Business Improvement and Creativity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Business Improvement and Creativity - Essay Example To maintain the company’s market shares, the top management of RIM is being challenged to constantly improve its business processes and product quality and design. (See Appendix I – Summary of Mobile Phone Sales Volume Around the World on page 11) As part of analyzing the main drivers behind the business improvement of BlackBerry, this study will purposely analyze the theory behind John Kotter’s model of organizational change and DEbono’s six hat thinking. After critically analyzing these two particular business improvement theories, it will be applied in the case of RIM – BlackBerry. According to Nelson and Quick (2008, p. 416), organizational change is inevitable yet manageable. To compete in the market, implementing product innovation and organizational change is necessary (Sabri, Gupta and Beitler, 2007, p. viii). is commonly used in â€Å"planning, implementing, and sustaining change† (Sabri, Gupta and Beitler, 2007, p. 176). According to Kottler (1996), the eight steps towards a successful organizational change include: (1) establishing a sense of urgency; (2) creating a guiding coalition; (3) developing a vision and strategy for change; (4) communicating the vision and strategy for change; (5) empowering employees for action; (6) generating short-term wins; (7) consolidating gains and producing more change; and (8) anchoring change in organizational culture [cited in Sabri, Gupta and Beitler, 2007, p. 176]. (See Appendix II – Kotter’s Model of Organizational Change on page 12) The model presented by Kottler is clear and straight-forward. Using the SWOT matrix, this model encourages the managers to reflect on the need to implement organizational change (Kottler, 1996, p. 21). It also encourages the managers to use their leadership skills to effectively communicate the vision and strategy to persuade employees to support organizational

Understanding of the material presented on social learning and general Essay

Understanding of the material presented on social learning and general strain theories - Essay Example The general strain theory is a criminology branch that has a perspective that criminal behavior is a result of pressure by negative emotions such as anger which results to negative or strain relationships with others. The social learning and the general strain theories have some similarities and differences that explain more concerning them. The difference between the two that, general strain theory puts emphases on the negative relationships with others while the theory of social learning focuses much on the cognitive information acquired through the learning process. The general strain theory involves a motivational element of emotions that are negative while social learning involve a general learning process of either negative or positive things around the human beings (Agnew 67). For general strain theory, motivation occurs before the negative performance, but for social learning theory, motivation occurs when the desired behavior is achieved, although reinforcement is applied whenever a learner shows undesirable action. The social learning theory has some general similarities with the theory of general strain. Both of the two theories focus on the behavior one acquires from their environment they live. Both theories influence the development of a human being under any specified circumstances. They both explain how the human surrounding influences the relationship that he will have to the people around or even objects (Agnew 68). The two theories have motivation and reinforcement as the key factor that influence the action one engage in. They are both behaviors centered as compared to the other theories. The two theories propose that both behaviors of conformance and criminal like behavior are some kind of behaviors that one acquire and maintain, or even change through interaction with others. The most convincing theory between the two mentioned theories is the social learning theory. This theory can easily handle behavior

Causes, Effects And Implications Of Sibling Incest

Causes, Effects And Implications Of Sibling Incest This literature review focuses on research that is related to sibling incest and discusses the causes, effects and implications that sibling incest has on the victim, perpetrator and the family. It focuses on the types of research that is conducted and the weaknesses and strengths of these studies. It also discusses further implications and suggestions for future research in regards to sibling incest. It is meant as a review of the types of research and how this affects our views on sibling incest and ways that we can improve future research to help those that are victims, perpetrators and impacted by sibling incest. Sibling Incest is a huge taboo in the US and an issue that is largely dismissed as something that is not experienced by the general population and occurs only in a very small amount of cases. After reading each of these articles, it has become clear that there is a significant lack of research regarding this particular form of family abuse. Much of what has been researched seems to contradict each other and are questions regarding this hidden taboo continue to go unanswered. When most people in the US think of incest, specifically sibling incest, they seem perplexed as to what causes this desire in people and how this plays out in a family. Sibling incest seems to be considered one of the highest forms of abuse within a family and needs to be researched so that we may begin to understand the full impacts this has on individuals and families. By researching and understanding this abuse more thoroughly we might be able to prevent future incest cases and help victims and perpetrators re cover from such a violent form of abuse. We might also be able to come to understand the full impacts of sibling incest and if our views as a country and our taboo against it holds true. Does sibling incest violate such basic psychological views and trusting relationships that might damage the victim more than any other type of family abuse? Thompson discussed why incest between siblings needs to be studied more than any other area (2009). The author described the sibling relationship in regards to incest and the effects the incest has on the victim and the family as a whole. Thompson sheds light on the families of sibling incest relationships and different theories that can begin to explain the family system and family response upon disclosure of the abuse. The author examines how blaming plays a part in the reactions to incest disclosure by the family, and how this affects the health and wellbeing of the victim. Thompson describes different coping mechanisms and the effectiveness of group therapy in the lives of incest victims. The author briefly discusses different theoretical frameworks that might aid in work dealing with female victims of incest. Thompson focuses on family systems theory and the relationships within the family. A group model is mentioned as a successful way to work through incest trauma and develop healthy coping strategies. Short-term and long-term group models are discussed in their benefits and disadvantages that each provide (Thompson, 2009). Kissing Your Sister The article Kissing Your Sister summarizes a study performed by three evolutionary psychologists, Debra Lieberman, John Tooby, and Leda Cosmides. The study sheds light as to what makes people avoid incest relations. The study was performed on 600 people and investigated their family histories and relationships. The study suggested that there are two main things that trigger us to avoid sexual relationships with our siblings. These triggers are the amount of time that the person spends with the childs mother at a young age and the amount of time the two spend living in the same house. According to the authors, these trigger two evolutionary processes that are beneficial to the survival of humans. Altruism and aversion to incest help individuals to survive by getting along and avoiding possible malfunctions in reproduction. Sibling Incest: Reports from 41 Survivors In the article, the authors discussed a study that was performed with 41 adults who experienced sibling incest. The research was done due to a significant lack of previous research in this specific area. Included in the study were men and women, perpetrators and victims. The sample consisted mostly of Caucasian working-class women with a mean age of 39 years old. They asked open-ended and closed-ended questions regarding the abuse, who started it, the duration, and disclosure. The report results reported several findings. It suggested that the average age difference was around 4 years with victims being, on average, around age 7 at onset and age 13 at the end of the abuse. The questions investigated several issues included who initiated the abuse and the threat of violence that is placed on the individual. The authors also investigated other sexual abuse experienced by the participants and the environment of the family, including any physical, emotional, and/or sexual abuse experienc ed with other family members and non-family members. Sibling Incest within Violent Families: Children under 12 Seeking Nurture In the article, the author investigates possible causes that might lead to sibling incest including violent homes, neglect, and a need for love and nurture. The author suggests that violence in the home may influence a childs sexual identity and possibly influence the desire for incest. The author defines violent families, the concept of nurture, and sibling incest in order to create a picture of how they might interact and influence each other. The author uses anecdotal evidence to support her views that family violence may lead to a different sexual identity in the child and sibling incest desires. The author explores the process children exposed to violent families might go through. She recognizes the need for connection, comfort and nurture that the child has and suggests that they begin to look for this emotional connection in their siblings. She investigates the sexual progress and exploration that a child goes through from birth to adolescence and how this might be affected by family violence. The author discusses the possible effects of shame and how this might make a child more vulnerable to sibling incest. Findings of each study Sibling Incest: A model for group practice with adult female victims of brother-sister incest. Thompson argues that a long-term group model is best used when working with incest victims. Thompson ends the article pushing for a broader approach when investigating the lives and trauma of incest victims, looking at the way family dynamics and interactions play a part in leading to incest. Thompson recommends group therapy as a way to help victims feel understood and work through their coping skills as a group. Kissing Your Sister The authors interpret their results from their study on sibling incest to suggest that the amount of time the potential incest partner spent with you in the same roof and being raised by the same mother, predict the likelihood of incest behavior. The more time the stepsibling or sibling does spend in these conditions increase the likelihood that you will avoid incest acts. They also suggest that women are more likely to avoid sibling incest possibly due to the desire to reproduce healthy offspring. The authors suggest that aversion to sibling incest is strongest among siblings of the opposite sex. (Lieberman, Tooby, Cosmides, pg. 1) Sibling Incest: Reports from 41 Survivors The authors in this study were led to believe that the average age difference between perpetrators and victims was 4 years with the most cases of sibling incest experiences including fondling and having the siblings genitals rubbed on the subjects body. The study suggests that a majority (68.3%) of participants were coerced, threatened or bribed in order to force cooperation. (pg. 9) It suggested that more male participants believed the sexual experience was consensual. It also suggested that more abuse ended when the perpetrator left home, versus the victim. The majority of participants perceived themselves to be emotionally abused by being ridiculed, degraded or put down, emotionally neglected, or threatened with abuse. (pg. 10) The researchers discovered that disclosure of sexual abuse occurred almost rarely. The majority of participants also reported having sexual experiences with other family members. The study concluded that sibling incest can be long-lasting and frequently ent ails intercourse. In most cases the sexual behavior was coerced in some way. Parents were seldom aware of the abuse while it was occurring, and factors other than disclosure most often led to the incest ending. (pg. 13). Sibling Incest within Violent Families: Children under 12 Seeking Nurture According to the author, the effects of sibling incest can be traumatizing as the individual enters adulthood. The author believes as a result of her anecdotal evidence and researching thoughts on sexual exploration throughout childhood development, that the childs interpretation of sexual exploration might be altered due to the abuse and the childs search for another form of nurture in their environment. As the child develops their views on this will alter, in which case they might view their incest acts as disgusting and no longer normal, thus the adult undergoes significant psychological distress. The author suggests that according to the determinants model, a lack of social support and parental availability will leave the child at high risk for sibling incest, both as a perpetrator and victim. Strengths/Weaknesses of each study In the article Sibling Incest: Reports from 41 Survivors, there are so many elements that skew the findings of the researchers. First, the researchers interviewed both perpetrators and victims, making the title of the article very misleading. By interviewing perpetrators as well as victims, they are skewing the data to represent either higher or lower percentages in certain areas. The age difference between perpetrators and victims was skewed because they used all participants data as representing of the victim, and their counterpart as representing of the perpetrator, even though there were several individuals in the study that reported initiating the abuse. Several other misinterpretations of this data might have led to skewed findings and misunderstandings of sibling incest. Sibling Incest within Violent Families: Children under 12 Seeking Nurture presents some good suggestions and possible ideas on what might cause some forms of sibling incest. It presents good anecdotal evidence that might lead to very good research studies that will investigate this correlation in more depth. However, the anecdotal evidence and the mere opinions of the author are not enough to come to any conclusions about the correlation between family violence and sibling incest. It isnt enough to change therapy, prevention, and intervention in regards to sibling incest. These types of articles are great gateways that lead to further investigations of relationships and causes of many types of family violence and continue to be the start of research that hasnt been investigated yet. Conclusion It is clear that there needs to be much more researched in regards to sibling incest in order to understand the full dynamics and implications of this violation upon an individual. The articles that are mentioned above begin to address these issues, some of which actually addressed possible implications that sibling incest has on individuals. However, most of the research was targeted at causes of sibling incest. They all came to similar conclusions such as the perpetrator is generally about four years older than the victim. The only article that seemed to address the implications of abuse on individuals was Sibling Incest: Reports from 41 Survivors, and this even was very brief and concise. They suggested that victims might feel a sense of distrust towards the opposite sex as adults and feel uncomfortable in sexual relationships. Most studies performed open-ended and close-ended questions on adults that had experienced sibling incest as children. Thompson describes different ways to help victims cope with the abuse as adults by using group therapy and teaching coping mechanisms. The implications that these studies hold on further research of sibling incest are significant. Further research should be used to perform different types of studies and experiments including long-term studies. This becomes a challenge when usually sibling incest is not disclosed until the victim is an adult and much time has passed since the abuse. We should also focus our studies to discover exactly how sibling incest might impact the victims and the families throughout the lifetime and in the next generation. Although some of the research examined was thorough, it is important that we continue research on this subject matter in order to become confident of the causes and understand the family situations that might lead to abuse. Since some of the evidence is contradictory, it would be helpful to gain more insight with better designed studies and larger sample sizes. I hope that some of these articles encourage more research to be done on such a difficult topic to understand as sibling incest.

