranked the second most business friendly country in the world. This contributed to an increase in the number of investors streaming into the country every year. Lack Of Unnecessary Bureaucracy Investors prefer doing business in a country where there are little or no unnecessary procedures. A country with such officialdom scares away investors. When it comes to starting a business, New Zealand has easy procedural steps for an investor to start a firm in the country (Potter and Spires, 2002, page 78). While other countries insist on tireless paperwork that can take months to be completed, New Zealand has put in place an efficient system that enables a foreign investor to start business in the country within twelve days only. This is one of the reasons why the country was ranked at 99.9% in matters relating to â€Å"Business Freedom† and 85% when it comes to â€Å"Economic Freedom.† Government control, conditions of the labor market and property and ownership rights are also favorable to foreign investors. Free Trade Agreements New Zealand has engaged in a free trade agreement with Australia. The two are in a partnership called Closer Economic Relations (CER). Under this partnership, goods and services are traded freely between member countries. Both the two countries have mutually benefited from this scheme. Goods and services from New Zealand have been open to a market of about twenty five million prospective customers in Australia. In the same manner, New Zealand has served as a major market for the goods and services from Australia. A major achievement on the side of New Zealand as a result of this agreement is that a total of 19% of its exports are imported by AustraliaAdvertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More New Zealand has also signed free trade agreements with other countries. These are Singapore, Chile and Brunei. The trade agreement, known as the P4 agreement, has been of substantial importance to the member countries. Of most significance is that these member countries will never lack a market for their goods. They are also least affected by the instability of commodity prices in the international market. Furthermore, each of the member countries utilizes its comparative advantage to produce only goods that it can produce easily and efficiently. It can then easily acquire the other goods which are best produced by other member countries. From the above discussion, it can be inferred that international trade has been of much significance to the economy of New Zealand. If this smooth international relations are anything to go by, then the economy of New Zealand is set to experience a major boost in the next one or two years. Current Economic Situation Of New Zealand New Zealand is cu rrently recovering from the global financial crisis which began in 2007. Prior to this financial crisis, New Zealand was again struggling to gain ground after the Asian financial crisis of 1997 to 1998. Although the New Zealand economy is generally struggling to be stable, there is a prospect of much stability in the years to come. This is because there is a general economic slump throughout the world and New Zealand is no exception (Bannock and Peacock, 1989, Page 27). This section will look at today’s economic situation of New Zealand basing on its GDP figures. The Gross Domestic Product of New Zealand has been experiencing gradual growth. Over the years, New Zealand’s GDP growth had a quarterly growth of 0.56. However, the growth has been encountering a series of highs and lows. During the times when the economy was doing well, the GDP growth was growing at an impressive percentage. A good example of this is in 1999 when it hit an impressive mark of 2.7. On the othe r hand, the GDP growth rate was low at times when the economy was doing poorly. A good example of this is the year 1991 when the GDP growth rate hit the lowest mark in New Zealand history, which was -2.60. The figure below is a representation of the trend in the growth of the Gross Domestic Product of New Zealand in the last four years. Source: TradingEconomics.com; Statistics New Zealand The Gross Domestic Product Per Capita of New Zealand has also increased significantly over the years. This has been as a result of increased production due to increased efficiency and reduced costs of production. Currently, the GDP Per Capita of New Zealand stands at 14995 US dollars. The value of the GDP Per Capita was at its record highest in 2007; 15308 US dollars. This was probably before the serious consequences of the 2007 global financial crisis set in. Although New Zealand has a low GDP Per Capita compared to other Western economies, the rate at which it is growing is promising. It is with no doubt that with such a trend, New Zealand’s economy is going to become more stable than ever in the coming one or two years. The figure below shows the value of the GDP Per Capita of New Zealand from the year 1998 to 2008. Source: TradingEconomics.com; The World Bank Group As seen from the above diagram, the GDP Per Capita has been growing steadily from 1998 to 2008. This is a positive trend about the economy of New Zealand because it portrays the high probability of a better economy of the country in the coming years. Challenges Facing The Economy Of New Zealand Although New Zealand is on its way to a more stable economy, there are various hindrances that stand in its way to this achievement. Some of these hindrances are internal while others come from external forces. The internal barriers can be overcome, as it will be seen later. The external forces such as a global financial crisis cannot be averted by any country. However, it is possible to plan for the future in s uch a way that the negative effects of these forces do not have a devastating impact on the economy. Below are some of these hindrances and how New Zealand has stepped in to provide viable