Culture and international marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Culture and international marketing - Essay Example Thus the key terms used within this essay will be defined, with others being defined as they are introduced in the discussion. Marketing has several definitions. Kotler and Armstrong (2010) provide a very simple definition of â€Å"managing profitable customer relationships† (p.28) and a more detailed one of â€Å"the process by which companies create value for customers and build strong customer relationships in order to capture value from customers in return† (p.29). Both put the focus on relationships rather than transactions, and consider the relationship as providing value for both companies and customers. Global marketing is defined as â€Å"the commitment of organisational resources to pursuing global market opportunities and responding to environmental threats in the global marketplace† (Keegan and Green, 2011, p.587). If marketing has several definitions, then so does culture, which has different meanings depending on the context within which the term is used. The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary (2002) lists seven meanings for the word culture (p.575), two of which are relevant here. The first is culture as â€Å"a particular form, stage, or type of intellectual development or civilisation in a society; a society or group characterised by its distinctive customs, achievements, products, outlook, etc.†, the second as â€Å"the distinctive customs, achievements, products, outlook, etc., of a society or group; the way of life of a society or group†. When discussing culture within the context of marketing, the obvious one requiring consideration is national culture, especially as organisations now market their products internationally, even if only by having on online presence. However, other cultural implications for marketing arise from corporate cultures, sub-cultures and social representations of culture. Usunier and Lee (2009, p.8) identify ten sources of culture that affect individuals: Figure 1: Sources of Cultur e (Source: Usunier and Lee 2009 p.8) Mullins (2010, p.829) defines organisational culture as â€Å"the collection of traditional values, policies, beliefs and attitudes that constitute a pervasive context for everything we do and think in an organisation†. Johnson et al (2008, p.195) identify the idea of subcultures within organisations, that exist within the overall organisational culture, but have specific characteristics of their own. These can be based on functional, geographical or business structures, for example, where different approaches can be seen based on the discipline or location of the office or department. On this basis, the marketing department of an organisation will not only exhibit the organisational culture, but also the marketing â€Å"department† sub-culture and the marketing â€Å"profession† subculture. Thus there are three organisational cultures affecting the department that deals with global marketing. The primary focus of this analys is is the impact of national culture, however, consideration will also be given to the impact of organisational culture where that is relevant. National Cultures and Marketing One of the challenges for marketers when dealing with global marketing issues is that culture cannot be easily seen or identified. Children are brought up within the national culture, and absorb the national values without conscious awareness – they simply learn from, and imitate, their parents (Keegan and Green, 2011, p.141). any

Ethical Concepts in Counselling

Ethical Concepts in Counselling Ethics pertains to beliefs we hold about what constitutes right conduct. They are moral principles adopted by an individual or group to provide rules for right conduct and represent aspirational goals or the maximum standards which are set and enforced by professional associations. The American Counseling Associations (2005) Code of Ethics states that when counselors encounter an ethical dilemma they are expected to carefully consider an ethical decision making process. While counseling a client, the counselor is presented with countless challenges to recognize when and where a specific ethical concept, standard and guideline might be crucial. Ethical standards and guidelines inform our judgment as they help us recognize, think through and find or create path to deal with a dilemma. The way we respond to a dilemma has a great deal to do with our sense of what is valuable and right. In this perspective, the response is seen as being fair and judicious for the client or perhaps is in t he client’s best interest for continued development. When counselors operate from this highly personal and subjective position, they call upon a sense of morality. Morality is concerned with perspectives of right and proper conduct and involves an evaluation of actions on the basis of some broader cultural context or religious standard. Morality serves as a foundation to ethical practice and decision making. To decide ethically is to first decide morally. (Values and Ethics in Counselling: Real –Life Ethical Decision Making, Dana Heller Levit) Values pertains to beliefs and attitudes that provide direction to everyday living. Clients ethical issues becomes a dilemma when they pit ethical, legal or organizational requirements against each other or when the ethical codes become silent on the clients issues. With respect to these , finding occasional inconsistencies among resources are inevitable. As a result, to select a preferred course of action from among the conflicting guidelines, counselors use a decision making model that allows them to weigh the relative importance of the information obtained. A structured method of information collection and review can facilitate the ethical decision making process. The application of this model may help counselors to avoid ethical misconduct and to pursue ethical ideals. The counselor essentially needs to be inquisitive at the beginning phase of an ethical decision making process. The initial step is to identify the problem or the dilemma based ethical, moral and legal dimensions by gathering all relevant information that illuminates the situation. In