Sunday, January 26, 2020

Factors Influencing Decisions to Undertake Financial Savings

Factors Influencing Decisions to Undertake Financial Savings Background Information The concept of saving does not provide itself to a concise definition leading to diverse definitions put forward by various researchers and economists in the economic literature. In the macroeconomics literature, it is considered as disposal income less consumption. Issahaku (2011) contended that saving goes beyond the proportion of disposable income that is not spent and that, spending on durable goods such as furniture, home accessories, appliances, computer, equipment and accessories, automobiles among others are ways of saving too. Andrea and Francisco (1998) also pointed out that investment in human capital such as medical products, apparatus and equipment, professional health services, health insurance and so forth are forms of saving. Nonetheless, the short coming of this view is that it conceals the clear distinction between expenditure and saving because several of the human capital components mentioned are more or less current expenditure items. This study seeks to consider saving as deposits in savings accounts which are done with banks, microfinance institutions, susu groups and other saving avenues (Schultz, 2005). This definition is in line with the definition put forth by the 2013/2014 Ghana Living Standard Survey (GLSS 6) report as the setting aside of unspent income in a bank or a non-bank financial institution or in other forms of arrangement such as pension plans and some insurance products. The reason for this definition is that, it is through these saving window that financial institutions get to increase their credit standing and promote investment. Notwithstanding the lack of a common definition for the concept saving, it is an important macroeconomic variable to be studied under the purview of the economic arena of an individual as well as household level. Saving according classical economist like Adam Smith, David Ricardo and J.S. Mill is an important determinant of economic growth. For the individual or household, savings serves as a cushion against future unforeseen and uncertain circumstances of life while for a country’s economy as a whole, it leads to higher economic growth. For Rao (1980), saving constitute the basis for capital formation and capital formation constitute a major determinant of economic growth. Unlike developed economies where income is generated at a higher rate which encourages more saving thereby translating into more capital formation, developing economies like that of Ghana where income standard is almost uncertain coupled with low rate of financial inclusion of the various sectors of the eco nomy, it will be appropriate to pay more attention to the patterns and determinants of saving in the economy. On average East Asia saves more than 30 percent of gross national disposable income (GNDI) while Sub-Saharan Africa saves less than 15 percent. Regional differences have been rising: over the past three decades, saving rates have doubled in East Asia and stagnated in Sub-Saharan Africa and in Latin America and the Caribbean (Loayza et al., 2000). By a hike in aggregate saving, the social value of saving can exceed its private value in many developing countries. National savings of every economy can be broadly categorized into three saving type namely the household sector saving, private sector saving and finally the private sector saving. Public savings is the saving done by government such as state, local and federal government while private savings is the saving done by corporate business, institutions and organisations. Household sector savings is the saving done by families and individuals. Among these three savings type, the household sector savings is said to contribute a larger share to the total domestic savings of the economy (Rehman et al., 2011). Household sector savings is of utmost importance to the capital formation of every economy in that, the sector engages in substantial financial and non-financial investment and make possible both private and public investment by transferring accumulated savings. The Ghanaian household sector savings is made up of savings from urban households and that of rural households. Rural household sector is vital to the Ghanaian economy not only because of its potential in generating employment and income, rather, because of the limit set by this sector to the growth of some other sectors. Hence the growth of the aggregate economy is enormously dependent on the amount of savings emanating from this sector and how they are transferred into the hands of the enterprising investors. Ghana’s quest to mobilizing enough domestic resource through financial savings for capital formation which will eventually manifest itself in economic growth is believed to have begun when the country embarked on a comprehensive financial sector reform. Preceding this era, the country’s financial system was shallow , fragmented and almost at the verge of collapsing as a result of excessive state control and weak institutional framework leading to lower rate of financial savings. Many were the significant strides made in the economy during the reform which was mainly driven by liberalization policies such as interest rate deregulation and credit allocation, improved regulatory and supervisory frameworks especially in the financial sector. All these were geared towards enhancing banking intermediation that would improve financial savings mobilization. Despite these significant strides made, it is worth noting that most of the expansions in the financial sector were only c oncentrated in the urban areas at the expense of the rural societies (Osei-Assibey and Baah-Boateng, 2012). In recent times, the economy has witness a considerable increase in the number of both foreign and local financial institutions with the licenced Micro Finance Institutions leading with a total of 409 as at July 2014. Rural/Community Banks follows with 137 and finally, 58 Non-Bank Financial Institutions. (Data source: Bank of Ghana Website). Despite these significant increase in the number of financial institutions, the 2005/2006 and 2013/2014 Ghana Living Standards Survey (GLSS 5 and 6) reports have revealed that rural areas have higher percentages(78% and 78.5%) of households that do not owns a bank account or undertake financial savings as compared to that of urban households( 61% and 53.6%) respectively. This leaves us with mind boggling questions such as; what factors at all are responsible for these high percentages of rural households without savings account? What are the factors that influences the decision by rural households/individuals to hold bank account or undertake fin ancial savings? Do the operations of financial intuitions actually play a role in influencing the decision by rural households to hold bank accounts or/undertake financial savings? These questions and many other more are begging for answers. It is against this backdrop that the study seeks to investigate the factors that determines the decision by Ghanaian rural households to undertake financial savings or hold bank account. The hypothesis to be tested is whether operations of financial institutions actually play a significant role in the decision-to- save by rural households in Ghana. For the purpose of this study, it must be emphasized that â€Å"saving† refers to an individual having a bank account or is financially contributing to a loan/savings scheme in any of the financial institutions (i.e. banks, microfinance institutions, susu groups and other saving avenues). Problem Statement: It is now widely understood that saving has great potential impact. This insight is grounded in evidence that the poor