Anglo

Anglo Although, it now became a commonplace practice among particularly ‘progressive’ social activists to blame Western civilization on account of its environmental unfriendliness, the objective analysis points out to the fact that it is namely in Western societies, where people have traditionally been concerned with trying to preserve nature. The soundness of this suggestion can be well illustrated even today.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Anglo-Germanic Writers’ Influence on Popular Environmental Thinking specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More For example; whereas, in Nigeria it is being considered absolutely normal by the residents of country’s even biggest cities to dump garbage onto the street, right in front of their shabby houses1, in such Western countries as Britain, Sweden and Germany, one may very well end up facing administrative charges for even as little as throwing a cigarette butt anywhere else but into specially designed garbage bins. And, the reason why, as compared to the people from Third World countries, Westerners appear to grow ever more environmentally aware is simple. As history indicates, the more a particular society is being affected by scientific progress, the less its members require natural resources to sustain their physical existence, which in its turn creates objective preconditions for them to consider adopting friendly stance towards the nature. In other words, the notions of environmental friendliness and scientific progress are very much.2 This is precisely the reason why it is specifically Anglo-Saxon societies, which have traditionally been considered the most technologically advanced, that continue to feature world’s highest environmental standards. In our paper, we will aim to substantiate the full soundness of this suggestion by exploring how creative writings and visual artworks from Anglo/Germanic authors, concerned w ith popularizing the objective essence of natural laws, contributed towards increasing the extent of public’s environmental awareness in 19th and 20th centuries. When we assess the qualitative subtleties of Western civilization’s socio-cultural and scientific progress, from the time of antiquity until today, a very striking picture will emerge – the pace of this progress appears to have been gaining exponential momentum during the time of antiquity (5th century B.C. 5th century A.D.) and during the time of comparatively modern era (15th-20th centuries). However, during the course of so-called Dark Ages (6th – 14th centuries), the pace of Western socio-cultural and scientific progress came to virtually a complete stall – all thanks to Catholic Christianity.3 Therefore, it comes as not a particular surprise that it was specifically the exposure of Biblical fables’ anti-scientific essence, on the part of European most prominent intellectuals, which created the initial preconditions for Western civilization to be set back on its natural track of development.4 And, there can be very little doubt that Erasmus Darwin (1731-1802) was one of these intellectuals. In his poetical work The Botanic Garden; a Poem in Two Parts, supplemented by scientific commentaries, Darwin went about promoting a revolutionary idea that people and plants are being subjected to the same laws of nature.Advertising Looking for research paper on environmental studies? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In its turn, this implied plants’ sexuality: â€Å"The first buds of tree raised from seed die annually and are succeeded by new buds by solitary reproduction; which are larger or more perfect for several suc ­cessive years, and then they produce sexual flowers, which are succeeded by seminal repro ­duction†.5 Nevertheless, it were not the explicit references to the very n otion of sexuality, quite unconventional for its time, which ensured Darwin poem’s progressive sounding, but the fact that this poem suggested the physiological origins of a number of purely metaphysical notions, such as ‘soul’. As a result, Darwin’s poem ended up promoting clearly positivist message that it is the existence that defines consciousnesses, and not the other way around. As it was noted by Reed: â€Å"If life, mind, and feeling are concomitants of the arrangement of organs and of a fluid ether in animal bodies, what role was left for either God or the soul? Erasmus Darwin†¦ argued that the way we act is a function of our upbringing- of social, not divine intervention†.6 It goes without saying, of course, that such Darwin’s botanical stance was wholly inconsistent with the very spirit of anthropocentrism, based upon Judeo-Christian tradition, which contributed rather substantially to poem’s scientific value. After all, even during the course of 18th century, Church continued to exert a strong influence onto the essence of socio-political dynamics in British society. And yet, Darwin proved himself intellectually honest and courageous enough to utilize his poetic talent for the purposes of enlightenment, while defying the conventions of anthropocentrism. What is particularly interesting, in this respect, is the fact that he went about accomplishing it by the mean of endowing plants with clearly anthropocentric psychological traits – whatever the ironic it might sound. In The Botanic Garden; a Poem in Two Parts, flowers are being represented as such that can experience a variety of different emotions: Whilst erythrina oer her tender flowerAdvertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Anglo-Germanic Writers’ Influence on Popular Environmental Thinking specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Bends all her leaves, and braves the sul try hour;- Shield, when cold hesper sheds his dewy light, Mimosa’s soft sensations from the night.7 Thus, even though in Darwin’s poem, plants can be formally referred to as God’s creations, under no circumstances can they be referred to as some sort of God’s commodity. Just as it is being the case with people, in this poem, plants appear to have