Religious Roles in The Narrative Of The Life Of Olaudah Equiano Essay

Religious Roles in The Narrative Of The Life Of Olaudah Equiano The narrative of Olaudah Equiano is truly a magnificent one. Not only does the reader get to see the world through Equiano's own personal experiences, we get to read a major autobiography that combined the form of a slave narrative with that of a spiritual conversion autobiography. Religion may be viewed as at the heart of the matter in Equiano's long, remarkable journey. Through Equiano's own experiences, the reader uncovers just how massive a role religion played in the part of his Narrative and in that of his own life. More specifically, we learn of how his religious conversion meant a type of freedom as momentous as his own independence from slavery. As one reads his tale, one learns just how dedicated he his to that of his Christian faith; from his constant narration of the scriptures to the way that Equiano feels a growing sense of empowerment from the biblical texts for the oppressed community. However, at the same time, one may question Equiano's own Christian piety. D id Equiano really seek to tell the tale of his soul's spiritual journey, did he really believe God would set him free or was he simply using religion as a ways of manipulating British and American readers to accept him as a credible narrator. Regardless of which of these facts is true, religion is quite possibly the defining feature of his life story. Equiano's own exposure of Christianity first began when he was no older than 12 years old and was first arriving in England, where he experienced the sight of snow for the first time. Curious to what it was, he asked a mate and soon found out that "…a great man in the heavens, Called God…" [Olaudah Equiano, The Interesting Narrati... ...he bruised, which our Savior speaks of, who are they?" (Equiano, 124) Undeniably there is no doubt that religion played a major role in Equiano's own life and in his Narrative. No matter what you believe about Equiano's own Christian piety, there is no question that his religious conversion (at the very least) gave him a type of freedom of tranquility that was as vital to his heart, as his own manumission from slavery brought him. Just as Equiano himself mentions about his life and all the events that occurred in it; "…what makes any event important, unless by its observation we become better and wiser, and learn ‘to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly before God?'" (Equiano, 253) Bibliography Equiano, Olaudah. The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano. Edited by Angelo Costanzo. Orchard Park, NY: Broadway Literary Texts, 2004.

