Gay male culture Essay Example for Free

Gay male culture Essay American culture has focused much more heavily on gay men than on other members of the LGBT community. This may be due to larger numbers of men than women and it may also be due to gay men having more resources available to them to justify, explore and perform their sexuality. The western culture as a whole still sees men and male experience as the central experience in culture, even if the men in question are transgressing established gender norms. Gay culture relies upon secret symbols and codes woven into an overall straight context. The association of gay men with opera, ballet, professional sports, , musical theater, the Golden Age of Hollywood, and interior design began with wealthy homosexual men using the straight themes of these media to send their own signals. In the Marilyn Monroe film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, a musical [filmfreakcentral. net] number features a woman singing while muscled men in revealing costumes dance around her. The mens costumes were designed by a man, the dance was choreographed by a man, and the dancers seem more interested in each other than in the female star, but her reassuring presence gets the sequence past the censors and fits it into an overall heterocentric theme. Today gay male culture is publicly acknowledged. Celebrities such as Liza Minnelli spent [topix. net] a significant amount of their social time with urban gay men, who were now popularly viewed as sophisticated and stylish by the jet set. Celebrities themselves were open about their relationships. Gay men cant be identified by the way they look or what kind of music they like. There are gay men in every field and all sorts of fashions and music. Lesbian culture A lesbian is a woman who is romantically and sexually attracted only to other women. The history of lesbian culture over the last half-century has been linked to the evolution of feminism. Older stereotypes of lesbian women stressed a dichotomy between women who adhered to stereotypical male gender stereotypes (butch) and stereotypical female gender stereotypes (femme), and that typical lesbian couples consisted of butch/femme couples. Today, some lesbian women adhere to being either butch or femme, but these categories are much less rigid and there is no express expectation that a lesbian couple be butch/femme. There is a sub-culture within the lesbian community called Aristasia, where lesbians in the community adhere to exaggerated levels of femininity. In this culture, there are two genders, blonde and brunette, although they are unrelated to actual hair color. Brunettes are femme, yet blondes are even more so. Also notable are diesel dykes, extremely butch women who use male forms of dress and behavior, and who often work as truck drivers. Lipstick lesbian refers to feminine women who are attracted only to other feminine women. Bisexual culture In modern western culture Bisexual people are in the peculiar situation of receiving hatred or distrust [Lunde 1990] or even outright denial of their existence from some elements of both the straight and lesbian and gay populations. There is of course some element of general anti-LGBT feeling, but some people insist that bisexual people are unsure of their true feelings, that they are experimenting or going through a phase and that they eventually will or should decide or discover which (singular) sex they are sexually attracted to. One popular misconception is that [Lunde 1990] bisexuals find all humans sexually attractive. That is no truer than the idea that, say, all straight men would find all women sexually attractive. More people of all kinds are becoming aware that there are some people who find attractive sexual partners among both men and women sometimes equally, sometimes favoring one sex in particular . Distinctions exist between sexual orientation (attraction, inclination, preference, or desire), gender identity (self-identification or self-concept) and sexual behavior (the sex of ones actual sexual partners). For example, someone who may find people of either sex attractive might in practice have relationships only with people of one particular sex. Many bisexual people consider themselves to be part of the LGBT or Queer community [Barris, 2007]. In an effort to create both more visibility, and a symbol for the bisexual community to gather behind, Michael Page created the bisexual pride flag. The bisexual flag, which has a pink or red stripe at the top for homosexuality, a blue one on the bottom for heterosexuality and a purple one in the middle to represent bisexuality, as purple is from the combination of red and blue [Lunde 1990]. Transgender culture The study of transgender culture is complicated by the many and various ways in which cultures deal with gender [hrc. org]. For example, in many cultures, people who are attracted to people of the same sex — that is those who in contemporary Western culture would identify as gay, lesbian, or bisexual — are classed as a third gender, together with people who would in the West be classified as transgender or transsexual. Also in the contemporary West, there are usually [hrc.org] several different groups of transgender and transsexual people, some of which are extremely exclusive, like groups only for transsexual women who explicitly want sex reassignment surgery or male, heterosexual only cross-dressers. Transmens groups are often, but not always, more inclusive. Groups aiming at all transgender people, both transmen and transwomen, have in most cases appeared only in the last few years. Some transgender or transsexual women and men however do not classify as being part of any specific trans culture. However there is a distinction between transgender and transsexual people who make their past known to others . Some wish to live according to their gender identity and not reveal this past, stating that they should be able to live in their true gender role in a normal way, and be in control of whom they choose to tell their past to. Epistemology of the closet. The expression being in the closet is used to describe keeping secret ones sexual behavior or orientation, most commonly homosexuality or bisexuality, but also including the gender identity of transgender and transsexual people [branconolilas.no. sapo. pt]. Being in the closet is more than being private, it is a life-shaping pattern of concealment where gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender individuals hide their sexuality/gender-identity in the most important areas of life, with family, friends, and at work. Individuals may marry or avoid certain jobs in order to avoid suspicion and exposure. Some will even claim to be heterosexual when asked directly. It is the power of the closet to shape the core of an individuals life that has made homosexuality into a significant personal, social, and political drama in twentieth-century America. (Seidman 2003, p. 25). Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, in her book Epistemology of the closet, majorly focuses on male homosexuality. She is also an intellectual who is interested in gay and lesbian studies, queer studies, gender studies, and feminism. Sedgwick (Seidman 2003, p. 25) â€Å"proposes that many of the major thoughts and knowledge in twentieth-century Western culture as a whole are structured—indeed fractured—by the now endemic crisis of homo/heterosexual definition, indicatively male, dating from the end of the nineteenth century†. Incoherent ideas about homosexuality inform the way men are acculturated in the modern West, and (Seidman 2003, p. 25) since this is so, this incoherence has come to mark society generally. Incoherence characterizes the attitude toward homosexuality in the West and is beyond debate. examples, are gay men ridiculous figures of fun or are they sexual monsters who prey on young children? ; is the homosexual a limp-wrested effeminate unsuited for the armed forces, or the lothario of the showers who will gaze upon and/or rape his fellow servicemen? ; Is sexuality an orientation or is it a choice?; are homosexuals born or are they made? ; essentialism or social constructionism? ; nature/nurture?. These are all part of the effect of this crisis in modern sexual definition. Sedgwick believes that it is impossible to adjudicate between these (Seidman 2003, p. 25). In describing in general terms the mass of contradictions that adhere to homosexuality, she proposes that one consider it in terms of an opposition between a minoritizing view and a universalizing one. A minoritizing view takes the position that homosexuality is of primary importance to a relatively small group of actual homosexuals. A universalizing view takes the position that homosexuality is of importance to persons across a wide range of sexualities. Under the universalizing view, one can put nurture, social-construction, choice and a warrant for social â€Å"engineering† to eradicate homosexuality(Seidman 2003, p. 25). Sedgwick says that the current debate in queer theory, between â€Å"constructivist† and â€Å"essentialist† understandings of homosexuality is the most recent link(Seidman 2003, p. 25). She goes on to conclude that the continuation of this debate is itself the most important feature of recent understandings of sex. The aim of the book is to explore the incoherent dispensation under which we now live. Through an examination of a number of mostly late nineteenth century literary and philosophical works, including (Seidman 2003, p. 25). Melvilles BILLY BUDD, Wildes THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY, various works of Nietzsche, James THE BEAST IN THE JUNGLE, Thackerays LOVEL THE WIDOWER, and Prousts REMEMBRANCE OF THINGS PAST, Sedgwick discovers a number of pairs of opposing terms (binarisms) which she then shows to be inconsistent with and dependent upon each other. I found it fascinating to follow her explication of the ways in which these terms were related. Among the pairings that she assembles and dissects for our consideration are secrecy/disclosure, private/public, masculine/feminine, majority/minority, innocence/initiation, natural/artificial, new/old, growth/decadence, urbane/provincial, health/illness, same/different, cognition/paranoia, art/kitsch, sincerity/sentimentality, and voluntarity/addiction (Seidman 2003, p.25). She asserts that a true understanding of the force of the opposition of these terms must be grounded in the realization and acceptance that the content of all of these terms was determined around the turn of the century amid and through anxious questioning over who and what was homosexual. These opposing terms, all of which operate today, therefore have a residue of the homo/hetero definitional crisis(Seidman 2003, p. 25). In addition, Sedgwick perhaps delivers the coup de grace(Seidman 2003, p. 25), if such was needed, to sleek, masculine, modernist objective criticism. She demonstrates that modernist criticism finds its genesis in the homo/hetero definitional crisis and both its flight into and prizing of abstraction is a direct reflection of its homophobia.

A Culturally Competent Psychologist Social Work Essay

A Culturally Competent Psychologist Social Work Essay Culture as a construct is difficult to define. Definitions of culture often refer to a set of contexts, specifically man-made elements of the environment (e.g., institutions, values, and traditions), that form a part of the collective experience among members of a society or group and that are also trans-generational as a consequence of social learning (Betancourt Lopez 1993). Some psychologists consider ethnoculturalism as the fourth force in psychotherapy (Betancourt Lopez 1993, p.629). Implicit in this is the notion that culture is a factor in influencing behaviour. To be a culturally competent psychologist, therefore, it is important to plan and implement psychological practice and research that respects group identities, local communities, indigenous values, and national and cultural differences. Cultural competence is not about being politically correct. Cultural competence has real world consequences for individuals that, in relation to psychology, are typically vulnerable or in need. The national enquiry into the stolen generations, where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children were removed from their families (Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission 1997), for example, inferred that health workers participated in the calculated effort to assimilate out of existence indigenous individuals and cultures, an example of genocide. This apparent lack of cultural competence by health workers, psychologists among them, has contributed negatively to indigenous individuals psychological and physical health through mourning the loss of culture (Eisenbruch 1991), stress associated with interacting with a foreign culture (Westerman 2004), and trans-generational abuse (Atkinson 2002). Cross-cultural psychology endeavours to explicitly acknowledge the need for cross cultural awareness and competence in the discipline of psychology. Cross-cultural psychology is the systematic study of relationships between the cultural context of human development and the behaviors that become established in the repertoire of individuals growing up in a particular culture (Berry, Poortinga Pandey 1997, p.x). The goals for cross-cultural psychology include investigating the generalizability of existing theory and research results, investigating other cultures in order to identify unique cultural experiences in behaviour, and the integration of this research to establish a more universal discipline of psychology (Berry, Poortinga, Segall Dasen 2002). An investigation into behaviour as it occurs in another culture reduces ethnocentrism (Betancourt Lopez 1993) and enhances the discipline of psychology. Cross cultural research findings have observed that cultural explanations of mental illness held by psychologists are strongly correlated with shaping their response to individuals with affective problems and the subsequent course of those problems (Jenkins 1988). Also, in relation to affective problems, an individuals immediate social environment appears crucial to its sequence and prognosis (Harding, Zubin Strauss 1992). Finally, findings also suggest that members of minority groups defined by race and ethnicity are vulnerable to patterns of misdiagnosis due to a bias by clinicians to over-pathologize their problems (Good 1992). In the United States, for example, psychologists, regardless of race, have been found to diagnose more severely, and attribute more violence, dishonesty, and dangerousness to, patients that are black (Loring Powell 1988). Policy clearly has a role to play. The American Psychological Association (APA), often the policy guide for the Australian Psychological Society (APS), has made the inclusion of course components that pertain to multicultural issues, encouraging cultural competence, compulsory across training (American Psychological Association 2011) although in reality they are not compulsory as core or primary courses (Hills Strozier 1992). Also, cultural competency is not mandatorily assessed in relation to gaining registration in the United States (Sue 1998) and what assessment occurs during training differs from that done in relation to other training areas (Altmaier 1993). In addition to training, the APA Office of Ethnic Minority Affairs (1993) has published guidelines to assist with the provision of culturally aware psychological services for the practising psychologist. Training and practice constitute the areas upon which cultural competence policies are defined, as they are for Australian psychologists. To be registered as a psychologist in Australia one must complete an Australian Psychology Accreditation Council (APAC) accredited and Psychology Board of Australia approved course (Australian Psychology Accreditation