other words, counselors need to obtain a clear description of the nature of the problem through the usage of effective counseling skills such as reflexive questions. The second step involves a careful evaluation of the most critical issues abstracted from all the information gathered previously. At this point, attempts should be made to review the rights, responsibilities and the welfare of clients and other stakeholders concerned with the dilemma. This review extends to the point of considering the cultural aspects of the situation influencing the clients welfare. Furthermore, the use moral principles of autonomy, nonmaleficence, beneficence, justice and fidelity to address the situation is inevitable here. With regard to autonomy, the counselor should allow clients the right to choose and act according to their preference. Nonmaleficence is a primary concern that emphasizes on refraining from actions that may risk harming clients. An example would be inappropriately labeling clients with diag nostic terms that may denote abnormality, which could pose serious consequences to the welfare of the client. Beneficence is applied when counselors respect clients dignity and promote the welfare of clients. The principle of justice refers to being fair and nondiscriminatory towards clients. Fidelity deals with faithfulness to promises made and to the truth. There lies a problem in upholding fidelity when a counselor works with a minor client and is obligated to be loyal to the client, while the principle of beneficence may suggests that disclosure may be best for the whole family. In such circumstances, when counselors are left between the conflicting principles, they may need to prioritize certain principles over others as required by the situation. The third step is to review the ethical codes that are relevant to the problem situation. Ethical codes prompt, guide and inform significant values and concerns regarding ethical behaviour. Professionals sought the code of ethics and examine the particular sections relevant to the dilemma to consider if they offer possible solutions. At this point, they also consider if their values and ethics are consistent with or are in conflict with the relevant codes. In the event of an inconsistency with a particular standard, counselors seek supervisory guidance and clarify the issues. Upon rectifying the inconsistencies, they produce a rationale to support their position and document their judgment and reasoning to justify their actions to solve the dilemma. The significance of the fourth step involves keeping up to date on the relevant state and federal laws that might apply to ethical dilemmas. In order to do so, the counselor needs to be knowledgeable in the applicable laws and regulations. At the same time, interpreting these legal statutes as according to how they may relate to clients issue becomes a fundamental aspect of the decision making process. This would be pertinent in matters of breaching confidentiality, reporting abuse of the vulnerable , dealing with issues that pose a danger to self or others, parental rights and record keeping. It will also suffice to seek guidance from professional bodies concerning ambiguous ethical or legal situation. After thorough assessment of all ethical, clinical and legal issues pertaining to the dilemma, counselors present their facts of the situation and obtain consultation from professional authorities in the fifth step . This is especially useful when counselors are grappling with an ambiguous ethical issue. As an ethical dilemma can be intellectually overwhelming and emotionally distressing for both the client and the counselor, objective feedback from various reliable sources such as colleagues, supervisors or inter-organizational bodies can provide a wider view of the problem or even a new focus on unconsidered facts. Besides consulting professionals who share the same viewpoints, it may also suffice to seek expertise from cross cultural entities , as required by the nature of the dilemma. With adequate information and guidance at hand, the counselor is now at a position to formulate possible solutions to the dilemma (Frame Williams, 2005). In essence, the sixth step is about contemplating the possible and probable causes of actions. Apparently, it requires an extensive exploration process that would allow counselors to lay out the possible courses of action, while at the same time accounting for the ethical obligations of such actions. As counselors review the possibilities, it may be imperative to involve clients in the exploration process before deciding on the most probable courses of action. This is to ensure that decisions are made to the best interest of the client. As it was done in earlier steps, documenting these discussions and would be helpful for counselors to justify their actions in the event of them being questioned. The seventh step entails the previous one as it informs the counselor to enumerate the consequences of various decisions that were taken after evaluating the possible courses of action. This involves considering the positive and negative consequences of each option while at the same time weighing the relative significance of each option. Clients involvement matters during this analysis to ensure that the decisions gravitate towards the best interest of the client. To achieve this the counselor may employ the five moral principles of autonomy, nonmaleficence, beneficence, justice and fidelity as a framework to consider the consequences of a particular course of action. In the last step of the model the counselor decides on what appears to be the best course of action. After generating the best possible decisions and their outcomes, counselors together with clients and other supervisory consultation, would be select and implement the most appropriate course of actions. Implementation of decisions is followed by assessing the appropriateness of the outcomes of those decisions. The decision making process reaches the fin al phase when the counselor reflects on this assessments and communicates them with clients. However, a follow up may be necessary to determine if the actions taken are effective or if they require a modification. Last but not least, it