To Kill a Mockingbird – Dill Harris Character Sketch

Charles Baker Harris, who is commonly referred to as Dill, is a little boy in the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird and plays the role of a cardboard character. Dill is sincere friends with Scout and Jem and spends his summers with Aunt Rachel. Dill represents the naivety and innocence of childhood and is a very intriguing character. Dill appears to be younger than his actual age. In the beginning of the novel, Dill had a short stature and appeared to be four years of age, when in actuality, wassix years of age. â€Å"How old are you,’ asked Jem, ‘four and a half (Lee, Page 7)? ’† â€Å"‘Goin’ on seven (Lee, Page 7). † â€Å"‘Scout yonder’s been readin’ ever since she was born and she ain’t even started school yet. You look puny for goin’ on seven (Lee, Page 7). ’† The quotes from the novel are from a conversation between Jem and Dill when they met. Jem initially assumes that Dill is four and a half years because of his youthful appearance and petite body. Dill corrects Jem, stating that he is actually six years of age and is turning seven. Dill says in the last quote that he is quite small for his age. The quotes prove that Dill has a youthful appearance, small stature and appears younger than what he actually is. Dill also has white hair and a pair of blue eyes. â€Å"†¦ his hair was snow white and stuck to his head like duckfluff; he was a year my senior but I towered over him. As he told us the old take his blue eyes would lighten and darken†¦ (Lee, Page 8). † The quote from the novel is from the time when Scout is describing Dill’s hair and eyes. The quote is proof that Dill has white hair and blues eyes because this quote states that Dill’s hair was white with a duckfluff texture. The quote is also proof that Dill has blue eyes because the quote mentioned that Dill has a pair of blue eyes. Dill is of Caucasian race, given the fact that Dill has blue eyes. People of the Caucasian race are the only ones who can possess blue eyes. A positive trait that Dill possesses is his gift for storytelling and whimsical imagination. Dill would always make up peculiar stories about his life and share them with Scout and Jem. â€Å"Refreshed by food, Dill recited this narrative: having been bound in chains and left to die in the basement (there were basements in Meridian) by his new father, who disliked him, and secretly kept alive on a raw field peas by a passing farmer who heard his ries for help, Dill worked himself free by pulling the chains from the wall. Still in wrist monocles, he wandered two miles out of the Meridian where he discovered a small animal show and was immediately engaged to wash the camel. He traveled with the show all over Mississippi until his infallible sense of direction told him he was in Abbot Country, Alabama, just across the river from Maycomb. He walked the rest of the way (Lee, Page 140). † Another positive character trait that Dill possesses is his developed empathy for people. Dill desires fair treatment of every human being, regardless of race. â€Å"‘It was just something I couldn’t stand. ’ Dill said (Lee, Page 198). † â€Å"‘Dill, that’s his job. Why, if we didn’t have prosecutors—well we couldn’t have defense attorneys, I reckon (Lee, Page 199). ’† â€Å"Dill exhaled patiently. ‘I know all that, Scout. It was the way he said it made me sick, plain sick (Lee, Page 199). ’† â€Å"‘He’s supposed to act that way, Dill, he was cross—(Lee, Page 199)’. † â€Å"‘He didn’t act that way when—‘(Lee, Page 199). â€Å"‘Dill, those were his own witnesses (Lee, Page 199). ’† â€Å"‘Well, Mr. Finch didn’t act that way to Mayella and old man Ewell when he cross-examined them. The way that man called him ‘boy’ all the time an’ sneered at him, an’ looked ar ound at the jury every time he answered—(Lee, Page 199)’. † â€Å"‘Well, Dill, after all he’s just a Negro (Lee, Page 199)’. † â€Å"‘I don’t care one speck. It ain’t right, somehow it aint right to do ‘em that way. Hasn’t anybody got any business talkin’ like that—it just makes me sick (Lee, Page 199)’. The quotes from the novel are from a conversation between Dill and Scout after watching the trial of Tom Robinson for a while (Tom Robinson was a black man who was accused of sexually assaulting a white woman and was put on trial, despite the lack of evidence of the rape. The trial is unfair to Tom because the trial took place during the time when racism was prominent in the southern United States. The prosecutors and judges treated Tom disrespectfully and unfairly in the trial because he was black). In the conversation, it was shown that Dill was upset by the unfairness of the trial and the cruelty of the people towards Tom Robinson because he was black. Scout tries to comfort Dill, but Dill was far too upset by the injustice. In the last quote, Dill says to Scout that Tom shouldn’t be treated with disrespect because he was a Negro. The prejudice and unfairness of the trial reveals Dill’s empathy and desire for equal and respectful treatment of everyone, regardless if they’re black or white. This scenario in the novel causes Dill’s character to mature, such that he gains strong moral values like Atticus (Atticus is Scout’s father who is defending Tom Robinson and believes that black people should be treated equally and with respect, despite the fact that most of Maycomb’s citizens were racist). A trait of Dill’s that needs improvement is his naivety and his tendency to jump to conclusions without discussing his problems to anyone. Dill shows his naivety in the novel by running away from his parents because he believed that his parents didn’t love or care about him. Dill’s voice went on steadily in the darkness: ‘the thing is, what I’m trying to say is—they do get on a lot bettwe without me, I can’t help them any. They ain’t mean. They buy me everything I want, but it’s now-you’ve-got-it-go-play-with-it (Lee, Page 143)’. † The quote from the novel is from when Dill was e xplaining to Scout about why he ran away from his parents. Dill explains that he doesn’t feel loved by his parents because all his parents just do is give Dill material possessions to keep him occupied, instead spending time with him. What Dill really desires is not toys, but his parent’s time. Dill’s parents obviously love and care for Dill, but Dill is naive as to assume that his parents don’t. Instead of Dill discussing his situation with his parents or asking to spend time with him, Dill, with his naive mind, runs away from his parents. The fact that Dill ran away from his parents is proof that he is naive. â€Å"Jem gave a reasonable description of Boo: Boo was about sex-and-a-half feet tall, judging from his tracks; he dined on raw squirrels and any cats he could catch, that’s why his hands were bloodstained—if you ate an animal raw, you could never wash the blood off. There was a long jagged scar that ran across his face; what teeth he had were yellow and rotten; his eyes popped, and he drooled most of the time (Lee, Page 13). † â€Å"‘Let’s try to make him come out,’ said Dill. ‘I’d like to see what he looks like (Lee, Page 13). ’† â€Å"Our first raid came to pass only because Dill bet Jem The Gray Ghost against two Tom Swifts that Jem wouldn’t get any farther than the Radley gate. In all his life, Jem had never declined a dare. Jem thought about it for three days. I suppose he loved honor more than hid head for Dill wore him down easily (Lee, Page 13). † â€Å"‘You’re scared,’ Dill said, the first day (Lee, Page 13). † â€Å"‘Ain’t scared, just respectful,’ said Jem (Lee, Page 13). † â€Å"But Dill got him the third day, when he told Jem that folks in Meridian certainly weren’t as afraid as the folks in Maycomb, that he’d never seen such scary folks as the ones in Maycomb. That was enough to make Jem march to the corner, where he stopped and leaned against the light-pole, watching the gate hanging crazily on its homemade hinge (Lee, Page 13). †