Council 2011). APAC is the accreditation authority responsible for accrediting education providers and programs of study for the psychology profession (APAC 2011) whilst the Psychology Board of Australia functions as a subsidiary of the federal governments Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) (Psychology Board of Australia 2011). Finally, the APS, like the APA in the United States, is a voluntary organization that endeavours to represent psychology and psychologists in Australia. Despite this, the Psychology Board of Australia has adopted the APS Code of Ethics (2007) for the profession (Psychology Board of Australia 2011). Ethnoculturalism is recognized as important to the discipline of psychology and, as such, APAC (2010) has nested cultural competency within training for the discipline. Courses must encourage knowledge and understanding of: intercultural diversity and indigenous psychology; how the science and practice of psychology is influenced by social, historical, professional, and cultural contexts; the cultural bases of behaviour and organisational systems; issues for minority or marginalised groups; limitations of psychological tests with particular reference to cultural issues; and interpersonal skills in communicating effectively with clients, other psychologists, other professionals, the community, individuals, small groups, and agencies from varied cultural, ethnic, religious, social, and political backgrounds (APAC 2010). Training eventually gives way to practice. The APS Code of Ethics (2007) references ethnoculturalism in a more general way through three general ethical principles. The APS Code of Ethics (2007) is based on the respect for the rights and dignity of people and peoples; propriety; and integrity. In the first general principle, respect for the rights and dignity of people and peoples, (APS Code of Ethics 2007) psychologists are encouraged to have positive regard for diversity and uniqueness of individuals and their right to linguistically and culturally appropriate services. Acknowledging the particular needs of indigenous Australians, the APS has also published guidelines for the provision of psychological services for, and the conduct of psychological research with, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individuals (APS 2003b). Whilst there are no other specific ethnocultural guidelines, there are guidelines for other groups such as women (APS 2003a), and groups defined by sexual orientation (APS 2000). The Code of Ethics frames practice. Essentially there are three types of psychologists; clinical psychologists, applied psychologists, and research psychologists (Nairne 2009). Clinical psychologists diagnose and treat psychological problems; applied psychologists extend psychological principles to practical, non-clinical, problems; and research psychologists conduct research to elucidate essential principles of behaviour and cognizance (Nairne 2009). Whilst registered psychologists can arguably do little in regards to their initial training content, ongoing professional development and supervision are two areas where cultural competency can actively be developed and maintained. In addition to this, if involved in research, a culturally competent approach could be nested within it. So, it is in the areas of professional development, supervision, and research where the cultural competence of the practicing psychologist may be developed and honed. Continuing professional development (CPD) is a requirement for annual renewal of psychology registration (Psychology Board of Australia 2011). Identifying professional development to enhance cultural competence initially requires an assessment by the psychologist of their needs in relation to culturally competent awareness, knowledge, and skills (Pedersen 2011). Once an assessment is made, the psychologist can actively address deficits. CPD can then be identified that further develops an awareness that culturally learned assumptions exist and interact with those of a patient; develops meaningful information and insight into the patients unique cultural context; and finally develops a skill set that can facilitate patient change (Pedersen 2011). Early career psychologists may find the identification of necessary CPD daunting. Supervision, then, may assist in accurately identifying CPD needs in relation to cultural competency. Supervision is mandatory for psychologists (Psychology Board of Australia 2011) and can play an integral role in regards to cultural competency skill acquisition and expertise (Sue Sue 2008). Supervision may be defined as a process whereby a more experienced clinician mentors or imparts specialist knowledge to a clinician, or group of clinicians, less experienced (Bernard Goodyear 2004). Formative and summative assessment of cultural competency can assess the degree of supervisee cultural competency and guide further cultural competency training (Hays 2008). A supervisor, therefore, needs to encourage the development of cultural awareness, the reduction of bias, and developing strategic interventions in relation to future patients (Sue Sue 2008). Psychologists need to integrate cultural competence into their professional undertakings in recognition of the increasing diversity of their social context (Sue Sue 2008). For applied and clinical psychologists, interactions with patients are central to their provision of service. In relation to this patient / psychologist interaction, Pedersens (2011) Triad Training Model underscores the need for cultural competency and, by extension, its development through supervision and CPD. Pedersen (2011) suggests that when two individuals communicate there are actually three conversations occurring simultaneously. There is the uttered exchange; the psychologists own internal dialogue; and finally the internal dialogue of the patient (Pederson 2011). Cultural competency is imperative, according to Pederson (2011), as the greater the cultural difference between the psychologist and patient, the less likely the psychologist will accurately hear the internal dialogue, positive and negative messages, of the culturally different patient. Research too, then, needs to become more sophisticated, expanding the utility and generalizability of any findings. Psychological research, in regards cultural competency, is lacking in three areas: diversity amongst researchers; appropriate ethnocultural studies; and culturally appropriate assessment instruments (Gil Bob 1999). Firstly, the lack of diversity may be addressed by actively recruiting students from diverse backgrounds as co-researchers (Casas Thompson 1991) as well as striving for a culturally diverse research team matched to that cultural group being investigated (Atkinson, 1993). Secondly, cultural groups identified for research should be engaged in the development of research questions and that subsequent research should be monitored by members of these groups for community relevance and general quality (Casas Thompson 1991). Finally, assessment selection should consider cultural orientation, particularly as instruments are often Eurocentric (Dana 1996), and that any translations be accurately assessed in regards to their meaning (Brislin 1993). CPD, supervision, and research are three areas that the psychologist can actively develop cultural competence. The development of cultural competency is not a finite exercise but, rather, a lifelong process of learning. Being a culturally competent psychologist encourages research that is both sophisticated and more generalizable, and relationships between psychologist and patient that are more explicitly anchored in a cultural context, enhancing therapeutic outcomes in a wider range of therapeutic settings. To be a culturally competent psychologist, therefore, it is important to plan and implement psychological practice and research that respects group identities, local communities, indigenous values, and national and cultural differences.