solutions to some of them. Dependency On Trade New Zealand’s economy is majorly centered on trade. The dominant type of trade is international trade. Although a bit of the economy is diversified, trade remains the main source of government revenue and personal income to local investors. Its policy of a free market economy is faced with many uncertainties. For instance, the prices of most international goods are unpredictable. This puts the economy of the country at stake because prices can suddenly drop to unimaginable levels without warning. As much as there is a prospect of a better and more stable economy in the coming years, it is also possible that one day New Zealand can wake up to a crushed economy. In order to avoid such a circumstance, New Zealand is trying to stem up its foundatio n in trade by diversifying more of its economy to include other sectors such as tourism. Strong Currency The New Zealand dollar is strong compared to most developing countries, which can be prospective trading partners. It is therefore expensive for such countries to import products from New Zealand. This limits the market of goods from New Zealand to a handful of developed nations such as Australia, Japan, China, the USA and the Republic of Korea. Some of these nations produce identical goods to those produced in New Zealand. Therefore, New Zealand can never be assured of a constant outflow of exports to its trading partners. There may be instances where it may have to lower the price of its goods to outshine competitors. To avoid such instances, New Zealand has engaged in trade agreements that stipulate clearly the terms and conditions of the agreement. With such an agreement, the country is assured of a steady market and no cases of breach of contract. Although New Zealand has on e of the lowest unemployment rates in the world, the effects of unemployment, no matter how miniature, still count. Unemployment slows down the rate of economic growth of a country. The effect of unemployment on the economy of New Zealand was at its worst during the period when the country had a social security system that provided benefits for the unemployed. Those were the days when the rate of unemployment was close to zero (Fynes and Ennis, 1997, page 97). With the current unemployment rate of 6.5%, such a move would be suicidal to the economy of the country. Unemployed people drain the economy by raising the level of dependency. The working class is forced to spend some of their revenue on those who don’t have a source of income. The overall effect is that a vicious cycle develops. Increased expenditure on the unemployed reduces the amount of funds that are available for saving and thus investment. Lange (1990, page 178) states that lack of savings and hence little or no investment leads to a retarded economy that strives to produce only that which is sufficient for consumption. Luckily for New Zealand, a lot of jobs are created on a daily basis. For instance, approximately one thousand jobs were created in the June 2011 quarter alone. Current Account Deficit New Zealand has a persistent current account deficit. The current account deficit stands at a value that is 8-9% of the Gross Domestic Product. This is a trend that has been going on for years. The main cause of this deficit is an imbalance or inequality between the value of exports and imports. New Zealand mainly exports agricultural products. It also earns some foreign exchange from tourism activities. On the other hand, it imports valuable goods such as machinery and computerized devices. The cost of the imports far exceeds the total revenue acquired from the exports. Another cause is the relatively weaker New Zealand dollar compared to other developed countries. This makes it less expensiv e for foreign countries to import goods from New Zealand. On the contrary, it is expensive to import goods into New Zealand. New Zealand is trying to work on this discrepancy by broadening the base of its exports. Disadvantages Of A Floating Exchange Rate System New Zealand has adopted the Floating Exchange Rate System which is full of uncertainties. The uncertainties scare away potential investors. This is because they are not sure of how much they will make from the economy. It cannot be predicted whether the investor will make a loss or a profit (Franklin, 1978, page 56). This system also has a negative effect on importers. They are not certain of how much they will pay for their imports or worse still, the exact price at which they will sell their products. Efforts Of The Government And Monetary Authorities To Stabilize The Economy The government and Monetary Authorities have played a big role in a bid to stabilize the economy of New Zealand. They have put in place various mecha nisms and policies to counter inflation and cut down on foreign debts. The following are some of the ways in which the government and the Monetary Authorities have helped to keep the economy of New Zealand: Monetary And Fiscal Policies The government of New Zealand has the authority to make necessary adjustments on the availability and value of money for the betterment of the economy. The government can regulate the amount of money in circulation through government expenditure and taxation. The coordination of the two steps also controls the level of aggregate demand hence checking on inflation (Northdurft, 1992, page 124). Increase in expenditure by the government of New Zealand increases money circulation hence raising the level of aggregate demand. On the other hand, decrease in government expenditure reduces money circulation hence reducing aggregate demand. In the same way, increase in taxation by the government of New Zealand reduces money circulation and aggregate demand. Dec rease in taxation increases money circulation and aggregate demand. The money authorities of New Zealand can also control the amount of