a life of their own. And, even though The Botanic Garden; a Poem in Two Parts is not being concerned with promotion of the concept of evolution, by being exposed to plants’ sexuality, readers come to suspect the existence of dialectically predetermined links between flora and fauna. Thus, it will not be much of an exaggeration, on our part, to suggest that Charles Darwin’s Theory of Evolution partially derives out of his grandfather’s insights, in regards to biological commonality between just about all life-forms. The irony lies in the fact that both: Erasmus and Charles’s insightful ness in the matters of biology appears to be of essentially Lamarckian nature. As Barlow had put it: â€Å"Erasmus’s cast of mind appears to hold special heritable qualities When we examine the achievements and characteristics of his (Charles Darwin’s) forbears and descendants, the copious mind of Erasmus appears as a vast family aggregate†.8Advertising Looking for research paper on environmental studies? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Apparently, the example of Erasmus Darwin shows that in 18th century, the sheer vibrancy of the process of Western empirical sciences freeing themselves out of Christian imprisonment had put era’s most prominent intellectuals at liberty to utilize just about any creative techniques, while popularizing scientific notions. The legitimacy of an earlier suggestion can be also explored in regards to one of 19th century’s most famous ornithologists John Gould (1804 – 1881). Just as it used to be the case with many intellectually advanced enthusiasts of science at the time, Gould took an interest in a number of scientific pursuits. Contemporaries considered Gould a professional in the fields of taxidermy, gardening, naval navigation and zoology.  Nevertheless, it was namely his love of birds, which did not only allow Gould to ensure its fame as ornithologist but also to contribute to the process of Charles Darwin designing the concept of natural selection. According to Pycior: â€Å"Darwin has been described as being ‘frankly stunned’ by Gould’s telling him that the Galapagos finches were a peculiar group of thirteen species, all closely related to one South American finch, that Galapagos mockingbirds belonged to three distinct species from different islands, and that twenty’, Current Anthropology, 26/4 (1985), 503. 2 Joel Mokyr, ‘Technological Progress and the Decline of European Mortality’, The American Economic Review, 83/2 (1993), 325. 3 Andrew Keitt, ‘Religious Enthusiasm, the Spanish Inquisition, and the Disenchantment of the World’,  Journal of the History of Ideas, 65/2 (2004), 233. 4 Arthur Melzer, ‘The Origin of the Counter-Enlightenment: Rousseau and the New Religion of Sincerity’, The American Political Science Review, 90/2 (1996), 350. 5 E. Darwin, Botanic Garden, a Poem, in Two Parts; Containing the Economy of Vegetation and The Loves of Plants, with Philosophica l Notes (London: Jones Company, 1825), 23. 6 E. Reed, From Soul to Mind: The Emergence of Psychology from Erasmus Darwin to William James (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1997), 15. 7 Darwin. Op. Cit. 66. 8 Nora Barlow, ‘Erasmus Darwin, F.R.S. (1731-1802)’, Notes and Records of the Royal Society of London, 14/1 (1959), 85. 9 H. Pycior, Creative Couples in the Sciences (New Brunswick, N.J: Rutgers University Press, 1996), 89. 10 J. Gould, The Birds of Australia: in Seven Volumes (London: Richard and John Taylor, 1848), 28. http://nla.gov.au/nla.aus-f4773-1. 11 S. Gliboff, H.G. Bronn, Ernst Haeckel, and the Origins of German Darwinism: a Study in Translation and Transformation (Cambridge: Mass MIT Press, 2008), 156. 12 Niles Holt, ‘Ernst Haeckels Monistic Religion’, Journal of the History of Ideas, 32/2 (1971), 270. 13 Max Rieser, ‘Three Principles of Natural Beauty’, The Journal of Philosophy, 53/11 (1956), 355. 14 Harold McWhinnie, ‘A Biological Basis for the Golden Section in Art and Design’, Leonardo, 22/1 (1989), 61. 15 Reiser, Op. Cit. 356. 16 Nicholas Kyriazis, ‘Seapower and Socioeconomic Change’, Theory and Society, 35/1 (2006), 75. 17 A. Humboldt. Aspects of Nature in Different Lands and Different Climates; with Scientific Elucidations (London: Longman, Brown, Green Longmans, 1849), ix. archive.org/stream/aspectsofnaturei01humbuoft#page/viii/mode/2up. 18 Aaron Sachs, ‘The Ultimate ‘Other’: Post-Colonialism and Alexander Von Humboldts Ecological Relationship with Nature’, History and Theory, 42/4 (2003), 119. 19 C. Rourke J. MacDonald, Audubon (New York: Harcourt Brace and Company, 1936), 284. 20 P. Murphy,T. Gifford K. Yamazato, Literature of Nature: An International Sourcebook (Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn, 1998), 172. 21 R. Dawkins, The Selfish Gene (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1976), 3. 22 R. Dawkins. The Blind Watchmaker (London: Longmans, 1986), 13. 2 3 C. Darwin, On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life (Oxford: Oxford University Press, [1859]1996), 70. 24 R. Dawkins, The God Delusion (London: Bantam Press, 2006), 79. 25 F. Nietzsche, Thus Spake Zarathustra: A Book for All and None (New York: Algora Publishing, [1891] 2003), 75. 26 K.. Dobbelaere, Secularization: An Analysis at Three Levels (Berlin: Peter Lang, 2004), 167. 27 Christopher Hoag, ‘The Atlantic Telegraph Cable and Capital Market Information Flows’, The Journal of Economic History 66/2 (2006), 350. 28 H. Thoreau, On the Duty of Civil Disobedience, FeedBooks.Com [web page] (2007) http:// generation.feedbooks.com/book/219.pdf. 29 R. Lynn T. Vanhanen, IQ and the Wealth of Nations (Westport: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2002), 63. 30 John Leighly, ‘John Muirs Image of the West’, Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 48/4 (1958), 312. 31 J. Muir. A Thousand- Mile Walk to the Gulf (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1916), 139. 32 J. Burroughs. The Gospel of Nature, ReadBookOnline.Net [web page] (2011) readbookonline.net/readOnLine/21513/. 33 Ibid., 2011.