Poverty in Sudan: Trends and Causes

Poverty in Sudan: Trends and Causes To measure the trends of poverty in a systematic way one needs a continuous flow of household-level data pertaining to income and expenditure. The first household budget survey carried out in Sudan was in 1968 followed by the second one on 1978. In 1992 the ILO funded the migration and labor force survey. Also, in 1992 the Social Solidarity fund funded the poverty line survey. In 1994, Ali adopts a direct approach to assess the impact of the Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs) (1978-1986) on poverty in Sudan. However, and before reviewing poverty in Sudan let us glimpse the factors behind poverty in Sudan. Causes of Poverty The causes of rural poverty in Sudan are to be found in the sustained urban bias of the development strategies adopted since independence. This tended to neglect the traditional agricultural sector where the vast majority of population lives and is the main source of rural livelihood. This has resulted in high rural to urban migration unaccompanied by either increased productivity in the sector or sufficient urban development to generate the necessary urban employment opportunities. Note that the development of the agricultural sector was completely ignored but it was dichotomous in nature in the sense that the Islands of modern irrigated agriculture coexisted side by side with the vast traditional rain –fed agriculture. While the former benefited from modern scale specific technologies and market access, the latter lagged behind in terms of production technologies, finance, management, research, extension, market access and rural roads. As a result of this unbalanced urban/ru ral development structure, the traditional agricultural sector continued to be the major source of limited supply of unskilled labor to urban centers thereby swelling the ranks of the informal labor markets where there is little employment at or near the subsistence wage level. This has also exerting additional pressures on the already limited and over stretched social services and facilities. These trends were further aggravated by those displaced by both natural (rainfall failures leading to famines) and manmade disasters. El Tahir M. Nur (1992). In addition and throughout the period since independence, there has been a clear pro- urban bias in policies adopted by successive governments. These manifested themselves in the provision of a reasonably adequate social and economic infrastructure not matched by similar facilities in the rural areas. These pro- urban biases were further strengthened by the long running policies of subsidizing a variety of goods consumed by urban population. However, such goods were out of reach of many of most of the urban poor particularly, the recent migrants from rural areas who represent the poorest of the urban poor who are manually employed in the marginal jobs in the informal sector. But, it must pointed out that most of these consumption subsidies have been abolished under the recent economic reform programs, though electricity and piped water are still subsidized such that piped water is cheaper in urban than in rural areas. The effects of urban bias were further aggravated by government ma rketing policies for some of the major export crops mostly grown in rural traditional sector, where export monopolies very much along the lines of the old marketing boards, were established for Gum Arabic, oilseeds (abolished in late 1980s) and more recently livestock. This marketing structure has adversely affected farmers’ incomes, their incentives to increase production and their chances to raise their living standards. In the context of poverty alleviation, the current marketing structure for those exports needs radical reform. As discussed above, causes of poverty are more complex. Part of the explanation is certainly the lack of rural focus in the various development efforts since independence. The other part of the explanation relates to the basic characteristics of the traditional sector. In other words, it is vulnerability that constitutes the major cause of impoverishment and deprivation in the traditional sector. The unstable climatic conditions of rural Sudan, with their characteristics of frequent rainfall variability, have from time immemorial altered rural producers to the periodic oscillation from feast to famine situations. A basic strategy of rural producers was and continues to be hoarding of surpluses in good years to transcend the hardships of lean years. Furthermore, conflict in Sudan, as in elsewhere; represent the most devastating factor to nation’s infrastructure and welfare. Therefore, the civil strife took place in various parts of the country since independence, represents one of the most ravaging factors and has a tremendous impact on poverty situation in the country. Thus, southern Sudan was the most severe conflict and has been counted as the most destructive elements of development in the whole country. The war has also resulted in numerous cases of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and returnees whose situation become aggravated after they were but in zero stage of living. The problems of debt and the deterioration in donor community relations have also a tremendous effect on the poverty situation in Sudan. The International Institutions such World Bank and African Development Bank used to finance several sectoral developmental projects that have a direct impact on population welfare. However, the absence of those institutions has resulted in an un-bridged gap in terms of resources availability that reduces employment opportunities. Magnitude and poverty trends It is most important to note that the poverty trends differ very slightly and sometimes vary greatly between groups. In general terms, the number of the poor people in rural areas has increased with a rate nearly equal to the rate of population increase. And the number of the poor urban household has increased at a higher rate than the urban population growth rate. This situation was created due to immigration took place from the rural areas to urban centers responding to the economic incentives consistent with the objectives of maintaining industrial revolution centered in urban sector. However, as we mentioned earlier, the industrial sector was not able to absorb the rural migration. An elaboration of poverty situation will be presented in the sub-periods below depending mainly on studies made by Ali Abdel Gadir: â€Å"Poverty and Structural Adjustment Programs in Sudan†. The trend of head count index in Sudan over this period (1968-1978) had been increasing at an annual rate of 0.5% Annex 4. Over the same period, the number of rural households had been growing at a rate equal to the rural population growth rate while the number of poor urban households had been growing at a rate higher than the urban population growth rate. Over the same period, the