is essential to document steps taken so as to clarify options, facilitate reasoning and avoid redundant efforts. More importantly, having a documentation is significant if evidence of these efforts are later requested during an investigation. In overall this ethical decision making framework serves as a deliberative and creative approach that guides counseling professionals to fulfill their ethical responsibilities amidst an elusive situation. It assist baffled counselors to think though an ethical dilemma and to arrive at an ethically appropriate decision. Moreover, the framework also helps to prevent ethical violations by enabling counselors to acknowledge the intricacies of ethical decision making as a basis on which competent, ethical and profess ional counseling can be practiced. Despite its useful aspects, the decision making model does falls short in certain areas. In evidence, Corey, Corey and Callanan (1998) indicate this model cannot be applied in an automated or generalized manner, as practitioners often find themselves confronted with a complexity of personal values, social context, as well as a prescriptive professional code. As in the model fails to correspond with this reality or address the level of complexity they confronted. For instance, the general guidelines that states the counselors responsibility to minor clients and to their parents, may provide little help to a counselor who is struggling with an adolescent client who feels alienated from his chaotic family and wants the counselor to keep his violations of curfew and experimentation with alcohol from his parents. The counselor is in a dilemma determining how much material from counseling must be shared with parents and what does that disclosure mean to the progress of the therapy. As it is, the burden of analyzing ethical issues falls squarely on the professional who obviousl y requires critical thinking and intellectual ability that allows careful reasoning to arrive at the best solution. At the same time, reviewing numerous ethical codes and standards in an attempt to abstract those that relate to the dilemma can be a painstaking as well as a time-consuming process. On the other hand, after checking on all ethical and legal obligations, considering the available courses of actions can be again challenging as it may require the clients and the counselors collaborative efforts to speculate all possible options open to them. It may be exhaustive in the sense that it involves an in-depth exploration process where all possible actions and their outcomes have to be thoroughly scrutinized before arriving at a decision. Nevertheless, the ethical decision making model is of much relevance to the current practices of various professional organizations and is widely used by practitioners to find their way out of an ethical dilemma. The following scenario demonstr ates the application of the ethical decision making model. Joe, a 17 year old tells her school counselor, Anne that she was sexually abused by her stepfather and now intends to leave the house to stay with her close friend Mary. Joe also reports that she has not been able to focus in her studies due the trauma caused by the incident and hesitates to tell her mother as it is shameful to do so. In this case, Annes first task is to gather all relevant details of the problem situation such as Joes emotional health, sociocultural background, her current status with the her mother and stepfather and other and other relevant details. Anne also identifies Joes mother, stepfather, Mary and other members of the household as the stakeholders involved in the problem. Anne then attempts to safeguard Joes rights and works in line with the moral principles of autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, justice and fidelity to protect Joes welfare. In Joes case it is highly likely that different princip les may lead to incompatible conclusions. At this point, Joe seeks guidance and evaluates on which principle should take priority over the others. Anne also reviews the relevant ethical codes to check on ethical obligations regarding her actions. For instance, she may evaluate if a disclosing the issue to her mother would compromise Joes welfare. To mitigate this ambiguity, Anne refers to the ethical codes and standards. Then, Anne explores if any legal statutes are relevant to her actions and is careful about not violating them. Subsequently, Anne talks to her supervisor about Joes case to obtain feedback and solicits ideas from her colleague who works with teenagers. With all the information, Anne identifies a number of possible courses of actions. She lists down the potential responses such as encouraging Joe to talk about it to her mother while maintaining confidentiality of Joes case or as another alternative, informing Joe that she (Anne) would like to consult her mother. In J oes presence and with some supervision, Anne then considers the consequences and outcomes of the possible actions and evaluates the most probable options. Upon arriving at a decision which is ethically appropriate, Anne assesses the outcomes of those decisions and reflect on how they will set an impact on Joe. She communicates these to Joe and documents her action for record-keeping. Another case scenario would involve a family whose child has leukemia and the parents are addressing the situation with prayers rather than medical treatment. They have sought Paul for counseling. To begin with, Paul is faced with a dilemma, as he recognizes a serious problem. On one hand, safety and the welfare of the child and on the other, maintaining client confidentiality are two issues of concern. Conclusion: As counseling focuses on important perspectives such as clients needs, hope,risk and expectations to the point where lives can be at stake, counselors need to reason ethically through challenging situations and determine the most appropriate course of action that ultimately is in the best interest of clients. This requires counselors to be aware of professional and personal issues influencing their decisions, especially when considering the potentially profound, harmful ramifications to clients and the counseling profession when sound ethical judgment is not made.

