Business Research Method – Volkswagen.Doc

I. Rational II. Situational Analysis III. Theoretical background IV. Conceptual Model V. Research Design VI. Sources I. Rational: According to James R. Healey (2011), reporter for USA Today, customers have lost confidence in Volkswagen’s quality. Volkswagen has been subjected to a real loss in the perception of its customers regarding its cars quality. This situation results mainly from a quality problem. In fact, according to Marty Padgett (May 14, 2007), for the website  www. thecarconnection. om: â€Å"The CEO of Volkswagen of America admits the company generated a lot of ‘venom’ with the massive quality problems it experienced earlier this decade. † This position is emphasized by a Hallmark representative who observed: â€Å"Volkswagen representatives point out that the company's scores are improving, which is true. But so is almost everyone else's. Shame on us that we haven't moved up the ranking. † Volkswagen had difficulty recognizing the pr oblem as evinced by Trahan’s 2010 position on this matter. He was effectively thinking that the brand did better that it got credit for.Nevertheless, according to James R. Healey (2011), for USA Today, the company now seems to be taking the problem seriously since the beginning of 2011. â€Å"We have some trouble in IQS that we have to fix† remarked Trahan earlier this year. In the 2011 IQS, Volkswagen owners reported an average of 131 problems per 100 cars, putting the company into a tie with Mini for 29th  among 32 brands. The best was Lexus at 73/100, and the worst was Dodge at 137/100. Volkswagen’s score in 2010 was slightly worse than Dodge’s in 2011 at 135/100. That said, the company is still struggling to improve his score.According to the 2010 IQS report, Volkswagen score was only slightly worse than the 2011 one, with 135 problems per 100 cars. Historically, Volkswagen has been known for the quality of its cars; quality is measured by a carâ₠¬â„¢s reliability and its ability to make life easier for owners. To improve Volkswagen’s IQS score and thus reverse the trend in the US, the brand should reevaluate its quality standards that originally established its reputation. By doing so, Volkswagen could maintain its leading position in Europe while improving its market share in the US. This could enable the company to remain the most profitable automotive brand.What position should Volkswagen take on the current quality situation? What are the causes of such loss? What departments should Volkswagen restructure to avoid the quality problems? II. Situational Analysis: The brand has always been known for its reliable cars. Jason Chavis (2010), contributor for the website www. ehow. com, easily stressed it out by reminding that, throughout the eighties and the early nineties, Volkswagen was plagued by a number of quality control issues, particularly in its American market. This resulted in a new goal for the company. Volk swagen wanted people to know that driving was fun again.The famous â€Å"die deutsche Qualitat† motto results from this. Nevertheless, things have changed; the quality of Volkswagen products is recently decreasing. The Volkswagen Annual Report 2010 made obvious that Volkswagen does not really realize that its Quality Assurance is not as reliable as it used to be. The report clearly explains that the aim of Volkswagen is â€Å"to secure a pole position in terms of customer satisfaction and brand loyalty†. The problem is that Volkswagen needs to do more than securing a pole position. Volkswagen needs to reach this position. For instance, the J. D. Power – a ebsite providing consumers information by using consumer satisfaction data collected to help them in their buying decisions – and Associates 2011 Initial Quality Survey illustrates this situation quite well: Volkswagen reports 131 problems per 100 vehicles. This is very close to the last one, Dodge, with 137. To make a good comparison, Lexus is first with 73 problems per 100 vehicles. This situation is stressed by the fact that people seem not to trust Volkswagen anymore. As we can easily see in the Consumer Reports' 2011 Car Brand Perception Survey, Volkswagen has received one of the worst ratings.The results are given in a chart on wich figures are aggregates, reflecting a brand's total perception level across seven areas. Volkswagen received one of the worst ratings, with an overall score of only 19. To compare, the lowest rating is given to Isuzu with 2 and the best rating is for Toyota with 147. Volkswagen does effectively not seem to have the image it used to have: the image of all German car manufacturers. Nevertheless, despite all these problems, the German car manufacturer’s Annual Report 2010 shows the willingness of the brand to keep the customers in the heart of the its decision.Although, Volkswagen says in this report that its competitive advantages are not secu red through product quality and appeal alone. The brand reminds the theory following which customers’ loyalty to a specific brand is also influenced by the quality of service they receive. After-sales and customer service in the Volkswagen Group focuses primarily on establishing and maintaining long-term relationships with customers and partners worldwide. Its aim is to captivate customers with their outstanding commitment to good service combined with Volkswagen’s high quality standards.But, as explained before, these standards are not that high. In fact, the current situation is that customers do not trust Volkswagen quality as they used to. This is due to a lot of reported quality problems. Nevertheless the brand has now taken into account this issue and now understands that it has to enhance the quality of their cars. According to www. businessdictionary. com, the brand image is developed over time through advertising campaigns with a consistent theme and is authen ticated through the consumers’ direct experience.To summarize the situation, the downswing in the perception of Volkswagen brand image is due to the last part of this definition. The company has failed to make the consumers enjoy the experience of having a Volkswagen car. As explained before, this is mainly due to the high number of problems experienced by consumers. In order to improve their brand image, the company has to improve its IQS score, which would prove to the consumer that Volkswagen cars are as reliable as they used to be, which would consequently improve the company’s brand image. III.Theoretical background: According to Narasimhan, Ram, Mendez and David (2001) and the Wacker Theory (1989) on quality and evaluative judgment  «Product’s improved quality will take several periods of good performance before customers will recognize its performance as being related to quality†. This means that customers’ point of view regarding brandsâ⠂¬â„¢ quality will not change overnight. It will takes time to prove them that things have changed because customers are more and more dubious and because it takes time to have feedbacks concerning quality.That said quality is not the only factor when it comes to purchasing a car. Indeed, according to Nadia Huitzilin Jimenez Torres (October 2007) from the Universidad de Burgos  «Consumer purchasing decisions relating to foreign products are influenced by economic, psychological and sociological factors ». a. The economic factor: According to the neoclassical school of thought, consumers are rational. They make buying decisions toward getting the most out of everything. They just take into