money in the economy through monetary policies. These money authorities include the Reserve Bank and the Central Bank. The main concept behind the monetary policies is the control of the interest rates. This control is achieved by the regulation of the amount of money in circulation. The Central Bank can take expansionary measures to increase money circulation. These measures include buying of government securities, lowering the reserve requirements and lowering the interest rate on loans to banks where it has to act as the lender of last resort (Hatch, 2001, page 201). The overall effect will be that bank loans will have lower interest rates, more people will go for the loans and there will be an increase in money circulation. In the same way, measures can be taken by the Central Bank to contract money circulation. These include sale of government securities and raising reserve requirements. The bank can also raise its lending rates so that the banks have to raise their interest rates in turn. The overall effect is the reduction in money circulation. With such mechanisms, the economy of New Zealand won’t get out of hand and will definitely stabilize within a short time. Conclusion From the foregoing, it is evident that even though New Zealand’s economy is currently slightly stable, it is bound to become more stable in the coming one or two years. It is also clear that New Zealand has undergone many transformations from an agricultural economy to a free market economy. Furthermore, there are a number of challenges that face the economy of New Zealand, but policy makers from New Zealand have come up with appropriate remedies for almost all of them. Finally, the government and the Monetary Authorities have played a significant role in the stabilization of New Zealand’s economy. In conclusion, New Zealandâ₠¬â„¢s economy is set to become more stable in the coming years. Reference List Arthur D. L. (2000). Sector partnership report, promotion and development of export trade: Best practice in organization and partnership. Trade Partners UK, London: Trade Partners UK. Bannock, G. and Peacock, A. (1989). Government and small business. London: Paul Chapman. Franklin, S. H. (1978). Trade, growth and anxiety: New Zealand beyond the welfare state. Methuen: Wellington Fynes, B. and Ennis, S. (1997). Competing from the Periphery. London: Dryden Press. Hatch, C. (2001). Strategic linkages and competitive advantage; Microenterprise best practices. Bethesda: MD Lange, D. (1990). Nuclear free: The New Zealand way. New Zealand: Penguin Books. Northdurft, W. (1992). Going global: How Europe helps small firms export. Washington DC: Brookings Institution Potter, J. B. and Spires, R. (2002). The wider effects of inward foreign direct investment in manufacturing. Journal of Economic Geography, 2, 279-310. Shooks, W. and Lewis, K. (1981). New Zealand – Australia free trade agreement. Melbourne: Industries Assistance Commission Library. Taylor C. R. and Henisz W. J. (1994). US Manufacturers in the global marketplace. New York, NY: Conference Board. This research paper on A Macroeconomic And Financial Outlook Of New Zealand was written and submitted by user JoantheMouse to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

How to Revise Bullet Lists for Grammatical Consistency

How to Revise Bullet Lists for Grammatical Consistency How to Revise Bullet Lists for Grammatical Consistency How to Revise Bullet Lists for Grammatical Consistency By Mark Nichol Bullet lists distinguished from numbered lists in that they do not imply a priority or chronology in the order in which the list items appear are useful for when a list becomes too unwieldy to be formatted in line (within a sentence), but just as in a sentence’s in-line list, the bullet list’s grammatical structure should be coherent. Here are three bullet lists I obtained from a job listing (a format that frequently exhibits grammatical infelicities and thus amuses job-seeking wordsmiths attuned to irony), each followed by a syntactically sound revision: 1. Original â€Å"This position is responsible for: Writing and/or editing in all media Assures quality for engaging audience Coordinates flow of information to achieve news cycle deadlines Creative Designer Contributes to high-performing teamwork Continuously seeks and applies learning to enhance skills and performances† 1. Revision â€Å"This position is responsible for writing and/or editing in all media assuring quality for engaging the audience coordinating flow of information to achieve news-cycle deadlines creatively designing presentation of content contributing to high-performing teamwork continuously seeking and applying learning to enhance skills and performances† Note that the colon in the introductory phrase has been omitted because the bullet-list items consecutively complete that phrase; it’s incorrect whether in line or in a bullet list to write, â€Å"This position is responsible for: writing and/or editing in all media . . . .† (It is acceptable to follow each bullet list item with a comma, with the conjunction and following the next-to-last comma, and include a period after the last item, which more accurately replicates an in-line list’s structure, but these additions are superfluous.) Most important, however, the verb(s) in each item now take an identical inflectional ending (-ing). The list could also, by revision of the introductory phrase, allow a simple verb form (-s), requiring alteration only of the verb form of the first item and an extension of â€Å"Creative Designer† into a complete thought: â€Å"The content manager writes and/or edits in all media† (etc.) 2. Original â€Å"Job Requirements: Applicants should have at least three years of daily newspaper copy editing and design experience. Exceptional Writing Proficiency Strong Proofreading and editing skills Experience in page design and layout on pagination systems like Quark or InDesign. Must understand that journalists are held to a higher standard and must follow strict ethical rules, such as not accepting gifts from sources; not putting political bumper stickers on their cars; etc. all outlined in The New York Times Co.s ethical policies. Knowledge of best practices in page design, typography, use of space and photography. 