poverty gap ratio in the whole country had been decreasing at an annual growth rate of 0.64%. This shows that although poverty had been spreading at an annual rate of 0.5 % over the period, the economic conditions of the poor had improved over the same period. The rural urban poverty structure emerged as a result of a hasty adoption of dual economy development modules that advocate development through the transfer of cheap labor from the rural traditional sector (agriculture) to the urban modern sector (industry). Urban modern wage sector failed to absorb the rural migrants and marginal urban jobs by the rural migrants (the informal sector) proved not to be a stepping stone to the formal wage sector. During the period (1978-1986) the headcount index increased from 54.3% in 1978 to 77.8% in 1986 at an annual rate of increase 4.6% and the rural urban poverty disparity was that the rural headcount index for urban increase from 20.5% in 1978 to 52.9% in 1986. However, the rural incidence of poverty (83.1) remained higher than the incidence of urban poverty (53%). However, the period had witnessed that the incidence of urban poverty had been growing at a higher annual rate 12.6% than the rural (3.3%). Meanwhile, the number of poor families in Sudan increased from 1.7 million in 1978 to 2.7 million in 1986 in an annual rate of 6.2% which is higher than the population growth rate. Up to 1986, the number of the poor rural families exceeded the number of the urban poor families by 2.33 million but growth rate of the poor urban families exceeded that of rural by 9.4% percentage points ( Nur, 2003:5). The observed high pace of the incidence of urban poverty (12.6%) over the period (1978-1986) was attributed to the structural adjustment programs (SAPs) and the urban bias development policies (i.e. the development that overlooks the rural areas without creating enough urban jobs) coupled with urban poverty growing faster than rural poverty. Sudan poverty gap index, over the period (1978-1986) increased from 23.1% in 1978 to 45.4% in 1986 at an annual rate of increase of 8.8%. This implies that, given the incidence of poverty, the income gap ratio increased from 42.6% in 1987 to 58.4% in 1986 at an annual rate of increase of 3.9%. By contrast, during the period (1968-1976) the incidence of poverty has been increasing at an annual rate of 0.5% but poverty and income gap ratio has been decreasing at an annual rates of 0.64% and both 1.2% respectively (improve economic conditions of the poor). Comparing the two periods, we notice that the poverty levels, both in urban and rural, have in creased sharply. Therefore, the situation has become more and more complicated and the existing social safety nets ( Zakat and other social funds) were unable to address the phenomena at that time. During this period, the incidence of poverty has also increasing. The national headcount index increased from 77.8% in 1986 to 91.4% in 1992. The rural and urban headcount indexes increased from 82.1% to 93.2% and from 52.9% to 84.4% respectively. In addition to, the number of poor households increased from 2.71 million, in 1986 to 3.43 million in 1992 at an annual rate of increase of 4% (Nur, 2003:7). The poverty trend is shown below in Annex 4.The national poverty gap index increased at an annual rate of 1.7% over the period (1986-1992). The rural and urban poverty indices increased at an annual rate of 1.4% and 2.9% respectively. The national urban mean income of the poor as a ratio of the poverty line decreased over this period from 0.42 to 0.33, from 0.54 to 0.43, and from 0.38 to 0.22 respectively. This indicates that poverty had been deepened all over the country, particularly in the rural areas. Generally, three main poverty indicators namely, the head count index, the income gap index and poverty gap index, had been increasing at an increasing rate all over the period. It is also revealed that structural rural and urban forms of poverty exist in Sudan since 1986 and continued to exist at higher rates. Again, the continued urban bias characterized development in Sudan, overlooked the agricultural sector, lead to reduction in rural livelihoods. The result is that high rates of rural migration took place without creating sufficient employment opportunities for immigrants, coupled with displacement resulting natural and manmade disasters has worsened the situation. The public spending on social services like health and education was reduced and the poor are obliged to pay for these essential services, putting more pressure on their earnings in the formal sector defected their coping efforts to catch up with the rising cost of living. During this period, there is a serious vacuum in the data about poverty and other human indicators that have direct or indirect relation with surveys. Therefore, this period depend very much on perceptions and nobody dared to come out with results on poverty since no recognized survey oriented research is conducted in this field. However, several attempts were undertaken to tackle the issue. These attempts were not able to cover that huge gap through time (i.e. time series data to cover the period 1994-2003), although, they were able to produce an acceptable results and arguments that could be used as a proxy for the poverty phenomena in Sudan. The most interesting attempt has conducted by Eltahir M. Nur â€Å"Human Poverty in Sudan (2000); Magnitude and Distribution† then updated in 2003. Human Poverty As poverty in the human development perspective manifests itself in the deprivation of lives that people can lead, Tahir Nur methodology identified three main areas of human deprivation that correspond to the three human choices. These areas of deprivation include deprivation in survival, deprivation in knowledge, and deprivation in economic provisioning. Size and distribution in deprivation in Survival Deprivation in survival is all over the country but particularly high in the rural areas. While the rural national averages of means or the probabilities that a person will die before age 40, a child will die before age 5, and an infant will die before his (her) first birthday are 20.2%, 10.5%, and 7.2%, the urban national means of the same poverty indicators are 19.4%, 9.95% and 6.89% respectively for North Sudan where data is available, are 22.77%, 11.73%, and 8.10% respectively. From this comparison, we conclude that in terms of South–North, urban deprivation in the South is higher than that in the North but the differences in poverty indicators are small. Within the North, the rural deprivation in survival is higher than the urban one and again the rural urban differences in poverty indicators are small. Looking at the state rural ranking of poverty, we note that the top five states in rural poverty are the Red Sea, the Blue Nile, Kassala, South Kurdufan, and North Darfur. Their group means of the three poverty indicators (29.66%, 15.52%, and 10.52%) are higher than the national