There is no population crisis! essays

There is no population crisis! essays There is no world population crisis. There are lots of major countries with population problems, but it is also true that some dont have a population anywhere near to uncomfortable so it is not reasonable to categorize the world having a population crisis. Popular belief tells of recourses running out, perhaps a Water World in the not too distant future, but this is not possible, for It is integrally dependent on human ingenuity (Richmond, Sheldon). There is no possibility a shortage of living space either. If the entire world population moved to Texas, each person would have 1,400 square feet(Richmond, Sheldon). The world is huge, and we still have not discovered all of it. None the less we will not run out of area. Third World alone could support more than 30 billion people. The world's population now is only 5.6 billion.(Smith, Janet There is no World population problem Univ. Dallas 1994) We inhabit only 3% of the worlds landmass. We will always have land to live on. Yes, the resources in this world are limited, but it will not be exhausted because as long as man has the power to evolve, invent, and improvise we will think of ways to be more efficient, or substitute a more abundant resource with a seemingly rare material. This could not be more apparent than Silicon, for computer chips, and glass, for fiber optic cables. Both are made from silica, which, after oxygen, is the most common element on earth. It is sand! Thus, human beings took a common, abundant material, applied their ingenuity (in the form of, for example, quantum mechanics), and created unprecedented wealth.(Richmond, Sheldon). This subject goes back to lack of area; imagine if technology was developed to live under water. Countries have population problem, not the world. These counties have a population difficulty because they have the values different form some other countr...

Homestasis - Thermoregulation and control of blood sugar Essay

Homestasis - Thermoregulation and control of blood sugar - Essay Example The hypothalamus effects changes in response to alterations in body temperature by activating adjustments to effectors in the form of muscles manipulating body hair movement and operation of the sweat glands. Hence, the human body’ temperature can only be regarded as stable provided that the heat produced matches heat lost. The sustenance of the temperature of the body at a steady level is paramount given that the living processes within the cells closely depends on the action of the enzymes that work effectively in a set of stable conditions, especially at optimal temperature and pH. Any alterations in the set properties influence the utility of the enzymes and can yield to the death of the cells, and, ultimately, the death of the whole organism. This stresses the significance of regulation and sustenance of a constant internal environment. Nevertheless, the internal environment may not be entirely constant as it may be tolerated to fluctuate, albeit at exceptionally constric ted limits. Indeed, temperature regulation is imperative given that the speed of metabolic reactions is directed by enzymes activity that only functions optimally at temperatures that neighbor body’s core temperature of 37Â °C. ... Devoid of enzymes activity, much of critical bodily functions would fail to take place at the required level, which leads to the death of the cells. Q2 How the body gain and lose heat The outside temperature mainly differs significantly as the day progresses; however, the body temperature ought to be sustained at the core temperature of 37Â °C. This is well demonstrated in Jamel’s case given must be sustained at a constant 37Â °C with minimal variations while the outside environment is bound to change (Sircar 2008, 697). Given that the temperature in New York City stood at 10Â °C and there is a possibility that the temperature fluctuated prior the race, during the race, and after the race, Jamel’s body must adapt to the changing external environment. This is achieved via a number of processes through which the body is subjected to, namely: vasodilation, sweating, shivering, and vasoconstriction (Sircar 2008, 697). During the race in which Jamel’s body temperat ure rises owing to the rise in metabolism, the sweat glands located within the skin are activated to secrete/release sweat on to the surface of the skin. The action of evaporation of sweat from Jamel’s body’s surface yields to rapid cooling of the body, which, in turn, yields a drop in body temperature. How Jamel’s body Generate Heat Body energy (heat) is essentially gained through the action of two critical methods, namely: energy generation through metabolic and energy acquisition from environmental. Jamel’s body heat generation and preservation are facilitated by a number of factors: (1) increased muscular activity such as via shivering, which entails the transfer of stored chemical energy, which yields to a net increase in body heat around the skeletal muscle that flows

Managing Business Operations - Supply Chain Essay

Managing Business Operations - Supply Chain - Essay Example In order to meet its customers’ demand by providing quality services they decided to introduce IT in their business operations. Later on they ended up with problems as there was no integration between the systems of different units. Every individual department maintained its own account of activities properly but had no knowledge of what is happening in other departments. The lack of integration between different departments often created problems for the company. Thus, managing and integrating the affairs of all the units and departments became a tough task for a single person. Most often problems were detected after its occurrence. There are many processes involved in their business, beginning from order for freight to dispatch of the freight at the desired destination. The customer here is the company who places the order for transportation. The first process is the receipt of order from the client. Based upon the order, the company locates and sources the goods. The next p rocess is packaging of the sourced goods. Packaging is the process that requires intensive care. Goods may be breakable, or of exploding or evaporating nature etc. Each type of goods must be appropriately packaged so that no loss occurs to the customer due to destruction of goods. Dispatch of defective goods also affects the credibility of the company. The goods are packed and insured by MLH to secure the goods from loss in transit.

Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 41

Assignment - Essay Example The context that the research is done is usually in school or other meetings where teachers from different schools meet and discuss their research and how they usually deal with various problems affecting their subjects. Students at the end of the day benefit since the research aims to conduct various methodologies on how one has been teaching and if he can improve and what ways can he use. School wide action research involves most members of the faculty and its goal of including parents and students in future is a welcome advancement. The inclusion of students in search a process is crucial since they get to comment on what they do not understand. The information from the students and parents who monitor their students activities especially academics will provide invaluable information for further research and the consequent solutions. The research will follow up on the parents’ involvement in their children’s studies, which will in turn help in dealing with the problems the students face and help in finding solutions to such problems. Some of the teachers are reluctant to engage in school wide action research because most of them considered the classroom as a private affair. They do not need to include outsiders as such. Such a methodology is for improvement purposes and not for judgmental purposes. Joining the league provided schools with methods of evaluating their performance and that of their students. Schools that joined the league would get valuable information on how to deal with various problems that other school had overcome. School wide research is thus an important area in which teachers discover their weaknesses and strengths and find out ways to overcome them. The interaction with various teachers is important since there are successful teachers who can share their strengths which in turn those who are struggling with their students. The students at the end of the day get to benefit from the varied teaching styles

Infotainment of U.S. News Media Essay Example for Free

Infotainment of U.S. News Media Essay The current type of news media in the United States, dubbed as infotainment, wherein soft journalism is preferred over hard news, further stains the reputation of what is regarded as the â€Å"Fourth State† or one of the influential bodies in American society. This is because this kind of coverage does not offer serious reporting of events and hard facts, but sensationalized news about the lives of personalities, crime, and other less realistic stories. It is unfortunate to note that infotainment has made American media more comfortable with embellishing hard news primarily because it is what the public wants and what the public needs. Under the disguise and with misleading purpose of an energized print sales and broadcast ratings, infotainment is such a blooper which actually further escalates the worsening level of news media public. At the same time, it damages more the involvement and knowledge of the readers and viewers. In short, the existing nature of American news media weakens the quality of reporting and credibility of broadcast and print media companies, pushes further their respective public, and is detrimental to the nations democracy. Due the tight competition within the industry, American news media is now tied up to meet income expectations, resulting in a quality sacrifice and economic operation demands that dictate the choices of news content and compromise the managements operations. This transformation in the industrys mode has promoted a second thought of industry standards. This leaves the profession into the hands of new era of media practitioners who are less committed to the existing journalism code of ethics. These new breed have actually portrayed themselves as famous personalities moonlighting as journalists or news reporters. Ultimately, it is both the news organizations and American public which are to be blame for this sickening and continued reporting that focuses on personalities and other forms of entertainment rather than the essence or content of a news event. This is because no media company would practice infotainment if it will not click with the audience. However, it is not yet too late to save the news media industry. What it can do is for it to keep abreast and take advantage of the technological advancements within the industry such as the accessibility of satellite television or cable system and availability of World Wide Web or Internet. American media should utilize these technological improvements by not sensationalizing or resorting to what is called the â€Å"yellow journalism. † Instead, it should advance its cause and primary goal which is to present to the public a balance, fair, and fearless news reporting.