2. Revision â€Å"Applicants must have at least three years of daily newspaper copyediting and design experience, exceptional writing proficiency, strong proofreading and editing skills, experience in page design and layout on pagination systems like Quark or InDesign, and knowledge of best practices in page design, typography, use of space, and photography. Applicants must also understand that journalists are held to a higher standard and must follow strict ethical rules such as not accepting gifts from sources and not putting political bumper stickers on their cars all outlined in The New York Times Co.’s ethical policies.† The original introductory phrase is correctly punctuated because it is a fragment that sets up but is not syntactically continuous with each of the items that follow it. However, the items are inconsistent as to whether they are phrases or complete sentences and in terminal punctuation. In my revision, I created a new introductory phrase that can apply to all bullet list items (except the one about ethical rules, which I broke out as a separate paragraph because of its length and nonparallel structure and note the revision of its own in-line list), and I lowercased several words that were gratuitously capitalized. This scheme now matches that of the first bullet list with one exception: Here, for illustration, I have included optional internal punctuation in the bullet list, which I discussed but recommended against in my annotation of the previous example. 3. Original We are looking for candidates who have the following qualities: Quality Orientation Strong Work Standards Exceptional Communication Skills Ability to manage work Contributing to team success Proven decision making skills Building strategic working relationships Active Learning 3. Revision â€Å"We are looking for candidates who have the following qualities: quality orientation strong work standards exceptional communication skills ability to manage work desire to contribute to team success proven decision-making skills aptitude for building strategic working relationships active learning† This list was easier to fix: The introductory phrase, which comes to a halt, is correctly punctuated, and the items were mostly consistent in their phrase form. (Inconsistency in grammatical form between one list and another in a piece of content is acceptable, but lists should be internally consistent.) I simply removed unnecessary capitalization and rephrased two of the items to describe qualities rather than actions. For more tips about bullet lists, check out this post, and search the site for â€Å"lists† and â€Å"bullet lists† to find others. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Style category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:7 Examples of Passive Voice (And How To Fix Them)The Possessive ApostropheThe Difference Between "Shade" and "Shadow"

Operating strategies Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Operating strategies - Assignment Example It is also playing an integral roll in problem in problem solving, implementation and knowledge building to build durable trust based relation ship. And also do your best for superior quality and unique impact. Serve all clients as firm clients by influencing our scale and global network of knowledge resources. Also try to develop and broadcast world class research practice. Try to manage client and firm resources in cost effective manner too. If you want to make any kind of reputation and want your company brand as a standard than you have to deliver best of the firm to each and every client. These strategies also give publicity to your product as a standard one. Al ways try to develop and excite your people through a great active learner ship and make bigger, industrial opportunities. Always promote the wide ranging working atmosphere. And also support the compulsion to be descent to work. Respect the responsibility of individuals for balancing professional and private life and also showing care and consulate for every individual. 4. Govern Yourself Through a Partnership Based on Some Values: Always live by the principles of a concerned partner ship and benefit from individual freedom and take for granted the responsibility of mutual accountability and self governance. And always operate as single form. Operating Strategies in Immediate Staffing Group: Operating strategies should be very unique regarding immediate staffing issues for production of new product. The new generation of product will involve the new technologies that are not known by many current engineers. We mean to say that for the production of new generation we need a persons having command in all aspects that are