factor the economy of use, convenience, efficiency in use, dependability in use and finally improvement in earnings.Nevertheless in practice, these elements aren’t the only ones used or often poorly applied. Indeed, psychological and sociological factors are also used when making a buyin g decision. b. The psychological factor: Psychological factors affect the way consumers think and behave while making a buying decision. For example some consumers do compulsive purchases because of their mood, which often are completely irrational. According to Black, Donald W. (2007), Compulsive buying disorder (CBD) is characterized by excessive shopping cognitions and buying behavior that leads to distress or impairment. . The sociological factor: This factor is highly important for companies for whom brand image result from reputation. In fact many consumers from all around the world base their buying decision upon stereotypes. Sander Gilman (1985) argued that stereotypes are representations that are not accurate, but a projection of one to another. According to this definition the fact that many people believe that â€Å"Germans make good products† is a stereotype. This phenomenon might result to a biased representation of a product quality.A company can benefit from th e good image of another brand because they both are from the same country. This proves that the county’s reputation helps consumers to discriminate between firms and products they are not familiar with. Consumers can also be influenced by social factor. One can buy a product from the same brand his idol or friends wear because he wants to look like him or them. This is also true with word of mouth, which makes people like or dislike products. As we have seen many factors influence the perception of quality.This diagram summarizes the steps that a consumer follow when analyzing a brand’s quality: [pic] The reputation results from the level of advertising and the brand’s reputation. Added to the perceived monetary price and the consumer’s perceived features of the good, it results to the consumer perceived quality of the product. IV. Conceptual model : [pic] Hypothesis: 1. The more adapted the communication message, the greater the brand ______image is 2. T he better the reputation, the greater the brand image is 3.The better the anterior experience with the product, the greater ______the brand image is 4. The better the media planning, the greater the brand image is V. Research Design a. Nature of proof: A correlational study seems the most adapted in this situation. This will allow us to delineate the important variables associated with the problem. These variables are the communication, the reputation, the customer’s anterior experience. We want to know how the potential and the already granted customers think of Volkswagen. It is now obvious that the study will be a descriptive one. . Unit of analysis: We want to know how many of the population would be interested in buying a Volkswagen car, depending on their opinion about the brand. Thus, we decided to stratify our sample in three groups: country, sex and age. c. Sampling: Stratified sample: [pic] d. Interference of the researcher As the study is a correlational one, this will take place in the same natural environment in which employees normally function, thus in noncontrived settings. Moreover, this kind of study is conducted with minimal interference of the researcher, such as manipulation of variables.According to all these elements, we clearly face a field experiment. e. Source of data & data collection methods: In order to get the most accurate sources, the sources that matched as good as possible, we will use primary data. To collect them, we have prepared one interview, one questionnaire and two observations. The first one, the interview, deals with the variable of the communication; the second one, the questionnaire, is taking care of the reputation; the two last ones deal with the previous experience of customers and the communication. f.Managerial implications: g. Gantt-chart: 1. The more adapted the communication message, the greater the brand image is. Interview : 1) Age / Sex / Nationality / Occupation 2) Do you currently own a Volkswag en  ? If yes  : Why have you bought one  ? If no  : have you own one in the past  ? – If yes  : Why have you changed  ? – If no : Why  ? 3) Have you ever seen a Volkswagen advertisement  ? If yes  : on which media did you see it  ? Do you remember it well  ? Do you remember what was the message communicated during the advert  ? If yes : Did you feel concern by it ?Do you think there could be a better ccccccccccccccccccccccccccccmessage (open question) ccccccccccccccccc Did that make you want to own one  (open question  : why  ? ) ? If no  : for what reason do you think you have never seen one  ? What did you think about Volkswagen 5 years ago ? [pic] Observing 1. Observation of the number of returns in the selected country 2. Number of person who has replaced their Volkswagen by another Volkswagen VI. Sources: – Marty Padgett (May 14, 2007), VW Focused on Prices, Quality, http://www. thecarconnection. com/news/1014959_vw-focus ed-on-prices-quality; James R. Healey (2011), VW: We know you're nervous, but our quality is improving http://content. usatoday. com/communities/driveon/post/2011/08/vw-quality-problems-warranty-costs–/1 – Jason Chavis (2010), History of the Volkswagen Brand http://www. ehow. com/facts_4966661_history-volkswagen-brand. html – The Volkswagen Annual Report (2010), http://www. volkswagenag. com/content/vwcorp/content/en/homepage. html – Syvetril Perryman (2011), J. D. Power Associates 2011 Initial Quality Survey http://businesscenter. jdpower. com/news/pressrelease. aspx? ID=2011089 Consumer Reports' 2011 (January 2011), Car Brand Perception Survey http://www. consumerreports. org/cro/cars/new-cars/news/2011/01/2011-car-brand-perception-survey/overview/index. htm – Narasimhan, Ram, Mendez, David (2001), Wacker Theory (1989), Strategic aspects of quality: A theoretical analysishttp://findarticles. com/p/articles/mi_qa3796/is_200101/ai_n8943712/? tag=co ntent;col1 – Nadia Huitzilin Jimenez Torres (October 2007), The purchase of foreign products: The role of firm’s country-of-origin reputation, consumer ethnocentrism, animosity and trust http://www3. va. es/empresa/uploads/dt_13_07. pdf – Sander L. Gilman (1985), Difference and pathology: stereotypes of sexuality, race and madness – Black, Donald W. (February 2007), A review of compulsive buying disorder http://www. ncbi. nlm. nih. gov/pmc/articles/PMC1805733/? tool=pmcentrez – Uma Sekaran & Roger Bougie (2009), Research Methods for Business: A Skill Building Approach – Janine Frauendorf (2006), Customer processes in business-to-business service transactions

Research Utilization Project †Fecal Transplantation Essay