do save in cash and in-kind—whether as a way to build assets, manage household cash flow, or effectively cope with risk. However, much of their savings remain informal and outside of the financial system (The SEEP Network 2013). Savings makes it possible for combating or meeting any emergency accrued by the individuals or the households or any corporate agencies. Saving is more often meant for meeting contingencies but sometimes it also acts as a form of investment. People are sometimes not inclined towards saving and the very reason for this, is the lack of awareness. Given the proliferation of financial intuitions (both locally and foreign owned) in recent times, one will expect that the percentage of households (particularly rural households) that undertake financial saving or/ holds bank account will be higher or at least match the increase in the number of financial institutions. Rather, the opposite is what is being observed. According to the 2005/2006 and 2013/2014 Ghana Living Standards Survey (GLSS 5 and 6) reports, rural areas have higher percentages(78% and 78.5%) of households that do not owns a bank account or undertake financial savings as against that of urban households(61% and 53.6%). This reflects a worrying phenomenon and leaves us with mind boggling question such as; what factors are accounting for these high percentages of rural households without savings account? What are the factors that influences the decision by rural households to hold bank account or/undertake financial savings? Do the operations of financial intuitions a ctually play a role in influencing the decision by rural households to hold bank account or/undertake financial savings? This is where the study becomes relevant in providing answers to the above mentioned mind boggling questions. Aggregate saving in any economy is dependent on a number of variables. For effective economic planning, the planners should have an idea regarding the capacity of saving of different groups of people and the method by which saving can be improved. To advocate for financial saving, there is a need to know about the saving motives of the individuals. An understanding of the saving preferences also helps in calculating the saving instruments which can efficiently arouse saving. Objectives of the Study: The study seeks to investigate the factors influencing the decision to undertake financial saving in rural Ghana. 1.3.1 Specific objectives: The above objective of the study will be achieved by; Analysing rural households’ attitude towards financial savings Examining whether the operations of financial institutions such as proximity to financial institution and the extent of flexibility in opening accounts significantly play a role in influencing the decision by rural households to save. Research Questions: Some of the questions that this study is seeking to answer are; What are the factors that influence the decision by rural households to undertake financial saving or/ hold bank accounts? Among the factors, which of them significantly influence the decision-to-save? Do the operations of financial institutions such proximity to financial institution and the extent of flexibility in opening accounts have significant bearing on the decision by rural dwellers to save? Significance/Justification of the Study: Recounting the saving potential of rural households, Meyer (1985) provided some reasons in support of the saving potentials of rural households and these are; 1) rural households save automatically between harvests, and/or sell a portion of their crops to pay off debts or to expand consumption; 2) rural households are heterogeneous rich and poor; rich households can always save over long and/or short periods while poor households can save only over short periods; and 3) more modern farming methods allow farmers to increase income and, therefore, savings. It appears the intervention measures (such as interest rate deregulation and the liberalization of financial sector) which has resulted in the upspring of a number of financial institutions and establishment of Rural/Community Banks put forward by Ghana to take the maximum advantage of the saving potentials of the rural households is not yielding its intended objectives as indicated by the 2005/2006 and 2013/2014 Ghana Living Standa rd Survey (5 and 6) reports. It is just appropriate that more time and resources are spent in studying and paying more attention to the savings decisions of rural households so as to take advantage of their saving potential if the objective of mobilizing enough financial resources for capital formation is to be achieved as a country. This is what the study stands to furnish us with. Also, many are the studies that have been found in the literature to exist on saving prior to (Mills and Ricardo 1884) through Harrod and Domar’s postulation about the essence of savings on economic growth to date. These studies rather focus on the determinants of the amount or rate of savings (Issahaku, 2011; Alma and Richard, 1988), macro level analysis (Gupta, 1970; Khan et al., 1992 😉 and description of savings behaviours using descriptive statistics (Komla, 2012) leaving out the quantitative analysis as gap in the literature. In the Ghanaian context, studies done on the determinants of saving of rural households using a micro level approach have mostly been skewed toward a specific rural area, on gender basis or a group of rural areas in Ghana such as Issahaku, (2011); Munin et al. (2013); Komla, (2012), Oduro et al. (2012 ) etc. This study takes a micro level approach and a nationwide analyses of the determinants of financial saving decision of rural households i n Ghana by employing quantitative and descriptive statistics. This study again gives an insight into the correlation between the decision to save by individuals in the rural areas and the operations of financial institutions. Financial institutions such as banks and other non-bank financial institutions also stand to benefit from the findings of this research as the findings will make them aware of opportunities to provide rural communities in the Ghana with accessible savings outlets which will enable these businesses to make profit. Finally, the current study will add to the existing literatures on financial savings and shall be a reference material for future study. Methodology: The study is focused on using secondary data from the Ghana Statistical Services on the Ghana Living Standard Survey 6(GLSS 6). This is because it captures well most of the variables of interest such as age, marital status, educational status of household heads family size, income dependency rate etc. The study takes a look at two analysis i.e. descriptive analysis and quantitative analysis. The quantitative analysis takes a look at the determinants of the decision to hold bank account/undertake financial savings by rural households (being binary in nature) with the other independent variables carried out by adopting the model employed by Munin et al (2013) with some modifications. Organization of Study: The study is organized into six chapters including the present one. The second chapter of the study covers an overview of financial saving in general, the importance of rural financial savings to an economy especially the economy of Ghana etc. The third chapter includes related theories of saving, views on the savings potentials of rural households and studies conducted on the saving behaviour both rural and urban households in Ghana and other countries . The fourth chapter presents the methods used in this study and the source of the data used. The fifth chapter includes the empirical estimation and discussion of the results generated. The sixth and last chapter includes the summary, recommendations and conclusion.