means (23.59%, 12.3%, and 8.334%) of the same poverty indicators. We also note that the states with the least rural deprivation in survival are El Giezira, the northern, the River Nile, North Kordufan, West Kurdufan, and South Darfur– arranged by the order of being the least poor state. The probability that a person will die before age 40 is the largest component of the deprivation survival index throughout the States – a great loss of productive human capital. Size and distribution of the deprivation in knowledge The rural national deprivation is almost double the urban national deprivation in knowledge. While the rural national means of inaccessibility to media, adults illiteracy rate, basic education dropout rate, and secondary education dropout rate are 67.2%, 27.4%, 9.8%, and 53.6%, the urban national means of the same poverty indicators are 42.4%, 15.8%, 26.8%, and 27.4% respectively. Therefore, priority in the re-education of the deprivation in knowledge should go to rural areas. Provision of basic and secondary education service is vital for the reduction in the deprivation in knowledge because education dropout rate is the major component of the deprivation in knowledge index in all the States and across the board of rural and urban location. The rate of inaccessibility to media (radio and T.V) is the largest component of the rural deprivation in knowledge index. Upon raking the states by the basic education dropout rate, the States of the Blue Nile, North Kurdufan, West Darfur, North Darfur, and South Kurdufan come top in the state – level rural profile of the deprivation in knowledge. Their rural group means of inaccessibility to media (75%), adults illiteracy rate (29.3%), basic education dropout rate (69.6%), and secondary education dropout rate (71.1%) are higher than the national rural means (67.2%, 27.4%, 49.8%, and 53.6%) of the same poverty indicators respectively. For the national urban poverty ranking, while the blue Nile and west Darfur states retain their positions among, Wau, and Malakal replaced North Kurdufan north Darfur, as South Kurdufan as top poor urban areas in knowledge. While rural Khartoum is among the middle poor state in knowledge, urban Khartoum is among the least poor states in knowledge. In view of these results, basic, secondary, and adults education services should be extended to the rural areas with emp hasis on the top five poor states. Size and distribution of the deprivation in economic provisioning Rural national deprivation in economic provisioning is higher than the urban national one. The rural national means of the proportion of people with no access to electricity (75.5%), with no access to safe drinking water (46.7%), with poor sanitation (46.5%), dependent on the use of biomass energy (79.6%), below food poverty line (55.9%) are higher than the urban national means except for the head count index (80.9%) and the proportion of people dependent on the use of biomass energy (82.8%) which are higher in the urban areas. However, the rural national mean of the composite poverty index (59%) is higher than urban national mean of the composite poverty index (54%). Therefore, rural areas rank number one in the deprivation of economic provisioning. On average, while the proportion of people who have no access to electricity (75.5%) and that of those who depend on the use of biomass energy (79.6%) are the highest rural poverty indicators the latter (82.8%) and the proportion of thos e who are below food poverty line (80.9%) are the highest urban poverty indicator The experience of the Sudan, however, is unique. Some studies came out with, â€Å"despite the relatively high growth, evidence seems to suggest that its effect did not trickle down considerably to reduce poverty or expand formal employment opportunities†. Ibrahim A. Ibrahim et al (2001:11) While people expecting the poverty levels be reduced as the country’s GDP increased, there is strong allegation that poverty is increasing. In conclusion, while worldwide benefited from the global economic growth, Sudan did get to know that experience and the effect of economic growth on poverty is still very minute in general perception. Although, the prompt reason to think about is the mal-distribution of income, yet, the situation has many other interpretations and this area will further be elaborated in coming paper.

The Changing of Times, the Changes of Roles :: Essays Papers

The Changing of Times, the Changes of Roles After braving the hard travels and experiencing even worse, almost unbearable, living conditions of the pioneer life, the Jewish women gained a sense of a new freedom and a new reality that was only offered in the harsh, wild desert of the Southern Arizona territory. During these times of pioneers, many great histories and legacies of the small, scattered Jewish communities were established. Although these groups were small in numbers, there was a very large and dynamic impact. For example, of the Goldwaters of Phoenix, one of the more better known descendants, the late Senator Barry Goldwater impacted the federal as well as the state governments in politics until his death. Or the Capins, whose mercantile enterprise produced various large business chains throughout Arizona.(1) Or perhaps, the Bloom family, whose Bloom and Sons stores provided for the Tucson community for over eighty years!(2) The Jewish women of such families, although many unnamed and unrecognized for their work, have also help shape the fledgling Southern Arizona territory. These women broke the traditional guidelines of how to behave and how to live, which would have normally kept them in the home. â€Å"The escape from the ‘kosher beds’, from early marriage, the rituals accompanying menstrual purity, the continual burden of childbirth, was particularly dramatic in the case of the women revolutionaries...(3)† These Jewish women became, in a sense, revolutionaries; their generation produced radical changes in what a women's roles should be. Their source of strength can almost be credited to the Southern Arizona environment of those changing times, where etiquette and grace were not necessary nor needed in an area where rogues, flash floods, and the heat existed. Some Jewish women began to drop their traditional roles as mothers and wives to become doctors, nurses, teachers, even lawyers and active members in the community to better help the growing communities. In this paper, I plan to introduce my theory that the changes that led to the trailblazing of America also led to the trailblazing of the Jewish women, and I am using specific examples of local Jewish women of Tucson and Nogales, Arizona to show that the destruction and reconstruction of the ideal Jewish woman occurred during this dramatic time of mass migration, pioneerism and growth of America herself. The new times called for changes, and these changes were evident in the Jewish women's increasing involvement in their communities.