Clostridium difficile (C-difficile) is a common bacterium that is a frequent cause of infection in the colon and effects numerous patients. Clostridium difficile increases the hospital costs associated with inpatient care, including identification of the organism as well as treatment. The most common cause of C-difficile infection is the elimination of normal intestinal flora caused by antibiotic use. Standard treatment of C-difficile infection includes the use of oral (Flagyl) and intravenous (Vancomycin) antibiotic therapy. The use of fecal transplantation to treat C-difficile infection is increasing in popularity. Research regarding fecal transplantation dates back to 1958; however, the efficacy of fecal transplant for the treatment of C-difficile are rapidly emerging with noted benefits for patients. The mere thought of presenting fecal transplantation for the treatment of a C-difficile infection is often dismissed because of limited available evidence and the concerns about using someone else’s stool to treat the infection. The necessity to educate patients with C-difficile is an additional challenge. Potential donors and recipients need to be assured of minimal risks associated with the screening and transplantation process. The ability to educate society on the results of evidence-based practice regarding the treatment of C-difficile with fecal transplantation should minimize concerns and enhance patient outcomes. The creation of a patient education programs is increasingly beneficial when multiple health care professionals and interdisciplinary teams are involved. Thus, a project objective in implementing an educational patient program for fecal transplantation is the creation of an informative brochure for potential use in the Endoscopy Department at Sharp Memorial Hospital by December 2014. The treatment regimen for initial and chronic C-difficile with fecal transplantation is inexpensive and noted as extremely effective. The articles reviewed consistently reveal efficacy rates greater than 85%. Fecal transplantation for the treatment of C-difficile continues to illicit multiple verbal and non-verbal responses and is not considered a standard of care for patients, families, communities, and hospital staff. The implementation of an informative educational brochure will minimize fears, hesitations, and reluctance for the treatment of C-difficile with fecal transplantation. The central theme of transplanting feces from a selected healthy donor to the recipient with C-difficile is often met with resistance. The fecal transplantation brochure will encompass aspects of fecal transplantation with the expectation of educating patients, families, and communities. Additionally, the brochure would enhance awareness of hospital staff providing an opportunity to educate units or departments. The application of Kurt Lewin’s change model for the implementation of an educational brochure for fecal transplantation will be employed. The current treatment modalities for C-difficile and the methods of transmission are increasingly becoming expensive for health care organizations. The financial goals of the organization are to decrease the rates of C-difficile and possibly entertain the concept of fecal transplantation. A dichotomous survey will be used to measure awareness and use of fecal transplantation for the treatment of C-difficile. The interdisciplinary team employed to create the brochure would prove beneficial in developing standardized procedures in performing fecal transplantations. The Southern California Society of Gastroenterology Nurses and Associates is an excellent venue for potentially validating and communicating the results. The two possible grant funding sources for the fecal transplantation brochure is the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) and the American Society of Gastroenterology Nurses and Associates (SGNA). The creation and implementation of an educational brochure for patients considered for fecal transplantation would enhance community education and minimize fears in treating C-difficile with fecal transplantation. Keywords: fecal transplantation, clostridium difficile, fecal micobiota transplantation Problem Identification The traditional treatments for patients diagnosed with infections of the colon are antibiotics. However, many antibiotics kill the normal healthy bacteria of the colon. This results in an overwhelming increase in the risk for developing a C-difficile infection. Medicine. Net (2012) stated, â€Å"Patients taking antibiotics are at risk of becoming infected with C. difficile as antibiotics can disrupt the normal bacteria of the bowel, allowing C. ifficile to become established in the colon† (para. 1). The potential for implementing the use of fecal transplantations for the treatment of C-difficile among the general population is questionable. The mere thought of presenting fecal transplantation for the treatment of a C-difficile infection is often dismissed because of limited available evidence and the concerns about using someone else’s stool to treat the infect ion. Rohlke and Stollman (2012) stated, â€Å"Cure rates of > 90% are being consistently reported from multiple enters. Transplantation [fecal] can be provided through a variety of methodologies, either to the lower proximal, lower distal, or upper gastrointestinal tract† (p. 403). An additional consideration is the perception of fecal transplantation within the community. The necessity to educate patients with C-difficile is an additional challenge. Potential donors and recipients need to be assured of minimal risks associated with the screening and transplantation process. Current research supports and discusses a comprehensive approach to identification and screening for potential fecal donors, donor preparation, and transplantation procedures. The procedure for donor selection and screening is comprehensive to prevent the transmission of infection. According to Hamilton, Weingarden, Sadowsky, and Khoruts (2012), â€Å"The [donor] history includes assessment of infectious risk, including identification of known risk factors for HIV and Hepatitis, current communicable diseases, and recent travel to areas of the world with a higher prevalence of diarrheal illnesses† (p. 3). In educating patients, families, and the community at large, the rigor associated with the screening process must be emphasized to reduce fear. The project objective in implementing an educational patient program for fecal transplantation is the creation of an informative brochure for potential use in the Endoscopy Department at Sharp Memorial Hospital by December 2014. The brochure will be created using a collaborative approach by employing endoscopic nursing champions. The goal is for the brochure to be patient specific and encompass appropriate information to decrease fears and answer questions associated with fecal transplantation. Additionally, the development of a patient posttest associated with the brochure will be created to evaluate the effectiveness of content delivery and adjusted accordingly to meet patient needs and desired outcomes. The proposed solution will minimize the ambiguity and fears associated with fecal transplantation for the treatment of C-difficile. Solution Description The proposed solution for teaching potential recipients and donors about fecal transplantation for the treatment of C-difficile is to diminish infection rates. By creating and implementing a comprehensive nursing educational approach patients and donors can be well informed on this innovative treatment modality. â€Å"In many areas of clinical decision making, research has demonstrated that â€Å"tried and true† practices taught in basic nursing education are not always best† (Polit & Beck, 2012, p. 25). The ability to educate society on the results of evidence-based practice regarding the treatment of C-difficile with fecal transplantation should minimize concerns and enhance patient outcomes. The creation of a patient education program is increasingly beneficial when multiple health care professionals and interdisciplinary teams are involved. The importance of evidence-based practice is to ensure the evidence about