The Battle for Political Power in The Tempest Essay -- The Tempest Ess

"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power." -- Abraham Lincoln Shakespeare's "The Tempest" forms a world within itself. Within this world, many topics regarding government, power and colonization are addressed. Shakespeare tackles the discovery of new places and races, the relationship between the colonized and the colonist, old world ideologies on new soil, as well as theories on civilization and government. These aspects at the core reveal a very clear struggle for political power. Prospero's first major monologue creates the foundation of such a theme. In 1.2 lines 30-175 Prospero tell his story recounting the usurpation of the power he had as Duke of Milan, then quickly renews his power on the island. Prospero beings his story with an authoritative tone stating: "Obey and be attentive" (1.2 48). Desiring political power and authority becomes the core from which other themes derive. Power as the Central Theme: Prospero, the rightful Duke of Milan, so enthralled â€Å"In dignity, and for the liberal arts† (1.2 73), twelve years prior lost his dukedom to his brother Antonio. Antonio, in turn, betrayed Prospero’s trust by forming an alliance with the enemy, the King of Naples Alonso. This treaty gave Alonso â€Å"annual tribute, [to] do him homage, Subject his coronet to his crown, and bend The dukedom, yet unbowed—alas, poor Milan—To most ignoble stooping† (1.2 113-116). Ultimately, Milan gave up its freedom and became subject to Naples. Prospero, whose â€Å"library/ Was dukedom large enough† (1.2 109-110), lost his position as the Duke of Milan and he and his three year old daughter Miranda were sent â€Å"abroad a barque bore†¦to sea† (1.2 144-145). Eventual... ...cance to be defined. Works Cited: Brown, Paul. â€Å"This thing of darkness I acknowledge mine.† Political Shakespeare. Dollimore, Jonathan, and Alan Sinfield eds. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1985. Cohen, Walter., et al. The Norton Shakespeare. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 2008. Frank, Mike. â€Å"Shakespeare’s Existential Comedy.† Essays—Shakespeare: Late Plays. Tobias, Richard eds. Ohio University Press, 1974. Hirst, David. The Tempest. London: Macmillan Publishers, 1984. James, D.G. The Dream of Prospero. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1967. Madison, James., et al The Federalist Papers. New York: Penguin Books, 1987. Mannoni, O. Prospero and Caliban: The Psychology of Colonization. Great Britain: Richard Clay and Company, 1956. Traversi, Derek. Shakespeare: The Last Phase. California: Stanford University Press, 1965. The Battle for Political Power in The Tempest Essay -- The Tempest Ess "Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power." -- Abraham Lincoln Shakespeare's "The Tempest" forms a world within itself. Within this world, many topics regarding government, power and colonization are addressed. Shakespeare tackles the discovery of new places and races, the relationship between the colonized and the colonist, old world ideologies on new soil, as well as theories on civilization and government. These aspects at the core reveal a very clear struggle for political power. Prospero's first major monologue creates the foundation of such a theme. In 1.2 lines 30-175 Prospero tell his story recounting the usurpation of the power he had as Duke of Milan, then quickly renews his power on the island. Prospero beings his story with an authoritative tone stating: "Obey and be attentive" (1.2 48). Desiring political power and authority becomes the core from which other themes derive. Power as the Central Theme: Prospero, the rightful Duke of Milan, so enthralled â€Å"In dignity, and for the liberal arts† (1.2 73), twelve years prior lost his dukedom to his brother Antonio. Antonio, in turn, betrayed Prospero’s trust by forming an alliance with the enemy, the King of Naples Alonso. This treaty gave Alonso â€Å"annual tribute, [to] do him homage, Subject his coronet to his crown, and bend The dukedom, yet unbowed—alas, poor Milan—To most ignoble stooping† (1.2 113-116). Ultimately, Milan gave up its freedom and became subject to Naples. Prospero, whose â€Å"library/ Was dukedom large enough† (1.2 109-110), lost his position as the Duke of Milan and he and his three year old daughter Miranda were sent â€Å"abroad a barque bore†¦to sea† (1.2 144-145). Eventual... ...cance to be defined. Works Cited: Brown, Paul. â€Å"This thing of darkness I acknowledge mine.