Improving Life in the United States Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Improving Life in the United States - Essay Example The present face of life in the U S, however, reflects the fading effects from repeated burns suffered by the political and economic structure of the country mostly from foreign policies of tariff, trade and international relationships. Continuous demonstrations of strive for political supremacy over different upcoming nations accounted for massive loss to the GDP of the country in the past few decades. Subsequent turns of two different political parties did little favor to the growth of the economy after the severe blow on its economic nerves with the issues like the Wall Street Collapse and the WTC attack. America, the uncrowned emperor of the world nations, has ever since spent a lot more on defense and anti-terrorist activities across the world and made the great efforts to take revenge on apparently poorer and weaker enemies. The resultant picture was the raise of a weakening crack in the strong walls of the country’s promised security of its own individuals for their wea lth and prosperous life. Long years of recession along with European financial crises paved way for debatable levels of inflation and massive unemployment concerns in the U S. Presently, even as the data from various international assessment agencies shows that the country is generally stable; improving life in the U S is a serious challenge before the nationals now. The growing trend of inflation relates to the rapid progress of distance between the rich and the remaining people in the country. Such a scenario is sure to bring home the bad impacts on per capita GDP, life expectancy, status of family and community life, gender ratio at the employment sector and many more. Apart from them, the cultural changes at international levels also add to the adversities at the moment. Therefore, a revival of the entire administrative aspects and political framework is necessary for the renaissance of the nation. When life in the US is seen as the core element for improvement, it should be vie wed from the national and individual angles. The country has to reframe a majority of its foreign policies in order to pacify the cultural and religious disparities at the grass-root level among people. For the US, targeted attacks on the grounds of counter-terrorism operations in different countries may be reduced for saving its amazingly huge proportions of military funding. As a result, the money could instead be used for the uplift of living standards of the poor Native American children and for the promotion of education and health care of its citizens. Smaller nations in the European and Asian continents continue to excel their capabilities of progressive efforts in market capitalization and foreign investment allocations for advancement in business. It is time for the U S to realize the need for new and centralized economic policies for the reimbursement of its faith in the global market. As constancy in investment-allotment ratio is the index of economic stability, the gover nment of the US should amend plans for attracting more foreign investors. Thus, the country can avoid rigid actions of immigration cut-shorts and imposition of political

Advantages and disadvantages of viewing behaviour

Advantages and disadvantages of viewing behaviour To look at life-span development, we need to be aware of what it is, although the meaning is within the name. It looks at how a normal person develops throughout the life-span. This process begins between conception and birth, the miracle of pregnancy where a one-celled organism develops into a foetus and finally a newborn baby emerges into the world. The development of this developing child is affected by the world around them. Affecting growth and at critical points can alter their genetic characteristics, which are developed within the womb, and the expression of these characteristics. Our exploration begins at birth, where who we are and will ultimately become is a life-long endeavour. (http://www.learner.org/discoveringpsychology/development/ 2001) In this assignment I am going to look at the infant period of the life-span. Development occurs across three separate yet overlapping domains. Biological, which looks at how the body matures, grows and changes. Psychosocial looks at an individuals personality and emotions and also their social expectations and interactions. Cognitive involves the mental processes of knowing which includes problem solving, imagining, reasoning and perceiving. According to Erikson (1950) there are 8 stages of development beginning with 0-1 year old, basic trust versus basic mistrust. This involves trusting that things will happen either through the childs own ability or trust that the childs care giver will provide what is needed. A key element in Eriksons theory is based on a secure attachment being made. This ties in with Bowlbys attachment theory (1969), as he believes a secure base must be formed in early years through attachment. He believes this attachment will impact future relationships. For example, attachment in adult intimate relationships can mirror earlier attachments in childhood, resulting in negative or positive attachments throughout the life-span. Eriksons second stage of development is for 2-3 year olds, autonomy versus shame, doubt. At this age childrens biological development includes learning to grasp, walk and other physical abilities which ultimately lead to free choice. The child begins to show control, for example with toilet training. However they may also develop a feeling of shame if the training is not handled adequately. Children need to be enabled to assert some control over their environment. Success with this leads the child to feeling a sense of purpose. However this needs to be balanced as the children who exert too much power can experience disapproval from their care giver which will result in the child feeling guilty. In social work practice some theories have influenced social work over the years. One example is psychosocial casework which in many ways is a development from psychodynamic theory in particular the ego psychology of writers such as Erikson. However Thompson criticises Eriksons work on human development as he feels it does tend to lack awareness of broader social issues (the significance of gender, for example) (Thompson, 2009, p89) A key theory I touched on briefly is attachment. In 1970 Ainsworth and Bell conducted a study which looked at the individual differences in attachment. They used a test called the strange situation to conduct the experiment; it involved mothers and 1 year old infants