fecal transplants has been collected, evaluated, and implemented to establish the best practice and approach. The main premise for patient safety is to ensure donors have been thoroughly screened to minimize the potential for the transmission of other diseases with feces. According to Rohlke and Stollman (2012) on donor selection, â€Å"There have not yet been any adverse events reported that can be conclusively or directly attributed to [fecal microbiota transplantation] FMT, and proper donor screening is essential to avoid transmitting communicable diseases from donor to recipient† (p. 406). Individuals with recurrent C-difficile infections are moderately self-educated regarding treatment modalities and are receptive to the idea of fecal transplantation. The emphasis on educating patients, families, and communities regarding fecal transplantation as the initial treatment regimen is the focus. Hospital and individual associated costs in administering antibiotic therapy for the treatment of C-difficile could be drastically reduced by using fecal transplantation as the initial therapy. Brandt (2012) stated in reply, â€Å"Do patients typically accept fecal transplantation as a treatment option? Yes †¦patients typically respond with interest, and they are generally positive about trying it and they do not typically react with disgust† (para. ). The current research base associated with fecal transplantation demonstrates high cure rates while minimizing the reoccurrence of C-difficile. Rohlke and Stollman (2012) stated, â€Å"Cure rates of > 90% are being consistently reported from multiple centers† (p. 403). The review of current literature demonstrates that patient education for fecal transplantation is performed by a gastroenterologist and not the gastrointestinal (GI) nurse. Patient education provided to patients from physicians typically entails a one-way communication style. In this scenario, the gastroenterologist sends the information to the patient, and there is little discussion with the receiver. Thus, patients commonly seek out more information from the registered nurse. The ability to educate patients regarding fecal transplantation using the proposed brochure would facilitate a commonality and minimize fears. The feasibility of implementing the brochure into endoscopic departments would be perplexing and centered on nursing knowledge of fecal transplantation. Brodine and Kellogg (2013) stated, â€Å"All patients infected or colonized with C. ifficile must be educated about this bacterium, proper disease management, and transmission prevention. The nurse should use patient-centered communication—free of jargon and appropriate to the patient’s health-literacy level† (para. 13). The health care organization must employ educational programs specific to the needs of the patients and desired outcomes. â€Å"The Joint Commission recommends using the â€Å"teach-back† and â€Å"show-back† methods to educate patients; that is, ask the patient to â€Å"teach back† the information provided or demonstrate understanding by â€Å"showing† a skill†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Brodline & Kellogg, 2013, para. 3). The organizational culture at Sharp Memorial Hospital for nursing is centered on the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) Magnet Recognition Program ®. The nursing strategic plan is developed by nursing leaders with input from nursing staff based on the hospital strategic plan. Additionally, nurse leaders emphasize that innovation is a core value and part of the nursing process. Nurse leaders encourage innovation through training, resources, and role modeling (Beyond Excellence, 2013). The roposed solution of implementing patient education for fecal transplantation is supported by Sharp Memorial Hospital because it involves introducing new knowledge regarding innovative, evidence-based treatment modalities. Research Report Clostridium difficile infection remains a constant struggle for hospitals. The standard treatment regimen of antibiotics commonly results in relapses. Research on fecal transplantation is continuing to emerge as a promising alternative approach in treating chronic C-difficile infections. Numerous studies demonstrate positive outcomes with the administration of fecal transplant in the treatment of C-difficile (Rohlke & Stollman, 2012). Fecal transplantation has shown through research studies to be a useful treatment for C-difficile infection via the restoration of intestinal normal flora (Brandt, 2012). The most common sign reported by patients diagnosed with C-difficile is chronic diarrhea. Johnson (2012) stated, â€Å"The administration of antibiotics can alter the balance of normal colonic flora to permit the overgrowth of pathogenic C. ifficile strains that produce toxins which cause diarrhea and associated symptoms† (para. 5). In an article published in the Alimentary Pharmacology and Therapeutics, the authors reported 17 of 22 fecal transplantations for the treatment of C-difficile were effective (Landy, Al-Hassi, MLaughlin, Walker, Nicholls, Clark, & Hart, 2011). The substantiated results of the review article highlighted major differences in patients, donors, screening, methods of administration, and the definition of treatment responses (Landy et al. , 2011). The multiple factors highlighted in this review of treating C-difficile with fecal transplantation review across the spectrum using a standard approach is essential to supporting increased use of this treatment modality. Landy et al. (2011) stated, â€Å"Standardized controlled studies are necessary to ascertain the most effective treatment regimen as well as the most acceptable method of treatment† (p. 414). Grehen, Borody, Leis, Campbell, Mitchell, and Wettstein (2010) published a study, â€Å"to demonstrate the benefits of fecal biotherapy and the role of new therapeutic strategies for the treatment of gastrointestinal conditions† (p. 51). The study included 10 patients treated with fecal transplantation and monitored the progress of bacterial population of the colon pre and post transplantation for a 24 week period. Grehen et al. (2010) found the following: At intervals of 4, 8, and 24 weeks after the procedure, the bacterial populations in the patients’ fecal samples consisted predominantly of bacteria derived from the health donor samples. Comparisons of similarity at 4, 8, and 24 week samples to the donor-infused sample were made and each recipient’s baseline sample was statistically significant with Friedmen test. p. 551) Rohlke and Stollman (2012) noted that C-difficile rates continue to rise with greater intensity and severity. The treatment of C-difficile with fecal transplantation is an emerging and accepted intervention in patients with recurrent C-difficile. Rohlke and Stollman (2012) stated, â€Å"Cure rates of >90% are being consistently reported from multiple centers. Transplantation can be provided through a variety of methodologies, either to the lower proximal, lower distal, or upper gastrointestinal tract† (p. 403). The review by Rohlke and Stollman (2012) analyzed reports validating the factors of â€Å"donor selection, appropriate patient criteria, and the preparations and mechanisms of fecal microbiota transplant delivery available to clinicians and patients† (p. 403). The internal validity of the research articles reviewed demonstrates moderate samples were randomly selected. The current literature validated the need for more randomized controlled studies to determine established guidelines