Interpersonal Communication Essay -- essays research papers

In every society nonverbal communication is one of the most powerful tools that a person can use to interpret the message that is being delivered. Even though verbal communication is fairly straightforward, nonverbal communication allows others to sense the true emotions of the person that is expressing them. For example even though a person may say that they are not irritated, their usage of voice may display otherwise. Nonverbal communication not only reveals hidden messages, but it also complements, substitutes, and exaggerates verbal communication.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It was 8:00 a.m. on April 9, 1999 and I was saying goodbye to my parents at the San Francisco Airport. While I was walking away from my parent’s gate I remembered the study for my Interpersonal Communication class, and decided that the airport was a perfect place to observe nonverbal behavior. I sat myself near the entrance of a gate so I could clearly focus on personal space and voice behaviors while people stood in line to board their plane. This location allowed me to observe some very distinct behaviors, and I was amazed at the many different ways people express their emotions and the many people that weren’t aware of these expressions.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After I observed four different boarding lines, I soon realized how impatient our society reacts to situations. As soon as the airline attendants announced the boarding for a certain flight, it seemed as if everybody rushed to the...

An insight into boredom, the cause and the cure for the state of mind called boredom

The Dictionary describes bored as â€Å"as dull, tedious, and lacking stimuli†. There is an inherent anxiety in boredom; people will expend considerable effort to prevent or remedy it, yet in many circumstances it is accepted as an inevitable suffering to be endured. A common way to escape boredom is through creative thoughts or ‘daydreaming' yet I define Boredom as a lack of entertainment or a stimulant. School students can very easily get bored in the summer holidays because of a lack of change in the activates what they do in their day to day life. Everyone becomes bored at least once in their life. Boredom is a condition characterized by perception of one's environment in their life. In the newspaper lately their have been reports on teenagers being bored in the summer holidays. And it is the local government getting the blame for closing down public swimming pools and under funding them. The result off this is anti social behaviour i.e. vandalism petty theft and more anti social behaviour. There are many ways in which to tackle boredom. Getting a paper round is a good idea because it gets you up and out of the house, you can also earn money from it also possessions can be bought to prevent future boredom. But the downside to having a paper round is that you have to do it and it might cut into fun stuff. Joining a youth group is a good idea because there are normally new people every time you go. Buying a new computer game is useful force to tackle boredom and it can be very expensive, and you have to have the console to play it on in the first place. To stop this dreaded lack of entertainment you should try, not to do something all the time but rather go out to meet new people. This could be the people you would normally hang around with but maybe you could choose different people to hang around with. I find going to the park every day and just hanging about very boring. Some people get drunk to avoid boredom. Although this can make things funny and interesting, it is not a very good idea and can cause trouble as well it does damage to your body mostly your liver. Boredom we will all get it at least once in our life time but it is very easy to stop being bored, just go out there and find some thing to cure it. It is very simple to avoid but it is just as easy to fall into the trap of boredom. I hope that this essay has given you an insight into boredom the cause and the cure for the state of mind called boredom.

Effect Of Family Background On Students Academic Achievement

This research was done to look into the consequence of household background on pupils ‘ academic accomplishment in Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan ( Cina ) Yuk Tse, Tumpat, Kelantan. There were 377 respondents from twelvemonth 1 to twelvemonth 6 pupils of Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan ( Cina ) Yuk Tse, Tumpat, Kelantan. The instrument used in this research was the questionnaire to garner information about the respondents. The information such as pupils ‘ personal inside informations ( age, gender, cultural group ) and their consequences ( Chinese Comprehension, Malay Comprehension and English ) in Mid Term Exam Year 2010, pupils ‘ household construction, socioeconomic position of the pupils ‘ households, and their parents ‘ attitudes and outlook. Next, the pupils ‘ personal inside informations were analyzed utilizing mean, average, manner, scope, standard divergence, discrepancy and per centums to find their demographic profiles in term of ages, gender, cultural group, figure of sibling, individual populating with, parents ‘ income, parents ‘ highest degree of instruction, parents ‘ monthly income. Then, the pupils ‘ tonss in Chinese Comprehension, Malay Comprehension and English were analyzed to find their accomplishment in these three topics. The information from the questionnaire besides analyzed to find the relationship between pupils ‘ academic accomplishment and household backgrounds such as household construction, household ‘s socioeconomic position, parental outlook, place environment and place linguistic communication. The results of these informations analysis would so be used to reply the research inquiries and eventually reason the research. Hence, old research can be vali dated through the results.5.3 Discussion of Research FindingsBased on the research result, the mean category twelvemonth of the pupils in this school is in twelvemonth 3. There are adequate grounds to reason that there is a difference between academic accomplishment of pupils and category twelvemonth. The academic accomplishments for pupils from different twelvemonth are non the same. The flat faculty member is higher from twelvemonth to twelvemonth. Furthermore, the criterion for each pupils are non the same, because they are from different household background.Rankscategory Nitrogen Mean Rank Result ( BC ) 1 76 202.41 2 70 220.40 3 73 133.82 4 29 248.41 5 79 173.15 6 50 195.81 Entire 377 Table Female pupils in this school are more than male pupils. There are no significance difference between academic accomplishment of pupils and gender. Majority of the pupils were Thai, followed by Malay, Chinese and Indian. There are besides no significance difference between the academic accomplishment of pupils and