Characteristics of the leadership process

Characteristics of the leadership process Stogdills definition has three key components. First, it defines leadership as an interpersonal process in which one individual seeks to shape and direct the behaviour of others. Second, it sets leadership in a social context. In which the members of a group to be influenced are subordinates or followers. Third, it establishes a criterion for effective leadership in goal achievement, which is one practical objective of leadership theory and research. Most definitions share these processual, contextual and evaluative components. Some key charachteristics of the leadership process Leadership is a process of influencing others primarily through the use of noncorecive influence techniques. This charachteristics distinguishes a leader from a dictator. Leadership influence is goal directed to attain defined group or organisational goals There are five approaches to the study of leadership: Trait spotting: attempts to identify the personality trait and other related attributes of the effective leader in order to facilitate the selection of leaders. Style counselling :attempts to characterize different leadership behaviour patterns to identify effective and ineffective leadership styles. In order to improve the training and development of leaders. Context fitting: contingency theories which argue that the effectiveness of particular leadership behaviours is dependent on the organisational and cultural setting, which can also facilitate leadership awareness and training. New leadership perspective approaches: which identify new leaders, superleaders and transformational leaders as heroic and inspirational visionaries who give purpose and direction to others, with an emphasis on senior executives and politicians whose motivational role is said to be central to organisational strategy and effectiveness. Dispersing the role: a recent perspective which notes that leadership behaviour is not confined to those with formal leadership roles but can be observed across the organisation hierarchy, and thus one aspect of the new superleadership role is to develop self -leadership skills in others. Any study of leadership would be incomplete without an understanding of the debate between leaders Vs managers Leadership versus management We first have to deal with one crucial question: what is the difference between leadership and management? Some commentators argue that these terms are synonymous, as leadership is simply one facet of the management role. Other commentators argue that this distinction is significant. Leaders and managers play different contributions: leaders have followers, managers have subordinates. Those who make a clear distinction portray the leader as someone who develops visions and drives new initiatives, and portray the manager as someone who monitors progress towards objectives to achieve order and reliability. The leader is prophet, catalyst and mover-shaker, focused on strategy. The manager is operator, technician and problem solver, concerned with the here -and- now of goal attainment. The key distinguishing feature here is orientation to change . As Warren Bennis and Burt Nanus (1985, p.21) observe, managers do things right, while leaders do the right thing. Leadership versus Management Creating an agenda Establishes direction: Plans and budgets vision of the future, develops strategies decides actions and timetables, for change to achieve goals allocates recourses E Leadership functions Management functions Developing people Aligning people: Organizing and staffing: communicates vision and strategy, decides structure and allocates staff, influences creation of terms which develops policies, procedures and accept validity of goals Monitoring Execution Motivating and inspiring: Controlling, problem solving: energizes people to overcome obstacle, monitors results against plan and satisfies human needs takes corrective actions Outcomes Produces positive and sometimes produces orders, consistency and dramatic changes Predictability Tutorial question Discuss: Modern day organisations need leaders or managers Please discuss and give relevant examples to justify your answer. Power: what is it, and how can I get more? Leadership is about influencing the behaviour of others. One cannot be a leader without followers. One key attribute of followers is that they must be willing to obey. Leadership is a property of the relationship between leader and follower. We need to know why people are willing to let themselves be influenced by some individuals and not by others. We thus need to understand the nature of compliance. Leadership and power Power is a useful concept with which to explain the social process of interpersonal influence. Power is a critical dimension of leadership, and the two terms are often used with the same or similar meanings: a leader is someone with power, powerful individuals are leaders. We can thus define power in much the same way that we have defined leadership-as the ability of an individual to control or influence others, or to get some-one else to do something that they would perhaps not do. There are different sources of power to name a few information power, affiliation power expert power, all these power bases are interrelated. The exercise of one power base may affect a leaders ability to use another. The leader who resorts to coercive power may for example lose referent power. The leader may be able to use legitimate power to enhance both referent and expert power. A leader can operate from multiple sources of power and few leaders may be able to rely on a single power base. Please see table: Sources of power p+ are positive sources of power p- are negative sources of power POWER BASE EXPLANATION PERCEIVED AS Reward remuneration, award, compliment, symbolic p+ gestures of praise Coercion physical or psychological injury, symbolic gestures of disdain, demotion, unwanted transfer, withholding resources p- Authority Management right to control, obligation of others p- to obey, playing the boss and abusing authority exercise of leadership in times of crisis or need p+ Referent identification based on personal characteristics, sometimes on perception of charisma; or reciprocal identification based on friendship, association, sharing information, common interests, values and preferences p+ Expert Possession of specialized knowledge valued by Others, used to help others, given freely when solicited. p+ Unsolicited expertise creates barriers; expertise Offered condescendingly is coercive; withholding expertise in times of need p- Information access to information that is not public knowledge, because of position or connections; can exist at all organizational levels; secretaries and personal assistants to executives often have information power, and can control information flows p- Affiliation borrowed from an authority source-executive Secretaries and assistants act as surrogates for their Superiors p+ acting on their own self-interest; using negative affiliation power by applying accounting and personal policies rigidly