Usability Evaluation of a Web Design Interface

Usability Evaluation of a Web Design Interface 1/12 http://ojni. org/602/usability. htm Usability Evaluation of a Web Design Interface by Karen D. King, RDH, MHeD and Dr. Rosalee Seymour, Associate Professor, EdD, RN Abstract This report presents the results of a usability evaluation of the Web design interfac e for an instructional unit prototype on Herpes Simplex and Apthous Ulcers. Usability is defin ed as the measure of a product’s potential to accomplish the goals of its users (Dumas, 1999). The unit and the Web interface were designed to deliver instruction to undergraduate dental hygien e students.The three randomly selected users/subjects for this evaluation were from an undergrad uate class of dental hygiene students. This report describes the usability evaluation planning, im plementation, data analysis methods, and results. The results demonstrate that conducting usabilit y evaluations help to determine the organization and ease of navigation of an interactive, Web- base d, instructional unit. Usability Evaluation of a Web Design Interface Computers are used to educate, in many instances, with conventional interfaces that i nclude those used to create documents and manipulate data.A Web interface, which was tested in t his case, is very different from a conventional one. The Web is a domain that must be instantly u sable and support many communication modalities. Web designers must focus on the computer user whose goal is to gather information rather than to create documents or manipulate data (Raj ani & Rosenberg, 1999). It is critical that the accomplishment of the users’ goals be the primary objective o f a usability evaluation (UE) of Web site interface design.Users will not be able to access correc t pages unless the constructed site reflects their needs and contains a navigation scheme that allow s easy access to the desired information (Nielsen, 2000a). In Web interface designs the properties of color, sound, navigation, and place ment must be considered from a different perspective than with c onventional interfaces. Usability evaluation purposes. The faculty of the Department of Dental Hygiene, where this evaluation was conducted developed an oral pathology course for undergraduate student s in dental hygiene and wanted to deliver it via a Web design interface.The instructional unit o n Herpes Simplex and Apthous Ulcers is the prototype for nine instructional units to follow. It was anticipated that conducting a UE, on the prototype instructional unit Web interface, would enable identification of any usability issues or problems relevant to this Web interface before the constru ction of subsequent instructional units. In keeping with Rajani and Rosenberg (1999), the primary purposes of this UE were agr eed upon as: 1) to determine if the Web-based Herpes Simplex and Apthous ulcer prototype is easy t o navigate 13/3/2013 0:50Usability Evaluation of a Web Design Interface 2/12 http://ojni. org/602/usability. htm and meets the goals of undergraduate dental hygiene students, 2) to use any identifie d problems to revise this unit, 3) to make recommendations on the construction of additional units based on this prototype, 4) to save faculty time, and 5) to insure students’ goals will be met in t he Web interface format. The Literature Usability evaluations include a range of methods for identifying how users actually i nteract with a prototype or completed Web site. Planning of a UE egins with a statement of the ove rall purpose and objectives for the investigation and a clear identification of the problem (Hom, 1999; Instone, 1999). In a typical approach a UE is conducted while users perform tasks and a modera tor watches, listens, and records for later data analyzes and reporting of results (Fichter, 2000) . The next steps are the identification of the subject/users and the design of the study. Graham (2000) describes many ways to get feedback about the usability of a Web site. Gra ham (2000) recommends that a moderator observe a user representing the site’s target audi ence as they navigate the site.Graham (2000) cautions moderators against the interruption of the subject/user while conducting any observations. Nielsen (2000a) also recommends that the user/subj ects be representative of the target audience and not colleagues or others who may know too m uch about the site. Nielsen (2000a) recommends that user/subjects perform specific tasks durin g a UE as opposed to asking them to just play on the test site. These test tasks need to be re presentative of the types of tasks that users will actually perform on the Web site within the Web in terface being tested.Nielsen (2000a) suggests that the moderator solicit comments from users as they progr ess through to task completion to help determine their thought process. Hom (2000) refers to thi s encouragement of user comments during the evaluation as the ‘think aloud protocol’. H om (2000) des cribes this technique as one in which the user verbalizes any thoughts, feelings, and/or opinions while interacting with the test site. The inclusion of the ‘think aloud protocol’ all ows the moderator to qualitatively measure how the user approaches the Web interface and what consideratio ns they keep in mind when using it.For example, a user verbalizing that the sequence of steps, d ictated by a task, is different from what was expected, could demonstrate an interface problem (Ho m, 2000). Hom (2000) recommends using the qualitative ‘think aloud method’ in conjunction with performance measures. The performance measures add to the data collected noting such things as: 1 ) the time it takes for a user to complete a task, 2) the number and type of errors per task, 3) the number of users completing a task successfully, and 4) the satisfaction of the user with the si te (Nielsen, 2000a).After determining the study design and identification of the users, Spool et al. (199 9) in agreement with Nielsen recommend development of specific tasks for users to perform during the UE. In addition to a task list, Hom (1999) advocates during the planning phase of UE that on e specify materials needed and the site evaluation environment. Rubin (1994) agrees that the U E process needs test users from the target population to evaluate the degree to which a product meets specific 13/3/2013 0:50 Usability Evaluation of a Web Design Interface /12 http://ojni. org/602/usability. htm criteria. Rubin (1994) describes six basic elements of a UE: 1) a clear statement of the problem and/or evaluation objectives, 2) a sample of users, which may/may not be randomly cho sen, 3) a setting representative of the actual work environment, 4) observation of users who either use or review a representation of the product, 5) a collection of quantitative performance and qualitative preferences measures, and 6) an analysis leading to recommendation for design of the product evaluated.When analyzing data from having conducted a UE, rather than supporting hypotheses one is looking for patterns to identify common problems, in the remarks or observations, between use rs (Dumas, 1999; Hom, 1999). Performance data is statistically analyzed while qualitative data, collected by observing the user’s actions and opinions, is analyzed for trends. The data analysis results should lead to identification of strengths and recommendations for improving the site or pro duct (Nielsen, 2000a; Spool, et al. 1999; Hom, 1999; Dumas, 1999). Usability Evaluation: The Case This UE was conducted because usability problems, within any prototype, are important to discover prior to the costly, time consuming, construction of a web interface for additional i nstructional units. The specific purpose of this UE was to determine if the Web interface presented the H erpes Simplex and Apthous Ulcer prototype interactive educational unit in a way that allowed underg raduate dental hygiene students to successfully achieve unit outcomes.Specific objectives for this usability evaluation were to determine: 1) navigational and/or organizational problems with the Web interface, 2) the presence of any confusing term inology in the site, 3) if the site meets the goals of the user, 4) if the users can complete the as signed tasks, and 5) user’s attitudes toward the Web site. Methods A description of the UE environment, user selection criteria and profiles, usability evaluation process, the task list, and evaluation measures for this study follow. Usability evaluation environment. The UE took place in the moderator’s private campus office.This is a quiet, well-lit room with a comfortable temperature, equipped with a Dell computer workstation, which was used for the evaluation. A sign reading â€Å"Usability Evaluation in Session. Please Do Not Disturb† was posted on the closed office door to prevent interruptions and distractio ns. The UEs were co nducted on July 2, 2001, at 1:00 p. m. , 2:00 p. m. , and 3:00 p. m. Subject/users interacted with the Herpes Simplex and Apthous Ulcers Web interface one at a time. Each subject /user had 20 minutes to complete the usability evaluation. Subjectuser selection and profile.Three randomly selected undergraduate dental hygi ene students, from a target population of 24 (class of 2002), became subjectusers. All 24 students will be required to take the oral pathology courses including the instructional units reflect ing the results of this UE. Alphabetical order by user’s last name determined the order of subjectuser participation. In order to be selected the subject/users must have met the following criteria: 1) be an undergraduate 13/3/2013 0:50 Usability Evaluation of a Web Design Interface 4/12 http://ojni. org/602/usability. htm ental hygiene student, 2) have successfully completed one academic year of the Denta l Hygiene Program, 3) have previous experience with the Internet, and 4) have previous experien ce with Web browsers The demographic characteristics of the users for this evaluation were that: 1) they all were female, 2) ages 25, 22, and 43, 3) all had successfully completed on e academic year in the Dental Hygiene Program, 4) all had previous experience with the Internet, and 5) all had between 1 and 3 years experience with Web browsers. Administration protocol. Prior to the UE a training packet and session of 30 minutes were provided to each subjectuser.The training session included a brief description of the UE proce ss, purpose and objectives, and the UE protocol instructions. Each subject/user was given an opportun ity to review the packet and ask any questions before agreeing, by signing a consent form, to be a voluntary participant. The UE packet included: 1) a user profile questionnaire, 2) a task list , 3) a statement of the purposes of the evaluation, 4) evaluation instructions, and 5) a consent form. Prior to each actual UE every subjec tuser was again given a 10-minute review of the UE instructions and opportunity to ask questions.Subjects/users were told it would take one hour to complete the entire UE process; 20 minutes to complete the task list. According to Nielsen (2000a) , a UE time of 30 minutes or less is adequate to conduct a UE. An additional 15 minutes allowed time for the user to verbalize about the Web interface and to complete a follow up questionnaire to de termine their attitude towards the Web interface. The remaining 15 minutes of the hour the moderat or used to review notes of comments and observations and to make corrections so that no misunder standing would occur later in interpreting results.Shneiderman (1998) suggests the moderator rewrite UE notes as soon as possible, reducing moderator errors in note interpretation later. The subjectusers were required to use the’ think aloud method’ (Hom, 2000) to provid e subjective data in conjunction with the collection of various perfo rmance measures. The performa nce measures included: 1) the time it took the user to complete the task list; 2) the number of er rors per task, 3) the number of users completing the task list successfully in the allotted time, and 4 ) the attitude of the user toward the Web interface.In addition, the moderator collected qualitative data by observing each user during completion of each task and taking notes regarding their f acial expressions, opinions expressed, and verbalized thoughts while completing UE. The mo derator made notes