Saturday, January 18, 2020

8-Corporate Governance Practices in Emerging Markets: The Case of GCC Countries

Literature Review Different CG indices have been confirmed in the literature, mostly depended on developed countries. But, very small work has been carried out on the developing and developing markets. An attempts is carried out to establish know how of the emerging markets of Asia Especially established in oil based GCC countries. A little Interesting work has been carried out by two professional bodies; Institutional Shareholder Service (ISS) and Investors responsibility Research Center (IRRC). Both, ISS and IRRC provide a large CG database which offers a complex measure to analyses the overall Quality of a firm's CG. In this area Important research i has been Done by La Porta et al. (1998), Klapper and Love (2002), Gompers Et al. (2003), De Toledo and Pillicer (2006), Brown ; Caylor (2006), Leal and Carvalhal-da-Silva (2005), Ananchotikul (2007), Garay and Gonzalez (2008), Daines et al., 2010; Ibrahimpasic (2012) and Hassan (2012), are among others. A preliminary work CG was conducted By La Porta et al. (1998) to estimates the limits of that develops an â€Å"anti-director rights† Index to measure the degree of shareholder safety a major Factor in CG in 49 countries around the world. The index is calculated to know the sum of six dummies that assume the value Of 1 if a given form of shareholder protection is present and 0 Otherwise. It is concluded that common law countries have powerful investor safety than civil law countries and that stronger investor protection is related to greater ownership Dispersion. Following the same lines, Klapper and Love (2002) constructed a weighted average CGI for 374 firms in 14 emerging countries on a scale of 0–100. They conducted a firm level survey completed by Credit Lyonnais Securities Asia (CLSA) but with only six governance Components out of the seven studied by CLSA to build the index. The factors studied are transparency, accountability, independence, management discipline, fairness and responsibility. The study indicated that countries having poor legal systems, scored higher index in terms of CG and companies intending to expand in the market with the help of external credit have more chances of growth. To stick to better governance. Moreover, Klapper and Love that the countries listed in US stock markets shows good Governance. One more renowned and mostly used CG index; the ‘G-Index' was established by Gompers et al. (2003) for 1500 large firms between 1990 and 1998. They used un-weighted index to compute CGI reprocesses IRRC data as an equally weighted sum of 24 Shareholders rights practices across five characteristics; delay, safety, voting, state and others. The index assigns a value of 1 for every attribute that refuse shareholder rights and 0 Otherwise. Results shows that good governance has a positive Relationship with stock returns. In the same scenario, De Toledo and Pillicer (2006) established a governance chart for 97 nonfinancial Public companies in Spain by maintaining a binary Scale. Based on 25 questions and the questionnaire prepared By Brown and Caylor (2006); Gompers et al. (2003) and Klapper and Love (2004) are considered to arrive at the CGI and Companies scoring 25 are assume to portray high governance Standards. A study by Leal and Carvalhal-da-Silva (2005) on Brazil established another milestone in index preparation related to emerging Countries. They prepared an un-weighted CGI for 131 firms listed in The Sao Paulo stock exchange from 1998 to 2002. Title 11-Temporal Granger Causality and the Dynamics Relationship between Real Tourism Receipts, Real Income and Real Exchange Rates in Malaysia Literature Review This study applies the bounds testing Approach, error-correction modeling and Persistence profile to analyses the dynamic Relationship between real tourism receipts, Real income and real exchange rates in Malaysia. The study is covering sample period 1974 to 2009. Finding of this study disclosed that a long term relationship subsist in between the variables. In short term finding are that no Granger causality between actual income and real tourism receipts, while multiple causality in the long run. In addition it has been found that unidirectional causality running from real Exchange rates to real tourism receipts and Real income in both short- and long-run. The ultimate purpose of this study is to explore the temporal Granger causality and dynamic relationship between real tourism receipts, real Income and real exchange rates in Malaysia for the period of 1974 to 2009. Applied the bound testing approach and Granger causality Test in addition to variance decomposition, Impulse response function and Persistence profile analyses to achieve the purpose of this study. Major finding are, the bounds testing Approach indicates the existence of a long-run Relationship between real exchange rates, real tourism receipts and real Income in Malaysia. Second, to enhance the robustness of conclusion, it engages three long-run estimators, Namely ARDL, DOLS and FMOLS to Estimate the long-run elasticity's. Real income and real exchange rates have a positive and significant effect on real tourism Receipts in Malaysia. Third, the Granger causality Test is used to investigate the direction of Causality between the variables. In the short term, there is unidirectional Granger causality running from real exchange rates to real tourism Receipts and real income, but no Granger Causality between real tourism receipts and real Income. Therefore, in the long-run, we find bidirectional Granger causality verification in between real income and Real tourism receipts, but a Unidirectional Granger causality running from Real exchange rates to real tourism receipts and real income. Fourth, apart from using the Granger causality test, we consider variance Decomposition and impulse response function to find out the reaction of each variable either it is attributed to its own shock and to the shocks in other variables in the system. It is also called as the variable specific Shock. In describing shocks to real tourism Receipts in Malaysia, real income is more important than real exchange rates. Meantime, real exchange rates and Real tourism receipts are equally necessary in describing shocks to Real income. The urge reply of function disclose that shocks to real income and real exchange Rates have significant positive impacts on real tourism Receipts in the short- and long-term. Further, shock to real tourism receipts has a Positive effect on real income, while shock to real exchange rates has a negative effect on Real income in Malaysia. It is concluded that, persistence Profile showed that the real tourism receipts System is stable and valid as the profile Declines sharply towards the equilibrium within a period about three years after a system-wise shock. This affirms that the Trivariate co integrating system used in this Study is logical. For policy-making, we could mention at least two significant policy indications from the findings of this study. First, tourism is the long-term source for economic growth in Malaysia as the Granger Causality results propose that real income and real tourism receipts have bidirectional causality. Title 12-Corporate ownership, governance and tax avoidance An interactive effects Literature Review The fact is that taxes deductions from the cash flows available to a firm, and therefore the dividends distributable to the shareholders, propose that firm owners would attempt to increase their wealth through various taxes to keep away from these Practices. Such types of advantages of enhanced cash flows from tax avoidance practices are ingenious with certain Non-tax costs. This required the costs/benefits considering of such type of practices and the choice of tax avoidance if the interest outweigh the linked costs. Therefore, the benefits and the associated costs with corporate tax avoidance are discussed here. Prior to explanation, little awareness are provided on the meaning and measures of corporate Tax avoidance to give proper ground for the discussion in detail. The corporate tax avoidance lacks universal definition as it might connote â€Å"different thing to different People† (Hanlon ; Heitzman, 2010:137). The reality is that there is significant tax impacts on all settlement of a Company, meant to enhance its profit, could account for such shortness of universal definition. , they have different definitions of corporate tax avoidance put up by researchers in present times (for a review of these definitions see: Salihu, Sheikh Obid ; Annuar, 2013; Salihu 2014). Here, explain corporate tax avoidance as a decrease the clear cut corporate tax liabilities. This definition is in line with Hanlon and Heitzman (2010) It explains tax avoidance â€Å"as a continuum of tax arrangements policies where something like municipal bond Investments are at one side (lower explicit tax, perfectly legal), Therefore , the terms Such as tax management; tax planning; tax sheltering; and tax aggressiveness are exchangeable used with tax Avoidance in the literature (see for instance: Chen et al. 2010; Lanis and Richardson, 2011; 2012; Minnick ; Noga, 2010; Tang ; Firth, 2011). Similar to its definition, there have been many ways of corporate tax avoidance used in the prior Literature. These ways are mainly depended on the estimates from the financial statements and could be categorized into three classes/groups. The first group adds those measures that examine the multitude of the gap between book and Taxable income. All these consist of total book-tax gap; residual book-tax gap and tax-effect book-tax gap. The Second group has to take up with those establish the evaluate the proportional amount of taxes to business income. All these having effective tax rates (this comes in several variants like accounting ETR; current ETR; cash ETR; Long-run cash ETR; ETR differential; ratio of income tax expense to operating cash flow; ; ratio of cash taxes Paid to operating cash flow). The third group comprises other measures such as optional permanent differences (PERMIDIFF)/DTAX; unrecognized tax benefits (UTB); and tax shelter estimates. Other than this plethora of measures of corporate tax avoidance used in the tax literature, its conforming aspect remains un-captured as most of the measures are computed based on items that are affected by accrual accounting Procedures. To this part, Hanlon and Heitzman (2010) proposed a measure for conforming tax avoidance as the Proportion of cash tax paid to operating cash flow. Salihu, Sheikh Obid and Annuar (2013) documented the significant difference of this measure from other similar measures. This study suggested the use this measure for the Empirical investigation given the context of the study.