p- Group collective problem solving, conflict resolution, creative brainstorming; group resolution greater Than the individual contribution. p+ a few individual dominating the proceedings, groupthink p- Tutorial question Discuss : Which power base or which combination of power bases would you expect to be most effective for an organisation leader in current times? Five approaches to Leadership Research on leadership shows five main approaches in the study of leadership and that leadership theories have evolved gradually starting from the Trait spotting approach to New Leadership theories Trait spotting: the research for personality markers For the first four decades of the twentieth century, researches assumed that they could identify the personality traits of leaders It would then be possible to select individuals who possessed those traits and to promote them into leadership position. This search for the qualities of good leaders was influenced by great man theory, which claims that (predominantly male) leaders are born as such, and emerge to take power, regardless of the social, organisational or historical context. Great man theory is a historical perspective based on the premises that the fate of societies, and organizations, is in the hands of key, powerful, idiosyncratic (male) individuals who by force of personality reach positions of influence from which they can direct and dominate the lives of others. Typical list of qualities: Strong drive for responsibility; Focus on completing the task; Vigour and persistence in pursuit of goals; Venturesomeness and originality in problem solving; Drive to exercise initiative in social settings; Self-confidence; Sense of personal identity; Willingness to accept consequences of decisions and actions; Readiness to absorb interpersonal stress; Willingness to tolerate frustration and delay; Ability to influence the behaviour of others; Capacity to structure social systems to the purpose in hand. Rosemay Stewart (1963) cites a study in which American executives were asked to identify indispensable leadership qualities. They came up with the following fifteen traits: judgement initiative integrity foresight energy drive Human relations skill decisiveness Dependability emotional stability fairness ambition dedication objectivity Co-operation Limitations of the trait spotting theory It is difficult to challenge the list of qualities cited by either Stogdill or Stewart. Can we say that effective leaders should lack judgement, be low in energy, be undependable, lack drive, ambition, creativity and integrity and have little foresight? What happens when we compare Stewart with Stogdill? Both identify drive as a key trait. However, Stogdill lists venturesomeness, self-confidence, stress tolerance and system structuring as traits which Stewarts omits. Stewart identifies foresight, fairness, integrity, fairness and co-operation, which are missing from Stogdills list. Traits spotting presents several difficulties. First, there are more attributes here than personality traits. Second, these attributes are vague. Third, many of the items on these lists describe skills and behaviour patterns which have to be observed, rather than personality traits that can be assessed by questionnaires or interview: persistence in pursuit of goals, ability to influence others. It is difficult to see how trait spotting can be used effectively in leadership selection context, as originally intended. A further problem lies with the observation that one list of good leadership qualities is as good as another. Stogdills review revealed some overlap between research findings, but it is also revealed disagreement and inconsistency. This line of research has been unable to establish a consistent set of leadership traits of attributes. Leadership is about power and influence, the chemistry of which it is difficult to analyse in terms of personality traits. Style counselling: the search for effective behaviour patterns Disillusionment with the traits approach meant that leadership, management and supervisory style became a major focus for research. Attention switched from selecting leaders on personality traits to training and developing leaders in appropriate behaviour patterns. This research tradition argues that a considerate, participative, democratic and involving leadership style is more effective than an impersonal, autocratic and directive style. Two research projects, the Michigan and Ohio studies, in the 1940s and 1950s underpinned Employee- centred behaviour: focusing on relationships and employee needs; employee-centred behaviour: focusing on relationships and employee needs job-centred behaviour : focusing Consideration is a pattern of leadership behavior that demonstrates sensitivity to relationships and to the social needs of employees. Initiating structure is a pattern of leadership behavior that emphasizes performance of the work in hand and the achievement of product and service goals. Consistent with the Michigan studies, the Ohio results identified two categories of leadership behaviour, consideration and initiating structure. The considerate leader is needs- and the relationship- oriented. The leader who structures work for subordinates is task-oriented. The considerate leader is interested in and listens to subordinates, allows participation in decision making, is friendly and approachable, helps subordinates with personal problems and is prepared to support them if necessary. The leaders behaviour indicates genuine trust, respect, warmth and rapport. This enhances subordinates feeling of self-esteem and encourages the development of communications and relationships in a work group. The researches first called this leadership dimension social sensitivity. The leader initiating structure plans ahead, decides how thing are going to get done, structures tasks and assigns work, makes expectation clear, emphasizes deadlines and achievement, and expects subordinates to follow instructions. The leaders behaviour stresses production and the achievement of organisational goals. This type of behaviour can stimulate enthusiasm to achieve objectives as well as encouraging and helping subordinates to get the work done. This is the kind of emphasis that the scientific management school encouraged, except that here it is recognised that task orientation can have a positive motivating aspect. The researches first called this leadership dimension production emphasis. Consideration and structure are independent behaviour patterns and do not represent the extremes of a continuum. A leader can emphasize one or both. Job satisfaction is likely to be higher and grievances and labour turnover lower where the leader emphasizes consideration. Task performances, on the other hand, is likely to be higher where the leader emphasizes the initiation of structure. Inconsiderate leaders typically have subordinates who complain and who are more likely to leave the organisation, but can have comparatively productive work groups if they are high on initiating structure. Initiating structure High low High performance low performance High few