on the opinions and thoughts of the user following UE. Finally, the subje ctusers completed a questionnaire to describe their attitudes about the Web interface. Implementation Piloting the UE administration protocol.A Department of Dental Hygiene professor, fa miliar with the Internet, Web browsers, and oral pathology pilot tested the UE administration protoco l one week prior to testing subjectusers. The moderator provided the pilot test user with the s ame pre UE instructions and task list that would be given to subject/users. The pilot test resul ted in no problems with the UE administration protocol. The moderator observed the pilot test subject/us er and collected the same quantitative and qualitative data that was to be collected from th e research 13/3/2013 0:50 Usability Evaluation of a Web Design Interface 5/12 http://ojni. rg/602/usability. htm subjectusers. The results of the pilot test showed that the UE protocol could be use d with subject/users without revision. Pre-training for UE. At 12:30 p. m. July 2, 2001, the subjectusers arrived for the pr e UE training session. The moderator distributed the UE packet and described the purpose and proce dures of the UE. The users were given an opportunity to review the UE packet and to ask questions . Each of the three subjectusers signed consent forms before leaving the pre UE training. Administration of UE. Each of the three subject/users arrived at the moderator’s offi ce for the UE.The moderator reviewed the evaluation instructions and gave time for any additional q uestions to be answered. The following sequence of events occurred for the three users, each: a) beg an the UE , 2) completed the task list, 3) responded to questions about the evaluation experience, 4 ) added thoughts or opinions regarding interaction with the Web interface, and 5) left the mo derator’s office in 45 minutes each. The administrator used the remaining 15 minutes of each of the t hree hours to rewrite portions of notes taken during observation in preparation for the UE report o f results.Task list and description. The tasks were identified using the purposes and objective s of the UE. The task list includes 10 primary tasks for subjectusers to perform in navigation of the Website interface for the Oral Herpes Simplex and Apthous Ulcers prototype. The task list beginning wi th accessing the Website via the interface and progressing through the instructional unit follows. Because many of the 10 primary tasks were repeated the actual count of performing tasks is 31. Task 1 – with the browser open go to www. etsu. edu/cpah/dental/dcte760.This task was chosen to determine if users, indicating they had between 1 and 3 years experience with a Web b rowser, would have a problem accessing a Web site when given only a Web address without a dir ect link. Task 2 – read the instructions on the first page of the Web site and click on the lin k that it directs you to go to first. This task was to determine the clarity of the Web interface in p roviding instructions for beginning the instructional unit. Task 3 – click on Assignment 1 Task 4 – access the discussion forum and enter your name and email address.This task helped determine the Web interface design, by allowing for observing if users had difficulty locating the discussion forum area and/or entering information into it. Task 5 – When done in discussion forum, re turn to Assignment 1. This task will ident ify if users have difficulty returning to the designated page using the Web interface. Task 6 – Click on Assignment 2 Task 7 – Read the content on Apthous Ulcers. This task requires users to read content on a Web page on the site. Task 8 – Click on the images on this page to enlarge them. This task determines the e ase of click navigation to enlarge thumbnail images. 3/3/2013 0:50 Usability Evaluation of a Web Design Interface 6/12 http://ojni. org/602/usability. htm Task 9 – Return to Assignment 2. This task determined if users could navigate the We b interface via a link taking them back to a designated page in the Web site. Task 10 – Answer the study questions in Assignment 2. The study questions direct the user through a series of multiple-choice items in a linear fashion. Correct responses allow the u ser to continue to the next question while incorrect responses require the user to go back to the que sti on and make another attempt to answer.Users cannot go to the next question until the previous q uestion is answered correctly. This task requires navigating through a series of questions with the potential for going back and forth if an answer is wrong. This task determined if users could succe ssfully navigate the Web interface to the study questions Task 11 – When the study questions are all answered, return to Assignment 2. This tas k again measures their ability to use the Web interface to return to a designated page in the Web site. Task 12 – Click Assignment 3. Task 13 – Read the entire case 2 Herpes Simplex.Again, users are required to read c ontent on the Web site but they must use the Web interface design to do it successfully. Task 14 – When you have finished reading Case 2, return to Assignment 3. This task de termined if users could navigate the Web interface to a case study contained within the instructi onal unit and return to a designat ed page in the Web site. Task 15 – Click on Assignment 4. Task 16 – Go to Case 1. Task 17 – Fill in the diagnosis form. This task required students to locate a case, fill in case study information obtained from previous exercises.This task measures the Web interface’s ease of navigation using forms to complete information. Task 18 – Submit the Form. This task demonstrates if the Web interface allows for ea sy form submission upon completion. Task 19 – Return to Assignment 4. User must complete a form by diagnosing the case s tudy patient in this assignment. This task determined if users could easily navigate the case stud y, fill in the appropriate form fields, submit the form, and return to the designated page in the We b site. Task 20 – Click on Assignment 5. Task 21 – Go to the reflection form.This task demonstrates if the Web interface all ows users to navigate to the reflection form. Task 22 – Write your reflections on the unit on the form. A form to reflect on the in structional unit is required for assignment 5. This task demonstrates if users will be able, through thi s Web interface, to make text entries in the appropriate form fields in the reflection form. 13/3/2013 0:50 Usability Evaluation of a Web Design Interface 7/12 http://ojni. org/602/usability. htm Task 23 – Submit the form. The task determined if users could navigate the Web inter face to send the completed reflection form electronically.Task 24 – Return to Assignment 5. Determines if users via the Web interface, can eas ily return to a designated page in the Web site. Task 25 – Go to the course evaluation survey. An evaluation form is included in this instructional unit to determine student attitudes and satisfaction levels with the instructional un it. This task measures if the Web interface allows the user to easily locate a survey on the site. Task 26 – Complete the course evaluation survey. This task determined if users using the Web interface, could easily navigate a form to reply to the questions. Task 27 – Submit the survey.This task measures whether the Web interface allows use rs to easily submit form information electronically. Task 28 – Return to Assignment 5. This task measures the Web interface as it allows u ses to return to designated pages in the Web site with ease. Task 29 – Go to the discussion forum. This task determined if the users could open t he forum and is a test of the Web interface design and its ease of promoting discussion. Task 30 – Make a forum entry indicating that you have finished the usability evaluati on. This task measures the Web interface design’s success with entering comments into a discussion forum.Task 31 – Return to Assignment 5. This task measures the Web interface designs succ ess with returning users to designated pages in the Web site. (N=31 navigational tasks) Non-task performance measur es. Following Nielsen, (2000a) subjectusers were asked t o use the ‘think aloud method’ in conjunction with performance measures. The quantitative measu res to be evaluated included the: 1) amount of time to complete the task list, 2) number of err ors per task, 3) number of users completing the task list successfully in the allotted time, and 4) at titude of users toward the Web interface.In addition to the quantitative measures, the administrato r collected qualitative data during and after the usability evaluation by each user. This UE was designed to measure the ease of undergraduate dental hygiene student user s navigation through the Oral Herpes Simplex and Apthous Ulcers instructional unit prot otype Web interface. Although all task completion or non completion allowed for tests of the in terface, the following three questions focus more directly on navigation of the prototype Web inte rface: Do all the navigational links in this Web site work correctly?Is the or ganization of this Web site consistent? Is there any confusing terminology regarding navigation and organization on this Web site? Results The success or failure on each task performed as well as the qualitative data collect ed from the 13/3/2013 0:50 Usability Evaluation of a Web Design Interface 8/12 http://ojni. org/602/usability. htm post-test interview and the post-test questionnaire are reported. Because the tasks in the UE were short, the quantitative data collected was based on the entire task list and not on each task independently. Users had adequate time to complete the enti re task list.There were 31Website interface navigation tasks completed by three subject/users with a total of seven navigation errors. 1. User #1 took 20 minutes to successfully complete the task list with one Web i nterface navigation error. 2. User #2 took 18 minutes to successfully complete the task list with three Web interface navigation errors. 3. User #3 took 19 minutes to successfully complete the task list with three Web interface navigation errors Task 1 –Users #1 and #2 completed task #1 easily and were able to successfully open t he designated Web site without Web interface navigation error.User #3 entered the Web site address in the search line of the Web browser, an error message was returned by the browser, and then the user entered the Web site address in the address line of the browser and was able to successfully access the home page of the instructional unit via the Web site interface. In this c ase the navigational error relates to lack of knowledge about where to type in a Web address in a Web browser. Task 2 – Read the instructions on the first page of the Web site and click on the lin k that your are directed to go to first.User #1 asked, â€Å"Do I make the decision myself to go to assi gnment 1 or to the course syllabus? † The administrator did not answer this question as the instruct ions on the Web page indicated the first link. Th is error, while not significant since both links ta ke the student to the appropriate Web page to begin the instructional unit as well as the usability evaluat ion, could add user frustration to the mix. Users #2 and #3 use the Web site interface on the first page of the Web site to readily access the needed location.Task 3, 4, and 5 – Click on Assignment 1 and enter your name and email address in the discussion forum. When this task is complete, return to Assignment 1. User #1 was unable to re adily use the Web interface to access the discussion forum. This user consistently scrolled to the bottom of any page before making any choices about where to go next. This scrolling is not consider ed an error in the prototype but could indicate that the Web interface design needs revision to stop this behavior. Once the discussion forum was accessed, this user asked, â€Å"Is this where I go to post my name? The administrator did answer in the affirmative and the user continued with the task. Upon completion of the discussion forum entry user #1 could not navigate back to the desig nated page. The administrator finally intervened and instructed the user to use the â€Å"back† button on the browser. The user then looked for the â€Å"back key† on the keyboard. Further instructi on