Friday, January 10, 2020

Learning Team Deliverable Week 4 Essay

TA-4D) Recessions seem to show up every so often and create economic hardship. One might think that macroeconomic policymakers could tame the business cycle and implement policies that would end recessions. Are recessions a necessary fact of macroeconomic life? If not, what would it take to eliminate them? If they are unavoidable, what types of business can benefit from them? How would a recession affect your firm? Economists identify business fluctuations in the economy by measuring the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) output. This fluctuation of output is called the business cycle. McConnell (2009) states, â€Å"Many economist prefer to talk of business fluctuations rather than cycles because cycles imply regularity while fluctuations do not (p. 984). The business cycle is distinguished by four phases: Peak, Recession, Trough, and Expansion, always starting with the peak (McConnell, 2009). The motion of the business cycle propels with alternating rises and declines in the level of economic activity with each portion varying on duration and intensity. At the peak of the cycle, business activity has reached a temporary maximum. Here the economy is at full employment and the real output is close to the economy’s capacity. With a price level rise during this phase, either resources or consumers will eventually dwindle causing a decrease in output. A decline in total output, income, and employment of the business cycle is called the recession period (McConnell, 2009). During a recession the GDP will decrease, manifesting a notable increase in unemployment which leads to economic hardships in many sectors of the economy. A macroeconomic policymaker could try to keep business activity at an equilibrium by reinforcing a policy framework for businesses to abide by. Examples to the policy framework could include pricing rules, along with having resources available to companies for production. Whatever the details of this policy framework, one still must consider that an expansion leads to recession, and vice versa. It is evitable. So yes, recessions are a necessary fact of macroeconomic life. Consider a farmer with crops in his field and his inability to stop a storm that wipes out his crop, or a business executive with the best business plan who is vulnerable to the fluctuations of the stock market. These examples reinforce that recessions are a necessary fact of macroeconomic life and they are unavoidable. The types of businesses that could benefit from a recession are companies providing nondurable goods or business with a combination of both durable and nondurable goods with the ability to bridge the output until the recession moves back into motion with an expansion. Consumers cannot postpone the buying of nondurables such as food; therefore recessions only slightly reduce nondurable output. The last recession hurt the high end retail optical business moderately because they carry such an expensive product to begin with sales dropped dramatically until people were comfortable with the economic situation again. Our company had to compensate for this decline by laying off over half of the corporate staff, between the periods of October of 2008 through April of 2009. We now operate with half the amount of employees and even though the economy has started to come back the company will not hire any new staff. Other ways the company compensated was forgoing any rate increases for everyone until 2010. Recessions definitely hurt companies that sell durable goods; however, it also forces companies to look how to trim the business and cut costs during the time of a recession. (TA-4C) Deflation has serious economic effects; deflation is the falling of prices, according to National Center for Policy Analysis, 2001) deflation can increase interest rates so the market rate minus the change in price. For example, if the prices fall six percent per year and the nominal interest rate is four percent, the real interest rate will calculate at ten percent. According to National Center for Policy Analysis, 2001) â€Å"Deflation is negative price inflation or a simultaneous fall in a broad range of prices for goods and services†. Deflation will raise current wages and can lead to major layoffs as employers try to reduce costs. Many organizations will need to reduce labor coast and because it is the quickest way to free cash flow layoffs will be the first to be considered. Deflation will also influence consumer spending because people become more conscious when spending creating a decrease in sales for businesses. One comely used method for reducing deflation is influencing the interest rates. The Federal Reserve influences interest rates to help cause the supply of money to change and create movement. When the supply of money changes it reduces major drops in inflation and deflation (Bernanke, 2002). Deflation can affect numerous businesses, for example Citicorp, although Citicorp is a large financial institution, a large number of the company’s employees are employed in the call centers. The call centers provide customer service for credit cards. With deflation people are more conscious with spending and are more focused on paying down debt, without the consumer spending on his or her credit cards Citicorp is forced to reduce customer service jobs. References Harvey, J. (2011). Why do recessions happen? A practical guide to the business cycle. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/johntharvey/2011/04/18/why-do-recessions-happen-a- practical-guide-to-the-business-cycle/ on October 18, 2013. McConnell, C. (2009). Economics, principles, problems, and policies (18th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill Company. National Center for Policy Analysis. (2001). Economic Problems of Deflation. Retrieved from http://www.ncpa.org/sub/dpd/index.php?Article_ID=7473 on October 20, 2013. Bernanke, G. B. S. (2002). Deflation: Making Sure â€Å"It† Doesn’t Happen Here. The Federal Reserve Board. Retrieved from http://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/speeches/2002/20021121/default.htm on October 20, 2013.