† Political Shakespeare. Dollimore, Jonathan, and Alan Sinfield eds. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1985. Cohen, Walter., et al. The Norton Shakespeare. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 2008. Frank, Mike. â€Å"Shakespeare’s Existential Comedy.† Essays—Shakespeare: Late Plays. Tobias, Richard eds. Ohio University Press, 1974. Hirst, David. The Tempest. London: Macmillan Publishers, 1984. James, D.G. The Dream of Prospero. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1967. Madison, James., et al The Federalist Papers. New York: Penguin Books, 1987. Mannoni, O. Prospero and Caliban: The Psychology of Colonization. Great Britain: Richard Clay and Company, 1956. Traversi, Derek. Shakespeare: The Last Phase. California: Stanford University Press, 1965.

Applying Ethical Practice Essay

Ethical Implications The ethical principles involved in the article reviewed are beneficence (bring about positive good) fidelity (trustworthy), and veracity (honesty) The nurse involved is caught between the core principles of nursing, by following the patients wish of not informing her parents by the diagnoses of a sexually transmitted disease. The implications of betraying the core principles of nursing could cause internal conflict with her value principles, and not to mention the trust of the patient. Other implications could be how the parents view the patient. Strict religious convictions of the parents could cause more harm to the young teen by shunning the child, and not letting the child return home would keep the child from receiving the treatment needed, and possibly create a homeless situation for the teen. Making the school aware of the girls’ situation would also be breach of confidentially, and may even cause legal complications for the health care facility. The situation with the sex parties is not related to school activities, unless sex parties were occurring on campus. Due to the fact that the nurse informed the school the young teen attempts suicide, and again may have legal complications for the nurse and the health care facility. All of these implications can be seen in the article reviewed. Ethical Theories and Ethical Principals When it comes to veracity and fidelity the profession of nursing is considered to be at the top of the list. (â€Å"Honesty/Ethics in Professions,† 2013) The Nightingale Pledge calls nurses to have and use these value principles on a daily basis in nursing and also in every day life. According to the Code of Ethics for Nurses provision 3 3.2†¦ the nurse has the duty to maintain confidentiality of all information. Maintaining these principles also promotes Nonmaleficence (do no harm). According Jean Watson’s carative factors (Lachman, 2012) â€Å"developing and sustaining a helping-trusting, authentic caring relationship† is at the very core of nursing. Building this relationship with the patient the nurse must be self aware of any  judgmental feelings he/she may have regarding the patient situation.(Lachman, 2012) The nurse needs to decide what is the best way to care for the young teen. If confidentially is broken further treatment by the patient may not be sought after. Respecting the patient also means respecting confidentially. We must gain the patients fidelity and maintain the trust for continuing communication to occur. However in the article reviewed after the nurse discovers the young teens diagnoses she is torn between the trusting relationship she has been developing and the principle of beneficence by informing her parents of the diagnoses of cervical cancer. She also has the information regarding her sexual activates. Again this violates the confidentially needed to maintain the trusting relationship or beneficence. If the trust is not broken the young teen will not seek treatment and further harm will be done. Alternatives Alternatives to this situation would lead to probable breach of several core nursing values, fidelity and veracity. It would also breach Nonmaleficence. However the young teen is a minor and the diagnoses of cervical cancer is a diagnosis that needs treatment requiring