being observed by researchers in a play-room through a two way mirror. This study is relevant in practice as the social worker is the stranger. This is why the situation should be observed and record made of what occurs. As a social workers experience grows they may relate to what they observe on an attachment style. According to Bowlbys research there are lots of issues affecting attachment, for example, a mother suffering from post-natal depression may have trouble bonding with her child. This can have long-term effects on the child. However the child can form an attachment with another care giver. Although Bowlby insists on it being the mother this does not have to be the case, as children can adapt and attach to any care giver, as long as all needs are adequately met. Attachment is valid throughout the entire life-span not just in infancy. Every person has an attachment style that is unique to them. However a secure base is still needed as early attachment is crucial. When a child has a good early attachment they will learn to trust a new care giver because the child has previously learnt to trust. This again links Bowlby and Eriksons theories together, both putting attachment and trust as key issues in infancy. The intimacy of attachment is greatest at this early stage of infancy. Its difficult to get more intimate, than a vulnerable child with their primary care giver. There are 3 different kinds of attachment styles, ambivalent, secure and avoidance. Some attachment styles work well together and others dont. A social workers assessment in attachment styles is vital especially in adoption. As an ambivalent parent, who is very needy for love, this would clash with an avoidance child, whose reaction would be get away from me. Although Bowlbys theories are widely respected some feel his specification of the care giver being the mother as sexist. However his theory is valid and can be used with any care giver the child has and is vital in social work theory. A number of theorists have reconceptualised Bowlbys internal working model of attachment, which regulates communication with significant others, as a form of regulatory implicit rational memory (Bremmer and Slater, 2004, p208) This shows how Bowlbys attachment theory can be used as a base to support other theorists. Another key theorist for this stage of development is Freud. Freud (1905) believes that from the moment of birth the infants actions are driven by their desire for sexual and bodily pleasure. In infancy there are 3 stages to go through, the oral stage, the anal stage and the phallic stage. The initial oral stage is satisfied through sucking, for feeding. The second anal stage is released through the act of defecation. The final stage in infancy, the phallic stage is released through the infants interest in their sexual organs. Freud himself recognises the universal outrage that his theory was met with. Few of the findings of psychoanalysis have met with such universal contradiction or have aroused such an outburst of indignation as the assertion that the sexual function starts at the beginning of life and reveals its presence by important signs even in childhood. And yet no other findings of analysis can be demonstrated so easily and so completely. (Freud, 1925a: 216-217 cited in Thurschwell, 2009, p40) Looking at all the theorists and the life-span development in general gives you a benchmark of the norm. This enables us through the assessment process of any potential abnormalities that may be occurring. The theories are each relevant as they allow us to view why children exhibit certain behaviours. Theory is an integral part of social work, and the necessary tools needed are knowledge skills and values. Having adequate knowledge means knowing the relevant information, which when skilfully applied makes competent social work practice. Social workers need to be aware of people as ever growing individuals, with a past, present and future. It is vital to understand that service users are constantly changing and adapting to their surrounding environment. Children are not just miniature adults, they are their own individuals with separate wants and needs. We need to take this into account when dealing with children, and not talk around them. When this is not possible their best interests need to be at the heart of every decision made. Much of the distinction that we can make between adult and child owes a lot to how our society and the various cultures within it have constructed notions of what is appropriate for a child as opposed to what is appropriate for an adult. (Thompson and Thompson, 2008, p87-88) Although children need to be treated differently than adults we always need to be aware of the future of possibilities they have in front of them. A lot of who we become is mapped out in our childhood, so behaviours need to be noted and understood to help the individual in later life. One disadvantage the life-span development does not take into account is the world around us. This depending on the specific factor can lead to Anti-Discriminatory Practice (ADP) or Anti-Oppressive Practice (AOP), for example. a lack of understanding and knowledge of different cultural issues. Societal issues have just as much of an effect on infants as on adults. The structure of society often puts people at a disadvantage, for example, societys reaction to disability or race can lead to poverty and even social exclusion. However even with these issues people can sill build up resilience. Resilience enables some individuals to achieve satisfactory outcomes despite their disadvantaged backgrounds. This can be seen through a good school compensating for a delinquent neighbourhood. Even infants show resilience, low birth weight poses a risk to the child, due to the child being unable to grow at the rate required to which in return could affect its immune system, leaving