Thursday, January 2, 2020

Understanding Marginalized Groups Of The United States

Understanding Marginalized Groups According to a definition obtained from the Business Dictionary, marginalization is â€Å"the process whereby something or someone is pushed to the edge of a group and accorded lesser importance.† It goes on to say that â€Å"this is predominantly a social phenomenon by which a minority or sub-group is excluded, and their needs or desires [are] ignored.† This definition is what assisted me in understanding that my interviewee was a member of a marginalized group. The LGBT community, although have overcome many strides over the past few years, are still oppressed and frowned upon by many. Those apart of this community are judged, bullied, and discriminated against undercover as well as openly on a daily basis. A person’s socioeconomic status is a way in which a group of people can be marginalized. Fluctuating in financial status, incorporating incongruities in the conveyance of riches, wage, and access to assets, influences everyb ody. Disparities in riches and personal satisfaction are expanding in the United States and internationally. Behavioral and sociology experts have the instruments important to complete and recognize methodologies that could reduce these abnormalities at both individual and societal levels. Low socioeconomic status (SES) and its corresponds, for example, lower training, neediness, and weakness, at last influence our general public overall. Everybody profits by an expanded spotlight on establishments of financial imbalancesShow MoreRelatedWhy Identity Politics Creates Barriers For Marginalized Groups Essay1503 Words   |  7 PagesAMST 101 Many, Out of One: Why Identity Politics Creates Barriers for Marginalized Groups Identity politics is an undeniable twenty first century paradigm among minority groups, sparking discourse across political and social spheres. 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Wednesday, December 25, 2019