grievances few grievances Low turnover low turnover Consideration Low High performance low performance Many grievances many grievances High turnover high turnover Figure 1 : The Ohio State leadership theory predictions The influential work of another University of Michigan researcher, Rensis Likert(1961), reinforced the benefits of considerate performance-oriented leadership. He found that supervisors in highly productive sections were more likely to: Receive general as opposed to close supervision from their superior; Give general as opposed to close supervision to their subordinates Enjoy their responsibility and authority; Spend more time on supervision; Be employee- rather than production-oriented Supervisors in sections where productivity was low were production-oriented and concentrated on keeping their subordinates busy on achieving targets on time. The effective supervisors were not just concerned with employee needs. They were seen as subordinates as emphasizing high performance and had a contagious enthusiasm for achieving goals. Likert and his team identified four main styles or systems of leadership: System 1: Exploitative autocratic, in which the leader Has no confidence and trust in subordinates; Imposes decisions, never delegates; Motivates by threat; Has little communication and team work. System 2: Benevolent authoritative, in which the leader Has superficial, condescending trust in subordinates; Imposes decisions, never delegates; Motivates by reward; Sometimes involves subordinates in solving problems. System 3: Participative, in which the leader Has some incomplete confidence and trust in subordinates; Listens to subordinates but controls decision making; Motivates by reward and some involvement; Uses ideas and opinions of subordinates constructively. System 4: Democratic, in which the leader Has complete confidence and trust in subordinates; Allows subordinates to make decisions for themselves; Motivates by reward for achieving goals set by participation; Shares ideas and opinion. Likerts research showed that effective supervisors were those who adopted either system 3 or system 4 leadership, what Likert called and alternative organisational lifestyle. Tutorial question: The style counselling leadership approach is extremely relevant in current times Discuss this statement. Context fitting: the development of contingency theories The Michigan and Ohio perspectives offer leaders one best way to handle followers, by adopting the high-consideration, high-structure ideal. This advice is supported by the fact that most people like their leaders to be considerate, even when they are performance- oriented as well. The main criticism of this perspective lies with the observation that one leadership style may not be effective in all circumstances. Departing from one best way, Robert Tannenbaum and Warren Schmidt (1958) presented the autocratic- democratic choice as a continuum, from boss centred leadership at one extreme to subordinate- centred leadership at the other. This is illustrated in figure 2 Subordinate-centred leadership Boss- centred leadership The contingency theory of leadership is a perspective which states that leaders to be effective must adapt their style in a manner consistent with aspects such as the work context, attributes of workers and the nature of the work to be done Use of authority by the manager Area of freedom for subordinates Manager Manager Manager Manager presents Manager presents Manager defines Manager permits makes decisions sells presents ideas tentative decision problem, gets limits; asks group subordinates to and announces it. Decisions. and invites subject to change. suggestion, makes to make decision. function within limits questions. Decision. defined bysuperior. The Tannenbaum-Schmidt continuum of leadership behavior The steps in this continuum are represented as alternatives for the leader; their article was subtitled should the manager be democratic or autocratic- or something in between? Tannenbaum and Schmidt argue that the answer depends on three sets of forces: Forces in the manager personality, values, preferences, beliefs about Employee participation, confidence in subordinates Forces in the subordinates need for independence, tolerance of ambiguity Knowledge of the problem, expectations of involvement Forces in the situation organizational norms, size and location of work Groups, effectiveness of teamworking, nature of The problem Having concentrated on forces in the manager, having challenged the notion of one best way, to lead, research now considered aspects of the context in which the leader was operating: the people being led, the nature of the work they were doing, and the wider organisational setting. This perspective suggests that leaders must be able to diagnose the context and be able to decide what behaviour will fit. As the best style is contingent on the situation, this approach is referred to as the contingency theory of leadership. Tutorial question Leadership research and theory seems to be consistent in arguing that a considerate, employee- cantered, participative and democratic style is more effective. What factors in an organisational context would make an inconsiderate, goal- centred, impersonal and autocratic leadership style more effective? Contingency theory of leadership contd Another influential contingency theory of leadership was developed by Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard (1988). They believe that leaders can alter their style to fit the context. Hersey and Blanchard call their approach situational leadership, summarised in fig 3, which describe leader behaviour on two dimensions. The first dimension (horizontal axis) concerns task behaviour, or the amount of direction a leader gives to subordinates. This can vary from specific instructions, at one extreme, to complete delegation, at the other. Hersey and Blanchard identify two intermediate positions, where leaders either facilitate subordinates decisions or take care to explain their own. Situational leadership is an approach to determining the most effective style of influencing, taking into accounts of direction and support the leader gives, the readiness and maturity of followers to perform a particular task. The second dimension (vertical axis) concerns supportive behaviour and the amount of social backup a leader gives to subordinates. This can vary from limited communication, at one extreme, to considerable listening, facilitating and supporting at the other. The model establishes four basic leadership styles, labelled S1 to S4 S1 Telling: High amounts of task behaviour, telling subordinates what to do, when to do it and how to do it, but with little leadership behaviour. S2 Selling: High amounts of both task behaviour and relationship behaviour. S3 Participating: Lots of relationship behaviour and support, but little direction of task behaviour. S4 Delegating: Not much task behaviour or relationship behaviour. Share ideas and Explain decisions and provide Facilitate decision making. Opportunity for clarification. PARTICIPATING S3 S2 SELLING DELAGATING TELLING