the baby more vulnerable. Therefore overcoming this shows great resilience at a very early age. Another issue this raises is society labelling those who are considered to be outside the norm. Labels tend to influence the way people view and respond to what is labelled. Labelling theory describes the response and expectations of others to an act labelled deviant. This may create a situation in which the labelled person can do no other than respond in the ways expected. (Davies, 2000, p181) The labelling will have an effect on the care giver and therefore on the infant as well. When looking at infants you need to be aware of the surrounding family. Who at this early and vulnerable stage in development will have a significant impact? So although poverty is not something the infant will even be aware of, the care giver will be all too aware. There are a number of circumstances that may affect the way a child is raised; poverty is just one societal implication that can have an effect on the entire family. Any of these circumstances can lead to unnecessary stress which will then also impact on the infant. A different factor that can affect growth and development is disease and illness. One example of a condition that affects a childs development is autism. It is considered that autistic children show a lack of interest in people and therefore fail to show the normal attachment to their care giver. Autistic children have varying degrees of communication problems and because learning through play can be restricted, the childs pattern of development will be affected. In autistic children the overall development is slow and they do not reach the same mental milestones as the child who is normal. However autistic children are known to reach islands of brilliance. For example, although their communication with other children is very limited they may show considerably better powers of memory or drawing skills. So although the development process is very different from the norm, they adapt to their environment as other children do. In the early years it is just a matter of persevering and lea rning to get to know the infant the same as any other care giver would. In the case of an autistic child the life-span development would not be very useful, nor would the theories that have been suggested during this assignment. The social worker working with the infant will have to do their first initial assessment. Here they are laying the foundation for future assessments. They will be looking at the infants development and growth but as mentioned earlier the family will also impact on the infant in various ways. This is where knowledge of the entire lifespan is useful. As every person who is involved with the infant plays a part in their development. So an awareness of what is normal for that person is an advantage. The social worker will also be looking at the social implications that have an effect on the family, both positive and negative. So working with the family as a unit, with the infants well-being at the heart of everything, the social worker can focus on reducing the risk and negative impacts and raising awareness of the positives. This should have a positive affect on the well-being of the child. In conclusion a good knowledge and understanding of the life-span development benefits social workers, as it shows what is considered to be normal development throughout life. This helps social workers recognise when someone is not on target and therefore raises awareness of potential problems. However the disadvantage to this is it doesnt take into account any outside factors that can affect development. These factors include society issues that can lead to ADP and AOP if not taken into account with users and handled appropriately.

Mrs. Frisby and the rats of Nimh by Robert C. O’Brien

This book narrates the problems faced by the mice belonging to the family of Mrs. Frisby who is the main character of this fiction. The story of Frisby shows that she had the courage and determination to look after her family after the death of her husband. After the death of her husband Mrs. Frisby was expected to take care of her children. The story begins with the description of the life style of Mrs. Frisby’s family and the problems faced by this family as they depended on the humans for their survival. Due to the problems that mice’s family faced during winter, they were forced to change their places of habitation. However, Frisby’s son Timothy had a weak health. Due to his illness, Frisby could not carry her family to the safer place during winter, but it was important to find some solution the health problem of her son. This book consists of various adventures of Frisby who was able to even challenge a dragon. Frisy was able to save a crow who advised the mouse to go to old owl who was reluctant to give any advice until he heard the name of Mr. Frisby. Indirectly, Mr. Frisby is also mentioned in the book although he was dead. The old owl advised Mrs. Frisby to seek help from the nest of rats, which lived under a rose bush. After hearing the name of Mr. Frisby, the rats decide to help the mouse. It is curious to note that the rats led an independent life as they were able to establish their own colony with electricity, roads, streets, lifts, and various other facilities. Thus, Mrs. Frisby is introduced to the secret world of the rats. It is interesting to note that rats had mastered the art of reading and the young rats were expected to learn reading. The rats had succeeded in imitating the humans by establishing their own civilization in this secret world. The rats execute the plan of lifting the block of Mrs. Frisby’s house and shifting it to a safer location. This shows that these animals had mastered the art of modern technology by the use of latest machineries. Through this mastery of human skills, the rats had become independent