Napoleons Return to France Essay - 1037 Words

Napoleon returned to home to France with only about 10% of his Army still alive. He lost most of his soldiers during the Great White Death, which is one of the largest French disasters to date. Since all the coalition allies knew he was in trouble, they decided to follow him and take him out while he was down and burned out. This is when he decided to give himself up and be exiled to Elba with 1000 guards. Before he left though, he promised his men that he, â€Å"†¦ would return when the flowers bloomed.† And that was a promise that Napoleon kept. When he returned to France he came face to face with Marshal Nay but as an enemy and not a friend. Marshal Nay had started working for the new King of France, King Louis XVIII and built one of the†¦show more content†¦Unfortunately, for Napoleon there was two days of rain that mad this particular area very muddy. Napoleons forces where divided since Grouchy was keeping a close eye on Blucher. If only they would have k nown that he should have stayed with Napoleon they would have won Waterloo instead it was a drawn out battle that caused a lot of bloodshed on La Belle Alliance Ridge. Waterloo didn’t get started till 11:35 am because the ground was too muddy to get his cannons into place. Once he did get his cannons into place he decided he wanted to take Hougomont. Hougomont became a huge headache to Napoleon because he would constantly try to take it and never did during the entire battle. Picton ordered Major General William Ponsoby, who led the Scots Grays, to attack the French. Every English boy would have wanted to be one of those brave men at the time. They collided with the French lancers and they were annihilated. The Scots Grays tried to ever turn back but not one of them survived. While this was going on, around 1:45 pm, Picton was shot in the head, through his top hat. Picton was not dressed in his usual military uniform because Napoleon had attacked his train and stole his gear so all he had to wear was a black suit and top hat. That particular hat is on display in a museum at waterloo. A wind storm begin and actually started making Wellington a little nervous. He said give me Blucher or give me night.Show MoreRelatedNapoleon Bonapartes Biography Essay1520 Words   |  7 Pageson August 15, 1769, in his island homeland of Corsica. Napoleon was the second son of Carlo and Letizia. Corsica and France were at war. France had easily crushed the Corsican resistance, and taken over Corsica. So when Napoleon was born, he was considered a citizen of France. When Napoleon was nine years old and it was time for his schooling, he was sent to a school in Autun, France. At the school he was teased and tormented for being from Corsica, but he was determined, and he eventually learnedRead MoreEssay about Napoleon I1570 Words   |  7 Pages Napoleon I Napoleons life was a very interesting one. Starting a poor boy, hated by most, rising to rule a huge empire, and then finally being destroyed by his own arrogance and ending his life humbled, remembering what he had doe, and leaving it all in his memoirs for the world to read. Napoleon was born in 1769, on the Island of Corsica. His parents, Carlo and Letizia Bonaparte, were poor nobles. When Napoleon was just 10 years old, his father helped to get him a mathematical scholarship toRead MoreNapoleon and The French Revolution, Questions and Answers1767 Words   |  7 Pagesold regime. One of the major points of his betrayal comes from his appointment to emperor. This unsubtle transition goes against the main reason for revolution in France. If they are willing to go the extent of executing the previous king, the people of France would probably not want an even stronger autocratic ruler. Even Napoleon’s coronation ceremony resembles the old monarchies they fought to overthrow. Another backward step that Napoleon took was his marriage to Maria-Louisa, the princessRead MoreNapoleon Bonaparte’s Failed Invasion of Russia in 18121533 Words   |  7 Pagesseize the country. The crushing defeat which followed devastated the army, leaving it incapacitated and vulnerable. This venture into Russia crippled Napoleon’s quest for European domination, and destroyed his fiercely defended reputation as an indestructible leader. While Napoleon was at war various coup d’à ©tat (overthrow) attempts were made back in France, showing that he had chosen an inopportune time to leave the centre of his power. Furthermore, he was fighting simultaneous wars on two fronts; RussiaRead MoreNapoleon Bonaparte/ Napoleon I, is considered one of the greatest military leaders in history. He1300 Words   |  6 Pages Napoleon Bonaparte/ Napoleon I, is considered one of the greatest military leaders in history. He was the emperor of France and he also conquered much of Europe. From an early age Napoleon showed signs of being a great leader. Even as a child he was nicknamed â€Å"Little Corporal†, because of his undeniable courage and determination. In 1798 he sat forth on one of his major expeditions in Egypt. Napoleon and his soldiers defeated Egypt and they continued on their journey. Many expeditions later, NapoleonRead MoreNapoleon Bonaparte Essay1537 Words   |  7 PagesNapoleon Bonaparte has been called a hero by some and a villain by many others. He was the First Consul of France, then the emperor of France, and finally an outlaw. Napoleon had a meteoric rise to power in the late 18th century, and lasted to the early 19th century. He was able to rise to power through his great military victories and he was able to keep his power by fending off enemies in wars and with some refor ms. Napoleon started his life good, but different than many French rulers. NapoleonRead MoreNapoleon Bonaparte : The Downfall Of The French Revolution702 Words   |  3 Pages Napoleon Bonaparte was a military leader whose fame reached his peak in the French Revolution. He would serve as the Emperor of France from 1804-1814; He would resume this role in 1815 during the Hundred Days. He would become one of the most successful emperors in all of France and world history. He would win many wars and build a huge empire that ruled across Europe. His legacy has been analyzed by historians and learned by students in modern time. Napoleon Bonaparte was born on AugustRead MoreNapoleon Bonaparte A Hero Or A Villain?1624 Words   |  7 PagesThere is no question in the fact that Napoleon Bonaparte was a significant character in France. However, there have been debates among historians for years around the central question: â€Å"Was Napoleon Bonaparte a hero or a villain?† The answer here relies on how one looks upon the situation. Was Napoleon Bonaparte a savior to the French, or was he a tyrant to the French? Although many historians’ answers do rely deeply onto perspective, their answers also lie within which stage of life Napoleon BonaparteRead MoreThe Legacy Of Great Leaders1462 Words   |  6 PagesFrom enacting legal reforms to military reforms napoleon’s contributions have led to his time as being called the Napoleonic Era. Modern military, government, society, leaders and institutions utilize much of what Napoleon innovated or perfected. Napoleon’s father was a Corsican Lawyer named Carlo Buonaparte whom would serve as Corsica’s representative in the Royal Court of King Louis the XVI and as personal representative to Pasquale Paoil. Napoleon’s father and familial connections afforded NapoleonRead MoreNapoleon Bonaparte, a Man of War1522 Words   |  7 PagesNapoleon Bonaparte rise to power was because of his strong army he formed and his strategy for winning wars however his fall came when he went to Russia intending to defeat them but lost. Napoleon’s policies were to ensure freedom and equality for the people and to give the people the education they needed. Napoleon Bonaparte was born Napoleone di Buonaparte in Corsica, August 15, 1769. He was a small child, and often was teased by his classmates when he was enrolled in military college

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

The Youthworks ML2 Program Evaluation Taskforce - 1591 Words

During October 2017, the Department of Youth Development organized the YouthWorks ML2 Program Evaluation Taskforce to oversee and design this comprehensive program evaluation to assess 2015-2016 impact of services provided by the YouthWorks ML2 Program (a youth development afterschool program in Harrisville, SC.); and this program evaluation was guided by seven key evaluation questions that relate to program effectiveness, efficiency, outcomes, and enrollment demographics as discussed within this report; and program findings revealed the following: †¢ The YouthWorks ML2 program successfully achieved its goal of improving math, reading, and leadership skill levels. †¢ 81% of participants had an increase in math level. †¢ 65% of participants†¦show more content†¦Services provided by ML2 are geared to reducing at-risk behaviors, renewing minds, and restoring hope in children of low-income families; and YouthWorks ML2 is guided by the recommended principles of the Afterschool Alliance and the U.S. Department of Education. Program Objectives The YouthWorks ML2 Program main program objectives are to: 1. Improve math, reading, and leadership skills. 2. Reduce at-risk behaviors and actions of participants. 3. Get participants involved in community service. Program Strategies, Resources Activities According to the Afterschool Alliance, research reveals that after school programs should employ resources that implement strategies and activities designed to enhance academic achievement, actively engage participants, and expose participants to enrichment activities. Therefore, the YouthWorks ML2 Program provides strategies, resources, and activities via coordination, physical resources (community center, materials, supplies, etc.), technological resources (computers, internet, printers, etc.), mentoring services, partnerships, pre-and posttest assessments (SC PASS, SC-Alt., county exams, etc.), tutoring, summer camps (ML2 Computer Exploration, ML2 Coding Game Design, ML2 Robotics, etc.),