for the implementation of fecal transplantation. Additionally, the treatment regimen for initial and chronic C-difficile with fecal transplantation is inexpensive and noted as extremely effective. The independent variable of the effectiveness of fecal transplantation for the treatment of C-difficile remained a consistent theme. The articles reviewed consistently reveal efficacy rates greater than 85%. The external validity of the study articles revealed fecal transplantation processes are varied in the process of which patients are treated, the donor selection criteria, donor screening protocols, and the methods of delivery. The outcomes of the results reported are moderately consistent; however, the ability to generalize a standardized treatment pathway is ambiguous and larger multi-organizational and multi-disciplinary studies are essential. Rex (2012) found the following: Several studies of fecal transplantation have demonstrated high cure rates. The latest and largest to date is a retrospective case series involving 70 patients in Finland (mean age, 73; 86% outpatients). Overall, 94% of these patients had symptom resolution during the first 12 weeks after transplantation, including 32 of the 36 infected with the O27 strain of C. ifficile and all 34 of those infected with other strains. No immediate complications occurred. (para. 1) Fecal transplantation in the treatment for C-difficile has proven to be highly successful in a limited number of studies. In determining if fecal transplantation should be the standard of treatment for C-difficile infection, larger controlled studies are required. Additionally, a standard process related to donor screening, implantation techniques, transplant follow-up, and regularly documenting patient outcomes are essential in establishing standardized fecal transplantation protocols.

Friedrich Nietzsche Essay

Existentialism provides a moving account of the agony of being in the world. The spirit of existen- tialism has a long history in philosophy. But it be- came a major movement in the second half of the 20th century. Existentialism is not a systematic body of thought like Marxism or psychoanalysis. Instead, it is more like an umbrella under which a very wide range of thinkers struggled with ques- tions about the meaning of life. Much of the appeal and popularity of Existential- ism is due to the sense of confusion, the crisis, and the feeling of rejection and rootlessness that Euro- peans felt during World War II and its aftermath. Existentialism’s focus on each person’s role in cre- ating meaning in their life was a major influence on the Phenomenological and Humanistic traditions in psychology and on the â€Å"human potential† move- ment that emerged from them. Rene Descartes (1596-1650) said, â€Å"Conquer your- self rather than the world. †. To modern existential- ists this means that the World itself has no real meaning or purpose. It is not the unfolding expres- sion of Human Destiny or a Divine plan, or even a set of natural laws. The only meaning is that which we create by acts of will. To have a meaningful life we have to act. But we should act without hope. Acting is meaningful but it doesn’t create meaning that lasts beyond the acts themselves or beyond our own lifetime. You are what you do – while you are doing it – and then nothing. (Very depressing. ) In The Myth of Sisyphus, Albert Camus (pronounced â€Å"Kam-moo†) (1913-1960) describes life as a kind of hopeless, endless, uphill labor. Hence, the only true problem is that of suicide. Yet, he rejects nihilism; for the human being must fight and never accept defeat. The problem is to be a saint without a God. The last judgment takes place everyday. The human being must do his best, try for what he can within the confinements of his situation. Camus describes Sisyphus condemned by the gods to push a stone up a hill over and over, only to have it roll back down each time he reaches the top. A task that can never be completed. But he finds meaning in the fact that Sisyphus at least gets to decide each time whether to carry on or end it all. Camus says, â€Å"The struggle itself toward the heights is enough to fill a man’s heart. One must imagine Sisyphus happy. † Although there can never be any meaning in Sisy- phus’ task, there is meaning is choosing each time to continue. Despite encompassing a staggering range of phi- losophical, religious, and political ideologies, the underlying concepts of existentialism are simple: Mankind has free will. Life is a series of choices, creating stress. Few decisions are without any negative conse- quences. Some things are irrational or absurd, without explanation. If one makes a decision, he or she must follow through. Notes on Existentialism by Tanweer Akram. The fundamental problem of existentialism is con- cerned with the study of being. The human being’s existence is the first and basic fact; the human be- ing has no essence that comes before his existence. The human being, as a being, is nothing. This nothingness and the non-existence of an essence is the central source of the freedom the human being faces in each and every moment. The human being Notes on Existentialism Compiled for PSY 345 (Fall 2004) Existentialism Notes 2 has liberty in view of his situation, in decisions which makes himself and sets himself to solves his problems and live in the world. Thrown into the world, the human being is con- demned to be free. The human being must take this freedom of being and the responsibility and guilt of his actions. Each action negates the other possible courses of action and their consequences; so the human being must be accountable without excuse. The human being must not slip away from his re- sponsibilities. The human being must take deci- sions and assume responsibilities. There is no sig- nificance in this world, this universe. The human being cannot find any purpose in life; his existence is only a contingent fact. His being does not emerge from necessity. If a human being rejects the false pretensions, the illusions of his existence hav- ing a meaning, he encounters the absurdity, the fu- tility of life. The human being’s role in the world is not predetermined or fixed; every person is com- pelled to make a choice. Choice is one thing the human being must make. The trouble is that most often the human being refuses to choose. Hence, he cannot realize his freedom and the futility of his existence. Basically existence is of two types: authentic and inauthentic forms of existence. Authentic existence is contrasted with dynamic and is the being-for- itself, rising from the human being’s bad faith, by which the human being moves away from the bur- den of responsibility, through this beliefs in dogma and by regarding himself as subject to outside in- fluences and his actions to be predetermined. There is a striking contrast between the authentic and the inauthentic forms of being; the authentic being is the being of the human being and the inau- thentic being is the being for things. Yet, authentic being is only rarely attained by the human being; still it is what the human being must strive to gain. The inauthentic being-in-itself is characteristically distinctive of things; it is what the human being is diseased with for his failure to see himself as and act according as a free agent and his impotency to reject bad faith. Things are only what they are. But the human being is what can be. Things are deter- mined, fixed, and rigid; the human being is free; he can add essence