from the administrator got the user back on task. When user #2 realized that the task involved a discussion forum, the user indicated n o previous 13/3/2013 0:50 Usability Evaluation of a Web Design Interface 9/12 ttp://ojni. org/602/usability. htm experience with discussion forums of any type. Her response was â€Å"Am I being timed, b ecause here is the first problem? † The administrator reassured the user that there is as much ti me as needed to perform the task. Upon submission of the discussion forum entry, user #2 chose the â€Å" back† button on the browser quickly. User #3 got to the discussion forum easily, but then asked, â€Å"Am I the subject? † The administrator informed the user that the responses in the form fields did not matter and that any i nformation could be entered in any field.Upon submission of the form entries, user #3 used the â€Å"back† button on the browser but indicated that she thought only one click of the â€Å"back† button was sufficient. All users successfully completed the task. The Web interface design was not the culprit in these task struggles. Tasks 6, 7, 8, and 9 – Click on Assignment 2. Read the content on Apthous Ulcers. Cl ick on the images to enlarge the view. Return to Assignment 2. Users #1 and #3 did not click o n the images to view a larger version of the image. Both disregarded this portion of the task com pletely.Perhaps the images were large enough for them. User #2 opened the larger view of the images a nd returned to the designated page in the Web site indicating no problem with the Web interface d esign in the area of enlarging images. All users returne d to the designated page in the Web site, but only one user completed the entire task successfully. Tasks 10 and 11 – Answer the study questions in Assignment 2. When the study questio ns are all answered, return to Assignment 2. All users navigated through the study questions ea sily.User #1 expressed embarrassment, because the administrator of the UE is also a faculty member in the Department of Dental Hygiene, and the user did not want the administrator to know if the answers to the study questions were incorrect. The administrator reminded user #1 that the an swers to the questions were not the purpose of this evaluation. The Web site was being evaluated n ot the knowledge of the user. User #1 continued to navigate through the study questions, but indicated distress any time she chose an incorrect response to a study question.It is assumed this frustration related to having to go back and continue to answer until the answer was correct befo re going on. User #2 quickly re alized that the links chosen by user #1 were a different color. Sin ce all users participated in the UE on the same computer, the visited hyperlinks were apparent. U ser #2 easily navigated the questions with much less distress about incorrect responses, because sh e realized that her peers had chosen incorrectly as well. User #3 also noticed the visited hyperlinks and navigated the questions without incident.However, user #3 had a problem choosing answers beca use the hyperlink was on only one letter, the user had trouble positioning the mouse pointer exactly over the single letter link. The user clicked several times before realizing that the link ar ea was very small. This indicates an area of the Web interface design that needs improvement. All users successfully completed these tasks. Tasks 12, 13, and 14 – Click on Assignment 3. Read Case 2. When you have finished re turn to Assignment 3. Users #1 and #3 quickly read the case and returned to the designated We b page.Use r #2 appeared to have accidentally clicked the wrong link and could not locate Cas e 2. The administrator provided instruction because the user seemed frustrated. After the user located the correct page, there was no problem completing the task. Here it is hard to distingui sh if this is a 13/3/2013 0:50 Usability Evaluation of a Web Design Interface 10/12 http://ojni. org/602/usability. htm Web interface design error or not. Tasks 15, 16, 17, 18, and 19 – Click on Assignment 4. Fill in the form. Submit the form. Return to Assignment 4. This was the first form in the Web site.User #1 began with â€Å"OK, what is this? † The user had never filled in a form and submitted it through a Web site. Users #2 and #3 both accessed and filled in the required information in the form fields and returned to the designa ted Web page easily. User #1 took more time, but successfully completed the task. Tasks 20, 21, 22, 23, and 24 – Click on Assignment 5. Go to the reflection fo rm. Fill in the form. Submit the form. Return to Assignment 5. This was the second experience with the Web interface using a form. All three users accessed, filled in the form, and submitted the form wi thout a problem.Task 25, 26, 27, and 28 – Go to the course evaluation survey. Complete the course eva luation survey. Submit the survey. Return to Assignment 5. Users #1 and #2 had difficulty loc ating the survey link on the page. Once the survey evaluation link was located, no user had any difficulty completing the task. User #3 completed the task easily, but after submission of the form, the user clicked on the â€Å"back† button to return to the designated Web page in the site. As use r #3 clicked on the â€Å"back† button she said, â€Å"Is it erasing the form information if I am going back wi th the back button? The moderator assured her the action of the â€Å"back† button would not erase fo rm input after submission. Task 29, 30, and 31 – Go to the Discussion Forum. Make a forum entry indicating that you have finished the UE. Return to Assignment 5. By task 31, all users were familiar with th e site and had no trouble navigating the discussion forum and returning to the designated page in the W eb site. Upon completion of the task list, each user had the opportunity to comment on the Web site and offer suggestions and opinions. The following were offered:User #1 indicated that she would be more comfortable if the administrator had not bee n watching her progress. She indicated being watched so closely made her very nervous and she th ought the site would have been much easier to navigate on her own. She indicated that she like d the set up of the Web interface and asked if there were going to be other sites like this for her u se in the dental hygiene curriculum. User #2 indicated that she liked the site and thought it was easy to use. User #3 lik ed the site and would like similar sites for other topics in the dental hygiene curriculum.She indi cated that she did not like using the ‘back button’ after all the forms. All three users expressed nervo usness about being watched by the administrator. Discussion A sample of three users completed this UE. Nielsen (2000b) indicates that three to f ive participants in a UE are adequate. Usability problems were identified in some part of nine of the ten primary tasks on the task list. In addition, some of the problems as told by the users, rela ted to: 1) the administrator present during the UE was also a professor in the Department of Dental Hygiene in 3/3/2013 0:50 Usability Evaluation of a Web Design Interface 11/12 http://ojni. org/602/usability. htm which the user is a student, 2) the evaluation was conducted during the summer school session, and 3) all users were also students in the administrator’s class. Users reported being mo re nervous about the site content in the presence of this administrator. In future UE studies th e us ability administrator should be a neutral observer The questionnaire completed by the users following the usability evaluation demonstra ted user satisfaction with the site.Shneiderman (1998) suggests users should give their subje ctive impressions of the Web interface. All but one of the responses indicated that the us ers were satisfied with the site’s navigation and organization. The users indicated that the t erminology used in the site was clear, they were able to complete the assigned tasks easily, the site me t their needs, and the users liked the appearance of the site. The only responses not scored as sati sfactory were related to using the â€Å"back button†. Overall, all three users indicated the ease of na vigating the Web site interface was satisfactory. RecommendationsIt is evident from the results of this UE that Web-based interfaces for instructional delivery should be evaluated for usability problems. Corrections, suggested by the results, to the Oral Herpes Simplex and Apthous Ulcers instructional unit prototype and Web interface should be made and the site re-tested before continuing development of the remaining nine courses in the oral pat hology Web-based instructional unit series. The usability evaluation of the Oral Herpes Simplex and Apthous Ulcers Web-based inst ructional unit prototype resulted in the following recommendations for improvement to the Web site n avigation and organization. . This may be one time when the use of standard link colors should be violated. Students using the same computer to complete an instructional unit would be able to discern the answ ers chosen by the student previously using the computer. Changes in the Web interface design for te sts so that the link color does not change when a user chooses a particular response is recommended. 2. When assigning form submissions, provide a link to take the user back to the designated page in the Web site. The users in this UE did not like using the brow ser’s â€Å"back† button after completing the forms nor following entries to the discussion forum.The Web site interface desig n will be changed so the confirmation pages following discussion forum postings and submission of forms will take the user back to the page accessed immediately prior to the form or discussion f orum. 3. The hyperlinks for the answers to study questions were not large enough. Cli cking on a one letter link made users have a hard time identifying the link. This Web site interfac e design will be corrected so that the entire cell in which the letter choices are located will be the hyperlink. ConclusionsThe UE conducted on the Oral Herpes Simplex and Apthous Ulcers instructional unit pro totype Web design interface proved to be a successful method for the determination of usability problems in a 13/3/2013 0:50 Usability Evaluation of a Web Design Interface 12/12 http://ojni. org/602/usability. htm Web-based instructional delivery method. The users identified usability problems with the Web interface as well as with their own skill or lack of skill with using any browser. Re commendations for revision have been identified by the researcher and will be implemented. Authors NoteShould anyone wish to examine the Website and review the Herpes Simplex and Apthous U lcer instructional unit prototype it can be accessed at http://www. etsu. edu/cpah/dental/dcte760/. References Dumas, J. , & Redish, J. (1999). A Practical Guide to Usability Testing. Portland: In tellect Books. Fichter, D. (2000). Usability Testing Up Front. Online, 24 (1), 79-84. Graham, J. (2000). Usability Testing Basics. INT Media Group. Retrieved June 30, 2 001, from the World Wide Web: http://clickz. com/print. jsp? article=2053. Hom, J. (1999). The Usability Testing Toolbox.Retrieved June 10, 2001, from the Wo rld Wide Web: http://www. best. com/~jthom/usability. Instone, I. (1999). User Test Your Web Site: An Introduction to Usability Testing. Retrieved July 1, 2001, from the World Wide Web: http://instone. org/keith/howtotest/introduction. html. Nielsen, J. (2000a). Designing Web Usability. Indianapolis: New Riders Publishing. Nielsen, J. (2000b). Why You Only Need to Test with 5 Users. Jakob Nielsen’s Alertb ox. Retrieved June 12, 2001, from the World Wide Web: http://www. useit. com/alertbox/20000319. html. Rajani, R. , & Rosenberg, D. (1999).Usable? Or Not? Factors Affecting the Usability of Web Sites. CMC Magazine. Retrieved June 23, 2001, from the World Wide Web: http://www. december . com /cmc/mag/1999/jan/rakros. html. Rubin, J. (1994). Handbook of Usability Testing. New York: Wiley. Shneiderman, B. (1998). Designing the User Interface. Strategies for Effective Huma n-Computer Interaction. Third Edition. Reading: Addison-Wesley. Spool, J. , Scanlon, T. , Schroeder, W. , Snyder, C. , & DeAngelo, T. (1999). Web Site U sability: A Designer’s Guide. San Francisco: Morgan Kaufmann Publishers, Inc. 13/3/2013 0:50