of the control of human beings. Although the main characters are mice and rats, the story reveals the human character and values found in these animals as they think and behave like humans. For example, it is surprising to note that mouse goes to the owl and seeks the advice as there is a general perception that owl is always looking for the flesh of mouse. Mrs. Frisby shows her motherly affection when her son falls ill. The problems faced by the mouse’s family are also depicted in the fiction. Naturally, this book has attracted the attention of many students who study in elementary schools. Initially the book does not reveal the secret world of the rats. By doing so, the author is able to sustain the curiosity of the readers. Apart from mouse and rats, other characters in this book are Mrs. Frisby’s friend Mr. Ages, the crow, Jeremy, and the owl. Mrs. Frisby also learns that her husband was a close companion of the rats and out of respect for her husband the rats had agreed to help her. The reader is also informed that the rats had earlier depended on the human beings; later they decided to migrate to their present place where they established their own civilization. This book has been liked by the younger generation as there is description of the human character of the animals. Bibliography O’Brien, R.C. (1971). Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh. New York: Puffin

The Low Down on Apa Citation Example Paper Exposed

The Low Down on Apa Citation Example Paper Exposed What the In-Crowd Won't Tell You About Apa Citation Example Paper Overview The goal of learning how to compose an APA summary paper example of a report is to concentrate on presenting a concise form of the original. For instance, a ten-page paper or report would call for a one-page executive summary. Ensure you provide the citations of all of the reference points utilized in the original essay. These tips offer you some helpful guidelines which will help you prepare your paper and make sure it is formatted properly. Actually, to compose a fantastic term paper in APA style, you want to stick to the formatting rules strictly. Below, you will locate the helpful details about the peculiarities of AMA style research paper. Writing a terrific abstract is a skill that must be cultivated. Whether you will need an APA citation page example or you have any writing problems, simply complete the purchase form to get assistance from the gurus. If you're assigned to an apa research paper outline you ought to use proper apa guidelines. Then write the abstract part of your paper only after you're completely finished writing your paper. Thus, a research paper needs to have a central statement about which you need to write with the purpose of supporting it. It is mostly assigned by the subject instructor. At our cheap essay writing service, you can be certain to find credible academic aid for an affordable price, since the name of our site suggests. The main issue is they shouldn't be mixed in 1 paper. After you're ready to say what the major idea is, it is going to be simpler to write it. The major idea should stay precisely the same during the whole paper. As you are writing an academic paper, bear in mind that you will need to give a crystal clear argument and you need to do it as early in the paper as possible. Attempt to convince the reader your paper is worth reading and provide a concise overview of it. The very first thing that you are going to want to do is make sure your very first page is formatted independently from the remaining portion of the paper. For instance, every page of a paper ought to have a running head. The Ultimate Apa Citation Example Paper Trick Before starting inserting citations, you have to first ensure your paper was typed in double spacing on a normal paper. Format the line-spacing for your document to make sure that it's double-spaced. Short documents usually do not require using headings. Citation marks are employed in the major text and in the references at the close of the paper. Also, include the page number justified right within the header, or so the number an individual will show up in the proper corner of the header. To earn a note, the superscript number should be placed close to the corresponding bit of text after all punctuation marks. Please be aware that the range of sentences of essay conclusion rides on the amount of paragraphs inside your body part. You should also learn where and how to begin a conclusion for an essay. If you would like to learn to compose a conclusion for an expository essay, you also will need to concentrate on your primary idea and thesis statement. Writing an essay conclusion might appear an obvious and straightforward step in the whole essay writing task. Typically, the correct length depends upon the overall length of the paper. A paper of any significant length will likely require a conclusion of many paragraphs so as to effectively realize a conclusion's purpose. A paper of any substantial length will probably require a conclusion of several paragraphs as a means to effectively accomplish a conclusion's purpose. Writing a term paper is a troublesome task as it is and the truth is you aren't likely to have the ability to pass your post-graduate degree of education, if you don't do a number of research assignments. APA recommends five-level heading structure based on the degree of subordination. Across learning institutions, it's a requirement to organize your paper in a special way. Besides ensuring that you cite your sources properly and present information in line with the rules of APA style, there are several things you can do in order to make the writing process just a little bit simpler. The full title of your paper should appear again at the beginning of the chief body. Your structure should be flexible enough to fulfill the needs of your purpose and audience.