to his life in the course of his life and he is in a constant state of flux and is able to comprehend his situation. The human being does not live in a pre-determined world; the human be- ing is free to realize his aims, to materialize his dreams; hence, he has only the destiny he forges for himself because in this world nothing happens out of necessity. The human being hides himself from freedom by self-deception, acting like a thing, as if he is a pas- sive subject, instead of realizing the authentic be- ing for the human being; this is bad faith. In bad faith, the human being shelter himself from re- sponsibility by not noticing the dimensions of al- ternative courses of action facing him; in bad faith, the human being behaves as others demand of him by conforming to the standards of accepted values and by adopting roles designed for him; in bad faith, the human being loses the autonomy of his moral will, his freedom to decide; in bad faith, the human being imprisons himself within inauthentic- ity for he has refused to take the challenge of re- sponsibility and the anxiety that comes along with his freedom. Anxiety ascends from the human being’s realiza- tion that the human being’s destiny is not fixed but is open to an undetermined future of infinite possi- bilities and limitless scope: The emptiness of fu- ture destiny must be filled by making choices for which he alone will assume responsibility and blame. This anxiety is present at every moment of the human being’s existence; anxiety is part and parcel of authentic existence. Anxiety leads the human being to take decisions and be committed. The human being tries to avoid this anguish through bad faith. But the free human being, in his authenticity, must be involved; for his own actions are only his, his responsibility is to himself, his being is his own. The human being must be com- mitted. To be committed means not to support this in place of that, but to attach a human being’s total- ity to a cause; it is the human being’s existential freedom that leads to total commitment. Existentialist thinkers begin from the human situa- tion in the world; the condition of despair, the modes of existence, the human being’s tendency to avoid authentic existence, his relation to things, his own body, and to other beings, with whom he can- not come into genuine communication, and the sufferings of life. Starting from the study of being, each existentialist thinkers originate their own doc- trines, with their own emphasis on particular as- pects. Very often their viewpoints is conflicting and sometimes contradictory; yet this philosophi-cal attitude of being, as a whole, can be described as the existentialist movement, which stresses upon the â€Å"being† of the human being. Existentialism Notes 3 Additional Notes on Existentialism Existentialism, philosophical movement or ten- dency, emphasizing individual existence, freedom, and choice, that influenced many diverse writers in the 19th and 20th centuries. Major Themes Because of the diversity of positions associated with existentialism, the term is impossible to define precisely. Certain themes common to virtually all existentialist writers can, however, be identified. The term itself suggests one major theme: the stress on concrete individual existence and, consequently, on subjectivity, individual freedom, and choice. Moral Individualism Most philosophers since Plato have held that the highest ethical good is the same for everyone; inso- far as one approaches moral perfection, one resem- bles other morally perfect individuals. The 19th- century Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard, who was the first writer to call himself existential, reacted against this tradition by insisting that the highest good for the individual is to find his or her own unique vocation. As he wrote in his journal, â€Å"I must find a truth that is true for me . . . the idea for which I can live or die. † Other existentialist writers have echoed Kierkegaard’s belief that one must choose one’s own way without the aid of universal, objective standards. Against the traditional view that moral choice involves an objective judgment of right and wrong, existentialists have argued that no objective, rational basis can be found for moral decisions. The 19th-century German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche further contended that the indi- vidual must decide which situations are to count as moral situations. SubjectivityAll existentialists have followed Kierkegaard in s tressing the importance of passionate individual action in deciding questions of both morality and truth. They have insisted, accordingly, that per- sonal experience and acting on one’s own convic- tions are essential in arriving at the truth. Thus, the understanding of a situation by someone involved in that situation is superior to that of a detached, objective observer. This emphasis on the perspec- tive of the individual agent has also made existen- tialists suspicious of systematic reasoning. Kierke- gaard, Nietzsche, and other existentialist writers have been deliberately unsystematic in the exposi- tion of their philosophies, preferring to express themselves in aphorisms, dialogues, parables, and other literary forms. Despite their antirationalist position, however, most existentialists cannot be said to be irrationalists in the sense of denying all validity to rational thought. They have held that rational clarity is desirable wherever possible, but that the most important questions in life are not accessible to reason or science. Furthermore, they have argued that even science is not as rational as is commonly supposed. Nietzsche, for instance, asserted that the scientific assumption of an orderly universe is for the most part a useful fiction. Choice and Commitment Perhaps the most prominent theme in existentialist writing is that of choice. Humanity’s primary dis- tinction, in the view of most existentialists, is the freedom to choose. Existentialists have held that human beings do not have a fixed nature, or es- sence, as other animals and plants do; each human being makes choices that create his or her own na- ture. In the formulation of the 20th-century French philosopher Jean Paul Sartre, existence precedes essence. Choice is therefore central to human exis- tence, and it is inescapable; even the refusal to choose is a choice. Freedom of choice entails com- mitment and responsibility. Because individuals are free to choose their own path, existentialists have argued, they must accept the risk and respon- sibility of following their commitment wherever it leads. Dread and Anxiety Kierkegaard held that it is spiritually crucial to rec- ognize that one experiences not only a fear of spe- cific objects but also a feeling of general apprehen- sion, which he called dread. He interpreted it as God’s way of calling each individual to make a commitment to a personally valid way of life. The word anxiety (German Angst) has a similarly cru- cial role in the work of the 20th-century German philosopher Martin Heidegger; anxiety leads to the individual’s confrontation with nothingness and with the impossibility of finding ultimate justifica- tion for the choices he or she must make. In the philosophy of Sartre, the word nausea is used for the individual’s recognition of the pure contin- gency of the universe, and the word anguish is used for the recognition of the total freedom of choice that confronts the individual at every mo- ment. Existentialism