Sunday, December 8, 2019

Production Placement in Video Games- MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about theProduction Placement in Video Games. Answer: The term In-game marketing refers to a non-traditional advertising style that is pursued through digital gadgets and video games. On the other hand, product placement is indicative of a distinct marketing practice for a commercial purpose, in which a particular brand name, package or any kind of trademark merchandise are inserted as well as utilized in a motion picture or in television or in other form of media vehicle. However, several times it is considered that has been considered that the entire method of In-game marketing and product placement distracts from the mesmerizing experience related to playing video games (Dardis et al., 2015). It is not a worth admitting fact as In-game advertising and product placement provides a great sense of realism to the players, which indulge them more into the game. In a video game like Grand Theft Auto IV that is completely fictional, the style of In-game advertising and product placement gives an ironic as well as humorous reflection on the real-world society (Dardis et al., 2016). Through depicting products and premises those have similarities with the real world, the aforementioned video game actively indulge the players into an exciting visual world. At the same time, allows the players to understand what such rock star games attempting to make about the real society. Therefore, the thesis statement of the following essay is In-game marketing and product placement does not distract from the immersive experience of the game play. The Grand Theft Auto or GTA is officially known to be a video game that is based on action-adventure and is created by the combine effort of David Jones and Mike Dailly. Primarily developed by the DMA design or Rock star north and published by Rock star games, the video game is a series that are set in varied fictional locales (gta4.net, 2017). These fictional locales are Liberty city or San Andreas or vice city, which are ironical representations of real cities like New York City and Miami. It has been found out that there are presently sixteen games in the Grand Theft Auto along with two expansion packs for the original series. For the Grand Theft Auto IV, there have been made two expansions too. The most significant fact about the distinct gaming series is the video game series holds near about 10 world gaming records, which includes largest voice cast along with most guest stars in single video game series (nytimes.com, 2017). Moreover, the GTA has been ranked 5 in the best selli ng franchises of video game of all time. In this context, it is required to mention that each of the video games allows the players to have the freedom to select what to do and how to accomplish through varied procedures of transport and weapons. The GTA IV, which is set in the Liberty city, is about a single player a war veteran Niko Bellic who is struggling with the attempt to escape his past and at the same time is having pressure from the mob bosses as well as from the loan sharks (gta.wikia.com, 2017). The game is played in a single player mode and the world presented in the game is navigated by vehicle. The city depicted in the game is the Liberty city, which is based on the metropolis of the city of New York. Unlike the GTA3 that had vaguely represented its real world counterpart, in GTA IV, the Rock star production brings out a modified Liberty city that appropriately resembles the New York City (gta.wikia.com, 2017). It can be therefore said that the visual graphics of GTA IV is the mocking representation of the city of statue of liberty that helps the game series to attract more users who can indulge themselves in doing some exciting activities, which they could not accomplish in real life. The game employs some of the realistic resemblance to numerous well known buildings of New York like Astor Plaza, Bertelsmann building, Chrysler building, Brooklyn Bridge, Coney Island Cyclone, Doubletree Guest Suites, Erie Lackawanna Terminal and Manhattan Bridge (gta.wikia.com, 2017). By depicting the realistic representation of the aforementioned premises, it can be said that the game rightly possess all the potentials which are required to engage the players as well as mesmerize them into a game. A player or user gets immersive experience of a video game only when the person gets a taste of real life aspects in the game. The deliberate mocking presented by the aforementioned game of real life counter parts rightly provides a sense of realism to the users (Glass, 2007). In this context, it is required to be mentioned that people can make argument about the fact that the GTA game series and specifically GTA IV does not depict every street of the New York City but most of the major landmarks are presented in the game, which are rendered in exciting and surprising details. It should be considered here that the virtual world of video games gives an alternate reality to the users and allow them to freely implement their selves without having the fear of undesired consequences. Moreover, the video games and the virtual world presented by the games attract the consumers as they can escape all the responsibilities of the real world as well as the mandatory routines of daily life (Greitemeyer Mgge, 2014). On the other hand, the In-game marketing is the way of including products or brands in the virtual world through product placements. As per Jin and Phua (2015), it can is not a considerable fact that product placement in video games distracts from the hypn otic experience of video games as natural product replacement in the video games efficiently enhances the quality of the gaming experience. However, it also to consider in this case that incongruently placed products produce negative associations and absolutely distract the gamers (Hansson, 2017). Therefore, it can be said In-game marketing and product placement can only distract the immersive gaming experience when the representation of the realistic counterparts are made incongruently. However, it is to regard in this context that In-game marketing and product placement have become famous for exciting gamers to immerse into the gaming experience as most of the time, the characters and the products shown in the games mocks the real life counterparts of them. As per Mart-Parreo et al. (2017), the phrase immersive game play experience means a practical contact with observation of facts or a person, event or an occurrence that imposes an impression on the players. More precisely, the immersive gaming experience is indicative of an experience that evoked a special kind of sensation in the participants. Most significantly, according to Walsh et al. (2014), a gaming experience occurs through five particular elements, which are visual scanning, motor responses, auditory discriminati on, perceptual patterns of learning and concentration. Through the In-game marketing and product placement, the aforementioned elements like motor responses, visual scanning and auditory discrimination are infused in a game. On the other hand, it should be also considered that in terms of generating excitement or sensation among the players, video games like the GTA series and particularly GTA IV make inclusion of varied mock brands and places. In this respect some of the in-game fictional brands, which have been perceived to be the real-life counterparts should be listed. Some of the brands and places, which have been mockingly represented in the GTA