Damn Mussolini; Now We cant Do Anything essays

Damn Mussolini; Now We cant Do Anything essays At this point in 1930 it would be difficult to switch from fascism. For the past decade fascist ideas have constantly been reiterated in almost every aspect of society and it has become a part of every Italians life. Democracy would have worked if we had kept it going in the right direction after 1919. Instead we never really established a strong democracy and it ended up leaving people something to be desired. Mussolini stepped up and provided exactly what Italians wanted, combining ideologies from a few different political parties. It wasnt hard for Mussolini. He started his political life as a socialist, eventually editor of the socialist magazine Avanti, but was expelled when he supported intervention in World War I. He then started a group called the Fascio di Combattimento (League of Combat), which at first didnt gain much popularity. In 1919, a three-party government was formed, leaning toward a democratic side of government. Because there were three parties, it didnt work and wasnt able to govern Italy. The socialists started to talk of a need for revolution, which scared conservatives; numerous strikes in industry and agriculture scared the middle class. Mussolini took advantage of all this and started to preach against communism, against strikes, and for nationality. Mussolini now had a good middle-class following. By forming a militia called squadristi, he attracted many veterans of World War I and students attracted to the idea of unrestricted violence. Mussolini knew that fascism is best accepted when society is chaotic, and therefore created chaos in everyday life. He preached that fascism is a party of order, and drew mostly from the fears of socialism, communism, and disorder that the middle-class, upper class, and students had. Mussolini took office in the government in 1922 when the King made him prime minister. He still lacked fascist power in parliament, but he h...

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Assignment Exploring the Issues Related to the Management