Notes 4 History Existentialism as a distinct philosophical and liter- ary movement belongs to the 19th and 20th centu- ries, but elements of existentialism can be found in the thought (and life) of Socrates, in the Bible, and in the work of many premodern philosophers and writers. Pascal The first to anticipate the major concerns of mod- ern existentialism was the 17th-century French phi- losopher Blaise Pascal. Pascal rejected the rigorous rationalism of his contemporary Rene Descartes, asserting, in his Pensees (1670), that a systematic philosophy that presumes to explain God and hu- manity is a form of pride. Like later existentialist writers, he saw human life in terms of paradoxes: The human self, which combines mind and body, is itself a paradox and contradiction. Kierkegaard Kierkegaard, generally regarded as the founder of modern existentialism, reacted against the system- atic absolute idealism of the 19th-century German philosopher G. W. F. Hegel, who claimed to have worked out a total rational understanding of hu- manity and history. Kierkegaard, on the contrary, stressed the ambiguity and absurdity of the human situation. The individual’s response to this situation must be to live a totally committed life, and this commitment can only be understood by the indi- vidual who has made it. The individual therefore must always be prepared to defy the norms of soci- ety for the sake of the higher authority of a person- ally valid way of life. Kierkegaard ultimately advo- cated a â€Å"leap of faith† into a Christian way of life, which, although incomprehensible and full of risk, was the only commitment he believed could save the individual from despair. Nietzsche Nietzsche, who was not acquainted with the work of Kierkegaard, influenced subsequent existential- ist thought through his criticism of traditional metaphysical and moral assumptions and through his espousal of tragic pessimism and the life- affirming individual will that opposes itself to the moral conformity of the majority. In contrast to Kierkegaard, whose attack on conventional moral- ity led him to advocate a radically individualistic Christianity, Nietzsche proclaimed the â€Å"death of God† and went on to reject the entire Judeo- Christian moral tradition in favor of a heroic pagan ideal. Heidegger Heidegger, like Pascal and Kierkegaard, reacted against an attempt to put philosophy on a conclu- sive rationalistic basis—in this case the phenome- nology of the 20th-century German philosopher Edmund Husserl. Heidegger argued that humanity finds itself in an incomprehensible, indifferent world. Human beings can never hope to under- stand why they are here; instead, each individual must choose a goal and follow it with passionate conviction, aware of the certainty of death and the ultimate meaninglessness of one’s life. Heidegger contributed to existentialist thought an original em- phasis on being and ontology as well as on lan- guage. Sartre Sartre first gave the term existentialism general currency by using it for his own philosophy and by becoming the leading figure of a distinct move- ment in France that became internationally influen- tial after World War II. Sartre’s philosophy is ex- plicitly atheistic and pessimistic; he declared that human beings require a rational basis for their lives but are unable to achieve one, and thus human life is a â€Å"futile passion. † Sartre nevertheless insisted that his existentialism is a form of humanism, and he strongly emphasized human freedom, choice, and responsibility. He eventually tried to reconcile these existentialist concepts with a Marxist analy- sis of society and history. Existentialism and Theology Although existentialist thought encompasses the uncompromising atheism of Nietzsche and Sartre and the agnosticism of Heidegger, its origin in the intensely religious philosophies of Pascal and Kierkegaard foreshadowed its profound influence on 20th-century theology. The 20th-century Ger- man philosopher Karl Jaspers, although he rejected explicit religious doctrines, influenced contempo- rary theology through his preoccupation with tran- scendence and the limits of human experience. The German Protestant theologians Paul Tillich and Rudolf Bultmann, the French Roman Catholic theologian Gabriel Marcel, the Russian Orthodox philosopher Nikolay Berdyayev, and the German Jewish philosopher Martin Buber inherited many Existentialism Notes 5 of Kierkegaard’s concerns, especially that a per- sonal sense of authenticity and commitment is es- sential to religious faith. Existentialism and Literature A number of existentialist philosophers used liter- ary forms to convey their thought, and existential- ism has been as vital and as extensive a movement in literature as in philosophy. The 19th-century Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoyevsky is probably the greatest existentialist literary figure. In Notes from the Underground (1864), the alienated anti- hero rages against the optimistic assumptions of rationalist humanism. The view of human nature that emerges in this and other novels of Dostoyevsky is that it is unpredictable and per- versely self-destructive; only Christian love can save humanity from itself, but such love cannot be understood philosophically. As the character Alyo- sha says in The Brothers Karamazov (1879-80), â€Å"We must love life more than the meaning of it. † In the 20th century, the novels of the Austrian Jew- ish writer Franz Kafka, such as The Trial (1925; trans. 1937) and The Castle (1926; trans. 1930), present isolated men confronting vast, elusive, menacing bureaucracies; Kafka’s themes of anxi- ety, guilt, and solitude reflect the influence of Kierkegaard, Dostoyevsky, and Nietzsche. The in- fluence of Nietzsche is also discernible in the nov- els of the French writers Andre Malraux and in the plays of Sartre. The work of the French writer Al- bert Camus is usually associated with existential- ism because of the prominence in it of such themes as the apparent absurdity and futility of life, the indifference of the universe, and the necessity of engagement in a just cause. Existentialist themes are also reflected in the theater of the absurd, nota- bly in the plays of Samuel Beckett and Eugene Ionesco. In the United States, the influence of exis- tentialism on literature has been more indirect and diffuse, but traces of Kierkegaard’s thought can be found in the novels of Walker Percy and John Up- dike, and various existentialist themes are apparent in the work of such diverse writers as Norman Mailer, John Barth, and Arthur Miller. Conclusion Existentialists make endless claims. They never bother to show how they reached their claims or if these are, indeed, true. The existentialists when he pretends to present a representation of reality pro- vides no cognition; unverifiable assertions may well express powerful and even necessary emo- tions and passions, but that’s best left to the arts and literature. Existentialism is a highly passionate philosophy and, from the outset, seems to aim at a dynamic and fashionable life-style. Also it is mostly unsys- tematic and pays little attention to logic or science. Whatever one makes of its metaphysical claims, one cannot deny that existentialism was able to provide a moving account of the spirit of the con- temporary world and the nausea and frustration of survival. Indeed, it is basically for its richness in psychological insight and its impact on culture that existentialist philosophy will continued to be stud- ied.