IV, can be classified into American, British, Australian, French, Italian, Japanese, Swedish and South Korean brands. The GTA Albany, Schyster, Bravado, Vapid, Invetero, Declasse and Mammoth are real world American brands Cadillac, Chrysler, Old logo, Dodge, Ford, Chevrolet, Corvette, Coquette and Hummer respectively. On the other side, GTA Cheval is considered to be the real world Holden. Furthermore, British Brands, such as Jaguar, Aston Martin, Rolls Royce, Bentley, Mini and Land Rover are represented as GTA Ocelot, Dewbauchee, Enus, Weeny and Gallivanter respectively (reddit.com, 2017). The popular French brand Bugatti is represented as Truffade and the Italian brands Lamborghini, Ferrari and Maserati have been depicted as GTA Pegassi, Grotti and Lampadati (reddit.com, 20 17). However, along with the aforementioned brands, the GTA series players enjoys some not so famous country brands like Fisker, Telsa, Mercury and Lincoln in the GTA name of HIjak, coil and Dundreary respectively. In this context, it is to keep in consideration in this respect that not only through depicting the aforementioned brands, GTA series and specifically GTA IV displays the radio stations, which plays real music and real voice over of actresses and models (gta4.net, 2017). Here, it should be mentioned that the utilization of the models is primarily pursued for the brand endorsements, which is the sole aim of In-game marketing and product placement. However, it could not be ignored that the real life music presentations and voice over creates a sense of excitement among the players as they feel like existing in a real world where they can do anything they chose (Walsh et al., 2014). Therefore, it could not be admitted that the In-game marketing distracts from the immersive gaming experiences. Besides the above discourse, it is to consider also that the entire idea of In-game advertising and product placement has proven one of the effective marketing procedures in the contemporary time (Mart-Parreo et al., 2017). It is because the excitement brought by the product placement style or the real life depiction of the brands successfully drives the minds of the players towards the real world product. Consequently, the real world brands are generating sales for the record labels (Siemens et al., 2015). Henceforth, it should be considered with utmost priority that the In-game marketing and product placement is potential in accomplishing a huge number of customer acquisitions as well as indulging more gamers into the virtual world of video games. The reason behind the increasing persuasion of In-game marketing and product placement is that people nowadays are more connected to the digital world and to attract young customers, there is no better way but the In-game marketing that s uccessfully lures them towards a particular brand (Terlutter Capella, 2013). In this context, one thing should be noted that product placement has an immense impact on the consumers. According to Lull et al. (2016), fruitful consumer recall is possible through varied kinds of product placement. It has been a proved fact that participants or the consumers can properly recall product in the audio and video placement as the audio-visual sensorial cues are efficient in producing greater recall among the participants. Specifically, in the video games, there are seen peripheral and highly integrated product placements (Greitemeyer Mgge, 2014). Both of the aforementioned product placement styles are easy to include as well as efficient in establishing mock presentations of real world products and brands. However, relatively the highly integrated product placement is less in video games as they consume more time and effort (Hansson, 2017). However, the highly integrated product placement is proven most successful in creating acute depiction of the real world product s and unlike the peripheral product placement; it cannot be integrated as well as improvised in the final stages (Jin Phua, 2015). However, it should be considered that without the help of the highly integrated product placement, it was not possible for the Rock star games publishing could not have portrayed a virtual world that is potential in giving real experience. Specifically, the GTA IVs product placements like the presentation of the Jazz channel through salsa, alt-rock, hip-hop stations is one of the most real world representation that is considered to have indulged gamers into the game and has given them the immersive gaming experience. However, it is to consider in this respect that instead of keeping real world similarities, the producers of the real world depicted game series like the GTA series prefers to has a legal disclaimer that indicates that each of the contents of the video games is fictional and does not intended to depict any real life event (greenmangaming.com, 2017). It can be perceived that such legal disclaimer is shown in order to avoid any legal and public offense and harassment. Therefore, from the above essay it can be said that it is not a fact worth agreeable that In-game advertising as well as product placement creates distraction among the players and prohibit them from enjoying an immersive gaming experience. References Dardis, F. E., Schmierbach, M., Sherrick, B., Waddell, F., Aviles, J. (2015, January). WHICH WAY TO GO?: THE RELATIVE EFFECTIVENESS OF BRANDED ADVERGAMES, BANNER ADS, AND PRE-ROLL ADS ON BRAND RECALL IN VIDEO GAMES. InAmerican Academy of Advertising. Conference. Proceedings (Online)(p. 69). American Academy of Advertising. Dardis, F. E., Schmierbach, M., Sherrick, B., Waddell, F., Aviles, J., Kumble, S., Bailey, E. (2016). Adver-Where? Comparing the Effectiveness of Banner Ads and Video Ads in Online Video Games.Journal of Interactive Advertising,16(2), 87-100. Glass, Z. (2007). The effectiveness of product placement in video games.Journal of Interactive Advertising,8(1), 23-32. 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Retrieved 14 May 2017, from https://gta.wikia.com/wiki/Liberty_City/New_York_Landmarks Lull, R. B., Gibson, B., Cruz, C., Bushman, B. J. (2016). Killing Characters in Video Games Kills Memory for In-Game Ads. Mart-Parreo, J., Bermejo-Berros, J., Alds-Manzano, J. (2017). Product Placement in Video Games: The Effect of Brand Familiarity and Repetition on Consumers' Memory.Journal of Interactive Marketing,38, 55-63. Schiesel, S. (2017).Grand Theft Auto IV: Dystopian Liberty City.Nytimes.com. Retrieved 14 May 2017, from https://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/28/arts/28auto.html Siemens, J. C., Smith, S., Fisher, D. (2015). Investigating the Effects of Active Control on Brand Recall within In-Game Advertising.Journal of Interactive Advertising,15(1), 43-53. Terlutter, R., Capella, M. L. (2013). The gamification of advertising: analysis and research directions of in-game advertising, advergames, and advertising in social network games.Journal of Advertising,42(2-3), 95-112. The car companies of GTA V and their real life counterparts r/GrandTheftAutoV. (2017).reddit. Retrieved 14 May 2017, from https://www.reddit.com/r/GrandTheftAutoV/comments/39kzn4/the_car_companies_of_gta_v_and_their_real_life/ Walsh, P., Clavio, G., Mullane, S., Whisenant, W. (2014). Brand Awareness and Attitudes Towards Political Advertisements in Sport Video Games.Public Organization Review,14(2), 127-138. Walsh, P., Zimmerman, M. H., Clavio, G., Williams, A. S. (2014). Comparing brand awareness levels of in-game advertising in sport video games featuring visual and verbal communication cues.Communication Sport,2(4), 386-404.