Assignment exploring the issues related to the management of change within clinical practice In this essay I aim firstly to attempt to identify a change in practise I would wish to make and secondly, link this to the theory of change management and leadership management. The vision I would like to implement would be for the Worcester Royal Hospital psychiatric wards to have access to on site gym facilities, and for the psychiatrists to prescribe exercise to all inpatients. Currently exercise is not used widely as an intervention in psychiatric nursing. The Labour government acknowledged that the physical health needs of people with mental health problems had been neglected and that this group need support to access appropriate healthcare and health promotion services (Department of Health, 2009). Over the last ten years there has been progress made regarding the use of exercise in mental health services. In 2004 a research team asked GPs if they would consider prescribing exercise instead of antidepressants for low mood. Only 5% said they would. In a recent follow-up survey in June 2011, the proportion of those willing to prescribe it had risen to 22 %, reflecting a clear shift in attitudes and beliefs (Baker 2001) . However, I personally do not feel this is a large enough rise. From my experience in working in psychiatric wards at this hospital I have observed that exercise is much underused. For example there are no gym facilities and no exercise groups at all. I propose that all psychiatric inpatients should have access to and encouragement to attend physical exercise facilities. This is despite a large body of evidenced based research that has proven exercise can be an intervention to prevent and alleviate mental illnesses. For example, one study of the effects of physical exercise on depression concluded that after sixteen weeks exercise was just as effective as SSRI’s but without any of the side effects. Physical exercise also had the benefit of improving physical health and improving self-esteem through socialising (Craft et al 1997). In order to do this I will need to use change management theory and leadership theory. Change management  is a structured approach to shifting or transitioning  individuals,  teams, and  organizations  from a current state to a desired future state. It is an organizational process aimed at helping employees to accept and embrace changes in their current business environment In order to implement my change there would be a number of things I would need to consider. Firstly, I would need to consider how my change will be implemented. Ackerman (1997) has distinguished between three types of change: developmental, transitional and transformational. I would need to decide which strategy of change would best suit my vision. I feel it would be best to attempt to carry out a planned transitional change. This is an implementation of a known new state; involving the management of the interim transition state over a controlled period of time. My interim transition stage would be the process of building gym and exercise facilities while training staff capable to work in both psychiatric and exercise fields. This stage would also involve negotiating and finding a way around the administrative, health and safety and policy barriers which I estimate would be the biggest difficulty. My known new state would be encouraging psychiatrists to prescribe exercise and encouraging the service users to make use of the exercise facilities during their time as inpatients. I would define my change as episodic rather than continuous. Episodic can be defined as ‘infrequent, discontinuous and intentional’ (Weick and Quinn 1999). Sometimes termed ‘radical’ or ‘second order’ change, episodic change often involves replacement of one strategy or programme with another. However, once my intervention of exercise has been established I plan to make continuous change to it so as to make incremental improvements to ensure it is as an effective intervention as possible. Another, reason why I plan to use Ackmann’s transitional strategy as a basis for my change is because it has its foundations in the work of Lewin who conceptualised change as a three-stage process which I will explore later (Lewin 1951). When planning a change in the NHS such as this it is necessary to look at change theory models. These will be very relevant when implementing my change. The majority of contemporary research originates from the work of social psychologist Kurt Lewin in the mid-twentieth century. Lewin identifies three stages through which change must proceed before any planned change will become embedded in an organisation or system of working. These are unfreezing, movement and refreezing. I will base my change upon this model. Unfreezing is when I as a change agent proposes a plan for change to the team or organisation. During this stage I will attempt to win over team members who are not keen on my change, I will aim to resolve any anxieties or concerns regarding the change. Cummings and McLennan (2005) claim that an essential leadership role is to understand the different perspectives of individuals and stakeholders and to ‘align the changes to be meaningful for them’. During this stage I will attempt to access the relative merits of the forces for against change such as extent of the proposed change, nature and depth of motivation of stakeholders, and the environment in which change will occur. It is necessary for the driving forces for change to exceed the opposing forces for change, this is essential for change to be successful. As part of this stage it is considered necessary to conduct a force field analysis which I include in my appendices. In summary, I had several large forces for change. One being that exercise in alleviating the symptoms of mental health is supported by a large amount of evidence based research. Another large force for change is that people in mental health services suffer far worse physical health problems than members of the general population. I believe that my planned change or intervention will improve the physical health of this group. In my opinion the biggest force for change is that in times where health care cost demands are outpacing any rise in healthcare budgets, exercise is an intervention that can reduce the demands on the budget. After researching the topic I have concluded that the biggest force against this change would be the set up costs in terms of building facilities and training staff. Provision of physical activity also requires trained and qualified personnel; there is no data on availability, skills and training of staff with competence as exercise specialists and the expertise to treat people with a multitude of mental and physical problems as well as the skills to work in psychiatric settings. (Jones et al 2004). Another force against change would be navigating around administrative and policy rules. In the present culture of our society, procedures including health and safety, liability, manual handling and risk assessments may not allow ‘hospitals’ and ‘on site exercise facilities’ to be compatible. However, despite these concerns I believe I would be able to build up a good degree of teamwork within my team as I believe those I would be leading would be enthusiastic and motivated to make this change a reality. I will also conduct a SWOT analysis as part of this stage. This involves thinking about an organisation’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, and using the result to identify priorities for action (Ansoff, 1965). SWOT analysis is a ubiquitous feature of business strategy texts and courses. In a survey of 113 UK companies, Glaister and Falshaw (1999) found that SWOT was one of the most widely used strategic planning tools in current use across a range of sectors. The basic theory of using a SWOT analysis is because it helps an organisation to think about the reasons why they may need a change. I have included a SWOT analysis in my appendices. As part of this initial ‘unfreezing’ stage I will need to be able to gain support of the workforce to make my change successfully, I will need to gain and maintain this support through a mixture of good communication, good interpersonal skills and developing a sense of achievement. Scholtes, (1998) in his trust, respect and affection model identifies trust as arising out of the feeling that leaders or managers both care for their staff and are capable of doing the job. At this unfreezing stage it will my job as leader to help those team members who are not keen on the change to resolve their anxieties or concerns so that they become committed team members. Senge in ‘The Fifth Discipline’ (1990) talks of the difference between commitment, enrolment and compliance, suggesting that while it is more pleasant (and reassuring) to have considerable commitment, it is not necessary for everyone to be as fully signed-up as this. There exist a number of positions along a continuum, along which players may position themselves in response to proposed action and change. These are, in reducing order; commitment, enrolment, genuine compliance, formal compliance, grudging compliance, non-compliance and apathy. Senge suggests analysing what level of support is required from each of the players and directing energy to achieve that, rather than at trying to persuade everybody to ‘commit’ The second stage is movement; this is movement towards accepting the change. At this point I will need to formulate a plan of action and implementation. I would use a Gantt chart to effectively communicate my change management plan. A  Gantt chart  is a type of  bar chart  that illustrates a  project schedule. Gantt charts illustrate the start and finish dates of the terminal elements and summary elements of a  project (Gantt 1910). Terminal elements and summary elements comprise the  work breakdown structure  of the project. I would also set up a small project or reference group to help manage the project with me. I will aim to include everybody whom would be affected by the change in the planning. I will set goals and objectives and set target dates and timelines. I will also be available to support others and offer encouragement throughout the change process. I believe that the multidisciplinary team work and layers of management, already established in the NHS will be an important lever to help implement and embed the change. Throughout this process, I will be constantly evaluating the changes and making modifications if necessary. The third and final stage is refreezing. This stage involves supporting others so that the change is sustainable and remains in place to achieve improved outcomes. My role as leader will be to help the continued integration of the change into practice to ensure refreezing-that is, the change becoming part of normal practice; if this does not occur the previous behaviours will occur. There are a wide range of different theories of motivation in business management. These are of importance because the style of management theory adopted could potentially make the process of change a smoother transition. The core models are McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y model, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs model, Herzberg’s Motivation – Hygiene theory, Taylor’s scientific model and Mayo’s Human Relation model (Maslow 1970): (Herzberg 1966); (Taylor 1911); (Mayo 1933). Attempting change management under one of the more autocratic management models such as Taylor’s or McGregor’s Theory X model would have very different consequences when compared to Mayo’s or McGregor’s Theory Y model. Under Taylor’s model the workforce may resist change. This is because in such a work environment theory managers will make all of the decisions and simply give orders to the employees below them. In this working environment change would not be a smooth transition as there would be a barrier between management and workers, change occurs smoothly when the workforce work together to lead change. These models would not create motivation amongst the workforce. Alternatively, change may be more successful in an organisation culture based upon Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (Maslow 1970). Maslow put forward a theory that there are five levels of human needs which employees need to have fulfilled at work. All of the needs are structured into a hierarchy, and only once a lower level of need has been fully met, would a worker be motivated by the opportunity of having the next need up in the hierarchy satisfied. A business should therefore offer different incentives to workers in order to help them fulfill each need in turn and progress up the hierarchy. Therefore to implement my change and to e successful at doing so this model suggests I should delegate responsibility to employees to ensure they achieve self actualisation in the workplace. This could potentially ensure a smooth transition of change. However, there are problems with looking at management models when implementing changes. Every workplace, particularly the NHS is very complex and has a range of different management styles within each workforce. To state that management should use Maslow’s hierarchy of change to ensure a smooth transition of change is too simplistic. Although in theory it appears to be a solution, in reality there are lots of faults of this model in the workplace place. The theory makes crude assumptions that simply don’t apply to everyone. Most importantly Maslow states people attend to basic needs first and progressively deal with more complex matters until they reach  a point he calls self-actualisation at the top of the  hierarchy’s  pyramid. However in reality not everybody gets that far. This criticism is especially relevant in the practice I wish to change. In the NHS it is widespread knowledge that there are a large number of managerial positions, but to implement my change once exercise facilities are available I would need the support of the nurses and support staff to actualise my change. My point being that not everybody involved in my change would be able to reach self actualisation in their particular job or role. Another criticism of Maslow’s theory which equally applies to all of the theories is that Maslow’s idea belongs to a time and place. Maslow was American and he first suggested the  hierarchy  in the 1940s. It’s highly specific to America’s individualist culture where middle-class people worry about their personal needs rather than any collective needs. This may not be so relevant in a less right ring country with public health care and with a workforce with such diverse ethnicities and cultural heritage as is in the United Kingdom. However, despite the criticisms that are directed at theories of motivation it will be important for me as a leader to have the knowledge regarding how to motivate my workforce. When thinking about how I as a manager would go about implementing this change I feel it is important to consider what type of leader I would be. Leadership will be very important if I am to be able to work with conflicting views to build up trust in the change proposal’s worth and the value of putting effort into my proposed change. House (2004) describes leadership as the ability to motivate and enable other people to achieve the goals of the organisation they work for. There are many different theories of leadership styles, the two main ones being transactional and transformational leadership. Transactional leadership is leadership at its most basic. The followers do what the leader asks of them in return for a reward. The role of the leader in this model is to state what needs to be done and who will do it and then allow them to get the job done, hence it focuses on getting a task done rather than on the person undertaking a task. In nursing this approach was traditionally used in previous years when task allocation was the role of the ward manager when patient care was perhaps less holistic than it is today. When implementing my change I aim to be a transformational leader. This will involve being able to share and communicate my vision of change effectively to others. Transformational leadership theory suggests there needs to be a relationship of trust between the leader and the follower. Bass (1985) suggested four essential components of effective transformational leadership. First, leaders must provide intellectual stimulation, challenging the way things are and encouraging creativity among the team. Second, they must demonstrate individualised consideration and by using good communication skills make followers feel able to share ideas and gain direct recognition for their unique contributions. Third, they need to demonstrate inspirational motivation which enables followers to experience the same passion and motivation as the leader to meet the team goals. Fourth, they need to have idealised influence; that is, they must act as a role model who followers wish to emulate whole taking on the values of the leader. As a leader I will also need to possess emotional intelligence. This refers to the ability of the leader or manager to understand the role that their emotions play in their decision making and the ability to recognise the emotions of the individuals within the team and how this affects the work they do (Goleman, 1996). Goleman’s emotional intelligence framework comprises five elements: self-awareness, motivation, self-regulation, empathy and social skills. Possessing emotional intelligence will be important if I am to be able to work with conflicting views to build up trust in my change proposal’s worth and the value of putting effort into my proposed change. As a leader I will also need to be assertive. This is as opposed to being submissive or aggressive. Assertiveness can be defined as ‘expressing opinions or desires strongly and with confidence so that people take notice’. (Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary). Ruiz, M. (2004) The Voice of Knowledge argued that there were four factors involved in being assertive. These were to be impeccable with your word, not to take anything personally, not to make assumptions and for a person always to do their best. In conclusion in order to make my change successful there are many things I will need to do. Firstly, I will need to use theories of motivation to ensure I am able to motivate my workforce so that teamwork will be successful. I will then need to use Levin’s change theory model to ensure that I can gain support from my colleagues and to accurately plan my change. During my freezing, movement and refreezing stages there are lots of qualities I will need to display as a leader. I have identified I would consider it must appropriate to be a transformational leader as identified by Bass (1985). As a leader it would also be vital for me to display emotional intelligence and to be assertive. What I have learned from this module is that the business management theory behind making and implementing a change can be as important as the actual subject of change itself.

Eithics reflection paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

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