parent’s consent. The alternative of keeping the young teens confidence, would result in the patient not receiving the care she needs. Which would be a breach of Nonmaleficence. It would also be a breach fidelity and veracity between the physician and the nurse. The alternative to not informing the school of the sex parties would have a much better outcome, the suicide attempt most likely would not have occurred, and the health care facility would not be looking at probable legal proceedings. Maybe changing the language and leaving out the young teens name would have been a much better alternative. Ethics Committee Approaches A breach of confidentially should never be taken lightly. The disclosure of he information to the school and the resulting attempted suicide may be of bigger concern to the health care facility, rather than the breach of confidentially between the nurse and the young teen since she is a minor, and the breach of confidentially will bring about the care the young teen needs. The committee could raise the question about the physicians’ judgment  and his decision to notify the school. References Honesty/Ethics in Professions. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.gallup.com/poll/1654/honesty-ethics-professions.aspx Lachman, V. D. (2012). Applying the Ethics of Nursing to Your Nursing Practice. MEDSURG NURSING, 21(2), 112-117. Retrieved from www.ana.org Nathanson, P. G. (2011, July, 6). Betraying Trust or Providing Good Care? When is it okay to break confidentially? American Journal of Bioethics. Purtilo, R. B., & Doherty, R. F. (2011). Ethical Dimensions in the Health Professions (5th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Saunders. American Nurses Association (ANA). (2001). Code of ethics for nurses with interpretive statements. Silver Spring, MD: Author.

Persecution of the Early Church, Pax Romana, and Heresies in Monophysitism Summaries of Three Scholarly Journal’s

Persecution of the Early Church explain some of the how, when and why’s of the early church prosecutions. â€Å"Reasons of the persecution†, â€Å"History of the persecutions† and â€Å"Two Christian Responses: The Glory of Martyrdom and Apologetics† are segments within this scholarly journal. Therefore, each segment relates to persecution with in the early church, gives a list on the persecutions and touches on ten of Christianity persecutors. This article also gives an account on martyrs who died for the sake of the faith and the birthing of apologetics primary goal, defending the faith of Christianity. Pax Romana and the Rise of the Christian church,† reflects on the Gospel being spread at a time of â€Å"Roman Peace† with Christianity. This article depicts what are Pax Romana or Roman Peace and apologetics at a time when Rome allows Christians to spread the â€Å"Good News†. However, it clearly talks about Christian stay with their boundaries when spreading the gospel, there was evidence of Christian being persecuted. â€Å"The culture and Climate in Which the Gospel spread,† helps one to understand how the gospel starts to spread through evangelism starting with the Apostles and Jews being exiled out of Rome. â€Å"Catholic Answers† breakdowns the definition of Heresies in Monophysitism . Therefore, it supplies its reader with a clear understand of the topic at hand. Monophysitism originated as a reaction to Nestorianism. The Monophysites (led by a man named Eutyches) were horrified by Nestorius’s implication that Christ was two people with two different natures (human and divine). They went to the other extreme, claiming that Christ was one person with only one nature (a fusion of human and divine elements). They are thus known as Monophysites because of their claim that Christ had only one nature (Greek: mono = one; physis = nature) Catholic Answers Brom (2004). Bibliography Anonymous, â€Å"Persecution in the Early Church† Religion Facts (May 2013). http://www.religionfacts.com/christianity/history/persecution.htm Bruce, Frederick F. â€Å"The Early Church in the Roman Empire.† The Bible Student 56 (March-April 1933): 30-32. â€Å"Pax Romana† Applied Apologetics http://reformed-apologetics.webs.com/ Brom Robert H., Bishop of San Diego, â€Å"The Great Heresies† Catholic Answers to Explain and Defend the Faith (August 2004) http://www.catholic.com/tracts/the-great-heresies