Turn over responsibility Provide specific instructions For decisions and and closely supervise Implementation performance. S4 S1 (Supporting Behavior/Relationship Behavior R RELATIONSHIP BEHAVIOUR Low TASK BEHAVIOUR high (GUIDANCE) High Moderate low R4 R3 R2 R1 Able and willing or confident Follower Readiness Able but unwilling Or insecure Unable and unwilling Or insecure Unable but willing Or confident Follower directed leader directed Hersey and Blanchard also argue that the readiness of followers to perform a particular task is a key factor. This is explained by the lower portion of the figure in which follower readiness is drawn on a continuum, with insecure subordinates unwilling to act at one extreme to confident followers able and willing to perform at the other. Superimpose the readiness continuum on the top half of the model and you have a basis for selecting an effective leadership style. It is compelling and consistent with other theories to suggest that insecure subordinates need telling while willing and confident groups can be left to do the job. Tutorial question; Take an organisation of your choice and discuss the relevance and significance of the Hersey and Blanchard situational leadership theory. Leadership in the twenty-first century Two related trends in leadership thinking are now evident: Recognition of the role of heroic, powerful, charismatic, visionary leader. Recognition of the role of information leadership, at all levels. These trends appear to be contradictory. We have the new leader, who is a rational figure motivating followers to superlative levels of achievement. However, we have also the super leader, who is able to lead other lead themselves .The super leader thus encourage, develops and co-exists with informal leadership dispersed throughout the organisation hierarchy. The new leader is an indispensable and inspirational visionary, a coach, a facilitator concerned with building a shared sense of purpose and mission, with creating a culture which ensures that everyone is aligned with the organisations goals and is skilled and empowered to go and achieve them. The super leader is a leader who is able to develop leadership capacity in other, developing and empowering them, reducing their dependence on formal leaders, stimulating their motivation, commitment and creativity. The new leadership theory originates from the work of McGregor Burns (1978), who distinguished between transactional and transformational leaders. The transactional leader is a leader who treats relationship with followers in terms of an exchange, giving followers what they want in return for what the leader desires, following prescribed tasks to pursue established goals. Transactional leaders see their relationship with formers in term of trade, swaps or bargains. Transformational leaders are characterised as individuals who inspire and motivates others to go beyond contract, to perform at unexpected levels. Although Burns saw these two types of leadership it was easy to see why some commentators equate transactional with management, and transformational with leadership. The transactional leader is a leader who treats relationship with followers in terms of an exchange, giving followers what they want in return for what the leader desires, following prescribed tasks to pursue established goals. The transformational leader is a leader who treats relationships with followers in terms of motivation and commitment , influencing and inspiring followers to give more than mechanical compliance and to improve organisational performance Transformational leadership occurs when leaders: Stimulates others to see what they are doing from new perspectives; Articulate the mission or vision of the organisation; Develop others to higher levels of ability; and Motivates others to put organisational interest before self-interest. They achieve this, according to Bass and Avolio, by using one or more of Idealised influence act as role models, attract admiration, respect and trust, put needs of others before personal interest, take risks and demonstrate high standards of ethical conduct Inspirational motivation motivate and inspire by providing meaning and challenge, arouse team spirit, show enthusiasm and optimism, communicate expectations, demonstrate commitment Intellectual stimulation question assumptions, reframe problems, approach old issues in new ways, encourage innovation and creativity, avoid public criticism of mistakes Individualised consideration attend to individual needs for growth and achievement, act as coach or mentor, create new learning opportunities, accept individual Differences, avoid close monitoring. The transformational leader is a leader who threats relationship with followers in terms of motivation and commitment, influencing and inspiring followers to give more than mechanical compliance and to improve organizational performance. It is tempting to regard the profusion of new terms and the shift in emphasis in leadership theory and research as a systematic development of earlier ideas. However, the identification of new, super, transformational leaders represent a simplification of the concept of leadership, returning to trait spotting (hunt the visionary) and overlooks what is known about the influences of a range of contextual factors on leadership effectiveness. Tutorial question Considering senior business and political leaders with whom you are familiar, either directly or through the media, which come closest to these definitions of new leader, super leader and transformational leader? The new, super, transformational leader looks like a one best way approach. Does this vindicate trait spotting and discredit contingency perspectives? Dispersing the leadership role In the distinction between leadership and management, orientation to change is a defining characteristic, a distinctive mark of the leader. These results suggest, therefore, that leadership is a widespread phenomenon. Leadership behaviours are dispersed rather than concentrated in the hands of formally appointed managers. Leadership functions are best carried out by people who have the interest, knowledge, skills and motivation to perform them effectively. This observation is reinforced by the development of self-managing autonomous teams, which often have no leaders, or have coach-facilitators whose role is to develop team skills. These coaching- facilitating are super leaders. Recognition of dispersed leadership does not imply a shift of focus away from formal, senior figures. It may be useful to separate notions of leadership from formal positions and prestige job titles. However, it is necessary to recognise that senior figures with prestige title continue to exercise leadership roles and functions as well. This twin-track approach, which combines recognition of visionary new leadership with the notion of a widely dispersed leadership decoupled from high office, is illustrated by Warren Bennis and Burt Nanus (1985). Their model of twenty-first century leadership (in which the new role of the leader is to be (leader of leaders) is summarised in table 4.