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Human behavior in social work practice - Article Example Providing moral support falls under the theory of systems perspective. Systems perspective insists that. Without a doubt, social work adopted functionalist sociology, a theory that states social elements stay consistent throughout time. From my perspective, it is important to rectify with these issues. Social issues plague individuals because they are the key source of problems with interpersonal communication. Most women are unable to read and challenge their analytical skills at a higher level. The lingering social norms that plague the existing in the system has undoubtedly have limited the potential of women to excel in this society. Hence, this theory must be utilized to disregard these notions. I agree with the approach of the social worker. I think it is crucial to harness the development of young female workers. Female and close knitting group obviously helps Manesha with loneliness. As social workers, it is cognizant to have this in mind to help these young women gains self-confidence back. Additionally, it empowers individuals to harness self-growth confidence in order for them to be successful. As a social worker, I find it imperative to implement social cognitive theory in this issue. One element that I disagree with is the fact that was to assimilation and co-ethnic communities. I think there should be balance of understanding the social needs of women struggling to immense themselves in this environment. There should be more emphasis undoubtedly on the methods to conquer this assimilation. One of the biggest challenges that women immigrants and minority business owners face is assimilation, in case of Manesha. Imagine coming to a country with different trends, customs, and not understanding how protocols work? This is one of the biggest challenges for women and business owners that are immigrants. Assimilation and penetrating a customer base really does create many barriers for new entrepreneurs. This

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Academic Paper Review - Essay Example es advance,markets shift,competitors increase,and some products and services become obsolete regularly therefore the succusseful businesses are those that develop new knowledge and disseminate it in the enterprise quickly to manufacture new products and technologies. Maybury et al. (2002) noted that those are the activities that define knowledge-creating company and their business is to ensure continuous innovation. The author of the article sets out to achieve success in businesses through the use of knowledge to achieve the firms goals and objectives. The application of knowledge by the successful Japanese competitors for instance,Matsushita,Kao,Canon,Sharp,NEC,and Honda have made them famous for their capabability to be flexible to market changes,quick responces to customer needs,develop new markets and products and to dominte the emerging technologies. Ichijo and Nonaka (2006) stated that the secret of succeeding in business is the unique approach in the management of creating new knowledge. The article stresses the importance of the Japanese approach that normally seem incomprehensible and odd to other businesses but are used to develop new knowledge of running successful firms. Nonaka (1991) gave an example of the slogan â€Å"Theory of Automobile Evolution† that is a design concept that led to the development of the innovative urban car ,Honda City. The purpose of the article is to explain the focus of the Japanese approach that depends entirely on tapping the tacit and subjective intuitions,hunches of the employees,insights and hence testing those insights and enabling the business to use them as whole. Shibata (2006) noted that the key to successful processes is the ability of the employees to be personally committed to their tasks,their sense of identity with the business and its operation. The author in this article is seeking to present the importance of the business managers to mobilize the workers committment to their work and exemplifying implicit

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Escaping Embarrassment - Essay Example A strong example that the author closely relates to is that of a rapper who is performing on stage to a particular audience. It’s noted that when a rapper is close to making an embarrassing mistake such as an abrupt stop during a performance, they instead use rhymes that are prewritten. This closely brings out a learned behavior that the rapper has internalized to avoid bringing the performance to an abrupt stop. Alternatively, a colleague with whom they share the duty of keeping the performance going may actually chip in and continue with the rapping. This timely intervention keeps the performance going on and spares the other rapper the embarrassment of messing it up. This is what the author refers to as collateral face saving. Hence, an individual can escape embarrassment through either employing â€Å"canned resources† which are behaviors that have been learned over time or through collateral face saving. These same social resources can be employed in other social s ituations that require an individual to save their face and avoid an embarrassing situation (Jooyung). First, a distinct connection with these observations was made by Goffman as he explores the presentation of an individual in everyday life. He keenly looks at factors that affect face to face interactions. Goffman argues that when a performer comes on stage to perform, he or she will always try to influence the impression of the audience by altering his or her setting, appearance or manner. Concurrently, the person the individual is interacting with is on the same hand attempting to get information about the performer. Hence, Goffman observed that all parties involved in a particular social interaction are automatically involved in particular practices aimed at either avoiding embarrassing others or being embarrassed (Gofman). Secondly, the author, Sawyer compares