their cultural group. Most of the pupils ‘ households have 3-4 siblings in their house. There is non adequate grounds to reason that there is a difference between academic accomplishments of pupils and Numberss of sibling in a household. Most of them stayed with their biological parents. So, there is non adequate grounds to reason that there is a difference between academic accomplishments of pupils and people they live with. From the research outcomes, most of their male parents ‘ monthly wage is below RM1000 and their female parents are in other group, means they do non supply any money to the households in any grounds. There is non adequate grounds to reason t hat there is a difference between academic accomplishments of pupils and parents ‘ monthly wage. Majority of the parents had instruction at primary school degree. There is adequate grounds to reason that there is a difference between academic accomplishments of pupils and female parents ‘ highest degree of instruction.RanksMother ‘s instruction degree Nitrogen Mean Rank Result ( BC ) Others 38 216.22 Finish primary school 258 185.39 Finish secondary school 41 168.94 Diploma 25 242.06 Degree 15 148.53 Entire 377 Table Most of the pupils ‘ female parents stay at place as a homemaker. So, they spend more clip with the kids. Since their instruction at primary degree, they will be holding troubles in oversing their kids in their prep. Based on the research outcomes, the pupils have low accomplishment in Chinese Comprehension, Malay Comprehension and English linguistic communication. Their mean mark for these three topics are below 70 % . The lowest accomplishment among these three topics is Chinese Comprehension. There is non adequate grounds to reason that there is a difference between academic accomplishments of pupils and parents ‘ attitude an outlook. However, there is adequate grounds to reason that there is a difference between academic accomplishments of pupils and the figure of books at place. Availability in the place of books and other reading stuff has validated that it effects the academic accomplishment of the pupils.RanksHow many books, other than text editions are at that place in your place? Nitrogen Mean Rank Result ( BC ) no book 42 142.23 1-5 228 185.17 6-10 68 188.82 more than 10 38 259.05 Entire 376 Table There is adequate grounds to reason that there is a difference between academic accomplishments of pupils and place linguistic communication.RanksMajor Language Nitrogen Mean Rank Result ( BC ) Chinese 24 242.40 Malay 133 178.26 English 7 260.14 Tai 183 191.29 Other linguistic communication 30 163.32 Entire 377 Table Chinese linguistic communication is the medium linguistic communication in this school. However, most of the pupils speak their female parent lingua at place. For Tai pupils, they speak in Thai linguistic communication ; Malay pupils speak Malay linguistic communication. Even most of the Chinese pupils speak in either Thai linguistic communication or Hokkien, merely least of them speak in Chinese linguistic communication. Indian pupils speak in Thai or English merely. From the tabular array above, pupils who non utilize the school linguistic communication at place has been validated have lower academic accomplishment. Through this research analysis, S.J.K ( C ) Yuk Tse, Tumpat, Kelantan is holding some jobs which lead to pupils lower academic accomplishment particularly in Chinese Comprehension. First, the pupils from twelvemonth 3, twelvemonth 5 and twelvemonth 6 have lower accomplishment in Chinese Comprehension compared with other twelvemonth category. Majority of these pupils have female parents who in primary instruction degree. They have fewer books compared with other pupils. They speak in their ain female parent lingua but non in Chinese linguistic communication at place.5.4 Deductions of Research FindingsThis research is conducted to happen out the consequence of household background on pupils ‘ academicA accomplishment in S.J.K ( C ) Yuk Tse, Tumpat, Kelantan. This research can be a mention to this school to happen the ways to increase the pupils ‘ academic accomplishment. The ways below are suggested to increase the pupils ‘ accomplishment in Chinese Comprehension: Teachers as supervisors Teachers need to pay more attending and forbearance to the pupils who do non have any supervises from their parents. These pupils are confronting jobs in completing their prep at place. So, instructors play an of import function as their supervisors at school. As the pupils ‘ female parent lingua is non Chinese linguistic communication, it is decidedly become the pupils ‘ job when they ca n't understand the instructions from their instructors. Teachers need forbearance and steer them during the instruction and acquisition procedure. It is really of import to elicit their involvement to larn and talk in Chinese linguistic communication. Teachers as incentive Teachers need to promote pupils to read more Chinese books. Teachers can assist pupils to take printed stuff such as narrative books, amusing, magazines and others which suitable for their degree. Reading can assist the pupils to derive more involvement in larning Chinese linguistic communication. Furthermore, instructors besides need to promote pupils to talk Chinese linguistic communication with their parents. If their parents do non talk in Chinese linguistic communication, pupils can play function as a â€Å" little instructor † and seek to learn their parents in Chinese linguistic communication. Cooperation among parents and instructors Parents need to take part in school activities such as Parents and Teacher Association, Sport Day, Children Day, Annual Award Ceremony and others. Through these activities, parents will more understand the school map and cooperate with in educating their kids. Parents besides need to understand their kids ‘s demands and jobs. Parents can hold a meeting with their kids ‘s instructors and cognize more about their kids behavior at the school. Teachers and parents together think of ways to increase the pupils ‘ academic accomplishment. Encouragement from the parents Parents need to promote their kids to talk more Chinese linguistic communication at place. Children will non experience uneasy whenever they speak in this linguistic communication. Parents besides need to purchase some books or magazines to their kids or convey them to the library to borrow books. Parents need to promote their kids to read more books during their leisure clip and allow reading go one of their avocations.5.5 Further ResearchFurther researches are suggested as below: Research can be made on instructors ‘ learning methods due to the learning methods will impact the pupils ‘ academic accomplishment in this school. Make a questionnaire which focuses on the pupils ‘ acquisition job. It should be conducted to analyse the pupils ‘ acquisition job. Teachers can happen ways to work out the pupils ‘ jobs through the research consequence.